Welcome back guys/gals

Who's here for more of our furry little Max.

Little update for you all, I am currently knuckling down on the last few chapters, I made sme real headway today (Knocked out two chapters no less) Think I got two more to write and then its DONE, Final tally should be around 28 - 30 chapters.

Then Ill put out one a day, in the mean time, Max makes some little friends who get spooked, and Akira opens up.

As promised heres the next one

Enjoy

Three months later

The high midday sun cast its rays down on the quiet meadow, a lazy wind blowing over the long grass causing it to sway like green ripples. Max was busy cleaning her muzzle in the dry grass after eating her fill of her latest kill, a small buck. Near the tree line not far away, Max's new estranged friends, a pack of wild dogs, waited patiently for her leave. It hadn't taken them long to realize the benefit of hanging around to wait for her scraps. Why waste the time and energy when they could just mooch off her? So long as they didn't jump the gun, she didn't really care.

Lazily, Max gave herself a stretch, releasing a satisfied groan as she got to her feet. Giving the wild dogs a small bow, to which they simply cocked their heads to one side, she moved off heading back into the forest she had come to call home. She had no idea if the dogs understood her gesture, but it was something she had been doing since after her run in with her first mountain lion. The way she saw it, it was just polite. They were patient enough to wait for her to finish, so she would let them know she was done.

Akira, of course, found some amusement in this. 'Ya know they don't understand, right?'

Max shrugged, already knowing the redundancy of her display. 'Probably not... but in a weird way, they're… nevermind, it's stupid.'

'They're what?' Akira prompted, keen to find out exactly what the young Ahri was about to say.

'You'll just laugh, as you always do.' That much had been true so far. Akira was hardly forgiving. Had it been the same with her mom or was this mockery just reserved for her?

'I promise I won't laugh…' she stopped for just a second, backtracking, '...unless it's REALLY stupid, then I can't keep that promise.'

Max let out a sigh, glancing back to the pack of dogs as they busily nosedived into their meal for the day. 'I suppose they're kinda the only friends I have, even if I can't speak to them.' She had tried making a few noises at them, not really knowing what she was saying. They didn't seem to know either. If she was going to live as a wolf for now, it would've been nice to know how to communicate.

'I get that, but then what am I? Chopped liver?' Akira asked, curious to see how the young girl would reply.

Max shrugged, thinking it over. 'Well, you and them have something in common then.'

'Not sure I like where this is going…'

Reaching the treeline, Max found herself a small space to sit as she watched the dogs bicker amongst themselves over what was left, shaking her head slightly. Not like there wasn't enough for them all, she really hadn't eaten much of it.

'Well, I can't talk to them, and you won't talk to me, not stuff friends talk about anyways,' Max mentioned softly, hesitant.

Realizing that it would do no good to shut her down, Akira pressed, 'What would you like to know?'

That wasn't the response Max had expected. Usually, her passenger just gave riddles or what she hoped was at least half truths, and it took her a few moments to get the barrage of questions in her head in order.

'I dunno, normal stuff. How old you are, where you're from, hobbies and interests, ya know, normal stuff.' Max listed off quickly, trying to get all the questions out of her head.

Considering the questions for a moment, Akira decided to answer at least some of them. 'Hmm, ok then. Well, I guess the first thing you should know, although you've probably guessed, I'm very much dead, or at least… partially. Point is, I died, long before you were born.' Max didn't know what to say to that, she had suspected as much. It was why she avoided that line of questioning. Taking Max's silence as a sign to carry on, Akira proceeded. 'Therefore, I guess there are two answers to your questions. Age… in this existence if you can call it that, thirty-ish give or take before I died. Let's just say when you get to a certain age, you stop counting.'

Unsatisfied with the answer, Max sighed deeply. 'Why am I not surprised?'

'I don't follow.'

'Half answers AGAIN,' Max replied frustrated, shaking her head. 'You're supposed to be my friend, yet you can't even gimme a straight answer about something as basic as your age. Just… forget it.'

Akira let out a sigh. It wasn't that her age was a secret or anything, she really had just stopped counting. 'Two… thousand and summin', I think.'

This answer caused the young Ahri to choke slightly, not really sure if she heard right. 'Two THOUSAND years!'

'Closer to three,' Akira added as an afterthought. 'As I said, you stop counting after a while.'

'Holy shit!' Max gasped. Did Ahri really live that long? A year seemed like an eternity sometimes… but she really would have eternity, assuming she could avoid HIM.

'I was definitely the oldest in America, dunno about Europe or the rest of the world. Most die due to normal stuff, illness, accident, stuff like that,' Akira explains, trying to recall all the Ahri she knew of in her lifetime.'

'Wowzers. You couldn't have been alone all that time, surely.'

Not wanting to lie, Akira gave up a little personal information. 'I wasn't, no. I had a… mate. Like wolves, once Ahri find a mate, their bond is incredibly strong. Nothing can break it, not even death, which unfortunately is a distinct possibility given the long lifespan. Once an Ahri has found someone to share such a bond with, they very rarely manage to overcome it and find another mate. Even then, it'll probably be more of a physical than an emotional connection the second time around. Nowhere near as strong. Depends on the Ahri really. Most never get over that initial loss, though. Kinda sad if you think about it.'

'What were they like?' Max asked, curious to find out more. 'Your mate, I mean.'

'That's one hell of a question. Well, my mate was… an interesting one to say the least. He was a werewolf, a little like your admirer, I suppose," Akira added, the smirk clear in her voice.

She could feel the disapproval radiating from Max's very core. 'Ugh, I wish you would stop bringing that up…'

'I'll stop when it stops being fun to tease you about it. Anyway, where was I…" Akira paused, thinking seriously about the question. "He wasn't your typical werewolf. Kind of shy and reserved. I met him while in my wolf form. He didn't go on the offensive when he saw me, none of that Alpha male crap. A nice change actually. You're not the only one who's had to fend off hormone fuelled wolves. Instead, he just kept his distance observing me. After a while, I got curious and investigated. One thing led to another and we started hunting together in the nearby woods whenever we could. Things just… progressed from there, I guess.'

Since Akira was alone and extremely old now, it was safe to assume that her mate was no longer around. Max still wanted to know more, though. 'What happened to him?'

'Nothing good, Max. Nothing good.' Thinking about this was… painful. It'd been the start of, well… everything. Eager to move on, she switched to the next question. 'As for where I'm from…' if Akira could have smiled, she would now. Max was about to have her mind blown, '...if you mean where I was born, I guess in that regard we, me and you, are very much alike, in more ways than you'd think. Don't think that the pull you feel towards Arcadia Bay is exclusive to you.'

Max gradually put two and two together, her eyes going wide. 'Wait, you were born in Arcadia?'

'Born and raised, I saw them laying the groundwork for the lighthouse.' She could almost remember it like it was yesterday.

'What was it like… Arcadia, when you were little?' Max had to admit her curiosity. She hoped Akira would answer her honestly.

Casting her memory back, Akira began to describe the old town's history. 'Hmm, well, it was a lot smaller back then, it was barely classed as a village… mostly caravans and tents. It wasn't until I hit my first century it turned into an actual village, fishing by trade. It's changed a hell of a lot since I was your age, as you can imagine. Sometimes, I don't even recognize the place. Not everything changes, though. It still… feels the same.'

A million questions raced through Max's head at this reveal. Akira was her own encyclopedia of Arcadia. She could learn anything, but right now she was opening up to her, and this was an opportunity the young Ahri was going to seize with both… paws.

'And hobbies? Besides finding ways to embarrassing me.'

'And hanging out in your head you mean…' Akira added, amused. 'Well, when I was MUCH younger, I used to be a proficient hunter, for obvious reasons. Used to travel and attend a LOT of parties, some of which are too… how shall we say, adventures for your ears,' she replied, not wanting to downplay the young Ahri as a child, but some things really weren't meant for innocent ears.

'Oh?' Max commented, half curious and half worried.

Chuckling softly, Akira gave her a small hint. 'Well, you recall your little… "courtship" with that werewolf a few months back.'

Max's expression turned from curious to disgusted. 'Eew, too much information.'

'Don't knock it 'til you tried it.' It was a little early for Max to be thinking about that kind of thing. In time, who knew?

'I am so not listening.' Max felt a bit embarrassed about this. She didn't really want to think about it.

'You asked,' Akira stated, matter-of-fact. 'I think that answers your questions, though.'

'Not nearly. You've got, what, THREE millenniums on me. You can't tell me all you did was, hunt, travel, party and…' she hesitated, feeling her cheeks redden, '...there must be more.'

Before Akira could answer, Max noticed her little pack of followers were suddenly scampering for the treeline leaving their meal unfinished. Going into a crouch Max pricked her ears, searching for whatever had spooked them. She was intent on either scaring it off or dealing with it so her little friends could eat in peace. An uneasy silence came over the meadow. Somewhere a crow cawed, a cold gust of wind blew across the grass and the sound of a snapping twig caused the young Ahri to tense up.

'What do you reckon?' Max asked, eyes darting around frantically to prevent an ambush.

Thinking over the possibilities, Akira gave her opinion. 'I don't think it's an animal, certainly not a cougar or wolf. You've been here long enough. This is basically your territory.'

'Vampire maybe?' Akira suggested.

Max shook her head. 'Even I know they don't really come out during the day.'

'Not usually, and while it's uncomfortable for them, it's not unheard of.'

'You don't think it's…' She couldn't think it, a wave of panic began building inside her.

'I don't know, I find it unlikely, but...' Max didn't need Akira to finish that train of thought.

Backing herself slowly into the trees, she kept her ears pricked forwards for any sign of movement. When she could barely see the open meadow, she turned tail and bolted as quickly as she could back to the cabin. Akira didn't argue with her decision. If it came to a fight, familiar ground was preferable, and the old building was creaky enough to give away anyone trying to sneak up on them.

Bolting inside through the hanging door, Max made her way into the bathroom through the hole in the door, crouching down behind the old bathtub and peering under it towards the doorway. Her heart was pounding in her ears as she tried to get her breathing under control. She made a quick note of her options. If she needed a quick exit, it wouldn't be an issue punching a hole in the wall with her orb.

After a few tense minutes of silence, Max allowed herself to relax a little, only to tense up almost immediately at the sound of approaching footsteps over dried out twigs and leaves. Whoever it was wasn't trying to hide their presence, and they were definitely following her.

'Akira...'

The unspoken question was clear, but Akira didn't know how to answer. 'I don't know, Max… best be ready.'

Max could hear the footsteps getting closer. When she heard the footfalls on the porch outside, her hackles instinctively raised. A low growl began building in her chest as her mind started to race, her body began to tremble as her adrenaline spiked, every sense magnified. A low grunt cut through the air, accompanied by the sound of the hanging door protesting against the wooden floor as it was shoved open and the footsteps entered. They were inside.

She heard the footsteps walk around inside where she had slept for the last three months, her sanctuary, her home, and stop she guessed next to the old sofa. There was a loud slumping noise, like someone dropping a heavy bag, and a weary sigh. Slowly, Max crept from her hiding spot, making her way near the door. The orb resting on one of her tails was a solid black, ready to either attack the intruder, or aid in her escape.

Approaching the door, Max cautiously peered out of the broken panel in the door. At the end of the hallway, she saw a tall figure facing away from her, leaning on the old couch. Shoulder length graying brunette hair, a long dark brown leather coat with dark green and brown combat trousers. Her eyes flicked to the black sheath fixed to the figure's back, a long straight blade with an ornate bronzed handle held within.

An unfamiliar, deep voice greeted her. "Hello, Max."

So Akira is like REALLY old, wowzers.

Oh and whos this guy. Find out next time.

Peace out