Midnight Run [Catherine, Isamu]

"You're real shit at thinking like an assassin, yknow that?" Immediately raising her arm to object to any kneejerk response, "Fine."

He always had to make himself obnoxious... Grunting and shrugging it off, "Hide the damned mask on you. Keep it together if it comes calling."

Considering it went to tempt her first, it may only go after a tired target rather than the one that was asleep. Would it have left them be if they were both sleeping? Or would they both have been sitting ducks at that point? Forget it, they had to get ready, and she'd begrudingly settle herself down.

With a pointed finger, she'd squint her eyes at him, "I'm serious. Keep it together. I'm going back to sleep, you stay awake then."

Settling in, she'd grunt and close her eyes.

"Is that any way to speak about yer bodyguard last night?"

Voicing playful banter, he shrugged his shoulders obnoxiously and nodded his head with a grin. Well, it was clear that she remained relatively the same. There didn't appear to be any lingering effect on her, after all. That was a relief. Now, it was his turn to play the distraction. He didn't exactly welcome it, but it made sense considering the situation. Isamu imagined if that foxlike hollow saw Catherine again, it'd likely run away from here altogether. After getting stabbed like that, maybe he would too.

At any rate, it was time to get to business. As she rested once more, a rough grunt escaping her lips, Isamu exhaled softly as he readied himself in advance. His gas mask hid near-perfectly, he remained diligent, onyx eyes observing the area in preparation for the eventual reappearance of that elusive creature.

The sun settled past the horizon, bidding farewell to the lands below as darkness took it's hold. The songs of cicadas, the rustles of small animals through foliage, by all merits it was a typical beautiful night upon a Japanese countryside. Not a soul could say anything was afoot, the only interruptions being the occasional cloud drifting to filter the moonlight with shadow; it was plenty quiet, too quiet...

...

"...Isamu..."

A fleeting voice on the wind would alert one's attention, away from the clearing, into the darkness of the brush. Thin trails of mist beckoned the man, a sense of familiarity and promise hidden within it's mystery, that airy voice of a comforting tone, "...Is that you...?"

When the sun settled into the horizon, welcoming the moon and her band of stars, Isamu was wholly prepared for the presence of this foxlike spirit. He had followed everything according to Catherine's instructions. His gas mask was placed neatly in his pocket, located in a spot where he could easily pull it forward without inciting any attention unless this thing possessed more intelligence than expected.

Amidst the silence, he heard an airy voice of comfort call out to him. There was no malice in that voice. No intent to kill. Since Catherine had informed her of what this creature was like, he decided to play the role he was given and play along until she found a fitting moment to strike.

Curiously, he stepped forward, motioning his tall frame into the clearing, following the trail of mist that beckoned him forward. What form would this thing take that appealed to him? He called out to the voice.

"Who... are you?"

Traversing the misty darkness would lead Isamu to a particular tree, ribbons tied to it that gently fluttered in the breeze. At the base of that tree sat... His mother, A machete crafted of hollow parts jutting out of her shoulder as her face was twisted in pain. The mist began to swirl, accumulate as he got closer, the pained woman looking his way with dewy eyes and a thankful smile,

"Oh, Isamu it is you!" It spoke like her, looked like her, all angles made it appear as if it truly was his mother in duress, "I had come looking for you.. But that woman..! She caught me, she... Oh goodness..."

Sounded fearful, sounded like it was hardly keeping a sob back, "..I tried to run from here and she stabbed me..! She could be coming back any moment Isamu, please..."

The mist coalesced and twisted in on the both of them as she spoke, heaving pants and pained tears fluttering about the space, "..Please fend her off..!"

"..."

For a moment, Isamu was rendered speechless. He almost forgot her warning as a result of how chilling it was to see, even in a false form, his mother in an upright position. Walking on her two feet... smiling back at him, albeit in pain. For a moment, his guard was down. He knew it was false. A figment of the imagination woven together by this deceptive hollow.

Of all the things he could imagine, Cathering striking her wasn't one of them. He saw what transpired before. And yet, for a single uninterrupted moment, he imagined how pleasant that reality would be. And that bothered him. It made him oh so uncomfortable. As an assassin, hesitation spelled death.

...God, he was thankful that Catherine likely wasn't far behind. This truly was awful. Terrible. To be faced with something unattainable. Try as he might, this would never come to pass. That was what he told himself. What he always told himself. A bitter reminder. Yet, he would persist.

He would always persist.

"Don't worry. I won't let anyone harm you, mom. I promise."

As though to reassure the false apparition, he feigned a sense of unawareness as he embraced her. Now, it was inevitably and ultimately a matter of whenever Catherine was ready to strike. He couldn't bear this right now, but he was enduring it for the greater good---for what little that currently did him.

"..You're my good son.." The apparition slowly moved to return the hug as the fog thickened...

... Footsteps rapidly closed in on the clearing, in the cool misty terrain came a brilliant flash of orange slamming into the two, echoes of green light fluttering in her wake as she'd grab the blade jutting out of the "woman's" shoulder, a pained scream erupting as not only did she viciously yank her several feet away from Isamu, but she'd work to jam the blade in further,

"Help me! Help me!" The pained sobs of his mother cried out as Catherine's mind was moving to quickly end this before the man had any time to react; just because he should know fairly well this isn't his mother, doesn't mean he isn't going to do anything rash. She didn't even give him time to so much as look away as she went for the smoothest way to kill in this instance - given she was able to grab it with little issue of it's true mass, if it's body had changed to resemble that of a human, the organ placement ought to be similar enough... For the machete to plunge directly into the solar plexus, and straight into the heart. The violent struggle ended quickly, the deceased figure of his mother quickly decaying into the creature's true form; a hollow with brilliantly wide yellow eyes and a ghostly tail, strongly resembling of a fox covered in misty white fur.

Though she appeared eerily calm when executing the kill, she'd rise to her feet and slowly approach Isamu, looking down at him with an expression that could only be described as silent fury, hair cast over her eyes as her hand balled into a lightly trembling fist, laying the hardest punch she could manage to his cheek as she'd rapidly sink down and grab his collar,

"ARE YA FUCKIN' STUPID?!" Her melodic tone was sharp and loud, like the clap of thunder as she'd lay another punch before he had a moment to respond, "I told you to put the guddamn mask on, what 'tif I didn't wake up in time, ahh? You'd be fuckin' hollow chow that's what!"

If he tried interrupting her, it'd just be met with another punch and a shake of the collar, "DO YA EVEN HAVE A SINGLE THOUGHT IN YA DAMN MIND TO LET SOMETHIN' LIKE THAT SHAKE YA UP?!"

With an angered growl, she'd drop him roughly and raise away from him, stomping to the nearest tree while screaming her mother tongue, "FAEN!" Before slamming her forehead into the nearest tree in frustration.

"..."

He nearly compromised himself. He was well aware of that. Their embrace was short-lived as that false apparition was viciously torn away from him. Much like he expected, it cried out for assistance that would never come - not that Catherine allowed him that opportunity to begin with.

A precise stab toward its solar plexus silenced the creature, the deceptive form it took decaying to reveal what lay beyond its guise - a hollow. When it expired, the moment he looked up, grabbed by his collar, a resounding fist crashed against his face.

Even if he wanted to speak, his face was met with her fist again, and then another for extra measure. Hemmed by his collar, he gazed into her eyes as her harsh words sonorously rang through his ears, drawing him back to reality. He didn't even care about the bruises against his face or the small traces of blood.

He couldn't pretend that everything was going according to plan. His objective was simple, and he was a whisper away from becoming a meal. Enduring her upbraiding until she roughly released him, Isamu sighed softly as he eased his body toward the closest tree, exhaling somewhat somberly as he leaned against the tree. She was right. That thing was awful.

"Y-yea... you're right. I fucked up. I nearly compromised everything. Anise... you were right. That hollow was awful. I shouldn't have let my guard down... but I did. I... when I saw her standing... I froze. I know it was all an illusion, and I'm a fuckin' idiot. Even so... I lost my edge for a moment... I'm sorry."

His gaze traveled toward the ground as he hid his expression behind his arms, his mind a whirlpool of unease.

She slammed her head against the tree, "'Sorry' doesn't keep you alive. 'Sorry' doesn't stop the hollows from eating you. 'Sorry' gets you fucking killed here..."

Her fist hit the side of the tree, teeth gritted as she stood with her bleeding forehead pressed against the tree, minutes of silence linger between the two as she couldn't even look at him... Until she sighed, and relented. Pulling away from the tree, she would silently step over to his side, and then sit down, hugging her knees with her head pressing into them,

"I saw my dad," She'd reluctantly admit, "I fell for it so hard at first. This isn't even the first time. I always get out of it... But the fact that I can't help myself... I fucking hate it."

Her hands curled into fists as that plume of frustration swelled in her chest, "..I just hoped that you'd be stronger."

"I thought so, too..."

Isamu admitted that without any uncertainty in his tone. He felt well-equipped to handle that horrific creature and momentarily faltered when the moment was at hand. He wasn't going to make any excuses for his actions. He deserved every reprimand she had to offer.

When faced with a vision of a possibility, albeit warped and nightmarish, that might never come to pass, he was shaken up. He was of firm mind with everything else, so why? He could murder someone without blinking an eye.

No matter how much they begged for their life, if it fit his bottom line and filled his pockets, the most he could offer them was a quick and painless death. Foolish pride aside, he almost compromised the whole plan of operation. He could have died just now. As they sat beside one another, he simply leaned against her shoulder, his worn voice accompanied by an exasperated sigh.

"I couldn't help myself, either, ya know'. I thought I'd be prepared. After all, I saw you tear that thing off of your skin. I was given all the information I needed. But when I saw my mother... standing on her own two feet, a sight I hadn't seen in years, I... lost focus. I messed up. I'm not any better. I got all the information and nearly got my ass killed. I've seen some fucked up shit in my life before, but that thing... needed to die."

He wondered about her father, truth be told, but didn't quite know if now was the time to broach the subject, considering her current frustration.