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The Cohen-Kline Icosahedron

Chapter 7

copyright comidacomida 2023

The second day at class was the first full day for Kaiden. Despite Sean informing him that he'd be teaching his Roost, what hadn't been explained was that Kaiden wouldn't be the ONLY one teaching his Viddin classmates. The entire morning went as the young man had anticipated with some discussion on Human social norms, societal mores of different cultures, and the great divide between Human nations. Kaiden did stop short of getting into politics, however, and kept things focused on sociology.

He'd planned to go in depth on anthropological studies and how Human cultures had changed over time after lunch, but that was when he got thrown a curve ball. Sean, and the woman Kaiden had met the prior morning (Lynn, he learned was her name) explained that he would have final period with the Viddin, but his focus for the early afternoon would be the Ilsit in his care. When he went back into the room he found Zithing, Kalsig, Sogig, and Hassag waiting for him. Haklys, he learned, was patched in via data pad (it was just far too difficult to move a Major around on campus).

Repeating his earlier lesson that had been designed for the Viddin, Kaiden went through it with the Ilsit. The Human had spent months mentoring and tutoring the gryphons but his reptilian students were a new experience; fortunately they were all surprisingly quick on the uptake. Hassag pointed out that all of them had received a primer on Humans and were required to understand it completely before being allowed at the Unity Centre on Plateau Earth. Kaiden was thankful for the small favors.

Both Viddin and Ilsit were in Kaiden's class for the last hour of the day. Kaiden used it as 'free time' of sorts, letting the two different races compare notes and discuss the lesson as he went back over his lesson plans to accommodate for the sudden change in expectations. He did, however, pay attention to the discussions between Viddin and Ilsit; Nittik, Prirn, and Hahn were all too eager to talk to the reptiles about all of the different Humans they met after lunch. Apparently the class period following the mid-day break was socialization and a second year class of Humans were meeting Viddin for the first time.

Hahn spent a lot of his time proclaiming proudly that he was a lot of the Humans' favorite Viddin and Nittik accused him of using his knowledge of Land Earth media to maximize his interaction while Prirn spent his time waxing poetic about the many wonderful varieties of Humans present and how nice it was to expand his horizons. Tral was mostly just focused on the anxiety he'd felt during the afternoon and how happy he was he hadn't accidentally flattened one of the Humans or run anybody over.

Kytskir mostly talked calmly and casually about how nice it was to be asked questions by inquiring minds, and getting so many answers to his own questions from different points of view. Sokkas and Vetlyk didn't really take part in the conversation, ultimately prompting Kaiden to ask "Did you two enjoy meeting new Humans too?"

Vetlyk's feathery cowl raised as he regarded Kaiden. "I was polite and proper. Most of the Humans paid me the same respect... though one asked if Hahn and I were related."

Kytskir let out an indignant grunt. "Yes... one would presume that second year students would know the difference between a Vidday and a Viddinis."

Nittik snickered. "Yeah... he was one of those 'barely passing' students... a lot like Tral, but probably not as good at Sooshuh, or whatever sports Humans play."

Kaiden interjected. "Tral is far from 'barely passing', Nittik. Everyone here is a great student and I'm glad to have all of you in my class."

Hahn leered. "Strike the 'c' and the 'l' from 'class' and that's probably true too... except for Tral... am I right?"

Vetlyk extended a wing and smacked the back of Hahn's head with it. "Vulgar and inappropriate, classmate. Have more respect of Kaiden'huu."

The Viddinis let out an indignant squawk. "That was a COMPLIMENT!"

A small amount of chaos ensued as the Roost went about talking over one another-- all except for Sokkas, who continued lounging on his couch; he'd been the only Viddin who hadn't contributed to the discussion and Kaiden certainly hadn't missed it. Standing, the Human went over to address his black-feathered classmate. "You didn't have a very good time meeting new Humans, Sokkas?"

The Viddinich was direct. "None of them interested me. They were too loud and did far too much talking."

Kaiden smirked. "Asked a lot of questions?"

Sokkas grunted. "They were speaking more than listening. Communication is supposed to be two way."

Kytskir leaned their direction. "I recall several of them trying to get you to talk, Classmate, but you mostly ignored them. It is hard to carry on a conversation when both parties are not contributing."

Staring down the Viddinek with his reddish-lavender eyes, Sokkas let out a snort through his nares. "I had nothing of value to say. None of them interested me."

The aloofness was nothing new for Sokkas, but Kaiden knew that it wouldn't serve his Roostmate well if they were expected to interact with the second year Human students. "Sokkas..."

The Viddinich's eyes were immediately on him, expression softening significantly. "I am glad we are back with you, Kaiden'huu."

Smiling, Kaiden reached out and rested a hand on Sokkas' talon. "Thank you, Sokkas... but the senior staff are putting all of you with the second years for a reason. You need to try and get along with them."

Sokkas' scowl was severe. "I have nothing in common when those squawking fledglings."

Prirn, the ever-tactful and smooth negotiator spoke up from behind Kaiden. "You would not want Kaiden'huu to look bad to his superiors, would you, Sokkas? Imagine how they would react if they found out that one of the Roost was unwilling to get along with Humans."

The Viddinich's eyes switched back-and-forth between Kaiden and Prirn several times before coming to rest on Kaiden. Sokkas let out a soft sigh. "Very well. I will try... very hard... to engage with the Human students... for educational and socialization purposes... but I cannot guarantee that I will like it."

Kaiden was willing to accept those terms, and made a mental note to thank Prirn for the assist at a later point. "Thank you, Sokkas. I appreciate it."

The rest of the class went smoothly once everyone had calmed down. Kaiden managed to put together a follow up to his first lesson, having the Viddin and Ilsit work together to compare and contrast different human cultures and sub-cultures, identifying different physiological characteristics of Humans of different ethnic backgrounds such as skin tone, hair color, build, and other such visible differences, and then identifying commonalities as well. All of them did reasonably well.

Eventually class came to an end and they were all able to leave. Kaiden waited while the Viddin got help from the Ilsit in packing up their data pads into their shoulder satchels and everyone moved out as a group into the hallway and toward the back door. Sokkas padded particularly close to Kaiden as they left the classroom, crowding him against the wall while speaking softly in English. "Kaiden'huu... I will not have you for tonight, but I will have you tomorrow. Tral has chosen to press his claim... I will miss you."

Kaiden offered the leopard/vulture a one armed hug around the neck. "Thanks for letting me know, Sokkas. We'll have a special night tomorrow to make up for it."

Nodding, his classmate gave him a little extra space. "I would like that."

Moving as a group to the exit, there was only one small delay as a young woman about Kaiden's age appeared in a side hall. She raised a hand with a small paper note in it; very few people bothered with paper and it caught the young man's attention immediately-- so too did her call. "Prirn! Oh, Prirn!"

The Viddinur double-stepped and hopped out of the group, trotting over to her ahead of the group and spreading his wings slightly in greeting. Although the two of them spoke in French (Kaiden wasn't very good with French) he could just make out her accent. That, coupled with her black skin, he was fairly sure that she was from central Africa, and she created a sharp contrast to Prirn's light coloration. Their interaction was brief and she stuffed the paper into the Viddin's shoulder satchel and gave a quick wave before departing back down the side passage.

Kaiden waited until Prirn returned to the group. "What was that about?"

The gryphon's feathers puffed out. "That was Nneka. We had a very nice talk today during social time and she promised to get me the name of a few poetry books I could study on my data pad."

The young man smiled. "That's great! As usual, you have no trouble making friends."

Hahn sauntered by. "He wants her to have his chicks."

Despite Prirn being significantly smaller, he still managed to body-check Hahn against the wall. The larger Viddinish caw-squawked out a laugh as he trotted ahead to catch up with the rest of the roost, who was just exiting the back door and into the parking lot where their transport waited. Kaiden was about to say something to Prirn, but he felt Tral's presence loom behind him a moment before the Viddinire spoke. "Kaiden'huu... would you mind speaking with me for a moment please?"

Tral was not usually one to request time from him and, coupled with the fact that they were having a night together at the Viddinire's request doubled that sentiment. Turning to regard the largest of his classmates, Kaiden offered a smile. "Of course, Tral. What's up?"

The enormous gryphon fidgeted slightly, hind paws almost tapping on the floor as he shuffled his weight. "I... believe Vetlyk told you that I requested to have time with you tonight instead of waiting more days... right?"

Kaiden nodded, then took a step forward with a chiding grin. "Yes... you could have told me yourself, you know."

Tral's ample head-feathers fluffed and he raised his neck slightly. "I... was doing that right now."

Unable to hold back a laugh, Kaiden managed to keep it short and quiet. "Can't argue with that, I guess."

The gryphon let out a soft throat-clearing rumble. "Yes... I... uh... I hope you do not mind... I... just wanted time with you."

Kaiden smiled, feeling warm by the admission. He reached forward and rested a hand on Tral's upper front leg. "Tral... you never have to apologize for wanting to spend time with me. It makes me feel good when I hear you say that. Thank you."

Tral clacked his beak twice as he shook his head to settle his feathers, fluffing his wings as a follow up as he offered a beaky grin and gave his best self-assured pose; Kaiden had seen the genuine often enough to tell that the big fellow was trying to hide a lack of confidence. "Oh! Then... you're welcome, Kaiden'huu!"

As usual, Tral managed to get another laugh out of Kaiden. While Nittik was the jokester and Hahn was the class clown, the humor Tral brought to the group was far less contrived and much more organic. Kaiden liked all three kinds, but the genuine nature of Tral being Tral was so innocently poor it almost hurt to experience. It was a pain that Kaiden really enjoyed. "Come on... everyone else is already at the transport. Time to go home."

* * * * *

The Roost was animated and vocal on the short trip back to the house with the majority of the Viddin squawking and chirping happily about their interaction with the second year class, but also how much amazing details Kaiden was able to provide about Human interaction. Nittik pointed out that he was looking forward to learning more about Human mating rituals to which Hahn noted that he already knew the Human mating call, crying out in a very good imitation of a college-aged female loudly slurring the words "Oh my god, I'm SOOOOOO drunk!"

Kytskir rolled his eyes and noted that he was looking forward to learning more about Human politics, at which point Vetlyk agreed, while Prirn noted that he wanted to see more of Human art, music, and movies, at which point Hahn interjected that Kaiden had shown him an amazing series that took place in a galaxy far, far away. Through it all, Kaiden sat up front with Tral crammed in right behind him so that the Viddinire's enormous head rested on the back of his seat, beak looming over him the entire ride home. At some point Sokkas complained that they were all acting like hatchlings, but the objection went largely ignored.

Once the large van-like transport came to a stop Kaiden got out of the front seat and opened up the sliding door and the back ramp, giving his classmates multiple ways to exit; the variety made it easier for everyone to empty out without the smaller Viddin getting trampled. Tral waited until last and, as Kaiden made his way in after the rest of the gryphons, the large condor/tiger stepped up beside him and matched pace. The human reached up to rest a hand against the Viddin's shoulder and Tral let out a rapid-fire triple-clack of his beak, signaling his enjoyment of the gesture.

The conversation about day 2 had continued inside the house with the Roost speaking in true Viddin fashion. As usual, Kaiden only caught a little of it. Nittik and Hahn were arguing over what movie Humans would like more on a date while Prirn was trying to convince them that music was the way to go, especially since movies were usually public. Kytskir kept espousing the importance of an intellectually compatible Human and Vetlyk kept telling them all that they were uncouth loin-brains who were overdue for time with their Jiyjah. Sokkas, rather than engaging in conversation, simply left the room with a simple squawk of "Not a bad idea." and departed.

The Ilsit had already finished preparing dinner by the time the Roost calmed down and, as most of the lizards brought out some ready-made foods, Tral excused himself to speak with Zithing, who left after bringing out a basket of toasted garlic bread. Kaiden thought nothing of it, taking a seat at the table and encouraging the Roost to do the same. The meal was straight forward and simple: spaghetti with meatballs and red sauce-- it had all been packaged so it was more a matter of heating it up rather than cooking. Kaiden honestly didn't mind since he grew up on ready-made meals and, since everything was Viddin safe, he figured it would be a good introduction to some of the more 'home-style' Human cuisines.

There was a much more casual conversation at the table about Human food at that point, with Kaiden pointing out the components, followed by the Viddin trying to outdo one another in figuring the best way for them to eat pasta (the meatballs were the easy part). Kytskir eventually identified that a small amount of the spaghetti could be caught between talons and then sucked up into his beak with the use of his tongue in a manner that, to Kaiden, looked like him coughing up an owl pellet in reverse. He managed to avoid laughing.

Everyone ultimately figured out their own methods and dinner was a success; it was also a double-benefit that the new experience toned down the chaotic chatter and it was limited to occasional positive reiterations of events from the day. The Roost could definitely agree that Humans were great, followed by a mutual agreement that Kaiden was the greatest of all. He appreciated the positive affirmation, but blushed nevertheless. Dinner did ultimately come to an end, at which point he got well wishes for the night, head bumps, soft wing-buffets, and touches of beaks as everyone headed off to their own nights, leaving the Human alone with Tral, who fluffed his feathers and got up from his lounging sofa.

The enormous Viddin let out a rumbling chuff; he was clearing his throat. "So... would you like to sit with me in the living room for a time? It was so loud we did not get a lot of time to talk, and I enjoy talking with you, Kaiden'huu."

Kaiden smiled at the slight warble in Tral's voice. It was always funny that such a gigantic predator could be so intimidated by the young man's mere presence. "That sounds great, Tral. I'd love to."

They spent almost an hour and a half lounging in the living room; Tral was on the sofa, and Kaiden sat in the armchair closest to the gryphon's head. They shared a lot of laughs most of the time, but also spent a good long while talking about serious matters too; Tral had the capacity to be incredibly deep when he was settled and the situation was right. Kaiden learned that Tral had a long history of being at odds with his Dame, mostly because she was, according to him, using his clan name to her benefit, encouraging him to mate with hens from her home aerie so that when the time came for him to pass the torch, their realms would merge and her people would gain reputation and standing.

Kaiden couldn't believe just how subtle Viddin politics could be. "So you're saying that all of the chicks you've had..."

Tral nodded, holding up his talon with three rings adorning his digits. He counted each, using his 'thumb' to point at them in turn as he called them out. "A boy to her third cousin's daughter; twin boys to her best friend's grand daughter; the most recent one was a girl to the daughter of a hen she owed a favor."

Kaiden could feel from the way Tral was stating facts that the entire situation bothered him, but he was keeping it factual so Kaiden tried to do the same. "I like the second ring... there are two stones because they were twins?"

Tral double-clacked his beak to acknowledge it before adding in English "Yes."

All three rings were made of a silvery metal and had orange-yellow gemstones adorning them; the third was new and, as Kaiden continued inspecting them, he paused. "You used to have one ring on the first digit of each talon... but now you're wearing all three on one. Why is that, Tral?"

The Viddin huffed and got up, flopping off of the sofa and onto his paws and talons. "Can we talk about something else, please, Kaiden? I want to spend time with you and feel good about it... talking about my Mam doesn't make me feel good... is that alright?"

Kaiden felt simultaneously bad for prying so much but also good since his companion was finally willing to speak up. "Sure, Tral... what would you rather talk about?"

The huge gryphon offered a beaky smile. "I would rather dance, and I would really like it if you would join me."

Unable to object at that point, Kaiden nodded and followed Tral back to the Viddinire's room. Tral had one of the two largest rooms in the house (the largest went to Vetlyk) and he made good use of it. Zithing had set up one of Tral's many sound systems on the wall adjacent to the large Viddin's sleeping sofa, which was more like a gigantic bean bag than the usual lounging couch. Off to the side was a shelf where Tral kept his smaller belongings like his shoulder satchel and his data pad.

A powerful musky scent smacked Kaiden in the face, and that's when he noticed Tral's Jiyjah laying in the corner in a very generous pool of milky fluid. Tral followed Kaiden's gaze and his nares reddened immediately. "I wanted to be at ease tonight with you, so I may have used my Jiyjah two or three.... dozen times."

Rolling his eyes, Kaiden let the reveal slide. "What did you have in mind for music?"

The young man's relaxed dismissal of the situation appeared to help put Tral at ease. "I have a nice selection loaded up... let me just--"

Not finishing the statement, Tral reached out a talon and Zithing emerged from the closet to pull off each of the gryphon's rings, and then quickly pass a brush through his cowl of feathers and chest fur. Putting the brush into his maw, the little Drone then looked to the two of them and gave them two thumbs up before disappearing back into the closet. Kaiden had to fight back a chuckle. "So that's why you like him; he fits easily into any storage you have available."

Not responding to the comment, Tral padded over to the sound system and gingerly pecked one of the buttons with the tip of his beak. Music started playing immediately; Kaiden recognized the song as one of his grandfather's favorites from 'way back when'. It had a good beat, and it was accentuated by the timely, rhythmic bobbing of his companion's back end as Tral started to get a feel for it. The gryphon moved closer, beak parting in a wide smile. "Come on, Kaiden... feel the music."

As usual, Kaiden wasn't the most accomplished dancer, but Tral wasn't above giving him some pointers. When they had first danced together, the Human remembered getting bounced around repeatedly by a bump from Tral's shoulder, elbow, or hip, but his body had apparently learned something from all of those corrections and, before long, the young man was back in the pocket, moving efficiently and what felt like naturally in time with his companion. He was surprised when he realized he was enjoying himself. Before he knew it, a half dozen songs had passed... as had almost a half hour.

Tral finally let them take a break. Kaiden followed that up with an admission. "That was... pretty fun."

The Viddin's beak parted into a full on beaming smile. "Really? You are not just humoring me, are you, Kaiden'huu?"

The Human shook his head. "No! I was really enjoying myself... and being with you. Thank you for insisting on teaching me."

The huge gryphon flopped his rear end on the floor next to where Kaiden was standing. "I am glad you think so, Kaiden'huu... I do not really have many people to dance with. It is not something Viddin do often. Zithing will sometimes, but I get worried that I may end up stepping on him if I am not careful."

Kaiden smirked. "Well... I'm glad you're worried about stepping on him, but you don't mind putting MY life at risk."

Tral's feathers puffed out immediately and his eyes widened. "I did not mean that, Hasst! What I meant was--"

The Human reached up and put both of his hands around Tral's beak, using all of his fingers to close it and silence the forthcoming defense. "I was KIDDING, Tral."

Once it was apparent that the gryphon understood the joke behind it, Kaiden let go, and the Viddinire's feathers slowly relaxed. Tral's pointed tongue emerged and licked around his beak multiple times. "You have a very firm grip, Kaiden'huu... I like it."

The statement got Kaiden laughing, and he leaned against Tral. "Oh, you silly bird... never change."

Tral's feathers puffed up at that. "Never?"

The Human ran a hand through where the fur and feathers met on his companion's sternum. "Well... some change is fine... I just want to be sure that nobody ever takes away the main parts of you that make you who you are... like your Dame... or anyone else that says you aren't good enough."

Tral cocked his head to the side. "Good enough for what?"

Kaiden shrugged. "For... well... anything. I'm sure you could do whatever you wanted if you put your mind to it. You're in the Unity Programme. You're visiting Land Earth. Heck... you have a Human for a Hasst! Think of all the Viddin that couldn't say the same thing!"

Tral's voice was surprisingly quiet for such a large gryphon. "Am I good enough for you, Kaiden?"

The earnest vulnerability with which his companion asked that question stopped Kaiden dead in his tracks. "What? You? of COURSE, Tral... that's what I've been trying to say all along. You... you're GREAT!"

The Viddin ran a single talon around in a lazy circle on the floor. "I... think you are great too."

Kaiden reached up and took hold of Tral's head; despite its gigantic size, he found it incredibly easy to move so that he could stare right into the Viddinire's eyes. "You are one of the most tender, thoughtful, amazing individuals I have ever met, Tral. I can see that you don't give yourself enough credit and you always put others first... and-- and that's a great thing, don't get we wrong... just make sure you're not always putting yourself last."

Tral went to move his head but surrendered the moment Kaiden offered him any resistance. The big gryphon made his throat clearing sound and looked sideways, not meeting the Human's gaze. "I know what it feels like to be pressured, and I do not want you to--"

Kaiden interrupted him. "Tral... if there's a problem I'll say something. You don't always have to be stand-offish... sometimes it's NICE to be wanted."

The huge Viddin's nares reddened and his eyes slowly moved back to focus on Kaiden. "I... am not sure how much pushing is too much, so I thought it would be safer if I let you decide when we--"

Kaiden cut the statement off with a kiss, pressing his lips to the tip of Tral's beak. The gesture shut the gryphon up, not simply because of the close contact, but because of the shivering shudder that ran through all several-hundred pounds of him, followed by the loud, copious splatter of several jets of semen hitting the floor. Before Tral could object, apologize, or try to redirect the conversation, the Human called out. "Zithing... do you have any Xys?"

The little raspy voice spoke up from the closet "Yes! Yes I do!"

Tral shuddered again, and the floor became even more slick. Eyes heavily lidded, the Viddinire rumbled out a soft growl. "Tonight, Kaiden?"

The Human smiled. "Tral... I want you to be my Takket."

A heavy head pushed into Kaiden's chest, knocking him over. Tral laid down on him, head pinning the young man to the ground as the Viddin stared at him; the Jiyjah and two unsolicited ejaculations seemed to do little to cool him off, and the words escaping Tral were accompanied by a rumble deep within his chest. "I promise I will try very hard not to hurt you."

The statement was frightening... but not as scary as it was enticing.