"Over my dead body!" I growl, but now Yin's running with it in her arms and she's three levels higher than me so I have no chance of catching up. We make an odd picture, a laughing girl holding a ginger cat and an angry boy waving a meat cleaver dashing across the violet-streaked hilltops. No one would suspect that we were Hunters in that moment. Gradually, the sky begins to darken and I calm down a bit. "Okay! Okay! Truce, the sun's going down!"
"No tricks! Or I'll chop your head off!" Yin wheels around, brandishing her katana threateningly. I raise an eyebrow, feeling like my pride as a man is being challenged. This girl...thinks she can take me on already? However, the night is coming, and now that we're outside the forest in the open, it really will be getting more dangerous.
"Fine!" I put my cleaver away. Yin allows me to catch up, we're both breathing heavy, our faces flushed. "You know, it's my familiar. I'm technically it's owner according to the System, so you shouldn't interfere in our relationship. Regardless, on account of the time, I'll let you off this one time." I reach out to pat the cat on its forehead. It observes me warily, tucked under one of Yin's arms. Surprisingly, it doesn't attack.
"If you're the owner, then you shouldn't abuse it or get angry. Now explain this familiar business!" Yin says and I walk with her quietly, seeking some shelter while night falls. Unbeknownst to her, when she looks away, the cat and I lock eyes. Silently, I communicate to it and I like to think it understands.
This isn't over...furball.
However, it ignores me completely, licking its paw again. Ugh, I really thought this thing was cute earlier? It's the goddamn devil. And now I don't have a familiar slot anymore. Although I suppose I can always give Yin the Azure Drake in a few years. Damnit though, really, what am I supposed to do with this useless cat in the middle of the Calamity? Shaking my head, I sigh.
"Maybe it'll run off on its own..."
"What did you just say!"
#
The night is eerie silent in the grassy hills. Occasionally the wind blows and the whole place rustles quietly. Yin rests in my arms, snoozing gently, the cat cradled in hers. I look at them fondly, wondering how I ended up here. One moment I was undergoing grueling training with the strongest party, the next I was taking care of this little girl. I don't have many complaints, despite the change. Though I've been driven to the brink of insanity many times, watching Yin sleep right now, feeling her in-between my arms, it almost seems like it was worth it. No one knows my name in this world except her.
But that's all I need.
*Shua*
A shrill howl sweeps through the place and Yin snuggles deeper into me as the cold wind reaches her face. She sniffs, and I stare out into the darkness, keeping watch.
Who knows how many nights I spent looking out into the cold like this in my past life?
Yin doesn't know it yet, because she doesn't have to, but while a Hunter needs to rest his muscles, sleep is not strictly necessary, except every once in a while. Obviously, performance will begin to degrade, and before a dangerous hunt, it's always best to get as much as you can, but the higher level you become, the longer you can go without properly resting.
Let's let her enjoy sleeping peacefully a little longer.
In the forest, I wasn't too worried about sleeping. With the trees hiding us, nothing was likely to come upon us. But now, out in the open hills, I'm a little worried. It's worth it to keep watch, if only for beginning of the night when the undead are most active.
