Letting out a huge breath of air you open your eyes slowly.

Once again, to a dark forest right in front of you.

Once Tynan touched the painting, something seemed to sweep you off your feet and toss you around like a pair of dice being thrown onto the ground. Just that you didn't land with your stomach flatly, but were lowered at the last second gently as if by a huge hand.

Warm breath escaped your mouth and pierced the cold air like a needle. It was fairly chilly but your jacket was nestled cozy against your skin and shuddered a bit when you pulled the zipper all the way up.

It was kind of quiet, until you listened carefully and your ears managed to pick up...

a sound of a train?

"Of all the things, a train?" muttering you listen more intently and it seemed that the train wasn't that far from where you were, its heaviness and rattling evident.

*SNAP*

"Tynan? Ebory?" looking around for any sign of your companions  your eyes searched for silhouettes among the trees and in the mist that spread everywhere. 

Ruffling the tips of grass your feet start carrying you in no particular path as it seemed that there wasn't any animal or human which would have crossed through here except you. You could try walking towards where the train was as the sound didn't seem to fade away into the distance but stay in place. Maybe it would even lead you towards the village where you were sure to meet the others.

Thinking of different ways of finding a path you push towards nowhere, bending branches to the sides and looking upwards sometimes when you hear a noise. 

There weren't any birds here either, not even insects, but something still flew among the trees like a ghost.

You remember one evening at Ebory's when you saw different shapes and sizes of creatures which inhabit this world. There were a few books with illustrations and descriptions which the old lady took from the library for studying. Some beings looked a bit similar to some animals from your world and a comment flew from Ebory that many animal and plant species are descendants from this world: 

"...even some of the most beautiful flowers which we admire came from darkness."

Suddenly you feel the ground begin to shake slightly and you stop in your tracks. The trees seemed frozen in place but you could hear them creak and break. 

You blink rapidly as you feel a bit lightheaded.

Fingers touch your cheeks as you mush your face a bit and feel cold drops of sweat curse down.

"What is this?" asking no one you focus your vision on the trees as their forms stop spinning and the black tree barks seem to cover themselves in ash stains.

Resembling birches makes you lower your guard and not think as you touch the surface of them and feel every inch of the rough wood. Nothing out of the ordinary really.

"I should keep going" with your statement your legs wobble a bit as the ground shakes slightly again. But nothing around you moves and it seems a bit eerie when even the leaves don't move or there's no other sound except for your breathing and the distant sound of a train.

Frankly it felt like being in a picture book.

....................

A few times you could have sworn that you've seen lanterns behind the trees that you passed, but the road was still bumpy and full of tall grass which you parted with your form. There didn't seem to be any clear path and no other living being apart from you walking around.

Finally approaching what seemed to be a small empty space void of trees you stop and look around trying to spot anything that might indicate a path, even a dirt road would really save you as the forest seemed to be never ending which made you sweat nervously.

"I wouldn't like to wander here forever" you scratch your head in frustration as you look towards the sky light up slightly by the moon peeking through the clouds.

And that's when you hear it.

A deep melodic voice calling out.

"Come in, come in"

Turning your head in every direction you look for the source of the voice as your mind seems to fog up.

And your eyes stop on something  far off  from where you were... 

A creature so tall stood in the distance.

Its horns poking the sky and its empty eyes looking forward.

It looked menacing but at the same time mysterious and beautiful.

.....

Gawking you stared at it with your whole body rooted to the ground.

It didn't even blink, just turned its massive head slightly to the sides as if observing or looking for something. It was either covered in fur or something else as you couldn't make out what that creature really was made off. 

Heck you couldn't understand how such a colossus made no sound and appeared out of nowhere.

*ding*

Hand shot into the pocket as if by instinct but you find nothing and just grab around in your pocket, trying to find the key. 

*ding ding*

Goosebumps across your skin, 

empty air being grasped. 

A whisper reaches your ears...

"Welcome"

................................

The key was gone.

Anyone in your place would be happy to know that the thing that was causing them harm is gone. Yet you paced forward through the forest with a thousand thoughts crossing your mind. 

Seeing as you've been followed by it everywhere you went and now just... poof. Adding to that, the voice was the same one which spoke to you before, a long way back in a dream.

Something had changed.

Yet you were still with your head in place, no straight jacket or madness dripping from your mouth.

Shaking your head to get rid of pesky thoughts you almost come headfirst into a tree. 

"Damn I'm a bit disorientated" gripping the tree with one hand you look down to your shoes. 

While walking you kept an eye out for Tynan's silver strings but the forest kept them hidden from your sight.

 Calling out to your friends and receiving no answer also made your confidence plummet.

"haaa..." your hot breath colors the air whitish as sweat beads once again roll off your face. The temperature seemed to drop considerably and your shoes seemed to sink into the forest floor as if you've entered a swamp.

Pushing yourself off the tree you look around once more for anything, anything to show you a way.

And something does get your attention.

Just a few feet from you, were some kind of small white dots and when you approached them your eyebrows rose up to discover moon vines growing in a small bundle. Their heart shaped leaves shielding the white flowers.

Picking one bloom you twirl it with your fingers. The motion of the white petals moving seemed to calm you and a memory resurfaced of a playmate from your childhood showing you how these flowers would gently fly down to the ground like a parachute when tossed. 

So you flick the bloom and watch it slowly descend to the ground. Yes this was a distraction from finding a way out but truth be told you didn't care and wanted your head to relax a bit from the constant pounding.

Baby steps, no rush, do it at your own pace and you might see something else that you weren't able to see before.

*snap snap*

Twigs gave out to pressure under your feet.

Something glowed among the trees again.

Lanterns.

No rush, no rush.

You kept repeating it in your head and walking slowly.

There! You've seen something!

A flat wooden surface greeted you as you approached and discovered even more wooden planks stuck in the ground and stretching in a line away from you. Rope connected the short planks which were barely up to your stomach. Along with the fence laid a smooth dirt path covered in a layer of mist making it not so easy to spot from afar. 

Taking a step from the overgrown and thick forest  onto the path you feel your heel sink a bit into the dirt. Roughly about a meter and half wide it was enclosed by the fence and honestly looked like a normal path in a park.

"Uf... it's a bit cold" you shudder

Bending your fingers you feel them sting a bit and shove your hands in your pockets for warmth. Trailing along the path your eyes start seeing taller posts with orange yellowish light atop of them and soon see that they were actually the lanterns that you've been seeing like an illusion.

Soon the dirt path changed into a steady but uphill red brick pavement. 

*clack, clack, clack*

With no haste you continued.

.................

It seemed that the more you relaxed the more you could see as your surroundings became brighter, not only did the lanterns provide light but the mist that was everywhere seemed to disperse in places and show dark tree roots growing into the path, the same moon vines wrapped around them.

Seeing something again in the distance you decide to take a small break and stop at the structure which was a bench with stony sides supporting it and covered in moss. The wooden part looked worn out as you picked off some of the paint.

*grumble*

Leaning your chin against your hand you hear your stomach reminding the basic needs of food. All that walking around and nerves spent  and still no companions in sight.

"I would go for a sandwich right about now, don't suppose this other world will have any convenience stores" talking to yourself loudly you chuckle.

*grumble grumble*

"Oh shush you, don't expect me to eat grass to please you" patting your stomach you then look at the crescent moon above you. Only now you noticed that the sound of the train had vanished and the calming sound of cicadas replaced it. Still it was kind of strange seeing a clear dark sky without any starts like in your world.

But it was calm. And that's all it took for your shoulders to relax from their usual stiffness.

"Still this place is bombarding me with illusions, mazes, change of temperatures..." stretching your arms behind your back you let out a yawn. Looking down at the bench on your right side you see a small firefly just sitting around. It crawls along the surface then opens its wings and flies on top of your hand. Bringing it up to your eye level you see the little critter flicker its blue light.

"Pretty..." you mutter under your nose as to not scare it away. The little bug doesn't flash its light but maintains it blue. It even seemed to tuck its legs underneath its body and fully sit down. If it weren't for you being on a mission you would gladly sit here and admire THIS kind of nature. 

The non scary, no human eating creature filled forest.

A yawn escapes your mouth again and the little bug flies away leaving a blue hue trail behind it. Blinking sleepily you feel something wrap around your waist gently. 

Your body doesn't freeze up or cause any alarm. 

There's a faint smell of lavender in the air and it becomes more intense as something nestles on your head.

"Hey, are you an illusion too?" completely calm you ask it. 

Not answering your question you instead feel a gentle breeze on your cheek and another smell - mint. Bringing your hands up, you first touch your head then slowly go higher until your fingers meet soft familiar hair. 

"At least your hair is real"

Tugging at the tips you giggle then see silver ashes dancing above you. 

Curiosity winning you dip your head expecting the demon standing there with a grin on his face.

But instead you see nothing but the trees.

The sound of cicadas fill your ears for a bit. Then just barely a whisper, you hear your name.

..............................

"From her story I remember that she mentioned guardians,                                     

- the shadows told her."

Still fuzzy in the head you snuggle against something warm and swim in and out of sleep. Light pitter patters and muffled voices drift around. The smell of mint didn't leave you but it became a bit fainter, no trace of lavender though.

"We'll part-

A mix of irritation and anger.

-Yes I do understand that it's dangerous."

Silence falls and you go back to sleep fully without a care in the world.

...........................

Trying to change your sleeping position you raise an arm up, still with closed eyes, and try to rest it on top of your forehead but your hand bumps into something and that something...

nibbles your hand

Eyes fluttering wide open you stare at Tynan's face with a deadpanned look.

"....You bit me" 

"Well you hit me~" his smooth voice gives a low chuckle "Also I have no hands to defend myself~" and with that he gives you a small whoops and throws you an inch into the air. Your brain only realizing after a few seconds what happened makes you turn your head to the side and see that in fact the demon was carrying you in his arms. 

Hearing another pair of steps you crane your neck and see Ebory trailing behind Tynan with her nose stuck inside a small book, a red bookmark between the pages. The black cat was adorably sitting in her bag and it seemed smaller. Guess familiars can change their size huh.

"We are almost there, it took a bit before we each found each other" turning back to Tynan who looked ahead you see that the sky above him was still the same with the moon shining bright.

"Where did you find me? Altogether, what really happened when we came here?" your question is followed by a gurgle coming from your stomach. Hearing that Ebory claps her book shut and speeds up to Tynan who was snickering to himself and you who was laying still with a mortified look.

"I'd say let's stop and take a seat on that fallen log, my guess is that there's still some way to the village" already heading towards the log she opens up her bag and the black cat jumps out and stretches its body followed by a yawn.

Tynan lowers you to the ground and you three sit on the log making it creak from the weight. A few seconds of rummaging in her bag and Ebory taps your shoulder and gives you a few cookies and some water. Not much but you practically ate everything in super speed. She even offered what seemed to be checkerboard cookies to Tynan who first looked at her with raised eyebrows, then took of his glove and removed one from the pile in her bag. 

"Sorry I didn't take any other food, I just always have these on me for a quick snack" popping one in her mouth she chews on it for a bit.

"It's enough, thank you" letting out a happy sigh you feel your stomach thank you as well for the small meal. Turning to both of them you now see that Tynan's suit was a bit dusty and Ebory's long skirt ripped at parts, even her bag had a smudge of dirt on it.

"Let's start" she gulps down a bite "We ended up on some wooden bridge which stretched across a lake." a few water drops escape her mouth as she drinks " and we were leaning against the railings looking down at the water, nothing seemed to inhabit it and it was very clear with a shine to it, not to mention the perfect circular shape of it... " reliving her memory she also goes into her thinking faze but snaps back " we looked for anything of interest but found nothing."

"We even tested the water and it seemed normal apart from the glow" the cat adds in to Ebory's explanation.

"Yes, no bioluminescence as there was no living organisms in the water. Anyway, we left that area and wandered for a bit through the forest but soon a dirt path appeared from among the trees and after a few more minutes we found Tynan" 

"I appeared directly on the dirt path" taking out his thin pipe he taps it against his knee and a few silver ashes fly out. "You two should have also been with me but something went wrong. One of my main guesses is that the village became suspicious that a demon, a human and a witch are travelling together~" 

"So it separated us" you conclude and Tynan nods his head. You Raise your hand like you did many times back at school "Just a quick question, if Ebory appeared at some bridge and you were on the path then where did you find me?"

The both gave side glances to each other and you saw Ebory's face lace with worry while Tynan blew smoke through his lips and twirled the pipe once.

"I found you on a bench covered in leaves, asleep" giving a snort he starts laughing while Ebory just facepalms.

"You make me sound like a hobo" joining Ebory you facepalm as well and let Tynan's laugh die down. But you also find yourself covering up a smile as you've never imagined yourself falling asleep in the middle of the forest on a bench, open to all dangers.

"Ok then here's what I was doing" you tell them of your wandering and of the things you saw. When mentioning the disappearance of the key Ebory tried not to look surprised but failed as her eyes just bore into you even more, Tynan on the other hand just nodded at some parts and even when you told him about the illusion of him he gave a sly smile then poked your sides making you jump. 

"Anyway I didn't even feel myself fall asleep, it really seemed like I was awake" swatting him away you fume a bit then cross your hands. He just shrugs innocently.

"I used to find you by locating the key since its presence is easy to spot in your world but here it is much more difficult and now that it disappeared, I can only get a hold of you through your dreams~ " His smile vanishes suddenly as his eyes seemed to sharpen, 

Gently taking your hand he gives a light squeeze and looks at you straight in the eyes"If you hadn't fallen asleep, then I would not have found you."

"...." a shudder goes through you. For once you falling asleep literary saved your life. If it weren't for that then you would keep wandering...

"Ok, ok, but what do we do now? I mean there's no key anymore."  shrugging you look at the two.

It was too easy.

Just poof and the problem is gone.

Then why were you welcomed here?

"Even though you entered this world, are you so sure that you can leave?" Tynan's question earned him your confused face so he continued:

"I have spent what amount of energy that I had getting all three of us through the painting, although we should have landed near the village, we were separated, seeing as I am still recovering from my "sleep", I cannot open the gates leading to your world. " he raises his arm and looks at his ungloved palm as if he's inspecting something. For a second you thought you saw his nails become longer and darker but the other second they were normal. " In the village we should get some answers to your situation as I am sure that you already caught on that things are being too easy~" a chuckle escapes him as you nod.

"But who do we have to ask about all this?" a cliche image of a wise wizard surfaces in your mind, or a king sitting on a throne and knowing all the land's secrets. 

"Now that's where the problem lies, let me first explain how this world somewhat works" The old lady searches for something in her bag then tosses the said thing at you. " The rubik's cube in your hand is solved and all its colors are in place, much like our world" gripping the item you first question why of all things that Ebory could be carrying it has to be a rubik's cube, then you almost drop it as she snaps her fingers and it begins to mix up the colors fast transforming it into  a multicolored mess. "Now this one that you're holding in your hands is like this place that we are in, calling it the darker world is an accepted term here but it's meant more like just a vast space of something that is ever changing, no matter how much you try to solve the rubik's cube, you won't get its colors in place." taking back the cube Ebory puts it away and looks at you with a look of a scholar:

"No matter how much knowledge I gather I still can't seem to grasp how things are the way they are." she then lightly slaps Tynan's shoulder with a scowling face " And your demon doesn't give much information either."

"I am not a researcher like yourself Ebory, I do not throw myself headfirst into danger just to receive knowledge which I can obtain through careful studying. Also I accept that some things are not what I expect them to be" his mocking tone made Ebory red in the face as she spits out:

"You know  very well why I'm so desperate-"

Before they start another arguing session you cough loudly to get their attention and ask again who you have to find to ask for answers. Seemingly ashamed at her own outburst Ebory quiets down for a bit then takes a deep breath to fully calm herself.

"I've only been there a few times, it is a mysterious place crawling with all sorts of things. Some good, some bad but if anywhere you would get answers, it has to be there." the last part she seemed to say more to herself than to you. Gathering up her things she gets off the log.

"Since we're not far I'll go a bit ahead, I won't enter the village until you show up" the witch seemed to walk slowly at first but her pace quickened and you didn't manage to even say anything in time. Her black cat looked at you with slowly blinking eyes and a face saying "she needs a bit of space" then without a rush headed into the mist after its master.

"....You could be a bit nicer to her Tynan" giving a sigh you look at the demon a bit disappointed "after all she did bring you back". 

You sit for a bit in silence. 

Then he utters:

"Y/N" in a second you end up on his lap as he hugs you close. Hearing his heart beat and feeling his warmth made you happy but it seemed like he was holding you a bit too gently. As if you would just scatter into a million pieces. 

So you reach out and cup his cheeks

And lean your forehead against his 

Somehow contact like this would calm you so you wanted to do the same for him.

"She cannot face the fact that her family is gone. Even after all those years of living it seems that finding her family has imprisoned her in her own mad world." he whispers gently while gliding his fingers through your hair.

You suspected as such that Ebory's family was indeed gone and the old lady was not giving up hope that she would still see them. A gentle buzz takes you away from your thoughts as you see a teal colored  dragonfly land on Tynan's shoulder. It looked at you with its two compound eyes and flew off leaving a blueish hue just like that firefly from before.

"Come on, let's go" sliding off his lap you take his hand firmly to which he grins and gets up. Taking a few steps you turn to him for a bit and stretch up quickly placing a kiss on his lips.

The smell of fresh mint~

...................................

 The entrance was drowned in Wisteria. Their long branches with blooming flowers stretched almost to the ground and covered most of the wide arc. Beyond them you already heard sounds of chattering, distant music, shop bells ringing.

Ebory kept to her word and waited for you two by the entrance. There were no guards, no inspection. It looked like anyone could waltz in and join in. Calling out to the demon and witch you nervously bite your lip:

" What kind of creatures will I see there? Anything I should definitely know before entering?"

The old lady noticing your worried state gives you a reassuring pat on the shoulder but her voice remains firm:

"If you were to go alone, there would be trouble for you, I'm not gonna sugar coat my words and say that you have to stick with us or at least Tynan, because without him you will be snatched."

Remembering the shadow siblings words as well you nod to affirm Ebory that you understood. 

"And as general knowledge, if you stare at something or someone for too long, they will start staring at you back" she clearly implies not to get hung up on something there. 

"Tap"

You hear a light tap of a bongo drum from the village. Oddly enough that one tap seemed like it shifted something in your mind, made it rotate. Above the entrance and wisteria there were also some kind of golden ribbons flying around. They sparkled in the lantern light and made you want to catch them.

"Tell me Y/N, do you like festivals?" You hear Tynan ask from behind you. Not taking your eyes off the ribbons and hearing even more instrument sounds you feel a twitch to go there and have a look around. It's like when you're a kid and you have to know and look at everything. 

"I get tired of crowds after some time but... I like seeing the decorations and how the buildings light up during festivals." remembering one festival back in your country you reminisce the taste of a warm drink during cold season and the happy chattering of your parents in an open cafe on top of a hill which overlooked the city. And not just your home, when you would travel to other places and see their festivals your eyes would sparkle and your mood would skyrocket at people's creativity. 

Snapping back from memories you see Tynan standing close with your hand in his. He looked relieved that you weren't so scared as he thought you would be. Still, even though it was a festival you had not forget that it was another world with creatures which you would see only in games or read about in books. Be cautious and stay with Tynan, it should be ok.

You end up in an alleyway, high houses stretch towards the sky and their windowless walls were of white color with timber frames slicing the building in places making patterns.  The stone path under your feet was bumpy and not that comfortable to walk on but you shrugged it off quickly as you three headed for the end of the alley. The mix of different sounds became stronger until it engulfed you and the painting which you saw in the library came to life in front of your eyes.

A crowd made out of different shapes and sizes creatures walked along an uphill road. Strange masks, long robes, hats of all sorts were carried on their owner's heads. Now describing what you really saw was a bit hard as every entity that passed either looked like from what you would find in mythology or conjure up in your dreams/imagination. All in all you were in shock to see, for example, a two story high black furred creature with a straw hat on its head, a long red nose poking out from under it and two scrawny long arms on the sides with sharp claws, in one of them it seemed to carry a basket filled with something. That huge being parted the crowd easily with its form and went down the hill. 

There were some human like beings as well but most of them either had a mask on and you couldn't tell if they were really a person or they were like the rest of the village folk and had some sort of unique appearance to them. One individual you really thought of as human because she was standing with her back to you, a short puffy dress complimented her form nicely as long black hair rested on her back, she also had a deep blue shawl on her shoulders. When she turned around she looked at you, well.... she didn't really look as her vision was covered up with her hair, but her mouth was smiling and showing off four sharp teeth that poked out.

Good thing Tynan pulled you with him through the crowd  and you quickly lost the lady. 

"We just came here and you're already headfirst into danger~" Tynan laughs while Ebory scoffs. It wasn't easy walking as every small thing caught your eye, every being passing through was interesting to look at and you didn't feel threatened at all. The warmth from your partner seemed to fuel you and reject any fear. 

"The architecture here looks interesting~" with a sing to your voice your eyes look at the small shops on the first floor and the living quarters on the second. A huge part of the houses resembled something from Japanese and German architecture, and one might think that these two would clash but here they worked perfectly and  didn't seem to fight at all. The wisteria also played a significant part as its branched made sort of roofs in some places and lanterns hung from them. The village wasn't illuminated as much as you expected but the dark that crept around added some charm to it all. Oh and of course how could you forget to mention that you had completely no clue what the entities around you were saying. Only from their tone could you guess what kind of conversations were entities having.

"Where exactly are we going?" you pipe up as you pass a school of child sized monks with yellow robes and with papers stuck on their foreheads.

"To an acquaintance of mine~" something similar to a diamond shaped kite flies past you on the right and you manage to spot in a second that it had a snake's tail gliding the air as well.

"How come I don't need a mask? Would it even help me somehow if we get separated?" the thought didn't rise in your head because of disguising, you just wanted a pretty mask like so many that you've seen here. And Tynan seemed to catch onto that:

"When we resolve the situation then I will take you out on a date~"

"Deal" your heart skips a beat and you give yourself a high five in your mind for scoring a tour. Putting aside the event you look at Ebory who was quietly traveling with you. She hasn't said anything and her gaze seemed to shoot around sometimes at directions where there were less people.  Her cat was hidden in her bag and didn't even poke out its nose outside of it.

*tap tap tap*

You hear the bongo drums again as they start playing a rather speedily tune. It seemed to drown out the crowd's noise and even made you feel as if the whole place was being rotated with each tap. Giving the demon a tug on its sleeve you tell him what you hear and he suddenly stops and fully turns to you, Ebory stops as well and looks at you two confused as to what's going on.

"I mean it's part of the festival right?" you ask unsure and see Tynan shake his head and his lips tighten.

"Y/N that bongo drum-"

Suddenly you wobble from the impact of Ebory running up to you and grabbing you by the shoulders. The old lady had quite a grip on you as you couldn't get free and she even started shaking you lightly:

"You heard it right?!" she more stated a fact than asked as her eyes focused entirely on you ready to drill whatever information you had. The crowd started to walk a bit further away from you as if an invisible barrier came up. And behind that barrier stood your demon with his face darkened and his eyes shining deep purple, hands were quickly moving drawing something on the invisible wall, long nails pointing and scraping the air.

"Ms Ebory please-"

"TELL ME WHERE YOU HEARD IT " she shouted at your face and some spit escaped her mouth. Her hands were even shaking while holding you. Noticing something shining at her side your eyes see a blue glow becoming more intense.

The flower

She's using it to keep Tynan away, to keep anyone away as she shakes you for a sound you randomly heard.

"Ok I'll tell you! Just please let go of me and I'll show you the direction where it came from" it was a lie and you would slap yourself for it later but what else can you do? The kind old lady you knew suddenly went crazy and you were in the middle of the street surrounded by various monsters. 

Things can't get worse...

"You're not only going to show me the direction but you'll come with me so I know where exactly it is" staring wide eyed at you Ebory lets you go and you almost tumble to the ground as your legs felt like jelly. Looking past her you see Tynan cracking the barrier, silver strings seemed to eat away at the wall and he shoved his arm inside and held it for you to take.

So with what strength you had you force your legs to move.

But your hand never reaches his as something hits you in the back of the neck and you black out.

.........................

Waking up you rub your soar neck, a splitting headache added to that as you feel a bump. Finally focusing you see the old lady in front of you leaning against the wall and looking at the passing crowd with a disinterested look. 

You were in some alley again but with a dead end on your right and the road on the left. The ground was cold to sit on so you shifted a bit and got her attention. As she takes a step you scramble onto your feet somehow but immediately get knocked down by some force. 

"I'm sorry Y/N, but you're not going anywhere until we find that sound's source" bending on one knee she looks at you with a guilt ridden face then takes out some sort of pack and throws it to you.

Huh, an ice pack. Putting it against your bump you feel the coolness sooth the pain but you still scowl at Ebory.

"I don't suppose you want to tell me what the hell happened to you?" being angry at elderly didn't make you feel very good but dammit this woman just went overboard as to kidnap you for her goal.

She takes a step back and leans against the wall again. 

Then slides down onto the ground.

"My daughter..." her voice becomes raspy. "When we were getting ready to travel to this village, she mentioned once of hearing a strange tapping sound, "most likely drums" she said. But she shrugged it off as just being tired and imagining it. When we were searching the village she mentioned it again and I couldn't hear it..." 

"I searched for entities that have anything to do with spiriting away people with instruments. Naturally there was a huge list of them but narrowing it down to creatures using hand drums it left me with a few options. "The reflection of lights dies in her eyes as she closes them. 

"Yet there's also the possibility that they weren't taken away by a demon with a drum. It sounds stupid I know, but I just have to try any way that seems like it could work to find my family." And that's when Tynan's words come back to you mentioning that Ebory would head into any danger for research. But could you really blame her?

 "Why couldn't you just tell me? I would have gladly helped." you try saying it softly but still some irritation mixes in.

"Hah, your demon would surely prioritize your safety first than let you chase an unknown entity through this monster infested town with me" she spits out and opens her eyes to look at you with a stern expression which then relaxes gradually "How's your head?"

*tap tap tap tap*

There it was again

But you tried your best to ignore it as Ebory would go bonkers 

"A bit better, thanks for the ice pack" throwing the now warm bag you rest your head against the concrete wall.

No one seemed to pay attention to you two in the alley as beings just passed by without even a glance. Most likely Ebory had her barrier in place. You sit for a bit not talking to each other and you grip your head as the tapping seemed to speed up again and it made your head spin. 

"So we just sit here and wait until I hear the magical sound?" you barely hear the crowd anymore as the tapping became too intense. Ebory just nods and says nothing for which you're grateful.

Problem is how long were you going to hold out until Tynan comes to get you. Hell you don't even know how he's going to find you in a random alleyway.

Then an idea pops up.

"Mind if I close my eyes for a bit? The headache is coming back."

Not waiting for a reply you try to push the drums out of your head and try sleeping. That way you could tell Tynan where you were.

*tap, tap tap*

"Shit..." you cuss under your mouth and Ebory takes it as a sign that you've heard it again. Springing to her feet she takes her bag and stands you up quickly.

"Tell me where you hear it coming from" she tried not to shout or sound angry but failed. Impatiently twitching in place she waits for your answer which you didn't know how to give. The tapping seemed to come from all around.

"I don't know, come on Ms Ebory this is absurd-"

*TAP*

Your head swings to the right, to the dead end and before you know it Ebory takes off running towards it like a mad dog. 

"IT'S HERE!"

"MS EBORY WAIT!!" you shout as you stagger towards her. As if looking for a switch she scrapes her nails on the wall trying to find it.

And then she vanishes right before you eyes, as if the ground literary swallowed her.

"What the hell is going on..." muttering you fall back on your butt and look at the empty alley. The darkness which you liked before seemed to creep up on you as the barrier was gone and the demon wasn't with you.

Feeling a stare behind, you gulped nervously as you turned your head to see pairs of glowing red eyes of creatures that crowded the only exit of the alley.

So much for staying with someone.

Here's another chapter! I'm a bit late with this one because I had to stay in the hospital for a bit, I had 6 wisdom teeth removed with an operation (my doctor was even surprised that I had 6 not 4) anyway I'm still recovering and I have almost a week and a bit until I leave my country for studies, rest assured the next chapter should be the last and it will be loooong, I don't think you guys are scared of too many words soI want to write everything that's on my mind. I really like to thank people's patience with my uploading, it's not great, but eh, somehow I managed to get all this way here. ^^

See ya in the next  (final) chapter!