Chapter 36 The Friend Group Intervention
POV: LUNA
I couldn't focus in class. Again. Professor Cael was teaching something about magical resonance and energy transference. Something that would probably be important later.
All I heard was white noise.
My mind kept replaying Miguel's voice through the charm. The fear. The pain. The desperate warning that something was coming for him.
I'd spent the entire morning in the library before class. Research that probably looked suspicious to anyone paying attention. Campus ward structures. Magical barriers and their weak points. Transportation spells. Anything that could help me get off campus without triggering alarms.
Just curiosity. That's what I'd tell anyone who asked.
Except I was a terrible liar. And apparently, people were paying attention.
"Miss Eclipse."
I jerked my head up. Professor Cael was staring at me. The entire class was staring at me.
"Yes?"
"I asked you to identify the primary risk of unstabilized energy transference."
I had no idea what he'd been talking about. "Um. Magical backlash?"
"That's one risk. But not the primary one. Perhaps if you were paying attention, you'd know the answer is complete energy depletion. Potentially fatal."
"Sorry. I'll focus."
But I didn't focus. Couldn't. My mind was a thousand miles away. Or however far Miguel was from here.
The charm was in my pocket. I kept touching it. Making sure it was still there. Still warm. Still connected.
Class finally ended. I gathered my things quickly. Trying to leave before anyone could corner me with questions I didn't want to answer.
"Luna. Wait up."
Nova's voice. Of course. She'd been watching me all day with that worried expression. The one that said she knew something was wrong and she was going to fix it whether I wanted her to or not.
"I need to get to the training grounds. Ryder's expecting me."
"Ryder can wait. We need to talk."
"About what?"
Nova didn't answer. Just grabbed my arm. Her grip firm. Not painful, but not letting go either.
Marcus appeared on my other side. Blocking my exit path. His expression serious. Concerned.
"She's right," he said quietly. "This has gone on long enough."
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb," Nova said. She started guiding me toward one of the empty classrooms near the back of the building. "We're talking. Now."
I didn't have the energy to fight. My body was exhausted from last night's training. My mind spinning from the dream. From Miguel's warning. From the impossible weight of everything happening at once.
I let them lead me inside the classroom.
Darius was already there. Leaning against the teacher's desk. Arms crossed. That calculating expression on his face that meant he'd been planning this. Thinking it through.
"What is he doing here?"
"Same thing we are," Marcus said. He closed the door behind us. The click echoing in the empty room. "Staging an intervention."
"An intervention for what? I'm fine."
Nova laughed. Actually laughed. But there was no humor in it. "You're not fine. You haven't been fine for days. And we're done pretending we don't notice."
She pointed at a desk. "Sit."
"I don't need to—"
"Sit, Luna."
The tone left no room for argument. I sat.
Nova paced in front of me. Marcus leaned against the wall. Darius stayed where he was. All three of them watching me like I was a problem that needed solving.
"Okay," Nova said. She stopped pacing. Faced me directly. "We need to talk about the fact that you're clearly planning something stupid."
"I'm not planning anything."
"Don't lie to us," Marcus said. His voice gentle but firm. "You've been researching escape routes from campus. I saw your search history in the library system. You're not as subtle as you think."
My face flushed. I'd thought I'd been careful. Used different terminals. Cleared my history.
Apparently not careful enough.
"And asking about ward weaknesses," Darius added. He pulled out his phone. Showed me a screenshot. Questions I'd asked in the campus forum. Anonymous, but he'd clearly traced them back to me somehow. "That's not casual curiosity, Eclipse. That's reconnaissance."
My stomach dropped. They'd been watching. Tracking. Noticing every move I made.
"I'm just curious about the security. How things work. It's not—"
"Bull," Nova said flatly. She crossed her arms. "You're going to go after Miguel, aren't you?"
The accusation hung in the air. Heavy. Undeniable. True.
I wanted to deny it. To lie. To convince them they were wrong and I was just stressed about the challenge tomorrow.
But I'd never been good at lying to my friends. And right now, with all three of them staring at me with that mixture of concern and frustration, I couldn't even pretend.
My hands were shaking. I clasped them together. Tried to steady my voice.
"He's in danger. Real danger. The dream-link. The charm glowing. He warned me something was coming for him. I can't just sit here and do nothing while he's—"
"Yes, you can," Darius interrupted. His voice cold. Logical. Infuriatingly rational. "That's exactly what you do. You stay here. You train. You survive the challenge tomorrow. You deal with Miguel after. If there's anything left to deal with."
The casual cruelty of that last sentence hit like a physical blow.
"There might not be an after! That thing hunting him could kill him before the challenge even happens. Before I get a chance to help. And then what? I just live with the fact that I could have done something and chose not to?"
"And if you leave campus unauthorized, they'll expel you," Darius continued. He pushed off the desk. Stepped closer. "Or worse. Breaking confinement during a crisis situation. That's not just detention, Eclipse. That's removal from the academy. Possibly exile from all pack territories."
"I don't care about—"
"You should care," Marcus cut in. His voice quiet but intense. "Because exile means no protection. No pack bonds. No support system. You'd be completely vulnerable to whatever's hunting you. Is that what Miguel would want? For you to sacrifice everything trying to save him? To throw away your life, your future, your safety? For what might already be a lost cause?"
The logic was sound. Rational. Everything I'd been trying not to think about since the charm had glowed in my hands.
But logic didn't erase the guilt. Didn't make the fear go away.
"He's in danger because of me," I said. My voice breaking. "The research said it. Darius said it. Miguel's marked because of his connection to me. Because we used to date. Because he still cares about me. That makes him a target. And if he dies because of that. Because of me. How am I supposed to live with that?"
"You live with it the same way everyone lives with impossible choices," Darius said. "You accept that some things are out of your control. That you can't save everyone. That survival sometimes means letting people go."
"That's easy for you to say. You don't care about anyone."
"I care about not being an idiot. Which is more than I can say for you right now."
Nova stepped between us. "Okay. Fighting isn't helping. Luna. Look at me."
I did. Her eyes were soft. Worried. Scared.
"We get it," she said gently. "We understand why you want to help. Miguel was your first boyfriend. Your first kiss. Your connection to the life you had before all this supernatural chaos. Of course you feel responsible. Of course you want to save him."
"But?" I prompted. Because there was always a but.
"But what if it's a trap?" Marcus said quietly. He moved closer. Knelt down so he was eye level with me. "Think about it, Luna. Really think. Miguel gets dream-links to you. Warns you about danger. The charm starts glowing. He tells you he's being hunted. Everything pointing you toward leaving campus. Toward going to him. Doesn't that seem convenient?"
"You think someone's manipulating the dream-links? Using Miguel as bait?"
"I think it's possible. And you need to consider that possibility before you do something that gets you killed."
I wanted to argue. To say they were wrong. That Miguel would never be part of a trap. That the connection between us was real and pure and untainted by whatever darkness was hunting us.
But I couldn't be sure. Not completely. Not when everything else about this situation was manipulated and orchestrated.
"What if you're wrong?" I asked. "What if it's not a trap? What if Miguel really is in danger and I'm the only one who can help him? What if I stay here, focus on the challenge, and he dies while I'm safe behind these walls?"
"Then he dies," Darius said bluntly. "And you live. And you use that anger, that grief, that guilt, to fuel your fight against whatever's hunting you. You turn his death into purpose instead of letting it destroy you."
"That's horrible."
"That's survival. Welcome to the real world, Eclipse. It's not pretty."
Nova shot Darius a look. Then turned back to me. "What he's trying to say, in his terrible way, is that you're not thinking clearly. You're emotional. Scared. Guilty. That's when people make mistakes. Fatal mistakes. And we're not going to let you make that mistake."
"So what? You're going to lock me in my room until after the challenge?"
"If we have to," Marcus said. He didn't sound like he was joking.
Silence fell. Heavy. Oppressive. All of us knowing this was an impossible situation with no good answers.
I slumped in my chair. Defeated. Exhausted. They were right. I knew they were right.
But that didn't make it easier.
"So what do I do?" I asked quietly. "Just wait? Hope he survives until I can help? Pray that whatever's hunting him takes its time?"
No one answered. Because there was no good answer to give.
Then Nova sighed. Long. Defeated. Like she was giving up on something she believed in.
"Look," she said slowly. "If you're going to do something stupid. At least let us help."
I looked up sharply. "What?"
"You heard me. If you're set on this. If nothing we say will change your mind. Then we help. We make sure you don't get yourself killed doing it alone."
Marcus stared at her like she'd lost her mind. "Wait, we're HELPING her break the rules?"
"Apparently."
"This is insane. We could all get expelled. Or worse. You just spent ten minutes explaining why this was a terrible idea and now you're—"
"I know what I said," Nova interrupted. She looked at him steadily. "And I meant it. This is a terrible idea. Probably the worst idea we've ever had. But Luna's going to do it anyway. With or without us. And I'd rather be there to help than sit here wondering if she's dead."
Marcus ran his hands through his hair. Paced. Stopped. Paced again.
"This is insane," he repeated. But his voice was weaker now. Giving in.
"Completely insane," Nova agreed. "But we're doing it anyway. Right?"
Marcus groaned. "I'm going to regret this. I know I'm going to regret this."
"Probably," Nova said. She almost smiled. "But you're in, right?"
He was quiet for a long moment. Then sighed. "Yeah. I'm in. Goddess help me, I'm in."
Nova turned to me. "See? We're all idiots together. You're not alone in this."
I wanted to cry. Or hug her. Or both. "You'd really risk that? Expulsion? Exile? All of that? For me?"
"You're my best friend. Of course I would. What kind of friend would I be if I let you run off to possible death without backup?"
I looked at Marcus. He shrugged. "What she said. Plus, someone needs to be the voice of reason when you two inevitably do something even more stupid than the original stupid plan."
Despite everything. Despite the fear and stress and impossible situation. I almost smiled.
Then we all looked at Darius. He'd been quiet through this whole exchange. Watching. Calculating. His expression unreadable.
"Don't look at me," he said finally. "I think this is the stupidest plan I've ever heard. And I've heard a lot of stupid plans."
"But?" Nova prompted.
Darius was quiet. Considering. His fingers drumming against his phone.
"But," he said slowly. "I'm not letting you idiots get yourselves killed without supervision. Someone needs to make sure this disaster has at least a chance of not ending in everyone's death."
"So you're helping?" I asked. Not quite believing it.
"I'm preventing you from dying in the dumbest way possible. There's a difference."
"I'll take it."
Darius straightened. Pulled out his phone again. Scrolled through something. "My father has a transport spell he taught me. Illegal, but effective."