Mama Fox

<Zuri>

How could people live like this?

Arriving near the village settlement, Zuri raised his sleeve to cover his nose.

The pungent stench of poverty was so off-putting. Musty, thick and just plain overall gross.

“What’s wrong?” (C)

‘She can’t smell that, huh? Why is that not surprising?’

“Nothing.” (Z)

“I’ll take care of it, whatever it is!” (C)

“I said it’s nothing.” (Z)

“…Are you still mad about earlier?” (C)

‘Why is she still talking?’

Even if Zuri wanted her to do something, what could she actually do?

He sighed.

Being a Kitsune wasn’t easy sometimes. That filthy odour that used to be at least tolerable in his last life was now broaching new levels of unbearableness. The gifts this new body gave were many, but so were the drawbacks. It was a double-edged sword. Zuri had developed a number of weaknesses he never had before. They ranged from little things like his sense of smell to his sensitivity about having his fluffy parts (ears and tail) touched.

For the most part, he was able to manage them. Heck, sometimes he forgets they are there. But, every so often, a small incident would remind him of them. Like the incident today, although that shouldn’t be dismissed as small.

“Here you go, my love!” (C)

A weight came to rest around Zuri’s neck.

All of a sudden, the obnoxious smell polluting the air was replaced with the scent of freshly plucked flowers.

“Smells nice, right?” (C)

A lei necklace.

“…I don’t need it.” (Z)

‘How did she create this?’

Continuing walking while enjoying the smell, Zuri ignored the (likely fake) crestfallen expression Cleodora wore. He had more important concerns occupying his mind at the moment. They were already upon the village, and it appeared their arrival was somewhat expected. A small crowd was gathered outside. It was made up of men, women and multitudes of children all waving and smiling at them.

‘That fool…!’

Zuri had been hoping to sort this whole issue out as quietly as possible. A challenging feat considering how much attention they both already attracted. His desire to eat was already intensely strong due to not having dinner yesterday. He wasn’t eager to waste time entertaining a bunch of… well, peasants for no reason.

Watching the fool return their greetings with great enthusiasm, it was quite clear he wouldn’t get a say in that choice.

Ha, right.

It was time to entertain the masses.

“—And this is my wife, The Third Princess, Zuri!” (C)

Standing beside Cleodora, Zuri fought the fierce desire to rebuke her words.

‘…Calm down. You can handle this’

The mission right now was simple: get food.

Zuri didn’t need to explain himself to a bunch of nobodies to do that. In fact, pausing to do so would make this whole process take longer. Yet, the casual way in which she said he was her wife bothered him to no end. She sounded so sure of herself, so certain in her own words that they seemed infallible. The villagers ate it up, and cheers were given.

Infuriating.

Did people really think he would marry someone like her?

“Welcome! Welcome! How can we help again today, Miss Hero?”

An old man came out of the crowd.

“Elder! Great to see you again. We came looking to buy some home supplies.” (C)

Cleodora made an odd gesture while sending a knowing gaze to the old man.

“Unfortunately, we are a bit low on money right now…?” (C)

‘What!?’

She then laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of her head.

“Ah, no problem at all! In our village, you are welcomed to take anything for free.”

“Thank you, elder.” (C)

The conversation between Cleodora and the old man sadly didn’t end there. It quickly veered into the most boring, random and benign subjects. The weather, the approaching harvest season, the best tools for farming and blah blah blah. Did village people seriously have nothing else of interest to talk about? Zuri stood in silence, but the longer this took, the more annoyed he felt himself getting.

He could feel the villagers' stares all over him.

It was uncomfortable.

Unlike the nobility, the countryside folk had no tact. They could not feign disinterest in the same manner, and given that this was far from their first interracial encounter, their staring was clearly motivated by something more than mere curiosity.

That plus the titbit Cleodora had shared earlier was adding to his annoyance.

The sooner they leave, the sooner he could find out what happened to all his money.

“Can you finish this useless conversation?” (Z)

The moment Zuri spoke; he felt everyone around him freeze.

Shortly, a hand tried to come and rest on his shoulder, but he swatted it away and sent the owner a glare.

“…Please excuse my wife. She’s quite tired after the move. You know how it is, hehe?” (C)

The old man gave a hearty laugh.

“It’s alright. The Princess of Iron has spoken!”

He motioned to the village.

“Come, let me take you to the storage room. You can pick out a few things.”

‘Finally’

Just as they were about to move, though, Cleodora blocked Zuri’s way.

‘What now!?’

“Ah, you should wait here, my love. The storage room is a bit far from here.” (C)

…And how exactly would she know that?

“And what? Trust you to pick the supplies?” (Z)

If she were capable of doing such a simple thing, they wouldn’t be here in the first place.

“I’ll do well. I swear it.” (C)

“I don’t care.” (Z)

Zuri side-stepped the obstacle in his way only for it to re-emerge again.

His eyes narrowed.

‘What is she hiding?’

The old man suddenly chimed in, his subtly eyes widening as though a thought struck him.

“Don’t worry, Princess. We’ll make sure everything you need is accounted for!”

‘Now I’m even curious’

“Then let me aid in the carrying.” (Z)

Looks like the old man was in on whatever it was.

As Zuri was about to reject the offer again, a bunch of men’s voices joined in the reassurance.

“We got it, Princess!”

“Carrying all those heavy boxes is a man’s pride!”

“Leave it to us, Princess!”

‘What is going on?’

After a brief staredownwith them, Zuri eventually relented.

“…Fine.” (Z)

Leaving was more important than idle curiosity.

“Thank you, Princess!”

“We won’t fail you, Princess!”

Watching Cleodora leave with the men, a thought crossed Zuri.

…She wasn’t a man, no?

Or was it because she was a Child of the Sun that it didn’t matter?

“Umm, ah, Miss Princess?”

“What?” (Z)

Turning to face whoever had the nerve to call him, Zuri met the eyes of a child.

‘…Of course’

“I mean, yes? What is it?” (Z)

The boy, who had cowered after Zuri’s first remark, held out a book.

“I-Is this you?”

Zuri leaned slightly down and scanned the book.

‘How the hell did they get a picture so far out here?’

It looked beaten up and was torn in various places, but it was a picture book, no doubt.

And one that featured a child Zuri surrounded by his family.

From the looks of it, it was depicting one of the tales of his siblings.

Gazing back at the boy with trembling hands, Zuri sighed.

It looked like he was on the brink of crying.

Crying kids were such a pain.

Magic began dancing around Zuri.

Grabbing the book out of the boy’s hands, he gave a charming smile and asked a simple question.

“Would you like to hear a story?” (Z)

“—And, thus, balance was once again restored to the kingdom!” (Z)

A thunderous applause erupted around Zuri.

Holding the beat-up book in his hand, he closed his eyes while smiling.

‘What on earth is taking them so long!?’

What was supposed to be a short story that lasted a few minutes at best had slowly devolved into a history lesson about the Kitsune people spanning two hours. Zuri had been standing, narrating and visualising stories for two goddamn hours. His magic facilities were vast, being both a kitsune and of royal blood, but having never seriously trained them meant he was already feeling tired.

“Miss Princess, could you tell us one more, please, pretty please!?”

“Yes, please!”

“Miss Princess!”

‘Greedy little bastards!’

How was he even supposed to leave this situation? The mothers of the children were also sitting around with them. Listening intently, and while they may not be as shameless as the kids to ask openly, they definitely wanted more stories out of him. Zuri could see it in the eyes. Truly, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

“No can-do little ones!” (C)

Zuri felt his feet leave the ground as a body pressed on him.

“She’s all mine!” (C)

For the first time since meeting Cleodora in a decade, Zuri felt relieved to see her face.

The princess carry wasn’t necessary, though, but that will be discussed the moment they get back.

“What took you so long!” (Z)

He whisper-yelled.

“You looked so busy, sorry. We decided to take the stuff directly to the house in the meantime.” (C)

Zuri’s stomach rumbled as he glared at Cleodora.

“Right, right.” (C)

Cleodora turned to address the people.

“We’re off then!” (C)

She lowered her head to Zuri’s ear.

“Hold on.” (C)

Then launched off the ground with a deafening sound.