What should she do? What can she do? Should she stand and run for the forest? No, they are faster and will catch Adalia before she makes it to the woods. Should she take her sword? would that help her escape? High chance Adalia is going to end up fighting for her life that way. So, should she start fighting for her life? Can she? She barely won against the last D-type, if one would consider that time a victory. She can't move. The wolf only pinches Adalia's chin, but all of her joints lock as if wires grow out of the wolf's fingers, slither into her body, and tie around all of her bones.
Hawu just stares. She doesn't even feel the hand holding the demon's face. What should she do? What can she do? Every option going across her mind will cause panic. Kill her? Everyone would think she killed a pup. Expose her? That'll put the whole village in turmoil. She's frozen. The demon is frozen. Neither knows what to do. Neither can do anything.
"Kima! There you are. I was wondering where you went. You haven't even finished your food yet." A familiar voice shatters the ice. The aged gray wolf pulls away Adalia and encases her in her embrace. "Sorry, Hawu. I found this pup near the demon walls. She was buried in the ground with only her legs sticking out," Klawa says.
Hawu is baffled. Why would Klawa defend a demon? Even if she has the moon charm, it's not worth risking the safety o an entire village.
Adalia is baffled. Why would Klawa defend her? Even if Adalia has the moon charm, she's more beneficial for the wolves if she dies here and now.
Why?
Why would she do that? What's her plan? What's her goal?
Adalia can't say anything. She can't do anything. She's still recovering and the wolf's embrace is too strong. If she speaks, her voice, her accent, and her dialect will give her away.
Hundreds of eyes stare at them and each other. Wolves nearby stop doing whatever they were doing to see what's going on. The air is cold and almost feels solid. Only the trees are making sounds.
Hawu is taken aback, but she's responsible for this tension. A crowd is forming, because of her.
"Nothing to see here," she has to say. "Go back to your own businesses."
The wolves chatter as they dissipate. Klawa leaves with the demon in her embrace. Hawu is still on edge, she rushes towards the aged wolf and snatches her arm.
"We need to talk about this," she whispers.
_____________________________________________
Klawa pours some grape juice for Adalia, herself, and the siblings. Despite the day still starting the air is hotter than the sun. Adalia is sweating, what are they going to do? Hawu and Lawu are sweating, what is she going to do?
The aged wolf sits beside, between, the two sides. " So, Adalia, this is Hawu and Lawu. Hawu, Lawu, this is Adalia."
The calm bursts into chaos. Lawu and Adalia jump at each other. Lawu extends his claws and bares his fangs, but his sister grapples him and they both fall backward. Adalia reaches for her sword, but Klawa holds her tight, embracing her before she could swing. She's too strong for Adalia, especially now with all the injuries.
"Calm down, calm down. They're not going to hurt you. I'm not letting them," Klawa says.
"Hey, Lawu, Lawu! Bro, chill!"
"What are you doing? She's a demon!"
"You think I'm stopping you for no reason? She'd be dead if I want her to be."
"Okay, fine!" Lawu relaxes and Hawu lets him go. "Explain!"
"Right, you..." Hawu looks at Adalia who's still locked in Klawa's arms. "Show him the thing."
No response.
"Oh, sorry, you can't move like this." Klawa lets go of Adalia.
They're all staring at her. Should she do as they say? There's not much option. That is, if at all. Best to cooperate.
Adalia lifts her hand. She shows the ring on her finger.
"Ok, the fuck is that supposed to be?"
"That's the moon charm," Hawu says.
"Right... How do you know it's not a fake?"
"How would the demons know how the moon charm looks?"
"I don't know, they captured one of us and interrogated them?"
"How would they know of it in the first place?"
"They've been here for some time, I'm sure they've heard of the celestial wolf somewhere."
"It won't come off!"
"It's glued on!"
Hawu sighs and rubs her face. "There's no convincing you, is there?" She holds her brother by his shoulders and turns at Klawa and Adalia. "Can you give us a moment?" She says, smiling.
"Sure, go and settle yourselves," Klawa replies.
Hawu pushes Lawu to another room and closes the curtain. Their voices are muffled from behind the cloth barrier.
"By the way... You still haven't finished your food. Why don't you eat while we wait for them?"
"I told you, I'm not hungry," says Adalia, just before her stomach cries for sustenance.
"Maybe, but your body still needs nutrition to recover." Klawa lets Adalia go and brings her food.
"I have a plan, alright. I have something in mind about all this," Hawu explains.
Lawu is very reluctant. However, she is his sister. The least he can do is listen to what she has to say. He exhales, "Ok, go on."
"Right, so... I'm thinking why don't we use this opportunity to show her that we're not all bad?"
Lawu crosses his eyebrows and opens his mouth a crack. He's still very much unsure, however, he can't help but be intrigued. "Explain," he says.
"Madam Klawa told me that she found her unconscious. Which means that her only experience with wolves so far is with Madam Klawa and with us. If we keep the good impression until she recovers and eventually returns to her place, she can convince everyone else there's no reason to kill us and may even stop this war before it gets even crazier."
It does sound like a good idea. It's a chance to make things turn for the better and even if it doesn't work, it's not going to make things any worse. However, Lawu is still unconvinced. What if something goes wrong while Adalia stays here?
"I don't know, sis. And like, you sure we're her only experience with wolves? She could be one of the ones attacking villages."
"Not entirely, but she does look different than the ones attacking us and she's wearing different stuff too. If we know one thing about them besides how dangerous they are is that they care a lot about uniforms. We'll be with her making sure everything goes well and we'll keep her weapon too. It'll be as safe as it can be."
Lawu thinks for a second. He doesn't really have any reason to go against his sister's plan. It is a good plan. It's a great idea if everything goes well. Is it worth the risk? Well, if he's being reluctant about it, it's only going to lower the chance of the plan working. If he wants this to work, he must trust Hawu and commit to it.
"Ok, we'll go with your plan. Let's do it."
Hawu hugs her brother. "Thank you. We'll show her how we really are."