My Secret, My Bully, My Mate

Chapter 5: The Dream

Aria Vale

That night, I dream.

I'm standing in a forest, but not the one behind the academy. This forest is older, wilder, the trees so tall their tops disappear into mist. Moonlight filters through the canopy in silver streams, illuminating a path of white stones that winds between ancient trunks.

I'm walking, though I don't remember deciding to move. My feet carry me forward along the path, drawn by something I can't name. The air smells of moonflowers and rain, sweet and clean.

A wolf appears ahead of me. She's massive, larger than any wolf I've ever seen, with fur that shimmers silver and gold in the moonlight. Her eyes are amber, glowing like twin flames in the darkness.

She doesn't frighten me. Instead, I feel recognition, like seeing someone I've known my entire life but somehow forgot.

"Who are you?" I ask, and my voice echoes strangely in the dream space.

The wolf tilts her head, studying me. When she speaks, her voice resonates inside my chest, vibrating through my bones.

"I am what you have always been. What you were born to be."

"I don't understand."

"You will." She takes a step closer, and I see now that her fur bears markings, swirling patterns that seem to move and shift. "The awakening comes. The moon will reveal what has been hidden. What they tried to destroy."

"What was hidden? What are you talking about?"

But the dream is already fading, the forest dissolving into mist. The wolf's amber eyes are the last thing to disappear, burning in my mind like afterimages.

"Remember who you are," her voice whispers as I fall into deeper sleep. "Remember what they took from you."

I wake with a gasp, sitting bolt upright in my narrow dorm bed. My heart races and my skin is slick with sweat. The room is dark, illuminated only by weak moonlight through the single window. My roommate, a timid Beta named Maya who barely speaks to me, snores softly in the bed across from mine.

I press a hand to my chest, feeling my heart pound beneath my palm. Just a dream. It was just a dream.

But it felt so real.

I swing my legs out of bed, knowing I won't be able to sleep again. The clock on the nightstand reads three in the morning. Two more hours until dawn. I pull on a sweatshirt over my sleep shirt and grab my shoes.

The dormitory is silent as I slip out. Everyone else is sleeping, exhausted from the day's classes and the anxiety about the rogue attacks. I make my way downstairs and out into the cool night air.

The academy grounds are different at night. Shadows pool in corners and doorways. The usual bustle of students is replaced by an eerie quiet broken only by the occasional sound of night patrol passing in the distance.

I should go back inside. Being out after curfew could get me in serious trouble, especially now with the heightened security. But my feet carry me toward the training grounds, a wide field surrounded by equipment and obstacle courses.

I need to move. To do something with the restless energy thrumming through my body.

The training grounds are empty. I head to the practice dummies, rough humanoid shapes made of padded canvas and straw. During the day, Alphas beat on these to practice their combat skills. Betas aren't supposed to use them without supervision.

I don't care.

I throw a punch. It's weak, poorly formed, exactly what you'd expect from someone with no real combat training. The dummy barely moves. Frustration builds in my chest, hot and fierce.

I punch again. And again. My knuckles split, blood welling up, but I don't stop. All the anger I've been swallowing for three years pours out through my fists. Every humiliation, every cruel word, every time I had to bow my head and accept abuse.

"Your form is terrible."

I spin around, fists raised. Lucian stands at the edge of the training grounds, dressed in dark clothes that make him nearly invisible in the shadows. How long has he been watching?

"What do you want?" I demand, too tired and raw to be properly afraid.

"I could ask you the same thing." He walks closer, moving with that fluid grace all Alphas seem to possess. "It's three in the morning. You should be in your dorm."

"So should you."

"I'm on patrol." He stops a few feet away, his silver eyes catching the moonlight. "The rogues have everyone on edge. We're taking extra shifts."

I lower my fists slowly, suddenly aware of how I must look. Sweaty, disheveled, blood on my knuckles. "I couldn't sleep."

"So you decided to assault a practice dummy?" There's something almost like amusement in his voice. "Without proper technique, you're just going to hurt yourself."

"I'm already hurt," I say before I can stop myself. "What's a few more bruises?"

The amusement vanishes from his face. For a moment, something else flickers in his eyes. Something that might be guilt or regret. But then it's gone, replaced by his usual cold mask.

"Go back to your dorm, Vale."

"I will. In a minute."

"That wasn't a request."

"I know." I turn back to the dummy, raising my fists again. "You can report me if you want. Add it to the list of my failures."

I throw another punch. This one lands better, the dummy swaying slightly. Small victory.

"Your stance is wrong," Lucian says suddenly. He hasn't left. "You're putting all your power in your arm. You need to engage your core, rotate your hips. The power comes from your whole body."

I stare at him. Is he actually giving me advice?

He moves behind me, and every nerve in my body goes on alert. "May I?"

I should say no. I should walk away right now. But curiosity and something else, something reckless, makes me nod.

His hands touch my waist, adjusting my stance. Even through my sweatshirt, I can feel the heat of his palms. My wolf, who should be cowering from an Alpha's dominance, instead surges forward with interest.

"Feet shoulder width apart," he instructs, his breath warm against my ear. "Bend your knees slightly. Good. Now when you punch, rotate here." His hand presses against my side, just above my hip. "Feel how that engages your entire core?"

I can barely breathe, let alone feel anything except his proximity. He smells like pine and night air and something uniquely him that makes my head spin.

"Try it," he says, stepping back.

I throw a punch, following his instructions. The dummy rocks back hard, the impact reverberating up my arm.

"Better," Lucian says. There's approval in his voice, and I hate how much that small praise affects me. "Again."

I practice the motion several more times, each punch stronger than the last. He watches in silence, occasionally offering corrections. It's surreal, this moment. Like we've stepped into some alternate reality where he isn't my tormentor and I'm not his victim.

"Why are you helping me?" I ask finally, lowering my fists.

He's quiet for so long I think he won't answer. "I don't know," he admits. "I shouldn't be."

"Then why are you?"

His jaw tightens. "Go back to your dorm, Aria."

He used my first name. Not Vale, not Beta, but my actual name. I've never heard him say it before.

"Lucian…"

"Now." The command snaps through the air, his Alpha will pressing down on me. But something strange happens. Instead of forcing me to obey like it should, the command slides off me like water off stone. My wolf growls in response, refusing to submit.

Lucian's eyes widened. "What…?"

But I'm already running, fleeing back toward the dormitory. My heart pounds and my mind races. That's never happened before. Alphas can always compel Betas. It's one of the fundamental rules of our nature.

So why didn't it work on me?