Haah!
I gasped, my eyes flying open as I jerked upright.
"Where am I?"
The sterile white ceiling of an unfamiliar room swam into focus on me.
I still remembered the lingering images from that strange penalty.
I didn't understand what it was, but I still couldn't help but think of that betrayal.
"You're awake," a soft voice said beside me.
I turned my head, wincing at the dull throb that accompanied the movement.
Principal Kiera sat in a chair next to my bed, her crimson eyes watching me with a mixture of concern and something else I couldn't quite identify.
Guilt, perhaps?
It took me a moment to realize I was in the academy infirmary.
The antiseptic smell, the pristine sheets, the privacy curtains partially drawn around my bed—all of it screamed medical facility.
"What happened?" I asked, though I knew perfectly well.
Kiera's shoulders slumped slightly, her usual perfect posture giving way to something more human.
