At this point, none of us knew exactly where we going. My mother – who’s visited the manor multiple times – only ever follows one of the many maids that works here to her room, and always tends to have her hearts chords easily strung like a guitar by the enchanting art. So she can never remember the layout of the manor. Regarding Tadashi, he likely reads while walking to his room, so he doesn’t bother to look around; or perhaps he’s well aware of the layout but chooses to feign unawareness as to not cut our joyance short. As for me, I can barely recall the path my father took Tadashi and I on to get to our rooms; because, um, as soon as I entered through the manors large doors, drowsine– an extremely hostile wave of repose homed onto me. This… enemy drained me off all motion and soon I felt like I couldn’t walk.

…

I can’t blame myself, honestly, as socializing with a body as premature as mine is tiring, so I retreated to Tadashi’s back for the third time that day. His back has become something like a refuge for me, something I can lay on after an incredibly strenuous and enervating day.

20 minutes passed as we continued aimlessly walking around the halls. There were times when maids passed us by, bowing and nodding, continuing out their chores for the evening.

Once we turned a corner – one of what seemed to be the 100^th corner – there were maids lined up under a large arching opening, bowing their heads; tight buns pointed towards the large double-doored entrance. Three people walked in; two men laughing throatily, and a woman with a solemn smile, arm wrapped around one of the men.

We walked closer to where the maids were lined up, and one maid – wearing the signature black-aproned dress, that reached to the shin of the maids; long black socks covering the remnants of naked skin; arms sleeved with thin black-hued fabric, shrills along the shoulders – walked closer to the group of people. There was one difference about this maid, and it was that she wore a white headband, contrary to the other maids who wore their black-aproned dresses without a headband, but her black hair remained tied in a tight bun. This maid is astonishingly beautiful: her thin figure; face and all, as her sand colored skin accentuated her toned facial features. Her brown eyes that remained solely on her destination.

The maid, stopping a few feet away from the trio of people, bowed her head, and almost like the sun spontaneously decided to highlight the figures that stood in front of the door, a beam of light intruded from the large rectangular window – positioned right above the doubled-door entrance – shining on the two of the three people who held large reverence from the crowd of maids.

The maid, hands to her side, remained stiffly bowing, speaking courtly, “Welcome home, Sir, My Lady,”

A man of equivalent stature to my father, wavy long brown hair – reaching to his sharp jawline – tinged with a hint of dark blonde, swept back without any sort of gel to maintain its neatness; loose strands pointing north, south, west, down, and up, but none overlapping with his forehead. A neatly trimmed and lined full beard (far better than my father’s stubbly beard), colored with brown and blonde similar to the hair on his head; a lean, masculine body that kept a firm posture; carrying himself with a sense of cordiality; wearing a cream colored turtleneck, and black pants with fancy black shoes. Next to him – someone I remembered quite quick – is Mrs. Allen, arm wrapped around the man: Mr. Allen.

Mrs. Allen is wearing a dark purple blouse tucked into her slim black culottes, and black high heels on her feet; lavender hair braided like a waterfall. Mrs. Allen’s distinct features, such as her skin, eye color, and beauty are similar to her daughter, Iris. But unlike Iris, Mrs. Allen is much more… developed, I suppose. She hasn’t changed much from what I remembered her to look like before, however, but her gorgeousness is much more apparent in person than in my memories.

The graceful display – with the suns help – of the overwhelming beauty of the lovely Allen couple was cut short, as someone, or to be exact, my father who was standing behind Mr. Allen, waved eccentrically at where I was standing, “Oh! You guys are up early,” My father walked towards us, smiling obnoxiously, “What are you guys doing here?”

“We were just walking around.” My mother answered, going in to kiss my father.

Mr. Allen looked at me studiously when a bright, charming smile appeared on his face; a smile similar to the women I encountered yesterday with Tadashi whilst we were abandoned out in the city…it nearly made me writhe from embarrassment.

Mr. Allen glanced at my mother, smiling, and nodding his head, before his eyes landed on Tadashi. “Tadashi, it’s always a pleasure to see you again. Mary was asking for your attendance yesterday, but your father said that Albus urged you to take him around the city.”

‘Damned Father! Don’t make me out to be some kind of spoiled brat!’

Right now would be a perfect time to scrutinize my father, yelling out that my own father abandoned both his sons in a large city with not a coin, I’m aware that he’d end up being scrutinized by my mother and maybe even shunned by Mr. and Mrs. Allen. But, at the same time, if I do say something, my father would take that opportunity to tear apart our agreement made yesterday where I’d be given permission to travel to the city more frequently; an agreement of large magnitude to me, I’ve since named it the Albus Alistair Freedom Doctrine.

‘Ah! That’s why he agreed to the deal so quickly! He made up a perfect excuse for abandoning the both of us yesterday, to make me seem like a child… right? No, that doesn’t make sense. Just to make me seem like a child?’

Maybe I’m overthinking it. If I’m not then I’ve been playing along to my father’s plan without being conscious of it. What a genius that man is; disgusting, childish, a terrible father, but a genius nonetheless!

Tadashi nodded his head. “I’ll have to apologize to Mary later.”

“That just makes the surprise all the more wondrous, doesn’t it Ralph?” My father cut in.

‘Surprise?’

The corners of Mr. Allen’s lips pulled up into a cheeky grin.

“You all must be hungry.” Mrs. Allen smiled, putting her right hand on the maids shoulder who maintained her bowing position this entire time. “Maria, please tell the chefs to prepare breakfast.”

The maid named Maria, someone I’m assuming is the leader of the rest of the maids, bowed slightly lower than before. “Yes, My Lady.” She walked towards the line of maids, maids forming a path for her entrance as she entered the large room behind them, as the line of maids dispersed into different directions.

“Please follow me,” Mrs. Allen said, following Maria’s path, “I’ll take you all to the dining room.”

“What great hospitality.” I said in a mocking whisper to Tadashi.

He grinned.

The Allen’s sat at the unnecessarily long, seemingly antique wooden table alongside my father and mother, immediately indulging in conversation with everyone about everything.

Whilst listening to their conversation, I heard that Iris and Mary had already eaten and were going to get their dresses at a dressmaker’s shop within the city. I’m fairly disappointed that Iris won’t be joining us for breakfast, but there’s not much I can do about it, so I put the thought away.

‘I guess Tadashi well have to suffice.’ I sighed, putting my elbow on the table, leaning my cheek against my fist. “Older brother, say something funny.”

“No.”

“You bore.”

The meals followed a few minutes later.

The normal thought of breakfast reminded me of some toast, eggs, with some meat on the side. That’s what anyone would think when they hear the word breakfast. My expectations for an Allen Family breakfast had acclimated the more I looked around the large dining hall, sitting at the long table. So I was expecting maybe some more polished dishes with credit going as far back as having been grown on the best farm in the world or something.

But my expectation was completely incorrect.

At least to the Allen’s it was.

 There’s only six people at the table, but they had brought out enough food to feed hundreds of people. The term quality over quantity doesn’t mean much to the Allen Family as I thought it would.

“Please enjoy.” Mr. Allen smiled casually, drinking his tea out of a porcelain cup that had a unique shine of an unattainable richness.

We all indulged in the feast that was laid out for us. Some more than others (Father), but overall it was a fun time. While the adults talked about the party and other adult stuff, I simply ate and would respond to their questions concerning me with brief but polite answers.

It’s not as though I wasn’t interested in talking to them, I was just very hungry.

Somewhere along the meal, I found myself thinking further about an encounter with Iris.

‘I wonder what I should say to her. I’m not necessarily nervous to speak to Iris, but last time I came here she was very antisocial, almost like she was afraid of everything. I remember she would simply poke her head out behind her mother’s leg and nod yes or no.’

“Albus, how come your smiling so big like that?” Tadashi inquired, nudging my arm. “Hey, what are you thinking about?”

Turns out, I’d been smiling this entire time. But I wasn’t aware of it in the least. Kind of ironic.

He gasped quietly with a discordant expressionless face, placing his hand over his mouth. “Don’t tell me you actually have a crush?!”

“Shut up.” I said, quickly covering my mouth with my hands.

“Eh, you’re blushing now. So I was right. Who’s the girl? Iris?”

Tadashi reminded me of the girls in my village that would gossip about their crushes and boyfriends, pressing further into an area that the owner wishes to remain undiscovered.

As I gained my composure, cutting into a steak on my plate, I spoke: “Don’t be so daft, older brother. I’ve yet to talk to her, let alone see her face to face.”

When the final words escaped my mouth, I noticed that the adults had gone quiet.  They were all staring at me. My mother and the Allen’s were grinning, but my father in particular was smiling a wide malevolent smile.

“I see you’ve taken quite a fancy to my daughter, Albus.” Mrs. Allen said with a jovial smile.

So my father is spreading rumors about me having a crush on Iris? He really is just like a child!

I looked back at Tadashi hoping for him to help me, but he was playing with his food acting as if he hadn’t heard the question.

‘I see. So this was my father’s plan. He’d planned to leave me behind, but knowing I’d run off he left me with Tadashi, so that way he can tell the Allen’s this rumor of his, while I’m abandoned in the city under the guise of shopping. He even fooled my mother. Tadashi likely caught on somewhere along the way but chose to remain silent about my father’s plan, given how he’s acting currently. It’s a well thought out plan on my father’s behalf, and I acted according to it perfectly.’

I swear, they’re the reason I have trust issues. But I tend to ingloriously pride myself on my genius at times, so I’m going to do so once again by doing something no one would expect.

I took a sip of tea, ignoring everyone’s probing gazes. “She certainly has been the center of my thoughts lately.”

They all stared wide-eyed, speechless at my words and my unwaning confidence after the fact. My father probably expected me to bashfully react, giving him a sense of solace after having endured my verbal abuse; revenge after I’d gotten my revenge. An exchange of quips between that of a father and son, seemingly harmless with pretext but it’s an actual competition between a man and a man in a showdown over ones pride.

Regardless, I sipped more tea whilst admiring the shocked reactions.

Mr. Allen coughed, breaking the silence. “I-I see. I’m glad you do. Iris isn’t very sociable, so your response caught me by surprise. I do hope you’ll spend more time with her.”

“Of course,” I grimaced at my father, “It’d be my honor.”

We finished eating breakfast and decided to walk around the city to digest our meals; shopping along the journey. We walked for what seemed to be hours before we noticed it was getting dark.

Days really go by fast when you’re having fun…

Out of nowhere I began to remember what I had said at breakfast. It was a moment of realization; something that pierced my heart and mind with a sense of dreaded self-reflection.

‘HOLY SHIT THAT WAS SO EMBARRASING. WHY THE HELL DID I SAY THAT?!’

Indeed, the embarrassment had subjugated control of my motor functions, as it searched for a catalyst to endure my embarrassment; and did so by striking Tadashi in the arm. 

“Ow, what the hell! Why’d you hit me?!” He exclaimed holding his arm.

“You’re my catharsis.” I said expressionlessly. “Rejoice.”

“Weirdo.”

As I disregarded my older brother’s insults, I began to think about Iris again.

‘Do I actually like Iris? There’s no way.  I’ve only seen her a few times – times that can’t be considered an actual meet. We haven’t even exchanged words yet just a one-sided greeting… So why can’t I stop thinking about her?’

I suppose she is quite pretty with her long purple hair and crystal blue eyes and whatnot. And she’s shy which makes her even more attractive. I just get the urge to tease her when I think about her; her cheeks red as I hold my stomach from having laughed at her expression for so long.

In this moment, an epiphanic guide of light that traveled off the waning crescent moon, seemed to pierce through my eyes, igniting my brain with a realization. A realization that’d been acknowledged but suppressed; dug deep down with the intention of never resurfacing. The flood of emotions that accompanied this realization was fit into three words that painfully engraved itself into my soul.

Am I sadist?