CHAPTER 2:

We ran as fast as we could through the woods, trying to find any trace of the cursed bastard. I wanted to hunt this guy down as fast as possible, preferably before the full moon. If that didn't work, he'd have a hell of a time hiding from us, considering he'd be hungry.

We searched for anything; Ripped cloth, claw marks on the trees, footprints, paw prints; but nothing traceable showed up.

"Ugh… it's like going on a wild goose chase." Sango panted.

"No kidding." I responded, just as tired. "Though, it's probably because it's too dark out to see anything… remind why we decided to come here in the middle of the night."

"To keep track of the moon which was pretty confusing, but other than that I have no idea." Sango replied.

"I must have had a brain fart or something." I chuckled. "Come on, we should set up camp. Don't want to freeze to death, do we?" And so, we built a fire and sat down.

"Want some meat?" Sango asked, pulling out a cut of beef. I nodded as she stuck it on a stick and stuck the stick in the ground to be cooked by the fire.

"So, how do we know that this isn't just an ordinary wolf?" I asked, holding my knees to my chest.

"Well, eye witnesses say that it could stand on two hind legs and it was at least nine feet tall when it did that." Sango explained.

"Really?" I asked. Sango nodded.

"They also swear they heard it talking and laughing. They think there may be two, because sometimes the eye colors are different." Sango continued.

"Well that's an important piece of information that the king failed to mention. What colors were the eyes?"

"Gold and red. They say the red one is more viscous."

"Interesting. So, we're possibly looking for two beasts, then. Double the fun." I said, unenthusiastically.

"Oh, cheer up, Red. At least the price is good." Sango tried to lighten my spirits. I was still not too happy about possibly killing two people who probably didn't know what they were doing. I wasn't content with killing one either.

"Alright, so has anyone seen them not as a huge wolf?" I asked.

"No, but their certain it's a werewolf." Sango said.

"That's not why I was asking." I said. "I was asking because what do we have to go on if no one's seen the damn guy?"

"Really, you're just thinking of that now?" Sango deadpanned.

"Yeah, what of it?" I said… then smirked. We both just started cracking up, thinking that both of us are idiots for not thinking about it sooner.

"Oh, this is bad. We shouldn't be laughing, for all we know we could accuse an innocent traveler." Sango chuckled and I stopped laughing. Sango took notice and looked concerned. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"Don't you know?" Sango looked confused. "No one passes through these woods."

"…Well… why?" She asked.

"There are stories… apparently this isn't the first time a wolf has lived in these woods. They say that a long time ago, my great, great grandmother was also a bounty hunter. One day, she got an assignment to kill a werewolf that happened to be attacking the village." I hid my eyes under bangs as I told this story, which my grandmother told me. You can guess who she got it from.

"… What happened?" Sango asked.

"She did as she was told. She set out into the forest to find and kill the wolf, and she succeeded, but at a price… you know how when a werewolf dies it changes back into a human?" Sango nodded. "Well, as it turns out, the wolf ended up being her husband, my great, great grandfather." Sango gasped.

"Well, what did she do?" Sango asked.

"… She felt incredibly guilty after that… she went back to the village in a daze, trying to convince herself that what she saw couldn't possibly be true. But sure enough, when she got home, he was gone.

"For the next few days she locked herself up in her room. Some thought she was waiting for her husband to come back… some said she was receding into her mind, playing the incident over and over. Pretty soon, it just became too much grief for her, so she took the arrow she'd used to kill him and thrust it right into her own heart, where the pain hurt most." I said, saddened by the tale as I was, Sango was crying.

"Th-that's so… sad and yet… romantic too." Sango sniffled. I scooted to sit right next to her and hold her as she cried.

"… You know, back then her hood used to be white, but when she killed herself, all her grief, and pain, and love got soaked into the cloak along with her blood, turning it the color of crimson." Sango looked up me in disbelief, then to cloak draped over my shoulders.

"So… that means that-"

"Yup, the cloak I'm wearing is the very same one, passed down since then. The villagers thought it fair that they give the last heirloom of her mother to my great grandmother… She was only 12 when it happened. And four generations later, here I am, wearing the cloak, pursuing the same career, the same job… maybe she'll look down and see this… and feel the ach in her heart once again." I felt like crying, but I couldn't do that, that would be a total sign of weakness and I'm not in the habit of crying on jobs.

Sango sat up and wiped her tears away. "So, if your great grandmother had already been born, then doesn't that mean she was a wolf too?" Sango asked.

"Um… I don't think so… maybe what happened to my great, great grandfather happened after she was born, 'cause there's been no reports of werewolves till now.

"Still, such a sad story. If I'd killed my husband, I'd probably do the same." Sango said.

"Yeah, but the story doesn't end quite yet." I told her.

"Huh?" Sango asked, looking confused.

"Well, there's different endings. Some say that because she committed suicide that she got sent to hell and spent the rest of eternity with her beloved. Some say she still roams around these woods, looking for him in order to go where they belong together. Either way, she still loves him, even after death… I think she'll find happiness if she hasn't already." I explained.

Sango sighed. "Well, maybe she is stuck here, seeking forgiveness, trying to heal the pain in her heart."

"Maybe, but that doesn't mean that she hasn't found him already. Maybe they're running around the woods, happy as can be." I said.

"Maybe they're reincarnated and will soon find each other, if they haven't already." Sango said.

"Maybe…" I said thoughtfully. "I hope so at least. No one deserves to spend eternity lost and alone."

"Here here." Sango chanted and we smiled.

When the beef was done we ate and went to bed. But I couldn't sleep… I had the odd feeling that someone… or something was watching us.

'Nah, get a hold of yourself girl, no one but you and Sango would be crazy enough to come here at night.' I tried to reassure myself, but to no avail. Still, I went to sleep under the unfamiliar gaze, clutching the silver knife firmly so I could react in an instant.

A/N: WOOHOOOO! Almost Halloween! I'll have something special planned for that, heehee. You just wait…