LOGINJasper’s POV:I hadn’t slept well in days. The ceiling above my bed had become painfully familiar over the last week. Every crack in the stone. Every shadow cast by the moon. Every hour that crawled by while my mind replayed the same memories over and over again.Aria laughing in the courtyard. Aria sitting in my lap. Aria’s hands unbuttoning my shirt. Her breath catching when I touched her. Then…“I’m a virgin, Jasper.”The words haunted me like a ghost. Not because she’d said them. Because of my actions afterward. I’d looked terrified. I had been terrified. Not of her. Of myself. I sat up with a frustrated groan, dragging both hands down my face.“Still awake?”I looked toward the doorway. Rylan leaned against the frame with a mug balanced in one hand. One of the few people who’d been around long enough to ignore titles. He didn’t bow. Didn’t treat me like the Fae Heir. He treated me like Jasper. Which usually meant he was about to annoy me.“What time is it?”“Late enough that you’
LucienThe room was quiet except for the steady crackle of the fireplace. Rain tapped softly against the tall windows overlooking the academy grounds, turning the world outside into little more than blurred shadows and silver streaks.Aria sat curled into the corner of my couch.The ancient book rested in her lap. She hadn’t turned a page in a while. She was staring through it, in her own thoughts. I watched her from the kitchenette while the kettle warmed over the flame. She’d asked not to be alone. She hadn’t asked me to fix anything. Somehow…That felt infinitely harder. I wanted to make everything instantly better for her. Steam curled from the kettle. I poured two cups of tea before carrying them into the sitting room. She didn’t even notice me until I set one on the table beside her.“You’ve been holding your breath.”Her eyes blinked up to meet mine. “I have?”“You do it when you’re trying not to think.”A tired smile tugged at her lips. “I didn’t know you paid that much atten
ArcherThe training arena still smelled like her. Most people would’ve smelled sweat. I smelled rain, wildflowers, and the lingering trace of something I couldn’t name. I slammed my locker shut harder than necessary.“You’ve done that three times.”Kieran leaned against the opposite wall, arms folded across his chest.“The locker hasn’t offended you.”I ignored him. Instead, I shoved my practice sword into its sheath.“Still thinking about yesterday?”Silence.“I’ll take that as a yes.”I started toward the exit. Kieran fell into step beside me.“I’ve never seen your wolf react like that.”“Neither have I.”“You looked like you were trying not to shift.”“I was.” He was quiet for several steps.“What exactly happened?”I stopped walking. “I don’t know.”“You know more than you’re saying.”I looked toward the mountains beyond the academy walls.“My wolf…”The words felt strange even saying them aloud. What “…recognized something.”Kieran frowned. “What?”“I wish I knew.”We continued
Aria’s POV:Sleep had become a luxury. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw something different. Jasper’s face in the courtyard. The Council chamber. Archer’s wolf fighting against something I couldn’t understand.“Go.”The memory alone made my stomach tighten. He’d known. The second that strange pulse had left my body, Archer had known exactly what it was. Or at least…He’d known enough to be afraid.That was the part I couldn’t stop thinking about. Archer wasn’t the kind of person who panicked. He adapted. He fought. He protected. But yesterday…He’d looked genuinely shaken. And if Archer knew…Who else did?I had been raised human. Every supernatural student at Ebonveil had grown up learning things I’d never even heard of. Their parents had explained the old laws. The ancient bloodlines. The forgotten wars. I had learned algebra. They had learned survival. The realization sat like a stone in my chest. I was always going to be behind. Unless I changed that.The academy library stretched
Aria’s POV:Training had become my favorite part of the day. Not because I enjoyed getting knocked onto my back. Or because Professor Kane believed bruises were “excellent teachers.” I liked it because it was the only hour where my mind had to stay in the present.There wasn’t any worrying about the whispers, Jasper, or confusing kisses. Just surviving the next strike. I tightened the leather wraps around my hands as I pushed open the heavy doors to the combat arena. The room was empty.That was strange. Usually at least a dozen students had already arrived. The training floor stretched before me, silent except for the distant crackle of enchanted torches lining the walls.Then I heard footsteps, slow and measured, walking towards me. Archer stepped out from one of the side corridors dressed in black training clothes instead of his academy uniform. His sleeves were rolled to his forearms, exposing the faded scars crisscrossing his skin. No Professor Kane. No other students. Just him.
Archer’s POV: The training dummy exploded into pieces. Straw scattered across the practice ring as my fist punched straight through its chest.“Damn.”I pulled my hand free and watched the dummy collapse into a pathetic heap.“That’s the fourth one.”I looked over my shoulder. Kieran Wolfe, My Beta, leaned lazily against the arena fence, his arms crossed over his broad chest. His gray eyes dropped to the destroyed dummy before lifting back to me.“They’re going to start charging you for those.”“They can try.” A corner of his mouth twitched.“You’ve been in a terrible mood all week.”“I’ve been busy.”“You’ve been brooding.”I rolled my eyes and reached for another training blade. The steel hummed as I tested its weight. Kieran didn’t leave. He almost always had something to say. Normally I ignored him until he gave up. Today…He was unnervingly quiet. That got my attention.“What?”His joking expression disappeared. “Something happened at lunch.”I continued inspecting the blade. “So







