“Eep!”
“In fact, I distinctly remember you crying when several bullies picked on you.”
“Ugh!”
“And I clearly remember this one time where I beat some of those bullies up for you, and you ran over to that corner and began to cry—”
“Alright, alright! I get it! I was a lot different back then!”
“Yes, you were.”
Kevin smiled at Christine, who turned her head.
“You still haven’t answered my question,” she mumbled to change the subject.
“Question?”
“My question. How can you know that you’re in love with Lilian when you’ve only known her for three months?”
“Ah, that question. I’m not exactly sure what to tell you.” Kevin shrugged helplessly. “I’ll admit, I don’t know everything about Lilian. I’m sure it’ll be a long time before I do. But, I don’t really think I need to know everything about someone to love them. Lilian and I, we just sort of work. She’s bright and vibrant and cheerful. She has a love for life that I’ve never seen in anyone else. Her personality, her emotions, that openness she displays all the time, I envy her ability to be so honest with herself.”
He chuckled in a self-deprecating manner.
“To be honest, when I first met Lilian, I was actually kind of jealous of her.”
“Jealous?” Christine wrinkled her nose. “Of her?”
“Weird, I know, but Lilian is just so open. She has no trouble speaking her mind. She says what she wants to say, does what she wants to do, and she doesn’t care about what anyone else thinks. In comparison, I was a shy kid who couldn’t even talk to a single girl without fainting or running away.”
“You talked to me just fine,” Christine said, referring to their meeting at the arcade.
“And you can thank Lilian for that. It’s only because of her that I’m like this now,” he fired back. “If it weren’t for Lilian, I doubt you and I would have ever met. Re-met? Whatever. My point is, we wouldn’t have become friends again. Even if I had met you before Lilian, I wouldn’t have been able to speak with you because of my… girlphobia?” Kevin scrunched up his face, then decided to just roll with it. “Yeah, let’s go with that.”
“Girlphobia?” Christine couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You were… afraid of girls?”
Kevin blushed, just a bit. “Not quite afraid, really, just too shy to talk to them.”
“Same difference.” Christine blew out a deep breath. “So, that time when you got me that… stupid cat… from the claw machine, the only reason you did it was because of Lilian?”
“I got you that cat because I wanted to,” Kevin told her, “but without Lilian helping me get over the anxiety I felt around girls, I can guarantee it would have never happened.”
“And just how did she manage to help you get over your… issues?”
Kevin absently recalled the hundreds of times that Lilian had tried to seduce him, either by prancing around naked, leaving the restroom door unlocked while she took a shower, or by wearing sexy lingerie and posing on his bed—desensitization at it’s finest.
“By being really, really tenacious.”
“I see.” Christine closed her eyes. “I… I guess I should have expected this.” She smiled at him, but it was a very bitter smile, the smile of someone who had lost without ever realizing it until it was too late to win. “I mean, you two are dating already. It was stupid of me to think you would fall in love with me just because I confessed.”
“I’m sorry.” Kevin knew that contrite apologies wouldn’t really help, but he had nothing else to give.
“No. It’s fine.” Christine sniffed. “It’s not your fault.”
Kevin didn’t know why he felt so guilty at the sight of Christine’s embittered smile, but he did. He felt like a jerk.
“Well!” The smile became cheerful, but Kevin knew it was fake. Christine never gave such bright smiles. “I think I’ll go back to the party. You should, too. I bet your mate’s looking for you.”
The girl didn’t spare him another glance. She walked past him and went on her way.
“Christine.”
She stopped.
“Are we still friends?”
Christine clenched her hands into fists. Her knuckles, already snow white, turned nearly translucent as they shook. They relaxed seconds later. She turned around and presented him with another smile. It was an honest smile, despite the tears that were starting to glisten down her cheeks.
“Of course we are,” she said before disappearing around a corner, walking in the opposite direction of the amphitheater.
Kevin closed his eyes and sighed. He felt bad—horrible even—but he knew this was for the best. He liked Christine, but only as a friend, and he needed to let her know that. Leading her on, giving her false hope, it would have only hurt her more in the end. It was like ripping off a bandaid; better to get it all out of the way at once, than to let it fester and scab.
Kevin re-joined Lilian and his friends. They eventually found Iris bumming money off of Justin. He noticed Lindsay looking at him a few times, but whenever he looked her way, she would be looking at something else.
They partied well into the night, staying up until ten pm before traveling home.
Christine hadn’t been seen at the party after their conversation.
***
It is a well-documented fact that all kitsune, especially females, possess an almost unhealthy obsession with their bodies. Every kitsune bears a strong urge to shape their body into an exemplar of beauty. While nature certainly does an excellent job for them, many kitsune feel that isn’t enough. Even though the overall standard of what it means to be “beautiful” is something that most of the world’s population has come to a general consensus on, each individual often has their own quirks and ideas on what it means to be “truly beautiful.”
Looking at the female members of the Pnevma clan, it becomes immediately apparent that “beauty,” as defined by them, can be summed up in two words: tall and voluptuous. Each member of the Pnevma clan is tall of stature and has a humongous pair of jugs--except for one of them.
Even Iris and Lilian, the second youngest members of the clan, are purveyors of incredible beauty. While not as tall as the others, they are still growing, and they are already quite shapely in all the ways that matter.
In order to fully grasp how the concept of beauty within the Pnevma clan works, one needn’t look any further than the clan's matriarch.
Delphine Pnevma has, for the past seven centuries, been considered one of the most beautiful kitsune to ever grace the earth. She is the possessor of a beauty envied by all, and is considered the pinnacle of what a “pure” Pnevma clan female should look like.
Tall with big breasts.
Sure, she has a magnificent pair of legs, wide hips and a shapely rear along with nine perfectly groomed silver tails, but most people are too busy admiring the ginormous beach balls on her chest to notice.
The kitsune in question sat upon a chair, a dais really, one befitting the matriarch of the most powerful spirit clan in the world. Kneeling before her, below the steps that led to her throne, was one of her daughters.
Aster, much like her mother, possessed incredible beauty. She was tall, not taller than her mother, but tall enough that she easily met the standard set by the matriarch. Her breasts, while also not as large, were more than large enough. Then again, it was pretty much impossible to have breasts larger than the matriarch's. The fact that she also had a twin sister, who was identical to her in every way possible, only made her that much more attractive to those outside of the clan.
Too bad they’d both unilaterally stated that they were only into each other.
Delphine was listening to a report from her daughter. While none of the females of her clan were allowed to leave the clan estate (except on holidays and extended vacations), she had divvied up the task of sorting through the information from her various spies
to her daughters. She believed it was important to help them learn and grow as kitsune.
It had nothing to do with the fact that she disliked the idea of more paperwork.
Aster and her sister had been given the task of sorting through information that arrived from France. It was their job to keep an eye on the political climate of that country, both human and yōkai.
She had been just about to tell Delphine something interesting when shouting reached their ears.
“I-I am sorry, Lord Shénshèng, but I cannot allow you to pass!”
“Please step aside, young man. I hold no quarrel with you. However, should you choose to block my path, then I will be forced to take action.”
“Lord Shénshèng! Please stop! You have not been granted permission to enter―”
The doors burst open. Delphine watched dispassionately as one of her guards, a grandson of hers, flew into the room and landed on the ground with a dull thud. He had a hole in his chest that steam still rose from.
“Was that really necessary, Shinkuro-kun?”
“I would like to make a strong suggestion that you never call me by that name again,” the one known as Shinkuro spoke as he stepped into the room. “Then again, I have a feeling that my words will fall on deaf ears, so I shall not bother.”
Like a good portion of male kitsune, Shinkuro Shénshèng was an exemplar of their species, combining all the masculine sex-appeal of an alpha male with the pretty boy looks expected of a bishounen.
Like most Celestial Kitsune, Shinkuro had blond hair; long golden locks tied into a ponytail that reached down to his waist. His clothing shimmered with each step he took. Intricate designs crawled along the stately garment, symbols of power that were arcane and esoteric. His robes were resplendent, if a bit ostentatious. Nine blond fox-tails writhed behind his back in clear agitation, contrasting starkly with his emotionless facade.
While Delphine noticed all of this at a glance, she was the only one. No one else could even look at him—his mere presence commanded those weaker than himself, demanding they kneel before him, that they accept him as their liege. It wasn't a technique. Like all kitsune who were gifted with the ninth tail, his very presence bored down on those near him when his youki was unleashed; an omnidirectional force that crushed everyone under its weight.
“Ma… there is no need to be so angry,” Delphine replied with a placid smile that did nothing to put the angry man at ease.
Shinkuro stopped several feet from the dais, right next to Aster. Although his face appeared calm, expressionless even, his presence, the essence that made up Shinkuro Shénshèng, showered all those present with unrestrained rage. The rage of a king. The fury of an emperor.
“No need to be angry? After what your granddaughter did to my youngest, I believe that I have every reason in the world to be angry.”
“Ah, yes, your son.” The placid smile remained, but the quality had changed. Whereas before the smile would have put people at ease, now it had taken on a condescending edge. “The one who went off without your permission, traveled to America, kidnapped my granddaughter, and sent his attendants after my family. Is that the one you are talking about?”
“Please do not try to place the blame on my son. His actions were indeed reckless and hasty, but we both know who is truly at fault. You promised Lilian to me. Though I am loathe to allow a girl bred from that Shinkuror, that traitor of a kitsune that you called a son to mate with my own flesh and blood, you still made that promise—and I will admit that her talent for the Celestial arts is unsurpassed amongst the youngest generation in my clan, even my own children. That is all moot now. My son has become a vegetable. He refuses to talk. He hardly eats. He cannot even go to the bathroom without aid.”
“And whose fault is that?” asked Delphine. “I did not force your son to go after my granddaughter. I did not tell him of her whereabouts. I specifically kept any and all information about her a complete secret--as per your request, I might add. If anyone is to blame for your son’s state, it is you for being negligent.”
Shinkuro closed his eyes. “You believe this to be to be my fault?”
“Of course. You are the one who did not keep your son on a strict enough leash. You are the one who refused to do something about him when his ego led him into making reckless decisions. You call yourself an enlightened being, however, rumors have been spreading, Shinkuro-kun. Rumors of your youngest owning sex slaves, of breaking young women, both human and yōkai. It is enough to make one wonder if you Celestial Kitsune are truly the compassionate beings that you claim to be.”
Shinkuro opened his eyes, and for the first time since he had barged in, there was true emotion within them; a fierce and burning anger. “What you're claiming is preposterous. I would know if my own son was committing such heinous acts.”
Delphine shrugged. “You are free to believe whatever you wish. I cannot stop you. It does not change the fact that rumors have spread. That you claim ignorance of these rumors is troubling, but that is beside the point.”
Shinkuro’s face twitched as he regained control over his emotions. Delphine smirked.
“You claim that I promised my granddaughter to your son. However, I remember making no such promise. I told you that we would try to come to a mutually beneficial arrangement by setting up mating ceremonies between a man of your choosing and my granddaughter, Lilian, to see if she found herself interested in one of them. I never said that these ceremonies would end in mating. You simply decided to indulge your son's insatiable lust by trying to force me into giving you that which is not yours.”
Shinkuro frowned at Delphine. The pressure he'd been releasing in small quantities suddenly increased. Those in his general vicinity gasped, their lungs deprived of oxygen, falling to the floor, hands clinging to their chests as they curled up into the fetal position. Matters only got worse when Delphine upped the ante, unleashing her own oppressive aura.
If the aura wielded by Shinkuro could be considered divine, the aura of one who commanded all to bow before him, than the one that Delphine unleashed was cold and bone-chilling, the tender caress of death’s embrace. All those in the room felt it, the icy hands clenching their hearts. The presence Delphine pressed upon them was every bit as impressive as the one wielded by Shinkuro.
“Very well. I see that your beliefs on this matter will not change,” Shinkuro's voice was more calming than a gentle ocean breeze. However, none of those who heard it felt comfortable. “However, do not think this is over, Lady Pnevma. You might be willing to try and slide around your sins, but I am not. You have committed a grave injustice against my clan and I. Every action has consequences, and the actions that you have taken this day will have dire consequences indeed. I hope, for the sake of your clan, that you are prepared to face them.”
“We shall see,” Delphine smiled, seemingly unbothered by Shinkuro’s not-so-subtle threat.
With those parting words, Shinkuro exited the great hall. Delphine extended her senses, feeling him as he left the Pnevma estate via the Shrine Realm Gate.
“Are you sure this decision was wise, Mother? This is going to cause a lot of problems for us and our allies.”
Delphine turned her head towards her first daughter. Daphne was a kitsune whose extraordinary beauty nearly matched her own. She was tall, about as tall as Delphine herself. Her long silver hair was tied into a series of intricate braids arrayed around her head in beautiful artistry. Her clothing, an off-white toga shaped somewhat like a dress, showed off her tall, busty figure. Daphne, as Delphine’s first daughter, was the princess of their clan, and she would one day take over when the matriarch decided to retire. She had seven tails.
“It will be fine,” Delphine assured her daughter. “The three Great Clans of Pnevma, Gitsune and Bodhisattva have never gotten along. This was simply an attempt to see if we could come to some kind of accord. To be honest, I did not expect it to work anyway.”
“And what about Lilian? Surely you intend to punish the girl
for her insolence.”
Daphne was a firm believer in supporting the clan. Acting in self-interest was anathema to her, and Lilian’s incredible selfishness was something she could not abide by.
“Ma, ma. I think punishing her is a little harsh, don’t you agree?”
“But Mother! Surely you can’t just―”
“We shall speak no more of this matter, daughter of mine.”
Daphne stiffened as the matriarch’s words cut through her like a knife. Her body shivered in fear. As the oldest and the one who would eventually lead the clan, she was allowed a certain amount of leeway when it came to how she spoke to her mother. That did not mean she could argue with the matriarch, however, especially in a public forum.
“Yes, Mother.”
Delphine’s placid smile put her daughter at ease. “In due time, you will come to understand that what happened this day was not Lilian’s fault, my dear. For now, though, do your best to put it out of your mind.”
“Yes, Mother.”
“Now then,” Delphine turned back to Aster, who’d had the good sense to remain silent while the more powerful kitsune were talking, “you may continue your report. I believe you mentioned something about one of the yōkai villages located in the Alps being destroyed by an unknown party.”
Delphine leaned back on her throne, resting her left elbow on the armrest and placing her left cheek in the palm of her hand.
“I am curious to know more.”
Afterword
Welcome to the afterword, home of the place where I randomly spout nonsense. Just kidding.
So, here we are at the end of book 4 to the American Kitsune series, A Fox's Family. I feel like this volume, in particular, is a bit of a doozy. In all honesty, it was the hardest one for me to write, and not because I was suffering from writer's block or something like that. The content of book 4 was brutal compared to the other three, I think, especially for a story that started off as a slapstick romcom anime parody.
A Fox's Family (American Kitsune Book 4) Page 41