"Ok Ok... Stop it!"
It was Chirpy.
Chirpy knocked Angelica down with his weight and licked her all over the face.
Having noticed her scent, he dashed towards the trail and dived in through the open window all the way from the training grounds on the other side of the mansion. He had run at his full capacity without caring about the surroundings.
"stop..." Angelica tried to catch his face. But she lost to his strength, who was excited about seeing her after a month.
*whimper* *whimper*
Chirpy whimpered when Angelica finally managed to push him away and got up. He sat opposite to her like a sobbing puppy with droopy eyes and ears, his tail still wagging from seeing her.
Angelica stifled a laugh at his appearance. It was sly of him to act cute in front of her, which was her ultimate weakness.
Because no matter how he tried, it always worked.
"Come here you silly wolf" Angelica called out to Chirpy with her arms spread wide.
She caught him in a bear hug and buried her face in his fur which was wet from running through the rain.
"I missed you too baby" Angelica said in a longing voice.
*whimper*
All that mattered to Chirpy was Angelica and Angelica only.
He had never been separated from her for a prolonged period throughout the years they have been together. In contrast to a master-follower relationship, they were more like siblings.
Wherever Angelica goes, he'll follow her. Even if it was to the end of the world.
At least it was, until a certain human he always disliked decided otherwise.
"Grrrrr"
Chirpy growled in a deep voice looking at the unsightly human, who regrettably happened to be Angelica's kin.
"Hmmm" Angelica turned to the recipient of Chirpy's growl.
She didn't need to take a look to find out who it was since, ever since Chirpy became a part of the Ashford family, the two have been mortal enemies.
"Not again" Angelica sighed, putting a hand to her head.
Clive and Chirpy were having a staring contest, each snarling at the other.
"Heh" Clive scoffed, glaring at the excuse of a dog.
Chirpy wriggled out of Angelica's embrace and stood in front of her.
"GRRR"
Chirpy got into a stance, ready to pounce on the slightest movement. Clive, who behaved akin to a pitiful cub in front of his sister, always acted like a ferocious tiger in front of the wolf.
Angelica's mouth twitched.
She was tired of looking at the all too familiar standoff, with neither taking action. It was so bad that sometimes she wanted to throw them into a boxing ring so that they could fight each other in mortal kombat style.
"Quit it, you idiots!" Angelica stood up and whacked Clive on the head.
"Oww.."
And a gentle pat for Chirpy.
"Awwoo"
When she looked around, she could see that her father's office was a mess. There were muddy footprints on the wall, on the floor, and even by the window. There were also a lot of paw prints on the carpet.
'The old butler's gonna have a blast' Angelica thought, the corners of her mouth curled up.
The old butler hated it when the siblings got mud on the carpet after running around the mansion and finished playing outside.
And the room looked like a swamp monster made a brief appearance before bidding farewell.
Angelica sat on the sofa opposite Clive and crossed her legs. As Clive took a seat right by her side, Chirpy was still growling at Clive exposing his sharp canines.
"Start from the top" Angelica said snapping her fingers at Clive, turning his attention to her.
Clive took a deep breath before he started confessing with his head down like he was a five-year-old caught with his hand in a cookie jar.
"First was the storm in the southern region..."
".....and then the ships to Murim......."
Angelica listened to him talk with her hand resting on the armrest. Aside from the occasional nodding and humming, she didn't interfere with his speech in any way.
"......Shorty after the landslide, I..."
Angelica squirted her eyes and narrowed in on him, guessing what was about to come next.
"I mean... Ahem... WE were pressed for funds..." Clive averted his eyes feeling the guilt creep up his spine.
"A proposal came from the capital and you know the rest"
"And exactly how did I get there?" asked Angelica with arched eyebrows.
" hehe.." Clive laughed awkwardly scratching his cheek.
"We added a concentrated dose of Xalian extract...."
"Wow... You should be so proud of yourself" Angelica clapped.
"Wha..?"
"Awoo?"
Both Clive and Chirpy looked at her bright smiling face with confused expressions. That was not the way they expected her to respond. It was rather unexpected.
"Is that what you expected me to say?" Suddenly Angelica's face darkened, a mockery smirk replacing her smile.
"You...*beep* *beep* go and *beep* *beep* *beep* *beep* and *beep* *beep* *beep* *beep* and also *beep* *beep*........"
(The above words were censored for viewer discretion)
*whine* *whine*
Chirpy laid down and closed his ears with his paws. Clive on the other hand was staring at his baby sister's flawless swearing. His jaw dropped from the unanticipated attack.
"Don't forget to *beep* *beep* and those twin devils too *beep* *beep* *beep* *beep* shave their *beep* *beep* *beep* "
Clive never knew Angelica was capable of saying such things. He was hearing a variety of new words at that too.
"Stop" said Clive, raising his hand in the air to signal her.
He predicted that his ears would start to bleed if this continued any longer than it already has.
"I think that's enough" He continued, covering his face with his hands.
"Haah....That took a lot out of my chest" Angelica beamed with a pleased face and patted Chirpy's head gently.
She felt satisfied since all the words that needed to be said were said.
"I could never unhear that"
Clive felt goosebumps all over his body, Angelica's words were spinning like a song inside his head in a never-ending cycle.
"I feel parched"
Angelica stretched her arms and looked around the room to find something to drink.
Unfortunately, the jar of water near kept at the side table was knocked out on the floor.
"You want something to drink" Clive's voice staggered. His brain was still recovering from the psychological attack.
"Coffee" Angelica answered in a firm tone.
"Because murder is illegal... for now"
"You didn't need to add that last sentence... hahaha" He got up and walked to the door, stumbling along the way.
"Hmmm" Anglica looked at her brother, who was shaking like an abandoned kitty in the rain.
With only his head poking out, he rang the service bell and called for a maid.
Since it was past midnight, only a few staff were on duty and it took them a few minutes to reach his office from the waiting area. This was because Clive did not like to have people waiting on him when he was working late.
'He may be a little trash but, at least he's a recyclable trash'
After a few minutes, an attendant came running, as if he was waiting to be called.
"Bring coffee and camellia tea. One cup each"
The attendant looked at Clive's pale face with a puzzled look and then ran off to bring the refreshments.
A moment later, the attendant returned with a cart and knocked on the door. It had the coffee and tea requested along with a few additional snacks.
Almost immediately, Clive cracked open the door and pulled in the cart, as if he was standing by waiting for it the entire time.
"You may leave" He said to the confused attendant and closed the door.
The attendant blinked his eyes and stared at the door for a moment before he turned around and walked away.
Clive pushed the cart towards Angelica and handed over her cup of coffee. He sat next to her and took a sip of his own cup of tea.
"I guess there are no unidentified substances in this drink" Angelica asked with a smirk.
"Pffttt...." Clive almost spit his tea.
"NO! I would never do that!" He yelled to defend himself. Although he was guilty of his previous acts, he would never ever do such an immoral thing again.
"You do have a record" said Angelica, taking a sip of the freshly brewed coffee.
She could feel the stress in her body meltdown and her mind clearing up.
"Also... I don't trust you. I trust this" Angelica tapped on the left side of her nose.
On closer inspection, Clive could see a thin silver ring on her nose. He was not able to notice it earlier due to the constant arguments they were having. Now that everything was settled? He could take a proper look.
"You pierced your nose?!" Clive exclaimed, unconsciously getting up on his feet.
But soon settled down after thinking of their consequences.
"Mom is going to kill you... hehe" An evil smile appeared on his face from foreseeing the future.
"Not if she kills you first" Angelica shot back pissed.
"Now listen. This is an alchemy device" The corners of her lips curled into a mischievous grin.
"Guess who gave it to me?"