“You really should get to class,” Ava suggested gently. “You’re going to be late.”
I left feeling like Ava and I were actually getting somewhere. We may not be any closer to the keys, but we were on track to solve one problem, at least.
Oberi led me to Supernatural Government, where I slid into a seat beside Eddie. Chatter buzzed around the room, though I ignored it.
“Something’s bothering you,” Eddie stated. It wasn’t a question.
I slumped in my chair. “Ava-Marie and I just had a… weird encounter.”
“Good or bad?” he asked.
“Both?” I answered.
“Eh, women,” Eddie said nonchalantly. “What are you gonna do?”
“Fuck ‘em.” A guy who’d overheard us laughed as he passed by on his way to his desk.
My hands curled into fists, and I shot out of my chair. “You think that’s funny? I’ll fuckyouup.”
“Oh, yeah? You wanna go?” he challenged.
Eddie put a hand on my arm and tugged. “He’s not worth it.”
Oberi growled. Just then, Professor Woolly called the class to attention. “Calm down, everyone. Mister Wahkin, Mister Perry, I suggest you take a seat, or I’ll have the guards escort you out of my classroom.”
“We’ll finish this another time,” the guy growled. “And I’m not gonna tell you again, old man. The name’s Bones.”
Bones. I hadn’t had the pleasure of fighting him in the ring yet, but I’d heard his stats were pretty amazing. He was a warlock with one hell of a temper. Rumor had it, he’d killed his first opponent when he’d joined the fight club last semester. I hadn’t seen the fight, thank the ancestors.
“Ah, yes, Mister Bones,” Professor Woolly said coolly. “Have a seat and pay attention.”
Professor Woolly was kind and gentle at times, but he knew how to keep the class in order. He didn’t take anyone’s shit. He paced at the front of the room and began his lecture. “Based on last week’s essay questions, I see that we need to review the structure of the Supernatural Union. For some reason, quite a few of you thought thatgodswere members of the Supernatural Union. I believe one of you even listed yourcatas a representative. A few people mentioned angelic Deacons and the Arcanean king.”
“Yeah, and you marked the answer wrong, too,” someone at the front of the room said, sounding upset.
“That’s because it is,” Professor Woolly stated bluntly. “The United Supernatural Union is a level of government that deals with interracial treaties and laws. These laws are put in place and enforced by a council, which is made up of a representative from each of the major supernatural races. Your answers to the essay questions suggested most of you believed that chiefs and monarchs serve on this council, but that’s simply not the case.”
Pages rustled as Professor Woolly flipped through a book. “If you’ll turn to page fifty-six in your textbook, you’ll see a diagram of the hierarchy in supernatural government, with the United Supernatural Union at the top. Chiefs, priestesses, monarchs, and the like are at the top oftheirgovernment, as you can see in the chart, but their power lies only among their own people. They, of course, do have some influence as advisors to the Union representatives, but since participating on the Union council is a full-time job, no chief or king could run the Unionandtheir own race.”
“So who runs it, then?” a girl asked.
“That’s exactly what I wanted to discuss,” Professor Woolly said. “Each member of the Union council is appointed by his or her people. In some cultures, the decision is left up to the highest reigning monarch, such as in fae culture. Others, like the Elementai, vote on their representative. There is, of course, a process to undergo— background checks and the like— before a new representative can join the Union council. It’s important for you to know who your representatives are.”
Professor Woolly began listing out all the representatives. “Remember these names, as you’ll be tested on them: Amber Lee, elemental; Onyx Foxe, witch; Theodore Antov, fae; Lazarus Gray, angel; Vilas Blackwell, vampire; Merida Sharpe, mermaid; and Orion Themis, Astromancer.”
I noticed he hadn’t mentioned an Elf representative. I bet they weren’t even thinking of having one on the council. That was shitty and unfair.
“We’ll be diving into their background and qualifications over the next two class periods. We’ll cover representatives for the elementals, witches, and fae today, and follow up with the others on—” Professor Woolly’s lecture stopped dead when heavy footsteps came into the room. It sounded like the heavy boots of a guard. I instantly froze, sensing something wasn’t right.
“May I help you?” Professor Woolly asked.
The guard began listing off names. “Brianna Thomas, Cain Flores, and Eugene Perry— you’re all to come with me to the infirmary.”
“Ha! Eugene,” someone cracked.
“The name’sBones!” he snapped. “Call me that again, and I’ll rip your head off.”
“What’s wrong?” the girl sitting ahead of me squeaked. Her fae wings fluttered.
