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 chooseto.”
“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.”
