LEXI

As the crowd shuffles forward, I slip my schedule out of my bag and unfold it. It’s blank. Completely, impossibly blank.

“Huh?” I mutter. A spike of panic stabs through my chest. Did they forget me? Am I already failing school before stepping foot in a classroom?! But before I can spiral too dramatically on my very first morning, the paper ripples in my hands. Dark ink bleeds up through the fibers like water soaking into a sponge, lines and letters forming and sharpening until actual words appear.

Schedule – Alexis Elle

Daily schedules can be found on the table by your bed each morning.

Please carry it with you at all times. Schedule may change at any time.

MONDAY

12pm – Shifter Basics

1:30pm – Lunch break

2:30pm – Medicinal Magic

4pm – Free time

7pm – Dinner

Academy Gates are locked at midnight. They will not be opened again until seven a.m. for any reason.

“He’s a Wolf Shifter like me, but he started last year. He was about to give me a tour. You should come too! That is… If Aaron doesn’t mind. Is that okay, Aaron?” She asks, smiling up at him with hopeful eyes. Aaron pauses, looks me over slowly from head to toe like he’s inspecting a suspicious package, then gives a single, stiff nod.

“Yes, you may bring this girl along. Next time ask first.” He says bluntly. Then he turns on his heel toward the door. I blink. Excuse me? This girl? Ask first? Bossy much? Mallory doesn’t seem bothered at all. Actually, she looks pleased. She hooks her arm through mine and pulls me along.

“Aaron is my Alpha’s son. He’ll almost definitely be Alpha himself one day. He’s so good at taking charge.” She explains in a dreamy voice. Good at taking charge? He’s good at giving orders, sure. But take charge? He seems more like the type who’d argue with a tree for standing in his way. I resist the urge to make a face. She didn’t ask for my opinion. And honestly… I do need a tour. So I swallow my commentary and follow them both out of the dorms.

To Aaron’s credit, once he gets started, he relaxes. Sort of. He’s still extremely… Intense. But he knows his stuff. He shows us the major buildings. classrooms, dining hall, the courtyard, the potions labs (which we are forbidden from entering alone), and a giant greenhouse full of magical plants that apparently bite. By the time he drops Mallory and I at our first class, it’s five minutes to twelve. The moment he spots another older student waving him over, Aaron mutters a quick goodbye and jogs off without waiting for a response. Mallory immediately spots another one of her wolf friends and abandons me mid-sentence. She practically launches herself at the girl, chatting animatedly as if I’ve vanished into mist. And once again… I’m alone. I take a breath and head inside the classroom. Almost everyone is already seated. Two empty seats in the very front row. And one at the very back. Beside Blake. My stomach dips. I COULD sit in the front. I really could. But sitting front-row in a class called Shifter Basics, when I don’t even know what species I am… Well it feels like setting myself up for disaster. And I DID promise myself I would talk to him. So I steel my spine, lift my chin, and walk down the aisle straight toward the back row. The room quiets slightly, and I can feel eyes following me, whispers picking up as people notice where I’m headed. Let them talk. It won’t kill me. Probably. Blake glances up as I approach. His expression shifts, confusion flickering across his features, followed by something cautious. Wary. Like he can’t decide if I’m about to attack him or something. For a fraction of a second, our eyes meet. His are even more striking up close, rich molten gold, unnervingly sharp, like he’s seeing far more than he should. Something warm curls low in my stomach. Then he looks away, quickly, to his left, jaw tightening. I stop beside the empty chair and clear my throat.

“Is this seat taken?”