Lucian didn't even make it down the steps of the chamber before he felt the temperature of the room—
sharp, acidic tension thick enough to choke on.
Rowan hovered behind him, pale.
Chandler followed last, posture rigid, assessing everything.
Lucian's eyes swept across the councilors—
Renlow stiff as a stone,
Varn pretending calm,
Two others whispering furiously—
And Hale—
smiling.
Of course he was smiling.
Lucian muttered under his breath:
"Perfect. Absolutely perfect."
Then he stepped between Horace and the council dais.
LUCIAN'S INTERVENTION
"Councilors," Lucian said sharply,
"I remind you that the Crown Prince has not violated any section of Academy conduct. Yet."
A few councilors stiffened.
Horace didn't look at him—
he still had his eyes locked on Hale.
But he hadn't moved in several seconds.
That alone was a good sign.
Lucian continued:
"We should refocus on the facts.
You've presented your preliminary accusation."
He folded his arms.
"Let us respond before you escalate further."
Councilor Renlow sniffed.
"Escalate?
We stated only what your… Omega has caused."
Rowan flinched at the phrasing.
Chandler stepped protectively closer to him.
Then Hale spoke—
and every hair on Lucian's neck rose.
"Very well," Hale said smoothly.
"Let us hear your counterarguments."
Lucian inclined his head.
"First—
Elleanore Fonze has displayed no pheromonal influence abnormalities before the incident."
Councilor Varn tapped her tablet.
"According to whose reports?"
Lucian's jaw tightened.
"My own."
Several councilors exchanged looks.
Hale smiled lazily.
"Interesting, coming from the student who has repeatedly violated internal security protocols."
Lucian's eyes turned to ice.
"Every protocol breach I've committed has been in service of ensuring the Academy doesn't collapse under its own corruption."
Several councilors gasped.
Chandler smirked faintly.
Rowan covered a squeak.
Horace's lips twitched.
Hale only looked delighted.
"Yes, yes," Hale sighed.
"You do love your righteous crusades.
But this hearing is about the Omega—"
"Her name is Elleanore," Horace snapped.
"And she is not the one at fault," Lucian continued.
"Her heat spike was directly caused by—"
But before he could finish—
another councilor cut him off.
"Please do not insult this committee," Councilor Renlow said loudly.
"With the absurd notion that an Omega's instability is somehow the Academy's responsibility."
Lucian narrowed his eyes.
"Oh?
So you openly admit that if the Academy badly manages an Omega's heat cycle—an Omega it forcibly enrolled—
then you bear no responsibility for the consequences?"
Renlow sputtered.
Hale's smile thinned a fraction.
"Incompetence and bias aside," Hale drawled,
"we require physical verification."
Lucian tensed.
Horace turned his head slightly—
finally looking away from Hale.
"…physical verification?" he echoed.
Hale gestured lazily at the empty witness stand.
"Bring the Omega here."
Rowan sucked in a sharp breath.
Horace's expression froze.
Chandler straightened stiffly.
Lucian went still.
"You," Hale said softly,
"are making extraordinary claims about her stability.
If she is as harmless as you insist…
prove it."
Rowan whispered:
"No. No, no, no—"
Horace spoke first—
his voice low, cold, feral.
"She is not entering this room."
Hale lifted a brow.
"Is she unstable?"
Horace stepped forward.
"Don't toy with me."
"Then bring her," Hale said lightly.
"Let us take the readings ourselves."
"You will not touch her."
Hale tilted his head.
"Then you admit—"
Chandler cut in.
"No."
Everyone turned.
Chandler stepped forward, shoulders squared, expression controlled but burning underneath.
"I'll bring her."
Horace's head snapped toward him.
"Chandler—"
Chandler held up a hand.
"No. Listen."
He turned to the council—
and for the first time that day, he fully faced them.
His voice was steady.
Level.
Dangerous in a quiet way.
"You want to see whether she's stable," Chandler said.
"You want to see whether she can stand here without collapsing the room."
Renlow nodded stiffly.
"That is correct."
Chandler inhaled.
"Then let me say this clearly."
He met each councilor's gaze in turn.
"If you bring her here, the only thing you'll witness is how much restraint she has."
The chamber paused.
Hale leaned forward, intrigued.
"Restraint?"
Chandler nodded.
"She was in heat shock. She nearly died.
But she didn't harm any of us.
Not me.
Not Rowan.
Not Horace."
Rowan's cheeks reddened faintly.
Horace blinked, surprised.
Lucian raised a brow.
Chandler continued:
"In fact—
Elleanore was the one begging us not to die."
The chamber murmured.
Chandler's voice softened—
just barely.
"You can twist what happened however you want.
But we all know the truth.
She wasn't the danger.
The chamber was."
Lucian almost smiled.
Horace's shoulders relaxed a fraction.
Rowan let out a shaky breath.
But Hale—
Hale smiled slowly, like a wolf sinking into fresh snow.
"My, my," he murmured.
"Such devotion."
Chandler's jaw tightened.
"We're stating facts," Lucian cut in.
"Are you?" Hale asked softly.
"Or is this simply the result of three Alphas and a Beta imprinting on the same Omega?"
Horace stepped forward.
"Watch your tone—"
But Hale cut him off.
"You said yourself she wasn't dangerous.
So bring her."
Horace's voice shook with fury.
"I said she wasn't entering this room."
Hale shrugged lightly.
"Then this hearing cannot continue."
Lucian stiffened.
"Councilor—"
"No," Hale said.
"This Council demands the Omega's presence.
If she does not appear, she forfeits her right to defense."
Rowan's heart dropped.
Chandler froze.
Horace's breath hitched sharply.
Lucian spoke quickly:
"This is irregular—"
"Then file a complaint," Hale said smoothly.
"After we proceed."
The councilors nodded.
One by one.
Until the whole crescent of powerful figures stared down at Horace with the same conclusion.
Hale lifted his chin.
"Bring her," he said again.
And then—
the chamber doors
opened.
Every head turned.
The guards stiffened.
And the boys' breath caught.
Because standing in the doorway—
was Elleanore.
Not escorted.
Not trembling.
Not hiding.
Standing tall.
Her chin lifted.
Her eyes steady.
Her breath calm.
And every heart in that room halted.
The Girl They Thought Would Break
The moment I stepped inside the chamber, the air changed.
Not subtly.
Not gradually.
It stopped.
As if the entire room inhaled at the same time and forgot how to breathe again.
Horace was the first to react.
His eyes widened—sharp, electric, terrified and relieved all at once.
"Elleanore—"
He said my name like a prayer and a warning.
Rowan's face broke open with shock.
Chandler stiffened so hard his jaw ticked, hands fisting at his sides.
Lucian whispered under his breath:
"Of course she came."
The councilors stared.
Some startled.
Some annoyed.
Some… curious.
But Hale—
Hale smiled.
As if he'd been waiting.
"Ah," he said softly.
"The Omega arrives."
Horace took a step toward me immediately—
but I lifted a hand.
Just a small gesture.
But enough.
Enough to make him freeze.
Enough to make Rowan blink in surprise.
Enough to make Chandler inhale slowly, watching me with new eyes.
"I'm here," I murmured,
"on my own."
The chamber stilled.
Horace swallowed hard.
Rowan's breath hitched.
Chandler's stare darkened with something protective—and something else.
Lucian closed his eyes briefly, exhaling:
"…you stubborn girl."
THE WALK TO THE CENTER
I walked forward—
not too fast,
not too slow,
steady.
Each step deliberate.
Each breath quiet.
My legs trembled beneath the gown Lucian had found for me, but my spine remained straight.
Horace moved instinctively to walk with me, but I shook my head.
"I need to do this."
Rowan whispered, voice soft, aching:
"Elle… you don't have to prove anything."
"I know," I said gently.
"But they think I'm afraid to be here.
I'm not."
Chandler's voice rumbled behind me.
"You're stronger than any of them realize."
I didn't look back—
but his words settled into my chest like warmth.
When I reached the center of the chamber, I faced the council.
Their expressions varied:
Renlow: skeptical
Varn: unsettled
Three younger councilors: whispering
The two older councilors near the end: uncertain
Hale: smiling like a man watching a show he'd already predicted the ending of
I lifted my chin slightly.
"I'm Elleanore Fonze," I said softly.
"I'm here to speak for myself."
HALE BEGINS HIS GAME
Hale tapped his stylus lightly against the desk.
"Miss Fonze," he said.
"You arrive unescorted, despite your condition?"
I held his gaze.
"I'm not helpless."
A ripple moved through the room.
Horace's chest rose sharply.
Rowan watched me with worry and awe.
Chandler crossed his arms, impressed.
Hale's smile did not falter.
"And yet," he continued lightly,
"you were in critical condition only hours ago."
"I'm standing now."
Hale leaned forward.
"Are you stable?"
"I am."
"Are you certain?"
"Yes."
"Are you—"
"She said she's stable."
Horace's voice cut through the chamber like a blade.
Hale's eyes flicked to him.
"Your Highness, I was asking the Omega—"
"Then ask her, not your agenda."
Several councilors gasped.
Lucian whispered, "Horace, please," under his breath.
I stepped forward before the argument ignited.
"I'm stable," I repeated.
"And fully capable of answering your questions."
Hale spread his hands in mock politeness.
"Very well.
Let us begin."
FIRST ATTACK: OMEGA STABILITY
Hale's tone softened—dangerously.
"Miss Fonze.
Do you deny that your heat spike endangered three Alphas?"
"No."
Rowan's breath caught.
Horace stiffened.
Chandler's jaw tightened.
I continued:
"Because they endangered themselves to help me.
I didn't lure them.
I didn't call them.
And I certainly didn't choose to be restrained in a chamber designed to suppress Omegas."
Hale's brows rose.
"So you blame the Academy?"
"No," I said.
"I blame the people who put me in that room."
Several councilors flinched.
Lucian smirked faintly.
Hale tapped his stylus.
"And who are those people, Miss Fonze?"
I inhaled.
Slow.
Controlled.
"The same people trying to blame me for surviving."
A murmur ran through the chamber—
shock, disbelief, recognition.
Hale's smile faltered for the first time.
Only a little.
"You claim we endangered you?" he asked.
"Yes."
"How so?"
"You controlled the conditions.
You placed me in a chamber meant for Alpha suppression.
You ignored registered medical warnings.
And when I nearly died, you called it 'influence.'"
Hale paused.
"You speak boldly for someone on trial."
Horace stepped forward sharply.
"She's not on trial—"
Lucian seized his arm again.
But I spoke first.
"I speak boldly because I know the truth.
And because I'm done being silent."
Rowan made a tiny sound—
part sob, part laugh of relief.
Chandler's eyes softened.
Horace stared at me—
for a moment forgetting how to breathe.
SECOND ATTACK: BOND IMPLICATION
Councilor Renlow adjusted his glasses.
"Miss Fonze.
We have reason to believe you are bonded."
My heart stopped.
The chamber tensed.
Rowan's fingers curled.
Chandler stepped forward half an inch.
Horace's breath caught in his throat.
I forced myself to breathe.
"I am not bonded."
Hale lifted a brow.
"No?
Then how do you explain the reaction of these three Alphas—"
"He's not an Alpha," I cut in, nodding to Rowan.
The councilors blinked.
Rowan froze.
Lucian stared at me.
Chandler murmured,
"She's saying more than any of us would."
Hale tilted his head.
"And that matters because…?"
"Because Betas don't have bond-driven instinct surges," I said calmly.
"And he reacted, too."
The chamber murmured again.
Hale's eyes narrowed.
"What are you suggesting?"
"That none of them came to me because of pheromones."
Horace inhaled sharply.
"They came," I said softly,
"because they cared."
Rowan flushed.
Chandler's expression softened.
Horace closed his eyes briefly, breath shaky.
I lifted my chin.
"No bond.
Just choice."
THIRD ATTACK: EXPULSION
Hale straightened.
"Regardless of sentimental reasoning," he said,
"your presence here threatens the Academy's stability."
I lifted a brow.
"How?"
Hale folded his hands.
"You attract trouble."
"I survived trouble."
"You disrupted Academy order."
"I was thrown into a chamber alone."
"You destabilized multiple Alphas."
"They stabilized me."
Hale's lips thinned.
"You are impertinent."
"I am alive."
The room fell quiet.
Then Hale said it.
The words he had been waiting to say.
"Miss Fonze,
the Council recommends expulsion for your safety and the safety of others."
The chamber gasped.
Horace moved so fast it startled even the guards.
He stepped in front of me—
fully in front—
shielding me with his body.
"No."
Hale blinked.
"…what?"
"No," Horace repeated.
"Absolutely not."
Rowan moved beside him, chin trembling but eyes fierce.
"You can't take her away."
Chandler stepped up on my other side, voice low.
"You'd have to expel us too."
Lucian rubbed his temples.
"Oh stars, this is spiraling…"
Hale leaned forward, amused.
"Do you all refuse the Council's verdict?"
Horace's voice shook with barely-restrained rage.
"If you expel her—
you'll have to do it over my corpse."
Rowan swallowed.
"And mine."
Chandler crossed his arms.
"And mine."
Lucian sighed.
"…and paperwork from me."
Hale's smile vanished.
For the first time—
his expression cracked.
"You dare—?" he hissed.
Horace stepped closer.
Just one slow, terrifying step.
"I dare," Horace said quietly,
"because she is not leaving this Academy."
I touched his arm gently.
"Horace—"
He turned his head slightly, eyes softening painfully.
"I am not losing you," he said under his breath.
"Not again."
Rowan whispered:
"We love you, Elle."
Chandler nodded once.
"You're one of us. You're staying."
I swallowed hard.
Then faced the council.
"I'm not leaving," I said simply.
Hale's eyes burned.
And then he stood.
"Then this hearing," he said,
"just became war."