Chapter Four: A New Member

It had been one month since Mirai had moved in when she was awoken by loud knocking. Opening the door, her Uncle stood with proud grin. By his side was a young women with a lovely pale face and dark eyes. Bangs covered her forehead and she wore a long brown skirt with a white shirt tucked in. Wrapped around her waist was an apron. A small carpet bag rested by her feet.

“Mirai, this is your personal maid. Her name Nounen Rena.”

Rena curtsied and kept her eyes down on the floor but Mirai was having none of it.

“It is ok to treat me as a friend. I want us to be friends. We will help each other. Uncle, may her room be next to mine?” asked Mirai.

“If that is what you want, then so be it.”

“I am in no place to be considered a friend. I am just a maid” protested Rena.

“You are both a friend and maid. I insist. This place is so full of men that having another woman around will be refreshing. It will also help with the younger three who like to cause trouble” said Mirai as she pulled Rena into her room and closed the door.

“Now, we ought to do something about your clothes. I bet we are close to the same size, what color dress would you like?” asked Mirai.

“I cannot wear your clothes…it is improper” said Rena.

“Not if I say so. Now do you prefer pink or peach?”

Mirai finally got Rena to wear a navy skirt and white shirt from her wardrobe but Rena insisted on keeping her apron on. Mirai went with a sea blue dress that had small ruffles on the hem.

“Come along then, the boys must be already be at work.”

“How is it that you are so…cheery after what has happened?” asked Rena as her and Mirai watched Kaoru chase a butterfly through the garden.

“My parents, when they were alive, always taught me that it is ok to be sad but that happiness will always be greater than sorrow. I remember my parents and sister best when they were happy so by being happy I am keeping them close.

“That is rather lovely” noted Rena. She shifted the sleeping Kauan in her arms a bit while Mirai happily Ren’s hair as he attempted to read a poem.

“Oh, are those some of the workers?” asked Rena pointing to a window. In the window was Yugo and Juri comparing some pieces of metal.

“Yes. They are twenty-five of them working and living in the house. These three with us are the youngest” answered Mirai.

“I am…impressed. How does this household run so smoothly?”

“They all take turns with the housework and such. Some help in the workshop here and others go into town to collect requests and deliver the products” said Mirai, proud that she had managed to remember everything her Uncle told her.

“They…are rather handsome” said Rena as her eyes drifted back to the window.

“They are but…some of them can be a real pain” said Mirai with a frown. Kaoru wobbled over tugged on her arm.

“Yes?” she asked with a smile. Kaoru frowned before moving to climb onto her lap. Ren shifted a bit so that Kaoru could rest his head on Mirai’s shoulder before dozing off.

“These three are adorable little delights” cooed Rena and Mirai could not help but smile brightly at how relaxed and soft Rena’s expression was.

Little did Mirai know that she was not the only one watching Rena with a close eye. 

At the window, Yugo could not help back keep glancing back at the new maid. She seemed soft-spoken yet there was the gleam of adventure. He had the feeling that she and Mirai would get along just fine. 

“Has the new maid caught your eye?” teased Juri.

“Of course not” said Yugo. “She is just…new.”

“I will believe you for now” said Juri with a knowing smile.

When lunchtime rolled around, Takki had insisted that Mirai and Rena eat together in a room next to the kitchen. It was small, but lovely with white walls and lace curtains on the windows. A table was neatly set for two and Rena nearly fainted when Mirai told her that she had to eat with her.

“You are my friend now and shall be treated as one” said Mirai as Rena carefully sat herself down.

“If I may be honest, I feel as though you are treating me more like a sister than a friend” confessed Rena.

“Then a sister it is” said Mirai softly. Rena felt a tear slip down. She hardly knew Mirai, yet Mirai had accepted her with open arms.

“I think that younger sister would have liked you very much as well” Mirai added as she wiped the tears from Rena face.

“My father died at sea and my mother fell into such a depression that the family she worked for…fired her and hired me instead” explained Rena. Mirai nodded and squeezed Rena’s hand. “It was a horrible family. The father had five different mistresses, far too many children, and not enough money to pay for them all. The mother…she forced her own daughters to sell themselves on the streets! The oldest son had the nerve to get a girl pregnant then declare that he never knew her. Poor girl was thrown on the streets and I never saw her again. I could hardly stand working there, but we needed the money. The mother then attempted to sell me to an older gentleman, but I ran away and hide in the stables and in farms until your uncle found me and brought me here.”

“Oh Rena…I…am at a lost. I am glad that you are my maid, my friend, and my sister. I promise you that no harm shall come to you. Never” promised Mirai as she hugged Rena close.

A sudden crash from the other room cause the two to spring apart and rush to the dining room. Nothing seemed out of place except that a window was broken.

“What happened? Why is the window broken?” asked Mirai.

“My newest invention went a little haywire. It threw itself out the window” explained Takki with an amused expression. “Oh look, it is coming back.”

Mirai turned towards the window and let out a soft gasp. A small bird, small enough to fit in the palm of her hand, was floating in the air. It was made of copper with gleaming blue glass wings that flapped as though made of paper. It flew towards Mirai with a soft clicking noise and landed on her open palm. 

“Oh Uncle. This is beautiful” said Mirai was the bird closed its wings and went silent.

“I am glad you think so. There are many more in the shop. Quite popular as we receive hundreds of requests for them” said Takki proudly.

“Each of us came up with our own creature to make” added Yugo. “Mine is a dragonfly.”

“Oh I love dragonflies! Their wings are so long and beautiful” said Rena with a soft smile.

“If it would please you, would you like Yugo to make one for you?” asked Takki. Rena flushed a deep red.

“I could not ask for a such a thing…I am still just a maid” said Rena.

“It is of no problem to me. Think of it as a welcoming gift” said Yugo brightly.

“If the Master approves of it, then I shall accept it” said Rena. Mirai could not help but giggled at the exchange between Yugo and Rena. They looked quite cute together.

“If everyone is done with lunch then I shall start cleaning up” said Rena after a few moments of silence.

“I will help as well” said Mirai. Rena opened to protest but Takki beat her to it.

“We cannot have two girls doing all the heavy lifting. Ryosuke and Yuto, you two shall help as well.”

“But there is still glass that needs shaping” protested Ryosuke.

“I am sure that Yuri can handle it. Now, no more arguing. Get a move on it. Keito, I will be checking on the boys today and will request that they recite that poem that I sent.”

While Yuto and Rena made small talk as they gathered the plates, Mirai and Ryosuke made sure to ignore each other. Mirai could only remember the harsh words he spoke to her.

“There are so many rose bushes in the garden” said Rena as she piled the dishes onto the counter.

“Thank you. It years for me to create them” said Ryosuke.

“Do not touch them unless you want to be excused of being a ” hissed Mirai.

“Not again” groaned Yuto.

“And what do you know of me? How dare you make such horrible assumptions about me. Why do you care if I am still pure or not? I am sure that you are not” said Mirai as her anger from the past encounter rose again.

Yuto could tell that a fight was going to break out.

“How about we go collect the napkins” said Yuto to Rena. She nodded and the two hurried out.

“Why do you care if I am pure or?” asked Ryosuke. “I have no need to know of your past. I am sure that if you went through what I have then you would know why I am who I am.”

“What you are is a spiteful little devil who ought to burn in the pits of hell!” Mirai all but yelled.

“Then I guess I will see you there!” fired back Ryosuke. Both could have continued the fight but were interrupted by a strange sight.

The plates that were stacked on the counter were now floating in the air as though hung by strings.

“What…is going on?” whispered Mirai. Ryosuke froze. The Master has not told her the truth of this house?

“Nothing you should worry about” said Ryosuke through gritted teeth. He snapped his fingers and the plates flew into the sink.

“Keep your mouth shut about what you saw” hissed Ryosuke. Mirai nodded but what happened next nearly gave her a heart attack. 

Ryosuke suddenly grabbed her by the shoulders in a tight grip and brought her face close to him. Their faces were inches apart and his grip was so tight on her shoulders that Mirai swore there were going to be bruises.

“If you dare breath a single word of what just happened, mark my words, I will end you.”

He released his grip on her and walked out just as Yuto and Rena walked back with the napkins.

“The plates…they are all clean. You two work fast” noted Rena. Mirai raised her eyebrows and looked at the plates. Sure enough, they were sparkling clean with no dirt at all.

“Are you alright? You seem a bit shaken” asked Yuto. Mirai could only nod her head.

A/U Woah! Things are getting intense pretty early on. I promise there is much more to come. Also Yugo and Rena FTW. I don’t know why I ship them, I just do. As always, thank you for reading! Also, I posted chapter three twice on the same page on accident.