He stepped out of shadow and into the entry room at home, and promptly sagged back against the closed door, shutting his eyes against the dim interior of the kitchen and letting the shadows have their grumble.

You didn't even last four days! Araski snorted from a shadow up above the door.

I wouldn't have lasted even that long, if I'd had my way, Tiger rumbled from deep inside.

I have never met such an imbecile in my life, Genner sniffed from somewhere in the gloomy kitchen, for once not speaking of his host.

I have-- that idiot they had trying to teach us the first day! Flash cackled from the shadow he cast on the wall, from the nearest glass panel.

"What does it say about a magic class, when the only magic you use is to get away?" Cacopheny muttered, to himself, and knocked his head back against the door with frustration. "And shut up," he added absently to the rest.

They, of course, did no such thing, and continued making their comments from random places as often as between his own ears. He forced himself to ignore them, heaving himself back onto his feet and pushing his hair back out of his face. You should cut that one of these days, you know, Tek commented helpfully.

"Whatever," he half-answered, and started for his room. The house would be empty, he knew. Sentio, Chario, and Kenjista would all be at school, and Akija, in light of an empty house and faced with a morning of boredom, would most likely be at her family's.

I can't believe that bastard, Tiger was hissing under his non-existent breath. "Do this, do that, don't look at me like that!" I wanted to rip him open, if he looked down his nose at me one more time....

"He wasn't looking at you," Cacopheny wearily reminded him, pausing in the doorway to the living room to note that someone had left a fire burning-- recently, too-- in the fireplace.

And left a quilt on the floor in front of it, too.

With Akija in it.

Oh.

Guess the house wasn't empty, after all!

Ignoring the nameless one's cackle, Cacopheny blinked at Akija as she turned her head enough that it was facing him, lit by an immediate smile, but also by curiosity and a little surprise. The expression was inviting enough that he changed direction, approaching her rather than his bedroom door.

"Yer back early..." she began, voice as lethargic as the rest of her looked, "or did I fall asleep after all?"

For an instant, he was confused. "Fall a-- oh." He forced himself back into the "correct" language, dropping down beside her with an audible thump on the carpet. "No... I left earrrrly."

Without losing any of the quilt from around her, Akija managed to scoot up just enough to lean her head back onto his leg, like a pillow, and look up at him from there. He froze for a moment.

Oh, come on. Loosen up.

She's not gonna hurtcha, or anything.

"How come?"

Cacopheny, busy trying to figure out what to do with Akija with her head practically in his lap-- tentatively putting his fingers on her hair, to start-- let one of the "safer" ones answer for him. "Because that 'master-mage Tenacin' is an arrogant, pompous fool, who has no concept at all of what he is speaking," Genner's disdainful tones sniffed out of his mouth.

Does she know that word, 'pompous'?

Don't think so....

Cacopheny shook his head a little, taking over the conversation again. "Errr. ... Tid you get ssat? Gzenner ssinks he is arrrrogant-- vitch he iss-- ant stupid-- vitch he probably iss not."

Well, stupid or not, he does not know anything about what he is trying to teach!

"But at any rrrrate. I to not like him, ant he obfiously toes not like me."

Even with Akija so close and comfortable-looking-- with his hand now resting over her scruffy hair, and somehow staying relaxed there!-- he still couldn't keep much of his annoyance or frustration out of his voice. He had made a point not to talk about his magic lessons so far-- he'd decided to at least try them for a while, and not complain unless things got too difficult. Apparently, they'd gotten that far already....

Akija, at least, looked sympathetic. "That sucks. I'd'a played hooky in the face of that, too." Though "hooky" was not a word Aedelian Landwerlen had given him, living with Akija had long since taught him what it meant. He smiled a bit at her, running his claws through her hair, like she often did to him. She blinked at him, but then shut her eyes and went contentedly limp. Apparently she liked it. Well, that was something, at least.

"You probably vood," he agreed, then sighed. "But how am I ssssssuppos'd to learn magzic if I cannot stant my teacher? I sssink I coult learn better from ssem, ssan him," he grumbled, indicating his own head, and the shadows, with his free hand.

Of course you could!

Genner here knows everything, right?

And we'd be oh so glad to teach you, too.

Oh so glad.

"And ssat. Is not sayingk mutch."

"You told Aloia it isn't workin' out?" she asked with a little chuckle, turning onto her side again so that her cheek rested on his leg, instead of the back of her head. He continued claw-combing her hair gently, pleased to do something she seemed to like, for once. The dueling emotions of continued annoyance and growing contentment made themselves known through Genner and Araski bickering, trying and failing to drown out Tiger's purring. It wasn't as if having two conflicting emotions at the same time was unusual for him, after all.

"There's gotta be someone else who kin teach ya, then," Akija continued.

"I am alrrrready on my second teatcher," he admitted, ignoring the shadows. "Sssse firsst tid not ssseem to have known. I am half demon. Zhe vas not happy, and kvit after sse first lesson."

A snort conveyed all her negative opinion on such a teacher, and he smiled a little at the sound of her still-unfailing support. Tiger purred louder. "Nuthin' wrong with goin' fer a third... if Aloia 'spects you t'learn magic without gettin' along with yer teacher... hmph."

I highly doubt that she is going to find a single one who's both willing and knowledgeable, at the same time, Genner muttered.

Or that anyone in their right mind can stand! Araski snapped, for a split second in agreement before they went back to their muted bickering.

"I sssssuppose.... But vat if a ssird von toes not. Like me, eisser? Or I to not like him. Or her." Given he seemed just as likely to dislike anyone, as they were likely to dislike him.

There was a pause, and then Akija gave a sigh. "Yeah, good point... but still. Still not fair t'have t'deal with a teacher ya can't at least tolerate, and vice versa."

Not like you "at least tolerate" many people.

Or many people "at least tolerate" you!

Certainly not around all those damn dragons....

"Oh, duh," Akija suddenly exclaimed softly, smirking. "What about my pop? Ya like him well enough, right?"

That wasn't something Cacopheny had even considered. "Uh. Vell, yesss. Do you ssink he vood? Or could? I am not a daemon...."

"Sure he would," she smiled. "Pretty sure he could, too. The basics're the same; we just have an extra step t'go, in having t'get magic from around us, first. An' ya could prolly team up with Sentio or Chario if ya needed to, at least t'explain the whole internal magic part." She opened her eyes and turned her head just enough for him to see that one open eye was peeking back at him. "If ya think it's worth a shot, I'm happy t'ask pop about it fer ya."

Cacopheny was silent, thinking. And listening to shadows bicker, as always.

Hey, should take her up on it.

Should not!

He's probably the only one around here who'd know anything about our stuff.

Well, besides another demon.

I still think we'd do a better job teaching you....

Don't do it, it's a trick!

I wonder if he'll teach me how to make fireballs!

He won't be teaching you anything, Almadir.

It's a trick, it's a trick!

Shut up, stupid, it is not.

It iiiiiiis!

You're just saying that to be contrary.

... so?

It seemed almost like the perfect solution. It was certainly better than going back to someone who hardly understood him when he spoke, no matter how carefully he tried to form the words, whose shadow muttered obscenities and resentment at him, and who glared suspiciously at him with every other word. It even seemed better than giving up entirely-- even if he wasn't afraid of disappointing everyone, now that he'd made the decision, he almost wanted to find out more about this magic he'd never believed he had. The little residual nervousness he had about Deiv wasn't even much of a deterrent, especially since even the shadows couldn't agree on whether it was warranted.

What if he hurts us?

Don't be stupid, he's never hurt anyone before.

He hurt Her.

That doesn't count.

It should.

What if he was just waiting until he had us in the right place? Huh? Under his power?

Shut up, you don't know what you're talking about.

And, really, it was hard to be nervous or annoyed or unhappy, with Akija using his lap for a pillow, the fingers of one hand half-snuck between her cheek and his leg, with a soft, whispery purr filling the outward silence.

I'm just a sucker for that purr.

Speaking of Akija... better say something before she started to wonder-- and before someone actually succeeded in talking him out of it.

Pah, we wouldn't.

I'd certainly try.

"Rrrrrrr. All rrright."

"Okay," she smiled, purr briefly pausing so she could speak. "I'll hike out an' ask him later. Today... but later. Maybe the storm'll go away if I lie here long enough...."

Well, he wasn't going to protest, if she didn't want to move. "Maybe," he agreed quietly, and resumed running his fingers through her hair. He found himself, however, hoping that it didn't.

And Tiger continued to purr.