“My name… is Luise. Nice to meet you all.”
It is the first name that came to mind, just a random thought.
For a moment, there was absolute silence, and then in the next:
“Oh thats such a cute name!”
“Are you from the kingdom of glesco?”
“Is your hair naturally white?”
“Your eyes are pretty”
“How is it, being a human?”
“How did you get here?”
My poor poor ears.
“Settle down children, I think you all may be making her uncomfortable.”
Ms. May, you are a lifesaver.
One by one they all asked me some of their questions. The main ones being questions about the color of my hair and eyes. Turns out white hair and eyes are fairly rare, usually only common in dusk elves, angels, and a handful of species of demons. Because of that I got asked some questions about who my parents were.
Afterwards we all ate dinner and I was told the daily schedule. Wake up, eat breakfast, attend class, have lunch, free time, dinner, and then sleep. Cycle repeats. For a majority of kids apparently they spend their free time socializing and playing games. The first free time I get I am taking a trip to that guild Nicole mentioned.
“Luise sweetie, would you like the top bunk or bottom?”
“Top please”
“Alright, let me set up your sheet”
“No thanks, I can do it myself”
“awww, you’re such a big girl. Well, if you need me feel free to call!”
I wonder how long it would take before I would get used to being talked to like a child. With that Ms. May left the dorm room making sure to leave the pillow and blanket with me. This would be my first night of sleep outside of the abyss, I wanted to savor it.
“Ummm… Luise?”
I could hear a faint voice of a little girl below my bed. Looking over the rail I could see Gabriella, or Gabbie, as she preferred to be called.
“Yes, What is it?”
“How does it feel like to be a human?”
Ah, I guess that is something she would be interested in. Gabriella is a beastgirl just like most of the others here. Actually, now that I think about it I may be the only human in this orphanage. Although whether I am truly a human right now is something I am not sure myself. Still, how do I even answer a question like that?
“Hmm… Well before I respond, how does it feel like to be a beastgirl?”
“Huh? Umm… I guess it feels alright, I like that I can use my tail as a pillow sometimes”
Yeah… her tail looks like it would be a really good pillow.
“What about the sounds you hear, the colors you see. How does it feel to pick things up, how hard is it to learn different subjects?”
“Uhhhh thats a little hard for me to answer”
“Hehe, well that's kinda how I feel right now. Sure, as a human my ears are on the side of my head instead of on top and I don’t have a fluffy tail that I could use as a pillow, but there is obviously more than that. The average strength of a beastman is greater than that of a regular human. What you could probably pick up no sweat I may struggle with. Also, your eyes are different as well. Look in my eyes, what shape is the black part of my eye?”
“Uhh, its a circle.”
“Correct, and your eyes are more like thin ovals. That affects how well you see the world around you. What you consider bright I may consider dim as your eyes are better as seeing things in the dark. Humans also have shorter lifespans than beastfolk do if I remember correctly. To make up for this we mature and learn at a much greater rate than other races do. Because there are so many differences and I don’t really know how it feel to be a beatman, I find it a little hard to answer.”
I don’t quite remember where I learned any of this, but I have a faint memory of someone explaining it. It was already night so the room was dark, I could barely make out where the walls ended and the floor began, yet I could see the dust floating in the air perfectly fine. I guess my vision was more attuned to movement rather than light. I cannot help but wonder how she sees the world.
“Hey Luise.”
“Yes?”
“How old are you?”
“Ten. Why do you ask?”
“You’re pretty smart. I thought you were older.”
I wonder how old I really am…
Gabbie asked me a couple more questions before eventually moving to her own bed to sleep. I climbed back on top of my bunk and began trying to follow the grains of wood in the ceiling above me.
A question surfaced in my mind. How does it feel like to be a human? Can I even call myself a human now? After all, I look like a human and my abyssal abilities were sealed, but does that make me a human? I really wish I could get my memories back as soon as possible. Millions of other questions followed after that and before I knew it the sun was up.
“Luise, get up! Time for breakfast!”
I heard Nicole’s voice calling me. Seems I wasn’t able to even get a wink of sleep. Oh well, I guess it's time to see what they have for food here.
“Coming Nicole!”
Heading downstairs I met Nicole and we both walked into the dining hall. She chose to sit where she told me she likes to sit, right next to Ms. May. As for me I found a nice spot in one of the corners farthest from the door. I could see the entrance to the room along with the door that leads to what I assume to be the kitchen. I don’t know why but I didn’t quite feel comfortable with my back to any of the doorways.
After everyone sat down we all said some sort of prayer. I had no clue what they were saying but I mumbled something similar to not seem rude. I’ll make sure to ask Nicole about it later. Afterwards Ms. June walked in carrying plates, seeing her being troubled by the weight I rushed in to help her.
“Ms. June, let me carry that for you”
“Huh? Oh, Luise. Thank you very much, you can hand that plate to May”
I know I told them my name was Luise but it still felt weird being called that. Well, it is something that I am going to have to get used to.
Looking at the plate that I grabbed from Ms. June I could see some sort of meat. Maybe beef? Pork? Not completely sure, but I was sure that if I wasn’t careful the sauce that covered the meat would spill on the group.
“Here Ms. May. uh, if you don’t mind me asking, what type of meat is this?”
“Oh, sorry sweetie, I forgot to ask if there was anything you don’t eat. If I remember correctly Mr. Johnston gave us Coyote today. Is that fine with you?”
So there are coyotes within the woods here. I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if Goddess Lenora chose to drop me off just a tad deeper into the woods.
“Yeah, I can eat Coyote. Actually, it sounds and looks tasty.”
Seemingly satisfied by my answer she gave me a smile before taking the plate and placing it in the center of the table. Immediately all of the kids began taking portions to put onto their own plates.
I gotta admit, I was a little skeptical of eating Coyote of all things but it was not that bad. After we finished eating and everyone cleaned up their plates it was time for classes. So, I guess it's time to see what Ms. May is going to teach us for my first day here.
“Alright class, so today we are going to be reviewing our multiplication”
Math, huh. I don’t quite remember anything too complicated but if it's just multiplication I should be fine. Hm… I think I originally learned multiplication a little younger than ten, here’s hoping I don’t make a fool out of myself.
“So, Haru, what is six times five?”
Everyone immediately turned around and began looking at the girl that Ms. May called upon. The poor girl was counting on her fingers and looked like she was a little afraid of everyone looking at her, something I can certainly understand.
“Uhh is it thirty?”
“Correct, well done Haru.”
I could immediately see her face wash over with relief. Guess this girl really hated the spotlight.
“Nicole, can you answer a question too? How about seven times three?
“Ummm… is it twenty four?”
“Close, but not quite. Luise, will you be able to answer it?”
A bit odd to ask someone to answer a question on their first day, but I assume it is Ms. May’s way of learning where I sit in terms of education.
“Ms. May, it is twenty one, correct?”
“That is indeed correct, well done.”
Overall the class was relatively boring. Today was entirely focused on multiplication with the occasional addition and subtraction problem sprinkled in. The entire time I was thinking of what I was going to do after lunch.
Finishing class we all exited the classroom and re entered the dining hall to see that the older kids and Ms. June were already there. We all went straight to eating once everyone sat down so I guess the prayer thing is only for breakfast. For lunch we had coyote again, but this time it was made into a type of sandwich with lettuce. Instead of the bread for the buns that I would expect, it was replaced by some potato-like vegetable that was cooked with a char.
Finally after everyone finished eating it was free time. The part of the day that I was most excited for.
“Alright kids, free time starts now. Make sure you all stay out of the forest and return here when it gets dark!”
“Alright Ms. May!”
As soon as she let us out I immediately headed outside and began heading towards the guild. Uh… I kinda forgot to ask Ms. May or any of the kids where it was before leaving… I really hope they have a sign.
