A Most Peculiar Engagement
Disclaimer: I don't own Petshop or its characters, blah blah blah.........I'm not Matsuri Akino, though I do obsess over this manga. A lot.
Summary: When D meets his new fiancé, he's anything but thrilled, but when he learns about an enticing secret of hers, things get very interesting.
The Count lay sprawled over piles of fresh contracts in need of organization, his pointer-fingernail gently tracing an empty tea cup. He was exhausted. Everything around him seemed as though it were far in the distance, and he wished that time would hold still just for a moment so that he might nap in peace. But, sadly, this was not to happen, for only five minutes later the little chime above the shop door rang followed by the sound of light, yet imperial foot steps walking about the shop. A deed voice grunted, "Is there a Count D here?"
Yawning, the Count sat up from his desk, his eyes yearning to close again. He slowly walked into the parlor to pleasantly greet his patron. When D looked his customer up and down, he observed that the man was wealthy, for he wore a suit of the finest material available in America. His hair was long, for the modern man, trailing just past his ears; he wore a confident smile that seemed to express just what he was thinking. And from reading his smile, D could see that this man had not come to purchase a pet.
"Welcome to my pet shop, good sir," he greeted politely with a curt bow. "How may I assist you?"
The man smiled and returned the Count's bow with a gentle nod. "I trust you are the Count?"
D shook his head. "I am not," he answered, "I'm afraid that you seek my grandfather. He is traveling abroad right now. If you'd like, I shall relay to him your message, or perhaps I can help in some way?"
The man nodded gruffly. "You can help me, actually," he said, wiping his copper face. "I have come from Japan to meet you, and I bring with me my daughter. You two are to be married by the end of the month."
The Count froze, not knowing how to react, all he knew was that he needed to sit down – and he needed some tea. "Please," he said, blankly gesturing to the couches, "do have a seat. I shall pour your tea."
The man began to speak rapidly about marriage contracts, dowries, and other such formalities. The Count was growing ever-paler with each word. It wasn't until the man took a sip of his tea that D had a chance to speak. "I'm sorry," he said, "but this is all so sudden to me. I was unaware of any such contract."
"Really?" inquired the man. "That's unusual. How did you not know that you were engaged to Japan's commercial princess?"
D rested his head on the tips of his fingers. "Do forgive me," he stated, "Commercial Princess?"
The man nodded. "For twelve years has this contract been under our ink. Your grandfather made all the arrangements. You see, Koruna – that's my daughter – is to marry a man of diversity, seeing as she is a symbol of Japan's Foreign Policy. And who is a better example of true diversity that you, a Chinese Count who works for a living. You run under Chinese religion, I'm aware, and you follow a varied amount of values, you're familiar with many diverse cultures, and there's also the peculiar, and unexplained matter of your title as a Count. An Asian falling under a Western title, it's rather intriguing."
D's face was beginning to weep beads of sweat as his mind tried to assimilate what was being placed before him. He had no intention of getting married any time soon – or ever, so he thought. And why hadn't his grandfather told him when the contract was made. Even more strange, why had this man not introduced him to the princess in question?
"I am sorry," the Count breathed, "but I do not believe that I am the correct suitor for your daughter. The whole affair is completely against my code of ethics."
The man laughed and slapped his knee with force. "Exactly why you are the perfect man for my daughter to marry!" he cried. "You have class. And you are not greedy. Have I yet told you of the handsome dowry I am offering?"
The Count nodded. "You have, Sire. But, I must repeat that this is against my code of ethics. I am human. And, as you know, humans mate for love, not for image. And your dowry does not interest me. As you said, I have no greed."
The man began to smile brightly. "Ah, well, Count, you must understand that this truly is not negotiable. Your grandfather will pay a hefty price should you not agree to my offer."
The Count clenched a fist as his loyal friend, T-chan sat beside him, growling crudely. "And what sort of price would that be?" he inquired suspiciously.
The man gave a curt nod as he set his cup of tea on the table, swallowing slowly. "Well, if you take a look at this contract," he said, retrieving a thick, rolled-up document from his jacket pocket, "you will see that if this agreement were to be broken, your grandfather would give over the property of your family to mine."
D went sheet white as his fingers rested defensively on T-chan who growled with a fierce threat. Give the shop to a Japanese noble? Simply judging by the man's smell, the Count could see that he had no position to take care of an animal – let alone the animals in his pet shop. There was no possible way that such a claim could be true. But as D examined the contract, he could see on the very bottom was his grandfather's signature written smoothly and clearly in his native Chinese.
T-chan stood angrily and began to pace. He looked D in the eye with sorrow. The Count could only return his gaze with an ethereal sadness. He wished to be free to make such a life-altering choice, but it seemed that he lacked such a liberty. Either he lose the shop, and all the animals that lived within, or marry a woman whom he only knew of by name and title. Though it was difficult, he reluctantly agreed with a shameful nod.
The man embraced D like a father and began praising the gods and talking of his plans for the grand wedding in America. "Oh, just imagine the good this will do for Japan! Such diversity!" and he left the shop, his words of admiration reaching the ears of the ever-curious Detective Orcot as he entered.
And, of course, as was expected, Leon couldn't help but interrogate D harshly. "You didn't sell that guy anything, did you?" he snapped immediately.
D brushed his words with a swishing hand as he looked away. "Too nosey to say 'hello', I see," was his reply.
"Come on, D," the detective pushed, parading his fist in the air. "I know something's up with that guy! What is it? Drugs? Imported illegals? Or did he just purchase some sort of fire-breathing toad?"
The Count sobbed and gave T-chan firm glare. "What is 'up' between that man and I is none of your business, detective, and the sooner you know that, the better-off you'll be."
Leon gave the Count a suspicious look, but decided not to say anything. For some strange reason, he had a sweet tooth. "Here's a funny question for ya, D," Orcot mused, "Do you got anything sweet?"
D sighed, not feeling quite up to dealing with the detective. So, he simply waved his hand over to the refreshment table. "Take what you like, but do not disturb me," he ordered, resting his cheek to his arm which lay on the head of the couch.
Leon served himself a few sweets and went to sit on the couch across from the Count, only to find a growling Totetsu in his way. "Move over, stupid goat."
The Count winced. "I'm not a goat!" T-chan snarled. Of course, Leon only heard more growling and simply shoved the creature aside. This angered T-chan greatly causing him to clamp down hard on Leon's wrist.
The detective screamed and tried to shake the Totetsu off, but his jaws would not release, and his wrath could not be balked. He refused to let the detective go until he had tasted enough blood to satisfy his rage.
Watching the quarrel with one eye, D couldn't help but release a little chuckle. Right away, T-chan let go of the fouled policeman and leapt to the Count's side where he rested his head on D's lap, keeping a keen eye on his foe.
Leon began to scarf down the treats as his suspicious eyes circled the room. "So," he began, "what is it?" After several long minutes of silence, the detective grew impatient. "Fine," he sighed, slipping a lemon tart across the coffee table. "Then I suppose you won't want this?"
The Count could smell the delicious aroma dancing about in his senses like a wandering ghost in search of a hospitable place to reside. It was almost irresistible. Before long, D stood up, walked around the table, scooping the lemon tart into his arm, cradling the box as though it were a baby, and sitting beside the detective with a face full of fresh tears on the inner lining of his dual eyes.
"You all right, D?" Leon asked. The Count sighed and gracefully rested his head on the detective's shoulder; gentle sobs could be heard from time to time.
Before the detective could relay his question again, D blurted out with an aching tone, "This is not fair! Such injustices have not existed in my family for generations! What possible sense does my grandfather make in forcing me into such a decision?"
The detective took two fingers and pushed D aside. Brushing his slick fingers through his blonde hair, he breathed, "Maybe I could help if I knew exactly what this injustice is."
D sighed. "I suppose, giving the condition of my rather hyperbolic diction, it would only be right for me to tell you some of the details to this preposterous event."
The detective sighed and thrusted, "Leave it to you to use big words when you're depressed. Just get on with the injustice."
Wiping a single tear from his left eye, the Count sniffled and said, "I have been made an offer by the Chief of Foreign Policy in Japan that is positively impossible to refuse."
Reclining back, Leon pressed, "Go on."
"If I do not comply with his . . . outrageous demand, the price I will be forced to pay is simply ghastly! And the worst of all of this is: my grandfather approves of it. Though I do have a suspicion that he did not willingly agree to such an atrocity, I have no proof of it being forced."
Leon groaned with impatience. "Look, D, if you don't wanna tell me, then fine; but, don't think for one minute that I won't find out."
Resting his forehead on the tips of his fingers, the Count fluttered a shooing hand at Orcot. "Still, still, Dear Detective, you will know when I tell you," he chided. Then added quickly, "And if I am unable to escape this horrid contract, then believe me, Detective: YOU WILL KNOW!"
Not another word was said, as Leon could tell that D truly was stressed out. After he finished his sweets, he left the shop with Christopher at his side.
The previous day had passed and the now rested Count held his head up as customer after customer came in and out of the shop. Try as he might, however, D was unable to free his mind of his current plight. From time to time, he would see a married or engaged couple enter the shop and feel the need to crawl away in tears, but as the only clerk in the shop, it was his obligation to tend to all patrons with his cheerfully mysterious behavior.
"Do enjoy your pet," said the Count as he saw off his last ferret. Surprisingly, they were in high demand as of late. D knew that when one thinks of a ferret with affection, it usually signifies the coming of a royal clan, and all these affectionate thoughts had been focused around his shop all day. D just laughed and pushed the thought aside, however. There were only three remaining clans of monarch ferrets in the whole world, and they were nothing to fret over. However, he couldn't help but feel a pinging curiosity in the back of his mind.
Five minutes after resting on the couch, the Count only had to stand once more as the Japanese Chief of Foreign Policies came in and shook his hand. Beside him was a young lady no taller than the Count's shoulder. She had eyes of a dazzling chestnut, enormously rounded to a picturesque almond with skin deeply shaded amber. Her hair was held back by a simple bow that allowed it to follow out behind her like a radiant shadow watching over all that it touched.
The Count bowed politely and said, "Good day, Sir Yamato," and reverently sifting his eyes to the young lady, he added, "Princess Koruna." She curtsied with a polite demeanor about her, lowering her eyes to the floor.
"It is pleasing to meet you, Count." She said in a perfect accent, her eyes not straying from the floor.
The Count could sense that she was not pleased. He felt hurt in her soul; as though she was losing as much as he was. He truly pitied her. Mr. Yamato took off to the car outside the shop leaving Koruna behind. As he left, a tear slid down the princess' cheek as her head followed her gaze. "May I interest you in some tea?" the Count offered, trying to please her.
Koruna's eyes darted up sharply. "No, thank you," she snapped with great hostility. She took a seat on the couch with perfect posture and examined a picture on the in table. "I see your appearance has not wavered from your father's." she stated.
D shook his head. "That is my grandfather," he told her. "My father and I look nothing alike. It's quite strange, really."
Koruna's brown eyes glared at him with anger. "Must you speak to me in that tone?" she shot. "Or have I the need to remind you that I am a princess."
D's eyes flickered as something punctured the back of his mind. "A princess," he thought, "I am speaking with a princess with eyes like those I have never seen. And on this very day she has come to my shop – on the day the ferrets gain attention." Slowly, his lips curved into a half-smile. "Indeed, Your Highness, I am aware that you are a princess. Please tell me: what clan are you from?"
Koruna's head jerked and she scoffed. "What are you talking about?" she asked.
The Count shrugged slightly, his eyes closed and his calm demeanor once more returned. "I believe that the monarch ferrets still label their communities clans. Or am I incorrect?"
Koruna's eyes twitched as she gazed at the Count bewildered. "Y-you know I'm a . . . ferret?"
Calmly sipping tea, the Count nodded. "I just discovered your little secret, actually. My only question is such: is that body a host or is it a form your clan can take on?"
Koruna's eyes sparkled with mystery as she replied, "Have you ever heard of a clan that shape-shifts?" D nodded. "You know a great deal for a human. Is there a reason?"
"None that you may know, Your Highness," said the Count easily. Not too long after, Leon came into the room, flipping back his blonde hair. When his eyes fell to Koruna, he flashed a cheesy grin and presented a thumbs up.
"Oh, Orcot, you fool," D thought, rubbing his head with his fingertips.
"Count, you have a woman with you?" he asked.
"Brilliant work, Detective," sighed the Count, nettled. "What have you come for?"
"Where's Chris? I have someone that I want him to meet," the detective stated. "But that can wait. Meanwhile, please introduce me to your lovely lady friend."
"Orcot-san, this is Koruna Yamato. My –" D went fridged, his bottom lip quivering. He looked pleadingly to the detective. "My fiancé," He finished grimly.
"I'll never understand you Chinese..." Orcot exclaimed. "Where's my brother, I want him to meet someone."
"If you mean to have him meet another one of your loose women, you can forget it. He'll have none of it. He said, and I quote, 'Unless he's actually going to be serious with her, I don't want to meet her!'"
The detective smiled and gave a thumbs-up. "Then bring him in."
D sighed and took off to the back room. He preferred leaving Koruna anyway. An engagement with the ferret princess usually meant one thing: the wedding night ended with only one living member of the party, and the Count seriously doubted she would let herself be the victim. "Honestly, Grandfather, what is it you have planned under all this? And how do I get out of it?"
D stopped in the middle of the halls and fell to his hands and knees sobbing. Tears flew from his eyes as he leaned on the wall for support. He wanted to die before the wedding night. He wanted to feed himself to T-chan. His tears were falling to the ground one drop at a time creating a warm puddle of grief.
Two hands touched his back. Count, he heard the elusive voice of Chris say with concern, Count, are you all right?
"Your brother wishes to see you, Christopher," D said weakly. "He wants you to meet someone. He says that he's serious about her."
Chris knew not to pry the Count any farther. He had been very brief with him all day. Sometimes, he was even pretty harsh. T-chan had to comfort him when he sent the Count violently ranting after trying to be nice and calling him "Brother D". He didn't know why it made the Count so mad. He thought it would be a nice thing to say. He always thought of the Count as an older brother. Someone to guide him on the wise path. Now the Count needed him, but he had no wisdom to give. Not even the Honlon would help him.
"Chris!" Leon squeezed his brother tight. "I can't believe this, but I found the perfect girl! How was I to know that she was right under my nose. Who knows, maybe soon she'll become your sister-in-law."
"Big bro, you just met this girl, don't think too far in the future," Chris sighed.
"That's just the thing, Chris!" Leon cried with delight. "I didn't just meet her. I did, however, just find out that she's the one for me. It's Jill from work. Now, she's at the house and she wants to see you. Come on!"
Leon dragged Chris out, mostly because he was excited, but he was also eager to get away from the Count's fiancé. She really pissed him off.