It had been two weeks since Taija started to work at the clinic.

Lilly hadn’t stopped the questioning Lapin yet. Which Alice had hoped for when Taija started to work as “that woman’s” assistant.

There was too much going on. Once again Alice was glad that she didn’t feel emotions, otherwise so was there a risk that she would have broken down by now.

Not only was Lilly acting like a jerk. But Lapin had left a small worried warning for Alice to keep her eyes at Taija, she was acting to careful. Just like someone that did their best to hide their addiction. She pointed put especially that it didn’t mean that she thought Taija took anything or something like that, but it was still better just to be really sure.

She clearly showed off to be a better person than Lilly, that accused Lapin of having second thoughts. While Lapin could worry about Taija like she was a family, because she cared.

It was also because that Ellen would go on a small celebration with those that had been involved in the work at the hotel. Which of course includes Chris.

Alice found it hard to trust him since he acted like he did the last time he was drunk during their celebration. Would he act just as bad even if Alice wasn’t there? Would he try to take some advances at her poor sister at the bar? Would anyone in the group try to take advances of her? Or would they just leave her at her own when she was drunk?

It was really far too much to think about now, far too much for Alice to think about.

It had been no problem when Ellen first joined Chris and Thom at the bar, but only after a short while so had Sour joined with his daughter.

Sure, every one of them that was involved in the work was welcome, but it felt strange to sit around the same table as Sour after rejecting him that harshly last time. Even he seemed to find it uncomfortable, maybe he really hated her after all. Ellen hadn’t even taken the time after the celebration to apologise to him for her horrible behaviour.

“So, what is up between the baby girl and brother wing?”

Of course Thom had to notice that they both were uncomfortable and ask about it.

Chris told Thom what had happened between them, trying to point fun out of Sour for being rejected like that. He didn’t seem to care at all if Sour was hurt by the whole thing.

“And while you express it like that. Don’t forget that I wasn’t the one that tried to corner my love interest, challenging her sister and did lose.” Sour countered with telling the story about Chris had cornered Alice, ending up in a fight with Ellen. Which he had lost.

“So you two guys got your hearts crushed?” Thom burst out in low laughter and ordered in some beers, so that their hearts could be healed faster.

“Baby girl, did you used and sneaky tricks against Chris, or were you really able to knock him out cold fair and square?”

Both Sour and Agnes talked for Ellen, asking how he even could come up with the idea that Ellen would use any sneaky tricks. She was a very strong and honest girl. And would never, ever, use any dirty tricks against a friend as he indicated.

Ellen felt a little better. Even if she had rejected Sour right off the bat, so didn’t he seem to think bad about her.

“Ellen is really a strong girl. I don’t think there is many that will be able to take a beating like that, and then beat the senses out of me.” Chris’s words were probably meant to be positive, but she didn’t feel like that. In her ears it sounded more like he praised her for being strong like a guy, even though she clearly were a girl. There was no chance that he did see her more like a guy, right?

They had been drinking both beer and a couple of shots absinthe over some small talk.

Then when they all were drunk and happy so had the idiotic guys got the idea that they should hunt some females. Even did even try to get Ellen to come along at it.

Both Ellen and Agnes had declined and left the bar with some good advice from the guys. “Make sure to beat the senses out of any possible idiot that tries something funny while you going home.”

Agnes had asked if Ellen wanted company home, most probably worried that something could happen to her. Ellen had declined but thanked for the offer, it was after all just as big chance that anything could happen to her when she walked home. So it was better she did just like Ellen and walked straight home.

Swaying from side to side of the street Ellen slowly walked home. She had been drinking a little too much, because of those idiotic guys. She was walking home ALONE, because of those idiotic guys. She was feeling angry, because of those idiotic guys.

They had during the time at the bar pointed out how strong and independent she was, almost painting up a picture of how she was more of a guy than a woman. And then the idiots had offered her to come along when they should hunt girls, as if SHE would have any kind of interests in that. Only to make it worse, so hadn’t they offered Agnes a chance to come along. Without saying it, making it clear that she was a woman in differences from someone like Ellen.

So was Ellen. She was also a WOMAN. Even if she was strong and independent so was she still a WOMAN. Why couldn’t they see her like one, what had she done wrong? All she had done was to work as a cog technician, and protecting “that princess” from Chris once. None of those things should be enough for them to start to see her as a guy, right?

If it was that she got seen as “that princess’s” knight in white armour, so should mean that it was all “that princess’s” fault. That damn “princess” seemed to be ruining her life again, just like before. Stealing her beloved Jack from her, stealing all the beauty from their mother. The beauty that the two of them were meant to share.

Why did “that princess” have to do all that against her, why did life have to be unfair so it wouldn’t even punish Alice?

Ellen could feel how all of the poison that she drank during the evening was about to find it’s way up. Wobbly walking over to a house, lending against the wall and threw up.

Couldn’t everyone see that she was just as weak as any other girl? She seemed strong, but she was really weak. She wanted to be taken care off, she needed to have someone to take care of her. She wasn’t independent, she needed someone. She wasn’t strong, she was just a normal girl. Why couldn’t anyone see that? Why couldn’t she get treated as she deserved, why couldn’t she just get treated as she DID deserve?

She didn’t want to get praised only for the work she did, for the things she found out. She wanted to be praised for how beautiful she was. How fragile and delicate her personality was.

Was that really too much to ask for? Couldn’t she at least got that small deserved treatment from a guy? Couldn’t she get treated like that by Jack, couldn’t he come back and fulfilling her small wish?

She could hear someone nearby. There had to be people in the houses, watching her. Laughing at how a GUY acted like that, in her mind so she could really see that happening. They were laughing at her, they couldn’t understand how unfair life was toward her.

Hard, cold?

Ellen couldn’t remember it, but she had apparently continued her walk and fallen to the ground. But it didn’t matter anyway, she was apparently a failure as a woman so she could as well just lay there.

“Why are a lovely girl like you laying here?” Of course someone had to bother her. Why couldn’t she just be allowed to lay there and feel a little sorry for herself, was it too much to ask for?

“I just LOVE the feeling of the cold sipping into my body.”

Couldn’t that idiot see that she had tripped over? Did everyone around her have to be an idiot? She didn’t want to stay with someone that couldn’t use the brain, so she could as well rise and get home.

Her knees hurt, they had to been taking a small beating when she did fall. If this had been the only time that was. At least the person was kind and smart enough to help her rise, maybe she had been a little rough with her answer to him.

He helped her with very gently movements, in differences from how those idiotic guys would have helped her. Maybe there was someone that actually did see her as a woman.

She was about to thank for the help and turned toward him, getting a glimpse of his face before she had to throw her head to the other side to let some more of that poison to get up.

“JACK?!”

She had to look really hard to make sure that she hadn’t seen wrong. It really was her beloved one, it was really him. She started to cry rivers and almost throw herself at him.

“It is really you. You are really Jack, right?” She hugged him tight as she spoke, it had to really be him. It couldn’t be wrong, it couldn’t be a dream.

“Yes. It’s me Ellen, my beloved daughter.” He hugged her with one arm and patted her on the head.

His voice, his lovely chest. The way he acted, it really was her beloved father that she had longed for during all the time. He really was back, back with Ellen.

“Where have you been Jack? What have you been doing this whole time?”

It was so much she wanted to ask him, so much she had to know.

According to Jack, so was he falsely accused of something, so he had been forced to go into hiding. He had tried to keep an eye at them while doing it, but had found it very difficult to only look at them from a distance. It was first now that he had the luck to really meet up with his most beloved and smart daughter. He had been so lucky.

“Since it has been so difficult to see you, so am I wondering how you are doing?”

“Everything is going fine now, we had some problems. But it wasn’t anything that couldn’t be solved.”

Ellen looked up at him after have buried her face in his chest. She knew it could sound like she was the reason that the problems were solved, but she wanted to get praised by him. It wasn’t wrong, right? It couldn’t be anything wrong with wanting to get praised by the beloved one, right?

“I am so proud of you. You are truly a really smart and wonderful girl so of course you solved the problems that you and your sister have been facing.” He praised her. Sure he did mention “that princess” to, but he was proud over her.

“I have a small favour to ask you for, that can help me solve my problems.”

Jack suspected that there could be someone following him, so he didn’t have much more time he could spend with her. But at the very least he decided to lead her to the house, he couldn’t after all let a woman walk alone in the middle of the night.

“If it will help you to be able to come home, so will I do anything.”

It was far to short time for him to explain it to her, but he wanted to meet her at a specific café the next day so he could explain a little more for her. A café where he knew he was safe, so it wouldn’t be any problems.

They were by the house and he was ready to leave, but not after giving Ellen a “bye kiss” at her forehead. Ellen had to be the happiest woman at the planet that given moment, and she should be even happier when her beloved finally could move in with her again.

“Can you please give me “the reason” to why I shouldn’t trust Lapin?”

Alice had grown really tired of “that woman’s” attitude about Lapin. Which recently had become even worse. If there were “a reason” that Alice shouldn’t trust the girl, she could spit it right out.

“The reason is that…” Lilly suddenly cut herself short. Alice knew what it all was about, Lapin had come back into the room after emptied the “Angel”.

“You better ask her yourself, so can you see how “good” that girl can be.”

“That stupid woman” left with Taija and went into her treatment room.

Alice let out a light sigh. Why did it have to be like that, Lilly just seemed to hold up with that questioning about Lapin. Taija wasn’t better since she always stood behind Lilly, agreeing to her words with silence.

They started with working as a supporting group toward each other at the clinic, and she had thought that it would be like that during the whole time they all worked under one roof. But she had clearly been very wrong, Lilly’s part in the “supporting” was more or less to work against her and Lapin.

Maybe she really needed to force the cat out of the box about Lapin, and ask her directly about if she knew what Lilly meant with a reason Alice shouldn’t trust her.

“Would you like some tea Lapin?” Alice walked pass Lapin toward the small kitchen area, when she interrupted Lapin’s talk with a patient. Looking as kind and innocent as always, making it impossible to suspect her to be up to something bad.

“Yes please miss Alice.”

If the whole thing at the clinic wasn’t enough, so had Ellen also started to act even stranger since their celebration at the bar. She had told Alice that she had been asked by someone to help with a bigger project, someone but wouldn’t tell who it was. And she couldn’t tell her anything about the project either since it was very secret.

Which only made Alice think more about it. Who in the whole world would ask for a project to be kept very secret, and asked their employees to also keep the identity of the employer secret. The whole thing smelled very fishy, no one that followed the law would act like that. But it got even stranger that Ellen seemed happier than earlier. Which almost indicated that the work couldn’t be of a bad nature, if Ellen all off sudden hadn’t got a taste for illegal activities. Which only sounded like a really bad joke while knowing how kind Ellen was.

Alice noticed herself that her mind had slipped. The tea water was already warm and Lapin had taken her place around the table, looking at her with a smile.

“To start with, how is the house searching going?” Alice had served the tea and decided to start with a question that still was important. Sure Lapin didn’t look as tired like before, but she was clearly still tired.

Once again Alice offered a helping hand since she still hasn’t found a new place to live, but once again Lapin declined since she wanted to handle it herself.

Alice tried to lead the small talk in a direction there she comfortable could ask about if Lapin knew what “reason” “that woman” criticized her for. It couldn’t be crystals. Alice would have noticed that, right?

Just like Alice tried to lead the conversation in a specific direction, so was Lapin leading it in other directions. It was like she knew that something would come up.

“Will you really just sit her and small talk with her?” Lilly had apparently left her office and decided to interrupt their conversation.

“I thought you should ask her for the reason.”

“Why do you have to try to turn Alice against me? Why can’t you let her trust me? I am trying to do my best to deserve her trust.”

Sure Alice was tired of Lilly’s attitude, but Lapin had apparently overheard some of it. At the end flying up and lashing out at Lilly, making sure that Lilly knew how tired she was of it.

“If that is the case, wouldn’t you deserve it more if you told her the reasons why she shouldn’t trust you.”

Lapin sank down in the chair and shamefully avoiding Alice wondering look. Whatever it was, she sure still was hesitating about if she would deserve to be trusted after telling Alice about it.

“I… I did a lot of bad things while I was addicted to those crystals. Like stealing, robbing and even tricking a lot of kind people.” She was shaking.

“I also got thrown out by my own family and lived with some friends that I have turned my back now. So I am living on the street for the moment, because all of the cheaper hotels know how bad I am since the addiction.”

“And even though I don’t belong to a family anymore, so am I having a big debt that I am trying to pay.”

“Not a citizen any more, no home and having a debt. That truly is good enough reasons to not trust her.”

Sure the debt could be the only thing that could bring any problems, but the rest of it. It wasn’t even worth Alice the time to think about. No matter how “good reasons” Lilly thought it was.

“So you have been lying about having a place to live?”

Lapin shamefully nodded to Alice question. The poor girl was honestly felt bad about it.

“By the way Lilly, if there’s a problem that Lapin isn’t a citizen and not don’t have a home. How does it come that you trusted me after I got thrown out from Taija’s home?”

Lilly’s idea that Alice was a special case was so stupid that she didn’t consider to even following up at it. If she hadn’t been sure “that woman” was childish before, she would have been sure by now. Idiotic, it was a really idiotic idea to call it a special case.

She turned and looked at the poor girl again, something had to be done about her problems. “How does it work with debts Lapin?”

Ellen buried her face in Jack’s chest again, it was the best thing ever.

She had met him at the café that he had decided that day, spending a really wonderful time with him. He had told her that she couldn’t tell anyone that she meet him, not even Alice. Which she hadn’t thought about doing anyway. Jack was Ellen’s beloved, and only Ellen’s. So she wouldn’t give Alice a chance to take him away from her. Not a chance for everything in the world that she would let Alice try to take him away from her again.

The help Jack wanted from Ellen was to tune an automobile so it would go faster. Which would make it possible for him to get from point A to B faster, and make it easier for him to catch up with information about how to solve the problem with being falsely accused. Sure he could move more rapidly with her help, but she couldn’t see how it really would help him. Yet she accepted his request. He did after all say that it could help him to be able returning home to Ellen faster. Which really might be true.

“How is it going with the automobile Ellen?”

She would like to have stayed like that in silence for a little while longer, and simply enjoyed the reality. “It is going forward, there’s a little to small space to work with inside the motor, but I might be up at something.”

She had been spending her first two days to examine the automobile to sort out good and bad ideas. Which meant that she only had used two days to truly work with the request. Some of the ideas that she had thought was good had turned out just plain bad, but at least she got some new ideas from them.

“I am proud to have a girl this smart.”

He praised her, he seriously praised her. That was much of the motivation that she truly needed to get through everything that was happening.

Alice didn’t only try to stick her nose where it didn’t belong about this job. Even though Ellen told her that it was a secret, and that she wasn’t allowed to tell her anything at all.

The last day Alice had also bring home her assistant, and THEN asked Ellen if Lapin could live there with them for a while. Sure, that itself wasn’t a direct problem. Even if Ellen’s chances of truly relaxing decreased. The problem was that she first picked the girl home and then asked if she could live with them. If Ellen wouldn’t have agreed to it, what should have happened then? Would Alice have been nagging about it until she got as she wanted, or would she have sent out the girl after getting her hopes up?

“That princess” seemed to really have her moments when she didn’t use her brain, AT ALL.

“Will you be building something outside the motor?”

Jack started to curiously ask about the work, interrupting all her thoughts.

Ellen would love to do that, but it would involve some risks since it easily could get up dirt there that would damage the cogs. And if she set up some protection it could be a pain to repair it.

Jack came up with more suggestions that Ellen punctured one by one, of course there were a few that was so stupid Ellen wondered if he had forgotten his brain somewhere while he had been hiding.

It could sound like she punctured them for the sake of fun, but she thought through ever suggestion very carefully. Sure, some of the ideas could have worked temporarily. But no one of them sounded like they would last forever. Which was what Ellen wanted. She wanted to do a work that would last forever and really help Jack with what he wanted to get done.

“I am sure that I will find a good solution soon.” Ellen explain in a panic-like matter when she noticed how disappointed Jack looked.

She must have sounded really mean to him. She must have sounded like she only made up bad excuses, which really wasn’t the case. She only wanted to do a great job, a wonderful job that she could be proud over.

“I know that you will do that sweetheart.” He hugged her and hold her tight. Telling her that he really believed in her through the simple hug. Not to mention that he clearly showed off that he cared for her, by whole his heart.

“How about we stop for today, so can you get some rest and time to think it all through at home.”

He did show how important she was to him. Even thinking about her health at a time like this.

Ellen would like to stay there for a while longer and spend some more time with him. But since he still was hunted so could neither of them remain there and Jack had to continue his investigations of the false accuses.

Ellen looked at the building where she worked for the moment, it did look like a normal house. So no one would ever expect that the building had a really big workshop in it. Ellen would have thought it was a normal house at least, she had been really surprised the first time. She could never have guessed either that or that it existed a group that tried to solve those false accuses. Which strangely enough should mean that it happened quite a few people.

The neitherworlds was a truly strange place if that was to the norms.

Ellen would have loved if it was a little calmer back home. It had been a small pain when it only was “the princess” there, since she loved to be close to Ellen. Now there was a cat there too, it was still not that she had any problem with her. But she was acting very insecurely in the house, which she hopefully would stop doing as the time passed by. Maybe she even could spend more time with Alice later on too, so that Ellen could get “that princess” off her back. And get some real chance to relax in her own house.

Back at home Ellen got surprised when Alice and Lapin were warming up all the food again, so they all could eat together. It was the first time since Ellen started to work for Jack that they would eat together. If it wasn’t Lapin’s idea, so could it maybe be that there was a chance “the princess” did have a heart. If it wasn’t that she only tried to create a possibility to ask Ellen more about her job.

“Pardon miss… Ellen? Do you want some wine with the food?”

“Not today, but thanks for asking.” The cat was a really kind and gentle person, even asking her about that. But she really needed to do something with that insecurity, it was annoying. She was sharing the house with them, she would act that she also lived there instead of acting like a guest.

“How is the job going Ellen?” They had just started to eat when Alice just had to ask that question. She really just had to.

“I can only tell you that it’s going forward.”

When would her stupid sister learn that it was no use for her to ask about the job, Ellen would never tell her about it. Not even if she would have been allowed to tell Alice about it.

“Is it really that secret?” Lapin looked at her with curious eyes.

“It is.”

“Ain`t it a pain to not being able to talk about it, not even others that might be workin’ with the same thing?”

“It`s no big problem.”

Ellen pulled a quick lie, the cat did have a point in what she said. It was annoying to not be able to ball the ideas with someone else, even without telling them about Jack. Only the ideas themselves, it could have helped a whole bunch.

Ellen noticed that there was a big difference between how Alice and Lapin curiously looked at her. “The Princess” was looking at her in a way that spelt out problems. She seemed to be ready to stick her nose where it didn’t belong.

While the cat was looking at her in a more honest curious way. She wanted to know, only for the knowledge sake. But was accepting a no as an answer.

Ellen walked into her room, without even turning on the light giving gears.

She had heard about how Taija had become more careful around both Alice and Lapin. Which Ellen could understand since Lilly a couple of days before had done some really stupid moved by attacking the reasons why the cat wouldn’t be trusted. Did Lilly even think about that she was aiming for points there even Taija could be the target? Ellen couldn’t help but feel sorry for Taija.

Walking over the bed and took a seat so she could look out through the window.

Why could it have been so Jack could come back? Sure she was more than happy to see him every day, but it still wouldn’t have been wrong for him to move in with them again.

Since Alice and Lapin shared a room, so could him and her shared room. Just like the lovely couple did in the movies Ellen saw once in the time. It wouldn’t have been too much to ask for, right