Hunting (with) the Exorcists

[Harri-chan]

Rosemarie gave Elliot a brief glare as they both ended up at the back of the group, and followed them towards the source of the light. As Logos led the way, the light got brighter and brighter, until it was blinding them all. The ground beneath their feet softened, and the smell of freshly baked cookies and cakes filled their nostrils.

The light faded, and while they were still surrounded by the thick forest, they now stood at the edge of a circular clearing, the floor covered with lush green grass. Ahead of them was a little cottage, made from... gingerbread? With candycake supports, the entire roof, as well as the front door appeared to be made from chocolate! The smell of it all was hard to resist!

[Blaze]

The Exorcists raised their hands and arms to shield them from the light, walking forward until they reach the clearing, noses wrinkling as they smell the smell of delicious baking!

Upon reaching the gingerbread house, they stare at the sweet structure in bafflement, the sound of stomachs rumbling coming from them.

"Ergh... I'm huuuuungry!" Jean says in a tiny whine.
"It's probably a trap..." Blaze mutters, despite the hungry look in her eyes.

[Harri-chan]

Elliot had soon found his way from the back of the group, all the way to the front, and was gazing at the gingerbread cottage in amazement.

"It smells just like Julia's bakery!", he practically squealed, and he started to run forward. Clattering into the chocolate door, it burst into hundreds of pieces, and he immediately leaned down to start gathering up handfuls, pushing them into his mouth. Brittnie watched him, one hand rubbing her tummy as she looked to Blaze.

"It does smell pretty good... ", she murmured quietly.

[Blaze]

Blaze gives a shaky, reluctant nod of agreement.

"Yeah, but remember how the story with the gingerbread house went? We need to be careful." she mutters.
"At least we have Elliot to serve as a test to see if the food itself is a trap." Okuni says, looking everywhere but at the house itself.

[Harri-chan]

The entire group would be feeling the strong desire to follow in Elliot's footsteps. Lucy would be the only one that could truly resist it, and of the rest, Logos was feeling it the most. After eating almost half the chocolate pieces on the floor, Elliot disappeared further into the house.

"Maybe it would be good to rest and refresh ourselves after the battle... ", said Rosemarie in a softer tone than she usually spoke with, and seemed to wear a confused expression.

Brittnie shuffled forward slightly, and then paused, inhaling deeply, closing her eyes as she let out a happy sigh.

"It reminds me of home... ".

[Blaze]

Logos is typically the strongest and most resilient of the group, physically and mentally, but even she cannot resist looking hungrily at the house, salivating intensely. The Exorcists follow Elliot inside, telling themselves that they need to keep a closer eye on the boy, but deep down they want to see if any more goodies lie inside.

"Yes... and Elliot seems okay, so it can't be poison or anything... and if it's slow-acting I can heal it..." Jean murmurs, placing a finger to her mouth, not realizing she had run it down the walls first.

[Harri-chan]

Oddly, Elliot was nowhere to be seen once the group got inside the house. The furniture was also made from cakes, chocolates and sweets too, and one candy cane chair had been shattered and partly devoured. Jean's mouth was filled with sweetness as she sucked on her finger, and for a moment she thought she heard a whisper-quiet snickering from behind her, but it was so quiet maybe she had imagined it.

"Where is the boy?", asked Brittnie, her dress swishing a little as she came to a stop and spun around on her toes. Rosemarie frowned, following the red-haired teenager to the middle of the room. Her dark eyes scanned the room, and she looked back to the Exorcists, holding up a hand.

"Nobody eat anything... ".

[Blaze]

Jean gulps, sweating a little as she stares at her finger. "T-Too late it seems... I had a lapse." she murmurs, looking at the others, trying to find the source of the laugh.

Blaze goes over to the partially devoured chair and examines the area around it, looking for any sign of what happened to Elliot. THe others spread out, searching for hidden doors or passages, the sound of their stomachs grumbling getting louder.

[Harri-chan]

A mist seemed to cloud Jean's vision, first blurring everything, and then darkening until she could see nothing at all. Gravity's force seemed to increase tenfold, and she felt herself falling, landing on another body which let out a startled yelp. Slowly, her eyes began to adjust... she was no longer in complete darkness, but there wasn't much light either. She was in a very cramped space that looked like a cage, with a heavy cloth thrown over the top of it, and in the cage with her was Elliot.

"J-Jean? What happened?", he groaned.

[Blaze]

The other Exorcists spin to face the spot that Jean once occupied, starting to worry.

"Okay... DEFINITELY do not eat anything." Lucy says.
"I'll try to drown out the smell, that should help." Blaze takes out a stick on incense and lights it with a match, a strong pungent scent filling the air.

-----

Jean yelps as she lands, looking around at the cage and at Elliot.

"I had a bit of chocolate, and wound up here... I suppose anyone who eats the food will wind up here." she mutters, climbing off Elliot.

[Harri-chan]

"Do you think they'll figure that out? I don't think there's even room for one more person in here, let alone the entire group... ", he said, and he was quite right. He tried to squeeze himself to one side so Jean had room, but the pair would be stuck in pretty close quarters.

"My tummy feels really funny, Jean... does yours?", he asked, although for now, Jean would feel quite fine apart from the softest of tingling sensations inside her mouth. It might be hard to spot in the darkness of the covered cage, but Elliot looked a little different. Instead of fourteen, he looked more like... twelve, and now had the very faintest of softness to his previously stick-thin figure.

====

When Blaze lit the incense, and it's smell filled the noses of those remaining, they felt the temptation begin to fade, but there was still no sign of Jean or Elliot. A cold wind suddenly blew in through the broken doorway, sending shivers down their spines and it swirled around them, blowing their hair and their clothes, and all of them could hear that whispered laughter in their ears.

[Blaze]

"I admitted to eating something, so yes, I think they can figure it out." Jean says reassuringly.

"Hm? No, my stomach feels fine. Maybe you ate too much. I doubt that the food would teleport us here just to die from poison, but if you get worse, I should be able to purge it from your body."

-----

The Exorcists turn towards the door, weapons at the ready. Now that the temptation was mostly gone, they are all on alert.

"Show yourself." Logos says coolly, discretely wiping her mouth.

[Harri-chan]

Elliot leaned back against the side of the cage, one hand reaching beneath her t-shirt to rub at his tummy with a frown. From above, there was the faintest sound of shuffled footsteps and creaking wood. After reassuring Elliot that he wasn't going to die, Jean could feel that tingling sensation spreading from her lips, down through the rest of her body, and for a moment, her clothing seemed to tickle against her skin.

====

The swirling wind seemed to focus on the middle of the room, and a dark mist slowly came together, growing more and more solid, until it had became a very curvy woman. She was showing a lot of pale skin, clad in a black corset with orange lace edges that framed her large breasts, a black pair of lace panties, and black and orange striped tights that came up to her thighs, with knee high black leather boots on her feet. Her hair was long, thick and dark brown, and on top of her head she had a giant black witch's hat with an orange bow just above the floppy brim. Her plump lips were glossed red, and she was smirking, but she had a cloth wrapped around her eyes, concealing them, with her finely trimmed eyebrows showing above it.

"Very well... ".

[Blaze]

Jean feels her lips tingling and the sensation moving south through her body. She starts to worry, but keeps it inside, not wanting to worry Elliot.

"Did you hear that? We must be below the house. We should try making noise to show them where we are."

------

The four Exorcists move to surround the witch, Blaze leveling a handgun at her head, Okuni pointing a drawn arrow at her chest, Lucy pointing her staff and Logos pointing her sword at her chest.

"Release our friends." Blaze demands.

[Harri-chan]

In the darkness, Elliot was now closer to ten, although his clothes, if anything looked a little more snug. They seemed the right size in proportion to how they were before, but he was definitely getting a little more flesh on his bones. He didn't seem to notice, and was instead looking at Jean in surprise.

"J-Jean... just how old are you?", he asked, somewhat nervously.


====


The Witch looked at the four, who were soon joined by Rosemarie and her scythe, but she just rolled her eyes. Puckering her lips, she sort of... blew towards them, and suddenly Blaze was holding a candy cane, Okuni was brandishing a long, twisty marshmallow, and Logos was now holding a long, clear tube filled with colourful candies. Lucy was holding a very large cookie, and Rosemarie holding a plate with a huge chocolate and cream cake sitting on top.

"Or what?", smirked the Witch.