Part 1
Blessing In Disguise
Miku awoke late that morning.
She rolled over on the blanket she had set down on the ground of the run-down shack.
A large handful of girls slept here, as most did not have a home of their own.
The village which Miku lived in was poor, very poor. There was hardly ever enough food to go around, clean water was hard to come by, and most of the villagers lived in groups, sleeping in old tattered shacks.
Miku sat up, allowing a soft yawn to escape. Her long turquoise hair was sprawled out around her. She ran her fingers through her long locks; it was the best she could do to get knots out. It would be more appropriate to cut it short, but, she couldn't bring herself to do it.
She lifted the side of the blanket, retrieving two hair clips underneath.
The way they stood upright made them resemble cat ears.
She quickly did her hair up in two pigtails, then got up and winded through the other blankets set out on the ground until she reached the door.
She had been the last of the girls to awake and leave the shack.
Today was the day that a wealthy man would be visiting; he was visiting from another village which was much more prosperous.
He visited every few months, and each time, the villagers would gather in the square to greet him, hoping that he will donate some of his many earnings. But, he never did. Still, the villagers remained hopeful. Many crafted gifts for the man, but, it never seem to change his mind. Some even gave their whole month's supply of food in hope that he donates some back, which of course, never happened.
Miku had never really paid much attention to him, in her eyes, he was selfish and greedy, coming to take the small amount of food that the villagers had. She still had to show up in the tiny village square to greet him as a sign of respect though.
By the time she arrived, every person in the village (which wasn't many) was already crammed into the town square, as the wealthy man arrived in his horse drawn carriage.
Some of the villagers sat up on roofs, trying to get a good glimpse of the fellow.
Miku scrambled up a frail wooden railing, stretched out in front of one of the larger village shacks.
As the man got out of his carriage, many hopeful villagers rushed forward with gifts of food and crafted objects. He would take them and pass them back to his servants, whom tossed them into the carriage carelessly.
Miku allowed a shrill hiss to escape her clenched jaw, which was completely drowned out by the buzzing noises of the now busy town's square.
To say she despised the man would be an understatement.
He winded through the villagers, greeting them and taking their gifts.
Miku looked out at the woods surrounding the village. She liked to go out during the mornings, which she would as soon as the wretched man left.
She whistled a three note tune, which the villagers would not have heard, but the birds did.
Miku listened hard as the birds became silent, and then sung the tune back to her.
She smiled warmly; the birds were the closest she had to friends or family.
The wealthy man suddenly hushed the villagers, they obediently fell quiet.
He stood up on the side of the carriage and began to speak.
"I have an errand, it is very important; I need somebody to do deliver something for me. Any volunteers?" He asked.
Of course, pretty well every hand in the village shot up in the air, villagers jumped over each other to make sure the man could see them.
Miku hissed again, now he was getting the poor people to do his dirty work.
As the bustling noises began again, Miku looked back out to the woods, singing her tune to the birds, who replied every time.
She was only vaguely aware that the wealthy man was walking passed all the villagers, making his way around the square, searching for a somebody to deliver his errand.
She paid no mind as he walked by her, and was unaware that he had paused a few feet away.
"You. Girl" He called.
Miku's attention snapped to him, her head spun around, her gaze met his.
"Yes Sir? She asked in the sweetest voice she could fake.
"I would like you to deliver my errand" He said.
"Me?" She chocked.
Suddenly, a small uproar began between villagers, clearly unhappy that she had been chosen.
A girl whom Miku lived with leapt forward, "But Sir! She loathes you!" She squealed.
Miku laughed quietly to herself to this, and continued to stare blankly at the man.
"Perfect" The man replied, flashing a sleazy smile.
She arched a single eyebrow.
"Come girl" He said, beaconing her forward.
Miku obediently leapt from the wooden railing, trotting forward to him. "I have a name , Sir" She said feebly.
"Never mind" The man replied, then lead her through the crowd to his carriage.
Miku clenched her jaw tighter; she was determined to dig herself into a deep whole with this man now, she didn't care if he cut her food supply, or personally killed her, she didn't exactly have much to live for.
The man opened the carriage door, revealing a large compartment inside.
He gestured for Miku to step in first, "Ladies first"
Miku simply scowled, not at all impressed by his attempt at charming her, "I insist" she replied.
The man simply laughed and got into the carriage and sat on the left. Miku followed and sat opposite him on the right.
The servant outside shut the door, and pushed the villagers back a few metres.
"So? What is it I am delivering?" She asked.
"I have a letter I would like you to take to a friend who lives in a mansion within the woods" He explained.
"And why would I do that?"
"If you succeed, I will donate all the money required to get this village on its feet" He replied in a stern tone.
This caused Miku to listen more carefully; at first she was disappointed in herself that she believed the man. But… Just that small amount of hope that she could help the village over ruled. Perhaps if she did something important for him, he would do something for her.
"The money is here, and I will not be leaving the village until you return" He went on.
"Hm… A letter huh?" Miku questioned.
"So I am getting through to you" He commented, flashing is sleazy smile again.
"Maybe. But don't get your hopes up" Miku grunted, she was doing whatever she could to swing the power of the bargain into her hands.
The man reached into his pocket, retrieving a faded letter which was folded over.
"Now. Listen carefully" He said hastily.
"Yes?" Miku said cautiously.
The man began to explain, "Nobody else must know you are delivering this letter, including the other inhabitants of the mansion this must go to" "Within the mansion, there is also the Master, Mistress, a butler, a maid, a doll girl and boy and another lady. They must not know that this is being delivered, understood?"
Miku nodded, this was no ordinary letter by the sound of it. "Who am I delivering it to?" She asked.
"I can't tell you" He replied.
Miku stared back blankly, "I can't exactly deliver it if I don't know who it is going to" She replied.
"You can, and you will if you want your village to prosper"
"Ah…Okay…"
He handed her the letter, "You are forbidden to read this letter, is that understood?" He growled firmly.
Miku gulped slightly, nodding quickly, "Yes Sir"
She took the letter and put it into the pocket of her cloak.
"I suggest you act as a lost girl in the woods when you reach the mansion, the others cannot know you are delivering this letter" He hastily added.
"If that is what is needed" She responded.
He opened the door, "Now, I suggest you hurry before it gets dark".
Miku stepped out of the carriage, "I won't disappoint you" She said. Immediately feeling mad at herself because she was acting as if she were another one of his puppets. But she couldn't help it; if he was offering to help her village, well then she couldn't turn down that opportunity.
"Good luck, girl" He added, his tone was as sleazy as his smile.
She kept her head down, and pushed through the crowd to the woods. A few of the villagers even tried to tackle her, but she was swift enough to dodge their attempts.
Miku felt at ease when she finally reached the woods, she actually felt safer within the woods then she did in the village, even if wild dogs did reside within the trees.
The Mansion that the wealthy fellow had mentioned, Miku had seen it, and many rumours had arisen about it. All were fairy tales of course, many villagers had gone missing within the woods; many seemed to blame it on the mansion inhabitants, saying that anybody who went in would never come out. Miku blamed the disappearances on carnivorous animals, it seemed more likely.
She kept a curt pace, hoping to reach the mansion before nightfall; it was located quite deep within the woods. Miku sung to the birds while she walked, it helped to comfort herself.
The bright glow of the mansion became visible to Miku by roughly midnight, she was feeling rather exhausted, especially considering that she never really had much energy to start with, she only ate once a day if she was lucky.
She trudged up the steps, and knocked on the mansion door,
After waiting for a few agonising moments, it was finally answered.
A man with long hair of a violently bright purple shade answered, he wore a black and white uniform, perhaps this was the butler that the wealthy man had mentioned.
"Greetings" He said in his profound voice.
"Hello, Sir. My name is Miku, I was lost in the woods when I found this mansion" She explained in a distressed voice, which she impressed herself by being able to pull it off.
"Oh dear, come in dear" He replied, immediately beaconing her into the warm mansion, closing the door after her.
He lead her down the hallway, past many mysterious doors, too many to have all been bedrooms.
Miku got a glimpse of a large clock on her way by; it indicated that the time was about five minutes to midnight.
The butler opened a door at the end of the hallway, she walked in without hesitation.
Inside, a blue haired man sat in a large chair, almost like some kind of throne.
"Master, we have a visitor" The butler said slowly.
The blue haired man looked up, and smiled upon seeing Miku.
"What a lovely surprise! Lost were you? Well fear not, you may stay here as long as you want!" He said cheerily.
Miku smiled back, he was rather welcoming.
"This is the mansion Master" The butler introduced. "Shall I gather the others?"
"Yes, indeed!" The Master replied.
The butler turned on his heel and swiftly left the room.
"Take a seat dear" The Master offered.
Miku settled down in a seat a few chairs away from the Master.
"So, Miku is it?" He asked.
Miku was very surprised that he already knew her name; he must have heard it from the hallway. "Yes, Sir" she replied.
"What is a young girl such as yourself doing out in the woods?"
"I was, ah, looking for food… And I got lost, so, I ended up here" She explained briefly.
"I must say, you look quite worn, how long have you been out there?"
"Oh not long, the village I came from is very poor"
"Oh. How very unfortunate! Don't worry, we'll get you all fed up and groomed soon enough" He comforted enthusiastically.
Miku smiled, and about then the butler re-entered the room, followed by a small group of others.
The Master slowly introduced the others as they entered.
"This is our maid", a girl with short green hair, she also wore a black and white uniform similar to the butler.
"The Mistress", a woman with short red hair, she entered and sat by the Master.
"The Dolls", two young yellow haired kids entered, a girl and a boy, they seemed younger than Miku. She wondered why he had called them "dolls", she had to admit, they did have that look about them, but it was still a little odd. Perhaps it was a slang term?
"And the lady", a woman with long hair of a pink shade. Miku thought to ask for a name, but, if she hadn't been given one, she figured there was some reason for it, a strange one at that.
Miku waited for another to walk in, the person she was to deliver the letter to. She could sneak it under the table to them.
But… Nobody else entered.
Where was the mystery receiver?
They all gathered around the table, looking at Miku with large smiles on their faces.
"This young girl has wondered by our Mansion, her name is Miku" Master said.
Each of the inhabitants gave a small greeting.
"We should celebrate, Master" The maid spoke.
"Indeed, may we throw a party?" The doll boy asked in excitement.
"Yes! A splendid idea" The Master approved.
"We shall get working in the kitchen then" The butler said as he left the room with the maid.
It seemed sort of odd to Miku, to throw a party when one gets a visitor, she would not argue though, for she was famished.
She sat politely at the table, conversing with the others, as the butler and maid had soon begun to serve dishes.
"Oh dear, you have nothing to wear" The Master said, and then turned his attention to the lady, "Would you please take Miku to the wardrobe to get changed?"
She nodded and beaconed Miku forward; she rose from her seat, and followed the lady past all of the doors again.
The lady walked into one about three quarters of the way up the hallway.
Miku followed, and watched in awe as she entered a walk in wardrobe.
"Have you a preferred colour?" The lady asked.
"No, miss" Miku replied, she did, but was grateful to wear whatever would be provided.
The lady returned with a flowing turquoise coloured dress, "I figured it would bring out your eyes, and you're…" She trailed off, her eyes on Miku's long hair, "Hair… Well we shall get you groomed up in no time" She added positively.
After what seemed like an hour of the lady yanking at Miku's long tangled hair, and wrestling her into a bathtub, then putting the dress on, they finally returned to the table.
Miku thought to ask why the lady was taking so much care to her appearance, as she would not be staying long. In her mind, she would find the mystery receiver, deliver the letter, and then rack off. As far as she knew; in their minds, she would leave as soon as she felt comfortable to sought her way back home.
So, why throw a celebration for someone who would be gone in the blink of an eye?
And take so much time to tend to her?
It all seemed very sinister, but Miku didn't really bother with complaining, she felt like royalty.
Miku really did try hard to hold back and make an effort with her manners, but… it was all too much.
Stacks and stacks of dishes containing food which was foreign to her, she couldn't help herself.
She totally gouged out on anything she could get her hands on, and she felt terrible about it.
Miku's stomach wasn't use to holding this much food, and so much flavour, it proved too rich for her to handle. She was forced to stop eating before she could taste every dish in fear of possibly throwing it all up again.
After sitting at the table with the others as they ate, engaging in conversation every now and then, Miku's stomach was quickly adapting and she didn't feel quite so bloated.
The butler left the room for a moment, and came back with a large glass of dark coloured fluid.
It was a deep red colour, but not the colour of blood; it was darker, almost purple.
He handed it to her, and the Master at the head of the table nodded approvingly.
"Ever tasted wine?" He asked.
Wine… the name vaguely rang a bell, but she could only recall it as something only rich people had.
"No" She answered simply, looking at him blankly.
"Well then, there is a first time for everything isn't there?" He commented with a wide smile.
"Smell it first, appreciate the taste" The lady suggested.
Miku did as the lady had suggested, and was thrown back at the incredibly strong smell at first, she had never known a liquid to have such a strong smell, except of course blood… but this smell was far different.
It intoxicated her airways at first; she sat back and stared at the glass in her hand for a moment.
"Go on" The Mistress encouraged.
Suddenly, Miku was afraid of disappointing anyone, if they had given this to her, then she would drink it. She could never waste anything, a trait that everybody in her village adopted at a young age.
She lifted the glass to her lips; the liquid rushed onto her tongue, and tingled her taste buds.
At first, she was not sure if she liked this foreign taste or not.
It was dry, very dry, and had a bitter after taste as she swallowed it. But… She had a strong impulse to take another sip. Although the liquid had been cold in the glass, it felt warm inside her.
"You like?" The doll girl asked from where she stood beside the door.
"Yes… I think so…" Miku replied uncertainly, studying the liquid called wine.
"Drink more, you will enjoy it more" The lady assured.
Miku did, and over the course of the night, she gradually drained the glass.
Her brain seemed to become slightly fogged, it wasn't anything too worrying, but, she felt as if she was reacting a little slower than usual. The others apparently didn't notice, maybe she was just imagining it?
The butler served another glass, and she politely drank it, but hoped he would not bring another, so tried not to show she was enjoying it too much, but enough to satisfy them.
However, as the lady had said, she enjoyed it the more she drank of it, it was almost addicting.
After the second glass, Miku knew that she was not imagining her slow reactions and fogged brain, she concluded it to be a side effect of the liquid, but, surely it wasn't poison?
No, if it were poison, she would be dead.
She began to notice random movements in inanimate objects occasionally, this worried her.
Again, the others apparently didn't notice her slight change in behaviour. But, she was luckily not served another glass after nearly falling over a chair which she was sure had moved a few inches left to clear her path.
After sitting at the table for at least two hours, Miku was taken to a room at the other end of the house to rest. On her way past, she got a glimpse of the clock, which said it was five minutes till midnight.
But, that had been the time she had arrived.
Miku didn't really ponder too much over this; at that point, she didn't trust anything her fogged brain claimed to be seeing.
Miku woke up with a head ache, in what seemed to be the middle of the night.
Her head was spinning, she tried rubbing her eyes, but, to no avail.
She forced herself to sleep, which was less restless.
She awoke again what seemed like hours later, but it was still in the night.
Her head ache had vanished, and any drowsiness she had had before was gone, she felt as awake as ever. But… it looked to be very late in the night judging by the darkness outside her window.
She lay back down, and tossed and turned for quite a while, but she had no hope of falling to sleep again.
Miku stared blankly at the ceiling for some time, pondering on what to do.
She remembered the brain-fogging liquid from earlier; perhaps it had summoned her prior head ache.
She had to deliver the letter and get out of there, the sooner the better; she didn't want any more of that wine, even though her tastebuds craved it.
She had to find the other person who hadn't showed up at dinner. It had been very late; perhaps they had already gone to bed.
She would find them, and then leave the letter under their pillow. Yes… It seemed like a good plan.
Miku convinced herself to get out of bed, she quickly realised that she still had the dress on from the so-called celebration. Without hesitation, Miku immediately changed out of this and into her normal clothes and cloak which had been left on the end of her bed.
The door creaked as she opened it besides her best efforts, and she snuck out into the hallway.
She looked down the hallway at all the doors, where to start?
Miku crept down the hallway, listening to noise behind each door.
She nearly jumped to the roof when a hand was placed on her shoulder.
She spun around, looking down at the doll girl and boy, "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to go snooping, I was just… Curious and sort of disorientated" She said quickly, just randomly stringing a sentence together.
The two dolls simply smiled and exchanged a giggle with each other, "We know a secret" The boy sniggered.
"Would you like us to tell you the secret?" The girl giggled impishly.
Secret! The first thing Miku thought of was the mystery receiver; the dolls must have known where they were. She began to feel slightly excited at the thought of getting out of there so quickly and without even risking walking into the wrong room.
"Yes please" She replied steadily, giving a small nod.
The dolls walked off further down the hallway, Miku hastily followed.
They stopped about halfway to the end, before the clock.
"Take a look" The girl said with a small laugh, and gestured towards the clock.
Miku did, and it indicated that the time was… five minutes till midnight.
This was the time she had arrived, the time she had seen on her way to bed, it had not changed at all.
At first, Miku giggled along with the two, they must have broken the clock and the others didn't know.
"You impish pair, you better try and fix it" She suggested light-heartedly.
The boy looked at her more seriously, "Oh no, it's not broken miss, look"
Miku took a glance at the clock, and realised that it was still ticking. She immediately stopped laughing and watched the clock for a moment.
When the time came for the thin hand to click over, it jumped forward, and then quickly jumped backwards, back to its original time.
This was no ordinary clock, it wasn't just broken.
Miku began to panic, was this some kind of cruel prank of theirs?
If it was, it definitely had her unhinged.
She panicked and the room began to spin, but, she was sure this was not the wine's doing.
Miku ran in what she thought was the direction of her room, she felt herself crash into something hard, a wall… or door.
Her hands desperately fumbled for the handle, and when she found it, she hastily twisted it and stumbled into her room.
But, instead of the bed she expected to see….
Before her was… not a bed but…
Two rows of coffins.