Quinn Redtile's transferal application was accepted within a matter of days, and before the week was out, the young Imp was sporting a navy uniform and had been granted a room in the girls' dorms. She was inducted into Class 2-F without much incident, and though Cobalt felt daunted at the prospect of having yet another rambunctious student added to his already riotous class, a part of him was relieved. Despite the odd circumstances that lead to their acquaintance, he found himself warming up to the Imp. She was cheeky, quick to joke and generally good fun. Her work ethic, on the other hand, left something to be desired, but such was to be expected. After all, it was no small secret that Cobalt had been placed in charge of second year's "problem class".

One merciful thing about working at B.I.D. was that it prided itself in being one of the only schools to offer regular Applied Demonics classes, which were hour-long sessions that her held three-times weekly. Every demon of their year would split into groups going by race, whereupon they would attend classes that focused on studying and practicing their unique abilities and magical talents. Of course, it just so happened that Cobalt's schedule lined up perfectly with these classes every Friday afternoon, granting him an hour's respite from the hectic day-to-day.

Sat atop the bleachers by the school's main sports track, the Incubus took a long sip of his tea and sighed as he watched the class unfolding down below. This week, the Golem Applied Demonics class were having practical lessons; learning how to manipulate stone and earth with their magic. So far, they had succeeded in tearing lumps out of the loam, but hadn't much luck in putting them back.

However, his good mood faded away as memories rushed back of his own time attending Applied Demonics. The sole Incubus in a class full of Succubi... humiliation wasn't even the worst of it.

"No sense in getting hung up on the past, Trayer," he murmured to himself, locking his fingers around his thermos.

A flutter of wings sounded from above him as a dark blur darted past his vision. Nearly leaping out of his skin, he stared wide-eyed at the raven that had just landed beside him. It stared at him with beady eyes for a moment before stretching its wings, displaying the odd red colouration of its feathers.

"Um... hello," Cobalt spoke after a moment of consideration.

The bird ruffled it's feathers.

"Alright?" it stated in an eerily familiar voice.

Before Cobalt could react, the raven abruptly exploded into a cloud of red smoke, scattering feathers all over the bleachers. Coughing, he opened his eyes to see none other than Quinn Redtile reclining beside him. Of course; Imps were capable of transforming themselves into animals, after all.

"Why aren't you in class, Miss Redtile?" he asked with a sigh.

She shrugged.

"We're practicing transformations, so I thought I'd get a bird's eye gander at the campus before I head back to the classroom. Saw you moping down here, and the rest is history," she quipped, flashing her teacher a grin.

Taking advantage of his brief distraction, the Imp snatched the flask right out of Cobalt's hands and took a deep swig. The smug look on her face was swiftly wiped off, however, as she spat the tea all over the bleachers in front of them.

"Eugh! This shit's minging!" Quinn exclaimed, spitting a glob of black spittle onto the ground.

Cobalt retrieved his flask.

"That's because I made it for myself, not to share. Anyway, while I have you; how are you finding school life?" the Incubus queried, safely stashing his tea inside his satchel.

Quinn pulled a face.

"It's school, what else is there to say? Work's boring, assignments are boring, and everything in-between is boring too. Still..."

Planting her hands on her hips, the diminutive demon stepped up onto the bleacher and gave a satisfied sigh as she surveyed the Golems practicing down below.

"I like it here."

Down at the sports track, the Golem Applied Demonics teacher - Anthony Bretzt - looked away from his students, only to lock gazes with Quinn. Baring his teeth, he pointed an accusing finger at her.

"HEY!" he barked, rushing towards the bleachers.

Quinn blanched.

"Ah fuck, he must have found out that bag of dog shit was from me. Gotta go, Mr. C!"

Turning on her heel, she darted off towards the main school building. For a demon with such short legs, Quinn was a surprisingly quick runner. Her brevity was not necessary, however, as it took Mr. Bretzt quite some time to heave his way up to Cobalt, whereupon he grabbed his knees and gasped for breath.

"Tricksy... little shit... ugh..." the Golem puffed, wiping the sweat off his forehead with a thick brown hand.

Swallowing hard, Cobalt offered him a hand.

"I, um... I am so sorry for my student's behaviour, Anthony," he mumbled, heart hammering quickly.

The Golem waved his apology away.

"You'll get a handle on them eventually. Been meaning to talk to you anyway. One of yours hasn't shown up for class this period."

"What? But they were all present this morning! Did you check the register?"

"Yeah, she was present every class since, but not this one. Deyeyr, I think her name was," Mr. Bretzt explained, scratching his bald spot.

This was bad news. The rest of the staff already considered Cobalt to be an unreliable amateur; he could ill afford to wind up losing one of his students. Slinging his satchel across his shoulder, he gave his fellow teacher a shaky nod.

"R- Right, I'll go make some enquiries," he said resolutely, though the pitch of his voice was a little less than reassuring.

Mr. Bretzt didn't dignify him with a response, and instead simply turned around and returned to his class. Heart hammering in his chest, Cobalt made his way down off the bleacher and went headed for the school, only for a short individual to step out from behind a low wall.

"Deyeyr, yeah? Think I know where she is," Quinn Retile stated, adjusting her cap.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Information'll cost you though."

The Imp held out her hand and waited. With a sigh, Cobalt pulled out his wallet and began rifling through it.

"I really can't have the other teachers thinking I'm any more incompetent than I already am..." he murmured, pulling out a bank note.

Quinn stared blankly as he placed it in her waiting hand.

"Oi, I was taking the piss, yeah?" she laughed, the corner of her mouth tugging upwards.

Cobalt sighed.

"Well, in that case I'll take it ba-"

"Saw her go into the changing rooms, didn't see her leave. Seeya teach!"

Money clenched tight in her hand, Quinn sprinted for the school, leaving her teacher alone in front of the sports field. With a weary sigh, he directed his gaze towards the changing rooms; little more than a small stone building squatting by the edge of the running track.

"Alright Miss Deyeyr, I won't tolerate truancy in my class..."

Straightening his back as well as he could, the Incubus marched across the sports field, eyes locked with the changing rooms. He was given a few strange looks by the nearby Golems, but he swallowed hard and did his best to ignore their staring. Steeling himself, he knocked upon the door to the girls' changing room.

"Hello? Anybody in there?" he called, pressing his ear against the door for a response.

A few seconds passed and nobody replied. However, as he was about to pull away, he heard the quiet sound of someone warbling. Just what was going on in there...?

"I- I'm coming in, okay?"

Slowly, he pushed the door open, flooding the chamber with light. What he saw was... not what he expected.

A single student lay upon on of the benches, snoring as she slumbered deeply. Her patchy brown skin told him that she was his missing Golem student, and judging by the state of her clothes, the demon of Sloth had fallen asleep halfway through changing. She had succeeded in somehow pulling her tracksuit bottoms on over one of her school shoes, while the other lay forgotten on the floor, exposing the cloven hooves she had in place of regular feet. Not only that, but she had neglected to even attempt to unbutton her shirt, and instead tried to pull it over her head, leaving her stomach exposed as she slept peacefully.

Gently, the Incubus sighed. Lottie Deyeyr. He had no words to describe the enigma that was her. Golems were known for sleeping often, but she really took the cake. She slumbered through nearly every lesson, and not even an airhorn was enough to wake her up sometimes.

He had bought one just to test that theory.

"Miss Deyeyr? Come on, wake up; Mr. Bretzt is looking for you," Cobalt called, clapping his hands.

She stirred a little, but simply shuffled about and slept on.

"Miss Deyeyr!"

Again, she moved, but did not awaken. Slowly, Cobalt took a deep breath.

"LOTTIE DEYEYR, WAKE UP THIS INSTANT!"

"AAH!" the Golem suddenly screamed, startling the pair of them.

Frightened awake by her teacher, the disheveled demon rolled off the bench and crashed to the floor, all tangled up in her own clothes. She kicked her legs and squirmed, but could do nothing to right herself.

"Aah! Everything's dark! Help!" Lottie cried in a slightly dopey tone.

"Pull your shirt down, it must be stuck on your horns."

"Who's there?! I can't see! Aah!"

With an exhausted sigh, Cobalt got to his knees and reached out.

"A- Alright, I'm just gonna hold your shoulders..." he said, gently placing his hands upon the Golem's arms.

She squealed at his touch and squirmed about on the floor, but with some encouragement from the Incubus, Lottie eventually stopped panicking and sat up.

"Okay, let's get you untangled."

"Are you a ghost?"

Cobalt stopped what he was doing, puzzled by his student's question.

"Uh, no. Why would I be a ghost?"

"Cuz ghosts are invincible."

"... Do you mean invisible?"

"Yah! And I can't see you, so you're invibible!"

"... right, in any case, I'm going to start pulling the cloth away. Is that alright?" Cobalt asked, swiftly deigning to ignore what she had just said.

Lottie gave an enthusiastic nod in reply, nearly smacking her face into his nose in the process. Slowly, the Incubus teased the cloth of her shirt away from the girl's horns, taking care not to rip the fabric. After a little patience, it came away, revealing her face.

Despite the fear she showed earlier, Lottie seemed none the worse for wear. The Golem beamed at him, her eyes sparkling behind her askew glasses. With a shake of her head, her curled silver locks adjusted themselves, while the question-mark-shaped cowlick atop her head wobbled to and fro.

"There you are. I take it you have things covered from here?" he sighed, taking a step back.

"Yah! Just gotta get my P.E. stuff!"

As she hopped over to her bag, however, Cobalt realised that Lottie's shirt hadn't just gotten caught on the short rocky horns jutting from her forehead. Now that he got a good look at her, he saw that her uniform shirt was too small for her, especially around the chest. Swiftly turning his gaze away, the Incubus cleared his throat and righted his tie.

"Erm, Lottie?" he asked, clasping his hands behind his back.

"Hi!"

"I think you really ought to speak to one of the housekeepers about getting a new uniform. Yours seems to be a little tight."

"Nah, it's fine! Look, look!"

Turning around, Cobalt raised an eyebrow as the Golem put her arms up and giggled. However, as soon as she took a breath, the strained shirt buttons finally gave out. With a ping, one of them shot forward like a bullet from a gun, connecting directly with the her poor teacher's forehead. The force of impact was enough to knock him off his feet, throwing the Incubus back and causing him to crack the back of his head off the stone floor. The last thing he heard was Lottie's Deyeyr's voice calling his name before his world blurred and faded to black.

------

Cobalt groaned in his sleep, shifting about uncomfortably as a heavy weight pressed down upon his chest. The bed he was lying in felt surprisingly soft, and as he took a deep breath, the Incubus realised that the air smelled distinctly like disinfectant. The back of his head throbbed as he slowly peeled his eyes open, wincing a little as harsh fluorescent light bore down on him from above.

"What the...?"

Surrounded by drawn curtains, the Incubus dully realised that he was lying in a bed in the school's infirmary. For a moment he wondered when the nurse finally transferred in, but his thoughts were quickly disrupted when the heavy lump on his chest shifted a little.

"Wha... Lottie...?" he murmured, rubbing his eyes.

True enough, the gentle form of Lottie Deyeyr sat in a chair by his bed, silently snoring as a trail of drool leaked from the side of her mouth and onto Cobalt's shirt. One way or another, the Golem had finally managed to put on her tracksuit semi-correctly; the jacket was on inside-out and the t-shirt was back-to-front, but at least she was clothed. Small mercies.

"Um... Miss Deyeyr...?" the Incubus whispered, softly prodding her.

"Maah...mm..." she warbled in reply.

As he made to prod her harder, Lottie suddenly snorted herself awake. Meeting her teacher's gaze, she pushed her glasses up the bridge of her nose and broke into a wide grin.

"Mr. Traya! You're alive!"

She launched herself forward, wrapping his head in a constricting hug. With her chest pressed firm against his face, it took every ounce of willpower for him not to suffocate right then and there.

"Y- Yes, I suppose I am. And it's pronounced Trayer, not Tra-" he began, only for the scatterbrained Golem to hop out her seat and jump for joy.

"You fell asleep on the floor, so I carried to the infirarry! Your head was all sticky and icky!" she giggled, pointing to the bandage wrapped tight around his head.

Frowning, Cobalt reached back and lightly pressed his fingers against his head. It throbbed in response, and when he pulled back, he saw that they were lightly daubed with blood. Must have been a nasty fall...

"Well, thank you... Um, if you don't mind me asking, who exactly patched me up?" asked the Incubus, sitting up in the bed.

"The nursie lady! I'll go get her!"

With that, Lottie bolted out through the curtains, knocking the chair over with a flailing arm as she did so. While he waited, Cobalt swung his legs over the side of the bed and took a deep breath. It had been a long time since he ended up in the infirmary quite like this, and that was back when a certain Fallen was there to attend to every scrape and bump he had. She liked to help out the school nurse, for some reason, and carried a first aid kit at all times, as well as a pack of bandages she always kept strapped to her thigh. Of course, that was before she went completely insa-

"Found her!" announced Lottie, gallivanting back through the curtain.

Another individual stepped in with her, dressed in a pristine nurse's uniform and carrying a clipboard. But as Cobalt made to introduce himself, his words caught in the back of his throat. Despite the steel-rimmed spectacles and little cross-bearing hat she wore, there was no doubting the identity of the woman standing before him.

"E- E- Elya...?!" he gasped, scrambling back into the bed.

Surprisingly, her face looked calm. Licking her fingers, she flipped a few pages on her clipboard and began scrawling something in pen.

"Lucid and reactive... good. You suffered some minor trauma to the back of your head, Mr. Trayer. How are you feeling?" she asked in a matter-of-fact tone, clasping the board beneath her arm.

He just blinked dumbly. Elya was... calm. Composed, even. And most shocking of all; clothed.

"I, uh... I- I'm fine now... Th- Thank you for taking care of me, but I really have to-"

"Excellent. Before you return to your duties, I have just a few more tests to ensure you are in good health. Miss Deyeyr, could you excuse us...?" the Fallen asked, glancing over at Lottie.

Despite her teacher's silent pleads, the Golem nodded enthusiastically.

"Okay! Bye-bye Mr. Traya!"

Waving over her shoulder, she skipped out of the infirmary and down the hall, humming tunelessly to herself. Her footsteps sounded uneven, and as Cobalt glanced over at the retreating Golem, he noticed that she had neglected to put her other shoe on, causing her left hoof to clack noisily against the linoleum. At once, the warmth seemed to be sucked out of the room as Elya's face darkened. Striding over to the door, she shut and locked it, stashing the key within her breast pocket. She sighed deeply, before reaching down and pulling Immoderata from her stocking.

"I had such hopes for you, my love. But again, I find you in the arms of a deceiver. Will you never learn?" the Fallen spoke, her voice returning to it's usual montone.

Cobalt grasped the bedsheets fearfully.

"Sh- She was just helping me! A- And since when were you fit to be a school nurse?!" he squeaked, bringing his knees up to his chest.

Elya laughed coldly and slipped a shoulder off her uniform.

"I've learned things in your absence, my love..." she hissed, running her tongue across the flat of the blade.

The Fallen stretched one expansive wing and flicked the light switch, bathing the sterile infirmary in inky gloom.

"But perhaps you raise a good point. The Deyeyr woman aided you in your time of need, and wasted not a second in leaving. I shall stay my blade from her throat..."

"Oh thank-"

"... on one condition."

His heart sank, but if it was to keep his students safe, Cobalt was willing to put up with whatever she had planned. Exhaling deeply, he nodded.

"Alright. Let's hear it" he mumbled, already regretting his decision.

At once, Elya slipped off her skirt and tossed her top aside, revealing to the Incubus just what he had suspected; that she wore no underclothes. Pushing him down onto the bed, she placed a cold hand upon his throat.

"Spend a night with me here. We need not exert ourselves, and as the day has come to a close, we shan't be interrupted. Surely you wouldn't push away another opportunity to slumber in my arms, would you, my love?" she breathed, bringing her lips close to his ear.

The first time was bad enough; despite his exhaustion from the class' day out in London, Cobalt didn't sleep a wink that night, as Elya's wandering hands had kept him cautiously awake. But he liked to think himself a resolute man, and despite his misgivings, the Incubus was not about to put Lottie in harms way after what she did to help him. So, with a resigned sigh, he reluctantly opened his arms.

"A- Alright..."

She was on him in a flash. With icy, practiced fingers, Elya stripped the shirt from her captive before locking her legs tight around his waist. Dagger clutched tight in one hand, she reached up with the other to stroke Cobalt's hair.

"I could get used to this, my love," the Fallen whispered in an insidious tone.

Cobalt could only bite his tongue and squeeze his eyes shut. The night - though long - was finite.