The Tale Never Ends

“SISTER?!” The tour guide yelped like a frightened pup, his eyes as large as the saucers at the pantry. “Err…” he stammered and I told him about Sister while making full sure to remind him that I was a human!

At the end of my story, the tour guide nodded his head profusely. “So, would you like a drink, Master Shiyan?” Still, I had hardly any desire to acquiesce to his invitation. Citing my need for more suitable clothing for my sister, I declined.

It was well past dinner when we got out. Fortunately, the busy streets of Baishan City were still bustling with people with neon signs of the myriads of shops still open blazing proudly overhead. I led Sister with me as we walked through the streets and Sister remarked uncomfortably, her eyes wandering to her fox’s tail, ears and legs, “I do not feel right, Little Brother.” “Relax, Big Sister. No one’s looking!” Still, I knew what I said did little to ease Sister’s nerves as she followed uncomfortably behind me.

We veered into another crowded commercial alley that I almost thought I was a sardine when a chorus of cries and screams from girls filled the air. From the voices, they did not seem local. “Are you a cosplayer? Which character are you portraying as?” I turned back and saw Big Sister being surrounded by a bunch of young teenage girls. In a loss of what to do, the horde of young girls took pictures with her while I could only watch with amusement at her helplessness and chagrin.

One of them ran to me. “Hi there. Is this woman your girlfriend? You must also be a cosplayer too then? What character are you?” But before I could say a word, she took her cell phone and had a picture with me.

Then I realized what she was talking about—my fur-trimmed trench coat! She must have mistaken my strange outfit for some anime character! “I’m not a cosplayer,” I pointed out, slightly exasperated, “That woman is.” I motioned at Big Sister. The girls around her still pelting her with questions, asking about what character she was pretending to be. I went to her aid and said to the girls, “She’s portraying herself as a fox demon from Chinese mythology, one of the nine-tailed foxes.” That made the girls squealed in amazement. Sister hurriedly whispered into my ears, “We need to be more careful! It’s a sacrilege to pronounce myself a brethren of the nine-tailed foxes! Say, what are those devices they are holding? The ones that sparkle with bright flashes? I notice you have one too.”

We quickly sent off the girls with a group photo as a finale and I quickly dragged Big Sister into the crowd quickly. “You’ve been far too long from society, Sister,” I said to her, “That flashing device is a cell phone.”

We strolled into a mall and I began to realize the curious stares boring into our backs. We were not in Beijing after all where people dressed more flamboyantly otherwise we would have blended in easily. We were like ducks in flocks of hens here in these parts and Sister was beginning to feel vexed from being stared at, her head flinching left and right with angst and irritation. “Why am I feeling like I’m being hated here?” she asked softly. And a “you’re thinking too much” was all that I could come up for now.

We were passing by the front of a clothing store when I stopped. I walked in and found a long winter coat and handed it to Big Sister. “Put this on.” She looked at me and understood my intention. Then I pointed at the fitting room where she then headed to try it on.

The shopkeeper came to me while I waited, saying warmly, “Here’s a sweater that would go well with the miss’s winter coat, sir.” I nodded and took the sweater. “It should be fine. I’ll take the entire set, all of it with the top and bottom, with any matching set of shoes. Wait. I want a pair of boots for her. The taller the better.” The shopkeeper did her best to mask her puzzlement, but she trotted off to do as I requested.

Sister came out of the fitting room, wobbling awkwardly as she drew nearer. “Errr… Sister, surely you must have something underneath this winter coat…” Big Sister gave me a strange look. “Of course not. Why? Do I need something inside?” I shoved the sweater into her hands, saying, “Wear this inside.” With a shrug, she went back to the fitting room without a word of protest.

After a great deal of work, Sister finally looked less conspicuous. At least, with her fox’s tail and legs hidden, she looked more like a human. Only, her fox’s ears were a tad more tricky. But it was nevertheless a problem solved when I saw a fur-spangled beret perching on the top of a mannequin. I yanked it off and fit it on Big Sister’s head, tucking her ears nicely inside. She shifted uneasily with the hat on top of her, still, she did not object.

We wandered into the men’s section and I found something to finally shed off the absurdly-anachronous fur coat Sister made for Father. With a wholly-new set of clothing, I looked once again normal. Standing behind me, looking into the mirror from over my shoulders as I looked at myself, Sister murmured, “Hmmm… Maybe the coat I’ve made for Father needs some adjustment…”

We proceeded to the cashier’s counter to settle the bill. To my shock and disbelief, everything we bought cost a five-figure sum. Fortunately for me, the credit card belonged to Father otherwise I would have to mourn for the hefty damage of my wallet.

I took Sister’s hand and we left the store, going for a brisk walk before going back. We came to the food court at the top story of the mall and the delicious scent of broths bubbling in hot pots, steaks, and countless other delicacies hit us face first. Sister’s nose never stopped sniffing the moment the elevator doors opened to admit us. With her sensitive nose tingling to the delicious smells of the food surrounding us, instead of me leading her, she was dragging me around like a dog on a leash! We weaved through mobs of people carrying food trays and pushing carts and finally stopped in front of a hot pot restaurant and Sister began ogling at me imploringly.

“So, that’s it then? A hot pot dinner?” I chuckled. Sister jabbed her finger inward, nodding like a little girl. She must be terribly curious and interested to find out what hot pot was, having lived almost all of her life in the mountains. I giggle and led her inside.

In truth, I had only a sparing appetite for hot pot; barbeque skewers had always remained my absolute favorite. But Zhang Zhigui, as far as my memory serves, did have an everlasting craving for hot pot cuisines. Poring through the menu, Big Sister recognized not a word. But she was hardly discouraged, jabbing her finger so fervently at every illustration of meat she saw that she could have almost perforated the menu with holes. “This! And this! And this too! Let’s not forget about this!” She screamed excitedly. The waiter taking our order whimpered, “Err… Miss… Our portions are quite large… Are you sure you want this much meat?” But it did little to dissuade Sister from casting pleading looks which I could not bear to refuse. It was the first time for her to venture this deep into society and this reminded of Edelweiss’ first time in the city too. “It’s all right. We’ll take them all,” I said calmly to the waiter.

The waiter shrugged helplessly before he retreated to submit the order. It was only then I realized that this meat galore would cost me at least 500 yuan. It was small wonder that the waiter had to speak out. He must be wondering if I had made the mistake of bringing a girl who was actually a bottomless blackhole in disguise to dinner! Then again, there was nothing left to be done save to swipe Father’s credit card on the machine.

Before long, we found our table laden full of plates and dishes bearing all varietals of meat. Pork rib slices, bacons, and many more sat before us as Sister’s mouth began to water. I smiled at her, amused by her behavior and gestured her to tuck in. With no more need for any hesitation, she swiped some pork slices off a platter with her bare hands and shoved them ravenously into her mouth!

I almost cursed in exasperation. “I had forgotten Sister was a fox demon who had never once tasted cooked meat before! She does not even eat anything cooked before!”

I leaped to my feet and pried open her mouth quickly, fishing the meat from her jaws. That earned me an incredulous scowl from her and I shook my head wearily. “Look,” I said to her, trying my best to be nice, “Put the meat into the boiling broth and wait for it to cook before you enjoy it! You’re a human now!” That made her “Ohhh” so loudly like a little girl on her first cooking lesson, her eyes growing wide with anticipation as she watched the meat boil in the gurgling pot of soup.

Like a parent demonstrating to his child some table manners, I fished the cooked meat out of the broth with my chopsticks and added some condiments before I fed it into Sister’s mouth. With an interested “Ahhh” as she opened her mouth, she wolfed it down with a loud crack. She had snapped the tip of my chopsticks with the meat! I reached frantically over the table and held her mouth again, screaming, “Spit out the wooden tips!” She regurgitated the splintered tips of my chopsticks on my hand obediently and began chomping down on the delicious meat…

The meal and dinner etiquette lessons went on until it was ten in the night and we finally finished all the meat.

We began heading back to the hotel. Halfway, we passed by a little alley when Sister’s footsteps halted suddenly. “Wait, Little Brother,” she hissed suddenly. She peeked into the shadows that darkened the narrow backstreet. But I, noticing nothing amiss, merely said, “The hotel’s this way!” Sister’s hand shot up at once, a gesture for silence, and she walked into the obfuscated wall of blackness in the alleyway.

I trotted at her heels, feeling like a father being led around by a tireless and spirited little daughter. But before I could lead my absentminded Sister back to the main street, a voice rumbled from within the darkness. A voice so dark and sinister with an evil cackle, “Heh heh heh! What do we have here? The Spirit of the Sword gracing us with his presence!”