Page 38 of A Dusk Of Stars

It makes me feel sorry for both of them, when the unexpected defiance in his voice makes me suddenly become aware of how isolated they are here at the Academy. I’ve never seen them with anyone else, and they’re among the rare few who are repeating the first year.

I make myself snap out of it. “Well,” I finally say, “to each his own. So you’re definitely not coming to Foundational?”

He shakes his head.

“Raven?” I turn to ask her.

“No, you’re not,” Alaric says as he leans a little closer to her. “You’re staying here with me. You should let weird, powerless shifter ladies fend for themselves.”

I snort out a laugh. “That’s some solid advice there, Alaric. I think you’re one of those people who are simply too mature for school.”

He throws me a playful scowl.

“Um,” Raven starts hesitantly.

I turn to look at her. She’s getting up and motioning for the two of us to step aside. A little surprised, I nod and I follow, finding myself walking around the yard with her.

“I could help you,” she tells me in a low voice, “if it’s shifting that’s still troubling you. You can rely on me, Anna.”

“That’s really sweet, Raven,” I say as I come to a stop to throw her a grateful look, ignoring how uneasy the words make me.

When has relying on others ever gotten me anything but trouble?

Everything I’ve done in my life so far, I’ve had to do on my own.

Why shouldthisbe any different?

But that makes an idea start to take shape in my head.

“Maybe I could pass the mid-term examwithoutshifting,” I say, more to myself. “I mean, it’s an obstacle course, isn’t it?” I don’t wait for an answer. “Why shouldn’t I try to pass it as Anna the human instead of Anna the shifter?”

“No, Anna,” Raven says with conviction in her voice, “I don’t think there’s ever been ahumanwho passed it.”

“Of course there hasn’t,” I say with growing excitement. I throw her a mischievous smile. “But only because none have ever been given a chance.”

Chapter 15

The students walking through the door all seem to carry the smells of the cold November day outside. It’s in hushed voices that we keep cross-examining each other from our seats behind the Service Desk, although I do have to keep reminding Alaric that we’re at my place of work, which also happens to be a Library.

It’s a favor I’m grateful for — that they’re choosing to study with me while I’m working. I’m particularly grateful because these days, I’m just too tired from juggling so many things at the same time. Between regular and special classes, studying for all the mid-term exams and struggling with my shifting, I barely have any time to spare to get a good night’s sleep, let alone do anything else.

“What are the phases of the moon that make a shifter most lethargic?” Raven recites, the last word turning into a soft yawn. I guess I’m not the only one who’s tired.

I catch Alaric looking at her with this warm intensity that brings a smile to my face. He hasn’t been bothering much with the right answers, more with getting Raven to laugh, that is,smileat his jokes.

I look up at the ceiling, trying to come up with the answer. “Crescent,” I say hesitantly, and I look down to see what kind of look Raven will give me.

She presses her lips tight, which in this case doesn’t seem to be a smile, but a grimace telling me I got it wrong. Damn it. The Foundational exam istomorrow.

I let out a soft groan. “Alright, I’ll remember next time. Hit me with another one.”

“What are the five characteristics of a mate bond?” she recites from the workbook.

“Trick question,” I say with confidence. “Thereareno universal characteristics apart from just… knowing. It doesn’t even necessarily go both ways. Though thereisthe fact of the other person’s scent being irresistible.”

When she gives me a look telling me I got it right, I ask for another one.

“How does an unsuccessful shift affect the body?” she recites from the workbook.

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