Even having a moment to breath barely eased the small sting of adrenaline, Luciel meeting the many moving eyes of the beast that identified itself as 'Unyat' in a plural sense. It was moments after this that the chimera was tilting his head, flicking an ear as he could've sworn the strange growths on top of their new...[i]associate[/i] had moved. Tiny eyes and clicking teeth glinting confirmed this, sending a ring of tinnitus through his senses as he took a step back only to find his legs lock up and feel numb. Luciel came back to his senses, shaking off almost fainting as he propped himself up on an elbow and rubbing his face with a groan, thankful the ground was at least soft enough so as not to inflict any more than a sore arm after landing on a shackle bruise. [i]'Why couldn't it have just been a normal, empty cave?[/i] The very thought of looking at Unyat made Luciel's skin crawl, but he'd apparently refocused during an explanation by Rose in regards to the scarecrows. Her talk of percents went over his head, as he found it simply a needlessly fancy way of saying 'I'm pretty sure'. Convoluted human-speak, it summed up to be, though he was curious why Rose would name Gish as the group leader. All of the effort going into explaining witches, naming people as leaders, cheeky winks...subtle implications drew Luciel to conclude Rose was trying quite hard to be friendly with the group, immediately making him skeptical of her intentions. To him, witches were just made-up antagonists in children's books to encourage them to obey out of fear of being eaten by haggard crones. In all honesty, to even call anyone a witch was a notion steeped in misunderstanding. People simply [i]want[/i], and those who use magic to get what they want are called 'witches' by those jealous of their power. The color that goes along with them is as meaningless as the size of their boots, as the toils of human aspirations cannot so simply be summed up with the hue of a color...the very idea was presumptuous and forgettable. It wasn't hard for Luciel to sum up Rose's explanation as a sort of redirection, though it was tricky to tell from what. Gish's explanation with William nearby made him slightly curious of the group. Everyone seemed to have either been from this cave or just [i]appeared[/i] in it in rapid succession timed apparently just before he blindly walked in. Though he didn't think it would be polite for him to make a joke about it being weird since he found the cave on his own accord, he did have the heart to say, "Vell...I just vahndered in...to zeh cave." His voice trailed off as he looked away, easing himself into better footing before simply being hauled to his feet by Victor who came sloshing across the shallows of the pond to do so. Luciel was glad that they could come to a consensus regarding a plan. Worst case was that the cottage was occupied and they'd have the opportunity to ask for directions or maybe if it was okay to camp...well, no...[i]worst[/i] case scenario was that the chimera was completely wrong and Gish's fears of being eaten by witches could come to fruition. Still, if push came to shove, Luciel wasn't above murdering the occupants for a chance at rest which he'd sought, hours ago. On that note, the idea of cooking the contents of his game bag sounded as enticing as ever as being marooned in a shipwreck and walking miles through forest and caves was a good way to build up an appetite. "J-jeh, I suppose" Luciel said, making a sound that may or may not have been the poorest attempt at a forced chuckle as his ears folded back from Victor's touch. A dull click came from the crossbow which had been triggered at an angle which left the bolt knocked on the spent string. With a sigh, he withdrew the bolt, holding it in his teeth while rearming the device. There arguably wasn't any apparent threat...though Luciel couldn't help but notice Unyat out of the corner of his eye, making his skin crawl; you could call it paranoia, simply having his weapon ready was enough to ease his nerves to the point of working the shake out of his steps as he followed Gish to the cottage. There were so many people to keep an eye on. Unyat needed no explanation, and the feel of their eyes tested Luciel's resolve in every waking moment he was aware of them looming just out of his willingly redirected sight. Two of the three humans were overly friendly, what with Rose trying to be helpful and Victor uncomfortably buddying up to the chimera enough to worry him considerably. Certainly a knight of his supposed standing, capable of owning a suit of armor so extravagant, would rather bother a woman like Rose. Was he just...[i]into[/i] that sort of thing? Everything was so cringe-worthy, even seeing Victor encourage William to the cabin. This left him only to Gish and William; Gish from Rose and William from Victor, it was a strange feeling to have the slightest sense of compassion...a will to protect. Luciel shook these feelings, those he concerned himself with were merely there for now until finding the reason or means to take what they could and leave, he was certain of it...and felt foolish for letting his focus slip with so much to lose from supposed 'friends' he was surrounded by. Biding his time was still the best course of action, letting himself be wheeled off to the cottage. "Ehn-yeh...V-velcome to zeh group"