“You haven’t even been trying to come up with an activation phrase, have you?” Lindsay asked.
“Of course I have,” Lilian grinned, “and I’ve thought of the perfect phrase.”
Lindsay just knew she was going to regret this. “What is the activation phrase?”
“Hawa Power!”
“Figures,” Lindsay mumbled, and the sound of her palm smacking her face echoed across the grassy field.
***
Kevin woke up with a startled gasp. It took him a moment to realize where he was, in a bedroom, with a naked Lilian and Iris pressing their bodies against him. He then realized that he was also naked, and he needed another second to remember how that had happened.
Ah, right. We got drunk after returning from the baseball game.
He didn’t remember exactly who had convinced him and Lilian to start drinking. Actually, he was almost positive that both he and his mate had been forced to drink by Kuroneko’s maids. Kevin couldn’t recall much of what happened, but he specifically remembered being tied down to a table. After getting completely wasted and partying it up with Kuroneko and her girls, he, Lilian, and Iris had gone up to their room and had sex.
Why did I wake up?
Lulled by the gentle breathing of his mate and her sister, along with the warmth from their bodies, Kevin was just about to fall back asleep—when his stomach rumbled.
Ah. That’s why I woke up.
Groaning, Kevin extricated himself from Lilian and Iris. The two girls frowned before slowly moving closer to the spot he’d vacated until they were cuddling with each other. He paused for a moment, admiring how their bodies entwined underneath the covers, thighs rubbing and breasts pushing together.
Wiping the blood from his nose, Kevin put on his boxers and wandered downstairs into the kitchen. After raiding the fridge, grabbing several vegetables and some ranch dressing, he walked back into the main hall.
He was about to head back upstairs when a voice called out to him.
“Are you having trouble sleeping, child?” Kuroneko asked.
Kevin turned to face the woman. She was lounging in a booth, her legs stretched out as her split tail waved in the air like it had a mind of its own. There was a saucer in her hands, which she took intermittent sips of.
“Kuroneko,” Kevin mumbled, “what are you doing up so late?”
She gave him a vague, mysterious smile. “I could ask the same of you.”
Kevin shrugged. “I was hungry, and you’re dodging my question.”
Kuroneko’s smile reminded him very much of a lazy cat, yet Kevin felt like there was a hint of mystery within her smile, a hidden depth that he could neither see nor describe, but he knew was there all the same.
Her bosom heaving as she shifted in her seat and gestured for him to sit across from her, Kuroneko said, “Humans are a most interesting species. I have always been fascinated by them. They have the capacity to be some of the kindest people I have ever known, but there are just as many who allow hatred and fear to rule them. This war is a perfect example of how their fear can turn into hatred, and how that hatred can be used by those not ruled by fear.”
Kevin said nothing. He walked over to Kuroneko’s booth and slid into a seat opposite of her. Yellow eyes watched him with a cat’s curiosity, studying him like a puzzle that needed to be solved.
“You are a very interesting human,” Kuroneko said, startling him.
“Excuse me?”
“I’ve lived for a long time and I have met many humans. Almost every human I’ve met who discovered the existence of yōkai have reacted in one of three ways: They disassociate themselves from yōkai and feign ignorance, they begin to fear and hate yōkai, or they die soon after learning because they got into more trouble than they could handle.”
“I’m not sure I understand what you’re getting at,” Kevin confessed. He hoped she wasn’t saying he was going to die soon.
“You are a human who learned about yōkai, accepted yōkai into your life, and have already run into plenty of trouble. However, where other humans who’ve done the same have died by biting off more than they can chew, you’ve survived—no.” Eying him with that cat’s curiosity gleam in her eyes, she shook her head. “You have done more than just survive. You’ve thrived in our world. I can see it in the way you walk, the battles you’ve been through, the monsters you’ve faced, and the hardships you’ve suffered. Any other human who faced what you have would have died by now.”
“I guess I’m just lucky.” Kevin shrugged.
“Luck does not keep someone alive, especially not someone who’s faced down Shinkuro Shénshèng himself,” Kuroneko’s voice was firm. “There is something odd about you, Kevin Swift. I have never met a human who can survive everything that you have. You intrigue me.”
“I’m not sure if that’s a good thing or not,” Kevin mused. Kuroneko snorted, amused by his audacity. He gave her a curious stare. “And what about you?”
“Me?” Kuroneko started in surprise. “What about me?”
“Yeah, you apparently know a lot about me, but I only know a little about you.”
“You wish to know about me, do you?” Kuroneko shifted in her seat. “I suppose I can indulge you a bit. What would you like to know?”
Kevin thought about that for a moment, wondering which question he should ask first. He had many, but their time was undoubtedly limited. After several seconds of this, he smiled.
“Could you tell me how you met Daven and became one of the Four Saints?”
“Now that question takes me back,” Kuroneko said, her smile becoming nostalgic. “It must have been 400 years ago when I first met Daven and the other two. I had just left Japan a few years previously because I wanted to explore the world. Well, that and Hagaromo Gitsune had just risen to power in Japan, turning a once peaceful nation into a cold and uncaring place devoid of happiness.”
Hagaromo Gitsune was the Void Kyūbi, the third and most mysterious of the three Kyūbis. Kevin knew very little about her because Kotohime knew very little about her. What he did know was that Kotohime had left Japan partly due to Hagaromo Gitsune, though she had never told him the full story.
Kuroneko kept talking while he pondered his maid’s unknown past. “In either event, I had taken to traveling the world. It was during my time in the middle east that I first ran into Daven and the other two, Orin and Sarah. I had gotten myself into a spot of trouble with an Oni Overlord, when they came along and helped me out.”
Oni Overlords were the most powerful classification of oni. They weren’t really overlords in the literal sense, as they did not command armies or people, but they were all extremely powerful. Kevin had been told that an overlord class oni was capable of taking on a kitsune with eight tails, which was the height of power a kitsune could reach without the blessing of their patron god, Inari.
“Beloved?”
Before the story could continue, Lilian wandered down the stairs and into the room. She wasn’t wearing much. White lace panties covered her bottom, and a thin robe had been thrown over her shoulders. She hadn’t bothered tying it closed, so he was given a glimpse of her bare breasts as she ambled over to them.
I wonder if I’ll ever get tired of seeing her like this, Kevin wondered. Probably not.
“Lilian, what are you doing up?” he asked.
“Couldn’t sleep,” she murmured, sliding into the booth and snuggling against him. She buried her face in his neck. Her warm breath hitting his bare skin caused Kevin to nearly lose control of his libido. It took every ounce of willpower he had not to react to her.
“Ah, sorry about that,” Kevin apologized, wrapping an arm around the redhead and pulling her closer. “I meant to come right back after having a snack, but I got distracted.”
“S’okay,” Lilian mumbled as she closed her eyes, scooting even closer until she was practically curled up on his lap. “What were you two talking about?”
“I was merely telling him about how I me
t the other three members of the Four Saints,” Kuroneko said.
“Sounds interesting.” Lilian’s speech was interrupted by a yawn. “I wonder if I could use a story like that in my manga.”
“Perhaps. Shall I continue my story?” Kuroneko asked.
Lilian became a little more alert at those words. Her tails curled around Kevin’s thighs as she took her head from his neck and placed it on his shoulder instead.
“Please do,” she said.
“Very well. After Daven, Orin, and Sarah helped me defeat the Oni Overlord, I decided to travel with them,” Kuroneko continued. “I soon discovered that they were almost like a vigilante group. We went around the world assisting yōkai who were in trouble, keeping the peace between races, and generally trying to be helpful. It was during this time that we earned our title as the Four Saints. Helping our fellow yōkai was rewarding in its own way. However, as you should know by now, we yōkai don’t really get along with each other.”
Lilian had taken out a pencil and sketchpad. She jotted down notes and made several sketches, which Kevin assumed was a younger Kuroneko.
“The problem wasn’t because the yōkai races couldn’t get along, but because those in charge refused to let us get along. The Great Inu Taisho was constantly quarrelling with the three Kyūbi. The Tengu King, Sōjōbō, was always fighting against Shuten-Dōji, the most powerful oni in the entire world, and the only one who isn’t completely warlike. Naturally, we also became the subject of unwanted attention from these great forces, who disliked how our group was upsetting the status quo.”
Kuroneko leaned back and sighed.
“After nearly fifty years of failing to create our ideal world, we realized that trying to change the current one wouldn’t work, and so we decided to find a place where we could create our own world. It was during the early 1700s when we traveled to North America and established ourselves here. Several other yōkai factions had also tried to do the same, but we refused to allow that. While the humans had their revolution, we Four Saints gathered our own allies and fought against the various yōkai clans that wanted to intrude into our country, and we were eventually able to establish the United States as a nation that was free from the influence of any yōkai clan.”
Kevin would admit that this story impressed him a great deal. It was something that came straight out of the annals of a modern fantasy anime—not those isekai stories either, but an actual modern story with fantasy elements. He really wished he could have seen what happened during that time.
Kuroneko finished off her sake and stood up while he was lost in thought. “Well, I believe I have reminisced enough, and I believe it is time you two returned to bed. We have a very big day tomorrow.”
Kevin and Lilian gave the nekomata a confused look.
“What are we doing tomorrow?” he asked.
“Why, we’re going to the beach, of course." Kuroneko’s eyes shone with mischief as she grinned at them. “After all, no trip to California is ever complete without going to the beach.”
CHAPTER 8
MAGICAL GIRL TRAINING
The sound of an alarm beeping rang loudly in his ears, forcing his mind into an unwilling state of alertness. Eric groaned as he fumbled for it. Beside him, a figure shifted on the bed.
“Turn that off, please. It’s really loud.”
“Just a sec…” Eric mumbled as he continued blindly groping for it. He eventually found the alarm and shut it off, sighing in relief when his bedroom was plunged into merciful silence.
Several seconds passed. Eric felt his body slowly succumbing to the warmth of his bed. He snuggled into his blankets and against the large pillow on his left, slowly drifting off.
“Eric, would you shut the curtains please?”
“Huh? Oh, sure.”
Eric was just about to stand up and make for the curtains—when his brain suddenly froze.
Oh, no. No, no, no, no. It can’t be. There’s no way. I could’ve sworn I’d gone to bed alone!
Not wanting to face the reality of his situation, but unsure of what to do, Eric turned his head to the left.
“Good morning,” Julius greeted him with a sleepy smile. The young bishounen was lying on his side. He wore a large baggy shirt, the sleeves of which slid down his shoulder to reveal milky white skin. Hair like raven’s feathers contrasted nicely with his skin.
In any other circumstances, Eric would have found the sight before him to be incredibly arousing. However, Julius was not a woman, just a very pretty boy. In this situation, Eric did the only thing he could think of.
He screamed.
***
They had decided to skip trying to create an activation sequence, and were instead getting right into learning how to fight with magic.
“Hiya!”
Lindsay swung her rod at Future Lilian with reckless abandon. A diagonal swing from the left. A horizontal swipe from the right. She even tried to stab the redhead with the heptagram jewel at the end.
None of her attacks hit. Future Lilian dodged all of her attacks in a most… unorthodox manner.
“Ha! Hawa! That was close! Muni! Mu! Sho! Munya! Munwawa!”
She wore the strangest outfit that Lindsay had ever seen. A dark blue coat fit snugly against her torso, trailing down to her ankles before flaring out around her almost like a cloak. Her feet were covered in metal boots, yet they didn’t seem to hinder her. Long black stockings traveled up her shapely calves and stopped at mid-thigh, contrasting beautifully against her fair skin. While one hand was covered by a black glove, the other had been fitted with a metal bracer. Thrown over the entire ensemble was a white cape tied together with golden tassels.
Right then, Lilian seemed more interested in making her cape flutter in cool ways than she did dodging.
“Hold still, you!” Lindsay was getting frustrated. “Come on! Why won’t you take this seriously?”
“Seriously, you say?”
Lilian’s eyes flashed before, as if a switch had been flipped inside of her, the woman’s entire demeanor shifted from playful to deadly.
Lindsay barely had time to contemplate this change. Mere seconds after it happened, Lilian dodged her next attack, sidestepping her thrust. Unprepared for such a maneuver, Lindsay stumbled forward. Over extended and off balance, she could do nothing as Lilian grabbed her forearm and yanked her forward.
She gasped in asphyxiated agony as a knee was driven into her stomach. When the knee left, Lindsay crumbled to the grass, her body curling around her stomach as if it would help. She tried to suck in a breath, but breathing was impossible just then, like trying to breath oxygen when you’re floating in the non-atmosphere of space.
Lilian looked down at her with a baleful stare. No longer joking around, no longer goofing off, the redhead with nine fiery tales had never looked more serious.
“Do not tell me to get serious, girl,” Lilian warned. “Not when you yourself aren’t even taking this seriously. I mean, come on! What the heck were you doing? Physical attacks with a magic wand? The whole point of this training is for you to learn how to use magic!”
“U-ugh…” Lindsay groaned. “I… I would try to use magic, but you… haven’t exactly told me how I’m supposed to do that yet.”
Lilian sighed. “I’ve already explained the theory to you, Lindsay. You create spells by voice activation. In other words, calling out the name of your spell will activate your magical implementation device, which will then scan your brainwaves and create a technique based on a combination of your words and your imagination. We call this electroencephalography.”
“You say that like I’m supposed to understand what that means,” Lindsay grumbled. She sat up, rubbing her bruised stomach. She wouldn’t have guessed from looking at the woman, but Lilian’s kicks hurt. “Look, Lilian, I want to help Kevin and the Lilian of this timeline, and I’m even willing to do this ‘magical girl’ gig to do it. However, I can’t do that if more than half of your explanations make no sense.”
> “My explanations aren’t that complicated,” Lilian grumbled with a pout. “You’re not an idiot, Lindsay. I shouldn’t have to lecture you as if I’m speaking to the lowest common denominator. The basics of magic are simple. Your basic attack and defense spells should come simply by imagining them. After that, you simply create a name for your attacks, and your magical implementation device does the rest. I told you this already.”
“But I still don’t understand it!” Lindsay cried out. Frustration welled up within her bosoms, and she felt tears sting her eyes. “Maybe I’m not cut out for this sort of thing. I’m not like Kevin, who can do whatever he wants once he puts his mind to it. I don’t have that kind of strength. I’m just a normal girl. I’m too… too weak to be of help to anybody…”
“Don’t you dare say something like that, Lindsay!”
Lindsay stiffened when a pair of dainty hands grabbed her by the shirt and hauled her off the ground. Lilian’s emerald irises were like burnished gems, fervent and all-encompassing. She tried to look away, but Lilian grabbed her by the chin and leaned in close, until their noses were touching.
“I don’t want to hear you ever say that you’re weak again,” Lilian’s stern voice resounded within Lindsay’s skull. “You are not weak. Do you think I came all the way to this time so I could deliver what could very well be my mate’s salvation to a weak little girl? Of course not! You might not have Kevin’s strength of will and competitive spirit, but you have something that makes you perfect magical girl material.”
“What is that?” Lindsay asked, her voice nothing more than a whisper. From this close, Lilian’s face seemed almost otherworldly. Lindsay had never wanted to kiss someone more than she did Lilian right now.
Lilian’s smile was kind. She didn’t seem to realize what their close proximity was doing to her.
“Your kindness and strong desire to help others. Being a magical girl is about more than just doing magic. It takes an innate kindness that very few people have.”
Unable to continue staring at Lilian, Lindsay turned her eyes away from the woman. “I’m not that kind.”
A Fox's Alliance (American Kitsune Book 10) Page 20