Page 6

Alice grabs me and pulls me into a sprint, only slowing when we get to Manananggal Hall so we can safely ascend the steps, joining the stragglers filing into the auditorium.

“Why didn’t you tell me he was there?” Alice whispers, her voice still shaking slightly.

“I…”Fuck, use your fucking words, Sum.The fear of that male’s presence lingers on my skin, whispering of the danger coiled inside him. It felt like I had roused a sleeping dragon, and it had opened one silver eye to lock its gaze on me.

Whoever he is, I must stay away from him while I am here. I hate that out-of-control terror I felt, and I never want to feel it again, ever.

Alice pulls me through the doors of the building. “It’s fine. I mean, I don’t think we can get expelled on our first day. Right?”

I manage to shake off my stupor. “I’ll take the fall,” I say confidently. This isn’t my world, not really, not yet. I can figure something out. Avalon is supposed to be the nexus of most realms. I am sure I can find a portal and fall into another.

Alice scoffs. “You wish. If someone is getting expelled on the first day and becoming a legend, it’s me.”

I roll my eyes, but inwardly, I smile as Alice and I find seats near the back of the auditorium. The room is comically big to accommodate all the students. The stage at the front is so grand it almost looks like a dais.

I look around, cataloging faces and species. Am I looking for other potential allies? Is that what I consider Alice? An ally? Maybe. My eyes sweep over the room, catching the markings ofthe various races. There was that dryad from earlier. A woman with silver hair and a shining shell necklace. I’m pretty sure she is a mere. The sorcerers are easy to spot. They wear their black runes on their skin with pride. Despite what the guide had said, they really do make up the majority of the student body. Great. I’ve never fit in anywhere, and I’m pretty confident Avalon will be no different.

A young sorceress sits next to me, talking to her friend. “Trust me. He’s as scary as they say. And as hot.”

Alice’s ears twitch. “Who is?”

The sorceress shoots Alice a glare. “The headmaster, of course.” Alice blinks blankly, and the sorceress sneers. “The son of Merlin. Wow, they really do let anyone in here nowadays.”

I snarl, my hands curling around the arms of the chair. “Careful.” I’m not sure where the outburst comes from, but hearing her talk about Alice that way felt like a personal attack.

The sorceress sniffs at me. “And what are you supposed to be?” she scoffs and rolls her eyes before turning back to her friend, giving Alice and me her back. The way she dragged the wordwhatout reaffirmed what I already suspected. Sorcerers are elitist dicks.

“What a bitch,” Alice murmurs.

A woman walks onto the stage. Her hair is swept back from her face, and the white streak at the front is stark against the shiny black. She narrows her dark eyes, tightening her already pointed and sharp features. The bright lights shimmer against the red silk fabric of her robe, glinting off the gold characters embroidered onto it. She claps once, the sound reverberating around the entire room, drawing everyone’s attention to her, but there is still some hushed chatter.

“Hello, students. I would like to start by welcoming the new first years. We are thrilled to have you. Welcome back to our returning students. I trust you all had an enjoyable summervacation. First, some introductions. I am Deputy Headmistress Locke. I specialize in advanced alchemy, specifically for use in combat, so I won’t meet some of you for a few years yet.” She gestures behind her. “This is Professor Draco, head of Shifter Studies.”

There is a surge of whoops and hollers as Professor Draco steps forward, bowing his head in acknowledgment. I roll my eyes at the shifters’ show of respect for their leader. I study Professor Draco’s face, trying to work out what kind of shifter he could be. There’s a slight shimmer to his skin when he moves a certain way, which looks almost like scales. That can’t be right, though. They are extinct. He straightens a lock of black hair that had fallen across his forehead. His golden eyes tilt at the edges, and his smile is unnerving, too charming and handsome.

Deputy Headmistress Locke claps again, and the shifters’ hoots and hollers die down. “Professor Harrison, head of General Species Studies. Professor Uxley, head of Occult Studies. Professor Reign, head of Realm Studies. Professor Buraeux, head of Combat Studies…”

She goes down the line, introducing all the heads of departments. By the end, my head is a mess of names and faces.

“Now, before I release you to no doubt celebrate the last night of summer, the headmaster has a few words of wisdom for the year.” Deputy Headmistress Locke steps back, and the room goes completely silent for the first time since we entered the auditorium. I glance around in surprise. The quiet chatter and whispers had continued throughout the deputy headmistress’s speech and the introductions, which only makes the silence that much more oppressive.

Everyone’s eyes lock on the tall figure as he steps onto the stage. His power flares around him, swallowing the light and seeming to cast him in shadows. The same silver eyes that pinned me in the library make a searing sweep over theaudience, taking in every student. That same terror locks me in place. I knew coming to Avalon would mean meeting all manner of beings, but the headmaster is… something else, something deadly. My primal instincts scream at me, begging me to run. I have no doubt there is no worse location to be than the center of this man’s focus.

“Fuck,” Alice mouths, slouching in her chair. I can’t move enough to do even that, my muscles having locked in place.

“Welcome.” His deep voice fills the room so there’s not one crevice unaffected by it. The frigid cold that emanated from him in the library has failed to thaw. If anything, his voice reverberates with even more power, and I see people in the audience shiver with it. “Your time at Avalon can be the best and brightest of your life. It can be full of heartbreaks and parties, sorrows and studies, debaucheries and exploration.”

He pauses, every student sitting transfixed and seeming to hold their breath, waiting for him to continue. My breath feels trapped in my lungs, and I flinch from the magnetic pull of him, something telling me to fight what feels like a compulsion.

“But I’m more interested in what you want these years to be. Who you want to be. Most of you have been told your entire life that you needed to be one thing, whether it was based on your species, your power, your family, or your realm. All of that is gone as of today. Wash yourself clean of those responsibilities and obligations. Within these halls, you have the freedom to figure out the one thing most of you have never gotten the chance even to consider. On your graduation day, you will cross the stage and shake my hand as you receive your Mark.” He slips off a ring to show the Avalon seal on his finger, marking him a graduate of Avalon and a being at the height of knowledge and power. “When that time comes, I want you to be able to answer one question. Who do you want to be? For now, I charge you to work on your answer. Dismissed.”

Everyone stands and gathers their things before heading out of the auditorium. Alice pulls me from the room as quickly as possible, shoving other students out of the way and snarling at them when they get upset. “Fuck, he’s the headmaster?”

“It’s fine. He’s probably already forgotten about it.” I try to make my voice sound as confident as possible, but my breath is still ragged.What was that? Where did that ancient, forbidden power come from?

“Forgotten about what, Miss Tuatha De Daanan?” His low voice makes my whole body tense. Alice crashes to a halt and lets out a squeak.

I turn and look up at him. He towers over me and the surrounding students. His size is just another thing about him that puts me on edge. I clear my throat. “E-Excellent speech, sir.”