"For sooth! Thou art under my care, young princesses!" His English was a little hard for her to understand, as she was failing English. However, Yukiko understood the gist of what he was saying and could not help smiling. Looking around at the trees and the other foliage, Yukiko felt that they were getting no closer to the abandoned village. There was absolutely no light in sight.
"... Uh, Sanae-chan? I may be wrong but... I don't think this is the right way."Those were the exact words that Yukiko did
not want to hear. If they were lost, her parents would eventually wake up to her empty bed and she would be grounded for the rest of her life. Yukiko released a slow breath in an attempt to remain calm, unaware that she gently squeezed Satogi's hand in the process.
It'll be okay.. We'll fix this... Sanae-chan and Orokawru-Senpai will find a way back....❝Lessee... you're right. Yep. We're lost. But! But, that don't mean I dunno how to get us un-lost. Y'know, I know how to get to the shrine from anywhere in the forest? Even at night.❞A bead of sweat fell from Yukiko's forehead, unable to believe how easily Sanae admitted to behing lost. However, the mention of the shrine immediately perked Yukiko's spirits back up. Visiting the shrine would be just as good as the abandoned village. Shrines were very neat after all and held lots of history,
"That sounds perfect, you're a lifesaver, Sanae-chan." Yuki smiled, obviously very relieved that they would be able to get themselves out of this mess.
❝Would be a lil' easier if we had some kinda flashlight, but... Kyosuke-kun took Satogi-kun's. Hmm... y'know, I heard about cellphones havin' flashlights, but... I dunno how mine works. S'this way, though.❞A pang of guilt overwhelmed Yukiko, but she did not speak up. If they knew she had been hiding the fact that she had a flashlight this entire time they would surely realize her ulterior motive was to hold Satogi's hand. That would be far too embarrassing to explain, so she chose to continue concealing the fact. After a while, laterns came into view and Yukiko gave the area a good look, enjoying the aesthetics. Yukiko glances down to make sure she won't fall unnecessarily, though normally she was surefooted.
❝They say the abandoned village's hidden by some trees at the bottom of the cliff on the other side of the shrine. Me? Well, I never saw it before, but... well, that's probably 'cause it's hidden. 'Sure if we get up to the shrine, we can find a way to get down there, y'know? And—... uh, wait. Shh.❞Yukiko nodded her head, glad that they might get to visit the shrine AND the abandoned village that was rumored to house all kinds of Youkai. When Sanae put her finger to her lips, Yukiko felt her heart sink.
W-We aren't alone...? Is it Andoh-san and Izumi-Senpai..? ...Or someone else...? She had to admit she was very nervous. What if it was human thieves or other degenerates? The three of them could not fight off vandals. The voice sounded like singing... At first, earlier on she thought it was her imagination, a song stuck in her head, but now that they were closer it was obvious it was
unsettlingly real.
Weep not poor children,
for life is this way,
Murdering beauty and passions❝Am I the only one who hears... voices? Ya think someone else is out here? Could it be Kyosuke-kun and Nao-chan? Oh man, what if it's... what if it's the voices of Youkai? D'ya think we really found some?!❞No... I hear someone too...? It might be them... but what if it's not?" Yukiko asked quietly under her breath, biting her bottom lip as she attempted to make a deicision. At the mention of Youkai, actual real Youkai, she found inner courage and nodded her head in a determined manner. Youkai did not intimidate her as much as the thought of cruel humans, but she would figure out sooner or later that certain Youkai were
much more frightening than any human,
".... I suppose we'll never know if we don't investigate." Yuki sighed, managing to put aside her fear of the possibility there was violent humans inside of the Shrine instead of the Youkai they were seeking.
Then she spoke in English, the only sentence she could passibly say without making a fool of herself,
"All for one, and one for all...?" Yukiko quoted in a insecure manner, asking the other two if they were truly going to be in this together, no matter how horrible their discovery might turn out. She also realized she was quoting the musketeers, but their motto really struck a chord, and in this situation they would have to be united, or else things could turn out very badly, especially if they encountered delinquents instead of Youkai,
"Do...Do you guys... hear singing or is it just me..?" Yuki asked in a shaken tone, unsure what kind of scene they were about to happen upon.
Hush now dear children,
It must be this way,
Too weary of life and deceptions
Rest now dear children,
For soon we'll away,
Into the calm and the quiet
"Truly enough that would stump normal beings, though the answer to your simple riddle is A Fire. Now that that's out of the way, did you need something further? I must stay vigilant, humans will be intruding our village sooner rather than later I'm afraid."Clapping her hands when Sanja guessed right, Tsuyari smiled a bit. She loved being in the Daitengu's presence, especially when Susumu was throwing out riddles. Watching Sanja get them right with ease was very entertaining. It also reminded her why it was useful to be in good standing with Sanja. His knowledge about the land aside, Sanja was incredibly intelligent and that made him an invaluable ally to have.
❝Oh, oh! You guessed it right, Sanja-kun. My boy's so smart. Smart, smart~❞Tsuyari just shook her head at Susumu's words, completely baffled by his behavior. She began to wonder why he asked Sanja riddles in the first place when he knew that the Daitengu was going to guess them all right anyway. She didn't understand his reasoning, yet that wasn't really her fault. She had never been attracted to anyone romantically, so she was unable to point out flirting when she saw it.
"It reminded me of Ki, as they are quite dear to me, I got them a gift. They are after all tending to the shrine whilst I am here."The embarrassment in Sanja's expression brought a grin to Tsuyari's lips. However she did not get to enjoy the fact that she had embarrassed Sanja very long,
"Aw... Now I wanna get Ki something too..." Tsuyari pouted. She was incredibly broke, so the chances of her getting Ki anything worth having were slim to none. Most of the time Tsuyari stole the things she needed. She would catch fish in the river using her ability to manipulate the wind to jerk the fish out of the river. Despite her resourcefulness, Tsuyari knew that Ki would not want a stolen present. The last time she stole something for Ki was still a well-kept secret.
"Yet, I admit I don't know if they'll even like a silly material object such as this."She blinked at the bunny as Sanja toyed around with it, smiling softly,
"I think Ki will love it. Ki comes across as the type who cherishes sentiment over monetary value." She explained, but it was only her opinion in the end. Tsuyari let herself zone out, though the smell of the air had changed. She wasn't entirely sure of what was coming, but she did know that it wasn't any type of Youkai she had ever smelled.
“Please remove your hand from Sanja-sama, or have it removed … from your arm,”"...Karasu-San too? How did I manage to obtain such violent comrades...?" Tsuyari mostly asked herself but asked her rhetorical question loud enough for all three men to hear. While she was not referring to Sanja so much, she definitely meant Susumu and Shohei. Also, she completely forgot that she was still in her Yokai form, one that Shohei had never seen before, but still called him the same pet name she always would as she was m.
❝Oh? Tell me, is that a promise or a threat? If you take off one of my arms, can I take off one of yours? An eye for an eye, right? I'd like to bargain with eyes...~❞A shiver ran down her spine.
Here we go again... The thought of eyes being removed made Tsuyari very uncomfortable. She had never seen anything
that gruesome, well, except for when she had to cook fish. Fish were a totally different story, though. Humans being harmed by Youkai was not acceptable, they were more like pets that needed protecting in Tsuyari's eyes and she would gladly intervene in one's defense. Violence between Youkai was always a constant reminder of what happened to her parents and that made her antsy.
All five of Tsuyari's tails began to swish around eagerly when her eyes located what Shohei was warning Sanja about. There were two humans in the village. She wondered how they managed to be among the Youkai, but that only intrigued her more. Humans were such interesting pets. They never ceased to grow and amaze her.
"Curious is it not? Such an obvious answer when clearly the lions have starved and died within those three years. . . Goodluck."Tsuyari couldn't help but smile when Sanja managed to ruin Susumu's game with the humans. She knew where this was coming from, Susumu was going to try and wager them out of body parts. Tsuyari made her way over to the humans, getting a better look at the two. She was always curious when it came to their species. She waved off Shohei and Sanja before returning her full attention back to the humans, ecstatic that there was something worthwhile going on. The night had been kind of quiet and dull, so this was a much-appreciated change of pace.
"Very charming, but looks like the game is over. And the terms were quite unfair, and not in our favor, to start with. The correct thing to have done would be a quid pro quo. You tell us things, we tell you things..."A snicker escaped her lips, enjoying the human girl's spark. She could tell that the human was nervous, but Tsuyari did nothing to interfere just yet. While she was interested in protecting them, their fear and bewilderment did amuse her. They were always so surprised or frightened when they met with something they deemed 'fictional'. They were so arrogant in that sense, believing they were the dominant species... That is where Tsuyari drew the line. Humans were by no means superior.
"Ehhmm... regardless how nice it was to meet you, Susumu-san.. I do think we must take our leave.."While she would not admit it, Tsuyari was in no rush to see the humans leave. She was in the mood to play with them a bit as well, although in her company they would return home with all of their body parts. She simply was not the grotesque type of Youkai,
"Do you even know your way back...?" Tsuyari asked cheerfully as if delighted by the humans happening upon the village, but also that they were likely lost.
“You need to work on your act dude. You sound way too annoying to hold an audience.”Tsuyari's eyes met the blond male,
"How about you show how it's done then? Lead by example, no?" She tilted her head, blue hair shifting with her movement, her blue ears twitching as she spoke. She found it quite irritating, as she loved Susumu's riddles immensely. While she liked the girl, the boy simply clawed at her patience.