[b][i] – Kathy[/i][/b]

Her cheeks became tinted with a red hue again as Crash asked a rhetorical question. “You’re being evil again.” Kathy pointed out with a fake pout on her face. She had been expecting to go pick up the towels together if they agreed, but the shapeshifter ended up just bringing enough for all 3 of them on his own. She let out a laugh. “I’m not the only one eager for all this I see.” Though Crash’s corgi form had only been a temporary one back at the beach, it somehow seemed oddly fitting for his personality. “Good boy.” She told him, grinning at her subtle joke.

Feeling Crash’s fingers gently wrap around her own, she felt a small urge to pull her hand back. Successfully keeping this embarrassment-based reaction of hers suppressed she actually managed to also tighten her grip so she was actually holding his hand back instead of letting it lie limp in his grasp. Still, she could not keep all the blood from rushing to her face again. [i]‘Aaaah, this is so pathetic.’[/i] She thought, feeling even more embarrassed at how greatly this was affecting her despite the fact she had been the one to suggest it in the first place. In fact, it was exactly what she had wanted. Kathy could feel her heart beating a mile a minute and was fairly certain that Alex (with how close he was to her) could hear it and maybe Crash could even feel her pulse from her fingertips. She didn’t know if that was actually possible, but it sure felt like it was with her hand heating up at the contact.

[i]‘With all the blood rushing to my head and hands, how in the world do I still have some left for the rest of my body?’[/i] She wondered, temporarily lapsing into a moment of confusion and randomness.

Kathy was brought out of her random thoughts when Alex jumped off and declared the start of an adventure as he flew upside down. Laughing again, she pointed off in the right direction for their destination and added, “Let’s make sure we’re going in the right way though.” Smiling she thought, [i]‘He’s adorable. I wonder if this is how it would feel to have a younger sibling?’[/i] She offered her other hand to Alex. “Do you want to hold my hand as well? It’d be a good way for us to all stay together.” Or he could always just return to sit on her shoulder once more. She didn’t mind either method but decided to offer another to Alex as well.

Nodding to both of them, she began to walk on with Crash and Alex (making sure the small boy was either following properly, holding her hand, or comfortably on her shoulder again) into the forest. Hidden in the darkness, she felt less embarrassed about how red her face was or the fact she was holding Crash’s hand. She still felt extremely self-conscious, but she could calm down a little. “Careful. Let’s go a bit slowly and let our eyes adjust.” She told them, though mostly directing her warning for a certain clumsy individual.
---
[b][i] – Leroy[/i][/b]

“Leroy.” He answered, smiling in a warm and friendly manner as he nodded before taking the offered seat. He was quite happy to receive the invitation seeing as he thought he might’ve been quite bored until he found a place to use as a temporary place to sleep in for the night. “It was my pleasure fair lady, though I apologize for the sudden intrusion.” Now, Leroy had no idea if Garden’s manner of speaking was actually normal for her, but for now he decided to just mimic it. Not really in mockery or the desire to be as polite as she was, but simply because he could.

Looking at the small kitten in Garden’s arms, his smile grew wider. [i]‘Small and young, but apparently more perceptive than most.’[/i] He thought, feeling like applauding the small animal for being able to recognize something humans just never seemed to be able to detect. “Perhaps the kitty doesn’t like the scent of my roommate? He’s a bakeneko, and someone quite similar to a cat. I’ve heard that cats are sometimes hostile towards the scent of other cats.” Leroy told her, offering a logical-sounding reason that was entirely wrong. He didn’t even notice that he slipped back into his normal manner of speaking. Already having lost interest in being extra-polite after getting distracted by the kitty named ‘Sunflower’.

“I didn’t actually think the academy allowed pets.” Leroy commented, looking curiously at Sunflower. “Or is that small cat in your arms actually not a pet at all and another student?” He was half-joking, but by now he had begun to learn that not everything moved according to common sense within Athalia.

Turning his attention back to Garden he asked, “Any reason why you’re not heading somewhere else like the others?” He gestured around them at the lack of students compared to the large group that had gathered around from Maria’s announcement.