Chapter 178: a little friendly competition

Chapter 178: A Little Friendly Competition

POV: Astrid Vale

Aldric stood on the platform in the main courtyard the next morning, waiting for the murmurs to settle before he spoke. "Moonshade and Blackthorn will hold a joint social event this week," he said. "Team games, supernatural challenges, food stalls, and prizes. Every team must include students from both schools. I expect you to work with people outside your usual circles."

The word prizes had barely left his mouth before Xander straightened beside me like a hound catching a scent.

"Prizes," he whispered. "Astrid, did you hear that?"

"Everyone heard it. He said it into a microphone."

Reed, who had spent the past week helping student council organize the event, glanced at his brother with tired patience. "The purpose is integration, not winning every competition."

"Winning and integration aren’t mutually exclusive."

"They are when you’re involved."

I laughed, though I was more intrigued than I let on. An afternoon of ordinary fun with my friends sounded like exactly what I needed.

Sign-ups happened in a crush around the noticeboard, and I ended up with Ivy and Eliza, our names scribbled onto a sheet beneath a heading someone had decorated with a stick figure wearing a crown. Josh appeared before we’d finished writing, practically bouncing.

"Pick the hardest challenges," he said. "Climbing wall, obstacle course, the one with the mud pit. We’ll dominate."

"Enthusiasm isn’t a supernatural ability," Criston said, appearing behind him with a quiet look of resignation.

"It should be."

"It isn’t."

Estelle joined us a moment later, offering to help organize an illusion-based game for the evening. She smiled easily, warm and unhurried, and half a dozen students immediately volunteered to assist her. I watched the mix of faces around us, wolves and witches and mind readers arguing cheerfully over team names, and thought that Aldric’s idea might actually work.

Reed and Xander found us by the sign-up sheet, and Xander’s expression darkened as he scanned the posted lists.

"We’re on different teams for the relay," he said. "Reed. Reed. They separated us."

"The teams were drawn randomly."

"They’re afraid of our combined brilliance." He turned to me, outraged. "It’s a conspiracy."

"It’s a lottery," Reed said.

"A conspiracy dressed as a lottery." Xander jabbed a finger toward his brother. "Beating you is now the highlight of my entire week."

"Don’t turn this into a royal rivalry," I warned them both.

"We would never," Xander said.

"Absolutely not," Reed agreed.

They said it far too quickly, and I knew I was doomed.

The first challenge began after lunch. Teams had to navigate a course of physical obstacles and simple magical puzzles, and my group fell apart in the first five minutes, everyone trying to lead at once. Josh shouted directions. A witch named Delphine argued with a Lycan boy about the best route. Eliza kept saying she had a plan, but nobody was listening long enough to hear it.

At the third puzzle, a wall of carved markings pulsed faintly whenever someone touched it. I watched the glow flicker, then noticed that each marking brightened a half second after the last, as though it remembered the order it had been touched in.

"Wait," I said. "Don’t all press at once. It’s responding to sequence. Start at the left, then move in the order they light up."

They hesitated, but Eliza nodded, and Delphine followed her. The markings flared in perfect succession, and the wall slid open with a low rumble. Cheers erupted from the group.

"I knew we’d get it," Josh announced. "My contribution was essential."

"Shouting encouragement isn’t the same as solving a puzzle," I said.

"It’s moral support."

"It’s noise."

The next round pitted the twins’ teams against each other, and Xander treated it like a battle for the throne. He stalked up and down the starting line, calling out insults and promises of humiliation, while Reed stood completely composed, arms folded, saying nothing at all. That calm clearly irritated Xander more than any response could have.

I cheered for both of them, waving at each in turn.

"You can’t cheer for both," Xander called across the field.

"I can do whatever I want."

"You’re dividing your loyalty."

"Astrid is allowed to enjoy watching us compete," Reed said evenly.

The challenge came down to the final stretch, Reed and Xander sprinting toward the finish line with their teammates shouting behind them. Reed crossed first by half a step, and Xander threw up his hands in outrage, announcing to anyone listening that his foot had been over the line first and the judges were clearly biased.

"The judges are students," Reed said.

"Corrupt students."

I laughed so hard I had to hold onto Eliza’s shoulder.

During the break, I noticed Ivy standing alone near the edge of the field, a paper cup of something in her hand. Roshan approached her slowly, and I started to turn away, then lingered just long enough to see how he stood, hands in his pockets, no demands in his posture.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" he asked.

"I’m trying," Ivy said.

"Want to get something to eat?" He nodded toward the food stalls. "I won’t make you talk about anything."

She hesitated, then smiled. "Okay."

They walked off together, side by side, and I watched them disappear into the crowd. Every part of me wanted to follow and tease her mercilessly. Instead, I turned back toward Eliza and let Ivy have something that belonged only to her.

As evening settled over the grounds, the organizers called everyone to the central lawn for a final announcement. Tomorrow’s challenge would be a mixed-team supernatural exercise, and it would count toward the merged curriculum’s practical assessment.

A list went up on the board. I found my name quickly, listed beside Eliza’s and those of several students whose abilities I’d never worked with before.

I stared at it for a while. Xander slung an arm around my shoulders. "You’ll win," he said.

"You don’t know that."

"I know everything."

"You don’t have to prove anything to anyone," Reed said quietly, on my other side.

I smiled at the list, then at both of them. Maybe I didn’t have to prove anything. But I wanted to discover what I could do, and tomorrow I wouldn’t just be playing a game. I would be finding out how far I’d come.