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To others, it made me a being to be wary of.

And to a few, it even made me an abomination.

As if I needed that last part highlighted.

But that was exactly what tonight’s celebration felt like it was doing.

As I made my way through the elaborate party my family had thrown for me, stares abounded as I passed on by, an unsettling mixture of intrigue and wariness emanating from so many. Especially my peers from Maven Academy. While the current students gathered in their friend groups, I had no one to turn to, no one to gravitate to.

I was the outsider, the loner.

And right now it felt worse than that.

I was like an animal in a zoo to them, being observed with excitement and fear all at once. At a distance that excitement ruled. But any closer and their fear took the reins, so concerned were they of what I was capable of.

It really hadn’t helped my case that I’d had a few bouts ofexplosivenesswhen I’d been younger, via meltdowns at a time when I’d struggled to control my mammoth power, the potency unlike anything any magic-wielder had ever experienced.

Although, today was being framed as a celebration for my twenty-first birthday, it was really more than that. My magic had reached maturity a few weeks ago, a big deal among all those who dealt in the magical arts. It was a milestone that was unlikeany other. It meant I’d come into my full power, and also that I wouldn’t visibly age beyond this point.

It was the earliest any being on this plane had ever reached magical maturity. Even my mom, who had been the most powerful sorceress around before me, had only reached magical maturity in her late twenties.

That was yet one more oddity that belonged only to me.

I sucked in a breath and forced my thoughts away from all of that, focusing on the celebratory nature of everything around me. The decorations, the high spirits of my family. I fought to bury anything negative. At least for the time being.

The ballroom of my family home had been transformed into something akin to a spelled-laced fever dream.

Silver shimmer draped from the vaulted ceilings like enchanted constellations, catching the light from the floating chandeliers. The walls had been glamoured to reflect twilight, the sky outside mimicked in deep navy swirls. Starlight flickered along the edges of the arched windows.

My name glowed in silver calligraphy above the archway.

The supernatural guests filled the space in glamourous outfits.

There was a present mountain that sprawled outward, a glinting pile of intricately wrapped boxes tied with silk ribbons. Many were spelled to rotate and float slowly to showcase themselves.

Silver roses had been enchanted to bloom midair, scattering petals that dissolved before touching the floor. A constellation spiraled overhead, each star flickering beautifully.

Music pulsed from spelled instruments in the alcoves.

It was most definitely one hell of a supernatural spectacle.

“Ari!”

I turned at the sound of Dad’s roughened voice.

He’d gone all out when it came to his appearance tonight. With his former background as Alpha to the largest wolf pack in the world, he’d been a rough and tumble guy, sporting the whole ripped jeans, tank, and well-worn leather jacket look. He was more now—a hybrid being. The child of an Immortal, something he hadn’t found out until later on in life that had caused a lot of problems for him and my family, especially when it had been revealed that the Immortal blood running through his veins had come from the most despicable being of all, Draco, a true monster who had exacted a reign of terror over the supernatural world shortly before I’d been born.

He was sporting an all-black look in a tailored suit. Although, his tie had silver stripes, in keeping with the theme of the party—a nod to the color of my magic, which was the same as Grandfather’s.

He walked to me and threw his arms around me, bringing me in for a tight hug.

Well, with his hulking form, it was always more like a bear hug, him completely dwarfing my five-foot-five height.

“Happy Birthday, baby girl,” he said, as he pulled back, smiling brightly, and holding my hands between us. He looked me over in my silver floor length dress, my golden waves flowing down past the jeweled straps. “I can’t get over how grown up you are now. No longer my little girl, but a flourishing young woman.”

“Dad,” I protested, my cheeks heating at his overt compliments, and the wholeflourishing young womanthing.

He chuckled, then told me, “Your mom is putting some finishing touches to your cake. She wants to know if you’d like to start opening your mountain of presents now, or save that for after the bighappy birthdayceremony?”