[i] On a lightly clouded day, while twilight approaches at a steady pace, announcing itself with a red tint in the sky, passersby may start noticing a curious individual perched in a lone tree by the wayside, normally away from view. A dark creature, hanging upside down from a large branch, almost the size of the small tree itself. It looks like an anthro bat, with a canine looking snout, long ears, cheek fluff and black dreadlocks that touch the ground. Her large wings are folded against her, and she rests there, looking around with a child-like innocence. It’s pretty safe to assume that she is a female of her species, due to her easily noticeable breasts and thick thighs… There’s only one little detail that sets her apart from your usual bat. Well, two, in fact. She’s entirely black, a shiny, glossy substance glistening in the sun as if it was rubber, or latex, maybe. Second, said substance is slowly drooping down from her, evaporating as the drop leaves her body, never able to reach the ground… Most people simply walk by so as to not disturb her, but one unwise individual decides to get a little too curious.

The peaceful gaze of the creature is occupied by some flowers below. She stares at them like she’s never seen something like this before… She unfolds a wing, her hand approaching one of the flowers, like she wants to pluck it, but strangely does not do so, as if revering the small piece of flora. She closes her black and purple eyes, taking a long whiff, exhaling with bliss and tranquility. Slowly, the traveler that had been observing the creature approaches while she’s distracted, step by step, so as to not scare it – can’t be too cautious, right? – making their way closer and closer… They crouch behind a bush. It’s strange, they think. Her hair aren’t dreadlocks… They’re like tentacles. Writhing slowly, as if animated by their own little muscles, and it looks almost like some of them turn to star at the concealed watcher…

Suddenly, without any provocation from their part, the bat’s head turns to stare at the overly curious traveler. She’s been observing the flower undisturbed for this long, they thought they were hidden well enough, but no. The purple eyes of the creature pierce theirs, and they can’t bring themselves to look away. The goosebumps on their skin are real, however. The stare of the glossy bat is enough to make his skin crawl… Try as they might, they’re simply unable to get up from their crouched position and run away. The creature knows it, she was only playing along until their quarry got too close… And isolated. There’s nobody around anymore, except for these two.

Her innocent smile turns into a smirk. She whispers something, but the traveler is too far to hear it. She spreads her arm-wings open in their entirety… Her wingspan is so wide, she could easily wrap him up if he got close. A strange pull seems to be attracting them to the membranous limbs. Not just mentally, but physically, too, like it’s sucking the air… Surely, that’s only a trick of the mind... She looks like she wants to hug the Peeping Tom, share her warmth with them in that gentle embrace. Enthralled by the strange display in front of them, the traveler gets up, and takes a few tentative steps forward. The bat tilts her head, inviting them closer. She whispers again. If only they were closer they’d finally be able to hear what she had to say!

And so, they take one step too much, lured in by their own curiosity… They’re so close to the bat, they could almost touch them now. But before being given the chance to do so, the wings of the creature snatch him up, like a sprung trap, a net of blackness. They try to struggle, but it’s already too late. The crepuscular scene they were witnessing turns to black as the wings engulf him. A strange liquid covers every part of them that got caught by her wings, and quickly starts spreading to cover their entire body, all the while dragging them straight through the membranes, as if the insides of the creature’s wings were made out of water. All in all, it only took a few seconds. The traveler is gone, and the bat stretches happily, before going back to observing the flowers as if nothing happened.[/i]

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Art by Skellertom on FA
Story in the description by yours truly. Length: 744 words.