Taming Freign

Chimera often took walks deep into the forest. He stayed away from the city as often as he could, he wasn't ashamed to admit he found most people irritating and loud. Bumping shoulders with his fellow Succubuns didn't fulfill him like some of his other more socially inclined littermates. The sloth bun enjoyed the quiet of his home in the outskirts with his lovely wife and herd of imps. Today after he brought Hutch a rehabilitated imp, he felt the itch under his skin to escape the noise. That led him to these walks. Walking further and further away from the city, the buzz dying out to the chittering of wild imps and rush of wind. 

Chimera huffed as he looked at his Impup, Iceberg, rolling around in the snow and doing circles around his legs as they walked. The little imp was much more excitable around the snow after it snuck a ice cream mochi off the table a few days ago (the little scamp). It was a cute foil to his Loafki, Bread, who sulked on his shoulder, the fiendish traits standing out against the white landscape. He adored both his pets and tried to take them everywhere with him, he knew they especially appreciated these little adventures into the woods. 

The bun turned his eyes away from Iceberg and up towards the sky. The dark trees stretched as far as the eye could see, spreading their leaves and occasionally letting snow fall down to the floor below. His breath fogged in front of him as he sighed out a deep breath. He could feel the tension slip off him like shedding a second skin. Chimera leaned his face further into his Loafki's fur, the imp radiating heat from its fiendish state. The comfort of the warmth only added to the feeling of deep relaxation. He closed his eyes and breathed a few deep breaths. 

His impup pawing at his leg and jumping around him frantically drew his attention away from his inner musings. He opened his mouth and turned around, only to find the words stolen from him. Chimera had heard of Freigns before, read about them in Hutch's books but seeing one in person was an entirely different experience. It was much smaller than Chimera was in his bun form. Its black fur seemed like a void against the white snow around it, only its large white eyes and lighter blue markings blending in with its surroundings. 

It seemed as if time stood still while the elusive imp and Chimera stared at each other. He didn't know how long had passed before Iceberg prancing closer to the Freign broke their standoff. The Freign hesitated at Iceberg’s approach, shifted its legs as if debating if it wanted to dash away from them or not.  It seemed that Iceberg could sense its hesitation and stopped its approach. The Impup bowed into a playful stance, its curled tail wagging a mile a minute with his joy at seeing a new friend. 

Chimera couldn't help but huff out a laugh at his impup's playful, silly behavior. He eyed the wild imp carefully before slowly lowering himself so he sat with his legs crossed. He reached up to Bread and picked them up off his shoulder, placing them down on the snowy floor next to him. The Loafki grumbled, displeased at getting its tiny paws cold and wet from the snowy ground. It side-eyed Chimera briefly before padding up to the Freign without a care in the world. Bread plopped down next to the imp and settled against its side. The Freign seemed shocked at the carefree way in which the other imp walked up to it and seemed to settle in as well. It was an endearing and rare sight to see all 3 of the imps grow comfortable with each other. 

Shifting, Chimera started to dig through his pockets. Wallet, no. Cellphone, no. Imp treats, yes. The sloth bun pulled out the baggy of homemade treats (a mashed up ball of plain mochi dough, cheese and sugar) and watched as his pets perked up at the sound of the bag opening. Bread got up and began to waddle over, while Iceberg was sitting before Chimera in a blink of an eye. The Freign seemed shocked at how fast the other imps returned to the sloth bun at a mere sound. It tilted its head in confusion as it shifted a few inches closer, raising its snout to get a better look at what Chimera had in his hands. The Succubun, seeing this, raised a treat up so the wild imp could see what it was. After he was sure they’d gotten a look, he ducked his head back down to look at his impup. Chimera went through the quick series of tricks he taught Iceberg, sit, paw, roll over, play dead, before tossing the treat in the air for it to catch. After it caught the treat, Chimera pet his cold fur before turning to give Bread his treat (Chimera has long given up trying to teach his Loafki any tricks, Bread was a sassy little imp and wouldn’t do tricks on command like his other pets).

The Freign watched enthralled by the snack its new friends were getting. Chimera held out one of the treats towards it, holding back Iceberg from snatching it out of his hands. He watched with bated breath as the wild imp approached tentatively, nibbling at the treat held out to it. Chimera’s two pets excitedly nuzzled up to their new pack mate as Chimera ran a gentle hand down Freign’s back. He sighed as he hoped his wife wouldn’t kill him for bringing home yet another pet.