Cenisa came to her senses and apart of her wanted to take in the woods. The other side of her, she didn't wanna hear.
What did that man call them? She looked back at the trees that wee half apple and half pinecone.
The Huíshōu? At the moment, there was only one large tree with it's roots greeting the surface of the light green grass.
Were there more?
As she looked around the woods, there was a part of the woods that was lightly thinner to the left. When moved to it, there was a slight space she could squeeze through.
It was a tight fit and she swore she stepped in poison ivy. On the otherside, there were dozen's of apple and pinecone trees. The tallest was planted in the middle with a large rope around the trunk. The branches on the tree were enormous with large leaves. She guessed the fruit were bigger if it came from that tree.
She pushed pass some branches to get through. She wanted to eat the whole garden. How tall was the tree, the sun could barely slip through the foliage.
She hoped on her toes. That last apple was some juicy.
She squinted her eyes, and used the rope around the tree to perform a one large leap. She able to grab a branch and she rested on the thought of what the fuck she was.
But does apples…
She got on the branch so she could sit down. She stood up again and did a large leap in the air. She caught a branch and sat on it. She near the top. She stood on the branch and reached for the apple above her.
She plucked it and ate the apple, it was harder than the last few. She finished the apple and held the pinecone. She bent back the pickle of the cone. Wedge in between was a small seed.
She through the seed in her mouth and it was edible. Her cheek felt itchy. "TENG!" she heard a voice. She jumped down and peek in the woods where the body was. "TENG! WHA--BABA! BABA COME QUICK!" It was a woman with neck length hair and one eye. She was hugging the corpse. Cenisa crept out the section of the woods, she understood. That woman cared about somebody and they were gone. She did that.
"HELP!" the woman yelled as she caught her stepping out the trees. "Somebody killed my brother!"
She stared at her. "Did you hear me?" she cried. "Help!" she looked at her brother. "Please!"
Cenisa moved to the crying woman and laid her hand on her head. "Wha… I … I can't…" like her brother, the light consumed her and travelled into Cenisa. She scratched her cheek again.
"I did it again…" she looked at her hands. "All I know is harm…"
Cenisa wasn't in Georgia anymore. If she could get that energy in it, maybe she could think. She walked out the woods into sunlight and she was in front of a large corp field. "Good day, ma'am!" greeted a balded head man toweling the earth. "what is this?"
"This year we're growing cabbages." he stopped toweling. "Are you new?"
"Uh… yes." she looked at the field, it was a good sized field with two type of corps. Cabbage and some type of beans. "This is Yugayama Village. Where did you come from?"
"South…" he scratched her cheek. "Soksong village? Are you here to trade?"
"No. Actually, I'm traveling…" she didn't know what to say but it sounded like a good answer. "Fantastic, my name is Jingguo. My brother is Xiaowen, he's a trader in the village and aunt is a doctor."
"My name is…" she averted her gaze. "Ci Woo?" That was too easy. "I'll show you around. Yugayama is a friendly place, sit and rest here, if you don't mind. Make some friends." he put down the tool and followed him into the village. In middle of the village was a well surrounded by rock. "What's in the well?" she asked.
"Water." he looked back at her and grinned. "We actually have a small restaurant here. So, I'll show you there first."
"Thank you…" Along the way, Jingguo explained certain places like the school and the shrine. The school was Fenkai and the children learned basic village occupations, history, and fighting. "Almost every boy that goes to Fenkai wants to be a guard. I bet it's because of the legend of the Fǎnshè."
"The Fǎnshè?" they had arrived and place was full of villagers already. "Jingguo!" a man with short hair struggled to get up from the floor. "Jingguo, I finally found it."
"Your wife's wedding ring?" Jingguo joked with a smile. The other didn't take it as funny. "No, the talisman of the jiangshi. I found it walking in the woods near the village."
"I don't understand why your so obsessed with some hopping drunkard."
"I'm telling you it's linked to the prophecy in the shrine. Those Oni knew something and the bureaucrat is dead."
Jingguo narrowed his eyes and just looked at him. "Bolin, how old are you?" he folded his arms. "My age doesn't matter." the boy grimaced. "It does because I'm too old for bullshit like vampires that hop on one foot."
"Damn--can't you at least listen and be silent." argued Bolin. "No," Jingguo rolled his eyes. "You keep wanting to travel and that's fine. But not letting a fool stay in my house."
"I'm a fool!" Bolin's lips parted. "Are you fucking with me!"
"I'm not your father…"
"I swear this whole village has been against me since my parents got killed by the Oni."
"You are half and the villages dead baby--"
"Dead baby!"
"Your half!" he stressed. "Bolin, your mother started it and now you wanna be like Shuye was."
"Jingguo! Shut up!" yelled a thin woman in the restaurant. She used a cane to get around the tables. Her black hair tied in a bun. She put her hand on Bolin, "Listen, go make the rice balls for me. Jingguo just mad cause he's dying." the woman look at Cenisa. "Why are dressed like that?"
"Ci, this is Xinchou." he introduced. "Nice to meet you… what in God's name are you wearing?"
"Uh…"
"She's a traveler." said Jingguo. "Her skin is darker then mine."
"I'm black…" she said through her teeth. "Xinchou, don't be like that."
"You think this is normal?" she looked Cenisa up and down. "She's weird."
"Xin…"
"No, don't come in here."
"And criticized me…"
"Shut up, she looks funny." she gawked at her. "Where are you from?"
"I'm sorry, let me introduce myself right." she grabbed her hand. "My name is…" Xinchou dropped her cane and kept smacking Cenisa hands. Cenisa's grip tighten. "Hey!"
"Let me go!" Xinxhou yelled. She grew smaller in her flesh. Jingguo tried getting his fingers between Cenisa's but instead she held them but. One of the patrons intervened. He punched Cenisa in the face, her skin cracked showing the white under.
"What are you!"
Her eyes turned red and black lines appeared under her eyes. The inside of her mouth was black as she hissed at the man. Her tongue slithered out and licked his cheek. Xinchou dropped completely, her body small to the bone as well as Jingguo.
"AUNTIE!" Bolin raced out the kitchen with a knife. He stabbed Cenisa in the face. Her tongue wrapped his arm and she grabbed it.
He tried to pull away and quickly revealed his necklace. "MOVE!" he screamed. "I MOVE YOU!"
The coin sized necklaced shined in Cenisa's eyes. She let Bolin go and jumped out of the doorway. "You're a vampire!"
She rolled her tongue out and looked at the people standing astonished. Cenisa couldn't think of anything else kept she needed energy, she needed to heal. "What is that!"
"Is it a demon!"
"The oni has risen!"
"Look at me vampire!" shouted Bolin. "Look at me!"
Mass confusion. He clapped his hands, he thought to himself that he didn't have time to get pots from the kitchen. He whistled, "Look! Look!"
Cenisa growled and jumped as high as she could. She landed on top of a fat man and gripped the back of his neck. His head shrunk and screams rose to the sky. "GUARDS! GUARDS!" she dashed across the dirt to seize a woman's throat. Like the rest she took the life out of her and through her lifeless body on the ground.
And she found herself there to… again.