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((The Naos & Prajna: Food buffet))

“Hey, watch it…”
David scowled at the woman’s sudden protest but knew it was expected; he had been the one to rudely bump into her but still, it was an accident, still he had just wished she had been a little forgiving, a little more courteous, a little more lady like but he quickly waved his hand, as if literally pushing the thoughts away. His buzz was still enjoyable and he wasn’t going to let one sour woman ruin it. He smiled amusedly as he watched his sister chat gleefully away with Anita. They looked almost like siblings themselves with their similar, wild chocolate locks and light colored eyes. Both looked quite cute when genuinely smiling too. David decided perhaps it was best he take his leave, but then Anita began asking questions the older Nao knew his sibling knew very little about. While Namini was more guardian-quality than David, usually making sure the Star ate and helping it do its hair or get dressed, David was more of Prajna’s bodyguard, making sure it didn’t go off and kill itself in some bar fight or something. Therefore, at the start of Anita’s questions, the man felt very little concern or interest but then she said something about “kisses” … then “hiccups” and ended in “weirdness.” Yup. This was definitely not information David wanted to share, if only for the fact that his sister was here and unaware of the Star’s more …outrageous behavior.

Yes it was rebellious and tended to wander in her presence, but Namini was still innocent to the fireball’s tendency to lock lips or meet the fists of new Raevans. David really wanted to pull Anita to side and tell her all she wanted to know and send her on her merry way, but his metallic gaze fell upon Namini’s girlish buns and sweet smile and he knew that was absolutely not an option. He sighed. How was he going to have to go about this? He couldn’t lie TOO much in front of Namini!

Namini was ignorant of her brother’s internal turmoil though as she took Anita’s mannerisms in. Anita was quite adorable, the young girl had to admit, and she felt an incredible bond to her, so early on in their friendship. Especially when she asked for advice. Namini felt like, for once, she could be of guidance to someone! Like a sister, not a mother, and this feeling was exciting.

“Kisses? I didn’t know Raevans could eat something like that, though it shouldn’t be soo surprising with the peculiar things they do consume” Namini cooed, cupping Anita’s hands in her own. “But a month and half? He’s still a cute little baby! You must have been so happy to finally welcomed him into your home! Prajna took us a little while to figure out, but it eats… hmm.. how do I explain? Fire? It eats fire, though rarely. Sometimes sunlight. Pretty much anything warm or bright. It’s so hard to feed though. Prajna is a picky picky eater and it’s always telling me how each thing tastes differently, so I try my best to bring it new sources of light or warmth… but incidents? Weirdness… I.. I haven’t run into--”

David frowned and then walked closer to the pair, releasing Anita’s hands from Namini’s affectionate grip, sighing in defeat. He turned towards Anita, a scowl on his face, though it seemed to not be directed at her but the ugly memories playing out in his head.

“Namini’s never been around for Prajna’s mischief, that’s why. Prajna bites, scratches, pins anything and everything that moves down” he confessed, his sister wide eyed with a mixture of confusion and awe. Was her Frei really capable of such things? It didn’t seem very strong, the girl thought as she glanced back over at her little crimson dinosaur. David continued, placing a brotherly hand on Anita’s head, his other hand thrown over his shoulder with the thumb at Varun who was floating behind them, talking with some woman the caveman had never met, “That kid. Prajna’s fought him once. There was another, older Raevan Prajna said tried to “eat it” once too.”

Namini remembered the time Rivener tried to trap Prajna away as its dessert slave. She shivered as the memories came floating back to her and she realized, perhaps she had just been looking the other way whenever her delicate Star had been involved in trouble?

“Prajna also likes... To...” David slid his hand down the back of Anita’s braid and rested it on her neck, leaning in with a playful smirk. “Kiss.”

Immediately though he backed off, playing with the feathered necklace he was wearing, “Though I have no idea where Prajna learned that. It watches way too much television I think.”

Namini gawked with a reddened face at her brother, like he was some stranger who had just come up and flashed her. To flirt so openly in front of her, did he have no shame?!

Prajna’s brows had knitted together when Varun addressed it in a scolding tone, reprimanding the Star for being caught in the act of negligence. Just as the dinosaur was about to retaliate though, the Leviathan seemed to have caught someone else of interest and bid Prajna a sudden adieu, leaving the Star surprised, annoyed. Prajna looked itself over. Was it perhaps… out of place tonight? But it was Halloween! The Star knew it to be the night of mischief and costumes and sweets! Why was everyone turning away?!

Prajna had tried to drone out the annoyingly gleeful and unusually loud sounds of Eiry, the Star quickly developing a quiet dislike for the bashee, but turned its attention back to the green duo to see if perhaps they had come to their senses and returned their attentions back to the dinosaur. Surprisingly, they had. Or at least one of them had.

Cruz was saying something to Prajna. Hm?

“Prrashna, Yes?” Cruz asked, gesturing to Eiry, and Prajna found itself staring at Cruz’s lips again. Then his sharpened teeth. How odd. Prajna felt another blush creep onto its pale cheeks and, despite not knowing what the question really was implying, it nodded quickly. Eiry? Whatever. Whoever. The Star didn’t care anymore. It’s new mission was to figure this crocodile out. The Star was starting to wear out from how easily flustered he was making it, and for reasons unknown!!

Costume Contest Entry Form

Name: Prajna
Human or Raevan: Raevan

Costume: Dinosaur (specifically a feathered Velociraptor) - Taking advantage of its recently chopped locks, Prajna had shed off its more casual femininity for a costume with a little more edge, or perhaps one would say, bite. Inspired by a documentary it had watched, with some help from Namini, the Star had mohawked its soft, crimson tresses into fearsome spikes that curved along Prajna's head and down its neck like a saw. In the cut of a sleeveless turtleneck was a brilliant red shirt that continued the reptilian effect, with a scale-like pattern dancing across it, the design shimmering very subtly in the moonlight. The cloth also seemed to be grooved, to provide realistic shadowing to the scales. There were fake scratches and cuts on Prajna's pale shoulders as well, but from its elbows down, the scaly red cloth continued until it reached the Star's fingers, where it then curved into three pocket-styled claws.

On its androgynous face, most of its features had lost even more of their familiarity as matching red paint covered its entire forehead, down to the bridge of its nose. The paint had also covered its eyes and created a stark contrast with the blues when Prajna did have them open. It was almost like warpaint. When the Star had extended its wings, to complete the overall prehistoric look, the soullessly colored appendages were decorated with a bit of fake blood and some extra red feathers and scales that were tucked in or applied with theatrical glue. The tattered effect of Prajna's red spiraling ribbon completed the look.

((Josh: Wine tasting; LuLu: Pot luck ->Entrace ))

Being able to dismiss someone’s behavior so easily, Zul must have been either a saint or a cold hearted demon. Though LuLu understood his viewpoint she just could not bring herself to follow it. It was obvious that Eiry was beneath her and did not deserve an ounce of her attention or time. However, remaining silent was not in her nature. Reproach was given when deserved just like praise. Those who annoyed her were quickly told the fact and those who amused her were equally informed. She sighed. A hand flipped one of her pigtails behind her back as though making a statement. “I do not worry about people like him,” she paused as a wicked smile flashed on her face for the briefest of seconds, “But, I do like reminding him that he is stupid.”

The rabbit morphed back into her usual demure composure as Zul petted her ears acting much like the timid beast that comprised her soul. Her rage was forgotten for now. Those garish feeling were replaced by the warmth coupled between the two raevans. LuLu thought that she might enjoy spending the whole night glued to that one spot. It was comforting being at Zul’s side. The steady stream of compliments also compromised a nice perk for the girl. She shook her head in disagreement “I am not. You are. I do not flatter those undeserving.” LuLu sincerely hoped that she was wrong. She hoped that Zul was just as scrupulous in allocating his approval. The rabbit wanted to deserve his admiration, but she had her doubts. The baphomet’s comments were certainly tactful and well stated. LuLu may have even called them true a year or two ago. Nevertheless, with the way events had turned out as of recent, comparing the frei to a refreshing spring day would be a stretch. She nodded at Zul’s words, showing neither joy nor dislike with them. The well intentioned statements were beginning to weigh heavily on her mind, but she would never ask Zul to take them back. She would hoard the compliments away like the greedy person she truly was. LuLu’s ears gave a twitch. She wondered idly where she had gone wrong in her path to becoming a princess.

The frei gave a start when she felt a chaste kiss plant itself on her forehead. The sudden action woke the girl from her busy and rather unmanageable thoughts. The gesture was gentle and affectionate. The slight pressure of Zul’s chin pressed into the bridge of her nose was the only sign that it was truly happening and wasn’t just another daydream. As he pulled away, LuLu started to regret the way she was monopolizing the sigel’s company. Surely a proper princess would share the gift of Zul with everyone else. If he was able to cheer her up this much he would be able to bless another with the same happiness. The girl nodded, “I would love that. Thank you.” In a burst of boldness, most likely fueled by the heavy drink still coursing through her, the girl’s bone wings gave a few powerful pumps until she was floating at the sigel’s level. LuLu took the beak of his mask in her small palm and lifted it up deftly. The movement was rapid and fluid despite her minor inebriation, a small nod to the agility her previous self once possessed. With the majority of Zul’s face exposed LuLu took advantage of the position and placed a delicate peck upon her elder’s cheek. Her lips formed into a large smile as they rested upon his skin. The frei pulled away in a flash returning the mask to its rightful position almost as if it had never been disturbed. She then took the arm from around her shoulders and ducked under the sturdy limb resuming her normal stature. She traced her fingers with Zul’s for a few lingering moments before she floated off. She hummed out loud giving her “brother” a polite departing curtsy, “Have fuuuun.” The enjoyment of her actions was evident in the way her features had lit up.

She gave a small twirl as she left her sibling’s side. Her egg shaped purse flopped around unabatedly at her side. LuLu looked ahead of herself to see if any other promising visitors had come to the party while she had been distracted. Lavender eyes darted around enthusiastically despite the thought nagging at the back of her brain. Had she had forgotten something important? Perhaps she had. Yet, she could not place just what was amiss. Little did the frei realize that she had unwittingly dismissed her self-constructed ban on socializing.

LuLu froze in place nearly becoming a mirror image of the raevan her vision had landed upon. The muse’s slight form was draped in a luxurious fabric. Her precisely bowed shape looked so much like a priceless work of art it was almost unnerving. Smooth features so perfect they had to have been chiseled by an ancient Grecian, a master of his craft. If LuLu had not seen Melisande before the sigel would have been mistaken for a part of the décor, albeit a beautiful addition. The rabbit found herself edging closer to the muse. She was attracted by an elegance and charm that she could only dream of one day obtaining. In her young eyes, Melisande was a true princess. The frei felt humbled. Her fingers went up to fidget with her braids. Absentmindedly she compared them to Melisande’s own platinum curls. It was heinous how stark the difference was, how far she was from her ideal. Completely absorbed in her scrutiny, LuLu didn’t realize how close she had gotten until she bumped into Melisande. The rabbit emitted a surprised squeak. Her hands cupped over her face to hide her mortification. “Sorry!” LuLu peaked at her Greek goddess from behind parted fingers. Her face burned to the touch. “So pretty.” The thought escaped her before she could stop it.

Josh was charmed by the way Aphismet shielded his family. It reminded him a bit of himself. Despite the fact he knew his ravean to be the occasional brat he could not bring himself to ever think negatively of her. The boy was even more impressed considering Eiry was not actually the man’s own. Josh gave a nod at his elder’s fortitude. He wondered idly if he could withstand a daily dose of the ghostly sigel’s pranks and still be able to defend the ravean’s name. Josh shoved away the thought as he took another sip from his wineglass. He relished the smooth beverage as it slid down his throat.

The bou listened to Aphi’s story bemusedly. It was certainly whimsical imagining the various shenanigans that the man must have gone through with Riv and Isi. The boy’s ears perked at mention of the Italian woman’s name. Josh echoed, “Alex…. You two dated?” The boy never even realized the land mind he might have been stepping on.

[ Eiry - with Cruz and Prajna at the buffet ]

With a curt quirk of his head and a widening of his smile, Eiry turned his full attention upon Prajna his gaze warm as he looked at the pouty-lipped dinosaur. It was true that he had not really spent enough time with it before, but Eiry hardly spent time with any Raevan other than Rivener. He was oddly put out for being involved in the Raevan community and he wasn't sure if it was because of his physical distance or his mental distance when it came to interacting with the others of his race. When he was young he was far more difficult to communicate with, speaking and splintered and mashed up together words, and he was so fearful and clingy as a frei, hardly able to move out of his home, like a ghost set to wander the place where he belonged. Now, though, as a Sigel, Eiry had gained a lot more confidence in himself, priding himself on discovering and living life a lot more than he did when he was a frei. He realized that he was sorely put out when it came to social interaction and it was something that bothered him, tickled him at the edge of his mind so that sometimes he spent entire evenings contemplating his alienation from the other raevans. It was about time that he tried to put the other non existent foot forward. Perhaps with Cruz here, he himself could actually be introduced to other raevans instead of introduced as a little annoying brother. It was a change of pace, after all!

Still somewhat attached to Cruz, tangled up with at least one limb, Eiry easily pried himself free from floating beside the frei to give a warm greeting to Star. He arced his arm from his head to the bottom of his ribbon, curling as he gave it an over exaggerated bow. When he lifted up, he reached out gingerly to take its hand and lay a gentleman's kiss upon her knuckle, bending up to give Prajna the brightest of smiles, "Prajna...Yes! Yes, of course. Isn't that but a fracture of your name? How are you, fine one? Such lengths and breadth's of time have passed since we last laid eyes upon one another! And it's my honest fear that we haven't been subjected to one another's company. This night, we shall make amends to that, shall we?"

Eiry leaned up, giving a friendly squeeze of his fingers to Prajna's before he let her hand go and leaned up again to float by Cruz's side. "You must enjoy stories, am I right in thinking so?" He looked once to Cruz, hoping for a smile of affirmation.

(( Kyou - An isolated corner near the doors ))

As more people arrived, Kyou instinctively looked up from the buffet table to look in the direction of the entrance. The stiff white figure was hard to miss, Melisande looking as beautiful and perfect as ever, like a statue, which he assumes is her costume of the night. Then Vivi and Shepard following closely behind, he had not met them in person before, but he remembered their faces on file.

Golden eyes then noticed a figure some ways away from the door in a quiet corner, someone not joining the crowd. "Isi?" He mumbled to himself, wondering why is the youth hobbling in a dark corner like that. Kyou knew the boy was a bit of a grump, and was probably dragged here by Eiry. Perhaps he could go check on him... looking back at the food before him, he decided to grab more french fries, almost piling them over his venison like a small hill, as well as a few pieces of small snacks, an extra fork and a glass of orange juice before heading towards Isi.

"Hey there. Nice costume!" He attempted to make conversation as he approached the youth. The expression of discomfort was clear on Isi's face though, which prompted his next line. "Why don't you sit down on that barrel here? That backpack thing looks heavy." Kyou suggested as he motioned to a giant barrel laying on it's side not too far from the buffet table, but still far enough as to not be disturbed by the chatter coming from the crowd. It also looked rather sturdy, probably filled with wine or other harvest, as the barrel did not move an inch all night. "I also brought some food and some orange juice if you want them."

((The Nao's: Buffet table | Prajna: Corner of room with Eiry & Cruz))

Prajna found itself overwhelmed by the sudden attention it was receiving but quickly nestled into its usual level of comfort and pride as Eiry even began to fully acknowledge and praise its very existence. It was so interesting to see a Sigel too, respect the Star so highly. Prajna was about to probe for another compliment or sign of affection when the minty ghoul surprised the androgynous Frei and presented it a small gift of intimacy that Prajna had never experienced. Instinctively, the dinosaur couldn’t help but stare, like it was watching the legendary meteor heading towards the Earth, preparing to wipe out its very existence, as Eiry bowed low in a truly humbling manner and then reached out… and kissed Prajna’s cool hand. It was but a peck but the contact of someone’s lips, a Sigel’s lips, against the Star’s porcelain skin sent waves of fire up Prajna’s arm before spreading to the rest of its partially developed body. The second it felt Eiry drop its fingers, Prajna drew its hand to its chest, as if its fingers had just touched a hot plate and were lightly scalded, though its cheeks were blazing up more than ever before. Unbeknownst to Prajna though, the act was nothing more than a simple gesture to Eiry, who was still talking as if nothing exciting, or worth discussing, had even happened. Prajna stared at its hand and tried to erase the surprise from its genderless features before trying to weasel back into the conversation. Now what had Eiry said? They had met before? It had been so long.

Small flashes of the beach event slowly surfaced from the depths of Prajna’s mind and the Star recognized Eiry to be the mischievous prankster from that event as well. Prajna couldn’t help but allow a frown to pull at its lips. So… he was always going to be like this: loud, giggling, playful. The redhead thought over each of these adjectives and wondered if they were really that bad of a trait to have; perhaps the Star was just misunderstanding something, like it had with Basil. It would try and give Eiry a second chance.

“Prajna remembers you, Eiry. You were by the waters…” Prajna allowed its voice to fade into the cool air, wondering if those events were even exciting to talk about now. So many things were going on right now, they seemed unimportant and this theory was soon proven by Cruz’s sudden need to lead them towards a new place to hear Eiry’s horror tales.

Prajna’s cerulean eyes zoomed onto Cruz’s as his clawed fingers interlaced with the Star’s and the crimson dinosaur was wondering what he was doing; Looking over, Prajna had seen Cruz holding Eiry’s hand as well but noticed that the fingers were not the same. As Cruz led the trio towards a more isolated corner of the barn, gesturing to some long table covered in some hideous Halloween-themed cloth, Prajna’s calculating gaze remained on their hands. Cruz released Eiry’s and pointed to the table but his fingers were still curled around Prajna’s.

What was he doing? Was it because Eiry had kissed that hand? Was Eiry sick?

Thoughts of the virus’s past horrors flooded the Star’s mind and its eyes widened at the sight of their hands. Was the virus to return?! Did Cruz know something that Prajna did not? Unintentionally, while its thoughts drowned in the memory of sweaty nights, day lit nightmares and a never ending lethargy, Prajna’s fingers squeezed Cruz’s rough hand, a bead of cold sweat sliding down the Star’s forehead, thankfully not causing the makeup to smear too much along the way down.


David watched as Anita and Namini beamed like little children at Christmas and wondered what it was about girls and their need for another girl’s approval and interest. Though it wasn’t entirely like he hadn’t expected something like this to happen; His sister was a hard one to hate and Anita seemed like a good girl herself, so it was no wonder they got along instantly. The caveman had even tried to separate the girls with his explanatory intervention but Anita’s cool response proved he was now the third wheel. David pouted, but was quickly reassured to see Anita’s interest direct itself elsewhere as she turned to greet a man who had suddenly approached the group from behind.

”You guys know Zeke, right? He does part time work with the Lab!” Anita chirped and the Nao’s looked one another over, dumbfounded, before shaking their heads at the same time, albeit rudely perhaps.

“David Nao.” came the simple response.

Namini broke out into another one of her wonderful smiles (where was she keeping all of them?!) and addressed Zeke with a small wave, introducing herself as well, “I’m Namini Nao, David’s younger sister and Prajna’s mama~.”

Namini loved introducing herself as a proud parent of one of the Lab’s little babies!

[[ Eiry - Carving Table, or rather, underneath it.
Isi - Off to the side of the buffet table and entrance]]

"Yes, along the waters! What a historic battle that was, a gala of gallantry to be remembered!" Eiry crooned happily, chuckling at the memories.

Following along his new young frei friend, Eiry happily squeezed at Cruz's hand. He didn't get to touch people most often, but it wasn't like he wanted to most often either. Eiry restrained himself from touching people since he had watched their flinching reactions for way too long to be convinced that his touch would do anybody any good. That's what came from being part spirit, the lifeless cold of a corpse, and Eiry was well aware of it when he saw the reactions in other people's faces. At first it amused him, but after a while, it got old and, needless to say, kind of saddening to Eiry. So he refrained, save for the rare occasions when he had to scramble and hold desperately to other people's warmth as if trying to steal it to replace what he didn't have. For this night, though, Eiry allowed himself to be touched and pulled along by Cruz who gestured them towards a quiet table under which Cruz pointed. It didn't take long for Eiry to figure out what he suggested, and with a grand clap of his hands after he was released from the grip, he spun about and fell into and through the table so that he disappeared underneath.

"Grand, idea, grand! Too cold for a story telling domed by night, but never late for a weaver's circle underneath the skirt of a table!" Eiry hooted from underneath, his voice muffled until he lifted up the cheap table cloth for the others to join him in the dark makeshift form. "A regular blanket fort this is! What a grand idea, young Cruz, old chap, grand idea! What stories we can weave under here, join me, one and all!" He grinned up at Prajna and Cruz, beckoning them underneath the table.

He had seen the look of worry on Prajna's face, something that he interpreted as only natural concern of the scary stories he was about to tell. That made him all the more excited to spin them the stories he knew, hoping to scare them into feeling alive. That was the whole point of being scared right? Reminders towards one's mortality? Towards one's current state of being alive and the fragility of it all? Wasn't being scared meant to make one appreciate life all the more? And to laugh afterwards at the ploy? Eiry thought so. He believed it with all his ghostly heart, and he swore himself to its duty underneath its ragged banner as long as he haunted this plane. He smiled all the more at Prajna, taking every frown and every twitch and hesitant draw of the hand as confirmations of his well done work and nothing more.

"Come, come!" he said.

Isi stood idly by, fighting against the weight of his backpack as he balanced on his crutches. He wasn't sure how to approach any one at the event, finding it hard to imagine himself swaggering up to a group and jumping in conversation. It just wasn't in him. So when Kyou came sauntering up to him instead, Isi nearly melted from relief. He already hated being here at the party, feeling like a nobody, so it made him glad to see an old friend come strolling up to him to make conversation.

The grumpy look on Isi's face relaxed when Kyou hoisted up the food for him to see, and he looked away momentarily, almost abashed to be as grumpy as he was. He also didn't like the initial feelings that he felt whenever he was meeting old friends. It made him feel foolish, almost childish, and Isi hated to be reminded of his youth. But, after the initial shock wore off, Isi was actually more than happy to see a familiar face. He rolled his grey eyes at Kyou from behind his round fake glasses and let his grumpy frown flip into a shy smile.

"Hey, Dr. Kyou," he said in greeting. At the compliment, he looked down at his outfit, shrugged, and then looked back at the approaching doctor. "This thing? It's just a tan jumpsuit, Doctor, nothing fantastic. You have a cool costume though." To the suggestion that he sit on the barrel, Isi reluctantly agreed. He never wanted to sit down at events. For him, events were excuses to see for how long he could stand before he had to sit down or fall down, but there was no use of acting so stubborn in front of the doctor. Dr. Kyou knew all his habits already. He complied slowly and hobbled over to the barrel, careful with his footing before he was able to hoist himself up and dangle his legs over the sides. His legs were getting thinner, with the slow passage of time, visibly more slender than they used to be when Isi first met Kyou. Isi tried to some how disguise the alarming skinniness of his legs by futzing with the fabric of his pant legs but it was no use. He sighed irritably, glaring at his arms as he wrestled off the contraptions so that he could pull off the heavy backpack and let it carefully fall to the ground beside the barrel. He didn't want to destroy the backpack that Eiry had worked so long to craft. He carefully set up his crutches beside the barrel too, hoping that they wouldn't slip off and fall to the ground where Isi couldn't reach. When he was done with his long and laborious task of making himself comfortable, Isi turned his attention to Kyou and held out his hands for the offered food and drink.

"Thanks a lot, Doc," he said with downward cast of his eyes. After he took the food into his hands and set it up on his lap, as if trying to hide the abnormal skinniness of his legs, he turned again to the doctor and offered a meek smile, "How'd you know orange juice was my second favorite?" Then as an afterthought, he said, "Wow, Dr. Kyou, it's been so long since we had to stay over at your Lab, huh? It feels like yesterday, almost. I kind of miss it there, to be honest."

"Thanks."

(( Cruz – Pumpkin Carving Table | Anita – Buffet Table ))

To its constant flushing of color and warmth, Cruz could only offer smiles. Though he did not have the words to say so, he wished he could hear more of Prajna's words for its voice was perplexing and enthralling, almost sounding, as strange as the analogy, like candle light in darkness. His rune pulsed, glowing steadily in time with the beat of his heart. A sour feeling, however, was tingling in his chest and he tried his best to keep it at bay. This proved difficult when Eiry, word weaver that he was, was able to draw out words from the star that he could not. Jealousy, however minor, was present and while he did not resent or feel spite toward Eiry he was intent on expanding his vocabulary as soon as possible so that he may, too, have conversations. As it stood now, he was best at body language and understanding the subtleties of touch.

Thus, it was extremely easy for him to detect that something was not quite right at the sudden change in grip on his hand. Cruz's eyes flashed wildly to Prajna's, his hand gripping back reassuringly. His brows raised in worry and it only took but a second for him to take note of the star's suddenly stiff posture and the worried look upon its face. Tentatively, his free hand reached out and a finger lightly brushed the star's cheek in an attempt to console it. ”Prrashna...?” Cruz cooed quietly, his wings shaking with anticipation.

In the mean time, Eiry had gone off and done precisely as the crocodile had hoped, though he probably should have expected such a flashy entrance even to the underside of a table. The Frei's gaze drifted back to the minty Sigel, offering him a weak smile – a promise that he and Prajna would join beneath the table soon (or so he hoped) – but quickly returning to the aid of the hand he held. It had not been an intentional deviation, just one of comfort; the way he held Prajna's hand was his favored sort of hand holding, but it would not have been terribly comfortable with Eiry's gentle chill of death or the basket. In his mind, he had to be extremely careful with the basket even though it was a cheap prop (and inside was an equally cheap prop stuffed wolf) and holding Eiry's hand with such an item was already a dangerous endeavor from his ability to phase on a whim. Cruz was certain if he had held Eiry's hand as he held Prajna's that he would not have recovered quickly from a sudden phase out and dropped the basket again.

Once was certainly enough for the poor wolf inside.

Gently, he pulled Prajna's hand closer to himself, holding their hands aloft and near his chest with a pitiful look of concern across his face. ”Yes...?” he attempted hopefully, though pouted soon after and offered the alternative, ”..No?” Did Prajna not want to hear scary stories after all? Was there, perhaps, something wrong with the location?



The Nao's on cue reaction of simultaneous head shaking was enough to make Anita nearly choke on a quick laugh. The sudden intrusion of a man so well dressed likely caught them off guard. If she hadn't known any better, she would have sworn that Zeke worked here for the wine tasting, not actually being dressed up in costume. His response to her reaction was even better, and she grinned hard at the newly darkened raver. Then, one of the cutest things Anita had heard in a long time came from Namini's mouth; ”Prajna's mama!”

From that alone, Anita could tell she and Namini were on the same page as Raevan guardians. While it was difficult for herself to picture Cruz as her child, or rather herself as a mother, the intent and level of affection was all there, one hundred percent, so it was not too out there to relate to those strong women called 'mother'.

Anita allowed herself to be squeezed by the raver, knowing full well it was just a friendly gesture. Perhaps that was the distinction for her; if the contact was strictly friendly, rather than flirtatious or having an ulterior motive, she was perfectly fine with it. Of course it certainly helped that Zeke was playing for the other team where as David was quite obviously not. In all honesty, she wasn't even quite sure herself why she had rebuffed David's advances from the beginning but he wasn't the only one. Here and there were males wanting to flirt her onto her back, so to speak, and all of them received the same treatment. It wasn't that she wasn't interested, either, but... perhaps it was their approach that didn't impress her in the way they all hoped.

Enough of that, though. There was talk of beards.

”Pfff,” Anita spattered gracelessly at Zeke's comment, giving him a wry look, ”I'll be baby butt smooth again by the end of the night. You're keepin' that scruff, so you win by default.” Were they having a beard-off? So suddenly, at that.

As she was gently pressed against the man's side once more, in a sort of half hug, his words to the Nao's sounded parting in some way and it jarred a thought from Anita who quickly held her hands out in front of herself as if to halt all other words and sounds. She stammered a string of 'oh's before gathering her thoughts toward Namini and David once more, grinning like a loon but with her brows upturned pitifully. ”Do you think it'd be okay for me to get your guys' personal numbers...?” her hazel eyes flickered toward their Raevans by the pumpkin carving table for the briefest of seconds, ”I just... They seem to be getting along well. It'd be nice to have in case they want to see each other again?”

Play dates. Yes, that was the suggestion with her silly roundabout way of asking.

She could remember her mother setting up play dates for her with the kids at school. Even while she was young, most of her acquaintances and friends somehow turned out to be male and the lot of them would play pretend. Anita wondered if Cruz, Prajna and Eiry were off to do the same, perhaps pretending to truly be their costumes and play games with one another. Little Red Riding Hood, a raptor and zombie ghost Shakespeare were truly a trio to be seen.