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I gathered my courage before I knocked on Thea’s door again. After being convinced about my commitment, she’d agreed to tutor me privately. Every week, two hours on a Wednesday afternoon.
To keep away from curious eyes, we agreed to continue at her flat. Valkyries hardly came into Triad territory, let alone in their dorm. It was highly unlikely that anyone would recognise me.
Still, I sighed in relief when Thea opened the door and I could get out of the hallway. Every second longer was an opportunity to be discovered.
“Hey,” she signed.
“Hi.” I hadn’t tipped my shoes off on the doormat before something big nudged against the small of my back.
A low purr rumbled through the room and Bàs demanded my attention unashamedly.
I patted the big catzel’s head, enjoying the feel of the smooth fur through my fingers. He was massive, but he behaved just like any feline I knew. Playful, adoring, and demanding.
“Prrrr?”
“I’m glad to see you too.” I scratched him behind his ears, earning another loud purr. He was one happy beast and why wouldn’t he be? One would have to be a fool to refuse to give him exactly what he wanted. Just how people used to treat me, only without getting much in return.
At least Bàs purred and stared happily at me with his big, vacant eyes.
Thea tapped my shoulder, asking for my attention. “Lesson?”
“Yes, of course.” I ventured further into her living room and picked my usual spot opposite of Thea’s. Bàs jumped on the same couch and curled against me, his head resting on my lap.
“Good catzel,” I praised, mindlessly running my hands along him. Grey would be so jealous if she knew a big catzel like him was allowed to stay at the dormitories. It was unfair that they had to stay locked up in the Barn, but nothing I could do about that.
Once I was sure Bàs was satisfied, I returned my attention to Thea. “Ready.”
“Good.” Her hands fluttered and danced like only hers could. “First. Lesson.”
“Do I need to take notes?”
“No.” She reached for the bag on the couch that I hadn’t noticed before and pulled out a couple of sheets. “For you.”
“For me?”
She nodded and made a new gesture. “A... B... C...”
“Huh?” It took me a moment. “Oh, the alphabet!”
“Yes.”
Great. I’d already been practising my fingerspelling. I’d get to show off how quickly I picked things up.
I settled into the couch, trying to keep Bàs’ head steady. He seemed to like me, but there was no guarantee he wouldn’t maul me if I woke him. In general, people and animals didn’t like being disturbed during their sleep. It made them grumpy and I didn’t think this massive animal would be any different.
“Mmppprrrrr,” he grumbled, yawning to expose an impressive set of sharp teeth.
Yes, definitely not someone to mess with.
I gestured to his head. “Are they always this big?”
My teacher snickered softly. “No.”
“Just yours?”
“No.”
She strung another sentence together, but most of the words escaped me. She had to fingerspell some of the words before I got the meaning.
“Ooh. It depends on the amount of...” I frowned. I couldn’t have heard that right. “Tails?”
“Yes. Bàs. Nine.”
I studied the sleeping beast next to me and ran my hand down his back, to the part where his tail started. There was most definitely only one.
“I don’t want to sound mean, but... I don’t see nine tails.”
A chuckle escaped Thea, one that made me feel like I missed something. Was I going blind?
She brought her hands together in a different gesture, one I learned from our Afterlife Battle game. “Bàs. In Veil. Nine.”
“Oooh. He has nine tails in the Veil?” I scratched the big cat behind his ears. “Amazing. I love animals.”
From the corners of my eyes, I saw Thea sign something, but I wasn’t paying close enough attention to catch the gestures. I shouldn’t have taken my attention off of her.
“Can you repeat that?” I asked, making sure that this time I was looking at her and only her. Her grey eyes were bright from the sun and her hands cast beautiful shadows. I still didn’t understand what she meant, but that didn’t take away from the beauty of the motion. It was like they had a life of their own.
Thea read the confusion on my face and shook her head in bemusement. She pulled one of the worksheets back and scribbled something down.
«Bàs is my best friend.»
I smiled and reached for her pen. I could’ve replied by talking, but I felt like that would break the flow. «Grey is my best friend too.»
Instead of reaching for my pen, she grabbed another from her pocket. «Grey?»
«My dusk wolf.» To aid my reply, I made a little doodle of my familiar. The little stubby legs and floppy ears weren’t exactly accurate, but I did my best. Drawing just wasn’t my strong suit.
Thea sniggered, her pen shrieking on the paper. «Beautiful.»
Most people wouldn’t dare tease me, but she wasn’t like most people. While it was foreign, it was also kind of funny. My drawing was shit and her teasing was well-meant.
I brought my own pen down again. «That’s exactly what she looks like.»
«What are these flaps?»
She drew an arrow to the back of Grey and circled the strange lumps.
«Her wings.»
She snorted. «A masterpiece.»
What a strange sound from someone that didn’t talk. Somehow, I’d have thought it would be forbidden for them to chuckle or laugh, but perhaps not. But that begged the question, why were they supposed to stay silent in the first place?
I’d asked her about it before, but she had refused to answer. Was it rude to ask her again?
I stared at the woman across me. She was a deep pool of mysteries, all hidden from those who didn’t make an effort to communicate with her. If I hadn’t taken the time to learn some sign language, I wouldn’t have known about Bàs or that she had a sense of humour.
She put the pen down and made a familiar gesture. “Coffee?”
“Yes.”
She rose from her couch in silent grace and left me sitting with Bàs. A place I was becoming rather familiar with.
***
