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CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

TAI

M y shadows race across the snow-dusted ground and weave between blackened trunks, searching for any sign of fresh growth after Nova’s mishap in the forest. The Bedlam Moon is coming fast, and soon these woods will be teeming with wolves—meaning I’ve got a lot of replanting to tackle before they arrive.

I haven’t let Nova leave my sight since her fight with Sylus, just in case he retaliates. He hasn’t come back to the dorm at all the rest of the week. Nor have either of us seen him on campus. Where he went, or what he’s doing, I have no clue. Same goes for Callum.

Did Nova take it too far the other night? Probably, but he needed to be put in his place. Because while I’m powerful in my own right, especially now the cap on my magic is much higher than it used to be, it’s nothing compared to the might of the entire royal family behind her. I don’t think her sister’s family would tolerate it, either. They all have a fondness for her.

Even if she does have some questionable hobbies. Like now, I’m watching her try to use her fledgling magic to juggle throwing stars. She’s perched on an ice-covered boulder, the glow of her magic sparking unevenly across the metal as the stars wobble in the air. Every few seconds, one of them veers wildly off course, clattering to the ground in a muted thud. She groans, hopping down and snatching it up before tossing it back into the rotation with a scowl.

She doesn’t quite have the hang of magic yet, at least not enough to help me restore this forest, so I work while she attempts to control her magic. When I’d told her she could head back to the dorms, she’d shot me a look like I’d suggested she take up knitting.

So here she sits, playing with sharp objects.

The forest feels alive tonight, as if it knows what I’m here to do. My magic tills the soil, overturning charred logs, and pushing saplings to take root. Giant trees on the outskirts stand like silent witnesses, their blackened trunks and broken limbs the only remaining visible mark of the fire she sparked. But the damage cuts deeper than the dismembered bark—this place is out of balance, the energy off-kilter.

I drop to my knees, placing my palms flat against the ground. My fingers sink into the freezing soil, and a quiet pulse of warmth radiates from me, seeking out the dormant life below. The energy here is weak but not gone, like an ember waiting to be coaxed back into flame. I close my eyes and focus, drawing the magic up from deep within, letting it flow through me and into the earth.

The first sapling pushes through the ground a few feet away, its slender stem trembling as it stretches toward the moonlight. Another follows, then another, until a small cluster of them rises around me. The sight makes something tighten in my chest. It’s not much, not yet, but it’s a start.

A metallic clang interrupts my focus, followed by a muttered curse. I glance up to see Nova glaring at the throwing star now embedded in the ground by her foot. Her hands still glow, her frustration evident in the uneven ripple of her magic.

“Need a hand, Your Majesty?” I call, smirking as she shoots me a withering look.

“I’ve got it,” she huffs, flicking her wrist to send the star flying back into the air. It wobbles, spinning awkwardly before joining the others in her improvised juggling act.

I wouldn’t call her hopeless, because she’s got strong magic, she just needs to work at being one with it instead of divided.

I shake my head and turn my focus back to the earth. Another surge of magic courses through me, stronger this time, and more saplings push through the soil. The ground trembles beneath me as the forest begins to heal, one small patch at a time.

Behind me, Nova lets out a triumphant laugh, and I glance over my shoulder. She’s managed to keep all three stars in the air for a full five seconds before they clatter down again. Her smile is bright, unguarded, and for a moment, I forget what I’m doing.

I’ve fallen so fucking hard for her, it makes me ache .

“See? Progress.” She beams as she picks up the fallen stars.

I bite back a grin, relieved to see her somewhat happy again—especially after the hell she’s gone through worrying about Callum. I’m worried too. The ghosting just doesn’t align with the Scotsman we knew—the man who threw himself into danger without a second thought if it meant helping someone else. It gnaws at me, fueling an uneasy churn in my gut every time I imagine what might have gone wrong, other than the walking-in-on-me-naked-with-the-girl-you-fancy incident.

Still, for this fleeting moment, she looks lighter, like the weight on her shoulders has eased. Watching her smile at those fallen stars tugs at my chest. Maybe I can’t fix everything for her, but at least I can appreciate the rare joy on her face.

“Impressive.” I smirk before I return my attention to the growing trees. “Just don’t put out anyone’s eye, yeah?”

She huffs but doesn’t argue, and the sound of her laughter mingles with the whisper of the trees as they begin to take root once more. For now, it’s enough to keep my darker thoughts at bay.

Nova

“How the fuck do you get this to work?” I shriek, the frustration boiling over as I throw my hands up. The tiny spark of magic I’d managed to summon fizzles out, leaving nothing but a shimmer in the snow. Growling under my breath, I let myself fall back into the snowbank, the icy cold against my shoulders doing nothing to abate my hot temper.

The crunch of snow grows closer before a shadow passes over me until Tai’s face appears above mine, framed by the pale winter sky. His lips twitch with a smirk he’s trying to suppress. “Magic isn’t something you force, Princess.” He crouches beside me. “It’s like a dance. You have to move with it, not against it.”

I glare up at him, brushing snow from my face. “I’ve been dancing, Tai. Hell, I’ve been fucking waltzing, salsa-ing, and doing the goddamn cha-cha, and all it’s gotten me is—” I gesture at the small scorch mark in the snow beside us, “—this.”

He chuckles, reaching down to offer me his hand. I slap it away and sit up on my own, wiping snow off my coat. “It’s not funny.”

“No,” he agrees, though his eyes still gleam with amusement. “But it is entertaining.”

I groan, burying my face in my hands. “I’m hopeless.”

“Hardly.” He saunters towards me. “You’re trying to control something you don’t understand yet. That takes time.”

“I don’t have time!” I snap, the words harsher than I intend. “The Bedlam Moon is tonight. Tonight! If I can’t control this by then … she’ll take over when I shift.” It was one thing to do it when I was in front of the professor where he could use his magic to change me back like last time.

Everyone knows the Bedlam Moon amplifies our magic. It’s when our beasts are more feral, too. If I’m shifted during this fucking moon, she’ll be the one in control, not me.

He sighs, settling down into the snow beside me. “You don’t need to control it.” He takes my glove-covered hand in his. “That’s your problem. You’re treating magic like it’s something outside of you, something to be tamed. But it’s not.”

I glance at him. “Then what is it?”

“It’s you, Nova.” His gaze meets mine. “Your magic. Your wolf. All of it. It’s you. ”

I scoff, shaking my head. “My wolf is not me. My wolf is a fucking nightmare. She’s reckless, impulsive, wild?—”

“And so are you,” he interrupts, chuckling. “At least, the best parts of you are.”

I bristle at his words, but before I can argue, he continues. “Your wolf isn’t some separate creature you need to fight or control. She’s you, Princess. She’s the part of you that’s untamed, the part that feels and acts without overthinking everything. The part that’s free.”

“I don’t want to be free,” I mutter, yanking my hand back and crossing my arms. “I want to be in control.”

He leans closer, his expression softening as he brushes a strand of hair from my face. “And that’s why your magic isn’t working. You can’t force yourself to be something you’re not. You have to trust her. To trust yourself.”

I look away, the weight of his words settling in my stomach like a stone. Trust my wolf? The same wolf that nearly mated Sylus fucking Creed in a blind hormonal haze? The stupid wolf who bit Callum multiple times? The same wolf that keeps a running monologue of how horny she is for almost every male that crosses my path like some feral beast? Like the doctor ?

“I hate her,” I whisper. “I hate what she makes me feel. What she makes me want.”

“Nova.” Tai’s voice is gentle, but it carries a weight that draws my wounded stare back to him. “She’s not the enemy. She’s you. And until you can accept that, you’re going to keep fighting yourself. And losing.”

The words hit harder than I expect, and for a moment, I can’t find anything to say. The cold nips at my cheeks as he watches me, waiting.

I take a deep breath, and the cold burns my lungs. “So … what? I just say, ‘Hey, wolf, let’s be best friends,’ and everything magically fixes itself?”

Tai’s lips curve into a small smile. “It’s a start.”