Chapter 5: Madness

Suddenly, the Walokas…changes. It seems to grow somehow, shooting up from the ground until it's a similar height as Ateek, Its claws reverts, though the eyes still hold their glow as they gaze out of the darkness at him.

As the figure steps out of the shadows, Ateek is able to see him in greater detail, something that his almost luminously pale skin, not to mention his complete lack of clothing, makes far easier.

"Fair enough," the werewolf says, apparently unconcerned by his exposure. "Sorry about coming after you like that. There are some Mylokas skulking around, and I'm a little on edge."

His eyes looks up and down at Ateek as he tries to avoid doing the same thing. "You're a human?" he asks in a tone of mild interest.

He nods,still endeavoring to maintain eye contact.

The werewolf's eyes almost seem to flash as he tilts his head. Finally, he says, "That's going to be interesting."

Suddenly, he looks up, nostrils flaring as he inhales a sharp breath. "Got to run, fresh meat," he says. "And you should too. There's a bloodsucker close by."

Before Ateek can reply, the Walokas turns away and strides off into the darkness. Once he can no longer see him, Ateek turns back the way he was going, continuing on towards the school.

Before long, the grounds are silent again. Ateek wonders how common it is for the students to wander around once school's out for the day. It might be Ateek's best interests not to be outside his room after dark.

The next five minutes are uneventful, which gives him a chance to get his breath back after his first interaction with, he has to assume, a fellow student. For all he knows, he'll meet more before the end of the day.

Atee supposes that it could have gone worse. He does, after all, have all the bits that he walked through the school gates with, which is more than could be said for some people who've walked into an area populated by werewolves, according to historical records.

Looking at it in that particular context, he should probably feel quite good about himself.

Well, about as good as he can while walking along a path in the gathering gloom, half expecting something to leap out at him without warning, on his way to join a school full of fiends.

Ateek shakes the thought, raising his head to see where his going…

…and stops. There's something very familiar about the view up ahead he can't help but feel he has seen that exact arrangement of trees and that particular twist of the path.

And helpfully preventing him from putting it down to deja vu are the footprints in the dirt of the path.

He places his foot experimentally down on one.

It fits.

For a moment, Ateek remains still, considering his position. It could be a coincidence: just because his at a school that admits and educates the occult, the uncanny, and the fiends doesn't mean there has to be something supernatural going on.

There could, in fact, be a perfectly reasonable explanation for this, and the fact that he can't think of a single one doesn't prove anything.

With that thought in mind, he starts moving forward, trying semi-consciously not to step in what might not, necessarily, be his own footprints. He steps through the corridor of trees, looking this way and that, until he comes to a halt, one foot raised off the ground.

He is now looking at two sets of footprints in front of him.

After a few seconds, he places the foot back down on the path. What to do next is going to take some thought. But was there to do next?

"Look, it's been a long night," Ateek says to the empty air. "I'm honestly not in the mood for this shit"

There's no reply, though it's tough to say whether or not he was expecting one. It certainly doesn't seem like anything's changed, at least as far as he can tell by looking.

Still, at least he said something.

He starts moving forward again, adding a third set of footprints to the two he left behind before. And sees a familiar scenery pass by, keeping watch for any sign that things might be different.

And then he looks at an unfamiliar sight a wilder group of trees, their branches intruding into his path. Ateek looks down at the ground in front of him and sees that there are no footprints there.

With a sigh, he continues on.

The path he's on remains entirely mundane, though there's little enough to tell how close he is to his destination or whether he is on the right track. If he is going to have school grounds that try to rewrite the laws of reality, he can't help but think, then there should be maps provided as well, or at least some helpful signs.

Just as he is starting to wonder whether this path even leads to the school, he seed a light up ahead, warm and welcome in the darkness.

Ateek quickens the pace, telling himself f it'll only be a little farther before he can stop, sit down, and try not to think about the previous thirty minutes.

Ateek keeps walking, keeping an ear out for the sound of paws on the ground. It's not long before he reaches a large willow tree in his path, its curtain of leaves blocking his view of the way ahead.

Ateek is angered, wondering what this could be. It seems too much to hope that there's not going to be anything unpleasant on the other side of these leaves; there's optimism, and then there's just a refusal to be realistic. On the other hand, he does have to get to the school. The thought of camping out here overnight doesn't hold much appeal

Ateek pushes confidently through the willow branches. He steps forward, shoving his way through the leaves until he is on the other side.

A slim figure is leaning against the tree, her back to him. Even from behind, you can see the faint red glow that her eyes give off shining against the tree trunk.

"Are all humans as noisy as you?" she asks, her voice lazy. "I've heard you coming for about ten minutes."

Ateek shrugs, waiting to see what comes next.

After a moment, the vampire turns to look at him, gazing out of a pair of red eyes.

The vampire's nose wrinkles as she regards you. "God, what's that smell?" she demands. "Did you go wading in the swamp or something? Is that a particularly human hobby?"

Before Ateek can respond, she waves a hand dismissively, moving on.

"....Rude" Ateek says.