"I have something to return to you…" Yuri's prey said, smiling politely.
"Who are you?!" Winston immediately demanded, stepping forward so that I was behind him.
"Oh… My name is Kcreya…" the prey said after a second of contemplation.
"Well, how do you know us, and what do you want?" Winston curtly asked, narrowing his brows in suspicion.
"…This child helped me a few days ago," Kcreya patiently answered, nodding at me. "She kindly shared her medicinal herbs yet, for some reason, she ran away and left her basket…which I'm here to return."
Winston hesitated before glancing back at me, gauging my reaction to see whether Kcreya was telling the truth.
"Ah—yes," I confirmed, blinking out of my daze. "Thank you…Kcreya," I said, stiffly accepting the empty basket from him. "Were…the herbs helpful?"
"Indeed…!" Kcreya breathed, a mixed expression of anxiousness and gratitude flittering across his face. "If I had delayed any longer, then—" he paused, frowning with distraught before forcing a smile. "Nonetheless, I wanted to thank you before leaving this place… May I know your name? And yours as well," he added the last part when Winston scowled.
"I'm Winston," Winston barked.
"I'm…Airee," I slowly said, observing with curiosity when Kcreya stiffened.
"Winston…and Airee…?" Kcreya repeated softly before dipping his head. "…I'll remember your names. And…your kindness, Airee…"
Before I could ponder about his peculiar reaction, Kcreya gave a final nod and left.
…
"He's gone, you don't have to be scared anymore," Winston broke the silence, grasping my hand as if to comfort me.
"Huh? I'm not scared," I refuted, puzzled.
Quite opposite, while I was wary about Kcreya being Yuri's prey, I was rather intrigued by him…
"But…you ran away from him? And you never told me about him! And you were really quiet when he was here? And you didn't seem to like him…?" Winston stated.
"That's because of—" I said before pausing, unwilling to explain about Yuri. "Uh—anyway, I'm not scared. Let's hurry back…!"
Tugging Winston towards Irraine's place, I tried my best to avoid Winston's eyes and his silent questions.
=====
"Why did I have to stay back? I wanted to see the little one as well!" the demon complained once Kcreya was far into the distance.
"Don't pretend like you weren't eavesdropping," Kcreya replied drily. "Even though you hid, I sensed you nearby."
"My, my…!" the demon purred in amusement. "You're the only human I've met so far that has ever been aware of me… Until now, that is." They chuckled with glee, irking Kcreya. "That little human sensed me as well. Isn't that interesting Kcreya, isn't it?"
Kcreya grunted.
"I want to meet her and smell her properly once more. Aren't you excited, Kcreya? Aren't you?"
"Enough," Kcreya shushed the demon. "Let's make haste and return."
The demon pouted and stuck their tongue at Kcreya.
"Don't kill the mood!" they hissed before shooting off unhappily into the sky.
[…]
"[Winston] and…[Airee]…" Kcreya murmured to himself long after the demon had disappeared.
He stopped walking and sighed, tilting his head back as he closed his eyes.
…
"If our fates truly align, we'll surely meet again…"
║║║║║║║║║║
It happened a few days after our encounter with Kcreya.
The knights and the others were still on their ongoing hunt, having not returned for two days now since their search for the beast had widened further into the mountain.
The atmosphere within the town was tranquil and peaceful, and it was expected that the knights were hot on the beast's trail, soon to capture and kill it…
Winston and I were at Irraine's while Fin stayed inside with Mr. Sparrow and Irraine.
Winston and I were practicing our archery when the first screams pierced our ears.
An animalistic screech punched the air soon after, and Winston and I exchanged looks of alarm.
Without a word, we both clutched our bows and arrow bags and headed towards the screams.
"What's going on—" Finn's voice came from behind as we sprinted away from Irraine's place.
"STAY INSIDE!!" we shouted back at him before continuing forward.
As we neared the northern outskirts of the town where the screams were originating, several townsfolks fled past, shouting as they barreled away and into their homes.
My heart squeezed, and I nervously felt the strap at my hip, double-checking that I still had my arrows AND my dagger—
I stopped in my tracks, my guts twisting as I laid eyes on it.
It was crouched several yards ahead of us, gnawing on the person beneath it while the person screamed and struggled for help.
It was a mountain lion of some kind but was as brawny as a bear, its large canines flashing bloody white while it chewed.
Multiple wounds on its body—old and fresh—glistened yellow with pus, and, as it shifted to get a better grip on the person underneath, some of its gaping wounds shimmered pink with fat and blood.
Despite being ghastly injured, however, the beast showed no signs of collapsing…
Winston tugged on my arm and pointed his bow at a nearby roof.
Understanding immediately, I gestured to the house across from his, and we both nodded before rushing away from each other.
Scanning my respective house, I quickly scaled the wooden boxes conveniently placed against its wall before clambering up its thatched roof.
Once my bow had clear view and aim of the beast, I glanced over at the opposite rooftop where Winston was.
A swift nod from him was all I needed to nock an arrow and anchor as I drew the string back.
We released around the same time, my arrow penetrating its right side while Winston's pierced through above its left shoulder.
The beast reared back with a high-pitched whine, and Winston's second arrow pierced through its abdomen while my next barely grazed it.
By the time I had used my fourth and final arrow, the beast turned tail and limped off, leaving behind only a trail of blood and tissue…
As soon as it retreated into the trees, Winston and I clambered down and rushed to the person the beast had attacked.
Fortunately, they were still breathing, and I shouted at the houses around me, yelling that the beast had gone and the injured needed help.
Thankfully, several townsfolk responded, and soon the injured person was tended to.
Only when they were being carried away on a wooden stretcher did I realize Winston was nowhere to be seen.
"Winston?" I called out, scanning the townsfolk around me. "Winston!"
…
[Don't tell me he—]
"If you're looking for the boy that was with you, he…he ran after [it]," one of the townsfolk uttered, face pale as they approached me. "I…I didn't realize he was a fool…! If I had known better, I would've stopped him—wait, where are you going—STOP! DON'T GO!!"
I ignored them, sprinting towards the trees where I last saw the beast.
I didn't know who to curse more, Winston—for foolishly going after the beast alone—or me, for not noticing or hearing him leave.
Bursting into the forest, I ran after the bloody trail, and—when I couldn't distinguish the blood any longer—I followed the set of footprints and pawprints accompanied by broken foliage.
"WINSTON!!" I roared, stopping in my tracks when I lost the trail to the dense undergrowth in front of me. "WINSTON, WHERE ARE YOU?!!"
Seconds ticked by as I listened closely, my pulse beating in my throat as I gathered my breath.
Just as I was about to shout again—
There.
Out in the far distance, someone called my name.
Without hesitation, I swiveled and rushed in that direction.
I ran for three, long minutes before I finally spotted something up ahead.
[Winston!]
The side of his body was facing me, and he was slowly backing away from something in front of him.
I glimpsed in the direction he was looking at and my feet skidded to a halt when I saw the beast.
It was a few yards away from Winston, purposefully striding forward as it stared him down, baring its teeth as rivulets of blood and saliva bubbled down its maw.
Just as I unsheathed my dagger and was inching towards them, Winston stopped backing away and straightened.
It wasn't until he positioned his bow and arrow at the beast that I realized he had decided to stand his ground.
Realizing at the same time, the beast sprung into a sprint, snarling as it pounded towards Winston.
Dread and terror shot through me, and I was rushing towards them before I knew it, roaring with all my might, "GET AWAY!!!"
The beast swiveled its head towards me, and—in that instant—Winston released his arrow, piercing it straight through its eye.
It jolted its head back with a yowl but instead of being deterred, it became even more determined to close the distance between it and Winston.
Winston seemed as calm as ever as he released arrow after arrow into the frenzied beast hurdling towards him.
Jerking in pain yet never slowing down, the beast made a final lunge just as Winston released his final arrow, piercing the beast square in the chest.
The beast crashed down with an ear-thundering screech, and Winston rolled out of the way, using that opportunity to scramble towards me.
The next few moments happened in a bloody blur.
My body was still sprinting towards them.
Yet—before I could reach them—the beast twisted upright with unfathomable speed and snapped towards Winston.
It hooked its claws into his back, eliciting a scream from him, and crushed him down into the earth.
Engulfing his entire neck into the pits of its carnivorous mouth, it snapped its jaws shut.
The sound of cracking bones split the air—and something within me broke as well.
Roaring with anguish and horror, I hurled myself into the beast, bashing my dagger deep into its neck as we both rolled away from Winston.
Mewling and snarling, it swiped me several times, and—at one point—the left side of my face scorched in pain, my vision and hearing failing on that side for a second—before I regained my senses and doubled down on hacking away at its jugular and head.
It pressed down on top of me, and I shielded my face and neck with my free arm as it snapped at my throat.
In seconds, the beast ravaged my arm and lunged past to clamp its teeth around my shoulder, but I hardly felt it as I continued twisting and ramming my dagger as far and deep as I could into its head.
I continued to push and saw for what seemed like an eternity before—eventually—finally—the beast slackened and stilled against me.
Yet—with its death—the weight of it bore down on me, and I choked on blood as I let go of the dagger still lodged within its carcass.
…
I feebly tried to shove it off but recoiled when the entirety of my torso, arms, and head burst with excruciating pain.
[Fu…ck.]
…
I helplessly laid there as I struggled to catch my breath, trembling as I felt the heat trickle away from my wounds.
What felt like immediately after, my body numbed, and I shuddered when I felt myself going cold and empty.
…
Tears leaked from my eyes as regret and sorrow blanketed me.
…
[Sorry… I'm sorry…]
…
I hazily focused on the sky and canopy above me, and, with the last of my life, I watched as the shadows flitted with the light along the lengths of the leaves and branches overhead…
…
Before I left, however, something blurry encroached my vision.
Some part of me must have recognized who it was because I found myself gasping out a few more, extra breaths.
"…Ahh...…
…[Yu]...[ri]...…[ael]...…" I heard myself sound out.
Then I succumbed to the darkness.