The water level of the silver bathtub reached and leveled itself at Ashton's neck. With thick soap bubbles floating about near the surface, it disguised what she needed to disguise. She wasn't blessed with a feminine frame, but being a knight always seemed to be better than being a married woman, so she didn't really care for it.<br/><br/>"Well... contingencies," said Ashton ponderously. "Amaya, Eve, Aris and Nathaniel." The knight raised a finger to her chin. What would she do if any of them were to pose a threat?<br/><br/>"Hard to judge without first knowing their strength, Ash," replied Roy. He lounged on the floor right next to the door of the room.<br/><br/>Ashton had always thought Nathaniel, the demon, to be the greatest potential threat amongst all of them. But what if she was wrong? Was there a risk-free way of finding out?<br/><br/>"Are you alright, brother?" asked Ashton. "I can hear your breathing. You didn't even use a sword today."<br/><br/>Roy forced a smile and coughed, shutting his eyes. "Well... I never really recovered," he said. His eyes looked at Ashton with melancholy as he raised a hand to the right side of his chest and rubbed it.<br/><br/>"Damn that Robert," hissed Ashton.<br/><br/>"And for the sins of one man and the charity of another, you have taken an entire family from Earth." Roy sucked in a deep breath of air and burst into a coughing fit.<br/><br/>"How long have you been holding that in?!" Ashton shot up from the tub and rushed to Roy's side, the water still running off her body. Sitting down next to him, she allowed Roy to rest his head on her shoulder.<br/><br/>"I... fear I do not deserve such... kindness," he whispered. Ashton stroked Roy's face with a finger and shook her head.<br/><br/>"No. You, Jonas and father have done no wrong."<br/><br/>"Will you forgive... me for allowing my sister to shoulder the sins of scheming men?" Roy turned towards Ashton and smiled weakly.<br/><br/>-----<br/><br/>Ashton moaned, rolling about in what felt like soft sheets.<br/><br/>"Hmm... my bed," she mumbled.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Wait, why am I in my bed? From the bath?!</span><br/><br/>Ashton sat up and placed a hand on her chest. Flat. Someone put her chest sash on for her. Moonlight rays shone through the glass, gently illuminating the blanket covering her legs.<br/><br/>Was it Roy who brought her here? Was he even well enough to?<br/><br/>"Greetings, my lord."<br/><br/>Ashton turned to her right, staring right in the face of Capet. "C-Capet?" she gasped. Did he find out?<br/><br/>Guy bowed and smiled. He always smiled in a pleasing fashion, but this smile unnerved Ashton this time. It was the sort of smile that looked polite and omniscient at the same time.<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">He probably knows.</span><br/><br/>"My lord. Demon hunters will be coming here by the mornin-"<br/><br/>"Demon hunters?!" yelled Ashton. Her eyes widened with horror. What if they found out about Nathaniel? What would happen to her name and status?<br/><br/>Capet's smile dropped, and he looked quizzically at Ashton. "<span style="font-style: italic">Are</span>we sheltering a demon?"<br/><br/>Ashton looked at Capet silently, then nodded.<br/><br/>A smile came back to his face. "There's two solutions. Kill the demon, or the demon hunters. They aren't elite demon hunters, so they couldn't be too difficult, my lord." Capet spoke nonchalantly, as if he was reading off an inventory list. "Their silver weapons, while excellent against demons, will not be the match of steel."<br/><br/>"Just... poison them," Ashton sighed, lying back on her bed. "And... is Roy okay?"<br/><br/>"Yes, my lord. I retrieved him after I brought you back. He is resting."<br/><br/>(To be continued)