D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

--- Kat ---

Kat didn’t end up having time to debate how reasonable it was to chase after Souris because two hands slapped themselves around her legs and pulled her down into the earth. Kat let it happen, her body strong enough to withstand the ’damage’ that might have been caused had this happened to someone else. Once she was buried up to about her waist, Kat felt what was probably a second spell get cast as the dirt around her try to cut into her midsection. Sadly for Souris... it was just the top layer of dirt. Not stone, or any of the more serious minerals. It was just dirt and the spell gave out before her waist did.

Kat ripped herself free, content to keep her water transformation hidden for the moment. As she escaped the hole, Kat glanced downwards to see if any tunnels from Souris were visible but that didn’t seem to be the case. *Alright this is actually a much bigger pain in the ass then I thought. Describing her as someone that ’dodges by moving the ground around’ feels highly incorrect at this point. She swims through the ground now, and rather fast as well.*

[Perhaps she couldn’t do this before? We have no idea how hard something like-] Souris’ hand reached out of the ground once again, this time with a little dagger in hand to slice at her ankles. Sadly for the mouse, Kat was ready for it this time. As the knife lashed out, so too did Kat’s tail. It wrapped around Souris’ hand and YANKED the mouse from the ground. Kat also punched her in the face on the way around as her tail whipped the mouse around and into the ground.

*Do we want to try and talk to her? Or just take her out?*

[I guess we can talk a bit?] Kat was still waving Souris around, and the mousekin wasn’t really reacting to the flinging. [I don’t see any glowing stuff on her arm so I don’t think she was on the one to activate any of the pillars of light... unless she failed the challenge? I guess that’s possible. Anyway, point is we don’t need to beat her. Not sure Appoline won’t poison her when she sleeps... but that’s not really our problem is it?]

*Feels like it might piss her off... but yes I agree. Especially as we worked with Hedera for so long.* Kat slapped Souris once more before throwing her up into the air a bit. Lily’s shadow hands formed up from the ground and clapped around Souris to keep her in place, they were almost sucking in light with just how much mana Lily was using to maintain them. She was not skipping out on the durability.

”Seems I’ve caught a little mouse,” mused Kat.

”Ha, ha,” droned Souris. ”Like I haven’t heard that one before. You realise I’m actually pretty tall for my type of beastkin right?”

”Not sure that really helps your case,” commented Kat.

Souris did her best to shrug, but of course she was locked in place strongly so it was barely visible. ”Meh,”

Kat continued to stare at the mousekin for a few moments, perhaps seeing if the other woman would give anything away. Kat wasn’t totally sure what she wanted to ask if she were being honest. Part of her was cursing herself for not asking Hedera more about her teammates while they’d been together. Then again, Hedera hadn’t asked for that information either so it had been something of an unspoken agreement to get along but not throw their teams under the bus.

Now though, Kat really wished she had... something to at least demonstrate that she’d gotten along well with Hedera and that they’d left on good terms. ”So, what brings you to this part of the island,” is what Kat eventually settled on.

Souris was not impressed. ”Wow, you are shockingly bad at this aren’t you.”

*Fuck it.* Kat decided that this attempt at acting tough had clearly failed. ”Yes, yes I am. It felt wrong to be too nice after getting attacked but you’re right, I’m bad at holding grudges and I’m not even really angry. I’d rather speak with you, perhaps team up, or just get some information and then head our separate ways if that’s more agreeable.”

”And why would I expect you to do that instead of, say, taking me out when I’m asleep?” asked Souris.

”Because I’m pretty sure I can take you out right now? As for why I’d prefer to talk, I spent a bunch of time with Hedera actually, before we split up and I came here to the centre without her. She’s likely still in Winter where I last saw her,” explained Kat.

Souris chewed on that for a few moments, her mouth darting from side to side as she thought it over, which also caused her ears to bob around a fair bit. Perhaps she was trying to hear something? ”Alright, how about this. Tell me something about Hedera that isn’t immediately obvious in the reports and I’ll hear you out.”

”She rambles when she gets nervous?” Kat tried.

”Correct, but you could get that information out of her just by glaring a bit and connecting the dots,” countered Souris.

”Yes, but I might just think she rambles all of the time. I’m also not sure what else I can really point out to you, because a lot of that could be found through investigation like how she... enchants, and I use that word slightly loosely, her arrows,” countered Kat.

”Ah yes the arrow thing. That’s a better point, even if it’s a common trick it’s not one you can immediately guess at if you’re not an archer... though you do have one in your team so perhaps she had the same idea?” mused Souris.

*I’m pretty sure Green uses an enchanted quiver and bow to enhance her arrows and doesn’t do anything with them individually. Not sure what difference that makes in the grand scheme of things but I think that’s how it’s done for her. Best not to announce that though.* So Kat just shrugged and said, ”Not sure what else you want me to tell you then. I didn’t exactly ask pointed questions about her private life, nor did I ask about the rest of her team.”

As Kat said that though... she realised something. Timmy. She couldn’t see a Timmy anywhere, and Souris should have one right? That... was potentially not ideal. *Lily keep an eye out. I’ve got no idea what she might have asked it to do, nor why she wouldn’t have had it fighting with her.*

[Isn’t it possible that she just can’t take it/him with her, either at all, or without it costing a bunch of extra mana?]

*Perhaps... still keep an eye out.*

Souris, didn’t notice the conversation going on between Kat and Lily. It happened fast enough that there wasn’t much if anything to see. Especially with Kat trying to keep her face as it was. ”I suppose the fact that you’re sticking to your story instead of just trying to make up things that sound good enough is a point in your favour,” mused Souris. ”Still... that doesn’t explain why you’d be willing to work with me here, or why I should trust you.”

”I’d like to point out I specifically said I’d be happy to let you go after we shared some info. This... wasn’t exactly a hard fight for me. Maybe it would be different next time, I doubt you’ll let me grab you so easily, but still, I didn’t feel too overwhelmed so I don’t feel like letting you go will cause me major problems.

”As for the working together part? I went over that. I spent a bunch of time with Hedera. We found each other on... day two? Gosh was it really that long ago? Pretty sure it was early day 2 without checking. So, yeah, it just felt wrong to take you out without giving you a chance.”

”And the elf eying me up? I don’t recognise her...” Souris asked, though the unspoken question, at least to Kat’s ears, was ’she’s not a contestant right?’

”Yeah, that’s Appoline, an alchemist that wanted to work with me. Apparently this place is meant to have good ingredients for it, or rather, it’s been sealed so long the chances are high she can find some good stuff. Appoline decided to come along right after Hedera turned me down,” explained Kat.

”And why would she do that?” asked Souris. ”If you were getting along well?”

Kat shrugged, ”How should I know? The reason she gave was that it was safe, secure, and there were a bunch of orbs practically free for the taking. Going with me would be a risk... and the potential betrayal wasn’t something she wanted to participate in. I mean, I sort of understand. It’s one thing to work together at the start... but as things come to a close... well you almost have to at that point.”

”And are we not at that point now?” queried Souris.