The Gift from Grandpa
Ever since my baby teeth had started falling out, a peculiar change had come over the way I slept.
Whether I was settling in for the night or just catching a nap after a meal, I invariably woke up wherever Grandpa was.
The Snowy Mountain, its eternal snow so white it stung the eyes. And our Grandpa, who reigned over that peak.
The first time, his sheer size had startled me. Now that colossal tiger didn't frighten me in the slightest. If anything, his presence had begun to feel strangely comforting.
I crossed the snowfield toward him, the path already familiar under my paws. The snow swallowed my feet with every step, and it never stopped feeling wonderful.
"So you've come."
"Kyau!"
Hi, Grandpa.
The white tiger, vast as a mountain peak, lay waiting for me. He was still so enormous that his face remained a blur behind the dense blizzard, but the gaze that reached me through it was unmistakably a grandfather's, waiting for his grandson.
Without a moment's hesitation, I nestled into the plush thicket of fur between his enormous forepaws and sprawled out.
"Kyauung..."
So fluffy. I love this.
This was the sweet spot. It blocked the Snowy Mountain's knife-edged wind, and from behind me I could feel the heavy, steady beat of Grandpa's heart, settling both body and mind.
"Kyau...ung..."
I propped my chin on his paw and started to whine.
"You seem listless today. What happened?"
He spoke as if in a whisper, though even that was enough to make my ears ring. I rubbed my chubby cheeks against his paw and poured out my grievances.
"Kyaang... kyau... kyaaang."
Grandpa, all my teeth fell out, so I can't eat meat...
"Haha. Losing one's milk teeth is part of growing up. Everyone goes through it."
"Kyau!"
I know that, but it still hurts! This morning my little sister got meat, and I had to eat stew!
I paddled my forepaws in the air, venting my sense of injustice. The joy of my life had been cut in half. I was supposed to chew on hard bones and tear at tough jerky to work off stress, but these days all I could do was lick my gums with my tongue, and the itch inside my mouth was driving me insane.
"Nngh..."
Can't you just make them grow back with your powers, Grandpa?
I kneaded his fur with my paws like a grandson throwing a tantrum. Strangely enough, I always turned into a bit of a spoiled brat whenever I was at Grandpa's side. Maybe that just meant I felt at ease here.
Even in the face of my childish complaining, Grandpa showed not the slightest hint of annoyance. He only let out a low rumble of laughter.
"Do not be impatient, little one."
Grandpa's shadow fell over me as he lowered his head to look over my small body.
"Among all of my bloodline, you were born with the sturdiest potential. It merely takes time to fill a vessel of your size."
"Kyau..."
Okay... I got it, Grandpa.
"They will grow in soon enough. Do not take it so hard."
He soothed me as he spoke. The certainty in his voice eased me a little. If Grandpa said so, then it was so. I still couldn't even see his face properly, but he was an elder of our family, so I would take him at his word.
"Wait just a little longer. In the meantime..."
Grandpa paused, then drew in a deep breath.
In an instant my body went weightless, and I frantically latched onto his fur.
"Kyauuuu!"
Grandpa..!
"Kyauuung!"
Put me down first!
Only after Grandpa stopped inhaling was I able to land back on his paw. That had nearly given me a heart attack. I nipped at his forepaw to register my complaint.
"Haha. Is the little one giving Grandfather a massage, too?"
"Kyau."
I was just lifting my head at that note of fond approval when it happened.
Hoooo—
Grandpa breathed over me. A white aura, fine as powder, wrapped itself around my body. It felt like a clean, cold wind from the depths of an ice cave slipping between every strand of my fur.
"Kyauuu."
This feels like drinking ice-cold radish water kimchi.
It was cold, but it didn't sting. Instead, a bracing clarity swept through me, as if a stuffy tightness in my chest had been blown wide open. The energy sank past my skin, through muscle, all the way into the marrow of my bones. The heat that had been itching in my gums cooled, and a delicious chill spread in its place.
"Kyau..."
Oh... this is nice and cool... I like this.
A pleasant shiver ran through me. It felt so good, like having an itch scratched in exactly the right spot, that I grinned without meaning to.
"Grow well, my beloved child."
Grandpa's tender whisper lingered at my ear like a lullaby. My consciousness began to blur. The white landscape of the Snowy Mountain receded, and the warm sensations of the waking world started to return.
"Kyaumm..."
When I opened my eyes, the first thing I felt was the drowsy sunlight of late afternoon.
"Prrrr..."
I fluttered my lips as I woke. My body was still heavy with sleep, and yet I felt strangely refreshed.
"Kyaum..."
That was a good nap.
I turned my head and found a white puff of fur stuck to my side. It was Lumia. She had shifted back into her fox form and was dead asleep with her nose buried in my belly. Her fluffy tail brushed the tip of my nose.
"Oh my, is our Blanc awake?"
Kailian set down her teacup and looked over at me. She had been reclining on the sofa with a book, enjoying her teatime, and from the look of it she had been watching Lumia and me sleep with thoroughly contented eyes.
"Kyau."
Yeah. I'm up, Butler.
I scooted my hips back and stretched my spine out long. Crackle. Every joint popped into place with a satisfying little sound.
"Did our baby sleep well? Looks like you ate something delicious in your dream. That expression is adorable."
"Kyau."
Not all of us dream about food, you know.
Kailian closed her book and reached out, gently scratching the crown of my head and the spot behind my ears. She had a talent for picking out only the best places. A little more practice and she might even catch up to the Emperor.
"Grrrng... golgolgolgol..."
A Purr Song spilled from my throat all on its own. I nuzzled my head into Kailian's palm and soaked up the affection. Warm sunlight, my Butler's soft hands, and the heat of my little sister sleeping beside me. This was heaven.
"Hehe. But why is your fur so cold? It feels nice and cool, though..."
Kailian tilted her head as she stroked me. It was my own fur, but for something that had just woken from a nap, it was oddly chilly, and powder-soft besides.
That was when the tip of my nose started to tickle. Was it Lumia's tail from a moment ago?
Itchy. Itchy.
An unbearable prickle climbed up from deep inside my nose. I wrinkled it on reflex and tipped my head back, winding up for a sneeze.
"Kya... kyeu..."
"Hm? Blanc? Are you going to sneeze?"
Kailian laughed and reached for a handkerchief, but it was already too late.
"Kya... kyaa..."
I sucked in a huge breath, pulling air all the way down into the depths of my body. A cool aura wrapped around me in that same instant.
"Kyachoo...!"
KWAANG—!
What burst from my mouth and nose was not a spray of droplets, but a breath of chill frost. Condensed cold fanned out in a wide arc.
Crack-crack-crack!
The low tea table in front of me, and the air around it, froze over in a heartbeat.
"......?!"
"Kyau...?"
Did I just pull an Ice Age...?
"Keng!"
Kailian's eyes flew wide. Lumia, startled awake by the sudden cold, bounced straight up off the floor. A heavy silence settled over the parlor.
I stared blankly at what I had done. The table that had been basking in warm spring sunlight only a moment ago was now white. A thin crust of frost filmed the teacup, and frost-flowers had bloomed across the tablecloth. It was as if time had stopped in this one spot, and winter had taken its place.
"Kyauuu..."
Oh...? Does this mean I can have shaved ice here in the summer now?
"Wh... what is this...?"
Kailian poked the whitened teacup in a daze.
Clink.
The sound of ice rang out, clear and bright. The frozen black tea inside the cup split along a crack and shattered.
I was just as thrown as she was. Had I really done that? All I had done was sneeze.
So this was the gift Grandpa gave me? He said it was to cool my gums, and now he's got me shooting freeze rays.
I was so startled that my diaphragm started answering on its own.
"Hic!"
Pah.
A tiny snowflake popped out of my mouth.
"Hic!"
Pah.
This time a ring of white breath puffed out in the shape of a doughnut. Uncontrolled cold kept welling up from inside me with every hiccup, bursting out however it pleased.
"Kyau... kkh!"
Uh... why is it doing this... it won't stop!
I clapped my forepaws over my mouth in a panic. White frost still leaked out between my tiny toes. I gave up on stopping it and gave my tail a lazy flick.
Whatever. Let's enjoy this, Butler.
"Kyau."
Bow down, Butlers. I have at last reclaimed the dignity of a Divine Beast.
"Blanc... turn your face toward the window before you get in trouble..."
"Kyau."
Okay...
Icicles were dangling from the ends of Kailian's hair. I pointed my face at the window at once.
"Keng..! Keng!"
Beside me, Lumia showed not the slightest sense of the moment. She rubbed her face against my tail, begging for more.