Notes: chap 17 is up on Lycelia. Kirito will not being staying wolfified. And... I reorganized and might actually have a coherent plotline to help me write more for a while.

It required the use of a few throwing knives from time to time to put down troublesome bugs, but I kept to the forest floor rather than the trees. I felt tired enough after eating so much turkey that I might miss a branch if I tried. The churning of my overfilled stomach didn't leave me too inclined towards aerial acrobatics either.

Considering the rough manner in which they were killed and cooked, the turkeys weren't half bad. I had to avoid the burned bits and the feathers, but the birds were so gigantic there was still plenty of white and dark meat to pick from. The heart and liver were nice and hot, though that was as much from their natural body heat as the fire. They were more or less raw, but they tasted so good that I didn't mind the blood dripping down my chin.

I just wished I hadn't eaten quite so much of the basketball-sized organs. Stress eating was part of it, compensating for nearly dying again. As for the rest, all I could point to was irrational revenge devouring, to get back at the stupid turkeys for all the trouble they'd put me through. It was hard enough to fight giants without having to deal with turkeys too busy pecking at me to realize they were being cooked alive in an oven. It was silly of me to hold a grudge against an AI, and such a stupid one at that, but after spending so much time in a virtual world it was hard not to think of them as real creatures at times.

I averted my eyes upon sighting a beak in the distance. I didn't even want to see another turkey for at least a month after gorging myself like… well, a hungry wolf. Sometimes I worried Fenrir's Cloak had done more than just up my senses and change my looks. Were a few altered tastebuds enough to lead me to this or was this the effect of wearing a mask for so long that I was starting to become it? Though, at least acting like a wolf was still better than falling into the other mask I could never quite forget I was wearing.

I pushed aside my worries about the game subconsciously brainwashing me. I'd never be able to move forward if I let paranoia take ahold of me. I was a little crazy even before I grew wolf ears so I couldn't blame them for that. And it wasn't as if I didn't have my reasons for eating the things I killed.

"Wolfy-chan!"

I held back from attacking by the barest of margins as Sachi's arms wrapped around me. It was a little too close to the grasping hands of the giants for comfort but I wasn't so far gone as to not eventually recognize that she was hugging me. She was lucky her whole aura came off as so fundamentally unthreatening to my instincts or a tragedy might have happened. A single strike from one of my daggers might have sliced the low-leveled player in half.

"You came back," she said warmly. Then, in a slightly sterner voice, "Where have you been? We were fighting all sorts of monsters. Unless — are you not a fighting-type pet?"

Pet. Words were coming back to me quickly with the exposure I was getting and I wasn't too fond of that one. Sachi had moved to a side-hug now though which would be awkward to escape. Besides, I was aware enough to know that a little more human socialization could do me good. A tiny sweet treat to wash away the taste of too much turkey wouldn't be amiss either.

The blond ruined the moment. "Woah! Sachi, your pet got herself pregnant."

It took a moment to register the accusation but once I did, a growl arose in my throat and chest. It was true that I'd eaten far too much, and that a totally unnecessary physics mechanic had distended my stomach quite significantly. Still, suggesting I'd done that and become suddenly and significantly pregnant was rudeness on such a level that if he was an npc I would have already slain him. I wasn't even a girl, not that accusing my sister of such a thing would have been any better.

I'd long fallen out of the habit of speaking with anything other than growls and my daggers. Try as I might, I couldn't wrestle my tongue into submission. It was frustrating and hard to comprehend why it was happening, or when it had first started. My teeth had sharpened a little, canines lengthening, but my mouth was still generally the same. Well, the same as Suguha's, but regardless.

I gave up growling and mimed a large bite in his direction before pulling a chicken feather out of my hair

"She understands us?" said Keita.

"And she can solo those giant turkeys? Just what level is she, anyways?" said the tall mace user.

Sachi hugged me again. "You're amazing. But I guess if you can talk I should ask you again properly. Do you want to come with us? We're adventurers, trying to fight our way to the higher floors."

If by higher floors they meant mid-level, I thought they might manage it. Eventually. Obviously I couldn't hold their hands all the way, I had far too many tasks of my own to complete. I was tempted to just wash my hands of them immediately.

Not yet. It had been far too long since I was able to interact peacefully with another human being, let alone a whole group. And for the moment I actually didn't have that much else to do. I'd finally found the jewel that would open the next dungeon but the keyhole was only visible by moonlight. I could farm enemies until then but it wouldn't do much good. I'd already more or less reached the maximum level for the floor. It would take thousands of kills to raise my level again, compared to a few hundred in the dungeon or a few dozen on the floor to come. Better to save my strength and recharge for a short time. Even with all the practice I had, each dungeon had new tricks and traps to throw at me.

I nodded, but only by the barest measure. Regardless of what so many in this Death Game thought of me, I did try not to lie when I could. Hopefully I'd made it clear that I didn't intend to stay with them forever.

After another hug that made me wonder if hugging was what girls spent their whole days doing, Sachi took me by my hand and led me along with her. Pressure, heat, texture. Holding her hand warmed my heart, like I was experiencing a tangible reconnection to humanity. It felt much like my dim memory of holding my sister's hand when I was younger, so akin to life that I could no longer tell the difference between this and reality.

It should have been comforting, like a glass of water in the desert, but I felt little more than bitterness tinged with bloodlust. That Kayaba was able to pull off this sort of update to the engine without a staff and the whole world against him was another sign of his genius, but I'd long since lost all respect for the man. All I felt for him was an aching desire to tear his heart out.

I pushed down the growl that formed at any thought of Kayaba and followed along meekly and silently. I didn't want to scare them off now. I needed this for a little while longer. Just a little longer until I could feel human again.

The town walls approached as we walked and reluctantly I slipped out of her hand and made my exit without a word. I resisted their calls to come back and instead crushed a teleportation crystal to return to the highest opened floor. I couldn't follow them into town no matter what my wishes were. The same glitch that hid my player name also had most of the guards running me out of town like I was a neutral mob. And even if I was willing and capable of wearing an enchanted collar like an actual player pet, the risk of discovery was too great. If someone recognized me as Kirito it would put everything at risk.

I carved my way through zombie rhinos with unusual ferocity to suppress my annoyance. It would be foolish of me to ever visit the group again.