She would give anything to feel the ache in her wrist from writing too many notes and the numbing of her legs from sitting too long; to have difficulties in concentration replace her loneliness and her sorrow; to feel light, no matter how artificial, on her face.

Her breath came out in bursts of steam that were only visible by the light of the moon. In the distance, daemons danced in the darkness, howling at their victory in poisoning the entire surface of Eos. She poked at the dying embers of her fire, but she knew it was too late.

The light was gone, and it was never coming back.

"This is the only reason those damned Lucis witches can bend the elements to their wills." The lanky, wrinkly professor stood straighter, whipping the wooden pointer toward the chalkboard and scratching at an invisible circle around the picture of the glittering Lucis Crystal. Kara winced, clenching her teeth in an attempt to take the edge off of the awful sound.

"Gods, that's horrific," Wyn muttered behind her. His seat creaked when he leaned back.

"I'd ramble a bit longer, but fortunately for you, we're out of time for today," the man continued, scratching at his pointed beard and adjusting his thick, round glasses. "And I don't want to stand here any longer, so if you have questions, save them for later. Don't forget: the exam's tomorrow."

"How convenient," Mairi grumbled, catapulting her chair back onto its four legs and using the momentum to stand. "What a prick. Acts like this aren't what he signed up for."

"To be fair, it's not what he signed up for," Kara reminded her with a sly smile. She closed her notebook full of doodles, notes, and scribbles and tucked it under her arm.

Ravus stood at the back of the room, eyes glazed as if he'd been zoned out for the duration of the class. She couldn't blame him; the two-hour lecture consisted only of a weaselly man talking shit about Lucis and whining about his tension headaches that the students somehow caused him. If she'd learned all this as a child, she'd be zoned out too.

Wyn broke her from her thoughts by smacking her back and making her jump. Irritated, she rolled her eyes and shoved his shoulder, but the reaction only made him laugh harder. Concealing her smile, Mairi waved goodbye and quickly followed Leo out of the room. Kara's heart ached for freedom as she wondered whether they were off the study together or waste the time doing something fun. Either way, she'd rather be with them than stuck in her previous commitments.

"Ready to hit the books?" Wyn asked, grinning from ear to ear. Kara sighed and shook her head. "Oh, c'mon. We'll know everything there is to know about the damned witches in a few hours."

"That'd be wonderful if I felt I needed to know that," she retorted, stepping around him to stand before Ravus. "You'd better help me stuff all this nonsense inside my head."

Ravus raised an eyebrow, pushing his chair in. He hadn't brought a single thing with him to class. "I'm not entirely sure how you expect me to do that."

"By teaching me?" she sang out, swaying as a smile crept onto her face. If he had just spent a moment away from dreaming of revenge, she might have coaxed a small smile from him. Instead, he shook his head and held open the closing wooden door.

"I'd have to move too much air-headed nonsense out of the way first."

"Hey!" Kara punched his shoulder as she walked through the doorway. "You don't get to be mean to me just because you're smart and I'm not."

"You're plenty smart, Kara, you just keep your only two brain cells far away from each other," Wyn teased, tugging on her ponytail and skipping out of her reach when she went to swat at him.

Inside, she was bubbling with laughter and relief for the light-hearted conversation. Outside, she scowled and pouted. "You're both so rude to me sometimes. It's hardly fair."

"What, can't fend for yourself?" Wyn knocked his shoulder into hers and gestured toward the looming library doors that stood closed down the hall. "Is it because you're a girl?"

"It's because you're pricks!" She gave him a good shove and he stumbled into the wall, still laughing. Ravus hung behind, taking no part in their playful fighting as he'd already done his part in fueling it. He didn't look like he regretted the instigation, though.

Wyn shook his head as his giggles wore off and he pushed open one of the library doors. He glanced back over his shoulder and spoke in a hushed voice. "Where should we sit?"

"Why do you even ask? It's always the same table," Kara pointed out, bouncing the door off her elbow for Ravus to pass through behind her.

Wyn mocked her under his breath and led the way up the stairs and through shelf upon shelf of books until they reached the very back corner of the library where they could disturb only each other if they talked. Kara threw her books onto the table and Ravus shot her a disapproving look that Wyn snickered at.

"Lighten up, man. This place is dead. Everyone else is dicking around outside."

"Because it's nice out." Kara threw a pointed look at the window to her left, pouting at the warm sunshine and happy cheers of cadets getting a spare moment to themselves. "I'd like to be outside dicking around."

"Yeah, well, girls that fail their exams don't get outside time," Wyn teased, patting her notebook.

With a crinkled nose, Kara sat down and turned to her notes. Really, they were a mess of jumbled thoughts, practiced signatures, mocking drawings of their teachers, and shameful attempts at real sketches. The mixture of horror and disgust on Ravus's face had the siblings cackling.

"It's no wonder you failed," he finally said, leaning across the table to try and make sense of her handwriting. "What is a 'moan-arch?'"

"Shut up," Kara laughed, leaning back in her seat. "Ravus, I haven't been in school since I was ten."

He puffed out a breath, retreating. "I can tell."

"Can you help me?"

"It's as simple as memorizing the material," he shrugged. "There's nothing I can do to help that."

"Quiz me." She pushed her notebook toward him and sat straight with her hands folded together on top of the table. Wyn shook his head with a smile and cracked open his book, eager to be somewhat productive. "It'll be like a pretest."

"A pretest?" Ravus eyed her a moment longer. She nodded toward the notebook again, wrestling a smile. She couldn't help pushing him around a bit; it was fun. "Fine." He didn't touch the notebook, crossing his arms over his uniform—the uniforms they were forced to wear any waking moment they stepped outside of their rooms—and lifted his chin defiantly.

"Good." Kara wiggled restlessly in her seat, eager to prove she'd paid attention.

"In what year did Insomnia isolate itself from the rest of the Kingdom of Lucis?"

Kara paled, stumbling over her words as she tried to recall. When did we ever learn that? "Um… Pass."

Wyn choked, turning his face so she couldn't see him smiling. Ravus didn't miss a beat.

"Seven twenty-five. What was the name of the previous king of Lucis?"

"Previous as in…?"

"Before Regis." Ravus spit the king's name like poison, but his face was calm if not impatient.

"I—" Kara laughed nervously and shook her head. "I don't—"

"Mors Lucis Caelum, the one hundred and twelfth king."

"Ravus, why do I need to know this?" she demanded, exasperated already.

"Because it's important." Ravus tilted his head; he was mocking her now. "When did all established nations align their calendars and begin the modern age?"

Kara threw a finger at him, grinning confidently. "That's a trick question! They've always been aligned!"

Wyn couldn't hold back his laughter anymore when Ravus cracked and a smile marred his stern expression. Her heart sank when he reached forward and pointed at the dates listed on the page in the notebook that lay in plain sight.

"Year one. You may want to at least attempt reading these before the exam."

"Yeah," she sighed, shoulders slumping in defeat.

"How about this?" Wyn sat up straighter. "You study quietly for thirty minutes and then we can take a break."

Kara nodded, pressed her lips together, and stared hard at her notes. She fidgeted, bouncing her feet, shifting her weight in her seat, and gnawing on her cheeks, but she read for as long as she could in silence under the irritated scowls Ravus shot her every now and then when the toe of her shoe would knock against his. No matter how hard she tried to memorize the material, it wouldn't stick. Her mind always wandered to other things and her notes didn't make anything easier. After around twenty minutes, she dropped her pencil to stop her scribbling and broke the silence.

"Nothing's sticking."

"Maybe your brain just doesn't wanna learn," Wyn suggested, setting his book down and crossing his legs on his seat. The bench he and Ravus shared tipped and he righted it, laughing at his friend's startled expression. "Did I give you a good spook, Ravus?"

Ravus ignored him and pulled Kara's notes back toward himself. Flipping through the pages, he stopped on one and raised the paper so she couldn't see.

"Ravus, I can't do this," she protested with a groan, rolling her head back.

"Just one question, Kara."

She huffed and propped her chin up on her hand. "Fine. I get to ask you one question, too, then."

Ravus frowned, sure that he'd already proven himself knowledgeable. "… Sure." His head jerked to swing his hair out of his eyes while he read. "How much has daemon activity increased in the last century?"

"I dunno. Like, seventy?"

"Seventy what?"

"Just seventy," she groaned, laughing hopelessly into her hands. "What's the answer?"

"Three-hundred percent."

"Whoa, really?" Wyn leaned over to look at her notes. "Is that right or did she make a number up?"

"It's right," Ravus replied, sliding the notebook across the table to Kara.

"That's insane," her brother scoffed. He closed his book, waiting for Kara to quiz the stellar student beside him. "What's your question, Kara? Gotta pick a tricky one."

"I didn't say what kind," she pointed out. Ravus's emotionless exterior crumbled as he went to protest. "Ah-ah," she interrupted, holding up a finger. "You said I could ask a question, so let me think of a good one. It'll help us get to know each other better."

Kara closed her eyes, thinking hard. There had to be something that would get under his skin… An idea struck her and she couldn't contain her giggles. He's going to hate me. Ravus sighed, knowing he was in for trouble.

"Come on," Wyn urged, grinning. He was eager to know how she planned to fluster him, too.

"Okay, okay, okay." Struggling to contain her snickers, she reached out. "Hold my hands."

"Why?" Ravus demanded, sure this was some sort of trap. "What are you doing?"

"Just do it. Trust me."

"No."

"Ravus." Kara pouted, begging. "I'm not going to hurt you."

Ravus glanced at Wyn before giving in with a huff. His hands were warm, rough with callouses from years of training. She closed hers around his and cleared her throat, ready to take on a very serious tone. He was uneasy, and she reveled in every second she could get.

"This is very important, I promise."

"Kara, just spit it out already!" Wyn whined.

She stumbled over a short fit of giggles that threatened to break her composure. Thinking of his reaction was making her sweat. "What's your body count?"

Wyn nearly toppled out of his seat, howling with laughter, but Ravus only frowned.

"My what?"

"Body count?" Kara was laughing now, though she was much more controlled than her brother. "Do you know what that is?"

"I thought it had something to do with killing, but his reaction tells me otherwise."

"Ravus!" Wyn scrubbed at the tears in his eyes, clapping a hand down on Ravus's shoulder. "She's asking how many people you've slept with."

If Ravus was one to roll his eyes, he would have. Instead, he jerked his hands away from Kara's and leaned back in his seat, irritated by their antics. Wyn broke again, clapping his hands loudly. Kara hushed him, giggling at the shade of red that steadily overtook the prince of Tenebrae's face.

"Come on, answer!" she pleaded, kicking Wyn under the table. "I'll tell you mine."

"Whoa, you have one?" Wyn demanded, sobering up rather quickly. She ignored him, forcing Ravus to meet her eyes.

"I already know your answer," he muttered, glancing away to see if anyone was coming to hush them.

"You knew?" Wyn punched Ravus's shoulder playfully, but he was getting annoyed. "I swear to the gods if it's you two that—"

"Ugh, gods no." Kara mocked a gagging sound. Ravus's nose crinkled and he shot Wyn a look that read "Are you serious?"

"Okay, good." Wyn sank back in his seat and crossed his arms. A smirk tugged at his lips. "Kara, I know his."

"You do?!"

Ravus shook his head, refusing to take part. Wyn grinned and nodded, nudging Ravus's shoulder.

"But I'll only tell if you tell, too."

"Okay, easy." Kara's heart skipped a beat when she gave him her answer, but she stifled her pain under her laughter. "Only one: Gray. You had to have known that."

"Gray?" Wyn repeated. He shook his head. "I suppose I should've. It's been three years?"

She shrugged him off. "His?" Kara shifted her weight around, giddy to dig a little deeper into Ravus's life. Ravus crossed his arms and waited.

"Four, possibly five. He won't talk about the last one." Wyn nodded when Kara raised her eyebrows. "I know. Impressive when there are only, like, six options in this entire city."

"Damn, alright," Kara teased. Ravus was going red again. "We've got ourselves a little player!"

"That's the last time I tell you anything," Ravus muttered to Wyn, earning a laugh.

"You only wish it was."

"Okay, now it's your turn, Wyn." Kara leaned forward with a devilish smile. "How many?"

Wyn threw his hands up defensively. "Whoa, I never agreed to be a part of this."

"You agreed when you so easily dished out your best friend's secrets." She cocked her head to the side as he stammered. "Go on."

"It's really not that big a deal as your making it, Kara."

"Then why do you care so much?"

"I don't—"

"What is it, big brother?"

"Kara."

Ravus piped up, breaking the silence. "One. It happened a month ago."

Wyn's eyes went wide and all he could do was shove Ravus, lost for words. Kara was elated that she'd been able to turn Ravus against her brother and effectively get out of studying with a simple question.

"Who?" she asked, eager to torture her brother a little longer. "Please, Ravus, I need to know who took his v-card."

Ravus cracked a smile when Wyn got on his knees to beg for secrecy. Revenge truly was his favorite game. "Kylinn."

"No." Kara's mouth hung open in shock and Wyn fell onto the carpet, melodramatically burying his face in the floor. "Wyn, you're joking! Kylinn?!"

"Hey! Don't start getting all haughty about it!" he cried. He sat up and threw an accusing finger at Ravus. "He's already gone for sloppy seconds!"

She wasn't sure how to feel about that. No, actually she was. She wished she'd never asked. Grimacing at the thought of the two romancing that unbearable bitch, she pulled her notes closer and made sure they saw her disapproval, especially Ravus.

"I expected more from you," she muttered. He shrugged.

"She's not that bad of a person."

"Well neither are you, but I wouldn't fuck you." Wyn turned to Kara sourly. "He's only saying that because they're talking." Clearly bitter, he crawled back into his seat. "Talk about a match made in heaven."

"Wow," was all Kara could muster.

Suddenly, she felt drained. There was no more exciting conversation that could pick her up from her new low. It was an odd feeling that way so suddenly, but she didn't care to find out why. All she knew was that she didn't feel like talking anymore. Taking a deep breath, she stilled her mind and read about Eos's history. It was time she learned to keep her mouth shut.