The Winged Wolf Chapter 6, a Harry Potter + Avengers Crossover fanfic

Chapter Six: Magical Sakura Tree, Test, and First Hunt

It's been a year since my familiar bond and tattoos have been finished, and I currently working through some of my knife fighting techniques using my claws, incorporating the Kali martial arts style. Working in fast slashes and stabs into each other easily was a bit difficult at the start, but it's like practicing an instrument, start slow and speed up from there.

I know that I will never be a powerhouse in regards to physical power, at nine I'm a bit below average at four feet even, and even if I am strong for my size with my healing and training helping a lot, that will only take me so far. But speed is where I can shine, making use of my enemies opening to strike, and using their weight and momentum against them. I may not be the largest foe for my enemies, but ignoring my magic, my claws alone make me lethal.

At nine inches long and metallic, they are deadly by any estimation, adding in my speed, incorporating my magic, my training, and using momentum to make to of the added weight and density of my metallic bones, I am not to be underestimated. Both my claws and my height still have room to grow, and as I gain more experience in fighting and knowledge in magic, I will be able to grow as a warrior and assassin.

But as a fighter, I want to mirror what Bruce Lee said, "Be like water making its way through cracks. Do not be assertive, but adjust to the object, and you shall find a way around or through it. If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves". I need to be able to adjust to the different enemies I will face in the future, both magical and non-magical alike, and I have built a foundation on which to move forward with, only life and its many adversaries will be able to give me the experience I need to grow.

"You're getting faster" Yumie hiss inside my mind, from her place resting in the Sakura tree on my back.

"Thanks, but I can go faster, like you said, moving my body as one, into a single movement" I hiss back, having taken inspiration from her and how fast a snake can strike. Moving their body as on muscle into a single movement of intense speed.

Taking a calming breath I work on that concept again, something I have been trying to incorporate into my movements for the past week. Relaxing and clearing my mind I center myself, feeling the wind move through my hair, the blood running through my body, becoming aware of every muscle becoming loose but getting ready at the same time.

I am a blade ready to be drawn, a snake before the strike and in a single moment my body tenses as one into a single movement as my fist and claws punch forward. The air snaps and then silence, the world around me still as if waiting in tense anticipation before it breathes again, the wind rustling the leaves once again.

Punch after punch, the air snaps around me, my hands and claws blurring between fierce stabs and deadly slashes, my body working as one into a lethal dance of death. Exuberant in my success at reaching a new breakthrough and an even deadlier speed I slow down, centering my mind and body once again.

"How was that?" I ask Yumie, smiling all the while at my success. How she is able to tell what my body is doing while on my skin I don't know, but I just boil it down to another mystery of magic.

"Perfect" she hisses out in pleasure, making me smile even wider. Though this is when I start to sense the arrival of my teacher coming back from his trip, another stumbling person joining him.

Moving to the center of the training yard I move to sit on my knees, waiting for my teacher and the stranger to arrive, curious as to what is going on. This will be the second time my teacher will have brought another person to our home, the first being the man who gave me my tattoo, so I have to wonder what this is about.

As I wait for my sensei and his companion, I think back to our discovery of what my magic did to the Sakura tree, having found that it seemed to have mimicked my healing capabilities. If you cut it, it would bleed but soon heal seconds later, and I'm sure if you poisoned it, it would sicken but very easily recover. While you could still cut it down, I'm sure, killing it, same as me, it has the potential to be an incredibly long-lived tree that can weather many of the trials time can throw its way.

Another discovery was that you could take the naturally falling Sakura petals and steep them in hot water, the resulting tea being both delicious and able to heal the body of the drinker. Sensei pointed out that while the resulting tea may not make a drinker immortal by any means, it could still add two or three years to a person's life or bring a man away from the brink of death but using most of its potency doing so.

Though like many things in the world, there is a balance, in that the life extending properties and extreme healing abilities are limited to a single cup of tea, the magic saturating the body with that one cup, and no longer effective after that.

The leaves can be dried though for later use in said tea, or crushed into a power, able to heal any open wounds, sever or not, and as many times as needed. So, if your potential death is from an open wound and not blood loss, poison, or damaged organs, you're in luck there.

While not the most useful for me, being that it is mimicking my own abilities, it can be used for others, studied, or even sold later. Because of this, me and sensei have collected two Twenty-five-ounce bags, one for me and one for him, as the petals fall once every six months, now blooming despite the season and weather. We've stored the bags in two space expanded boxes sensei managed to get, blood locked to each of us.

The rest of the petals break down and keep the soil and surrounding plant life healthy, that magic seeming to recycle itself. If to many leaves are taken, then the magic of the tree won't replenish itself right away, causing it to stop producing for who knows how long. Like in many things in life, it's all about balance, take to much and you cause harm, to little and it can do to waste, but just enough and everything works out.

Sensei is immortal himself and can use chi to heal, and I can heal from pretty much anything in seconds to a minute, but it never hurts to have other options to help available. Plus, I think sensei wants to try and make some infused sake out of the petals, the lush, but I'm sure it will be great anyway.

Yet as I think of sensei, my curiosity creeps up like a sly cat once again, wondering why he's brought another companion so soon after the last.

A few minutes my curiosity is raised even higher as my teacher arrives through the door with the stumbling man in tow, his hands bound and a gag in his mouth. After entering the courtyard, he pushed the man to his knees before turning to me and simply uttering in Japanese "Kill him".

Shock washed over me like a tidal wave of glacial water, I could only look at my sensei, the man who has guided me and trained me for years and ask "why?" responding in Japanese as well.

"Because I asked of it of you Elizabeth, this will be your final test before I train you in the foundation of chi, if you can not do this, you must leave" he said, firm in his stance.

"What did he do to deserve this fate, to deserve the touch of my blades?" I ask, not yet ready to comply with my teachers demand, no matter how much I respect him, and yes, even love him as a grandfather.

"Nothing, he is simply your test. What is your answer?" he said, again firm in his position.

Taking a deep and calming breath, I brace myself for what may happen next, my heart crushing under the weight of a mountain, but nonetheless I face my sensei "I cannot and will not do this then Sensei. There is good and evil in this world of grey we live in, and this is an evil action I will not do. Forgive me!" I say and bow to the man I respect and love, my eyes glistening behind my blindfold.

"Good!" I hear him say, causing me to sit up with a start, my senses showing me both my sensei and the man looking at me with smiles, the man unbound and no longer gagged.

"Why?" I have to ask, more confused than hurt or angry, knowing this must be a test of another kind.

"Because Elizabeth, I know how much you respect and love me, and I have come to see you as a granddaughter as well" he says, causing me to smile. "But I needed to see that you would keep to your principles despite your feeling, I do not need to you be righteous, I do not need you to be pure or a hero, but I do need you to think for yourself. If I am to teach you chi, you must make your own path, and never be a puppet to others, not even me. Understand?" he says.

"Yes Sensei" I respond, giving both him and his companion a short bow of respect.

"Good, now Akio is done helping he will head out. You have shown me that you know when not to kill, now you must show me that you can kill" he says, his tone and demeanor stern once more.

"Yes Sensei" I respond, my own demeanor just as stern for the task ahead. This may be far too much a task for the average nine-year-old, but I am far from average, and I have been training for a coming war. Both my own, and the battles ahead that I may find in the world of Marvel.

Look upon me oh enemies of mine for I am your death in shadow, blades, and magic, may your blood stain my hands and drip from my claws.

ΩΩΩ

Standing next to my sensei in front of in front of a rundown house, I can hear five people inside, and even from here I can smell the metal of their blades and the used opium scent poisoning the air.

"Who are these men? I can smell the drugs and weapons from here." I say, curious who my targets will be.

"Simple thugs, not good enough for the yakuza and vile all the same. They are you're targets, and you are free to do as you want in your pursuit of them" he said, the weight of his words easy to hear, holding the magnitude of life and death.

"Yes Sensei" I nod and silently make my way to the house, merging into the shadows as I get closer, taking the time to study it occupants. One of the first things I notice is that one of the five people is an innocent woman, a woman who has been ill used and abused by the other men inside, their rancid scents covering her.

Sensing that she was alone in her room I merge into the shadows inside, thanking Yumie once again for her amazing talents and I cover my lower face with a black mask before covering the woman's mouth as I make my presence known.

She startles and tries to scream but my hand stops the noise easily and she soon notices me, seeing that I'm not one of her vile abusers but still a stranger. Covering my lips with a finger, I motion for her silence, waiting for her to nod before removing my hand.

Going close to her hear ear I whisper "I'm going to get you out of here, just close your eyes and you'll feel very cold for a few seconds before the feeling recedes and you'll be free to run away after that. I'll take care of the men here, nod if you understand" I ask, waiting a moment before I see her nod then close her eyes.

Holding her close, I merge into the shadows once again, moving outside through them, though I know they would feel like an artic winter bath to her, so I move quickly. When we emerge outside, she takes a deep shuddering breath as she opens her eyes, taking a closer look at me, seeing my covered mouth and eyes, before nodding her thanks and running off to safety soon after.

Shadow traveling back into the house, I watch the monochromatic world of the living room within the deep and crawling shadows, my prey right before me. Something switches inside my mind because they are no longer men, no longer humans, but prey for my hunt, filth I need to purge. A large smile spreads across my face, a demented waxing crescent moon, my blood thirst as easy to see as fresh blood on fallen snow.

Reaching out with my magic I wrap it around their throats, as soft as Deaths breath it wraps around them, with no magic of their own to fight off or even feel the touch of my magic. With a violent squeeze of magic and will, the sound of crunching bone and wet tearing paper is heard through the room, a gory overture to the coming symphony of death that awaits them.

The walls and ceiling are painted a fresh and shining burgundy as the smell of copper becomes cloying through the air, filling one's nose, heavy on the tongue. With a scream the last two men rise up, but far to late for one of them, as I bust from the inky shadow, claws at the ready, carving deep into his back and eviscerating his spine and heart.

The other man screamed, a high-pitched whine of terror as he threw the watermelon knife he was wielding at me, the bade sinking into his friend with a soft squish as he ran towards the door. Letting out a giggle that only caused him to run faster I shadow traveled outside, standing before him bloodied and smiling as he opened the door, only to slam it closed again.

The scent of his fear filled the air as the music of his screams hide behind the door, the chase of this prey becoming more entertaining as time ticks by. Going up to the door I need to play with him more, to drive him to run, to flee from the monster chasing him and make the chase more fun, and so I ring the doorbell and sing:

Ding Dong

I know you can hear me

Open up the door

I only want to play a little

I smile and stab my claws into the door, purposely just missing his head and ring the doorbell again with a giggle.

Ding Dong

You can't keep me waiting

It's already too late

For you to try and run away

Skipping away from the door I move over to the window, scratching it with my claws as I look in with a demented smile and bloodied face as he looks at me with horror and terror in equal measure, making me smile all the wider.

I see you through the window

Our eyes are locked together

I can sense your horror

Though I'd like to see it closer

Letting out a loud laugh I drag my claws across the walls to the door once again, ringing the doorbell again before starting to claw open the door, making his breaking voice scream out again as he runs.

Ding Dong

Here I come to find you

Hurry up and run

Let's play a little game and have fun

I walk through the broken-down door, his scent easy to follow as I make my way through the hall.

Ding Dong

Where is it you've gone to?

Do you think you've won?

Our game of hide and seek has just begun

I sing out, my childish voice ringing through the house as I follow his scent, hearing the beat of his heart screaming out like a wet and waterlogged drum.

Just wait, you can't hide from me (I'm coming)

Just wait, you can't hide from me

Arriving at what I assume is his room I kick the door down, letting myself in with a laugh, his heart beating even louder, a beacon to my instincts.

Knock Knock

I'm inside your room, now

Where is it you've hid?

Our game of hide and seek's about to end

I rip open the closet door where the wet beat of the drum rings out, his fear filled scent filling my nose, like the sweetest perfume to me as I hunt down the vile trash who so wantonly begets pain to the innocent. He cowers in terror at the site of me, no longer able to fight, fear robbing him of his will to move, eating away at the sanity of his mind.

Ding Dong

I have found you

My claws rip into his head and brain, ending his nightmare at last, the crimson fluid painting my claws, dripping from them like a leaky spout as I finish my song.

Ding Dong

You were hiding here

Now you're dead (N1)

With that I finish my hunt, my prey dead throughout the house, discarded like the trash they were, and the switch inside my mind turns off, shocking me with what I've done, but at the same time, unable to care at how I killed them. They were vile people who made victims to any they could, making the world suffer around them, as that woman could attest to, I was simply the bigger predator who played with my food.

I turn to my sensei who walked in behind me, having observed the entire ordeal "Am I a monster?" I ask, feeling both hallow at how I acted but satisfied with the hunt.

"To many, you would be," he answers honestly, making me nod in acknowledgement, hearing no condemnation from him, "but more so you are a predator to those who perpetrate true evil in this world, making the innocent suffer due to their malice and desires. You hunt them as a wolf but play with them as a cat would a mouse" he says, bluntly honest in his assessment.

"Yes Sensei" I say, having no choice but to agree, Yumie whispering words of understanding to me, her being a predator as well, understanding my mindset.

"But you are more than that as well Elizabeth," he says, surprising me, "you made sure to save the woman first before you began your hunt, and only played with your prey when there was one weak one left. You have a noble heart to go along with your predatory sadism, and more so, you are in control of the hunt rather than the hunt controlling you" he says with a smile.

"I may not share your instincts or inclinations Elizabeth, but you still desire to do good and end the evil in the world, and that's enough for me. You did well, and I'm proud of you, proud to have you as my student and granddaughter" he says, his smile become warm, feeling to me as the noonday sun would to others.

"Thank you, Sensei." I say before bowing, and when I look up to meet his white eyes, my heart unburdened because of his acceptance, I can't help but say…

"Thank you, Grandfather" with a gentle smile gracing my own face.

Note 1: This song is "Hide and Seek" (Vocaloid) English ver by Lizz Robinett, slightly altered by me

Note 2: I know this is a darker aspect to the character but I wanted those predatory instincts to come out to play in their own way and for her to have a bit of her own issues as well. Working on trying to create a bit of a flawed charter but still a likeable one. I've been watching some movie and show review videos and saw what they pointed out as flaws for main charters and female charters, so trying to learn from that a bit. Apologies if this bit of a turn in Elizabeth isn't liked, but I am trying my best for my first story, learning as I go.

Note 3: Some things will come into play or be explained later as well, I am working on chapter 14 right now, so some ideas I may have put into play already or do my own have my own plans in mind, so apologies if I seem to ignore any suggestions for the next chapter, simply it's that it's already written, though feel free to leave suggestions.

Thanks for taking the time to read and review and I hope I can continue to write a story all of you can enjoy.