Chapter Eighty
The cabin was quiet, the chaos of the gala and the council chamber finally behind them. The night stretched soft and calm, the kind of stillness that only came when they were all together.
In their room, Riven, Kael, and Lucien were sprawled across the bed and chairs, half-dressed for sleep but still deep in debate.
“I was going to go business,” Kael muttered, running a hand through his hair. “It made sense. Pack management, trade, logistics. But now…” He gestured vaguely toward Avery, toward the bond that tied them all together. “Now everything’s different.”
Lucien leaned back, thoughtful. “I was set on information gathering. Intelligence, networks, the kind of work that keeps us ahead of threats. But with Avery, with all of us… it feels too narrow. Like I’d be cutting myself off from what we actually need.”
Riven snorted, tugging at the hem of his shirt. “Military. That was the plan. Strategy, combat, command. But that was before I had a mate. Before I had this. Before I realized I don’t just want to fight — I want to protect. And that’s not the same thing.”
On the other side of the room, Avery and Molly sat cross-legged on the bed, brushing out their hair and listening with barely concealed amusement.
“They’re hopeless,” Molly whispered, her violet fairy glowing faintly in her curls.
Avery smothered a laugh, Silver flickering with shared mirth on her shoulder. “Completely hopeless. And I’m not helping them. Not yet.”
The boys continued to flounder, tossing out half-formed ideas — diplomacy, teaching, even architecture at one point — each suggestion more desperate than the last.
Avery and Molly exchanged a glance, then dissolved into quiet giggles, muffling the sound behind their hands.
Finally, Riven groaned, flopping back against the pillows. “We’re doomed. We’ll be the only ones without majors. The council will laugh us out of the room.”
Lucien rolled his eyes. “Dramatic.”
Kael pointed at Avery, narrowing his gaze. “You’re enjoying this.”
Avery’s lips curved into a regal, knowing smile — the same one she’d given Londrell at the gala. “Immensely.”
Molly laughed outright, falling back onto the bed. “Let them suffer a little longer. It builds character.”
The bond hummed with warmth, laughter threading through it. For a moment, there was no prophecy, no looming war, no shadows waiting in the dark.
Just five souls, tangled together, floundering and giggling their way toward tomorrow.
The sun had barely crested the horizon when Avery laced up her shoes and stepped outside. The air was cool, the forest quiet, and Lucien was already waiting at the edge of the porch, stretching with quiet focus.
They didn’t speak much as they ran — they didn’t need to. Their bond pulsed steady between them, a rhythm that matched the beat of their feet on the trail.
Riven and Kael had left earlier, heading to the school with Auron, Mark, and Wulph to set up the morning training program. They’d promised to be back in time for breakfast, and Avery trusted them to keep their word.
Back at the cabin, Molly woke to an empty room. She moved through her morning ritual with practiced ease — stretching, washing, braiding her hair — before drifting toward the kitchen, drawn by the scent of cinnamon and something sweet.
Elena was already there, sleeves rolled up, flour dusting her cheek, moving with the graceful efficiency of someone who found peace in the rhythm of cooking.
“Auron and Mark went with the boys,” she said without turning. “Remy’s with the seers. So I thought I’d make breakfast. And a few treats.”
Molly smiled, stepping forward. “Can I help?”
Elena glanced over, her eyes warm. “Of course. I was just about to start the dumplings.”
Molly rolled up her sleeves, eager. She loved learning how to make Avery’s favorite things — the dishes that made her eyes light up, the ones she always reached for first.
They worked side by side, laughter soft, flour flying, the kitchen filling with warmth and scent and the quiet joy of shared purpose.
Outside, Avery and Lucien turned back toward the cabin, the run winding down.
Inside, the table was beginning to fill with food, and the day — whatever it might bring — was already off to a perfect start.
The cabin buzzed with energy that morning, a different kind of excitement than the nights of strategy and war. Avery and Molly were practically glowing, their laughter spilling into the kitchen as they helped Elena set the last of breakfast on the table. It was the first day of college. For all the weight of prophecy, council chambers, and looming threats, this felt like a milestone that belonged just to them.
Avery had spent the night before in quiet conversation with Dean Errol, her decision finally spoken aloud. Diagnostic medicine.
She loved the lab, the puzzle of it, the way problems unraveled when you looked at them from the right angle. It wasn’t just science to her — it was a way of thinking, a way of approaching the world. And she knew it would serve her everywhere: in the council chambers, at the royal table, in the moments when clarity and precision would mean the difference between peace and war.
Her parents knew. Auron and Remy had both agreed it was the best path for her. And her uncle, the King of Werewolves, had been nearly giddy at the thought of her turning that sharp mind toward the good of their people.
But her mates? She hadn’t told them yet.
She wanted them to find their own way, to realize they could choose freely, not just follow the paths they had once thought inevitable. So she kept her secret close, a quiet ember of joy she would share when the time was right.
At the table, the boys were still debating majors, their voices overlapping in half-serious arguments.
“Business makes sense,” Kael muttered, stabbing at his eggs. “But it feels… small now.”
Lucien shook his head. “Information gathering is useful, but I don’t want to be boxed in. Not when everything is shifting.”
Riven groaned. “Military was the plan. But now? I don’t know. I don’t want to just fight. I want to build something.”
Avery and Molly exchanged a glance, barely suppressing their laughter.
“Let them flounder,” Avery whispered, her eyes sparkling.
Molly grinned. “It builds character.”
As the meal wound down, the excitement of the day ahead settled over them. Books, classes, new faces — and beneath it all, the knowledge that they were not just students, but leaders in the making.
Avery tucked her secret close, her heart steady.
Today, they stepped into the world as college students. Tomorrow, they would shape it as rulers.