Chapter 2: A New Family
LEO looked Lille up and down, and grimaced.
“Come to think of it, you’re in a horrible state. Your clothes are tattered, your face is dirty, and your hair’s all tangled. You’re not even wearing any shoes… Ark, what sort of route did you take?” he said.
“Oh, uh, I didn’t…”
Noticing how Ark’s voice suddenly turned strained and awkward, Lille answered in his place. “Leo, it’s not Sir B– …Ark’s fault. I’ve always been like this. Is that weird?”
Year-round, she wore the same long-sleeved dress. They didn’t give her a new one until it became so tattered it was unwearable, or she otherwise grew out of it. They also hadn’t allowed her to cut her hair. She realized then just how beautiful Charles and Leo’s clothing was. Furthermore, they had silky, shiny hair, and the palms of their hands weren’t black with dirt.
Do I really look that terrible?
She grasped a handful of her long hair and swept it in front of her shoulders for inspection, but she couldn’t tell if it looked bad or not.
“Not exactly weird, just…,” Leo trailed off.
His gaze wasn’t quite so aggressive now. In fact, he looked distressed, or even sad. Lille felt she lacked the vocabulary to put the right word to his expression.
“Isn’t there something you should say, Leo?” Charles said, placing a hand atop Leo’s head.
“…Sorry,” he apologized. “That was kinda mean of me.”
Lille shook her head as if to say it was nothing, but truly, she couldn’t tell whether what he had said was mean or not. Should she feel upset? She was so overjoyed at the fact that she was having a conversation that she didn’t care if it was a nice one or not, and her other emotions were struggling to catch up.
“Anyway, why did you call Ark ‘Sir,’ but not me?!” Leo pouted, indignant.
“I think she’s got the right idea. You’re younger than her, while I’m much older. Probably even older than Master Charlie,” Ark said triumphantly.
Lille suspected it wasn’t an issue of age; Leo simply didn’t like being left out. “Then, how about I call you Little Leo?” she suggested, trying to think of a nickname that would suit him.
Leo gaped at her, speechless.
“Um, yes…?” she asked uncertainly.
“Ugh, forget it! I’ll just be Leo,” he spat, heaving an exaggerated sigh.
“Oh, right.” Charles intervened before the conversation derailed further. “If you like, now would actually be a good time for you to take a bath, Lille. It’ll only get colder as the evening draws on. I can get you a change of clothes, too,” he offered.
“Good idea. But won’t it take a while to get the bath ready?” Ark asked.
“No, it’s fine. I already heated the water for her,” Charles said, before turning to the bird and the boy with a look that meant business. “Ark—show her the way. Leo—help me out with dinner preparations.”
They both nodded, and replied at the same time:
“Okay!”
“Got it.”
Charles proceeded to open the door to the cozy, red-roofed house, and when Lille stepped inside, she saw an open, spacious room filled with furniture. There was a hearth, a sofa, a large dining table, and a perch, which was most likely meant for Ark. Farther inside, it looked like there was a kitchen, too. The walls, floor, and furniture were all constructed from the same material: a warm, amber-colored wood. The room was simple in design, but bright and cheerful nonetheless.
Charles and Leo headed toward the kitchen, while Lille followed Ark down the corridor that branched off from the living room. As she walked along the hall, she noted numerous doors to other rooms; the house was much bigger than the exterior suggested.
“Ark…do you think it’s true that Master Charlie doesn’t know who I am?” she asked.
“Yup. I mean, I’m pretty sure he’s never been to your country. All he told me was he’d heard of a country that imprisons sorcerers, so we should rescue you and invite you to work here.”
“Oh, I see. I wonder how I can help,” Lille worried.
“I’m sure Master Charlie will tell you all about that in due time. Ah—about Leo…,” Ark paused mid-sentence and swooped around to perch on Lille’s shoulder. In a hushed tone, he whispered, “He hates the thought of Master Charlie being taken away from him. That’s why he’s sulking so much. He can be harsh sometimes, but he’s a good kid. You don’t hate him for all the rude things he says, do you?”
“No, of course not. It’s easy to see that Leo’s a nice boy,” she assured him.
“Phew, that’s a relief. Anyway, you must be pretty cold by now, huh? Enjoy your bath.”
“Thank you. I will.” Lille smiled.
“Here we are; this is the bathroom. I’ll leave you to it,” Ark said as he stopped Lille in front of one of the doors. Satisfied he’d performed his duty, Ark flew away, leaving Lille on her own.
Carefully, she pushed the door open, her heart pounding. It revealed what looked like a changing room. She supposed it was a good idea to take off her dress, to start.
Once she was naked, she wandered toward a sliding door, reasoning that was where the bath would be. Pulling the door to the side, she could see tendrils of warm steam floating up into the air. The bathroom was different than how she imagined it. The bath itself looked like a huge bucket, full of hot water, and there were bottles full of colored liquids placed around it. She picked up something that looked like a gemstone, but when she smelled it, it had a nice, fresh scent, which meant that it was probably soap.
She had never washed herself in such a large basin of water. Usually, she would wipe herself down with a steaming hot towel. Occasionally, she was granted a bucket filled with warm water to wash her hair, but that was as good as it got.
What should I do? I don’t know how to use any of these things…
Luckily, she heard Charles entering the changing room with some clothes for her, so she slid open the bathroom door to ask him for help.
“Excuse me, Master Charlie?”
“Hm…? Wh-Whoa!” Charles yelped in surprise when he turned around to see Lille. He clapped both of his hands over his face, completely flustered. His face turned a deep red, the blush spreading up to his ears. “Lille! P-Put some clothes on!” he exclaimed.
“Huh? But I’m about to get in the bath,” she replied, confused.
“Well, yes, but…!” Charles floundered.
Why’s he in such a panic? Is he embarrassed about something? Lille didn’t know what all the fuss was about, and she was preoccupied with her own problem.
“The thing is…I don’t know how to use a bath,” she admitted.
“What? Really?” He raised his eyebrows.
“Would you come in here with me? So you can show me what to do?” she asked.
“L-Lille, what on earth are you saying? Of course I can’t. You’re a young lady, and I’m a man. It’d be inappropriate.” He shook his head in disbelief.