By evening, Auriella and Penny were back in Ravenwood Hall, exhausted from their first day of classes.
"Come hang out in my room for a bit," Penny said as they climbed the stairs.
Auriella followed her to the second floor, grateful for the company.
Penny's room already felt cozy. She'd added fairy lights above her bed and a fuzzy throw blanket on the armchair. Auriella kicked off her shoes and curled up on the bed while Penny flopped into the chair.
"Okay, so," Penny said, pulling her knees up. "First day at our dream school. Thoughts?"
"Honestly? Weird. Not what I was thinking at all," Auriella said. "Those rules are so extreme. The curfew, the restricted buildings, lights out at midnight. This isn't what I imagined college would be like."
"Right? It's like a prison with really nice architecture." Penny shook her head. "At least the classes were good. The professor wasn't as scary as I thought he'd be."
"Yeah, he was actually interesting." Auriella smiled. "And the buildings really are as beautiful as Granny said. Gothic and grand, just like she described."
"True." Penny grinned. "Also, that Lincoln guy seems cool. Really friendly."
"Yeah, he was nice," Auriella agreed. "Helpful too. We would've gotten so lost without him."
"His cousin though?" Penny's eyes widened. "Celeste is... something else."
Auriella laughed. "She's obsessed with all the creepy stuff. Like, genuinely excited about murders and disappearances."
"She literally wants to break into the restricted buildings," Penny said. "I couldn't tell if she was serious or just messing with us."
"I think she was serious."
"That's terrifying." Penny shook her head, but she was smiling. "She's kind of fun though. In a weird, intense way."
"Yeah," Auriella said. "I liked her. Even if she is a little crazy."
They talked for a while longer about their professors, the other students they'd noticed, the massive dining hall with its vaulted ceilings. It felt good to just talk, to process everything together.
"Look," Penny said eventually, her tone becoming more serious. "I know today was overwhelming. But we're here. At Blackthorn. The top school in the country. Our dream school. Maybe the rules and everything else isn't what we expected, but we're still here."
"I know."
"So let's make a pact," Penny said, leaning forward. "We follow the rules. We stay out of trouble. No sneaking into abandoned buildings, no breaking curfew, none of that. We're here to get an amazing education and actually enjoy college life. Deal?"
Auriella held out her pinky. "Deal. And no parties, Penny."
Penny linked hers with it, and they both smiled.
"Of course. No parties, or boys, or drinking. I promise you that." Penny's voice softened. "We're going to be okay."
"Yeah," Auriella agreed. "We are."
An hour later, Auriella climbed the stairs to the third floor. The hallway was quiet, most students already settled in for the night. Classical music still played softly from the hidden speakers, filling the silence.
She unlocked her door and stepped inside, closing it gently behind her.
Her room looked peaceful in the moonlight streaming through the window. The forest beyond campus was dark now, the trees just shadows against the night sky.
Auriella freshened up, changed into her pajamas, and washed her face, going through the motions slowly. Her body ached with exhaustion—physical and emotional.
When she finally climbed into bed, she pulled the soft sheets up to her chin and stared at the ceiling.
She was here. At Blackthorn. The place Granny had always said she'd end up.
For as long as Auriella could remember, it had been just the two of them. No parents—they were gone before she had any real memories of them. No aunts, uncles, or cousins. Just her and Granny in that little house with the rose garden, baking bread on Sunday mornings and reading books by the fireplace.
Granny had raised her to be strong. Independent. To dream big and never settle.
And Blackthorn had always been part of that dream.
Auriella thought about the campus—the Gothic buildings that really did look like castles, just like Granny described. The stained glass windows. The ancient libraries. It was everything she'd imagined and more.
She just wished Granny could see it.
Auriella's chest tightened, but she pushed the ache away. She was here now. She'd made it. And tomorrow was a new day—new classes, new experiences, new possibilities.
She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
I'm letting go now, Granny. I promise you I'll do my very best.
Tomorrow, she'd start building the life Granny always wanted for her.
But tonight, she just needed to sleep.
Auriella closed her eyes, letting exhaustion pull her under.
And for the first time in weeks, she fell asleep peacefully, without fear.