Disclaimer: The characters within this story all belong to CLAMP.
Warnings: Clean.
Summary: Prince Kimihiro rants to his maid about the irksome Lord Shizuka. Follow up to Investigations Dep't.
Completed: February 4, 2010
AN: Today's. Does anyone know the name of Yuko's fortune teller friend? O.o

Infuriating
by: Kagome-reincarnation

The prince's face was a vibrant shade of red when he moved swiftly back to his own private offices. The faithful maid, however, knew better than to mention it. Instead, she took his coat and, eying the papers, asked, "Did you find all the papers you needed?"

He'd blushed even more deeply then, sputtering about an "insufferably moronic oaf" that needed to "learn to communicate like a normal human being." She raised an eyebrow, suddenly gathering a fairly good idea of what had happened.

"Perhaps you met with the Lord Shizuka?"

He'd stopped short, fuming under his breath for only a moment, before gazing at her before giving a short nod. He turned away immediately, the red having spread to his ears and neck.

She smiled at her ward. Ever since he'd been young, he'd had a tendency to worry about the silliest of things. "I see," she smiled at him, amused by his behavior. "Perhaps you are disturbed by his oddities?"

It was, after all, no secret that the man was easily the best at what he did – because he was able to disperse the dark spirits and curses that fell over victims. He was, most effectively, an exorcist. There were many rumors about the man's behavior. Some said that he ate his workers when he became hungry, some said the man was unbelievably cruel, and even others said that the man had a hidden chamber dedicated to torturing prisoners for information.

Yes, the old woman thought as she watched her young master, the Lord Shizuka had caused many rumors. However, she'd been under the impression that he was a rather forthright young man who was not unlike her lord, although he did have some rather interesting traits.

It took a moment, but the prince shook his head. "No," he explained. "It is not his oddities that disturb me." Kimihiro scowled. "It's his wretched behavior! The man acts like a complete savage! It's a wonder that he's made it so far in society – a complete savage!"

The maid looked on fondly as the young man she'd looked after for so long began to vehemently protest the Investigations Department Head's behavior. As Prince Kimihiro went on to rant about what it was that the Lord Shizuka had done to irk him so, she easily picked out the actions that the lord had done as opposed to the severe transgressions that her future king imagined.

"Now, now," she scolded slightly as he calmed. His face was pink from the lack of oxygen intake – he'd continued to speak without pausing to take a breath – and his breathing came in short pants. His expression was one of fury, but the old woman couldn't help but realize that he was quite annoyed for being received as was expected by a man like the Lord Shizuka for a man such as the son of the king, Prince Kimihiro.

It sounded very much as though the Lord had treated him as he should… and for some reason, her prince had taken offense at it. The grandmotherly maid smiled softly at her charge. "Aren't you overreacting? He treated you as should any man of his station."

Kimihiro froze as the color on his face quickly returned from a faint pink to the vibrant red it had been before. "I… I'm not overreacting!" he protested her words hotly. "He's simply… infuriating!"