“Hey, Estelle, sorry about this, but… I can’t let you into the workshop for now. Have to make sure everything’s safe and whatever’s trying to crawl into your brain is completely isolated. Might call you in for a couple of tests to see if I’ve got it all right, but… well aside from that, I guess you’re gonna have to find something else to do in your own time.”

  Not long after we finally set our relationship straight, Belle said those words to me, leaving me at a loss.

  I didn’t know what to do, frankly.

  I simply sat at a table near a window in what was basically the house’s living room, just staring out of the window.

  At first, I didn’t think much of her words. I just smiled and understood, and went about my other other chores, cleaning up the rest of the house, doing the dishes, cleaning up the food storage, hanging the laundry, etcetera.

  And then I ran out of chores to do.

  Well, that was still fine…ish.

  I hadn’t swept down the house since the chaos caused by Selenia’s visit, so that would occupy me for a while.

  And it did.

  For a day.

  It had only been around a week and a half since that day, so there wasn’t that much work to do.

  That brought me to where I was now, just sitting here, staring out the window as the breeze carried those autumn husks across the mountain.

  It was the first time in this new life that I wasn’t busy.

  When I first woke up in this world – Manusyara, as I had come to realise its name was – I was consumed by the madness of starvation, unable to manage even half of a coherent thought before it would be fed to the ravenous voice that lurked inside of me.

  It was hardly any better when I first saved my sister. I still shambled through alleys focused only on survival, the only difference was that it was my sister’s survival, not my own. Every waking moment was spent thinking about nothing but her, all the way up until I collapsed in front of her at the height of my insanity.

  Even after I recovered, there was still little time to just sit. Winter was encroaching, and living was hard. I had to toil every day to secure just a little bit more food and resources, and the pain of dying and the mournful guilt and regrets mounting from my past life piled onto my shoulders, consuming every moment of reprieve I had.

  And finally, after that were the days that had just passed, where I worked as Belle’s temporary assistant. First, I was resigned to a dull existence as a test subject, then I was paralysed into silence by our exchange of burdens underneath that full moon.

  And now, finally, I was here.

  It was quiet and peaceful.

  I didn’t need to struggle, I didn’t need to resign myself, I couldn’t close myself off or hide behind those torments of the past. There was not even the lab work to distract me.

  I was just alive.

  My thoughts started to drift, as they always did.

  First they went to my sister, as they always did. I wondered what she was doing right now. She had moved on from massive encyclopedias detailing the strange life on Manusyara to more… well, childish pursuits, like novels about grand adventures with knights, mages and princesses on quests to slay dragons and save the world.

  I wondered briefly who she imagined herself as when reading those stories; was she the hero in her eyes, one of their companions, or the princess who needed saving?

  Maybe she envisioned me as the princess?

  Oh, right, I was a girl now. I hadn’t thought about that in a while.

  To be honest, I still really wasn’t sure how to feel about that. I didn’t really have strong feelings about my gender.

  The most being a man had meant to me was my attachment to the idea of being a ‘big brother’.

  It wasn’t that I felt nothing. I was certainly at least a little bit uncomfortable with the lack of anything between my legs, and it definitely felt a bit strange to wear camisoles and the like, but I already wasn’t the most fashion conscious person in my past life, mostly sticking to whatever would get me through the wilderness.

  But I tried not to think about it too much. Thinking about it still reminded me of the painful thought that I wasn’t who I used to be anymore, that I would never get to go back and say those simple, frivolous words to the people who deserved to hear them the most.

  Yes, I had promised Belle I would try to move on, but I couldn’t just do it in a day. It would take a long time for those wounds to properly heal.

  It hurt. It still really, really hurt.

  At the very least, I could take solace in the fact that I knew I wasn’t alone anymore. I wasn’t the only one who wished they could go back to old times and tell those who they loved words they never got the chance to say. I had her to help me through it.

  Maybe later on in this life, when I needed to start wearing bras or getting periods or something, when calling Belle ‘Mother’ wasn’t painful and came naturally to me, I’d be ready to face what all of this meant to me. Hopefully, I’d be a bit more prepared and at peace by then.

  What was I thinking about again?

  …

  Oh, right, my sister.

  Whatever it was she was doing, I don’t think I would get to find out, at least not for now.

  She was still kind of annoyed at me. She wasn’t crying anymore, at least, but she still wasn’t super willing to just talk to me.

  At first, when I ran out of things to do around the house, she was excited that I came over to play with her, but the moment she heard that it was because I had ran out of things to distract myself with, she immediately became peeved by the idea that I was still just running to her to distract myself, rather than finding any kind of hobby of my own.

  I pouted a bit.

  Really, she wasn’t even six years old, and she was already starting to get rebellious against her older sister?

  Couldn’t she have been cute and obedient for just a little longer?

  I sighed, bemoaning the fact that she wouldn’t let me watch over her in the library. I would have been fine just silently watching her read from the sidelines, but she didn’t even let me do that.

  I drummed my fingers on the wooden table.

  I was bored. I was well and truly bored.

  I wasn’t that interesting of a person, to be honest. I didn’t have many interests or unique qualities, no hyperfixations or ambitions or anything. I mostly filled that hole by just being social and talking to people who did have those interests, really.

  Like my best friend, for example. He was really into video games of all kinds, and spent all of our time together just ragging on about systems and mechanics that usually flew over my head as an outsider, but I was nonetheless engaged during my conversations with him.

  It would have been nice to have something like that right around now.

  My eyes continued to drift out the window, facing the east side of the Yrd’ll Mountains, towards the nation apparently known as ‘Tenmai’.

  Compared to the lively city of Arden to our west, there wasn’t much I could say about Tenmai. All I knew is that their land was shrouded by massive trees and forests and their people loved nature.

  I did notice far out in the horizon though that there was an impossibly tall tree though, extending all the way up into the clouds.

  I wondered what that was about.

  I blinked, catching sight of something strange below in the shadowy forests.

  Were the trees… falling?

  That was odd. I don’t remember there being any lumberjacks or anything like that around. It was really baffling to be doing that on this treacherous mountain that nearly extended into the clouds, rather than the forest to our west.

  That had to be dangerous, no?

  More trees fell.

  I blinked, raising an eyebrow and squirming a bit.

  Were they… getting closer?

  No, that was absurd, right?

  No one could possibly be cutting that many trees down so quickly, let alone be doing so as they made their way up a mountain, let alone be travelling that fast without modern vehicles.

  I started to hear the rumblings of fallen trees crashing against the mountains and foliage.

  I started panicking a bit.

  No, that was definitely getting louder, and it was definitely getting closer.

  A loud, strangely modern siren started to go off, startling me.

  “FUCK!”

  I heard a muffled shout from the workshop, filled with urgency and panic.

  I flinched, my mind starting to race.

  Were we in danger?

  I needed to find my sister quickly.

  I hopped off the table and started to run through the house, making my way towards the library where Luna spent most of her time.

  I made it to the bottom of the staircase, where I met my frightened, confused sister, who was looking around side to side with a scared look on her face.

  “Luna!” I shouted towards her.

  She swivelled around, panic still clear on her face.

  “Sister! What’s happening!?”

  I shook my head rapidly.

  “I don’t know, but come, quickly!”

  I ushered her down the stairs, pulling her into my arms.

  “We need to get somewhere safe.”

  It was at that moment that Belle came barrelling through the hallway, making a mad dash through the house all the way from her workshop.

  “NO TIME TO EXPLAIN, YOU TWO HAVE TO GET TO THE WORKSH-”

  Her words were cut off by a thunderous explosion of dust and splinters, scattering a blinding cloud of dust from the other end of the hallway.

  Luckily, my sister and I managed to get out unharmed, as Belle stood over us and shielded us with her own body.

  The dust started to settle, and I started to make out a vague silhouette walking through the destroyed house.

  “Belle~ I’ve come to visit!”

  A mature, overly eager voice – a tinge of deranged affection lurking in its dulcet tones – echoed through the ruined hallway.

  Belle just groaned in deep annoyance, letting us go as she pinched the bridge of her nose and grimaced heavily.

  I paused for a moment upon seeing and hearing that.

  She seemed more exasperated than alarmed. Were we not in danger after all?

  But what the fuck was happening? I still had absolutely zero idea what was going on.

  “That fucking bitch…” Belle clicked her tongue, “seriously, I went and paid her off, and she still decided to snitch? Lady of her word my fucking ass.”

  The dust started to settle, and a woman in a strange, yet familiar robe walked through.

  Beautiful silver hair – blurred streaks of corrupting grey running through it – swept backwards across her head, tunnelling into a series of ornate pins and clips, where it then fell into a series of tiny, flat tails that loosely fell all the way down to her shoulders before looping back up to the back of her scalp.

  Beady, hauntingly clear lavender eyes curved happily, accompanied by an upsettingly cute catlike smile.

  A beautiful, ancient-Chinese style dress adorned her figure, coloured in gold that bled into soft purples, contrasted against a skirt and thick long ribbons of deep blue and fabrics of white. Her collar, pits and shoulders were briefly exposed, before trailing off into detached translucent sleeves that mysteriously flowed and fluttered like water.

  I blinked.

  Were those… rabbit ears on her head?

  No, wait, there was way too much fur covering the inner ear, and they curved just a bit too sharply, were they fox ears?

  Rabbit-fox ears?

  I blinked again, almost reeling.

  Were those real?

  They didn’t seem attached, rather they just naturally rose from her hair.

  How did that work?

  Did she have four ears?

  I couldn’t really tell, given that her hair was covering her ears. Or where human ears would have been, at least.

  “I heard you were raising kids for the past six years~ and you didn’t tell me!? I thought we were best friends! We were sworn sisters-in-law, weren’t we!? You promised~~”

  As she walked, ignoring the destroyed house behind and around her, the remaining dust disappeared, revealing us to the strange woman.

  “No I did not,” Belle groaned in exasperation, “he was drunk and swore he was brothers with your husband. I haven’t sworn shit with you and I never will.”

  If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

  She resigned herself to something, and let up her protective stance around my sister and I.

  The woman’s lavender eyes slowly fell from Belle and trailed down towards us.

  She gasped in excitement, the smile on her face blooming even further.

  She seemed to blur and disappear, reappearing in front of us before we could even blink, shoving her face into ours as she gazed upon us with wonder.

  “Omigosh, they’re so cute!”

  She swivelled her head from side to side, appraising us.

  She gasped again, putting her hands around Luna’s face and smushing her cheeks, making my sister squirm in confusion.

  “Look at her features! Her hair and her eyes… were you hiding this precious little gem from me for six years!? Did you birth her out of wedlock!? How scandalous~ You know, my husband and I at least waited until we walked down the aisle together.”

  Belle just sighed again, her brow creasing in frustration.

  “No, I didn-”

  But the strange woman just ignored her, her head snapping towards me.

  “Oh, and what about this child? She looks far older than her sister… an affair? Was it you or him? Oh, is that why you’ve been keeping your children a secret from me? I almost thought Selenia was lying when she told me about these two. I couldn’t believe that sisters like us would keep secrets from another, but that’s alright, I understand. It’s nothing to be ashamed of, I was young and adventurous too at one point. But don’t worry! If it’s causing you that much anxiety…”

  I yelped, suddenly finding that my feet weren’t touching the ground anymore.

  The strange woman carried me in her arms like a baby, hoisting me up on her forearm, holding my face next to hers.

  Her strangely strong demure fingers clamped tightly around my jaw and cheeks, bringing our faces together.

  “I’ll take care of her for you! Look, we both have lavender eyes! And my ancestors had golden fur too, no one will suspect a thing! I’ve been looking for another daughter recently~ It’s a win-win! And then you don’t have to hide your children out of shame of your infide-…”

  She trailed on and on, her speech getting faster and faster as she accelerated into intelligibility and insanity.

  I tried to escape from her arms, but found I was locked in place.

  I looked at Belle with pleading eyes.

  She just winced in chagrin and palmed her face.

  “Chang’e, please put Estelle down.”

  I blinked again.

  This was Chang’e? The legendary captain of the Black Moon Expedition I heard about?

  I was expecting someone… rougher, or more… pirate-like, I guess?

  The woman – Chang’e – gasped upon hearing my name, almost dropping me in the process.

  “Estelle!? So she really is yours! Oh, and if she has that name, she really must be important to you… no, don’t tell me. It wasn’t you who had the affair, but-”

  “There wasn’t a fucking affair, Chang’e.”

  Belle took that small moment of weakness to snatch me from the strangely strong woman.

  She awkwardly cradled me in her arms for a second, both of us blushing in embarrassment before she quickly let me down, hiding me behind her again.

  Luna quickly scrambled over to us, not wanting to be stuck with the odd woman.

  “Why the hell do you always visit like this, anyways!? We have a fucking door, you know! Please walk up to it and knock on it like a normal person! Every time you come over, half the fucking house is destroyed and I have to spend ages rebuilding it! You think that shit’s easy!?”

  Chang’e just rolled her eyes and smiled lightly, waving her grievances away.

  “Pft, it’s fine, it doesn’t really matter anyways. It’s all just wood. Nothing important lost. I would lose the surprise! Besides, we’re always like this, aren’t we? I crash our ships into the Dark all the time! No big deal!”

  “YEAH, AND WE FUCKING HATE YOU FOR IT EVERY TIME IT HAPPENS!” Belle snapped at her… colleague? Captain? Friend? Sworn sister?

  This was all very confusing, if I was being honest.

  Chang’e just laughed, shyly looking away in embarrassment.

  “Oh, stop it, you. I know you all think it’s a very fun time. We get to all huddle together on the shipwreck like one big, happy family!”

  “I would rather never have to hug you for warmth again. Especially in that maddening shithole.”

  “Haha~ are you embarrassed? Oh, that’s alright, bis sis loves you anyways~”

  “We’re not fucking sisters.”

  Belle scowled, looking around for any way out of the headache of a conversation.

  Her eyes swept across Luna and I.

  “Luna, Estelle, this is Chang’e, old…” she grit her teeth, forcing the next few words out, “friend… of mine. Worked with her along with Selenia, if you remember her. Chang’e, these are Luna and Estelle. I don’t know what the fuck you think happened, or Sol forbid why you even know what those names mean, but they’re two children I adopted while I was on my trip to Litanus.”

  Chang’e just blinked and frowned.

  “Are you sure? The little one does look just about old enough for-”

  “I think I would know if I popped a baby out, Captain,” Belle rolled her eyes.

  “Don’t call me Captain!” She waved her arms petulantly like a child, her sleeves fluttering in the dusty air, “You make me sound like I’m some sort of scallywag or pirate! I’m not, thank you very much. I’m a refined mother and wife who’s just trying to make her way back home so she can bring her husband and children to their in-laws, picking up lost children like you along the way~”

  “Please don’t ever call yourself refined while you’re standing on a pile of splinters in someone’s half-collapsed home that you destroyed,” Belle dryly bit back, gesturing at her ruined home, "and don’t call me your child ever again. Or your sister.”

  She surveyed the collapsing house.

  The stairs were still intact, at least.

  She sighed, looking at Luna with an apologetic smile.

  “Sorry, Luna, about this… mess… I just have some very loud and annoying friends. The alarm was meant to give me warning in case something like this was going to happen, but well, clearly I wasn’t fast enough.”

  Luna just nodded shyly.

  “I-it’s okay, Mother,” she mumbled.

  “The library should still be fine. You can go back there for now… I’ll deal with this mess, call you back when it’s time to eat, ‘kay?”

  Luna nodded rapidly, skittishly retreating up the stairs to hastily run away from the strange woman.

  “Estelle, you…” Belle pursed her lips, trailing off, “well, I guess for now, you can just come with me. I guess we need to serve some tea.”

  “Oh! Tea!?” Chang’e popped up, “I love Belle’s tea, yes, let’s go!”

  “Please don’t destroy the rest of the house while you’re here. There’s some fragile runework underneath a couple of these floorboards,” Belle drawled as she led us to the dining room.

  She poured everyone a cup of the usual comforting sweet herbal tea, letting the warm liquid soothe and calm the chaotic atmosphere, leaving behind the ruins of that side of the house.

  “So, Chang’e, what brings you here to my home? Don’t you have more ships to crash or something? I’m guessing Selenia blabbered off about me, but is that the only reason you’re here?”

  Chang’e just pouted, almost collapsing onto the table and spilling the tea everywhere.

  “My children don’t want to play with me anymore!” She whined childishly, her puffy ears twitching sadly, “they get all embarrassed and skittish when I hug them! They throw things at me and get all red! Why!? Is it so wrong for a mother to want to play with her children!?”

  Belle just raised an eyebrow and calmly sipped her tea.

  “I’m surprised they lasted so long. They’re like what, nine this year? I would’ve started getting embarrassed by six, honestly.”

  “Why does everyone say that!?” Chang’e teared up, flapping her sleeves around. “Even little Artemis, so calm and polite, gets embarrassed when I tell her how much I love my children!”

  Belle just winced.

  “I don’t know how you don’t find yourself embarrassing, to be honest.”

  “Is it a sin to love your children!?”

  I just smiled politely as they had their conversation.

  I was a bit confused, but I think I understood the gist of it.

  Belle had previously described members of the Expedition as ‘unhinged lunatics and perverts’, and while I didn’t really get that feeling when it came to Selenia, it definitely came across with Chang’e.

  She seemed to be an overbearing, overly affectionate, perhaps even slightly insane mother, her thoughts filled with nothing but her children and husband. She was reckless, maybe a bit air-headed, but unwavering in her convictions and her unconditional love.

  And she was insanely, unreasonably strong. Strong enough to topple trees by jumping across them and collapsing half a small mansion with a single leap.

  I listened on in silence, sipping my tea as Chang’e bemoaned to her old friend about how no one was reciprocating her affections, and her husband was currently working away from home and couldn’t fill her… uh… rabbitly urges.

  I probably shouldn’t linger on that last one.

  “All of you keep complaining about the way I treat my husband and children, but look! I’m the only one of us who’s actually married! If I’m so bad at loving my family, where’s the proof!? Where’s all of your families, huh!? Selenia can’t find a good boyfriend, Khonsu and Thoth keep turning down all those wonderful, dedicated and loving ladies for some reason, even though they seem perfectly fine-”

  Weren’t those the two men who were apparently only chased by crazies?

  I wondered what that was about.

  “And Hecatya and Aradia just broke up! If you’re all so much better at love than me, then why don’t all of you show me how to do it properly!? Huh!? I thought not! I’m right, in the end! My love is the only one that actually worked out!”

  Belle’s eyebrow just raised even further.

  “How did you pick the one maybe sane point to make, but only realise it in front of the only person who actually has a good response? You’re talking to the one person on that crew who actually had a fiancee. And, you know, I have children now too.”

  Chang’e froze, her face growing aghast as she robotically turned towards me.

  Then she started crying.

  “No!!”

  She collapsed backwards on her chair, rolling to the floor and tumbling around as she wept.

  Belle just looked at her in disgust and refilled her tea cup.

  “I-I can’t be wrong! I-I love Hou Yi! H-he loves me too! He shows it to me every night! He bites me, he grabs my ears and pulls my tail, a-and-”

  She continued to sniffle.

  I really didn’t need to hear the details of her nightlife with her husband.

  I got off my own seat and gently pat her on the back, while Belle just watched me warily.

  “U-um, Miss Chang’e, it’s alright. I-I don’t think you’re that bad.”

  My main intent was to just get her to stop talking about what she did privately with her husband, but I did also mean it.

  It was a bit embarrassing to say, but I did kind of understand and relate, if I was being honest.

  I knew that my sister would one day find my care and worry embarrassing, but I hoped I would never stop feeling so dearly about her, no matter how old or independent she grew.

  I think I even would have appreciated being on the receiving end of such embarrassing affections. It would be nice to know that I was truly at the centre of the other person’s world, that I truly meant everything to them and that nothing would ever make their care for me waver.

  It was the quiet part, the reluctance to ever say it out loud, that had always caused me pain in the end. My parents loved me, and I did love them back, but their affection towards me was always relatively restrained and normal, and I never really told them how much they meant to me back.

  I sort of wished a person like Chang’e could have been my mother in my previous life. Maybe then, my connection with my parents would have never drifted, their love for me would have always been reinforced and drilled into my head, negating the fact that I felt lost I because I never got to meet my younger sister, along with negating the perpetual guilt that slowly crept in afterwards.

  And I wish I could have loved like Chang’e too. If I had that confidence, I would just be able to say those important, frivolous words to my parents.

  But it was too late for that, the most I could do was shower my sister with that love instead.

  Maybe I was just a desperate and needy person?

  Huh.

  Anyways, when she heard my words, the woman rolling around on the floor froze.

  She looked at me with her beady, lavender eyes.

  “You mean it?”

  I smiled shakily.

  “I think your love for your family is very admirable, Miss Chang’e. If I were your child, I think I would be very flattered.”

  Of course, that didn’t mean I wish I were her child.

  I was incredibly grateful that it was Belle who found me, and I would never in a million years accept anyone else as my new ‘mother’ now that I had her; that beautiful heart, and all of its dazzling hopes and dreams, that she had shared with me, which resonated so closely with my own memories and regrets, were things I would never exchange for anything.

  I just meant what I said. Her capacity for love was admirable.

  Belle winced upon hearing my words.

  “Kid, if you want me to treat you like that, I’ll let you know right now I’d rather crash into the Infinite Dark again.”

  I just giggled, smiling warmly as I faced her.

  “That’s fine. I didn’t ask that of you, and that’s not why I accepted your ca-”

  I was interrupted when Chang’e tackled the wind out of me, crushing my body in her grip.

  “WHERE DID YOU FIND SUCH A CUTE AND OBEDIENT CHILD, BELLE!?” she bawled out, rubbing her cheek against my own.

  Belle looked at the two of us uncomfortably.

  “Need help, Estelle?”

  “I-I think I’ll be fine…” I was a bit winded, and breathing was a bit hard, but I would survive.

  I think.

  “ARE YOU SURE SHE’S YOUR DAUGHTER!? IS SHE REALLY IMPORTANT!? CAN I TAKE HER HOME AS MY DAUGHTER INSTEAD!?”

  Belle frowned, her eyes darkening.

  She snapped her fingers, and Chang’e suddenly found that her sleeve was on fire.

  The rabbit-like woman flinched and spun away from me, desperately rolling around to put it out.

  Belle took the opportunity to snatch me towards herself.

  “Please don’t go claiming ownership over other people’s daughters.”

  “WAH! ESTELLE! MUMMY IS BEING BULLIED BY AUNTIE BELLE!”

  “Don’t call me an aunt either. I’m not an old hag like you.”

  She snapped her fingers again, and this time, a great blaze lit over the woman’s entire body.

  Was she going to be fine?

  Was the house going to be fine? The floorboards were made of wood…

  Somehow, miraculously, nothing dangerous happened.

  Chang’e pat herself dry, sniffling as she rubbed out the tears in her eye and the soot on her robe.

  “Belle, please, remember our sworn sisterhood!”

  “For the last time, that wasn’t me.”

  “Estelle, that makes you my niece. You have to call me Auntie Chang’e,” she spoke with a grave face, as if her words were of deathly importance.

  Belle just sighed, again, and scratched the back of her head.

  “Estelle, you don’t have to listen to what this lunatic says. You don’t have to call her anything.”

  I smiled hesitantly.

  “I-it’s okay… I-”

  I stuttered, blushing.

  Despite her rough attitude towards her former colleague, it was clear she did have fondness for her former captain, it was just that she was always terrible at properly expressing her affections, like she always was.

  If she didn’t like the strange woman, she wouldn’t have put up with the inane conversations or make small talk about her other former crewmates. She definitely wouldn’t have suggested that the woman might make more visits in the future and continue to destroy the house.

  I hoped what I said next didn’t sound strange to Belle.

  I didn’t want her thinking that I would rather be someone else’s daughter or anything.

  “I wouldn’t mind calling her that, actually.”

  But something about Chang’e was, well… it was familiar and comfortable.

  The way she dressed, her name, even a couple of her facial features and mannerisms – aside from the strange rabbit thing she had going on – all of them reminded me of home.

  She reminded me of my parents’ family and culture.

  Looking at her, that particularly ancient Chinese style of dress, it reminded me of what my mother would wear for special occasions.

  Even though I was in another world, and the origins of that style of dress and the culture it belonged to were surely different, I couldn’t help but feel as if I shared something with the possibly-deranged mother in front of me.

  It was like a small bit of home – the home I never thought I would ever get to see again – falling into my lap.

  “You sure, Estelle?” There was a hesitant, wary grimace on Belle’s lip and a worried bend to her eyebrow. “She can be really bad about the whole family thing.”

  I chuckled.

  “It’ll be alright. I don’t think she’ll hurt me. I can withstand a little bit of embarrassment.”

  I was sure of at least that much.

  Maybe it was a bit presumptuous of me, but I felt like I understood the woman at least a little bit. She would never bring harm to those she considered her family.

  Belle probably knew that as well. She was the same way too, even if she didn’t express it outwardly. That was why she kept me out of her workshop for now, until she could sort her mess out.

  Belle sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that day.

  “Well, I guess I do need to find something to keep you occupied for a while… guess a babysitter wouldn’t be the worst.”

  “No,” Chang’e cut in with a low voice and a deadly glare, “not babysitter, auntie.”

  “I’m not calling you my sister,” Belle deadpanned.

  “How about it, Estelle!?” Chang’e pushed her words aside, beaming as she spoke to me.

  “Do you want to play with Auntie Chang’e!?”

  Well, like Belle said, I did need something to do with my spare time now, and Luna still didn’t seem that happy with me…

  “I hope I’m not intruding on your time, Auntie Chang’e,” I smiled shakily and bowed.

  The strange rabbit woman just squealed and leapt towards me, picking me up and spinning me around effortlessly as I yelped.

  “No, no, not at all, Estelle! It’s so wonderful to finally meet someone who appreciates my love like my husband does! Why can’t my other children be like you!?”

  Then she brought me in, crushing me against her chest.

  “Mmph!”

  I think I felt her starting to move.

  “Oh, you’re such a precious little thing. Don’t worry, Auntie Chang’e will take care of you! Way better than that poor mother of yours.”

  “Oi.”

  I wasn’t sure. It was a bit hard to tell, given that I was currently being smothered by her chest.

  “Where are you taking her?” Belle’s exasperated, tired voice started to grow more distant.

  “To play, silly!” Chang’e laughed, “I can’t just let her run around on splinters in this broken house-”

  “And who’s fault is that, I wonder?”

  “-and besides! There’s nothing to do up here on this boring mountain anyways! A growing, young girl like Estelle needs more excitement in her life! I’m taking her to see Arden!”

  “…Just be back by sunset, okay?”

  “Oh, don’t worry, I know just how important dinner is to you. She’ll be back right as the sun dips, I promise!”

  “If a single hair on her head is missing or I see a scratch on her skin, I’ll invert your fucking organs.”

  “Oh, sorry, Belle, I’m flattered by the offer, but I’m married. My husband already does that every night!”

  “I-… Ugh. I-… I’m not gonna respond to that one. What the fuck.”

  Never mind.

  Maybe this was a mistake.

  The first smatterings of Estelle evolving into a menhera lol

  Chang’e won’t be a major character or anything. She’ll mostly just appear in this chapter and the next, and then come back for one conversation halfway through Episode 3.

  Anyways, trivia/fun fact I guess.

  This isn’t in Episode 3, so all of these events are entirely unmentioned in the game. The player never knows that Luna and Estelle have a connection with Chang’e. At best, it’s softly implied during Chang’e’s first on-screen appearance during the 1.5th Anniversary that Luna recognises her and has seen her before, but they never directly speak to each other. It goes completely unmentioned and is unknown until the 4th Anniversary where Estelle properly becomes obtainable; she has a voiceline when put in your Expedition where she wonders how ‘Auntie Chang’e’ is doing. Players then proceed to immediately lose their shit upon hearing it.