Page 27 of Change

“Here’s some unsolicited advice: go to the doctor. You should not be in this much pain. Have you been around Mr. Ducharme at all since your cycle began?”

“No!” I was close to panic at the sudden turn in subject. “Why?”

“He’s yourmate, Bianca.” Ms. Protean closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. “Even if youwantedto hide this from him, he’s going to be able to tell. Nobody knows how a mated dragon will act, but I can’t imagine he’d let you pretend this away. Besides, you also have Mr. Montrone and Mr. Kohler to contend with, and if I recall, they canfeelyou. It’s no wonder Mr. Abernathy is concerned. But for your own sake, be proactive and go to the doctor—this is not something you should ignore.”

“It’s fine!” I snatched the pills and put them in my mouth before guzzling the water. I hadn’t even considered that they’d bephysicallyin-tune with my bodily functions. Now I really had to be careful, because this could be bad. There was no way to hide from the others for the next two to three days.

I could only hope my luck would hold out and it wouldn’t beterriblethis time. Stay hydrated, and definitely no puking and fainting.

“No one has reason to be worried,” I added. Especially not once the pills kick in.

I, most definitely, was not worried.

Ms. Protean remained silent for a moment, and I could see I hadn’t convinced her of anything.

Thankfully, though, she let the subject drop. Ms. Protean leaned forward in her seat, locking her fingers under her chin. “Have you given my offer much thought?”

“Thought?” I asked even though I knew what she meant. This was the reason I assumed she called me here to begin with.

“I presumed already, and obviously introduced you as such too. If you’re going to be staying on campus even though you’re on leave, you might as well earn some points for an independent study program with me. After all, you only seemed to be a short distance away when I needed you.” She inclined her head toward the door. Her point was obvious.

I blushed. “How did you know where to find me?”

“I have my ways.”

“Where’s Cécile?” The white Persian’s absence hadn’t gone entirely unnoticed.

The older woman pulled back a fraction, surprise flicking across her face before it was masked over with cautious indifference. “Why?”

“I don’t think she’s a cat.” In fact, I was sure she wasn’t. “Is that how you knew where I was?”

She relaxed more with every word. “Yes.”

I knew it! “What is she?”

“A cat.” At my unmoved stare she briefly rolled her eyes. “She’s a shikigami.”

“A shikigami!” But how? I pressed my hands into my thighs—that wasn’t what I expected. With the way the creature’s eyes roamed over me, I was expecting some sort of demon—

Wait, Kasai was a shikigami and he was basically a demon too. So was Kiania. I hadn’t been wrong at all.

“How come everyone sees her?” Shikigami were supposed to be spirits. “She looks real. Where is the onmyoji?”

“The onmyoji who summoned Cécile belongs to my quintet, his name is Lee Sao,” she answered. “Cécile mostly stays with me these days. She can pass as a regular cat and also goes to Lee when he needs her. I am not at liberty to disclose how at the moment.”

Aw. Why couldn’t she tell menow?

“Does Damen know?”

“Mr. Abernathy…” Ms. Protean said slowly, pausing and glancing upward as she appeared to choose her next words carefully. “Sometimes Mr. Abernathy doesn’t see what’s right in front of him—unlike you. Or if he does notice, he chooses not to comment on it. But this is good, it shows you’ve been paying attention. Does this mean you’re accepting the position?” She seemed indifferent, but I could hear the underlying eagerness in her voice. “There’s no pay, of course.” Her features crumbled a bit and she sounded apologetic. “Not at least until you’re a senior, but this experience can count toward credits and—”

“Yes!” I clapped my hands together, unable to hold back my excited squeal.

“Yes, what?” A weary voice cut into our conversation.

I turned in my seat, pressing myself against the back of the chair as Bryce, who stood in the doorway, studied me. “What have you been up to that has Uncle Gregory in a mood?”

Ms. Protean scoffed, “Whenisn’the in a mood?”