Periwinkle
Shanty saunters from one side of the classroom to the other as she gives her lecture. The siren’s blue hair sways with her sleek hips.
“If you’re spending time in the mortal world, it’s inevitable that you’ll need to interact with humans now and then. That’s why understanding the basics of politeness is so important. In your pairs, the more established student should demonstrate to the newer student how you’d ask a human for minor assistance.”
I glance over at Vim, the being Shanty paired me off with. Politeness hasn’t seemed to be one of her strong points in our past conversations.
Her scowl today is a little milder than usual, but I don’t think that means she’s softened to me. She’s just less sure what to make of me after the news of my victory on a mission for the headmaster—and whatever rumors are swirling about the strange new power I’ve displayed.
Vim squares her broad shoulders ominously but then pastes a vacant smile on her face. “Excuse me. Could you point me to the nearest corner store?”
She’s definitely better at being polite to me as an imaginary human than me as the being I actually am.
Shanty brushes past us with an approving pat of Vim’s back. “Good. Now, the other partner should take a turn. Think of something you’d need to find or know if you’re on your own in an unfamiliar setting. And experienced students, don’t make it too easy for them.”
I take a breath, and a ripple of emotion niggles at the back of my mind.
Part of me considers ignoring it, but a pang of guilt immediately follows that impulse. What if someone’s hurt or in trouble?
I let my focus on the task in front of me relax and open myself so the feelings sweep through me.
Someone’s irritated Hail, off on the other side of this school building. Jonah’s working through a difficult problem that’s making him stressed. He also has an annoying itch he can’t quite reach.
Mirage—er, I think he’s relieving himself in the bathroom, with some delight at the stream.
And Vim is staring at me with growing impatience.
I’m still getting the hang of balancing my own thoughts with the unpredictable flow of emotions from the men I accidentally marked. It doesn’t seem right to neglect them—but it’s awfully hard to concentrate on pretend scenarios for my schoolwork when their very real presence follows me around like four nagging ghosts.
I scramble to get back on track. What would I need if I was showing myself in the human world?
Good emotions to feed on. Happiness and excitement, but nothing too extreme.
I offer Vim a warmer smile than she gave me. “Hey there. What do people around here do for fun?”
I taste the pleasure she takes in following Shanty’s instructions to be difficult. “Why are you asking me? I don’t know you.”
She starts to turn away, and my heart lurches. At the same time, a surge of mingled hunger and disgust smacks into me with the impression I know is Raze.
He’s going on a hunt, and he’s ashamed that he needs to kill to feed his body.
I can’t help him with that problem from a distance—and being aware of his insecurity without him sharing it voluntarily feels like an intrusion.
I bury my connection to him as deep as I can in my consciousness and yank my mind back to the being in front of me.
Vim has raised her eyebrows.
“I—I’m new in town,” I say hastily. “I didn’t mean to bother you. You looked like you might know a good place to hang out and meet people.”
“A decent start,” Shanty says from right behind me, so abruptly my pulse jumps. I didn’t notice her approaching. “You’ll want to sound more confident. And it’s usually better to let people know you’re new right away, even to apologize for asking for help, before you get to your question.”
As Vim’s lips curl with a trace of a sneer, I nod. “Yes, of course. I’ll remember that!”
Before we have to do any more mortal socializing practice, the bell rings to signal the end of class—my last class of the day. I start to relax, getting up out of my chair.
Then another burst of emotion jolts through my unintended bonds.
Mirage—he’s restless. Some students in the courtyard are totally asking to have a prank played on them, and suppressing the urge is making him feel stifled.
