Charlotte didn’t sleep.
Even after Ethan walked her back to the dorm. Even after Lucas lingered outside the door longer than he pretended to. Even after Jenna insisted on checking her pulse three separate times “just in case sovereignty trials cause delayed death or something equally dramatic.”
Charlotte lay awake, staring at the ceiling.
The howl still echoed in her bones.
Not Shadowborn.
Not ordinary wolf.
Ancient.
And when she had closed her eyes, just once, just briefly—
She had seen silver eyes opening in darkness.
Not human eyes.
Not wolf eyes.
Something older.
Something buried.
And it had looked at her like it recognized her.
⸻
Morning came too quickly.
The academy buzzed with tension, whispers spreading faster than wildfire.
“She transformed the flames—”
“She pass
