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[Acre / Grand Contest Hall / 04:31 PM]

The crowd cheered in anticipation for the next contest participant. The stage darkened slowly, barely perceptible, as the curtains parted to reveal a Glaceon who stepped out into view with a delicate parade. He held his head high and approached the edge of the stage at a steady pace, showing off a noble appearance. The cheering and calling, the whistling and encouragement from the audience, grew ever louder as the Glaceon's beautiful features showed.

As the lights grew brighter, a cold wind formed and followed behind, some unimportant pieces of the stage crystallizing, the cold breeze brushing past the blue tassels either side of the head-crest so characteristic of the species in such a way that they flowed gently in the magical wind. The Glaceon's eyes closed and the diamond-like ears tilted back slightly, barely giving a distant look to the audience that expressed such adoration.

He did so out of nervousness. This was his biggest show yet, with a huge audience, the density of which frankly frightened him. There were so many people who'd heard of him and had come to see him show off, so many people on the edge of their seats waiting for his next move. And the din - oh, the noise! It was so much louder than any crowd he'd ever seen before! Normally, he quite enjoyed the contests, but there were just so many people, so many chances to mess it up in front of everyone. His trainer, too, had been so eager to see him work his magic up on stage, so certain that he was going to win. He definitely wasn't going to disappoint her, of all people.

He focused some of his ice energy into the crystal he wore on his ribbon-decorated necklace and it glinted brightly enough to dazzle the audience, but not too bright to be easy on the eyes. It was difficult to find that balance, but he was starting to think he'd mastered it. The trick was to pay attention to where the other lights were coming from, and make sure the crystal worked in harmony with them. It was a contest of gentle beauty, after all - a show of power by blinding the crowd would do him no good.

He took a breath, disguising it as a condescending look towards the crowd and a heavy sigh before lifting his head and closing his eyes again - his most practiced and most theatrical motion. His favorite, too, because it meant he could act in his mind like the audience wasn't even there, and they loved it! They loved it because that was what they expected of him, the "Ice Queen", the rising star who'd captured everyone's hearts and acted as though that wasn't even a fact worth acknowledging.

He gave a dissatisfied huff, as exaggerated as he could manage, and began to turn away to exit the stage. When he opened his eyes again and spotted an Espeon smirking and winking right at him as she marched into the spotlight to make her own appeal, he almost faltered. The ruby embedded in her forehead glowed, far overpowering the light of his crystal.

As they passed each other, he only just managed to hold back a polite nod to keep up the haughty facade, but it shattered anyway for a brief moment as he felt her soft, well-groomed tail brush against his flank. He almost tripped, the surprise just about overwhelming him for a second, but he somehow kept his composure until he passed the curtains and left the stage. He had to hope now that no one noticed him briefly panicking, but given how loved he was by the crowd, it was likely that they were closely watching for longer than he would have liked. He had to make sure his next appeal more than made up for it.

More importantly, though, he was sure he knew that Espeon. He knew her very, very well.

---

[Acre / Home - Acre's Room / 08:40 PM]

The day of the grand show was coming to a close, and Acre was just beginning to wind down and head to bed. Tiredly, the dainty Glaceon yawned, but resolved to stick to his plan from this morning and attend to the one last thing he wanted to do today. Standing in the middle of his room, separate from his trainer's so he'd have plenty of space to himself, he called up the same icy aura he'd focused so hard on during the contest. He could feel his fur beginning to harden into icy needles, but he suppressed that reflex. Threatening things like that weren't beautiful, and it wasn't like his power was to be used as a weapon anyway. He didn't need all of that.

Instead, he allowed the aura to expand beyond him, growing slowly for a few seconds before bursting outward to fill the entire room with an icy energy. With just one small command in his mind, gently pushing the aura in one direction, it began to flow through the room, gently blowing through the few feathery ornaments that decorated his walls. The small jewelled tassels that hung from his dreamcatcher above his small dog-bed became tangled as the wind grew stronger.

Soon, he took a firm step forward and molded some of the energy to become more solid like snowflakes. The small white dots in the air around him began to descend, but as his body tensed up with a purposeful glare straight forward at a blank, dark-blue wall, the snowflakes were whipped about and pulled higher towards the ceiling where icy stalactites began to form. He placed his rear-most forepaw in front of the other again in another graceful step, keeping his head high so that the tassels on his headcrest flowed just the way he wanted them to, and whipped his tail from his left to his right at exactly the same time his paw came in contact with the floor. The motion accompanied a focused command to the wind in his mind, one that caused the wind to abruptly change direction. He lowered his head again, watching an imaginary audience appraisingly.

The sudden shine from the icy rock dangling from his necklace was the only hint he gave that he was about to do something. In a real contest, were there any threat to his win streak, now would be the time to get serious. Without any other warning, he suddenly leaped into the air, leaving behind him an arced trail of solid ice as he spun to his rear in a graceful backflip. A practiced motion that he was only now adding magic to.

The wind whirled in just the right way to toss his tassels around wildly, his ears shaking under the force of the wind as the sound drowned out all else, showing his near-perfect sense of balance. Even a squall like this couldn't throw him off, even one he was expending so much focus into creating by himself. At least, that was what the audience was supposed to think. In reality, the wind wasn't nearly powerful enough to knock him off course in mid-air, and even if it was, it was controlled such that it only helped his ascent if anything.

Everything felt like it was in slow motion as he turned in the air. Everything was perfect, his training had come a long way. This was a trick that was sure to astonish his next audience. He suppressed excitement, knowing he had to focus if he was to end this with a bang. He glanced down as he approached a standing angle to check the top of the statue. Satisfied with the flat, circular platform he sculpted, he landed almost perfectly on the top of it, crouching low as he landed but only for a brief few seconds. He stood up straight, staring down near the bottom of the wall where he imagined the crowd would be, cheering and calling out for him, before launching himself into the air to land where he imagined the very edge of the stage.

He closed his eyes with an exaggerated smirk, disguising a moment of especially strong focus as he broke the sculpture apart into small shards of ice that seemed to hover in the air for a while before beginning to descend. The way the lights in his room were reflected off the surfaces of the shards resulted in wild glittering of rainbow colors that scattered through the air.

After throwing a quick glance at a random member of the imaginary crowd and giving them a faint smile - he imagined breaking his icy mask for just one person, even though he knew he never could - he turned around and walked straight into a mound of pink fur.

"Wh-- eek...!" He tried to scramble away but ended up slipping on the remains of the ice and landing on his back. It didn't hurt, but it was certainly an undignified landing, what with his paws flailing about in a desperate attempt to drag himself upright again. When he did manage to settle into a sitting position, only then did his very unmasculine shriek register in his mind. Ignoring the fact that his face was now flushed red in humiliation, he looked up at the Espeon that stood before him. The very same one he'd barely defeated in the contest earlier, and now there was no mistake.

She looked very well-groomed, her fur absolutely flawless. Not a single hair stood out from the rest, the fluffy tips of her ears were tamed and it all looked so shiny and smooth, and he knew from experience that it was soft. Around her right foreleg, near the shoulder, was a molded bracelet of clay, painted a deep red. On it were pinned seven different ribbons, spread around its face evenly. Some of them, Acre shared - the blue one and the heart-shaped one, for example, dangled from his necklace - but she had three more in total than him. He didn't even recognize the others. Her eyes always glowed a light purple, and the ruby in her forehead always sparkled brilliantly. The Glaceon had no idea how she could have lost to him.

"Penny," he gasped with an astonished stare. He wasn't quite sure what to say, but he figured that saying her fur had been invitingly soft, as he'd found himself thinking, probably wasn't wisest. Or the most important thing at the moment. "Wh-What are you doing here?"

"What was all that about, all that talent I never saw a trace of? Are you hiding something from your fans, 'Ice Queen'? Holding back, maybe?" She smirked again as she spoke teasingly, as he began to look away, shaking his head very slightly.

"Stop calling me that, it's..." He trailed off when she lifted her tailtips to push his muzzle back towards her, forcing him to look at her.

"Embarrassing? 'Penny' isn't much better! It's Penthesilea." There was a pause, during which she just watched him, a subtle smile on her face. "You still can't say that?"

"I never could..."

"Pen. Tess. Sill. Lay. Ah. Repeat after me."

His eyes darted around, trying to look anywhere but at her, difficult as it was with her holding his snout. He quickly decided to change the subject, more because he was embarrassed about not being able to say her name than any real urgency to ask what he wanted to ask.

"A-Again, what are you doing here? You're trespassing, you know...?" He began to trail off as her smirk grew wider, clear amusement in her face, and she let go of him.

"Fine, I'll let you off this time," she giggled, before sighing melodramatically. "But one day, you'll learn to speak my name if it kills me! ...Hee hee, I'm merely here to greet my old friend. You've grown a lot since we last met! You know, when I saw you in that contest, when I saw you casting glares at the fans who would happily prostrate themselves before their queen, I just couldn't believe it was you." She paused for a moment, seemingly appraising him, before continuing in a sing-song sort of voice. "Buuut, once you saw me, once I felt you shiver... and especially now that I've heard that girly scream again for the first time in years, I just couldn't doubt it anymore! It's really you, Acre!"

He said nothing, instead glancing away to avoid her eager gaze. He was too embarrassed to speak. So she continued, standing up now to walk around him at a slow pace, examining him from every angle.

"You're all grown up and... girlier than ever, you're even more of a lady than me at this point! I'm sooo proud of you, hee hee! And oh, I've missed you. Where have you been, hm?"

"I've been with my trainer," he replied simply, standing up and turning to look at her once she got around to behind him. She smiled kindly down at him in response. He was only a few inches shorter than her, but when she was this close, it became quite noticeable. "I've been trying my hardest to be as good as I can be for the stage. It's what she wants."

"But not what you want?" She smirked knowingly, and what was left of Acre's confidence faded. Of course, she was a Psychic-type, it was only natural that she could see right through him. Indeed, he himself had no real wish to become an idol, but he couldn't exactly refuse the one who'd been taking care of him and given him food and shelter. He couldn't complain, so he said nothing. She just giggled and continued. "Well, isn't that precious? Poor, beloved star hates the spotlight and wants nothing more than to run away from his fame..."

"I-It's not like that!" he protested, stuttering shakily. Too late, he realized she was only teasing. She knew already exactly what was going through his mind, exactly what to say to get a reaction out of him. Judging by her suddenly bursting into laughter, she enjoyed it quite a bit.

"I know, I know, silly! But you do want a break from it all, right? It must be hard work. I can't imagine how you do it, you know. When I joined that contest and faced up against you, the idea of using my power for performance is just so alien to me!"

"It's, well... It's harder than it looks, yes." He paused for a moment, somewhat stunned by all this. It felt like an interview to him, except this time, he was the one speaking, not his trainer. That thought didn't really help.

"So do you want a break or not, huh?" She grinned, lifting a forepaw to gently bat his nose. He flinched slightly in surprise, watching her tail lashing from side to side and the way she kept her paw held up playfully even after the deed was done.

"W-Well... you see, I... can't neglect my training. I have practice in the morning, and..."

"Oh, psh! You're already incredible, you can relax a bit! It's not like you've got a contest coming up soon, right?"

"Actually, I do... Not tomorrow, but the day after. And if I fall behind in practice, I won't do so well in the real performance, so I can't miss out..."

"Surely you can miss just one performance, right? Like, just not go?"

"They're all excited to see me there. I can't disappoint anyone."

"Hrmm... What a pain..." She frowned and her tail lifted slightly before she turned away with a displeased huff. After a moment of Acre considering what he was going to say next, she turned back towards him, the smirk completely gone from her face. She looked worried. "Well, look, even if you can't take a whole day off, d'you think you could at least spend a few hours out tonight? Being serious now, I've really missed spending time with you. I've wanted to catch up for so long. Seeing you on TV and seeing you working so hard... You looked like you'd changed so much. I wondered what'd happened to the sweet little Eevee I used to know..."

"I'm sorry, Penny, I really am... I just wasn't expecting to see you. And, well, even if I did, I doubt I could sneak in any free time... Rei's pretty adamant about my career."

"Rei... That's your trainer's name?"

"Yeah. But... tonight might be all right. But I have to be back before midnight, okay? I can't practice if I'm tired."

"Really?" Her eyes lit up and she smiled again, this time genuinely happy, not just a playful smirk. "Well, what time is it now? It's about... nine, right? We've got a few hours. I know just the place to get you a break!"

She leaned over to him and grabbed one of his tassels in her mouth, dragging him towards the door. He let out a very undignified squeal as he staggered after her, with no intention of resisting her lead. The only protests he vocalized were small yelps of discomfort at having his precious tassel pulled on. He knew it would be nice to sneak out for a while, after all.

---

[October / Café Plaisir - Roof / 09:53 PM]

The occasional shape passed by on the ground far below, every last one watched by October and Chai as the two savored their break. A thin veil of smoke surrounded them, but it wasn't hard for them to see past it, not when they were used to it by now. Most of the passers-by earned a snarky comment from one or both of them, though tonight, they were mostly late-night customers, Pokémon neither of them recognized.

The crimson-furred Ninetales, October, eventually leaned back and took a long drag of the cigarette rested in his mouth, having lost interest in the visitors he knew too little about to mock. Chai did the opposite, the quiet Umbreon leaning a little closer to the edge of the roof and letting out a near-silent sigh.

"C'mon already, someone we can really talk shit about," the Umbreon muttered, almost too quiet to hear.

"Do I perhaps sense a little venom?" October teased almost sarcastically, glancing with a faint smile at the dark shape beside him.

"Huh?" Chai's left ear twitched back towards the fox and he paused for a moment, jolting once slightly in a silent chuckle. "Maybe. Might've been hoping to spit some of it at someone."

"Not a single interesting specimen deserving of it, though," October mused with a long sigh, breathing a cloud of smoke that shimmered with heat. After taking a deep, smoke-filled breath, he muttered, "Shame."

"Unless you count these two. Huh, here we go; is that Glaceon being led by a leash?" Chai turned his head to October for a second, a cocky smirk on his face which October caught just before he turned back again. "Check this out."

"Mm?" With a curious grunt, October leaned forwards again. Following Chai's gaze (and ignoring his smirk) led to an Espeon, followed closely by the Glaceon he'd mentioned. It took him a second to make out that the Espeon was tugging on one of the Glaceon's tassels to get the blue one to follow. "Oh, ouch, that's no leash."

"Really? Oh, you're right, it's a... thing." October couldn't see Chai frowning from this angle, but the Umbreon had a somewhat confused look on his face for a brief second. "They haven't even arrived and they're having all kinds of fun."

"Good for them." October's voice lowered to a whisper, barely above his own breath. "Hang on a sec, isn't that...?"

"Looks like they get along just fine on their own, so what're they doing coming here?" There was scorn in his voice, but after a second, he realized October had spoken, so he turned his head slightly to look at him, exhaling a fresh cloud of smoke. "What?"

"Colin was talking earlier about a show-Glaceon who'd be in the area, didn't he? Famous one, I think." October tilted his head, frowning slightly as he thought about what he said. Was that right, he wondered?

Chai scoffed and looked out at the pair again as they came closer. He noticed the Glaceon was looking around, but nowhere near high enough to spot him. "Meh, I wasn't even listening. Tuned out once he started talking about contests." Chai rolled his eyes, another expression invisible to October.

October smiled to himself as he remembered. The Umbreon had almost jumped at the call for work in another room. Almost.

"Yeah, it was a Glaceon he was talking about, right?" October frowned for a second, pausing as he tried to remember. He clearly hadn't been paying particularly close attention either. "The 'Ice Queen' or something of the sort?"

"I wouldn't know." He dropped the now-small cigarette on the roof and crushed it with a paw before returning to lying down, now dangerously close, looming over the edge. "What, you think this is her?"

"Might well be." He perked up suddenly, grinning, several thoughts coming together in his head as the pair approached the front door. "I have an idea!"

"Yeah, I think those are ribbons on-- oh no."

"Let's go and greet them, shall we?" He tossed his own cigarette away with a flick of his head even as he ignited the entire thing with a heated breath, reducing it to ashes that were carried away on a sudden breeze. "A celebrity deserves to feel welcome, especially in an establishment such as this! It's only our duty, too!"

Chai stood up very quickly and turned back to him, eyes slightly wide. "Ohh no. Hell no. You are not dragging me into another of your crazy--"

"Come on, it'll be fun! Think about it: why else would they be here, of all places?" At this point, October just couldn't suppress a grin, not that he tried very hard to.

"Octob--"

The Umbreon's words dissolved into growls, muttered profanities and a sigh of resignation when the larger Ninetales grabbed him by the scruff of the neck and literally dragged him into another of his crazy plans.

---

[Acre / Café Plaisir - Outside / 09:55 PM]

"P-Penny, can you at least let go of me...?" Acre whined as Penthesilea tugged on his tassel to get him to hurry up for what must have been the hundredth time.

"Nope," she giggled cheerfully, not even loosening her grip to avoid her voice being muffled. "Too fun."

"Not for me...!" He huffed and once again kept close to her side. Once again, she sped up, and he let out an exasperated sigh. "Well at least tell me where were going, you still haven't!"

"No need, we're almost there! Look!" She didn't slow down. If anything, once he caught up again, she just gained in speed, not giving him a whole lot of time or space to actually scout out the place.

A large building stood out from the trees and trails around it, hidden from them by hills and forestry until they got this close. As they approached it, Acre thought it was quite possibly one of the biggest and yet most modest buildings he'd ever seen. The red of the bricks that made up its walls drew the eye, but not nearly as much as the fact that it had three floors. It wasn't actually all that magnificent in appearance, but the fact that it was in an otherwise unassuming place and managed to look like it fit in was interesting. He wasn't used to big buildings, either. That grand contest hall he'd been to before had been frightening. This was fine.

As they approached the front door, Penthesilea began to slow down and finally let go of his tassel. He breathed a sigh of relief and paused, sitting down to catch his breath while she went on ahead. During his moment of rest, he couldn't resist looking around at the place that fascinated him so. There didn't seem to be a sign anywhere that told him of the name of the place, which actually kind of worried him. His ears twitched at the sound of a cheerful "Welcome!" from where Penthesilea had wandered off to.

He decided to pick himself up and follow after her. He spotted a jubilant-looking female Lopunny at the entrace. Penthesilea was standing in front of her, engaged in conversation. As he approached, Penthesilea turned around and smiled at him, nodding towards the door.

"Welcome to Café Plaisir," the Lopunny called happily, waving to Acre as he passed by. He gave her a polite nod and a muttered "thank you very much" as he passed the doorway. So this place was called Café Plaisir? He'd never heard of it before, but it sounded like a nice place. Still, though, what was she taking him to a Café for? She couldn't have sneaked into his house in the dead of night for a drink and a snack with him.

He followed Penthesilea quietly and let her do all the talking, noticing that she didn't need to do much. She just greeted the Pokémon at the reception like they were old friends and carried on. Acre smiled kindly at each of them and hurried after her, past the double doors that led into the main bar area. A bar, he thought. What was a bar doing in a Café?

That thought was interrupted when he actually passed the doors. He walked headlong into a red-furred Ninetales who'd been rushing past and let out a quiet but high-pitched yelp of surprise as he toppled over, struck completely out of left-field and overbalanced. He landed ungracefully, now a heap of light blue fur.

"Ow..." The Ninetales regained his balance quickly enough, standing up straight and looking around for the source of the impact. He hadn't even seen the Glaceon, but when he did, his expression fell. "Oh, Fortu-- I am terribly sorry, miss. Are you all right?"

Penthesilea glared at him intently, stepping between him and Acre. "You ought to watch where you're going, red," she growled, staring right into his eyes and lashing her tail from side to side like a predatory cat. The Ninetales flinched slightly and tried to mutter an apology, but didn't get a lot of time; Penthesilea turned to Acre as he stood up. "Are you okay?"

"Uh huh..." Acre nodded slightly before clearing his throat and standing up a little straighter. Still, he kept his gaze low, looking ashamed. "Y-Yes, I'm fine, thank you. Forgive me, that was... that was entirely my fault..."

"Don't be like that," Penthesilea almost snapped at him. She caught herself, though, knowing she didn't need to take out her irritation at the moment on him. She took a second to calm down, then led him further into the bar. "Come on now."

"Hang on a second," the Ninetales spoke up just as they turned to leave, drawing Acre's attention right back to him. With a start, he noticed the Umbreon standing behind the red-furred fox. Was he there before? The Ninetales spoke again. "I wanted to talk to you."

"Ah, yes? Is there something you need?" Acre replied. Penthesilea turned back and saw the two actually talking, and sighed. She walked back to their vicinity and watched them with disbelief.

"Are you, by any chance, that Show Glaceon known as..." The Ninetales paused, narrowing his eyes in thought, and one of his tails twitched a bit. "...what was it... Ah. The 'Ice Queen', correct?"

Acre flinched noticeably, but spoke before the Ninetales could react to it. "Yes, I am. I'm... not here for a show, though, and I'm sorry to disappoint. A-And... My name is Acre."

"Of course! My name is October, it's a pleasure to meet you." The Ninetales bowed theatrically, his tails grouping together slightly and rising proudly as he introduced himself. As he stood up straight again, Acre noticed a smile on his face that faltered quickly. "But... you don't like the name 'Ice Queen'? I think it's charming..."

"I'm not a 'queen'," he said simply, looking away again in embarrassment. October tilted his head.

"Not a..." Realization dawned on the fox; he blinked and looked right at the Glaceon once again, maw hanging open slightly. "Wait a second, you mean you're--"

"Male, you dense dirtball!" Penthesilea suddenly interjected, loud enough and vulgar enough to cause the red Ninetales to rear back a little. That glow in her angry eyes was frightening...

"D-Dirtball! How dare..." October paused, conflicted. She had attacked his hygiene and thus his pride, which was of course unforgivable, but if this Glaceon really was male, then... he hated to say it, but it was probably deserved. He felt awful for it. Strangely curious, yes, but embarrassed at his mistake too.

He looked at Acre for another moment, taking in his appearance. His slight build, his fair face, his dainty paws that looked quite small on him. His eyes (when he could actually see them) sparkled quite beautifully with a charming innocence, and the faint pride with which he wore that pretty necklace certainly helped.

Now that he took a closer look, there wasn't just a chunk of finely-cut and crafted ice in the center, but four ribbons as well, two on each side. A blue one, shaped like a Pokeball; a red-and-gold medal; a red ribbon with a yellow pawprint and a pink, heart-shaped bow decorated the white string that hung loosely around his neck. They were kept beautifully, their surfaces shining bright with an almost mirror-like polish.

Even his voice had been feminine! A soft, pleasantly gentle lilt was present in his speech, ever quiet, too. He couldn't believe it, but Acre had pulled it off perfectly, fooled him absolutely. Now, he was just impressed. And very, very interested.

Acre looked up at the Ninetales with an almost sad expression, as if apologizing for his appearance. He caught a glimpse of the Umbreon behind him perking his ears up and widening his eyes ever so slightly. Acre guessed he'd had him fooled too.

"It happens all the time," Acre muttered, barely audible, still keeping his head low. He tried to ignore the looks the group had been getting and put on his sweetest smile before he continued. "Don't worry too much about it."

October tried a friendly smile. "N-No, no! Let me make it up to you! It's the least I can do!" He glanced at the Espeon, realizing he still didn't know her name, and noted that she looked thoughtful. He definitely did not like the mischievous look in her eyes, though. He'd seen enough of that.

She hummed to herself, and eventually spoke, a sickeningly sweet smile suddenly covering her face as she leaned a little closer to October - as close as she could stand, anyway. "All right! I know just what you can do, red. Bring your boyfriend over to a table and let's talk business, shall we? Quickly now, people are staring~"

"Business?" October repeated quietly, a little hope renewed in his heart as he realized he was being given another chance.

"Boyfriend?" Chai repeated under his breath, just blinking expressionlessly before giving October a confused, uncertain look.

October just knew that Colin would never forgive him if he drove the famous Glaceon away. Their Sylveon friend had been dying to see one of his shows, so he had to make up for his earlier mistake somehow.

Speaking of shows... He knew just what to do. He ignored Chai's despairing sigh at the grin that formed afresh on his face.

---

[Acre / Café Plaisir - Main Bar / 10:14 PM]

Acre looked around at the rest of the bar, now that he had a chance. With Penthesilea talking to October and Chai over a round wooden table, Acre had time to let his attention wander elsewhere, and wander it did. Many Pokémon strode around the room, the waiters dressed in colored aprons, the quadrupedal ones carrying trays on their backs and the bipedal ones carrying them in their paws or hands.

He could see all kinds of Pokémon, some human trainers or lone customers, and even some creatures that were definitely neither. There went his thought that it was a Pokémon-only Café, not that it really mattered to him. The waiters had been friendly as they passed by. Most gave him a wide smile, some more of a smirk and a wink. He gave each one a friendly smile and nod back, leaving it at that.

"I'll be right baaack," Penthesilea suddenly sang into Acre's ear, jolting him back to reality. She hopped away from the table and trotted towards a startlingly massive Ninetales - five feet tall, he must have been! - that had been scanning over the bar for the last ten minutes or so. Acre watched her grab his attention as she approached and the two began talking. Just as she glanced back towards the group mid-sentence, Acre turned back towards the other two.

"I, um, I meant to ask," he muttered, almost to himself. After a second of thinking about his next words, he raised his voice a little so that it was more audible. "Are you two customers here too?"

"Oh, no," October replied first with what looked like an amused smile. "We're employees at this... fine establishment."

"Oh? Are you on a break, then?" Acre continued, tilting his head slightly to the left. He didn't even notice the fox pause.

"For tonight, yes. Nothing left for the morning shift workers today, so we're left to our own devices."

"I see. Well, this place looks and feels very pleasant!" Acre beamed up at October, his tail sweeping the floor behind him rapidly. After a second, he glanced at the Umbreon and faltered. "Oh... You haven't said a word yet. Are you all right?"

"Me?" The dark one's ears perked up and the rings glowed slightly. Acre shrank back a little, worried he'd snapped him out of a daydream or something. He relaxed when he continued. "Yeah, I'm fine, why?"

"Ah, this is Chai," October butted in rather quickly. "Fellow co-worker of mine, as I said."

"Oh, you're right, I don't think he and I introduced ourselves to each other yet." Acre bowed slightly, a smile on his face as he looked back up at the Umbreon. "It's nice to meet you, Chai!"

"Likewise," the Umbreon replied simply, casting his gaze towards Penthesilea and the Ninetales. "Who is she, anyway? She never gave us a name."

"Oh, Penny?" Acre grinned and giggled to himself, a startlingly feminine laugh. "She's an old friend of mine, we've known each other since we were Eevees. Well, since I was an Eevee."

"Penny... So she's not your sister?" Chai asked, ever blunt. Acre giggled a little more loudly this time, with October's quiet chuckle almost drowned out.

"No, but I guess she's not far off. No blood relation, but she has been like an older sister for much of my life. She... did disappear for a while after I evolved and I was given to another trainer, but I ran into her during a contest earlier today." He paused, looking thoughtful. "Is it still today, come to think of it? Or has midnight come around already...?"

"She disappeared?" October inquired, curiosity showing on his face with a frown that Acre thought might have hidden a little concern.

"Yes. We spoke on the way here and... apparently, her trainer just took her to another region for a while. She said she challenged gyms there, but I don't know why they came back. I wonder how far they got..." Acre's eyes half-closed as he glanced down at the empty table.

"If she made it to the champion or even the elite four, I get the feeling she would've talked your ear off about it," Chai interjected suddenly. "She's proud, I can tell that much."

"That doesn't really help... I would've liked for her to make it." Acre sighed, but shook his head. "Either way, you're right."

"Permission granted, guys!" came Penthesilea's voice from behind Acre. The Glaceon yelped in surprise and spun round to meet her, fur standing on end after the fright. She grinned at him cheerfully. "Down, girl." Her grin grew a little wider when just those words managed to get him to tense up a little more. October thought he saw him blush.

"You talked to Firenze?" the red Ninetales asked. There was a very brief pause before he spoke the name, and he was looking at the great fox more than at Penthesilea. Acre wondered if they had some history.

"Yep, and he okayed it! We've got a show on our paws now, guys!"

"Wait, you're doing a show here?" Acre blinked, having been completely oblivious to the conversation before. "But you already did one today, won't--"

"Nope," she interrupted, leaning in close to him and playfully pressing her nose to his. "You're doing a show here. You're on in half an hour, so you better get yourself prepared!"

"A-Are you serious? There's no way I-- Not on such short notice!" Acre's eyes widened as he realized she was absolutely serious. "I didn't agree to this...!"

"You don't have much of a choice now. Break a leg, Ice Queen, and keep in mind the audience you're playing for here!"

"Audience...?" He blinked. What did she mean by that? "I-Is something special going on?"

"Don't be dense!" There was a quiet pause, but the silence was filled by the conversations and interactions of other Pokémon in the bar. It took about two seconds of a very confused Glaceon's blank stare to prompt her again. She reared back slightly, the first time he'd seen her look surprised. "...Wait, do you actually not know what this place is?"

He shook his head, his confusion turning to worry. "Uh... Café Plaisir?" he tried.

"Seriously?" sighed an exasperated Chai, closing his eyes in utter disbelief.

"You didn't notice the looks you were getting?" October asked incredulously, his maw hanging open once he was done talking. He was sure the place couldn't be much more blatant.

"You honestly don't know," Chai declared. He blinked and shook his head. "You're in a brothel. A Pokémon whorehouse. Titty bar, breastaurant, whatever you wanna call it. Fuck, get it together."

"A... Pokémon brothel? Th... Those exist?" Acre looked around one last time. The smirks and winks, the occasional 'come here' gesture, that one time a passing Flareon brushed her tail against his face, they all made sense now. And now he felt like a total idiot - how the hell had he missed that? "I had no idea..."

"You clearly don't frequent the internet," both Penthesilea and October muttered at the same time. They each looked at the other when they realized they'd said the same thing at the same time. Penthesilea continued. "Well anyway, just keep your audience in mind, all right? You're here to please everyone..."

Acre gulped as she leaned in close again, her smirk back on her face as if it was never gone. Please everyone? As in... no, that couldn't have been it, she'd said it was to be a show, not... whatever conclusions he was jumping to. But even if it was strictly a show, how could he appeal to this crowd? He specialized in beauty, not... this. Although... His features softened as he realized he could still take that route, just with a few variations.

"Uh... Look, I have no idea what I'm getting myself into here..." Acre turned to look at October and Chai almost pleadingly. October's eyes lit up at the sight. "If either of you know how, could you coach me somehow?" He watched their reactions, and when a dirty grin sneaked onto October's face and Chai just kind of stared at him in surprise, he realized what his words must have sounded like and stiffened. "W-Wait, not like that... uh... maybe like that. Wait, I- I still didn't agree to this!"

"Well, you've got twenty-five minutes to make up your mind now, and the sooner you decide, the sooner you can get some 'practice' in!" Penthesilea giggled proudly. So confident was she that he would accept, so sure he'd feel obligated to, that she began to wander off before he was even finished thinking. As he saw her trot happily through the front door, he wondered just where she was running off to. Then, back to the matter at hand, he turned back to October and Chai with a look of trepidation.

Chai was watching him quietly, and October had been staring after Penthesilea. The fox shook his head and chuckled nervously.

"She's a scary one," he admitted. His head snapped towards Chai, a smile suddenly on his face now. "Anyway, Chai, would you kindly go and wake Colin up?"

"What? Fuck no," was all the Umbreon said, glancing at October for with a scornful frown for an instant before looking away again.

"I'm sure he'd love to see this show. Don't you think so?" The fox's tails began to wave from side to side as his smile widened into a grin.

"You do it," Chai snapped back, a very subtle smirk growing on his face now too. So it was possible, Acre thought.

"No way. Too far. Lazy." October just laughed, looking away and upwards at the ceiling after his surprisingly honest refusal.

"Then I guess he's missing out." Chai looked at Acre and, seeing his half-confused, half-surprised expression, quieted himself and rested his head and forepaws on the table. He shifted his attention to the front door where he expected Penthesilea to reappear at any moment.

"In that case, we'll just have to encourage our friend here to make a return visit when our favorite fairy is less occupied with his dreams." He smirked at Acre and addressed him directly now. "You wouldn't mind, would you?"

"Ah..." The still-confused Glaceon had to take a moment to think before replying. He supposed this might not be too bad. Ever eager to try new things, "That... depends on how this goes, I guess," was his eventual decision.

"That's the spirit," the red Ninetales hummed cheerily. Acre wondered if October's attitude here was a good thing or a bad thing for him...

---

[Acre / Café Plaisir - Special Bar "Captivate" (Backstage) / 10:47 PM]

Acre took a deep breath behind the curtains of the stage. As he heard the eager calls of what seemed to be fans of his from outside, the thought of what he was about to do came back to him. He could feel his heart racing, his head pounding with blood rushing through his veins.

There were Pokémon outside waiting for him, and there were only a few minutes before he was due to show himself... He shivered and took another breath, turning to look at the clock. Two minutes... one minute... thirty seconds... Quickly, he went over his planned routine.

Six... five... four... He took a step forward, then another, gritting his teeth and building up his courage until he could be seen strutting onto the stage. The cheers grew louder the moment he was visible, and he looked out at the crowd.

It wasn't the biggest he'd seen. Not the smallest, either, but it didn't frighten him. What did frighten him was the realization that he had no idea how to make this work in a place like Plaisir. He saw everyone's expectant faces, and once he reached the circular platform at the end of the stage, glowered down at them with an unforgiving scowl.

Most of them looking up with an eager smile, seemingly starstruck, delighted to see him on stage. Some seemed to be leering at him, simply eager to see what he was going to do. Among the crowd was October, Chai and Penthesilea. The Espeon sat near the front of the audience, even closer to him than the two he'd met tonight.

Thinking back, she did mention seeing him on TV... He wondered how often she'd watched him, and how eager she could have been to watch him again. Her ruby glinted slightly with a faint glow as their eyes met for a brief instant.

He closed his eyes and tore his gaze away from her growing smirk in apparent disgust, the air around him growing cold. Some particles of water in the air around him froze and became solid, slowly descending to the floor, melting and disappearing on contact. He turned back towards the curtains and flicked his tail to the side as he walked, intending to kick up a bit of the hovering ice in a graceful gesture.

He heard someone whistling. Not just a melodious tune, but a brazen wolf-whistle. Too late, he realized he'd exposed his rear with that motion. Right, right, of course, he had to remember where he was. He tried to ignore the initial embarrassment, reasoning that the whistle was a good thing - it meant they enjoyed the sight - and flicked his tail to the other side.

This time, he drew from his experiences seeing some female Pokémon perform with a riskier method on stage, making it a more exaggerated motion that swayed his hips to the side a little, and it seemed to have exactly the desired effect. He heard an appreciative "ooh" from the audience, beneath the cheering. The reality of what he was involved in hit him like a brick. He felt his face heating up, the blood rushing to his cheeks.

He was really showing himself off to everyone. And not in the way he usually did, not exhibiting his power and grace to an audience who loved him. No, this crowd was here for something else, and he was here to give it to them. His trainer wasn't here to see this, this was all him. He couldn't believe what he was doing, this certainly couldn't have been him... but he was enjoying it far too much to deny, he was too excited to continue. Just the very idea of showing his true self in front of everyone... He just had to keep going. By now, there was no stopping himself.

As he walked back towards the main rectangular area of the stage, the moisture in the air solidified again, this time into snow that battered the stage, and only the stage. By the time he reached the center, he'd tossed as sultry a look as he could manage towards a Flareon in the crowd, a smirk with half-closed eyes that made the fluffy female visibly tense up and blush, her tail lifting right up. He could only imagine what it must have been like to have your normally stoic idol give you that look... and that thought only brought more of a thrill to his already racing heart. The Ice Queen's mask was melting...

Soon, the stage was covered in a thick layer of shining white snow with not a speck on the crowd, and Acre left small prints in his wake, leading to where he eventually stopped. In the middle of the stage, where everyone could see him clearly, he turned back to them and slowly settled into a playful bow, his eyes scanning over the audience as they watched him with eager curiosity. Though he let his chest sink into the cold powdery floor with his paws, he kept his hindquarters raised, and his tail even higher. It wagged from side to side in an arc; slowly, but not unlike a puppy wanting to play. And "play" was definitely on his mind at the moment.

"How long have you all waited to serve me?" he breathed huskily, giving the most inviting gaze he could muster to the crowd, his stare sweeping over everyone again. "Because one of you just might get the chance to warm me up in a bit..."

It was rare that he spoke during a performance, but now was certainly the time - he knew it'd get a reaction out of his spectators. And there was quite a reaction - several Pokémon shuffled closer to the stage in response to his invitation. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw someone just barely hold themselves back from climbing up on stage with him. On top of that, the volume of the cheers surged as just about everyone either volunteered or just cheered in excitement. He imagined his half-lidded gaze and vibrant blush probably had a hand in that.

It must have been just as overwhelming to the audience as it was to him. Something had awakened within him, some unfamiliar desire and exhilaration drowned out any embarrassment he should have been feeling. He was performing for himself now, not for his trainer and not even for the audience. It just felt good to unleash this feeling, his shyness perverted into a wish he couldn't help but listen to, a wish to be seen and appreciated as who he was. Long had he waited to discard his facade, to embrace those who loved him. To simply be on stage without his stage persona.

Now, he was experiencing his real self, just as new to him as it was to everyone who was giving him those hungry looks. In a way, he felt vulnerable, but at the same time, he found himself enjoying that. So exposed, posing in front of everyone, shaking his rear for emphasis. He stood up, but kept his head low, almost predatory in his examination of the closest spectators. Almost. He probably would have looked the part if his ears weren't beginning to tilt backward, laying flat against his head.

He didn't ignore them, didn't try to drown out the noise and act like they weren't there. He welcomed the cheers, the knowledge that every move he made was being watched with the utmost focus. With taunting slowness, he stepped out to the extended platform again, the icy wind kicking up around him once more. He let it blow his tassels out in front of him, the tiny snowflakes scattering throughout the bar, the heat of his excitement letting them land among the crowd with surprising warmth. Some reached up to accept his "gift", a sight that widened his smile.

With it came the realization that he wanted the audience involved. Not just watching, but really taking part, delving into the emotions and beauty he could show them. He knew that involving everyone here could be dangerous, but the fantasy was there. Still, he didn't want to act anymore. Gone, now, was the pretense of being so far above everyone else.

"Or, better yet... maybe I should be the one serving you..."

Indeed, it was possible that he considered himself to be lesser than them. He knew, at least, that he felt unworthy of respect for what he did; all he knew how to do was show off. The thought of finding himself literally beneath some of these spectators wasn't an unappealing one either, he thought to himself. It wasn't even that he wanted to serve them, but he wanted to lose himself in this experience, discover more about the things he really enjoyed, explore himself.

As the aura around him intensified, some of the ice energy changing to water, rising in temperature as his excitement came to a breaking point, he felt alive for the first time. Everything blurred together somewhat as he allowed himself to revel in the moment.

The lights dimmed and the snowflakes began to whirl around him in the swirling icy wind, streaks of water trailing behind his limbs. The icy wind grew into a snowstorm. He danced along with the crowd's cheering, swaying his rump, just enjoying the attention, loving their calling and whistling. The snow blanketing the stage was lifted up and melted, forming small droplets of water that hovered around him. An illusory rain, glittering in the dimming lights, battered him at his own command.

It was time to finish this. The crystals of ice on his necklace glowed brightly, turning the soothing rain to violent hail. He lowered his head to give the crowd a lustful gaze, then whipped his head upward as the wind suddenly changed direction. His tassels tossed in an arc in his head's wake, sending small droplets flying. He made no effort to hide the delighted grin on his face.

With a sudden move, he whirled about on one paw, gathering the icy energy around him in a nearly-solid sphere. At the end of his full-circle spin, he planted all four paws on the ground and pushed off, launching himself into the air, still spinning even as he soared into a backflip. Keeping his practice in mind, ignoring his excitement for the moment for the sake of his gasping, awestruck audience, he directed the icy wind below him. There, it coalesced into the two-foot-tall circular platform he'd been practicing, the ice just thick enough to withstand his weight.

Still, he was weighed down by his heavily wet fur. He didn't land as smoothly as he did when he practiced, he crouched upon landing and this time he didn't straighten up. Elegance wasn't his priority here either, so he stayed in a more primal stance and watched the audience's reactions. They were all looking at him expectantly, eager to see his next move. Everyone knew this would be the climax, and they just couldn't wait. Acre decided they shouldn't have to.

He turned away swiftly, turning his rear to the crowd again, keeping his dripping tail lifted high. He bowed down slowly, stretching with an audible, satisfied sigh, before daintily hopping off the platform.

He stood up straight and flicked his tail to the side, a simple movement that commanded the ice to break apart in a magnificent cold blast. Nothing blocked the view of the glistening fur of his rain-soaked hindquarters as he trotted away from the crowd.

They cheered louder than he'd ever heard as he turned his gaze back to them, still strutting back towards the curtains. As the tiny shards of ice came to rest on the stage, melting and evaporating now that he was done with them, he turned back to the audience. Happy with the show he'd put on, he humbly bowed as low as he could.

"Thank you," he called out to them. If he hadn't been already blushing with restrained arousal, he'd definitely be flushed with embarrassment now. "It's been a pleasure."

With a satisfied smile, happy to hear everyone loved his show, Acre exited stage right.

---

[Acre / Café Plaisir - Special Bar "Captivate" (Backstage) / 11:01 PM]

Acre took a few minutes to catch his breath after the show. He shook himself dry and sighed, glancing back at the curtains he'd previously emerged from. It felt like a long time before he straightened up and pushed through the door that led to the backstage corridor, where Penthesilea was already waiting for him, sitting on the ground with a slouch as though she'd been waiting forever.

"Hey," she greeted him nonchalantly with a friendly smile. "How do you feel?"

Acre just giggled nervously and trotted over to her, energetically touching his nose to hers. She seemed to recoil a little, but more in surprise than anything else.

"Great!" he yipped, his still-damp tail wagging rapidly. "That was... exhilarating!"

Penthesilea chuckled to herself, her tail waving slowly. She flashed him a devilish smirk. "You were getting really into it..."

Acre's blush never left his face, but now it was even brighter. He looked away shyly and smiled awkwardly to himself, not quite sure what to say to that. He wasn't given much time to think, though, as she leaned in and grabbed his tassel in her mouth. Ignoring his protests, she began to drag him down the hall, adjusting her grip after the wet fur almost letting him slip away.

Through a door and Acre found himself following her into the outdoor walkway, greeted by the cloudy night sky and a magnificent garden... as well as October and Chai. He barely registered Penthesilea releasing his tassel with a satisfied sigh.

"There's our star!" October said, grinning eagerly. He had his tails wrapped around himself somewhat, each one of his furry appendages shifting around a little.

"You guys...?" Acre whispered, blinking in confusion. "What're you doing out here?"

"Penny told us to find a room, but we decided to wait for you, make it a little easier to find us." The Ninetales perked up a little and shook his head, glancing at Penthesilea for a moment before returning his attention to Acre. "But enough about that! You were great! Amazing! I'm oh-so proud to have been able to experience that!" His grin turned to more of a smirk, the teasing tone in his voice growing more and more obvious as he continued to speak. He soon dropped all pretense of innocence, and continued with more direct praise. "It was a real pleasure... Your, ah, very unique and individual power was... ooh, absolutely fantastic."

"I thought this was your first time doing a show like that," Chai interrupted, saving Acre the trouble of blushing harder than he thought possible.

"Yeah, you were a natural out there," Penthesilea pitched in, turning to look at him with a taunting smirk. "What was that all about, huh?"

"Well, I..." Acre faltered, shaking his head with an embarrassed, sheepish smile. "I dunno... It just felt right."

"It certainly looked right," October murmured with a filthy grin, beginning to stand up and lead the way towards another door. "But anyway, we should probably get a room before some of your more, ah, rabid fans find us, eh?"

"Oh, right!" Acre perked up, alert, and moved to follow him... and then paused. "Wait, get a room?"

"Did I forget to mention?" Acre turned to Penthesilea as she spoke. He dreaded the reason for her mischievous grin. "I've also arranged for you to perform a private show! It's already paid for and everything, so don't you worry your pretty little head about any of that."

"Private show?" It took a moment of thought about where he was before he got it. "...P-Penny! You can't just set that stuff up without asking!"

"You did say someone would get to 'warm you up'," October grinned. "And you seemed pretty serious about it."

"Ye-Yeah, but..." Acre glanced around, as if looking for something to help him in his argument.

"You want it," Penthesilea accused, shutting Acre up completely. She could see into his mind, he thought for a moment that he could faintly sense her doing it. Shamefully, but with a hint of restrained excitement, he nodded slowly, admitting defeat.

"Then it's decided!" October declared, any doubts dispelled, and pushed through the door, leading the group along.

---

[Acre / Café Plaisir - Guest Bedroom / 11:09 PM]

The room was sparsely decorated, with nothing special adorning the floor but a simple pink rug. In the middle of the room stood a large double bed with soft sheets and plenty of large pillows. The room was kept very tidy, surprisingly enough, and it looked quite pleasant and comfortable.

"Well, go right ahead," Penthesilea said abruptly. By the time Acre turned around, Chai was already on him. The Umbreon lifted a heavy paw onto Acre's back, between his shoulders, and pinned him down to the ground firmly. The subdued Glaceon let out an indignant yelp, but seemed to accept it, lying down obediently.

He'd forgotten about October briefly. The Ninetales stalked behind him and pressed his wet nose to his rear, giving the vaguest of warnings before taking his tail in his jaws and gently pulling upward.

"C'mon up," October instructed, and Acre could only obey. With a whimper of equal trepidation and excitement, he raised his rear end up high but kept his chest to the floor, leaving him in quite a compromising position. He tilted his ears back and felt his body growing cold, the reality of the situation dawning on him.

He tried to look up at Chai and give him a pleading stare, but he couldn't see much other than his underside; his dark-furred balls and sheath, with the tip of his black canine cock peeking out threateningly. It looked distressingly large, both long and thick. The Umbreon felt him move and shifted his surprisingly strong and firm grip to the back of his neck, pinning him down once again. Acre found himself excited by his strength...

October let go of his tail, and Acre let out a relieved sigh too early. Suddenly, he felt the fox's painfully hot tongue press against his virgin entrance and drag upward, stopping at the base of his tail. He gave a strangled yelp, tensing up under the burning heat. The large fox's body temperature had grown frighteningly high, to the point where his very aura seemed to overwhelm Acre's own. He could even feel some of the water on his fur evaporating. The Glaceon couldn't suppress a whimper of discomfort.

"Ahh, that burns," October growled, pausing to give Acre time to recover. Steam rose from the affected area where water and fire mingled, causing both to wince.

"I-It's hot," Acre huffed, shifting his hind legs a little to get slightly less uncomfortable. He found it a little difficult to speak with this weight on his neck.

"Yeah, I know. Guess you'll have to go without that preparation," October sighed, but he didn't sound all that unhappy about it. In fact, his growl changed from annoyed to predatory halfway through his sentence.

"Really, October? I would've thought you could handle this," Chai remarked. Acre felt his grip shift a little as the Umbreon looked up. He heard the fox's indignant spluttering as he tried to defend himself. He paused, seemingly giving up on words for a moment as he roughly grabbed the Glaceon's tail and lifted it again.

"Grr... Well, hang in there!" he continued cheerily, before diving right back under his tail, licking over and over. Acre writhed about weakly, whimpering and trying to escape. Chai reasserted his grip, and he thought he could see the larger eon's member sliding slightly further out of his sheath. Seeing that, Acre tried to quiet his protests.

After only a few seconds of October apparently lapping up most of the remaining water from his pleasantly soft and shapely rear and a few seconds more of attention paid to his hole to prepare him, it all stopped. Acre took his chance while the steam began to diffuse into the air and breathed deeply, the pain and discomfort fading quickly enough.

"Worth it," October muttered, panting lightly with his tongue hanging out, before raising his voice and addressing Chai. "Well, he's ready now!"

"Wait, I don't know about that--" Acre trailed off as the Umbreon's grip on his neck was gone suddenly, leaving him able to breathe. Chai slowly moved behind him, but he didn't dare even twitch, except to look up at Penthesilea. Or, where she'd been. She wasn't there now. He looked around quickly, but couldn't see her in the room at all.

He didn't have time to make sure. He suddenly felt Chai's forepaws on his hips, pulling him back a little as the larger canine mounted him and settled on his back. The Umbreon's paws slipped down his sides and gripped at his waist, and Acre shivered as he felt a hot breath at his neck, and the tip of that warm, pointed cock pressing to his hole elicited a shaky gasp.

This was really going to happen, he thought. He realized he didn't really have much of a chance to stop it at this point - it didn't seem like Chai was going to be swayed here - but he guessed he didn't want to either. He just felt a little ashamed at letting himself fall this far. A previously-stoic contest veteran, prized for his beauty, was now beneath a quietly eager Umbreon who had every intention of having the Glaceon serve him. He couldn't believe it himself.

He felt Chai slowly push in and he tensed up with a whimper. The Umbreon's quiet grunt was drowned out by the sound of Acre's heavy breath as he tried to endure what at first was pain. The instant he relaxed, Chai bucked his hips forward, spearing him on as much of his length as he could manage. Any shame Acre felt completely evaporated in that instant as he let out a hearty and needy moan.

It felt far too big, like he logically shouldn't be able to handle it, but he was in something of a daze. He did feel pain, definitely, but it was strangely mixed with perverse pleasure. Technically, the shame was still there, but it didn't feel like shame. There was a thrill in it, just like the thrill he felt on stage. He'd fallen this far... and he was loving it, he was willing to fall further.

Chai's hot breath swept over his left ear, heard loud and clear. As he pulled back, Acre involuntarily whined, a plaintive, pleading note that was cut short as the larger eon suddenly thrust into him again. That whine became a breathless moan, and in response, he felt Chai's claws firm against his hips, as if about to pierce him. He tensed up again, a brief and irrational panic sinking in at the touch of those sharp, deadly claws.

Acre tried to quiet himself, becoming conscious of the noise he was making, but he couldn't deny how wonderful - how right - it felt. As Chai pulled back again, leaving him much less full than he'd been a moment ago, he began to miss the feeling. It felt like he had time to - everything was slow-motion to him. So, when he was once again stuffed thoroughly full of his cock, it only felt better. He already loved that sensation, especially now that it was getting easier.

"He's enjoying this more than I expected," October mused from somewhere behind them. "Just listen to him..."

"Uh huh," Chai huffed, shifting forward a little to tighten his grip and bury his cock even deeper in the poor Glaceon, delighting in his cries of pain and pleasure. "I was expecting him to be kind of a princess about it, really..." He could feel the larger one's precum beginning to coat his insides, adding a new dimension to the experience - the slick, wet sounds that accompanied each persistent push into him.

"Get a load of that," October growled appreciatively, sounding very threatening to Acre. Pleasantly so, somehow. His voice sounded closer this time. His ear twitched, trying to determine his exact location. Chai seemed to notice, though that might have been his imagination, and interrupted his concentration with another powerful thrust that shook him to the core. Once again, that wonderful feeling trapped all of his senses...

"Good vantage point back here, this," the Ninetales continued. "Lovely scent he's got, too, actually..."

"Huh..." Chai began to slow down a little, and Acre felt his weight atop him shift slightly. He didn't really notice it, though, until he felt a heavy paw on his back, once again near his shoulders. He could still feel the other at his left side, and he subconsciously tried to move his rear towards it a little. It felt strangely comforting. Suddenly, Chai spoke again, this time right into his left ear. "Take a look back at what I'm doing to you."

It was only when Acre tried to speak that he realized how heavily he'd been breathing. He was panting, much like a bitch in heat! His embarrassment stopped him before he could utter anything more than the stuttered beginnings of words he hadn't thought through. But the pause was long enough.

"I said, take a look," Chai growled, suddenly ramming in as deep as he could manage. Acre lifted his head, letting out his loudest whimpering moan yet. He tried to speak, but too scared was he that his questions would come out as a plea for more. Suddenly, he felt Chai's jaws close around the tip of his ear, forcing a defensive yip out of him, and pulled. Though it was gentle enough, Acre couldn't ignore it, and his head was forced to turn.

Once he looked back, the grip on his ear was released and the Umbreon resumed his deep thrusts, much quicker this time. He could see October sitting by them, staring at his rear. Following his gaze, Acre could see the devilishly sharp claws on Chai's left paw pressing to his side, and behind that, the Umbreon's hips slamming into his with each now-vicious thrust. They coincided with every lewd noise and wonderful feeling of fullness, in rhythm with each of his own uncontrollable whimpers and moans. There was no way that he, in his wild imagination, could possibly deny what was happening.

"You're loving this," Chai growled accusingly. Acre lifted his head slightly, and met the Umbreon's sinister gaze. Chai grinned as they held the stare for a moment, and he angled his next thrust down just a bit. Acre could see his eyes shut tightly as he rammed into him again, this time striking a sensitive spot within him and forcing a breathless, exhausted cry from his throat as the pleasure spiked unexpectedly. It was as if electricity coursed through his body; an exhilarating shock, and one he wanted more of.

The Umbreon growled to himself, hitting that exact spot again on his next thrust. Once again, the pleasant sensation shot through his entire being and once again, he could not suppress a groan. Dimly, beneath the haze in his mind, he noticed his voice was becoming high-pitched and he was beginning to sound desperate. But he wouldn't let himself try to speak, not even to ask him to slow down. He was still half-afraid he'd find himself begging for more.

"Good lord, he's rock hard," October growled. Acre hadn't even noticed, but indeed, he could feel his excitement come to a peak. His entire body tensed up, the tip of his modest pinkish member dripping with his own precum despite being completely unattended.

"You really love this..." Chai's grip tightened and a filthy smirk formed on his face. "Some 'princess' you are."

Princess... As if to try hiding his face, Acre looked away, facing forward again. He wasn't going to admit how much he was enjoying this... but he could tell Chai already knew. He closed his eyes, just focusing on the sensations. His entire body was shaking, and every breath he took trembled. He was getting close, even he could tell that much.

"Come on, princess," the Umbreon growled, suddenly leaning in over him with his paws at the Glaceon's hips, gripping firmly and pounding into him with a wild excitement, relentlessly battering his prostate. Mid-cry, Acre's voice broke, leaving his maw wide open with no sound coming out.

Princess. There it was again. Such a degrading thing to be called, but... he wasn't complaining. He was starting to think he'd secretly liked it, along with his title, the whole time. If his voice didn't malfunction, he would have let out a hearty moan louder than any before it as his entire body just about seized up. As it was, he was left panting helplessly, his back arched a little as he tried to push back against Chai's vicious rutting.

He found his voice again and cried out - screamed! - as just one more perfect push from Chai, the larger eon's knot bumping against his hole, drove him over the edge, causing him to hit his climax hard. His member throbbed and twitched as he was forced to shoot his seed onto the carpet below him. Normally, he'd be ashamed of staining any kind of surface, but right now, he just didn't care. He thought he heard himself gasping Chai's name, wanting to tell him just how good it felt, but any words caught in his throat and wouldn't come out. He just panted and moaned helplessly as he savored the sensations.

"Good girl," Chai snarled, pulling back briefly before once again pushing his knot to Acre's once-virgin entrance. The Glaceon let out a shaky, breathless whine of need as he tried to grind back against it, but Chai pulled back again. Before Acre could express any disappointment, he slammed in again, rocking his whole body forward slightly with sheer force. He couldn't suppress a yelp of pain and surprise.

He realized he wasn't the only one panting. Chai's grew louder as his fierce thrusts gained in speed, the Umbreon rapidly burying his throbbing cock deep into the Glaceon's abused ass, over and over. Every time, he slammed the knot against his hole, and every time, Acre cried out, his oversensitive body amplifying everything he felt.

---

[Chai / Café Plaisir - Guest Bedroom / 11:18 PM]

Soon, Chai began to slow down, focusing more on single, vicious thrusts that carried him deep. Acre gave no resistance, his legs shaking under the weight now and his body forced to rock back and forth by the intense fucking he was being given. A quiet growl and huff from Chai heralded a sudden jet of warm seed inside Acre, one that forced a yelp from him. The Umbreon's grip seemed to tighten as he painted his insides, but after a few more thrusts, he suddenly pulled out.

Acre let out a questioning whimper, but his query was answered quickly. Chai began grinding his still-throbbing member against Acre's rear, the very next shot of cum landing right on his back. Though he was still out of breath, the Glaceon managed an indignant yelp, but he did not move. He seemed to accept his place, with the last of Chai's generous orgasm staining most of the fur on his back.

With a satisfied sigh, Chai let him go and trotted over to the edge of the room, past a rather stunned and impressed-looking October. There, he turned to look back at Acre, who had now collapsed in apparent tiredness, and sat down next to the door to watch what would happen next.

Chai watched October's slow approach to the tired Glaceon who was lying on his side. He let his gaze wander to the black member hanging between the fox's legs, larger than his own. The Ninetales loomed over the Glaceon quietly, Chai could tell he was probably grinning. Calmly, October began gently licking at the Glaceon's neck, soothingly. Acre seemed happy with that, judging by the soft, shaky whine he let out, but Chai knew October's gentle act wouldn't last.

It was an act, he knew. October was never the type to be gentle, not unless he was somehow being sarcastic about it. He was probably trying to create a contrast between himself and Chai. Quietly, he wished the fox luck, knowing he wouldn't overcome his nature.

"Here," said Penthesilea from right next to him. Quickly, he turned to her, showing no surprise; but, fuck, she was quiet and she could sneak when she wanted to. Before he could react, she slipped something around his neck. Something heavy.

"Hey, the hell are you--" he began, ducking away from her. As he realized she was still sitting down, unmoving, he relaxed enough to check what she'd given him. A camera was hanging by the strap around his neck. A camera...

"Send me a copy as soon as you can, won't you?" Penthesilea sang, winking at him playfully.

Chai glanced over at the other two. By now, October was sitting down, leaning his back against the foot of the bed, one paw up out of the way and one on Acre's head, just behind his crest, as the Glaceon slowly but firmly licked every inch he could reach of the colossal cock before him. To October's credit, he was being surprisingly more gentle than he expected. It still wasn't going to last - delight and pleasure showed on his face, and it was only a matter of time before he pretty much snapped.

But... she wanted him to record this? His gaze returned to her as he considered it. Sure, he was already done with the little one, and he guessed he was going to just wait and watch anyway. Why the hell not, he thought. It'd keep him occupied. He sat back, lifting his forepaws to pick up the camera and take a closer look at it. Now, how to operate this thing...

With a claw, he pressed the largest button on the top of the camera. A light came on, and the screen facing him, now marked with a red "REC" icon, replicated the scene before him of October standing over Acre, pushing his member inch by inch into the maw of the Glaceon whose paws rested on the fox's hips. The press of another button marked with a plus icon caused him to zoom right in on the dick that Acre was gradually swallowing. About half of it was obscured by the eager blue's muzzle. Chai quietly praised him. He really was a good girl.

He glanced back at Penthesilea, curious about what she'd be up to. To his surprise, the Espeon was lying on her back, watching the show with a paw and her tailtips between her hind legs. He didn't know why he was surprised to see this, come to think of it, but she didn't seem to be paying attention to him anymore. Her eyes, glowing softly, were fixed on the movements of the Ninetales as he took his turn with the Glaceon she'd brought in. He wondered what her deal was.

A sudden huff from October brought his attention back to the pair. He saw now that the Ninetales had managed to free himself from the Glaceon's attention, leaving the smaller one bowing almost worshipfully. Chai zoomed out again as October slowly stalked around behind the Glaceon, brushing his tails against his side as he passed.

Chai could hear Acre panting heavily. He was sure the camera's microphone would pick that up too, but just to be certain, he shuffled a little closer. The poor thing must have been exhausted, he thought with a smirk, but he was so eager to keep going. He wondered why. He wasn't complaining, of course. It made for an excellent show.

He watched as October stepped over the smaller eon, dipping his nose behind the crest and giving him a gentle lick. At the same time, he lifted a paw and pressed it to the Glaceon's side, lifting his rear end up a bit to meet his massive member. Acre tensed up, and Chai barely heard a pained gasp as the Ninetales slowly pushed in.

The Ninetales' expression softened and he let out a satisfied groan as he easily sank into the slick, wet passage. Acre seemed to tense up only for an instant before relaxing again with a breathy, high-pitched sigh, delight showing clear on his face. Chai shuffled towards their front slightly to get a better angle even as the Glaceon's pleased moan melted into an exhausted whimper. He zoomed in a little to where their hips almost connected, where a couple of small drops of Chai's own cum dripped to the carpet.

"S-So hot," Acre panted, shifting about beneath the big fox to get a little more comfortable. It seemed like the gentle licks to the base of his ears and down to the back of his neck didn't help much, even if they were supposed to be comforting. Even the icy wind that began to surround them, heralded by the soothing glow of the crystal at his neck, did little to cool him down.

It was difficult to see through the slowly-forming mist at this distance, so Chai dropped down to all fours, letting the camera hang at his neck, and trotted over to take a closer look. He stopped just in front of them, slightly to their side, and sat back again to resume the recording. Acre was far too deep in his reverie to notice, but October looked up at him with a mischievous - no, positively evil! - smirk.

He grinned back, panning the camera over the scene, starting slowly from the rear where the Ninetales was slowly pressing in deeper and he could vaguely see Acre's hind legs spreading a little wider, and pausing again when he reached the shameless sub's desire-fogged expression. His eyes were closed and his maw was wide open as he panted helplessly. Chai could feel his own arousal stirring within him again. He could almost certainly fit his dick in there... but no, this was October's show now.

With a sudden jab forward, October drove in another couple of inches, almost taking him to the knot. Beneath October's growl and Acre's whimper of mutual pleasure, Chai clearly heard that wet noise again, and felt a litle pride at the fact that his own efforts were what was making it so easy for the larger creature. Another jab of his hips, fiercer this time, carried almost his entire length deep into the squirming second-timer. Acre's moans only grew louder and more high-pitched - all of his sensitive spots struck again, Chai assumed.

Acre shuddered and gasped deeply, arching his back a little as he was forced to his second climax of the night. His breaths quickly grew deeper and louder, a few mixed in with desirous moans and unintelligible pleas. Though Acre's second load was less in volume than his previous one, it was enough in staggering pleasure; his trembling forelegs gave out, sending his upper body crashing to the cum-stained carpet. It was only October's paw that kept his rear lifted, just high enough that the Glaceon's hindpaws hovered an inch off the ground.

October's act was really wavering now. Chai knew there was no way he'd hold back, and he felt vaguely satisfied as he saw himself proven right; October swiftly pulled back a few inches and thrust forward again, burying himself into the Glaceon all over again, forcing another shaky, high-pitched whimper from him.

"Hang in there, girl," Chai teased, glancing up at October to gauge his reaction. Judging by that look of concentration, his eyes shut tightly and his ears back slightly, he was already getting close. That was a surprise... but he could work with that.

"It's... too hot... too hot..." Acre managed, whimpering deliriously. The heat seemed to be getting to him, but the icy wind seemed to prevent it from being harmful...

"Nah, you got this," Chai scoffed dismissively, leaning over to the side a little to zoom in on Acre's face. "Now c'mon, Size Queen, tell the viewers at home how much you're loving this."

At that moment, October drove into him with a particularly brutal thrust, slamming his knot to his still-too-tight hole, eliciting a helpless cry from the poor little eon. Acre's entire body tensed up, his eyes shut tight and he gritted his teeth at the impact; that looked like it hurt.

Acre took a quick breath and tried to speak, only managing a few shaky words before October resumed his vicious, frenzied rutting. A few more thrusts and he was back to trying to force the knot in. This time, though, the Ninetales leaned over and pressed his fangs to Acre's neck at the same time he pressed his knot to his rear, grinding him into the mess they'd made previously. That forced some words out of him.

"October...!" the Glaceon cried breathlessly, gasping deeply before trying to continue. "Ahh, please... keep going..."

"You want the knot?" Chai teased, his tail beginning to sweep along the floor. It was fun, watching him struggle. He didn't really want to see it stop.

But before Acre could even confirm his desires, October bit down harder on his neck and managed to squeeze his knot right in, all the tension in his body from the effort melting away with a loud, snarling growl. Acre cried out louder than ever, more in pain than anything else. October continued to buck into the poor Glaceon, panting heavily and groaning loudly.

Chai shrugged, figuring that was as good a confession as he was going to get from the newly dubbed 'Size Queen', and shuffled over to their side to get a better view of the real action. He zoomed in slightly, taking a close look at Acre's hips, firmly locked with those of the larger fox above him. He panned over Acre's entire rear end, showing how his legs were lifted off the ground by October's one forepaw hooked under his hip, his tail was up on his back and buried almost completely under the Ninetales.

Chai huffed, sitting back again and looking down at the camera. He supposed that, now that October was finished, so was he. He pressed the larger button again and ended the recording. With a satisfied sigh, he turned back around to Penthesilea. She was already approaching him, and she sat down next to him, watching the exhausted pair.

October looked down at his writhing, panting prey, beginning to catch his own breath. Thinking about it, he must have been overheating badly. "You, ah... want a drink of something?" When he didn't respond, he continued with "Or do you need more than that?"

"A c-cold..." Acre began, taking a deep breath before trying again. "A cold shower might... might be nice..."

"Well, there's an idea, October," Chai said, calmly at first and then turning into a not-so-subtle growl when he turned to the shameless Ninetales. "Maybe you should join him."

"Nah, I'll pass," October shrugged. Absolutely no shame.

"I'll take care of it," Penthesilea piped up. "Where to?"

"En suite bathroom right over there, shower and all. Go nuts."

Acre finally collapsed, his exhaustion catching up with him. He closed his eyes, no longer listening to the conversation. He sighed in relief as October seemed to lift himself off of him, as he began to drift off.

---

[Acre / Café Plaisir - Guest Bedroom / 12:09 AM]

Acre awoke to the sound of Penthesilea calling to him and prodding his muzzle with her own. He quickly realized he was lying on his side, with October no longer on top of him, the Glaceon no longer stuffed. He felt kind of empty, now that he thought about it, but it didn't bother him much now. When he saw Penthesilea's face soften with relief, he looked around to see October sitting nearby, and Chai off in the corner looking at his camera. The embarrassed part of him wanted to rush over and grab the thing away from him, but that was probably a bad idea. He just slowly stood up.

He froze. Everything hurt, his entire body was burning in two different ways, both the pain in his rear and the warmth throughout his body rendered him unable to move.

"You all right?" Penthesilea asked worriedly.

"Yeah," Acre huffed. "I just need a moment. What time is it...?"

"Uh..." The Espeon looked around the room briefly, searching for a clock, but found nothing. She eventually shook her head. "I have no idea. You've been out for about... ten, twenty minutes?"

Acre let out a quiet whine, tensing up. He glanced away. "Oof, I need to get home..."

"Not as you are now!" she chided. "You're a mess. C'mon, if your trainer sees you like this..."

Acre opened his mouth to protest, but realized he was being foolish. Indeed, if Rei saw him with all these stains in his fur, if this pain caused his performance to falter, he was sure it would hit her hard. He gave in at last.

"We'll take our leave, then," October said smoothly, bowing slightly. "I trust you were satisfied?"

"Oh, absolutely," Penthesilea giggled. "We'd be delighted to come again!" With his best charming smile, October turned to exit the room.

The door was already open. Seeing that, Acre's eyes widened. They'd closed it after coming into the room, hadn't they? So how long had it been open? Worse, how many had seen him like this...? And... who had opened it? The blush creeped onto his face again, and his ears twitched, listening around the room as he stared at October's retreating tails through the door.

He was brought back to reality by Penthesilea grabbing his tassel yet again, drawing a yelp from him. Chai looked up and watched her drag him towards the bathroom and push the door open.

"Ah! C-Can you... stop doing that?" Acre protested, completely ignored. Chai shrugged as he watched the door swing closed behind them, and returned his attention to the recording he'd taken, a subtle grin slowly forming on his face.

The bathroom was surprisingly large for an en suite, and it had all sorts of luxurious amenities. Most importantly, a large shower-and-bath-chamber sort of thing. It may not have been as fancy as the one at Penthesilea's home, nor did it seem to have as many functions - she found herself looking for the in-shower radio and was somewhat disappointed to find nothing - but it was definitely larger than the one she saw at Acre's place. Curiously, she glanced at him to see how he'd react. Indeed, there was a look of wonder on his face, and she could sense a little excitement. She suppressed a grin at that adorable sight.

Taking advantage of the distraction, she quickly pressed her snout up to his neck, slipping under the string around his neck and lifting it over his head before he could even react. She sat back as he recoiled in surprise, watching her with his necklace still hanging from her muzzle.

"You hardly want to get your ribbons wet, do you?" she asked, not even needing an answer, and placed it on a nearby shelf. She then got to work on removing the clay bracelet around her foreleg, pulling it off as it glowed pink slightly. A couple of the small things she'd hidden between it and her fur as a sort of pocket fell to the floor. A small comb, a memory stick - she instinctively blocked her thoughts from outside view when she saw that, forgetting for a moment she wasn't around psychics - and a set of lockpicks clattered to the tiled floor. She swiftly gathered them up and placed them on the shelf as well, hiding her things under a towel.

Penthesilea gave Acre a small, innocent smile before she pulled the doors of the chamber open through telekinesis and helped Acre inside. He seemed stiff, and nowhere near as agile as he was before, wincing as he entered the shower. She slowed down for him, making sure not to push him too hard.

Once he was safely in the chamber, she closed the doors again and looked up at what seemed to be the control panel for the shower. Disappointingly, it was a pair of knobs, one marked with red and one blue. All it took was a clockwise turn of the red one, and...

The whole thing came to life and whirred suddenly, accompanied by Acre's startled yelp as freezing cold water assaulted him from the shower head. She quickly turned to him to see that his fur had completely frozen into tiny needles of ice, and she recoiled away from him as what splashed onto her from him proved to be far too cold for her. She could only endure as the water took its cursed time warming up.

She sighed, sat back in the corner and erected a psychic shield around herself, a light screen to deflect the water. Looking up at Acre, she saw that he seemed to be enjoying the cold now that the initial surprise had worn off. He had his eyes closed and he was leaning into the spray, lifting his forepaws up onto a small shelf to bring himself closer. She heard his quiet, satisfied sigh as he let the freezing water wash over him, covering his entire body. His fur had relaxed by now, returning to its usual softness. With the faintest of smiles of her own, Penthesilea turned the blue dial as well, so it wouldn't get too hot for him.

"This is nice," he mused quietly. As Penthesilea lifted the shower head up and brought it closer to her, he adjusted to stay in the stream of water, but turned to look at her now with his ears perked up. He gave her a smile, and sat down as she lifted the shower head above his back, directing the spray down his stained fur, along his sides, down to his chest, continuing until all of his fur was soaked. She looked up at him with a faint smile that widened into an amused grin when she saw that happy look on his face, that satisfied smile and his rapidly-wagging tail. Like a playful puppy. Didn't look quite right on the 'Ice Queen', she thought.

"I can tell you're enjoying this," she laughed, hanging up the head again before glancing around for some shampoo. In hindsight, she really should have checked before turning on the water, but it didn't matter; she quickly found a bottle of exactly what she needed. She picked up the bottle, and noted the conditioner she spotted just next to it for later.

"Well, what can I say?" Acre replied, shuffling over so he was in the water's spray again, lifting his head to nuzzle at the refreshing stream. "I really needed this... after what just happened."

"Oh?" Penthesilea turned to him, pausing in the middle of opening the shampoo bottle. "You're not hurt, are you? Or... Well, are you okay after that?"

"Huh? Oh!" He tensed up, as if caught with the cookie jar. "Yes, I'm fine! I didn't mean to imply it went badly, I'm just... you know, exhausted."

"That's to be expected, I think," she mumbled. Quietly, she lifted the bottle over Acre's back and squeezed with a more violent push in her mind than she'd intended, squirting a generous amount of shampoo into his fur. With a grimace, she shuffled a little closer and sat down, lifting her forepaws up to rub the shampoo in firmly. "That Ninetales... I wasn't expecting him to actually force the knot in. That looked like it hurt, are you all right?"

"I think so, yes," he sighed, and smiled at her. "Thanks, Penny."

"Thanks?" She blinked and looked at him in confusion. In the meantime, she set about covering the rest of his fur in bubbly lather. "For what?"

"Worrying, I guess." She heard him giggle softly to himself, and his expression changed. He looked thoughtful. "That was... That was my first time."

"Yeah..." She was barely audible, distracted by her own thoughts. Were they a little too rough, she wondered? Part of her felt guilty for letting those two have their brutal way with him - it was a miracle he didn't bleed! - but... he did just reassure her that he'd enjoyed it, so... who was she to judge, she guessed?

Slowly, she let her paws wander, now that she had an excuse to examine his wonderfully feminine figure so closely. Slowly stroking along his sides, down to his hips, scrubbing the stained fur and stealing a quick, subtle grope at his butt while she was at it. She thought she sensed his body tense, but he said nothing. She kept scrubbing, to better disguise her intentions. She found herself thinking that he seemed girlier than she was, and absolutely adorable, to boot. She had to suppress the twinge of envy she only just realized she'd been feeling.

She sighed and sat back, partly to calm her nerves but mostly to take a good look at him. He was quite a sight, covered in a soapy mess with his hairs standing on end somewhat after the thorough scrubbing she'd given him. Nothing like the magnificent figure she always saw on TV, though she supposed he would be once again when she was done with him. She picked up the shower head again and let it hover over him, to rinse his fur out.

Already, he was looking much better, much less weary and much more tidy. It took a little effort, making sure to get all that was left of the shampoo. To her surprise, he mostly held still. While she went about rinsing his fur, he idly looked around the place, admiring all the fancy amenities it offered. He wanted to take a closer look at the jets around the sides while she applied the conditioner, and at certain points while she was waiting for the conditioner to settle in, she could tell he was reading something on the back of a nearby bottle - the focused gaze gave it away.

When she was done, and when she was certain after thorough examination that he was clean, she shut off the stream of water once again. As the noise subsided, Acre straightened up a little and turned back to look at her.

"We're done?" he asked.

"Yep," she replied, hanging up the shower head once again. They stepped out of the chamber together, with her still offering him help in walking. "Need me to help you dry off?"

"No, I'll be okay," he smiled, and shook himself. "The water should freeze, and then it's not a problem! I can use the ice."

"Very resourceful..." She gathered her things, and Acre's, figuring he shouldn't wear his necklace while his fur was still wet. So she wore it around her own neck, carrying it for him. Judging by the smile he gave her, he understood why she was doing it. "Well, all right. We should get you home, then. How're you feeling?"

"Good. Very good, actually..." He sighed and stretched slowly, but suddenly winced in pain partway through. "A-Aside from, you know..."

"Yeah," she hummed, nodding slowly as she opened the door that led outside. There Chai was, standing right in front of her with the camera hanging from his neck. She almost jumped.

"You wanted a copy, right?" Chai asked, still as calm as ever. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't read him - his mind, like with all Dark-types, just worked in a way she couldn't comprehend, and his expression was stoic. She wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing that he was asking her this.

"Uh, yeah," she replied uncertainly after a short pause. "There's not a problem, is there?"

"Nah, just making sure." He glanced back at the door to the corridor. "Head to the roof this time tomorrow, should have it ready by then."

"Oh. Thanks for letting me know, 'bre!" she said cheerfully. She watched his expression for any changes in response to that little nickname. A subtle frown, but nothing more. A little disappointing, she thought.

"Yeah," was all he said before he turned to leave the room. Penthesilea turned back to Acre with an innocent smile.

"Let's be on our way, then!" she declared cheerfully, trotting on ahead with the Glaceon close behind.

---

[Acre / Home - Acre's Room / 01:12 AM]

Acre wouldn't have been able to describe the relief that washed over him the instant he collapsed forward onto his bed. Never before had it felt softer, its surface yielding to his weight ever so slightly, but so absorbed in it was he that he could feel it. He let out a satisfied groan as he closed his eyes.

Penthesilea, behind him, couldn't stifle a giggle. One of Acre's ears tilted slightly toward her, listening. Lazily, he rolled over onto his back and turned to look at her, eyes only half-opening again.

"Thanks for seeing me home, Penny," he breathed. His words kind of blended together into one long whine as tiredness weighed down on him.

"Aw, don't mention it!" she replied with a grin and a shake of her head. "I'm just glad we got to spend time together!"

Acre giggled softly at that. Then, he frowned slightly. "Hey... I want to ask you something."

Penthesilea tilted her head a little, still smiling at him. "Go right ahead."

"Well..." He thought for a moment about how to phrase his question. "Uh... Why Café Plaisir? I mean... I've been thinking about it on the way back, and... I don't really understand."

"You mean, what did I get out of it?" Penthesilea's smile seemed to fade a little, but not into a hurt expression. She just looked curious about his meaning.

He shook his head slowly. "Not really that... I was just thinking that an actual Café would have made sense if you just wanted to spend time with me. But you brought me... there. Why?"

"Mm..." She glanced away, nonchalantly. "You're right. A Café would have been more suitable for that. But I suppose I did lie to you, in a way." She looked back at him just in time to catch the sudden change in his expression. His eyes widened and his ears perked up, now closely paying attention. She grinned and spoke again. "Just a little! It actually wasn't just to spend time with you. I know you wouldn't have time for that."

Acre noted her grin faltered a little mid-sentence. Confused, he watched her closely. He still wasn't good at reading expressions, but he could at least hear her out. "What were you really up to, then?"

"Up to? You make it sound like it was a bad thing!" Her tail lashed from side to side a little, behind her, as her grin widened again. "I wanted to give you a break. You're always working so hard, right? I wanted my dear friend to relax a bit!"

"I see... Really? I-It's not even all that hard work... although I guess it'll start being hard, if I don't get to sleep tonight." He sighed and splayed himself out more over the bed, closing his eyes. "So I'll ask one last thing. What you said earlier... What do you get out of it? Or were you really just doing that all for me?"

"Well..." She looked thoughtful, a pensive stare on her face. Eventually, she nodded and smiled again. "Yeah, basically! All for you. How's that make you feel?"

"Flattered, I think..." Acre guessed he had no reason not to believe her, so he sighed and relaxed a little. "Well, anyway, that's all I wanted to ask. Thanks for today, Penny... I do think I needed a break."

"Heheh. You're welcome!" she said cheerily. "I'll get going then, if there's nothing else. I really should get home soon!"

"Oh, okay! I think I'll be all right for the night, so go ahead, I won't keep you. Goodnight, Penny."

"G'night, Acre. And good luck in that contest in a couple of days! I'll be sure to attend!" She giggled when she saw that brought a smile to his face, so with a smirk, she added, "And maybe I'll bring October and Chai along, too..."

"Wh-What? ...What!?" Acre cried, but by the time he'd opened his eyes, she was gone, leaving behind only echoes of laughter. He let out a nervous sigh, uncertain of whether or not she'd actually bring them to the show, whether or not it'd even be a bad thing, and... how exactly she knew where the show was going on. He shook his head, deciding there was nothing he could do about it now, and stretched out over the bed, closing his eyes and hoping for uneventful dreams.