Page 11 of Let Us Prey

“Uh, well. I don’t haveformaltraining or experience outside of the required dance electives at Shifter Secondary,” I reply, discreetly rubbing my sweaty hands on my skirt. I feel like she’s going to ask me to show her something impressive, and if Professor Sarabhai asks me to do some complicated step combo, I might flash lacy undies at the world.

As a rabbit, I have no interest in pissing this woman off enough that she shifts into a King Cobra, that’s for damned sure!

“Hmph,” she scoffs, shuffling the papers in front of her.

I frown as she wrinkles the pile of sheets I just spent thirty minutes neatly completing. The professor wouldn’t even come downstairs to speak with me until I had a tree’s worth of paperwork finished. Now she’s crumpling it like a burger wrapper. “Is there something you would like me to show you?”

“No. This is not an appropriate venue or time for a trial. You will report to Dance and Movement at the Leonidas Gym on Thursday at seven a.m. sharp for our first class. We’ll see if you measure up then.”

The hissing makes everything she says even more threatening, and I wonder if she’s stressing it on purpose. Are there any professors at this school who don’t torture their students for shits and giggles? I haven’t met one yet who hasn’t harassed me—physically or verbally. Shifter Secondary wasn’t like this at all, which makes me glad I didn’t get to attend the Apex Lower School. I don’t know if I would have survived teachers who scared the hell out of me every day during my younger years.

“O-okay. Thank you. I’ll do my best not to disappoint you,” I reply, turning to Cori and Rufus. They roll their eyes and I hold back a smile. Maybe Professor Sarabhai is less intimidating once she gets to know you. Neither of them seems overly concerned.

“I highly doubt you’ll accomplish that feat, but we shall see,” Bindi says before slinking off the stage.

“Annabella, you may proceed!”

A massive woman comes trundling out from behind the curtain like the prima in a production of Figaro. Her skin is shiny like patent leather, and her snow white hair flows down her back like a waterfall. “I amla primaof this school. My name isProfessoressaAnnabella Balena and unlike my colleague who is content to wait, for me, you willsing!”

Panic grips my chest as I look at my new friends with wild eyes. A little warning that the vocal professor prefers to walk around in her half-shifted orca form dressed like some sort of valkyrie from an opera would have been nice. This woman has a personality that could fill a canyon, and I do not feel ready for her. Rufus winks and gives me the hint of a smirk—he definitely knew she’d wig me out, but I suspect he’s not being mean. He wanted to see if I could handle it.

And maybe... prove to myself I could, too.

I appreciate his blind faith in me, but I also think he needs to pay for his little ploy. “Professoressa? I didn't prepare for an audition today, so my chords aren't fully warmed up. Would it be permissible to sing a duet with Rufus to help showcase my abilities without risking nodes?”

Her face lights up like a jolly orca giant as she makes an excited whale sound. “Bellissima! Rufus,alzati qui?1!”

Cori covers her mouth with her hand, shoulders shaking as she tries not to laugh. Rufus leaps over the two rows of seats in front of the proscenium and pulls himself up to climb on stage. He stops to whisper to the tiny raven shifter who took a seat at the baby grand upon Balena’s entrance, before walking to me with an expression full of both mischief and approval.

“Since Dolly pulled a fast one, I get to pick the song. Only fair, if you ask me,” he bares his teeth with a grin. “I hope you’re warm enough to keep up, cottontail.”

The opening bars of a familiar song start, and when he opens his mouth, I blink. I’ll be damned. Rufus can definitely sing, and he knows his theater. I didn’t expect to have to pull off Audrey to his Seymour for this song without so much as a warmup, but it doesn’t look like I have a choice. I put him on the spot, and he returned the volley, so now I have to show them what I’ve got.

Time to sparkle, Dolly.

Closing my eyes, I let the world fall away, feeling the music flow through me like blood in my veins. The harmonies and rhythm are the only things in my head as we sing through the Broadway classic ballad fromLittle Shop of Horrorstogether, and when I finish, my whole body is trembling a little. I don’t have a clue if we sounded good or not—I’ve never had a partner before—but I felt the performance in my soul.

“Perfetta!?2You little blond girl will join my program. We will make beautifulmusicathis year!” Her large hands clap together—the thunderous sound enhanced by the theater acoustics, making me wince.

“Good job,” Cori mouths at me from the audience.

Rufus sighs, dropping his mic on the piano with a bored look. “Yes, yes. We’re fabulous, teach. Is it time for lunch yet?”

I let out an enormous sigh of relief when I look around the room and see only smiling faces. Even Professor Sarabhai seems pleased, in her grumpy way.

Maybe my time here won’t be so terrible after all?

Dirty Little Secret

Chess

I almost swallowedmy tongue when she walked in today.

Fitz warned me she might drop by the Shird. After he convinced Aubrey and Renard to let her take up residence on the second floor of the Tower, he looked over her schedule for today. He threatened the staff of the Apex bookstore so they’d deliver her replacement uniforms before her first class. The rest of the shit she needs replaced or bought will arrive throughout the day, but he didn’t want her to get demerits. And Felix definitely would have punished her, even though he was present to see Fitz raging last night. His leniency is hard earned and Dolly hasn’t earned it yet.

Hearing her sing and seeing the joy on her face when Balena accepted her was an absolute gift. Delores felt so sad and lonely when she was here in the spring, and when Fitz told me about his encounter with her at that foul prom, I was sick. I don’t know her at all, really, beyond her accidental voyeurism and the brief chat we had. But something about her calls to me and I can’t stand knowing the people who hurt her before are still doing it now.

Signing the paper to allow Delores Drew to become a permanent member of the arts department is a bad idea.

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