A slight shiver ran up Jin’s back as he hurried along and his Knight whipped its head around, scanning for threats. He had the vaguest sense of being watched, and it irked him more than an actual attack would have. Still, he calmed down a bit at the sight of Tamashi further down the street and coming their way. Even if they were attacked, with her presence even death, apparently, wasn’t permanent. He waved a hand in greeting, halted to let her survey the damage, and sighed in relief as he felt his body stitch itself back together under the fox-lady’s magic. 

[color=39b54a]“Band of Youkai tried to take us apart. Nothing too big,”[/color] he explained as he reached into one of the pouches on his belt and took out a wad of cash. While it was likely she wouldn’t have charged for such a menial job, Jin was hardly short on cash. She had come through for him on several occasions, even if she made it look trivial, so he always paid her for the time. He turned to Cinwi and jabbed a thumb over his shoulder at Tamashi’s, [color=39b54a]“This is Tamashi, best healer I know of in the Crimson Sky. Make friends, or at least acquaintances with her.” [/color]

With the minor injuries taken care of, his main reason for visiting Dengeki had vanished. The sensation of being watched had not quite disappeared and his Knight had continued its observation albeit to no avail. If either of the two Youkai had noticed, then they gave away little indication. Oh well, he wouldn’t rope either of them in for the moment then. [color=39b54a]“In fact, I’ll leave you two alone to do just that.[/color]” He turned about and walked back from where the two of them had come, pausing to address Cinwi, [color=39b54a]“Feel free to call if you need help. 90-4185-5143.”[/color] With that and not a moment of hesitation, he turned into a pitch dark alley to begin his search.

They...were not fighting? Ruu was genuinely confused and the fact that they were meeting up with a second Youkai wasn't helping. [color=f26522][i]"Faust! Why aren't they killing each other?!"[/i][/color] Ruu asked him now.

Faust was silent for a moment, considering what answer he should give. [color=82ca9d][i]'They are ... allies.'[/i][/color] - [color=f26522][i]"Allies? What's that?"[/i][/color] - [color=82ca9d][i]'They help each other out'[/i][/color]

Ruu started to pout. She was clearly dissatisfied with his answers. Not to mention, Youkai and Human working together? What sort of comedy was this supposed to be? Regardless, it looked like the human was actually splitting from the group, in fact, he was actually moving towards her!

For a second she considering just eating him but ultimately decided against it, no, Ruu just devised a fantastic plan. That would show Faust to not mess with her like that!
[hr]If he had stayed on the street he probably wouldn’t have been able to hear anything, but under the alley’s darkness Jin’s ears strained to catch any noise. It wasn’t quite distinct, so he could have been mistaken, but all he heard sounded like gibberish. Useless for the most part, but it did alert him that the other party wasn’t alone. The javelin was twirled silently in his Knight’s hand as he crept forward quietly, halting when the voice stopped. 

There was no further sound of movement though and Jin quietly began to move further into the alley, scanning above him, before he rounded a corner. His Knight was posed to strike, but of course there was nobody there. [color=39b54a]“Where are you,”[/color] he murmured quietly, hoping the voice would jolt the other party into action and give away their position.

Mhm! It looked like he was searching for her! That would have been the perfect time to strike, alas Ruu decided for something different. Merging with the shadows in her hiding spot it was easy to get a few metres behind the male human and emerge from the dark wall. [color=f26522][b]"Ruu!"[/b][/color] Hopefully, she managed to scare him.

While Jin’s body didn’t turn, the spirit attached to him whirled about independently and brought its weapon to bear at the Youkai. He might have been able to see well in the dark, but the soul saw the world in its own way. Not nearly as detailed or beautiful, but effective in its own right. It… well she now that he had heard her voice, looked odd, but then again he perceived humans differently from one another. If he had to describe it, Jin would probably say her soul looked bloated, larger than he would have expected. 

Nonetheless, his body turned to face the Youkai and he raised an eyebrow at her attempt to… scare him or something? He wasn’t exactly certain what her plan had been, but it didn’t seem like she was dangerous at the moment. Oh the scent of blood was certainly thicker around her, but he wasn’t about to run her through just because of that. [color=39b54a]“What’s that? Your name?”[/color]

He...didn't seem scared at all! Curses. Ruu already failed. Regardless, now that she was closer, he actually seemed a little bit off, but nothing too unusual.

Now, Ruu continued to talk...or at least she tried to, after all, all what Jin could understand was some sort of gibberish.

Well then… apparently the Youkai couldn’t actually speak Japanese, or any human language given he didn’t recognize a trace of what it said. Did that mean it also couldn’t understand him? [color=39b54a]“Problematic,”[/color] he murmured mostly for himself before he walked past her and motioned for Ruu to follow. Maybe Tamashi or Cinwi would be able to understand her if she spoke some default Youkai language.

Ruu continued to talk her gibberish, in fact, it seemed like she was having a conversation nonetheless, though apparently not a pleasant one.

Understanding his motion though, Ruu actually decided to follow the human, for now, revealing her tattered one pieced simple dress and her bloody and dirty body in all its glory.

[color=39b54a][i]‘Multiple entities?’[/i][/color] It would also explain why her soul seemed larger than he would have figured and given the continued gibberish and pauses in between, it seemed like Ruu was in the middle of a conversation. So a plausible explanation, but not the only one to keep in mind for now. 

As traces of light filtered in from alley’s entrance, Jin paused to turn and actually look at the Youkai he had encountered. [color=39b54a][i]‘Oh...’[/i][/color] He hadn’t really expected a pretty picture, but a loli covered in blood with a torn dress was certainly out of expectations. Naturally, given her inability to communicate Jin could also surmise that she was either rather young or had simply not learned of human culture. Either way pointed towards her as someone who probably fed on humans and was covered in the lifeblood of her latest meal. 

[color=39b54a]“Well then… go on back I suppose.”[/color] His Knight waved with its spear tip aimed at Ruu for her to retreat back to the shadows. While personally he didn’t have an issue with the whole eat humans to survive most Youkai for the most part, he was fairly sure that this close to Dengeki would not be conductive to Ruu’s health if she was in the open. Soaked in blood as she was, he was certain that there would be some Chaser who would love to harvest her Soul Stone tonight.
[hr]Ruu continued to brabble on, her voice became a little more heated until she pouted, crossed her arms and stomped one of her tiny legs onto the ground, giving away some of her Youkai strength further enhanced by Terror.

After that, it didn't take long until Faust suddenly stood there. Humanoid in shape just looking at him could give one a headache. He looked familiar, yet every time a word, a name, a feature was coming to mind that could describe him it was like all his features had changed. Heck, was he actually here the entire time?

Regardless, he gave the human a bow before beginning to speak in the local human language. [color=82ca9d][b]"Greetings, Chaser. You may call me Faust."[/b][/color] Ruu in the meantime, was apparently impatiently waiting for something, hence her not standing still at all.

He watched impassively as the Youkai grew agitated, enough that she began to engage in the destruction of property. Couldn’t be certain if that was any useful gauge of her strength given how casual the gesture was, but it didn’t seem too out of hand. 

Naturally his attention drifted towards the humanoid that appeared next to Ruu and his Knight tightened its grip around the javelin’s shaft. Not quite jumping straight to violence despite the creature’s suspicious appearance, but certainly unafraid of the possibility. He grew tired of the being’s rapidly shifting appearance rather quickly and instead turned his focus back towards Ruu; much easier on the eyes.

He could still see the other creature from the corner of his eye and Jin reciprocated the bow even if his gesture wasn’t nearly as low. [color=39b54a]“Wow,” [/color]he murmured, actually surprised a Youkai would take such a name, [color=39b54a]“really looking to put people off with your introduction, huh? But what do you want?”[/color] The Youkai had obviously showed itself for a reason and he was curious; Ruu seemed rather unique as far as Youkai went, though it seemed like Faust was the true intelligence behind the amalgamation of creatures. At least, if there weren’t any other intelligent creatures stored within their soul.

Faust was silent for a moment, his shape making it impossible to figure out what exactly he was thinking he spoke up. [color=82ca9d][b]"If this little girl here would do what I want, we wouldn't even be here."[/b][/color] Faust made sure to let the rude Chaser know that he wasn't really happy with the situation. [color=82ca9d][b]"You see, the little one wants to be your ally."[/b][/color]

There was probably more to that, but for now, Faust decided to wait and act based on the human's reaction. Ruu spoke now again too, at which Faust replied in the very same [i]language[/i], a single word, but enough to make Ruu look a bit disappointed.

[color=39b54a]“Smart,”[/color] he remarked, easily picking up that Faust hardly liked the situation as it stood. Well at least it clarified who was in charge, at least for the moment. [color=39b54a]“And why would she want that?”[/color] Jin asked as he tilted his head just slightly to express curiosity and interest. He supposed Ruu was still fairly young as a Youkai and if she had seen him next to Cinwi it was probably fairly odd. In fact this right here was likely strange as Jin figured if she ever met Chasers it generally devolved into combat fairly quickly. 

Just as the male chaser guessed, Faust confirmed his conclusion, kind of. [color=82ca9d][b]"She saw you with another Youkai and was genuinely confused why you got along."[/b][/color] He paused again, before giving off a sigh. [color=82ca9d][b]"As you can surely conclude the little one is still very young. I decided it would be for the best to make her realize not all humans are...food."[/b][/color]

He sighed again, telling a Chaser that Ruu was a human eating Youkai wasn't in the best of his interests, especially considering where they were, but then again Faust figured he already knew anyways considering Ruu's attire.

[color=82ca9d][b]"'Allies help each other out.'"[/b][/color] Faust quoted in a regretting fashion. [color=82ca9d][b]"You see, if you let her eat your finger, she considers you an [i]ally[/i]... in return she also lets you eat hers."[/b][/color] Of course, that last bit, while serious, was out of the question, but hey maybe he actually had some young girl Youkai eating fetish and it would all work out? By now, Ruu was hanging in there, in fact, she was silent and bit deep into her own hand to ease her desire.

[color=39b54a]“It’s nice being right,”[/color] Jin muttered offhandedly, before addressing Faust, [color=39b54a]“and, again, smart. Tend to live longer the earlier they realize that.”[/color] Perhaps other Chasers might have called him a monster for letting a maneater live, but they would he didn’t really enjoy wallowing in hypocrisy. Unless they were of the “Murder all the Youkai” mindset, as far as he knew Chasers generally had some sort of interaction with some Youkai. Which meant they dealt with creatures that sustained themselves off either humans or lesser youkai that ate humans at some point. 

Those thoughts aside he raised an eyebrow at Faust’s odd proposal. The closest thing he could think of was some vampire ritual where the two parties exchanged blood to form some sort of bond. Still… even if he knew of something that resembled this, Jin sure as hell wasn’t about to just form a contract or bond with Ruu at random. [color=39b54a]“Interesting, but I’m not up to feeding some random Youkai my body parts. Bring a geis or the like next time and I’ll consider it.”[/color] If he could reign Ruu in and wean her diet to one that didn’t consist of other people than it would be a worthy use of his time Jin supposed. 

From Ruu’s subdued manner though, it seemed like she was just barely holding herself back. A voracious one then, given it couldn’t have been long since she just ate from her state. [color=39b54a]“I suppose some blood is acceptable though, if that’ll work.”[/color] As far as he knew even vampires, with their expertise in blood magic, couldn’t do much with blood if it was freely given. Something about the act of taking it allowing for manipulation, or the sort, he hadn’t really gone in depth with their discussion. 

Faust was dissatisfied with this answer. Of course, it wouldn't have been as easy as he hoped for. [color=82ca9d][b]"Of course, you have every right to be suspicious."[/b][/color] How was he supposed to handle this? They were way too close to the Hunter Association.

Paying no attention to the Chaser for the time being, Faust got into a conversation with Ruu. Freeing her hand from her mouth, the strong bite wound she had created already started to close itself as she replied to Faust. Whatever they talked about, Ruu seemed dissatisfied at first, even glaring at the male Human.

A few words later though she seemed all harmless again and stepped with big eyes closer to him. [color=82ca9d][b]"She would agree to your blood, but she wants lots of it."[/b][/color] Faust gave him to understand.

Jin would admit it was a bit irritating to stand by and watch as the two Youkai discussed amongst themselves, no doubt about him. Ruu’s glare might have been intimidating with the whole covered in blood thing, but her loli, yes he was familiar with the term, appearance sort of ruined any chance of that. He did note that she also seemed to have slight regenerative abilities. 

[color=39b54a]“Well she gets as much as I want to give, so tell her to deal with it. Also, safety precautions.”[/color] He didn’t know if the taste of blood would send her instincts wild, but Jin didn’t exactly feel like dying because he decided to feed a Youkai like some sort of pet. He stepped closer to Ruu and the Knight reached down to wrap a gauntlet around the Youkai’s neck. His grip was firm, but with a simple flex he would snap her neck. At the same time the tip of its javelin hung inches from her heart, ready to pierce it without hesitation. All of this was done slowly though, giving Ruu more than enough time to escape. If she couldn’t deal with that, well better luck finding another blood bag.
[color=82ca9d][b]”...!”[/b][/color]  How could he have been so stupid? Trusting in some foreign human like that. Sounding way more serious now, he again talked to Ruu, who, unlike Faust, seemed pretty chill about the entire situation.

[color=f26522][b]"Ruu!"[/b][/color]  Either she was oblivious to the danger she was in or was not feeling threatened at all.

A bit surprising to be honest, but maybe her child-like mind didn’t realize the dangerous situation she had just put herself into. Faust on the other other hand didn’t seem to like their positions, even if his rapid-fire gibberish seemed ineffective at convincing her. [color=39b54a]“Ruu indeed,”[/color] he murmured as his Knight tightened its grip to hold her steady and Jin ran the edge of one hand over the palm of the other. A thin line was drawn over the toughened skin, and he held it over the Youkai’s mouth. With a squeeze, the red ran free and he watched her carefully for any reaction.

As the sweet red nectar was traveling down her throat, Ruu's eyes became more tranquil, her face started to blush and her body temperature increased. If it wasn't already clear how much she enjoyed those meals, it was about to become clear day when the Youkai girl actually started to moan slightly. His blood was apparently very delicious?

[color=39b54a]“Joy…”[/color] Jin muttered dryly as he felt her skin flush as she drank his lifeblood. If he wasn’t wro- Oh, yeah, there it was. He actually scratched at his head with his free hand as he clenched and unclenched his fist several times to speed up the flow of blood. This… would be beyond compromising if anyone actually saw. He tugged his hand away for a moment just to see if she was satisfied with how much she had drank, still ready to provide a bit more if necessary. [color=39b54a]“You can tell her to stop being greedy at any time,”[/color] he muttered towards Faust, understanding that she might simply keep drinking for the taste or, evidently pleasure, rather than to sate any thirst.

Getting fed more, sooner or later, Faust actually decided to speak up. [color=82ca9d][b]”I'm honestly surprised she hasn't devoured you whole yet. As for her [i]greed,[/i] she won't stop even if I tell her.”[/b][/color] Faust didn't ever bother talking to Ruu this time, he knew he couldn't reach the girl when she was like that.

[color=39b54a]“That’s nice to know I suppose,”[/color] Jin deadpanned, shaking his head at Faust’s uselessness in the situation. Ruu didn’t seem to have noticed that the source of blood had been pulled away, savoring the leftover taste that stained her mouth. He gently tapped her forehead with a finger to try and get her attention, blood drops dripping onto her through clenched fingers. His Knight’s grip ensured she couldn’t try and snap at him though. [color=39b54a]“Hey, that’s enough.”[/color] She probably didn’t understand him, but she would have to get the message one way or another. 

It took Ruu a few before her eyes indicated she was capable of absorbing her surroundings again.[color=f26522][b]"Ruu?"[/b][/color] She looked confused at the Chaser though some quick words of Faust cleared up her confusion rather fast.

[color=f26522][b]"Ruuuu~~!"[/b][/color] She looked dissatisfied, clearly wanting more!

Now he hadn’t bled himself completely dry just because he had foreseen such a scenario, but Ruu seemed fairly young and impressionable. If Jin gave her more blood just because she complained or demanded it, he would probably teach her some bad habits. [color=39b54a]“Faust. Does she actually need more, or is it just a craving now?”[/color] He turned his attention to Ruu momentarily, flicking her on the forehead sharply. [color=39b54a]“Shhhh~ keep it down.” [/color]

If she was supposedly still hunger then Jin would give her a bit more blood, but not nearly as much as before. [color=39b54a]“That’s about as much as I can spare, tell her that.”[/color] He kept an eye on Ruu in his Knight’s grip, but began to wrap the cut with a strip of cloth for the moment. Tamashi might be annoyed that he came looking for her again within the hour, but oh well.

'Ruu is always hungry.' Could have been something Faust could have told him, but telling him that would only prove to be disadvantageous. Instead, Faust exchanged just a few words with the Youkai loli before she put her small hands onto the Knight's gauntlet and tried to free herself.

Thankfully it was only after he had dealt with his minor wound that Ruu began to struggle against his Knight’s grip in earnest. Well, he didn’t see any reason to hold her any longer, so Jin took a step back to give himself some distance. The grip around her neck was loosened even as the spear’s tip remained pointed at her heart. [color=39b54a]“So, she satisfied with that or what Faust?”[/color]

[color=82ca9d][b]”The little one won't harm you, you are now allies, after all."[/b][/color] Faust answered his question. Ruu was about to take a step forward, but stopped as the spear reminded her that it was still there, looking confused for a second, she happily grabbed it and tried to bend it!

To her disappointment, surprise, or perhaps both, her hand would simply pass through the shaft without any noticeable effect. [color=39b54a]“Right then,”[/color] Jin murmured as his Knight raised the weapon out of the way so it no longer threatened Ruu. [color=39b54a]“So what now? She been to the human world yet?”[/color] He didn’t have any idea what actually an ally meant to Faust or Ruu, beyond he, probably, wouldn’t be snacked on at a whim. If she followed him of her own will than that would be nice in a manner he supposed; would let him test foods with her sooner rather than later.