Chapter Text
No one seemed to notice her as she walked through the streets. Only the moon, bright and on the verge of being full, watched her every step. Her light travelling Yukata caressed her smooth skin and flowed alongside her slim feature. She seemed like something that couldn’t be catched with normal senses, gliding over the ground almost soundless. Her bright yellow eyes held a faint shimmer and glow in them, always searching for something odd that was out of place. The black locks that framed her delicate face swayed lightly in the nightly breeze.
She wouldn’t stay here for long that was for sure. Just long enough to gather some supplies and maybe sleep properly in what felt like ages. She hoped that the villagers were not too hostile against yokais. The woman sighed, already knowing the answer. At first, the villagers would be occupied by her beauty, admiring and envying her at the same time. But then their view would go further up to the top of her head and their faces would fall. They always did when noticing her midnight black cat ears.
She came to a halt deciding to speak up to the presence that followed her for a while now. “Do you have any particular reason to follow me? Or is it just that you like following people around?” her melodic voice filled the quiet night but sounded like a faint whisper nonetheless. Her sharp eyes wandered to the place where she felt the presence and simply waited. Nothing happened for a while, the breath and heartbeat of the person increasing with every second. One final deep breath and the shadow between the two huts started to bring out a little girl, not older than seven years old. Her raven hair was messy, her face dirty and parts of her body swollen. She was beaten up, no mistake. Pity and anger filled the women’s heart. Was she beaten by her parents? Siblings? Or even other villagers? The girl’s wounds were fresh, not older than a couple of hours, maybe half a day. The women put on a smile and spoke up again, her voice more soothing and alluring than before: “Hello little one, what are you doing up that late at night?” The girl just stayed quiet her eyes showing that she wasn’t quite sure how to handle the situation. Okay, so another tactic.
“I won’t harm you. Would you believe me if I gave you this?” The cat-eared lady rose her hand slowly to her head, the girl’s eyes following her every movement. Carefully, she unplugged the white anemone flower that was positioned just at the verge of the right ear and held it in the direction of the girl. Her face lit up instantly, her eyes widening to a big brown pool. After a few seconds, the little one tip toed over to the women, as if she tried to be as soundless as possible. After reconsidering a bit, the girl finally took the flower and gave the woman the brightest smile she had ever seen, even though one tooth was missing.
The next thing took the lady by surprise. Her hand was taken by the little one and she then was dragged along the path to a little hut outside of the village. Once they’ve reached the hut, the girl let go of the hand and held the doormat open, inviting the women in.
Maybe she would stay a bit longer then first planned.