The academy was quieter than usual as Raven made her way down the hall, the soft echo of her footsteps reverberating off the marble floors. It felt like the walls were watching her, like they knew who she was and what she'd come for. The weight of the past clung to her like an unwanted shadow, but she didn't let it show. Not yet.
Sinners Academy had been her prison once. Now, it was her battleground.
The students around her paid her no mind. They didn't recognize her—not yet. Raven had come back with a new face, a new name, and a new agenda. She had learned long ago how to blend in with the shadows, how to wear a mask so perfectly that no one could see the rage simmering beneath her skin.
It was late in the afternoon, just before the dinner bell rang, when she finally reached the central courtyard. The place where it had all gone wrong. The fountains, the columns, the towering oaks—everything was the same as she remembered it. Except for the people.
The people had changed.
And so had she.
Her eyes scanned the students milling about, laughing, flirting, their voices high with innocence. The carefree nature of youth disgusted her. They didn't know what it was like to have your whole world turned upside down, to be left alone in the dark with nothing but betrayal and broken dreams.
Raven's eyes narrowed as she spotted him. Killian.
He stood by the stone railing, his tall figure framed by the setting sun, the golden light catching in his hair, giving it an almost ethereal glow. His back was to her, but there was no mistaking the broad shoulders, the confident posture that screamed power. He had always been the one in control—the king of Sinners Academy.
Raven had once loved him. Hell, she'd trusted him more than anyone else in the world. But now, that trust was nothing but a twisted joke.
The ring he wore caught her attention—again. A symbol of his allegiance, his power. She remembered the first time she had seen it, back when everything had felt so right between them. The silver band, engraved with intricate patterns, was an heirloom passed down from his father. It had been the sign of his family's legacy, of the future he was meant to inherit.
That ring had meant something back then—something she could never have predicted would become so suffocating.
And now, it was a reminder of everything that had gone wrong.
He wore it like armor, like a constant reminder of who he was and who he would always be: the untouchable heir, the son of the powerful Vale family, a man who could destroy anyone who stood in his way. Even her.
Raven's fingers curled into fists at her sides, but she forced herself to stay calm. She had a plan. A damn good one. She wouldn't let him see her anger—not yet. Not until she was ready.
She stepped forward, her black dress swishing with each step. The fabric was form-fitting but elegant, a mix of power and grace, just like her.
As she approached, she could feel the familiar tension rising in the air, the electricity that always sparked when they were near each other. Raven fought the urge to break into a smile. He hadn't noticed her yet, but he would soon enough.
The wind shifted, catching her hair and sending it fluttering behind her like a dark cloak. Killian's head turned ever so slightly, just enough to catch the flash of her presence. His gaze hardened as their eyes met, and for a brief moment, everything stopped.
The world slowed down, and Raven was reminded of why she had come back to Sinners Academy.
To make him feel the way she had felt all those years ago when he had left her to burn.
The silence stretched between them, heavy with unspoken words. Raven could almost hear the pounding of her heart, but she held her ground, not breaking eye contact. She wasn't going to back down. Not this time.
"Raven," Killian's voice was a low rumble, tinged with disbelief. "I didn't expect to see you here."
Her lips curled into a small smile—sharp, dangerous. "I wasn't expecting to see you either. But here we are."
Killian took a step forward, his eyes scanning her, taking in the changes—how she'd grown, how she'd changed, how her once-soft demeanor had hardened into something more dangerous. There was a flicker of recognition in his eyes, but it was quickly masked by something colder.
"I see you've come back to finish what you started." His voice was controlled, measured, but there was something in the way he said it that made Raven's pulse quicken.
She didn't respond immediately. Instead, her eyes flicked down to the ring on his finger. It glinted in the sunlight, catching her attention once more.
"You still wear it," she murmured, her voice laced with bitterness.
Killian followed her gaze, then looked back up at her, a slight smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. "You think I'd just take it off?" he asked, his tone mocking. "This ring represents everything I am, Raven. Everything I've worked for."
Raven's jaw clenched. She hated that ring. She hated what it stood for. It reminded her of his betrayal, of how he had thrown her to the wolves when she had needed him most. How he had abandoned her without a second thought.
"How's it feel?" she asked, her voice low, deadly. "To wear that thing, knowing what you did to me?"
For a moment, Killian didn't respond. His jaw tightened, the muscles working beneath the skin, and Raven knew she'd struck a nerve. But then, he did what he always did—he smirked, hiding whatever pain or regret he might've felt.
"It feels like power," he said coldly. "Something you'll never understand."
Raven's fingers curled tighter around the strap of her bag. She wasn't here to relive old wounds. She wasn't here for the past. She was here to burn everything down, to take him down. The ring, the legacy, the power—it was all going to fall.
"You're right," she said, her voice now full of ice. "I'll never understand how someone so weak could wear that ring and call themselves a man."
His smirk faltered, just for a second, and Raven saw the flicker of something in his eyes—something raw. But just as quickly, it was gone, replaced by the cool exterior of the man he had become.
"You've changed, Raven," he said softly, as if trying to convince himself. "I thought you'd come back and make amends. But I see now... you've come back to destroy everything."
Raven's smile was bitter. "I've come back to take what's mine."
The words hung in the air between them like a challenge, and Killian's eyes flickered. The flicker of recognition was there again, but now it was accompanied by something else—something dark and dangerous. Was it fear? Was it regret? Or was it something else entirely?
"Raven..." He stepped closer, the space between them narrowing. "You think you can just walk back in here and take everything from me?"
She could feel the heat of his breath against her skin, could almost taste the bitterness in his words. It was the same tension they had always shared, only this time, it felt more dangerous, more combustible.
"I don't think," she said softly, her voice a dangerous whisper, "I know."
He studied her, his gaze flicking over her face, down to the black dress that clung to her form, back up to her eyes. He saw the change in her—saw how her youth had hardened into something sharp, unforgiving. Raven wasn't the girl he had once known. She was something more now. Something that could break him.
For a moment, the silence stretched between them again, both of them standing on the precipice, neither one willing to move first. Then, as if by some unspoken agreement, Raven turned and walked away, her footsteps echoing in the stillness.
Behind her, she could feel Killian's gaze on her, burning into her back, and for the first time in years, she allowed herself a small, satisfied smile. She hadn't come back for closure. She hadn't come back to make amends. She'd come back for one reason and one reason only:
To make him feel what she had felt when he walked away from her all those years ago.
To watch him burn