Guardian and Angel
Someone is asking a favor of Luka...and that someone is his Nightstalker companion.
“Um…wh-where are you going?”
Of all the creatures to run away, Luka had not expected his Night Watcher to do so. Angel was bounding on its tiny, springy feet, occasionally looking back.
“I…understand you want me to follow you, but…I’m sorry, it’s just a little confusing…”
Internally, the harlequin Kitsunegami sighed. He hadn’t grown his sixth tail yet, which would be fine were it not for Night Watchers’ inability to communicate outside of telepathy.
The creature looked back and cocked its head. Maybe it was reading his mind. “S-sorry, Angel.”
Unconsciously, Luka had stopped in place. Angel didn’t seem to mind, walking a few more meters ahead and gesturing with its lantern.
“What is that?!”
It looked like a tiny, glowing ball of light or fire, a match light without anything to kindle it. It did have a resemblance to the wisps Luka had seen floating around town, albeit this was even smaller and without eyes or hands.
Angel stared back at its bonded kitsunegami, and pointed its tail to the right. Luka turned his head and caught sight of an identically-colored glow.
The first wisp started to sway, gently drifting towards the light of Angel’s lantern. Softly, the three of them crept their way over to the second wisp.
There, the two fires fused.
Luka gasped at the suddenness of the whole thing…but on second glance, it didn’t seem that one was attacking the other. They had just come together and made a bigger wisp. One that looked more like the incarnates with the closed eyes…but a bit smaller…
Angel cocked its head at Luka once more. Telepathy or no, the message was clear: find another.
Back to the helpful servant, Luka nodded and ran into the woods. After all his time doing odd jobs around the castle, helping spirit wisps unite was unique, to say the least.
Hopefully, he could let it know that it was supposed to follow him, not the other way around.
Making a small illusion of a wisp to help himself remember, he searched through the woods. It was getting dark, but if anything that would be a help. The glow would show easier, and spirits seemed to like the night.
Suddenly, Luka stumbled into a clearing. He squeaked a bit in surprise: he hadn’t been watching his feet. But that wasn’t the most startling thing: the sheer abundance of wisps was. Well, maybe some of them were fireflies.
Steadying himself, Luka tried to regain his composure and think. He’d probably need one that was the same color as the other two. Looking around, he soon felt a wave of relief and gratitude as a correct-colored wisp was only a little above his eye level. No need to climb for it.
Softly, he crept over to the ball of light. There was usually no need for someone as harmless-looking as Luka to worry about scaring things away, but this little wisp was smaller than him by far.
“Um…uh..h-hey…”
Were these wisps even aware of the outside world?
“Pl-please come with me…someone’s looking for you.”
No movement.
He was half-tempted to split himself into eight and get help, but this whole thing had an air suggesting it should be kept private. Luka had never understood spirits the way others like Custos or Hunter could, but hopefully…
He leaned forward and nudged the wisp with his nose. It bounced back a bit, and Luka felt a surge of victory.
“A Nightstalker sent me. You’re lost, right?” With that, the wisp floated behind him. After a moment of fear, the harlequin fox realized that it had begun to trail the feather on his hat.
With the wisp as a built-in flashlight, Luka made his way back to Angel and its charge. Immediately, the small wisp detached from Luka and moved to Angel, as if pulled by a magnet. Luka giggled: harlequins weren’t meant to do this, their little companions were. But at least…
The fires fused once more, revealing a larger wisp with closed eyes.
…even for this…
It gently flew away, Angel’s gaze never leaving it.
…for this, Luka could be of help.