Foxfire (Nine Tails, 1) (12 page)

Masaki slowed but didn’t explain why.
He paused, as if listening, and then they continued on.

“
What can we expect?” Hiro
asked quietly.

“
Hard to say.”

Despite his anxiety about what would
happen next, Hiro couldn’t stop thinking about Masaki’s declaration
of love. He still couldn’t process it properly, as the idea of
someone so experienced and handsome wanting him, let alone loving
him, made his mind boggle. Hiro inched up beside Masaki as they
climbed over a large tree root.

“
I’m glad you told me how
you feel,” he said, keeping his voice soft. “It means a
lot.”

Masaki smiled at him, but then he
returned his sharp gaze to their surroundings. “My life’s been one
of ease, for the most part, and it must look appealing from the
outside. But at times, there are dangers. Facing them makes you see
what truly matters.”

“
Have you ever felt this
way before?”

Masaki vaulted over a fallen tree and
then turned back to help Hiro over. “No, I haven’t.” They continued
walking, and Masaki kept his gaze darting between the shadows and
the treetops. “I was never a seducer, like some of my brothers, but
I’ve had many lovers. I cared for them, but I never felt more.
Neither did any of them.”

“
How do you know that?”
Hiro asked, imagining it wouldn’t take anyone long to fall in love
with Masaki. He could already envision himself falling.
Hard.

“
They all left me. Grew
tired of me.”

“
I don’t understand that.
At all.” Hiro stumbled, wedging his foot under a root.

Masaki went down on his knees right
away, holding Hiro’s ankle steady and then freeing him. He felt the
bone and guided Hiro over the next few feet. “I’m your first lover.
It’s easy to think that person is perfect.”

“
Did you?”

They came to a point where the trees
twisted around each other in such a way that they had to change
course. Masaki paused, orienting himself, though Hiro had no idea
how he did this without the light of a sun in the sky. Light
radiated from everywhere, but nothing floated in the sky above
them. Only bleak grayness hung there.

“
Inari was my first lover.
I knew from the start that it was a different form of
love.”

“
It’s odd.”

“
What is?” Masaki asked,
tilting his head as he glanced back.

“
Gods having sex. Just …
seems strange.”

“
They have passions and
emotions as we do.”

“
Since it’s a different
kind of love, do you still feel that way?” Hiro asked.

“
I’ll always be devoted to
Inari, but we’ll never touch that way again. I promise.”

“
I wasn’t jealous. Just
curious.”

Masaki braced himself against a tree
and looked around. “Were you tempted by his seduction?”

“
Curious. But not tempted.
Would’ve been cruel to run from you and then jump into bed with
him.”

Masaki pointed in a new direction, and
they started again. “I’d have forgiven you, but it would’ve hurt,
after I’d told Inari how I felt about you.”

“
He said he wouldn’t have
done it.” Hiro sighed and cleared his throat.

“
You’ll lose your voice at
this rate,” Masaki said, reaching over and massaging the back of
Hiro’s neck.

“
Helps me not be scared. I
trust you, but the longer we wait for an attack, the more worried I
feel.”

Masaki stopped and kissed his
forehead. “Then let me distract you.” He transformed as soon as
he’d pulled away from Hiro, and after shaking himself, he knelt
before Hiro.

Masaki had changed to his larger form,
and Hiro could do nothing but stare at first. Masaki gestured with
his head, and Hiro realized he was supposed to get on Masaki’s
back. He did so, and Masaki stood carefully. And then he took off,
bounding over the trees and roots at three times the speed they’d
been traveling.

Hiro actually laughed for a moment,
the feeling of riding on Masaki’s back exhilarating. But soon, he
noticed the landscape change. It wasn’t just the speed at which
they moved—the trees literally began to change. They all began to
whip about, transforming into vines. He could hear and feel the
ground heaving. Masaki tried to maneuver, and he did a good job at
first, but soon he had to slow down. The vines tried to wrap around
his legs, but he jerked away, snapping at them when they managed to
grab hold of him.

Hiro clutched Masaki’s fur and buried
his face at the nape of his neck. Masaki gave a yelp as two vines
whipped around him and Hiro both. He turned, snapping and biting at
the vines. He freed them on one side and then managed to jerk free
on the other side. They outran the vines for a while, but then one
latched on to Hiro’s leg. The vine yanked him away and whipped him
to the ground. The breath knocked out of his lungs, Hiro lay
stunned as stars danced before his eyes and his head swam. Then
darkness closed in as the vines covered him. No sound reached him
as he struggled to move, to breathe. Just as the blood began to
roar in his ears, Hiro heard the sound of something slicing through
the air. The whizzing continued, and he felt the vines around him
giving way. Air came through, and he took it in with great, gulping
breaths. When he focused on the figure reaching for him, he sucked
in his breath again.

Masaki wore a strange kind of armor,
crimson dragon scales covering every inch of his body. He had a
katana in his hand and another strapped to his back. His hair flew
wildly around him as he drew Hiro up. “Can you walk? Are you
hurt?”

Hiro tried to assess himself, but
Masaki didn’t wait. He sheathed his weapon and swept Hiro into his
arms, dashing forward again, almost as quickly as he had in his fox
form. Hiro closed his eyes and clutched at Masaki, listening to his
heart pound in an effort to drown out the sounds around him. They’d
been stopped for several moments before realized what it meant.
They had come to the edge of the dark forest and now rested by the
bank of a river. Masaki eased them both to the ground, holding Hiro
tight.

Shaking a bit, Hiro let Masaki put him
on the ground. At his urging, Hiro lay back. He felt Masaki’s
fingers caressing his face, and he reached for the brave man who’d
just saved his life.

“
My hero,” he said, as he
pulled Masaki down for a kiss.

* * * *

Masaki responded to Hiro’s surprising
passion, straddling him and kissing him more deeply. He then
covered Hiro’s face and neck with kisses as well. His heart had
nearly stopped when he’d seen the vines take Hiro under. He had to
be more careful from now on. Masaki backed off and looked down at
Hiro. “That my line, isn’t it? You’re my Hiro, aren’t
you?”

Hiro smiled. “You were awesome.” He
turned his head to take in their surroundings. “How can you tell
which way to go? I can’t make out shit with the trees and gray
sky.”

“
Inari’s shrine pulls me.
It’s why Kilana chose it. She can trick us all she wants, but in
such a deal, we must at least be given a fair chance.”

“
And if she
cheats?”

“
Izanami wouldn’t allow
it.”

“
Why not?”

“
This is her realm. She
retreated her upon her death.”

“
I know, but why would she
care?”

Masaki smiled as he moved off Hiro.
“Then you also know her husband Izanagi came to take her back. She
asked him not to look upon her, but he did anyway and saw that she
was rotting. It’s why he fled and placed a boulder in front of the
entrance to Yomi.” He stood and helped Hiro to his feet. “She
doesn’t like it when others break their word or go back on their
honor.”

“
Is there really a
physical entrance to Yomi? With an actual boulder?”

“
Yes, in a coastal
province. I can’t say more than that. No one can enter that way
anymore. One must die or be brought here by supernatural
means.”

Hiro took a few steps, examining his
hands and arms. “Are we … going to start rotting?”

“
Do you feel strange?
Kilana’s power should shield you, but since I don’t know how she
comes and goes from Yomi, anything’s possible.”

“
Just tired. Sore. It
worried me.” He met Masaki’s gaze. “I keep forgetting where we are,
how unreal it is.”

“
You’re not dead. You
don’t need to be scared of that.” Masaki looked to the river. “We
have to cross, but I fear the water will be filled with
surprises.”

Hiro went a little pale as he looked
at the water. “Kappa?”

“
Maybe.” Masaki took his
hand. “Scary bedtime stories?”

Hiro nodded, swallowing. “Kids’ book.
Not at all appropriate for kids.”

“
It could be anything, so
we can’t get in the water.” Masaki pulled Hiro down the bank and
pointed to some rocks. “These lead across, and the river’s flow
seems gentle. If they’re really rocks, we can get across. But even
then the water might rush over us.”

“
If they’re really rocks?”
Hiro asked.

Masaki picked up a stone and threw it.
He did this three more times, testing rocks at different points in
the water. “Yes. Could’ve been some kind of monster
hiding.”

“
Great.”

Masaki lifted Hiro’s chin and kissed
his cheek. “We’re going to start. Do exactly as I say if anything
happens.” He held up their joined hands. “If you fall in, I’ll find
you.”

“
I can’t swim,” Hiro said
quickly.

“
I’ll find you,” Masaki
repeated, trying to make Hiro feel his resolve.

After a moment, Hiro nodded. “Let’s go
then.”

Masaki tested the first rock
carefully. Once they began, they needed to rush across. He pulled
Hiro after him once he was three rocks out. “Come,
hurry.”

They moved across at a rapid pace,
Masaki keeping his eyes to the water. Something moved there, but he
didn’t wait to find out what. He breathed a sigh of relief as they
reached the other side without incident, believing they’d been
given at least a small respite from trickery. But when he tried to
walk forward, Hiro wouldn’t move.

Masaki turned, and Hiro stood
completely still with his eyes closed. As he looked closer, Masaki
noticed a tentacle wrapped all the way around Hiro’s leg. The tip
rubbed Hiro’s thigh, where Masaki could see an erection. He didn’t
know what kind of creature lurked under the surface, but he knew
what it was doing. He unsheathed his katana and severed the
tentacle. It jerked and shook and then fell off Hiro.

Hiro blinked as the water bubbled, and
Masaki sheathed his weapon and threw his stunned lover over his
shoulder. Masaki ran until he could no longer hear the roar that
had begun building just as something broke the water’s surface. The
trees on this side were sparse, so he covered a great distance in a
short time. Once he felt safe, he put Hiro down and made him sit on
a rock. They were in a meadow, though the sky remained bleak, the
grass dead and the sparse trees rotting where they
stood.

“
What was that?” Hiro
asked.

“
Tentacle porn, almost.
Are you okay?” Masaki asked.

“
What?” Hiro asked,
wide-eyed at Masaki’s flippant answer.

“
A tentacle had a hold of
you, was rubbing you. Your eyes had closed. What do you
remember?”

Hiro blinked. “Crossing the water.
Then something touched me. Things got … fuzzy.”

“
An enchantment maybe.
Meant to trap you or distract us. Either way, I got you away from
the creature.” Masaki glanced down briefly, but Hiro’s erection had
faded. “You’re safe now.”

“
Tentacles?” Hiro bit his
lower lip. “It had tentacles?”

“
One wrapped around your
leg, that’s all.”

Hiro swallowed, his face flaming red.
“I’ll never do an Internet search ever again.”

Masaki took Hiro’s face in his hands.
“It didn’t hurt you. You’re safe. That’s all that matters.” He
looked off into the distance and dropped his hands. “And we’re
close. I feel it.”

“
Then let’s go, before
something else grabs me.” Hiro stood and took a deep breath,
walking forward.

Masaki followed and scanned the
landscape, knowing Kilana would probably be subtler with her next
trap, playing on their fears or desires. He also listened carefully
as they walked. Kilana could send any number of creatures after
them. The mountain soon came within their sight, which only made
him tense for the upcoming battle.

Chapter Seven

Hiro still felt little surges of lust
as they approached the mountain. He didn’t remember a tentacle
grabbing him at all, but he remembered his mind and body filling
with the desire to fuck. Perhaps he should’ve told Masaki, but he’d
felt too embarrassed. Now, they had other concerns, which he needed
to force his lust-addled brain to focus on.

The mountain loomed before them. There
was, at least, a trail leading up it, but Hiro wondered about all
the traps they’d encounter following it. Would it be better to take
another path, actually climb the mountain? Masaki came over and
kissed his temple.