Sunset's human world origin

Katon family back patio

Date: July 1st, time: 1:00 pm

*Sunset’s perspective*

“Okay, watch what I do.”, Sunset instructed. She had a pen and notebook to write down a basic light spell and showed it to Emi and Anura. She translated it into English for all three of their sanities.

“Looks simple.”, Emi said.

“That’s the point. Now, this isn’t enough to cast a spell all by itself. You need to direct it. Magic consists of two parts, imagination and power. You form the mental image of what you want then use your power to bring it into reality. Spell circles exist to help form and guide that mental image, but you still need to direct it. Try to activate it.”

Emi placed her hand on the circle, and a small flash of light erupted from the page that then proceeded to burn up. “What gives? You said you were able to make a ball of light.”

“That’s what I mean by “you still need to direct it”. You need to know what you want.” Sunset redrew the light spell then turned it back around to the girls. “Try again. Imagine a ball of light being formed by this paper.”

Emi closed her eyes and placed her hand on the circle. The paper burned away, and a small ball of light formed in her hand. She opened her eyes and brought the light up to her face. It was only the size of her eye, but that didn’t matter as she beamed a smile from ear to ear. “This. is. Awesome!”, she cheered and threw her free hand in the air. The light faded shortly after, and Emi looked down at it disappointedly. “Aw man”

“I’m sorry I can’t make it last longer. I don’t know enough about Earth’s magic.”

“My turn, but I wanna draw it.”, Anura said.

“Okay, if you think you can.” Sunset gave the pad and pen to Anura. “Make sure to spell it right. You don’t wanna be the one who’s spell circle blew up because of a typo.”

“They can blow up?”, Anura asked worriedly.

“I’ll check your spelling before you cast.”

Anura nodded and then drew a pretty good copy, though not as clean. Sunset checked it over and nodded her approval. Anura placed her hand on the spell circle, and the paper burned up. She turned her hand over to reveal her own ball of light. However, her light was purple. Interesting. Sunset thought back to Emi’s light and realized that it wasn’t the standard yellow. It was kitsune gold. Very interesting. Sunset redrew the spell circle, casted it, and a ball of turquoise light formed.

“Very interesting.”

“What?”, Emi asked.

“Light spells don’t normally take on colors like this, and my light spell didn’t take on this color when I wrote it Ponish.”

“Weird”

Sunset redrew the spell in Irish and casted it. It too was turquoise. She redid it in Dragon Tongue, and it was standard yellow. “This is odd.”

“Now what?”, Anura asked.

“Now, you two practice on your own.” Sunset stood up and passed Emi and Anura the couple of pads and pens that she had sitting next to her. “Don’t worry about the calligraphy, jus’ practice the spell.”

Katon family back patio

Date: same day, time: 1:15 pm

*Emi’s perspective*

“Don’t worry about the calligraphy, jus’ practice the spell.” Sunset left to go back inside, leaving the two of them outside.

Emi flipped open her pad and immediately began drawing her own spell circles. Each time she created a light ball, she tried to keep it going longer and longer, but she couldn’t keep it going for more than ten seconds. Over and over again, they only lasted ten seconds. Even casting multiple in quick succession didn’t change how long they lasted.

“How many sheets have you gone through?”, Anura asked.

“Why are you being so slow? Sunset said not to worry about calligraphy.”

“Well, I care. I wanna have nice spell circles.”

“Well, I don’t have time for that. Nor do Ah have time for ten second light balls.”, Emi said under her breath. Fire should be easy enough. Drawing a fire spell was easier than the light spell with it only being four letters. When she casted it, it formed into an apple sized ball of golden flames. It’s bigger.

“Woah! Emi, what are you doing?!”, Anura shouted in alarm.

“What does it look like I’m doing?”

“Trying to burn the house down.”, Anura deadpanned.

“Relax, I’m a kitsune. Fire’s our thing.”, Emi said as she bounced the fireball in her hand. The fire fizzled out, only lasting about as long as the light. Emi began drawing another fire spell, but not without a disapproving look from Anura.

“That really doesn’t seem safe.”

Another fireball rose from the pad, and Emi began passing it between her hands. “Let’s see how far I can throw this.”

“No!”, Anura shouted, but Emi ignored her and threw it into the yard.

The fireball didn’t just fly through the air, as she expected. It fell to the ground and lit the grass on fire. The grass is on fire. “Sunset!”, they screamed as they ran inside.

Sunset sat at the dining table with a plate in front of her and an unamused look on her face. “What’s going on?”

“The grass is on fire!”

Sunset’s unamused look instantly switched to alarm as she sprang up, knocking her chair over, and bolted to the fire extinguisher. She ran outside with Emi and Anura following behind. Sunset got to the fire and blasted it. “Now, who wants to tell me what happened?”

“Emi created a fireball and threw it into the grass.”, Anura said.

“I thought it would fizzle out in the air.”, Emi defended.

“Why were you creating fireballs? There’s a reason I left you with only the light spell.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, you explain this to Mom.”, Sunset said while pointing behind them.

They spun around to see Mom and Dad, the former of whom looked miffed. “Wha’ did Ah tell ya ‘bout burnin’ da house down?”

“In my defense, Ah didn’t catch the house on fire, just a bit of the yard.”

“Emi”, Dad said in his ‘you know what you did’ tone.

“Ah’m gonna let ya handle this. Dis is out a’ mo ball field.”, Mom said to Sunset, then looked back down to Emi. “Y’re helpin’ me fix dat.” With that, Mom took Dad’s hand and headed back inside.

The two of them turned back to Sunset, who had her arms crossed and an annoyed look on her face. “Emi, I applaud your ability to figure out new spells, but I left you with the light spell so you can learn control with minimal risk. On top of that, you know not to play with fire.”

“I really didn’t think it would land in the grass.”

“Energy is still subject to gravity.”

“It is?”

“Yes, that’s why blackholes are black.”

“Oooh, I did not know that.”

“Gee, if only one of us could’ve guessed playing with fire was a bad idea. Oh, wait.”, Anura snarked. Emi gave an apologetic smile, but Anura still looked upset.

“Well, now you do. No more fire until I say so.”

“Alright, light spells only.”

Sunset nodded then headed back inside. Anura and Emi returned to the porch and picked their pads and pens back up. Anura got straight back to drawing spell circles, but Emi wasn’t so quick to do so. If she wants to do anything cool with her spells, she needs to make it last longer. Maybe make it bigger. She was already using the full notepad; it’s only a few inches wide. To at least test her theory, Emi drew the light spell smaller. The resulting light ball was smaller than her previous attempts, about pea sized. She passed it between her hands as she timed it. Still only ten seconds.

Emi crossed her arms and huffed. Her theory proved incorrect. What else can be changed? Could I want it to last longer? I gotta know what I want. Last longer. Last longer. Last longer. Emi redrew the spell and casted it as she repeated the mantra in her head. The light rose from the pad, and Emi began counting. Again, it only lasted for ten seconds. “Damn it.”

“You okay?”

“Yeah, I jus’ can’t make the light last longer.”

“Why don’t you ask Sunset about it?”

“Ah might as well.” Emi got up and headed inside.

Sunset was back in her seat and chowing down on her food. “Is something else burning?”

“No, I want to know how to make the spell last longer. I’ve already tried wanting it to last longer, but it didn’t work.”

“Yeah, if it doesn’t work for Mom and Dad, it won’t work like that.”

“What?”

“Never mind. It was a bad joke anyways. Come sit down.”

Emi climbed into the opposite chair and placed her pad on the table.

“I’m not sure how to gather Earth magic. Equestrian magic is free flowing through the atmosphere. It’s very easy to access. I’m not sure what’s up with Earth’s magic, but I can’t feel it. The only way I’ve been able to access it is through those spell circles. So, the short answer is, I don’t know how to make it last longer.”

“What if I wrote ‘long light’ in the spell circle?”

“You’ll end up with a dud. That’s not how it works.”

“Great, that blows.”

“The best I can say is keep experimenting. Maybe you’ll figure it out.”

Emi nodded and headed back outside. Anura had multiple balls of light floating around the patio. “Wow, that’s pretty.”

“Yeah, watch this.” Anura stuck her hand out, and the lights swirled and danced around her for a few seconds before fading. It was like what she imagined fox fire to look like.

“Wow”

“Did you find out how to make them last longer?”

“No, Sunset said that she can’t feel Earth’s magic and that she doesn’t know how to gather it.”

“So, she doesn’t know how to get more fuel for the spell.”

“That about sums it up.” Emi sat back down next to Anura and resumed drawing spell circles.

Emi’s room

Date: July 4th, time: 7:55 pm

*Emi’s perspective*

The yearly fireworks show was minutes away from starting. Emi stood atop her step stool, carefully removing the fly screen from her window. The patio awning has a gentle enough slope that one could sit on it, and it can hold a lot of snow. An underweight eight year old should be no problem. From the awning, she had a much better view of the world beyond her backyard. It was a pretty night, but people didn’t know how to turn off their lights, so the stars were hard to see. She knew her mom hated not being able to see them in their full beauty but put up with it for the benefits living here provides.

“Girls, da fireworks are about ta start.”, Mom called out.

From her vantage point, Emi could see Mom, Aunt Minerva, Anura, and Sunset walk into the backyard. Dad was in the basement with all the animals, as usual. Grandpa was working, as usual. It’s a lucky night when no Darwin award nominees come in with freshly amputated fingers.

“Where’s yer siste’?”, Mom asked Sunset.

“I’m up here.”

The four of them looked up, and Mom looked unhappy. “Emi”

“It’s not that dangerous. I’m not hanging off the edge.”

Mom looked to Sunset and pointed up at Emi. Sunset nodded and headed back inside. The fireworks began, and Sunset climbed out of Emi’s window and sat down next to her. They sat in silence as the whizzing fireworks flew up into the sky. Emi was glad she gets to see them one more time before the end.

Katon family home

Date: July 19th, time: 8:00 pm

*Emi’s perspective*

“I’m the cake-asaurus rex!”, Emi proclaimed with cake all over her face. She may have had a couple too many cookies, but she wanted to not be in pain for tonight. This was likely going to be the last time she’d get to celebrate her parents’ wedding anniversary. She was going to make this count.

Mom picked Emi up so she couldn’t smash her face more into her cake. “Come ‘ere.” She brought Emi to the sink to wash off her face, all the while, Emi was laughing her butt off.

“She didn’t get that from me.”, Dad joked.

“Of course not. She got it from me.”, Mom said. Mom cleaned Emi’s face then plopped her back in her seat.

“So, what time are we heading over to Minerva’s?”, Sunset asked.

“Oh, not dis time.”

“Are you sure?”

“We aren’t exactly going to be making a lot of noise tonight.”, Dad said.

“Make noise!”, Emi shouted. Mom patted her on the head.

“I see.”, Sunset said.

The adults cleaned up then Mom brought Emi over to the couch, followed by Dad and Sunset. Grandpa, Anura, and Aunt Minerva all left to go home. Mom put on The XC-Files: The Movie on and cuddled up with Dad with Emi and Sunset between them. Emi didn’t really understand the movie, but she knew it was the first movie Dad took Mom to see. Even though he wasn’t into movies much as he couldn’t see what was going on, he liked cuddling up to Mom. Emi liked cuddling with her parents too.

Emi must’ve fallen asleep some time during the movie because the next thing she knew, Mom was carrying her upstairs, and Dad was walking behind them. “Hey, Daddy.”

“Hey”

“Did ya enjoy your party?”

“I did.”

Emi smiled as Mom brought her into her room and put her into bed. Tomiju jumped at the ladder, so Mom brought her up to Emi.

“Good night”, Mom said.

“Good night”

Mom left, turning off the lights as she did so, and she and Dad headed to their room. Emi snuggled up with Tomiju and her fox. When she dies, she wanted to be cremated with her fox. “That’s going to be years down the road. I’m not giving up.”

Flash’s room

Date: Aug 1st, time: 2:00 pm

*Sunset’s perspective*

“Sunset, could you come over? We need to talk.” That was the text Flash sent to Sunset earlier that day. She had no other context. She hadn’t talked to him in a while. Brigid brought her to his house, and she was now talking to Mrs. Sentry, who also had no idea what was going on. Entering his room, Sunset saw him sitting in his desk chair, facing the door.

“Sunset, please sit down.”, he said while gesturing to his bed.

A bit confused, Sunset sat down across from him.

“Sunset, I know something’s wrong, but you aren’t talking to me about it.”

“It’s none of your concern.”, Sunset said, irritated by Flash poking his nose where it didn’t belong.

“It is my concern. I’m your boyfriend, and part of being in this kind of relationship is talking to each other about what’s bothering us. We need to be a team.”

“Right now, you’re what’s bothering me.”

“Sunset, you’re not treating me like your boyfriend. You’ve been treating me like a nuisance. I don’t deserve to be treated like this.”

“Well, whatcha gonna do ‘bout it?”, Sunset taunted. There’s no way Flash would actually do anything about it.

“If you’re not going to treat me and this relationship properly, we shouldn’t be in this relationship.”

Sunset glared at him. He couldn’t really be saying this. He didn’t have the spine. “What do you mean by that?”, Sunset growled.

Flash didn’t take his eyes off her. He actually looked like he had guts. “I’m breaking up with you.”

Sunset bolted up in rage, startling Flash back. Once again, he looked like the weakling he was, but that didn’t quell Sunset. She was going to teach him better. She was gonna… Oh, shit. Her gut turned at the memories of having to look over incident reports of soldiers attacking their own families. As their CO, she had to. Each time, the soldier, their family, and every inch of their homes and workplaces were searched for some sort of curse that could explain their behavior, but rarely were any found. In hindsight and with human level knowledge on mental disorders, it’s obvious that they were suffering from the effects of untreated PTSD, but at the time, Sunset thought they were scum and couldn’t believe she’d let them serve alongside her without ever noticing. Now, she came within a hair’s length of becoming that kind of monster. No, I was going to do it. I am a monster.

Sunset stepped back, and Flash relaxed. She tried to find the right thing to say but couldn’t. She couldn’t say something to save face, to threaten him, not even a fake ‘sorry’. She just turned and left.

Brigid and Mrs. Sentry sat in the living room. Brigid got up from her seat to comfort her clearly distressed daughter as she walked in. “Hey, wha’s wrong?”

“I just wanna leave.” Sunset didn’t sound like she was going to cry, but she couldn’t control her tone. As much of a surprise to herself, she sounded scared on top of angry.

“Okay” Brigid brought Sunset out to the car but didn’t immediately drive away. “Sunset, wha’ happened?”, she asked in a tone Sunset had never heard before. It scared her but not for her sake. Her earlier tone apparently gave her the wrong idea.

“I…” Again, Sunset couldn’t find the right words. She had to tell her something or else she’d go mama bear mode, but she didn’t want to tell her the truth. She’d see her for the monster she is, and she’d be disowned and alone. She took a second to regain control over her voice before speaking again, regaining a sad but calm tone. “Flash broke up with me.”

“You were scared. Wha’ happened?”

“Nothing happened.”, Sunset said sternly. “It just brought up old memories, military memories.” She didn’t look at Brigid, but she knew her well enough to know she was trying to mentally connect the dots.

“He broke up with ya, n’ dat brought up some bad memories. N’ dat’s it? Nothin’ else happened?”, she asked in a much calmer, more inquisitive tone.

“I mean, I got mad at him, but nothing else happened. You would’ve heard if something happened.”

“Sigh, true.” Brigid started up the car and drove them home. Sunset could sense Brigid still wasn’t quite happy with her explanation but her fear was subsided.

Reads house

Date: Aug 19th, time: 7:00 pm

*Anura’s perspective*

Anura poked at her food as she slowly ate. Her appetite was about as low as Emi’s. It felt like someone stabbed her in the gut and was twisting the knife. Sunset seemed to be deep in thought and wasn’t paying attention to anyone around her. The adults were talking amongst themselves, and Emi was staring off into space. Anura snuck food to Kiba. She wasn’t gonna eat it herself.

After the adults were done eating, Aunt Brigid pulled out the cake and ice-cream. That pulled Emi back to reality. “Oooh, ice-cream.”

Aunt Brigid served each of them their respective plates, and Anura finally was able to eat something. Even Emi seemed to have activated her desert stomach.

“C’n ya eat without gettin’ food all ove’ yer face?”, Aunt Brigid asked Emi as she smashed her face into the cake.

“It tastes better this way.”

Aunt Brigid just groaned and went back to her cake.

“Is everyone ready to go to Japan?”, Grandpa asked.

“Yeah, jus’ need ta pack.”

“What kind of weather should we expect?”, Mom asked.

“Hot and humid,” Uncle Anzhong said, “you’ll be seeing me in yukata.”

“Okay, we’ll pack accordingly.”

“Hey, Emi, what’s Amigata like?”, Anura asked.

“Vending machines, vending machines everywhere. Other than that, it’s almost like going back in time.”

“Really?”

“The village council has worked to maintain the village’s traditional look.”, Grandpa said.

“Then why have so many vending machines?”

“We like to hold onto our history, but we’re not totally against modernization.”

Once everyone was done eating, Uncle Anzhong took the dishes to the sink. Emi was falling asleep in her seat, so Aunt Brigid picked her up and cradled her.

“Looks like you guys need to head home.”, Mom said.

“Yeah, we’ll see ya tamarrah.” Aunt Brigid gathered her family and left back to their place. That left Mom, Grandpa, and Anura.

Mom and Grandpa talked with each other while Anura sat alone. She didn’t care about what they were talking about. She had her wolf and just played with her.

“Anura, are you ready to meet my side of the family?”, Grandpa asked.

“I guess. Will they be nice?”

“That… they’ll be polite. Japan is an island nation with a rocky history with outsiders. Even with Japanese culture spreading across the world, the people are still wary of foreigners, but you’re my granddaughter. If anyone’s mean to you, they’ll have to deal with me.”

Anura let out a little laugh at that. Grandpa was sweet but not at all intimidating. “I’m going to bed.”

“Okay, goodnight.”, Mom said. “Brush your teeth first.”

“Oh wait, before you go,” Grandpa said, “giving someone a thumbs down may not be a big deal in the US, but in Japan, you’re telling someone to ‘go to Hell’. So, avoid doing that.”

“Good ta know. I probably would’ve done that.”, Mom said.

“Goodnight, Grandpa.”

“Goodnight. Now, Minerva-”

Anura didn’t hear the rest of their conversation, but it was probably just more adult stuff.

Canterlot Airport

Date: Aug 21st, time: 6:00 am

*Sunset’s perspective*

Sunset drudged behind her parents as the Make-A-Wish lady, Sunset forgot her name, led them through the airport. Brigid was carrying Emi, and Anura was riding on her mother’s lap, who was riding in an airport provided wheelchair. She had her legs but didn’t want to have to walk around the airport when walking around a lot normally is already enough of a pain. Anzhong had his hands full with Kiba and his cane. That left Sunset and Jiraiya to take care of most of the luggage. They had one of those cart things, but it was still a pain.

The lady led them away from the regular terminals and to a part of the airport with hangers and smaller planes. The plane she led them to was bigger than the commercial planes typically seen there but wasn’t as big as the jumbo jets they took last time they needed to cross the ocean.

“How did ya pay f’r dis?”, Mom asked.

“We have benefactors that let us use their private planes.”, the lady said.

The flight crew helped load their stuff up then got them seated inside. The inside was far more spacious than a commercial plane. It looked like something out of a rich peoples magazine. Brigid stood in the aisle, looking confused. “Um, wha’ do we do?”

“Take a seat and buckle your seatbelt.”, the flight attendant said.

“N’ our carry-ons?”

“Keep ‘em by your feet.”

They got seated, and the pilot came on the intercom. He gave them the typical spiel, mentioned they’d be making a stop in Hawaii to refuel, and then started up the engines. Anura had her face pressed up against the window the whole way up.

“Dis is da first time y’ve been in a plane, isn’t it?”, Brigid asked.

“Yeah, this is the first time I’ve ever been beyond the mountains.”

“You’ll like Japan. It’s almost all mountains.”, Sunset said.

Tokyo International

Date: Aug 22nd, time: 9:00 am

*Sunset’s perspective*

“I’m bored.”, Emi whined. They were waiting in the customs line, which was moving at a snail’s pace. Somebody forgot to charge her electronics on the plane, so she had no handheld.

“Ah know. It shouldn’t be much longe’.”, Brigid said.

Their setup was the same as when they went through the Canterlot airport, except Jiraiya was in front. The line inched forward, and Sunset had nothing to do but look around at all the advertisements. Japan was certainly an interesting place, and companies seem to use it as a testing ground for all their weird, experimental favors. What Creamios do in the US is nothing compared to the crackpottery that are Japanese Kitkittens. There was sensible stuff like ‘green tea’ and ‘red bean’, and then there was ‘soy sauce’ and freaking ‘corn on the cob’ flavored chocolate candy. Most of them made sense, like ‘wine’ and ‘sparkling champagne’, and even looked like something she’d wanna try, but Sunset draws the line at ‘corn on the cob’. Yes, it’s technically a fruit, but so is tomato, and knowledge is knowing that tomato’s a fruit, but wisdom is knowing not to put it into a fruit salad.

After several minutes, they were finally through customs and heading to the train station. Just like on the plane, Anura was glued to the window. “The buildings here are huge.”, she said.

“Tokyo is one of the biggest cities in the world and there needs to be space for all those people.”, Jiraiya said.

“Why not build outward?”

“That would very quickly leave us with no more farmland or wild land.”

“Oh, that wouldn’t be good.”

The rest of the train ride was in relative silence with Emi sleeping and Anura being fascinated by the scenery. Once they got off the train, they headed to the car rental place. Jiraiya was the only one with a Japanese driver’s license, so he drove them the rest of the way. The familiar sight of the Katon clan compound came into sight. The place was surrounded by walls and a gate. Though, the gate was usually kept open during the day. It’s kinda like a small castle. Since the invention of cars, a small parking lot has been added to the outside. There were only a few cars, for a clan of eleven families, since they were only ever needed if one was going out of town.

“What’s with the gate?”, Anura asked.

“Back when this place was built, raiders and wars were rampant.”, Jiraiya explained. “Wealthier clans would build these kinds of compounds to protect themselves.”

The seven of them piled out of the car, grabbed their stuff, and then headed to the gate, where Ryoko was waiting for them. “Hey, Dad.” She gave Jiraiya the best hug she could with all the stuff he was carrying. Kiba sniffed her leg, and Ryoko, as much as she tried to hide it, was clearly uncomfortable with the unfamiliar dog.

“Do you not like dogs?”, Anura asked.

“No, I just more fox than my brother.”

“Foxes don’t like dogs.”, Sunset clarified.

Ryoko took some of the bags from Jiraiya and led them in. She led them to the part of the compound that housed the clan head, i.e. her. It was mostly the same as the last time with a living room that wouldn’t look out of place in an American house with the exception of an irori (Japanese equivalent of a fireplace), a modern kitchen that was added on by Ryoko, and all the bedrooms and other various rooms. Ryoko led each of them to their rooms and left them to unpack. After handing out the bags that weren’t hers, Sunset went into her room and plopped on the bed. It wasn’t the same bed that she slept in last time.

It was what Sunset assumed was a typical Japanese bedroom. The primary material, just as throughout the rest of the compound, was bamboo. The bed was tucked into the corner with a desk tucked into the opposite corner. A dresser separated the bed from the shoji. Opposite the dresser was a small bamboo potted plant along with other minor decorations along the walls. Brigid had joked about these rooms being perfectly inoffensive.

A knock came at the door, so Sunset got up to answer. Brigid stood on the other side, having to bend over slightly due to the low frame. “Ya hungry?”, she asked.

“Very”, Sunset replied.

Brigid moved out of the way, and they headed to the common room. Oda was cooking in the kitchen while everyone else was sitting around the table. “So, it’s going to be a dry reception. Dad…”, Ryoko said but was then cut off by Jiraiya, who was holding Hikari.

“Don’t worry, I understand. I won’t touch a drop the whole week.”

Ryoko gave him a small smile, but Sunset could sense her doubt. The adults continued to talk about wedding stuff, which Sunset tuned out of. Oda brought the food over, but even Sunset was merely picking at it. It wasn’t that his food was bad; Ryoko was wolfing everything down. It was just that most of their appetites were in the toilet. Most of them ended up giving their uneaten food to Ryoko.

“Wow, you can really eat a lot, Ryoko.”, Anura said.

“Breastfeeding is very calorie intensive.”, Minerva said.

As if on cue, Hikari started getting fussy. Ryoko took him from Jiraiya and began nursing. A little bit in, Ryoko let out a yelp and pulled Hikari away from her.

“What happened?”, Jiraiya asked.

“He bit me.”

“Somebody’s goin’ ta be hearin’ ‘bout dat f’r da rest a’ deir life.”

“Did you understand her? Because I did not.”, Oda said.

“She said he’s going to be hearing about that for the rest of his life.”, Anzhong clarified.

“I guess you would have to be able to understand her to be married to her.”

“It takes a good ear.”, Brigid said.

Ryoko went back to nursing while the other adults turned the conversation back to adult stuff. Sunset finished as much of her food as she could before heading back to her room. There wasn’t a closet, so Sunset had to put all her clothes in the dresser. As she was doing so, she heard a couple of boys playing outside. Sunset poked her head out to see Sota and Yuto playing with toy guns. They were brothers, Sota being twelve and Yuto being ten, both with green hair, and both being annoying little shits. They’re loud, disruptive, and couldn’t follow directions to save their lives. Sunset closed the door and went back to unpacking.

Once she was done, she got back into bed and tried to get some rest, ‘tried’ being the operative word. The boys’ noisy playing kept her from relaxing. As she was getting up to tell the boys off, she heard Anura shouting. “Stop it!” A shout from Emi came next, reiterating what Anura said, only in Japanese and using less polite language. Sunset’s annoyance turned to fury as she bolted up and ran outside, neglecting to put on her shoes. The girls were by the tree, and the boys were jeering at them. Sunset got in between them, and the look on her face was enough to get Yuto to back off, but Sota was only a couple years younger than her and dumb as rocks.

Before she could turn them into pudding, the boys’ mother came over and dragged them away, giving the girls an apology before leaving. Minerva, Brigid, and Jiraiya came out from their respective rooms and came over to them. Sunset turned around and kneeled down to look at the girls. Anura had some dirt in her hair that Emi was helping her brush out.

“What were they saying?”, Anura asked.

“Not nice things.”, Emi answered.

“It was about my skin, wasn’t it?”

“Eh, yeah, they said you looked dirty.”

Anura huffed and crossed her arms. “Typical. Boys are so dumb.”

“Yes, we are. I’ll have a talk with them.”, Jiraiya said.

Anura said nothing, got up, and stomped back to her room.

Brigid and Minerva gave each other looks then looked down to Emi. “Has Anura been bullied ‘bout ‘er skin before?”

“Oh yeah, there were these three kids that constantly teased her about it. They called her ‘brownie’ a lot.”

They gave each other another look, and Minerva followed Anura back to her room.

Sunset turned around and headed back to her room. Hopefully, it would stay quiet.

Katon clan compound

Date: same day, time: 1:00 pm

*Minerva’s perspective*

Minerva followed Anura to her room, who had grabbed her brush and was trying to get the dirt out of her hair. Minerva took a seat on her bed behind her and pulled her into a hug. “Do you want help?” Anura nodded and handed Minerva her brush. “Why didn’t you tell me other kids were being mean to you?”, Minerva asked as she brushed out the dirt and crap.

“I tried telling the teachers, but they never did anything. What good would telling you do if telling the teachers did nothing? I’ve dealt with them on my own. They’re just too dumb to learn.”

Minerva brushed away the last bits of dirt then pulled Anura back in. “Anura, do you want to be homeschooled?”

“Yes, I hate school.”

“Okay, I’ll look into that when we get home.” Minerva got up to put the brush away when a knock came from the door. When she opened it up, the two boys were on the other side, looking like kicked puppies, along with their mother. “I think it’s for you.”, Minerva said to Anura. She got up from the bed and came over to the door.

“We are sorry for what we said. It was wrong.”, the older of the boys said in rough English.

“It won’t happen again.”, the younger boy said in equally rough English, then they both bowed deeply along with their mother. She said something in Japanese.

Anura stood there until they stood back up, gave them a thumbs down, then slammed the door in their faces. My sweet, little nine-year-old just told three people to go to Hell. This isn’t good. Anura stomped back to her bed and angrily climbed in.

“You don’t have to accept their apology until you’re ready, but your reaction seemed a bit extreme. Are you okay?”

“No! I’m not. Everything’s bad. What is everyone’s hang-up on the color of my skin?”

Minerva sat back on the bed and hugged Anura again. “I’m not going to lie to you and tell you that they’re jealous.”, Minerva said in her most calming voice. “Those two boys likely have never seen anyone like you before, and people tend to act stupid when confronted with something they don’t understand. As for the kids at your school, they likely learned it from their parents. Humans will attempt to ‘make the other’ of anyone different from them. The best that we can do is show them unrelenting human kindness, show them that we are all humans.”

“They don’t deserve kindness.”, Anura said bitterly.

“I’d say they need kindness the most. The meanest people have often been shown the least amount of kindness. All they’ve known is hate. Not everyone will accept your kindness, but those who do will learn it and begin to show it.”

Anura didn’t say anything and just hugged Minerva back. Minerva cradled her daughter, herself feeling like a complete failure for not being there for her when Anura needed her. Maybe I can reduce my hours. I’ll look at the math. Could I take an extended leave?

“Mom”

“Yes”

“Do you know who my dad is?”

There it is. “He’s a nurse from the Philippines. I don’t know who he is or where he lives, but I have seen his picture and know that he has fathered other children in the state.”

“Does his skin look like mine?”

“Your skin’s a bit lighter than his because of my genetics, but yeah, his skin looks like yours.”

“Can I see his picture?”

“Yeah, I’ll show you when we get home. But for now, know that I think you look beautiful, and that every part of you makes up the whole that is ‘Anura Reads’.”

Anura pulled in closer. She was still so little. Does she need a father? Did I mess up? I’ll ask Jiraiya later. He should know.

Katon clan compound

Date: same day, time: 1:00 pm

*Jiraiya’s perspective*

Jiraiya stomped over to Hanzo and Yui’s, Sota and Yuto’s parents, home. He wasn’t surprised that Hanzo’s kids would be ones to misbehave in such a way. He was always a wimp that couldn’t put his foot down. He didn’t know Yui well, but she clearly wasn’t instilling discipline either. Once he got to their door, Jiraiya gave it a good, hard pounding.

Hanzo was the one to answer, with the sound of Yui scolding the boys in the background, and immediately shrunk down upon seeing Jiraiya. “He-hello, sir.”

“I take it you know what your sons did.”, Jiraiya said in Japanese, using his pissed off dad voice.

“Yes, sir, my wife is disciplining them as we speak.”

“I would like to have a talk with your boys.”

“That won’t be necessary, sir. We’re taking care of it.”

“Those girls are my granddaughters. I would like to talk with your boys.”

Hanzo slinked out of the way, and Jiraiya went to where he heard Yui. The three were in the living room, and the boys looked just as cowardly as their father. Jiraiya approached them from behind, and Yui spun around to look at him. “Mr. Jiraiya, sir, I’m sorry for the actions of my sons. It won’t happen again.”

“You’re right. It won’t.” Jiraiya stepped past her to be directly in front of the boys. “What in the six realms made you two think it was a good idea to call someone dirty and throw dirt at them?”

“We’re sorry.”, the boys said.

“I don’t think you fully understand what you did. I’m going to teach you a proper English apology, and her reaction will dictate your punishment.”

“Can he do that?”, Yui asked Hanzo.

“He’s the former clan head. He can.”, Hanzo replied.

“Their punishment will apply to you too as you failed to instill discipline.” Jiraiya turned back to the boys. “Now, time to learn that apology.”

Sleeping Fox Inn hot springs

Date: same day, time: 6:00 pm

*Ryoko’s perspective*

“So, that is what that was.”, Ryoko said. Minerva and Dad had just finished recounting what happened with Sota and Yuto. They were all relaxing in one of the hot springs. Ryoko had this one specially cleaned and closed off from the public for Emi’s safety.

“Anura rarely swears or makes rude genstures. She had to have been mega mad to do anything like that.”, Emi said.

“Gestures”, Sunset corrected.

“Talking’s hard.”

“What did you do to the boys?”, Ryoko asked her father.

“Remember that old collection of statues in the forest?”

“The one of the wolves?”

“Yeah, they’re going to be cleaning those spotless. Hopefully that will teach them some discipline.”

“Do you just have a bunch of statues in your forest?”, Minerva asked.

“There once was a member of the Hayashi clan named Moriko. She was an artist and sculpture maker. These forests used to be filled with wolves, but they were hunted to extinction. Moriko was enraged and saddened by this, so created four wolf statues named Anger, Fear, Sadness, and Regret as a way to forever remind us of what we did.”, Ryoko explained.

“Aw, poor wolves.”, Anura said.

“Yeah, and without the wolves, we have a wild boar problem. No matter how many dogs we train, boars we hunt, and fences we put up, those pigs always get in and trample and eat our crops.”

“Yeah, I’d rather deal with a chicken or two getting snagged than the destruction those boars can cause.”, Jiraiya corroborated.

“How’d we get on the topic of boars?”, Anzhong asked, his way of getting the conversation back on track.

“Oh right, the statues, once they’ve been cleaned, I might take you out to see them, if we have time.”

Before long, their time in the hot springs was over as the sun was setting and dinner had to be made. Brigid helped Minerva out and over to the bench where she put her legs. It was interesting seeing her put them on. It looked like the only thing keeping them on were the socks, or whatever they were called, and the sleeve attached to the part she put her actual legs in. They were evidently enough though.

They headed back home, Ryoko picking Hikari up from Cousin Gina on the way. Oda began making dinner once they got home. This would typically be her breakfast, but her sleep schedule has been all over the place since the baby. No matter what she tried, she couldn’t get him on any sort of schedule. “Brigid, how did you get Emi on a feeding schedule when she was a baby?”

“Ha, we didn’t. She wouldn’t have it. She wanted ‘er food when she wanted it, n’ she’s still jus’ as stubborn.”

“Great”, Ryoko said through gritted teeth.

Everyone gathered around the table as the food was brought over, but Anzhong and his family barely ate anything again. Even Sunset, who Ryoko remembered having a big appetite, wasn’t eating. She couldn’t blame them. She would just shut down in their place.

Everyone dispersed after eating, and Oda and Ryoko headed back to their room. It was large and spacious and filled with stuff. Ryoko wouldn’t call herself a hoarder, but she did like keeping her things close to her. She had things organized enough and tricks to keep the room uncluttered. The remnants of their wedding planning were tucked into shelves around the room. They’d be thrown out, no need for them after the wedding, but it’d likely be after the honeymoon, or maybe before. It’d depend on when they could take it. She laid Hikari down for the night, hopefully, then joined Oda in bed. He had his laptop and was looking at honeymoon destinations.

“Maybe we should just find a nice campsite and camp for a couple weeks.”, Oda suggested.

“Camping, for our honeymoon?” Switching back to Japanese made talking so much easier. She didn’t have to translate what she was about to say in her head before saying it.

“You said you wanted privacy. Can’t get much more private.”

“I know, but we can go camping anytime. This is our honeymoon. I was hoping to go to the beach. We rarely get to go there.”

“Okay, I’ll see what I can find, hopefully a place with good food.”

Walking paths outside Amigata

Date: Aug 23rd, time: 9:00 am

*Anzhong’s perspective*

Through the densely packed trees and bamboo of the Haunted Woods laid paths formed by hundreds of years of people traveling and hunting. They now attract hikers and outdoor enthusiasts that are like 60% of the inn’s business. He’d been told that the nature of these trails was visually beautiful, but Anzhong only knew its beauty by smell and sound. The smells of the dozens of different plants danced on the wind and combined together to form a fragrance that cleared his sinuses of the oh-so lovely smell of stinky teenager. He loves his daughter, but Sunset was one of those teenagers that just stunk. She has good hygiene; she’s just stinky. Anzhong turned his attention back to the world around him. He could hear the birds chirping, rustling in the underbrush, Kiba sniffing at stuff, and… a car?

Anzhong checked where he was and realized that he was close to the main road, as in, he could touch it with his cane, close. A good couple of miles of the trail run alongside the road, so that wasn’t the surprising part. He was surprised at how quickly he reached it. He took a side step closer to the woods to give the car a wide berth, expecting it to whoosh past him, but it didn’t. He heard it stop alongside him and the sound of a window being rolled down shortly after. He braced himself, expecting the person to ask him if he needed help, not realizing this was a hiking trail and that he was a hiker, but nope, wrong again.

“Hey, do you live around here?” The asker was a man, 30s-ish, sounds like a city boy by the way he spoke. A waft of strong perfume and lots of hair products hit his nose, probably not an outdoorsy type.

“Sort of, but I’m not the best person to ask for directions.” Anzhong held up his cane in case the man couldn’t see it.

“Do you live in Amigata?”

“I’m from there, yes.” Anzhong heard the man get out of his car, and he switched his grip on his cane to one better for striking. He could feel Kiba tense up, telling him all he needed to know.

“May I ask how good you consider your quality of life to be?”

“You may not. You may get back in your car and leave me alone.”, Anzhong said in a much less friendly voice.

“I’m just trying to bring jobs to your little village. Imagine how much better your lives will be with higher paying jobs.” Oh, the sleaze, it was enough to choke on.

“That sounds like something to talk to the village council about.”

“I did, but I couldn’t get them to see sense. I was hoping that, if the community came together, that we could get the council to realize how great of an opportunity my business could bring to the people of your village.”

“Not going to happen. Firstly, you aren’t one of us. Secondly, we live here because we like our way of life. All the kids that want higher paying jobs with big companies move to Tokyo. If the village council already said ‘no’, you’re not going to get the village to side with you. Now, your car’s blocking the road. Get back in it and get moving.”

Anzhong turned on his heels and continued on his hike. He heard the man get back into his car and continue past him on the road. Ryoko should probably know about this. He cut the walk short and took some less traveled shortcuts to get back to the compound faster. Ryoko was easy to find given that she snores like an asthmatic yak drowning custard whenever she sleeps on her back, i.e. on the couch. She wasn’t loud; it just sounded gross. He whacked the leg of the couch with his cane a couple of times to wake her up.

“Wha-wha-oh, I told you to stop that.”, Ryoko complained.

“And I ignored you. By the way, a strange man that stank of perfume, hair products, and sleaze stopped his car in the middle of the road to talk to me, and he was talking about his business bringing opportunities to the village. You and the council already told him ‘no’, but he was going on about ‘the community coming together to make you see reason’. He was driving in the direction of the village proper, last I heard him.”

The air in the room became filled with Ryoko’s rage and fear aura, and the faintest hints of a growl arose from her throat. “Did you catch his name?”

“Nope, but I’m guessing you already know who he is.”

Ryoko let out something that was a mix between a growl and a hiss as she marched to the door.

“Want me to come with you?”

“Actually, yeah, and bring Brigid. We could use a scary redhead.”

Brigid & Anzhong’s room

Date: same day, time: 11:00 am

*Brigid’s perspective*

Brigid laid in bed with a book that she’d been meaning to read for a while now but has just been too busy to. The sound of Anzhong coming in pulled her back to reality. He was still as properly put together as when he left.

“Y’re back early.”

“To make a long story short, a man that doesn’t understand ‘no’ means ‘no’ is trying to manipulate the population of the village into allowing his business to operate here.”

Anzhong was speaking in Japanese, indicating that he’s upset, so Brigid switched to it as well. “Could you elaborate?”

“Several months ago, a man by the name of Sato Junichiro came to the council to propose building a factory.”, Ryoko said, coming in behind Anzhong. “We rebuked his offer because of the ecological damage it would cause, but it would appear that he’s back and, as Anzhong said, is trying to manipulate our people to get his way.”

“No wonder you two are upset.”

“Could you please come with us? I’m hoping you could scare him off, like you did those three wannabes.”

“Sure, just let me get my jacket and shoes on.”

Anzhong and Ryoko left to let Brigid get ready. She grabbed her jacket and pulled on her boots once she was outside. “Okay, ready to go.” The three of them headed down to the village proper and to the parking lot outside of it. The roads inside weren’t built for cars. They’re only technically roads because you could fit a cart through. Most modern cars, on the other hand, wouldn’t fit, and there are village laws in place that prevent cars from driving into the village proper. What the council did was build a parking lot for people to park their cars while they walk around the village. It kinda gave the place a shopping mall type feel, but it worked.

“Could you tell us which car is his?”, Ryoko asked Anzhong.

“What, do you expect me to smell each car and tell you if it’s his?”, he said in that way only a younger brother talks to his older sister.

“Right, I forgot you were blind.”

“You two really do fall back into your old sibling roles when you’re together.”, Brigid commented.

Ryoko sorta glared at her before they headed into the village. Seeing tourists around here was common, but a nearly 7’ tall redhead still garnered attention. “Who should we be looking for?”, Brigid asked.

“Dark brown hair, dark brown eyes, real generic looking, he looks like the physical embodiment of the phrase ‘worker Joe’, except you can smell the sleaze.”, Ryoko said.

Being head and shoulders above everyone else made scanning the crowd easy for Brigid. It wasn’t packed to the gills, but it was the middle of the day, and people were out and about. Hair colors ranged from browns and blacks to greens and blues. Most people were in traditional garb or shots and t-shirts. If Ah were tryin’ ta turn people ta mo cause, wha’ would Ah be wearin’? He wouldn’t be wearing a full business suit, more likely something casual. He likely wouldn’t be wearing hiking clothes, so those people could be ruled out.

Brigid saw a man matching the physical description, but she couldn’t “smell the sleaze”. Maybe it was because she wasn’t a fox. Brigid spun the man around, and looked like he was about to give her a telling off before freezing out of fear. “This him?”, Brigid asked Ryoko.

“No”, Ryoko said.

Brigid let him go then continued her search. She poked her head into one of the food stalls. Inside was a man with dark brown hair, wearing casual clothes, chatting up an elderly woman. Brigid motioned for Ryoko and pointed to the man.

Ryoko came closer, and judging by her face, she recognized the voice. She squeezed past Brigid, putting herself between the man and the woman. “Hello, Ms. Fujino, do you know this man?”

“No, he just sat down and started talking.”, the sweet sounding woman said.

“Do you want me to make him leave?”

“Oh no, we’re having a lovely chat.”

“Okay” Ryoko turned to the man. “If I catch you doing anything weasley, I will have my sister-in-law there throw you out of the village by the scruff of your neck.”

The man turned to Brigid was taken aback.

“Hi”, Brigid said in that pseudo-friendly way that communicates a threat.

The man re-schooled his features to appear friendly and non-threatening then turned back to the woman. He began talking like an old friend to the woman. Now, Brigid understood what the siblings meant by “smell the sleaze”. She couldn’t “smell it”, but she can recognize a salesman when she sees one. She tried to remember the article one of her old classmates wrote on their psychology a few years back. To summarize what she could remember, the environment filters out kind-heartedness and promotes traits like charisma and the ability to come up with a good lie on the spot, anything to make a sale. How quickly he’s able to go back to “friendly normal guy” was cause for concern.

“Hey, Ms. Fujino, this man is trying to sell you something.”, Brigid explained. “Don’t believe a thing he says.”

“Oh, I know. I wasn’t born yesterday. It’s just nice to have someone to talk to.”

“Yes, now, you two lovely ladies have a good day, and congratulations on the new baby.”, Sato said.

“I miscarried, actually.”, Ryoko lied.

The man sat there stunned as the two of them walked away. They met back up with Anzhong, who was hiding around a corner. “Did you say that just to mess with him or?”, he asked.

“Both to mess with him and to keep him from trying to use Hikari to try and manipulate me again.”

“Again?”

“I was very visibly pregnant almost immediately.”

“I guess being a smaller lady will do that to you.”, Brigid said.

“I’m not small. You’re massive.”

“So, what now?”, Anzhong asked.

“Well, I have no legal grounds to banish him, but Ms. Fujino is a major gossip and smart. Everyone will know his business within a few days and that I’m trying to hide Hikari from him.”

“Now what?”, Brigid asked.

“Well, why only have one gossip spreading the news when you have many? There are a lot of old people in this town that have nothing better to do with their time. Follow me.” Ryoko led them around the village, to places such as newsstands, other stalls, and other places of the like. At each establishment, Ryoko told the elderly person running the place about the man and what he looked like. Each stop took longer than a quick ‘hey, watch out for this man’ should as each person they talked to wanted to talk about their grandkids, what else was the latest gossip, and whatnot. At least we know they can do their job.

“Dem old coots c’n really talk yer ear off.”, Brigid said, switching to English.

“They only get chattier as they get older.”, Anzhong said, also switching to English. “Are we done?”, he asked Ryoko.

“Yes, we’re done.”

The three of them walked back to the compound and back to their respective rooms. Anzhong and Brigid took off their outer layer of clothing, Anzhong took Kiba’s harness off, and they cuddled up in bed. Brigid had the blankets over her while Anzhong didn’t. It was funny having a husband that was half her size. In the back of her mind, she was kinda worried about squishing him. She brushed her hand through his hair, which was naturally smooth, not the frizzy mess hers and the girls’ are.

“I love you.”, Brigid said.

“Love you too.”, Anzhong mumbled.

Katon clan compound meeting room

Date: same day, time: 6:00 pm

*Jiraiya’s perspective*

Jiraiya looked around at the rest of the people gathered in the room. The clan was far from its peak but it had bounced back considerably from its absolute lowest after WW2. With a total of twelve families and nearly sixty members, things were looking better. As the current clan head, Ryoko sat in front of the gathered clan leadership, the heads of their respective families. Anzhong and Brigid were not present as they’d be going home in a few days. Jiraiya was only there to watch his daughter work.

“I hope you see the problem.”, Ryoko concluded.

“Do you really think he could do such a thing?”, Mizuki asked.

“I don’t know, but I’d rather not find out.”

“Okay, make sure Mr. Weasel Man doesn’t brainwash the village into overthrowing the council to build a factory. Got it.”, Ren said.

“Could you maybe do it without running through the town, shouting he’s evil?”. Ritsu, Ren’s older brother, asked.

“Hey, it’s effective.”

“They’ll think it’s another prank.”

“Boys!”, Ryoko interjected. “Have this discussion later. I don’t care how, just get him out of the village. Dismissed.”

Everyone got up and left to go back to what they were previously doing. Jiraiya went back to the dojo, where Sunset was busy beating up her cousins, last he saw. In the dojo were Nakano, who’s been running the dojo since Aoi’s passing; several of the clan’s kids; and Sunset. The kids were all sparring with other kids of similar size. Sunset was sparring with Yuma, Ritsu’s son. He was putting up a good fight, but even though he was the tallest kid and reasonably strong, Sunset had more weight on him. She just had to knock him down and sit on him.

Jiraiya retook his seat next to Nakano to watch the kids. Seeing Sunset’s red hair against the many greens of the other kids was certainly interesting. “Hey! You’re cheating!”, one kid shouted, Jiraiya didn’t know which. It was one of the younger boys.

“The only rule of ninjutsu is ‘no dying’.”, Nakano said.

“But she spat on me.”

“Did it get into your eye?”

“No”

“Then stop whining. If it works, it works. Spitting is a perfectly reasonable distraction.”

“I take it that one’s a regular whiner.”, Jiraiya said.

“Yeah, Fuyuhiko, he’s Noriko’s son.”

“Ahh, that explains it. I remember when Aoi taught. She’d always made a stink about everyone following the rules.”

“Agh, I remember. ‘There have to be rules. The world will fall apart without rules.’”, Nakano said in a mocking, girly voice. “She still does. I just don’t have to listen anymore.”

“How did you two come from the same household, let alone the same egg?”

“Beats me. All I know is that rules are meant to be broken.”

The sinister laughter of Sunset drew Jiraiya’s attention. She had Yuma pinned with his arm twisted around his back. He couldn’t see their faces, but her laughter and his winces of pain told him all he needed to know. “Sunset, let him go.”, he said in his commanding voice. Sunset let him go and got off of him. Jiraiya got up and gave her the ‘come here’ finger while walking to the least populated corner. She followed, looking sheepish.

“Did I do something wrong?”, Sunset asked in a voice that made his heart ache.

“I just wanted to talk to you.”, Jiraiya assured. “I understand the intoxicating effect having that kind of control over someone has, but you can’t let it get the better of you. We are strong in body, but we must also be strong in mind and in heart.” Sunset nodded apprehensively. Jiraiya patted her head to reassure her. “Go take some time to center yourself.”

Sunset left the dojo, and though he couldn’t be sure, Jiraiya thought he heard her let out an irritated growl. That’s concerning. Jiraiya retook his seat next to Nakano, but he wasn’t watching the kids. Should I be worried? She did act reprehensive, but it could’ve been just an act. Jiraiya thought back to when Anzhong was her age and the warning signs he displayed. I should be more vigilant for those signs. She might start taking her frustration out on other kids.

Inari’s shrine

Date: same day, time: 10:00 pm

*Minerva’s perspective*

Jiraiya, if I didn’t love you, I’d tell you to go hug a mine. Jiraiya’s very smart and very wise but does have his dumb moments. Sending a woman without legs hiking up long-ass stairs in search of someone was one of those moments. At least the view’s pretty. The stairs led up the mountain, and the specific spot she was currently at allowed her to see over much of the rice fields, all surrounded by the trees. Growing rice apparently involves a lot of water, and the light of the full moon shimmered in the water and made it almost as bright as an overcast day. It may also be that being a basement gremlin makes it easier for her to see in low light.

As Minerva ascended the stairs, the path started to be lined with some sort of archways, the red ones that are squared off. She had a feeling she’d seen them somewhere before, probably in Brigid’s house, but couldn’t name them. A gate, like the one surrounding the compound, guarded by two dog… (lion?) things soon came into view. Past the gate was a small building with a large rope hanging from the ceiling and a box in front. This has to be the shrine. To corroborate her suspicion, a statue of a white fix sat in the middle of the building. Ryoko was sitting next to the box and looking up at the fox.

“Hey”, Ryoko said without turning to face Minerva.

“Your dad’s looking for you.”

“Okay”

“This place is pretty.”

“Yeah, Sora has been doing a good job.”

“Is this place important to you?”

Ryoko turned to look at Minerva, and in that moment, she felt like she was looking at something otherworldly. “My mother used to be the shrine maiden. Being here… it almost feels like she is here.”

“You must’ve really loved her.”

“I still do. She was smart, carrying, funny. She was not perfect. Not being human meant that school life drama was completely alien to her, and her salutations to most problems were what a fox would do, but she was there. That is more than I can say about Dad.” Ryoko said that last part with venom. Sure, Jiraiya was a busy man, but he tried his hardest to be there for the important stuff.

“What do you mean?”

“My father was not around much when I was kid. He was either doing clan head stuff or at the hospital. Being father seemed to be low priority to him, and it only got worse after his drinking problem started. I had to be parent for Anzhong. I had to get him his first dog. I had to teach him how to get around without Mom. I was barely adult, and I was hurting, but I had to jump both feet in because he was too busy wallowing in alcohol.”

Minerva winced slightly at her words. She’d known about his alcoholism, but this is… something else. The tears welling up in her eyes made it clear how badly she’s hurt. “I know you don’t really see me as your sister, but I consider Jiraiya to be my father. He’s still a busy man with weird hours, but he’s changed a lot since he was the man you remember.” Ryoko looked up at her with a skeptical look, so Minerva continued. “When I was pregnant with Anura, I had some medical complications that forced me to have a c-section when I was only about twenty weeks along. The whole time I was in the hospital, Jiraiya was with me, running updates to me from the nursery. He was by my side whenever he wasn’t needed in the emergency room. And I know he wants to be a better father for you because he asked me to smack him if he so much as cracks open a beer, and he used way more colorful language than that when he asked me.”

Ryoko looked at her intensely, then glanced up at the moon, and then back to Minerva. “Is he really better than your dad?”

“My father would rip apart my room, looking for money to buy more drugs, then scream and threaten me for trying to hide money to pay the bills when he did find it. Having absent or even dead parents would’ve been an improvement.”

The look of shock and horror that came across Ryoko’s face told her she got her point across.

“What about your mother? Did she not try to stop him?”

“Who do you think told him to do it? She’d even beat me if I were “too happy”. I don’t entirely blame them. They didn’t choose to become addicts, but the people they once were are gone. Brigid saved my life and brought me into a whole new family I couldn’t have ever imagined having before. I can never repay all their kindness.”

Ryoko looked at her like she was deep in thought before standing up and walking over to her. “You have had bad life.”

“I wouldn’t say ‘bad’, but it definitely hasn’t been easy.” Minerva knew Ryoko wasn’t trying to be mean, but her inexperience with the English language was showing.

“Let us go find him then.”

Minerva nodded as Ryoko got up to head down the mountain. As they descended the stairs, Minerva’s legs started to ache, so she had to stop to massage them.

“What is wrong?”

“Walking up all these stairs is hard on my legs.”

“But they are metal, they can not feel?”

“Yes, but my upper legs are still very much flesh, and along with the nerves, I also lost all the muscles, and I need to get my sockets refitted.”

Ryoko turned back around and patted her shoulder. “Get on.”

“Are you sure?”

“I am stronger than I look.”

Minerva lifted herself up onto Ryoko’s back, and Ryoko carried her back to the compound with little problem. “Are female kitsune stronger than the males?”

“We are about the same.”

“Oh, I’ve never seen Anzhong do something like this.”

“Have you ever see him get fight?”

“No”

“That is why.”

Ryoko let Minerva down once they reached her place, and they went inside. Jiraiya was playing with Hikari on the floor, and little Hikari was laughing his sweet little laugh. Minerva missed hearing that sound. There’s just something so sweet about it that never fails to make her feel good. Ryoko sat down next to him, and Hikari smiled as bright as the sun upon seeing his mother. Ryoko began speaking to Jiraiya in Japanese, and Minerva took a seat across from them. She couldn’t understand what they were saying, but things seemed promising. Jiraiya rubbed Ryoko’s shoulder the way only dad’s do, and she smiled at him. I think things are going to be okay.

Inari’s shrine

Date: Aug 24th, time: 1:00 pm

*Sunset’s perspective*

Sunset stood next to Brigid as the rest of the clan got seated. The main ceremony was a clan affair, but friends would be joining them at the reception. Even though it was just the clan, the place was beautifully decorated. Lanterns were strewn up over their heads, flowers were absolutely everywhere. Everyone in attendance was either wearing suits or kimonos. Brigid, Anzhong, and Emi were wearing kimonos as well, Kiba was wearing a snazzy bow tie, Anura and Minerva were wearing nice dresses, Oda’s fathers were wearing nice suits, and the happy couple were wearing traditional wedding kimonos. The immediate families stood behind two small tables, one with saké and the other with three cups on it. In front of the white fox was a wedding altar with bowls of salt, water, rice, saké, fruits, and vegetables on it. Either side of the altar stood the priest and the shrine maiden. The latter of whom was carrying the rings on a pillow. Ryoko and Oda stood between the tables, and Hikari was off with a babysitter.

“This is boring.”, Emi said quietly, a bit muffled behind her mask.

“I told you.”, Sunset responded.

The priest purified the shrine then called the attention of the kami, primarily Inari. “All gathered here today, it is time for the three-three-nine-times ceremony.”, the priest said. Jiraiya brought over the smallest cup and Oda’s biological father, his name was Fredrik, if Sunset remembered correctly, brought over the saké. They filled the cup up and handed it to Oda and Ryoko. “This cup represents the three couples, the bride and groom and their parents.” Oda took a sip and, although it was just a flash, made a sour face. Ryoko took a sip from the cup and made a barely audible noise that confirmed to Sunset that the saké wasn’t good. Oda took the last sip then they handed the cup back to Jiraiya. Jiraiya exchanged the small cup for the medium cup, and Fredrik filled it up. “This cup represents the three human flaws: hatred, passion, and ignorance.” This time, Ryoko took the first sip, then Oda, and then Ryoko. They handed the cup back to Jiraiya, and he exchanged it for the largest cup, and Fredrik filled it. “This cup represents heaven, earth and humankind.” Oda drank first, then Ryoko, and then Oda.

They handed the cup back to Jiraiya then approached the altar and shrine. Oda pulled out a piece of paper and opened it up. “I’m crap at remembering anything that’s not written down, so… We’ve known each other since the first day of our schooling. Even back then, I thought you were the most beautiful thing in existence. You also scared me pretty badly. Today, I vow that I will always love you, always see you as beautiful, and always be a little scared of you.” Ryoko let out a laugh at that, and she caressed his face.

“It is now time for the families to join in the drinking of saké…”, the priest began to say before the head shaking of the wedding party and the look Ryoko gave him reminded him that they weren’t doing that. “Uh correction, it is now time for the ceremonial offerings and the rings.” He pulled out some sort of flower from his robes and placed it on the altar. Ryoko and Oda pulled out similar plants from their kimonos and also placed them on the altar then Jiraiya and Yori, Oda’s other father, did the same. The shrine maiden brought the rings over, and Ryoko and Oda took them then placed them on each others’ fingers. “You may now kiss the bride.”

Ryoko pulled Oda into the kiss, and Anura made the ‘ew, grossing kissing’ face. Ryoko led Oda out the gate and down the mountain. Everyone, except for the priest, followed them to the clan compound, Brigid handing Emi off to Jiraiya and picking Minerva up piggy-back style again to bring her down the stairs, same as she did to bring her up. Anura happily hopped down the stairs, holding Sunset’s hand. Oda and Ryoko’s friends were arriving as well and joined the clan inside. The compound was decorated similarly to the shrine but with a self-serve buffet.

Brigid let Minerva down, and they went off to get the girls some food before it was contaminated by the horde of people. They got the food by the time the rest of them found their table. Once Brigid and Minerva returned, Anzhong was left to watch the girls while the rest of them got their food. Brigid got both herself and Anzhong plates. Everyone else had gotten to getting themselves food as well, so there was now a line. While waiting for food, Sunset saw Anura and Emi sitting together. Emi was noticeably smaller than Anura. Pre-cancer, Emi was taller than Anura. Sunset bit the inside of her cheek as her rage boiled up. She took some deep breaths to calm herself. Now wasn’t the time to get angry.

The reception and day went on. It was similar to Andy and Borago’s wedding, except there was no dancing. Everyone remained at their tables, which Sunset didn’t mind. After eating, the adults, minus Anhong, Brigid, and Anura, began socializing. With Jiraiya, he was being approached by everyone else, and they were having a more one-sided conversation with him. He looked like a public official that didn’t do the whole ‘public’ part of their job often the entire time. As the people came over to talk to Jiraiya, Sunset noticed them giving Anzhong weird looks. He wasn’t giving off any weird energy, so she couldn’t understand why.

Sunset grabbed Anzhong’s hand and began signing to him. “People looking at you weird. Why?”

Anzhong took Sunset’s hand and began signing in turn. “I was a weird kid. People were afraid of me.”

Was it because he’s a fox? Can they tell he’s a fox? What about Ryoko? Sunset wasn’t sure what he meant by that but decided to wait until later to ask more. Anzhong’s a slow signer and just as proper as in his speech.

Emi fell asleep shortly after cake, so Minerva took the girls back to their rooms. Eventually, people started trickling out. Jiraiya was finally left alone, and Sunset didn’t have to listen to their jibber-jabber. Once everyone else was gone, Ryoko, Oda, and his family came over to sit at their table.

“So, how does it feel to be newlyweds?”, Fredrik asked.

“The same as before, just official.”, Oda said.

“Fair enough.”, Yori said. “Where do you plan on going for your honeymoon?”

“Down to the beach.”, Ryoko said.

Sunset tuned out again and laid her head down on the table. She felt someone rub her back. She looked up to see it was Brigid. “Do you want to go back to your room?”, she asked.

“Yeah” Sunset got up and went back to the clan head’s part of the compound. She saw Anura sitting beneath the tree. She headed over and sat down next to her. “Hey”

“Hey” Anura looked solemnly down at the ground, not even looking up at Sunset for even a second.

“Is something wrong?”

“Who will I be without Emi?”

“You’re human. You’ll adapt. You’ll grow up and become your own person.”

“How do you know?”

“I felt this way back when Spitfire and I had to go our separate ways. It’s hard at first, but you’ll adapt to your new normal.”

“Who’s Spitfire?”

“She’s my biological sister.”

For the first time since she sat down, Anura looked at Sunset. “What’s your pony family like?”

A knot formed in Sunset’s stomach at their mention. What will they even think of me now? I’m not the same Sunset that left. Will they think I’m a monster? “I don’t wanna talk about them.” Anura didn’t push further and looked back down at the dirt. Sunset got back up and went back to her room.

Katon clan compound

Date: Aug 25th, time: 9:00 am

*Ryoko’s perspective*

Ryoko carried Hikari with her as she walked out to the parking lot. Anzhong and his family were loading up to leave. She walked over to Dad, who smiled like a fool at Hikari. “Hey little one, you couldn’t let me leave without saying goodbye, could you?”

“Something like that.”, Ryoko said. “When do you think you’ll be able to come back?”

“I’m not sure.”, Dad said solemnly.

“When you are able to come back, I’d like to spend some time with you, just the two of us.”

Some of the happiness and light returned to Dad’s eyes. “I’d like that.”

“You do need to not drink.”

“I think I can do that.”

Ryoko nodded then headed back inside. The decorations from yesterday had been cleaned up, and the compound and temple were back to how they usually look. Ryoko went back to her place, put Hikari to bed, and tucked in herself.