Taking Rank

by Hana Steven

  “Don’t want to drop your toy?” she asks with a grin, just before my “toy” decides to yawn and reposition himself. “That’s a real animal!” she exclaims. Turning to Dad she asks, “What are you thinking bringing an animal into a bookstore? It could have ruined the books.”

  “But he’s asleep,” Gale says.

  “It won’t sleep forever,” the clerk counters.

  “I apologize,” Dad tells her. “It didn’t even occur to me. But I can assure you that he slept the entire time we were in here and we won’t bring him with us next time.”

  “Good,” she states. She hands Gale my change then says, “Now, please take it out of here.”

  As Gale takes the sack with our books, we quickly leave the store.

  Outside I ask, “Why was she so upset? This little guy didn’t do anything.”

  “It’s not what he did,” Poseidon explains as we start walking. “It’s what he could have done. With how hard it is to reprint books now compared to twenty years ago, I can’t really blame her for getting a little defensive of her source of income.”

  “Is it really that hard to make books?” Gale asks.

  “Not terribly hard,” Dad replies. “But years ago the process was automated by machines. Those machines don’t work in most places so the number of books that can be made in a set amount of time has become much smaller.”

  “Stores still have a bunch of books from before the shift,” continues Poseidon, “so prices aren’t too bad yet. But when the stock runs out, prices will go up because of how hard it will be to get more.”

  “Does that mean I won’t be able to find more Drake Tamer books?” I ask, concerned about not being able to continue the story.

  “That and the Space Fights series are fairly old,” Dad replies, “So I doubt they’ll be in too much trouble. It will be textbooks and newer series that will become harder to find.”

  “Not to mention there is a publishing company in Caspin City that can still use printers to reprint books,” Poseidon chips in. “Caspin isn’t too far from here, so our area shouldn’t see too big a rise in book prices.”

  “Oh,” I sigh in relief. “That’s good.”

  “But if these printers don’t work because of magic,” Gale asks, “how can they be used in Caspin City?”

  “Because there’s a Technomancer who’s really fond of books and movies who lives in Caspin,” Dad answers.

  “Can we go there?” I ask, excited.

  “Maybe next year,” Dad suggests. Pointing to my right, he asks, “For now, why don’t you two stay out here while the three of us go in there and get some supplies?”

  Looking over I see a grocery store called “Kings Market.” I look around at all the people passing by nervously. Suddenly I feel a hand on my shoulder and look over to see Gale giving me a smile.

  “Come on,” she says pointing off to the side. “We can rest on that bench.”

  I nod and follow her over and sit down, laying the little blue Kitsune on my lap. Sitting beside me, Gale pulls out one of the children’s books and starts working her way through it; I help when she falters, but she mostly reads it on her own.

  After several minutes and two more readings of the book, I notice a gaggle of kids eyeing us and whispering.

  Gale says, “You can come pet him if you want.”

  Apparently her hearing is nothing to scoff at, I think.

  The kids move over and stop an arm’s length away. They watch the little Kitsune for a minute before a little boy gets pushed forward and cautiously reaches out a hand. He closes his eyes as his hand nears, then flinches when he finally touches the little guy. The little Kitsune squirms at the touch but soon settles back down.

  I grin as the boy peeks with one eye to make sure he’s still okay. Seeing his hand is still okay, he opens his other eye and pets the Kitsune with a huge grin on his face. With the first boy not being eaten, the rest of the kids come up and pet our furry friend. They enjoy themselves for a few moments before their parents call them back.

  “Bye,” I call out as they leave.

  “Buh-bye,” Gale echoes.

  Our little charge yawns and stretches on my lap. He looks around a bit then looks up to me and whines.

  “I think he’s hungry,” Gale says.

  “Good thing Jenna gave us that bottle, then,” I say, grabbing it from where I stashed it in the bag with the books.

  The little guy smells the bottle as I hold it out to him and after a few good sniffs he starts drinking. Faster than I thought was possible, the little guy drains the bottle and curls back up on my lap, asleep again.

  “Wow,” Gale exclaims. “I thought I ate fast.”

  “Jenna did say he probably hadn’t eaten for days,” I remind her. “I know I practically inhale my food when it’s been a long time since I ate.”

  Gale giggles, and then says, “Yeah, like five minutes.”

  Expecting a quip like that, I retort, “At least I last more than the three you manage.”

  “Hey,” Gale whines with a fake hurt look. “A Kitsune has to eat.”

  We both start laughing until the little Kitsune squirms, shutting us both up quite well.

  “Guess we should be quieter,” Gale states.

  I nod, making sure the little guy is back to sleep.

  Several more minutes pass as Gale reads.

  “These are boring,” she moans, stuffing the book back in the bag and fumbling for a different one. “I’m going to try Star Monk’s Disciple.”

  “Sorry we took so long,” Dad calls as the three of them move our way.

  “That’s okay,” I reply.

  “Yeah,” Gale agrees. “I read a book and some kids came over to pet this little guy.”

  “Well, then,” Poseidon begins. “Do you girls have anywhere else you want to go? Or should we just wander?”

  “I don’t think there’s anywhere else I want to go,” I say thoughtfully.

  “Same,” Gale agrees.

  “Then we can just wander around and look at the stalls,” Dad says, motioning to the rows of stalls along the road.

  Gale gets to her feet then picks up our charge from my lap, cradling him in her arms.

  Standing up myself, I grab the bag of books and say, “Let’s go.”

  We spend the next hour moving from one stall to the next. We don’t buy much but we each find a few things that catch our eyes. Gale and I find a pair of matching fox pendants at a stall of hand crafted jewelry. At our request, the woman who made them puts them on chains so we can wear them as necklaces—best fifteen Klen I’ve spent today.

  As the afternoon wears on, we gradually start working our way back to Jenna’s pet shop. With the sun arcing toward the western horizon, we arrive in front of the shop.

  Stepping inside, I call out, “We’re back.”

  I hear a muffled reply from further within as Poseidon, once again, picks up a puppy to cuddle. I dig the now empty bottle out of the bag and set it on the counter just in time to see Jenna approaching from down an aisle.

  “I thought I heard your voice,” she greets. Turning to Gale and our small charge, she asks “How was he?”

  “He slept, for the most part,” Gale replies.

  Holding up the bottle, I add, “He woke up and downed this in record time, then went back to sleep.”

  “He even got petted by some excited kids,” Gale says.

  “He allowed that?” Jenna asks, surprised.

  “He was asleep,” I explain. “But he didn’t seem bothered by it.”

  “Really, now,” Jenna says, looking at the young Kitsune.

  As if sensing her gaze, the little fellow gives a big yawn and lifts his head. He looks around then focuses on Jenna. Jenna, in turn, holds out a hand to him. The little one backs away from her hand but Gale pets his head.

  “It’s okay,” she says, taking Jenna’s hand. “She’s nice. See?”

  Gale moves Jenna’s hand toward him. As her hand nears him again, he backs aw
ay but then cautiously gives her hand a sniff.

  Seeing that he is still wary, I hold my hand out to him as well. “You remember me?”

  He sniffs at my fingers before rubbing his head against them.

  “She’s just like me,” I continue, dropping my transformation.

  The little blue Kitsune cocks his head before sniffing me again. He looks up to me then back to Gale before looking back to Jenna’s hand and giving it another sniff. He then looks back to me before nuzzling into Jenna’s hand, keening in hunger again.

  Jenna picks the little guy up then heads behind the counter where she retrieves another bottle and proceeds to feed him.

  “I can’t thank you two enough,” she says, somehow managing to hold the Kitsune and the bottle with one arm while digging behind the counter with the other. “This is for watching him,” she says, laying a small pile of Klen on the counter.

  “Cool,” Gale says, picking up the money.

  As she flips through it, the door opens behind us and a little boy’s voice calls out, “It’s the fox girl!”

  Gale and I turn to the newcomers. Standing just inside the door are Billy and his mom—the former looking excited, the latter disgusted.

  “Hi, Billy!” Gale waves.

  “Hello,” I echo.

  “What are you doing here?” Billy asks as he hurries over.

  “Billy! Get back over here!” his mom calls out frantically, reaching out to the boy.

  “Why?” Billy asks. “They’re my friends.”

  His mom shifts her attention from Billy to Gale. “What have you done to my son, you monster?” she shrieks.

  “What?” Gale and I ask together, completely confused.

  “What! Have! You done! To my son!”

  “Uh,” Gale begins, uncertainly. “I said hi?”

  “Don’t talk back to me, you monster!” the woman retorts.

  “Gale isn’t a monster, you meanie,” I defend my sister.

  “Silence, girl,” she tells me. “You are clearly confused.”

  “Okay,” Dad interrupts. “I think this has gone far enough. I don’t know what you have against Gale, but I can vouch for her being a very well-behaved girl.”

  “That thing is not a girl,” she argues. “A girl wouldn’t have those monstrous appendages.”

  “Appendages?” I ask.

  “Those ears and that tail,” she explains, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

  “What’s wrong with having ears and a tail?” Gale asks.

  “Yeah, she’s a Kitsune,” I add. “And I think she’s adorable.”

  “Normal people don’t have ears like that,” she retorts. “And only beasts and monsters have tails.”

  “Am I a beast?” I ask, starting to get upset. “Am I a monster?”

  “No,” she replies. “You’re just a confused little girl.”

  “Well,” I argue, “I have fox ears and tails.” I recast my Kitsune spell, wind swirling up around me briefly.

  “Monster!” she shouts as I am revealed.

  Running forward, she shoves Gale and me out of the way and pulls Billy back to the door with her.

  “Hey!” Gale exclaims, catching herself before she topples into the puppy pen.

  I bump into a set of shelves before asking, “What is your problem?”

  “I won’t let you monsters corrupt my son!” she screams at us.

  As I watch her, shocked at how scared of her Billy looks, she conjures a Fireball in her hand, brandishing it at us.

  “That’s enough,” Dad says, stepping toward the woman. “Don’t do something you’ll regret.”

  As the woman’s attention shifts to Dad, I spot Erik duck out the door behind her.

  “You’re scaring Billy,” Gale says, pointing at the boy.

  “I’m not the scary thing here,” she retorts. “You are.”

  She hurls the Fireball at Gale who blocks the attack with a simple Aegis. Not missing the chance, I use a well-placed wind spell to break her hold on Billy. Moving to catch the boy I knocked off balance, I trigger a Parasite Snare to restrain his mom and prevent her from casting more spells.

  “Well,” Jenna says. “You lot certainly know how to take care of yourselves.”

  “Why is my mom acting so mean?” Billy asks me, half crying.

  “I don’t know,” I answer honestly.

  “Some people just don’t like change,” Dad explains, kneeling down before us. “And a lot has changed recently.” He then turns to me and says, “Erik went to get an enforcer. Why don’t you and Gale take Billy to see the animals?”

  “Okay,” I agree. Taking Billy’s hand, I lead him back into the store, “Come on, Billy. There are bunnies in the back.”

  “Will you girls watch this guy for a little bit, too?” Jenna asks us.

  I nod as Gale takes the now trembling Kitsune from her. With both Kitsune and boy in tow, we make our way back into the store. Billy looks behind us until the scene up front is well out of sight.

  Chapter 10

  New Leash on Life

  “Is my mommy going to be okay?” Billy asks as we reach the rabbits.

  “I’m sure she’ll be okay,” I assure him. “She just needs to have a talk with some people.”

  “Lookie here,” Gale says, pointing to a cage with some small rabbits in it. “Baby bunnies.”

  Billy looks over to her, but rather than the bunnies, I see his attention caught by our little blue charge.

  “Is that a fox?” he asks, pointing at the young Kitsune.

  “Huh?” Gale asks. Following his finger she answers, “He’s a Kitsune, like me.”

  “Can I hold him?” Billy asks.

  “We can see,” I tell him. “Hold your hand out and let him smell you.”

  Billy does as I instruct and holds his hand out to the little guy. Cautiously, the blue Kitsune sniffs at Billy’s fingers before giving them a lick. Billy giggles and starts to scratch behind his ears.

  “Looks like he’s okay with it,” Gale says, handing him over to Billy.

  “Hello there, little Frost,” Billy coos, cradling the now purring Kitsune.

  “Frost?” Gale asks.

  I’m about to ask the same, but a thought occurs to me, “Is that his name?”

  “Uh-huh,” Billy answers with a nod. “Didn’t you know that?”

  Gale looks to me, realization blooming in her expression.

  “Familiars,” we say together.

  “What’s that? Billy asks, looking at us confused. “And how did you say that together like that?”

  “Familiars are two beings who share a special connection,” I explain. “Gale and I are familiars, which is probably why we can talk together like that.”

  “Oh,” he says. “Why are they important?”

  “How did you know that his name is Frost?” Gale asks him, pointing at the little Kitsune.

  “I just…did,” Billy answers slowly.

  “It’s the same thing that happened to me when Gale and I met,” I tell him. As a thought hits me, I turn to Gale, “Was your name Gale before we met? Or did I give it to you?”

  “Kind of both,” she replies with a shrug. “Foxes don’t really have names like you think of them, but Gale kind of sums up my ‘name’ in fox. Regardless, I like it.”

  “Wait,” Billy says. “Does that mean Frost is my familiar?”

  “It sure looks that way,” I reply.

  “So does that mean I get to keep him?” the boy asks.

  “He’s not a pet,” Gale explains. “But yes, that is essentially what that means.”

  “Cool!” Billy says, nuzzling his new friend to his cheek. After a moment, though, he pauses, “What if Mommy doesn’t let me keep him?”

  “Maybe Jenna will watch him here,” Gale suggests, “and you can come visit him.”

  Billy looks down at Frost, worry clear on his face. After a moment he asks, “Why was my mom so mad? Why doesn’t she like you?”

  “Some p
eople just don’t like things, or people, that are different,” I answer. “But to be honest, I haven’t had someone act that mean.”

  “Yeah,” Gale agrees. “I’ve been called childish and bratty, but never a monster.” With a giggle, she adds, “‘Monster’ isn’t that far off, though.”

  “You’re not a monster,” Billy says quickly.

  “I know,” Gale tells him. “But I’m not human either. For some, that’s all it takes, apparently.”

  “There you kids are,” Poseidon says as she comes around a corner. “We need you back up front.”

  “Okay,” I say, heading toward her.

  I hear Gale and Billy following me as I in turn follow Poseidon back to the front of the store. When we get there I see a man in an enforcer uniform talking to Dad and Jenna. Billy’s mom is still restrained where I left her.

  “Are you girls okay?” Erik asks as we come into sight.

  “We’re fine,” Gale answers. Teasing, she asks, “Were you worried?”

  Erik rolls his eyes then spots Billy and Frost. “That little guy seems to be less wary now,” he comments.

  “For good reason,” I half answer.

  Apparently hearing us, Dad calls out, "Come over here, please, kids.”

  We all move over to the talking adults who are watching us now.

  When we arrive, Dad continues, “We were just explaining to Officer Gerald here what happened a few minutes ago.”

  “How long are you going to just stand there,” Billy’s mom exclaims. “Those monsters are right there! Deal with them and free me.”

  The enforcer looks over to the woman then turns back to us.

  “I’ve heard what happened from these two, but I want to hear what happened from you, as well,” he informs us. He turns to Dad and Jenna. “If you would please keep quit while I talk to them. Now then, kids, if you would please explain what happened, starting from when you got here up until now.”

  I nod as I see Gale and Billy do the same. “We returned here to bring Frost back to Jenna,” I begin.

  “Frost?” Jenna asks, confused.

  “Please,” the enforcer says with a glance to her. “No interruptions.”

  “We had just handed him over to Jenna,” Gale picks up, “who started feeding him a bottle when Billy and his mom arrived.”

  “I was excited to see Gale again,” Billy adds, “and hurried over to say ‘hi.’”