Chapter 11: Chapter 11: Charming

To Sune’s dismay, Fang and Hollie aren’t back yet. And out of boredom she goes downstairs to pass through the rest of the night with the tavern staff and patrons. Kumiho stays in the room and begins picking at the red and black plaid skirt Sune made her wear for the whole day, “Cold...” She looks down at the boxes in the corner of the room filled with the neatly folded clothes they bought earlier in the day. Walking over she picks out a long pair of black cloth pants that she quickly slides on with the skirt still on. She fiddles with the elastic skirt for a moment before sliding it off her legs and getting back into bed. She pulls up the soft covers and begins reading the language book Oswin gave her while quietly whispering each word and their syllables to herself. While doing her nightly reading she hears a loud crash that silences the entire tavern. She quickly runs down the stairs and sees a scene that makes her blood silently boil, her face becoming increasingly cold.

Sune sits in a puddle of red wine with clear glass shards scattered across the ground, her white shirt stained red, her unfocused eyes staring at her right hand with shards of glass still stuck and small streams of blood flowing down her hand. Her black skirt beginning to stain with a dark red that only gets redder the longer it sits within the puddle of blood and wine. A mocking voice proudly travels through the wooden tavern, “You do realize that a clear glass of that quality is worth more than you, right gemang? How will you repay me?” The voice comes from a familiar affluent brunette woman who wears a black strapless minidress that tightly wraps around and accentuates her hourglass figure.

The cloud haired girl shivering under the piercing dark pink eyes, “I’m sorry... I can pay...” Her voice frail as her eyes remain unfocused.

“That glass alone is a gold aelf at least, not even mentioning the cost of that aged wine all over you. Can you really pay that? A Reynard mix like you has that kind of money?” She pulls out a black fan with a pink butterfly and uses it to cover her sneer from the eyes of the many onlookers.

The tavern goes silent for a long moment, only being broken by the harsh sound of the wooden legs of three separate chairs sliding across the wood floors. Three rough looking men that Kumiho recognizes as the drunkards she fed earlier that day walk up to the small woman, even the smallest of the three men two heads taller than the petite brunette.

The affluent woman pivots and turns to the three men, her movements hypnotic and alluring, her eyes glow a dark pink. “Hello boys~” Her enchanting voice strangely echoing through the ears of the tavern patrons. A force pulls on all the tavern goers' hearts, as if she was tugging on their very souls. The three men watch the vivacious woman’s enchanting movements, their pupils beginning to tinge with a light pink that only grows darker the more they look. All eyes trained on the woman and all eyes absolutely enamored with her every movement: the gentle sway of her hips; the wafting of her hair through the air; the fluttering of her eyelashes; the light bounce of her bust; the gliding of her tongue across her luscious lips, and the way her lips part into a charming smile. Everything she does is watched by the men with fervor, their gazes glued to her slim figure. The more they look the more they notice and the more they notice the more they can't look away. Before they even realize, they begin focusing on her body more than anything, the rest of the world disappearing as they watch drops of sweat slide down her clear skin and how her tight black dress sticks to her form. The dazzling gleam of her eyes brightening as the watching patrons’ eyes grow a darker shade of pink. She closes the distance between her and the closest of the three standing men, closing her fan and bringing it up to his chin, lightly pushing it up. Her other hand tracing his body, the gentle touch causing shuddering breaths as she reaches all the way up and rests her hand on his cheek and presses her body against his. The man stands there like a stone statue, only moving his head to look down at the woman, his eyes glazed pink and face flushed red.

“Did you need something~?” Her melodic voice paired with her loving gaze causes the man’s body to subconsciously shudder.

“Of… Course not ma’am…” His voice is lifeless as his fully pink pupils stare into the void of her black pupils.

“That's gr—”

“What are doing to them?” Sune’s broken voice spreading not only sound but also a faint pink mist that temporarily breaks the closer men out of their stupor.

The woman is shocked for a moment before she snaps her fingers, her eyes glowing bright and the men are returned to their earlier fervor, “How did you awaken so young?” She coldly speaks down to the white-haired girl who slowly stands up, her white tail stained with red wine.

Sune ignores her question and simply asks again, “What are you doing to them?” Her voice once again imbued with a faint pink mist that breaks even more men out of their stupor than before. The light in their eyes returning to normal as the pink fades but just as their eyes regain some clarity a snap rings out and they look towards the enchanting woman. All men who look quickly finding their clarity leaving once again as their eyes glaze and their pupils turn pink.

“Stop trying to snap them out of it.” Her irritation apparent as a thick dark pink fog begins to cover the ground and snuff out the light pink mist Sune unconsciously created.

“I'm not trying to do anything…?” Her voice frail and quiet, her eyes puffy and unfocused as she responds to the brunette with obvious confusion.

“You just awakened…? And your charm is already this strong…” The pink eyed woman mutters to herself before smiling coldly and snapping her fingers while using her fan to disperse the thick pink fog. “You're lucky there are rules a highborn must abide to. Learn how to more consciously control your gift and come to the capital. I promise you'll be in for a big shock if you do.” She turns and walks out the door, her quiet musing and tongue click barely heard by a certain red fox, “Tsk… It's truly a pity she awakened… but I’m fine with biding my time…” she hides her sinister smile behind her black fan as she walks out of the tavern, not even noticing the shadow trailing right behind her.

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Kumiho walks over to the dazed snow-white girl, she herself barely holding onto the clarity of her mind after being engulfed in the pink fog. Sune is a complete mess: a large red stain lies on the front of her pure white shirt; the back not much better with multiple glass shards sticking out of her back with red splotches and long drips of blood staining it. Her lower body in similar disorder: Her legs covered in glass shards and soaking wet in a mix of the two red liquids coating the floor; the ends of her black skirt stained with a dark red, and her white tail still dripping with red wine. Sune stares listlessly at her blood covered right hand still filled with glass shards, her body beginning to rash wherever the wine sits.

“Sune…?” Kumiho quietly speaks to the listless Sune, lightly shaking her shoulders. The three men who originally stood up all begin regaining clarity within their eyes and begin to stare in shocked at the state of the young girl. Kumiho puts her neck under Sune’s unharmed left arm and begins to support her up the stairs, Kumiho lightly glowing with a visible red aura. One of the men offers to help and so too do Edith and the staff members. She simply asks for them some wet and dry clean rags/towels along with anything that can act as a bandage along with a jar of honey.

She sits the disheveled young girl on a dry towel that one of the staff members named Matilda brought up, instantly staining the white towel in two distinct reds. Edith hands Kumiho a wet rag as Kumiho begins to take glass shards out of Sune's right hand while wiping the wound clean with the wet cloth. Once she is certain all the dirt and wine on the wounds is gone, she grabs a clean rag and pours honey over it, gently spreading the honey all over her wounds with the rag before wrapping the whole hand in white bandages. She repeats those steps on Sune’s legs, but Sune begins to moan and groan in pain. Her entire body jerking and grunting at every touch.

“Kumi…? Is that—Ugh! Ow… That you Kumiho?”

While responding Kumiho continues to remove glass and wipe the wounds, each wipe and pull causes the white-haired girl to twitch and groan, “It is, Sune… Where else does it hurt? Besides where there are bandages already.” Kumiho’s tone is somber while she wraps Sune’s last honey coated leg in bandages.

“Uh… No… I mean, nowhere. It's fine everywhere else…” The snow-white-haired girl speaks while avoiding eye contact with Kumiho’s piercing green eyes.

“It is completely true that no other part of your body hurts.” Kumiho speaks oddly while examining Sune’s expression, which suddenly morphs into a grimace before she opens her mouth and begins gagging as if something absolutely disgusting entered her mouth. Kumiho seeing her reaction continues saying strange things while analyzing Sune’s reactions carefully. “Sune’s head and face do not hurt.” No change from Sune, “Sune’s upper body does not hurt.” Sune lightly grimaces with a twisting lip, “Sune’s back does not hurt.” Sune’s face twists even more as she looks increasingly disgusted, “It is completely true that Sune’s back does not hurt.” Sune gags in disgust while dry heaving saliva, “Sune’s ba—”

“Wait! WAIT! I lied!” she cries in fear while tears form in the corners of her eyes, “My back does hurt please don't say it again.” She pleads while tears begin falling from her eyes.

“Mhm, now turn around so I can fix it.” Kumiho’s voice is calm, but her eyes are filled with an intensity that causes Sune to cower.

“N-No! You can't see…” She mutters incomprehensibly to herself while grabbing her shoulders with her opposite hands, creating an “x” shape across her chest and lightly rocking back and forth. Edith along with the other staff members and the three men watch the scene somberly and leave without question when Kumiho quietly asks them to.

“you can't… you can't see… you can't…” She quietly mutters to herself.

“Sune.”

“Can't…”

“Sune!” Kumiho raises her voice and shakes Sune, her unfocused eyes refocusing on Kumiho's blurry silhouette.

“Huh…?”

“Can I see your back now Sune?” Kumiho tries to speak calmly but it can't fool Sune anymore.

“But it's gross…”

“That doesn't matter to me.” Her terse response causes Sune to flinch.

“Bu-but, what if you don't like me anymore once you know how gross I am.” She feebly whispers.

“Haa…” Kumiho sighs, “Look at this before you call yourself gross.” She silently pulls up her black knitted shirt to show her bare stomach: a large star shaped scar on her stomach that was crudely stitched shut. “The commander of the knight convoy that escorted me before I joined yours had the genius idea to take some of the ‘unnecessary organs’ from all the prisoners regardless of age. Most of us didn't make it and the commander got in trouble and was hung the same day for killing still useful prisoners.”

“I-I’m sorry.” Genuine sorrow emanating from her voice as a soft and calming pink mist fills the room.

“As Fang already told you: ‘we all carry some scars, there is nothing to be ashamed of’. You are no grosser than any of us.” Her voice is soft yet sincere, quiet, and yet, it rings louder in Sune’s head than anything said to her before.

“Okay…” She slowly turns around showing and shows her back: the white shirt stained with a few splotches of red blood and some longer stains of dripping blood; wherever the shirt is ripped or torn gives a small look at her bleeding back. Kumiho rolls up the back of Sune’s shirt and breathes out heavily upon seeing it. Sune’s back is covered in a multitude of scars: small ones, long ones, burn scars, scars from cuts, and the most prevalent scar that Kumiho is all too familiar with: scars obviously created by a strong whip to her back. Along with the scars are two thin patches of red and white fur, one patch is towards the bottom of her back and on the left, the other patch closer to the middle and on the right.

“I thought he was nice at first because he was always complimenting me...” Noticing Kumiho’s frown, Sune quickly stops and puts on a cordial smile, “But it's fine~! Everyone here is so nice to me and that man is gone. So it doesn't matter.” Sune tries to reassure Kumiho but all it does is make the girl frown more as she begins to gently take the glass shards out and wipe them with her third wet cloth; the other two nauseatingly bloody. Softly spreading honey across Sune’s quivering back Kumiho asks Sune to help her wrap the bandages by grabbing the end Kumiho hands her and wrapping it around her stomach before passing it back to Kumiho on her other side.

Sune quickly gets dressed into an oversized cotton sweater and soft cloth white pants that reach to her ankles. while Kumiho rests for a moment on the ground, still wearing the oversized black knitted shirt and long black pants. Her body absolutely filthy after taking care of Sune: her brow wet with sweat; the black cuffs of her shirt now a dark orange from a mix of honey and blood; the rest of her shirt and pants covered in plenty of splotches of red blood and sticky red tinged honey. Once she finishes wiping her hands clean of blood, she goes into the bathroom to properly clean her body while carrying some fresh clothes and a towel.