The Fox's Quest Read Online Free PDF

demon, at least, mostly left him alone.
    The room wasn’t empty. Mamoru detected the sounds first, and sent a general wave of alarm at the demon sharing his brain. The demon stilled and listened a moment before calling out, “Who’s there?”
    The door slid open, revealing Usagi and her perfect upswept hairdo. She’d taken the loss of Nagato hard, but she’d eventually returned to her habit of presenting herself at her best at all times. Her best grew better by the day, as her body put the finishing touches on her transformation into a woman.
    “I need to talk to you,” Usagi said, shifting aside to let him in.
    The demon spoke warily, an attitude of which Mamoru approved. “Talk? What about?”
    They knelt face to face on the tatami floor, the demon trying its best not to stare too overtly at Usagi. Mamoru was aware, and amused, that his demon had recently begun discovering the involuntary part of human sexuality, the part that could make a man’s body react to a woman’s whether he liked her or not. Having been trained in such arts, Usagi was skilled at inciting desire.
    It was in the way her chest rose high when she breathed—she shouldn’t have needed to breathe so deeply while sitting down; in the way her kosode might slip from her shoulder to show creamy flesh; in the way she lifted captivating eyes to his. When she tilted her head to the side, the eye was drawn to the curve of her neck and the mind imagined nuzzling it to better capture her scent.
    Perhaps it was because they were both experiencing a similar feeling of attraction toward Usagi that their minds—human and demon—suddenly tried to meld. For a brief moment, Mamoru saw Usagi as the demon did, as a mysterious being of troubling beauty that evoked both fear and fascination and stirred desires unknown and forbidden.
    They both recoiled from this sudden intimacy, ending it. Mamoru was left with the startling insight the demon wasn’t merely experiencing physical attraction, but falling in love—or as close to it as to make no difference.
    The poor guy—thing?—had no idea. Falling in love with Usagi was like becoming enamored of a bear. It couldn’t end well.
    “I’m leaving soon,” Usagi said. She was obviously too self-centered to have noticed anything amiss. “My mission is to infiltrate the Imperial Palace. You know what that means.”
    “Oh.” The demon began to riffle through its host’s mind, trying to understand the context.
    Irritated by this rudeness, Mamoru shoved the demon back. It retreated like a kicked puppy. For a supposedly evil creature, it was strangely shy and averse to confrontations.
    When their minds were in close contact, it was easy to send thoughts through the thin barrier separating human mind and demon mind. Mamoru thought at the demon, Women shinobi are long-term spies. They spend years pretending to be someone they’re not and not seeing their own. Usagi may never return here.
    Consternation filtered through the barrier. “Do you have to go?” Not-Mamoru asked Usagi.
    “Don’t be an idiot. It’s my job.”
    “I could go with you.”
    “They wouldn’t allow it. Yoshio’s taken an interest in you, hasn’t he? He kept you in isolation for months and now you have personal lessons with him. He must mean to assign special missions to you.”
    That was not a cheerful thought. The demon sighed, stewing in misery so intense it filtered through the barrier.
    “Thank you for caring,” Usagi said. She picked at her clothing, eyes looking everywhere but at him. “I wasn’t nice to anyone because I didn’t want it to hurt too badly when I had to leave, but it hurts anyway.”
    The demon poked at Mamoru’s mind with a request for “long-distance communication methods.” He supplied it with the concept of mail.
    “Write to me,” the demon said.
    “If I can.”
    “If you write asking me to come, I will. Even if Yoshio won’t allow it.”
    Usagi looked up, wide-eyed. “Truly?”
    The demon nodded