Elsewhere, Hilael had assumed his wolven form as well and was carrying his pack awkwardly strapped between his wings as he searched in the dim light of the crescent moon for Ina. Innugati was flying instead of riding and helped him look for her. A sudden chitter and Hilael immediately flicked his wings to change course and followed Innugati to the ground. Once again, Ina had managed to find a tangle of briars to hide under.
"Hullo, Hilael," Ina said cheerily. She was curled up in her feral form and looking composed.
"Are you alright?" he asked slowly when he had found a way inside. He shifted to his common form in case he needed more nimble fingers to prepare a remedy.
"A little freaked out at an unusual instinctual urge that came from seeing if the goblin form would make it easier, but otherwise, not as bad as last time," Ina replied sheepishly.
"Do I want to know?" Hilael asked with his ears pulled back.
"I ate it," Ina shuddered. "Shell and all. I feel a little better, though."
He stared at her for a moment, then shrugged. "Not much different than the sheep eating afterbirth. Here, I brought you some meat to get you back on your feet faster." Hilael presented the bits of rabbit, which Ina wolfed down eagerly.
"I guess your hunting is improving," Ina complimented him and licked her chops.
"I asked Shanku to bring me a few when she came back from dealing with her own situation," Hilael admitted.
"Does she know about me?" Ina asked in horror. "Or Katari?"
"All I told her was that I needed some rabbits," Hilael said quickly with his hands before him. "I haven't said a word about either of you to Katari. He's been scratching his head and looking around all day, but I offered no information."
Ina rested her head on her paws and stared pensively at the ground.
"You've kept it secret from them for two years. Are you going to be able to for the next three?" Hilael asked after he sat down.
"There's no way to have that talk without it being unbelievably awkward," Ina squirmed. "It's still just once a year. It can wait."
"Try having to avoid it when the buck you've been shadowing and hot and heavy over wants to know why you vanished for a whole day without a word," Hilael said flatly. "That's going to be your alternative, and it was awkward enough for me as your stand-in today."
"We're not hot and heavy," Ina sniffed and held her head high.
"You have slept on his chest every night for weeks," Hilael pointed out.
"Well I won't be tonight," Ina pouted and laid her head back on her paws. "Stupid eggs..."
"If you're still hungry, I brought a salad, too. It's properly seasoned this time," Hilael offered. "I found lots of flavorful plants that offset the bitterness. It's even got a few flowers in it that should help you get your strength up again." Hilael got out the bowl he had carefully wrapped and presented it. With a grimace, Ina took it, and choked it down. She settled back down, looking a tad grumpy as she rested her chin on her paws. Hilael cautiously inquired to her well being again.
Related chapter...
Written for Artober.
The only thing I could think of for "dizzy" was Katari blacking out from blood loss. But the sketches were not agreeing and the ghouls weren't coming out like the spooks in my head and Katari's jaw appeared dislocated, so that version got abandoned. Went with Ina's issue instead. I know I'm not normal, but I get kind of silly when I lose too much blood. It's like a tingly version of a bad low blood sugar. That's why Ina looks drunk. Took two weeks to finish. Could have gotten it done sooner, but this is a very busy time of year for me, even without the extra assignment in Georgia.
