***
Inside Onee-sama's pavilion, Tamayō sat cross-legged on a cushion, staring intently at her daughter who sat just across from her.
The chamber was quiet, and the faint fragrance of sandalwood incense drifted in the air.
"What is it?" Onee-sama finally asked, catching her mother's unwavering gaze.
"No, nothing..." Tamayō still stared. "I was only wondering if you might… like to stroke my hair again. Judging from how restless you look, the urge must be gnawing at you, no?"
"Sou?" Onee-sama blinked in fake surprise. "Are you certain this is not simply your secret wish, Haha-ue, that I should pet you?"
"Nonsense!" Tamayō snapped, pulling out her folding fan from thin air to hide her mouth. "That I, the Great Dark Fox Spirit, would crave such attention... you truly look down upon me... Uhm..."
"You have yet to name me, Haha-ue," Onee-sama muttered, rolling her eyes.
"Ah, of course!" Tamayō brightened, raising a finger dramatically. "I am preserving the honor for the Supreme Lord himself!"
"But..." Onee-sama rose quietly, moving toward a side alcove where a lacquered tray with a teapot and cups had already been prepared.
She returned with the tray, setting it gently between them. Steam curled upward from the freshly brewed green tea. She poured carefully into the slender cups, sliding one toward her mother.
They both lifted their cups, sipping with the grace of empresses before continuing.
"Do you think we enjoy being nameless?" Onee-sama asked quietly, her violet gaze falling to the rippling surface of her tea. "The Supreme Lord named you when he first created you, did he not?"
"Yelp!" Tamayō nearly spilled her drink, clutching the cup in panic. "H-how did you learn such a profound secret?! That ranks among the top five things you children should never discover about me!"
"It's a secret," Onee-sama replied smoothly, setting her cup down.
"Gahhh!" Tamayō whined, shaking her fan, "Tell me, tell me, tell me!"
"If you must throw a tantrum, Haha-ue," Onee-sama's eyes narrowed into a glare, "then I will simply ask you to leave."
"...S-sorry..." Tamayō's fox ears drooped pitifully as she lowered her gaze. "B-but honestly, do not tell the others, alright sweetheart? Swear it to me, swear to your mother!"
Onee-sama turned her head aside with a sigh. "Hai, hai, I swear, I suppose."
"Put more conviction into your vow!" Tamayō crawled forward on her knees, tugging at her daughter's arm.
A vein throbbed visibly at Onee-sama's forehead.
"Tsk! If you have so much free time," she said, voice taut with irritation, "why do you not accompany me in the inspection today?"
"Eh?! You truly are a dictator!" Tamayō recoiled dramatically. "The gold and green ones are not even prepared yet!"
"Define 'preparation,' Haha-ue," Onee-sama countered, rising to her feet. "If they knew exactly when I would come, they would simply behave temporarily to please me."
"Hm? Is that not the entire point?" Tamayō asked, tilting her head as she stood as well.
"No, it is not!" Onee-sama snapped, her voice sharp. "How else will they mature if they do not learn responsibility on their own?"
She reached forward and grabbed Tamayō's fox ear, tugging her toward the door despite her protests.
Down the wooden stairs they walked, Tamayō crying dramatically all the while as Onee-sama dragged her across the courtyard.
They finally arrived at the nearest pavilion to Onee-sama's own—the Dominion Pavilion, belonging to the golden-furred Kitsune.
"Hm? Is this the chamber of the brown one?" Tamayō squinted suspiciously at the doorway.
"No, it is Gold's," Onee-sama answered flatly. "And why do you sound as if this were your first time entering?"
"Eh? Because it is indeed my first time entering," Tamayō said, eyes wide with innocence.
Onee-sama stopped mid-step, momentarily stunned. "You mean to tell me we have lived in the Shadow Realm for nearly seventy years, and this is the first time you have set foot inside one of your daughter's chamber?"
"You make me sound like a bad mother," Tamayō pouted, lowering her fan, "but I have a perfectly logical explanation for that."
"Which is?" Onee-sama folded her arms, her tone sharp and skeptical.
"W-well, you k-know..." Tamayō fidgeted, her eyes darting nervously around the entrance, "I don't want them to yell at me for invading their privacy. They might end up hating me too."
"But what about myself who enters as I please?"
"Why, but you are a terrifying and strict villain."
"Haha-ue, forgive me," Onee-sama said, glancing aside.
"Ah, so you understand righ—"
"You only seem brilliant and magnificent on the battlefield," Onee-sama cut her off, "but outside of that, you may very well be a ridiculous air-head. And I do not mean that as an insult."
"...!" Tamayō froze, her mouth hanging slightly open.
Knock, knock.
Onee-sama rapped her knuckles firmly on the wooden door.
However, there was nothing but silence.
Then again, she knocked, sharper this time. But there was still no answer.
"Tsk. Gold, I swear to the Supreme Lord—"
"Fine, fine! I'll open it!" Gold's voice rang from within, followed by the creak of the door as it slowly swung open.
Tamayō's eyes immediately lit up with childlike wonder, as though she were visiting a relative's home for the very first time. though in truth, that was exactly the case.
"Good morning, Haha-ue," Gold said with an elegant bow, though her golden fox ears twitched nervously.
She wore a yellow kimono fastened with a golden sash, the fabric bright and warm against the rosy tones of her chamber. "It is an honor to welcome you into my pavilion today... though I did not expect you to bring the oppressor along."
Onee-sama's sharp eyes swept over the room immediately. It was fairly tidy, but the signs of a hasty cleanup were impossible to miss.
The chamber itself had the flair of a princess's quarters, though with eccentric twists that suited Gold's personality.
Pink silk curtains draped across tall windows and trailed along carved wooden pillars. The ceiling appeared higher than Onee-sama's pavilion, and a faint floral perfume hung in the air.
Unlike Onee-sama's simple futon, Gold's bed was an enormous mattress set upon a regal wooden frame, its headboard gilded with patterns of foxfire.
Scattered across it and the floor were several life-sized dolls, their intricate faces decorated with delicate features.
Before anyone could stop her, Tamayō rushed forward and scooped up a plush bunny doll, holding it with sparkling eyes.
"Gold, I can tell you rushed your clean-up," Onee-sama remarked flatly.
"What?! Again with your distrust!" Gold snapped, her hands clenching into fists. "How in the shadows are we supposed to live together in peace and harmony when you always suspect me of some crime?!"