a meeting of chance (private/kuro)

A city that has been erased from Fiore’s map in the past. That is what the girl was told. She’s been all around the nation lately, familiarizing herself with it. Only made sense, as she would be spending a good amount of time here. But this was certainly one of the most unique places she had visited yet. Allegedly destroyed by a dark guild in the past, though she could not verify this information. But how it came to be mattered little to the yōkai. What it was right now - that interested her much more. For something great could come from this place. She merely had to exploit it.

The automatically acting necrotic barrier around her body shielded her as the cat moved through the abandoned streets, looking rather out of place with her attire. But she could not care less for such things. She’s been here for a while already, collecting samples and dealing with the occasional bandit trying to ambush her. But this time, something different had caught her attention. Between the buildings, a much more feminine voice. The transformation was immediate, only a black cat with a small red bow and golden eyes hopping across the rubble until it could see.

A girl? A sight that surprised her more than anything in this place. And admittedly, it made her curious. So much so that she decided to approach, in her own way. “Of course there is. Plenty of spirits still trapped within these crumbling walls. But what brings You here?” The voice was sweet and gentle, yet sinister at the same time as it seemed to echo from all around, it’s source hard to pin down. The idea of playing with this freshly arrived specimen was rather alluring to the bakeneko, but she also didn’t want to waste all of her time here.

And so, whenever this girl would show her back to Kuro, she would turn into her humanoid form and reveal herself, an inviting smile adorning her expression, along with those crimson eyes that reflected everything she could see, like a surface of the stillest sea. “You have chosen a dangerous place to be. Especially as the night draws near. This place must be more dangerous than most during Ōmagatoki.” She twirled the parasol in her hand as she spoke, standing completely still and calm even if her new friend here would not be able to remain as such herself. This was very interesting.

This girl’s first verbal response was a rather amusing one, especially to a yōkai. If not for her truly feline form, she would have laughed at it, even. For spirits, in fact, were very real. Sometimes even more so than the living. However, it seemed that the thought was put aside quickly, Kurome’s humanoid form taking a whole lot more attention from whoever she attempted to talk to. “Must I fit these crumbling walls to gain the right to walk these broken stones? I am simply someone who strives to look her best regardless of how compelling the world around me becomes.”

A quick glance at Yuzuki betrayed a hint of discontent in the cat’s eyes. “It is always disappointing to see someone wearing rags and even having a foul mouth unfitting a true lady.” But lecturing some other lass about the importance of fashion was not why she chose to approach. Instead, she merely chuckled when she was asserted amid the souls that wandered this place. “Have peace of mind, I am not bound to this place as a spirit. Alas, I cannot talk on behalf of anyone else you might have the pleasure of meeting here.”

Suddenly taking a few steps to the side, it was almost as if Kuro dropped all of her guard intentionally, her eyes suddenly focused on a large pile of rubble next to her. Using one of her long and slender fingers to trace over the rough surface and split apart the layer of dust and dirt which lied on top, she sighed. It was true that if it was up to her, she would have chosen a much more pleasant place for a chat than this. “Perhaps I am not reasonable then. Who even is these days?”

Suddenly, she would turn toward Yuziki and very slowly start taking firm and decisive steps toward her, that same small still creepily hanging on her face. “But you’ve not answered my question, have you? Why are you here? It’s rude to avoid responding, or attempt to answer question with a question. And while we’re at it, I wouldn’t mind knowing what name to associate with such an adorable face as is yours. You may call me Kurome, if you so please~” Her voice was sweet, as if it was pure honey itself. Demanding, seductive… her very presence was trying to press up against Yuzuki to coerce her into talking.

There was no reason to stop or even slow down. Her pray was near cornered, her movements betraying the obvious desire to escape from this situation as quickly as she possibly could. There was not a shred of intent to fight back. And while that made it a tad bit less fun in some ways, it also pleased Kurome. It affirmed her own power and charisma, the fact that she was successfully driving someone into a corner. At least to some degree. Naturally, she had no actual expectations for this to go as smoothly as it was going now all the way till the end.

Still, she had to enjoy this while it lasted. Moving one of her clawed hands to her mouth, she would lick her lips as if the juiciest morsel imaginable rested in front of her, the crimson gaze of hers piercing her pray without mercy. “Of course. I’m very much looking forward to us becoming very, very good friends~” Even completely disregarding the lie about fungus, the yōkai already knew this semi-fey was here for no such thing. After all, there was no such thing in this place. She explored the ruined city thoroughly by now.

Only when Yuzuki actually decided to start her escape did Kuro’s decisive steps come to a sudden halt. But her gaze was not separated from the other girl for one second. And the smile spread across her face did not fade. Nay, it grew. Because while her prey felt comfortable enough to start talking the moment she gained high ground, the cat had little interest in keeping it that way. In a moment’s notice, her feet would be planted on a nearby wall of a building, her nimble nature allowing her to almost run up the completely vertical surface before jumping off and landing right on that same roof.

Did the semi-fey perhaps forget she was talking to a cat? Her body might have been more fragile than most, but she fas far more nimble than most other creatures could ever hope to be. And she was fast, how else could she ever catch herself a tasty morsel like this? But before either of the girls could make any further movement, the entire roof shock as something else started climbing it. Not even a second later, several hair-covered thin legs started peering from beyond one of the ledges.

Precisely eight legs that were quickly followed by a bulbous a bloated body of a giant spider, one that was at least good 3 or 4 meters across. If some people found these creatures disgusting under normal circumstances, then this would be a waking nightmare. Its numerous eyes stalked the two girls as a sickly green liquid dripped from its belly, the bloated parts of its skin practically bubbling with this strange and definitely toxic waste. “How curious. Did it mutate as a result of the biological attack on this city?” It seemed that the cat didn’t feel particularly threatened by the monster.