"STTTTTTOOOOOOOOOOPPPPPPP!" Sona screamed at the top of his lungs. The crowd went silent and the man stared at Sona with cold eyes.
All eyes turned on Sona. He froze in place for a second. 'What am I doing? Why did I rush out without thinking?' For what seemed like an eternity, Sona stood still, but in reality only a few seconds had passed. Sona clenched his fist tight and raised his arm up to point at the child laying on death's door.
The crowd started chattering amongst themselves. "Who is this boy?"
"What is he thinking?"
"Looks like there might be two executions today."
The people continued to gossip amongst themselves.
"That girl committed criminal acts that resulted in damages to property. You are going to execute her because she cannot afford to reimburse you for said damages. Do I have the gist of the situation?" Sona lowered his finger from the girl as he stepped towards the robed man.
"That is correct. You are quite astute boy. What's it to you? This urchin is a blight on our illustrious city. I count it as a great honor to rid our streets of such filth," The man spoke and chuckled with malice. A knight rushed forward with sword in hand. "Stop. This boy intrigues me. Tell me boy, what would you have me do? She caused damages and grief in the form of two gold pieces. You can't simply expect me to--" The man was cut off as he watched Sona dig into a small pouch.
"Two Gold pieces was it?" Sona pulled out two coins between his fingers and threw them on the ground in front of the robed man. "Let her go now and there's an extra gold piece in it for yourself if you comply," Sona held a third piece in his hand.
The man started growling as he bent down to pick up the gold coins. He looked them over and placed them in his pocket. "Grr. Release the urchin, now!" The man growled as the Knights released her from the restraints. She rose to her feet in tears and ran to stand behind Sona. She gripped the back of his shirt tightly, bawling her eyes out. Sona reached back and placed his hand on the little girls head. "I held up my end, now, that gold piece you hold. Give it here," The man said greedily, a look of unbound lust filled his eyes.
"I am a man of my word," Sona tossed the third piece at his feet and turned around to face the girl. "Come along. We should leave now," He smiled at the little girl who barely came up to his waist. He bent down and scooped up the poor girl in his arms and started walking away.
"Wait! Wait, I say!" The man yelled after him but Sona ignored him and kept walking.
"Our business is concluded. I have nothing more to say," Sona shot back and turned to face the man. The man froze in terror. Sona's words sent shivers down this mans spine, but it was his eyes that terrified this man. They held a burning hatred, as if this boy was thinking of all the ways to torture him.
"Who does this brat think he is? Arhg!!" The man turned around and stormed off with the Knights following quickly behind him.
"Sona," Konotsune fell in line behind him as the two walked in silence, save for the little girl still crying in his arms.
"Sorry, Kono. I guess I ruined our date," He said reluctantly.
"Don't be. After all, I could never marry a man who would sit on the sidelines and watch an innocent child be executed just to save his own skin," She shook her head as she replied.
"P-please. D-don't hurt me," The little girl begged through a face full of tears.
"No harm will come to you child, I promise. You are under my care now. I won't let anything happen to you," He reassured the little girl in his arms. Her long, blonde hair was unkempt and covered half her face, but Sona could see the bruises and cuts. She had a pair of lavender wolf ears on her head, and her lavender colored tail hung over Sona's arm, swaying back and forth as they walked. "You poor thing. You've been through so much for one so young. Let's get you some new clothes, some hot food, and a warm bed. How does that sound?" He smiled softly at the girl and she started crying again.
"B-but I can't afford to pay you back. Don't waste your money on someone like me," She sobbed and buried her face into his shirt.
"I never said anything about paying me back, did I?" Sona reached up and pinched her cheek gently. "You are now my ward. It is my duty to care for you. Now, no more objections," Sona chuckled softly as the girl squirmed his arms.
'He is...so kind. His actions and words imply great wisdom. How old is he, really?' Kono walked beside him and couldn't help but smile. Whatever this feeling was, it was nice. "Sona is a good man. Trust me when I say that. Now, what's your name, child?" Kono asked in her usual voice. The girl looked at Kono and then buried her face into Sona's shirt, hiding her face out of shyness.
"She's my friend, sweetie. You can trust her. Tell us your name," Sona looked down at the shy girl clinging to him.
"If you say that I can trust her, then I will," She revealed her face and looked towards Konotsune. "My mother called me Whitefang. Ayame Whitefang," She whispered and hugged Sona, hiding her face once more.
"Ayame. It's a cute name. My name is Sona, and this is my friend, Konotsune," He introduced himself and Kono.
"It's..nice to meet you. Sona. Konotsune," She replied to the two of them.
"It's nice to meet you, Ayame. Now Konotsune, first we need to get her cleaned up and have a doctor look at her. Can I trust you to get her cleaned up at the baths in town," Sona sat Ayame down and gently pushed her to Kono.
"You can't..come?" She had grown attached to the man who saved her life. Being near him was the only place she felt safe.
"Not now. I'm going to grab some food and clothes for you. Anything in particular you wish to eat?" He smiled at Ayame sweetly. "Kono, where can I find a dressmaker?"
"Meat! I mean, whatever you decide. I can't be picky with the man who saved my life," She replied sheepishly, but with the word meat, her tail wouldn't stopped wagging at the thought.
"Down this road, three buildings down. You should find what you need," Kono looked Ayame up and down and grabbed a piece of paper. She wrote down Ayame's measurements on a sheet and gave it to Sona. "These are her measurements. They should be able to help you with these," She reached down and grabbed Ayame's hand. "Come along, Ayame. We will get you cleaned up for Sona. Does that sound good?" Kono spoke as they walked away towards the bath house.
"Yeah. I want Sona to be impressed!" She exclaimed happily.
Sona waved at them until they were out of sight. Turning around on his heels, Sona made his way to the clothing shop. It was relatively easy to find with the directions Kono had given him.
"Hi, welcome to the shop! What can we help you with today?" An angelic voice greeted him upon entry. A beautiful, slender woman with green hair walked up to him as he entered.
"Ah, yes. I need some children's clothes for a little girl. These are her measurements," Sona pulled out the piece of paper and handed it to her. "Let me get as many clothes as this will buy," Sona pulled out two gold pieces and handed them to the woman.
"Of course, we'll get right on it, sir. Could you give us fifteen minutes? I promise we will have the cutest clothes ready for your little angel by then. Thank you for your purchase!" She bowed as Sona left to procure some food for the three of them.
Konotsune and Ayame had long since arrived at the bath house. Kono paid the entry fee and the two of them rented some towels. They walked into the women's changing room and stripped down before walking into the women's bath.
"Whoa! I've never been to a bath house before! It's huge!" Ayame said excitedly and went to get in the water.
"Wait, Ayame. We have to wash ourselves over there first. Come, I'll wash your back for you," She pointed to the showers and they walked over to wash off. Ayame sat down as Konotsune ran the water and started spraying off the little girl. Kono paused as she stared at Ayame's back. She was covered in scars some old and some more recent. "You poor thing," Konotsune whispered as she sprayed off the dirt and filth.
She handed Ayame a bar of soap. "Scrub yourself with this real good while I wash myself. Just get the front and I'll do your back in a minute," Konotsune started cleaning off her body while Ayame started lathering herself up.
"Okay, Big Sis Kono," Ayame said sweetly as she continued her task. Kono finished cleaning herself off before Ayame finished. She walked over and took the bar of soap when she was done. "Mister Sona isn't an ordinary man, is he, Big Sis?" Ayame asked as Konotsune started scrubbing her back.
"How can you tell?" Konotsune asked as she continued she kept washing Ayame's back.
"He smells different, but that doesn't matter anymore. My life now belongs to Master Sona. My life ended today and he blessed me with a new life," Ayame smiled and laughed as Konotsune squirted some water in her face. "No fair, Big Sis," She giggled and looked down at the ground. "Could I..." She trailed off and lost her words.
"Hm? What's wrong Ayame?" Konotsune questioned as she sprayed off the little girl's body and rinsed out her hair.
"Do you think I could become strong one day? Then I could protect Master and repay him for saving my life," Ayame looked to Konotsune for an answer. Kono grabbed her hand and they walked over to sit in the bath.
"You know, he didn't save your life in hopes of being rewarded, right? That's just the kind of man he is," Konotsune dipped into the bath as well. "We need to finish soon, we shouldn't keep Sona waiting. We have a bath back at the Academy, so you can enjoy this every day," Konotsune sighed as she sunk lower into the bath.
"I know that, but..." Ayame ducked her mouth under the water and started blowing bubbles.
"Alright, let's dry off and get dressed, Ayame," Konotsune climbed out and Ayame followed after. They dried themselves off as they walked back into the changing room.
Sona finished grabbing some food from a nearby vendor. He had tasted a few types of food before settling on something similar to curry. He made sure to grab the mildest type he could find. Upon his return, the woman at the clothing store had his order already prepared. "Thank you again. We made sure to choose nothing but the cutest attire for your little girl," She exclaimed happily as she handed him two large bags full of clothes. "Please come back again when you need more work! We would like to serve you exclusively so please keep us in mind."
"Right, I definitely will. Thank you for everything," Sona bowed to her before leaving and making his way to the bath house. "I'll be little early, but it should be fine," Sona sat down on a bench just outside the bath house to wait for the two ladies.
"Do you think Sona will notice how cute I am now that I'm cleaned up?" Ayame giggled happily as she jogged out of the building. "Oh, Sona!" Ayame gasped and covered her face with her hands. "What did you hear?" She asked shyly.
"Hm? Not much, but I think you should know," Sona stood up and walked over to Ayame. "You look very cute, Aya," Sona reached out and rubbed the top of her head gently.
"Haha. Really? I'm glad you think so!" She giggled happily and sat down on the bench he had been sitting on. "What smells so yummy?"
Sona and Konotsune sat down on either side of Ayame. He pulled out two wrapped plates and handed one to Ayame and the other to Kono. "I'm not sure what it's called here, but in my country, we call it curry. Don't worry, I got the mild kind," Sona pulled out another plate for himself and three cans of tea. He gave two to the ladies and kept one for himself. "We still have some exploring to do around town, would you like to accompany us, Aya?" Sona asked as the three of them dug into their respective plates.
After several minutes had passed, they finished their food in silence.
"I don't mind if she comes if you're okay with it, Sona," Konotsune agreed with his decision.
"Why would a human be so kind to a demi-human like me?" Ayame looked up at her savior and frowned at her previous abuse.
Sona crouched down in front of her and pinched her cheeks gently once more. "Owowow, that hurts Master Sona," Ayame rubbed her cheeks and let a soft squeal of delight when Sona lifted her off the ground. He carefully put her on his shoulders and started walking down the street. "Woah! Big Sis, I'm so high up!" Ayame laughed with delight as she looked around the busy streets. Konotsune gathered up their lunch and threw away the trash before following after Sona and Ayame.
"Ayame," Sona spoke her name and she looked down at him.
"What is it, Master Sona?" She asked eagerly. Ayame wanted to do anything she could for this man.
"I don't care that you're a demi-human or anything like that. None of that matters to me. I did this for you because it was the right thing. I couldn't stand there and watch a child be killed, human or not," Sona explained to her and looked up when he felt water falling on his face.
"Cheer up, Ayame. Sona is different. He sees the world in a different light. He is not your every day human," Konotsune grabbed a handkerchief and handed it to Ayame. "Dry your eyes, little one. You don't want to make Sona upset right?" Konotsune handed her a piece of quilted white cloth.
"Big sis..." She took the cloth that was handed to her and dried her eyes gently. "I'm sorry, Master Sona," Ayame whispered softly to him.
"You have nothing to apologize for, sweetheart. You did nothing wrong. Now cheer up, let's find something we can do together. Hey Konotsune. Do you have any parks in this world or any kind of attractions for the younger audience? Maybe a toy shop?" Sona wanted to make sure he had some things for Ayame to play with.
"Both actually. The store is up ahead, and there's a park nearby where she could play. Shall we go there, Sona?" Konotsune asked and looked over to Sona. He was just like a father doting on his beautiful daughter.
"Does that sound good to you, sweetheart?" He asked the little girl on his shoulders.