While it isn't raining, the cloud cover overhead has kept the thick, richly grown area of the Botanical Gardens a little damp after the afternoon rains had hit. Luckily, it's a softly breezy night, so it's not feeling humid, just warm and nowhere near as dry as it would feel on the beaches in such weather. Perfect weather for walking through the gardens, enjoying a nighttime picnic, or even finding a place to camp out if you're one of the many homeless on the island of Oahu.
Surely there are people around, but they aren't thick enough to run into them all that often. Maybe a random sighting, maybe a random passerby on the pathways. Most people out for the night in the gardens seem to be attempting to find a little more privacy, though, and aren't necessarily out to be gregarious and chat with the other visitors to the area.
After a week or so of suggesting that Bjorn stay far away after Grace had run afoul a couple of actual Gods on the beach, she'd finally gotten to the point that she'd called Bjorn up and asked him to meet her. She waited in the Botanical Garden, relaxing comfortably on a park bench with her legs crossed, leaned back, just looking at the way the trees and night blooming flowers moved in the breeze.
Naturally, Grace had dressed for the occasion of seeing Bjorn after a brief break in time and she looked like she might have put some real thought into the outfit. A short, playfully swinging skirt hung down to a hem-length of mid-thigh, swishing lightly in the breeze as the pale blue material was obviously something thin and light weight enough to be moved by the slightest gust of air. Her feet were covered simply in a pair of pale colored, thong-style, sandals that she'd actually slipped off, leaving her legs and feet bare to the night while she comfortably rested her toes in the slightly damp grass. For a top, Grace had gone for darker blue camisole of what had to be silk, with the simplest of spaghetti straps holding it up, and had elected to leave the bra at home. All of her thick, almost black, hair was left down, brushed to a fine sheen, that hung along her back until nearly her waist and had been pressed back behind her shoulders. Other than that, Grace simply watched with her so-dark eyes and waited with a gentle smile on her lips, enjoying the moments of quiet in the night.
Bjorn took the breezy weather as a time to wear jeans instead of shorts, though they look like a new pair and a white button up long sleeve shirt along with it. His shoes are a pair of hikers, though they look like a new pair, perhaps having retired the old after a bit of use. He almost does a double take when he sees Grace, clearing his throat after a moment and getting over the initial shock of her beauty by replacing that look on his face with that of a smile as he approaches. "Aloha Grace. It's good to see you."
Trees shift and shudder in the breeze, a branch or two cracking in that odd way forests and heavily wooded gardens seemed to do so often. Nothing sounded like it was falling to the ground, but the sounds of nature were pervasive, especially when there weren't crowds of talking people wandering through the gardens to cover up the sound of all that life.
Grace looked up to Bjorn, her smile growing a bit wider until it lit her face, even as her cheeks pinked with a slight blush. Standing and uncrossing her legs in the same movement, Grace lithely padded toward Bjorn barefoot, feet making no sound on the dewy grasses beneath them. "Aloha ahiahi, Bjorn. It's good to see you, too. You look well, though now I'm wondering if you were expecting more of a hike." Her smile tilted a bit and became a grin as she looked him over, then finally depleted the space between them entirely and came close enough to reach out and slide her arms around Bjorn's waist. Tucking herself in against him for a hug, she looked up at his face as she did so, still smiling softly. "Sight for sore eyes."
The smile deepens as Bjorn looks down at Grace as she hugs him, one of his arms moving around to hug her in turn, the other moving a hand up to her face to gently stroke his thumb over her cheek, then run fingers softly through that hair of hers. "Well I don't really have much for conventional sneakers, and dress shoes on grass are just a great way to slip and fall if one isn't careful." He gently gives her a squeeze and then adds, "It's good to see you. Sounds like we've both been through some interesting things of late."
The sound of another branch making that creaking, cracking noise can be heard, a little bit into the forested area behind where Grace had been sitting initially. Immediately after the cracking was a heavy thud as something struck the ground, and afterward there was the rustling of brushes in a quickened way.
Grace turned her face gently to rub her cheek more against Bjorn's thumb, and then kissed the inside of his palm, her eyes falling closed as her smile turned more wry. Shifting the position of her face so it was just her cheek cupped in Bjorn's hand, she looked at him with an expression of bemusement. "I suppose interesting would be a way to put it. I'm not a fan of Gods assuming anything of me, so that sort of thing never goes over well. Though, it may be that the two that were there with me and myself have elected to put a lovely target on our backs for how we handled the situation, we did push them back enough that they left to regroup." Grace shook her head slightly, though mostly it just succeeded in having her hair shift around, sliding over the back of Bjorn's fingers. "We'll have to wait and see. But I'm not on the edge of starving anymore, so I felt like it wasn't so much of a risk to you to be around me. And I was tired of not having you there." Her wry smile turned slightly more sheepish, but she didn't look away. Honesty was important after all, even if mildly embarrassing. When the sound of something impacting the ground could be heard, though, Grace lifted her head away from Bjorn's touch and turned to look at the woods curiously, her gaze almost seeming impassive upon first glance, but the careful attention and curiosity showed in her eyes for those that actually knew how to read her expressions.
Bjorn smiled and then lowered his head to lightly touch his nose to hers. "When you mention Gods it sounds rather intimidating. I only had vampires of the blood sucking variety to deal with." But then there was a thump, and as Grace was distracted by the sound so too was Bjorn, especially the size of it. Peering into the trees he inquires rather softly to her, "Do you see anything?" He tenses slightly as he tries to discern for himself what's there.
The stars in the east begin to look washed out as the sapphire night sky pales.
The sounds of skittering and the heavy, rustling movement of the underbrush within the wooded area seemed to come to a stop, and nothing but the breeze was causing the leaves, flowers, and branches to move now.
Grace turned her face back up to Bjorn, her lips angled at a lopsided slant as she finally shook her head. "No more intimidating than vampires hungry for blood, I can assure you. They were more filled with hubris and much in the way of self-concern. It makes it easy to surprise them once. A second time, though, that's when I'll most be concerned." She frowned slightly and turned her gaze back to the woods, shrugging her shoulders lightly. "I can't see anything, and I didn't notice anything in particular. Maybe it was just an owl or something, maybe a bird falling out of a nest, or a squirrel or something?" Her voice was on the quiet side, anyway, so Grace didn't really hush herself much. When she looked back up at Bjorn, her brows were raised. "And I can't hear it anymore."
The look of curiosity shifts more to that of concern, it appears he actually saw something. "That is no owl... It is too big. It is in the brush... hopefully looking at flowers..." Though from the look on the big man's face it's evident that he doesn't really hold onto that hope with much muster. His eyes glance about briefly to see if anyone else is about in sight, the last thing he wants is some innocent passersby to walk over there.
Kai decided to go for a nice walk at the Botanical Gardens after work this evening. The wetness from the rain doesn't bother him, being from the West Coast including Vancouver and all he is quite used to it. A hike or a patrol he is on...hard to say really but now that he's settled into a nice routine on Oahu now. Steady job as an acupuncturist, an amazing girlfriend who runs in the same crazy circles he does and his calling that he whole heartedly accepts. Dressed in a simple white cotton dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up, khaki pants, black loafers and his trusty backpack over his shoulders he continues along the path with alert eyes. He spots a rather large imposing man and a slight but equally dangerous Asian girl. "Aloha and evening to you. Bjorn and Grace. It is nice to see you and it has been quite some time since we last met. Hope things are well?" He says in a polite tone as he steps into view of them.
It's the middle of June, and that means only one thing: Pride! Molly's out and about, and she's proud of herself tonight. Around her neck is a rainbow choker made all out of beads (which must've taken Molly forever) and her ears have similar earrings. She wears a white blouse that looks like she cropped it by hand with a pair of scissors just abouve the bottom of her ribs, currently only done up with one button, and who even needs a bra these days? Damaged jeans rest on her hips with a white, blue, and pink belt, and somewhere along the lines she's become barefoot. "Oh hi!" she declares, lifting a hand to wave as she approaches Kai, Bjorn, and Grace. "Err... Aloha!" Oh it's only been how long since you got here Molly, and you're only just starting to use the words now?
The woods remain fairly quiet, though as more voices come up and the volume of conversation shifts, the underbrush shudders as something moves in it, deeper into the wooded area.
Grace narrowed her eyes at the woods for a moment, an almost imperceptible frown on her lips. "So bigger than an owl. Are we talking like... the size of a deer? Or more like the size of a giraffe? I'd honestly be quite embarrassed if it was the latter and I didn't even notice it the entire time I was waiting for you." Grace looked up at Bjorn and gave him a wink along with a slight grin, moving up to her tiptoes to place a kiss solidly onto his bottom lip. "Do you want to go take a look? Or should we just let it go?" As Kai came closer to them and into view, Grace lifted her hand in greeting and nodded his direction. "Aloha ahiahi, Kai. I believe things are going well, I hope so for you, too." Molly's approach caught Grace's attention as well, of course, and she turned her so-dark eyes in the rainbow-bedecked woman, giving her a friendly nod. "Aloha ahiahi, miss."
There's the briefest distraction from whatever's in the woods as Grace kisses his lip and says hello to people. Bjorn snaps out of whatever concentration he had to wave to the new arrivals. "Aloha all." He looks back down to Grace and replies, "Worse. It was human sized. Not many things that size that jump down from trees and know to hide in the brush." He sighs after a moment and adds, "I know there are more of those Vampires out there. I'd feel horrible if something happened to someone here. And maybe it'll be nothing right?" Right... one could hope.
"Hi. Yes, things are well thank you." Kai replies and then quirks an eyebrow as he listens to the conversation between Grace and Bjorn. "Uh...what was human sized and jumping down from trees? Also did you just mention...the V word?" He looks over at Molly when she appears and gives her a warm smile. "Hey Molly. How are you? Nice evening for a walk but it seems like we might have walked into a bit of trouble if the big man's instincts are correct." He glances about to peer into the trees but he see's absolutely...nothing. "Huh, perhaps it was just a squirrel?" He shrugs and turns his attention back to the group.
"Hi!" Molly grins ear to ear. "How're you Kai? Haven't seen you in a while. I--" The British girl stops, attention definitely perking. "What, vampires? Here? And I don't have any guns, darnit." She looks positively glum for a moment, as she's craning her neck to look over at the patch of woods so indicated. She peers deep, but of course, "It's dark," she pronounces, "And I don't see anything at all. ...Definitely something there, though?"
The rustling in the underbrush stopped somewhat abruptly, leaving only the soft sound of the natural movement of trees in a gentle breeze.
Grace looked back to the woods and frowned a little bit more obviously. "Human sized and hiding, I can't imagine that's good. They might just be injured, or they might be worried. Or they might have been someone planning to rob someone in here and is now discovered because of a carelessly placed foot." Grace nodded just once, then motioned to the woods as she looked back up at Bjorn. "Let's at least go see, so we're not leaving some other person to discover something terrible. Or worse, leaving someone to die with a break in some important bone." She glanced over at Kai and then Molly, inclining her head. "There is definitely something there. Though what precisely, I'm not sure. And firing a gun here would likely cause more issues than you'd want. It would draw people, including police and any of the homeless that might be resting nearby, and you never know who you might catch in the crossfire." Grace turned more fully to the woods and started walking toward them, though she did stop on the way to slip her sandals back on over her bare feet. Better bare on grass than on unknown sticks and possible broken bottles, after all.
A nod at Grace as she mentions moving to see who it is in the woods. Bjorn starts to follow along, glancing back at the other two. "You're welcome to come with, or stay here in case anything comes out that isn't us?" He keeps moving and then adds, "Or run for help I guess if something happens..." A shrug and then he tugs at his shirt slightly. "I really came dressed poorly for this sort of thing, didn't I?"
Kai nods, "You're right. I'll tag along just in case someone needs medical attention and to watch your back." He then follows along with Grace and Bjorn, trusting in the big man's senses having been in more than a few scrapes together in the past. "Lead the way." He motions for Molly to follow along as well, "After you. I'll take up the rear guard." he winks, "Don't worry I've played more than my fair share of D&D to know what an adventuring party line up looks like."
"Strewth." Molly rolls her eyes, "I wasn't *serious*." She pushes her glasses up her nose, and by darned she isn't going to get left out, even if she is barefoot, unarmed, and barely wearing a top. "Come on, let's go see what's going on." She picks her way along with the others, sticking close to Kai for the time being as she knows him the best. "Maybe you did come poorly dressed? You could always de-shirt if you wanted to. I'm sure nobody'd complain." The young student smirks, before turning her attention back to whatever it is they're walking into. "Don't worry Kai, I'm sure none of us will get eaten or anything."
Loa dropped Chira.
As people pick through the somewhat thicker underbrush laden with night blooming flowers, the scent of said blossoms fill the air even more strongly than they had already. The trees keep swaying gently with the breeze that blows through them, carrying with it all the smells of the ocean and the mountains, to bring the heady fragrance to a delightfully, warmed, medley.
There had been enough scampering that whatever it was in the woods had gotten far off the beaten path, but eventually, after a few minutes of walking and looking, there was a bush that was quite filled with leaves that seemed to shake as Bjorn, Grace, Molly, and finally Kai came closer to it. The sound of leaves scraping against one another and small branches fracturing within the large bush was fairly audible as well. And even more noticeable, bright, white flowers were falling off of the bush as they were jostled from their natural mooring, causing them to litter the ground around it.
Grace took a moment to catch up to the procession leading into the woods, following behind Bjorn as he was the 'eyes' of the operation tonight. She smirked slightly and shook her head. "I don't know that you're dressed wrong for it, at least you have something protecting your legs and arms against the branches, Bjorn." This said as the lithe, careful, footsteps of Grace had her dodging around branches that might catch at her silky clothing. Wouldn't do to lose a layer of cloth, especially when it was your only layer. "If you do remove your shirt, I might end up stealing it." She didn't comment any further as to encouraging him to do so, though. When they came upon the bush that shuddered in the darkness, dropping its bright white floral bits to the ground, Grace stopped moving forward and cocked her head to the side, causing the long, heavy curtain of her dark hair to slide silkily over her shoulder. "I feel it's safe to assume that it's still here."
Bjorn looks back to Molly at the shirt comment. He scoffs, but with a smile as he shrugs and moves along. As Grace makes her way and mentions stealing it he says, "If you like..." With that he starts to unbutton his shirt, seems he doesn't mind doing it if it's giving it up for her, and even if it seemed mostly playful in request. Still though he grows quiet, especially as there's movement in the brush. He nods to Grace and slips his shirt off, handing it to her to don. "That's no squirrel..." He glances back at the others briefly before shrugging at Grace, not sure what to do about said creature.
Kai sighs and rolls his eyes at Molly's comments, "Great...you've just jinxed us. Haven't you seen enough scary movies to know to never say that..." Smirking as rolls his shoulders, loosening them up just in case they encounter some action in these woods...er, garden or whatever. He looks over towards Bjorn who is taking his shirt off and giving it over to Grace, aww what a gentleman and he'd probably do the same for his girlfriend or a lady in need if he had the chance. "Yeah, I kinda figured that wasn't Rocky or Bullwinkle that is out there..." He takes a deep breath and starts to breath through his nose then exhale through his mouth. Gotta get ready for the jinx after all.
Molly shrugs her shoulders, and shakes her head. "I've encountered vampires enough times that I don't think that'll be enough to jinx us," she replies. The student pauses to glance over at Bjorn briefly while the shirt comes off, and she flashes a grin, "I'd join you but, y'know, reasons." She shrugs, and hooks her thumbs into the top of her jeans as she walks along with the rest. "No, it's no squirrel, but... I think you're right, it is still here," she adds, nodding to Grace. "I don't think it's a vampire either. I don't really know yet. Call it a hunch."
As they watched the bush, apparently all eyes on it, it rustled again. This time, however, from under the bush, a foot, attached to a leg, slid out along the ground, driving a few blossoms to dance away from it and scatter. The way the foot lay seemed a bit unnatural, and it didn't move, also didn't flex. Like the entire leg it was attached to was unfeeling, or simply unusable.
Grace accepted the shirt Bjorn handed to her, flashing him a less-than subtle smile and looking him over once, very pointedly. "Nothing at all wrong with a preview, I hope you were planning on coming home with me after our date, Bjorn." Sliding the shirt on over her arms, she was pretty much enveloped by the thing. It came down lower than her skirt, and overhung her hands by a good couple of inches. As she rolled up the sleeves to leave her hands and ultimately her forearms bare, the leg popped out of the bush, and Grace stopped moving for a moment, watching the appendage. "Hello?" While one might not always talk to moving bushes, it would seem that talking to a lifeless leg was more than alright in her head. Taking advantage of the fact that her borrowed shirt covered far more than her original outfit had, Grace crouched down a bit and peered into the bush closer to its level. "If there's someone in there... you can come out. You don't have to hide. Are you hurt?" Her tone was gentle, soft spoken, and despite the decidedly European leaning of the Asian woman's accent, she managed to take the chillier edge off her words.
At the sight of the leg Bjorn stopped any thoughts of getting to close to the thing. He blinks and looks at Grace. "Careful... There's no saying that that's... attached." He steps to the side a little distance between him and Grace, hopefully providing a bigger target if the thing is hostile at all. He crouches down slightly and glances back at the others, trying to get an idea what everyone is doing.
Kai takes a closer look at that foot and frowns, "Guys, I don't think that whoever this foot belongs to is alive." He blinks and takes a step back, getting into a guarded defensive position with his hands up and in a bladed stance. "But if the person were dead, the foot would be discolored or there would be some blood pooling." His doctor like logic blends with his D&D monster manual knowledge it seems. "So either the person was just killed or they are un-dead."
Molly makes sure to position herself near to Bjorn, because he's, well, big and probably a lot more nutritious in the event of cannibal-monsters. "I agree with Kai," she mumbles, just in case anyone was worried about her opinion in the matter. "So uhm... we going to just stroll in and see what's up? Or do we want to poke it with a stick first?"
From within the bushes, a woman's voice, seemingly somewhat young, spoke. "You aren't here to help me." There was some darkness there, a shadow in her tone that indicated she wasn't pleased at being found in the bush. The leg moved a bit, and then there was a frustrated sob. Whatever it was, or even whoever it was, in the bush... they likely had been stifling themselves to keep from having their tears overheard.
Grace looked back at Kai, raising her brows, then looked back at the bush, surprise registering on her face. The words heard from within the bush had Grace standing up, then lifting her hands up so that it could be seen she hadn't armed herself. "I swear, I'm not here to hurt you. And we won't poke at you, you can clearly speak. Why don't you come out and we can figure this out before anything happens that could get misconstrued, alright?" She looked back at Bjorn and gave him a little shrug. "I have no idea if we have to worry, ultimately, but right now... whatever it is sounds scared. Maybe actually hurt." She looked at Kai and then Molly. "Don't try to hurt her, alright? Sometimes these things are just... in need."
Making a look at Grace he looks back at the bushes, the look is a skeptical one. Perhaps the foot has him a bit on edge. Still, Bjorn looks to Grace and nods and lets her lead with talking with, whomever or whatever it is that speaks. He looks to the others to see what they'll do but just takes another step to the side and back, trying to be less threatening. "Won't do a thing if you don't mean any harm."
Molly scratches the back of her head, and takes a step backwards. "Well, if she just needs help... probably fewer of us around might be a bit better. Honestly, I'm still slightly drunk, so I'll just be over there if you need me, okay?" The student stretches, pushes her glasses up her nose, and backs off a little ways.
Kai looks sheepish after hearing the voice of the lady in distress and rubs the back of his head. "Oh...sorry miss. I didn't mean to offend with my words and we really are here to help." He glances back towards Molly and motions for her to follow, "Hey Molls. No worries and if you aren't feeling well, I can give you a lift back to the university. Come on." He goes to escort Molly back along the trail, looking back once more towards Bjorn and Grace giving them a wave. "Take care and let me know how your doing tomorrow." Then he's off with Molly.
The sound of sobbing from the bush came again, then someone cursing in another language, which sounded decidedly like Filipino for those with an ear for such things. The leg that had popped out of the bush shifted again, but more like it was being moved. It didn't flex or bend like a leg would if it was moving itself. Instead, it looked more like someone was tugging it. And then... as if something were just given up, a stick in the bush actually snapped. With that snapping sound, there was a horrified "NO!" as a set of legs, complete with a pelvis, fell out of the bush and rolled, twisting oddly around each other as they had no muscular control. There wasn't any blood, but the top of the legs looked hollow, like a socket.
Grace looked back at Molly and Kai and nodded to them, giving a soft smile. "Mahalo for that, you two be safe, and take care. Aloha." She watched them leave, then looked over at Bjorn and nodded to him, stepping a little closer to the bush. Of course, in that next moment, the legs came rolling out of said bush, and Grace leapt back, watching with narrowed eyes as it happened. "Aswang." She said the word quietly. Taking a slow, deep, breath, Grace managed to keep herself out of some sort of attack readiness, or at least didn't /look/ like she was in a state of readiness to attack, when she moved over a little closer to Bjorn, then crouched down again, peering in the bush, staring across the legs that had gone for a tumble. "You sound like something's not alright. But I don't know what to call you."
Bjorn frowns when the legs come out. He frowns at that and looks to Grace and he tenses some, perhaps not sure if a fight will be taking place or not. He whispers over to Grace, "I don't suppose you know someone that can open a portal like that one time, hmm?" He otherwise let's Grace lead the conversation, not sure if they're safe yet. He looks about, just in case there's a trap in play.
After the legs had come rolling out, there really wasn't much to be done as far as keeping secret as to what was going on. And so, the upper half of the body followed the legs. It was far more delicate, though, and able to move fully of its own locomotion. Her arms were strong, and she held her torso up with them entirely, not even trailing her strangely sealed off stump along the ground. The half-woman was youngish, maybe 22 if she was lucky, and bore the standard bare skin and long, dark, hair that seemed so endemic to her species. Of course, this aswang in particular also carried streams of somewhat dirty marks down her face from tears and from where she'd tried to wipe them away with muddy hands. "You should just go. There's nothing you can do." Her words were decidedly colored with an accent, and clipped. Her black eyes were shining with further tears, though, and the sound of her voice was a little strangled by the knot in her throat.
Grace looked over at Bjorn and smiled slightly, seemingly amused as she stood back up to better meet his gaze. "You know, if you were of the forest it would be truly easy for you here. Instead, we'll have to find a freezer or an ice shelf somewhere for that to be easy for you." She winked to him, and then looked back at the Aswang crawling herself out of the bush, her eyebrows raising up higher. "Wait, what is it that's wrong? Do you really know that we can't help you if you haven't asked for help, or told us what it is you need?"
Bjorn looks to Grace and blinks a bit at the mention of entering the Nevernever. That was perhaps a conversation for another time. For now he looked to the Aswang and said, "If there's something that can be done to help then I'm willing to, so long as no one needs to be hurt in the process. What happened?" He looks at the legs in question, then back to the torso of the creature in question, perhaps curious as to what has it so upset, if it's not an act that is.
The young Aswang shook her head and started fully crying, setting herself down hard onto the ground at the stump of her torso and lifting her hands up to try to wipe away tears. "It's.... it's my first time out on my own. I can't get them back on." She let out another sob, this one making her age seem closer to that of a teenager than a 20 something, as she fell backward onto the ground and hit solidly with a thud. Whether or not she was throwing a temper tantrum would be hard to tell, save for the fact that she was still bawling, and sounded almost on the edge of retching.
Grace nodded in agreement with Bjorn's statement, watching the Aswang curiously, then stiffening slightly as the girl seemed to lose her shit and start bawling. Grace opened her mouth once, then closed it, seemingly at a loss for what to say. She looked up at Bjorn and spread her arms slightly out to the side, clearly unsure as to what precisely they would do to help in this situation. When she looked back toward the Aswang, she cleared her throat softly and asked her "Alright, let's start simple. What's your name? I'm Grace." Grace put her hand on her chest, to make sure the girl understood it was her name, not her state of being. "And it'd be better to call you by a name than just Hey you or Aswang Chick."
Bjorn blinks as she starts sobbing. He moves up to Grace and crouches down, looking back and forth. He looks to her finally and asks, "Did... You need help getting your legs on? Is that what you're telling us?" He clears his throat some and starts to search through his pockets, until he finds a few Kleenex. Carefully he offers them out to her.
The young aswang looked up at Grace and Bjorn, rolling herself forward and catching herself on her hands. She sniffled, her face awash with more tears and of course clear mucous from her nose. "I'm Chira... and I... I need help getting my legs back on. Usually my mother or one of my Aunts are here to help. But tonight I came out alone, and I realized after I returned to them... I don't know how to get them on right. They keep just falling back off. I fell out of the tree while I was trying to settle into them, and then you all came in chasing after me." Her lower lip quivered slightly and she shook her head. "I just need to get them back on so I can get home."
When Bjorn handed her the tissues, she accepted them, and proceeded to scrub off her face as well as she could.
Grace smiled slightly at Chira and nodded her head. "A pleasure, Chira. What can we do to help you?" She looked over at the legs, then glanced to Bjorn and offered him a wan sort of smile as he made sure that the young aswang had tissues to wipe up her tears and snot. Then, Grace moved to the legs to help get them straightened out, exceedingly cautious not to harm them, or get any debris in the socket at the top. The fact that she blushed a little as she did this, and notably kept her focus mainly on the ground, or on Chira and Bjorn while she did it, may have even slipped some people's notice.
Bjorn smiles as she takes the tissues and works on cleaning herself up some. He looks to Grace, then back to her and says, "Well... I suppose we could possibly... help hold you, or them in place? If you think there's a way to help. Everyone should have a chance to go home."
Chira looked between Bjorn and Grace, her expression stricken. "I figured you'd just kill me while you knew I was having trouble. If you really want to help, I just need the legs held up, and I need to climb into them right. That's it. I can go after that." Some hope seemed to simmer to the surface as she watched Grace right her legs for her, and the young aswang even managed to offer a wavering, broad, smile to Bjorn. "Thank you."
Grace shook her head as she stood up, then reached down to lift the legs up off the ground, pelvis first. "I wouldn't harm you for attempting to put yourself back together, Chira. I wouldn't harm you for most things, really. It's just when things get out of hand, or I get attacked, that I attack back, or defend myself. You've done nothing that warrants me hurting you." She got the legs sorted, holding the thin appendages by the hips, then looked over at Bjorn, blushing rather harder now. "Could you pick her up and help her into the legs? I'll keep them upright." Said legs came up to a little bit higher than Grace's own pelvis, which almost made her look like she was slow dancing with a partner that just didn't exist apart from the stems.
A nod is given as Grace asks him to help with Chira. Bjorn moves over to her and offers to wrap his arms under hers to pick her up. "Just let me know if you need me to move you at all." He does his best not to look where he's moving her, or her body for that matter though he doesn't blush like Grace was.
Once she was held up by Bjorn, Chira let out a laugh. "Oh man... this is awesome. You're so tall. I can't get this tall without flipping my wings out. But that'd probably freak you guys out." She patted the big man's arm, then motioned over toward the legs. Once she was settled down into them, she twisted a little, which had Grace flexing against the movement. A strange 'POP' sound was heard, and then Chira was able to use her legs again, which made her sigh, her shoulders sagging in relief as she lifted her legs out to the side, one after the other, so she didn't lift them forward or backward and kick either Grace or Bjorn. "Thank you! That's... so much better." She let out another laugh, then wriggled her way out of Bjorn's arms and Grace's hands on her hips, stepping away from them, fully nude but completely happy. She looked like any other, at least half Filipino woman of about 20 on the island. "I won't forget this. You two are good people!" And with that.... Chira literally ran off into the woods. Quick, too, like the dark didn't bother her in the slightest.
Grace, for her part, held on when she needed to, but as she felt the legs start to move on their own and of course heard the popping sound, she had to look down and see it for herself. Surprise overrode any embarrassment she felt at staring at another naked woman. When Chira thanked them, and started off, Grace held up her hand and called out "Aloha!" as if out of habit, because her eyes still carried a slight glaze of shock. Turning her head to look up at Bjorn, she blinked a couple of times, and seemed to be pondering a sentence to put together, but didn't quite come up with anything.
Bjorn watching her depart, Bjorn just blinks and then says after a moment, "Boy I really hope she doesn't end up killing someone now that we've helped her out." He moves to slide an arm around Grace and asks, "Well, how are you feeling now that you've helped put two halves of a woman back together?" He pats her backside a bit at that as he chuckles bemusedly to himself.
Since Bjorn wasn't wearing a shirt, it was far too easy for Grace to turn her head to the side and bite at him, letting her teeth scrape along his skin. "I feel like I've done something terribly dirty but terribly good at the same time. Helping someone young and filled with fear and confusion... it's surely to the side of good, which means that it's just that much closer to finding a balance between the good and bad things I've done in my life." She snuggled in closer against Bjorn, wrapping her arm around his waist and sliding her palm over the bare skin along his side, just above the waistline of his pants. "Though... what she does in the future, I imagine that's anyone's guess. Tonight, now, she was a scared girl. Do you feel like you've done well, helping a scared girl put herself back together again?" Grace looked up at Bjorn, smiling softly. "I'm fairly impressed, actually. You might well get lucky." Saying it out loud only caused Grace's cheeks to burn brightly with a whole new blush, but she didn't look away from him.
A smile widens on his features as Grace nips at the big man's skin. Bjorn licks his lips and then runs his fingers through her hair, especially as she blushes from what she says. "I do. She obviously needed help, and so all I can do is hope that it doesn't cause harm in the future. Maybe she'll be less likely to do so." He leans down and lightly brushes his lips against hers, and then teasingly nips at her bottom lip. "So now that the excitement is over and someone is saved, what would you like to do the rest of the evening then?" He just waggles his brow playfully at the last part.
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