Ceres pointed her staff at him, "Not another step. Drop the flowers and walk away. I don't want to hurt you but I will if I have to."

Eric blinked and held up his hands defensively, "Woah, Ceres, calm down, it's just me, you know, tickle monster? heh..."

"...Yeah. Tell that to Charles who just tried to give me flowers and then tried to knife me when I didn't want them." She backed up, "Just... just stay away from me." She turned and ran for it.

Eric dropped the flowers, rather shocked, "but... Ceres wait!" he called after her.

Everywhere she went on campus there seemed to be someone or another giving her googly eyes, or trying to give her a present or something.

Ceres ran until she reached the edge of campus, where the barrier edge was. She looked back and then forward and continued to run.

Some ways away in a clearing in the forest, Loki was poking fun at a bear, trying to teach it to jump through hoops.

Ceres stumbled into the clearing, not paying attention to her surroundings she tripped around a stump and rolled onto her back. Her staff went flying into a tree and turned back into CoCo would meowed lightly.

She didn't move, her lungs huffing and puffing. She's never run so fast before.

"nonono" Loki sighed, "It's spin jump spin, not jump spin jump" he rolled his eyes, "so hard to find an acrobatic bear these days. Hm?" he looked over at Ceres, appeared next to her and leaned over her, "Heeellloooo there."

Ceres waved weakly, she needed to get her breathing down to a normal rate.

Loki offered her his hand, "Rough day?"

"No. Don't touch me... all the guys... acting weirdly around me..." She gasped, forcing herself to sit up and crawl backward.

Loki elegantly moved his offered hand to a show of compliance, "Well then, that sounds like... an interesting problem" he shrugged, "I suppose if you'd rather, I'll leave you to it then." he turned to head back to his bear, "Hey!" he put his hands on his hips, "did I say you could have a break. We aren't leaving this clearing until you do it right!" he demanded from a rather depressed looking bear. It sighed and crawled back to it's feet to try the routine again.

"Wait...you... you aren't affected?" Ceres got up. Within seconds she was hugging him, "Oh thank the heavens, I thought I was going crazy."

Loki cocked his head as he looked down at her, hugging him, "... not that I terribly mind the appreciation of a grand powerful being... but if we're celebrating your sanity, might I suggest not doing so in the middle of a forest with a bear who can't even twirl?"

Coco was slowly circling the area, his hair on end. He didn't like Loki but he would do nothing unless Ceres told him too.

"Point taken. Ahem. Sorry." She removed herself from him, brushing the spot of him she'd been holding. She looked at the bear, and Coco meowed, "Hm. Well there's no wonder you can't get him to twirl." Ceres walked up to the beast, her hair changing back to pink, "He's got weak ankles...and he seems hungry. Is that it?" She asked gently. The bear got down on all fours and nudged her arm lightly.

"Ah! You're a lifesaver!" Loki proclaimed, "Well I'm bored with it now anyway" he waved his hand and the bear disappeared in green smoke, "So, we should have a feast or something! To celebrate your sanity"

"Ummm. As much as I am hungry, I kinda need to figure out why all the guys are so suddenly attracted to me at the school..."

"You're a woman of great legacy and beauty, of course all the men are attracted to you" Loki shrugged

Ceres blushed lightly, "That may be true but I've never had so many men try and show me affection at once... Charles even got angry." She wrapped her arms around herself, "I've...I've never seen him like that."

Loki looked at her sympathetically, "Well, I hate to be the one to tell you this... but it doesn't entirely surprise me" he sighed, "it was bound to happen sooner or later."

She tilted her head, "What...what do you mean?" She asked taking a step toward him, curiously

"Well, look at yourself" Loki gestured to her, walking circles around her as he spoke, "That human body could put any Azgaurdian to shame-and I don't say that lightly. Not to mention you practically exude the kind of magic that touches the hearts and souls of everyone around you. It's no surprise they're all mistaking it for love. At least back at your home you were surrounded by relatives, people who grew up accustom to you but out here? I even admit, I was caught up by it at first" he sighed, "The difference being, I grew up with the magic of the gods. It's a dance of passion I play every day so... well, I know better."

Ceres looked very sad, looking down at her hands, "...That...That can't be it. Nothing like this has happened to me before. Not even in past lives... What am I gonna do?"

"Are you sure about that?" Loki asked, "It's possible you just never noticed before. How often were you allowed to leave home? How often did every new man in your life, only come up to you because he thought he was in love? How many times did you settle for those men, because you thought they loved the real you?" his voice was barely a whisper, "The truth is, humans only flirt with love, didn't you ever wonder why divorce has skyrocketed? They finally made it acceptable among themselves to do what their nature tells them. To have a fiery passion with as many different partners as they can" he scoffed.

"But...that...." She began, as she began questioning everything. Almost all of her past lives she was betrothed to another. She'd never had a chance to pick for herself... Now that she did... She sat down under a tree, her arms around her knees. "If that's true... what am I going to do?" CoCo sat down beside her, his ears down.