After having a nice breakfast and saying her farewells to Bastien and Haru - who was very reluctant and pouty about seeing her go - (Y/n) went to work. In tow with the brunette's father, Kazuya Akihito, the head of the Akihito family and the owner of the vast conglomerate empire of the family, she boarded the plane. Of course, it was a private plane, something that came with the territory. And though she thought she would never get used to it, she had come to expect it.

It was always luxury mansions, luxury resorts, luxury private planes, and even luxury baby formula as far as Bastien was concerned. It just was the way things were when it came to the ancient family with more land than a continent. On the way over, she continued to be bombarded with countless opulent things though she was most fond of the food. Then there was the most expensive thing (?) Haru had given her, ensuring that she needed to take "Sona" everywhere she went. And granted, it was hard not to want to take Sona. She had gotten used to the luxury.

"Should I prepare for landing, (Y/n)?" a bright voice hummed, belonging to a young man.

Well, at least he looked like a young man. But, really, Sona was an android, a unique android that Haru made just for her. Although, Sona was no less of a person than anyone else in their eyes. He had emotions, likes and dislikes, and his own interests. In fact, she caught him, more than once, distracted from his job as her "secretary" when he noticed a dog walking by or some delicious treat he'd never seen before. In her opinion, Sona was really cute. He tried his utmost to always do his best but he struggled with self-constraint sometimes. However, that didn't really matter since he was like a best friend to her.

His hair color was very unique, a dark aquamarine settling into light blue at his tips, set to distinguish him from others. One very cool thing about Haru's androids was that they chose the color of their hair. They could also change other colorations like their eyes as well, but their body type could only be done once. According to Haru, even if an android wanted a different body shape, it would be like ripping their soul out of their body, so he was very against it. Still, there hadn't been a case like that yet.

As Sona piloted the plane to landing, the rest of the staff set out to carry the luggage to the limousine. They tended to their two passengers nicely, offering a hand with even the simplest of things. The car ride was much the same, Sona sitting in the back with a great big grin across his face. And though he tried very hard to sit upright and keep his eyes on the (h/c) haired girl to whom he was employed, they kept drifting to the window. His yellow pupils would sparkle at the cafes and restaurants before snapping back in place, giving a weak and embarrassed chuckle.

"We can go later," the younger girl smiled, giving the android a happy expression.

It wasn't long before they arrived at the location. It was still relatively unsettled, with a ton of natural greenery around. The younger girl could already see what she wanted to do with the area. Of course, there were plans and blueprints already, but she was confident that keeping most of the terrain and natural plants would have made it much better. Gazing over the blueprints, she began to hum, scribbling down lines of text on her own notepad. Sona would look over her shoulder every now and again before nodding and standing upright again.

The architects were already discussing things with Kazuya, pointing out certain concerns they had. To the brunette, money was clearly no object. He was willing to spend as much as possible to make the resort a success, particularly because he wanted to use it himself. Though he was no big fan of pampering himself in a resort or spa, his wife could use the special treatment. She didn't have much longer to live anyway, so making her feel special was the highest priority he had.

"(Y/n)," the man called, moving to the side to introduce the girl, "This is Miss (Y/n) Shiratori, a very talented young lady. I introduced her during our online meetings, but I'd like to do so again. Treat her with the same level of respect as you would me. I'm leaving it up to her for the final decisions on this project."

The architects all began to greet the girl, introducing themselves and what they were responsible for. She began to list out her plans for the resort with them, asking what changes needed to be made and what resources were required. Surprisingly, despite it being her first on-site job, she was doing a wonderful job. At least, that was what Kazuya thought. It wasn't surprising that she was great at her job, but it was surprising how he had come to know her.

Haru wasn't great with people. He was always written off as blunt and stuck-up, and to a certain extent, he was, but his mind was just wired to be the most efficient. It was always technology that he was most preoccupied with. Even when he was young, he didn't care to learn the alphabet - and he didn't learn until much later than his peers - but he was fascinated with computer chips. He learned all about them, making his nannies read to him when he couldn't do so himself. Still, he struggled constantly in school, and outside of it, he was no better.

The male wasn't interested in people that couldn't speak his language. If they weren't interested in computers or video games, he wasn't interested in them. And because of that, he would shove them away with words he thought were acceptable but that sounded harsh. He'd only been able to get close to a small group of friends. However, he was terrible with girls. That was why Kazuya had been so surprised when he brought the (h/c) haired girl to the mansion out of the blue.

Granted, Haru had all but kidnapped her, taking her home with great enthusiasm, but sooner or later, she was able to collect herself. The man watched as the girl learned how to train Haru, and though it was much akin to how one would handle a dog, if it worked, it worked. He learned common sense slowly but surely, and she began to get involved in business. It was a bit of a gamble taking her on despite her lack of any experience, but he was definitely proved right about his hunch when she succeeded so much. He was glad to have someone take on his family business since it was quite clear Haru had no interest in it.

And though Haru continued to insist upon the younger girl being his wife, she was not. At least, she wasn't yet. In the end, everything was her decision. However, both males held out hope that one day, she might have been able to marry the brunette. She was definitely strong enough to keep him in check, and that was something even his father couldn't do.

He watched as she began to make adjustments based on the current trends he'd been observing. Of course, there was always something new going on in terms of fads, but she was very focused on specific ones. Having a themed resort would allow them to stand apart from others, and depending on the theme and its alignment with the public's views, it may have proved to be a major asset. It seemed, however, that she had decided the moment they set foot on the plot of land.

"I'd like to keep our target as the upper class," she mumbled to herself before an idea struck in her head, "It's already a given that we'll be using top-of-the-line resources, but I'd like to take it a step further and make the theme nature. Since we have so much open space around here, the skyscrapers from Abali are visible, but we can use some illusions to cover them up with trees. Would that be possible?"

"Of course."

"Then, I'd also like it if you could incorporate more of a wooden texture. Stones would also be good, but I want them to be rugged, not spherical. Take care in making sure they're not sharp though."

The younger girl continued to list out specific things she wanted, going over how each room should feel or look. She did trust that they knew more about how things would look, considering their experience, so she gave a lot of leeway along with the requirements. In the end, she left them with a lot of positive comments, telling them she would be there for any questions they had. She also took them out to a nice dinner to start getting to know them. The amount of effort she put in was very admirable.

At the end of the day, Kazuya had taken her to a hotel owned by the Akihito's. They owned a lot. Whether it was hotels, stores, resorts, etc., it was all based off of their amassed real estate. They could have started their own country with the amount of land they owned. It would have been spread out across the world, but most of their land resided in Echal anyway. That was why Kazuya had decided to run for president. He might as well have.

Running for the position felt like a formality. It was a given he was the most qualified for the job and he had a surprisingly pure heart. There were a few things he wanted to change for the benefit of children, a goal he always had. If not for his wife, definitely for his own kids. Though the campaign had already begun, he wanted to be there for (Y/n) during her first official project. That being said, after watching her that day, it seems he was worried for nothing.

The hotel was luxurious, as was expected. The family had pretty much a limitless amount of money, what with all of the businesses and land they owned. Plus there were there investments and schools, which just poured money back into themselves. And though the previous family heads were very proficient in business, Kazuya was not. He was just lucky. In fact, since he started getting involved in the family business, he had only created things he wanted for himself.

The first thing he was entrusted with was an advertisement for a joint project with the Miyahara family. With the family friend's manufacturing plants and the storefronts of the Akiyama family, they sold a new toy. At the time, Kazuya was about thirteen years old, and the only thing he wanted to do was play with friends. As such, instead of taking it seriously, he decided to take a bunch of the toys and hide them around their schools.

He only wanted to watch chaos ensue, but it turned out to be a massive success, and his father requested he do the same to a few other schools around the country. The same happened when he wanted a new place to take his wife on their honeymoon. He had made an entire cruise line just for them, but when word got out, so many people claimed they would pay top dollar to go on it as well. Similar things happened when he made an amusement park for Haru and Bastien as well.

The hotel they stayed in was also intended as a vacation spot for him and his wife, but it turned out so successfully demanded that it was opened for business. Obviously, he could use it however he wished, choosing to halt any reservations for their stay on Haru's behalf. If his son ever discovered his future wife was in a building with other men, he would become very sullen. At the brunette's behest, no male was to enter in the left half of the main estate, except for, of course, the androids and family members. That was why reserving the entire hotel was so important to him.

As they entered, all employees were lined up, bowing to them as they entered. Used to it, the (h/c) haired girl simply nodded to thank them before the hotel manager guided them to the elevator. Though he did offer a tour to the younger girl, she was exhausted, requesting it for another time. As such, he led her to the top floor of the hotel, explaining all of the amenities they had available for her and introducing her to her personal servants. Though it was not common for the hotel to give servants to their guests, for the Akihito family, it was only proper.

After making sure that she was settled in, Kazuya bid the younger girl farewell. He had much to do in terms of his candidacy, and, truth be told, he had always found it difficult to spend time away from his wife since they were children. In the end, he had dinner brought up to her before giving Sona instructions to help her. Of course, the android's sole purpose was to accompany her and deal with any obstacles, but he pretended to listen to the man anyway, smiling along like nothing in the world could ever bother him.

The next day, she was awoken by the very obnoxious sound of a phone going crazy. As she opened her eyes, she was greeted with the vision of Sona wrestling with the device as if it were a live piranha. He gave a guilty expression and hid it behind his back before it began going off again, louder this time. Jumping out of shock, the male threw it across the room and soured. Displeased at the way it refused to stop, he scooped it back up and stared at it, considering dismantling it. Doing so, however, would warrant an undesirable grumpiness.

"What's going on?" the girl questioned, throwing one of the countless pillows she'd hoarded over her eyes, "If it's a bomb, take it outside, okay?"

"Well, it might as well be a bomb," the android contemplated, wondering whether to follow her instructions literally.

Once again, the phone began screaming at a blaring decimal, piercing both of their ears. Sona got a little dizzy, holding onto the side of his head as if it would fall off, but his ward just glared at it before finally extending her hand. He gave a glance, likely insinuating that she didn't want to answer it, but there wasn't much of a choice, unless she wanted to chuck it out the window. To his disappointment, she did not throw it to the heavens, instead, pressing a button on the phone to project the sight of a familiar baby in front of her. The child then began to cry, surprised and confused.

"Thirty minutes," a voice called, followed by the sight of the boy's brother entering the vision, "It shouldn't have taken thirty minutes."

Suddenly, what Sona was doing wasn't so much of a mystery any longer. Rather, he was only doing his job, even if, technically he reported more to Haru than he did to her. The brunette calling for thirty minutes wasn't beyond him. She figured he even messed with the phone to ring louder every time he had to restart the dialing. Chuckling, she congratulated his insistence before laying back in the bed with exasperation, glancing over to the hologram projected. It was incredible to see all the inventions the brunette had made, but obviously, he only had one goal in mind when he made that feature.

"I can't see you," she heard, a clear note of betrayal in the male's voice.

"So, what is it that you needed from me?"

The brunette scrunched up his nose in displeasure as he sat behind his little brother. The small thing babbled and pulled on his sleeve, supposedly trying to cure his grumpy face. And while Haru didn't quite understand the action, the younger girl couldn't help but smile. Bastien was always so precious, trying to make people smile and laugh at all times. And even if he got a little too into it, a complete foil to his brother, he made any room light up. It was as if he had a little halo hovering over him.

"I want you to come back," Haru grumbled, giving a look of disgust as the baby shoved as many of his brother's fingers into his mouth as he could, "I don't get why you had to go in the first place."

"Because being on-site gives a great - "

"Then you could have looked at a map or had them send pictures."

"What did we say about interrupting - "

"Not to." A pause. "Oh."

The brunette went quiet for a while as she explained why she wanted to be in person for the weekend. Granted, she wasn't entirely sure he was actively listening, but he was getting better at letting other people say things he didn't like. Or, rather, he tolerated it with her, but only because he wanted to treat her like a human being. If it had been anyone else, he wouldn't have batted an eye about interrupting them. Every single word he said was pretty much worth thousands of dollars, so he didn't get why people wouldn't want to listen to him.

"I'll be back by tonight anyway."

"I still don't like it."

"Yes, but I appreciate you not sending in a SWAT team just because I didn't pick up your call for a bit."

"Yeah, I did good!"

The brunette had the most delighted expression as his efforts were recognized. He then scooped up a very unsuspecting Bastien in his arms, the infant giving an "umph" in the process. As his brother began to wipe off his saliva on a towel, the younger brunette gave a look of absolute resentment. He kicked his legs and shook his head, likening his brother's actions to that of treachery or treason. Then, when his brother wasn't listening, the boy puffed up his cheeks and turned up to face him, taking in the biggest breath he could before shouting.

"No!"

Haru's brows furrowed, the genius holding up his precious kin as if he were a bag of rocks. Almost repulsed, he inspected him. When he didn't find any injuries, particularly on his head, he huffed, not knowing where he had gotten the balls to say something like that. All the while, the (h/c) haired girl snickered quietly, Sona doing the same in a more impish manner.

"You don't get to say that to me," the male finally scolded.

"No!"

Like all kids, Bastien learning to speak was a process. At first, he only babbled to himself as if having a full-on conversation about the socio-political processes he had a vested interest in. Even though he wasn't saying anything cohesive, he was very confident while he said it, so he was very much praised. He said his first word shortly thereafter. (Y/n) could still remember the drama over it.

An entire party was planned for Bastien's favorite stuffed animal. The boy and Haru were clear guests, but even (Y/n) was specially invited. The infant then began to bounce before very boldly motioning to his nanny. The woman brought out his favorite plushy, a colorful tree frog named Fougère. With much determination, as he stared his big brother in the eye, the brunette pointed to it and yelled "croa croa", illustrating the sounds the animal made. Although, since it took them a while to figure out what he was saying, he panicked, and ended up saying "grenouille", meaning "frog", though he did fumble the last part.

Regardless, after he had said his first word, he had started saying "no" constantly, something Haru didn't respond well to. After all, as the eldest genius child of the wealthiest family in the world, no one ever said that word to him. Hearing the child he had pretty much raised himself say that to him made him very angry, but he couldn't tell the brunette not to say it. After all, Bastien was also a member of the Akihito family. No one could tell him what to do, not even Haru.

"Bastien," the (h/c) haired girl murmured, waving to the boy, "Be forgiving, okay?"

The brunette babbled before crawling to where she was projected on his side. He seemed to understand she wasn't there physically, but was, instead a hologram. The boy was a smart baby, probably due to his brother's assistance. He was even able to open doors on his own, however sneakily it could be. Either way, he waved back, giving a giggle out of adoration. He then leaned forward to hear every word she said.

"You're such a sweet child, you know that?" she cooed, the brunette smiling wide.

"And me?"

Haru pouted. He was usually pouting. At many points in time, he would act like a child, but that was just by design. Though, doing so gave him attention, so he was also encouraged to keep doing it. Typically, the younger girl avoided pampering him for such behavior, since she thought he needed to realize the world didn't revolve around him. However, since he was doing much better about her being away than she thought he would, a little reward wouldn't harm anyone. Smiling, she laughed a bit.

"You are very sweet, too."

"I love you."

The younger girl went silent for a bit, just smiling, but he frowned. Obviously, she had told him it was difficult to accept his feelings. It wasn't something she wanted to commit to. For Haru, if she ever told him the same, he would never take anything else for an answer. Of course, she held feelings for him, but he had gone and slaughtered her would-be family. Though there were mixed feelings about that, it was more about her feeling trapped.

Without a doubt, Haru could protect her from anything. He could also provide anything she wanted at a moment's notice. Then there was the fact that he had since stopped trying to kill her whenever she got sick or injured. But, with all of his technology and money, if he ever wanted to lock her up for life, he could. He could easily trap her and she could never escape, no matter what she did. Really, the only reason he was listening to her was because he chose to. At any point in time, he could opt to stop listening and do whatever he felt like. Until she was given an indication that he viewed her as an equal, she would refuse to say it.

"Ahem," Sona cleared his throat, obviously faking it while raising his voice for Haru to hear, "If you talk for one more minute, we may have to skip your breakfast for the day."

"No!" the brunette objected, quieting his voice soon after, "You shouldn't skip a meal. You might...get sick."

"If I go eat, I can't be on call with you. Is that alright?"

Haru took a moment to respond. Likely struggling with the two options, he visibly panicked. On one hand, he would have to stop talking to the younger girl, and he wouldn't know when he would see her again. Sure, she said she would be back that night, but she never specified the exact time. For all he knew, she could come back at 11:59pm or not come back at all. On the other, if she didn't eat, she would be weak and may become unable to recover from any illness she received. Finally, he spoke up, very quietly murmuring.

"Go eat."

He hung up soon after, the last sight the hologram showed being him picking up Bastien and walking away. (Y/n) gave a sigh, getting out of bed while Sona picked up the phone, tucking it into his back pocket. He remained quiet as he left the room, letting her get ready for the day. Though, no matter how much food she ate, she couldn't get that strange taste out of her mouth.