Chapter 2 – The Mystery
"Do you think it strange, Bartleby?" asked Axel as the statue that Sora gave him stood regally in the sunroom. The bright sun casted a brilliant light upon the magnificent statue and the statue boy gleamed like an angel from heaven.
"Milord?" inquired the butler.
"Sora and Riku seemed rather uneasy about this statue."
"You are right, my lord. They do seem uneasy. However, I believe it is because they are leaving the statue to you that they are uneasy."
"Are you insinuating that I do not take care of artwork?" Axel glared at his servant. The man was excellent at his work, but sometimes the man was too impertinent for his own good.
"My apologies, milord; I did not mean it that way. What I mean was that Sir Sora is leaving an exquisite statue in your care, a stranger who he knows only through Lord Riku."
"That is a fair assumption," the man calmed down a bit.
"Shall I have the cook prepare for supper?" Bartleby asked after several minutes of silence.
"Yes. Have a messenger boy come by after supper. I have a letter to be sent."
"Yes, sir." The servant bowed out of the sunroom and Axel continued to stare at the beautiful statue.
"I wonder who the model is exactly," he said aloud to himself. Forcing himself to take his eyes away from the gleaming statue, Axel made a hasty retreat out of the room with the contents of the letter on his mind.
The following morning, Axel was on a carriage heading toward Baker Street where Zexion and Demyx lived. He wanted Zexion's opinion on the artistry of the statue and more about this brother of Lord Sora Linden of Durham.
"My masters will be with you shortly," announced the butler of the Sutton household as he led the visitor into the sitting room. Axel nodded before sitting down in a lounge chair and pulling off his gloves to fidget with them.
It wasn't long before his friends appeared in the sitting room. The three embraced one another in a friendly greeting before sitting in the chairs and couches.
"You were quite vague in your letter as to what you wanted to ask," said Zexion.
Axel laughed. "My apologies. I supposed I have been rather preoccupied by the sudden gift from Lord Sora."
"What did you wish to know about him?"
"I wish to know about his brother, the one who sculpted the statue."
"Sora's brother? I was not aware he had a brother," the man said with a slight frown.
"If he does, then his brother has never been to court," suggested Demyx.
"That is possible," replied Zexion facing his husband. "Sora is the lord of Linden Court in Durham and thus all business pertaining to there goes through him. And since Durham is so far north, it is possible that the records of the Linden household have not been updated in London."
"Where would the records be then?"
"Either Newcastle or Liverpool. The King has been attempting to gather all the records of his wealthy subjects and have them all in London, but it's a slow process. If you wish, I could request for the records."
"No," said Axel with a frown. "It would be improper for me to investigate into the Linden household just for an unnamed sculptor. If I must, I shall go to Durham myself to meet this brother of Sora's and the model."
"I am rather intrigued by this statue. You say it's lifelike?" smiled the blue-haired man. Axel nodded.
"Perhaps the marble's imported from Carrara?" asked Demyx.
"Most likely," replied the royal advisor. Axel's eyes widened considerably.
"Just how much money does Sora Linden receive a year?"
"He has a salary of one million Pounds," laughed Zexion.
"One million!?" Axel exclaimed. "How does he manage it?"
"He does a lot of businesses beyond simple manor keeping. I surmise he has investments in the Americas as well."
"There's an industrial man, right there," said Demyx.
"No wonder he is able to furnish a room with mirrors."
"Mirrors, you say?" asked Zexion.
"Yes. Yesterday, when Sora showed me the statue, he told me that they had walled a room with mirrors for his brother's work."
"Now I must see this statue you speak of," said Zexion eagerly. "I may not be an expert, but I do appreciate fine art."
"Shall we accompany you back to your home after dinner?" suggested Demyx. "You will be staying for dinner, right?"
Axel laughed. "Of course. I would love to have dinner with you both."
When Axel returned to his house that afternoon with Zexion and Demyx in tow, he noticed that the household staff seemed more flustered than usual.
"Bartleby, what's the matter?" he questioned.
"The cook believes that there's a vermin on the premise," the butler reported.
"A vermin?"
"Yes, milord. According to him, last night's leftovers had been stolen."
"None of the staff ate them?" Axel questioned.
"No. Everyone's been searching for the vermin the entire day. We shall get rid of it as soon as possible."
"Inform me once the problem's taken care of," the lord of the house said.
"Yes sir."
"Rat problem?" asked Demyx.
"Supposedly," hummed Axel. "Well, we're not here to discuss that little problem. Come." He then led the pair up the stairs to the third floor where the sunroom was located.
Upon opening the doors, both Zexion and Demyx gasped at the brilliant statue. Immediately, the blue-haired lord approached the statue and circled around it to scrutinize the piece of artwork.
"Magnificent," he said with awe. "The stonework is most outstanding."
"You are right. The statue is very life-like," said Demyx. "The face portrays such sadness."
Axel looked from his friend to the statue and realized that what Demyx said was true. The smooth perfect face was not simply a mere copy of the face of the model, but the eyes that had been detailed seem to speak of unfathomable melancholy.
"Is it possible to put in so much emotion into ones work that the work itself show the emotion?" he asked.
"It is not unheard of, but extremely rare," said Zexion. "The King would be most delighted to see such a piece of work."
The red-haired man set his lips in a thin line as he recalled his own words to Sora in consideration to the unnamed brother's aversion to showcase his work.
"Zexion, if possible, I would rather the King not know about this statue."
The blue-haired man looked at his friend with surprise. "Why not? His majesty would be delighted to know that such a skilled artisan resides in England."
"I promised Sora that I would safeguard the statue and not display it wantonly."
"I see. This brother of his does not like to exhibit his artworks."
"No, he does not."
"I shall honor his privacy. I do hope that he will change his mind and allow his statues to be shown in public. I hear the curator for the British Gallery is looking for a new exhibition."
"I would like to see his other works too," said Demyx.
"I'm sure they're all as magnificent as this one," said Zexion. The butler then entered the room.
"Milord, Lord Riku calls," he said smoothly.
"Bring him here," Axel commanded.
"Yes, sir."
"Riku's here?" asked Demyx with a raised eyebrow.
"He said he would call today. He was the one who suggested me as the statue's caretaker to Sora."
"Interesting."
"I didn't expect you two to be here as well," said Riku with a laugh upon entering the room. "I see you have found the secret treasure."
"It is a marvelous piece of work," said Zexion. "Do you know the sculptor, Riku?"
"To be quite honest, I've never met Sora's brother, the sculptor of this statue. I've only known him through Sora's words while we were at the boarding school."
"Is it possible that Sora's the actual sculptor?"
Riku laughed heartily. "Sora has no such patience for the arts. He enjoys music and art viewing but not the actual process of creating such a piece of work. The best work that you'll see him do is a child's rendition of the Mona Lisa."
"It's a shame that we can't get in contact with the man this year," the royal advisor said with disappointment.
"There's always next year," said Demyx cheerfully.
"Do you think I made the right decision to place the statue here, Riku?" asked Axel.
"It's a perfect place to put it. I dare say that you deliberately moved things around in here just to have the statue receive full sunlight," he grinned roguishly.
"You know me well," replied Axel with a grin of his own. A sudden thought came to his mind. "Oh, Riku. If I were to travel to Durham this year, can I call on Sora?"
Riku frowned slightly. "He would rather you not abandon the statue so carelessly. He treats this statue with great importance."
"Is he in some kind of trouble with the underground?" asked Zexion suspiciously.
"Oh, no. You misunderstood me," answered Riku while waving his hands in a defensive gesture. "What I mean is that this statue is most likely the livelihood of his own brother. Before he went on his travel through the Continent, he had been discussing with Sora about moving to London to study the arts."
"I see."
"By the by, I see your staff seemed rather busy. I hope you weren't preparing for some small gathering tonight without inviting me."
Axel laughed. "I would never think of such a travesty; having a party without my best friend. My butler informs me that we have a vermin of sorts on the premise; ate all the last night's leftovers. It's a mere trifle," replied Axel. Riku frowned slightly at the information before looking at the statue.
Zexion pulled out his pocket watch and glanced at the time.
"Is it time, dear?" asked Demyx as he looked over to his husband.
"Yes." He replaced the watch and smiled at his friends. "We must be on our way. His royal highness hosts a small recital tonight at the palace."
"Don't let me hold you up," said Axel. "It would not be good to keep our king waiting."
"Allow me to accompany you," the silver-haired man said.
"Of course," nodded Zexion.
"Good day, Axel. We shall call on you for another look at the statue in the future," grinned Demyx.
"My home is welcome to you all," replied the host.
"No need to see us out, we know the way," said the blue-haired man after shaking Axel's hand in a friendly manner.
"Very well. Good day, my friends." Axel watched as his friends made their way down the wooden stairs before his butler approached him.
"Have they caught the vermin?" Axel asked.
"No, sir. However, the cook informs me that he has recovered a set of silverware that had been used in the consumption of food."
Axel looked at his servant with surprise. "Silverware? Where?"
"They were hidden amongst the cutlery. He had not discovered them until he had begun preparations for tonight's supper."
"Then it was a thief who stole the scraps," said Axel with a frown.
"But, sir. Both the head maid and I had made sure that the house was locked up before we both turned in for the night." The butler was flustered by his master's displeasure.
"I do not blame you for the theft, Bartleby. This is an old house, it is possible for someone to enter and leave without leaving as so much as a trace here," the Lord of Dover said soothingly.
"What shall we do, milord?"
"It is fine. Have the cook leave the leftovers on a plate in the kitchen along with a set of cutlery. I shall leave a note inquiring our surprise guest's goal."
"Very well, milord. Shall I have the maid bring up tea and crumpets for you this afternoon?"
Axel nodded and the butler left the man standing in the sunroom. The red-haired man took another glance at the statue before leaving to his study. The thought of how to make the thief lower his guard and be caught red-handed in his home went through his mind.
Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts does not belong to me. No suing, please.
A/N: I have a feeling there are a lot of historical inaccuracies in this fic… (Namely the price of mirrors and the British Gallery) But does that really matter!? I think not (or at least I'd hope not, haha). On another note, hehe, Baker Street.