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"Are we lost?"
"No, we are not lost."
"…are you sure?"
"Yes, I am sure!"
"Really? Because I recognize that tree over there."
"You haven't even seen trees before today, how can you recognize it?"
"Because…"
"Because why?"
"…"
"Okuu…"
"Okay, so I don't recognize the tree, but I still think we're lost."
"We are not lost!"
Orin and Okuu glared at each other, neither willing to back down. Not long after their encounter with that poor human they veered off the trail and back into the woods, Orin insisting that she knew a shortcut to reach the village. At first Okuu didn't have a problem with it, but when the sun had visibly changed position in the sky and there was no sign of the village, she began having her doubts.
Eventually it was Okuu, ever the scatterbrain, who broke the stalemate.
"Why are we walking again?"
"Because, if that last human got scared and ran off when we were on foot then who knows how one might react if they see us flying."
The taller youkai crossed arms with a huff, muttering under her breath.
"At least we wouldn't be lost…"
Having four ears, her little jab didn't go unheard by Orin.
"Okuu, I'm telling you, I know where we're going. I walk through these woods all the time. Although…"
Orin brought a finger to her chin, pondering the forest around them.
"…I'm normally in my cat form when doing so. And it's usually at night, when I'm not collecting bodies…"
"Hey! How come I've never been invited on one of these nighttime walks before?"
Orin was caught off guard by the sudden change of topic, turning back to find Okuu pouting at her with her hands on her hips. Or hand, rather, as her control rod-covered arm hung limply at her side.
"Wha-I just, uh, didn't want to bother you. I know how hard it is for you to manage the Blazing Fires and all-"
"I could've gotten the other hell ravens to fill in!" Okuu interrupted, third eye flaring up.
Orin shrank back, her ears flattening down. She glanced to the side while taping her forefingers together.
"O-Okay, so maybe I actually just never thought to ask before. Ehe…"
Okuu looked to be taken aback by her answer, affronted that her best friend could possibly forget about her, before turning away from her with arms crossed once more. Orin weakly tried to comfort her.
"Okuu, I-"
"Humph."
"Okuu-"
"Humph!"
Orin reached out to try again, only to pull back with a sigh. Not of sadness, but exasperation. No matter how hard she tried or how much time passed she could never quite get used to Okuu's rapid mood shifts. So, rather than try and reach out again, she instead turned her attention back to the other matter at hand.
While she was reluctant to admit it, the hell raven was right. They were lost. She crossed her arms, bringing one hand to her mouth in contemplation. The more she thought of it the more it vexed her. She had walked through these woods numerous times, normally when there weren't very many dead to collect and the skies were clear, so why was the route she took suddenly so hard to find?
She stated pacing back and forth across the small clearing, lost in thought. Okuu, still giving her the silent treatment, peeked over her shoulder.
Hmm, I told Okuu that I'm normally in my cat form when out here, so maybe if I transform now, I'll be able to see the path from that perspective instead!
Spurred on by her thoughts Orin discarded her pack and loosened her muscles. She gathered the magic inside her, a fuzzy tingling sensation forming in the pit of her stomach, before letting it bloom outwards until every inch of her skin began to tingle as well. She caught herself almost missing a step, giving a little nudge so the field reached past her body and enveloped her clothing. Even if it was just the two of them now, Orin didn't want to risk turning back to her humanoid form sans clothing once they encountered someone.
The magic field turned from faint to thick, as if she were submerged in water. Orin visualized her cat form, from her black fur and twin tails to the red bow on her head, and slowly the field began to shift. Faint blue light covered her, hiding her from onlookers as her body moved and contorted like clay in the hands of a sculptor. Her hands and feet formed paws, her dress merged with her body, her whole form shrunk and compacted.
The light faded, and the magic retreated into the small black cat that stood in Orin's place. Once the process took several seconds and a concentrated effort to move through the various steps, but years of practice have allowed her to refine it all to happen near instantly. It proved to be a very useful skill for when she needed to quickly hide from villagers when caught in the midst of stealing bodies.
Now then, let's take another look…
The now fully feline Orin examined her surroundings. While the daylight made it harder to discern, from this new angle she began to recognize the familiar bushes and roots of her favorite nighttime path. An opening between two particularly twisted tree trunks caught her attention.
"There it is!"
"There what is?"
Orin jumped and looked up, finding Okuu looking quizzically down at her. Whatever frustration she might've still held had given way to confusion at her friend's actions.
"The path!" Orin answered. "Come on, grab my pack and follow me!"
"What do you mean grab your- hey, wait up!"
Orin wasted no time taking off down the forested trail, leaving Okuu stumbling as she snatched the bag off the ground and took flight after her. Or at least tried too, as the tight confines of the forest made real flight impossible. Instead, she held her wings out behind her and kicked off the ground with her feet, half jumping half gliding after her furry friend.
"Why do you never wait for me!?"
"You're one to talk!"
"Humph!"
It was sometime later before Orin finally saw signs of the human village peeking through the foliage. From what she could tell it seemed to be a farmhouse near the village outskirts. Paws skidding in the dirt she gathered her magics and transformed back to her humanoid form.
"We're here- ahh!"
CRASH!
Unlike her friend Okuu did not screech to a halt and, for the second time that day, crashed into the kasha. Thankfully they weren't in the air this time so all they fell through was a bush. It still did little to soften the impact of hitting the ground on the other side, though.
Before Orin knew it she was flat on the ground with a mouthful of dirt.
*cough**cough* "Ugh, Okuu…"
"Hey, you're the one who keeps stopping in front of me."
"And you're the one who keeps running into me!"
"It's your fault, too!"
"Okay, I'm sorry! Now get off me already!"
"No! This is your punishment for making me run into you again!"
Having fallen through the bush along with her, Okuu was currently holding Orin down under her own body. Orin wiggled to try and get free, but between Okuu's greater bulk and the two large sacks she had she didn't need to try very hard to keep her friend well and truly pinned. Orin struggled harder, moving her body back and forth to try and rock her friend off. In response Okuu dug her hand and feet into the ground even more.
"Okuu! Get up!"
"Hehehe, nope!"
Orin was so focused on trying to squirm to freedom and Okuu focused on denying her that that they didn't notice someone approaching until they spoke up.
"Um, hello?"
The two immediately froze, and after a brief pause both looked up at the new presence.
A young boy stood before them, no more than ten years of age at least. He was dressed in plain, rustic garments with a large basket in on hand. The smell of radishes emanated from the basket, and between that and the patches of mud staining his clothes it was clear he came from a family of farmers.
Despite her current predicament Orin was the first to respond.
"Um, hi! Sorry if we disturbed you, my friend and I were simply having a… dispute."
She nudged Okuu with her shoulder and the taller girl got the message, finally standing up and helping Orin to her feet. As she dusted herself off Okuu took the opportunity to introduce herself to the boy.
"Hi there! I'm Okuu! I mean, Reiuji Utsuho, but my friends call me Okuu. Nice to meet you, what's your name?"
She ended her question by pointing her control rod directly at the boy's face, bathing him in a soft orange light. Thankfully Orin was quick to intervene and shoved her friend's arm aside. Okuu had surprisingly good control over her powers but the last thing they needed was for her to accidently vaporize a villager, let alone a child. To his credit the kid seemed unfazed, appearing more curious about the device than anything, and answered Okuu's question without missing a beat.
"My name's Kenji. My friends call me Kenji."
A pause.
"You look funny."
Orin balked at the statement, unaccustomed to such bluntness. Okuu on the other hand took issue with it and was quick with a comeback.
"Yeah, well, maybe you look funny!"
Nobody said it would be a good comeback.
"Why do I look funny? You have wings and an eye on your chest! And you have four ears and two tails!"
"Of course we do! Haven't you ever seen a hell raven or kasha before?"
That snapped Orin back to her senses. She acted fast and clamped a hand over her friend's mouth.
"Okuu!" she whispered through clenched teeth. "What are you doing!? Do you want him to go tell the rest of the village!?"
"Hell raven? Kasha? What are those?"
She turned her attention back to the boy/
"Oh nothing, don't worry about it."
"Okay."
Another pause. Once she was certain she wouldn't blab anymore Orin removed her hand from Okuu's mouth.
"So, Kenji," she began. "Since you're here, can we ask you something? Oh, and I'm Kaenbyou Rin, but you can call me Orin."
Kenji adjusted his grip on the basket
"What do you need?"
"Well, Okuu and I came here looking for our friend. We haven't seen her in a very long time and were hoping that hu- I mean people in the village might be able to help. Would you be willing to help us?"
"Sure!"
"Great!" Orin clapped her hands together. "Her name is Koishi, and if I remember correctly she should be a little taller than you with messy green hair. Pale green, I think."
She turned to Okuu.
"Pale green, right?"
The other girl thought for a second.
"I think so."
Orin nodded and turned back to Kenji.
"Let's see, the last time we saw her she was wearing a long-sleeved shirt and wide-brimmed hat-"
"Oh, does she have a blue ball on a string attached to her?"
"She does!"
"Then you're talking about Rosey!"
Orin held her tongue, unsure what to make of that. She glanced at Okuu only for her to give a shrug in response. When she spoke again her voice was laced with confusion.
"Um, Rosey?"
"Yeah! She comes and plays with me and my friends sometimes, and every time she shows up she gives us green roses. Since she never told us her name we started calling her Rosey!"
"Well, we don't call her that, but I think this Rosey is the person we're looking for. Have you seen her recently?"
"No, I've been helping my parents on the farm and haven't had much time to play. But my friends might have played with her lately."
Okuu finally decided to interject.
"Can you take us to them?"
"Sure, just follow me!"
Kenji spun around and ran down the trail, the two youkai hot on his heels.
"Look at that," said Okuu. "We just started and already we might be close to finding Miss Koishi!"
"Maybe," Orin replied, brows knitting together.
She couldn't place what it was, but something about their conversation didn't sit well with her.
Hope you enjoyed. As always, feel free to leave a review, otherwise thank you for reading and stay turned for more!