I picked up my dress before looking up at Ava.

“I understand. I’ll turn around for you.” Ava slowly turned around while also making a show of covering her eyes.

Once I was confident that she wasn’t looking at me, I took off the shirt she had given me before quickly throwing the dress over my head and pulling it down.

Immediately, I looked back over at Ava to make sure that she was still facing away from me. After confirming that she was still facing the wall, I grabbed my tail.

…

It’ll be fine.

…

She said it would be easier now…

I guided my tail into the flap and grabbed the tip from the other side.

I-It’s not going to hurt…

…

Deciding it would be better to get it over with quickly, I yanked my tail through all at once.

…

To my utter surprise, it went through without catching at all. I even looked over my shoulder to check on my tail, and while it was a little messy, it didn’t look that bad.

She… was right…

…

“Just warning you, I’m going to turn around now, alright?” Ava suddenly spoke to me.

She stayed still for a moment before dropping her arms and turning around to face me.

“Oh, you managed to get your tail through yourself this time,” Ava came a bit closer, “Well done.”

…

Mhm…

I felt my tail start to sway, but I reached behind me and grabbed it before it got out of control.

“Let’s get to the brushing then,” Ava chuckled as she picked up the basket, “What are you waiting for? Let’s get back to the room.”

I followed Ava back to the room, where she promptly sat on the floor and gestured towards her lap.

“Come on now, you know what to do.”

I sat myself just in front of her and laid my tail in her lap. As soon as I did, I felt a brush run through it.

“Wow… I really outdid myself; It feels quite a lot better…” Ava decided to run her hand through my tail, “Don’t you think?”

“…”

I nodded.

“That’s good,” Ava switched back to the brush, “Now make sure you pay attention, we’ve got-”

I couldn’t quite make out what she said past that point, as my eyelids slowly closed, and I drifted off to sleep while she kept brushing.

…

I hope she likes it too…

…

…

The temperature around me suddenly dropped, and the surprise caused my eyes to shoot open, revealing an endless black void all around me.

“Is it?…”

A large black fox walked up to me out of the darkness. As soon as I laid eyes on it, I started running with my arms outstretched.

The fox just continued walking towards me until we eventually collided, and I wrapped my arms around it.

“Stay here… Please, just… stay… with…”

…

Wait…

…

It’s…

It’s… not her.

This wasn’t the first time that I had dreamt up a fake, but this time, I knew she was really out there, and it hurt just a little more than all the other times.

Why… is she still avoiding me?…

…

I cleaned up my tail… I got a new dress… What’s missing?…

“I wish you would tell me…”

I continued hugging the dream fox while I thought to myself. It at least provided some kind of comfort, even if it felt a bit hollow.

…

Is there something she wants from me?

…

Thinking back to when I met her at the temple, I tried to see if there was something she wanted, a gap I could fill.

…

What would a Goddess even need from me?

…

That’s when the perfect idea hit me. I walked around the fox and lay against its body, just like Ovia had let me do with her.

Is this it?

She did this for me when I was crying…

…

Maybe… that’s what she wants?

But… the other way around.

…

I liked it when she let me…

…

I looked back at the dream fox.

“What do you think? Is it a good idea?”

The fox just stared at me blankly.

“I mean… I think I’d be happy just being her pillow… because at least then… I could stay with her.”

I sat in silence for a moment, leaning deeper into the dream fox’s fur.

“But I can’t turn into a fox like she can…”

…

“Ava can turn into a crow… maybe she knows… but… can I even ask her?”

I looked back over at the dream fox, expecting to see a blank stare, but surprisingly, it nodded.

“Wait, What?!”

The dream fox then got up, gently sliding me off of its body, before walking off into the distance. I tried to follow it, but my legs felt like they were rooted in place.

As soon as I lost sight of it, a faint giggle echoed throughout the space.

“Who?!”

…

I jolted awake, only to find myself completely wrapped up by something.

Immediately, I started struggling, trying my hardest to squeeze my way. After much effort, I eventually freed myself from the cloth cocoon.

What’s going on?

I was still in the inn, although I had been moved onto my bed. Looking out the window, the sun had just started to set.

Something… feels… off?

I looked back over at what I was trapped in, but that just resulted in more questions.

…

…

Laying in front of me was the dress I was wearing, or maybe it was just a dress that looked a lot like it. It seemed much bigger than mine, to the point that I think it would’ve still looked big on Raynelle.

I looked down to check my own dress, but what I saw froze me in place.

…

Is this?

Did I?!

Where my hands should have been, there were instead two small white paws, barely able to leave an indent in the bed.

…

I-I did it!

…

I’m a little small… b-but it’s enough for her to rest her head on… It has to be.

My tail started swaying all over the place, trying to pull my whole body along with it, but I didn’t care.

I’m one step closer.

While I was busy celebrating, the door slowly opened with a quiet creak. Soon after, both Ava and Raynelle peeked into the room.

“…”

“…”

“…”

Nobody made a move, instead choosing to just stare in silence.

“Uh… Ava… do you know what we’re supposed to do here?” Raynelle asked.

“I can try,” Ava pushed the door open completely and came into the room before sitting at the foot of my bed.

…

They’re… a lot bigger than before…

Looking up at Ava from the bed, it was hard not to notice just how small I really was. I instinctively took a step back.

“Hey, calm down, don’t panic,” Ava showed her palms to me.

But I’m not panicking.

This… This is a good thing.

This is what I needed.

“It’s very early for this to have happened… at least, I think it is… I don’t know if kitsune are different when it comes to this.”

“Yeah, I still remember when you gave me a heart attack when you first turned into a crow about two months back.” Raynelle tried to come into the room, but Ava stopped her.

“You can’t just walk up to her like that right now. You’re a lot bigger than her now after all. You’ll just startle the little fox.”

Without waiting for a response, Ava turned back towards me, “Okay now, just… come to me slowly so I can check that everything’s okay.” 

…

Everything is okay.

In fact, it’s perfect.

“Look, I know you don’t want to open up to us, but I really need to make sure you’re okay,” Ava gestured towards her lap, “It’s rare, but I have heard some horror stories about the first time using Transformation Magic going wrong.”

But it didn’t go wrong…

I looked myself over just to make sure, and what I saw looked exactly like a white fox, a baby one with an oversized tail perhaps, but that’s good enough for me.

…

“Look…*sigh* I’m just trying to help you here…” Ava looked up at the ceiling, “I just… wish you weren’t so afraid of me.”

…

Hearing Ava say that caught me a bit off guard; it somehow made me feel a bit… uncomfortable.

…

I’m… not…

Scared of you…

…

I… think…

…

It’s true that Ava has helped me a lot in the last few days, and nothing bad ever happened afterwards.

But… why?

…

Nobody else is like that…

…

What do you want from me?

Everyone wants something.

…

Looking up at Raynelle, she stood in the doorway, staring at Ava, ready to run in and grab her at a moment's notice.

…

I thought back over every time Ava spoke to me, trying to figure out why she was different to everyone else I’d met until it suddenly became clear. The answer had been staring me in the face from the beginning.

She wants to touch my tail!

Every time she helped me, it had to do with my tail!

…

Does that mean… If I just let her touch my tail…

She won’t do anything to me?

…

Is it that easy?

…

…

I-It’s the only explanation.

I slowly made my way across the bed and clambered up onto Ava’s lap, making sure to present my tail to her as I did.

…

Ava looked down at me without saying anything. In response, I waved my tail in front of her face, trying to tell her what to do.

“Can I?” Ava asked.

I nodded.

Ava hesitated for a moment before running her hand through my tail with a content look on her face, “Well, I can definitely say that your tail, while smaller, is still just as soft as before.”

I-I was right.

…

If I just give her what she wants, I’ll be fine.

It even made that uncomfortable feeling go away.

Ava then checked me all over before giving her okay.

“What did you do to make her so… docile all of a sudden?” Raynelle asked.

“Well, that’s just my natural talents at work,” Ava smirked, “It was always only a matter of time before she would see my charm.”

“Oh, come on, let me try too,” Raynelle squatted down in front of Ava and held her hands out, “Just… hop on over.”

No.

I don’t know what you want.

I still can’t trust you.

I curled up on Ava’s lap, refusing to move.

“…”

“Oh, don’t be like that Mom,” Ava stroked my back, “I’m just that good at this.”

Raynelle and Ava kept going back and forth like that for a while.

I started ignoring the two of them pretty quickly, instead focusing on just how comfortable Ava’s lap was. The slight warmth made me feel sleepy even though I had only just woken up.

Tomorrow…

…

I’ll… come to you…

…