Page 29 of Night of the Dragon

“Did you find out what you needed? Will the Moon Clan help us?”

“Yes.” I dissolved the illusion in a puff of smoke, letting the image of the monk fade into the breeze. If Kiyomi-sama already knew what he was, there was no point in trying to hide it. Though he might still need a hat so as not to terrify the rest of the court. “Kiyomi-sama agreed to aid us,” I went on as Tatsumi pulled a leaf from his hair, gazed at it for a curious moment and let it flutter into the water. “The Moon Clan will be ready to defy the Master of Demons when the time comes. Kiyomi-sama knows where the Summoning will be. With any luck, she will have her forces in place before Genno ever gets there. If we can reach the valley before him, all we’ll have to do is hold them off until the time for the Summoning has passed.”

“Good.” Tatsumi joined me at the railing, his eyes dark as he gazed over the water. “The army we fought at the Steel Feather temple wasn’t Genno’s full force,” he added. “And he knows we’re going to try to stop him. The daimyo’s plan is sound, but the rest of us should head to the Summoning site because once the battle begins, Genno will be relentless. He will likely find a way through or around the army, and we need to be there when he arrives to summon the Dragon.”

I nodded. “We’ll stop him,” I promised, lacing back my ears. “He’snotgoing to summon the Dragon. Even if I have to stab him myself...though heisa ghost, so I suppose I’d have to use Kamigoroshi for that to work.” I clenched my fists, then glanced at the demonslayer at my side. “Promise me you’ll kill him, Tatsumi,” I said. “No matter what it takes, we have to win. I don’t care what you have to do—don’t let him summon the Dragon and use the Wish. Promise me.”

“I will, but...” Tatsumi cocked his head, a concerned frown crossing his face as he watched me. “We’ve always known the stakes, Yumeko. Nothing has changed. Are you all right?”

“I...” Pushing myself off the railing, I walked a few steps away, trying to put the fluttering thoughts in my head into words. “Kiyomi-sama... The daimyo...”

“She’s your mother.”

I whirled in surprise. Tatsumi offered a faint smile. “She looks just like you,” he told me softly. “And from the conversation in the hall earlier, it wasn’t that difficult to figure out.” The smile widened a bit, though his voice stayed gentle. “So, you really are a kami princess.”

“I can’t lose now, Tatsumi,” I whispered. “Before, I was alone. I thought I’d lost my only family to demons. But now...” I gazed back at the water, at the rest of the palace shining under the light of the moon. “I can’t watch this disappear,” I murmured. “I want to stay, to learn. To catch up on everything I missed. But if Genno destroys all of this...” I put a shaking hand on the railing, closing my eyes. “It doesn’t seem fair,” I said quietly, as Denga’s stern face flashed before me, one brow raised and unimpressed.Do you think life is fair, fox girl?he’d asked on more than one occasion.Do you think it cares about your petty desires?

“I just...found her,” I stammered out. “All those years at the temple, not knowing who I was, not really caring about my past. And now, I find out who I am, where I came from, on the eve when we could lose everything?” I sniffed, shaking my head. “The kami have a strange sense of humor.”

Master Isao shimmered through my memory, his smile gentle as he met my gaze.Life is not fair, Yumeko-chan,he murmured.Life isbalance. Before spring, there must be winter. Before the sun, there must be darkness. What is, is what must be.

There was a pause, and then a warm, calloused hand closed over my own. I looked up into Tatsumi’s solemn eyes.

“I promise, Yumeko,” he said in a quiet, intense voice. “Gennowilldie. I won’t let him destroy what you’ve found here. I’ll fight to protect you and all you care for. You have my word.”

My vision blurred. Stepping forward, I leaned into him and he pulled me close, wrapping his arms around me. For a moment, we stayed like that, our breaths mingling and the moonlight blazing down on us. Tatsumi’s fingers slipped into my hair, sliding it through his palm in an almost reverent manner, as if he were amazed by something so simple. Closing my eyes, I relaxed into him and listened to his heartbeat, remembering the first time I’d seen the cold, purple-eyed killer in the woods outside my burning home. He had changed so much since that terrible night. I wondered if my old self would even recognize the beautiful half-demon holding me in his arms now.

I wondered if I would recognize myself.

“Arigatou,” I whispered. “For everything, Tatsumi. I wouldn’t have made it this far... I wouldn’t have foundher, if it wasn’t for you.”

He gazed down at me, his eyes softer than I’d ever seen before. “My life is yours,” he said simply, his voice barely above a murmur. One palm framed the side of my face, long fingers and calloused skin pressing against my cheek. “You gave me purpose again, Yumeko. On my honor, I’ll make sure you have a home to go back to.”

Leaning in, he kissed me. I closed my eyes and wrapped my arms around his neck, feeling his own tighten around my waist, almost lifting me off my feet. My heart pounded as ribbons of light and heat began coiling through my stomach, spreading through my chest and every part of my body.

The snap of a shoji screen pulled me out of the emotions beginning to swirl around us. Drawing back, I frowned as a noble stepped onto the veranda several doors down, pausing to admire the lake and moonlight, before she turned in our direction. Tatsumi and I didn’t move, but the noble stiffened, and though it was too far to see her face clearly, I thought I saw her turn rather red. Smoothly, she pivoted, pretending to admire the lake once more, then walked swiftly down the veranda and disappeared around a bend.

Tatsumi didn’t seem concerned or affected by our sudden visitor, but I felt my cheeks flush. Drawing out of his embrace, I took his hands and started backing toward my room. Tatsumi followed without question or hesitation, though his eyes were faintly puzzled, his head tilted at a curious angle. When we had crossed the threshold, I released him, went to the doors and closed them with faint snaps, shutting out the sky and the enormous silver moon. The room dimmed, plunged into darkness and shadow, and I turned around with a deep breath.

Closing my eyes, I drew on my magic, feeling it rise from that ball of power somewhere deep within. With an outward push, I released it into the room, feeling it wash over the walls, floor and ceiling, engulfing the entire chamber in a cocoon of fox magic.

I opened my eyes and smiled at my handiwork. Tatsumi and I now stood in the center of a small moonlit grove, bamboo and sakura trees surrounding us. Fireflies danced through the air, pink sakura blossoms drifted around us like snow, and purple ayame-irises swayed gently in the wind. The grass beneath our feet was soft and thick, and overhead, the same enormous moon shone through the branches, spilling silver light over the grove.

I looked at Tatsumi. He stood in the center of the meadow, gazing around with an awed look on his face. “This is...” He gave his head a disbelieving shake and glanced at me, his eyes still bright with amazement. “Incredible. I’ve never seen fox magic this strong.”

“I’ve learned a lot.” Smiling, I stepped toward him, feeling long grass brush my ankles, hearing the hiss of the wind in the bamboo. “No one will disturb us here, Tatsumi. This is our last night, before we have to face Genno. Before the night of the Wish. I thought I could show you someplace beautiful.”

His eyes went a little glassy, and the look on his face caused a lump to rise to my throat. As I stepped forward, he held out a hand. I placed my palm in his and he drew me close, one arm sliding around my waist as he kissed me gently.

“Arigatou,” he whispered when we drew back. His forehead touched mine, our faces just a breath apart. “You are constantly surprising me.” He raised his head and gazed around in wonder, his voice barely a murmur in the darkness. “Ichiro-sensei always told me wishing is for fools, but... I wish we had more time.”

“Me, too.” I ran my fingers down his chest, feeling him shiver as they passed. “But tonight is for us, Tatsumi. No one will bother us here. No one will see a demon or a fox or a peasant or a shinobi. This is our place. One last night, before we face Genno in the morning.”

We kissed again, the moonlight blazing down on us, the wind ruffling our hair as it whispered through the bamboo. That strange feeling of warmth and light ignited in my stomach again, flickering under my skin like blue-white foxfire as it spread to every part of me. Tatsumi picked me up, carried me to a spot beneath the sakura trees and knelt, laying me gently in the grass. The breeze was cool, the ground soft and the cherry blossoms were like feathers drifting from the sky, as we leaned back and lost ourselves in fox magic.

15

The Hidden Path

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