Freign Dear

“Dvalinn, Dvalinn- man get back here please, it's too early for this.”

The imp, ignoring his owner's pleas, continued to prance about in the snow, it's white coat making it near impossible to see, with the only visible part being the icy antlers upon its head, shimmering in the daylight. He danced through the fresh layer of snow, leaving barely a hoofprint, as his owner trudged through the blanket of powder behind him.

“Man, cmon. I know you enjoy it, but I'm really not dressed well enough for this. I'm not in the mood for frostbite today, mate.”

Zepp gave out a heavy sigh, watching the playful freign dance through the falling snow ahead of him. Still in his pyjamas, with nothing more than a jacket and boots to protect him from the frosty morning air, he continued after the escaped imp, trying to convince the freign to come back to him. Further and further away from the warmth of their home he brought him, until Zepp found himself at the edge of the forest, where he had first discovered his companion. 

“Was around here I first found ya, huh? Yeah I remember, but cmon we can come back here later, first I need to-”

The snap of a twig echoed from the shadows of the trees. The imp, startled, dashed back towards his owner, and did his best to hide himself behind his legs. Eyes fixed on the source of the noise, the succubun took a step backwards, almost tripping over the freign.

“It's okay, there's nothing dangerous in there… right?” He lacked the typical confidence he had in his tone, almost as if he was trying to convince himself more than the imp. “Let's just back away, slowl-”

Another crunch. The imp started to dash along the surface of the snow, finding a spot to hide in some icicle covered shrubbery. Zepp himself tried to follow, but lost his footing after a few steps, slipping into the icy powder layering the earth. He turned back to the source of the sound, fear filling his eyes.

Out of the thicket, bounced a small, dark, creature, with soft antlers and ears adorning its head. Another freign, similar to Dvalinn when Zepp had first found him. Before he had figured out how to open the freezer. Relief washed over the bun, and he carefully picked himself up from the ice he fell on. 

“Hey little guy, it's okay. Not gonna hurt ya,” he chimed, softly, taking small, careful steps towards the wild imp, doing his best to prevent himself shivering from the cold air and ice clinging to his clothing, as to not startle the creature. 

The imp kept its large, white eyes locked on the pride bun. It held its ground, but its nervousness was almost impossible to miss. At any point, any sudden move or startling sound, it was prepared to dash back into the undergrowth.

“Hey, look at this, lil fella. Think I might got something you might like, want to try it?” Usually he kept a couple of imp treats in his jacket, mainly for when Huginn and Muninn broke out to start causing mischief. The bribery no longer would work on Dvalinn, but just maybe, it would on this friegn. Slowly withdrawing a treat from his jacket pocket, he dropped a knee down into the snow, about five meters from where the dark coated imp stood. 

“This look nice, lil guy?” He held the treat up, showing it to the wild imp. “They're tasty, want it?” The creature just stared back at him, cocking it's head slightly, but still unmoving. He tossed the treat forward about two meters, just before the halfway point between the pair. And he waited. 

The imps eyes dashed between the bun and the treat in front of it, clearly debating whether or not it wanted to get the treat, or stay away from the large creature just on the other side of it. It remained unmoving, and after a few minutes, it's gaze returned to only Zepp. 

By this point, the cold was really starting to get to the poor bun. His pyjamas were soaked by snow, ice was beginning to cling to the fur of his ears, and his fingers and toes beginning to feel numb. He returned to his feet and turned. “Okay then, I'll leave you be.” He began walking back towards where Dvalinn stood, his own imp no longer in hiding. He ran a hand through his white fur. He began to feel walk away, leaving the wild freign and treat in the snow. “Let's go home, mate, before I get frozen out here.”

He turned his head back once to look at the wild imp, who now was sniffing the treat, before picking it up and swallowing it down. He then set his sights back to his own imp, and then on the pathway back home. “A little disappointing, but it's alright. Still got you, bud,” he muttered to himself.

As they were coming close to their home, he felt a tug on his jacket. “Man you know you're not allowed-” he glanced down, expecting to see Dvalinn trying to sneak a snack from his pocket. Instead of his snow white fur, it was the dark coat of the wild freign. Upon being noticed, it bounced backwards a few feet.

“Oh, you want another one, I'm guessing?” He withdrew another treat, and offered it towards the wild imp. Hesitantly, it stepped forward, but eventually took the treat out of his hand. He gently moved his hand to the fur surrounding the creatures neck, expecting it to bolt, but instead it let him run it through the fluffy coat. 

“Dvalinn, guess you've got a new buddy now.” He placed his other hand on the white deer’s head, who was headbutting him, jealous of the attention the black one was getting. “You need a name, though, how about…” He pondered for a few moments. “Dáinn?”

The dark imp snuggled in closer to his arm. 

“I guess I'll take that as a yes, then, okay?”

He brought the pair up into his apartment, where the other imps were still sound asleep. “I'll figure out a bed and stuff for you in a bit, first I need to get out of this shit before I'm an ice cube. Please try not to wake Flint before I'm back. He mightn't be too happy to find I've brought another imp back without asking him first.”

He left the two freigns alone to play, as he went to the bathroom to remove his chilly, damp clothes, and take a nice, steamy hot shower.