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Rhyven's gaze sharpens. "Physically?"

"Or otherwise."

He holds my eyes for one second longer. Then nods. "Good."

I frown. "Good?"

"Honest enough."

He turns toward the next student. I remain irritated. And, beneath it, slightly exposed. Exactly what Dominion warned about. Once every first-year has been assessed, Rhyven addresses the whole Wing again. "Sky Wing isn't the fastest." A wolf near the back looks disappointed. "It isn't the strongest." Two vampires exchange glances. "It isn't the cleverest." Selena's expression does not change, which somehow communicates insult. Rhyven continues. "It's adaptable." He gestures toward the pale banner. "The wing stays in the air because it adjusts before the storm decides for it." That is almost poetic. No one seems more surprised than Rhyven himself.

Dax shouts from across the field— "Did you practice that?"

Rhyven does not turn. "Thorne." He warns.

"What?" Dax laughs.

"I know where you sleep."

"Romantic."

Several students laugh. Rhyven waits until they stop. Then his expression becomes serious. "If you're struggling, say it before someone has to notice." His eyes move across us. "If you're injured, report it. If your magic changes, report it. If someone in this Wing disappears from a meal, a class or a duty without explanation—" A pause. "Find out why." The simplicity makes it heavier. "Not because the Academy tracks attendance. Because we do."

No one laughs now. The deputies distribute narrow strips of pale blue fabric. Each bears the Sky Wing symbol. We tie them around our upper arms. The material warms against my skin and adjusts itself to fit. Not a rank. Membership.

Across the field, Nyra ties on dark green. Rowan black. Cassian silver-blue. For one irrational moment, I dislike that we no longer match. Then Nyra looks across the distance and lifts her wrist. I lift mine. Different colors. Same people. Perhaps that is what the Academy wants. Not separation. Expansion.

"Our first assignment begins tonight," Rhyven says.

A low groan rises. He ignores it. "Sky Wing holds the eastern perimeter for seven days." He opens a map. The Academy grounds shimmer in pale blue light. "Our responsibilities include the dragon landing platforms, lower eastern wards, the bridge routes and the first-year residence paths."

Elias raises his hand. "Patrols?" He asks. "Inspections." Rhyven answers.

"Is there a difference?" Orin asks.

"Yes."

"What?"

Rhyven thinks. "Patrols expect danger." He closes the map. "Inspections expect negligence." A few upper-years smile. "You'll work in mixed-year groups." He begins assigning names. No friends together automatically. No race repeated where avoidable. When he reaches mine— "Vaelith. Selena. Orin. Tessa." I nod. "Second-year lead: Mara Voss."

A vampire woman with cropped dark hair lifts one hand. "Eastern ward line. Sunset."

Rhyven looks at me. "Questions?" He asks.

"Several." I answer.

"Relevant ones?"

"I'll decide."

"That concerns me." A few students laugh. Rhyven's mouth twitches.

The Wings are dismissed gradually. Students spill from the field wearing their new colors and comparing assignments. Caelen crosses toward me once Dawn Wing has dispersed. He looks at the pale blue band around my arm. "It suits you." He says softly.

"You refused to take me." Direct. His eyebrows rise. "You noticed."

"I saw."