Offering his arm, he guided Trixie away from the room. By pure chance, he glanced over his shoulder just in time to find Liron sneaking the children out of the room and down the hall in the opposite direction. Emerick was hard pressed not to laugh. With a breath, he eased his expression and returned his attention to his little lover.
"If you want to critique my management skills, I don't want to hear it!" Trixie growled. "Mr. Jack Rabbit has already made it clear that they are 'decidedly lacking,' or whatever. Sorry I am new to running a fancy ass house and grounds, and sorry that I'm not picking it up as quickly as he'd like."
"No critiques," Emerick replied. "If you are interested in hearing them, I have a few suggestions, but I did agree to let you run things how you saw fit."
"Then why did you pull me away?" Trixie's eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"You were getting too worked up. I figured you could use a break," Emerick replied, kissing her nose playfully. "Besides, I like walking with you when I can."
"Oh," She colored. "Er… thanks." After a few moments she added, "not that I need them, but what were those suggestions?"
"You'll have to torture them out of me," Emerick winked. He jumped as she grabbed his exposed nipple and twisted it. "Hey! Hey! Fine! Enough torture!"
"I mean, I like you shirtless and all, but Jacoby does make a good point," Trixie smirked. "You do leave yourself much too exposed when you aren't properly dressed."
"Yeah, yeah," Emerick rolled his eyes, then pinched her butt to reciprocate, earning a yelp. "You wouldn't have me any other way."
"So what?" Trixie batted her eyelashes, then folded her arms. "Now seriously, you had some tips for me?"
"You're trying too hard," Emerick replied. "You're forcing yourself and those under you to go against your natures. Stop, and take the time to see who's better suited to what. I mean, take little Lorelei for example, she's an adorable little girl, but let me tell you she's a terrible cook. According to Jacoby, she actually managed to set the kitchen on fire today."
"You make it sound so easy!" Trixie huffed. "It's not that simple! And how do I know that they aren't just being lazy to try and get out of duties they don't want?"
"Frankly, because you raised them better than that," Emerick nudged her. "All I'm saying is, maybe you should have a meeting and figure out all who is interested in trying what, come up with a rotation of chores, and go from there?"
"That's actually not a bad idea," Trixie nodded. "Alright, fine. I guess that's a pretty good tip."
"I'll show you another good tip anytime my dear," He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. She laughed and smacked him playfully.
"Later," She giggled. "I have to go check on Jan. Hopefully he's not trying to mop the floors again."
"See you later then," Emerick nodded and watched her go. He chuckled when she deliberately pushed more sway in the motions of her hips as she walked, knowing full well he was staring at her butt as she departed.
Once she was no longer visible enough for him to appreciate her retreating figure, he sighed, then resumed his progress out of the house and onto the grounds in search of Orval. Normally, he would've run into the dutiful guard by this point, Orval typically made an effort to remain nearby.
Exiting the building, he started down the winding stone path that meandered through the grounds past the shed where the orc brothers were setting up shop to the training grounds where Emerick suspected Orval might be. As he walked the path, he passed the kitchen which was still in a bit of an uproar.
"Lorelei, I swear if you don't get out I'll kick you out!" Dalek snarled. It was the most words Emerick had heard from the drow where-beast since he'd met the moody fellow. He paused to listen, intrigued by the dark but formal tone of Dalek's voice.
Dalek, for all of his gruffness, had practically taken over kitchen operations, though Trixie had made numerous efforts to pull him elsewhere to help with other affairs. No matter what he was doing, the young man always ended up gravitating back to the kitchen, and correcting those in charge of the cooking. After about day 8 of this, Trixie gave up and let him be, which definitely was a good thing. Anything edible that came out of that kitchen at present was always prepared by Dalek.
"You don't have to be so mean," Lorelei sulked. "It was an accident!"
Emerick tried not to fall for her charm, but all he wanted to do was dote on the squirt. The little pink goblin-fairy was as cute as she was petite. She was surprisingly bold for as young as she appeared, but in an endearing way. She was stubborn and dedicated, but Emerick was forced to agree with Dalek on one point. Hard worker or not, Lorelei was ultimately ill suited to the kitchen.
"You say that, yet every time I give you a job, EVERY SINGLE TIME, something catches fire!" Dalek exclaimed. "I don't know how you do it! You aren't ever anywhere near the stove, kettle, or anything else that burns, and this last time I had you cutting ice!"
Emerick stifled a chuckle as he listened to them argue. It was like a big brother and his kid sister. In fact he'd had many similar disputes with both his older and younger sisters over the years. Whether or not he was right, Emerick almost always lost those battles. It was still fun to pick them every now and then.
"I already said sorry!" Lorelei huffed. "What more do you want?"
"I want you out!" Dalek roared. The argument was becoming circular, so Emerick resumed walking. Much as he wanted to intervene and encourage little Lorelei to seek to help elsewhere, until Trixie specifically requested his aid he needed to let her take care of things her own way in her own time. He would only cause problems if he started poking his nose where it didn't belong.
As he continued his path through the gardens, he admired the growing beauty of the scenery. He was no expert by any means, but Titus had done a lot to clean up the flower beds and tend the trees and bushes. He was also exceptionally careful and considerate when picking leaves, flowers, and other materials, though Emerick suspected this had more to do with the quality of the products he created in relation to quality of materials and not so much out of consideration for Emerick.
It was when he arrived at the rows of arching arbors that Emerick realized why Jacoby was truly as upset as he was. Jacoby's treasured Spectral Wisteria that clung to the quaint structures like ghostly shrouds where missing a few blossoms. While Emerick could appreciate the fact that the plant was rare and delicate, and it bloomed only briefly under very specific circumstances, it was clear the young orc had kept all this in mind when he selected the few samples he'd taken and if anything the flowers looked even healthier to Emerick. He would have to tease Jacoby about it when he came across the overly protective butler next.
Once he cleared the arbors, Emerick was just outside the shed turned workshop occupied by Rathus and Titus. He considered dropping in for a visit, but paused when he heard shouting coming from within. The echo was bad enough he couldn't fully understand what was being said, but he was pretty sure his name was thrown out several times. He decided to visit later and walked past. It was better to let the tempers die down a little.
Upping his pace, Emerick skirted the shed and continued to the grounds where he finally found Orval. The knight was with the young boy he'd adopted, Milo. From the looks of it, Orval was training the boy with wooden swords.
"Watch your stance!" Emerick heard him bark as he drew nearer. "Never forget the basics boy! That's the shit that gets you killed!"
"I'm sorry!" Milo gasped, then struggled to correct his form and posture. Emerick was pleased to see the boy looking much, much healthier from when they'd first met. From the looks of things, the boy was putting on both weight and muscle.
"Don't be sorry, be confident!" Orval snapped. Milo nodded and continued the drill Orval was running him through.
"He's looking lively," Emerick complimented, stopping at Orval's side as the boy continued swinging the wooden sword.
"He could do with a little more zeal," Orval dismissed. "But I am pleased with his progress."
Milo said nothing, but Emerick was sure he could see the boy smiling through his gasps. The two had become close almost alarmingly fast. Based on the circumstance Milo came from, Emerick would've expected the boy to be more aloof and distrustful, as Trixie and most of her family behaved, but Milo was quite the opposite. The kid was having a positive influence on Orval as well, to Emerick's delight. The knight was far more upbeat lately.