"Pardon me, but would you mind saying that again?" a confused Sakuya asks.
Two days after the tea party, you are back at the Scarlet Devil Mansion again. You tell Sakuya the reason that you come here: to help her with her maid-ly duties for the month. Sakuya, again, looks confused.
"My ears didn't deceived me, then," Sakuya says, "However, I still don't understand. Why?" the head maid asks you. Well, there's a reason for this:
After the tea party that was held at the SDM garden, the head house of the mansion, Remilia, calls out to you. She ushers you to a somewhat secluded place where no one can hear the two of you. Truthfully, we don't need to be discreet, as everyone else is busy doing their thing: Sakuya is cleaning up while Meiling went to the library, piggy-backing a tired Patchouli. We walk for a bit until we reached a spot that has some shades on it. Then, the vampire speaks,
"Did you enjoy the tea party?" she turns to you, a smile on her face. You say that it was fantastic, the food was sweet while the crimson tea compliment the dessert well. As you say that, Remilia grins,
"Well, of course. Nothing less from my Sakuya," she boasts, "Now, I won't beat around the bush. I suppose you are fairly acquainted with our head maid, Sakuya?" Of course. Whenever you arrived here, she's the one that has been giving you a warm welcome and hospitality. You find it odd, however that she's able to everywhere at once with a simple call, but maybe that's just a Gensokyo thing, similar to how Reimu can float.
"She is amazing, is she not?" the vampire smile hasn't leave her face, "Too amazing, perhaps. She has been keeping the mansion in tip top shape and well under control. Everything that you ask of her, she will do it. She is an able one, that Sakuya," Remilia drones on about Sakuya, "However, I worry for her. A human to take on that many tasks at once is not something that should happen. Well, a vampire like me would not have any problem but Sakuya, again, is only a human. I wish for her to have a companion that could help her in her times of need". It's true that Sakuya seems to be handling all of the work at the mansion. Although, wasn't there fairy maids and those… goblins(?) that she had employed? Remilia sighs.
"You should know how fairies work by now. They are simpleminded and fun-seeking that it would be a miracle if any big tasks would be accomplished, if not for Sakuya instruction. I worry that she would have a burnout, one of these days," Remilia looks solemn. Really? When you look at Sakuya, she seems to be doing fine. You didn't even noticed that she's tired. Hearing you say that, Remilia's face turns to a scowl,
"Are you saying that my eyes(judgement) are wrong? I have been with Sakuya for many moons and I know what is best for her. And right now, she is oozing with restlessness. There will be a time where she crumbles and I would not want that day to come," Remilia coughs, "That is why, I ask of you: I want you, to work as a secondary head maid, in the Scarlet Devil Mansion," she points to you. This is a bit much to take in. To just, suddenly, be given a job like this is… something. You need to have a think tank meeting with yourself first. Seeing you took too long to answer, Remilia chimes in,
"It seems that you are having trouble deciding. Then, I propose this: Work for me for a month. We can take it as your trial period. If you think that you like working as my maid, then I will gladly accept you. However, if you say that this is not for you, then I will let you go," Remilia suggests. A month, huh? That should be fine. A month doesn't seems that long. Before you can say anything, Remilia continues,
"Oh, and this is non-negotiable. You are to start your work two days after this conversation".
… Huh? What did she say? You ask her to repeat what she said.
"Are your ears full of wax now? I said: You are to start your work two days after this conversation is over. Honestly, how are you going to work efficiently if you cannot listen to simple order?" she sighs. No, you hear her completely, is the work part that you don't understand. You don't remember agreeing to it yet. "You took too long, so I answered for you. Are I not the best girl there is?" she smugly said. No, wait, but you haven't agreed to this yet, you still need time to-
She notices your face of refusal. She slowly walks forward. "I will say this again: Work for me, or-" she holds her thumb out and placed it on her neck. With the same hand, she made a slicing motion across the neck. Her smile creeps on her face. Well, you still want to live, so you agree to the vampire demands. "Wonderful! I knew you would agree to this. As I said before, you are to start work two days after this is over. Meet with Sakuya and tell her that you want to help her. Also, this is important. Do not tell her that I sent you. If she does, she would willingly play along with this and I want it to be seen as something normal. Now, then. That is all what I would want from you. I see you two days from now on," she then slowly walk past you. You stood there for a few seconds then, you head back home.
On Hakurei Shrine, you tell Reimu that you're going to start working for the SDM for the month. Reimu was confused at first, but she lets you go. She reminds you to bring back some of the pay back to the Hakurei Shrine, as part of donation fee. Thanks, Reimu.
And here we are now. You didn't say any of this to the head maid, you only think of it. If Sakuya did found out about the reason, you worry that the head house would do something to you –mainly to your head-. You say to her that she looks a bit tired lately, and you wonder if you could help her, only for the month though. Sakuya blinks a few times, before asking you,
"Did Lady Remilia put you up to this?" Bullseye. You turn away and (badly) whistles. Sakuya sighs. "Honestly, I told her that I'm fine…" Sakuya mutters under her breath. "Very well then, if that's what the mistress wants," Sakuya's resigns to the idea. "If you were to work under me, then I will teach you everything there is to know about maidhood. Before that, we need to start with your appearance," she points to you, "The outfit that you have right now won't do," she grabs hold of your hand, "Now, follow me," and drags you to one of the empty room. She hands you a bundle of clothes and asks you to enter the room so that you could change. You do so. But before you change into it, something is wrong with the sets of clothes that she gave you. You ask Sakuya if there's a mix-up when she gave you these clothes but she said that the clothes that she hands you are correct. You feel like you'll lose something if you wear this, but you did it anyway.
You head out of the room, embarrassed with the clothes that you're currently wearing: a black classical maid dress, a maid cap apron, and stockings, similar to the fairy maids that you see only it's in your size. You look at Sakuya, to see how she react and she only smiles.
"Ah, there you are," Sakuya says. You ask Sakuya if this is really the outfit you were supposed to wear, which she nods. You look back at your outfit, from front to back, even twirling around and then,
"Pft-" you hear a puff of air came out from Sakuya's direction. You look at Sakuya and she still smiles. Did she just laugh at you? She assures you that she didn't. You ask her if this is really the only outfits that's available.
"Of course," Sakuya calmly says, "As you can see, we only have the fairy maids working here, so there is only this maid outfit that's available to us on short notice. The one that you're wearing right now is the one that the thief, Marisa wore before". Well, that made sens- Hm? Marisa wore this before? "Why yes. We managed to catch that elusive thief one time and made her work here to pay off her debt. Why, you should have seen the look on her face when she was working here, "Sakuya reminisce. Why would she gave you the one that Marisa wore? Is there no spare available? Sakuya sighs,
"Again, this is such a short notice, and I wasn't able to prepare something appropriate. And you can see that the size between you and the fairies are miles different. Don't worry. I've already cleaned the outfit that you're wearing," Sakuya puff out her chest. Making you wear this doesn't feel right however. Noticing your discomfort, Sakuya continues, "However, it looks like you don't like the outfit that you're wearing right now. No choice then. There's a place that we need to visit first. Let's go," she grabs you by the hand and drags yo-
W-wait, at least let me change first! you scream.
After the exchange -thankfully you are able to change-, you walk with Sakuya to a certain building, in between the Human Village and Forest of Magic. The building are similar to the one at the Human Village, although, there are some random knick-knack strewn around the outside. Without knocking, Sakuya waltz in inside the building. You follow the confident maid inside. Inside the building, you can see various item are randomly placed. The messiness level can even rival Marisa herself. The urge to clean inside you rises but you supress it. Sakuya walks forward and you follow behind her, until she reaches the front counter. There is a glasses man sitting behind the counter, reading a book. He notices the maid, look up and say to her,
"Hm? Oh, it's the maid from the mansion," he looks past the maid and to you, "And who is that behind you, Miss Sakuya."
"It's good to see you, Mister Rinnosuke. Let me introduce you to our temporary worker," she introduces you to Rinnosuke. You greet the man.
Morichika Rinnosuke has golden eyes, short silver hair and don a pair of glasses. He wears a black and blue outfit and, on his stomach, a small bag rest there.
"Oh, you're the one that Marisa's been talking about," he says. Does Marisa know everyone here? you wonder. Rinnosuke continues, "Let me introduce myself then. My name is Rinnosuke Morichika. I own the antique shop, Kourindou," he points to the items that are laid out, "If there's anything that you are interested in, or anything that you need appraising, you can come to me. I would love to take a look at anything that you brought over from the Outside World. Now, what is it that you need of today?" he asks.
"We are in need of a maid outfit but tailored for men."
"Hmmm, a maid outfit tailored for men? I think I got the proper clothes for that, I'll be right back," he stands up and goes to the back. You take this chance to look around. There are things that you couldn't make heads or tails on how they are used. Although curios, you keep your hands to yourself, as you don't know how expensive the things that are being sold here are. Sakuya, however, walks around the place and touches anything that she found interesting. Later, Rinnosuke came back, carrying a black suit with him.
"This here is a butler outfit, the counterpart for the housekeeping maid," he hands you the outfit. The outfit consists of: a dark blazer with a white undershirt, a dark trouser, white gloves, and a black lace shoes. You don't know anything about clothing, however, the fabric are nice to the touch. `You can feel how it was professionally tailored. "The one that you have right there is the British butler outfit. There's many variation of it, depends on where they're employed. Some like to dress their butler with vest, different colour suit and so forth. Also, the word, Butler, itself came from the Old French, an-" Rinnosuke continues with the history lesson but Sakuya stops him.
"Thank you very much, Mister Rinnosuke. However, we are pressed for time right now," Rinnosuke awkwardly scratch the back of his head and say "Oh, right". Sakuya continues, "This outfit is perfect for the mansion aesthetic. Now, how much do I owe you?" Sakuya asks Rinnosuke. He look at both you and Sakuya, before saying,
"Don't worry. It's on the house. Take it as a gift from me to the human there." You say thank you to Rinnosuke. "Also, your mistress has been helping me with the store by buying and selling the oddities from the mansion. Without her, the store would probably be in the red by now."
"Thank you. Then, if the mistress has an interest in weird oddities, I'll make sure to visit here first. Also, any trinkets from the mansion, I'll make sure to show it to you first." Saying that, you can see his eyes lit up, a smile creeping on his face. Looks like the two are business buddies. "My, would you look at the time. It's best if we take our leave now. Thank you again, Mister Rinnosuke," she gives a slight bow and leaves the shop. You say thanks again to Rinnosuke and follow the maid back to the SDM.
The sun is setting as you return to the SDM, you and Sakuya are walking to one the empty rooms. She tells you that you would be staying her from now on. You ask why you're not staying in the rooms with the fairies maid. She says that, although you're a worker, you're still a guest of the SDM. She stills gives you the hospitality of a guest. You asks if you're going to start working today, which she reply with,
"No, it's too late. We'll start tomorrow. I'll be heading to the kitchen to prepare for dinner tonight. For now, rest in your room. I'll call for you when the food is ready," Sakuya then leaves to the direction -you assumed- the kitchen. You enter the room and placed the newly received outfit and place it on a coat hanger, next to the empty wardrobe. You realize that you didn't bring anything with you, especially clothes for the night. Looks like you're not showering today. Now, you can wait for Sakuya to call you, but you're feeling rather bored. Not adhering to Sakuya orders, you instead go out and hang out with Meiling. Meiling was confused at first but you tell her everything and she's cool with it. You talk a bit with the gatekeeper, then, the head maid appear behind you and Meiling.
"There you are," Sakuya says, "I told you to stay at the room, didn't I?" you say that you were bored of waiting and apologize to Sakuya. Sakuya sighs. "That's alright. I'm here to inform that dinner is finished. Come to the dining hall. Lady Remilia is waiting for you there. You too, Meiling," and like that, Sakuya leaves first. You and Meiling head back in to the SDM, you follow Meiling, as your still lost on the layout of the mansion. You feel like the inside of the mansion is bigger that what it looks like outside.
You walk for a while until you reach the dining hall. The vampire, Remilia, sits on one of the chair. Sakuya is attending to the mistress. Meiling look at the food with glee.
"Woow~~ there's so much here. And they all smell sooo good! Are we celebrating something today?"
On the table, there's lay various food, mostly western: steak, mashed potatoes, and tomato juice. At the shrine, you mostly had Japanese food, so this is all new to you. You have eaten at the mansion before, but they're mostly sweets, as you never stayed for lunch/dinner before.
"Fufufu, of course. Now, sit down, both you," the mistress ushers. Meiling finds a place to sit and you sit beside her. Sakuya stands beside the mistress. "Sakuya, you too," she turns to Sakuya. Sakuya hesitated for a moment, but follow the mistress's request. She sits next to Remilia. "Our guest here has something to say," she look at your direction. Oh right. You stand up and tell the resident of the mansion that you'll be working temporary under Sakuya for the month. Remilia laughs.
"Fufufu, is that so?" Remilia play ignorance, "The human has graciously given his time and body to pay back our mansion generosity. He begged me to let him work for us. And so, the generous me has no choice but to follow through, after seeing the human sad display," she boast her achievement. Funny, you don't remember any of that. You sit down. Before continuing, Meiling interjects,
"If he wants to work, he can work with me! I would love to have someone to talk to. It gets boring watching the same thing every day".
"No, Meiling," Remilia reply, "The gatekeeping position is a very special position that only you could do. And no one in the world can take that away from you," Remilia coolly plays it off. Hearing that, you can see Meiling smile and blushes. Sakuya remain silent during the conversation.
"As I was saying, because the human begged me, I have no choice. So, I employed him under Sakuya, to help her whenever she is short-handed," she turns to Sakuya, a smile on her face, "Would that be alright, Sakuya" she asks. Sakuya quickly replies with, "Of course, Lady Remilia," her face stays the same.
"Great, as expected of my Sakuya! Now, to show our hospitality to our new found worker, Sakuya has prepared this feast. Do not be afraid and just enjoy the meal. The share for the others has already been made, so eat to your heart content!" Remilia proudly exclaim. Meiling rejoices as well while Sakuya kept her cool composure. You are swept away by the mood, as you enjoy the feast in front of you with your boss and employee.
The feast has ended and you're walking back with Sakuya. You swear that the mansion layout changes, but you don't have any proof of that. The food, of course, is as amazing as the vampire proclaimed it to be. You can see that the vampire has the smuggest look when she sees you enjoying the food. You feel bad for Reimu that she can't taste the food with you, and you wonder if she's eating well for the night. It was supposed to be your turn to make dinner. But she should be fine. She was fine when you're not there before. Your walk with Sakuya is in complete silence. Even during the meal, Sakuya only gave curt response, like she's in her work mode. Before you can ask her what's wrong, she turns to you and say,
"You haven't taken a bath yet, right?" Sakuya asks, "Here is the bath area. I have put out the towel, clothes and the bath has been drawn out. I'll be waiting outside. Take your time," Sakuya stands beside the door. You say to her that it's fine and not taking a bath for one day is not the end of the world. Hearing you say that, her face contorted to a disgust, as she was looking at walking garbage. Feeling the pressure, you walk into the bath.
Inside, the bath is place is big. Bigger than the shrine. The walls are made from white marble, lots of bath refreshment and a big bath, able to fit two people in. You feel awkward on using other people's bath, but you reassured yourself that it's only for a month. Reimu would love this place. Not wanting to make Sakuya wait any longer, you quickly rinse yourself and enter the bath. It feels absolutely divine. All the fatigue from your body leaves you. The shrine only have a small shower with no heating. You wish to stay in the bath forever alas, time forbids you, as someone is waiting for you outside. You (reluctantly) finish your bath, dry yourself and quickly wear the clothes that Sakuya has prepared for you. They're regular clothes that the people in the Human Village wear. With the bath finish, you return to Sakuya.
Sakuya is standing guard outside. You apologize to her for making her wait long, but she doesn't seem to mind. With this, you walk with Sakuya again. There is something in your mind however. You ask Sakuya why does the SDM has regular wear, in your size even. Sakuya walk in silence. Then,
"Somethings are best left unknown," Sakuya coldly says. ? You don't understand but feel that Sakuya doesn't want to continue the conversation, so you drop it. Finally, you reach your destination: the room where you be staying for the month. "Well then, I'll be coming in the morning to pick you up. Our day starts early, so it's best to rest early for tonight. That is all, I'll be taking my leave then," with a sligh bow, Sakuya leaves. You say your goodbyes and watch her back for a few seconds, before entering your room. In your room, drowsiness comes, and you groggily walks to bed and lay on it. The bed is an absolute bliss. The bed feels fluffy to the point that you could sink into it. You feel like your floating on clouds –not that you know how cloud feels like-. At the shrine, you always slept under the futon. They're fine, but a bed made a ton of difference. If Reimu sleep in this bed, there's no chance she will wake up. You laugh at the thought and after that, you enter DreamLand.
"..ak… p" a distant voice calls. You shift around the bed. "W…ke up…" the voice calls again. You ignore the voice, you're still sleepy. Then, you feel pressure around the tip of your nose, blocking your airway. You start to have trouble breathing. Due to this, you jolt out of your bed, quickly breathing. You look around to see the source of your problem and the culprit stands there: Sakuya. Sakuya look at you, her face unamused.
"You're late," Sakuya sternly says, "Our day start early and you have wasted a good ten minutes by sleeping in," she scolds, "Please quickly freshen up, and meet me outside," Sakuya then leaves the room. You quickly gives her a (tired) response and groggily walks to the in room toilet. The toilet in your room is smaller than the bath, only able to fit one person, but it has the necessary equipment you need. You slowly freshen up, wear the butler suit from yesterday, and go out the room, to meet with Sakuya.
"Late," she immediately says after you leave your room, her stopwatch in hand, "We are already late and you're taking too long, preparing yourself," she puts away her stopwatch, "Not to mention…" she look at you, mainly your head, "Did you not put any hair gel? We put it on top of the desk, where the mirror was," she asks. Hair gel? What's that? Sakuya has a dumbfounded look on her face. "Unbelievable," she utters, "This won't do. Follow me," she grabs hold of your hand and bring you back inside your room. She brings you to the desk that she says the hair gel was, a small chair is there as well. She asks you to sit and you do so. She shows you how to use the hair gel, even going as far as to comb your hair for you. She styles it to a slick back hair. She also picks up a spray bottle and spray few puff of water out, side to side. Never thought hair care is this serious… you think to yourself. After a minute or so, she finishes her craft, a smile on her face.
"There, it is done. A person who works in the mansion has to be presentable at all times. I've done this for you the first time and the time after, you have to do this by yourself. Understand?" you nod to the maid question. You look at the mirror and with that singular hair job, you look like a different person. Hair gels amazing! you think to yourself. "Now that I think of this, do you not style yourself in the morning?" The most that you did just brushing your hair. The shrine doesn't really have any skin-care product and the shower only have a single shampoo brand (that you shared with Reimu). Reimu doesn't seem to mind much about her appearance as she does the bare minimum to look presentable. Maybe you get the habit from her? The few times that she does her best is when she went to the Human Village to solicit donation preach faith. Listening to this, Sakuya sighs,
"As expected of that poverty shrine…" she mutters. "Anyway, this matter is done. We need to leave post-haste. We took too long," she grabs your arm and brings you outside the room.
You're now in one of the hallways of the mansion, cleaning supplies are next to you: broom, a mop, bucket, rags and chemical that you are unaware of. Sakuya stands tall in front of you. You take this chance to take a look at her.
Sakuya Izayoi, the head maid of the Scarlet Devil Mansion. She is as slightly smaller than Meiling. She has blue eyes, silver hair worn in long braid with green ribbon tied on both sides, and a typical white maid headband. Her outfit is a French type maid outfit, blue coloured and short sleeves, and a small black ribbon on her neck. She also sports a small white apron. Hey body is petite, different from Meiling. Sometimes, you can see her materialize few silver knifes out, but you don't know whether or not she has it on her right now. You think back the first time that you met her,
It was a usual morning at the shrine. You and Reimu were cleaning at lounging around after finishing. You were about to made tea when suddenly, two figures came up. It was a little girl, carrying her parasol and someone wearing a maid outfit. They came up to the shrine to meet with you. They (mostly the child) asked you several questions. She seems to be interested in you, like how a child curiosity to something new. The maid, however, starts using the kitchen without asking for permission. Reimu seems to know the two, as they exchanged greetings with each other. Later, after the child finished with her prodding and the tea has been drunk, they take their leave, before inviting you over to some mansion. Scarlet Devil Mansion, or something. You say your goodbyes and asked Reimu who they were.
"Oh, them?" Reimu starts, "The first one, in the maid uniform, that's Sakuya. She's the head maid for that mansion at the misty lake. Our first meeting wasn't really pleasant, with that red mist incident. She's someone who take her job very seriously, professional to the end. However, don't let her perfect act fool you. There's one thing that you need to learn about the mansion: every one there is an eccentric. That includes the maid. Now, we should start preparing. Dinner tonight will be delicious~~ I got some meat for half-off at the market today ~~" Reimu happily sings. Tonight dinner was indeed very delicious.
"Are you listening?" the head maid asks. You go out of your stupor and sees that the maid has an annoyed face, "Judging by your reaction, I presumed you didn't. That is unbecoming of a maid. You need to always be attentive to your surroundings," the maid chide in. You apologize to the maid and asks her to repeat what she said. The maid sighs,
"As I was saying, I will explain to you the scope of our job. Our job is to take care of the mansion: mainly cleaning, cooking and attending the guests. There is also the matter of caring for the mansion residence, but I'll be managing that. For today, I will be checking in your skills. I want to see how you fare without any knowledge beforehand. Your job, is to clean the hallway as you would usually do. I'll be checking up on you from time to time. But do note, I have my eyes on you at all time. Don't worry, I have already excluded the fairy maid from helping. This area will all be you. I have provided the essentials. You may begin now," she gives a slight bow before disappearing the corner. You watch as the maid disappear. You look at the supplies that Sakuya has provided. You recognize only few of the things, like the broom, rags and toothbrush. Not to worry, as you have the basics pat down, because you help clean the shrine often and a part or Marisa's house. You also help Koakuma and Patchouli sorting books out. You should got this one in the bag. You look at the hallway that you're supposed to clean, but it looks clean enough. Nevertheless, Sakuya gives you this area to clean because there is something needed to be clean. You pick up the broom, and find the spot that needed cleaning.
After some cleaning: sweeping the floor, wiping the windows and polishing the vase on top of the table, Sakuya comes back to check up on you. You stop what you're doing and greet her. You show off the area that you clean out, proud that you're able to spot some dust that was lingering around. Sakuya says nothing as she looks at you directly, her face neutral.
"Sloppy," she stoically says. Without saying anything else, she walk past you. She stands in one the spot that you sweep, "You move too much. Rather focusing on one path, you instead move sporadically, wasting your time, going back and forth," she comments. She then moves to one of the windows, "Also, you only use water for the windows. Didn't I put out some soap for you to use? If you only use water, some grimes and gunk won't come out of it. Also, the newspaper are there as well for a reason. Not to mention," she place her finger on the sill and drags it across, "There's dust here. I put out that toothbrush so that you can reach those pesky spot that a lot of people miss, "she shows you the dust that forms on her finger. "Next," she moves towards one of the vase that you polished, "Why did you remove your gloves? Didn't you know that your hand has oil on it, and it will left an imprint? There is no excuse for a maid to just remove one of their attire during work. Also, please move the vase when wiping the table. There's dust underneath it if left unattended. Other people might not see it but we do. And lastly," she walks up to you. "A maid always keeps themselves proper," she brushes of the dust that lingers on your clothes, "No matter what happen, you must never greet your guest in dirt. The maid is the face of the mansion. If people see how sloppy their maid are, it will reflect on the mistress, and that is something that I won't allow. This also apply to, Meiling," she looks at the window. You receive an array of complain from the head maid. Everything that you did has been wrong, incomplete or improper. This isn't the end, as Sakuya continues,
"Another thing. Why did you only clean this area?" Sakuya asks you, her tone neutral.
B-because this is where you ask to clean, you timidly says.
"I applaud you for following orders, however, this hallway isn't the only place where the mansion needs cleaning. If you have the spare time, you should move accordingly. Do you need to wait for every order before you can move? Do you just stand there, doing nothing, happily waiting for an order? You need to learn to move proactively. Asses the situation, and think for yourself. If you notice by now, it's already midday." You look at the window outside and she's right, the sun is shining brightly on top of the mansion now. "However, this should be expected. It's only your first day after all. I'll help you clean up, we need to move to the kitchen next," Sakuya helps you clean the tools that you were using before. In no time, everything is spick and span. You follow Sakuya to the kitchen. During your walk, you notice that you're walking slower than before, the spring in your step has left you.
You arrive at the kitchen. There's a big table in the middle, lots of counter, an array of cutlery: knives, spatulas, different sizes fork and spoon. There's also a lot of pots and pan, some of them are made from clay. The difference in cooking tools are immensely different from the shrine. At the shrine, you only have two different knives, some chopsticks and two sizes spoon and fork and the same pot and bowl you used every day to cook.
"Now, it's time to assess your cooking skill. A good maid needs to have a good repertoire of recipes on them, so that they can satiate the need of their master. I want you to cook an entrée that you know. Anything that you're good at. Don't worry if the food takes a long time to make. I will assist in that matter. The ingredients that you need are at the pantry, just try your best. Do you understand?" she asks. You know what she asks of you but to be certain you ask Sakuya, What's an entrée? She stands there for a while before answering, "A main course." Oh, you can make that. You walk to the pantry to check the ingredient that they currently have and unsurprisingly, they have a lot. Reimu would be in heaven if she saw this. You look around and at the meat area, there's an unknown meat. You never seen that type of meat before but you feel like someone has eaten it before. There isn't any label on it either. You ask Sakuya what this mystery meat is and she asks you to ignore it and to not use it, as it is very expensive to get. You heed her advice and look the other way. You feel like you saw Rumia ate this meat before. Anyway, you pick up the ingredients that you need to make: Meat and Potato Stew. It's simple, the ingredients are cheap and if the ingredients are lacking, you can just substitute it with anything. Not to mention, they're filling too. The first time that you came here, Reimu served you the food and it was the greatest thing that you have ever tasted. Not that you can compare it to anything as you don't really have any memories previously, nevertheless, it left an impact on you. Feeling confident (again), you grab the ingredient: beef(duh), potato(obviously), carrot, onions, mirin, soy sauce, rice water, dashi and water. You also grab the knife and pot that you need to cut and put them on. You quickly whipped the food up (while Sakuya watches from behind) as to not make her wait any longer.
…transfer to a bowl and… done! Fresh Meat and Potato Stew! It was a lot pf pressure with Sakuya staring at you from behind during the time you were cooking. But, you managed. You turn to call out to Sakuya but she's already seated at the table, where the food is. She pick up the chopstick and put the meat and vegetable in her mouth. She eats in silence, taking extra precaution to taste the food. Your hearts thumping now. This is the first time that someone (professional) tasting your food. The only people that have ate your food are the people from the shrine, Marisa and Rumia. They seem to like your food so, it should be fine, you hope. The seconds feel like hours. Finally, she finish chewing and swallowed the food. Few seconds pass before she speaks,
"Passable. But not up to the mansion's standard," she curtly responds, "The beef is overcooked, chewy, the vegetables are cut unevenly, your knife work are basic, the taste are too weak, and the food chosen itself is too simple," she comment on your work, "Is there anything else that you could make?" the maid asks.
You list out all the food that you could make: fried rice, fried chicken, miso, curry. As you list more, she stops you,
"Are all of them Japanese food?" Looking back, she's right. You have only been cooking Japanese food. You mostly learn how to cook from Reimu and the occasional Marisa, who taught you how to cook mushroom. The head maid sighs,
"That won't do. A maid need to have a variety of dishes under her belt. The mistress here are a fan of Western while Meiling is more interested in Chinese. For Meiling and Koakuma, anything will do but she mostly request sweets to go with her tea. Don't worry, I'll make sure to drill in the recipe into your body. But for now, I need to prepared food for Meiling and the fairies. If you would, try to match with what I do." As she said that, the maid starts her work, giving you order all the way. You try to match with her but make too many mistakes. Even so, she managed to recover from your screw-ups, and keep on cooking. She's a monster, you thought. Seeing her move with exact precision, it's like seeing a human machine at work. No wasted movement from cutting, to simmering, to boiling, she does it with grace. When you're cooking, at best you can only take on two task at once, but for Sakuya, any tasks is possible.
And in a flash (hour), she finished preparing meals fit for 40. Varying degree of food are laid on the counter-top. All of them smell absolutely scrumptious. To affirm you statement, your stomach give an audible growl. Embarrassment set foot, as you try to hide it. Sakuya then hands you a plate of fried rice. You thank her and took a spoonful and
Delicious! you mouthed out. You can taste the texture of every individual rice, glistening with the oil and egg that has been cooked to perfection. The texture of slightly charred rice, giving the bitter (but delicious) taste. The egg, fluffy to the max. And the taste, strong, but not overpowering. … Different from what you would make. You (without care) chow down on the food, wasting no time to finish the godly fried rice. You feel like Sakuya is staring at you –probably to scold you on table manners-, but you don't care, the food is more important. In mere seconds, the fried rice is defeated. Sakuya holds out her hand and pick up the finished plate. You thanked her for the wonderful meal. During your (unsightly) feast, you forgot to ask her to eat with you. You ask her whether she has eaten anything.
"Hm? Don't worry. I've already ate," Sakuya calmly reply. That's great. What did she have? "I ate the food you prepared before."
... Huh? W-wait, really? you question the maid.
"Yes? Is there something wrong?" You say to her that she doesn't need to finish that. She could have made something even better than whatever you have made. Sakuya blinks a few time before saying,
"The food that you made are passable, not inedible. There's no reason for me to throw it away. Besides, even if it's not up-to standard, I can tell that you made it with a lot of care, it would be uncouth of me to do so," she gives you a smile, "Now, get ready. Our work isn't over yet," she walks away to the sink.
S-so cool...! you have profound admiration for the head maid.
The rest of the day, you follow Sakuya and helped with her duties: cleaning, managing the fairies maid duties, scolding Meiling (you only watch for this), sorting, cooking. You feel like there's no room for rest. You move from one place to another. Not to mention, the way that she teaches you are spartan-like. Whenever you did something wrong, she reprimands. She tells you like it is. If you did something wrong, you did something wrong. Thankfully, she explains why you did something wrong, rather than leaving you in the dark. There are some times where you need to take a break, and Sakuya was understanding enough to leave you be, although she resume her work whenever she can.
In the end, it turns night. Sakuya finishes the day by preparing dinner on her own. You weren't able to finish the day work as it took a toll on you. Although Sakuya reminds you that the mistress needs to finish her food first before you can eat, but today was special as Remilia herself wanted to speak to you. You feast on the gorgeous food laid in front of you. Remilia is present (Sakuya is attending her) as she smile while eating. She asks you a few question about the time you work here. You tell her that it's exhausting and you have a new appreaction to Sakuya. Hearing that, the Head Vampire puff out her chest, smugness overload, as she praise Sakuya. After the meal, as Sakuya has more matters to attend to (mostly her mistress), she points you the direction to the yesterday bath. She already placed the necessary things that you need. As you walk to the bath, you realize that Meiling wasn't with you during dinner. Although odd, you push that thought aside, and enter the bath. After finishing the bath, you make your way to your room, and lay on the bed.
As you lay there, you think back to the day that has transpired. Seeing Sakuya gallant figure, as she work diligently. Does she do this everyday? you ponder. No wonder that Remilia asks you to do this. Someone would have already collapsed at this point. Example: me. As you lay on your bed, your tired body loses it sense of reality, as you now enter a deep slumber.
The first week was hell. Sakuya relentless training has you week in the knees. Her Spartan-like way of teaching could make any adult(me) cry. Her teaching method follow the same formula: Do, Admonished, Teach, Repeat. Ranging from cleaning, cooking, managing (fairies) and other request from the mansion (sans Remilia, as that is Sakuya's priority). Thankfully, the more that you do it, the better that you get, the lesser reprimand you got from Sakuya. At the end of the first week, when you were task cleaning one of the room, you overhear someone talking. You went over to the source of the voice, and it came from the direction where Sakuya was working. The closer you get, the voice became more audible, and it's from someone that you know. A certain magician that you know. To affirm your suspicion, you enter the room where Sakuya is, and you can see that Marisa is talking to Sakuya.
"What do you mean he's working here now?!" an angry Marisa asks. Sakuya sighs.
"It is as I said. He's temporarily working in the mansion for the month. If you want to know more, please direct your question to the mistress."
"I did. And she smugly said that he's under your management. Now, I ask again: where is he?"
"And I will answer again: I don't need to disclose that information. If you need to see him, why don't you go buzz around the mansion like the fly you are. You're disrupting my work already."
"Why you!"
Not wanting to see the conflict escalate further, you greet Marisa. Marisa turn around and faces you.
"Hm? Oh, there you ar-" Marisa stops in her tracks. She scans your body from top to bottom. Then, "S-s-s-su-" Marisa stutters while she points at you.
"There, you met him," Sakuya sighs, "Now, if you'll excuse m-" Marisa turns around and grabs both of Sakuya's shoulder, her face faces the ground "Wh-what? Unhand me." Marisa slowly faces Sakuya and gives her a thumbs up.
"Thank you, Sakuya!" tears stream down Marisa's face.
"Uwah, gross," Sakuya quickly respond.
And just like that, the conflict de-escalate, and you continue with your work. Today, however, Marisa kept on pestering you and stealing glances whenever she could. She also asks you to treat her like one of the guest, and you play along (with Sakuya's permission). Sakuya thinks that it is more of a hassle to argue with Marisa, and she let it be. Today, a happy Marisa left the mansion and she became frequent in meeting you. And that, is the end of the first week.
The second week was more manageable. You're able to make less mistake then before. Not to mention, you're able to wake up earlier before Sakuya comes to your room. She responds with,
"It's only natural that a maid's day start early," and she waits outside. Nothing to note for the second week: except your meeting with Flandre and Remilia statement.
The mid of the second week, as you are cleaning one of the halls, you turn from the corner, and you can see that Sakuya is talking to someone. She is of smaller stature, same height as the vampire, Remilia, and what seems to be wings with multicolor bulb(?) hanging on it.
"Sakuyaaaa, I'm hungryyy," the child says, tugging on the maid skirt.
"Did you stay awake again, my lady?" Sakuya respond, "Don't worry. I'll whip up something for you in a minute. Why don't you head back to your room and wait for me?"
The child nods. Then, before she leaves, your eyes met. The child glares at you and gripping the helm of Sakuya's skirt a bit tighter.
"What's wrong, Lady Flan?" Sakuya turns to the direction where the child is looking, and you meet eyes with Sakuya too, "Ah, it's you. Have you done with your cleaning?" You nod. You ask Sakuya who's the girl next to her is. "Hm? Ah, you both haven't properly met. This here is Lady Flan, the younger sister of Lady Remilia. Lady Flan, this here is the Outsider. He'll be working with us for three weeks. Have Lady Remilia not informed of you?" The child shakes her head. You greet the young lady but she scowls at you and runs off away from you. Sakuya turns to you,
"Forgive her. She's a bit wary around people that she doesn't know. More specifically, around humans. Now, I have to prepare the young lady her meal, why don't you take over this area for me?" You salute to the head maid which ellicit a sigh from her.
At the end of the second week, during dinner time, Remilia order you and Sakuya to join her. By now, you and Sakuya usually waits for the Remilia to finish with what she have before ourself eating. It seems like Remilia have something to announce for the both of us. Tonight dinner is Steak garnish with mushroom sauce with grape wine (prepares by Sakuya).
"Sakuya," the vampire speaks, "How was he?" she inquires.
"At first, he was incompetent. Lack the basic ettiqutte, skill and talent for any housework," Sakuya honestly explain, "I don't know what you see in him when you first employ him to work here. I thought it was one of your sadistic play at hand-"
"That last part was unnecessary, Sakuya," Remilia interjects.
"-However. In this two weeks, I can see that he is dilligent in his work. He tries his hardest on to fix his imperfection. From cleaning, to cooking, to management, there's a gradual improvement in his work, and I can attest to that. Albeit he might not be the best, he is great at what he's doing and I can see him actually work as a butler one day."
"I see~~. And how about you?" Remilia asks you. Honestly, this past two weeks have been the most hellish moment of your life. With Sakuya spartan-like training and instruction, you actually feels the pressure, differ from the life at the shrine, where leisure is a given. But, you know that Sakuya meant well. You know that Sakuya has the most experience working as a maid and her skills are above no one else. The way that she teaches is easy to understand, and her hands-on teaching is superb. If I were to ask for any teacher to teach you the methodology of maid-ry, I would only ask for her, and no one else. So, thank you, Sakuya, for being your teacher for this past two weeks.
Finishing with what you said, Remilia has the biggest grin on her face while Sakuya has a small smile on her face. Then, the vampire speaks,
"Is that so?~~ Then, I can safely say this," Remilia take a deep breath, "Sakuya, this week onwards: I would like for him to attend by my side," she smilingly says. Hearing the news, the room falls silent, but Sakuya was the first to break it,
"W-what?" Sakuya stands up, "Lady Remilia, what do you mean by that?"
"I said that I would like him to attend to me for this week."
"I know that. But, Lady Remilia, with all due respect, I don't think that he's ready yet."
"But Sakuya, did you not said that he will make a fine butler one day?"
"Yes, one day. But not today. He still need to learn more before he could follow your-"
"Sakuya," Remilia voice grows cold. Sakuya stops in her tracks. She holds back what she wants to say. Remilia waits a few seconds before continuing, "Was there anything wrong with what I said, Sakuya?" Sakuya stays silent, "Sakuya."
"... I think that he is not yet ready to serve you," Sakuya replies.
"Are you saying that my judgement is wrong then?"
"Of course not, mistress."
"Then it is fine, is it not? Or is there any other that you would like to add?"
"No... mistress."
"Perfect!" the vampire claps, "Now, Sakuya, your duty for the week is as usual. And, if you do have any spare time, do find it in you to relax. Anyway, that is all. Sakuya, you may leave now, I need to speak with him."
"Yes, mistress," Sakuya gives Remilia a small smile before making her way out of the room. Thus, begin your one week, managing the demanding vampire.
It's now the end of the third week. Only one more to go before you can return back to the shrine. This also mark the end of you attending to Lady Re- Remilia. Sakuya looks delighted to re-work under her but today, Remilia wanted to be alone. Today, you are working at the library. Patchouli asked you to help her with the cleaning, as the library is huge, and it would burden Koakuma if she works alone. Not to mention, you already helped around the library, it won't be too much of a burden on you. Thus, you're now at the library, working side-by-side with Koakuma (Sakuya would be coming in later). As you are working at the library, someone's tapping on your shoulder. You turn around to see,
"Yo," Reimu raising her hand.
Reimu, what are you doing here? you ask.
"Hm? No reason. Just came in to check up on you," Reimu smiles.
But, we recently met though, you reply.
"Yeah, with that vampire tugging you around," the miko scratches her head, "Anyway, how about some rest? You work hard enough already."
Sure, sure, you sigh, After I finished with this area though. Reimu smiles.
"Great. I'll be waiting at the middle then. Also," she looks at you before grinning, "You're not going to serve me?~~" she teasingly says.
Yes, yes you dismissively says. She boos at you before walking to the middle. You quickly tidy the area and make your way to Reimu. As you get closer, you see Reimu, sitting on one of the chairs of the library while stacking some books. Patchouli looks at Reimu for a bit before ignoring her completely. You take your seat next to her then, you begin chatting. Not too long after, Sakuya came.
"Oh, Sakuya. Hey, would you please bring out some tea for us? Thanks," Reimu non-chalantly asks.
"Huh? First thing you see me and that's what you ask?" an annoyed Sakuya reply, "Also, the Outsider is here, he could've make it for you."
"Ehhh? Can't you see he's busy right now?"
"I can only see two freeloader slacking off."
"Hmmm~~. Well, I wonder what Remilia would think, knowing that her maid i-"
"I'll be right back," Sakuya left.
You really shouldn't have done that, Reimu.
"Eh~ It's fine, isn't it? It's rare to see her flustered like that," she turns to look at your disapproval face, "Alright, fine fine, I'll stop." Sakuya came back with two cups of tea.
"Here you are," she place one of the cups in front of you. You thank her for the tea. You pick the te-
"Oi! What's your deal?!" Reimu raise her voice. You turn to the two.
"Hm? What is it?" Sakuya tilts her head.
"You put your thumb inside my drink!"
"Huh? Are you well? Do you need your eyes check? Would you like to see a doctor?"
"I know what I see! Now, bring me a new one at once." Sakuya sighs. She left and immediately return with a new(?) teacup. She place the tea cup in front of Re-
"OOOIII! YOU!" Reimu shouts now. Sakuya sighs.
"What is it this time?
"What do you mean 'What?'? You placed your whole hand this time!"
"Well, I didn't place my thumb this time."
"That's not the point! Also, you did put your thumb in last time!"
"Well, I think the hospitality that I've given to you is fair. The quality of the tea should also match the one who drinks it."
"Oi, oi, is there something you want to say to me?"
"Hah. Of course the poverty shrine maiden would not pick up on any undertones. Do you want me to dumb it down for you? You. Dirty. Tea. Same."
"Heh~ Why don't we have a little 'chat' outside?"
"As expected of the boorish shrine maiden. Only knows how to talk with her fist. Unfortunately, I have a lot of work to do, so I must take my leave" and like that, Sakuya left the scene.
"Oi, Sakuya. Sakuya? SAKUYA!" Reimu screams, "If I get my hand on that girl I-" Reimu seethes in rage, "Sorry, I need to cut our chat short. I need to go and return a favour of someone." You say that it's fine and you ask her to treat her well. Before Reimu leaves, she has another thing to say,
"Oh right. I forgot to give you this," she fishes something out of her sleeves. It is a sake bottle, "Suika asks me to give this to you. She said she misses her drinking buddy. Anyway, I have to go now," and like that, Reimu storms off. You wave her goodbye and she's gone. Looks like you receive a sake bottle. Tonight, seeing that you and a certain maid would be free, maybe you'll share it with her. You clear the table, pick up the sake bottle, and helped with the remaining work.
After having a delicious dinner (prepared by Sakuya), you make your way to Sakuya's room, with the sake bottle in hand. You ask Sakuya beforehand if you could meet her tonight, as Remilia would like to be left alone today, and she ask you to meet her at her room. Now, you're in front of her room. You knock and you hear her asking you to come in. You open the door.
As you enter, you see Sakuya is sitting on one of the chairs in the middle of the rooms. You look around the room to see that it is similar to yours, sans the table and chairs in the middle.
"So, what is it that you need?" Sakuya asks. You look at Sakuya and sees that she still wears her maid outfit. You ask her if she doesn't wear anyting else. "Well, I do. But as a maid, I need to be ready at all times." Well, she could have always stops time, but you don't want to argue with semantics right now. You show her what you brought over, and asks her if she would share a drink with you. After all, in one week, you will be gone from the mansion.
"A drink?" Sakuya asks. She waits a few before replying, "That's fine. But before that, why don't I whip up something really quick. It would be a shame for our late night drinking filled with only drinks." Who are you to argue with that logic? You happily agreed and Sakuya left and return. Thus, you enjoy the night, drinking with Sakuya...
"That Meiling! She never listens!" Sakuya slams the glass.
... or so you thought. After a few rounds, you chat with Sakuya about randoms things in the mansion or in Gensokyo. But then, Sakuya kept on refilling her glass. Again. And again. And again. There was one time where you ask her if she had enough but she kept on drinking and now, she's like this. You have heard that some people have different faces when they're drunk.
"Time and time again, I said to Meiling: 'Meiling, you're the first thing when people look at the mansion. Albeit Lady Remilia is what people heard of, you're the one that they'll see first. So you need to be presentable at all time. Understood?'. And you know what she did? She sleep. Sleeping. On. The. Job. Ahahahaha. Don't mess with me!" She take another swig.
"Also, that Patchouli. If you're worried about your weight so much, why don't you lay off the dessert for a while. And no, your brain does not need sweets to function, I do not want to hear another lecture about the correlation between the efficiency of sugar and researching. Again." She take another swig.
"Lady Flan. I wished that she met with a lot more people. Her only 'friend' right now is that 'thief' and I don't want that 'thief' to be her influence as for the world outside." She takes another swig.
"And, Lady Remilia..." she takes a few seconds before continuing, "I wish that she is more understanding. I wish that she is more considerate to her maid. I wish that she listen to what I said. I wish that she would start eating the food that she doesn't like. I wish that she would request thing in a more precise manner. I wish that... she tells me what she's hiding from me."
"... does she not want me anymore?" Sakuya stays quiet. There has been something on your mind.
Hey, Sakuya. Why do you work under Remilia? Why would a Human work under a Vampire? you ask.
"Hmm? Ah, well that's a long story. It all started when-" she stops in her tracks. Then, "Hmmm~ I won't tell you~~, not unless you tell me what Lady Remilia is hiding from me~~" she teasingly says. You have sworn secrecy to the lady, and you plead the fifth. "Ehhh, why not? Hey, hey, why not?" Sakuya pesters you. You never seen this side of hers before. Maybe it's the alcohol talking? You have a very high tolerance of when it comes to alcohol, even Suika was impressed. That means it's time to wrap this up and call it a night. You tell Sakuya that you're going back and say to her that she should rest.
"Ehh~ Don't wanna~" she rock back and forth. You plead her to go to bed and she place her finger under her lip, then says, "Then, carry me~~" she puts her arms out. No choice then. You pick her up (heavier than Koakuma was) and carry her to bed. You tuck her in and before you left, you felt a tug on your shirt. You see that Sakuya is holding your shirt.
"Are you leaving...?" Sakuya has a dejected-look. You say to her that you're not going anywhere, just that you're going to find a chair to sit on. You take one of the chairs and put it next to her. You wait for her to fall to sleep and she has a hard time doing so. You waited and waited until she closes her eyes. Before leaving, you pat her head and make your way to your room. Sleep takes hold of you.
The next day, you're working with Sakuya as normal. After finishing with the day cleaning, Sakuya comes up to you.
"I don't think that I need to say this, but the thing from yesterday: please forget it. I would like for that to be put under wraps. And if I heard that story from someone else, you know what will happen, right?"
Did anything even happen yesterday? you say, If you have any trouble, I can lend an ear, and a few drinks.
"Good. Now, let's go. Cooking is next." she turns and make her way to the kitchen. You reply to her instruction and starts packing. But then, she says,
"Thank you."
It is now the last day of your temporary work. The final day where you clean the same hallway, rooms, see the same fairies, and the residents of the place. Well, it's not like you're never coming back here again. Tonight, before leaving, Remilia has something that she want to ask of you. Maybe it's regarding your pay? Reimu would be delighted to hear that. As you are finish cleaning, you see Sakuya came up to you.
"Are you done with your work?" You shake yourhead at her question, there are still some rooms left to stays silent. You wait for her to say anything else and then, she asks you another question.
"Are you really leaving?" Why yes. Your (verbal) contract only stated that you work for one month, and one month will passed tomorrow. "You know, Lady Remilia wouldn't mind extending your contract. I think she would glad for you to work under her." Be that as it may, you have to decline. Your heart is at the shrine. During your stay here, you kept thinking of the shrine and its condition. You're thankful for what Sakuya and Remilia have done for you. Again, you thanked them.
"... I see," Sakuya looks down, "Then, would you mind closing your eyes?"
What for? you ask.
"I have a gift that I would like to give you." A gift from Sakuya? What an honor. You close your eyes. You waited for the moment that you're able to open them. Then,
*chu*
you feel a peck on your forehead. You quickly open your eyes to see Sakuya towering over you. You ask her if she done what you think she's done. Sakuya giggles.
"Don't misunderstand. This is just a customary when greeting someone at the SDM. I only show it to you now as I think that you are deemed worthy of someone befitting to be living here. However, this greeting can only be done when you have verbal agreement or if you have made up during an argument. That is all. Nothing more and nothing less." Sakuya explains. "Now, I presumed there are more work for you to do. You should get on to it before Lady Remilia calls for you."
You were taken by surprise from that kiss but the way that Sakuya describes it make it like something that you shouldn't be concerned about. You get out of your stupor, says your goodbyes to Sakuya, and make your way to clean other rooms. Eventhough it should be fine, you can't help but wonder why your face feels a bit hotter today.