"I love you too, Kaede," David grinned and stroked my cheek.
"I have not tired of you at all. When you forgot my birthday, I was a little put off, but you know I can't stay mad at you, Kaede-sama."
I sniffled and forked a tiny bit of food into my mouth. When I looked up from my plate, Rome was actually staring at me. "What?"
"Do you want to know how I feel about you?"
"I can guess."
"You'd probably be wrong."
"I'll be happy if you don't hate me."
He let out a small huff of laughter. "No, Little Fox. I don't hate you. You're frustrating, vulgar, sometimes a nuisance. You constantly needle those around you, sometimes I question your sanity, sometimes I question mine."
"Gee, don't hold back. Tell me how you really feel."
"There isn't a damn thing about you that I would change, either. You're perfect the way you are. You're you."
The fork kind of fell out of my hand, and I jumped when it hit the side of the plate.
"You smell funny." Don't judge me, it was all I could come up with. "And you're a grump. And I don't like it when you lie."
He nodded.
"You really hurt me by pretending to be what you weren't."
"And you hurt me every time you thought I was my brother and kissed me."
"You liked it."
"Yeah. Just a little."
"I did have fun that night… Well, up until you got busted and all hell broke loose."
"I did, too. Wanna try it again?"
"Absolutely not. But I'd love to go out with Remy. Be a shame if his evil twin stood in for him." I gave him a wink.
He smirked and nodded. "I'll see if I can find some chloroform or something."
"Have him pick me up for dinner. It's Monday, so we should probably have dinner here. Remy and me, I meant."
"Of course."
The rest of the table watched our exchange with amused glances between Rome and me. Like they were watching a ping pong match.
The smile drained from my face. There was a peculiar feeling raising the hair on the back of my neck. The four of them stood and reached out, screams forming on their lips as everything around me slowed. The feeling intensified and pain seared my cheeks as my tattoos flared to life. Dodging to the right I ended up in Roki's arms just as the heavy axe smashed the chair I'd been sitting in. A frustrated scream tore from Sabine's little pocket dimension as she started to pull the axe back through.
Four hands erupted from around the tear in space, seizing Sabine and dragging her out kicking and screaming. It took a moment for Fress and Kottr to register to my senses. With a pop, the rift closed and the three of them stood there, Sabine panting heavily from swinging the hefty weapon and from thrashing against her captors.
"Fuck you! Let me go!"
"Sabine!" Rome roared and stood, walking around the table and ripping the axe from her grip.
I just stood there in shock as she looked at her brother with utter disgust and betrayal.
"Remy, go get the headmaster."
"I'd be delighted to," he said and took off running.
Finally, Sabine tore her gaze from her brother and snarled at me. All the pain and anguish she had ever caused me came crashing back, and I narrowed my eyes at her, stood, and punched her in the face as hard as I could.
I was about to go for seconds when Roki wrapped his arms around me from behind and whispered calmingly in my ear. "She is not worth it and can't harm you again."
Kottr and Fress nodded in agreement.
Sabine spit blood on the floor at my feet and looked up slowly, seeming happy. A little too happy. "Checkmate," she said with a giggle.
There was a ripping sound as another rift opened up behind me. The swish of a blade cutting through the air ended abruptly as it struck something solid. Sabine's face went from elated to horrified, and I spun just in time to see David, arms outstretched to protect me, fall to his knees. A wet gurgling sound bubbled from his front as the axe and arms disappeared into the rift.
David had jumped in front of me, shielding me with his own body just as Sabine's accomplice struck.
"David?" His name quivered off my lips.
He didn't answer, just fell face forward to the floor, knocking my chair on its side as he collapsed.
Sabine and I both screamed and watched in horror as blood began to pool around him. I dropped to the ground beside him, my heart in my throat.
"He's okay," I said, gripping his shoulder and rolling him over.
A vision of the first time he introduced himself to me flashed through my memory. His smile. His kindness, the sun shining on his brown hair. Flash forwarding to the time in the common room we had been naughty. Every moment of every time we spent alone. The first time we made love. Everything started crashing through my mind as his face came into view. I sobbed at his smile. It didn't go with his lifeless eyes as they stared up at the ceiling.
"David?" He didn't respond, just continued to stare up above me, the color draining from his face. "David. David. David!" I slapped his cheek. This was no time to be playing around. He was okay. He had to be. "David, stop fucking around!" I screamed, a wordless hollow echo from my heart.
Nobody moved around me. Nobody was helping me wake him up. "Someone. Anyone. Do something!" I looked over my shoulder, and they were all standing there, staring at my David.
That's when I saw the wound in his chest. The heavy headed axe had torn through flesh and bone. I could see his organs glistening wetly through the gaping wound, and blood was pouring from everywhere. The twins growled softly behind me in anguish.
"David, you're going to be fine! Stay with me!" I grabbed the wound and closed it, blood staining my white skin. "Somebody get a doctor. David? Can you breathe?"
"Kaede," Rome's voice said softly. He knelt on the ground beside me and put a hand on my shoulder.
"He'll be fine. Right? Werewolves can only die from silver bullets. I saw that in a movie."
"It was a movie, Kaede. In his wolf form, he might have withstood a blow like that, but…"
"Then make him shift. You're his alpha. Command him."
"Kaede-sama." Roki squatted down next to us, keeping his knees out of the ever-expanding pool of blood. "He is gone." I knew he was serious when I saw the tears streaming down his face.
He tried to pull me into a hug. Pushing him away, I snarled. "No! He can't be. He's not. Rome, make him better."
When the tears slid down his cheeks, I groaned in pain. Rome tilted his head and swallowed, trying to say something several times before he finally managed a weak, "I'm sorry, Kaede."
The scream that tore from my throat made everyone around me cover their ears. It didn't stop, and I wouldn't let it until the fucking gods, wherever they were, heard my anguish. The last little bubble of sanity inside me snapped like the inside of a glowstick.
From my knees, I jumped and landed on my feet. Spinning, I struck before anybody could stop me, shoving thick, daggerlike claws into Sabine's soft, exposed throat. Hot blood splattered my face, and I growled at her, fist tightening around the thick, sinewy insides of her throat. She gurgled and sputtered once before my fist blocked any chance of air escaping.
I pulled her face close to mine and locked my eyes with hers. My throat screamed in pain as I shouted a stream of obscenities at her, telling her I would see her in the darkest pits of Hell as I watched the light leave her eyes.
Until she was as dead as my David.
Yanking my hand from her throat, I turned around and walked away.
Chapter 16
How long I walked, I don't know. Probably not nearly as long as I lay in the snowbank, staring up at the clouds. My back was frozen when Roki found me. His face blocked my view of the fluffy cumulus clouds, and he was shouting my name, but I couldn't hear him. The whole world had been enshrouded in silence.
I closed my eyes when my face pressed against Roki's chest, and I fell asleep with the rhythmic pumping feeling from him running
as he carried me back. There was a brief flash of the bathroom as he stripped me and got me into the shower. The next time I opened my eyes, I was lying in bed. The reality of what happened came crashing back, and I screamed before rolling back over and crying myself to sleep again.
Wake up, Little Wolf.
I'm a fox. I think.
Foxes don't have claws that can rend the flesh of their enemies. You should have used your teeth and tore the flesh from her neck and drank her blood.
Ewww. I focused on the blackness of my closed eyes. Fenrir?
Yes, Little Wolf?
David's dead.
Fenrir's touch, even just mental, had always been cool. This time he enrobed me in a warm blanket and whispered, I know. I am sorry, Little Wolf.
Why did he have to die?
To save you. He gave his life to keep you safe. He died happy knowing you would live. They probably sing songs of his deeds in the feasting halls of Valhalla as we speak.
You didn't make him jump in front of that blade, did you? To save me?
No. You did. He loved you with everything he was. When he saw your end, he did the only thing he could to save you.
I don't want to live, Fenrir. The anguish was back. Just when I thought I was getting better, with so much to live for. It had all been swept away with a single blow of an axe. I was tired. Sooo tired, and I just didn't want to go on anymore. I'm tired of being a puppet.
Cut your strings.
You said Gleipnir was unbreakable.
Cut your strings, not that which gives you power. You will need that.
For what?
To exact your revenge.
Sabine is dead, Fenrir. Revenge exacted.
Sabine was just another puppet. Would you seek vengeance against her or the puppeteer?
Hel's face invaded the blackness, chuckling merrily. Smashing it with a mental fist, I snarled. Freya's worried looking visage frowned at me. Another swipe of imaginary claws, and she was gone. I doubted they were truly looking in on me. I was completely insane now and probably just imagining them.
You are far from insane.
I wasn't that far before David was killed. Think it pushed me over the edge.
The insane do not ponder their condition. That alone should tell you something.
Potato, tomahto.
He chuckled. The gods are too old for this world, Little Wolf. Would you help me free you?
If I released him, they would pay. That much was for certain. He would devour them all. Free me by freeing you?
Free you by freeing everybody. If it were not for the gods' meddling, your David would still be with you.
Don't. Don't use him as bait to lure me into your trap. If I free you, it will be by my own will.
And your desire for vengeance.
That, too.
Little Wolf?
What?
I am sorry for your loss. Truly.
The warmth he had wrapped me in tightened a little. It felt almost like a hug. Thank you. Fenrir?
Yes?
What am I going to do? I don't know if I'm strong enough to go on, let alone face everything.
Those who are strongest do not see themselves that way. When you need it, your strength will be there. Now wake up, Little Wolf. Live.
Don't wanna.
But I was all bark and no bite. As soon as I said it, my eyes opened. Heat, not unlike Fenrir's, surrounded me. Blinking a couple of times, Remy's features, serene in sleep, came into focus. Lifting my head, I saw Rome behind me. At least I thought it was Rome, but without attitudes coloring their features, I wasn't certain.
My movement woke Remy. Romy. The one I was facing. "Hey." He rubbed his face and sat up, giving me a sad smile. "You alive?"
"Bad choice of words."
He frowned and nodded. "Sorry."
"He's really gone? It wasn't a horrid nightmare?" The tears started again. How I had any left, I don't know.
He sniffed and nodded sadly. "He's gone, Little Fox."
Rome. The tears intensified, and I peppered them with a few sobs. Rome lay back down and pulled me close, hugging me to his chest. "Shhh. He's probably hunting with his pack right now, missing the fuck out of you."
In shock, I pulled back. "Rome. I'm…" I didn't even know how to apologize to him for killing his sister. She was a twat, but she was still his sister, and I'd ripped her throat out. How the hell the two of them didn't hate me was beyond me.
"If you are going to apologize for what happened to Sabine, don't."
"I'm still sorry."
"Don't be. If you hadn't, I would have. She might be related to me by blood, but she was not my sister. David was more family than she. She lost that much the very first time she attacked you. I was the one who threw her in her prison cell, remember?"
I nodded and relaxed a little. He pulled me back to his chest. Against my better judgment, I pressed my forehead against him, letting him comfort me.
"She awake?" Remy lifted his head and looked over my shoulder.
"She is," I answered. "Where's Roki?"
There was a moment of silence between the two of them, and it worried me. I rolled back over so I could see both of their faces. "What?"
"He's talking to the headmaster."
Relief flooded me. I'd thought he'd been hurt. "Oh. What about?"
"Disenrolling you from the academy and taking you home…"
Judging from their faces, neither of them were too happy with his decision. I didn't know how to feel. Mostly, I was just shocked that he would do something like that without at least talking to me about it.
Then again, maybe he thinks I'm not capable of talking.
"Do you need anything?" Remy sat up.
"To pee. Do you still have those walkie-talkie stones?"
"Yes?" Rome looked at me curiously.
"Tell Roki to hold off. I need to think. Or try to anyway. No promises." I scooted to the end of the bed, almost having an accident. Lying flat, I hadn't noticed how full my bladder had been. I popped from the bed to the door, stepped outside, and popped to the end of the hall, bursting through the bathroom door. It would have sucked having to run that far.
As soon as my butt hit the too cold seat, "Kaede Tanaka, please report to the headmaster's office," boomed through the school.
"Not before I pee." I looked down at the light boxers and thin T-shirt I was wearing. "And get dressed."
Finishing up, I stopped at the sink long enough to splash my face with cold water and wash up a little. Thankfully, Roki had given me a shower to warm me up after my snow nap.
As soon as I looked at myself in the mirror, I started crying again. The pain of losing David reared its head for no reason whatsoever. I had a feeling it was going to be like that for a long, long time.
Sullen, I left the bathroom and took the time to walk back to my room. I needed a minute before facing anyone, especially the twins.
I'd left without my key, so I knocked on my own door.
"Thanks, Romy." I couldn't tell which one answered the door. They were just going to have to live with the moniker on the occasions I couldn’t tell them apart.
"Rome."
"You guys need nametags."
"What fun would that be?"
He stopped chuckling when I glared at him. "I'm assuming you contacted Roki, and that's why I was summoned." I walked over to my dresser and pulled out a skirt, shirt, and undergarments and tossed them on my bed.
"Yes. He was surprised you were awake and informed the headmaster."
"Time to see what he wants."
"What do you want, Kaede?" Remy was still sitting on my bed. I could see him in the mirror on the dresser and could tell he wasn't excited about my answer.
"Honestly, I don't know. You two are literally the only two reasons I have to stay." Unless you count my revenge. I frowned at myself. If I were being honest, punishing the gods was more Fenrir's style. But there was still the matter of Steph. She was the one who had ended David's life
. She was the one who did everything that Sabine said. If anybody deserved my revenge, it was her. But is she worth sticking around for? I could go home, go back to my own life. Get drunk and dance with Hiroki. Try and forget David. A sob escaped my lips, and I had to put my hands on my dresser to steady myself. Rome was there in an instant, holding me. I twisted in his grip and buried my face in his chest. "Don't suppose I could talk you guys into going to California?"
"I wish we could. Our contracts with the school are bound in blood, just as yours was. It would take a vote from the entire board of directors to nullify. You might get your wish after everything that has happened, but I'm afraid Remy and I are stuck here for quite some time."
Rome's heart beat a little faster. I could feel it against my forehead. "Would you want to go?"
"With you?"
I nodded against him, not daring to look up.
"Well, I can't let Remy have all the fun."
He made me smile. For the first time in over a day. "Thank you."
"You're very special to me, Little Fox. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize that."
I lifted my head and stood up on my tiptoes, kissing him on his chin. "Thanks."
He nodded and let go.
I lifted my shirt over my head and dropped my boxers. Rome's eyes bulged out of his head, he blushed, and turned around.
"What? You've seen me naked."
"Just wasn't expecting it."
"You can relax. I'm just getting dressed." I sighed and slipped on my panties and put my bra on. "There."
He turned around and stared as I stepped into my skirt and pulled it up over my hips. "You weren't dressed."
"Meh. The important stuff was covered. Figured you wouldn't mind seeing my…" I trailed off. The hurt of never getting to expose my panties to David another blow.
"Fox?"
I shook my head. "Sorry."
He nodded. "We miss him, too. He was pack."
"He was more than pack, he was our brother," Remy said solemnly. With all my aches and woes over losing my lover, they had to be feeling his loss just as bad as I. If not more.
I gave him a brief smile of understanding and pulled on my shirt, buttoning it up and looking around for my shoes. I saw the toe of one of them sticking out from under my bed. "Will you guys come with me?"
A Tail of Two Kitties: A Reverse Harem Academy Tail (The Fox and the Hounds Book 2) Page 15