by Forthright
Tsumiko turned her face into his shoulder and prayed for the strength to reach safety.
Argent nudged her forehead with his nose. “Which way from here?”
With the bell tower of Saint Midori’s for a landmark, she was able to direct him to her brother’s campus and its dormitories. But which window was his?
“Do you still have my phone?” she asked.
“Yes.”
“I can call Akira to let him know we’re here.”
“No need.”
Lights flared in one of the windows, and suddenly, her brother was half-hanging out of it, frantically windmilling his arms.
As they drifted lower, she asked, “Did you do something?”
“Not I,” he said, traces of teasing in his tone. “You are to blame. Even a distraught, dimming beacon is a beacon.”
“My bracelet!” she gasped.
“In the same pocket as your phone,” he murmured. “Tsk. Do signal your brother before he draws attention to our arrival.”
Akira was clearly drawing breath to shout, but his roommate clamped a hand over his mouth and pulled him inside. When they reappeared, Akira sheepishly held out his hands in silent welcome. His friend anchored him there with an arm around his waist—wary and worried.
“Suuzu, I presume,” Argent said, coming level with the sill. “If you would be so kind?”
And Tsumiko found herself transferred into the young phoenix’s outstretched arms. He may have been slight of build, but he had an Amaranthine’s strength
“Hello, Suuzu.” Tsumiko tried to catch his gaze, but it darted everywhere except at her. Was he shy? Or … oh, dear. “Argent, my bracelet?”
“You are wearing my coat,” he replied, sliding the window shut and closing the curtains. “Not that you need warding if I am near.”
All at once, the stiffness left Suuzu’s shoulders. Quickly crossing the cramped dorm room, he set her on a desk chair and made way for Akira.
Her younger brother faltered. “Eww, Sis! You are gross. Crap, and she’s cold. Suuzu?”
The phoenix tossed him a blanket and adjusted the controls on a space heater. Akira threw the blanket around her, rubbing her arms to help warm her.
Meanwhile, Suuzu bowed low to her fox, “Thank you for caring for the sister of my nestmate.”
“I am in her keeping,” Argent demurred.
“As we must be in yours,” Suuzu countered. “Please consider our nest your den.”
Argent sighed. “Can we dispense with the formalities? I would prefer to mount a few sigils to bolster your defenses.”
“Please. And … may I, please?” Suuzu indicated the bundle Akira hadn’t yet noticed.
“The nurturing sort, are you?”
Suuzu simply nodded.
Argent sighed again. “I will not complain unless she does.”
And the young phoenix was back before Tsumiko, on his knees, clawed hands spread in a wordless plea.
“Do you like babies?” Tsumiko asked, unbundling her tiny passenger.
“We have so few,” he whispered, a gentle gaze fixed on the newborn. “I know many lullabies.”
Akira’s exclamation ended on a squeak. “Where did you get a baby?”
“It’s a secret,” she said.
“No, it’s a baby!” Her brother made a poor job of hiding the fact that he was counting his fingers. He mumbled, “Can’t be yours.”
She shot him a look while Suuzu took the infant. The phoenix’s reaction reminded her of Naroo-soh’s, all soft eyes and sweet nothings. Except Suuzu added a trilling that she doubted any human voice could duplicate.
“We needed a place to hide,” said Argent. His hands traced along the walls beside the window. “Among other things.”
“Stay!” exclaimed Akira. “They can stay with us. Right, Suuzu?”
Suuzu merely nodded, most of his attention still fixed on the baby.
“You’ll need stuff, right? Diapers and supplies and things?” Akira said, “There’s a twenty-four hour convenience store two streets over.”
Argent said, “I will compile a list.”
Tsumiko stirred. “Is there someplace I can wash up?”
“Sure. The bath is at the end of the hall.”
“Suuzu.” Argent’s tone held command. “Show me.”
Without hesitation, the phoenix passed the baby to his roommate and preceded Argent out of the room.
Akira dragged the second desk chair over beside Tsumiko’s and sat. He wasn’t nearly as comfortable with babies as Suuzu had been, but he was just as careful. And twice as curious. “Sis, this baby isn’t human.”
“I know.” Tsumiko leaned against her brother, resting her head on his shoulder. “I’m sorry I didn’t warn you we were coming.”
“It’s fine. Glad you did. But seriously, Sis. How’d you end up with a Rivven baby?”
“His mother asked me to take care of him.” She touched the tiny point of one ear. “He’s about as new as you can get. Not even a full day old, even with the time change.”
“Time change? Where did you come from?”
“England.”
“Seriously?”
She laughed softly. “Yes, although that should probably be a secret, too.”
“How did you get here?”
“Argent flew.”
Akira snorted. “And you two rode on his back?”
“Don’t be silly. We rode in his mouth.”
Her brother’s eyes widened, but all he said was, “That explains the damp patches. And the smell.”
“Sorry,” she whispered.
Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, Akira asked, “You okay?”
To Tsumiko’s embarrassment, her chin wobbled. “A lot happened.”
“Scary stuff?” At her shaky nod, he whispered, “Then it’s my turn to be brave enough for both of us.”
It was an echo of a promise she’d made many times over, on long-ago nights when he’d needed her to chase away the nightmares. Tsumiko was gladder than ever that Argent had brought her to this home. Akira had always been her reason to stay steady, to move forward, to stand firm. Yet tonight, her little brother had become her haven.
Letting a few tears dampen his shoulder, Tsumiko took comfort in another miraculously simple symmetry. As she had given, so she received.
FIFTY SIX
Kinship
Suuzu returned and crouched before them. “Akira, before you accompany Argent to the store, you will provide your sister with clothing.” To Tsumiko, he said, “The bathroom is ready for your use. I will accompany you there.”
Reclaiming the baby, the phoenix waited with one hand on the doorknob.
“I’m off!” said Akira.
“Be safe,” Suuzu replied, seeing him out.
Clutching clean clothes to her chest, Tsumiko murmured, “Ready.”
“Pardon me.” Suuzu bent close and slipped his hand into the pocket of Argent’s suit coat, which she still wore draped around her shoulders. Straightening, he held out her bracelet. Eyes downcast, he quietly begged, “Ward yourself, please. You are too much for my heart.”
The way he said it was really very sweet. Almost like a compliment.
She fumbled wearily with the clasp. In the end, Suuzu had to secure it for her.
In the empty hallway, Suuzu led her past several doors.
“Won’t you be in a lot of trouble if someone finds me in the bathroom? This is a boys’ dormitory.”
“Argent is skilled. Should anyone else enter this hallway, they will be diverted to the bathroom on the floor below this one.” Suuzu quietly promised, “We will not be interrupted, so take all the time you need.”
Tsumiko’s first impressions of her brother’s best friend were adding up—polite, helpful, cautious. And quite willing t
o yield to Argent. Was it because of the difference in age? Or was there a proverbial pecking order to the clans? Would a predatory bird rank higher or lower than a predatory mammal?
“Miss Hajime?”
At a touch to her elbow, Tsumiko surfaced from her ruminations. How long had they been standing outside the lavatory door? “Sorry, did you say something?”
“Yes. I will be entering with you. For your safety.”
“While I bathe?”
“There is a partition,” he assured. “I will keep your son while you wash.”
“My … son,” she echoed, struggling to keep up. Exhaustion was shutting down her faculties. Maybe it was a good thing she’d have company. In her current state, she might fall asleep in the tub. But Suuzu was a boy. She simply shook her head.
“I am aware that you have not given birth,” Suuzu said delicately. “However, Argent was clear. You will foster this new life. He will call you Mother.”
She wasn’t getting through. “But … you’re a boy.”
“Oh. Yes. I apologize.” Suuzu glanced worriedly along the hall. “Your bonded is permitting my attendance because I am immature and because I can be considered kin on your brother’s side.”
“Does that mean you adopted Akira?”
“He is my nestmate.” Suuzu gave up waiting and gently guided her into the communal bathroom. “By extension, you are my sister.”
Bonded to a fox. Brother to a phoenix. Mother to a half-dragon. Had there ever been a stranger family? Yet a family was exactly what she’d always longed for. She and Akira were no longer alone. And their little half-dragon would never have to be.
“Argent already filled the bath.” Suuzu indicated a bench in the changing area. “I will remain here.”
So Tsumiko crossed into the inner chamber, which smelled faintly of cleaning solution. The layout wasn’t much different than the baths at Saint Midori’s, and the familiarity spurred her on. Dropping her clothes into the corner, she soon sat shivering on a bathing stool, working a mildly musky shampoo into her hair. It took three times before Tsumiko was sure she was spit-free.
All the while, she listened to the odd mixture of words and whistling coming from the changing room. Suuzu must have been singing one of the many lullabies he claimed to know. Was this also a song of trees? Or simply a song of phoenixes?
With the last of the lather rinsed down the drain, Tsumiko wound a towel around her head and lowered herself into the steaming bath. Drowsiness swamped her senses, and she’d begun nodding when the singing suddenly stopped.
Suuzu quietly called, “He is coming.”
That was her only warning before Argent walked in. Sparing her the briefest of glances, he began to undress.
Quickly turning away, she demanded, “What are you …?”
“I wish to wash.” In a lower tone, he added, “Please.”
She risked a peek but shut her eyes when pale skin entered her periphery. Argent sat with his back to her before the faucets, already filling a basin to wet his hair.
“Suuzu is here and will remain here,” Argent said evenly. “I will avert my eyes from you, and you will give me the same courtesy.”
For half a minute, there was nothing but the smell of soap and the splash of water on tile. But then Tsumiko found her voice. “Thank you,” she murmured.
And Suuzu resumed his singing.
. . .
Argent left off washing long enough to tip back an entire basin of hot water, slaking the thirst that had tormented him ever since leaving Uppington. While carrying Tsumiko, he hadn’t dared to swallow. Only clench his teeth and run until his muscles burned and quaked, trying not to think about the new flavor teasing his palate.
He could still taste her.
Under the same circumstances, Nona and Senna would have been salivating heavily and licking their chops, savoring their prey’s fear, snuffing her light, stealing her soul. But fear had dried his mouth, and the bond had punished him. Was still punishing him.
And he wasn’t entirely sure why.
Hadn’t he acted with her consent and cooperation? Wasn’t this the outcome she’d wanted? His obedience—or lack thereof—wasn’t the issue here. And that worried him, because it meant their bond was changing.
Sloshing water over his shoulders, he took the time to wring out his hair before taking two white towels from the shelf beside the door.
“I have finished,” he announced, back turned. “Take all the time you need. I will wait with Suuzu.”
“I won’t be long.”
Tsumiko sounded half-asleep, and he was tempted to check if her eyes were open. But he’d promised privacy. Breaking his word would undoubtedly translate as disobedience … and further pain.
Snatching an additional towel, he returned to the changing area, where Suuzu was singing nonsense to the sleeping baby. The young phoenix shyly indicated a neat stack of clean clothing. “For your use,” he said.
With murmured thanks, Argent shook out a set of loose pants. Since he and Suuzu were similar in build, the clothing would fit, but Argent didn’t much care for the colors. Birds always did have a penchant for gaudy hues. The bright yellows and burnt oranges were most likely traditional to the boy’s clan. But Argent closed his eyes and sighed at the simple pleasure of wearing Amaranthine-made clothing again. Humans couldn’t hope to replicate the delicacy of his people’s wares. Airy as a summer’s breeze, the boy’s spare sleepwear suited Argent better than anything he’d worn in centuries.
“Will it do?” Suuzu asked.
“Admirably. Thank you.”
Suuzu murmured more niceties and scooted to one side in an oblique invitation. One Argent was only too glad to accept. Giving up every pretense, he sagged onto the bench. He had no experience with members of the phoenix clans, but in general, birds were as careful with their trust as they were with their clothes. Yet Suuzu was clearly one of the first enrollees in the integration efforts, and he’d laid claim to a human nestmate.
“Are you some kind of diplomat?”
“Not quite.” Suuzu briefly lifted his gaze to Argent’s. “I am the Farroost clan’s second tribute. My brother and I were sent to seek trust.”
“And you found it in Akira Hajime?” He shook his head. “What use is a school boy to you or your clan?”
Suuzu shrugged. “I have no regrets.”
Argent hummed, his attention drifting to the infant. Suuzu had not only washed the baby, he’d had the good sense to improvise a diaper and was warming him with skin-to-skin contact. That wouldn’t do. Not at all. “Give him here, lest he begin to believe he belongs in nests rather than my den.”
Once Argent loosened the lacing on his borrowed tunic, Suuzu yielded the little one.
This was his first chance at a close inspection, so Argent familiarized himself with his new responsibility. Unfolding the blankets, he stroked tiny limbs and tugged bitty toes. He explored the child’s scales and freckling, as well as six unassuming bumps that looked suspiciously like the beginnings of horns.
In their speaking-form, Amaranthine only differed from humans in small ways. But with mixed blood, a clan’s more animalistic traits seemed to bleed through. Gingko’s fox ears and this child’s scales were a consequence of the human undercurrent in their blood. And that blood was as familiar to Argent as his bondage. Just like Gingko, this child was a Hajime.
Suuzu asked, “Will you foster him?”
“That is my intention.” Argent settled the child against the blaze on his bare chest. “Learn my voice, my scent, the shape of my soul. I may not be as bright as your mother, but you will find safety in my shadow.”
The baby uttered a sleepy squeak.
Argent answered with a low thrum and promised, “You will learn the stories of my clan. You will bear the crest of my den. You will know the care of a father and mother, of a brother
and friends. Learn my voice, my scent, the shape of my soul, little one, for I am your home.”
FIFTY SEVEN
Nest and Nestle
Tsumiko pulled on her brother’s gym clothes, which were much too big. Cinching in the waist as best she could, she gave the jacket sleeves a push so they didn’t hang over her hands. Her little brother was probably still one of the shortest in his class, but he’d outstripped her. Which made her a little wistful, but also very proud.
In his own way, in this ordinary place, Akira had also found a special bond with the Amaranthine. His friendship with Suuzu was part of the peace that the Five were striving for. They were proof of what was possible.
When Tsumiko reentered her brother’s dorm room, everything was in shambles. Plastic bags with a convenience store logo littered the desks, and Akira had found extra futons somewhere. Suuzu swept past her and immediately began straightening rumples and smoothing creases.
Argent crossed to the bunked beds and knelt. Placing the baby atop the covers, he opened a package of disposable diapers. With the same flourish he used when opening car doors or serving tea, he replaced the baby’s makeshift nappy and dressed him in a white cotton onesie.
It shouldn’t have been so strange. He’d been around for all of Michael’s and Sansa’s children, and he’d raised Gingko. Argent probably knew just as much about newborns as she did. Maybe more. That much was obvious when she’d found him in the changing room—draped in saffron pantaloons, blaze bared, speaking softly to the baby tucked under his chin. Like a doting father.
Maybe he was following orders. Only she didn’t think she’d commanded him to care for the little boy. So Argent must have wanted to. For her sake … for the baby’s sake … for his own sake? Weariness left her brain too addled to reason it out. Now that she was warm and clean, she was ready to collapse.
Akira paused in unloading boxed lunches, steamed buns, and bottles of tea from plastic bags. “Sis! You look better. Do you feel better? Are you hungry?”