The hú shén was a master of disguise — a creature of many identities. It was almost unfathomable to believe that a powerful shapeshifter could turn into a rosy-cheeked five-year-old boy.

                 If she hadn’t seen him shift before her eyes, she would’ve mistaken him for a real kid. But that mirage was shattered when she looked into his mischievous eyes. The hú shén might be able to copy the youthfulness of a child’s face and body but his eyes gave it all away. There was wisdom in those eyes, knowledge that could only be obtained through experience and a long life history. It also didn’t help that his eyes had the wily glimmer of a clever fox.

                 “You need to tone it down. Your eyes are giving everything away.” she told him as she led him down the dim alleyway, their fingers interlaced. The handholding was weird given the circumstances they were in right now. She wouldn’t have minded if he was in his real form but the fact that he was a child in this state made the whole ordeal extremely uncomfortable for her. Nonetheless, he insisted that they must hold hands to make the act more realistic. Apparently, she was supposed to be his jiĕ jiĕ and her goal was to pretend to disown him in the alleyway, right outside the doll store.

                 “Don’t worry, xiăo jiĕ, I know what I’m doing.” he answered back in a child-like voice and gave her a toothy smile.

                 She shot him a look but didn’t say anything. Her steps faltered as they got closer to the demon boutique. An evil presence glided toward her and wrapped itself around her body. She couldn’t see its face but she could feel it poking tiny invisible needles into her skin. It didn’t take a genius to know that the demon wanted to get rid of her.

                 “I will handle this. You can stay here.” the fox whispered back in a voice that was only loud enough for her ears.

                 Nodding, she released his hand and allowed him to walk alone. Immediately, the prickling stopped. The evil presence unwound itself from her body and quickly chased after the hú shén. Apprehension clobbered her mind as its airy tendrils wrapped around the fox’s arms and legs to restrict his movements. She could see the struggle on the fox’s face as he walked deeper into the alleyway. She wasn’t sure his pained expression was merely an act or if it was real. It was hard to tell but she hoped it was the former. Her teeth gritted when the demon pushed the hú shén into the doll boutique roughly, causing him to fall to the ground and scraped his knees.

                 Beads of blood dribbled down the fox’s kneecaps. A normal child would be bawling right now but the fox barely utter a word. There were no tears in his eyes. His lack of response triggered the demon’s wariness. That wariness grew when the hú shén gave the demon a smug half-smile.

                 Before the demon could react, the hú shén slammed a yellow strip of spell paper onto the demon. The paper automatically combusted as it made contact with demonic skin. The magic in the spell slowed the demon’s movements, delaying its physical and mental processes. Taking advantage of the demon’s predicament, she raced into the store to save the trapped kids while the fox stayed outside to control the demon.

                 Glassy-eyed dolls lined the wooden shelves of the store. Some were made of cloth while others were made of plastic. A few of them were made of rarer materials like glass and porcelain. A row of porcelain dolls dotted the upper shelf. There were six of them and they were all dressed in long, red dresses made out of the finest velvet. She swallowed the heavy lump in as she ventured deeper into the store. Damn it, she didn’t know what to do. It was one thing to kill demons…it was another to free a bunch of children from their dolly shells.

                 Maybe there was a spell book somewhere. Maybe there was a magical phrase that she needed to say in order to release the children’s souls from their encasements.   

                 She screamed as the door slammed shut behind her. The last bit of light from the alleyway vanished as the door closed. Darkness consumed her. She jumped as a series of notes began to play from somewhere within the store. It took her a second to realize it was music from a music box. Each note brought a shiver down her spine, making her cringe with fear.

                This is getting creepy, she thought to herself. Her eyes widened as something cold touch her face. It felt like a hand…a doll’s hand.

                Frightened, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her dagger, “Stand back!”

                The dolls didn’t listen. They followed the demon’s orders and went to kill her.

                She was torn between her natural instinct to protect herself and her duty to save these kids. On one hand, she didn’t want to hurt any of them. On the other hand, she didn’t want to stand here idly and let them murder her. Frustrated, she decided to avoid them. It was quite difficult since she couldn’t see anything in the pitch-black room.

                She grunted as she tripped on the music box and fell to the ground. The dolls didn’t wait to smother her. They climbed over her and beat her with their tiny hands. She tried pushing them off but it didn’t help — there were just too many of them. The ones near the ground locked her arms and legs in place while the ones near her face slapped her repeatedly. Fear gripped her heart as one of them stole her dagger. She could hear them pulling the sharp knife from the scabbard and raising it toward her chest.

               Oh great, I’m going to get killed by dolls. This is a perfect way to die…NOT!

               Before the dagger pierced her heart, the door burst open. From the corners of her eyes, she could see the fox wrestling with the demon. A smile spread across her lips when the hú shén made one final kill. The demon dissipated into dust. Freed from the demon’s control, the dolls stopped moving and fell flat. The dagger dropped to the ground, creating a loud ping as it hit the floor.

               “Are you okay?” he asked as he helped her up. He didn’t say it aloud but she knew he was shaking because he feared he was going to lose her.

               “I’ll be lying if I said I’m not.” she grunted as he helped her stand up.

               She held her breath when he suddenly pulled her in for a tight embrace. He tucked her head against his chest, “I’m sorry, xiăo jiĕ.”

                “W-why are you apologizing?” This was a bad time to stutter on words but she couldn’t help herself when she was this close to him. Heat radiated from his body, warming her chilled skin. If she listened hard enough she could even hear the soft beating of his heart.

               “Because you would’ve been dead if I didn’t kill the demon on time. Why didn’t you protect yourself? I thought you are a good fighter.”

               “I am! I just didn’t defend myself because I don’t want to hurt those innocent kids.” She pulled away from the hug, “Do you know how to change them back?”

               “Yes.”

               She watched carefully as he clapped his hands together and muttered a series of words in a language that she didn’t understand. It definitely wasn’t Chinese…or any human language that she knew. The best conclusion that she could come up with was that it was a Spirit dialect.

               At first, nothing happened. The dolls remained as lifeless dolls. Ten seconds, they began to shake. She jumped slightly when the dolls cracked opened. Shards of plastic and porcelain littered the once-clean ground. Moments later, the souls of the children escaped through the cracks and floated out the door.

              “Where are they going?”

              “To find their bodies and return home.” The fox took her hand and led her outside, “We should go home as well.”

              “You make it sound as if we’re living together.” she pointed out, “I am very thankful that you saved me tonight but you are not coming home with me.”

              The corners of his lips curved up into a smile, “That’s not what your grandma said.”

              She stared at him, “What did my Nanna said?”

              “She invited me over for dinner tonight.”

              “She what?”

              “I’ll be great.” He squeezed her hand harder, “I’m sure we’ll have a lot of fun.”

              I rather get killed by dolls, she thought to herself. Her heart galloped as he threaded their fingers together, Okay, maybe this isn’t that bad. Gosh, what the hell is Nanna up to? Why did she invite him over for dinner? Is she trying to play matchmaker?           

Author's Note: I know you guys hate my apologies but I want to apologize anyway. Sorry for being away for a month. Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. There will be fluff next chapter since this chapter is kinda scary. I think I will reveal Yi Xing's name to the main heroine next chapter...so stay tuned! And thank you for sticking by me...I know I'm really unpredictable with my updates. *bows deeply*