Elias's Discovery

Elias's Discovery

POV: Elias

Something was wrong with Seth. I'd known it for weeks, if I was being honest. But the last few days have been different. Worse. Seth barely spoke anymore. I barely ate. Just went through the motions like a ghost, hollow and distant. And terrified. Always terrified.
I'd tried to help. Tried to joke, to lighten the mood, to be the friend Seth clearly needed. But every attempt hit a wall. Seth wouldn't let anyone close. Wouldn't accept comfort or support.
It was driving me crazy.So I did what any good friend would do. I decided to snoop. Not maliciously. I wasn't trying to betray Seth's trust. I just needed to understand what was happening. Why my friend was falling apart. Maybe if I knew what the problem was, I could actually help instead of just watching helplessly.
The opportunity came that afternoon. Seth had been called to meet with Kieran about the unit verification process. The barracks were empty except for me. Everyone else was at their assigned posts or attending mandatory briefings.
Perfect. I crossed to Seth's bunk, feeling only slightly guilty. Seth's trunk sat at the foot of the bed, locked with a simple clasp. The kind of lock that was more symbolic than secure. A knife blade popped it open in seconds.
"Sorry," I muttered to the empty room. "But you're my friend and you're suffering and I need to know why."
I lifted the lid carefully. Inside was the usual collection of cadet belongings. Spare uniform. Cleaning supplies for weapons. A whetstone. Some letters, though I didn't read those. That felt like crossing a line.
At the bottom, wrapped in an old shirt, was something unusual. I pulled it out, unfolding the fabric carefully. Strips of cloth. Long, wide strips of linen, soft from repeated use. The edges were carefully hemmed. There were faint stains on them, like they'd been washed many times but never quite came clean.
I stared at them, confused. What were these for? Then understanding hit me like a punch to the gut. Binding cloth. The kind used to flatten and hide a woman's chest.
"Oh," I whispered. The word fell into the empty room like a stone into still water. "Oh no."
My hands started shaking. I looked at the cloth again, seeing it properly now. Seeing what it meant. What it proved.
Seth wasn't a boy.
Seth was a girl. A woman. Hiding. Disguising herself in a military academy where women weren't allowed.
But why? Why go to such lengths? Why risk everything?
Magnus Blackclaw's words from the letter echoed in my memory. "I know my bride is hiding in your fort."
My stomach dropped.
No. It couldn't be. That was too much coincidence. But even as I tried to deny it, pieces were clicking together in my mind. Seth's terror when Magnus's name was mentioned. The way those wolves had called him "little bird" during the attack. The desperate, hunted look in his eyes. Her eyes.
"Oh, Seth," I breathed. "What did you run from?"
I carefully rewrapped the binding cloth in the shirt and placed it back at the bottom of the trunk. Everything else went back exactly as I'd found it. The lock clicked shut. From the outside, nothing looked disturbed. But inside my head, everything had changed.
I sat on my own bunk, head in my hands. My friend was a woman hiding from Magnus Blackclaw. Probably his missing bride. Definitely in terrible danger.
What was I supposed to do with this information? Tell someone? Turn her in? That felt like betrayal of the worst kind. Seth had trusted me. Had been my friend even when she was drowning in her own fear. I couldn't just hand her over to face whatever Magnus had planned.
But keeping quiet was dangerous too. If they found her and discovered I'd known, I'd be labeled a conspirator. Court-martialed. Maybe executed for aiding a fugitive.
I thought about Seth. Really thought about her. The way she'd saved my life during the convoy attack, throwing herself between me and a wolf without hesitation. The quiet kindness she showed even when she was terrified. The loneliness in her eyes when she thought no one was looking. She'd been carrying this alone for months. Running. Hiding. Afraid every single moment.
The decision was surprisingly easy. I was going to help her. Whatever that meant. Whatever the cost. Because that's what friends did. They stood by each other when things got hard. And things were about to get very hard.
++++++
I found Seth in the stables that evening. She was grooming one of the horses, her movements mechanical and distant. The horse, a gentle mare named Frost, seemed to sense something was wrong. She kept turning to nuzzle Seth's shoulder, offering comfort the way animals sometimes did.
Seth didn't notice. She just kept brushing, over and over the same spot, lost in her own thoughts. I leaned against the stall door, watching for a moment. She looked so small. So tired. How had I not seen it before? The slightly different build. The careful way she moved. The binding that must have made breathing uncomfortable.
"Hey," I said quietly.
Seth jumped, spinning around. Her hand flew to the knife at her belt. Then she saw it was me and relaxed slightly. "Elias. You scared me."
"Sorry." I stepped into the stall, closing the door behind me. "Didn't mean to sneak up on you."
"It's fine." She turned back to the horse, resuming her brushing. "Just jumpy. Haven't been sleeping well."
"I noticed." I moved closer, trying to figure out how to start this conversation. How to let her know I knew without making her panic. "Seth, we need to talk."
"About what?"
"About secrets." I took a breath. "About things people hide when they're scared."
Her hand stilled on the brush. "I don't know what you mean."
"I think you do."
The silence stretched between us. Frost shifted, sensing the tension. Seth's shoulders were rigid, her whole body coiled tight like a spring about to snap.
"Elias," she said carefully. "What are you trying to say?"
This was it. The moment where our friendship either survived or shattered. I chose my words carefully.
"So," I said, trying to keep my tone casual despite my racing heart. "When were you going to tell me you're a girl? Before or after Magnus Blackclaw drags you away in chains?"
Seth went completely still. The brush fell from her hand, hitting the straw-covered floor with a soft thud. For three heartbeats, she didn't move. Didn't breathe. Then she turned to face me. Her face was white as snow. Her eyes were wide, terrified, like a cornered animal.
"I don't..." she started. Her voice was barely audible. "I'm not..."
"Don't lie to me." I kept my voice gentle but firm. "I found the binding cloth. I put the pieces together. And honestly, Seth, or whoever you really are, I'm not angry. I'm not going to turn you in. I just want to help."
"You can't help me." The words came out broken. "Nobody can help me."
"Let me try."
"You don't understand what you're offering. If Magnus finds out you knew, if he discovers you helped me hide, he'll kill you. Slowly. Painfully. He'll make an example of you."
"Then we'd better make sure he doesn't find out." I crossed my arms. "Look, I'm not stupid. I know this is dangerous. But you're my friend. And friends don't abandon each other when things get scary."
Tears were forming in her eyes. She blinked them back furiously. "Why are you doing this?"
"Because you saved my life during that convoy attack. Remember? That wolf had me pinned and you threw yourself at it without thinking twice. You could have died." I smiled slightly. "Seems only fair I return the favor."
"That was different."
"How?"
"That was just one wolf. This is Magnus Blackclaw. This is an entire pack. An army. You can't fight that."
"Maybe not alone." I stepped closer. "But I'm not the only one who knows, am I? Kieran figured it out. Probably Talon too. And I'd bet Aelis suspects. So you're not as alone as you think."
Seth, no, Seraphina, I reminded myself, looked like she might collapse. "This is a nightmare."
"Yeah." I picked up the fallen brush and handed it back to her. "But nightmares end. And until this one does, you've got people on your side. Whether you want us there or not."
She took the brush with trembling hands. "I don't know what to say."
"Start with your real name." I leaned against the stall wall. "Because I'm tired
of calling you Seth when that's clearly not who you are."