This is our room!

Zerda watched as Valentin's reaction to the things he said and he couldn't help but feel a little shame flow over him. He knew that Valentin was avoiding the whole kissing situation, then again how could Zerda ask him. For all he knew Valentin was a virgin when it came to kissing too, but it never hurt to ask.....okay maybe it did. Zerda was a bit to shy just to blurt out hey are you a virgin in anything? So Zerda just kept shut on that. Though he did stand and slowly follow Valentin over to where he was and looked over his shoulder and everything he did. He seemed to be a little shaky and that was something that made Zerda question him. "Uh Valentin, whats a kiss like?" He asked in a simple tone. It was quite funny how Zerda had not ever thought about kissing till he had came to this place. Then again being alone in the desert for so long kinda makes you oblivious to what love might be like.

While he waited for the answer he couldn't help himself but to wrap his arms around him and lay his head on his back. It was just so comfortable to be on Valentin.

Valentin felt the fox approach behind him, but he kept on rummaging like it was a mission. It was cool anyway, the brief distance gave him that moment he needed to chill off his nerves before they exploded or something.. whatever it is that nerves do. He finally picked a piece of cloth. It was a shirt of his, but it wasn't a favorite. All of his rags were stained with oil and rust and he didn't want to give Zerda something that looked nasty to wipes his face with. He was about to run and offer him the shirt when the question hit him and he froze again, wide-eyed. The newly recessed flush returned to his cheeks with a vengeance and he was glad his back was still turned.

While he tried to think of an acceptable response, his concentration was broken by the appearance of arms wrapped about his torso. He felt Zerda's head finding a place against his back and at first, his muscles responded with stiffness, fingers digging into the fabric of the shirt he held. But that only lasted a moment before a small smile won him over and he sighed quietly.

"Hah, I dunno, kiddo." His voice sounded a bit forced even though he was going for 'nonchalant'. "I don't.. Well, I'm not the guy to ask about that kind of stuff, I guess.." He frowned to himself and flipped his ears back towards Zerda as he glanced over his shoulder at the fox. "Here.."

Valentin carefully extracted himself from Zerda enough to turn around and lift the crumpled shirt to his friend's face. It looked like the blood might be drying, so he licked the corner of the shirt as his mother would have done, and gingerly dabbed at Zerda's cheeks with a look of concentration.

He wanted to ask why Zerda had asked such a question, but was wary of what the answer might be, so he didn't say anything further for now. Though, he was taking his time clearing his face.

Zerda felt the tension in the faun and he chuckled a bit. Valentin was just to funny at times, but when he heard the faun had not known what it was like to kiss he was a bit glad. I'm not the only one then. He thought to himself in a happy little tone. He watched as Valentin finally found the cloth he was looking for and he happily stood still for his face to be cleaned by his friend. He closed his eyes and scrunched his nose as the cloth wiped his face free of blood. He felt his ears droop and suddenly remembered how he had reacted when he was a little boy with his mother. He smiled at the thought of her face and how she would stick her tongue out at the corner of her mouth as she concentrated on making sure every bit of dirt was erased from his face. "You have to stay clean mister, your a very important person now honey and the people don't want to have you all filthy and yucky now do they?" Little had he realized he had said every word out loud and all he could do was smile at Valentin. "I love you mama..." He said as he suddenly hugged Valentin very tightly. "Love you love you love you..."

((Short but cute XD)

Valentin was amused at first when Zerda began quoting, because even though he didn't know where it came from, it was very cute. But being called 'mama' admittedly freaked him out a little.

"I..uh?"

He responded to Zerda's hug by wrapping his arms around the fox's back comfortingly. He let the sullied shirt fall to the floor since they were done with it now. It struck him that he didn't know anything about Zerda's past, but from that.. well, it might just be his imagination, but there seemed to be something haunting his friend's past. He wasn't sure if something happened to his mother, or if he simply missed her since he was so far from home, and the thought occurred to him fleetingly, that maybe whatever fear he had of his face tied in. But he shook his head to scatter the silent musings. It wasn't his place to make assumptions.

One hand began to rub idly at Zerda's back and he daringly pressed his face to Zerda's temple in a comforting nudge. It wasn't a kiss, or at least that's what he'd decided, but the conclusion could be argued.

The hand that wasn't rubbing Zerda's back rose to brush at his hair. Valentin wasn't sure why he did it, but it would be so easy to just brush those bangs aside. He felt like he needed to know, but he knew how pandora's box played out, and he bit his cheek, keeping his hand by the back of Zerda's hair and safely away from those taunting bangs.

Zerda was happy that Valentin was so warming to him and he loved how he continued to hold him, even after he just realized his blurtation over his mother. He smiled as he buried his face into Val's chest as he felt a little silly for saying such random things, but was glad it was to Valentin. Why he felt so comfortable with telling Valentin, he was not sure, but it was possibly the best feeling in the world to him. As he had his face in his chest he suddenly felt Valentin's hand make its way up to his head and oooooh how that felt good. Zerda couldn't help but push his whole body onto Val's as the tingling sensation of good feelings took over him. A little moan slipped out of his mouth before Valentin decided to put his hand back down, and once more he found himself blushing. He had not ment to moan, but it just slipped and he soon found himself laughing a little to his embarrassment. "Valentin...I feel happy around you...your the most amazing person I have seen in a long time." A smile grew across his face and he couldn't help but snuggle into Valentin. He was warm and comforting. Looking up to Val he stepped onto his tippy toes and nuzzled into the fauns neck and at moments he licked it gently.

He wasn't sure what he was feeling but whatever he was doing felt right and that wasn't going to stop him in any way. He only hoped it was okay with Valentin. He didn't want to scare the poor thing away.

The faun smirked fondly as Zerda snuggled closer to him. SO he liked being pet? That was probably something worth remembering. He wasn't sure what was supposed to happen from here, but they couldn't stand here cuddling for the rest of the day. Was this considered cuddling? Zerda's little moan interrupted his thoughts and the heat on his cheeks made him feel like he was suffering from sunburn, the sound was.. adorable. His gaze rolled imploringly towards the metal leaves hugging the ceiling above them. What had he gotten himself into by accepting a double room?? But there was a hopeless smile on his face as he mumbled his reply.

"You're pretty special too, kiddo."

Valentin accepted the nuzzling well enough since he understood by this point that Zerda was fond of personal-space-invasion, and he really found no qualms with that. But then he felt something warm and... wet.. He brushed it off as dampness on Zerda's face from the tears, or the cloth, but then it happened again.

Hastily, the faun squeezed his eyes shut, his ears flipped back sharply, and his body went still again to restrain himself from reeling backwards. The storm of gooseflesh that raced out over his skin made it feel like all of his hair was standing on end, and he had to bite the insides of his lips to make sure no moan of his own got out. Though, he felt fairly certain it would have been more akin to a whimper. It occurred to him, in the recesses of his mind, that he should typically be growing concerned of being eaten in a situation such as this one. But if being eaten always felt this good, he would never mind being a prey animal quite so much ever again.

Well maybe they could stand here and cuddle just a little longer... No! Wait--no, he'd gotten so distracted! Planting both his hands firmly on either one of Zerda's shoulders, he pulled himself out of that pleasant haze and away from Zerda's nuzzling, giving himself enough room to look down at the fox somewhat sternly.

"No, Zerda wait.." He drew in a breath, some of the concern returning to his face as he recalled the sight of blood running down his friend's face, now drying on his vest, and the smell of it still strong in his nose. "Zerda.. Are you injured?"

Zerda was happy that Valentin was accepting the touching and nibbles that he was receiving. It made Zerda try harder, but he soon found himself frowning as he felt like he was torn away from the whole idea. He felt himself shrug his shoulders up as Valentin grabbed them. Looking up at the stern expression on Valentin's face he knew the fun was over and it was time to explain the strange actions of his body. He hated his tears as much as he hated explaining them, but he had to in this case other wise Valentin would bother him for all eternity about it. Taking Valentin's hands in his own he cleared his throat and walked him back over to the bed to they could sit. He looked around for a moment before looking back again at his friend, "Its just something I was born with. My mother had always told me not to cry because I would attract the enemy. I don't know how I can get rid of them, or why they only happen when I am in utter most depression. I just know that they were frowned upon, so I never really cried around anyone like I have in front of you."


Zerda looked down at the bloody rag and clenched Valentin's hand tight. Looking up once more he saw the blood on Val and shook his head, "You need to bathe now, I don't know what could happen to you since you are now carrying the scent." Smiling at him he shrugged, "Then again I guess we both could use a bath, then I guess we also need to finish my blanky. I really like how it looks ya know!" He said with a smile that just grew bigger as he was finally starting to feel much more enlightened. He pulled Valentin up to his feet and nodded, "Come on lets take a bath!" He said pulling him towards the door in a playful manner.

Valentin followed his friend patiently back over to the bed, curling his fingers around Zerda's hand as his own were taken, and sat down beside him to hear what he had to say. He nodded at Zerda's words, a little confused. So the blood was... tears? It was strange for sure, but at least he knew that is wasn't a wound now.

His gaze softened, but he was saved from whatever lame trying-to-be-supportive response he would have mustered up by Zerda's sudden cheer. A quick glance down at his bloodied vest proved Zerda's words to be true, but after the position--positions?--they'd somehow managed to get into today, he was wary of what bathing would entail. More blushing, most likely, which he wasn't looking forwards to.

As his friend pulled him off towards the door, Valentin tried to formulate a quick plan in him mind that would ensure he could help Zerda get his bath ready if need be--like they'd had to do previously--and hopefully have him back here and drying or resting by the time it was Valentin's turn. Not that a bath should require much planning, but with the way things were going today, you can't be too cautious.

The faun paused by a trunk near the door before the exited and snatched up a couple clean garments for them both. Just some comfy sleepwear so they wouldn't have to towel it back to the dorm room.

"Bathrooms this way." He smiled cheerfully at his friend and matched his step to show him the way, re-securing his hand into Zerda's. The bathroom closest to them was straight down on the opposite end of their hallway. It was similar to all the other bathrooms on the castle's estate; spacious with nice wooden cabinets boasting stone accents and a porcelain tub. Rather than loose integrity on public-style restrooms, there were simply more elegant single-person restrooms in the building.

Valentin lead the way to the tub and started the water. He nodded over his shoulder at the cabinets. "There should be some towels in one of those if you want go look."

Zerda was happy that Valentin followed in the same manner he had walked and a big grin was the result of this. He watched from the corner of his eye as Valentin grabbed some garments and he shook his head as he knew this time he wanted to run to his bed and dive into the blanket to sit naked for awhile. Valentin would just have to accept that one, as he would fight the clothes. They had finally reached the bathroom and he smiled as he remembered himself slipping and busting his head on the side of the tub, and thats where Valentin's inner caretaker emerged in full. It was funny though how feelings could emerge in a bathroom of all places, but he wasn't complaining. Looking over to where Valentin had pointed to retrieve the towels he shrugged and smiled back at Valentin. "Suuuuurrrrreeee i'll get the towels..." He said as he watched Val turn back to the tub.

Smiling he turned back and watched Val for a moment before nodding to himself, yeah he would do it. Quickly taking off his clothes Zerda ran towards Val and wrapped his arms around him tightly and pulled them both into the bath tub. What? He sill needed to get Valentin's clothes cleaned quickly too so why not. He already knew the faun was going to struggle so he held on tight and had nothing to say but a smile to express the fun he was having.

Valentin wiggled his fingers absently under the flow of water, making sure it kept coming out nice and hot the way Zerda liked it, while he hit his mental checklist. He set the clothing down on the floor near the tub, far enough not to get drenched should Zerda decide to splash around a bit. When the tub was filled, he would hastily make his retreat and wait outside in the hall until Zerda was through. Yeah, that was a good plan. Nice and easy.

Valentin, hunched over the tub looking bored with his hand in the water, was the image of 'unsuspecting'. When he was tackled, he had no preparation to try and weasel away or catch his balance, managing only to voice a short yelp of alarm before the pair fell into the tub with a great splash. Zerda was right to predict a struggle. Valentin's immediate and reigning reaction was to try and reel away from the confines of the tight grip that had thrown him off his feet. His hooves scrambled in the water for footing but found only the slippery porcelain wall. He had gasped at some point and now coughed, which might actually have been the best thing to happen in this situation. Coughing forced energy into his torso and his legs slowed before those hooves managed to dig either one of the tub's occupants. Almost as soon as his body began panicking, it was passing. He tried to sit up quickly and the side of one of his antlers collided the the tub's faucet. He winced from the unexpected bump and hunched his head down between his shoulders, but at least it wasn't his skull that hit.

The faun coughed one more time, closed his eyes, and took a nice long and deep breath. Both ears hung low and his wet bangs were plastered across his face, impairing his vision. And he finally sat still in the water.

"....." So much for his escape plan.

Zerda struggled with the faun and thought back to when he would struggle with the desert snakes from time to time. He really enjoyed his moment of strength over someone who could now easily be his prey, and he felt even happier that this one was bigger than himself. He had never hunted anything larger than himself and he felt very accomplished. Waiting for the water to finally settle he smiled down at his little catch and kissed its forhead. "There there....." He said in a calm caring voice. He was happy Valentin was calming down as the coughing was kinda freaking him out for a moment, making him think he had strangled the poor thing.

Taking a moment he patted Valentin's head and then relaxed a bit himself as he released him hoping he wouldn't run away and leave him there in the tub. Looking over at the shelf next to him he grab a soap bar and reached over to Valentin and pulled him close. He instantly started to scrub off all the blood on Valentin's clothes and then his body, "Look at us... and its all my fault! Sorry sorry buddy" He said as he scrubbed harder and harder. Finally finishing his clothes, Zerda began to try and undress Valentin, "Come on take your clothes off! Your all dirty too!"

Zerda couldn't help himself he just had to help Valentin get all squeaky and clean!

Eska was getting closer to the scent and she would just feel the presence of who she was pursuing. She could barely wait to see who it was she was in search for and it would be even greater is if she could test this ones strength. Of course she was going to have to study them first and for some reason she now could feel two people with almost the same scent/ She growled a little as she approached a door that lead to a room that almost looked like a study. She looked around and frowned a bit. "Hmm the scent seemed to be coming from here...ah there!" She turned to look at a door with steam emitting from it and she lowered her ears as she snuck over to it. Looking through the crack in the door she smiled at what she saw, "Oh two homosexuals? How interesting....and that since one is a faun and the other....a fox...wait a fox?" She continued to watch to see if anyone of these two were an actual threat.

How could these two be sharing the same similar scent though? Was it perhaps the bath water or the fact that they were just kinda all over each other? Either way it was strange to Eska and she couldn't help but shake her head a little.

Valentin's chest was still heaving a bit more than normal while he rhythmically took in a lot of air to help regulate his nerves. His breath caught quietly when he felt Zerda press a kiss to his forehead. Sheepishly, he raised a hand to brush his dark bangs out of his face so that he could peer up at the fox. He dark eyes were wide, still echoing his alarm. He blinked rapidly, forcing his brain back on track. It was just Zerda after all. After being released, he was able to raise one arm and grope blindly at the faucet above his head until he found the controls and shut off the flow of water. The splash had probably soaked the floor, but it still wouldn't do to overflow.

He drew in one more deep breath and released it in a slow, exasperated sigh. Now what? But of course he didn't have to decide 'now what' because Zerda had decided for him.

"What! Hey, Zerda, what're you--" The faun started to squirm to try and get away from the bar of soap but it was useless in the confines of the tub. "What? No, it's not your fault--hey, I can do that you know!" He felt ridiculous trying to dodge his friend in this manner, especially when he was failing so incredibly. He made to grab the edge of the porcelain and yank himself out of the water, but his soapy hands slipping and he splashed back into the water. He huffed his aggravation, then released a second yelp when he felt his clothes being tugged. He tried to mask his discomfort with a very nervous laugh. "Ah ha~ No, I'm fine, really! My clothes can stay on!" he argued, grasping the front of his vest to try and keep the buttons away from Zerda's grabby little fingers.

Without his arms placed to support his torso, the faun slipped deeper in the water until he was sprawled on his back with just his shoulders and head above the surface, which made protecting himself miraculously difficult. Deciding on a different tactic, he released his hold on his vest and made a grab for Zerda's hands, clasping them together between his own. He then kicked off the side of the tub to try and roll them over to put Zerda in his place.

Zerda smiled as his fried tried in every way to get out of his grasps only to end up deeper in the tub. He just wanted to get his friend clean that was all. Continuing to try and scrub him Zerda soon found his hands caught in Valentin's. For a moment he got a little defensive and he pushed Valentin's head under the water, but instantly he snapped out of his defensive posture and just let Valentin flip him. He laid there under Valentin and frowned a bit, "I'm sorry....i'll stop..." He said in a pouty tone. He really was sorry, but was enjoying his time with his friend. He calmed down and smiled up at Valentin, "Can you wash me Val Val?" He asked and was ready to accept the no that was probably coming. He wondered if Valentin sometimes grew annoyed of all his hardship that he put him through. Then again he probably wasn't because of staying around even after all this. He smiled again at Valentin and then grabbed Val's hands and placed the soap in them, "You should wash up first and then worry about....." Zerda then suddenly got quiet and began to shiver a bit. "V-v-v-v-Valentin, t-t-the water...i-i-its cold..."

Eska laughed at how the two seemed to play in the tub and then smiled even more once she saw the little death threat enter the fox's eyes. She knew it all to well and she enjoyed that look on herself as well. Watching a little longer she began to notice them calm down and she began to grow bored. "Come on now, me real men and do each other or at least make out.....booooring..." Eska stood strait and turned away from the door and began thinking of a way to mix things up. From the looks of it the fox seemed to be from hotter climates and she had just the thing to mess up the moment that was already growing dull. She peeked back through and saw Zerda now emerged in the water and she smiled, "Perfect..." Holding her hand up she focused her energy on the water in the bath tub and began to cool it at an alarming rate. She watched then as it began to frost on the outside of the tub and snickered a bit. She increased the energy around it and slowly it began to freeze over the surface of the water. She couldn't help but laugh as Zerda began to freeze up.

Valentin got the impression that Zerda had maybe allowed himself to be flipped over, since he has somewhat suddenly stopped returning the struggle. He found himself smiling apologetically in response to Zerda's frown, even as he heard the request to wash him. His face was already flushed from squirming about trying to get away, but he was fairly sure it was sustained by embarrassment. He wanted to say 'nah, how about we just each wash ourselves' or 'I'm clean enough, I'll meet you back in the room when you're through?' but that wasn't happening. He suddenly grew very aware of Zerda's nudity and kept his eyes pointedly on that still-hidden face. But with his attention of the fox's face, he was drawn to the smile there, and they were so close already, it would be so easy to move just that little bit closer. In the back of his mind, he knew Zerda would let him..

But he frowned, and Zerda's stutters confirmed the change he hadn't even noticed occurring. He watched in horror as the surface of the water stilled and began to solidify, the squeaky cracking of expanding ice familiar to his ears. He had no idea what was happening, but he knew what happened to Zerda when he got too cold.

With haste, he reached over his friend and yanked open the lever to release scorching hot water into the tub. It hissed on contact with the ice and the air drew out a white chilly smoke. The tub quickly over-filled and the hot water poured over onto the floor. The ice was persistent, and not knowing what else to do, Valentin reared back and slammed his head down against the ice like he and the other bucks used to do when they'd finally grown their first points. His tines dug into the ice and created enough cracks so that when he pulled back and brought his entire forearms down sharply, from fist to elbow, the surface cracked and snapped. He snatched Zerda up into his arms before the ice could stitch itself back together and leapt from the water, hooves clambering over the edge of the tub, and slipping carelessly onto the floor of the bathroom with his friend clutched protectively against his chest.

His heart was pounding painfully in his chest, and he belatedly realized that those big ears of his had picked up a noise. A cheerful noise. He snapped his head to the side to glare heatedly at the door. It could very well be his paranoia, but he was willing to believe that even in this school of magic, the bath water didn't freeze itself.

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Zerda stared up at Valentin with wide eyes as he began to freeze where he laid. He felt like death was staring him in the face when he soon realized that it was only Valentin staring him in the face with a look of great concern and most of all what the heck is going on look. Zerda felt the water around him freeze over him and he couldn't move anything but his eyes, which could only see the rims of the bath as well as the actions that were acted out by the faun on top of him. He watched as Valentin rammed his antlers into the ice and he felt it crack around him. He tried moving but found his body had already subbitted to the freezing temperatures. He felt himself growing sleepy and he slowly closed his eyes only to finally feel the warm grasp of Valentin around him. He looked around and noticed he was on the floor on top of him. He slowly lifted himself up and smiled at what warm water there was around them. He lifted his head and looked up to the door as Valentin had and he quickly stood. Walking over to the night garments he grabbed on and put the pants on. With a cross look on his face he made his way over to the door and kicked it in. "Who are you!" He yelled as he hovered over the girl who had fallen behind the door.


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Eska found their despair quite amusing and all in all just hilarious. She could barely control her laughing, though it seemed to not matter now as her cover was blown. She had fallen back on her rear and as she watched the fox approach her. She looked up at him and smiled as she caught a glimpse of some marking, was he apart of some cult or maybe it was just his normal wear? Either way she was intrigued and she had to get a little closer to this one and the determined little faun. Curling her tail between her legs she faked a few tears and looked up at the fox. "I am so sorry Mr. Fox, I thought you were in trouble! I saw you in the bath and then that faun had you pinned! From my view it looked like you were being drowned!" She slowly stood and held her hands behind her back as she blushed a bit, "I couldn't have a fellow member of my family be killed, as you see I thought I was the last of my kind...."

She watched as his reaction changed from aggressive to curious and she held out her hand. "Uh, my name is Eska Lagopus, and I am an Arctic Fox. I asume your some kind of desert fox. Though we are not exactly the same, we still share canine blood." She looked over Zerda and smiled to the faun, "And to you I am so terribly sorry for trying to kill you, I am quite sure you understand no?" They both had the scent, but now she knew it was really from the fox and she would most certainly get the information she needed from him her soon.

Valentin was impressed with Zerda's vigor when he stalked over and kicked open the door. His gaze narrowed at the girl that was revealed to be there and he swiftly rose onto his hooves. He remained hovering where he was instead of moving forwards because strategically, if she were to attack, it would be wise to not have them both within range of one assault. But the white fox didn't seem to be attacking.

As she delivered her exaggerate excuses, the faun lowered his face with his ears drawn back, not believing a word. He was not particularly quick to trust normally, the way he worried about things, but this girl's presence was distracting with how uncomfortable it made him. Perhaps it was merely her eventful entrance, or the way she would have been quick to kill without knowing the circumstance. Who was she to decide who to attack, or when to attack?

When she addressed him, his eyes narrowed so fiercely that the dark color of his large irises were nearly all that was showing.

She assumed he would understand? "No." He paused, only internally surprised by his own gall. "Fallacies. Why attack when he was submerged and not myself." The question was posed as an accusatory statement. If she had been trying to kill the faun, it was entirely illogical to freeze the water when Zerda was the one immersed.

He had often watched the older bucks of his tribe fight each other to prove strength, or go out fearlessly to defend the hinds and fawns from predators, but he could never understand how they did it. They bore impressive tines, but they were still prey animals. Why weren't they scared like he was? But as the familiar bubbling of panic in his chest at this moment felt to insist fight instead of flight, he thought perhaps--not today but in the future--he could learn to understand it a little better. Maybe you just need to find the right herd worth protecting. He kept his gaze steadily on the girl, but in his peripherals he noticed Zerda and how his aggression began to mellow. But Valentin wasn't ready to lower his guards yet.

Z:Zerda looked closely at Eska and he felt a little confused on what had happened. He looked back at Valentin and noticed the look on his face was that of anger and disapproval. Now he was really confused as he was trying to think of why his friend was so defensive. Yes this girl had tried to kill him, but it was out of care for him. Then again maybe Valentin knew more about people than he did, Seemed like Valentin was around people and hen adding the fact that Zerda had been alone for the past few years didn't help his judgement skills. Taking a moment Zerda walked back to Valentin and leaned closer to him, "Valentin, whats wrong? Why won't you try to give her a chance?" He asked with curiousity in his voice. He wasn't sure what was going on, but maybe Valentin had known this person. Looking at the stern face once more he had wondered if he had heard his question, "V-Valentin whats-"



E:Eska had smiled at the way Valentin's response to her acting. Seems as if this one was not quite stupid, but the fox seemed to be a little more naive. Smiling she quickly stood and cracked her knuckles slowly, "Ah poor little faun, can't trust me...how sad, I was hoping to play nice with you today, but you and your fox friend seem to be a waste of my time now." She looked down at the floor and the water that flooded it as the water from the tub continued to overflow. She held her hand up as she walked into the bathroom and clammed the door behind her. "If your a waste of my time, then you are no longer needed." Snapping her finger she watched as the room around her frost over followed quickly by a thick layer of ice. She cared not for the hot water here, it was useless if the pipes themselves were frozen. Crossing her arms she smirked at Zerda, "Now tell me little fox boy, why do you smell so good? Tell me why and I might spare you."



Z:Zerda watched as the room began to freeze around him and he frowned a bit, ".....why is it you? Why are you the one who is attracted?"

Valentin still refused to take his eyes from the new comer. But as Zerda stepped closer, the faun reached his arm around. His fingers found a position ghosting over his friend's opposite forearm, and he took a step forwards, effectively hiding half of Zerda behind his shoulder. Her threats made his skin bristle.

Eska's own response answered Zerda for him, so he didn't say anything. He had no idea what she was talking about, but Zerda seemed to.

Pipes freezing in the walls groaned mutely and the water that had been scalding hot a moment ago froze as it was flowing from the faucet. He felt so helpless as the room froze around them. The window looked too thick with ice to crash through without breaking his neck. She must have a lot of magical power, and here he was without even his trusty flame torch. He wasn't sure how much help it would have been anyway, if she was able to freeze the whole room. She probably would have just frozen his torch too. Is that possible? He made a mental note to mix antifreeze in his fuel canisters.

For now all he could do was wait to see what would transpire, the nervous energy in him building up until his muscles felt jittery and made him shiver before even the cold did.

E: Eska smiled as the look on the fauns face turned to utter panic. Watching him look around in a paic matter amused her and she couldn't help but take this chance to try and get a taste of her meal before it could freeze over. Walking slowly over to the two she heard Zerda's words and she tilted her head. "Oh your scent.....something about it just makes me want to keep you all to myself, but it seems you don't care to cooperate.” As she walked closer she watched the room glisten with the reflection of what light had been embodied in the ice and she smiled. The ice was nothing to her and every step she took was elegant and not a single slip befell her. Finally stopping in front of the two she watched the warm air slip out of their lips as the freezing temperatures overcame them. “Oh is this bothering you?” She said as she wrapped her hand around Valentin’s arm and pulled him forward to release Zerda.



Z: Zerda watched as the room was frozen completely and he felt at a loss, however Valentin hept his hopes up as he held onto him. Watching Eska closely he lowered his head slightly as the thought of his blood attracting this dangerous woman was all his fault. He felt like he had lost all his happiness he had finally gained back over the time he was with Valentin. This feeling though would have to be fixed later, as Eska had just grabbed Valentin in an aggressive manner. Zerda growled as he grabbed Valentin's other arm and pulled him behind him and quickly grabbed Eska by the arm and twisted it till she finally fell to one knee. "You think you are so superior than me? I think that you are quite confused cold hearted one." He smiled till he suddenly felt like fainting. Looking down at Eska he also saw that she was beginning to fade out. What was going on? Perking up his ears Zerda heard someone talking, but he wasn't able to make it out before collapsing on the unconscious Eska.

وقد تم الآن لعنة اثنين من الثعالب الافراج عنهم.

As the two passed out on the floor the ice around them melted and the once frozen pipes had thawed releasing the hot water once more.

Valentin sneered when Eska grabbed him and yanked his arm backwards. The sharp motion made his hoof slip on the ice and he stumbled back a step to regain his balance. When he quickly looked back up, Zerda had the girl by her arm and was twisting it. The faun's eyes grew wide, impressed, but maybe a little scared. Zerda had seemed so fragile before, and here he was forcing the white fox to her knee. His friend's ominously confident words felt foreign in his ears and he watched with concern.

The moment was interrupted, both foxes looking suddenly.. drowsy? Realizing that Zerda was about to fall, Valentin tried to rush forwards to catch him, but his hooves couldn't find a grip right away and he didn't make it in time. Luckily, the unconscious she-fox broke his friend's fall. He slid next to them not a second after Zerda had collapsed, and snatched the fox from atop the girl, reeling them both backwards as if she were poison. The faun's ears shot up as the room began to melt, almost as quickly as it had frozen. The hot water hissed as it began to flow again, and he wasted no time. Scrambling to his feet with his friend still clutched against his side, he shot his hand out to turn off the faucet. Leaving the rest of the clothes on the floor, he swept one arm under Zerda's knees and darted straight out of that bathroom and down the hall to their dorm.

Slipping inside, heart still pounding, Valentin deposited his friend on the bed and leaned his head down to his chest to make sure he was still alive. He then quickly went to his large wooden cabinet in the corner. He retrieved his favorite flame torch and jammed it into his belt, as well as snag a canvas messenger bag that he hastily shoved several choice items into and slung over his shoulder. Glancing one more time towards his friend still unconscious on the bed, he frowned determinedly and turned back down the hall.

The bathroom door creaked quietly as the faun pushed it open, one hand hovering over the tail of his torch. It took a long moment before the thunderous pounding of his heart receded from his ears and with a thick swallow, he finally ventured back inside.

The white fox was where he had left her, and he peered carefully at her face before drawing to closer to make sure she was still out. Her breath was very even, so she was either quite good at pretending, or she really wasn't awake yet. But to be safe, Valentin withdrew a brown bottle from his bag and found a washcloth to soak with it. He crouched beside her with a callous expression that had no business being on his face, and held the damp cloth over her nose and mouth. He counted to 5.. 10.. 15.. He could keep going. He could hold it there until the acetone and bleach powder concoction depressed her central nervous system severe enough so that she wouldn't wake up. But he didn't even realize he'd thought it, as he pulled the cloth away after 30 seconds. He could be confident that he had a bit of time now.

-----------

Valentin hadn't liked the idea of bringing the girl back to the dorm room, but he also wasn't okay with letting her out of his sight, where she could go off and recouperate, eventually making her way back to do whatever harm she had planned to Zerda. He quickly found a compromise to this dilemma.

The faun had been forced to dismantle his latest explosive experiment--he wasn't sure what his plans for it had been yet, but surely it would have been epic. The machine had a wrought iron smock stack, perhaps a little over 30 centimeters in diameter and 70 centimeter tall. The cylinder had been sliced open with a torch and shortened so that when the faun soldered the piece back together around his prisoner, it was a particularly snug fit with her arms trapped against her sides. To be thorough, he clamped a pair of iron shackles around her wrists and ankles, and chained those to the legs of one of his metal stools. Overkill? Maybe. But that wasn't all.

As a last-minute precaution--which really, this was his favorite part--Valentin had positioned a completed weapon, one of his favorites in fact, that did a very cool thing. A very cool thing which he promised himself he would not gloat, just in case once this chick new what it did, she had some magical way of overcoming it.

At any rate, the weapon was big and shiny--about the size and shape of a telescope with legs that held it up at about shoulder-level, and contained a lot of silver in its design--which was necessary for its function. It was something he had made with Kale, so it was the most functional weapon he owned. And right now, it was aimed at Eska's head where she sat nearby in the center of the room.

Valentin was leaning casually at it's base, holding the toggle of a pull-trigger in his hand that hung lazily by his hip. His other arm was propped up on the gun itself, his nose buried into his elbow, looking a little worse for the wear after having managed to set everything up at top-speed. His clothing remained unchanged, tho it had dried by now and was covered in grease smears and a couple small burns. Eyes were pinned levelly on the girl fox, waiting for either her or his friend to wake up.

Nearly an hour had passed till finally Eska's eyes began to flutter. Her mind was fuzzy and she wold barely move anything let alone lift her head to look around. She kept her eyes closed and felt a great pain in her head as it throbbed and threw her into a moment of hell. Trying to finally sit up she found the metal around her keep her restrained. She looked over at her arms and legs and though with blurred vision she could barely make out that she was in a prisoner's position. Shaking her arms a bit she began to whimper realizing she wasn't getting out any time soon and that she was probably being watched closely by someone. With that she looked forward to see a metal contraption set before her and when she went to tilt her head there she saw the faun who held the machine like his life depended on it. Tilting her head forward a bit she coughed then laid it back down as the room had began spinning.

"Wh-where am I?" She asked in a weak tone as she closed her eyes again. Wondering how she had gotten here, she felt a little strange and began to think of how it could be so warm. Lifting her head one more time she looked over at the window in the room and saw the sun and what seemed to be green trees. For a moment she was confused beyond belief till she finally came to her own answer. "That's right...I was sent a letter...then I came, but I don't remember much else...." Looking up at Valentin once more she began to tear up, "Wh-whats going on? Why am I tied up like this? I was called here to take classes and to research my family, but I'm tied up and I feel dehydrated..." She began to tear up for a moment, "Why are you doing this? Did I do anything to cause this, because I really don't remember..."

Eska really was lost in the recent event and had no clue as to why she was here, but she knew now that this faun was her enemy and she was to not trust him if she could ever get out of the things that held her down. Staring at the faun her vision finally cleared and she could see him clearly, he was skinny and weaker than a normal dear would be, seemed though that he had mechanical abilities beyond what she has seen. Looking at the machinery placed at her head she just felt like destroying it, but alas she was still a bit to weak.

The deer nearly jumped out of his skin when his prisoner started moving, but quickly re-established his senses. He glanced over to the bed, spotting Zerda who seemed to still be passed out. It made him worry a little the the girl, even after being chloroformed, had woken first. He spun his eyes back on her and glared.

As she tried to recall where she was and what happened, his resolve admittedly faltered. She didn't remember? She looked sad.. and scared. He was making her scared. And that scared him a little. But suddenly he recalled her false-play in the bathroom earlier and he hardened his stare with determination. There was no way he was risking believing her. He considered simply not answering her but it was too awkward to remain silent.

"You attacked us."

He remained where he stood, hiding behind his weapon. Now that she was awake, he could feel his heart speeding up, eyes darting about at his handiwork to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything. She was definitely locked snuggly into that chair, there was nothing around her within reach, his trigger-pull was attached correctly and clutched possessively in his palm, and several bottles of half-empty antifreeze assured him that he had remembered to protect his fuel. He used the back of his wrist to nervously adjust the dark green head band he wore that was keeping the bangs out of his face, accidentally leaving a smear of dark grease on his cheek from his fingertips.

A quiet beep suddenly sounded and echoed insistently throughout the room. He snapped his head down to the trigger, a little blue light flashing in consistency with the sound letting him know that the batteries were charged. His ears flipped forwards excitedly, popping the remote off the cord and tucking it up under the side of his head band as you might a pencil, and hopped over the machine's legs to dash to Zerda's bedside. He had been aching to check on him, but was too paranoid to leave the remote trigger out of reach. He remained standing, but leaned over the bed to peer at his friend's face best he could through the bangs, but sighed worriedly to see him still asleep. He shot a look over his shoulder at the girl, as if he had expected her to break out in the moment his back was turned. But when she was still in place, he lowered himself to the floor and started up the sewing machine, determined to finish closing up the blanket for Zerda. It was almost ready for use.

Watching the faun just sit there with a look of what seemed to be concern suddenly change to a less trusting one, made Eska worry. She looked around as her vision had finally cleared and she spotted the thing that Valentin was continuously looking at. A little fox on a bed in the corner of the room. She tilted her head as she saw the thing just laying there and then she observed the look on the fauns face. "I attacked you?..." She questioned aloud with a voice that sounded uncertain. She couldn't believe that she had possibly attacked these two, especially the little fox. The sound of the echoing beeps startled her and she jumped in her seat. Watching the faun run over to his friend with a remote now with him made her a bit sad. She still couldn't figure out why she would attack these two, but it must have been very bad if the faun had went through all of this trouble just to contain her.

Realizing there was probably no way she would be released she looked around the room spotted a glass of water. Smiling at it she squinted her eyes and attempted to drag the water from it to toss onto the machine that was pointed to her head. After a moment of straining herself she realized that she couldn't even do this simple task. Whats happened to me....I have never had a problem like this with water magic. Confused and now depressed she lowered her head and began to cry thinking she would never get out of this place. She watched the tears fall in her lap and the sound of the machine sewing a blanket was not really making her feel any safer. She looked at it and whimpered even more as the sound was louder than she felt comfortably with. This whole place was quite different and all the things around her was scary and unfamiliar.

"S-sir....what's your name?...." She asked hoping to get on his good side, though she hated him at the moment. Maybe he would warm up and if so she might be able to get him to release her from the chair. Looking over one more time she spotted a flicker of the little foxes tail and he felt a little safer for some reason.