Derain smiled and pulled her from the kitchen as the animals heard the door click they all came running he laughed and smiled at her. He brought her hand to hi mot and kissed it before letting their hands fall to thier sides.

He looked at the dogs and cats rub against her legs in bids for attention.... all togethe there were ten of them... he looked up to the sky then caught sight of Blaze, he was hiding in a bush no doub wanting to be playful... he quickly let go of her hand and stepped away before the tiger pounced him to the ground to lick his face happily as it purred and rubbed itself against him.

She blushed when Derain had kissed her hand, letting her hand fall to her side after he'd let go of it. She watched him and the animals rushing around them. Crystal nearly jumped back when she saw the tiger jump out. She didn't understand why there was a need for so many animals, it was strange enough to have a tiger, but to have ten cats and dogs seemed to be a bit over board in her opinion. Her heart beat was racing as she felt herself tense where she was, letting her fingers trace along the back of one of the dogs.

Derain groaned and then looked up at her expectantly. He shook his head and then pushed Blaze off of him... He petted the tigers head and then cooed softly to it... He was a big kitten. He sighed and then petted and scratched ears and bodies and shook paws. He smiled and called all the animals by name as he laughed and played with them.

He got up and ran in circles letting them chase him as Blaze crept up to Crystal and bumpped her legs for attention.

Crystal jumped back when the tiger first approached her but let herself relax a little more. She'd learned too much on the news of exotic pets gone bad. She put her hand tentatively on the tiger before stroking him gently and then scratching behind the tiger's ears gently. This just seemed too unrealistic to her and she was still trying to absorb all of these things.

Derain laughed as he watched the cat turn to puddy in her hands. He purred loudly and licked her leg enthusiasticaly. He took a stick and wove it in front of the dogs and tossed it back further down the path. The cats took off after the dogs wagging tails and Derain sat on the ground sighing in cotentment before reaching to stroke White Blaze's belly... He loved the animals he kept here. Maybe next time he could take her to the reserve.

Crystal felt uncomfortable but as the cat seemed to like her she began to feel a little more comfortable than before. She smiled slightly as she continued to stroke the cat. She bent down slightly so she could be closer to Derain, not really comfortable with being net to such a large cat. "How old is she," Crystal asked, her hand accidently touching his.

"He just turned two the other day... he's really just a baby, I think he'll get bigger... I got him when he was still the size of a small dog... I couldn't leave him, his mother was beaten to death by her tamer and he wouldn't survive without someone taking care of him, why not me? He's turned out well and quite affectionate, he pouts when he doesn't get attention and he never bites or claws... unless you break into the house... but then he just chases them around......" he trailed off babbling about the great cat that had become a part of his household. He smiled and took her free hand in his and drew her down to sit next to him.

The tiger not being outdone laid his head on her lap and rubbed against her. Spoiled brat! Derain chuckled and then kissed her temple.

Crystal shifted where she was and allowed him to bring her next to him. When the tiger laid it's head in her lap she laughed slightly. "Why did you decide to go to this school," she asked realizing again that he was the other new student at the school. She wasn't realizing that this could cause problems. She didn't realize that mentioning this in the first place could put her in the position to cause more trouble than she could handle.

He thought silently for a moment. "I wanted to be a normal kid..." was all he said, it was quietly whispered and wasn't really inviting in the way of another question. He didn't want to slip and tell her who he actually was, he wanted to be able to trust this girl completly first.

He bit his lip nervously and turned away from her slightly, his body tensed and coiled, his hand squezzing hers a little harder. He clutched his other hand in his lap, not realizing what he was doing. His fear clearly written in his body.

Crystal listened intently and when she knew she was free and clear of things she relaxed a little. When she felt her hand get squeezed a little harder she tried to get out of his grasp. "You're hurting my hand," she finally said as she squirmed slightly. "You're squeezing my hand too hard."

He dropped her hand quickly and clutched his hands together nervously. He turned further away from her before getting up and walking away silently.

"I'm sorry." was all he said before continuing farther down the path and once he knew he was out of sight he leaned against and old tree and just sighed.

((Sorry about the late response, finals week))

Crystal watched him as he stood up and walked away from her. She was confused, if she'd done something she would have preferred him to tell her. When he was out of sight she stood up quickly. She didn't want to be here alone, she was scared that someone would see her and accuse her of trespassing.

"Derain," she called in a pleading tone. "If I did anything I'm sorry, and my hand is fine, it's no big deal." She wasn't sure where she was going when she wandered into the forest, she wasn't used to having to actually look for someone.

"No... it's nothing." he whispered quietly contemplating his thoughts and throwing occasional glances her way. How could he tell her what was bothering him? There was nothing for him to say to her about his lack of control, or the fact that he was insecure. He didn't think that it bore saying. He'd rather settle into a comfortable silence, that would just allow him to study her closer.

This was turning out to be such a disaster, he was a klutz and he'd hurt her even worse. He gave a loud groan and hit his head on the tree before rubbing it and then groaning again. He was such an idiot and hoped that she would forgive him. But maybe first he should work on building a relationship with her then leave the hard stuff for later.

(Sorry as I told you in my message, stuff been poppin lately... and I may just have more freetime on my hands tomorrow for about a week.)

When she found him she let out a soft sigh. She wasn't sure what to do in this situation. It wasn't like you saw someone hitting their head on a tree trunk every day. She stepped for momentarily before stepping back again. "Do you want me to leave," she asked as she held her hands behind her back.

"I mean if I'm being bothersome I can leave, if you need to do anything that is," she felt ashamed of herself for some reason. Maybe she should have just tolerated the pain she felt in her hand. He wouldn't have run off like that. She fidgeted slightly as she tried to find the right stance so she'd be comfortable.

Derain tensed a little and stopped banging his head immediately. How could he tell her about his insecurities. From his relationship with Ashely he'd learned never to reveal personal things. And that was a relationship that he'd actually wanted. How could he tell her he was actually scared, and unsure?

He didn't know what to do... he thought miserably. He liked this girl and wanted to show her that, if only he knew how. He forced a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "No, I want you to stay, I'm sorry about your hand..."

Crystal let herself relax. As long as he wanted her around it would make her job a little easier. She stepped forward and took his hand in her own.

"It's okay," Crystal said. "My hand doesn't hurt. It's okay." She smiled at him and wanted to know what they would be doing next. Her stomach growled slightly but she ignored it.

Derain stood silently before whistling softly, letting the animals know he was going inside. He slowly walked up the path with Crystal in hand. After closing the doors behind him he point silently to the counter and began to remove items from the fridge to eat. He pulled out two green apples and some nutrients bars. He then took some lettuce and tossed it into a bowl before crumbling the bars and slicing the apples, he took some oranges out and peeled them and tossed them in. He tossed the whole bowl and then placed it before her before getting two forks. He began to eat it as silently as he'd done the rest.

Crystal followed him quietly not sure what to say. It was odd that he was being so silent when he'd seemed talkative earlier. As he was fixing the food she sat down in the chair silently, watching as he moved around in his own environment. When he brought the forks over she started eating also. "Thank you for making some food," she said quietly before taking a bite.

"No problem." He said digging in to the healthy salad. Eyeing her a bit shyly he wanted to say what he was feeling, but didn't know how. His mind boggled at the possibilites that were presented if he told her about himself.

He knew that all girls weren't like Ashley and was grateful to his sisters for that, but still didn't know how to further his cause. He wanted to talk to her honestly, as his Gran had always told him, 'Honesty is the BEST policy'.

Crystal was only partially aware that Derain was watching her to some degree. At times she could be entirely clueless of these things. She continued eating the salad, glad that it wasn't as boring as she expected it to be. She would have prefered something less 'healthy' per say but the food was delicious nonetheless. "When are you going to be back at school," she asked not really wanting to know the answer. There would be reports to give to her parents about whatever he did and if he wasn't at school she would be punished for it. She wouldn't tell him this though. It would give away too much about what her purpose was.

When she was thinking about this she suddenly felt sick to her stomach. She felt guilty about what she'd done to others to get certain business partners for her parents. If she had to do it again to Derain she wouldn't be able to handle anything else. She stopped eating and put the fork down. Putting her hand over her eyes to cover the expression.

Derain had been watching her and quietly stood and walked over to her. While he still didn't know how to say what he felt, he could give her comfort and protection. He stood behind her and hugged her gently before taking the hand she covered her eyes with and brought it to his mouth to kiss.

He leaned down and turned her head gently towards his, and softly kissed her eyelids. After drawing back slightly he whispered. "Just long enough to take care of business, I'll mostly be home though... you can come and visit."

Crystal was taken aback by how forward he was. She could feel herself blush but was comforted by his words. She wasn't sure what was going through her mind now. All she could think about was him. She nodded though so he didn't think she was in a trance. "All right," she said. "What kind of business is it that you need to do?" She felt like she was being nosy but it was something she wanted to know about, not because it would help her get his business but because she was genuinely curious.

"My inheritance. I don't really wanna speak about it. I feel it may put an even bigger gap between us. Then how would I sweep the fair maiden off her feet?" he chuckled and looked down at her tenderly.

He still couldn't really say how long he'd be gone... but what could he do? He had to go to Cali to handle a deal and that could take a couple of weeks...... that he wasn't looking forward to, but he was looking forward to being with Crystal.

"Inheritance?" Crystal questioned trying not to smile. "But isn't it a little early to be thinking about that, I mean your parents are still alive, right?" She hated being this inquisitive but she knew she could get good details to report to her parents. Half of her was regretting asking the question because he didn't really know who she was. He probably thought he was just another girl from a middle class family.

"It's my father's wish... and part of the deal is I have to attend to business like a man... Even though I'm a high school student. It gets tiring after a while." Derain smiled at her wondering what they could do in this house that held many amusements.

"Hey wanna go somewhere fun?" he suddenly asked changing the subject. Dad's company was the last thing he wanted to talk about.