FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Inside a traditional wooden house, located in the wooded hills along the western coast of Shikoku, a couple was finishing a meal together.

"Mm! Perfect cooking as always Keiko!" A young man hummed, setting his empty bowl down on the low lying table. His wife, a gorgeous fair skinned beauty, humbly grinned at his admiration.

"Thank you. I'm glad that you enjoyed it." They had been married for almost three years after precariously meeting by a bridge. Saru had unsuccessfully tried fishing along a rough river but spotted her at a bridge around dusk. They quickly fell in love and married. Ever since, Saru never experienced a bad day of fishing, and both sent as much time together as possible. Neither could've been happier.

"Save some dishes for me. I'm going to prepare something for us." He excused himself and stood up from his cushioned seat on the floor. Keiko watched him disappear to another room before tending to the table. She dutifully collected the used dishes, kettle, and chopsticks to be cleaned. The table was wiped down and dried too.

'What is he up to?' Keiko's keen ears heard him in the back room doing something. Enough curiosity nagged at her to see what he was up to. She quietly padded through the house and opened the sliding door to where the noise was coming from. Keiko found her husband in the back room where they stored a small tub to bathe in. Saru was inside the water filled cauldron with a towel spread out on the floor. A little flame underneath in a sand pit could hardly warm the water to anyone's liking. "You drew a bath for yourself I see." She found it amusing and approached him.

"I drew it for you too." He stirred the water.

"I appreciate it Saru," she took a step back, "but-"

"You have to take a bath with me!" He tugged on her robe, causing the sash to unravel a little.

"But I have to clean up the kitchen." She clutched the front to cover herself.

"We can clean the kitchen together in the morning. You need to relax from working here all day." He insisted. She smiled and let the silk pool around her feet.

"There." Saru grinned as she sat beside him in the small portable tub. "Happy?"

"Yes." He cheerfully replied.

"It's chilly water." Keiko remarked and folded her arms. Saru scooted beside her and wrapped his arms around her to share body heat.

"Better?" He snuggled close to her.

"Yes." She replied. "But how are we going to wash?" Saru retrieved a washcloth.

"We can take turns." He started by washing over her upper arm.

***

The light had already faded by the time they finished and stepped out of the bathtub. After helping dry each other and dress into simple bed robes, Keiko and Saru prepared for nighttime. The bedroom door slid open and quietly slid shut with just enough light to see around the dark space. Saru disrobed before helping disrobe his wife. "Your skin is so soft after a bath." He remarked and ran his hands over his upper arms and shoulders. Her skin felt divine to the touch.

"You're the one who washed me." She grinned and laid down.

"And I enjoy caring for you."He quickly joined her and pulled the covers up. The married couple stared at each other before saying goodnight.

"Sleep well Saru."

"Goodnight Keiko." Saru closed his eyes. Keiko watched him for a while through the darkness before making her move.

"Sleeping spell." She placed a hand on his head. Her husband's body immediately relaxed and fell into a deep sleep. 'Now that it's safe...' She released a heavy sigh and relaxed her body. Fur suddenly started growing all over her skin, creating a beautiful orange, white coat with black "socks" on her limbs. Her nose turned black as a muzzle protruded from her face, feet elongated and turned digitigrade, and ears moved to the top of her head and turned into large triangular points. Nails were replaced by black claws, and here deep brown eyes narrowed into slits before reemerging into an amber color. Lastly, eights tails budded from the base of her back and elongated. The fair skinned woman had changed into a beautiful eight tailed red fox! The kitsune looked over at the human sleeping beside her and smiled. Her tails reached out towards him. Keiko kissed his forehead and pulled Saru to her front. Tails coiled around his limbs and torso until they were snuggly wrapped together, his skin enveloped by her fur. The vixen pet his neck and back with her padded hands

"Goodnight Saru." The vixen whispered. Saru unconsciously snuggled closer and nuzzled into her fur. She smiled and closed her eyes, holding the man that she loved.

"Good luck at sea today." Keiko kissed her husband on the front porch of their house in the woods.

"Thanks. I'll try to come back as soon as I can to help you tend to the house." Saru hugged her. He enjoyed the feeling the silk that she wore, and the body warmth underneath.

"There's very little for me to do today. I'll have it done before sun high." She promised.

"I still want to work the chores with you, so save some for me." He kissed her.

"Alright. I will." Keiko hugged him before he walked down the pathway to the coast. She grinned and regretted seeing him go, even if it was only for half of the day. She watched his every step until the trees obscured her view. "I hope you catch lots of fish." Keiko turned around and softly sang. The vixen stepped back inside and changed into her fox form, letting her tails freely wave in the air.

"And I hope to enjoy the day too, because you're not the only one who is going somewhere today." She strolled around the house's rooms and quickly tidied a few things. Keiko was preparing herself for a different journey. The kitsune opened the door and peeked outside. She hopped from the doorway seeing that no one else was around.

"I live in a hilly forest, but a fox can never be too careful." She walked uphill to an old trail. The abandoned path led high into the forested hills where no one lived, nor traveled. After twenty minutes of hiking through the gorgeous forest, Keiko reached an important sign standing by the path. The sign read 'Fox Lake.' It was a humorous name for a hidden onsen (hot spring) that only foxes knew about. Having a hot spring hidden so deep in the woods helped foxes avoid humans in the rural area. The atmosphere was relaxing and the perfect place to spend the day at. The owner was an old white nine tailed fox who resided at a shrine in the Tosa province. He was kindly referred to as the Old Fox by visitors.

"I made it." She spotted the aforementioned bathhouse and grinned. The kitsune had planned a visit on this day over a week ago, and it would be well worth it. The building wasn't particularly fancy in appearance, but that was deceitful for its quality inside. Keiko stepped inside the main entrance to the dressing room. The shelves lining the wall to store clothes and other items were barren except for a few spots. It was typically empty for the late morning.

'Just imagine how crowded the spring would be if raccoons knew about this.' She thought to herself and disrobed. The vixen retrieved a small bucket, washcloth, and towel before entering the bathing room. Her eight tails flowed behind as she walked over the smooth wooden floor. The kitsune took a quick glance and retrieved hot water from a small pool in the center before heading to the right wall. Like the dressing room, the bathing room was empty except for an old fox couple washing beside each other.

'How sweet.' Keiko grinned as the older couple quietly chatted. She sat down on the stool with a grin and took a deep breath. Birds could be heard outside. The setting was peaceful and calm. Living in a rural area was the slow tempo to life that she cherished. The vixen lightly washed her fur and rinsed without any hurry. She would've sat there for an hour, taking the time to clean her body thoroughly, but having taken a bath with Saru yesterday defeated the purpose. Finished, the kitsune wrung the washcloth and set it aside with the small bucket. She stood up and padded to the large opening that led to the hot spring itself.

"Oh?" Keiko spotted a familiar person and paused. A five tailed kitsune was facing another wall and washing herself. "Hello Yuki." She greeted the white furred vixen. A pair of deep brown eyes looked up hearing the name.

"Keiko! Goodness, I haven't seen you here in over a year!" The white vixen exclaimed.

"I know! If I had seen you there, then I would've washed beside you to talk."

"That's alright. I'm almost done anyway." She continued brushing the washcloth ofer her last tail. "What made you decide to stop by Fox Lake today?"

"I actually planned a visit for today a while back, although, I didn't believe I would be bathing for a second day in a row back then." Keiko chuckled.

"Where did you go for last night?" Her friend curiously asked.

"Nowhere. Saru drew a bath after dinner and insisted that I join him."

"Your husband is still doing something extra just for you." Yuki mused as she wrung out her washcloth. The vixen set it aside with the bucket and stood up. "But after today's bath you get to enjoy an outdoor hot spring!" They walked outside onto the stony ground where a large pool of water overlooked the countryside. Steam rose up from the surface, tantalizing those who wished to use its relaxing properties. Best of all, they had the entire spring to themselves because of the morning hour. Keiko and Yuki set their towels aside and waded into the warm water.

"Ah." The vixens a softly sighed and sat down by the low rock wall. The warm water soothed skin, muscles, and mind alike. Keiko took a deep breath. The mountain air was clean and fresh, without a hint of salt unlike the coastal hills. Distant cuckoos of birds echoed around the hills. She turned to her side and looked over the spring's rock wall. Her eyes gazed down the landscape contently. The view was gorgeous. Beyond the rock wall and pathway she could see the hills below, almost to the coast. In the far distance a terraced rice paddy dotted a hill. The kitsune closed her eyes and took the entire moment in.

"Fox Lake is my favorite hot spring in all of Japan." Yuki relaxed.

"The only thing Fox Lake is missing is someone to give a nice massage." Keiko reached down and rubbed over her foot.

"If that Old Fox was here then he'd satisfy any request."

"He's too kind for his own good!" Keiko chuckled. "Fox's are knows for trickery and mischief behavior. What will happen to that reputation with him in Shikoku?"

"I heard that he gives good luck to anyone who offers food at his shrine in Tosa."

"How is he not fat from eating all of those offerings?"

"Who knows." Yuki stretched her arms and folded them behind her head. They quietly enjoyed the pristine bath for a moment. "How is your husband doing?" Yuki asked.

"He's doing very well." Keiko smiled brightly. "I saw him off when he left to fish for the day."

"I could never imagine anything bad happening with you married to him." Yuki combed over an arm causing the water to quietly ripple.

"I give him a little touch of good luck in a charm every other day." She proudly acknowledged. "How have you been doing lately?"

"Same old, same old. My brother and sister constantly quarrel over the smallest problems, then I'm dragged into the argument to settle it. They're still haunting that old house in Kyushu that I told you about."

"Some things never change." Keiko wistfully thought aloud and sank up to her neck. Underwater, she ran her hands over her white furred breasts and tummy before retracing up her orange sides wearing a smile. Her tails swished happily behind her. "I miss having my fur and tails during the day." Keiko wished that she didn't have to cram her body into a human shape so often and so long, but it was easily worth having Saru.

"I'm guessing that you do not go around your feral fox form nor your current form in front of him?" She knowingly grinned.

"Havens no!" Keiko laughed. "Do you remember visiting few days after Saru and I were married?" Yuki's ears pinned back guiltily. "You were so excited to see him that your feet were still covered in fur and had claws!"

"Don't remind me." She bashfully covered the top of her muzzle. "I can't believe I let that go. I still feel terrible about it."

"Don't worry about it. You should practice being in your human form longer like I do."

"You're around Saru most of the day. You have to stay human much longer than most foxes."

"I'm used to it." She shrugged.

"Don't tell me you're always in your human form. You'll run out of that magic even with a human to draw from."

"I place a sleeping spell on him for the night so I can change into a more comfortable form." Keiko rubbed her chin. "Then I wrap my arms, legs, and tails around him."

"Do you even fall asleep?" The white vixen smirked.

"Usually." Keiko half joked. Her friend chuckled.

"Do you still love him?"

"I love him." The kitsune nodded without hesitation.

"Ah, but does he love you?"

"Of course he does!" Keiko was shocked that her friend would even ask such a question.

"How do you know that if he doesn't know you're a fox?" Yuki challenged. Her white tails swirled underneath the heated water's calm surface. Keiko hesitated and her ears folded back.

"We've been married for almost three years." She calmly stated and looked out into the hilly forest below. The snow furred vixen watched her friend for a moment.

"I have never heard of a man keeping a fox for a wife." Yuki shrugged. "Whenever a fox is found out, she is chased out."

"But Saru loves me without a doubt." Keiko insisted. "He always holds my hand when we walk together through the hills and forest. Sometimes he takes me on a boat ride along the coves. He cooks for me as often as he can. He loves me faithfully, and never wronged me. We fall asleep together together... He takes such good care of me! Nothing could change his love for me." The eight tailed kitsune confirmed. The white vixen stood up and looked over the rock wall to the hills below. Droplets of water sprinkled off her fur to the water.

'I may have to curse you to test that.' Yuki slyly looked over at her unsuspecting friend.

"I caught this fish when everyone else was casting their nets on the other side of the boat." Saru laughed as he presented the finely cooked tuna. Keiko didn't even lift her gaze when Saru sat down across from her. "You're quiet." He noticed. "Are you feeling well?" He asked.

"Oh." She grinned and lifted her head. "I'm fine." The beautiful woman replied.

"Is the tea cold?" Saru touched her cup only to swiftly retract his hand from the heated surface.

"No..." Keiko delayed.

"Please tell me, Keiko. I'll listen closely." He leaned forward attentively.

"Hm." The kitsune thought. "What if you had a beautiful pearl but found that it wasn't a pearl. Would it still be beautiful?" She asked. Saru was perplexed by the odd question.

"Let me think... If I had something beautiful then I wouldn't care about the form. It would be beautiful, even if its value wasn't a pearl's." Saru spoke before returning his gaze to her. "What's with this talk of pearls anyway?" He asked.

"Ah. Nothing but a curious question of my mind." She feigned a grin. The kitsune was worried. 'What if Yuki is right?' Keiko thought to herself. 'Foxes aren't pearls.'

The following days peacefully passed the wooden house on Shikoku's western coast. Saru the young man and Keiko the kitsune in disguise resumed their love and lives together; however, misfortune eerily struck their house for the first time. Keiko suddenly fell very ill one day. As the fever and chills progressed, their concerns grew. Saru called on every doctor and priest he could find, but none were able to alleviate Keiko of her ailment. He tended to his sick wife day and night. The only rest he obtained was with her. Inside the bedroom, Keiko was laying in bed and enduring the fever and chills that plagued her body. The room was made as comfortable as possible for her. Flowers in small porcelain vases were within reach by her sides. A cup with cool water and a damp cloth were also ready by her side.

'I hope this sickness leaves my body soon.' The kitsune shuddered and clutched the blanket. A fox dying of a disease was unheard of, but the real danger rested in the weakness that was created. Energy was sapped, leaving the kitsune weakened. For a fox that meant not being able to utilize enough energy for magic, and in Keiko's worst case scenario, not being able to maintain her human form. 'Saru is suffering much more than me.' The fox frowned. The human was doing everything he could for her, because he loved her so much. Keiko wiped her eyes only to detect an odd sensation. She stared at the back of her hand and her jaw dropped.

'Oh no!' She watched the black fur begin to creep up through her skin like blades of grass seeking the sunlight during spring. 'I'm too sick to maintain my human form!' Keiko groaned and flipped her hand over. Her palms were starting to develop pads and fur as well.

'What if he finds out?! What if he finds a fox in his bed?!' She worried. The sight of her being driven out of the house with Saru chasing her, cursing and threatening to kill, was enough to make her cry. Keiko covered her face with a hairy palm and weeped.

Outside the room, Saru looked over his shoulder hearing a soft noise from behind the bedroom door. His heart ached.

'My wife is suffering, and I can't do anything about it!' Saru cursed himself. "Are you sure there's nothing that you can do?" He pleaded with the priest. The worried old man concentrated. His brow wrinkled in thought, searching for a solution.

"I'm afraid there's nothing more that I can do." He solemnly shook his head in conclusion. Saru's heart dropped.

"What?! There must be something!" He pleaded with the priest. "She's my wife! I love her more than anything in this world!" His hands clutched his trousers into painful fists.

"I have tried nearly everything that I carried with me." The elderly man looked across a mat where nearly a dozen trinkets, powders, and stones lay organized. Saru had the priest perform the most blizzard rituals in any attempt to cure his wife, but nothing so far even worked in the slightest.

"What is that one used for?" Saru held up a funny looking talisman.

"To ward off a fox's spirit." The old priest explained. "She hates it when I show it to her."

"Do you think my wife is being bewitched or cursed?"

"I don't know for sure, but if her fever worsens then I fear the worst for her well being." He honestly assessed Keiko's situation. "Try placing it around her neck." He advised. Saru looked at the oddly glittering rock in his palm, then the bedroom door. He hesitated for a long time. Something didn't seem right about it, and he couldn't go through with it against his wife's request.

"If she doesn't like it, then I won't force it on her." He decided and set the talisman down. "You may go now." The priest understood and gathered his items. Saru didn't move until the front door slid shut and the elder was trekking down the rugged path.

Meanwhile, Keiko coughed and cleared her throat.

'This sickness won't leave me in time.' The vixen in disguise could feel her body slowly starting to revert into her fox form. At the current rate, Saru would wake up in the morning beside a fox! Keiko clutched the covers hearing the door slide open, then softly shut. 'Another doctor?' She crossly peered over the quilt only to relax seeing that it was her husband.

"Hello. How are you feeling?" Saru immediately knelt by her side.

"Hi." She meekly replied with a faint grin. "The same as this morning." Keiko wanted to reach out and hold his hand, but the vixen reminded herself about the fur and developing pads. Saru reached out and pressed his hand to her head. Her forehead was burning to the touch.

"You're skin could heat a bathtub cauldron." He half joked making her smile.

"What did the priest say?" Keiko softly asked. Her husband's expression faded.

"He doesn't know what to do. That old priest believes that you're cursed or... I don't know." The frustration in his voice was evident. "I want you to be well!" He roughly swallowed. Keiko couldn't bare to see the man she loved under so much anguish and stress. In her mind it was better to tell him the truth. That way, she could heal easier in her feral form in the forest, and he would no longer worry about the woman that was a fox. "I'll find the world's best doctor, make offering at every shrine, pray to-" A finger touched his lips and cut him off.

"Please close your eyes." She requested. Saru was perplexed with the oddly serious request, but obeyed. Keiko relaxed and changed into her fox form. Tails, claws, a muzzle, and fur soon emerged until the fair skinned woman was replaced by an anthropomorphic vixen. Her lip quivered, but she managed to speak. "Okay... Open your eyes Saru."

"Okay-" When he opened them, a far different sight than the fair skinned woman greeted him. Pointy black ears, a long muzzle, whiskers, claws, and a body covered in fur replaced her entirely. He was staring at a fox's head! Saru yanked the cover down and eight long, white tipped tails greeted him. A naked vixen was in his bed! His brown eyes looked over her body before searching her amber eyes.

"I'm sorry Saru!" She softly wailed. "I'm a fox!" The vixen barely had the strength to hold herself back from bursting into tears. It took him the longest time to find his voice.

"K-Keiko?" His voice stuttered hoarsely. Her head softly nodded. Saru shakily reached out towards her. Her ears folded back as she watched his hand slowly descend to her. Keiko tensed and closed her eyes, expecting him to whip her and drag her outside. However, his hand carefully touched her instead. The kitsune opened her eyes and watched her husband touch her rusty orange furred shoulder. She breathed and noticed how gently he touched her. His hand slowly edged down her arm to elbow. Saru trailed down her black furred forearm. Surprisingly, it reminded the human of her, not as a fox, but Keiko, his wife. He pet over her hand. The black fur was sleek and silky. Keiko's fingers curled, hiding her black claws, but he soothed her hand and relaxed them.

"Aren't you mad?" Her voice nearly choked.

"No. If anything, I know why I slept so soundly with you." He grinned while petting her black socked hand. "Your fur is like warm silk." She softly grinned at the compliment and curled a tail around his arm. Saru felt over the affectionate fluffy appendage.

"Do... Do you h-hate me?" She whimpered as tears fell from her eyes. Even if he was about to beat her and kick her out for being a fox, Keiko still wanted to believe for a moment that he would always be her husband, and cherish every memory they had together. His grin didn't fade.

"Of course I don't hate you." His soft words stunned the kitsune. "Fox or not you are my wife, and I love you." Saru bent down and kissed the end of her muzzle and damp nose. Keiko's muzzle was ajar from shock.

"Huh-what?" The kitsune was speechless.

"I love you." He repeated himself. "This may sound odd, but this is the first time that I have actually seen you, the real you!" His voice found strength, meaning every word spoken. "I married a fox, not a woman." He nervously grinned and kissed her again. His words made her heart cry out in joy, and the fox's strength started returning at once.

"Please don't stop!" She cried out and pulled her husband down with both arms and quickly wrapped him up with her tails. He obliged and continued kissing his wife's muzzle as she wiped away her tears. Saru parted his lips and met her tongue with his. The open kiss between different mouths was awkward at best. They both parted with a laughing sputter, but her arms hugged him like a vice. "I was never good at kissing. I'd much rather lick your cheek!" She admitted. Saru grinned feeling the smooth foxy appendage swipe over his cheek. Whiskers teased the human's skin as Keiko nuzzled his face.

"Your voice sounds better." Saru noticed through the physical attention they showered each other with.

"I actually feel better." She surprisingly sighed with full relief. The vixen was weak, but her fever had vanished entirely like magic.

"That's wonderful!" Saru hugged his wife. Keiko smiled and started wondering.

'Did someone curse me?' A sudden noise interrupted her thought. They froze as a figure suddenly opened the bedroom door. In the open doorway, a pure white vulpine figure was completely visible from head to paw.

'Yuki!' Keiko sat up, recognizing the five tailed white fox. Yuki's beautiful figure was dressed with an equally beautiful white kimono bearing leaves and flower designs. The kitsune approached and stopped at the end of their bed. Her deep brown eyes looked at the odd couple for a moment before a grin emerged on her thin black lips.

"Who are you?" Saru nervously asked. Her foxy eyes seemed to stare into his soul.

"I am Yuki, but I am here to talk to your wife." She looked at the eight tailed red fox.

"What are you doing here?" Keiko could hardly believe that her friend would show herself in front of her husband so carelessly!

"You're husband must truly love you more than anything else." Yuki started, much to the couple's surprise. "Keiko, I'm sorry for being so quick to curse you to sickness like that. You're my friend, not someone to amuse myself with." She apologized to the speechless two. Her white triangular ears perked up in a better mood. "I hope to meet you two soon under better circumstances." She bowed and walked to the bedroom door.

"How do I cure her sickness?!" Saru blurted. Yuki's tails mysteriously twirled in the air.

"All she will need is a good night's sleep." She looked over her shoulder at the human and winked before vanishing into thin air. Silence returned to the house, but rather than feel afraid, the pair oddly sensed a serene calm.

"Who was that?" Saru looked at his wife.

"Uhh... A friend of mine." She sheepishly answered. "I saw her last week at Fox Lake."

"Fox Lake?"

"A hot spring near here for foxes..." She stopped to recoil her tails around him. "We can talk about that later though." Keiko's smile returned. "I want to spend the night without hiding anything from you." Saru watched as all eight tails disrobed him and snugly coiled around them. The vixen pulled him down to the bed, and the human was surrounded with the softest fur he could imagine. He lifted an arm and watched the tails cling to his limb before securely coiling around him again.

"Do you like my fur?" She nervously asked. The vixen's ears were partially pinned back.

"Yes! You're very warm too!" He remarked as the writhing sea of furry tails.

"Thank you." She giggled. "I never thought you would say those words before." Man and fox relaxed and stared at each other intimately without a desire to move. After their ordeal, they were happier to be with each other than anytime before. "What are we going to do about all of this?" Keiko asked as the reality of the situation set in.

"Nothing." He shrugged much to her bewilderment. "Things will be a little different. You can be the fox you are at home now, but both of us have to keep this a secret."

"I like your idea." She reeled her husband closer until their fronts were pressed together, but it didn't seem close enough for the vixen. "I don't want to let you go." She whispered. For the first time, Keiko and Saru fell asleep together without any spells.

"Ah! This spring water feels wonderful!" Saru sank down to his neck as steam evaporated around him, but quickly jumped up. "And the view is beautiful!" He could hardly believe his eyes at the hills below.

"Sit down Saru." Keiko pulled her husband down to sit beside her. A few tails and an arm wrapped around his side underwater for extra measure.

"Sorry! It's just... Wow." The human couldn't even form the words. A five tailed white vixen waded into the spring next. Her muzzle wore a more serious look than her two counterparts.

"You're the first human to visit Fox Lake." Yuki smirked. "You better not blabber your muzzle about it to anyone." She warned.

"He won't." Keiko reassured her friend. "If the Old Fox let him in then we have nothing to worry about."

"I can't believe he allowed Saru inside." Yuki sat down across them in the soothing water. The human simply grinned and took in the gorgeous scenery beside his wife.

'The world is so full of wonders...' He couldn't believe that meeting Keiko on a bridge one day would change his life so much. "I love this hot spring." Saru remarked.

"Because there are foxes here?" Yuki chuckled.

"Well... One in particular." He grinned at Keiko.

"Flatterer." She rubbed his side for a moment.

"Even the bathhouse is so peaceful and calm." Saru couldn't help but add. The foxes bathing inside didn't seem to mind that a human was among them, provided that he had permission and was with Keiko.

"I never thought you would finish cleaning her tails Saru, especially when most of them we're wrapped around you." Yuki joked.

"She always has a tail around me now," he lifted an arm to prove it, "but I enjoy the touch."

"You can rub my paws when we dry off." Keiko grinned and nudged Saru with her elbow.

"Of course." He shot her a playful glare, but didn't refuse.

"He really wants to do anything extra just for you." Yuki lightly shook her head.

"And I appreciate it." Keiko smiled and shared a quick kiss with Saru.

"Save that for a private place!" Yuki threatened to splash them. "We're at a hot spring after all." Keiko rolled her eyes. "Thank you. It was odd enough watching you two help wash each other."

"That elder couple always help each other." Keiko retorted.

"That's different." The white kitsune folded her arms. "They're old." She pointed out.

"You're jealous." Keiko teased, making Saru chuckle.

"What?! Jealous?"

"Mmhm." Keiko nodded. "I think you have your sweet brown eyes set on a fox or human."

"Oh, hardly!" She stuck her chin up.

"You know Yuki..." Keiko swirled a finger in the spring's water. "I may have to curse you to find out." She mischievously grinned, proudly showing off all of her white teeth.