Chapter Text
Renee froze up. What else could she do? Renee hadn’t ever seen an eye that threatening. She hadn’t been this scared in years. Her fear was strictly instinctual. Poking out from the shadows, and cutting the light it touched, was the tip of a spear. The texture showed it was crudely carved from wood. A fallen branch, perhaps, was the base. The more the spear moved forward the more reasonable that conclusion was. A hand firmly gripped the wood towards the base. The skin was unevenly pale with odd splotches of varying tan. It would be similar to Renee's skin in color if she spent more time outside. The tip of a nose revealed itself as the eye remained unblinking. A chilling wind blew through once more. No one reacted to it. Not whoever was in the shade, not the silver haired person, and certainly not Renee. A tattered and torn sleeve extended up the slim yet fit arm.
Finally a whole person stepped forwards into the orange light of dusk. Silver eyes quickly darted quickly to examine this new figure. They noticed the hair of the figure. At the top of the head it was a fluffy white, but as the matts rolled down the face it faded into a pure black mess that was roughly cut. They must be Cursed with such hair. The added light revealed the other eye. This one was pure darkness, so much so that it was nigh impossible to differentiate between the iris and the pupil. The shape formed by the eyelids was narrow and squinted like a predator. However, the most frightening part of their appearance was the sweater. The front was completely covered in what could only be blood. Most of it was dried, but there were still splotches of deep crimson to indicate small bits of dampness. The small second was an eternity to Renee. “Your sleeve.” Their words moved a strand of silver in front of their mouth ever so slightly. The tear was familiar to their silver eyes. It roughly was the size of the flags they and Renee gathered. That, accompanied with the bloody attire made it clear exactly who this was, and they were no ally.
The figured growled and snarled and ran forward at the person with silver hair. Renee could finally move again, being snapped out of whatever instinctual freeze she was in. She body checked the person with all her speed and force sending them both to the ground. “I’ll get them.” Renee heard her companion say firmly. Once more she felt the stiff coldness of silver run over and through her body. She took a deep breath trying not to panic. She fell over as she could no longer move with balance. Just as suddenly as she had fallen, Renee rose back up fluidly. She was pulled to her feet by her companion. Renee's breath was heavy and quick still in shock from the silver which was now gone. “Did you get them what’s-“ Renee couldn’t even finish her thought before they interrupted her. “I have no idea. They have some kind of light Curse. A tree looked as bright as the sun then I saw them disappear. Considering I can't turn what I can't see it's an issue.” Renee looked around herself. “We’ll make it anyway. We’ll go through a lot worse if we get into this place.” Renee couldn't help but smile at the challenge. “You really are insane.” The silver haired companion was abut to say something else before the air was cut suddenly. They winced as there was a loud thud in the tree Renee was leaning against. She flinched and looked to the side. It made her breath shake. Stuck in the tree besides her head was the wooden spear. Renee looked back at her companion to see their cheek gushing blood.
They were in shock more than pain. Renee looked at her companion. Their eyes were wide as they slouched further and farther down holding their bleeding cheek. She heard them jinx under their breath, "I can't go back." They shook their head. "I've- I can fix this." They tried to stand up. Renee paused seeing her companion like this. They needed this to go right just as much as she did. With a million thoughts running through her head, Renee spoke sporadically. “I have a plan- but there’s no time- uh- be ready- I promise this'll work, I promise!” Renee ran off. She heard her companion say her name, but the sound was drowned out in her thoughts. She didn't want to ignore them, but she had to act fast. Her legs were fast and strong. It was the only part of her body that was fit. She let her legs move subconsciously. Whoever was hunting them was absolutely silent, but no one had mastered a Curse and they were no exception. The trees became a blur to Renee. And then stillness as she halted to a stop. Renee looked around at the light as the rays became graphs in her head. Light would vary in unnatural ways. Any deformation became instantly clear. There were shadows with no blockage, there was brightness reflecting from the ground, there was weight on the branch above the silver hair. They all had one convergence in space. Renee ran once more back to the well tread path she and her companion were ambushed on. She ran faster than before. Faster than she ran at the beginning of the exam. Faster than most legs could ever run. But not Renee’s. Renee’s legs speed up. No Curse, power, or fortune made Renee so fast. Discipline, determination, and hard work made Renee able to run at such an unbelievable pace.
As she approached the branch, which she figured out the hunting predator was on, her jacket began to slip off. Renee looked into the eyes of her companion trying to convey her plan. She pleaded for them to understand. The silver eyes looked right back at her with an unnatural glint. The predator was right above them. Renee looked right at the invisible foe covered in shadow. It all climaxed to a large jump. Her letterman jacket fell off almost entirely, but Renee wouldn’t let it leave her fully. Her hand wrapped around the sleeve as tight as she could. It led a path for her companion's touch. A glimpse of silver movement flashed in her eyes below her. Renee felt the tip of her fingers touching the branch above her. It was rough and thick, but it was warm with the golden sun beaming on it. A contrasting, cold stiffness flowed through her body until she couldn't feel the warmth of the sun anymore. And so Renee smiled, but it was quickly interrupted by her face hitting the forest floor and all her senses becoming a haze.
A snap brought Renee back to full consciousness. “Ow.” She softly muttered. The sunlight warmed her back. It brought her back from the coldness of the silver. “That was seriously your plan? It was dumb.” Renee’s companion loomed over her. Their composure and formality had returned to their voice. “I mean?” She asked while half her face laid in dirt. “It worked.” They motioned to the unconscious figure of the hunter next to Renee. “Are they-“ “They’re fine I believe. If you're wondering, no, my Curse didn't do this. Judging by the dark circles under their eyes they were sleep deprived. This fight simply took whatever was left out of them, and when knocked unconscious the body forced them to take the sleep.” Renee nodded. “Good to know. Very detailed explanation.. So your Curse-” They nodded softly. “I didn’t tell you my Curse. Not in its entirety at least. But you knew. I said as long as I could see it, I could turn it.” Renee smirked softly. “You’re not as good as lying as you think. Besides I saw it with your shoe. You need a path of physical contact.” Renee felt the sun further warm her as she got up. To Renee's right sunbeams befell the unconscious figure that was attacking them. They looked peaceful. Renee got to her feet and pulled the body up, slinging it over her shoulders. “Oh wow that is- harder than it looks in movies.” Renee breathed heavily for a few moments before standing up straight. “Okay let’s go.” She beamed at her companion. “What are you doing.” They asked Renee. She thought for a few moments to answer why she had done it. “I want to make sure they finish too. There’s a reason they were following us even after we stopped collecting flags.” Renee started walking forward. “Ah…” Her companion considered everything that had just happened. “Renee,” She turned her head around and tilted it like a curious puppy. “My name is Hosuh Shirogane.”