Chapter 2 ~ I’m A Little Too Good

{Ava’s POV}

My Story…

My story isn’t a common one. In fact, it’s quite unusual.

Mine is a story of hate— but then it's not the cliché everyone-hates-me-becaus-I’m-a-miserable-misfit kind. No. 

Mine is actually the opposite. 

I’m hated because… well, because *I’m a little too good* at everything.

And no, that doesn’t mean I’m proud or self-obsessed; I really didn’t choose this. I was born this way— literally.

Hear me out. 

Now, I haven’t studied this fact since childhood, but there are plenty of older witnesses who can testify to it. Though, most of them hate me too.

If my parents were still alive, maybe they’d be better witnesses, but I don’t even know who those folks were.

Calita tells me they’re dead— she’s the only one who ever tells me anything. Meanwhile, I live with the cruel Alpha and Luna of the DarkClaw Pack: Alpha Rayon and Luna Reeca. I don’t know how I ended up under their roof, but their scornful family— two sons and their precious daughter, are the closest thing I have to family.

And Calita?

She’s an old cleaner who works in the Alpha House. She’s mute but communicates with me through sign language and notes. She’s been at their service longer than I’ve been alive and, for some reason, she’s always been kind to me. In a world that treats me like an infestation, her kindness feels like the warm sunlight I need.

Still, in this house, happiness never lasts long. The smallest things I do always seem to offend someone— and today, being neatly dressed happens to be one of them…

“And where are you headed off to?” A harsh voice interrupted me as I attempted to walk out the door. It was morning time and having done all the duties assigned to me by Luna Reeca, and having also been secretly fed by Calita, I was about to leave the Alpha House to go visit my best friend, Edna. 

Yeah, miraculously, I had a best friend— long story, and she was my everyday escape from this trauma house. But then I didn’t know that today would mark the beginning of not going to Edna’s house ever again…

With Alpha Rayon’s question, I halted before the doorway and turned to the table where half of the family was feasting. “I’m going to see Edna.” I responded, avoiding eye contact.

“Oh is that so?” Luna Reeca joined in. “You’re going to that miserable girl’s place and you’re looking this clean? You expect us to believe that?” She said sternly. 

“I always look clean, Luna.” I responded, still avoiding eye contact.

“So we are the dirty ones?”

I stuttered. “No. It’s.. it’s n-not what I—”

“You shouldn’t believe her, Mother. She’s going to see one of those gutter rat boys in the neighboring Pack— she reeks of them.” Revna commented now, not looking up from the table as she chopped a meat piece with a knife. 

Revna…

She was their pious first daughter who looked physically different from her other siblings, having a darker shade of hair color and a flawless physique that was frequently intimidating. She visibly stood out from the others but it was probably because she was the vilest of them all, scaring me more than Luna Reeca. 

“I believe you’re right, daughter.” Luna Reeca responded. “But I also believe that we are indulging her, that's why she has the guts to appear this proper!” She voiced and I sighed as I knew this was about to escalate like it always does.

But then I was wrong. This was about to escalate beyond the usual point.

“She has become relaxed and this is because all she does is petty work around the house!” Luna Reeca continued. “She doesn’t fucking train with the other wolves during the training period! She doesn’t go out there and get rough like the rest of them. I mean, look at her fucking skin!… It’s even clearer than mine, and I’m Luna!” She bawled while I sighed.

“But she can’t train with the others, my raven.” Alpha Rayon said now with a have-you-forgotten tone and Luna Reeca grew quiet for a moment which meant that she understood what he was talking about.

“Right.” She muttered now, her volume low but harsh. “I keep forgetting that she’s an entitled Wretch who so happens to be more skillful than the other trainees in the Pack and can even beat up our best trainer with ease!” She uttered angrily. 

“Calm down, my Raven.” Alpha Rayon muttered in reasoning but she rebutted. 

“No. I’m telling you. This girl is a witch!” She told him fiercely and then faced me. “But she needs to know that all her wizardry attributes don't make her special!”

I kept my gaze trained on the ground as her voice continued to rise. Alpha Rayon soon bailed as he got up from his seat and followed after his Beta who came to call him. 

“She needs to know that they instead make her uncanny!” 

As expected, Luna Reeca didn’t stop.

She faced me now. “You’re an irritating and odd distaste, you scum!” She roared now and just when I thought things couldn’t get any worse…

“You will not be going anywhere today!… or tomorrow!… or next!” Luna bawled now. “Instead, you’ll go to the Pack’s training grounds and wipe all the used l gears clean no matter the number— From today, you’ll be in charge of that!” She uttered and I tensed.

“B-But that’s too much for one person to handle—”

“I don’t care!” She cut me off harshly. “You will handle the duty from today until whenever I say you should stop— which is most likely never!” She retorted. “But that’s not all…”

“You‘ll be assigned other scruffy duties once you’re done because, from today, I’ll ensure that your miserable self doesn’t have the leisure to visit any stupid friend anymore!” She voiced. “Instead, all you’ll do is work, work, and fucking work! I’ll make sure of it.” She concluded. 

“Let’s see how much your skin will be glowing after you swim in dirt for a month…”

I just stared.

I was overwhelmed and frustrated because I didn’t deserve this but could do nothing about it. 

I thought it was really unfair, especially since I didn’t do anything wrong, but I didn’t know they weren’t finished.

“The Pack’s Guest house has not been visited for some time now so it’s probably really dirty. Once she’s done with the gears, she should also go and clean them.” Revna joined in now and then she made eye contact with me. 

“… all four houses.” 

“W-Wait. What?—”

“Very good, daughter.” Luna Reeca chimed in, satisfied. 

“She will clean those houses to sparkle— I’ll personally inspect them, and if clean, the cycle repeats itself tomorrow.” Luna Reeca said and returned her gaze to me. “It’s time you became properly useful.” 

She looked pleased now as she gazed at the turmoil plastered on my face.

“Nevertheless, you’ll start with this house of course.” She muttered now as she started to trail towards the stairway, picking up a glass cup along the way. 

“You might think you cleaned it earlier but if you look properly…” She dropped the glass cup and it shattered harshly on the ground beside her. “… you’ll realize that you might have missed a spot.” She said casually while I stared at the shattered glass pieces. But just then, I heard another shattering sound and I looked to see that Revna had tilted the table, causing all the glassware to slide off.

Their pieces labeled the ground now while Revna rose to her feet smirking as she left that area. 

“Looks like you missed a lot of spots.” She said as she started towards her mother.

Satisfied, both of them motioned to ascend the stairs and leave but then the sound of my voice halted them instantly. 

“I’ve had enough of this.” I said. 

Both of them threw their gazes at me.

I was heaving now— heaving in anger: “Once I finish all these assignments, I’m.. I’m leaving DarkClaw!” I voiced with resolve and the air grew quiet… 

…before Luna Reeca burst out laughing. 

She laughed hard now while Revna, being the darkness she was only let out a slight snigger.

“You’ll leave DarkClaw?” She raised an eyebrow, wearing an amused expression.

“Yes! For good!” 

“And where will you go?” Luna Reeca joined in, her tone teasing me.

“Don’t bother asking, mother. The Bitch obviously has nowhere to go mother— except maybe the slums of the slum boy she knows.” Revna teased, still amused.

“Moonspire Academy.”

The air went quiet for a moment after my utterance.

— Luna Reeca and Revna stared for those few seconds before Revna broke the silence.

This time, she laughed. “You have finally gone mad.” She said over her chortle. “Moonspire Academy? A Nobody like you?” 

I glared at her. “Yes. I’ll enroll and only return home at the end of every season. I’ll graduate to become a Royal Warrior and then I’ll be able to pay you guys back with my Warrior wage and not owe this Pack anything again.” I said responded and the air grew quiet— except for the sound of Luna Reeca’s footsteps shifting towards me now.

“Okay.” She said plainly, stopping before me. I was still scowling.

“No problem.” She added. “Leaving this house on a mission to pay me back sounds nice. I could never reject money— nonetheless, I have one condition.” She frowned. 

“Once you leave this house, you can never return. Once you go, you can never come back even if you get chased away from the Academy or fail. I don’t even care if you go rogue— all I care about is you returning all the money this household has ever spent on you at the end of the four Academy seasons as you have said you would.” She said and I grew uneasy at once.

“But that’s not all.” She added as she folded her hand behind her back and started pacing to the side. “Upon getting to the Academy, you’ll be asked for your Pack of origin before you’re enrolled. Obviously, you’ll put in DarkClaw for which I or Rayon will have to consent to it.” She turned and faced me now.

“Now, as much as I detest you, there’s no way I can withhold the consent— it’s not possible to do so, so I’ll consent. Nonetheless, along with the consent, I’ll attach a letter to the Generals over at Moonspire. I’m legally your guardian so I am allowed to do this therefore this letter will contain instructions for the Generals to heavily drill you and put you through double the hardship other combatants face. They do this because I will paint you as a rebellious ward, hence you will be going there to be punished.” She said and her frown tightened. 

“This will be your fate should you decide to go.” She concluded and grew a slight smile. 

“So…” She folded her arms. “Do you still feel like going and chasing your dream?” She asked, looking like she already knew my response….

… but she was wrong. 

“Yes, I’ll leave tomorrow.” I said with clenched fists and for a moment, she looked shocked before she grew back her scowl.

“Alright then. You leave at dawn… never to return…” 

**

~ The Next Day ~

It was settled. 

In just one night, the course of my life was changed, spun in a direction I never could have expected.

Moonspire Academy.

I never could have guessed that I would be going there, leaving my old life never to return.

I was scared, confused, and anxious. But then I was also relieved.

— relieved that I wouldn’t have to be dealing with Luna Reeca, Revna, and the rest of their family anymore. Revna might not have seemed like much trouble back there but she’s a major disturbance to my existence, hence there’s finally peace in my heart. Nonetheless, I still have a lot to figure out going forward. 

Luna Reeca had been eager to send me off this morning, seemingly because she believed that I was going to Moonspire to be battered and beaten since she knew there were better fighters than me over there.

She believed that I would come crawling back to DarkClaw after facing the Generals’ brutality (due to her letter) and honestly, this scared me. But then I had no choice but to face the challenge with determination and hope that I would prove Luna Reeca wrong. 

My core pain however was the fact that I was leaving Calita behind, the only woman who ever loved and cared for me. It was heartbreaking but there was a hidden intention in my heart for me to return to DarkClaw to get her. 

Meanwhile, it had always been my dream to go to the academy, so I just had to stay focused and determined now. I have a few coins from saving so hopefully it will be enough for me at the academy. 

And if it isn’t, I’ll painfully have to figure something out… but then I don’t have to do it all by myself, as in this pool of mess, there was one good news to hold onto.

“I think we are here. I think I can see the tall walls already!” Edna chirped from beside me now.

Yes, my best friend was here and going to the academy with me— she was the good news.

Somehow, Edna had found a way to sneak into my room last night since I was under house-arrest, and with me telling her the new development, she went back home and this morning she showed up to tell me she was coming with me. 

I didn’t quiz her much, knowing I needed her and also knowing that her parents didn’t really care about what she did with her life— long story again. So now, it was the two of us on this journey, and we were in a hurry due to Edna’s excitement.

We got to the gates of the Academy and strolled in and honestly, I was surprised by the poor assessment we received. We were barely checked by the guards and it was almost as if anyone could just wander into the academy as they pleased. 

Nonetheless, Edna and I got into the vast premises to realize something was going on as there was a huge crowd surrounding an area on the field— probably the reason why the gates weren’t properly guarded.

The gathering looked chaotic so instincts took over and made Edna and me abandon our bags to go and see what was happening.

However, I felt reckless for the fact that we shouldn’t be this disorganized since we just got here but then Edna pulled me along before I could reconsider, and soon, we were squeezing through a foreign crowd in order to get to the focus point and see what was causing such commotion.

I grew shy as I squeezed through but Edna’s persistence kept me going as she kept pulling me along, and soon, we got close enough to see what was going on.

— to see a young, fair, and good-looking male.

**

The crowd was cheering.

The young, fair male was with another older-looking man in the fighting pace and apparently, the fair male had just defeated him as I could tell from the way the crowd was cheering.

— and from the way he was acting. Halfheartedly, he was receiving his accolades and then before I knew it, another male jumped out from my side towards him, showering him with more praise. 

“LIMA, YOU FUCKER. YOU ACTUALLY WON!” The new boy yelled as he crashed into his friend in a rough half-hug, conversing with him further. 

“He’s really handsome.” Edna said to me now, referring to the one who had won and I was about to agree with her when the bloke in question started to speak, cutting me off with his tone.

The crowd was still cheering for him but then he nonchalantly cut them off now. 

“Alright!” He said aloud. “Now that my point is made. Now that you all know I’m the absolute best there is!… I’m calling out anyone who thinks they can face me!” He said through the cheers, spreading his arms proudly. And with that, my smile inverted significantly just as the crowd’s cheers started to go down.

He continued to speak. "I don't care if it's a top officer or another fucking General— anyone who thinks they can beat me, step forward now so we can clear the air once and for all!” He said again and every noise died as everyone just watched. 

Seconds passed and the air remained silent as people’s curiosity played to see if anyone would come out, and while this happened, the fair male stood ever confident. 

“Oh my goodness. He’s proud— too proud that it’s annoying.” Edna said now, speaking the exact words that were on my mind. 

“Thought so.” The fair male added after a while and motioned to leave while the air remained silent with a sense of defeat hovering around for the fact that no one dared challenge him. 

“I wish I could just go out there and humble him.” Edna muttered quietly to herself but then I heard her. Within the following seconds, no one still dared move a muscle causing the bloke to smile until…

“I will.” Someone uttered and heads began to turn as gasps began to streak around.

That someone was me. 

Edna instantly grasped me now in her panic. “What are you doing?!” She whisper-yelled, trying to hold me tightly to herself. 

“You might not be able to humble him, but I can.”

I stepped out into the circle.