"Sounds like a plan!"

And so she shall?

Back to the river-

(Brief pause for consideration of whether to try to hunt a partridge they pass by... Nah.)

-And back upriver and back to the village. When the field of drying reeds comes into sight, conversation audible on the wind, she goes for another nuzzle to change back again. If that's okay.

It is!  Honestly she is absolutely going to take every opportunity to be cuddly that she can get.

Human-shaped Megi will prepare her disguise again and then scoop Alicia up, petting her contentedly as she walks back to the village, then!

She pauses to make polite conversation with a group of women and teens doing basket-weaving with the bounty of reeds. Megi somehow is understandable to Alicia and the others both at the same time, like before at the shrine, which will surely speed up language progress.

It sure will!  She hopes.

It seems to be! Megi repeats words a lot, in a gossipy sort of tone. Wow, monsters? Scary! Good thing the kitsune warned them. Yes, she'd probably enjoy more meat treats and other goodies. Oh, no, this one is a really young kitsune, she can't play very many tricks yet, so no need to worry about that. Gently rubbing Alicia's ears all the while.

And then on to the village where they're invited to sleep in Broom Lady's house for the night. She has a guest room and seems excessively proud of it. Megi thanks her profusely!

"Thank you," she murmurs, when they have a moment, "for helping with the language."

...Also: She could be a horrible goose if she wanted to!

She just, you know, doesn't, because they have enough problems.  It's not right to prank people who don't actually deserve the inconvenience.