2. Raven

2

RAVEN

Ihold the duffel bag tossed over my shoulder in a death-grip as I stand rooted to the spot, staring up at the house I once called home. I barely remember anything apart from the night we left it all behind, and standing right here in front of it again makes me feel two feet tall.

Squinting, I take in every detail, committing it to memory but failing to compare it to the last time I was here. Everything I have known is tainted by that dreaded night. The pain I felt and the confusion it left makes me wonder if the exterior walls were always that sickly, pale gray. Were the window frames always black? The front door so boldly onyx too?

I can’t even tell which was my room from here but, as soon as I start to consider it, I quickly shut it down. Those are attachments we have zero care for.

It feels the same, yet completely different all at once. I don’t know whether that’s because it’s so foreign to me now or because I’ve grown since then, but now it’s just brick and mortar. It doesn’t hold any more value than that.

“Come now, Raven. You insisted,” my father demands, waiting on the porch, but my feet still refuse to move.

I agreed to pack up my bag, the very one my mother brought with us when we left here, and follow his word if it meant I could see Mama first. There was tremendous reluctance on his part, but he eventually agreed.

Now that I’m standing here, I wish I hadn’t pushed the issue.

This place isn’t good for me. Amberglen was supposed to be the beautiful home where I would grow into a sweet girl, running through flowers and being carefree, but the hand I was dealt led to a completely different life. This place is just as haunting as Shadowmoor now.

Pursing my lips, I look to the window to the left of the porch and instantly see Mama’s silhouette. I know it’s her without question. Her petite frame, arms folded around herself as she looks down at the ground. As if sensing my eyes on her, she inches closer to the window and meets my gaze.

The pain is there, the disappointment at the situation. Whether it’s for me or herself, I can’t tell, but it’s thick in the air as I gulp.

“Raven, Silvercrest is a prestigious academy for highly gifted and respected families. I agreed you could come here on the way because I assumed it would be a quick visit. If you insist on dragging this out I can change my mind and take you straight there,” Papa grates in irritation, folding his arms over his chest and stretching the Monarchy-issued suit across his sizable frame. That’s what is most important to him. His job, his role in what he believes to be the greater good.

I don’t recall what that is anymore, but I remember the raised voices in the house. It was always about him, his job, and Mama’s lack of understanding.

Mama never gave me a full explanation of why we left, but over the years I’ve come to assume it’s because of Abel and the corruption within The Monarchy. Him summoning me back and demanding I change my life may as well be law. I can’t outrun him and I refuse to try, it would only make me look weak.

“You know I’m a Void, right? She’s told you that?” I match his stance, leaving my duffel on my shoulder as I fold my arms.

“It’s not possible for you to be a Void. Now, will you move this along, or shall we skip this little reunion and proceed to the academy? You’re going to have to do something about your hair too.”

Pompous asshole. He irritates every damn bone in my body. No one is touching my hair. It’s pink because I chose for it to be that way. The center part I wear, though, is there to fall on either side of my face and hide the shadow markings I gained when I first stepped into the darkness. The small black star by my right eye is a stark reminder of where I’ve been and what I’ve escaped.

Escaped.

Rolling my eyes, I don’t let him stray from the point I’m trying to make. “There is no point in me attending a gifted school when I don’t have a gift to wield,” I point out, not moving an inch.

“I didn’t create a Void and neither did your mother. It’s not possible. It will all be taken care of at the academy. Now, what shall it be?”

Growling, my teeth grind with frustration. I fucking hate the way he says ‘now.’ That’s one thing I do remember as a child. Back then, it made me afraid that I was in trouble. Now it makes me want to start trouble.

I look up to see Mama through the window and find her leaning closer this time, her eyes fixed on mine as she shakes her head. ‘Go’ she mouths, cracking the ice wall around my heart as disappointment burns through me.

I don’t know what I expected coming here. It’s pitch-black but still not as dark as it gets in Shadowmoor, and, once again, I’m being sentenced to a life I didn’t ask for. Do I want to return to the troubled shadows back home? No.

My knuckles ache, my skull still vibrating from the headbutt earlier.

Could Silvercrest be any better? Surely it can’t be worse. Either way, it beats the bullshit I’ll get if I stay here any longer. I have nothing going for me, nothing in this life that feels any more substantial than the shadows I’ve become so comfortable in.

I look at the house, Mama, and the man I’m supposed to call my father before looking back at the car parked behind me.

Settling my gaze on Mama again, the pain is apparent in her eyes as she mouths, ‘I love you.’ My chest tightens, confusion rippling through my veins. I know we’re not the closest these days, but shit… she wants me to leave without a word. What the fuck is that about? As if sensing my frustration, a rumble of thunder vibrates across the sky as her eye twitches and tears stain her cheeks.

A calmness washes over me, a decision made in my mind.

“I’m done here.”

“I’ve told you, Raven, you—”

“I said I’m done,” I repeat, louder this time, as I point over my shoulder. “Take me to Silvercrest.”

His grin instantly spreads across his face, the lines marking his forehead disappearing as pride settles over him. Fucker. “And your mother?” he asks, pushing, just like I remember.

I take one final look at her through the window, a sad, teary smile on her face, before I look back at him.

“You have us both at your mercy with whatever bullshit this is and I get the sense she wants me as far away from you as possible. So the distance works in my favor. Now, am I going or not?”

* * *

The driver doesn’t utter a word as I sit alone in the back of the car, and I lose myself in my thoughts as I stare down at the pamphlet in my hands.

Silvercrest Academy.

The font practically fucking shimmers in my hand, like golden lava running across the page.

My dearest papa barely spared me another look after I agreed, waving me into the car without another word before he strolled inside the house. I have no fucking clue what’s happening, but when have I ever? I grew up living on the cusp of knowing and drowning in the world around me.

Leaning back in my seat, I watch the scenery go by through the window. We’ve been driving for well over two hours now. I’m sure my father knows someone who could portal me to the academy, but this is probably a life lesson or some other bullshit.

I’ve tried to nap to no avail, despite the twilight hour having come and gone, giving way to a dark sky and an endless, inky blackness.

It’s not until the rays of sunlight pierce through the clouds, sunrise breaking through the air, bringing a shimmering life to everything it touches, that we see anything other than trees and shrubbery in the distance. The driver takes a right and I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that the vast building propped on the mountain range ahead is our final destination.

The charcoal-gray peaked roofs and ivy-covered walls are unmistakable, even from here.

Turning the pamphlet in my hand again, I take a peek inside.

Welcome to a future like no other.

Silvercrest Academy is renowned throughout the realm for fostering those with gifts vital to our world—the protectors of our lands, and the saviors of our people—and honing those gifts so that our students may rise to unimaginable heights and preserve our way of life for generations to come.

Our core values—determination, composure, and results—guide the hands of our faculty and staff and form the foundation of our world-class curriculum at every turn.

The only academy endorsed by The Monarchy, Silvercrest guarantees you a prosperous future, honored by all.

Trials and tribulations may come your way, but overcoming them confirms your rightful place in this world and your importance to our people.

Follow the sun, destroy the shadows, and survive another dawn.

–

Professor Burton - Head of Silvercrest Academy

Oh, great. It looks like I’ve got more pompous shit to deal with. I bet he’s just like my father. This is going to be wonderful. I fight back an eye roll as I turn the page, glancing over the list of proffered classes; everything from herbs and potions to combat classes and magic training courses. Not that the latter will be of any use to me.

The car rolls to a stop as I hear the crunch of stones beneath me and I glance out of my window again to find the building now looming right in front of us. The first glimpse I got of it did it no justice. I’m sure you could fit the entirety of Shadowmoor in the grassy area surrounding the academy.

I climb from the car before the driver can get the door, which earns me a grunt, but I’m too engrossed to care as I take in my surroundings and the morning chill makes me shiver. There are multiple buildings on the property, none as big and grand as the one directly before me, but the place feels like it goes on and on for miles until you meet the cliff edge in the distance. At least if I want to take a run and jump off of it, it’s not too far away.

Flowers adorn the walkways and birds chirp in the distance, all of it otherworldly compared to the bleak darkness of Shadowmoor. I feel like I’ve left the land I was raised in and traveled to an entirely different dimension. If this is what Silvercrest looks like, I dread to think how spectacular Haven Court is. Everything seems to shimmer and shine, from the stained glass windows to the golden statues that line the tops of the academy’s towering pinnacles.

Maybe I’m in over my head. Perhaps I’m more suited to staying put and fighting it out in Shadowmoor. This… feels like it belongs to someone else entirely and I don’t even know where to begin navigating it all.

The thump of my duffel bag as it lands at my feet pulls me from my thoughts and I look at the driver with a frown.

“Your guide will be here in a moment, Miss Hendrix. Good morning, and goodbye.” He slinks back into the car without another word, leaving me riddled with the creeps at the only words he’s spoken to me this entire time.

Reaching for my measly belongings, I gulp down the uncertainty that threatens to consume me, roll my shoulders back, and try to exude confidence. I can face this place just like I faced Shadowmoor. The point of attack and defense will be different, but I’ll survive it nonetheless.

I don’t know whether to stand and wait or head toward the circular door ahead, but it doesn’t take long before curiosity gets the better of me and I slowly make my way toward the door. Three stone slab steps lead up to the entryway and I’m halfway up them when I hear a guy’s voice from inside. It’s loud and obnoxious, irritating me immediately.

“Give me two minutes to deal with this fucking brat and I’ll be right with you. Make sure to save some of that early-morning pussy for me, would you?”

Barf.

My gut tells me I’m the “fucking brat” being referenced here. I want to be mad about it, but I’ve been called far worse.

Like “Void.”

Bracing myself for some asshole to walk through the door, it swings open a moment later, leaving me dead in my tracks for what feels like the hundredth time in less than twenty-four hours.

His eyebrows wrinkle, his nostrils flaring as his jaw tenses.

“Raven?”

My name on his lips sounds like more of a curse than a blessing and I’m already regretting being here—well, being here without asking some obvious questions beforehand—but it seems information was withheld on both sides, not just mine.

Sighing, I steel my spine, ready for the onslaught.

“Sebastian.”

My brother. Fourteen years and he doesn’t look any different. His eyes still glimmer with mischief, his angry, snappy tone all-too-familiar, and the sneer on his lips remains the same as the day we left all this behind. Nothing has changed.

“What the fuck are you doing here, Raven?”