I don't know exactly how much time I spent crying, but this girl has been accompanying me the whole time. I don't know what to talk about with her, though. She sits next to me, on the bed, and I can only look at her once every so often in silence.
She keeps her left arm around my shoulders, gently hugging me by her side. About 10 minutes pass, and I notice that she's been looking at my ears and tail constantly. She's also looking for something in my hair, at the side of my head. I don't understand what that's about either.
Although I just met her, I want her to stay with me like this for a while. It feels so relaxing, when she cares for me like this.
"Ah, I haven't introduced myself, have I? I'm Maria, and as you can see, I'm a human! I'm also registered at the guild as an adventurer!"
As if trying to raise my mood, Maria introduces herself in a cheerful tone. Maria... Where have I heard that name before?
"I'm Mimin, and I'm a beastkin. Nice to meet you."
"Oh wait, I just introduced myself as an adventurer. Um... Do you know what I mean by that?"
"Eh?"
What's wrong? Are you asking me if I know who an adventurer is? If I remember correctly...
"An adventurer is someone who risks their lives completing dangerous requests from the guild, because nobody else wants to. Right?"
"W-Well... That's one way to put it... So you do understand. That's a relief."
What's with this awkward mood all of a sudden... Maria looks at my ears and tail again, probably because I just introduced myself as a beastkin. She looks like she wants to do something.
"Um, so... What kind of beastkin are you? There's many different kinds of beastkin, right?"
"Yeah, you're right. I-"
...Why do I have a bad feeling about answering that question? Should I not tell her that I'm a beastkin of half Silverwolf and half White Fox?
"-I... I'm actually not sure about that myself..."
I decide to hide it from her, for now. I feel like that's probably the right thing to do here.
"Is that so? Then, where do you live? Who are your parents? If you want, I can bring you home?"
"I... I don't..."
It hurts... Why does my chest hurt so much again? As much as I try to speak, my voice keeps getting stuck in my throat, and I can't finish my answer.
"Ah... Don't say anything, I understand... It's just that, I was hoping that this wouldn't be the case..."
Maria puts more strength into her left arm, hugging me more tightly, and she remains silent for a while again. She already knows what my answer is.
"I'm sorry... for your loss."
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"That said, if you really don't know what kind of beastkin you are, there's not really much I can do to help you find out..."
"It's fine. Thank you."
Maria takes another look at my ears and tail again, this time she seems to have many questions that she wants to ask.
"Silver colours... Fox ears and tail? What kind of fox has silver fur like this? Red and blue eyes... I don't know any beastkin with these traits... How mysterious..."
I let her continue examining me for now, as I don't have a bad feeling about this like earlier. She probably won't find out exactly what kind of beastkin I am, from just looking at me.
"Um... If it's fine with you, can I touch your fur?"
"Yeah, I don't mind."
Maria puts her hands around my tail, caressing the fur with her fingers. The warmth of her fingers are comforting to feel, and I start to relax, focusing on her touch. She strokes my tail gently, in one direction, outwards to the tip, in a way that actually feels really good. I can probably fall asleep to this if I'm lying down on the bed...
Then, she shifts one of her hands from my tail, to my ears. She presses my ears against my head gently, stroking my ears from the base to the tip, being careful to not mess up my fur. Then, she pats me on my head in between my ears and...
"Uwa!"
A weird sound came out of my mouth.
"W-What's wrong? Did I do something weird?"
"No, it's just... It feels so good..."
What is this... This is bliss! Why does a headpat between my ears feel so good...?
"You mean... You've never gotten a headpat like this before? What kind of... How... This is basically what..."
Maria is saying something, but I can't focus on the conversation anymore... This headpat is taking up all of my attention because of how good it feels! I'm really going to fall asleep from this if it continues...