A winter in Yetinburg ch.11

	Click.
	"-area is slated for protection as snowy owl nesting grounds. Repeating today's headline story, a twenty four hour gym in Yetinburg is the latest in a series of horrific attacks on the branch of the Attica based crime group in the city. This marks the seventh such attack since the incident in Yukiten twenty seven days ago, and it is believed that there are five more dead at the scene. Yetinburg police are reminding residents they are enforcing a strict nine pm curfew for all non-essential travel, and is urging residents to stay at home unless necessary-"
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	Sonia mumbles a bit as she takes her hand away from the snooze button, yawn escaping and putting her sharp teeth on display while eyes stay closed. The kumiho moves in the bed to snuggle up against me once more, content smile coming to her face as our two naked bodies share warmth and closeness. The alarm woke me up too, but if Sonia wants to cuddle I'm more than happy to do it. I pull her body in closer to mine, pressing my chest against hers so I can give her a morning kiss.
	"Morning Sonia. Don't you need to get ready for work?" I tease. The messy head of bedhead under my nose grumbles and shifts around, face nuzzling into my neck as her arms wrap around me under the warm covers.
	"Not till eleven..." Sonia mumbles out.
	"We need to see Catherine and Charles off too." I remind her.
	"Don't wanna get up." She grumbles, huffing a bit from me keeping her dozing off again.
	I just chuckle and let her have her way, we still have plenty of time before both of those events. Enjoying the warm morning isn't hard, even with a grumpy kumiho wanting to sleep in with me. I give her head gentle strokes and my hand wanders down to her naked ass, feeling one of the soft pillows with a gentle squeeze. It helps her relax, used to the attention in her half-awake state.
	The alarm goes off again to some song about shark-girls in bikinis. It makes Sonia growl a bit, but a light slap to her behind changes her mind on ignoring the alarm. She releases me and lets out another yawn as she gets her legs to the floor. The fox ignores clothes and heads right for the bathroom while I get up out of the bed myself, following her so we can share another morning shower. The water is already going by the time I enter, so I slip right into the stream with Sonia to start helping her shampoo her tails. Once the fluffy, if waterlogged, tails are done with I grab the soap. Sonia raises her arms and indulges me as I scrub her body down from behind, grinning as she enjoys the treatment. My hands move along her slight curves, over her chest, under her arms, and along her legs. Once I finish, I turn and Sonia returns the favor, using her chest to scrub my chest as her hands move everywhere and linger on my crotch at the very end to help wake me up like I did with her. A rinse, and a drying later, and we're ready to get some breakfast. I get some clothes on while Sonia heads downstairs, still naked, to cook breakfast for us.
	I get downstairs in my fresh sweater and jeans to find Sonia wearing only an apron, humming to herself as the pig liver and back bacon sizzle. I come up behind her, kissing her neck as my hands move under the apron and to her chest to pinch her nipples. It elicits a sharp yelp from her despite the tails letting her feel me coming. A giggle follows as she continues to tend to the meat and pancakes.
	"Didn't get enough? We haven't taken a night off all month!" Sonia teases me, though the grin on her face tells me she hardly minds. I push the bulge in my pants up against her rear, giving the nipples another tweak to make her jump
	"Can't help myself. It's all your fault. Maybe we should have a quickie right here?." I tease back,  getting a moan from Sonia while I molest her chest. The pushing of her bottom into my crotch shows all the information I need, so I reach down to unzip my pants and fish my erection out.
	"A quick one, alright? It'll be ready in only a few minutes." Sonia pleads with fake complaint. I just chuckle and push it between her legs, able to smell the feminine scent already.  I thrust between her thighs to get my dick ready before pushing up into her, groaning as the silky vice clenches around me in delightful contractions. Not wanting to waste time, I make a wanton effort to bust my load as fast as possible by rutting into Sonia like an animal. She pants and moans in her own enjoyment, holding onto the stove for balance while trying to tend to the food. It's not long before I push her up off the ground using only my crotch and give the nipples a twist, making her let out a loud squeal as her body shudders in orgasm alongside my own. Once it's over I pull out and let her nearly fall over, catching the fox under her arms as the long tongue goes back into her mouth.
	"We'll need to add morning quickies to the routine~" She smiles back at me, exchanging a deep kiss.  I step away to clean both of us up with the paper towels from the counter. Sonia moves the food to the plates beside the stove as I clean her up.
	"I wouldn't mind. It's getting to be a pain washing the blankets so much though." I grin back, sitting in my spot as the pancakes and back bacon is set in front of me. Sonia just scratches my beard with her claws before getting her own food to sit down next to me.
	"Not my fault work hasn't been calling you. Are you sure they haven't fired you?" She asks, switching to a less lewd topic of conversation.
	"They would have called me if they fired me. Renovations must just be taking a long time. Another month without word and I'll look into getting a different job, I still have some of my savings for us to live on until then." I assure Sonia, adding some of the blueberry syrup to my pancakes. The answer satisfies her, and she cuts into her liver with a smile.
	"Alright, sounds fine to me. I don't mind not having to do the chores anyways." Sonia chuckles, giving me a kiss on the cheek. I rub her head back before going back to my food, both comfortable not speaking during the meal.
	As I'm getting up to wash the dishes the home phone rings. Sonia snatches it before I can get to it, answering with a cheery "Hello?". She speaks with someone on the other side, taking it upstairs on her way to change into real clothing. I finish with the dishes and then get the fire going again as it had been reduced to mere coals since last night, Sonia coming back down to put the phone on it's hook.
	"Who called?" I ask, standing up and putting the metal screen back in front of the fire.
	"Kotori. She said she had the things together for the experimental procedure at the hospital. You know, that one about using my blood to heal someone? They just need to wait for a patient willing to have it tested on them." Sonia smiles. "I didn't expect things to go so fast."
	"If there is real proof, the doctor's network takes notice quick. Still debating species classification?" I inquire, looking over Sonia's choice of a v-neck sweater and tight jeans.
	"Yeah, but you could just check that on your laptop right?" She asks, turning once when she notices me looking to show me all angles. I nod, satisfied that it's good enough for work.
	"I can't access everything. I'm only a clinical doctor with a suspended license. Well, I'll get my full one back soon now. Should be coming in the mail." I explain, smiling as she preens me by picking some of her hairs off my sweater.
	"Alright, we're presentable now. Lets send those two off before we miss them!" Sonia grins. I chuckle and ruffle her hair up to make her grumble, settling for patting it down as I head to the door first.
	We slip our snow clothing on before heading next door, the temperature milder but still freezing. It won't thaw until May. We knock on the door and a moment later Charles opens it up, grinning. We trade our frat greeting by bumping our elbows before the back of our fists, followed by a "Eyyy!"
	"About time you got up, we're leaving in ten minutes." Charles grins, letting us in. I just unzip my jacket, looking at the bags they have packed for their cruise. Catherine took a lot of persuasion to take the free vacation, paid for by myself, with Charles. But she eventually caved. And now she was checking everything over a third time to make sure nothing was forgotten.
	"Alright, take it out Charles!" She smiles over at her husband, noticing us before picking a pile of papers and some items up off the table. Moving over, she starts to chat right away. "Here is the spare key, use it to check on Sarah to make sure she's fine a few times a day. If she wants to sleep over at your place, please let her. I'll sleep sounder if she did as well. If you see anything out of the ordinary, call nine-one-one. I don't want to take chances with some psycho running around, even if they're only going after the mob."
	"Don't worry, we'll make sure it's safe. You'll just be gone a week, it'll be fine." I assure the worried mother, knowing it's hardly enough to calm her nerves. I take the keys and papers, Sarah's school schedule and some contact numbers on it that any over-prepared parent would have. There is even a number for an exorcist at the bottom, with a note 'in case of ghosts and/or possession'.
	"Alright, she'll probably hang around your place a lot so slow down on the... well, make sure she's asleep before playing around. I don't need Sarah developing a voyeurism kink." Sarah whispers, making Sonia blush at the rather private comment.
	"We'll keep that in mind..." Sonia replies, the comment only making me chuckle. There is no way that Catherine doesn't smell that we had a quickie before heading over. Charles takes the first load of their luggage out with him, making it the only load with some careful carrying. Catherine gives Sonia a hug for few moments, giving the kumiho no time to return the motion.
	"Good. You stay safe too, and get Sebastian to pick you up at night. You're probably okay but don't take chances out there! And mind curfew!"
	"I will, don't worry. I can take the bus both ways, I'll be off at seven anyways." Sonia assures the worried housewife. Catherine smiles, taking a deep breath to calm herself.
	"Alright, vacation starts now. Thank you for this, it'll be nice to have a chance to relax. Sarah gets off school at three, make sure she makes it home. Her cell number is on that paper." Catherine relaxes, getting her snow gear so they can get ready to head to the airport. "I'll bring back souvenirs, so be good you kids."
	"We will mom." I tease, making Catherine giggle a bit as her boots get put on. Sonia doesn't react to the joke, and realizing why I pat her head and play with her ears to make up for mentioning the 'm' word.
	Sonia and I exit after the married couple, locking the door for them as Catherine gets into the passenger's seat. Charles grins back at me and nods before moving into the driver's seat of his truck, me and Sonia waving them off as the truck pulls out onto the street and heads towards the airport.
	Once they are out of sight, I move to the sidewalk to walk to my mailbox, taking out that day's letters and newspaper. Sonia heads back inside ahead of me, and I follow with the letters. With the snow gear back off I sit on the couch to go through the mail. Sonia keeps her snow gear on, getting her lunch packed for work while I set aside bills and grin at the letter with my renewed doctor's license. I leave it there for the moment and stand up, heading into the kitchen and for the stairs. Sonia notices, and almost seems to read my mind.
	"Are you installing that hidden shotgun thing you mentioned?" The fox asks, putting her meal into the lunch-case while staring at me. I stop on the stairs and nod down at her. She smiles, glad the bit of protection was being put in place. "Okay, good. I'll see you tonight, we can have some more fun then."
	"If I were a lesser man you'd kill me." I joke, chuckling as I lean down and give Sonia a kiss goodbye. She giggles back after the kiss, moving away to get her lunch in hand and head for the door.
	"See you tonight!" She calls.
	"I'll be waiting!" I call back. The sound of the door closes behind her, so I head back upstairs. Sonia insisted I renew my gun license and get something for self defense, so I decided to install a hidden wall safe to store the weapon in. I already have the gun in the metal safe sitting in the bedroom beside the tools, and begin measuring where to put the hole as soon as I get in the room. It takes a couple hours to install it and hide the long locking gun safe in the wall behind the nightstand. I finish just in time for the doorbell to ring, making me head downstairs and to the front door at a relaxed pace.
	"Delivery for... Sebastian Lowell." The yeti delivery woman smiles, holding a small box from the jewelers. I grin with delight and sign for it, the woman wishing me luck before heading back to the delivery car, driving off to their next stop somewhere. I take the box inside and up to the gun safe, stashing it inside as the safest place to keep the package secret until I had everything else planned. I don't want Sonia finding the rings before I can attempt to be romantic. As I'm daydreaming about that, reality snaps me back as my cellphone rings.
	I fish in my clothes for it, but it's not there. I rush to find it in the room and eventually get the nearly forgotten phone out of the night stand drawer I had left it. Cursing myself for leaving it some place like that, I lift it to my ear and answer.
	"Hello? Boss?"
	There is a slight pause on the other side, with the sounds of panicked voices and general chaos coming through. I wait for them to get back to me, boss speaking in a serious voice among the panic.
	"Sebastian, we need a doctor here. The Don got injured in the last attack, and our doctor was killed. We don't have the know-how to take care of it." The oni explains in a forced calm voice. "Head up to that big mansion on the hill. You know the one. Do it fast. And leave your phone there at home."
	She hangs up, leaving me standing there with a quiet phone. It takes a minute for my worry to set in, but I dial the number for Sonia's cell right after. Getting the answering machine, I leave a message for her while I hurry downstairs to get ready to head out. The faster I'm finished the sooner I'm home and out of the firing line. I can't refuse, it'd be just as bad for me.
	"Sonia, I need to head into work to take care of some things. I don't know how long I'll be gone, but I should be back by tonight. I love you."
	With the message  left, I hang up the cellphone and remember to put it down on the couch when I pass. I throw my winter clothing on and boots next, afraid of what the mob would do to me if I didn't make it in time. My keys in hand, I rush out the door and almost forget to lock it on the way to my truck.

	The mansion comes into view ahead of me. Gates one might find on a french palace are placed in front with ten foot brick walls topped with sharp metal spires surrounding the large property.  Snow covers any garden that could be but the paved driveway to the large three story building is clear, a huge garage placed at the end of it with room for plenty of vehicles. The walls are so white that they almost get lost in the snow layer, but the windows make it stick out even with every curtain closed. I have to stop at the gate, an oni moving over and tapping on my window. I roll it down, the scowling strawberry not amused to see me.
	"What business do you have here?" She asks with a demanding, harsh tone.
	"Got a call. Don needs a doctor."
	That changes the oni's tune immediately. She moves away and the gate opens for me, letting me drive my truck straight up the driveway. I'm waved into the garage by my boss, the blue oni shivering in the open garage door. I take care moving in, the door closing behind my vehicle as I park. The inside of the garage has expensive looking cars parked in a row at the back, none fit for driving during the eight month winter. I ignore the show cars and step out of my truck, leaving the keys inside as the boss takes my arm and hurries me to the door into the mansion. The interior is made with fine hardwood with expensive looking burgundy paint on the walls, lamps sticking out between signed abstract paintings to illuminate the hallway. It gives way to a two story entrance-way with a large crystal chandelier, a group of ten guards with semi-automatic weapons sitting and standing around the room. They pay me little notice as I'm pulled up the stairs with it's polished handrail and down another long hallway while I try to match pace with the blue oni in business heels.
	The place is big, and I lose track of where I came from by the time I'm pulled into a basic medical room. The hell-hound I had met before in the same leather top and pants, Amazon with her black fur clothing, a were-bat I didn't know with greasy hair and normal looking hair.A tanuki that isn't any older than I am sits on the medical bed, hair cut short with expensive glasses in front of her eyes and an equally expensive looking sweater worn with designer jeans. She looks in pain and pissed off. They all take notice of me, and I can hear the hound growl as I pass by.
	"Alright, what's wrong?" I ask, pulling up the sleeves of my sweater to use the sink, scrubbing my hands and arms to prepare for the unofficial work. The blue oni boss speaks, adjusting her glasses while the rest of the room remains tense.
	"To put it simply, deep cuts in her back. She needs stitches, badly."
	I dry my arms before moving over, giving stern looks to the bat and hound to get them to move away from the busty tanuki. I move around behind her and gently lift up her shirt. I'm not prepared to see the bone deep cuts, but they're already clotting up despite the blood already soaked into the thick garment. I can't quite make out what is carved into her, but ignore it for now. I still need to seal the wounds so they don't open again and heal properly.
	"Take off the sweater, I can't work with it in the way." I instruct. I get death glares from the group, and I scowl back. "I'm a doctor, I won't even see them."
	They begrudgingly help get the sweater off their don as she hisses and tries to bear with the pain. I get the supplies I need ready and begin to wash the blood off so I can stitch the cuts closed, deciding to give her something to numb her back to make it more bearable as I start working. She does a good job, as I guess the pain of whatever caused it are worse than my careful hands.
	"You sure this guy knows what he's doing? He's just our butcher." The Amazon asks the boss, the blue oni scowling at them before nodding.
	"I'm sure! He was a doctor before I scooped him up. Just let the man work." She urges the others, another growl and fiery glare coming from my favorite hell-hound. I work at a steady pace, wanting to get it done well but quick.
	"What happened anyways? I need to know whether to prescribe some antibiotics." I ask. I want to know just how much danger I'm in as well, and hope the question will inform me. "Is there anyone else injured?"
	The room stays silent for an eerie amount of time. Finally, the blue oni speaks up, the others not wanting to answer.
	"Every one of our places but here has been hit. The don was at the last place, but that fox spared her. We don't know why. There are no other survivors." She answers, grimacing a bit. "All we have left are the twenty or so in the mansion. You can leave as soon as you're done, hurry up."
	I do my best to stay calm, the stitches making the cuts take shape. It almost takes my mind off of the precarious situation until I finish and look at the stitches, the look on my face giving it away. Curious eyes look at their boss's back, the cuts making a large symbol that looks a bit like a zipangunese character. None of us seem to know what it is though.
	"Well, you're done. Come here." The hell-hound growls, her strong paw grabbing onto my sweater to lift me off the ground and carry me out of the room. I can see the blue oni is surprised, but stays in the room with their boss to apply gauze. The tanuki needs to be guarded by someone. I'm dragged up the stairs and to a room facing the back of the house, thrown inside where a group of thugs are lounging. The short were-bat and the amazon follow the hell-hound in leather in, fiery eyes glaring down at me as she reaches for my shirt again to lift me up. She takes a long whiff of my scent as I panic, a deep growl coming out from her throat. I'm dropped to the ground again, abnormally strong foot-paw pinning my chest down to make me cough from the pressure.
	"It's similar, that scent is basically the same! You know that bitch fox, don't you?! Tried to cover it up with some sort of perfume or something!" She accuses. I can almost feel my death drawing closer with how the atmosphere in the room changes. "Tell us what you know!"
	"She's... not the same!" I struggle to speak, feeling my ribs creaking under the pressure. The hound obviously doesn't believe me, as she takes a baseball bat tossed to her and takes some practice swings. I'm already panicking, before asking a question. "What color... is that fox?!"
	"Like you don't fucking know. Just tell us where she's resting, and I don't need to break bones!" The hound barks at me. I reach into my pocket, hound watching me with attentive eyes as I take out the pocket-watch Sonia got for me. I open it up and lift the picture of the fox during the winter festival. The hound snatches it with a painful amount of force. She inspects it, swearing up a storm as she steps off of me and tosses the picture at my stomach.
	"It's not fucking HER! FUCK!!" She hound yells. I manage to get up, not liking the stares still being directed at me. I put the picture back into my watch and the watch into my pants as coughs escape me. Just before the hound throws the bat through the window in anger, something stops her.
	The lights in the mansion turn off with a fading hum, the only light after coming from the windows. My blood runs cold. So does everyone's when they seem to realize terrible things are about to happen. It takes a moment, but the hell-hound speaks up first to take command.
	"I'm going for the boss, you two take this group and guard the doctor! We might need him after! Take him up to the boss's room! Move it!!" She barks the orders, taking off into the hall to get to where  the tanuki is before I can register her moving. I forgot how fast hell-hounds can move when motivated. I'm not opposed to the armed protection as guns are pulled out of the wall and passed around, none given to me as the group of oni and other species lead me out of the recreation room we are currently in and straight down the hall.
	The sound of gunfire echoes from the entrance down the dark hallways, light only spilling in from open doorways and the curtained windows. My heart is beating out of my chest as we keep moving, one of the group occasionally breaking away to find a flashlight in a room. The gunfire stops, one source at a time. Light is starting to vanish as the short sunny part of the day starts to disappear, only making things darker.
	Gunfire followed by a cry of pain come from a room behind us. Everyone stops and turns, guns raised as the bat starts using her sonar to try and find something in the dark. I retreat to the back of the group, silence persisting for a long time. Everyone stays ready, before the bat speaks up.
	"I can't see anyone. Lets go."
	We continue on, the guns staying raised as the one that had fallen behind for another flashlight is abandoned. The lights we do have light up the hallways, the slow pace aggravating for me as I feel the need to run for it. They turn the lights off, not wanting to have the group of ten around us get spotted. It doesn't help when the bat starts to shoot her semi-automatic rifle down a side hall, but by the time lights and eyes are pointed down there all that is seen is a bare corridor.
	The bat gets us moving again, leading the way. Flashlights stay lit and scan every direction, but when we turn the corner we find the bloody corpse of one of our group. We only realize we're down to nine now.
	"Shit... How did?... keep your eyes open, we're probably being stalked." The were-bat warns the group. She opens fire in front, glass shattering as the bat tries to hit some far off target. We move faster to head towards the stairs, needing to get to the third floor to reach our destination. We have to spread out heading up the steps to avoid tripping over each other. When the front of the group is nearly to the top, there is a cry of pain and some gunfire below us. Another yell and a heavy tumbling noise. The ones in back shoot at whatever is there as we hurry up and run for the don's room. Another cry of pain, and I dare to glance back at the stairs. A pair of piercing yellow eyes stare back from the darkness, a vague form discarding a limp oni two heads higher than it. I turn back away and run a bit faster.
	Three in back fall off, leaving us with four including myself, the bat, and the amazon. I look back again, the light of the gunshots illuminating something blood red and furry, too fast for the group to get a hit in. The shots get frantic before it reaches them, guttural and bloody cries coming from the group. I look back ahead, cold sweat coming down my neck. The large double doors are right in front of us, none trying to shoot the pursuer. The oni to my left is pulled away, a snapping sound the only noise I hear before a loud 'thump'. The Amazon brings out her machete and turns, challenging the attacker. It seems to work, the brown skinned warrior's blade flying through the air as a scuffle begins while we flee. The bat throws open one of the doors and we almost dive in.
	The doors are locked and barricaded by the bat, my blue oni boss, and the hell-hound as I move back to where the tanuki is sitting, trying to remain stoic in the face of the threat with a blanket over her bare body. The room full of expensive collections and furniture is lit up by old gas lamps, luckily kept with fuel so we can see something in the windowless room. I catch my breath with hasty gasps and gulps, throat dry and burning. The three fighters that remain back away from the door when the bat raises her gun, the other pair raising theirs to wait for the signal from the one with some clue of where the enemy was.
	"Where's everyone else?" The hound asks, everyone jumping when the blade of the machete is stabbed through the wall with a powerful impact. The few inches that got through drip with fresh blood, and the sound of struggle outside end. The bat raises her rifle and shoots through the wall, not caring about the paintings in the room as the spray of bullets swings around towards the door before stopping.
	"We're it. She picked us off on the way up." The bat explains.
	I'm sweating bullets as I back up away from the center of the room, joining the don in the back where she is sitting on the edge of a lounging seat with shaking hands while she tries to stay calm. She is shaking too much to hold a gun herself. The three armed guards keep watch, oni minding the door while the hound tries to sniff out the enemy and the bat keeps using her sonar.
	"Fucking bitch, come out and die!" The hound barks with rage. On cue, coming fluffy and red twirls out of the vent above with the grate in hand. It lands with a soft 'pomf' before the mass of tails reveals it's owner. A head of red hair with large pointed ears stands behind the bat, almost as tall as I am. They're wearing a red mist valley dress with gold decorations sewn in, the tails bunching together to hide their number and keep out of the way. As the bat turns in shock, the grate is dropped and I almost can't see the hand fly. A wet sputtering comes from the winged woman as she falls backwards with a cut throat, alerting the other two.
	My blue oni boss turns and sees the situation, aiming at the fox in front of her with her own gun. With surprising speed, she's caught up to before she can fire. With martial skill, the kumiho's knee hits the taller oni in the stomach to keel her over. Jaws snap down and bone shatters, the oni screaming in pain as she holds where her horn used to be. The yellow eyed and sharp toothed woman turns and spits the horn out, hell-hound taking the shot once the oni is out of the way on the floor. Bullets fly into a bookcase and miss their mark, a blur of red moving out of the way of each shot before it's fired and approaching the hound. The furniture in the large room is shot full of holes, hell-hound not able to move her gun to point at the fox fast enough for a hit. The red meets the black, and a powerful impact hits the hound's hands to knock the rifle away but bends the metal in the process.
	The hound doesn't waste any time countering, one of her paws swinging down in a brutish strike that casts a bang when it's blocked by the fox. The red one swings the hound over her head with a one handed grab, flinging the heavier and larger opponent across the room and through a wood bug display that splinters and scatters the dry butterflies within. Growling with anger, fire and smoke coming off of her body, the hound charges the fox again. The fox waits and greets her with a powerful palm strike to the face, stunning the hound for a kick to the side that makes another impact noise mixed with a loud crack. A paw moves to her side as she doubles over for a moment, the momentary recoil getting her jaw slammed up by a knee before the fox extends her leg into the hound's stomach, throwing her back across the ground again.
	Pain from her broken rib is ignored as a tooth is spat out by the hound, blood leaking from her mouth. She rushes in again, roaring in rage before stopping just in front of the serious faced fox. Her arms are swung together as fast as possible, getting blocked as another powerful 'bang!' echoes through the room. With her arms up, the fox somehow doesn't notice the blue oni that appears behind her. Strong blue arms wrap around her and pin the arms up, the oni's legs wrapping around the fox's as she brings her down in a strong hold. The hound is back, and looms over the fox now. The oni closes her eyes as the hound's glow red, and I recognize the death gaze hell-hounds are infamous for. The fox glares back, but a fluffy appendage wraps around the hound's face. The hound yelps in surprise and there is a loud crunch, oni yelling in pain again as a bone is splintered by powerful jaws. Freed by the inflicted pain, the fox swings her legs up to kick the hound into the top of the bookcase behind her, causing the heavy wood to fall on top of the powerful opponent. With the hound off her, she flips to her feet and pulls the bloody oni up with her claws digging into the blueberry's skull. The oni tries to pry the claws out of her head, but the other clawed hand stabs into her neck. She's released amidst bloody choking, holding onto her throat while falling over onto the ground to die.
	The hell-hound bursts up out of the fallen bookcase, black smoke and fire surrounding her in rage. One look at her friend doesn't help, making her snarl with increased fury. "You bitch! I'll tear you apart!" She yells in pained anger, reckless rush running right into a knee thrust to her chest. She coughs out black smoke, the fox slashing at her twice with her claws to leave multiple deep gashes across her face and collar. The hound tries to counter-attack, but her speed is just a bit slower than the fox that blasts a palm strike up into her jaw. Three more slashes to her body, before another strong blunt strike to the head that makes the hound stumble back. The hound swings a fist down, but the fox grabs it and swings the hound around a full circle before throwing her into the wall. Shaky getting up, the hound's fire is dying down before getting slammed into the wall again by a thunderous kick from the thin form of the red fox. The thick walls shake, the hell-hound struggling to stay standing as the fight comes out of her. The fox pushes the bloody head up, hell-hound laughing at her own defeat.
	"I'll see you in hell you fucking bitch. I'll make sure all those vengeful spirits around you get a turn with ya!" The hound jeers painfully. The fox isn't phased.
	"I don't think I'll be allowed visitors as far down as I'll be dragged." Her calm voice responds. Her other hand reaches up and takes hold of the hell-hound's head as well, before twisting in a sharp motion. A loud crack is heard before the hound falls lifeless with a smug grin stuck to her face.
	The fox turns to face us, and approaches the two non-combatants. I fear the worst, but she moves to the counter to look through the teas the tanuki has stalked instead.
	Both me and the tanuki are taken aback by the odd activity, watching as the fox puts the kettle on and starts making something to drink. She even takes the time to wash the blood off her arms in the sink, letting me examine her more closely. She definitely stands just half a head shorter than me, excluding the ears, and has a thin but toned frame that fits into the mist valley style dress well with an average sized chest. I recognize the predatory yellow eyes, and the claws. Her crimson hair is held in place by a gold hairpiece, two needles running through with braids running along her head to spill out on the other end around a tight bun, well groomed bangs cut at an even level besides the sharp sideburns that travel down her jaw. She doesn't look older than thirty, but the number of tails betrays the triple digit age. With tea started, she approaches and smiles at the pair of us.
	"I am not familiar with you. Allow me to me introduce myself, I am Youyeol Aejong. What may your name be?" She asks, making no attempt to bow while staring at me alone. Instead, the fox sits down on one of the lounge seats and lean against the back. She crosses her legs and leaves her tails beside her, arms resting on the polished wood back.
	"S-sebastian Lowell." I answer honestly, staying standing up. My legs aren't listening to me due to my fear, the name and presence not helping me. She seems to resemble Sonia, at least a bit, but has sharper eyes that pierce right through me.
	"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr.Lowell. Relax, lets take some time to converse." Yuhyeol speaks with a calm voice, only unnerving me more after the viciousness before. I am shaky, but take a seat beside the tanuki. The one beside me is already shaking and accepting death with as stoic an expression she can manage. The fox stands back up, wandering around the room to inspect the collections. "There are quite a few nice things stored in here. I might just help myself to them when you are no longer with us Ms. Suun."
	"If you're going to kill us make it fast!" The tanuki snaps. Yuhyeol lets out a 'tuttut' as she inspects an antique  pistol rack, passing it over with a momentary sneer to find the sound system.
	"Don't be so hasty. You put me through a lot of trouble, and ruined my fun down in Yukiten. I'm going to savor some time playing with you before I give you that eternal slumber. A shame I cannot take time to enjoy it further." Yuhyeol hums, looking through the collection of CDs before picking one out. She puts it in, and soon enough the sounds of an opera begin to start up thanks to the system's internal backup battery. She adjusts it to be quiet enough so we can keep talking, before heading back over to us. My heart nearly stops when her attention shifts to me when something catches her attention. She leans down to sniff at my neck, taking in some long breaths before standing up straight again, look of shock on her face as the singing starts on the speaker system. A smile spreads on her face like she had received a gift from the heavens. It doesn't look like it'll be going away.
	"So, you're not unfamiliar with kumiho. Are you Mr.Lowell?" Yuhyeol asks, stepping away as the kettle begins to boil. My blood runs cold, and I remain quiet. She pours three cups of tea into glasses and carries them over, handing a fancy teacup on a small plate to each of us. From the smell I can guess it's some kind of bitter green tea. I take my own, but Yuhyeol has to set the one for the don down between us as the tanuki won't take it. She sits in her own spot, looking straight at me. "Don't by coy now. I can smell her on you. Do you have her picture on you by any chance?" She requests, blowing on her own tea.
	I steady my own hand, not able to calm down with those yellow eyes staring at me. I stall by blowing on my tea to sip at it, but I can feel her patience wearing thin just as her eyes narrow.
	"What do you want with her?" I ask, "For all I know you want to kill her too."
	Yuhyeol laughs, though the tanuki is looking confused about the talk of something that seems to be urban legend. The fox crosses her legs and takes a sip of her own.
	"Utter nonsense. I would not dream of harming a hair on that head!" Yuhyeol assures me, though I feel no calmness come to me. "Call it a burning desire to see others of my kind. I do not see them, we have no need to meet. But curiosity comes from not knowing you see." I keep hesitating, so she adds a small threat to the end. "You can still be my prey, boy."
	I set my tea to the side and take out my pocket-watch. Yuhyeol watches with keen interest and catches it when I toss the cheap device over. Her nimble fingers open it with one hand and a small gasp of surprise leaves her, the fox setting her tea down as adoring eyes stare at the picture inside.
	"She is quite stunning... a fine woman." Yuhyeol smiles with pride, closing the pocket-watch to toss it back to me in a gentle arc. I catch it and put the device back in my pocket just as she stands up and drinks down the rest of her tea. As if she were now in a hurry.
	"Ms. Suun, you have your wish. A quick death." Yuhyeol informs the still stoic tanuki next to me as the kumiho steps over to the antique pistols, looking them over with care. "So tell me, which of these is your favorite? I can smell the gunpowder, you keep them loaded. Likely for emergency occasions such as this I presume."
	There is a long pause, Yuhyeol turning to threaten the tanuki with her eyes. It makes the ring-tail crumble.
	"Th-the one with the ivory handle." Her voice cracks.
	The requested pistol is taken off the wall and carried over, Yuhyeol putting it in the don's hands. The tanuki looks confused, but the fox steps back and waits with hands on her hips.
	"I do detest the smell and function of pistols. I have rather painful memories of their first incarnations, and avoid using them to this day. You can save what dignity you have by using that one shot to do my work for me. I find myself with a bit more business to take care of in this city that does not involve you."
	I look between the two, but the mention of more business gets me frightened. The only noise for a minute is the sound of the opera on the speakers and the tanuki muttering a prayer, before the pistol is raised to the temple on my side to have the shot facing away from me. A click as the hammer is pulled back. And then a loud gunshot, the tanuki slumping over on the couch, limp and dead.
	"Now then. Sebastian Lowell, you will tell me that which I desire to know with no less honesty than you value your life with." A cold, calm voice threatens. Yuhyeol looks down at me as my heart feels about to explode, mortal fear coursing through my head as her piercing yellow eyes paralyze my body. Nine red tails unfurl behind her like a peacock's display, blotting the lamp-light from view and darkening my view of the kumiho in front of me.
	"Where is my daughter?! Where is Sonia Aejong?!!"