The Undine yawned. The ground beneath her instantly trembled. Not a moment later...
“W-Wooow...”
“Th-That’s an Undine for you.”
Water filled the hole Miyako had spent the day digging. Slight waves spilled over the top. The Undine brought forth cool water from thin air with a single yawn. It was just one of the rare and powerful abilities available to Undines.
Now I just need to get a few hot stones in there, and the bath is finished. This is the best; I can share a bath with Fuuka-chan any time I want.
“Haha, hahaha, I’m so happy... Thank you, Undine.”
“Nyo, please, it was nyothing.”
The cat-shaped water spirit Undine wagged her snake-like tail and rolled onto her back.
Miyako took a good look at the aqua-blue seal engraved on the palm of her hand. The seal was the proof of her contract with the Undine. It had appeared before her eyes when the cat-shaped water spirit licked her hand.
“It’s my thanks for digging me out of the earth. Instead of a pet cat, I’ll be your pet Undine for as long as you live in this world.”
“Th-Thanks...”
Being from another world, Miyako had trouble grasping the reality of this situation. But shooting a glance at Fuuka, who had gone deathly pale and was trembling as she rushed through the pages of a book about water spirits (it looked to be a guidebook from the cabinet in the cabin), she got the feeling this was...
“This is... pretty extraordinary?”
“Only a handful of people each generation manage to form a contract with a spirit. I can’t believe this is happening as an afterthought to making a bath...”
“Nyahaha, that girl has the more nyormal reaction. How boooring.”
“She’s not ‘that girl.’ She’s Fuuka-chan.”
“Hmph. Fuuka.”
“That’s it. She’s important to me, so make sure you call her by her name.”
“I see. Understood. My apologies, Fuuka.”
“And one more thing, if you don’t mind...”
“Hmm? What is it?”
“Can you do something about that tail?”
That tail. The tail Miyako was trying her utmost to keep out of her sight. It was a writhing snake. I hate snakes, thought Miyako.
“Hmm, I thought it looked quite cool.”
“Yeah, sorry... It’s a bit much for me.”
“Very well. I am a water spirit with nyo fixed form. I’ll change my form however you like, but...”
“Yeah?”
The Undine cocked her head.
“Miyako, Fuuka. The two of you have nyames... I would like for you to give me one too.”
“What??!!” Fuuka screamed in surprise. “Naming a spirit... That’s the highest form of contract; don’t you know that?! In terms of the summoning arts, when you give a spirit a name, that name defines it. It’s a method to take complete control over the spirit. This is much more than just a contract...”
“I said I want one. Stop being so annoying.”
The Undine jerked her face away from Fuuka, at which Miyako snapped angrily, “That’s no way to behave!!!”
In her world, Miyako was the oldest of her siblings, and she acted the part.
“Make it a good nyame.”
“Hmm.”
Miyako turned to the nearby tree stump on which the Undine was sitting, and took in the sight (excluding, if she could help it, the tail).
The shape of a cat. A semi-translucent water-like body. A sort of jewel buried in her forehead; it’s pretty. Something like a fish’s fin on her back. And a snake for a tail.
“...How about Vaporeon?”
“I can’t say for sure, but it feels like that infringes upon something, so I’ll reject it.”
Miyako was a child of the P*kémon age.
“How does Un*gi-Inu sound?”
“Do I look like a dog to you? And what’s an ‘unagi’ anyway?”
Miyako had a deep knowledge of retro anime.
“Hmm, cat-shaped and with a pretty aqua-blue color... The most famous blue cat-like thing I know is...”
“I have a bad feeling about this...”
“Doraem*n!”
“That’s definitely infringing on something!!”
Miyako was a fan of her nation’s favorite anime.
“Uhh, well then... Umi!”
“Umi.”
At Miyako’s suggestion, the Undine and Fuuka tilted their heads in sync.
“Yeah. Since you’re a water spirit, and your body’s color kinda reminds me of the sea.”
Miyako remembered the sea in Okinawa, where she’d gone for a graduation trip before she became a wage slave doomed to die from exhaustion.
“Nyahaha! I see, so you’re nyaming me after the sea!!” The Undine laughed delightedly. “Very well, I’ll take that nyame with pleasure! From today on, my nyame is Umi.”
The Undine’s body flickered and shook.
“A kitty cat!”
Miyako’s face lit up.
A Persian cat with shining fur sat before them. She still had a jewel in her forehead, but other than that she was much more clearly a cat than the previous form, which had looked cat-like but was obviously something else. Fluffy and cuddly, with bright shining fur.
“Look, I have padded paws too.”
“You’re a genius!!!”
Yahooo! Padded paws for the win!!
While Miyako was jumping for joy, behind her Fuuka was trembling. Is she not good with cats? Or maybe we’ve been messing around too much for her.
“Fuuka-chan? Sorry, I went and...”
Miyako resolved to have Umi change forms again if Fuuka didn’t like this one. But...
“She’s so cuuuuute!!!” said Fuuka.
Her beautiful eyes glistened with excitement. It was the most excited she had sounded since they’d come here.
“So... you like it?”
“Ahem. It’s not awful. I wasn’t able to keep a cat at my mansion, even though I wanted to, because it would have been bad for my younger sisters’ health, as you can imagine. And it’s no business of mine what form you make the spirit you have a contract with take. After all, by next week we won’t be together anymore!”
Fuuka rushed the words out, and then dropped her eyes to the floor.
Miyako knew that Fuuka actually loved animals, but despite that, her family had stripped away everything except what was necessary for a political marriage.
“I’m nyot a cat, I’m Umi,” said Umi, clearing her throat.
“Heh heh, okay. As long as you’re okay with it, I’m glad,” said Miyako, smiling. “It’s always been my dream to have a cat and live a laid-back life. It feels sorta like a more refined way to live, when you have a cat.”
Miyako’s landlord had a no-pets-allowed policy.
“I’m nyot a cat, I’m Umi!”
✦ ✦ ✦
Umi tilted her head and pricked her ears to attention.
“Someone’s here.”
“F-F-Fuuka!”
It was a familiar voice.
It was around noon, so it was Shan Li, the traveling merchant from the continent who always came by a little after noon.
“Shan Li-san?”
“Ah, Fuuka! I hear you practice white magic!!”
The usually haughty Shan Li ran inside, out of breath.
“Wh-Whatever’s the matter?!”
“Please, I need your help. Don’t ask any questions!!”
Clearly, unusual events lay ahead.