Weiss Kreuz Fan Fiction ❯ Boy for Sale ❯ All of Them Liars ( Chapter 2 )

Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Weiss Kreuz nor am I profiting from this, it is for pure reading enjoyment. The wonderful Koyasu Takehito is the creator.

All of Them Liars

Three hundred miles away, members of the Sorano family were trying to cope with Yohji's alleged “escape.”

“It just doesn't make sense,” Cora shook her head lightly.

“I tried to stop him, but he…he just took off,” the woman's new husband insisted as he rubbed her back. She wasn't the type to go to pieces, but this dreadful information was so shocking.

“But Bradley, why didn't you tell me this sooner? Why didn't you tell me that you knew he'd ran away? I could've caught up to him somehow.”

“Well, he said he felt like he needed to `escape', so I let him run off into the real world. Believe me, he'll come crawling back once he realizes how hard it is out there.”

“Escape? But Yohji loved it here. I can't imagine him saying that!” the woman sobbed as she wiped her eyes with a handkerchief.

“Well, he ran away. I'm sure you couldn't have imagined that either.”

“This is all my fault. I was always too proud to tell him how much I appreciated him…but I really thought that he already knew. I was such a fool.”

“Don't you waste another tear on him, darling. I have a feeling he'll try to weasel his way back into this household. And when he does, don't believe any of his lies. Just let me handle him. I'm sure he'll see things my way.”

“Lies? What would he have to lie about? You said he told the truth about where he was going, that he was running away.”

“Well…” Crawford hesitated for a moment as he gathered his thoughts. “Maybe he was honest about that part, but I'm sure he'll have some excuse as to why he deserves a second chance.”

“I do hope he comes back. The girls miss him, my mother misses him too.”

“As do I,” the woman's husband insisted, lying through his teeth.

Cora looked out of her bedroom window. “Oh Yohji, where could you be?”

+++

Yohji was in the kitchen fetching oranges for the second time today. More and more, Andrea had begun using him to relay food back and forth to Fujimiya. But sometimes, Yohji was dissatisfied with the food she prepared for the emperor, so he'd alter it or make something completely different if there was enough time. He didn't mind the errands though. Now that he'd been granted a little freedom in the kitchen it gave him a chance to practice cooking again and to develop a relationship with his new master. He tried not to get his hopes up, but couldn't stop wondering if things might be like they were with Lady Sorano. Perhaps the emperor and he could officially become friends on some level.

Later that evening, Yohji brought a warm meal to Fujimiya's room

“Alright,” the redhead smirked. “Who cooked the chicken?”

“Guess.”

The emperor took another bite of the food and smiled. “You.”

“Right!” Yohji smiled.

“How'd you make it?”

“I crumbled dry bread crumbs with parmesan cheese in a bowl. Then I added basil, thyme, oregano, rosemary and a few other seasonings. I took some skinless chicken breasts and coated them with egg before rolling them in the bread crumb mixture. Then I fried the chicken in virgin olive oil and added it to the pasta with marinara sauce that Andrea had already made for you.”

“I'm glad. It wouldn't have been the same without the chicken.”

“I'm glad too, Sir.” Yohji bowed and started for the door.

“I have yet to dismiss you Yohji,” Fujimiya reminded his houseboy. “You're always doing that.”

“My apologies, Emperor.” The long haired man sat back on the couch. “Is there anything else I can bring you?”

“No,” the redhead said casually while eating his food. The older boy sat there confused. “But you can keep me company.” Ran finally made eye contact with Yohji upon saying those words.

“Yes, Master,” Yohji nodded.

+++

Two months and one week had passed since Yohji was removed from his family. He panicked whenever he felt he was beginning to forget their faces. But he was angry that he could still remember Bradley Crawford's. On his second attempt to retrieve slave trade records regarding his purchase by the Sorano family he remembered something very important. He had no recollection of anything ever being signed or documented the day his father sold him away into slavery. There was a quick exchange of money and the rest was history. No wonder General Morrison was unable to confirm Yohji's residency at the Sorano estate. The revelation utterly depressed him. He thought about it so much that he suffered an anxiety attack one afternoon on a trip to the garden to pick fresh tomatoes for Chef Beauvais. Unable to breathe, Yohji began stumbling around in circles, trying to calm himself down enough to get air into his lungs. He looked down at his hands as they switched back and forth from feeling tingly to numb due to lack of oxygen. Finally, someone came to his rescue and he felt cold water splash all over him. The suddenness of the experience briefly distracted him from his previous worries. The blonde wanted to shout at whoever had wet him, but he couldn't once he turned and saw that it was Emperor Fujimiya. The redhead was standing next to a large fountain where he had obviously gotten the water from. He went to Yohji and grabbed him by the wrist.

“Sit,” Ran said while dragging Yohji to the edge of the fountain to rest a moment on its ledge. Now what's going on, should I get a doctor?” The other man just shook his head, still not ready to speak yet. He saw Yohji inspect himself and his soaked clothing. “Come with me.” The emperor took hold of the taller boy's wrist once more and led him up to his chamber. Yohji stood in the middle of the room shivering with a towel in hand. “Put this on.” The redhead offered a dry set of clothing.

“No, I couldn't.”

“Shut up, houseboy. Just put it on.” Yohji stripped out of his clothes absentmindedly, without considering his audience. He was just in a rush to put on something dry. “No…” Fumimiya insisted after the other boy had completely dressed himself. I have something else for you to try on. He offered Yohji another set of clothes in order to satisfy his curiosity with the green eyed man's nakedness as he changed once more. “Would you like to lie down?”

“No, I should probably get going before Chef Beauvais becomes upset that I haven't returned.”

“Oh,” the emperor replied. He had mistaken the other boy's eagerness to undress in front of him as a sign of romantic interest. But it was obvious to him now that Yohji just felt comfortable enough to do so being that it was only they two and no women were present. “Carry on then.”

Yohji came to the kitchen in his borrowed clothes with eight tomatoes as requested. “Chef Beauvais has been waiting for…you,” Andrea finished slowly as the blonde boy came closer. “Where did you get those clothes?”

“The emperor lent them to me. But don't worry; I'll start wearing my uniform again as soon as it dries. I know how important it is for us all to dress alike during work hours.”

+++

Andrea was usually talkative, but now she was being so quiet that it almost seemed as if she'd forgotten how to speak. Seeing Yohji in Fujimiya's clothes earlier felt threatening. She now realized that passing off her serving duties for the emperor to the long haired man had given them a chance to bond, something she had never counted on being that Ran Fujimiya was not one for bonding. She feared that Yohji was developing the sort of favoritism that she had always coveted.

“Should I chop the rest of the vegetables that finely as well?” Yohji asked in reference to the fact that Andrea had minced a large carrot into nearly nothing without even thinking about it.

“Oh…” the woman replied, shaking her head lightly and trying to refocus. “No, I made a mistake. I was thinking about something and…no, don't do the other vegetables this way. I guess I'll have to throw the rest of this stuff out.”

“We can make carrot cake out of it,” the green eyed boy insisted and slid the finely cut carrot into a wooden bowl from the cutting board.

Andrea took another carrot and chopped it more carefully this time, making sure to leave larger pieces for the vegetable and meat pies she was making. While she did the cutting, Yohji prepared the pie pans and mixed the ingredients, but he kept daydreaming about doing other things. He watched as head Chef Beauvais artistically decorated a cake that had taken him all morning to put together. A majority of the icing was a soft blue, but Chef Beauvais was adding a thin layer of white and manipulating it to look like lace was surrounding the cake. The long haired man sighed with discontent. He hardly ever got to cook because Beauvais, the sous-chef, and their team usually monopolized the stove and the ingredients. And although the emperor encouraged him to use the kitchen at will, Yohji knew that once again, he had to first earn the respect of the other staff before he could start acting so liberally in their territory. Especially being that this time there were cliques involved and it felt so much harder to impress everyone.

“Alright,” Andrea began. “Are you done mixing? I need to fill the pie shells and get them into the oven.” Yohji handed the ingredients over. The woman's mood softened and she started to forget about how jealous she had felt earlier. “You know, you're pretty good at this, maybe you can become my apprentice. I can teach you how to cook.”

“That would be nice,” the boy said in an unconvincing voice. He was surprised that Andrea thought he was a novice in the kitchen.

“What, you don't like cooking?”

“No, I love it. I enjoy cooking a lot in fact.”

“Really? You never shared that with me. Well, I've been cooking all my life. Both my parents were chefs. I'm sure the things you've already learned are nothing in comparison to the way you've seen me cook, right?”

“Oh, of course,” Yohji said humbly. Andrea cooked well. She had lots of experience being that both of her parents were cooking professionals and had practically raised her in the kitchen. But Yohji had learned all the things that Andrea knew within the first year of his apprenticeship. Cooking just came naturally to him and what he didn't learn from Irma he learned from personal trial and error.

One of the maid ladies suddenly interrupted the current conversation. “The emperor wants more lemonade. The pitcher in his room has gone dry.”

Andrea retrieved another pitcher from the ice box and put it on a tray with a glass. This was usually when she would ask Yohji to carry out the rest of the errand for her. He held out his hands to take charge of the tray. “I'll bring it to him, thank you,” she said in a voice that was slightly bitter. It was time to start exclusively delivering food to the emperor again. She didn't want Fujimiya getting the impression that Yohji was the one cooking for him. Little did she know he actually was.

“Come in,” the red haired man answered when he heard tapping at his chamber door. Andrea entered.

“Here you are, Emperor Fujimiya.” The woman poured a fresh glass of lemonade and traded his empty pitcher for the full one on her tray. She smiled, but Ran just looked at her. “Is there anything else I can do for you?” she smiled and stood proudly.

“No.” It was a single word that had many words within it to the right listener. The redhead had been disappointed that Yohji hadn't brought him the lemonade. But that was alright, Andrea still sometimes delivered things to him during the day. However, it was rare. He could stand to see her face once in a while just as long as Yohji kept showing up more often than not.

+++

Later that day Fujimiya did not attend dinner. He had been gone for many hours on business. This was the golden age Leilanese Empire and he intended to uphold its greatness through pursuing all opportunities. He'd spent part of his evening enjoying the open air on a large patio in the home of a well respected landlord and his daughter. Whenever the girl's father would briefly leave the table to take care of random business, she would try to advance on Ran. He wasn't particularly enamored by this girl, but her strong sexual presence aroused him. “It's time that I leave,” Ran eventually said.

“Yes, I suppose we've kept you long enough,” replied the landlord. He saw his guest out of the front door and into a waiting carriage. The redhead was glad to finally have a little privacy. He rubbed himself between his legs gently. His body hadn't been so pent up with lust in months. Truth be told, he avoided sex because the thought of having to share his personal space with someone else was alarming. They might want to cuddle, or ask him questions, or tell him boring things like `I love you'. But he was tired of denying to himself that he might not mind experiencing those things with Yohji. In his mind it was settled, he wanted to have sex with the new houseboy. As not to embarrass himself, he stopped rubbing his erection and thought of something else upon approaching the palace. His arousal went down by the time he got home and was greeted by several of the staff.

Immediately, Ran bathed and dressed himself in clean night clothes. He rang the servant's bell and when the maid answered, he asked for dessert. But instead of Yohji, Andrea delivered his request again. He was surprised. She hadn't delivered anything to him during the evening in well over a month. “Where's Yohji?”

“Washing dishes.”

Ran took a bite of the food at hand. “He didn't make this,” the redhead said to himself.

“Of course not,” Andrea smiled. “Yohji doesn't know how to make things like this,” the woman started to laugh. “He only knows the small things that he's seen me make.”

“Yohji was an apprentice in his last household for years before becoming the primary cook. I knew that this food wasn't his because he cooks for me all the time and I can tell the difference between his work versus someone else's.”

The sous-chef stood there absolutely stunned. “I…I wont' cook for you anymore if it displeases you, Sir.”

“No, I don't want you to stop cooking for me. You each cooking differently and it makes my meals very interesting. Although, you have been slacking off lately.” Andrea swallowed hard when she heard the criticism. Ran began eating again. “However, this cobbler is delightful. I'm glad to see you put effort back into your cooking.” The girl smiled. “But I want Yohji to bring me my food from now on. I don't think the kitchen can afford to have you away so much,” the emperor tried to explain, but it wasn't believable. “Tell Yohji to come to my room, so that I can inform him personally.”

Feeling absolutely defeated, Andrea returned to the kitchen and quickly told Yohji that the emperor wanted to see him. She didn't look him in the eye or anywhere near him while admitting the information and hastily walked off. Andrea couldn't face him after all the humiliation she had just endured.

A little baffled, Yohji went to Emperor Fujimiya's chamber. His heart pounded, wondering if he'd done something wrong. “How can I serve you, Master?” the long haired man began as he entered the room. “Is there anything I can get for you?”

“Just close my door behind you and come here.” Yohji tried not to seem scared as he approached Ran's bedside. Ran scooted over and encouraged his guest to climb in. When the taller man didn't immediately get in bed, the redhead pulled him in. “Do as I say!” he scolded playfully. Yohji felt alarmed and kept looking around while stiffly resting on the mattress. “I won't force you,” the red haired man started as he played with the material of his guest's pant leg, referring to their becoming intimate. “So do you want to spend the night with me?”

“Al-alright,” Yohji agreed, still not quite understanding as to what was going on. The redhead gently took the other man into his arms and caressed the side of his neck with his lips, then started sucking on his collarbone. “What's happening?” asked Yohji who was very tense and seemed genuinely afraid.

Ran was puzzled at first and then decided to take a shot in the dark. “Yohji, are you a virgin?”

“What's that?”

“Have you had sex before? Have you made love?”

“No, I'm not married yet.”

The redhead laughed, thoroughly entertained by the other boy's innocent response. “You don't have to be married. It's a very pleasurable experience. I can't believe you haven't done it, especially as handsome as you are.”

“Well, in my old household only married people did those things. No slaves were allowed to marry unless it was arranged with other slaves and the servant girls were always supervised by Irma, so there was no room for committing relations with them either. But even if they hadn't been watched so closely I doubt they could look passed the fact that I was not a free-person like them, just a slave.”

“So did I scare you?” Ran slightly changed the subject.

“Well, yes. Why were you trying to bite me?”

“I wasn't biting you. I was just nipping at your neck.” The red haired man could tell that Yohji still wasn't grasping everything. “It's like a bruise from kissing too hard. I'm sorry if it hurt. I didn't realize that you were new to all of this.”

“I know what love making is,” Yohji insisted, not wanting to be mistaken for utterly naïve. “I just didn't expect someone of your stature to seek it from me.”

“Let's talk about something more interesting, shall we?” Ran unbuttoned Yohji's jacket and pulled it off of him. “Tell me, houseboy, do you ever think about me?” The long haired man was quiet for a moment and his face began to show signs of blushing as the emperor kept undressing him.

“I enjoy being in your company,” Yohji finally said.

“I didn't ask you that.” Fujimiya took the other boy's face into his hand and turned it so that they were looking directly at each other. “Maybe you don't want to be here,” the redhead said in a disappointed tone before releasing Yohji. “You can leave now.” Ran lay back onto the pillows with his hands tucked under his head. “Get out,” he said in a sarcastic way that almost sounded like singing.

Feeling stupid and hurt, Yohji put his shirt back and balled his jacket up into his arms as he quickly tried to leave the room. He had never felt so embarrassed. Being sent away as if he were nobody got him to feeling homesick again. He was disposable here and tonight's episode with the emperor proved it.

Meanwhile…

Ran pouted like a spoiled child, alone and bothered by the fact that Yohji hadn't come back to beg for his forgiveness. He waited a few more moments before realizing that the boy was indeed not coming back. Ran didn't count on him actually staying gone. No one ever did when he threw them out.

The redhead crawled to the front of the bed and sat there. Then slowly, he got off the bed and walked toward his chamber doors. He opened one of the large wooden panels and looked down the long hallway. Swallowing his pride, he went into the hallway and tried to stop Yohji as he saw the other man turning the corner. “Yohji.” The blonde looked back once and began walking away faster. Angered, Fujimiya ran after him. Soon, it became a game of hide and seek as the older boy tried his best not to be found. He didn't want to be confronted by the person who had just rejected him so crudely. Why further the humiliation.

The red haired man ducked in an out of rooms in the east wing. Most were being remodeled and sheets were draped over every piece of furniture. It provided a wonderland of hiding places for Yohji to evade being discovered. But eventually, Ran caught up with him. The emporer had nearly given up when he saw the other man's reflection in a mirror that hadn't been sheeted. “There you are!” the redhead exclaimed. He yanked Yohji out of hiding by his arm.

“Just leave me alone.”

“You should have come back. Why did you insult me like that? Why don't you want me?!” the redhead asked quite frankly.

“Why would I want anyone who thinks that I'm nobody?”

“I never said that.”

“You didn't have to!”

Ran had no choice but to consider Yohji's point of view. It was staring him dead in the face. “Well, I don't think you're nobody.”

 

“You're full of shit.”

“I'm infatuated with you! Do you think I would swallow my pride and chase after some houseboy in the middle of the night if I felt differently? And if your answer is `yes' than maybe you're the one who's full of shit, Yohji!” Fujimiya began to leave.

“Wait,” Yohji halted the other man. “Don't go. We're quarreling over something that isn't even worth the words.” He paused for a moment while Ran allowed him to gently take his hand. “And yes, I do think about you. I feel comfortable enough to share that with you now.”

“I'm pleased.” Ran leaned forward and closed his eyes as his mouth touched Yohji's. But it was brief. He ran to shut the door so that no light shown in except from the moon, through the sheer window drapes. Doing his best not to seem too overbearing, the redhead guided his partner to a large chase. The sheet that was covering it sank in as they rested on the piece of furniture and began removing their clothes again. Yohji was the first one to become completely naked. He enjoyed feeling the other man's eyes on him, having the depths of their lavender desires warm his cold body in the open air. The long haired man leaned onto the back of the chase and spread his legs.

Ran was smiling and unbuttoning his pants. He crawled onto the chase and sought another kiss from the houseboy. The redhead could smell vanilla on Yohji's skin from the kitchen. It was intoxicating and arousing. If he smelled this good, how good might he taste? The emperor took full command and began tracing his tongue over one of the older boy's nipples. He sucked at it gently and then harder until the blonde gasped. “The other one,” Yohji insisted. Ran took the other nipple into his mouth and gave it the same sort of treatment. He could feel the long haired boy start to reach for his manhood. The redhead repositioned himself to provide better access. Watching Yohji experiment with touching his penis was delightful. It flexed, growing hardest during its most sensitive strokes and jerking from time to time. “How's that?” the older boy teased.

“Shh!” Ran suddenly became very serious. “I thought I heard something.”

“I hear it now too.” The long haired man stood up quickly and began walking toward the door. “Fire!” he whispered in distress. “Someone is yelling fire!”

“Quickly, lets get dressed!”

As it turned out, Ran's mother in a drunken stupor had accidentally knocked over some of the candles in her room and the drapes were set aflame. Everyone inside was ordered to flee to the garden courtyard while slaves were sent in with buckets of water to put the fire out. Ran was so concerned with finding the rest of his family and making sure that they were unharmed that he didn't notice when Yohji was recruited to put out the fire. Kitchen staff or not, he was still a slave. The Fujimiya's owned him just like they owned the livestock on their land.

The slaves tried to go in orderly, screaming at each other to stay focused and follow the smoke. Some of them were shaking feverishly, but they all made it to Mother Fujimiya's room. By this time the fire had spread by way of the rugs in her room and into the outside hallway. Some of the slaves threw the water on the flames while the others refilled empty buckets or tried to put the fire out by smothering it. The burning wallpaper made a crackling sound and unique designs of black with orange engraving everywhere.

“Yohji!” Ran called out. “Yohji!” He couldn't find his sweetheart anywhere as he waded through the crowd of relatives, house staff, and the many guests who were staying over night and had been drinking as well when his mother carelessly knocked over the candles. But after the second call he silenced himself, remembering that his fondness of the houseboy was to be kept private. In the panic of it all, he had forgotten. It was okay for people of his stature to lust after slaves, but nothing beyond that. His level of concern was sure to expose his inappropriate feelings if he were to carry on exclaiming the blonde's name. Someone however, had already caught on.

“Don't worry, Sir,” insisted General Morrison. “If you're looking for Yohji, I sent him inside with plenty of water. He'll be just fine. And the fire should be out soon too!” The general's words of reason did nothing to calm Fujimiya's nerves. In fact they only disturbed him even further. Andrea who had been standing close by had overheard part of the conversation.

“General Morrison,” she began when the emperor walked away.

“What is it, girl?”

“I heard Yohji's name and the word `fire'. Did he start it?”

“No, no. I think Master Ran is just concerned with his safety because Yohji isn't really ours.”

“Not ours?”

“Yes. He claims to be owned by a different family. I did some research and couldn't find any record of his ownership. But the law states that he can contest his new ownership for up to one year. Until then we have to keep him in good condition, just in case he really does belong to another family who wants him back. If he gets hurt or dies while on duty we'll have to pay back whatever amount the original family bought him for, plus extra expenses based on the fact that he's no ordinary slave.”

“Oh.”

“But I told the emperor not to worry. Yohji has plenty of water with him.”

When the fire had finally died, everyone went back into the palace, but stayed clear of the water soaked areas.

Andrea was on her way back to the servants' quarters when she saw Ran looking around pitifully as if he'd lost something. The girl smiled. This was her time to shine. She could comfort him, hold him against her bosom and tell him that everything would be okay. Picking up the long hem of her nightgown she began striding toward him when suddenly, she saw his eyes light up and Yohji crashed into his arms. They embraced each other in such an intimate way. It was now unmistakable that General Morrison had made an error. Ran was not concerned about Yohji's well being because of some law or his original family. He was concerned because they shared more than just a slave and master relationship.

Andrea backed away and hid behind a corner, bracing herself against the cold wall. She was so upset it made her feel lightheaded. [I must do everything in my power to split them up,] the girl thought to herself. She pouted just a few moments more before seeking another way to get back to her room.

Meanwhile, Ran was still holding Yohji in his arms. The redhead pulled away gently. “I wish the two of us could share the night together, but after all of this I really need to stay closer to my family. My mother is extremely distraught over what she did, but it's my younger sister that I'm worried about. She's still so frightened and she wants to stay in my room with me. Can you forgive me for abandoning you tonight?”

“There's nothing to forgive. I understand completely.” The two men kissed briefly and then parted ways.

+++

The next morning Yohji arrived in the kitchen and began doing his routine chores which usually included chopping or peeling whatever vegetables had been left at his work station. “Morning!” he greeted the sous-chef. She gave him no eye contact and just kept rolling a ball of dough. Thinking she might be in a foul mood after losing sleep because of the fire, the long haired man just continued his work through the awkward silence.

“Don't put that there!” Andrea scolded Yohji. It was the first thing she'd said to him all morning. He didn't understand why she seemed so irritated. All he'd done was placed the chopped cabbage into a bowl on the counter.

“But that's where I always put the ingredients when you're cooking.”

“Can't you see it's in my way? I need room to maneuver without a bunch of stuff in my work space!”

“Sorry.” Yohji felt very uncomfortable. He could now tell that something was amiss, he just couldn't put his finger on it. But something was definitely wrong.

“So,” Andrea began. Yohji hoped that she'd have something more kind to say this time, but he was soon disappointed. “Why didn't you tell me you used to be a primary chef? Why did you allow me to make a fool of myself by going on about my own expertise yesterday instead of just stopping me?”

“Well, you seemed very proud. I didn't feel it was my place to take that away from you.”

“You actually think that would take away my pride? I'm a lot more sophisticated than that. It takes a lot more than a few words to rattle my chain!” Andrea exclaimed.

“Clearly,” Yohji said rather sarcastically and raised an eyebrow. The sous-chef felt embarrassed for losing her cool and could only stare as Yohji wiped his hands on a kitchen towel. “I have to go pick some strawberries from the garden for Beauvais.” The strawberries could have waited. Yohji really wanted to get out of that kitchen because it wasn't just a kitchen anymore, it was a battlefield.

Andrea stood there seething with anger. It was so bad she started to tremble and she could tell that the people around her were beginning to notice as they began staring. Attempting to seem more normal she tried to smile and went on cooking, but every pan, pot, roller, whisk, and wooden spoon she touched fumbled to the kitchen floor. Upset with how clumsy her mood had made her, the woman pulled at her hair on both sides of head. Then, something sprinkled down in front of her eyes, something white. Her eyes flew open with regret as she slowly brought her hands in front of her face to confirm that they were still covered with flour from the dough and she'd completely forgotten to wipe them. The day had just gone from bad to worse. “That's it!” she cried. Tearing off her apron, Andrea ran to the kitchen exit so that she could hide and sulk in her room.

“Andrea!” someone called. It was Chef Beauvais. “My God, woman,” Beauvais sneered as he looked at the condition of her powdered hair. “If you're a messy person than you should really start wearing a chef's hat. It'll keep your hair out of the food and the food out of your hair.” The man took one last critical look at her before continuing with his work.

[Something has to change,] Andrea thought to herself as she approached the servants' quarters. Looking through the large, pastel stained-glass windows, she could see General Morrison in the garden discussing something with Yohji. That's when it hit her. Yohji didn't have to stay at the palace. In fact he shouldn't really be there at all. According to him, he was owned by another family. General Morrison just couldn't find the records to prove it. The wheels in Andrea's head began turning. Perhaps if she could find them, Yohji would have to leave. She knew that Morrison wouldn't bother himself with tedious or lengthy searches, but Andrea was willing to try. After all, she had a good motive and that motive was to see the green eyed boy gone!

Andrea entered the servant's sleeping quarters which were divided between men versus women. Each room was assigned to two people of the same sex. Rooms to the left were occupied by women and those to the right were for men. Now it was up to the sneaky sous-chef to figure out which room that Yohji bunked in. She had seen him go into the last room on the right several times and was sure that it must be his. Searching for anything that indicated his residency, Andrea dumped out the first drawer of a night stand between the two beds. She found nothing of Yohji's. The second drawer was nearly empty and she dumped its few contents onto the nearby bed; still nothing. Quickly, the woman put everything back the way she'd found it and headed out the door, that's when she noticed a stray letter on the floor that must have slipped away. Fearing that she might be found out by sticking around any longer, the woman snatched the letter without even reading it and went to her chamber for privacy. She shut the door so that she could be prepared to put it away incase her roommate walked in and began reading the contents of the envelope she'd just swiped. Jackpot! It was a formal denial letter from the slave trade market. It read:

 

In the case of Yohji Kudou, no record of him has been found under the ownership of the Sorano estate or any other estate by the knowledge of Langdon Harbor Slave-trade Market.

 

Sincerely,

L.H.S.M. Executive Manager

 

Andrea hid Yohji's letter under the security of her mattress. All too happily, she made her way back to the kitchen smiling, and humming, commenting on what a beautiful day it was.

+++

Yohji had avoided Andrea for the majority of the day. Now that it was dinner time he had to work side by side with her again. But she seemed to be in a lighter mood. Not sure what to make of the dramatic change in attitude, the long haired man tried to stay reserved.

“Start boiling some water for me, won't you dear?” Andrea requested.

Yohji nodded slowly and prepared the water in a medium size pot. Something still felt very troubling. But all he knew was that Andrea had something up her sleeve.