The halls of Ninth House felt unfamiliar, though they hadn’t changed in the time Miles had been away. He was back, but not as the Miles North everyone remembered. The top student, the pride of his generation, now walked the same corridors as a stranger in a life he barely recognized.
As he made his way through halls, something caught his eye - a flyer pinned to the bulletin board. 𝐀 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐭 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐥: 𝐍𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐡 𝐇𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐞 𝐌𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐔𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐀𝐛𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭. The same flyer that had been plastered across campus after his sudden disappearance. He paused for a moment, the sight of it tugging at something deep inside. The photo of his younger, confident self stared back at him. A frown flickered across his face, brief and almost invisible. He didn’t allow himself more than that. The rest of the emotions, the guilt, the trauma stayed buried, locked away where they wouldn’t be seen. Miles straightened his posture and moved on.
His name had been whispered in the halls once, carried with admiration and awe. He was the student who could solve any puzzle and secrets with ease. But all that brilliance felt hollow now. The knowledge he had chased had led him into the dark and there was no going back now. Now his name was whispered again… Diferently this time. This time it was simply the shock of students seeing someone they probably thought they would never see again. Miles moved with purpose, navigating the familiar paths. He passed a group of students, their laughter dying as they caught sight of him. They didn’t recognize him at first, and when they did their expressions changed to something that resembled a mix between confusion and disbelief. Miles kept his gaze ahead, ignoring them all. He wasn’t ready to face them and he wasn’t sure he ever would be.
As he approached Adrian’s office the weight in his chest grew heavier. This was the path he had chosen… Or rather the path he had been forced to choose.
He hesitated for a moment outside the door but as he turned the knob, his demeanor shifted. His expression brightened and his pace quickened. He pushed the door open and stepped into the room with a smile. “Adrian! It’s good to be here again. Thank you.”