(Braiddan) Cat and Mouse (Notte)

[Braiddan]

Golden rays of sunlight peirced across the blackened canvas of the nightsky, banishing the blinding darkness. Within the trees that harbor the darkness beneath its thick brances and canopy of leaves a man hunted. Yet not for sport or for food, in his mind, he hunted for the very fate of human kind. His name was Braiddan, a freelance demon hunter who had quite a name for himself. His hair was fiery red, and he stood at an unimposing stature of five feet eleven inches. All he wore were a red jacket and breeches, only a chest piece of leather armor for protection and a blessed shortsword. His eyes were what was truely feared, they were as red as his hair. Urban myth dictates that he had been been wounded by demons so much that he was soon to become one.

Braiddan himself believed the myths, which was why he had wards tattoed upon him by high ranking shamans. Braiddan had no affiliation with the rigid cloisters of churches like other hunters. But they have not had as high of a success record as he. Twenty demons had fallen under the point of his sword, and he had the scars and the near death experiences to prove every battle. Yet now he persued a demon that had eluded his tracking so far.

He had heard stories of a vile demoness that had racked the capital city of Wyndia under pure tormoil. Yet as abrubtly as she had appeared , she disappears. He had yet to catch sight of her, and it looked like tonight won't be any different.

 

[Notte]

Notte was bored to death, having to constantly be on the move. She didn't even really have the time to stay and watch as her masterpiece of chaos and disorder plagued across the cities she visited. It wasn't what everyone thought, it was a plague of truth and uninhibited lust. She had many hunters after her, but none of them would ever catch her. Although, one had taking to stalking her, following her wherever she went. She had felt like she was an obsession, an infatuation to him.

She was a true enigma, even to her own kin. Constantly seperated and held apart from the others. She belong in two different worlds, but was accepted by neither. However, Notte had a secret, one she held eternally close to her. One that could only be found in her blood. Its why she kept running, why any time she bled, she burnt the bandages that stopped it. Always, she would hold the lie of her birth close to her.

Water splashed up around her as she bathed in the dawn. She loved the feel of washing the dirt from her body, her skin crawling with the filth of humans. The water was cool against her heated skin, but the constant flow helped to lower her temperature. Giving her a more human look, instead of the red that tainted her skin from the fire in her blood. She was the only demon that she knew of who could at least appear fully human. A cursed heritage.

Her breasts were heavy, full, to big to fit into a mans hands. Her waist was tapered and small, hourglass. Belly was flat, toned, and lead down to the V of her ample hips. She had a very generous body, one that was always exotic and beautiful. Lithe. Her hair hug down to her bottom in long black waves streaked with red and blond. Another trait from her parents. But her most exotic feature was her eyes. Deep set and tricolored. Stormy gray, winter sky blue, and lavender violet.

 

[Braiddan]

Splashing, something was in a body of water close by, not exactly thrashing, more like relaxing. He drew his sword, it glowing, something demonic was close, he was sure. So Braiddan crouched, moving through the forest silently going to the source of the sound he had heard. It had seemed he did grow a slight obession for hunting down this demoness, it's been a year since he got the job and he had yet to see any trace of her, he believed that would drive any man to the point of obsession.

When he finally arrived near the body of water, he was stunned to see a human looking woman bathing withen it. In fact he stumbled upon the sight of her, a branch cracked beneath him. He held his breath as he quickly slipped behind a bush, red kind of stood out in a forest. And there he watched her, seeing if she even noticed the sound, or his hasty dive into the bushes.

 

[Notte]

Notte had just emerged from the water when she heard the snap of a branch coming from in the forest. She sighed heavily, disappointed that her bath had been cut short. She ducked under the water, leaving only her head above and searched around as if she were human. She smelt him, knew that she was being watched by a human man and she knew his sent. It was her hunter. She smiled on the inside, but didn't let it show. Maybe it would be fun to play with him a little. As long as he kept on thinking that she was human.

She looked around frantically, making the water splash this way and that. Acting completely innocent, totally human. "Who is it?! Whose there?! Is someone there?" Her voice was raised high as a frightened female humans would be. "Please, whoever you are! Please, don't hurt me!" She made tears clog her throat, even when there weren't none. "Viktor, if that is you... I swear! I'll tell my papa and he'll come after you."

 

[Braiddan]

Braiddan decided to get to his feet, not letting the woman stand there in fear while she waited to see who it was. "Ah'm no Victor, Ah was 'untin this area. I 'eard splashin' and thought it was a demon delving intae the deep. Ah apologize, lass" Of course he did not explain why he dove behind the bushes and decided to spy on her until she spoke. But he figured she didn't need to know. His sword was still glowing however, but he had never heard of demons that could assume a human form.

Sighing, he sheathed his sword, if the demoness were to reveal herself, she would of done so already. Now he decided it was his duty to make sure the woman all by herself in the woods was safe. HE had to admit she was quite a sight, he even forgot about the demoness he was persuing for a while.

 

[Notte]

She swam back away from him, looking at him as if he were crazy. "Sir... there are no such things as demons. There are only humans that commit graveous sins. Are... are you sure that you didn't come from one of those asylums? You don't think your a demon yourself, do you?" Her voice showed slight fear, a tremor of fear laced through it. It was a survival instinct for her, she had to pretend to be something she wasn't her whole life, she could have gotten praises for her acting skills. She could have joined the theatre if it hadn't be for the fact that she was always on the run.

She swam side ways, her breasts teasing the surface of the water. Her clothing was on the same water bank as he was and he was near it, but not close enough that she wouldn't be able to grab it and run. She reached the edge of the bank and sit beneath the water, her eyes large and watching him. "May I.. may I get out and get dressed please? I'll move slowly, just don't hurt me." The way she spoke, was very refined, high class. There was little drawl to her words. It was obvious that she was of status, but she was able to change her accent and speech anyway that she needed to so long to keep her hidden.

 

[Braiddan]

"Oh there be demons lass, Ah've slain a score o' them in me life time. And no, they 'aven't corrupted my soul just yet, even though they got damn close." Braiddan said, obviously the woman has never heard of him, nor could she see his red eyes, because she seemed to pass him off as completly normal. Which he found odd, he wasn't allowed in most cities bacuse of his reputation or people claiming he was a demon. There was also the fact of his outlandish thick accent, which she seemed to take no notice of.

"Alrigh lass, no need tae fear me." He said taking his hand off his sword and turning his back to her, so she could get dressed without him seeing. Even though the idea of pounceing on the woman was tantilizing, he decided against it, knowing it would just lead to more trouble he didn't need.

 

[Notte]

She gasped in fiend shocked surprise as if she were truely afraid of him. "D..don't you know that murder is a si..sin?" She stumbled over her words as if she couldn't get them out fast enough. She turned her head down and hunched her shoulders up, as if she was afraid to look at him for the fear of him attacking her. Especially in her vulnerable state of undress. She talked slow as if he were a child and flinched away from him as if he were crazy.

When he turned away from her, she stepped out of the water. Flowing out of it as if she were apart of the water itself, some strange exotic mermaid. No, she was neither, she was half demon, half something else that she would kill anyone who knew. She moved towards her clothing and bent over to retrieve them. She pulled on first her white see through white robe that doubled as a chemise and nightwear. She started to pull on her other robes until she was fully draped, but still appealing. She sat down on a dry rock and put her sandals back on. She stood up, clothed in holy robes. "All...alright. I'm dressed."

 

[Braiddan]

Braiddan turned around to see the woman now clothed in holy robes. His eyes rolled as he shrugged with a slight chuckle. "Well tha' explains everything, yer a gullible lil church lamb" He said, of course the church tells the general public that demons do not exist, but then send legions upon legions of hunters to chase demons down. "O course the church thinks they don't exsist. They couldn't track down a cow with child, let alone a demon"

Braiddan also had a habit of harassing church goers and the like, of course they seem to drain the fun out of it now a days, unless he finds the really snobby ones. Suddenly though, a yelp escaped his lips as a black mist escaped from his shoulder, that smelt of sulfer. "Damn, Litho's bite still sting ever after death" He said shaking his head slightly. He turned his head back to the woman, releaving his eyes to her. "Sorry abou' that"

 

[Notte]

Her mouth dropped open in shock, but on the inside she was laughing. If only he knew what she truly was, if only he knew that she was the Demoness that he was hunting. She wondered what he would think, if he would get that sick feeling in his stomach from being attracted to the very thing that he hated, hunted, tried to destroy. "What we dislike most in others, is what we hate most within ourselves." She whispered the words as if she were afraid that he would attack or kill her should he hear them.

She made herself fall backwards and land hard on the ground as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing, but couldn't look away as the black mist rolled out of him. She made the sign of faith over herself as she looked at him, just disgusted on the inside as she acted out her part. When he revealed his eyes to her, she let out a shriek of fear and crossed herself again - all the while smiling on the inside. She had to hide everything on the inside. "Please, Sirrah, don't hurt me! I have not done nothing wrong. Are you... are you Gods punishment for my impurity?"

 

[Braiddan]

"No, it's just an old would actin' up. Usually when that 'appens there is a demon near by" He said simply as he looked about the place, he still had yet to realize who he was searching for was right infront of him. Which caused his sword to glow, his wounds to reopen and the like. But that was the kind of flaw someone had when they studied demons all their life, the scholars arrogance of if it is not in a book, or a story passed down for generations it simply doesn't exist. That was his theory on a demon that could assume human shape. And by the looks of it, that theory was not going to change anytime soon.

"And what are ye babblin about impurity for?" He asked finally as he looked over her form. There was something strange about her, but he couldn't determine what. But he simply took the whole impurity comment to mean she bedded before she was married, which seems to be a think the church dispises. "What are ye doin' so far out of town anyway" He knew that if he walked to the nearest town right now, it would be around nightfall when he got there.

 

[Notte]

"Sirrah, is there truly such a thing as demons? If there are, does that mean that there are Angels too?" Her voice now held a note of interest. As if she truly were a lamb of her faith and she would sacrifice herself to it. Then her eyes clouded with a note of terror and she moved towards him, like he was the hero that could protect her. "Does... does that mean that... that there is a de-demon out there right n..now?" She stood up quickly and hid behind him, her breasts pressing into his back as if she could hide herself within him. "Wh..what if the demon has been wa..watching me this whole wh..while?"

She hid her face between his shoulder blades and smiled, not that he could see or feel it. She was having a grand time playing the damsel in distress. Most men just fell like rocks thrown into a lake and they often times drown. "I ran away from home after my fiancée forced his needs upon me. Even though I didn't want it and wished to wait for marriage, my father still called me a sinful whore and an adulteress. I have.. no home now." Her voice was low, soft, choked. The lie was also one that was very believable in their times and she used it to her advantage.

 

[Braiddan]

"If the demon were a he, he would of tried tae kill me and 'ave 'is way with ye. But Ah 'ave a pretty strong feeling the demon is a woman. Ah really 'ave no clue of a female demon's methods"He said shrugging, but suddenly winced as she clung to him. He just had a fresh ward tattooed on his back, it was still sore and her face was right on it. "Easy! Ah 'ave wounds back there" He growled slightly as he drew his sword, the woman was really getting him nervous. He didn't like using bait during hunting, and this woman was just that

"Sirrah does not care about Marriage, only the church and the tax men do. Ye should be fine. " He said, his sword was glowing very brightly now. He could actually feel heat from it. Something was really close, like right behind him. "No one cursed ye are anythin' did they?" He asked finally, maybe the woman had an invisible demon following her, of maybe she was even possesed, he had to make sure.

 

[Notte]

"Oh no! Say it isn't so! The first time it happened. It had hurt so much, I never want to feel that kind of pain again. Don't let the fowl demon get me, please, Sirrah." She spoke and let tears fall down her cheeks. They were big fat crocodile tears, but she knew that he wouldn't be able to tell the difference. Her lower lip trembled prettily as the tears fell. She jumped away from his back as if it had burned her, because she had accidentally hurt him. "I'm sorry. I'm just so frightened."

Her eyes widened as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Well, when my parents found out they brought me to the church and the church told me that I was a sinner and that I was cursed with impurity and lust because of what had happened. They said that it was all my fault because I'm a beautiful woman."

 

[Braiddan]

"Well, ye are a beautiful woman. But Ah always considered it a blessing and a curse from the gods. It's definantly not yer fault though. Ah 'ave strayed away from the church, they altered the word of the god's oracles, what they give ye is nothing but half truths. But ye'll find someone worthy of ye." He said trying to console the woman a bit to calm her down,if there was an outside demon present he can't have the woman going hysterical, it would just complicate things. But with his last comment there was a hint of his own lonelyness in his voice. His constant life on the move casuing him to have no friends and no lover. But he felt hunting was his duty.