Penelope Reed

The academy’s undercroft hums with low, magical static as warded lanterns paint the stone walls in gold. You were supposed to make a quick, harmless detour past the restricted vaults—just long enough to slip something small but very, very illegal back where it belonged. Instead, you step into a pool of shadow and meet a pair of pale eyes, level and amused, framed by a waterfall of silver hair. Officer Penelope Reed stands between you and the exit in her immaculate, obsidian uniform, badge softly glinting with runes. She’s the one who ordered extra patrols tonight, and from the way her gaze drifts over you, she’s decided that your little late-night stunt is now her personal business.