[Stacy POV]
"I don't know if I should be happy that my daughter caught a high-value target or worried that an obsessed sis-con is on his way to her," I muttered, darting between thick tree trunks as I sprinted through the forest. Branches whipped at my shoulders, snapping back violently, but I ignored the sting. Each breath filled my lungs with damp night air, heavy with moss and soil, the kind of smell that clung to you long after you left the woods. My boots pounded the earth in a rhythm that matched the pounding of my heart.
The forest was alive with noises—crickets chirping, the occasional rustle of some nocturnal animal, and even the distant croak of a frog. But over it all, I could hear my own movements, the crunch of leaves and the rustle of my cloak, and it reminded me that time was running short.
"Stacy, I need an update," Kayda's voice crackled in my earpiece. She sounded calm, but I knew her well enough to detect the tension beneath.
"Right, right. "I will arrive in only thirty minutes," I answered, hopping over a fallen log without breaking stride.
There was a brief pause, then Kayda's voice returned, tinged with genuine surprise. "Wow. I thought you would take another hour and a half."
Her words made me grin despite the urgency. "Well, lucky for you, I was already on the city outskirts. Additionally, I understand how that guy behaves. If he's moving for his sister, he'll move fast and without thinking. I can't afford to drag my feet."
Kayda chuckled faintly, though her tone quickly sharpened. "Don't wear yourself out. If a battle starts, we'll need you at your best."
"It should be fine," I reassured her, leaping down a steep hill and rolling once before springing back to my feet. Dirt smeared across my arm, but I ignored it. "He won't start anything as long as we don't lay a hand on his sister. He's protective, not reckless."
"We'll see. She is with Kitsu, after all," Kayda muttered, the weight of her words hanging between us.
I slowed just long enough to push a branch aside and smirk at the thought. "Right. Anything can happen when she's involved." The smile tugging at my lips was both proud and exasperated. My daughter's talent for chaos was almost legendary at this point.
[Kitsu POV]
"What the hell is this!? Fifty-four losses against a kid!" Dea screamed, slamming both palms on the ice table. The sharp crack echoed against the frozen walls around us, her breath puffing out visibly in the cold air. Her cheeks were flushed red; whether from embarrassment, rage, or the chill, I couldn't tell.
"Hahaha, don't worry about it. It's your first time playing the game." I leaned back in my chair, tail swishing lazily behind me, enjoying her frustration far too much. My tone carried zero comfort, but that was the point.
"That doesn't matter!" She jabbed a finger toward me, her hair frazzled and her eyes practically sparking with static. "You just won in five moves again!"
"Well, your start was shit," I said plainly, shrugging. I picked up my queen and tapped it against the board like I was playing with a toy, not destroying her pride piece by piece.
"Grrr." She growled, gripping the edge of the table like she wanted to flip it.
"Well, to the next one?" I asked innocently, tilting my head as I began resetting the pieces. My claws clicked softly against the ice with each move.
"Fine," she muttered, scowling.
"Do you want black or white?"
"White. And can you stop with the damn ice walls? It's getting cold." She wrapped her arms around herself, glaring at the thick frost layering the walls like a crystalline fortress.
"No. Run your lightning through yourself to heat up or something," I said with a straight face, meeting her eyes without blinking.
Her mouth opened and closed twice before she let out a strangled sound. "...Are you serious? You can't be serious. Right—you're a fox. You aren't serious." She muttered to herself like she was trying to work out whether I was insane or mocking her.
"Hahaha, nice detective work, Miss Gullible," I laughed, ears flicking as her muttering made me grin even wider.
"Dea! Not gullible!" She snapped, practically hissing my name like it was an insult.
"Yeah, but you need to concentrate on the game more. You just lost your knight again." I lifted the little piece between two fingers and wiggled it in front of her face.
"Damn it! Stop distracting me!" She snatched it back, cheeks glowing with frustration.
"I'm only conversing with you," I said sweetly, leaning my chin on my palm.
"Tsk. I guess it's my fault then," Dea muttered, clicking her tongue and staring down at the board like it had personally betrayed her.
"Do you have any pets?" I asked casually, raising a brow as if the thought had just crossed my mind.
Her mood instantly flipped. "Hehe, of course I have pets. I have a few, actually," she said proudly, puffing out her chest.
"Oh, a few? I only have one, and she's full of energy already. How do you handle more than one?" I tilted my head, though in the back of my mind, I was already considering getting a fox myself someday.
"Really, only one? Well, mine keep themselves busy. They love killing monsters for leveling." Her eyes lit up as she spoke, her earlier anger melting into excitement.
"...So they're monsters themselves," I said, feigning shock, ears twitching forward.
"Huh? Aren't all pets monsters?" She stared at me like I'd just said the sky was green.
"No. Pets are mostly non-harmful creatures."
"Uh, that's food," she replied with a completely serious expression.
I stared at her in silence for a long moment. "...Right. So what sort of pets are they?"
"Oh, one is a minotaur, and the second is a wolf. I have more, but those two are my favorites because they can speak with me."
"They can talk?" I arched a brow, pretending to be impressed.
"Yes! Isn't it cool?" Dea beamed at me, her earlier hostility forgotten in her pride.
"...I agree. That's pretty cool," I admitted with a straight face, though I was biting back laughter. Internally, my thoughts twisted. So those were her pets? Slaves, more like. Mom always said the federation had no shame in binding powerful creatures to their will.
I flicked my queen forward and claimed her piece. "Check."
"NOOO! I hoped you wouldn't see that!" Dea wailed, smacking her thigh in frustration.
"This board is minimal," I said, shaking my head like the game was beneath me.
"Hmph. You're right. If this were a real battle, I would've outmaneuvered you long ago." She crossed her arms and huffed, her pride desperate to save face.
"Hmm. Probably. I'm more brawn than brains." I laughed, leaning back.
"Hah. Like I thought," she said smugly.
"So, back to your pets. What's the second-best thing about them?" I pressed, casually guiding the conversation.
"Oh! We can make clones of them so they can keep leveling up even though they aren't the ones doing the killing, but they still—" Dea froze mid-sentence, her eyes narrowing. "You bitch."
"Hahaha, thank you for all the information," I cackled, grinning ear to ear.
"Shit. Brother's going to kill me for this," she muttered, sinking into grief.
"Oh, don't worry. It's info I already knew," I waved her off.
Her head shot up. "What?"
"Your pets? Yeah, I killed them. "Thanks for the levels," I said, flashing a wide grin, though I had to resist frowning at the memory—it was only four levels. Not nearly worth the effort.
Her mouth fell open, her face paling. "Ugh, dammit. So it really was you."
"Yep." I can't believe that a simple illusion concealed me so effectively," I cackled again, my tail swishing.
"Dammit! I told Kay it was you," Dea fumed, slamming her fist on the bed.
"Kay? Is that your bodyguard?" I asked, tilting my head innocently.
"Yes! The one you fucking killed."
"Good. His name sounded like shit anyway." My smile widened at the sight of her fury.
"You! Your race really works well with reincarnation," she spat suddenly, a grin creeping onto her lips like she'd just thrown a knife.
"Oh? You're actually revealing that card?" I narrowed my eyes.
"What?"
"You thought I wouldn't know you knew about me being a reincarnation? Please. With all the spies you idiots have crawling around, I figured out months ago that you knew. And I'm sure you've also come in contact with the trans furry recently." I leaned forward, eyes sharp, searching for the flicker of recognition in her face.
Her pupils tightened. "Tsk. You can read minds, can't you?" she muttered, trying and failing to mask her slip.
"Hahaha! With a face like yours, anyone can read your mind," I said, pointing at her cheeks flushed pink with embarrassment.
"What! There's nothing wrong with my face!" She shrieked, standing up and slamming her hands on the table hard enough to send pieces scattering.
"It's an open book to your mind, so yeah, there is," I said calmly, not flinching.
"How do you even have a girlfriend with a damn personality like yours?!" Dea yelled again, hitting the table until pawns rolled onto the floor.
"What the fuck is wrong with your head? Are you jealous now? You jump around like a kid high on sugar." I scowled at her whiplash mood swings.
"Hey, stop bullying me!" she whined, grabbing a pillow and hugging it tight as she flopped on the bed.
"...You are crazy," I muttered, watching her sulk.
"Whatever. Her brother just arrived anyway," I said, turning my gaze to the window. Outside, the whirring thrum of rotor blades grew louder as a helicopter descended toward the mansion. My ice walls groaned under the strain, holding firm like a bunker sealing us in.
"Hey, why are you smiling like that?" Dea asked, hugging the pillow tighter, glaring at me.
I only tilted my head. 'What is this woman?' I thought, bemused.
[Kayda POV]
"He's here," I announced grimly, eyes locked on the aircraft hovering above the estate. Its floodlights washed the landing zone in harsh white, making the sparring trainees look like ants caught in a spotlight.
"Yes, and they're demanding a landing pad," Rebecca said dryly, her expression unimpressed.
"Well, as they can see, we're conducting a drill," I replied, my lips curving into a smile that didn't reach my eyes.
"I told them that, but they insist," Rebecca said, handing me the comm scroll.
I snatched it up. "Yeah? Let me talk to the dumbasses."
"Hello, hello! Answer me, please. Where is our landing pad?" an agitated voice demanded immediately.
"Yo. We don't have one open right now. As you can see, we're running a drill. Just wait a few minutes for it to finish."
"What's a few minutes?"
"Thirty," I said without hesitation.
"WHAT?!"
"Tell your boss he can enjoy a free demonstration of our tactics," I added, smirking.
"Like hell those shitty movements are tactics," a harsher voice cut in.
"Oh, finally. The big bro speaks."
"Where is my sister?" he demanded, his voice edged with venom.
"With a lovely fox. "Don't worry about her," I said mockingly.
"You—"
"Listen well. If anything unexpected happens out here, that fox will kill your sister. And not quickly." My tone dropped into a warning growl.
"Is that a threat?"
I scoffed. "Of course it's a threat. You dare to meddle where you shouldn't and then make demands? Wake up, bro-con. If you want anything right now, you'll wait."
"You're stalling for time," he accused, voice tight.
"Pfft. Obviously. The more time we have, the more we'll wring out of that gullible girl." I laughed, letting the sound echo into the comm.
"You will—"
"Careful. We have your sister. Remember that."
"Grrr—" His teeth ground audibly through the magic link.
"Grind like that, and they'll fall out," I said sweetly, then cut the connection.
Rebecca raised a brow as she reclaimed the scroll. "Did you really have to go that far?"
I smirked. "Not really. But Kitsu's rubbing off on me."
Rebecca sighed, shaking her head.