Just Thoughts
The halls of Alfea were quiet, the kind of quiet that settled in after midnight when even the restless had found their sleep. Minari moved alone, as she often did, her boots echoing softly against enchanted stone. She wasn’t sneaking—she never did—but the way shadows wrapped around her as if drawn to her presence? That tended to make people talk.
She was halfway back from the training chamber when she felt the shift in air—subtle, but not unfamiliar.
“Still playing with spells your teachers pretend not to notice?”
Minari paused. Not surprised. Not startled.
She turned, arms crossed. “Still stalking girls you’re obsessed with?”
Darcy stepped from behind a pillar, that smug smile never quite reaching her eyes. “Only the interesting ones.”
The silence between them sizzled for a moment, unspoken power crackling faintly.
Darcy’s gaze raked over her, sharp and amused. “You know, the girls at Cloud Tower are starting to talk. Some of them think you should’ve been born one of us.”
Minari’s brow arched. “Because I don't sparkle in pastels and giggle at pixie dust?”
Darcy’s smile deepened. “Because your magic doesn’t flinch. It bends shadows. It slips into minds. It knows what it’s doing. That kind of control scares people.”
Minari didn’t deny it. “Control isn’t evil.”
“No,” Darcy said softly, taking a step closer. “But power like yours always walks a tightrope. Everyone’s waiting to see which way you fall.”
Minari tilted her head, unbothered. “Let them wait. I’m not here to make them comfortable.”
Something flickered in Darcy’s expression. Curiosity. Respect. Something darker beneath it.
“You’re dangerous,” Darcy said, almost to herself.
Minari stepped past her, slow and deliberate, brushing her shoulder slightly. “No,” she murmured, without looking back. “I’m just not afraid of what I am.”
Darcy stayed behind, lips curling into a slow grin. And for once, she didn’t follow.