Chapter 56: Little Mouse, Little Boy
“Ah! A live transformation!!!”
As the little mouse transformed into a human, Wang Ziyu, who witnessed everything, let out an earth-shattering shriek.
“Aowu!” Papa, the mouse turned into a person! Seeing the mouse become human, the white dumpling hurriedly alerted Lin Xia.
“Big brother, don’t hit me, wu…” The child was obviously terrified too, crying and begging Lin Xia not to hurt him.
“It’s okay, don’t cry.” So it was an Otherkin (Yizu). Lin Xia had wondered—with cats and dogs in the pet shop and strict rodent control, where could a mouse have come from? Unexpectedly, it turned out to be a little Otherkin child.
Faced with a child, especially a little boy crying pitifully, Lin Xia couldn’t be harsh. He picked the child up and held him in his arms, wiping away his tears.
“Sorry… I was too hungry, I wanted to come in to find food…” The little boy explained to Lin Xia while wiping his eyes. Meanwhile, realizing the little mouse was an Otherkin, the white dumpling wasn’t so scared anymore. Seeing the stark-naked little boy, he hopped off the sofa and quietly slipped away.
“Aowu…” Getting a small blanket for the brother, otherwise he’ll be cold…
Soon, the white dumpling came out of the break room dragging a blanket in his mouth.
“Good job, Baby.” Lin Xia took the blanket and wrapped up the little boy. The boy was very polite, thanking both the white dumpling and Lin Xia.
“Sit here for a moment, I’ll go get you something to eat.” Lin Xia settled the little boy down, then went to fetch food. There were leftover steamed buns from breakfast, so Lin Xia brought over some buns and juice.
“Thank you, Big Brother.” The little boy was starving; after thanking Lin Xia, he immediately started devouring the food like a hungry wolf. It seemed he was truly famished.
“Ziyu, come with me for a second.” Taking advantage of the time the little boy was eating, Lin Xia pulled the shell-shocked Wang Ziyu into the break room.
“Lin… Lin Ge, what is going on?!” Wang Ziyu’s mind was still replaying the scene from moments ago; he couldn’t even speak smoothly.
A live transformation, and from a mouse at that! In his twenty-something years of life, Wang Ziyu had never experienced anything so fantastical. For a moment, he felt his worldview being powerfully washed away.
“It’s exactly what your eyes saw. The little mouse turned into a human,” Lin Xia said seriously.
“So I wasn’t dreaming!” Wang Ziyu couldn’t help but pinch his own cheek. It hurt. Okay, it’s real.
“Actually, in this world, there is a type of people called Otherkin…” Lin Xia explained the concept to Wang Ziyu in a serious manner. Since Ziyu had seen it, the existence of Otherkin could no longer be kept secret.
Wang Ziyu listened, stunned, but his ability to accept things was strong. By the time Lin Xia finished, he more or less understood, even if he couldn’t digest it all immediately.
“Wait a minute, Lin Ge!” Wang Ziyu suddenly thought of the white dumpling. He had always felt that Lin Xia didn’t treat the white dumpling like a pet. Could it be that the white dumpling was also an Otherkin?
“Is An An an Otherkin?” Wang Ziyu looked at Lin Xia nervously, daring not relax for a second.
“Yes.” Under Wang Ziyu’s gaze, Lin Xia nodded, admitting the white dumpling’s identity. “Baby is my biological son.”
Since Wang Ziyu already knew about Otherkin, the white dumpling’s identity couldn’t be hidden for much longer anyway. It was better to be open about it now.
“Then what about Da Bai?” Wang Ziyu’s eyes widened in surprise. Not only was the white dumpling an Otherkin, but he was also Lin Xia’s biological son. Then Da Bai… could he be another one of Lin Xia’s children?
“Da Bai is also an Otherkin.” Lin Xia didn’t want Wang Ziyu to know that he gave birth to the white dumpling; that was something he really felt too embarrassed to say out loud.
“Wow… then Lin Ge, are you one too?” A thought suddenly popped into Wang Ziyu’s head—was he the only pure human in the entire pet shop?
“I’m not.” Lin Xia shook his head. “Aside from Da Bai and Baby, everyone else in our shop is an ordinary human.”
“That puts me at ease.” Wang Ziyu patted his chest, breathing a sigh of relief. “Thanks for telling me this, Lin Ge. I’ll keep it a secret.”
Although scared, the shrewd Wang Ziyu knew what he had to do.
“Thank you, Ziyu.” Seeing that Wang Ziyu could accept it calmly and voluntarily keep the secret, Lin Xia knew he hadn’t misjudged him.
After talking, the two returned to the sofa. The little boy had finished the buns and was drinking the juice.
“The buns were delicious~ Burp!” Seeing Lin Xia come out, the little boy immediately put down the juice and spoke sweetly to him, only to let out a loud burp. The little boy felt embarrassed, his small face turning red.
“As long as you’re full.” Lin Xia smiled gently.
“I’m full. Burp!” As soon as the little boy opened his mouth, another burp escaped.
“Then I’m going to ask you some questions now. Can you answer them honestly?” Lin Xia sat next to the little boy, picked him up, and tightened the blanket around him.
“Okay~” The little boy sat up straight, waiting for the kind big brother’s questions.
“What is your name? How old are you?” First, the standard questions.
“My name is Hao Shu. I’m six years old.” The little boy’s voice was sweet and soft, reminding one of sweet, fluffy cotton candy.
“Where is your family? Who did you come out with?” Lin Xia asked.
“Um…” Hearing this question, the little boy lowered his head and poked his fingers together, seemingly unwilling to answer. After a long while, knowing Lin Xia and the others were waiting, he slowly squeezed out the words bit by bit. “I… I ran away by myself… Big Brother, please don’t tell my papa…”
“Ran away by yourself? Can you tell me why?” Lin Xia pressed on; it seemed he was getting to the root of the matter.
“I don’t like my papa… and he doesn’t like me either. He always calls me a rat… and says I’m stupid and useless…” The little boy felt sad whenever he thought about how his papa scolded him.
“You’re still small. There’s not much kids can do. It’ll get better when you grow up.” Seeing the boy’s sadness, Lin Xia comforted him.
“But… Papa always says I’m useless, says I only know how to eat and play and can’t do anything. The boy next door, Xiao Peng, speaks English so fluently, but I don’t know anything…” Having found someone who would listen, the little boy poured his heart out. The more he spoke, the more aggrieved he felt, and tears began to fall plop plop.
“Aowu!” Big brother, don’t cry, here’s a tissue! The thoughtful white dumpling handed over a tissue at just the right moment.
“Thank you… I really want to be as beautiful as him. I don’t want to be a dark, black mouse…” Seeing the good-looking white dumpling, the inferiority complex hidden in the little boy’s heart slowly surfaced. He didn’t like his original form, and neither did his papa.
Now, Lin Xia didn’t know how to comfort him. One cannot choose their birth. Whether ordinary human or Otherkin, no one can choose their origin or form.
Lin Xia had once wondered if he could accept it if the white dumpling wasn’t a little tiger but another species, like a snake. The answer was yes, but he might have felt uncomfortable or uneasy at first.
Lin Xia could understand the little boy’s sadness. Mice generally weren’t liked by people, and even his father despised him. From the boy’s words, it was clear his father didn’t just dislike his original form but picked on him for many other things too.
“It’s okay. I was criticized by my mom growing up too, and aren’t I doing just fine now?” Wang Ziyu pulled up a small stool and sat in front of the boy, reaching out to pet the fluffy head he’d been wanting to touch.
Wang Ziyu wasn’t just saying this to comfort the boy; it was the truth. He had been very naughty as a child, and his grades weren’t excellent, so his mom had nagged him plenty.
“Big Brother, are you a mouse too? Do you know English?” Hearing this, the little boy’s eyes lit up, and he looked at Wang Ziyu with expectation.
“Sorry, I’m not a mouse. As for English, I do know it.” As soon as Wang Ziyu finished speaking, he saw the little boy lower his head in disappointment.
“I knew it, I’m the only one who can’t do anything…”
The little boy radiated an aura of inferiority and self-abandonment. A child who should have been carefree was burdened with too much too early, becoming sensitive and overly anxious.
“Has your papa ever praised you?” Lin Xia suddenly thought to ask. Parents usually love their children; harsh criticism often comes from high expectations. Perhaps the boy’s father wanted the best for him but used the wrong method.
“I think so…” The little boy tilted his head in thought for a while before recalling the few times he was praised. “During the Lunar New Year, I recited a poem in front of my aunts. They all said I was smart, and Papa was so happy!”
From those few words, Lin Xia could imagine the scene. During the New Year, adults always loved making children perform. Regardless of how the child performed, the relatives would offer praise—whether sincere or not was another matter.
“Seems like children in Hua Country are all the same!” Wang Ziyu felt a deep resonance. When he was little, every time relatives visited during the New Year, his mom would drag him out to perform. For the sake of his mom’s “face,” he couldn’t mess it up. In his mom’s words: “Do whatever you want at home, but act proper outside. Don’t make me lose face…” Consequently, Wang Ziyu was like a crazy dog at home, but whenever his mom took him out, he was as well-behaved as a little rabbit.
“Big Brother, is your papa like that too?” Hearing Wang Ziyu’s complaint, the little boy couldn’t help asking.
“Haha? My dad isn’t like that. My dad is responsible for making money to support the family; he doesn’t have time for this stuff. But my mom is exactly like that. Not just my mom—lots of moms are like that…” Wang Ziyu shrugged, looking indifferent. He was used to it anyway; it was like that when he was little, and it was still like that now.
Lying on the floor resting his eyes, the big dumpling’s ears twitched when he heard “making money to support the family.” He opened one eye a slit and looked guiltily at Lin Xia. Ao! He wanted to make money to support the family too, but he was just a tiger; he could only let Lin Xia support him.
“Da Bai?”
The big dumpling was lying right across from Lin Xia, so Lin Xia could see his every move.
“Ao!” Caught in the act, the big dumpling immediately got up and hopped over to Lin Xia’s side to curry favor.
“Behave.” Lin Xia stroked down the tiger’s spine, turning the big dumpling to mush. The big dumpling lay softly beside Lin Xia, motionless, looking exceptionally obedient.
The big dumpling felt great to the touch, so Lin Xia couldn’t resist petting him a few more times. At first, the big dumpling let him pet, but after a few strokes, he pounced on Lin Xia’s hand and licked it vigorously…
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