The Fox Can Love (Tomoe x Reader)

Chapter 14: An Old Enemy

(Y/n)'s P.O.V

Tomoe is out today. It's been a long time since I left my father behind for good. Life with Tomoe has made me the happiest I've ever been since mother died. What the future holds...I don't know. But I hope Tomoe will be by my side.

I stand at the counter looking out the window. When I see the familiar flash of white hair in the woods I can't stop the smile that breaks out on my face. I wait for him to emerge but I see no sign of him. Eventually, I go outside.

"Tomoe?" I say, looking around the clearing.

I hear a rustle and gasp as I see the flash of red and blue eyes in the dark thicket. Those were definitely not Tomoe's...!

I run inside and fetch my katana, gripping it tightly in my hands. Tomoe wouldn't be back for a while. I only had myself. Barely stopping myself from shaking, I hesitantly go back outside, keeping my ears alert. The intruder had to be near still.

"Show yourself. I won't play any games." I call out.

A dark mist of miasma fills the clearing as a figure shrouded in darkness slowly emerges.

"(Y/n)~" a deep voice echoes.

"Who are you?" I demand, backing away a bit.

"You don't remember me? How sad. You were once quite fond of me." He says, still inching closer.

Realization crashes in waves over me. Those eyes....that voice. I knew them. Byakko. The white tiger.

(a/n: Byakko was the Japanese version of the Chinese white tiger. He is sort of like a yokai but I could be wrong, and for that, I apologize. I'm altering him to fit with my story though.)

"I take it that you remember me given the look on your face. I didn't think you could forget the one you freed from one of the most powerful curses ever made."

My eyes widen. The curse that held him in the white tiger form.

"You bastard. You dare show your face in front of me?" I grit my teeth, pure hate coursing through me.

"An old friend can't stop by? What a shame." He says, finally emerging from the dark miasma. He looks the same as ever. White hair with black stripes, sharp features, and even sharper teeth.

"Our friendship ended long ago after what you did. Leave!" I say, my heart pounding.

He smirks at me. "Not until I get what I want. Give me the eye. I know you have it." He says, dangerously quiet.

"The eye? What are you speaking of?" I reply, racking my mind for a clue as to what he could be talking about.

His face grows dark. "Don't act clueless," he says, lunging at me, "Give me the Dragon King's eye and maybe I'll let you live. We could even go back to how things used to be~" he pins me to the ground.

I struggle under his weight, glaring at the feral man before me. I scream, kicking him off so that he flies back several feet, slamming into a tree.

"Don't touch me, beast," I get up, brandishing my katana with a murderous aura. He wouldn't get away with this.

Surprisingly, from the bottom of the tree, he grins, despite the blood running down his chin. "There's the (Y/n) I know. I loved you most when you were like this." He smirks, getting up.

"Love?! You never loved me! No one would do what you did to someone they loved!" I snap.

His claws elongate and sharpen as he leaps up and sprints towards me. I parry his blow, a shrill ring echoing through the woods.