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Melissa swings around and points her finger back at Wraith. “He pulled that fucking chain one too many times.”

“You kept taking off! I explicitly told you to keep your feet on the ground. It is not a difficult command.”

“I can’t not fly. I didn’t not fly. Every time I try to do anything whatsoever, he yanks me down and tells me I’m doing it wrong. He won’t even let me try.” Melissa ignores him and talks to me instead, her eyes wide, her tone pleading.

“She’s making no progress whatsoever,” Wraith says. “She doesn’t have the fine skills in her wings to make the small adjustments needed for safe and stable flight. I think they should be removed. Again.”

“I think you should be removed,” Melissa mutters under her breath.

“She’s disrespectful, and she’s physically weak. She is strong only in her ability to talk nonsense, to disrupt the class, and to drop feathers everywhere.”

“The two of you need to stop,” I say firmly.

“Your highness…” Wraith begins. I do not let him continue.

“I want you to teach my human mate to fly. She has good wings and perhaps she does not have all the control she needs just yet, but she will develop it over time. And you, Melissa, are going to have to show your instructor respect and try your best. I don’t know how that chain got unmoored, but…”

“She ripped it out,” he says.

“She ripped it out? That’s an incredible feat of strength. Very exciting.”

Wraith’s expression contorts into a mask of annoyance. “I do not think she is suitable for my class.”

He thinks he has a choice. I am not entirely sure why an air of rebellion has been sweeping through the Golden Keep of late, but I have no intention of allowing it.

“Instructor Wraith, I want her competent in the use of those wings. I need her to be able to fly, or at the very least, retract them neatly. They can fold down more than they do, I am sure of it. Wings don’t need to be all over the show.”

Wraith reels himself back in.

“Yes, sire. I think all things are possible, but I do need a willing student.”

“I’m not a willing student,” Melissa says.

“That is literally the only thing she and I can agree on,” Wraith adds.

“I could teach her.”

Nox is leaning over the railing of the stairs, having apparently heard every bit of the shouting match. I assume most of the keep has heard this dissent echoing around and through the walls.

“Yes. Let Equinox teach me!” Melissa immediately grips that suggestion like the lifeline it isn’t.

“No,” I shake my head firmly. “I want you to have proper instruction. If I wanted you taught by a reckless amateur, I’d teach you myself.”

Above us, Nox snorts. Melissa pouts. The only one who seems pleased by this interaction is Instructor Wraith, who is absolutely not suited to her temperament. He’s the best teacher I can think of, but Melissa likes to resist education. I have notgiven him an easy task, but that does not mean I intend to relieve him of it.

“Come here,” I say to my mate, taking her by the arm, and leading her far enough away from the others that they will not hear us. “My love, your lessons with Instructor Wraith are not just about learning to fly. Flying is important and you need to learn how to do it without killing yourself, but being in his class is also an opportunity to fit in. The whelps you are with are your cohorts in a sense. Being around them will teach you much about our culture. You could make friends, and begin to feel more settled here. That is why I will not be teaching you myself, and why Equinox will not be teaching you. You will attend classes with Instructor Wraith.”

“I already have a best friend. She’s back in the human world and she probably thinks I’ve ghosted her to shack up with you.”

“Actually, her father has reached out for us to have dinner together. So yes, I think your absence has been noted,” I tell her.

Her eyes light up. “Really? I get to see Tempest again?”

“You have wings.”

“We can hide them. Or we can make it a themed dinner party. Heaven and hell. I can put a halo on and call myself an angel. Can we do that?”

“I will try to arrange something, assuming you do not cause so much trouble here we are unable to go. You will need to learn to control your wings; that’s the bare minimum.”