“Not always for ill,” he assures me, and he cracks a smile.
For the first time, I feel a bit better in his presence, and I offer him a tentative smile. I would love to put all of the animosity behind us.
“I’ll always have you to thank,” he continues. “I don’t know if you know this, but when they cleared out Thistle’s things, it became obvious that he was going to pin the murders on me.”
I wince. “He said something that made me suspect that. If I had gone with him… yes, I think he would’ve.”
“My entire life would’ve been ruined because I trusted the wrong fairy. That will not happen again. Friends are important, but you have to truly get to know a person, and if you’re first memories are getting high on fairy dust—”
“Fairy dust had its time in our lives, and now, that’s over and done with,” Bay says.
“Yes.” Cosmo fiddles with the collar of his shirt. “It’s too hot.”
Bay gives him the once-over. “You’re just not used to wearing a shirt.”
“Why should I cover up this delicious bod? That’s the only crime happening on campus this very moment.”
I cover my mouth to smother a giggle. Cosmo is more than a little full of himself.
He winks at me. “You want to see my abs? Swing by our hut later. Maybe we can dance some.”
“In your dreams.”
Cosmo grins. “If you’re in my dreams, it’s gonna be wet.”
“Ew.”
Bay just gives me a teasing smile and lifts her eyebrows. I shoot daggers at her, not wanting her to mention the dream I just had. Luckily, she just slaps Cosmo.
“You’re a guard now. Act like it.”
“Why can’t I guard a heart or two?” he drawls.
“More like the pussies are going to be what’s guarded,” Bracken jokes.
“Need to investigate them thoroughly. Make sure they aren’t haunted or anything.”
Bay rolls her eyes. “And here I thought you’re being accepted for the position of guards meant you two had matured.”
“You’re sorely mistaken, but I can make you sore in other ways.” Cosmo winks.
"Does everything have to be a sexual innuendo with you?" I ask. "Seriously, how did you get through the interview process?"
Bracken laughs. “We interviewed together, and we had a code. If I tapped my fingers against my thigh twice, Cosmo had to keep his mouth shut.”
“Is that true?” Bay grins. “I would double tap all the time.”
“I’d tap you both,” Cosmo says.
Bay and I exchange a look and burst out laughing.
“Not even in your dreams,” she says.
“Sorry. That’s just not happening.”
Cosmo just smiles that much wider. “It’s all right. I know you’re both worried that after you have me and have an orgasm that will send you through the cosmos, you’ll be ruined for all other men. I don’t blame you. It’s a rather legit concern.”
Bay and I just laugh and laugh. Bracken does too. Cosmo is the only one unamused.
“You should know that I’m a very patient lover,” he protests. “Making sure my partner comes is more important than my orgasm.”
“Sure it is,” Bay says.
“You’re welcome to try to see if I’m lying.” He winks. “Remember. I can’t lie.”
He salutes us and takes off.
Bracken clears his throat and shakes his head. “He can’t lie. I better get after him. We’re on probation. We have a month to prove ourselves before the jobs are completely ours, and I will not have him fucking this up for me.”
Bay and I wave, and then she turns to me.
“Cosmo might be a good lover after all. Or at least a good lay. Want to gain some experience before you pick between your two lover fairies?”
“I don’t think so!”
She laughs. “Oh, Rosemary. Loosen your wings a bit.”
“I’m not going to just open my legs for anyone.”
“You could do worse than Cosmo.”
“Have you two ever…”
“Fooled around? Yes. Gone all the way? No. I almost wish I had now.”
"See if he'll join you and Zoth." My stomach twists because of my suggesting that.
“No. Zoth needs my full attention.”
Bay grins, and we fly back toward the cottage. As much as I want to know why Zoth requires her full attention, I also don’t want to know. Sometimes, I think it’s for the best that Bay keeps things from me. I don’t always want to know what’s going on in her dark mind.
Chapter 9
Illumination is my first class of the day, and I can't wait for it to start. I'm out of my wings excited. I can't say why, but I've always just known that Illumination is the class for me.
As soon as I enter the room, I zoom over to the front row and claim the seat in the middle. The professor is already here. At least I assume the very young-looking fairy hovering above the desk is the professor. Reaching halfway down her back, her deep red hair fades to a light blond on her tips. Her wings are a bluish translucent color, her eyes a deep brown. Her clothes are almost more like a veil, all greens, blues, and purple. That's how the fairies in the court dress, as if they're more ethereal than the rest of us. It's a bit insulting, if you ask me, how the courts put on airs, and that's how all of the fairies who attend here feel. We're free fairies, but that won't always be the case if we continue to have crime here. The academy could be shut down, or the fairy courts go to war to decide which should hold dominion over here. My parents specifically live nearby because this entire region is free of the court's influence.
Her attire, though, has me wondering if we have a courtly fairy spy in our midst. I narrow my eyes, watching her closely, and she meets my gaze and gives me a pursed smile.
She says not a word until everyone has arrived. “Greetings. I am Professor Luna, your instructor for Illumination. This class will help you all greatly. At least, that is my hope. You see, illumination is about opening the
