Riddle Me This [open]

[stormecho]

A storm was never truly a problem. Well, not physically. The flash of lightning as it split the air was beautiful, in the wild, uncontrolled way of nature. Eika had seen many storms like this one, and the rolls of ominous thunder only made her pin her ears back slightly. As usual, the wind demon was in her true form, the rain crashing down making her fur coat heavy and darkened to an indigo rather than the usual pale blue. Shaking her head, she snorted - she was cold, wet, and the abundance of rather misty-looking fur that formed an impressive mane and tail only meant she felt heavy. Which explained why she had taken shelter from the storm in an overhang, glad for the protection it offered.

She could take being wet and irritable. Unfortunately, the storm produced high winds, and she could feel them acutely, hear the whistling as they blew past the rocks, carrying rain with them. She could feel its pull, tugging at her soul. It would be so easy to give in, to close her eyes and relish the feeling of no body; no blood or muscle or bone to weigh her down, no pain, only freedom. But that was dangerous, and she didn't want to lose herself just yet. Eyes narrowing, a lighter shade of blue than her wet fur, the yokai shifted and raised one paw, jaws closing on it and then quickly releasing at the jolt of pain. She had bitten hard enough to draw blood, and the metallic tang of it was distracting, but at least she felt more like herself now.

Sometimes, such sacrifices were neccessary. A sound - a footstep, maybe? - made her ears prick, distracting her even more from the sounds of the storm. Someone out, in this maelstrom?

[Sayuri]

Even the sky was starting to show its rage. Chaos: here, there and everywhere. There was not a single place in which Sayuri could really put her guard down and/or take a rest. She was forced to pay extreme attention to her surroundings. Nevertheless, it was not about herself whom she cared about; indeed, she was just tired of killing rebellious demons that thought of themselves as powerful and unbeatable when they obviously were not.

Heavy water drops fell on the fox's soft and pale skin as she walked slowly through the water-logged path. Almost everybody would be wearing an umbrella at the moment, covering him- or herself from the rain, but Sayuri was not a usual being. Rain was something she truly loved. Feeling her skin being cleaned with the water's purity. Moreover, the more it rained, the less youkai she would find in her way and less time would she waste.

But it was then when another presence caught her attention. Who could be walking in such a day? Sayuri tried to catch the creature's scent and although it was more difficult to recognize a scent when it was raining, the demon lady realized that it smelled similar to a dog, yet not completely. Furthermore, the demoniacal aura around the creature became more intense with every step Sayuri made closer to it.

It did not last too long until she reached the place in which the dog-alike demon was. There was no need for Sayuri to hide or try to avoid it, she was not looking for a fight after all, although she pleasantly would if the stranger decided to attack. She walked a few steps more and stopped at about twenty meters away from the giant dog. She did not talk, and neither did she move again. The six-tailed fox demon remained quiet and with her eyes fixed on the ones of the other youkai.

[stormecho]

The intruder - she forced herself to not think of the other that way, it wasn't as if this was her own territory - came into sight, stopping a safe distance away. Eika had to accord the other some measure of respect for being cautious as well as polite. Youkai, even herself, tended to be volatile and unpredictable when approached haphazardly. Especially right now. A storm was a powerful thing. Maybe she was lucky that someone else was here. That way she could focus on something other than the howling of the wind. It throbbed as if it could pull her from her body, and she leaned heavily on her injured paw, putting as much weight on it as she could. The quick flares of pain relieved the tension, lessened the pull. It gave her enough concentration that she could finally try to speak, not that the wailing of the wind allowed much to be heard.

"Greetings. A beautiful storm, is it not?" There was reverence in her tone as she spared a glance for the chaotic winds and flashes of lightning, safe from the heavy rain in her niche of shelter. The wind demon was rarely completely tactful, believing that the more to the point she was, the easier she was to understand. "There is room here, if you wish shelter." Not that she would be comfortable being so close to another demon, whom she couldn't trust... But it was raining, and being wet was hardly ever pleasant. There was enough room for them both, just about, and maybe having someone nearby to talk to would offset the effects of the storm.