"You done yet?" The voice belonged to one of the two females who hid in the alley. The one who was standing had asked the question. The other was crouched low to the ground, a large, shapeless lump in her arms.
Both girls were similar in appearance: thin, petite, and pale. The one who had spoken had long, dark hair that was pulled into a single braid down her back. Her eyes were the color of amethyst. There was a soft "thump" as the second girl dropped what she was holding and stood, whipping dark liquid from her mouth.
"Yes, I'm done. My apologies for taking so long." The girl was only slightly shorter than the other but had the same long hair, only hers was silver, threaded with black, and hung down her back and over her shoulders. Her eyes shone the color of sapphire.
"Dante… you don't have to apologize. I know as well as you that you can't control this." The dark haired girl had knelt beside the lump on the ground. Dante sighed, running a hand through her hair, "Yes, Yumi, but it's getting worse!" She fell back against the wall of the alley.
Yumi only shook her head and placed a hand on the lump, turning it over. It was a man, looking to be no older than 18, possibly 20. His skin was pale, his eyes dark with death, and there were two puncture wounds on his neck.
"You needn't worry," she said, "We'll find an answer." Dante watched as Yumi closed the man's eyes and stood. "May your soul rest forever in Oblivion," both girls whispered, as the corpse slowly began to dissolve into a fine grey mist, sinking into the floor and walls of the alley.
"Come, Dante, and don't worry," Yumi said, pulling up the hood of her travelling cloak, "No one will find the body. He is one with the darkness now." Dante stared at the spot where the man once rested only a moment more before pulling up her hood and following Yumi out of the alley.
The sun was hanging low in the sky over the village, and it would soon be dark. Dante and Yumi emerged from the alley onto a street that was relatively deserted. The few people that did turn their attention to the two girls, they ignored, heading towards the gates at the entrance of the village.
It didn't take the two very long to reach the main streets of the village, and they attracted very little attention. This was mainly due to the fact that most of the villagers stayed indoors because of the attacks. Villagers had started to go missing a short time ago, and their bodies would turn up again mummified. Yumi and Dante, like the villagers, didn't know what had happened to cause the mummification, but they knew who had caused it.
As the two neared the gates, they saw two men running. One was younger, with bright, crimson colored hair and an eye patch covering one of his eyes. The other was older, shorter, and was carrying a small boy in his arms. Dante couldn't see any wounds on the boy, but he was unconscious, and this worried her.
The two men ran past them, and Dante turned as if she was going to follow them, but Yumi placed a hand on her shoulder, shaking her head and pulling Dante towards the gates. "The boy will be fine; they're taking him to the hospital. We must go to the others, Dante." Dante didn't hesitate, but followed Yumi out of the village and into the forest.
~~[Scene Skip]~~
The white wolf crashed into the tree behind it, smashing it to pieces. The black wolf made a noise that sounded much like laughter and growled at the other. The white wolf quickly got back up from the ground, shaking itself off and charging at the other wolf, barreling into it.
The two wolves continued to roll around on the ground, biting and clawing at each other, but it didn't seem that they were fighting. The smaller white wolf grabbed ahold of the fur at the other's shoulder and rolled, flinging it off into the trees.
There were more smashing sounds as tree broke, and then that was followed by laughter. "I give, I give!" called a voice from the trees. Moments later a man emerged from the tree line, brushing wood pieces from his shoulders and legs. He was chucking now, rubbing at his shoulder. "Geeze little sister, did you have to bite me that hard?"
He shook his head, more wood pieces falling from his auburn hair. He was tall, with deep green eyes and dark olive-toned skin. He wore a white, unbuttoned, sleeveless vest and black pants. He wore no shoes or shirt.
The white wolf rolled to its feet and pawed over to the man, nudging him with its nose. "Yeah yeah, I said I give!" he cried, playfully swatting its nose away. The wolf knocked him to his butt with its head, a low growl in its throat. He laughed, "Fine, little sis. You win!" At this the wolf nodded, stepping back and shaking itself.
The wolf began to change. Its features became more human like, more feminine. Its white fur gave way to deep olive-toned skin like the man's. The girl's hair was auburn as well, and her eyes were a vibrant emerald. Her clothes were simple as well: a black sleeveless shirt and a pair of deer skin pants that hugged her legs closely and cut off just below her knees. She, too, was barefoot.
"I told ya I'd beat you again, brother" she said with a smirk.
"Yeah, but honestly, I think you cheated!"
"Cheated? You filthy dog! I'll show you cheating!"
The two ran at each other, wrestling back and forth. Their canine teeth were elongated and looked like fangs, which they used occasionally to snap at each other. They were completely enthralled in their play fight that they didn't see the two girls enter the clearing.
"Aya! Damien!"
"Idiotic dogs!"
Both shouts resounded at the same time, and Yumi and Dante stopped a few feet from the other two. Both stopped fighting, but they were laughing.
"Yumi, Dante!" Damien cried, throwing his arms into the air, "It's a time to celebrate! My sister and I destroyed the monsters!" Dante gave a small smile, "and the boy?"
Aya bumped shoulders with her brother, "The boy will be fine. His mother didn't make it, however."
Dante sighed, "At least the boy is safe…"
Yumi shook her head, "And what of the two men? Were they witnesses to your battle with the monsters?"
Damien nodded, "Yeah, they were fighting the monsters when we finally tracked 'em down. It was weird… one summoned flames, even" Aya nodded, "And the other used a scroll to shield the boy and himself with black needles…"
Dante frowned, "But they saw you?" She looked troubled, "If they start spreading rumors of giant wolves around the village, it will only send the villagers into a bigger panic…"
"But the monsters are dead!" Damien said with a grin, "We no longer have to stick, around. Sure, they'll panic for a few weeks, but eventually they'll calm down. I mean, there won't be any giant wolves for them to find out here once we get out of here."
"Oh? So sending them into a crazed panic is alright for you?" Dante asked, looking irritated, "You can't just scare these people shitless, Damien! They've been through enough! Do you realize how many people lost husbands, wives, sons and daughters to those creatures? And in such a horrid way, too! What those things did… the victims were completely mummified when they were found!"
Damien held up his hands in surrender, "I know Dante, and I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you angry. It's just that, what can we do? None of us can make those guys forget they saw us, and we can't stop them for saying anything. Of course… if they weren't around to be able to say anything…"
"Damien!" Dante cried, "We won't kill innocent humans!"
"We won't have to…" Yumi said, causing everyone to look at her. She nodded towards Aya, "Go on, tell them."
Aya shrugged, rubbing her right arm, "One of the men, the older one, knows what we are… werewolves I mean. And I don't think he'll say anything, either."
"How can you be sure?" Dante asked
"I can't be sure 100%, but look," she held out her arm, and Damien inhaled sharply, gently grabbing it. "Aya, what the hell is this?" There was an angry red burn on her arm above the elbow, like someone had held a torch to the skin. It had blistered, and was bleeding a little.
"The old man, I think he filled the area with silver power," Aya said matter of factly, taking back her arm from her brother.
"But I wasn't burned, it couldn't have been silver"
"It was," Aya said, cutting him off, "I think he concentrated it in front of us, but you'd already reached the trees when it finally appeared. It caught my arm, but I was able to avoid it touching anything else."
"Why didn't you say anything sooner?" Yumi asked, taking Aya's arm and examining it carefully. "You shouldn't have been wrestling with your brother, either."
Aya shrugged, "I didn't really notice it until I was walkin' on two legs again." She laughed softly, then cringed, "Though now it hurts like a bitch"
"I'm gonna kill that bastard dead," Damien growled, his fingernails growing into short claws.
"Calm yourself, Damien," Yumi ordered, leading Aya to the edge of the trees, "The human was simply protecting himself and his companions. He believed you two were dangerous."
Damien spat, "That doesn't excuse him hurting my sister."
Dante laid a hand on his forearm, "No, but Aya will be ok. The silver only burned her, it didn't enter her bloodstream. In a few days the burn will have healed. Relax, Damien."
"And Damien," Aya called from the tree line, "That was terrible grammar."
Damien smiled, but he didn't retract his claws. Dante led him over to stand beside Yumi and Aya. "I know how you're fairly certain, Aya, but we must be sure. I want you and Damien to watch those two, make sure they don't go around spreading rumors."
Yumi had taken Aya's arm and was bandaging it, and at Dante's plan she looked up, "And what do you propose we do if they do, in fact, cause chaos?"
Dante looked to Damien, "You bring them to us. You do not hurt them, but you bring them to us the minute you think they've gained the inkling to tell stories. I have a feeling they'll be around for a while, which mean we'll have to stay as well."
Yumi had finished wrapping Aya's arm. "It stings," Aya stated, wincing as she moved it in a circle, "But it'll heal up soon. I'll help my brother, and make sure he doesn't accidentally hurt the men." She smiled sweetly at Damien, who scowled in return. Yumi gave a short nod, "Then you two will keep watch on the humans, and we shall remain in the village until they leave." The others nodded in agreement, and at that they all started back towards the village.
Sooo, second chapter is up! I hope you guys enjoy, and as always, reviews and tips are very much appreciated! ~Reese