Chapter 2
*A bell rang*
Freya's expression changed.
"Oh," she said. "It's early."
"What's early?" I asked.
She took my hand, her skin was cold.
"Your welcome test," she replied. "Try not to scream."
The walls whispered my name again.
And this time—i couldn't stop it.
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Freya didn't let go of my hand until the bell stopped ringing. When it finally did, the sound didn't fade—it sank, like it had slipped under the floorboards to wait.
"You can breathe now," she said.
I realized I'd been holding my breath and sucked in air that tasted faintly of dust and rain.
"What do you mean, welcome test?" I asked. "And why does this place keep—talking?"
Freya tilted her head, studying me like I was a puzzle with missing pieces. "You really don't know."
"Know what?"
"That Blackthorn isn't a school." She smiled faintly. "It's a border."
My skin prickled. "A border between what and what?"
She didn't answer right away. Instead, she crossed the room and pressed her palm to the wall. The stone rippled under her touch.
The wall breathed out.
I staggered back. "Freya—what did you just do?"
She withdrew her hand. The stone stilled, smooth and innocent again.
"I asked it to listen," she said.
"You can do that?"
"I can do worse."
Her tone wasn't proud. It was tired.
She sat on the edge of her bed and patted the space beside her. After a moment, I sat too, keeping a careful distance.
"I'm not human," Freya said casually.
I laughed once, sharp and brittle. "That's not funny."
"I didn't say monster," she replied. "You did."
I swallowed.
"What are you, then?"
She rolled up her sleeve.
The markings along her wrist flared softly—thin silver lines branching like veins made of moonlight. They shifted, rearranging themselves into symbols I somehow understood without reading.
"I'm a warden," Freya said. "Or what's left of one."
"For the school?"
"No." Her eyes darkened. "For what's beneath it."
The floor creaked.
Something far below us moved.
"I arrived here twelve years ago," she continued. "Same as you, letter, no choice. First day felt wrong."
My chest tightened. "What happened to you?"
"The school kept me."
She smiled again, but it didn't reach her eyes. "It offered a deal, protection in exchange for loyalty."
"Loyalty to what?"
"To balance," she said. "To sacrifice."
The word scraped my nerves raw.
"Students disappear," I whispered.
"Yes."
"And you—"
"I make sure it isn't everyone," Freya finished quietly.
Silence stretched between us.
"You're lying," I said, even though my voice lacked conviction.
Freya met my gaze. "You can hear the walls. That means it's already watching you."
As if summoned, the stone hummed softly.
Elara, it whispered, come closer it said.
My vision blurred.
Freya grabbed my wrist. "Don't answer."
"What happens if I do?"
Her grip tightened. "You become mine."
The room darkened.
The symbols on Freya's skin burned brighter, crawling up her arm and disappearing beneath her collar. Her eyes flashed silver for just a second—inhuman, endless.
The floor cracked.
¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶¶
A shadow seeped from beneath the bed, stretching, reaching.
Freya stood, placing herself between me and the darkness.
"It's too soon," she said sharply. "She hasn't chosen yet."
The shadow paused, and then slowly withdrew, as the lights snapped back on immediately.
Freya sagged, breathing hard.
"You can't protect me forever," I said softly.
She looked at me and for the first time, I saw fear.
"No," she agreed. "That's why you scare me."
Another bell rang.
It was the time for attendance, the school murmured.
Freya released my wrist.
"Welcome to Blackthorn," she said. "If you survive the week, I'll tell you the rest."
The door unlocked itself.
As I stepped into the hallway, I felt it again—that pull, that attention.
Behind me, Freya whispered something under her breath. And somewhere beneath the school—
Something answered