Mages in Manhattan Read online

  I was rewarded with jerking my head up slightly. My stomach and legs remained stuck to the ground. Damn, something easier? OK, one good push-up. Come on body, just one good push-up.

  After thirty seconds of effort, all I had to show was a twisted neck and spots in front of my eyes.

  OK, planks. Planks are easy. I held the push-up position for about two seconds, then fell onto my face. OK, knee planks. I was able to hold that for about ten seconds.

  I envied the shifters like Kitty-Sue; the physical aspects were so easy for them. I could probably find a werewolf to bite me. But that would cost me, cutting me off from magic. Checks and balances, magic is made up of checks and balances.

  Give up magic? Hell no! I got back to my knees for another plank session. I heard the stereo in the other room change songs. The new tune was “Eye of the Tiger.” My musical curse had a sense of humor.

  After two hours, I had worked up to thirty seconds planking. It was time to move on to other exercises. I sat in the center of the pentagram, facing north. Disappointed that I could no longer sit in the seiza position, due to inflexibility, I settled for a standard cross-legged position known as a half-lotus.

  Bringing up all my mental focus, I willed Air, that most pliable of elements, to blow out the candle facing me. Seconds of effort turned to minutes, then hours, with me unable to direct Air.

  At 6:00 p.m. I gave up, needing to rest. Crawling towards the candle, I blew it out with a raspy breath. The cacophony of the thoughts and desires of thirteen million people slammed into my senses. It took a lot of effort to ignore the psychic noise.

  It was going to be a long recovery. I hoped nothing would interrupt it.

  Exiting the room at 6:00 p.m. as promised, I was greeted by the smell of grilled meat, steamed vegetables, and rice. Since Akiko had a hard time cooking, due to intangibility, it had to be Kitty-Sue.

  Entering the kitchen/dining area, I saw Kitty-Sue bent over fetchingly, looking in the oven to see if the meat was ready. She had changed from her earlier, apron only, mode of dress. Now she wore a yukata, the bathrobe-looking jacket that Japanese wear while at home. Kitty-Sue had a short version in deep blue, with a matching sash around her waist. Her bent over posture caused her tail to lift the hem of the yukata so that her panties were visible. The panties were a deep blue color and had a hole in the back specially made to allow her tail to exit.

  “Smells great,” I said. “What’s cooking?”

  “Yakitori, veggies, and rice,” she replied, standing up and smoothing her yukata down.

  “Where did you get those new clothes?” I asked.

  “I brought them from my old house,” she stated matter-of-factly. “I'll be staying here from now on.”

  My immediate reaction was to say no. But as I drew breath to let her know I didn’t need her help, I realized that I did need her help. I would be in a bind without her assistance. Akiko was great, but not accomplished in the physical realm. The better part of valor would be to let her stay.

  “For now,” whispered my evil side. “We can dump her once we don’t need her anymore.”

  No use arguing with my evil side; he would merely point out that she was probably having the same thoughts. Have I mentioned that most magicians are slightly crazy?

  “Great!” I said aloud, forcing a smile. “Make yourself at home. I really appreciate your help.”

  Dinner was great. Marinated chunks of meat grilled on wooden skewers, mixed vegetables grilled to perfection, and small portions of Japanese rice. And Yebisu beer; lots and lots of Yebisu beer to wash down the meal.

  Since we were both high-metabolism individuals, the table was overflowing with food. Kitty-Sue matched me bite for bite, avoiding the beer in favor of some flavored fizzy water concoction that she preferred.

  From this morning’s scene, no sign was left. The rice bowl that Akiko had transformed into a pet dish was gone, as was Akiko. When I asked about my student, Kitty-Sue remarked, “She decided to visit her brother. Now that she knows you are safe, she needs some time with family.”

  I strained at the psychic link between me and Akiko. I was still too weak to see what she was doing, but I had the impression that she was content and occupied. The simmering anger I had felt this morning was gone. The girls must have set aside their differences.

  We chatted about many things: her day out, shopping for supplies, the TV shows she liked, etc. After the third time she mentioned shopping at the Hanu-Masa market for groceries, I realized what she was hinting at.

  “Excellent meal, Kitty-Sue,” I said, rising from the chair. “Excuse me for a minute. I’ll be right back.”

  I went to my bedroom and popped open the warded case that held my more potent magical items, as well as stacks of currencies. There wasn’t much money left, I would have to take steps to get more ready cash soon.

  I picked up about 500,000 yen and returned to the dining room. “Kitty-Sue,” I said, “I really appreciate your help. Here’s some cash for the monthly household budget. Let me know when you need more.”

  Her eyes widened slightly at the amount I considered a “household budget,” since 500,000 yen is about $5,000 US. Then she looked at the remains of our meal on the table. She had a tabulating look in her eyes as she considered just how much food we could go through in a month.

  “OK,” she said, slipping the cash into her pocket. “I’ll let you know when I need more cash. I’ll save receipts for you.”

  Sitting in my chair, I dozed off for several minutes, waking only when Kitty-Sue gently shook my shoulder. “Come,” she said. “I’ll bathe you now.”

  She led me back to the bathing room, where she had prepped the tub with hot water. She quickly stripped my dirty clothes off, leaving me naked. A glance in the full-length mirror attached to the wall showed that I hadn’t improved appreciably. Still skinny, old, and wrinkled. My hair was a bit longer, although still white, and my beard was growing out. At least the beard was covering the sunken cheeks caused by the loss of most of my teeth.

  Accelerated metabolism causes spurts of hair growth, but does nothing for grooming; my hair was still lopsided from one side getting burned off in the battle with the spider-goddess. Peering closer, I saw that even my eyebrows were white. And damn, they were bushy as hell. Turning my head, I saw that my ears had sprouted long white hairs. Not the cute fuzz that Kitty-Sue had, but bristly, old man hair.

  Kitty-Sue quickly shucked her own clothes, neatly folding and placing them in the small closet I used for the laundry hamper.

  She entered the shower room and stood beside me in front of the mirror. She was in her ninety percent human form, the extra breasts gone, and only her pointed ears with soft tufts of hair, oval pupils, and ever-present tail showed her as a nonhuman.

  The contrasts could not be more evident; her lush youthfulness, firm breasts sitting high on her chest, and wide hips shouted youth and energy as compared to my tired old carcass.

  She struck a slightly naughty pose, one leg in front of the other, turned away from me with her butt pointed in my direction, her tail tickling my nose, hands splayed across her breasts, barely hiding her nipples. Looking over her shoulder at our reflections, she raised one eyebrow in query. Even her tail seemed to make a question mark.

  At my lack of reaction, she made a tiny moue of disappointment, followed by a chuckle. “Just a few more days of TLC and you’ll be ready to romp.”

  “It might take more than a few days,” I replied. “I haven’t felt this weak since ...” I trailed off. No sense bringing up old war stories.

  She had procured a second stool, shorter than my original, and encouraged me to sit on it. She prepared a small plastic bowl with hot water and soap and lathered it into froth.

  She sat down on the taller stool and scooted up behind me, placing my head between her warm breasts. She used a small scoop to pour the lathery mix onto my head, working up a good amount of suds, then proceeded to shampoo my hair and beard. She even scrubbed out my ears.
>
  “My ears are hairier than yours, now,” I joked. “Maybe I’m turning into a were.”

  “Kitsune admire hairy ears,” she replied. “You would be quite a catch in our circle.” She continued the scrubbing process, paying particular attention to my groin, ensuring that every inch was scrubbed.

  “I’ve never felt so clean,” I said as she rinsed me off with the shower attachment.

  “Tomorrow,” she said with a nod, “I will trim your nails and beard.”

  “I want to keep the beard for now,” I said. “It suits my white hair.”

  “No problem,” she said. “Just trim, no shave.”

  Clean and rinsed, I eased slowly into the tub full of hot water. Kitty-Sue placed a towel under my head and excused herself. As I felt the tensions of the day’s exercises fade away, I heard the sounds of her cleaning up in the kitchen.

  I dozed until the water chilled, then woke with a start to find Kitty-Sue perched naked on the stool, watching me with the patience of a cat looking at a mouse hole. It was these moments that reminded me that no matter how beautiful she was, she was still very different from any other woman I knew. I would never really know what was going on behind those slit pupils.

  Hell. Does any man ever know what goes on inside a woman’s head?

  “Are you ready for your bath now?” I asked, lumbering to my feet. The tub had a set of handrails that I used to stand and exit.

  With that uncanny grace possessed by shifters, she nimbly jumped from her perched position to her feet beside me. She brought out a large terry cloth towel and dried me thoroughly.

  After the towel was wrapped around my skinny frame, she hit the switch on the tub’s control panel that reheated the water for the next user. Japanese don’t like to waste water and have a setting on their fancy tubs that will recycle the same water, heating it to the temperature they like. Kitty-Sue cranked the temperature up to Japanese levels, much too high for my body.

  After my hair was dry, she combed it out, ensuring it wouldn’t tangle. She had prepared a new set of pajamas for me, a silk-looking T-shirt and shorts combo.

  My feet dragged with exhaustion as Kitty-Sue led me to the bedroom. She lowered the bedcover.

  “I’ll be right back,” she said as she exited the room.

  I lay back on the bed, taking a few minutes to meditate, fighting off sleep, waiting for Kitty-Sue to join me. It would be impolite to greet her with snores. I heard the sounds of her bathing.

  Finally, after what seemed a long time, but was mere minutes, she was back in the bedroom. Naked except for the collar, she once again raised an eyebrow. The smile on her face was enticing, but my recovery still had a long way to go before I was ready for her antics.

  “Not tonight, dear,” I said with reluctance. Damn, I was anxious for my reverse puberty to start. The urge to remove the magic collar that forced her to remain a fox while in my bed was strong. But I had good reasons for that precaution.

  With an understanding smile, she leaped on the bed, transforming in mid-leap into her fox form. She came to my head and licked my cheek, nuzzling for comfort. I opened my arm on that side, and she snuggled into the space between my arm and body. Her warmth was a sweet comfort that rapidly sent me into a dreamless sleep.

  Three

  Magnet for Weirdness

  The next several days were the same routine, awakening to the sounds and smells of food cooking, entering the kitchen to find a sexy vixen wearing only a tiny apron preparing a filling meal.

  Today, the menu was a bit different: eggs Benedict, a mountain of bacon, and hash browns. The smell was delightful as I sat at the table loaded with food.

  “American style,” I exclaimed. “Excellent! You’re a treasure, Kitty-Sue.”

  We ate quickly, the food disappearing. Kitty-Sue finished first, due to her perfect teeth. I was still limited to one-sided chewing. I would have to do something about teeth very soon. New tooth buds were on the agenda, but would take time to sprout. I would have to whip up a set of dentures. Did I have the elements I needed in the study?

  “Kitty-Sue,” I said, “next time you go shopping, please pick up some plain full-fat yogurt, milk, and cheese. I need a lot of calcium.”

  “No problem,” she said. “I plan on going out today anyway...” She trailed off and looked away, running her fingers over her collar.

  Sensing a shift in her mood, I asked, “What’s wrong?”

  “I have to visit my mom and auntie,” she said. “They want to see me today.”

  “Hey,” I said, “no problem. Family’s important. Are you embarrassed about the collar? I can take it back with no problem.”

  She jumped to her feet, hands protectively around the collar. “No!” she said. “Going home with such a potent gift will show great honor.”

  Her tail lashed nervously. “They won’t like me being with a non-kitsune. Kitsune only mate with kitsune. Well, sometimes tanuke, but mostly kitsune.”

  I was about to say that we hadn’t really “mated” yet, but realized that consummation wasn’t required for her family’s worries. The fact that she had spent so much time with me was damning.

  “Is what they say about magicians true?” Kitty-Sue asked.

  “What do they say about magicians?” I countered, anticipating a question about magician mating practices.

  “That you can’t tell lies,” she said.

  How to answer? The checks and balances required to handle magic, the fact that when one lies, the first person he deceives is himself, which inevitably leads to internal conflicts. I could tell a lie, but the consequences would be severe, even if self-imposed.

  “If I strike a bargain, I won’t lie,” I responded. “In most other cases, I won’t lie because a magician with a reputation as a liar becomes a warlock. Nobody would trust me to keep my bargains, and I wouldn’t be able to function.” I took a sip of the excellent coffee Kitty-Sue had prepared.

  “I can certainly lie, but I prefer to tell the truth,” I said.

  “So,” she said, tilting her head to the side, “you can, but you won’t?”

  “Pretty much,” I responded.

  “I think it’s better you don’t meet my mom and auntie yet,” she said, which made me wonder what tales she had spun already. Of course, others lying on my behalf wasn’t a problem.

  Kitty-Sue’s tail popped erect, and she turned her sharp pointed nose towards the window. A second later, I smelled ozone and the faint scent of Akiko’s perfume while feeling a “tug” on our psychic connection. Interesting that Kitty-Sue could sense Akiko even before me.

  Akiko popped in on us, appearing at the other side of the table. She was wearing her “student” costume, a miniskirt in a plaid pattern, a white blouse that was button-popping tight across her breasts, and a red ladies’ tie wrapped around her neck matching the ribbon that held her long hair back, topped off by a black blazer with an insignia on her breast. Today, her insignia said “Hogwarts.” Poor girl was starting to assimilate my sense of humor. The insignia changed every day, each one another magic school. Sometimes I thought she changed her insignia just so I’d have a chance to stare at her breasts.

  “Hello, Akiko-san,” I said. “Welcome back. How was your visit with your family?”

  It was still a sore point with her that she was prohibited from contacting her family. She could only watch over them and protect them from supernatural threats.

  “They are well,” she replied. “I chase away a mononoke bothering my parents. They not dangerous, but very annoying.”

  Kitty-Sue placed a fresh cup of coffee in front of me, ignoring Akiko. There was still some friction there. I duplicated the cup to the ghostly plane and offered it to Akiko. She sat in the remaining chair; only the ever-so-slight bobbing up-and-down motion indicated she wasn’t really sitting on the chair.

  “You realize,” I said, “the more you hang around your family, the more strange things will happen, right?”

  At her first sip of spectral cof
fee, Akiko’s form solidified, becoming more distinct. “Scott-Sensei, what means ‘hang around’?”

  “It means to spend time with someone or something,” I replied. “The point is, you have become a locus for supernatural forces, which naturally leads to a strange attractor phenomenon. Wait, I can make a chart that explains—”

  I was interrupted by Kitty-Sue. “You’re a magnet for weird things now. They come to you because you’re weird, too.”

  “I’m NOT weird,” said Akiko through gritted teeth. The Ghost Mage of Roppongi’s eyes blazed behind her glasses as tendrils of magical energy rose from her form and her hair lifted like she was sitting on a Van de Graaff generator.

  Looking at me, Kitty-Sue said, “That’s pretty weird, right?” followed by her devilish smile.

  At my reproachful look and mental tug on her collar, Kitty-Sue temporized. “No, sorry! You’re not weird. It’s that ring that you have. It’s an Artifact of Power. Very rare, very powerful! No one can make those anymore. That’s why weird things are attracted to you.”

  Akiko’s hair settled into place, her eyes cleared, and the magical tendrils dissipated as she regained her composure.

  “No one can make... But Scott-Sensei...” she started before she felt my thoughts through our psychic link. She knew I had made the ring years before our first meeting, long before I had gifted it to her. This was one secret I intended to keep.

  “Yes,” said Kitty-Sue, “he gave a silly ghost girl one of the rarest magical Artifacts in the world.”

  I don’t lie, but letting others make incorrect assumptions isn’t the same. Let Kitty-Sue think that the art of creating perpetually spelled objects was lost.

  “And he gave a trickster kitsune one almost as potent,” responded Akiko, pointing at the diamond-studded collar that Kitty-Sue wore.

  “Well, I really consider those as loans,” I said, abruptly stopping as both females turned to glare at me. Oops, never try to take back something from a girl.