p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"The autumn breeze moves through my silver white hair like dancers twirling through the movements of a Beethoven symphony, tangling it beyond hope. I sigh at the thought of unraveling the thick strands later on this evening then close my eyes and focus on the sunshine as its warmth bleeds through the breaks in the wind, warming my soul trough the kiss it leaves on my skin. Hills roll by in the English countryside, finally free from London and its restrictive alleys that block the sunlight, I find myself able to actually take in a full breath. The smog of the city refused such niceties, and my lungs ache from the lack of style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!- [if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!-[endif]-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"An excited cry from the carriage below breaks my stream of conscious thought of the pastoral pleasures before me, "Oh Tsuki! Look! We are almost there! Oh, I do hope he is home! But yet, even if he is not, he will come home to such a cute home, for we shall decorate the mansion. Perhaps even hold a ball! Oh, how I long to see Ciel's face when he first sees my plans!" the blonde head of Elizabeth Ethel Cordelia Midford of Scottney peers though the carriage window and points enthusiastically down the long winding country road. The blue roof of a grand home slowly peaking above the trees in the horizon./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"My old friend these last ten years is only thirteen and I twenty-one. Her simple joy and pure energy awaken such spirit in me that I consider her as a younger sister. There have even been times where Lizzie has taken on my heritage and called me her big sister, a sign of respect and a show of how close two friends are in my home country. Most people seem very taken aback when they learn that me and my family immigrated to England from Japan, though they never seem surprised. I have always assumed that my features and actions make the connection style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!- [if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!-[endif]-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"A sudden powerful gust of wind surprises me and loosens the large bow in my hair, my eyes go wide and my ears flatten against my skull in anticipation. My hands fly up to catch the fabric and I anxiously attend to the hairpiece, meticulously returning the bow to its original state with a frown upon my lips. Lizzie continues babbling excitedly, unaware of my almost undoing, while my thoughts drift to how stupid it was for me to insist on sitting outside the carriage with the driver. Just so I could feel the wind and the sunshine in harmony on this long journey out of town to visit a man I have never met. Well, a boy is more accurate. Lizzie's fiancé is her age, which is lucky for her in this day and age. Most noble women have husbands chosen for them that are almost more than double their style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!- [if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!-[endif]-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Once I focus on the road ahead of us, I feel my eyes widen slightly at the vast expanse of the mansion before us, looming over head like a grand masterpiece more suited for gawking at rather than living in. However, this seems to be the expectation here in London and I have grown accustomed to such extravagance. A glance back to Lizzie has me turning in my seat to fully appreciate the fully content smile occupying her entire face./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Only when Ciel is involved the world is granted such a perfect visage of love and happiness, especially since his return from the dead. My own smile drops slightly at the memories of those horrible months that the world thought Ciel Phantomhive had died with his parents while the original mansion burned. I had never been able to meet him, but this boy that had meant so much to my dear little sister was gone, and so it seemed Lizzie had gone with him. Not once did she brighten the world with any kind of smile, and it made my heart ache for both her and this young child that I had never known./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Lizzie once again interrupts my train of thought as she makes eye contact with me, that same content look upon her face brightening with cheer, "We are here Tsuki! Let us go immediately!"br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!- [if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!-[endif]-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"I answer with my own smile before allowing the driver to help me down from the seat. Lizzie bounces with uncontrolled energy as I bow to our driver in thanks, allowing me to stay in touch with my culture, albeit impatiently./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;""Let's go!" Her voice drags out the words, further proving her fraying patience, "And thank you Mortimer for the ride, promise not to tell mother of father! Or even Paula!" A chuckle sounds from behind us as Lizzie drags me up the front steps of the gleaming stone-gray estate, and she takes that as confirmation./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Lizzie's small pink knuckles rap viciously against the huge wooden door so many times I quickly loose count. After only a few short minutes the door opens, revealing a small, gentle looking old man with gray hair and a kind smile. His butlers uniform provides me with his status, while Lizzie quickly settles with the introductions, "Oh hello Tanaka, this is Akatsuki Yamamoto. She is also from Japan so you two should hit it off straight away, now where is my darling fiancé Ciel? Oh, do tell me that he is home, for I have so much I wish to discuss with him!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Scarcely a breath is had before she is off to search the mansion herself, not allowing poor Tanaka to voice anything but a simple laugh as his cheeks redden in slight exasperation. I heave a small sigh and give the old man a soft smile, my eyes closing in a happy expression, to apologize for my friend's forwardness. Bowing low, I open my mouth to begin introducing myself properly when a loud shriek bounces along the halls. My head drops and I cannot help but sigh even harder than before, no doubt Lizzie has found something of interest, and I had best go find her before her imagination runs wild./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"An excited cry from the carriage below breaks my stream of conscious thought of the pastoral pleasures before me, "Oh Tsuki! Look! We are almost there! Oh, I do hope he is home! But yet, even if he is not, he will come home to such a cute home, for we shall decorate the mansion. Perhaps even hold a ball! Oh, how I long to see Ciel's face when he first sees my plans!" the blonde head of Elizabeth Ethel Cordelia Midford of Scottney peers though the carriage window and points enthusiastically down the long winding country road. The blue roof of a grand home slowly peaking above the trees in the horizon./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"My old friend these last ten years is only thirteen and I twenty-one. Her simple joy and pure energy awaken such spirit in me that I consider her as a younger sister. There have even been times where Lizzie has taken on my heritage and called me her big sister, a sign of respect and a show of how close two friends are in my home country. Most people seem very taken aback when they learn that me and my family immigrated to England from Japan, though they never seem surprised. I have always assumed that my features and actions make the connection style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!- [if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!-[endif]-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"A sudden powerful gust of wind surprises me and loosens the large bow in my hair, my eyes go wide and my ears flatten against my skull in anticipation. My hands fly up to catch the fabric and I anxiously attend to the hairpiece, meticulously returning the bow to its original state with a frown upon my lips. Lizzie continues babbling excitedly, unaware of my almost undoing, while my thoughts drift to how stupid it was for me to insist on sitting outside the carriage with the driver. Just so I could feel the wind and the sunshine in harmony on this long journey out of town to visit a man I have never met. Well, a boy is more accurate. Lizzie's fiancé is her age, which is lucky for her in this day and age. Most noble women have husbands chosen for them that are almost more than double their style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!- [if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!-[endif]-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Once I focus on the road ahead of us, I feel my eyes widen slightly at the vast expanse of the mansion before us, looming over head like a grand masterpiece more suited for gawking at rather than living in. However, this seems to be the expectation here in London and I have grown accustomed to such extravagance. A glance back to Lizzie has me turning in my seat to fully appreciate the fully content smile occupying her entire face./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Only when Ciel is involved the world is granted such a perfect visage of love and happiness, especially since his return from the dead. My own smile drops slightly at the memories of those horrible months that the world thought Ciel Phantomhive had died with his parents while the original mansion burned. I had never been able to meet him, but this boy that had meant so much to my dear little sister was gone, and so it seemed Lizzie had gone with him. Not once did she brighten the world with any kind of smile, and it made my heart ache for both her and this young child that I had never known./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Lizzie once again interrupts my train of thought as she makes eye contact with me, that same content look upon her face brightening with cheer, "We are here Tsuki! Let us go immediately!"br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!- [if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" /!-[endif]-/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"I answer with my own smile before allowing the driver to help me down from the seat. Lizzie bounces with uncontrolled energy as I bow to our driver in thanks, allowing me to stay in touch with my culture, albeit impatiently./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;""Let's go!" Her voice drags out the words, further proving her fraying patience, "And thank you Mortimer for the ride, promise not to tell mother of father! Or even Paula!" A chuckle sounds from behind us as Lizzie drags me up the front steps of the gleaming stone-gray estate, and she takes that as confirmation./span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Lizzie's small pink knuckles rap viciously against the huge wooden door so many times I quickly loose count. After only a few short minutes the door opens, revealing a small, gentle looking old man with gray hair and a kind smile. His butlers uniform provides me with his status, while Lizzie quickly settles with the introductions, "Oh hello Tanaka, this is Akatsuki Yamamoto. She is also from Japan so you two should hit it off straight away, now where is my darling fiancé Ciel? Oh, do tell me that he is home, for I have so much I wish to discuss with him!"/span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt;" /span/p
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; line-height: 200%; background: #FAFAFA;"span style="font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 200%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; color: #111111; letter-spacing: -.15pt; border: none windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: none windowtext 0in; padding: 0in;"Scarcely a breath is had before she is off to search the mansion herself, not allowing poor Tanaka to voice anything but a simple laugh as his cheeks redden in slight exasperation. I heave a small sigh and give the old man a soft smile, my eyes closing in a happy expression, to apologize for my friend's forwardness. Bowing low, I open my mouth to begin introducing myself properly when a loud shriek bounces along the halls. My head drops and I cannot help but sigh even harder than before, no doubt Lizzie has found something of interest, and I had best go find her before her imagination runs wild./span/p