Chapter Eight: Sing Me Friendhsip

Disclaimer: this is an adaptation and based loosely on Goong; I do not own the plot or the manhwa. I also do not own the sailor moon characters or any real locations, quotes, real fashion brands, real food or buildings that might appear in this story. I reserve the right however, to be creative with the characters.

Character Spotlight

Lita Thompson (Kino Makoto): Is a maid working at Column Estate and although often flighty, she always has good intentions. Lita has her moments of wistfulness – randomly remembering past boyfriends at ill-timed moments. She is more so highly perceptive, picking up the slightest mood changes of those around her and often just as quickly the cause. She loves to cheer people up and takes her job very seriously, working for the Column's in the hopes of someday becoming a cook for the house, her dream job. Like in the anime/manga her food is delicious.

Later, Serena began preparing to leave. She wanted to wander a little into the gardens and decided as much when all of Prince's delicacies had been polished clean from the plates. There were clothes left for her in the massive walk-in closet which came as no little a surprise. There hadn't been any expectancy for something actually being in there. Someone had shopped for her, and amidst the neatly folded rows of clothes were familiar articles of jeans, t-shirts and last summer's dress from her own miniscule closet back in Braythorne. The tags still lay on the new clothes, one glance at a price tag making Serena hesitant about putting on anything at all, but in the end weakness to resist the gorgeous apparel won out over her conscience and she settled on the gorgeous baby pink sweater under an old floral romper. She completed the look with comfy calve-length day boots – just a pair amongst thirty other newly purchased footwear, arranged neatly on the shoe rack of the closet – whoever did the shopping as well as this good deed had excellent taste.

Next she styled her hair, throwing up long strands of corn-blonde locks into two odango buns at either side of her head – the style which had been with her for years – letting two, thin pig-tail inspired streaks hang out. A peak at the vanity mirror let her know the style was adorable as ever and later she proceeded to search for stationary, finding a blank sheet of paper, writing pen, small envelope as desired. The letter she penned was not for Darien in particular, but for anyone who might look later for her. The guilt of worrying them earlier still bothered Serena and she determined with the note not to bother this household again. I don't expect anyone to come looking for me, but if by some reason you do…I'm in the gardens, she wrote. If I can find them, that is. Thinking better of that implication and knowing the foul-tempered Darien would find her attempt at humour far from funny, she added: That was a joke, baka. I'll see you soon, don't worry about me.

So maybe the note was for Darien. She tried not to think too much about why she concerned herself with him first before anyone else and placed the information on the side table, rushing out the door in pure excitement of all that was to come. She made it ten steps from the door before a tall maid with pulled-back dark hair carrying laundry rammed into Serena hard, sending them both careening to the marble ground.

Where had she come from? Her rump and arms throbbed as Serena tried to remember what she had done to deserve the attack. The other girl looked just as confused if not more, and it took a moment for her to react, but when she did her instincts kicked in and she was gathering the scattered articles of clothing while sputtering a fast apology. "Are you okay?" she asked after the tenth 'Oh my gosh, I'm sorry!' "I can't believe I just did that!" The blues and greens of laundry hung haphazardly in her arms, something quizzical passing through those confident features- but only for a moment.

"Are you all right?" Serena asked, missing the look.

Ignoring the question, the maid carefully gazed first to her and then at the room she had just exited. It took a second for that face to fall once more, the perfect depiction of mortified, the bundle in her grasp looked ready to be dropped a second time.

"Crap. I just took down Mrs. Column," she stuttered a little, "As in the t-tyrant's wife." Briefly, the shaking ceased and pride seeped into her tone replacing where fear had once been and the girl grinned, "That's pretty awesome!" Quickly correcting herself, "If you don't mind me saying, that is. Not that it was my intention… the thing is, Mrs. Column, I have never taken someone down so quickly before." Pride really did grace the outline of her elegant face, until her senses seemed to return. "I am so fired," she groaned.

"Why?" Serena asked, half her attention on tending to her bruising hip, the other portion decoding the scene and how it came to be. The maid must have only recently finished doing laundry – the clothes smelled clean, the scent of softener still fresh. With the pile of socks, pants and shirts so high, the maid wasn't able to look and see where she was headed; it did not help matters that Serena hadn't paid much attention either. But the collision had hurt; the sturdy but slim girl had been able to knock her hard enough to leave behind pain that felt like a rapidly growing bruise. It made sense how they had gotten here; her certainty over the job's termination however, was not as easily understandable. "Relax, I am not going to fire you," Serena said, feeling a little strange because she had never even contemplated firing someone before.

"Why not?" the girl seemed suspicious.

Serena shrugged, "I'm just not going to." Because she did not have the power to do so and letting go of staff really didn't seem the way not to unsettle this household. She kept those reasons to herself.

"You like getting pushed?" the girl blurted. Her eyes wide, she looked positively astonished that anyone would favour being roughed around. "I'd beat me up if I were you."

"Not today," Serena said firmly. "Besides, I think you could take me pretty easily if I was to fire you and get you mad. No thanks."

The girl beamed and the conversation quieted. The bruise felt better; undoubtedly it would leave a mark- not one that people could easily see, thanks to the cushion provided by her long sweater. The last thing either she or Darien needed was someone spreading nasty rumours regarding their domestic life. 'Rape in Paradise!' she could see the headlines now. "No rape here, no way," she blurted and the maid's brows shot up. "I mean that I'm all good," Serena corrected, blushing. "Every part of me is fine – not that there is any reason for it not to be that way – what I mean to say is...Your job is safe."

"And I won't tell anyone about your marital woes," the girl winked, "Who heard rape? Not me."

"I really didn't mean for that to slip out," Serena giggled shyly. "It was a mistake."

The girl smiled, saying good-naturedly, "Oh I get it. What with the responsibility of being daughter-in-law and keeping this family together, revealing such devastating news so soon after the wedding could be tragic. In fact I think that kind of thing is common around here, happens often."

"You-you know what I mean!" Serena shook her head, trying to evoke the air of someone serious; after all home abuse was no laughing matter, but failed by a long-shot simply because she was far from being a serious person. Calming down after having laughed again she asked, "How about I help you pick these up?"

If anything these words stunned the maid more than the giggling wife of her employer. "S-sure!" she decided finally, laughing a little nervously. "I mean, it's not like any harm can come from you helping me clean up, how could I possibly lose my job that way?"

"Good."

"I mean, making the newly-wed bride work is no biggie. No biggie…"

"Argue one more time and I will fire you," Serena stated. That was it.

With no further arguments – neither direct nor implied – they went about their task in impeccable silence, every article picked and carefully folded back into the maid's hands by the end. Then, they faced each other. The foresty green of the maid's eyes looked at her above the tower of pants and shirts shone with gratitude. "Thanks for this," she said genuinely thankful and for the first time sounding at ease. "I guess this makes for two records in one day; first for taking down the boss's wife and secondly for actually gathering up my mess so fast. It's been one for the books."

"What's your name?" Serena asked, trying her hand at meeting new people.

"Lita," the girl offered, smiling brightly. "Lita Thompson, I work here."

"Oh? I'd never guess." Serena teased. "I'm Serena Jack…Column." It was part of ingrained upbringing to introduce with both first and last names, a part of her Serena intended to keep. If only she could figure out what surname to use? "Could you help me find the way out of here?"

"There are many ways in, but few out." Lita's eyes twinkled and she rolled them playfully. "Just Kidding. Where were you headed?

"I'd like to see the gardens." She said. Then Serena remembered to be specific, "The one without the bewitched and frozen people unfortunate enough to have angered my oh-so-very rueful husband, now stuck for eternity. My guess is they are through those doors?" she pointed to the doors just down the hall, wondering when this marriage might become a part of her and not so foreign a reality. She wanted hard to like her life here.

Lita chuckled, "'For all eternity,' eh? I don't know anything about that – that's the good employee response by the way, I'd never tell you the secrets of this dark manor so soon – but the gardens with the most amazing roses ever are just past those doors," she explained, pointing to the opening at the end of the spanning hall. "Then turn right. When you see the fountain, keep going until you come across the statue that looks a little like a crazy person decided to run nude and someone poured him stuck with cement. Take a left, the gardens should be straight through from there."

Straight down, then right and left. "Got it, thanks," Serena said tucking away the directions. She made move to leave when Lita's firm grip found her shoulder.

Startled, Serena stopped, waiting for her to speak. Finally she cleared her throat enough to say, "You wouldn't...You won't tell the other Column's will you?" the girl blushed, looking to the ground. For the slightest second Serena considered that she might harbour feelings for her new husband, it made sense most women would, but Lita shook her head as if to discredit that possibility. "I'm here so I can learn to cook," she explained. "One day I want to create masterpieces in one of the big kitchens in Column Estate, and I just know they'll let me when I'm good enough… or when I finally wash enough laundry. Sometimes I'm allowed in to watch the other chef's on my shifts off, but I'll really be fired if anyone hears what I did to you—"

"You did nothing to me." Serena clarified, raising a hand. The girl had nothing to atone for and need not beg. Even if they'd just met, Serena appreciated the easy way being around her was. No way was she going to lose that over some misunderstood bump. "If you're fired, I'll never get to taste your supposedly delicious food." Serena teased giving a playful shrug. "The way I see it, you're stuck in this 'dark manor' for a while longer. That alright?"

"Sounds good to me," Lita grinned. "And I'm holding you to it by the way; my cooking is to die for!"

"Good to know." Serena smiled at her new friend. This was progress. "How will I find you?"

"Easy!" she winked, really loosened up by now. "Ask anyone for the hottest chick here, and make sure to add that you're looking for the one who can also break all of their backs in half. They'll show you to me."

Despite the garish description, Serena saw through to the humour at heart. This girl was sweet and unnecessarily would not hurt anyone, she could tell. "Thank you." Serena said turning, "I'll be sure to visit…I think you're my first friend here."

"Huh." Lita cocked her head. "'First friend here' was my last boyfriend's debut album. Good to know," she said throwing the line back at her. Turning, she hummed some unfamiliar tune. "Look out!" Serena heard her call just before she disappeared, long hair swaying the last of her she glimpsed before hearing, "More friends are gonna come running."

In response a smile curved her lips. Making good of those directions, Serena turned the knob so the door was open, stepping through. Replaying the other instructions in her head she hoped sincerely that she and Lita might meet again. She looked forward to hearing the rest of that song.

Life is Bliss...

A.N: Exams start next week Tuesday, SO FREAKING STRESSED, but I had to post this for you guys! There's a Character Guide I've put a lot of effort into, too, so enjoy that. So…am I Forgiven? (For the long wait?) I hope so! Looking forward to feedback on this one; the next chapter is a quickie too so it'll be up sooner. Did I mention how much I love y'all? As always, I gotta thank SoujaGirl and the Lord, because without either of them I would not be this far. And you guy's support is invaluable, so very grateful. I'm blessed!

Xoxo, Analynn