Thornhill Academy (By Sheridan Hartin) novel Chapter 119

Obedience Made Visible.

ས ཊཱི, 79%E

living thing, restless and waiting. And when we pass one of the hall’s tall windows, I catch my reflection in the glass, and the faint, ghost-blue sigils flare along my neck. I yank my scarf higher, heart hammering.

Rynor’s voice slides through my ear in a whisper, “You are losing focus.”

“I know,” I whisper back.

“Then breathe, my queen.”

So I do. But it doesn’t stop the thought that’s been clawing its way up my throat since morning: if I can barely control this now, what happens when I can’t hide it anymore?

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10:39 Wed, Dec 31

Thornhill Academy.

A Place to Breathe

༤ དཱ 79%L

By the time the last class ends, I feel like my bones are vibrating. Every lesson has blurred into the next- runes, recitations, lectures that could’ve been in another language for all I cared. I smiled where I was supposed to, nodded when teachers looked my way, and prayed no one noticed the way the light kept flickering off my skin whenever my focus slipped. Keeping the concealment in place feels like holding my

breath for an entire day. Every second that passes, it claws a little more at the edges of my sanity.

When the final bell rings, Kael catches up to me in the hall. “You look like you’re one wrong word away

from incinerating someone.”

“I might,” I mumble.

Evander gives me a knowing look from the other side. “Home, then?”

Home. The word shouldn’t fit the attic, but it does. We climb the narrow stairs to my dorm, Kael chattering about Coach’s new training regimen and Evander pretending to listen. The moment we step inside, I hear the click of the door, and it’s like my entire body finally decides it can stop pretending. I exhale-a deep, shaky, finally kind of breath-and let the concealment unravel. The air shifts instantly. Blue light spills over my skin in delicate, intricate lines, crawling down my arms and curling up the side of my neck. The sigils flare to life, glowing softly like ink kissed by starlight. I roll my shoulders, the tension bleeding out of me with every flicker, as I rip the scarf free and strip the long shirt that has been making me sweat all

day.

“Gods,” I whisper, “that’s better.”

Kael stares, eyes wide. “Every time I think I’ve seen the full show, you prove me wrong.”

Evander just shakes his head, but there’s a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “You look like yourself

again.”

A soft hum fills the room, deep and low-like the sound of thunder if thunder could purr. “She looks

divine.”

Rhaziel steps from the shadows behind the bookshelf, the darkness peeling away from him as if reluctant to let go. He looks at me like I’m made of something sacred. His gaze follows the markings across my collarbone, the curl of blue across my shoulder, down to the faint trails wrapping my wrists.

“You are absolutely beautiful like this, hummingbird,” he says, voice soft enough to make my stomach

twist.

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10:39 Wed, Dec 31

A Place to Breathe

I smile tiredly. “You’re biased.”

“Entirely,” he agrees.

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The floorboards creak under my feet as I sink into the couch. “I have no idea how the Hecate I’m supposed to keep this up,” I admit. “I can’t hide these forever. The concealment helps, but it drains me, and if

anyone gets too close-”

Rhaziel crosses the room in three slow steps, every one deliberate. “Then you must rest somewhere you do

not need to hide.”

I glance up at him. “You mean your realm?”

He nods but corrects me, “Our realm.” The shadows at his feet ripple in agreement. “Time flows differently there. A few hours in your world may pass as several days in mine. You could rest and be as you are meant

to be, without fear of discovery.”

Kael, sprawled in the armchair opposite me, groans dramatically. “So you’re stealing her again.”

“I am offering her peace,” Rhaziel corrects gently.

Evander folds his arms, ever the rational one. “And when she comes back?”

“She will return rested. Her power steadied. The marks will remain, but she will have better control of

them.”

Kael frowns but glances at me. “He’s not wrong, trouble. You need a break before you burn out. Even my fire’s got nothing on what you’ve been holding in.”

Evander nods, eyes softening. “Go. We’ll be here when you get back.”

That does it-the quiet reassurance in his voice. My throat tightens with gratitude I don’t know how to voice. I look at Rhaziel again. “Just… a few days?”

“As long as you need.”

I hesitate only a moment longer before I nod. “Okay. Take me there.” I get some comfier clothes and kiss Kael and Evander goodbye. They assure we they wont eat all the snacks, but I think we all know thats a lie. Then I turn to Rhaziel. The smile that curves his lips is small but genuine as he holds out his hand to me, and the air around us begins to shift again. Shadows rise like a tide, curling around my ankles, then up my arms. The world tilts, warm and cool at once, until the attic dissolves into night.

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10:39 Wed, Dec 31

A Place to Breathe

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When the darkness clears, we’re standing in a space that looks alive. The Shadow Realm breathes around

us, endless skies of indigo and deep silver, the air heavy with the hum of quiet power. Wisps of light float

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