Page 37 of Demon of Dreams

“Otherwise known as a demon.” Felix shrugged. “The difference is one of vocabulary, not semantics.”

“Fallen angel?” I blinked. “Does that mean God is real? Wait, do you have wings?”

“Not anymore,” he said. “And your guess is as good as mine on the God thing.”

I looked at Ash. “I don’t mean to sound rude, but…whatisa changeling?”

“It’s okay, you can be rude. I usually am. A changeling is just a fancy word for ‘faerie that nobody wanted.’ Which is kind of fitting, when you think about it. First my family didn’t want me, and now I’m at Vesperwood, which doesn’t want me either.”

“It’s not that bad,” Felix said.

“Oh come on, you know they don’t want us here,” Ash retorted.

“They?” I asked, still trying to wrap my head around these revelations.

“You know. The pure, pristine, beautiful, and good witches who are just trying to protect their homeland and definitely aren’t actively persecuting paranormal beings who are minding their own business. Beautiful and goodhumanwitches, who are endowed with their own magical abilities but are totally, completely, and absolutelynothing likeus dirty supernatural creatures. Beautiful and good humans who for sure don’t want to round us up and kill us or anything.”

Felix sighed. “Ash is exaggerating a bit.”

“Did they or did they not hunt the Trieste Vampire Collective into extinction in 1896? Did they or did they not force the entire shifter world into hiding after 1947? Did they or did they not issue the Proclamation of Proactive Defense, essentially putting a price on the head of any paranormal being found within the territories of the United States?”

“That’s been rescinded.”

“Only partially.”

Felix sighed again. I got the feeling he did that a lot. “You have to remember the environment from which each of those movements arose.”

“Yeah, an environment of witches being terrified of anything they don’t understand,” Ash said, his voice bitter. “Theymurderedan entire family of selkies on Vesperwood’s own grounds in 1961, you know.”

“I thoughtIwas the Historian.”

“Well, then do a better job of it! Stop apologizing for witches just because you want them to be nice to you.”

“I’m not apologizing for anyone. I’m just saying it’s more nuanced than most people—witchesorparanormal beings—want to admit. No one’s hands are clean.” Felix turned to me. “Sorry, you didn’t ask for a dissertation on the magical history of the past four centuries.”

“No, but I’m starting to think I might need one,” I said, my stomach tight. “I thought Vesperwood was supposed to be a safe place for people like—like us.”

I hadn’t told Ash or Felix what I was, and I wasn’t sure why. Maybe I just needed more time to get used to the idea of being an incubus myself, before I shared it with anyone else. Iwasbeginning to feel a bit guilty about referring to the tenelkiri as monsters, though. I hadn’t realized it was such a touchy subject.

“Well, of course it’s safe foryou,” Ash said, at the same time that Felix said, “Vesperwoodissafe. Now, at least.”

“Mostly,” Ash added darkly.

“Itis.” Felix looked at me. “TheCliff’s Notesversion is that Earth is supposed to be a neutral zone, a world in which everyone—witches, paranormal beings, and mundane humans—can exist in peace. But a long time ago, various supernatural beings broke that peace and attempted to oppress humanity and make Earth their own dominion. Witches, naturally, weren’t big fans of that, so they founded schools like Vesperwood Academy to learn how to protect their lives, and those of mundane humans, and to keep Earth a free and peaceful place.”

“That sounds reasonable.”

“That’s what theywantyou to think,” Ash said.

Felix gave him a pointed look. “Both sides have committed excesses in the name of defense, and neither side is as much a monolith as anyone would like to believe. There have always been paranormal beings who fought alongside witches, and there have always been witches with dreams of dominion and enslavement. These days, Vesperwood Academy admits any student who wants to further their understanding of magic and the paranormal, as long as they’re committed to maintaining peace and freedom amongallbeings on Earth.”

“Yeah, but only because Dean Mansur instituted that rule when he reopened the academy,” Ash said stubbornly. “If he ever left Vesperwood, how long do you think that rule would stay in place?”

“It’s pointless to argue about hypotheticals.” Felix glanced at his watch. “Besides, we’re going to be late to class if we stand around any longer. First Hour’s about to start.”

They continued down the corridor, and I followed in silence. This was a lot to take in. I was having enough trouble getting used to being an incubus. I hadn’t reckoned on prejudice from other students too.

We got to our first class with a minute to spare, and Ash hurried to the back of the room. He pointed to an empty desk beside him, giving me a questioning look. I turned to Felix, who was slipping into a desk in the front row.

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