A/N: Been very lazy and unmotivated lately. Sleep schedule has gone all whack again. Ugh.
Chapter 3: A Murder Mystery Game
With both hands, I held up my long hair to let Sanae zip up my dress. A midnight-blue gown with diamond accents along the waist, previously owned by Origami Yukari. Originally, I was hesitant when Auntie Akane said I could have her late sister's clothes. She had no need for them, she insisted. And besides, I did just have my growth spurt. But despite my increase in height, the same thing couldn't be said for my bosom. How the Hell could it have not even grown an inch all these years?! Obviously, of course, this meant that Origami Yukari's dress was very loose around the chest area to my greatest annoyance. Luckily, Sanae was able to make a few alterations by tailoring it before we left Kamakura.
"Fits okay?" Sanae asked.
I raised my arms and tried walking as well. "Sanae, you're so clever with your needlework. Fits like a glove."
"Good. Let's put your hair up too."
As Sanae braided my hair, I debated whether to reveal to her about what transpired with Fumiko. In terms of possible people I could speak to, if anyone at all, there weren't many options. Not Kanami, obviously; she'd only get angered at the thought of someone directly threatening me. How exactly would I even tell her anyway? Hey Kanami, Fumiko wants to use noro on Tojis and basically threatened me, along with your family. And now, we may be in danger because I refused her offer. Yeah, I definitely could not do that. Then, there was the Akabane Sword Team, but they were certainly out of the question. As for Fumiko's servants, the idea was laughable. I guessed Sanae was my only choice.
"Sanae, I need to tell you something."
Looking at me in the mirror, she asked, "Is something wrong?"
It'd take me longer than the time I had to explain everything, so I got straight to the point. "Murasaki Fumiko has noro in her."
If Sanae was surprised, she hid it well. "Are you sure?"
"I was once an evil aradama goddess," I scoffed. "I know what it feels like."
And I did. Even though I no longer had a great aradama inside myself, I still retained some supernatural powers. Like how I was able to sense Kohime one time. I no longer even needed a Spectrum Finder to locate aradama. The close presence of noro alone was enough to make me feel noticeable fever symptoms.
"Fumiko also literally said she wants to be my right-hand woman," I added. "She told me that when her family was alive, they all did research on aradama. There's no doubt that she wants to use noro on Tojis. And she also made an underlying threat to me and Kanami's family."
"So, what are you going to do?" Sanae asked, pushing the last bobby pin in to secure my braided bun.
"I don't know yet," I said.
A plan of how to deal with this needed to be thought out carefully. Questions had to be asked first before any drastic actions. Dreading having to eat at the same table as Fumiko, I steeled myself as I made my way down for dinner. Although I was on time, I was the last one to arrive and even more unfortunately, the only seat left was the one beside Yui.
"Hiyori-sama, over here!" she called in a sing-song voice while waving her hand.
As I passed by Fumiko, our eyes met and hers immediately darkened in anger. Her fingers turned white as she held her knife tighter, carving up her meat more intensely. Pretending to take no interest in her, I addressed myself to the task of starting the soup course.
Judging by the dishes served, I guessed Fumiko was more of a fan of Western-traditional Christmas dinners. Extravagant delicacies, some I couldn't even name, were continually being brought in by Ryosei and Sakimoto Kaho, the maid. Huge platters of roasted fowl stuffed with raisins and spices. A turbot garnished with parsley. Fruits and vegetables carved into strange creatures. Larks' eggs, truffles, and oysters. And interestingly enough, some sort of custardy pudding called a blancmange.
Conversation was boisterous amongst the Akabane Sword Team and Kanami, as they talked in a noisy fashion about current events. Most of the talking I was forced to do was telling Yui to stop flirting with me.
"Yukari-sama's dress looks so good on you, Hiyori-sama," she squealed. "Although she was a bit chesty to begin with, I think it really shapes your figure well. By the way, did Kanami-chan do your hair?"
Ugh. Girl talk. The number one thing I'd always been bad at.
"No, Sanae braided it up," I replied, trying to concentrate on my meal.
"Oh, she came here too? I think Sanae-chan is also a cute-looking girl. I remember watching her at the National Swordsmanship Tournament back in 2018. Just the sight of her fighting on adrenaline, while sweating and panting, was enough to make me drool! Heh heh. I only stayed for part of the tournament because I had to take a bath to wash myself down. Seeing all those hot-looking Tojis was so turning me on, especially you, of course. Tee hee. Speaking of baths, how about you and I take one together tonight?"
Sensing my frustration, Hana snapped, "Come on, Yui. We've discussed this. Leave Hiyori-sama alone."
"Do you wanna take Hiyori-sama's place then, Hana-san?" Yui asked mischievously, batting her eyelashes.
At the suggestion, Hana's cheeks turned as red as a tomato before she hit the ponytailed pervert on the head with a karate-chop.
"Owie, Hana-san! That hurt..."
Shaking her head and giving me a sympathetic smile, Chie offered, "More coffee, Hiyori-sama?"
"Yes, please."
Refilling my cup, Chie asked Kanami, "Is there a drink you want, Kanami-chan?"
"Some of that orange punch, if you don't mind, Setouchi-san."
At the sound of my girlfriend's voice, I glanced at where she was sitting with Mihono and Kofuki. It was clear the three of them were enjoying the chance of pigging out. What a bunch of gluttons. Even when Mirja told her two teammates to mind their manners, Kofuki responded with stuffed cheeks, "Can't talk. Must eat." Bits of food flew from her mouth, earning her a scowl from Fumiko.
For the most part, Fumiko said hardly anything at all, except on occasional instances when she'd interject a short comment. I could tell she was struggling to be polite as the hostess, but amongst society she viewed as so inferior, she was squirming. I relished the sight.
"The snowstorm looks like it's getting worse," Hana commented, looking outside.
She was right. What was once a light snowfall a few hours ago had grown into a full-on blizzard. A gust of strong wind blew open one of the French windows. Even though Ryosei hurried at once to close it, just those few seconds were enough to drive all the warmth from the dining hall, making us shiver. I placed a hand over the top of my coffee cup to preserve the warmth of my drink.
"We get snowstorms very often in these parts. Perfectly normal," Fumiko remarked.
"I imagine it's difficult though if you're snowed up," Mirja said.
"Yes, one time we were stuck for a week."
I could hear Mihono turning to Kiyoka and whispering, "What'd she say?"
Kiyoka repeated Fumiko's words. Giving a low whistle, Mihono said, "Wow. Hope that doesn't happen anytime soon."
"Especially since we have a mission to complete," Chie added.
With a grunt, Kofuki stabbed a piece of meat with her knife. "This damn snow will prevent me from playing with any aradama-chan."
Was that seriously her only concern? Wasn't there anything else that occupied Kofuki's thoughts? I eventually gave up trying to figure out what went on in that girl's head. Kanami once told me privately how she and Kofuki were pretty similar. I quite frankly did not see the resemblance, besides their mutual interest in kenjutsu.
Kofuki's words seemed to have sparked an idea in Kiyoka though. "After dinner, how about we all play something?"
Then, giving a quick frightened bow of her head towards Fumiko, she hastily added, "Only if it's okay with you, Fumiko-sama."
Not looking up from her plate, our hostess muttered, "Do whatever you want."
"What did you have in mind, Kiyoka-chan?" Chie asked.
"I was thinking perhaps we could play a deduction game," Kiyoka answered.
"Oh! Just like the one we played at the ryokan?" Yui asked.
My brain recalled the memory. The time Kiyoka, Yui, Kanami, Ellen, Maki, Suzuka, and I stayed at a ryokan after a mission. Save for Kanami, we all took part in a murder mystery game.
"It sounds like fun," Chie said.
"Although I think Kanami would probably win. Either her or Hiyori-sama; they're the Toji detectives after all," Mihono said.
At this, Fumiko cast a cold eye on Kanami and then towards me. Surely, she couldn't have been unaware of the fact? I mean, practically the whole country knew we'd solve murders thrown our way to the point where people started calling us Kanami Holmes and Hiyori Watson. I was driven nuts by seeing those two nicknames for weeks in the newspapers.
"Would you like to join us, Fumiko-sama?" Kiyoka asked.
"No. I have work to do."
"O-Oh. O-Okay, then," Kiyoka stammered.
"You may use the drawing-room for your little game if you like," Fumiko said.
I translated this to: Do not use or even go into any other part of the house. Oblivious to Fumiko's crusty attitude, the Akabane Sword Team began another round of chattering in excitement. Only Mirja was quiet. I couldn't help thinking her behaviour was odd during dinner. Several times, I had looked up to see her eyes fixated on either me or Kanami. What was bothering her?
After dinner, we all went to the drawing-room, except for Fumiko. Ryosei poured us all some Martinelli's sparkling apple juice before going back to the servants' quarters, telling us to ring the bell if we needed anything.
It was only almost half past eight, but already I was feeling tired. Probably because I stayed up late the previous night doing paperwork. But even so, I literally drank three cups of coffee earlier and normally, that was enough to keep me from dozing off. Eventually, drowsiness won over and I couldn't take it anymore.
Getting up from the cushioned armchair, I said, "I'm sorry. But I'm just too tired for some reason. I think I'll turn in for the night."
"I'm quite sleepy myself," Kanami said. "I'm also heading to bed."
"Aw, but you two simply must grace the occasion!" Yui whined, seizing me and Kanami facetiously by the arms.
"Hiyori-sama and Etou Kanami are tired, Yamashiro Yui," Mirja said. "Let them go to bed."
Sticking out her bottom lip in a pout, Yui obeyed but not before giving both of us goodnight kisses on the cheek. Hana and I threw black looks at her.
Trudging up the staircase, I turned to Kanami and said, "If you're coming up with me only because you want sex, I'm too exhausted."
With a yawn, my girlfriend replied, "Actually, I'm just as tired as you are, for some reason. Wanna snuggle though?"
I rolled my eyes but could feel the corners of my mouth turning up. "Okay."
A/N: Man, writing about the food in this chapter was making my mouth water in anticipation of my own Christmas dinner with my parents. Lol.
