"Alright, kids, listen up!" Kadiri demanded, making everyone stand at attention.
What even is my life now? Meioshi thought, sitting next to Omezo.
She didn't know how things came to this, but here she was in front of another of Kiyonobu's wives with a different cushion kanabo. It was cute really. Little roses were attached at the grip of the club and foliage stuffed like pillows or animals went up the body. At the end of the hilt, however, was a small box designed like a medical kit. Meioshi had a fondness for it and played with the box before Kadiri started yelling at everyone. When the stern wife frowned at the doctor, Meioshi straightened up and rushed to stand at attention with Omezo and three other oni children about Omezo's age. Homugi, Yuko, and Hasumi were seated outside of the "arena". It was a small space surrounded by different toys of a more violent variety. The toys weren't weapons per se, but they were cushioned sticks and swords, wooden shields covered by pillows, cushioned fighting gloves, and other things of that nature. Of course, little stuffed animals were surrounding them as well. Birds resembling hawks, a phoenix, or gumyōchō were spectators in this tournament that Meioshi was thrown into, but she wasn't nervous about the stuffed animals watching her as much as she was about Kiyonobu. He was seated next to Kadiri just staring at her like he was waiting for her to do something. It wasn't a creepy stare, though. It was quite the opposite. He seemed eager about all of this. He just didn't outwardly show it. Kadiri reminded Meioshi of the commanding officers on warfronts. Not all of them were bad people, but they were serious when they had to be. She had to have been an interesting mother. Hell, she's gotta be an interesting lover for the quiet Kiyonobu.
"Your father wants to see what you've learned in training. Remember the basics: offense, defense, evasion, and grab. No hair pulling or face shots. Body blows only. Little Meioshi," Kadiri called, earning the doctor's attention.
"Ah, yes, ma'am?" she replied, standing stiffly in the oni warriors' presence.
"It's Mother Kadiri," she growled before tilting her head with disapproval.
"Eh? Oh, so you're like a self-defense instructor!" Meioshi said cheerfully. She nodded before correcting herself and giving the demoness her best bubblegum smile, "I'll do my best, Mama Kadiri!" Panda eyes. A long inhale, quick turn to Kiyonobu, and a concerned look from Meioshi was all the proof anyone needed to verify that Kadiri... found Meioshi to be cute. Believing that she did something wrong again, Meioshi leaned over to Omezo and asked, "Did I say something bad?"
"Sister-mother likes seeing you happy," Omezo replied, shaking his head at the question. "She's really nice when you get to know her, and she's all about safety. That's why everything's got pillows!"
"Mommy gives us treats when we're good," one of the other children said. It was another little boy with fluffy hair like a dandelion. This child was specific about calling Kadiri his mother, so Meioshi assumed this boy was Kadiri's actual son. "You just have to practice her teachings as best you can."
"Kadiri," Kiyonobu softly called, giving his wife a quick glance before returning his sight to the children.
Kadiri shook her head rapidly, blushing minutely in the process, before saying, "Stop being cute! I am not to be softened up! These four children are your challengers and your future classmates as your knowledge of your oni heritage grows. Of course, you already met Omezo, the youngest son of Maemi. You will speak with each child on this arena floor in due time as you settle into your training under Lord Kiyonobu's House, but you will refer to them as your brothers and sisters for now until we receive word from the commander of the earth."
"Yes, Mama Kadiri!" Meioshi said, standing straight again. "Oh! Um?"
She raised her hand and rose on her tiptoes to ask a question with the demoness's permission. This just made Kadiri twitch an eyebrow to fight her cuddling instincts. She ground out, "What is it?"
"I'm still new to this, but who is the commander of the earth? Do all oni children have to have a commander train them in hurlyburly? I don't quite understand the need for such an ado," Meioshi said in her more accented language.
Unfortunately, this broke Kadiri and made her practically float to Meioshi as she kneeled to speak to her in a sweeter, mothering tone. The stern wife said softly, "You're too cute for your own good, little one. No, not all oni are trained by a commander. We have a caste system like most youkai. The lower class oni, or workman's ogre, are our most primitive selves. They don't have the ability to appear human the way you or I do. Husband has mentioned that you have a mortal skin. Oni that are capable of changing to humanoid forms are considered middle to upper class. The less ogre features you have such as hair coloring or skin coloring, the closer you are to elite status. The lower class are extreme predators and can't control their base instincts. It is easy to manipulate them as they lack complex thinking. The lower middle class to upper lower class is where tradesmen ogre resides. These brutes are like foot soldiers and are used to guard certain areas or items. They trade their strength for certain rewards like you might do a chore for candies. Though not as primitive, they can devolve to a berserk killing machine if provoked or weakened. They don't have the ability to appear human, but they do have more human features like proper arms and legs. You, little one, are more in line with a true oni and are higher in class. Possessing a mortal skin aided you in this. The reason why you need a commander to train you, or at least look at you, is because of the power that we sensed you using. A primitive ogre can only do so much with claw swipes and punches. You called out to the power of the ice, an element that belongs to the waters, and used it in what we call an oni's 'first hunt.' The first hunt is quite important to many youkai species. It dictates a sub-class within a species' caste system such as warrior, monk, or guardian. This sub-class opens many doors for you and is really where a teacher is assigned to you. He or she judges whether or not you should be taken under their wing. The more power or skill you possess, the higher in class your mentor could potentially be. Lord Numa-o was the most curious about your power. You used a great deal of it during your first hunt. What were you hunting when you used your ice powers?"
"Twasn't a hunt, Mother Kadiri. Just a silly, old dog who was worried about his pack," Meioshi said with an amused grin. Her eyes changed to something fonder when she said, "He asked for a square to test his strength. While I detest purposeless fighting, he needed proof that I had nothing to do with events pertaining to an investigation. My Homugi over there was part of it. It sounded quite serious. The gent might be a stubborn thing, but he cares very much about his cater-cousins. Ah, friends, if you will. Hehehe! He'll even go to war for them! It's very sweet of him."
"There's no way she's talking about Sesshomaru," Yuko grumbled, squinching her nose cutely.
"Not possible," Homugi whispered.
"Though I do wish he'd show that kindness to others and not just a select few, I am grateful for who he has welcomed into my life as a result. If not for him, I wouldn't have met Homugi. She's so cute!" Meioshi squealed, running over to Homugi to pick her up again. She lifted one of her paws and said with glittering smile, "Look at her little toe-beans! They have speckles!"
"Meioshi, stop embarrassing me!" Homugi squirmed, blushing profusely.
"Oh, and my little sunflower miko! Rather fitting that she be a fairy," Meioshi said, holding out her hand for Hasumi to hover over her palm. "She's cute, too! I might not be his friend, and he might never call me anything yond witch or doctor, but he helped me find new friends. For that, he will always be my silly, old dog."
Kadiri and Kiyonobu inhaled sharply. The panda eyes even darker and bolder than before. Omezo took that as a cue to sneak away from his kanabo, hop over to Meioshi to sit next to her, and pet Yuko. The nurse apprentice oinked before letting the boy cuddle her. He then said, "The first hunt sounds nicer than what we've been taught. Maybe that's why you were able to fight Lord Numa-o so well. You had something to go back home to."
"Friends do help a lot, but I wouldn't have been able to make the right friends without my family," Meioshi said. Her eyes lowered a bit before she released Homugi and Hasumi. "Make sure you find the right friends, Omezo... when you grow up. Because the wrong ones have no problem leaving you completely alone when you really need someone there. No matter how hard I've cried or how far I've run away or how much I try to convince myself that they're just in arm's reach, my family won't just pop up and show me that everything was just a joke. The wrong friends will remind you every day that they're gone, but good friends - the right friends - will remind you that your family taught you too much for you to quit. They've done too much for you to settle down into something you feel in your heart is wrong. Learn everything you can... from your family. Your mummy, daddy, brothers and sisters... are the best teachers you can ever have. What they teach you here will you help you find the right friends out there. Honor them always and love them regardless... because it only takes one person to say that they will honor and love you... and won't."
"Kachan oni," Kiyonobu called, towering over the group. No one heard him walk over to them.
When Meioshi turned to him, not realizing she was speaking so negatively, she snapped out of it and stood up at attention. "Ah, y-y-yes, sir! I'm so sorry, Mas - !"
"We will start your training tomorrow morning instead. We have to get your things from the fields," Kiyonobu said, kneeling down to pat her head.
Meioshi wasn't sure what it was about this particular oni, but he somehow... it didn't make any sense to her, and it could've been that she simply missed him that much, but... in this oni's eyes... she could swear he looked like... Arimasa, her grandfather...