The Witch's Grave - Gretchen of the Reap part 2

[tsukikoko]

The demon's struggles and howls went unheard, or at least ignored, as Tsu continued to perform his rite. Again he repeated those ancient words, then again, and again. Louder with each repetition. Punctuated by more intense force and command.

Inwardly, the werewolf was pleased to see that the host was taking back the reins. Her attempts to break free did not go unnoticed and he felt an invisible smile build behind an outwardly fierce expression. Yet he would not touch the spirit, not until his rite had completed and he was sure she was severed from it's hold. Move too soon and he could harm her, or allow the creature back in. Being forced to start again would only heighten the risk to the Burbat, increase the strain on her spirit and psyche.

Galer za da sar.

Again. He was so close now, the thrill of an upcoming hunt burned in his chest and pooled in his mouth. A change prickled beneath his skin, the wolf wanting nothing more than to satiate itself with a spiritual kill. But Tsu did not falter, his clockwise movements around the possessed Burbat continuing without pause.

One final time, the words came to his lips. His gaze turned, locking onto the demon's for the first time since his ritual had begun. A promise lay behind his predatory gaze - of an age-old hunter born to rend and tear those spirits who brought his wrath upon them. His reason to be might be maintaining balance, but part of that was to prevent those who should not be from crossing into the mortal plane. His eyes spoke of that truth without the need for words.

It was a promise of relentless fury. A promise of death.

Galer za da sar.

[Pearl Dragon]

Kira's eyes continued to flicker between blood red and natural gold until finally they stopped mid-change to give her a bi-colored appearance.  Her chest heaved in heavy pants, mouth agape in an expression not unlike shock as her eyes stared forward and up at ceiling as if in a trance.  The shifting shadow figure, however, continued to flail and jerk about like a TV screen losing its reception.  It's mouth opened in an 'O' of hateful frustration as it continued to howl and rage at the circling werewolf.  Kira continued to look for internal footholds, keeping her physical body frozen in place while the entity spasmed and shook, floating further and further away until it now looked as if a tall figure were sitting in Kira's lap. 

Her mouth closed into a clenched sneer of effort, eyes squinting against the Demon's influence until she finally managed to shut them entirely.  When she opened them again, both eyes were their original gold, solid and unchanging.  Her teeth parted, throat working, until a few words croaked out from beneath the struggling silence:  "Kira b-be...no bad!"

[tsukikoko]

No sooner had Kira’s eyes opened, the twin orbs of gold shining out as a beacon of freed thought, Tsu began to smile. When she spoke, fragmented though the words might have been, the smile only grew warmer. She was doing so well, he was really glad to see her still fighting. Again those ancient words left his lips, but with this final chant, the spirit was completely severed from it’s Burbat host.

However, if the demon hoped to get away and regroup, attach itself to another host, it was about to be sorely mistaken.

Just as the final threads anchoring it to Kira snapped, Tsu reached out with a swift hand, his clawed digits curling around the spiritual creature’s head (or at least, the approximation of where a head would be). But while a physical being such as himself should have passed straight through, Tsu’s claws pierced straight into the spirit’s skull as though it were just as In the ensuing seconds the werewolf dragged his demonic captive away from the still-bound female, out through the doorway and around the corner, out of sight. He fully intended to return and free her, but she did not need to see what he was about to do.

But, should the Burbat look out through the doorway, she might see a shadow upon the wall - a giant, monstrous shadow, hunched over. The demon shrieked, equal parts enraged and terrified. The shadow’s maw opened, snapped numerous times and very abruptly, the screaming stopped.

Silence pervaded the witch’s hut, the shadow shrank once again and a few seconds later Tsu’s face appeared around the corner again. All of the fur and fangs had disappeared, leaving the man completely human once more. He hurried over to Kira and began untying her.
“Hello there, good to see your real self, sorry I couldn’t free you quicker. How are you feeling, any pain?” Given what the demon had done to her, Tsu wouldn’t be surprised if the reverted transformations left Kira with aches, pains and a bit of bleeding. The latter was hard to tell, given he had sprayed her with a mixture of salt and his own blood. “Do you remember your name?”
An odd question, perhaps, but the werewolf had seen a loss of self in some creatures even with only brief possession.

[Pearl Dragon]

In the moment that the demon's hold on Kira's body snapped, her eyes shut tight and reopened to see Tsu's hand reach forward as if to grab her head. When it closed, claws barely a fraction of a centimeter from her muzzle, she could make out their blurred shape and uttered a small noise somewhere deep in her throat. Her vision, although unfocused, was at least now fully through her own eyes rather than as if she were peering through windows and that she was glad for. However, everything was once again so much closer, so much more real.

As Tsukiko pulled the screeching, glitching demon away from her, she watched with widened eyes as the blurry form vacated the room and the beast-man's shadow grew to a gigantic blob with what looked like fangs and a large open mouth. She trembled in her bindings, heart still racing, skin and gums itching all over. The burs and extra teeth that had grown unnaturally from her flesh had all retreated, disappearing to be sealed over and dots of blood that left impressions of where the burs had been moments before. Her mouth, still tasting of blood but otherwise healed and healthy, was void of its original demonic sneer. Instead, it gaped in a trembling, frightened expression at the racket of noise and shapes in the other room, waiting for whatever might happen next.

When at last the man returned, he was indeed a man again. Her vision had already begun to clear, and she looked up at him with fearful eyes as he spoke to her and worked her bindings loose.

“Hello there, good to see your real self, sorry I couldn’t free you quicker. How are you feeling, any pain?  Do you remember your name?” He asked as he worked. Kira's mouth closed again, then opened in an attempt to speak. She looked down, eyes now widening at the sight of the blood that covered her front before uttering a weak cry. She looked back at the man pleadingly.

"My is--is yes hurt! Red red! Kira is red!" She stammered, and she tensed against the loosening binds. She felt no pain, other than the itching on her skin which was already beginning to dissipate. But so much blood! "Not can feel! I-.." She stopped, confused and fighting the panic. She didn't want to be hurt, and what of everything the demon had said about her? She'd have to explain that too.  "And is not bad, be not true what is shadow thing said!  No kill chil-dren, no kill!  Kira be punished many hurts, no want many hurts...please no be make bad hurts to Kira...."  She said, all but sliding from the chair once she was finally free.  She huddled at the man's feet, every muscle tense as if to run but her discipline held her in place, demanding she answer to this man.

[tsukikoko]

Should Kira have looked up, she would not have seen any anger, aggression, or judgement upon the silvering man's face. There was only concern and a gentle protectiveness, a look that soundlessly conveyed his wish to take away her fear, shield her from such things, if only he could. There was the mention of 'many hurts' as well, said with the panicked manner of one traumatised by beatings. It was a potential scenario that lit a blazing inferno of anger in the werewolf's chest. But he let none of it show, for her sake.

When she huddled at his feet, Tsu crouched down ever closer to her, a soft shushing breath, meant to soothe, escaping his lips. He laid the frayed rope of her bonds aside, before placing a tender hand upon Kira's head, his thumb gently stroking across her fur.
"It's alright, Kira, it's alright." She knew her name, at least. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you, I promise. I know you didn't mean it, I know the shadow was not telling the truth."
As best he could, Tsu kept his language simple. Though this 'Kira' spoke English, the broken, almost child-like nature of it, implied that she might not understand complex nuances or language. From what he could gather, she thought herself hurt not because she felt hurt, but because her being covered in blood must she must obviously be hurt. Never mind that at least half of it was his own blood. Getting her clean so he could check her over properly and hopefully reduce some of her panic, was almost certainly a good idea. With yet more gentle strokes, Tsu questioned softly,
"We're going to clean this blood off you, is that okay Kira? Can you stand?"

[Pearl Dragon]

Kira flinched at the man's crouch as he lowered himself more to her level and as the hand reached down to her head, she shrank with flattened ears beneath it almost to the floor, eyes closed tight, until she had no more room to avoid it. Where she expected another scruff or some other blow, it was instead a gentle weight that caressed rather than gripped. After a moment she opened her eyes again and looked up at Tsukiko, still somewhat frightened but feeling that same hope creeping back as he spoke that perhaps she was not in trouble after all.

"It's alright, Kira, it's alright." He said, his voice low and reassuring, "Don't worry, I won't hurt you, I promise. I know you didn't mean it, I know the shadow was not telling the truth."

"Is shadow be inside head, scare and tell bad trouble of Kira." She continued, tapping her chest and scratching nervously under her collar. She raised slightly from her hunched position, wanting to be comfortable and perhaps risk a little bit of confidence in the man's presence. What the shadow had said were lies, most of them. He had spilled a few of her other misfits and crimes, after all she had disobeyed commands on many occasions in favor of satisfying curiosity. This very situation was the result of that disobedience. But she'd never killed anyone, especially the children.

"Be is find small friends, like friend Zavijah. Is take small Zavijahs but not be killing. Big grey man and zaps be is grab Kira, but Kira be good! Kira give small Zavijahs free! And is many sorry for glass, Kira scared jump and now broken." She turned to the bottle still shattered on the ground that once held the shadow. Her hands began to ring and fidget as she looked back to the man, wondering what she could do to fix the problem. "Can be take other bottles? Be fix?" She asked, referring to the other bottles on the shelf above the bed. The previously swirling black masses inside were now abnormally small and motionless, as if hiding within their glass prisons.

At Tsukiko's question of standing, Kira got up almost immediately.  The front of the shirt that served as her 'clothing' was already turning a dark reddish-brown from the drying blood.  Here and there her fur was also beginning to look rather macabre, patchy and grimey as it was.  She nodded timidly at the mention of being cleaned up.


[Kira's reference to "grey man and zaps" is Stenson and Jay, from an earlier thread.  For context, they were called to deal with a schoolyard incident where a creature had taken a child, but not far.  Sten had to deal with it lol  Tsukiko probably would've heard or read about the incident in a report somewhere, although it wasn't a big incident.  Thread reference:  wathais.proboards.com/thread/185/playground-shenanigans-finished]

[tsukikoko]

Tsukiko's gaze lifted to the bottles for a few moments, simply staring at the stillness within them. His expression didn't change, but there was a certain fixed attentiveness to the man's gaze. It lasted all of a few seconds, before he once again looked at Kira and tilted his head just a touch. Big grey man and zaps? Stenson sprang to mind for the former, which had the werewolf running over recent incidents, though there were a fair few she could potentially have been involved in. Tsu didn't have eyes on every single callout, after all. Even though he wanted to know where she had come from and how he could help her further, figuring out who she had mentioned didn't matter right at that second, since his priority was to get the small, winged super clean and calm. She fidgeted and fretted, so he thought it best to distract her as quickly as possible. There was time yet to find out the rest.

The Burbat had nodded, agreeing, albeit timidly, to being washed, thus, Tsu took her hand in his own; the size difference between their hands was comical, her grip barely spanned two of his fingers.
"Don't worry about the bottles," the man said with a smile as he led Kira out of the house and into the cool night air. While he could have perhaps found running water in the witch's house, he didn't much like the idea of Kira remaining near the bottles, quiet though they might have been while in his presence. "-we'll clean up the glass once you're washed, okay?"
With that, Tsu led her away from the witch's abode and a little further into the trees, where he knew a small, fast-running stream to be. He didn't want to risk deep water, in case she panicked (not all supers were good swimmers after all). Even so, he planned to get in the water with her, just in case.

It was only a few minutes before the pair reached the stream, which had been audible long before it was visible. Tsu stepped into it first, the water reaching his mid-shin.
"It's a little cold I'm afraid." Another smile as he beckoned her forward. "Would it be alright for me to find you some new clothes after this? I don't think the stains will come out."
He had noticed the rags she worn, material that might just have qualified as clothing. But Tsu wanted to dress her in something better, if she was open to it. There was the collar too, was she owned by someone? An escaped slave? Or did she just like it?

[Pearl Dragon]

Kira let herself be led away, her hand practically swallowed by the larger man's.



"Don't worry about the bottles, we'll clean up the glass once you're washed, okay?"

Kira looked around at the hut, then up at the night sky as a cool breeze drifted past them. She nodded, her eyes lingering for a moment on the man's before darting quietly away and down. They made their way towards the sound and smell of water. Its scent was refreshing, and Kira caught sight of it soon enough. When the man continued forward, she watched with timid curiosity as he waded his way shin-deep into the running water.

"It's a little cold I'm afraid. Would it be alright for me to find you some new clothes after this? I don't think the stains will come out." Kira cocked her head at him, taking a tentative step into the water. A small hitch in her breath, a wince, and she was soon also waist deep in the water. It rushed all around her, sending the initial shock of cold through her body at least until her body became used to the chill. She looked down at her bloodied shirt, ears drooping down as if in shame. To his question, she nodded again. "Me is have a clothing be is give by Mas-...Doctor Jed."

Just then, she gave a small gasp, remembering the food pellets. These she fished out quickly from an interior pocket and handed them up to Tsukiko. "Is not get wet, no eat if be wet?" The question was anxious, she hated to ask him to hold them for her, but it was too late to turn back now.  Once, or if, the pellets were accepted, Kira shed the bloodied shirt and then lifted her arms up and spread her wings.  She was obediently still as Tsukiko worked, and occasionally looked up at him with a sort of curious admiration.

[tsukikoko]

At the offered pellets, Tsukiko cocked an eyebrow, looking down at them curiously. He did, however, do as she requested and took them in one large hand, holding the... food stuffs? out of harm's way where the water was concerned. Given her small stature, he thought bathing her with even only one hand would be easy enough.

The mention of a doctor Jed caught his attention as well; there was only one medical professional he knew by the name.
"Ah, Jedidiah? You know him?" Tsu queried as he dropped to his knees in front of the burbat. "Small world."
At least now Hemming had someone to take her back to, someone who might know a little more about where she might be staying, who and what she might be.

For the moment, despite his thoughts, the werewolf busied himself with coaxing the blood from Kira's fur (a task to which he was personally well acquainted) and it was at that point he noticed just how thin the little creature was. He had thought her small, yes, but now as his fingers ran down the line of her ribcage he realised every single bone was prominent, in a manner not at all healthy. She wasn't just slim, she was drastically underweight.
"Would you like some food too Kira?" Tsu asked gently, smiling kindly at her, "I know when I've had a long or scary day I become very hungry, and you've had pretty scary day just now." The weight of the pellets in his hand suddenly seemed more prominent. "And not just these," he indicated the pellets to her, "we could try something new, if you'd like?"
What a strange thing for her to be concerned about though, these pellets. They reminded the werewolf of feed one could procure for feeding goats or wallabies at a petting zoo. Who had given them to her and why? Was this all she ever ate and did that explain her very low body fat? He couldn't help but think she needed more weight on her frame, especially as a creature capable of, if not flight, then gliding.

The man's fingers gently worked across the membrane of one wing, wetting and cleaning in steady increments. Eventually, he asked,
"And might I ask what you are Kira? For instance, I am a werewolf, you might have seen how fluffy I was earlier." A lopsided smile, friendly as ever.

The blood and grime coating Kira's body was beginning to wash off. It wouldn't be perfect, without soap and proper scrubbing implements, but she looked far better already. Tsu was most glad to see she had not been badly injured during the whole thing.

[Pearl Dragon]

Kira shifted her posture in sync with the areas that Tsu was washing. A few areas stung subtly, mostly from the cold water pulling clumps of drying blood from her fur, but also from the occasional pinprick wound leftover from renegade demonic burs. If they hurt, she would only give an occasional wince, but nothing more. Her eyes remained curiously fixed on Tsu, watching his face and then dropping to his neck and collarbones if she accidentally made eye contact. She was grateful that he had taken the pellets, and felt a bit more at ease knowing they would not get wet.

"Ah, Jedidiah? You know him? Small world."

Kira's head cocked slightly at the question. She'd been in this world long enough that it was already an enormous world to her. "No, is be big world! Very green big, pretty world.  Jed-id-diah be is find Kira and make big boom stick on pecking thing." She rambled, lifting her wings to emphasize 'big' and 'boom' while brushing at an old stitching scar on her shoulder where a mutated vulture had pinched her flesh badly enough to warrant repair. At Tsukiko's question of food, Kira thought to offer up her pellets when Tsukiko mentioned something new as if he had read her mind. She was still baffled at how lucky she was to not be in trouble for everything she'd done, and could only gape at the man's question. Her memory of the food Zavijah had brought in the strange white box some weeks ago floated to her mind and her mouth watered at those wonderful, alien flavors she'd experienced.

"Is...cake of cheese be new?" She asked hopefully. As for what she was, she nearly said her name again. But...Kira is who she is...what she was? "Kira is Burbat.  Come from...Master's world and then...big black.  No be memory finding." She said simply, tapping at her head to signify memory and flinching slightly as if that answer might be wrong. She worried again at her wrists and fought back a few shivers. The water was getting cold now, especially now that her fur was completely soaked through. She wondered at his comment of being 'fluffy' and tentatively touched his arm. The skin was bare. "Fluffy is where wolf? Kira no see were-fluffy is wolf...is be real?" She had remembered how he'd changed, but the entire ordeal had been a confusing and baffling mess. She could truly only remember the darkness in her mind and the memory of Tsu's other form was already foggy at best. She had written it off as more illusions caused by the thing in her head.

[tsukikoko]

At Kira's cocked head and sweetly naive responses, Tsu couldn't help but chuckle and ruffle her between the ears. She was adorable, childlike. She sparked the father in him, a drive that manifested in silliness as much as protectiveness. As such, where the mention of 'Master's world' made his chest briefly burn, at the burbat's mention of 'were-fluffy' he grinned widely.
"Oh yes, he most certainly is real." Tsu leant closer, his voice dropping to a whisper as though to share a mischievous secret. "Truth is, I can hide or show the wolf whenever I want and he is very fluffy."
All of a sudden, a big, bushy, black tail curved around and flicked Kira gently on one of her wings. It clearly hadn't been there before, but it was now visible, clear as day, originating from the base of the man's spine.
"I can show you were-fluffy properly sometime, but for now I still need to get you clean, clothed and fed. Cheesecake can certainly be new if you like. Probably after something more substantial, though I wonder what we should start with? Pasta and chicken, or maybe something sweeter?" For a moment, Tsu looked thoughtful, before smiling again. "Tell you what, I'll lay out a lot of different new foods, you can try a few different things and we'll see which ones you like?"
Carefully. He thought to himself in the same instant. Keep a close eye the whole time, make sure nothing is going to make her sick.

He wasn't sure what she meant by 'big black'. A period of unconsciousness, a near-death experience, traversing between planes of reality, or something else entirely? The werewolf made a mental note to ask Jedidiah about her later, in case that shed any light on her origins.

"Right, I think that's about as clean as I'm going to get you." Tsu said as he checked her over one last time. As he led the burbat out of the water, still being careful to keep her food pellets dry, he opened his free arm, gestured to himself and asked. "Are you cold? Were-fluffy is very warm if you want to warm up in his fur."
As he said this, a carpet of black and silvering fur carpeted the man's chest, parts of his neck and the sides of his face. There was a more animalistic slant to his features now, but his expression was still friendly. Her attempt not to shiver had not gone unnoticed. Should she wish to, Kira was free to cling to Tsu and siphon body heat; he hadn't been lying, the werewolf was exceedingly warm, even just her earlier touch of his skin would have been enough to tell that much.

[Pearl Dragon]

Kira's eyes visibly brightened when Tsukiko mentioned that the 'were-fluffy' was real. Even the hand that came down to ruffle her head only earned half a flinching bow from the Burbat, but she quickly recovered and gazed up at him with that same fascinated awe. When he leaned in closer, Kira shuffled her feet a bit and then moved in with him, eyes growing wider as he dropped his tone suddenly to a whisper.


"Truth is, I can hide or show the wolf whenever I want and he is very fluffy."

Kira looked around suddenly, as if worried they might be overheard and then back at Tsukiko with fearful apprehension. When the tail swept unseen behind her to touch her wing, she let out a gasp of astonishment. "Where be-" she started as she gazed at the sudden tail, but then looked around again at the woods. When she turned back to Tsukiko, she seemed troubled.

"I can show you were-fluffy properly sometime, but for now I still need to get you clean, clothed and fed. Cheesecake can certainly be new if you like. Probably after something more substantial, though I wonder what we should start with? Pasta and chicken, or maybe something sweeter?" Kira's worry dissipated at the mention of cheese cake, and other strange food things she'd never quite heard of.


"Pah stah? Chick hen?" She pondered, repeating the words under her breath as if saying them might somehow give her a sense of what they tasted like.

"Right, I think that's about as clean as I'm going to get you. Are you cold? Were-fluffy is very warm if you want to warm up in his fur." The man asked, when suddenly his entire body seemed to sprout a dense coat of fur. Kira swallowed back a sound of amazement as she watched the fur appear out of nowhere before her very eyes. She glanced momentarily down at her own arms and fur, wondering if she could do the same. The way some things changed so suddenly in this new world, like this man's fur or like Ash and his body shape, never ceased to amaze her. It was almost scary...not quite right. But, who was she to judge?


At the offered arm, Kira reached out tentatively and then placed a hand to the fur. It was indeed warm, and her body immediately craved to rid itself of the cold tremors. With a few careful side-glances up at Tsukiko, Kira moved closer and embraced the arm in a climbing hug. Moments later, she was settling into the crook of Tsukiko's elbow, curiously brushing a hand through the fur of his shoulder before gently sniffling at it to test its scent. It was incredibly warm, and the shivering in her body quieted rather quickly,although the heat was steadily replacing the day's excitement with exhaustion.


"Thank..." She muttered, uncertain if she was being too intrusive. Ash had given her similar offers to be helped or held before, and she hoped this one was no different.

[tsukikoko]

Tsu smiled warmly as Kira climbed onto him and nestled in, leaning her subtly towards himself so what little weight she had was safely propped against his chest.
"Not a problem sweetheart, you stay there as long as you want." He glanced down, saw the evidence of tiredness in her frame. "Feel free to have a sleep, if you're tired, I've got you."
At that, the furred man began to walk, choosing a route back to his car that took the two of them well into the trees. While it was highly unlikely anyone would be out here at this time of night and with his senses currently heightened by the werewolf's partial shift he'd almost certainly smell or hear anyone before they got close, it still paid to be cautious. The last thing Kira needed right now was more excitement.

It was a good twenty minutes before Tsu's truck came into view, parked at the side of a small, unused track more dirt than road. He'd chosen a place relatively distant, so as to not give away his approach with the loud engine. Should Kira have stayed awake and made conversation, she would find the werewolf attentive, cheerful and encouraging of any questions she might have for him. If she fell asleep, he ensured the journey was as smooth as he could make it for her.

Once beside the truck, with his free hand, the werewolf placed his index finger against the driver's side door. While Tsu would never have bought a car with a fingerprint lock for himself, Isaac's insistence on getting him the best of the best had proven to come in very handy, since he didn't have to worry so much about where to put his keys when shifting.

After a moment or two, the car unlocked with a heavy clunk. Tsu moved his way round to the passenger's side and being careful not to jostle Kira too much, he opened up the door. Should she be awake, he asked gently,
"Have you ever been in a car before sweetheart?"
If she was still asleep, he very carefully extricated the burbat from the crook of his elbow to place her on a blanket - one that was, perhaps unfortunately, covered in wolf hair with the same scent as the fur currently coating his body.

[Pearl Dragon]

At Tsukiko's mention of sleep, Kira felt the blanket of exhaustion she'd been fighting suddenly grow heavier. Coupled with the heat of the man's fur, she found she was steadily losing that fight. The passing trees as they walked were barely registered, and her questions were muffled and sleep-logged at best. Mostly of them were a muttered "Be where going.." and "Is be still eating cake cheese...", although Tsukiko's vibrant and lively answers came through to her in foggy segments. Her eyes drooped, head dipped, and slowly her weight in Tsukiko's arms would seem to grow more lax. By the time they reached the man's vehicle, the burbat had surrendered fully to the onset of sleep and was dozing rather heavily against him.

Tsukiko opened the door with a touch, and the clunk of the door opening earned a small flinching twitch from the sleeping Burbat. Her eyes fluttered open for a moment, catching the second half of his question.

"...-ar before sweetheart?"

She blinked sluggishly and curled a wing over her eyes. Her answer was a nonsensical "-mep" given dutifully, although lacking of meaning and ignorant of what the question had even been. She laid down on the blanket willingly enough, curling into the passenger seat undisturbed thanks to the similar scent of the blanket to the man's fur. In her mind, she hadn't been moved at all.

[tsukikoko]

For a moment, Tsu simply looked down at the small creature nestled in his car and smiled. Either she had decided to trust him incredibly quickly, or was so exhausted as to not care. Either way, he didn't want to disturb her, but knew that turning on the engine would likely do so.

Thus, once the werewolf had carefully closed the passenger side door, he meandered around to the back of his truck and leant against it, turning his gaze skyward. Not much of the moon could be seen through the tree cover and massing clouds, but there was enough to gently bathe his skin in the light of his Mother's touch. Tsu remained stationary, hands lightly hooked into the pockets of his trousers and expelled a breath. Where the heat of his sigh should have misted gently in front of him and then dissipated, instead it curled upwards before him, dancing and coalescing into a bright jewel of silvery light. There it drifted, until the faint outline of a pair of gnarled, woody hands grasped it, winking his essence out of existence. A gift. Payment. A silent request to keep the witch's hut hidden from any further prying eyes, at least for a few hours until he could return. With the payment taken, a bargain struck, he was confident in the spirit's ability to shroud the abode.

And still the werewolf remained stood still, watching the sky. There was time now, after all, no need to rush. Let Kira sleep a while.

Approximately half an hour later, the driver's side door to the truck swung open and Tsu seated himself inside. He glanced over at Kira, inserted the key into the ignition and fired the truck into life. There he waited, watching carefully for signs the Burbat had stirred and was frightened by the sudden loud noise, the rumbling of an engine. He was ready to soothe her, if needs be. Otherwise, if she did remain asleep, he reversed the car, turned around and began to drive out of the forest.