Night Dip (Open)

[Deleted]

An hour after sunset, Adrain arrived at the Crystal Springs. It wasn't overly often that he came here, but tonight he wanted to take in the starlit skies and unwind. The darkness was as natural as the day was to him after all. Shadow affinity was rare, and it bestowed a few attributes beyond the obvious such as the comfort of the dark beyond what most people felt. The springs were, as of the moment Adrain arrived, empty as far as he could tell.

Serai was behind him, the large cat at times also enjoying the hot water, at least to the extent that no more than his paws of choice were in the warm drink.

The mage had a sack along his back as he approached the edge of a comfortable enough looking spot and leaned down, using a small earth spell to manipulate the rock to form a long seat along the edge. At this point, the mage begins to disrobe, pulling his cowl off, then his tunic, shoes, and pants to reveal only a bathing suit on his body. It was still a colder night, but the mage would be in the hot water soon enough. He puts his garments within an arcane glyph and casts a spell, forming a temporary barrier just in case the wind blew or something.

With that, he enters the water, easing into the heat as he leaned against the part where he would come to sit. The mage's fit body reddened slightly as the heat sunk into the skin, and he winced slightly at some of his not fully healed cuts reacting mildly uncomfortably to the sudden heat, but it was all settled in shortly enough. He raises one hand out of the water and manifests a few soft lights in the form of a glowing sphere of light for ambience as he sighs, looking up at the night sky.

Serai takes a seat nearby at the water's edge, dipping his two front paws in and laying his head upon them.

"Serai, do you wonder what magnificence is out there, what is on those stars? Some of the fated have told me they are other suns with even other worlds around them, what could they be like, if they are there?" he says, not expecting a serious answer from the large cat. The tiger growls softly then quiets, his eyes closed. Adrain himself lays back and simply lets the water do work on his tired body until otherwise stirred to attention elsewhere.

[Deleted]

It was liberating to be in this form; it was the second one she had learned as a phioric. A gorge hound; it was a beast that was feared by many in Nova. Originating in the manna gorge, a gorge hound was about the size of a dire wolf. Slightly smaller than a horse, but not by much. Gorge hounds were most known for their ability to track magic through their sense of smell. Easily identifying subtle differences in manna. Usually preying on creatures with magical ability; many a mage had fallen to the beasts. Another note that struck fear into the hearts of many, was the effect of a gorge hounds gaze. The large pupiless eyes had an eerie glow; if one looked into the gaze they would be afflicted with visions of their own death. Usually gorge hounds use this gaze to paralyze their prey with fear. It was this form that Aria had taken now.

After leaving the castle, Aria had allowed Lucinda to take a seat on her back. Keeping to the shadows she trotted through the city. Navigating by memory, smell, and sound. It did not take them long to enter out into the woods. Once at the forests edge Aria had picked up speed; going at a loping gallop. It was only a little past an hour past sunset when the smell of the springs grew strong in her nose. Along with the scent of a familiar mage and feline.

A snort of air came from her nose in a dog like laugh; this was going to be amusing. She slowed down to a walk as she broke through the brush; her tongue hanging out of her mouth as she panted from the long run.

[Lucinda Noru]

The run out to the springs was both terrifying and exciting for the young princess. Lucinda clung to Aria, laying low against her back, her fingers dug into silky fur. She was pretty sure not many people got to ride on a gorge hound, so she made a mental note to thank Aria later for the opportunity. The night was chilly as they crept through the streets of Nova like shadows but not too much so because of the warmth from Aria and her cozy clothes. The princess had decided to simply wear a pair of velvet, midnight blue pjs and wool socks with boots and a black fur cloak. She had a smudge of blue paint on her face and drops on her toes inside her shoes.

Aria made a strange sound which Lucinda thought might be a laugh as they finally approached the springs. "What's so funny?" she asked, though it sounded rhetorical as she wasn't really expecting an answer. Lucinda assumed she'd find out soon enough. She proceeded to try and slide off Aria's back, lost her balance and landed in a nearby bush. She poked her head out as she stood, laying their both their bags on the shore by the calm and heated waters. She had yet to notice that they were not alone.

[Yuki D'Avranches]

Yuki didn't know what she was doing that night that she decided to visit the Crystal Springs, it was maybe the latest agreement she had with her mother or the fact that the garden at night no longer left a good place to hide and organize her thoughts either way she was following the trail towards the springs. In her hands was a bag that contrained a change of clothes, her swin wear, a towel and just a few of her bathing supplies, as she walked she wondered if she should have asked Hawkeye to company her, shaking her head of the thought since she had didn't given him the night off and she didn't plan to visit the springs until just two hours ago.



Looking down as she walked stilled dressed in her clothes from that morning, which consit of her dark green cloak with black boots and stockings. Under was her dress in a pale blue winter dress. On her right hand was the mana amplifier, she smiled softly looking at it since that night she had kept it hidden from not only her mother but Hawkeye as well, only wearing it at night it become a habbit. Still she wondered for a moment if it would be okay for her to place it in water, sighing she decided it was best if anything to take it off once she reached the springs since it was late and she didn't want to bother Adrain about something that was trival.



Upon reaching the edge of the forest that opened up and releaved the springs she stopped in her tracks noticing that there was two people and a hound already. Now feeling a bit shy about having come at this time, she slowly started to back up for a couple of reasons. One was that there was a possible vicous gore hournd and also she wasn't very comfortable changing infront of others. Even if the bruices and lashes from childhood had heal she still didn't want anyone to see her body.



Turning into she moved west into a set of brushes quickly changing into her swimsuit and pulling her bathrobe on to help keep some of the chill from her body. Putting her cloak on she walked back towards the springs, once she broke though and now had a clear veiw of everyone, first person she notice was Princess Lucinda her nervousness only incressed first was wondering if maybe she came at a wrong next. Then her eyes moved to the person in the springs and her eyes brighten to see Adrain one of the few people who spend time to get to know her before jugding her fully. Giving a bow to Princess Lucinda if she looked up and saw her, before her eyes wandered to where the safest place was sit down and place her feet in the water.



Walking closer to the springs making sure to stay as far from possible Princess Lucinda and the gore hound that seems to guarding her, which caused her to end up closer to Adrain. Placing her bag on the rocks she carefully took off her shoes and stockings and place her feet into the water, as she slide her cloak off, folding and placing it next to her bag. Looking around wondering where Serai was, wanting to shower the tiger with hugs, but for now she was going to remind quiet unless someone asked her a question.

[Deleted]

In the time between when Adrain first entered and the others started to arrive, he had actually begun to doze off. The mage was at peace for once, the soak having brought him to a rare relaxed state. Usually Serai would wake him up if he stayed in too long, mostly the fact that the redness of the skin gets to be a little too much. As the moonlight fell upon the mage, his features were made evident to those in view. His face in the moonlight was even more well sculpted, his toned body reflected upon the water. The only notable blemish was a scar on his chest. Ladies get your fill while you can.

Serai meanwhile perks up at the sound and scent of the Gorge Hound. At first he was preparing to enter an attack pose, but then a sniff later realized it was an all-too-familiar presence.

'Aria, why do you turn into that vulgar thing, it lacks the grace of feline greatness.'

After the initial scare, the tiger noted that Yuki had also arrived. A strange twist of fate this was! He was tempted to saunter over to Yuki, but then just chose to switch sides such that he was between Yuki and Adrain. The water began to allure the cat, but he held his excitement off for the moment.

[Lucinda Noru]

Yuki's arrival to the spring caught Lucinda's attention and she looked around, finally spotting Adrain and Serai as well. She looked back at the giant gorge hound Aria with an accusing and surprised look. She gave a smile and nod to Yuki when she bowed as this was an informal setting. Now, she had a decision to make. She had come here with Aria on the premise that they would be the only ones here and thus had not brought her swimsuit. She couldn't very well bathe in her pjs but Lucinda wasn't sure how much she could trust this baroness to keep her mouth shut either. Still, she couldn't very well ruin her velvet pjs and luxury underthings.

Lucinda was still in her bush that she landed in, so she used it as a convenient cover to strip off her clothes and stuff them in her bag. She was obviously nervous, scared. In her mind, she worried this would end badly but her talks with Aria had struck a nerve. So the princess took a deep breath and stepped from the brush, the moonlight hitting her pale, naked skin. Her body wasn't toned, save for some muscle in her arms from her archery, it was soft, supple. The princess seemed even smaller without her dresses, with a 5 ft 4 frame and thin waist that showed off her perky breasts quite nicely, though she wasn't what one could call 'curvy'.

The blonde moved to settle herself in the water, her blue eyes looking both confident and somehow anxious. She chose a seat a few feet away from Adrain, the tiger, and Yuki, almost on the opposite side of pool. The mage didn't seem to have taken notice of anyone yet but the same could not be said for Lucinda as she clearly could not keep her eyes off his sculpted form, a light blush settling on her cheeks. Though who could say it wasn't from the heat of the springs.

[Yuki D'Avranches]

Relaxing her feet in the water just letting it make small waves in the springs, as she looked at Adrain last time they met was under the moonlight during what she had come to call her darkest hour. Even then she had noticed that he was very good looking but now was different from what she could see that wasn't hidden by the water caused her to blush even more, he body was that of a god made to perfection that even the scar on his chest didn't take away anything about him.


Yuki was glad for the minor distracted of Lucinda deciding to stop from out of the bushes. Even with it being a slightly distracted her eyes darken for a moment as she looked over Lucinda, comparing herself in her mind to the princess. From her breast which was bigger than hers and her hips, turning away as a few tears started to well up in her eyes. Honestly, she didn't know why she was comparing herself to a princess who been gifted with being born female with the perfect body while she had suffered from the sad fate of being born male and then given a female body.


The tears had started to fall not wanting anyone to ask her why she was crying over something that might seem foolish to them she quickly slipped into the warm water ducking her head under. Now at least if she was crying she could blame it on the water or even just dust in her eyes. Turning to look at the sky she wondered how brave and comfortable the princess was in her own skin to bath naked in front of a man. Hell, she had come with her bath stuff and even a swimsuit even if no one was going to be at the springs.


Pushing those thoughts out of her head not needing to get more depress when she had come to ease her mind and get rid of some of the stress. Now wasn't the time for her to be insecure about her body, raising her hand to pet Serai giving him some love and attention, this way she didn't have to look at the princess with her perfect body and feel unsure about her own.


"Serai, how have you been?" She whispered softly to him so that no one else would hear her. It was helping to put her mind at ease even if she wouldn't be able to understand him, but at the back of her mind now that she has seen someone her age naked it made her wonder if could ever live up to those standard. Another wave of silent tears began to flow, quickly wiping them away, letting her mind slowly wander to happier thoughts as she absently pets Serai.

[Deleted]

Melda had decided she needed another trip to the Crystal Springs. Her last springs adventure had turned into an absolutely disaster, and Melda was determined to have a more exiling time this go around. Once again Diamond accompanied her, as was his job. As usual, you are fully permitted to relax once we arrive, but… ahem… as for the incident from last time… regarding you and well, modesty… well you know what not to do this time around. Melda had given him a towel before departing, to secure the fact that it wouldn’t happen again. She couldn’t allow her face to turn the colour it had last time, it revealed too much.

As they got closer, Melda saw figures not far in the distance. She hadn’t expected any other people, but then again, that had been the case last time as well. Clearly the springs weren’t as secluded as she’d been told. Is that Yuki…? And Lucinda…? Prepare yourself Diamond. This shall be interesting. In addition to the two she’d listed, she saw two animals, one she had to assume was Aria, because Lucinda was here, and another she hadn’t a clue about, as well as a mysterious sleeping man.

Melda cleared her throat lightly to announce her presence to any who hadn’t sniffed them out yet. Princess, it’s a pleasure to see you again. She bowed her head before placing her things on a rock, and removing her top layer of robes, revealing a bathing robe beneath it, black in colour, so it would not show through once water hit it. Her silver locks were down against her back, stopping just above her hips, wavey and thick. She settled down next to Lucinda, nodding her head at Yuki. She hadn’t known the girl well, noticing too much Drama around the girl to approach her more than once after meeting her. The water caused the robe to cling to her skin, as any clothing would, but Melda had positioned her hair around her chest, just in case, although sideboob was something no one could control, even under clothing. Melda looked back over to Diamond, motioning for him to join them whenever he pleased.

Interesting little group we have… who is this man? Normally, Melda would have left without approaching the man, not sure of his potential danger to her, but in this situation, Lucinda and Yuki were clearly comfortable around him, and Aria and Diamond would likely protect anyone if they were attacked, so the matter was quite small.

[Deleted]

Diamond was yet again asked by his boss Melda to head out to the hot springs and agreed. Nothing so eventful on the travel there but could see several different tracks as they got there. It did keep him alert "Yes yes, that was for one time. I'll be good....heck I got shorts for this if I want to get into the springs" he said and saw that they were deffinetly not alone. His battlefield senses could tell someone was watching the area as they were getting there. Then when Melda spoke up about that they were not alone out there. Diamond was about to sarcasticly answer back and he had heard two names come up. One was the name Yuki, as that was the young lady he saved awhile ago that tried to sneak out. It had been awhile since he saw the young lady. The other name did raise an eyebrow for him though, as Lucinda was the princess to the kingdom to the north. The bodyguard did remember hearing that she did return to the palace awhile after things died down. This time though he was going to behave himself, as that girl was a blood relation to Noku. This made him pause, since Diamond did not want to piss off the king.

"Yes....yes this will interesting" Diamond said as they got closer and this time he saw Yuki and then the princess. He was expecting some kind of bathing clothing but instead it was a birthday suit. So the male made sure that his eye did not dip below Lucinda's face. His eyes shot over to two very large animals, one was a tiger and the other was a wolf like creature. The wolf though had an idea who it was and the other was something he remembered and spotted Adrian in the springs. This slightly raised an eyebrow but none the less gave a mental shrug on this matter "Greetings ladies this is a unexpected. Introductions should be made though in this case. My name is Diamond Corsica, Lady Melda's bodyguard and and I shall be rather discreet while I am here" he said and gave a bow before standing up and started to think over for a second. Tonight he was not in the mood for the water and went over to a near by tree and sat down.

"I might get in after awhile though, maybe after getting a fire started. Also miss Yuki, how are you doing? The last time I saw you, were almost kidnapped by some ruffians" Diamond said showing some concern for the young noblewoman. As last time she was rather distraught and just scared out of her mind.

[Deleted]

The large gorge hound raised its head as it sniffed the air, three more scents were approaching the area. All three she recognized. As Yuki appeared at the springs without a guard she let out a large grunt. Even Melda who did not care to bathe around Diamond brought along her guard. After all, it was dark, and they were in the forest. In fact Arias first run in with a gorge hound was at the springs. Lucinda at least came with her; she wondered what the Baroness could even do to defend herself if something decided she was prey.

As Lucinda got changed and the others approached; Aria stood in the spot where she was, giving Lucinda some more cover as she changed. Her eyes remained closed; as she did not want to accidentally cause anyone to panic with visions of their own death….then again…nah Yuki was annoying but Aria wasn’t particularly that mean.

Aria turned her large head towards Serai as she heard him call out to her; the cat had to have seen her in this form once or twice. ’If you want to talk about forms lacking grace you should see my skunk form. All waddles.’ Gorge hounds had their own type of grace, however Aria knew better then to try to argue that point with a cat. As Lucinda moved from the bushes to sink in the water, the scent of tears immediately hit Arias nose causing her to sneeze. One massive ear went back against her head as she contemplated, what on earth could have made the girl cry at a drop of a hat. Aria walked back into the brush and circled around to where the Baroness sat. The baroness would find a cold wet nose suddenly pressed up against her cheek for a few moments before the gorge hound pulled its head back and sneezed again. Apprently the salty smell of tears bothered the large gorge hounds nose.

Aria at this point moved to go greet the other Duchess and her guard; when she went into the water Aria gave the older woman a lick across her face. And at the size Aria was that wet sloppy kiss was probably the size of the poor woman’s face. Aria at this point decided now was a good time to hop into the water. So with a quick small hop over Melda’s head. The large gorge hound plopped into the middle the springs, sending large rolling waves over the edges of the springs. At that point only the large head remained emerged above the water’s surface.

[Deleted]

Ellaria sighed with relief as she realized she had entered the outskirts of Nova according to the lines on her map. She was almost there, their fresh start wasn't even a day away. She peered down at her map, looking for the best route to take that would be the quickest, so she would not have to spend the night in the forest, she loved the forest, but she really, really, wanted a hot bath and soft bed. She had been traveling for weeks, and only a few nights had been spent actually in an inn. Her hair was a mess and her clothes and skin had numerous dirt smudges form sleeping on the ground. She sighed again and spoke aloud, "What do you think Crowley? Should we take this road or this one? They both lead to the entrance of the city, but which one looks shorter?"

At that moment a soft hissing came from inside her cloak as a rather large albino python slithered it's way out to wrap itself around her shoulders to glance at the map with her. Crowley tapped a blue area on the map with his tail, "I say we take this little path here and stop at, what's this? The Crystal Springs, Before going into the city. I'm sure they get plenty of travelers in, but Darling, you look an absolute fright, and why pay for a bath when we can get one for free in the peace and quiet?

Ellaria nodded in agreement as she turned to start walking in the direction of the springs, "You have a point, that way when we get into the city we can find an Inn, get a room, and go straight to bed. Instead have having to waist all of those formalities of speaking to people."

Crowley hissed in her ear, disapprovingly, "If we are going to live in the city we really should work on your people skills. Don't get me wrong, I simply adore you. But when's the last time you actually held a conversation with anyone."
Ellaria shook her head, they had had this argument before, and she refused to have it again. She didn't need friends, she was completely content in her solitude with Crowley.

They walked on for some time, and one couldn't help but notice as the air became denser as they neared the springs. A small smile formed on Ellaria's pale lips, she could not wait to sink into the hot water relax for a few hours to cleanse herself before going into the city. Just as she saw the trees clearing up and could see the clearing of spring, she caught a wiff of human, animal, and Phioric? Then she heard the voices, mostly female. She stopped, she had not seen or spoken to any of her kind in over a year since she was seen as Unfit. And then there was just, people. Backing up as to leave she said, "Bitch at me later about it later Crowley, but there's no way I'm getting into that spring." It was then she realized a familiar weight was no longer resting upon her, she looked around just in time to see a white flash slithering rather hastily towards the springs. "Damn it!"

She broke out into a run chasing after him, and just as she broke through the clearing she saw the end of his tail go under water. Paying no attention to the people in the spring already, she charged in clothes, cloak, boots, and all, screaming, "Crowley you perverted, insolent, lecherous snake!" When she finally caught up to him, she punched her hand through the water grabbing him by the middle and pulling him out. Ellaria turned him to face her shaking him slightly, "Are you completely insane? Slithering off like that? JUST BECAUSE YOU HEAR WOMEN SPEAKING IN A HOT SPRING?"

Crowley made staccato hissing sounds, one might call it a laugh, "Darling, listen to yourself, you're the one standing in the middle of a hot spring, completely clothed, talking to a snake, while looking like a completely disheveled snake woman. I think it is you who are insane. And plus I couldn't help myself. Look around you, all but two are male, and one is even undressed" He made the staccato hiss again, looking at her with what could only be described as mirth.

Ellaria's face fell and she finally took in her surroundings, her large red reptilian eyes darting from one person to the other, while still holding on to the calm snake. All strangers, one naked, one Phioric, one a tiger, the others human. With her free hand she face palmed herself and muttered. "Shit." She had done exactly what she hadn't wanted to do.

[Deleted]

Serai watched Yuki, raising a brow when the large cat noted tears coming down her eyes. Odd that one could be. He would think she be happy to spend time with Adrain, especially in his current state of undress since the pheromones coming off her made her interest obvious. The tiger allowed Yuki to show him attention, rubbing his face against her nearest anatomy at first to let her calm. Then Aria in that mutt form came over and poked Yuki which would likely startle her. Afterward, the tiger decided Yuki needed distraction.

He put his paw on Yuki's face the next time she seemed to get upset, and waited for her to move. The pattern would repeat until Yuki was in a position such that she was close enough to Adrain. Once so, the tiger decided to act like he was spazzing out from the water and go under Yuki, flipping her along his back straight into Adrain's lap. In the process it may have been possible that Yuki's top would snag along one of the tiger's fangs in the initial spaz and thus exposure, but it wasn't clear at first and not the tiger's obvious intent. The tiger would chuckle mischievously in a manner such that Aria would hear it obviously.

At this, Adrain finally roused as his purple eyes opened to meet Yuki's now rather close. He jumps slightly out of startle but not enough to move Yuki too much. Raising an arm behind his head to rub it, he chuckled softly. As Aria jumped in making waves, he glances at her before then turning back to Yuki.

"Oh hello Yuki, I didn't expect you to make your way out here. You look lovely this evening." he says, able to see a redness on her eyes and guessing she may have been recently upset and thus deciding to make her feel better. Plus she was rather cute in her swimsuit, the view of her skin showing that the transformation was at least thorough. As he became more aware of his surroundings, his gaze went to a Gorge Hound with a familiar energy that nobody seemed to be entirely flipping out about. He had a theory but would let it go for now and wait for Yuki to likely scramble off of his lap.

Then his eyes traversed to Lucinda. Now, Adrain was no pervert, but when a young man sees a beautiful woman in the moonlight, he can't help but to take notice and took in every inch of her exposed body. He thought about the scenario. Lucinda arrived after him and thus would likely have seen him here, yet she decided to go in the springs nude still. She was apparently comfortable enough with herself that she didn't need feel embarrassed to show herself in the dark a little. That or she (successfully) was trying to appeal to Adrain since the mage had an idea of her interest. That said, he didn't choose to make a scene of it.

"Evening Lucinda, what brings you out this late?" the mage says with a smile, not spending an undue amount of time looking at her. Admittedly he thought the princess was not likely to come out in the dark, but the boldness was admirable. "I'm glad to see you all the same. I apologize for being momentarily asleep. You see, my body is still sort of destroyed internally from something I had to do a couple weeks ago and the springs causes that pain to fade enough to unwind." he says. The spell to disrupt the fog had taken more out of his body than it was possible to explain and he hasn't exactly been able to go without using magic or being active due to the nature of his life to recover any faster.

At the edge, his eye came to an older woman, elven, lovely in her own right but in a mature way along with what appeared to be a chaperone of some kind, a bodyguard most likely. A lover would be in the water with her. After a moment, the mage recognize it as Duchess Melda Delsaran Vanya. She was a woman that Adrain had admired, aware that she was a practitioner of magic within the court. He always wanted an opportunity to meet her as such but there wasn't that great of an opportunity before now.

At this point, the mage stands up and looks toward his sack on the ground nearby, standing on the seat he sculpted and pulling it over. "Well, relaxing is always better in the company of friends." he says he begins to rummage through it and pulls out a bottle of wine, Paliconian Moscato along with a parcel containing some cut cheeses, crackers, cookies, and fruits. He then holds his hand to the water as he causes a platform of ice to manifest a few feet in such to not get into anyone's way, using a buffer of mana to keep it from chilling the water. He walks over and lays out the refreshments, then casting another ice spell as he causes a number of chalices of ice to form, as if growing out of the table.

"Please, help yourselves. While I didn't bring a large, party sized portion it should be enough for some mild refreshment. Lucinda, Yuki do either of you want some of the wine? It is a Paliconian Moscato preferably cold on consumption, sweet with hints of other fruits" he says, pouring for either if they wished it. Afterward, he poured a glass and then calmly made his way through the water to Melda, pausing a couple of feet away, the moonlight radiating off his body in the night backdrop.

"Good evening Lady Vanya. I am Adrain Kaiaru, Headmaster of the Arch of Ages. It is a pleasure to meet you. Would you like some wine this evening or any of the other refreshments?" he says lowering his head in a bow, showing a little more formality to the noblewoman he was just meeting. "Please feel free to enjoy any of the things I've brought this evening." he says, his eyes traversing to the bodyguard. Now that he was closer, he recognized it as Diamond, a mage he had met a couple of occasions past. "The same goes for you Diamond." he calmly says.

At this point, there was a disruption as yet another woman charges through and dives into the water, plucking a snake out with some yelling and cursing that he couldn't fully make out as he wasn't paying attention at first. He rose a brow, and when a moment arrived that Melda was done with him, he approached her, standing ten feet away as to not get too close.

Hello there! Are you alright?" he says, taking in the woman. She was dripping wet with her attire, apparently not having initially planned coming in like that. Her features were as best he could describe pale with some snake-like attributes. A lovely blend in its own right wth her midnight hair and red eyes, but soiled from perhaps a rough route of travel.

"My name is Adrain. If you wish I can create a fire for your clothes to dry and while you're here. You look like you could use an evening to unwind perhaps, feel free to join this group if you like, I have some finger foods on the ice platform as well as wine if you like it." he says with a warm smile. Perhaps he was being slightly too trusting, but he didn't see her as an obvious threat.

[Lucinda Noru]

Lucinda’s attention was distracted from Yuki’s odd behavior with the arrival of Melda and Diamond. The princess looked surprised to see them. More nobility from the castle? This was going to be all over the kingdom by morning! Palico Princess bathes nude in public springs. It was going to look bad, people would talk. They would call her unclean or worse, a whore to bathe without clothing in the presence of men while she was unwed. She realized after a moment that she hyperventilating slightly and she took a deep breath, refocusing as she heard that Melda was actually talking to her, hoping no one had noticed. Lucinda needed to learn to be bold and this was a step in the right direction.

“Lady Melda, the pleasure is mine, of course. It’s been a while since we’ve seen each, not since I’ve been back I’m sure. Please, join me, the water here is just perfect. How have you been?” Lucinda asked, her perfect princess demeanor in place. “Oh, yes, very interesting group. You recognize Lady Aria, of course? And Baroness Yuki. That man there is Headmaster Adrain, to answer your question,”Lucinda ticked off all the current members of the springs. It really was an odd sort of group, “Diamond, you’re looking well.” She acknowledged the presence of the guard casually.

When Diamond mentioned Yuki being kidnapped, the princess looked alarmed but didn’t say anything, choosing instead to wait to hear Yuki’s reply. After, of course, Aria and Serai stopped goofing around. She covered her mouth, trying not to laugh at the antics of the big animals. The commotion finally woke the mage who looked around, probably alarmed she would think to find so many people here when no one had been when he fell asleep. She noticed that he noticed that she wasn’t wearing any clothes, and though she blushed, she didn’t look away or otherwise indicate her shyness.

“Good evening, Adrain. Sorry to have disturbed you. Aria dragged me out here, actually, with the assurance that we would probably be the only ones here. So, I came in my best pair of velvet pj’s and when I got here, realized that I had a choice. You can see how that decision went,” Lucinda explained, laughing. Her previous introductions proved somewhat useless as Adrain introduced himself and then stood, turning to grab something behind him. She watched, taking in his almost naked form with a well practiced look of disinterest, as he rummaged around in his bag and then offered refreshments.

Before she could accept anything, their little hot springs party got an official crasher in the form of a strange, pale maiden. The young woman came stomping directly into the spring, shouting, and reached into the water. She came back up with a large python, matching in skin tone to its owner, and shook it. The woman spoke to the snake as if it were talking to her. Lucinda, for her part, was quite alarmed and scooted quickly away from the woman over closer to Aria and Adrain.

[Yuki D'Avranches]

As Yuki was taking some comfort in Serai when she felt a cold wet nose pressed to her cheek startled she tried wiping the water and tears away from her face as she turned and saw the gore hound. A small giggled escaped her lips at the squeeze, "I didn't mean to make you squeeze with my tears. I guess my insecurity about my body after see Princess Lucinda's made me a bit sad. Silly reason to cry I know." She said softly as she tried her best to smile it didn't reach her eyes which would be plain to see the small hints of pain behind the smile.


Feeling a paw on her face she turned to look at Serai, she moved away from him close to Adrain. She giggled as he kept doing it no matter how many times she tried to move away from him, if she didn't know better she would swear he was trying to make her smile, that was until he flipped her across his back into Adrain's lap her top getting ripped in the process exposing a bit more of her chest.


Realizing she was had landed she blushed turning scarlet because of her current position. Being this close up it allowed her to study Adrain's face from his eyes which to her shined brighter than any gem to his lips, which caused her to turn even more crimson if it was possible. If she wasn't blushing already she would be even more at the comment. "Ah.. yes... Hello, Adrain." She said she slowly struggled for words, as she tried to calm her racing heart as well. "It.. it is... I didn't know... uh... thank you..."


Quickly scrambling off of his lap she turned and glared at Serai thinking of all the ways she could turn him into a nice fur coat for causing her to become all flustered. She swears the cat had it all plan from the start for this to happen and if she didn't know any better she swear Serai wanted to see her all flustered. The small distraction of Duchess Melda and Diamond entering the clearing didn't do much to calm her redden cheeks.


It did only remind her that she needed to speak with Melda privately about her helping her a bit with her magic studies. She was thankful for Princess Lucinda's introducing everyone because she didn't think that she would be able to form proper words at this point. Hearing Aria's name she looked away before her eyes landing on the gore hound, honestly how stupid could she have been to tell her insecurities to the one person who would turn around and use it against her.


The mention of her almost kidnapping made her want to hide under the water. She had been able to keep it quiet around the castle of what happened that day but she could see that Diamond only asked out of concern. Slowly calming her heart rate from the earlier event. "I am fairing well thank you Diamond. As for the attempted kidnapping I have recently learnt that it was another baroness who ordered it to happen. It appears that she either wanted to scare me or get rid of me as a competitor for one of the Duke's hand." She said calmly. "I do believe that it isn't the only reason, I feel like there is some missing information." She didn't want to mention it was only recently she had come about the news that it was another noblewoman and she wasn't one to give the name of the young woman and spread rumors around the castle, like how she wasn't going to mention this night to anyone, not even her own guard.


Since she was close to Adrain she was able to see his muscles and get a closer look of his body as he stood and reached for his sack. Honestly, she felt like the whole world was against her today since she had just managed to calm her heart rate and cool her cheeks a bit for them to become redden once again as she watched Adrain. Not that she mind at all but still she has barely come to terms with her own feeling when the world seems to throw them at her ever moment they could.


She was about to accept the offer of the wine hoping that it would help calm her a tiny bit when a woman jumped into the springs. Startled she moved closer to Adrain wondering what the hell was going on until she pulled out a snow white snake and started to talk to it something about the start being a pervert. Turning to look at the others wondering if they had any idea what was going on at the moment with the woman and the snake.


Deciding that she would stick close to Adrain still a bit unsure about the white skin and red eyes woman. Giving a small wave to the woman and the snake, who she guessed was named Crowley based on what she had said earlier to it. "Hello, Miss. Hello, Crowley." Greeting the pair, since it seemed that Adrain had deemed them safe and she trusted him right lots more than she trusted Serai.

[Deleted]

A few months at least my dear. I’ve been alright I suppose. Incidents here and there, but all in all, I’m well She smiled, hoping someone had already filled her in on the attack so she wouldn’t bring the conversations down to a dark path. What brings you back Princess? Though I suppose I can assume the answer to that. She smiled, having a feeling Aria was responsible- not that she minded. Lucinda was a welcome surprise.

Melda sunk into the water down to her shoulders. She wasn’t expecting this many people to be around when she decided on this trip, but then again the same thing had occurred last time. She waved off Diamond’s choice to stay dry, having a feeling Aria may force him into the water at some point, and if not her, then Yuki. She just hoped he had the chance to change first; otherwise trudging home with him later would just be a hassle in wet clothing. It was at this point that she received a rather sloppy welcome from the animal she now knew was Aria. Aria, really! Must you be so… canine? Melda went to wipe off her face, but she decided to wash it off instead, and ducked down into the water, rubbing her face as she did. She hadn’t intended to get her hair went so early on, but the red head forced her too. She rose from the water and pushed hair out of her face. As Lucinda listed off the people present, Melda nodded along, noting the name of the mystery man who accompanied them in the water. She heard of him before, as someone involved with magic herself it was surprising she’d yet to meet him.

Melda’s eyebrows rose considerably as Diamond spoke to Yuki. For one, she hadn’t known they were acquainted, and two, kidnapped? She’d thought she had eyes and ears all over the castle, but clearly she was wrong if a kidnapping had stayed so underground. However, she chose not to pursue the topic yet again, wanting to keep drama out of this bath. Even when Yuki said it had been another Baroness. She would have to ask her at a later time. No drama. Nooooo drama.

When the spectacle between Adrain and his companion begun, Melda watched, a bit amused by it all and curious how Yuki had come to know them already. She seemed to have a wide range of resources for someone her age. Once the man was roused, Melda took a closer look at his face, noting the colour of his eyes for no particular reason other than they stood out. It seemed he wasn’t too shocked at the appearance of people to his bath, which could either be concerning, or he wasn’t really asleep.

She turned her attention away from him as he spoke to the people around them, and leaned her head back against the ground behind her, closing her eyes for a moment and letting the water ease the tension in her muscles. She’d never let on how much work being a Duchess was, and after so many years a change of pace like this was more than welcome. It was why she enjoyed spending time with Aria so much; something new everyday. Her attention was brought back to the circle of people as she felt the water shift, as though someone were walking through it, which is exactly what was happening. She opened her eyes and saw Adrain making his way towards her, allowing her eyes to dip for a moment, taking in his figure, which was only to be expected, even from a widow like her. They didn’t linger however, and returned to his face as he greeted her. When he spoke her name, her face changed a bit, curious. He knew her by her face? She’d known that Lucinda and Diamond had both said her name, but Adrain had supposedly been asleep during that time… So he’d just known her by face? That wasn’t normal at all. She returned her face to its normal stature of maturity and professionalism, and nodded her greeting. Evening Adrain. The pleasure is mine. I’ve been meaning to meet you for quite some time now, it’s a shame it finally happened in a… less than professional setting. Melda cleared her throat, keeping the professional face in place.

And wine would be lovely, thank you. Unlike the last mystery man she’d met in the springs, this one was pleasant, and gave her no reason to be angry, though the fact of his gender kept her sceptical, as usual. When Adrain addressed Diamond, she cocked an eyebrow, making a mental note to ask about that later in the evening. Once introductions were done, Melda returned to her relaxed state, letting the conversations happen around her. She wasn’t quite a social butterfly, as anyone could assume. She was here to relax and bathe, and she didn’t care what she looked like in the process, even if it was anti-social, which she was used to being known as.

Her relaxation was cut short yet again as someone fell into the water, loud as they did. Her eyes shot open, and she looked in the middle of the bath, wiping water splashed onto her face. Another woman seemed to have joined them rather abruptly, as well as a snake. Interesting. The woman spoke some rather curious things to the reptile, so Melda assumed she had some way to communicate with it, otherwise she was just plane crazy. Adrain addressed the woman calmly, which Melda gave him points for, and offered her to join them. Anymore people and the springs would became a bath of flesh more than water. Melda sighed, and did not greet this new person, finding no need to just yet. Clearly there was some story behind it, and someone there was bound to ask, so she didn’t bother, and just continued to watch instead.