John tensed, although he kept his expression level, and Yuki's eyes flicked to him. She followed his gaze before locking onto the hair as well.

Think, John, think! The scanner didn't ding on Aiki himself, when it dinged on Yuki while she was in disguise, so it probably wasn't her, right? But she must have interacted with him somehow. Was he bent to her will by force and magic, perhaps? …But shouldn't that show up on his detector? He hadn't thought to test it yet, but any active magic should trigger it. Did that mean they were willingly working with her, or did they just not know somehow?

No. No, no. The couple couldn't have been in on this from the start, right? There was no way, they seemed too calm for people who had just met a kitsune who told them to betray people who saved them earlier, and any magic of Kiku's actively influencing them should ping his detector.

His heart started to pound faster, even as he tried to harden it. The tax collectors could have been a purposeful feint to get them in and gather information. Kiku was disturbingly capable and strangely knowledgeable. What if she had spies planted before they even knew of her?

He refused to believe it.

There was no way that some of the first people to tolerate his presence in years were spies.

Yet, despite the whirling maelstrom going through John's head, Yuki didn't act, and he followed her lead.

"Nothing of note, Lady Yuki. I think Haru did some more berry harvesting, and I finished weeding by the front gate and then started helping her a bit after lunch," Aiki answered, and to John's uneducated ear, it sounded like he was being truthful… but then who did the wall outside? Was it Haru, and the hair just something that transferred from her to him when they hugged later?

Yuki's expression didn't even flicker, giving no hints of her thoughts. "So, how is that coming along, Haru?" she smoothly asked. "Anything of note?"

The woman straightened herself and shook her head. "No, Lady Yuki!" she responded. "Everything is going well. We should have everything ripe up pretty quickly and put away in the cellar." Yet still, he could find no hidden meaning or intent behind her voice, either. She seemed to legitimately believe what she was saying.

He tensely shook his head. "No. I think this is the last round before the cold starts creeping in," he explained, voice hard.

At his tone, the two looked to one another nervously, but said nothing, unwilling to risk the displeasure of what they thought was a powerful Unbound.

"How have you two been doing lately, anyhow? We haven't been around with how busy things have been, but I'm sure you two are getting bored out here alone," Yuki casually commented, taking a step closer. She was just outside of grabbing range now, and her prey was none the wiser.

A bit of worry began to enter Haru's eyes, but Aiki still seemed blissfully unaware of the threat, even as the jaws of a trap closed around his ankle. "Of course not, Lady Yuki," she politely responded, casting her gaze downward. "We are happy with our safety. We miss our friends back in town, but we have no problem waiting. I do hope your trip today was good. You all seemed pretty tense when you left this morning."

It was a pretty good deflection, although John couldn't tell if she knew what was happening. She may have merely noticed something was off and was trying to save their skins. After all, one who didn't know Yuki well might assume she was looking for an excuse to punish someone, and in that case, trying to divert her was a matter of self-preservation.

"Now," was all she said before lunging at Aiki at unnatural speeds. He didn't have time even to flinch before she was upon him, bowling him over and knocking him to the ground like a sack of potatoes.

"Aiki!" Haru screamed, but she was frozen in place, even as John's conscience warred with itself.

Did he really have to do this? The mere thought of betraying the trust of his guests in such a way ate at his heart, but did he have any choice but to at least verify them when they'd been in contact with Kiku herself?

What if they were enslaved? Could he justify not ensuring their safety, even if they may fear him for it?

It was with a heavy heart, but John had plenty of time to seize Haru telekinetically and lift her into the air, her lack of Aegis of warding making it trivial.

"Sorry!" John quickly apologized as he pinned her flailing arms against her sides, pulling a rag from his bag and tying it across her mouth to muffle a scream. "I know this looks bad, but it'll hopefully be over in a minute!"

He tried to ignore the betrayed, terrified look in her eyes as he levitated her back away. He'd love to leave her on the roof so she could at least move, but if something was going on with her…

Well, he'd rather not deal with it.

Aiki tried to shout something, but Yuki had him pinned, and all it took was a gentle grasp to hold his mouth shut and cut off his yell. Then she just waited. The strength gap was utterly insurmountable, and despite his wild flailing and squirming, Aiki couldn't even budge her limbs, despite the kitsune putting seemingly no effort in. Gently, she flexed her Presence, radiating calm and warmth like the sun, yet so subtle that John could hardly feel it.

Eventually, Aiki's struggles weakened, and he stopped trying to shout, although his chest was heaving and it was hard to tell whether he actually calmed down or had just run out of stamina.

"None of that now. I'll go first," Yuki stated, voice firm but not angry, more like she was dealing with a grumpy child. "Right now, we are dealing with a monster that can impersonate others, and we must make sure everyone here is still themselves. Have either of you gone outside the walls?"

The way the kitsune could say something entirely true while still leading others to believe something else entirely was incredible, if a bit disturbing. She couldn't have had more than a few seconds to cook that one up, yet she made it look easy.

Finally, she removed her hand from his mouth, and he finally could speak again… although the first thing he did was gasp for air like a dying fish, even though she wasn't covering his nostrils. "Thank you, Lady Yuki," he hurriedly said, clearly trying to mollify her even though he didn't dare look her in the eye. "I didn't go outside today. Not with all those monsters around."

She stared at him, long and hard, before gently grabbing his jaw, forcing him to look her in the eyes.

Silence hung uncomfortably thick in the air as she stared him down, unflinching even as he uncomfortably writhed in place, unable to do anything about it.

"Well, you seem to be telling the truth," she mused, finally releasing her grip and letting him flop back down. She didn't let him back up, though, keeping the man thoroughly pinned as she turned her attention to the floating Haru. "How about you? John, if you'd ungag her, please."

He quickly did so, repeatedly apologizing to her as he untied the knot. "Again, so sorry. I swear, we don't mean any harm! We just need to make sure you're still you! That's all. This should all be over in a minute." In retrospect, John probably didn't need to gag her, and doing so only to undo it a minute later was sending all kinds of mixed messages.

He thought he caught the woman glaring at him for a split second before her self-preservation kicked in, but it could have easily been a trick of the light. "Lady Yuki," she began, "My husband speaks the truth; both of us were busy inside the walls all day, not that we would wish to go outside with what has been going on. We set to work after you left, and we only broke for an early lunch atop the walls before the rain got too bad."

A lunch atop the walls, where they would both be in line of sight of the forest.

John groaned, and he shared a meaningful glance with Yuki. The kitsune nodded to confirm that the poor woman was being truthful, and John could tell by her frown that they both likely came to the same conclusion.

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If Kiku could influence either Aiki or Haru out of the fort when the other wasn't paying attention to, say, weed an exterior section of the wall, she could have her way with their mind without having to enter the fort, something she seemed reluctant to do.

Probably because she assumed that there were traps rigged to kill anyone who wasn't authorized. Wait, now that he could create things that would only trigger on Kiku and Kiku alone…

That was a thought for later, especially if he could make a low-intensity positive, like what triggered off Aiki, only fire off a non-lethal effect.

Perhaps it was time to make her worries well placed if she wanted to keep fucking with people under his protection.

He could lock doors entirely to unauthorized parties, too, but that was an idea for later. Same with the breakdown that he was likely going to have about Kiku being able to influence people from a distance once that properly sank in. Given she wasn't just puppetting the world by now, he had to assume that any sort of Aegis protected well against it, or perhaps awareness was enough, and he'd have to figure out something for himself.

"Well, that complicates things," John muttered. "I'm sorry, Aiki, but you may have been mind-controlled without your knowledge." It was best to rip the band-aid off quickly, even if he couldn't help but cringe in sympathy, the feeling of being helpless in Kiku's arms sending a shiver up his spine.

Never again.

"What!" he exclaimed. "I'm loyal, honest! I'd never do anything to either of you! Lord John, Lady Yuki, you have to believe me!" As he hurriedly reassured them, his eyes went wide, and he started to struggle once more.

"I'm afraid it isn't a matter of loyalty, it's a matter of what others can force mortals to do," Yuki sighed, poking him hard enough to draw blood with one of her claws before standing back up.

Aiki rapidly shot to his feet as she freed him, rushing to his wife's side as John released Haru in turn. The two shared quiet, whispered words that only soulmates could, the utter love and worry clear even if the words were lost. Perhaps it was a bit premature to let them go, but if Yuki thought the situation was under control, he would follow along.

Yuki leaned in and sniffed the single drop of blood on the tip of her claw, frowning deeply. Then, she licked it up, seeming to swirl it around her mouth like a sommelier for a moment. "The nogitsune used her abilities on him earlier today," she authoritatively stated.

"How's that possible? If he were under her magic's influence, he should have shown up immediately, not just when I checked his shoulder and saw the hair, right?" John questioned, finally tearing his eyes away from the lovers.

"If it were an ongoing effect, yes. I can only taste faint remnants of her magic in his blood, the last vestiges of something that had already come and gone," Yuki explained.

Self-destructing mind control magic. Well, wasn't that peachy? It, however, gave him a few more puzzle pieces to fit together, forming a clear picture. "So, let me see if we agree on events here. Aiki and Haru started the day normally, and Ki—the nogitsune was observing the area, even after we left. She didn't want to come inside, but she saw the pair of them eating up on the walls, and smelled an opportunity. From there, she implanted the idea of weeding the wall around the side to him, and waited. Once he was alone, she ambushed him. Lastly, she gave him a command that he then executed and forgot about, seemingly also purging the memory of his encounter or even going outside."

Yuki nodded. "I'd agree with some additions. The fact that the wall got weeded says she watched him for quite some time before making her move. She was likely waiting to see if it was a trap or if you could somehow detect something wrong from a distance. The true mystery is what she got him to do."

"She didn't go for the obvious target. My workshop was still entirely blocked up, and even if Aiki somehow forced it open, there'd be no way for him to put it all back in place from the outside," John noted, frowning. "Haru didn't note that he was gone for too long, joining her shortly after lunch, so he probably wasn't gone for long to do any—"

John's voice caught in his throat, and his eyes widened.

"The cellar, the food," he muttered, a tremor shaking him.

A pair of shrill screams broke him from his thoughts, and he pivoted to see Rin and Yosuke by the door, with Aiki and Haru cowering at the new arrivals.

"Lady Yuki, Lord John, we heard a commotion and came as fast as we could!" the boisterous Unbound said, looking over at the pair of lovers with confusion, uncomprehending of the looks of fear cast in her general direction.

"We?" Aiki muttered in fear, eyes locked onto the undead, which, now that he thought of it, he had almost certainly seen in the thrall of the tax collectors.

"It's alright!" John quickly offered. "He doesn't work for the tax collectors anymore! After they drove them off, we kinda stole him? I mean, he's his own person, so it's not like we own him, but he didn't have a choice in working for them, and now he doesn't have to. In fact, he'd rather make sure they don't do what they were doing again. Hell, most of them are, uh, dead now, other than the ones that got drafted into the militia!"

The quiet was deafening, with Aiki and Haru looking at him with barely suppressed disbelief. Rin awkwardly stood by the door, eyes slowly scanning over the room as she tried to figure out what exactly she had missed. Yosuke, for his part, was trying to look cool and unbothered, leaning his back against the doorway, and damn was he ever pulling it off, although that was certainly easier when you didn't have expressions to give anything away. Still, John couldn't help but wonder if their reaction hurt?

He knows that it would if he were in the undead's shoes, but his several years alone in the woods might have warped his context and sense of empathy somewhat. How would he have reacted before that, back when he was a normal person who hadn't lived in the woods for ages? He wasn't sure; it all felt so long ago now.

Yuki, of course, continued to be serene and calm, radiating an aura that said everything would be okay. "Rin, would you mind standing guard while we check on something? Yosuke, please keep watch on the walls," she politely requested.

"Yes, Lady Yuki!" Rin said, bowing sharply, and turning to stand by the door, looking outward and pointedly keeping Aiki and Haru here, even if the kitsune didn't order her to. No, given what happened earlier, there was no doubt in his mind that they wouldn't dare try to squeeze past the Unbound.

They probably overlooked the implications, though, given their eyes were locked onto the undead who simply nodded and left, undoubtedly pointedly aware of the true reason behind the order. Poor bastard. Given his alarm tablet, it wasn't as if anyone could sneak up on the fort easily anyway, but it wasn't as if anyone except him and Yuki knew that.

They would have to be very, very careful about what they tell any ordinary person. Kiku could interrogate it out of anyone vulnerable with nothing but a few minutes alone with them, without anyone ever knowing.

"Right, let's do this, then," John said, turning to walk toward the stairs with a stiff gait, worried about what they'd find below. Yuki was not far behind him as he headed down into the building's cellar, pawsteps all but silent other than the creaking of the steps under her weight.

They were cast into shade, muted magical lights embedded into the side of his addition as they went down the dark staircase, away from the light above. A faint chill bit the air, and at the base of the stairs, perhaps a dozen feet underground, was a heavy wooden door, tightly sealed around the bottom with various soft materials to keep the temperature even.

Terror gripped his heart as he swung the weight door open, having to put his weight into it due to how tight the fit was.

Cold greeted them, and numerous shelves sat in the dimly lit room, illuminated only by a single light above. Perhaps not as cold as a fridge, the room was still far more brisk than the open air, making John shiver as the raw temperature differential made the air race out. On the shelves lay numerous sealed containers for anything that would expire rapidly, with the less perishable materials left on the shelves in bags, baskets, or whatever was most convenient. A trio of magical focuses embedded in the walls pulled heat from the room and vented it into the soil via attached metal rods, maintaining a stable temperature all year round. At the far side of the room, a machine sat that lightly pulsed entropic energy over a metal plate with a lever pull, rapidly sterilizing any sealed container placed on it and letting anything that would naturally rot quickly last far longer.

John quickly spotted the new additions; several containers placed on the third set of shelves on the left-hand side stood out like a sore thumb due to not being in his mental inventory of this place. He swiftly approached them, opening the baskets only to see ordinary wineberries from his little garden.

A furred hand reached past him, grabbing one, and John jolted a little.

"It looks ordinary," Yuki said, eyeing it up and down before sniffing it. "Smells normal, as well." She popped it into her mouth a moment later, much to his terror. "If she poisoned them, there's nothing she could use to capture you that would hurt me. They taste normal."

Perhaps he was getting paranoid, but Aiki had to have done something. Why would Kiku of all people not have used an opportunity like that? She could have pried some basic information out of him, sure, but she could have done so much more!

He scanned them with his Nameless and Kiku detector, but found nothing. Frowning, he gave them one last scan, this time removing the lens so it detected any magic.

The counter wiggled, but failed to click fully.

Was it a false positive?

Was there something in there?

What if it was tainted, but with something non-magical?

If this went on for too long…

Winter was going to be much more challenging.

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