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“So, you’re certain you followed it all the way here?” The brown-haired woman asked, her scowl fixed on her face. The abandoned house they stood before was the only blemish on an otherwise pleasant neighborhood. The well-manicured lawns and pristine homes greatly contrasted the overgrown property and the decaying boarded-up home.
“Yep, it slipped right inside, and it hasn’t left since,” the blonde woman assured, her wide smile beamed with youthful ignorance.
“Let’s get this over with then,” the brown-haired woman sighed and trudged inside the house. The blonde followed close behind with a pep in her step. The inside was no better, the foyer looked like it hadn’t been touched by human hands in over a decade, and the kitchen was no better. The scurrying of insects and rodents could be heard around every corner. “I don’t know how in the hell you expected to find it in this mess.”
“Don’t worry, I brought bait,” the blonde held up a comically small bear trap with a piece of cheese inside its jaws.
“No,” the brown-haired woman shook her head and pulled out a collapsible animal catcher from her bag. It folded out into a long metal pole with a metal grabber at the end, small enough to wrap around a snake’s throat snuggly. In addition, she readied a small cage, large enough to fit a decent-sized rabbit comfortably. “Hold this,” she gave the cage to the blonde. “I’m going to find it the old-fashioned way.”
The duo carefully treaded through the halls, the brown-haired woman inspecting every inch of the floor. It wasn’t long before she found a peculiar trail across the ground, similar to snake’s, but whatever slithered across the floor was far wider than any snake.
“Good, it hasn’t found somewhere to burrow yet,” the brown-haired woman smiled. “In fact, I think it’s right behind that closet door.” She gestured to a cracked door. The trail led through a large hole chewed through the bottom. “Open the cage and get ready,” the brown-haired woman ordered as she readied the animal catcher.
The two women tip-toed up to the door; the blonde carefully put her hand to the knob while the brown-haired woman readied the catcher. The blond slowly opened the door, which creaked within a few seconds. That same instant, something darted out of the closet, rushing away from the noise. However, the brown-haired woman was ready, the animal catcher clamped around the creature’s neck. The beast wiggled and struggled as the brown-haired woman deposited it in the cage and shut it tight.
“We got it?” The blonde inspected their catch. “I told you it was the fattest snake I’ve ever seen.” The serpentine creature was, in fact, quite portly in appearance, at least compared to the average snake.
“It’s a Tsuchinoko, a Japanese cryptid,” the brown-haired woman corrected.
“What’s it doing in suburbia?” The blonde inquired.
“That’s what I’d like to know,” the brown-haired woman explained. The creature itself hissed in displeasure at being caught but made no immediate attempt to escape. With their catch in hand, the two women turned to leave.
“So, what do we do with it?” The blonde asked.
“I have a nice enclosure for it to live in, at least until I can figure out where it came from,” the brown-haired woman explained as they exited out the front door.
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You find the most interesting creatures in the oddest of places, but how did they get there in the first place?
Until next time, Read, Comment and Enjoy
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