The cool, sterile air of the university library clung to Luna like a second skin.
Rows upon rows of towering bookshelves, filled with the whispers of forgotten knowledge, loomed around her.
Finding Professor Eldritch was proving to be more challenging than decoding ancient Sumerian.
Seriously, this guy was like a mythical creature – everyone had *heard* of him, but no one had actually *seen* him.
"Professor Eldritch?" Luna echoed the name to a bespectacled student hunched over a mountain of textbooks.
The student blinked owlishly, pushing his glasses further up his nose.
"Oh, *him*. Good luck. Heard he lives in the clock tower and subsists on a diet of chalk dust and existential dread."
Another student, sporting a ripped Ramones t-shirt and a perpetually exhausted expression, offered, "Rumor has it he only teaches one class a year, and it's something insane like 'The Metaphysics of Interdimensional Travel.' I wouldn't even know where to *find* his office, let alone him."
This was going nowhere fast.
Luna tapped her foot impatiently, a flicker of annoyance igniting in her normally placid expression.
Victor Nightshade's shadow loomed large, a constant reminder of the ticking clock.
She needed to find Eldritch, and she needed to find him *now*.
Just as she was about to give up and resort to less conventional methods (like, say, hacking into the university mainframe), a whisper caught her ear.
"Try the west wing, third floor.
End of the hall.
But don't say I told you.
" A fleeting glimpse of fiery red hair disappearing around a corner was all Luna got.
The west wing was eerily quiet, the hushed silence amplifying the rhythmic tick-tock of a grandfather clock at the end of the hallway.
The air here was thicker, charged with an almost palpable energy.
Luna's precognitive senses tingled, a prickling sensation at the back of her neck.
This place… it felt different.
And then she saw him.
Not Professor Eldritch, but Marcus Stone, Aiden's right-hand man, the imposing werewolf who looked like he could bench-press a small car.
He stood guard outside the very door Luna was heading for, arms crossed, his expression as welcoming as a locked vault.
"Little Miss Luna," Marcus greeted, his voice a low rumble that echoed in the confined space.
"Fancy meeting you here. What brings you to this… secluded corner of academia?"
Luna plastered a sweet, innocent smile on her face.
"Oh, just exploring. I heard there was a… particularly fascinating professor who lurked around here."
Marcus's eyes narrowed, scrutinizing her with an intensity that could melt glaciers.
"Professor Eldritch is not someone you just 'stumble upon', little one. I suggest you return to your… more age-appropriate activities."
"But I'm genuinely interested in his research," Luna insisted, feigning wide-eyed curiosity.
"I've heard whispers of his groundbreaking work on… well, you know…" she lowered her voice conspiratorially, "…the more esoteric aspects of… canine lineage."
Marcus's eyebrows shot up, a flicker of surprise replacing the suspicion in his eyes.
"Canine lineage? What do you know about that?"
Luna shrugged, playing the ingenue to perfection.
"Just a few things I picked up. Did you know, for instance, that the lunar cycle can influence the regenerative capabilities of certain… breeds? Fascinating stuff, really." She rambled on, weaving together a mixture of genuine knowledge gleaned from her past life and carefully crafted BS, dropping enough arcane terminology to make it sound convincing.
She saw Marcus's initial skepticism slowly give way to a grudging fascination.
He uncrossed his arms, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.
This guy, despite his intimidating exterior, was clearly a nerd at heart.
And Luna knew exactly how to play a nerd.
"And the way certain genetic markers can influence… let's just say, 'behavioral patterns'… during specific celestial alignments?
Mind-blowing.
" She leaned closer, lowering her voice to a stage whisper.
"Have you ever heard of the… *Lupus Stellaris* theory?
"
Marcus's eyes widened.
He opened his mouth to speak, then hesitated.
A muscle twitched in his jaw.
He was hooked.
Luna smiled, a small, almost imperceptible curve of her lips.
The game was afoot.
"The *Lupus Stellaris*…" he murmured, his voice laced with a mixture of disbelief and… awe?
"That's… that's…"
He trailed off, his gaze fixed on Luna.
The air crackled with unspoken words, a silent battle of wits waged between the stoic werewolf and the seemingly innocent girl.
"It's…" Marcus began, then stopped again, a flicker of something akin to respect in his eyes.
"It's… quite fascinating.
Isn't it?
"
The hallowed halls of Crestwood Academy whispered secrets.
Sunlight streamed through stained-glass windows, illuminating dust motes dancing in the air, a deceptive serenity masking the currents of power swirling beneath.
Luna, outwardly the picture of an innocent student, navigated the corridors with a predator's grace.
Her target: Professor Eldridge, a recluse shrouded in mystery, rumored to possess knowledge that could unravel the threads of Victor Nightshade's insidious web.
Emily White, a wisp of a girl with wide, apprehensive eyes, trailed behind Luna.
"Are you sure about this, Luna? Professor Eldridge… he's… intimidating."
Luna offered a reassuring smile, though her eyes held a glacial determination.
"Knowledge is power, Emily. And we need all the power we can get."
Eldridge's office was a dimly lit sanctuary overflowing with ancient tomes and arcane artifacts.
The air hung thick with the scent of old paper and something indefinably… other.
The professor himself, a stooped figure with a shock of white hair and piercing blue eyes, sat hunched over a manuscript, seemingly oblivious to their arrival.
"Professor Eldridge?" Luna's voice, though soft, commanded attention.
The professor slowly raised his head, his gaze sharp and assessing.
"Miss Moreau. To what do I owe this… pleasure?"
Luna launched into a carefully crafted query about a historical figure connected to Nightshade's family, her words laced with innocent curiosity.
Eldridge, however, remained an enigma, his responses cryptic and evasive.
A subtle tension filled the room, a silent battle of wits between the aged scholar and the reborn prodigy.
Just as Luna sensed a crack in the professor's defenses, a deep voice boomed from the doorway.
"Miss Moreau, I believe your guardian is expecting you."
Marcus Stone, Aiden's imposing head of security, filled the doorway, his wolfish features radiating disapproval.
His presence was a clear message: Aiden was keeping a close watch on her.
Luna suppressed a surge of annoyance.
Aiden's overprotectiveness was becoming a hindrance.
"Thank you, Mr. Stone. I was just leaving." She turned back to Eldridge, her eyes flashing with a silent promise.
"Professor, I trust our conversation will continue soon."
As Luna and Emily made their way back through the academy grounds, Emily breathed a sigh of relief.
"That was… intense. Do you think he knows anything?"
Luna's lips curved into a knowing smile.
"He knows more than he lets on. And I will find out what it is."
A shiver ran down her spine, the familiar prickle of premonition.
She glanced over her shoulder, half-expecting to see Marcus Stone still watching them.
But there was another presence, a subtle darkness lurking at the edge of her awareness.
Victor.
The game was escalating.