The young woman known as Diarah smiled shyly at the Hyldnir woman who named herself Astrid, letting a hint of an embarassed blush creep on to her features at the woman's tone of voice. Inside she was thinking,<i>Ah, so she is not too fond of me and the others</i>. That sense of annoyance that had plagued the mentally damaged woman disappeared upon this discovery, to be replaced by an odd curiosity.<i>I wonder why she hates us so. It surely can not be the simple fact that we are not Vrykul. Not even this beast would be that vain.</i><br/><br/>As the thick, warm cloaks were handed out along with the boots and food, Diarah, hard as she tried, could not shake that feeling of curiosity and slight annoyance that did nothing but build as time went on. It galled her that there was something about this woman she did not know, when she most definitely wished to know it. As the woman shrugged on her yeti hide cloak and felt that feeling of warmth surround her that blocked out some of the chill, she was already thinking on something to do.<br/><br/>By the time Diarah was putting her food away, an idea had already come to mind, however now was not the time to implement it. That would come later. And so without any further waiting around, they set off. The woman Astrid set a quick pace and Diarah quickly fell behind.<br/><br/>At the end of the first day the woman's feet were throbbing and she was exhausted. This pattern was repeated every day. They would walk and walk and Diarah would pay no attention to their surroundings, beautiful as they would be to a normal person. However, on the last day they reached what she assumed was their destination. She stood transfixed, staring down in to the dark hole with an odd fascination. Everything about this hole that led in to the mountain intrigued the her. The sense that someone was watching them only made her want to explore the hole more; to find out who that someone was and, if the moment called for it, end them. Only when she finally turned away did Diarah notice the tracks outside the entrance, however she paid them little mind.<br/><br/>Later that night when they were all surrounding the campfire, drinking in its warmth, Diarah was subtly watching the Hyldnir woman Astrid. She slowly, throughout the night, sunk deeper and deeper down in to depression and distance. At the height of these feelings, the woman made her move. The way the Hyldnir acted, the way she stared in to the flames as if reliving a past event, told Diarah it was time. The woman yawned and stood, muttering in a shy voice, "<span style="color: DarkOrchid">I am tired. I think I may retire for the night.</span>" She stood and moved as if she was exhausted, pulling out her bedroll and setting it up, then crawling in to it, still in her clothes to attempt to preserve at least some warmth.<br/><br/>Her eyes closed and very soon, according to all outward appearances, was asleep. She breathed the deep breaths of sleep, she hardly seemed to move at all, however she was not asleep. Diarah reached out with her mind and felt the presence of five other beings. Four of them she ignored. The fifth one, however, she did not ignore. Even from the distance with which her mental eye gazed at it she could tell it was wreathed in grief and depression.<br/><br/>The woman's mind approached that of the Hyldnir with caution, not wishing to startle her in to doing something that would result in her death. Diarah, much as she hated to admit it, needed the brute to find her way back. And so Diarah did not force her way in to the Hyldnir's mind as she so wanted to, but instead stopped at the boundaries and gazed inwards, like a child looking through a hole in a fence. What she saw there made her smile. The woman was reliving the loss of her fellow hunters. What intrigued the young Human the most however, was the way in which the creatures the Hyldnir had fought acted and the way she remembered them.<br/><br/><i>Its time to have some fun</i>. Diarah listened to the woman's thoughts for quite a while as she relived the events over and over, mourning the loss of her fellow hunters. As she did this she formed thoughts in her own mind, making them sound as much like the Hyldnir's as she could, then sent them spinning in to the maelstrom of grief and pain Astrid was experiencing.<span style="color: Red"><i>Poor Ulrika. She didn't even have a chance to raise her weapon before being cut down</i></span>was one of the thoughts. It was quickly followed by<span style="color: Red"><i>Ilsa, Anella and the rest were so brave. Sacrificing themselves so I could get back and warn the village.</i></span>She let those thoughts sit in the Hyldnir's mind for a time, making sure they sunk in before continuing. The next thoughts contained slight bitterness and a sense of disgust, as well as the feeling that she'd suddenly come to a realisation.<span style="color: Red"><i>N-no. They weren't brave or strong. They were weak. A true Hyldnir does not let a simple animal slay it, whether it has the look of a puppet about it or not. A true Hyldnir would triumph over such creatures. A true hunter would be successful.</i></span>Then another thought occurred to Diarah. She set to forming more thoughts in the mental voice of Astrid.<span style="color: Red"><i>These Humans on the other hand, and the corpse as well, they are strong. They must be otherwise the Elders never would have assigned them to me. Especially the quiet, dark-haired one who went to sleep a little bit ago. I don't know what it is about her, but I can sense an inner strength within her that is worthy of respect.</i></span><br/><br/>The young woman withdrew from Astrid's mind, a small smile on her face as she returned completely to her own body, hoping she was successful. If she was, she would have a new pet in the morning. If not, she would have to inflict some pain very shortly...<div class="messageTextEndMarker"> </div>