I sensed multiple problems with this arrangement. First, the three of us weren’t blood relatives. Yes, we were family, so there was no chance of any sort of attraction occurring, but I still couldn’t see Emma as my birth mother. Therefore, I felt uncomfortable about being naked together. I needed to figure out a way to avoid that. Think, think quick! Mom kept staring at me, waiting for an answer that wouldn’t come.
“Uh, well, Mom—” I tried to say “no,” but she made an awfully sad face.
“Aw, Shion, let’s go together! Today of all days. We never bathe together.”
“Er, but Mom—”
“You must take a bath, darling! Look how filthy you are! We need to rinse and wash and scrub it all away!”
Ugh—phrasing, mom! I knew what she meant, though. She was basically pointing out what Marie always said—the faster you scrub off your dirt, the better.
“All right,” I said.
Mom rarely asked anything of me. So, it felt nearly impossible to say no when she did.
“Yay!” Mom grinned and giggled. “Let’s get going, then!”
I couldn’t back out now seeing how happy she was. Mom took Marie and me by the hands, and we headed for the bathroom.
Marie’s going to be part of this, too? I was not comfortable with this! She was only ten, and she was my sister, so it shouldn’t be a big deal. It kind of was, though. It felt problematic because if I looked around, I’d end up seeing her naked, like it or not. The best I could do was try to remain calm. No problem, right? I’m as tranquil as a river.
We entered the changing room at the end of the hall. I quickly undressed, wrapped myself in a towel, and beelined it into the bathing room. First-in-first-out, am I right?
“Why’s our little boy in such a hurry?” Mom laughed.
“Yeah, Shion! Wait up!”
Nope. I wait for no one. As in Japan, you washed yourself with water outside of the bath, then you just soaked in the tub. I got a head start on this, while noticing that the tub was barely big enough for me, not to mention the three of us.
They had soap here. That made sense since soap was an old invention back on Earth, too. It didn’t smell like much, which was fine with me. I rubbed away with the soap bar, hurrying to scrub the dirt from my body. I was pretty much caked in filth, so I was having a hard time getting it off quickly. This was the worst-case scenario.
“C’mon! Wait up, Shion!”
Mom laughed. “Don’t slip, Marie!”
Game over. Mom and Marie came into the bathing room. I kept my eyes on myself and scrubbed away with the soap. I felt their presence, one to the side of me and one behind me. How can I sense them so well?! I thought. What am I, a kobold?!
“Shion, I’ll help you wash, dear,” Mom said. She was the one standing behind me. Without waiting for my reply, she took the soap and started from the head. I sensed Marie standing to my side, washing up.
“Ugh!” moaned Marie. “It’s really caked in there!”
“Make sure to get out every last bit of dirt,” Mom warned.
“Yeah, I know,” Marie grumbled.
This was so strange to me. Normally, I’d only heard deep, male voices in this bathing room. Now that there were women’s voices echoing in the cramped space, the atmosphere felt completely different.
No, it doesn’t. Don’t think like that. I reminded myself. It’s my mom and my sister. There was no chance of attraction. No chance!
Something soft brushed up against my head. I felt my cheeks flush.
“Th-that’s good enough, Mom!” I poured water over my head, washed the soap away, and jumped into the bathtub.
“Hey!” Mom scolded. “There’s no need to rush like that!”
Yes, there was. I felt too defenseless. I mean, of course I was, given that this was at home with my family. It wasn’t so simple in my case. My mother was younger than my actual mental age, and this “mom” had brought me into a bath with not just her, but also her daughter. Marie and I weren’t the same age in this life, and bringing my past life into it, she was like a daughter to me. This only made me more confused about how I should be feeling about this situation. And yet here I was.
I made my plan: stay in the tub for a few minutes, then leave.
I kept my eyes trained on the wall as Marie and my mom washed themselves. I narrowed my eyes and beat the wall in a staring contest.
Don’t look. If you look, you’re done for.
A few minutes passed, and it sounded like they had finished up. Perfect timing, I thought. I didn’t mind a quick bath. A quick bath is what could let me escape from this puzzling purgatory.
“I-I think I’m done,” I said, scrambling to get out.
“I don’t think so, dear,” Mom said. “You need to warm up properly. Besides, I thought we were supposed to take this bath together!” She pouted again.
She was right: technically, we hadn’t bathed together. I didn’t think there was any convincing her that I’d fulfilled my end of the bargain unless we spent at least a little time in the tub together. Resigned, I sat back down in the tub.
“Just a few minutes,” I sputtered.
Mom giggled. “Thanks, love. Okay, Marie, hop in.”
“Okay!” Marie giggled. “This is kinda fun. We never go in the three of us!”
Did she really have to be so pleased about the situation? She’d just complicated my exit strategy!
Keeping my eyes averted, I counted the minutes in my head. Surely, a few more minutes would be enough. Until then, I just had to keep my head calm and my eyes down.
This was going quite well until Mom hugged me from behind. Yet again, fearsome clouds of softness pillowed at the back of my head. Pillowed? You know, pillows. Those pillows.
I felt the blood pump through my body. This was bad. This was really, really bad.
“I love hugging you, Mom!” Marie said.
“And I love hugging the two of you, my darlings,” Mom replied.
I knew I should chime in, but I couldn’t bring myself to say: “Me too, Mommy!” I was too troubled. I just couldn’t figure out how to shake my discomfort.
I wasn’t attracted to Mom, of course, but it was awkward knowing that she wasn’t really my mother. Ugh, these feelings are just so difficult to put into words! It wasn’t helping that the pillows springing into my head were dulling my thoughts. I needed to grin and bear it just a little longer.
While doing so, I had a nice conversation with Mom. I realized that we didn’t have many actual conversations. I lost any additional opportunity to leave though, and as pleasant as that was, her constant snuggles kept interrupting my thoughts. I had reached the absolute limit, both mentally and physically. It was time to get the heck out of here.
“I think I’m done,” Marie said.
“Yeah? Okay, just make sure you dry off well so you don’t get the chills.”
“Okay. See you guys at dinner.”
Huh? Marie beat me to the punch! If I got out now, we’d be drying off together. Ugh, I needed to wait a bit longer now.
Once I finally heard Marie’s footsteps going down the corridor, I had a bit of a wider range for my eyes. Mom still wouldn’t let go of me, though. Would she ever let me escape from her embrace?
Stumped, I heard soft chuckles over the top of my head.
“Why are you being so shy, Shion? No need for it.”
“I-I’m not being shy.”
Mom saw right through me, and that just made me blush all over again. I felt her grip around me tighten a little bit. Her chest was still pressed against my back side.
I looked up at Mom and fell silent. She had a sad smile on her face.
“Sorry, Shion. I’m sorry.”
Why was she apologizing? Why did she look so sad? I didn’t understand, but I didn’t have the courage to speak.
All I could do was accept her feelings, and her embrace, and hope that consoled her, even if by the tiniest bit. The room fell silent. I felt her pulse, her warmth, her body, and I wondered what in the world to do.
Moments passed.
“Sorry, Shion.” She chuckled. “I think I’ll get out now. What about you?”
“I’ll stay in a little longer.”
I couldn’t look in her direction, much less get out with her.
“Okay. Then I’ll see you at dinner.”
“Yep.”
I lowered my eyes to the water as Mom got out. At last, the pressure against my shoulders dissipated. I wanted to get out of the water myself, but now I’d have to wait a little longer.
You know, the experience wasn’t as bad as I expected. The struggle had become softened by the comfort and joy of spending time with such wonderful family members. I felt like shouting to the world: I’m so happy!
It wasn’t just because of my family in this world, but above all else, it was because I had magic. Magic that I had discovered myself. Real, actual, magic!
I’d been reborn here in this life and then invented magic. I could conjure Flare, Bolt, Aqua, and there was so much more I hadn’t learned yet. Now, unlike in my previous life, I lived a life full of hope, of anticipation, and of happiness. How could I not be grateful?
But I wasn’t satisfied yet. I wanted to use and discover more kinds of magic. To that end, I had to learn and research more. The prospect stirred with me feelings of uncertainty, but also of excitement.
What kind of magic will I develop next?
I let the thoughts stir in my head. It was all I could do to not swell up and explode.