The more Sophia was drinking, and the more she was getting drunk from it, the more details the girl revealed of her old life in the previous world. She told them a lot about her sister and how much she missed her. After Canir agreed to deliver a letter from the blonde to her family to get the closure she was looking for, Sophia relaxed so much that she immediately fell asleep on Maya's lap. However, the alcohol might have helped a bit with that, as well.

The others chatted and drank for a good while longer, especially Fen was making the best out of the boost that let him enjoy alcohol even more while also reducing its negative side-effects.

The following morning started surprisingly early. Maya and Aura hadn't drunk that much in the first place. Canir is Canir, Fen got his possible hangover reduced, and Sophia was still immune to it in the first place. The wolves went to do the finishing touches to the lake while the couple was still with Canir.

"Hrmm..." The tiger had created a table and some stools with earth magic and was currently ruffling her hair while she was staring at a blank piece of paper. At the same time, she was also playing with a pen from her storage. "I have no idea what exactly I should write to my family... Wait, aren't I using a different language right now...?"

"Nah, you still know your old language," Canir answered her. "You just haven't used it since coming here, even though you hadn't realized. If the letters are for your family, you'll unconsciously use your old written language for real."

"Magic sure is weird." She had no better explanation. "So, if I start writing now, it'll be my old handwriting and language my family knows?"

"Yep." He only nodded. "To you, it'll look no different compared to what you've been doing the entire time since coming here, though."

"Like I said, weird... Well, whatever, let's get over with it..."

----------------

Way over two hours had passed since the tiger started working on the letters. Her face went through many emotions, if not all of them, during that time, and she overall seemed to be having a hard time.

"How... How is it going...?" Maya tried to approach her.

"Not... overly well... I think?" Sophia hung her head. "It's... It's gotten waaay too sappy..."

"Sounds fitting for you, though." She tried to make a little joke.

"Ahaha, fair enough..." The blonde let out a forced laugh in response.

"Can I take a look?"

"S-Sure, why not…?"

"Thank you..." Maya leaned over and took a look at the letters. "Ah... I can't read a single thing... What a jumbled mess of symbols... Are those real words? Looks more like art to me... Not the good kind, I want to add."

"Really...? It's the same I always write like, though?"

"Not at all! It's not even similar."

"Hello? Different language and stuff." Canir raised his arms. "Did no one listen to me?!"

"Hearing it and seeing it are two completely different things." The couple was in perfect sync.

"Okay, that's fair." He understood where the two were coming from. "Want to be able to read it, cat? I could bless you with the ability."

"Seriously?!" She got excited but also dubious. "Where's the catch?"

"A sharp and throbbing pain on your forehead for a while. I need to get physical for a blessing, after all. "

"He's really good at those flicks..." Sophia's forehead started hurting just by remembering it.

"I-I see... Wait, could Sophia and I speak in a language no one else knows here together, then? That would be pretty handy."

"No, spoken words would get automatically changed to this world's language without you even noticing."

"Aww..." The cat-girl looked disappointed.

"Written words could work with a bit of concentration, though. Well, it could also work when you're alone with her, as there would be no need for a translation in that case because both of you know the same language and no one else needs it, either. Safe for maybe some missing vocabulary here and there, maybe, that would fix itself when getting an explanation, though. Anyway, still, in that scenario, there's no need for a secret language in the first place, is there?"

"That's true... Well, alright, still good enough. Please hit me~." Maya brushed away her bangs and presented her forehead to Canir. "Wow, I never thought I would ever say those words."

"I didn't think your inner S would let you say that." Sophia had her own interpretation.

"Okay, one language blessing coming right up~."

"Thank you very mu- OUCH!" She wasn't able to finish her sentence as Canir moved closer and gave her a hearty flick before the cat-girl could even react. She also almost toppled over from the force. "That hurt!"

"Do you understand now why I punched him into another dimension after he did it to me without warning?" Sophia looked at her with a smug expression.

"Absolutely."

"I don't like where this is going..." He retreated a few steps from the couple.

"Anyway," As Maya had no intention to punch the overseer, for the time being, she simply ignored him. While nursing the sore spot on her forehead, she then focused on Sophia's letters again. "W-Wow, I can actually read it now! So weird..."

"W-Wow..." Maya wasn't sure what to say while taking a short break before picking up the second letter.

"..." Maya needed a moment. After she put down the letter, she wiped away a few tears that had run down her cheeks. "I miss my family..." It had quite an effect on her.

"Me, too..." Sophia had been silently crying ever since the cat-girl was reading her letters.

"I'm sorry!" Hearing those words, Maya pulled herself together and immediately stood up before hugging the tiger from behind. "Y-You did well with those letters... Especially the one for your sister is packed with emotions and love. It's easy to see how much she means to you. I'm sure she'll appreciate those words, too..."

"T-Thank you..." She was glad that her feelings seemed to be properly conveyed by the letter. Sophia then returned the cat-girl's hug by holding her arms, and the two stayed like that for a while, trying to keep their tears in.

Canir felt that he should give the couple some alone time to calm down and decided to go over to the wolves for the time being. He was sure it would take a while before the two would be back to normal again.

Teanam

Today we have some feels.

 

There's also a version of the illustration with a white background where the lighting feels a little different. 

Spoiler

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A big thanks to @San_plus_ on Twitter for giving us something different, way more emotional this time!

 

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Once again, a gigantic THANK YOU to everyone supporting the story on Patreon for making those illustrations possible!

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