Chapter 42: I've Got a Tail Too You Know?
1000 AD - Land of the Kitsunes
Lady Sora and Shiro watch as Senko pampers Nakano, which makes the Darkness retreat a bit, but doesn't make it go away entirely.
"What is Sen doing?" Shiro asked "she made such a big deal about going to help Nakano and she hasn't made much progress"
"Indeed" Sora said "I fear at this rate we won't be able to defeat the Darkness, or even make it go dormant"
"Well, then" Shiro said "there is no other choice. I, the great Shiro, will have to go pamper him myself… to his heart's content"
The Enchanted Forest - Fairy Tale Realm
Nakano returns home from a long day at work to see Senko… with another female kitsune
"So your him, huh, Nakano?" the kitsune asked
"Uh, yes" Nakano said
"My name is Shiro" the kitsune said "and I'm a kitsune"
"I'm sorry I didn't ask, she just showed up" Senko said "she said she'd leave after dinner, is that all right?"
"If you don't mind the cramped space, then sure" Nakano said "besides food is always more delicious when you're with good company"
"I agree" Shiro said "I appreciate your understanding" and they sit down to eat
"Thank you for dinner" Nakano said to Senko
"Yes, thank you" Shiro said "as usual, Sen, your dinner was delicious"
"Good, I'm happy to hear it" Senko said "Shiro, now that you've eaten, isn't about time to head back home?"
"Not quite yet" Shiro said "see there's more to my visit then a desire to eat your cooking, Sen. Right, I also have business with Nakano"
"Me, really?" Nakano asked
"Now, then" Shiro said, cupping Nakano's face with her hand "those who worship me are always happy, but you my dear look particularly worn out. Poor thing, you must be exhausted from your long day at work, that is why I'll give you a treat: just this once, you may pet my head!"
"Are you sure that's all right?" Nakano asked "you're not going to get mad at me and smite me, are you?"
"Of course not, I would never" Shiro said
"Well, okay" Nakano said and he pets Shiro's head as Senko watches while doing the dishes
"You can pet me if you want" Senko said, approaching them
"You like to get pet, huh?" Shiro asked Senko
"Sure, once in a while" Senko replied as Nakano pets both of their heads
"What lovely petting" Shiro said as Nakano finishes "I like you, Nakano"
"Okay… thank you" Nakano replies
"I shall give you a reward" Shiro said "tell me what you'd like"
"Whoa" Senko exclaimed "hold on just a minute"
"Stay out of this, Sen" Shiro said "I wouldn't even be here if you were actually satisfying him"
"Hang on" Nakano said "Senko's doing a great job, she's been a huge help"
"There's no need to restrain yourself" Shiro said as she summons foxfire "relax and give in. There's nothing you can hide when you're around me. My eyes see all, they know all"
"Shiro!" Senko shouted, knowing Shiro may be about to release something she can't control
"Release the desires from within your heart" Shiro said "tell me what they are"
"The desires…" Nakano said, falling into a trance "… in my heart… Let me…"
"Let me" Shiro repeated
"Fluff your…" Nakano said
"Fluff your" Shiro repeated "hold on, you want to fluff my tail?"
"That beautiful fur is white as the driven snow" Nakano said "it's so pretty, I've wanted to pet it all night, you have to let me fluff it just a little"
"No way!" Shiro exclaimed as she teleported away
"Did you see that?" Nakano asked, still in a trance "the fluffy fluff disappeared"
"C'mon, it's not so bad" Senko said "I've got a tail too you know?" and she let him fluff her tail, which slowly brings him out of the trance
Outside, Shiro watches through a window
"Look after that boy, you must be kidding" Shiro said "there's no way I'll be pampering him anytime soon"
"That's good for all of us" a voice said and she turns around to see the Apprentice "what you did was very dangerous, and in a slightly different situation could have cost us all, dearly"
"What did I do?" Shiro asked
"When you used the clairvoyance on the boy, you went up against the Darkness" the Apprentice said "if it hadn't already been starting to wake up from its dormant state, what you just did would have woken it up. Senko seems to been able to calm the Darkness back down. You may not directly use magic on Nakano… as any magic used on him may wake up the Darkness further. If it fully wakes, Nakano Kuroto may become the next Dark One…"
Nakano has to work in a field much further away than usual today and doesn't finish until after dark. His employer knows the forest can be dangerous to walk home alone at night so he offers him lodging
"I'm sorry Senko" Nakano thinks to himself, knowing she'll be upset he didn't come home… but also knowing she'd be far more upset if he tried to make it home and something happened to him
"Sure, thanks for the offer" Nakano said, but his employer doesn't respond, almost as frozen
"Greetings mortal" a voice said and he turns to see Shiro "hi there. I, the great Shiro, have come to escort you"
"Wait, hold on" Nakano said "why are you here? … And why is my boss frozen?"
"If you don't make it home tonight, Sen will be upset" Shiro said "and I froze your boss to stop him from seeing me"
"What?!" Nakano exclaimed
"Don't worry, I'll unfreeze him once we're gone" Shiro said "and make him think you went home before he could offer you a place to stay for the night. Now let's go"
"How?" Nakano asked
"Through the Enchanted Gates" Shiro said and she summons a giant gate which glows with magic on the inside. She enters the gate and Nakano enters behind her
"Woah, I feel like I just stepped into a fantasy world" Nakano said, looking around. He sees he's on a path above the forest and mountains, lined with Enchanted Gates on either side
"You're not far off" Shiro replied "I used the Enchanted Gates in order to make a shortcut. Hey, Nakano, seeing how Sen is a kitsune, don't you ever wonder why she does all this stuff for you?"
"Well… I" Nakano begins and thinks back to all the times he asked her, and how she avoids the question
"Have you ever heard anything about your ancestor, Nakano?" Shiro asked
"No" Nakano said
"Your ancestor and Senko were close" Shiro said "I don't know much about him, it was before my time. Maybe Sen's just using you as a replacement for your ancestor. Maybe she's not thinking about you at all. Are you really all right with that?"
"What choice do I have?" Nakano asked "my life is a wreck, she's always taking care of me and I can't do anything in return. So I can't blame her if I can't think about my ancestor" and Shiro notices that Darkness begin the flare up
"Woah now" Shiro exclaimed "there's no need to be so negative, that's not what I meant…"
"But…" Nakano began "if that's what Senko needs, I'm okay with it. The reason why doesn't really matter to me, but I'm just really happy to have her in my life, you know? And for what it's worth, I think Senko's happy too. Whenever I see her bright smile, I think she must be"
"If you turned out to be a bad guy, I was going to leave you up here in the mountains" Shiro said
"The mountains?!" Nakano exclaimed
"That's why we took the Enchanted Gates rather than just teleporting you home" Shiro said "I wanted some time to make sure you were a good guy and have plausible deniability if you weren't and… something happened to you. I suppose I'll let you have Sen for a while"
"Thank you" Nakano replied "you're very kind, Shiro" and she shoves him out from a nearby Enchanted Gate
"You can walk the rest of the way by yourself!" Shiro shouted
"Hang on, where am I?" Nakano asked
"It's just outside your village" Shiro said and she vanished and he heads home
"I'm home" Nakano said, entering his hut
"Oh, how I missed you" Senko said, jumping at him to give him a hug "I was starting to worry you wouldn't get home tonight"
"Yeah, I'm sorry about that, Senko" Nakano said
"I something wrong, dear?" Senko asked "…wait a moment… I can't help but notice you smell like another fox"
"I ran into Shiro earlier" Nakano said
"Shiro?" Senko asked
"I wasn't going to be able to safely make it home" Nakano exclaimed "but Shiro offered to bring me home"
"You spent the night with another fox?" Senko sobbed, tearing up
"Don't cry, you're the only fox for me!" Nakano exclaimed
"I'm teasing" Senko said, shifting back to her normal mood
Elsewhere, Shiro meets with the Apprentice
"Did he suspect a thing?" the Apprentice asked
"No" Shiro said "he briefly wondered why I just didn't teleport him home, but I told him it was so I could leave him in the mountains if he turned out to be a bad guy and he bought it. He didn't suspect it was because I didn't want to use magic on him. I also misdirected him into thinking Senko is here because of his ancestor"
"Excellent work, young fox" the Apprentice said "and his ancestor is part of the reason Senko's here, it should make the lie that much more difficult to detect. I believe I am close to developing a spell to destroy the Darkness once and for all, I only need a year or two. But in the meantime Nakano Kuroto must not be permitted to learn he is the host for the Darkness…"