I am lying in an extravagant bed. Mi'Min is next to me, refusing to let go even while sleeping. My fingers are mutely snapping, only the soft swishing of skin against skin can be barely heard. The motion is repeated for a long time, until something different happens. A dim flame has taken form on top of my index finger, making it resemble a candle. A smile brushes past my lips. I bring the nascent flame close to my mouth and pretend to light a cigar, taking a couple of deep, pretend puffs. Then I frantically try to wave away the fake smoke.

***

Someone gently pushes against my shoulder. I am roused from a half-sleep, still having kept most of my awareness. My tail hurts. Did I sleep on it or something... Being a dwarf was way easier. Speaking of, I could really go for a beer right now.

Mi'Min whispers, "Wake up, Big Sis. Breakfast is here." She herself woke up only a few minutes before me. The reason was my gurgling stomach, combined with the alluring aroma.

After she sees my eyes open and a grumpy expression emerge on my face, she giggles and rushes off to the bathroom to brush her teeth. I go off to my own room and get ready for the day as well. We soon meet up in the dining area, where our food is already served. There's fish cakes with a sweet and sour sauce, accompanied by fresh, cut up vegetables resembling a cucumber. Mi'Min moves my plate from the opposite side of the table to where her plate is. Then she drags another chair and hops up, smiling widely and waiting for me to join her. I sit down next to her.

While we are eating, Mi'Min stops for a moment and turns to me. "Are Mommy and Daddy sad?"

"They are. They miss you very much."

"Is your mommy sad?"

"She is."

Her misty eyes hold back the burst of emotions. She nods and returns to her breakfast. The meal is quickly finished, and Mi'Min looks like she is anxious to return to the presumed safety of her room. She grabs my hand and pulls me along.

***

I am reading Mi'Min a pretty interesting adventure book. After a few chapters, she takes over. While I do need to occasionally help her with the more obscure words, she is proficient enough to read quite smoothly. The little beastfolk even gives the different characters their own voices. Engrossing.

When she gets a bit tired and a bit bored, Mi'Min marks her current spot and sets the book down.

"How's the collar? Is it chaffing?" I ask. She tugs at the enchanted shackle. "Do you know what 'chaffing' means?"

"Itchy!"

"That's right."

"It's okay. Hot."

Mi'Min stands up from the couch we were sitting on and wanders over to a dresser, proceeding to rummage inside a drawer.

"What's up?"

She pulls out a hairbrush and starts walking back to me. "Brushy."

"You want me to brush your hair?" She shakes her head and points at me. Oh my God, so precious. I grin at her and say, "Only if you can catch me."

Before she can reply, I dash, jumping over a surprised Mi'Min, landing in a roll, rising up almost immediately, and then sprinting out of the room. Even though I call it a sprint, it's only in form. My speed is very slow.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Mi'Min grins and rushes after me with dexterity reserved for people years her senior. I increase my speed, matching my now not so comical movements.

We dash down the corridor and toward the dining area. Just as Mi'Min reaches for my swishing tail, I vault over a table. She stares at me from the other side with a scrunched-up face. I confidently smile back, only for her to scuttle under and crash against my legs. With a sorrowful wail, I fall down in slow motion.

A giggling beastfolk climbs on top of me. "Caught you!"

"How did I ever think I could beat the swift Mi'Min. As fast as the wind and as nimble as flowing water."

I spring up while holding on to her, causing her to squeal in exhilaration from my abrupt action. When we get back to her room, I pick up the hastily dropped brush and hand it to her. I sit down on the bed, place Mi'Min on my lap, and bend my tail round, placing it in her lap.

The prickly brush slides against my fur once. This feels weird. I instinctively flinch and try to pull away the still foreign-feeling appendage.

"No squirmy!" Mi'Min commands.

I start grumbling and shaking her at the same time. She tries to protest again, but her voice turns into gleeful giggles. When I stop simulating a rollercoaster, the little beastfolk starts gently brushing the fur of my tail. Huh. Still feels weird, but in like a good way?

"When can we leave, Big Sis?" Mi'Min asks, continuing her methodical brushing. She momentarily glances at something that caught her eye, but it's already gone.

"Wanna leave tonight?" She spins around to face me and nods enthusiastically. "Good. But keep it a secret, okay?" I bring a finger to my lips and make a long 'shh' sound.

Mi'Min imitates me, making the same sound. Then she goes back to her brushing.

"Hey," I say, "want to workshop something with me?"

"What's that?"

"I'm designing a campaign for a game. Do you think a tavern is a good place for the players to meet for the first time?"

Mi'Min purses her lips, getting the general gist of what I am asking. Then her eyes light up. "Captured together!"

"Another classic." I ruffle her hair, earning myself some sounds of protest. I innocently ask, "Did you get inspiration from somewhere?"

She turns back and stares at me, her expression entirely unamused. "Big Sis..."

After a delicious lunch and a nap, the day quickly passes. Mi'Min and I play silly games, read some more, and then have dinner. The beastfolk refuses to part from me for even a minute, insisting on us sleeping together again. She snuggles up next to me and drifts away in seconds. Sweet dreams, Mi'Min. An anesthetic is released into her bloodstream by a lone nanobot.

A second microscopic machine collects Khi's items into its folded space and makes its way back to me.

I get up from the bed. My head detaches from my body. There's no blood spilling out courtesy of my swarm and the bioengineering of my current shell. My right hand is used to pick up my head, and the left is used to take off my collar.

As soon as the enchanted item is removed, I feel strength flood my form. The sensation is thrilling for a moment, but normalcy soon returns.

My head is stitched back into place. I take out a mana potion I'd stored in my folded space and gulp it greedily. The blue liquid evaporates while going down, replenishing my empty supply.

The freed collar is gripped in both hands. With an immense flare of tempering and all of my control, the metal is sheared, breaking the enchantments, too.

I lean over Mi'Min and snap her collar with significantly more ease. Then I pick her up, turning to a wall.

A flick of my head causes a piece of the wall to shoot out, impacting a barrier and producing a glimmer that reverberates through the magical surface. Five metal needles appear in front of me. They bunch together and zip forward with a thunderous clap. The projectiles bury themselves halfway into the barrier. Most of my mana bursts out. The five needles move away from one another with great resistance, slowly tearing open a hole.

When the barrier is compromised enough for my warp drive to work, and while Mi'Min's mana field is still stabilizing, I warp us both away.

The last thing I see as the barrier closes back up is a touch too slow of a response looking at the regretfully damaged gifts I left behind with nothing but terror on their faces.

We are in Lohrin. Above us is a clear sky, and the weak light of dusk gives form to the area around us. The anesthetic is replaced with another drug, causing Mi'Min to stir, and then abruptly open her eyes.

She stares up at me in fright but quickly relaxes when she sees my softly illuminated smile. "Where are we, Big Sis?"

"We're home, of course. You missed the daring escape, sleepyhead."

The little princess whips her gaze around, realizing we are actually outside and not in the room she recently fell asleep in. When a small hand touches her bare neck, she leaps up and wraps her arms around my own un-accessorized one, attempting to give me the tightest hug ever recorded. I let her cry in my just as tight hold for as long as she needs to.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.