Foxfire

by VanillaMint

VM: um, I wonder if anyone is still interested in this fic;_;? If so, please do send me some comments!*begbeg*

Part 15

Flowers of vibrant colours bloomed from every corner of the garden as the seasons encroached summer. A butterfly of pale blue landed on a yellow ?, its feets catching the edge of a petal as it leaned forward to taste the sweet nectar.

Shinya stared at the butterfly absent-mindedly, not really seeing the butterfly or the flowers or anything at all. All that filled his mind was Toshiya and his bitter words. He longed to be back in their cave dwelling deep in the forest, far away from humans.

The butterfly was disturbd halfway through its meal, as a giant hand reached down and broke the fragile stem of the flower. The man with fiery red hair smiled cheekily as he sat down on the garden set opposite the auburn-haired beauty right in the line of his stare.

Broken off from his trance, Shinya’s eyes narrowed and he glared at the human in front of him.

“ A flower to cheer you up,” Die placed the flower on Shinya’s hand.

Shinya looked at his hand with an expression of disdain, as if Die had contaminated it, then flicked the flower away. “ Where’s your ‘cousin’ Toshiya?”

“ Toshiya? I think he went shopping with mom…a strange one, that Toshiya. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him before but he seems awfully familiar somehow,” Die frowned, thinking.

“ You don’t remember?” Shinya frowned as well, a little crease forming between his brows as he scritinized Die’s face for his reaction.

“ Remember what? Surely I’ll remember someone so beautiful if I’ve seen them before!”

How strange that Die doesn’t remember Toshiya…but perhaps not. After all, Shinya did bring down the boulder quite hard on his head and it was dark at that time. But what’s disturbing Shinya even more is that both he and Toshiya now remain in human form even during the day! Never in his whole life has anything like this happened. And those dreams like some kind of warning…that female voice that keeps telling him to run, to escape…Shinya tried but he couldn’t shake off the feeling of dread that they brought.

“ Hey…you suddenly interested in Toshiya…” a sly grin stretched across Die’s features. “ Are you jealous of him?”

“ Why should I be jealous?!!”

“ Because he’s more sexy than youXDD!”

“ Grr, shut up, you stupid human>.<!” Shinya huffed and stormed off, annoyed that Die was spoiling his thinking time.

“ But I think you’re very pretty!” Die called even though Shinya was already ten yards away. Die laughed and got up to chase after him.

There’s no way I’m going to stay here, with these stupid humans, especially this annoying redhead! I must find a way to turn us back to normal! Shinya swore.

***

Toshiya smiled as he donned a pretty white dress and looked at his reflection in the mirror. True, he was angry and felt hurt by Shinya. But at the moment, he was too excited and curious. Not only was he able to retain his human form but the bracelet had given him an identity as a relative of a rich family that came from afar. Now he can really experience what being a human is like (ie Toshiya having too much fun to worry about anything^^;).

“ Oh, Toshiya my dear, don’t you look lovely in that dress,” Die’s mother complimented when she saw him.

“ My, thank you,” Toshiya giggled. He pranced happily around the shop, regardless of the strange looks from the other customers.

“ We’ll have that too,” the lady said to the delighted shopkeeper.

Kaoru sweatdropped as another package was deposited on the pile he was already carrying.

The sun was not glaring as it ws when they left their mansion. Towards the east, dark clouds seemed to grow bigger and bigger, Kaoru noted as he placed the fruits of their shopping onto the carriage.

“ Ma’am, I think we’d better leave soon. Looks like it might rain,” the purple-haired servant said to the mistress as he helped her in.

“ Yes, we do not want to risk an accident like last time. You have to be more careful when you’re driving, Kaoru,” she reprimanded.

“ Yes, ma’am.”

“ Now, where’s Toshiya-chan..?”

Kaoru turned to the front of the carriage and found Toshiya sneering at the black horse there.

“ Lady Toshiya, let me help you in side the carriage,” Kaoru humbly took the beautiful man’s hand. The moment their hands touched, he felt a lighting sharp pain stab in his head and he reeled for a moment in a vision. He saw a flicker of Toshiya in the cave, in the forest.

The bracelet grew unbearably hot against Toshiya’s skin and he instantly withdrew from Kaoru’s touch.

“ Toshiya.”

Toshiya looked at Kaoru, a mixture of anger and fear evident in his brown almond-shaped eyes. Above them, the sky growled and darkened. A few drops of rain fell from the sky.

“ You are-”

“ Toshiya, come in; it’s starting to rain,” Die’s mother called from inside the carriage.

Toshiya pursed his lips and turned away from the other man to board the carriage.

***

The shock of cold water against his face dispersed the hazy cobwebs that clouded his mind ever since that encounter with Toshiya earlier during the day. Outside the sturdy bricks of the mansion, rain poured down fiercely from the grey skies. Kaoru wiped his face with a towel.

Toshiya…he’s the person who saved him that night after the cliff fall…

“ Kaoru-san, supper’s ready to be served,” a female servant called from inside the kitchen.

“ Yes, I’ll be there in a second,” Kaoru answered. He swung the empty wooden pail back into the granite well before heading back inside to help serve the food.

At the long dinner table, Toshiya was chatting amiably with the two ladies(Die and Kyo’s mothers) while Shinya stared at him openly. Shinya pouted when he realized the other fox-human was ignoring him on purpose. But then, the tantalizing aroma of roast meat wafted into Shinya’s nostrils and he forgot about Toshiya for a moment and waited expectantly as the purple-haired servant called Kaoru carved the roast lamb expertly with a sharp knife.

“ I’m starving,” Kyo exclaimed.

“ Kyo, you should be more polite in front of our guest,” Kyo’s mother reprimanded him.

Toshiya smiled but his eys was darting sideways to catch a glimpse of Kaoru when he served him slices of cut meat.

He knows about me.

He’s trying not to show it but I know he knows.

Is he going to tell the others? Toshiya gently bit his lower lip, worried at what the other man is going to do. I can’t let him tell them…

Toshiya’s eyes narrowed vehemently.

I won’t let him.

***

To be continued

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