Mixed— chapter ten: The Dream

Then he disappeared into the shadows of his bunk, leaving me and Kael in silence. 

Taron sniggered from halfway up his bunk ladder, drawing out my name like he was announcing a performance. “Ryderrrr… I heard a rumor.” His blue stone glowed faintly, casting mischief across his grin. “That you forcefully silenced a poor, poor perfect blood.”

I stiffened. Heat crept up my neck, but before I could speak, Kael leaned forward with a scowl. “She deserved more.”

Taron’s smirk deepened. “Yeah, Ryder ruined my wish.” He tapped the side of his head with a lazy finger, voice sing-song. “The head exploding fiasco, remember? Oh Ryder, you shouldn’t have dis-spelled Kael’s spell!”

Kael grinned wide, puffing his chest like he wore the memory as a badge of honor. “Still my proudest moment.”

I groaned, dragging a pillow over my head. “Can you two not relive my worst day at the academy while I’m still in the room?”

Kael chuckled, but his blue Luminor flickered bright and loyal, as if to remind me he’d still do it all over again.

Taron snorted, finally climbing the rest of the way into his bunk. “Careful, Ravenwood. Rumors spread faster than spells.”

The dorm went quiet, but my stone pulsed warm under the pillow, restless.

Kael shot upright in his bunk, eyes sparkling. “Did you hear that thump in the hall earlier? That was Ryder—froze that stuck-up Juniper stiff as a board!” He laughed, slapping his knee. “She toppled over like a log. Dumb girl.”

My stomach twisted. I glared at him. “She isn’t dumb! She’s our friend. And I’d never catch you talking bad about me like that.”

Kael’s grin faltered, but only for a moment. He rubbed the back of his neck, mumbling, “I didn’t mean—”

Before he could finish, Taron’s smug voice cut through from the top bunk. “Oh, hush, Ry. Everyone knows it doesn’t matter if we bully her. Just have fun!”

His words dripped like acid.

My fist clenched under the pillow, nails biting into my palm. “She matters,” I said quietly, but my Luminor pulsed hot against my ribs, betraying the storm twisting inside me.

Kael glanced at me, his blue stone dimming, and for once he didn’t argue.

Taron let out a long groan and leaned back against the wall of his bunk. “It’s fine, dude. Just chill. It was a joke.” He waved a hand lazily, his blue stone glowing calm and steady. “I would never actually harm the kid.”

Kael relaxed instantly, grinning again as if nothing serious had been said.

But I didn’t. My jaw stayed tight, eyes fixed on the faint orange flicker under my pillow. Taron’s voice might’ve been smooth, his grin easy, but the words still echoed in my head.

A joke or not, Juniper was different. And different was never safe here.

The door banged open so hard it rattled against the wall. Seraphina stormed in, her golden Luminor blazing in her hand like a torch.

“LIGHTS OUT WAS AN HOUR AGO!” she barked, eyes sweeping the room like a hawk’s.

My pulse spiked. Without thinking, I yanked my stone from under the pillow, the orange glow flaring. “Narcolesas!”

Her body went stiff, then collapsed to the floor in a heap, unconscious.

“Ryder—” Kael started, eyes wide.

“Mindosis,” I snapped, pointing at her. A faint shimmer passed over her eyes, sealing the memory away. She wouldn’t remember walking in, wouldn’t remember finding us awake.

Silence. The only sound was my own heavy breathing.

I got to my feet, grabbed her under the arms, and dragged her limp body across the hall. Her golden braid trailed on the floor like a line of fire behind me. I propped her against the doorframe of her dorm, brushed my hands off, and muttered, “Not my problem.”

When I walked back in, Kael’s jaw had dropped. Taron raised his brows, whistling low.

“Efficient,” Taron said dryly, rolling onto his side. “Reckless as heck, but efficient.”

Kael finally found his voice. “Ry… you just knocked out a perfect-blood and rewrote her memory like it was nothing!”

I sank back onto my bed, my stone still glowing faintly in my palm. My chest tightened. “Yeah,” I said quietly, staring at the light. “I did.”

Kael stared at me, his blue stone glowing faint in his hand. “Ry… you can’t just keep doing this. Silencing her in the hall was one thing — but knocking her out and rewriting her memory?” His voice dropped low. “That’s… that’s dark.”

I kicked my shoes off and sat on the edge of my bunk, gripping my Luminor tight. “What was I supposed to do, let her drag us straight to Thale’s office?!”

Kael’s jaw worked, like he wanted to say something else but didn’t. Finally, he muttered, “You’re starting to sound like your mom.”

The words cut deep. I froze. Then I forced a laugh that came out harsher than I meant. “Whether I sound like her or not, I’m not getting expelled.”

Silence stretched between us. Kael leaned back against the wall, his expression tight. His blue glow pulsed steady, loyal, but there was worry behind it.

“Just… don’t lose yourself, Ry,” he said finally, his voice softer. “If you go down the same path she did, there won’t be any coming back.”

I laid down without answering, pulling the blanket over my head. But under the fabric, the orange stone throbbed against my chest, its glow refusing to dim.

“His mother wasn’t evil,” he said simply. His blue Luminor glowed faint through the slats of his bed frame, calm and unwavering. “The council thought she was because of her stone color.”

I shifted under my blanket, the orange pulse against my chest quickening.

Kael frowned up at him. “Then why kill her?”

Taron rolled onto his side, his voice steady, but there was an edge beneath it. “Because fear makes people do stupid things. A pure Vantablack stone scared them. They decided it was safer to brand her evil than admit they didn’t understand her.”

His words sank into the room, heavier than the silence before.

Kael looked back at me, his scowl softened now by something closer to guilt. My throat was tight. I wanted to believe Taron. I needed to.

But the orange glow throbbed harder under my blanket, and I wasn’t sure which was worse: that the council had been wrong about her… or that they might be right about me.

That night, sleep didn’t come easy. When it finally did, it wasn’t rest—just falling into shadows.

I stood in a wide, endless black. No floor, no ceiling, just darkness pressing close. My Luminor pulsed in my hand, not green, not orange, but shifting between both—like it couldn’t decide what I was.

A woman stood a few paces away. Her hair spilled long and dark, her presence sharp but warm. She turned, and though I’d never seen her outside of a file photo, I knew her instantly.

“Mother,” I whispered.

Ronnie Ravenwood smiled, soft and sad. “They told you I was evil, didn’t they?” Her voice echoed in the dark, wrapping around me like silk.

I swallowed, throat dry. “They killed you because of your stone.”