Chapter Seventeen
Bechora
I woke up the next morning to another package waiting on the counter.
Someone had noticed I’d missed most of my classes the day before and gathered notes from them for me.
Shadrie insisted it wasn’t her, that the package was left in front of the door to our dorm, and whoever delivered it seemed to have vanished into thin air the moment they knocked.
“Thank Selir, it’s Friday!” Shadrie groaned as we gathered our bags to head to class. “We should totally veg out and watch trash TV this weekend to celebrate surviving our first week.”
“That sounds great.” I smiled. “It didn’t look like I missed much yesterday, just a couple of reading assignments for Elemental Magic and an ass-kicking in combat training.
I just have one class this morning and combat training this evening, so if I hit the library after my first class, I can free up my weekend. ”
“Perfect. Oh, we should invite Miles. After the way your hunka-hunka demon mate interrogated him the other day about the human realm, I bet he could use a veg out too.”
“Shit, that reminds me. I need to try to find more information on demon mating stuff while I’m at the library. Zypher’s been pretty chill, but it would be nice to know what he’s expecting to happen, and the one time I managed to look into it, I didn’t find anything helpful.”
“You mean other than laying that Demon Daddy Dick on you?” Shadrie cackled.
“Shadrie!”
My roommate shot me a bemused grin and shrugged. “I’m just saying, the guy is over seven feet tall, no way he’s not proportional. Don’t try to tell me you haven’t thought about it yet, either. That demon is hot as hell, no pun intended.”
“Would you shut up before he hears you?” I squeaked, motioning toward the doors leading outside from Magus House.
Shadrie mimed zipping her lips and then grinned. “I’ll shut it for now, but I definitely want details when you finally take him for a ride… Oh, look, there he is now.”
My eyes followed her gaze to find Zypher waiting a few yards down the sidewalk, balancing four coffee cups between both hands. We made our way to him, and he greeted me with a warm smile, handing Shadrie and me each one of the cups.
“Who’s the spare for?” Shadrie asked, tilting her head toward the fourth coffee.
“Miles. We are… bros now.” Zypher chuckled when Shadrie’s mouth fell open at the word bros. “Ah, here he comes now. If you would be so kind as to deliver this to him and give me a moment alone with my Dilectus, I will be in your debt, ice mage.”
“Sure thing, Triple D.” Shadrie winked with a mock salute before taking the extra coffee from Zypher and turning back to meet Miles on his way out of Magus House.
Zypher snagged my free hand in his and pulled me so we were facing one another. “I have been researching the mating customs of your realm, and I would like to take you on a date this weekend.”
The gentle tone of his voice made my heart flutter, and I almost said yes before I remembered I’d already made plans with Shadrie.
“I already promised my roommate we’d veg out.
” I sighed. “But maybe you could join us if you’d like?
We were going to invite Miles, so I doubt Shadrie would be mad if I invited you, too. ”
“Ah, like a group date. I was told those are sometimes a first-date custom in your realm, to make things less awkward between the courting pair. Had I realized the mages were also courting, I would have suggested something similar.”
I nearly choked on the coffee I’d just taken a sip of. “Miles and Shadrie? They’re not courting, big guy.”
Zypher gave me a puzzled look before tilting his head toward where the pair stood with their heads together like they were plotting something. “Their behavior would indicate otherwise, Dilectus.”
“Trust me, whatever that little secret sesh is about, they’re not courting. Shadrie doesn’t have the right parts for Miles.”
The demon’s brows furrowed, and his eyes flitted between our friends and me. Understanding slowly bloomed on his face after a few moments. “Oh… Oh! I see. Should we find partners for our mage friends to attend the group date with?”
I couldn’t help the small laugh that left me as I patted Zypher on the chest. “No, it’s not a group date. It’s just friends hanging out.”
“But I am more than your friend, Dilectus. We are fated.”
“Boyfriends attend group hangouts,” I said before I considered my words.
Zypher’s face split into a stunning grin. “I see. Then I shall endeavor to learn the customs of ‘boyfriend attending group hangout’ by the weekend.”
“I didn’t mean… You know what, nevermind. It’s fine. There’s not really anything special you need to do, just be yourself, and it will be fine.”
Before either of us could say anything else, Shadrie and Miles stopped next to me.
“Time’s up, Triple D., I am starving, and we have class soon,” Shadrie said before turning her attention to me.
“Miles is in for a group veg. We decided we’re going to watch that sister wives show from the human realm—apparently it’s our friend here’s guilty pleasure, and he made sure to find out when it would be available in our realm the second he got settled into his dorm on orientation day. ”
Miles blushed furiously, and his eyes dropped to the ground. “I can’t help that I like the drama.”
“I, too, find drama can be quite enjoyable.” Zypher grinned, slapping Miles on the shoulder.
Shadrie cackled, and I shook my head before gesturing for us to get moving.
We made our way to the dining hall in comfortable silence before Shadrie and I settled in at what was becoming our normal table.
Miles shot us a horrified look as Zypher pulled him along to the buffet to gather our breakfast. My demon mate didn’t seem to notice as he chattered away at the poor mage.
“So, you only have the one class this morning and then combat training?” Shadrie asked as the guys placed overflowing plates on the table and settled in with us.
“Yeah. Somehow, I ended up with Human Studies as an elective.” I frowned. “Which is weird considering I’m, y’know, from the human realm.”
“I mean, considering orientation day, maybe not.” Shadrie shrugged. “If the academy’s magic enrolled you late, you probably got stuck in whatever elective was available to meet your credit requirements.”
“We have a class together, Dilectus,” Zypher spoke, causing me to turn my head to look at him.
“You’re taking Human Studies? Isn’t that a low-level elective?” Miles asked.
“Yes. Most demons take the course, though I put it off until I couldn’t.” Zypher shrugged. “My procrastination seems to have worked in my favor, as I will have an expert on the subject matter in class with me.”
“Not sure I’d call myself an expert.” I laughed. “The human realm is complicated, even for those of us who grew up there, but I’ll do my best to help you keep up.”
“It’s not that in-depth a course anyway,” Miles added, pushing his glasses up his nose.
“I read up on it when I was selecting my courses. Mostly, it covers a handful of common human customs and then the major ones of each region. It’s meant to keep supes from insulting any humans they might encounter if they visit the human realm. ”
“My sister took that class when she went here. She said they do a section covering region-specific myths caused by supernaturals of certain species gravitating to those areas,” Shadrie added.
“Maybe this won’t be a waste of time for me after all.” I smiled, finishing my food. “I was never big into myths and shit, that was more Geordie’s thing.”
A twinge of sadness raced through me at the thought of Geordie, and I didn’t miss the sympathy on Shadrie’s face. We hadn’t spoken about my friend-turned-fae seer since the night with her mirror. Before I could spiral into self-pity, Zypher gently stroked my arm to get my attention.
“We should head to class, Dilectus. Professor Kragmane enjoys finding any excuse he can to exert the power of his position over his students.”
We said our goodbyes, leaving Shadrie and Miles to finish their breakfast, and headed to one of the old stone buildings in the southern portion of campus.
I noticed the professor first when we entered the auditorium-style classroom.
For what the squat, white-haired professor lacked in height, he made up for in the ferocious glare he wore.
I turned to whisper a comment about little-man syndrome to Zypher and stopped short.
Seated in the classroom were the three males who seemed to loathe my existence for reasons unknown to me.
“Ignore them, Dilectus,” Zypher murmured, placing his hand on the small of my back to guide me to a seat when he noticed Dante, Vallynn, and Gabriel. “They will not bother you if they know what’s good for them.”
As if he could hear Zypher’s words, Gabriel’s eyes sought me out, and he scowled, flashing his fangs at me so quickly I almost didn’t catch the unspoken threat.
“Don’t worry, Zypher,” Dante called out. “You’re the only one here interested in stooping so low.”
Zypher growled, his hand on my back tightening into a grip on my blouse. “Mind yourself, gargoyle. Even your prince knows the only reason we demons bow is because we choose to.”
“Take your seats,” Professor Kragmane called out before the males could continue posturing.
I slumped into the nearest empty seat in relief, Zypher sliding into the one next to me. He reached over and took my hand in his, stroking the back of it with his thumb while the remaining students filtered in and took a seat.
“Excellent, you’ve all arrived on time.” Kragmane clapped once the last student was seated. “If you would please open your syllabus, we will cover what is expected of you this term, and then I will be assigning groups for the first project.”
The lesson went by relatively smoothly as Kragmane covered the items in the syllabus. Human Studies seemed to be exactly as Miles and Shadrie described, though I had to stifle a snicker when I realized there was a section on human sexual customs and behaviors.
“Now, the first major project for the term will see you split into groups of five,” Kragmane said once he’d finished covering the rest of the syllabus.
“Each group will be assigned a region of the human realm and must present a thorough report covering unique customs of the region and how these customs were influenced by supernaturals. It is important to note that I expect each group to provide as detailed a timeline covering the evolution of these customs. You will have exactly one month to prepare your presentation, as some of the research can be quite time-consuming. Once you’ve been assigned a group and given your region, you are dismissed. Any questions?”
“Do we get to pick our groups?” Dante called out. I couldn’t help rolling my eyes because, of course, he would ask that.
“No, I have already assigned them, and there will be no changes under any circumstances. If you dislike a member of your group, I strongly suggest you get over it,” Kragmane answered.
His reply felt like a bad omen, and that sensation only settled in deeper as he began to call students to the front in groups of five before handing them an envelope with their assigned region.
There were only fifteen students left when Zypher’s name was called off first for the next group.
As if sensing my distress, he squeezed my hand gently before moving to the front of the room.
“Vallynn Evarian, Gabriel Dreadgrave,” Kragmane called out, and I couldn’t help the flash of hope that I’d end up in the next group. “Dante Vazgurr, Bechora Knight.”
My stomach plummeted, and I forced myself out of my seat.
Keeping my eyes on Zypher for reassurance, I moved to stand with the rest of my group.
I couldn’t help but wonder if we could convince the other three to work on portions solo; even Zypher in the group wasn’t enough to override the dread I felt at being stuck with the others for the next month.
I barely managed to grab the envelope with my copy of the assignment and move out of the way for the next group to be called before Vallynn spoke.
“I will take the evening to review our assignment before I email you all plans for how to proceed with the project.”
“Excuse you,” I snapped. “I’m the only one here actually from the human realm, so what makes you think you should be in charge of the project?”
Vallynn tilted his head and smirked before waving a hand at himself. “Prince.”
“Yeah, and?” I asked, jabbing a thumb in Zypher’s direction. “Pretty sure he’s a prince too.”
“Let the fae have this one, Dilectus.” Zypher snickered. “He is not used to not getting his way, and we wouldn’t want the resulting tantrum to interfere with our project.”
I could have sworn shadows swirled around Vallynn’s hands as he crossed his arms over his chest, his lips set in a haughty scowl.
“Yeah, okay, big guy, you’ve got a point there,” I replied before narrowing my eyes at the fae and jabbing a finger in his direction.
“Don’t expect me to be at your beck and call when you can’t figure something out about the human realm, though.
The library here seems pretty well stocked.
I don’t want to have to deal with your entitled ass more than necessary. ”
Vallynn’s mouth fell open in shock as Zypher slid an arm around my shoulders and led me from the classroom.
“If I didn’t have another class, Dilectus, I would show you exactly how much I appreciated you putting the fae in his place,” Zypher whispered in my ear, causing me to shiver at the insinuation.
“How about we get through this weekend, you fill in any blanks I have about demon mating rituals, and then we see what happens from there?” I countered.
“You’re interested in learning my culture?” Zypher raised to his full height in shock. “Specifically, the mating rituals?”
“We’ve only known each other for like a week, but yeah.” I shrugged. “I’d like to know what I’ve gotten myself into, even if you are already starting to win me over.”
“I can skip my next class and tell you anything you want to know.” Zypher grinned.
“No.” I laughed. “I’m heading to the library to get some work done for my other classes. If you want to help now, you can tell me what books to check out while I’m there to get a head start.”
I couldn’t help the grin that plastered itself on my face as Zypher excitedly rattled off a few titles before dropping me off at the library. It was almost enough to make me forget I was stuck dealing with three douchebags for the next month.