"Wait...hold up," Zully said, blinking. "You kissed Caelan?"
Yvaine stared at the floor, fingers picking at her sleeve. "Yeah… but it just happened. I don't know…"
Nyx raised a brow and grinned. "Girl, you're something else. I caught you almost kissing Nerd Boy Ed the other day, now you're lip-locked with a Frosthowl? You get it, girl."
Yvaine let out a sigh. "I don't know what I feel right now. I like Ed… and then Caelan...when we kissed, it felt…"
"How was it?" Nyx cut in quickly, leaning forward. "Were his lips cold? I've always wanted to kiss a Frosthowl girl, just to see if I'd freeze on contact."
Zully turned to her. "Nyxara."
"What?" Nyx threw up her hands. "A girl can dream."
Yvaine rubbed her temples. "What is wrong with me? What do I even do with all of this? I hate this kind of confusion."
Zully's voice softened. "Look, I'm not some love expert or anything. But maybe… let your heart decide. Just don't overthink it too much."
Nyx smirked. "Or don't decide at all. Just do both. I mean, why not? Threesomes are fun."
Zully shot her a glare. "Can you be serious for once?"
"I am serious." Nyx shrugged. "But fine. On a less scandalous note, you could always do a little magic. I'm sure there's something in Zully's big spooky book. A 'who-do-I-like' spell."
Zully shook her head. "Nope. We're not doing magic to mess with feelings. That's not what it's for."
Yvaine nodded slowly. "Yeah. I think I'll just… step back. From both of them. Focus on finding my wolf. Ed's been helping me. Zully, I'll need your help too—to bind the potion."
Zully smiled. "Yeah yeah, I know. I'll help."
"Yeah. Thanks."
Nyx pointed. "Speaking of Caelan… is that his sweatshirt?"
Yvaine glanced at the folded grey hoodie on her bed. "Yeah. I was gonna return it today. And check on him. He saved me, you know… in that storage room."
"And he taught you that spell," Zully added.
Yvaine's cheeks colored a little. "Whatever. I'm just returning this. As a normal person. Nothing weird. The kiss… probably didn't mean anything."
Nyx rolled her eyes. "Of course not. Totally meaningless."
Zully gave her a nudge. "Stop."
"Ow," Nyx muttered.
They all laughed.
"I'll be back in ten minutes," Yvaine said, picking up the hoodie and straightening her top. "Just a breeze in, breeze out. That's it."
Yvaine stepped out of the room, making her way to Caelan's dorm. Her heart was racing.
She didn't even make it past the courtyard before she saw Ed.
Thank you Moon Goddess... Trying to complicate my life further.
He was walking towards her. Head down. A book in his hand, of course.
He looked up. Smiled.
"I was just coming to find you."
Yvaine blinked. "Me?"
"Yeah." He lifted the book. "Thought you might like this. Something on rare wolf awakenings. It mentioned Silver Wolves."
"Oh." She held the sweatshirt tighter. "That's... sweet. I was actually on my way to return this." She raised it slightly.
"I was hoping you'd go to the library with me and we can read it together. I've got chocolate."
She hesitated. "Um.. not right now, Ed."
"Oh." He says with a nod. "Okay. Some other time then."
She looked at his face. The way his smile faded just a little. The way he looked down again, like he was used to it.
"Actually…" she said. "You can walk with me. And after, we can go."
His eyes lit up. "Yeah?"
With a smile, she says, "Yeah."
They walked in silence. The air between them felt soft.
Ed stopped outside as they reached the dorm.
"I'll wait here. It's too cold inside."
Right.
Yvaine gave a small nod. "Won't be long."
She climbed the steps, walking straight to Caelan's room. She Knocked.
The door opened.
Caelan. Shirtless, his silvery blue hair was messy. Freaking sexy.
Her mind blanked for a second.
"I—uh—I brought your sweatshirt back," she said quickly, holding it out.
He smiled. "Thanks. I was wondering when you'd come by."
Then...
A voice from inside. A girl's voice. Sleepy. Soft.
"Caelan? Who's at the door?"
Her chest twisted.
Caelan glanced back, then turned to her again. "uh...That's uh..."
She stepped back. "Nevermind it." She gave a stiff smile.
"Yvaine—"
"I just came to return this. That's all."
She handed him the sweatshirt. Turned.
Walked fast.
Ed was still outside. He stood up straighter when he saw her.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
"Do we go to the library now?"
She shook her head. "Not anymore. I'll see you at dinner. Sorry."
Then she walked away. Didn't even know where to.
She just needed space.
________
Dinner time. Cafeteria buzzing with noise.
Yvaine picked her food, barely hearing whatever Elyan was saying beside her.
Her eyes drifted toward the Frosthowl corner.
Caelan sat there, laughing with the others.
Their eyes met.
She quickly looked away.
Then she spotted Ed. He was sitting alone, quietly eating. Guilt pinched her.
She picked up her tray.
"Where are you going?" Veylor asked.
"I'm going to sit with Ed. No offense, guys."
Zully gave her a smile. "That's okay."
Nyx smirked. "The girl is in love."
Yvaine rolled her eyes and walked off.
She reached Ed's table. "Hi."
He looked up. "Hey."
"Can I sit?"
"Sure."
She sat. "I'm sorry for how I ran off. I just—"
"It's okay," Ed cut in. "Really. I understand. Girls have raging moods."
Yvaine laughed, relieved. "Thank you."
She leaned in. "So, about that book on wolf awakening…"
Ed nodded. "Right. So, the book says late wolf awakening usually happens when the wolf has been suppressed by trauma or magic. Especially in bloodlines that carry hybrid genes or rare ancestry, magical occurrence. Sometimes, the wolf doesn't come out until the host experiences extreme emotion, danger, or... a trigger event. Sometimes... contact with mate."
Yvaine listened closely. "What kind of trauma are we talking about?"
"Anything that threatens the core of identity—grief, loss, betrayal. Or sometimes... it's birthright related. The wolf comes when it's time."
Yvaine was about to respond when—
"Well, well, well. Look who survived the storage room."
Ed stopped talking. Yvaine didn't need to look back. That voice. That presence.
Lucien fucking Lioréan.
She turned to face him, expression blank. He stood flanked by his goons.
Lucien sneered. "You know, Theolux, you're like a cockroach. Filthy. Pathetic. Refusing to die. Not unless I crush your head under my boot."
It was him. He'd locked her in. She should have known.
Images flashed—darkness, panic, the air running out. She would've died if Caelan hadn't found her.
Something inside snapped.
"You son of a bitch!" she yelled, lunging at him.
Gasps erupted around the cafeteria.
Ed and the others jumped up. Zully shouted, "Yvaine, stop! Yvie!"
But she wasn't stopping. She clawed at Lucien's face. He stumbled back as his friends tried to pull him away.
Veylor and Elyan managed to drag Yvaine back, still thrashing.
Lucien's face was marked with red scratches. He was seething.
"You stupid bitch," he growled, stepping forward—ready to hit her.
But Caelan was faster.
He stepped in and punched Lucien square in the face.
And just like that, chaos exploded.
Silverwolves versus Frosthowls.
The other students screamed and hid for their lives as ice and light flew around violently.
"ALL SILVERWOLVES AND FROSTHOWLS REPORT TO THE ADMIN BLOCK THIS INSTANT."
The voice rang loud and sharp. The fight halted immediately.
Lucien spat blood. "You'll pay for this," he hissed at Caelan.
Caelan wiped a cut on his lip, unfazed. "Get in line."
Around them, students groaned, limped, or held bruises.
Veylor turned to Yvaine, holding her shoulders. "Are you okay?"
She was panting. "Yeah."
But Veylor suddenly tensed. His eyes turned white.
Elyan paled. "He's having a vision—quick, the sketch pad!"
Ed was closest. He grabbed it and handed it to Veylor.
Veylor dropped to the floor and began to draw—his hand moving fast, possessed, like something was pulling the image out of him.