{Jill-In-The-Box}, {Fooly}

[Mashiara]

Vivian's full lips held a darkly rouged smirk as she casually swayed out of the wing of the palace in which Fooly kept his rooms. Oh, she could have had the box delivered by courier, but it was sooo much more fun to do it herself...

Her red slippers peeped from beneath her deep purple gown, her steps slowing to a proper, calm walk, befitting a lady simple wandering about the palace. Were she younger that might seem odd without a book in her hand, or a beau at her side. At her age, however, it was deemed appropriate for her to wander... Which suited her quite well.

***

Back in the chambers of Fooly's room, upon a nice little footstool, there rested a simple box. It was somewhat weighty, being composed entirely of silver, and having a little silver handle at its side, bent a bit at the end like a child's musical toy.

The sides were smooth, unbroken save for the precious gems that winked from the sides of the box. They extended over the bottom, too, but nothing adorned the top, except for a scroll of slanted lettering, in a tongue that most would not know. Who really knows what it was? It probably had some witty saying on it, but it wasn't really all that important... Who cares?

The important thing was that there was a lovely little surprise in the box.

A little folded card rested on the stool beside it, reading:

"A little gift
For a favorite Fool.
A reminder of
the Golden Rule."

It was signed simply "Your Admirer", and that was all...

[Akedhi]

The Fool is a very private person.

No one is allowed in his room. No one. He even cleans it himself - the maids stopped bothering to try after their hair kept turning odd colours and materials. (Blue ribbons, floral patterned snakes... that sort of thing.)

Thus, finding a thing in his room that he certainly didn't put there puts him into a bit of a foul temper.

All curiosity aside, he doesn't like it.

Someone came in his room.

He goes through his things, making certain that nothing was disturbed or removed, all the while sending sideways glances at the shiny thing in his room. Satisfied that all the intruder had done was leave him a... present... he proceeds to examine it.

He ought to throw it out.

Or... something.

But what does that crank do? He'll find out, then he'll throw it away.

[Mashiara]

Something tells me she had a feeling it would disrupt the order of his vicious little daily life cycle to find such an innocent thing in his rooms... Just... child's play, if you will.

It would have been nice to have seen what his reaction was in person. She had considered leaving a monitoring fly on the wall, but the chances of the first use of her magical abilities being successful were better with only one thing in the room at once. She was willing to cede her eyes in favor of being as sure as possible that he would get quite a little surprise.

She remembered when she had tried to put him in a dress, chuckling a bit as she recalled how it had rather gone awry.

***

Back in the private sanctum of the Fool, the box sat It began to give off a tiny metallic tinkling that grew as he turned the little handle. It rose up, taking on the sound of little bells. Soon that flourished into chimes, which broke into loud peals, and then clanging and jangling as if every metallic thing in the world were raucously broadcasting the news that he had found the little gift...

Suddenly, however, the jangling all ceased, a hush occuring before a loud Pop! Immediately after that, there was a rush, as though something had been released, and the lid flew open, a slow white vapor beginning to rise.

The vapor began to materialize into a fine gauze, interlacing with something downy and white. It had spread so that four individual objects could be seen, one at each point of the box.

Four voices tinkled in harmony, each a different depth and purity. Slowly, the laces and downy white fell, revealing four pairs of clear, almost silver eyes, which seemed to be the optical version of man-made mirrors. Clearly, however, there was an intelligence behind them that no ghost could possess. The white continued to fall, revealing the same lace, in far less quantity, but no less quality. Silver and white ribbon twined in hair that went from every shade from silvery-blonde to raven-black, the skin of each running from very fair to ebony, again showing the range of the spectrum. On each face, however, was an identical predatorial smirk, as each woman took one step forward, and breathed deeply, nodding to the man onto which all four sets of mirror eyes were a-fixed.

[Akedhi]

He screamed and flung the box against the opposite wall.

"Get out of my room!"

His voice cracked on the last word, as he backed away from the... women? Creatures?

He is going to kill whoever thought this up.

Painfully.

[Mashiara]

You see, these muses, these gorgeous sirens really do not obey voice commands... or any commands, really. Once released from their shimmering prison, then are quite free, and quite palpable.

They move as he does, gaining ground if anything, but not allowing him to get any further from them than he was when they first appeared. Their slender, shapely arms extend, wavering to him, supplicating.

He can certainly try to get revenge... It will be amusing. However, at the moment, he might want to figure out how not the be the victim of these beautiful visions...

[Akedhi]

That's easy.

First off, the box explodes.

Second off, the sheets and blankets and curtains in the room billow away from their usual places and wrap themselves around the horrid things.

The Fool covers his face with his arms and huddles in his corner.

"Stay away from me!"

[Mashiara]

Ah, how lovely. Everyone knows that a corner is the worst place to hide when being chased. The slender forms are twisting in their fabric shrouds, though they are still moving towards him, four shapely forms showing in coloured sillhouettes as they wriggle to get free. A hand and an arm, a leg and slender ankle began to disentangle themselves...

They move nearer now, a soft humming something between a lullaby and a maiden's song starts. A music box, but the little dancer inside is in the form of four very tangible beings. Sort of... palpable illusions, in a way. Very inventive of Vivian, though rather draining...

Still, I think it was worth it. Don't you?

[Akedhi]

The Fool simply won't allow it.

The sheets and curtains and things transform into sheets of molten glass, glowing red and clinging to the figures.

If they were human, they would be dead now. Glass melts at a temperature far, far higher than that endurable by the human body.

The Fool doesn't play nice. Ever.

[Mashiara]

But.

They are not exactly human. The molten glass is enough, however, to properly trap and burn one of the creatures. Two had fallen free of their bonds, and snaked towards him with their hypnotic eyes intent on his girlish form, drawing ever nearer, the closest almost within arms' reach.

The fourth siren-creature was only partially entangled, so that with a screeching, pained noise, she pushes the rest of the glass off, showing horribly scarred and disfigured muscle and bone, the skin burnt away from one side, and nearly three quarters of her face. The hideous creature joins her sisters in the pursuit.

The fourth, entrapped creature, sends out flashes and spangles of shimmering light, vanishing to leave only a slight haze where she had lain.

The other three, however, were still quite focused on the lonely man in the corner. Mmm...

[Akedhi]

He darts between them and snatches the box. (Gymnastic exercises are a wonderful thing - he could probably get away from soldiers coming after him too.)

And hurls it out the window. (Oops, he broke the glass. Oh well.)

It shatters with a soft tinkle on the stone below.

[Mashiara]

As the glass exploded scintillating shards all about the ground and flora beneath the window, a sharp hiss sounded. In a gust of rather forceful wind - particularly for the indoors - the remaining figures were distorted and whipped away in the sudden wind, just as their sister had been.

Along with the windy sound was a rich, relishing chuckle. Obviously someone, somewhere had enjoyed the little show put on for her. In her chambers she tucked her red-slippered feet beneath her with a smug expression, turning over the Grimm-esque mirror in her delicate hand and setting it on her vanity with a little pat to ensure her hair was in place.

What a little dear the Trickster was, yes... Adorable Fooly.