"Hmm? You don't remember?"

Xavier squinted. "No."

She leaned against the counter, arms crossed, tail flicking lazily behind her. "I came to your room last night and asked if I could sleep on your bed," she said, smiling faintly. "You said yes."

"I did?" Xavier raised a brow, confused. "I don't remember that."

"Well, you did," she said simply, as if that explained everything.

He stared at her for a few seconds, trying to piece together fragments of last night — Reva, the drive, her confession, the forgotten dream. Nothing about Lyra showed up.

"Okay then," he muttered. "But seriously, why were you there?"

"I don't know," she said with a light shrug. "I just… felt like sleeping next to you."

Xavier went silent. That was not how Lyra acted. The usual aloof, soft-spoken girl who could barely look him in the eye, who only thought about food, was gone. This version was forward — almost brazen.

He leaned back on the counter, watching her closely. "Did you… eat something weird? Expired food or maybe something spoiled?"

Lyra frowned, shaking her head. "No."

"Alright," he said slowly. "Then how're you feeling?"

She paused, her golden eyes locking onto him. "Hungry," she said quietly. "And thirsty." Then, after a beat, her tail twitched once and she added, "And… hot."

Xavier stared at her. "…Hot?"

Lyra nodded, her face unreadable — though there was a glint in her eyes that made him more uneasy than curious.

He cleared his throat. "Right. Then go take a shower, cool off a bit. After that, we'll go to Seraphina's place and get something to eat, yeah?"

Lyra's tail wagged once, almost happily. "Okay," she said softly, and then turned around, heading toward her room.

Xavier ran a hand through his hair and exhaled. "What the hell is going on…" he muttered under his breath.

Lilia wasn't around, and she was the only one who might've had a clue about Lyra's sudden switch. But with no one to ask, he was left standing there — half-dressed, half-lost, and completely unsure what the hell just shifted in that girl overnight.

After thinking for a while, Xavier decided to call someone back at the Beastlands—maybe they'd know what the hell was going on with Lyra. After a few rings, a kid picked up.

"Uh, hello? Who's this?" the kid's voice cracked through the line.

"It's Xavier," he said. "Is Kilop around?"

The kid shuffled on the other side. "The king's in seclusion, sir. But I can get someone older."

"Yeah, do that."

A few seconds later, a deep voice came through. "Who's calling?"

"Xavier," he replied.

The tone immediately shifted. "Ah, Lord Xavier. Is something wrong? Do you need to speak with His Majesty?"

"The kid just said he's in seclusion," Xavier said flatly. "It's nothing serious anyway. Just… needed some answers. Figured you beasts might know better about this sort of thing."

The man gave a short chuckle. "Alright, what's troubling you?"

Xavier explained everything—from Lyra sneaking into his bed to her sudden change in attitude and the weird, heated behavior she was showing. There was silence for a while on the other end.

Then the man sighed. "Ah… I see. It might be that time of the month."

"What, her periods?" Xavier frowned. "How the hell would that make her act like that?"

"Not the forbidden days," the man corrected, his tone a little awkward now. "I mean the mating season. It's common among beastkin, especially the younger ones who haven't gone through it before. This could be her first time. She's confused, her instincts are heightened, and she doesn't quite understand what's happening to her yet."

Xavier rubbed the bridge of his nose. "So what am I supposed to do, then?"

The man chuckled again. "How would I know? You can… handle it however you want. Just know it'll pass eventually."

"Right."

He hung up the phone and leaned back, staring at the ceiling for a long moment.

"Handle it however I want, huh…" he muttered.

But that didn't sit right with him. Lyra wasn't herself—if anything, she looked lost behind that sudden boldness. Doing anything with her now would feel like taking advantage, no matter how natural her instincts were.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. "This is just great."

Xavier slumped back on the couch, the phone still dangling loosely from his hand. The faint sound of running water echoed from the bathroom—Lyra's humming barely audible under it. He exhaled sharply, tossing the phone onto the table before leaning forward, elbows resting on his knees.

"What the hell am I supposed to do with this…" he muttered.

His mind spun circles. Lyra, out of all people—no, out of all beasts—was the last one he'd expect to act like that. Usually, she kept her distance. Playful at times, sure, but never bold. Never the type to crawl into his bed or whisper with that look in her eyes.

Now, she was in his shower, humming like she owned the place.

He rubbed his temples and glanced at the door, half-expecting her to come out any second. Every minute felt heavier, and he could almost feel her presence through the walls—some strange mix of heat and tension that wouldn't let him relax.

When the door finally creaked open, steam rolled out like smoke. Lyra stepped out, wrapped in nothing but a towel, her hair wet and messy. Her tail swayed lazily behind her, droplets of water flicking onto the floor.

"Done," she said softly, her voice still carrying that strange warmth.

Xavier's eyes flicked up and then away. "Good. You feel better now?"

She nodded, walking toward him, the faint scent of soap trailing in her wake. "A little. But I'm still hungry."

He cleared his throat. "Yeah, I told you—we'll go eat at Seraphina's. Just get dressed first."

Lyra tilted her head, her ears twitching. "You don't want me to sit?"

"Not like that, no."

Her lips curved into a teasing grin. "You're acting weird."

"I could say the same thing about you."

For a moment, she just stood there, watching him. Something flickered in her eyes—something wild, something that made his pulse stutter. Then, as quickly as it came, she turned and padded off toward the wardrobe.

Xavier let out a slow breath.

He watched her quietly as she pulled out her clothes, humming again, almost as if nothing had happened. It was strange—seeing her move like that, so effortlessly calm yet so obviously different.

Maybe the beast guy was right. Maybe it was just instincts.

Still, Xavier couldn't shake that uneasy feeling crawling in his chest—the kind that told him this wasn't something he could just ignore and wait out.

If this was the start of her mating season… things might get a lot more complicated than either of them expected.

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