Chapter 2 Promise Me, Don't Just Because of His Face…

Catherine's POV

I stood alone outside the school's massive, towering gates, peering through the iron bars at the endless rows of pointed rooftops and green lawns stretching out beyond them.

The loud chatter of new students and their families suddenly made me regret my decision.

I shouldn't have turned down Aunt Lassey's offer to come with me. This wasn't making me braver. It was just making me more nervous.

"Miss Catherine, I'm Daisy, your guide. Please follow me."

I jumped, spinning toward the person who had appeared beside me without my noticing. Daisy had a warm smile and a striking presence that instantly reminded me of a strong-willed warrior.

"Miss Catherine, please leave your luggage here." Daisy gave her wand a quick wave, and my bags vanished on the spot.

Before I could even react with surprise, she explained, "Your luggage is in your dorm room. As your guide, I need to show you around campus, and carrying bags would just get in the way."

Wow. Magic.

I tried to calm myself down, but my stomach still tightened with a quiet knot of anxiety.

We strolled through the campus together.

Daisy seemed to understand me unusually well. She didn't ask the kinds of personal questions that would have made me even more anxious, like "What type of Awakener are you?" Instead, she kept talking, sharing all kinds of knowledge about the magical world.

"The opening ceremony is this afternoon, and I'll take you there. This morning, you can explore the school and get familiar with the place."

Daisy seemed to sense my nerves. She spoke gently to reassure me. "Miss Catherine, don't be afraid. Magic welcomes everyone."

I gave her a grateful smile.

"The building in front of you is the largest library on campus. You're free to go in and explore on your own. We'll meet again in thirty minutes."

Daisy disappeared right in front of my eyes.

I pushed down that nagging feeling of not belonging and walked toward the door. But before I even touched it, it slowly swung open on its own.

There were only a handful of students inside. I took a quiet breath and started looking around.

Then my steps came to a stop. Someone called out to me. "You probably don't want to go over there."

The short-haired girl's expression was hard to read, a mix of fear, awe, and disgust.

That look immediately caught my attention.

"Are you a new student? That's Lynn Hammer. He's a half-blood, a rare full cross-breed," she said, frowning. "As a new student, you should keep your distance. And don't let his looks fool you into going near him."

I followed the direction of her finger and spotted someone in the distance, leaning against a bookshelf with his head down, reading.

The moment I saw him, I was completely drawn in. Elegant, still, his face looked like something a creator had poured their entire life's skill into making.

A perfectly proportioned build, naturally gorgeous golden curls falling in a casual, tousled way, and the school uniform on him looked like a walking ad for a luxury fashion brand.

Any of that alone would have been enough to win people over.

"Why? You don't like him?" I asked, curious.

"It's not just me. It's everyone. Just remember, the unspoken rule at this school is to stay away from the half-bloods. Especially him."

I didn't agree with that kind of extreme thinking. Letting other people dictate my choices, interfere with my opinions, or control who I spend time with, that's just not who I am.

Even though I didn't know the full story yet. But no matter what, no one should be pushed out and isolated just because of who they were born as. I needed to get to know Liam Hammer for myself before forming any opinion.

The opening ceremony was about to begin. I sat in the seat Daisy had pointed out for me and looked around with curiosity.

The hall was grand and ornate in a vintage way, and looked like it could hold a few thousand people. But only fifty or sixty new students had filed in.

Then again, with the school's strict admission rules, the background checks, the financial requirements, it made sense that not many students made it in.

A woman walked steadily up to the stage and spoke in a serious tone. "I'm Vera, the headmistress of this academy. I'll keep this brief. Each of you will now receive your new student information."

The moment she finished speaking, I heard a crisp little chirp near my ear. A paper crane folded into the shape of a dove hopped cheerfully on my shoulder, then the next second settled calmly in my hand and unfolded into an open letter.

"The documents list each student's dormitory, class schedule, and meal times. Additionally, dorms are not assigned by gender, and room transfer requests will not be accepted. The paper doves belong to each of you personally, they will be with you throughout your time here."

Gasps broke out around the room.

Everyone seemed surprised. I stared at the dorm number on the page, thinking: dorms not divided by gender, well, it's a magic academy. Of course it's different.

After I finished reading, the letter folded itself back into a dove and hopped around in my hand, chattering away at me.

"Student: Catherine Wells. Your schedule is updated daily, I'll notify you. Note: The school gates close at 12:00 AM and open at 7:00 AM. Please follow these rules strictly."

The students' noise was cut off by the headmistress. "You'll have plenty of time to get acquainted with your doves. For now, we move on to the next part: partner assignments. Your partner will play a very important role in your time here, your studies, your assignments, and even the direction your life takes will be closely tied together. Let magic guide you, and choose carefully."

Partners?

The thought of being left without one hit me immediately. My heart tightened. I looked around at the other new students and noticed that most of them already seemed to know someone. Which made sense, they'd grown up in the magical world their whole lives...

Then I noticed the figure sitting in the front row. Liam Hammer.

While the rows behind him were filling up, not a single person had taken a seat anywhere near him. I was certain it was deliberate, everyone was pointedly ignoring him.

Lynn sat with perfect posture, hands folded together, his uniform fitted over a frame that clearly held a lot of power beneath it. He looked like a sleek, noble leopard. His expression was completely calm, as if the way everyone treated him didn't bother him in the slightest.

I kept watching him. Out of place, just like me. A thought was growing steadily stronger in my mind: we were the same kind of person.

Liam Hammer's POV

God, this is boring.

I zoned out the moment I looked at Vera's face and went back to staring at the diamond on my cufflink. Her speech, the new students sneaking nervous glances at me, whatever was about to happen next, none of it was as worth paying attention to as this one little gem.

I couldn't figure out why Mom insisted I come to this school. Was it tradition? Being feared, ignored, despised? Or was it because Vera had asked Mom for a personal favor she couldn't turn down?

People's hatred couldn't change one simple fact. Half-bloods were too powerful. Even the Imperial Academy of Magic needed the Hammer family's connections for protection.

Even if that connection was just "the heir once studied here."

I turned the gem between my fingers, bored out of my mind. Just let me go home and sleep.

Wait...

Someone was walking toward me.

In that moment, it felt like she was the only person I could see. She was heading my way, toward the seat next to mine.

Hadn't anyone told her what it meant to sit next to me? Hadn't she heard the rumors? Hadn't anyone warned her to stay away? Did she even know who I was?

Maybe they had... maybe she'd just chosen to ignore all of it? No, I was sure she wasn't actually coming toward me.

"Can I be your partner?"

The girl looked like an elegant princess. A fit, graceful figure, soft golden curls, and a pair of beautiful blue eyes looking straight at me.

I could already hear the whispers from behind,

"Oh my god!"

"Has no one told her who Liam Hammer is?"

"For the love of, I can't even imagine..."

She ignored all of it. Caught off guard, I slowly nodded without really thinking.

"Great!" she said happily, and just sat right down beside me.

I didn't know what to say, and she didn't say anything either. I could tell she was nervous, but not because of me. It was more like the anxiety of a new life, a new place.

Vera looked almost like she couldn't believe what she was seeing. She seemed to know this girl.

She asked again to confirm. "Are you sure you want him as your partner? For the next four years? Once a partner is chosen, it can't be changed."

I half-expected Vera to just quietly assign the girl a different partner. After all, I'd already told Vera I didn't need one.

But when the girl nodded without hesitation, Vera agreed.

I stared at Vera, stunned.

Did Vera not know what this girl was going to face because of me?

Vera paid me no attention and announced to the room:

"All partners have been registered. You now have free time, take this chance to get to know your new partner."

The hall filled with the sound of conversation.

"My name is Catherine Wells. I'm an Awakener, but I don't know my specific type yet. I only found out a few weeks ago, before that, I was just a regular human."

She spoke quickly, like she was embarrassed by it, like that was the reason she felt out of place among everyone else, and why she was so nervous.

I stared at her for a long moment without saying anything, my thoughts tangling into a mess.

An Awakener who doesn't know her own type? Does that actually exist? Who is she?

What kind of Awakener has such a naturally striking presence, and still doesn't know who she is?

Who is she?

And what was going through her head when she chose to sit next to me?

Vera had already left. With her gone, the new students talked even louder, and right now every eye in the room was on me and Catherine.

I was watching her calm profile, just about to say something to break the awkward silence, when a girl came walking over, laughing and messing around with her friends.

Before I even had time to react, the full cup of water in her hand tipped and spilled all over Catherine's jacket.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" The girl put on a fake smile as she apologized, her expression smug and mean. "That's such bad luck, but then again... maybe that's just what happens when you sit next to a half-blood?"

"Traitor~"

She did that on purpose.

But before I could even stand up to say anything, Catherine shot to her feet, grabbed the mug off the table, and without missing a beat, threw it right back at her.

"Oh really? Well, so did I, total accident!"