Like A Fairytale

Chapter 47

Flo

Chaos.

Flo couldn't describe the situation any other way.

It was said that there had been an attack. He didn't know much more until now.

No one explained the exact situation to them.

Karelle and Ella hugged, Alix cried out of overwhelm, two other cooks scolded, and one cook baked a cake. Out of frustration. At least she tried to bake a cake. Out of sheer fear and nervousness, she confused salt and sugar, took pepper instead of the expensive cinnamon...

There were to be staff surveys, which they were all waiting for. Interviews with lie detectors.

Two Shadows, both women, stood in front of the kitchen door and kept watch. Flo and all the other kitchen staff were held at their workplace. Alix was sure that the security personnel were currently searching all the rooms of the staff.

Alby distracted herself with the dishes and was currently torturing a pan with a cleaning sponge.

"I hate that!" she scolded. "All that! My room! My privacy! They shouldn't be allowed to do that!"

Flo sat on one of the kitchen counters and stirred with a spoon one of the fresh broths that were to be served in the evening. As a basis for a soup. Actually, he wasn't allowed to do that, but at that moment, no one cared.

"Do you think they'll find Silverpaw?" Alby asked next. "Oh, what am I talking about. If they search our rooms, they will surely find Silverpaw. But..."

"I have an official permit to keep Silverpaw here." Flo raised his eyebrows. "I'm not worried about her, but rather about the poor security staff. If Alix is right."

"He's right. Searching the rooms is part of the security protocol, in case of suspicion of terrorism and such."

"Oh." Flo grimaced. "Silverpaw is not a terrorist. But... Maybe she wants to defend my room."

"Why?" Alby put the pan aside rudely and grabbed another one to forcibly remove all the dirt. "Silverpaw is such a sweet kitten."

"Unless she sees the security personnel as intruders. She is now almost knee-high. I can still carry her around, with a little effort, but she gets stronger every day. I'm not sure how she reacts to unexpected and unknown visitors."

Alby turned pale. "Do you think she'll bite? How strong is it now?"

Flo thought of the night before, when Silverpaw thought nibbling on the desk was a great idea. Not much remained of the piece of furniture. Minnie had passed on the damage for Flo. Today or tomorrow, he should get a new desk.

Free of charge.

Something Flo was still wondering about. "If Silverpaw bites, there could be one less security person," he said. "I hope it doesn't come to that. With a bit of luck, Silverly will only proudly present her work of a broken desk..."

"What?" Alby grinned briefly.

"She abused the desk as a playmate." Flo shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh no. That will be expensive. We have to pay for broken furniture ourselves. That's in the contract."

"What?" Contract... "Minnie said I didn't have to pay for the desk myself."

"WHAT!?" Alby turned abruptly. The pan, which she had maltreated earlier, fell into the sink. Dirty water spilled onto the floor and splashed in all directions. The noise caught the attention of the others in the room.

"Alby!! What are you doing?" cried Ella indignantly. She sounded exhausted.

"Sorry. I just was... Frightened by something," Alby explained quickly. "There was a spider!" A lie. "I'll clean up immediately."

Astonished, Flo followed his friend to the back of the kitchen. Here waited everything they needed for cleaning in a small chamber next to the large storeroom. Flo grabbed a mop. "There was no spider," he whispered to Alby.

"Of course not." Sighing, Alby took a bucket and a cloth to wipe. "You don't have to pay for the desk?"

He shook his head. "No. I don't have to pay anything."

"If the others had heard that." Alby bit her lower lip for a moment, then shook her head. "There would be rumors. Are you sure?"

"Minnie told me I didn't have to pay anything," Flo confirmed.

"Minnie?"

"The AI of Burgstadt. She accompanied me here, so to speak. I have an old Minnie box, and it also works outside of Burgstadt. You've seen the jewelry box."

"Interesting. Actually... As far as I know, the AIs of the cities are mostly independent of Mina and only work to a limited extent outside of their cities. They do not have direct access to the systems here, but they can transmit data. Did Minnie send a message for you?" Alby leaned against one of the shelves, embracing the bucket with the rag inside. "We have to report such things to my aunt. Minnie shouldn't be able to decide such a thing. She should not have access to Mina's systems."

Flo shook his head in confusion. "She said she had arranged everything. But I will still report the damage to your aunt. When all this is over. Just to be on the safe side."

Alby nodded. "That's better. Maybe Minnie has a system error and passed the damage on to someone in Burgstadt? The AI from the cities lacks the authority to 'take care of' something like this here."

"Maybe. Come on, we have to clean." Flo demonstratively held out the mop to the Alby.

"Yes. Thank you. For the help."

"Gladly."

Flo helped Alby remove the large puddle. While they were cleaning, the two did not speak to each other. Both had a lot to think about. Of course, Flo didn't know what exactly Alby was thinking about.

He himself wondered why Minnie seemed so 'different'. She had no system error. He knew that for sure. He owed this job to her.

And he had never signed a contract...

"Alby Willow and Flo Whitebloom!" A man in the typical uniform of the security personnel, none of the Shadows, stepped through the door. "Please follow me for questioning."

Nervously, the two friends exchanged a look. "At least we weren't called alone," Alby murmured and grabbed Flo's hand.

Hand in hand, they followed the man out of the kitchen.

(c: sasi)