Eyyy how's it going how many people have I killed
Anyway, I'll be (hopefully) lightening the mood here, because this story has a gigantic map, and in 12 chapters they've moved very little, so I'm trying to move the plot as quickly as I can, despite not having any, just a few splotches of random shorts, but I'll try to stretch the chapters as much as I can. Or whatever. Idk
HarmonianTraveller
Ahh, thank you~! Yeah, I get you… uwu;;
I ship it ewe
Luka caressed the water weeds in the lake, slowly trailing her hand across the surface of the water. Len had cremated her body, trembling and shivering as he held his eyes closed and set fire to the body before him, and they sent the ashes into the river that flowed from the mountain. Luka looked down at the lake; all the water was connected in some way, wasn't it? Ripples followed her fingertips, distorting what she could see of her reflection. The water felt odd, less happy and flowed gently and quietly, the streams slowly moving past the rocks and pebbles as if the water knew that something had happened. It was true, she thought, as she moved her hand past the reflection of the orangey-blue sky, drowning the rising sun in ripples. Of course, she thought hastily, she was an aquatic creature herself, she of all of people should know! The water would respond to one of their kind passing, and the way it responded to her was with empathy. It didn't feel sorry, nor guilt, it was just a body of water treading across the surface of the world, but it understood that one of their own had left them, and that was what the water told her.
Ah, but why had it been her? She had fought so hard, yet she never made it to the end. Perhaps it was for the best, that she had been put to rest immediately, so she could make sure everything went smoothly. Perhaps she had already left them. Yes, it was certainly for the best, although Luka couldn't quite see it that way. Her humorous side took over, suppose Gakuko was already there, and instead of sleeping peacefully in the forest of beginnings, she hadn't quite reached it yet, and was kicking others out of the way, yelling to be let in. That was probably what was going on. She didn't want to be fussed and wept over. She would've wanted everyone to escape and live, because that was what she had fought for.
…
Mikuo awoke.
The harsh strips of sunlight poured onto his face. Feeling disgruntled with his sleep he moaned for more rest, but the devilish light of the sun begged for justice to win over him. The sunlight bathed his skin as he lay on his side, trying to close his eyes. What had happened yesterday was something he didn't want to deal with today. Let me sleep, Mikuo yawned, scratching the back of his ear. Eventually he got up, groaning. Sleepily making his way towards the cave mouth, needing to go, and with his eyes half-closed, he knocked into a boulder instead. He recoiled backwards, and his eyes snapped open, rubbing his head. What- Oh, that's right, everybody had returned to the cave to rest after sending off Gakuko's ashes, but what was the rock there for? Had it rolled through the cave while he was asleep, and no one looked? The boulder was still there, blocking his way out, and he sighed. There was no way he'd be able to move the boulder by himmself, and the gap left was too small for him to crawl through. None of his companions had awoken, so he retreated to where he had been resting and sat, grumbling to himself.
The sunlight that had shone upon him was now looking towards Miku, and following the beam of light, his eyes fell back on her. Don't look into my eyes… Her voice had told him. Another voice had told him the same thing. The same words echoed in his mind, somewhere, somewhere before he had been brought to the castle. Someone had told him the same thing, a long, long time ago. And her repeating those words had only made him wonder who it had been. He looked towards her. Don't look into my eyes. He remembered a story he had heard before, a time before he had been taken away. A story about those whose eyes made others tell the truth… What were they? Stories. They were fairytales spun by the adults to get children tucked into bed. And who had told him these stories? He couldn't remember, but something in Miku's eyes almost had.
Ugh… He might as well have gone to lay back down to sleep.
And, for some fortunate reason, he did.
…
The space was just small enough for her to crawl through. How lucky, she thought she had been taller than the Kins themselves, but it had seemed like the age only wore her body smaller… Luka's eyes glazed over as they settled on Miku, curled up in one corner, and instinctively, turned to search for someone else. Mikuo lay on a large, smooth rocky ledge, quite a fair distance from her. One day she'd have to change that. A small sound caught her ears, and she looked around, wondering where it was coming from. Finally her gaze swept back to the male Kin. The noises were from him; she realised, and were actually mews of pleasure and playfulness. Caught by her curious side, she moved over to him.
The first thing she checked was his face – at first glance, anyone would think that he was sleeping soundly, but, oh, she knew the signs of having a pleasant dream when she saw one. His ears were twitching, like an excited puppy, and other than the occasional mews, he seemed to be purring contentedly, a small smile on his face as he dreamt, blissfully unaware of her presence. Luka looked downwards, her eyebrows rising. Oh yes, he was certainly having a pleasant dream.
"Hey." She nudged his shoulder. She was going to wake him from it. To think, just a moment ago she had been mourning over Gakuko's death, but if there was anything else to put her mind at ease, it was to tease the little kitten in front of her. Gakuko wouldn't have minded, she'd probably have done the same. "Mikuo. Wake up." She nudged his shoulder again, pinching his ear.
Mikuo's eyes snapped open, still slightly disgruntled as he looked around sleepily, trying to focus on Luka's blurry figure. "Unhh… Huh…?"
The Lumiere smirked, crossing her arms as she gestured downwards. "My, my. Mikuo, I must ask, is it that you've gotten your tail caught in your trousers, or were you just having a very nice dream?"
"What..?" He blinked, looked downwards and shrieked. He toppled off the ledge and fell face-first into the grass, flailing and crying in alarm as he finally settled on a seating position, hunched over. He glared at the smirking Lumiere menacingly, face and ears red.
"What's the matter? I just wanted to tell you."
"You could've just woken me up… It would've-" Mikuo paused. "…Stopped."
"Sure it would." She smiled slyly at him. What were you dreaming about? She didn't ask him, and graciously let the boy be on his own. "Well, you're awake now, so that's that."
(( I am so sorry ))
Mikuo shifted over uncomfortably."Umm, can you help me move the boulder, then?" He nodded towards the huge rock.
She snorted. "Do you really think I'm that strong?"
Mikuo sighed, ears flattening. It had certainly seemed so when she attacked the guard back at the foretress. But now he still couldn't get out. "Yeah." He murmured unhappily.
Luka smiled, then turned towards Miku, who was still fast asleep, not too far away from them. No one else was awake… "You like her, don't you?"
"What?" Mikuo's ears perked up and he turned back towards Luka. "E-Excuse me?"
She smirked, gesturing towards Miku, now curled up on the floor. " like her. Admit it."
Mikuo's face turned red, and he shook his head frantically. "Wh-What the hell? I do not! Heck, the girl's a bi-" He stopped as Luka gave him a glare. "I mean… But it's true, y'know. She just pretends to be nice to you. I swear, if you ever see her alone, she's one huge spitting, hissing ball of fur-"
"Just like you," Luka interrupted smugly. "You may not have noticed it, but she's only like that when she's around you. Plus, she saved your life."
"Tch. You don't know her. And she didn't save me, she was only using me because she wanted to stay alive, okay!?" He was okay with that, he thought, and calmed down quickly. "By the way, what's that boulder there for?"
"Oh, that." Luka turned towards it. "Len and Luki pushed it there last night, while you all were sleeping. The wind was starting to act up again, so we moved a boulder there in case any of the stone giants would come to claim us; or even a wild beast. We're not ready for that, I'm sure you wouldn't want to fight in your condition."
"But," Mikuo began, puzzled, "last night we were trekking through the storms, and this morning we sent Gakuko's ashes – how could they have pushed the boulder without my knowing?"
"Hm." Luka sighed. "You were unconsious for an entire day, perhaps that's why your clock is out of sync. Everybody was weary and stayed in the cave to rest, while you slept rather peacefully. Whatever you were dreaming of, I'm sure it must have been nicer than whatever was happening out here."
Mikuo coloured. "No, erm…" He stumbled, trying to snap a reply.
"I'm sure it was pleasant. Now come on, we've still a long way to go."
…
Len groaned in protest, despite not being the only one to help as he pushed against the boulder until it was finally moved out of the way. Mikuo, hopping from foot to foot, bolted out of the cave once the blockage was gone, and the rest streamed out easily. Lenka flopped down onto the grass, happy to get back onto the plants and let the sunlight pour over her, while the other girls combed the mess out of their hair. Luka stood next to Luki, both of them mumbling over the map as the others dashed about in the sunlight. "We'll have to take the end path." Luki moved his finger to one end of the map, and Luka nodded. "It's a tough twist, but if we move fast we should be able to get to the border of the forest before the sun sets. If everyone's still strong enough to pass the hills, there's a small town just after…" He looked at Luka and smiled. "No humans."
This seemed to relieve her, but looking at him, she frowned. "What about you, then? You're not… One of us."
"I said no humans, not unwelcoming to humans. I've passed through their town many times before, and I promised them I would bring no harm. They've come to trust me, and so they should be fine with just a few… Visitors."
Luka bit her lip. "Of course."
"But the others." Miku sounded, stepping up behind them. "How are we going to get everyone out of the castle? Even if we somehow manage to bring them all, slowly here, wouldn't they notice if the number of prisoners were decreasing? And that surely it would be our fault?" Her face darkened. "They're searching for us. We can't stay in one place for long."
"She's right." Luka sighed. "The Ones won't stop until they've reached their goal." She gave Luki a look, and he nodded sadly. "We'll have to move out. We have to keep moving. There's no time for the others. Maybe one day…"
"No." A voice sounded.
The three looked down. Chu was standing behind them, one hand on the edge of Miku's tail, looking up at them with her innocent blue eyes. "No. They won't find out."
"You're very optimistic." Luka smiled, bending down and scratching the Kitsune between her ears. "And that's good. Go run along and play with your sister, now." She gently shoved Chu away, and with the little girl taking a look back at her bitterly, specifically at Miku, she hopped off and ran to join her sister and the other girls.
"Kids." Luka sighed, giving Luki a glance. He smiled at her, and she turned away. "Anyway… Maybe there are some other Kingdoms with no humans… One that the entire army wouldn't dare to take on by themselves."
"Hmm, yes… There must be a few." Luki nodded, scannning the map. "But if there are, they're not on this map. Hidden in the mountains, forests, deserts, there must be some villages, maybe even towns where your kind reside. That would be nice…"
"For us, yes." Luka said wistfully. "But what about you? You can't return to your area anymore…Not without…"
Both of them gave each other pained looks, one with more fear than the other, but Miku couldn't tell which looked more scared. But the way they looked at each other gave her the idea to take a step back and let them talk amongst themselves. She turned and returned to the others, who were playing with the twins by the river. Kaiko was creating shapes with water in the air, and Len blew into the wind, creating fire along with the bubbles, and the others cheered and clapped as the two elements created a story. Mikuo had trotted back to their direction, seating himself, not too close, but just enough to watch them play from a distance.
"Look, I'm a dragon!" Len said, and drew the figure of a dragon in the air, bursting flames from its mouth, and Kaiko in turn made a ship. As the fire hit the water, the ship went up in steam, and Lenka held out her hands so she could receive the remaining water droplets. Chu and Yan giggled as they watched the monster devour the ship, and Len, following his creation, was pretending to swallow something whole, although it looked more like he was choking on something.
"Alright guys, pack up. We've got a forest to get through and a mountain to cross." Luka came in behind them, bending down so she could wash her face. "I found some berries behind the cave, so if you're hungry you can go pick a few- Where are the twins?"
Everyone froze and looked towards Len, where the twins had been sitting earlier, but they weren't there anymore. Len looked panicked and stood up, dropping several embers on the grass. Smoke went up, and Kaiko hurriedly doused water over the plants. "Th-They were here just a moment ago." Lenka said. "How'd they run off so fast?"
Miku sniffed the air. "They're not in this area anymore. How did they move so quickly? And quietly… Oh!" She turned towards the north of the cave, where Yan returned with something in her mouth. She hopped back towards them, looking very calm for someone who had just disappeared in the middle of the woods, and returned without her sister. She placed what she had in her mouth onto the ground and everyone groaned in shock.
"Did you… Was it already dead?" Luka asked worriedly, gesturing at the dead bird before them, feathers bloodied.
Yan shook her head. "Chu."
"Oh."
Chu returned after, with another dead bird in her mouth and dropped it next to her sister's. Lenka looked at it repulsively, and turned away. "Great. I'm starving." Mikuo jumped in next to them and looked hungrily at the meat. "Len, start a fire."
"Nnnrgh… Can't someone clean it first?" He suggested in disgust.
"Hah, like the castle food was any cleaner. I want this one." He extracted his claws to rip open one of the birds, but Chu swiped it away. "Hey!" He exclaimed. The Kitsune raised an eyebrow at him and swallowed the bird whole, blood, feathers, and every other part disappearing into the mouth.
"Oh!" Everyone groaned.
Yan took her bird and began to nibble on it gently, but the smell and sight was enough to disgust everyone. "Okay… Maybe some fruit wouldn't be so bad." Miku sighed, holding her stomach.
They ate, trying not to notice the sinewy smell of the dead birds being devoured behind them; suddenly Miku did not think as well of the twins as she had before. But they were still children… She had to let it pass. "We should start off now." Luka bent down next to the tealette. "How are you feeling? Are your feet okay?"
"Yes," Miku nodded, lifting one of her feet of the ground and inspected it, stumbling through the rocky outcrops in the stormy night many of them had thought they received cuts and bruises over their feet, but now that the storm had cleared and the sun had rose again, they could see they had no more than a few lacerations, and the mountain had rumbled into a small landslide. "And to think… Just when we had finally come clearing out of the woods we would have expected peace, but they always said beware the calm before the storm. And now we must venture into the forest again…"
"It won't be as bad." Luka patted her shoulder. "Now, we must make haste. No doubt the soldiers have been alerted of our escape and are on our trail. Where are the horses?"
"Here." Luki led the two horses toward the group, one had received a blow on the side of its leg, but stood straight, only limping every once in a while. "The second horse is fine, but it is still afraid. Let the twins sit on this one; someone will have to lead the other horse. It is too afraid to continue."
"Fine." Mikuo sighed, reaching for the second horse's reins, but as soon as it caught sight of the Kin, it bucked and reared, neighing as it tried to struggle from his gasp. Mikuo in turn stumbled backwards, hissing at the animal.
"No, no…" Miku turned towards the horse from the other side, and despite its lack of side vision, it calmed down at her touch, neighing softly. "You must be gentle with the animals, they fear us. You idiot." She added. The horse turned from Mikuo and carried on at a slow trot without looking back, seeming satiated at Miku's side.
"You should be gentler, now shouldn't you?" Luka brushed by his side, and he groaned in frustration. "Is everyone fine? Where we head should not be much further, but we still have a long way to go, and we need to move fast lest the soldiers are chasing us, and you know they won't stop at nothing. The storm might have slowed them down, but we must move now."
"Alright," Luki looked upon the group, it had been smaller than it had been before, it was only one that had been subtracted, but yet, without her everybody seemed small and weary. "Let's go. We should arrive at our destination before sunset."
(( myeurhh I'm giving up can you tell ))
…
The trees stood in their marked positions, guarding whatever magic has been hidden for centuries. The gentle breeze carried their whispers from one to another, reporting whatever they see to be suspicious. Tiny, delicate footsteps were heard as squirrels hurried up and down the trees, jumping across from branch to branch to get to their destinations. The air was a satisfying smell of fresh pine, pleasant to the nose. In another direction, beyond the forest guards, a deer and doe galloped together in a trance of bewildering beauty. 'This forest', Miku had already figured out by the time they had stepped in it, 'This forest shows the life not accustomed to humans, I can see Luki wondering… Our magic is stronger than they could ever understand, but it is such pleasure to be in it again, even if it is an enchantment…'
A shadow darted through the trees. Miku started, stopping her leisurely trot and paused, scanning the vegetation of what she had assumed to be another person, surely no animal was fast enough… And suddenly she looked up, that the forest had not been the same when she had looked through it the first time, which her companions that had been leading were suddenly gone. No… Not again, she couldn't be left behind… She began to call their names, starting with the most familiar upon her lips, Luka-
"Are you lost, fair maiden?"
The voice made her jump and squeal, in an almost immediate reaction she turned and landed a blind punch, but whoever she had been swinging her fist towards ducked easily and she then found herself looking at a dark-haired boy, red eyes looking back into hers. Red eyes…? Yes, some of them were sure to have red eyes, but there could not have been any humans with them, but the way he looked so melancholically at her she could tell he was not simply human. "No…" She began slowly, then flustered, he was looking at her in a way she did not quite like, but found it hard to refuse. "No, no, I was travelling with my friends… Have you seen them? There was a man, with two horses, a Lumiere, a Kappa…"
"Oh, them, yes." He sighed, changing his position on the tree branch he had been relaxing on, and she wondered how he had found himself upon it so quickly and quietly, and how she had lost her companions… "They passed by, they should be not too far ahead of you. If you run now, you should be able to catch up."
"Thank you!" She sighed in relief, had he not given her his help she would have held her suspicion and left his sight immediately, but still he stopped her.
"Hold now, maiden," in somewhat casualty he was able to keep her from walking with a few soft words of his gently voice, he turned her to face him. "You have very beautiful eyes."
"Oh," she blushed, but forced herself to remain stoic. "I- Thank you. But I must leave… We have a town to be getting to, and I'd like to catch up with my group, if you wouldn't mind."
At the mention of the town his position and face change, his brow furrowing as he looked back at her, gaze never moving from her eyes. "The town? No, no, you mustn't go there. I mean- I suppose you could if you wished, but I would rather you not…"
"What? Why not?"
"Well, they…" He began sheepishly, which seemed odd for him even if she had known him for barely a few minutes. "They don't like us – I mean, me. And my clan… We… We are Skinchangers. Do you know what that is?"
"Skin changers?" Miku repeated curiously. "No, I don't believe I've heard of them before."
"Ah, well – we are sort of like the werewolves you might know, but we are able to control our changing as we please, and into anything we wish…" He paused, watching to see if she was listening. Satisfied, he continued. "Well… The townsfolk, they don't quite like us because the older generation of skinchangers were always at their throats, but we have gotten rid of the previous pack owners, and though we swear of our innocence, they do not believe us…"
Miku felt pity for the race she had never before heard, and out of her kind placed her hand unto his. He looked at the contact in surprise, but said nothing. He seemed so innocent, and if it was true of what he said, maybe she could settle the feud between the two tribes… "You look starved. Have you had nothing to eat?"
"Oh," Miku clutched her stomach, suddenly remembering that she had had nothing to eat since even before being imprisoned in the ice zone, and she could no longer remember how long ago it had been. "You are right… I haven't eaten for so long."
At this his ears, she noticed, seemed similar to hers, although she had sworn he had human ones when she first looked at him; pricked up. "Then, run for your friends," he said excitedly, and though he looked older than her she could sense him picking up a feeling of boyish excitement, like a little child would. "The hunters of our clan have just brought in two deer today, and it would be too much for us to finish alone, and we have no place to keep it fresh. Perhaps you could share with us."
"What?" Miku looked startled. "No, we couldn't – I mean – Well, I'm not sure about them, but me? No, no I couldn't…"
"But you must," he pleaded, tightening the grip of his hand that she realized was still over hers. "Please, come with us. Just for tonight you will see what a real feast is… We will treat you with exempt royalty. The following morning you may leave for the village if you wish."
Miku flustered, catching the hint that he had offered them beds, but refused profusely. "No, no, we can make do on our own…" But before she finished a small green-headed girl came bounding out of the shrubbery, scratching the back of her ear. "Chu!" She exclaimed in surprise. "What on earth are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with the others – where are they? Are they not ahead of us?"
The Kitsune shrugged. "Luka worry. Send me to call you."
"Oh, yes, I'll be there in a bit…"
"Is this your sister, my lady? She looks as though she will grow as lovely as you are now." The boy looked down at the child excitedly, petting the top of her head.
Miku's cheeks turned red, and she pulled her hand from his, shaking her head. "N-No, we just have the same hair colour, is all, there is another one too, but we are not related…"
"Who this?" Chu asked curiously.
The tealette had opened her mouth to speak, but the boy interrupted her. "Ah, little one – Chu, was it? I am the Skinchangers pack leader, and it would be my honour to receive you at our feast tonight, but my lady here declines."
Chu looked suspicious, which Miku was grateful for, but then horrified with at her next words "We'll all go! I ask Luka first. Miku, will you go? You'll go, right?"
"I-I- Well-" She stammered. But before she could finish the tiny Kitsune had bounced off, and soon she was surrounded by her friends again, but not with the feeling she had wanted to be welcomed with.
…
As they were ushered back towards the secluded camp of the Skinchangers, Miku turned to the boy standing by her side. She was at the back of the group, with Mikuo glowering behind her, but had said nothing about it. For some reason she felt safer with the raven-haired boy next to her, and then realized they hadn't introduced themselves. "Your name," she murmured. "You haven't said."
"Ah… Well, there's a reason for that." He sighed solemnly, and she felt him clutch for her hand. Another growl sounded from behind them, but she ignored it. "I would rather not introduce my real name to those I do not trust well, only to the closest members in the pack… But I would make an exception for you, my lady."
"Miku. Please."
"Lady Miku." He teased, and she felt him brush the hair from her eyes, leaning towards her to whisper something. Again Mikuo cleared his throat in annoyance, but now she didn't care about him as the boy's lips brushed against her ears. "Call me Zatsune, my lady."
oh
OH
OHHHHHHHHHHH
Taha I didn't know who else to use to spark some jealousy www uvu
Okay so that was the last stretches of random fillings I had, so updates might be... erhh, they're pretty slow already, but now they're going to be even slower because if you know me then you know that I never plan ahead and I always end up making a story of bits and pieces of ideas I make up before I fall asleep. Because when you're half-asleep is the best time to come up with ideas. I still have one more extra scene that I want to add it, but I don't think I can squeeze it in until we're done with this subplot.
It's a really big subplot.
Ey
don't look at me like that
( also don't look so concerned about the first part he did get his tail caught in his pants because he never puts them on properly ... maybe
hueheuee )