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[ The Jolly Obstacle Couurse ]

"You Look soggy"

Amy rolled her eyes and sighed. Way to state the obvious Mr. Dragon. What she wouldnt give to be a creature that was a walking furnace. "You look dry. Perhaps you want some of my sogginess?" She smiled mischiveously then, creeping closer, she held out her arms and started shuffling forward with a pout. "Im cold Sid...Since you look sooooo dry, clearly this means you need to be soggy too right?

Yayoi

[ The Jolly obstacle Course ]

"Awwwwe come now, I promise you'll only shiver juuuust a bit~ W-Wait! Dont do that!" Of all the tings to do, why would he give her his shirt? A light blush creeped up on her at the sight of the bare chest and abs before her. She was cold and soggy sure, but that didnt mean the whole world needed to be shown something so ungodly as Sid's upper body. It just wasnt fair that he could be that toned and litterally do nothing...While she had the slightest bit of pudge that just wouldnt go away no matter what she tried. The plant ghoul sighed, taking the shirt and putting it on.

She sould just have to hope no one would notice all that much.

"Youre not going to get cold?"

Sure he was a dragon, but still...

"You know....We could just stop oby the swoleman booth and see what happens when you take your shirt off?" She wanted to see what reaction he would get when there was creeple of all kinds just oogling. The thought made her eye twitch juuuuuuuust a bit but she could handle it...

Maybe.

[ The Jolly Obstacle Course ]

"Better?" Sid put his hands on his hips while glancing around. Really he had no issues going shirtless. He wasn't a female so didn't have boobs hanging out or anything.

He shook his head. "If it was extreme cold maybe, but you know I can breath fire so I'm pretty sure I'll be ok unless someone decides to freeze me in a giant block of ice." That would suck really. The boil scratched at his chin for a moment pondering her idea. "Why? Its not like people haven't seen shirtless people before...." He didn't quite understand why she wanted to see other's reactions to his shirtlessness.

It was a natural state to be in anyhow.

There was not any point, in his several decades of life, that Valeryk Respin could recall seeing such a wide and strange array of so many different people. And likely not any time where he'd felt more out of place, either. Large, luminous violet eyes raked across the broad pathway, taking in flicking tails, sweeping wings, coiling horns, wispy tendrils, and stray... animals? He blinked, and scooted out of the way as a girl and her apparently-not-prey rat charged ahead to catch up with a mangled and mismatched group that might've been her 'friends.' Despite their differences, they all seemed to get along.

Very strange.

And this, if the assortment of colorful pins, badges and swinging 'guest' passes were any indication, was not even the lot of them at their strangest. Val swallowed and fiddled with the cording of his own pass, threaded through a belt loop on his pants to keep from being too grossly in the way. Being 'humanish' felt, in a word, horrible. It made him small and awkward and unbalanced. How did these creatures move about comfortably on two legs? It seemed like he would topple at the slightest push, surely. Particularly when being crowded by all these strangers that he was damn-near afraid of even touching.

"V-aaaaaal!" And just like that, the monster boy's fears came to a point. An arm dropped its weight across his shoulders, and a body only scantly larger than his crashed into his back. An unfortunately familiar face bobbed its way into his view, and a second arm snaked around his middle to balance him. Valeryk grimaced. "Oiya, little-" Fingers skated experimentally across his chest, and the other man met Val's indignant huff with a dazzling smile. "-brother. Little brother. I was star-ting to won-der when I'd see youuu," he chirped in a sickly sing-song voice.

"Vaikirri, I-" He huffed, twisted, and buried his face against his older sibling's shoulder. Because while it would have been equally as acceptable to give the taller man a very fond punch to the face for his behavior, Val didn't imagine that was how you went about greeting family you didn't see but for a handful of days at a time. Besides, Kirri was at least familiar amongst all this other mess. Being five years his senior, graduated, and comfortably living out his life away from home, Vaikirri would likely be his only source of useful and mostly-reliable information. And comfort, if necessary.

His older brother patted his head, tousling up chin-length red-brown locks. "Mama didn't want to stay and be apart of the festivities..?" He asked slowly. When Val gave a muted and unhappy grunt in response, Kirri shrugged. "Ah, well, you know her, off to defend the home-front, a great and noble pastime indeed. Don't worrrry so much about it, kiddo. C'mon. Whaddya say we head over 'n watch all the stragglers fall on their faces, hm? That's surely something you'd be interested-"

But his attention wavered off to a a group of girls strolling by them. One of the tall, skinny ladies cast a quick glance at him from the corner of her eye, before sticking her nose up and linking arms with her girlfriend as they moved past.

Kirri patted his younger sibling's chest once before abruptly releasing him. "I'll catch up with you," he informed Valeryk, a smooth, amused smile seeping across his lips.

The color drained from Val's face. "No, what? Don't leave- Kirri!" He squawked pitifully.

But the older boy was already trotting off. "Don't worry so much," he called over his shoulder. "Just go, find a seat, make a friend. I'll find you later, okay? You'll be fiiiine! No one's gonna bite your head off, enjoy the festivities, have a snack, yadda yadda..." And then he was spinning back to his target, stalking up behind the group of girls and being very... Vaikirri about the whole thing.

This was how Valeryk Respin found himself sitting alone and sulking in the stands of the House Cup.

[ Jolly Obstacle Course ]

Mathias was still busy staring at his "prize", and hadn't yet noticed that there was somebody in the stands trying to get his attention. The medal wasn't so bad. It was shiny, at least, and Mathias did so like shiny things. It was quickly stuffed into his pocket, as if he feared somebody might attempt to take it from him.

The candy cane, however, was thrown at the back of the head of the first elf or talking snow man he saw, because it was absolutely somehow their fault that he had done so poorly, and throwing the candy cane at somebody helped to make him feel somewhat better. Not a lot better, but just a little bit.

But even that temporary tinge of satisfaction wasn't enough to rise his spirits, and turning away from the crowds, the wolpertinger began to rub at his face and grumble, quietly berating himself for a job poorly done. Why did he have to fail at almost everything he attempted to do? When was he going to get bigger, stronger, better?

It was as he was letting out a long sigh and peeking through his fingers that he caught the movement from someone sitting up above, and Mathias's hands dropped, keen eyes honing in on the boil who was waving at him.

His heart leapt in his chest, and he held up a hand in return, as mixed feelings of disappointment with himself and excitement at seeing his friend began to brew inside of him.

Motioning for the ghost boil to wait where he was, Mathias made his way to the stairs, and up into the stands to see him.

------

It didn't take the wolpertinger long to find him, and though he was sitting with some creeple who appeared to be older students, perhaps even graduates (which Jove was, also, he reminded himself), he sat next to him anyways, decked out in all of the monster dorm gear he had been given, including his own scarf, which he loosened and pulled down.

"I vas hoping you vould be here." He said, by way of greeting, a large smile brightening his face for just a moment.

"Vere you, ah, vatching this whole time?" He seemed hesitant to ask, because he wasn't sure he wanted to know that Jove had seen him floundering around like an incompetent fool out on the obstacle course.

The smile had dropped.

Jolly Obstacle Course

In the back of his mind was the faintest temptation to lie, to tell Alexander that he was sure he had done well (he should have enjoyed the snow after all). But really, that course was hell. He could easily believe his bonded had done horrid.

"Not that well." The words were both an admission and an understatement as he tried desperately not to think about the field of ice.

He was not quite so joyous in his announcement, but it was good enough that Alexander was happy. Being back at school was both mundane and exactly what they probably both needed. "I am slightly concerned with what they may come up with for the next event," he admitted as he took a place next to Alexander on the wall.

[ The Jolly Obstacle Course ]

Astra turned and stared at the floating boil, unsure as to how he was doing that before she noticed the large antlers on top his head, and the hooves instead of paws or feet, and soon knew how he was able to float.

"Oh, it's a flying reindeer!" She stated, surprised and perhaps a little amazed. He was pretty odd, but that went without saying. The reindeer was from Christmas town after all, and after a few moments the amount of JOY the reindeer emanated was making her feel ill.

Speaking in rhymes, he mentioned minipets, and before the fae could say anything else she found herself holding a bundle of fluff.

"..Thankyou!" She called out to him.

--------------------

After calming down, Pokerus sat back in her seat and watched the floating reindeer pass with some interest, wondering if this was one of the ones who drew sandy claw's sleigh. Because that would be awesome.

It would be nice if he wasn't so...cheerful though. Because she could only take so much JOY.