A Promise of Death

Rabi?

The shifting of Riella woke me from my peaceful slumber. Stars shone down on the siblings, twinkling in the black sky. I let out a sigh that I hadn't realized I was holding in. We sat in the twisted, rough branches of a willow tree, sparkling strands of leaves blowing softly in the chill breeze. Riella sat next to me, scanning her surroundings, drowsiness glazing her eyes.

The events of yesterday came crashing down at me all at once, and I groaned. Looking over to Riella, I pushed it to the back of mind as I watched her pet the animal that was cupped in her hands.

"Hello brother," Riella yawned, rubbing her eyes. She clutched the animal to her chest as she gazed around the landscape, taking in the forest.

"Hello Riella," I sighed, letting a soft smile creep onto my face. She didn't seem angry at me. I raised my arms into a stretch, letting out a yawn.

"Brother, what do you think of Rabi?" she questioned, pointing to the animal that now rested on her shoulders. It's long whiskers twitched as its eyes landed on mine.

"Do you mean the Willowrat?" I ask, watching the lithe body of the animal tilt its head as it picked up my voice.

"Willowrat?" she said confused, her face blank. "Oh! Yes, I mean her. Does Rabi seem like a good name?"

"Interesting," I mutter, looking around to make sure there were no threats.

"Alright, I'll just name her Rabi," she says, smiling. "Oh!" she gasps suddenly, and I jump and turn to her. "We need to get you a Willowrat!" she laughs.

"Why?" I ask, expressionless.

"Because! Then you won't feel lonely or anything because I have Rabi!" she says as if it were obvious.

"Okay?" I say, bewildered, "I don't want a willowrat though, I've heard they can be annoying. Remember the one near Arachne's house?" I growl, remembering the countless times the sneaky rodent had stolen food from the adoptive family.

"I'm still gonna get you one, if only for Rabi to have a friend," Riella cries, hugging me. Her eyes were wide, and her bottom lip was pushed into a pout. I let out a sigh of defeat.

"Ugh..." I sigh, looking down at my pleading sister. I shake my head, my hand raising to facepalm, when I hear an ear-splitting screech of pain sound from behind me. Voices were shouting in the distance, appearing to come closer and closer. I flattened my ears, muffling the sounds of the inhuman yowls.

"Brother?!" Riella yells, her eyes widening as she whips around to face me, her tail lashing.

"Let's go," I tell her, nodding. Riella gives a determined smile, unsheathing her daggers from their pockets.

Riella lunges into the trees, screaming a battle cry. She motions for me to follow, and I run after her, frantically remembering battle moves Arachne had taught us. Figuring that a stick wouldn't be of much use, I decided I'd shift into a caracal if things got tough.

"I'm here, sister," I smile, acknowledging her as I stop next to the cat-girl. The people in front of us stood, shocked, as we appeared through the trees. Riella swung her daggers on their chains, and I cracked my knuckles. I surveyed the area, seeing a man who held a rope in one hand, a knife in the other. Two other men surrounded him, long daggers held in their hands. They crowded around a frightened figure, it's tail lashing as it looked for a way to escape. Dull claws dug into the bloody grass, and it's spiked tail was flicking back and forth over the crimson plants. It seemed to be a dragon, however it had fluffy white fur, and it didn't have any wings. Round, scared eyes darted back and forth, defeat rising in it's pupils.

As I watched it's desperate attempts to escape, I hadn't noticed the large man running at me, his dagger pointed to my throat. "Brother!" Riella screeched, and I let out a feeble wail, covering my face. Long knives knocked the man away, and I looked back to see Riella swirling her long daggers, forming circumference of a circle around her. Her face was pointed to a large, muscular man wielding a hammer. Realization struck through me as I realized it was the bandit who had kidnapped us.

"B-B-Brother," Riella stuttered. I had never seen her so scared before. I knew I had to comfort her.

The wail of the dragon-creature startled me, and I looked back to see about eight more men appearing from the treeline. They walked behind the leader, holding something surprisingly familiar. I narrowed my eyes, ready to turn into a caracal if needed.

"Felix, the scissor blades!" Riella cries, looking at the shiny, detailed scissors in front of her. Riella ran forward, and I started to run after her, but skidded to a stop. I spun around, grabbing the wounded animal, holding it close to my chest. It whimpered in my arms, it's scathed body shaking in fear. I mumbled softly, stroking it's head. It immediately calmed down, relaxing.

"Felix?" I hear my sister calling my name, and I twitched an ear as I hear the clash of blades.

"You go first, sister!" I yell back, placing the frightened creature under a bramble thicket so they wouldn't see it's bright white pelt. It's blood had soaked into my clothes, and I grimaced.

Sparkling dew on a cobweb caught my eye, and I quickly pulled it off the ground, spreading the white substance on the animal's lacerations. Figuring it'd have to do for now, I spun around to see my sister spinning her blades wildly, a terrifying gleam in her eye.