Being a short guy growing up had been unpleasant, to put it mildly. My older brothers and cousins (not to mention countless bullies) had teased me mercilessly about it, but eventually, I’d gotten over it. I couldn’t change the fact that I was shorter than average. Hell, I was shorter than most women. It was what it was.
Besides, when I came out, I’d quickly realized there was a benefit to being small. Some guys really liked twinks.
When we reached the edge of the forest, Zoltilvoxfyn stopped and removed a glowing blue stone—a touchstone—out of his pocket. “I best make sure they're available.”
“Good idea. I don’t want to walk in on them having sex. Been there, done that. It was awkward, to say the least, even though they didn’t see me. Still, there was a lot of skin and scales andmoaning. So much moaning. I didnotenjoy that. I wish I could burn it from my brain, you know?”
The slightest smile curled at the corner of his lips.
Hold on just one second, he had a sense of humor. It must be buried. Of course, he didn’t know me from Adam, not that he knew an Adam being drakcol, which might be part of the problem. Unfortunately for him, he would get to know me, and I was a talker. Silence was about to become a thing of the past. I had years worth of built-up words, and he was going to get them all.
“Kalvoxrencol,” he said. After a moment, he continued, “Pest, I need to speak with your Seth.”
Zoltilvoxfyn stopped talking, and I didn’t hear anything, not that I’d expected to. I’d seen other people using touchstones on the Admiral Ven, and I never heard the other side of the conversation.
“It’s important,” he said. “I didn’t want to interrupt anything, though.”
“They were fucking, weren’t they?” I asked. “I bet they were. They do it a lot. Like all the time.” Rabbits fucked less than they did.
He choked in what sounded like an aborted laugh, but he got control of it too fast for me to know with any certainty. “I’ll be there shortly.” Zoltilvoxfyn tucked the touchstone back into his pocket. “This way.”
He gestured to the wide, arched doorway, and I bounded inside.
Chapter 5
A formal introduction.
As we wandered upstairs, I peered around, taking everything in. Once again, I was struck by the lack of typical rich people junk like artwork, statues, and useless furniture. It wasn’t only rich humans who liked excess. It had been the same pretty much everywhere I’d wandered, though there was a lot of universe that I hadn’t seen.
But people liked things. What they hoarded differed from species to species. The garmiqi hoarded the skulls of their enemies, and on the same planet another race, the kheekii, hoarded shells, pink being the most treasured. Another, the sidlis, treasured the most perfect leaf during autumn from each tree—it was like gold. Each prominently displayed or traded theitems for other valuables, some with obvious uses… others not so much.
“Where’s all the artwork?” I asked.
He peered around the empty hallway before he answered shortly, “Drakcol are not, as a whole, an artistic race.”
Zoltilvoxfyn stopped in front of a wooden door enhanced with a carving of a tree—the first sort of artistic thing I’d seen in the palace. He palmed a panel glowing with blue light the same shade as NAID and waited. A moment later, the door popped open, and Kalvoxrencol stood in front of us. His long silvery-blue hair hung around his muscular frame, and his amethyst eyes focused on Zoltilvoxfyn.
While they were different colors, Kalvoxrencol steel-blue with purple and bright blue accents around his scales, they were obviously related. They shared the same long noses, full lips, and wide foreheads.
Kalvoxrencol held the door open. “Come in.”
I slipped inside, passing through Kalvoxrencol, who shivered in response, his wings rustling on his back before tightening to the point they were invisible. Seth sat on the long backless couch in their apartment, a book in his hand and a black cat on his lap.
I could stare at him forever. Seth wasn’t particularly handsome. Like if you looked up average in the dictionary, a picture of Seth would be right there. But he was so human. The first one I’d seen in years. I loved his round face, deep brown eyes, and soft brown hair. He was husky with a paunch, and he had broad shoulders and wide hands.
Seth smiled shyly at Zoltilvoxfyn as he clutched the book, making it shake. I immediately rushed over to pat his shoulder, even though he didn’t know I was here. “Don’t worry. I won’t let him be mean to you,” I said, shooting Zoltilvoxfyn a look. He raised an eyebrow in response.
It hadn’t taken me long to figure out Seth had anxiety, and I wanted to protect him, though he didn’t truly need it. Seth didn’t hear my words or react, which oddly poked at me. I longed to be able to talk to him, hug him, and hang out.
Kalvoxrencol settled next to Seth, draping an arm over his shoulders. “What’s going on?”
Smoothly, Zoltilvoxfyn sank onto one of the stools facing the couch, his tail flicking faster than normal. “I wish to speak to Seth.”
Kalvoxrencol grinned like he couldn’t imagine anyonenotwanting to speak to Seth, which was fair. I wanted to. Who wouldn’t? Seth, on the other hand, paled, dropping the book to the couch and fisting his hands in his hoodie pockets. The black cat on his lap started to purr, but she kept glaring at Zoltilvoxfyn.
“Why?” Seth asked in a strained voice.
“Be nice,” I told Zoltilvoxfyn, who flicked his tail at me but otherwise didn’t react. It had to have taken years of practice not to respond to the random dead people who talked to him. I would’ve been hella bad at it. I would’ve jumped at every noise and chatted with ghosts all the time. Hello, padded cell. Room for one.
