Evaline:
By the ti Monday morning rolled around, I was able to feel the change in the air like a pulse beneath my skin. The whispers were louder, more frequent. Eyes were trailing after in the hallways, lingering a second too long.
The students at Silver Moon Academy had always talked. It was their favorite pasti. But now, the gossip wasn’t just about entrance scores or... my identity as a rogue, as a nobody. It was about my internship and the Alpha.
Not only was I a top scorer. Not only had I secured the prestigious privilege award. But now... I was working at the Council. Under Alpha River.
By so cruel twist of fate, my private misery had beco public envy.
It started innocently enough. I didn’t realize at the ti of dinner on Saturday evening, when I revealed about my position as River’s assistant to my friends, soone at the table next to ours was listening.
By Sunday afternoon, the rumors had spread like wildfire. And by Monday morning, the students were no longer whispering about my internship, now they were whispering about .
And yet, as unsettling as it was, most of them hadn’t confronted . Not directly. They preferred to make passive-aggressive comnts in the halls or laugh louder than necessary when I walked past.
I could live with that.
What I wasn’t prepared for was Tuesday.
Because Tuesday changed everything.
* * *
"Good morning, first-years," Professor Kieran greeted as he entered the lecture hall, the soft click of his boots echoing as students sat up straighter. He was wearing his usual composed expression, but there was an energy in him that hadn’t been there the previous evening... sothing sharper, more attentive.
The golden strands of his hair was shimring beneath the lights as he glanced at his tablet and then out across the room.
His gaze swept across the students until it landed on . And lingered.
"Let’s begin with a short discussion," he said before pausing. "Evaline, would you mind leading us into today’s subject?"
Every eye turned to . And there were dozens of expressions - shock, confusion, narrowed eyes - all locked on as if I had just grown a second head.
And I was no different. I just sat there staring at him, and it was only when Mallory patted my thigh under the table, did I forced myself out of the shock.
I stood slowly with my heart thudding, and recited the introduction of the lecture we had prepared. My voice was surprisingly steady despite the boiling stares stabbing into my skin.
I could feel Kyros smirking from two rows behind , probably proud. And Mallory offered a discreet thumbs-up.
But there were others, girls in expensive robes trimd in family crests, males with entitled expressions, who were less impressed.
When I sat down, Professor Kieran gave a small nod. "Excellent start. As expected."
And that... was when things truly spiraled.
* * *
By lunch, the whispers had evolved into open scorn.
"Guess sucking up to the professors works after all," one girl muttered as I passed by her table in the dining hall Wednesday morning.
"She probably threw herself at Alpha River to get the position of his assistant."
"Have you seen how Professor Kieran looked so proud of her? What’s even there to bother sparing her a second glance?"
I gritted my teeth and forced myself to keep walking, with tray in hand and shoulders straight. I wasn’t going to let them see flinch.
I had survived the streets. I had survived the massacre of my pack. I had survived betrayal and pain and nightmares. I had survived far worse than what they could imagine even in their worst nightmares. So, there’s no way I was going to let these petty girls with too much lip gloss and daddy’s money shake .
But the tension only thickened as the day wore on.
By afternoon, it wasn’t just strangers who noticed the change.
"You okay?" Kyros asked as we walked out of Rune Theory.
"I’m fine," I lied. "Just tired."
He gave a look, one that said he didn’t believe , but let it go.
"I have heard so of the girls talking," he said eventually. "About Professor Kieran. And Alpha River."
I let out a sigh. "Let them talk. I’m not here for their approval."
"No," he said thoughtfully, "but so of them might try more than words."
"What do you an?"
He gave a grim smile. "You are new. You are smart. You are... unpredictable. That makes you dangerous to so of them. Especially the ones who think they have dibs on power."
I laughed without humor. "What, like River’s fangirls?"
"Not just fangirls," Noah added as he joined us with Mallory. "There are senior students who believe they’ll end up mated to one of the Rogue Brothers. They have built their entire future around it."
That made pause. "Seriously?"
He nodded. "I would stay alert, Eva. Especially around-"
"Speak of the devil," Mallory whispered sharply from behind us.
I turned just in ti to see her.
Tall. Elegant. Dressed in a fitted Academy uniform that looked tailored and undoubtedly expensive. Her dark hair was flowing in soft waves around her shoulders, and her eyes - a striking violet - held no warmth.
"She’s Celeste Renwyn. Daughter of Alpha Renwyn of the Eastern Peaks. Senior student. High-ranking... and Powerful." Noah whispered next to my ear, letting know whom I was facing.
I had heard of Eastern Peaks and Alpha Renwyn. They were one of the most powerful packs.
And by the looks of it... his daughter didn’t seem like a fan of mine.
She was flanked by two equally striking girls, one with ice-blond hair and the other with gray eyes that were shimring with amusent. They looked like royalty surveying their court.
Celeste’s gaze landed on and her lips curved in a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
"Evaline, isn’t it?" she said sweetly.
"That’s right."
She extended a hand and I took it cautiously. Her grip was firm, cool.
"I have heard so much about you," she said in a velvety voice. "Top of the entrance exam. Interning at the Council. How impressive."
"Thank you," I said, unsure of what ga we were playing. "I’m just doing my best."
"Oh, I’m sure you are." She tilted her head slightly. "And working under Alpha River, no less. Such an... intimate position."
I didn’t flinch and replied calmly. "It’s just an internship."
"Oh, of course," she said with a tinkling laugh. "It’s just... most girls would kill for a chance like that. Especially when the Alphas are so... selective with who they let close."
I didn’t respond. Because there was nothing I could say that wouldn’t fuel the fire.
She took another step closer, and though her tone remained polite, her eyes sharpened.
"Let give you so advice, Evaline. This Academy thrives on balance. So of us have worked very hard to maintain that. When new variables arrive, especially rogue ones, it’s easy to upset the flow. That kind of imbalance can lead to... unfortunate consequences."
I t her gaze squarely as I asked, "Was that a threat?"
She smiled at that. "Of course not. Just a friendly warning."
Then she and her entourage turned and walked away with their laughter echoing down the hall like a pack of circling wolves.
- - -
By the ti I got back to the dorm that night, my muscles were aching and my mind was buzzing. Mallory and Noah both had tried to cheer up, but I could tell even they were feeling the pressure of association.
Kyros, however, didn’t mince words.
"She’s not done," he said as we stood outside our dorms after curfew check.
"I know," I said while hugging my arms to my chest. "But I’m not backing down."
"I didn’t expect you to," he replied. "But be careful. Celeste plays dirty. She’s been eyeing the Rogue Alphas for years. Especially Alpha River."
I laughed bitterly. "Then she’s wasting her ti. River hates ."
He gave a strange look. "Is that what you really think? Why would he even hate you?"
I paused and thought back to the way River had glared at . The way he had lost his temper. The way his gaze lingered just a second too long when he thought I wasn’t looking.
"I don’t know what to think," I said honestly, not being able to share the beef between and the Rogue Alphas.
"Then maybe don’t think at all," he said with a soft smile. "Just keep doing what you do best. Surviving."
But even as I crawled into bed that night, exhaustion pulling at like vines, my mind wasn’t on Celeste or the rumors or even the growing danger around .
It was on River.
On the heat of his eyes when we argued.
On the way Kieran’s voice had softened when he said I belonged here.
On the fact that sohow, despite everything, I was now tangled in a web of power, politics, and desire that I never asked for and couldn’t seem to escape.
But if they thought I was going to break... they had no idea who I really was.
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