Nox and Misty moved through the halls of the Pyrell Household, trying not to draw attention.

Fortunately, the mansion was large enough that no one noticed them sneaking toward one of the more secluded bathrooms.

Nox was practically walking around in his underwear, covered from head to toe by the bedsheets Misty had forced him to wear.

The dancer walked ahead of him, glancing from side to side.

"You can relax a little," Nox muttered.

"No. Impossible."

"No?"

"I don’t want Tessa’s mother seeing a half-naked demon wandering around her house."

Nox let out a small laugh.

Eventually, they reached the bathroom.

Misty opened the door and stepped inside first.

"Alright. We’re here."

The bathroom was enormous.

The walls were decorated with pale marble, and a massive polished stone bathtub occupied a large portion of the room.

"Wow..." Nox said.

"Rich people live weird."

"That’s exactly what I was thinking."

Misty smiled and approached the tub.

"Make yourself comfortable. I’ll get the hot water ready."

Nox nodded.

While the dancer adjusted the hot water valve and searched for the perfect temperature, preparing the soap tablets for the foam, he slowly approached one of the mirrors.

The sheets hung loosely over his shoulders.

For a moment, he stood perfectly still, staring at his reflection.

’How strange...’

It had been a very long time since he had actually stopped to look at himself.

The image reflected in the mirror wasn’t Tyler.

Nor was it a terrifying demon.

It was something in between.

Something that still felt unfamiliar.

His makeup had been ruined during the battle.

Beneath the white paint, the reddish tone of his skin was clearly visible.

His horns protruded through the dark strands of his hair.

Nox raised a hand and touched one of them.

Then he looked at his eyes.

His ears.

His nose.

His jaw.

’I can barely remember what I used to look like...’

The thought left him with an uncomfortable feeling.

Back then, he had permanent dark circles under his eyes.

Now his body was strong, athletic, and far healthier.

And yet...

It still felt strange.

He opened his mouth and examined his fangs.

Moved his lips.

Inspected every detail of that unfamiliar face.

Behind him, steam began to fill the room.

Slowly, the mirror started to fog up.

Until the reflection disappeared completely.

"What are you doing?"

Nox turned around.

Misty was watching him with amusement.

"Making funny faces?"

The dancer stuck out her tongue and rolled her eyes dramatically.

Nox burst out laughing.

"No."

"You looked pretty entertained."

"I haven’t seen my reflection in a long time."

Misty tilted her head.

"And?"

"It feels weird."

The dancer watched him for a few seconds.

Then she smiled softly.

"You have a nice face."

Nox raised an eyebrow.

"Nice?"

"Yeah."

Misty shrugged.

"When I hear the word demon, I imagine huge monsters, giant fangs, and horrible creatures."

"Thanks."

"But you look pretty human."

Nox smiled.

"I don’t know any other demons."

"Then maybe they’re all like you."

"Or maybe I’m the weird one."

That made Misty laugh.

The dancer finally shut off the water.

The bathtub was now full and covered with white foam.

"Alright."

She turned toward him.

"Take off your clothes."

Nox blinked.

"Straight to the point."

"Hurry up."

Misty pointed at the tub.

"I’m going to wash you."

Nox let the sheets fall to the floor.

The dancer immediately walked over and picked them up.

"I’ll deal with these later."

"How kind."

"I know."

Then she covered her eyes with one hand.

"Finish undressing."

Nox watched the performance for several seconds.

"Are you seriously not looking?"

"Of course not."

"Liar."

"Maybe a little."

The demon shook his head while removing the rest of his clothes.

When he finished, he stepped into the bathtub.

The hot water immediately enveloped his body.

"Ah..."

He hadn’t realized how badly he needed this.

The foam concealed almost everything.

"I’m in."

Misty moved her hand away from her eyes.

"Perfect."

"Weren’t you not looking?"

"I saw everything through my fingers."

Nox laughed.

"I figured."

The dancer picked up a sponge.

Then she began gently scrubbing the demon’s chest.

Slowly, with soft movements.

"Wow."

"What?"

"You’re pretty muscular."

Nox rested his head against the edge of the bathtub.

"I guess running through mountains and fighting heroes helps."

"Probably."

The sponge continued downward.

Across his shoulders.

His arms.

His back.

Little by little.

Nox’s body began to relax.

Every muscle.

Every joint.

Everything.

Until he eventually closed his eyes.

"I needed this."

Misty smiled.

"I figured."

The dancer’s voice seemed especially gentle.

"You look really tired."

"I am."

"Then relax."

Misty’s free hand gathered some foam.

She carefully began cleaning away the remaining traces of makeup on the demon’s face.

"I’ll take care of it."

Nox simply let out a sigh.

He felt peaceful.

"Want me to wash your hair?"

"That sounds nice."

"And your horns?"

Nox opened one eye.

"Do horns need washing too?"

"I have no idea."

"Then go ahead."

Misty let out a small laugh.

Her hands began moving through the demon’s dark hair.

Foam accumulated between the strands.

Then her hands moved to his horns.

Massaging them with unexpected gentleness.

Nox felt a shiver run through him.

"Everything okay?"

"Yeah."

"It looked like you liked that."

"Maybe."

Misty smiled and continued.

The movements of her fingers were slow.

Relaxing.

More and more so.

Until Nox eventually closed his eyes completely.

And finally...

He fell asleep.

◇◆◇

He didn’t know how much time had passed.

Maybe minutes.

Maybe an hour.

When he opened his eyes again, the bathroom was still filled with steam.

Foam still floated across the water.

But Misty was no longer behind him.

Nox blinked in confusion.

He looked around.

Then he noticed something strange.

The dancer’s clothes were hanging neatly off to the side.

Beside them was her black underwear.

Delicate.

"What...?"

Nox frowned.

At that moment, he felt something strange brushing against his legs.

Something soft, moving.

Slowly, he lowered a hand beneath the water.

And grabbed a strand of hair.

Immediately, a figure emerged from the foam.

Misty appeared in front of him, completely naked.

Barely covered by traces of soap.

Smiling.

"I thought you’d sleep a little longer."

Nox took a few seconds to process the situation.

"What were you doing?"

Misty wiped her face, still smiling.

"Finishing the job."

"Underwater?"

"Underwater."

Nox stared at her for several seconds, unsure how to respond.

The dancer laughed.

"You looked completely exhausted."

"I was."

"It showed."

Misty rested her arms on the edge of the tub.

"Besides, I wanted to help you relax."

"That was excellent service."

The woman’s smile widened.

"Right?"

"Yeah."

Nox nodded.

"But I didn’t know that was part of the makeup process."

Misty laughed again.

"It’s not part of the makeup."

"It’s not?"

The dancer shook her head.

"That’s just something I felt like doing."

Nox fell silent.

And Misty laughed once more.

Then she stood up and slowly stepped out of the bathtub.

Water slid down her skin.

Her long wet hair reached almost to her backside.

Her curves were fully exposed.

Elegant and athletic.

Misty grabbed a towel and calmly began drying herself off.

Finally, she pointed at Nox.

"Come on."

"What?"

"Get out of the tub."

"Already?"

"Yes."

The dancer smiled.

"Now the real work begins."

Nox raised an eyebrow.

"The real work?"

Misty nodded proudly as she wrapped the towel around her body.

"The makeup."

And the demon’s resigned expression made her burst out laughing once again.