They were extensions of himself as much as they were automatons. With a little concentration he could focus upon his nodes channeling his abilities through them or extending his own senses out through them. In essence they became the perfect recepticals for the acquisition of knowledge. They became ideal spies. Roughly the size of a half dollar coin the nodes were often overlooked even when in plain sight. Couple that with their abilities to camouflage themselves and their natural stealthiness about the only thing that they had lacked was speed. But speed was never really an issue for Aegir. He was patient enough to wait, patient enough to orchestrate plans that spilled out into the far future.

It was through his nodes that he had learned of another refreshing arrival to the island. Shokushu did provide quite a selection to chose from, Aegir would freely admit. Like all the new arrivals Lillian would be subject to the intrusive projections from these nodes as they delved into her mind scanning into her thoughts. It was a process in which Aegir weeded out individuals and separated others into selective catagories.

Taking his time, Aegir simply monitored this new arrival for he had been tied up with his recooperation. Having detached a tentacle in a recent encounter while two others suffered servere burns Aegir patiently bid his time until he had regrown the lost tentacle. By that stage the two others were nearly 100% healed, though the appendages still were charred in places and happened to be quite sensitive they at least no longer irritated him with constant pain as they once had.

During this time of recovery Aegir had learned through one of his younger nodes that an excursion was being planned, one that would lead several students into the wilderness to study the flora and fauna. Newly healed and given such a golden opportunity? How could he pass up on this splendid chance? And seeing how it was Lillian's class Aegir was sure that he would come across her in the process.

Amphibious in nature Aegir was more at home in the sea than on land. Yet he had spent a great deal of time in the forests. It was the dim lighting that was quite tolerable to his sensitive eyes that he found refreshing in such places for the canopy overhead had been thick and full preventing an abundance of light from reaching the forest floor. In advance Aegir spun his plans weaving them in the same fashion that a spider weaves an intricate web. Each thread meticulously placed in such a pattern that it was both an artform and deadly snare.

This was yet another opportunity for him to make use of his illusionary skills. Slowly he was adding more and more creativity to his snares, something that his kind had lacked altogether. True, projections came easily enough to his kind though they were often simple and lacking. Illusions of safety, of concealing something dangerous by masking it with something pleasant ... only recently did he begin to invoke more intricate illusions drawing upon those minds that he had absorbed. He also learned from his victims pressing into their thoughts, drawing them out and adapting his creations to suit their own impressions of the situation.

As always he had been up for a challenge so the night before this excursion would begin Aegir glimpsed into the future. His precognitive abilities left him vulnerable and so he rarely used them outside of the relative safety of his lair. The further into the future he delved the longer his physical body would remain inert in the present and so pressing himself too deeply into the future could be quite perilous. But a single day was a trifling matter.

Some would use such a gift to staff off mistakes, to forewarn beings of impending doom or danger. Others would be more selfish viewing lottery numbers or which team won this sporting event or that so they could layer their wagers accordingly. For Aegir glimpses into the future were never carved into stone. He knew that they could be manipulated, that the outcomes could be changed. Like water the future was fluid, maleable, adaptable to the events in the present. Only the past was rigid and unbending. What Aegir used this gift for now, however, had been to locate Lillian, to see where she would be throughout the excursion. Finding a point where she would be separated from others or could become separated from them had been what he had looked for. To his delight Aegir had foreseen that she got herself lost ... why that was just too good to pass up. Alone in the forest, wandering about trying to find her way back. Why he would have plenty of time to play with her, plenty indeed. He could patiently practice his deception too, refining his illusionary gifts before chosing a precise moment in which to strike, an ideal moment of his very chosing.

Departing from his lair early the following morning it had taken Aegir several hours to reach the very spot he had seen in his visions. Once there he began to draw an elaborate disguise about his natural form before getting just out of sight as he prepared for her arrival. He had time to analyze his approach, time to reflect upon his rouse and how he was going to structure the challenging role that he had invoked for himself for this time Aegir was going to attempt something a little different. Only time would tell how it would work out for him for as a matter of recourse Aegir never delved into his own future. He enjoyed being a bit surprised at the outcome of his hunts after all and would have found them painstakingly dull if he knew of their outcomes in advance for the very thrill of the hunt that sent his three hearts into rapid motion as his blue blood coursed through his veins would have been dissolved. What good would a hunt be if there was no thrill in the deception? No joy in ensnaring one's prey ... this time though he would interact with his quarry for while she too was another victim she also represented an opportunity to better himself, to enhance his own skills as much as to polish them off. How else did learning occur if one was unwilling to challenge themselves? To push themselves to new limits? For too long he had allowed simple routines to dictate his patterns and so Aegir had issued this challenge to himself. And should he fail? Like always he had placed a back up plan into existance should he need to draw upon that eventuality he could simply drop this charade coming away from this with knowledge even in failure, the knowledge of what doesn't work could be just as valueable as obtaining knowledge to what does work.

'Lucrecia Lillian Dramen', the pass card read, it's owner looking down at it with disbelief. With the photo on it too, Lucrecia had to wonder why such a thing was necessary.

At her other school, when she was out of classes because of an assignment, she just got given a signed slip of paper to show to her various teachers... but, this, this was taking things a little to the extreme.

Unless half the students were master forgers, something that seemed unlikely, she couldn't quite get her head around why she had to carry something around that looked more like a ID badge than a "get out of class for the day" badge.

Still, the rest of her classmates seemed to be okay with the idea, although a few were rolling their eyes at the sight of the passes, so Lucrecia decided just to roll with it, clipping the item onto the front of her shirt's pocket, checked the case of her glasses that was held in that same pocket, before shouldering her backpack.

Spending a day in the island's forest, doing a study on the surrounding wildlife, was a little unnerving, to say the least. But that came more from having one of the worst directional senses in existance.

Still, with a map, a compass, lunch, and the other girls, Lucrecia was sure she'd manage. Even if she didn't really know any of the others... But, her teacher had been firm on the idea that this study would play a fairly large part in the following term, she couldn't afford to back out...

Which was all very well and good until the group had set off, heading down a trail, the other students gossiping amongst themselves while Lucrecia took stock of what they were walking past.

So far, nothing too exciting, just the basic grasses and weeds that grew all over campus. In fact, the wildlife didn't start to change until after around half an hour's walking.

In fact, while the other students took a break in the centre of a clearing to sit down and drink some water, Lucrecia knelt down by the edge, rooted through her bag for her sketchbook and started drawing some of the flowers.

Many of them where ones she had never seen before, so it was those she sketched, her glasses firmly in place to prevent her getting a headache as she worked.

She was thorough, trying to get as much detail in place as she could, wanting to get a high mark for the assignment, and not trusting her ability to recall such a things without having taken the time to at least note them down.

Unfortunately, by the time she had finished such a task, she realised that she couldn't hear any gossiping anymore. Snapping the black-bound sketchbook shut, she spun around, looking all around the empty clearing.

The others had left, just got up and gone, without even telling her. She felt enraged at the idea of such rudeness, with a little bit of panic at the thought that she was in the middle of a forest, alone...

She fought back the two emotions, trying to keep a level head. She could catch up with the others, she hadn't quite got enough done to complete her work so heading back wasn't really an option.

There was only one little problem. There were two trails leading out of the clearing, three if you counted the one she had arrived through... and, after taking a look at her map, both seemed to lead to likely areas to study the fauna and flora...

"Okay, calm down Lily," she muttered to herself before she could start panicking again, "this is simple, just look for the trail that has signs of being used recently and follow that... They wouldn't hide their tracks, it'll be easy to follow and catch up."

The logic was all there, she now just had to pray that it would deliver, as she looked around at the beginnings of the two trails. On the right-most one, the plantation was fine, not flattened in the slightest. While the grass on the left-most path had been trampled, and the dirt disturbed, it had to be that one.

Taking a deep breath, she headed down the path, hoping she'd chosen correctly.

Working through countless possibilities and calculations had been a breeze for him. As he waited in silent patience Aegir came to toy with his assumed identity quite a few times in both the realm of physical appearances and of course personality. Fear was something that he was trying to avoid here for fear would trip off those pesky warning bells of alarm so he had come to decide upon a form that would not be intimidating. Dirty blond hair cropped close to the skull, wide blue eyes hidden behind a set of spectacles and just a touch of freckles sprinkled against his pale cheeks. The form itself was on the small side for it had been his experience that small beings were seen as less threatening. His stature a mere 5' 4" while on the tips of his toes Aegir's assumed form was also on the scrawny side.

To complete the ensemble he added the touch of a school uniform, scuffled black shoes that had once been polished but had been worn down by the terrain, black pants and a white shirt with sleeves rolled back just below the elbows. His arms contained scratches in places brought forth by marching through the foliage off the trails themselves while some dirt smudged his face and hands. Over his shirt he wore a gray sweater. Upon the left corner of which had been an emblem etched in gold thread that resembled a creast of sorts. The creast contained the image of an eagle in flight, its talons opened and extended, wings outstretched as if it were getting ready to snatch a fish out of water. Just above the eagle had been a series of letters in the Greek script. Ϡρ η the three chararacters seemed to indicate the name of a sorority of one sort or another though the first letter, Sampi, was obsolete. This may or may not have meant anything, though the symbol itself more commonly refered to the number 900 when used in mathematical equations. The other two rho and and eta were both still concurrant letters both having mathematical values themselves expressed in 100 and 8 respectively.

A bit disheaveled, his right front pocket had been turned inside out, his shirt untucked so it stuck out from beneath his sweater while a back pack was slung haphazardly over his left shoulder. Aegir had not seen anyone for some time now, not since Lucrecia's classmates came and went. He had remained hidden blended into his surroundings allowing the larger body of students to saunter past though he did delve into the minds of a choice one or two that his nodes had pointed out to him in the past Aegir did not allow this to side track him using the opportunity only to gather additional information and as a means of killing a small fraction of time as he continued to wait. Days, weeks, it mattered not to him. Aegir could out wait just about anyone or anything for that matter. Surviving eons had taught him the necessity of patience and the rewards it brought. Rushing lead to carelessness which resulted in erroneous decisions which only brought unnecessary danger with it. Generally he was a cautious being and thus behaved in such a fashion.

As the ordained time approached Aegir made himself noticeable. Sulking about would not do well for his identity and so he had illicted to remain visible. Hobbling along the path he favored his left leg. The feigned injury was meant to explain his slow speed. He had only traveled a short distance before he spotted her in the distance winding her way down the trail in his direction. Halting at once his blue eyes blinked rapidly a few times, his head twisting from side to side as if glancing around himself in an effort to collect his barings. Aegir had illicted to go with a soft spoken, somewhat shy and overly timid personae. He had processed numerous names searching through a great many uncommon ones, something that would scream outcast, geek or nerd yet would not be too obvious. Dex, Dexter, Martin, Ross ... none of those names seemed to fit. Neville? He had mulled that one over for a time before dismissing it. Too contemporary, especially with all those Harry Potter books and movies. In the end he delved into the ancient realm of pop culture for a name reaching back into the annals of time. Sixty years to Aegir may have meant little but it did mean a great deal to humans. Information that existed well before Lucrecia's generation was unlikely to be known to her unless of course she happened to have acquired such trivia, or had been a fan ...

Reginald. Reggie ... the perfect name. Not too out there, not too obvious.

"Uhhh ... umm ..." he began though the sounds were not vocal being projections into her mind. His mouth did move in correspondence with the sounds and syllables while for all practical purposes it did seem that he was speaking in a conventional fashion. Aegir possessed no vocal chords and thus could not speak aloud even if he had wanted to save for in his own native dialect, a dialect that he had not used in well over a millenium.

"Hi!" The word at last popped out of his mouth as he looked away, cast his gaze furitively around himself as if fearing a sudden attack any any second though from what one could not say. Reaching into his front left pocket he withdrew an asthma inhaler, took a quick puff of it, drew a deep breath then upon shoving it back into his pocket he looked back at her making fleeting eye contact before dropping his gaze to the ground. "You ahh, don't happen to know how I can get back to the beach do you?"

His words were full of nervous hope as if the world hinged upon her very answer. Figdetting in the spot that he stood in, Aegir as Reginald, kicked at the ground causing a miniature dust cloud to rise up beneath his foot.

Lucrecia had been walking for a while, repeatedly having to dust down her glasses to clean them of the dirt kicked up by the wind. Still, as she went down the trail, she saw more and more signs of the other students passing.

Scuffed earth, crushed weeds and even the odd sweet wrapper (those she picked up, putting them in one of her bag's side pockets. She hated litter) but still no sign of getting any closer, the other girls must have been quite the way ahead of her.

In fact, Lucrecia started to wonder if it would have been a good idea to bring a watch, unsure of just how much time had already passed. She didn't feel hungry, so it couldn't be lunchtime yet, but apart from that she was clueless.

If she didn't have to catch up with the others, Lucrecia would have stopped to sketch more of the plants she passed, and a small rabbit she passed as it ate it's own meal just off of the trail, watching her with cautious eyes as she passed.

If she hadn't known that the action would have scared it, she would have cooed, the small brown creature had been rather adorable. But, while she didn't stop to sketch, she did mark down the location of it on her map, now having a rough idea of where she was.

Then, not much further ahead, she spotted someone else. Someone else! Finally, maybe she'd know where the others wher-
That thought derailed the moment she got closer, able to make out the other person in more detail.

A boy. What was a boy doing on Shokushu Island? It was an all girls school, Lucrecia knew that much, so why would there be one, much less out in the middle of the forest... especially one in a different school uniform?

It was suspicious, but she put that to the back of the mind as she got closer still, spotting the slight limp he sported, along with the dishevelled looks. Clearly he didn't mean to be here. Maybe he was part of a sports team, she knew that many schools competed in various sports leagues but he didn't look the part for such an activity, especially as she saw the inhaler. So why was he here?

He looked nervous, but, being clearly lost, Lucrecia couldn't really blame him for that, fidgeting somewhat as he spoke up, not entirely keeping eye contact as he did so, asking if she knew how to get to the beach.

"The beach?" She knew the island had to have something at least resembling a beach, but she didn't quite see what he'd be doing to want to be there either. Well, short of spying on any sunbathing girls in their bikinis and swimsuits, but she did like to think that most of the male race where above such things.

Still, he was out of his depth, and she did have a map, so there was no harm in at least pointing him in the right direction, right? Glancing down at the coloured map in her hands, she noticed that the most direct route to the nearest beach just happened to be just down the trail she was on. Which, she rather cynically deduced, probably explained why the other girls had gone this way. Still feeling a little sore at being abandoned by them, she did not have any inclination to think nicely about them for a while, even if she was typically a friendly person...

Snapping back to the boy, who looked even more nervous, she managed to smile. It wouldn't do to take out her minor temper trantrum out on a stranger, much less one in need of assistance, would it?
"Uh, it looks like it's down this trail here," she gestured behind him, before fixing him with a level stare over the bridge of her own glasses, "now, who are you?" Her suspicion starting to break through again.

Some individuals were so guillable. Others were far too trusting for their own good. Not Lucrecia, defiantly not. Which only made this ordeal all the more entertaining for Aegir. It was the thrill of the challenge that proved as exciting a moment as when he would finally spring his trap. Reminded of those infernal jack-in-the-boxes Aegir could almost hear the continuous stream of music being played as the crank was slowly wound. Never knowing when the music would stop giving rise to the sudden appearance of the very being inside the box itself always led to a certain dreadful anticipation. Though this was anything but dreadful.

While he bought his time Aegir read through all those flickering thoughts and emotions that ran through this one. Her uncertainty, her suspicion, yet her willingness to help over powered her better judgement. Like a book he leisurely thumbed through the pages that had been presented to him, absorbing the information that was so plainly there before his very senses. Drinking it all up he ingested his fill and then some always craving more, always desiring more.

Glancing back over his shoulder when she indicated that the beach had been in that direction Aegir studied the spot for a long moment before his gaze drifted back towards her. It was her tone that had perked up his attention along with the residual thoughts that accompanied her words for he could smell the stirring of suspicion within them once more even without the need to press into her mind to learn of such things. "Geez! I've been going around in circles. Must have been up and down this path a zillion times already."

There was a slight wheeze to his voice as if his medication had not kicked in readily. His gaze forever roaming as he scuffled his foot against the dirt once more. Lowering his head he inspected the ground as if there had been something incredible at the base of his feet rather than meet her eyes with his own. Then it came, the sound that passed from his lips had been softly spoken that it could have been missed for the wind had refused to carry his words far. Embarrassment was a difficult emotion for Aegir to capture and relay but he tried his hand at it nonetheless hoping that he had the right amount of humility intwined with enough shyness to pull it off. His cheeks stained an even deeper crimson was an easy touch to the mascarade.

"Reginald."

The single word uttered against the wind. He did look up a moment later removing his own glasses only to wipe them upon his sweater in an effort to clean the grimy lenses. Plopping them back upon his face he looked back up at her. His voice a little stronger than it once was added to that single word. "Reginald Kenneth Dwight. Everyone just calls me Reggie though." He let out a small sigh as if his own name had horrified him or at least churned his own stomach. Now Aegir had been banking on the fact that she was too young to have any knowledge as to where that name had been derived from. It was a gamble after all, seeing how his illusionary personaes had always had original names, names of people that he spliced together from all his absorbed memories. This one however was of a real person. A mover and shaker in the musical world for well over two decades ... for the name he had gone with had been the birth name of icon Elton Hercules John.

And if she recognized it? Well there was a reasonably easy fix to that. How many individuals had acquired names of celebrities in the past? Some times it was by happenstance such as Miss Brown naming her son James or Bobby inadvertantly giving rise to a James Brown or Bobby Brown. It could be deliberate in the case of crazed fans though Aegir had learned that it seemed to be more common place to use celeberity names for pet names rather than child names humans were weird in their versatility. Course he was going to play the outlandish card, an obsessive mother and father that were huge fans of Sir Elton that just so happened to possess the surname Dwight. As a hommage to their favorite entertainer they named their only child after their idol. As an additional touch Aegir could draw upon near every song in the singer's repetoire from the memories he had absorbed into himself giving another touch of realism to the illusion. It would reinforce the fact that he grew up listening to such tunes as played again and again and again by parents that were obsessive fans. Though this was an angel that he need not play unless she picked up on the origins of his name.

"Dreadful, isn't it?" Shaking his head, Aegir cast his gaze skyward to the trees where it had lingered for a short while upon a small avian. Those large blue eyes of his suddenly got wider as his jaw drooped then trembled in astonishment. He had meant that his name was dreadful, and probably would have clarified matters had it not been for the new illusion he manifested. The one that he had tossed his attention upon, a minor distraction that might further alleviate some of Lucrecia's suspicion though it could just as easily backfire against him.

"NO WAY!" He gasped out at last, then shook his head in disbelief. "A Harpyhaliaetus coronatus! Er ... Crowned Solitary Eagle. But they're endangered! Not to mention that its waaaay out of its habitate. I was under the belief that they only dwelled in eastern and central South America which only leads me to believe that there must be a wild life conservatory around here somewhere, a private zoo or menagerie ..."

He tappered off almost forgetting that he was in the presence of another, or so was projected by Aegir's portrayal of this personality. A bit addle brained to go along with his shyness would do nicely. Sweeping his gaze back to her Aegir shook his head once again. "Sorry ... bad habit. I'm not use to being around people as you can see. My class was suppose to do a study on the wild life here. Came over from the mainland though I sorta umm got distracted. Spied an albatros and went to have a closer look and well before I knew it I managed to get myself hopelessly lost. We were suppose to rendez-vous at the beach if we got separated, wait there and regroup which is all well in good if you can find the beach that is."

Lucrecia watched the strange boy fidget, even has he exclaimed just how lost he was... having gone up and down a path, not quite knowing with direction to go, that was a familiar experience, she thought with a hint of bitterness at the memory.

Still, if he really did have just a bad a directional sense as her, then he probably needed all the help he could get. Lucrecia looked him up and down quickly, trying to gauge just how long he'd been wandering. She noted the way he seemed to favour one leg, probably strained or twisted the other... Ontop of the guy's asthma, that was going to make travelling slow. Which suited her just fine, giving her a chance to do her assignment, and keep a careful eye on the map so she didn't get lost herself. That would just be embarrassing.

She raised an eyebrow when he finally spat out his name, more at his embarrassment over it. The name sounded familiar, she'd heard it somewhere, but she honestly didn't know where, figuring it was one of those common names in a different country or something. Even if it did sound ridiculously cheesy.

"Hey, Reginald sounds better than Lucrecia," she spoke, before the boy died of his own embarrassment, "Lucrecia Lillian Dramen. Mom's a writer, so she decided to name me after one of her novel's characters..." she sighed, remembering the stick she had gotten at her first school for the name, she was sorely tempted to give out her own nickname. But still she held back, that was something she only let people close to her know, not someone she just met.

Luckily, before she could deliberate further, Reggie cried out, staring up above the trees. She spun just in time to see the great bird's tail feathers vanishing. The boy was rambling, while she just cursed having missed the chance to sketch or record it's location. A bird like that would have nailed her an A, easily.

Still, once she started paying attention to Reggie's speech again, just catching the tail end of it before he drew off into an embarrassed silence. Still, he had a valid theory, if a little unlikely. If there had been a reserve or something, it would have been marked on her map. So, instead, the black haired woman came up with a different theory.
"Or it's owned by one of the teachers or something. Back in England, I knew a guy who kept a Red Kite, a Vulture and a Snowy Owl, so it's more than likely that someone's rearing that Eagle."

She managed to stop herself rambling, although she managed to do so without quite as much awkwardness. Still, the guy clearly knew a lot about birds, possibly even the other wildlife too.

In fact, that they were on similar assignments was practically a blessing. A little help would go a long way for Lucrecia, having more detailed notes now would save her having to research any creatures later. Although, it did seem a rather odd co-incidence...

Still, the trail was fairly long, even following a stream at one point, Lucrecia was sure that he'd be able to help her on the way to the beach- wait, followed a stream?

She looked at the map again, she was sure that the trail didn't follow a stream. But, there it was, clearly marked. It looked longer and twistier than before too... Lucrecia stared, puzzled, maybe she'd just been looking at the wrong part of the map...

No, that wasn't possible, there was the clearing she'd left, marked in her red pen so she'd find it easier to navigate the route back... okay, maybe she'd been looking at the wrong part earlier, that made sense. Shaking off her confusion, she decided to just follow the map and if it seemed wrong, she'd just turn around and head back to the school. One of the teachers would help Reggie, she was sure of it.
"uh, anyway, better get a move on if we want to make the beach anytime soon," she spoke, starting to head down the trail at a pleasant pace, " wouldn't want to stand around here all day."

A pity that this had been an elaborate deception on his part, Aegir was beginning to admire the exchange he was having with Lucrecia. It had not been often that he was found himself engaged in conversations these days. Oh, yes, there were numerous mad prophets, seers and diviners that he had conversed with throughout the years though for the most part he had been isolated from social interactions. It could not last though Aegir concented to enjoy it a little longer.

There was no mistaking that his personae had been selected due to the similarities between the two making it a bit easier to interact with Lucrecia, while slipping past her suspicious nature. Smiling, he brought his gaze towards her upon hearing the recital of her name. His mind was working into her own, filtering through useful and useless facts alike, learning more from her on both a conscious and subconscious level even as they continued to converse.

"Well I'd swap you names but then we would both have a hassel with our peers teasing us," an impish grin sprang over his lips, small, but there as he considered the absurdity in that statement. "So it seems we both have rather eccentric parents. You get named for a character in a novel while I get named after a pop singer, who coincidentally hated his birth name enough to legally change it."

Glancing away from her for a bit he shook his head as if to clear it of his thoughts. "Elton Hercules John ... all on account that my parents are avid fans and well just so happened to have the last name Dwight they thought that it would be fantastic to name me after their icon. Course, I don't think that they would have realized the damage they were doing ahead of time. At least the name is somewhat obscure, couldn't imagine what it would have been like for you having a name that's in popular culture in the here and now. More concurrant and thus easier for people to recall unlike mine even if it is such an atrociously sounding name. Still I think Lucrecia is a nice name. Its fitting, uncommon, unique even. Sets you apart from others y'know."

He went quite again as they walked on, his wide eyed stare going about here and there as he continued to ramble nervously from time to time. Occassionally he would make a comment about this particular piece of vegetation or that then suddenly sprang back to an earlier subject they had touched upon. It was as if his mind was everywhere and nowhere in particular almost as if he had a thousand things going through his head at once.

"You're probably right. I mean, with me being from the mainland and all I have little idea of what actually goes on here. Speculation and conjuncture is all I have to draw upon. Educated guesses but it seems far more likely that one of the faculty here is keeping such exotic specimens. Might have gotten loose ... don't know why else it would be allowed to roam free but that's the great thing about life, there's always a mystery to unravel."

Stopping for a quick moment he stepped up a rock elevating his bad leg. Rubbing it softly with his hands Aegir glanced back towards her after adjusting his spectacles which had managed to slide down to the tip of his nose. "I'm sorry I must be slowing you down immensely. I do appreciate your help a great deal. Here I was thinking that matters were terribly bleak and I discover an angel upon the horizon."

His cheeks colored once more, his gaze immediately falling to the ground pretending to focus back upon his leg he gave it a quick massage before turning to go. Aegir had sensed her puzzlement though it had not been from his words, at least they had not come to register fully upon her mind just yet. No, it was confusion for when he had stopped she had consulted her map finding it in error with the surroundings. That, of course had been his doing at least in part. He needed to lure her further away ensuring that she could not reach any help or assistance, that her fellow students would be well out of earshot so he had projected his illusionary talents upon occassional terrain features and more aptly upon the map she carried. Obscuring what was actually there with different features and terrain would only serve to befuddle her further which only worked to serve Aegir's agenda.

After they were moving once again he glanced towards her, his blue eyes regarding the visage of her features aptly studying them. "Is there something amiss? I get the feeling that ... well ... umm I'm not quite sure. But when you were checking the map ... and even now your brow is a little furrowed, like you're thinking about something that doesn't make sense. We're still on the right path right? Or should we have diverted back at that rock just before the stream?"

As they walked, slowly thanks to Reggie's injured leg, Lucrecia was keeping a careful eye on the map even as she conversed with the boy. She let him do most of the talking, not quite ready to trust him with too much information about herself.

In fact, the only thing she ever went into any real detail of was her home town back in England, the weather there, her old school, things that she hadn't had a chance to talk about to anyone at Shokushu yet.

She did laugh a little when he mentioned swapping names though, the black haired woman couldn't see that one going too well. Then her eyes widened when he went on to explain his identity. So that was where she had heard it from!
"I knew your name sounded familiar... still, not that bad, most kids at school wouldn't know just where it came from. Much the same with me, actually, mom's not that much a big name author, so most people won't have read her books." Which was fortunate, she didn't even want to think of the mocking or nicknames she would get if the opposite had been true, "Even if she was a bigger name, hardly any high school kids still read anyway. The jerks don't, I know that much, so all they know is that I have an odd name..." which was still annoying, that much was for sure. Still, there had been nothing said about her name here yet, so she was hoping she'd escaped that pest.

She fell silent again, not wanting to rant about how irritating she had found that, the same wisecracks being made year after year by arrogant teenagers... Instead she listened to Reggie, who seemed just as prone to rambling as she was, regually getting sidetracked from a conversation to bounce to another.

Still, the guy was pointing out odd plants, ones that she would normally have missed, ones that were rapidly sketched and noted in her sketchbook. While she got one of these, a rose-like thing with vibrant yellow petals that had red speckles on them, she noticed Reggie rubbing his injured leg.

He glanced back, adjusting his own glasses as he apolagised. Still, he hadn't slowed her down too much, Lucrecia wouldn't have gone too quickly on her own for fear of getting lost. She crocked an eyebrow as he spoke, calling her an angel... was he hitting on her?

It seemed more a slip of the tounge as his cheeks darkened and he looked away. But then she noticed something else, making her own redden in time with his own. The top button of her shirt had come undone and, knelt down as she was, she'd inadvertently given Reggie an eyeful of what was underneath, luckily held in check by a plain white brassiere.

Quickly returning her sketchbook back to her bag and standing up, she fumbled with the button on her shirt, almost popping out a second in her haste. Why did they make the uniform so small? Her face flushed darker, glad he hadn't stared (for too long, anyway) because she would have probably died of embarrassment and humiliation if he had.

Finally her shirt relented to her fingers, allowing her her modesty back. Taking another glance at her map, she stared again, she was sure the path was different... in fact, the small area they were in didn't seem to match anything on the map at all.

The boy seemed to notice, speaking up, gratefully not commenting on her dress malfunction a moment earlier. Yet his words made her eyes narrow again, as he asked whether they should have turned back at the rocks.

Sure, the map seemed to indicate that was right... but, earlier, Lucrecia was sure it said to just stick on this trail. Besides, he was supposed to be lost! If he knew which way to go to get to the beach, he was not lost.

Her suspicious aroused again, the young woman turned her gaze back to the map. It said go one way, while her instincts and (admittedly rather haphazard) memory said to go straight. She took a water bottle from her bag, taking a good long drink as she muddled over the problem, pointedly not answering Reggie.

Mind said one way, heart said another. This was a dilemma and a half. However, she knew that her instincts were less likely to be wrong, she didn't know how old the map was, after all.
"No, we're on the right path." She stated, placing her drink back in her bag, shouldering it once more, "I was just looking over the rest of it."

Give it half an hour or so, if no sign of the beach had appeared, she'd come back and go the other route. Until then, Lucrecia had to just relax, enjoy the company while it lasted, and get as much of her assignment done as she could.

There had been a feeling, a sensation that stole over Aegir that he had not been quite familiar with. While certainly no rube when it came to decipher humans and their plethora of emotions he was by his own admission a novice in understanding all that they had to offer. Was this what tranquility was? Peace? He was unsure though he could not capitulate his rather relaxed nature to anything else. Nor had he sought to maintain an illusion for this long. Sure, there were times that he had experimented with his techniques or arranged a scenario of his own devising but for the most part such matters were meant only to be short term veils, ones he would drop once he had accomplished his aims. Had he not drawn Lucrecia far enough away? Did it really matter if other students rushed to her assistance? Aegir was more than capable of defending himself though his brush with Christine had reminded him that he was not invulnerable, even here.

He supposed that he could very well take advantage of this deception. Like a trap door spider he could pop forth from the earth, snatch his prey and drag it back into his lair all within the blink of an eye. He was close enough to bring his tentacles to bare upon her, close enough to harvest her body for the very purposes he had intended and yet Aegir had hesitated. Not because of fear or caution but out of enjoyment. Lucrecia was bestowing upon him a rare commodity, something that had been missing for so long that Aegir had begun to believe that he had no need of it. Yet now he was reminded of how sorely he had missed interactions of these kinds. While untroubled about dispelling this fictious being and the accompanying personae that he had created for it Aegir did realize that upon doing so capturing a moment like this may never yet occur again upon this island.

"I suppose you're right about the name. Still, Reginald?" He shook his head just a little then shot her a small smile, a vibrant smile that almost though not quite reached those wide blue eyes of his. Having fallen quiet for a moment as he took heed of what she said he responded in his soft voice. "I can't imagine why anyone would make fun of your name. In a way I'm glad that your mother's works have not become too wide spread. Hmm ... what have we here? Alisma gramineum ..."

Reggie's eyes were captured upon a group of plants near the stream that they had been transvering along. Of course he could not help but prattle on about the plants even as he stooped next to one of them. "They're quite rare though their range is rather widespread. They grow throughout North America, Europe and throughout North Africa though they're endangered in the U.K. Did you know that those plants that grow in the water self pollinate? See their flowers never blossom and grow beneath the water. Naturally these here are in full bloom and thus reproduce in the normal sense of the word through cross pollinization."

Aegir's mind roamed back to the glimpse of her clevage he had seen. There was something deliciously tempting in knowing that in time he would have plucked away her bra to lavish the concealed flesh beneath. The thought was enticing in and of its own. He also quite enjoyed the stream of thoughts she was displaying. From relief that he had enough tact not to point out what he had witnessed to her questioning nature upon whether or not he was in fact hitting on her. That had taken a moment to process for the term had not been familiar to Aegir. Accessing the memories of the absorbed he soon discovered what the terminology had meant or at least found something that was a close proximity to it. It entailed courtship ... it was how humans managed to some how reproduce. The who task seemed quite complex to Aegir not to mention quite contrary to how most species operated in the animal kingdom. Overall animals either went into heat or simply were taken by an aggressive male or otherwise performed some sort of ritual to attract a mate. Male peacocks displayed their colorful plummage, male frogs croaked and so on. But the whole idea of asking for permission, going through the stages of getting to know one's mate, risking rejection, it seemed as if divine province or outstanding luck had to have a hand in matters for humans to get together in any sort of lasting relationship. Perhaps it was a matter he would study further at some point though it was all too confusing to him. Aegir's kind, back when they reproduced sexually that is, were a rather violent lot. Pheremones would be used to lure prospective females to a male though most often the female of his species would resist. That had been one of the lures provided by human prey, while they could fight back they were no where near as powerful as having to subdue a being capable of lifting a ton of weight who just so happened to be as efficient at grappling as he.

Still monitoring her thoughts he found her suspicions were resurfacing though he firmly believed he could alleviate that situation. "I haven't seen any sea gulls ... can't hear the ocean either but that doesn't necessarily mean anything. Could just be low tide. I'm glad we're on the right path though I wouldn't have minded if we got hopelessly lost."

He flushed again, bringing a hand to the back of his neck to scratch absentmindly at a spot, his eyes flying towards the recently discovered plants observing their tiny purple-tinted flowers, their wide stiff leaves and even the small nutlets that each plant had produced. "What I meant was that the others wouldn't leave without me and ... well I couldn't have wished to have gotten lost with anyone else. You've been a real big help Lucrecia. Really."

Looking back he smiled upon her even if flashes of what he was intending on doing to her had filled his mind. Thinking too far ahead of himself could have been a mistake though for as his excitement elevated he could discern the slight musky odor that waifed into the air. His pheremones, an evolutionary throw back, still emitted a scent when he was agitated or excited sexually. And while this scent was harmless to humans and most other living beings it did crop up at a rather inopportune time for unlike most of her concerns that aroma could not readily be explained away.

As they continued to walk, Lucrecia was finding herself more and more comfortable in Reggie's presence, slowly opening up more in the conversation. Yet there was this feeling of unease that wouldn't quite leave, the sensation of something being not-quite-right.

Still, Lucrecia hadn't really gone into the middle of woodlands before, so she supposed the feeling was probably normal. The idea that anything could be waiting behind a tree, waiting to pounce, was more than enough to make her stop and take another look at the surroundings.

Again, there was no sign of anything dangerous, although Reggie had started talking about some plants near the stream... he was surprisingly knowledgeable, Lucrecia had the feeling that her teachers wouldn't know half of the stuff he was saying.

Still, while she was trying to note down what he was saying, the young woman did notice that he seemed distracted, like he was thinking about something else.

Rather cynically, an unusual thing for the normally optimistic girl, she had to wonder if it involved her accidental peepshow. Her cheeks were starting to flush again with her embarrassment even as she glanced down, making sure her shirt buttons were still firmly in place this time.

There was her PE T-shirt in her bag. But it was a little tight too, almost accenting her bust whenever she wore it, so changing wasn't an option even if she could think of an excuse to do so, and a manner to do it without Reggie being able to peek, accidentaly or not.

Still, she snapped out of her own absent-mindedness when she heard him talking directly to her this time. She'd been fiddling with her shirt button, something she stopped before she accidentaly popped it free again, focusing on the words before her imagination could kick in about how he'd react to a second incident...

It was a good thing she already had a small blush on her face, because Reggie's words would have caused one. The compliment was a little awkward and cheesy, yes, but it seemed sincere. And, besides, from the sounds of it, the boy hadn't exactly had too much experience with social interactions with the opposite sex. Not that it was something Lucrecia was much an expert on either.

Before she could zone out, an odd smell reached her nose. Different, almost musky in it's 'texture'. It was almost addicting, but it also sent alarm bells ringing in her mind.

Lucrecia climbed too her feet, glancing around at the surroundings once more. Could it be some animal, a predator of some kind? It sure wasn't a deer, they'd already passed a small group of those and there hadn't been that scent before.

Still seeing nothing, she decided not to risk ignoring the potential threat, spying two hefty looking branches near the treeline. Telling Reggie to stay near the stream, where she dropped off her bag, she walked towards them, they'd make decent makeshift weapons... should be enough to drive away an assault.

And, even if she was merely overreacting, or going crazy, they'd make a nice crutch for Reggie's leg. Focusing on the treeline, she bent down to take the large shafts, pointedly not thinking about the way her skirt was riding up and revealing the plain white panties she was wearing...

There were qualities about her that he could appreciate, free to observe her every now and again when she had turned her focus upon this or that. In many ways this lie that he wove had been similar to her, part of that was intentional, part accidental given how he had elected to play his role. Like a performer in a play he had rehersed this character in and out in his head while he waited for events to fall into place though he began to experience a feeling that must have been akin to that of an actor upon the final night of a long running play or one that had been on a television series that had run for years upon years that had reached its final episode. Regret wasn't an emotion that Aegir had ever felt though he had the stirrings of something close to it. Oh, he did not mind the fact that he had taken on this guise, it served his purpose after all. What he was beginning to regret was the fact that his performance was coming to an end. That he would have to give up something he was enjoying immensely if only to immerse himself back into reality.

Figments were a bane like that. Once dispelled the magic was forever lost and though he had never really minded casting aside the shadowy forms that he had worn in the past something within him had said that he would miss the part of overly nervous, yet shy Reggie Dwight. Inwardly he sighed though a moment did steal over him in the ensuing seconds. A moment in which he had considered allowing Lucrecia free from his clutches to go on her merry way without any knowledge of how close she had come to the clutches of a being like him.

It had been this train of thought that had him consider the words of his elders. He had been tainted by them if he were feeling something that bordered upon compassion. The thought did not hold sway with him for long, however, all that had been necessary was a reminder of what he had witnessed not long ago. The flash of her brassier, the shapely form of her body, there was just something that he could not place his finger upon, something that he had found enchanting about her. Had it been her simplicity? Had it been the thought of finding a kindred spirit, an outcast amongst her kind? Was it her glasses that accenuated her eyes especially when the rays of sunlight would catch them at just the right angle? Aegir pondered this question for a time quite glad that she had been distracted by his pheremones.

Funny, she seemed to be a bit receptive to them. Not that they had clouded her judgement or impaired it in any way for that matter. It was more the fact that she associated the scent itself with something pleasant, something exotic perhaps. Staying in character he watched her with those round eyes of his, his gaze flying over the landscape as he sniffed at the air indicating that he had picked up upon the aroma as well.

"Pole cat? Er ... more commonly referred to as skunks ... no wait ... the scent is all wrong for that. Umm ... its familiar ... moose? No, that's not it." His eyes followed her movements as she approached the branches. Discerning her thoughts he had become aware that she had intended on using them as a weapon against this unseen predator not having reached the conclusion that the very predator she was seeking to defend herself from was within arm's reach at present.

What he had been thinking about prior had been shelved for the time being for his eyes had captured a glimpse of her white panties as she bent over to retrieve the wood. Unable to help himself, he grinned though caught the slip fortunately before she had gazed back towards him. Aegir would need to exspunge some of these human emotions in time or better learn to shut some of them off given how they were beginning to interfer with his own thoughts. It would certainly be a learning experience, though another had forced its way into his mind more likely drawn forth from several of the minds he had absorbed upon his own. The choice images did flash through is mind giving him the precise means by which he would cast off this shell, probably much to Lucrecia's detriment.

Still, he had to consider his grand designs. He wondered for a moment if he could actually pull off his thoughts. Entertaining his thoughts upon the matter he wondered if he could draw her into a kiss. If he could get her that close he could easily entwine her body in his tentacles, wrapping her up in that embrace while dropping this masquerade. Upon reflection he did not believe it was possible given that they had just meet and his read of the workings of humans could be erroneous. But she had seemed somewhat receptive to him, even opening up. Following her thoughts too had allowed him to gain a fair understanding of how he was perceived by her.

Though that was unlikely Aegir knew that when she approached to grant him one of those branches as use as a crutch would perhaps be the best time to strike. No question she would probably figure out that the scent that she was drawing in was emitting from him at that stage any how. For the interim he did as she requested, staying by the stream, his gaze going here and there then upon returning to her he drew upon just the right hint of concern.

"You know ... you should let me look around. Obviously something's got you panicked and last time I checked I was the man around here. Not that that means anything of course! Just that well I'd feel better knowing that you weren't wandering into the maws of some wild animal. I'm pretty knowledgeable when it comes to animals soooo I might avoid becoming lunch, that's all. Not that you'd be lunch of course. Just saying that I'm scrawny and small and may not appeal to the palet to whatever is out there if anything at all ..." he rambled adding a little nervousness to his meek voice for added effect. Like a chef he was adding a pinch of this, a pinch of that until he had just the right hint of spices to flavor his dish. And that was what he was doing with his illusion, attempting to flavor his character enough that Reggie was believeable and consistent in his mannerisms.

Lucrecia, for a split second, wondered if the uniforms were made so that she'd accidentally reveal herself on purpose. It seemed silly but, as her shirt had come undone, again, there seemed to be some degree of truth to it.

She resisted the urge to redo the button, focusing more on the potential threat. Reggie seemed to be trying to guess the source of that scent, yet his ideas didn't seem right. Still, as she breathed, she did notice that it wasn't so heavy where she was, so the cause was clearly not about to jump her.

But, she still did not know what the cause was and that was still cause for alarm. She straightened, keeping a firm grip on both branches. Reggie had been insisting that he look around, which just seemed suicidal.
"Reggie, no offence, but you don't look like you'd last long if it did attack." And, logically, if it was stalking humans, there was a fair chance of an attack. "With your leg, running isn't much of an option. And I'm not too sure on your swinging arm."

Still, with the possibility that they would have to flee in mind, Lucrecia kept a careful eye on the surroundings as she heading towards the boy, pretty much throwing the makeshift weapon/crutch at his feet, giving her a hand free to remove her glasses. Wouldn't do to lose or break them if things turned nasty, she decided, managing to slip them into their case in her shirt pocket.

Remembering the loose button, she was about to reclose that when she remembered Reggie was still looking. Her face flushed, hand dropping to her side as she tried to come up with an excuse for the damn uniform. The worst thing was, the next size up was too large for her, so it was either have something small and revealing, or something that was practically falling off...

Then her eyes widened, the scent was stronger her... could it have come from the other side of the stream, that would be the logical conclusion... but, still, now that she thought about it. The scent wasn't the kind of thing she would associate with hostility, of predators. It was musky, almost enticing... like something you would find on the-
"Beach. It smells like something you'd find on the beach!"

Grabbing her bag, she completely ignored the map, slipping it inside the item. Looking up, she noticed that her companion seemed a little spacy... glancing back down, no, no more buttons had popped, she wasn't flashing him. It was like, "something on your mind? We're nearly there."

Here it was, the time was now, Aegir could feel the excitement coursing through him, his blue blood practically boiling with excitement. One of her weapons had been lost to her when she tossed it over to him now if he could only rid her of the other he could finally strike, yet there was that nagging portion of him that wanted to hold back, to milk this moment for what it was worth for he had known that accomplishing it again simply would not happen. True, he might be able to duplicate it here and there with other students but he doubted that he would have the same rapport with them as he was having with Lucrecia. And once he dropped this disguise he felt that it would be unlikely that she would have ever dropped her guard like this or would be so trusting when running across strangers. It was more that which had bothered him than anything else and while he figured he could delve into her mind, erasing true memories and implanting false ones within his neurosis would not allow him to do so. He craved to be remembered, to be admired in a strange fashion. A compromise? He considered his options carefully before he concluded leaving her with the memory of Reggie as he was, scrubbing out those of his actual self and thus leaving him in a position where he could don this identity again in the future should he manage to arrange for another opportunity like this.

Just a little closer and he would have sprung upon her though she did not do so. There was still a small distance between them though with surprise on his side he should have been able to cover enough ground to allow for the reach of his tentacles to snare her. But he had been distracted in doing so noticing that her button had come undone again. This time she must have realized that he was staring for when he looked back upon the delicate features of her face he realized that she was blushing. With her attention shifting from him to her bag he made a show of picking up the branch she had tossed in his direction.

"You're probably right," he admitted to her conclusion at his condition. Not being able to run would make him vulnerable to whatever beast was out there though Lucrecia seemed to conclude that it was no beast at all but the beach itself! His face brightened at those words, if only to remain in character, his mouth dropping open as if he wished to impart something to her but no words seemed to come out.

Finally he managed to croak out something, his wide blue eyes staring upon her while he spoke. "You mean, we're there? Your the best Lucrecia!" He laughed softly with glee making as fast as an approach towards her as he could with that hobbled leg of his. That had certainly drawn him out of his spaciness. Just an arm span away from her he dropped the branch off to the side, his hands reaching out to clasp gently at her arms, his chin tilting backwards so he could look up into her eyes being somewhat shorter than her in this illusionary form anyway. "You did it! You really did it!"

Standing up quickly upon the tips of his toes Reggie pressed a quick kiss to her lips. The musky aroma of course getting stronger as he became a little more agitated. He wanted to prolong that kiss though when his lips fell away from her own his eyes cast themselves to the side, his meek voice sounded scratchy in his throat. "Sorry ... I'm sorry Lucrecia ... I ... well ..." it was time, time to end this masquerade for the clock chimmed twelve, the hour of the unmasking was at hand. He looked back towards her, eyes containing a small spark of worry within them as if further to cause her to believe that he was speaking about the impromptu kiss.

Well, this time, Lucrecia'd caught him. The boy's eyes were wide behind his glasses as he stared at her chest. Now she was really starting to blush, inwardly cursing whoever had designed the uniform. Still, at least she was taller than he was, otherwise he would have been able to see more than just the tiny hint of the flesh underneath...

Anyway, Reggie seemed to realise his folly, and how close she was to lobbing her stick at him, as he managed to wrench his gaze away from her bust and back into her own eyes. He was almost cute in his embarrassment, moving to get his makeshift crutch to hide it.

Still, there was no harm done. Not like either of them could have helped the situation. Still, with no more threat, Lucrecia felt safe enough to do her shirt's button back up, but Reggie looked up before she had the chance... couldn't do it with him watching, he might think she'd been exposing herself to him on purpose... the poor boy'd burst a blood vessel if he thought that, she decided with a wry smirk.

The way he seemed lost for words was rather endearing, the boy's face positively beaming as he heaped praise on her... praise which she wasn't really that deserving of, what with picking the trail at random thanks to a confusing map...

The young woman snapped out of her thoughts as she spotted him moving closer, rushing as fast as his leg would allow. He practically dived forward, dropping his crutch as he looked up right into her eyes, halting for the briefest moment... he wasn't about to-

And then he kissed her. It was a quick, rather clumsy, movement, pressing his lips to hers. Lucrecia dropped her stick in surprise, eyes wide and cheeks blushing as she looked down at the stammering, apolagising boy...

How to react to that? She'd never really been kissed before, but it'd came out of no where... and she wasn't really looking for a relationship, although he was a nice lad... had the scent gotten stronger? Ugh, this was confusing, so Lucrecia just went with an emotion and ran with it.
"Uhh, it's okay, really, it wasn't bad... would have been nice to get a little warning though."

Her weapon discarded, her reactions to him read as if she had placed each thought into a manuscript for him to read. He sensed the emotion there, the evident surprise at his own deed which had surprised him. Had he been urged on to fulfill the very thoughts that he had? If so he really had to do something about these absorbed memories for it seemed that they were beginning to guide him rather than he selectively browsing through them for tidbits of advice, inspiration and the sprinkling of new found knowledge they possessed primarily in the understanding of humans themselves.

Aegir had not yet let go of her, his hands still upon her arms, and though the illusion hide it his tentacles slithered about her not yet touching her but manuevering for position. Looking into her eyes he eased himself down so that he was no longer standing on the tips of his toes. The palms of his hands brushed against the length of her arms in doing so, smoothly filtering down against the bare skin only to halt at the palm of her hands as he slipped his hands into her own. It was then that he had chosen to cast his gaze back into her eyes. Such sweet eyes even without her glasses shielding them.

"T-T-That's not what I meant ..." he began in Reggie's tone of voice as if forgetting himself in this moment. Had he managed to loose track of his aims? He must have at least for a second. Ensuring that he had a firm enough hold upon her hands with his own he repeated his earlier words. "I'm sorry Lucrecia."

Pity and sympathy were matters that were alien to Aegir. Such concepts were only vaguely understood by him and only because of the numerous minds he had absorbed along the way. Yet the words sprang to his lips even as his flesh became hazy, rippling like a heat mirage upon concrete. The shift had only taken the span of a heartbeat if that. His size had shifted for now he loomed over her rather than the other way around as he stood just a hair over 7' in height. His once blue-gray eyes had now become solid, devoid of pupils they were an empty white coloration. Tentacles writhed about his mouth while his mauve flesh appeared to glisten against the scarce rays of light that filtered down through the canopy of trees. Instead of legs his humanoid torso tappered off into a mass of tentacles many of which had been elevated from the ground in positions ready to strike and that they did rushing in towards her body to grasp and hold her. Half of these appendages had suction cups to better hold and grasp objects as well as people.

It is almost a shame that it has to come to this, his words came, far more confident than Reginald's ever would have been. His gaze did not waiver, it remained focused upon her and though his eyes seemed to zoom in upon her own his gaze had been cast downward towards the button that had remained undone as without pupils it became difficult to discern exactly what he was gazing at. Though now without the deception of an accompanying illusion she would have picked up those words within her mind.

His grip did not slacken upon her hands remaining firm in order to prevent her from striking him though that was less of a worry than her braking free and drawing away from his grasp. He certainly could not keep pace with her should it have come to that. And while he had a few tricks that he could employ in slowing her progress down, even hindering her altogether under the right circumstances he had not wished to take the chance that she could elude him, not after the effort he had put forth in snaring her in the first place.