Foxfire (Nine Tails, 1) (11 page)

“
She’s reaching out from
the underworld. She threatened to do as much.”

“
But how? Possession?
Rebirth?” Daisuke asked.

“
She told me when she
first caught me that she’d traveled in and out of Yomi many times,
that each journey made her stronger.”

“
Then I will go there and
fight her. I’ll bring Hiro back if she’s holding him there,” Inari
said, her kimono changing to armor. Blue dragon scales covered
every inch of her body, and she drew a katana from the sheath on
her back. “I’ve grown soft in recent years. No witch will harm
those I protect.”

Masaki shook his head. “No. I must
make a deal with her to be free. Truly free. If she can return
once, she’ll never give up and keep returning again and again.”
With a thought, Masaki changed his clothes as well, banishing the
linen kimono in favor of jeans, sturdy boots, and a thick Henley.
“I remember how she tricked me. I’ll be in Yomi faster than you
could take me there.”

As he moved forward, Inari grabbed
him. “What are you doing? This is no time for guessing!”

“
Please, my lady, trust
me.” He gently pulled his arm free. “I touched the tree she was
hiding in when we met. I remember how warm it was.” He rushed
forward before they could stop him, reaching out to touch the
sculpture. Passing through Inari’s ring of fire singed him, but he
didn’t stop.

Masaki felt himself falling the moment
his hand touched the metal, and he could hear Inari calling his
name. He landed on a bed of moss and rolled until he hit the trunk
of a tree. As he stood and dusted himself off, he heard giggling.
Pausing, he waited for the witch to appear, but she didn’t. The
laughter faded, and nothing around him moved. He took a few steps
and called Hiro’s name. His voice echoed, and he listened intently.
He called again, thinking he might change to his fox form and try
to scent Hiro, but before he could decide, a cry caught his
ear.

“
Hiro!” he called, running
toward the sound. The fog grew thicker, but he kept going.
Something solid hit him and knocked the wind from his lungs, but
then he heard Hiro’s voice.

“
I knew you’d come for me!
I knew it!” Hiro said, squeezing Masaki and burying his face
against Masaki’s neck.

Hiro didn’t feel cold in his arms. The
witch must have been slowly drawing Hiro into the land of the dead.
Masaki held Hiro at arm’s length, noting that he was dressed all in
white. As he wondered what that might mean, Masaki pulled his shirt
aside to look at his chest.

“
Hiro, did the artist
touch you here? Do you remember?” The mark was gone, but it had to
have something to do with all of this.

Hiro blinked, but then he nodded and
touched the spot. “Yes. What’s happening? I don’t
understand.”

Masaki held Hiro’s face and kissed him
lovingly. “A witch once tried to bind me into her service. Inari’s
mark upon my soul made this impossible and protected me, and she
vowed she’d make me hers one day. But it was decades ago.” He
kissed Hiro again. “I’m so sorry. I never imagined she’d come after
one of my lovers.”

“
You came for me. That’s
all that matters.”

The sweet gratitude in Hiro’s voice
made his chest tighten. “I’ll have to make a deal with her, to free
you and to ensure she never returns, so we must find
her.”

Hiro bit his lip, worry and fear
marring his face. “Can’t we just go home? Can’t Inari
help?”

“
It would only be
temporary. Inari was present when I killed the witch, yet she still
returned.”

“
She caught you? That’s
what the girl who made the sculpture said. She told me she’d caught
a fox once and been forced to set it free.”

It angered Masaki that the vile bitch
had spoken to Hiro for even a few moments. “Yes, that’s what
happened. Inari rescued me, then gave me permission to kill the
witch when she threatened us all. She vowed she’d take all nine of
us from Inari, and this is obviously the beginning of her
plan.”

Hiro looked around as he inched closer
to Masaki. “What do we do? This place changes. I hear laughter and
strange noises, but then silence will follow. I thought it was a
dream, but I realized where I was when I saw one of my paintings
come to life. A painting of … Yomi.” He gazed into Masaki’s eyes.
“That’s where we are, isn’t it?”

Masaki nodded. “Yes. And we must stay
together.” He reached into his pocket and drew out a silver chain.
He joined their wrists and then explained, “This can stretch up to
a mile.” As soon as he took his hand away, the chain seemed to
vanish. “It will not inhibit our movements, as it is only solid
where it touches us. If we’re separated, simply pull on your wrist.
This will lead me to you.” He moved his arm, tugging. “Do you feel
it?”

Hiro looked at their wrists and
nodded, and then he joined their hands. “Thank you for coming for
me,” he said softly.

Masaki pulled him close. “This is the
worst time and place, but I don’t care. I’ve been watching you for
months, and when we finally touched and became one, I realized I’d
already fallen in love with you. You owe me nothing, but I won’t
face this trial without telling you.” He kissed Hiro, pleased when
the young man held him and returned the kiss.

Hiro looked up at him, tears misting
his eyes but never falling. “When we get home—because I know we
will—I’ll stay as long as you like. I’ll tell my whole damn family
I’m gay and show you off,” he said, laughing nervously before
reaching up to kiss him.

Masaki longed to stay in this moment,
but it wasn’t possible. “Then we must find the witch. Have you seen
a house or anything like that?”

“
There was a pavilion with
food.”

“
Did you eat anything?”
Masaki asked, holding his breath.

“
No. I’ve read enough
mythology to know better.”

Masaki nodded. “Then as you said, we
will go home, and I’ll be honored to show you off as well.” He
glanced around, clutching Hiro’s hand to his heart. “Which
way?”

Hiro looked around a long time, but
then he finally pointed. “That way, I think.”

Masaki pulled Hiro to his side and
began walking, keeping alert with every step. He knew that, despite
his protest, Inari might still come for him, but he also knew that
he could not win this battle relying on help from
others.

Chapter Six

Hiro eyed the landscape, expecting
danger in every shadow. He’d felt safe—or at least safer—ever since
Masaki had found him. The trees around them seemed to change and
move, and he no longer had any confidence he’d picked the right
direction.

“
Masaki, I think I was
wrong.” He sighed. “I’m sorry. We’d have found it by now if I’d
picked the right direction.”

Masaki paused and looked around them.
“I doubt it mattered. As you said, the landscape can change. The
witch who has done this claimed to have moved in and out of Yomi
many times. She might have other powers as well.”

“
Then what can we do if
she can simply keep tricking us?” Hiro had only been thrust into
this world a few days ago and had no idea how to handle this
situation.

“
You could surrender,” a
melodic voice said behind them.

Masaki pulled Hiro close as they
turned. “Never, Kilana,” Masaki said. “But I can offer you a
deal.”

The figure before them was not the
girl Hiro had spoken to at the museum, yet the eyes held the same
glint. Her pale skin contrasted with her red lips and gold eyes.
Her hair now fell all the way to her feet and continued to flow
behind her. She wore a black kimono that shimmered as she moved.
She grinned, revealing sharp teeth. “You remember my name,” she
said to Masaki. “Not going to hide behind your kami this
time?”

“
I didn’t hide before. I
refused you and summoned Inari because your efforts affronted
her.”

“
Why be a messenger when
you could be so much more?” she asked.

“
I don’t wish to serve
anyone but my lady. Do you wish to hear my deal or not?”

She shrugged, as if bored, but then
she grinned once more. “I’ll listen.” She turned to the left, a
pavilion appearing just in time for her to step into it. “Come, we
can talk as we eat.”

A plate of fried tofu sat in the
middle of the low table. Plump, colorful silk cushions surrounded
it, and Kilana reclined on one, beckoning them over. She took up a
pair of chopsticks and began to eat. Masaki pulled Hiro to the
table, where they both took cushions and knelt on their
knees.

“
Hiro and I are both
smarter than this. You attempted to bribe me with food before. It
won’t work, especially not here.”

She continued eating, though her mouth
twitched slightly.

“
I’ll endure a trial, set
by you. If I am triumphant, you will never again attempt to capture
me or any of my brothers. Hiro and I will leave here freely and
unharmed.”

“
And if you
fail?”

“
I’ll renounce Inari and
serve you, using all of my powers to do your will.”

She licked her lips. “And your young
morsel?”

Masaki frowned, clenching his knees as
if trying to hold something back. He let out a deep exhale and
said, “I request that he be delivered to Inari.”

“
You could keep him as a
little pet. We could even give him a collar.” She set her
chopsticks down and leaned forward. “Why not just stay with me?
I’ll let you have him. Once you go back, he might leave you. I’ve
been watching. He’d never have let you take him if I hadn’t put a
touch of lust in my spell.” She cast another sharp-toothed grin at
him.

Hiro stiffened. He had felt a little
odd at first, frenzied in his arousal, but his desire for Masaki
had been real. He leaned forward, but he didn’t know how to refute
her claim.

“
Something to say?” she
asked.

Hiro reached for Masaki’s hand and
looked at him. “I did feel strange when we first touched, but I
needed no spell to want you.” He turned to Kilana and eyed her. She
did frighten him, but she seemed to want Masaki enough not to act
rashly. “Maybe you did enchant me with lust. I did feel something
indescribable, but I felt more than just desire. I thought Masaki
was beautiful, even when I was scared of him. I like talking to him
and being with him. I’m glad he was my first, and I won’t let you
ruin the memory.”

Kilana sat up and laughed, clapping
her hands together like a child, which looked so odd given her
elegant appearance in this incarnation. “Oh, he’s a bold one! I
like him.” She held one finger out. “One alteration, and we shall
have a deal.”

“
I’ll consider it,” Masaki
said.

“
If you fail, both of you
must stay with me.” She held both hands up before Masaki could
object. “You will serve me, and he will belong to you alone. I
won’t touch him. Won’t try to seduce him. You’ll lose your spirit
without him, and that would make you tiresome.”

“
No one else could touch
him? Absolutely no one but me?” Masaki asked.

“
Yes,” Kilana
said.

“
Then we have a deal. You
have half an hour to decide my trial.”

Kilana leapt up and waved her arms. “I
need no time. I am prepared.” The clouds parted, and the peak of a
mountain was revealed. A great shrine appeared there, the red torii
gates and flaming lanterns standing out against the sky, and Kilana
turned to them. “A shrine to Inari. You must reach it. If you pass
into the sacred space, I will release you. You’ll be allowed to
call on Inari and go home.”

“
How long do we have?”
Masaki asked.

“
Twenty-one hours.” She
bowed, laughter bubbling from her. “And then you’ll be mine and
we’ll begin with my plans for your brothers.”

Masaki gave her a barely perceptible
bow in acknowledgement. “Then we shall begin.”

Hiro followed Masaki, not looking
back. While the encounter itself had not been frightening, the
thought of failure began to weigh on him as they moved. He had
faith in Masaki, but kitsune were not so perfect they were immune
to failure.

“
It’s not far. We can be
there in a couple of hours, I think,” Hiro said.

Masaki took Hiro’s hand once more.
“There’ll be dangers. Tricks. Perhaps even yokai or demons to
face.” He glanced back and stopped. “You must trust me at every
turn. She’ll make every effort to win.”

Now Hiro couldn’t help being afraid.
He nodded. “Of course. I’ll do what you say.”

Masaki touched Hiro’s cheek. “You’re a
far greater prize than even my freedom. I won’t fail, I
swear.”

Hearing the oath made Hiro feel warm
and confident, but as soon as Masaki turned away, he felt cold. The
forest seemed to grow thicker as they moved, and he felt sure
something would come at them at any moment.

* * * *

Hiro swallowed, or tried to. His
throat was parched, but drinking even one drop of water would trap
him in Yomi just as eating anything would. The heat seemed to be
sucking the life from his body, surrounding him and near
suffocating him. The forest grew thicker as they walked, and soon
they had to weave in and out of the trees to move
forward.