Kirara

If you ask anyone in Inazuma which delivery company is the most reliable, the name "Komaniya Express" will surely be mentioned.

If you were to continue the line of inquiry and ask just what about their service left the deepest impression, you would see a smile creep onto their lips as they tell you of a certain special courier...

That adorable, vivacious young youkai with two twin twirling tails. After you thank her for delivering your package, she will bow deeply while wearing an expression of unadulterated bliss, as though she was the one receiving the gift.

If you're willing to spend the time to leave a 5-star rating on the feedback board or give her a few snacks, you may even see stars of joy shoot from this youkai's eyes as her tails swish back and forth.

Ah! But the same people who tell you this will also warn you that this nekomata isn't some weak little thing you can pick on. If you have designs on packages that don't belong to you or get carried away and try to touch her tails... Well, then you'll have to face the consequences.

After hearing all this, it's hard to resist going to Komaniya Express...

"Excuse me, I have a package to deliver, and I was hoping the neko—"

Without waiting for you to finish, the owner turns around and shouts "Kirara! Another one for you!" as though it were an everyday occurrence.

At that moment, a beaming girl will bound towards you, quickly fix her hair and adjust her clothes, and say with a smile—

"Welcome, and thank you for choosing Komaniya Express!"

Kirara's earliest memories are of wandering the wilds of Inazuma.

Back then, she was a nameless kitten with but one tail, and woke every morning with an empty, growling stomach. After a stretch, a yawn, and a single "meow" as though to bellyache about her circumstances, she would begin to hunt for breakfast. The menu often included finches that had let down their guard, or overly curious young fish too near the shore.

Whenever she encountered adventurers out in the wilderness, she would lie down at a safe distance and watch intently as they fished out all kinds of marvelous instruments from their packs. Fwoosh! Suddenly there was a fire roaring. Bong! A strange cauldron was set over the fire. And then, with a bubbling sound, an intoxicating scent would occasionally waft over on the breeze...

Observing this process with wide eyes, to her it was as if she had witnessed magic. Thus a yearning for human society began to flutter about in her chest, as though a butterfly had flown into her heart.

During a frigid winter night with the biting winds howling, Kirara, still a small kitten, was frozen to the point of being unable to feel her tail.

"Gotta find a warm place to hide. Even a hollow in a tree will do..." She thought to herself. But when she was able to look up, she saw a cluster of warm lights flickering not too far away...

This was the first time Kirara entered a human home, and while she was curious about everything around her, she was also frightened. The owner of the house seemed not to notice the kitten that had found its way into her home, but Kirara paid little notice. She found a small square box near the entryway into which she snugly fit, and into it did she sit, falling asleep almost immediately.

"I'll just rest the night, just one night..." were her last thoughts before dreams took her...

Yet when she awoke, she found a warm fire crackled away next to her, and beside it was a fragrant bowl of nekomanma. Directly across from her was an old lady in the middle of knitting a woolen sweater. The old lady seemed to be trying to say something, as though encouraging her to eat. With her tail down and guard raised, she cautiously took a bite of that aromatic nekomanma in front of her that she was so curious about...

It was the most delicious thing she had ever eaten, to the point she began to doubt whether or not she was still dreaming!

And so, she stayed in that cozy little home for one winter after another, and heard story after story from that kind old woman...

On occasion, when Kirara thinks back to that first night, she'll cock her head and ask herself:

"Strange... what was I thinking about before I fell asleep again...?"

Kirara enjoys human cities, with their fireworks, marketplaces and scattered eaves. There is always something she's never seen before, waiting to be discovered.

When she first became a nekomata, she used her youkai powers to enter Inazuma City in a human form. She eagerly explored every nook and cranny in the city, and not even the roof of the Almighty Shogun's Tenshukaku was immune from her curiosity. This is the reason that the Tenryou Commission is one of the addresses she is most familiar with.

Though the Tenryou Commission taught her rules like "don't climb on other people's roofs" and "don't eat the ornamental koi", then she learned "how to be a good youkai in human society" from none other than the Lady Kitsune of the Grand Narukami Shrine. Kirara has caught the eye of "the greatest and coolest youkai," as she calls her, and Yae Miko, for her part, has been willing to impart all her experience upon her lively and interesting junior. Upon learning that Kirara felt the streets and alleys of Inazuma City were priceless treasures, Miko recommended that she seek employment at Komaniya Express.

"If you want to blend into human society, then you must work like an ordinary human. This is most important." Thus spoke the Lady Kitsune.

"Ah, yes," the illustrious priestess appended, "Packages addressed to Guuji Yae at the Grand Narukami Shrine must be given the utmost priority. This is even more paramount than what I just said before!"

Sometimes, bandits with less than honorable intentions will covet those bulging parcels. Hiding beside the paths that the deliveries must take, they carefully eye the passing couriers.

If the delivery person looks tough, or is in a group, the bandits won't risk it. After all, it's just another day with an empty stomach at most.

But when they chance upon a courier like Kirara, appearing delicate and traveling alone, their hearts leap with joy and anticipation. They can nearly taste the Mora that has fallen neatly into their laps.

When Kirara passes, the bandits emerge from concealment and surround her, maliciously blocking her way forward.

"Huh? Do you need something?" Kirara stops uncertainly.

Upon closer inspection, this young lady has two tails. Strange, to be sure, but she looks frail and her face is kind — the perfect prey, through and through. Even better, the pack she carries is bursting with thick packages. Truly, this is a good day for a robbery!

"Uhm... If you have packages you'd like to deliver, please visit our Inazuma City offi—"

Most bandits don't even let her finish before brandishing their blades. The more polite sort will attempt to persuade her to put down her delivery pack willingly for her own safety. The desperate will simply swarm her, hands outstretched to plunder.

But whatever their methods, the result is always the same—

The next morning, several large boxes will have appeared on the doorstep of the Tenryou Commission. Under the "Type of Goods Delivered" section of the delivery slip sealing the packages, a single word will be written: "Meanies."

When she first moved to Inazuma City, Kirara would often lie by the roadside, observing the pedestrians passing by.

"Oh! So this is how human girls dress..." Her wish to join human society made her very conscious of her own outfit, and whether or not it was similar to those around her.

In the springtime, girls would often pluck a flower to place behind their ear or in their hair... Soon after, a special accessory became quite popular... Then everyone began flocking to some particular style of bracelet...

Kirara accepted every style without question, imitating every trend as she saw it. She never thought there was anything wrong with what she was doing, just that all those accessories would occasionally restrict her movement and make it hard to climb up and down. It was so different from being a kitten out in the countryside!

This persisted one day, when she was delivering a package to an old customer named Chiori, and she received a serious dressing down...

At the time, Kirara had politely knocked on the door before gently pushing her way inside. But she couldn't have known that Chiori would glare at Kirara as though she were a cat that had fallen into a bucket of paints...

This Inazuman fashion designer who had opened a famous design label in Fontaine was already quite familiar with Kirara, and so she spoke directly—

"Utter insanity! What did you do on the way here? Fight Specters? What kind of garbage have you covered yourself in? How did that garish flower get stuck in your hair? It's assaulting my eyeballs. Really, the only thing on your entire body with a speck of taste is those shoes..."

"Um, Chiori, y—you know th—those are just m—my feet..." Kirara managed to stammer nervously.

Chiori buried her face in her hands, and immediately picked up her scissors and some cloth before pulling Kirara into a changing room.

"Now don't you misunderstand! It's just that I'd be embarrassed to let anyone see you walking out of my shop looking like THAT!"

The dressing down became a dressing up, and after the sound of snapping scissors and swift needlework faded to silence, Kirara had the outfit she now wears today.

From then on, she had a new task when delivering packages: answering client's questions about just where she got that delightful outfit. Thus did the reputation of Chiori's shop spread far and wide.

"Hmph. I told you my judgment was immaculate." On this delivery run to Fontaine, Kirara found her friend in seemingly much better spirits.

"Other than the clothing orders, is there anything else?" Inquired Chiori.

"Yes, there is, it's just that..."

"Come on, out with it, stop beating around the bush!"

"The customers are asking... if you, that is, your shop... Can you release a shoe design that looks like a cat's paw pads?"

To Kirara, every delivery is a priceless treasure. Each package takes her to different places, and allows her to see all kinds of scenery.

After work, Kirara would go to the "Undelivered Packages" section of the warehouse, and see all the myriad reasons that packages couldn't be delivered to their recipients.

"Filled in wrong address," "recipient moved," "wrong name"...

Each stranded package was like a fish bone lodged in her throat, choking her slowly. Thus, she began to quietly record the details of each package, and used her routes during work and spare time to discover the whereabouts of each recipient.

This resulted in the reputation of Komaniya Express increasing by the day, as customers rushed to praise the reliability and quality of their service: No package was undeliverable.

When the owner of Komaniya Express heard of this, they spent all night designing a new title to issue to Kirara: Gold Level Courier.

"Actually, when I saw that the 'Undelivered Packages' section was empty, I thought we'd been robbed..." confided the owner.

For Kirara, her greatest happiness is the moment she delivers a package into the hands of the recipient. After a long day making deliveries, she likes to climb to a high place, taking in the sights of the city while listening to the sounds of mirth drifting upward from the markets.

This is when she recalls her days as a kitten, listening to stories on the lap of that old lady. The twists and turns and sudden reveals, the fantastic beasts and monsters, all gently follow Kirara's memories like the cool evening breeze, blowing gently into her heart.

And just like the old days, she gently closes her eyes as the stories intermingle with her dreams, welcoming the arrival of tomorrow with contentment.

Some clients of Komaniya Express may be surprised to discover a mysterious package at their door. Most of these packages are small and exquisite, and beautifully decorated.

Cupping the parcel in their hands and shaking their heads, they might think it strange, as they haven't bought anything recently, nor is there any writing on the package. But they may have already forgotten that in the not-too-distant past, they gave some snacks to that courier with two tails.

Each package usually contains a lovely little gift, such as a dried flower of the Nilotpala Lotus, a Starconch ornament, or if the household has young children, a Scarab with peculiar patterns on its shell!

These are all items that Kirara has collected while out on her deliveries. To her, each is a novel and fascinating treasure, and perfect as thank-you gifts. Unfortunately, the rules of Komaniya Express forbid any transactions between employees and clients. Thus, Kirara must make each small box herself, adding cute decorations, and quietly placing them on the recipients' doorsteps.

However, the beneficiary of by far the most "mystery packages" is a small home in the Inazuman countryside...

Though Kirara is quick to say she never wants to go back being some "great youkai" roaming the mountains and valleys, whenever she has time, she will always run back to that old house from that frigid winter's night. Leaving a present at the door, if she happens to find the old woman sunning herself in the yard, she'll immediately return to being a cat. "Meow, meow," she'll call, jumping up onto the woman's knees, curling up into a ball and pouting for attention.

"Ah! Back, are we, Kirara?" The old woman smiles and laughs. She doesn't know that this little cat is already a renowned courier. All she knows is that she often goes out to "play" for ever longer periods.

"You really are growing up so fast. I remember when I found you in the box, you were such a tiny little thing..." Scratching Kirara's head, the old woman fishes out a round, shimmering pearl and places it on her paw pads.

"See? This is that Sango Pearl from the story. Now, I don't know who it's from, but there it was on the doorstep, along with some snacks, too." The old woman also quietly observes to herself: "When I wake up, the house is so clean and orderly, and breakfast is already prepared. How very odd..."

"Why, you haven't grown into a youkai who takes care of me in my old age, have you, little cat?"

Whenever Kirara hears this, she stretches innocently, letting out a contented yawn as she pretends to have no idea what the old woman is saying.

After speaking, the old woman falls silent and just smiles warmly. The two of them then continue to enjoy a leisurely afternoon bathed in sunshine.

One night in the depths of midwinter, Kirara was lying down by the coals, taking a nap. But try as she might, she simply couldn't sleep well.

The charcoal had long burned out, and even the smoldering embers had gasped their final breath as the chill wind rattled in through cracks in window frames and seeped under the doors. Kirara involuntarily curled up tightly, hugging her tail close. Lately, her tail was always itchy and restless, and no matter how much she licked it, it was never enough to calm it.

"Strange, Granny left this morning, she's been gone way too long..." she quietly mewed to herself.

The final lingering ember became darkened ash, and even the residual warmth it had provided was snuffed out. Kirara stretched out and looked out uneasily at the snowflakes falling outside the house, and then quietly leaped out the window.

The snowflakes under her feet were chilly, and her paw pads soon ached from the cold. Climbing onto the roof, she gazed out towards the city. But the moon was totally obscured this night, and the surroundings were pitch black without even a speck of light.

"I remember there was a really, really tall tree nearby..."

Kirara's tail seemed even more anxious than she was. As she climbed, it repeatedly refused to obey her mental commands and nearly caused her to fall.

The tree stretched ever upward, so tall it seemed without end. Kirara did not think about just how high she had climbed. Instead, stories of youkai and humans raced across her mind. It seemed as if she wasn't climbing a tree but pursuing days gone by, and if she was but a step too slow, all might slip away forever...

"Faster, just a bit faster..."

Finally, she reached the crown of the tree, and all the world lay spread beneath her. In the distance, a dazzling light suddenly lit the blackness before her eyes like a firefly — the light from the city at night.

In that moment, it was as if something dormant in Kirara's heart was ignited, and all the fantastical stories of the past had finally become reality, a thousand rays of shimmering light streaming into that galaxy of fireworks. The stories that had once seemed so far away were now so close she could almost reach out and touch them, and she now yearned as never before to bask in that glow.

"Ah! I see her!"

Somehow, an unseen power helped Kirara pick out the one person she desired to see amongst the dazzling stream of lights.

When she safely alighted back on the ground, the clouds parted and the moonlight cast her shadow upon the snow, a shadow that now boasted two tails...

"Are you sure you don't want to stay the night? The snow has only just stopped, and getting back won't be easy," urged the landlord.

"No, no, I couldn't! I have a little cat at home, waiting for my return, haha..." laughed the old woman as she stood before the entryway.

"If that's the case, I'll take you back!" A young female voice suddenly rang out from outside.

The landlord and old woman peered outside, and there they saw a youthful lady with two restless tails, and a shining Vision dangling from her waist.