When Sapphire awoke soon after, Cobalt told her the truth of everything he knew about their mysterious brother Biscuit, the Night Terrors, and his dream abilities - that is, while conveniently leaving out anything regarding Bluey’s young age when she and Bandit had conceived Biscuit - for Sapphire’s sake of sparing her perception of their father, as well as her sanity. She was surprisingly open-minded though, believing that every word Cobalt said was the truth.
Once they felt sufficiently well-rested, Cobalt and Sapphire eventually returned to the floor level of the school and hugged as boyfriend-and-girlfriend as they reluctantly parted ways, returning to their own homes to reunite with their parents.
Cobalt took a deep breath before he opened the front door of his home, and was instantly greeted by a sleepless Bandit and Chilli.
“COBALT! We thought we lost y-” Chilli said, before remembering that Cobalt wanted them not to speak to him without permission.
Cobalt looked up at his parents, who he’d known his entire life. Until a few short days ago, he’d only ever known them as good dogs. He remembered the words Biscuit had said, and before he knew it, his face erupted into tears as he pulled his mum and dad in for a family hug.
“I'm okay, but... don’t get the wrong idea… I’m still pissed at you guys…” he finally huffed through his crying. “But… I just… I just want us to be a normal family again…”
Cobalt sniffled, as did Bandit and Chilli as they held him in return.
“So even though I still haven’t forgiven you yet… I’m willing to try. And…”
Cobalt rubbed his wet nose against his mum and dad’s chests.
“I don’t hate you guys… I still love you. I always will.”
Cobalt wept into his parents chests, and they wept as well as they all fell to their knees together as a family.
And from then on, the Heeler family began to slowly, but surely, heal.
Cobalt immediately arranged a serious discussion with Bluey and Bandit to reconnect with Biscuit - which they agreed to whole-heartedly. They explained that over time, they’d let their complicated feelings about each other get in the way of acknowledging their son, and that they would vow to spend every night with him in their dreams as his parents from then on - and true to their word, they did just that.
Without any witnesses to what had really happened, no one at school knew of Cobalt and Sapphire's battle against the Night Terrors - and for the sake of some normalcy, they were completely okay with that. The two maintained their relationship discreetly through their remainder of high school; not that many of their classmates knew of their sibling bond to begin with, but they still kept things on the down-low, just to be safe. And while Bandit and Chilli were immediately supportive of the news from the get-go, Calypso was a little more hesitant to accept her daughter’s taboo interest - though upon seeing how happy Sapphire was with Cobalt, she eventually came to accept it; especially upon learning that hypothetical offspring between half-siblings had virtually no significantly-increased risk of genetic diseases.
Cobalt continued to have vivid daydreams and dreams while not on medication, but as he grew older he slowly grew to manage his fantasies and better discern fiction from reality. However, he would still occasionally take Noctivex to give his brain a mental break from his own imagination.
To try and understand his parents better, Cobalt later decided to major in psychology in University, which helped him to comprehend why they ended up the way that they did. After some long and emotional discussions with them, he came to realize that Chilli’s struggle with hypersexual and pedophilic fantasies stemmed from sexual trauma with her own father - which was in turn a result of losing her mother to cancer as a child - while Bandit’s complicated romantic feelings for Bluey were a result of Chilli’s stillbirth before Bluey was born. Knowing this, Cobalt was finally able to put the past behind him and truly forgive his parents for the complicated and messed-up dogs they were. After graduation, he even decided to become the school counselor at Rainworth High, to help a new generation of students who may be dealing with complicated issues such as his when he himself was a teen.
And then, one day, Cobalt received some unexpected - but wonderful - news from Sapphire.
“Is it almost done, Daddy?” Cobalt’s young daughter asked with excitement, barely able to sit still any longer.
“Almost, Dawn,” Cobalt replied affectionately to his little girl as he finished the shading in the background. He smiled contently, knowing in the back of his mind that he would never be with his daughter in the same way his own dad was with Bluey.
“I still don’t understand why you never went for an art degree at University instead of psychology, you could’ve easily been a professional artist. Or at least an art teacher,” Sapphire said with a grin, holding their daughter close as she sighed wistfully. “I still remember the very first piece you drew just for me. It was so beautiful, even back then!”
“Eh, y’know…” Cobalt replied with a shrug, finishing up the detail on the background as he finished what he considered his greatest piece yet. “If I made this whole ‘art’ thing into a career…”
He took a step back and let out a sigh of satisfaction, as on the easel before him was easily his personal new favorite piece: himself, his wife, and their beautiful daughter, Dawn, accompanied by a very subtle shadow of a certain imaginary blue heeler on the wall beside them.
“...it wouldn't be nearly as much fun.”
