Today was the Choosing.
For every eighteen-year-old girl like Raven Shadow, it was a day they had anticipated with a mix of dread and hope since they first set foot in high school.
It was the day young women from every district were given a single, life-altering chance to be accepted into Silvermoon Academy.
The academy wasn't just a school; it was an escape route, a chance to ascend, to be chosen.
It was an open secret that the highest-achieving human students often became mates to alphas, the undisputed apex of werewolf society.
Two centuries ago, a devastating war had decimated the werewolf population, hitting the she-wolves the hardest. With only a tenth of their females left, the alphas had turned to human women for mates, forging an alliance that was as necessary as it was uneasy.
The werewolves had been a force of nature during the war, strong and relentless, until a virus engineered by human scientists tore through their ranks. It specifically targeted their females, wiping out eighty percent of them. Facing extinction, the werewolves had no choice but to call for a ceasefire. A fragile peace was brokered between the two races.
But it was a peace built on rules and regulations, underscored by a tension that never truly faded. As a symbol of this new coexistence, the alpha king himself had taken a human mate, a woman he met at Silvermoon Academy, cementing the school’s regal and notorious reputation.
“School, my ass,” Raven Shadow muttered, her eyes narrowed at the teacher standing at the front of the classroom.
The woman held up an official-looking application form, her voice a monotone drone as she preached about the importance of a good impression, about how this single piece of paper was the key to their futures.
Everyone knew the academy was a glorified matchmaking service, but nobody dared say it aloud. Not when it was their only shot at a life beyond their reach.
“Make sure you fill in every section carefully,” the teacher instructed. “Silvermoon Academy will select only one student from each district. With two other schools in ours, the competition is fierce. Use every skill you have. Make your application irresistible. Ask your parents for help; their experience might guide you. And remember, submit your forms first thing tomorrow. The law mandates your application, and non-compliance carries heavy penalties. Treat this form as if it were your life. Good luck.”
As if on cue, the bell shrieked, signaling the end of the lesson. The room exploded into chaos. Students scrambled to pack their bags, their voices buzzing with excited gossip about the selection.
Raven shoved her books into her backpack, her fingers trembling with a tension that had settled deep in her bones. This was a chance she didn't know if she should take or refuse.
Even if by some infinitesimal chance she won a spot at Silvermoon Academy, she had no interest in playing the damsel in distress. Nor was she naive enough to believe in the fallacy of love—her mother’s profession had poisoned any romance the notion might have held.
Besides, she knew the game was rigged. Alphas didn’t choose girls like her—poor, broken girls from the dregs of society. They chose beauties, victors, girls who knew how to play the game. Raven was none of those things.
“Hey, purple whore,” a voice sneered from behind her.
Raven froze, the air catching in her throat.
Not today, she thought, squeezing her eyes shut. Just leave me alone.
If she ignored them, maybe they would get bored. But she knew better. They never did.
“Hey, are you deaf?” the voice called again, much closer this time. Raven could feel their malicious eyes boring into her back as her tormentors gathered around her—the same group that had made her life a living hell for years.
A hand shoved her hard from behind. Raven stumbled, her hands flying out to grip the edge of her desk. Bitter anger surged through her, but she swallowed it down. She wasn't in the mood to bloody her knuckles, not when she had the Silvermoon Academy form in her bag to worry about.
“You think you’re actually going to get into Silvermoon?” Blair, their leader, sneered, her voice thick with disdain. “Don’t make me laugh. They don’t want trash like you. I mean, with a used hole like yours, any dick would get lost in there.”
The other girls cackled, emboldened by Blair's cruelty.
Raven’s fists clenched, her nails digging into her palms. Blood pounded in her ears as the sting of their words sank in. Being an orphan adopted by a prostitute was all the reason they needed to circle her like hyenas.
It didn't help that her mother's idea of a joke was to name her Raven Shadow, a constant reminder of the unnatural color of her hair.
For as long as she could remember, her hair had been black at the roots and a shocking purple at the tips. Raven Black would have been better, but no. The woman—probably high at the time—had effectively announced to the world that Raven was adopted, denying her even the claim of a family name.
Not that Raven knew which was worse: being Brenda's biological daughter or just a convenient replacement.
She had despised her name and her hair for as long as she could remember. Once, in a fit of rage, she’d hacked off the purple ends, but they’d just grown back, marking her again as a freak. That, combined with the shame of her mother, was all the ammunition her bullies ever needed.
Raven knew they wanted a reaction, but she refused to give them the satisfaction. She straightened her spine, adjusted the strap of her bag, and tried to walk away. They blocked her path.
“Get out of my way,” she said, her voice a cold, steady line despite the heat coiling in her gut. She didn’t want a fight, but she would handle it if she had to. A week of punishment detail was nothing new, and neither was taking on all five of them at once. It wouldn't be the first time.
And it certainly wouldn't be the last.
Another girl, Megan, laughed. “What are you gonna do about it, huh? Hit me? You might have gotten lucky in the past, but we won’t let you win this time.”
Raven ignored them. It was all talk.
“Oh look, she’s ignoring us again,” a girl named Chloe drawled, her voice dripping with false pity. “You think she’s too dumb to understand? Or just too scared?”
“Bet she’s scared,” another chimed in. “Probably shaking in her boots, thinking about all the dicks she’ll have to suck if she actually gets chosen for Silvermoon Academy.”
The girls erupted in another wave of laughter.
Something inside Raven snapped. She lunged forward so fast the girls stumbled back in shock. Her heart hammered against her ribs, her fists trembling. Fury burned through her, every insult they’d ever hurled at her fueling the flames. She wanted to hit them, to wipe the smug smirks right off their faces.
But before she could, a teacher appeared in the doorway. “What is going on here?”
No one answered, but the tension in the air was thick enough to cut. Besides, Blair and her crew were notorious.
“All right, that’s enough. I want all of you out of this classroom and on your way home. Now,” he commanded.
Raven was the first to move. With one last burning glare, she shoved past Blair and her cronies. She wouldn't waste her energy on them. It wasn't worth it.
Her school was public and massively overcrowded. Raven quickly melted into the throng of students flooding the hallways, making it impossible for her bullies to find her again.
Walking home, Raven let her gaze drift over the destruction that still scarred the city. The humans may have won the war, but the damage was permanent.
Skeletal remains of buildings clawed at the sky, streets were still cracked and scorched from old explosions, and the air carried the faint, perpetual scent of ash. Two hundred years had passed since the last bombs fell, but the Earth had never truly healed.
Soon, Raven reached the sprawling patch of land packed with trailers. It was the only shelter people like her could afford. After the war, poverty had skyrocketed, leaving proper houses, no matter how small, as a luxury for the privileged few.
Even those houses were walled off, isolated from the crumbling world outside. Her mother always said they were lucky to have the trailer. She’d bought it secondhand after the last tenant left, claiming she got a good deal.
The white trailer was weathered, its paint peeling and faded. The inside was no better. Their few belongings were strewn across the tiny space: clothes draped over chairs, empty food cans, and cigarette butts littering the table. The ashtray overflowed, and the stale, pungent smell of smoke hung heavy in the air.
It was no place to raise a child, but it was better than the streets, where the true predators of this new world lurked. Crime was rampant, though here in the trailer park, it was mostly petty theft. At least Raven didn't have to worry about being murdered in her sleep.
Brenda, her mother, was gone when Raven got home. The silence was familiar. Brenda was rarely home, and when she was, she wasn't interested in conversation. She had made it painfully clear years ago that she was no maternal figure. Raven didn’t push her luck; a roof over her head was enough.
There was no food, as usual. Raven didn’t bother looking. Instead, she pulled out a snack bar she’d been saving and sat at the grimy table. She unwrapped it slowly, her gaze falling on the form from class.
The Silvermoon Academy application stared up at her, demanding answers she didn't have. The only reason she was even considering it was the sliver of a chance it could lead to a university scholarship.
University was a dream only the elite could afford. If she could somehow get into Silvermoon Academy, survive it, and come out on top, she could escape this life. She could become someone else—someone who didn't live in a tin can and flinch at shadows.
As she chewed the stale bar, her eyes landed on a question: “If you have any special skills, please state them.”
Raven paused, staring at the words. What special skills did she have? Survival? Avoiding fights? She tapped her pen against the table, lost in thought, just as the trailer door creaked open.
“Welcome home—” The words died on her lips as Brenda stepped inside, a huge, burly man trailing right behind her. The sight of him made Raven’s stomach clench.
She snapped.
“You promised you would take your business somewhere else,” Raven said, her voice sharp with outrage. “Why is he here?” She pointed an accusing finger at the man, her face tight with disgust.
Brenda just rolled her eyes. “Promises don’t put food on the table, sweetie. I’ve got work to do.”
Her gaze fell on the application form, and a harsh laugh escaped her. “Is that for Silvermoon Academy? Good for you. Try hard to get in, and your life might just get better. If you have a hard time landing a guy, just remember what I taught you. Give his dick a good suck, and he’ll be putty in your hands. You two could end up together, making beautiful little werewolf babies. What a lucky bitch you are, Raven.”
The blood drained from Raven’s face. Her stomach twisted as the words sank in, rage and humiliation boiling up from her gut. Her hands began to tremble. Brenda didn’t care. She never had.
Hot tears stung Raven's eyes, but she refused to let them fall. “I should have known,” she said, her voice thick with bitterness. “You never could keep a promise.”
“Oh, please,” Brenda scoffed, lighting a cigarette. “I do what I have to. What I do is why you have food to eat and a school to go to, so don’t get all high and mighty with me. Now, if you’ll excuse us, I need the trailer for a couple of hours.” She smirked, a cruel glint in her eyes. “Unless you want to stay and learn a thing or two.”
Disgust coiled deep in Raven’s stomach. She shoved past her mother, glaring at the man, who leered at her as she went. The urge to scream, to smash something, clawed at her throat, but instead, she stormed out of the trailer and slammed the door behind her.
The tears finally spilled over the moment she was outside. She wiped them away furiously, her chest heaving with a sob of pure shame and anger. A few neighborhood kids saw her and waved, calling for her to come play, but she couldn't face them. She didn't want anyone to see her like this—broken and exposed.
Without a word, she turned and fled toward the woods behind the trailer park. It was the only place she could ever be alone, the only escape from the ugliness of her world. She found a fallen log and collapsed onto it, her hands shaking as she pulled the crumpled form from her bag. Her vision blurred with tears as she stared at the section asking for her special skills. Her anger crested into a tidal wave.
With a savage burst of fury, Raven scribbled her response.
Special skills:
1. Sucking a dick.
2. Giving a mean lap dance.
3. Wait till you see me in bed.
It was a strange, vicious kind of therapy. She knew they would never accept her now. Fuck this world. Fuck Brenda. And fuck Silvermoon Academy.
She was done playing their game.