Drowning. Mimi is drowning. Clawing through the heavy water, Mimi felt her lungs struggle to contain her breath. The light above her is so far away. Her eyes become blurry, and nostrils fill with water as Mimi's body forces her to take a breath. Water fills her mouth. With one more push, Mimi breaks the surface of the water. Flailing her arms, Mimi's claws finally dig into something. Blinking her eyes several times, Mimi flings herself at the solid bank. Pulling herself from the depths. Shaking, Mimi chokes on the water, purging the inky liquid from her lungs. Laying on her stomach, her face in the mud, Mimi finally breathes in the fresh cold air. Something slaps her hand. Mimi realizes her claws have impaled a large koi fish. Twitching in surprise, Mimi flings the fish against a tree. The fish stops moving.
Is she back in time? Mimi sits shivering with her back against a tree. How differently did the trees look here, now, and then? Not much, she thinks. Clinging to the tree, Mimi uses it to lift herself up, accidentally piercing through the tree trunk with her claws. Lillian had said that she was going to drop her next to the Shen Manor. Mimi squints through the trees behind her and immediately sees the large battlements of a Chinese fortress.
"Ohh. There it is," Mimi mutters, immediately feeling like an extra in some sort of foreign horror movie.
Stumbling out of the woods, Mimi realizes that what she had "fallen" out of was a large koi pond. On closer inspection, the koi pond is a little strange. Looking even more closely, Mimi realizes it is the koi. Strange symbols were bred into the patterns. Rorschach blots of faces contorted in pain immediately pop into her mind as she stares at the scales.
A voice interrupts her thoughts, and Mimi leans away from the koi pond to see the faded essence of a spirit. The man repeats himself, but Mimi finds herself drawn to the fact the man is holding his head in his arms. She makes eye contact, and the man jumps, bowing to her. When he sees her tails, he nearly drops his head. He bows again, looking nervous. Mimi raises her hands and touches her tongue. A simple translation spell she had learned from Rick.
"Can I see Lord Shen, please?" Mimi asks politely, swishing her tails in what she hopes is an innocent manner.
The spirit holds up his head, the neck bleeding profusely, and nods it, "Right away. Follow me."
Constantly holding his head over his shoulder to make sure she is following, he leads her to the castle's large double doors and opens the door for her. Stepping through to the red carpets, Mimi is immediately taken aback at the noisiness of the castle. Spirits of every shape in size clung to the balustrade and hovered in the corners. Two spirits threw what appears to be a ball of dung back and forth on the side. Shouting strange obscenities at each other. A woman with a rat's head and a naked body is descending the stairs in a stately manner, making shrill chattering squeaks. At the sight of Mimi and the soldier, the entryway becomes unnervingly quiet. The spirits instantly disappear.
"Do I clear a room or what?" Mimi says offhandedly to the soldier.
"They are right to fear one of the Shen clan," the soldier said in an ominous tone from the crook of his elbow.
Ah. My sense of humor is going to be wasted here, Mimi thinks, following the soldier up the stairs. The soldier leads her to a door of black wood. Before Mimi can knock herself, the soldier shoves his head through the door with both arms. She watches his back move up and down as if bowing over and over in obeisance.
Pulling his head back through the door, the soldier bows to her once more and says, "Lord Shen will be delighted to see you."
"Thank you," Mimi says very politely, bowing to the soldier.
The soldier is taken aback by her behavior. A little smile even graces his thin grey lips. He opens the door for her and disappears. Taking a deep breath and trying to crush the butterflies floating around in her belly, Mimi steps into the door. The thin man stood with his back facing her, looking over his estate.
"Greetings, Lord Shen," Mimi states, bowing to the man. She waits for him to turn before rising, waiting for just the right moment to make eye contact.
"It is indeed as he said—an undiscovered member of our clan. One who so resembles my dear wife," he steps around the desk, seemingly taking all of her in at once.
Mimi realizes at that moment. She probably looks like a fox who had recently been dragged behind a cart. Yet it was her tails that seem to draw the man's attention. It was rude to blatantly stare at a kitsune's tails, much like how it is rude to ask a woman her age. Mimi chances a peek at the Lord Shen's tails and discovers that he only has three. It meant that she is the most powerful creature in the room.
Deciding to use this to her advantage Mimi turns her eyes to the floor, swishing her tails from side to side coquettishly, "Father, I am from the future and seek The Reverent. Someone will use it against you at your most powerful."
"My most powerful, eh? What year have you descended from?"
"The year 2019, my lord boasts near a hundred tails and is most magnificent to behold. Far exceeding that of the Golden Phoenix," Mimi twinges her tails as if to demonstrate fear and awe.
"Please look up, child, so I may look at you," Lord Shen is standing before her, his height matching her own.
Feigning tears, Mimi sniffles, "I pray you will allow me to save you, my lord."
"Such a dutiful child," Lord Shen's voice is soft, and Mimi feels shivers of disgust course through her body. She had heard the stories of this man—the first of her mother's many consorts.
"Please sit down."
Following his own advice, Lord Shen sits behind his desk, kneeling upon the floor. Mimi follows this example and sits in front of the desk, making sure to fan out her tails behind her like a peacock.
"I trust you know what dangers lay in the journey to find The Reverent," Lord Shen picks up a pair of chopsticks and stabs at what Mimi realizes is a large koi fish.
"I love my father, sir, and would die for him," Mimi beseeches, casting her eyes down, not quite able to take her eyes away from the koi.
He notices this, "Do you know why I eat koi, little one?"
The disgust rolls in her stomach, and Mimi squashes the urge to flick him through the window like a bug.
"My lord is terribly busy collecting tribute from his lucrative vassals. He has no reason to mind one of many sons and daughters," Mimi says demurely. He reminded her of an irritable stage manager she had once had to deal with.
Puffing his chest out proudly, Mimi watches with horrified fascination as he puts a piece into his mouth, skin, and all. She could still make out the pattern of what appeared to be a death mask as he slides the skin back out from between his lips.
"But of course, I am! Charming child, I eat this koi because it is the biggest in the pond. One needs to remind those beneath you who is the bigger fish!"
Mimi doesn't say anything and keeps her eyes lowered in obeisance.
"My child, of course, I will bestow upon you, The Reverent," Lord Shen declares, "But you must, of course, meet the rest of the family!"
Mimi feels her stomach cramp up at the very thought. Her mother was a distant shining figure, like a star. She knew of her existence, but it had been many years since she had seen her light. Perhaps she could talk to her.
"It would be a delight seeing my most esteemed family once more, my lord," Mimi intones softly, as if reverent at the idea.
"I will summon them shortly," Lord Shen says kindly, and Mimi realizes he had finally taken notice of the dirt she had carried into the room.
"Forgive me, my lord. I am clumsy," Mimi puts up her hands, magically wiping the mud from herself, and shifts her clothing to a simple gown of muted colors.
That was when she realizes her mistake.
"You wear the claws of the Golden Phoenix," Lord Shen points to her in accusation.
"You gifted them to me, my lord father," Mimi says quietly, lifting her head and revealing watery eyes. If only he knew she stole them from his old desk nearly hundreds of years after his death.
This softens him, "But of course I did. Your obedience makes it quite clear that you are your sister's successor."
"I only live to please, my lord," Mimi felt like gagging.
He pats her cheek affectionately, and Mimi felt little bits of fish skin attach to her face.
Lord Shen stands from his seat and using her wits, Mimi magics a Chinese fan into being, waving it demurely in front of her face before wiping the fish skin off with the back of her hand. He hits a gong on the other side of the room as she makes the fan disappear.
As if on cue, a line of fox spirits materialize into being all bowing to their father. These are her much older siblings, she realizes. She had never even seen them before.
"My children, it is a blessed day. Your sister of another time has come to claim The Reverent!"
Keeping her eyes down, Mimi studies her siblings from beneath her eyelashes. There are five in total. All five keep their expressions blank, but there is an odd excitement in the room. Mimi is beginning to get weird Sound of Music vibes when Lord Shen steps in front of who she assumes to be the eldest.
"Shun," Lord Shen proclaims loudly to the entire room, and Mimi wonders if this is normal behavior.
The man at his father's side could be no more than nineteen, but looks were always deceiving. Peeking at his tails, she counts six tails. This was not bad in terms of strength. He has already surpassed his father in terms of power. She judges that she could easily take him down in a fight if it came down to it. Like most of those in the room, he had inherited the standard long black hair and emerald green eyes from their mother.
"Yuanjun," Lord Shen stands in front of the second son, and Mimi is immediately set on edge.
The boy, probably about seventeen, standing beside Lord Shen, has glazed eyes and emitted a strange odor that causes flies to circle above his head. Like the dead, Mimi thinks. His head hung at a strange angle as if it had been broken at one point and botchily put together. He is dressed finely in white and red silks, and Mimi realizes quickly that he had no tails. Cutting all the tails from a fox spirit would mean certain death for the fox spirit involved. What kind of monstrosity is this?
"Ying," Lord Shen pats the young woman on the cheek fondly, and to Mimi looks like she enjoys it as much as swallowing a live frog.
Ying is dressed exactly like Yuanjun but in a feminine style. Mimi realizes belatedly that Yuanjun is her twin. Unlike Yuanjun, however, Ying reminds Mimi of a porcelain doll. Her face is skillfully painted, and her long black hair passes her back, joining the silk train on the ground like a waterfall. There were twelve fox tails she could see ostentatiously displayed from a slit in the skirts. Mimi makes a mental note to be careful of this one. Power in kitsunes could be derived in two ways; age and wisdom. This one had already outmatched her eldest siblings and father. She is not one to be trifled with, Mimi thinks.
"Yongrui," Lord Shen steps in front of another rather startling looking youth and places his hands proudly on the young man's shoulders.
Where Yuanjun is creepy by resembling the dead, Yongrui seems to strive on the opposite side of the spectrum. Yongrui's fingers twitch like he wants to grip something in a stranglehold. His emerald eyes were sizing her up. Looking her up and down before licking his lips with a long fox tongue. Psychopath is the name her mind supplies. His six tails wag like an eager puppy waiting to pounce and eat something.
Lord Shen, seemingly tired of this parade of children, stands in front of a young girl that Mimi nearly misses in the perusal of the eldest siblings, "Chen."
The girl twitches uncomfortably under her father's gaze. She is shorter than her siblings, and Mimi is willing to bet she is close to nine or ten. Two tails peek out from under her skirts. But Mimi has to hand it to her. Despite being crowded by her siblings, Chen stands with her head held high.
"And where is Dandan!" Lord Shen calls loudly, stomping his feet.
Chen trembles and Mimi decides to step in, "My most esteemed father, I would not want to waste the time of my beloved and wise siblings."
"She will not be one if I have anything to do with it," Lord Shen grunts, and Mimi feels a shudder go down her back.
"You are dismissed," Lord Shen utters to his children, his mood darkening before her eyes.
"Perhaps I may have use for the child," Mimi says airily, displaying her claws, "It would be my privilege to discard anything not meeting my lord father's generous expectations."
Lord Shen nods at her, "You may have her if you can find her. Damn, child."
Hearing the sharp intake of breath from behind her, Mimi ignores it for now. Mimi steps in front of Chen, shielding her from Lord Shen's sight.
"Perhaps I may stay for a couple of days to regain my strength to serve you properly in the future?"
Lord Shen stares at her kindly, "Of course, little one. Please say hello to your heavenly mother."
Mimi bows in agreement.
Opening a drawer in his desk, he produces a large red casket, "To find The Reverent. Light one stick of incense. The instructions will soon be clear to you."
Mimi takes the red casket and fights the victorious smile that rose to her lips. Lord Shen points a sharp finger at Chen, "Take your sister to a room and make sure she is comfortable. Do not disappoint me!"
Chen scrambles to bow hurriedly to her father before hurrying out the door, beckoning Mimi to follow her.
Mimi closes the door to the study, and with a wave of her hand, prevents their conversation from being heard by eavesdroppers. Her "little" sister feels the surge of magic in the air, and Mimi could see the hair on both the top of her head and tails become fluffier with nerves.
"You are not taking Dumplin," Chen spins around and spits at Mimi, who raises an eyebrow in surprise.
"Why don't we talk where there are fewer eyes about," Mimi could see shadows lingering in corners, perfect places for an ambitious spirit to read their lips.
Emphatically shaking her head Chen, points at a room and then bolts down the corridor.