Chapter 6: Evil Animals

Disclaimer: I don't own the PPG or Norse figures.

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"Young Master!" Huffing and puffing Nix trot over to Brick's side pausing to catch his breath. "Thought you might need some help."

Brick looked away slightly embarrassed. It had been nearly three hours since he had stormed out of Blossom's room. It was bad enough everything looked exactly the same but in his blind rage Brick had gotten himself hopelessly lost. He had been wandering the uniformed white halls ever since. During this time he had managed to burn off some steam but had long since realized he had no way of knowing how to get back. The halls had been eerily vacant of servants or any sort of living creature for that matter.

"One of the maids caught sight of you a while ago but was afraid to approach you." Fixing his disheveled hair Nix stood straighter. "I figured you would appreciate the assistance, these halls are rather difficult to navigate."

"Yah I guess." Brick murmured scratching the back of his neck. Accendo who was perched on the boys shoulder quickly pecked him on the head. Yelping quietly the teen huffed a bit before crossing his arms and reluctantly thanking Nix for helping him.

"It's not a problem Young Master." Nix replied with a soft smile. "I was on my way to find you and Milady anyway. I'd like to introduce you to the steeds you'll be taking for the trip."

"Steeds?"

"Yes. You don't expect us to make you walk the entire way do you?" Teasing lightly Nix turned back down the hall motioning for Brick to follow. "It's bad enough we can't send bodyguards but to leave you two without transportation? I think not!"

Nix slowed after a time knocking lightly on what Brick assumed was a door. For the life of him it looked just like every other wall he had seen. When he got no response, Nix opened the door just wide enough for Nubem to slip through. A sudden squawk and the white bird was scrambling back out, feathers standing in every direction.

"Sorry Nubem!" came a muffled apology from beyond the door before a loud screech overpowered it.

Brick lightly pushed Nix out of the way wrenching the door open. He was both shocked and amused at the sight before him. Disheveled couldn't even begin to describe the way Blossom's room looked. It was as if a full on storm had passed through. Clothing was strewn across every surface, the three chairs and table from the corner were in splinters, her dresser overturned, and for some reason the entire room was covered in layers of ice and half frozen water. He couldn't believe how bad the room had become in the three hours since he last saw it.

"CLOSE THE DOOR QUICK!" Brick barley had time to react before Nix slammed the door shut and a large black blur crashed into his face. Moments later he was sprawled out on the floor as a heavier weight smashed against his side knocking him off his feet. A flurry of black and red feathers and whatever had attached itself to his face was gone.

"Sorry." Looking down, he was even more surprised to see Blossom draped over him. If her room had been hit by a storm then she must have been standing at the center of a maelstrom. Her hair which was usually brushed to perfection blew wildly around her matted in several places. The clothes she wore could hardly be considered clothing anymore torn as it was. He could tell it had previously looked similar to his own, but now the top was in tatters that looked ready to fall off at any moment. What had been a long pants couldn't even pass for shorts now as it covered almost nothing, looking as if it has been shredded by an angry cat. And for some odd reason she was sopping wet. The sheer amount of creamy white skin on display had the boys face burning red in seconds. Fortunately he didn't have long to dwell on this as Blossom sprang off of him darting away, hot on the trail of the black blur that had attacked him earlier.

'Brick we have to catch it!' glancing around he spotted Accendo trailing after the blur as well.

"What the heck is that thing anyway!" Brick shouted as he jumped in front of the feathery mass. He caught a glimpse of a large bird before his face was covered in a blast of near frozen water.

"Stiria, stop!" Blossom shouted, grabbing at the bird. Before her hands could close around it the bird turned slipping just out of reach.

Stiria as Blossom had referred to it, seemed to be mocking them. The damn bird was flying circles around the teens. It would dive down just close enough to reach and then zip away before their fingers could close around it. With Stiria's attention on Blossom and Accendo, Brick thought he would finally be able to catch the rampant avian. He managed to grab hold of a few tail feathers before it darted away again leaving him to crash into Blossom and Accendo. It was like Stiria was planning everything out and watching the show from her perch on the remains of the bedpost. Digging it's talons into the wood, Stiria began flapping her wings madly conjuring up a blizzard of snow and water. Though Accendo escaped in time the two teens had gotten tangled on the floor and were caught in the blast. Melting himself out of the ice Brick got up again only to slip on the water and ice patches. Though he tried to stop he crashed into the bed anyway. 'What the hell am I doing! I can just fly!' he thought as he stumbled off the mattress spitting out feathers from the pillow.

Blossom, Brick, and Accendo continued to chase after the chaotic animal. Occasionally one slipped or fell. The teens even crashed into eachother a few more times before finally Accendo managed to pin Stiria to the top of a shelf.

"Finally." Sighing in relief, Blossom made her way over to the two birds and plucked Stiria up before wrapping a cloth around the bird. "You caused us a lot of trouble."

"Mind telling me what's going on now?" Brick asked looking everywhere but at the girl.

"Right. Brick, Accendo. I'd like you to meet Stiria." Blossom replied obviously pleased as she pet the black bird. Which was weird considering her usually emotionless demeanor.

"Ok. Now try something we don't already know." he huffed in irritation. The damn bird had humiliated him so many times it was pathetic and worse yet he couldn't just kill it. "Like maybe you could explain how you got the evil thing."

"Stiria is not evil!" Blossom snapped clutching the bird protectively to her. She turned away, absently petting the bird as she mumbled "I just don't know how to get her to listen yet."

'Brick I think it's a familiar.' Accendo stated, head tilted to one side. He fluttered over to get a better look. The second he landed on Blossom's shoulder Stiria hissed at him. The smaller bird clicked her beak irately, fluffing her feathers as she glared at Accendo. 'Yep she's definitely a familiar. Even got the jealous streak new ones have.'

"How'd you summon her?" finally turning to face Blossom, he stared her dead in the eye. "Might explain her… reluctance." He flicked his gaze over Stiria taking in every detail. He stopped abruptly when he saw her eyes. They were the same color as Blossom's, maybe a shade off.

"Well… I'm not exactly sure." She chuckled nervously. "She kinda just appeared when I was blowing off some steam."

"Your an idiot, you know that?" Brick asked in a very monotoned voice. "You not supposed to summon a familiar with that state of mind!"

"Hey. How was I supposed to know she'd go all psycho?"

"Maybe if you'd ask!"

'People PLEASE!' Accendo squawked over the noise of the two redheads. 'Must we be fighting now? We still have somewhere to go.'

'Oh yah… I forgot about that.' Brick thought as he glanced at the door. "Nix wanted us for something."

"What are we standing around here for?" Blossom walked over to the door pausing before she grabbed the handle. "Let's get going then."

"Ugh, Pink." Stepping forward Brick placed a hand carefully in Blossoms shoulder. "Don't you think you should change first." his eyes glance nervously down over her not even bothering to hide his flaming red cheeks. What was left of her clothes literally looked like it'd fall off at any moment.

"Oh. Would you look at that." She glanced down looking as if she had only just noticed how torn her clothes were. "You owe me new clothes." she said as she lifted Stiria to eye level. The black bird squawked loudly in reply.

He had to admit there was something different about Blossom. He wasn't sure what Stiria had done but he liked the change. She seemed a lot less frigid than when he saw her a few hours ago. 'Ok… maybe not so much.' he quickly turned around as Blossom carelessly moved across the room, her bright pink underwear very nearly on display. 'Please don't let her be like this on the trip.'

'I think Stiria destroyed her sense of self preservation' Accendo landed on the boys shoulder still watching the girl as she flitted across the room. 'Aaee! Don't look.' Accendo wrapped his wings around Brick's eyes before burrowing his face into the boys red hair.

"Well are we going or not?" pulling red feathers from his face Brick saw Blossom standing in the doorway already changed into her usual attire. "I'm not standing here for my health."

"What the heck are those things?" Brick was now standing in front of a tall reptilian creature. It looked like a raptor with two horns on it's head and what seemed to be a feathery fan on it's tail. The creature stood a good five feet even as it crouched down to look at him. It had the fangs of a sabertooth that reached below it's jawline and claws like butcher knives. It was covered head to toe in jet black scales that gleamed in the light. Further back in the stall was another reptile that looked near identical except that it was covered in white flecks. Both had tail feathers of the same navy blue and snake like eyes. But here was where they really stood apart. While the pure black one had orange eyes the one with white flecks had blue.

"These are Erie Raptors." Nix said placing a hand on Bricks shoulder before reaching out to pet one of the reptiles. "The one your looking at is a female her name is Iento. The one with the white flecks and blue eyes over there is called Noctis." leaning closer Nix whispered "I'd stay away from him if I were you. He's got a bit of a problem and tends to bite. Learned that the hard way. Wouldn't want THOSE teeth in your back side."

While they were talking Blossom had slipped into the padded stall and was making her way over to Noctis. When Brick caught sight of her he nearly jumped out of his skin for the large reptile was running at her full speed. Just before a warning left his throat Noctis skidded to a stop and began rubbing himself against the girl. The lizard was acting like an overgrown house cat as it literally purred rolling around at her feet, begging for attention. Bewildered, Brick turned to Nix with a confused look. "I thought you said he was dangerous. Docent look like he'd hurt a fly."

"Only in the presence of females." Nix deadpanned looking like he'd very much like to hit the lizard right then and there. "Milady used to coddle him before. And now the stupid things got it in his mind that she belongs to him."

Brick made a mental note on Nix's attitude towards the creature. If Nix, who loved animals didn't like this one, Brick was probably gonna have a hard time with it. Since these things were coming with them he'd definitely be picking Iento for himself.

Blossom was making her way back out as he contemplated. She opened the door wide allowing Noctis, whom had practically attached himself to her, out of the stall. Accendo screeched loudly as the reptile hissed at them on it's way past. 'Yah I'm definitely picking Iento.'

Trailing far down the stable halls Blossom stopped after a time, she placed Stiria on the scaly back of Noctis before opening a cabinet. She removed two large bags which she placed on the ground. Next she grabbed a couple of brushes and handed them to Noctis, the scaly lizard grasping both handles in it's claws. In each bag she stuffed three different types of blankets and several medium sized pouches before closing them. Taking both brushes back form the large reptile she placed Stiria onto her shoulder and made her way back. 'Why would she leave the bags behind?' just as the thought passed his mind it was answered. Noctis had bent down and grasped both thick straps of the bags. With no effort the lizard carried both as he followed Blossom.

"Ah. That's a very good idea Milady." Nix said as she handed Brick one of the brushes. "I'd be good for getting aquatinted."

"I'm assuming you've already chosen Iento?" Blossom asked as she opened the stall door. "She likes being brushed."

Nodding an affirmative, Brick slid into the stall making sure not to get too close to the angry blue eyed lizard as it hissed beside Blossom. He really wasn't liking that one. Iento on the other hand seemed to be much more accepting. She leaned down to sniff at him a bit before butting her head against his chest. Accendo took a liking to her instantly as he landed on one of her horns before running his talons over her scaly head.

"Just run the brush over her hide." Nix instructed from outside. He was currently playing keep away with Noctis as the demon creature refused to hand over the bags in it's possession. "They like it when you scratch their head like Accendo's doing so don't worry."

"If she docent like something she'll tell you." Blossom said appearing beside him as she scratched Iento's chest scales. "Isn't that right girl."

The Erie Raptor crooned loudly absolutely loving the attention she was getting. And when Brick ran the wiry brush over her hide she practically collapsed in bliss as her claws rubbed the ground much the same way a cat would. Wave after wave of colors and emotions suddenly flooded his mind as Iento purred loudly. 'What was that?' he thought as he abruptly stopped. Iento gave him a pleading look as she rubbed her snout against his hands. Giving in he began brushing her again. When the odd waves returned, Brick realized they were coming from Iento herself.

"Ah I almost forgot." turning to look at Nix the teen almost burst into laughter. The tutor was tugging desperately at one of the large bags while Noctis simply held the other end looking bored out of his mind. "Erie Raptors are a lot like familiars. They can communicate but only with emotions. A lot of times they associate colors with those emo-Ack!" Brick snorted trying desperately not to laugh as Noctis released the bag. The lizard seemed to be laughing as its sides heaved and it made an odd stuttering growl while it's mouth curved up. Nix pushed off the floor and dusted himself off before attempting to retrieve the other bag.

"Maybe you should help him." Brick snorted, chuckling quietly as he turned to Blossom.

She didn't even look at him as she continued scratching Iento. "This is his only exercise." the way her voice strained and mouth twitched told him she was trying to keep a straight face. Her sides shook gently and he realized, she was LAUGHING. He hadn't even seen he smile since they were thirteen. There was no way he was gonna this pass up. Placing the brush down beside him, he carefully reached towards the redhead. When she didn't seem to notice he inched closer. He then ran his fingers gently over her side, the results came immediately as she promptly fell over in a fit of laughter.

'She always was a bit sensitive there.' Accendo called walking over as he and Iento stared at the laughing girl. Stiria who had been perched on Blossoms shoulder was now beside him. She began bobbing her head up and down chirping loudly as she dusted her tail over Blossom.

Even without his familiars help Brick got Stiria's message. He dusted his fingers over the girls side grinning like an idiot as she howled in laughter. Both birds had joined in and even Iento lent a feather tipped tail. Sure she'd probably yell about it later but right now it was freaking hilarious to him. He secretly liked her laugh though he'd never admit it, not even to Accendo.

"YEOWCH!" The boy yowled in pain as something clamped down on his backside. Turning to look he came face to snout with none other then Noctis. The evil thing had a mouthful of his pants hanging from it's teeth. He glared at the demon lizard already thinking of ways he could kill it when a cold hand fell onto his shoulder.

"Leave- leave him- alone ok." Blossom wheezed out still trying not to laugh as she leaned heavily against his side. Her cheeks were a bright red color as she wiped tears of mirth from her eyes.

"Why? He's the one that bit me!"

"I wasn't talking to you." still struggling to catch her breath Blossom reached out grabbing the fabric from Noctis's teeth. Noctis gave in without a fight as he let go moving away like a scolded puppy, tail and head drooped slightly. "Oh quit being so dramatic." she turned to Stiria then holding her arm out for the bird to climb. With a squawk the bird turned away. "Fine then."

She got up and walked off as Accendo flew over to land on her shoulder glancing back as if to make sure Stiria was watching him. Which she was. He knew what was going on. Accendo was trying to make Stiria jealous of him and it was obviously working. Shaking his head, Brick reached over just like Blossom had. This time Stiria took the invitation and climbed to his shoulder making sure to scratch him on the way up. 'WHAT IS WITH THESE HATEFUL ANIMALS!' Brick mentally shouted as he tried to hold his arm still. It was bad enough he had to deal with Accendo's attitude but now he had Stiria and Noctis to deal with as well. The latter of which he was sure was glaring at him as he left.

As he stepped out of the stall a soft blue color passed through his mind before a scaly nose brushed his arm. He jumped back, momentarily thinking it was Noctis again. Thankfully it was Iento. She was holding onto the brush he had been using and forgotten on the ground. "Thanks." he whispered as she dropped it into his hand. 'Not all of you are so bad.' her response was another lighter wave of blue.

The rest of the day found the teens and tutor packing more supplies for the journey. And when that was done they retreat to the study. Nix drilled them with hundreds of different maps and star charts that they had long since studied. He even pulled out several cultural books that odd enough looked both familiar and foreign at the same time. Once this was done Nix sent them off to bed as if they were still children saying they needed plenty of sleep.

"Wake up! Come on!" Brick felt like he was getting motion sickness as he was shaken back and forth. A pair of soft cold hands were pressed against his shoulder before the warm blanket was torn from his grasp. "Wake up already!"

Brick just rolled over before pulling the pillow over his head. He didn't want to wake up yet. His internal clock stated it was still very early and he hated mornings. Unfortunately whoever was trying to wake him was very persistent, either that or they had a death wish. The icy hands were back again, this time they were pressed against his back. He could feel himself being shaken again but he refused to get up. The pillow was torn from his grasp as well. Growling in irritation he wrapped his arms over his head instead. He was distinctly aware of a voice in his ear coaxing him awake but he just didn't want to move.

The hands were back again and so was the voice. It had a nice ring to it and reminded him of the first time he had come to Nifilheim. Blossom had taken him and Vertex to the Crystal Caverns, there they heard what Vertex called "The most Beautiful song in Existence" as the wind whistled through the caverns knocking the crystals together in an orchestra of sound. Brick had returned that night to listen to the caves song once more but the wind had been still. He chanced upon someones song instead as the eerily enchanting voice carried through the caverns. That song was even better in his opinion.

Reluctantly, Brick rolled over as the hands pushed against him. Whoever it was must have fallen over then because something cold and heavy landed on his bare chest. He shot up with a strangled gasp.

"About time you got up." he looked down to find Blossom lying sideways over his lap arms still out looking like she was pushing against something.

"Do you secretly enjoy this or something?" he teased as she picked herself up. "I mean this IS the second time you've thrown yourself at me in the past twenty-four hours."

She didn't answer, just glared at him icily before pushing him over the edge of his bed. Her head popped over the corner then as she looked down at him. "Don't get full of yourself."

He grumpily picked himself off the floor as he made his way to the closet to change. He could have sworn he saw Blossom staring at him from the corner of his eye but when he turned to look she was facing the opposite direction. He glanced at Accendo but the bird was fluttering around like an idiot trying to get Stiria's attention. Rolling his eyes he continued his routine.

Once he was done Blossom led him to the kitchen where they finished off a quick breakfast. No sense using the dining hall and making more work for the maids as Blossom stated. Brick honestly couldn't have cared.

The four trekked back to the rooms to pick up any loose items before meeting up with Nix at the stables. There they found a cleanly saddled Iento with four evenly weighted bags on her back. Noctis on the other hand only had a bridle on and was prancing circles around Nix who was still trying to saddle the creature. As soon as Blossom came into sight the lizard took off nearly jumping on her. The demon turned to putty in her hands holding perfectly still as she slipped on his harness and saddle. Once everything was secure Noctis lay on the ground awaiting further instructions.

"I envy you sometimes." Nix said glaring at Noctis before smiling serenely at Blossom. "Now you both know what to do right?"

"Yes we head towards Yggdrasil's root and use it to go to Svartálfahemir." Blossom obediently recited.

"Once there we find someone to recruit then head up to Jötunheimr. Completely bypassing Midgard." Brick huffed. It was annoying they had gone over this so many times he could recite the whole thing by heart.

"After Jötunheimr we find recruits from Vanaheimr and Alfheim." She continued.

"And if you run into any sort of trouble or need help?" Nix questioned.

"We can summon Nubem to bring assistance." both teens finished. "Can we go now?" Brick asked trying not to sound irritated. He wasn't exactly looking forward to the blizzard they'd have to pass through.

Nix pulled Blossom off to the side then whispering something to her. The redhead slapped her thighs as she answered him. He heard a soft clink as she did so. 'Must be the daggers.' he had the swords with him as well but they were both wrapped away in a bag with his personal belongings.

Once they were done talking the teens both mounted their steeds. "You sure you know how to handle her?" Blossom asked as she glanced at Brick who was having a bit of trouble with Iento.

"Yah. I got her." he gently tugged at the reigns trying to get Iento to stand back up. She didn't seem to get what he wanted her to do. He focused on the grey coloration she was sending him before picturing her standing up. She seemed to understand this time as she got up and jogged over to Noctis. The small group slowly made their way to the stable doors. They finally reached them just as Brick felt ready to pull at his hair.

With a heavy scraping sound the doors swung open the mist flooding in. The cool breeze was a welcome addition to the previously stifling air. The two raptors stepped out into the ghostly white mist. Pausing for a moment Blossom looked back one last time at her icy castle. With a final wave to Nix they turned into the blinding white world and were swallowed whole.

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Ok this chapter was longer than I intended it to be. But whatever I think it was ok. I tried to make it a little funny but I don't know if that passed as funny or just awkward.

Well on a different note I finally decided to place my story into the Romance category as well! I intend to write more but I don't know how that'll turn out. I'm not too confident on my fluff writing. I try to make things cute but they always seem to border on…other things. ^_^' I blame it on the teenage mind! DAMN HORMONES!

Now enough of my ranting. Please leave a review and tell me how I did. Any ideas you may have for the story are welcome too. I like hearing opinions and trying to see things from other peoples point of view. Thank you!