ch20

      Irai glanced around from the tree, hoping to see anyone that would come to her aid, but she had no such luck. The four men continued to circled and waited patiently around the tree as she looked in the apple tree for anything that could come to her use. Sighing, she looked down again, waiting for their next move.   The sun slowly began to fade as the sky began to take a dark hue. Time moved slowly for Irai in the tree as the four began to grow impatient.

         Three of the men slowly began to climb the tree from different angles as she looked carefully at them. A mischievous smile crept onto her face as Irai made her way to the end of her branch, eyeing the men carefully. Plucking an apple from its spot, Irai waited a mere second before she hurled it right into the face of the closest man, resulting in a curse as well as a loss of balance as the first fell to the ground with a thud.

         Irai proceeded to grab another apple, hurling it at the second. He, too, lost his footing on the branches, deflecting the apple with his arm before he landed on the ground a little more gracefully than his partner. The third closed in on her slightly, keeping himself on the tree as Irai hurled an apple at him. Her smile widened as she looked near the man. Taking yet another apple from the tree, Irai began to move closer to the man before she pegged the apple at him.

        As the third proceeded to block the apple, Irai leaped at him, grabbing one of the stronger branchs nearby before she swung her feet into his chest. Branches snapped in the path of the falling body as the third landed hard into the ground. The other three proceeded to wait again as Irai smiled to herself, enjoying her small victory. Eventually the fourth got out of his spot, obviously dazed from the blow as the waiting game began again.

        The sky gave in to the darkness as the moon slowly began to rise.   Irai looked down at her foes again, her eyes still able to pick them up as they all seemed focused on the moon.   She pondered escape, but unsure as to what they were up to, she remained in the tree, observing carefully.

        Irai stared in amazement as the four forms slowly began to shift. Hair grew rapidly, muscles bulged and faces extended as she watched the four shapeshift into werewolves.   At the sight of the transformantions, thoughts of her own ability to change came into mind.   Wonder as to why she did not transform yet slowly crept into her mind as Irai's amazement turned into confusion.

       Her thoughts were shattered, however, as Irai found herself clinging to the tree as the four weres shook it violently.   At this rate, they're gonna uproot the tree! Gathering her balance, she leaped off of the apple tree, landing far enough from the weres to give herself enough time to recover and bolt in a full run. The four persued Irai, quickly gaining on her before she found herself cut off from the mansion as all four surrounded her. Almost in a full state of panic, her gaze changed rapidly from werewolf to werewolf as the four slowly closed on her.

        "Bad puppies.   Picking on a poor, defenseless kitty like you are."

        Irai glanced up at the voice that came from above her before a woman landed near her.   The bat-like wings attached to the woman's back folded up as the two demonic tails swung back and forth lazily. She looked around at all four of the werewolves before she smiled at Irai, causing the cat-morph to shiver slightly at the sight. Her ears slowly picked up two growled words from one of the werewolves.

         "A succubus......"

         The succubus broke into the chant as the four weres began to close in on the duo. Irai prepared herself for a real fight, but merely blinked as the chanting finished. Dark tentacles sped from the ground and around the weres' legs as the four found themselves struggling to maintain their balance or on the ground. A wicked chortle sounded from the demoness's throat as she looked around, satisfied with the results of the spell.

          "Hmph.... it's a shame Master told me to return them unharmed...." Disappointment covered the succubus's face before she turned to Irai and smiled, creating another shiver in her. "Master also requests that you return to the mansion."

          Irai glanced around, still confused as to what had just happened. Eventually she gathered enough of herself to walk past the struggling forms of the werewolves as they found themselves entangled further by the tentacles. Looking around, she eventually found the abandoned clothes that she had taken from Ren's stash, picking them up before she quickly returned to the mansion.

          Inside the mansion, Irai looked around for a moment, gathering in her mind where she was before she began to move to the front lobby. Glancing around, she nearly lost herself in the halls of the mansion before she recognized the one she took with Ren to the kitchen. Glancing around nervously, she made her to the door, wondering who the demoness referred to as 'Master'.

          She blinked in amazement at the first sight of the lobby as she opened the door. Irai regarded the dangling form of the man who was in the mansion in the morning, hung to the ceiling with rope by his feet. As the man regarded her, he proceeded to throw a large tantrum, cursing wildly.   Irai proceeded into the center of the lobby, looking around at the mess of furniture knocked around as well as the inverted man.

         "You okay Irai?"

         She turned to the source of the voice and saw Ren, causing a smile to appear on her face.   She quickly made her way up the stairs to him, embracing him in a tight hug. He let out a small "oof" to her embrace before he returned it, smiling.

         "Be gentle with me Irai.... I kinda got banged up."

         "Well then, let's see it."

          "Not right now....." Ren's gaze shifted on to his hanging prisoner.

          She nuzzled his neck, wrapping her arms around Ren gently before she looked at the form that was suspended from the ceiling. Even louder curses flowed from the man's throat as Irai leaned her head against Ren. He gently rubbed her back, causing her to purr slightly.   Eventually the muddled words stopped as Ren glared at the prisoner.

          "You're lucky I don't kill you now for what you tried to pull.   You either can be quiet for the rest of the night and released tomarrow or shot with a bolt right now. Or perhaps the succubus would enjoy you. It's your choice, really."

          The man's eyes remained wide as he stared at Ren. Not a single word escaped his mouth as silence filled the lobby. Satisfied, Ren escorted Irai back down the stairs before the two made their way back to the kitchen hallway. Both looked back at the prisoner one last time before the duo walked through the hallway and into the dining room.

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          Slowly, Irai woke up as the day began anew. Purring softly, she rolled around under the covers, wrapping the blankets around her as she enjoyed the silky feel against her. Her arms slowly began to search for Ren while her eyes remained shut, refusing to open them to the light. After a few seconds, she forced them open, raising her head slightly to take a look around her.

          Curiousity began to overwhelm her as she sat up in the bed, letting the sheets fall off her. Slowly she slipped out of bed, looking around the room as she made her way to the door. Her hand nervously grasped the knob as she began to twist the knob slowly.

           The door opened.

           Irai sighed in relief, happy to know that the last two days were not dreams. A few thoughts of Ren flashed in her mind before she looked in the closet, raiding Ren's clothes as she nabbed a white shirt as well as a pair of pants. Quickly putting them on, Irai made her way out of the room, looking around for Ren inside the mansion.

          She stopped and looked around in the lobby, amazed to find the furniture arranged neatly. Irai looked around for the prisoner, only to find that the rope had been taken down. Her thoughts slowly changed from her former master to Ren, but it wasn't long before her stomache made protest. A soft smile dawned upon her face as she made her way downstairs and to the kitchen.

          In the kitchen, she saw Rina at work as Irai took a seat at the table. Her mouth watered at the sight of the food being prepared, occasionally letting out a small whimper. Eventually the cook turned around and smiled at her, the smile turning into a grin at the sight of the cat-morph's reactions.

         "Hungry are we?"

         She merely nodded as Rina placed breakfast in front of her. Irai licked her lips once before she began to feast upon the food, savoring the tastes within her mouth.   Eventually she felt stuff as she finished the last bit of food, leaning back into the chair with a loud, happy sigh. Rina picked up the empty plate and washed it as Irai looked at the cook's work.

          "Rina.... have you seen Ren today?"

          She nodded. "Yep. He said that you should be ready for today's work, he'll be back shortly. And...."   Rina tossed Irai a key. "and that I should unlock your room after the former Master left.   Here's the key. I'm sure you'll want it."

            She stared at the object that held her like a prisoner in her room for months. Eventually she pocketed the key, standing up and thanking Rina for her breakfast before she wandered outside.   The wind blew against her, causing her to shiver slightly before Irai eventually made her way into the middle of the yard.   Glancing around for anyone, she stripped down completely before she laid upon the grass, basking in the warm heat from the sun. She rolled around in the grass, enjoying the feel of the blades against her fur. Slowly, Irai began to lose herself in her feelings, smiling contently as she stared up in the sky.

            "Irai! You ready for today?"