Chapter 13

VALERIA My heart drops. “What?” “It’s what everyone is saying!” Eden hisses, taking my arm and pulling me down the hallway. I notice that the other students are looking at me as we pass by, and she lets me go. She still beckons me to follow. Only when we arrive at our dorm room does she say something again. “They’re saying you killed him because you got humiliated in his class this morning.” I open my mouth to defend myself, but then it occurs to me. What is even the point of all this? They all probably think that about me, and nothing I say would change anything. I just sit on my bed and start taking off my shoes. “Sure, if that’s what you all think.” Eden’s expression goes soft. “Valeria…” “It doesn’t matter,” I mumble. “If you think I did it, go ahead. Never mind the practical facts like him being a master sword fighter and perfectly capable of defending himself against someone smaller, slower, and much less experienced than he is. Never mind that he would never have gotten taken down by someone who lost badly in a match against one of his students. Never mind that I’ve been in the human world all my life and this is my first time even touching a sword. Sure, I did it. I killed a master.” She goes silent. With a sigh, she walks over to me and sits next to me. "I'm sorry. I mean, I know you couldn't have done it. I just heard it from everyone and I thought..." She trails off, and I can genuinely feel that she's sorry for what she said. I find myself not really capable of caring anymore. If they want to ignore the facts and stick to ignorance, sure. I can feel that she's ashamed, so I just choose to go to the bathroom. But before I can go in, Eden gets up and stops me. "Hey, I'm really sorry," she says in a tiny voice. "I will try to tell people about it." I don't say anything. I just nod and go ahead, locking myself in the bathroom and turning on the shower. Eventually, I hear the door opening and closing, a sign that Eden just left. And with that, I let my tears out. * * * "The new girl killed Mr. Murdock, did you hear?" This is the first thing that hits my ears the moment I step out of the dorm room, and instantly I know that my second day in this wretched school will be a bad one. The girl who said that to her friend flinches when I go out into the hall close to her, turning to me and immediately stepping away as though I'm carrying an explosive. A part of me is pissed off, but a bigger part of me is hurt. Half of me wants to defend myself, but the bigger part of me wants to just own it so they would shut up, which is a bad idea. I just swallow it all back and continue walking. "That's her. She looks as rabid as everyone says." "Look at her. She creeps me out." "I mean, no wonder she looks like that. She's a half human, right?" I hear a low rumble of laughter as I pass by the lockers. Girls and boys alike have gathered there, watching me pass by. According to my schedule, I have the same swordfighting class for today, but I don't know how that will go down considering that the teacher is dead. Thinking that this is a magic school of some sort and they probably had a replacement already, I go to the amphitheater. Unsurprisingly, however, it's barricaded. One of the men guarding the place sees me. "Hey, you! Get back inside. Didn't you see that this area is off-limits?" I open my mouth to apologize, but I just turn around and make a move back inside before anyone sees me. But of course, I don't make it that far until a group of girls approach me. And the one in the lead is Celeste. "You know what they say about killers, Nia?" she asks one of her friends, who's a black-haired girl with bird-like features. "About how they visit their kill sites to reminisce the death and get an extra kick about their murder?" I take a deep breath as they all smile meaningfully at me. My chest is tight with anger, but I just clench my fists and say nothing. "Hi there, Valeria." She walks over to me. "How have you been? Do you think the investigation will go well?" "I hope so," I just say. "What are you doing here?" "Just checking on you," she says without missing a beat. "We all know that everyone should be looking over their shoulder to look out for you." I keep quiet, pushing past her to head back into the school, but then Celeste's voice starts to ring in the field. "Your mother went to this school, did you know that?" she calls out. "She was quite the bigshot. I wonder what happened and she fell so low that she married a human and gave birth to a murderous monster?" Something inside me snaps. Something that feels like it's been lying dormant there for a long time. Suddenly all logic leaves my mind. Even my voice and my consciousness vanish in one go. A stronger force takes over, something that feels like mine but also foreign at the same time. A beast of some sort. Strong and powerful and primordial. I face Celeste again, but this time I don't feel like myself. A different entity seems to be inside me controlling me, using every ounce of anger in my body until I find myself lunging at Celeste with my hands outstretched and ready to wrap around her neck. Celeste must see this too, at least feel it, because fear crosses her features and she starts to back away. She pushes the raven-haired friend forward to block herself, and I have to say that I just went... insane. I grab the girl by the shoulders and throw her down on the ground, listening in satisfaction as I hear her crash. I pin her down as she tries to scratch me, and that's when I see something strange. My hands don't look like hands. They're covered in soft fur, tipped with long curved nails that look razor sharp. My fingers have shortened, and my palms are elongated. I look up and see my reflection in the window close by. My face is covered in the same soft brown fur, my eyes now fiery and bright amber. My mouth is pulled back in a snarl and my teeth are now long and sharp. A werewolf. I look like a werewolf. And I certainly feel like one. Feral and hungry and angry. I turn to Celeste and her scent manifests in the air. I knew right then and there that even if she runs, I can find her and hurt her.... She lets out a scream as I push her friend harder, knocking her out. Her other friend yelps and runs away as far as she can, leaving Celeste in there. I turn to her, ready to attack and get back at her for saying all the things she did, but then I hear a sharp voice from behind me. "Valeria, you have to stop now." I whip around, and there I see Stefano marching towards me.