Kitsune: A Little Mermaid Retelling

Chapter Twenty-Three (Part 1)

Rin fell, her shoulder slammed into the ground, and her eyes flew open. The air crackled. She scrambled away just in time to avoid the stomping of the horse's hooves. Flaming hooves, these were no average horses. These animals are from the forest. She got to her feet and saw the back of a man as he swung a blade at a wolf. Shin! She ran forward, intent on stopping the man from attacking Shin, but someone grabbed her around the middle and stopped her.

"Rin, don't, they'll kill you," Hikaru whispered into her ear.

She wrenched her neck backward, tensing in his grip.

What is going on?

Shin and the man circled one another. The hairs on Shin's back were raised and his lips pulled back, revealing rows of pointed teeth. He growled and snapped, goading the man into attacking. I thought he had left me for good. She was relieved he had not abandoned her but also furious he had come back. She could see from the way the man struck like a snake, he was no mere mortal. She knew him; it was the guardian's man.

Hikaru pulled her back and she watched in horror as Shin and Akio's dog battled. They met in the middle, blade flying and white fur all ablur. Rin clutched onto Hikaru's arm, unable to tear her eyes away from the fight. The man swung his sword and it bit into Shin's shoulder. Blood poured from the wound in a sickening trail down his foreleg. Rin clenched tighter; she must have been drawing blood from Hikaru's flesh. Shin snapped at the man's arm and caught a length of his sleeve, which he tore free.

Shin spun around, putting himself between the man and Hikaru and Rin.

"Get Rin out of here," Shin snarled at Hikaru.

Rin shook her head. She looked at Hikaru, begging him not to do it with her eyes.

"We cannot stay here," Hikaru agreed.

Whose side was he on? She did not know. She tried to pull away, but he had a firm grip on her arm.

"I don't know what either of them wants, but my first goal is to keep you safe."

Shin lunged for the man again, heedless of how powerless she was in this form. But Hikaru pulled her back before she got very far. The man grunted as Shin's jaws grazed his collar. Hikaru guided her away, holding onto her shoulders as she strained to watch her best friend fight for his life. Hikaru helped her onto the back of the Yokai horse. The animal was accommodating, but it flicked its tail back and forth and its ears pointed back. These creatures had a master, and because they were willing, it meant their escape was their master's will. She felt powerless. If she had her fox fire, she could help Shin instead of abandoning him.

Hikaru kicked the horse in the ribs and then they were flying through the night. She did not know where he was taking her and she did not care. Whoever provided the horses would find them no matter where they went. Her mind with Shin, she clung onto Hikaru's arm as she looked over his shoulder, watching the fight as it grew smaller and smaller in the distance.

They ran over rice paddies and closer to the forest they went. She wondered if the horse was taking them to their master, but then they made a sudden turn onto a country road. Hikaru pulled up short and the horse came to a stop. It pawed the ground with its flaming hooves and snorted clouds of sulfur. Hikaru slid down and then helped Rin join him on the ground. When they were both safely on foot, he slapped the horse on the rear and sent it running. He watched it go for a few moments before turning back to Rin.

"I do not trust that beast or Captain Sadao. So I thought we should send it away."

She nodded if only to placate him. Akio would find her; it was only the question of whether it would be before the witch's spell turned her into a fox or not. She linked hands with Hikaru, looking for comfort. The road was empty but for the moonlight that guided their path. It was not that different than the place where he had found her after the witch's spell had stripped her of her voice.