Chapter 2- They meet again!
1119 Words
Lilith woke before dawn.
The room was still, the sea beyond her window nothing more than a distant hush. For a moment, she lay flat on her back, staring at the ceiling, cataloging sensations the way she had been taught.
Breath. Steady.
Pulse. Controlled.
Pain—
Her shoulder throbbed, deep and insistent.
She closed her eyes.
The beast— wolf’s weight crushed back into her memory. The claws. The heat of its breath. The way her dagger had hesitated, how the runes had dimmed, uncertain.
That had never happened before.
Failure she understood. Fear, even hesitation, those could be corrected.
Uncertainty could not.
Lilith swung her legs off the bed, bare feet hitting cold floorboards. The sting grounded her. She welcomed it. By the time the first thin line of light crept through the window, she was already outside.
The clearing behind the bookshop was small and uneven, hemmed in by frost-stiff grass and a low stone wall. Lilith dropped to one knee, dagger in hand.
Again.
She moved through her drills with ruthless precision. Stance. Grip. Wrist. Strike.
Steel whispered through air.
Her shoulder protested with every extension. She ignored it. Sweat gathered at her temples, slid down her spine despite the cold. Pain was expected. Pain was manageable. Pain was certain.
Her reflection flickered in the shop window, pale, tight-jawed, eyes too sharp for someone her age.
No weakness. Not here.
She drove the dagger into the practice post harder than necessary, wood splintering under the blow. The runes hummed, steady now. Obedient.
Good.
Her gaze lifted, unbidden, toward the tree line beyond the cliffs.
Nothing moved.
No yellow eyes. No ravens.
Still, the air felt… held. As though the forest were listening.
Lilith sheathed the blade and forced herself to breathe.
Whatever had gone wrong last night, she would correct it.
She always did.
—
Ravenshore wore mornings differently than Oslo.
The streets were quiet but not empty, doors opening, shutters lifting, people moving with the unhurried confidence of those who knew exactly where danger lived and how to ignore it.
Lilith passed a pair of fishermen speaking in low voices.
“—closed the upper trail,” one muttered.
“About time.”
No panic. No questions.
She noted it. Filed it away.
At the bakery, warmth wrapped around her like a memory she refused to linger on. She ordered quickly, tapped her phone, ignored the curious glance the baker gave her shoulder.
She needed to get some work done but before that she need to get a car. The Academy was far and no public transport went there.
By midday, she found what she was looking for, a small, sun-faded lot near the edge of town. The car wasn’t impressive. A little battered. But it will do. She got her driver license right before leaving Oslo.
It would do.
She drove it carefully at first, testing the engine as she navigated Ravenshore’s narrow lanes.
The engine coughed.
Once. Then again.
Lilith swore under her breath as the car shuddered and died in the middle of the road.
Of course.
She pulled out her phone, scrolling until a workshop appeared nearby.
The garage smelled of oil and sea salt, its corrugated roof rattling against the wind. Tools clinked somewhere in the back, and the low hum of music, an old blues track, moody and slow, threaded through the air.
Lilith stepped inside.
And stopped.
He was leaning over an open hood, sleeves rolled up, grease streaked along his forearm. The light caught on dark hair and sharp lines she recognized instantly.
The man from the forest.
He straightened.
For a heartbeat, neither of them spoke.
Then his mouth curved, slow and familiar.
“Well, well. If it isn’t dagger-girl.Told you we would see each other again.” His voice curled into the space between them, smooth and amused. “What are the odds?”
Lilith’s hand twitched toward her coat.
“You work here,” she said flatly.
“Occasionally.” His gaze flicked past her, to the car visible through the open door.
“It stopped running,” she said. “Can you fix it?”
He studied her for a moment too long. Not her face— her stance.
“Yes,” he said finally. “But you shouldn’t be surprised. That model hates the cold.”
“You noticed quickly,” she replied.
“Comes with the job.”
That wrongness stirred again, subtle but unmistakable.
He didn’t seem to be shocked to see a wolf in the forest.
Didn’t ask about the dagger she kept hidden.
Those absences were louder than questions.
He moved with easy competence, hands steady as he worked. No wasted motion. No hesitation. Annoyingly skilled.
Lilith watched in silence, every instinct alert.
“You’re not from here,” he said casually.
Neither was a question.
“No,” she agreed.
“Then word of advice.” He didn’t look up. “If the forest gives you a warning, listen to it.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You speak as if you know what forest speaks.”
He smiled faintly. “Ravenshore doesn’t keep secrets well. Just pretends it does.”
The engine turned over smoothly beneath his hands.
“All set,” he said, straightening. “Try it.”
She did. The car purred. She reached for her wallet.
“Don’t bother,” he said.
“I’m not taking charity.”
“Good,” he replied. “Because I’m not offering it.”
He wiped his hands on a rag, then held one out.
“Zane.”
Every instinct screamed no.
Lilith took a second and took his hand.
Heat snapped up her arm, sharp, immediate. Her breath caught despite herself.
For just a fraction of a second, his expression faltered.
Surprise.
Recognition.
Something like pain.
Then it vanished.
“Lilith,” she said, pulling back.
He repeated her name quietly, as if tasting it.
Outside, her phone vibrated.
A message.
ACADEMY ALERT:
Orientation has been moved forward to this Saturday. Mandatory attendance.
Her jaw tightened. She was supposed to have a week to herself. Why was the Academy rushing?
Was it because of what happened at forest? They can’t know about it… right?
Zane followed her gaze. “Looks like you don’t need any warning.”
She slid into the car, starting the engine without another word.
As she drove away, she caught him in the mirror, standing in the doorway, eyes thoughtful now, the smirk gone.
Her dagger stirred against her side.
Recognition.
Her dagger that never failed her was becoming her biggest uncertainty since she came to Ravenshore.
Lilith tightened her grip on the wheel.
Looks like, Ravenshore was just getting started with her…
- Writer
