Without a thought Lira slams the shoji open to find - nothing.
Except for the few candles on candle stands, settled on either side of the tatami room that have illuminated the room, as if it was still in the middle of the day. She quickly brings inside the basket of bed sheets. Lira gently slides close the sliding doors, a major contrast to the way she had opened it. She did so while breathing heavily to recover from, using a lot of force to open the shoji.
She looks around in the room once again. A sudden thought comes to mind - it's just surprisingly how the 10th Prince doesn't have any servants around. Does he do everything himself? That's rare for royalty. Usually they have at least 5 servants that assist them in pouring a cup of tea. Not to mention helping them get dressed, which takes around more servants than fingers and toes put together can count. Slight exaggeration for the imperial family of 12 royal descendants, in the most powerful empire in Divia, but Lira doesn't think too much about it.
A guilty thought arises in her mind for a brief moment. Less servants means that would mean reducing the pay for multiple servants; is equivalent to her getting more pay. If someone was around they would have seen her eyes sparkle like diamonds at the thought of money. Although she doesn't have a huge love for wealth, but money sometimes gives her an explainable excitement.
Her mind stops imagining things that will never happen, she redirects her attention to the chabudai. She stares at the chabudai blankly her heart settles ever so slight. Thankfully its been placed back to the way it was before the 10th Prince had flipped the table across the room; and did a kabedon - a floor kabedon to her.
Abruptly, without control her heart begins to flutter. Her mind to race without control, it begins recalling every second, every breath in that intimate moment. His hands tightly pressing onto her delicate skin, the 10th Prince's deep ancient ruby red eyes buried with messages. But most intimately, the central part of his body felt really close to her abdominal. Although she didn't dare take her eyes off him and look downwards, but she could just feel it. Since both of their legs were almost fully compressed together. At that moment, she couldn't help gulp at the extreme closeness of not just their lips, but their.... And throughout her whole body she could feel electrical currents travelling throughout, reaching her face and heating it up rapidly.
"I see you're back," chimes the 10th Prince from somewhere. But not anywhere in the tatami room, she's certain of that as she spins her head 360 degrees, and looked up just to make sure he wasn't some ninja prince.
She didn't dare reply. Out of fear of him possibly doing a kabedon to her again, but also from her mind unable to stop thinking about the first kabedon, that'll hopefully be the last one. Lira quickly picked up the basket and slithered to the sakura patterned noren that surprisingly she just noticed. His voice seemed to have travelled through from there.
The noren she approached hung all the way down to the floor so she couldn't see anything inside from the bottom, and the noren was dead still, so it was impossible for her to have a chance to spy in between the gaps on the sides.
"Yes, 10th Prince I've returned." she quietly sighs, continuing to talk to him hoping he didn't actually hear her slam the door, although it was really really loud. "and now I dare intrude behind this noren to place the washed laundry to its allocated place."
"Come in," commanded the 10th Prince, his tone full of control.
Lira gently moved the noren away to enter through. And behind this fabricated wall she finds a study room. There are calligraphic scrolls pinned around the whole room. The walls coloured in red, with silver patterning, that magically corresponded with the black ink of the calligraphy artworks. The shade of red similar to the 10th Prince's eye colour. The silver patterning similar to the robe he's wearing that has silver embroidery and a crane on it.
She made eye contact with the ruby coloured eyes, similar to the room she just immersed in. Taking minor steps, Lira walked elegantly in front of the table, where the 10th Prince sat behind on a wooden chair.
"10th Prince where should I place the laundry." smiled Lira, while lowering her head slightly to show respect.
"Follow me," exclaimed the 10th Prince, as he put down the calligraphy brush on its stand. Swinging the sleeves of his robe aside he stood up from the chair, and walked around the table, directly to the noren directly opposite of the one Lira came in. This one's length too reaches the floor. But instead it was covered with paintings of bamboo.
He brushes aside the bamboo patterned noren as Lira follows behind him. They immerse into another tatami room, but this one a lot bigger. As soon as they exit the study room, directly on the right is a tokonoma. At the bottom, the elevated platform rests a vase of flowers, and a calligraphic scroll hung against the wall. It had one word - still. The character had many strokes, it was sophisticated to the point where the educated Lira had to look twice to make sure it wasn't another character.
They seemed to have already walked to the centre of the main tatami room, where it too had a chabudai and a few zabutons, as well as another tea set that rested on the table. They smoothly walked around it until the 10th Prince stopped in front of a noren with a crane, almost identical to the robe he's wearing right now. Lira halted right behind the 10th Prince, before brushed aside the noren he turned towards Lira with a smug on his face.
"Also, you're sleeping on the floor tonight." chimes the 10 Prince merrily. Lira couldn't help but put on a cold smile, while staring deadly at the 10th Prince.