Chapter 1

• Gray... that was the color that perfectly described my mood today. From the door, I found myself unable to take more than two steps, as if the center of the room were capable of turning my gray into black.
• "Hi, my name is Eliza Singer. I'm 16 years old, and I'm from Heington. It's a pleasure to be part of a school as prestigious as Siram High School." That was my formal introduction to a bunch of unfamiliar faces of teenagers with wolf blood.
• Some looked at me with such curiosity that I seemed like a rare museum piece, while others seemed to roll their eyes with disdain at a newcomer who had been born and raised among ordinary humans. In the midst of it all, a red-haired girl sitting in the back completely ignored my short introduction, absorbed in what seemed like the work of a lifetime. Her fingers moved silently and gracefully over a piece of paper, and her eyes sparkled at what could be a masterpiece—or simply scribbles.
• In my head, all I wanted was to get out of there, run back to Heington, and pretend that nothing had happened in the last few weeks. But it was impossible to ignore the great summons. At best, I would be arrested and tried as a rebel, but I knew it wouldn't end there.
• The great summons was a decision made during the great conference of the clans, held in the city of Heington, located east of Siram. Heington was an important human metropolis, central to negotiations and the distribution of goods among the clans. Due to its excellent location and the fact that it did not belong to any of the clans, it was considered the ideal neutral ground to host the important conferences of the alphas, which took place annually.
• "Hey, newbie! You can sit here next to me." An athletic-looking boy with curly black hair and a wrinkled uniform pointed to the chair beside him. I opted for a chair farther back.
• As I walked down the aisle, I noticed the boy wink smugly, thinking I had paid attention to him. I rolled my eyes, walked straight past him, and stopped in front of the empty seat in front of the distracted redhead. Glancing quickly at the paper she was focused on, I noticed small black circles tracing a path over a set of lines. They were musical notes that made up a strangely familiar melody.
• I sat down calmly, smiling, while the biology teacher continued the lesson. Although I had missed a few days of class this semester due to the move, I didn't feel lost with the content being explained.
• "And so we see how genetics—" The shrill sound of the bell rang, causing the students to quickly get up and rush out of the room. I calmly put my notebook back in my backpack and noticed the teacher muttering something to himself.
• "Eliza!" he called out as I passed him. I looked firmly into his light brown eyes, which made him look away as he stroked his white beard.
• "Do you need something?" I asked, my voice monotone. I didn't want to prolong the conversation, as I still needed to find the room for my next class, and arriving late on the first day would not be well received.
• "I know this is all new to you, maybe you're having trouble keeping up..."
• "I'm fine!" I interrupted him before he could start that familiar speech about understanding what I was going through and offering help. I had heard the same conversation dozens of times this week and didn't need anyone's pity. Coming here had been my choice, and I was adapting as best as I could. "Professor, I appreciate your concern, but it's not necessary."
• I tried to sound as gentle and direct as possible. I looked at him seriously, waiting for his approval, and heard him sigh as he studied me a little differently.
• "Eliza, I know your history and I can already imagine how you will perform here. Don't let these changes stop you from continuing to shine." I smiled at him and nodded. Siram High School was nothing compared to Genius School, the high school I had attended until last semester, but I couldn't say that openly or I might lose my place at the only high school in this village with acceptable teaching. "Annie, could you show Eliza where the next classroom is?"
• I looked back and realized that the distracted redhead was still sitting there, the only one left behind.
• "Annie!" The teacher walked over to her and pulled a wireless earpiece out of her ear, which finally snapped her out of her trance.
• "Hi? What? Is class over?" she asked, completely lost.
• "Annie, could you accompany Miss Eliza to her next class? I believe you are in the same class."
• "Eliza?" This was perhaps the first time she had looked at me since taking her eyes off her music notebook. I wondered how it was possible for someone to be so completely lost like that.
• "Hello, nice to meet you!" I said, waving at her. A look of understanding immediately appeared on her face, and her freckled cheeks turned red. She stuffed her things into her bag and walked toward me, keeping her eyes down the whole way. I decided to break the silence first.
• "Annie, right?" She nodded slightly but kept her eyes down. We stopped in the hallway in front of the door to the next room. "I noticed you were writing a score. Can I take a look?"
• "Well, yes... No! It's just not ready yet," she stammered, shyly gripping the sides of her skirt.
• "I'm a composer too. Maybe I can help." She looked directly at me, as if trying to gauge whether I was telling the truth.
• Realizing I was serious, she opened her backpack and handed me her precious work. I grabbed a pen and quickly began correcting the notes that were off-key and out of rhythm, as well as completing the last missing line. Imagining the "damage" I was doing, she widened her eyes, frozen, stretching out her trembling arms in an attempt to retrieve her notebook.
• "What are you doing? Give it back to me!"
• "Done!" I didn't bother to explain. I simply handed back the composition and entered the room, leaving her behind, bewildered.
• "You said you were going to keep a low profile, but you've already started showing off," my inner wolf murmured.
• "I couldn't help it. Her lack of attention was already irritating me. Consider it my only act of goodwill," I replied to my wolf.
• My wolf, Lisa, was right. My goal was to try to go unnoticed and finish this year being invisible. To do that, I adopted a more nerdy appearance—baggy clothes, big glasses, and my long black hair tied up in a bun. If I couldn’t stay unnoticed for the year and a half I had left to finish high school, I would end up in trouble.
• "See? I can do it," I whispered to myself after the bell rang, ending my first day of school.