Chapter 172 – Letters

The more Sophia was drinking, and the more she was getting drunk from it, the more details the girl revealed of her old life in the previous world. She told them a lot about her sister and how much she missed her. After Canir agreed to deliver a letter from the blonde to her family to get the closure she was looking for, Sophia relaxed so much that she immediately fell asleep on Maya's lap. However, the alcohol might have helped a bit with that, as well.

The others chatted and drank for a good while longer, especially Fen was making the best out of the boost that let him enjoy alcohol even more while also reducing its negative side-effects.

The following morning started surprisingly early. Maya and Aura hadn't drunk that much in the first place. Canir is Canir, Fen got his possible hangover reduced, and Sophia was still immune to it in the first place. The wolves went to do the finishing touches to the lake while the couple was still with Canir.

"Hrmm..." The tiger had created a table and some stools with earth magic and was currently ruffling her hair while she was staring at a blank piece of paper. At the same time, she was also playing with a pen from her storage. "I have no idea what exactly I should write to my family... Wait, aren't I using a different language right now...?"

"Nah, you still know your old language," Canir answered her. "You just haven't used it since coming here, even though you hadn't realized. If the letters are for your family, you'll unconsciously use your old written language for real."

"Magic sure is weird." She had no better explanation. "So, if I start writing now, it'll be my old handwriting and language my family knows?"

"Yep." He only nodded. "To you, it'll look no different compared to what you've been doing the entire time since coming here, though."

"Like I said, weird... Well, whatever, let's get over with it..."

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Way over two hours had passed since the tiger started working on the letters. Her face went through many emotions, if not all of them, during that time, and she overall seemed to be having a hard time.

"How... How is it going...?" Maya tried to approach her.

"Not... overly well... I think?" Sophia hung her head. "It's... It's gotten waaay too sappy..."

"Sounds fitting for you, though." She tried to make a little joke.

"Ahaha, fair enough..." The blonde let out a forced laugh in response.

"Can I take a look?"

"S-Sure, why not…?"

"Thank you..." Maya leaned over and took a look at the letters. "Ah... I can't read a single thing... What a jumbled mess of symbols... Are those real words? Looks more like art to me... Not the good kind, I want to add."

"Really...? It's the same I always write like, though?"

"Not at all! It's not even similar."

"Hello? Different language and stuff." Canir raised his arms. "Did no one listen to me?!"

"Hearing it and seeing it are two completely different things." The couple was in perfect sync.

"Okay, that's fair." He understood where the two were coming from. "Want to be able to read it, cat? I could bless you with the ability."

"Seriously?!" She got excited but also dubious. "Where's the catch?"

"A sharp and throbbing pain on your forehead for a while. I need to get physical for a blessing, after all. "

"He's really good at those flicks..." Sophia's forehead started hurting just by remembering it.

"I-I see... Wait, could Sophia and I speak in a language no one else knows here together, then? That would be pretty handy."

"No, spoken words would get automatically changed to this world's language without you even noticing."

"Aww..." The cat-girl looked disappointed.

"Written words could work with a bit of concentration, though. Well, it could also work when you're alone with her, as there would be no need for a translation in that case because both of you know the same language and no one else needs it, either. Safe for maybe some missing vocabulary here and there, maybe, that would fix itself when getting an explanation, though. Anyway, still, in that scenario, there's no need for a secret language in the first place, is there?"

"That's true... Well, alright, still good enough. Please hit me~." Maya brushed away her bangs and presented her forehead to Canir. "Wow, I never thought I would ever say those words."

"I didn't think your inner S would let you say that." Sophia had her own interpretation.

"Okay, one language blessing coming right up~."

"Thank you very mu- OUCH!" She wasn't able to finish her sentence as Canir moved closer and gave her a hearty flick before the cat-girl could even react. She also almost toppled over from the force. "That hurt!"

"Do you understand now why I punched him into another dimension after he did it to me without warning?" Sophia looked at her with a smug expression.

"Absolutely."

"I don't like where this is going..." He retreated a few steps from the couple.

"Anyway," As Maya had no intention to punch the overseer, for the time being, she simply ignored him. While nursing the sore spot on her forehead, she then focused on Sophia's letters again. "W-Wow, I can actually read it now! So weird..."

Hello mom,

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry for everything.

I'm sorry for being such a handful when I grew up.

I'm sorry for still being a handful after I grew up.

I'm sorry that I never told you what was going on with me.

I'm sorry that I left the job in the kindergarten.

I'm sorry that I disappeared.

I'm sorry that I have to apologize so much.

I'm sorry.

I didn't plan to disappear like this. I didn't want to, either. A few unfortunate events happened that led to this, and there's nothing I can do about it anymore. I'm gone.

I miss you very much, but I doubt we'll be able to see each other again. I'm not dead, but I've ended up in a place that I'm most likely unable able to ever leave again. I don't even know if these words will ever reach you.

I know how it sounds, and you're my mom, so you can't not, but please try not to worry too much. Despite my words, I'm happy. Genuinely happy. I'm having a good time for the first time in forever, and I just enjoy my life. Guess what, among many other amazing things, I even have friends now.

I deeply regret that I couldn't say all of this to you in person or how I was just simply gone one day, but this is all I can do now.

I'm sorry.

I wasn't the best daughter, far from it, but believe me that I'm happy that you're my mother. I'm glad and incredibly grateful that you raised me. Unfortunately, no matter how much I want to, I won't be able to pay you back.

Thank you.

I miss you.

I love you.

Goodbye,

Sophia

"W-Wow..." Maya wasn't sure what to say while taking a short break before picking up the second letter.

Hey Steph,

I miss you.

I really miss you.

I'm not sure if I want you to miss me, too, but I do.

I'm sorry for being so selfish. Though, me being selfish really isn't something new, is it?

How could you even put up with me for so long? I was the worst, after all. I'm sure you had better things to do. Still, thank you. Thank you for being there for me the entire time. You have no idea how much it meant to me. You saved me. You were the one who kept me going all these years.

I don't know if I was able to properly show it, probably not, I was useless at those kinds of things, after all. Still, I loved spending time with you. I loved every second of it. I was a bit grumbly when you basically moved in with me, but that was just me being me. It was great. I looked forward to coming home whenever I knew you were there. I have no idea if you've noticed, but on those days, I always tried to wrap up things faster at work and even cut my running short to be with you earlier.

I miss that. I miss you.

I wish I could be with you. No, I wish you could be with me. You'd love it here.

Speaking of that, do you still remember how I wished for so many things? Of course, you do. I talked about those hopes every day, after all.

I wished to be less shy and more confident.

I wished to be less of an idiot.

I wished to get over my fear of people/girls.

I wished for company.

I wished for friends.

I wished for so very many more things. You made a lot of my dreams come true, Steph.

Thank you.

Naturally, as my sister, you couldn't grant me every wish. Not that I wanted to, either, of course.

Guess what, Steph, I made it. I've finally made it.

I'm not shy anymore, and I'm almost too confident for my own good at times. Okay, I'm still an idiot, maybe more than ever, but that's terminal, anyways. I'm able to speak with girls again! I have friends! Friends! More than you'd ever believe! Yes, it's more than 0!

Even more, I've found someone, Steph. I've found her, Steph! I've found a girlfriend! I, yes me! No, I'm not messing with you. Maya's her name. She's funny, intelligent, beautiful, cute, caring, and much more. She wanted me! Me! Impossible, right? I thought so, too, but she's actually sitting right next to me as I write these words. I'm happy. I'm so unbelievably happy. I love her. I genuinely love her. I was able to find romance. Love.

I wish you could meet her. I bet the two of you would get along so incredibly well. I wouldn't even care if the two of you would end up teasing me day in day out. I would enjoy every moment of it.

Unfortunately, the two of you won't meet. Neither will I be able to see you again. I'm sorry. I didn't die when I disappeared all those months ago, but I ended up in a place that makes it impossible for me to see you or mom ever again. I want to. You have no idea how much I want to, but I don't know how that would be possible. You'd love it here, too. I know how much you love animals, after all, and this place is full of them. I haven't seen any of your favorite foxes yet, but an uncountable amount of various breeds of dogs. You love them just as much, right? A ton of different types of cats, too! I'm surrounded by so many of them that it feels like I became a cat, myself. I'm sorry that I can't show you any of them, either.

There's so much more I want to tell you. So very much. So incredibly much. I experienced so many unbelievable and fantastic things you would never believe, but I can't. It took me all of my willpower to write those lines without breaking down completely. If I had to share everything about my current life while thinking about you, I'd cry for weeks.

I only wanted, no, I needed to let you know that I'm doing fine. It's not the same without you anymore, but I love my new life. It's everything I wished for and so much more. I hope you'll be happy, too. Find someone great and make her happy. Let her make you happy, too. It's the best feeling in the world. Trust me, I finally know.

Thank you.

I'm sorry.

I miss you.

I love you.

Goodbye,

Sophia

"..." Maya needed a moment. After she put down the letter, she wiped away a few tears that had run down her cheeks. "I miss my family..." It had quite an effect on her.

"Me, too..." Sophia had been silently crying ever since the cat-girl was reading her letters.

"I'm sorry!" Hearing those words, Maya pulled herself together and immediately stood up before hugging the tiger from behind. "Y-You did well with those letters... Especially the one for your sister is packed with emotions and love. It's easy to see how much she means to you. I'm sure she'll appreciate those words, too..."

"T-Thank you..." She was glad that her feelings seemed to be properly conveyed by the letter. Sophia then returned the cat-girl's hug by holding her arms, and the two stayed like that for a while, trying to keep their tears in.

Canir felt that he should give the couple some alone time to calm down and decided to go over to the wolves for the time being. He was sure it would take a while before the two would be back to normal again.

Teanam

Today we have some feels.

There's also a version of the illustration with a white background where the lighting feels a little different. 

A big thanks to @San_plus_ on Twitter for giving us something different, way more emotional this time!

Once again, a gigantic THANK YOU to everyone supporting the story on Patreon for making those illustrations possible!