"Tokuwa," repeated the hostile voice with a sigh as it spilled from the lips of a young woman sitting in her car. She had been leaning forward towards an intercom attached to the side wall of the massive gates that encircled the estate that lay before her, speaking into it. She cursed in a foreign language, running her hands through her hair and resting her head on the steering wheel.
After a few moments, a mechanical voice chimed in, "Voice signature not recognized. Please try again." The way it delivered its words so emotionlessly only served to further anger the girl who was now tearing at her hair. Fed up, she slammed her fist down on the horn, muting the long string of foreign obscenities that she was screaming.
Taking a moment to catch her breath, she fished around in her purse, producing a battered cellphone, probably another casualty of her temper. Flipping open the cover, she dialed a number into the keypad, clearing her throat while it rang. A voice clicked on at the other end, and it was all the girl could do not to explode.
"Jeffrey," she began slowly, picking her words carefully and giving herself ample time for each syllable. "The front gate is on the fritz again." In the background, the voice on the other end murmured back to her. "No," she replied. "No, no, don't come out here. It's fine. Don't trouble yourself. I'll find a way in." Again, the other voice spoke, sounding slightly concerned. "Oh, me? No, I'm fine. I'm just a little stressed. You know the horrors of job and all." The other voice laughed and then bid her goodbye, probably promising to have it fixed as soon as possible.
Hanging up, she threw the phone back into her purse and moved her car in to reverse, backing away from the black iron gates. Glancing over her shoulder, she manuvered it into the grass along the left wall where it would be out of the way for visitors of the Manor.
She stepped out of the car, shutting the door and grabbing her purse and a bag of groceries from the back seat. After checking four times that there was no possible way for someone to steal it, the girl left her car, walking along the wall until she reached an area that had been overgrown with vines. In one great leap, she scaled the wall, surpassing its surface effortlessly and landing on a high branch of an oak tree within the estate. It was then that the wind blew through her hair, scattering its pieces and revealing twin pointed ears.
She was an elf.
It was three-fourths of a mile before the Manor came into view, but the elf took it all in stride, balancing her groceries and purse with ease. Coming through the final patch of scattered greenery, her eyes could see the entire Manor in full view, nestled in the midst of this wooded paradise. A satisfied smile crawled to her lips as she hopped to the pathway that led straight to the front door.
The house was perfect from its evenly-laid white brick exterior to the columns that supported the second and third story. The bay windows were massive, but silk curtains drawn on the inside protected the privacy of those within the structure. There was a tower-like addition on the left side that was reminiscent of old fairy tales, and an assortment of hand selected vegetation gave it a polished look. As she neared it, the ornate decorations etched into the brick became visible, vines and flowers perpetually winding about each other.
Hanging a sharp left, the elf girl moved away from the large white palace, following the path along the back of the house until it ended, becoming a dirt road instead. Here the trees were not hand selected, but grew like wild fire, blocking out the sky in some parts. It was in this area that the elf lived in a tiny cottage, a mere ant to the Manor.
Her home was small and meant to house only a few people with its cramped quarters, but it seemed lavish to the elf in that it possessed a second floor with an extra room and balcony that were used for storage. The whole building had an old feel to it. The white painted wood had turned gray and molded from years of neglect, and the vines here were not artwork etched into brick but actual plants that had almost overgrown the entire face of the home. But it was just that. Home.
Following the smoothed rocks that acted as a pathway to the steps, the girl hopped up to her tiny front porch, fishing in her pocket for the key and letting the door swing open with a soft thud. "I'm home!" she called out to her housemates, setting the groceries and purse down on the kitchen table. A sigh slipped out of her lips at the stack of dishes in the sink as she roundered the corner towards the phone.
Her answering machine was flashing, and the number two was illuminated in red light. Slipping out of a black jacket, she revealed her uniform, a knee-length black dress with a white apron and collar. On the breast pocket of the ensemble, there was a rectangular name tag that had the name "Akina Tokuwa" scrawled out in looping calligraphy, and under that, it read "Head Maid" in similar writing.
The thunder of steps came clamoring down the stairs as Akina collapsed on the couch, kicking off her shoes. "I feel so old," she lamented to herself, settling in for a light nap.
Up the stairs, Anarriima and Calliope were playing chase while Naraka studied the English language in her bedroom. The dull hum of life could be felt outside the cottage as well where the horse and cat were grazing together. And even further up in the heavens, the sun began to droop down, sinking past the horizon and into night.
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