Kula Diamond had achieved winter perfection on this day – and unlike what she was capable of in a matter of seconds with her chilling powers, she decided this time to work things out the hard way, and use the snow that fell past the clouds over the past day, to form a dainty, natural snowman.

She didn't have a carrot on hand, but the rock pebbles she found were enough of a size to form the eyes and smile without too much of the snow-molded canvas being filled.

When completed, it was a welcoming sight.

But then something took a turn as soon as she saw the snowman start to 'sweat' – and shrink – and puddle at her feet.

Kula was flummoxed, and a little terrified at the sight, as she dropped down to her knees and started to dip her gloves into the mostly-liquid in an effort to re-solidify it...

...but then the puddle bubbled in a sudden heat, and at the same time, she noticed an opposing hand on the other end of the little pool – and she glanced up to see a small pair of specs worn in front of two red, untrustworthy eyes.

"Aah!" Kula yelped as the heat in her gloves boosted dangerously high all of a sudden - as a controlled flame on the other end of the puddle bubbled the water lightly.

"I'd say it deserves a little heat, don't you think?" Flashing the flames with a bastard's flair, the Addes underling Nagase grinned with a smarmy evilness, taking pride in the pain in Kula's eyes.

The Ice Doll's mood quickly soured into a different level of 'upset', gazing sharply into her firey opposition. "Y-you—!"

Nagase laughed, like the scrawny bully she was. "Fire beats ice any day of the week, doll; I don't even care about the season – I just wanted to show you who's the alpha female."

After seeing the former NESTS agent nearly tear up in frustration, Nagase continued, "Oh, what's the matter; you gonna cry now?"

She continued to look down on Kula, until the ice-bearer stared up to her with a shift away from sadness, into vitriol. Kula knew exactly what was going to come to her aid...

…as SHING went two blades that slung past on Kula's left and right respectively – as her guardians in Diana and Foxy were now here to her aid.

"You should run," suggested Diana.
"Though, we won't mind having to fight about it if you don't," added Foxy.

Unsurprisingly, Nagase wasn't one to show she was 'yellow-bellied', trying to play it off cool (ironic for her elements).
"Oh look, the 'two mommies' came to save their baby girl~" She already had a hand wrapped behind on the handle of her weaponry... "You think I'm afraid of you two? Bitches, please..."

Just as she started her distance, stepping from the pointy blockade, she found another blockade forming right behind her.
A very well-endowed blockade, at that.

Nagase just needed to look up once to see Lien Neville's even sharper gaze looking down on her with a sense of dominance.

Lien said with calm serenity befitting the 'Angel of Death', "Maybe you're not afraid of them... but what about me?"

Nagase tried her hardest not to look even slightly unnerved. "Oh, don't you fuckin' look down me like you're my mom...!"

Lien retaliated in just, hammerlocking Nagase's arm before she could unsheath the blade. "Oh, I bet you'd wish I was your mommy. Otherwise, all you'd get was a spanking."

"Urk—!" Nagase felt a sudden sharp, stabbing sensation – as she was sneakily shanked in the side. Unsurprisingly, Lien was willing to go the mile to pierce skin before Diana or Foxy could, holidays be damned.

On top of that, Lien leaned in closer to Nagase's ear and whispered sinister nothings... "But you won't even get that distinction from me..."

"Urgh...!" Nagase pried Lien's blade-clutching hand away with simple force, and quickly rested a hand around the area bleeding beneath. Despite the pain, she laughed it off...
"Heh... guess you got me..."

Lien retorted, "And unless you're willing to die for me, this will be a long time going..."

Nagase smirked. "It might be, but I've got places to go~" Then she warped out in a puff of flame.

With the bratty ninja gone, Lien was now left with no-one of importance to put attention towards, but Kula and her protectors.
"Know I did that for my benefit before yours," Lien said, as she gazed down on Kula, and the puddle that used to be a snowman.
"You look like you've seen death – there's plenty more snow around here, you'll be fine."

Though the two rapier-wielding guardians were welcome to the aid, it didn't mean they were fully on Lien's side.

"Weather's just barely approaching the negatives, honey," Diana commented. "You sure you're fine going around like that?"

An apt question; aside from the zipper being fully zipped up – a small courtesy for herself countered by all her otherwise vicious intentions – Lien managed to do fine in these winter days with the exact catsuit getup she was most recognized in...
"If you were anything like me, you'd know that I've been feeling cold for a long, long time..."

She squatted down to Kula's kneeling level... "...and from the look in your eyes, kid – so have you."

On the other end, the former anger in the Ice Doll's eyes was mixed with uncertainty towards the relative stranger gazing upon her. Diana and Foxy continued to stand close, but Kula was the most clueless towards Lien's presence.
"...Should I fear you?"

Lien smiled lightly. "Only if you choose to." She briefly ruffled the icy-blue hair on the 'Anti-K' agent.
"Go on now, play in the snow~" Then she walked away, down the icy, snowy sidewalk...

What she felt there, towards Kula, was not entirely personal – but, as they say, it was a matter of 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend'.


Not gonna lie, I feel like I might get a little bit of milage out of this Nagase/Lien feud - also, in a semi-relevant note, Nagase/Angel feels like a viable ship in my KoF fanfic-headcanon, being "The Kula Bullies".