Chapter 208: Chapter 207: The Fox part 3

As she gazed upon the moon on the night of her thousandth birthday, she felt unusually tired, her body was swaying, her eyelids heavy, but still they were fixed on the moon. A presence appeared behind her and a chuckle filled the night sky.

“Just as Lord Tsukuyomi said, I was offended when he said your devotion was unequalled, but seeing you so fixated amidst your evolution proves him true.”

“If you are the one to raise me, can you find me in the morning?”

“No child, I will stay, in silence if you prefer and follow your example as I hope we all one day do.” The woman transformed into her celestial fox form and stood watch over her new child and the moon they both adored.

The change was slowed by the fact she remained conscious, but not halted. Her tails shone with a lunar glow, her fore-legs changed into human arms, her hind-legs into human legs, her torso too did change and finally so did her head.

With each changed limb, a tail was spent then she lost two each for her torso and head, until she had but one remaining.

Even as her body changed however, her gaze remained unbroken and only when the moon finally yielded to its bright sister did she finally yield her consciousness and fall into slumber.

Whilst asleep, her new mother carried her to her old quarters, where she was left to sleep as her things were gathered up and then she and they were taken to where she would call home for the next Chapter of her life.

When she had awoken, she found herself half swallowed into the fur of the celestial fox and had a miniature panic-attack, much to the Celestial foxes amusement.

“Apologies, Kyubi. You were so adorable, I couldn’t resist cuddling with you.”

“It’s fine, I just can’t remember anything except the moon.”

“That’s fine, we never spoke anyway. I am Ginrei and I will be your mother from now on. Unfortunately, as per Lord Tsukuyomi’s instructions, you will be studying with a teacher in a different realm and we won’t have much opportunity to snuggle.”

“I don’t sleep much anyway, I never seemed to need it.” Kyubi shrugged as she stood and tried walking around, finding the task of walking a little bit awkward on two legs after a thousand years of walking on four.

“Very good, you are a fast developer indeed. Unfortunately, resisting sleep is now unacceptable, doing so will waste the good you could one day to in service to our lord.”

“What do you mean and who is it I will be studying with?” Kyubi asked her follow up as she switched between jumping and skipping to get used to her new body.

“You have been selected as a future celestial fox, anything that your body requires, your divinity channels will need as well. You have already stunted yours considerably my dear, so from now on, you study for eight hours a day, sleep for ten and the other six will be spent learning to socialise in a way befitting our lord’s attendant and learning extra skills to help his people. As for your teacher, he is a legendary mentor to immortals from almost every species, his name is Obelix.”

Kyubi flipped into a handstand, then raised one hand, then swapped. “I’m getting the hang of only two legs I think, when do I start my studies?”

“Tomorrow, for now, you learn to make a kimono for yourself. It is tradition for adult Kitsune and celestial foxes alike to wear clothes they have made themselves. You should have at least four prepared, one for day to day, one for formal but not celebratory affairs, one for your wedding and one for when you are attending to Lord Tsukuyomi.”

“Then I only need one, because everything I do is in service to Lord Tsukuyomi.”

Ginrei smiled warmly, then transformed into her human form and created some cloth, then they began working on it together. As it was her first time, she focused more on the process of turning the cloth into a kimono.

As two hours ticked by, Ginrei called for a break so they could make some food, but nearly fell over herself standing up when Kyubi refused to help. “I’m not moving until I’ve mastered it.”

Ginrei had asked her to help for two reasons, the first was to teach her how to prepare food, but the most prominent reason was in anticipation of Kitsune attention span. “I’m sorry, are you sure? Do you not want to do something else?”

“I would like to, but disappointment and failure go hand-in-hand. If I have failed to master one skill, learning another will have to wait.”

Celestial foxes weren’t exempt from fox-spirit nature and Ginrei couldn’t resist her’s, which demanded she tease the determined little fox. She sat opposite and asked if she was really a fox and not just an exceptionally beautiful dog-spirit, but all Kyubi said was that she didn’t care what she was as long as she could serve the moon.

Ginrei quickly found herself growing incredibly attached to her new child, moved beyond words by what she could only describe as perfection. The girl was beautiful, single-minded in her devotion to their lord, using that devotion to overcome her nature and her ability to learn and adapt went beyond anything she had seen in any of the other children she’d raised.

“No matter then, I’ll prepare food this time and the next, but you will be helping me every third time to learn.” It was the first time she had seen Kyubi look downtrodden or upset, something that made her most curious, until her response turned it to amusement.

“How much do I have to eat exactly? I usually only eat once every three days.”

“Hahaha!…” Kyubi found the laughter vexing, but waited patiently as Ginrei wiped her eyes. “…You really are a silly little fox. You need food and sleep if we are to repair the damage to your divinity channels, to that end, you will eat every two hours until they are acceptably restored.”

“I can’t eat that much! I’ll throw up if I eat that much.”

“I didn’t think this would be the first thing I have to fight you on…” Ginrei muttered before looking at the sewing table. “…If you don’t eat, I’ll take away the sewing table.”

“I’ll eat.”

“Seriously child, are you really a fox?” With every word and second that passed, Ginrei began to doubt her ability to comprehend any thought that crossed her mind. ’Two hundred daughters and I feel like I’m a first time mother on the first day, I guess I should throw away the book before I start butting heads with her.’

By the end of the six hours, Kyubi had put together her first kimono, but was entirely dissatisfied and wore it only because she had no other clothes to wear. To Ginrei though, the kimono was just another example of the talent and potential Kyubi had, both of which she wanted to see fully realised.

When they had finished their third meal, Kyubi was practically in tears at having “wasted so much time on something as unnecessary as eating”, but that was only the beginning of Ginrei’s troubles.

After eating, she was immediately tasked with putting out her futon for bed, but Kyubi insisted on having a bath first. The bath didn’t sound like too great a compromise, so off they went and when they returned an hour later Kyubi did prepare her futon, but after laying down she tried giving up on sleep every five minutes.

“I guess I’m not sleepy.”

“You haven’t tried, now lay down and sleep.”

Five minutes later

“I guess I’m not sleepy.”

“Kyubi, you aren’t moving from there until you go to school tomorrow.”

Five minutes later

“I guess I’m not sleepy.”

“Try closing your eyes.”

Five minutes later

“I guess I’m not sleepy.”

“Try keeping your eyes closed and counting the stars on the ceiling.”

“How can I count them with my eyes closed?”

“Hmph, I guess you aren’t quite at that level yet, Tsukuyomi will be disappointed…”

Five minutes later, Kyubi was asleep.

“…I don’t know if she’s the easiest child I’ve raised or the most difficult. I’m also rather jealous her first kimono is actually wearable, mine took three days, the arms were too short, it hung at an indecent length and was tattered at the edges.”

As Ginrei continued to mutter to herself, she could have sworn at one point that Kyubi had heard her and was just pretending to be asleep, but when she began twitching in response to her dream it was clear she wasn’t.

’What do you think of your new daughter then?’

’She’s perfect, I would gladly pin the future of our kind on her.’

’I agree, even the first of your kind, Tenko, can hardly believe her potential and growth.”

’The sun fox is far from welcome in my thoughts, Lord Tsukuyomi. Please don’t taint the memory of my daughter with his pride in her.’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep