Cobalt huffed through his speaker, "Well..." he sighed, "This sucks..."

He was in a locked room with no windows. He thought he was somewhere in Axiom City, but he honestly had no idea. He barely had any light, too. All he had was his sketchpad, a few pencils, and a classic gameboy with an old game in it. He'd gotten bored with that pretty fast. There wasn't anything around him to sketch, and drawing Cassandra a hundred times was also getting old.

Why couldn't he just...like...fight? With his family?

"COBALT!"

"Huh!?" He slid down the wall where he was lounging, hitting his head on the concrete ground, "Ow! Cassy!?"

"Cobalt!" Cassandra threw open the door to the room, "You have to come quick! V-Gr is in the hospital!"

"What!?" Cobalt jumped up, rubbing his head as he ran out.

"Come on! He's this way!"

EVE put her hand on the machine that was keeping V-GR alive. His servo pump was working too hard still, even though his body had been put in a freezer to try and stop the melting of the metal. It was so bad that he had to be cut open and his circuit boards had to be removed, his inner casing having been flushed out and smoothed out. He barely had any brain activity at this moment.

"Dad!?"

EVE swung her head around, "Cobalt!?"

"Oh no!" Cobalt hurried into the room, "What happened to him!?"

"His servo caught on fire." Willow said solemnly, "I tried to tell him not to overwork himself! Now look what he's done!"

"M-Mom..." Cobalt took his father's hand. It was scorching.

"It's not fair!" Willow tried to stop herself from crying again, as she'd already done that.

"It's okay, Wil...hush..." EVE stroked her daughter's back.

Cobalt began to feel sick to his stomach. He knew why his father was working hard; it was for him. If he didn't exist, then his dad wouldn't be here right now, struggling to stay alive.

"Coby..." Willow said, "Come here..."

"Huh?" Cobalt blinked, clearing his vision. He lifted his mother in his arms, which he'd only done a few other times. He let himself lean against the bed as he cried.

Cobalt stared at V-GR, sound asleep, "Was this my fault...?"

"What?" Willow looked up into her son's eyes, "Cobalt, this was most definitely not your fault."

"B-but...he didn't do this to himself...until..."

"I'm gonna stop you right there." Willow cut him off, "He did this because he didn't feel he was strong enough to protect us. If anything, it was our fault for falling in love."

He blinked again, "But that wasn't your fault..."

"You didn't choose to be born, did you?" Willow pointed out, "And besides, he definitely didn't need to push himself this hard, he was already strong. This was his own fault."

He didn't push the subject after that, but he did feel a little bit better.

EVE sighed, "Cobalt, you need to get back to the hidden room. It's not safe for you out here."

"I don't really care about that right now..." Cobalt replied with angry tears, "I want to be here with my dad..."

"It's not like they stand a chance against you, Mom." Willow glanced at EVE, "Let him stay?"

"Ugh." EVE shook her head, "You will be the end of me one day, you know that?"

Willow giggled through her sad tears, "I know...I know..."

A gentle breeze came through the open window as Cobalt cradled his mother in his arms. V-GR's breathing stayed sharp and rhythmic in the silence of the hospital room, each breath sounding like it would be his last.

Cassandra watched the sky from the hospital roof, waiting for any signs of a galactic spaceship. She was worried, not just for Cobalt, but for her adoptive parents. The sun set as she thought about this, terrified that her past was catching up with her. She thought she was free, she had no idea they would come back.

She knew how to ward them off, but she didn't know how much time it could buy them. She spun her skeleton key absently in her hands, the anxiety getting to her as she shivered. She rubbed her hands together to try and warm them.

"Hey! Cass!"

"Huh?" she looked over the edge of the building, where Cobalt was hidden under the shadow cast by the rough stucco walls.

He frowned, "What are you doing out here?"

Cassandra brought both knees to her chest, "I'm making sure the ship isn't gonna take you before V-Gr wakes up. I want to help too."

Cobalt let the silence hang around them, the stars beginning to come into view, "Mom doesn't want you outside."

"I don't care." Cassandra pouted, "They can't hurt me anyway. I'm the last link in the royal family."

"Still. You shouldn't be on the roof. And besides, you need to sleep."

Cassandra let out a breath of air she'd been holding in her cheeks, "I can stay up."

Cobalt sighed, leaning back into the building.

It was a couple more tense moments before Cassandra spoke again, "How's your dad?"

Cobalt crossed his arms, "Still asleep. His fever has stabilized though, so that's good. Mom won't leave his side. I saw her trying to curl up in his arms, but one of the nurses forbade it, so she's just on the edge of the bed." he spoke with sad, maroon-colored eyes, "I can't be outside much longer. Come back inside? Please?"

"No." Cassandra replied stubbornly, "Not until V-Gr is better."

"You're gonna be out here all night!" Cobalt huffed in exasperation. He turned to rest his arm against the building, the roughness of the wall feeling gritty against his alloy. He shakily took a breath of air, "Listen...I understand that you just want to help, but I'm not going anywhere, and neither is Mom or Dad." he explained, "You can still help without being on the lookout."

She considered this. If she was outside, she could see the threat sooner, but it's not like it took her long to engage her weapon. She could do that on a whim if needed.

"Please?" Cobalt put his hands on his hips, his forehead clinking against the edge of the roof, "I don't want Mom to worry even more..."

He was still and silent after that, but it wasn't long before he heard whooshing past his ear.

"Well, are you coming in or not?"

Cobalt laughed, jumping after her, "Hey! Wait up!"