I franticly pushed off the Raiden Shogun as her actions heavily surprised me to the least, but I as drew away from her and franticly looked around the cave we were all in I mentally shorted out as a new voice made me freeze. "Oh Ei... Where did you steal that poor child?"
But as I looked over to the voice and saw the figure of Yae Miko looking at Ei with a teasing smile her face froze as she noticed the prominently displayed set of nine tails that untucked themselves from my hoodie.
"If anything wouldn't this be your child, Miko," Ei said tiredly before she sighed and looked between me and her longtime friend Yae Miko. "My sister Makoto in her final words asked me to take you in... What is your name young kitsune."
As I looked to the entrance of the cave and considered if I could just run away from here and to Mondstadt where all the least complicated people were, I answered Ei's question. "My name is Kurama. What do you mean by taking me in?"
"Ahem!" Yae Miko cut in with her smile tightening as she stepped behind me and gently held onto my shoulders with her soft hands. "Actually, I believe young Kurama should come with me. As a kitsune, he should be enlightened as to his responsibilities to the shrine, and I bet he would be just... scrumptious stuffed into a little Miko outfit." Miko said breathily into my ear making my shoulders roll in discomfort but before Ei could deny her a bright flash lit up the caves chamber.
"Woah!" Paimon cried out as I blinked in surprise as an Electro Vision was floating in front of me and wordlessly, we all looked to Ei who shamelessly huffed and gently pushed the floating Vision into my hands.
"Kurama, I see great potential in you. I won't see you being used to sell Miko's perverted little books that she shills to buy exorbitantly priced fried tofu of all things." The Electro Archon spoke as she pulled me away from Miko.
"Paimon wonders if we could keep him in our Serantea Pot... Paimon remembers Ningguang and Yelan like cute things." Paimon said in a conspiratorial tone with Lumine facepalming and glaring at Paimon as the goddess and Miko looked over at the now frozen form of Paimon.
"I know of Ningguang... She is a model businesswoman, but I didn't know she had a taste for... younger men." Miko said tittering as she covered her smile with her priestess fan.
"Enough of this babbling. After my trials, I wish to rest for a while. Kurama follow me back to the palace as that is where you shall live now henceforth." Ei said as she began pulling me out of the cave but seemingly knew I may very well bolt from her as she kept a firm yet gentle grip on my shoulders.
"Fine! I know when I am beat, but Ei... Know that I shall steal him away to my shrine one of these days while you leave the Shogun to take over!" Yae Miko's voice carried outside the cave.
Ei's body twitched and momentarily her grasp on me loosened as she muttered some curse about Yae Miko being an annoying fox or something, beneath her breath that I could hardly hear.
-
"Kurama, if she comes into the palace offering candy for you to go to her shrine with her... Don't go, she will make you dress up in girls' clothes and sell your image without consent." Ei warned me as we arrived in her palace at the back of Inazuma City.
"Sooo am I to simply loaf around in your palace or something?" I asked sarcastically as I was still reeling from the recent events.
Ei looked down to me and I saw a bit of smirk as she snorted. "Well, I am glad to hear you won't be a lay about, but no I will be teaching you how to control your vision, and seeing as you are a kitsune you will likely need Miko's lessons anyway if you want you use a catalyst as a weapon."
Then she sighed as she patted me on my head and pulled me against her, once again inadvertently burying my face into her ample chest as she spoke softly. "I don't know how I am to supposedly heal you and what relationship we will have but I will make sure you want for nothing here in this palace."
Feeling my kitsune instincts kicking I looked up to Ei with my soft golden eyes peering at her purple eyes as I murmured quietly. "Alright... Mommy."
Ei's eyes constricted and almost staggered in place, but I couldn't see the rest of her facial expressions as I was wordlessly tucked back in her chest as Ei shook in place for a moment before going eerily still.
"Say that again..." She commanded with a very odd light to her tone and I locked up nervously as my kitsune instincts told me my prank went too far and it was time to change into my smaller fox form and hide inside my mountain burrow for a couple decades.
Basically, it was screaming. 'I'm in danger.' In a deadpan autotune.
"Mommy?" I asked in confusion tilting my head to the side with my fox ears perking up and tilting with my head movement.
"Yes!" Ei cried out before coughing and stepped away from me. "Ahem, I mean yes Kurama I suppose I could take on a somewhat motherly role for you..." As she took my hand brought me into a room adjacent to the main hall and told me I was staying here.
"Now I must apologize Kurama, but I have important work to take care of for the next couple of hours. I will have my trusted subordinates bring us dinner later where we can discuss some things." She said and as she said discussing things, I saw her eyes flash with coldness before she looked back at me with a smile and patted me head gently brushing her fingers behind my ears as she whispered.
"I have a traitor I need to deal with before they leave Inazuma, my... distaste wasn't directed at you. It's just that you made me come to a mental realization and remembered an ungrateful abomination I spared before that dared to bite the hand that gave it existence."
Finally, she stopped petting my head and making my mind blank out at the pleasure of her well-practiced fingers playing with my ears, and her parting words affirmed my partially clear thoughts as she muttered darkly. "What he has may very well prove to be a delightful gift in any case."
I think Ei is going to kill Scaramouch and take back her gnosis...
-
I laid down on my futon atop the covers not even tired, but I was just staring at the ceiling as I tried to order my thoughts about what in hell was going on in my new life.
Honestly, before I was thrown into the future, I honestly planned on just going to Liyue as I could likely get a cushy job away from the nonsense of Inazuma and even live a phenomenal life with my long-life span accumulating funds and such maybe even marrying Ganyu or something if we were compatible.
But nope I had to follow my kitsune instincts and now I have a mother figure that I knew damn well was already attached to me due to my cute actions and acting dependent on her. So, I couldn't flee Inazuma with its constant storm going on, and with how she hadn't even lifted her travel restriction I couldn't get a chartered ride out of here that could actually take the rigors of the storm she had going around the islands.
A series of knocking rang out from my door and a voice followed. "Honored Guest, I have your dinner here."
'Uhh, where am I supposed to eat?' I thought looking around my ornately decorated room but with nothing hinting at a table for me to eat food at.
"Coming!" I called out as I got to my feet and slide open my door and saw a black-haired woman wearing an ornately decorated set of clothes with its midriff opened up showing off her body suit-covered under-boobs.
"Where am I supposed to eat this?" I asked blankly as Kujo Sara handed me a basket from the smell of which carried warm bread and probably smoked meat.
Kujo frowned and asked me to excuse her as she looked past me and seeing my ornate bedroom without a dedicated table eat upon, she instead asked me. "By the way who are you to the Shogun? No disrespect to the Almighty Shogun but you were given her longtime friend Yae Miko's room?"
For a moment I cursed Ei for being petty as Yae Miko would certainly prank or bring me trouble even for the supposed insult for taking her room even if she hadn't used it in years.
"Uhm Ei has adopted me as her son apparently?" I said awkwardly before I seemingly scrutinized the frozen figure before me. "Hey... You are the most trusted servant Mother referred to when it came to delivering my food, correct?"
Kujo Sara dropped to the ground in a deep bow as she realized with my kitsune heritage I may very well be the Shoguns adopted son while also being Yae Miko's son as she was the last known kitsune and was much venerated for her iron control of the shrine that none of the commissions could shake, and with the long friendship that the Shogun.
"I didn't know of your standing and respectfully ask for your forgiveness Lord!" She said as she knelt on her knee staring at the ground.
I sighed and then my long tails buried the woman in their heavenly softness for a moment before I quickly pulled them away as she spluttered in surprise. "There now I have punished you. But seeing as you are my mother's most trusted subordinate, may I ask you a favor?"
"My lord, anything you desire I will see done in the Shogun's honor!" She said proudly as she stood back up and when she mentioned the Shogun's honor, she placed her hand over her breasts making them jiggle with the motion.
"Yes well... Can you be my friend?" I asked quietly honestly feeling embarrassed a bit as I knew how isolated this life has been, literally living in a cottage beside a mountain and then thrown into a wonky time situation, I literally never had a single friend in this life... And boy is that depressing.
Kujo Sara reeled back as though struck and began to stammer about how it was improper, and I realized I was losing her as she couldn't imagine lackadaisically becoming so close to me and in turn the object of her worship the Shogun.
"Fine! Then you are now my big sister, and you cannot say no, or I will tell Mother than you hate me!" Then before she could deny or run away, I hugged her and pulled her into my room along with the food basket being carried on one of my tails.
"Come on and help me eat this food, there is obviously way too much!" I said cheerfully as I pulled the stammering tengu along with me to sit on the soft tatami mats of the floor to eat some food.
"Fine then!" Kujo Sara sighed explosively but I saw she wasn't angry or anything. If anything, she definitely began doting on me slightly when after we finished our food and I began the kitsune nightly ritual of brushing my tails before bed, she took over and I leaned against her with her large soft breasts acting as a headrest as she made my mind melt from her softly brushing my tails while softly humming.
A few minutes later I couldn't help but nod off against the older woman.
The next thing I knew was the feeling of Kujo Sara gently tucking me into my bed, but I wanted my scratches, I wanted her body warmth adding to my own, so I almost drunkenly grabbed her arm and pulled it against my chest. "Nooo don't let the Mikos get me big sister..." I muttered softly and Kujo Sara audibly had to hold in her strong giggles before she fondly sighed and laid down beside my futon on the mats of the floor as I held her arm.
"Very well I shall stay with you until you fall asleep my little lord."
I smiled and then I swiftly fell back asleep even deeper than before with the knowledge that I was safe for once. No longer would I need to worry about Hilichurls breaking into my cottage, nor did I need to worry about some bandit burning down said cottage simply to be an asshole.
I was home. I was safe. I now had family.