Setsu's chest felt heavy as her feet carried her along. In one corner of her mind she felt the urge to stop, but the other half urged her along. She couldn't stop, not now; they were behind her, she could feel it. The trees towered high into the air breaching the skyline; they were like giants, imposing and grand. They intimidated her with their presence; their sheer wooden might, and the dark overcast the leaves made.

For the first time in a long time, Setsu felt truly afraid. Their scents were behind her, breathing down her neck and making her hair stand on end. There were a lot of them. Alucard, Cain, along with several other scents she couldn't differentiate, probably just normal soldiers; random fodder that weren't worth mention.

"There she is!"

Setsu let out a tiny gasp. They had caught up with her? This fast? The female hastened her pace; she had to keep one step ahead of her pursuers. Still, that wouldn't be enough. The sound of their paws reached her ears. They had gotten closer than they had been before. At the corner of her eye a blur zipped by. Another blur came, followed by another and it went on until the scents grew stronger.

The blurs slowed down, solidifying into proper furry shapes. Setsu could see the whole lot. Most of them were indeed random dogs of the Clan, while Alucard's black shape stood out amongst them. There was movement behind her; a familiar scent reached her. Turning around she was met with more soldiers. At the head of this group was none other than Cain.

"You can't escape, Setsu. Be a good girl and heel." Cain's warning was followed by a small but short growl.

Setsu looked around her to find any way of escape. Everywhere her eyes went, she found no such escape present. Wherever they went, a clansdog would be in their path. A whimper came from the young female, frantic as her feet moved about in accordance of her fear.

"Please don't make this harder than it has to be." Cain said.

Setsu shot him a direct but defiant glare. "You won't take me! I won't go back!" Setsu growled in matching of her defiance. Doing this only provoked the clan dogs as they moved in.

Cain's stare remained all the more cold as he stared down the young one. Setsu was a sheltered creature; she had never seen much of the outside world. Such was the way of "Container". The "Container" was the precious jewel of the Clan and would lead it to glory. At least that was the goal. So many had died to obtain this role, as Setsu had obviously figured out. Ever since she was weaned from her mother, Setsu had been spoiled and lavished in splendor living better than most at her age. It must have been a sudden blow to her tremendous ego to learn that she wasn't unique in her standing.

"Just what is the Container, really?" Setsu's question spontaneously emerged.

Cain reacted with a look of shock.

Setsu said nothing and continued to glare.

Cain's coldness melted just for a moment right before he spoke again. "Please Setsu, I don't want to harm you." For a brief moment, Cain's voice dripped with a hint of sincerity. For Setsu it appeared to be nothing more than a front, but she didn't realize that it was real.

"Never!" Setsu spat out.

That outburst spurred the Clan dogs to move in. Setsu tried not to show fear, but her body lowered into a frightened position. Her eyes rolled around in her head continuously looking for an escape. It was met with the same success as before; there was no way out. Either she went back by choice, or she went back by force. At this point the latter seemed the more likely outcome. The Container, she had no idea what it truly was, she never did nor did she question it. Ill suspicion had set in, but still held its mystery to her. Latter be damned, she wouldn't go with them!

Suddenly she felt a chill. Her breath appeared in a cold air in front of her.

Was there one near here? Her neck fur stood up on end. Something stirred all around them. The Clan dogs couldn't see it or sense it. It wasn't tangible to them. The fear the controlled her body began to dissipate. Her determination became like the sun drying up the reservoirs of fear. Her legs stretched back up creaking as they did. The muscles in her body tightened up as she prepared herself.

The other clan dogs noticed her changed demeanor and wondered why the sudden loss of fear? Cain held the most curiosity out of all of them. The fear and panic was gone, that much he could see; it should be easy but something didn't seem right. Cain looked right into her eyes and could see something bubbling within. Setsu's body remained frozen; not even a flinch or a hair out of place.

"I'm not going back." She said ,almost at a whisper.

Cain grew confused at that statement. The other clan dogs laughed at the female's bold display. All except Alucard, who kept his silent demeanor.

"I'll bring er in." One of the dogs, a mutt, strode up to her casually; a confident smirk plastered upon his face. "All right little bitch, just come on and we won't have any trouble." the guard's smirk remained as he closed in. Setsu still didn't move; she seemed so calm.

Cain kept his gaze upon her, hoping to intimidate her with his superior position. It didn't work. Setsu merely stared back at her fellow clan dog. Oddly, Cain found himself the one being intimidated. Setsu's body shifted as a smirk cross her face. Cain knew what it meant. Alucard could as well. Slowly the black furred dog stepped backwards away from the circle.

"Stay away from her!" Cain shouted a warning. The clan dog didn't even phase, nor at the female's smirk.

A second move followed. This time Setsu's body flinched. Her neck snapped backwards with a sickening crunch, yet it still appeared to be intact as it snapped back into place. With a lurch it fell forward along with the rest of her lower body and then right back into her original position. Her eyes stared back at the clan dog; it was cold and lifeless, not a drop of light reflected.

"What was that?" The clan mutt asked. "Trying to freak me out little lady?" He chuckled. His companions joined in.

"I told you to get away!" Cain ordered.

The dog looked back. "What are you talking about she–"

Setsu lunged forward, and opening her mouth wide, she bit hard into his throat. A gurgle sprang up from the blood that flowed outward. The dog looked shocked for a moment but it ended as soon as his life did. With eyes rolling back into his head, he fell to the ground with a thud. The rest of the dogs stood dumbfounded, too shocked at seeing their comrade fall to such a lowly female. Cain nearly shouted another order before Setsu leapt again, this time going for one of the other dogs.

That dog fell in the same manner with blood gushing out, spraying Setsu in crimson rain. At that point the other dogs rushed in to attack. Several of them piled atop Setsu hoping to use their superior size to overwhelm her. For a moment it worked as Setsu fell under the weight of the combined mob. Cain himself could feel comfort for just a moment. It didn't last. Without warning, the dogs were thrown off as an inhuman roar echoed out from underneath. The only one who wasn't present was Alucard. Cain couldn't see his familiar black shape amongst the throng.

Setsu stood tall and without any form of tire in her body; she seemed perfectly fine. But she couldn't be. That was on the minds of everyone. They didn't have time to say it as Setsu was quick to attack. Cain could only watch as Setsu tore through the dogs as if they were nothing. Some pleaded for mercy while others stood bravely. It didn't matter, for the female had become a rage filled monster. While the others were dumbfounded as to what was going on, Cain knew exactly what was happening.

"What kind of spirit did she channel?" He asked himself.

This was the first time he had seen a spirit channeling. Cain had heard of this ability amongst those of the Clan. There were few who possessed the ability or simply Cain had not witnessed one happen in his life. Cain was snapped out of these thoughts as he felt the hard impact of Setsu's body ram into him. Despite the small frame of the Container, Cain flew back farther than he should have. Tumbling to the ground, he felt his bones ache as they were pushed.

When he stopped rolling he found himself upon his belly. Scratches had formed underneath his fur stinging him; some started to bleed. Setsu loomed in front of him growling deeply. Cain's vision began to blur in and out of focus. When he stared at the advancing form of Setsu, he thought he could see something. For a moment, he saw an aura around surrounding the dog. It was the spectral image of a bear. The image quickly faded out, leaving only Setsu.

XXX

Setsu growled again as the vision faded from Cain's eyesight. Bloodlust had yet to be sated within her. Death gnawed at her, wanting to her to give into its desires.

Kill...tear.

The growl in her mind commanded.

Must...avenge.

Yes, vengeance on the canines.

Ohu...die.

She stopped. Her neck snapped backward again. The voice inside spoke to her. The canine before her looked so familiar. Who was he? She sniffed, filling her with his scent.

Not...Ohu...OHU!

This dog wasn't Ohu. Ohu was where she needed to go. All of a sudden she saw flashes in her mind. Paths, trails, scents, trees, it was all coming at once. The images were powerful running faster into a mixture. Setsu rolled her head with a growl accompanying each creak of the neck.

"Ohu!" Setsu blurted out. Behind her voice was an echo, a deep tone overlapping her own.

Craning her head around to her left, Setsu darted off in that direction. Cain could only sit and watch as her form disappeared into the trees. He scanned the area, a few wounds in his neck only causing him the slightest of pain. They were all dead; Setsu had killed everyone. None were spared in her rampage, their bodies strewn about in a disgusting display of blood and entrails.

Their stomachs were torn open spilling digestive juices and various pieces of meat. Others had their heads caved in, exposing the brains underneath their skulls. Rage was behind these mutilations. The canine had done this all after she had killed them. Whatever she had channeled emanated hatred. Cain could feel its lingering presence even now. The hatred spread its trail across the forest. Whoever was in her path, Setsu would more than likely kill them.

"S-set-setsu." Cain managed to croak. Turning away from his fallen comrades, he limped towards the direction Setsu had gone. The Grandmaster had given him orders and he would follow them; even at the cost of his life.

"Cain!"

Cain fell when he heard the voice. That and from the strain of hauling his weakened body. A shadow loomed over him, its color matching the fur of who it belonged to. Cain saw the ground getting smaller as he was brought to his feet.

"You show yourself now Alucard?" Cain asked in a slight bitter tone.

Alucard didn't reply. "I saw what she could so, I felt her bloodlust. I didn't want to commit suicide," he admitted.

Cain grunted. It may have seemed like cowardice to some, but what the dog did was smart. Only a fool would rush into that fray. But then here he was, about to go after their currently filled Container.

"Come on. Let's go after her," Alucard urged to his companion. He knew the orders they were given, even if they currently had become a suicide mission.

XXXX

Mayu settled down in her grass patch, shifting her legs so that the tickly stalks would be bent away from her belly. She kneaded her claws into the ground, watching the pups sleep in a dazed and thrown-out heap a short distance away. The afternoon sun had fallen slightly from the sky, and the heat from before had died down, though just enough to allow laying outside of one's home.

She was outside her and Bat's den, watching the pups sleep while the sun sank into her whitish pelt. Bat had currently retreated away from the sun, disliking how the heat attacked his thick and darkened fur, and was resting in the den at the moment. For once, all was quiet, excluding the soft birdcalls in the woods and more distant yelps and barks of the Ohu soldiers.

Mayu lazily closed her eyes for a few moments, letting her other senses feel the pulse of the calm spring weather around them. The faint but cooler wind brought smells of flowers and growing leaves in it, but no promise of rain, making the perfume of the plants almost sickly sweet. Before she'd had her family, and after the loss of Mao and Alucard, Mayu would have probably kept her nose raised to the air and self on guard, concerned about a possible coming storm that would bowl in after the calm. Now, however, she could finally feel the peace underneath the weather, and Mayu let herself relax and rest. There would be no storm– not now, or later. And if there was, then she would just crawl under shelter with Bat and their pups.

Behind her in the den, Mayu could hear Bat begin to shuffle around, sitting up. When she continued to lay in the sun, not hearing him coming any closer, Mayu had to cock one of her ears and open one of her eyes to take a peek at what he was doing. Even peering from the corner of her eye, she couldn't see him moving any. Bat was just sitting still, muzzle tilted up slightly, in one of his moments where the crossed scars over his face almost looked like eerie substitute eyes, covering for the pale orbs underneath sliced lids that would never fully open again. Mayu paused, looking at him for a little longer before flicking her eyes back to the front and watching the cubs slumber again.

All the same, she didn't close them again, opening her eyes further. Bat was obviously deep in thought about something, but there was an undercurrent of movement in his still body and stiller eyes. Mayu could tell he was going to do something after the thoughts were over, though she wasn't sure what. The Labrador could still remain cold and unreadable at times, body and face taking on an emotionless mask not even Mayu could see through. It had cracked slightly over the dissolving of Hougen's reign, but not all of it could blamed on the influence of Hougen or humans, or even the many years spent wandering and honing his blind-eye skills. Bat was just a withdrawn and controlled dog sometimes. It was in his nature.

Mayu decided to wait where she was, returning her attention to the scent-sodden air and moving her tangled stringy tail so that curved behind her legs. She didn't have to wait too much longer, hearing quiet footsteps approaching behind her as she watched Wing slumber, snoring as his head drooped over Kuro's back.

The saluki flicked her ears back, not even turning around as Bat sat down next to her, moved into the sun at last.

"Hello, Bat," Mayu said, voice almost lazy in the summer heat. She adjusted herself, spreading her body out more over the ground, grass bending underneath her and brushing against her fur. Bat ignored the silent invitation to lie down, still remaining sitting up. Mayu thought nothing of it, pausing to see if he would respond to her, but when he didn't, she went back to watching their pups sleep. Kuro was underneath Wing's chin, propping his older brother's head up and being covered by his fringy hanging ears, and Mina was collapsed near Wing, little pink belly upturned towards the sun, twisted and stretched out like she had nothing better to do than own the world.

There was another brief stretch of silence, Bat remaining still as they both watched their cubs, one parent with their eyes and the other with their senses. Bat finally shifted as a fly sped through the air, buzzing along before it disappeared into the forest. He turned his head to look at Mayu, whom was currently basking in the sun again, ruffled fur glowing the light. Bat didn't need eyes to tell she was relaxing, her strict guard lowered for once. He almost felt guilty for tearing her out of it.

Bat gave his head a small shake, moving it to face down at Mayu. She perked her ears, seeing him preparing to say something. Bat usually didn't move his face to talk to others. He couldn't see them or hold their eyes; it was useless. Moving his head was an action born sheer of politeness.

"Mayu, we need to talk," Bat said. Mayu arched an eyebrow at him as he refused to come down to her level, still sitting upright and stiff, but she pushed it away, settling herself down further and tilting her head at him.

"About what?" she asked. "Wing again? I swear, if he's been harassing Hiro again–"

"No, it's not about Wing," Bat said, hearing the casual, not-even-near-anger in Mayu's voice. The sun had dulled her, though she was rapidly shaking off its warmed feeling at the odd tone in his voice. "Rather, about Mina."

At that point, Mayu's face took on another expression entirely, and seeing Bat's point-blank seriousness, and she began to get to her feet. "What about Mina?" she asked, voice sharper than it had been with the mention of Wing. Bat didn't know if it was from her waking up, or something else entirely.

Bat flicked one of his ears, listening to the buzz of an insect behind him before cocking them forward, completely focused on Mayu. "I know your intention is to toughen her and give her the ability to survive," he began, feeling Mayu start at the unusual turn their conversation was taking, "especially in a place like this– where you are… outnumbered…– but I think you're being too harsh with her."

"'Harsh'?" Mayu said, straightening up, surprise in her voice. "Bat, she's over four months; she can learn how to hunt and feed herself already, or at least get her skills together. I know you like pampering her, but…" Mayu gave her a head a small shake.

"This has nothing to do with pampering," Bat said, feeling a stab of annoyance inside him. He did love and spoil his daughter, more than Wing and Kin, admittedly, but this had nothing to do with it. The sad suspicions he'd been having were validated. "You practically radiated it at Reika's; you're being unfair to her–"

"How?" Mayu asked, voice a little sharper, surprised and annoyed that Reika had come into the conversation. She bore no ill feelings towards the sweet reddish akita, but hardly considered her one to turn to for advice with raising a daughter. Hearing Bat mention Mina and Reika in the same sentence made an instinctive protest arise in her. "Bat, please–" Mayu took a deep breath through her nose as she continued talking, struggling to push down the impulsiveness in her that would make things more difficult.

"I know Mina has issues with the training sometimes, but she needs to go through it," Mayu said, the last hints of any sun drowsiness in her leaving. Bat watched her, currently holding his tongue. "Ohu is a paradise, but it's no reason to not prepare her early– it's an army too. And not just one." Mayu tilted her head up, giving it a rough shake and beginning to get to her feet. "Out of all the soldiers you've sensed around you, Bat, can you name more than two female ones? And I mean legitimate ones, not just soldier mates like Reika is," Mayu added, seeing the name already forming on his mouth.

"I could," Bat said calmly, but wisely refused to say the first name that had come to his head, particularly with Mayu on guard as she was. "You being one of them, and, despite how she looks and acts, Reika can fight when she needs to. Do you know she almost drowned Hougen in the war?"

Mayu blinked in surprise, ears perking up. "Really?" Bat could hear the disbelief in her voice at Reika, friendly, chattering Reika, doing anything particularly violent at all besides snapping a rabbit's neck. The akita's personality was as warm as her fur color, the soft red blending into her cream underbelly, and it seemed as if she was there to complement Hiro's blunt language and mammoth battle-worn pelt. Mayu had heard enough about Hougen from various soldiers around the camp to be surprised at the fact that the war had almost ended long before Weed had split open the great dane's skull, and a vengeful other force had disposed of him completely.

"Yes. She baited him and played to his weakness before she threw herself– and him– into the nearby river." Bat's crossed eye lids twitched slightly. "It was a miracle she didn't drown… I don't recall Hiro or Mel being too happy with having to sit on the sidelines."

"Not as if you cared too much at the time," Mayu said wryly, flicking one of her ears back. Bat had to give a quiet snort as they were both momentarily distracted from the subject, silently appreciating the truth of her words. He'd told Mayu everything about his origins from Ohu, or rather, from the opposite army who'd been trying to kill them for several long bloody months. She had been surprisingly calm and accepting, despite the carnage that had been left behind and the actions of Hougen's army.

"Still," Mayu said, breaking through the brief silence, "even if Reika is a soldier, it doesn't change that there aren't that many females here, period, and Mina has to be ready to face her other– male– companions with just as much strength as they have. And since so many of them seem uneager to train a female when she reaches the right age, I have to try and prepare her before the time comes, so that she actually has a chance in Hell to show them otherwise," Mayu finished fiercely, and Bat could hear the determination– and undertone of love– in her voice for Mina. Whether or not their daughter could hear it when she needed to, however, was another story entirely…

"Mayu, if you're trying to prepare her for the future, why not Wing and Kuro?" Bat shot back, hearing the softly in-tune breathing of the three pups nearby, one's little heart pattering along a beat or two faster than the others. Kuro. "They need preparation as much as Mina does, perhaps more."

"I am training them," Mayu retorted, the tiniest of repressed growls entering her voice, back stiffening slightly, "and no different from Mina– she just gets a little more, since they'll be accepted by any of the other soldiers here for training the instant they become of age."

"Mayu, you're working Mina raw," Bat said sharply, being uncharacteristically blunt. At this point, he didn't know who was the blinder– him or his well-intentioned and tough-love mate. "I haven't seen Wing and Kuro out on their own hunting trips yet, or any compliments towards them being bitten back at the last second–"

"Are you saying I'm not proud of Mina?" Mayu barked, cutting in and sitting straight up. Bat could hear her paws scrabbling over the grassy ground as she jumped to her own impulsive conclusion, and a little too quickly. "She's done fantastic, is fantastic; just because I don't lavish her with pats all the time doesn't mean I don't feel the same way you do–"

"I know that's not it, Mayu," Bat said, voice slightly colder as his own temper and fur beginning to rise slightly, "but why can't you tell her that? You're so obsessed with leveling her out with the 'other males' that you're becoming hypocritical, and she's convinced you love Wing or Kuro more than her. I meant to imply nothing else," he added coolly at the end, tone flattening out to the calm and aloof voice he'd used as a traveling fighter and commander in Hougen's army. When Bat became angry, he didn't explode like Mayu did. He seemingly became calmer and more disjointed from the reality outside his slit eyelids, hackles prickling ever so slightly.

Seeing Bat's rising anger at her thoughtless comment, Mayu forcefully bit her teeth, trying to rein in her impulsive tongue and the scrambled thoughts about what she was hearing. "I know you weren't," she ground out, trying to fit some more understanding softness in her voice, but having a difficult time doing so, "but hypocrisy? Explain, Bat. PLEASE." Mayu said, the rough please grinding up and falling from her throat like a brick when combined with her anger.

She hadn't meant to anger Bat, but– her? Working Mina raw? What the hell was he thinking? That wasn't 'working Mina raw'; being worked raw was when you had your back split open by a sonovabitch border collie and had to contort like a snake with all the other worthless meat sacks on legs to please him. Mina, Kuro, and Wing were protected from that; Mayu wasn't forcing any of them beyond their limits, and she wouldn't allow anyone to do it over her own dead body.

Bat could hear Mayu's attempt to recant her earlier words and stab that had made him angry, but the sound of slumbering Mina's breathing harmoniously mixed in with those of Wing and Kuro reminded him of what had to be said. "You're trying to train her to compensate for what others'll think of her for her gender– fine. I understand that," Bat said, hackles slowly lowering as he tried to tell Mayu what he was thinking.

"But you've started to do their reverse– instead of believing she's going to be a weak and worthless scrap because Mina is a she, you're forcefully telling her she has to be so much stronger and give you more effort than her brothers solely because she's female, not because she's Mina. Taking it to the opposite of extreme of what you hate so much," Bat said quietly, knowing Mayu's ears were cocked and listening to him in stunned, stubborn disbelief. He tried to keep his voice quiet and gentle to make her understand better. "Becoming a variation of what you loathe in her eyes, Mayu, and it's hurting her."

"What? NO, it's nothing like that–" Mayu protested, trying to sound indignant at what he was implying– what he'd flat out just said– but Bat could hear the slowly advancing and hollow pain in her voice. Her internal stubbornness and denial would only get her so far, and she knew it. "My training Mina is nothing like the discrimination she's going to get later…" Mayu's words faded, the attempt at adding her usual fieriness dying. "It's not as if– goddamnit, I give up. Bat, is– is that what I'm really doing to her?" Mayu asked, usually firm tone gaining a quaver. Bat felt a tiny waft air trail over his fur, bringing more of the condensed scent of flowers.

"You weren't trying to–"

"I'm not asking you what know I wasn't trying to do; I'm asking you what I actually fucked up and did," Mayu said sharply, cutting Bat off. He could hear the razor wire of anger in her voice, but not directed towards him: unforgiving to herself. Mayu leaned towards Bat, and he could feel her craning closer, her searing stare cutting pressing against his face.

"Well, unintentionally, but– yes." Bat said flatly, unable to keep going with the extra lace trimmings on his words. It would have only made things for Mayu worse, and if she'd so easily accepted what he'd told her about Mina, then it meant she'd been suspecting herself of doing something similar to begin with, even if only subconsciously.

There was a brief moment of quiet as Mayu tried to get her words together, and Bat could hear their pups all breathing together in their squashed heap, a faint snore escaping from them now and then. A bee buzzed over their heads, heading on to the fragrant flowers. Bat heard something like a ragged snort and sigh come of Mayu's mouth, breaking the uncomfortable calm again.

"Why didn't you tell me what I doing earlier?" Mayu asked, a small rasp in her voice. Her stringy ears flicked back and drooped.

"It's never been this way before," Bat admitted, turning his head in an attempt to look at the place Mayu's eyes would be. In the perpetual dark of blindness, he wasn't quite sure where. "You've always been harder on her than Wing and Kuro, but until we came to Ohu, she didn't think much of it."

"Did she talk to you about it?" Mayu said, feeling something sink inside her. Her own daughter, withholding important things from her, all because she found herself unable to talk to her mother. Mayu suddenly felt like Lazarus, bitterly reminded of the cruel collie and his mane of fluffy fur, which seemed like a spiteful joke– it was nothing like his personality. His own daughters had barely been treated above the other puppies, and Mayu had seen him turn them away more than once, silencing them before they even got the time to speak. She hadn't thought any of it while she was in the Clan.

"No, but I can tell," Bat said, ears cocking. Mayu didn't doubt his claim. He listened to Mina's little chattering on a daily basis… and far more than she did. Mina had a recent tendency to quiet down around Mayu, as if she was watching her words. Like she was worried about letting something 'weak' slip. Mayu felt furious and nauseated with herself.

Hating what she had discovered, Mayu closed her eyes, trying to get her scrambled thoughts in line. First Cross, then George and Ken, now this– it was as if hell itself just couldn't leave her and family relations alone.

Sensing her inner turmoil, Bat leaned forward, touching his nose to Mayu's shoulder. He didn't attempt to go any closer or become sappy to comfort her, knowing she liked to hold herself up, and adding gilded and sappy sweet words to everything would just the split the wound open further, not close it.

Mayu quietly moved her own muzzle, setting it on top of Bat's. He could feel the short puffs of air coming from her nose, rolling over his snout.

"Bat, how the hell am I going to talk to her?" she asked, much lower and softer than Bat had heard her in a long time– not to mention rawer.

Bat tilted his muzzle up, moving his nose further up into her fur. "Just try to get her alone somewhere and do it," he said. "Explain yourself to her. That's all you can do."

Nearby, the steady little heartbeats of the pups continued, uninterrupted and blissfully unaware. Mina sleepily yawned.

XXXX

Ohu.

The wavering images and words throbbed through her head again, feeling as if they were going to split her skull open. She gurgled on the sludge and drool slowly dripping out of her mouth, taking another mechanical step forward.

Ohu.

Setsu could no longer feel her eyes, her lids fluttering up and down every now and then when something remotely like sensation hit them. It was eaten away within seconds of seconds, belly and innards slowly heaving forward and feeling ready to burst from her skin like rotting stones inside. They went back with another one of the heaving breathes that seemed to belong to the world, not to her. The word 'her' did not apply to it anymore. 'Her' meant gender and an identity. Setsu had a garbled, searing mess of neither.

Gajou.

The dog continued her labored panting, driving herself further. A briar tore at her leg, and she ignored it, leaving a subdued blood drop to begin forming through her short fur. Setsu plowed forward through the trees and bushes, head down and swaying unnaturally, thick ropes of drool slipping and pouring from her mouth to the ground and snagging plants below. Some of it looked and smelled more like black sludge and decayed bear flesh then saliva. Setsu couldn't tell whether that was true or if the nose on the face that belonged to someone not her was betraying them. Both her and the feral thing locked together in the body, melting and oozing their burnt flesh into each other. Becoming one.

Gajou.

Setsu crushed a tuft of grass under the foot, ignoring the obvious trail of body fluids and disturbed vegetation left behind them. The dog had been walking for three days straight without food nor water, feeling them to be poisonous. They were distractions. They made the trip to Ohu slower; kept she and the no-eyed phantom smoke and sludge with a red fur crest from ripping apart the dogs and human that had destroyed her. Setsu gave a small snort, unblinking eyes twitching, filmed over with exhaustion and another ethereal layer.

The front leg took another stride forward. Normally, Setsu's limbs would've wobbled and caved in long ago due to stress and pain. They had no food to fuel them. Right now, however, they were taking one step after another, quivering flesh held on to cores of solid steel. They would not crumple until everyone at the rock palace of Gajou and Ohu was dead, and the red-furred and silver-furred dogs that had ripped and torn were dead, entrails ripped from their stomachs; old scars reopened and flesh devoured.

Kill.

More drool splattered onto the ground as Setsu staggered over another patch of grass, briefly shining and dripping from the petals of the flower it had landed on. The dog's raspy breathing became deeper and more strained for a moment, trying to inhale for a chest and body a thousand times its size. For a few moments, distorted black smoke played at the edges of her mouth, curling over her gums and slithering over her muzzle, but then it was gone, and only Setsu was doggedly trudging on ahead.

Kill.

Everything would be theirs again; the corpses of humans and dogs to feed on, the necks to twist and snap, the stretching territory that had once belonged to them and them alone. None of it would ever be taken again. Not after they were crushed and ripped apart in her mighty jaws and paws; not after they reared and broke their spines with a roar of triumph and slap of the brace of claws and toughened skin.

KILL.

Setsu growled in demented pleasure, briefly choking on her own dry throat and salivating tongue. She gave a few hacking coughs, doubling up, before continuing to march on.

Only two more days to Ohu.

XXXX

Cross had a lot on her mind. It was so much, it had halted her walk and turned it into a sit down. Currently she lay sprawled upon the grass, taking in the sun against her silky fur. A few bugs tangled in her fur which had grown with age. Oh how she remembered her younger days; remembered and missed them. To relive those days would be a private dream. In her mind she remembered all of the battles, the trials she had worn. Everything had led to this moment. She was thankful for her life.

A mate, children, a real family– what more could she ask for? Ken, George, Miney; their birth was forever etched in her mind. Feeling each little push, each yelp, and lastly their suckling at her teats. At that time, she had felt true happiness, something she hadn't felt in such a long time, not since that day; the day Sawada left her to die. There had been a blessing in that, for had it never happened, she would have never met Ben, nor started her family; her second family that is. Although she had tried to forget her first, she could never do that. Even when she was happy with her current one, she could never forget her first litter.

But there was a clear separation between them. Her second was made out of true love, while her first simple instinct. As much as she hated to admit it, she had never loved her "few hour" mate. He was simply there to fulfill his breeding duties, nothing more. Mayu; oh how she wished she could talk to her, but it was doubtful the female would allow her to even get close.

Cross wanted to cry but couldn't. She was dried out. Contemplation of what to do ached her old bones. Stay or move, it wasn't important either way as her thoughts had free reign over her.

"Come on! Get out!"

Cross looked up at the sound of a tiny voice. Her thoughts were pushed away by the movement of her body. Old bones creaked as she strained with a grunt. Another sound followed it, sniffling. From the volume and pitch of the voice, it was a pup. One of Reika's perhaps? No, it wasn't. Somehow Cross knew that it wasn't. But, the only other pups that were around were...

"Please get out!" The pup pleaded. A small black labrador pup, one with a white underbelly, was biting at her paw. Cross silently observed the pup, taking in her features. She had heard that voice before, long ago. Although it came from a different pup; her daughter. However, this puppy wasn't her daughter. Could fate really have planned this? Such a meeting couldn't have been a mere coincidence, could it?

"H-h-hello?" Cross managed to speak out.

The pup looked up from her sniffling and gasped when she noticed the female before her.

The pup backed away uncertain and slightly afraid of the stranger before her. Cross observed likewise noticing that the pup was holding up her right paw, avoiding the ground entirely.

"Hello miss!" The pup squeaked out, clearly nervous but maintaining a respect for her elders.

Awkward silence followed between the two. Neither knew what to say to the other. But what else could they do?

"Is there something wrong with your paw?" Cross broke the ice, asking the question.

The pup didn't know what else to say besides showing respect for the older dog. "Um no. I-i-it's fine," she said.

Cross wasn't convinced. She could tell when a child was lying, especially when Ken, George, and Miney were pups. "Dear, I can tell you're in pain. Please show me your paw."

The pup still kept a nervous glance towards the older dog, uncertain even.

"Please little one, I'm not going to hurt you." Cross spoke soothingly.

The pup's distrust towards her vanished upon those words. Holding out her right front paw, Cross walked toward it. Sticking in it was a small thorn. It was in deep, more than likely from the pup's attempts to remove it.

"Oh my, that's deep. Hold still." The pup obeyed as Cross gently bit into her paw. She felt a small tug bringing in a small shot of pain. It lasted for momentarily before subsiding completely.

"My paw!" The pup exclaimed in happiness. "Thank you old lady!"

Cross's eyes bugged out at the mention of the word 'old.' "Aheh my name is Cross little one. And you're welcome dear." Forgetting the comment, Cross smiled down at the pup. "What's your name?"

The pup had forgotten her uneasiness about the situation. "Mina, miss Cross." The pup bowed her head.

Mina, such a lovely name, Cross thought. "What are you doing out here all alone Mina? Where's your mother and father?" Cross held a hint of nervousness with the thought of the mother around.

Mina pawed at the ground when she heard mention of her parents. "Daddy is talking with some friends of his, my older brother is playing with his friend Kin, and my little brother is with Mommy," Mina answered.

Cross noticed some sort of lack of emotion when the mother was mentioned. However, there was plenty of it when the father was involved.

"So what are you doing here, Cross lady?" Mina innocently asked.

"Oh just taking a walk. Moving these old bones about." Cross answered with a chuckle, both at an admittance of her age and the title the child had bestowed upon her.

Mina curiously sniffed at Cross and as the old one was doing before, looking at her features. "You know lady? You kind of look like a grumpy mister I met."

"Grumpy mister?" Cross repeated. Immediately her mind went to George. No one else could be considered a 'grumpy mister,' especially in regards to appearance.

"That must have been my son. Don't mind him, he's actually sweet when you get to know him," said Cross.

Mina observed something else, a secondary feature. "You know, you look like my mommy too. Just like the grumpy mister."

Cross's mouth stood agape at that. "Well that's..." Cross wanted to say something, wanted to admit, but something was holding her back.

"Um, excuse me lady? Can I walk with you?" Mina suddenly asked.

Reaching her ears, the very question made Cross smile. "Certainly dear."

Mina had been taught not to speak with strangers. But seeing as they were both apart of Ohu, they were not really strangers to one another. There was another reason, something unspoken between the two females. Both could sense it and that alone was enough for them to walk together.

It was the first time grandmother and granddaughter spoke to one another.