I found that I couldn’t look through the eyes of a butterfly for too long. The drain on my mana was palpable. After flying around the garden for a bit, it had to end. I returned to myself and watched the butterfly land on Janie’s horn.

Mother picked me up from behind, startling me.

“Hey!”

“Fufufu, I can see your magic has advanced even further,” she said, kissing my cheek.

My face heated up as Janie looked at me. “You don’t have to embarrass me!”

Mother slowly put me down. “Ah, but you looked so cute standing there. And, this is also a mother’s duty.”

“It is?”

“It is.”

I pouted, but before I could protest, I felt a kiss on my other cheek. I turned to see Janie grinning like a villain. “You too?”

She giggled and stuck out her tongue. “See? Now, it’s not embarrassing!”

“I think this is even worse!”

The group burst into laughter.

image [https://i.imgur.com/egXC7OT.png]

After a nice dinner with Janie and my parents, Janie’s father agreed to let her stay the night. Janie, Mother, Yumi and I sat on the floor of my room.

“What do you two want to do now?” Mother asked.

Janie bounced. “What about story time!”

“Story time?”

“Yeah! My mother always reads to me before I sleep.”

Yumi raised her hand. “Perhaps, we can each share a story? I could start.”

Mother looked at Janie and I. “How about it?”

“Yay!”

“Sounds great!”

Yumi cleared her throat. “Then, I’ll start,” she said. “Once upon a time, there was a little orange fox. The fox lived happily with her family. Even though, the fox king had forbid it, she still lived happily.”

“Why did the fox king forbid it?” I asked.

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“The fox king was a very selfish man. He didn’t want many of the fox families to be happy, Little Princess.” Yumi paused and looked at mother. “That king was very much unlike, Her Majesty.”

“Fufu, you flatter me.”

“Get back to the story!” Janie said.

Yumi smiled. “One day, the fox king said in his really deep voice. You will bow to me as the other families have or face my wrath,” Yumi said, mimicking a deep voice. Her tail stood stiff, and her ears twitched.

“What happened next?” Janie asked.

“The little fox was taken away from her family by the mean fox king. He gave her to another fox, but the little fox hated it. She didn’t want to be away from her family. She didn’t want to be separated. To make matters worse, she didn’t see her family around after that. Not in any of the meeting places.”

“Did something happen to them?” I asked.

“The little fox didn’t know, and she could only make guesses. The fox she was given to didn’t care for her safety. So many of the lower fox families had become just like the little fox’s. When almost all hope seemed lost, a savior came for them!” Her smile became tender in remembrance. “The greedy fox king was slain by someone who was not even a fox, freeing all of the little foxes.”

“Who was the savior!?” Janie squealed.

“The savior was a bat! None of the foxes could have predicted that.”

I wondered if the little fox was supposed to be Yumi. I wished I paid more attention in grandpa’s history lessons. I could only guess that the bat was Father. My thoughts were broken by Mother’s voice.

“Who wants to go next?” She asked.

Janie raised her hand. “I do!”

Mother patted her on the head. “Very well.”

Janie giggled before starting. “There was once a really big dragon. She was bigger than a mountain and redder than a volcano. Mother...I mean, the dragon was the strongest in all the lands! She had a baby dragon who wanted to be just like her when she grew up! The end.”

“Fufufu, what about the little dragon’s father?” Mother asked.

“The little dragon didn’t want to be like him because he was too weak.”

I had to hold back my laugh. I suddenly felt bad for poor Ineer. I remembered watching Mother crack his head, but I never got the impression he was weak. I always assumed my mother was simply that powerful.

Mother gestured to me. “You’re next.”

I wanted to argue, but Yumi and Janie both looked at me expectantly. I sighed. “It’s not that interesting.”

“We will decide that,” Mother said.

With another reluctant sigh, I started. “There is a place—a world beyond this one—where people can’t use magic.”

Janie’s eyes widened. “A world without magic?” She asked in awe.

“Endeed, the world relies only on science to build grand structures. There might not have been magic, but there was a saying about science and magic being indistinguishable. Anyways...In that world, people always dreamed of magic. They dreamed of tall buildings that pierce the clouds. They dreamed of making flying contraptions. They dreamed it all without magic. And they did it.”

“They did? How?”

“It was all through the power of science, and I don’t know the specifics.” I continued explaining the wonders of modern technology to them, including cell phones and cars, while they listened in awe. "However, even with everything, people could still be harsh. Everyone wanted it all, but they could have none of it.”

“Was it a bad world?” Janie asked.

I shook my head, but My lip quivered.

Janie stood and hugged me. “Don’t worry. That world isn’t real!”

Yumi and Mother joined the group hug.

“Let’s wrap this up,” Mother said. "How about we sleep in here together for tonight?”

I nodded. “What about Father?”

“He will understand. Besides, I think he will be attending to duties until late.”

My bed appeared big enough to fit us barely, but Yumi pulled out a large mat instead. She placed it on the floor.

With all of us sharing a mattress, I felt safe. Sleep came easily for me.