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Taking care of a baby is much harder than either of them expected.
Giyuu learned that lesson several months ago, shortly after Shin was born, but some days, like today, made that observation so hard to ignore. Their son was currently teething, running a mild fever, and expressing his displeasure to the entire estate with impressive dedication for such a small body. Shinobu had checked his temperature again and again throughout the morning and assured Giyuu there was no real danger, yet that did not make their baby any less miserable.
Unfortunately, discomfort did not change the fact that Shin still needed to eat. The problem was that Shin clearly disagreed.
Giyuu sat cross-legged on the floor with a bowl of rice porridge balanced in his hands. Across from him, Shin sat in Shinobu's lap, his cheeks flushed and his tiny eyebrows drawn together. Every time Giyuu moved the spoon toward him, Shin kicked both legs and turned his head away.
"He must be doing that on purpose," Giyuu said after another failed attempt.
Shinobu glanced down at their son. "He is eight months old, Giyuu."
"He is still doing it on purpose."
As if determined to support his father's argument, Shin shoved one hand toward the approaching spoon and nearly sent porridge onto the floor; Shinobu barely caught the bowl before disaster struck. Their son looked entirely pleased with himself afterward, which only strengthened Giyuu's suspicions.
The next several minutes accomplished absolutely nothing: Giyuu tried distracting Shin with one of his favorite toys while Shinobu attempted to feed him. That, again, failed miserably. Shinobu tried telling him a story while Giyuu held the spoon, but that produced exactly the same result. Every attempt ended with a stubborn baby refusing food and two increasingly frustrated parents wondering how such a tiny person could overcome their collective efforts.
"We fought demons for years," Shinobu muttered. "How is this so much more difficult?"
"Demons never needed us to feed them," Giyuu told his wife. A reluctant laugh escaped her before she could stop it.
The entire situation only got worse from there. Shin's gums were obviously bothering him more as the afternoon passed, and his patience seemed to disappear by the second. He fussed, squirmed, and protested every attempt to help him. By the time half an hour had passed, they had managed only a few reluctant bites. Giyuu thought that, at this rate, they would spend the entire afternoon sitting on the floor with the same bowl of porridge.
Shinobu finally sighed and rested her chin on top of Shin's head.
"We need assistance."
Mitsuri arrived less than an hour later carrying enough warmth and enthusiasm to brighten the entire room. She greeted both of them before crouching down in front of Shin. Their son immediately stopped fussing long enough to stare at her. Mitsuri's expression softened as she examined his flushed cheeks and unhappy face.
"Poor little sweetheart," she said. "His gums must hurt terribly."
Shin made a miserable noise that sounded suspiciously like agreement.
Mitsuri reached into the small bag hanging from her shoulder and produced a chilled teething ring wrapped in cloth, then used it to press the cool surface against his sore gums. The change was almost miraculous: his kicking slowed, and his crying gradually faded.
Both Giyuu and Shinobu only stared. Mitsuri smiled knowingly.
Once Shin had calmed down, feeding him became much simpler. He accepted spoonful after spoonful while happily chewing on the chilled teether between bites. The battle that had consumed most of the afternoon ended within minutes, which Giyuu found rather offensive. They had struggled for nearly an hour, and Mitsuri solved everything almost as soon as she arrived.
Before he could dwell on that terrible injustice for very long, Shinobu paused and frowned. "Giyuu."
Her tone alone made him wary. "What now?"
"I believe our son has created another problem."
One glance answered the question: his diaper needed changing.
Fortunately, Shin remained calm thanks to the teething ring. While Mitsuri continued entertaining him, Shinobu handled the diaper change without difficulty. There was no crying and no kicking; compared to feeding him, the entire process felt absurdly easy.
By the time everything was finished, Shin had fallen asleep against Shinobu's shoulder. His fever had dropped slightly, and one tiny hand still clung loosely to the teething ring. Mitsuri accepted their repeated thanks with an embarrassed smile before heading home for the evening.
After she left, only a comfortable silence was left in the room. Giyuu looked at his sleeping son before turning toward his wife.
"We were unprepared for this."
Shinobu laughed softly. "We should ask for help more often."
"We definitely should."
They watched Shin sleep peacefully between them. Neither of them had expected parenthood to be easy, but reality continued finding new ways to surprise them. At least they had people willing to help when things became too much; that realization alone made the difficult days feel much more manageable.
As Shin snuggled closer in his sleep and Shinobu leaned against his shoulder, Giyuu decided it was worth learning anyway.