[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Some time later, once the food had been eaten and gifts exchanged, table cleared and wine had been drank, they swayed together in the centre of the room to the soft sounds of the radio, happily lost in each other.

"Thank you for a perfect Valentine's Day" murmured Candy, as she rested her head on his chest, swaying slowly with him as they moved around the room. "You somehow always make each special day even better than the last."

Crax grinned and kissed the top of her head. "I have to keep it special, Princess, as you make each and every day special just by being here with me".

She raised her head to give him a lingering kiss, and together they swayed on, the room lit only by the candles and the moonlight shining in through the window behind them.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

By the second squeak, Crax and Candy had stopped swaying and were looking at the radio with very concerned looks on their faces, thinking that there was something wrong with the speaker, but no - the third squeak came from around their feet, and they looked down together with eyes wide open, arms still wrapped around each other.

There, peeping out from beside Crax's foot, was a small pink bird, who seemed to be gazing up at them in confusion.

"What on earth-" began Crax, as the little bird let out a loud squeak and turned to flee towards the table legs, causing it to trip over and land flat on it's belly.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

The bird began squeaking hysterically, misery somehow etched into its loud noises, and Candy felt her heart break for the tiny creature. In her haste, she barely noticed that she had removed her arms from Crax and turned around to bend down and pick up the tiny squirming bird, which was trying unsteadily to rise to its feet.

The little bird hobbled away from her outstretched hands, and Crax's eyebrows raised even further as it grabbed the edge of the tablecloth in its tiny beak, letting out a soft, muffled squeak as it tugged.

"Careful!" Crax exclaimed, as he reached out to grab Candy by the elbow.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He pulled her back, away from the table and into his arms, as the table cloth and runner slid off the table bringing with them the candlesticks and table decorations, all of which landed on the floor with a series of loud thumps.

Candy darted forward to pour a glass of water onto the small flames which had caught on the red velvet as the candlesticks fell, thankful that she had put it down on the shelf rather than on the table. She saw Crax bending down to examine the holes in the cloth, and glanced around to see where the small bird could have gotten to during the commotion.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"I'm sorry, Princess, I don't know where that little thing has come from." Crax's voice was heavy as he surveyed the damage - the tablecloth was burned in a couple of places, the candles had melted onto it, and one of the candlestick holders had been twisted and bent by the impact on the ground. He turned his head to see if he could spot where it had run off to, and a wiggling mound under the edge of the cloth caught his eye.

"No, Crax, wait-" Candy's urgent whisper came too late, as Crax pulled the cloth off of the small creature, which squeaked in fear and scuttled back onto its feet.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Candy darted forward, but the little creature dived under the cabinet, using its tiny feet to propel it forward on its belly. A soft bump was heard, followed by another set of heart-wrenching squeaks, though these were slightly muffled as they came from under the heavy piece of furniture.

Candy knelt down and peered into the gloom, spotting the trembling creature over in the corner. She reached under the cabinet, but her arms weren't quite long enough to reach it, though she succeeded in making it wiggle even further into the corner to get away from her hand. She sighed, and for a moment she lay peering under the cabinet in thought.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"Crax, what are we going to do - the poor thing seems to be terrified of us" she whispered, glancing around to face him as Crax gave a mild snort of amusement.

"Sorry, Princess - I just can't fathom where this little thing has come from" he murmured, lying down flat on his belly to peer under the cabinet beside her. "I'm not sure if I can reach him, but let me give it a try."

Crax's longer arms were better able to reach under the cabinet, but as his finger tips brushed the tiny bird's foot, it gave a squeak of alarm and scuttled out from under the side of the cabinet, making a shuffling run for the door.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"Candy, the door!" cried Crax, arm still stretched under the cabinet up to his shoulder, but it was too late - the door had been left slightly ajar from when he carried the dirty dishes through to the kitchen, and now he watched the tiny pink bird scramble through it, it's hysterical squeaking sounding from down the hall as soft thumps indicated it had tripped again in its haste to get away.

Crax closed his eyes and groaned. It seemed like his romantic night had been derailed entirely, but he knew the kind-hearted woman at his side would insist on trying to retrieve the tiny bird from wherever it had run off to.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

He watched as she hurried to the door, opening it carefully in case the tiny bird had hidden behind it, and as her curls disappeared around it he pulled his arm out and brushed the dust off of his sleeve, before pulling himself to his feet to follow after her.

He spotted the door to the reading room open at the end of the hallway, and followed the sound of Candy's voice as it mixed with the occasional sound of bumps and squeaking, until he stepped through the doorway to see her on her knees, cooing and making soft sounds as she reached a hand under the sofa.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"Come on sweetheart, we won't hurt you - I just need to get you out of here, okay?" Candy's voice was soft and soothing, and she reached towards the bird slowly, watching it tremble and shuffle away from her outstretched hand. She let her hand drop until it was resting open on the floor, turning to lie on her side so she could better see under the sofa, and cooed at it as the bird slowly shuffled towards her hand.

"Oh!" she exclaimed in surprise, as the bird grabbed her loose bracelet in its beak and tugged it off in one swift motion, scuttling away with its prize held in its beak.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"All right there, Princess?" Came Crax's voice from above her, and Candy rubbed her wrist where the bracelet had caught as the little bird tugged it off, rising to sit beside Crax's feet.

"It stole my bracelet!" she muttered, cheeks pink and slightly annoyed twist to her lips. Crax couldn't help but grin, and she looked up at him as he stroked the top of her head.

"I'm sorry Princess, but it's a little amusing - you were trying so hard to be sweet and encouraging, and then it nicked your bracelet and ran off with it under the armchair." He grinned again, and twisted one of her long curls around his finger.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Candy shook her head, a sheepish smile appearing on her face. "It is a little amusing" she murmured, pushing herself off the floor, "but I'm worried about what will happen if it gets hurt under there, or if it needs the bathroom. A look of alarm flashed across her face. "What if it swallows my bracelet!" she muttered, covering her mouth with her hands as her eyes opened wide in horror.

Crax rubbed her shoulders to comfort her, and nodded his head to where the tiny bird was peeping out from the armchair, bracelet dangling from its beak and head feather slightly squashed from being under the furniture.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

"Try and keep its eyes on you, Princess - I'm going to see if I can sneak up on it" he murmured into her ear, voice low in hopes of not being overheard. Candy nodded her head, and moved over to the bookshelf, sliding down to sit on the floor and gesturing slowly to the little bird as she made cooing noises in the hopes of keeping its attention.

Crax shuffled slowly around the room, climbing onto the sofa so as not to alarm the little bird and making as little noise as possible. He hoped that he would be able to grab the bracelet, at the very least - he too was worried the charms could cause harm to it if swallowed.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Carefully, he climbed onto the armchair above the bird, and reached down slowly, until his fingers were just above its head. At the last moment, the little bird glanced upwards and let out a loud squeak, dropping the bracelet and diving forward out of his reach, to land on its belly once more with another loud set of distressed squeaks echoing around the room.

Candy made to stand as Crax scooped up the bracelet - at the very least, it was no longer in danger of swallowing it - and looked over in dismay as the tiny bird disappeared under the sofa again, another set of muffled squeaks indicating it had either fallen over or bumped its head on something.

[ToxxicRenegadeAngel]

Crax climbed off the armchair and rubbed his temples with one hand as he held the bracelet out to Candy with the other. "Any ideas, Princess?" he asked gently, noting the look of distress and dismay that crossed her face as she stared at the sofa.

"Maybe it will come out if we leave the room?" she whispered, glancing at him before making her way to the door. Crax followed, making as though to turn the lights off out of habit but then second-guessing himself, turning instead to wedge the doorstop under the door so that the little bird wouldn't be in danger of it moving onto it if it came near.