Chapter 3
Year xx12, the 7th day of June
I was told later down the line that both my grandparents had died young around the ages of 32-35 leaving my mother at the age of 16 which is why she had employed herself in a brothel to make money as no other place in that village would hire her even if she had a higher education than most, simply because she was a woman trying to work in the civilian district who were stuck in the ways of the past.
Though she might have left that life for me as well as moved villages for a job that paid regularly as well for me to have opportunities I wouldn't have received had she not left, I was still discriminated for being a prostitutes daughter, a bastard child, but I was at the age of 2 and a half so it wasn't something that I understood at the time but my mother had decided it would be best that I would be homeschooled, so as such, she taught me when she could with her basic education and in the ways of body language.
Though I should say, my mother had quite the unusual childhood as her mom, my grandmother was taken at a young age from her home as she was selected for being a beautiful girl where she was then raised in a brothel with others who just like her, were administered different poisons then given an antidote a bit after until they had grown up to the age of fifteen where they had begun their duties to the house, and not many had survived the practice, but over the years of exposure to the poisons they've received, they had become insensitive to most of what they were given and their bodily fluids had become poisonous to other humans, which had meant the death of the partners the girls slept with, hence the house usually sent them off to kill the enemies of their village, the head of the house would then collect the money without giving any to the girls, but the poisons didn't quite work in that way and her grandmother knew it, so when she had met a sap who fell in love with her she took her chance and fled with him where they married at a shrine and later on had my mother, my grandmother then continued the practice on my mother and taught her the ways of grace as well as how to read human behavior, and my mother had continued to pass the same knowledge m and practice down to me.
***
"Here you go, say ah," Nami told Himeko while holding up a small spoonful of a liquid towards her mouth
"Ah," she said, gulping down the bitter substance she was given with a pinched look on her face at the aftertaste.
"All done, now we'll wait the same amount of time and see its effects on you, it shouldn't do too much now but it is a new one you're being exposed to so best be careful understand? You'll tire soon so try to rest" her mother said to her while turning away to make some tea and gather some things.
"Okay Okaa-San," she said while getting just a bit more comfortable in her and her mom's bed as she could feel the beginnings of sweat making its way down her skin along with the hot and cold chills that went with, her breath picking up just a bit as her lungs were starting to get heavy, as well as drowsiness, but she knew it was a normal reaction, and so with that, she tried to do as she was told and in and out of sleep she went.
Nami sat at the edge of the bed and put a cold wrung out rag on Himeko's forehead then checked her heartbeat, it was a bit frantic but not alarmingly so, she's taking the poison well, soon after maybe a few weeks of taking it she would build up protection towards it, which is something she had wanted for her, if it works out then it'll be added to the list of immunity.
Getting up from her seat on the bed she went to go relax in the living room where she'll sit and add the amount of the dose of the poison that she gave along with Himeko's current status within her health records binder as well as drink the freshly made tea that was waiting for her.
She checked in on Himeko every ten minutes for the past hour and hadn't found any abnormalities, there was nothing but the usual high temperature with chills, plus nausea, and as her body as young as it is, is trying to flush the poison out, which is good, and with her daughter in and out of sleep it makes it easier for her to give her some sips of water here and there to keep her from dehydrating, and besides the sweat along with the groans about stomach pains, and excessive drool, Himeko's body is treating the poison as if it was just like any other brief illness which implied good things, and its almost time for Himeko to take the antidote.
About thirty minutes passed along with three more checkups before she gave Himeko the antidote, Himeko had gagged saying it was even grosser than the poison, which fair point, cause it does have a far more bitter taste than the poison itself but it is helpful.
Her daughter had tried to knock out again soon after, but she had to eat something before going to bed no matter her loss of appetite, so she spoon-fed her a few spoons filled with mashed potatoes and made sure she drank some water along with it.
The antidote will kick in soon enough and the effects of the poison will be long gone just the phantom pains with the hazy memory will be left in its place, she's proud that Himeko had taken it so well, even she couldn't handle this particular poison nicely, her mouth had been that of a running fountain of retch, it was like the stomach flu for her while her daughter had been nauseous she hadn't spit up so for her it had been but that of a small fever.
She'll be sure to put in a few extra hours at the shop so she could buy her daughter some mochi along with some chocolate powder for hot chocolate as she deserves it after all she's done today.