This didn't seem like an ordinary mall
It was much more of a masquerade
Glass ceilings shimmered with reflected light, chandeliers hanging like frozen constellations.
Music drifted through the air, soft and haunting, wrapping around every step, every whisper.
And everywhere—
Masks.
White.
Black.
Red.
Three bloodlines. Three legacies. One night pretending peace was real.
We arrived together.
St. Vladimir—a wave of white masks, polished, controlled, untouchable.
At the center—
Princess Sameen.
She didn't rush. Didn't hesitate. She moved like the space already belonged to her.
Three steps behind her—
Xavier.
Not beside. Not ahead.
Close enough to reach her in seconds.
Far enough to pretend he wasn't watching everything.
The rest of us followed, a quiet formation that broke the moment we crossed into the crowd.
We dispersed.
Black masks glided through the crowd—
Witches and Warlocks
From Veilborn Academy
Still.
Observant.
Their presence felt like shadows learning how to breathe.
And then red—
Lycanthrope
Or as you'll like to call it .. Werewolves
From Gravefur Covenhall
Laughter too loud.
Movements too loose.
Danger that didn't bother hiding.
A hand brushed mine as someone passed.
I stilled
But all l saw was his behind
A black mask saunting away from me
Then l let it go.
Across the room, Sameen approached a woman seated near the center—elegant, composed, the kind of presence that didn't need to announce itself.
The matriarch.
Lady Anastasia
Colun Matriarch.
Sameen dipped her head slightly—not submission, but quiet respect
"Your Grace," she greeted.
The matriarch's eyes flicked over her, sharp and assessing.
"Princess," she replied smoothly. "You've grown."
Then, softer—
"And so has your shadow."
Sameen didn't react.
Didn't turn.
Xavier hadn't moved.
Still three steps behind.
Still watching.
The matriarch's gaze lingered a second longer before she smiled—thin, knowing.
"I trust the journey was… uneventful?"
"Of course," Sameen said.
The music shifted
Subtle.
But enough.
Something in the air followed.
A ripple.
Like the night had just taken a breath—
And was about to exhale something none of us were ready for