Miria steadied herself and looked directly at Luck, who had been quiet, processing everything she'd just shared. He was calm as ever, his expression unreadable, but she could feel the weight of his gaze. After a moment of silence, he spoke.

“Why do you think it’s Lydia?” Luck’s voice was soft, but there was an edge to it—a careful, calculating tone that Miria recognized. “You don’t seem like the type to jump to conclusions without more evidence.”

Miria took a breath, glancing down for a moment as she gathered her thoughts. She hadn’t expected Luck to be convinced so easily. He wasn’t the type to trust things on a whim, and rightly so. But there was more to this than met the eye.

“My sister,” Miria replied, her voice steady, but a hint of frustration threaded through her words. “She’s the one who told me. She noticed something strange that I didn’t at first.”

Luck raised an eyebrow, intrigued but not fully convinced. "What did she see?"

Miria exhaled slowly, recounting the details. “When Celia and Dan first heard about the announcement, they were listening to Mrs. Kaira. But while everyone else in the room was paying attention, Lydia—she was the only one not looking at Mrs. Kaira. She was looking at her phone, like she didn’t want to hear about what was going on.”

She paused, letting the suspicion linger in the air. "At first, I didn’t think much of it. But when I went over it with my sister later, she pointed out how strange it was. Everyone else in the room was focused, but Lydia was distracted. That alone doesn’t prove anything, but it’s enough to make me think something’s off.”

Dan, who had been leaning against the wall, watching the conversation unfold, crossed his arms. “You think Lydia’s the one behind it? Isn’t that a bit of a stretch? What’s the real connection?”

Miria’s eyes narrowed slightly, her resolve firming. “My sister’s instincts are sharp, and she wouldn’t have said anything if she didn’t think it was worth investigating.”

Finn, who had been quietly observing from his spot at the table, raised an eyebrow. “You’ve been working with this theory for a while, haven’t you?” His voice was calm but had an underlying curiosity. "So, what's your next step?"

“I’m going to try and contact Lydia to see if she’s hiding something. If she is, then we need to know what it is,” Miria responded, her eyes not leaving Finn.

Ivy, sitting nearby, shifted uncomfortably. “I get it, but this sounds risky. If you’re wrong, it could backfire. If Lydia’s not involved, then where does that leave you?”

Miria was quick to answer. “I’d rather know for sure, even if it means making some enemies along the way. This isn’t just about Lydia; it's about what’s happening under the surface. If she’s hiding something, it’ll affect us all.”

Lila, who had been quietly absorbed in her own thoughts, finally spoke up. “I don’t know... I can’t shake the feeling that there’s more to it. If Lydia’s involved, then we need to find out before anyone else does.”

Luck regarded Lila for a moment, his gaze sharp and calculating. “You’re jumping on the bandwagon too, Lila?”

Lila met his gaze with a slight smirk, a glint of determination in her eyes. “I’m just saying... it wouldn’t hurt to find out who’s really behind this before things spiral out of control.”

Dan sighed, running a hand through his hair as he processed everything. He could see where Miria was coming from, but the stakes were higher than usual. If helping her meant aiding a rival house, it could backfire, especially since Phillips House was already in front of their house on the leaderboard. Hampden House was in last place, and the idea of helping a house that was already ahead only to risk strengthening their position didn’t sit well with him. If he was going to help Miria, it had to be with the understanding that it would benefit Hampden, not boost the standing of a rival house.

Miria's gaze turned steely, her resolve clear. "We can’t afford for this to backfire on Phillips House," she said, her voice tight with determination. "If we prove Jaxon was manipulated, it might clear the house’s name. But if we can't, then the entire house is going to be tainted by this mess. We need to get to the truth, for everyone's sake."

Luck nodded, his expression unreadable. "We don’t know if Jaxon was manipulated, but Lydia's actions are suspicious. She may know more than she’s letting on." His tone was as detached as ever, but there was an underlying sharpness that indicated he was already thinking through their next move.

Dan crossed his arms, his eyes narrowing. "So we're putting all our bets on Lydia being the key. If she knows something, then we need to find out fast. But we can’t make any moves until we have solid evidence."

Miria glanced at Dan, nodding in agreement. "Exactly. We need to confirm her involvement before we do anything. If she’s hiding something, it could be the key to understanding what really happened with Jaxon and Kael."

Ivy, who had been quiet, raised an eyebrow. "But if Lydia really is hiding something, do you think she’ll just come out and say it? We need to be careful here. We don’t want to tip our hand too early."

Luck tilted his head, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Lydia is smart. She’s not going to reveal anything unless she’s cornered. We need to approach this cautiously. If we push too hard, she’ll just cover her tracks better."

Finn, who had been quiet for a while, spoke up with a slight frown. "So what’s the plan? We confront Lydia directly? Or try to gather more information first?"

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Miria's lips pressed into a thin line. "We start by observing her—see if we can catch her in a lie or pick up on anything odd. If we can’t get the information that way, we’ll have to be more direct. But we can’t act recklessly, especially if we’re wrong about her."

Lila, who had been absorbed in her thoughts, suddenly spoke. "What if she’s just as confused as everyone else? Maybe she’s not the one behind all this. If we accuse her without proof, it could come back to bite us."

Miria met Lila’s gaze, her expression firm. "If Lydia is hiding something, it’s better to find out now, before it escalates. This fight isn’t just about Jaxon and Kael—it’s about what’s happening beneath the surface. If there’s something else going on, we need to know."

Dan exhaled sharply. "I still don’t like the idea of risking everything on one person’s word, especially if we don’t have any hard evidence. But I get it—we need to know the truth."

Luck’s gaze was cold, calculating. "If we find something incriminating, we’ll deal with it. If not, we move on. But we don’t ignore it. We can’t afford to let this slip."

Miria nodded, turning towards the door. "Alright. Let’s start by keeping an eye on Lydia. We’ll gather what we can without making her suspicious. If she’s hiding something, we’ll find it."

They were walking a fine line, trying to uncover the truth while avoiding making the wrong move. If they were wrong about Lydia, it could end up making things worse, but if they were right, it could clear the air for Phillips House and expose whoever was truly behind the chaos.

Dan crossed his arms, his tone thoughtful yet laced with skepticism. "But even if she testified, it wouldn't mean much. Jaxon was the one who started the fight, whether he was manipulated into doing it or not. You can't rule it out as self-defence, considering he was the one who instigated it. No matter what Lydia says, it’s still Jaxon’s actions that are under scrutiny."

Miria’s expression tightened. She knew Dan had a point, but it wasn’t the full picture. "I get what you’re saying, but that’s not what this is about. If Jaxon was manipulated into starting the fight, then someone else is pulling the strings. We need to find out who and why."

Luck, who had been quiet up until now, spoke up, his voice calm and measured. "Dan's right, in a way. The fact remains, Jaxon initiated the altercation, and that’s what the school will focus on. But if Lydia’s involved in some way, we could find out what led to Jaxon’s actions. There’s more at play here, and it’s not just about self-defence."

Finn, who had been listening attentively, leaned forward. "So, you’re saying there's a chance that Jaxon didn’t act on his own, that someone else had a hand in it?"

Miria nodded. "Exactly. If we can prove that, we might be able to shift the focus from Jaxon to whoever manipulated him. It could change everything."

Ivy shifted uncomfortably in her chair. "But what if you’re wrong? If it turns out Lydia’s not involved and it’s just a simple fight, then what? You risk making an enemy of Phillips House when you could be focusing on more important things, like catching up in the rankings."

Dan gave Ivy a pointed look. "Exactly. Phillips House is already ahead. If we get caught up in this, we might end up doing more harm than good. At least if we focus on getting our house up to speed, we’ll be in a better position."

Miria shot a glance at Dan, her expression hardening. "I’m not saying we should ignore the rankings, but if we let things slide just because it’s not affecting us directly, we’ll be no better than the people we’re trying to stop."

Luck stood up, pushing his chair back softly. "We’ll proceed carefully. We don’t have to get involved in every detail, but we should uncover the truth. If Lydia is involved, we’ll know soon enough. If not, we’ll pivot. But there’s no sense in ignoring it completely."

Miria’s eyes sharpened. "We’re in this together, right? So let's make sure we know exactly what’s going on before jumping to conclusions."

Dan sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Fine. But we need to be strategic about this. Phillips House is a tough one to deal with, and if we go in half-cocked, we’ll just be making ourselves targets."

Luck gave a small nod, his gaze steady. "Agreed. We move cautiously, but we move forward. Let’s gather what we can."

The group fell into a tense silence, each member processing the weight of the task ahead. There was much to uncover, but the path forward wasn’t clear. One thing was certain, though: things were about to get complicated.

Miria stood up abruptly, her chair scraping against the floor as she did. Her eyes were sharp, filled with determination, but there was a weariness to her movements. "I think we’ve talked enough for now," she said, her voice firm but laced with a hint of finality. "We’ll figure out the next steps tomorrow. For now, I need a break."

She gave a quick glance around the room, meeting everyone’s eyes briefly, as if silently signalling the end of the conversation. Without waiting for a response, she turned and started walking towards the door. The others exchanged looks before following her lead, one by one getting up from their seats.

Finn was the first to stand, pushing his chair back with a sigh. "Well, if you’re leaving, guess we should too," he muttered, but his tone was light, almost as if to ease the tension.

Ivy was next, brushing her hair back as she stood up. "Yeah, let’s not make things worse by staying here and overthinking it. We’ll have more time to figure this out later."

Lila followed, her expression unreadable but her steps quick as she caught up with Miria. "I’ll head out too," she said, her voice low, but the intent was clear—she wasn’t going to stick around if there was nothing more to discuss.

The conversation with Miria and the others had come to an end, and the room fell silent again. Dan and Luck remained in their dorm room, each processing the events of the day in their own way.

Dan was seated on his bed, running his hand through his hair in frustration. “That conversation was a mess. Miria’s got her theories, but nothing’s concrete. I still don’t get why she’s so certain about Lydia.”

Luck, who had been sitting cross-legged on his own bed, glanced toward the window as if waiting for the right moment to speak. His tone was calm but sharp when he did. “It’s not about certainty, Dan. It’s about gathering the facts. Miria’s instinct is to act first, but we need more than just a gut feeling.”

Dan threw himself back onto his bed, staring up at the ceiling. “I know, I get it. But even if Lydia’s hiding something, what’s it really going to do for us? The fight was started by Jaxon, and no matter how you spin it, he’s the one who threw the first punch.”

Luck’s gaze never wavered from the window. “The problem isn’t just the fight. It’s what led to it. If Jaxon was manipulated, that changes things.”

Dan huffed, turning his head to look at Luck. “Maybe. But at the end of the day, it’s still Phillips House that’s involved, and I don’t see how this helps us—especially when they’re already in a strong position.”

Luck finally turned his attention back to Dan. “We’ll find out soon enough. The truth doesn’t always care about who’s in the lead.”

Dan exhaled, his frustration lingering. “Guess we’ll see where it all leads, huh?”

With that, the room fell back into its quiet rhythm, each of them deep in their own thoughts as they prepared for whatever was to come next.