Kitsune
The sounds of birds, the distant sound of water, the trees swaying in the wind, the brisk morning air. A peaceful walk through the woods to clear his mind. It was calm here, quiet. No expectation. Especially not this early in the morning, the dew still covering every inch of the exposed forest. A slight fog, too. Not that he'd complain, it was perhaps the most peaceful he'd felt in a long while.
Eiji stopped just short of a clearing, keen eyes landing on a lump of brown, black, and greyish fur combined with red, a lot of red. He drew as close as he could without giving his position amongst the treeline away. Eiji quickly realized he was observing a kitsune, two large tails wrapped around its massive and frail body. The kitsune seemed injured, lacerations across its tails and body, its torso barely rising and falling with breaths, almost at a standstill.
He wanted to help, this was a creature deserving of aid. But on the other hand, what if it were simply a trick by the Raiden Shogun's conning right hand woman? He'd been on the run for so long, he feared being caught out now. Eiji looked behind him, from where he came. He'd have to bring the kitsune back to the shrine, he didn't have the supplies on him here. Ultimately his morality won out as he broke into the clearing, surprising the poor creature who didn't even have the energy to run, merely lifting its head before collapsing back down.
"I won't hurt you." Eiji spoke quietly, calmly, both hands out to show he wasn't armed. The shrine guardian drew closer, steps cautious and slow. Even injured, a kitsune wielded great power. Eiji knelt down beside the wounded creature, inspecting its injuries. "What hurt you…" The man whispered, it looked like the kitsune had been well and truly mauled by something or someone. When he reached out, the creature cowered, unable to flee even still.
"I need to bring you back to my home.." Eiji whispered, hand stilling above the creature. "I don't have what I need to treat you. But I promise, no harm will come to you." The kitsune seemed to visibly relax at his words, resting its head on its front legs. Eiji sighed, carefully and as gently as possible, he scooped the creature up into his arms. Here he could feel the ragged breathing, he could see the badly injured tail barely hanging on. Somebody or something had well and truly tried to kill this kitsune.
Eiji stood with the creature in his arms, held close to his chest, left elbow supporting the mangled tail. "Okay, you'll be okay. It's still there." The kitsune either couldn't speak or simply chose not to, remaining silent in his arms except for the breathing. If Eiji were to be honest, he wasn't sure if the legends stating to kill a kitsune you must remove all of its tails were true or not. He could only hope the poor creature still had a chance and wasn't a spy. The shrine guardian began his much more hurried journey back to the Asase Shrine.
Getting to the shrine was the easiest part, ducking inside without being seen no problem given the scarcity on the island. The real problem came when he laid the kitsune down on the small cot he had in one of the rooms. Eiji had no idea how to take care of a spiritual creature, he wasn't exactly a medic. "Okay. I'll be right back, just stay here." Eiji gently ran his fingers through the fur on the creature's head before leaving the room to get the medical kit from the bathroom and supplies to clean the injuries.
Eiji returned quickly, placing it on the bed beside the, quite frankly, massive fox. "Can you speak?" He asked as he dipped a cloth into the warm water he'd gathered. The kitsune didn't speak, but it relaxed its head down as Eiji began to clean the blood from its fur. "That's okay. Too tired for a human form too, I'm taking it?" The kitsune's head lifted and lowered again. Eiji used his free hand to brush its fur again, gentle as he washed the wounds with alcohol and water.
He ignored the blood on his hands as he wrapped soft bandages around the injuries. Eiji was extra careful wrapping the tail, doing his best to wrap it in a way that kept it together. "That's the last of them.." Eiji looked down at his hands, biting the inside of his cheek. It was a lot of blood. He'd fought, seen injuries, seen casualties. But being away from it for so long.. Eiji stood up with a breath of relief. "I'll be back. Just going to wash up." The shrine guardian bowed his head and then left the room, pulling the door shut with his foot.
He wasn't sure how long he spent cleaning his hands, the blood never did quite come off. Though he supposed that was the after effect of war. Eiji rested the towel on his shoulder as he reached for the door, quietly opening it in case the creature was sleeping. Eiji turned as he entered, quietly and carefully shutting the door behind him as well. The shrine guardian sighed, he was really regretting taking it back here, what if.. No, no he did the right thing. He knew he did the right thing. Right? Yeah. Yeah.
"Hello. I am Katsumi."
Eiji jumped, turning around as electricity crackled at his fingertips, getting ready to summon his sword. But that electricity grew stronger than weaker with a sudden but strong burst of wind. A man sat on the bed, blond and brown hair tied in a high ponytail with a strange wave embellished ribbon. His armour was slashed in several places, showing the bloodied white kimono underneath. His blue eyeliner was smudged, blue-green eyes glossy as he stared at Eiji. His tails were larger now, up behind him, the bandages still on the left one to keep it together.
"Hi.. Katsumi. I am Asase Eiji."
