ShadowBound: The Need For Power

By the time lunch ended, Liam was walking alone through the halls toward his final class of the day.

Tactical Espionage waited in the western academic wing, and the closer he drew to it, the more the dining hall’s noise faded behind him. Students moved through the corridors in smaller streams now, some heading to final lessons, others rushing because they had spent too much of lunch pretending time was not real. Liam kept a steady pace, his report tucked neatly inside the document case beneath his arm, while Edith’s words turned over in his mind with quiet precision.

’With this, it should be easy to make Lucian speak,’ he thought.

The information Edith had given him was not large in quantity, but it was enough. That mattered more. A person did not need a full history to be pressured. Sometimes one correct detail, placed at the right angle, did more work than an entire biography. Edith had been careful. Liam had expected that. She had not told him everything, and he doubted she had given him anything that would truly damage Lucian if used carelessly. But she had given him context. Familiarity. A few habits. A few old things Lucian likely would not expect Liam Hunter to know.

That was enough to open the first lock.

’I can find him after classes end,’ Liam thought as he passed a row of tall windows showing the gray afternoon beyond. ’Edith said his final class is Earth Magic. That means I will need to go back toward the Magic Department after Tactical Espionage. Annoying, but manageable.’

The Magic Department sat farther from the western wing than he cared for, especially with the weather worsening by the day. It would require crossing more of the academy grounds after the final bell, which meant more cold air, more wind, and more time wasted before he could return to his room. The thought irritated him almost as much as the reason for going.

Lucian Kellor had become another inconvenience.

That was the word Liam had settled on.

Not threat, not enemy, not mystery, at least not yet. An inconvenience. Something sitting in the path of information he wanted, refusing to be moved by ordinary means. If Lucian answered quickly, the matter could be handled with minimal trouble. If not, Liam would have to become more deliberate.

’Deal with him today,’ Liam thought. ’Get the report submitted. End the day. Return to the room before this cold nonsense gets worse.’

That last part was becoming more important than he wanted it to be. The academy’s halls were tolerable, but the windows made the weather outside impossible to ignore. Late autumn had settled deeper into Tempest with every passing day, and the wind had begun carrying the kind of bite that made Liam hate every open courtyard on the grounds. Fire-aligned Myst could warm him from within, but it did not erase the irritation of cold touching his face, hands, or the back of his neck.

He was still thinking about that when a familiar voice slid in beside him.

"What are you thinking about so seriously?"

The tone was velvet wrapped around mischief.

Liam did not stop walking. His eyes shifted sideways.

Charlotte was suddenly beside him, matching his pace as though she had been there the entire time. Her curls framed her face in a way that looked deliberately effortless, and her uniform sat on her body with the kind of confidence that made the standard academy design seem less modest than the instructors probably intended.

She wore her coat open despite the chill seeping through the corridors, because Charlotte apparently considered weather another thing that should admire her rather than inconvenience her.

Her brown eyes studied him with open amusement.

"Nothing," Liam said.

Charlotte’s smile widened. "Liar."

"I am not thinking about anything important."

"That is a different answer."

"It is the one you get."

She leaned closer as they walked, close enough that a few passing students glanced at them and then quickly looked away. "You know, most people would be honored if I cared enough to ask what was on their mind."

"Most people are easier to impress."

Charlotte placed a hand lightly over her chest as if wounded. "Cold. So cold. And here I thought that was the weather’s job."

"It is doing enough."

She laughed softly. "There it is. You’ve been even more bitter than usual since the temperature dropped."

"I have not."

"You absolutely have." She looked him over with a slow, shameless kind of delight. "It is almost cute."

Liam’s gaze remained forward. "Do not call me cute."

"Would handsome be better?"

"No."

"Pretty?"

"No."

"Terrifyingly brooding?"

"That is worse."

"Dark and emotionally unavailable?"

Liam gave her a flat side-eye.

Charlotte’s grin turned wicked. "Oh, that one was close."

"It was not."

"You looked offended in a very personal way."

"I looked the same."

"You always say that, but I am getting very good at reading your tiny little changes." She lifted a finger near his face as if measuring an invisible line. "For example, right now your eyes are saying, ’Charlotte, please stop speaking before I throw myself out a window.’"

"There are no open windows here."

"So you admit the rest?"

"No."

Charlotte hummed as if accepting a confession. "Shame. I would have caught you."

Liam ignored her.

That only encouraged her.

She walked a little closer, her shoulder nearly brushing his arm. "Were you thinking about Sheila? You have had that look lately."

Liam did not take the bait. "What look?"

"The one where you pretend you are not involved in something while absolutely being involved in something."

"That is not a look."

"It is with you."

"I was thinking about a report."

"Boring."

"It is for class."

"Even more boring." Charlotte tilted her head. "Unless it is Seraphina’s report. Then it is probably invasive, morally questionable, and strangely useful."

"It is."

Charlotte’s eyes brightened. "See? I knew it. Who did you observe?"

"I am not telling you."

"Rude."

"Yes."

She gasped lightly. "You admit it so easily now. I have trained you well."

"You have done nothing."

"That is what all difficult men say when they are being changed by a woman’s influence."

Liam looked at her again, expression utterly unimpressed.

Charlotte smiled at him as if his lack of reaction was somehow deeply rewarding. "Careful, Liam. One day you may wake up and realize I have made you fun."

"That would be unfortunate."

"For you, maybe. For everyone else, it would be a public service."

They reached the corridor leading to Tactical Espionage, where the air always seemed to change. It grew quieter, heavier, and less forgiving, as if the walls themselves had learned too many secrets from the classes held there. The door to Seraphina’s room stood half-open, warm lamplight spilling across the floor. A few students were already inside, their voices lower than they would have been in any other class.

Charlotte’s teasing softened into anticipation as they approached. Unlike Liam, she did not find Seraphina unbearable in the same way. There was a part of Charlotte that seemed to enjoy the danger in the woman’s presence, or at least respected the artistry of it. Liam found that preference questionable.

They entered together.

Lady Seraphina Vale was seated on the front desk rather than behind it, one leg crossed elegantly over the other, her dark attire falling with perfect intention around her frame. Her midnight-green hair rested over one shoulder, and the silver embroidery along her sleeves caught the light when she moved. She held a stack of papers in one hand, though her attention lifted to Liam and Charlotte the moment they stepped through the door. Her bright green eyes settled on them with that familiar, playful sharpness that always made the room feel less like a classroom and more like a trap that had learned how to smile.

Professor Veylan Kaine stood near the far wall, silent as ever, arms folded, his steel-gray eyes already measuring everyone present.

Seraphina’s smile curved.

"Well," she said, voice smooth and delighted, "there are my two late little shadows."

Charlotte’s lips curved immediately. "We are exactly on time, Lady Seraphina."

"Which is only late if I wished to see you sooner," Seraphina replied.

Charlotte laughed under her breath, clearly enjoying the tone.

Liam found it annoying down to his bones.

"We were walking," he said flatly.

Seraphina’s gaze slid to him with amusement. "How tragic. Forced to endure Miss Raven’s company all the way here."

"Devastating," Liam said.

Charlotte clicked her tongue. "You wound me."

"You will recover."

Seraphina chuckled, the sound soft and dangerous. "Charming as always, Mr. Hunter. Do take your seat before Professor Kaine decides punctuality should be taught physically."

Kaine’s expression did not change.

That made it unclear whether the threat was a joke.

Liam and Charlotte moved to their seats. The room was arranged more like a classroom today, with desks placed in a loose half-circle rather than pushed aside for drills. Only seven second-years occupied the space, which made the silence between them more noticeable.

Each student had their report ready, though the nervousness in some of their faces suggested not everyone trusted what they had written. In a class like this, turning in an assignment felt less like submitting work and more like handing over evidence against oneself.

Seraphina waited until Liam and Charlotte were seated. Then she shifted lightly on the desk, uncrossed and recrossed her legs, and smiled at the class as if she had gathered them for something pleasant.

"Now that everyone is here," she said, lifting the stack of papers slightly, "you may turn in your reports."

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