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Rowena Fenning was in a state of shock. She was standing pressed against a wall, staring at the bright red colour of the silky material she had pulled out of the box she'd found on her bed upon entering her new dorm. It looked like she was trying to push herself back through the wall, and, to be honest, if that had happened she would have been very happy. It would have meant that she could run very far away from that dress, which she hadn't even properly looked at yet, and very far away from the ball she'd read about in a note that lay crumpled on the floor where she'd dropped it.

Now, normally, Roe was the very image of propriety and poise, calm and collected. Ladylike is a good word to describe, and ladylike does not do well when applied to her face right about now. 'Horror' does better, as does 'terror'. She couldn't wear that colour! That was... bright, and, and, and seductive, and attention-catching! No - it was attention-demanding. And poor shy Miss. Fenning went to rather a lot of trouble to escape the attention of others, for very particular reasons, not least because she was shy. Painfully so.

Everyone has their bad days, but for her, every day was a bad day. Her shyness was like a wall between her and the rest of the world, and it didn't help that half of them frightened her even worse by happening to be the reincarnations of very big animals with very big teeth. Or hunters. The mere thought of guns made her shiver, as though simply thinking about them might bring someone who knew how to use one and with violence on their mind.

She could hear a noise, coming from somewhere nearby, and knew that one of her other roommates must have arrived. It didn't really help much; in fact, her terror was now torn between the stranger walking around their quarters and the foreboding red material lying with silken allure on her bed. Wear me, it called to her, beguilingly. Wear me, and dazzle. Rowena closed her eyes and sank to the floor, irrationally putting her hands over her ears. Curled in a ball, she wished the box on her bed and the note on the floor away.

But wishing, in real life, rarely leads to results.

As Jed walked to his dorm room, he whistled and twirled the keys in his hand around his index finger. He was in a good mood today. Which was odd, considering it was an average day; good and bad had occurred, but it was just easier for him to focus on the good on this particular day. Certainly nothing could bring him down. As Jed finally reached his door, he paused for a moment, ruffling his hair to make sure it was suitably messy and glancing down at his shoes to make sure both were tied. Roe was probably inside. Rowena Fenning, his... well, his wife to be. Jed didn't know if he was comfortable with the wife part, but... well, she was awfully pretty. And really quite nice when you got over the shyness. Although Jed resented the idea of arranged marriage, Rowena seemed like just the sort of girl for him; and, after all, he could have gotten some horrible girl for his betrothed like... like Morgan Scott.

Turning the key in the lock, Jed opened the door and continued whistling. It was a tuneless song, the sort that you make up as you go along. His father used to do the same thing, and Jed wanted to be just like the man. Jed tossed the keys onto his bed in a practiced motion, but stopped when he heard the keys hit an unfamiliar object with a clank! He turned and saw a cardboard box sitting atop his comforter, and he walked over to it to read the note on top explaining that this was to be his outfit for the beach party, and it was mandatory that he read it. He was expecting a pair of uniform swim trunks, maybe a bow tie, something along those lines. But then he'd forgotten he went to a school that supported co-ed dorms, and classes with names like "How Not to Be a Pansy Prince."

As Jed opened the box and tore through the flimsy tissue paper, he dropped it in dismay. "You've got to be kidding me..." he mumbled under his breath. It was pink. And not only was it pink, there was a pink top hat, and a pink cane, and...

Jed put a hand to his hair to nervously flatten it down before mussing it up once more. He looked around the room, wondering if perhaps there was a pair of fairy wings the Headmistresses might want him to wear to the party as well, when his eyes fell upon Rowena. He'd completely overlooked her, so caught up was he in his own drama, that he didn't notice the girl, resting in fetal position against the wall. "...Rowena?" he asked, keeping his voice soft so as not to startle her. "What's wrong?" Jed walked toward her, and in the process he stumbled across the girl's own box. He glanced at Rowena with concern written across his face before pulling the dress out of the box.

It was certainly pretty, if not a little too formal for... well, for a beachfront ball. But, then again, it was fitting when one took into consideration the outfit he would be wearing. Most importantly, though, it was daring. It was bold. The color would grab anyone's attention the moment she walked into the room; or, rather, onto the shore. It wasn't Rowena at all. "Well," he said, fishing for words of encouragement. "That's... that's quite a color."

She could hear movement, even though her hands were pressed desperately over her ears, and she cringed inwardly, her lips moving in the soundless plea for whomever it was to 'just go, just go, just go, just go'. To be honest, as she sat there, Roe was experiencing something incredibly similar to her own personal hell. She could feel the dress now, watching her, her fear of what it represented making it come alive in her active imagination. She shivered and pressed her hands more firmly against the sides of her head, the vauge thought passing through her head that it was a good thing that her hair was up in a no-nonsense bun today, otherwise she may not have been able to get such a good hold.

As the door swung open, she shrunk back against the wall, not daring to open her eyes and see who it was. Hopefully they would not notice her, squashed against the wall as she was, and they would leave just as they had arrived, blissfully unaware of the trouble they were causing. She had no idea who her roommate was for this new year, as the crowd around the list had been too much for her. All she had found out was her room number, nothing more. She had been able to take some minor comfort from the fact that, although the dorms were co-ed, her roommate was going to be female... but right now she wasn't all that sure. She could hear the intruder whistling, and it sure didn't sound like a feminine whistle to her.

A new fear chilled her insides, and she wished herself invisible for the umpteenth time this minute. She could hear... him... moving around, seeing the box on... his... bed. No, no! He was going to open it, and he was going to start getting dressed. She had no doubt that the box contained, as hers had, an outfit for the beachfront ball, and her cheeks flamed red at the mere prospect, overriding for a brief moment her own fears regarding said ball and the dress sitting accusingly in her opened box. Curling herself tighter inwards, she squeezed her eyes more firmly closed and tried to make herself wake up. This had to be a nightmare - no real day could possibly be this bad, could it?

"You've got to be kidding me..."

Any doubts she had about the identity of the interloper were wiped away by that simple disbelieving utterance. The voice was distinctly male, and she even thought she recognised it. Jed. Now more than ever she wanted the floor to open and swallow her whole - not only was she trapped in a room with her terrifying outfit and a boy presumably about to get undressed, but said boy also happened to be her... betrothed. The prospect made a shudder pass through her, unbidden, and she steeled herself to run. She couldn't stay here another moment - she had to be free of this, even if she had to run into the sea itself!

"...Rowena? What's wrong?"

No! Don't speak to me. Don't notice me. Go away! Rowena shook her head, fingers splaying across her dark hair as she did so. Like a child, she had almost believed that if she couldn't see him he wouldn't see her... but of course, it had been inevitable that he turn and see her. Oh, if only he would just leave, to give her time to dry her eyes of the tears that were beginning to leak onto the fabric of her sensible gray skirt and to get away from here. The more she thought about it, the more necessary it seemed to her to be running, far far away from this. When she ran, she could be free.

"Well, that's... that's quite a color."

He wasn't going away! Roe's head snapped up and she got to her feet in a single fluid motion, stepping forward before her head had quite processed what she was doing and snatching the horribly beautiful dress out of Jed's hands. Without saying a word she fled to the tiny bathroom linked to the room, slamming the door behind her and bursting into tears on the other side. The red dress slipping out of her numb fingers, she leaned against the door and put her head in her hands, unable to stop herself from crying. This is so stupid a voice in her head pointed out, and you really behaved rather badly there. It wasn't his choice of a dress. Which of course made her feel even worse. She had simply lost control for a moment or two there, giving in the animal urge to flee the scene of her terror.

Looking down at the red dress, she picked it up slowly, hesitantly, as though it might bite her. It really was beautiful, and for a moment she yearned to put it on. It was just so soft in her hands, flowing over her fingers with liquid gentleness, and the colour was... dazzling, yes. But she couldn't wear such a thing. It was far to revealing, far too - too dangerous. That was the word she had been searching for, the perfect one to describe the dress in her hands. Dangerous. And oh, so alluring...

"Never Look a Gift(ed) Horse In the Mouth; part one."

He felt bad for them. Really. Parvana had trapped the whole of the student body between a threat and public humiliation. He could only imagine what mental repercussions would stem from this in his office. I mean, they were already trapped on an island (which never resorted in some of the more dangerous side effects of isolation of that sort, surprisingly) and now they were not only trapped but also governed by a tyrant whose goal was to fashion minions rather than fashion adults. He snorts, inside and out. Khan never really disagreed with him. They were two parts of one whole, and hell if Doyle was going to argue over galloping about versus dealing with all the stress of being cooped in some tiny office room. He had gotten the notice that there was going to be one girl to be treated special this ball, for accomplishing the highest grades in the former year. She was going to be given a ride. He chuckled low in his throat as Khan perked up. For all that most horses hated the bit and technically amateur riders, Khan was always up for giving rides. He was a gentle soul beside his veteran warrior status. He knew the poor girl would be in such poor shape with her designated wear, but honestly he was glad she was not decked in pink or green. I mean, a black stallion with pink or even green bows? It would be his own kind of terror. Not a kind thought process there, friends. Not at all.

Rowena.

She was the lovely doll-faced girl with horrid case of the flaky shakes. He could see it in the way she walked, the way that she hid behind her books when she walked, the way that her lovely eyes never quite met those of her peers. And yet paired with the handsome Jed. The boy with the wild western sky in his head, the heat of the plains on his breath, and the dust of the earth in his heart. Such differences, and yet what a fitting pair to weed out their intricate issues. Him with feeling trapped and needing to protect, her needing protection and yet doting as any doe could be. A small grin crosses his mouth as Khan rolled his eyes at the thought of Jed. It was not as though Khan was a real irritable brute, but he never had understood the freedom that Spirit had. He had always been given plenty of range to run, but enjoyed the comfort of a kind hand and a decent rider. Doyle's eyes shift to and fro as he stepped up the stairs and made it to Rowena's floor. Oh this was going to be priceless. She wouldn't even know it was him out there. (If there was anything Doyle was good at, it was being inconspicuous.) He hands the note to a young man smelling of Big Cat and sends Benji Gatti to give her the note. The boy would be quick about it, he knew, because the draw to prey animals was one the boy liked to avoid out of courtesy.

When he heard. "Look, I just was told to give you this." and saw Benji leave, he made his way downstairs again.

It would say...

"Dear Ms. Rowena Fenning,

For your great pains in the past year you have spent with us, you have been given the opportunity to spare your feet the walk to the beach. We have prepared a horse to share in your escort down to the beach. Contact your betrothed, for he shall aid you in the ride, be it on or off the animal. You are welcome to take your time to come to the party, if you wish to first take the provided picnic basket for a side trip. Upon a two hour time, approximately, we will be preparing for fireworks. You are required to have returned by the first explosion.

Thank you for your hard work, Miss.

THE HEADMISTRESSES AND TEACHERS OF NEMARE."

He settled into the feeling of the outdoors as he made his way to stand outside of the lobby. He made sure none could see before flowing out and becoming Khan. He had found Rowena in his time spent recruiting out of the school and it was rewarding to be able to give her some time to just her and her betrothed. He knew it wouldn't be perfect, as obviously she would hate her dress (most people did in some form or another) but he could try. A good horse can always help pass the time. He had trained a little in the past week to keep Khan's gait even and smooth and he could boast having become much much better already. When he felt Khan getting dancey, he let the change overcome him. A smooth crackling of silver sparks flowed as Khan jumped. It was as though someone turned Doyle inside out to find a horse on the flip-side. He whinnies and inspects himself through the equine eyes. His usually buzzed mane was let grow, and in intermittent braids and strands there were brilliant red bows and pink roses woven directly into his crest-hair. His bridle was a bright silver and his saddle was a bareback saddle (as the leather ones had been decidedly too hard for a lady to ride in a dress) of silver whose blanket looked as though it were melted and falling in a waterfall over the entirety of his barrel. He was quite the spectacle, but still he trotted to find her window and stood in all that equine handsomeness for her to assess.

He was excited, Khan was excited. He could not wait to see what the night would do for them, though honestly he planned more to lean back and let Khan do the watching. Kids should be allowed their courtship at least to be on their own terms and without supervision once in a while. He allowed the 'animal' look glaze over his eyes as he waited. Another perfected trick. He was never caught before, even the headmistress that played Spirit's Mother had mistook him for a horse when he was hired and had slept as Khan in the stables. Horses or not, his ability to look the part of a dumb animal was both fun and successful.

Mmm. Dandelion.

Jed had grown up with a younger sister who was about three years younger than him, and four years younger than Rowena (or so he guessed, anyway). But, boy, could he see the similarities. Or perhaps that was just girls in general. You said things, and you didn't even mean anything by it, and then they exploded into tears like a pipe that had burst. And things had gotten even more dangerous now that Johanna had hit puberty; or, now that she was "turning into a woman" as Mrs. Dawson called it. Whatever it was, simple questions could really set Johanna off. Once, Jed had asked Johanna what was a completely innocent question: "What did you to your hair? It looks different." And then Johanna had lost it. "What's that supposed to mean?!" she asked, her face going all red and blotchy, her nose shining brightly as she streaked past him and into her bedroom, slamming her door for good measure.

Girls. They were definitely a mystery to him. Case in point; Rowena Fenning. One minute, she's curled up on the ground, cradling her head, motionless to the point that Jed had been tempted to nudge her with his foot just to make sure she was alive (naturally, he knew better). And after he said one infintesimal thing about the color of her dress, she rears up and snatches the dress right out of his hands like his hands might smear stains on the fabric. Jed couldn't even pretend to understand Rowena as she sprinted into the bedroom, slamming the door in his face like he'd said something to personally scorn her. And she did all of this without a single word of explanation to him!

He remained where he'd been standing, his mouth slightly agape, as he tried to fathom the situation. Jed let his hands fall to his sides while he went over each word he'd said in his mind. Well. That's. Some. Color. Or maybe he'd said that's a color. Had he said it was quite a color? Did that even matter though?! Truth be told, Jed didn't know if it mattered. Still, he had no idea why Rowena would be angry. Unless... well, maybe she liked the color. Maybe she liked the dress in general. But then why would she be curled up with her back against the wall?

...Maybe she'd been so enthralled by the dress that she'd lost all ability to stand, or even speak. And so she'd curled up on the ground, and... cried. Or maybe that was what all girls actually did before they went out, or when they got really excited. They cried. Jed wouldn't be surprised and, after all, he didn't know Rowena's life, exactly. But no matter how hard he tried, he simply couldn't see Rowena particularly excited about the dress. He sat down on his bed and glanced at the clock. Only a minute had passed since Rowena had fleed into the bathroom, and he could still hear her crying. It was a sound that ached throughout his body with each resounding sob, and Jed flattened his hair a second time, something that he typically avoided doing more than once an hour. And here he was, doing it twice in five minutes. All he'd done was state the obvious!

It was an epiphany. Maybe that was just it. Maybe that was exactly what Rowena was thinking; that it was some color. The kind of color she didn't feel comfortable with. And when he'd said it out loud, it was too much for her. That had to be it. Hopefully that was it. Jed approached the door and knocked gently. He'd never been in this situation before; when Johanna cried, Mrs. Dawson was there to talk her out of it. Was he going to have to do that with Rowena? "C'mon, Rowena," he began, keeping his voice gentle. "It's a... it's a great dress! You'll look great!" Could he sound any dumber? "It could be worse, right? It could be... really ugly. It could be a really ugly color. Like brown or..." Was brown an ugly color to girls? He didn't know. Glancing at his bed, Jed looked at his own bed and stared at the pink tuxedo. Perfect. "Hey, d'you want know what I have to wear?"

There was a knock at the door. Jed walked over and peered through the peep-hole to see a boy he'd never met staring at the door expectantly, a letter in his hand. He could have been there for anybody; he could have been for Jed. But instead, Jed stretched the truth and said, "Someone's at the door for you, Rowena. I don't know him, so he's gotta be here for you. You want me to get it for you, or are you gonna come out?"

Rowena knew she was being ridiculous, knew that she was being incredibly unfair on Jed, knew that she was making an utter fool of herself. But she also knew that there was no way, come hell or high water, that she was going to come out of this bathroom. They could all go to their party and have fun, and she could stay here and be... safe.

To someone who didn't know her, this kind of reaction to a simple dress would seem out of proportion, but it wasn't about the dress. Not really. The thought of a party scared Roe more than she'd care to admit. Parties meant people, and having to socialise with people. It would mean being unable to fade into the background as she usually did, being exposed. And for her, and for the shy deer hidden deep within her soul, that was more than she could stand.

A knock on the door behind her startled her, and she moved rapidly away from it, clutching the red dress to her chest instinctively. Standing in the middle of the room, she hiccoughed quietly to herself, and heard Jed's voice through the door. Calming. Quiet. Just the tone, as it were, to calm a spooked horse. A spooked Rowena, more like; her breathing was ragged as she tried to get a hold of herself, trying to think of a way she could tell him to just leave her alone without hurting him. That was all she needed now.

"C'mon, Rowena. It's a... it's a great dress! You'll look great! It could be worse, right? It could be... really ugly. It could be a really ugly color. Like brown or..."

She wasn't really listening to what he said, her thoughts too distracted by the glimpse of herself she had caught in the mirror stretched across the wall. His tone of voice was what mattered, anyway. Staring at herself, wide-eyed, almost surprised out of her crying, she was captivated by her appearance. Tears were still spilling from her eyes, and her face was horribly splotchy and red, the way it always went when she'd been crying. Well, at least that'll match the dress, huh? said the more cynical part of her brain. Lifting a hand numbly, the girl wiped her cheek and stared at herself in horror - as if this day was not bad enough, now she looked as terrible as she felt.

Looking down at the dress in her hands, Roe's slightly parted lips closed, a resigned expression on her face. Cinderella wasn't going to the ball after all, not looking like she did. In a way, it was almost a relief, to have given herself the excuse she required, but... the dress still called out to her, begging her to try it on. She didn't even know what it looked like, really. The only glimpse she'd caught of the whole thing was when Jed had been holding it up, right before she'd snatched it out of his hands.

"Hey, d'you want know what I have to wear?"

Her head turned towards the door as Jed's efforts at drawing her into a conversation finally penetrated the fog of her tears. She opened her mouth to say something, anything, but her voice had vanished, and all she could do was croak almost inaudibly. Clearing her throat, she stepped up to the door, placing a hand against its painted wood. But what could she possibly say to him? 'Go away' was too cruel, and she couldn't bring herself to say the words. Leaning against the door again, she sighed deeply, reaching up to pull her hair free of its restrictive bun and slipping the hair tyes that had held it up over her slender wrist. As her thick waves tumbled down around her head, she hung her head, letting the sheets of curling brown hair cover her face. A makeshift place to hide.

"Someone's at the door for you, Rowena. I don't know him, so he's gotta be here for you. You want me to get it for you, or are you gonna come out?"

Wetting her lips with her tongue, she took a deep breath and turned around, readying herself to reply to his question - but then, he spoke again, and she lost her nerve. She'd missed her chance and now... what was he saying? Someone was here? For her? Instantly, her mind turned to Headmistress Parvana, and her legs turned to jelly. She had come to get her, she knew it. And she had walked right into it, trapping herself in this bathroom with no way of escaping! ...but no, it wasn't Ms Parvana. It was 'he'.

And to be perfectly honest Roe didn't know which was worse. "For-for me?" she whispered, and was pleased to hear her voice was not raspy from her earlier sobs. Slowly, hesitantly, she opened the door just the tiniest of cracks and looked out, as though she could see who was there from within. She didn't want to leave the relative safety of the bathroom, not for anything. Never mind what she looked like. She couldn't let Jed - or anyone - see her like this. "Who is it?" she asked shyly, proud of herself for managing to contain her stutter, for once.

If it was in any way possible, Jed would lean in and speak reassuring words to Rowena through the door separating them; he would say something along the lines of "Let's get out of here, go do our own thing. Who needs the dance? Who needs that dress? We won't get caught." Except for the fact that they weren't at any school; they were at Nemare. And at Nemare, crazy headmistresses could make you go to beachfront balls against your will. Not only that, but they'd force you to wear pink tuxedos at said ball. It wasn't fair in the least. The dance should at least be optional, much less the outfits... It was thoughts like this that made Jed want to cower in the bathroom like Rowena. Or, even better, run. He listened to his heartbeat, and it seemed to echo the statement so that every part of him was driven toward the same thing for a moment; run, run, run. Wind whipping at your mane, and dust making your throat feel unbearably dry, but you could make it, because you were made to last in the desert, you were a mustang, you were wild, you were unbreakable...

"For-for me?"

If it hadn't been for those words, there would have been a buckskin stallion standing in their dorm room. Jed was jolted back to reality, his eyes wide. Close one. Just when he started to get comfortable and think that he and Spirit had reached an agreement, his own mind was slowly tugged backward to dark, unfamiliar regions he wasn't customary with, and Spirit's own animal tendencies sprung forward. It was more of an impasse, really. When it got down to it, Jed had more control over his spirit than other students his age had over their own disney incarnations, but that was reassuring only occasionally. Things would be easy if he had a human spirit, he was sure. Then he would just have the occasional personality conflict, maybe an unnatural connection to his former lover or friend, and that would be the worst of it.

Although Jed was feeling much less agreeable (although that might have been Spirit, who was currently undergoing bitterness due to his unsuccessful attempt at gaining control), he tried not to let it show. Being miserable would only make this situation all the more unbearable; that was what his mother would say in this situation. Still, he could only grunt at Rowena in reply to her question; he didn't dare open his mouth, for something dangerous might come out. "That's what I said, isn't it?" he might snap. And the last thing Rowena needed was to be frightened.

She really was like a deer, he thought to himself. In Texas, deer weren't exactly plentiful, but Jed had seen Bambi, so he had an idea for how they might think. If Rowena had been a horse, well then, that would have been easy, but, as it were... He would have to lure her toward him with gentle words and a total and complete lack of anything intimidating. He couldn't show anger or irritation, not even for a moment. ...Well, come to think of it, Rowena wasn't all that different from a horse. Perhaps he'd been looking at this the wrong way entirely. He stepped away from the door so that, if she opened it, she wouldn't be frightened at his immediate appearance, and, as if that had done the trick, the door creaked open a crack. It was miniscule, but it was progress; a step in the right direction. Maybe if he told her she was pretty, she'd come out all the way, but that might have been taking it too fast, so Jed stayed quiet. "Who is it?"

"Some... guy," said Jed. "He's a student, I guess. He had a letter." He spoke slowly, because he was afraid that too much, too fast would make Rowena close the door on him again. "He looked nice." Now he was just being dumb, he knew. The guy had looked anything but nice; a little pissed, to tell the truth. But Jed would say anything to coax Rowena out of her hiding place. Why he was so determined to get her out of the bathroom was suddenly a mystery to him; what did it matter to him if Rowena stayed in there for all of eternity, other than the fact that Headmistress Parvana might blame him for dragging her to the ball himself? And then he was reminded of his spirit; it was because Jed looked out for people. And Rowena was someone who definitely needed looking out for. "Come on," he said. "We can answer the door together."

"Some... guy. He's a student, I guess. He had a letter."

A letter? What could that possibly mean? Rowena stepped away from the door, cowed by the simple mystery of an unopened missive. She didn't have anyone who would be writing to her besides her father, and she had seen him just before she'd left home to return to Nemare, so he wouldn't be writing about anything, would he? Biting her lip, she let out a stifled sound that sounded a little like 'meep'. They said she was the reincarnation of a doe? Well, right now she was probably more like a mouse. Not the cute little hat-and-jacket-wearing mice from Cinderella, but a real mouse: a frightened mouse, with a cat outside the door.

"He looked nice," came Jed's helpful voice from outside the door, and Roe bit her lip in the anguish of indecision. She didn't want to go out of the safety of the bathroom, and she didn't want anyone [particularly not Jed] to see her looking like she was right now - a mess. But her heart went out to him nonetheless. Here she was standing around feeling sorry for herself and possibly over-reacting about a silly dress and a sillier dance, when the guy was standing out there so patiently. For her. Waiting.

No one waited for Rowena Fenning.

"Come on, we can answer the door together."

Emboldened by her realisation, she returned to the door and pushed it open a little more, this time just enough to show her splotchy, tear-stained face. Lovely. That was probably not exactly the kind of sight that a genuinely good guy like Jed deserved to see, but she couldn't think about that. She couldn't think about any of the reasons for staying in her bathroom, otherwise she would never ever come out. In a voice barely managing to rise above a whisper, she announced her presence, such as it was, with a soft "...Jed? Uh... c-can you g-get the letter f-for me?"

This, for Roe, was a major achievement. More than two words [ums don't count] said in the presence of a male. Now that was something for the books. Never mind that it had happened now, amongst all the rest of it. It was quite a step forward, not that she even noticed it. She was too focused on forcing herself not to flee into the bathroom. It was so hard to keep herself from thinking about how ugly she was and how terrible she must look, how badly she had behaved and how completely awful he must think she was. Her gaze fell to her black ballet flats, and she gripped the side of the door, her knuckles turning white from the effort of not giving in to the urge to run.