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Sunday, April 22, 2001

7:39PM

United Kitsune of Rhy'Din Clubhouse

The clubhouse was in a relatively quiet and out of the way part of the city, styled like a traditional Japanese inn; while I was technically a kitsune I hadn't spent enough time in Japan to understand more than the basics of their culture and architecture. The building was a little far from the main roads; I had to park my car a few hundred yards away. The path leading through several red-painted torii wasn't completely lost on me; despite my relatively humble beginnings I was aware of their significance.

As I passed through the gates the atmosphere seemed to change; a sense of calmness and peace replaced the wariness and apprehension I usually experienced when entering an unknown part of the city. It was as if I was 'in tune' with the place; perhaps there were magicks or other powers at work? It wasn't like I had much formal training about what I was; what I knew came from decades of brutal trial and error. Perhaps those here would be able to teach me more about what I had become.

The simple wooden door at the entrance slid to the side, revealing another vulpine. She was female and stood significantly shorter than me; dressed in one of those traditional kimono robes. She regarded me with a look of perplexed amusement. "You are the one Meika spoke of, yes?" I blinked at her as I realized that four bushy tails spread out behind her.

I nodded. "I believe so. I am Marcus Firestorm."

The vixen's lips spread into a soft smile. "Welcome to the United Kitsune of Rhy'Din, Marcus. I am Hanako, wife of Ichiro and caretaker of our inn." I followed her in, taking care to remove my boots in the entryway before walking inside; that was one of the customs I had remembered.

"I admit I am at a loss; I don't really know any others of my kind." While I had seen other 'anthros' around the city, very few were vulpines and none of those were kitsune. Hanako obviously was; it was something I could somehow sense. I was sure she could sense the same with me, as did Meika.

A new voice chimed in, belonging to the inn's other occupant; a male kitsune who was standing behind what looked like a bar in the main room; he was still a little shorter than me but the mass of tails behind him seemed even more impressive than Hanako's. "Welcome. We can sense something about you, Marcus. You are a child of Inari; however you don't appear to be completely kitsune."

I nodded at him. "It's a long, painful story," I followed Hanako towards the bar as I explained. "I was once a man; one who had fallen in love with a kitsune. She sacrificed herself to save my life; as a result of doing so I became what you see here."

Both kitsune nodded as I took a seat at the bar. "It is not often that a mortal becomes one of us, especially under such circumstances," the one behind the bar gave a bow in greeting. "I am Ichiro; proprietor and guardian of this establishment. You are welcome here as much as any other child of Inari."

"Thank you," I replied. "I will admit I am ignorant of most of the customs and traditions of our kind, so if I make any mistakes please let me know."

Ichiro laughed; the sound more akin to a yip than what a human would make. "Do not worry about it," he replied, "we are all so far removed from our homelands that traditions don't really matter quite as much. We also count a few non-kitsune among our number; those who have fallen under our protection."

Hanako slid behind the bar to join her husband; grabbing a few small glasses and a particularly ornate bottle of what looked like alcohol. "We welcome you to the United Kitsune of Rhy'Din, Marcus," she set one of the glasses in front of me before setting the others in front of herself and Ichiro. "This is a special bottle of sake from the cask we broke during our wedding ceremony. It is something we do to welcome new members into our fold."

She started to pour the alcohol into the glasses; a slightly milky, almost sweet-smelling brew, as the soft scrape of the front door opened. I cocked an ear towards the disturbance; turning my gaze to witness the kitsune who had placed the invitation on the windshield of my car.

Meika was dressed in the same outfit I had seen earlier; a form-fitting leather bodysuit which looked stunning on her athletic frame and a long, black coat that looked somewhat similar to mine. The handle of her katana hovered behind her head; I wasn't well versed in the art of swordsmanship but the intricate wrappings of crimson silk over white leather spoke volumes about the level of craftsmanship and care that went into the weapon. Two tails fanned out behind her; a detail I hadn't noticed when I saw her in passing a mere few days ago.

The vixen smiled in my direction as she approached the bar. "Planning on starting without me, I see!" Her voice was soft and light yet full of good-natured humor. "I'm glad to see you accepted our invitation. I am Meika; one of UKoR's guardians and scouts." She extended her hand to me; which I took and shook lightly. The contact was unexpected; her manner a little more casual than the others.

"Marcus Firestorm," I greeted. "Nominally I'm an investigator for the Dark Knights of Rhy'Din, though that doesn't entail too much and I typically freelance. Thank you for extending the invitation, Meika. I haven't seen other kitsune in my time here."

"There aren't many of us," Meika answered, taking a seat next to me. "We are tight knit; almost family. For most of us we're all we have, so we help each other out as much as we can."

"We take our duties to our fellow kitsune very seriously," Ichiro commented as he grabbed another glass, setting it in front of Meika.

Hanako smiled as she finished pouring the alcohol for us; reverently sealing the bottle and setting it back into its place of honor behind the bar. "We are glad to bring you into our fold, Marcus; we will not impose on the duties of your guild unless you decide to seek an official position with us." I nodded at her.

"Now to celebrate," Ichiro raised his glass towards mine; keeping it slightly above the rest as the vixens joined us. "Kanpai!" The familiar clink of glasses sounded before we imbibed; the sweet, cloudy liquid acting as social cement to our little ceremony.

"Another?" Hanako asked, reaching for a different bottle this time.

"Absolutely," Meika nodded enthusiastically, her tails swaying happily. "I bring news of the pursuit of the oni. Apparently there is a nest located somewhere in the catacombs beneath the main city."

Ichiro's ears perked as his wife filled our glasses a second time. "You found them so soon?"

Meika bowed her head slightly. "Yes. They have been causing trouble with several local guilds; there are rumors of the dead rising and attacking several taverns."

"This is true," I confirmed. "The Dark Knights have had a few dealings with them and we have had some trouble in the catacombs. An associate of mine and I were planning to investigate soon."

This drew the attention of the other kitsune. "It appears we may have a mutual goal," Ichiro stated. "We have suffered a few targeted attacks from _oni_over the past few weeks. Even though we fought them off a couple of us were gravely injured. We believe a greater force may be behind this."

"Would you like another to come along with you?" Meika asked as she sipped at more of the rice wine. "The oni are not to be underestimated, as our friend Sandra unfortunately found out."

"If you're willing, I won't say no," I answered, also sipping at the alcohol. "We need to get to the bottom of this or others will be hurt."

Hanako offered a smile. "You have our blessing, Meika. For now, let us relax and allow our new addition to settle in."

---

KitsuneMeika: ((sorry to cut it short, i gtg. early day tomorrow))

HanakoFourTail: ((S'ok, Meika-mun. good to see you again))

MarcusFirestorm: ((I should be good for a little longer, but it is getting late. Thanks for the invite, Meika-mun!))

IchiroSevenTail: ((G'night, Meika-mun!))

KitsuneMeika: ((i'll try to be on tomorrow but no promises. welcome, marcus-mun! night-night!))

KitsuneMeika has left the room

HanakoFourTail: ((Thinking about it, Ichiro and I might need to call it a night. We're still getting settled into the new place))

MarcusFirestorm: ((You two know each other IRL?))

IchiroSevenTail: ((Yea, we're engaged. Just moved into an apartment together last week, sprung for two phone lines so we can still RP together))

HanakoFourTail: ((We're here most nights unless one of us is working a night shift. Great to meet you, Marcus-mun!))

MarcusFirestorm: ((Absolutely! This is a busy time for me so I might not be on that often, but I'm excited about this storyline. Looks like this is bringing in several groups!))

IchiroSevenTail: ((Yeah, I know some people in other guilds; looks like there's a group of people bringing a big storyline together. This will be fun; hopefully we'll get to play it out for a while))

HanakoFourTail: ((We'll add you to our buddy lists, Marcus-mun. We'll also email you if you miss anything important. Have a great night!))

HanakoFourTail has left the room

IchiroSevenTail: ((Okay, Hanako's motioning for me to get off the 'puter. Great meeting you, and welcome aboard the foxy train!))

_ IchiroSevenTail has left the room_