Big Eyes, Small Mouth (BESM): Monster Academy - Chapter 4.2a Couples' Retreat

[Justin OOC]

Kuro, Skye, Kyohei, Delilah, and Ruby stood in front of the dorms, the black-feathered wings disappearing from Ruby's back as the Teleportation spell vanished. "Alright, I believe the headmaster's correct, there's a sigil in each dorm. Which one do you want to hit first? It is after curfew, and if we get caught it's going to be an issue, especially if Kyohei and Kurosoroshiimaru are there. it will be somewhat less so going into the men's dorm."

She sighed. 'It's something of a double standard i know, but it is what it is."

[Togashi Kagato]

"Let us begin with the easier, and hopefully faster one then." Kuromaru said evenly, turning towards the male dormitory and taking Skye's hand in his. In his human guise still, the daiyokai walked with his usual straight-backed grace towards the building, smiling faintly down at Skye as though they were a couple on a post-curfew canoodling session. As he moved, though, the Cat Prince kept his powerful senses alert for anything amiss, a waft of odd scent or a noise out of place.

It was a sacred trust that had been placed on the students, and as a scion of the Beast Throne, there was no chance in any of the thousand hells that Kurosoroshiimaru would permit himself to falter.

[Justin OOC]

Kyohei took Delilah's hand, and nodded to Ruby, before taking hers. "Lead the way. We're with you, since you can find the sigils." since the guise was to generally appear as couples out for a night of fun, he knew Delilah wouldn't mind much, nor would she fail to include Ruby in what would be done to maintain the masquerade if they were caught.

He looked to Delilah, "Are you okay?" It wasn't that she'd given him cause, just that with all that had been laid on them, and everything else going on, he did seem to be more protective of her. Especially since Aoi showed herself. Last time Haruna had almost killed Delilah, only Lilith's timely defense saved her.

[Delilah Synn]

"I'm fine," Delilah sighed, her fabulous chest heaving up and down as she looked up at Kyohei with a wistful smile and gave his hand a squeeze. "I can taste everyone's emotions and I still don't understand why some of them feel they have to do things like this." The ravishing young woman shivered deliciously, then she firmed her lush lips into a tight line. "But enough, we have some sigils to find and a Shiny-spirit to stop!"

Her smile turned wicked as only a succubus could manage, voice a velvety purr. "Let's make this look good, hmm?" Delilah twisted lithely, placing herself between Kyohei and Ruby, her hands sliding around their waists... and drifting lower. She gave Kyohei a lingering kiss, then shot Ruby a seductive look and licked her lips. "I promise, I am an experience you will never forget."

It would take someone looking beyond her exaggerated pulchritude to realize she was actually keeping an eye out, emotion-sense attune to its utmost acuity in case proximity to the sigils caused an emotional disturbance in anyone nearby.

[Justin OOC]

Ruby simply nodded. "I'm sure." She looked to kyohei and took his hand. "Here." There was a slight glow as she magically inscribed a sigil on the back of his hand.

"If I get out of control, concentrate on that. It should reign me in."

[z-Skye Angelus]

Reign her in? What the fick is she? Skye stared at Ruby a moment, her eyes narrowing. But she quickly dropped the look, exchanging it for a glance up at Kuromaro. As always, just gazing on him made her smile. Her fingers tightened around his as they walked, her heart pounding in her chest. She was still smiling as she glanced around, her eyes seeking the sigil or the monster. Her nose was active too, testing each scent in the air for signs of the quarry.

[Justin OOC]

Ruby led them through the boys Dorm, and at least twice they had to run, avoiding the approach of either students or the faculty. Finally the quintet of young monsters made it to the common room on the third floor. Ruby stopped. "Someone is watching us, we're nearing the sigil."

[Delilah Synn]

"Quick, pretend we're making out," Delilah whispered sultrily into Ruby's ear, pressing her over abundant bosom against Ruby's much more modest one, looping her arms around her waist, hands teasing her pert behind. "Kyohei, if you want to 'pretend' this is getting you hot too, scootch in close and grab my ass."

Then Ruby found a pair of impossibly sensual lips caressing her own, and despite the unmistakeable pleasure they promised, she could tell Delilah was restraining herself, her passionate demon's heart seeking the source of hostility watching them.

Sensing the Watcher's Emotions and trying to locate his position

Heightened Emotion Sense: (2d6+13=21)

[Justin OOC]

Kyohei didn't have to be told twice, joining in, his hand sliding down both girls' backsides, calmly squeezing their rumps, helping to pull the two closer, noting Ruby was suprised, but not resisting, falling into the act quickly. Kuro and Skye could follow as they would or not...

Delilah could sense a shifting presence, one that was beginning to show the beginnings of arousal. The vent across from them, overlooking the door seemed to be the primary locus.

[Justin OOC]

With no reaction from Kuro and Skye, the jig was up quickly, and a large spine seemed to sprout from the wall separating the two groups. This immediately caused Kyohei to disengage himself from the girls, and zero in on the attacker. It looked like a trio of giant horned toads, each bristling spines. A closer look revealed they were undead, as their flesh was tattered and reeked of death.

Ruby, managing to regain her breath shook her head. "Serious necromantic magic. Those spines are tipped with poison."

[Delilah Synn]

"Eeewww!" Delilah squealed, a ripple running across her delectable flesh as she shuddered - the icky, undead spiny toads were invisible to her emotion sense, making her tongue curdle. But the one who had sent them wasn't and she could taste him retreating behind the vent.

Her purple eyes blazed, subtle, golden flames licked up from her fingertips and up her arms, and her perfect complexion seemed to almost glow from within with a opalescent light. The succubus pointed accusingly at the vent, her abundant chest giving a vigorous jiggle with the motion. "The guy who sent these toad-things is behind there and he's getting away!"

[z-Skye Angelus]

Skye knew she should have done something, but when it came to the moment, she found that she couldn't pretend to make out. Instead, she stood next to Kuro, holding his hand, watching for signs of the person they were looking for and looking really uncomfortable. It was actually a relief to have a fight start. The Moon Shard was pulled from its hiding place in her belt and Skye prepared for battle!

[Togashi Kagato]

"Finally."

There was perhaps a touch of relieved exasperation about Kuro's attitude as he stepped away from Skye and faced the creatures coming from the vent. The very thought that he would have to 'make out' with Skye in public (and yes, two or three other people present WAS public) was repellant to the proper young Daiyokai. Even the pretence of such public display, as if he were a monkey... or a common succubus for that matter. Urgh! But this was something he could deal with. This was, in fact, why he was here at all. Deception wasn't one of the Cat Prince's strengths, whereas finding and administering violent death to an interloper, well... to borrow a phrase from the Human world: that was much more his speed.

With a rare sideways smile for his girlfriend, he abandoned his mortal shell, black blossoms filling the air with the smell of night-flowers as he swapped plain uniform for the rich white, gold and scarlet robes of his station, swapped dull human teeth and nails for sharp fangs and claws. His hair lengthened in an intangible breeze, the dark colour fading to the pure white of hengeyokai royalty as he brought his taloned hands up, crossing them in front of his chest as he readied himself.

"I have your left." he told Skye, his inhumanly beautiful features a composed counterpoint to the ferocious gleam in his emerald eyes.

[Justin OOC]

Kyohei moved first, grabbing one of the chairs nearby, not wanting to actually strike them. He lashed out with it, illiciting a hiss from one of the three toads, then hit it again.

(Skye is up, then Kuro, then Delilah, Ruby will act last, if there's a need)

[z-Skye Angelus]

A flush covered Skye's face as she remembered their shared hunt and what had followed, but she forced that out of her mind. "Then I'll take your right," she answered as the Crescent Moon Shard was pulled from its hiding place. For a second, it appeared to be a curved piece of stone; then it was a gleaming sword of silver light. She slashed twice at the toad on the right, her blazing sword leaving afterimages on the eyes of the watchers.

Attack #1 - Tsukuyomi's Slaying Strike - 174 (WR 7: Accurate x3, Muscle, Piercing x3, Targeting: Yokai): 15

Carver *rolls* 2d6: 3+2+10: 15

Damage: 189

Attack #2 - Tsukuyomi's Slaying Strike - 174 (WR 7: Accurate x3, Muscle, Piercing x3, Targeting: Yokai): 13

Carver *rolls* 2d6: 2+1+10: 13

Damage: 187

Spending 20 EP to raise second attack to 15.

Defense #1 - Carver *rolls* 2d6: 5+2+10: 17

Defense #2 - Carver *rolls* 2d6: 6+4+10: 20

Defense #3 - Carver *rolls* 2d6: 3+2+10: 15

EP Spent: 20 | HP lost: 0

[Justin OOC]

The first strike was more than enough, and one of the toads simply fell to peices under her divine attack.

"You might want to hold back hits like that Skye, no need to draw attention to your heritage. I guarantee you keep it up, some of the more sensitive monsters will come looking." It was well known that some monsters could sense celestial power better than others. Most of the Yokai were young, but still that level of power would be hard to miss.

(Kuro, you're up)

[Togashi Kagato]

Kuromaru regarded the foul, sluggish things. They were so... well, inelegant. Unlovely. He sighed as he realised that the spines presented an obstacle to their well-deserved dismemberment and destruction.

A small obstacle.

To the others, the hengeyokai prince blurred, a streak of red, white and green that the eye couldn't follow. In a gust of wind that smelled of jasmine, the spiny toad being beaten back by Kyohei was abruptly without a head, a shower of viscous gore spattering the ground around it as the horrid thing's head hit the wall across the corridor hard enough to splat into a pancake. The remaining toad, mouth open as it hopped towards Skye, found itself likewise decapitated, collapsing in a rotting, stinky heap as the shattered remains of it's head adorned the far wall alongside the first.

The blur ceased, and Kurosoroshiimaru stood off to one side, regarding the vent in the wall with one eye as he fastidiously flicked a gob of something from the sleeve of his robe. Other than the offending piece of toad meat, he'd been so fast that only the ichor on his long, wicked claws was any indication that he'd been in the fight at all. He looked at the others, an elegant eyebrow raised.

"Well?" he demanded in a quiet tone. "I'm not crawling through a vent after them."

Two attacks (of a possible 3), reaching into the mouths and clawing the heads off from the inside. Damage: 121 in true shape, armor penetration 24.

Owns-The-Night *rolls* 2d6: 6+5+13: 24

[Carver Soze] 3:56 am: Nice roll!

Long6 *rolls* 2d6: 1+5: 6

Long6 *rolls* 2d6: 1+6+8: 15

Owns-The-Night *rolls* 2d6: 2+6+13: 21

[Long6] 3:57 am: yeah you got them both

[Justin OOC]

Kai looked at him. "Remind me to not piss you off."

Ruby nodded. "A moment." She made a sigil and a small ermine appeared. "Go down there and report back." The Ebon black Ermine scurried into the vent and left them there.

"I do love having familiars."

[Delilah Synn]

Delilah pouted, HellFire flickering out as she folded her arms beneath her breasts, the awesome globes almost bursting the laces of her bodice. Her cute nose scrunched up in irritation as she gave Skye and Kurosoroshiimaru a level look.

"I could have handled one of those toad things, y'know. I'm more than just boobs and a pretty face," Delilah claimed, though the way she was standing and the way she was dressed made if hard to see anything more than her exaggerated beauty. She nodded at the vent, then pointed at the door right below. "Shouldn't we keep going? I can sense which way the guy or whoever is going."

[Justin OOC]

Ruby nodded. "Let's go ahead, he'll find me no matter what and let me know."

Kyohei took the lead, followed by Delilah, with kuro and Skye in the middle, followed by Ruby bringing up the rear. The Door lead them into one of the large stairways, and revealed a slime trail, leading down the stairs.

"Well, I guess we know our prey is not worried about his unmasked form." Ruby looked to the others, upon seeing it. "Don't touch it though, it's acidic." Even as Kyohei spoke they could all see it etching the concrete, eating away at it.

[Justin OOC]

Down the stairs they came to another door, this one with six different locks on it. "ruby?"

"I don't know, this isn't on the map I memorized, we've actually gone down at least six floors when we were on the third. This is uncharted territory."

[z-Skye Angelus]

"Awesome," Skye snorted, the first thing she'd said since the toads had died in such an satisfying way. "So we're off the map in a demon school. Sounds like how I like to spend a night out." She wanted to, but she didn't dare take Kuro's hand.

The half-angel looked around at the assembled students. "Are we going?" she asked, her golden eyebrows rising.

[Delilah Synn]

Delilah tossed her burgundy hair, wrinkling her nose at the smell of the acid etching the stairs. "Of course we are!" the succubus exclaimed in a bodice-straining huff. "This is our school - we can't just let this guy do his thing and suck up all these souls! People like their souls and some of us won't be able to... nibble."

Without waiting to see if the others agreed, Delilah edged to the side of the stairwell to avoid the slime trail, then strutted down the stairs, her high-heeled boots clicking softly as she poised her weight on her toes, trying for a modicum of silence. If she was the least martial of the ones there, she still had a great heart beating beneath her voluptuous chest.

[Justin OOC]

"Right then." Kyohei and Ruby headed to the door, and with a wave of her hands, the young witch removed the magic warding it, and Kyohei opened it.

The smell of a fresh kill assaulted their senses, and Kuromaru's more than the others. Inside were the bodies of dozens of humans, some barely damaged, some truly horrifficly mutilated. "This is why Yokai are hunted by humans. One or two really bad ones ruining it for everyone else."

[Togashi Kagato]

Kurosoroshiimaru sniffed, the cool haughty expression on his perfect features lending it a disdainful air, but then the aquiline nostrils flared slightly and he sniffed again. His robe swirling about his feet, the lordly yokai stepped over the dead body that lay closest to the doorway and peered into the cavernous chamber.

"There is a human female being tortured. I smell burning flesh, and three yokai." he looked back over one shoulder at the others and made a gently flicking motion with his right hand. Black talons glittered in the dim light. "Shall we?" With that, he turned and paced swiftly towards the smell that his keen senses had detected, his kimono whispering like a faint breeze.

[Justin OOC]

Kyohei moved with an alacrity that was unexpected, heedless of the blood splattering his legs as he went further within. Another human was in danger, being attacked by Yokai, and years of training came to the fore.

The scene that greeted him was a gruesome one. A teenage Japanese girl was bound and gagged, suspended from the roof on hooks through her hands and feet, as two Yokai that looked like large slugs, and another that looked like a bipedal lizard violated her. The touch of the slugs was leaving red mars as it was slowly eating her skin, and her tearfilled, eyes spoke only of fright, as the lizard was obviously inside her.

"You FILTH!" Delilah could feel a volcano of rage erupt from Kyohei, and the revulsion of Kuromaru beholding this next to Kyohei.

More than that the monsters could feel a very sinister aura emanating from Kyohei, as his hands literally began to glow black. "You don't deserve to live." The three perpetrators initally didn't look, but afterwards, they realized they were about to have to defend themselves.

[Delilah Synn]

Within Delilah bloomed a supernova of loathing, hate, and sympathetic pity. She was a succubus, at least partly. For her, sex was, in a very real way, life, sustenance. And though succubi weren't above trickery, seduction, or manipulation to get it from who they wished, the idea of physical rape was anathema to them, the worst thing this breed of demon could conceive of, a perversion of what they held most dear.

The powerful scent of brimstone and jasmine wafted from the voluptuous teen, followed by a scorching, dry heat. Her eyes blazed with purple fury, great, sable-feathered wings growing from her back and delicate horns sprouting from her head as her human seeming dropped, revealing her in all her demon-angel glory. Vicious talons of solid, coruscating flame extended from her fingers, exaggerated figure sheathed in the gold and silver flames of arisen HellFire and AngelFire like a second skin.

For possibly the first time ever, Delilah seemed more dangerous than enticing, her dual-nature made manifest, her innately tempting demeanor subsumed beneath her rage as she stepped up next to Kyohei. "You don't even deserve to have been born," Delilah amended, her sultry tones crackling and ringing with opposing powers dwelling in a single girl. "And now, we're gonna make you regret it."

[Togashi Kagato]

Kuromaru's reaction was one of extreme distaste. Of course, certain lower forms of yokai than the beast-demons practiced such perversions as entertainment and/or sustenance. He knew that academically, as he knew humans practiced something called 'shopping'. To actually witness it was disgusting.

The suffering of the girl touched him but little. He didn't know her, didn't care about her beyond a basic vibration of sympathy for a trapped animal. It was unfortunate that she had fallen prey to demons and suffered for it, but all mortal life was made to suffer, really. She was their prey, and they were cruel, brutish and distasteful. He didn't experience the hate and rage of his fellows at the revolting sight before his jade-green eyes, but that mattered little in the grand scheme of things.

These demons were intruders on the Academy grounds. They were an affront to his sensibilities. They would distress Skye with their coarse and disgusting practices. They were likely agents of the mysterious foe. And his fellow students were preparing to move against them. Any one of these facts would be reason enough for Kurosoroshiimaru to slaughter these yokai with no more emotion than he would flick dust from his sleeve.

Delicate-seeming fingers tensed and flickered, the sharp pointed nails growing once more into black claws the size of steak knives.

"Lay down and die easily." he told the offending demons in a bored, haughty voice. "Oppose us, and die painfully. The difference is only significant to you."

[z-Skye Angelus]

Skye was frozen with horror. Her pretty face went slack with disgust at the scene before her. This is why demons deserved to die. This was the cruelty that her mother and grandmother had warned her about. The voices of her schoolmates faded to murmurs; the smooth voice of her boyfriend was a rumble that couldn't penetrate her haze. She couldn't feel anything other than pure, hot rage.

Her human guise fell away from her, revealing the angel underneath. Her sword was out; there was no girl anymore, only an avenging angel.

But the rage that lent her power also made her careless. Her first swing at the lizard raping the girl went wide when her foot slipped in the blood dribbled across the floor.

Carver *rolls* 2d6: 1+1+10: 12

[Carver] 7:57 pm: MUTHER FUCKER!!!!

Carver headdesks.

[Justin OOC]

Skye missed, dashing forward to fast and sliding in the filth and gore upon the floor. Kyohei did not. The battle joined, He engaged the lizard, the same target it seemed that Skye had in mind. Everyone except the girl saw exactly what happened. His first hand seemed to pass through the chest of the Lizard, pulling out what could only be called his spirit or soul, and then his hand closed, and the soul exploded into ephemera. The vacant body dropped like a marrionette with its strings cut, and Kyohei's remaining hand ceased glowing, wrapping around the girls waste and pulling with inhuman might. She screamed as the tendriled slug monsters acid burned her, but she was pulled free, leaving them at the mercy of the others. His other hand, now not glowing removed his school jacket, draping it over the girl as he turned his back to the monsters, hiding her from what he knew was about to happen.

Ruby watched in mute horror. It was true, he was exactly what they feared most.

[Delilah Synn]

Delilah snarled in fury, her sable wings cracking like a whip as she launched herself through the air. She wanted to vent her affronted rage on the violating lizard, but Kyohei beat her to it, so she unleashed her wrath on the closest of the slugs. She raked it with her fiery claws, the flames crackling through the air as they glowed white-hot and tore through the putrid slug flesh with sizzle and pop of seared fat.

"Burn!!!!" she hissed, surprisingly not squirming and squealing at the sight of demon guts.

Rolls

HellFire Flux Roll: (2d6+10=16)

Adding Weapon 8 and Piercing 4 to her claws (20cp)

AngelFire is currently adding +1 to her Super-Strength and granting her 6 Armor

Attack #1

Asarasa *rolls* 2d6: 1+6+12: 19

Attack #2

Asarasa *rolls* 2d6: 6+4+12: 22

Claws inflict 117 Damage (56 purely from Fire) and ignore 24 points from Armor.

Defense Rolls:

Defense Rolls: 2d6+12 = 19, 2d6+12 = 24

[Justin OOC]

The combined attacks reduced the foul yokai to smoking ooze on the floor, his comrade looking at the girls despite it. Lust was the natural state of mind for these yokai, and even fear of death could pale when confronted with transcendant beauty.

[Justin OOC]

A Dark unintelligible language issued from Ruby's mouth, and feathers like obsidian blades sliced the other slug monster to ribbons. She looked to one of the others. "We need to smash the seal, that Altar they defiled, and see if we can heal that girl's wounds quickly."

[Delilah Synn]

"I... I think I can help the poor girl," Delilah said hesitantly, her fiery talons faded, her sheath of fire dimming into an subliminal flickering below the surface of her skin. With a flap of her wings and a lash of her tail, Delilah hopped over to the girl, cupping her cheek compassionately and looked up at Kyohei. "Kyo, bring her outside the room, this... filth, and I'll try to... to help her."

With gentle care, Kyohei carried the girl out of the disgusting and laid her carefully across Delilah's lap, making sure his jacket still covered her. Delilah brushed her hair pack and pillowed the girl's head on her bountiful chest. "Shhh, shhh, it's going to be okay. They're dead, and soon, you won't hurt anymore, I promise."

The angelic succubus held up her hands and stared at them intently and a bit uncertainly. How do I do this? It's so different from what I know... Uh... Heal!? Cure? Curaga? Healhealhealhealheal... Softly, Delilah slid her hands under the jacket, skimming down the girl's sides and across her abdomen, lips tight as she focused hard on something that was innate to her, but only recently learn. Slowly, her hands began to glow with a pure, silvery-white light, throbbing, not flickering like flame, the incandescence bathing the girl with a soothing, cool warmth that chased the pain away... At least the physical pain.

AngelFire Flux!

AngelFire Flux Roll: 2d6+10 = 13

Converting Angelfire into 3 ranks of Healing.

[Justin OOC]

The girls wounds began to close, the damage done to her was very extensive. She was asleep now, and from the other room they heard a resounding crash. The seal had been destroyed, likely by Kuro.

Ruby emerged, looking to Delilah, then Kyohei. "You and I will go to the girl's dorm. Delilah, There is a private cottage in the woods beyond the lake, You, Kurosoroshiimaru, and Skye take the girl there. You'll be safe. Kyohei and I will be along presently. You can lay her on the bed there, and let her rest."

She placed a hand over the girl's eyes. "She will not wake for some time, enough I hope to save her."

[z-Skye Angelus]

"We shouldn't split up." It was the first words that Skye had managed to utter since the entire incident had gone down. "We should stay together," she said, repeating herself with different words. It was also clear that the young girl was badly shaken; her blue eyes were too wide and she was far too pale.

[Justin OOC]

Ruby looked at Skye. "We cannot take her with us, not to another seal. She was close enough to dying there. I fear if we bring her near another she will die."

"I do understand, better than you could imagine, the disgust at what we all witnessed. Right now we need to get her to safety, and destroy the other seal we were assigned. "Perhaps, given your heritage, you can help Delilah tend her wounds. Kurosoroshiimaru can help defend yourselves until we get there. We have to get that seal within the next hour..."

[z-Skye Angelus]

Skye teetered on the edge between berserk outrage and compassion - angels were prone to both. "Can you break the seal without Kurosoroshiimaru's help?" she asked, her eyes still too wide. The aforementioned demon hovered close to her, his brilliant eyes focused on her. His expression wasn't concerned, but there was an air that he was barely holding back from her, from comforting her.

"Yes," Ruby said.

"Fine," Skye replied softly. "I'll carry her. Let's go." The blonde woman put away her sword, bend to gather up the woman and rose easily, showing no effort from the burden.

[Delilah Synn]

"I know the cottage," Delilah said with a nod, having noticed it on one of her and Kyohei's outings by the lake. "I can lead us there."

The buxom succubus inhaled deeply, straining the laces of her bodice, and pulled her Seeming pack on, wings, horns, and tail receding out of sight. Though she kept the taller, more mature figure she had been wearing for the play, Delilah had restored her face to its glamorous, youthful beauty surrounded by burgundy waves of hair.

As Skye picked up the girl from her lap, Delilah flowed gracefully to her feet, chewing on a succulent lip in concern. She had tried to heal the girl as best she could, but she was new to this angel-magic and hardly knew what she was doing. Maybe Skye can help me with it... While Skye settled the girl in her arms and spoke a few soft words to Kurosoroshiimaru, Delilah glided over to Kyohei, giving him a tight hug and a light kiss.

"You be careful, Kyo. I'm not done with you, yet," Delilah urged him in her smokey tones with subdued playfulness. "Finish quickly and come back to me. Promise me."

"I promise, Delilah," Kyohei assured her, hugging her back.

Reluctantly, Delilah broke the embrace, then glanced at Skye and Kuro and nodded towards the door. "Let's go, guys and get this girl to safety, so she can heal and recover."

Looking over her shoulder to make sure they were following, Delilah strutted through the door and up the stairs, the high-heels clicking softly, her chin elevated to a confident angle, daring anyone to question where they were going with the somnolent girl. "The cottage is on the far side of the lake, but once we get outside, I know a path we can use where few will see us." Coming to an intersection, Delilah unhesitatingly turned left. "This way..."

[Justin OOC]

The entire trek to the cottage was made silently, and each of them could feel eyes upon them. Above them in the trees, hundreds of ravens and crows watched them, more and more intently as they neared the cottage. The door opened for them, and they found it to be quite tidy and orderly. Only one door was locked, and attempts to open it failed, regardless of the method. There was a smaller bedroom on the other side with a single bed for them to lay the girl in, and the kitchen was surprisingly well stocked, and even had running hot and cold water. The den had a large television, and a bookshelf filled with many of the greatest classical literary workings of humanity.

It would be an easy thing to put the girl to rest, and wait.

-----

Elsewhere, Kyohei and Ruby made their way towards the other sigil.