It had been good to be able to relax again. With Astra recovering well and semester break fast approaching, the energy around Beacon had finally calmed down, and Cobalt found it to be a relief. Ordinary days like today were what he enjoyed, nothing out of the ordinary, no stress, just the freedom to spend time with the people he cared about.

"Got any…twos?"

Cobalt sighed and handed his last card over to Astra. "How are you so could at every card game?"

Astra laid down her new pairs of cards, freeing her hand. "Don't forget, Cobalt, you're dealing with a pro," she reminded him, "I've been doing this since I was four."

"I remember that you used to make bets back at Titan," Storm said, "You must have emptied the pockets of every kid there at least once."

"And then nobody wanted to play cards with me anymore," Astra sighed. "So disappointing."

It was just Cobalt and Storm visiting Astra today. Storm had been doing good on his promise to spend more time with Astra, and Cobalt figured it was a lot easier to do so when it was just the three of them, as opposed to being there with all of Team LLAC.

The game won, Astra gathered the cards and placed the deck on the little table next to her with a sigh. "Now what? You guys up for a board game?"

Cobalt glanced at the clock on the wall. "I don't think I can stay for too much longer," he admitted, "Coco wanted to have tea with me at four." Why, he wasn't sure. The two of them tended to catch up whenever they saw each other, so it seemed weird to Cobalt that Coco would schedule a specific time to do so. What was so important that needed to be discussed?

Astra's face fell. "Aw. Luna can't come in for another hour. What am I supposed to do 'til then?"

Storm reached out and gave her a pat on the shoulder. "Don't worry, I'll keep you entertained," he assured her, "We can talk about trans stuff."

Astra smirked at him. "What, like we have nothing else in common?"

Storm looked flustered. "N-no! I'm sure we do! I just happen to have trans stuff I wanted to talk about."

Astra leaned forward, chin in her hands. "Oh, yeah?"

Cobalt was curious too. Storm didn't often bring up trans stuff with him, probably because it wasn't something Cobalt could personally relate to, but he did appreciate knowing what was going on.

Storm shifted in his chair. "Well, um," he started, "I was wondering where you were getting your estrogen doses in Vale. I assume you found a new clinic when you moved here?"

"Oh, I go to Gemini," Astra told him. "Why, you looking for a change?"

Storm nodded. "I've been thinking about it for the past couple of weeks, and I think I've been feeling female for a while now."

"I getcha," Astra nodded knowingly, "So, she/her then?"

"Yep," Storm confirmed. Her voice was higher and softer now; Cobalt realized she was using her Semblance. "If you guys could help me to spread the word, that'd be great."

Cobalt grinned at her. "Sure," he hesitated for a moment. "Can I ask though, if it's okay- is there any particular reason you want to switch to estrogen? Won't you want to change again after a few months?"

Storm shrugged. "To be totally honest, I don't usually shift as often as I have this year," she admitted. "I'm guessing switching to a new school made me want to shake things up a bit, but I usually only shift every couple of years or so. I mostly want to start estrogen so that I don't have to use my Semblance too often."

"Do you really feel like you need to change your voice for people to accept you as female?"

Storm chuckled at him. "It's not for other people," she assured him, "It's more comfortable for me. Just like how not all women wear makeup for the sake of societal acceptance. It's just what feels right for them."

"Don't worry about it too much, Cobalt," Astra piped up. "Trust Storm to know what she's doing when it comes to her own gender."

There was the slightest hint of scolding in her voice, and Cobalt felt his ears warm with shame. "Sorry," he said to Storm. "Did I overstep?"

Thankfully, Storm's response was to pull him close. "Don't worry," she assured him with a kiss on the head. "Your heart was in the right place. Astra's right though, I know what I'm doing."

"Right," Cobalt felt sheepish. "Sorry."

Storm ruffled the hair between his ears. "You already said that," she teased. "Now, don't you have a tea to get to?"

Cobalt jumped, glancing at the clock again. "Shit, right." He scrambled to his feet. "I'll see you guys later. Have fun talking about trans stuff!" Hurrying out of the room, he made his way through the corridor and started making his way towards the school's pavilion.

He still wasn't sure what was so important that Coco had felt the need to schedule a time to talk to him about it. She was usually so confident and so sure of herself that she was happy to drop news on him at any given time, so the fact that she wanted to discuss something specific, at a specific interval? Yeah, that was weird.

Coco was already seated and waiting for him when he approached, though thankfully, she didn't seem bothered that he was slightly late.

"Hey," Cobalt greeted her as he sat down. "Tea didn't get too cold, did it?"

"You're not that late," Coco assured him, grabbing the teapot and pouring two mugs. "I had to finish grading some essays anyway, so I only got here a couple of minutes ago." She added two spoonfuls of sugar and a splash of milk to one of the mugs, just as Cobalt liked it.

"So," Cobalt got straight to the point as he pulled his mug towards him, "I'm guessing whatever you wanted to talk about is important, considering you arranged time for it?"

Coco stirred her tea. "I suppose you could say that I need some…help. With a decision."

Cobalt lifted an eyebrow. "You? You need help?"

"Hey, even seasoned warriors need help from time to time," Coco admonished him lightly. "Don't act so surprised."

"You once refused to let Yatsu help you carry a giant cabinet into the house," Cobalt reminded her.

Coco snickered. "Okay, fair," her snicker faded. "This is important though." She took off her sunglasses, folding them onto the table, and Cobalt started at her. This must be serious, then.

"Professor Goodwitch plans to retire at the end of the year," Coco announced. "Naturally, she wants me to take her place as Headmaster."

Cobalt blinked. "Wow. And you're not…excited for that?" From what Coco had told him in the past, following in Glynda's footsteps and becoming Headmaster of Beacon was what she'd wanted since she'd been a student here.

"No, I am," Coco confirmed, "Ten or so years ago, I would have jumped at the chance. But now…" She sighed. "I'm away from the family enough as it is. I might get to see you every day, but the girls? Your mother? If I took this opportunity, I'd see them less than ever."

Cobalt understood. Just in the time he'd spent at Beacon, he missed the rest of his family dearly, and he could only imagine how much stronger that feeling was for Coco. She went home for dinner almost every night, but would she still be able to do that as Headmaster? And then there were the holidays, where Glynda would remain at the school to help take care of students who had nowhere else to stay during the holidays. Would Coco have to do that too?

"Okay, yeah, I can see why you'd need help," Cobalt admitted. "But I don't really know, I mean…this is a really good opportunity, and it's what you've always wanted to do…maybe there'll still be a way for you to visit home regularly."

Coco sighed, a hand on her head. "If there is, I can't imagine what it would be." It wasn't exactly common for academy Headmasters to have kids- in fact, Cobalt couldn't think of any who'd had them. Coco was very likely the first, which meant she had no frame of reference for how to balance her work and home life.

"I think you should talk to Mom about this," Cobalt admitted. "I mean, she and the others have helped you to balance things so far. Maybe she'll be able to help you figure out what to do with this as well."

"Maybe after she makes fun of me for needing help," Coco huffed lightly. "But you're probably right. If anyone can give advice, it's her."

Cobalt sipped his tea. It was warm and tasted like home. "I guess one of the most important things will be who you appoint as your right hand if you do take the job," he said, "You'd need someone who can afford to take care of things whenever you're not able to."

"I already have someone in mind, actually," Coco told him. "Someone who's good with the students and has plenty of free time."

"Oh?" Cobalt leaned forward. "And who would that be?"

Coco grinned. "I guess you'll have to wait and see. No point setting anything in stone before I've even made a decision."

Cobalt shrugged. "Fair enough." He downed the rest of his tea. "Was there anything else you needed to talk about?"

Coco shook her head. "You can get back to your friends."

Cobalt stood up, unable to help feeling apologetic. "Um…Sorry that I wasn't much help."

Coco smiled gently at him. "Don't worry about it. I've got plenty of time to figure this out. Go and spend the last week of term with your friends."

"Alright, well, keep me posted," Cobalt pushed his chair back in. "And thanks for the tea."

As he headed back towards the interior of the school, Cobalt still couldn't help but wish he'd been able to provide more aid. It was weird to see Coco so indecisive and unsure. She'd been concerned enough to ask for his help, and he'd been practically useless.

Maybe things would be different if Dad was still around.

He shook away the voice inside his head. How would that help? Coco's problem was that she missed spending time with her family, not that she needed more hands on deck. Why had thoughts like that been circulating in his head so often lately? At every turn, part of him always seemed to be thinking of his father; what he would do in a situation; how different things would be if he were still here. It had been driving him crazy, and he hadn't been able to bring himself to talk to anyone about it. And worst of all, whenever it happened, it would ignite a small thread of anger inside him, anger that he didn't know what to do with. He could push it down for now, but there was a worrying question in the back of his mind- what would happen when he couldn't conceal it anymore?