Chapter 23: Lost Child

"Wow…"

Iris was staring at a group of monstergirl children. Some of these monstergirl children were catgirls. She hadn't seen any other catgirl till this point. It fascinated her to find others like herself. Those catgirls even had different fur colors!

"Eryn, look!" Iris pointed at the monstergirl children. "Those are catgirls like me!"

Strangely enough, there was no response from Eryn, prompting her to turn around.

"Eryn?" Iris called out once more, only to hear nothing back. She looked around and didn't find him and her two sisters anywhere.

"E-Eryn?" Fear settled into her lower body. Many people were walking around. The sounds of chattering and footsteps echoed through her cat ears. "Eryn?"

When did she separate? Wasn't she holding on to his hand? She couldn't remember at all. She saw other catgirls and simply wanted to see them up close. Did she wander around without realizing it?

Her eyes darted around, trying to find her owner. Anxiety pooled through her heart. She sniffed the air, trying to locate his comfy scent, but there were too many scents roaming around. These unfamiliar scents and sounds overwhelmed her, making it hard for her to think calmly.

"E-Eryn?" Iris started wandering through the school area. Eryn must be nearby, right? He'd never abandon her. He wasn't like that. She was sure he must be worried about her. He must be looking for her too!

But her optimism couldn't push away the negative feelings growing in her mind. What if he did abandon her? What if he forgot about her? What if he planned to leave her behind. Would she be alone again?

"No…" Iris clenched the fabric of her shirt, a sour feeling pooling through her chest. Her heart tightened at the idea that Eryn would leave her here. Eryn wasn't like that! She knew Eryn wouldn't leave her behind! And yet, she couldn't stop the tears from welling up in her eyes.

"Eryn…" Iris called out again, hoping it reached him somewhere. She couldn't have wandered too far. Maybe she could trace her steps back! That sounded like a good idea! With renewed determination, she turned around and–…

BUMP!

"Ow!" Iris bumped into someone. "S-Sorry…!"

"Oh?" The person Iris bumped into turned to her.

In front of Iris was a girl slightly taller than her. Black long hair reached her back with hime-cut front bangs reaching just above her mystical purple eyes. She wore a black shirt and skirt with purple frills. Her presence seemed to exude a royal aura.

"Hello there!" The girl waved. "Are you lost?"

"Y-Yes…" Iris nodded timidly. This girl appeared nice.

"Oh, don't worry!" The girl slammed a fist to her chest. "I'll keep you company!"

"… Y-You will?" Iris asked, surprised. This girl, who she just met, wants to help her?

"Of course!" her eyes sparkled with excitement. "Who are you looking for?"

"My… owner." She answered. "And my two sisters."

"You have sisters?" She grinned. "I have a sister, too!"

For someone she just met, this girl was oddly excited to accompany her. Iris didn't feel anything malicious from her intentions. Maybe she was a good person? Still, something felt off about this girl.

"Oh…!" The girl's eyes noticed the catgirl's ears and tail. "Wait, are you a monstergirl?"

"Y-Yes…" Iris nodded timidly. Well, there were a lot of monstergirls in this school.

"That's cool!" She leaned close to her face, too close for Iris's comfort. "Can I touch you?"

"E-Eh…?" Iris blinked.

Before Iris could even respond, the girl cupped the catgirl's cheeks, giving them a gentle squeeze. "Wow, your cheeks are so soft."

"U-Uhm…" Iris was dumbfounded about what to do. Wasn't she supposed to help her find Eryn? Here she was, touching her face. On the bright side, Iris supposed it was better than being alone.

"They can stretch pretty wide, too!" The girl gently pulled her cheeks.

"T-That hurts…" Iris grumbled. If she were Lofie, she'd bite her fingers off. But Eryn wouldn't want her biting other people.

"Iris!" A familiar voice called out. "Iris, where are you?!"

"… Eryn?" Iris's cat ears twitched. She snapped her face away from the girl and ran to the voice. That sounded like Eryn! Did he find her?

"Eryn, there she is!" Melty pointed at the catgirl.

"Eryn!" Iris cried out, reaching her hands toward him.

"Iris, there you are!" Eryn crouched down and spread his arms apart.

"Eryn!" Iris jumped into his embrace, finally feeling his comfortable warmth.

"Thank God, I found you." Eryn tightened his arms around her and sighed in relief, glad she was okay. "You made me worried sick."

"Mhmm…" Iris nuzzled into his chest. A few tears escaped her eyes. She was so overjoyed to be in his arms where she felt the safest and most protected. "I'm sorry, Eryn…"

"You shouldn't wander around, Iris." Lofie shook her head. "You worried us."

"Yeah!" Melty agreed. "You made Eryn sad!"

Eryn held back a chuckle. It was amusing seeing Lofie and Melty being the more sensible children of the bunch. I'm just glad she's safe.

"Iris…" The girl approached them. "That's a pretty name, Iris."

"Uh…" Eryn, Lofie, and Melty stared at this new person.

"Eryn." Iris tugged on his hand. "She kept me company when I was looking for you."

"Oh." Eryn bowed his head lightly to the girl. "Thank you for keeping Iris company."

"Oh, don't worry about it!" The girl scratched her head and chuckled awkwardly. "To be honest, I'm… kind of lost, too."

"… What?" Eryn blinked. Wait, this sounds familiar.

"But what's better than one lost child?" She raised two fingers proudly. "Two lost children!"

I'm… not sure how to feel about that? Eryn scratched his head. Was this child lost? Did she stay with Iris because she needed the company? She's an interesting character.

"Oh, and my name is Yuki!" The girl grinned, leaning forward.

"H-Hello, Yuki." Eryn raised a brow. She's quite enthusiastic. "My name is Eryn. Are your parents here?"

"Yeah! My dad is here!" She bobbed her head, then slowly cast her gaze to her feet. "I… think so. I think my dad's somewhere. He wouldn't… leave me behind."

There was an indescribable sadness in her voice. It tugged his heartstring in such a way. I wonder if she's talking from experience.

"… hey, hey, can I tag along with you?" Yuki asked.

"Sure, you can–…"

"You have three children!" Yuki drew her hands to her hips. "It's not that different from having four children!"

"Uh…" Eryn stared at her.

"And you seem like a good person!" Yuki stroked her chin in deep thought. "My parents tell me to avoid strangers, but I think you're a good stranger! I can sense it!"

Briefly, Eryn saw her eyes glow faintly. Huh? He blinked a few times and looked at her face. Was I imagining things? Perhaps the panic from losing Iris was getting to his head. Yeah, that's probably it.

"Eryn is very kind." Iris smiled, tugging the hem of his shirt. "You can trust him."

"Yeah!" Melty nodded. "Eryn is the best! He's not a stranger to us!"

"Okay!" Yuki grinned. "I'll stick with you until I find my dad!"

"… All right." Eryn didn't get his response out, but he was going to help her regardless. Haven't I… been in this situation before? It was not too long ago that Eryn helped a lost child reunite with her parent.

"So, Yuki, was it?" He crossed his arms. "Could you tell me how your dad looks?"

"My dad looks very cool!" Yuki exclaimed.

"Er, I mean…" Eryn scratched his cheek. "What does he look like?"

"Oh, he's wearing his blue martial arts uniform!"

"… A what now?"

"I don't know what it's called, but my dad is a martial artist!" Yuki's eyes sparkled with fondness. "He's very cool!"

A father wearing a blue martial arts uniform. He figured that kind of description would stand out in a crowd. The color was all he had to look for, really.

"Anything else you can tell me about him? Like hair and eyes?" Eryn asked. The group began walking through the school area.

"Oh, his eyes are purple! Like mine!" With her fingers, Yuki rubbed below her eyes. "His hair is dark blue! It's a very cool blue!"

If it wasn't obvious now, Yuki thinks her dad is cool. She's gotten me curious. What is her dad like?

"So, uh… how did you get lost?"

"It's very dumb." Yuki scratched her reddened cheek. "I got excited to explore the school so I wandered around by myself. Before I realized it, I was already lost."

"I see…" he nodded. "I bet your dad is worried about you. I'm sure he's looking for you as we–…"

"Yuki!"

Yuki froze in place and turned to the voice. A voice that sounded familiar.

"Is that your dad's voice?" Iris asked. Her sharp sense of hearing could pick up on the voice better.

"Yeah!" Yuki nodded frantically. "My dad's looking for me!"

"Let's go find him, shall we?" Eryn smiled. They tried to locate the voice calling for her. It didn't take too long for a person wearing a blue martial arts uniform to appear in their view. Huh, that is indeed a blue martial arts uniform. His uniform had white Sakura flower patterns scattered around the clothes. Both sides of his clothes had two different shades of blue, one darker than the other. Strapped to the right side of his waist were two katanas.

Wait, two katanas? Eryn leaned his face closer. Two long steel blades were sticking out, glistening under the sunlight! He's got two katanas?! Aren't those weapons? Is he carrying actual weapons?! Is he allowed to carry that to a school area?!

"Ah, dad!" Yuki began running to him. "That's my dad!"

"Yuki!" Her dad dropped to one knee and spread his arms apart. "Jeez, where have you been?"

"Dad!" Yuki happily jumped into his embrace. "You found me!"

"Mhmm…" Ignoring the katana situation, Eryn observed the father-daughter duo. Seeing their heartfelt interaction filled his heart with warmth. It was a beautiful interaction that he could relate to. When Iris jumped into his arms, he felt so glad she was safe. I imagine that's what her dad must be feeling right now… to have his daughter in his arms.

"Dad, that person kept me company and helped me find you!" Yuki pointed at Eryn.

"Oh, really?" The man stood up and approached Eryn. He bowed at his waist. "Thank you so much for helping my daughter!"

"N-No worries." Eryn bowed back awkwardly. He still wasn't used to receiving direct thanks.

"Is there any way I can repay you?" He asked, visibly grateful.

"N-No, that's fine." He waved his hands. Why is this situation giving me flashbacks? "I was just doing what anyone else would…"

"Kindness such as yours shouldn't go to waste." He remained firm. "Not just anyone would assist a lost child."

"E-Er, well…" Eryn averted his eyes. I doubt he's going to change his mind anytime soon. An idea then popped into his mind. We're in school right now, so…

"Are you a parent, as well?" He asked, glancing at the three monstergirl children. He just noticed the little Anubis sitting on Eryn's shoulders. "Oh, are you bringing your kids to school?"

"A-Ah, no… not yet." Eryn cleared his throat. "They're interested in going to school. I hear Little Flower is one of the few schools that teach monstergirl children."

"Monstergirl children? Interesting!" He nodded. "I was also planning on having my kids attend Little Flower. If you'd like, maybe we could explore around together?"

"Ah, I'd like that." Eryn nodded with a smile. I could use the company. Exploring an unfamiliar school alone was a little daunting but having another parent here would make that more bearable.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself!" He offered his hand. "The name's Kazumi. And you've already met Yuki. She's my daughter."

"My name is Eryn." He gave him a firm handshake, then turned his attention to the monstergirls. "And this is–…"

"We're Eryn's children!" Melty cut in. "And you can call me Melty!"

"And we're monstergirls," Lofie added. "I'm Lofie."

"Eryn is our owner!" Iris said proudly. "My name is Iris!"