The Demon King said to call him Papa

Chapter Twelve: Something fluffy

I didn't dare to move as the unfamiliar weight across my legs got heavier; something else was placed on my lap. 

I waited for the pain, the shouting to start but there was nothing.  My heart pounded as something soft brushed against my clenched hands.

I peeked, quickly closing my eyes and waiting for a few seconds before slowly opening them to discover two long grey furs covering my legs. I followed the ends and saw that each one was attached to the sibling's. 

"Your punishment is to brush our tails to our satisfaction." Aidan had a smile on his face as he handed me a brush that appeared in an instant. 

"Y-your tails?" I touched them, they were as soft as his ears, my hand sinking into the soft fur.

"They get tangled very easy as we move around." Nadia's voice gently brushing away the last of the panic and fear that had almost overwhelmed me. "And we do not always get a chance to brush them as much."

I look down at the two tails and carefully started brushing them, trying really hard with each stroke. 

Minutes later, both Aidan and Nadia's tails shined in the sunlight and the brush was covered in hair. 

"Wow!" Aidan couldn't help wagging his tail. "When was the last time it felt so light?"

"This was amazing work!" Nadia suddenly smiled, two fangs pointing out from her mouth. "Thank you Princess!"

I looked down at my hands as a strange bubbly feeling filled up my chest, I have never been praised before.

"Dear!" Mimi's voice came from a paper bird that swooped down and landed on my knee. "It's time for a check up! Please come back to your room."

"With your permission, Princess." Nadia knelt besides me and offered her arms.

"P-permission?" I didn't really understand what she meant. 

"To carry you back to your room."

I looked at her hands, seeing the bumpy parts that covered them and looked up, meeting her eyes. They were steady as she waited for me to respond; this was another person who was willing to look at me with  a clear gaze.

I nodded my head towards her, still tensing a little as I felt her hands touch me and settled against her chest- the hard metal cold against my back.

~~~~~~

"How was your day?" Papa asks as food appeared on the table, soup and bread steaming up into the air. 

"I-it was good." I watched as he used the sparkly lights to cool down the soup. "I w-went on a walk with Nadia a-and Aidan."

"That's good." Papa watched me eat, leaning his head against his hand. 

"I-i got to touch Aidan's ears...." I trailed off as a piece of bread was held out before me.

"Touch his ears?" Papa's eyebrow raised in response.

"A-and his and Nadia's tails." I tried to talk around the bread as Papa's face scrunched up. "W-was that a bad thing?"

"No, no." Papa quickly reassured me, brushing away crumbs that stuck to my cheeks. "Beastkin usually do not allow others to touch them. Petting their ears or touching their tails is a sight of great trust that only Pack members are allowed to do."

"P-pack?" 

"A Pack is like a family Soraya. So they must of really wanted to get close to you if they allowed you to touch them."

"I-i see." I could feel my face heating up as the bubbly feeling returned. 

Papa reaches over, brushing my hair way from the side of my face.