Hajoon followed the fox demon down into the main room and then out the back into a small courtyard. The man turned with a swish of tails and stared at him intently. He had expected the scrutiny, so Hajoon did not even flinch. However, the gold eyes glowed suddenly.

Before he could stop himself, Hajoon's hand whipped out in an instinctive, warding motion. A sharp warmth prickled his fingertips as if he had just brushed against some sort of invisible current. The heat lingered, but then dissipated.

"Ha! You can even evade my glamour!" breathed the fox, brimming with satisfaction. "I was right about you. How long have you been hiding your change from her?" he demanded.

Hajoon was silent for a moment, but then he sighed.

"Since we entered the mountain," he answered grudgingly, eyes narrowed.

"Kana tried to mark you, but it had the unintended effect of breaking the seal on your human body. Do you remember anything about who you are now?" the fox pressed, eyes eagerly flicking over Hajoon's face.

"It...has been confirmed by others...but I have no memory of being the White Tiger of the West," grunted Hajoon.

"But if you came from the water realm...Did you meet them?"

"The boy Gamera and Lord Xuanwu...yes."

"And did they give you that...?"

Hajoon nodded.

The fox stroked his upper lip thoughtfully.

"Mmmn. That's enough," he said, relief passing briefly over his face. "Even though Sakurako has nine tails, she'll be weakened if you chop them all off with that thing. You'll have a chance to kill her, but the only way to get close enough is to become her prey. Female foxes crave yang energy and as a former god of the divine realm your scent will catch her interest. She won't be able to resist it."

The fox suddenly grimaced.

"In the end, you may have to destroy the fox bead to kill her, but that's a last resort."

"You're fine with not getting it back...?" asked Hajoon.

The fox shrugged.

"It's already been this long...Even if I cannot avenge myself, it's good enough to avenge my mate. Surely, I don't need to explain what it's like to part from the only person you love?" the fox said with bitter amusement.

"No," grunted Hajoon in agreement.

"Will you be able to do it? An exchange of energy with a fox demon can only happen through..."

"Yes," Hajoon interrupted with a grimace. "I know what I must do."

"Well then..." the fox grinned silkily. "To make that more tolerable, I also have a gift for you..."

***

Shuto Castle, Kingdom of Shobu

Present: Late Spring, 1472

A young man, about nineteen, sat in the pavilion with the side of his face propped on his fist. He stared blankly at the koi fish swimming lazy circles in the pond below. On the opposite side, sat two attendants: an older maid, and a twelve-year-old page.

Straightening up with a sigh and rotating his aching shoulders, the young man brushed blond hair out of his blue eyes. Then he made a face as his maid move swiftly to his shoulder, reaching to rearrange a strand of hair that had escaped from the simple ribbon tying back the rest from his face.

His young page grinned into his elbow as he watched his master's eyebrows crease.

"Atsuki," Keizo admonished gently, catching the older woman's hand before it could reach him. "What have I told you about touching me without permission?"

"Ah!" the woman clapped her hand on her mouth, looking sad and embarrassed. "I forgot myself, my Lord Keizo...please forgive this old woman's bad habit."

Keizo, the third prince of Shobu, relaxed his grip. He shot a quelling glance at the boy who was trying not to giggle.

Even if her master's tone had not, the firmness of his grip reminded her that he was a grown man and no longer the child that she had watched from infancy.

"It's alright. I know it's out of affection, but there is no need," he smiled warmly, softening his words for her.

She brightened subtly.

"Indeed, my Lord is grown now," she nodded, though her expression was somewhat wistful. She was about to go back to her place, but a rustle of silk on the path made her turn. Her expression became alarmed.

"The Queen!" she whispered.

Keizo stood slowly and descended onto the garden path just as the Queen and her attendants came up to the pavilion. As was customary, the handmaidens had hidden her face behind two fans, but he could see the outline of her profile quite clearly. He bowed, giving the courtesies in an easy manner. She acknowledged with a quiet murmur, barely speaking his name.

The silence that followed was filled with the chirping inquiry of a few white cotton ball birds who had gathered in the budding branches above them.

Though awkward, the long pause did not trouble him. He wondered if he should speak first to soothe his attendants' nerves, but then decided against it. Even though his mother and the Queen were rivals, the Queen had never harmed him. In fact, she had strangely ignored his existence.

After the death of her son, Seiren, she removed herself from court, only rarely stepping out to act as a counter weight to his mother, Lady Sakurako. This was her role and one that Seigen sanctioned. Although Sakurako was clearly his favourite, he was not a fool and he used the Queen when it suited his needs. Even Keizo understood this, so he wondered why he was being approached so deliberately now.

The Queen raised a graceful hand and Keizo was surprised to see one of the little cotton ball bids alight on her palm. It twittered happily, twisting its head back and forth, hopping a bit, and then as quickly as it had come, it was gone, catching up with its companions who had already scattered to other parts of the garden.

"Prince Keizo, you are older now than my son was when he left for Moutan," the Queen mused.

Keizo stiffened at the implications. He forced himself to relax, letting his shoulders loosen, and making sure his hands did not curl into fist.

"Indeed, it is so," he agreed, managing to keep his tone even. He wondered where she was going with this train of thought, but there seemed to be no malice in the wistful tone.

"Although the kingdom is frenzied in its preparations for war, you are still able to enjoy the garden after your studies," she observed. "This is a good thing," she added gently, in case he misunderstood.

"His Majesty did not agree to my request to go with the army. Nor did my mother..." he winced a bit. "It is shameful."

"I did not mean anything saying it. As you know, I wish that my own son had not left me. You are the kingdom's only prince. So how can I not agree with them?"

Keizo's lips twisted. The Queen had notoriously refused to acknowledge Seiji, his older brother, leaving him to live in the shadows.

The Queen's words weren't malicious, but Keizo did not need to see the queen's face to imagine how bitter she must feel. Of Seigen's three sons, Seiren had been the most promising.

"But I didn't come here to talk about the past. You are an adult now and have your future before you. You only need to decide what that means and which path you must take. That is all that I came to say," she said, cryptic to the end.

So, she came to warn me out of kindness, he thought. Things in court must be moving faster than anticipated...

"Thank you," said Keizo, bowing. He wondered if the Queen was aware that he wasn't always in agreement with his mother's ways. It wasn't outright rebellion, but he had his own thoughts, much like his mysterious, masked brother Seiji.

She turned elegantly, expression still hidden behind the fans, but then paused midway. It looked like she was about to speak again, but then she simply nodded before she moving away with her entourage.

He blinked a bit at her abrupt departure.

"I wonder what that was about, my Lord!" chirped the page, not caring if he was heard.

"Shhht!" the maid shushed him, gripping the boy's sleeve.

"Let him be, Atsuki. He meant no harm," Keizo breathed, squinting against the sun. "It is mid-day now...let's return."

The queen, who had moved to a different part of the garden, watched his exit from the shade of a mulberry. One of her attendants handed her a bow made from the same wood. She nocked, turning her attention to her target, and then pointed the arrow at the silver haired man who appeared next to it.

"Are you expelling evil spirit, my Lady?" asked Bai Xie An, with a slight tilt to his lips. He leaned his hand against the tree trunk, looking like a fairy in a painting.

Not swayed by this picturesque moment, the Queen declined to answer, and instead she adjusted her aim and took the shot, taking a wisp of his hair and nailing it into a tree a fair distance past the target.

The Grand Sorcerer smiled.

"You're as sharp as ever, Nanako," he grinned, shaking his head.

She handed her bow back to her attendant and walked up to him, waving away the fans. Her attendants stepped back and she gestured for Bai Xie An to accompany her.

"Things move apace," she remarked. Her tone did little to reveal her inner thoughts. In fact, her observation was quite detached. "The seed that slumbered has grown into a shadow, and that shadow is soon to be made flesh. No matter how often I purify the lake, it's only a matter of time before the seal breaks. Is it wrong that I'm a bit relieved that I will no longer have to carry the burden of guarding it?"

"What are you planning to do when it's done?" he asked.

She burst out into a tinkling laugh, startling him. The Queen rarely showed emotions, but today was an exception.

"My house ended with Seiren. After I avenge his death, I will retire to the temple to pray for him to be reborn into a loving family. I hope—"

She stopped abruptly, staring at something on the roof top.

Bai Xien An looked up.

Seiji...

Wearing his demon mask, the young man stood on the roof top staring to the south, looking incredibly lonely.

"It's so clear now," the Queen whispered.

Bai Xie An's brow creased.

"The thread," she clarified.

Bai Xie An looked at the tangle of red lines covering his student's body, only visible to those who were meant to see it. A single thread trailed off the roof top and south through the gate.

The snow white cotton birds suddenly squawked and took off en masse.

"Ah..." he muttered to himself. "The little red bird has arrived."

End of Book 2.