Into despair.

A young girl stumbled through the forest, clutching onto her bow with a haggard sort of expression. "T-This d-doesn't make any any ... any sense." Delia muttered to herself, taking a bow from her quiver that was slung across the back of her neck. She shot off an arrow then, aiming no where in particular which caused the arrow in question to fall to the ground before making an impact with anything. What was she even doing? What was the point in any of this? It felt as though since she had arrived at Foresta, she was starting to have more questions then she was answers. Stopping in the middle of the forest trail, the girl fell to her knees and started to sob uncontrollably. It had only been a few hours since she had been told by Constantine that their brother was dead. "W-W-Why?!" The girl cried out, a mixture of pain and anguish woven in her voice.

It didn't matter how Dion and her had interacted when he was alive, what mattered now was that he was dead and she would never be able to see him or talk to him ever again. "W-Who would do s-s-s-such a thing!?" The girl spoke out-loud, as if she were attempting to speak to the wind. In her mind though, it would be a wonder if even that responded. Clutching her bow then, Delia suddenly stood up with an enraged sort of expression on her face. She'd shoot everything, everything that moved and that would try to upset her in any way. That was the only thing that made sense, how else could she defend herself now? It wasn't like Constantine could take a punch from any bully for her.

Despite how much she underestimated her living older brother, the girl ending up becoming too wrapped up in her emotions and started to draw arrow after arrow sending them off now with furious intent. The first arrow caught a rabbit that had been hiding in some bushes nearby, which in turn caused said rabbit to poof into a mouse. The second arrow hit a nearby tree with a sharp ka-thunk that caused the tree to poof into bear (the inanimate ones that you would see at a taxidermist). The third arrow, while Delia had not been aiming for where her first arrow had hit - collided with the rabbit now turned mouse. If the impact of the first arrow hadn't killed the rabbit, the second arrow definitely did.

Delia's shooting of arrows lasted all but a few minutes until the girl finally ran out and collapsed down to her knees once more, "I-It's not f-f-fair!" Her cries sounded more like screeches then as the young woman fell forward, slamming her fists against the ground with her forehead touching the dirt. It seemed as though for now, the only thing that could take her tears was the earth.

Forget trying to get stuff done in the woods. Secret rituals that required concentration and blood sacrifice only worked if he was able to attain solitude. Today, it seemed, just wasn't his day. First, the knife slipped when somebody in the general vicinity cried out,

"W-W-Why?!"

So, instead of an easy-to-bandage nick on his thumb, he'd need to stitch up the finger. As he was hurriedly doing this (waiting was definitely not an option and he usually had a first-aid kit with him on these ventures), an arrow hit the earth next to him. He, of course, jumped to his feet, but he was duly distracted by the task at hand (literally) when another arrow sheared through the fabric of his shirt and nicked his upper arm.

His next step would have been to get the heck outta dodge, but, between one moment and the next, he'd shrunk. The world yawned up around him through his clothes (loose white shirt that would not have been out of place at a Renaissance Festival and form-fitting brown trousers) and some of it lost color.

And then sounds and smells. By God, the sounds and smells. He crept forward, nose twitching as he scooted out from under the vestments now about fifty times too big. He had to be about the length of a ruler, mostly white with smallish patches of reddish-brown fur, especially around the eyes. The very tip of his tail (yes, he had a tail, he checked) was black.

Ermine? Is that what he was? He couldn't be sure without a mirror, but the signs were there.

The big question:

Now what?

He certainly couldn't go back to what he was doing. Stoats didn't have thumbs. It was clear that an arrow caused this... maybe carrying an enchantment? Was he not the only stuff-bespeller at the school? With nothing better to do, he went in careful search of the origin of his new form. It took a bit of getting used to, walking about on all fours, but he finally crept to the origin of the sounds.

By the empty quiver, it was the origin of his current predicament. He immediately recognized the girl and he would have relished making her feel uncomfortable again had she not been sobbing. The boy in ermine form closed the distance between the two of them instinctively, avoiding her fists and touching his tiny brown nose to the side of her jaw.

After a few minutes of sobbing, Delia's cries soon started to get quieter and quieter. It seemed as though the girl was just falling into misery with no capabilities of climbing out. That was all the way up until she felt something wet touch her face, normally in any other circumstance the girl probably wouldn't have noticed at all thanks to the fact that she was crying so much. The fact though that this touch was so slight, caused the young girl to slowly sit up - rubbing some of the tears out of her eyes. It only took Delia another minute then, to take note of the tiny animal that was right in front of her.

"Oh m-my god, don't tell me... y-you're..." Delia stopped herself then, had a student or a teacher been nearby while she had been firing her arrows off? The animal itself was such a distraction that it was clear that the young girl had calmed down quite a bit just by it's presence. Even at that, Delia couldn't even be sure if this animal was a human or just well... a friendly animal. Staring at it briefly, the young girl noted that it looked like a ferret but had a few different attributes to it. "H-Hi," Delia finally managed deciding that it was easier to consider the animal as an animal as opposed to a human.

"Did I disrupt you?" The second that she started to consider an animal as well, it immediately became much easier for her to speak to it. Her anguish from just a few moments before rested in the back of her mind, awaiting for any potential trigger that might happen. The animal, whether it be an animal or a human had shifted her focus and therefore slowed her tears.

Of course he couldn't answer her. Ermine didn't have language. At least none that he could rely upon to answer questions. But, equally obvious, she was not expecting an answer. He watched her start to put the pieces together before abandoning the puzzle entirely.

That was frustrating, since he had no intention of remaining a small, furry woodland creature forever. However, it was good that she was calming down since her psychotic break earlier. He'd have to give her a lecture about letting arrows loose in the woods all willy-nilly.

In response to her question, he gamboled around her and then placed a tiny paw on her leg and trilled up at her. If this had occurred to anybody else, he would have found it hilarious and worthy of bringing up as often as possible. How could he impart to the girl that he needed to be turned back into a human?

At the little animal letting out a small noise, Delia let out a light giggle. She wasn't exactly sure why she thought this thing was adorable, but it was and in response the young girl reached her hands out to pick the animal up. Any normal person though would consider that unwise if this were indeed a wild animal. "I-I'm sorry." Delia started off slowly - looking away from the animal for a moment before bringing her eyes back upon it. "I... I just haven't had a good day." It was hard to even think about it, how could she possibly mention it to this tiny thing without starting to cry again?

"A-Are you having an okay day?" Delia asked the animal then, her normal stuttering slowing down to almost non-existent. It was pretty difficult to be shy around an animal that couldn't respond to your questions, at least not in English. "I-I really hope you're just a normal animal." There was no way that this thing was a human that she turned, who would have been out here in the first place? No one she could possibly think of.

He had not expected her to pick him up, nor had he desired such an act. It would have been okay if the endgame was something different, but the movement was jarring and he wasn't used to being so small.

Felix, of course, knew.

He'd been in the arena when Constantine had found the source of this girl's sadness. What had been an adventure culminated in tragedy when it became abundantly clear what the nature of the abandoned farm had been. Felix would never admit it, but he did occasionally get nightmares about the place. What little empathy he had, he certainly felt with regards to Delia and her brothers.

That did not excuse her behavior, nor did it make his current predicament any less absurd or pressing.

He had a hard time moving his head back and forth in the 'no' gesture the first time, when she asked about his day. It might have come off as random movement from a wild animal. The second thing she said, that she hoped he was just a normal animal, he made an effort. He lifted his paw, bringing it down for her attention (not hard, but definitely intentional), and making a distinctive 'NO' gesture with his head.

He gestured with a tiny paw where he'd been when she started the arrow thing, hoping that she would take the hint, find his clothes, and put the pieces together.

It had taken a moment through her own muddled thoughts to realize that the ermine had been making motions at her that seemed oddly human like. Frowning curiously, Delia noticed that Felix had been shaking his head. The fact that a small forest animal was shaking it's head at her caused a significant amount of concern in the young girl which was proceeded by Delia setting the animal back down on the ground.

As soon as the animal moved it's tiny paw toward some of her arrows, Delia's jaw dropped. "No, no, no, no." The young woman stood up and started to pace nervously. Immediately trying to figure out what to do in this situation with a person she innocently turned into a animal. "I-I'm s-s-s-s-s-so s-s-sorry!" Delia exclaimed anxiously. "I-I don't k-know h-h-h-how to help you!" Delia said then, rubbing her eyes with the bottoms of her palms.

Lovely.

Just fantastic.

Felix was pleased that she had finally gotten the drift. He was more than pleased to be on the ground again.

However, this progress was negated by the immediate two-step-back of her starting to freak out again. He squeaked and got out of the way when she started pacing. Being this small and close to the earth meant that her footsteps were a terrifying, ground-tremoringly jarring experience.

If he were human, he would have rolled his eyes. As a stoat, this would have taken too much practice to do. Instead, he attempted another form of communication that she might be able to focus on to calm down.

He started dragging a foot in the earth around them, barreling past bits of bracken in an attempt to spell. It was so awkward, though. He'd get to the end of a letter and, because it had taken him so long to remember the shape of it, he'd forget what he was trying to spell in the first place. Spelling was NOT a skill ermines had. Writing was NOT a skill ermines had.

Thus, when he considered himself done, the note in the earth looked like this:

"It oky. Ge clohs pls. -->"

And that represented a monumental effort on his part. He trilled up at the girl again, hoping to get her attention so she could do the one thing that might make it easier once he did turn back into a human. He wanted her to get his spell components too, but that seemed less likely to happen with any real satisfaction. She could easily break them, or worse, accidentally trigger a half-completed enchantment. At this point, who knew?

But, if their first encounter was any indication, his nudity if and when he became human again might cause her to have a meltdown. At least she was out of arrows.

In between her pacing and anxious hics and sniffles, Delia caught a little of what the ermine was doing out the corner of her eye. After all, it was much easier for her to notice things with her eyes as opposed to anything else. It was when the animal made a noise at her as if to get her attention that Delia's thoughts were reaffirmed that it was indeed a human and she had definitely messed up.

Staring at what appeared to be a strange collection of letters, it took Delia a few minutes to realize what the ermine had been trying to spell. "C-Clothes? Y-You're telling m-me t-t-to get your c-clothes?" Delia asked the animal then, as if he could properly respond to her. Hesitantly, the young woman looked around the area with a clearer vision now - soon spotting the rumpled pile of clothes just a few feet away from them. Walking over to them, Delia paused for a moment before looking back at the ermine - "T-T-This isn't a t-t-trick right? Are you m-m-mad at me?" For some odd reason she was suspicious of the human turned animal, after all what had been the likelihood of another student wandering this deep into the forest? "I d-d-don't k-know when you c-c-can t-t-turn back by the w-way..." Delia mentioned to the ermine then, chewing on her lower lip in an almost frustrated sort of manner.

He followed her as she went to retrieve his clothes, trilling at her again when she didn't actually pick them up. He gave her a decisive shake of his head when she asked if he was mad at her. Right now, he was too shellshocked to be mad. Anger might come later, or he might write this experience off as character-building. Either way, he'd have to repay her somehow for the inconvenience.

He tilted his head, the closest thing he could do to a shrug in response to her lack of knowledge. He trilled his impatience, dragging his feet to create another arrow pointing at his clothing and satchel where (hopefully) most of his components may have landed.

With a start, he realized that taking him back to school wasn't necessarily the best option. He was, by no means, ashamed of his body, but he worried that she might die from embarrassment when he did shift back if he did so before being returned to the safety of his room. Also, she would have to carry him if they were going to get back in any timely fashion. He figured that his nudity would only be made worse for her if she were touching him.

Then again, it was probably a justifiable punishment. Karma.

He added to his succinct message. "Dorm?" was scrawled in the dirt next to the arrow.

As if receiving some affirmation that Felix was indeed not tricking her for the time being, Delia bent down and carefully picked up his clothes and satchel that was nearby. Anything else escaped her notice for the time being since she was too focused on getting the job at hand done with. Turning back to Felix then, the young girl knelt down and noticed the next word that was written in the dirt. It would make sense for her to take him back to the dorm, but what if he changed back human while she was carrying him?

This caused Delia to blush furiously and stand up, taking a few steps back and really trying to consider her options. Maybe if she had him climb into his clothes and she just carried his clothes with him back, the situation could be avoided? Frowning Delia bent back down and laid Felix's clothes in front of him, "C-Climb u-u-u-up he-here. I-I-I'll carry y-y-you back i-in y-your clothes." After all, she couldn't see any other options. The idea of carrying him in her bare hands or on her shoulder seemed a lot more awkward compared to this option.

Felix complied immediately, not wanting to ruin this chance by freaking Delia out too much. It was a comfortable and expedient compromise. If he was lucky, he supposed, perhaps he'd be himself before the end of the day.

Going to get food might be awkward, especially if Constantine were lurking about in cat form. Would Felix still be allergic to Constantine in this shape? Somehow that seemed a tad absurd.

He nested in his clothes, curling up to make picking up the bundle easier. All manner of plans wound through his head for retribution, but a part of him suggested leniency. Grief would be a difficult thing to work through and he had no right to monopolize the forest for his madcap scheming.

No, no, he wouldn't be himself if he just let this pass unresolved. Felix prided himself on a couple things and follow-through was one of those things.

He waited for Delia to get moving, watching her face with beady, reflective eyes.

As soon as Felix was comfortable in his bundle of clothes, Delia started a slow but steady trek back to the school. As she did so, the young woman proceeded to get lost in her own thoughts. The news that Constantine had told her about Dion still weighed heavy on her mind, but not so much that she felt to need to show it for the time being. How much of her wailing had Felix actually seen and at that how much did he really care? The young man seemed to enjoy teasing her more than anything else and Delia felt helpless to defend herself.

About five minutes into her walking and stepping onto the school grounds, the young woman felt her hands begin to shake quite unwillingly. Looking down she noticed that various strange colors were coming from Felix. With surprisingly quick reflexes, but little to no care for Felix's well being - Delia threw the transforming animal into the air and backed off (only realizing her stupidity of throwing him quite a few seconds later after the deed was done).

[ooc; I just started off his transformation back to human, I figured you'd do the rest ]

One moment, he was riding amid a nest of his clothing, the next he was thrown into the air and his body was changing faster than he was ready to deal with.

His reflexes, fine-tuned from years of lessons hard-learned, kicked in once his arms were more or less human-shaped, snatching a piece of clothing out of the air as he fell, tucking into a roll and using his momentum to launch himself to his feet.

He'd managed to grab his pants. Fabulous. With no real regard for Delia's discomfort, he slipped into them mostly to avoid any trouble from the groundskeeper, who was probably around. His body movements still seemed to carry that weird, boneless fluidity of the stoat, especially as he moved to snatch up the rest of his belongings. He checked on the flask hidden in the bundle, letting out a sigh of relief.

Words took a little longer, but they soon arrived. "I'm sorry for your loss," he commented. "Try not to turn me into an animal again." He didn't shrug back into the shirt right off, instead using the moment to brush off his angular torso. The roll had caused his skin to pick up bits of plant and dirt and he wasn't about to get that on his shirt. Speaking of which.... he grimaced at the slash in one of the sleeves and the residual wound on his arm.

"Fantastic."