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I can't think of a title rn sorry

Summary:

In which Ayato takes matters into his hands a little early.

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It was both...hard to find the information, and not at all. Mostly because it wasn't presented as information.

In all honesty, following a fairy tale's directions into the forest, and into a cave was likely not the smartest thing Ayato had done in his short life. But..with the things his mother had done to them, the way Laito's smile was becoming more and more fake....no. No more.

 

Through the trees he could see it, a yawning, dark hole; the mouth of a cave. Steeling himself, he entered the cave, walking further inside until his nerves couldn't handle any more. There, he knelt, opening the bag he'd brought with him. Containers of food, a jug of mead, it was all set upon the rough stone that made up the ground with soft clinks of the materials coming into contact. For a few moments, they and his breathing was the only sounds.

Then, quietly, the sound of something moving behind him. A faint dragging sound. He turned, yet it was hidden from his sight still, as if the darkness of the cave swallowed up the creature. Well...except for its eyes.

Wide, round, watching him without a blink. Unwavering. Curious, but so utterly alien to any gaze he'd seen before. That gaze flicked from him, to the offering, then to him again, and he got the distinct feeling that whatever it was, it was questioning the situation.

"I need....you to get rid of someone." He finally spoke, his voice quiet in a way he hated. "My mother. Can you do it?"

The creature didn't make a move for a long moment. Then, just as he was about to speak again -though he knew not what he'd say- it crept closer. A face finally appeared to match those eyes, and while something of it was human-like in structure...whatever it was was not human. Likely never had been. Feathers in hues of soft green and vibrant teal covered it, and what had to be a hand -scales covering it in a way not unlike bird feet- reached out from the shadows, and for a moment, a single thought crossed Ayato's mind. Like a realization, screamed from a place of deep, instinctive alarm. Of sheer, utter panic.

'This thing could tear me into shreds, and there's nothing I could do to stop it.'

 

But it didn't. That hand came up- and gently poked at his nose, then ruffled through his hair, the creature giving a cooing noise akin to a dove. It bent, picking up some of the food and the mead, brushing past him towards the mouth of the cave- and then it was gone.

And by the time he returned to the manor, so was Cordelia.