CHAPTER 67: A BLUR OF SILVER AND WHITE

The first wolf lunged for her throat.

Theo stepped forward, matching its speed and force. Her fist slammed into its jaw with a crack that echoed through the greenhouse. The beast was lifted clean off its paws and thrown into a pile of shattered pots.

Before the dust settled, the second wolf attacked.

She spun low, sweeping her leg out. Her heel collided with its ribs so hard it skidded across the floor, tearing through vines as it crashed against a pillar.

Another wolf jumped from above, its claws outstretched. Theodora quickly snatched a broken metal rod from the ground and drove it upward, catching the beast mid-air and slamming it into the rafters.

But more came at her, with more numbers

They circled her with pack precision, their ears pinned with concentration, and growls vibrating the soil beneath her feet.

She was a little too excited for this. Being surrounded by snapping wolves wasn’t exactly anyone’s dream come true, but she couldn’t help the bubbly feeling that kept crawling up her chest, about to make her heart burst

"Come," she whispered.

They obeyed.

The next wave hit her all at once. The Second-years were being more careful and this time, it was a coordinated assault meant to bury her under sheer numbers. Two lunged from the front, one from her right, and another, tearing through vines, from the back.

And Theo returned the favour, moving ike she was born for chaos, like she had learned to fight before she learned to walk.

She ducked, flipped backwards, caught one by the scruff mid-air and threw it into another.

She twisted, palm-striked another wolf in the snout so hard its teeth snapped together with a crunch. Another leapt for her spine, but she spun around and grabbed the rim of an overturned planter, then hurled it like a weapon, and the wolf crashed into it with a yelp.

But there were too many.

They kept coming.

Their snarls filled the air, their claws shredding the ground.

One wolf finally managed to clamp onto her shoulder from behind, its claws digging into her bone.

Pain flared down her body, and that was exactly the final push Seraphina needed.

*Let me out, Theo or I’m gonna explode!*

Theo exhaled shakily, then she stopped fighting it.

Silver light tore through her veins like wildfire and her bones began reshaping with brutal speed, her skin stretching and splitting into luminous fur. Her muscles expanded, and her claws also followed the spurt of growth.

The wolf that had latched onto her shoulders was knocked away at the sheer intensity of her transformation, and when it was finished, a towering wolf with silver and white fur stood there, almost glowing as though its body had been carved from moon steel.

The second-years froze.

The aura Seraphina gave off was different from anything they’ve ever felt. Not only was it overwhelming, but it felt entirely different from a regular wolf’s aura.

Then, Seraphina opened her jaws and let out a deafening roar.

Panels of glass instantly shattered into pieces, vines snapped harshly from the walls and the earth trembled so hard that the remains of the greenhouse almost crumbled to the floor.

The wolves trembled as they slowly stepped back from her. She stood there, waiting and watching for one of them to attack.

Because she knew their egos and pride wouldn’t let them retreat.

And they did not disappoint.

Several of them suddenly attacked her from behind, and when she turned back, she hit them even harder than before.

She slammed a wolf into the ground so hard the soil cratered. She grabbed another by the spine and hurled it through an entire row of wooden tables. One tried to even escape, but she was on it in a flash, pinning it with a single massive paw.

Another group of six tried to overwhelm her, leaping together in a coordinated strike, thinking that it might work.

Bad choice.

Seraphina spun sharply and her tail whipped like a silver blade and knocked them all out of the air.

Every wolf that came at her ended up on the floor, wheezing or howling or unmoving.

Still, more second-years forced their wolves forward, driven by arrogance or stupidity or whatever else their pride was dripping with.

And Seraphina more than welcomed them.

A silvery white blur tore through bodies.

Even injured, she moved impossibly fast.

One wolf managed to rake its claws across her leg, and she retaliated with a devastating bite to its shoulder that made it whimper in pain.

Finally, the last wolf charged. It looked desperate and scared, probably regretting every part of this plan. She pinned it down easily, and her silver muzzle pressed close to its neck and her canines grazed its pulse.

Theo forced her wolf to stop before she would kill the wolf. Instead, she knocked it out like she did the rest.

Then, Seraphina lifted her head up, standing tall among the bodies of wolves that filled the area. Some of them had even reverted to their human form, too weak to keep their true form.

Blood stained her beautiful fur, and as she stood there looking unintentionally graceful, she almost resembled a forgotten deity of war.

Then, Theo pulled herself slowly back into her human form, now naked and kneeling in the middle of the destruction.

Naked.

Naked?! Oh no, she did not think this through!

Her clothes had been ripped into shreds when Seraphina had emerged, and there wasn’t anything she could use to cover up.

"Shit, shit shit!" She cursed silently as she tiptoed out of the greenhouse.

If it were nighttime, she would have mingled with the darkness and gotten past everyone.

But the sun was out.

The only good thing about this was that the first-years were injured, and most of the Second-years were currently unconscious.

*Seraphina, I need your help* Theo whispered desperately.

*In case you don’t know, I can only tweak your features. I can’t replace what you have down there with a guy’s own. If I were to ever do that, I’d be knocked out, for a very long time,*

*That’s not what I’m asking! I just need you to be on the lookout for me. If anyone’s within a twenty-foot distance from me, let me know,*

*Wait, are you really gonna sneak back to your room like this?* Theo could hear the amused tone of her wolf.

*Yeah. It’s not like clothes are miraculously gonna appear in front of me, or someone’s gonna toss me a jacket or something out of nowhere!*

Suddenly, there was a crunch in the bushes behind her. Theo and Seraphina gasped, and Theo quickly forced herself into a corner by the side.

The person stepped out from the path, and the scent that he carried had her recognising him before she even saw him.

Aurelius.

She pressed herself harder into the corner, waiting for him to pass by.

Seraphina quickly sucked in all her aura and presence, hoping that would be enough.

But of course, luck wasn’t something she had.

Aurelius’s loud boots came to a halt, and she could feel his piercing gaze as he looked around the place. Seconds passed, and he refused to move.

Her heart raced quickly. It pounded so hard.

She needed it to shut up.

And then, he started to walk again. She held her breath as he walked past the corner she was squeezed in, and once he was gone, she released a breath and stepped out to continue her journey.

Before she could take a step forward, Seraphina’s alarmed voice screamed in her head, *He’s on his way back with speed. I’m going to have to change!*