A Tail of Two Kitties: A Reverse Harem Academy Tail (The Fox and the Hounds Book 2)

by Jacquelyn Faye

  He sat and looked down at all of us.

  "How?" I probably shouldn't have asked, but I did.

  His massive head leaned over, and he touched his nose to mine, dead eyes staring at me the whole time. The effect was morbidly creepy. "I knew you would never free me, so I had an accomplice help me."

  "Freya…"

  He chuckled, the rumbling in his chest shaking the whole disk.

  "Freya? Fenrir! What have you done?" Hel seemed just as confused as we were.

  "Hello, sister."

  "Our mistress would never aid the likes of you, cur. Tell us another lie," Fress shouted angrily.

  His chuckle became outright laughter, his shoulders bobbing in mirth. "Come out…Freya."

  There was a shimmering next to him, and the goddess of love stepped out from behind him, walking sheepishly toward us. The kitties bowed low.

  "Mistress…we do not understand…"

  Freya shifted, her golden dress sizzling as it melted away. Her hair shortened, and her muscles thickened. He looked exactly like Freya, but a man.

  "Freyr," I said in shock.

  "Not as dumb as you sound, Little Fox!"

  "Who?" The twins asked in unison.

  Freyr bowed low, a sweeping gesture full of mirth.

  "Freya's twin. One of the Vanir, like her."

  "One who wishes to be rid of his ties to the Aesir. The only way to do that was their destruction."

  "So, you pretended to be her and concocted the whole ruse about killing him."

  "I am still shocked you would try to end me, Little Fox. You should have known better," Fenrir grumbled.

  I cowered a little and moved away.

  "Fear not. You are not the first mortal to be tricked by a god. Nor will you be the last. Assuming any of them survive."

  "Fenrir!" Hel hissed his name.

  "What, sister? Are you going to subdue me? Even my shell can best the likes of you." He swiped at her with a paw, lurching across the disk and threatening to spill us all over the edge.

  "Kaede, we need to go. Let them fight it out." Rome pulled me from my spot beside the wolf.

  "Where is our master? Where is Freya?" The kitties only had eyes for Freyr.

  He gave them a smirk. "Safe for now, bound in her hall with a length of Gleipnir loaned from my good friend here." He patted Fenrir.

  He had placed too much faith in the bargain he had struck with the god of destruction. Without a thought, Fenrir snapped his jaws over the upper half of the god with a sickening crunch and then launched his body at the wall of the cavern. With a splat, he hung there motionless, shock and pain overwhelming him, before he slid for a moment and then freefell into the nothingness below.

  "Dumbass," I said with a sigh.

  "Quite," Fenrir agreed.

  "You gonna kill me, too?" Again, I probably shouldn't have asked…

  "Free the cunning little fox who freed me? Perish the thought. You and your friends may go, you have yet to unbind my spirit in your mortal realm. Do so, and you will all live. No more games, Kaede. You are mine. My will is yours. Do as I command."

  "Sure thing, Boss." I motioned the guys to the other end of the disk. Fress and Kottr shifted, eager to find their mistress. If my blade could cut through Gleipnir, I would free her. It was the least I could do.

  "Kaede," Fenrir rumbled my name once more.

  "Yes?"

  "Do not plot against me, nor disobey me, again."

  "I won't."

  He nodded. "I shall lie in wait here until my spirit is free. Do not dawdle."

  Nodding once again, I climbed into the chariot. Frantic to get the hell out of Hellheim. Away from him.

  The four of us gripped the chariot, and we were off, winding around the walls of the cavern and going up, and up, and up. We spilled out of the mouth of the smoking volcano.

  Epilogue

  My tears made viewing David's body upon the unlit pyre nearly impossible. He was covered in a black shroud, but I knew it was him. I could feel it. Even passed on, I could feel him. This was truly the end. The last time I would have my heart broken as he was taken from me.

  The funeral was supposed to have been days ago, but Uncle had postponed time and time again, until matters were settled and I could handle it emotionally. I thought it was a hundred years too early, but when I complained, Uncle gave me a sad smile.

  We stood, the four of us, David's pack, by his body. Rome was on my left, Remy my right, and Roki behind me. They surrounded me, supported me, and loved me, even though they were hurting just as bad as I was. Not one of us had a dry eye. Even Rome sobbed as Fress and Kottr bore the body to the pyre.

  The rest of the school stood behind us, to bear witness and pay their last respects to their fellow student. Everyone but Geri. When she had found out what Steph had done, she vowed to all of us she would return with her, or her body. For the first time since she'd been bound to me, I trusted her.

  Lornca and her mate, who was just as shocked as the Kitties to find out Freya wasn't Freya, led Uncle to the front, on the opposite side of David from us. The elves began singing, and the words and melody pulled some of the pain from my heart with its beauty. You could almost feel the song guiding David's body to its final rest. They sang for what felt like days, but was over in a minute, and as the last note touched our ears, the sun crested the horizon, plunging the rocky beach on the coast into darkness.

  Tatsuo, shifted. It had been quite a while since I'd seen him in his full draconic form. He craned his neck over David's body, and I reached up to run my hand over his snout like I had done so many times as a child. The huff off his warm breath even made me smile.

  He stepped back and motioned for us to do the same. When we were clear, he raised his head to the sky, roared, and then spewed fire at David's pyre. The heat practically blistered our skin, but we didn't move. Couldn't tear our eyes from our friend and love until his body was nothing but ash.

  Tatsuo shifted back, bowed his head at us, and left. The elves opened an obsidian jar and sang once again. The ashes that remained swirled up into the air and into the jar. When it was over, they closed the lid and walked it over to the four of us.

  "I am sure he would wish to be with you. Keep him with you, or find him a spot for his eternal rest. He is yours, just as he always was."

  Fucking elves. They made me cry even more.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  "Hel is dead."

  I sat in the chair in front of Tatsuo's desk. A battered, broken, very tired looking Headmistress Lateran standing beside an equally tired looking Tatsuo.

  "Like, dead-dead, or mostly dead?"

  "This is not the time for jokes, Kaede. You have freed Fenrir's body," Uncle said sadly.

  "Well, I didn't know! I mean for fuck's sake…these gods play games like chess masters. I know one thing… It will be over my dead fucking body before I release his spirit."

  I still had the necklace on. It was the only way to keep him out of my head. When we got back to the school, I'd shut it down and been barraged by commands to go free his spirt. By the time I turned it back on, my ears and nose were bleeding, and that wasn't an exaggeration. I spent an hour in a very remorseful Lornca's infirmary before the headache finally dulled down to a roar.

  "Fenrir did to Hel what he did to Freyr. If they live, it will be a millennium before they heal enough to crawl from their prison," Lateran said angrily.

  "Forgive me if I hope they don't make it."

  Lateran snarled and lunged, but Tatsuo stopped her with an outstretched hand. "You can hardly blame the child, Isabella. Hel tried to murder her through your daughter's hand."

  "Another matter for which this creature will pay!"

  Ever seen a pissed off dragon? Even in human form? Scary doesn't even begin to describe it. He surged from his chair, and the room filled with the shadows of his invisible wings as he stared down at his hellhound assistant headmaster. She cowered and actually held her arms over her head.

  "She escape
d from prison, made multiple attempts on my niece's life, killed her classmate…and you have the presumption to tell me that you seek retribution?" His voice boomed through the room, over the school, and could possibly be heard in Oddi, maybe even Reykjavik.

  "No." She sobbed, kneeling on the floor. "Even though Hel commanded her death, my daughter let her own insecurities fester, and her heart became tainted. I do not hold the creature responsible."

  "That creature is the lover of your two remaining children and pack. I suggest you treat her with the respect that she deserves."

  "Deserves? She has been instrumental in bringing about Ragnarok."

  "Would you have fared any different with the subterfuge of the gods?"

  She thought about it for a moment before shaking her head. "No. Even Hel was convinced that Freya was who she claimed to be."

  "Then this is the last we will hear about it. We need to figure out a way to destroy Fenrir's spirit. That is the only way."

  "Agreed."

  I just nodded. While my uncle was scary as fuck, I was enjoying the little show. Mostly because it wasn't directed at me. I had to fight the urge to cheer mid rant. He definitely deserved a hug for all that.

  "What if we unbind her?"

  "The chain cannot be broken, Isabella."

  "That is what we thought. She has already freed Freya. Her sword pierced through it like a hot knife through butter. Maybe she can do it to the chains that bind her?"

  "Not without sacrificing herself upon her sword, I'm afraid."

  Lateran seemed a little too pleased with that outcome, until Tatsuo narrowed his eyes at her. "I am sure we can come up with something. She is a resourceful girl."

  I blinked in shock. That was the first compliment the woman had ever given me.

  "We will need help."

  "From whom?"

  "The gods if need be. This affects them just as much as us. At least Kaede has a voice." He nodded at me, referring to the debt the real Freya owed one little foxlike immortal mortal. Me.

  She was very grateful when I cut her off the tendril of Gleipnir her brother had bound her in. She cried a few dozen ounces of golden tears and gifted them to me, as well as my new feline guards and chauffeurs. As long as I didn't mind freezing my ass off riding in the back of a chariot in Iceland in winter. They saved us a bunch in gold coins, though. I wasn't mad at her at all, even a little. It had been her brother the whole time since I'd first been stabbed.

  "We shall see," Lateran said with a humph.

  "That is all, Kaede," Uncle said dismissively. He knew I had a hot date planned for the evening. I deserved it. No gods, no school, no nothing but a good time.

  "Thanks, Headmaster." I knew better than to call him Uncle in front of Lateran.

  He nodded, and I left them standing there, briefly wondering again if anything was going on between the two of them other than school administration. I hated to admit it, because she acted like a crone, but she wasn't bad looking. For a dog.

  "You ready?"

  I jumped four feet in the air and landed with my hackles raised. "Fuckballs, Rome. You scared the shit out of me."

  "We can swing by your room if you want to change your underpants."

  "It was an expression." I leaned closer to him. "And who said I was wearing any?" I kissed his cheek and laughed like an evil genius when he sputtered and turned red.

  "Are you?" he called after me. The kitties were waiting for Rome and I at the front of the school. I felt bad for having them wait for us, but I'd been called to the headmaster's office on the way to dinner. It was Rome's and my first official date. Kind of felt bad for him, too.

  "I don't remember if I put any on or not… Maybe you'll find out."

  He growled in frustration behind me. It was going to be a fun night.

  "You sure you want to do this?"

  "Do what?"

  "Date me. I'm kind of high maintenance."

  His hand on my arm stopped me from taking another step. Especially when he spun me to face him. "I've never been more sure of anything." He leaned over and kissed me. No heavy tongue dueling kissing, just a firm press of our mouths, followed by a hand sliding up my back. I whimpered from the heat of it.

  He was most definitely maybe finding out if I was wearing underwear later.

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  "Oh, my kami, I'm friggin' full." I lay back in the plastic bench covered in simulated wood grain and rubbed my tummy.

  "Too full to dance?"

  "Never too full for that. Want the rest of my cheekin?" I shoved my bucket toward him. There were only two wings left, but he still looked a little hungry. And yes, we went to KFC for our first date. I'm cheap.

  "No. I'm full, too. Thank you, though."

  I grinned at him.

  H-h-help…m-m-meeeee.

  I sighed and sat up. "Please tell me you fucking heard that."

  "Heard what?"

  "Voice in my head asking for help."

  "Um… I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it's probably a good thing I can't hear the voices in your head."

  "I'm going to go ahead and agree with you. Mind if I'm jealous of you?"

  "Be my guest. Have the voices stopped?"

  I tilted my head and listened. Nothing. "Yerp."

  "Well, it can't be a god or anything. You're still wearing your necklace. It looks much nicer on you now that the headmaster had it shrunk down."

  "My back is grateful for that, too."

  "Maybe it really was just a voice in your head?"

  H-h-help…m-m-meeeee.

  "Nope. Just heard it again."

  "What does it sound like?"

  Sighing again, I answered truthfully. "Your sister."

  "Kaede… You have nothing to feel guilty about."

  "You think it's a Freudian voice in my head?"

  "Don't you?"

  "Sounds pretty real and bitchy to me."

  "My sister is dead, Kaede. It can't be her?"

  "Didn't say it was her. I said it sounded like her."

  He sat up and looked at me. I mean really looked at me, staring into my eyes for a few moments. "Steph?"

  I smashed the top of my almost empty bucket of chicken. "If it is her, I'ma kill her. Why can't she go haunt someone else?"

  Rome paused to think for a moment. "Because she's not dead…"

  "Great. Then where the hell is she?"

  "Sabine could create and control the rifts into her pocket dimension… If Steph was in there when you killed Sabine…"

  "She's…stuck."

  Rome nodded.

  "Know what?"

  "What?"

  "Sucks to be her. I'll let Geri know she can call off the search. Come on. Let's go dancing."

  He chuckled and got up. Offering me a slightly sticky from chicken hand, he pulled me to my feet and kissed me.

  "Mmmm. Chicken kisses…"

  Author's Note

  Reviews are important for new authors, and I greatly appreciate everyone who takes a moment to leave one, even a line or two! Thank you so much for reading my reverse harem series! I'm writing away, and more books will be out soon!

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  About the Author

  A late comer to the writing game, Jacquelyn had always been a fan of romance novels and lately become addicted to the reverse harem category. I mean seriously, who wouldn't? Sitting alone one night she flipped open her laptop and said, "I'm going to give this a whirl." And thus, the Lovin' the Coven series was given life. She has designs on other series as well, but only time shall tell.

  As for her, she is five-foot-som
ething, with graying hair, wicked eyes, an eager smile, and an annoying laugh. She lives at home with her dog, a cat, and that is about all she is comfortable sharing.

  Connect with Jacquelyn

  [Twitter][Facebook][Email][Goodreads]

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  Other Works

  Lovin' the Coven Series

  (Reverse Harem- 7 book series)

  First Moon

  Second Blood

  Third Charm

  Fourth Rite

  Fifth Essence

  Sixth Sense

  Seventh Seal

  The Fox and the Hounds

  (Reverse Harem – trilogy)

  A Tail of Woah

  A Tail of Two Kitties

  The Tell Tail Heart