Izayoi would feel worse about escaping the manor grounds if her parents hadn't just decided that Takemaru was the best person for her to marry with absolute no warning.

There was nothing wrong with Takemaru - in fact, it was obvious enough why her parents had chosen him. But as well as a friend he might be, she just…couldn't. Marrying him wouldn't benefit the people under her father in whatever way. So why bother someone she didn't truly love? Her mother had married her father through love! So why couldn't she?

Huffing, Izayoi decided she'd much rather concentrate on her herbs than her impending courtship. Kneeling down, she began to sketch a particular herb that had captured her attention. It was still half in its bud, but she needed to record the growth of herbs as well as their properties.

In true Izayoi behavior, the young princess concentrated solely on what she was doing, enjoying the tranquility of the forest. Most found the forest creepy, something to be scared of, but Izayoi never found it that way. It was calming, with the birds singing and the grasshoppers chirping, and the way the sunlight shined through the trees…who could find this place scary? Izayoi was humming under her breath before she began to notice something was…off.

The birds stopped singing.

The grasshoppers stopped chirping.

And the sky got darker.

Izayoi stopped mid-sketch. Her heart began to pound. What was going on? This had never happened before, in all her years of sneaking out to be in the forest. Was there a beast somewhere? A bloodthirsty yōkai?

Biting her lip, Izayoi moved very slowly to grab the fallen branch in front of her. It was thick, and slightly heavy in her hands, but if did it perfectly right then maybe she'd be able to get whatever had disturbed her forest out…

A howl sounded, and Izayoi's eyes widened when she heard a steady set of feet approaching her. It was distinctly canine, but it definitely wasn't wolf. Maybe rabid dog? Whatever it was, it was going to pay for ruining the tranquility of her forest!

She listened closely, heart pounding as she heard the footsteps coming closer to her. Wait for it…wait for it… Squeezing her eyes shut, she gripped the branch with both hands and stood up, and as she stood up she swung as hard as she could with her tiny, small body.

Thunk. The sound of the branch making contact with something, and something heavy falling to the ground. Eyes still shut tight, Izayoi mused that she thought she had aimed much higher than intended, but at least she hit it…and since she was still alive, she assumed that she had knocked the thing out.

Slowly opening one eye, Izayoi looked down to see what she had hit. Her hands went limp on the branch.

On the ground, with a giant bruise on his forehead, was a clearly male, handsome taiyōkai, with long silver hair pulled into a high ponytail and wearing what seemed to be heavy armor, and blue markings on his cheeks. He let out a groan, and trickle of blood went down his forehead.

"…oops."