Music of the Night

Chapter 95

Chapter 95

It didn't take long for the two to find Pina again. The Dall sheep was lounging outside at the school courtyard, taking in the warmth of the sun. He only opened his eyes when both Aoba and Arthur were casting a shadow over him.

"Oh? Is there something that you need from me?" Pina asked with a pleasant smile. Arthur partially opened his mouth to use his clicks. It seemed as though the Dall sheep was holding something in his hands. He decided not to ask about that but instead asked: "Pina, do you remember who sent you the note? If you could describe it to me, I might be able to pick out who it was."

Arthur imagined Pina's brows furrowed as he puts on a thoughtful expression. His ears picked up the steady breathing of Aoba, since he was on the bald eagle's shoulder. They waited for the answer until Pina spoke up.

"It was a grey field mouse. Cute little guy but I have a feeling he's old enough to be my father if I were a rodent. I didn't know you have fans outside of school, Arthur. Don't tell me you've been starting a ZooTube account."

The Honduran white bat laughed, couldn't imagined himself doing that without an aide or at least have some programmes that were speech-induced. Then again, he had listened to the news about braille keyboards being produced or special sound waves for the deaf.

"I don't know any field mice," he admitted, fur fluffing up. "Did he say where he's from?"

He could imagine Pina shaking his head. "No. Though, I now that I think about it, he does dressed up like a little butler. He left in a limo that looked like it belonged to a toy store. Now, only rich families have butlers."

Arthur smiled, knowing where this might lead to. He thanked Pina profusely, causing the Dall sheep to giggle. "It's a small matter, Arthur. Now if you two would excuse me, I have a cobra to talk to."

Both Arthur and Aoba don't have to question what Pina meant by that. In fact, Arthur might have a word with his old reptilian friend from Gryphon Cross at a later date.

...

Arthur's nose caught the scent of lilies and frangipanis in the garden. He was accompanied by someone he did not expect: Louis the red deer.

This happened when he told the new head of Horns Conglomerate about the mistyped morse code that was delivered to him. He was surprised that the red deer would be willing to decipher the message for him and track down the messenger.

After a few days, their search led them to the Harlequin Estate.

He listened to Louis' description of the estate while trying to block out unnecessary sounds like the raking of leaves or the garden shears trimming the hedges. 

Of course, flowers and trees have distinct sounds when they were being cut.

"You think Mizuchi's parents wanted to talk to me?" Arthur asked with wonder, mouth partially open to use his clicks. "Why couldn't they call me?"

"Do you think Mizuchi has given your number to her parents?" the red deer questioned, causing Arthur's fur to bristle. Of course not! Mizuchi's interaction with her parents were strained during their last encounter and the Honduran white bat wondered if he was the reason for their family's downfall.

He loves Mizuchi with all of his heart, but there are obstacles that can rival his battle with Melon at the Black Market.

When they reached the front door, a butler was waiting for them, just by the sound of his feet going pitter-patter on the marbled floor. As much as he was nervous, Arthur stood up straight with his ears perked up while his wings wrapped around himself like a cape.

"Ah, I shall inform the Master and Mistress of your arrival. Please follow me," said the butler, his footsteps echoed through the mansion. Arthur used his clicks to follow the sound of his rodent-like feet while Louis does his best to steer him into the right direction.

His ears picked up the sound of murmurs and excited chatters in some of the rooms, probably Mizuchi's siblings. He smiled, knowing that their long ears could pick up their footsteps before they could sit down.

When he was guided to sit on one of the sofas, his ears swivelled at the sounds of oncoming footsteps. Since all of them took their shoes off, the sounds were similar to wearing slippers inside the house.

"So, you got my message?" a feminine voice asked.

"I was able to decipher the message but there was a typo," Arthur replied smoothly. "It is quite a challenge to learn morse code the first time. I can teach you how to write properly if you like."

He could imagine the figure in front of him having either a shocked or blank expression. He couldn't tell what facial expressions were made unless he felt the face. But that's just asking for trouble!

"Hmmph! If you are so smart, why don't you stay away from my daughter," the voice sneered, causing Arthur to wrapped his wings tighter around himself. Beside him, he felt Louis tensed up. Before the red deer could say anything, the male voice spoke up.

"Sakai, don't you think you're being hard on the boy?" the voice, Mizuchi's father asked. He could tell that the harlequin buck was afraid to speak up. "After all, he-"

"Don't interrupt me when I am having a serious conversation, Mervis," Sakai snapped back at her husband. "Can you imagine what I have to hear every single day at work about how our daughter seemed to turn down every suitor we paired her up with?"

Arthur was about to say something but Louis held his shoulder, a signal for him to wait.

"Tell me what's so special about you, bat? You can barely see, have fangs that might as well drain her of her blood and on top of that, you're not even financially secured."

Arthur listened, clenching the two fingers on his right wing. "I don't have to be rich to be happy, Sakai. Yes, I am blind but I am clear about my path and what I choose. Instead of blaming me for what happened, try and understand from Mizuchi's point of view. You'd be surprise to find out what an amazing doe she is."

"The very idea," Sakai harrumphed as she stamped her foot to the ground. "And what are you going to do once you have graduated? Perform on the streets and barely making ends meet? A lot of artists die young and are broken before they could reach thirty."

There was silence except for the rolling sound of an incoming tea trolley. The bubbling sound of tea being poured while sandwiches and cakes were properly placed on the plates with matching cutleries. The sound alone made Arthur's stomach rumble, pleading him for his daily dose of tea.

"Sakai," Mervis spoke up tentatively. "Maybe it's-"

"I said don't interrupt me, Mervis."

The Honduran white bat only smiled, tapping Louis on the knee. "I don't know. But what I know is that life is unpredictable, even when you think you know everything. I thought that's something common rabbits are familiar with? A beast with a thousand enemies everyday and night?"

With that, Arthur finally sipped the hot brewing tea that was placed beside him.