Nephthys wouldn't necessarily consider herself a frail princess, but a princess? Well, she had been once upon a time, hadn't she? It was only proper that she finally have a bodyguard now that she was coming into her ~official~ adulthood years. She was old enough to take herself a husband unofficially if she chose, to hold a rank, to possess power -- but at two years old somehow she would become ~a certifiable adult~ from what she'd been told. Didn't make a lick of sense to her, but whatever. Two months to go until.. nothing.

As a frail princess, I demand to be carried. The scarlet lioness pivoted, abruptly leaping towards his back in an attempt to drape herself across him. Now carry me, man-servant. If she was frail, it meant he had to do a thousand more things besides protect her. It was the law.

Bhaskar does not expect @Nephthys' response to be agreeable, but he was certain that it was all just to fuck him over again. And of course, it was just that: the maroon lioness threw herself upon his back and demanded to be carried by her man-servant. The colossal braced the moment he saw her flinch and launch her weight against his, but slightly bent at the knees when the Tollaire girl leaned on his back. He gritted his teeth, sturding his legs in the frigid ground below. I take that back, he mumbled under his breath. Definitely not frail. After all, Neph was almost two and while she was not as big as him, she was damn close to it. But mama raised no quitter. The gargantuan now-mule took a slow step forward. But your word is my order, m'lady! He managed to balance well as he began to carry his princess through the snow.

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you dare speak to your princess like that? nephthys quipped, huffing loudly in disdain at the slight. How dare her peachy man-servant speak to royalty in such a manner! Didn't he know what the consequences would be for such treasonous actions? Hopefully so! Because Nephthys certainly didn't, nor did she have the creativity to come up with something on the spot. A terrible conundrum for the firebird, truly. I am but a frail and delicate flower, you've said it yourself. Not that she was really helping the situation by being strewn across his back like a wayward lamb being returned to its mother on the back of a mule. Now where are you taking me? There better be a feast when we arrive and I expect my subjects to all roar with delight as I cross the threshold into my kingdom.

Okay, she was possibly having a little too much fun now. Whoops.

Bhaskar wished that @Nephthys was a frail and delicate flower right now because she was weighing on his back and threatening to make him crumble in a few more steps. It's true: he had said it himself. Anything but! He huffed, fog escaping his lips as he spoke. Speaking was definitely not a good idea, because he felt his balance tip slightly to the right before he could fully regain it. It was a workout in of itself, with the maroon girl acting as a weight on his back. Bhaskar stepped onward through the snow, leading her further in the forest.

He strengthened his back, tensing his stomach muscles to keep the dead weight on his back steady. Roar with delight... he panted. More like roar with laughter. To be fair, it looked more like Bhas was kidnapping her than anything else.

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no! You said it yourself. I am a frail princess. Nephthys was alive with glee at how horribly his plan has backfired. She certainly doubted he had anticipated her being so absolutely invested in their new game and the thought brought a smirk to her lips as she idly swatted at pile of snows. Eventually she could tell her faithful steed was growing weary, and so she took the opportunity to lurch forward and somersault into the nearest snow drift for the softest landing. Nepth still grunted from the impact, however, and quickly began a war. She swatted some snow at him, laughing. Your princess declares war on her man-servant for disrespecting her!

The colossal steed continued to carry his red backpack, his slow steps taking the princess to her kingdom where all would roar with laughter. He panted loudly, carefully choosing where he stepped lest he ended up squished by the Tollaire girl. Wouldn't that be an ironic end, considering how they first met? One thing's for sure, though, a part of him was enjoying the ride. The closeness it provided was more than anything he's ever had with the opposite gender, and it definitely felt odd but in a butterflies-in-my-stomach way.

But Neph hanging on his back like a wet rag didn't last long. He felt her slip to the side. Bhas froze in place both to try and balance, so he doesn't fall with her and to check if she was actually doing it on purpose or falling down for real with the risk of getting hurt. Of course, it was @Nephthys and she purposefully faceplanted in a snowdrift, swatting snow towards him in a declaration of war.

The red-haired steed felt like a weight has been lifted off his back (literally) and his poor feet screamed in agony. For that reason, he couldn't predict let alone avoid the snow that flew straight for his face. He blinked, opening his eyes, and shot the girl an annoyed glare. The snow melted down his face and he shook his large head to shake off the rest of the snowflakes. What, now you're gonna fight your servant? He quickly used his paw to collect a big chunk of snow and launch it at her. Frail princess my ass! If she wanted a war, she will get a war.

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someone has to put him in his place, she replied coolly, a wickedly mischievous grin lighting up the darkness of her muzzle. He had wanted to spar and so she would give him a battle, even if it was a bit unorthodox. Nephthys was nostalgic for the times she spent running with her brothers in the snow, kicking up a curtain of white as they went. Maybe she wasn't as invested in snow games as she used to be and maybe @Bhaskar wasn't her brothers, but she could still relive a bit of childish fun, couldn't she?

The scarlet lioness snorted in amusement as he retaliated -- and yes, she had to admit that bigger paws made for better shovels. Nephthys huffed and pivoted to scale a nearby tree, deftly ascending into the branches within the blink of an eye. She balanced along a branch that she felt was close enough to do some damage and began to shake it with her weight, hoping to dislodge the snow that rested on top and send an avalanche down below. Besides, it would be harder for him to hit the bull's-eye with her so high up.

Hopefully.

If she was a mighty princess, then she better hires another servant so when Bhaskar misbehaved, she wouldn't need to get her paws dirty. But of course, the Tollaire girl had taken matters into her own hands and was not leaping from her spot, running up a... tree? His gaze followed her, ready for the inevitable zig-zagged surprise attack, bu when she climbs up he blinks twice in confusion. What, you gon- - nna hide there? But before he could say it, the man who was glancing up realized his awful mistake. @Nephthys shook the branch and consequently, the whole tree shook with it. In a matter of seconds, snow cascaded down atop the colossal lion, enough to bury him and his whole body to disappear beneath a pile of snow. It had piled up from the many days of snowfall. Then there was silence, and the red-haired man didn't resurface.

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Ah, she may have miscalculated how much snow a man could handle.. or maybe she miscalculated how heavy the snow was to begin with. Her tail swept idly as she steadied herself, claws digging into the branch below as she investigated the crime scene below. Nephthys noted with some disappointment that she'd either murdered the man or knocked him out; both were unintentional consequences. Oops.

Man-servant? she asked, ears drawing forward as she strained to hear any movement from below. Her head tilted left and right, her motions fox-like as she willed the behemoth to breach. But.. nothing. Fuck. Nepth didn't want to try and drag his ass for help! He was too big! She grumbled and dropped onto the ground beside the pile, pawing at the snow to begin excavation.

The giant of a man laid beneath the pile of snow, holding his breath and purposefully not resurfacing. The silence remained, until he heard the muffled voice calling out for him. He remained beneath the snow, hoping that @Nephthys will actually come to his rescue before he suffocates.

Then he heard footsteps approaching. Just a bit more, he bided his time, laying in wait until the Tollaire lioness began to dig. Gotcha! He exploded out of the snow like a giant polar bear in hiding, looking to drape his front paws around the girl's nape and drag her down in the snow pile with him in a bear hug.

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