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Something was wrong…or weird…or strange…or some other Earth word.

The stories were not upsetting, especially not to any little in the room. They had spent the morning alternating between begging for snacks and asking Baldron to tell them more about the children and the time before the portal closed.

Baldron knew more about that time period than anyone I had ever met and he knew more than anyone else on the planet because I was one of the leading experts.

“Should I wait until we are alone to ask questions or do you think this is private enough?” Raxius asked the question quietly as we stood by the food but I wasn’t sure I knew the answer.

“I…” Pausing, I collected my thoughts and spoke lower as the people of Earth laughed in the corner. “We need more privacy, but I will tell you that you are not going crazy.”

Quiet laughter came through the bond as Raxius indicated understanding. “That is mainly what I was looking to confirm.”

His feelings of curiosity and confusion had been growing over the past hour. I appreciated knowing my mate was highly intelligent but I did not have enough answers for him. That was frustrating. My thoughts about Shiloh were also puzzling.

That was a good English word too.

“At what point can we ask Shiloh…questions?” My role was caretaking, so it seemed like Raxius should be the one to handle difficult issues. “Did you realize how vague he has been about his skills and role among the people of Earth?”

A frustrated emotion came through the bond, causing me to push back soothing ones. I could feel him responding to my help which had the benefit of relaxing me as well. Seeing my caretaking actions working was far more pleasurable than I had ever imagined they would be.

Mentally feeling like he had taken a deep breath, Raxius finally sent calmer feelings to me. “We are going to ask questions as soon as we leave here. From what I can feel, he is expecting that. We are not going to needlessly upset him, but we must know the answers to our questions as his mates and as his Dominants.”

Yes. I could not do proper caretaking without sufficient information.

“I am going to adjust our schedules after this meeting.” Quietly and discreetly. “Then we will be able to go back to my quarters without issue.”

More laughter kinds of emotions came through our bond. “The humans call that hacking.”

I performed the huff to entertain him. “The humans would be wrong. I am being helpful.”

I may not know the spell for making bathtub blocks, but I was highly knowledgeable on topics such as device management. Mostly because they only needed low-level spells to alter it. That did not matter at the moment, though.

“He’s very excited.” Raxius sent soothing happiness through the bond, and based on the way Shiloh relaxed his stance and aimed a smile at his Master, Shiloh got the emotion as well. It pleased Raxius and caused him to project calm. “He likes the stories.”

“But he has been careful about what he has sent through the bond and even though ours is still new, I do not like how tight he has made it.” I hadn’t realized how much it had grown until he felt the need to lower it. “Am I reacting wrong?”

“There is no wrong with mates.” Raxius slowly shifted closer and brushed his hand over the base of my spine. “Sometimes he is going to cause us strong emotions and we will react in unexpected ways.”

I appreciated his manners but I found myself wanting a firmer touch or to be cuddled. Going back to bed to restart our day sounded like a very good idea, even though I couldn’t explain why. “I do not like unexpected reactions.”

I also did not appreciate his mental laughter.

“You are handling them very well, though.” He aimed something new and soothing through the bond, but I could not decide what it was in the moment. “You are also giving him support and being patient which I know he appreciates.”

The Earth groan would have been very appropriate as well as their pout, but I settled for a mental sigh. “I do not like being patient. Questions should be answered immediately. That is the only way to gain knowledge.”

Otherwise people hid information and made gathering it difficult.

Individuals on both sides of the gate were difficult.

“You are trying to make me react like a human and I refuse to participate in that behavior.” Raxius’ low, stern voice did not match the laughter in his head, which was distracting in confusing ways. “Behave and do not pout.”

No.

I liked pouting.

It was a highly underrated Earth behavior.

“If you can continue to behave until we can leave, that would be a behavior I could reward.” Raxius had decided to practice being a brat because he said that in quiet English before walking away. I did not even have a chance to attempt pouting at him or stomping my foot as I had seen the people of Earth do sometimes.