“We’re here, Mr. Trayer.”

Snorting himself awake, Cobalt yawned and rubbed his eyes. Unsticking the side of his face from the car’s window, he shook his head and gazed blearily at Gulliver through the rearview mirror. Noticing that the car had stopped, he wiped the condensation off window and squinted through it.

They were parked on the driveway of an ornate manor house built into the side of a hill on the outskirts of Brimstone. It was clear to see that it was a recent construction; it was all Roman columns and marble fronting, but the stone was bright and unweathered. Blanketed in a thick layer of snow, it almost blinded Cobalt to look at. As he gawked at the Brode’s home, Gulliver stepped out of the car and opened the door for him, bowing politely as the Incubus stumbled out into the snow.

“No need to be nervous, sir. Most of the staff has returned home for the holidays, but I assure you I am more than capable of doing the work of a hundred men. Heh, oftentimes I do anyway,” the Nymph quipped, adjusting Cobalt’s tie for him.

“A- Ah… I’m not so nervous about that, just… Are you sure Charles Brode wants me here?” he asked, remembering the scathing letter he received from Whitney’s father the previous year.

Gulliver nodded understandingly.

“Fear not, Mr. Trayer; I’m sure it’s all water beneath the bridge now. Allow me to get the door for you.”

Marching up the steps to the ebony double doors, Cobalt took a deep breath of the cold air and let it out slowly.

“You do something to piss off that Nymph girl’s dad?” Lilith asked curiously.

“Apparently,” Cobalt whispered beneath his breath.

“… You didn’t sleep with her, did you?”

“No, I didn’t sleep with her! I just told her to follow her own path!”

“And he didn’t like that?”

“It’s a complicated situation.”

“Mr. Trayer? Are you alright?” Gulliver called from up ahead as he dutifully held the front doors open.

“Y- Yes! Coming now!”

Taking care not to slip on the frosty marble steps, the Incubus hastily wiped the snow off his clothes as he stepped into the Brode’s lavish front hall. The décor was a cacophony of silvers and golds with dozens of bespoke paintings and portraits decorating the walls. A glittering chandelier hung from the ceiling, bathing the already-overwhelming entranceway with a kaleidoscope of shining light. Cobalt did his best not to visibly recoil when he stepped inside, remembering just how important light and decadence is for Nymphs. A spiral staircase sat in the centre of the hall, leading to an elegant upper landing. By the far wall, opposite the front door, was a massive painting of the Brode family; Charles, Juliet and Whitney herself. The Nymph was still sporting long, golden hair in the picture, and her smile looked strained.

As soon as his eyes adjusted to the light, however, it became clear to Cobalt that not all was well in the Brode house. Cardboard boxes lay stacked against the walls, and there were a few bare spots on the wall were paintings and decorations had been taken down.

Whitney’s parents were still separating, then…

“Ready, sir?” Gulliver asked, the light glinting off the lenses of his shades.

Cobalt swallowed hard and nodded.

“As ready as I’ll ever be, I suppose.”

“Capital.”

Clearing his throat, the butler took a step forward and clasped his hands behind his back.

“Presenting Mr. Cobalt Atticus Trayer! Otherwise known as the Iron Hound, Brimstone's homegrown hero and our own Miss Whitney's core teacher!" the butler announced at the top of his lungs, his voice echoing throughout the entire house.

"Um, just Cobalt is fine," the Incubus whispered to Gulliver, his cheeks burning at such a grand entrance.

"Of course, sir."

The sound of expensive shoes clacking against expensive wood flooring rang out from the house's second floor as a Nymph appeared at the top of the stairs, dressed in a luxurious gown that looked to cost more than Cobalt's entire net worth. Her hair was as golden as the many bangles she wore, and had it not been tidied up into an extensive braid, it likely would have trailed along the floor behind her. With a glittering smile, she gave Cobalt a polite wave.

"So good to finally meet you, Mr. Trayer!" she called in a sing-song voice, her rings clacking against the banister as she descended the stairs.

"G- Good to meet you too, um..."

He glanced at Gulliver.

"You can call her Juliet."

"... Juliet," Cobalt concluded, glancing back at his student's mother.

"Oh Mr. Trayer, how informal!" the lady of the house chuckled.

"S- Sorry, I misspoke!" the Incubus quickly stammered.

He stared desperately at Gulliver, who just signaled for him to calm down. Reaching the bottom floor, Juliet Brode adjusted her gown and glided over to her guest, whereupon her faithful butler carefully whispered something into her ear. She raised an eyebrow for a moment before nodding understandingly and presenting her hand.

"Let's start again then, Cobalt. I'm Juliet, Whitney's mother. Charmed to meet you," she said in a much more casual tone of voice.

Gazing at her hand, the Incubus glanced over at Gulliver, who mimed kissing it. Pulling a face, he just took the Nymph's hand and shook it as firmly as he could.

"Thank you for having me. Sorry, I'm just a little scattered."

"No worries at all. I'm sure Gulliver didn't mean to just spring this on you."

"Terribly sorry, sir," the man in question said, bowing politely, "I meant to cause you no distress."

"No time for apologies, Gulliver; don't you have a meal to prepare for our guest?"

"Right away, ma'am."

Glancing over the rims of his sunglasses, he gave Cobalt a reassuring wink before bowing out of the front hall, leaving the Incubus alone with his employer. Clearing his throat, he forced on a smile and looked back to Juliet, who's face hadn't moved in the slightest.

"I suppose I must apologise for the suddenness of the invitation," she said with a light laugh, clasping her hands before her.

"Oh no, I understand. It's been a rough few days for everyone. I- I mean, I'm sure it's been particularly tough for you and Mr. Brode."

At the mention of Whitney's father, Juliet's smile wavered just a little.

"Ah, well... Charles is... a busy man regardless, so..."

She shook her head.

"But never mind that. This dinner was my idea. I wanted to thank the man who saved my dearest Whitney up close and in person."

Reaching across, she suddenly grasped Cobalt's hands tightly and gazed deep into his eyes.

"So allow me to thank you, Cobalt. For saving our dear little girl's life."

"Pah! He didn't save anything!" a booming voice suddenly yelled, startling the Incubus.

He whipped his head around to a door behind Juliet, where a man was leaning. His suit was as austere as Juliet's gown was ostentatious, and his hard gaze and fine moustache told Cobalt that this was not a man to be messed with. Folding a newspaper underneath his arm, Charles Brode stormed over to the Incubus and narrowed his eyes.

"I want this man out of my house," he hissed.

Cobalt took a nervous step back.

"Charles. Mind your tone. 'This man' saved your daughter's life," Juliet snapped, shoving her estranged husband aside.

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"Only after he ruined it!"

"Let's not restart this argument, shall we?"

Placing a hand on the Incubus' shoulder, she suddenly linked arms with him, much to his surprise.

"Now, Cobalt; allow me to show you to the dining room," Juliet said in a much more pleasant tone.

"He is not sitting at my table! Juliet! Get back here right now!"

Pointedly ignoring his indignant cries, she dragged Cobalt through a doorway and down a lavish hall. All he could do was stumble over his own feet in an effort to keep up with her, and hope that the ensuing dinner wasn't going to be any more awkward than that.

-----

To Gulliver's credit, he was an excellent cook. The first course were some manner of croquettes, and they smelled absolutely delicious. They were a perfect golden-brown, and their crispy coatings made a satisfying crunching noise whenever Cobalt cut one of them open. However, as soon as he tried to eat one, his tastebuds were assaulted with the dry, claggy taste of bland ash. He struggled to force them down, his knuckles whitening around his cutlery as he chewed.

"So, Cobalt, how are things back at B.I.D.?" Juliet asked from the other end of the table, elegantly popping her food into her mouth.

He glanced up. The Brode's dining room was massive in scale, and their table looked as though it was large enough to seat Cobalt's entire core class with room to spare. Juliet sat far at the leftmost end of the table, while Charles was seated on the far right, glaring daggers at Cobalt as he picked at his foot. A fourth chair sat just across from him, but despite the pristine plate of food served before it, it was empty.

"Good, for the most part. Everyone's mostly gone home for the holidays; it's just a handful of us staying over for the winter," he responded, having to raise his voice a little in order for them to hear him.

Charles scoffed.

"Nowhere better to go?" he quipped, sipping his wine.

"N- No, I just prefer the peace and quiet of an empty campus."

He sneered at the Incubus' response, but didn't offer any reply. Swallowing hard, Cobalt returned his attention to his food as the dining room was plunged into an uncomfortable silence.

"Yeesh. This bites," Lilith remarked.

Cobalt subtly nodded in agreement.

"How're you holding up, kid?"

She was doing it again. Asking him if he was okay. It was a little off-putting, but not unwelcome.

"I, uh... just wanted to make sure. What I said down in that human's place... Probably a lot to swallow."

Cobalt nodded again. It certainly was a lot of information to process. Which was why he was doing himself the favour of just not processing it.

"So... just..."

"You don't have to say anything. I get it," he whispered beneath his breath.

"Right. Uh... thanks, kid."

"Did you say something?" Juliet asked.

"Huh? O- Oh, no, sorry. I was just clearing my throat."

Staring hard at his food, Cobalt bit his lip. While he certainly appreciated the Brodes' hospitality, he honestly wished he could be anywhere else. He would have preferred just a message delivered by Gulliver or even just another letter. It would be impersonal, yes, but at least it wouldn't put him on the spot like this.

After an agonisingly long first course, the butler in question stepped into the dining room and gathered up their plates, refilled their drinks and swapped out their cutlery before announcing that the main course was on its way.

Cobalt didn't know how much of this he was going to be able to take.

At the other end of the table, Juliet sighed and checked her watch.

"She should be down by now..." she sighed.

Charles tutted.

"What do you expect? She's always late to dinner."

"But never this late. I should check on her."

"Leave her be, woman! She's just being difficult."

"Difficult?! Charles, she lost her-!"

Juliet cut herself off. Frowning, she took a deep breath before continuing.

"... she's having a rough time. But she shouldn't be locked in her room!" she said, sounding a little more choked up.

Her ex-husband-to-be looked away, his own glare softening.

"Yes, well... that's not what I'm talking about. She's had an attitude problem ever since 'someone' got into her head," he replied, staring pointedly at Cobalt.

"Charles!"

"What?! We send her off with this new teacher, and she comes back with blue hair and-!"

"Charles! Not in front of company!" Juliet snapped, slamming her fist down on the table.

He growled and folded his arms as Gulliver returned with a quartet of plates expertly balanced in his arms. As he served up some kind of baked vegetable dish, Cobalt found himself sinking deeper into his chair.

"Bear with it. They really are thankful, Cobalt. Just a little... uptight," the butler whispered as he adjusted the cutlery.

"I'll try..."

"Capital. I told Whitney you were here. That seemed to perk her up a little."

His frown deepened. Cobalt hadn't seen Whitney since the incident with Epsilon. By the time he was lucid enough to get out of his hospital, she had already been taken home. All he had to go on were the stories the hospital staff told each other when they thought he wasn't listening. Apparently it took a long time for the Nymph to come to terms with her situation, and her screams were supposedly haunting...

He knew that fact well enough.

The main course passed in an equally uncomfortable silence, and would have ended in one too had it not been for Juliet suddenly speaking up once she had cleaned her plate.

"So, Cobalt, Charles and I were discussing the B.I.D.'s funding situation before you arrived," she announced, dabbing her face with a napkin.

"No. End of story," Charles said abruptly, setting his cutlery aside.

She gave him an icy stare.

"And we believe it's about time we've starting supporting the school once more."

"You believe that, and that's only because-"

"Charles!"

"No, I'm tired of this discussion! That man turned our daughter against us - against everything we've built for her - and you expect me to just-"

This time, he interrupted himself as he noticed a figure appear in the dining room doorway.

"O- Oh, Whitney. Good to see you up, darling. You're just in time for dessert," Charles Brode stuttered, sitting back in his chair.

Cobalt looked up from his dinner.

Whitney... she was in a bad way. He could tell that just from a glance. The Nymph was shrouded in a baggy, oversized hoodie with the hood drawn up over her head, casting shadows over her face. As ever, Cobalt could only make out one of her eyes, but it was easy to see the dark rings beneath them, betraying her lack of sleep. Slowly, she looked around the table before settling her gaze onto her teacher.

"Sir? What're you doing here?" she asked in an unusually quiet voice.

"Your parents invited me over. It's, um... It's good to see you safe, Whitney," he told her with a smile.

She tried to return the gesture, but visibly struggled to do so.

"You too..."

"Will you be joining us, honey?" Juliet asked in a concerned voice.

She thought for a moment before nodding slowly and taking a seat in front of Cobalt. As Gulliver brought out fruit tarts for them to enjoy, the Incubus saw Whitney struggle to manage her fork in her left hand. The right remain by her side, concealed by her thick top.

"I've got some assignments upstairs. Got them done yesterday," Whitney said, barely touching her food.

Cobalt shook his head.

"Whitney, what matters right now is rest and recovery. Everything else can wait," he told her in a gently voice.

Charles nodded.

"I hate to admit it, but he's right. Health first, everything second," he announced, wiping some strawberry jam off his chin.

"He has a point," Juliet concurred.

Whitney looked into Cobalt's eyes. Her own was quivering.

"Sorry sir."

"Don't apologise. You're okay."

"I just... want everything to go back to how it was..."

Cobalt sighed. He felt the same way.

"I know, Whitney. I know..."

Juliet suddenly cleared her throat, drawing all eyes back to her.

"On the subject of B.I.D., Charles and I have reached an agreement on another matter," she said, neatly cutting into her tart.

As she began to speak, Whitney looked away.

"Brimstone has, well... It's just not safe anymore, is it? What with all these Devil attacks and whatnot. Not to discredit the great work that you've done for us all, Cobalt, but the fact of the matter is-"

"We're pulling Whitney out," Charles interrupted.

Cobalt's eyes widened. He turned to look at the girl in question, but she just kept her eyes on the floor.

"But it's her final year! These last few months are crucial!" he cried.

"I understand that, but I assure you that we'll be able to handle her education from here. I already have a selection of Aporue's best tutors picked out."

He knew that if Whitney's parents wanted to pull her out of the school, then he was in no position to stop them. But that didn't stop Cobalt from trying to convince them otherwise.

"With all due respect, have you asked her about this?" he queried, looking from one Brode to the other.

Charles sighed.

"This is for her own good. You can't rightly expect her to attend school with the one arm, can you?"

"Charles, that's enough!" Juliet cried.

"What?! It's the truth! She's safer here, where she's with her family and away from any bad influences!"

Across from Cobalt, Whitney murmured something beneath her breath, but he couldn't quite make it out.

"Bad influences?! You're one to talk! You want your own daughter to be a lingerie model!"

"We've expanded our range, it's not just lingerie! And why not?! I'm not about to teach my daughter to be ashamed of herself! Not to mention there's good money in it!" Charles retorted, jabbing a finger at Juliet.

"Oh, because it's always about money with you! Where's the dignity?! The freedom?! She needs a creative outlet, for crying out loud!"

"So you'd have her become a spinster!"

"That's 'fashion designer' to you!"

Something flashed in front of Cobalt. As the unhappy couple's argument grew louder and louder, he noticed that the fork in Whitney's hand had begun to vibrate. He tried to ask her if she was okay, but a sudden spark of electricity shot out from the utensil.

"Enough..." she mumbled, her knuckles whitening around the fork.

"You can delude yourself all you want, Juliet, but you are not dragging her down with you!" Charles yelled, leaping out of his chair.

Juliet did the same, knocking her glass over.

"She has a talent, Charles! And you'd rather have her waste that talent by flaunting herself with the rest of the mindless bimbos you employ!"

"How dare you!"

"Oh I dare!"

Cobalt began to panic as electricity began to flow all over Whitney's skin, sparking and flashing as her parents fought. He tried to reach for her, but was met with a painful shock.

This wasn't good. He had seen this happen enough times with the others, but with the Brodes too engrossed in their argument, neither of them noticed.

"I can't make them stop," Whitney breathed, her voice sounding like television static.

"Whitney, stay calm, okay?" Cobalt pleaded, reaching over to her again.

She shook her head and stepped out of her chair.

"I can't. I- I'm sorry."

"Whitney, wait!"

She was outbursting...!

"I'll make it so you get your wishes. I- I'll be what you both want!" the Nymph cried, clenching her fist as lightning flashed all around her.

The lights began to flicker as an electric hum began to emanate from all around. She was glowing brighter by the second, enough to snap her parents out of their spat. They both stared at her with wide eyes, unsure of what was happening.

Whitney sighed shakily and wiped her streaming eye.

"Sorry I wasn't good enough, sir," she said with a sad smile.

Panic, fear, paranoia... Cobalt had seen outbursts triggered by all of those emotions. But the look in Whitney's eyes was a look of sheer and utter defeat. He had never seen despair like it.

But he wasn't about to abandon her. As the light from her energised body grew blinding, Cobalt kicked off his chair and leaped towards the Nymph, fixing to take the brunt of the outburst upon himself. For a split second, everything went silent as the air seemed to suck itself right out of the room.

The next, Whitney Brode detonated in an explosion of light, shaking the foundations with a mighty thunderclap. Blinded and deafened, the Incubus felt himself knocked back by the shockwave. He struck the wall, then the table, and then the floor.

Consciousness failed him by the time the third second passed.