Okay, sorry - Not every chapter can be all about Megumi and Yahiro - Part of the development of this story will also be about their careers, to make it seem more 'realistic', if ever that was possible. Also, I do feel like conflict should be added at some point so yeah :P Although, I would love for them to lovey-dovey all day everyday, it must happen~
I hope you enjoy though I found it a bit of a boring filler chapter myself xP Boring but necessary! :3
As always, I hope you
E-N-J-O-Y~!
Megumi yawned as she woke up, stretching out her limbs. After much hardship, she managed to convince her overtly-affectionate mother-in-law that it'd be best if they started off in separate rooms - So she got her own, lavishly-decorated, room with her own personal touches to it, and Yahiro got the original master bedroom - Of which she did not mind.
She hummed in glee as she started her normal routine. Her flowing night-gown was very comfortable, hugging her skin lovingly and she found herself running a hand over her side, giving a cute, close-eyed smile upon feeling the pleasant sensation on her slender fingertips.
Though slightly young in her dressing, it was still relatively stylish - Today's ensemble was a loose, purple jersey with an irrelevant date and the name of a sport of which she had no interest, along with some black shorts, two, gray lines running parallel along the sides and loud, benevolent highlighter-yellow sneakers over creamy, thigh-high socks, frilly ribbon of lemon threaded through the top, fastening them.
"Yosh!" she gave her complete, in the long, wood-bordered mirror of hers, reflection a thumbs up and a smile, head slightly tilted as to inspect every angle. She adjusted the waist of her shorts slightly and skipped out, inhaling deeply, "Something smells great!" she cheered, knowing that Yahiro wasn't around to scold her, the unexpectedly gluttonous teenager going slightly faster in pace.
"Ohayo, Ojou-sama*," the middle-aged maid greeted. It was only the second day, but there was already help around the mansion. She did feel slightly bad that the older woman had to get up so early for them but she had a seemingly genuine smile on nonetheless.
/ O-ha-yooo~! /Megumi greeted with a wide, happy smile, seeming to brighten up the room, her small, child-like hand waving quickly and energetically, as she jumped into her high-back chair, comforted by the luxury cushioning of the seat, and her brown eyes sparkled as she took in the delectable breakfast, / Looks good, / she uttered in almost-desire, the only thing missing is the slight hint of drool that she desperately worked to hold back.
"I'm glad you think so, Ojou-sama," she said absently, though kindly, to the younger girl, gingerly placing four waffles onto the no-doubt expensive china, and smearing caramel sauce all over it, into every square and crevice, causing a sticky, yet delicious mess.
The maid stood back and nodded at her work, though not as presentable as alot of her meals, she thought back to what the Waka* had told her:
That idiot girl eats like an elephant and she has no manners or sophisticated taste. She'll probably want something sticky and full of sugar for her meal. Don't forget.
She had let out an unprofessional chuckle then - She had served as the head maid in the Saiga household, of which only Yahiro and Chitose occupied regularly, for many years, perhaps even before Yahiro was born, and she had never seen the usually-stoic and grumpy heir express concern so obviously before.
She left her reverie quite quickly and briskly walked towards the table, expertly balancing the tray, holding Megumi's appealing breakfast, and the selection of teas she had prepared, three teapots standing proudly on the outer rows, "Today; we have waffles with caramel topping and three types of teas, choose whichever you like, there's the western milk-tea, grey and earl - Which would you prefer?" despite the statement being half-childish to her, she smiled, reminded of her humble youth.
"Eto.." she muttered, the pads of her thin fingers dancing atop each other, trying to find safe footing, on top of the others, / .. Do you have any hot chocolate? / she asked reluctantly - she hated to be a bother, she really did. She even ducked her head in shame behind her small notebook which held her request, mentally apologizing for inconveniencing the worker.
Instead of feeling any kind of agitation or outrage, the maid with slightly graying hair bowed her head in obedient affirmation, before letting out a slight giggle, "I'm very sorry, Ojou-sama - I should've known - I'll get you some right away!" she said without a single hint of animosity behind her words.
/ A-arigatou a-and.. gomenasai.. / she wrote slowly, jittery though holding a smile, for she was treated so nicely. She was about to begin eating when the maid tapped her on the shoulder, causing her head to turn.
"Here we are," the maid set down the steaming, evidently-foamy cup of hot chocolate, setting a small square underneath as to not stain the smooth, mahogany surface of the table. "Since Yahiro-sama is not around, do you have any plans for today?" she inquired, smoothing out her clean, white apron and showcasing her name-badge, which read: Tomoe Chiharu
Megumi pondered for a second - She had plans, well, more like aspirations. She clenched her first in determination, she couldn't let this opportunity pass by! / I'm going to an audition today / she beamed brightly, tilting her head slightly, her medium-length, cleanly-cut bangs slightly obscuring her sight.
"Oh?" Tomoe inquired simply - she had been told a number of things about Megumi, one of such things being that she's an aspiring singer. "Where is the audition, if you don't mind me asking?" the maid asked curiously, politely bowing before taking the seat across from the songbird.
Megumi bit into her waffle, chewing it thoroughly and making a slight 'mm' sound, before swallowing deeply and cutting another piece off, rolling it in the wonderfully-scented caramel, / It's in Taito - You know, the Tokyo University for Fine Arts. / she wrote down, rather calmly, with her free hand, trying hard to stifle her immense excitement.
"Well!" the older woman beamed happily, feeling an odd sense of pride at that, "Shall I call the car for you?" she inquired, getting the pager shared between the help at their home out of her neatly-creased pocket.
/ Hmm.. / she thought about it - It would be easier but the audition isn't for another three hours and she had some time to kill, so she might aswell walk. She shook her head after a minute or two of consideration: / That's okay, really - I'll walk since I haven't been out for so long! / she smiled enthusiastically, maybe she'll run into a friend while she's out aswell, can't do that from the back of a limousine.
"Is that really okay? Yahiro-sama said that you shouldn't be left to roam by yourself, or you'll be in danger," Chiharu said worriedly - Not only was she worried about what the Saiga heir would do to herself if Megumi got hurt, but she had grown rather fond of the young, humble girl.
/ I'll be fine, I promise! / she told the concerned maid and jokingly held out her pinky finger, poking out her small, plump tongue and bringing the dish up to the sink, despite the help's protest, / See ya! / she showed, waving awkwardly behind her as she excitedly ran off, out of the large, double-doors that were used for entrance, or in this case, a hasty exit.
"... Bye, Ojou-sama..."
It was bustling as always in the city and Megumi enjoyed the fresh air, even if it was cluttered with machines and different scents, she liked it anyway. She liked the look of the parks, too, they were always so green and well-kept. She had always loved parks, but she enjoys them even more now - Since it's where Yahiro and herself had their dates every week for the last while.
She skipped through town naiively as always, flimsily holding her purse, allowing it to swing back and forth with the strap racing along, in turn, across her slender forearm. She saw people riding double bikes and giggled to herself, thinking about their first 'date'. It took her a long time to get Yahiro to say that any time spent with her was fun, but she had succeeded.
After an hour had passed, she felt low on sugar - She went to the nearest, quaint cafe and ordered something with lots of sugar! A white chocolate frappe. She drank it with gusto and there were some admiring glances from some of the males, but she was so innocent, that she just smiled and waved at them, as if they were just giving her friendly attention.
She opened her phone and noticed alot of texts from Yahiro:
From Yahiro
Subject: Baka
Don't get into any trouble, idiot. I'll get you if you do.
Don't eat too much, you're getting kind of chubby - Is this what they mean when they say women let themselves go after getting married? Tsk. Lazy.
Don't eat our home before I get back, or you can sleep out on a park bench.
Megumi puffed out her cheeks indignantly at the rude messages but blushed at the same time, though what Yahiro said was mostly offensive and way too straight-forward, she understood it was his way of looking after her.
She checked the time and it read 2:00 PM, which meant that she only had 30 minutes to get to the University! She hailed a cab quickly, though her attempts failed and she only got one on her fourth try, curse her shortness!
"Ueno Park, please," she uttered, looking around with shifty, paranoid eyes wondering if Yahiro was going to pop out and tell her to shut up like he always did when she spoke out loud.
"Yes, Ma'am." the cab driver tipped his hat and gave a toothy grin, she simply smiled back.
She absentmindedly watched the numbers clock up on the money calculating device on mid-dashboard. When the car finally came to a screeching halt after what seemed hours, though in actuality, it had only been 15 minutes or so, the cab driver turned back with a flat palm.
"That'll be eight-hundred yen, miss," he said, hand still in waiting. Megumi rummaged through her purse and noticed the time shining on the front of her phone, which showed that she only had 10 minutes to get to her appointed audition. She put a one thousand yen bill in his hand and smiled.
"Thank you for this! Keep the change, I'm in a hurry!" she ran out of the cab, being clumsy Megumi, she almost tripped on her own feet. She ran through the entrance and fixed her disheveled appearance before going through the cold-to-the-touch, push doors that separated her from her temporary stage.
She nervously stepped forward and the soles of her announcing sneakers clicked against the marble-like tile of the floor, awkwardly smiling at them. She waved and grabbed her sketch pad, knowing she'd have to introduce the fact that she spoke this way at some point / Konichiwa, mina-san* My name is Yamamoto Megumi and I'll be performing one of my favorite songs - Before you're confused, I'll explain that I always communicate through this board to preserve my voice, / she quickly, almost impatiently, wrote out, showing them her inexplicably neat handwriting, despite her writing pace.
"Kawaii~" she heard the younger of the three judges whisper, marveling at her petite and cute appearance. He had blonde hair, though it had some bright, fluro-green on the side of a jutting out fringe, which made him look especially eccentric.
"Please, begin," bellowed the calm and collected voice of the neatly-presented woman in the middle, bespectacled and wearing an official-looking suit.
Megumi took a deep breath in and collected herself, closing her eyes and clasping her hands infront of her fluttering chest. She opened her mouth wide and the words began to flow out in a sweet melody..
*Ojou-sama means My Lady or Respectable Lady - Pretty much a female leader or master.
*Waka is a form of 'Young Master' - I considered using Bocchan, but thought it was too informal or childish to describe Yahiro
*Mina-san (Mina) means everyone and I added the -san honorific to show the formal meaning behind it or addressing with respect/unfamiliarity.
*Konichiwa means Good Afternoon and is a way of greeting. I doubt you don't know but yeah.
*Ohayo is Good Morning and is also a greeting. You probably know this one aswell, but just to be sure :P