They went home in silence. Mel was there too. Mom was so shocked, it was easy to trust him when he said she was shaking too much to drive. When they got back, he took charge straight away and checked out the cupboards before starting to make dinner for them. He made sure they both had drinks, and something on the TV that was unlikely to disturb them any further. He did everything that made sense to try and help them. After a while, Mom left her chair and came to sit beside Amber on the couch, sharing a mug of cocoa.

"I'm sorry," Amber mumbled, and looked down at her hands. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"You've not upset me, Amber. I'm just scared. I'm just worried about you. And I'm so glad you're safe."

"Yeah, Mel's like a superhero, that's twice he saved me now. I didn't expect him to be there."

"I kind of freaked out when I came to the gate and you weren't there. He was just passing, and he saw me, and... he said he heard something, and just took off. I don't know what would have happened if he wasn't there. And I keep waiting for the catch. Like, I don't know why anybody would go so far to help."

"Maybe he's just nice? I think it there's bad people in the world, there has to be good people too, right? Hey, maybe he really is a superhero! If there's monsters there's got to be heroes to fight them, right?"

"I wish I could trust people that easily," Mom sighed. "I'm very glad we met him."

"Dinner is served!" Mel walked in with a tray in each hand, strutting like some kind of butler, which led both mother and daughter to giggle so much that it was a few minutes before they could take their food. Some kind of pasta bake, which was voted acceptable.

"This is great," Amber gave a thumbs-up, and her Mom just smiled, "You can cook as well, is there anything you're not good at?"

"Cooking, saving damsels in distress, you're even good with kids. We should invite you round more often. Don't suppose you're a secret carpenter too?" Mom grinned widely to show she was joking, but she half hoped she could think of some excuse to invite Mel round again. He was exactly the kind of reliable guy who could help them get back on their feet.

"Unfortunately not. I can hang a door, but that's about it as far as wood goes. My superhero name would probably be Bicycle Repair Man, and that's about as far as my mechanical skills go."

"That's a heck of a skillset, Mr... Sorry, I don't think I caught your last name?"

"I probably didn't give it. Everybody calls me Mel, but if you must know, it's Weevil."

"Evil?" Amber asked, a little surprised.

"No, Weevil. Like we-evil. It's a kind of insect. Now you can see why I don't tell anybody my full name."

"Mel then," Mom nodded, "It's good to be properly introduced, but I can promise you we're both happy to forget your name and never say it in public. Your secret identity is safe with us."

And just like that, Mel was a friend of the family. He'd become someone who might be called in to babysit when Mom needed some time to herself. It would be so much easier for the Rainbow Knights to make plans now they could meet up in the real world, and that little joke meant that there would be no suspicion if Mom heard them talking about super powers, as well as strengthening the bond between them. Mel was sure that as soon as he was asleep, he and Amber would be busily congratulating each other for how well their first real meeting had gone.

"Are you feeling any better now? I think you were a bit shaken earlier."

"Yeah, it was just so sudden. I was scared for my baby. I'm still nervous, but you're like this knight in shining armour, a strong and protective influence. I feel safer with you here. I don't know what I'm saying really, I just really can't thank you enough."

"Can you stay around in case that guy comes again?" Amber asked. She wasn't sure how to put it, but she hoped that was a sensible thing to ask even if she wasn't supposed to know the guy was connected to some ancient prophecy.

"I don't think he'll be back," Mel answered, and ruffled her hair just like Mom used to when she was younger. "But I'd be happy sleeping on the couch just in case. If it makes you feel safer."

"Wow, how about that?" Mom got about half a syllable into replying before laughter entered her voice, "You could tell all your friends you've got your own superhero guarding the house." It wasn't that funny, but the situation was strange enough to get a giggle out of Mom, and in her current state of mind she thought she might feel better with a strong guy between them and the outside world. "I wouldn't want to impose, though."

"Seriously, it's no problem. I need to be in the village tomorrow anyhow. I left my wheels in the supermarket car park, and by the time I walk back there and drive home it'd be well past midnight, so it just makes sense for me to stick around. You're still shaken, so it might help to have someone you can lean on in case anything else goes wrong. Convenient for me too."

* * *

Amber opened her eyes. The throne room was dimly lit, but the light reflected from the crystals intensified as she looked around, revealing Jack and Violet sitting around the table.

"Mel not here yet?" she asked in surprise.

"He's not got to bed yet," Violet shrugged, "I've pulled him here from there so many times now, I can tell as soon as he's in bed. It's like scratching an itch, pulling him in here as soon as he gets his head down."

"He's at our house, on the sofa. I thought he'd be asleep like ten minutes ago."

"Oh, then I can... No, I can't find him." Violet sounded really confused, "I can sense the souls, and..."

"And what?" Jack asked, "This doesn't sound like something to play games with. You can find him by his soul, right? Pull him in from anywhere. Find any person, living or dead, as long as you know them."

"He's not there," Violet answered slowly, gripping the edge of the table until her knuckles went white. "His body's ten feet from Amber's, but his soul isn't there. I think he might be..."