Even with the obvious fact that he was being watched, the blind male had continued to take several more sips from his cupped hands of water. There was no doubt in his mind that this lake was much more than a normal one from that of nature's creation. Whatever it was, the water from the lake had been able to refresh his thirst for water for what seemed like it would last for hours. The strange part was that the spirits of the dead that had been guiding him to reach the other side of the mountain had seemed as though they didn't wish to come near this part of the forest at all. What the exact reason to why they had avoided this lake was unclear to him, was it because of that presence he felt that was watching him the entire time he was taking drinks from the lake itself, or was it more.

No matter what it was, Niya hadn't bothered to try and get the spirits over to where he kneeled at for the company. If they had wished to wander off somewhere else, it was their choice to do so, just as it was their choice that they wanted to help him find his way to the other monk. It hadn't been too long after he had finished taking the last drink did the blind male finally help himself back up to his feet to stand straight. The presence hadn't showed itself yet, so he had thought that it would remain that way even once he had walked away from the lake.

Although, that was the exact opposite of what he had expected. A female voice had soon echoed throughout the entire lake area of his surroundings. This voice had caused Niya to stop in his tracks only to turn his attention back upon the lake itself. Normally, once the sound of a voice or anything had come up the blind male would easily be able to figure out who and where it had come from in an instant. Strange though, just as the forest animals, Niya was unable to figure out exactly where this female seemed to be as she spoke to him.

Asking him upon who he was and what reason he had to be there at the lake, the blind male gave nothing more than complete silence as a response for the time being. He wanted to figure out where this woman was first before he would decide to answer such a question to a stranger he didn't even know either. It didn't seem too long after the female's voice echoed throughout the area did the forest animals begin staring at his stance before them all. Didn't seem like he was really in any place to be asking a question back or demanding for the female to show herself first.

Keeping both of his hands visible at his sides to show that he was not here to battle at random. "I am but a simple traveler ma'am. I simply wish to meet with a monk that resides upon the opposite side of this mountain." Even though it was a lie that Niya was nothing more than traveler, he had kept his tone calm and his body still. Most people and demons that had told lies would have their hearts racing rapidly in the fear that they would be caught in their lie, but Niya had remained completely calm as though he knew he was telling the truth. "I had only accidentally found this lake. I have yet to been able to get any fresh water in some time, I apologize if this is your lake and is forbidden to drink from it. If so, I will take my leave immediately." The second question she had asked of the blind male when he had answered was the truth. He had indeed been quite parched from walking away from the group since the last time he had drank anything was quite a while ago. He was given food, but not really any actual water. As for the accidentally finding the lake, it was also true he hadn't really meant to find it in the first place. Niya had only been following the sounds of the spirits of the dead and heard some rustling from the nearby area and that had just caused him to be cautious was all.

Kyra paced inside her concealed temple wondering what she should do or not do. A person was simply not allowed to know of this location and wander off again. She never wanted to risk this place being revealed to human kind for their destructed habits. It had happened before, long ago. A single man had discovered her lake, discovered the beauty it held, discovered the forest was alive with much wildlife and that the soil here was very fertile. At first, this man was no threat of any kind. He did not spoil the land, he didn't dirty the water or kill the animals. He didn't chop down trees, he was peaceful. So she had let him leave. But within a weeks time that one man had brought back a couple of dozen men back with him. Kyra could recall the grisly scene as if it had just happened yesterday. The men immediately began destroying the area surrounding the lake. They chopped at trees, burnt the grass. They shot at animals and killed her much loved critter friends. This act of destruction enraged Kyra and forced her to destroy every single one of them. Of course, word spread of these men disappearing and occasionally someone else would show up searching for him. Eventually a bounty was put on Kyra's head, but after many years the mortals realized that she could not be killed by mortal hands... Still..

"A simple traveler, you say? How do I know you are not here to destroy this place? To destroy its purity and innocence with your barbaric natures?" She paused. It may be true that this stranger was not human and was similar to her, but she knew she couldn't risk trusting him. "There is a road to that mountain you seek, is there not? I am certain of this. Are you not from around here, Traveler?"

After a few minutes passed, Kyra decided to reveal herself. She parted the weeping branches and slowly, yet casually descended down the short stairs and stood before the blind man. Her dark hair danced as a small breeze passed by which also disturbed her short silken kimono that had just momentarily blew up a little to far. She was barefooted as she silently walked in the grass, wearing only the minimal. The man would have noticed this if he wasn't blind. Her appearance was that of a much desired and envied woman, a trick to full a man into letting his guard down. Though she needn't use this technique much anymore, she still permanently kept this appearance for it was the one she favored.

The animals continued to watch from the forest. There eyes glued to the stranger, ears perked as if they were truly listening to the conversation. "My friends. Be at ease and disperse, please." Kyra whispered softly and at that they animals did indeed begin parting and going back to their usual behavior.

((Sorry! Wolfie didn't realize the ink snake was a secret.))

Hikari leaned back against the tree and listened to the song Raven was making. Closing her eyes, she almost felt calm, the way she used to when her father had sang to her. She must have drifted off at some point, because she dreamed that she was still a child in her father's arms, and that he was singing her to sleep. If one were to look at her in that moment, they would see a pure, unguarded smile on her sleeping face. The combination of slumber and smile seemed to take years off of her, making her look like the teenager she was.

After stating that he was nothing more then a traveler who wanted to reach the monk on the opposite side of the mountain and having to stand there and await for an answer from an unknown female around him, the few minutes of silence had given him the slight feeling that the female had figured out that he was lying from his words. Even if she had figured out that he was lying and this whole thing started out into an all out battle with the woman and forest creatures around him, Niya wasn't going to simply just stand by and give in to them all. Obviously enough, if they had attacked him first, he would fight back to defend himself against his enemies.

That had all changed his thoughts when the female voice had spoken up once again to response of him telling her that he was a traveler. It hadn't seemed that she didn't believe his words but it wasn't as though she did believe them as well, she spoke of him possibly coming to this lake to destroy it's purity and such with his 'barbaric ways'. "I cant truly prove to you such a thing that I will not do by my current actions. Although, I can simply say that once I have left..you will indeed not see me return to this place. Your lake shall remain the way it is." His voice remaining steady and calm through the entire time as he continued to take his attention upon the animals that surrounded him. The second question she had come up for him had caused a bit of nervousness to shake through Niya's body. Indeed, there was a better way to get to the other side of the mountain by simply following the path he was on the entire time, but it would've been a longer walk was all. The spirits had led him through this way since it they seemed to had known it to be a quicker but more dangerous route.

What was he to tell her, he barely knew this person and he was simply going to blurt out that he heard voices telling him to go this way. She would've thought he was crazy and obviously lying, he would have to come up with something to tell her that wasn't just plain ridiculous. "I know of the road..but I have been traveling for quite some time now. I left off road to see if I could find any water around in the forest. I am unaware of how far the next village was, so I had to enter the forest and find something to drink. I...I am indeed not from around here, I come from a village that is much further away from this location." It was difficult to even speak of where the blind male had come from since it caused him to remember his home with the monks.

Finally once a pair of footsteps was heard approaching down what seemed to be stairs, Niya had raised a single brow from underneath his bandages to what he was hearing. By the time the female had left from her hidden area, it took nearly about a second for the blind male to realize where she was. She had told the animals of the area to leave and just like that they listened to her intently before leaving the lake area to return to this own business. Turning his head toward the woman, Niya remained silent and awaited for her response to what he had to say in his defense.

((I'm sorry! I forgot it was my turn! ))

Suzume chuckled at the woman's comment about being able to sleep through anything. "It's nice to meet you Sayuri," she said before answering her question. "We're actually just on a walk," she said giving Chi a reassuring smile. "We were up at the castle and soon we'll be headed around the mountain to see a monk."

She paused for a moment before asking another question. "Can I ask you, if, the thing you're looking for is the Maboroshi no Ginzuishiou?" She knew it may seem like a very random question, but so far most of those she'd met since she started her journey had been seeking it, and this woman said she was seeking something important to the world...

"Maybe you could come with us," she added. "That's what we're searching for. We could use all the help we could get." She was smiling again, not even stopping to think that the woman could be searching for the jewel to use it for evil. She didn't look evil, and Suzume liked her. So the thought never crossed her mind. Perhaps she was serching for it, and that's why she already had a piece, though Suzume wouldn't know that Sayuri didn't know she had it.

Then Chi was scolding Sayuri and walking away. She blinked owlishly after him. If the woman responded that she was looking for the Ginzu and that she would join them, Suzume would be happy and would grab her pack before catching up with Chi and taking them both back to the castle where the others were waiting.

Studying the stranger, Kyra looked him up and down. He was blind? "You can not see, Traveler? That is strange indeed.. Not one man has ever ventured in here who had some sort of disability." She paused and moved her tongue over her top row of teeth. What would the inside of another spirit taste like, she wondered.

Kyra silently moved to the edge of the lake and stared down at the reflections in the water. The lake was so clear, so pure that it near perfectly mirrored the surrounding world. The trees, grasses, the clouds and the sky were all staring back at her from the water. It was really a breathtaking scene and she often wished she could disappear into a mirrored world and not truly have to worry about the reality side of the reflection. Yes, she was at peace in these woods, but sometimes she longed for more. Sometimes she wished to leave this sanctuary of hers, but only for a short time. She knew if she charged her powers before leaving she would be able to put a protective veil over the lake and temple to keep out any dangers, but she had never dared to try it.

"I see.. So, you are heading to see a monk, raised by in a faraway place, and decided to leave the safety of the trail for some water." Kyra paused and turned once again to face the stranger, "If you cannot see, then you must have heightened senses, special abilities, yes? I cannot see you as not being a threat, because I know you must hold secrets of your own, but I am curious. What does the monk hold that interests you, Spirit?"

Kyra's eyes had darkened only slightly and her teeth has sharpened just barely as that last question was asked. She revealed that she could in fact sense something off, something more and if this blind stranger was intending to attack she would be prepared.

Staying completely silent as the female had stood there to study him, Niya had seemed completely unafraid of this other strange female that had been questioning him back and forth with what seemed like an endless amount of questions. He had obviously not shown it through his expression or any of his actions as well, but indeed he was getting quite annoyed with the fact that he should be on his way to the other side of the mountain once again. So, the female had found out he was a traveler just looking for a drink, so shouldn't she just let him go on his way now. That thought was soon interrupted when yet another question was brought up upon how Niya was actually blind and that no one had ever came through here that had such a disability of not being able to see where they went. He hadn't bothered to answer such a question, his blindness was something that people normally figured out about him considering his eyes were nearly always bandaged up to any sight whatsoever.

It had only taken a matter of moments before the female had made her way over toward the lake did Niya raise a single brow and move his head to look at her; in a way. Unaware of how clear the lake was by sight, the taste of the water from earlier had been quite clear and clean nothing really to what Niya had actually tasted before. Normally, whenever he would try to take water from nature itself, it would always be mixed with some sort of dirt of nature to follow which always made it also quite difficult to drink without coughing some of it back up. This was his chance at the same point though, she was preoccupied with the lake as it seemed, he could make a run for it and get away from the lake before anything horrible could really happen. Strangely enough though, the blind male refused to move as he stayed still only to await for yet another question.

The woman had known quite well that being blind must've given Niya some sort of ability or at the very least heightened senses to be able to get this far into the forest with zero sight. So, she found out he had heightened senses, so what. Many mortals who had been blinded had to figure out someway to start moving again around their homes. The one part of those questions had caught him off guard was the fact that she had now considered him a 'spirit'. Even if his eyes weren't seen and he was quite unable to do so, Niya would've had his eyes widened up in shock to know that the woman knew he was something close enough considered to a spirit.

She questioned him on what he wanted from the monk as he let out a low sigh from his own lips before lowering his head a bit. Well, no use lying anymore now. "So, you know do you?...Well indeed, I am blind..however this is nothing something I was born with. It is..something much more personal." Even if the woman had known him to be a spirit of sorts, it didn't mean he was prepared to give away his whole story to her. "The monk..its been known that the monk is supposedly able to cure any type of disease, illness or disabilities. I had hoped that if I could find this monk..that they would be able to cure my eyesight and return it back to once it was." His tone of voice low to a near whisper but loud enough for the female to hear his words.

Soon though, he had raised his head once more to look at the female unaware of her eyes darkening or even her teeth sharpening as well. "It is quite more than obvious..that you are not a mortal as well. You guard this lake as your home I suppose? Do you consider it your home?..Do you honestly wish to remain here for the rest of your eternity? I am quite sure that even you wish to leave this place..at the very least once in awhile. Why not visit the monk yourself..maybe he will be able to help you with defending your home by keeping it hidden from ever being noticed by mortal eyes." His tone had returned back to it's normal calmness as though he had never even answered he previous question that had been given to him.

Again slightly taken aback by the comment from the young man she shifted on her feet as he passed her by. She was a little concerned for her safety and wondered if these people were dangerous, but as her attention turned to the girl still present. Her aura was kind and gentle and her smile was a very friendly one, she didn't seem dangerous. When she began to talk about the Ginzu Sayuri was a bit hesitant to answer. 'I'm guessing it won't be a bad idea to have someone to be with while on this journey, though I'm kind of scared. If the young man was her companion now then he is probably her companion on this journey. He doesn't seem to like me..' She fidgeted with her fingers and looked down at her bare feet. Sayuri had noticed earlier the shift in the environment when the two had touch the soil, and she had guessed that the young man was a demon of some sort. At the moment Sayuri was sending little pulses of her spiritual energy to cleanse the area; sometimes this occurrence happens subconsciously, she feels the environments discomfort when disturbed. Still looking at her feet Sayuri responded to Suzume's question, "I am in search of the jewel. It was an assignment handed to me by my parents, they always told me that there never enough people who intend to find the jewel for good. It's better to have more then less. I really want to get rid of the horrid thing..."

Sayuri's adoptive parents had always told her about the jewel and before she had set on the journey they had told her about how she had come into their lives. They told her they had a hunch at where she belonged but they place was long gone, destroy they night they came to her. The slight confession bring back the truth, but Sayuri pushed it to the back of her mind as she rose her head to give Suzume a small smile. "I would love to join you, I'm must confess though that your friend has me a little hesitant to give a solid 'yes'. He doesn't seem to like me much and I wouldn't want to cause any trouble."

The world around them seemed to pause briefly as this exchange took place. Why was she bothering questioning him this much? Usually she cared little for the unfortunate souls that wandered onto her lake. But there was something about this man that caught her interest, that made her curiosity take over. He was powerful in his own ways, but did not seem to be the killer type. Yet.. But, How would it benefit her to kill him? She could only consume the souls and blood of humans in a beneficial way. Killing this stranger would be a waste and would hold no value.

"So, you wish to regain your eyesight? There is no mystery to why. Even with heightened senses and certain.. abilities.. being unable to see the world around you would be rather sad." Her eyes and teeth had gone back to normal now and her tone was smooth, almost gentle. "These monks, do you really think they can cure your blindness? I have heard of such healers before. Yes, they have been around for many, many years." She sighed, "But I have never gone to see them. I've only ventured to the outskirts of the nearby villages. I'm surprised you hadn't heard of me before."

His question about her leaving caused her body to tense. How dare he ask such a question to her while rudely entering her home. Inhaling deeply, Kyra forced herself to remain calm, "This is my home and I have always considered it as that. I do protect this place from those who wish to destroy it..." She paused, a sadness nearly creeping into her voice, "I do leave. For short times when it is necessary, but I do not stay gone long. Living somewhere for so long can make you feel odd when you're away. But enough of me spilling my thoughts and secrets to you.

She turned her gaze away from the blind man and stared down at the crystal clear lake, "I have thought about moving on, but something holds me here. More than you could imagine.. More than you could ever know." Her voice was now low, as his had been. The thought of leaving had crossed her mind several times and she often wished to see other parts of this world. To see other places that hold beauty, to witness nature as she had never seen it before. She hadn't always been like this though. "The monks couldn't protect this place. If I wasn't here this forest would have already been cleared. The animals butchered. The lake unclean and polluted with human filth. My question to you is how long would it take to travel to the monks?" She could protect this place while she was away as long as she is able to replenish her powers often.

Haru was aware of what was going on through the snake, who kept its eyes on the female that the other woman was talking to. It stayed concieled within her hair though, looking out from there. He himself was focusing on the sketch at hand, the form of a face had begun to take shape on the page within the book. For a moment he did not know who it was ment to be, his hand merely moving on its own. Slowly however it began to come to mind. "Sensei" he sighs a bit, his hand pausing on the page. He stared at the incomplete face, memories coming back to him a bit. He hoped the other was alright, though he could not let him find him for his own protection. Then again what about these people's protection. He glanced up at the three of them around. Was this right?

Chi looked back at the two, squirming a bit. This was not good, no good, no good! That girl knowing and joining them? He looked down at his feet, pushing some dirt with his toe. This was new without Hex there. He would have interviened by now, but he was silent. He tapped the side of his head a little bit, looking up towards his hair now, though nothing happened. He sighed, the two of them fighting was not good. He hated it, though he was a bit still upset. He looked over at the other two. That woman had interrupted their talk. He sighed and crouched down, drawing a circle around himself within the dirt. It wasn't big or anything, but it was a circle. He watched a small bug approaching his circle. He watched it move over the ground, closer and closer to his spot and to him. It was going to invade his circle. It was going to get to close. He reached down a bit, flicking at it so it was knocked away and on its back. He watched its legs kick and it rock back and fourth in an attempt to get up.

Raven glanced over at the peaceful tiger with a smile. He turned on his side as the song was finidhed, merely watching him in this state for now. He said nothing, enjoying the peaceful moment of being relaxed and for once nothing being wrong or the other trying to rush off. He was sure the female and boy were fine. She had not summoned him and the other who said she was safe with the snake did not seem bothered at all either. He reached over lightly to stroke the other's cheek gently with a talon. He wondered for a moment if this would be the first and last peaceful moment they would have. It was true, they had no idea what laid in front of them. Whatever it was he would do what he could to help and make sure no one had to lose their life because of this little quest. Even from the gem. He took a breath, closing his own eyes for a moment.

As expected, the strange woman had continued to question Niya about everything on him. Her first question seemed to had been based off of a confirmation on his request to go see the monk to return his eyesight, from what she said on how it was sad that he was unable to see the world around him for the true colors of everything. He remained completely silent, he was already quite used to the whole fact of being blind but it was indeed true, the first several months that he had to survive with being completely blind was truly a sad thing. The sight of amazingly well prepared food, the sight of nature around him had all disappeared to nothing but complete darkness. However, she questioned him right after about his thoughts if the monks were able to truly going to be able to cure him of his blindness, he had let both of his fists come to a slight clench. That much worried him, the thought that the monks would be unable to cure his curse of being blind like this would leave nothing more than a terrible heartache inside of him. He would have to continue his travels on for who knows how long till he would finally find someone or get the pieces of the Maboroshi to finally return his sight. "Yes..I believe they can cure my eyesight. They must..You do not understand how terrible it is to not be able to see the world. You have sight..you can see your lake..your animal allies and everything around you." His voice remaining low as he spoke to the woman until she had began to walk back over toward her lake.

She stated that this lake was her home and about how strange it would've felt to be gone away from it, about how she protected it. Just those words had easily reminded Niya about his original home, with the monks. It was true, even though his home with the monks was to be protected by the monks themselves and it had been destroyed, the thought that he had no other choice but to leave the village to venture on his own had indeed made himself feel odd. Even though the village was destroyed, it was still his home no matter what. He hadn't spoken much more about telling the woman to leave the lake if she truly considered it as a home of such to herself.

Right as the woman spoke of something holding her there that Niya wouldn't really be able to understand, he once more remained silent about it all. He may had been unaware if it was a curse or something kept her from moving on away from the lake, but he knew the feeling of not wanting to leave such a place that you once called home. The day Niya's own village was attacked, even when the monks were being slaughtered left and right he had wished to remain there and die with the people who raised him up to be such a good person. Although, shockingly enough he still left his home since he was instructed to live on by the same monk he had almost considered his own father of sorts. The reason he hadn't spoken up about any of that was since, what his feeling of what she thought that held her there was completely different there was no need to speak of something like that.

However, when the female stated that the monks were unable to protect the lake, it had made the blind man's blood stir up within himself. He wanted to just take out his blade and ram it straight into the woman's mouth to shut her up from daring to speak about the monks in such a way, true the monks she spoke of were probably not the same ones who raised him but the fact of speaking up about them and while his thoughts were already on his home made him feel so very uncomfortable. Although, he kept his facial expression calm and steady as he resisted the urge to speak up in profanity. "It will probably be close enough..to a day's travel to reach the place. Especially if we continue to go off road to get there. There will most likely be others that will join us there later on, they will not be heading through this lake though..if I am correct, they will continue on down the main path." He instructed about the group he had traveled with earlier, as he turned kept his gaze upon the woman while she stood by the lake. He remained utterly still. "If you do not wish to leave your home...I am not telling you to..I am simply telling you that maybe the monks may be able to grant you a wish to protect your lake much easier. I understand you wish to protect your home...but what would happen if one day your power was too weak to protect it against something much too powerful..even for you. There are many different creatures that lurk in the shadows out there."

After the man had become silent after his last statement, Kyra too also remained quiet. She was puzzled by his strong beliefs in the monks and gazed at her own reflection in the lake. She had never gotten along with monks, she didn't trust them, and she didn't like them. Her reasons were her own though, but she didn't want to test this stranger's faith in them either.

"Well.." Kyra turned back to the man, "I might as well go.. There are other reasons aside from protection that I wish to seek out from those monks." Kyra glanced back at the water as her eyes flashed black once more. She shut them and stood, peacefully in front of the lake. Holding out her arms, the wind in the area began to pick up causing fallen leaves to dance wildly around her and the small open field. The area around the lake seemed to become brighter, almost blindingly so. Then, all at once the wind died down and the light faded leaving everything almost normal. When Kyra opened her eyes she was pleased to see the land around them shimmering in a dream like state.

If she was going to be away, she wanted this place to be hidden, to be protected from everything dangerous. If the man standing nearby hadn't been blind he would have seen the grass, the trees, the water, even the sky shimmering in an lucid and dreamy state. The area was encircled for a few miles in a disappearing dome that would protect it from all other eyes. No one would even realize that they have come across this place.

"So, where do we head to now?" Kyra grinned and turned towards the blind man. "Oh, you can call me Kyra."

((Haha Chi and the bug made me laugh for some reason.))

Suzume nodded at the woman's words. She was glad to hear that she wasn't after it for the wrong reasons. Suzume hadn't thought she was anyway. She always hoped for and found the best in others. When she spoke of her hesitancy because of Chi, Suzume looked towards him.

He'd sat in the dirt and drawn a circle around himself. She looked back at the woman and simply shrugged. There wasn't much Suzume could say about Chi, what with him sitting right there and all. Not that she would have said anything bad about him. She just didn't want to talk about him like he was a child and as if he wasn't there.

She smiled at the woman. "Chi is my friend," she started. "He hasn't given us any trouble, and he has a good heart." She hoped the words would comfort the woman enough and that she would understand Suzume's position, wanting to reassure her that things would be fine, while not wanting to talk about her friend, Chi. "Plus, there are more of us back at the castle. They're waiting on us to leave, now. We should be going."

Suzume picked up her pack and began making her way towards the castle. She looked over her shoulder as she passed Chi and Sayuri. She wouldn't force Syuri to come along if she were uncomfortable, and while she thought Chi needed a friend, and wanted to help him, she wouldn't force him to come back against his will either. She walked along the path now back to the castle.

The doors opened at her arrival and she gave the snake a little pet to say she hadn't forgotten him. She moved inside the gate and into the courtyard and towards the others who all looked ready to go. She stopped in front of them with a cheerful smile. "I found a new friend!" she exclaimed. "Sayuri is looking for the Maboroshi no Ginzuishou, too! I invited her to come along with us."

Suzume looked much like a child who'd made a new friend on the playground. She was excited for more companionship and excited to be on their way to see the monk. Though she saw them all, she wasn't paying enough attention to notice Niya was missing right away. She was on edge and ready to put the jewel back together and save the world already.

Hikari looked up sharply as she sensed Suzume approaching. The kitsune stood up quickly and went over to the other woman. "It's a good thing you're back. The tiger wanted to go after you, and I must admit that I was ready to run off to find you, too. Where is this friend? And where is Chi-kun?" She asked. She felt an odd combination of relief and anxiety, being happy that Suzume was fine, but worried about Chi, and now on her guard about this new person. Suzume would never suspect someone of foul play or ulterior motives, so Hikari felt like she had to be suspecting for her. Although the tiger demon did that pretty well already.

With the silence that had fallen between the woman and himself, it had seemed the two had completed their little conversation. At this point, it seemed as though he might had well as just turned his back to the woman and continued on his way toward the monk on the other side of the mountain. The woman had kept her own intentions on the lake in front of her and stayed just as silent as how the blind male remained. That was until the slightest movements of her turning her gaze back onto him and speaking that she had her own other reasons to see these monks that Niya was after. Did that mean she was coming along as well to the other side of the mountain, he had not bothered to speak a word to her on asking if she was planning to travel there as well. Rather, he had only raised a single brow at what she had said.

That was until a quickened change in wind had caught the blind male's attention. Turning his head toward the direction he had felt the gust of winds blowing towards, it had seemed as though this was not a simply random breeze of air from nature's doing, no. It seemed much more controlled as though it were directing all of it's natural force toward the lake area. To follow, there was yet also another bright light that even those who were blind could not ignore that came from the lake. The light of the lake had been powerful enough that it even caused Niya to have to move a single arm over his bandaged eyes to lower the intense pain that surged through his covered eyes.

However, just as quickly as the light and wind came about, it immediately returned everything normal in an instant. With his blindness, he was unable to tell the difference of what had just happened in the area, but it was well aware to him that this woman had just done something indeed powerful. By the time she had returned over to him and asked as to where they were going to head now, it had given him no doubt in his mind that she was indeed following to the monks with him after-all. It had not bothered him too much that yet another person would join him to go to the monks, but it was simply the thought of how this woman spoke of monks badly earlier that had him slightly annoyed. Even though he hadn't shown it upon his face or actions, he was indeed annoyed with the fact. So he had simply stood to the side and pointed toward the direction he had been walking the whole time through the dense forest before he came across this lake. "I'm sure the travel will be quite shorter if we simply go through the forest. However, we can also take the original path that leads to the other side from outside of the forest. I simply would think that this other way would be a much more quick approach to the monk." He informed, leaving out the fact that he had only continued on that path outside of the forest due to the spirits of the dead in the surrounding area letting him know about it.

Even as the woman had introduced herself as calling her Kyra, the blind male had remained silent about letting her know of his own name. He hadn't told the group he was traveling with recently his name, so what in the world would change his mind now to simply tell another person he hadn't known of his identity. Without another word to continue, Niya had simply began to make his way further from the lake and back into the dense forest he was once walking through.

((Hey everyone! I just wanted to let everybody know that Kry has to drop the play. It doesn't seem like anyone else is really posting anyway. Do any of you want to continue, or shall I deem this play deadzo?))

(I'm here, just waiting on others..)

((I'm still willing to keep going, I've just been having school issues that have been worked out!))

((Wolfie wants to keep going!!))

(I want to keep going! I just have been busy. >_<)

Glancing back at the large willow and the shimmering lake, Kyra was saddened to be leaving a place she had grown overly attached to. "Goodbye, my friends. Just for now, I'll return." Her whisper was barely audible. Turning her head back to the direction of the man, she cocked an eyebrow as she noticed he was already leaving. And without returning his name to her. Men rarely had the chance to learn her name and walk away, he could have at least been considerate enough to give her his name. But she shrugged it off and began silently following him.

"Through the forest would be fine with me. But.. taking the road could provide me with a much needed snack. That spell wore me out.." Kyra chuckled and was at her new acquaintance's side, her bare feet silently moving over the dead leaves that littered the forest floor. She wasn't lying about feeling drained. Using that protection spell had in fact wore her out and drained her abilities considerably. And feeding would give her the strength back she would need to continue the protection spell.

As she continued to follow the man, she couldn't help but wonder the true reason she was tagging along. It wasn't as if she truly had business with these monks. In fact, she would probably be burned just for entering their sanctuary, but something as pulling her to travel with this stranger. She couldn't pinpoint the reason, the feeling to trust him. It was very unlike her, but she had given in due to curiosity. The monks would most likely sense her presence as an evil one and consider her a demon spawned from the deepest pits of Hell. In a way, she knew she was very similar to just that, but her essence wasn't purely evil. She sighed and cast the thought aside. Whatever would happen when they arrived wouldn't really matter.