The Heart of a Fox

by T. Isilwath

  “The “lady” has spoken, Soka, now get out of here and go bother someone else,” he ordered.

  He didn’t want to hurt them. They were drunk and Soka was Hiroshi’s brother-in-law. If anything happened, and one of the idiots got hurt, there would be hell to pay. At the same time, he wasn’t about to let them lay a finger on Joanna either.

  “What? Your bitch too dumb to know the difference?” Soka taunted, then looked at his vixen with indecent thoughts written all over his face. “Hey, if you like it on your hands and knees, I don’t mind.”

  “Bastard,” she answered, spitting.

  Soka took one step too many and got too close. The drunk reached out to touch Joanna on the arm, but he was faster. He seized Soka by the throat, snarling and baring his teeth right in the idiot’s face.

  “Don’t you touch her,” he seethed, lifting the man up by his neck and letting his feet dangle.

  Soka choked and scratched weakly at the hand cutting off his breath. Unfortunately, the other two were too drunk to think straight and decided to go for Joanna while he was busy with the ring leader. Joanna kicked Taro in the groin hard enough that even he felt a pang of sympathy for the man’s agony, but then Hachi made the mistake of grabbing Joanna’s wrist. The drunk twisted her arm, and he heard her gasp with pain from the ill treatment.

  He immediately threw Soka to the ground, whirled on Hachi with a growl, and forced him to let go of his vixen by breaking his hold with a single blow.

  He hadn’t used all of his strength, and he even curled his fingers under to make sure that he didn’t cut Hachi with his claws, but he still heard the bone snap as Hachi screamed.

  “I warned you not to touch her,” he hissed, giving the howling man a shove.

  Hachi fell, clutching his broken arm, and writhed on the ground next to Taro, who had yet to recover from Joanna’s kick.

  “Filthy hanyou! How dare you raise your hand to us!” Soka threatened, rubbing his bruised throat. “When I tell Hiroshi what you have done, he’ll skin you alive!”

  “And I’ll tell him that you and your drunk friends came up here to rape a guest of the shrine!” he countered, furious.

  Soka spit on the ground in contempt. “Her? Why should anyone care about a demon’s whore?”

  He saw red and his fox came forward in an incoherent rage. He almost-

  almost- blasted them with foxfire, but Joanna stayed his hand.

  “Aki, no,” she whispered desperately, bringing him back to himself.

  When his head cleared, he looked at the three drunks and saw the fear in their eyes. Lifting his upper lip to show his fangs, he shoved Joanna behind him and flexed his claws.

  “Get out of here before I break a lot more than Hachi’s arm.” Some semblance of intelligence seemed to come back to the three men because they did as they were told. Soka and Taro helped a whimpering Hachi to his feet and supported him as they staggered down the hill. He waited until they were out of sight before turning his attention to his vixen.

  “Did he hurt you?” he asked, taking her wrist in his hand and inspecting it for injuries.

  “No. I’m fine. I’m more worried about you. You almost lost it there. Your hands were glowing.”

  “Thank you for stopping me,” he said sincerely. “It’s bad enough that I broke Hachi’s arm. I’m glad I didn’t do any more damage.”

  “Was what Soka said true? Will Hiroshi punish you for protecting me?” He thought a moment and almost considered lying to spare her the truth, but decided against it. “He will be angry. I don’t know what he will do, but he can’t fault me for trying to protect you. They did threaten to rape you and they are known trouble-makers. And it’s not the first time they’ve gotten into a fight over a woman.”

  She nodded, her face tight and drawn. “Okay. I’ll trust you, but if anyone tries to hurt you because you protected me, I’ll be really angry.”

  “Everything will be fine,” he assured her, holding her by the arms.

  She hugged him and placed her cheek against his chest. “I’m sorry things got messed up.”

  He sighed and rested his chin on the top of her head. As always, her scent calmed and soothed him in ways no other scent ever had, and he felt his fox blood cool and settle down.

  “It’s okay. Do you want to sit back down and watch the moon again?” He had no hopes of continuing what they had been doing when they were so rudely interrupted, but maybe they could regain the feeling of peace and oneness.

  “No. I’d like to go back to the shrine. There we can be guaranteed that no drunk assholes will come barging in on us,” she answered with a resigned sigh.

  He nodded and let her go, stepping back and turning to the strings of paper lanterns. Together they cleaned up the picnic site and gathered their things, then they made their way down the hill. Joanna had thought ahead and brought a backboard to which she tied the rolled up mat, the support poles for the lanterns, the lanterns, and the ropes. He strapped the board to his back and carried all of the gear while she took the leftover food, the dishes, and Iris down with her.

  They skirted the edge of the village, purposefully avoiding the festivities that were still going on near the center of town, and headed for the shrine. After their run-in with the village idiots, neither of them were in any mood to see other people. They were both silent, each lost in their own thoughts as they made their way back, and he did his best not to let the anger take him again as he was once again reminded of what the villagers really thought of him.

  ‘Filthy half-breed and his whore. I should have cut out their tongues for that,’ he thought darkly, and the fox in him agreed.

  Of course, if he had done such damage, then Hiroshi would definitely kill him or at least try to. Right now his vixen was too weak to return to the sacred grove, and he would need to leave her in a safe place while he went looking for the maitake. It would still be a number of days before he could even think about going to look for it. He wanted to wait until he was certain the maitake were at full potency so he had to make sure that she stayed welcome at the shrine until it was time, and that meant bowing down if the headman came after him.

  ‘I’ll just make sure Joanna doesn’t see it. I’ll tell Kaemon to keep her here if they come for me.’

  The sacred complex was dark and silent when they returned, and they slipped quietly into Joanna’s room. Akihiro wondered how long it would be before Ichiro and his family got back from the festival, but trusted that it wouldn’t be too much longer. Morning chores must be done in the morning regardless of how much sleep the person had gotten the night before, so he was certain the priests and priestess would be back soon.

  “Are you tired?” he asked, seeing Joanna yawn and rub her eyes after he had lit a fire in the irori to chase away the night’s chill.

  “A little. It’s been a long day.”

  He nodded and rolled out her futon from where it had been placed against the wall for the day, then he retrieved the blankets and made up the bed while she stored the dishes and Iris where they belonged. There was an awkward moment where Joanna seemed uncertain, and it took him a few beats to realize that she wanted to get ready for bed.

  “Do… do you want me to step outside?” he asked, blushing.

  “You don’t have to. I don’t mind if you stay,” she replied, slipping the long, billowy shawl off her shoulders.

  “Are you certain?”

  “Yes,” she insisted.

  Her voice said one thing, but her body language was saying something completely different. It wasn’t that he thought she was lying about not minding that he was there, it was just obvious that she wasn’t too sure about something.

  Not wanting to upset her more than Soka and his idiot followers already had that evening, he dutifully turned his back to give her some semblance of privacy while she changed. He heard the rustle of cloth and tracked her movements around the room until he heard her approach. Two hands stroked his back gently, making him shiver.

  “
Akihiro,” his vixen breathed, soft and sweet.

  He turned to face her and saw that she’d changed into one of her long-sleeved “night shirts” made of soft cloth. This one was dyed a pale pink and had flowers painted on it. He smiled at her loving face as she ran her hands over his shoulders and down his sides to the hem of the new shirt. He blinked as her fingers slipped under the fabric and began to push it up, sliding it carefully over his head until he was bare-chested. He noticed that she stared appreciatively at his muscled torso, and goosebumps broke out all over his skin when she lightly stroked his breastbone.

  “You know I don’t think you’re a worthless half-breed, right?” she asked softly, stroking the valley between his chest muscles with one finger.

  “I know,” he answered and touched her hand with his own. “You know I don’t think you’re a demon’s whore, right?”

  She looked up at him, her eyes watery, and smiled. “Yeah. I know.” He sighed with relief and gathered her into his arms, holding her close. ‘I love you so much.’

  He nuzzled her ear and she lifted her face, her hands coming up to cup his cheeks as she drew his head down. This time he knew what to expect so he opened his mouth and met her halfway as she kissed him. The kiss wasn’t passionate or demanding, but sweet and loving instead, and he employed the technique he had learned from her earlier in the evening to kiss her with tender love. He heard her sigh and felt her melt against him as they kissed, and a small part of him rejoiced.

  Voices and the sound of sliding doors announced the return of Ichiro and his kits back from the festival so he reluctantly ended the kiss and put on his green kosode to cover his naked chest. He half expected to see Hiroshi come barging in demanding to know why he had broken Hachi’s arm, but no one disturbed them.

  Tired from the long day, Joanna settled down on her bed and he joined her, putting his arms around her and snuggling with her the way they had grown accustomed to. Soon she was asleep, but he was still wide awake. His human side was still wound up from the kissing and stroking earlier, and his fox side was still on alert from Soka and his cohorts. He knew Hiroshi would be angry with him, and he’d probably be beaten, but the fire of rage still burned in his blood, and he knew he wouldn’t have done anything differently. He also knew that he probably would have blasted Soka with foxfire if Joanna hadn’t stopped him.

  He waited until he knew Joanna was deeply asleep before slipping out of the bed and going in search of Kaemon. Because of the Seals, he couldn’t go through the house so he had to go around the side and call the young priest out to him. Kaemon looked tired and smelled faintly of saké, but he wasn’t drunk, and Akihiro was able to explain all that had happened. Even in the eerie light of the full moon, he could see Kaemon’s disgust at Soka and his followers.

  Apparently the news had already reached the village (twisted to make Soka look innocent and Hachi blameless, of course) and plans for what to do about it had already been discussed. The only good news was that Hiroshi was disinclined to believe his drunken brother-in-law, but that didn’t mean that punishment wasn’t coming. In a way, Hiroshi almost had to punish him even though he had just been protecting Joanna. If he didn’t, then he might lose the respect of the villagers, and that would weaken his leadership. Akihiro understood this and accepted it.

  He didn’t want Kaemon to get involved, and he explained why. He didn’t fear for his own life, but cared much more for Joanna’s welfare. He would allow Hiroshi to beat him for breaking Hachi’s arm, and, in return, secure Joanna’s safety until she was strong enough to leave the village after he had gotten the maitake. Kaemon agreed to keep Joanna at the shrine and promised to employ his sister’s help in that endeavor. Akihiro thanked him and bade him goodnight.

  Joanna was still sleeping when he returned, and he slipped carefully into bed without waking her. She mumbled something in her sleep and rolled towards him as he snuggled up, and he put his arms around her and nuzzled his nose into her hair. Her warm body against his was almost as pleasurable as the activities they had engaged in on the hillside before Soka had showed up, and he wondered exactly how far they would have gone if no one had interrupted them.

  ‘Would she truly have mated with me?’ He dared to hope that she would have and that meant there was a chance that she would try again, maybe once they were back in the grove and no one would bother them.

  Nostrils flaring as he remembered the stink of the drunk men and their acid threats, he pulled his sleeping vixen even closer. No one was going to hurt his mate. He didn’t care what happened to him, but he’d die before he’d let anything happen to her. And he’d maim anyone who touched her. He knew he would.

  Chapter Twenty

  When Joanna woke it was well after sunrise and Akihiro was nowhere to be seen. She found that odd because he usually stayed in bed as long as she did just to enjoy the physical contact. Akihiro had an unusual penchant for cuddling, but since Michael had shared the same love of snuggling she was used to it. In fact, she could say that Akihiro was the only man she had ever met that liked cuddling more than Michael did. At least with Michael, he would eventually put some distance between them and wouldn’t hold her all night. With Akihiro, once he was in bed with her, he was plastered against her in whatever position they went to sleep in, and he stayed that way until morning.

  She didn’t really mind except that it made her usual position changes during the night a little entertaining at times, but he always seemed to find a way to accommodate her need to shift around. By morning, however, they were usually back in the “spoons” position with Akihiro pressed up against her back and his arm around her middle. It was their favorite sleeping arrangement, and it always made her feel protected. Sometimes his morning erection poked her in the spine, but she paid it no mind and drew no attention to it. She had a feeling he would die of embarrassment if he knew she could feel when he was aroused.

  Speaking of arousal, she could hardly believe how bold she had been last night, and thinking about it in the daylight made her shake her head at her own actions. She had practically jumped him, and was well on the way to ravishing him, when they were interrupted by the three drunks. She hadn’t been planning to kiss him senseless then throw him to the ground to have her wicked way with him; it had just sort of happened. One moment he was holding her and eating the last of the sweet new rice, and the next moment she was French-kissing him like tongue was going out of style.

  It had been completely impulsive on her part and totally unexpected. Even now, she wasn’t exactly sure why she had done it; just that she had wanted to at the time and had just “gone with it” per se. The evening had been so perfect and so wonderful. Everything had been going so well up until Soka and his goons showed up. She knew she had it in her to be sexually aggressive, but she was fairly certain that Akihiro was shocked to find out that she could, and would, initiate intimacy. Then again, she hadn’t heard him complaining.

  ‘He seemed pretty content when I let him grind against my leg,’ she mused.

  She had to admit that there was something powerfully alluring in knowing that no one had ever touched him the way that she did, and the idea of being his first was very appealing. She was experienced enough in sensual pleasures to ensure that her fox’s first time would be a memorable and positive experience, and she knew first hand that he was a very quick learner.

  ‘Hmmm, I wonder when we’ll have another opportunity to explore a bit…’

  she thought, feeling a twinge of arousal herself. It had been five months since she’d been with a man, and it was the longest she’d gone without since she and Michael had become lovers.

  She rolled over to face “his” side of the bed and hugged his pillow, breathing in the scent of him left on the fabric. She knew he loved her scent, but she enjoyed his as well. It was woodsy and wild, and held just a hint of musk. Even when he was sweaty from working, he always smelled good to her, but he smelled best when he was freshly cleaned and still damp from his bath.

&nbs
p; ‘What are you doing, girl? You’re playing with fire, aren’t you?’ her mind argued. ‘Didn’t you decide that you weren’t going to do this? Are you so weak that you can’t stick to your convictions? And what about Michael? Are you losing faith in him? He did say it would be okay, didn’t he? Aren’t you turning your back on him by being with Akihiro? What are you going to do when you die and he decides to kill himself because he can’t live without you? Is that what you want? Isn’t it too late already?’

  She frowned and hugged the pillow tighter. Of course the little voice in her head was right. She was being unfaithful. She was being unfair. She was being selfish and cruel to allow Akihiro to get so close to her knowing that she was going to die. But she couldn’t stop herself. So much of her situation was almost too much for her to bear, and being with Akihiro was the only thing keeping her from losing it completely. He was her comfort and solace. He was the only one who knew the whole truth, and the only one she could really trust in this backwards, strange world. If she gave him up, she would have no one. Even if he would let her go (which she seriously doubted that he would), he was far too attached to her now. He would probably follow her in death, and then his blood would be on her hands in the afterlife. She didn’t want that, but she couldn’t see any way to avoid it without leaving the village and going someplace where Akihiro couldn’t find her.

  ‘I can’t do that. If I do, I’ll be all alone… Maybe I am just a weak-willed, fickle girl…’ she thought sadly as she sat up to look around the empty room and shivered, her arms coming up to hug herself. ‘I wonder where he’s gone.’

  It was unusual for him to just disappear. If he was going to work in the village, he always woke her and told her he was leaving so she wouldn’t worry, but this time she had no recollection of him telling her goodbye. Although to be honest, she had been very tired by the time they had gone to bed, and he might not have wanted to disturb her. It was a plausible explanation, but an unlikely one, and a cold lump of foreboding settled into her stomach.