Kitsu lay on her back on top of a building she'd scaled about 3 hours ago and looked up at the sunset ahead of her, as the sun descended below the horizon it stained the sky pink and orange making it seem like a giant boiled sweet. Just the thought made Kitsu hungry. However she still had to wait, for how long she didn't know or care but as soon as everyone was away and asleep, then she could start. She lay back letting off a long sigh; night never came soon enough and always went away too soon. She almost felt herself dozing off but she jerked herself awake, it was everybody else that went to sleep not her.

After a few more hours passed the crowds below in the street began to lessen and the sky grew darker. Looking up Kitsu saw the moon poking out between two clouds; she smiled at it thankful that it wasn't a cloudy night. She looked down and saw that the streets were now completely deserted; she waited a while to check if she was the only person up and got to her feet. She ran along the rooftop and leapt over the gap to the next one, flipping over as she did so and using her tail to regain balance. She stopped and crept to the edge of the roof and looked down, there was a window slightly ajar below her, she curled her tail around the edge of the roof and lowered herself down in front of the window; looking in she saw the room was completely empty of people but not of anything else. She took her dagger from her pocket and slid it under the crack between the window and the ledge and slowly prized it open.

It slid with a creak, she stopped suddenly waiting for something to happen but luckily nobody seemed to notice, she sighed with relief and carried on, once the gap was big enough she put her dagger away and began to open the window with her own hands, once opened she swung herself inside landing upright without a sound, she shook her head to get the hair out of her face and looked about; an old chest sat in the corner furthest from the door, she crept over to it and bent down, it looked ancient and worn so whatever was inside must be equally as old. Purely out of curiosity she took out her dagger again and attempted to pick the lock with it, unfortunately the blade was far too large for the hole so she put it away again.

She sighed and got up sitting on the old box thinking of a way to get in, It creaked and she hopped off it turning the door, she saw a light pass under the crack and felt a gland of sweat form on her forehead, a couple of voices sounded from the other side, after what seemed like forever they stopped and the light moved away, Kitsu sighed with relief wand turned back to the chest, she examined the lock and saw that it was rusted and crooked, having an idea she took out her dagger again and began to saw through it, to her surprise it dug in and after a long time broke through, Kitsu pulled it off the chest and opened it coughing from the dust, inside however there was only a small amulet resembling a bell attached to some kind of cloth.

She picked it up and shook it but it didn't make any sound at all, she wondered why it was in an old chest like that. She didn't notice the light re-appear under the door and was startled as the lock turned and the door creaked as it began to open.


The old man that strode in held a candle in front of him and looked about mid 50s; he looked about but saw an empty room, his eyes then fell on the open window and then the open chest.


Kitsu collapsed on a roof at least halfway across the village from the house breathing heavily, she'd only just leaped out of the window in time as the door opened and had dashed along the rooftops as fast as she could, she still clutched the amulet in her sweaty hand, realizing it was still there she looked at it curiously feeling somehow drawn to it. She slipped it into her pocket but hesitated, whatever it was it must do something so she may as well find out, she took it out again and shook it but no sound came out, she looked in the gaps for any sign of an orb in the centre but didn't see a thing, she checked the bottom and found something inscribed in a text she didn't understand.

マジックの鐘

Whatever it meant might give her some clue as to what it was for, but she couldn't read it let alone understand it so she was currently at a loss. She jumped as she heard footsteps approaching from the street below; apparently she wasn't the only one awake.

(wow...long o.o )

It had been quite a long day for the blue fox-boy, through the festival, getting reacquainted with his old hometown after being away for years on end, and overall trying to relax but having little luck.

Yawning as he wandered the streets, now in the dead of night, sleepy but currently unable to sleep, his ears perked up, hearing...well, what could be described as sounding like someone breaking into something. Whatever it was he couldn't really be sure, but he hadn't much else to do, so he wandered off toward a building nearby.

Looking up around the roof for a few moments, he sighed lightly and walked around to a wall on the side, using his claws to help pull himself up eventually onto the roof, surprised at what he found.

A girl sitting there with something he couldn't identify in her hands, who appeared mostly human but for her fox-like ears. Even with all the travelling he'd done, the places he'd been, he'd only twice met anyone even the slightest bit like himself, and this time seemed to make a third. Though there was the matter of what she had...

"Well, heard something over here, but I didn't really expect to find someone anything like myself here..." Kai said, at somewhat of a loss for words, not that he would've been able to come up with much more anyway.

Kitsu listened to the footsteps below holding her breath and keeping as quiet as she could. Her palm began to ache a bit from clutching the amulet in her hand too hard and she could feel her heart rate increase. At home she'd never been caught, she'd been so good at sneaking into homes and getting out silently that she'd presumed all places were like that, dead easy pickings but apparently not. And then there was the amulet she'd found in the chest, it didn't look like much at all but something about it made her curios as to what it's purpose was.

She opened her palm and looked at it carefully; although it was glistening with her own sweat it seemed to reflect something more than moonlight, as though there was something moving about inside. She looked behind her to see if there was anybody else there but there wasn't, she turned back to the amulet and eyed it so closely she could see every detail of her eye in it; again she spotted something else moving about in it. Getting a little panic stricken she clasped her fist over it again and leaned back letting out a heavy, exhausted breath. She'd nearly been caught in the act and god knows what would have happened to her, she dreaded thinking about it.

Down below she heard the footsteps continuing in the street below and saw a shadow pass across a wall. Hoping that whoever it was hadn't seen or heard her she lay back trying to pull herself together, she never fell to pieces like this, and the risk of being caught was half the fun. The she heard whoever was below sigh, her ears rotated slightly on her head trying to catch any other sounds, she didn't feel exhausted any more, and felt her cat-like curiosity begin to prickle at the back of her neck.

"Well, heard something over here, but I didn't really expect to find someone anything like myself here..."

"Wha...!" Kitsu started and looked about spying the owner of the voice.
Expecting it to be the owner of the thing she'd just stolen she was a little surprised to see the shape of a fox standing on two legs, she got to her feet a little speechless as for words.
"Er, you can't know allot of," she struggled for a word to describe him "err, fox people? Then?"
Whatever his species was, 'fox person' didn't really do him justice, he looked more like a breed of Kitsune, and she then noticed that his fur was blue rather than orange.

"Wha...!" the girl started, obviously not having noticed him come up the wall just earlier, perhaps because she seemed quite focused on what was in her hands. "Er, you can't know allot of," she started, seeming to struggle for a word for a short time before continuing. "err, fox people? Then?"

"Can't say I do," he replied, sighing lightly again. It was kind of fun at times being the only one like him around, but it got...kind of lonely, in a way. He wasn't really sure how to explain it; perhaps because he felt alone because there were so many of so many different species around, especially lupines and werewolves, and none like him. "I've met two in my travels, and there's presumably my family somewhere, but aside from that, I'm the only one I've ever known that's anything like me. Suppose my blue fur doesn't help in looking for those like me," he continued, chuckling softly. Even in his family, he was the only one with blue fur...his family, and both of the other fox-like folk he'd met, had red or orange fur. Not him, though...he just had to be different from birth, didn't he? Both the fur and the power over fire...

"Can't say I do," the stranger said sighing lightly again.

Kitsu blinked and let her mouth open slight whilst tilting her head to one side. Whoever he was he seemed kind of lonely, she presumed there should be others like him, after all he was here so he had to be born from somebody, unless he was a homunculus but then of course they didn't have a soul so he couldn't be as this person clearly had a soul and a pretty down one at that too.

"I've met two in my travels," he said as he carried on "and there's presumably my family somewhere," well that scratches the homunculus idea "but aside from that, I'm the only one I've ever known that's anything like me. Suppose my blue fur doesn't help in looking for those like me," he chuckled slightly at his comment.

Kitsu blinked again not sure of how to reply and rubbed her arm absent mindedly.
"Well what's wrong with staying with your family?" She asked "wouldn't you be happier there?"
She'd have stayed with her own but they'd been growing extremely suspicious at all the object that had suddenly started appearing in her room so she'd snuck aboard a boat and left as soon as she could praying that they didn't realize she'd been stealing for the past 5 years, it was addicting once you started and just seemed like a game to her.
"Er, I don't think I caught your name," she said after a long pause.

She slid the amulet into her pocket and rubbed her palm where she'd gripped it too hard and red marks had showed up along with the sweat, her escape was a little too close for comfort and she wouldn't like to go through that again for fear of being caught.

"Well what's wrong with staying with your family?" the girl asked. Of course she couldn't have known about his history, even though it took place about thirteen years ago in this very city...kicked out of his home because of his powers and an old family legend. "Wouldn't you be happier there?" Probably not... "Er, I don't think I caught your name," she continued after what seemed to be a moment of thought, for both of them at that.

"I would've stayed here with my family, but...well, I was never able to," Kai started. "That's all in the past, though, I'm not really bothered too much by it any more. And my name's Kai, sorry for not saying so earlier...mind if I ask yours?" Realizing that he hadn't exactly given much of an answer to her first two questions, he knew that he would've, but would rather not bring it up. He had a good deal of difficult memories before a few months ago here in Arda, and he much preferred now to start anew, with the weight of them off of him.

Kitsu could see she'd hit a nerve and she looked down feeling slightly ashamed.
"I would've stayed here with my family, but...well," he started "I was never able to,"
Kitsu felt a little more ashamed at having brought up the subject, after all he didn't look like it was at all a happy memory.
"That's all in the past, though," he continued causing Kitsu to look up "I'm not really bothered too much by it any more. And my name's Kai, sorry for not saying so earlier...mind if I ask yours?"

"Huh? Oh, sure," she answered "you can call me Kitsu-Chan, okay?"
She smiled slightly giving an impression of being a little childish.

((Not nearly as long as my first one but nithing's perfect ^_^; ))

"Huh? Oh, sure," the girl said, seeming to snap out of a thought of hers, and smiled slightly, almost childishly; though she was a few years younger than him. "You can call me Kitsu-Chan, okay?"

Kitsu-Chan? That was a strange name...he was pretty sure he knew where the kitsu part came from, but the 'chan' sort of lost him. Maybe it was some sort of cultural thing...regardless, he snapped out of this thought process, returning to reality.

"Kitsu...you mean like kitsune?" he asked, though he was sure he already knew the answer, since that's basically what she was; a kitsune, a fox-person, though not full fox like himself. Out of the two fox-like people he'd met in his travels, one of them was a kitsune. "Anyway...pleasure to meet you, Kitsu-Chan," he continued.

(I'm probably not helping in that...but come monday my post length will increase again since I'll be back at home)

Kitsu immediatly saw a look of slight curiosity in Kai's eyes, she didn't see anything to be curious about, after all the only thing was her appearance and that wasn't strange to him.
"Kitsu...you mean like kitsune?" He asked.
Kitsu nodded, most people got that almost immediatly.
"Anyway..." he continued "pleasure to meet you, Kitsu-Chan,"
"Thanks, you too," she replied "I mean it can't be every day you meet a person with fox ears and a tial is it."
She gave out a slight chuckle allowing her tail to poke out from behind her briefly.

"Thanks, you too," Kitsu-Chan replied. "I mean it can't be every day you meet a person with fox ears and a tail is it." Then he noticed her own tail poke out briefly from behind her, which he'd suspected she had but hadn't seen at first, as she chuckled, and he chuckled as well, shaking his head in a no. Well, unless they were a lupine or werewolf, and had wolf ears and a tail...there were a lot of those around, it seemed. It got kind of depressing sometimes, being about the only vulpine around in a world that was full of all sorts of lupines.

"True enough, usually the ears and tail are lupine," he said. "Never really been sure why there are so many lupines and werewolves and such around and rarely any vulpines, but I suppose that and my blue fur make me even more unusual."

Kitsu noticed Kai glance at her tail as it poked out from behind her, she drew it back and curled it round playfully, Kai seemed to chuckle at the comment which seemed only half true, considering the amount of Lupines and werewolves, but very few of them were more cat-like than fox-like.
"True enough," Kai said "usually the ears and tail are lupine,"
Wow, almost exactly what I was thinking.
"Never really been sure why there are so many lupines and werewolves and such around and rarely any vulpines, but I suppose that and my blue fur make me even more unusual." He continued.
Kitsue thought about it for a second unsure of how to answer.

"Well Kitsunes are actually quiet common where I come from," she said after a long while of thought "but there only my kind, just the ears and tail I mean, so maybe your just looking in the wrong places, assuming you are actually looking that is." She gave a half hearted laugh at the comment and one of her ears rotated to the side a bit.
She looked round in the direction she'd come from with a puzzled expression. It had sounded like a door being opened and an exchange of voices before the door closed again, Kitsu looked back over at Kai.
"Hey, do you think we could get inside somewhere?" She asked "I mean I don't want to be standing around talking all night even if I am a Kitsune."

"Well Kitsunes are actually quiet common where I come from," Kitsu said, after a long period of thought it seemed. He'd have to look for such a place sometime...where ever it was, he'd never been there, and it sounded rather interesting. "But there's only my kind, just the ears and tail I mean, so maybe you're just looking in the wrong places, assuming you are actually looking that is." At that comment, Kitsu gave a half-hearted laugh, one of her ears rotating a bit. Then she looked over in a certain direction, and Kai's ears perked up slightly, catching the sound of a door and a few voices. "Hey, do you think we could get inside somewhere? I mean I don't want to be standing around talking all night even if I am a Kitsune."

He knew that there was something going on, probably to do with what she was holding in her hands, but foxes were naturally cunning and somewhat larcenous, so he ignored it. Not that he was the latter...but that was hardly the point.

"Sounds good to me...kind of strange spending so much time on a rooftop anyway. There are a few places around here that are still open, and I still know my way around here pretty well since not much has changed in the thirteen years that I'd been gone...so what sounds good?" he asked, looking back over to Kitsu.

Kitsu kept one ear on the sounds, she suspected they were coming from the person she'd just stolen the amulet off and they were coming to look for the thief and she didn't want to be standing outside right in the open when he caught up to her.

"Sounds good to me..." Kai said turning Kitsu's attention back to him now "kind of strange spending so much time on a rooftop anyway. There are a few places around here that are still open, and I still know my way around here pretty well since not much has changed in the thirteen years that I'd been gone...so what sounds good?"

Kitsu scratched her head thinking about it and turned her ear back to the sounds, they were now faint footsteps moving along the gravel accompanied by the soft thump of wood.
"Well anyplace really," she said "so long as it's not the sort of place were thugs hang out, I got enough of those on my way here."

"Well anyplace really," Kitsu said, directing her attention toward the footsteps that the two of them could likely only hear due to their enhanced senses, "so long as it's not the sort of place were thugs hang out, I got enough of those on my way here."

It was pretty clear that whoever was walking down there was who Kitsu had stolen the...well, whatever it was, from. It didn't seem to be anything of any particular value from what he could tell, though, so there was no point bothering himself about it, or the ethics behind it, or anything like that. It would probably just get her mad at him anyway.

"Don't have to worry too much about thugs or anything around here in Estolad...I know of a pretty good seafood place not too far from here, though, if you're interested," he said. Being a fox, he loved seafood, especially fish, and since she was clearly part fox, though not as much so as him, perhaps she'd share the same tastes. If not, then there were always plenty of other places he knew of to go around town that would still be open.

The footstpes appeared to be faltering, as though the owner wasn't sure which way to go next, Kitsu had to surpess a giggle that she'd lost him and he was out searching for his whatever it was with no idea who stole it or where they went, it was all she could do to stop.

"Don't have to worry too much about thugs or anything around here in Estolad..." Kai said snapping her out of it and back into preasent day.
Kitsu turned her attention back to him half forgetting that the previous owner of the thing in her pocket was trying to find her.
"I know of a pretty good seafood place not too far from here," Kai said carrying on "though, if you're interested,"

"Seafood!?" Kitsu said a little more loudly than she intended "perfect! Let's go."
She hopped off the roof and landed lightly on the ground, waving her tail like an exited kitten playing with a ball of string, she looked back up at Kai and waited for him to come down.
"So where is it?" She asked.

"Seafood!?" Kitsu quickly responded loudly and obviously excitedly. "Perfect! Let's go." She then hopped off the roof and landed lightly on the ground, her tail waving around and even showing itself that she was excited, causing Kai to chuckle slightly. It seemed he'd hit the mark pretty well on this one. "So where is it?"

"Just a little ways down the street and to the side," Kai replied, jumping easily down from the roof of the building. It would, though, be fairly easy for them to follow their noses to it...after all, Kitsu was bound to have a sense of smell not unlike his, despite not physically being as much of a fox. Well, not even nearly as much of a fox, to be more accurate.

Feeling he may as well lead the way regardless, though, he wandered down the street, making sure she was following, inwardly glad that they were going a different direction than those people from earlier, meaning they more than likely wouldn't meet. And of course the less trouble he had during his trips to the towns and cities and such, the better.

Kai chuckled slightly at her reaction and she blushed slightly suspecting she'd overdone it a bit. Kai jumped down landing beside her with ease, she looked up and down the street expectantly waiting for Kai to lead the way.
"Just a little ways down the street and to the side," he said answering her question.
She looked back over at him and smiled. "Okay,"
She followed him down the street still waving her tail around rather obviously, she curled it into a spiral so as to avoid knocking anything she didn't want to.

She began humming to herself cheerily and forgot all about the amulet in her pocket and the previous, and very irritated and angry, owner out looking for it in vain. It was either Kitsu's imagination or she could just about smell the food from here, although it was only down the street according to Kai. She stopped humming and thought about something, seeing as this was a whole new country to her they probably didn't do any of the food that she normally had at home.
"Hey, Kai-san," she said (sticking to cultural traditions) "do they serve mu-n sakana? It's this silver fish with grey patches that look like the moon."

It didn't take long for the two of them to near the local seafood eatery, Kai's ears perking up and picking up Kitsu's humming along the way. She definitely seemed cheerful upon mention of seafood, though he hadn't had any himself in too long, so he was looking forward to it perhaps just as much.

"Hey, Kai-san," Kitsu said, no longer humming for the moment as she talked. Although given the 'san' part, it was basically confirmed that simply Kitsu was her name, and the rest was just something to do with her culture or something of the like, "do they serve mu-n sakana? It's this silver fish with grey patches that look like the moon."

Looking up to the sky thoughtfully, though still paying plenty well attention to where he was going, and clearly thinking about this for a few moments, he nodded. It probably didn't have that name, in particular, but he was fairly certain he'd seen such fish around before, at least back when he was younger and actually living here in town. "Yeah, they have something like that. Not sure if it's called the same thing, but I know I've seen it when I was younger and actually living here in Estolad," he said, obviously not bothered about bringing up this small part of his past, despite that it concerned the parents that had rejected him. That and his old dark half were all left behind upon its destruction, and so he didn't have nearly as much of his former worries.

Kai thought about the question while Kitsu looked about seeing if she could spot the place herself, it was hard in the dark but she suspected it would be the place with the fishy smell coming from it, She sniffed and caught the seafood smell coming from an open window.
"Yeah, they have something like that." Kai said.
Kitsu blinked and looked over at him, then remembered she'd asked a question.
"Not sure if it's called the same thing," he continued "but I know I've seen it when I was younger and actually living here in Estolad,"

"Great," Kitsu replied "so I can have that then after all."

"Great," Kitsu replied, "so I can have that then after all."

Nodding, Kai noticed that they'd now reached the restaurant he'd mentioned, and he held the door open for her before going inside himself. Naturally, there were only so many people inside, both working and dining, given the time of night. Of course, it could also thus potentially be a rougher crowd, but if anything came up, he'd deal with it easily enough. He just hoped that nothing did.

"Two of you? Go ahead and sit where ever you want," a waitress that had come up after noticing the two come in said, motioning to the full restaurant, where there were plenty of empty tables and booths.

"Guess I'll leave it up to you where we sit...I'm not really picky on that," Kai said, looking to Kitsu as the waitress walked off to tend to someone else at the moment.

Kitsu followed Kai inside and looked about, it was pretty small and smepty but that didn't surprise her because of how late it was. She looked about, taking in the entire room and everyone in it, there didn't seem to be anybody intent on starting any fights so she was satisfied. She was still looking about when a waitress came over barely sparing a second glance.

"Two of you? Go ahead and sit where ever you want," she said gesturing around the room.

Kitsu looked about again unsure of where to actually sit down.
"Guess I'll leave it up to you where we sit." Kai said "I'm not really picky on that,"
"Okay," Kitsu said feeling slightly reluctant.
She eyes the place carefully and thought about it hard.
"How about over there?" She asked indicating the table furthest from the window.

"Okay," Kitsu said in a reluctant manner. Maybe he should've just picked a seat...but he wanted to be polite, and wasn't sure if she'd have a preference. "How about over there?" she asked, pointing to the open table that seemed to be furthest from the window. The better not to be spotted, he supposed.

"Sounds fine to me," Kai replied, walking over to the table and pushing the seat that he wasn't sitting in about a foot from where it had been with his tail while he walked. One of the pleasures reserved for those that had one and could use it effectively, that was for certain. He himself had always enjoyed having a tail simply because he felt it looked nice, though.

"Sounds fine to me," Kai replied.
Kitsu smiled and followed him over to the table and sat down sighing with releif. From here she would be able to examine her prize without the risk of the previous owner seeing her with it. Speaking of she took it out of her pocket and held it up to the light, she laid it down on the table and poked it expecting it to do something. It was a curious little thing, shaped like a small bell you get on cat collars, only larger, much larger. She looked at it absent mindidly unaware of any expression Kai was giving her. She prodded the thing again trying to work out what it did.

"Hey, err, Kai-san..." she said "I don't suppose you know what this is do you? I mean it doesn't look like anything to me."
She didn't really expect an aswer, after all Kai probably wouldn't know what it was anyway, Kitsu wondered weather or not it was just a broken toy left over from a person's childhood.
"Never mind," she muttered.

Raising a brow slightly in curiosity, Kai watched as Kitsu took out what she'd obviously taken earlier in the night before he'd found her, examining it, prodding it around the table, and overall clearly wondering what exactly it was. It looked like a bell to him, though it didn't appear to make any sound, even with his good ears.

"Hey, err, Kai-san..." Kitsu said. "I don't suppose you know what this is do you? I mean it doesn't look like anything to me." Kai simply shrugged in response, not personally having the slightest clue, trying to think of perhaps something he might've known about it back before he was five when he was living here in town. Nothing came, however. "Never mind," she muttered, before the waitress returned to take their orders.

"I suppose I'll have the calamari dish, with some shrimp, along with a glass of water," Kai said, thinking something up quickly, having had little chance to look over the menu. The waitress, however, nodded, and turned her gaze to Kitsu in order to take her order, whatever she was having.