Chapter 5 – Midnight Mess.

The party had started to blur together. Music, flashing lights, and the scent of something expensive lingered in the air. After the dance, Azazel was still beside me, his smirk in full effect as if he knew something I didn't.

"You're an interesting one," he mused, watching me closely. "I don't think I've ever seen someone so stubborn yet reckless at the same time."

I scoffed, adjusting my dress. "I don't think I've ever seen someone talk so much nonsense in one night."

Azazel let out a deep, amused chuckle, but before he could respond, I heard Daniel calling him from across the room. Azazel gave me a parting glance, something unreadable in his eyes, before leaving my side.

I exhaled, rubbing my temples. As much as I hated to admit it, Azazel was… entertaining. Annoying, but entertaining.

Across the room, Raphael had returned to his seat next to Daniel, leaving Hazel alone on the dance floor. I didn't know why, but she looked irritated. Not that she showed it much Hazel had the kind of face that was always composed, always in control. But I noticed the slight clench of her jaw, the way her nails tapped against her glass a little too forcefully.

Then, to my horror, she turned… and walked straight toward me.

I rolled my eyes before she even got close. Of course.

She didn't sit. Didn't speak. Just stood there, sipping her drink like she was evaluating me.

And then

"You really think you're something, don't you?"

I almost choked on my own breath.

I blinked, turning sharply to Hazel, but her lips hadn't moved. She was still drinking, her expression perfectly neutral.

What the hell?

"You don't belong here."

This time, I was sure it was her voice. But it was inside my head.

I sat frozen, my fingers tightening around my glass. She was speaking to me through her mind. That was possible??

I swallowed, choosing to use my actual mouth to respond. "If you have something to say, you can say it like a normal person."

Hazel smirked.

"You don't understand, do you?" she said smoothly, still in my mind. "I don't need to tell you to stay away from them. You'll learn. I'll make sure of it."

A slow, creeping chill spread down my spine.

She leaned closer, her voice dropping to something almost gentle in my mind. "I will break you, Mirabel."

My stomach twisted, but I forced my face to stay blank.

Hazel's eyes gleamed with satisfaction at my silence. She took a sip of her drink and then without breaking eye contact tilted her hand.

The cold splash hit my dress before I even processed what had happened.

Gasps echoed around us as the dark liquid spread across the fabric. Hazel blinked innocently, as if she had accidentally spilled it.

"Oh," she said aloud this time, her voice light. "How clumsy of me."

I knew. I knew she did it on purpose.

But she didn't wait for me to react. She simply turned and walked away, disappearing into the party like nothing had happened.

My hands clenched into fists as I sat there, seething.

This was my one attempt at doing something normal, at blending in, and Hazel just had to pull something.

Fine. If this night was ruined, I wasn't going to sit here like a fool.

I stood up, ignoring the stares, and walked straight out of the party.

The night air was thick, suffocating.

I stormed out of the ballroom, my dress still damp, my mood even worse. The sound of music and laughter faded behind me as I stepped further onto the dimly lit campus grounds.

Hazel. I should've seen that coming.

I took a sharp breath, running a hand through my hair. I shouldn't have let her get to me. I shouldn't have..

A sound.

Faint.

But wrong.

My steps slowed.

Something about the air around me felt… off.

The pathway ahead stretched into darkness, the towering gothic structures of Eldermire casting long, jagged shadows under the silver glow of the moon.

But behind me, Something moved.

I froze.

A whisper of movement. The crunch of gravel.

My pulse spiked.

Slowly, carefully, I turned my head.

The pathway was empty.

The wind howled softly, rustling the trees. A gate creaked in the distance.

Maybe I was imagining it. Maybe...

Growl.

My breath hitched.

The hairs on my arms rose.

It was low, guttural, and close.

Too close.

Then

A blur of darkness lunged from the shadows.

I barely had time to react.

A grotesque figure burst into the dim light eyes burning red, its mouth twisted with jagged, blood-stained teeth.

A rogue demon.

It moved fast, unnaturally fast.

I barely managed to throw myself to the side, my heartbeat thundering in my ears. My ankle twisted as I stumbled, falling hard onto the stone path. Pain shot through my palms as I scraped them against the rough ground.

I turned, gasping, just as the creature let out a piercing shriek.

And then more movement.

Two more demons emerged from the shadows, their warped, skeletal bodies shifting unnaturally, their claws gleaming under the moonlight.

I tried to move, tried to run. but I wasn't fast enough.

A sharp claw slashed through the air.

Pain exploded across my arm.

I screamed, staggering backward as hot blood trickled down my skin.

No. No, no, no.

This wasn't happening.

I needed to move. I needed to.

My breath came in ragged gasps as I pushed myself up, my body screaming in protest.

The demons circled me, their movements calculated, hunting.

This was it.

I was going to die.

My fingers clenched against the stone. My entire body shook.

No.

Not like this.

Move, dammit, MOVE!

Something inside me snapped.

The air tightened.

A strange, twisting force coiled around my fingertips, like invisible strings pulling from deep within my chest.

And then.

It happened.

A pulse of pure darkness erupted from my hands, slamming into the two nearest demons.

A shockwave tore through the air.

Their shrieks turned into horrific, guttural howls as their bodies disintegrated into black ash.

Gone.

Just like that.

My breath hitched. My knees buckled.

I swayed, vision blurring, pulse erratic.

The remaining demons stared.

I stared too.

What… the hell had I just done?

The dark aura that had burst from me flickered once more, curling around my fingers before vanishing completely.

The last two demons hesitated.

And then they lunged.

I tried to move.

I couldn't.

My legs refused to work. My body was too weak, too drained.

This was it.

This time, I wouldn't.

A gust of wind slammed past me.

Then blurred motion.

Faster than thought, faster than instinct.

Something, someone, moved between me and the creatures.

I barely registered the sheer speed, the sheer power of it.

And in the blink of an eye.

The demons were gone.

Just like that.

My gaze flickered. My vision was slipping.

And then I saw him.

Raphael.

Standing in front of me.

His breath was steady, his posture relaxed like he hadn't even tried.

Like those demons had been nothing more than a mild inconvenience.

His white hair gleamed under the moonlight, his crimson eyes glowing with something unreadable.

And for the first time…

He wasn't just looking at me.

He was seeing me.

I saw it.

The way his expression shifted just barely. The way something deep, ancient stirred in his gaze.

Like he had just realized something.

Something impossible.

I barely had the strength to whisper.

"What… was that?"

His jaw tightened.

But before he could say anything

My body gave in.

The world spun.

And everything went black.

Raphael's POV.

The party had begun to bore me.

Laughter. Music. The clinking of glasses. The same conversations, the same empty power plays.

I sat at my usual place, swirling the amber liquid in my glass, barely listening as Daniel spoke beside me. Across the room, Hazel was still dancing, her movements practiced, perfect. She was good at that at looking like she belonged.

Azazel had vanished, but that wasn't surprising. He was restless by nature.

I let out a slow breath, tilting my head back slightly. The night was dragging.

Then

Pain.

A sharp, sudden twist in my chest.

My grip tightened around the glass as a strange pressure spread through my ribs, like something was pulling yanking demanding my attention.

Wrong.

Something was wrong.

I placed the glass down carefully, barely aware of Daniel's voice fading into the background.

My vision sharpened.

The sounds of the party dulled.

Every instinct inside me screamed Move.

Before I even realized it, I was walking.

Through the crowd. Toward the door. Following the pull.

A faint, familiar scent drifted through the air not perfume, not magic.

Something deeper. Fresher.

Blood.

My pace quickened.

The moment I stepped outside, the cool night air hit me but it did nothing to ease the feeling.

No.

It was stronger out here.

A pull beneath my skin, wrapping around my ribs, clawing at something deep in my bones.

I knew this feeling.

I had never felt it before, but somehow I knew.

It wasn't just instinct.

It was something older.

Something I couldn't name.

And it was leading me straight to her.

I moved faster, my strides silent, sharp, precise.

The scent of blood was heavier now, laced with something darker.

Demonic.

Then I heard it.

A piercing shriek.

My muscles tensed.

And then the crackle of something unnatural.

I turned the corner just in time to see it.

A pulse of dark energy burst from Mirabel's hands, slamming into two rogue demons.

A shockwave of power.

And then—they were gone.

Destroyed.

I stopped.

For a single moment, I did nothing but watch.

She was shaking. Her breath came in ragged gasps, her body swaying like she was about to collapse.

Her hands…

They were still coated in black energy, flickering like dying embers.

But then the power vanished.

Just like that.

Her gaze flickered, dazed, disoriented.

She didn't even see the last two demons move.

But I did.

And before they could touch her.

I was there.

Faster than thought.

Faster than instinct.

The first demon didn't even have time to register my presence before my hand wrapped around its throat.

A single crush of my fingers.

Bone shattered.

Its body collapsed into dust.

The last one turned, its crimson eyes wide. It tried to run.

I didn't let it.

With a flicker of movement, I was behind it.

One strike. Precise. Calculated.

And then silence.

Gone.

I exhaled slowly, my body relaxing.

The fight had lasted seconds. Too easy. Too simple.

But it wasn't the demons that held my attention.

It was her.

I turned, my gaze landing on Mirabel.

She was still standing barely.

Blood dripped from a gash on her arm. Her breath was uneven.

But it wasn't the injury that made my chest tighten.

It was her eyes.

Wide. Glazed.

Glowing.

A faint, golden shimmer.

Something ancient. Familiar.

Something that made every instinct inside me snap into place.

The pull in my chest the twisting, unbearable feeling from before I knew what it was now.

Mate.

The realization hit me like a blow.

My pulse slammed against my ribs, my breath sharp.

No.

No, no, this wasn't possible.

I didn't move. Couldn't move.

I just stared at her.

And then, her body swayed.

Her eyelashes fluttered.

And before I could do anything, she collapsed.

She collapsed.

I moved before she hit the ground, catching her effortlessly.

She was light.

Too light.

Her body slumped against my arms, her breathing shallow, her skin growing paler by the second.

Then I saw it.

The wound on her arm.

Black.

Not just bruised, not just bloodied blackened.

Poison.

My jaw tightened. Demon claws were toxic, but this? This was spreading too fast.

I shifted her weight, my arm supporting the curve of her back as I cradled her closer. Her heartbeat was slowing.

Unacceptable.

I turned sharply, ready to move

Then I felt it.

A presence.

Watching.

My gaze flicked up, scanning the darkened edges of the courtyard.

And then a shadow.

Lingering. Still.

Too still.

A figure stood beyond the torch-lit pathways, cloaked in darkness, their form barely distinguishable from the night itself.

Not a student.

Not a teacher.

Something else.

My grip on Mirabel tightened.

The figure didn't move. Didn't step forward.

And then just as quickly as I noticed them…

They vanished.

Gone.

I exhaled through my nose, calculating.

Follow them, or get her to safety?

The answer was obvious.

My priority was here.

I secured my hold on her, then moved.

The moment I entered the main building, Sofia was already searching for her.

She had just stepped into the hall, probably coming back from the ballroom, when she turned and saw us.

Her eyes widened in horror.

"Mirabel?" she gasped, sprinting toward us.

I didn't slow. "Call the school administrator," I ordered. "And my brother. Now."

Sofia barely hesitated. She fumbled for her phone, her hands shaking as she pressed the buttons. "What happened to her?"

"Poisoned," I said simply. "Demon claws."

Her breath hitched. She looked at Mirabel's arm, at the dark veins creeping outward.

Then she ran.

Not wasting a second, I took her to the medical ward.

The second we arrived, the healers rushed to us.

The head nurse's face paled when she saw Mirabel's arm. "Demon venom," she muttered, ushering me toward an open bed.

I placed Mirabel down carefully.

The moment my arms left her body, I felt it.

A strange, uncomfortable tightness in my chest. A reluctance.

I clenched my jaw and stepped back.

The healers worked quickly, glowing runes forming in the air as they muttered incantations.

But my mind was elsewhere.

Because this shouldn't have happened.

Eldermire had one of the most advanced supernatural security systems in existence.

Rogue demons shouldn't have been able to get in.

Unless

They weren't from outside.

Unless they came from inside.

I exhaled slowly.

There were only two possibilities.

1. The demons had escaped from the underground containment facility.

2. Someone had let them in.

Both were equally dangerous.

And in both cases

Someone wanted Mirabel dead.