Author's Notes: I had a comment last week about how my chapters should be longer. Don't think I didn't hear you! Honestly, I intended to make this chapter longer, but truthfully, I have been dead dog sick since Sunday. Today, my eyes stopped streaming enough for me to see straight. So, there might be more errors in this chapter than usual. That's not my style, but really - I'm beat.

Rose Red: Model 85001

Chapter Nine

Hitomi sat in the back courtyard and pulled weeds, which were promptly chewed up by a visiting cow. The cow didn't have a lot to say, but it seemed to like dancing. It took one step forward and then two steps back over and over again. Then it ate the long weeds Hitomi offered it with what might have been a sideways smile, or it might have been cow speak for, "You think this will stop me from eating your flowers after you go into the house?"

Hitomi sighed.

Van left that morning to pick up Allen, Gaddes, and the two stylists in the chopper the next Tuesday. Gaddes' assistant had been making himself at home in the downstairs bedroom, since Van had picked him and all the company's luggage up the day before. Hitomi was left to do the finishing touches on her bedroom – which Allen would be sleeping in during his stay – and to do the final preparations for the food. Hitomi was rather loath to do either of these things, so she was hiding out in the yard. For starters, she knew that Allen would not like the tower the way it was. The man was a millionaire and a snob and it wouldn't suit him to sleep in a bedroom with a springy mattress and a faulty paint job. Hitomi planned to make it as luxurious as she could by burning flavoured bees' wax and replacing the sheets and blankets with new things. She had already unloaded all her personal items into a couple plastic boxes and took them downstairs to Van's room. That was the only room that wouldn't be seen during their guest's visit, or so Hitomi thought. When she was finished with her bedroom she would have to work on the food, which she knew he wouldn't like either. He was the type of man to sneak illegal meat on the side and anyone who didn't serve it to him chopped really fine was below the standard. Well, Van didn't do that sort of thing.

Now Hitomi could feel the cow's breath on the side of her neck, but when she turned to look at it, it was afraid and jumped eight steps back.

Hitomi stood up and watched the cow head off to where ever it had come from. It was getting fat because it ate off the green hills that came with the late spring in the mountains. Hitomi was like that cow too. Her hair was long enough to fall on her forehead, and she'd become so comfortable with Van that she'd forgotten all about the ugly world and how it worked. Lucky for her, it was coming for a visit.

And unlike the cow, she had nowhere to run away to.

Van was okay waiting on the AstroTurf until he saw Allen, and then he felt kinda queasy. Allen stood a whole head taller than him. Van practically had to look up to the bean pole. His height wasn't the only thing; everything else about him was hyper annoying. He was anorexic skinny. His straight blond hair fell all the way to his waist. His skin was practically white and flawless without a speck of stubble, almost as though he could never grow a beard in his life. He was wearing a fish scale coat that was barely legal and what for? Who to impress? They were in the middle of nowhere!

Annoying.

Van swallowed it and shook hands with Gaddes.

Allen removed his smoky purple sunglasses and looked around the flight pad like a bored goddess, for lack of a better description. Van felt a whole new level of revulsion creep up his throat.

Then he went up and introduced himself.

"Yes. I've heard," Allen said breezily, not looking at Van but staring out at the expanse of prairie before him. "About everything, so you don't need to tell me how much effort has gone into my accommodations. I'm sure they'll be below sub-standard and that I'll wish for death before I'm gone."

"I'm sure I will too," Van said quietly as he stepped back towards the chopper.

"What was that?" Allen said, turning to Van for the first time.

"I'm sure that's not true," Van amended. "If there's nothing else you need to do in the city, I can seat you right away and we can get going."

Allen opened his mouth to answer, but Gaddes spoke up first. "That's great. Let's go."

Once inside, the noise of the chopper blades beating furiously overhead, conversation was difficult and Van couldn't have been more grateful, but it wasn't long before they touched ground outside the house. Van helped everyone down and Gaddes said something about how they should all go on one of Van's ice tours before they left if there was time.

"There won't be," Allen said, moving ahead of the other men and the stylists. "I need every last minute to achieve perfection."

Van caught up to Allen and walked a few paces in front of him, but to Van's surprise it seemed he couldn't stand for Van to walk ahead of him and he sped up his steps so that Van was behind him. Van twitched and went ahead, but Allen jumped ahead of him again.

"You're acting like you can't wait to see her," Van said, suddenly stepping right beside Allen.

"Who gave you permission to stand this close to me?" Allen spat. "And who can't I wait to see? No one I know could possibly be in this Hell hole."

"Don't be so sure." Van exhaled and said sharply, "Listen snob, I don't care if you want to act like this. That's up to you, but I want to make something clear to you before you go into the house."

Allen stopped in front of the front door and brushed his coat away from his hip so that he could rest his hand haughtily on it. "What's that?"

"Even if you used to own her, you don't anymore, so don't take any liberties. Got it?"

When Allen heard that, he slowed right down. His face went from pale to bluish and clammy. Van moved to open the door, but Allen grabbed his arm. "What do you mean? I only ever bought Hitomi. Are you saying that you're her new owner?"

Van flicked Allen's hand off his arm and said, "That's what I'm saying."

Inside, Van and Allen walked into the fragrance that could only be Hitomi preparing what could best be described as an afternoon tea. Van loved the smell of bread baking, and he loved it even more when it was coming out of his own kitchen.

Hitomi came out when she heard them come in. When she saw Allen, her face fell. Van knew that was her shy face. It didn't mean anything.

Instead of introducing them, he went up and put his arm around her shoulder and whispered, "Why don't I show them to their rooms while you finish up in the kitchen? You can meet everyone later."

Hitomi ducked her head obediently and went back to work.

Allen clenched his jaw and watched her go like he wanted to say something to her.

But Van stepped in front of him. "Your things have already been taken upstairs. Shall I show you where your room is?"

Allen nodded, and Van led him past the kitchen and up the tower steps.

Van was expecting Allen to make a comment about how shabby the place was, but he was utterly silent as he moved silently behind Van, making occasional checks on the banister or on top of a picture frame for dust. He seemed satisfied that there wasn't any.

"This is my room?" the model asked dully when they reached the room.

"Yes. The bathroom is through there and there's a closet here. I apologize, but we didn't think it would be right to unpack your luggage ourselves, so we've left it for your stylist to do."

"That's fine," Allen said tightly.

"Lunch will be served in about half an hour if you'd care to eat. Please make yourself at home," Van said with a fake smile before turning to leave. He was just happy that the jerk didn't have to know that it was Hitomi's room.

Hitomi watched their guests eat the lunch she had prepared from the safety of the kitchen. Besides, all six people really crowded their dining room. There wasn't really room for her or Van to sit unless they sat on the couch.

Van came and stood next to her in front of the counter.

"How am I doing?" she asked nervously.

"Fine from what I can tell. They're eating, aren't they? So, they can't accuse us of starving them."

"I guess," Hitomi said, biting her thumb.

Van put a hand on her shoulder and said, "There's no reason to be this nervous, is there?"

"We'll see," Hitomi replied. She knew that dinner would be the difficult event. After all, Allen wasn't even eating the lunch. He was pacing in the conservatory.

When dinner finally came, Van didn't force them to eat in the kitchen. After they had served their guests soup and salad and offered them their main course, Van and Hitomi took their plates and sat down in arm chairs on either side of the hearth.

"Don't worry," Van said as they loaded their plates. "Gaddes doesn't want us to hide in the kitchen."

Hitomi nodded and followed Van into the living room awkwardly.

Once there, Allen seemed to take particular notice of her. She also noted that before he saw her he seemed to have taken particular notice of a bottle of wine, which he had brought himself and emptied half of into his glass.

"Hitomi," he said, not sounding remotely drunk. "Do you know how many times I've wondered what happened to you? I've spent days and nights and weeks asking myself where you might have gone. It seemed like you'd dropped off the face of the world."

Hitomi coloured and after a glance at Van, answered. "Sorry, I didn't know that I should have kept in touch. Besides, I couldn't."

"Why not?"

Hitomi didn't even think before she answered. The fruits of years of training with her father to answer truthfully and immediately when asked a question were coming to bear. "I have been in cryostasis the past three years at SLI." She turned it into an acronym hoping that then he wouldn't know what she was talking about.

"Oh, I see," Allen said, understanding completely as he swirled the wine in his glass. "You sold yourself to Sleeping Beauty Inc. That's a fairly good company. My father had my aunt sent there for a cryostasis treatment after my uncle died. She was so tragic, but they kept her well for over twelve years to my understanding. She was a Cinderella. What were you, Hitomi?"

She bowed her head and answered stiffly. "I was a Rose Red."

"Huh? How interesting. Do you know the story of Rose Red? It's not as famous as the story of Thumbelina or Rapunzel. Would you like to hear me tell it?"

Allen didn't wait for anyone in the room to say if they wanted to hear a spoiled model tell them a bedtime story and started telling it. "Once upon a time," Allen said. His voice low and practiced like an actor's. "There was a beautiful young woman who lived in a prosperous kingdom. Her name was Rose Red. The king was wise and proud and the queen was the possessor of the most wondrous beauty and though I know it will surprise none of you – she was the fairest in the land. Rose Red was a serving wench in the castle, and the proud king began to have eyes for her as his queen aged. Time passed and soon there was nothing left to the old man but his desire for Rose Red. Naturally, this didn't please the queen and she sent her most loyal general to kill the wench. As he took her into the forest, he intended to cut out her heart, just as the queen commanded, but as he stood with his knife poised over her breast – he found that he couldn't do it. Instead, he sought to ravage her on the forest floor."

Hitomi gasped.

"That was a fate worse than death for a virgin in those times, but luckily Rose Red's screams brought help. A troll wielding a club found them and recognizing the situation, slammed the general with his club and shattered his skull against a tree." Allen picked up an olive from his plate and dropped it into his wine. "Rose Red thanked the troll and asked him if there was anything she could do to show her gratitude to him for his kindness to her. Can any of you guess what he asked her to do?"

"Be his wife?" one of the stylists suggested with a tinny giggle.

"No. Though that was what he wanted, he lacked the courage to ask her to be his bride. Instead, he asked her to clean and repair his home, so that he might live more comfortably."

"So, how does the story end? Does she fall in love with the troll?"

"Alas, she does not. While cleaning his house, she finds a cellar full of gold. Seeking her independence, she steals the gold and leaves the troll with no companionship and no treasure. On her way home she hears that the old queen has died and travels back to marry the old king who once lusted after her and lives happily ever after."

Hitomi sucked in her breath. That wasn't the story of Rose Red. The story of Snow White and Rose Red was about two girls who helped a dwarf get his beard out of a log. Allen wasn't talking about fairy tales. He was talking about something else, but Hitomi thought she knew what it was. It was obvious and insulting that he was casting Van in the role of the troll, but then who was he casting himself as? Hitomi remembered a certain princess type girl with blonde hair and knew that Allen was making her the queen and himself into the old King. And if that were the case, who was the general? Hitomi didn't know. That must be someone from the part of her life that she didn't remember.

But there was another meaning to the story and it made Hitomi shudder uncomfortably.

On the other side of the hearth, Van couldn't stand it any longer. He knew that Allen made all that up. "That's not how the story goes," he said severely, flicking something off his pant leg into the fire. "You just made all that up. In the story Rose Red and Snow White take money from a wicked dwarf who won't pay them for their services, but there's not the scank you suggest. Rose Red's story is as pure as a bar of soap."

Allen laughed heartily and swirled his wine again. "Who knew you'd be so well versed in fairy tales? You look like a fighter pilot."

Van only knew the fairy tale because he had read it especially because of Hitomi, but he didn't find it to be a very spell binding tale. There wasn't any romance in it and all it was about was forcing a cruel little rich man to pay what was due. But rather than admit any of that he simply responded with, "Excuse me for being well read."

After that, Allen tried to pick Van's brains about exactly how well read he was, but Van excused himself by helping Hitomi clear away the dishes.

"Your friend is delightful," Van said to Hitomi when they were alone in the kitchen. "Was he always so charming?"

Hitomi's smile seemed forced as she replied. "Actually, he's being a good deal nicer than I remember. He hasn't complained about the food and he brought his own liquor, so there was no whining about the fact that we don't have a liquor license. He hasn't sneered about the room or asked for better accommodations, has he?"

"No, but that reminds me," Van said, sidling towards her so he could speak quietly into her ear. "I've decided to give Gaddes my room to sleep in. He plans to let the girls bunk up in the downstairs bedroom and he packed two cots with his gear so he'll have his man sleep in the front room with the cot."

"So where are we going to sleep?"

Van winced. "In the hanger. Sounds cozy, doesn't it?"

Author's Notes: Thanks to everyone who reviews. Hope y'all enjoy the chapter. Review - I need the encouragement. Now I'm gonna go collapse some place soft.