Chapter 266: Hello, Red-head.

"Maybe we should pull down his pants out of the blue and check... just to be sure,"

"Do you really think the Commandant would let her back into the school if he wasn’t sure it was actually Thaddeus this time? Gravemont won’t make such a mistake twice,"

"The scent is different, though. And he looks taller and more masculine. I think it’s definitely Thaddeus Douglas this time,"

"I still can’t believe there was a girl amongst us all this time and we had no idea! That’s wild!"

"I still think we should pull down his pants. Just to be hundred per cent sure this time,"

Thaddeus had expected all this. Coming back to Gravemont and taking his place, he knew people would still be doubtful of his identity.

But he didn’t mind.

They could come at him if they wanted and pull down his pants. All they would find is a cock staring back at them.

He sat down by the side of the boneyard, listening to more and more hushed whispers about him.

Just then, the noise inside the room started to quiet, and Thaddeus couldn’t imagine he could become the centre of more attention till a presence filled his back.

Commanding.

Heavy.

Enough to make him break into a sweat.

He could feel his wolf grovelling already, lowering his head and tucking in its tail.

Whoever was standing behind him... wasn’t an Alpha heir. He was an Alpha already.

And there was only one crowned Alpha currently in school.

"You’re not her, are you?"

Thaddeus dropped his spoon and turned around. He looked up and found himself staring into the eyes of Aurelius Voss. The guy was huge!

"Unfortunately, I’m not," He replied.

"The cousin. You’re Thaddeus," Aurelius said quietly.

He wasn’t asking this time.

"I am,"

Aurelius kept looking at his face, fascinated. He looked exactly like the form Theo took when she first came in. They really do look alike, to the point where it was almost terrifying. The only differences were the height, voice, build, scent, and, of course, the aura.

"You a lone wolf, too?" Aurelius asked.

"Huh?" Thaddeus blinked, confused.

Aurelius had a humorous gleam in his eyes, and Thaddeus suddenly had the feeling that he and Theo had probably had a conversation like this before.

"No, he is not," A voice answered from behind.

Aurelius’s eyes instantly darkened. The humour vanished, and his features tightened to something unreal.

Everyone around them lowered their head even more, unable to look up and watch the exchange anymore. The whispers also died off completely till the silence in the room was pin-drop.

Thaddeus felt his heart rate spike.

What idiot had said that?! Or do they not know that they were referring to one of the Alphas of the south right now?!

It was shortly after the battle. Leonard had suffered terrible injuries from his war. And due to his old age, the injuries weren’t healing as fast as they were supposed to. He’d remained on bed rest for days, while the council of the south had called for a meeting.

It’d been the fastest decision ever made.

By morning, they had decided.

By evening, Aurelius was now the Alpha of the Argent Tribunal Pack.

The reason was simple — The Alpha was now too weak and old to continue. There was no reason to ponder over it when his son and heir was still alive.

The Alpha blood had been passed to him. Everything about him now carried heavy weight and strength.

"Do you mind stepping out of my way? Your muscles are like... everywhere!"

Thaddeus’s jaw dropped.

The small person standing behind Aurelius all this while finally stepped into view as he kept trying to squeeze in with his plate of food.

He finally sat down next to Thaddeus, dropped his plate and grinned at him, "Hey!"

Thaddeus still looked stupefied, "...Thomas, right?"

"What is it?"

Thaddeus squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, praying in earnest to the Moon Goddess that the ground would open up and swallow him right that second, because what the hell did she mean by ’What is it?’

Was she blind?

Didn’t she notice the literal elephant in the room?!

"Uhmmm, you know you just walked past someone, right?" He finally said.

"Yeah?" Theo raised a brow, then she turned to Aurelius, who was now staring at her like she was very strange, "Oh, right." She stood up again, then she cleared her throat loudly, "Thaddeus is not a lone wolf. We are together,"

And then she sat back down as if she had just dismissed him.

"So, listen," she started again, poking Thaddeus with an excited look on her face.

Thaddeus wanted to disappear!

And then Aurelius laughed.

Actually laughed. It was something he hadn’t done for a very long time because there was absolutely nothing that would make him cackle anymore. The best he ever did was smile.

The entire room remained very silent, and this time Theo actually looked around.

What the hell was happening?

"Do you mind?" She stared up at him, slightly and genuinely annoyed, "There are lots of people here trying to eat,"

"The— Thomas!!" Thaddeus cried, whispering through clenched teeth, "He’s an Alpha! That is Aurelius Voss of the Argent Tribunal Pack," ℴℴ𝘮

Her lips formed an ’o’ and that was the moment she understood that she had just put herself in some kind of trouble. How come she didn’t register the presence he carried? You know why? Because she never once seen him as a threat, or saw him as some commanding person.

If anything, she would swear to herself that she knew this person.

She stood back up, this time a little slower than before and scratched her head awkwardly, "Uhmm," She was looking anywhere but at him, "Nice...shirt,"

"Heavens!" Thaddeus turned away and covered his face.

Aurelius didn’t say anything. He simply turned around and instructed, "Come with me,"

Then, he walked out of the boneyard.

The moment he left, the students all raised their heads, and there was not a single person not staring at their table now.

"Shit. He’s dead,"

"Who is he again?"

"I heard he was given a special admission,"

"Special? That’s weird,"

"Anyway, he’s fucking dead!"

Theo looked down at Thaddeus, and he looked back up at her. She pouted at him like it was an indication for help, and all he could offer back was two thumbs up with a forced smile as motivation.

"You should have said something to me earlier!" She whispered to him.

"How did you not know that he was an Alpha? It’s written all over him!"

"I didn’t know, okay? I just didn’t! My wolf didn’t find him as intimidating!!"

"Maybe," Thaddeus grabbed her shoulders and pulled her closer, whispering as quietly as he could into her ear, "Maybe it’s because you knew him before your memory loss. You mentioned it to me before, but that was before he became Alpha. I do not know what he thinks of you now, especially since you’re Thomas!"

"That doesn’t help!" She slapped his hand away and straightened, staring at the door, "Oh well. Let’s just get this over with,"

She could feel a hundred prickling eyes and a hundred more whispers as she walked out of the hall.

He was standing at the far end of the walk, and she dragged her legs over to meet him.

Aurelius was leaning against the wall. His hair was much longer than it used to be before, with one hand of it tied up while the other fell to his shoulders.

When she finally stood in front of him, he finally had the opportunity to take a better look at the guy in front of him. The features fit him perfectly for a boy — but the first thing that had given him away...was the scent.

Now that Aurelius was stronger and more acute, he could tell when something was off before his instinct even pointed at it.

"Hello, Red-head,"

Theo’s brows furrowed.

And just like that, before his eyes, the illusion that Sylas had put over her face fell away. After all, it would always fall away for those who truly knew her.

The brown hair transformed into shimmering flecks of red, falling down to her waist. Her masculine features faded away, till amber eyes and an oval-shape faced woman was staring back at him.