{Elira}
~**^**~
"ESA’s legacy is rich," she said solemnly. "And it is worth rembering those who left an indelible mark on our history. One of them was Kathryn Morgan—our academy’s brightest student in record. She was a strategist, a warrior, and a leader among her peers."
The words struck like a blade.
My breath caught, eyes widening as the sound of my mother’s na wrapped through the hall. Kathryn Morgan. My own mother.
A sudden rush of heat stung my eyes, tears threatening to spill before I clenched them back.
My chest swelled painfully as I imagined her, walking these sa halls, leaving a mark so deep that even now, years later, her na echoed here with respect.
Around , my friends gasped softly.
"I’ve heard of her," Cambria whispered with awe. "They say she was unmatched in combat."
Nari nodded quickly. "And she graduated at the very top of her class. She is a total legend."
Tamryn’s lips curved faintly. "A na that still commands honor. That says a lot about who she was."
But none of them knew the truth—that the woman they spoke of with such reverence was my mother.
And for a mont, I wanted to tell them. To let the pride bubbling in my chest spill over. But my throat locked tight, and I said nothing.
The vice-chancellor’s next words shattered the fragile warmth I held.
"And I have recently learned that Kathryn Morgan was aunt to one of our very own students, the Student Council’s PR officer, Regina Shaw."
My blood ran cold.
"What?" The word slipped from before I could stop it. But I was totally in my own world.
Students clapped again, heads turning toward the front row where Regina rose gracefully to her feet. And she turned, her smile wide and polished as she lifted a hand to wave at the crowd.
The sounds of applause followed her like a tide. But in that sea of faces, her eyes found mine.
For the briefest mont, her smile faltered with just a flicker. Then it returned, dazzling and false, as she sat back down like nothing had happened.
My chest tightened, horror clawing up my throat as I understood sothing important. Regina had stolen even this.
My mother’s na. My mother’s honor.
And except the triplet brothers, no one, not even my closest friends knew that truth but .
As the clapping died down and the vice-chancellor moved on, my thoughts spun in a storm I could barely contain.
’Is this how Regina climbed so high hereBy standing in shadows that didn’t belong to her using my mother’s na, my mother’s legacy, to polish her own?’
The thoughts churned my stomach.
Around , my friends were buzzing with disbelief.
"I can’t believe it," Cambria muttered, her brows knit tight. "Regina Shaw, related to soone like that? It doesn’t feel right."
"She doesn’t deserve it," Nari snapped under her breath, her usual brightness shadowed with anger. "To have connection to soone so honorable. It makes sick."
Just then, Tamryn turned toward , her gaze searching. "Elira, since you and Regina are cousins, do you know Kathryn?"
Nari’s head whipped around quickly. "That’s right! If Kathryn was Regina’s aunt, then she should be your aunt too, shouldn’t she?"
The breath I had been holding released in a slow, heavy exhale. My chest tightened as the weight of their stares pressed in.
"No," I replied softly as I silently fought the depressing emotion stirring inside .
My friends froze, confusion flickering across their faces.
Juniper tilted her head, her voice dropping to a thoughtful murmur. "Then maybe Kathryn was from Regina’s mother’s side. That would explain why you don’t share the sa connection."
Her words hovered, almost offering an escape. But sothing in hardened as I quickly made up my mind, refusing to be thrown to the sideline where Regina wanted .
’No. I wouldn’t let Regina erase like this. Not from my own mother’s mory.’
I straightened imdiately and t each of their gazes in turn. "You got it wrong, Juniper."
Their eyes widened as they leaned in, the tension thick between us. But before their questions could tumble out, I said it quiet, but steady, letting every word deliver as sharp as a blade.
"Kathryn Morgan... is my mother."
The silence that followed was deafening.
Cambria’s hand flew to her mouth, her eyes wide. Nari’s jaw dropped open so far she forgot to close it.
Juniper blinked once, twice, as if trying to process what she had just heard. Even Tamryn went rigid with shock, her lips parting slightly but no sound coming out.
I could see it in their faces—the questions, the disbelief, the rush of emotions barely contained.
But all of them were careful, their voices lowered instinctively, as though they knew the weight of this truth wasn’t ant for curious ears around us.
I pressed my lips together, steadying myself. Regina had stolen the applause today, but that wouldn’t last.
One way or another, I would find a way to reclaim my mother’s na. And that ti, I wouldn’t stay silent.
On the other hand, my friends’ stunned faces were enough to tell I had just turned their world upside down.
"You..." Nari leaned in, whispering so low it was almost inaudible. "You’ve been Kathryn Morgan’s daughter this whole ti? And you didn’t say anything?"
I nodded once, unable to trust my voice yet.
Juniper’s eyes sharpened, though her voice trembled slightly.
"Elira, why didn’t you tell us? Do you know how many students here idolize her? The way they speak about her—it’s like she was untouchable. And all this ti, her daughter was right beside us."
Tamryn’s expression was softer, but no less shaken. "You’ve been carrying this secret alone." Her words weren’t a question but a quiet acknowledgnt that pierced through .
But it was Cambria who pressed the hardest, her brows knitting as she leaned forward. "Elira, forgive for saying this, but how co you are... an oga?"
She swallowed, her tone hesitant but direct. "If your mother was Kathryn Morgan, a prodigy, one of the strongest wolves of her ti, then sothing doesn’t add up here."
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