“[color=ForestGreen]This is completely your fault![/color]” A black garment was thrown behind a hunched over figure, two pairs of eyes following its arc through the half lit room before it joined a similar pile of crumpled clothing in the middle. The pair of pure black eyes tossed his head, making a disgruntled whinny. The person hunched over huffed, their shoulders rocking with the motion.

“[color=ForestGreen]Because you didn’t tell me how late it was last night, so we got home late, so I slept all day and never unpacked![/color]” Another whinny, and this time the person hunched over stood up and whirled around, another long piece of fabric in her hand that was now placed upon her hips. She glared at the great beast occupying the other half of the room – though the face giving the glare wasn’t on top of her neck.

“[color=ForestGreen]You know I can’t ignore the call, and yeah, I could’ve unpacked earlier in the week – and I could’ve held off seeing the grounds with you too![/color]” The great shire horse merely rolled his eyes unnaturally, and promptly turned his face away from the headless girl – and the head glaring at him from on top of the dresser. Underneath him the bed creaked alarmingly from his weight, and Claire only glared harder at her companion – well, as hard as one can glare with a grin on their face.

“[color=ForestGreen]Oh don’t be like that, I still need help finding… this?[/color]” Claire stared at her hand, jutting in the air as she pointed accusingly at Thanatos – or more specifically the blue cloth curled in her fingers. It was the latest item to be yanked out of her suitcase. On the bed Thanatos nickered in amusement.

“[color=ForestGreen]Har har, laugh it up you ham.[/color]” As though to say he would Thanatos just nodded his head up, making further noises towards his rider. Claire huffed and immediately started pulling the dress on, a simple dark piece the color of a late night’s sky. With no sleeves to adjust Claire just made sure the dress was down, though it felt tight against her waist and hips. Luckily the slit along the dress’ side, following the fabric to the floor, gave her legs some breathing room.

Of course the most important part wasn’t how it looked, though making a first impression was always good according to her father. No, the most important part was the high neck of the dress. Claire’s pale fingers wove through her messy brown-orange hair as she lifted her head up from the dresser, carefully aligning her neck. The dark blue smoke that drifted lazily from the openings on either of her severed neck began to curl, meeting each other as Claire finally lowered her head into place. A few pale tendrils wisped from the very obvious straight ‘gash’ that wound around her neck, but that’s what the neck line was for. Well, that and making sure the magic holding her head on had some reinforcement. It was surprisingly easy to lose her head.

“[color=ForestGreen]Well Thanatos, how do I look?[/color]” As Claire pulled on the neck to keep it in place she turned to her horse, the black beast tilting his head before shaking it. Claire immediately pouted, though Thanatos wasn’t deterred and looked pointedly beside him on the bed. “[color=ForestGreen]Yeah, yeah, that was next! It’s not like I go anywhere without it.[/color]” She grabbed onto the blue and green plaid material resting against Thantos’ side, quickly working the tartan sash over her shoulder and tying it at the opposite waist with practiced ease.

“[color=ForestGreen]Alright, ready to go?[/color]” Thanatos made an agreeing chortle, the bed once more creaking as the frame found its weight relieved as the huge horse stood and began to trot to the door of the dorm room. “[color=ForestGreen]Oh no, no no no – I can’t bring you like that![/color]” The black horse paused and gave Claire a look, a glare that was much more effective on him than her. Thanatos did not have a smiling problem.

“[color=ForestGreen]You’re huge! I doubt anyone else is bringing an animal – well, besides themselves. What do you want me to do, ride in on your back, bust open the doors? … Well, it’d certainly be memorable. No, what I need is a nice, compact little companion.[/color]” Thanatos tossed his head up once more, stomping his hooves and shaking his head. “[color=ForestGreen]Oh it’s not that bad, come here you big baby.[/color]”

Less than five minutes later Claire was humming to herself as she practically skipped in her flat evening shoes towards the ball room, a fuzzy stuffed horse tucked into the sash across her chest with just a hint of lipstick mark on his face – Claire put just the basics on. He couldn’t really make an expression like this, but Claire knew Thanatos was pouting. Good, that’s what he got for making her this late.

… Okay, so he was right it was both their faults. Claire couldn’t help it though. When the whispers came for her, called her out into the countryside or through city streets with a desperate urging and a foreign name on her lips she would always come. After all, it was how she first gained Thanatos.

Claire’s musing were cut short as she found herself in front of the doors to the ballroom, mentally preparing herself for meeting all the other creatures in there. Living with her family – a decidedly human family – was nice and all, but didn’t quite prepare one for these situations. At least she had her manners – though her parents might argue if she even had those!

Well, not that it mattered. It seemed no one was even going to spare the little human-scented faerie a glance.

It was almost like a western show down inside the entrance, with tension so thick Claire could probably butter someone’s biscuits with it. It seemed there was a party crasher ruining the mood, to put it lightly. Really how bad could one person be? Though…

Honestly all the aggression, the [i]anger[/i] in the hall? It was kind of… intoxicating. Unbidden Claire’s pink tongue darted out to wet her ever grinning lips, the corners of which stretched just that bit closer to splitting her face. Despite, or perhaps because of, the light feeling gathering in her chest urged the exact type of person Claire to come out and not allow this, so without preamble she called out in a cheerful voice.

“[color=ForestGreen]Isn’t this supposed to be a ball? Who died?[/color]” Hm, is that a bad thing to ask for some species? Eh, it was already out of her mouth. Claire patted the nearby behemoth of a man on the back, grin ever unwavering. “[color=ForestGreen]The food can’t be that bad. Ooh, punch.[/color]” And just like that Claire was distracted, though hopefully she wouldn’t lose her head in the bowl again.

In her sash Thanatos hoof palmed with one of his stuffed appendages. His mistress was awful at reading situations.