Return Home (Mermaid Swamp AU)

"New" Guests

Rin lead her friends into the house and showed them to their rooms. The steps heading up to the second floor weren't fixed yet since Rin was replacing them, so even if the trio wanted to look upstairs they couldn't. Only half of the stairs were finished and Rin needed more wood for replacements. Yuuta got the room second door right (when facing the stairs) of stairs, Yuka got first door to the right and Seitaro got first left door. The second left door was locked since it had been Rin's room but now she didn't sleep in a bed since she was used to the water and cold air of the mountain range.

"Miss Lukaina.... Why is the fourth door closed?" Yuka asked as Rin was making dinner for everyone.

"That room was mine.... but my mother made it a prison for me she never let me out of that room when I was little." A tear came to her eye as she recalled that her mother was cruel yet loving to her. "She said it was to keep me safe from the evil people who envied us for our wealthy background."

"Oh I'm sorry." Yuka said but Rin cut her off.

"No it's fine, I feel better talking about that with someone rather then bottling it up."

Yuuta and Seitaro listened in through the dinning room door, since Yuka left it half open on accident. The boys didn't understand why a mother would do that to her daughter, all because people were envious.

"Mother finally chose to let me explore the manor when I turned 11. I got sick a lot from staying inside a stuffy room for so long, the doctors ordered her to give me more freedom, which to her meant the run of the house." Rin laughed softly. "She'd shake her head at me when I'd put on some old kimonos and run around with the maid chasing after me. She used to scold me but I had such an enclosed mind for an 11 year old girl, so she just said to quit making the maids unknowingly play with me."

Rin chuckled at old memories, "Finally, Mother let me outside and the first thing we did was heac to the village nearby. She took me to visit my father's grave, which was a tradition of hers since my birth and I still visit there."

Yuka got curious about Rin's old room, "Do you not have the key?"

"I lost the key to my old room," Rin said. "I used to wear it around my neck by a black string. If you three find it than you can look through my old room but nothing must leave that room. I hate having to fix a mess that can be prevented."

Rin served up dinner and sat down with them to eat, it was beef on rice with soy sauce lightly added. Everyone sat in silence eating while Rin ate with her eyes on her food but her guests kept glancing at her. They weren't sure how to eat with this heavy silence hanging in the air, Rin finished her food first and waited patiently for Yuuta, Yuka, and Sietaro to finish. Yuka volunteered to do the dishes which Rin allowed since the boys wanted to ask her questions.

"Miss Lukaina, why did you mention placing flowers on graves?" Seitaro asked.

"Tomorrow is the day of the honored dead. The owner of the land, which is me, shows they honor those who have passed by placing flowers on the graves in the village. But most of the flowers get sent adrift in the swamp, so many the settlers which are now my people, died in that water from maddeness even other odd things. Illnesses or maybe presonal reasons."

"So that is your duty to show respect with flowers?" Yuuta question. "I'm sorry, that is a bit confusing to me."

"Well, I'd best get some rest for morning to come." Rin said getting up from her chair. "Good night everyone."

With that Rin left the dinning room for the living room to sleep on the couch which was normal for her now. Seitaro, Yuuta, and Yuka all went to their assigned rooms to rest for the night. Rin slept in the living holding a picture of her and her mother in one hand hung over the front of the couch as she laid on her stomach.