The sea breeze still clung to him as Harry Hook set foot on the pristine grounds of Auradon Prep, his boots making a dull thud against the stone path. It was a far cry from the rough and chaotic Isle of the Lost, where every corner was filled with grime and danger. Auradon gleamed with a sickening brightness—too polished, too perfect for someone like him. His hooked hand swung at his side as he scanned the faces of the prissy, preppy students strolling through the campus.

Then, his eyes landed on her.

She stood out, even among the clean-cut and noble-born. A girl with raven-black hair that shimmered like silk in the sun, her skin fair as the purest snow, and lips a soft shade of red. He knew immediately who she was—Snow White's daughter. She was every bit the fairy tale in real life, a walking symbol of the world he’d always despised from afar.

Harry’s smirk curled at the edge of his mouth as he leaned casually against a tree, his blue eyes watching her closely. There was something magnetic about her, something that made him pause in his usual swagger. The innocence she carried was almost laughable, but it intrigued him. For a split second, their eyes met across the courtyard, and her gaze faltered under the intensity of his.

"A princess," he muttered under his breath, amusement dancing in his voice. "How quaint."

Auradon might be new to him, but the game was the same. And Harry Hook never backed down from a challenge.