It took every ounce of self control Lieu had in her to prevent herself from screaming the instant the fox's words invaded her mind. Without any warning or a request for permission, the act was akin to rape, and Lieu had enough experience in that area to make up for the others' inexperience. So she stood, frozen in place with her hand on her axe, unable to move for fear of breaking down completely and unable to process the fox's words due to her intense concentration.

The others around her seemed to take it much better than she did, though. None panicked, though one showed his displeasure by defacing the fox statue and instantly earned Lieu's respect. Events seemed to move in double-time around her as she stood, fighting the urge to run away screaming. There was talk of slaying Anjou, minor squabbling, some sort of gem given to the almost naked guy and snatched by the pumpkin, then snatched back deftly. Lieu felt her body relaxing, her mind recovering, and finally lowered her hand from her axe.

In an attempt to cover her shakiness, she took a strong breath before asking the first thing that came to her mind: "So, uh, why is a fox trying to help us kill a fox? I've never met one I could trust." Her heart fluttered a bit, but she managed to somehow keep her voice from wavering.