The Sacred Seducers
Ritual, glamour, devotion, indulgence.
You make desire divine.
Strengths: charisma, intuition, allure
Weaknesses: drama
Familiar: an unhinged phoenix
Astrid meets Lustrata House
Pepper shoved open the double doors, and warm golden light spilled over us like the opening scene of a cinematic sex montage.
“Prepare yourself,” she breathed. “Lustrata doesn’t do casual.”
The lounge was fully doing the most. Silk drapes in deep burgundy. Glowing altars topped with crystals and offerings I couldn’t identify. Mirrors framed in dripping candles. Incense curling through the air like it was auditioning for a perfume commercial.
Someone played a harp in the corner. For ambiance.
A cluster of students arranged themselves on chaise lounges in poses that looked accidental but definitely weren’t. One fed grapes to another while a third braided flowers into their hair. Everything moved in slow motion, like the whole room existed at a more sensual frame rate.
A stunning figure in burgundy lace glided toward us, eyes lined in shimmering gold. They moved like honey poured from a sacred vessel.
“Welcome, darlings.” Their voice wrapped around me like warm silk. “I’m Selene. Please remove your shoes. The carpets are enchanted for sensual grounding.”
I looked down. The carpet did seem to be… breathing.
“Just go with it.” Pepper was already barefoot, sighing happily as she wiggled her toes. “Selene knows fourteen kinds of ritual intimacy. She taught me how to tie a soul-knot with two candles and a poem.”
“It’s a useful skill,” Selene said, completely serious. “For binding magic. Among other things.”
They leaned close, breath warm against my ear, and inhaled like they were tasting my aura. Which, apparently, they were.
“Interesting,” they murmured. “Overwhelmed. Curious.” A pause. “Under-touched.”
I choked on nothing. “Excuse me?”
Cricket materialized on a mirror frame, examining her claws. “They’re not wrong, darling. Your energy is practically parched.”
“Your familiar has excellent instincts.” Selene straightened, smiling like a blessing. Or an omen. Hard to tell. “Come to our moonlit rites sometime. We’ll remind your magic it has a body.”
Behind them, the harpist hit a particularly dramatic chord.
“Is that… on purpose?” I whispered to Pepper.
“The harp always knows,” she whispered back, delighted. “Lustrata’s whole thing is sacred sexuality. Ritual. Ceremony. They turn getting off into a spiritual experience.” She clasped Selene’s hands. “Ugh, I love this house. You people make orgasms feel like church.”
“That’s the goal,” Selene agreed serenely.
I wasn’t sure if I wanted to join Lustrata or run screaming into the night.
The carpet pulsed warmly under my feet, and the incense curled toward me like an invitation.
Probably both.
What would you like to do next?
Astrid meets another house
Astrid continues her tour of the academy
Get book one, Professor Ravish & His Carnal Curriculum
