Chapter Thirteen: The Girl Hostess Who Struggled With Decorum
Madoka notices that this kitsune is amazingly young-looking, appearing to be no older than thirteen or fourteen years, with an adorable face with little suggestions of whiskers on her face as though she’s only mostly transformed into a human-like form. Her hair and ears are purple, a bright pastel shade. She wears a kimono in a pastel green on white patterned fabric that looks as expensive as any that Kiyomi herself would wear.
The kitsune girl with long hair framing her face bows deeply and she blushes intensely. “Kozuke-sama! It is a pleasure to see you again!” She smiles, with eyes only for Kozuke for the moment, yet after a moment she blushes and bows to Emi and Madoka as well, and when Kiyomi steps forward, her eyes widen and she claps her hands to her cheeks as though mortified.
“Sari-chan. Please be sure to attend properly to all of our guests. Don’t just focus on this mangy lion-dog. These ladies are also very important persons,” Kiyomi admonishes Sari.
Sari gasps and, looking flustered, she bows deeply, hands to her sides. Her bow is so low she actually falls over onto her forehead. She squeals and her tail thrashes wildly as she poofs and suddenly reverts to the form of a small purple kit. She squeals and stands on her back feet and awkwardly bows again.
“I’m so very sowwry!” she says with a lisp. “I’m so clumsy. I’m such a worthless hostess. Forgive me, please! Oh, Kozuke-sama… my shame is so deep.” Sari covers her face with her paws and Kiyomi scowls.
“You dishonor our family name carrying on like that. Regain your pride as a kitsune and pull yourself together, little cousin! That sloppy transformation. Why are they allowing you to greet guests here? Don’t be unworthy! Show me your pride in your work!” Kiyomi admonishes Sari strictly.
Madoka gapes at Kiyomi and Emi shakes her head. “It’s no trouble, little one. Don’t mind it,” Kozuke murmurs, looking away.
Sari gasps and suddenly, with another poof, she transforms into a girl, her transformation perfect, but unfortunately without her kimono. She stands nude in front of all. Madoka gapes, casting her eyes elsewhere, and Emi laughs softly, looking down. Kozuke turns his back to Sari, and Kiyomi steps forward to wrap her arms around Sari to hide her shame.
“Focus, Sari-chan. You can do better than this, little cousin. Fight harder!” Kiyomi says, her tone comforting now rather than admonishing.
Sari shrieks and cries. “No! Kozuke-sama saw me… oh no… the shame, Onee-sama…” she sobs softly. After a moment she poofs again, with a look of determination in her teary eyes, and suddenly she once again wears the kimono.
Madoka and Emi continue looking elsewhere for a long period of time, and Kozuke stands facing Madoka and Emi with an embarrassed expression mixed with compassion for Sari.
“You may turn your gazes forward to your hostess again, important guests!” Sari says with a quiver in her voice; she does her best to assume decorum. “I’m so very very sorry for my failures,” she sniffles.
Madoka turns her attention to the girl in the arms of Kiyomi, now standing behind her. She pets Sari’s head and Madoka notes that the whiskers are gone, showing only her cute little face. An unfamiliar emotion fills her and after a moment she rushes forward, with a little squeaking noise as she rushes to pet Sari.
Emi gapes at Madoka after she turns her eyes back to Sari and Madoka, and she shakes her head. “Are you entirely a girl inside, Madoka-chan?” she asks, shaking her head. “You squeed when you saw her again!” she laughs.
Madoka blushes redly, squirming. Sari looks up to Madoka’s face and blushes herself, and bows deeply, clumsily ramming her head against Madoka’s chest.
“Oh my. I didn’t know you swung that way too, little cousin.” Kiyomi laughs aloud when she notes Sari’s head crashing against the bottom portion of Madoka’s bosom.
“What are you talking about, pervert Onee-sama!?” Sari gasps, straightening. “I’m sorry… I’m so very clumsy,” Sari mewls. “To assault a very important person. I only add to my list of shames.”
“The lifelong list is kilometers in length at this point. It is very easy to pile up a list of failures in several hundred years.” Kiyomi comforts Sari.
“Several hundred years?” Emi asks skeptically as she looks at Sari searchingly. “What part of this chibi is an obi-chan?” she exclaims.
Kiyomi glares immediately at Emi, lightning quickly draws her fan, and strikes Emi on her forehead. “Don’t insult me and my family, impudent mortal girl,” she snaps at Emi.
“O-owie!!!” Emi gasps, and with a sudden fierceness in her eyes, she leaps forward to grab Kiyomi’s fan. She struggles to try to wrench it from her hand. Kiyomi stares at Emi incredulously and raises her free hand to her mouth, hiding it while she laughs that haughty laugh at Emi’s valiant but pointless effort.
“What are you thinking, mortal child? One like you can’t harm a youkai.”
“Don’t laugh at me like that! I hate that! I don’t like you!” Emi yells, seeming frustrated that she can’t seize her fan and hit her back with it. She balls up a fist and quickly lashes out at Kiyomi’s face. Quickly Kiyomi unfolds her fan, and amazingly, it blocks Emi’s attack entirely. With a flick of her wrist, a burst of air knocks Emi onto her butt once again on the floor. She mewls loudly. The air that bursts from the fan suddenly turns the foyer into a zephyr, and Madoka and Sari shriek together as their yukata and kimono blow up revealing their panties. Even Emi’s skirt blows up as she struggles to climb up to her knees.
“Oh no, Onee-sama… you’ve embarrassed me!” Sari moans, crying.
“Lion-Dog-Butler-sama has already seen your all, silly little one. Don’t cry over flashing your panties.” Kiyomi laughs with that haughty laugh; she eyes Madoka once again with lascivious eyes, however, and Madoka notices it and runs behind Kozuke as Emi had. Emi climbs up to her feet.
“This is not the way to treat important guests, Onee-sama!” Sari gasps, admonishing Kiyomi this time, waggling her small fingers at Kiyomi.
“Aha… to be admonished by you, little one.” Kiyomi laughs.
“Onee-sama! We should not keep our very important guests. Please everyone, stand and come along. I will show you to your reserved room. It has a door that opens into the hot springs.” Sari starts walking, flicking her tail with a little more dignity. She casts a happy smile backwards as she beckons to everyone.
Kiyomi follows quickly, beckoning to Madoka, still hiding from her behind Kozuke. “What an amazingly strange situation,” Madoka comments as Kozuke leads her, following after Sari. Emi rubs her backside surreptitiously again, and takes a place walking beside Madoka. Kozuke and Kiyomi lead the two and Sari walks ahead, padding ahead more gracefully than expected. They walk down a series of hallways past sliding doors along the way. Here and there are alcoves with decorations, demonstrating how posh this youkai onsen is. Along the hallway stand glowing lanterns, illuminating it.
As they walk, they pass a crab-like youkai with a towel around its waist. Emi gapes at it, and moves to the other side of Madoka to put distance between herself and this new monstrosity. The youkai clicks at them as it passes and, oddly enough, bows. Madoka uncertainly bows in return. After a while of walking they leave the youkai far behind out of sight. Sari opens a sliding door in the seemingly endless series of corridors. She leads the way into a room and Madoka looks around as they enter. The room is very comfortable. Taking up a large amount of space inside of it, besides alcoves which contain decorations, is a large low table with zabuton cushions around it.
Sari smiles a heartwarming smile at the four and bows, standing by the table. Above it from rope hangs a large lantern almost the same size as the table itself with a beautiful paper shade about it illuminating the room cheerifully. “Please seat yourselves. Wait a short time and the feast will arrive.” She giggles. “I hope you are hungry, honored guests!”
“Oh, yes! I haven’t had anything since that hamburger…” Madoka comments, blushing suddenly recalling the conversation at the table and realizing that she hadn’t finished the hamburger in her mortification.
“Me too!” Emi enthuses. “I didn’t expect this when I decided to stay the night at your home, but what an unbelievable turn of events!” Emi grins warmly at Madoka, marveling at the situation.
“I look forward to it, little one,” Kozuke murmurs his attention on Sari for the moment, seating himself at the table. Sari preens at Kozuke’s attention.
Sari giggles and goes to her knees next to Kozuke. “I’m pleased to hear it, Kozuke-sama! Please wait a moment. I will be very quick!” She giggles, bashfully taking Kozuke’s arm.
Kozuke blinks and chuckles. “That would be a good idea. I’m anxious that the onsen will put my mistress to sleep, because it would be best to get to it as soon as possible, but the food is just as important to her recovery,” he observes, musing.
“Recovery? Mistress?” Sari gapes, seeming surprised by Kozuke’s words. She casts her glance around, scanning over the attendants, and finally focusing on her older family member, unable to imagine that anyone else could possibly be the one he mentions. “Onee-sama! I did not think you were interested in Kozuke-sama!” she gasps, blushing and pouting.
Madoka drops to her knees on a zabuton and Emi settles down next to her. Emi eyes Sari and laughs softly.
“Interested? You misread the situation, little cousin. Lion-Dog-Butler-sama’s mistress is this one. The buxom and lovely girl here.” Kiyomi moves behind Madoka, and drops to her knees behind her, suddenly pressing her chest against her back, and as if to accent her compliments for Madoka, she wraps her arms around Madoka, squeezing her breasts.
Madoka shrieks loudly, flailing and blushing as Kiyomi fondles her.
“Don’t stain my mistress’ purity!” Kozuke snarls at Kiyomi. Kiyomi grins over Madoka’s shoulder tauntingly at him in response to his words.
“You perverted oba-san!” Emi turns to Kiyomi and glares disapprovingly.
“This one? This mortal girl is Kozuke-sama’s mistress? How could that be? Such a great man as he serving a weak human girl…” Sari gasps, sniffling. She eyes Madoka and as her eyes fall upon Madoka’s breasts, something seems to occur to her, and her eyes widen. She suddenly glares at Madoka and pouts.
“Is she your type, Kozuke-sama?” Sari gasps, looking at Kozuke and clinging to his arm, pulling it to her and pressing her nonexistent breasts against it.
Suddenly, Emi moves lightning quickly and holds up Kiyomi’s fan that she’d snatched from her obi while she wasn’t looking. Her eyes shine and she folds it open, mimicking the haughty laugh.
Kiyomi looks at Emi and gapes for a moment, and suddenly Emi strikes, lowering the fan onto Kiyomi’s forehead. She grins as she mimics Kiyomi’s laugh.
Madoka squirms and thrashes still in Kiyomi’s clutches, her breasts still being fondled. Finally her head lowers, her face flushed intensely. She bites her lip unfamiliar with the strange feelings triggered by Kiyomi’s deft fingers.
“Ah, no fair! My hands have been occupied!” Kiyomi complains.
“That’s your weak point, right?” Emi grins at Kiyomi.
Kiyomi finally lets go of Madoka and grabs the fan quickly from Emi’s grip. Emi shrinks away from the look in her eyes, and moves to run away, but suddenly Kiyomi launches herself at Emi. Emi shrieks and tries to crawl away. “No!”
Kiyomi grins lasciviously and glomps her, and molests Emi as well as she thrashes and struggles. “Stop it, Oba-san!” Emi yells.
“Onee-sama! You’re mistreating our guests!” Sari gasps. “You’re so weird! Why do you chase ladies like this?”
“Because they’re lovely and soft and squishy!” Kiyomi grins.
“No!” Emi screams.
Sari looks down at her down chest pressed against Kozuke’s arm, though his eyes are focused firmly on Madoka, concern painted all over his face. Sari sniffles and her lower lip trembles as she pouts.
After the feast arrives, everyone moves to proper positions around the table. Sari remains seated next to Kozuke as servants set platters down on the table and set the table quickly. Emi sits with her face flaming. She covers her face. Madoka blushes, hiding behind her hands as well.
Madoka peeks at the feast. There are many dishes of vegetables, seafood, rare meats, hotpot, chicken, fish and pickles, all classic, and yet an odd, slightly sweet smell rises up from the meal set before them. The servants, Madoka notices, are a variety of types of youkai that look mostly human, male and female. Emi grins at a particularly handsome catman with deep blue shaggy hair.
Kiyomi notes Emi’s expression as she eyes the servant setting a platter of sashimi in front of her.
“Tch…” Kiyomi frowns.
Suddenly, before anyone has started to eat, Sari takes a pair of chopsticks, lifts up a big bite of fried chicken, and raises it up to Kozuke’s mouth with a shy expression.
“Say ah!” Sari says with a blush. When Kozuke looks at her with a stunned expression, Sari presses it firmly against his mouth. “It’s good, isn’t it, Kozuke-sama?” she giggles.
“A pureblood kitsune like yourself should not dally with a mutt without a pedigree,” Kiyomi criticizes Sari.
“Why are you so mean to Kozuke-sama?” Sari cries.
Kozuke sighs and opens his mouth to accept Sari’s offering. Sari blushes and squirms, overcome with her joy.
“Because he’s a mutt dog. There is no comparison between ourselves and him.” Kiyomi frowns.
“That girl is a mundane human woman.” Sari pouts. “She is far below the level of my Kozuke-sama!” Sari states. Kozuke looks away uncomfortably from her shining eyes.
“Don’t speak that way of my mistress. She is the one and only shrine maiden of Kami Fujitabanare-sama!” Kozuke gently corrects Sari.
“Th-that isn’t… that can’t be…” Sari gapes.
“It is very true. My special Madoka-chan is a very important person,” Kiyomi points out firmly.
“Sh-she was that important? I’m so sowwy!” Sari mewls, and relapses into undignified speech. She bows again by force of habit and she slams her head against the table in front of her. She mewls loudly, and straightens, a smashed mess of sashimi all over her forehead.
“Oh nuuuu… I mweshed up againeeee…” Sari mewls, her accent slipping further into a childish lisp. “Kozuke-shaamaaaaaaa!” she bawls.
Despite the interruptions, the four fill themselves from the feast, and after a time, Sari stands and moves to a sliding door nearby, opening a closet, in which futons are piled up inside with folded up bedding in storage units. She removes several yukata, and return to the table, in turn, offering each a same-colored yukata with the same patterns on them, stones and clouds resembling cloud-surrounded mountains, blue and white.
Madoka gestures to reject the offering when Kozuke brings her expensive gifted yukata seemingly from nowhere. Sari examines the yukata and shakes her head. “Oh no! Please don’t stain your beautiful yukata, important guest. Accept our yukata. It should be the right size,” she murmurs. Madoka blinks and nods, finally accepting the offered yukata.
Emi accepts hers with a smile. “They seem lovely,” she comments, smiling warmly at Sari. Sari returns the warm smile with a little bow.
Afterwards, Sari hands one to Kozuke, and her eyes linger on him for a long moment, but she looks away and turns red from head to toes. She haltingly shows them to the other door in the room, sliding the door open to show a luxurious massive private hot spring. She kneels at the door, not looking back into the room, though she twitches as she waits. Madoka gasps, and Emi looks at Kozuke with widened eyes. He laughs and turns his back like a gentleman. “Please proceed, ladies.”
“Such good manners for a mutt-butler,” Kiyomi comments with a chuckle. Unlike him, her gaze lingers on Madoka and Emi as they change their clothes. They each stiffen as they notice her gazing at them. She doesn’t attempt to molest them again while nude, though her eyes sparkle.
“This is the reason why I love the onsen.” Kiyomi grins, drooling.
Once they’ve changed, Sari seems to be relieved.
The spring is ultra natural, surrounded with greenery, lined with artistic polished stones with high bamboo walls surrounding it. Inside of it are large polished stones to offer some degree of privacy while in the bath. Outside sits a basket containing oranges. By it are two pitchers with six small cups and six larger cups.
Sari leads the way to the onsen and goes to her knees next to the hot spring; she looks at the four and smiles, trying not to let her eyes linger on Kozuke.
Madoka and Emi walk over to the hot spring, their eyes sparkling as they gaze at the steaming hot water.
“Wait… is this a co-ed bathing situation?” Emi gasps.
“If you aren’t comfortable with it, I will keep my eyes averted, ladies. Please enjoy yourselves. We are not here for me. We’re here for you, but I would ask you to behave yourself, perverted fox.” Kozuke glares at Kiyomi.
“What do you mean?” Kiyomi asks with exaggerated innocence. She chuckles. “No promises, Butler-Lion-Dog-sama.”
“If you do anything improper you will find my teeth in your scruff, fox,” Kozuke warns Kiyomi.
“Your threat is clear, mutt.” Kiyomi shrugs and pats Madoka’s head. “Don’t worry about me,” she reassures Madoka. “Nor you, Emi-chan.” She smiles warmly at Emi.
Emi shivers from head to toes, not reassured at all by her words.
“Onee-sama, Mistresses, would you prefer hot sake or milk?” Sari inquires.
“I… I’m underaged.” Madoka blinks, staring at Sari.
“That doesn’t matter, honored Shrine Maiden. In this world there are no laws. You may enjoy our fine sake, if you wish,” Sari murmurs.
“Sake for me, of course, little cousin.” Kiyomi smiles warmly at Sari, stepping over to her.
“Milk,” Madoka murmurs, blushing.
“I would like to try the sake.” Emi grins.
“Take care, you wouldn’t want to get drunk for the first time in your young life,” Kozuke warns Emi, his back still to the girls.
“Awww… will you truly not bathe, Kozuke-sama?” Sari complains as she pours drinks for the three. She hands them their drinks, and they accept them in turn, Emi with a slightly naughty smile as she accepts her sake cup, Madoka gratefully accepting her milk. Kiyomi grins at Emi approvingly, promptly downing her sake. Emi sips at hers gingerly with a little little giggle. Madoka looks at her with a raised eyebrow. Emi shrugs and grins in return.
“I hope you are enjoying it, important guests!” Sari blushes, noting Kozuke stiffening at her question. “And please disrobe, honored guests. Please now enjoy the bath!” she murmurs, fidgeting a little, casting a glance at Kozuke again.
Madoka hesitates, but finally unties her obi and hesitatingly lets her yukata fall away.
“Use the baskets set out to keep your yukata dry. There are towels if you wish to preserve your modesty,” Sari suggests.
“I think I will use one.” Madoka drops her Yukata in a basket and wraps a towel about her chest and body. Kiyomi watches, licking her lips.
Emi nods and does the same, quickly wrapping her body in a towel. Kiyomi immediately steps into the bath.
“Please join us in the bath, little cousin. I invite you to break decorum.” Kiyomi smiles.
“No… but I could not, Onee-sama!” Sari mews.
“There is the decorum I was waiting to see.” Kiyomi grins. “But I entreat you to join us. Consider it an order from your elder,” she murmurs.
“Just how old are you?” Emi gapes as she and Madoka step into the bath and they gasp happily as they sink down into the luxurious warm water.
“A lady never tells,” Kiyomi responds, with an annoyed expression. She sinks down into the hot water with a happy sigh, completely nude, her silvery tail flitting as she sinks into the water. Sari eyes Kozuke again.
“Will you truly not join them, Kozuke-sama?” Sari mews.
“It would be best not to, but feel free to take my place, little one,” Kozuke murmurs, eyes closed as he sits cross legged on a nearby stone, his back to everyone. Sari raises up and brings a cup of sake to him, offering it to him, putting a hand on his arm. Kozuke’s eyes open briefly. He nods to Sari with a little smile, accepting the cup, and looks away.
“No, Kozuke-sama! I will accompany your great and lonely self,” Sari murmurs.
Meanwhile Madoka sighs and grins, sunk down to her neck in the hot water. She grins at Emi and Emi grins back. Madoka blushes suddenly as though realizing that she had taken her clothes off entirely in front of Emi, and even Kiyomi. Emi grins, seeming to know what is on her mind.
The three ladies relax in the hot water and Madoka blinks, realizing that Kiyomi stands behind her. She expects Kiyomi to grab her, but she senses the aura of Kozuke surge, and Kiyomi doesn’t make a move.
“How are you enjoying yourselves, cuties?” Kiyomi asks with a satisfied purr.
“It’s a lovely onsen…” Emi murmurs. “I’m happy that it’s just us and no strange people are in our bath.”
“I’m so happy that you aren’t bundling me up in that category.” Kiyomi grins.
“But someone weird is here in our bath,” Madoka complains.
“That cuts deeply, Madoka-chan.” Kiyomi sighs.
“Do you feel anything, mistress?” Kozuke calls out.
“Feel anything? Like what? Like youkai, Kozuke-san?” Madoka asks. “Nothing like that… I only felt something dangerous on the streets outside.”
“That’s normal in a large crowd of youkai,” Kozuke murmurs. “I’m referring to your spiritual energy. The feast should have charged your energy a little, but the water should help as well.”
Madoka yawns suddenly. “No… I don’t feel anything, Kozuke-san,” she murmurs.
“I don’t blame you for being tired.” Emi comments, patting Madoka’s shoulder.
“Wouldn’t Tatsuo be jealous if he found out about this?” Madoka asks, stifling her yawn.
“It’s fine if you fall asleep, Mistress. To make the most of our time, we will stay tonight at the onsen. Your training truly starts when you wake,” Kozuke remarks.
“No... I don’t want to sleep… I want to be able to… do more.” Madoka yawns, closing her eyes. She chews her lip, thinking about her lack of strength and Aoi.
Goshujinsama! Don’t worry about it. It will come when it comes. You can’t rush it. Why do you think so much of someone such as I? Aoi’s voice comes.
Why? It’s because you’re important to me. Don’t you understand? Even if you aren’t that Aoi, you are still Aoi. Do you get it? I see that happiness of my other self in flickers. I see what they have, Madoka replies softly in her mind.
Do not forget that I am a nonentity, an unbirthed spirit. There is no way into the world for one such as I, Aoi replies.
Don’t say that. I will be your door into the world. You deserve more, Aoi-chan! Madoka replies, her mind’s voice throbbing with emotion.
Aoi seems to draw away from Madoka, suddenly, taken aback by Madoka’s words.
“No… don’t run away from me… oh… please don’t… I just want to be closer to you… Please…” Madoka sobs softly.
“That is not a healthy obsession,” Kozuke murmurs. “A shikigami does not know how to respond to such feelings,” he admonishes Madoka gently.
Madoka’s legs wobble, and she suddenly drops into the hot water. She nearly faints, surrounded by the hot water, and she yelps, choking on water as she feels a hand on her ankle, pulling her underwater like an undertow. Madoka struggles, drowning, suspended in the water, hearing nothing and seeing nothing as she feels her energy being sapped away.
