The room was silent—until it wasn't.

Evie's breathing turned erratic, her chest rising and falling rapidly as the weight of her dream settled over her like a suffocating force.

Her fingers clutched the sheets, her lungs struggling to take in air. She felt dizzy, disoriented—the vision still burned behind her eyes.

The girl.

The reflection of herself, bathed in darkness.

Her smirk. Her voice. The way she said—finally, we meet at last.

She wasn't alone in her magic.

There was someone else.

The thought sent her into a spiral of panic. What did it mean? Who was she? Why did she feel—

"Evie!"

The sound of her name came through all at once, pulling her from the chaos in her mind.

She gasped, her vision tunneling, until suddenly—

Warm hands grasped her shoulders. A firm, steady presence anchored her.

Rowan.

His deep green eyes were filled with worry as he knelt in front of her, his grip on her tight but comforting.

"Breathe, Starlight," he murmured. "Come on, match my breathing."

She shook her head, her body trembling.

"Evie, look at me."

Her gaze flickered to Duke, who was kneeling on the bed beside her, his golden eyes soft with concern but filled with determination. "Come on, Angel. In and out, just like I'm doing." He exaggerated the movement of his breathing, his large hand pressing gently against her back.

Sol was beside her, one hand cupping her cheek, his warmth bleeding into her skin. "You're okay. You're safe. We've got you."

Seth was at the foot of the bed, eyes sharp but filled with something raw. "What the hell happened?" His voice was firm, but Evie knew him well enough to hear the panic underneath.

She swallowed hard, her chest heaving as she tried to follow their rhythm.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Slowly... her heart began to steady.

Her trembling eased.

She felt the warmth of their touch, grounding her. She wasn't alone.

After a few more moments, she whispered, "I saw someone in my dream."

Their expressions hardened instantly.

Rowan was the first to ask. "Who?"

Evie hesitated, swallowing the lump in her throat. "She... she looked like me. But not." She shook her head, gripping the sheets as memories of the dream flickered back to her. "Her aura... it was dark. Twisted. And she said—she said, 'Finally, we meet at last.'"

Silence.

Duke's fingers tightened on her waist, his entire body going still.

Sol exhaled, a deep muscle-tensing sigh, like he was already putting pieces together.

Rowan's hand slid down her arm, his thumb brushing lightly over her wrist. "That's not normal," he murmured.

"No shit," Seth snapped, running a frustrated hand through his dark hair. His blue eyes were sharp as a blade. "This isn't just some nightmare. This is a damn warning."

Evie nodded, her gut twisting.

She knew it too.

The girl in her dream—she was real.

And somehow, she was connected to her.

______________________________

The Headmistress' Truth They didn't waste any time.

The next morning, the moment dawn broke, they stormed into the headmistress' office.

The older woman, always composed and unreadable, barely had time to greet them before Duke spoke first.

"Tell us the truth." His voice was dangerous, his golden eyes burning. "No more secrets."

The headmistress straightened slightly, her hands folding over her desk. "I assume this is about Evie's vision?"

Rowan scoffed. "Don't act like you don't know more than you're letting on."

Evie clenched her hands at her sides, her heartbeat pounding. "There's someone else, isn't there?"

The headmistress held her gaze for a long moment.

And then—

She sighed. A deep, resigned sound.

"There is something I have kept from you," she admitted.

Evie stiffened.

Seth muttered, "Of course there is."

Sol's voice was firm. "Tell us. All of it."

The headmistress hesitated—but then she spoke. And every word shook Evie to her core.

"You have a sister, Evie."

The world stopped moving.

Evie froze, her breath catching in her throat.

Her fingers curled into fists, nails digging into her palms.

A sister?

No. That wasn't possible. She was—she had always been—

"What?" she whispered.

The headmistress' expression softened, but there was something else in her gaze. Regret.

"You were not born alone," she said quietly. "You had a twin."

A twin.

Evie felt like the air had been punched from her lungs.

She barely noticed the way the room had fallen into tense silence—the way the princes had gone still, their anger shifting into something deeper, something dangerous.

Duke was the first to break the silence. His voice was low and sharp. "And you didn't think this was something we should know?"

The headmistress sighed again. "We had to keep her hidden. She carried something... unnatural."

Evie felt sick. "Unnatural?"

The headmistress met her eyes. "She carried the full force of darkness. While you were meant to be the light."

The words struck like a physical blow.

Her twin—her sister—had been hidden away because of her magic.

Evie's stomach twisted.

And then, as if things couldn't get worse—

"Alaric has found her."

Her breath caught.

Her hands shook.

The princes tensed.

"What?" Rowan's voice was deadly quiet.

The headmistress' expression was grim. "He's using her. He plans to complete his mission of destruction—with her at his side."

A long, painful silence filled the room.

Evie felt cold all over.

Alaric wasn't just after her.

He had someone else now—someone who was part of her.

A twin sister she never even knew existed.

And if he had already found her...

She didn't even need to finish the thought.

Because she already knew.

They had to stop him before it was too late. ______________________________