Primrose had no idea why everyone was being so nice to her, but she was having a great time. Being doted on by so many older girls made her feel cool and part of the big kids crowd, even though she had no idea what they were asking her. She didn’t know what brands were popular or even what a brand was! She was a fox just six months ago! Shimmer had taught her that if she didn’t know the response to a question, she should just ask the same question back.

  “What are your favorite brands?” She asked the girls around the table as she sipped on a second cup of juice. Violetta, the highest ranked and the leader of the girls, had snuck away and told her mom a real, impossibly powerful, noble was here. In response, Lady Blueport ordered as many things as she could to gain favor from the little girl who could destroy their entire family line.

  “I am not yet old enough, but my mother and elder sisters are simply charmed by the cosmetics from the Aristo Group! We have to get them imported from the capital! Did you get that dress from the capital, too?” Violetta’s ramblings about the capital were usually taken as bragging by the other girls, but it was hard to brag in front of someone with such overwhelming status.

  Now this was a question she could answer! Her Papa had instructed her on what to say if anyone ever asked about her dress. “It’s a pretty dress, isn’t it? It’s been dyed with the most vibrant red on the market! It’s called Shimmer’s Colorant from The Persson Trading Company! Unlike other red dyes, it stays the same color no matter how many times you wash it!” To anyone in the modern world, this was obviously an ad read, but to a world without widespread media, it was a revolutionary advertisement technique which would later be coined as “Persson Gossip Marketing”.

  “Really? Your family has a business?” One of the girls chimed in, “My father runs one of the most profitable businesses in Swaan! Maybe your family should come to him for advice?” She hadn’t ever been in a conversation where her father’s status was outranked by someone else, so she boasted freely. That’s why she was so bewildered when her mother ran up from the adults' area and made her bow so deeply her forehead almost hit her knees.

  “Please forgive my daughter’s foolishness, my lady! If you find it in your heart to spare her, I will cane her myself!” The noblewoman sounded almost frantic as she begged the little girl for mercy. Primrose, who had no idea what was happening, looked to her father for guidance. When he also had no idea what was happening, she said what Shimmer always said when she misbehaved during etiquette class.

  “One time is igroranthe, two times is malise. I forgive you this time, but not the next!” She butchered the difficult words, but they kept thanking her, so she probably did a great job. She saw her Papa out of the corner of her eye, pointing at his clothes and then back at her. She got the hint.

  “Madam, you have a lovely blue dress! Wouldn’t it look better in red?”

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  While Primrose was putting her newfound skills into use, Pail was being lectured on the importance of etiquette. While his sister always listened intently and learned quickly, Pail couldn’t care less about talking fancy or whatever Shimmer was on about. “What’s wrong with the way I speak? I think I speak real good.” He grumbled while tying a bundle of candles together.

  “You will be entering school in a few years, so you’ll need to be able to communicate without sullying your family name,” Shimmer explained for the thousandth time as he flawlessly peeled a basket of roots without looking. “Try again. ‘Good afternoon. If I may introduce myself, I am Norman Persson Jr, eldest son and heir of the Persson family. May I know your honorable name?’”

  “But that’s not my name! That’s Papa’s name! My name is Pail! Why would I introduce myself with someone else's name?! You never tell me why!” Shimmer had told him that he has to use his middle name when he’s not at home, but he’s never explained why. “Tell me why or I won’t listen at all! Ever!”

  “It’s a slave name, okay!? It makes you look like a slave! You aren’t a slave anymore, but people will think you are if you introduce yourself as Pail!” Shimmer finally snapped. He had tried to be mindful and considerate, but he just kept asking! “You are lucky! If I had a second, normal name I could use, I would! Be grateful!”

  “G-good afternoon. If I may introduce myself…I am Norman Persson Jr, eldest son and the heir of the Persson family. May I know your honorable name?” Pail responded quietly. He didn’t know how to articulate it, nor how to apologize, but he knew that Shimmer was right. He didn’t like the name Pail and what it represented. He hoped his Papa would give him a new one like Primrose, but it still felt weird to introduce himself with someone else's name.

  “See? That wasn’t so hard, now was it?” Shimmer offered him a pleased smile, just like his etiquette teachers used to do. He knew he was being harsh, but children needed harsh education. Educating the children on noble matters was a way for him to pay back all the kindness he’d been given, so he took it a bit more seriously than a boy his age should.

  “Can I go play now? I finished packing the box, and I introduced myself as you wanted. I wanna go play marbles!” Normally, he would ask his Papa, but since he wasn’t around. His second choice to ask would be Rowboat. She was currently bathing, so Shimmer was the third in command.

  Pail aimed the round stone in his hand at one of the stones in the circle he’d drawn in the ground. He hit his target with an audible clink, knocking the other marble out of the circle. “Hah! I told ya! I’m the best!” He puffed out his chest and ruffled his wings in triumph as he gloated.

  “You must be cheating! How do you throw so good?” The boy on the other side of the circle groaned as he handed over the rock to Pail. He was a full blooded oni by the name of Jasper. He lived a few houses down and became quick friends with Pail. They spent all their free time with each other, doing whatever it is little boys do.

  Jasper looked pretty intimidating at first glance. He had light purple skin, messy purple hair, and two giant horns sticking out of his forehead. He was much taller and bulkier than Pail, but they were both the same age. Jasper had just turned eight, and brought up being older at every opportunity. The fact that they were only a few months apart was conveniently glossed over whenever he offered his big-kid wisdom. Unlike Pail, who worked at home in the workshop, Jasper apprenticed at a carpenter, something he also always bragged about.

  “I ain’t cheating! I just have the best throwing arm in the country!” To demonstrate his claims, he chucked a pebble as far as he could down the road. It made it pretty far. So far that it hit Norman, who was coming home from his outing, straight in the forehead.

  “Ah… crud.”

  Time skip soon?