In the mean time, he ran like crazy. He felt really bad about what he was doing, but wasn't there someone who'd said something about desperate times? The speed of his passage dried the tears that had fallen on his arm and whipped off his hood. His bushy black hair was arrayed behind him as the wind tore at him as if trying to slow him down. He wasn't all that noticable, but his lips were a bit thicker than would be normal for a pure human, and his nose was kind of flat. What his deep voice hid was how young he actually was. A boy as big as a man stopped in front of a small hut in a different portion of the village and entered.
"Is that you, Kinich?" his father called from the bedroom.
"Yes, sir. I just needed to grab a few things. I'm sorry for waking you."
"Are you going back out, at this hour?" his mother asked.
Kinich continued the shouted conversation as he gathered the things he'd need from his room and the kitchen, "Yes, ma'am, some things came up and I think I'll be staying elsewhere for a while. You can go back to bed, so don't worry. I'll explain better in the morning." He finished up his short trip home with a stop at the tool shed in back, loading his bag of stuff with other things he might need.
Another frenzied dash across town brought him back to his temporary sanctum. He'd been gone about an hour, and was worried about Itsumi. He'd known her for a long time, ever since he'd become a scribe at her house. Well, he hadn't really known her, but he'd watched her a lot. Whether she'd ever noticed him was the important thing. Now, everything was different, and he knew he'd regret it. He was sweating, and he could smell his strong odor on his hooded jacket. He pulled the hood back up, and hoped she wouldn't figure anything out. She hadn't given him any indication before he'd left. He opened the basement door and pulled out a lantern. His keen eyes scanned the room for her as he lit the wick and flooded the place with light.
