I wanted to thank everyone for taking the time to review!
~Man's Best Friend~
Chapter 2: The Hanshin Republic Part I
Erin woke slowly, her eyes gradually adjusting to the strange scenery of blue that met her gaze. She felt… as if she were floating, a weird sensation since she'd never floated in anything other than water. And she definitely wasn't in any water at the moment. Shaking herself to full awareness, Erin pulled herself up onto her legs, yelping in surprise when she found that there wasn't any ground beneath her. Startled, she took her surroundings in with sharper eyes, unfortunately, that just made things even more confusing.
She was floating in what she could only describe as a vertical tunnel. What she first assumed to be a blue background was actually mixed in with gray and black, the colors swirling into each other and moving, almost as if it were alive. Rings of small golden spheres wrapped around the tunnel, acting like a barrier. Bewildered, Erin tossed her mind back to remember how she got to this otherworldly place, before recalling the past week at Yuuko's shop, the arrival of the story's protagonists, and finally, the start of their adventure. There had been a flash of light, and then… she had wound up here. Was this how the characters traveled to different worlds, through this creepy tunnel? If so, then where were the others?
Another look around, both above her and below, revealed that she was indeed alone, though there was a while light at both ends of the tunnel. Which was not a particularly reassuring sight. Erin looked back at the spheres, wondering if she was supposed to break away from the tunnel's flow and go past the pattern of rings. Would she end up somewhere else, or would nothing happen at all?
A deep throaty laughter from behind Erin quickly cut off that trail of thought as she turned around, fur and muscle tightening up on instincts alone. She was taken aback at finding that the laughter was coming from a giant snake that wasn't even ten feet from her. It towered over her, its scales colored pure white; its gleaming purple eyes watching her in obvious amusement.
Erin froze, her jaw dropping a little at the sheer size of the serpent, and was instantly met with a swell of fear that wasn't completely familiar. Normally, when she was afraid, it was a sensation that made her stomach clench and had her biting her lip, before hiding it all beneath a forced bravado. Here, while she's still very much afraid, Erin now had to stop herself from growling and baring her teeth. It was unsettling, realizing just how much her reactions have changed just because she's in Mutt's body.
"Relax little one." The snake, definitely a male from the low baritone of his voice, said as his forked-tongue flickered out, tasting the air. "I have no intention of eating you." That scenario hadn't even crossed her mind. She was still too hung up at being confronted by a giant snake that actually spoke though.
"Oh, well that's good. I had no intention of being eaten today." She replied out habit. As the snake's smile widened, Erin desperately wished that she didn't become mouthy as a defense mechanism. She tensed, prepared to run should the snake choose to attack her, but he only chuckled in response.
"What an amusssing mortal you are. Yessss, I definitely chossse my wielder wisssely." The snake hissed in a pleased manner, the "s" sound of each word exaggerated slightly.
"I get that you're a snake, okay? You don't need to do the generic hissing lisp. It's an overused cliché." Erin muttered lowly, though his deep chuckle told her he'd heard what she'd said just fine. 'God, he sounds way too creepy when he does that.' She noted silently as a metaphorical shiver went down her spine. "So, to what do I owe the visit? I'm pretty sure I'm supposed to be with Syaoran and the others right now. At least I think so…" Had something gone wrong when Mokona sent them to their first world? How could she have lost them already?
"Oh don't worry little mortal, you're friendsss are clossser than you think. I merely wanted to introduccce myssself. Fire, Wind, and Metal have already aligned themssselvesss with your companionsss. A youth with sssomeone to protect, a warrior with a lesssson to learn, and a wizard with a passst to overcome. Sssuch a predictable lot, but not you. Oh no, you are very different, unique, ssstrange."
"Glad I caught your attention. You realize you're making absolutely no sense, right?" She replied steadily, unable to completely relax even though the serpent didn't seem like he wanted to hurt her. Then again, one could never really trust a snake, not when animes were involved. Or in the bible for that matter. There was a reason for why calling somebody a snake was an insult.
"Yesss, I sssuppossse you wouldn't know what I'm talking about, not with that ssseal around your neck anywaysss." The snake hissed idly before lashing forwards suddenly. He quickly lowered his head to her eyelevel and Erin reeled back, only to bump into the snake's coils, which quickly slithered around her in a matter of moments. The snake's body was easily several feet thick, its length nothing short of impressive, especially with her now very meager height. Erin knew she stood no chance of breaking free. He didn't squeeze her to a pulp like she'd feared, rather he teasingly used the tip of his tail to scratch the back of her head. Erin, hyperaware of everything the serpent did, noticed that his scales felt strange against the skin beneath her fur. They weren't warm or leathery, but hard and cold, like metal. She was even more caught off guard when the snake smirked at her, mischief radiating from his purple eyes. "Don't worry little one, I will shield you from any harm. I promissse."
~Man's Best Friend~
"Morning, Kurogane-san." Erin heard Syaoran say quietly as she woke to the sunlight streaming through the window. She yawned widely before stepping away from Sakura to stretch. 'What a weird dream.' She absentmindedly scratched at the scruff of her neck with her back leg, ignoring the slight noise her tag made, and frowned. 'Even in my own head I'm still stuck in Mutt's body.' She huffed, feeling slightly sore at her own subconscious for such a deed. "Good morning, Erin-san." The teenager said just as softly as before.
Standing up straight, Erin found herself at eyelevel with Syaoran, who was still sitting on the other side of the princess. The small bags under his eyes told her that the boy hadn't gotten much sleep last night. Still, he was smiling slightly, which matched his gentle brown eyes well.
"Morning, Syaoran." She returned genially enough, before glancing over at Kurogane who was glaring at the floor. "And good morning to you, Kurgs." Her amiable tone turned bland as she addressed the man.
"For the last time, my name is Kurogane!" He shouted back, unknowingly giving Erin the reaction she wanted, and she hid a smile. She didn't understand why, but she really got a kick out of messing with the guy.
"Ah, what a lovely sound to awaken to in the morning." Fai remarked happily from his corner of the room, rubbing one of his eyes and yawning lightly. "Good morning, Syaoran, Erin."
"Kuro-puu, you're so loud!" Mokona cheered as he jumped to the floor while Syaoran quietly returned a greeting to Fai in the background.
"It's Kurogane, rice ball!" He growled, though not nearly as loudly as before.
"Mokona's right Kurogane, don't you have any respect for Sorata and Arashi? They took us in out of the goodness in their hearts and yet here you are, shouting in their home. You probably woke them up." Erin intoned with mock disappointment while slowly shaking her head at the man. Mokona copied her actions from beside her, but with a smile still planted on his little face. "So ungrateful, you should be ashamed of yourself."
"What the hell are you talking about, mutt!?" Kurogane shouted as he pointed his finger just millimeters from her face. "You're the one who's disrespectful, calling me all those stupid names! You're the one who should be ashamed! I have–" Whatever the swordsman was about to say next would forever stay a mystery because Erin, in a genuine instant of irritation, suddenly bit down on the man's finger. There was a moment of stunned silence before Kurogane started yelling again. "Aaaggghh! What the hell?! Let go, let go!" He lifted Erin up into the air with a disturbing amount of ease and physically tried to shake her off. At feeling her feet leave the floor though, she bit down even harder. "Damn it!"
Syaoran watched the pair with bemused worry, while Mokona and Fai simply laughed.
After a few more seconds of flailing, Kurogane was able to get Erin off, blowing frantically on his finger that now glowed red and had swollen to ridiculous proportions. She could literally see his finger throbbing in pain and could only sweat-drop at the antics this anime reality could conjure up. Kurogane turned on her abruptly, looking particularly furious as his teeth sharpened drastically, not unlike that of a shark's. The shape of his eyes changed too, the pupils vanishing completely as his eyebrows narrowed.
"You bitch!" He growled angrily, a red tick mark appearing on the side of his head as his left brow twitched erratically. "Why the hell did you bite me?!"
"Don't stick your fingers in front of my face if you don't want me to bite you then!" She barked back, wondering if she had a pair of tick marks to match as she glared back at the man. She was a little impressed and amused at his bitch remark, seeing as it fit her situation perfectly, but she would sooner swallow her tongue than let Kurogane know that.
Erin had always considered herself a very laidback person, but she did have a few triggers that instantly set off her temper. One was when people felt the need to stick their hands right into her face to articulate their point. It was rude and patronizing. Granted, she'd never bitten anyone before when they'd done it, but that had been all Mutt's reaction, who did occasionally bite when she felt extremely playful, scared, or annoyed.
"Good morning noisy freeloaders!" Sorata cried out cheerfully as he threw open the bedroom door with a bang, Arashi stood behind him, looking perfectly tranquil in comparison. His arrival immediately killed the mood, leaving Kurogane to grumble to himself sourly while the others returned the greeting.
"Breakfast is ready in the communal kitchen downstairs." Arashi added helpfully as she bowed to them.
"Thank you very much, Arashi-san." Syaoran replied as he stood and bowed back. Erin quickly raced out of the room and followed behind Sorata as he led them to the kitchen. Typically, the man proceeded to brag about his wife's culinary skills on the way there. The communal kitchen, which was located on the first floor, was a rather large room. The back wall was lined with appliances and cupboards for free use while three separate wooden tables were spaced out over the room. The Hanshin Republic seemed very much like Japan's culture, as the tables were made with a traditional style. They stood only a foot and a half off of the ground, surrounded with cushions instead of chairs.
The plates had already been fixed and Erin easily found her spot at the end of the table as her food was the only meal prepared in a bowl. Kurogane complained about having to sit next to her, but she barely paid the man any attention as she was busy inspecting her food. Her meal, thankfully, was not dog food, but rather an assortment of meats mixed in some sort of porridge. Beside it sat another bowl filled with water.
Erin waited until the others started to eat, observing their interactions. Syaoran and Fai thanked Arashi again before eating and Sorata claimed his wife's cooking would be the best thing they ever ate. Funnily enough, both of them seemed to have some difficulty using chop sticks, which Erin found odd since she'd figured Syaoran had also come from a culture similar to the Japanese, judging by the way he'd used suffixes. Arashi and Sorata brought their hands up in silent prayer before eating, and began to explain how to use the foreign utensils. Syaoran seemed to be having an easier time of it than Fai, who had taken to spearing his breakfast with his chopsticks. Kurogane stared down at his food with a confused expression, clearly not recognizing the meal itself, but he quickly began eating after Mokona stole a bit of food right off his plate.
Finally turning her attention to her own food, Erin took an experimental taste, humming in approval as the flavor rolled around in her mouth. Eating as a dog was something she was still coming to terms with. With Yuuko and the others, they'd fed her regular food and ate with her on the floor. It helped ease the transition, but that didn't change the fact that she now had to drink water out of a bowl rather than a glass, or that there was some foods she just couldn't eat anymore. 'God I miss chocolate.' Erin thought sadly as she cautiously drank from her bowl, concentrating so that it wouldn't move and fall off the table.
"How is it, Erin-san?" Arashi asked from a few seats over and Erin gave her widest smile, uncaring if any of the porridge stuck to her muzzle.
"It's great Arashi. Sorata wasn't exaggerating in the slightest." She answered truthfully, getting a beaming smile from said man before he gazed at Arashi proudly. 'And thank you for not making me eat from the floor.' That was a demeaning experience that Erin wanted to avoid for as long as possible. The conversation picked up a little after that once Syaoran began asking questions about what the Hanshin Republic was like. It was apparently an island shaped like a tiger, which was of course the nation's symbol in most things. Their currency was called Koko, autumn was just beginning to set in, and they have a fantastic baseball team according to Sorata. None of the others seemed to know what baseball was though, judging by their confused faces. Breakfast ended not too long after that, with everyone thanking Arashi again for the food.
"We have some spare clothes that might fit you guys." Sorata began as helped his wife pick up the dishes. "Y'all won't exactly fit in with the stuff you're wearing." He pointed out, causing Kurogane to frown while Fai nodded in agreement. With that, Sorata lead the boys out of the kitchen while Erin stayed behind with Arashi. Clothes weren't really an issue for her anymore, not that she tried to think about it.
It was quiet for a few minutes as Arashi began washing the dishes in the back of the kitchen, but the silence surprisingly wasn't uncomfortable. It was nice and it gave Erin a moment to think about things. First and foremost, they needed to find Sakura's feather. Mokona had said that he'd sensed another feather during the fight with Shougo, so it was best to start there and see if the leader possessed the feather. Once they did find Sakura's feather, they could move onto the next world that would hopefully, though not likely considering her luck, be the location of her body. She sighed heavily, flopping down onto her side and stared at the table, suddenly feeling rather melancholy. Things were easier said than done.
"Erin-san?" Arashi asked hesitantly from her place in front of the sink and Erin turned to her. "I know it's not any of my business, but may I know what your situation is?" The former priestess continued politely, obviously not wanting to offend her guest. She couldn't really blame the woman for asking either. Erin knew she'd be undeniably curious if she were confronted with a talking animal from another dimension.
"Oh, well I found one of Sakura's feathers in my world." She started, gaze drifting down at the floor as Arashi continued cleaning the dishes at a slower pace. "I was with my dog when I found it and I, uh, wished to go somewhere else." She frowned, wondering what she would've done if she'd landed in another world. Really, it was incredibly lucky that she wound up in Yuuko's care. "I passed out and then woke up in the Yuuko's shop, my soul stuck inside my dog's body." She muttered, ignoring that Arashi had stopped. "Now I have to travel to other worlds to find my body and get back to normal."
"I see." Arashi replied lowly, her voice easily carrying over the silence. "Have no fear Erin-san, I have little doubt that you will find your body. It is inevitable." She set the last plate on a nearby rack to dry before turning back to Erin, a small smile on her face. "Let's go find the boys. They're probably ready by now." Erin got up and trailed behind the woman, feeling a little bit better, and wondered if Arashi had somehow picked up on her seldom mood. After heading back to the bedroom and finding it empty, save for Sakura, the two continued outside where they did indeed find that the boys were ready to go.
Syaoran now wore baggy jeans that were too long, which he had to roll up, with grey sneakers, and a short-sleeved pullover that was blue and white. Fai had on regular jeans that he kept in place with a black belt, black dress shoes, and a light blue long-sleeved shirt that was a little short at the waistline, revealing an inch or two of skin. Kurogane wore a dark pair of skinny jeans, brown work boots, and a black t-shirt that was a tad too tight judging by the way he kept tugging on the collar.
"You guys look great!" Sorata said with a grin, obviously trying not to laugh at the three and their ill-fitting outfits. It was lucky that they had anything close to their sizes. "Y'all should be okay walking around town in those clothes." A snicker escaped the man as Kurogane adjusted his shirt again before he quickly covered it with a cough.
"Okay then, we'll be off." Syaoran stated as he gave the couple a nod of gratitude.
"Don't worry Syaoran-kun. I will stay by Sakura-san's side." Arashi said as she bowed in farewell.
"Thank you." The teen replied with a small relieved smile. Sorata motioned for Syaoran to hold out his hand, before giving him a coin purse that was designed to look like a frog.
"There's some lunch money in there. The four of y'all be good and eat together, now." He explained once he noticed the boys' shared look of confusion.
"Thank you very much." Syaoran said again and Erin found it odd that out of all of them, the teenager was the one with the best manners.
"So how come you're giving it to the kid to hold onto?" Kurogane grunted, causing Sorata to give Syaoran a thumbs up in approval.
"Because he seems to be the most trustworthy." Erin chuckled at the man's antics, finding she couldn't really fault his reasoning. Syaoran did seem to be the levelheaded one. So far Fai seemed to be a bit of an airhead, while Kurogane looked to be the hothead of the group.
"What the hell do you mean by that?" Kurogane muttered indignantly, clearly not as amused as her.
"He means your face is very off putting, Kuro-Kuro." Erin couldn't help but add from beside Arashi. Predictably, the swordsman turned to glare at her furiously. "See, that's exactly what I'm talking about!"
"Kuro-puu has a scary face!" Mokona chirped from his place in Fai's arms, making the wizard laugh.
"I do not!" He roared before abruptly turning away from them, stomping onto the sidewalk and effectively getting their group to head out. "And my name is Kurogane!"
"Ah, uh, wait Erin-san!" Sorata called belatedly, stopping them just outside the gate. Erin looked up at the man curiously, who suddenly fidgeted with something in his pocket and avoided her eyes. "Well, uh, you see we have, um… leash laws so…" It took three whole seconds for her to process what Sorata was trying to say.
"Oh hell no, I am not wearing a damn leash!" She shouted angrily, causing him back away nervously as he pulled out a dark blue leash from his pocket. Erin glared at it with hatred, not taking her eyes off of the offensive thing for even a second. If it were her choice, she wouldn't even be wearing the dog collar. "I may be stuck in a dog's body, but I sure as hell won't be treated like one!" 'I'm as much of a person as anyone else here!' Was what she wanted to say, but those words gave too much away. Revealing how she truly felt. Erin wasn't going to appear vulnerable, not in front of people she barely knew.
"But y'all will get a fine." Sorata protested weakly. Arashi stepped forward and laid a gentle hand on his shoulder before taking the leash. She crouched down to Erin's level and beckoned her forward with a firm frown. Erin stubbornly stayed where she was, glaring with all she had.
"I said no, Arashi." She growled to the woman, whose gaze never wavered. A decent gust of wind passed and Erin could suddenly pick up Arashi's scent, a mixture of coconut, paper, and something flowery. It was a little disconcerting, how strong her nose was now. She'd been doing her best to ignore Mutt's sharper senses ever since she'd landed in Yuuko's shop. She didn't appreciate constantly being reminded of her situation, especially not at the moment.
"You have two options Erin-san. Join the others and wear the leash, or stay here with me." Arashi replied, her stern voice leaving no room for argument. Erin's body automatically sat down, ears tucking downwards, instinctively reacting to Arashi's reprimanding tone the same way Mutt would have responded to hers. It was only with quick thinking that she managed to stop the reflexive whines that wanted to escape her throat.
Erin lowered her head instantly, avoiding everyone's eyes, embarrassed and afraid of how little control she had over her own actions. Arashi mistakenly took the gesture as a sign of agreement though, and the former priestess easily clipped the leash to her collar before handing it over to Syaoran, who took it without a word. The group left without incident after that, and Erin gloomily trailed behind the others in silence, wondering just how much of a person she still was.
~Man's Best Friend~
A few hours later found them standing in the shopping district. The leash had been passed between the others, except for Mokona of course, never once brining attention to it. At first, as they'd moved through the city, the others had allowed her to lead, stopping when she did, never forcing for her to go faster or go in a certain direction. But despite their attempts, Erin quickly became aware of the many eyes that followed her, of people pointing her out to others, and the occasional bold child that tried to pet her. They all agreed that she shouldn't speak, for obvious reasons, so Erin silently fumed and remarkably kept her mouth shut. Though she did mutter an insult under her breath whenever she could get away with it.
She'd never felt so demeaned.
A pair of high school girls still dressed in their uniforms passed by, giggling to each other as they waved at Mokona, who soaked up the attention like a sponge, much to Kurogane's irritation. Erin supposed that it was a good thing that this world had such strange creatures as Kudan. Mokona fit right in. The girl closest to them caught sight of her trying to hide behind Fai a moment later, and she tugged on her friends shirt before gesturing to Erin.
"Oh wow, what a cute doggie!" She heard the second girl say while the first nodded in agreement. "I wonder what breed it is." Her temper finally reaching its limits, Erin tugged hard on the leash, leading the group in the opposite direction of the two girls, only stopping at the crosswalk because she had too.
"What the hell are those things?" Kurogane grumbled and she followed his gaze, eyebrows rising in confusion when she could only spot the cars in front of them. Not for the first time Erin resented her new height, assuming the swordsman was talking about something she couldn't see.
"Indeed, these metal horseless carriages certainly are a wonder." Fai agreed while Syaoran nodded. Erin blinked up at the others before turning back to the street.
"Wait, are you guys talking about the cars?" That seemed to get the whole groups attention, save for Mokona who was humming happily to himself.
"Cars? Is that what they're called?" Syaoran asked curiously. The idea of someone not knowing what a car was, was mindboggling but she nodded slowly, answering lowly.
"Yeah, they're machines. In my world they replaced horses and carriages about a century ago. I can't really give you the finer mechanics, mind you, but they're manmade. Probably run on gas or electricity. You seriously don't have cars in your worlds?" Fai and Syaoran shook their heads while Kurogane gave a dismissive grunt.
"I visited a country back in my world that was beginning to experiment with steam powered boats, but we had nothing as advance as the things in this world. Kudon, electricity, cars, baseball; I've never heard or seen anything like them before now." Syaoran replied, his tone both thoughtful and a little awed.
"So you have these things in your world, Erin." Fai asked while smiling and she shrugged.
"Everything except the Kudon. Like I said, there's no magic in my world. I guess that makes sense though. Without magic, we progressed in science instead." She chuckled. "Man, if you guys find cars amazing, airplanes will blow your minds." The crosswalk light finally turned green and they moved. Syaoran looked like he wanted to ask what airplanes were, but was interrupted by a new voice calling out to them.
"Welcome!" Said a nearby vender, who was a middle-aged man standing behind a stand filled with fruits, smiling widely. "Yo, fellows!" The man greeted as he held up some of his produce to entice them. "Want to buy some apples?"
"Huh?" Syaoran mumbled as he stopped in front of the man, studying the fruit in confusion. "This is an apple?"
"Of course it's an apple." The merchant replied slowly, looking a little bemused as Fai moved closer.
"Do the apples in your world not look like this?" The wizard asked and Syaoran shook his head.
"The shape is the same, but they're coloring is more yellowish."
"That's a pear!" Kurogane argued while crossing his arms.
"No, pears are redder, with a stalk on top." Syaoran countered calmly as he blinked up at the swordsman.
"That sounds like a tomato." Erin added thoughtfully, though making sure to keep her voice soft.
"Tomatoes are much bigger and orange." Fai said plainly and Erin squinted her eyes at the blonde. She was pretty sure he was describing a pumpkin. He smiled and she suddenly wondered if he was just messing with her.
"Hey! Do you want to buy any or not?" The vender shouted, his patience now gone.
"Buy!" Mokona chirped from where he sat on Syaoran's head.
"Right, so that's four apples?" The man said as he began to bag the fruit.
"Actually…" Syaoran glanced down at Erin, who looked at the food and tried not to feel disheartened. He caught her gaze and she shook her head at his unspoken question. She'd never liked apples anyways. "Um, yes, four please." As Syaoran handed over the money, Fai took the bag and handed the leash over to Kurogane. They walked a bit, finding a spot away from the throngs of people, and Fai passed out the apples.
"Apples taste good!" Fai said after taking a bite and Mokona hummed happily.
"Yeah." Syaoran agreed while studying his own, seemingly lost in thought.
"But, I suppose that this is just more proof that we really are from different worlds." Fai continued as he looked over at the passing people. "Oh, I haven't asked… How did you get to the Dimensional Witch's place?"
"I was sent by the priest in my country." Syaoran answered and Erin looked up at him just in time to see Mokona eat his apple whole, swallowing it down in one mouthful. Her jaw dropped as she stared up at the little creature in shock, barely noticing that the others hadn't witnessed the disturbing action.
"Ah, that priest is really something! It's not easy to transport even a single person, yet he managed to send two people to another dimension at the same time." Fai nodded his head, sounding genuinely impressed. "And of course we know how Erin got to the Witch's shop. How about you, Kuro-tan?" Kurogane tensed before looking off to the side.
"I was forcefully sent to that bitch by the princess of my country." He stated angrily, not even reacting to Fai's nickname.
"Oh! You must have done something bad. So, you're being punished?" Fai mused gleefully and Kurogane turned to him, glaring and baring his teeth.
"Argh, shut your mouth! And what about you, huh?"
"Me? I went there on my own." His easy response just appeared to annoy Kurogane further.
"Tch, then you didn't even have to ask the Dimensional Witch for help. You could've traveled between worlds on you own."
"I can't." Fai amended with his usual grin. "Even with all my power, I can only transport myself to another world once."
"Does it matter how we got to Yuuko's?" Erin sighed as she looked over the group. "We should focus on the present and on what we're trying to achieve. There's no point in looking back, won't change anything."
"Eh, no need to be so serious Erin!" Fai remarked as he folded his hands behind his head. "I was just trying to start a conversation. We'll be spending a lot of time with each other after all."
"No, Erin-san is right." Syaoran said as he frowned at his apple. "I need to focus on finding the princess's feathers."
"Mokona will try too!" The little guy jumped down onto a nearby railing, ears perked up, his face the picture of concentration as he tried to sense Sakura's feather. After a few minutes though, he slumped in defeat and let out a small sigh.
"It's no good, I don't sense anything." He admitted sadly, ears drooping with his mood.
"You can't?" Syaoran asked, visibly disappointed and Mokona shook his head.
"Hmm, what could it mean that you don't sense the wavelength of the feather today, when you did yesterday?" Fai mused aloud, his head tilting to one side as he glanced over the group. "What do you think it means, Kuro-puu?"
"Stop calling me those weird names." The taller man growled instead of offering a possible answer.
"Waaahhhh! Erin was right, you are scary." Fai teased causing Kurogane to look away out of sheer annoyance.
"Oh for the love of–" The swordsman cut himself off abruptly, before taking a step forwards as he stared off into the distance. "I-is that?"
"Hmm, what's the matter?" Fai asked, trying to follow the Kurogane's gaze, but only seeing the crowds of people moving about.
"It's her, there's no doubt about it." Kurogane said more to himself than to Fai. He suddenly broke into a run, surprising the others as well as Erin since he was still holding the leash.
"Whoa, what the–" Erin's shout was cut short as she felt the demanding tug on the leash and was forced to run after the man to avoid being dragged. She could hear the Fai, Mokona, and Syaoran call after them, but Kurogane showed no signs of slowing down. "Hey idiot, stop already. We're going to lose the others!" She shouted, but the swordsman ignored her completely. He led them down into what she'd originally guessed to be a subway, but actually turned out to be an underground mall. "Kurogane, stop!" Erin tried again, finally getting a response as the man came to a halt.
"Eh, what are you doing here mutt?" He glanced down at her before turning back to look over the area. "Damn it, where did she go?"
"I'm here because you're still holding the leash, dumbass." She replied through her panting. Mutt's legs were pathetically short compared to Kurogane's and the man had been booking it. Pausing to take in her new surroundings, Erin was met with foreign signs, glass windows displaying clothed manikins, and the smell of freshly brewed coffee from not too far away. People walked around idly, shopping bags in hand, and Erin remembered she needed to be quiet. "Who's this "she" you were trying to catch?" She murmured, barely loud enough to be heard over the crowds chatter.
"Princess Tomoyo, I saw her." He answered shortly, his grumpiness returning to its normal level upon realizing that he'd lost his target. Erin made a great effort in restraining herself from biting the man beside her.
"Moron, she's not your princess." She huffed and he glowered down at her. "Yuuko explained it at the shop, didn't she? In these new worlds, we're going to meet and see people who look exactly like people we've met before. The girl you saw was this world's version of Tomoyo, her counterpart." She continued; glad to finally regain her breath. Kurogane was about to say something in return before someone shouted from behind them.
"Hey, you!" They turned to see that it was the Mohawk gang from yesterday, with their pudgy pink haired leader at the front of the group. "You're the one from yesterday alright!" The leader continued loudly, smirking as his men spread out behind him. "To think that you would walk into our territory all on you own. It saves us the trouble of having to track you down!"
"I've got no business with you." Kurogane grunted in annoyance as he turned back around, dismissing them, and Erin snorted in agreement. Glancing back over the underground mall, she saw that the shoppers were making themselves scarce. Like the dramatic showdowns in old western movies, everyone had taken cover as soon as the bad guys appeared. "Get lost."
"You might not have any, but we do!" The leader cut in quickly, nearly drowning out Kurogane's last sentence. The swordsman's shoulders twitched at that and Erin sighed, frustrated at both the man and the gang. They really needed to get back up top and find the others. The last thing she wanted was to get lost in such a foreign place.
"What did you say?" Kurogane asked lowly, though his shift in attitude wasn't noticed by anyone except for Erin. She felt her own body tense in response, a growl building in her chest as she glared at the gang leader.
"We're going to use you and your dog as bait to lure out that detestable kid and make him join us!" The leader stated as he pointed his finger at the back of Kurogane's head. 'Again with the pointing, doesn't anyone know how infuriating that is?' The leader's left fist was bathed in a dark purple light before, Erin could only describe it as a giant horseshoe crab, appeared above them. "My Kudan may not look like much, but it's a First-Grade. Now, unless you wanna get hurt, you'll come with us!"
The Kudan moved faster than Erin could track and she let out a yelp of surprise as Kurogane suddenly picked her up, getting them safely out of the way as the Kudan's tail slashed at where they'd been standing, leaving deep grooves in the ground. He ducked behind a nearby pillar, one arm clutching her firmly to his chest. Before Erin could fully register the situation, the Kudan attacked again, swiftly cutting apart the stone beam, forcing Kurogane back into the open. It spun towards them like a spinning top, and he leapt out of the way. Erin could hear that the leader was still talking, but she was too focused on the Kudan to pay him any attention.
Kurogane sidestepped another attack, twisting and running, making Erin dizzy as everything blurred around her. Her vision was tipped upside down abruptly as Kurogane moved into a sloppy handstand, only able to use his one hand to help him land. He lost his balance and tumbled over sideways, rolling them to the side and curling over her protectively as the Kudan lashed out with its tail again. The ground burst from the force of the blow, sending rubble raining down on them.
"Damn it all." He growled; his right arm still wrapped around her. "That bitch. If only I had my sword, I could finish this fight with one slash."
"Sorry." Erin whispered, her heart racing terribly, knowing that she was unhurt solely because of Kurogane. It took her a second to realize that she was trembling and immediately tried to stop, with little success. "I'm slowing you down." He shook his head while not looking at her, smirking instead at the Kudan above.
"This is nothing." As if to prove him wrong, a number of large spikes grew out of the Kudan's shell before shooting towards them. They were still on the ground, half-buried in debris, and the spikes were too fast to dodge. Erin ducked her head down and Kurogane's arm squeezed around her tighter, his other arm coming up to shield their heads.
The resulting crash of the spikes tearing into the concrete was almost enough to deafen her newfound sense of hearing. The kicked up rubble left them in a cloud of dirt that she couldn't see out of and irritated her nose, but she could feel that Kurogane was already moving. He nimbly climbed up a makeshift mountain of stone, setting her down once they reached the top, and she squinted up at him. Dirt scuffed his face and arms, his clothes were surprisingly fine, and he didn't seem to be hurt anywhere. The cloud of dust cleared to reveal the leader's Kudan charging up for another attack and Erin eyed it warily.
"You've got to be kidding me!" Kurogane said with a scoff before straightening his posture, towering over her and glaring down at the Mohawk leader. "There's no way you're going to beat me with that thing." He smirked. "I can't die. Not until I get back to the world I came from." His fists clenched at his side, and Erin stepped back as a bright blue light outlined Kurogane's body. "Not until I see her again!" Two swirls of dark blue, she didn't even know what to call them, appeared behind him, twisting into each other, before taking the form a blue dragon.
"Holy shit! What is– How did–" Erin stuttered as she stared up at the giant creature. Its' pupil-less eyes turned to her before lowering its head to stare at Kurogane. Realization hit her like a brick. "Oh, wow, that's your Kudan." He blinked at her in surprise, narrowing his eyes in thought, before turning back to the dragon.
"You… were in my dream…" He muttered and the dragon roared in response before flashing a blinding bright blue light and turning into a sword of all things. It was a massive thing; the blade was easily longer than her by a several feet, the hilt looking like a dragon's claw. 'Okay, so Kudan can be any type of beasts, human lookalikes, and now they can even turn into weapons. Good to know.' "You're saying you want me to use you?" Kurogane asked the claymore, his smirk now a full blown grin that promised trouble for his enemies. Erin jerked back, startled as the sword actually roared back in answer. "So you want to go wild too, huh?"
Kurogane took the claymore, his right hand crossing over his left in a backwards grip as he held the Kudan in a downwards angle. It had to weigh a hundred pounds; however the swordsman showed no signs of strain at carrying such an oversized weapon. Without preamble, he jumped down from the mound of rubble, bringing the sword up into an overhead slash.
"Hama Ruyo-o-jin!" Kurogane shouted as a shockwave of blue energy burst from the sword and cut the crab Kudan in half, making it disappear in a light of purple. The leader held his chest in pain, falling to his knees as his men shuffled around him nervously, some shouting their disbelief at his quick defeat.
"C-change in plans. Hey, man in black, want to be one of us?" The leader asked weakly and Kurogane scowled at the kneeling man.
"You've got to be joking." He laid his sword over his shoulder, unimpressed. "There's only one person in my life that I'll ever serve." Kurogane growled as he glared at the cowering man. "And that's Princes Tomoyo."
"Then you're an enemy too." The leader stated before nodding at his men. "You may be too strong for us to beat, but you left your dog wide open for an attack!" The gang raised their fists like the day before, and almost simultaneously unleashed a barrage of energy bullets that headed straight towards Erin. "This is what happens to those who refuse me!"
"Shit!" Erin heard Kurogane curse from below, but she was completely frozen at seeing so many blasts racing towards her. "Move you idiot!" He yelled while running to her in what seemed to be slow motion. She knew that she needed to move, she should jump down, take cover, or at least duck, but for some reason she just couldn't. Her legs felt like they were made of lead, leaving her unable to take a single step. She couldn't even open her mouth to scream. It was like her entire body was put in lockdown. Her heart was racing furiously, as if trying to get a lifetime of beats in before she died.
'Shit, if I don't move, I really will die!' That thought caused her eyes to widen. 'I can't die, I can't! This isn't even my body. If I die, then Mutt does too! I can't let that happen!' At that last thought, Erin could have sworn she heard a deep, throaty laugh ringing in her ears.
White overtook her vision. She heard the explosion, the sound of the numerous blasts hitting something solid, but she surprisingly didn't feel any pain. Blinking harshly, Erin's eyes were greeted to pure white scales as an amused sounding hiss came from above. Slowly looking up, she found that the giant snake from her dream was coiled around her protectively. He winked at her, purple eyes gleaming, before raising his head to glare at the gang.
"An animal with a Kudan?!" She heard the Mohawk leader shout in shock, his men muttering around the same lines. "That's not possible!"
"I can't believe those assholes attacked me!" Erin growled, her fear quickly turning to anger now that she was safe. Her Kudan turned to her, his big mouth pulling into an even wider smile.
"Indeed little one. Shall we show them what a misssstake that wasss?" He hissed mischievously and Erin nodded. Those bastards had almost killed Mutt. The snake's body dissolved into a light so bright that it forced her too close her eyes. She opened them a second later, feeling something encasing several different parts of her body. "I will shield you from any harm." His words echoed in her ears oddly, but her attention was quickly taken by the exclamations from below.
"What, what is that?!" The Mohawk leader shouted, pointing at her shakily.
"It looks like armor!" Another voice called out and Erin paused to examine herself. She was indeed wearing armor; she could feel it encasing the length of her body and the top of her head. Looking at her legs, she saw scaly white guards located on her shins, segmented so that they wouldn't hinder her movement. Strangely enough, the armor didn't weigh a thing.
Looking down at the rubble, she wanted to hit herself for freezing up. The drop was a good distance, but they were plenty of jutting stones for her to jump to. She did just that, quickly hopping down from one spot to the next, never faltering and feeling unbelievably agile.
"Sssnakesss are naturally graccceful predatorsss, little one." She heard her Kudan chuckle into her ear. "Ssso long asss you wear my armor, you will have my ssstrengthsss." She landed next to Kurogane, who was now smirking, his sword Kudan once again resting on his shoulder.
"You okay there, mutt?" He asked and she tsked at him, pretending to be affronted.
"Please, you didn't honestly think that I could be hurt by these bastards, did you?" She replied, uncaring to keep up the act of playing a normal dog. The shrieks of disbelief made her smile. Kurogane hummed, before glancing at the gang his humor shifting into a glare.
"I don't usually fight weaklings or cowards." He started while raising his sword in front of him. "But my blade hungers for more blood, so I'll make an exception." He never got the chance to attack though as the gang had already started retreating. "Tch, what a waste of time."
"Well, I wouldn't say that exactly. We did discover our Kudans after all." She said, smiling widely now that the danger had passed. At her words, both Kudans deformed into orbs of light, entering their bodies with a farewell hiss and roar respectively. Kurogane frowned before looking over the area.
"C'mon, let's head back." He grabbed the leash that was trailing behind her, she'd forgotten about the damn thing, and left the partially destroyed mall for someone else to deal with. Upon arriving on the surface though, the two quickly realized that they had a problem. Neither of them knew how to get back to the apartment building and it looked like Syaoran, Fai, and Mokona were long gone.
"Oh this is just great." She grumbled and Kurogane grunted in agreement. "How the hell are we gonna get back?" With no visible leads, they walked around the area, but didn't spot the others or find a landmark that looked familiar. Stopping at a bench a half-an-hour later, Erin found herself glowering at her leash in irritation. A gust of wind passed and she picked up the slight scent of coconut, paper, and something flowery. Her ears pricked up as an absurd idea hit her. "Hey, Kurgs?"
"For the last time, my name is Kurogane!" He shouted dramatically, causing the bystanders to look at him oddly.
"Yeah, yeah. Look, I think…" She sniffed the leash twice, before cautiously sniffing the air. "I think I can get us back by tracking Arashi's scent."
"You think?" He repeated shrewdly and she gave him an annoyed look.
"Well I've never actually had to find someone with my nose before. It's kind of a new thing for me." She responded moodily before taking another whiff from the leash. "We can try it at least. It's gotta be better than sitting on our asses for the rest of the night." Kurogane grunted and they started out again, this time with Erin taking the lead. Twenty minutes later and a particularly strong breeze, she caught Arashi's scent. It was a bit of a runaround at first, as her nose led her to the different shops Arashi frequently visited, but they did reach the apartment building in the end. "Oh yeah, do I rock or what?"
Kurogane didn't say anything, but Erin decided his answering smirk was praise enough.
~Man's Best Friend~
They'd surprisingly reached the apartment about an hour before the others came back. Kurogane had taken off her leash almost immediately and Erin had celebrated her freedom by running around excitedly on the small lawn behind the complex. Kurogane had left without her noticing and she'd stayed outside until Arashi had announced that dinner was ready.
Their evening meal went about the same way as breakfast. Erin ended up with several pieces of fish while the others ate white rice, some sort of soup, and the same type of fish. The only difference was that Kurogane griped about having to sit across from Fai, instead of complaining about sitting next to her. Dinner passed by quietly, with Arashi and Sorata answering the few new questions Syaoran had about the Hanshin Republic.
Once they'd retired to their room, Erin laid curled up next to Sakura, feeling exhausted from the day's events. Kurogane was off to the side doing… something to his sword. She didn't ask what exactly, since he seemed so focused on the task and didn't want to break his concentration. He had an odd little tool in his hand, a stick with a ball of wrapped up cotton on the end. He dipped the cotton into a dish of powder before light tapping it up and down his sword before wiping the powder away to repeat the process.
Syaoran was of course on the other side of Sakura, dutifully waiting for her to awaken. His dedication almost made Erin want to roll her eyes at the kid. The love interest couldn't be any more obvious. Fai stepped into the room with Mokona in his arms, pausing to give both her and Kurogane curious looks, his gaze lingering on the sword maintenance that Kurogane was doing.
"What in the world happened to you two today?" Fai asked, continuing after a moment of silence when neither of them spoke. "C'mon Kuro-puu, tell us."
"Yeah, whatever." Kurogane replied distractedly, making Erin smirk.
"Kuro-puu isn't listening to us at all!" Mokona added helpfully.
"So it seems." Fai stated with a mock sigh of disappointment. "So what did happen, Erin?" The wizard continued, a smile playing across his face.
"Meh, we got ambushed by those Mohawk creeps. Kurogane took care of them pretty quickly." She muttered, feeling too sleepy to go into detail.
"Kuro-Kuro is so strong!" Fai praised in an exaggerated fashion with Mokona jumping up and down in agreement.
"How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that!?" The sudden outburst was lost on the others as Erin reclaimed everyone's attention.
"How did your day turn out?" She asked though a yawn, inwardly smirking as Kurogane turned to glare at her.
"We met this world's versions of my king and the priest." Syaoran answered thoughtfully. "It was surprising to see them here."
"I imagine it would be, but that's something were just going to have to get used to." Erin replied, wondering if she might meet people she knew back in her world. "I don't doubt we'll be running into more familiar faces before this adventure is over." She continued and Syaoran nodded. "In any case, tomorrow we should all stick together. For now, I'm getting some much deserved sleep. Keeping up with Kurgs today was exhausting." Kurogane shouted at the blatant butchery of his name, making her, Fai, and Mokona laugh. She burrowed more closely into Sakura's side, sighing contently as her eyes fluttered close and sleep took her.
Hopefully, they would have better luck at finding Sakura's feather tomorrow.
~Man's Best Friend~
This chapter turned out to be a couple thousand words shorter than the first, but I doubt that I'll ever post another chapter for Man's Best Friend with that kind of word count again. I'm usually pretty good at putting out chapters in the 7,000 these days, but there's never really any guarantee. It all varies on how I'm able to work the chapter. I can definitely promise that I'll never post a chapter under 5,000 words though. So you can look forward to that.
I'd been debating on whether to give Erin a Kudan ever since I started this story. I got this idea from the other OC Tsubasa stories. Since several of them seemed to be found of giving their characters a snake, I just went with it. However, like how Kurogane's Kudan can shapeshift, Erin's can turn into armor to better protect her in battle. While each of the others were chosen by their Kudan for an important reason, Syaoran got Fire for his fierce protectiveness, Kurogane got a dragon for his battle prowess, and Fai got the giant bird for his desire of freedom. The snake chose Erin, simply because she was different and amusing.
–Hexalys