Through the forest

Although an inn would have been for the best, Inari realized they were a little short on money and neither of them knew the area well enough to even point out the nearest inn. Fortunately it was almost a straight shot through the forest to the plains outside of Namina. Inari carefully helped Mose off the ground and together they began limping their way towards home. Inari was surprised at how heavy Moseph was, but then recalled how her body was smaller and slimmer. She had lost a lot of her muscles with the fusion.

The going was indeed rough. Moseph needed to stop and rest several times. His last staff was being used as a walking stick and he didn't have the strength to grow more or to enchant them. If they came under attack, their chances of victory were even lower than their chances of escape. Inari found that between her remaining gear and helping Moseph, she herself was getting tired quickly as well and found herself thankful that Moseph had to keep stopping.

After several hours of stop and go, they found that they hadn't made much progress and night was coming fast. Inari made the command decision to call a halt for the night. Although a clearing would have been the best place to stop, there wasn't one readily available when they needed to stop. So instead they found a cushy place by a downed tree and settled in. Inari made sure Moseph was comfortable before setting about making a fire and getting some of their meager rations ready to eat.

The fire is what drew them near, but they had followed the progress of the pair for quite some time. They had witnessed the **** of their hated enemy only hours after he had slaughtered their clan. If not for the cloaked one's sudden attack on Necromancer, they would have been **** to watch their entire clan raised as walking corpses to further increase his power.

This pair had proved useful. The female was strong, but her sudden change had been somewhat disappointing. She wasn't useful to their needs. The male on the other hand, was. So they had waited. They had watched. And they had followed. Far from the ruins where their clan had made their home. Now the pair was tired. They just had to wait for sleep to take them.

"So what do you plan to do once we reach Namina?"

Inari looked up from her cooking, a little startled by the sudden question. Moseph hadn't said much since leaving the site of the battle. He was still a little shaken up by what had happened, including that Inari had taken his wife's form before fusing with Venus.

"What do you mean? I'm a Hunter, just like you. I'll go back to doing what I always do."

"Ven... Inari, you can't go back to how it used to be. Your body is seriously different now. You are a little shorter, your arms and legs don't have the muscle they used to, and you will be a little more... Off balance. I don't think you will be able to wield a sword like you are used to."

"Then what do you suggest?"

"Well, for one thing you are a fox goddess now. Maybe you should try to get used to your new powers. Also, you know that Tychus is going to lose it when you first walk in. And Ace? The poor kid will probably need someone to pick his jaw up off the ground."

"I can handle Tychus. And Ace better keep his eyes and hands to himself. I only want you! Err... I mean." Inari blushed and looked away. Moseph coughed and waited for her to look back up.

"Inari, a lot of how you feel about me is due to your new memories. You know that right?"

"I know! But... They are still part of me. I'm not just Venus or Inari now. We're one person and how one feels, so does the other one. It is still really confusing, but what I feel is still real and still me!"

"I... I understand. But I am not sure if I can accept that right now."

"I...."

Before she could really come up with an answer, Moseph rolled away from her and tried to go to sleep. Inari ate the food she had prepared in silence and then tried to do the same.