Finding himself a fairly comfortable branch, Kekipi concealed himself from sight as best he could and settled in to watch. The file that Cinnabar had given him rested on his lap and as he watched the house of their little flown bird’s family. He would have greatly prefered to be powered up, but if their missing officer had indeed purified and felt a Chaotic aura nearby, it was a good bet that they’d run. So, at least for now, it was far more conducive to success to wear his civilian skin.

However much he hated that skin for its weakness.

Sighing a little, he took the pencil that seemed to live in his hoodie and began to twirl it through his fingers. Already, the enforced inactivity was beginning to bore him. And, if he wanted to keep his mind alert through the night, he would need to give it little breaks. Frowning slightly as he rifled through the various hoodie pockets, he smiled slightly as he unearthed a tiny notepad. Perfect. He may have burned the tattoo shop to the ground, but he couldn’t stop the random design ideas. And frankly, he felt a need to give himself some ink that showed his devotion to Metallia and the Dark Kingdom. Oh, nothing obvious, of course. But just enough that he’d know.

Leaning back against the main trunk of the tree, he let part of his mind wander and control his drawing hand while the rest of him remained on high alert, listening for any sounds of someone sneaking about. Would the missing officer try to check on her friends and family? Cinnabar certainly seemed to see it as a strong possibility. And let’s face it, he thought, she is the expert here. And that just invited other thoughts. Cinnabar was very clearly not human anymore. And yet, she was very different from the youma he’d been able to sense within the Rift. And she didn’t seem to want to murder him outright. So.

Did that mean that the merging of youma and man quieted some of those urges? He wondered if Cinnabar could or would even tell him if he asked.

A slight rustling caught his attention and he sat up, eyes scanning the area. After a moment, a raccoon waddled through, intent on a nearby trashcan that hadn’t been properly sealed. He waited for another few moments, listening hard, before coming to the conclusion that the raccoon was the only other living creature out other than himself.

With a sigh, he shivered in the chilled air and glanced up through the surrounding branches. Much to his surprise, the moon’s position indicated that he’d been out here for several hours already. And now that he allowed himself that realization, it came to him that his a** had fallen asleep. Grimacing slightly, he gathered up the file and his sketches and powered up. Much easier to teleport away when he was up in a tree, after all. He would report to Cinnabar in the morning.

Moments later, the only living creature moving through what was left of the night was a very satisfied raccoon.