Prologue

"Wow, General Gorou! That's genius!" The pointy-eared general's tail started involuntarily wagging at his subordinate's compliment, and he started to feel a bit bashful about the amount of pride and confidence it gave him. Even though he was tightly surrounded by his soldiers - much taller than him - hanging onto his every word of advice, he felt safe and seen. He was a bit unsure about what exactly was so genius about what he had said, but being useful and helpful meant the world to him. Seeing his subordinates happy and relieved was all that mattered to him.

"Me next! Me next!" another soldier pushed forward, coming even closer than the other soldiers around him. Suddenly, Gorou felt just how stuffy and crowded it was there. He moved backwards but bumped into two other soldiers, who barely budged at the impact. Gorou had learned to make use of his small figure in situations like this when he needed to get away. He could always crouch down and find his way out of crowds, but now he didn't need to flee - all he needed was space, and air.

"Alright, alright! But like, let's, kinda, uh... break it up a little, okay? I-I'm sure such a crowd is in the way of the villagers here, let's not crowd the streets!" Gorou tried weakly, but realized the soldiers were too excited to calm down and act rationally at this time. He noticed that there were simply times when men didn't listen to words, and he just needed to wait it out. Gorou collected himself, focusing on his breathing and whatever he could find to anchor his mind. Just as he had thought, the soldiers calmed down after a while and everything was back to normal, but he couldn't help feeling wary: he was unable to have control over the situation when he wanted to. If only he was a little bit bigger and bulkier...

"General Gorou! Are you joining us for bath time, too?"

Gorou had had a long and sweaty day so he was actually ecstatic about being able to finally have a bath and relax.

"Yes, I'm coming!" He yelled as he ran up to his soldiers who waited for him. Everyone had their bathing supplies ready, and the group headed inside the bath house.

When they entered the changing rooms, there were already a few men in there in the middle of taking their clothes off. Gorou respectfully looked away, making sure to focus on himself and the task at hand.

Just as he put down his belongings, an unexpected yell made him bolt upright.

"You ass! Give me my towel back!" One of the soldiers started chasing around his colleague, and the group couldn't help but burst out in laughter as they watched the naked one desperately try and get his towel back. Gorou's face flushed a bit at the sight and he couldn't help but steal a glance at his own size. At times, it felt like he was a different species - well, he sort of really was. But every now and then he'd get a queasy feeling, thinking about how he was seemingly the only one who was different. He felt a somber mood creep up on him, but he shook it off quickly.

'Even if I'm different, these men respect me and accept me. I am grateful to have them! This is the best!'

He grabbed his own towel and joined the group, feeling welcomed and liked.

Gorou was gazing at the moon for a few seconds before he brought his attention back to the cup of tea in his hand. He noticed a tiny sakura petal had landed in his tea, and he couldn't help but find it serene and meaningful. He took it as a good sign, and peacefully watched the small petal swim around. The summer night breeze gently carressed his hair and there was a nice smell in the air that put his mind at ease. He was already feeling relaxed from the bath earlier, this was truly just the cherry on top. He felt overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude for these untroubled and tranquil days. He was vaguely aware of the group of men behind him having a quiet banter, but he had chosen to stay a bit farther away for a short while.

Perhaps because of the knowledge that it was his men behind him, he had his guard down, so he couldn't help jolting up as he felt something touch his sensitive tail.

"Eek!" he yelped and whipped around to see what it was.

"Whoops! Hehe!" one of the soldiers had a sheepish grin on his face.

"You...! You know I'm sensitive there!" Gorou protested defeatedly, and sadly looked at the nearly empty cup in his hand - the tea had splashed out at the sudden movement, together with that special flower petal.

"Ehehe, I couldn't help it! It's just so fluffy, especially after the bath!"

Gorou let out a sigh, shaking his head. He was relieved that it wasn't something dangerous, but he still couldn't help feeling anxious about the fact that his request was disrespected, again. Will there never come a day when he can have faith that no-one would dare to touch his tail or ears? If he had to choose, he'd rather keep this friendly relationship with his men than be feared and kept a distance from, but he kept wondering if maybe there was a different option, where he could feel respected but also trusted and liked.

Soon, his heartbeat slowed down again, and the soldier had wandered off as well. It was time to go home soon, he thought with a sigh. Today was eventful and tiring - even though they only had physical training that day, and nothing extraordinary happened, Gorou felt more exhausted than usual. He would surely sleep like a log tonight.