The morning light slanted golden through the carriage windows, illuminating motes of floating magic dust that danced like fireflies around Kaelith's head. She sat with perfect posture chin up, shoulders back, legs crossed at the ankle but her mind?
Chaos.
Not the quiet kind. Not the polite kind that could be managed with tea and breathing exercises.
The unfiltered, messy, Kaelith-brand chaos. And all of it was centered around one person.
Imeena Cromwell.
Kaelith tried not to look at her. She tried. Truly. Heroically. But Imeena was sitting right there across from her, one arm braced along the window frame, face turned slightly toward the scenery blurring past.
She hadn't spoken since they'd gotten in.
She hadn't even looked at Kaelith.
And yet, Kaelith's brain was on fire.
Because seriously how was it even possible to look like that?
The modified uniform. The open collar. The glint of gold chainwork running down her forearms.
The bone buttons. The grim expression of someone who would win an argument by setting the room on fire and then walking out while lighting a cigarette with the flames.
Kaelith sighed softly and rested her chin on her hand.
How could one woman be that hot and that cold at the same time?
Imeena looked like a villain in a Celestian drama novel, the kind who appeared in chapter three, killed someone important, and made you question your morals for the rest of the novel.
The kind who monologued once and then left you with a sword to your throat and a strange desire to ask for her number.
She had this presence. This edge. Like her bones had been carved from battlefield metal and her spine was held up by grudges alone. Her silence wasn't empty. It was loaded. It was intentional.
Kaelith had tried, in the last week, to chip at it. Joke here. Smile there. A little flirtation disguised as banter. Nothing stuck. Imeena remained unaffected.
Completely untouchable.
It was infuriating.
And also…kind of intoxicating.
Kaelith's eyes flicked lower. Imeena's coat had shifted as she leaned forward slightly to peer through the window, revealing the faintest line of muscle beneath the fabric—just where her waist met her ribs.
The woman was built. Not the exaggerated kind. The real kind. Efficient. Functional. Like she could take someone apart and not wrinkle a single seam doing it.
Kaelith exhaled through her nose.
Hot. Just... catastrophically hot and completely unavailable.
Typical.
"Eyes up," Imeena said without looking at her.
Kaelith blinked. "What?"
"I can feel you staring. It's annoying."
Kaelith grinned. "Well maybe if you didn't look like a tragic poetry metaphor come to life, I wouldn't stare."
Imeena gave her a look.
It was brief, but deadly.
"You're impossible."
"And you're deeply committed to being allergic to joy."
"Good. Keeps people away."
"Not working," Kaelith sang.
Imeena turned back to the window.
Kaelith smiled wider and leaned into the seat, bouncing slightly as the carriage turned onto a long, tree-lined path.
The ride slowed.
Kaelith pressed her face to the window like a kid in a sweet shop.
And there it was.
The Celestian Academy.
Her first real look at it.
And it was breathtaking.
The main campus sprawled across a hillside, glowing under the morning light like something from a myth.
Towers of crystalline glass rose into the sky, catching the sunlight and scattering it in soft prismatic halos.
The central dome was carved from obsidian-streaked marble, floating runes encircling its base like a crown. Pathways spiraled out in elegant curves, flanked by trees with silver-veined leaves that shimmered in the breeze.
And the gates:
Tall. Elegant. Wrought from lunar-forged metal and covered in ancient glyphs that pulsed gently as the carriage approached.
"Stars," Kaelith whispered.
Imeena didn't say a word.
Of course.
But even she had shifted slightly, as if bracing for impact.
The carriage rolled to a stop, and a bell chimed somewhere above them an echoing sound that vibrated faintly in the bones.
The spell-warded gates unlatched with a low hum, and a pair of student envoys stepped forward to open the carriage door.
Kaelith stepped out with poise, boots crunching on sun-warmed stone.
The air smelled like pine and magic and possibility.
She straightened her uniform.
Stood tall.
This was it.
Behind her, Imeena descended from the carriage with the slow menace of a storm cloud wearing military boots.
She didn't look at the architecture. Didn't admire the trees. Just scanned the perimeter once, eyes sharp, posture loose but ready.
The student envoys both tensed.
Kaelith watched them out of the corner of her eye and smiled.
Yep, she thought. That's right. That terrifying shadow is with me.
The courtyard buzzed with activity. Students were pouring in through other gates—some by carriage, others by portal, some arriving mid-conversation or trailing floating trunks behind them.
Kaelith spotted two fae girls comparing rings, a group of mages huddled around a levitating chessboard, and what looked like a water spirit gliding down the steps in a coat made of actual rain.
She was home.
She turned to Imeena, beaming.
"Try not to hex anyone on the first day."
"I'll try not to breathe too loudly," Imeena muttered.
Kaelith opened her mouth for another comment—but was cut off by a regal voice rising over the din.
"Ah! Princess Kaelith Daemara."
Kaelith turned as a tall figure approached from the steps of the central dome.
Dressed in deep navy and silver, with an ornate brooch shaped like a shifting star, stood the Headmaster—no, Principal of the Academy.
Principal Daelith. Celestian scholar, veteran of the Time Rift War, and purveyor of education nightmares.
He bowed with practiced elegance.
"Welcome, your Highness."
Kaelith bowed back, polished and diplomatic. "It's an honor, Principal Daelith."
"And it is our honor to receive you. Your presence here marks a historic chapter in the Academy's history."
Kaelith smiled brightly. "I hope to make a valuable contribution."
"You will, I have no doubt."
Then, before she could brace for it—
"I would be honored," the Principal continued, "if you would give a short address to the student body. As the first Demon-Human royal to join our ranks, your voice carries weight and significance."
Kaelith blinked.
"…A speech?"
He smiled kindly. "Yes. We've prepared a platform. Nothing formal, just a few words. The students will be gathering shortly for orientation."
Imeena, beside her, muttered under her breath:
"Oh this will be fun."
Kaelith swallowed.
Then smiled.
Of course she was being thrown onto a platform before even entering the building. She was a symbol, after all.
She straightened her shoulders.
"Of course," she said brightly. "I'd be delighted."