“Not the yokai then.”
Akari wrinkled her nose. “No, they never agree on anything anyway, so it would take them a decade just to decide whether to be mad or not at us.” Akari checked the oven and then leaned back against the island. “I don’t think anyone can really understand just what it means to be part of something as traditional as the kitsune.”
“Then you’re obviously very isolated. I know what you mean. That happened to me as well. I did something for over a year because my family asked, and I couldn’t say no.”
Akari tilted her head, taking her in with this new bit of information. “Maybe you do understand but to the same extent? We have people leading us that have been around for five or six hundred years. They were standing on the shores when the Americans forced their way onto our island. They were starving with the others when the war cut them off.”
“Weren’t you here by then?” Kiera had thought they had been some of the first settlers in the BC.
Akari snorted. “If you think we got it easy because we were here rather than Japan, you don’t know your history.”
“I don’t. Kiwis know more American history than Canadian. Heck, we often don’t even know our own history.”
“That isn’t so strange. We wear blinkers here too. When the war started, they stripped all the local Japanese of their land. Never gave it back. Some have moved back and had to buy the land again, but that injustice still sticks in the craw of the elders.”
“Be careful, you sound like a tengu.”
It took Akari a moment to recognise the pun, only to roll her eyes. Kiera stole a piece of carrot that had escaped the oven tray.
“So, you have old people who don’t want to change and hold a grudge. This all means you won’t ever be a doctor.”
“That’s it in a nutshell.”
Akari chopped the end of a carrot that had missed being sacrificed to dinner and quickly reduced it into some sticks. Kiera smiled a thanks as she offered the carrots.
Akari asked, “What did you think of Himari?”
“I know you want me to say she’s evil incarnate, but she was alright. She came to warn us that the tengu are coming after me.” Decent considering she had been strung along by Haku for years.
Akari shrugged. “They were bound to do that in any case. They want that naginata. What’s the difference?”
“Now they can do it without the others caring.” When Akari just raised an eyebrow, Kiera fished her phone up and opened the post. The one million was ticking over to nearly two.
Akari swore, “It had gone viral.”
“Mmm. I think it’s because he’s so cute.” Kiera had managed to get him in an unguarded moment when he gazed up at her. His paws on her legs and his two tails swept out from behind him while he offered an opened-mouthed grin. Kiera smiled down at the image before she closed her phone and returned it to her pocket. The jacket got a brief caress. She didn’t often get gifts that were as thoughtful.
“The other yokai will be mad about that.”
“All of them?” Kiera knew she’d make enemies, but she assumed they would be mostly the same ones she had because she had the naginata.
Akari went thoughtful. “The other kitsune like Haku. They might follow him if Eiji died. They will give you the benefit of the doubt. The other yokai might be easier though. Haku is powerful for someone so young, and many other groups of yokai appreciate the power. But that grace won’t go far.”
“Would we have to call a council to talk to them? Or visit them.”
Akari shook her head. “We’d have to think smarter. There’s a festival coming up at the end of next week. That would be the ideal time to garner support. If we can get enough on our side, the tengu would back down. It is what Kiyoshi should have done but hasn’t.”
Kiera groaned and threw her head back to plead with the ceiling for a break.
“What?” Akari asked.
“Does it have to be so far away?”
Akari chuckled. “You aren’t a prisoner here.”
“I might as well be. Whenever I go out, there are tengu.” Kiera gestured towards the door to indicate the crows sitting on a branch outside.
“I thought Haku would take you out one day.”
“That is one day. One. I’m getting stir crazy.”
Akari chewed on her lip and asked, “Is it just the house or do you have to travel?”
“It has nothing to do with that. It’s about choices. When I make a choice, I feel free. All this restriction is bugging me.” Akari nodded her head though Kiera wasn’t sure what she was agreeing to.
Chapter Sixteen
It was a bit drizzly, but it had meant there were no crows in sight as they had pulled away from the house. Kiera had been hidden in the back. The others had been going out regularly enough that the tengu had stopped following them. This made it easier. Once away, she climbed out from the back into the front seat. Haku glanced at her but returned his focus to the road.
“Have you been here before?” She flapped the brochure to indicate she meant their final destination.
“Yes.”
“Sorry, I forgot you were ancient and have done literally everything there is ever to do.” Even she could hear that was sounding whiny.
He frowned at her.
She sighed and said, “Don’t mind me. I’m just cranky.”
“I thought this would lift your mood.”
“It will. I’m still at the cranky stage. You know like a baby that has just woken up.”
He didn’t make any more comment on her mood, and she was pleased with that as they made their way to Beacon Hill.
The weather cleared by the time they stopped at the tourist site. He took her hand when they were walking down the path. She glanced at him to see if he meant anything with the gesture, but he had his eyes focused on the peacock ambling across the path in front of them. She tightened her grasp around his hand and just let the moment be. Sometimes she worried too much.
She looked at the peacock and said, “That is an odd-looking peacock.”
Haku glanced at her and asked, “You can see it.”
“Of course, I can see it. It’s a massive bird right in front of us.”
“It’s an Iblong Adarna.”
“A what?”
“It’s a mythical creature from the Philippines.”
“How? I mean how did it get here?” They continued to stroll along as if the bird was normal. None of the other tourists glanced its way, so Kiera took that as proof that only they could see it.
“Like the others did. It travelled here with their people or even manifested afterwards.”
“That has happened?”
He nodded. She took her hand back to grab her phone. She crouched down to get closer to the creature. Like a peacock, it had a long tail, but the colours were completely different with a red comb on its head with a yellow-mustard body. The tail was mostly blue but as it moved, the colours went through the whole spectrum. It must have been smarter than normal animals as it struck a pose for her, and she laughed as she took multiple photos.
It was only later when they were sitting under a tree that she edited and posted the images. Haku was behind her leaning against the tree, and she leaned against him.
He said as she looked over her shoulder, “You have a good eye.”
“Thank you. That means a lot coming from you. You know I love your paintings even if it looks like magic created them.”
“In the past, we used to give magical gifts to people to create art.”
“You don’t anymore?”
“We got tired when we were hunted down. Either to force us to give them the gift or just out of jealousy.”
“Talking about jealousy. I know this is stupid, but I’m jealous of Himari.”
“Himari? Why?”
“She’s hot.”
He brushed her hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ear. She turned to look at him better. He watched her lips though.
When she pulled back, she asked, “Do you seriously think I’m hotter than Himari? She was sex on a stick in the red dress.”
“You do know she wore that dress for you.” Considering the dig she had given Akari, she wasn’t surprised, but it also nettled.
“Witch,” she accused the absent woman.
He kissed her again, and she turned so it wasn’t at such an awkward angle.
“How quaint?” The two of them shot apart at the words. Katsu stood with Sho and two other men. Haku got to his feet, standing between her and the tengu. Getting to her feet, she patted her pocket where the naginata was hidden. Glancing around revealed there weren’t any others in the garden near them. Certainly not close enough for others to hear what they were talking about.
Katsu must have noticed her instinctive reach for the weapon as he said, “I’m not here to fight.”
“Then just why are you here?” Kiera wasn’t afraid to speak her own mind.
Katsu smoothed his hands down his expensive-looking suit. “I wanted to see if you would be reasonable.”
“By giving you the naginata?” Over dead body. But they had already established that was the way the tengu wanted it.
“Yes.”
Haku angled his body so he would take any attack thrown at them first. “We can’t, it has bonded to her.”
Katsu smiled, but there was no mirth in the gesture. “Kill her and then give us the naginata,” he suggested.
Kiera snorted, and Haku bristled. “No.”
“So unreasonable. She’s only human. She will die soon anyway. If you do us this favour, you will have our support if you ever want to step up to a position of leadership in the council. Eiji isn’t nearly as powerful as you, even if he is a couple of decades older.”
“Killing my wife is not an option.”
Katsu shrugged and motioned to Sho and the men with him. The men shifted into fighting positions. So much for not wanting to fight. Time slowed to molasses, and it was impossible for her to move her body. It seemed the effect also ranged to the tengu as they grimaced as they moved in inches.
Haku, on the other hand, moved with ease. He threw a fist at the first man who burst into flames where it hit him in the middle of his chest. Haku rounded a kick to the other tengu. He went flying and hung in the air like a slow-motion movie of Deadpool. Time rushed up to normal speed, but this only left Sho and Katsu while the other two rolled on the grass to put out the flames. And it was clear Katsu wouldn’t get his hands dirty as he still stood with his fingers curled around his lapel.
Katsu caught Sho’s shoulder and said, “Another time then.” He flashed them a smile that was all teeth. Kiera shuddered.
She asked Haku, “How did you do that?”
Katsu retreated quickly and unless they had super-human hearing, they wouldn’t hear her question.
He shrugged and said, “I told you we had power over time. I can’t do it for very long but if you use it right, it can be very powerful.”
He stumbled, and she rushed to prop him up. It also seemed the trick took a lot out of him. She slipped her arm around his waist and said, “Let’s get home. I’m sure Akari will want a blow-by-blow of this afternoon.”
“She won’t care about the fight.”
“Who said anything about the fight? She will want to know about the date.”
“This was a date?” His tone filled with confusion.
She chuckled. “Yeah. This was a date.” Shaking her head at his oblivious nature. “You know we’re definitely going to have to ask for help.”
“Yeah. The festival is two days away. Akari told me her plan.”
Kiera groaned. “Another two days trapped inside.”
Chapter Seventeen
Feeling self-conscious, Kiera tugged at her jacket. The crowd flowed in one direction, so she wasn’t too worried about losing Haku and Akari in the crowd. But she did widen her stride. Dodging around people who were going slower than she, so she was just behind Akari. She didn’t want to be left open for attack.
The noise level shot up once they entered the building. She could smell the food, and she craned her head around to see where the food stalls were. If they had to suffer the crowds, she at least wanted food to make up for it.
She must have been more distracted than she thought as Haku reached back and caught her arm and dragged her to where Akari was waiting for them. They took her into another room where people were gathered around the wall as they watched a tea ceremony. Amazing, the delicate nature of the movements.
Kiera wanted to ask how long they would be here watching someone pouring tea—they were supposed to be looking for people to protect them from the tengu—when she saw the leader of the kitsune on the other side of the room. Eiji had ditched his suit for a blue, wide-sleeved robe that was cinched at the waist with a silk strap. He observed the tea ceremony with a critical eye.
Once the ceremony was over, the crowds dispersed. They made their way to where Eiji was packing things away.
Without looking up, he said, “What do you want, Haku?”
“Have you heard of the tengu plans?”
“Yes.” From his tone, Kiera assumed he didn’t care that the tengu wanted to kill her and take the naginata.
“Are you going to let them start a war against my wife?”
Eiji let out a long breath and turned to look at them.
Akari swore under her breath. “You are, aren’t you? You bastard.”
Eiji kept his eyes on Haku. “Hush, woman. This isn’t your problem.”
“It’s mine,” Kiera interjected.
The kitsune glanced at her and then spoke to Haku. “Humans are not our concern.”
Akari tugged on Haku’s arm. “Let’s go, he isn’t going to help.”
“Inari will.” Haku threw in the name.
Eiji shrugged, unconcerned that his patron goddess would help them, and he would not.
Haku went with Akari, but Kiera stayed to say to the kitsune, “I feel sorry for you.”
“Sorry for me? You are merely human. I don’t care about your pitiful emotions in regard to me.”
She shook her head. There was no getting through to him. She turned and saw that the others had already left the room. She skipped to catch up with them. Outside the tea ceremony room, they made their way past a demonstration of aikido. Kiera twisted to get past someone when she was caught from behind.
Turning, she recognised Sho. She tugged on her arm to free herself. Her other hand going for the naginata in her pocket. Sho, regardless of the crowd, drew a katana. He must have retrieved his own as she had ended up leaving it on the walkway after all when Haku had carried off. People scattered out of the way. She wondered if they would start screaming. Instead, cameras came out, and people started clapping.
She slipped the pencil out of the pocket at her breast. The naginata flashed to its full size in her hands. There was a rush of ahs from the crowd. They must think it was all a show.
Sho attacked. He had improved his technique. Now he worked against her in short, sharp attacks. Skittering back and bouncing on his toes so even with her reach, he was too far away. He was faster. Probably those tengu powers.
She blocked and parried and gasped when someone tried to cut at her from behind. The reaction of the crowd was the only thing that saved her. In a panicked rush, she parried both of her attackers.
A man flew past her, and she glanced around only long enough to see that Haku was fighting his own set of tengu. She just had to hold her own for a short while. Unfortunately, she was running out of time as both of the men coordinated their attacks, so she was rushing from one parry to the next.
Her foot slipped, and she half-skidded into the crowd. Someone grabbed her under her armpits and threw her back in against the two men. Not willing to swing at the innocent bystanders, the tengu stepped back. The crowd
was a mixed blessing.
Throwing her back in but also preventing the killing blow. Stunned, she was a little slower. Bringing up the staff of the naginata meant the katana nicked her and sliced into her thigh. There was a pair of jeans ruined.
The crowd gasped, but there was no change in tone. Blood oozed, but she didn’t have time to focus on that and jabbed at Sho and turned on his partner.
She could see Inari past him, and anger flashed through her like a dunk in a hot pool. She wouldn’t just stand there and watch these two tengu cut her down. Not much good the naginata did if the first two yokai to face off with her managed to cut her down in public.
She managed to hit the partner in the side of the head; unfortunately, she had lunged forward too much, and it was the staff rather than the bladed part of the naginata. Though to be honest, she wasn’t keen on seeing any blood spilt even if these guys were serious.
Dazed, the man stumbled to the side and before she could turn to deal with Sho, he swept her legs out from under her. She hit the ground hard, knocking the air out of her lungs. Without time to recover, Sho landed on top of her. His legs straddling her torso.
He caught the naginata and used it to press down on her throat. Her lungs, starved of air, burned as they tried to get the tiny trickle of oxygen past the wood pressing on her throat. Sho grinned with glee.
Energy crackled along the shaft of the naginata, and the lettering flashed with light. Electricity danced over her skin, but it didn’t hurt. She couldn’t say that for Sho as he was thrown across the floor with a loud snap. She turned and gasped in air, trying not to throw up.
The crowd clapped and cheered. The other tengu with blood covering half his face where she must have split his skin with her blow, reached down and helped Sho to his feet.
Himari appeared at her side and helped her to her feet. “Let’s get out of here.” Kiera didn’t argue with her and followed her deeper into the crowd. The crowd, figuring the show was over, let her pass. But it was a tight crush. She saw the face of the mystic, Manabu, in the crowd, but Himari pulled her along so all she had a chance to do was frown at the man before she was dragged out of the crowd.
Zero Foxes Given Page 11