Chapter 3: Whispers of Dark Magic

SERENA

My hands were still tingling from that purple light I could not hide. I shoved them under my legs and looked at the floor.

Headmistress Vale leaned forward. Her eyes were sharp but not mean. At least not yet.

"Serena Blackthorn. Your file says you come from a troubled family. The fire. The blame. Yet here you are."

I nodded but did not speak. What was I supposed to say? That my own family treated me like trash every single day? That I still had nightmares about the fire I did not even remember starting?

She tapped a paper on her desk. "You were not supposed to get in. The normal process would have rejected you. Someone pulled strings. I want to know who and why."

My head snapped up. "I do not know. I swear. My uncle just threw the letter at me and said I was leaving. I thought it was some mistake."

Darius made a sound like a laugh but meaner. "Mistake. Right. Witches always have their tricks. Especially the weak ones trying to sneak in."

I felt my face get hot. Weak. There it was again. The same word my family used. "I did not ask for this," I said quietly. "I just wanted to get away from them."

Headmistress Vale held up her hand. "Enough, Darius. You are here as a witness because of your position as Alpha heir. But this is my academy." She turned back to me. "Your blood test showed something unusual. Latent power. Stronger than most first years. But it is blocked. Does that sound familiar?"

The warm spot in my chest flared up again. It hurt this time, like something was pushing against my ribs. I pressed my hand there without thinking. "It feels like fire sometimes. Or electricity. I see purple sparks when I am upset. But I never told anyone. They would have beaten it out of me."

Darius stepped closer. His silver eyes narrowed.

"Show me."

I shook my head. "I cannot control it. It just happens."

"Convenient," he muttered. But he did not look away. For a second I thought I saw something else in his face. Not just hate. Curiosity maybe. Or worry. But it disappeared fast.

Headmistress Vale stood up. "You will start with basic classes tomorrow. Shadow Veil house has its own rules. Stick to them. Trials begin in two weeks. If you fail the first one, you go home. And Serena... watch your back. Not everyone here is happy about a Blackthorn walking these halls."

She waved her hand and the door opened by itself. Darius grabbed my arm to pull me up. His fingers were hot on my skin. The second he touched me, the power in my chest exploded. Purple light flashed between us for real this time. Not just sparks. A small burst that made his hand jerk back.

He cursed loudly. "What the hell was that?"

I rubbed my arm where he touched me. It tingled like electricity. My heart was pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears. "I told you. I do not know."

Headmistress Vale looked between us with a strange expression. "Interesting. Report any more incidents. Both of you. Dismissed."

Darius did not say another word. He just turned and walked out fast. I had to run to catch up because I did not know my way around yet. The halls were quieter now. Most students were probably at dinner.

"Wait," I said before I could stop myself. "Why do you hate me so much? I have not done anything to you."

He stopped so suddenly I almost bumped into his back. When he turned, he was close. Too close. I could see the muscle jumping in his jaw.

"Your kind killed my mother. Witches and their curses. You think I would welcome one of you here? Especially one who smells like dirt and lies."

His words hit me hard. I stepped back. Tears burned my eyes but I blinked them away. "I am sorry about your mother. But that was not me. I was a kid. I lost everything because of that stupid fire and now you want to punish me too?"

For a moment he looked like he might say something else. His hand twitched like he wanted to reach out. But then his face went hard again.

"Stay out of my way, Blackthorn. Or I will make your life here worse than whatever hole you crawled out of."

He walked off toward the Lunar Fang side of the building. I stood there alone in the hallway feeling smaller than ever. My stomach growled loudly. I still had not eaten real food. The smashed bread was long gone.

I found my way back to the Shadow Veil dorms. Finn was waiting in the common room with two plates of food. He grinned when he saw me.

"Figured you might miss dinner. Here. It is not fancy but it is hot."

I took the plate and sat down fast before my legs gave out. The food was simple, chicken and rice, but it tasted like heaven after days of scraps.

Tears slipped down my cheeks while I ate. I could not stop them.

Finn sat across from me. "Hey. What happened? Did Darius do something?"

I wiped my face with my sleeve. "He hates me. The headmistress said someone forced my acceptance. And my power... it flared when he touched me. I do not know what is wrong with me."

Finn leaned in closer. "Nothing is wrong with you. A lot of us here have rough starts. Stick with me. I will show you around tomorrow. And ignore Darius. He is all bark until someone challenges his control. Then he gets dangerous."

I nodded but inside I felt lost. This place was supposed to be my fresh start. Instead it felt like the same pain with bigger walls. After dinner I went to my room. The other girls were already asleep or pretending to be. I changed into my old shirt and lay on the bed staring at the ceiling.

The warm power was still there, humming softer now. I held my hand up in the dark and tried to make it come out. A tiny purple spark danced on my fingertip. It did not hurt this time. It felt... right.

"What are you?" I whispered again.

No answer. But for the first time I did not feel completely alone with it.

Sleep came slow. When it did, I dreamed of silver eyes watching me in the dark. Not with hate this time.

I woke up to someone shaking my shoulder. Finn stood there with a worried face.

"Serena. Get up. First class in twenty minutes. And word is already spreading about you and Darius in the headmistress office. Vanessa is telling everyone you tried to attack him with dark magic."

My heart sank. Day two and already more trouble.

I got dressed fast in the plain uniform they gave me. It was a little big but better than my old clothes. As we walked to class, I kept my head down. Whispers followed me everywhere.

In the classroom I found a seat in the back. Darius was already there across the room with his wolf friends. His eyes locked on me the second I sat down. He looked angry. And something else I could not name.

The teacher started talking about basic magic control. I tried to focus but my chest kept getting warmer every time Darius glanced my way.