Kyo and Amagiri sat waiting for their leader to sit before them. When Chikage had arrived, they bowed in acknowledgement. Chikage sat on his knees at the small table and began to sip his tea that one of the girls had poured for him. He was silent for a bit while he savored the taste of the tea. He then set the cup down and cleared his throat. “It’s good to be back. Did I miss anything while I was away?”<br/><br/>“Not at all Chikage,” Kyo responded, “As a matter of fact, it’s been very quiet here. I heard that you were going to pass down the Hakuoki name to one of the Shinsengumi.” Kyo’s violet orbs flickered as he glanced at Chikage. Chikage picked up his small cup again and took a small sip. He stared at the tea leaves that had made their way into his cup.<br/><br/>“Rumors about me again huh?” Chikage smirked. “Just because I’ve created a treated with the Shinsengumi, doesn’t mean I’m going to pass down my power. Of course there is one other powerful male out there in their ranks and yes we can go head to head, but I will not be passing down the demon name. If I do such a thing it will be because of a certain someone…” Chikage set his cup down again. “Anything from you Amagiri?”<br/><br/>Amagiri wasn’t one to be the talkative type. He was also not the type of person to bring up such trivial things like rumors or anything about the girls. He handled thing fairly well on his own without him. It was especially why he favored him more than he had Kyo. Amagiri lifted his stoic gaze to Chikage and shook his head. “Not that I am aware of. I think that for the most part the village has been quiet. While you were away, we had done our best to keep things under wraps. The women….are of a different story.”<br/><br/>Chikage nodded as he listened to them and Kyo failed to bring up anything else that was distasteful to him. “Well, since we are in a treaty with the Shinsengumi, we have to be available to support them in times of need. That means that if they are at war with a neighboring village that we are not in a treaty with, we will be available. There are times when we cannot and we must decide to not join their ranks, but I am one that can never turn down a battle.” Kyo and Amagiri nodded in agreement.  There were no objections to what he had said, but there was an expected question.<br/><br/>“And so what of Natsu?” It was Kyo who had inquired about her. Why should he be surprised?<br/><br/>“Well, that has been taken care of. She will remain in this house, but if another instance happens, off with her head.” Chikage said, his face turning serious. The azure and auburn haired men grinned. Neither of them particularly liked Natsu, but they kept her around because she had her ways. If not for her capabilities, then she wouldn’t be there and even this time if not for Mishiko, she wouldn’t be there.<br/><br/>----<br/>The girls were all rather pleased with their new Lady. They were surprised that she offered them to have a bit of tea when they were done with their chores. So, they quickly moved about the house. Many of their tasks included keeping the bath clean, folding the different clothing, washing and hanging the clothing out to dry and preparing the meals throughout the day. Tonight they would be having a kimchi stir fry as the main dish. They had all hoped that the Lady would be pleased. They all now knew that she was the top priority. If they did not please her, then there was no pleasing Chikage.<br/><br/>Maiko looked to Ami and sighed blissfully.  “I think that having the Lady here will do us well. Having another female with power here gives it a wonderful touch.” She muttered as she cleaned the dishes.<br/><br/>“Mmm, yes. But I also think that having the Lady here means less time with Lord Chikage.” Ami explained as she dried the dishes that were handed to her. Rai stirred the boiling pot over the fire and tasted the mix.<br/><br/>“I think that it’s a good thing we will spend less time with Chikage-sama. He has different needs than the others. He knows that we are frail and he has to hold back. It’s not fair to him.” Rai muttered a-matter-of-factly. She moved on to the other simmering foods and began to clean up after herself while she did. Natsu and the other girls filed into the room with the kitchen girls. She nodded to the outside garden and they all finished up what they were doing before they headed out with several pots of tea. One was made especially for Lady Mishiko and the rest was for them. They poured her glass and awaited her arrival before they could be seated.<br/><br/>“I wonder what Lady Mishiko wants to know about us? Perhaps she is skimming the surface? Or does she want to hear something deeper?” Kushina inquired aloud as they all stood perpendicular to the door so that they could bow as she walked through the garden. There was still a bit to do before sundown, but Chikage had just returned and they knew that they could all easily pull it off later.