Fifty nine

David's face burned tomato red as Satake shifted to the side. Hesitant, David turned in his direction and noticed his eyes were closed. He wasn't sleeping. At least not deep enough to be considered a slumber. Satake's eyes opened again. His attention flew to the book nestled on David's bosom. "What is that?" He asked.

"A book about relics," David replied, sitting up and placing the book on his laps to hide his bulge. Satake did the same.

"Why are you researching about them?"

David raised an eyebrow. "Don't you want to know your own origins?"

Satake threw his head back in exhaustion and part frustration. "I am not so sure. I have built a life for myself as a part of the Crow family. With this new awakening, I am beginning to question everything. My life. My identity. I know if I keep on digging, I will eventually lose them both. So who will I be when I don't have those two things? Who is Satake Crow? "

"Satake Crow is who you have always been regardless of what new revelations come. I have also chosen to run from things about myself. It's why I chose to lie to you about my identity the moment we met. You see, I am perceived more as a friend than an instant fiend if no one knows I am related to the Candice Blossom AKA the wolf poacher. At first, I thought it was because I wanted to disassociate myself with the evil that Candice committed but that was a lie I was content telling myself. The truth was I wanted to completely cut myself from my family's legacy. My family has done horrible things to stay at the top of the magic hierarchy. I was afraid soon that legacy would catch up with me and I swore I was going to do anything to avoid such a heavy fate but your family is not what makes you. I have come to terms with that and I hope I am right."

"But you are. You helped me with Olamide's situation. You told me who I was and you haven't tried to eat my heart yet. So compared to your sister, you are a literal angel."

"I don't know..." David stuttered, remembering the Candice - Olamide situation. He brushed that aside, opened the text of serpents, and began reading aloud. "The seven known relics to the realm of the seeing are the gluasad, Berserkers, Osumare, Kitsunes, Merpeople, Yee Naaldlooshii, and the Phoenixes."

"It says the seven known relics. Does that mean there are more?

"Precisely," David answered. "These are the ones that have been..." David suddenly came to a pause before he could blurt out something that disturbing.

"It's okay," Satake whispered. "You can say it."

"Hunted." David finished. "These are the ones that have been hunted down and accounted for by witches."

"So tell me about Kitsunes. Since I cannot shift like my werewolf counterparts or use the miracles of my Alpha. It makes me wonder what abilities they have."

David continued reading. "Kitsunes are the embodiment of fox spirits bound to a human body and particularly known for their trickery. The human and its spirit are one because they share a heart therefore, it is the heart that must be eaten. Their abilities include partial shapeshifting, superhuman strength, foxfire, and an affinity for blades."

"Foxfire?" David asked, puzzled. "Pyrokinesis?"

"That is what it says but the book is quite old so there might be some inaccuracies."

"What makes you think so?"

"I don't think you are pyrokinetic," David revealed. "I suspect you have the ability to control lightning."

Satake moved closer, taking a look at the book he probably could not decipher before looking David straight in the eye. "What makes you think so?"

David took Satake's hand and asked, "Do you trust me?" To which Satake nodded hesitantly. David took Satake's little finger and snapped it faster than the Beta's reflex could realize. As Satake screamed, a fork of light exploded from his broken finger.

"Woah, what was that?" Satake gasped, the unimaginable pain in his hand slowly becoming dull from all the adrenaline pumping in his veins.

"Fox lightning." David deduced, half laughing at his own sense of humor. David then put his palm over Satake's damaged finger and muttered a healing spell, fixing the broken finger. "Now isn't that interesting."

"I will admit, it is better than having a wardrobe change every moon cycle." Satake gave a knowing smile. "What else is in the books?"

"Well," David slurred, taking a peek at the book. "So...there is something about kitsune's tails."

"And what does it say?"

"The tails of a kitsune imply how old it is. They grow one every ten human years. The more tails a kitsune has, the stronger it becomes." David read out.

"So I have two tails?"

Satake had a point. David subtly used the predator rune to expose Satake's fox spirit. Except the text of serpents was wrong, Satake was supposed to have two tails. David could clearly see one... Two... Nine. Nine tails. That would make Satake ninety years old.

"No. You have nine tails." David informed.

"So another inaccuracy from the book, I suppose." Satake yawned.

"I don't know... Back at the pub when you attacked me, your fox said something about grief being a means to freedom. I'm not sure why but I have a feeling that has something to do with why you have nine tails." David paused for a bit, looking at the names his sister had scribbled in the book. "Do you think your parent's death had something to do with it?"

He did not respond. He remained motionless on the bed and soon began to snore. He was fast asleep. I draped him in a warm duvet and left the room, feeling remotely satisfied and unsure as to why that was so.