Page 33 of Zodiac Hybrids

“That’s more complicated. A born wolf-shifter has total control on any night, but a werewolf is forced to turn if they’re exposed to moonlight. All of their emotions and aggressions will be heavily amplified, often to the point of a total loss of control.”

That sounded just like the professor. So maybe he passed a disease to me after all. “So if they can’t control themselves, then they’re a were-shifter and not a regular one.” I stated just to prove I was following.

My handsome new friend shook his head. “It means they’re either a were-shifter… or they’re a hybrid. We’ve learned pretty recently that mixing any other blood type with shifter blood creates its own rules.”

“Oh…” Okay, well that tracked too. So he didn’t turn me into a shifter by biting me. That much was certain-ish.

“You really don’t know all this?” He leaned forward on his elbows, and I sat further back in response.

“I just started here a few weeks ago. I’m… learning a lot.” I laughed it off sheepishly.

“And yet you can see the Lore Section.” He raised a brow a full half inch above the frame of his glasses. “And you can turn the pages of this book.” He nudged it even closer to me to prove a point.

“Well, yes. I’m not blind and fingerless. Just boring and powerless.” I raised my eyebrow right back at him. Well, both of my eyebrows. I couldn’t do that singular eyebrow thing that all these guys seemed to be good at.

“Huh. That’s funny. What did you say your name was?” He straightened and offered me a hand.

“Lila.” I answered immediately. His handshake was firm and possessive, so I added my full, “Lila Denton,” as I waited for him to release me.

“Lila Denton.” He repeated with a pulse of his grip that nearly crushed my bones. His tongue darted out to moisten his lips before he proceeded to introduce himself. “Ceto Arya. You’re taking Calc with Professor Shen, aren’t you?”

I blinked rapidly at the question. “Oh. Y-yes. I am. How did you know?”

“You sit four rows in front of me.” Ceto tilted his head to the side with a slightly hurt smile. His grip had softened, but he was still holding me captive, and I swallowed, waiting for his permission to pull back. In my mind, I knew I could pull away, but I felt paralyzed to do anything but keep my hand in his palm. “You always seem so focused on the lesson, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you never noticed me. Pleased to finally make your acquaintance.”

“Likewise.”

Finally he let me go, and I shoved my hand into the pocket of my hoodie beneath the table.

“See you later, Human Lila.” He said with a playful eye roll, and my whole expression flattened. Seriously the men in this school were the worst. I never thought I’d say this, but I was so ready to go back to being invisible…

Chapter 18

Fascinating. I’d met many a shifter in my time in Graves, but never one who had hit adulthood without knowing they were one. Who didn’t even know how blood pacts or mating worked, yet scented of multiple mates no less.

Or one that was capable of multiple mates, for that matter. I couldn’t help but be curious about this strange woman who wandered into the Lore section, not realizing only the magical among us could see that section at all.

But if she was already the target of others, I would also have to be careful of how I approached her. If she got that scent signature from a Zodiac Shifter, then it wouldn’t be a stretch to assume she was one of us. It was entirely possible to mate to any other shifter, but typically, the stars built us with specific preferences.

Either way, I hoped she’d come to the library again. If not, I may just suddenly need some tutoring in Calc.

Chapter 19

“The Aquarius, also known as the Water Bearer of the Zodiac covers those born between January 20th and February 19th.” Professor Karras began, while he scribbled a symbol that looked like two squiggly lines stacked on top of each other on the white board. “In Greek legends, Aquarius represents the son of the King of Troy, who caught Zeus’ eye while out working the fields. The king of gods became so infatuated with the boy, he essentially kidnapped him and brought him back to Olympus. From then on, he became the cup bearer, who served water to the gods.”

“I don’t understand—why is Aquarius an Air sign and not a Water sign?” A girl to my right chimed in. I couldn’t remember her name—Emily? Elizabeth? Something with an E for sure—but she stared at the professor with the same doe eyes that Linda and the other handful of girls in the class did. Hell, I probably looked at him that way too, so it’s not like I was any better. We were all equally pathetic here, I thought to myself with a frown.

There were all of eight people in the Astrology club, including myself and Marcus and Linda. Only three of them were men, again including Marcus. Not surprisingly, Adrian was most popular with women in general, and his extracurricular classes reflected that. Even his physics class was disproportionately female for a STEM field. Was that like, accidental feminism? Being so hot that women take interest in sciences they may not have otherwise signed up for, thus bringing more diversity into the field?

Yep. Doing the lord’s work with those abs, Doctor.

“That’s a great question.” Adrian hummed along. “You could say it has more to do with personality and what the water bearer represents. After all, the cup holder may present the life sustaining liquid to his community, but he never gets wet himself. For a matter of fact, Aquarius are quintessential Air signs. They tend to value interpersonal dynamics over raw emotion, and tend to focus on intellectual and philosophical compatibility over atmosphere and ‘vibes,’ like you kids might say.”

I cringed internally at the way he was so intentionally trying to separate himself from the rest of us through his age, but mid-thirties was probably like being a child for his kind, really. If shifters had the level of immortality that the books implied, then anyone under a century basically was in the same point of maturity and development for these guys.

Linda sighed loudly to get the attention on her. “So you’re saying Aquarius are servants? I don’t really identify with that.” She seemed disappointed to learn more about her own star sign.

“From a historical perspective, I can see why being a servant sounds like a negative thing, but from a spiritual perspective, it’s more about caring and accommodating others. Aquarius tend to be generous and humanitarian, which is the most admirable form of servitude.”