One week after returning to Bren’it’p, Fletcher sat on the couch in his apartment next to Beam. Despite the fact that it was late evening, he held a mountain of paperwork in his lap that he was trying to catch up on after his trip to Alcett.

  It was a miracle the entire department didn’t fall apart completely without him given how little they accomplished in his absence. The next month was going to be a disaster in trying to get everything back up and running properly, and it all started with completing this stack of papers by the end of the week. The only unfortunate part was that Unhumans didn’t pay overtime.

  Beam was being a good sport about all of it, hanging out with him even though he was constantly working. The first day back had been perfect between them, but as soon as he’d returned to work, he’d been inundated with endless tasks to complete, all of which seemed to have a very immediate deadline.

  “Fletcher?” she asked from next to him where she was reading a book. It was written in the Unhuman language, and translation magic only worked for spoken word, so as much as he wanted to pursue Unhuman literature, his language skills were still at a very basic level. Part of Nanti’s assignments was translating paperwork to and from English for him, and he felt bad for all the extra hours she was having to put in as well.

  “Hmm?” he mumbled, tapping his pen to his lips. They had yet to find a suitable replacement for Fieva, meaning he and Brenzo were picking up the slack, but one of his many assignments due within the next few days was to finish reviewing resumes so they could put together a list of interviewees. He was currently considering whether someone with only one year of studying under Humans was going to be enough for the management position.

  “Remember our talk about Unhuman and Human dating customs?”

  “Yeah,” he said. This candidate had also spent four years working as an assistant in Sanfe to the Unhuman Education Administrator there, and that was a lot of Human experience alongside seeing the inner workings of education, which was something learning at a Human school couldn’t teach.

  “I was wondering if you were ready to try one of the Unhuman customs out. I mean, I’m not trying to pressure you or anything, but you made it sound like Humans eventually get to that point too, so maybe if you feel comfortable with it…”

  “Of course, babe. I always enjoy learning Unhuman customs,” he said. As much as the candidate might know about education, the fact was that he didn’t have enough leadership experience to take on the entire task of leading middle school education for the whole city. Fletcher set that resume in the ‘no’ pile and sighed as he picked up the next one.

  “Fletcher, are you actually listening to me?” Beam asked crossly.

  “Uh-huh.” His eyes flitted over the next resume.

  “Fletcher Anders.” A golden hand appeared over the top of the paper. “I’m trying to have a serious conversation.”

  Fletcher blinked several times. “Sorry. It’s just work.” He sighed. That was a poor excuse. She’d been putting up with his extra hours for days now, and the least he could do was offer her some genuine attention. “I’m sorry, Beam. I’m ready to talk now.” He set the papers from his lap on the coffee table and faced his body towards her.

  Once again, he was taken back with just how pretty she was. In fact, it looked like she dressed up extra, with her soft curls in a fancy updo.

  He smiled at her. Despite her grumpy face, there was humor in those golden eyes.

  “We were talking about an Unhuman custom you wanted me to try?” he reminded her.

  She rolled her eyes. “It’s not just an Unhuman one. Ugh, forget it. We can talk about it later. Go back to your paperwork.”

  Fletcher grabbed her hand. “Beam, I’m sorry. I was caught up in something, and I ignored you, but I promise I want to talk with you. No more work the rest of the night, okay? It can be a date night at home.”

  A smirk formed on her face. “I was hoping you’d be willing for a night in.” She cleared her throat. “As I was saying, I’m not trying to pressure you in any way, so don’t feel like you have to agree. It’s just… well this is a long time to wait by Unhuman standards, and I’m not really sure how Humans go about bringing it up.”

  He blinked, staring at her as he tried to piece together what she was referring to. All at once it clicked.

  “You mean… sex?” He immediately cursed himself for saying the least romantic thing possible in the situation.

  “Yes, you idiot. My deities, for someone so intelligent, you sure can be dense.”

  He chuckled, nervous about his next confession. “I’ve actually been wanting to. With you, I mean. I just, well… you see…”

  She raised her eyebrows as he stammered. “If you’re about to tell me that you’re against doing it with an Unhuman, just spit it out.”

  “No. It’s not that.” He winced. “Beam, I didn’t bring it up sooner because… I’m a virgin. I’ve never, uh, you know, with someone so I guess I was too embarrassed to say anything.”

  Fletcher paused, waiting for her teasing. That was one sure fire way to ruin the evening, but she deserved to know the full truth.

  She giggled, like a genuine, true giggle.

  “That was your reservation?” Beam grabbed his face. “Fletcher Anders, I don’t care about that. I care about you and being close to you.”

  “Are you sure? It is pretty embarrassing,” he said.

  Beam kissed him. “Darling, that only means you don’t have any bad habits I have to break.”

  Fletcher laughed, leaning closer to her and kissing her harder. He suddenly cared a lot less about paperwork.

  ***

  A month and a half later, Fletcher stood in his bathroom, trying his best to get his hair in order before they needed to leave. Beam stepped in, gorgeous in her formal dress as she reached across the sink to grab her toothbrush.

  The past three weeks, she’d spent more nights at Fletcher’s place than her own, and, in truth, he saw a future where he married her—or mated with her as the Unhumans would call it.

  Not that he’d told his dad about such things yet. That was a problem for later, and based on the few letters he’d gotten from his father since his surprise departure, Sebastian wasn’t in any place to receive that kind of news in writing.

  “Hurry up, Fletcher. You’re going to make us late,” Beam said around the toothbrush in her mouth.

  “Who cares? It’s just a party. Who’s going to notice if we’re late?” he asked as he ran his fingers through his hair one last time to make it look just the right amount of messy.

  “This is a super important party. The Government Gala. All of my company’s clients are going to be there. Being late makes me look bad. You got invited because of your position, but my invitation cost a lot of money,” she reminded him after she spit out. “You have five minutes.”

  “Coming,” he promised as he finished with the top two buttons on the tunic he wore which constituted formal fashion in the Unhuman world. It had a straight collar up to his neck with embroidery designs along the body and sleeves, but the fabric was soft and breathable, even if it did go down nearly to his knees. He disliked the bright red color Beam picked out for him, but it was the exact shade of her dress, and she wanted to match so he wore it for her. Underneath he wore comfortable, form fitting, black trousers.

  “You look so handsome,” she said as he exited the bathroom. “We’re going to be the best looking couple there.”

  The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

  “Only because of you. You are stunning.” He grabbed her hand and spun her around. “Let’s go. I wouldn’t want you to disappoint all those clients.”

  Beam rolled her eyes as she looped her arm through his, and together they exited the apartment. Knarf waited in the hallway, as usual, and gave them both a small nod. The [Ogre] had never been quite as chatty as that first day back, but he’d definitely been more friendly than he was before Fletcher’s trip home.

  The three of them strolled out of the apartment building and began the long walk to the party. It wasn’t too cold for a day in mid-February, and Fletcher didn’t feel much of the chill with Beam next to him and her constant heat radiance to warm him.

  Bren’it’p was lively as with any weekend evening, and their casual walk turned into dodging between the masses after only a few streets. Fletcher had expected tensions between him and strangers to be higher after the assassination, but, as Minister Vi’le predicted, people seemed to respect him more.

  He’d heard “jemlk’wp” only three times since returning to the city, and the majority of those he passed either ducked their heads in acknowledgement or did nothing. There were hardly any stares or shoves or pauses, making living in Bren’it’p a very comfortable experience compared to when he first moved in.

  “You still haven’t told me what you want for your birthday,” Beam reminded him as they walked. “It’s only a week away.”

  “Being with you is gift enough,” he said.

  She softly punched his arm. “Be serious. I was thinking we could have a party at your place. Invite Brenzo, Nanti, Cors, and some others over for drinks and a card game.”

  “That sounds good, but honestly, I’m fine if we don’t do anything special,” he assured her.

  “As if I’m going to let your first birthday we celebrate together go to waste. Twenty-six. You’re getting old, Fletching.”

  “Says the woman who’s already thirty.” He chuckled.

  Thanks to her [Jinn] heritage, she still looked to be in her early twenties since her species aged slower than Humans once they hit twenty years old.

  They laughed some more as Beam wrapped her other arm around his, holding him close.

  Getting to the party took them a solid half an hour of walking. When they arrived at the location, Fletcher’s jaw dropped a bit. He thought he’d seen all the grand architecture Bren’it’p had to offer, but this building stood far above them all.

  It wasn’t the tallest he’d seen, but it was delicately designed, full of stained glass along the walls with a dome roof that seemed to sparkle in the lamplight. The windows all depicted various scenic pictures, ranging from waterfalls to mountains. A stream of party goers stood along the steps, all of them clad in clothes similar to what he and Beam wore.

  “Shall we?” Beam said after a moment, allowing his awe to wear off. “That is, if you have any interest in seeing the interior of it instead of just admiring the walls.”

  He laughed. She didn’t seem to understand how brilliant he found all this architecture after growing up in the colonies where buildings were bland and functional. “When you visit Alcett with me, you’ll realize why I find this all so spectacular.”

  She leaned in close to his ear. “It’s probably because you’re a giant nerd.”

  Grinning, he pulled her along up the steps. Knarf lingered behind them, watching but not following as close now that they were some place with more security.

  The inside was as magnificent as the outside, more so in some ways with the decor and murals. The floors were large tiles, each with their own intricate designs, and the lighting was on the dimmer side, large torches providing light. As stunning as the decorations were, a lot of them were covered by the myriad of guests in attendance. Fletcher saw representatives from every Unhuman species he knew of—except [Demanlics].

  “If this party is supposed to represent the entirety of the Unhuman government, why aren’t there any [Demanlics]?” he asked in a whisper to Beam as the attendant confirmed their tickets.

  She looked at him incredulously. “[Demanlics] don’t take part in anything so crass as politics, Fletcher. You’re talking about sacred beings.”

  “I thought they were the guardians of Mythia. Shouldn’t they want to know what’s happening in it? I remember learning about how [Demanlics] are largely responsible for keeping the peace for the first decade after the Merger, so I guess I assumed they had some kind of role in government.”

  Beam led him deeper into the party which was down a set of stairs from where they entered. “Things are different now.” She glanced around, confirming nobody nearby was listening. “It’s not something we often talk about. If you want to know more, I’ll tell you when we get home, but for now, understand that [Demanlics] used to have a lot of contact with us regular Unhumans, but during the First Unhuman War…”

  She sighed. “During the First Unhuman War, the Travesty occurred, and they cut themselves off from Humans and Unhumans alike, claiming the world was unfit for their presence. The fact that you saw one with Minister Vi’le at all is a small miracle. Now, promise me you won’t bring it up again until we’re someplace private.”

  “I promise,” he said, a little surprised with how clandestine she wanted this to be.

  “Good,” Beam said as she straightened her shoulders. “Let’s go make the rounds. There are a lot of politicians I’ve got to suck up to tonight, and I expect you to be a good sport about it.”

  “Whatever you need,” he said with a smile.

  True to her word, Beam led him on the longest butt-kissing adventure of his life. He knew her job relied heavily on politicians’ investments, but he didn’t realize quite how much schmoozing was required to keep them placated. Fletcher couldn’t remember even a tenth of all the names thrown at him as they went around the party, Beam introducing him to every Administrator, Minister, and Legislature member she knew, and maybe even some she didn’t know.

  They all were exceptionally polite, and none made any comments about his distinct species, either not caring about it or not brave enough to enter such dangerous political territory. About an hour and a half into the night, Fletcher was weary of the constant small talk and took his leave to get Beam and himself something to drink while she chatted up some city official and her mate.

  As he passed through the crowd, he silently counted all the kinds of species before him. A group of [Tengu] were huddled at one table, their winged arms tucked close as they sipped their drinks—probably a difficult task with beaks. On the balcony above him he noticed a rocky [Golem] kneeling on the ground as she spoke with a less than two-foot tall [Gnome] with light blue skin.

  The diversity of the gala amazed him, bringing out more species of Unhumans than he’d ever seen in his life.

  Approaching the refreshment table, he caught sight of something unexpected. At first glance, it was just a female [Elf], but something about her was familiar. She looked like any other [Elf], with bronze markings along her cream-colored skin, bronze hair, and pointed ears. The ears were maybe a little smaller than he normally saw on [Elves], but that was just part of the species diversity. The familiarity was in her face and the way she moved.

  “Addy,” he murmured to himself in disbelief.

  It had to be. Unlike Jeric who’d changed greatly since that day nearly sixteen years ago, Addy held much more of herself, and Fletcher had the advantage of having seen her less than ten years ago during a trip to Loketa. They used to write, but at some point it’d dropped off, and he hadn’t heard from her since they were in highschool.

  She tugged a piece of hair out of what appeared to be frustration as she spoke with a [Vampire]. That was her. He was sure of it. There was no way some [Elf] could have her same appearance and her mannerisms. That was too much of a coincidence.

  But that brought on a bigger question. How was she here, and as a fully-fledged [Elf] no less? He thought back to what Knarf said about becoming an Unhuman and then the claim from the Hexed Humans that Unhumans killed them. Something strange was going on, and there was only one way to get an answer.

  Leaving behind the refreshments, he walked towards Addy and her companion, being careful to keep himself at the [Vampire’s] back. He stared at Addy, waiting for her to notice him. When she finally did look his way, her eyes strayed past him before returning in a rush, her face doing nothing to hide her shock.

  She ended the conversation with the [Vampire] and dashed over to him, holding her skirts high.

  “Fletcher Anders, please tell me this is some kind of sick joke,” Addy said, her voice a bit more musical than he remembered but, all in all, still her. “What are you doing here?”

  “I should ask you the same thing. The only difference is that I’m still a Human,” Fletcher hissed back.

  “Shut up,” she said, glancing around. “You’re going to get us both killed.”

  “What’s going on Addy? What happened to you?” he asked. “I never expected to see you like… this.”

  “We can’t talk about this here. You need to leave. We both do. And now,” she said in a hushed tone, her eyes constantly bouncing around the room.

  “I can’t leave yet,” Fletcher replied. “Addy, what’s going on? How are you an Unhuman?”

  “Don’t call me that,” she snapped. She continued her anxious scan of the room. “Just come with me, and I’ll explain everything. There’s a safe house close by where we can go.”

  “No,” he said firmly.

  “I don’t have time for this,” she muttered as she grabbed his arm. “Come with me.”

  “Stop.” He shook her grip off. “I’m not leaving. Go if you want.”

  “Fletcher, you have to trust me. You’re not safe here.”

  “Believe me, I’m plenty safe,” he assured her. “It was nice seeing you.”

  “Fletcher,” she called to him as he walked away. “Please. Just come with me.”

  He looked back to see the pleading in her eyes and paused. As he opened his mouth to offer an apology before continuing on his way, the room they stood in exploded.

  fifteen advanced chapters (five weeks ahead of RR). if you just can't wait to see what happens next :)