Adrianna had been constantly battling with Shay for about twenty hours. She looked tired, disheveled and was totally consumed. Her tiredness had seeped into her bones. It had drained her emotionally. During her sleep she would often shudder as though she was waiting for the demons of tomorrow. She had tumultuous few hours of disaster fuelled dreaming.

This was the toughest she had ever faced, but the experience was rich. Dmitri slept beside her after removing her shoes. He covered her with the blanket. The academy had announced a day's holiday before the final competition. Adrianna had to face the final competition with Lile.

​​

Dmitri brought her closer to him so that she rested her mind. She had to make sharp decision for the final round against Lile. He had heard from others that Lile had been giving very tough time to her opponents.

Finally Adrianna slept when he pulled her over his chest. She curled herself inside like a baby. Dmitri combed her hair with his hands softly until she stopped shuddering.

Adrianna dozed for the entire morning and woke up in the afternoon. She found Dmitri also snoring beneath her. She smiled as she looked at him. She smelled his chest and only changed her position and slept again. She was sleep-drunk. She was in no mood to get up. Finally the couple woke up late in the afternoon. They took a shower and went to the dining hall feeling very hungry.

Ed and Cora were also very tired but they woke up late in the morning. After breakfast, they went to the main hall where they discussed Pierre, their favorite subject for hours together. Cora looked outside and wondered where Pierre must be at that time when the first snowflake fell outside the window. Cora smiled. Winters had come. Her thoughts went to Adrianna who was still sleeping. She smiled and then started talking about her with Ed.

As Ed spoke about Adrianna, she became intrigued. Her daughter-in-law had a terrible childhood. She could easily go astray but then it was in her nature to be so composed and calm and it was because of this nature that she had been so successful in her life.

While talking suddenly they heard Adrianna and Dmitri's voice. They were talking sweet nothings, which made Ed blush to his neck. Ed's only regret was the Dmitri was way too shameless unlike Pierre who was an elegant man in every sense.

He was using a sexy voice to talk to his wife. Keeping his voice low and husky, he was asking her to climb him like a koala while he kissed her all the way to the dining hall. He had, in fact stopped just before entering the main hall and after making her stand, brushed his lips against hers. Adrianna was getting excited by the minute.

"Ahem!" Ed cleared his throat. The two of them looked at the intruder. While Adrianna ran to her grandfather, Dmitri clenched his jaw as his lips curved down upon being disturbed.

"Grandfather, how have you been?" she asked with a huge smile as she hugged him. Then she greeted Cora politely.

"I am good!" Ed was excited to see her. "Yesterday you put quite a fight there child. Keep it up!"

"Thanks Grandfather," she replied. Her eyes looked sunk.

"How come towards the end you were glowing so much Adri?" he asked.

"It's a spell in which I can sap your energy and make you weak…" she replied.

"What? That's a dangerous one."

"It is but Mihr taught me and also taught me how to control it. I had to use it to stop Shay." Then she turned to Dmitri and said, "I think Shay had broken some rules and he should be disqualified from the competition."

"Which rule?" asked Dmitri as he pointed her to go to the dining hall. He was very hungry now.

She got up from her place and followed him. While walking, she said, "He used a hex to kill me. Ponos Maxima is cast actually make a person bleed to death and that too painfully. I want to report that to the academy."

"In that case why didn't the academy stop the competition there and then?" he asked he sat on the chair.

Adrianna sat next to him. She picked an asparagus stick, dipped it in hollandaise sauce and munched on it. Dmitri served her with boneless fish chops. "That is what I am wondering. Couldn't they see that I was bleeding profusely?"

"You should report this immediately," Dmitri said in anger.

"But I am wondering that how could Shay break the rules? If you break the rules you are disqualified. This means that whatever points you had garnered all along are going to become zero. Your name would be discarded. So if Shay had a chance to reach the third position, he would not get that prize now," Adrianna mused as she ate the fish. "The only person who can help right now is Howard. I saw him there in the audience."

"Of course he is there. He had been there all the while along with Ed. The two of them had been eating chips and popcorn that Howard had brought from the human realm and didn't share it with me!" Dmitri was extremely angry. "Do you know that they gave me only one chips packet?"

Adrianna shook her head at the baby who was sitting next to her. She finished her lunch soon and then summoned both Mihr and Howard. When Dmitri saw Howard, he became angry again. Howard hardly gave him any importance. His own daughter's boyfriend was no less. Liam had been troubling him with his shamelessness. At this point of time, Howard was actually taking revenge on any werewolf he could see, howsoever petty revenge was.

Mihr knew what Adrianna wanted to say. "Look Adrianna, there is something wrong definitely. In the first stage of the competition, it was Ilsa who allowed Lia and Zola to enter but no one could find out who allowed Raz to enter the wilderness in the second stage of the competition. This is still a mystery and under investigation. Shay should have been disqualified by now but why haven't they taken the step? I am also confused."

"You should make a complaint Adrianna," said Howard. "You can make a complaint to the ministry if you like."

"No one in the ministry would talk to me right now. Isidorus is not available…" she replied sadly.

"Tell it to Professor Ziu," replied Howard.

"If I were you, I wouldn't tell it to him, instead keep a watch on him," said Mihr.

Adrianna was shocked to hear that, "What do mean Mihr? Professor Ziu is one man who had supported me always. This is the most shocking statement I have heard. Sometimes I feel you are too paranoid!"

Mihr started laughing, "Okay, okay. I am sorry to say anything to your favorite professor." He stopped laughing and looked at her, "If you like you should complain about it to him but do that now."

"It is a holiday today," said Cora who was listening to the conversation intently.

"The academy's administrative block must be open," Howard said encouraging her.

Adrianna nodded. She looked at the clock. It was 3PM. She rushed to the academy.