Arrival

[hitobannofokkusu]

*Hitoban knew something had to be done, fast. She looked around to find that everyone was gone. She saw that Wahya's eyes were golden and panic rose inside her. She could NOT let Giga get out. Not again, not after what had just happened. Her fur flashed white as she soared through the air and tackled Wahya, knocking him off of the dog. Kazumi turned and smiled at the dog. She padded over to him and sat down.*

I hope you realize your terrible mistake and I only hope that you will be able to forgive me for what I am about to do. My name is Kazumi, by the way.

*Kazumi stood and put her teeth on the metal collar and squeezed her eyes shut. Then she clamped down with as much force as she could and the metal shrieked, crunching to the shape of her jaws. She shook her head and it tore. Then she bent it and pulled it off of the dog, tossing it away. Now she gave him a sympathetic look and raised a paw to his face. She extended one claw and aimed it toward his nose. She knew just how to hit it to make him unable to smell any more.*

*However, just as Kazumi was about to slice into the dog's nose, Maname burst through the bushes and skidded to a halt before Kazumi.*

Don't hurt him!

Good gracious, child. Why not?

Because Shimo knew him. Please, don't hurt him.

As you wish, little one.

*Kazumi smiled at Maname before fading back into Hitoban, who looked around confusedly. She wasn't expecting Kazumi to take over then. She must have picked up on Hitoban's panic and decided to step in. Hitoban looked at Maname expectantly and then nodded her head toward the dog.*

"He's your problem now."

*Maname gulped and nodded. She walked past Hitoban, who followed her and stood in between Maname and the dog and Wahya as Maname confronted the dog. The numbers Shimo had repeated earlier were burned in her brain.*

Excuse me, dog. Do you remember a white wolf by the name of Shimo? There was something about test subject 11098527. Do those numbers have any significance to you?

[Tsukikage]

"No." Shimo said coldly, returning from his hiding place, "They'd mean nothing to him. We don't even know each other by name. I saw you once before, though you probably wouldn't recognize me. You were out hunting with your master, when he was hurt badly by whatever you were hunting..." Shimo shot a glance at Wahya, "I can only guess at what it was... you ran off like a coward, or perhaps were chased off. Do you remember that red wolf, about a year ago? Did you see him as you fled from the dark terror you wish you'd never found? Well I saw you! I saw you run away." He stepped toward the dog, his blank eyes full of contempt, "We grew close for a time, your master and I. I healed his wounds as best I could, and cared for him in your absence. Other humans came, and I thought everything was going to be okay. Tell me, do you know how I was repaid for my kindness? DO YOU?!? I doubt it... I was shot and taken by one of the other humans..." He snarled, and an expression of pure loathing came over him as the hairs on his body stood erect. "The humans took me away and cared for me, then, when I thought I was safe and among friends, they ran 'tests' and 'procedures' and all manner of ungodly experiments on me until I no longer knew who I was or what I was doing. They took away my name, my family, I don't even look the same anymore! Look into my eyes, if you can find them, coward! That series of events you set in motion by hunting something better left unfound! It was me! Maybe you didn't come back and see them take me away." Shimo stared intensely into the eyes of the now terrified dog. He could actually see now, but his eyes were still white as snow. After a moment, he turned to walk away, "Tch. Kill him, I don't care anymore. I only stopped you last time because I felt some connection to him..." He looked downward, "I almost wished I hadn't remembered, now..." He turned back to the dog one last time, "Some advice? Don't hunt what you can't kill."

[Rynn]

Rin remained laying on the ground half asleep, still not knowing why she felt so tired, she sighed and closed her eyes again enjoying the cool feeling of the shadows that she lay in. Kaze walked through the forest and stopped in the shadows and listened, it was Hitoban, Whaya, Shimo, and a scared looking dog. He listened in silence no one noticing he was there for he blended with the shadows too well. As Shimo walked off he continued to sit there waiting to see what would happen to the dog.

[Wahya Ayawisgi]

The dog looks in shock, he did not know what this white wolf meant. He looks back around to all the wolves.

Wahya quickly gets on his feet with a snarl, "What the hell are you doing?! Dont push me around, this mutt deserves to die trying to find me and let those damn hunters come! We should kill him where he stands!" Wahya's solid gold eyes stared through the dog ready to kill him in a instance.

[Tsukikage]

Shimo turned back to the group. "Wahya, watch yourself; you know what happens when you get too... emotional. The current seal on Giga is far from perfect. Though..." he looked gravely at Hitoban, "I agree with the sentiment."

"Listen to you!" Kage snapped, "Wahya said the exact same thing when you first showed up, remember? And did we kill you? C'mon, I mean, he may not even be the same dog you remember --" Kage shot a quick glance at the dog, "no offense, but you guys all look a lot alike. My point is," He continued, turning back to Shimo, "show others the same grace that was given to you. So what if he's got hunter's around? If it comes down to it... we may have to kill them all. But this would be nothing more than killing in cold blood, and I won't stand for that on my brother's land. The final decision rests with Hitoban, of course, but I will not let blood be spilled here in this way."
Kage leaned in to whisper to the dog, "You'd better pray that if you leave this place in one piece, you never find us again... or I won't be so merciful, understand?"

[Rynn]

Kaze continued to watch the others from the shadows, Rin sighed and rose stiffly to her feet and gave her fur a good shake, before dissapearing into the forest without a word to anyone, she headed towards the lake they had seen a while ago.

[hitobannofokkusu]

*Hitoban sighed and looked to the dog. She didn't want to kill him. He was just a mutt. He could lead hunters here, but hunters she could handle. What she couldn't handle was if Giga got loose again. Her main concern as of right now was ensuring that Giga stay locked away. She padded forward and stood, looking the dog in the eyes, her expression unreadable. Then she snarled, lunged forward, and pinned him to the ground. She opened wide her jaws and slung them down to the trembling dog's throat, then stopped just short. Her teeth gleamed menacingly and she looked into his frightened eyes with the corner of one glowing red eye. She snapped her jaws shut, pulling up at the same time, making a snap right in his face. Her paw pushed slightly on his throat and she spoke in terribly serious tones.*

"If I ever find you or your f.u.c.k.i.n.g hunters here I swear to whatever mystical beings are out there that I will kill you instantly. Do you fully comprehend the magnitude of what I'm saying? If I ever see you anywhere near me, my pack, my friends, or my mate I will rip out your insides. Now get out of here before someone does something rash."

*Hitoban gave a final shove on his throat and stepped off, padding back over to where Kage was. She sat down and stared at the dog, waiting for his hasty retreat.*

[Rynn]

Kaze chuckled quietly at Hitobans' order and made a mental note to not tick Hitoban off....ever. He then sat there debating on whether or not to head back to the clearing. Rin had reached the edge of the forest and padded off towards the lake, she hadn't seen or heard a stream so she had kept going till she found the lake, she padded slowly towards the lake still feeling a bit tired.

[Tsukikage]

Mar had followed Kaze, who obviously wasn't going to listen to him, anyway. "Oi vey... they're all pups, I swear... geez." He grumbled as his massive form came into view of the others. He took one look at the dog, then turned to Hitoban. "Tsuki and Dawn are up, and Rin left somewhere," He began, "nobody listens to me." He muttered under his breath. He looked at the dog again, and chuckled as he saw a mess the poor thing had left on the ground. "Haha! House pets. Oh yeah... Hmm..." He chortled. Then he looked very seriously into the dog's eyes, "I think he's in shock, Little Miss. He's completely unresponsive... he's probably scared witless right now, poor guy. If I had to guess, he'll probably scream and run as soon as his mind comes back. You guys scared him bad." He paused for a moment, noting that his own head was almost as big as the dog, "Hmm... maybe I shouldn't have come. I wonder if he'll move at all. Maybe he's dead... that'd be weird. I can't say I've ever seen someone die from fear before."

[Wahya Ayawisgi]

The dog quickly runs away yelping as he disappears into the forest.

Wahya watches as the dog runs away then looks to Hitoban with a glare, "What the hell do you think you are doing?!" Wahya leaps at Hitoban and stops right in front of her nose to nose. "You should of let me killed him, he wanted to find me, so he should of had the pleasure of me digging my teeth into his throat!"

Wahya's fur was a very dark grey now.

[Tsukikage]

"Wahya!" Mar snapped, "You need to remember who's in control! The seal on Giga is fragile at best. By the way, that doesn't hurt or anything, does it? I mean, that whole... well, having a dream-catcher woven into the skin on your back like that. But I digress."
Kage nodded, "This is not your land Wahya, and therefore, not your call. No one is forcing you to stay with us if you don't want to abide by Hitoban's decisions, but please... just calm down... we're not prepared to fight Giga right now."

[hitobannofokkusu]

*Hitoban stared back into Wahya's eyes, angered by his disrespect, but determined not to show it. Yelling back would only cause more unrest and possibly set Giga free. She took a deep breath and smiled.*

"Wahya, please calm down. This is what I think is best for all of us. He's just a housepet, and I'm pretty sure he's not coming back. I don't like killing anyone unnecessarily, but if he ever comes back here with intent on tracking someone or bringing hunters, you can kill him. For now, calm down, take some deep breaths, and focus on something else, understand? We don't want another fight."

Hitoban sighed and turned away from him, putting a clear end to the discussion, and moved over to Mar and Kage.

"I think we all need to head back to the group to ensure nothing bad happens. We can wait until Rin returns, and then head to the Grotto."

*Hitoban padded past them and started walking back to the others.*

[Rynn]

Kaze saw Hitoban turnining to leave and turned and walked back to the clearing and laid down in the shade again. Meanwhile Rin had reached the lake and started drinking, once she drank her fill she turned and made her way slowly back to the others.

[Tsukikage]

Mar, Kage, and Shimo followed Hitoban back to the group.

Mar walked beside Shimo, hoping to get a little bit of insight into what had happened. "So, kid," He began, "you know who you are now?"
Shimo shook his head, "No. I don't. I know what happened to me, and I know who I am only as far as what kind of person I was..." he trailed off, as if bothered by something, then returned to the conversation. "I'm not a good person, Mr. Mar. Not good at all," he said solemnly, "in reality, I'm nothing like the lost runt with amnesia you met before."
"But you said you helped the human, right?" Mar said, quizzically.
Shimo sighed, "Only in hopes of... killing more of them. I remember that I..."
Mar stared at Shimo in shock, "You...?"
"I ate them!" Shimo whispered. "There was never enough food in our lands, so when hunters came through, we ate them to keep fed. The young of our pack ate those who could no longer hunt or be of use. Eating the hunters only lured more, seeking revenge, I suppose. It... it's horrible just thinking about it. I thirst for blood again. I didn't want that life, but I was conditioned... we all were. Life had only one meaning, and that was to feed." He stared at the ground in a crazed stupor as they walked on, and Mar could see white bubbles clumped at the corners of Shimo's mouth. "I can feel it, Mar; I can feel the hunger for the flesh of my kind. I would eat you or any of the others, and that frightens me. I am both disgusted and exhilarated by the memory of blood."
"Shimo..." Mar gasped.
Shimo shook it off and snapped out of it. "Tell no one but Tsuki, I beg you. I... I don't want to be a monster ever again." He smiled at Mar with sadness in his eyes, "My second chance at innocence... is wasted, but I don't want anyone to think of me that way, you understand?"
Mar nodded, and they continued in silence.

Kage approached Hitoban as the group headed back. "That was handled well, Hitoban." He sad jovially, "Though I'm sure it wasn't easy; I'm sure your 'sister' didn't like that very much." Kage had accepted long ago that he'd never be able to get Katashi and Kazumi straight, so he just referred to them by way of context. "Speaking of which, we haven't heard from 'that' one in quite some time... I've been curious: is it hard to maintain control?" Kage dropped his head and flattened his ears, "Um, I mean, I don't mean to pry or anything. I'm sorry, maybe that was too personal. Well... I mean... I only ask because I'm concerned about Wahya. I'm afraid he and Giga might be... becoming one person, or at least they seem to be agreeing on things more often. I'm not saying your sisters are demons, or anything, but it is a similar situation with you and... um... the violent one. Gah! What is her name, anyway? Ka-a... Katami or something?" Good going, Kage... he thought, if she's not mad at you, then she thinks your an idiot... way to go.

[hitobannofokkusu]

*Hitoban listened to Kage patiently. He looked embarrassed and she couldn't help but giggle.*

"Kage, don't look like I'm going to bite your head off! It's a simple question, after all. The first you speak of, Kazumi, is my good side. She doesn't normally like to harm others, so she was relieved when I stepped in. I don't know why she chose to break through like that though. In truth, Kazumi has more strength than Katashi ever will. Katashi spends all of her time trying to get out while Kazumi sits back and watches what I'm doing. She gives advice when necessary and, on occasion, she will overpower me to stop me from doing something that I would regret later.

Kazumi, on the other hand, is my evil side. Yes, I admit she is difficult to keep restrained at times, but that's only when some part of me agrees with her. Whether it's my mind, my body (like if I were badly injured and still needed to fight), or my heart, if one of them agrees with her, she tends to fight harder. Especially when it's my heart. Those are the times she comes out, most of the time. See, the heart is a very powerful thing and when corrupted, it can do very terrible things, but when purified it can do very wonderful things. Katashi corrupts my heart sometimes, but I rely on Kazumi to purify it.

That's why I'm different than Wahya and Giga. I have Kazumi to balance us out or I think Katashi would have won long ago. Also, I don't think Giga can love. Whoever I love, that's who Kazumi and Katashi love. Katashi wouldn't dream of hurting Tsuki, or Dawn, or you, or any of my pack or my friends. Katashi would fight to protect you. And that's what makes her special. That's how she's still me, whether she wants to believe it or not."

*Hitoban smiled sheepishly. She'd said more than she intended to. It seemed that closer to the end she'd just been rambling! Her tail wagged slightly as she continued on.*