Come by Night 2: Winter's Moon

Chapter Seven - A Favor Owed

"Isamu," I whisper, clutching his arm. I am very afraid. My kitsune's miasma is terrible, and it does nothing to soothe my nerves. He shakes in his rage and I fear imminent violence. He has killed for less than this insult.

The very idea of what the tengu wants fills me with dread. How can anyone accomplish such a feat? To steal from the King of Hell means going there. The task is impossible. What if Isamu gets caught? What if he dies?

I am afraid I will lose Isamu. Tears fill my eyes, spilling over despite my efforts to hold them back. I am trembling and cannot stop it.

I hate the shugenja, his sly way of bristling Isamu. To hell with all priests and monks, may they burn forever! When he looks at me, his eyes leave the feeling of residue upon my skin, as if he can touch me with his sight. I shudder with loathing. I do not want to belong to this strange and cruel yōkai should my fox fail. I resolve that if it comes to the worst, I will kill the tengu myself.

"You will do no such thing," Isamu declares.

"You think not? There will be no rest for you, or your bride, I assure you. Rumor has it you have a daughter, too. What of her?"

"How dare you come into my home and threaten my family, Katsurō!" Isamu snaps.

The tengu sighs almost lazily. "You were never so prickly before. Your family has made you weak, white fox."

"No, they have given me redemption."

My breath catches and I peer up into my lover's fierce visage. I am his redemption? What does that mean? The tengu glances at me and smiles again.

"Katsurō..." Isamu warns. I hear the staccato trill reverberate in his chest.

This creature knows things about Isamu I do not and perhaps never will. What is this terrible past my lover does not wish me to know. Why? I watched him destroy my childhood town without a care. Is whatever he's hiding so much worse? Does he not trust me, in the strength of our rare and beautiful love, to confide the truth?

"You live inside a fantasy, Isamu. There can never be redemption for such as you. What will you do when your pet dies, hmm?"

Isamu says nothing, but I hear him grinding his teeth. His ears are flat, his tails weaving and wagging in glorious agitation. "I will find a way," my nine-tailed fox says.

The tengu laughs again. "As you will, kyuubi. Far be it from me to intrude upon your delusions. Still, you will do this for me, Isamu. You owe me and I have a need. I invoke our sacred Law of Obligation or Reprisal. Leave with me now, and we shall take this journey to Hell together. We were friends once, have you forgotten? Comrades-in-arms not so long ago as that. I will tell you what I seek along the way."

"Give me a few minutes with my woman and child first, 'old friend.'" It is clearly a taunt in how he says it.

"Of course," the tengu says, unfazed. "But tarry not overlong, Isamu. Our quest is time sensitive if there is to be success."

The other yōkai leaves the room, and never have I been so glad to see someone go! I hate him viciously. I grasp hold of Isamu, clinging to him as I cry. I feel like I am losing him all over again. This is a death sentence, surely! I thought I would have more time. I am traumatized. It isn't fair. I only had two weeks.

Isamu holds me and I crush myself against him, so his touch and his warmth will be a memory I can cherish. We cling to one another. Why is life so unfair, always ripping us apart?

"I love you," I gasp out between sobs. "Please don't go." I know it is useless to beg, but I do it anyway, unable to stop myself.

His voice is thick with unshed emotion. "I must. I will not live in fear every second, or risk losing you to him. My spirit cannot take it! The Law of Obligation or Reprisal is clear. He saved my life, Hotaru. This is the yōkai way. Without it, our world would fall apart. It is the only honor among thieves and predators."

"No! Please! There must be another way! We have only come together again. What will happen if you do not return? How can I live without you? Tsukiko needs you!" All my fears flash before my tear-blinded eyes. "I cannot bear it! Not again!" The grief crushes my lungs, sucking the air out of them. It is like the time I drowned. I feel lost and alone, though he has not yet left.

"You will endure." He rests his forehead against mine and all I can see are those brilliant sea-glass eyes. "You must be strong for me now. I can do this if I know I am returning to you. Please be here, alive and well with Tsukiko, promise me! Whatever you hear, however long it takes, we were meant to be together. I will always find you. We are eternal, you and I."

"But..."

His smile is haughty. "Think you that I will fail this quest?" He lifts my chin with his fingers and gazes down into my eyes. "I have every reason to return. You are the light that shines in this world. Nothing will stop me from clawing my way back to your side, Hotaru. Not even the King of Hell."

And such is the intensity of his gaze, his utter confidence, that I believe him.