Alyssa accepts her suva and thanks the attendant. She takes a long sip of the steaming beverage, its warmth loosening the knot that seems to have tied itself in her throat.<br/><br/><blockquote><div><cite>Yuki wrote:</cite>"You're lucky to have been spared. Being digested by a demon is one of the worst ways to go." <span style="font-weight: bold">*gulp*</span> "Or so I've heard. Never experienced it myself."<br/><br/>"...Why <span style="font-style: italic">were</span> you spared, anyway? The attack happened a decade ago...you couldn't have been much more than an ankle-biter at the time, no? Was it because of your own abyssal taint?"</div></blockquote><br/>A knot which promptly attempts to re-tie itself at Yuki's indictment, nearly causing her to choke on her suva. There is a loud *CLACK of cermic on stone as Alyssa plants her mug on the hearth with considerably more force than necessary before addressing Yuki.<br/><br/>"Most certainly<span style="font-style: italic">not</span>," she insists. "I was human until the night of the Massacre. The succubus who invaded my home forced her own essence into me, transforming me into this--" Her tail twitches to emphasize her meaning. "-- and then, she consumed me! Only the Guardian's hand shielded me from death that night. If Father Jaron had arrived even a minute later, the succubus would have completed her meal and I would have digested alongside... my mother..."<br/><br/>With the recollection of her mother's death comes a pang of grief, replacing the indignation that filled her only moments before. Alyssa finds herself trembling, hands clasped to her breast over her necklace and the pendant of Rubin- symbols of families old and new.<br/><br/>"My apologies," she says to Yuki, her voice returning to a more reasonable tone. "My demonic blood is a subject I prefer to avoid. I meant no offense to you by my remarks."<br/><br/>As Alyssa regains her composure, another thought occurs to her. "Yuki, Mindy... Do you suppose the attack on Rubinova was meant to test the valley's protection? If the demons learned of a way to pierce the wards of Vermifor, they might be able to apply the same technique to the magic of the Pact."