46. Kitaro

Chapter 46

Kitaro

T he castle had been a flurry of excitement during the preparation for the celebration banquet. Despite Vanra and Kitaro's struggles to come to terms with the possibility of the mage returning to his own time, the mood in the castle was a festive one.

Because of their impending journey to visit Satsuma, Kitaro continued training Vanra. They had just finished their lesson and were walking to their room when they were intercepted by a wolf shifter named Nasume Venrik.

He was almost as tall as Kitaro. His jet-black hair was pulled into a complicated braid. He wore a flashy gold shirt that set off his amber-yellow eyes. It paired well with the air of superiority he carried himself with. With his high cheekbones and fine features, Nasume was undeniably handsome, but there was an ugly side to him that Kitaro could never unsee.

The wolf shifter lit up into a broad smile. "There you are, Kitaro! I have been looking all over for you."

"Prince Nasume," Kitaro greeted him in a terse voice. His body tensed, ready for a fight. They had once been friends, but Nasume's obsessive romantic interest in Kitaro had driven a wedge between them since he didn't reciprocate. The wolf prince's pushiness would only cause more problems now that Kitaro was with Vanra.

He strutted up to Kitaro, then draped himself over the dragon shifter. "Must you act so cold? I have missed you so much since we last saw each other. Did you miss me?"

It took every ounce of self-control not to shove Nasume into the nearest wall. Kitaro's manners forced him to stiffly say, "I trust you have been well."

"I am even better now that you are here," Nasume murmured as he pressed even closer to Kitaro. "Now, if only you were as happy to see me as I am to see you, then I would be satisfied."

Vanra watched the scene with wide eyes. Kitaro could smell the human's shock tinged with a hint of anger. Not wanting him to get the wrong idea, the dragon prince extracted himself from Nasume's clingy hug. "You have always been overexcitable."

The wolf shifter pouted at being denied. He shifted his attention to look down at Vanra with a disapproving expression. "So, this is your human stray I have heard so many rumors about?" Nasume wrinkled his nose in distaste. "If you were that bored, I would have happily entertained you."

"That will not be necessary." Kitaro gestured at the human. "This is Lord Vanra. He is a member of our clan. As such, I expect you to treat him with the same respect owed to any Ariake member."

"Your old man must have lost his damn mind to allow such a thing," Nasume said with a laugh. "What was King Tatsuki thinking?"

"Father was of sound mind when deciding, I can assure you," Kitaro defensively retorted. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

"I was invited to the celebration banquet. I was hoping to get the chance to dance with you again."

When Nasume tried to slide into a dancing hold, Kitaro outmaneuvered him to prevent it. "Forgive me for declining." He couldn't understand why his father would have invited Nasume, who was a prince from Norello, the capital of Kunushi. There was no reason for the wolf prince to make the long journey from the most northwestern part of Talwyn for such a minor event.

"I am sure I could entice you to change your mind," Nasume suggestively said as he once again moved to touch Kitaro.

A feminine laugh interrupted him. Kitaro had never been so glad to see his older sister, Kizoshi. "Prince Nasume, how unexpected to see you here in these halls."

She was as tall as Kitaro, with an elegant poise lent to her by her half-Power heritage. Her dark amethyst eyes danced with amusement, usually at someone else's expense. As always, her fiery red hair was styled in an elaborate updo, with many glittering hair pins made of various jewels. Kizoshi's markings pulsated between red and purple, to show the two halves of her shifter and Power. Her intense aura of power intimidated even the most self-assured of shifters. Her shimmering red dress with gold trim had long, oversized sleeves. She looked regal as she approached them.

"Kizoshi," Nasume greeted her, but the annoyance was all over his face at her arrival. He hated her with a fierce passion. It was a hatred that was mutual between them.

She made a disapproving tutting noise. "So impudent. I would be outraged by your disrespect if it were at all surprising."

He gave an overly dramatic bow. "Please forgive me, Princess Kizoshi . How kind of you to grace us with your magnificent presence."

"As many times as I have had to put you in your place, one would think you would have learned where that is by now."

"Why should I remember when you are always so quick to remind me?"

"Perhaps if you were as intelligent as you believed, I would not have to be burdened so," Kizoshi said in an icy tone. "Now, if you would be so kind, I have business with my brother. Since you seem to have stumbled into the family wing under a mistaken belief that you belong here, I shall have a servant escort you back to your guest quarters so that you do not become so lost again."

One appeared with a bow to do her bidding.

Nasume glared hatefully at her. He sarcastically said, "I appreciate such generosity from you. It is always a pleasure seeing you, Princess Kizoshi."

"I cannot say the same." She gave a dismissive gesture for the servant to take him away.

"I will see you later tonight," Nasume told Kitaro with a flirty wink.

"I very much doubt that." Kitaro watched apathetically as Nasume bristled at his words.

"Do not be so sure about that," Nasume warned before he allowed himself to be led away by the servant.

Kizoshi gave her younger brother a stern look. "You really must learn to treat that mongrel like the trash that he is."

"If I were to do so, it would put Father's alliance with King Soseki in jeopardy, and you know it," Kitaro reminded her. "Regardless, I appreciate your efforts in getting rid of Nasume."

"I regret it cannot be permanently. He is nothing but problems. "

"I cannot disagree," Kitaro said with a wry grin. "It is good to see you, dear sister. It has been far too long."

Kizoshi hugged him tightly, and he lingered for a moment. It had been some time since he had last seen her. "Forgive me, Kitaro. I have been attending to too many things in the Divine Realm. I did not mean to stay away so long."

"Whatever the reason, I am glad you came."

"Yes, I have been remiss in not coming earlier to meet the curious new member of our clan." Kizoshi focused her attention on the human. "You are called Vanra, yes?"

He shrank back a little under her intense amethyst gaze. "I am."

"We will have words later," Kizoshi promised him. "Now is not the time yet."

"Okay?"

She turned to Kitaro. "I am off to meet with Kisano now. We shall have a proper catch-up later, dear brother."

"I shall look forward to it." Kitaro hugged his sister once more.

With a word of parting, Kizoshi walked away toward the library.

When she turned the corner, Vanra stared up at Kitaro in shock. " That's your sister?"

"Yes, I am pleased you have finally met her. It is quite unexpected for her to appear. She rarely comes to the Living Realm."

"Do you think I'm in trouble with her?" Vanra asked as they began walking back to their room. "There was something ominous about the way she said we would talk later."

Kitaro chuckled. "Do not mind Kizoshi. She prides herself on being mysterious and hard to read. I do not know why she wishes to speak to you, but you are not in trouble. You have already seen how she treats those she dislikes."

"She obviously hates that Nasume guy, which I'm totally with her on that. Who is he? Tyrian mentioned him a while back, but I never found out more about him."

"He is Prince Nasume Venrik, son of King Soseki in Kunushi, who I must tolerate for the sake of my father's alliance. We used to be close once, but we have grown apart over the years."

"It sure didn't seem that way from his behavior," Vanra dourly said.

Kitaro scowled. "He has trouble with boundaries, so it is difficult."

"He's clearly into you."

Once they entered their room, Kitaro held Vanra's gaze. "His interest is entirely one-sided. I harbor no such feelings for him."

"Have you ever?"

Kitaro hesitated as he tried to find the best way to explain their past. "When I was very young, I wondered if there might have been a chance of something between us. But I soon realized my mistake. Unfortunately, Nasume still clings to that hope that I may one day change my mind about rejecting him."

Vanra frowned. "I see."

The human's distress bothered Kitaro. He pulled him into an embrace to reassure him. "You are the only person my heart has ever chosen. I swear he is not a threat to you. I am incapable of having the same feeling for him I have for you."

"Good, because I really don't like the idea of him stealing you from me." Vanra went up on tiptoe to kiss the much taller dragon prince.

"No one is going to take me away from you." Kitaro hoped that included fate, too.