Chapter 8: Moon Studies
1221 Words
The rest of orientation passed in a blur.
Dean Blackwood introduced the faculty, explained the academy’s rules, and reminded first-year students that entering Silverwood Forest without permission would result in immediate disciplinary action.
Evelyn barely heard a word.
Her thoughts stayed on the message that had appeared on her schedule.
Meet at the Moon Tower tonight. Come alone.
Who had written it?
And why had no one else seen it?
⸻
“Earth to Evelyn.”
Lucas waved a hand in front of her face.
“Huh?”
“I asked if you wanted to walk to class with us.”
“Oh… yeah.”
She quickly smiled.
“Sorry.”
Lucas studied her for a moment.
“You’ve been quiet.”
“I’m just tired.”
It wasn’t exactly a lie.
⸻
Their first class was Paranormal History.
The classroom looked like something from another century.
Rows of polished wooden desks curved around a circular lecture floor. Ancient tapestries hung from the stone walls, each depicting supernatural wars, legendary creatures, and forgotten kingdoms.
Instead of a whiteboard, a giant enchanted map floated in the center of the room.
The professor entered precisely as the bell rang.
He was an elderly man with silver hair braided down his back and bright amber eyes.
“Good morning.”
His voice carried easily through the room.
“I am Professor Aldren.”
He smiled.
“History is not merely dates and battles.”
With a flick of his fingers, the floating map transformed into a battlefield.
Tiny dragons soared through the air.
Armies of wolves charged across glowing valleys.
Witches launched brilliant spells into the night sky.
Gasps echoed around the classroom.
“History,” Professor Aldren continued, “is memory.”
⸻
The lesson covered the founding of Hidden Moon Academy nearly three thousand years ago.
“The academy was built after the Great Divide,” Professor Aldren explained.
“When humans and supernatural beings agreed to live separately.”
The magical battlefield shifted.
A massive castle rose from the earth.
“The founders believed knowledge would prevent war.”
Finn raised his hand.
“So… has it worked?”
Professor Aldren smiled sadly.
“Not always.”
⸻
For the rest of the lesson, Evelyn couldn’t shake the feeling that Professor Aldren kept looking at her.
Not openly.
Just enough to notice.
Whenever he mentioned ancient bloodlines or forgotten kingdoms, his eyes drifted toward her.
⸻
Their next class was Combat Fundamentals.
Unlike History, this class took place outside.
The training arena was enormous.
Stone walls surrounded a circular field covered in soft silver sand.
Weapons of every kind lined the edges.
Professor Ashcroft stood in the center.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
His black training uniform bore the academy crest across the chest.
His expression remained unreadable.
“So.”
His voice echoed across the arena.
“Which of you believes combat is about strength?”
Nearly half the class raised their hands.
Ashcroft nodded.
Without warning—
He disappeared.
Students gasped.
A second later, he was standing behind them.
“It’s about awareness.”
A few students yelped.
Lucas only smiled.
“I forgot he does that.”
⸻
Pairs were assigned for the first exercise.
Maya partnered with another fox shifter.
Finn ended up across from a vampire.
Lucas was matched with a dragon shifter.
“Evelyn.”
Professor Ashcroft looked directly at her.
“With me.”
The arena fell silent.
She walked toward him.
“I’ve never held a sword.”
“I know.”
He handed her a wooden practice blade.
“It isn’t the sword that interests me.”
Before she could ask what he meant—
He attacked.
Instinct took over.
Evelyn stepped aside before she consciously realized she had moved.
The wooden blade missed her by inches.
Ashcroft struck again.
She ducked.
Again.
She blocked.
Again.
Again.
Each movement felt… familiar.
As though she’d practiced them a thousand times before.
Finally, Ashcroft stepped back.
The class stared.
No first-year should have lasted more than a few seconds.
Evelyn had lasted nearly three minutes.
Ashcroft lowered his weapon.
“You’ve never trained?”
She shook her head.
“No.”
His eyes narrowed.
“…Interesting.”
⸻
After class, Lucas caught up with her.
“You okay?”
“I don’t know.”
“What happened out there?”
“I honestly have no idea.”
She looked down at her hands.
“It felt like my body already knew what to do.”
Lucas didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he glanced toward Professor Ashcroft, who was still watching them from across the arena.
“I think,” Lucas said quietly, “the academy is starting to ask the same questions you are.”
⸻
That evening, the campus settled into its usual rhythm.
Students filled the library.
Others relaxed in the gardens.
Music drifted from one of the residence halls.
At dinner, Maya chatted excitedly about her classes while Finn complained that his magical theory textbook had tried to bite him.
“It has teeth,” he insisted.
Celeste took another sip of tea.
“It told you not to open it upside down.”
“I didn’t know books had preferences.”
“They do.”
⸻
As the sun disappeared beyond the mountains, Evelyn glanced at the clock.
8:47 p.m.
Her heart raced.
The Moon Tower.
She hadn’t told anyone about the message.
“I’m going to take a walk,” she said casually.
Maya looked up.
“Want company?”
“No.”
The answer came too quickly.
Lucas, who had just entered the common room, paused.
“You sure?”
She forced a smile.
“I just need some fresh air.”
He studied her for a moment but nodded.
“Don’t stay out too late.”
⸻
The path to the Moon Tower wound through the Whispering Gardens.
Moonflowers glowed softly in the darkness.
The academy seemed quieter than usual.
Almost… expectant.
As Evelyn climbed the spiral staircase inside the tower, she noticed something strange.
There were no footprints in the dust.
No signs anyone had been there for years.
Yet at the very top…
A single lantern burned with silver light.
Beside it stood a hooded figure.
Their face remained hidden beneath a deep gray cloak.
“You came,” the stranger said.
The voice was calm.
Neither old nor young.
Neither male nor female.
Evelyn tightened her grip on the silver bracelet.
“Who are you?”
The figure slowly turned.
“I’ve been waiting for you, Moon Heir.”
The words sent a chill down her spine.
Before Evelyn could ask another question, the hooded stranger reached into their cloak and placed an ancient silver key on the stone floor between them.
“This belonged to your mother.”
The key was engraved with the same crescent moon and wings as Evelyn’s bracelet.
“It opens a place the academy has kept sealed for twenty years.”
The figure stepped backward into the shadows.
“Find the truth before someone else does.”
The lantern suddenly went out.
Darkness swallowed the tower.
When Evelyn relit the lantern with a trembling hand…
The hooded figure was gone.
Only the silver key remained.
Clutched in her hand, it felt warm.
As though it had been waiting for her all along.
- Writer
