They were mostly quiet as the boy led them along. He seemed nervous, as if Robbie and his cohorts might be waiting around every tree.

Kisaki decided that further conversation could wait until he was in a place where he was more comfortable. She remembered her own embarrassment at being bullied and how she’d felt much better once she’d followed Tamiko home.

Through some minor miracle, Shitoro held his tongue as they walked, seemingly not in the mood to argue with the boy’s earlier cat comment.

Kisaki tried to take in her new surroundings – Cartersville, Tamiko had called it – but instead found herself stealing glances at their new companion. He was a good head taller than she and appeared to be of comparable age – in appearance anyway. He was tall, thin, and with a strong chin. Kisaki had few reference points to judge attractiveness but decided he was pleasant to look at, certainly much more so than the brutes who’d accosted him.

“Where are we going?” Tamiko asked as he led them down a side street off of the main thoroughfare of the small town.

“Like I said, my place. Or my parents’ place anyway. They’re not home, though. They’re gone for the week, visiting my grandparents. I had to work, so I stuck around. Trying to save up for a car. You know how it is.”

Kisaki did not know how it was, but his answer seemed to satisfy Tamiko, so she decided to trust in her friend.

After about fifteen more minutes of walking, they came to a small dwelling. It was a drab beige in color and two stories in height. A portion of the street lay alongside it – a driveway, if Kisaki recalled correctly – and it was surrounded on all sides by a wooden fence that didn’t look sturdy enough to keep out anything that truly wanted in.

“It’s not much to look at, but it’s home,” the boy said brightly enough. “Come on in.” He walked up a few steps to the door and opened it before frowning down at Shitoro. “Is he one of those hypoallergenic breeds, by any chance?”

Kisaki opened her eyes wide in confusion. She turned to Tamiko, who merely shrugged uncomfortably.

“It’s just that my mom is allergic to cats. Nothing horrible, but she’ll end up sneezing for a week if too much fur gets on things.”

“Oh,” Kisaki replied, not entirely comprehending. “He is...”

“Then it is a good thing I am not a cat,” Shitoro said suddenly. “A fact that you humans seem to have some issue discerning.”

The boy let out a laugh. “Which of you two is doing that? Because seriously, that is kick ass. We’re talking Jeff Dunham level shit right there.”

“Jeff Dunham?” Kisaki asked.

“It’s her.” Tamiko hooked a thumb over her shoulder. “She and her cat have a special bond.”

“My claws are going to form a special bond with your leg, human, if you keep calling me that,” Shitoro growled.

“Wow,” their would-be host said. “That is wild. I can’t see your lips moving or anything.”

Shitoro let out a disgusted sigh. “Is the entirety of your species this dense? I swear, one would think opening that door would present a challenge to you. It’s beyond me how primates such as yourself managed to spook the bulk of the celestial court.”

“Shitoro,” Kisaki warned.

“Is that his name?” the boy asked. “I had him pegged as more of a Fluffy.”

That caused Tamiko to burst out laughing.

Shitoro, however, seemingly found the comment less than amusing. Before Kisaki could say anything to stop him, his eyes flashed and he transformed to his youkai form. He stood there glaring up at the wide-eyed boy. “I have had to endure a lot in my time, but I will warn you once and only once, that I am not fluffy!”

♦ ♦ ♦

Anything further Shitoro might have had to say was drowned out.

“Holy shit! What the hell is that thing?!”

Though the nearby dwellings weren’t nearly as close together as some Kisaki had seen on Tamiko’s island, she suspected they were close enough to hear the panic coming out of her new friend’s mouth.

Tamiko was apparently thinking the same thing. She whispered, “We need to get inside,” then grabbed the boy from behind and dragged him through the door.

Kisaki glared down at Shitoro. “Go on.”

“It would be rude of me to pass through first without holding the door for a lady such as...”

“In, now!”

Perhaps it was the tone in Kisaki’s voice, but Shitoro hurried through the doorway as quickly as his little hind legs could carry him.

As soon as he was inside, she followed and closed the door behind them, hoping they hadn’t attracted any undue attention.

♦ ♦ ♦

If it hadn’t been for the panic in the boy’s voice, Kisaki would have found the interior charming. It was simple compared to the celestial palace, even compared to the resort she’d stayed at with Tamiko. If anything, it reminded Kisaki of a peasant dwelling, but that wasn’t to say it was bad. What it lacked in finery and grandeur, it certainly made up for in comfort.

And then there was the smell. She couldn’t put her finger upon it, as she’d never smelled anything like it before, but the dwelling had a pleasant, lazy odor about it. The brown-haired boy had called it home, and that struck a chord with her. Indeed, it smelled like what one might imagine a home should smell like.

Taking in the sights and scents would have to wait, however, for Tamiko had her hands full. She’d pulled the boy into a room off of the entranceway and was trying to get him to sit down.

“Get off me!” he protested. “What is that thing? Who are you people? And how hard did that blockhead hit me back there in the alley?”

“Calm down,” Tamiko said. “This is all fairly new for me, too.”

“I am not going to calm down. That ... cat talked to me, and then it turned into a ... I don’t know, a freaking garden gnome or something.”

Shitoro’s fur ruffled at his words and he opened his mouth, but Kisaki pushed past, then turned and pointed a finger his way. “That will be enough.”

“But...”

“I’m serious, Shitoro. It can wait for the moment. Just stand near the doorway for now until we calm him down.”

The youkai made a sound of disgust. “Such insignificant creatures. Why I even bother trying...”

Kisaki stepped into the room slowly, attempting to appear as harmless as possible. She looked around and then took a seat on a comfortable, if worn-looking chair. “Your home is really nice.”

“You’re kidding me, right?” he asked. “That’s the best you’ve got? You just kicked the crap out of six guys who’ve hounded me since the second grade, you have a talking gnome cat, and all you can say is ‘your home is nice?’”

“It really is,” Tamiko agreed before stepping back when he turned to glare at her. She turned to Kisaki and inclined her head before taking a seat of her own. The look on her face said it all. Scared and confused as he was, at least he was talking, which was infinitely better than screaming.

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“I’m gonna call the cops,” he said. “Tell them you forced your way inside and are holding me hostage.”

“Cops?”

“Please don’t do that,” Tamiko replied, and then to Kisaki, she explained, “American slang. It means the police.”

“Ah, the enforcers of your laws. Yes, as my friend just said, kindly do not do that. It is unnecessary.”

The boy laughed, although there was a manic quality to it. “Not sure what I’d tell them anyway, at least that wouldn’t get me locked up. They threw Mr. Dawkins, that’s our neighbor three doors down, in the drunk tank for the weekend after he claimed to have seen Bigfoot out in the woods. Can only imagine what they’d do if I started yelling about talking gnomes.”

“Shitoro is not a gnome,” Kisaki said. “He is a youkai.”

“A tiger youkai, if we are being specific,” Shitoro added from the doorway to the room, where he looked to be busy pouting.

“Yes.” Kisaki smiled at him. “He is a ferocious and loyal tiger youkai.”

“Youkai?” the young man asked. “I’ve heard that before.”

“It basically means demon,” Tamiko explained.

“Oh yeah. From like manga, right?”

She nodded.

“My mom’s into that and I’ve read a few.” He turned toward Shitoro and blinked several times, as if not believing what he was seeing. “So you’re actually telling me they’re real?”

“Hopefully not all,” Tamiko replied. “I’ve read a few stories that are a bit ... disturbing. But trust me. I was just as surprised as you.”

“Are there any others like him?”

Tamiko turned to Kisaki with an expectant look upon her face. Kisaki realized this was her friend’s first chance to ask questions, too. She’d met Shitoro, only to be whisked away before she could properly process things. If anything, they were sharing the same surprised emotions. The boy’s were just a bit fresher, that’s all.

Speaking of which, she couldn’t keep thinking of her host as “the boy.” “My name is Kisaki. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance. You’ve already met Shitoro, and this is Tamiko.”

The boy nodded. “Are you two ... y’know?”

“Y’know?”

“I think he’s asking if we’re youkai, too,” Tamiko said. “I’m not. Just a fifteen-year-old girl from Kabira Beach. Heck, two hours ago, I was in your shoes.”

“Kabira Beach? Is that in New Jersey?”

“Ishigachi ... it’s west of Okinawa.”

“Okinawa?” The boy paused as if thinking. “As in Japan?”

Tamiko nodded.

“You’re Japanese ... I mean, obviously, you look like it. I mean, you look Asian, that is, not...”

“Oh great. Another broken human,” Shitoro muttered.

“Sorry,” he continued, throwing a quick glance the tiger youkai’s way before turning back to Tamiko. “So you’re really from Japan?”

“If you ask my father, he’d give you a long answer to that,” she said with a smile, “but yes.”

Their host didn’t seem to know what to say to that. “Um ... your English is really good.”

“Thanks. My dad runs the resort there. I get a lot of practice with the tourists.”

“I bet,” he replied, still wide-eyed. “I’m sorry, maybe I’m thick, but I still don’t get it. You said that two hours ago, this was all new to you. But you’re here now?”

“Yes. A short while ago I, we were there standing on the beach back home. It was dark, and then poof, suddenly we were here and it was morning.”

“It was my fault,” Kisaki explained.

“I should say so,” Shitoro snorted from the doorway.

“So what about you?” the boy asked Kisaki. “Are you ... like her?”

She looked down at her lap and considered this. “The funny thing is, this is new for me, too, but to answer your question, I am ... different. My mother is one of the daimao.”

“Daimao? Is that like a shogun or something?”

“It’s a greater demon of sorts,” Tamiko replied. “Or maybe a lesser god. Depends on which myths you read. They’re pretty high up the ladder, though. Like comparing a lizard to Gojira.”

The boy nodded as if he understood, then turned back to Kisaki. “So you’re ... a goddess?”

“Lady Kisaki is a hanyou,” Shitoro said with a pained sigh, stepping into the room. He stopped as the boy turned toward him. “Oh, calm down already, child. Had I wished you harm, we would not be having this discussion. She is a half demon.”

Kisaki nodded. “I recently learned my father is a human. I’m here looking for him.”

“In Cartersville?” the boy asked. “I think you’re going to be disappointed. Not much happens here. At the very least, I’m pretty sure none of the townsfolk are married to a goddess.”

Kisaki’s face fell at the news, but Shitoro said, “He may not even be aware.”

“What?” she asked. “How?”

“He ... your father, that is ... may ... no, he is almost certainly not aware of his siring.”

“Why?” Kisaki asked.

“It’s difficult to explain.”

The boy stood and stretched, seemingly more at ease following Shitoro’s declaration of no ill intent. “If that’s the case, then he’s going to be a lot harder to find. But I’ll tell you what. This is ... I won’t lie. This is really freaking weird. But it’s kinda cool, too. Also, you helped me out earlier. I was sure that goon was going to feed me my teeth...”

“Why?” Kisaki interrupted. “What transgression occurred between you?”

“Life,” he replied. “Robbie’s had it out for me ever since we were kids. He’s the closest thing this town has to an official jackass. Anyway, I’ve been mostly avoiding him since we started high school. He’s not exactly in any honors classes, if you get my drift.”

Tamiko laughed at this, although Kisaki didn’t quite understand why.

“But last week, I was working at my new job, stocking shelves down at the Grub Stop. He and a few of his troglodyte buddies came in and started wandering the aisles. Next thing I knew, I saw him stuff a box of doughnuts in his jacket.”

“Doughnuts?”

“You need to try them, trust me,” Tamiko said before opening her eyes wide. “Hey, I just realized you’ve been speaking English, too.”

“I am?” Kisaki asked.

“Yeah, remember? Three days ago, you told me you couldn’t. What? Were you just being shy or something?”

Kisaki turned away, unsure of what to say. “I spoke the truth. I didn’t speak it. I ... only learned it a short while ago, listening to those boys argue.”

“You’re telling me that up until about an hour ago, you didn’t speak English, but now, suddenly, you speak it better than me?”

“Yeah,” the boy said. “I mean, I can’t even hear an accent.”

Shitoro cleared his throat, catching their attention. “Perhaps if you had paid better attention in your studies, such knowledge would be evident.”

“How so?” Kisaki asked.

The tiger demon strolled further into the room, then hopped upon one of the many cushioned seats.

“Hey!” the boy said. “My mom is...”

“Allergic to cats,” Shitoro replied. “Yes, I heard you. Fortunately for her, I am a tiger demon.”

“Tigers are cats,” Tamiko said triumphantly.

“Do you ever grow weary of being tiresome?”

“Not really.”

“Eh hem,” Kisaki interrupted. “You were saying?”

Shitoro crossed his arms and leaned back. “I was saying that this ability of yours is commonplace. The celestial tongue is far more complex than anything spoken by humans. Those who master it can often easily pick up other languages. They are child’s play in comparison to the speech of the gods.”

“In minutes?”

“No,” he replied. “If you will allow me to finish. Your mother, like all daimao, possesses a mind more advanced than any human could even hope to understand.” He paused to look condescendingly at the two others in the room. “It is my belief that you inherited this from her ... a very small portion anyway, if your progress in your studies is to be believed.”

Kisaki let the insult go for now. She’d always envied her mother – her power, her beauty, her regal bearing, everything. A part of her had always wondered if she was a disappointment, seemingly in possession of none of those traits. However, if what Shitoro said was true, then it had just been hidden until now. If she’d gotten that from her mother, then perhaps she’d also gotten... “Would it work the same way with combat skills?”

Shitoro’s expression suddenly went from smug to unsure. “Err...”

“I was meaning to ask you about that,” Tamiko said. “You kicked their butts pretty hard. You must have been studying martial arts for years.”

Kisaki shook her head. “Before today, I have never had cause to raise my hand to another. When you met me, that boy Hojo, the one who pushed me into the water, was the first time any had ever accosted me.”

“Really?”

“Yes. That is why I am asking. Shitoro?”

“I ... do not know,” he admitted. “I was actually just about to step in with my magic when you began doing whatever it is you did. It was most ... unexpected.”

Kisaki started to mention the vision she’d had, too, but then stopped herself. If her sudden skills made Shitoro nervous, what would that do?

“No matter the cause,” he continued, “you must keep that to yourself. Do not even tell your mother about it.”

“Why?”

“Because she would punish me, that’s why! You were never supposed to be taught to fight. It was her wish.”

“But you didn’t.”

“I know that, but she won’t believe me. I’ll be lucky to be demoted to the cleaning staff.”

“Why didn’t she want me to learn to fight?”

“A lady of your station needs it not. Also...”

“Also what?”

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Those who learn how to fight often wish to test it out. Considering your heritage, it seemed a risk not worth taking.”

“My heritage? What does that have to...” She stopped when she noticed the boy watching her intently. Feeling a strange heat rise to her cheeks, she quickly forgot everything they were discussing. “My apologies. I did not mean to interrupt your tale.”

“That’s okay,” he said. “What you guys are talking about is far more fascinating than my day. I was just going to say, I told my boss about Robbie and he ended up calling the cops. End of story. That’s pretty much the point where you guys stepped in, right when he was about to beat the snot out of me for ratting on him.”

“He should thank you for forcing him to own up to his actions.”

“I have a feeling he doesn’t quite feel the same way on that subject. Personal responsibility isn’t one of his better virtues.”

“Perhaps he has learned some from today.”

“I doubt it. Learning isn’t his forte either.”

Tamiko laughed at that, and soon Kisaki and the boy joined her. Only Shitoro remained silent, continuing to look put out.

After a few minutes of this, the boy looked up at them all. “Oh wow. I’m a terrible host. I got so caught up in...” He gestured toward Shitoro. “And all the rest of it, that I forgot I promised you all some lemonade.”

“I’d love some,” Tamiko said. Kisaki looked at her questioningly, to which she added, “Kisaki would love some, too. Trust me on this.”

“I am quite fine as I am,” Shitoro muttered.

“A warm bowl of ... milk maybe?” the boy offered, to which the youkai narrowed his eyes. “Okay, nothing for you. Gotcha.”

“Thank you,” Kisaki said before adding, “I am sorry, but I do not know whom I am thanking for this hospitality.”

The boy paused for a moment, then slapped his forehead. “Oh wow, I am such a moron. I’m sorry. I swear, that idiot must’ve beaten my manners out of me. It’s just been a bit of a long day.”

Kisaki smiled. “It is quite all right.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” He stepped forward and held his hand out to her. “Stephen Fuller at your service.”

Kisaki was about to take his hand when suddenly Shitoro stood up from where he’d been sitting.

“What?!”