Crescent Wolves - G. Bailey Page 0,18

how to design your schedule."

"And I don't have to wait for the next term to start?"

Samantha shakes her head. "Most of our new students are like you. Their powers manifest at random times after they turn eighteen, and they master them at different rates. We've made it easy to integrate new students into our program by dividing classes up based on skill level. You won’t have to worry about getting lost--all of your classmates will be relatively new shifters, like yourself."

"I'll put a call in to President Hawthorne," Mrs. Fairbanks volunteers, already reaching for the old-fashioned rotary telephone on the desk. Before I can say anything else, she's dialing a number and speaking rapidly into the phone, talking for less than a minute before hanging up. "He'll be down shortly," she informs us. "Feel free to wait here."

I stare down at my lap as we wait, unsure what to do or say. At least it sounds like they're not going to turn me away for being a freak, but that doesn't do much to put my mind at ease. All I can do now is wait… and hope this President Hawthorne feels the same way as the others.

A few minutes later, the door to the office opens, and I look up. A guy who looks to be around my age pokes his head into the room. "Mrs. Fairbanks?" he says. His voice is melodic, with a slight Cheshire lilt in the accent. His hair is an ashy shade of blonde, his eyes a bright gray. "Professor Abernathy sent me to ask you about wolfsbane. Tomorrow's a full moon."

A full moon? I think. Does this mean he’s a wolf shifter?

I'm once again a little surprised by how nonchalant the students here are about their abilities--will I ever get to that point? Not if you only ever turn into an abomination like you did earlier, sneers a cynical part of me, but I do my best to ignore it.

"Ah, Mr. Ivis," says Mrs. Fairbanks. "We received a new shipment this morning. Would you be a dear and make sure it got to the nurse's office?"

"Of course," the guy says, giving her a nod. He glances at Samantha and Josie before his eyes come to rest on me, giving me a curious once-over. I'm not sure whether it's the fact that he's obviously handsome or the fact that I must look a mess, but I duck my head a little. His eyes linger on me for a moment longer before he clears his throat and leaves the office.

"Good kid," remarks Josie. "That was Shade Ivis, Millie. He's a wolf shifter. Before long you'll learn the names of most of the students here."

I open my mouth to respond, but then the door opens again, and a tall man enters the office. He's stately, handsome, and well-groomed, with salt-and-pepper hair and a trim goatee. His dark suit is a stark contrast to the white school uniforms. "Good morning, ladies," he says, approaching Mrs. Fairbanks' side of the desk. "May I?" he asks, indicating a free chair. Mrs. Fairbanks nods, and he sits down, leaning back and folding his hands. "I was told we have a bit of an unusual case here," he says, his dark eyes settling on me.

I listen as Josie and Samantha reiterate the story, from their charm alerting them to a new shifter to bringing me back here. Mrs. Fairbanks chimes in to confirm what they saw in my aura. For a long while after, nobody speaks, and I feel incredibly small under the headmaster's unreadable gaze.

Finally he speaks up. "Well, you're right that this is an unusual case," he says. "In fact, I've only heard of something like this happening once before. It was centuries ago, when a group of rogue witches tried to create a hybrid shifter using the abilities of the other clans. It was deemed an abomination and destroyed." My heart sinks.

Samantha's brow furrows. "You're not actually thinking about--"

"Of course not," Hawthorne replies. "That was a long time ago. We're more civilized now, more evolved. Obviously, we'll want to see how your abilities manifest, Millie, and some research will need to be done into your background and parentage, but you're entitled to an education here, the same as everyone else." He smiles at me.

Did they ever tell him my name? I wonder. They must have, right? I honestly can't remember. Before I can consider this further, he’s standing up, straightening his suit. “You said she showed signatures of