Wow! I haven't looked at this in two years! But since I want to work on all of my fanfics and get them finished before starting new ones, I had to bite the bullet and write!

I think I will probably end up re-writing the first few chapters when I have time… lol xD

Anyway! Please enjoy, and if you like, please review!


Chapter 4

That night, once all the work was done and finished for the night, Retsu took Ichigo to the servant baths. On the way there, they met up with the three other main servants, Zakuro, Pudding and Minto.

"Hey Retsu." Zakuro greeted the younger girl "Who's this? A new girl?"

"I'm Ichigo." Ichigo introduced herself "and yes. I'm a new girl here."

"Poor thing." Minto cut in with a snort.

"Don't be mean! Pudding likes your hair. Reminds Pudding of a girl she used to know!" The youngest, Pudding said. Ichigo smiled.

"It's nice to meet you all finally." She said "Even if it is under these sorts of circumstances."

They five of them headed down to the baths, got undressed and got in. Retsu had been right earlier, these baths were very hot. But Ichigo needed a bath, so she just had to deal with it.

When they were done, the girls took her back to their room. All together there were ten servants; the five girls and five male servants who never seemed to interact with them in anyway. Whether this was under orders from higher up or not, the girls would never know. Because of this, the five shared one room between them.

"This is my bed." Zakuro pointed to the first bed by the door "Next to that is Minto's, and then Pudding's." She pointed to the other side of the room "And that's Retsu's and your new bed."

"Did it belong to Marion?" Ichigo asked, and then wished she hadn't when Zakuro's face fell.

"Yes, it did." She said, and turned away "Anyway, we should all get ready for bed. We need to be up early tomorrow morning to set fires and make breakfast."

"Oh. Okay." Ichigo nodded slowly, and got changed into a nightgown. Once everyone was in bed, Zakuro put the lights out.

"Good night, everyone." She said. There was a chorus of good nights, and then silence.

Ichigo found it hard to sleep that night. The bed was hard, cold and she could feel the presence of someone else. All she could think about was her family, how sad they would be at finding her gone. Would they be sad? She hoped not. Would they look for her? She hoped so.

But then, just before she finally nodded off, a new thought fluttered into her mind. Who was this Marion really? Everyone kept saying they were very alike. Were they really that alike? Even Ryou had mentioned it to her.

Finally she drifted off into a sleep, full of dreams of her family and this mysterious Marion.

The next morning, Retsu woke her up. Ichigo was so groggy as a result of not getting much sleep, but she got up none-the-less.

"That time is it?" Ichigo asked as Zakuro put out a bowl of water for them to wash in. Retsu looked at the clock they had.

"It looks like quarter to five, but I can't it very well." She said "Ever been up this early?"

Ichigo shook her head. Her parent shad never believed in getting her up at the hour of the servant.

"Well get used to it." Minto snapped "We have to do it every day."

"Ignore her. Pudding does." Pudding added. Ichigo nodded. She wondered if the girl ever talked not in third person.

Once the girls were dressed, Zakuro instructed every one of their jobs for the day. Since Retsu and Ichigo were in the kitchen yesterday, today they were supposed to be on cleaning duty. But because Ichigo was new, Zakuro was taking cleaning duty and sending Retsu to take Ichigo into the village to buy groceries.

But first, everyone was to set fires in the rooms to warm them. Zakuro took the bedrooms and main rooms, Ichigo and Retsu the west wing and Minto and Pudding the right wing.

"This is all you do." Retsu said to Ichigo as they got to the first room "You take a bunch of this wood and put it in the grate, and then light it with the match." She did this, and Ichigo watched as the wood caught fire "You then make sure it burns, and then you can move on."

Ichigo watched Retsu do this five times, and then did it herself. She burnt herself the first time, but by the third she was an expert.

Less than an hour later, the girls were ready to start breakfast. Ichigo wondered what the male servants did in this time. She tried to ask Retsu, but she didn't know either. Since they had nothing to do in this time, they joined to others in the kitchen to help with breakfast.

"Ichigo!" Pudding called as the girls walked in "Could you fetch Pudding four eggs, please? Pudding needs them."

Ichigo nodded, and looked around for where the eggs would be. Retsu laughed.

"Eggs don't come from the kitchen." She said "They come from the barn. You'll need to go down there."

Ichigo nodded. She vaguely remembered how to get to the barn, and kindly rejected Retsu's offer to take her down.

Ichigo stepped outside, and breathed in the fresh air. It was nice to be outside again. She quickly walked across the yard, and down the steps carved into the hill side to the barn, which sat much lower than the rest of the house. When she got there, she opened the door.

She had never seen anything like it! Cows, sheep, chickens, even a goat! She had never seen so many animals in one place at once!

"Can I help you?" Someone asked, making Ichigo jump. She stepped backwards, and fell over her skirts. Just before she hit the floor, a rough calloused hand reached out and grabbed her, keeping her from hitting the floor hard. Ichigo looked up, and saw a boy, older than her with skin tanned dark from working in the sun. His eyes were dark brown, and so was his hair, which was curled in tight ringlets around his head. He helped Ichigo up.

"I'm sorry for scaring you." He said, and held out his hand "The name's Robin. I work with the animals down here."

"You work with the animals?" She echoed. He nodded.

"Yeah. Like milking the cows, sheering the sheep when it needs doing, and collecting eggs from the chickens."

"Oh!" Ichigo exclaimed "That's why I'm down here! I need some eggs for the breakfast."

"Of course." Robin smiled. He walked over to a box set in the wall, and opened the top. Inside were individual nests, each one with a few eggs inside "How many do you need?" He asked.

"Just four." Ichigo replied. Robin nodded, and picked up four eggs. He put them in a basket, and handed them to Ichigo.

"Here you go." He said "Fresh from the chicken."

Ichigo thanked him, and went to leave. Just before she could, Robin put his hand on her wrist. Ichigo turned, slightly surprised.

"Please come back." He said "It's so very lonely not having anyone to talk to down here. The other servants never come down here, apart from to collect eggs and milk. I would so love to have a chat with someone once in a while."

"I can't make any promises." Ichigo said, shaking her head and then smiling "But I can try. I remember Retsu said something about me having some free time later tonight. I'll come see you then."

Robin smiled.

"Please do." He said, and let Ichigo leave.

Ichigo made her way back to the house, and just before she entered the kitchen, she could feel eyes on her. She looked around, and saw Ryou looking at her out of a window on the second floor. When he saw her looking at him, he quickly turned and walked away from the window. Ichigo continued to look for a few more seconds, but then turned away, shaking her head.

She handed the eggs to Pudding, who thanked her with a hug. Ichigo then sat down to eat her own breakfast, a bowl of porridge. Once breakfast was finally ready, they took it out into the dining hall and stood around whilst the family ate, waiting on their every need. Once breakfast was all done with, the girls got to work with their jobs for the day.

Retsu and Ichigo put on shawls and caps, and picked up the baskets and money for the things they needed to buy. Zakuro had also left them a list of things they needed to get.

"Carrots, turnips, fish, pork and potatoes." Retsu read "Grapes, apricots, flour and sugar. The list goes on! We're going to be busy."

The two headed off. They walked down the steps cut into the side of the hill, since it was a quicker way than going down the main path. Ichigo couldn't resist looking at the barn.

"Hey, Retsu." Ichigo asked.

"Yes?"

"Do you know the boy who works in the barn?" She asked "You know, Robin?"

Retsu looked slightly surprised "No. There is no boy who works in the barn, and certainly not by the name of Robin." She kept looking at Ichigo.

The rest of the walk was in silence. In town, they visited the butchers, the fish mongers, the green grocers and the general store. On the way back, they were carrying so much stuff that Retsu piped up and said that they should take the long way back, since it would be easier to carry everything. Ichigo agreed.

Upon returning, they took the groceries to the kitchen, and helped to prepare lunch. After lunch, Zakuro gave Ichigo some spare time for two hours until dinner. Ichigo thanked her, and rushed quickly to the barn.

"Hello?" She asked as she opened the door "Robin? Are you here?"

Robin jumped down from the rafters, making Ichigo cry out in surprise. He shook his head, and laughed.

"I'm sorry for scaring you." He said, chuckling "I just couldn't help it."

Ichigo crossed her arms.

"I'm sorry." Robin said again "Come on, let's talk."