Saki

  Lyran sighed and looked out over the town rooftops. Dingy and disgusting, but the view was captivating in its own way. Eventually he looked back to Tama and answered.

  His words were slow at first, but quickened as he became more confident. “Because you would not have let me and I was scared you would do something stupid.. and.. to be fair, I was right!

  I saw what you did Tama to that Lich! You attacked a portal spell as it was forming on the staff. If you had just gotten out of its radius nothing would have happened, instead you attacked it. The guild believed you both dead until I told them you weren’t!”

  “Tama is the greatest ninja ever! She does not need a baby sitter!” Tama snapped back angrily, her tail lashing aggressively back and forth. Her ears flattened and her cheeks red.

  Despite her words, I saw the way her eyes shifted and the way her tail lashed left to right instead of up and down. Tama almost never lied, and even now the only person she was lying to was herself.

  I couldn’t help myself, I giggled. “It’s not funny!” Tama snapped at me, her face filled with anger. However, her lips twitched up slightly.

  “Oh, I am so sorry Queen Tamaneko! Is that a flogging for me now? Or are you gonna bring me one hundred feet in the sky again and drop me?” I raised an eyebrow and leaned in. My voice was filled with derision and she picked it up instantly.

  She smiled, trying to force it back to a frown and failing. “Nya! Except this time Tama is going to take you two hundred feet! Maybe even three hundred!” Her tail stopped lashing and she sniffled.

  She turned to Lyran and said “If you buy Tama fries, she will forgive you.” She put on an innocent face and I burst out laughing.

  “Well Tama, if I didn’t know any better, I would think you did all this to get free fries from Lyran!” I said with snark.

  Tama’s cheeks flushed red and she giggled.

  Lyran looked relieved and nodded happily. “Of course Tama, I will get you all the fries you could want.” As he said this he looked at me hopefully and asked “Out of curiosity, how much does that engineering position pay? I have a feeling it won’t be enough..”

  I snorted before stating simply “It will never be enough Lyran, it will never be enough.”

  He sighed and shook his head before smiling and letting out a laugh. Tama followed and a moment later we were all rolling on the rooftop giggling.

  Tama grabbed Lyran and blinked suddenly. For a moment I panicked at why she would do that. Then I sighed when I realized.

  Lyran had just promised her unlimited fries. I walked over to the edge of the rooftop towards the market square. Sure enough, Tama and Lyran were outside the cafe and Tama was pulling him inside. I smiled and shook my head. That poor man.

  I used my tails to get down by doing something a little dangerous. I shifted into my combat form and jumped. All nine tails became earth spikes and right before I hit the ground, they all impaled the ground, holding me in the air.

  I slowly lowered myself using them, then shifted back. A few people gasped. But most seemed uncaring. I smiled as I looked around. Kitsune normally had a bad reputation. But these people knew me.

  I felt something I hadn’t felt since Tama had given me my badge name. A sense of trust and comfort. I took a single step before I heard a voice call out “Halt!”

  I whirled as a random guard ran up to me. He looked livid and I wondered why for a second. Then he pointed at the shattered cobblestone where I had stabbed into the ground, leaving it broken and chipped. I winced and smiled sweetly. “Was it an accident?” I said almost hopefully.

  He raised an eyebrow and said “You’re coming with me.”

  For the briefest moment, I considered fleeing, coercing, charming, or just causing a scene. Then I remembered what happened with Talia and decided it was just safer to go with the man. Besides, if he tried anything, Tama would kill them all anyways.

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  I also could have complained that Tama didn’t get in trouble. But complaining why the Queen of a kingdom didn’t get in trouble for basic destruction of property was a losing fight.

  Technically as royal advisor, I might have the power to sidestep this. But it would create a bad precedent and it would be an abuse of power.

  Not something I was exactly against, but this would just be pointless.

  I was cuffed with Elemental nullification bracelets and because I was considered intelligent, despite my inability to actually cast spells. I had a gag put on my mouth.

  I was brought to the guardhouse where the guard played bad cop and tried to get me to confess openly. I could have but I refused.

  It was more fun to watch the guard’s face change color in real time. This guy clearly had a power trip mentality. At least until Tama showed up, burst down the door and knocked the man and all surrounding guards unconscious. I would have facepalmed if my hands were free.

  I looked at her unimpressed. She looked back at me seriously. “Tama is here to save Saki!” She said as she appeared next to me and removed my bracelet cuffs and disappeared again.

  I quickly pulled the gag out of my mouth and said “Tama stop!”

  She appeared next to me again and asked “What happened!”

  ? I rolled my eyes. “I was arrested for destroying public property. If you had just let it go, I was going to get out just fine.

  Now you hurt a bunch of people. You have to think before you act Tama! I appreciate you saving me, but I didn’t need saving from this.”

  As I spoke I stood and removed the bits of cuff still left and stretched. My nine tails came out and began grabbing and picking up the guards. I carefully laid them down on the floor in a line and looked at Tama who was looking at a bulletin board.

  More specifically, she was looking at a golden star on it and staring. “Tama, please go get a healer or two. Tell them the guard house was attacked, but no one is dead. Just injured.”

  “No need, I already brought some.” Lyran said from the doorway. He stepped inside and to the side just as a few dozen healers entered the room. “Honestly, I am surprised none of them are dead. He added after a moment.”

  “Yea, Tama tends to avoid killing people In town. It’s probably why you survived. Because she knows murder in the town is bad. So she avoids causing the killing blow.” I commented mindlessly as I passed by the guards to the guy with the control issue.

  I gently climbed on top of him and leaned into his ear. “Naughty naughty” I whispered before climbing off and walking over to Lyran. His face had turned beet red and his nose was bleeding.

  “Was.. was that necessary?” He asked shyly. I giggled and grabbed his hand before leaning in.

  I whispered gently in his ear. “Why? Did you want your turn?”

  My cheeks flushed red and I forced an illusion to hide how much doing that excited me. Lyran had no such abilities and he covered himself and stuttered out. “I.. I gotta go get Tama more fries!”

  I giggled and nodded. He turned and left the building and my face dropped in annoyance. I turned back to Tama who was already standing in front of me. “We have to get out of here quickly. Matriarch Talia could be here any second and then the real trouble begins.”

  Tama nodded and hugged me before we both vanished. We reappeared a few seconds later outside the guild hall.

  I stepped back and cleaned my dress and dusted off Tama’s gi. Causing Anna to shimmer and giggle before making a comment. “Wow Saki, that was bold. Someone wants to play with Lyran’s toy.”

  My face went red again and I snapped back “I am not the one who goes around possessing people Anna!”

  “Tama also likes Lyran’s toys! But not the one that finds me!” Tama said happily as she wagged her tail.

  “Oh? What say you Saki? Do you want to share Lyran’s toys?” Anna said in a serious tone. But her undercurrent made it clear this was a trap.

  “I don’t think anyone needs to be playing with anyone else's toys without permission!” I said as I wiped the blood from my nose.

  “Yea!” Tama said and for a moment I felt relief. Then she continued. “Only if you play with them in private after taking them!”

  Anna started giggling madly and Tama looked confused.

  My eyebrow twitched and I asked “Happy now Anna?” My tail stiffened and I glared down at her.

  Chapter 115: Mana and Magic