Paxton was aware of Ashton's distaste of him. The dragon wasn't particularly good at hiding his feelings, which was one of the things Paxton appreciated. Demons always approved of upfront people, because they were easier to manipulate. Generally, these people were just clueless, but Paxton could imagine that the likes of Ashton were just too powerful to hide how they really felt.
Useful.
"Nurture," Paxton said, sidling his chair closer to Ashton, "very well. That means you get Hobbes and Locke, and I'll take Descartes and modern genetics?" Paxton gave Ashton a smile. "You see, we should see to it that we are both equals in the debate. We don't need to upstage one another. I'll think we'll get a better grade if there's no clear winner, you know? Make them think about that both of us have valid points."