CHAPTER 13
THE RETURN HOME
Shinkuro looked at the remains of his once-pristine mansion, at the rubble that had once been towering spires, the debris that used to be majestic walls, and the gardens that were now naught but ash. The Citadel of Light, one of the most famous structures in the kitsune world, nay, the entire yōkai world, was no more. It would have to be rebuilt.
“To think my home could be brought to ruin like this.”
A sigh. Shinkuro couldn’t truly blame the people who’d come to rescue Lilian Pnév̱ma, nor could he blame the girl in question. It was he who had brought her to his home. And while their presence had precluded the destruction of his palace, they had not been the ones to do all that damage.
That honor belonged to his son.
“Do you see this?” Shinkuro didn’t need to gesture for Chao to know what he was talking about. “This palace is now gone because of your reckless actions, because you decided to use the power granted to you as an eight-tailed kitsune for mass destruction. And you wonder why Lord Inari decided not to bestow the ninth tail upon you.”
Chao gritted his teeth, clenched his hands, and shook in place. Shinkuro didn’t even need to look his son’s way to know what he was thinking. His eldest was surprisingly open with his emotions.
His son quickly calmed down. “You have my apologies, Father.”
“Do I really?” Shinkuro murmured softly.
Chao lifted his head. “Father?”
“When you were younger, I used to think you would become one of the brightest and mightiest kitsune to grace this world,” Shinkuro continued speaking in his soft overtones. “You were brimming with talent, passion, and intelligence. Celestial techniques came to you as easily as breathing, and your thirst for learning exceeded all of my expectations. I had such high hopes for you. However, ever since Lord Inari proclaimed that Jiāoào would gain the ninth tail upon reaching his ninth century of life, you have been incredibly disobedient.”
Chao said nothing, as he knew that to speak out of turn would result in a harsher sentencing. He didn’t need to say anything, however, as the clenching of his fists said everything Shinkuro needed to know.
Shinkuro looked at the sky. It was a mockingly bright blue. It contradicted the destruction of his palace, of his home, so well that he wondered if Inari hadn’t made it sunny as a prank.
“I am no longer certain what to do, Chao.” Shinkuro crossed his arms and looked down at his eldest son. “You are my son, and you are very important to me. That being said, I cannot brook this kind of disobedience from anyone, not even you.” A pause. Staring at his son who knelt before him, Shinkuro’s ears twitched. “Which is why you are no longer a member of this clan. Chao, you have been officially banished from this clan.”
Chao remained silent for several long seconds that seemed to stretch into minutes. Finally…
“I understand… Father…”
“Then you know what you must do.”
“… Yes.”
Shinkuro turned his back to his son. The rustling of fabric told Shinkuro that Chao was back on his feet. Footsteps let him know that Chao was leaving. Shinkuro ignored the pain in his heart as his son left.
As a father, what he had just done was an abominable, unforgivable sin, but as a clan leader, what he had just done was necessary. A clan could not function if one of their members was disobedient, especially if that member was just below their leader in strength. It hurt, but this was all he could do.
“I am sorry, my son,” Shinkuro said softly to himself, his words disappearing into the wind.
Because he didn’t want to dwell on what had happened, on what he’d been forced to do, Shinkuro decided to bring his attention around to something else that had caught his interest.
Shinkuro raised his right hand to his face, touching his nose and the underside of his chin. Even now, the places where that human, Kevin Swift, had hit him still stung.
It had been a very long time since Shinkuro had last seen battle, and it had been longer still since he’d suffered injury. Yet, in the span of a single fight, he had been injured several times. Not by a yōkai, not by a god, but by a human.
A human had injured him. Hurt him. Made him feel pain. Throughout that entire battle, that human had been the only one to have dealt any damage to him.
What’s more, that young human boy had also broken through his Aegis of Infinity and Body of Light, which should have been impossible. Not even his two rivals, Hagaromo Gitsune and Delphine Pnév̱ma, could just break his barrier with a punch like that.
“Kevin Swift…” he murmured again. “I will be interested in discovering how a human such as yourself managed to gain this strange power.”
***
“Jiāoào! Jiāoào, where are you?!”
Fan gingerly picked her way through the rubble, avoiding the sharper fragments that could actually stab her if she wasn’t careful. She walked around a fallen column, leapt over a chasm, and climbed up and down several mountains of debris.
“Jiāoào! Are you there?”
“I’m right here, Sister,” a voice came from around a particularly large piece of debris. It looked like it had once been a column. After moving around it, Fan quickly spotted Jiāoào sitting on the broken fragments of a wall.
“There you are.” Fan’s lips curled with joy as she gingerly sat down next to him. “I was worried when you disappeared. I know there are not many places we can go right now, but still…”
Jiāoào sent her a grateful look; Fan’s heart skipped a beat.
“I apologize for worrying you.”
“It’s okay.”
Fan glanced at Jiāoào out of the corner of her eye. Maybe it was just her, but he was acting a lot differently than the last time they had spoken, before he’d gone off to America in his ill-fated attempt at kidnapping Lilian. He was quieter now, though this might have just been due to how he’d practically been in a coma until just yesterday. However, he also didn’t speak out of turn when someone spoke to him, and Fan knew from her spies that he’d freed all of the women he’d enslaved and made stay at Father’s second estate.
“Are you okay, Jiāoào?” Fan tentatively reached out to touch his shoulder.
“I’m fine,” he said softly. “I was simply thinking.”
Fan frowned. “About that girl?”
“About a lot of things,” Jiāoào corrected.
Fan pouted. “I still don’t see why you asked Father to let them go, especially after what they did to you.”
“Yes, I am a little surprised myself, to be honest.” Jiāoào’s self-deprecating chuckle bothered Fan immensely, though she said nothing, allowing the boy to continue. “I guess the reason I decided to ask Father to let them go is because I don’t think what happened to me is necessarily their fault.” At Fan’s incredulously scrunched face, Jiāoào smiled. “I know. That doesn’t sound like me, does it? It’s strange, but I feel like a veil has been lifted from my eyes.”
“No, it doesn’t sound like you at all,” Fan agreed. “Are you sure you’re feeling okay, Brother? You know that if you ever need to get something off your chest, I’ll always be here for you.”
“I know.” He reached out, placed his hand over hers, and gave it a squeeze. “Thank you, Fan.”
Hearing Jiāoào call her by name instead of calling her “Sister” made Fan’s cheeks burn red hot. She turned her head so he wouldn’t see.
“You’re welcome,” she mumbled.
Together, the two remained where they were and watched as the sun set.
***
Kevin Swift was startled awake when he felt the airplane’s tires hit the landing strip.
Several blinks got the sleep out of his eyes. He would’ve used his hands, but they were currently pinned in place by two fox-girls.
They had taken a normal plane to cross the ocean and reach the United States. No private jet this time. In front of him sat Kotohime and Abercio. The male kitsune had been h
itting on Kotohime ever since they entered the airplane. The four-tails had ignored the older man until his persistence got annoying. After which, she had bashed him on the head with the sheath for her katana.
It hadn’t deterred him much.
Behind him, Camellia slept like a baby, while Kirihime uncomfortably squirmed in her seat as the five-tails snuggled with her. The poor maid looked most uncomfortable.
After saying goodbye to the yama uba in China, they had met up with those two in Greece. Kirihime and Camellia had been waiting for them at the airport. Their greeting had drawn quite the crowd, though whether that was because of how many gorgeous and busty women there were, or because Camellia and Lilian had engaged in resonant bawling as they hugged, Kevin could not say.
Yawning, Kevin went about waking the two kitsune who were using him as pillows.
“Are we there already?” Iris woke easily enough, raising a hand to her face. She paused when she noticed how wet it was. There was quite a bit of drool staining her left cheek.
“Yep. Now wipe the slobber off your face.” Kevin was almost amused by the fox-girl’s blushing, but he didn’t pay much attention and instead turned to Lilian. He tenderly stroked her cheek while also tilting her head up and leaning down to wake her with a kiss.
Lilian moaned into his mouth as she woke up and deepened their kiss. Kevin took a moment to revel in this simple pleasure, the electric feel of her tongue sliding against his and her hands making a mess of his hair. He had missed this more than he thought possible.
“Beloved,” Lilian greeted, giving him one last peck before raising her arms above her head and stretching. Kevin eyed the tantalizing way her breasts, hidden behind a black shirt with the words “Weeb Pride” on the front, shuddered from the action. “I’m guessing we’re home?”
“Yeah,” he said softly. “We’re finally home.”
The group of kitsune plus Kevin were allowed to disembark with the other travelers.
Kevin wrapped an arm around Lilian’s, keeping her close. His other hand held the metal case containing his guns and ammunition. He was honestly amazed that he still had the thing after all the crap that he’d been through.
They stepped onto the terminal, following the mass of humanity. As people greeted each other or went off their own way, Kevin turned to Kotohime.
“How are we getting home?” he asked. “Are we hiring a taxi or something?”
“Oh, no. Ufufufu.” The woman giggled, and Kevin suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. Now that could not mean anything good. “There shall be no cab, Kevin-sama. I have actually taken the liberty of informing Kiara that we would be coming home. She should be somewhere within this crowd.”
It didn’t take long to find Kiara. It was easy to recognize her shaggy brown hair, sharp eyes, and even sharper business suit. She stood some distance away, further from the terminal than the rest of the people waiting, her single arm crossed and a smirk on her face. Kevin also noticed that she wasn’t alone. When he caught sight of the person standing with her, he immediately realized why his trainer was smirking.
“Oh, this is so not good.”
His mother looked downright furious. Blond hair framed her red face, brimming with anger, and her eyes glared claymores at him. Her casual wear, a simple skirt and t-shirt, presented a distinct contrast to Kiara. There was also a smile on her face, but it wasn’t a pleasant smile.
As he reluctantly followed his group, his mom’s smile widened.
“I hope you had a good time traveling around the world, Kevin. You hung up on me so abruptly the last time we spoke that I never got to ask how the weather was in Greece.”
Kevin shuddered. “I’m in trouble, aren’t I?”
“Yes.” His mom’s smile widened to the point where her eyes were forced closed. Kevin barely resisted the temptation to hide behind Lilian. “Yes, you are.”
***
After parting ways with Abercio, who had done his best to stay with them, much to Kotohime’s dismay, the group hopped into Kiara’s latest hummer limousine and went home.
Kevin had been promptly grounded upon returning home. Ms. Swift had confined him to his bedroom and not allowed anyone to visit. He’d also had all of his anime, manga, and video games taken away. Fortunately, with their previous home destroyed, he didn’t have much of that right now anyway.
Because their apartment complex was still in ruins, Kiara had told Ms. Swift about the condominium complex that she lived in and that she could get them a good deal. It hadn’t taken much convincing for Ms. Swift to get them a condo there using the insurance money gained from the destruction of their previous apartment.
The condominium they now lived in was a rather nice place; way better than the Le Monte Apartment Complex. Their new residence was a three-bedroom, two-bathroom condo with an office and a living-slash-dining room connected to a spacious kitchen. It was about 250 square feet bigger than their other apartment. The extra space was much appreciated, especially since there were more than just Lilian and Kotohime living with them now.
Lilian cracked a smile as she remembered Ms. Swift demanding to know why there were three more beautiful women living with her son. Kevin had introduced them as Lilian’s family and claimed that, after they met up with their wayward relative, they had decided to stick around in order to support his and Lilian’s relationship. That probably would have been the end of the matter had it not been for Iris telling Ms. Swift that she only supported their relationship if she was allowed to join in on Kevin and Lilian’s sexcapades.
Poor Kevin had been smothered by his mother after learning about his “manliness,” because apparently, having fraternal twins wanting to screw him was the definition of masculinity.
That still hadn’t stopped her from grounding him.
It was later at night. Kevin was still locked in his room, talking about something with his mom, though she didn’t know what. After brushing and flossing her teeth, Lilian went in search of her sister. It wasn’t hard to find the girl. She was standing outside of the door to Kevin’s room, worrying her lower lip.
“Iris?”
The black-haired vixen froze, but then she quickly turned around and presented Lilian with a relaxed smile.
“Oh, Lily-pad. What’s up?”
“What are you doing in front of Beloved’s room?” The wicked gleam in Iris’s eyes made Lilian shake her head. “Never mind that. I’m sure I don’t want to know. Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something.”
“About what?” asked Iris.
“Not here.” Lilian grabbed her fraternal twin’s hand. “Come on.”
They ended up on the balcony, which was a lot bigger than their previous one. Several lawn chairs had been set out, situated on what appeared to be fake grass, and three potted palm trees sat to their immediate left.
Lilian leaned against the wall and looked up at the sky. Twilight was upon them, and she couldn’t help but admire the thousands of twinkling stars. They always made her feel so very small and insignificant, but she’d never minded that.
“Lily-pad, you look like you’re thinking some deep thoughts…”
“You like Kevin,” Lilian stated, not asked.
Iris was taken back. “What—Lily, what are you…?”
“Don’t lie to me.” Lilian turned to face Iris. “You like Kevin. I know you do.”
Iris squirmed for a moment before her expression hardened. “I like you.” She looked away suddenly, her right hand grabbing her left elbow. “But I—I’ll admit, the stud’s not a bad guy. I could think of worse men to give my virginity to.”
Lilian nodded. While it wasn’t a confession, she never expected Iris to give her one. Her sister wasn’t like her. While she was always honest with her feelings, Iris was only honest when it suited her, and even then, her constant teasing made it impossible to tell when the Void Kitsune was being sincere.
She looked back up at the stars. “Do you remember the promise we made when we were younger?”
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Iris leaned against the wall next to her, so close that their shoulders were touching. She looked up at the stars. The night sky was reflected in her carmine eyes.
“How could I forget? It was twenty years before you met the stud for the first time.” Hesitating for a second, Iris glanced at Lilian out of the corner of her eye. “To be honest, I kinda thought you had forgotten.”
Many years before Lilian had met Kevin, and even before her grandmother had begun trying to find a mate for her, Lilian had made a promise with Iris. It wasn’t a promise between kitsune, or even necessarily a promise between sisters. This had been a promise made between two outcasts who’d had no one to rely on but each other.
“I could never forget such an important promise,” Lilian murmured softly.
“That must be why you’ve agreed not to go all the way with the stud, huh?”
Kevin had told Lilian that he thought fifteen was too young for him to have sex; he had asked her to wait. Lilian thought that was kind of dumb. Why wait for something they both wanted? She didn’t get it. However, she had agreed. Part of the reason was because she wanted Kevin to be happy, but another part was…
“Yes.”
“I see.” As Iris looked at the ground two stories below, a soft smile crossed her face. “I’m glad you haven’t forgotten. To be honest, when I heard that you had a mate, I got really upset because I thought you forgot our promise.”
Lilian shook her head, turning away from the night sky and sliding down the railing until her butt was resting against the floor. Iris followed suit. Now sitting with their shoulders and thighs touching, Lilian stared at their reflection in the glass.
“When we made that promise, I didn’t know anything about human society.” She bit her lip but continued. “For whatever reason, humans do not accept having multiple partners. They call it polygamy and some have made it illegal. They also wouldn’t accept a relationship between sisters.”
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