“Belladonna? Seriously?” Iris looked disgusted. “What an awful name.”
“Nya!” Cassy hissed like a cat being threatened with water. “Take that back, nya! My name isn’t awful!”
“It’s hideous,” Iris countered. “Though I suppose we should just be grateful your name’s not something really stupid like McFluffin. Still, Belladonna is a pretty dumb name.”
Cassy hissed some more, but Lilian spoke before the nekomata could retort to her sister’s insult. “Why are you after me?”
“Nya?” Her anger dissipating, Cassy tilted her head. “I thought I made that obvious already. It’s nothing personal, just business.”
“It is not just business,” Lilian said, glaring. “You’ve been attacking me like I’ve committed some great sin against you, and you mentioned Kevin last time. What does he have to do with this?”
“You wanna know why I’m attacking you, nya? Fine, then.” Cassy crossed her arms under her chest. “You’re right, this is personal. I was so excited when I received this mission because it was in Arizona.”
Lilian didn’t get it. “What’s in Arizona that would make you excited?”
“Master lives in Arizona, nya.”
“Master?”
Lilian and Iris shared a look.
“Master Kevin, nya.”
“Master…” a deadpan Iris started.
“Kevin?” Lilian finished, looking just as confused.
“Is it just me, or does the stud know way too many yōkai?”
“It’s not just you,” Lilian muttered. “I’d like to know how he knows so many yōkai myself. For someone who didn’t even realize we existed until I came along, he seems to know an awful lot of us.”
Cassy ignored the two as they spoke. She was off in her own little world.
“I didn’t really care about killing you, to be honest,” the nekomata continued. “I just wanted to see Master. Nya, Master Kevin.” Releasing a dreamy sigh, Cassy placed her hands on her cheeks. “I remember our first meeting like it was yesterday, nya. He was so kind, and he gave me a place to stay and lots of milk. It was heaven, nya.”
Her expression darkened.
“But then that stupid landlord found out about me, nya!” She hissed. “That stupid, fat, insensitive jerk! He forced Master to abandon me! Nya! Oh, how I just wanted to wring his fat nyeck!”
Lilian and Iris stared at the older yōkai with matching wary expressions.
“Ne, ne, Iris, I think this woman’s crazy.”
“You think? She’s obviously insane.”
Cassy didn’t seem to hear them. She was in her own little world. “So, when I had been told that I’d be going to Arizona to kill off some kitsune, I thought to myself, ‘this is my chance to see Master again, nya.’ I had it all planned out. I would appear before him as a cat, for the sake of nostalgia, nya. He would treat me just like he used to back then, and I’d get a bowl of milk and then, and then when we went to sleep, I’d change back so when he woke up, I’d be in my human form. It was the perfect plan, nya.”
Her eyes narrowed.
“And then I discovered that Master Kevin had a mate, nya. He had a kitsune mate, and her entire family was living with him. Not only that, but his mate was the very target I was hired to kill, nya.” Cassy pointed at the redhead, her expression a rictus of rage. “You ruined everything!”
“I fail to see how any of this is my fault,” Lilian said. “You only have yourself to blame for what happened.”
“What?” Cassy growled.
Iris nodded, agreeing with her sister. “You should have been more assertive. Really, you can’t blame my Lily-pad for being quicker to nab the stud than you.”
Cassy hissed. Her muscles bunched as she bent her knees. Lilian and Iris tensed, preparing for the battle to start up again. A trickle of sweat ran down their faces as the air became thick with Cassy’s killing intent. They tried to ignore the shaking in their legs that came from knowing they’d be fighting the real Cassy and not a hellfire clone.
“Lilian! Iris!”
“It’s Kevin!” Lilian said jubilantly.
“Does that mean he beat that kitsune?” Iris wore a half-smile. “Not bad. Not bad at all.”
“Nya, Master?!” Cassy hesitated for a second before glaring at Lilian. “This isn’t over, nya! Just you wait! I’ll come back to finish the job, nya. Then Master will be mine!” With one final “nya!” the woman ran off, leaping out of a nearby window and disappearing.
Lilian and Iris noticed her disappearance, but most of their attention was on Kevin—more specifically, on the bloodstains covering his shirt.
“Beloved!” Lilian rushed over to him and began checking for injuries. “Inari-blessed! Look at all that blood! A-are you alright? Does it hurt anywhere?”
“Ah-hahaha!” Kevin chuckled nervously. “I-I’m fine. Kirihime healed my injuries.”
“I see…” Lilian sighed in relief. “That’s good.”
She wouldn’t disrespect her mate by showing anything but the utmost confidence in him, but she had been really worried when she’d left him alone with the two-tailed fop. Speaking of…
“What happened to the fop?”
“Ah, um, h-he escaped,” Kevin said. Lilian blinked, then looked at her mate more closely. He seemed… depressed? No, disappointed was a better way of putting it.
“Did something happen during the battle?”
“No… nothing serious, anyway.”
Lilian’s frown grew. “You’re sure?”
“Yes.”
Kevin gave her a completely unconvincing smile. Lilian worried her lower lip. Something was definitely wrong with her mate, but she supposed now wasn’t an appropriate time to call him out. She’d do that in private—preferably while she was cuddling into his side after losing themselves to lust and passion.
“I think you two should continue this conversation later, Lord Kevin, Lady Lilian,” Kirihime said. “We should make haste in leaving this place.”
Kirihime handed Kevin off to Lilian, who was more than happy to take his weight. Iris also decided to help by getting on Kevin’s other side. Lilian was positive that her sister’s reasons weren’t as altruistic as her own.
“You sound like we need to hurry or something,” Iris said as she reached down and placed a hand on Kevin’s backside.
“Eep!” Kevin squeaked before tossing an annoyed look at the raven-haired beauty. “Did you just pinch my butt?”
“You’re imagining things,” Iris replied blithely, ignoring the looks that she received from Kevin and her sister.
“We are in a hurry,” Kirihime said gravely. “Someone is coming, and we do not want to be here when she arrives.”
***
Kevin’s group met up with Kotohime and Kiara before they all made their way outside of the convention building.
“You know, the damage doesn’t look as bad from the outside,” Kevin commented. Indeed, the convention building’s exterior was unblemished. No one would have realized that a battle was taking place inside simply from looking at it.
“All of the fighting is happening inside,” Kotohime said. “It makes sense that much of the exterior has remained pristine thus far. Now, then, let us move. I would like to reach the vehicle before the Mul Clan’s matriarch arrives.”
“Oh, no,” a voice said behind them. “That simply won’t do. You cannot leave just yet—not until I’ve had a chance to greet you after all these decades.”
Kotohime froze. Everyone else turned to see a woman behind them. She was pale, not porcelain like Christine, just pale, as if the sun had never touched her. The dark clothing that she wore, a black sleeveless shirt, skin-tight pants, and equally black boots, made a startling contrast with her skin. Her long hair seemed to change colors in the sunlight. It shifted from dark blue, to black, then back again. Six black tails swayed behind her.
She strode toward them with an indefinable elegance. The way she moved made the hairs on the back of their necks
stand on end. There was something dangerous about this woman; they could all feel it, even if they could not identify why they felt this way.
She stopped several meters from them, her lips curving delicately, her eyes lighting up. Despite her resplendent beauty and gorgeous smile, everyone remained tense.
Kotohime remained frozen solid. Her body seemed unnaturally stiff. Standing beside her, Kirihime’s breathing picked up as if she was having an asthma attack.
“Hello, Tsuki-chan,” the woman purred. “It’s a pleasure to see you again.”
Chapter 15
Remnants of a Painful Past
“Luna…” Kotohime whispered in a weak voice.
“It’s been a long time, hasn’t it, Tsuki-chan? Ah, you don’t go by that name anymore, do you?” Luna’s smile was so pleasant that it made the hairs on Kotohime’s neck prickle. “The last time you and I saw each other was about one hundred and fifty years ago, was it not? You were just a cute little three-tails back then. Look at how well you’ve grown. You’ve become quite the beautiful woman.”
Kotohime shuddered in disgust and—Kevin thought—maybe even a hint of fear.
“Are you not happy to see me?” Luna asked.
“It had been my hope that you and I would never cross paths again,” Kotohime admitted.
Luna’s smile took on a twisted quality. “Now that is not a very nice thing to say.”
A strange pressure suddenly filled the air. If Kevin had to describe it with words, he would have said that it felt like a several-fold increase in the Earth’s gravitational pull. His knees buckled. Were it not for Lilian and Iris holding him up, he would have fallen over. A glance at the two revealed that they were also feeling the effects of this strange force. Their bodies were shaking.
“W-what is this…?” he asked, his voice a hushed whisper, as if he was afraid that Luna would hear him.
“It’s killing intent,” Kiara answered. “You know what that is, don’t you? It is the manifestation of a person’s intent to kill or cause physical harm. Humans can use it to some extent, but it’s far more powerful when a yōkai does it, because ours is infused with youki.”
So this was killing intent—true killing intent and not the kiddy stuff that his peers used to toss at him when Lilian had first shown up. It made Kevin sick. His stomach threatened to empty its contents onto the pavement, and only his iron-clad will and desire not to look weaker than he already did kept him from giving in.
“Kirihime,” Kotohime’s voice broke through the fog of fear that had penetrated Kevin’s mind. “Please take Lilian-sama, Iris-sama, and Kevin-sama back into the convention center.”
Kevin observed Kirihime. For a moment, it looked like the three-tails was about to argue. However, after a second of indecision, she accented with a nod. “Very well. Be careful, sister.”
Kotohime’s smile was tremulous. Kevin had never seen such a look on the woman’s face. Something unsettling squirmed around in his gut.
“I will,” she assured her sister.
Somehow, Kevin knew that she was lying.
***
Kotohime watched as Kirihime led the trio of youngsters back inside of the convention center. She felt a brief bout of relief. Though there was likely still fighting going on inside, they would be safer in there than they would be out here.
Kiara stepped up beside her, wearing a grin that combined excitement and anxiety. “It seems I’ll be getting that ultimate challenge I always wanted.”
“I wish your ultimate challenge would come at a time when I’m not around,” Kotohime stated.
“Aw, you’re no fun, spoilsport.”
Luna’s eyes flickered from Kotohime to Kiara and, in a derisive tone, she said, “I am disappointed in you, Tsuki-chan. To think you’d have fallen so low as to befriend a dog.” Kiara bared her fangs in a snarl, but the gesture went ignored by the six-tails. “And not just any dog, but the very one who was responsible for the death of your dearly departed Corban.”
Kotohime felt a surge of hatred that made her blood boil. “Don’t you dare speak his name. You are the reason my mate died—you and no one else.”
Luna’s smile dripped with condescension. “Don’t be ridiculous, girl. We both know your mate would never have died were it not for this dog. After all, the reason he died was because it decided to follow you. It was only thanks to your mate sacrificing himself that this mutt is still alive.”
Kiara flinched, but Kotohime stood firm. “If you had not kidnapped my sister, I would have never gone to her rescue, Kiara-san would have never followed me, and my mate would have never been killed. Do not try to pin the blame for Corban’s death on someone else. We all know who is truly responsible.”
“To think that you would still blame me for his death.” Luna seemed genuinely regretful, but Kotohime knew better. “It seems trying to talk sense into you will not work.”
The air grew thick—not just in a metaphysical sense, but literally thick. Moisture gathered in the air. Streamers of water coalesced all around them, traveling toward Luna, until they were swirling around her tails.
“Though I do so despise combat, it seems fighting is the only way I’ll be able to get through to you.” Luna’s merciless smile made Kotohime’s insides quake. “Do be sure not to die on me… Tsuki-chan.”
***
Kevin, still being half-carried by Lilian and Iris, followed Kirihime as she led them further into the convention center.
All around them, the dead bodies of kitsune and humans lay. It looked like the battle had come mostly to a close, though they could still hear the sounds of combat further in.
“Kirihime, are you sure we should leave those two alone? Isn’t there anything we can do to help them?” Lilian asked as they continued to run.
Without breaking her stride, Kirihime turned her head and gave the redhead a sad smile. “I am afraid that in a battle of this caliber, all we would do is get in the way.”
As if to emphasize her point, the entire convention center was shaken to its very foundations. The windows that remained intact shattered in an explosion of water, which poured into the building. Kevin, Lilian, and Iris almost fell as the rapidly rushing water crashed into them. It was only thanks to Lilian and Iris reinforcing their bodies that they didn’t fall on their faces.
“Quickly, you three,” Kirihime said. “We need to reach higher ground.”
They continued to move as the convention center was rocked again. More water flooded into the building. They took a staircase and ascended to the next floor, where they ended up in a hallway. Turning a corner, they were forced to stop in their tracks when another group of people almost crashed into them. Three of them were clad in spandex. One of them was quite familiar.
“Hawa! It’s my family!” Camellia’s smile was brighter than a star as she waved at them. “Kirikiri, Iris, Lilian, Kevin-kyun! Hullo!”
“Um, hello, Camellia,” Kevin muttered, warily eying the soldiers, who were looking at them stupidly.
“My Lady, are… are you well? You’re not hurt, are you?” Kirihime asked, her fingers twitching, clearly longing to reach for the daggers under her dress.
“Um!” Camellia nodded joyfully. “These nice people kept me company.”
The “nice people” that Camellia mentioned snapped out of their fugue. They looked from the group of kitsune to Camellia, then back to the kitsune. Camellia again. Then the kitsune one more time. For good measure.
“So, wait, these are the people you’re looking for?” one of the soldiers asked.
“Yes!” Camellia’s sunny smile hadn’t changed in the slightest. She was completely unaware of the heavy tension pervading the atmosphere. “Those two are my daughters, and that’s Kevin-kyun, and that one is Kirikiri.”
“Daughters,” one of the men muttered, eyes straying to the tails writhing behind the backs of the three kitsune. “Your daughters are kitsune.”
“Of course,” Camellia said as if the answer should have been ob
vious. “I’m a kitsune, too.”
As she spoke, five tails emerged from underneath her magical girl skirt, and her ears sprouted fur and became long and pointed.
The group of spandex-clad men eyed each other. Anxiety was written all over their faces. They looked at Camellia’s still smiling face, then at the other four people. Kirihime had now taken out her knives, Lilian had several orbs of light orbiting her, and Iris had summoned some void fire, which hovered over her tails. Kevin didn’t have a weapon, or superpowers, but that didn’t stop him from preparing for combat.
“We’re screwed, aren’t we?” asked one of the men. Everyone sans Camellia nodded. “Thought so.”
***
Several tons of water crashed into the bus before it could reach the convention center. Glass shattered and objects flew as they were thrown from their shelves. Heather swore as she cranked on the steering wheel, and the teenagers screamed as they were tossed out of their seats, smacking into the walls and floor.
Christine held onto Lindsay as her friend screamed. Creating a protective shell of ice, which was hard on the outside and soft on the inside, she softened the blow to her back as she was slammed into a wall. She barely had time to register the pain before her entire world flipped upside down. The world outside tumbled past her. It was a dizzying display that made her stomach do backflips. She would’ve hurled, but her throat had closed.
And then everything stopped. Inexplicably. Unexpectedly. It stopped.
With her head spinning and her back aching, Christine blinked the fuzziness out of her vision. She belatedly realized that she was lying not on the floor, but on a wall. That meant the bus must have tipped over. Lindsay still lay curled up against her, only now the blonde was lying on top of her.
“You okay, Lindsay?” she groaned.
“I… I think so,” Lindsay said, her voice shaky. She placed her hands on either side of Christine and pushed herself up. Their faces were barely an inch apart. “You protected me.”
In the face of such a sincere expression, Christine could only blush. “O-of course I did. We’re friends. It’s only natural that I would protect you.”
A Fox's Vacation (American Kitsune Book 5) Page 42