NOVEL NEXT Chapter 29: A Storm Within
The first taste was always the most telling. Selena Thornfield let the sweetness of honey seep across her tongue, its golden warmth softening the sharp edges of her thoughts for a single, fleeting moment. The scone beneath the glaze was a delicate thing—its flaky crust giving way to a crumbly heart, textured just enough to linger on the edge of perfection. She tilted her chin ever so slightly, the movement precise and poised, a reflex honed by years of expectation. Her deep purple eyes narrowed, though not in displeasure; they studied the sensations as if deciphering a puzzle only she could solve. Satisfaction, like joy, was a currency she spent sparingly.
Her silver hair shimmered as the light of a thousand enchanted candles caught its cascade, pooling like molten moonlight over her shoulders. Each strand seemed to glow as she leaned into the experience of the meal, taking another deliberate bite. This time, the richness of clotted cream and the tart vibrancy of strawberries played a quiet, elegant duel on her palate. The corners of her lips twitched, but the expression was fleeting, gone before it could fully form. Her face settled back into its usual cold grace, unreadable but undeniably commanding.
The Great Hall rose around her in a symphony of stone, magic, and memory. Towering walls cradled banners that rippled with a life of their own, each depicting tales of bravery and loss—an eternal reminder of the weight of legacy. Above her, the enchanted ceiling bore witness to the storm outside, clouds roiling in dark, swirling oceans of silver and charcoal. Rain lashed against the charmed barrier with a soundless fury, its invisible energy casting flickers of motion across the warm torchlight below. The air carried the damp, electric tang of a storm on the cusp of chaos, mingling with the feast's heady aroma: roasted meats, fragrant spices, and the faint sweetness of desserts waiting to be devoured.
Selena's fingers brushed the smooth curve of a golden goblet beside her, its ornate surface catching glints of firelight. Her hand stilled, the cool metal grounding her against the unbidden warmth that flared under her skin. It wasn't the storm that unsettled her. It was him.
From the corner of her eye, she caught the reflection—a face not her own but one that haunted her thoughts with infuriating persistence. Solace Antigonus. His tousled, sun-kissed hair seemed permanently at war with gravity, strands falling into his eyes only to be swept aside with careless ease. Those golden eyes, bright and reckless, caught the light with a glint that danced between charm and defiance. His smile—infuriatingly self-assured—pulled at her composure like a thread threatening to unravel the whole tapestry.
Selena's fingers tightened around the goblet, the pressure enough to make the metal creak faintly. Weakness, she chastised herself, though the word cut more deeply than she intended. Solace was everything she despised: impulsive, unruly, a living contradiction to the strict order that governed her world. Yet, in the same breath, he was everything she couldn't stop noticing. He had orchestrated a rebellion against a professor—a bold, reckless stunt that should have ended in humiliation. Instead, it had crowned him in the kind of glory that burned itself into memory.
Her gaze flickered toward him again, just for an instant, drawn by an unseen force she couldn't deny. He was laughing now, his voice ringing out across the hall like a challenge hurled at the storm above. It was the kind of laugh that dared the world to silence it. That dared her to silence it.
She straightened her spine, forcing her expression back into its polished mask, a shield of icy composure. Her hair slipped over her shoulder, a cascade of moonlight that reflected the indifference she needed to project. She was untouchable, a queen of marble and frost, immune to the chaotic pull of someone like Solace. And yet, there he was, weaving himself into the quiet corners of her mind like a persistent storm cloud.
The whispers of the hall didn't help. They swirled around her like smoke, full of half-heard compliments, envy-laden glances, and the low hum of unspoken admiration. To them, Selena Thornfield was perfection incarnate: graceful, intelligent, untouchable. But within her, a storm raged, silent and furious.
She dragged her eyes away from Solace, though her mind refused to follow. His reckless energy was an affront to the rigid lessons drilled into her from childhood—control, precision, unyielding strength. And yet, his defiance of those very principles unsettled something within her, something buried deep and long forgotten.
Her fingers traced the goblet's edge with slow deliberation, a futile effort to steady herself. She stole one last glance, catching him mid-laugh as he dodged a playful shove from a housemate. He was a whirlwind, impossible to ignore, impossible to contain. He met her eyes for the briefest of moments, and in that instant, she saw it: a spark, a silent question, and a declaration all at once. He would not be tamed.
Her heart twisted, sharp and unfamiliar, and she forced her gaze away, setting the goblet down with measured care. A sigh slipped past her lips, too soft to be heard over the din of the hall. She had no time for distractions, least of all one as reckless and dangerous as Solace Antigonus. Vulnerability was a luxury she couldn't afford—a weakness that invited betrayal.
And yet, as she lifted her chin and donned her mask of indifference once more, his laugh echoed in her mind, wild and free. It was infuriating. It was intoxicating. And despite herself, she couldn't quite let it go.