Heirot

Stephan twisted, and felt the wind off of her attack as it narrowly missed his abdomen. “I can smell you,” he replied as he slid his foot out in the snow and kicked at the back of her legs. “Isn’t it counterproductive if your prey can smell you coming? I suggest a shower, it might help with your stealth issues.”

He seriously hoped that she didn’t expect him to fear her. For one, it was not in his nature to fear a woman, needless to fear anything at all. It was she who needed to fear, but he felt she might be outside the realm of normal females.

Yoruhana fell into the snow, and made a face, she could feel he wasn't one to mess with but she wasn't either. She smiled and used the large amount of snow to mask her movements.

Stephan spun out of the snow as she used it to mask whatever move she was planning. It had worked in some way, by making him turn his back to her for a split second as he tried to maneuver out of whatever she was planning, trying to put distance between them.

Yoruhana smirked and threw open her black wings, and paused looking at Stephan. she tilted her head and smelled the air slowly.

"you've been around an Angel . . ." she said bitterly.

Stephan looked confused, and then he thought about the girl who had traveled with him the short distance to the in “Really? I hadn’t noticed one,” he told her with a grin.

"yes . . .I Smell her on you . . ." Yoruhana said, she made no move towards Stephan. she in fact looked curious. "were is she now?"

Stephan looked thoughtful. “I don’t quite remember where I left her body,” he mused. “I’m not used to the trees you see, so it’s a little hard to tell one tree from the next. Well, it’s been fun, but I have some things to attend too that are somewhat time sensitive.” He turned, keeping his swords out, but leaving his back to her, and he walked down the path he’d been heading. He listened to her; having a slight feeling she might try and attack him from behind. The fight probably was not over to her.

Yoruhana growled and launched herself at Stephan. Rage taking over she slashed furiously downward toward his shoulder.

Stephan heard her, glanced behind him to see something coming from above. He dove, twisting his shoulder forward, but the strike cut across his back. “Gah!” he yelled, stumbling forward in the snow for a brief moment before he pushed himself to his feet, spinning with both arms out, swords held straight, back towards her. Damn it, he hadn’t expected a demon to get pissed off over a dead angel… one that that wasn’t even really dead. He thought he’d been doing the girl a favor by faking her demise.

Yoruhana growled launching herself again at Stephan truly believing his words of him killing her sister, her twin, the only member of her family she had found evidence she had survived.
"what did my twin ever do to you?!?" she snarled, slashing at him again.

***

Celeste continued walking through the burned town, looking, searching for any shelter. She paused next to a large tree that had somehow remanded standing, she smiled softly before whispering to the tree. "may I take shelter here?" Celeste smiled and climbed into the tree's branches.

Stephan moved his sword quickly to parry the strike, and then retaliated with his own. “Sister?” he asked in disbelief. Maybe it was the blood, and the black wings, but… though her face resembled the angels he couldn’t believe they were sisters. For one, demons and angels were two very different species, at least he thought so.

Now he knew he could back track, and claim innocence to the incident he had claimed, but the likely hood of her believing his innocence was slim to none. So he was faced with the option of killing her, and then if she was the angel’s sister he’d face her wrath…

Not that he was particularly afraid of either one of them. So the idea of incapacitating her seemed very appropriate, the only thing was he needed her to be still for five more seconds longer than she was pausing at the moment so he could strike her soundly over the head.

Easier said than done, he thought grimly. “What do you want with the angel?” he asked quickly.

Yoruhana jumped to the side and crouched, his blow had met but she wouldn't show her pain. "I want my family back . . ." She whispered "It's been soo long . . ." she began to stand her arm pressed to her side, blood just starting to well between her fingers "if she is truly gone . . .we'll never be reunited . . ." she looked down, and sighed "she was my last hope of finding a member of my family . . .now what more do I have to live for? If you have any soul, you'll strike me down" she let her body become limp, and pulled her instincts to a almost dormant state. It was over to her, there was no reason she should go any further, but some thing nagged at her mind telling her, that Celeste's body needed to be properly buried, but he had said he didn't know where her body lay. Yoruhana felt it wasn't good enough to allow him to live any longer ether but it wouldn't bring her Sister back, Nor would it bring her family back. To end her life would be a hard thing to do, but she accepted death if it would be delivered. Closing her eyes, she felt a single tear run down her cheek, Funny the crazed Berserker, who would never cry, would cry before her death, and for her sister.

***

Celeste snuggled down on a larger branch of the old tree and smiled. "good night" she murmured before closing her eyes and falling asleep.

Caleb knew he should leave the city and try to cover as much ground as possible before the next morning. Instead, he found himself walking down a desolate street and stopping in front of the charred remains of a building. His old forge. Until a few months ago, this had been his home. He surveyed the rubble without much expression on his face. 'Home' was a strange concept. What bothered him most about looking at the ruined building was that he didn't feel much attachment at all. Like his time spent attempting to 'fit' here had failed, and for all the years he lived there, he didn't even earn the sense of belonging necessary to feel homesick.

He turned his back on the forge and began walking back toward the east edge of the city, feeling annoyed and dissatisfied. He picked up the trail that led away from the city, and it was almost a relief to know he would not be coming back to this place, ever. However, as he reached the border of the forest, something overhead caught his eye. He looked up to find a winged figure resting in the tree, bathed in pools of moonlight.

Despite knowing immediately who she was, despite having spent nearly a whole day with her, his first instinct was still to think that she wasn't real. He studied her resting form for a long moment. No, he told himself, it would be pointless to talk to her like this. She was asleep, and he was barely dressed. However, as he turned to continue down the path, he heard something. Not a real sound, but almost a gut instinct, like a soft breath on the back of one's neck. The faintest brush of fur and claw against earth, stealthy as the night.

Caleb stopped moving, holding still and silent on the dark path, and slowly scanned the area around him. There was no more sound, but he knew, from experience, that whatever he'd heard was still there. And perhaps it was his experience as a small furry creature, but he also had a wary feeling he knew what the thing was. The stealth, and this patient silence, like he was being stalked, screamed out 'cat'. He assumed from pure habit that it was here for him. He stood very still, waiting for the creature to give away its position.

The panther looked down at the sleeping Angel, only seeing prey. The fire had chased everything away, but seeing something so close he couldn't resist and so he fell upon the the Angel, tearing at her wings.

Celeste woke to the pain and let a squeal of pain it happened so quickly, she and her attacker fell to the ground where she feared she'd die. Celeste paled as she heard a sickening crack, her wing had broken from the fall.

Caleb whirled in confusion back toward the place he'd come from. The pained female cry seemed to make the world stop moving for a paralyzing moment. It was her. The thing was after her....not him. His legs burst into motion before he could even form the thought to run after the sound. A few strong strides put him in view of her, and he could see the large black creature tearing at her body.

He ran up next to the creature and threw his arm around its neck, drawing it up in a fierce choke hold. The panther quickly released its jaws from the girl and attempted to bite him and wrestle out of his grip, but Caleb hauled it roughly backward with arms that could swing an iron hammer for hours without tiring. The panther swiped out with its back paw at Caleb, dragging its long claws fiercely down the back of his leg. Grunting at the sensation, Caleb wrenched the huge creature's head to the side. There was an audible crack. When he released his grip on the cat, it sank to the ground.

Caleb limped backward, watching the creature to be sure it didn't move, and then turned to the girl lying on the ground. Still catching his breath, he dropped to kneel next to her. "Hey, are you alright?" he asked uncertainly as he studied the girl's wounds.