Feliks And Xiu

The only reason Feliks was on the list was because it would be easy to hide things in his house without his knowledge, Roy told Vash. When Feliks was working on things he might go from room to room while looking for something he needed, but considering how many pieces of fabric and supplies were strewn about the house...

Even a computer could be hidden in there.

"I'm not usually so disorganized," Feliks explained, pushing and prodding at the woman who was wearing a dress he was hemming the bottom of. "Things have just gotten, like, totally out of hand recently. And Kat comes over to help out, sweet girl, but she is as clumsy as anything. It, like, makes the mess worse! Have you decided on the colour you want there, Xiu?"

"Yes," said the other as she pointed at a piece of fabric on the table.

"Perfect! I was, like, hoping you'd want that one!" Feliks grinned as he continued to work. Vash opened his mouth to speak, but Feliks continued. "I'm missing a whole box of pins I know I put on the table here. That is one of two boxes I actually know where they are! Except, like, now I only know where one is, as that one is so not there."

"Here is another one."

"Thanks Maddox, sweetie, but I told you to stop coming out of my closets," Feliks said, taking the box of pins from his hands, eyes slightly narrowed.

Vash stared at Maddox, then at the closet he had come out of. "How did you get there?" he demanded to know.

"I entered it," Maddox replied, as he reentered the closet and shut the door.

Roy and Brian were snickering, but the only one who had not reacted to Maddox's sudden entrance was Xiu, who either had completely missed it or actually was not effected by it.

"Are you missing anything?" he asked the woman called Xiu, knowing the answer but not wanting to hear it.

"My husband," she replied simply.

He wondered if this was anything like Natalia and her brother.

"Uh-uh! Remember, you aren't supposed to be thinking about that," Feliks tutted. "That's why you're here."

"'e's nae missin'," Roy whispered into Vash's ear, this time sort of blowing on his ear and causing Vash to struggle not to rub it. "Ai think they're fightin'."

At this point, Vash was not sure what to believe. Was this important? Probably not. They were here to search the place, after this interview. "Where were the both of you yesterday?"

"Here!" Feliks exclaimed. "Where's that ribbon?"

Maddox stepped out of the closet, holding it out.

Feliks scowled, snatching it from his hands. "What did I, like, say?" But before he finished speaking Maddox had gone back into the closet. Feliks went back to his task (both of the dress and answering Vash's question). "I was working so hard yesterday. All yesterday! Until, like, Kat told me to go out to the restaurant. Feli totally solved my problems, he's so totally good at that! You see, I was trying to–"

Feliks went on for some time. Vash made Brian listen to him (much to the Irishman's dismay) while he turned his attention on Xiu. "And you?"

"In the evening?" Xiu repeated, looking down at her feet while she thought. "I went for a walk. I spoke with Lovino. That was around seven, I think. When I went out for a walk, not when I talked to Lovino. I do not know exactly when that was."

"Seven thirty two," came a voice from the closet.

"Get out of there!" Vash demanded, wheeling on the closet. He opened the door himself, only to see no one there.

He stared.

Roy chuckled. "'e does tha'."

"Check the ceiling," Xiu suggested, something of which seemed to surprise Roy. So Vash looked up, only to see the same impassive face on the man who currently had his feet on one wall and his hands against the opposite one.

"You stop messing around!" Vash retorted, before closing the closet door and shoving a chair in front of it. Returning to his task at hand, he noticed that all four of the citizens of Hearth were simply staring at him in shock. "Is there something else wrong?" he asked calmly.

"That depends on your definition of 'wrong', honey," Feliks replied.

"Is that all?" Vash asked Xiu.

She hesitated for a moment before blushing slightly. "Then Antonio showed up and after they argued they went home."

"No surprises there," Roy commented.

Nevertheless, after searching the house and not finding anything, it was time to move on. Vash removed the chair from the door to let Maddox out and to check the closet.

Maddox was not there.

Vash was not amused.

Notes:

Sorry for missing yesterday, all. Still suffering from post-convention fatigue. And things are looking to get busy here all of a sudden, but I will do my best to keep up.