[Open Post] Into the Sunlight

[silvereyedphage]

It's been over a week since Morgoth assaulted him, tearing away half of the phage and taking it God knows where. Muraki can still feel the effects of the attack: his mind feels as if it's been wrapped in cotton batting full of thumbtacks. He's been avoiding human company, since he still feels vaguely defiled from the attack, but playing the hermit

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[invsbl_eyebrows]

Tom's sitting in the main room, as well, but only because he can't think of anything else to do. After a while, he gets out of his chair and starts pacing around with his hands stuck in the pockets of his jeans, bored.

His pacing might bring him closer to where Muraki is sitting.

[silvereyedphage]

There was a time when Muraki might have lusted after a youngster like Tom, but while he might catch himself admiring the young man, he feels no urge to pursue him. Even still, as he looks up, he turns over the sheet he was reading and covers the rest of the pile with it. "Can I help you, young man?" he asks, curious, friendly, even a bit surprised at himself, at his own innocence.

[invsbl_eyebrows]

"Er," Tom says, a little taken aback because he wasn't expecting anyone to talk to him. "No? I don't need any help. I was just, um, pacing."

[silvereyedphage]

"Taking a turn about the room? It's a good-sized room, so you're likely to get some exercise walking up and down its length," he says, sitting back in his chair. "But to whom do I owe the pleasure of addressing?"

[invsbl_eyebrows]

"I'm Tom," he replies. "Tom Yarbro."

[silvereyedphage]

"I'm Doctor Kazutaka Muraki," he replies, bowing his head to the young man.

[invsbl_eyebrows]

"Cool. So you're a doctor? That's good. In case somebody gets sick or something, I mean. I didn't know if there were any doctors here."

[silvereyedphage]

"There are a few here," he says. "I'm primarily a surgeon, but I can treat most anything that turns up."

[invsbl_eyebrows]

"Cool," Tom says. "Do many people get sick here?"

[silvereyedphage]

"No more than usual: I've treated more injuries than illnesses," he says. "Including one over-confident young man who tried to rid the woods of the wolves and ended up getting chewed up by his prey."

[invsbl_eyebrows]

"Wow. Bugger," Tom says. "I knew there were wolves, but. I didn't know they'd tried to eat anybody."

[silvereyedphage]

"Most wolves will attack if provoked, but I had never heard of an attack quite this severe, which has lead me to suspect that there might be something wrong with these creatures," he replies.

[invsbl_eyebrows]

"How do you mean?" Tom asks, feeling nervous all of a sudden.

He could tell there was something wrong on the night the wolves were out. The Mansion's magic had felt all wonky.

[silvereyedphage]

"I don't think those wolves were mere flesh and blood creatures: their attacks seemed too aggressive and coordinated, as if they might be guided by some force greater than they are," he says, dead serious. "Or they might be more intelligent than the average wolves."

[invsbl_eyebrows]

"So they're superwolves or something like that?" Tom feels, and looks, even more nervous now. "D'you think they might come back?"

[silvereyedphage]

"You might call them that, for lack of a better term," he says. "It's hard to tell if those creatures will return or not, and so unless someone can find a way to drive them back, we may have to exercise caution and avoid going into the woods or leaving the house at night, if at all possible."

He's not thrilled with the idea: he's going to have to carry out his rituals closer to the house, in that case.