"Finnick… no fur?"
Bao Bei reached out with his little hands and patted Finnick's smooth, warm skin. Finnick's belly was hairless and had a light brown tint. Only his tail and ears were covered in fur but the rest of him looked almost like a human man.
"As we grow up, our fur starts to go away," Finnick explained. "When we become adults, only our ears and tails stay furry."
"Bao Bei, too? Bao Bei will become like that?" the boy asked curiously.
"Yes, that's right. All beastmen are like that," Finnick nodded. "In exchange, we gain the power to turn into our beast form. When that happens, we get much stronger. But it takes energy to change, so we can't do it until we're grown up."
Hmm. Strange, Bao Bei thought. You become more like a human, but you can turn back into a beast?
Still thinking hard and tilting his head from side to side, Bao Bei was lifted gently into Finnick's arms. Finnick opened the door to the bath.
"Wah!"
Bao Bei stiffened suddenly when he saw the bathtub. His small body tensed up in surprise. It was probably the first time he had ever seen one.
Trying to calm him down, Finnick gently patted his back and sat him down on a small wooden stool.
Bao Bei refused to let go of Finnick's arms, clinging tightly, but Finnick gently peeled the boy's hands away and, with a wooden bucket filled from the bathtub, poured warm water over Bao Bei's shoulders with a splash.
"GYAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!"
A powerful scream echoed through the entire bathroom.
The children, who had been cleaning up after dinner and getting ready for bed, froze in shock at the sudden scream.
"What was that? What happened?"
"Is someone getting killed?"
"I'm scared!"
Some of the smaller children began to cry. The older ones quickly ran toward the bathroom, where the sound had come from. When they opened the door, they came to a complete stop, stunned by what they saw.
Finnick was naked, kneeling on the bathroom floor, holding Bao Bei down carefully so he wouldn't fall.
Bao Bei was screaming at the top of his lungs, thrashing wildly, and kicking Finnick in the face with all his strength. His fur and long tail were standing on end, completely puffed up. Bao Bei was in full panic, not even aware of his own position. He leaned backward, twisting and flailing in a desperate attempt to escape.
If Finnick had let go, Bao Bei would've fallen hard onto the tile floor and likely gotten seriously hurt.
"No! No! Let me goooo!"
"It's dangerous! Calm down, Bao Bei!"
"What happened, Brother Finnick?"
"What's going on?"
Finnick looked troubled as he answered the older child who had asked in surprise.
"He's afraid of the bath. The moment I poured warm water on him, he started screaming like that."
"No! Not water! I hate it! Scary! No!"
As Bao Bei kept thrashing around, the older kids stepped in from behind to help hold him down. Finnick firmly pulled Bao Bei back into his arms and held him close to his chest.