A Fox's Tail (American Kitsune Book 2)

by Brandon Varnell

These two made for a lovely tsukkomi.

  “How dare you insult me like that! I'm not a whore!”

  “I noticed that you didn't say anything against the other things I called you!”

  “They all mean the same thing!”

  As they raced down one of several hallways, shaving away the distance between them and their goal, a figure stepped in front of them. This person stood in the middle of the hallway, impeding their progress, causing the two females to skid to a halt. The cloud of dust they’d kicked up did not stop, however, and kept on moving for several more feet before dissipating.

  “Who the hell are you?” asked the raven-haired female.

  Lilian's eyes widened. “It's you!”

  ***

  “I can't believe you've got another one, Kevin,” Alex said as they changed out of their track uniforms. “Just when were you going to tell us that you had another girlfriend hidden in the wings?”

  Kevin pulled off his shirt.

  “Which girl are we talking about now?”

  “You know, the one arguing with Lilian.”

  Kevin scrunched up his face.

  “Oh, right. There was a girl arguing with Lilian, wasn't there?” He threw his shirt in his duffel bag and began discarding his pants. “I wonder who that girl was.”

  “You mean you don't know?” Alex asked, disbelieving. “That girl was getting ready to have a throw down with your girlfriend, and you're telling that you don't know who she is?”

  Kevin rolled his eyes and threw his pants in the duffel bag as well. “That's what I said. And Lilian's not my girlfriend.”

  “I know this is going to sound strange, but I don't believe you.” These words came from Andrew.

  “Wha…?” Kevin started. “Why not?”

  “I don't know.” Andrew shrugged. “Maybe it's because you're currently living with the sexiest girl I've ever met. Or it could have something to do with how you've been acting recently.”

  “… Right… living… girl… name…?”

  Kevin stared at Justin like he was some kind of idiot.

  The twins did as well.

  “Where have you been, living under a rock? This has been common knowledge for weeks now.” Kevin turned back to Andrew. “And what do you mean I've been acting differently?”

  Andrew raised a single eyebrow. “You mean you haven't noticed?”

  “No.” Kevin twitched. “If I had noticed, I wouldn't be asking you, would I?”

  Alex and Andrew shared a look. Together, they turned back to Kevin.

  “Kevin,” the way Alex spoke his name in such a serious tone had Kevin unconsciously straightening his back. “You have the worst case of Cannot Talk to Women that I have ever seen.”

  “Ugh.”

  “You're absolutely terrible at talking to women,” Alex agreed.

  “Urk.”

  “Couldn't talk to a woman to save his life.”

  “Hurk!”

  Kevin almost felt the metaphorical arrows shooting into his back.

  “I'm not that bad.” When all he got were three deadpanned stares―even Justin deadpanned at him—Kevin blushed. “Am I really that bad?”

  “Kevin, half a month ago you couldn't talk to Lindsay or any other girl without passing out. Hell, you just straight up passed out without saying a single word sometimes.” Andrew's voice was half-empathetic, half-condescending. “You were so bad at talking to women that most of us had a bet going on about when you'd finally come out of the closet. Seeing you bring a sexy thing like Lilian to school was actually a relief.”

  “Auu,” Kevin made a strange noise in the back of his throat. “It's not like I can help it. I don't know why, but I just get so nervous whenever I'm around girls.”

  He didn't really understand it, this strange nervousness. Having been raised by his mom, one would think he wouldn't get nervous around members of the opposite sex.

  Then again, his mom wasn't exactly what he would call the most stable of parents.

  “Yes, yes, we all know that,” Alex said in a placating tone. “But that just proves my point. Ever since Lilian showed up, you haven't passed out once. You're even talking to Lindsay like a normal person. Well—” Alex quickly corrected himself, “—mostly normal at least.”

  “Have I really?” Kevin cupped his chin between his fingers, adopting a look of deep contemplation, which involved scrunching his face in ways that distorted his features.

  His friends pulled out their cellphones and began snapping photos. By tomorrow morning, images of Kevin would be posted on the school's Facebook page and Twitter feed. Kevin wouldn't find out about this until several months later, much to his embarrassment.

  Now that he thought about it, he hadn't felt all that nervous around any girls for a while. He hadn't even passed out during any of Lilian's most recent attempts to seduce him.

  That wasn't to say he didn't still react to her; Kevin's mind went back to that moment they had shared just before the track meet. He'd definitely felt uncomfortable—and flustered—by her actions.

  However, even though he had been affected by her “kitsune Seductress” act, he had not felt the light-headed oh-my-god-I'm-about-to-pass-out sensation that he would have experienced prior to meeting the two-tailed vixen.

  “I guess you have a point,” Kevin sighed, then shook his head. “Whatever, I'll think about this stuff later. I'm taking a shower.”

  He left his friends to finish getting changed and walked into the shower stalls, clad in just his boxers, a towel and bar of soap in hand.

  The shower stalls were just that—a series of showers blocked off by large metal stalls and a curtain. Kevin liked the set up because it allowed him privacy while washing up.

  Most people didn't use the showers, but he disliked the feel of sweat caked on his skin. He especially didn't like putting on a clean pair of clothes while sweating like a pig. Kevin was hygienic that way.

  There were a few other people who felt the same way, and used the stalls as well, as evidenced when Kasey Chase walked out of one of the stalls, a towel wrapped around his waist.

  Upon noticing that he was no longer alone, his rival stopped walking for a moment to give Kevin one last congratulations.

  “You didn't do too bad today, Swift.”

  Considering this was Kasey Chase, his rival in all things running, the boy might as well have told him that he was the most awesome thing since the invention of giant mecha robots.

  Kevin was a big fan of mecha anime. He even had a Gundam Wing and Gundam 0083 poster in his room.

  Kevin walked over to the nearest stall, but stilled long enough to give the other boy a nod, acknowledging Chase's words.

  “Thanks.”

  “Tch. Don't get cocky now. You may have beaten me this time but, I'm not going to just let this stand,” the boy continued. Kevin hung up his towel and turned the shower on to its hottest setting. “Next track meet, I'm going to leave your ass in the dust.”

  “Whatever you say, Chase.”

  Steam began to rise in the small stall. Kevin heard Chase's footsteps receding as he began cleaning himself.

  He stayed in there for a while, much longer than normal. He didn't feel like coming out quite yet. Kevin had a lot on his mind, and he needed some time to think, before meeting with Lilian who, in all likelihood, would be waiting for him just outside of the locker room.

  He wasn't entirely sure he was looking forward to that meeting.

  Most of his thoughts were actually centered around the two-tailed kitsune. Some of his thoughts were on that kiss she had given him and some were on her, um, enthusiastic congratulations after the track meet. But, a good deal of his wonderings were also on the girl that Lilian had been arguing with.

  Just who was that girl anyway? And why had she looked so familiar? Maybe he was just imagining things, but he could've sworn he'd seen that girl before...

  Shaking his head, Kevin let out a deep sigh as he finished getting clean. He would think about this late
r. Better yet, he would ask Lilian about it when he met up with her.

  Turning off the water and grabbing his towel, he dried off as much as possible in the stall. He then wrapped the towel around his waist and walked into the changing area.

  As he exited the showers and entered the changing room, his eyes blinked several times in surprise.

  He stared for nearly a full minute.

  There was no one else in the room. It was completely empty.

  Just how long had he stayed in that shower?

  Concerned by his lack of attentiveness but knowing not to dawdle any longer, he dismissed his thoughts. He walked over to his locker, opened it and got dressed in a plain white t-shirt, faded blue jeans and his black Adidas.

  The sound of the door opening drew his attention and caused him to pause. The sound of three sets of footsteps drawing inexorably closer drew even more of his attention. Curious to know who else had stuck around, Kevin finished tying his shoelaces and turned to confront the newcomers.

  He wasn't sure who he expected to greet him, but whoever he'd been expecting, it was certainly not the people standing before him.

  Three men had entered the locker room, all of them unfamiliar, and all of them far too old to be in high school. They were muscular, with the shortest of the trio only being an inch taller than him, and the tallest towering over him by a large margin. While their muscles weren't as disgustingly hulking as Chris Fleischer's, they all looked like they drank a pound of Muscle Milk every day, and spent at least two hours at the gym.

  “You Kevin Swift?” asked the tallest of the trio. Kevin couldn't judge height, but guessed this man was at least seven feet. He had a deep voice, long blond hair, and a long face with lips that were disproportionately large compared to the rest of his features. They reminded Kevin of a fish's lips.

  “Um, yes... i-is there something I can help you with?”

  Kevin felt a distinct spike of fear rush through him, a tiny thrill that traveled along his spine, as the men on either side of the tall one cracked their knuckles threateningly.

  “It's nothing personal,” the tallest spoke again, also cracking his knuckles. Kevin gulped. That couldn't mean anything good. “But we've been ordered to rough you up a bit. Do forgive us.”

  Chapter 7

  Mistaken for a Badass

  “It's you!” Lilian exclaimed in shock. The raven-haired female at her side gave the kitsune a confused look, while Kiara only smirked at them.

  “Yes, me.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “Isn't it obvious?” Kiara spread her arms, as if to encompass the entire hallway they were standing in. “I'm here for you.”

  “For me?” Lilian blinked several times, attempting to figure out what this woman meant. After nearly five seconds of regarding the older femme in the business suit, she scratched the back of her head nervously. “Look, I… I appreciate that you find me attractive and everything…” She looked away, uncomfortable under the woman's stare now that she knew what Kiara wanted. “… But I don't swing that way. And I have my Beloved, so…”

  Now it was Kiara's turn to blink, befuddled. Fortunately, she was much quicker on the uptake than Lilian. She also came to the correct conclusion, unlike Lilian.

  “That's not what I meant!” Kiara exploded, her cheeks actually turning red in mixed anger and embarrassment.

  Lilian blinked.

  “It's not?”

  “No!”

  She tilted her head to the side, confusion setting in and showing clearly on her face.

  “Then why are you here for me?”

  “To teach you a lesson,” Kiara declared, “But before I do that.” She looked at the goth girl standing beside Lilian, staring at them with increasingly obvious irritation. Kiara pointed at her. “You, because I'm a nice gal, I'm going to give you a warning; this is about to get ugly. Leave now and nothing bad will happen to you.”

  It took several seconds for the lolita-clad girl to respond. When she did, it was with a scowl. “Are you threatening me?”

  “If that's how you want to take it,” Kiara replied calmly. “Though I like to think of it as giving you good advice. This has nothing to do with you, so there’s really no point in you sticking around and getting caught up in this.”

  The woman's words made the younger female pause and think. A moment later, the raven-haired girl nodded her head, and made an about-face. As she began walking away, Lilian gawked at her back.

  “H-hey! Where are you going?”

  Pausing mid-step, the female with the ice blue eyes did not turn around, but she at least gave Lilian an answer. “That woman is right. I don't really know what's going on, but it clearly has nothing to do with me.”

  “So you're just going to leave?” When the girl shrugged, Lilian huffed. “That's fine. It’s not like I want an annoying little girl here anyway, especially one as unhelpful and tsundere as you.”

  The girl twitched. “I don’t know what that means, but I feel like I’ve just been horribly insulted.”

  The young kitsune ignored the girl and turned her attention on Kiara. “And after I deal with you, I'll finally get to be alone with my Beloved.”

  At the mention of the young man that she had fallen for, Kiara smirked. “I'm sorry to say that you won't be seeing your 'Beloved' any time soon. He's currently preoccupied with other, more pressing concerns.”

  Lilian's eyes widened at Kiara's words and tone. The goth girl also went stiff. Seconds later, she was off, running down the hall. The other two ignored her in favor of each other, not even paying attention as the light tapping of her slipper-like shoes faded into the distance.

  My Beloved is…” Lilian's eyes narrowed. “What did you do to my Beloved?”

  “Me? Nothing.” Kiara’s sly grin boded nothing well. “He is simply being entertained by my boys at the moment. Don't worry, though,” she added upon seeing Lilian's horrified face. “They'll take real good care of him.”

  Lilian didn’t hear that last part. She had stopped listening after hearing the part about her beloved being entertained by this woman’s boys.

  Lilian made to leave, turning around to head off in search of her beloved, and rescue him from whatever this person’s boys were doing to him.

  Kiara wouldn’t let her. She appeared in front of the girl once more, blocking Lilian’s path.

  “I’m sorry.” Her smile said otherwise. “But I can’t let you go and help your mate. You and I still have unfinished business.”

  “I see, so that's how it is.”

  Lilian tilted her head toward the ground. Her red hair hid most of her face. The rest was cast into darkness, all except her chin and mouth, which was set into an ugly frown.

  “Move,” she whispered harshly.

  “Hm… how about, no.”

  “I said move!”

  “Not happening.”

  “Fine,” Lilian growled, her voice harsh and grating. “I was simply going to use an enchantment to make you leave this place. But now… now I don't think that's going to be enough punishment for you.”

  “Hoh?”

  Kiara watched with a smirk as Lilian began to change. Her ears grew, becoming pointed and long as they moved closer to the top of her head. Red fur sprouted along her ears, covering them in crimson except for the tip, which became white. Her canines sharpened to finely honed points, and her pupils morphed into slits.

  Finally, two bushy red, white-tipped fox tails sprang out from a hole hidden in the back of her jean shorts, writhing and twisting in obvious agitation, as if they were a reflection of the girl's stormy emotional state.

  “Oh my, what an interesting transformation.” Kiara's smirk widened into a fanged grin. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a kitsune in their hybrid state—over one-hundred years, in fact.” She chuckled. “This is getting very, very interesting.”

  Lilian hardly paid attention to the woman's words. Her outrage at the tomboyish femme overwhelmed of her. It consu
med her every thought—this anger, this hatred. The need to destroy this woman who had let several men taint her Beloved surged through her, an unstoppable force.

  “I'm going to break you,” Lilian growled as two small, bright balls of compressed light appeared above the tips of her tails. “And then I'm going to find those friends of yours, and break them for daring to violate my Beloved in ways that he still refuses to do to me!”

  An awkward pause ensued. Several crickets chirped. The annoying sound caused Lilian's ears to twitch.

  “Wait. What?” Kiara gave her look a bewildered look. “I think you've got the wrong idea. My boys aren't going to―”

  “You think you can sic your boys on my Beloved and have them play out your sick, twisted fantasy?!” Lilian interrupted. Her hair lashed out like fiery whips as she shook her head. “I'll never allow that to happen! No way! If you think I'm going to let those boys of yours commit acts of yaoi on my mate, then you've got another thing coming!”

  “Yaoi?” Kiara blinked. “Isn't that also called Boys' Love in English?”

  “Who cares what it's called in English, you disgusting, dirty old hag!”

  Kiara twitched.

  “Okay, now that was just rude.”

  “Your disgusting BL fantasies end here!”

  “I'm trying to tell you, that's not—”

  “Die!”

  The tips of Lilian's tails moved like a trebuchet, shooting forward at speeds no human eye could track. The two spheres of light situated at the very tips of her tails were launched at incredible speeds, mere streaks of light that traveled toward Kiara.

  They were dodged easily enough, effortlessly even. Turning her body to present Lilian with her profile, Kiara then contorted herself so that the light spheres sped past her on either side; one near her head and the other just inches from her lower back. The two spheres of compressed youki continued on, striking the wall at the far end of the corridor, leaving black scorch marks.

  Looking back at the damage done, Kiara whistled.

  “Phew, that was close.” She turned back to Lilian and smirked. “You've got pretty good―whoa!”

  She was forced to dodge another ball of light that came at her nearly twice as fast as the first two.