4. Zoe
Zoe
I spent most of the last few days before classes unpacking and getting familiar with the campus.
By the time we were finished with dinner, my things had been delivered from my university dorm.
It was a delicate balance getting all of my clothes hung up; the bar fell several times before I figured out the right way to distribute the weight, but I got it eventually.
As I finish pinning the front pieces of my hair back, I catch my reflection in the mirror in my tiny bathroom.
I look the same. Exactly as I did before the ceremony. My hair is a plain, dull brown and wavy, my eyes copper, and my skin a pale, dull tan. Nothing about me screams, “Hey, look at me, I’m an Omega!”
I'm certain now that I imagined that voice, because if Ray, a newly designated Alpha, had such a strong 'Alpha' presence, wouldn't I have an Omega one?
That’s probably what it is. It is significantly more likely that I am a Beta and was imagining things than that I touched the garnet, was Blessed by Ilota, who does not Bless people, and was deemed an Omega.
Also, I didn’t shift. If I had shifted, I’d believe she Blessed me, but I didn’t.
I need to push that voice from my head, forget the purring, pleased murmur that called me an Omega, and embrace the fact that I got exactly what I wanted by being designated a Beta.
A knock on my door drags me out of my thoughts, and when I pull it open, Warren is waiting for me.
“Is that what you’re wearing?”
“Good morning to you, too.” I step aside to let him in as I look down at my outfit. “What’s the matter with what I’m wearing?”
Warren has his pale blonde hair pulled back off his face, secured with a tie at the base of his neck. His black pants hang low on his slim hips, and he’s tucked in a button-up, pale grey shirt that makes his eyes pop. He’s left more than a few buttons undone and rolled up the sleeves.
My stomach flips at the sight of him. When did he get so handsome?
“This is the first day of class. You want to make a good impression. Your future spouse or spouses may be here.”
Polyamory is the standard among Alphas and Omegas, but some Betas are known to practice it.
I’ve even heard that sometimes Betas are picked to be part of a pack, but that’s rare.
While most of my designation are monogamous, there isn’t a stigma against polyamory for any of us.
I've always assumed I'd be monogamous, because that's what I've always seen.
I glance at the plain black leggings and t-shirt that I’m wearing. They're my favorite and comfortable, and if I’ve got three classes back-to-back today, I want to be comfortable.
"What? I look fine."
He clicks his tongue at me and holds up a finger.
“You look shapeless in that. You’ve got an incredible body.
Why do you try to drown it in fabric?” He digs through my clothes and grabs the cropped, hooded sweater he gave me for my birthday this year that I never wear. "Take off your shirt and put this on."
He's not asking. Warren grabs a pair of sneakers for me from the pile under my clothes. I strip off my shirt, pull the sweater on with my back to him, and pull my pendant out to rest on the front.
It’s not the type of necklace a woman of means would wear, but the fact that it carries so much of my family's history makes it invaluable to me. I wish I had more time with my mother to get the story behind it. How many of us have touched it when we’re happy, held it when we cried?
I didn't know a necklace could make me feel connected to the past, but I do.
Warren pulls out my pins and fluffs my hair before placing them back in the same spot I had them in. “There. That’s better.”
Truthfully, I don’t think it looks any different, but I trust Warren. I’m still comfortable, which is really all I care about.
We cross campus, going through the Hub to grab cups of coffee and a pastry for breakfast, then make our way to the academic buildings. Our class is in the largest lecture hall in the building, and when we walk in, I can see why.
The entire first-year class must be here. So much for Viv's theory that we'll be split into multiple classes. There are at least five hundred people in here, if not more. It’s going to be impossible to find Viv in this chaos. I’ll need to ask her where her room is so we can walk together tomorrow.
Though class doesn’t start for another fifteen minutes, the hall is already mostly full, and Warren and I slip into a row in the middle. We have to climb over a few people to get to empty seats.
All around us are Betas. Realistically, there should be thirty to fifty Alphas in here, and less than ten Omegas, but all I see are Betas.
“The Alphas are all sitting together,” Warren whispers in my ear as he elbows me in the side.
“How do you know?” I follow his gaze and swallow my question.
It’s immediately apparent who the Alphas are in the room.
All of them have an aura about them that promises danger.
Probably sixty percent of them are male, the rest female, and all of them are attractive.
Is that a requirement to be Blessed? I can't see anyone with unattractive features in that group.
I find myself searching for Ray, but all the Alphas are on the far side of the rounded lecture hall, and maybe he isn’t here yet.
I don’t know why I’m looking for him. It’s not like we’re friends.
Eventually, a portly man with pinkish skin and sandy-brown hair stands at the front of the room and calls the class to attention.
“Good morning, students. I am Professor Nikolaus Hayes. Please address me as Professor Hayes.” He clears his throat and looks around the room.
“Welcome to the Institute. We’re glad to have you here.
I know you have not had much time to settle into your designations, but that is what I am here for.
In this course, we’ll learn the expectations for each designation, how they interact, and what their responsibilities are in our society. ”
He looks around the room, eyes landing on the group of Alphas.
“Alphas, I presume? You all tend to group together on the first day. Next class, I’d like you to spread out and sit with your Beta peers.
This course is about how we work together as a society, and we cannot do that if we remain segregated. ”
It’s easy for him to say, but that is not the practice in reality.
Alphas tend to stick together, and their jobs in government and law enforcement mean they mostly live in our capital, Raeldell, located in the heart of our realm, Kestia.
We have a Prime Alpha for each province, but I couldn’t name mine if asked.
The subprime, a Beta meant to represent our best interests, also sits on the council.
I lean close to Warren. “Where are the Omegas?”
He looks around the room and shrugs. "I don't see any."
I don't know if he'd recognize them if he did.
Professor Haye shuffles through some papers on his desk.
After a moment, he turns to the class. “It would appear no one was designated Omega for your class. That’s most odd indeed.
I’m not sure we’ve ever had a first-year class without Omegas.
” He clears his throat and smooths down the front of his white shirt.
“But the Gods choose who they Bless carefully, and I will not presume to know the whys of it.”
No Omegas? Out of hundreds of us, not a single person was designated as an Omega?
If the voice in my head is to be believed, which it isn’t, because that would be absurd, I’m an Omega. Not that I’ll tell anyone about what I heard.
The professor continues, explaining our syllabus and what he expects us to learn over the semester. The main goal of this course is to teach the designations how to work together. In other words, it’s to keep us under the thumbs of the Alphas who make the rules.
As soon as the class is over, I’m on my feet, darting for the door in hopes of being one of the first out so I can scan the students for Viv. We have the next class together, and I have no idea how many people will be in it, so I’d like to make sure I sit with her.
When she comes through the door talking to her brother, I call her name.
“Viv! There you are.”
Ray doesn't appear to have heard me and turns to his sister. “I’ll see you later.” I watch his back as he walks away.
Warren follows them out of the classroom. “Not very chatty, is he?”
Viv shrugs and falls into step beside me. “He can be. He’s just adjusting to everything, I think. I mean, just a few days ago, he turned into a giant bird.”
She told us on the first day that her brother was an Argentavis.
I wanted to go to the library to read more about them, because it’s not a form I ever learned about in school, but I never made it there.
Most of those Blessed by Oren were hawks, vultures, and owls.
I’ve heard of a few that don’t seem useful at all, like flamingos and cranes, but I believe those forms are reserved for the few Omegas Blessed by the God of Wind.
After a short walk, Viv and I peel away from Warren, heading to our next class.
Viv’s voice is low as she leads us to the back row of the small classroom. “What job placement are you hoping to have?”
“No specific career in mind, truthfully. I’ve never spent much time thinking about it. I figured I’d take a balanced load in university and here, and see what they recommend for me.”
She hums as she stores her bag under her chair. “I can’t imagine leaving so much up to chance. I want to live in the capital one day, so I’m hoping for an administrative-type role. Maybe one day I can be a subprime.”
“Ah, I have no desire for government. That’s one thing I do know I’m not interested in.” The teacher’s aide hands out the syllabus, and I skim it to see if there are any group projects. There aren’t, thankfully.
A small Beta woman shuffles to the front of the room. “Welcome to Cultural Anthropology. Let’s begin.”