Shippo knew they had not been in the cell as long as it felt like it had been. Though there was no way to judge when the sun had set and if it had risen again, Shippo's internal clock told him it had barely become night. His heart though, felt like it had been stuck in here for days. The fox's stomach churned. His gut agreed.
Sumi had fallen asleep. He didn't know how. Perhaps it was because she was familiar with the holding cell, and what to expect from their captors. She snored lightly on his shoulder. The boy was painfully aware that what he was experiencing with the woman leaning against him was the closest thing to courting he had ever practiced. He rested his nose in her hair and inhaled. She did smell so good. There was a scent about her that was completely strange to him, but it was soothing and he could taste it on his tongue.
The panther had come back just a while before, and he had instructed Shippo that he would be back before sunrise to take them to another location. Shippo hadn't said anything, but wondered why the panther took the time to update him. The fox wondered if the panther was in this job voluntarily.
He ran his palm up the side of his companion feeling the miko garb she wore. Humming, he felt her curl into him more against the setting cold of the cell. His nose was still pressed against his hair and he wondered why she couldn't control her beast. Sure, Shippo understood that is got out of hand for everyone from time to time, when emotions were unstable, but he'd never heard of having no control over it.
It didn't seem as though she found it odd he could control his beast. Otherwise, the boy may have assumed that this girl's species couldn't naturally. No, from the look in her eyes when she understood his plan, he could tell she was ashamed that she didn't currently have any say about what form she was in. He scratched her head. Poor girl.
She moaned slightly then opened her eyes. She attempted to look into his, but couldn't quite focus with how close their faces were. "Shippo." She seemed to enforcing what little Japanese she learned.
Shippo scooted back from her so he could sit with an arm's length if space between the two. She tilted her head and he giggled slightly. Covering his mouth as his blush creped up, the boy cleared his throat and situated himself in a comfortable position. Sumi followed his example.
"Okay, we are going to teach you some words while we have nothing else to do. I'm sure being able to communicate would help you much more right now."
She stared at him blankly.
He coughed and shifted his hands in and out of his haori sleeves. "Uh yes, well. First, let's learn yes and no."
He shook his head and said "no."
The woman looked at him. He repeated the gesture and word. "No."
She mimicked him with a shake of her head. "No."
Shippo smiled and clapped. He then nodded his head and said "yes."
Repeating his motion and word this time, Sumi nodded after a moment in addition. "Yes."
Shippo nodded. "Yes."
"Yes." She smiled lightly.
"Hehe. Yes, no." He repeated the nod, and then the head shake with the words.
She nodded vigorously and said. "Yes yes yes."
She got it. "Thank goodness you are bright."
"Yes."
He couldn't help but laugh. "Alright, now…" The boy figured visuals would help her best, but there was very little in the cell he could use to educate her. He looked down at himself. Well, he could use his clothes and body parts. "The head bone's connected to the neck bone…" he chimed to himself.
"Sumi?"
She nodded. "Yes?"
He grinned at her for using the word in another form. "Foot." He pointed to his fox-like left paw. Then he pointed to her humanoid foot and repeated the word. "Yes?"
She shook her head and answered "no."
He placed his and onto her bare skin. "Foot."
She studied him and quirked her upper lip, lifting it slightly. She wiggled her appendage. "Foot?"
"Yes." He clapped again.
"Foot."
"Yes."
She sat back for a moment and looked at said foot. She muttered something under her breath and returned her gaze to him. She grabbed the long curtain of hair that fell behind her and pulled it over her shoulder. She held it and pointed to it. "Yes?"
He nodded. "Hair."
She looked at it and shook the tail in her grip. "Hair, yes?"
He confirmed what she'd learned by saying yes.
Her mouth twisted to the side as she flipped the long strands back over her shoulder. She looked at him, chewing on her lip for a moment before sighing. She brought her arms out and made a pooft sound with her mouth. She repeated the action and sound quickly, her hands flying outward. And it was this big.
"Yes?" She raised her eyebrows in question.
He shook his head, informing her he didn't understand. "No."
She growled softly at herself and tried again. She pointed to him. "Shippo." Then she brought her arms out and made the same sound as before.
"Bigger?" He thought on it until it seemed to come to him. "Oh the beast form?"
Her brown eyes narrowed as she concentrated. "Yes?"
"Beast."
She pointed to herself and then made the same motion as before but making the space smaller rather than larger. "Beast Sumi, yes?"
"Beast, yes." Shippo was hesitant to confirm since it was sketchy what she could mean by a bigger Shippo and a smaller Sumi.
She nodded and it seemed an air cam over her. Almost of anger. "Sumi beast no."
Shippo stretched his hand forward and touched hers. She allowed it.
"No."
"Sumi no beast yes."
He repeated what she said with an eyebrow raised.
Growling at herself again, she ran her fingers through her hair in frustration. "Sumi no pooft beast. No beast!"
"No beast. No pooft?"
"Yes." She nodded with emphasis.
"Yes." He rubbed her hand with him. She couldn't pooft as she put it. He made the sound back to her. "Pooft transform."
"Transform?"
He nidded softly. "Yes."
"Sumi no transform beast. Yes?"
He sighed at the implications. "Yes."
After a few hours of language study with Sumi, it seemed to Shippo she must already know many languages. She was learning very quickly and clearly had a knack for picking up on basic structure and memorizing words. She had learned all the body parts Shippo was able to teach her without blushing. She'd learned the word hunger and hungry. She'd figured out cell, bars, lock, key, and even guard. Sumi had even picked up on individual pieces of clothes. He'd explained as best he could what he was. She seemed to understand the fox implications but not the youkai part. He'd learned that she was called a nagual in her language, and he'd tried to explain to her that he didn't know the translation for that in his. He had never met any creature like her before.
Now the two were working on ideas and concepts—things he couldn't show her in their present holding area, or things that simply had no physical representation. Currently, Shippo was trying to get her to understand the notion of a name. He believed she understood that "Shippo" and "Sumi" were names, which name did not mean the physical individual.
He held her hands in his, rubbing his thumb along her knuckles. She seemed to like that.
"Sumi?"
She looked up from where her head had been bent over their mutual grasp and said "yes?"
He smiled. "What Sumi name?"
"Sumi." She answered quickly and returned her gaze to their hands.
"Uh no." He shook his head. "Sumi not Sumi. Name?" He emphasized the negative word.
She looked up slowly, but met his eyes. He felt his hands instinctually grip hers at the look on her face. It was practically screaming to him that she wanted to run away.
"No name."
He sighed. "Sumi—"
"No name! She shook her head and tried to pull back, but the boy kept a firm hold on her.
He pulled her forward and saw her distress. He wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her cheek."Alright, alright. No name. I'm okay with that." He rubbed her back softly and she drifted back down from her near panic state. She had been nearly panicked—he realized then.
Rubbing her back with her now clutching onto him, the red haired boy took note not to bring up her real name again.