Sleeping Arrangements

'Cute.' This was the first word Natsume thought when she saw the little girl in front of her. She was a head shorter than Natsume, partly due to her rapid growth and partly to the girl's lack of growth. Seeing Natsume's calm expression, Hikari pouted. She took another step forward and looked up at Natsume.

"Hello. Big. Sister." She said again with emphasis.

This caused her father to nearly burst out laughing. He pushed Yori to the side and left the two of them alone. He had to discuss things with Yori, so he didn't have time to show Natsume around. Fortunately, his daughter was perfect to take over the role.

"Hello, Hime-sama." Natsume replied calmly. However, this made Hikari even more frustrated. Natsume felt that this little girl was a bit spoiled, so she didn't indulge her. Hikari reached out her small pale hand which Natsume ignored. Her hand dropped to her side, and she didn't move. They stared at each other for what seemed like eternity until Hikari couldn't hold it in any longer. Hikari looked around awkwardly and, after seeing that no one else was in the main hall, grabbed Natsume's elbow and led her to the east wing.

"Big sister, since Father is busy, let Hikari show you around!" Hikari was frustrated by Natsume's quiet personality and ended up being the first to fold under the pressure. She was usually the reserved one in a group, and others would go out of their way to help her. Now, Hikari found herself being the active party in this scenario. Although it was strange, she felt a little excited and began to introduce everything along the way.

Hikari took Natsume through the whole building and described everything that had even a little history to it. Eventually, they entered the inner courtyard of the dojo, and she began to talk about random things. The more she talked, the more excited she became. "…This tree is hundreds of years old…" "…This sword scar was left by my grandfather…" "…This puddle of mud is blurry…"

After following her for the whole afternoon, Natsume memorized the layout of the dojo. After walking around for so long, Hikari was tired, and they decided to rest beside the hearth in an empty room. Although she was frail-looking, the cold didn't seem to affect her at all. However, that didn't stop her from burying herself in layers of fur. "Ah, so comfortable!"

"Hime-sama, do you also practice here?" Natsume baited her with a question she already knew the answer to.

"Father said that Hikari is touched by the spirits and has a weak body." She started explaining as she stuck her head out of the fur burrito. "I want to learn too, but father is worried that I would hurt myself…" Speaking her true thoughts caused her persona to crack a little. Natsume didn't point it out and continued asking questions.

"Hime-sama, you've never mentioned your mother."

"Ah, Mother is chasing after my grandpa. He bullied me when I was born, that's why I'm like this." Hikari answered innocently with a bright smile, but Natsume could see through the façade.

"What was she like?"

"Very beautiful!" Hikari answered without hesitation.

"What else besides her appearance?" Natsume rolled her eyes.

"Um, she was very gentle. My father said she cooled his raging heart, while he melted her icy walls." Natsume decided not to push anymore. She only wanted to dig past the outer layer and see what it looked like underneath. However, she didn't expect a reversal.

"What about big sister?"

"Ah… Well, my mother is also gone." Natsume answered truthfully.

"Tell me about aunty!"

"She… was born in the wrong era." Natsume revealed a sad expression so that Hikari would notice. Getting the hint, she didn't ask any further questions. After they laid for a while, Natsume was going to get up but then realized she didn't know where to go.

"Hime-sama, I do not know where my room is."

"Big sister, this is your room!" The silence was stifling but seeing that Natsume engaged on her own made Hikari happy.

"Ah, thank you for guiding me today, Hime-sama. I would like to rest now, sorry to impose on you." Hikari nodded but didn't move from the fire. Natsume thought she was just cold, so she didn't bother anymore. She already discovered that Hikari was very willful, but she should leave on her own. Natsume had been wearing her armor the whole time, and although she had gotten used to the weight, the fatigue had accumulated.

Natsume removed all the pieces of armor one by one, and let out a sigh of relief. There was a pretty paper partition separating a section of the room. Natsume realized that this room was very high quality and wondered if all the rooms were like this. The wooden basin was very large and would easily let her submerge herself for a bath. Unfortunately, without her ninjutsu, she would have to boil some water at the fire first.

Fortunately, there were already several buckets of water prepared at the side, so all she had to do was submerge the heated stones to bring the water to the right temperature. Hikari continued to lay in between the furs and watch Natsume prepare a bath. At this point, Natsume had already begun to ignore her existence. Although it was strange, she didn't have the authority to order around the little princess.

Once the water was warmed, she filled the tub and undressed behind the paper partition. Although the screen was thin and slightly transparent, it was too dark to see through it. Natsume appreciated the birds painted on the screen while letting the hot water seep into her cold body. It was a small luxury, but it seemed to release a lot of tension in her muscles. After a while, Natsume got out of the bath and changed into the black kimono that Saru gave her. The corner of her lips rose slightly when she thought of the monkeys.

That smile instantly dropped as soon as she saw a pair of futons next to each other with a white figure snuggled under the covers of one of them. "Hime-sama, shouldn't you return to your room?"

"Big sister, this is my room!"