The assembly hall was already full by the time Cobalt arrived. The entirety of the second-year populace filled out the rows upon rows of seats, turning the hall into a veritable kaleidoscope of colourful skin, flashing horns and personalised uniforms. To the far left of the assembly hall, class 2-A sat quietly, each student keeping to themselves as they waited for the presentation to being. As for 2-F on the far right, Quinn had decided to climb onto Lottie's shoulders for a better view, Whitney had gotten into yet another argument with Karazelle, and Izzbelle had just kicked Arnn Srenth in the face for no adequete reason, setting his nose aflow with a deluge of blood. Seated in the front row, Martha Cain gave Cobalt's class a glare of disapproval before fixing her gorgon stare on the Incubus himself. He responded by narrowing his eyes and sneering.
Yes, he was fully aware how badly behaved his class could be. He didn't need any more reminding of that fact.
"Ah, um... M- Mr. Trayer! H- Hello...!" piped a quiet voice from beside him.
Raising an eyebrow, Cobalt looked over to see Jelli lingering in the assembly hall doorway, nervously wringing her hands as her stubby tail waved back and forth.
"Are you alright, Jelli? Looking for a seat?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"Um, I- I, uh..."
"You could sit next to me if you want?"
Her eyes widened as her tail began to beat faster.
"N- Nein, no, I- I- I did not mean that! I- Izzbelle has already saved a seat for me!" the Glutton stammered, frantically waving her hands.
Squinting into the crowd, he saw that the Oni was indeed guarding the chair beside her. Judging by the blood spatters on it, poor Arnn had made the mistake of not asking whether it was to be occupied before sitting down.
"Well, thats... nice of her."
"Y- Yes, I suppose so... She's scary, but... nice too..."
Cobalt laughed.
"Of course, of course. I imagine you'd rather sit with your friends than with your teacher, right?" he joked.
But the look on her face told him that Jelli was feeling anything but jovial. Her eyes began to water as she grasped the edge of his shirt.
"M- Mr. Trayer, I'm sorry, I- I didn't mean that! I- I- I had just already agreed to sit with Izzbelle and your offer was so unexpected and-!"
"HEY, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOIN' TO HER?!" thundered a loud, angry and frightfully familiar voice.
Knocking her fellow classmates aside, Izzbelle stormed up to Cobalt, fists balled and ready to fly.
"I'm gonna give you five seconds to explain why she's cryin' or you're gonna be shittin' your own teeth out for the rest of the fuckin' month!" hissed the Oni, grabbing the Incubus' tie with one hand and pointing at Jelli with the other.
He choked in surprise as she nearly pulled him off the floor. Izzbelle had certainly gotten quite protective of Jelli since the two got to know each other, and while he was glad to see them get along, he worried that the Oni was wont to go overboard whenever sticking up for her new friend.
"I- Izzbelle, please let him go! It's fine, really!" Jelli cried, desperately wiping the tears from her face.
"You think I'm just gonna let him off the hook after makin' you cry like this?!"
"He didn't make me cry! I made me cry! Please, just put him down!"
Raising an eyebrow, Izzbelle glanced down at her friend, before scowling and dropping the Incubus to the floor. Coughing and spluttering for breath, he readjusted his tie and gave Izzbelle a shaky smile.
"N- Now now, I think we all ought to calm down a little, don't you think?" he suggested, staggering back to his feet.
The Oni bared her teeth.
"You got lucky this time, dumbass. But I swear, if you ever do anythin' to make her cry, I'm gonna-!"
"Izzbelle, please! W- We talked about this!" Jelli interupted in a whining tone, wiping her eyes with the sleeves of her blazer.
She sighed.
"Right. Yeah. Layin' off him, I remember. C'mon."
Grabbing the Glutton's sleeve before either of them could react, Izzbelle marched back towards her seat in a surprisingly reserved manner. Not only did she manage to find a sound friend in Jelli, but apparently the young German was helping her curb her anger as well. If anything, Cobalt felt a little safer.
Glancing down at his watch, his eyes widened.
"Ah, it's about to begin...!"
-----
It was just a few minutes past nine when Elya finally took the stage, dressed in her pristine nurse uniform. Beneath one arm she was carrying a slide projector, and with the other she wheeled a simple gurney behind her. Placing it in the centre of the stage, the Fallen set up the projector and switched it on, displaying the words "Emergency Medical Procedures" on the screen behind her.
It was odd seeing her so calm and composed. For a moment, Cobalt briefly wondered whether Elya was capable of behaving normally around others, but as soon as she finished her preparations, she wheeled around and fixed him with a paralysing stare.
"Good morning, second-years," she droned in her usual monotone, not once taking her eyes off Cobalt.
She was met with mixed responses, most half-hearted, but some enthusiastic. Most students didn't care much for her, but for some reason, one or two of B.I.D.'s pupils had found the new school nurse's outwardly cold demeanor alluring, earning her a small base of fans. Cobalt could only silently pray for those poor, misguided souls, as unaware of Elya's true nature as they were.
"Many of you simply know me as the nurse. I shall have you know that my name is Elya Tray-"
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She cleared her throat.
"Excuse me. Elya Yalfre. According to your curriculum, you are to learn the various means and methods of saving a life today, and it falls to me to teach you. I would advise you all to listen well; these techniques could very well come into play in your own turbulent lives, one way or another," Elya continued, clicking on to the next slide.
Cobalt swallowed hard. Half a minute in, and she had already set an ominous mood. He could only hope she didn't traumatise the students with her presentations...
With introductions out of the way, Elya wasted no time in getting stuck in to the meat of the seminar. Despite Cobalt's worries, she remained calm and professional throughout, explaining each and every medical technique with crystal clarity. First came the identification and application of the supplies availible within most standard first aid kits. Then came explainations of simple procedures such as cleaning infected wounds and stemming excessive bloodflow. Once they were out of the way, she produced a few items from a small bag and began to demonstrate how to perform an emergency tracheotomy using a pen.
Cobalt was surprised at how smoothly it was going, and soon found himself relaxing into his seat. Perhaps this wasn't such a bad idea after all...
"... naturally cleaning blood as you go. Next up is a simple but crucial procedure that everybody should know by heart."
She clicked a button on the projector, emblazoning "Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation" on the screen behind her.
"CPR. I'll need a volunteer for this one."
Some dozen students eagerly raised their hands, naively willing to place themselves in Elya's care. But her violet gaze swept dismissively over them before locking onto Cobalt.
"Ah, Mr. Trayer. How good of you to step forward," Elya announced, causing his heart to jolt.
"Wh- What? But I-!"
"Onto the stage, if you would. Let's not waste any time."
Spurred on by both her words and his own anxiety, Cobalt deigned to swallow his objections and slowly shuffle up the steps and onto the stage. A few students half-heartedly clapped for him, but he could see that amongst his class, Jelli, Karazelle and Izzbelle's faces had all gone deathly pale.
"For the sake of the audience, I'll have you lie down here," Elya instructed, gesturing to the gurney.
"O- Okay."
Easing himself up onto its cold rubber surface, he lay down flat, eyes locked with the ceiling of the assembly hall. He could already hear the students whispering.
"When someone is found unconcious, the first thing one must do is contact the emergency services. Then, place them on their backs and ensure that their airways are open," Elya explained, stepping over to him.
The Incubus' heart began to beat faster, though whether it was out of fear or anticipation, he couldn't tell.
"Next, check to see whether they are breathing."
She leaned down close and placed an ear to his lips.
"So tentatively close, and yet so far away. There is a poetic beauty to this, is there not? My body compells me to demonstrate my love before an audience, and yet I must adhere to my duties first. Fret not, my love. We shall be alone soon enough," the Fallen whispered so that only he could hear.
His whole body froze up as he struggled to react, but by then she had already moved on to explaining the next step.
"Interlocking your fingers like so, place your hands upon the patient's chest and begin thirty firm chest compressions."
She braced her hands against Cobalt's chest and began to simulate the compressions. She thankfully applied no pressure, but it soon became clear to him that she was using the time to slip her fingers beneath his shirt and lightly brush his skin, sending electric tingles all across his body.
"After performing thirty pumps of the chest, administer two rescue breaths like so. Excuse my intrusion, Mr. Trayer..."
Lightly pinching his nose, Elya quickly pressed her chilled lips against his own before he could react. Rather than blow, however, the Fallen wasted no time in taking advantage of the situation and swiftly snaked her tongue into his mouth, much to Cobalt's alarm. Though it lasted but a few seconds, the sensation of being ruthlessly kissed before the entire second-year population was highly embarrassing, enough to set Cobalt's cheeks burning.
As quickly as she began the intrusion, Elya withdrew her tongue and returned to face the audience.
"Repeat these steps until the ambulance arrives, or until the patient expires. Whichever occurs first. Thank you Mr. Trayer, you may return to your seat," the nurse announced, taking his hand and helping him off the gurney.
Collapsing back into his chair, Cobalt raised a shaky hand and wiped his mouth. No, never mind. Clearly Elya had ulterior motives for everything she did, and he would be fool to let his guard down around her again.
The seminar continued without a hitch, with Elya explaining the methods through which one could perform an emergency blood transfusion, but Cobalt couldn't focus on her words. Instead, he could only helplessly watch as she stared at him nonstop, eyes ablaze with maddened hunger. By the time he snapped out of the trance the Fallen had put him in, an hour had passed.
"And finally, I shall leave you all with a simple but crucial technique. For this I shall need another volunteer."
Cobalt flinched, but surprisingly she looked straight past him to the far end of the front row.
"Miss Cain, how thoughtful. Please join me on the stage."
Scoffing, Martha Cain shook her head.
"I didn't raise my hand and you know it, young lady!"
Elya's eyes narrowed.
"Please, Miss Cain, let's not waste any time here. We're nearly finished."
She scowled and rolled her eyes, but the batty old Fallen relented. Trudging up the stairs to the centre of the stage, she sat herself on the gurney and folded her arms.
"Thank you. Now, a frightfully common cause of death is choking, whether it be on small objects or food. One runs the risk of blocking an airway any time they put something in their mouth, but thankfully in 1974, Henry Heimlich provided us with a simple method of dislodging any blockages."
Reaching into her bag, Elya produced an apple with one hand and Immoderata with the other. The colour drained from Cobalt's face at the sight of the black iron knife. This could only go badly.
Cutting a sizable piece of the apple, the nurse stepped over to Martha and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Observe," she stated simply.
In a shocking display of brutal speed, Elya roughly shoved the slice of apple into Martha Cain's throat, pushing it as far as it would go with two fingers. At once, the older Fallen began to choke and splutter, falling to her knees as she gasped for breath that wouldn't come.
"The most common cause of such incidents is eating too quickly, or taking a breath whilst swallowing. Quite dangerous," Elya stated calmly, watching as her victim clawed at her throat.
Martha's face began to go purple as she fell onto her side, much to the shock of the audience. Cobalt in particular was feeling rather weak. As much as he disliked Martha, he felt far from comfortable as he watched this display.
"If you come across somebody choking, first stand behind them," explained the nurse, stepping behind Martha.
Hoisting her to her feet, she steadied the choking woman and presented her palm.
"Administer five blows to the back."
She leaned her forward and repeatedly struck her with the heel of her palm, much to Martha's discomfort.
"Place your arms around them like so, lock your fist into your hand and perform five abdominal thrusts."
Cobalt could see the sadistic glint in Elya's eyes as she administered a series of purposefully weak Heimlich thrusts. Right as Martha's eyes began to roll back, the nurse finally rammed her fist into her abdomen with enough force to expell the chunk of apple right out onto the stage. Letting go, she allowed Martha to crumple to the floor, whereupon she calmly stepped over her and addressed the students.
"And so ends my presentation on how to save a life. I hope you utilise these techniques to stay out of my infirmary in future. Thank you."
With that, Elya gathered up her things and curtly left the stage, stepping over the barely-conscious form of her old core teacher. As the students whispered and murmured to each other, Cobalt stared wide-eyed at her.
Perhaps Elya was also trying to keep him safe, but in an entirely different way.
His whole body shuddered.
It wasn't a pleasant thought.