A knock on the door interrupted any further conversation the boys may have wished to have. Varian swiftly threw a blanket over the chalkboard and shoved it somewhere out of the way. Braxton glanced around the room once before getting up and crossing over to let Zephyr in.

Zephyr frowned as he surveyed the collection of youth. "I was not aware you were hosting early morning parties, Rudforest."

"Jealous you didn't get an invite?" Braxton smirked as he leaned against his doorframe. "Unfortunately this is a VIP event, and you just don't make the cut."

"I wouldn't want to be considered a VIP to you in any capacity," Zephyr answered coldly. "I have no doubts that it would involve a concerning amount of illicit activity."

Braxton just laughed.

Varian tentatively stepped up next to his friend. "I suggested we meet here. The guys were having some trouble in physics this week, and last night we were working on some problems together. We didn't get to finish, so I told them that if we all met at Braxton's room before breakfast, I'd go over any final questions they had. Normally we would just all get to breakfast a bit early, but it felt unfair to message you that late and expect you to be able to be here an hour early."

Zephyr gave Varian a warm smile. "I appreciate your consideration, Varian. Thank you. Shall we go?"

"I've been ready to go for hours," Braxton answered dramatically. "I am starving!"

Zephyr rolled his eyes but chose not to respond. The group stepped out into the hallway. Things were busy now, the majority of their classmates reluctantly awake for the day and starting to get to where they needed to be.

A group of young men were spinning and leaping down the hall, fully engaged in their song. Jim couldn't understand the language they were singing in, but they were all smiling and the tune seemed upbeat, so he assumed it was something positive. Braxton, on the other hand, joined in long enough to exchange a few lines with one of the main singers before the group were off and away, bounding their way further down the hall.

Moments after and the small accompaniment of friends arrived at the cafeteria. Braxton, Zephyr, and Matt headed for the meal lines. Jim peeled off with Varian to go check their usual table.

"Good job with your quick thinking when Zephyr showed up," Jim smiled over at his friend. Very quickly he lost it again. "You really believe Zephyr is in danger?"

Both boys glanced over their shoulders. The tall blond human was easy to pick out among the crowds of students. In no small part because the younger men gave him a wide, respectful berth.

"I'm certain." Varian pulled out his tablet and tapped at the screen, bringing up a detailed spreadsheet and attached document. "I've been trying to track the timeline to make sure that all things line up, and from what I've discovered, so far it all seems to make sense."

"Then we have to do everything we can to protect him."

Varian nodded. "It's going to take all of us."

"Not all." Jim set his gaze firmly on the table they were approaching. "Sy can't know about this."

"He won't like that we're hiding it from him."

"It's safer." Jim sighed. "I can't risk putting him in danger, and I know he'll be stressed out about Zephyr being in danger. If he tells Zephyr, Zephyr might go to his grandfather, and then we won't be able to prove anything. Gray will spin it as revenge, and we'll just get Braxton kicked out for certain."

Varian sighed. "If you're certain."

Sy looked up and smiled when they finally reached the table. "Good morning!"

Jim glanced swiftly at the line to be certain Zephyr wasn't looking, then once around the room to be sure no one was paying attention. "Good morning, Sy." He kissed him swiftly.

Sy blushed hard. "Be good. We're in public!" He hissed, though he was smiling anyway.

"Sorry. I'll behave, promise."

Varian rolled his eyes affectionately. "You two are as cute as Rupunzel and Eugene."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Jim answered flippantly. "Besides, Sy is always cute."

"Good morning!" Hogarth dropped his tray on the table and offered the gathering a smile. "I can watch the table if you want to go get breakfast."

"Thank you," Jim stood up, Sy following his lead.

"I'll sit with Hogarth," Varian was already loading an article on his tablet. "I want your opinion on this article I was reading last night about nuclear energy as an alternative power source."

Jim smiled to himself as he guided Sy towards the breakfast lines. He didn't recognize what Echidna had made for the main dish today, but it certainly smelled good. He let the beastly woman put a scoop onto his tray, along with two bonzabeast sausages. Sliding his tray on down the line, he got himself a crumpet and jam as well as a dish of diced fruit and yogurt. Beside him Sy had a package of honey for his crumpet and had selected a fresh pear for his fruit.

When they returned to the table with their drinks and meals, Varian and Hogarth were gone. Braxton, Matt, 628, and Zephyr were seated about the table in their stead. Sy offered Zephyr a small smile before he claimed his seat next to Jim.

"Good morning, Zephyr."

"Hello Sy." Zephyr sliced into his sausage neatly. "It's unfortunate your friends were unavailable to sit with today."

"These are my friends," Sy replied brightly. Everyone knew what Zephyr had meant, though, so he didn't bother to pretend like they didn't. "I don't usually sit with my other classmates. We are friends, but not nearly as close. I could ask Aladdin to join us again, though, if you like?"

Zephyr shook his head. "No need to disturb their usual routine for this. But thank you, Nah-Nah."

Jim hated that nickname. It was so childish. And something about prim and proper De Châteaupers having a pet name for his boyfriend just felt so wrong. Sy hadn't picked Zephyr. He'd picked Jim. And the jealous part of Jim wanted Zephyr to remember that.

Thankfully there were no further incidents of affection for Jim to disapprove of before the end of breakfast. Matt and Varian took clean up duties today. The two of them peeled off from the group as the rest started for the exit.

Sy, Hogarth, and 628 were the next to leave the group, waving goodbye to their friends on their way into the classroom. Braxton and Jim stopped in front of the gymnasium and turned to face Zephyr. The senior student gave them a short nod of farewell.

"I will be back at the end of class. I have a test in psychology today, so I may be a few minutes late."

Braxton rolled his eyes. "Oh, because my classes matter less than yours do. I see how it is."

Jim elbowed him sharply.

Wincing, Braxton rubbed at his side. "Ugh. I suppose it's fine," he muttered, clearly reluctant to correct his behavior. "Gives me an extra minute or two in the showers. And I'm passing navigation anyway, so I guess missing a couple minutes is fine."

"I will do my best to finish before the end of class, but it is not often that anyone completes a test." Zephyr answered with a sigh. "I'll need all the time I can get."

Jim frowned. "Wait, if you don't even have time to finish your tests, how can you ever get a perfect score?"

Zephyr shrugged. "We're graded on a curve, and I believe it's adjusted to account for only the questions we were able to finish. Or the average number of finished questions is the standard that's set or…honestly, I have no idea. We were told we'd get bonus credit if we ever do manage to complete a test before the end of class, but from what I'm aware of, no one has ever claimed that."

Braxton scoffed. "Well that's no fair. The instructors shouldn't be allowed to make up rules as they see fit. And if the standard you're striving for is constantly changing, why even bother trying? You might as well all band together and agree to only answer one question each so you can force the system to change."

A flash of a smile snuck onto Zephyr's face before he managed to school himself and erase any evidence of finding Braxton tolerable. "I believe the suggestion did go about the class. But I am training to be an officer. Unclear objectives and changing goal posts are a part of what I will be managing every day. Perhaps the teacher is merely running a year long psychology experiment on all of us, but I choose to view it as practice for once I leave school. The military is not a controlled environment. We must be prepared for unfair situations."

"If that is actually what the teacher is doing, I can't decide if I hate it or not. I've dealt with plenty of that in my lifetime, I don't need them messing up my one chance out of the situation by simulating my exact childhood. But, I suppose for people like you, the practice is needed."

"'People like me'? And just what do you mean by that?"

"Sheltered, spoiled, captain's pets." Braxton replied easily. "Your granddaddy has almost certainly made sure to smooth your course from the moment you were born. You don't have to work for anything. You'll be handed promotions and choice assignments your whole life, at least until you're finally the one in charge of things. Why do you think the officer's path is filled with generational career soldiers? You just hand things down from parent to child, keeping the ranks and medals within the approved of families."

Zephyr stepped back and drew in a deep breath. He straightened his spine and adjusted his uniform. "I will see you at the end of class, Rudforest."

Braxton didn't stick around to watch him leave.