I was shocked when the man mentioned his name, 'Mark? That name seemed way too familiar; I… I feel like my father has mentioned that name to me before.' I realized that my mouth was agape as I closed it.
I regain my composure, and I speak up, "You're the man that my father mentioned to me; you were the one that helped him win the first war between humans and half-animals."
Mark moves his head up and down, agreeing with what I just mentioned.
"That would be true; I used to be a scientist, researching about half animals—That's how your father and I met. Your father was used as an experiment to see what half animals could take and what would not work against them, he was near death, so I saved him. That's how we became friends and helped each other along the way. I may be human, but I am a very skilled individual."
I sat there listening to what he said, 'So this man saved my father's life? I wonder how my father must have felt, meeting humans for the first time and being attacked and almost killed; he's brave for what he did.'
"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Mark; My name is Maya, Okamis's Daughter. My animal name is Junsuina Chi." I give a gentle smile to him; I reach my hand out, gesturing for a handshake.
Mark looked surprised at first at mentioning me as Okamis's Daughter; he was surprised by something else too. He happily takes my hand in his, agreeing that it was nice to finally meet me.
"Okami, I see you found your mate; I'm so happy for you," Mark said as he turned towards my father. I remember my father mentioning something like that to me.
Mates are considered the boyfriend/girlfriend system to animals, but they were made for each other by birth, and if you are separated from them or rejected, it will put that animal in immense pain. That was something I didn't want to feel.
Suddenly my head shoots up, my eyes growing wide. I heard police officers, and I couldn't tell if they were close to us or not. The fact that I heard police sirens not too loud but not too quiet either scared me.
My actions didn't go unnoticed by my father, "Maya, are you alright?" I turned my head towards my father—the look of shock written all over my face. I shook my head from side to side; I took a deep breath and explained everything.
"Over the years, doctors diagnosed me with something called 'Hyperacusis,' meaning is sensitive to sound, meaning when people whisper, it sounds as if they were talking to me" I never thought I would be telling my father this. Still, I guess it was about time that I did.
I could hear my father chuckle, 'Why is he laughing at me? I didn't think it was funny that I have a disability.'
'There must be a reason he is; he wouldn't just laugh at you for no reason; Okami is better than that.'
I sighed; Junsuina Chi was right; my father wouldn't randomly laugh at me; that doesn't seem like something he would do. I look over in Mark's direction; it seems like I was not the only one who was confused by this.
"Maya, Purebloods are different than Halfbloods; Although half animals have better hearing than humans do, Purebloods have greater hearing than Halfbloods." Okami paused, it seemed he wanted to say more, but he was hesitant, 'Why is he hesitant? Is it something bad?' the tension grew more as time passed without speaking; my father then finally spoke up.
"Maya, Purebloods are the true head species, Making them the true strongest animal in the world, which gives you a higher status than me. I wasn't hesitant in saying this because I'm afraid to be brought down to a lower status; I'm still king, but you are considered the queen of the half animals, made to rule next to me. This is different from couples; our system works differently than humans think."
Tears were forming in the corner of my eyes, 'How could I be the strongest animal in the world? Look at me; I'm a nobody who was bullied all their life.'
It felt like all of this was some kind of dream; everything was happening so quickly; one moment, I was being bullied at school; I bit into a girl's arm and sent her to the hospital.
I then get told I'm half-animal, specifically Pureblood, And then get told that the true king is my father, and now I'm being told that I'm the strongest animal in the world.
This all didn't seem real, I knew it was, but I wanted to imagine it wasn't. I was put through so much pain and distress just getting to this point in my life; I didn't know how much more I could handle.
My father comes closer to me, rubbing circles on my back. This feeling was oddly comforting as it allowed me to calm down.
"Maya, The birth of you was the birth of that new species. Which means you are currently the only recorded Pureblood in existence."
This news was interesting to me, 'So this means if I die, my Species will be extinct.'
I shivered at the thought; I did not want that to happen to me, which means I need to learn not to be afraid fast, or else I'm going to be killed quickly.
"When you were born, the whole world went into chaos, only because the news of a new species being born spread throughout the city. The news made them fear us; they weren't sure what would happen next."
I looked over to Mark as Okami told us all this information; he took in all of this information.
"So you're saying that when your mate gave birth to Maya, that was the cause of all the abrupt chaos happening in the city?" Mark questioned Okami; my father shook his head up and down, confirming the information.
Looking at Okamis's nonverbal response, Mark runs a hand through his hair; he speaks up to my father once more. "The whole world seems to be against Half Animals, So why did creating a stronger species help out our situation?"
My father turns toward Mark and me before answering Mark's question. "Maya's Birth was considered a blessing towards me; after what I had done to save my kind, Both Maiya and June were sent to help me save and protect this world."
I see Mark nod to my father's answer, but I had a question to ask my father this time.
"What if the whole world goes into chaos again after restoring it?'
My father shook his head and told me that it would not happen again. "I would say that it is my fault that the whole world went into chaos again; I thought that I could win this battle easily and that everything would be normal again.
I didn't think that humans would get greedy about their positioning, But I was taught that patience is key and that I would need to keep fighting for my freedom. You and your mother taught me that; you and she helped remind me that I have to fight for my kind to be free truly, that nothing will ever be perfect. No matter how hard I try to make things perfect."
When my father mentioned that my mother and I had helped him open his eyes to the truth, I cried. I gave him a big hug, clenching his soft orange fur. He put his arms around me, gladly accepting the hug.
We both pulled away, and I wiped away my tears; I had another question to ask him.
"You told me that Purebloods are the strongest animal in the world, that I would be of higher status than you. What makes me greater than you, though?" I was still confused by all of this information, and I wanted answers to as many questions as I had time to ask.
My father notices that I am still confused as he takes the time to think before giving me an answer.
"Well, for starters, you're faster, have better hearing, And have a lower chance of being killed. You have a human and animal form which means you can blend in without people questioning you, and your human form is just as strong and capable as your animal form."
I was surprised with the number of things I was capable of doing or achieving. Okami looked at my expression and smiled at me.
'And there's even more, to discover along the way."
Hearing my father say those words helped me gain more confidence; I remembered something when he talked earlier. My father references Junsuina Chi as June; I wondered what the reasoning behind it was
"When you spoke about Junsuina Chi, you referenced her as June; why is that?"
Okami laughs at my question but answers me nonetheless.
"Junsuina Chis is her full name; it's long, so I always called her by her nickname 'June' when she was young; she loved the nickname" I processed his answer, thinking deeply about it, 'Wait, so, Junsuina Chi was born by Okami, so that meant I must have been born by him as well or was I truly a host."
'Does that mean that Junsuina Chi is your child, and I'm the host, making me your daughter?" I feel like the question seemed obvious, but I still wanted to ask to be sure. In one of the books, I read that there is such thing as Half Animal symbiotes, which means that a half-animal form can take over a body and use it as a host.
My father continues to smile at me, "Both of you are my children, Maya; you were the firstborn human, and when you came of age, June started to develop, which is when your Half-Animal traits should have started; showing."
Okami then sat up from the sofa; Mark and I did the same thing. My father sighs and stretches, "I think it's best to head back now; we don't want the others worrying about us."
Mark and I agree as I get ready to head out with my father. "Why don't you come back with us, Mark? I'm sure the others would love to see you again."
Marks nods once more as he gets his things together, leaving a note for his wife, so she knows where he is going.
I see my father looking outside the window, the moonlight shining through. Okami nods his head as I see him get down on all fours; Mark then puts his backpack on his back and gets onto Okami's back, making sure he has a good hold on him.
My father then turns his head towards me, motioning for me to turn into my animal form.
"Come on, let's go for a run. I'm sure Junsuina Chi is desperate to stretch her legs."
I nod as I turn into my animal form; the two of us run outside. With the light breeze of wind hitting my face, my father then laughs as he dashes off in the direction of the woods.
I give him a slight chuckle and chase after him at a quick speed.