“Not so,” she whispered. “Your father has powerful allies in the spirit world as well as this one, else his tower would have fallen decades ago. This is a foolish thing you have done, Michiko, but we can derive some good from it. When we return to Eiganjo Castle, I will petition your father again for a trip to the Academy. I will insist upon it. Only this time, I will go with you and we will travel with a phalanx of armed guards.”

  Michiko laughed, her eyes still moist. “Thank you.”

  “Now,” Lady Pearl-Ear said. “We must find your friends. Where did you lose them?”

  Michiko’s eyes brightened. “We were halfway to the academy. I searched for them after the storm, but they were gone. I expect they returned to the tower, or went on to the school to wait for me.”

  “Very well. I will assemble a search party—”

  “That is not necessary, Lady Pearl-Ear.” Lady Silk-Eyes spoke from the doorway leading outside. “Our patrols picked up two Minamo students in the woods only this morning. They claimed to be lost on their way back to the school. They are being seen to on the far end of the village.”

  Pearl-Ear brightened. “There, you see? Your friends are safe.” She turned to the elder. “And my brother?”

  Lady Silk-Eyes shrugged. “That I do not know.”

  “Thank you, elder.” To Michiko, she said, “We can travel back to the tower together, you and I and the wizards. On the way, we can work out what to tell your father.”

  “Then you should make haste, Lady Pearl-Ear.” Lady Silk-Eyes came back into the hut. “There are powerful forces gathering all around us, and they are about to converge on this village.”

  “Of course, elder. We will go at once.”

  Lady Silk-Eyes reached out, took Pearl-Ear’s hand, and squeezed. “Be careful, Lady Pearl-Ear.” She nodded toward Michiko. “Some humans from Towabara think we can see the future, but in reality we are merely observant. We see the world around us clearly, which makes it easier to tell what can happen. From there, it’s all down to experience and guesswork.

  “I see that your trials have only begun,” the kitsune elder said, squeezing Pearl-Ear’s hand. She reached out with her free hand and took hold of Michiko’s. “And your journey, my child, is far from over.”

  Lady Silk-Eyes dropped their hands and folded her arms into the sleeves of her robe. “Off you go, my dears. If you are still in the village come midday, come see me again. We will share a meal and conversation.” She looked meaningfully at Lady Pearl-Ear.

  “I would be honored,” Michiko said.

  “Excellent. Perhaps we shall see each other again.” Lady Silk-Eyes moved over to the fireplace and began assembling a pile of sticks. Whistling, she poured water into a teapot and broke out a bundle of tried tea leaves.

  “They’re waiting,” she said, without turning.

  Pearl-Ear guided Michiko from the hut, gently pushing her ahead. She hesitated for one moment after Michiko was out the door, glancing back at the elder.

  The touch of Lady Silk-Eyes’s hand on hers lingered. The village elder’s somber prediction weighed likewise on her mind.

  But the old fox did not look up from her fire building, and Pearl-Ear quickly joined her own student outside.

  * * * * *

  Lady Silk-Eyes had said Riko and Choryu were being attended to, but Pearl-Ear suspected they were being guarded instead of pampered. As she and Michiko approached the kitsune samurai compound, she found the sights, sounds, and scents of warriors preparing for battle.

  A gleaming white kitsune male stopped them at the heavy wooden gate to the compound. He made no introduction as he held up his hand, halting Lady Pearl-Ear and Michiko.

  “The elder sent us,” Pearl-Ear said. “The humans you found were separated from Princess Michiko.” She waved towards the princess, who bowed formally.

  The kitsune samurai kept his hand on his long sword. He thumped the closed gate with his free hand, narrowed his eyes over his long snout, and then jerked his head toward the compound.

  The gate creaked open. Another pair of armed kitsune rangers stood inside, each dressed for the deep woods in gray-brown robes.

  “They’re here for the wizards,” the gate sentry said.

  The new kitsune both gave Michiko a long, appraising look. Lady Pearl-Ear could tell they were drawing in the princess’s aura. Apparently satisfied, they waved Lady Pearl-Ear and Michiko through the gate.

  “Follow,” one said.

  Pearl-Ear’s unease grew as they crossed the compound. The camp was not large, but there were more than thirty kitsune samurai and rangers visible … which meant there were far more hidden or patrolling nearby. Each of them was armed and dressed in drab colors that would serve as camouflage among the trees. Immersed in her own meditations on the far side of the village, she’d had no idea so many warriors were gathered here.

  The samurai led them to a small hut near the back of the compound. Pearl-Ear counted ten more warriors as they went. This was more than a defensive force for the village—it was a small foxfolk army.

  Inside, they found Riko and Choryu eating from rough wooden bowls at a long table against the wall. Riko let out a happy yelp and almost upset her meal as she sprang up.

  “Michiko!” she cried. The princess went to meet her friend, and the two embraced. “We thought we’d lost you. Were did you go?”

  “Where did you? I spent hours looking for you.”

  “Praise the spirits you’re all right,” Choryu said. “I would never have forgiven myself if—”

  “Forgiveness is something you should seek, not grant,” Pearl-Ear said. “All three of you.”

  Choryu defiantly held Lady Pearl-Ear’s glare. “Something had to be done. We were only attempting—”

  “I don’t care, Choryu. I just want to get us all safely back to the tower.”

  Choryu scowled, but said no more. As Michiko recounted her adventure in the woods, Pearl-Ear checked the interior of the hut. Four kitsune samurai and one officer stood along the walls, silent but alert. Riko and Choryu seemed slightly haggard and distressed by their experiences, but they were largely unhurt. Each bore a series of minor cuts and bruises. The white-haired student remained at the table, sullenly stirring his soup with a wooden spoon.

  “We searched,” Riko was saying. “And never stopped. But we never saw your horse’s tracks once we left the road. The more we searched, the deeper we went into the forest. I’ve never been so lost.”

  “How did you find your way here?”

  “We didn’t. The kitsune found us, perhaps half a day’s walk from here. Choryu guessed you’d come this way, and here you are.”

  “Choryu,” Michiko called. “You’re awfully quiet. Don’t despair, my friend. We are safe here.”

  “I am not despairing,” Choryu said. “I am humbled by the generosity of our hosts.” He fixed his penetrating eyes on Michiko’s. “And I am eager to complete our journey safely.”

  This last remark went by without comment as the girls went over to the table, still chattering away. Pearl-Ear took a closer look at the white-haired wizard. He was sporting a deep purple bruise over one eye and his left arm hung stiffly by his side.

  “Where is the leader of these warriors?” Pearl-Ear asked.

  A large gray samurai officer stepped forward, accompanied by a single ranger. “Here,” he said. “I am Silver-Foot.”

  Silver-Foot was taller and broader than the rest, with two white stripes running along the fur on top of his head. He bobbed a perfunctory bow to Lady Pearl-Ear, and the ranger followed his lead.

  “I hope you weren’t put to too much trouble by my charges.”

  The lower-ranking samurai grinned. “The boy resisted, but we reasoned with him.”

  Pearl-Ear traced a soft-furred finger under her eye, outlining an area as big as Choryu’s bruise. She raised an eyebrow.

  “He attempted to cast a spell on us.” The samurai shrugged, opening his hands to the sky. “But no harm was done. Besides, he was easy to carry.”

  “Indeed. Please accept my thanks on behalf—”

  “You are Lady Pearl-Ear from the Daimyo’s land.” Silver-Foot’s handsome exterior disguised a brusque personality

  “I am.”

  “We have reports of an armed and mounted party making its way up the western border of the forest. They came from the tower in Eiganjo.”

  “That is the path my student and her friends took. They are most likely the Daimyo’s retainers, searching for Princess Michiko.”

  Silver-Foot’s face wrinkled. “So they aren’t coming here.”

  “I suppose they could find their way here if my charges left tracks. But no, there is no reason to expect them. What is it, Silver-Foot-san? Why are there so many warriors here, and why are you so dour?”

  Silver-Foot bobbed again. “No offense intended, Lady Pearl-Ear. But your students being here is a bad thing, one that you should have prevented. They are lucky we found them when we did.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Two days ago, far to the south,” Silver-Foot said, “we found the remains of a scouting party. One scout had had his skull cracked by a hard, blunt instrument. Another had been stabbed repeatedly with small, dirty blades. We found the third hung up in the branches of a tree with arrows through his legs and chest.”

  Pearl-Ear tilted her head. “Bandits? This far north?”

  Silver-Foot shook his head. “Worse.”

  Pearl-Ear’s voice dropped to a whisper. “Hostile kami?”

  The officer sneered again. “Spirits don’t use crude clubs and dirty knives, milady. But to continue: yesterday, before we found your wandering wizards, we came across a single felled tree. It hadn’t been cut down with saw or axe, but instead had been chiseled down, bit by bit, with something small and hard. Whoever did that also carved a trench in the trunk and lit a large fire there.”

  Over at the table, the wizards and Michiko were done re-acquainting themselves and had begun to listen to Pearl-Ear’s conversation with Silver-Foot. Pearl-Ear stepped forward and bowed her head. Silver-Foot lowered his own until their foreheads touched.

  “I don’t understand,” Pearl-Ear whispered. “What felled the tree? What does this all mean?”

  Before the officer could answer, a cry came from the main gate.

  “All hail Elder Lady Silk-Eyes!”

  Pearl-Ear and Silver-Foot straightened up. Through the open doorway, she could see the wizened elder approaching, escorted by the same two kitsune samurai.

  “I will answer you,” Silver-Foot whispered, “as soon as the elder makes her wishes plain.”

  Lady Silk-Eyes swept into the room, and all the kitsune present fell to one knee. Michiko and Riko rose from the table and likewise genuflected in honor of the elder, but Choryu remained seated at the table. The proud youth was probably unaccustomed to being treated so roughly. Perhaps, Pearl-Ear thought, he would learn from this experience and not invite such rough treatment in the future.

  Lady Silk-Eyes steadied herself on her gnarled walking stick. “Reunions complete, then? Everyone all caught up?”

  Lady Pearl-Ear rose. “Yes, elder. Thanks again for the village’s assistance and your own kindness.”

  The old fox smiled, her eyes twinkling. As the rest of the kitsune returned to their feet, she said, “And you, captain? You have made the arrangements we discussed earlier?”

  At the word “captain,” Silver-Foot’s ears flattened. Hierarchical ranks were rarely used in kitsune society and even more rarely observed. Except for age and experience, all members of the community were roughly equal in terms of status. Silver-Foot did not seem comfortable hearing his military title on the lips of the village’s spiritual leader.

  “Yes, elder. I sent my fastest riders west to meet the Daimyo’s men and fetch them here.”

  “Excellent. When will they arrive?”

  Choryu looked up from his bowl. Riko seemed nauseated by this news as she nervously bunched her robe in her fist.

  “That’s not necessary, elder.” Pearl-Ear tilted her face down and folded her hands over her stomach. “A small escort will be more than enough to take us—”

  “They can be here in less than two days,” Silver-Foot cut in. “Assuming they listen to my riders and respond quickly.”

  Lady Silk-Eyes nodded. “That gives us time to prepare. Very good.” She turned to Pearl-Ear and said, “Gather your children and follow me. Leave matters of war to warriors.”

  “But elder,” Lady Pearl-Ear said, the panic in her voice rising. “We are not at war with the Daimyo. They are only looking for the princess, and if we—”

  “Less than two days,” Lady Silk-Eyes mused, ignoring Pearl-Ear. She looked up at Silver-Foot. “And how far south did you find the tree and the scouting party?”

  “A day’s march for kitsune,” the officer said.

  The elder nodded. “I see. Too close to call, then. Well, this will be exciting, won’t it?” She took Pearl-Ear by the hand and said, “Come, Lady Pearl-Ear, and bring the children. We have much to do and a whole village to rouse. We have two sets of visitors coming, and I want to have a proper reception ready.” Lady Silk-Eyes turned back, still clutching Pearl-Ear’s hand. “Tell me, Silver-Foot, which do you think will arrive first? The goblins or the Daimyo’s troops?”

  Pearl-Ear might have stumbled if not for the elder’s firm grip. Across the room, Choryu’s head sank almost into his bowl. Riko stood in open-mouthed astonishment, and she turned to Michiko just as the princess mouthed, “Goblins?”

  “Come,” Lady Silk-Eyes said again, tugging on Pearl-Ear’s hand. “You came here for answers, and we have less than two days to find them.”

  The entire village was assembled quickly, mostly due to the love and respect they held for Lady Silk-Eyes. The rest were mobilized by fear of the approaching goblin horde.

  Lady Pearl-Ear watched her people filing into the village’s central courtyard, enjoying a sense of belonging even as the danger approached. There were over seventy villagers that she recognized, with another score that were new to her. They came in all shapes, sizes, and ages, and each bowed before the elder before assembling in carefully arranged groups on the dry soil. Even in these tense circumstances, the kitsune-bito were bright-eyed and chatty, muttering to each other before they sat. Once in place, however, their conversations faded, replaced by the low, thrumming sound of a group chant.

  There were kitsune warriors, too, more than she had ever seen in one place. They numbered as many as the villagers, if not more, each samurai armed with the traditional long and short swords, each ranger with a dagger and a long wooden staff. Some seemed to be from other villages, and while many stopped by the square to bow before Lady Silk-Eyes, none stayed. The elder sent them all to Silver-Foot to become part of the officer’s impromptu army.

  Shocked at first, Michiko now seemed consumed by curiosity. Whether she was being influenced by the convivial kitsune villagers around her or she was blossoming outside the confines of her father’s tower, Michiko seemed much more alert and alive.

  “The akki have never raided this far north, have they?”

  “Not in living memory,” Pearl-Ear said. “And we are a long-lived people.”

  “What will they do if they find us?”

  “That depends on what they want. I’ve heard that a goblin army cannot move quietly, yet they have come this far without being noticed. They are either unusually disciplined or they have been enchanted. Either way, this is far beyond what anyone expects from them.”

  “Both of those options point to an outside influence,” Riko said.

  “Very good.” Whereas the girls usually clung to one another, Riko was clearly following Michiko now. Despite her own fear and fatigue, Riko had adopted Michiko’s student-like interest in the situation. “Determining what that influence is may well be a part of the elder’s ritual.”

  “I have never seen a kitsune rite in person,” Riko mused. “Will I be allowed to observe?”

  “More than that,” Lady Silk-Eyes cut in. “You’re going to participate.”

  None of them had heard the elder approach, not even Pearl-Ear. Lady Silk-Eyes nodded to the fox-woman.

  “Go ahead,” she said. “Explain.”

  “The spirits of our village, our land,” she said, “are not the same as the ones in Eiganjo Castle.” She turned to Riko. “Or the patrons of the Minamo Academy. The white myojin, for example, is extremely rigid about who can invoke his power, and when.”

  “But the kitsune also pray to the white myojin and the Sun,” Michiko said.

  “We do. But we also call upon the cedar and other natural spirits. The kami here are less grand, but more accommodating. It’s less a question of quality—how precise an invocation is—and more of quantity. The more voices we raise, the stronger the spirit magic will be.”

  Pearl-Ear paused to look around the courtyard. “And with that in mind, where is Choryu? We may need his voice, as well.”

  “He was quite miserable after the kitsune found us. He lashed out, and was subdued … gently,” Riko added, with a bow to Lady Silk-Eyes. “I think he feels responsible for getting Michiko into this mess.”

  “Please go and find him,” Lady Pearl-Ear said. “This is no time to sulk.”

  Michiko sighed. “I must make sure he understands. This is not his fault.”

  “Even if it were, he should be here with us.”

  Riko shook her head sadly. “He can be difficult when his mood is sour. Will one voice make such a difference?”

  “Perhaps not,” Michiko cut in. “But with goblins about and the kitsune warriors on alert, he’ll only cause trouble if he’s not here with us.”

  Riko and Pearl-Ear smiled together. Michiko cocked her head quizzically and said, “What?”

  “Sometimes, princess,” Riko said, “you are wiser than your years. I will go find Choryu.”

  Lady Silk-Eyes slid in close to Pearl-Ear. “When we find the wizard boy, keep him close to me,” she said. “He has the look of a skeptic about him, and it will take careful guidance to keep him from spoiling the ritual.”