The summons arrived before breakfast.
Freya was halfway through lacing her boots when a sharp knock cut through the dormitory's morning hush. She opened the door to find a younger Verdant student standing stiffly in the hallway, eyes wide.
"The prefects are asking for you," he blurted. "Now."
The words landed like a dropped stone.
Behind her, Sera froze mid-motion. They exchanged a look. Neither of them needed to ask why.
"Thanks," Freya said quietly.
The messenger nodded and vanished down the corridor.
Silence settled in the room. Inky watched from the windowsill, tail flicking once. Freya felt the faint echo of yesterday's duel stir in her chest. Not regret. Something more complicated.
"Well," Sera said, forcing a thin smile. "That was fast."
Freya finished tying her boots. Her fingers were steady. That surprised her.
"Come on," she said.
The walk to the prefect chamber stretched longer than usual. Students filled the corridors in low, buzzing clusters. Conversations dipped as Freya passed. Eyes followed her with open curiosity.
Word had traveled.
The prefect chamber sat tucked in a quiet wing overlooking the inner gardens. Its door stood slightly ajar. Freya knocked once and stepped inside.
Lysara stood at the center of the room. Two other Verdant prefects flanked her, their expressions composed. Morning light filtered through tall windows, painting pale shapes across the floor.
"Freya Valemont," Lysara said. "Close the door."
The click echoed softly.
For a heartbeat, no one spoke. The air felt measured. Deliberate.
"We're going to be direct," Lysara continued. "We are aware of the duel that occurred yesterday."
Freya met her gaze. "Yes."
"You engaged in unsanctioned combat," one of the other prefects said evenly. "In a public space. Without instructor supervision."
Each phrase landed like a careful weight.
Freya nodded once. "I did."
Sera shifted beside her, tension coiled in her shoulders. Freya could feel her friend's urge to speak. She reached out and brushed her fingers lightly against Sera's sleeve. A silent request.
Let me.
Lysara's eyes flicked briefly to the gesture, then back to Freya.
"Do you understand why that is a problem?" she asked.
"Yes," Freya said. "It sets a precedent."
A faint spark of approval flashed in Lysara's gaze.
"Good," the prefect replied. "Because that precedent matters. If every insult or provocation ends in steel, the academy becomes a battlefield. We cannot allow that."
The words were firm. Public-facing. Freya heard the shape of them. The message they were meant to carry beyond this room.
And yet.
Lysara stepped closer. Her voice lowered by a fraction.
"However," she said quietly, "we are not blind to context."
The air shifted.
"The Pyros students were harassing a Verdant member," Lysara continued. "Repeatedly. You intervened to stop an escalation."
Freya's chest tightened. She held still.
"That instinct," the prefect said, "to protect your house… is not something we discourage."
The admission hung between them, careful and controlled.
"But," the second prefect added, voice crisp, "we cannot publicly endorse unsanctioned duels. If we do, we invite chaos."
Freya understood. This conversation existed in two layers. One spoken for the record. One threaded quietly beneath it.
"So here is how this will proceed," Lysara said.
She straightened, her tone sharpening back into official cadence.
"You will receive a formal reprimand for engaging in unsanctioned combat. The Pyros students will receive the same, with additional penalties for harassment. This will be announced in neutral terms."
Sera exhaled softly beside her.
"Publicly," Lysara said, her eyes steady on Freya's, "the academy condemns the duel."
The words were clear. Unambiguous.
Then, softer:
"Privately… we acknowledge that you stepped in where others hesitated."
Freya felt something settle in her chest. Not vindication. Recognition.
"You defended Verdant," Lysara continued. "That carries weight. But understand this: power is not only the act of drawing steel. It is knowing when to escalate and when to call upon the structures meant to handle conflict."
Her gaze sharpened.
"Next time," she said, "you come to us first. If we fail to act, then you step forward. Do you understand?"
The trust implicit in the statement struck deeper than any reprimand.
"Yes," Freya said quietly. "I understand."
For a moment, silence stretched. The tension in the room eased by a fraction.
"Good," Lysara said.
She turned slightly, signaling the conversation's official end. But as Freya and Sera moved toward the door, the prefect's voice stopped them.
"Freya."
She looked back.
Lysara's expression had softened, just a shade.
"Yesterday," she said, "you reminded the academy that Verdant does not abandon its own. That matters. Do not forget it."
Freya inclined her head. The words lodged warm and steady in her chest.
They stepped back into the corridor. The door closed behind them with a quiet finality.
Sera let out a long breath. "That went… better than I expected."
Freya nodded. Students glanced at them as they passed, curiosity still bright in their eyes. Rumors would spin regardless of what the prefects announced. That was the nature of the academy.
But beneath the whispers, Freya carried something solid.
A line had been drawn. Not to cage her. To guide her.
And for the first time since the duel, the weight of it felt less like restraint and more like balance.
The formal notice came at midday.
It appeared on the central announcement board in crisp black lettering, framed by the academy seal. Students clustered around it in tight rings, voices rising in a low, excited hum.
Freya and Sera approached through the crowd. The noise dipped as they drew near. Eyes tracked them openly now. Curiosity had ripened into expectation.
Freya read the notice once, then again.
Official Disciplinary Hearing
Involved parties in the unsanctioned duel of the previous evening are to report to Chamber Three at the sixth bell. Witnesses may be called.
A hearing.
So this was the public half.
Sera exhaled slowly. "They're making a show of it."
"They have to," Freya said quietly. "If they don't, it looks like favoritism."
The sixth bell arrived too quickly.
Chamber Three was already half full when they entered. Tiered seating curved around a central floor marked by a simple circle. Students filled the benches in restless waves, their whispers threading into a constant murmur.
At the far end, a raised platform held three prefects and a single instructor observer. Lysara sat at the center, her posture immaculate. The room quieted as Freya stepped into the circle opposite the Pyros student she had dueled.
He avoided her eyes.
The instructor rose. His voice carried easily.
"This hearing concerns the unsanctioned duel that occurred yesterday evening. We will establish context, intent, and consequence. This is not spectacle. It is instruction."
The last word settled heavily in the air.
"Witness," Lysara called.
The Verdant boy stepped forward. His hands trembled, but he lifted his chin as he entered the circle. Freya caught his eye and offered the smallest nod. He steadied.
"They were cornering me," he said, voice thin but clear. "I tried to leave. They wouldn't let me."
The Pyros student shifted, jaw tightening.
"I didn't ask her to step in," the boy continued. "But I'm… glad she did."
A ripple moved through the benches.
The Pyros student was questioned next. His answers were clipped, defensive. Pride warred with the weight of the room's attention.
"It was just talk," he insisted. "It didn't have to become a duel."
"You accepted the challenge," Lysara said evenly.
Silence.
Finally, Freya stepped forward.
"Why did you intervene?" the instructor asked.
The room seemed to lean in.
Freya considered the question. She could dress it in strategy or house politics. She chose the truth.
"Because no one else did," she said.
The words fell clean and unadorned.
"He was being cornered," she continued. "And it was escalating. I made a decision."
A beat of silence followed. Not empty. Full.
Lysara's gaze held hers. Something like approval flickered there, quickly masked.
The prefects conferred in low voices. The chamber buzzed softly, tension coiling tight. When Lysara stood, the noise died instantly.
"This academy does not tolerate harassment," she said. "Nor does it tolerate unsanctioned combat."
Her voice was calm, precise. Each word slotted into place with deliberate care.
"The Pyros students involved will lose house points and serve disciplinary duty for initiating the conflict. Freya Valemont will receive a formal reprimand for engaging in unsanctioned combat."
A collective breath moved through the room.
"These measures are not contradiction," Lysara continued. "They are balance. Intent matters. So does structure. You are all training to wield power. Power without restraint is chaos. Restraint without courage is impotence."
Her gaze swept the chamber.
"Learn the difference."
The words settled into the bones of the room.
The hearing adjourned. Students rose in a rustle of fabric and murmurs. Conversations ignited instantly, speculation sparking from bench to bench.
Freya stepped out of the circle. The Verdant boy caught her arm briefly.
"Thank you," he said again, steadier this time.
She nodded. "Next time, call for help sooner."
"I will."
As he melted back into the crowd, Freya felt the atmosphere shift around her. The whispers were different now. Less sharp. More measured.
Respect threaded through them.
Sera appeared at her side, eyes bright. "You handled that perfectly."
Freya released a slow breath she hadn't realized she was holding. The tension that had knotted her shoulders since morning eased by a fraction.
"They handled it perfectly," she corrected softly.
Above them, the academy resumed its restless rhythm. Students dispersed into the corridors carrying the lesson with them. Conflict, consequence, balance.
Freya felt the weight of the reprimand settle into place. It did not sting as she had feared. It felt… instructive. A boundary drawn not to confine her, but to shape the path ahead.
Inky brushed lightly against her ankle as they turned to leave. His presence was steady, watchful.
The duel had been a spark. The hearing was the echo that taught the room how to listen to it.
And as Freya stepped back into the flow of the academy, she carried both the reprimand and the recognition with equal care.