Chapter 36.1 The Welcoming Committee     

They did not find me until I was at Tokyo station waiting for the express train to Kyoto. A handsome young couple came up to me, greeted me, and asked me if I was ashamed to worry my mother and the honorable hostess who had given me shelter.

I didn't see the point of answering, or even looking at them — I gave them an oblique glance and turned away, not following their reactions, and when the express train arrived, I calmly took my seat and picked up the purchased — The Hobbit: There and Back Again". In this world saw the first and second films, but acquaintances advised me to read in the original.

The wizards, or half-breeds, sat three rows away from me, and I could feel their stares, not very well. And I didn't care — who were they to demand anything of me? Must I sit under lock and key, asking for permission to leave? What if it's a difficult situation? Because Miyazaki put all their efforts into preparing for the war, they are only interested in us when we show our faces, and there is no real search. I've seen the Mage Police in Tokyo, and we looked at each other, nodded, and went about our business. That's it.

So I won't encrypt myself too much and I won't sit in the basement either. Ba-san just laughed and joked, in a friendly way, not like with "respectable people" in Tokyo, where the lion's share of punishment is their job.

Upon arrival, we were met by an executive sedan, but I ignored it and went to the shopping district, one of the many in this city. I wanted to diversify the menu. At the market, I talked to a vegetable vendor and spent an hour collecting pumpkin seeds. I roasted a test batch at his place. I agreed to come back in a few weeks for both pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds, as they should be prepared for me in a more serious quantity.

The whole time I saw the escort in my field of vision, but at least they didn't touch me, and that's good. At the exit of the district a car was waiting for me. In the cabin I was again bombarded with angry looks, but I ignored them — I was thinking about where to hang the future fish, because the beer, and other snacks to it, picked up in the bar, but I wanted fish, when I saw the fresh fish. In short, the extraordinary vacation went well.

Again, I almost completely ignored the welcoming committee and just nodded. From loud, long and boring speeches, skilled and experienced hands, lightning and fire in the eyes, as well as other, other, etc., etc., I fenced off a pre-suspended complex of barriers.

I have no time — I still have to salt the fish and look for a place, and also prepare dinner. I don't know where the other quiet and wise comrades from the meeting group have gone, but my mother has attached herself to my shadow and followed me everywhere, tracing my every step.

I didn't like her first angry looks from a distance when she saw what I had become, and I was right — they wanted to tell me a lot of things. But it didn't work. For the next few hours, while I was cooking, my mother was close by, and the foxes were a little farther away, but also in sight, and I even noticed the disparaging expressions on their faces (very nice, very, but noxious and disparaging, also vindictive, so not interested at all), as well as, no doubt, venomous comments. And I don't care.

The empty spare refrigerator was completely taken under my needs, and when the already cooked borscht cooled down, spreading aromas, when I steamed cutlets and finished cutting vinaigrette, I noticed that those gathered were waiting for something.

What — it was clear, but "no, it's not enough," and having set aside only for myself, and after dinner, I hid the rest in the refrigerator, having surrounded it with seals. Angrily, everyone without exception squinted, and I, after bathing, went to bed. They couldn't break the seals on the refrigerator, and I protected myself, the rest is not important.

Is it worth saying that I was insulted by ALL of them? Is it worth saying that they tried to shame me, to teach me, to educate me, to take revenge? Or that we had a real internal war with the foxes in which there was no winner, only armed neutrality? And in training and classes, my teachers became more demanding, harder, and increased the pressure?

But the break did me good: I collected my thoughts, thought, dispersed and made some decisions. Even though I was angry, I managed to control myself, and the goal was that the broken family sword would be mine, and the second one would be mine when I proved my skill.

But that won't be for a while, because my mother's clan training, her nuances, her experience, all of it makes her an excellent fighter despite her long lack of training, and it will only get stronger with time. So I won't get a second sword for a long time.

I can't get into the local libraries, though. They give me books and scrolls, bring me excerpts to study, but the full texts are usually hidden. The libraries themselves are guarded like treasure houses, which is understandable, but inconvenient. And it's a shame, because I wanted to go wild here, too. Basically, there's nothing more to say.

Training routine, everyday life, everyday life, domestic petty squabbles, and the eternal noise of harmful foxes, which a few weeks after my return brought a gray bakeneko — no less harmful than the foxes. Four pairs of ears tried to get at my food, and the cat also tried to get at the fish, but I shared it with her, so what.

Besides, I always try to welcome cats. There were also strange movements around me and my mother, who was still having "tea" with the local elite and making some plans. That's how the time passed until we finished repairing the sword.