A/N; yet another take on Refuge!
Clients and Clocks
Angelica Smith wasn't with a client when the call came. Her dark eyes were full of satisfaction as she looked over the properties she had closed on in the past month, flicking through them to be sure that everything was filed correctly.
That was one benefit to growing up and loving your small town. There was literally no room for some competitor to take commissions from her or food from her boys' mouths. Some days even she didn't want to look at her grocery bill.
Nellie rang her line. "Angie? Brace yourself. There's a client on the phone asking for the von Gikkingen place."
"Oh no, not again!" the realtor moaned in horror, since it had only been a few months since the last owner had been chased off the property by his own equipment.
"She's pretty insistent, and she talks like money is no object. Shall I put her through?"
Angie let out one more unprofessional moan before pulling herself together, straightening herself on her rolling chair and plastering an accommodating smile on her face since she knew smiles carried through the voice. "Let's see if she's reasonable."
Her phone started ringing the traditional tune she had picked out last year, making the realtor push the appropriate button for the speaker. "This is Angelica Smith, owner of Better Homes 4U. How may I be of service?"
"Greetings, Angelica," a surprisingly young but sweet voice answered warmly. "Did your secretary mention my interest in the von Gikkingen estate in your listings?"
The poor woman felt like throwing up but forced the smile not to fade. "Indeed she did, but I don't think you are aware of that property's history."
"On the contrary, I just gave it extensive research," the sweet voice answered confidently. "I even looked into your area's online newspaper to confirm some of the incidents to get a full picture. The last client didn't leave a good impression on the Baron, did he?"
"Not hardly," Angelica groaned before she could stop herself, even letting some of the steel melt off of her backbone with the admission.
"Then perhaps it would comfort you to know that in my research, I've noticed a definite pattern with the tenants that have owned it since it passed into your company's holdings."
"… What kind of pattern?" Angelica asked slowly.
"The tenants he tossed out the most violently were the ones planning a massive facelift for the property to make money out of it, correct?"
The realtor laughed a bit nervously. "I did try to warn the last one, but he had a lot of money and he didn't want to listen. I had the paperwork for the full refund ready when the hospital released him."
The young lady on the other end laughed darkly. "You're competent. I approve. But for the ones that didn't seem as offensive but still didn't want the place, that took some more digging. But it was eventually clear that two were very unpleasant people and the other one wasn't mentally compatible to share a home with at least one ghost."
Angelica winced. "I haven't been informed of his progress, or if he's still a resident of that asylum."
"He is. But what I am trying to say is that I love the house in its original integrity, and my plans after concluding the sale involve restoring the place, not renovating it. The style of the house suits me, and I've been a longtime fan of the Drosselmeyer family. I have the understanding that the Baron von Gikkingen was good friends with the last one."
"That is correct," the red head confirmed, wondering if she dared to let herself hope that this might just be the last time she handled the papers for the von Gikkingen estate. "Both him and his daughter."
"I thought so. Since I have no plans to violate his property and am fine with respecting his place within the manor, I will be conceited enough to say that the von Gikkingen manor will suit me and my temperament just fine. How soon can you draw up the papers?"
"… if this is a prank call, I have Caller I.D.," Angelica warned, realizing that just because she didn't recognize the voice this time, didn't mean that it couldn't be a cruel joke. "You sound too young to be able to afford the Baron's estate."
"Oh, how do I put this?" the voice asked while sounding just a shade lazy and uncaring. "Have you heard of the Kuma toy brand?"
Angelica scoffed. "Of course. I still have piles of their toys in boxes for when my kids have their own kids."
"My father owns that brand."
Her mouth nearly fell off her face. She gaped silently at the phone, vividly remembering when her boys refused to even consider any toy from a different brand. She knew full well that her children weren't the only ones heavily impressed by what their design team could come up with.
Angelica was literally talking to someone that could buy her entire hometown with change she shook out of her couch cushions.
"So yes, affording the manor, the restoration and the upkeep that will need to go with it is not even a tiny problem. But as you guessed, yes, I am young enough that I can't exactly come myself and perform an inspection until at least Christmas break thanks to school. That's why I want to send the best person I've got on my payroll to come there and take care of all the incidentals for me, including notes of what needs to be replaced or repaired. How soon did you say you could have those papers ready?"
"… T-Tomorrow morning, if you want," Angelica managed to squeak out a little breathlessly.
"Wonderful, but you'll have more time than that. I am booking a plane ticket for my assistant as we speak, and it will take her… it looks like three days from now to reach your location. She has my complete backing in all decisions, so if you would mind having the papers and keys ready when she arrives, I'm certain you'll be able to take care of business as quickly as possible and never have to deal with the von Gikkingen estate again. I imagine you're sick of cycling through the paperwork by now?"
Angelica's tears couldn't be held back. "I'll have everything ready, and I'll tell my secretary to keep an eye out for her. Can I have a name?" she asked while hurriedly grabbing a pad and pencil.
"I am Yoshioka Haru, but I will answer to Haru. My assistant's name is Nachima Ichigo."
Angelica paused as she finished writing 'Haru'. She didn't have the slightest clue how to spell the assistant's name.
"She will be willing to answer to Lucy if that would make it easier," Haru added, like she guessed what the problem was as there was someone happily exclaiming in Japanese on the other end. "All you'll need is one look at her to understand why I sent her in my stead."
Angelica happily wrote the new name down.
"Oh, one more thing? Lucy will likely be very tired when she gets there. I can arrange for you to be compensated if there is one clean bedroom and bathroom in the manor for her as well as some food and running water in the kitchen. Her favorite tea is chamomile and raspberry leaf, and she's very fond of fish and potato dishes for meal ingredients if that's possible. Is that something you can arrange?"
Angelica wrote down the new information as quickly as she could. "I have a son that got his license recently; I'm pretty confidant I can talk him into a part time job to fetch whatever groceries Lucy wants if she's going to be too busy to do it herself more than once."
"Perfect! You have my number now, so feel free to text any updates as you get them, and Lucy will contact you and your son as needed. Oh, right, please be understanding that she'll be eager to inspect the house on her own when you first meet her. She won't try to be rude, but she might be impatient. She's very keen on the manor as well."
Angelica bit her lower lip nervously. "Does she know about the Baron?"
"I assure you she was sitting right next to me when I was doing my research before calling you, and took all the talk of ghosts even more seriously than me. The Baron will not find her even a little bit of trouble, I promise."
ooOoo
Three days later, Angelica was nervously pacing her office and doing her best to avoid looking at the clock every ten seconds. She had rescheduled her two appointments for other days since the last thing she wanted to do was keep the richest client she would ever meet the assistant of, cooling her heels in the waiting room.
Her heart pounded as she eyed the von Gikkingen paperwork as if it were a hissing snake. "Please, please let that little girl be right," she couldn't resist whispering, even though Haru didn't sound like her age was that far off from her teenage sons.
A teenager with an assistant. One that she could send halfway across the planet with a few taps of her fingers. It really blew her mind that someone the same age as her sons could buy something like the von Gikkingen estate on a whim! If Angelica had that kind of money…
No. She loved this town, and her home was perfectly suited to what she and her boys needed. A bigger house would mean she'd have to fill it with more things to clean, and she didn't have time for that nonsense.
"Angie?" Nellie called from the line. "Lucy's arrived."
"Excellent!" the realtor exclaimed happily before settling into her chair. "Send her in."
"Um…" Nellie answered a bit nervously. "She's a bit distracted by the Drosselmeyer."
Angelica blinked before laughing a little. "We can't blame her for that." Even without the clock working, it was still a worthy work of art. She left her chair in order to open the door to her office.
There was an ancient woman leaning on a gorgeously carved cane, all of her attention fixed solely on the grandfather clock that Angelica had inherited after her uncle's death, but had wanted to keep safe from her sons' destructive antics when they were younger. Blue eyes shimmered with tears as they took in every line, every engraved flower, every detail as if her gaze alone could drown in them.
She didn't look even the slightest bit Asian, Angelica noted. Her choice of clothing to the careful bun her silvery hair was caught in made her look like she had never set foot out of England her entire life. She looked far too old to be left in a house by herself, let alone a haunted one.
Angelica shook herself back to the present and offered a careful smile since she had been warned that this woman would want to conduct business as quickly as possible. "Good afternoon, Lucy."
"Good afternoon," the woman gently rasped, still not taking her eyes off of the Drosselmeyer. "May I inquire as to why this has not been wound and set to the appropriate time?"
"No clock made by Toto Drosselmeyer has worked since the night he disappeared with his remaining family and the Baron's death. It still creeps me out knowing no bodies have been found," Nellie offered with a deep shudder.
"Pity," Lucy sighed, surprisingly not needing more of an explanation than that. Then she seemed to straighten up and take in a steadying breath before tearing her eyes away from the beloved heirloom. "Shall we get to business then? My driver's still waiting."
"All I need is some signatures and payment," Angelica assured her while escorting the ancient woman into the office.
"No chair," Lucy insisted before leaning against the realtor's desk and reaching for one of the pens sitting in a cup.
Since Angelica had marked the right pages in advance, it took only a few minutes for everything to be signed and a check to exchange hands. She choked when she saw the amount. "This is more than the listing stated," she gently tried to tell the crone.
"The extra is to cover the salary your family members earned by getting the manor ready for me, as well as an advance on future shopping runs. Your son's number, if he agreed? Three hundred a run seems generous."
"He did," Angelica assured her before handing over a business card with her son's information written on the back. "He's a good boy, but he is in school still."
"I will respect that," Lucy promised as she happily pocketed the manor's keys and ownership papers. "Once a week should be all I require until I send for more help. You have a pleasant day now," Lucy wished before balancing herself on the cane again and started hobbling for the door.
"Good luck with the Baron," Angie wished her as she opened her office door, remembering that Haru had told her that Lucy wanted to make the first inspection on her own.
Lucy's smile turned very warm at the thought, almost like the realtor thought she was going to take tea with one instead of live with a ghost. "Thank you," she responded in a way that didn't seem to think that she needed luck.
ooOoo
Toto was in his favorite perch of an ancient swing, dangling far above the ground surrounding his friend's manor. Even as he let the gentle breeze set the swing to swaying, he remembered the day he and Baron had tied it on for his little girl. He could still see how her eyes lit up as she swung back and forth as her shoes just skidded over the earth beneath her. Although she had been the only child who ever swung on this, there were still uneven ground far below.
"Higher, Papa, higher!" he could remember her cry out as her face tried to reach heaven on the highest level the swing could offer her.
Toto couldn't help but feel another stab of regret as he thought about his precious child. He had needed to feed the pair of them and keep a roof over their heads even with Baron's help, but he couldn't shake the feeling that he had squandered the little time he had gotten with the jewel of his life. He really had tried to maintain a good balance between work and home since the death of his wife, but he still wished he had more memories of holding his little girl. Telling her how much he loved her. Berating himself for not answering the door himself that night, with a weapon. Oh, if he had just answered instead, he knew Baron and Renaldo could have kept his girl safe for him. Even if it had meant his death, Toto would have preferred that over this endless agony.
Not being a crow. He had actually learned to enjoy it once he mastered flying. Bugs tasted differently to a bird's tongue, though he kept up the façade of hating them to keep his brother-in-law's taunts to a minimum.
No. It was not knowing what happened to his child that was the real torture. He closed his eyes and tried to take steadying breaths.
Today was the day a new tenant arrived. Maybe not the owner, but someone was still coming to live in the manor for a while. If it was another person that needed to be driven off, the crow needed to keep his wits about him. He knew better than anyone that there would be plenty of time to mourn his daughter later.
Eighty years later, and his mourning was still not over.
In the afternoon, a car Toto recognized as a taxi drove up to the gates. He cocked his head in order to watch.
After a while, the driver hopped out of the car and used a key to hastily open the lock and drag the gate open, although he looked less than happy about it.
Toto flew down to rest on the wooden fence in front of the manor so that he could hear as well as see how quickly he could determine the character of this revered assistant.
The car pulled in front of the manor's heavy doors. The driver was quicker on his feet than his passenger and was already popping the trunk of the taxi to remove the luggage.
Toto was taken aback when the first thing he noticed was a thick head of silvery white hair set into a respectable bun, and a set of brittle-looking shoulders as they just managed to rise above the height of the car.
Surely not. Why would some rich heiress from Japan send someone so old to a manor she knew was haunted?! Was she trying to stop the poor woman's heart from fright?!
The elderly woman was staring at the manor, so he couldn't see her face at first.
The taxi driver slammed his trunk shut before grabbing two of the woman's bags. "Here, I'll bring them inside for you."
"That would be lovely," the woman sighed, shaking her head as if to force herself back to the present. Leaning heavily on a cane Toto was at a wrong angle to see, she limped up the steps and fumbled with a set of keys.
No, he'd like to see her face once before she tried her luck with Baron. He gave a loud caw and raised his wings to heighten his chances of being noticed.
Both of the human turned to look… but Toto soon forgot about the man.
The old woman's face was shockingly familiar. She bore more than a passing resemblance to Toto's beloved mother-in-law, who had died just a little before getting to hold her infant granddaughter.
Granddaughter.
No. He couldn't let himself hope!
Those beautiful, familiar sapphire eyes locked on him before widening in shock. A slow tired gasp escaped her throat at the sight of him.
The man sniffed impatiently. "It's just a crow, nothing to get worked up about unless you're superstitious."
The woman didn't answer, staring at the crow until her eyes overflowed with tears that shamelessly traveled down her cheeks like twin rivers.
"So where do you want these?" the man asked impatiently as he stood just inside the doorway.
The woman shook herself as if waking from a deep sleep before leaning against the side of the door frame to search inside her handbag. "Just leave them right there. I'll take them to my room myself."
The driver twitched an eyebrow at her while giving a pointed look at the cane at her side. "No offense, ma'am, but unless you're planning on sleeping on a couch, I have trouble believing you can get your luggage very far, plus there's one more bag left to go inside."
Baron must have noticed the same resemblances Toto did! For that piece of luggage, as well as the two in the man's arms, were lifted up and carried inside the building with no assistance at all.
The man stumbled with a cry as the woman found her checkbook and began writing in it. "What was that?! How did that happen?!"
"I specifically withheld from you that this is a haunted house because I needed to get here as quickly as possible," the woman responded cordially as she ripped the check out with a certain amount of care before offering it to the man. "There is a generous tip included. Thank you for the safe-"
The driver didn't need any more explanation. He ripped the check out of her hand and about threw himself at his car in order to turn it back on and perform a slightly dangerous turning maneuver in order to speed back out of the gate, which was all too happy to close and lock after him.
But the woman had already lost interest in the man. With a practiced care, she eased herself down the small set of stairs and determinedly hobbled up to the wooden fence. Toto's heart was pounding a mile a minute, unable to take his eyes off of that worn but dignified face. He both prayed that his every instinct was correct but mourned the passage of time that had ripped them apart.
The old woman stopped in front of the crow and looked him full in the face, wonder and happy recognition in every feature as she smiled lovingly for him, and him alone. Tears were still evident, but not enough to deny what they both knew.
"Hello, Papa," Louise whispered lovingly.