[Okami pov]
Their masks changed with a certainty that only a practiced hand could find. My own head bobbed to their rhythm, a slight song that weighed slightly amongst my thoughts.
A voice that sang through the instrument they played. For their voice was… it was not heavenly - as the movement of some would suggest - more a quiet rhythm that seemed to draw one further into their performance.
An entranced gaze that brought me from the grasp of Delphine, my feet hunched across her shoulder as I watched intently.
When they finished their routine. It was with a flourish and a bow. Left to the applause of the crowd.
I smiled. As much as my maw could. And followed behind Delphine. Left for the streets that she had decided upon.
Only slightly intrigued by the quiet steps the twins made towards the rooms. Upstairs.
I yipped slightly, let Delphine rub her finger against my head in a pleasant manner. Then - as the curious fox I was - leaped from her shoulder.
Onto the street where I found myself assaulted by all manners of smell and sound. Assaulted by a hustle and bustle I had never seen before.
My eyes widened, dilated, only instinct brought me to the side. Stepped from the way of another. Who had not even noticed my presence.
But there was a small smile on Delphine as she led our journey, confident in the fact that I would follow.
She was right.
I had no other choice. No, it wasn't that cut and dry. It was a matter of trust, that nascent feeling that seemed to grow deeper and deeper within my chest.
A tight sensation that clung deeper and deeper into my heart. Enough that I curiously followed her. Through the mocks and jeers of her fellow disciples. Through the tribulations that her journey had occurred.
Of course, this too. Her exploration through these streets. Where her eye never left my own. Even as she watched the sun fade into the sky. Those that had finished their business had already left.
And out came those who sought entertainment. A purse in their hands, jingled with a clang that spoke of that same currency the twins had held.
A reddened smile omitted from their face. For they said goodbye to those they had treasured. Only to reveal that same reddened smile.
So curious. The nature and soul of man.
Full of deception. But with that deception came a beautiful symphony of seemingly endless chaos. A routine, a break. There was so much to see. So much to enjoy.
So as her soft hand brushed through my hair. My eyes merely, and with a curious touch, guided my leap.
Hands instinctively leaped to grab me. But I was slippery enough to evade their touch.
To land among the stone ground. A smile and wink, the only such measure I had given to her discomfort.
As she chased me - from the rooftops - leapt from place to place.
Only… there were so many chances for her to grab me. Like some flashy game that occurred within the minds of us, and us alone.
I smiled. A grin that reached my ear as I leapt to the shoulder of one such man. His expression devoured by surprise and drink.
Reddened by the natural light of the moon. Where he was headed, that was inconsequential. For I found enjoyment in my mere leap from his bald head.
"Hey!" He yelled but I ignored him. Did the same to each and every one I had come across. Save for one.
Her eyes seemed to pierce my own. Bright green… blue… red… a kaleidoscope of colors that seemed to shift. Evershift towards a new, brighter color. Until it finally centered on one. A color that I could not describe.
Not with my mere mind.
"You…" She muttered, the clothes that she wore were of poor quality, ready to fall at the very next moment. And what she carried, a basket of meager supplies. It told a story.
"You are not what you seem… are you?" She asked. Her eyes stared straight into mine. With a perception that seemed to pierce beyond any veil I could take upon my own.
Before I could say a word - I was just so curious - a hand tore into my side. A yip of pain that brought me back into Delphine's embrace.
The girl seemed to sulk slightly before she put upon her face a slight smile.
"We will see each other again. If fate wills it…"
It seemed like that last line. It had been placed over her other, with haste and with no thought at all. A mask to veil her true thoughts.
"S-"
Delphine shook her head. Her eyes pointed at the various people in the surroundings. Of the attention I had drawn with my antics.
And at the moon that had set so firmly upon the sky.
It was soon after that my back seemed to stretch. A crack that brought forth a yip of pleasure. As the sheets of the newly changed bed were ruffled into a comfortable shape. A hand placed over my back. Slightly pet it with a gentle hand.
"Sleep. I will wake you in the morn…"
She had turned to that outdated way of speech once more. An influence upon my thoughts that I could not deny.
"Of course." I spoke in turn. A yawn that echoed soon after. My own eyes closed, the mere image of those curtains - that veiled the moon - my last sight before all faded to a pleasant black.
Woken here and there by the shift in blankets, a ruffle that seemed to tell of someone both parting and reacquainting themselves with the bed once more.
Still, in the midst of that non-sleep, non-wake, I found myself circulating that same heavenly energy. Stretched thin into strands of power that rose through my muscles. Tightened them in preparation for some further step.
Another yawn, a hand that reached further into my fur.
And the day had once more come. A determined look upon Delphine, as she unfurled her crossed legs. Stretched and readied herself once more.