Date: 15th day of the 11th month of the Year 5894 of the Unified Calendar

Location: Fae Continent, Northern Hemisphere, Terra, Tav Universe

Man, what did I do to deserve this?

It was a little over an hour after the attempted farm robbery, at about six in the morning, and the sun had crept over the eastern horizon. While standing in the front yard as he finished the last of his chores, Gato watched the western mountains glow pink with the rising sun. As the world got brighter around him, he thought to himself, How am I supposed to explain to my parents what happened about an hour ago? Would they even believe me?

Still, he couldn’t help but notice that there was something more he needed to do to help around the farm. He picked up a garden rake and headed over to the field, breaking the ground open when he arrived. As he did that, he let his mind wander along.

What could happen next? I mean, what with the amount of stupidity that the bandits only a couple hours ago had in mind to do to us, I fear for the farm and for everyone else in the area. It’s going to be a problem for everyone, especially with Jeremiah’s lover and her family coming to live on the farm soon.

As he toiled away at the ground and got everything he could as ready as possible for the next planting, he continued to think over what had happened to him.

What are we supposed to do? I mean, well… this is proving to be rather problematic, do you not think?

A second of silence hit him, even as the nearest rooster crowed.

Oh, who am I kidding? There’s literally nobody else in the area now. After all, if there was anyone else, I am sure that they would have to let me know they were here right away. Nobody here can read my thoughts at all, thank goodness. If there was anyone who could —

“Oh, Mister Gato, good morning.”

Eh? Who said that?

Turning to face the speaker, he saw it was a boy who couldn’t be older than ten years old standing on the road next to the field. He wore a strange form of clothing that looked like it belonged on someone from another nation, what with the folded clothing and extra large belt over his waist, as well as the strange shoes and socks that he had on his feet. Then there was the fact he did his brown hair in the fashion a page would normally have their hair in, and his brown eyes shone a light from the pupils.

“Uh, yes, good morning to you, too, young mister,” Gato said, looking anywhere but the boy in question. “Who might you be?”

The boy walked over to Gato as he said, “My name is Sarahime, Mister Gato. Also—”

“Hold on a second,” Gato said, raising a hand to forestall any further conversation. “Sah-Rah-He-May? Are you related to Yuuki of Katai?”

“Why, yes, I am,” Sarahime said. “I’m her little sister.”

Gato nearly tripped over his own two feet when he heard that.

“Ack!” Sarahime cried out when she saw the result of her comment. Rushing over to Gato, she helped steady him from what her words had done. “I am so sorry! Are you all right?”

“Yes,” Gato said as he steadied himself, “I am fine.”

“I am glad, Mister Gato,” Sarahime said. “I mean, who would have expected that nobody would tell you about us in onee-chan’s family?”

“Er… oh-nay-chahn? I mean, what does it mean, and how do you spell that word in the local tongue?” Gato asked. “I would like to know how you spell your name properly as well.”

“Oh, of course,” Sarahime said. “You write my name in the local letters as S-A-R-A-H-I-M-E, and onee-chan, spelled O-N-E-E-dash-C-H-A-N, is an honorific for older sisters.” She tilted her head to the side. “Is that all you can think of for right now?”

“Yes, for the—I mean, no, not at all.” Gato shook his head. “How did you find your way over here?”

“I asked for help from onee-chan,” Sarahime said. “She knew how to get here from our home in Alfheimwood, so I thought I’d pay you and everyone else a visit. Is that a problem?”

“No, it is not,” Gato said. “However, I have to wonder something.”

“Yes?”

“How old are you?”

“I will be fourteen in five days.”

“What the—are you kidding me?!”

Instead of verbally replying, Sarahime reached up and parted the top part of her shirt for Gato to see her growing breasts. “Does that answer your question?” she asked him.

His face heating, Gato turned around in a hurry, keeping his back to Sarahime when he did. “Could you please put your clothes all the way back on?” he asked. “You are committing a cultural taboo now.”

“Cultural taboo? What are you… oh, my shirt. Okay, I will fix my shirt,” Sarahime said. “Honestly, why is that a taboo to show off my skin around my chest?”

As she moved about to fix her shirt, based on what he could hear, Gato said, “Because only people who are married to each other can show off their nudity. If you do that to someone you do not intend to marry, then you will be seen as a prostitute, at least according to government and liturgical law. Does that make sense?”

“Yes, it makes sense,” Sarahime said. “Okay, I’m decent now. You can turn around to see me again.”

Gato turned to look at Sarahime. True to her word, she was decent enough to not be seen as a prostitute by the standards of Sylvania.

“Now, I have eaten nothing since lunch. Do you mind if I enter your home and have something to eat?” Sarahime asked.

“What… why do you wish to have something from my family’s food supplies?” Gato asked. “I mean, why not wait until you get back to your home?”

Sarahime’s face dropped. “Unfortunately, my family does not have the food needed to feed all of us,” she said. “At the very least, we need to portion out the food for all the younger children to survive in the long haul, at least until someone in our family gets lucky and marries a farmer. I mean…”

“I think I get the idea,” Gato said. “Your sister plans to marry Jeremiah, my brother, both because she loves him and because he is a farmer that can help provide the needed food long-term. Am I wrong?”

“No, you are right,” Sarahime said, lifting her face back up. “I just wish that the reality of the situation was less… what word am I thinking of… punishing? Yeah, that’s it.”

Gato’s face softened up. “Sure, I understand that,” he said. “Now, give me a bit to finish raking the ground for the next time someone plants crops in these fields, then I will lead you into the house. Does that sound good?”

“Yes, thank you very much.” Sarahime bowed with her arms to her sides, bending at the waist. “I will be right here for the time being.”

“Okay,” Gato said.

Now, isn’t this a surprise? I didn’t expect that an in-law to be would show up here, nor did I expect her to be about my age. Still… why did my face heat when I saw her bare chest? Is it possible that… that I’m falling in love? He scoffed as he continued his work. Yeah, right… as if that would ever happen. There has to be a valid reason that I am not thinking of.

Eventually, he finished taking care of the chores he had set out to do in the middle of the night, but that was a rather small consolation prize for the events of the night prior. Since everyone else in his family had been asleep when he fought the bandits, it might be difficult for them to believe that something had even happened. His family, though, would surely believe Captain Bruno of the Town Guard, who could be his witness.

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Motioning to Sarahime in the universal “follow me” gesture, he walked over to the house and placed the rake next to the doorway. At the very least, I can be a proper host for miss Sarahime as she eats a good meal. I wonder what we’re going to have for breakfast?

So, with an upbeat heart, he walked with Sarahime over to the kitchen table, hopeful that he would get a good meal. They were the first two there. That’s rather odd… where’s everyone else?

“Good morning, Gato,” his mother greeted him with a yawn. “You sure are up early today.”

“I couldn’t fall back asleep, Mom,” Gato said. “I took care of some chores I thought you would assign me, and I did them in the middle of the night.”

“I see,” his mother said. “What did you do to help around the place?”

“Well—”

“Good morning, Diana, Gato.”

“Good morning, Alexander,” Gato’s mother said to the man of the house. “Gato seems to be especially awake for someone who was up in the middle of the night.”

Gato’s father raised an eyebrow at Gato. “Why... wait, who is that boy with you?”

The mother blinked as she turned to face Sarahime. “For what reason did Gato invite you inside?” she asked.

“Uh—”

Sarahime’s stomach gave off a rather voracious roar.

“Oh, dear,” Gato’s mother said. “I see now. Gato saw you needed something to eat, so he invited you in for breakfast. No need to fret, dear. You will have something to eat before we send you off on your way.”

“—thank you, ma’am,” Sarahime said. “Also, I am a girl, not a boy.”

Gato’s father blinked his eyes. “Oh, okay, my mistake,” he said. “Pardon me. Now,” he turned to face Gato again. “Why were you up in the middle of the night, exactly?”

“I could not fall back to sleep,” Gato said. “And it’s a good thing, too, since I had to stop a pair of thieves from robbing us of our food.”

This caused both parents to gasp out. “WHAAAAT?!”

“Yes, that happened,” Gato said, moving to his chair at the table. “I am starving right now. Could we wait until after breakfast for me to tell you what happened?”

“No, Gato, we really want to hear this right now,” his father said. “How did you stop thieves from robbing us without our knowing about it?”

“You mean you did not hear it?” Gato asked. “I thought it was loud enough that you might have heard what happened outside. As you know, I was awake earlier, shortly before Lauds, and I did some chores to make sure this day would be a good one. Partway through the chores list, however, I overheard a pair of robbers walking into the silo to try robbing us of our food. I had to stop them, so I grabbed a pitchfork and held them off for someone from the town guard to arrive.”

Gato’s mother’s eyes grew wide and her mouth fell open. “Gato, you could have died!” she said. “Where are the thieves now? Are they gone from the property?”

“They’re now sitting in the Alfheimwood jail, Mom,” Gato said as he pointed toward town. “Go into town later today, if you want to, and talk with Captain Bruno about it.”

“You didn’t take them there yourself, did you?” Gato’s father asked.

“No, it was Captain Bruno of the Town Guard who did.” Gato shook his head. “He got my statement, and he will not let those two get out of jail. I think we are safe.”

“Thank the Divine Spirits of Nature,” Gato’s mother said. “You were very brave, Gato. Would you like breakfast now? As you know, whoever is up first gets to choose what we have for breakfast. Since you were up first, what would you like?”

“I would like to try oatmeal for once, please,” Gato answered.

“Do you want raisins in the oatmeal?”

“Yes, please.”

“Okay, Gato,” his mother said, turning to the pantry and preparing the meal.

Gato’s father cleared his throat, exclaiming, “Gato, I am very proud of you. You saved our farm this morning!”

“Thank you, father,” Gato said.

At that point, Jeremiah groggily walked into the kitchen. “Good morning, mother. Good morning, father,” he said between yawns. “Are we going to have hash browns for breakfast today?”

“Nope,” the father said, shaking his head. “Gato was the first one up today, so he chose oatmeal for us all.”

“Gato was the first one up?” Jeremiah looked at Gato with both eyebrows raised. “How did that happen?”

“Trust me, I don’t know how to explain it, either,” Gato said, shaking his head. “I have been doing chores ever since I woke up in the middle of the night.”

Jeremiah sighed. “Okay, I understand. Oatmeal sounds fine.”

“Glad you think so,” their mother said. “Now, how about you go wake up the rest of your siblings? I need them to get ready for the day.”

“Yes, mother,” Jeremiah said, before noticing Sarahime. “Hey, wait a second. Sarahime, what are you doing here today?”

“What, am I not allowed to visit my sister’s betrothed?” she asked.

“Oh, you mean your sister is Yuuki of Katai, right?” Gato’s mother asked.

“Yes, she is,” Sarahime said. “Honestly, my family needs to get the ability to farm the land, and that is because we are running low on food that we can safely forage and eat. With that said, I need to make sure my family does not starve from a lack of food during this time.”

Gato’s father nodded. “Okay, I can permit your family staying on the property to help around here. Please bring them over as soon as you can after you eat breakfast, though, will you?”

“Yes, sir,” Sarahime said. “I will do that.”

“That is good,” Gato’s mother said. “Now, could you please wash up for breakfast today? Jeremiah,” she turned to face her eldest son. “Please show her to the washroom, will you?”

“Of course, mother,” Jeremiah said. “Follow me, please, Sarahime.”

“Okay,” Sarahime said, walking with her sister’s betrothed to go take care of cleaning up for breakfast.

Gato gave off a contented sigh. Finally… I got to choose breakfast for the family. Out loud, he asked, “now, is there anything I should know about today’s plans?”

“No, there’s nothing to discuss,” Gato’s father answered. “You have a free day for today. If you go into town, please be back here by dusk, so you can have dinner.”

Gato blinked once, twice, and thrice. “That… is super generous.”

“Oh, don’t misunderstand,” Gato’s father said, raising a hand. “If something comes up by the time you get home, then the rest of the day, we will need your help until the project is done. We’d like to reward you for what you did this morning, Gato, that’s all.”

Wow… this is an immense surprise. Still, why do I feel that something bad’s about to happen at this rate? Gato sighed. Then again, what do I know, anyway?

“Son? Are you okay?” Gato’s father asked.

Gato looked his father in the eye. “I might be, but I do not feel like it, father. I mean, how am I supposed to explain this, anyway? It is pretty much impossible at this rate.”

“Well, you will not know until you try,” Gato’s father said. “I mean, really, how likely is it you have gotten sick with something unheard of?”

“Equal parts likely and unlikely, if I may be honest,” Gato said, before looking at his mother, who was still working away at the breakfast that he requested for the family. “Then again, what all am I able to do about this? Anything and everything?” He scoffed. “No, that does not sound right.”

“Gato,” his father growled slightly.

“Sorry,” Gato said, sighing and turning back to face his father. “I guess I am not fully over whatever is going on with me. How am I supposed to fix this issue that is within me?”

“Well, you can do something about the whining, young man,” Gato’s father said. “Your whining is really getting to the rest of us in the house, and I highly doubt you want it to do that at all, do you?”

“Aw, ma—” Gato double timed it to catch himself there. “No, you are right, father. I apologize for the whining that I almost did just now. I guess I need to get rid of the whining as best as I can. Is that what you mean by what you say?”

Gato’s father nodded. “In so many words, yes, Gato.”

Gato sighed before he walked over to the supply closet.

“Son, what are you doing?” Gato’s father asked.

“Checking to see if I forgot to put something away where it belongs, father,” Gato said, opening the closet door. “I sincerely hope I didn’t, because then we’d have a thief infestation on the property.”

“Gato, who in their right mind would steal supplies from the supply closet?” his mother asked. “I mean, really, they’re so commonplace, it’s not even funny.”

Silence hung in the air as Gato thought it over. Come to think of it, mother’s right. Who in their right mind would steal such commonplace supplies from the closet?

“Son? Are you well?”

“I’m doing fine, mother,” Gato said. “I just need some time to come up with a list of what’s still here and what needs to be put away.”

“I feel you, son,” Gato’s father said. “Now, what’s going to happen with your attempt to find a good job?”

“You’re really asking me that?” Gato asked. “I have not a clue.”

“Well, we can’t keep you around on the farm, regardless,” his father said. “I think you need to go enter an apprenticeship sooner than later. It’s not as if you can become a noble and get a manor all to yourself. That’s not how the world works.”

“Yes, I get that, Dad. Oh, right, Mom, do you need me to do anything to help prepare the meal for this morning?” Gato asked.

“No, not yet,” his mother shook her head. “Just be sure to enjoy your day off, Gato. You earned it, son.”

Gato blinked. This is unexpected… “Thank you, Mom,” he nodded.

“No need to thank me. This is a proper reward for you doing the work that you put in last night and early this morning,” his mother said.

Gato drooped his head and sighed. “I get it, Mom, I really do.”

“I hope so, son.”