Chapter One

“Are you sure you have everything packed?” Megumi placed a box onto a chipped white dresser. Kira stared at her phone, then shook her head. “What else are you missing, Kiki? The clothes, shoes, hygiene bag, and your books are all here.” She tapped her chin. “Does Aegul Port get cold like it does here? Ottaka gets freezing in winter.” Her mother muttered, then pulled out her checklist to inspect. “Sean! Did you find the winter clothes?” She rambled out the door leaving Kira alone.

The past twelve hours blurred, but it still felt like a minute passed since she left university. With the news of her transferring mid-semester, her phone became her hand as she waited for a phone call. Either her cousin or the dean needed to confirm this had been a mistake. Unfortunately, nothing came, not even a text from Seraphina.

She tugged the inside of her lip with her teeth. If anyone had answers to her predicament, it’d be her cousin. She dialed again. Every ring raised her anxiety. She paced her room, and avoided the boxes. “Come on.”

“Kira!” an excited voice answered.

Relief flooded her. “Sera, I need to talk to you.”

“Yes. I’m all ears.” She listened to the distinct sounds in the background, followed by a door shutting. “I just got out of class, so I wasn’t ignoring your text. Still, sorry it took so long. What did you need to talk to me about? Sounds urgent.”

She grimaced at the dryness in her throat. “I’m not even sure where to begin.” She grabbed her water bottle. “I mean, I do, but I don’t. I don’t know. It’s really confusing and concerning. Maybe it’s nothing?” Everything in her head fell apart.

“Take a breath.” Seraphina’s tone dipped. “One thing at a time, okay? Start small, and tell me what’s wrong?” The concern laced every word. Whenever major issues occurred, they both prepared to handle the emotions that came with it. A promise to each other after Kira’s father passed away. “Do I need to take the tube? I can be there in two hours tops!”

“No,” she responded sharply. “If anyone is taking the tube, it’s me coming to you.”

Her cousin didn’t speak. The pause unsettled until rapid-fire questions mounted on top of each other. “What? Why? Is everything okay? Is Sean okay? What about aba-san? Kira, what is wrong? Are you alright? You don’t come here unless一”

“No!” Silence between them lingered. The only sound came from their breaths into the speaker. Kira sat on the edge of her bed before she grabbed the envelope from Greyward Institute. The insignia shined right at her. “It’s not like that. I didn’t mean to worry you. Mom and Sean are okay, I promise. I’m okay.” She assured Seraphina.

She traced the circular, silver-black wax-seal. It sparkled under the light. Two parallel lines represented as columns, with a wreath sitting between them. Ivy leaves circled the strange ‘H’ with a motto written in gold ink on the parchment. “I got a letter at school during my swim practice. In Balance,”

“We Endure.” Her cousin sounded off. It reminded her of a chant people said after prayers. Familiar, but foreign.

“Yeah.”

“Wait, how do you know Greyward’s motto?”

“It’s on my letter of acceptance.”

Her cousin didn’t answer right away. The quietness unsettled her. “Sera?” She pulled her phone away to check, but the line remained connected. “Did I lose you? Are you there?”

“What do you mean you have a letter of acceptance?” Her tone changed.

Her cold tone pulled her away from the phone. She raised a brow, then brought the device back to her ear. “Like I said, I got a letter from the dean during practice. He said the scholarship program selected me. I’ll need to be on campus in the next forty-eight hours.”

“My family’s program?”

“The one and only.” She pressed her fingers to her lower lip to bite. A sigh escaped. “Didn’t you guys already select a student this year?”

Seraphina hummed. “We did, but they were released last week.”

“Ok, so that makes me the replacement. That makes sense now.”

Her cousin chuckled, but sounded hollow. “No, Kipa. You’re not understanding the situation.” Whenever tensions rose, they used their nicknames to soften the blow. “We don’t replace.”

“You don’t replace?” She repeated the ominous statement. “So, why did I get selected?”

“I’m not sure. My family handles the program, and the rule has always been one student from a non-prestigious background per year. This all went under my nose. No one bothered to tell me about a replacement.” She continued. “I’ll have to talk to my dad and find out what’s going on.”

Kira rubbed her hand over her knee. “Why would you be notified about this?”

“I’m the heiress of Cavendish.” She answered as if it cleared everything.

Before she asked what it meant, her cousin continued. “Look, you have an offer, and there’s no declining it. You’ll be here shortly, and we need to talk about everything you need to know before you arrive.”

“Okay?”

“You’re my cousin. This makes a lot of things easier, but complicated.”

“You’re not making sense.”

She shuddered. “Just hold up. Let’s go back, okay? You said something about not declining the offer. The dean mentioned something similar earlier.” Kira scratched her knee. “He said it’s a great opportunity, and an honor, and it’s all accepted and set. Why can’t I just reject the offer? It'll be less of a headache, plus it’s the middle of the semester.”

She knew Greyward was the place for prestigious families. All the political leaders, corporate bosses, head of firms, all attended the institute, and only those who graduated from there were allowed to lead. “I am just a swimmer trying to follow my dream.”

“We have a swim team.” Seraphina nonchalantly replied. “That’s not the focus here though. This is a great opportunity for you. Your dean was right about that. You’ll be able to lead, Kipa.” She paused again.

It’s not my dream. “Why can’t I just reject the offer, Seri?”

“You don’t reject Greyward.” She stated firmly. “Once you’re chosen, you attend. It’s scary, I know. It’s different, but it’s okay.” Her tone lightened. “You’ll have me. Plus, there are some amazing friends that I think you will love as much as I do.” She cleared her throat. “We still need to talk about those things I mentioned.”

“Like what?”

“Never, and I mean ever, tell anyone you are a scholarship student.”

Kira’s brow twitched. “Is there一”

“I mean it, Kipa. If anyone knows you are a scholarship student, everyone will eat you alive. It’s why once they know you’re my cousin, that’s all they need to know. Got it?”

“Okay?”

“We’re first years, and we will have the same classes. If I’m busy, I’ll make sure you’re protected.”

“I gotta be honest here, Seri, I don’t want to accept this offer.”

“It’s happening, Kipa. Oh! That reminds me of another thing.” The disregard sidewiped her. “This is probably the most important part to all of this, and one you can’t break. When you meet the Fates, don’t get in their way. Keep your distance, head down, and you’ll be okay.”

“I’m noticing a pattern here.”

“If you slip up, or bring a bad reputation to yourself, they can get you expelled like that.” She snapped her fingers in the background. “Now, they're not bad, but just steer clear.”

“Who are we convincing here?”

Her cousin laughed. Greyward sounded like a prison, but only to her. “This is not normal, but it'll be good and we’ll see each other more than over the summer. Plus, I am one of the Fates, so it won’t be as hard as other scholarship students had it.”

Kira stood up. “You’re a Fate?” Her cousin answered. “I feel like I’m missing something here.”

“Do you know of Fier DeSan?”

“The one who runs the food and farming industries?”

“To put in layman terms, he was a Fate of Greyward. When you get here, I’ll explain more. I promise.” Seraphina’s tone lightened again, but Kira didn’t trust it. “Avoid the fates. Tell no one you’re a scholarship student. Blend in.”

“Become wallpaper. Got it.” She ran her fingers through her hair.

“You’ll be extraordinary, Kipa. It’s Greyward. Once you’re in, you’ll lead the world.” Her cousin’s enthusiasm seemed sickly, instead sweet. “I’ll see you when you get here. Love you.”

“Love you, too.” She hung up, and stood in her room while more questions built around her.

She set her phone down on her desk. The light from her lamp flickered until she moved her hand away. She studied the fixture and reached toward it again, but her mother burst into the room.

“Are you ready? Chu is here with the trailer.”

She turned to her mother and watched her for a moment. Her dark curls framed her freckled face. Her eyes were swollen from crying, but she never saw her mother cry. She always kept her composure, especially after dad died. Reality hit knowing she’ll be away for the next seven months on the other side of the world.

Her mother always seemed bright, tall and full of smiles. In a blink, she saw the age and wondered how much more will time take away from her? Even if she gazed in the mirror, Kira took her father’s gray eyes, caramel skin, and clear skin. What she’d give to have her mother’s brown eyes and more.

“Kiki?” Megumi stepped forward. “Oh, little bloom.” Her voice shattered Kira’s resolve. “I know. I know.” She whispered, and cupped her cheek.

“I don’t want to go.” Her voice cracked. What if I do, and I lose you? “Can’t I stay?”

Her mother’s thumb wiped a tear. “It’s okay to be scared. I’m scared, too. It’s a big move, and you’ll be far away from home.” She lifted her face. “But you’ll conquer this like I know you will. You are your father’s daughter.” Her smile warmed Kira. “I’ll be here, and anything, I mean anything, whatever you need, I’ll be a phone call away.”

◆◆◇◈◇◆◆

The drive to the station with Chu’s terrible jokes, Sean’s conversation about sports, and her mother’s checklist weighed on Kira. They unloaded the trailer, and she watched as the workers loaded it into the tube. Her eyes landed on the high-speed transportation known as a tube, and she trembled.

Her mother spoke with the workers, confirming location and items. She barely nodded in response. The gleaming metal on the tube kept her focus. Silence kept her company. She remembered the excitement at fifteen in being inside one of these tubes. Not today. She’d rather run from it and never look back.

“You know, I wasn’t expecting them to be smaller.” Sean stepped beside her. His voice pulled her from her thoughts. She glanced at him. He stood two inches taller but two years younger. His dark, straight short hair covered his eyes often. He wore his favorite jersey and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “It kinda looks like a very long egg painted yellow.”

She snorted. “Now I can’t unsee it.”

“You’ll have to tell me if it has egg-shells.” He wagged his brows with his signature, goofy grin. “Or rides on egg-shells.”

She rolled her eyes at his joke. “You’re awful.”

He shrugged. “So, are you doing okay?”

The dreadful question. She kept her eyes down. “Are you okay?” She redirected.

“Meh. I’ll live.” He glanced at her. “You didn’t talk much on the ride here.”

“What was there to say?” She sighed.

“Ki-sa?” He turned to her.

“Yeah?”

He pulled her into a brotherly hug and squeezed. “Out of everyone here, you will handle this shit with finesse.” She laughed at his new word of the day. “I’m serious. You will be okay, and I’ll miss you like hell but tell anyone and I’ll deny it.” He smirked. “Call me every day?”

“Of course,” she promised. “I can’t go a day without bugging you.”

He grinned then playfully punched her shoulder. “You better.”

Their mother walked over then pulled Kira into another embrace. The smell of honeysuckle consumed her for a moment. “I’m already missing you like crazy, my little bloom. My sweet baby.”

Her throat tightened with emotions. She clung to her mother and nodded in agreement. “Me too. I’m gonna miss everyone here.” A watery chuckle left her lips. She buried her face into her mother’s shoulder before letting go.

In that brief moment, she witnessed the unshed tears in her mother’s eyes, while a thumb wiped her away. “I can always stay, you know?” Kira tried once more. “Like, I don’t really need to go.” She whispered.

“It’s Greyward.” Megumi licked her lips. “No matter what happens, we will always be here for you. I’ll always be proud of you.”

She nodded in understanding. Others fought for this position, and it landed on her lap. With the wrench thrown in her plans, she needed to move forward. “Ok.” She vowed. “I got this.”

“Call us when you arrive over there?” Her mother placed a kiss on her forehead.

“I will.” She remained close before the warning bell rang for departure.

Her heart raced as several people began to board. As she stepped away and reached for one of the entrances, she glanced back and waved. They both waved back and her mother cried. “I love you!”

“Love you, Ki-sa!” Sean yelled.

“Love you both.” Kira sniffled then entered the tube. Her legs became heavy with every step until she found her seat. As the second horn blew and doors shut, her focus remained on the window. She kept her eyes on her family until the tube moved and everything became a blur.

“In balance, we endure…” she whispered.