All Chapters of Scarred by fate : Chapter 301 - Chapter 310

Zahra's POVI devour my lunch, still feeling the weight of a lot of eyes on me for most of it. Towards the end of the meal, Zanthe stretches awake — thank the goddess, or shifting later would’ve been awkward. There’s a lot of banter and chatter at our table. It’s clearly a bit of a reunion for some of them. Nicholas seems to know all the instructors well, and I guess as a graduate of the academy himself, he must know them from alumni events and the like.They all remain sitting and chatting after finishing. I glance at my watch and see I’ve still got another hour and a half before sparring. I think I’m going to lie down — Zanthe can’t do much about exhaustion, and I feel like I’m dragging.'I'm going to rest a bit in my room.' I link Tobias.He looks at me,

Zahra's POVI wake up feeling incredible — relaxed, boneless, and so well rested it’s unreal. It’s like I’ve had twelve hours of uninterrupted sleep. Tobias’s scent wraps around me, and I inhale it like it’s the only oxygen I’ll ever need.He’s tracing slow circles up and down my back, and somehow it isn’t ticklish. Before I can stop it, a breathy sigh slips out. Goddess damn it, Zahra, have some self-respect! That was embarrassing.“Little one,” Tobias murmurs, “it’s nearly time for the sparring assessment. You need to get ready and head back outside. Aiden just linked to say the others are already moving.”I groan, stretch, and roll onto my back. Tobias is still lying on his side, watching me. His arm is under my head, and when I moved, his other hand slid onto my hip. His palm spans almost my entire stomach, fingers brushing the opposite hip bone. Fuck, I really am tiny. He must think I’m such a baby compared to him.I roll to the edge of the bed and stand, stretching again — a sat

Zahra's POV“Miss Larkin.”I stand and walk to the arena. Astrid practically skips to meet me — all smugness and bad intentions. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch movement. Jameson and Maddox are heading over instead of staying at the side-lines.“Miss Ravenscroft, you can retake your seat, please,” Maddox says, his tone clipped.Astrid stops short, frowning. “What? Why, sir?”“Because, Miss Ravenscroft,” Maddox all but growls, “Director General Reed wishes to assess Miss Larkin himself.”Her face twists. “Why? Why does this nepo-baby get special treatment?”I scoff before I can stop myself. Goddess, she’s so painfully unoriginal. In Astrid’s world, I’ve either slept my way here or been born into it. Apparently, I can’t possibly be here on skill alone. Cue eye roll.“Because, for your information, Miss Ravenscroft,” Maddox says, voice like ice, “the elite instructors have informed us that none of our current candidates in the academy would pose much of a threat to Miss Larkin.”Ast

Zahra's POVInstructor Maddox turns to us all “Congratulations, cadets. You should all be proud of your efforts today. Before we give you your marks, we’ll proceed to the shifted section of the assessment. We’ll repeat what we’ve just done — same partner, this time in shifted form. You may shift before the start or during. You’ll be marked on speed, fluidity, and style of your shift. When your bout ends, remain in wolf form until Nurse Rebecca has recorded your wolf’s markings. Any questions?”“No, sir.”“Good.”They head back to their positions. I notice the fourth-years stripping down, so I stand and start peeling off layers too — shoes, socks, T-shirt, tank top, leggings — until I’m down to sports bra and shorts. I feel way too exposed, but I don’t want to shred my uniform every time. That’ll get expensive fast.The sports bra style they issued has a regular back, which does nothing to hide my scars. I hate the idea of showing them, but at this point enough people have seen that I’

Xander's POVThe car is silent all the way back from Night Howlers. Four long hours with nothing but the hum of the tyres and my own mind chewing itself raw. Three years. No visits. No messages. No Zahra.She’s one of my closest friends, like a sister.‘A sexy sister,’ Atlas growls in my head.‘Cut that out. We don’t think of her like that.’‘Who are you kidding? I’m literally inside your head, Xander. You can’t lie to me.’‘We’re with Max and Medus now,’ I snap, trying to slam that door shut before it goes anywhere.The relief of telling my parents, Zach, and Zahra about me and Max still lingers — it’s like a mountain I didn’t even realise I was carrying has been lifted off my shoulders. For some reason, Zahra’s opinion mattered more than everyone else’s put together. Her quiet words, that steady reassurance… I’ll never forget them.My arms feel empty without her in them now. She fit there perfectly on the way up, and I don’t think I’ve ever slept so well in a car before.Zach’s thu