Chapter Text
Mayumi stood in the doorway of Keiki's main workshop, silently listening in as the goddess worked on some sort of small sculpture.
Keiki was hunched over a table with a knife in hand. A little figurine, no bigger than the hand that worked on it, sat in the middle of a square wooden board. The figurine was humanoid, but Mayumi couldn't make out any finer details from her position.
“Are you going to say something, Mayumi, or are you just going to stand there?” Keiki asked.
“Oh! Sorry, Lady Keiki!” Mayumi stammered out.
“Why are you apologizing?”
“I'm sorry for disturbing you.”
Keiki let out a gentle chuckle. “You're not bothering me.”
“Yes, Lady Keiki.”
“Why did you come here? It must be something important.”
“I...” Mayumi couldn't remember what she had come in for. It must have been some sort of report, or maybe someone had a request? She was drawing nothing but blanks.
“Did you forget, or is it something embarrassing?”
“I forgot.”
“I guess it couldn't be that important, then.” Keiki took a step away from her work. “Would you like to take a look?”
Mayumi walked over and leaned over the figurine. It looked like a very short man, though its proportions were deliberately off. It was still clearly unfinished, but Mayumi could make out the outline of some large weapon.
What really stood out to Mayumi was how divorced the figurine was from Keiki's usual style.
“Why does it look so... different?” Mayumi asked.
“It's a copy of someone else's work.”
Copying was extremely unusual for Keiki. “Why make a copy?” Mayumi asked.
“It's for a game.”
“A game?” This was also very strange for Keiki.
“It's the cutest thing ever! It's like playing with little toy soldiers!” Keiki pointed over to a different table. “I have some finished models over there.”
On the other table sat dozens of figurines of small, armed men. They were impressively detailed. They were all the sort of masterpieces Mayumi would expect from Keiki.
“That reminds me, I'm expecting a guest today. I want her brought here when she arrives,” Keiki said.
Mayumi stood at attention. “I'll go wait for them, Lady Keiki.”
“Please do.” Keiki picked her figure back up and cut another chunk off of it.