Zero Foxes Given

by Nix Whittaker

  “There are stories that some of us did, but we can’t tell now who came about that way and who of us are here because of myths coming to life.”

  “So, can we get new ones? I mean born like you guys were.”

  “Yes. Though I haven’t met any.” The figure on the page now resembled her but even though she thought it looked finished, he still worked. He had changed from his pencil to another that was darker.

  “What about the kitsune? What is your history?” He glanced up, and she wondered if he was reluctant to share his people’s secrets. She raised her eyebrows as if asking him if he was going to speak when he didn’t say anything.

  To urge him to answer her question or to explain that he didn’t want to say anything, she said, “We are married, and this is supposed to be my world now. I deserve to know about it.”

  He frowned. “We aren’t properly married.”

  She shrugged. He wasn’t wrong and she had been mostly teasing him. “Okay, pseudo married.” It didn’t mean she wasn’t neck deep into whatever was happening in this strange magical world.

  He shifted his fingers on the pencil before going back to the sketch. She thought he wouldn’t answer, but he said as he worked, “The kitsune started as foxes. So, I suppose we came out of the primordial ooze like humans did. But it was the humans that gave us our other form. They used us as a reference to cunning and deception till one day, one of us took on the shape of the most cunning and deceptive creature on earth.”

  “I would object, but you aren’t wrong.” A smile touched her lips, and she rested her head on her hand as she listened to his voice.

  “The first kitsune was beautiful and clever, and she was curious. She wandered into the villages where she fell in love with a human. She had two children to him but one night there was a fire, and she panicked. She transformed back into a fox. The humans chased her down. They blamed her for the fire and any other ill that had happened. She would sneak back to look at her boys. They were different from the other humans. Withdrawn but also brilliant. One became an artist and made tapestries that adorned palaces. The other became a potter and made delicate vases. She saw then that another aspect of cunning and deception is also an illusion. She watched her sons live and have children. When she was two hundred years old, she grew another tail. Her wisdom growing with it, and she went in search of others like her. Other foxes were transforming as her. Lost in the human world, she took them apart. Mostly we don’t mix with humans. We have settlements that are almost all yokai. But here, it’s different. When my people came to Canada, it had little civilisation but a lot of power. We were running away from the other yokai that preached purity and death to humans. Here we could be ourselves, but we were few in number, so we gathered together. No longer caring if we were kitsune or tengu. Now that we are settled and mostly safe, we are going back to our old ways. No one marries outside of their breed anymore.”

  “Is that why they don’t like that you married me?” She knew it was more complicated than that, but she knew he wasn’t averse to their marriage, and she wondered what his motivation was.

  He finished the sketch and turned it towards her. She ran her fingertips over the image. He saw her very differently to how she saw herself. There was a life and laughter in her eyes that she wasn’t familiar with. She was mostly withdrawn and sharp with people. He hadn’t hidden aspects of her she wished he would, like her slight double chin. But he also hadn’t highlighted it.

  He asked, “You like it?” She frowned. Confused by the sound of lack of confidence in his voice.

  “It’s amazing.”

  His fingers brushed her cheek. She caught his hand and pressed it to her cheek. She had been travelling alone for so long the touch was a spark to tinder. Heat suffused her cheeks, and she turned away from his touch. Her eyes dipped. She couldn’t afford to be attracted to him. He leaned forward, his breath lightly warming her skin. He moved closer still and kissed her. His lips a mere whisper on her own. An invitation to the kiss rather than a kiss itself. She wanted to kiss him, but fear had her pulling back.

  She shook her head when he frowned at her. Explaining, “I can’t. If I let this go further, I’ll be trapped here.” At least that was the explanation she was willing to share. She wasn’t the prettiest girl, and she had been rejected before because of her weight. It wasn’t easy to open herself up for that kind of hurt.

  When he still looked confused, she stood and paced the room. Stopping eventually by the window. Her back faced him so she was brave enough to speak.

  “My father died last year, but it was like he was gone a long time ago. He dragged him with me. He had Alzheimer’s, and we didn’t have the money to send him somewhere to look after him. The family was staunch about looking after their own instead of asking for help. But it meant someone had to stay with him. Since I had just finished high school, it landed with me. I will never let people I care for trap me again.” She didn’t add that it had all been so her uncle could claim the land left by her mother. That was a family secret, and it would stay that way.

  When she turned, she saw him leaving the room. Pain lanced through her heart. She had laid out her fears, and he had just walked away.

  Chapter Eleven

  Kiera spent the evening getting information out of Akari. Haku had disappeared into the rest of the house, and Kiera only saw flashes of him. Clearly, he was avoiding her, and she didn’t know what to feel about that.

  Akari though was much easier to get to talk about the kitsune. It had taken most of the night to get her onto the topic of Inari. Apparently, the reverence for the rice goddess was real. But eventually, Akari said the museum was her real job and that selling outside was an odd thing for her to do. She was the curator for the most prestigious international exhibitions in the museum. That explained the clothes to Kiera. Her options weren’t great while she had the naginata. Even with the marriage to Haku, it seemed the tengu were still interested in stealing the naginata. Unfortunately, over her dead body. Inari had to be more powerful than Haku. She should be able to take the naginata back. She would be able to leave, and Haku could get on with his life without her.

  Kiera waited for Akari to leave to pick up some groceries before she made her move. Haku was still avoiding her so it was easy to sneak out of the house without him noticing. She looked at the tree and made sure there weren’t any birds sitting and spying on the house. The sky was grey so the umbrella she had armed herself with became the perfect camouflage for the tengu if they were elsewhere and spotted her leaving.

  She took quick, furtive steps as she left the street and went down to the bus station. Searching for any sign of tengu had her jerking her head around at the slightest flutter of wings. Her heart raced when she saw a shadow, but it was only the lazy circles of a hawk rather than a black crow.

  Even on the bus, she tucked her head down so there wouldn’t be any accidental glance. She kept her head tucked down as she got off the bus near the museum. Shaking out the umbrella as she entered, she glanced around for the rice goddess. Inari was waiting for her so she should have been surprised by the lack of tengu. As a god, she would be aware of everything. She assumed the gig came with some omniscient powers though limited in some way. Otherwise, Inari would have known about her attack on the walkway before she had mentioned it at the council meeting.

  Inari motioned with her head for Kiera to follow her. Without a word of explanation, Inari started her on a private tour of the museum. Stopping in front of a piece, she explained its provenance, and Kiera wouldn’t have it, so she cut in.

  “Why me?”

  Inari raised an eyebrow. “That is more complicated than you think, but I will give you the brief view. I need your help.”

  “Help? You are a goddess. Or are you a fake goddess?” Or possibly her understanding of god was skewed because she was purely human.

  “I’m like all the yokai. I am made from their belief. I’m not like the Christian god or Santa. I’m not all powerful.”r />
  “But you are all knowing?”

  Inari tilted her head. “I know more. I’d be arrogant to assume I understood all I know.”

  Kiera walked off to the next exhibit. She needed a little time to take in all this. It would be a bad idea to get angry at a powerful being even if she wasn’t quite all-knowing. Inari followed her and said, “Maybe not me, but the yokai do really need your help.”

  Kiera snorted. “They are magical. How could little old me help them?”

  “With the world.” Inari’s eyes begged silently.

  “You want them to rise up and make us humans into their slaves.” Kiera guessed.

  Inari hissed, “Far from that and don’t even joke. The more it is thought and passed around humans the more power those yokai have.”

  “You mean there are some of you who want that… that outcome?”

  Inari flapped her hand as if swiping away the idea itself. “Yes, but not me.”

  “Then what is it you think I can do for the yokai?” Kiera knew her worth. She was a mediocre celebrity with no qualifications of outstanding talents.

  “Bring us into your world.” Inari moved onto the next exhibition as if they were seriously talking about the items within and were naturally moving on. Instead, they were talking about something that would blow the minds of normal people.

  “How? I’m human and do they even want to?” Kiera waved her arms as the whole concept dug under her skin. Magical beings should be asking other magical beings. Not her. Hadn’t she done enough in her life? Once she realised her motions looked hysterical, she slapped her palms to her sides.

  Inari widened her eyes but didn’t comment on her actions. “It isn’t about want but inevitable. There will be one day when the yokai will be uncovered. I know what humans do to things they fear. We’ve been there. It’s one of the reasons why we are now hiding. But with technology that discovery will be impossible.”

  Kiera knew everyone now had cameras, and an incident could easily be recorded. The tengu who had attacked her had taken a risk to attack her on the bridge but if he had been following her since the museum, he might have seen it as his only choice.

  Kiera asked, “What do you want me to do?”

  “You are an influencer.”

  Kiera snorted. She had a hundred thousand followers. That was hardly a massive audience considering how large the world was. Then it hit Kiera. Her own finger tapped the centre of her chest. “I’m your test. If I can get my followers to accept your kind, you know it can work with others, but it isn’t a massive risk with me and my kind.” The look on Inari’s face confirmed it. Kiera turned and walked a few paces away. Her hands dug into her hair, and she tugged as she thought about Inari’s proposition.

  Kiera had a specific audience. She went to what most people would consider very boring tourist places. There was no bungee jumping or skydiving in her feed. Instead, she went to out of the way places that no one knew about because they were so tame.

  It had all started with a billabong in Australia. Instead of people wanting to see her wrestling crocodiles like a classic Steve Erwin, she had taken a walk to a place few could visit. A friend had an in to the place. It was one of those places where you had to know the locals.

  That was Kiera, she made friends and then went to places that no one else knew of. Posted it and suddenly those places were shared around the internet. Most of her followers wouldn’t even leave their hometown, let alone visit those places. She spun back to Inari.

  “I’m a glorified tourist. Not an activist. I can’t save your people.” Even to her own ears, she sounded hysterical.

  “I think you can, and that is the risk I’m taking. I gave you a means to protect yourself from those that will want to stop you.”

  “So, you knew they would attack me?”

  Inari winced. “No, that was unfortunate. I had forgotten that others might covet its power. I have possessed it for a long time; its real name has been forgotten even by my people.”

  “But you knew I would be in danger. You didn’t even warn me.” Kiera dropped her voice low as she knew if she let her emotions enter her voice, she would cause a scene with hysterical screeching.

  Inari caught Kiera’s hands and squeezed them reassuringly. “You would have thought I was a crazy person if I went about it that way.”

  Kiera didn’t disagree with the goddess. All of this seemed impossible to her, but she had a pencil in her pocket that could change into a naginata, and she had run her fingers through the fur of a fox that was also a man.

  “I don’t like being tricked.” Kiera pulled her hands free and turned away. She had heard enough. She hated it when others decided for her what her life would be, and she would never let that happen to her again.

  Outside, a crow watched her as she left. This had her picking up her speed and opening her umbrella. She kept to the crowded areas, but it was with relief when she walked up the street that Haku lived.

  Chapter Twelve

  Kiera bounced to her feet the moment she heard the tentative knock at the door. She dashed to answer it, desperate for interaction from people in general; she would even take a random stranger.

  Instead of the delivery man or a gas inspector, it was Kiyoshi. He was dressed in a suit today rather than a robe, but that didn’t take any of the regalness out of his bearing. But at least the mystery was solved that he had dressed up for the council meeting. That disappointed her as she had enjoyed her vision of him brooding in some tower in his ridiculously impractical robes. He raised his eyebrows slightly at her appearance and stepped past her into the house without a proper invitation.

  Haku asked, “Kiyoshi? What are you doing here?”

  “I am the leader of the yokai. You ask as if I’ve never been here before.”

  “You haven’t,” Haku stated. Kiera followed Kiyoshi as he moved past Haku into the open space of the lounge. He looked around, inspecting the place like a real estate agent who only took on high-end apartments.

  “I hadn’t realised that.” His tone dripped with derision.

  Kiera debated whether to sit and make Kiyoshi sit to be polite but rather liked that she had mobility standing. When Haku didn’t sit, she remained standing as well.

  “Speak your business, Kiyoshi.” Haku slipped his hands into his pockets. Kiera loved when he stood like that. He looked so much like tuxedo mask that her childhood fantasy took on a very dirty slant.

  “You are a powerful yokai.”

  Haku growled, “What does that have to do with anything?” Kiera noticed he didn’t deny his strength. Akari had hinted but other than the two tails, she wasn’t sure just how powerful Haku was. The powers he had shown so far were certainly impressive.

  Kiyoshi shrugged and picked his way around the room. Picking up random things before putting them back. “I’d forgotten that. Eiji goes out of his way not to mention you in council meetings.”

  Kiera glanced between the two. There was tension though there wasn’t a raised voice. She had forgotten that arguing could get interesting among the Japanese and grateful that they were still speaking in English so she could understand.

  Haku tilted his head to the side. His tone sardonic, “I would happily attend to make sure I wasn’t left out of the conversation.”

  Kiyoshi stopped and glanced back at Haku. He raised an eyebrow though Kiera had no idea what Haku had really threatened. She wasn’t sure why Haku wasn’t allowed at the council meetings or what the other hidden political manoeuvrings there were. “I’ll keep that in mind, Haku. Now about why I’m here. I wanted to reassure you that we are dealing with the tengu.”

  Kiera snorted. There had been tengu in the trees outside when she had opened the door. That didn’t seem like handling anything in her experience. Haku nodded, and she frowned at him. Surely, he didn’t believe the man.

  Her fists tightened, but she managed to keep her tone even. “Giving them a stern word won’t stop them from trying to kill me for the naginata.”
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br />   Kiyoshi raised an eyebrow, this time directed at her. “I didn’t bring this up at the council, but I have consulted with Manabu. He says someone of great power can try to subsume the bond. Are you willing to let me try?”

  Now the conversation about power made more sense. He knew Haku had tried and failed to take the naginata. Kiera was strangely hesitant, but she nodded. Kiyoshi wasn’t someone she was familiar with, and she wasn’t sure if he was working with the tengu or not. But as leader of the yokai, he had to have some honour. She glanced over at Haku. He still remained with his hands in his pockets and didn’t give her any sign of what direction she should take.

  Kiyoshi gestured for her to approach. Gritting her teeth, she stepped forward. He asked her for her hands with a simple gesture. She laid them in his palms. They were cool and dry, but her skin still crawled at the touch. Kiyoshi’s lips moved, but she couldn’t hear the ritual words that would transfer the bond. His eyes closed as he dropped further into the ritual. His hands flexed around her own.

  He frowned, and she asked, “Are you done?” She didn’t ask if it worked. She didn’t need to feel the naginata still in her pocket to know that nothing had changed.

  He said, “Let me try again.”

  She sighed but didn’t retrieve her hands, and he muttered again. This time, he said the words in a more determined whisper. A sharp spark arced, and she yelped. Pulling her hands away in reaction, she shook them.

  Haku stepped forward, but she waved him off. The spark had been more of a surprise than anything else. Kiyoshi stayed to try another spell but, in the end, left disappointed. It seemed she was truly stuck with the naginata until she died. And she certainly didn’t want to do that anytime soon.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “Are you willing to return the favour?” Haku had finally finished with his sulking. He was making them sandwiches, which in her mind was a clear apology from him. She didn’t think he was much for words. But she wanted confirmation, so she thought she would push him.