Oni

(the start of something)

She rode through the town at a lazy pace, allowing the umatokage to stretch its long legs in a natural stride. Despite the noise of the vehicles and people moving around her, she could hear the hard grind and scratching of her beast’s claws as they dug into the asphalt of the road. Her companion, Yami, moved along side her in much the same manner. Both scanned the crowd as they had been taught. Neither really knew what to look for. Yami pointed out a sign and guided his umatokage in that direction. The animal made a long grunting sigh, as if sad to stop moving.