REMEMBERING EMBERS ♦ private

It had been beautiful, the slow change from a matt black darkness devoid of light to a colour so much more vibrant in comparison the burgundy then lightening into a cardinal, he could hear her, just as he could sense the forest and feel every breath of wind scraping away at the wounds she had caused. Yet there was something pleasant about hearing his name said in such a manner, this wasn't the emotionless Izayuki, she wasn't saying it a harsh or cruel way that was mocking. This was her, she was back to being the bakedanuki that many looked up to, kind natured and caring of those around her who had turned a dishevelled guild into a family. Pressure did nothing, whilst one cut was covered there were only more bleeding, yet now he had something to focus on. He could still listen, the kind words, the apology that was drenched in regret and sadness, the calm about the forest as it now lacked in the in sense evil intent from earlier. It spread, a chill across his body, at first there was a plight of worry within him that this was going to be his last moments before his mind faded away with his blood. Yet there was a slight sense of being revitalised, a strain creased his forehead as his yes cracked open, blood was frozen with ice, he could see the shimmering surface across both of his arms. The cuts on his side from the thorns, it hurt, he could feel the little needle holes in his neck being closed over with a frozen cap.

She looked so, wrought with distraught, so saddened and apologetic the guilt tying her up and carving her into little pieces. "Crying will do nothing, for now we need to get out" Sentence left unfinished his eyes rose up to where she was staring, spite littered her gaze yet there was a peace within his. She had blocked further blood loss yet the risk he had taken was stupid and foolish, he half expected Theo to round the corner with a muffin in his mouth. Start mumbling about how silly he was to have tried something like that, getting all in a huff as he did when lacking sleep yet Rin would soon calm him down and bring a medical kit. He needed more blood, it wasn't worth mentioning that to the woman before him they just needed to get somewhere medical, if he could, have a little more energy and blood then he could heal himself.

"Izayuki, do not hate yourself B Positive. We just need to get somewhere with medical professionals, or back to Black Rose. Isn't it called the Haemo Globe Inn" There was a break between each statement, drowsy and slow it could have been misinterpreted for the words of a drunk man yet. Heh, no mosquito or vampires would like him now. His blood was probably too cold for their liking, hopefully she would keep talking, he  he just needed to focus, on something before his mind fell too deeply into the soft comforts of rest.

The tanuki could only look on the forest with spite and distrust at what it had done. All for what, because she scolded some people for accidentally dropping a smoke lighter instead of killing them? Some trees had been scalded, yes, but not killed in the incident. The cherry blossoms also healed and regenerated quickly, so they had no reason to complain. Though the forest was beautiful once again, the yokai found it hard to forgive the blood it had shed and forced her to spill. However, if she did not forgive the forest for simply hunting its prey down as any carnivore, she would never be able to forgive herself for any of her bloodshed misdeeds. What was hard to reconcile was its blatant control of her free will upon being poisoned by her blood. It could have let her go and worked the dark matter out of its web, or been discovered by someone who could tend to it, such as Lester, but instead it played her like a puppet to its ill will.

The gentle and soft words of Lester did not necessarily accept the apology. The youthful mage had only caught onto her shaking emotions and gave a few supportive words. Izayuki doubted he could so easily forgive her, and half expected he was just stringing along comforting words to receive her help and ensure he did not die there. Well, even if he was, the ayakashi ceased to care. She did not deserve forgiveness after all, especially after the many things she had done and all the blood she had spilled. One of the targets survived and it would be too selfish to expect his forgiveness after making a brutal attack on his life, mixed with cruel words and gruesome tactics. He mentioned getting out of the forest which the yokai responded with a nod of agreement to. There was nothing left for them in Sakuramori.

The next stream of words were slow, drowsy, and confusing. They seemed far different than the words of someone who was of sound mind and body. He mentioned not to hate herself and to be positive, which was quite the difficult request given the situation. There was little to be positive over other than the fact that Lester had not died in his foolishness and her bloodlust. He also managed to mispronounce the guildhall and home of Black Rose, replacing the intricate name with a strange word Izayuki had not heard before but could link the root word to ‘blood’. “Silver Moon Inn,” she corrected in a gentle whisper before shaking her head. “Rose Garden is too far away from here. The nearby village may have a healing mage or some herbalists, but...”

The bakedanuki gave a defeated sigh as she gazed down at Lester’s torn skin, his wounds capped with unholy ice. Her worried, pale eyes trailed back up to meet his watermelon gaze. “I don’t think you’ll make the trip there in your current state. You’ve lost too much blood,” she explained. She could always shapeshift into a faster creature and fly or rush him over. Even then, it would be many hours even at her speed until they found the village. The village did not promise a healer either, only hope of one and a few alternative doctors. Would they be able to transfuse blood into the boy before it was too late?
Another idea sprouted in the ayakashi’s mind, who was just about to give up and attempt to take him to the village anyway, despite there being only a small chance of him actually surviving the trip and meeting a skilled healer. “The other option is I could perform a blood transfusion right here,” Izayuki suggested, looking down at the moonlit grass and now healthy roots, her guilty expression avoiding Lester’s eyes once again. “You already know the nature of my blood, though. It would hurt, and we would have to pray to whatever benevolent deity that exists out there that your own healing blood would be able to combat its properties.”

The yokai disliked the idea overall. She knew that her ‘blood’ was barely even blood at all, just dark matter taking on the properties and chemical makeup of mostly human blood for the time being as she retained a humanoid shape. In battle, the yokai noted the dark matter typically targeted the pain receptors and could burn and scald opponents if she so let it. Other times, those effects could be magically counteracted. The bigger concern of the guild master was the fact that her blood had been corrupted by the trio of hell demon children. Lester’s blood had managed to fight off and clear the corrupted blood out of the web of the forest, but would he be able to do so with his own body so low on blood? Izayuki decided to let the decision rest with him. She had no idea just how her blood would affect him, if at all, but she was not about to push the notion. Dizzy as he was, surely he had enough consciousness to be able to accurately decide for himself.




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That was it, silver moon. If he weren't lacking in blood so much the man would have blushed at the mistake he had made, how could one forget such a simple name. Her voice was soft, angelic and sweet to listen to. Yet the news she brought was less than pleasant, Rose Garden being quite a distance there was only a village nearby, the mention of a healer was positive yet there was a pause as she rose to meet his eyes, a sadness resided in them as the bakedanuki sighed. He wouldn't make it, it made sense for the blood loss was immense, his life was fading away with time. A blood transfusion, she was acting oddly, avoiding his eyes with such an expression on her face it surely wasn't good. She was right, her blood would not be beneficial to him. And he would have to pray to whatever was watching over him. Nothing was watching over him but the thought was nice at least. "Just do it, I trust you. Don't give me too much just enough to get to the village."  A smile dipped across his face, it would be fine right.

I mean what choice was there, bleeding out even further and feeling his body grow colder, or the chance of turning into a berserk demon. Would his eyes flash with memories?

Alabaster-furred ears twitched at the youthful mage’s weakened words. He agreed to the suggestion and gave her the permission to do it, but what caught her attention was the next three words. He trusted her. It was almost hard to believe after everything she had put the younger slayer through, both physically and possibly emotionally. All he had wanted to do, after all, was heal the sickened forest, and she did not even allow him that without brutal force.

Whether his words were of his fading state due to the severe loss of blood, or rooted in actual truth, the bakedanuki began to care less, knowing she had a task ahead of her. He had instructed that she not give him too much of her own blood, which was certainly fair. There was no telling what even a drop would do, nevermind a few quarts or a gallon or so of the thick dark matter and energy. Gingerly, the ayakashi lifted a pale and sickly wrist of the other guild master. With her magic, she delicately allowed the frosty cap of unholy ice to melt back into warmth, at least on his arm. With her other hand, the yokai took a claw to her own palm to allow her own blood, onyx in color, to flow. She lightly held it above his own open wound and began to work her personal control over the blood. It was like a third magic of hers, the ability to precisely control the dark matter. From her hand, she channeled it through the vital veins and arteries within his arm, through to the necessary organs that required the extra blood to keep him alive.

The yokai knew that it likely was not the most pleasant process, her blood having the mild chance to burn like acid even as she tried to restrict its properties to do no such thing. If anything, she hoped some of her quick regeneration capabilities would be taken and utilized by the snowy-haired mage’s body and his own blood. There was no telling what other effects might ensue, given the mysterious nature of the shadow-like energy that she called her life force. It could be as mild as an abnormal appetite, moderate as a fair dose of pain, or as severe as a full rewiring of the brain. She did not know what to expect, as the blood belonged to a yokai but was unique and unlike the blood of any other bakedanuki, while it retained corruption from hell demons. Scared of what might happen but trying her best not to show it beyond her pale gaze of concern, Izayuki removed her hand and once again resealed the wound with her cold god-slaying ice.




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He had not feeling in his limbs, otherwise the male would have been able to tell that the bakedanuki had awkwardly taken his hand into her grasp, a crude method, yet through squinted eyes he could see the movements she had made, there was no medical equipment here, nothing to be sterilised or cleaned, nothing to keep either of them safe from surrounding alien critters. A neat slash in her palm parted the skin, it would likely leave a faint scar due to the location of it, foolish choice really yet this was no time to be worrying, It was a horrid colour, the same hue that the forest had been just earlier the thought of it entering his bloodstream even under such life threatening circumstances was chilling. For a few moments there was nothing, he lacked feeling in much of his body so the female could have hacked off a limb for all he knew. He knew when feeling came back since it came in a burst of fire, sharp and acidic it burned down his veins, trains of searing pain across each limb as it pooled and gathered in the centre of his torso.

"You said it would hurt but- arrg, your blood really isn't the nicest. Just, just a minute" Half heated, an attempt to settle her mind and clear some of the worries. She would need to be calm enough to aid him to the village, she seemed strong enough for it physically. Lip was bitten slightly as the tsunami of blood found its way through his system. It hurt, the the pain was something he could understand and bear, who would despise such pain if it was the cost for their life. He was not so childish as to force her hand away from giving blood, as with each del of pain which rushed through his system there was an ever so slight increase in temperature, he could feel how his mind had been getting fresh oxygen and much of the fuzz in his head had vanished. Considering he was resting on the knobbly trunk of a blossom tree he managed to settle back, relaxing slightly eyes closed, yet it was intentional this time not due to a lack of blood he simply needed to let it do its jobs. Each drop working to reboot its system yet the clashes between Izayuki's and his own blood was not without chaos. Oil and water were never a good mix it was as if someone was using the wrong puzzle pieces.

The tree he was leaning on bloomed further, a couple of the closed buds dancing and showing off their beautiful petals as he cracked an eye open after a few minutes. Their cuts had once more been sealed over and some amount of color had returned to his pallor. "We should slowly start moving, it'll have to be slow but with some help I can walk. Just need to stop thinking about the pain." talking about the pain didn't help in the slightest yet, he would gain nothing from sitting here longer. As if they ached with the pain of an elderly man he brought his knees up slightly, a hand extended with a question in his eyes to the other slayer. Surely the forest wasn't that large and the village not too far away, if she aided him in getting there at least then they would be able to have a proper conversation about what had just happened.

At first, all was still. Her obsidian-hued blood spilled into his bloodstream, channeled through with precision by the ayakashi. Before too long, the effects of the dark matter were met by the youthful mage, who instantly reacted from the agony of it all. The first instinct was for Izayuki to look away and not see the pain she was inflicting while trying to help. The underlying beastly instinct of the yokai tempted her to relish in the sight of another being in pain. With an immense amount of renewed willpower, the bakedanuki rejected both impulses and focused on the other guild master to ensure he would not suffer anymore than he had to. His words, though heated at first, were accurate. Her blood was far from nice, used best as a defense mechanism than anything else. Yet here she was, trying to use it to heal.

Eventually the flow was halted and his wounds sealed up once again. Once again, Lester suggested they leave Sakuramori, to which Izayuki wholeheartedly agreed. When he started to move to pick himself up, the bakedanuki sprung up first and took his questioning hand to help him steady himself. “Just take it easy,” the yokai urged in a warm and gentle tone, standing right alongside Lester, ready to help steady him or give him a shoulder if he needed. Ideally, she would have changed into the form of some beast or fast moving, large animal or monster in order to transport him quicker. Unfortunately, balancing required plenty of coordination and muscle, and rushing through the uneven grounds of Sakuramori, with its vines, branches, and thorns still present could only end up re-opening some of the injuries he had sustained. The ice was only a seal, after all, unable to fully heal or regenerate the damage he had taken. While her black blood, freshly transfused, could potentially assist him in regenerating quickly, its properties would have to merge with his own blood’s properties first. She still did not know what to expect in the way of side effects from the transfusion, but fortunately Lester seemed to be alright thus far. The village was likely a good hour away perhaps, if not more. Traveling from the heart to the outskirts, though, the bakedanuki hoped to find some herbs that could temporarily aid him until they reached the village, and if needed, more formal assistance. Humans were so fragile. “Are you sure you’re okay to walk?” she questioned, pale eyes blinking with genuine concern.





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A slight smile tugged at his lips, thankful the tanuki had grabbed his hand for the world was still unfamiliar, as if directions were wrong and the poles had changed with North being west and there were two souths. His mind had trouble concentrating on things, a sentence, a thought trail just ending for no reason, floating away as if it were a child's balloon lost at the circus. Unsteady his feet rolled slightly on the curvatures of the land below, roots under food displacing even a mage with the feet of mountain goat, the bone haired youths body lurched slightly as he attempted to grab the yokai's forearm in hopes of steadying himself. Take it easy was good advice indeed, he had just been thrown around by thorns, slashed and sliced to pieced, diced up and chased around a forest, before cutting himself, getting pricked in the neck and impaled by icy spears. Most of which was either done by an evil forest or a person he had once looked up to and now had hoped to forge an alliance of some kind with. Really it was, not going quite as planned, hopefully they could get to the village alright, get properly healed there before a ride back to a proper inn. Theo would be at the ship he could sent the jello mage a brief message, things could still go smoothly.

Was he okay to walk, slow and controlled his breathing settled for a moment as he evaluated it, one of those black needles from earlier had gone through from his shoulder to his back, the ones on his neck were fine yet from this one he could feel a straining. Deep and inside it was as if with every movement the small hole was only widening. "I can wall, a bit slowly, yet it is a walk." He set the pace to be slow, the amount of roots making much of the path to be a hazard to any well minded individual which neither of them were. "This walk will take longer than normal, and until I am better healed all of my magical power is going towards keeping my body functioning. Although if you see any plants which may help feel free to pluck them and bring them closer." It was as if he was, embarrassed almost, in a situation such as this he was ashamed of his lack of sight, he was able to sense his surroundings yet the blurred vision which constantly distorted and fluctuated was of no aid.

They had to find some way to pass the time, stumbling across roots and keeping an eye out for plants was no way to spend over an hour. "I don't suppose you're any good at starting idle conversation?" A smile flickered up to his eyes for a brief moment, he was not one for small talk, yet normally there was always a topic at hand to converse about, of which there were none at this current time until she wished to explain what had happened in the recent debacle.

The bakedanuki attempted to assist catching him as his feet rolled over the uneven terrain. She focused a bit of concentrated cold air around his ankles to attempt to numb the pain. The air would not be cold enough to freeze or harm his skin further, but merely bring down any soreness from walking. It really was a shame, the fact that her magic had little use in healing. Every drop of magic within her was designed to kill and hurt others, not to bring healing or support to anyone. It really was a frustrating fact in times like these, where she was helpless when a friend or family member was hurt or in need. Slowly and steadily, Izayuki continued to guide him down the forest paths, choosing the smoothed, quickest, and safest routes that would lead to the village. Were there a sharp or big stone or stray root in their way, the ayakashi would gently help him over or around it to avoid him sustaining further injury or the ice on his wounds breaking and causing further bleeding. She had yet to see any good healing plants, but kept her pale eyes peeled and keen senses alert for any sign of them.

With a smile, he inquired about small talk, having nothing else to say and them having nothing more in common to talk about, the guild relations discussion having passed earlier in the day before the forest attacked. A small grin on her face, the bakedanuki shook her head. “I’m not one for small talk, but to keep your mind off of the pain, you could describe to me in detail what happened back there if you wish,” she offered. Perhaps a long time ago in her younger days, the yokai would have adored small talk. Many years ago, she loved hearing the sound of her own voice and basked in any ounce of attention she could receive from it. Nowadays, however, she was a tanuki of few words. Unless something needed to be said, talking could be such a bore. She preferred getting right to the point of a conversation instead of sugar coating a topic for the sake of pleasantries and politeness. “And if you have questions about any of this, I’d be happy to answer them,” she added, personally thinking he would ask about the events that went down, the cherry blossom forest, or the shadow-hued blood she had channeled through his veins.

They would be happening upon the village shortly, its architectural style best described as eastern or Midian. The smooth cobblestone roads would come into view shortly and from there, she could seek out the village healer or a doctor.


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He was glad for the help, a bracing arm her when he felt unsteady, if the blood rushed too fast and his vision started to blur as if a mist was settling on the landscape the bakedanuki was right next to him. A slight chill settled over his ankles, at first it was unnerving, a reminder of the frost from before, yet just a few moments later he had stopped thinking about his ankles and feet, the aches that had grown there and blossomed up in the arches and heels of his feet were diminishing as the swirls of cool air kept him slightly numbed as well as refreshed. Judging from their actions it was unlikely that she had any healing magic, for if the most she could do was numb some of his pain and seal the wounds it would be important to get to a proper physician. It moved slowly at first, much of it still frozen the blood was much darker than normal as one of the pinpricks on hick neck started to bead up with blood slightly, it was merely a small incision, he wouldn't lose much blood as it would likely start clotting over soon. Yet he could feel the unconformable track that it left behind as the blood droplet trickled down his neck, with each milimeter that it moved the droplet got smaller, until it was merely a red line down his neck, the vague residue and memory of what had happened. It would be interesting to explain to the others what had happened.

Not one for small talk yet happy to listen to him, with a slight intake of breath he mulled over it, best to start at the start lest she not have full knowledge of that as well. "I had come to the forest, just visiting nearby and figured I might as well before going across the other side of the country. I was, looking at something, the trees felt sick. Thats when you appeared behind me, asked me to leave. I declined but we worked out an agreement- I later broke that. We were walking through the forest for a while but at one point I think I took us a little too close to the heart of the darkness. Another tree darker than any I had seen before was there." It was odd, the memory was there for sure yet it wasn't a memory of in the forest, he had, gone up to the tree and connected with it, "I let my magic run through the injured tree and somehow, I met not physically but mentally with the subconscious of the forest, it was still normal yet there was all of this darkness on top. That's when I realised it was you, the tree showed me a memory of it attacking you and taking your blood." That would explain it, his brows drew together slightly as he stepped with care over a rock, he had woken up in a different place wrapped in thorns.

So she had wrapped him in a thorny vine and taken him closer to the centre, yet then when he woke up she let him leave. Encouraged him even, there must have been some of her left in there at that time. Hesitation was what brought the pause, she had told him to tell her yet was it for the best? "You had wrapped me up in thorns and taken me closer to the centre, yet when I woke up you let me go, telling me to leave. Which I did, or I tried to at least. The forest didn't seem to like that, it grew. The roots grew, they swirled up and grabbed at my feet till I fell. And then, you came after me." Heavy, he sighed slightly, perhaps there were a few details he was missing yet it was not an vent he wished to have permanently etched into his brain for rewatching. What had happened, he just had to focus on this, and walk, and they would be there soon. "Then we fought briefly, I um, you sent vines after me which I managed to trap in a shield, I could immobilize the forest but you always managed to break free. Your words were, not your own." He left it there for a few moments, the words hanging in the air with a slight warmth in comparison to what followed.

She was always smiling, he wouldn't mention that to her yet that was all he could remember, the leering mocking face with lips drawn back and teeth grinning every time he fumbled for a step or dodged a vine. "You sent out a tsunami, the pollen it was all black. I didn't breath too much in but enough, so I told you that I wanted to see the heart and would come with you. You threatened me by putting a collar around my neck with a note that if I ran it would slice me up and we went for a walk. I used the forest to briefly block you, froze time for the forest then while I um. I cut myself." It sounded so childish, emotional. The plan seemed so foolish looking back on it now. "It did eventually work, you impaled me a couple of times, poked my neck full of holes. When time returned to normal the forest had enough of my blood to heal and cleanse itself, when that happened you returned to normal." The rest was known to both of them

Yet he had no questions, it was likely that she had some yet the village was forming around them as he took a moment to take in their surroundings. There should be a doctor somewhere, "normally they have big plus sign crosses on signs." There were those who couldn't read, and whilst he could the words around him were too furry and misted over to read.

The topic of small talk was given, suggested for the sake of passing the time and hopefully averting his mind from the pain he was most likely still in. It started just as Izayuki remembered it, but as the youthful slayer continued, the bakedanuki bitterly began to recall key details, only this time they were from his perspective. As a floral mage, he had recognize the sickness on the trees and had done his best to investigate and get to the bottom of it. Part of it was a mistake on his part. He had insisted he stay and research, and when given permission but conditions, he had broken them. More interestingly, the guild master noted how he had bet the subconscious of the forest, something even the bakedanuki had hardly truly ‘spoken’ with even while under the influence of Sakuramori. The cherry blossom forest had shared the memory of it attacking her and draining her life source, only to meet an outcome it had not anticipated.

Izayuki assisted him in stepping over the rock as he paused, but picked up on the slight hesitation. Was it just from weariness, a foggy mind, pain, or just extreme focus on moving about the natural obstacles in their path? He continued, which stopped the yokai from running with the question. Unfortunately, it was far from what she wanted to hear or be reminded of. Indeed, she had tried to encourage his escape while she fought against the will of Sakuramori, but in the end the forest won and proceeded to play with her like a ragdoll, the puppeteer’s strings binding her free will and directing her actions to be what the forest desired. She remembered then chasing him down and the brief fight, followed by the horrible words she had uttered. The memory of them made the bakedanuki’s snowy-furred and black-tipped ears and tail droop. “I really didn’t mean those words,” she murmured again, guilt once again welling up inside her. “I didn’t mean for any of it.”

With his description, she hesitated to ask for forgiveness again. She was hardly deserving of it, so surely it would be far too selfish to request it again. He continued on with the last round of details, all of which made the yokai wish the ground below her would just open up and swallow her. There was no escape from the truth being thrown in her face again, as much as she wished to curl up and hide underneath something and never come back out. “I see,” was all she responded with when he concluded. She knew the story and now she knew and understood his side of it. Fortunately, the village was in sight to bring the topic to a halt. The style of the place was lovely, with buildings one would recognize from the nation of Midi. There were a few stray cherry blossoms in the forest that were unconscious and disconnected from the web of Sakuramori. They were not self aware like the blossoms of the nearby woods and simply provided a dazzling view for the residents and any tourists. Just as Lester described, a building came into view with a large red plus symbol on the sign, like a giant vermillion cross. Steadying the other guild master, Izayuki attempted to help him walk his way towards the place and through the door. “I’ll be covering any medical fees,” the bakedanuki said, for both morality’s sake and of course for legal reasons regarding liability. Though she doubted it would happen at this point, Izayuki really did want to see Crystal Swan and Black Rose remain allies. That, and any little thing she could do to help him would at least stifle the overwhelming guilt by a little.

The people at the front counted seemed bewildered at the sight of the man with dark ice covering large and dangerous fresh wounds. It was in the middle of the night by now, or the early morning hours, but luckily a crew stayed up all day and night to assist the villagers with any medical emergencies. This certainly was an emergency. “Is there a healing mage on staff?” Izayuki would question as a couple of nurses and assistants moved forward to help Lester get to a place in the building where he could be tended to and rest. A nurse responded that they had one on staff and available right that moment, much to her relief. The interior of the building was of the same eastern style as the exterior, but far more calming and clean. She intended to stay with him if possible, to both make sure he was taken care of and to keep watch over him in case her blood caused any issues of mysterious nature that the doctors could not handle. The guild master hoped to lead the doctors to believe that they had simply been attacked by Shades, corrupted Hansha, rather than the whole ordeal they really went through. Whether or not Lester would keep those details secret, however, was unknown to Izayuki.



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It was visible, the guilt etched into her face as an expression came to life which he had not seen her display before. It was odd, yet the motions of apology and unintentional displays of guilt would help to ease his pain when looking back at the memories. Being able to see the physical changes, the movement of her tail and ears as they fell, sinking towards the ground as a small voice came out. With none of the confidence from before it was raw, unprotected and vulnerable he understood. She didn't mean it, there were things that people couldn't fake, one of them being the tightening feeling of remorse, deep inside tearing away and shredding at them. Regret patterned her face, her actions and her words, there was no need to extended explanations. Not at a time like this, he just hoped that he could get past this, move on, live more, grow taller and flourish. Then perhaps, they could make amends.

Drawing closer the building loomed before him, if they couldn't get a healer here then perhaps there was a method of transport. Yet all they could do was try and hope. She spoke her intentions of covering medical fees, without complaint he simply nodded, happy to have the burden off his shoulders as the bill would undoubtedly be expensive and hard to explain. There had been no villagers on the streets due to the time, yet a light could be seen through the windows of the clinic so a sparkle of hope formed. A warm gush of air surrounded the duo as they entered,perplexed the staff stood there for just a split moment, taking in the sight that was two familiar faces. One wrought with guild and sorrow, whilst the others was painted with pain. One took each arm as they aided him, after the walk he let much of his weight fall across their shoulders. Through a small door and onto a bed, a moments rest he got, reclining and leaning back the comforts of the bed despite the surroundings was wonderful. There was a healer on duty thankfully. A slight smile of thanks, directed to both staff and the ice mage, faded out as they started reveal as many wounds as they could, most of them being on his torso thankfully his lower regions were able to stay clothed. The assistants moved around in a completely calm state, preparing for the doctor it seemed as one questioned Izayuki whether she would like a chair or some refreshments bows of heated water were brought.

He would have spoken, yet the energy had left him. One might have thought the mage would have been more energetic being rested on a bed yet endorphins had kept him going on the walk here, so now as he sat and waited there was nothing so pressing to say that he would force it out. Firm the hand pressed a cloth against one of the cuts, gently dabbing away at it with warm water he cracked an eye open to see the doctor who had started to examine one of the smaller cuts. "Are you able to explain to me what you know?" Only looking up at the sugar mage for a moment before returning to his work the physician seemed to be so calm, had he seen something like this before? "Was in Sakuramori, got attacked, cuts, everywhere, you can see. But the thorns injected something into my bloodstream I can feel it. Izayuki found and helped me hence the ice. What can you do?" Pauses between the words indicated pain as one of the assistants had also started to sterilise some of the cuts. Yet he understood, sometimes mundane magic-less methods were best put to use before the magic.

The explanation had only brought forth nods from the doctor as he rose to gather some lacrimas from the draw. Pain, that was what he mostly thought of the experience, several of the smaller cuts had been opened up, whilst not spewing out blood they were being used to drain him of something. Toxic and dark in colour a series of magical circles appeared on his forearms the doctor muttering away as a nurse hooked him up to a iv blood line. Burning and searing it was dragged forth from his veins, a screaming child not wanting to leave the amusement part clawing and biting to stay whatever had gone into his system was being sucked back, taken into one of the lacrimas. Leaving an acidic trail of mind numbing pain, it was just, so slow, time passed so slow was there no way to speed it up as his face contorted.

"I can't get all of it, your body will just have to overcome it. Yet now that is out we can heal you with magic normally. It won't hurt so much so just relax if you can. Some of them might leave scars." Formal, the doctor must have been alive for five decades by now. Yet it was best to follow doctors instructions. A few rouge bleeding cuts dribbled blood slightly only to be wiped and cleansed as he felt fingers dance across his stomach. Had it been another day this would have brought laughter from the ticklish teen yet his chest was let down, a sigh flowing out as he relaxed back whilst the magic did its work. Now that most of the toxins were out and he was getting fresh blood it was only a matter of waiting until his magic built up in power again. Perched on the stool as he did his work the doctor was strangely silent, yet it was the nightshift and the people here had likely not expected anything eventful tonight.

Tilding to the side as his wounds were worked on Lester let his watermelon gaze bathe the tanuki in attention. A question which would have been best left unasked at other times was rising to his mind. Hopeful that she would answer due to the regret, guilt or empathy it left his lips so suddenly. "Why is Sakuramori so important. To both you and the guild?"

The bakedanuki gratefully accepted a chair in the same room as Lester. She proceeded to curiously watch the healers at work, having never really been in such a situation where she needed human medical treatment. Humans certainly were fragile beings, with only so much blood contained in their bodies, skin that did not close wounds so quickly, and bones that snapped into two like twigs. Nevertheless, they were so fiercely independent and proud as a species that it fascinated and captivated most other races and species. As weak as they were physically, they made up for it with a roaring will and powerful mental capacity. Humans could withstand so much and mentally and emotionally adapt as they needed. While yokai could tolerate many harsh things physically, their minds were much more easily tricked, deceived, manipulated, and broken. A smart yokai typically only took one time to learn, but others sometimes never learned. Izayuki liked to consider herself as one of the ones who understood her emotional and mental vulnerability, and thus did her best to hide and protect it as she could, which probably contributed to why she closed herself off from most people, both humans and other yokai.

Due to having been raised by humans in a world of humans, she almost felt alienated by her own kind. She knew little about them besides what she knew from innate knowledge, experiences, and research. Meanwhile, she had never been fully accepted into the world of mankind either, as most saw her as anything but equal-- a beast, a monster, an animal, a demon, the list went on. She was greater than them or lesser than them, but rarely on equal footing. It was saddening, and it was times like these where she had to sit back and ponder her interactions with humans. She had almost killed another one, after all, so she could not help but question where she stood in their eyes. Each one was different, but common factors were always present.

When the doctor began to interrogate the other guild master, Izayuki’s alabaster-furred ears pricked in curiosity, a hint of worry in her face. Much to her surprise, Lester greatly tweaked the story. He did not allude to who or what he was attacked by and put the tanuki more in a position of having helped than done harm. Perhaps it was a lie, but it still saved face, which struck the bakedanuki as curious. Did he not want to explain to another human of the exact details or did he simply not trust to do so while she was in the room? The latter would be a good explanation, but a part of the yokai still wanted to believe that he was doing it for her and Black Rose’s sake, as selfish as the wish was. The doctor and attendants then began to clean his wounds, give him new proper blood, and draw out the dark matter that had once acted as Izayuki’s life force. She winced and looked away as she saw him in pain yet again. It was indirectly caused by her, after all. Even when she tried to help, she only ended up hurting. That seemed to be the cycle now, of course, but she still could not bring herself to get used to it.

The formal doctor then announced that he could not retrieve and draw out all the blood, but mentioned his body would have to overcome it. It was both a disappointment and relief for the tanuki, who did not wish to see whatever effects might have come of the black blood, yet she at least had some hope that his magic and blood that had healed the forest could heal his own body. It was then that he turned his head towards the yokai, watermelon gaze settling solidly on her. The question threw her off guard, having not expected such a topic while he was in a doctor’s office still receiving treatment. Izayuki contemplated for a moment, finding the answer quite easily enough, but taking a little more time to word it. “Sakuramori is important because it is a self-aware living being, like me and you,” she explained, tone calm and pale eyes locked on his. “Other than its carnivorous plants, it has no means of protecting itself, so Black Rose stewards and defends it.”

Of course, the guild had not been the best stewards as of late, seeing as the guild master herself had caused the cherry blossom forest to fall ill. But the woods were partially to blame for that, being hot tempered and angry, thus eager to take out its spite on the tanuki. Still, she now knew more about it than she once did and had a fair idea of how to fix it should anything similar happen to it again. “Why do you ask?” she queried, her own snowy-haired head tilted slightly.



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Silence for a moment, at least from her the question seemed to cause some thoughts to swirl in her mind. Perhaps he had prodded at something which was sensitive yet the topic was relevant and the information intrigued him to some extent. A self aware and living being, yet at the same time it was one lacking in many morals. What were the legal boundaries around things being self aware, was it the same intelligence level as a foolish deer or were the trunks and leaves closer to that of a human with so many ideas and thoughts flowing through their mind. The forest could not run nor hide, it could not flee a battle or gear armour, use weapons. It just had itself, the roots and thorns and vines used to protect itself and gather what prey it needed. Not that he could blame it after all. The conversation was pleasant, taking his mind of the slight pinpricks and feeling. Black Rose cared for the forest, protecting it from those who might wish it harm the cause was noble indeed, a little unexpected indeed. "nothing in particular I was just curious. How sentient is the forest, or well, what is its level of intelligence?" He was unsure if it could be measured, yet the idea was one that lead onto many more. Why had the magic council not claimed it for testing, that being said, why had he not.

Scraping back the stool the doctor stood, a quick double check of the body before looking at the pale haired mage with a slight nod. "I've done what I can the wounds are closed and your body will start to heal the scars. My attendants will give your some pain medication on the way out when you settle the bill." The mans voice was serious, not particularly emotional, perhaps he had come here to retire after many years in the field seeing many injures. Some of which wouldn't have healed. That man lester and anther nurse entered, placing his shirt on the bed by his side she offered to hold the door back into the reception area. Where likely a couple of digits was waiting for Izayuki. A nod of thanks caused his hair to move slightly, they had washed the blood of thankfully, the locks were back to his natural white which he had become so comfortable with. Shirt tugged on and hair drawn back into a messy and vague ponytail he had cringed slightly, wincing at the odd movements, yet this place was too clean and too perfect, staying here while good for his physical health would benefit no ones mental well being.

He lent on the counter slightly, not out of laziness just a slight rush of blood to the feet after standing up, it was still all healed yet the ordeal had drained him. He was hungry, thirsty, tired and in need of a hug. The past few hours had distracted him from the world around him yet soon enough he would return to a state of loathing where he lacked confidence in each choice he made and regretted the majority of his choices. Yet unlike a childs choose your own adventure book he was unable tot turn back the pages and choose a different path. The nurse began noting things down before sliding across a small bottle of pills. 'Right! Take these as the instructions specify, you need to stay in bed for a couple of days and only light activity for a week after that depending on how strong your self healing and magic is. If there are any problems just see a local physician they can call us for our patient notes on you. So who's paying?' Light hearted and sweet, especially when questioning about the payment. Yet he would hold the tanuki to her word, there was no need for him to spend money if he had to.

When they left he shivered slightly, holes in his shirt and the very early mornings weather was doing him no good. Eyes mapped out the area briefly as he motioned towards a livelier looking area of the street. "I think its best for the both of us if we get something to eat, after that dry, chemically cleaned room some water, a drink would be welcomed. Will you join me for another few moments?" He doubted she would return to the forest too soon. It was a slight walk, around five minutes it would take them, although his pace was slow. Just a meander, the darkness his much of it, yet just like the forest his white hair slowly changed, a blush of pink overcame it as the man started to twitch. He was thirsty, not for liquid not in that way. He needed to bathe.

There was a traveller, the stars were clear overhead so they had decided to sleep under the shelter of an overhand, he just saw veins. A heart beating which could be taken out and squished in his hand. perking up his head tilted, staring at the blood bag for a moment his muscles tensed before sending him leaping towards the 'bath' in an attempt to let the red liquid shower over his hair .

Lester continued to question about the forest, which the bakedanuki was glad to fill in details. For a plant mage, it likely was a subject of interest, so while she was careful with just how much information she revealed, she took the leap of faith to assume the details were in good hands. “The forest is as sentient as you and me,” she explained. “It talks, it has emotions, it interacts with the world and knows what is out there from listening to the birds and wandering critters. Sometimes the trick is more about getting it to shut up. Trees are noisy.” The statement was said in lighthearted seriousness. She could understand plant life when it was self aware and could communication in a language all its own. The trees in particularly typically had nothing better to do other than engage in idle gossip. That was the way of things in their world and luckily Izayuki had learned how to block it out when she wanted. In reality, Sakuramori was akin to a yokai like her, unique, mysterious, and unable to be described by ordinary means. Unlike a large group of self aware trees, the entire cherry blossom forest was a web and hive mind. While the individuals existed as their own beings, they were still connected and tied to the will of the forest, and could interact through that web.

The attendant brought in his shirt and the doctor gave a series of instructions. Listening closely, the bakedanuki nodded in agreement. Pain medicine upon paying the bill-- such a thing was more than fair. While he stood up and prepared himself to leave, Izayuki ventured to the counter to pay for it. Out of dimensional storage black as a void, she pulled her personal checkbook out. She had quite a few jewels to spare due to saving up and from her salary as a guild master and from the rewards of high ranking jobs. She could comfortably pay the bill and did so eagerly. The guild master used the jewels from her personal bank account to avoid suspicion or questions within the guild. Kiru and Seika both processed and managed the money and guild funds rather regularly and would notice if something was off. An expensive fee paid in Sakuramori would certainly raise their suspicion, as the guild generally wasted little to no money on the tranquil forest that was disguised as harmless for the most part.

Izayuki flicked her snowy-furred tail and nodded when the nurse asked who was paying after delivering a long set of instructions to the other guild master. She carefully tore the freshly written check from the checkbook, folded it to avoid Lester seeing her terrible and embarrassing handwriting, and handed it to the person at the counter. Eventually the two had left the doctor’s office and were back on the streets of the village which were slowly becoming more lively as the earliest workers and champions among morning people began to stir. The stars still shined overhead and blazing torches lit the smooth cobblestone of the Midian-style village. She intended to see him back to Crystalli or wherever Crystal Swan made their current guildhall and ‘home’, but the youthful slayer offered her to join him in something else-- a drink. Was it really wise to drink so soon after a medical procedure such as the one he had? And, wait a minute, was he not underage? By Fiore means, the bakedanuki was also too young to drink alcohol, but fortunately she cared not for the beverage, finding the smell and taste too harsh on her keen senses. She was unlike other tanukis because of that fact however, as most enjoyed liquor, and often drank far too much. Regardless, she nodded anyway, giving him the benefit of the doubt that he was just going to order something like water, orange juice, or chocolate milk. The yokai personally enjoyed tea.

She walked with him in silence, ready to still catch and steady him if needed, even though he seemed just fine for the most part. The pace was slow and casual and the ayakashi almost missed the subtle changes in his hair color. Odd, as most hair color changes due to stress made one’s hair get lighter, but Lester already possessed quite the pale shade of white. “Lester, your--” before she could comment on the sudden shade of rose pink on his head, the youthful mage had dashed forward at an alarming pace, much unlike the slow meander they had just been enjoying. A dagger that smelled of sugar suddenly formed in his hand and only then did the yokai see the sleeping traveller up ahead. Her pale crimson eyes widened in shock as he leaped forward towards the vagabond with apparent intent to kill. In a rush, the bakedanuki vanished from where she stood and reappeared in Lester’s path, facing him. A fast hand lurched forward after the teleport, attempting to grasp his dagger-wielding wrist firmly but without hurting him. “Lester, what do you think you’re doing?” she asked, trying to keep her voice from shaking with the shock that was already apparent in her eyes.




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