Chapter 23: C22

Why me? What did I do, god? Who did I piss off? Is this funny to you? Is this just an extremely long-winded joke?

It had already been a week in this world, and I was subjected to some form of embarrassment at least once a day now. The only ones to outweigh what I was experiencing right now was anytime I had to confront my loss of...identity.

“Ow! That hurt!”

“Sorry, sweetie, just making some small adjustments~.”

SMALL?!

Claire had managed to poke my tail with a needle a number of times at this point. I never paid it much mind other than when I was cleaning it, but my tail seemed to be…weighty…Claire was adjusting the spot where my tail passed through the dress and was using spare material to make some kind of ornate sleeve to go around the base. Unfortunately, this meant my tail was now a pin cushion.

“Are you almost done?”

I wined as I stared at the wall ahead of me.

“Almost, and there!”

Claire stood after tying off a single remaining thread.

“Look at that. It’s a nice little touch if I say so myself.”

“What’s a nice little touch?”

“The color of the ribbon accentuates your tail quite well.”

“What ribbon? Color?”

I swear to god, what did she do to my tail?!

I twisted around and managed to get a steady enough look at my tail’s base.

“W-what is this?”

I never had a really good look at my tail around the base and when I looked felt a hot flash come over me. A short sleeve was now lining the base of my tail, roughly fifteen centimeters long. The material was a deep maroon lined with bows across its top to accent both my tail, the rest of my outfit, a maroon dress that was knee length with small bronze accents made of monster scales with the skirt of the dress composed of multiple layers to make it poof.

“Do I need to have this?”

I complained; my face must have been flushed deeply right now.

“Kiyomi, you’re the birthday girl here. You can’t have your eighth year without it.”

Claire said in an almost scolding tone, holding a finger and shaking it.

“Why not? And what’s the whole thing about it? I’m happy, I just don’t know why!”

After voicing my complaint, Claire wore a confused expression on her face.

“Wait, they never told you, huh? Must be to keep it a surprise…”

Claire brought her hand to her chin and looked as if she was thinking something over.

Wait, there’s even more than this or the dinner?

I was confused. Every day a question was answered yet followed with two new questions in its place. Like when I realized there weren’t that many children around. Why? Hatsumi said there were some, but they all stayed in certain areas most of the time. I’ve seen a few but very seldom together outside. Next, I was presented with this supposed huge celebration? What was the significance of this? Why was the dress required? After a moment, Claire shook her head and spoke up.

“I don’t want to ruin your surprise, so how about I keep it to why we’re doing this alone. We have a little while until we go out to see everyone, so I can tell you while I dress your hair. How does that sound?”

“Mm mm, sounds good!”

I nodded, glad to receive a straight answer on the subject.

“Let’s get seated before we start.”

It had been a few moments, but Clair eventually got started on my hair. She was apparently having difficulty since my hair was slightly irregular in length after Hatsumi cut it the previous Sunday.

“That darn alley cat! Cutting such good hair in such a way! “

Wait…was that an insult at Hatsumi?

After working through her initial frustration, Clair sighed and finally began talking.

“Haaahhh, so where to start? Well, I guess I’ll shorten it up a bit-“

And Claire began spilling everything she knew.

“Nearly four hundred years ago, the territory of Va-ren was brought into the Empire after years of fighting. From Va-ren and other parts of the Empire, people decided they wanted a fresh start and not to see their old home so hurt like it was.”

There was war in Va-ren? The books never went over a war other than in the nickname of the territory.

“Those new towns and villages eventually became Morus, and Damus- By Myr, she made your hair so uneven!”

Claire momentarily cut off her lesson to complain.

“Are you following so far, Kiyomi?”

She asked calmly.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Okay, where was I? Ah! So, they became Morus and Damus, from there people from over the empire and her neighbors started visiting.”

Clair paused and grabbed a glass of water from a stool next to us, taking some of the water and using it to wrangle my hair.

“It was hard though, for people to have children in both places for a while. This led to children being really precious. Because for a long time, the populations only rose when people traveled. When children were actually being born, they would often be taken away by monsters or becoming ill. This led to a tradition where the children were celebrated for hitting two ages.”

Damn, this world is really tough. The mortality rate was that high?

Claire held up two fingers before continuing.

“The first is what today's celebration is for; you hit your eighth year. Most Children would be taken by illness or monsters around here before now.”

So that’s why I never saw any other children on their own or about? They’re being sheltered? Won't that be bad as well?

She dropped the first finger.

“The second is when you turn sixteen. You will have made It to adulthood without being taken by a monster; Illness will rarely affect you from now on. Please do your best not to let a monster hurt you, Kiyomi, promise?”

Claire made a pained smile when she asked me to promise her.

I’ve seen that expression before; it was like that, huh?

“I promise!”

I entertained her request, giving her a toothy smile to go with it.

C’mon, don’t look like that, Claire.

“Mmm! Good!”

She smiled back, then nodded before continuing the story.

“Anyway, so after five decades or so, Morus became safe enough that they dropped the tradition. Morus is relatively safe for children to grow up. Damus is still considered the frontier, though, and it’s dangerous enough here still that the tradition never died and parents have become rather paranoid if you ask me.”

Wait, I have a question now.

“Hey…Claire?”

“Hm? Yes?”

“Why do you think Hatsumi allows me to come outside the city with her? Other than teaching me?”

I was confused about the behavior since it put Hatsumi out of the norm.

“If we’re talking about Hatsumi…she knows their fears-“

Claire paused.

Wait, how would she know?

“-But, Hatsumi also doesn’t want to fail you.”

Claire nodded with a smile, turning me around and starting on my bangs.

“She wants to teach you all she can and give you the best chance she can give you at being a strong adventurer like her.”

Claire’s face softened.

“But, anywho, the purpose of the dress is to mark your eighth year as one to celebrate and kind of gawk at you like “Look, this little girl made it to such an age with all these scary monsters around, and she’s so pretty, cute, and small!”. The boys get a nice tunic and pants with circlet, but in your case as a girl, you get a dress and- oops…”

Claire shut her mouth, and her expression shifted as if to look like she held in an “Oh shit!”.

I think I just heard something I wasn’t supposed to hear.

“Haaaa? Did I just hear I was supposed to get something else?”

I could tell I was giving Claire a rather impish smile just from her immediate reaction to my prodding.

“Ahaha, nothing, you heard nothing.”

Claire responded, a bead of sweat falling from her forehead.

“Are you sure? Y’know, my scalp is somewhat itchy. I could really ruffle up my hair right now.”

“Wait-wait-wait, ssshhhh! Stop!”

Claire grabbed my wrists to stop me from ruining her work.

*Sigh*” Okay, I told you nothing.”

I nodded with a smile, satisfied that my false threat was taken seriously.

Did you think I’d willfully do what I’ve been complaining about every time you all patted my head? HA!

“Okay, so the thing is-

And then Claire proceeded to tell me some things none of the others wanted me to know.

Nice! I should work on my acting skills for this evening!

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“Ooooh, so you made one of these for Hatsumi too?”

I asked Claire, sitting as she was handling some finishing touches. I held my tail in my hands and was looking over the sleeve around it. The sleeve looked like I could slip my arm through it from how big my tail was around the base.

…Is this overweight?... Do I need to exercise my tail?..

“Oh yes, don’t ever ask her to see it on her though. It embarrasses her to no end.”

I looked back up to Claire.

“Hmm? Why? I thought this was a signifier of pride? The outfit, I mean, not the sleeve.”

Claire smirked.

“Oh, that’s cause I designed it for her when we were in Morus when she was but a child.”

Wait, Hatsumi’s from Morus? And I thought they didn’t practice this there?

“I thought they stopped the tradition there?”

I asked, Claire, shaking her head in response.

“Not along the border, when Hatsumi was but a wee baby, I moved to a village along the border and opened a shop there. It was surprisingly similar to the rest of the frontier. Hatsumi, Chessa, Callum, and Stanis all grew up together in that village. I was responsible for each of their coming of ages before coming back to this shop when my mother fell ill.”

She paused, smiling sweetly.

“She was like you, but a bit more flustered and a lot less curious. Her tail dress was a rather generous ribbon and a bell fashioned to the end of her tail. She hates the thing to pieces.”

Clair ended the recounting with a giggle.

“It is absolutely wonderful seeing her grow the way she has. Especially with you suddenly here. Her attitude surely turned around.”

“I’m glad I could be of use to her rather than a burden…”

I said, thinking about the fact that all this work was being done because I was here. I never mentioned anything, but I could see even Lorn working herself to exhaustion to teach me. They were all acting as if that were normal.

“Oh please, child, stop with the pouting. From what I hear, you spend literally every other moment pouting. She’s doing this cause she wants to!”

Claire flicked my horn.

Ow!? God damnit, again?!

“Owie!”

“Kiyomi, we’ve been talking a while now, and I think some things are adding up that you haven’t discussed with anyone else at all!”

What?

“Oh, don’t think I haven’t noticed! The others don’t have much experience raising children, but I had three boys. I can see you’re hiding something; from what they’ve told me you don’t talk often, that right?”

I was now looking at Claire with utter bewilderment.

What!? What does she mean!? Does this damn Tailor know something!?

Claire proceeded to sigh then placed her hands on mine, which I had unconsciously been using to hold a death grip on my tail.

“Kiyomi, start talking past what you think people want to hear. Be a little more willful! You’re a child, that’s the nature of life, act the part, be a hellion if you must. Don’t hide anything you may have to say to your mother or the others, or you’ll find yourself unable to tell them anything soon enough.”

I’m safe? That’s it?

After a moment of silence, Claire looked down and apologized.

“Ah, I’m sorry. Look at me, some old shelly trying to give a child life advice and making her cry.”

Cry? Wha-

Claire brought a free hand to my cheek, and I could feel her finger swipe against something, spreading the wet feeling.

Wait, I was crying? But she barely berated…me…

My thoughts stopped; I was actually berated. I hadn’t had that happen up until now.

Am I actually worrying them by acting as I have? Asking permission all the time? Ma’am? Sir? I thought I was acting polite. And looking back, I rarely spoke without first being spoken to. Have I ever even talked with Hatsumi outside of her initiating the conversation?

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have-“

“Thank you.”

“Hmm?”

Claire was now confused.

“I think you told me something I really needed to hear.”

I said with a slight smile, my tail slipping from my grasp and now swaying happily behind me. With this, Claire’s expression softened once more, and she patted my hand.

“Mother’s can always tell.”

She smiled.

“Now, let’s work on those acting skills a bit before taking you to yours.”

 

“So, the plates are set, this is done, this is done too, did we miss anything? Everyone is here, and Callum managed to get ‘it’ finished in time.”

Hatsumi seemed to be going over a list of things to be completed before Kiyomi arrived and the celebration started. Her tail was swaying from side to side with liveliness, clearly content that everything had been completed. She stood up from the seat in the living area that she’d found herself using so she could catch stay out of the way of the others that were helping.

“Hatsumi, they’re coming! Claire just came out of Lorn’s office with Kiyomi in tow!”

Chessa called out, leaning past the corner she had just turned.

“Oh, stalker crap! Everyone, places!”

Hatsumi yelled, which prompted a sudden flurry of footsteps through different parts of the room.

“Hatsumi! You haven’t told me where to go!”

Callum was standing next to Hatsumi now, holding a cloth-wrapped object in his hands.

“Oh heck!”

I thought I had this! I don’t have this! I really don’t have this!

She thought to herself.

“Here, we’ll give it to her together. Lets put it iiiiin- ah!”

Hatsumi grabbed the item and hurried to the far wall, placing it far back into the fake throat of the giant lizard head that was her first kill.

“Just grab it from here when I have her distracted. I’ll give you the signal.”

She told Callum.

“Wait, what’s the signal?”

“I’ll-“

“Guy’s, they’re at the door!”

Avery raised her voice over the commotion between everyone present.

“Let's hurry to our spot at the end of the table!”

“What’s the signal?!”

Callum swore as the two reached the end of the table readied for the feast with everyone else around the table as well. Hatsumi was soon unable to respond, though, as a loud audible click resounded throughout the room and the door opened.

*Click*

The door swung open slowly as Claire entered and beckoned to someone behind her. A moment later, and the one they all had painstakingly prepared all of this for, entered the room.

The small demon girl was clad in a maroon dress, accentuated by ribbons in intervals and an array of hardened bronze monster scales. The top looked as if it were a mid-sleeved blouse, the sleeves puffed out near their ends from layers of white cloth that was given a wavy structure. The waist of the dress led to a knee-length skirt of similar build to the sleeves, with the exception that the poof was exaggerated slightly more. White stocking led from the outfit’s shoes and into the dress. Her legs ended with dark brown stained boots made of hide that was treated to its softest possible state without tearing under strain. And lastly, the outfit was topped off with a sleeve around the girl's tail, accentuated by bows.

 

“Congratulations on your eighth sun!”

A room full of people yelled at once, causing the child in front of them all to grin. Small sparkles, semblances of the smallest of tears could be at the corners of her amber eyes that reflected the candlelight that lit the room, giving her an almost unnatural appealing glow.

In the room, everyone whom Kiyomi had met was gathered.

Avery, whom Kiyomi had already affectionately begun calling ‘Auntie' much to Hatsumi’s dismay.

Callum, the first of Hatsumi’s team to take to the girl, and had gone so far as to play with her when she seemed as if she were bored being dragged around by adults.

Chessa, the elf that hoped to apologize to Kiyomi, and to somehow move past her difficulties with a new child in the home.

Stanis, the Paladin that watched from the sidelines, still trying to parse together how to interact with Kiyomi.

And Lastly, Lorn, the old elf that suggested Hatsumi form the bond she did with Kiyomi in the first place, the woman that was pulling all of the strings along. The woman who decided for the first time in so many years that she would do her best to teach a child once more.

“Come, Kiyomi-“

Hatsumi began with a sweetened tone as she and Callum both moved to either side of the chair at the end of the table between their own.

“-Your seat awaits~.”

To which Kiyomi smiled.

“Thank you! Everyone!”

At this sight, Hatsumi thought.

I couldn’t have adopted a demon this cute~.

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