The Church (1)
They say children grow by leaps and bounds, changing day by day.
I finally understood what that meant. It was no exaggeration. Tia was, quite literally, growing at an alarming rate with every single day that passed.
"Mommy! Poop!"
"Go do it."
"He'p meee!"
"Hooow…"
The diapers had come off long ago. She still needed my help climbing onto the toilet, but accidents in her pants had all but vanished. The daily routine of changing and washing diapers was gone, and though part of me felt oddly wistful about it, my body was grateful for the break.
"Hey, doesn't Tia look like she's doubled in size these past two weeks…?"
"Double? Pfft. Not double — more like tripled, if you ask me."
"Do demons always grow that fast?"
"Seems like it. No wonder they're monsters in a fight."
Catching bits of conversation like this drifting between customers as I made my rounds through the tavern, I'd felt a chill run down my spine more times than I could count.
The truth was, nobody knew what demons actually looked like, or whether their growth really was this rapid. And thankfully, most of the customers knew about as little as I did. That alone let me wave off most of it with a shrug — apparently so.
"Ugh. What am I going to do with you?"
"Mmmm?"
Every time I looked at Tia, my worries only multiplied.
I ran my fingers over the rough-textured horn — the tactile satisfaction was immense, almost addictive. But no, that wasn't the point.
The horn was slowly curving backward, toward the back of her head. If they were demon horns, surely they'd be straight, jutting upward like a spear. Instead, Tia's horns were curling round and round like a ram's, and I couldn't help but worry. At this rate, someone was bound to figure out she was a dragon's daughter sooner rather than later.
"How is your hair growing this fast…"
"Mommy! It tickwes! Muhehe!"
I sat Tia on my lap and gathered her hair together. My hands must have been too rough, because she kept bursting into giggles.
My own hair had always been so well-behaved that I'd never given it a second thought, but Tia's clearly needed careful attention every day. All the more so as it kept getting longer. Of course, the easiest solution would be to chop the whole thing off in one go… but I couldn't quite bring myself to do that.
"Owww! Muheee! It huwts!"
"Bear with it."
"No! It huwts!"
"…"
The problem was that I wasn't exactly practiced at braiding hair myself, so there was no way I was going to get Tia's hair tied up without casualties. Only after coaxing and soothing poor Tia — pinched and pulled from every direction, sobbing her eyes out — did I finally manage a single proper attempt.
Oh. So that's how it's done. I more or less had the hang of it now.
But when I tied the gathered hair with a cord, what resulted was a bizarre, lopsided little ponytail, and I struggled mightily to keep a straight face. There was no way I could let her go out looking like that.
"What? What iiiit?"
"Nothing. You're just… too cute…"
I couldn't hold it in any longer and scooped Tia up in a tight hug. She blinked at me in bewilderment, patting at my chest for a moment before resignedly wrapping her arms around me in return.
How could anyone be this adorable?
"Mommy's bweasts…"
"…"
Tia had been born to be loved. Of that, I was certain. No matter how many times I turned it over in my head, I always arrived at the same conclusion.
I quietly stroked her hair, then slipped the bothersome bangs gently to the side. A hairpin later, and there she was: Tia with her forehead bare, somehow even cuter than before.
"Eeee!"
"What's wrong, Mommy?"
"Nothing…"
It was the kind of face that made me want to shout it from the rooftops. Desperately holding back my laughter, I slowly patted the head of my bewildered daughter. She was adorable, no question — but pinning back those bangs was going to take some practice. Or maybe I should just learn from Irina.
"Mmmm. Mm…"
"…"
Holding Tia like that, another tingling sensation made me flinch and shudder. Tia was busy kneading and fiddling with my chest, and her intentions were so transparent it was almost comical.
"Hungry?"
"Mmm."
"You're too old to nurse. Give it up."
"Why? There's stiww milk!"
"Hey. How old are you, trying to breastfeed at your age—"
The words died in my throat. Come to think of it, Tia was still only two months old. Her body just happened to look about five. And my milk hadn't dried up yet, either.
So was nursing her, in fact, the right call for now? But then again, breastfeeding a child this enormous in my arms would look utterly absurd. I found myself caught in a genuine dilemma.
"No baring your teeth."
"Mmm."
"And don't grope me with your hands while you're nursing, either. Got it?"
"Mm!"
Tia nodded her head with gusto. She was always quick on the uptake at exactly these kinds of moments.
I let out a long sigh and lifted Tia up with both arms. Her arms and legs were already spilling out of my embrace, straining to burst right out of it. She weighed a ton, honestly.
A nagging doubt crept in — is this really right? But the moment Tia's expectant eyes turned toward me, it was already too late. I no longer had the strength to resist.
"Ugh. I said no teeth… nngh…"
"Mmmm. Omnomnom…"
Let the milk dry up soon. Please. Never in my life had I prayed for anything so earnestly.
By the time the feeding was over, I was utterly drained. It wasn't that she was particularly active — it was that every graze of Tia's teeth sent a jolt through me and left me trembling, nearly killing me both mentally and physically.
"Shall we head out soon?"
I peered outside. The sun had only just risen — it was early morning, with hours to go before the tavern opened. Normally I'd have been fast asleep at this hour. But today, I had something to do.
"Where we goin'?"
"The church. Get changed and get ready."
I planned to stop by for morning service. It had been Irina's enthusiastic recommendation — even with the bribe, I'd apparently have to at least pretend to be religious to keep my citizenship papers. In other words, I needed to leave a favorable stamp of my face with the priest. I had, technically, made quite a memorable impression on him my first day in this town, and I was curious what he'd say if we crossed paths again.
More than anything, though, Tia needed to grow comfortable with the church. When it came down to it, the thing that would help her get through life wasn't her grumbling, stubborn, atheist mother — it was the church that practically ruled this world. Having faith would do Tia nothing but good.
"You can dress yourself, right?"
"Mmm!"
Watching Tia now smoothly strip off her clothes and throw on her going-out outfit all by herself, an involuntary smile of pride spread across my face. Although — the clothes were already starting to get small. The sleeves had been so generous when we bought them that they'd swallowed her hands whole; now they were riding up past her wrists. I'd have to pick up some new clothes while we were out.
"What's a chuwch?"
"Hmm. It's a place where people who believe in God gather and show off, like, I believe in God this much!"
"Why they do dat?"
"Because it puts your heart at ease."
"Hmmmm…"
"Probably?"
I was just as ignorant about religion as Tia was, so I decided against airing my shallow opinions. Seeing it and experiencing it firsthand would be faster and better anyway.
Once we were ready, I pressed Tia's hood down over her head and we set out from the house. It hadn't been that long since our last outing, but Tia was bouncing around like a bouncy ball, hopping every which way. I had to grip her hand tight, just to make sure she didn't stray off somewhere strange.
Listening to her humming, feeling utterly drained as we walked, we reached the church in no time.
The moment we stepped into the chapel, a familiar woman a few rows up waved at us like she'd been waiting all morning. Irina.
"Auntie!"
"Shh. You have to be quiet in here—"
I clamped a hand over Tia's mouth mid-shout. I had no intention of getting thrown out the moment we walked in. If that happened, it would only be a matter of time before I was branded a heretic and my citizenship was revoked.
Tia's lips pressed into a tight pucker, completely unable to open her mouth. I took her hand and walked slowly toward Irina's row up front, muffling our footsteps so as not to disturb the prayers. I nudged Tia into the inner side of the long pew first, and Irina greeted her wordlessly, ruffling Tia's hair like she'd been waiting for exactly this.
After savoring Tia's hair for a good long while, Irina murmured under her breath.
"You actually came? I figured you'd never manage to get up this early."
"Get up? Please. What do you take me for, some night owl? More importantly — were you always such a devout believer, Irina…?"
"Hehe. Sundays only. Oh — the priest's here."
When Irina raised a finger to her lips in warning, Tia clamped her mouth shut again. Not quite as much as Tia, but I felt myself growing tense, too. I squeezed Tia's hand hard. My palm was slick with sweat — it must have felt unpleasant, but Tia willingly held on anyway.
Soon the clack of polished shoes grew near, and a bespectacled priest appeared, a nun trailing behind him. Both were familiar faces. The same two people I'd seen the day I first arrived in this city…
"Welcome, everyone. What a wonderful way to start the morning — fresh and early, wouldn't you say?"
"…"
My eyes met the priest's as he surveyed the chapel. My breath caught.
He was looking at me with the same gentle smile as before. And just like that day, I was terrified that this smile too would twist into a look of disgust, as if he were regarding an insect. Without even realizing it, I had already pulled Tia's head into my chest, hiding her from view.
"I see some new faces among us today. Excellent. I know you're all busy, so let's begin promptly."
"Ah…"
The priest calmly withdrew his gaze and resumed the service. My eyes met the nun's beside him once, but there was no flicker of recognition in her expression. Neither of them had recognized me or Tia.
Tia, I could understand — she'd been a newborn back then, and she'd shot up since. But failing to recognize me came as a bit of a surprise. Then again, I suppose a woman who'd shown up covered in blood with her hair in wild disarray could be forgiven for going unnoticed once she turned up neat and clean…
"Mmm, Mommy. Can't bweathe…"
"Ah. Sorry."
"S'okay though. Wike Mommy's chest. Mommy's bweasts aw cozy."
"…"
Just as I was sighing at Tia burrowing ever deeper into my chest, a heavy, deliberate footfall began to echo from somewhere far off. At that sound, a shiver ran through my entire body.
"O God, we give thanks that even today You grant this breath the life it lives. Grant us ease in our breathing, comfort in our bodies…"
"…"
While everyone around me pressed their hands together in prayer, I froze solid in my seat.
In the shadows at the back of the room — there, I met eyes with a priest in black robes, his hands clasped behind his back. And in his gaze, unmistakably, was the look of a man who knew exactly who I was.
He was a face I recognized, too.
That ninja priest, that son of a—