Page 8 of My Professor is a Demon

I closed my eyes, reaching out with that peculiar sensitivity I'd always possessed but never fully understood. The ley lines beneath us pulsed with power, but something was wrong—discordant notes in what should have been a harmonious symphony.

"It's like someone inserted a foreign object into a natural flow," I said, struggling to translate pure sensation into words. "Creating ripples that distort everything around it."

"Precisely." Dr. Katz's voice carried approval that warmed me more than it should have. "Most trained sensitives couldn't detect that subtlety without instrumentation."

"Lucky intuition," I dismissed, though his praise made me unreasonably happy.

"Not luck. Natural talent honed by dedicated study." He handed me a small device that resembled a modified cell phone. "This will help quantify what you're sensing. We need to place monitoring equipment at specific points around the quadrant."

We worked methodically in the darkness, setting up his sophisticated magical monitors at calculated intervals. Dr. Katz seemed different here, outside the classroom—more fluid in his movements, less constrained by his academic persona. Almost as if the shadows suited him better than fluorescent office lighting.

"You've done field research before," I observed as we configured the final station. "But none of your published papers mention practical applications."

"My earlier work was... less formal," he acknowledged, his hands moving with practiced efficiency over the equipment. "Before my academic career."

"And when was that exactly?" I pressed, emboldened by the darkness. "Because sometimes you reference magical theory that hasn't been taught in centuries, Professor."

He straightened, meeting my gaze directly. Something ancient and knowing flickered in his eyes, there and gone so quickly I might have imagined it.

"Perhaps your education has gaps, Miss Evers."

"Or perhaps you're not what you appear to be." I stepped closer, fearlessness overriding common sense. "Just like I'm not what I appear to be."

The admission hung between us, unexpectedly vulnerable. Before he could respond, a pulse of energy rippled through the ground beneath us—unnatural but deliberate. The monitoring equipment began emitting urgent signals, lights flashing in the darkness.

"Something's happening," I whispered, all challenging questions forgotten in the face of immediate discovery.

Dr. Katz checked the readings, alarm growing in his expression. "These are the same energy signatures that appeared before the ritual."

"You think someone's trying again? After Elowen and Rudy stopped them?"

"Not exactly the same," he clarified, studying the data. "Similar methodology but different target output. Someone is still manipulating the ley lines, but for a different purpose."

Another energy pulse shook the ground, stronger this time. I stumbled, and Dr. Katz caught me against his chest, his arms instinctively wrapping around me. The contact sent our energy signatures into immediate resonance, creating a protective field around us both as the unnatural power surged.

Through the thin fabric of his shirt, I felt the solid warmth of his chest, far more muscled than any academic had a right to be. His arms held me with effortless strength, his hands spanning my waist with room to spare. I tilted my face up to his, finding his dark eyes.

For a moment, we stood locked together. I felt something shift between us—the carefully maintained professional distance crumbling as our supernatural energies intertwined.

"Oscar," I whispered, using his first name without thinking. "What's happening to us?"

Oscar

Icouldn't answer—didn't know how to explain the impossible connection between us. Instead, I held her tighter as another shock wave rippled through the area.

This time, I felt my disguise slip further, features shifting momentarily toward my true form. Charlotte gasped, her hands coming up to frame my face as the change rippled through me.

"I knew it," she breathed, wonder rather than fear in her voice. "I knew you weren't human."

I pulled away abruptly, forcing my appearance back under control, rebuilding the walls between us. "We need to leave. Now. It's not safe."

"But the readings—the data—" she protested, still more excited than afraid despite what she'd glimpsed.

"Can be collected remotely," I insisted, gathering the core monitoring equipment. "This area is dangerous, Charlotte. More than we understood."

Something in my tone must have convinced her, because she nodded.

"I won't tell anyone," she said quietly as we headed back toward the main campus. "Whatever you are, your secret is safe with me."

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