RED: So just where can we find them?
TANKEN: I can see through the snow.
RED: Okay cool, and then?
TANKEN: I'm not doing this for free, you know?
RED: I..uh, of course. What's the deal then?
TANKEN: Stay with me.
RED: Uh, actually no. And that's not how it works.
TANKEN: Why not?! She's a mortal human, why do you lo-
RED: You are creeping me out. How did you know about that?
TANKEN: All it takes is a good look in your eyes and I now know about what you're thinking.
RED: Weird and creepy. Don't do that again without my permission.
TANKEN: Hm, okay, so enough with the chit chat, yes or no?
RED: Anything other than that please. I don't like where this is going.
TANKEN: Why? Am I not pretty enough?
RED: Ugh, I'm sorry, but I refuse your offer. I'm gonna find him myself. Bye.
TANKEN: Wait!
The ever so annoyed reaper looked back, tired and frustrated.
TANKEN: I'll help you! But...but, let me stay with you!
RED: As friends.
TANKEN: What?
RED: As friends. I'm not interested.
TANKEN: Huh?
Tanken thinks for a while, before finally thinking that if they were even as small as friends, they could still work out.
She smiles brightly, then nodded her head.
TANKEN: Deal.
RED: Well, that's easy.
Red, although still suspicious of her plans agreed anyways. He needed Murasaki alive, and if it means making a deal with a snow spirit, he'll do just like that.
The snow spirit dissolves into a snow swirl then quickly stormed out of the scene, seperating into three parts and scanning the area swiftly.
Red felt confused. What did she do? Should he stay or what?
...
The third part of the snow spirit sensed a distress signal somewhere near. Since she knows the landscape very well, she knows that there are a few caves and underground chambers in the area.
She, once again had cut her body in five more pieces, enabling them to scatter and locate the where the signal could have been.
The snow swept clean whenever she would pass, almost as if telling everyone, that the snow deity was there.
Yuki no Tanken, is one of the nineteen snow spirits existing in Japan. In this particular area, only she wanders in the snowy landscape. Her sisters were scattered on the other parts of Japan. The spirit, though looking young and flirtstious, had experience and power all in one. She have successfully lured men of all looks and professions. Though they all end up being a painful memory to her since she would lose them, either by old age, war or sickness. She had had enough.
What drew her to Red however, was the burning love he has in his heart, she envied it, and wanted it for herself.
She thinks that if she's able to help him with rescuing the human, he'd slowly appreciate her strength, and perhaps after some time, fall for her.
She is not in love with him yet as well, but she wanted to give it a try. She wanted him to be her last. Since the man doesn't look quite happy as well.
...
The snow spirits's fifth part stopped when it sensed a human scent on one of the caves.
It quickly called its other parts and then as quick as a blink of an eye, morphed together and formed the snow siren.
She confidently had her body ascend to the cave's roof, then fall to its opening to get a better look. She felt the human's fear as he screamed.
She had then confirmed it may be what the reaper had been looking for. She quickly had half of her body go back to Red's location in a form of snow.
...
Red waited impatiently, almost losing faith at their deal. What if she tricked him? What if he's wasting his time?
All sorts of questions and doubts came to the reaper's mind.
Suddenly half of the siren's snow morphed into a red-crowned crane. That caught Red's attention and he quickly kneeled to check her out. The crane looked unfazed and it directly stares at him.
RED: Ah...are you Tanken?
The bird nodded and turned, demanding him to follow her.
When Red was about to follow her casually she squacked rather aggresively. She showed her wings as if signalling him to back off. Red was confused. What does she want and mean?
RED: I...I command birds but I don't speak bird.
TANKEN: *sighs* Have some disguise, genius. We need not to go there with our true forms to avoid suspiciouns.
RED: Oh. Okay.
He morphed into a Black Kite, a popular bird of prey in Japan known for its ferocity and abundance.
The crane looked impressed, then started to flap its wings, demanding the other bird to follow her.
The two flew for some minutes, before having successfully found Murasaki's location. Murasaki was unconcious. And the Jorugumo growing impatient and hungry every passing second.
...
Half of the snow spirit's body morphed with her, making her overall transformation bigger.
The Jorugumo heard the movement and quickly went to look, but there was nothing in which she saw.
Still believing there was something out there, she leaves the cave and takes a look, only to see a Crane bird grooming its feathers.
The spiderwoman smiled and felt her stomach rumble again.
JORUGUMO: Maybe a crane would taste nice for now.
She attempts to catch it, but the crane was surprisingly fast. Though know that she needs to wait for the said reaper, she was also very hungry by then, and there was no near animal in which she could feast upon, so she decided to just double the silk applied to Murasaki, who was still unconcious, to make sure he won't run away.
She curses under her breath, then decided to crawl to the cave's roof to get the crane.
The Black Kite, managed to sneak into the cave, morphing into his true form, then quietly and quickly cutting each silk with his summons.
Murasaki slowly comes back to his consciousness when he felt shocked to see the first face that greeted him.
MURASAKI: Red?
RED: Ssshh.
MURASAKI: Red they're after your head.
RED: I know.
MURASAKI: Why are you still...
RED: To get you out. Now shut up.
MURASAKI: Red...how old are you?
RED: More than a hundred and sixty.
MURASAKI: You're too young..
RED: Wow, that's really flattering, why? You a thousand years old?
MURASAKI: No, I mean...you can't beat her.
RED: I know.
MURASAKI: What?
RED: Keep it down please.
MURASAKI: Are you trying to kill yourself?
RED: Nah. I have someone to help me. Luckily. Because my original plan was to just sneak you out, 'cuz I can't beat her.
MURASAKI: B-but...what if she loses?
RED: You'll be dead, and I'll be gone forever too. Simple as that.
MURASAKI: What???
RED: I said to keep it down, didn't I?
MURASAKI: Sorry, but then...h-hurry!
RED: *raises hands* Boys, can you make it a little bit faster?
The summons agreed then split into two more each one.
The strong silk was then cut loose, Murasaki being able to stand up after. He felt wobbly, and he can't even maintain his balance without Red's help.
Red sighed then whispers his apologies to Murasaki.
MURASAKI: Why do you look like that?
Red snaps then Murasaki turns into a little Japanese tit(a small bird). Murasaki, shocked and unhappy, tried to shout at him in anger but only birdy squawks came out. Red then transforms back to being a Black Kite, picking him up and urging him to fly as well.
Murasaki, as he had never done it before, fell a couple times before Red concluded that he will just slow them down. He swooped him with both of his claws, almost surprised of its weight, then flew out of the cave.
Red was about to felt relief when suddenly he was greeted by the fearsome face of the Jorugumo, who by then had finally given up chasing the cunning crane.
JORUGUMO: When did these birds get in here?
She sounded very pissed, even more pissed when she saw that her meal was nowhere to be found. Having thought for a while, she concluded that it must be a scheme of the Red reaper.
Angry as she is, she transformed into her spider form, her eight legs extending, and enabling her to move very fast.
Red looks back, terrified while trying to carry Murasaki as well.
RED: Don't turn around. Don't turn around. Don't...turn around.
He warned the little bird but Murasaki was so curious he looked back as well.
He was surprised when he saw the monster that captured him the first place, she was already scary, but driven by hunger and desperation, she looks even more terrifying.
MURASAKI: You're...fast, right?
RED: I don't know. I've never been chased by something like this before.
MURASAKI: Really?
RED: Yeah. So just keep praying I make it out alive. With you, if course.
Red flapped his wings as if his life depends on it, well, his life pretty much does depend on it. When he felt the monster getting nearer, he teleported to a further distance.
MURASAKI: H...how? How?!
RED: Don't ask. I hate explaining unless you're someone else.
The crane noticed that the spider woman was chasing them with great determination, worried that they'd get caught and ran out of flare, she decided to fight like a Yuki no Tanken instead.