Vixen

"Someday I'll make it to the end of a fight," I said, massaging my head. Most of the recoil pain had faded, all except for the hangover headache pressing against the back of my eyes.

"How are—"

My cheeks flushed when Yahime scooped me into her arms and I begged her to put me down as she carried me across the cavern to the battered fox woman slumped against the wall.

"Is that?"

"same… fox girl…"

Same? The robes certainly were. I had my suspicions. I just wanted to hear the answer from the source. Once Yahime set me down, I knelt down to examine the woman.

The black Dusk skin had receded. There were still splotches; they'd become fluid like Yahime's skin, I guessed from absorbing Essence Stones. Her face reminded me of Bixey's if I imagined Bixey with a fox's face and her clothes were nearly identical as well. The largest differences were in her hair and measurements. Unlike Bixey's orange and burnt orange and grey hair, Lady Hanabi's was like a summer sky: cloud white with sky blue streaks throughout. Even slumped over I could tell she was a great deal taller than me and the rest of her body… I pulled my cloak over my chest. Aurelie's already made me ashamed of my original body and Lady Hanabi's made me never want to go out in public again.

"Lady Hanabi?"

I gingerly nudged her shoulder. My heart sank when she fell over and it was only when I saw her blessings rising and falling that I relaxed.

That's good. I'd hate to tell Lucinda I'd found her hero and killed her. Let's try to patch her up.

My biggest concern was black splotches. They seemed benign, but I worried they would re-possess her if left alone.

"Can you do anything about those?" I asked Yahime. "Like use [SOUL ABSORPTION]?"

Her eyes flickered as she rested her hand on one of the spots. The spot resisted before finally being sucked up like water through a straw. Yahime repeated the process several more times until all the spots we could see were gone. Then we rolled her over and checked beneath her clothes. I felt bad and mildly embarrassed to be peeking without permission, but her safety was more important than her dignity.

ALERT

FAMILIAR YAHIME HAS UNLOCKED A NEW SKILL.

[ONE OF MANY]

I was curious about Yahime's new skill, but decided to prioritize Lady Hanabi's health. I used [HEALING TOUCH] and after a few minutes the kitsune's eyes fluttered open. Like Bixey's they were narrow and sharp, just amber yellow instead of blue.

"Who… where…"

"Take it easy," I said, helping the woman sit up. "Are you Lady Hanabi?"

She scrunched her face and waved her hand dismissively.

"Lose the 'Lady' nonsense. I hate that stuffy stuff."

"Then I'll take it, you are."

"Yeah. So what happened to me? I feel like I've been trapped in an endless hangover."

I explained the situation to Hanabi. She took it rather well. Even the part about losing the last decade of her life.

"When you're as old as I am, a decade is like a day. That said, I appreciate you freeing me. I would have been stuck with that starved Dusk until we turned to dust if you hadn't come."

"Why were you even here? Lucinda said you got drunk one night and wandered off."

Hanabi laughed dryly and tried to push herself to her feet. She didn't quite make it and I had to help her.

"I remember a party and arguing with someone that there was hidden ruin up here. I think I stumbled into the cave to prove a point and…" Her face scrunched again as she tried to remember. "I remember a black shadow attacking me. I tried to fight it off and almost won before it stepped on one of those stones. Then I was stumbling in the dark in a dream that I couldn't wake from."

That sounds awful. Even if it was only a little, she was conscious the whole time. It's a good thing her sense of time is different. If it had been me I would have gone insane, saved or not.

"Just rest for now. Yahime and I are going to take a look around and then we'll take you back to Stonewood."

Hanabi's brow raised like she'd only just noticed Yahime. I'd had her transform to avoid traumatizing Hanabi and debated whether I should keep her identity a secret for the time being. I ended up coming clean. She took it fairly well all things considered. Only a short outburst before her fatigue subdued her.

"mother…"

I tripped over my foot. Was she talking to me?

"fox woman… mother…"

"Yeah. I thought so, too. I plan to ask her directly once we get back."

I left Hanabi to rest while I explored the rest of the cavern. Aside from the prodigious size and the glittering Essence Stones, the cavern was disappointingly barren. The only things of note were the scorch marks that I guessed were from Hanabi's struggle with the Dusk. They were more precise than the ones from our battle, like laser focused blasts instead of the flamethrower blaze we'd faced.

I filled my satchel with Essence Stones before returning to Hanabi and together we left the cavern.

"Collapse the entrance," Hanabi said once we were back in the tunnel.

"Why? I plan to come back and collect more stones after taking you back."

"Then dig it out then. Those stones are too dangerous to be left alone."

She's right. Richard hasn't found it yet. Yet. If I make it look like a dead end he might not find it. Even if he does, it'll take him forever to clear the rubble unless he has a mage skilled with earth magic.

With no reason to argue, I used my magic to collapse the ceiling of the cavern entrance and seal it. I did the same towards the entrance of the cave but left some depth to make it less suspicious. Sealing a cave at the entrance would be the same as placing a sign in front of it; sealing it further in gave the illusion of a natural formation.

***

"Lady Hanabi!"

Lucinda hobbled her old bones as quickly as she could when she saw the fox, fat tears wetting the black fur of her face. While the two reunited, I told Taro what had happened.

"She's lucky you found her," he said. "Otherwise she would have been stuck there until she died."

"If she even could die," I muttered under my breath. After Yahime's recounting, I wasn't sure Dusk COULD die. So why give Yahime a functioning health bar?

If I could figure out who brought me to this world, I could ask them. Vide? She seems like someone who would have answers. She is the Goddess of Souls and Yahime's mother.

My musings aside, our return had caused a stir in the village and soon everyone was celebrating Hanabi's return. A few bottles of foul smelling liquor strong enough to eat through stomach lining were brought out and it was hard to believe the village was under siege.

"You mean to tell me," Hanabi stammered. She took a deep quaff of her drink and slammed the cup on Lucinda's table. "That those empire pricks are trying to destroy the village I built?"

"You never said Hanabi founded the village," I whispered to Lucinda.

"I didn't know that either," she whispered back. "I knew she helped the first settlers. She's never said anything about being the founder."

We giggled while we whispered. The drinks may have tasted like shit, but they got the job done. I felt bad Yahime couldn't partake.

"fox woman…"

"Call me Hanabi already, Dusk." Her glassy eyes turned to slits and I swore the temperature of the house rose.

"Her name is Yahime," I retorted, returning Hanabi's glare.

"Yahime then. What do you want? You're not gonna try and eat me like your sister, are you?"

"no… want to ask… mother?"

My heart stopped.

"Mother? Oh yeah, how's that snarky daughter of mine, Luci? She been around lately?"

The chatter of the room fell silent and the villagers began edging towards the door. It had been decided that we wouldn't hide Bixey's fate from the rest of the villagers. Her mother was different.

"Yahime, why don't—"

Hanabi raised her hand and a suffocating pressure pressed down on me and I saw the tempest brewing in her golden eyes.

"What happened to my Hana?"