Did you know? If you let your eyes unfocus juuuuuuust so, and let your head flop back and forth as coils thick as your whole entire body squeeze you silly, you can see secret creatures in the ceiling colors? It’s true! He’s just spent…several? Probably several instructive minutes making a close study of the subject. He’ll have a paper out next month. It’ll flip the whole world upside-down. Or rightside-up, if it was already flipped wrong. Now that he’s got that sorted out, he can tackle the next item on his to-unpack list. It’s a very good list. One of his favorites. Excellent work, under the circumstances. Now let’s see here, ah! Yes, of course. One teeny tiny itty bitty question to tackle:

Was the gagging supposed to make him squirm?

Like, okay, the gag makes sense. He’s caught, she doesn’t want him talking, gags are very common here, that all tracks. But there was an awful lot of production around the choice of material. He thought maybe he was naughty because he didn’t let her hypnotize him, but was he actually naughty because this is Seli’s sash and veil? Both? Maybe a bit of both? He guessed? Resisting her, of course that’d be naughty to her. But why’s the sash and veil naughty? Seli was just wearing them, yes, but so what? How was this any different from borrowing a coat? Was it a heat thing? A smell thing? Was it supposed to be taboo because she was just wearing them, and didn’t want to give them up? Sooooo, borrowing a coat without asking first? That is a bit of a power play. She’s [i]making[/i] him borrow her coat without asking. And maybe she’s playing like it was all his idea, like he’d wanted her sash and veil the whole time. For smell, or for her just wearing it, something like that. There’s options, the specific answer isn't all that important. He can see the underlying theory. Feels like it’d be more potent if she picked something other than a veil and a sash, but then again, if she’d chosen something more intimate that would’ve been a bit much. Ugh, didn’t bear thinking about.

Anyway.

“Mmmpphhh!!!!” Hazel’s muffled, panicked squeaks rang out through the empty halls, wavering as he shook helplessly in her iron grasp. And then they fell even quieter as he buried his face in faintly cool coils. The only defense of a goofball. Hide away from his tormentor. They can’t see him, they don’t exist. Flawless logic. 

It’d be better if he knew how to flop his ears down over his face, that would be a nice touch. But he works with what little he’s got. Moments like this, you’ve got to do something. It’d be odd if he didn’t.

Almost as odd as thinking he was Yuki’s husband??!? Excuse me? What? Why?! Oh gosh, that wasn’t the rumor around here, was it? Yuki-

Yuki. 

The plaza. 

The ceremony!

On the one hand; he had successfully made it to the plaza, where Yuki could, in theory, spot him and rescue him. On the other hand; if Yuki were to see him right now he would Die Forever. Tough choice, touch choice. No, wait, not a tough choice! Not a tough choice at all! This lady - Purnima? - was up to no good, and was planning on using him, to get to Yuki, to get to Princess Sulochana, to get to all of Crevas!

Oh no. Was this a Market War?!

He had to escape. If he could convince her this was all a case of mistaken identity, maybe she’d let him go? Or at least let him go enough to reach his tablet, get a message out to Yuki, warn her of the danger before it was too late. He just. Had to. Work his jaw just so, and. Not chomp on the sash while he…

“Mrrr!”

Okay, not. The most clear, but he can work with that.

“Mmphh? Mm mrr?”

Did she get any of that? Any of that at all? No, no, doesn’t look like it. She’s not even looking at him. Just, rubbing his antlers. Still. 

“Mmphh? Mmphh! Mrrrph, mr mpphh-!”

Huh. He could feel her rubbing his antlers. That was. A new feeling.

“Mrr? Mrrr…mrr…m-mrrrrrrr~”

O-oh. Um.

Okay! Apparently! Antlers can feel! And ears can feel even more! That doesn’t change anything! Not one bit! Even if it does feel kinda nice and there’s a funny tingling in his spine threatening to turn all his bones to wiggly jelly, you do [i]not![/i] Ear rub privileges are a sacred thing! And, he doesn’t want them from somebody who’s plotting against Yuki and Princess Sulochana, especially not somebody who thinks he’s her husBAnD?! A fact which she would know if she would just! Listen!

“Mmmph! Mm mrp mrr mrrpmrrrphh!”

Golly it’s hard to talk like this!!!