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Lin shivered at the thought of demons, but she knew of their body weaknesses. Elves studied them constantly, not just the healers.

She nodded, then, and stepped closer to Ambrose. "Alright. So, your barrier has disappeared or is not working. A demon is facing you now. First, you have to remember to stay as calm as you can so that you can think clearly."

She rested her palm over his chest in the heart area.

"Now, demons do not have hearts the way we do, obviously, but they do have a source of their existence. It is in the same area as our heart. As you said, they have the same body makeup as a human. It is very good that you know that already. Studying anatomy is vital for self defense."

She slightly pressed the heal of her hand into his chest. "This is the area you want to hit with the heal of your palm. If you hit too high, you will hit bone and it will not cause severe damage. Too low and you will miss the source of life."

Several hours and two bottles of demon blood later, Danni dragged herself up from where she'd collapsed for a cat nap on the floor.

She had vague memories of serenading a very amused Arzol, and some flashing moments of herself giving a very impassioned speech about how much an a*****e Ialo was for getting arrested before she could kill him. And then she vaguely recollected falling flat on her face and dropping off to sleep.

Now she was awake, and it felt like all the sand on the family island was coating her mouth, and an enthusiastic group of girls were doing an energetic riverdance in her head.

"Jesus flipping Christ..." She muttered, and opened her eyes, only to hiss and squeeze them shut again when the light burned her eyes out of their sockets.

It was only then that she remembered she was completely out of aspirin. s**t. She was going to have to go visit Ophi.

"You know what the straight blood does to you if you overindulge." Arzol, the b*****d, was sitting at the table, putting together a jigsaw puzzle she'd bought for Poopsie. It was a bit ridiculous, might've even been funny under different circumstances, to see him frowning over where to place a piece in a puzzle of a bunch of cartoon smiling dragons.

"Why the hell aren't you moaning?" She demanded, dragging herself to her feet and leaning against the table.

He smiled, patted her hand with his own cool, lifeless one.

"I let you drink most of both bottles. You look like you needed it. And it's the only way to get you to sing. Too damn bad you aint got the tits and curves to go with the voice." He said, and she flipped him off, running a hand over her face, damning the sun.

"You wouldn't know what to do with a pair of tits if they were bouncing in front of your ugly face." She muttered, and he laughed, letting it go.

"I'm going to the clinic. Stay here, leave, whatever. I don't give a s**t." She said, and barely managed to stagger through a portal before she landed on a bed in the clinic, groaning.

"Ophi, the man I hold nearest and dearest in my heart at this very moment in time, tell me there's aspirin to be found here." She practically begged, looking around through squinted, bloodshot eyes.

Ophiuchus glanced over at her from where he was sitting at his desk, musing over lesson plans. "It's Professor Akakios during school hours," he corrected her. "And really, why should I give you aspirin? You know the, ah, former Headmaster would not have approved of your excursion." He sniffed the air. "Or of you drinking demon blood."

He stood up and walked over to Danni, his long dark robes giving the impression of gliding. He pushed her legs over and sat at the foot of the cot, tossing his newly-turned-black hair back over his shoulder.

"So, talk to me."

Ambrose nodded, though his skin had heated. This was an...interesting lesson, all right.

"Yes, I suppose that will take a bit of practice." He agreed, murmuring because he was deathly afraid his voice would crack.

((That's why it's funny.))

Lin shook her head. She took Ambrose's hand in both of hers and opened it up. Then, she pressed the heel of his palm just a little lower.

"This is the spot, and you must hit it with the heel of your palm, not with your fist. The heel can penetrate deeper."

"Akakios," he corrected again, crossed his arms. The little green garden snake around his neck suddenly moved, and flicked its tongue in and out several times while the healer lovingly stroked the top of its head.

"Look," Ophi said, sighing. "One of the things Ialo treasures most in the world is the safety and well-being of the students here. You should respect his wishes, even if he is no longer here. It's.... a common desire of a lot of the teachers here. A lot of things hae happened to you as well, and we've always wanted to do our best to give everyone here the best future possible. So please... Treat yourself more kindly."