Page 10 of Fatality on the Field

I arch a brow, wondering if he interrupted something or just cock-blocked it since Iggy and Slade are in there. But I don’t say that out loud; I think they need time to figure out how they’re moving forward without extra scrutiny before we get home. Once we’re back, the family can all give them hell in a handbasket all we want in private. “Okay. I didn’t realize he was missing until Salem declared the marching orders for the rest of the clean-up.”

Kat winks at me, then ducks her head as she goes back to assisting Salem at the stove. They have a very good rhythm with her taking the prepared items and handing them to him to cook on the griddle one by one. It’s obvious how comfortable they are, even in that close proximity, and it makes me dart my gaze to Rogue. She grins, nodding a little before she jerks her chin at the shark and bobs her eyebrows.

I guess she thinks our friend will go to ‘the really big show’ sooner rather than later, so I hope the panda and the crow can help her be ready for it. Otherwise, the kid is going to be hobbling for a week at the least; that damn shark is fucking enormous, even to me.

Then again, we’re both in line for dragons eventually, and that… is an experience unto itself—I should know.

six

KASPAR

Ipeeled off from the group carrying the damn food, because I was hoping to get cleaned up before I had to be near food.

My quirks aren’t well known yet to my entire ‘family’, much less to the others we’re now allied with. However, when I’m dining in the more human-style, I prefer not to be dirty simply because the Fae I’ve lived with most of my existence also have that preference. Liam would have done so as well if he had not showered already, and it strikes me as a bit odd that he did so well before the new demon girl ordered everyone around.

That’s something I might have bristled at a bit if we weren’t guests and Morgana didn’t look tickled as hell to witness it—she’s got a real soft spot for the chick.

Luckily, when I entered the dorm bathroom, I discovered that it’s neat as a pin—unexpected for college lavatories, but somewhat more in line with being the royal floor—and found Ignatius and Slade in stalls. There was an odd scent that I could only catch the tiniest whiffs of, and I think it was because Liam’s magic is still floating in the air. Most shifters wouldn’t be able to sense it, but I have been around the prince’s powers since we were much younger. I’m attuned to him in ways others are not, as it’s my fucking job.

“Hello? Who is that?”

I snort, shaking my head. The humanoid magic users are good at many things, but subtlety is not one of them. “Kaspar. We returned from the mission to fetch goods, and I’m in here getting cleaned up before I’m assigned anything to do with breakfast. Carry on.”

Slade hums softly, but there’s no power behind it, and says, “Their facilities are extremely nice for a college. I suspect the lower floors are not so well maintained.”

Duh. The royal caliphate likely has someone bribed to keep their space sparkling and stocked.

But the kid is too nice to body slam for his naivete, so I simply reply, “Yes, it appears Prince Jasper has ensured they don’t have the kind of messes the dorms at State University probably have hiding in them.”

“It depends on the dorm and who is in charge of it,” Iggy calls. “The magical dorms are blessed with spells and shit that help keep them pristine. If students fuck them up by practicing or whatever, they’re bound by duty to do the clean-up themselves.”

I nod although he can’t see it as I pick a stall further down the row. “Makes sense. I’d assume the human ones are shitty, and probably various shifter floors. Some of the lesser shifters are known for being pigs… metaphorically more than physically.”

“Iggy and I only lived in the dorms for a semester or two before he got pissed. He got the apartment to make sure we had a place that was safe and clean.” I can almost hear the siren frowning before he adds, “Mostly because the dorms are full of supes from all over and we both have families that draw ire. You know?”

I know, but I doubt that’s why the snooty professor did it; he wanted away from the rabble.

“I also wanted privacy and not to be in the middle of the chaos and bullshit.”

Arching a brow as I hang up the towel I brought from a fresh pile on the way in, I chuckle. “Nice of you to admit that, professor. I was sure you would scoff and say you were only worried about safety, not the status of the students surrounding you.”

Iggy huffs, Slade laughs, and I smile to myself as I strip off the borrowed clothes. I hope they’re going to provide more today, or this won’t feel like a true wash-up after a while. Once he’s ready, the stodgy academic grumbles, “I didn’t like being among the younger students, nor the ones who I was not sure we could trust with the things either of us brought along for our education. Slade has expensive and antique instruments, while I have family heirlooms used in various practices. It felt stupid to risk those things being stolen for pranks or nefarious reasons.”

Yep, definitely worried about the rabble. At least he’s admitting it.

“You’re almost as stuck-up as a dragon,” I muse as I adjust the temperature of the water to scalding. “I can’t say I dislike it. It makes me feel less elitist when you open your mouth to shame things.”

“I’m not shaming anything!”

The siren lets out a musical laugh this time, and I can feel the adoration in it. “Oh, Iggy, you definitely are and you frequently do. It’s just part of your grumpy charm; people who know you realize that it’s not serious.”

“Morgana might not,” I say as I step into the hot-as-the-Hell-we’re-in water and sigh in relief. “She’s very particular about equity and inclusion of all kinds, Ignatius. You may want to work on the conditioning your family put you through as you grew up. I don’t believe that woman is going to put up with rich idiot shit in the slightest, especially with young Lucas shining his acceptance of everyone so brightly.”

That’s something I’ve been mulling over as well, so I’m not being a hypocrite.

“Seems like something you’d want to take to heart, too, dragon.” The professor’s jab is edged with a humor that isn’t usually in his tone, and I think he’s actually trying to have fun with someone who isn’t his favorite minor obsession.

So I smirk to myself as the water makes my dragon purr internally in happiness—yes, dragons that are not fire drakes enjoy hot shit, too—and think about how to respond without fucking this moment up. “I see you’re taking the many mini-lectures we’ve received alongside the cranky demon prince seriously as well, mage. Having shade thrown at you by kids is frustrating, isn’t it?”