I hope it's Shinobu's child.
If not, she just committed a crime.
~*~
“Mother, can we go now? Please??” You tug on Shinobu's insect-like haori impatiently. “Mmm... not yet.” Shinobu replied, still adjusting your clothes.
You let out an overdramatic sigh, lifting your head up at the ceiling as you grow bored. “Moooom..” You look at Shinobu with a irritated expression as you complained. Shinobu ignored your complaining a bit, eventually standing up from her kneeling position. “C'mon, let's head out.” Shinobu finally spoke with a gentle tone, dropping one of her hands down for you to grab.
Your face instantly lit up at Shinobu's words. You quickly grab her hand, squeezing it by accident. “Walk faster!” You gently push Shinobu's side, swinging her hand. “Don't rush me.” Shinobu narrowed her eyes down at you. You closed your mouth, looking down at the floor for a while before walking outside.
“Head up. And be polite out there, alright?” Shinobu patted your shoulder with a friendly smile. You gave a slight nod before giving multiple nods. You were a bit of a troublemaker, so Shinobu stood by your side during the introduction of yourself.
The only way Shinobu got all the Hashira's attention before the introduction was if Master Ubuyashiki was involved. Shinobu gave a thumbs up towards Ubuyashiki as he gave a slight nod. He put one of his fingers up to his lips in a shushing action, causing all the Hashira to go dead silent.
“Alright, let's go.” Shinobu patted your back. You grab your mother's hand, both of you walk out into the butterfly garden. The light from the sun went directly in your eyes. You squint at the eight pillars in front of you, gripping Shinobu's hand nervously. Shinobu squeezed your hand back a bit, giving you a smile.
“This is Shinobu's child. She wanted to introduce them to you.” Ubuyashiki spoke first, giving some sort of context to the pillars. A few 'aww's' were spread between the pillars, mostly from the love pillar.
“Shinobu, you may speak.” Ubuyashiki spoke calmly towards the insect pillar, along with another nod. “Thank you, master.” Shinobu took a breath. “As master said, this is Y/N.” Shinobu looked down at you, putting her hand on your shoulder, signaling you to talk.
“Um..” You closed your mouth, quickly opening it back up again. “I'm Y/N and uh..” You tap your hand against your pants, thinking of what to say next. You eventually gave shrug, looking up at your mother clueless of what to say next. Shinobu bit her lip nervously, quietly telling you what to say.
“I'm.. glad to meet you.. and uh.. yeah.” You stammered a bit. “Smile.” Shinobu muttered under her breath, tapping your arm a bit. You gave a small smile, slowly backing away from the pillars timidly.
“What happened to you being excited at first?” Shinobu quietly questioned with a chuckle. Embarrassed, you lower your head, tucking both of your hands into your pockets. “Don't worry. You're fine.” Shinobu rubbed your back, comforting you for a while.
“Hey, kid—Y/N! Who's ya favorite Hashira?” Tengen slapped the pebbled ground, raising his voice from afar as you flinched at his sudden voice. “Uh.. um..” You panic a bit, knowing none of their names at all.
“Why are you so adorable?!” Mitsuri commented after Tengen's loud outburst, holding her hands up to her mouth with a giggle.
“I agree, Kanroji! Kocho's child is pretty amusing! Haha!” Rengoku crossed his arms, a bit louder than Tengen.
“Who are we talking about?” Muichiro snapped out of his daily daydream, looking around confusingly.
Eventually, there were multiple comments and conversations overlapping each other around the Hashira. You grabbed on to Shinobu's haori, clenching your eyes. Shinobu put her arm around your body, glancing at the master.
Ubuyashiki softly cleared his throat, the garden once again returning silent. “Please be polite towards Y/N and Shinobu.” Ubuyashiki closed his mouth, the eight pillars giving their respective bows towards the master.
As things calmed down, the meeting came to an end. You let go of your mother's hoari, calming down a bit. “You did great for your first time.” Shinobu encouraged you with a wider smile. You gave a smile back, leaning against her body. “Thanks..” You mutter.
“Kochoooo!!” A high pitched voice caught both of your attentions. Mitsuri ran over to you and Shinobu with a gasp. “Oh my goodness! Kocho, this is your child? They're adorable!!” Mitsuri squealed, holding out her hand in front of your face.
“Hi! I'm Mitsuri, Kanroji, the Love Pillar! You're Y/N, right? Nice to meet you!” Mitsuri tilted her head, her bubbly and bright smile saying on her face. You stare at the love pillar's hand, looking up at Shinobu. She gave a nod to you as you hesitantly shook Mitsuri's hand. “Nice to meet you.” You speak in a low tone.
“Aren't you the sweetest? I'm great friends with your mother!” Mitsuri stood up straight, putting her hands in front of her body. You were on your best behavior at the time, due to your mother right next to you.
“Thank you...” You replied a bit timidly. Mitsuri gave a smile towards you and Shinobu, waving goodbye before walking away. “Tired..” You grumble. “Alright. We could go inside if you want.” You didn't hesitate to give a nod as an answer, you both walking inside the mansion.
You flop on Shinobu's bed head first into her pillow. She quietly chuckled to herslef. “You have your own room, y'know that?” Shinobu slid her door behind her. “Mmm no.” You responded a bit muffled due to the pillow in your face.
Shinobu sat down on the edge of the bed, lifting her head up and closing her eyes for a moment. She let out a small exhale, eventually laying down alongside your body. You were already exhausted, due to the fact you were very hyper, and constantly bothering your mother in the middle of the night. So, it didn't take along for you to doze off.
You eventually shifted over to your right side in your sleep, stuffing half of your face in Shinobu's insect hoari cloth. Shinobu didn't fall asleep, only resting her body for awhile. The only thing in the room at that time was peaceful silence.
~*~
I can probably see Shinobu being a strict mother at times.
Have an amazing day!