Chapter 5: Scene 5 – Panda Express

Scene 5 - Panda Express

The two younger sisters of Seven Clouds exchanged a look. They weren't quite sure what to make of the... everything going on. They'd come home from cram school, only to find their brother in pain on the couch and a panda cooking stir-fry in their kitchen.

There was a moment of silence between them as their hands overlapped and they tried to cope with the situation. The panda was easy to explain; he was merely a rather large and fat man, with two buns on his head and two deeply sunken eyes. His skin was white as porcelain and black as coal, but maybe it was just a trick of the light, or his ill-fitting suit.

Coming to an unspoken agreement between themselves, they glanced at their brother, squirming in pain on the couch. Black tar was soaking the couch as it spilled from his pores, and he was belching out smoke.

"Brother, you're disgusting." Hazy Clouds waves her free hand in front of her face. He was smoking, of course, from one of those new E-cigarettes. That's why you couldn't see it, it was in the cloud. All digital. That explained the smoke belching from his mouth.

"You smell awful, stinky brother. Did you eat something that didn't agree with you? Roll around in garbage?" Serene Clouds frowned. That would explain the stomach pain and the grease all over the couch.

"Do the young Misses mind leaving Sir alone for the moment? He has had a hard day." Treasure continued to fill dishes for the teenagers. "The two of you look tired. Here, sit. I have made duck and stir fry for the both of you."

Treasure set the dishes down on the table, bringing over a bowl of rice for each of the girls. In his opinion, they looked like they could use meat on their bones. How were girls their age supposed to study without brain food?

"Who are you?" Hazy Clouds asked, dragging Serene Clouds behind her. She sat with some trepidation, fears not shared by her gremlin of a sister.

"Yeah. Are you my stinky brother's new boyfriend? It would explain why he's still a virgin loser..." Serene Clouds asks, stuffing her mouth full of duck and rice.

"Sister! Don't be so rude to your brother's boyfriend! He made food for us, you know?" Hazy Clouds puffs out her cheek.

"Pfft. It's really good, too." Serene Clouds continued to fail to live up to his name. "I guess he's an okay catch."

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"A-ah..." Treasure tried to put a paw to his cheek. His blush was barely visible under all that fur, but it was there. "No, I am not Sir's boyfriend. We are coworkers at the pawn shop."

"The pawn shop? Brother, are you changing jobs?" Serene looked over at her brother, who responded only with groans and clouds of smoke. "Do they pay well?" Her attention shifted to the panda, who could answer her questions much easier.

"Ah. Yes, the Boss pays well. She has a royal's fortune behind her." Treasure nods. "The business itself needed a few extra hands. Sir has expertise in this field, and thought he might ply his trade at her shop instead..."

"I'm glad Brother is getting out of that sweatshop." Hazy Clouds pats her cheek with a napkin, making sure to balance out her sister's energy. "They make him work such long hours. But will he be happy if he's not an engineer?"

"...the Sir is an engineer?" Treasure blinks in surprise. "I thought he would only have appraisal skills. If he is an engineer, perhaps..." Treasure thought to himself that it might be time to dust off the toolbox and take on an apprentice. He was only a carpenter and potter by trade, but perhaps Seven Clouds could take the trade even further.

"Not really. Stinky brother just engineers as a hobby." Serene Clouds finishes her meal, snagging a few cuts of duck from Treasure's own plate. He frowns, carefully pushing his plate out of reach.

"Sir has hidden depths to him," Treasure thinks out loud. "I would appreciate getting to know all that he has to hide."

"Pfft..." Serene Clouds coughs up some rice, taking a glance at her sister, and then back to the panda seated across from them. "Are you sure that he isn't interested in Brother's body?"

"..." Hazy Clouds had to admit her sister's theory had some merit, but all she saw from Treasure was someone both confused and about to fall asleep into his meal.

"Did I say something wrong?" Treasure looked at them with pleading eyes, and the two girls silently giggled to each other. Maybe this one was a keeper? Now they just had to get their brother on board...

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