Wings of a Butterfly

[Birdie]

She opened the door and found the floor in here was just was clean as the hall. Or, the hallway had been. She had managed to make little smudge marks on the floor, of which she was ashamed. She blushed when he made mention of it. "Yes my lord. Forgive me." Brigantia stood for a few moments longer, trying to figure out a way to get the fruit from the door to the table without tracking any dirt inside. She bet if the little toad saw her, he would begin to yell and berate her for her stupidity. It was not her fault she had no shoes and that there was dirt and blood on everything she owned. But then, her own happiness and comfort was no longer an issue.

Finally, Brigantia manned up and moved across the room to placed the fruits on the table. With that task completed she went back to the door and stood in the hall. "Please enjoy." She bowed deeply to him, holding the empty basket in front of her. She turned, about to close the door when she became distracted by her dirty prints again. "Ah... I am sorry to bother, but how exactly does one clean the floor, my lord?"

[Lord Sesshomaru]

It was entertaining to watch her try and figure things out. But he was shocked at her inability to think for herself. Was she truly the idolized. For a moment, he seemed to be ignoring her as he grabbed a clean sheet of paper and insistantly scribbled something onto it.

But Sesshoumaru wouldn't leave her hanging too long. He placed down his pen again and forced himself to stand out of his seat. He moved further back into the study and onto one of the shelves was a large stack of rags. He took them to her.

"Bucket of water, and these. Must I send someone to assist you?" Must he? Truly? This was clearly more bother than it was worth. Why did he agree to do this again?

[Birdie]

She accepted the towels into her arms and carefully placed them into the basket for easy carrying. She bowed deeply to him again "No, thank you my lord." With a hidden smile she walked happily down the hall and out of the house so as to retrieve her bucket of water. Brigantia was absolutely elated at all of the new things she got to learn own to do. She carefully carried her full bucket of water to the door. It was a difficult task which took her quite a while. She could not lift it very well, but she was absolutely determined to do it all on her own.

Once at the door way to the house she figured she should dip the towel in the bucket of water and wring it out. From there she began to process of cleaning the floors. For the first time in her life she got down on hands and knees and did true manual labor. She found it exceedingly enjoyable. She got to flitter about. The only thing which made her task hard was the veil atop her head, but she would not take it off. She simply worked around it.

Finally she made it to the end of the hall and turned to see her handiwork. She became absolutely flumoxed as to why there were more dirty spots than before. It took a few moments to realize that her feet and dress were still dirty which then transferred to the wet floor. Heaving a sigh she went back to the end of the hall and sat outside. She got as much dirt and dried blood off of her dress, feet, and legs as she could. Satisfied that she was properly cleaned, she turned her attention to the bucket. The water was very dirty now and probably of no use. She then had to take the water else where to dump it out (as it seemed illogical to do it beside the house) and then refill it and carry it back. Once again she cleaned the floors and this time they stayed clean. Beaming with pride she wondered what she should now do with the towels. Instead of going to bother Sesshomaru again, she figured she should search for another servant to help her out.

[Lord Sesshomaru]

The servants that hustled by ignored her and any questions she sent their way. Any glances were quick and filled with disdain as they kept their distance. The only servant that gave Birdie a double glance was a rather stout tanuki girl.

The demon was a much weaker version of her species and had very little humanoid features. The only thing keeping her from being suspected as just an abnormally large raccoon dog was the full head of hair and the fact she was wearing clothes and walking upright.

"I'm doing the laundry right now, add those to my pile." Her paws were already full with a dirty stack and the only reason she stopped was for Birdie's own load. "Come on!" she insisted, thrusting the pile towards the hanyou to encourage her to hand over the rags.

No matter if they were given to her or not, the demon huffed. Her plump cheeks seeming to inflate with the intake of breath. "Where did you get the rags? I'll have to replace them with clean ones."

[Birdie]

Brigantia felt a little ignored by all the passing servants who would not hear her pleas. She figure they had a lot of things to do though and were much too busy to help out the new comer. Luckily an interesting looking young lady stopped to help her out. Smiling brightly (though this was hidden) Brigantia carefully added the towels to the stack.

"The Lord was kind enough to give them to me. They came from the place where he seems to do a lot of things with papers." She had no idea what a study was nor had any comprehension as to what one would do in such a room. In fact, all of those papers completely befuddled her. "Will you please teach me how to wash these? I would like to learn very much, miss." She was itching to obtain a new skill. It was a day filled with a lot of new things and she did not want the newness to end or her activity and distractions to stop.

[Lord Sesshomaru]

The tanuki girl stepped back with her load, eyes wide in horror and wonder at the information. Her tail twitched and curled up around her thigh in her fear as she looked in every which corner. Trying to accept the odd reality of the girl's statement she forced an awkward laugh and turned away from the girl.

"The laundry's in the...servants quarters. You don't stay there, do yoU?" she asked suspiciously, giving a light sniff at her new follower. She could quickly assess the girl. And was hanyou. And she knew there were indeed a small amount of rags kept in the lord's study.

Just in case. But the servants fought each other to get out of ever putting clean rags back in. And she dreaded it. She was too weak to fight her way out of it! "This is just great...why did you have to get rags from the study!? He'll murder me if I place a paw in there!"

[Birdie]

"No ma'am, I do not. I stay over yonder." She gestured in the general direction of the house in which her room was situated. She was unsure of what her living situation had to do with laundry, but she was happy to answer the question. Then the tanuki seemed to get upset over having to take the towels back. Kill her? Why would he kill her? He seemed so wonderfully kind that the demon's fear and anger appeared misplaced.

"I would be more than happy to take them back, as I am staying there anyway." She was all smiles again as she walked beside her new found companion. Brigantia hoped they could become good friends. She wished for many conversations and to blossom beneath this young lady's tutelage. "Beg your pardon but what is your name? I am Brigantia, sometimes called Birdie."

[Lord Sesshomaru]

The tanuki let the girl chatter away. The information was just too shocking for her to handle so she did her best to concentrate on walking in a straight line. They passed the hot springs through the outer hallway before entering that servants quarters. It was a much larger building then assumed and although must of the area was for the living of the servants themselves, all the laundry and little odd jobs were taken home with them.

The halls were even more crowded then before and children ran between her feet but it was a lifestyle she was used to and easily ignored. "Makoto." she answered quickly, her mind's wheels spinning rapidly as they entered the outer rooms filled with large barrels of water and woman already working on the clothes and bedding of the entire estate.

It was when Makoto got to her destination that she had no distraction to think over what Brigantia had been saying their whole walk here. She dropped her pile at her feet and placed her hands on her hips. "Now what are you saying about staying in the Lord's quarters!?" she asked all too loudly and the other servants stopped and paused, catching the name of the building next door and whispers quickly went around. "That whole building is the Lord's personal quarter. How could you be staying there?!"

Makoto was the type to easily lose herself in chores and her own mind. The gossip was slow to make it to her ears and although the shock of her statement had caught the attention of the other servants they had found this information out much earlier. The only thing new was seeing the being everyone was speaking about.

"You truly do seem deaf Makoto-chan!" A gentle and coy voice chimed in. The tall and slender woman sidled over with a sleeve covering her mouth to hide her smile and give her more of a surreal look. Once again an animalistic demon, she was more proportioned like a human with perkier breasts and a slender waist to match. "This here hanyou," she began with a secretive tone, her eyes narrowing and only seeming smaller from her white skin and black markings over her eyes. "Is replacing her."

The demon, more particularly, the panda demon was dressed much more appealing than the other servants that went about their washing. Her pattern was clearly obvious of her animal nature with the rounded ears to match.

"You mean..." Makoto began, starting to catch on. The panda woman nodded her head vigorously and giggling as she shushed Makoto from going into detail on her.

"Now shush Makoto-chan! You know how the lord gets when he hears her name!" With that said she sashayed off and re entered the building leaving Makoto grumbling even more at this new realization.

Seeing the questions in Birdie's posture, Makoto set about her washing tasks before answering. "That's Fumiko. She stays in the high class area of the servant's quarters. What with her being a geisha and all that." she muttered the last part, feeling just a bit jealous.

[Birdie]

The children running about was something Brigantia had never experienced before. With liquid grace she managed to side step and move about them with ease. She found she enjoyed their play and chatter and would have loved to learn their games. To play was something she had never done before. She could not bring the hidden smile from her face.

They entered a steaming, extremely warm room which was filled with hustle and bustle. She also liked this room so full of chatter. The air was not only thick with steam but with their hopes and dreams. The things they liked and didn't like, it was filled with so much joy. Compared to the earnest and sorrowful wishes of those who prayed, this gave Brigantia a happy feeling.

"Makoto is a beautiful name," she said in reply, though it was ignored and not much needed. The tanuki did not seem to require the compliments that most others craved. When the woman spoke again Brigantia became very confused. Was it wrong for her to stay there? Her wings fluttered with slight agitation. "He invited me to stay," she said quietly. The sudden silence of the room made Brigantia extremely uncomfortable.

It became business as usual once the gorgeous geisha arrived on scene. She spoke with a certain arrogance afforded by those who lived in an upper class world. It was apparent by they use of the word 'hanyou' that she did not much care for Brigantia merely upon the basis of her birth. She found it to be cruel as she had no choice in who her parents were. A small frown came to her lips as she listened to the small conversation between Tanuki and Panda.

Once Fumiko left, Makoto was kind enough to answer only a few of the questions left buzzing in Brigantia's head. She nodded mutely, digesting what had just happened. "A geisha?" Brigantia had only seen a few when they had come to pray for the grace and beauty of a butterfly. "That is wonderful! I am sure she does her job very well." She turned to the laundry, more interested in that then the panda or the mystery person they had previously spoken about. "What should I do?"

[Lord Sesshomaru]

Very good at her job indeed. Makoto huffed, making herself comfortable in front of the bin and the textured rack inside the water. There were many others on the floor and she picked one up and added it to the water. "Grab a towel and get to scrubbing." she hoisted up a rag and pushed it into the water and quickly began rubbing it against the rack, the grooves helped to scrape off dirt and grime. "We'll have to do this a few time each with clean water. Can't really clean much with dirty water."

Soon Makoto lost herself in her work but it was harder to relax into it when she had to guide the strange hanyou into the job. Makoto could tell that those slender hands hadn't seen a day's work...well, ever! Although her clothes were worse for ware. But as they got into a routine Makoto was able to work just as unconciously as breathing.

"So...why are you wearing that fabric on your head? Did the Lord make you wear that because you're actually hideous?" Oh she wished, it would selfishly make her feel better about her own appearance.

[Birdie]

Brigantia nodded. It made sense. You can't clean things in the dirty. She followed Makoto's lead. At first she had a rough time with it, being extremely slow, but the more she scrubbed the easier the work became. The soap was turning her pale hand red and rashy, but Brigantia paid it no mind. A little pain was good here and there. It certainly distracted her from the things she did not wish to remember.

The question broke her concentration and she paused. "The veil?" She lifted the edge of the cloth slightly to further emphasize her statement. "No... I mean... I do not understand the meaning of hideous, or rather I do not know if I could be considered ugly or beautiful. I have never taken the time to compare and study. No, I wear the veil because..." She had to take moment. Her voice was beginning to catch as tears welled up in her eyes. All the gruesome deaths were coming back to her. Breathing deeply she finished her statement. "When I lived at the temple I was something like a relic. I was required to hide myself from the common folk so as not to blind them. The gods' light would come through me, being a given gift. I have no wish to harm you or anyone in this way." It was not that Brigantia thought highly of herself. She was simply a gullible creature who believe the lies that anyone told her.

Satisfied that her reply would give Makoto her answer, Brigantia went back to the task at hand with vigor. She had no desire to remember all the horrible things that had only happened the night before. She did not want these memories. Did not want to be burdened by they feeling of precious lives being lost all at once.

[Lord Sesshomaru]

Makoto paused, wanting to laugh but the smell of salty tears made her hold back any opinions she had towards her new acquaintances statement. It didn't smell like a lie and maybe it was a special reason why the Lord wanted to keep her. Deciding to leave it like it was for the time being she stood and hoisted up the bucket filled with now dirty water and dumped it through a channel that lead to the large river off the grounds of the manor.

Of course, Makoto wasn't the only one that took in this new information and whispers were quickly spreading once again. The tanuki waddled her way back with fresh water to their spot and readied for the next batch. "We're almost done." she assured but paused before getting her hands wet again. "But maybe you should take some clean rags to the...the Lord's study before we finish."

Feeling like the girl was walking into the lion's mouth, Makoto wrung her hands on her kimono. "Are you sure you can do this...I'll...I'll come with you if you want me to." She paled, feeling like she was only stepping into the mouth with Brigantia.

[Birdie]

Brigantia marveled at the tanuki's strength as she lifted, dumped, and came back with new water. She wanted to say something to compliment her but was not sure Makoto would appreciate it, no matter how much Brigantia respected the woman for her physical strength. She was about to dive back into the work when Makoto asked her to take towels back to Sesshomaru. "Aaah... Are you sure? There is still so much left to do! I mean, I do not mind taking them back alone, it seems you are upset by the notion and I am more than happy to comply. I do not think the lord would ever hurt me... or you for that matter." She wanted to add how absolutely kind he seemed to her, but decided that Sesshomaru might not enjoy her saying as much.

Once receiving the affirmation, Brigantia nodded. "Alright. I will try to come back, if there is still time, to help out." She bowed deeply to the tanuki. "Thank you so very much for teaching me and all of your help." With that Brigantia picked up some dry towels and began her way through the halls. There were still children playing and Brigantia paused to speak with them and learn their names. She requested that she might play with them sometime and they seemed to enjoy the idea, being too young to understand prejudice.

Getting distracted a few more times, Brigantia made it back to Sesshomaru's living quarters. She opened the door to find the floors still clean. Her heart was bursting with pride for a job well done. Down the hall she went until she reached his study door. She knocked and awaited the response necessary to gain entrance.

[Lord Sesshomaru]

Sesshoumaru allowed her entrance easily enough. He didn't look up at her immediately as he read the final line of the last few contracts he had to take care of. Finally he looked up and saw she had, absent mindedly pointing to where she should place them.

When Sesshoumaru carefully put the last scroll on the stack did he relax and give Brigantia his undivided attention. "You have new clothes awaiting you in your room." he stated simply, eyeing her with intensity. "From here on that is what you shall wear." he tried to hide his disgust as the smell of smoke and blood still clung to every fiber of her clothes. "And everything you are wearing now is to be thrown away."

With his words spoken, Sesshoumaru stood up from his desk and put away the ink bottle and pen onto the higher shelves in the room.

[Birdie]

She crossed the room, glancing only once at his working form. She found she liked the way he looked all concentrated on his work, a little more relaxed than when she had first encountered him. Now was the time to concentrate on her own work. She placed the linens on the shelf, though with some difficulty as she had to stretch up to reach properly. Once this was done and she surveyed her work with satisfaction, Sesshomaru addressed her.

Brigantia turned to him and listened, her hands clasped in front of her. Her position was straight backed and very stiff. She was still not sure how she should be acting in front of the demon. When he mentioned that everything was to be burned she shifted, touching the hem of her veil. "Yes my lord... Must everything be burned? Will there be a new veil? Forgive me but I fear I cannot do without..." She did not want to ask too much of him, but she could not live with out the covering. Or more accurately, no one else could. She nibbled her lower lip, nervous. Maybe she would be killed and eaten now, when she was being insolent.