Things that go bump in the Night~ Open;;

[tsuzuki]

[/i]. Her hair was white as snow, with porcelain skin that gleamed bone-white in the moonlight. Her narrowed eyes were of a most unnatural pink. And yet despite this, there was something about her that stopped her appearance from screaming imposing and dangerous-- maybe it was her rather small stature, or the overall feminineness of her look-- or maybe it had something to do with the little wolf pup that sat at her side. It's always hard to look frightening when in the company of adorable furry little animals.

Her seasoned eyes scanned the forest carefully, watching out for any signs that might denote danger. But all seemed quiet, desolate-- fitting for such a landscape. With a toss of her head the female started forward into a quick jog, just slow enough for the puppy to keep up. Her eyes were focused straight ahead of her, but her pointed ears remained pricked for any sound that didn't belong.

She ran on the balls of her delicately arched feet, muscles tensed and poised-- always expect that something was going to jump out and attack you. Then it wasn't nearly as suprising when something did. And having first grown up with three older brothers, then being on her own since childhood, Tsuzuki was
quite used to things jumping out at her.
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[Aiko]

Tsubasa was doing what crow demons did best: that was, feeding on dead flesh. The dark and gloomy night did not bother him in the least. In fact, so ravenous was he that he barely noticed the night. It had been a while since he’d had a meal like this one. In the spring, it always seemed to Tsubasa that he was hungrier, perhaps because not so many creatures seemed to die in the season of rebirth. This dead canine was a gift straight from heaven… or perhaps hell. It was a large wolf, apparently killed when its throat was torn out. Probably some territorial dispute had been the cause of its demise, but Tsubasa didn’t care. All he cared about was the meat.

Long, claw-tipped hands, which were attached to long, black-feathered wings, snatched greedily for handfuls of meat, pulling flesh off in handfuls. The crow demon, whose form was primarily human-looking, shoveled the remains of the wolf into his mouth with a haste that promised to give him poor digestion. Strings of sinew stuck between Tsubasa’s yellowed teeth, and bits of red flesh flecked his lips. Fluid dribbled down his chin as he indiscriminately shoved some organ into his greedy gullet. He swallowed the hunk of meat, having barely paused to chew, and threw down another handful of meat. A rib was ripped off the cage, with such force that the white bone splintered. The crow demon ripped strings of meat from it, then gnawed it, seeking sweet marrow with his biting.

He was so absorbed with his feeding that he didn’t notice the approach of another.

[tsuzuki]

[/b][/color]

Her relatively high pitched, quite feminine voice did not make for the most intimidating growl in the world-- but the snarl on her face showed something different entirely. Her usual facade of sweet innocence was all but lost here-- the thought didn't even cross her mind to try her favored approach. Rather than her mocking smirk or exaggerated pout, her lips were curled in a display of white fangs and her pink eyes were narrowed to little
more than slits.

The once almost sweet scent of blood turned suddenly sickening, and her stomach churned out of rage more than anything else. Or maybe that was just a reminder of how long it'd been since she herself had eaten.
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[Aiko]

A soprano cry erupted from behind, and Tsubasa’s head flicked around to glance over one stooped shoulder. What he saw behind him was a woman of such pale complexion that her true coloring was probably white, with an ugly snarl on her feminine face. The crow demon sensed too late the demonic aura that the female possessed. He might have been forewarned, but he had been too intent on his feast. Now a threat faced him down with hard, vengeful eyes that seemed quite intent on violence. Tsubasa recognized the look. It was one he often possessed.

Where was his staff? If there was going to be a fight, he needed his only weapon. All he had with him was a pack, full only of inks, brushes, and scrolls. He must have dropped his walking stick when he’d come upon the already half-devoured carcass of the wolf. Tsubasa clumsily hopped in a circle, rising out of his crouch to face a possible foe on his foot. His foot, the only one he had, propelled him back as he hopped away, landing atop the bloody mess that was what remained of the wolf before he landed on the other side of the dead animal. He still had the cracked and nibbled-on rib clenched in one fist. Still hopping backwards, with his ink-black wings extended from his body to maintain balance, he thrust the rib at the demoness, brandishing it like a knife in an attempt to cover his retreat.

The crow demon’s head snapped from side to side. Where was his staff?! There! Lying and looking like any other inconsequential stick might, but this was Tsubasa’s aide in walking. It lay approximately ten feet away. The crow demon turned sunken red eyes on the female demon. After a moment of indecision, he chucked the rib bone at her and began hopping and flapping madly towards his walking stick.

[tsuzuki]

[/i] she even knew what her possible opponent was doing... because that always worked out so well.

The little demoness tensed, shifting her center of balance-- in case she needed to avoid any more projectiles from the crow. Her once snarl had since dropped into look that read something like,

are you kidding me...[/color]

Her lip stayed half curled and one delicate white eyebrow was arched, making her look more confused than anything else... but it wasn't so much confusion that she felt-- rather, she was a bit... weirded out, so to speak, by the crow. Tzuki wasn't used to dealing with them, and was finding this quite strange.

"You never answered me, bird."[/color], Tsuzuki muttered, trying to look more sure of the situation than she was.
Oh yeah... and where the hell did I leave Yukiko...[/color]
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[Aiko]

He had it! There it was in his hand, smooth wood rubbing against grimy, calloused palms, which were at that moment slick with fetid meat. Tsubasa used his walking stick to pivot, planting one end in the ground while he hopped around to face the demoness once more. Now that he had his replacement limb, he moved with much more confidence and grace, though “graceful” never should be used to describe the crippled crow demon’s movements. Planting his foot solidly on the ground, the human-shaped demon lifted his stick into a defensive position, holding it lengthwise with both his hands, close to his body and ready to be used to safeguard against an attack. He had been expecting the female to attack while he’d had his back turned, but now she was just giving him a baffled look, and muttering comments.

Answer? Question? Had there been a question? Tsubasa had rather been preoccupied when the demoness had shown up growling at him like she was going to launch an attack. If she’d asked a question, comprehension of it had been swept away as the crow demon tried to react to the sudden appearance of a foe.

With jerky motions of his head, he sized up the female, tilting his chin this way and that as he examined her. He ignored her commenting as he wondered whether or not it would be worth the trouble of fighting her. A squelching grumble that came from the crow demon’s stomach made the decision for him. He was still hungry, and that dead wolf was the best food he’d had in several long weeks. He’d fight so that he could eat it. Who knew when he’d get his next meal without it? Thrusting his walking stick forward, Tsubasa hobbled closer only a few steps before he halted raising his staff menacingly. He shook it at the demoness as he squawked, [black]“You leave an old crow be! I’m hungry! Go find your own!”[/black] His voice was tight with tense anxiety. He’d fight the female, for sure, but what good was a cripple like himself against such a strong-looking demon as this one?

[tsuzuki]

[/i][/color]
A look of utter repulsion crossed Tsuzuki's face as she glanced from the old crow to the carcass. Her intention had never been to steal the bird's meal, it had been to... what was she doing here again?

Oh right, it was a wolf carcass... and she'd been looking for a fight. But that agressive urge had all but gone now, leaving the demoness feeling slightly confused and with waning patience.

A small smirk cracked across Zuki's face as she came forward a few more drawn out, dramatic steps, slitted pink eyes never leaving Tsubasa.

"Oh, I am so sorry for disturbing you then, jiji. "

With a flourish of her hand-- overacting, as usual-- the woman came to a stop. One could tell she was staying wary of her distance, as through that she had not brought herself much closer, but Tsuzuki was in no mood to doding bones and sticks and whatever else the other demon could get his hands on.

"Ah, but tell me now, why should I leave you alone?[/color]

---

(I think 'Jiji' is supposed to be a rude slang term for 'old man'~ That's what I've been told, anyway, but I'm not sure =P)

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[Aiko]

Narrow nostrils flared on the crow demon’s gaunt face. Tsubasa was out of practice with sarcasm, and wondered why the demoness was apologizing if she wasn’t leaving. He swayed slightly, talons moving in tiny increments to readjust his position on the ground. He pulled the staff closer to his chest again, defensive, not at all liking how the demoness was sidling closer. He hopped backwards a few paces, sloped shoulders hunching. His mouth was a grim line beneath his beaky nose as he unblinkingly followed the female’s progress. Too close for comfort!

Anyone could see that the demoness was out of range, but in a moment of panic, Tsubasa swung his staff at her like a club. He hacked with startling swiftness, if the motion was lacking in finesse. [black]“Stay back!”[/black] he screeched, crouching low for balance. His scrawny arms were taut with tension, and he licked his deficient lips, beads of sweat popping to life on his temple. A vein throbbed beneath his skin, flooded with adrenaline. [black]“Stay back or I’ll fight! You leave me be!”[/black] The cripple swung madly again, still hopping backwards. It was only by virtue of immense amounts of practice that he was able to keep his footing at all.

[tsuzuki]

[/i][/color]

A disgusted sigh-- directed at herself, more or less-- escaped her pale lips as Tsuzuki crossed her arms across her chest. Deciding to change her manner once more (Tsuzuki was usually quite a decisive creature, but this demon was unlike anything she'd come across in quite a while), the female sort of hunched herself up, make herself more threatening-- which doesn't really work when you've only got five feet of height to work with. It made her look angrier maybe, but a little shorter too.

Brow furrowed, she glared at the crow through red-pink slits, wondering to herself if it was even worth it to stay here-- this certainly wasn't the type of fight she had been expecting...

[OOC: Gah, I feel like all my posts are short and repetitive. Hopefully once finals end I'll find some muse =P]

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[Aiko]

The demoness was hunching down, and her pink eyes were slitting. Everything about her tensing body screamed danger. What was she doing? Was she about to launch an attack? Tsubasa swung the staff again, though he was panting already. His narrow chest heaved with the effort of his lungs, drawing air into them and forcing it out just as quickly. The crow demon’s pulse was quick, and the beads of sweat were trickling across his pasty skin. He was about to be attacked by some deranged demoness! Oh, no, he would beat her to it, he would! With a screech that was half-human, half-crow, and all panic, the male demon hurled his staff at the female with all the might he had in his scrawny wing-arms, then flapped mightily, lifting himself up off the ground.

Tsubasa flapped into the air, gaining altitude with swiftness born from need. He flew faster than he could hop, and in little more than a second, the crow demon was beyond the reach of the demoness, and gaining altitude. And with a screech, he began to sink into himself.

With a sickening speed, the demon shrank in size, his bones grinding as they shortened. The loose clothes the demon wore dropped from his body, but ashy skin was quickly covered with oily feathers, which rippled across his body. His one leg shriveled until it was tucked close to the black feathers of his belly. Hands withered, shrank, and disappeared into limbs that were fully wings, and as they did, bits of meat that had been left on them dropped earthward. While most of his body shrank, the demon’s face exploded outwards, his nose becoming a beak. Teeth itched in his mouth as they changed shape and arranged themselves within the beak, for his nose and lips became one thing. A third eye, crimson, opened between the other two, which were widening into completely round orbs that rolled wildly in their sockets. Finally, a bony tail streaked out from his rear, a continuation of his spine in both form and appearance.

Tsubasa had transformed, changing from human in appearance to something that was completely avian.

The crow demon shrieked as he rose another foot in the air, snapping his beak in a hungry way. Then, tucking his wings close to his body, the crow dove, his beak pointing towards his target. That target was not, however, the demoness. The demon’s tiny heart beating quickly in his narrow chest, he locked himself in a freefall for one exhilarating moment. Then, with a slight twitch of his tail and wings, he repositioned himself, and he crashed into a chest that no longer possessed a beating heart. Tsubasa had already eaten that organ.

Cool, damp, decaying flesh was what Tsubasa burrowed into, snapping away with his jaws to make room for himself. He swallowed quickly, more quickly than should have been possible, with the aid of a usually-ignored jewel shard embedded in his throat. The crow hid himself in the chest cavity, where he was shielded by a cage of ribs, and by the secret means of the crow demons, settled himself in and extended his control out through his own body and into the one that surrounded him and pressed in on him from all sides.

Tsubasa could see through his own eyes, though there wasn’t much to see, save for the shadowy, indistinct shapes of ribs and half-rotten organs pressed close to his face. But he could also see through the eyes of the wolf, dimly, like he was looking through a haze. The eyes could barely be persuaded to function any more. Nevertheless, the crow demon possessed the body of the dead wolf now.

The wolf was raised onto its unsteady paws, wobbled a moment, and turned to face the demoness. The only reason Tsubasa could even see her through the film and filth covering the wolf’s eyes was that she was white. He had the impression of her position, but not what she was doing. Tsubasa caused the wolf to growl, a sound that gurgled through the gaping hole in the dead beast’s throat. That was the only warning the crow demon gave before he forced the creature forward on weak legs. Bones clacked against bones, and pieces of flesh fell off. Maggots tumbled from the lurching body to writhe on the dark ground, the larvae pallid in the moonlight. Once he got the hang of it, Tsubasa flung the wolf’s body towards the demoness, still-powerful jaws parted to bite.