A/N: Thank god! I did it! Woo-wee! It's been a loooong time!! Nearly six months!! O_O anyway here it is, please review! Tell me how to make my story better!

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Chapter 4

* Inchworm, Inchworm, measuring the marigolds

You and your arithmetic, you'll probably go far…

Inchworm, Inchworm, measuring the marigolds

Seems to me you'd stop and see how beautiful they are *

Saichi struck the tuning fork on the bench, an exasperated expression on his face. Nari had suggested that he form a sort of children's choir that met on Sunday afternoons. It had been a fine idea, but it just wasn't clicking. "One last time, then..." As the children began to try to sing, he winced. They were out of tune, out of time, and he was out of patience.

Suddenly Nari appeared over his shoulder. The children stopped singing, grateful for the interruption.

"May I try it?" Without asking, she picked up the sheet music they had been singing from. She looked at it for a second, then carelessly tossed it aside. "How about a different song..." Saichi growled under his breath and scurried to pick up the sheets of paper. He folded the music in half and tucked it under his arm, watching Nari calmly divide the kids into two sections.

"Now, for the first half, we all sing together. Here's how the first part goes..." she struck the tuning fork on her knee and hummed around for her note. "Two and two are four, four and four are eight - Now you try." She sang with them as they forgot the notes, the words, and the rhythms. However, she was patient, and she found the note again and sang it through again. Once they had that pretty well down, they moved to the second part. "Two and two are four, four and four are eight -- watch the difference there - how can you be so blind? Don't worry if that's a bit low or high for you, the other kids will cover. Now, let's try it together."

Saichi ground his teeth in frustration. It was an easy piece, but the one he picked wasn't THAT much harder... She has such a bloody way with them! Arr, it drives me insane! He stomped out of the barn, glaring daggers at nothing in particular. Nari glanced up and watched him go, looking utterly surprised. When the door had slammed shut behind him, she shrugged and sounded the tuning fork once more.

~

Rakuraia Kougai brushed her blonde hair out in front of the sitting room mirror. The talk of the other harem girls washed over and around her, and she didn't bother trying to listen hard. They never said anything interesting.

She adjusted the straps on her long black dress. Most of the girls would never wear black, but Raku's skin was more tan than normal and the black brought out the difference. It also made her chocolate eyes darker, leaving her pale hair to shine. Not to mention black suited her personality much better.

If she had been a lower ranking harem girl, she could never have pulled it off. In fact, sometimes she wondered why Jadoku has chosen her in the first place, as she was so out of his style - pale hair, pale skin. Green eyes. Even her particular shade of blonde hair was more of a gold than blonde.

Not that she was complaining or anything... Jadoku was pretty much everything Raku wanted in a man, plus she was paid. Thinking about this, Raku smiled. I mean, what else is there to life?

~

"f I were you, I wouldn't be complaining." Saichi's head jerked up, and his black eyes met her green ones. He was sitting on a bench by the lake, and she had just come up behind him.

"What did you say?"

"I said, if I were you, I wouldn't be complaining."

He hadn't been complaining, but the last she had seen of him was a grand dramatic exit. It was quite good, he thought. Nevertheless, she was right - he was complaining, and actions speak louder than words anyway.

"Well, you're not me." An edge of anger crept into his voice as he muttered, "you couldn't stand half a chance in the University..."

"Lucky for me I'm not there!" She flopped down on the bench beside him. His eyebrows lifted up. Did Nari actually sound angry? "What is it about this stupid University? It's always University this, University that..."

Saichi sat straighter on the bench, an indignant flash coming into his eyes. "I grew up there! My parents lived and died there! It's my home, more home than this tiny nothing of a town could ever be!" His voice grew in anger as he railed on.

There was silence for a second, before Nari lashed out again. "You're not the only one new to Lakeside. I grew up elsewhere too, and my parents lived and died there, and it holds a lot of meaning to me, but you don't ever hear be bragging about it do you?"

His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "I was meaning to ask you about that... Where do you come from? Who ARE you?"

Nari clenched her teeth, glaring at a point along the horizon. "That's none of your business."

"Perhaps it is my business!"

Nari suddenly whipped around and faced him, her eyes blazing. "My home is personal information. If I EVER decide to tell you about it, then it would be your business. For now, you're being a stupid officious JERK!!!!" She was nearly screaming by the last word. She took a few deep breaths, and then continued. "Remember, you're the one helping me, not the other way around." She suddenly got up off the bench, and was about to storm off, but she turned back. "Oh, and another thing? Don't insult Lakeside. They have enough problems of their own without you being on their case." She spit the last word out and whipped back around, her braid flying. She ran down to the barn and slipped inside, shutting the door behind her with a snap.

~

Raku sat back in her chair, makeup done, hair brushed, dress perfect, and heaved a sigh. She was again reminded of the other girls in the room as their conversation rolled over her. She let the words drain through her brain, casually sifting for anything worth noting.

Suddenly she whipped around in her chair, everything else forgotten. "What about Saichi Tenshou?" The other girls fell quiet, for it was rare that the great and mighty Rakuraia step down off her high horse enough to utter a word to them. The speaker, one of the more reticent ladies, shrank back in her chair.

"Um, the Emperor was talking about that girl he wanted, um, Nari? He was saying that Saichi wasn't doing a very good job because everyone has a weakness and he wasn't going to just ask her because of something about her being special but I don't know - " Raku cut her off with a wave, the girl was starting to babble.

She twisted around in her chair, absentmindedly smoothing her mussed dress and hair. She was trying to glean what she could from the girl (what was her name again?)'s chatter. So Saichi was involved with the new catch? Raku frowned. And it wasn't news to the girls... Why hadn't anyone told her?

The door opened and a messenger stuck his head inside. "Rakuraia Kougai? The Emperor called for you." Raku stood up with a swish of her black skirts, a satisfied grin on her face. Right again, she thought. I always know when he wants me... And now she had several questions to ask him. Why didn't he tell her about Saichi? Of course, it was probably her fault for not paying attention. She mentally smacked herself for being careless. After all, she liked keeping tabs on old lovers.

~

"Hey, Nari..." Saichi came to lean over the stall door. "I... I'm sorry."

"For what?" She looked up from her book, eyes wide with surprise.

"For prying... you know, earlier today..."

She waved the apology away with a flick of her hand. "That's all right, it's my fault, I shouldn't have gotten angry. I forgive you." She went back to her book.

He blinked. "Um..."

She looked up again. "Hmm? What?"

"Never mind." He went over to his stall and sat down on his pile of blankets that he used for a bed. Wow, and I thought I'd really offended her... heh. What a weird woman.

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big thanks to my reviewers, and also to the peeps on Elite Skills (.com) you guys are so full of creative-ness and helpful comments!!! yay.

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