Title: Switch
Fandom: Tales of Destiny
Characters/Pairing: Marian Fustel, Rutee Katret
Rating: general
Length: ~500 words
Content notes: none
Summary: AU: Rutee and Leon's places are reversed for certain plot events.

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The job interview had been brief; the older woman had looked her up and down with a twist to her lips that could have been wry or disapproving. Then she'd propped her chin in her hand and said, "The kid can be a real handful."

"I'm not afraid of hard work," Marian had said, because why had she come to the city except to find a paying job? The Gilchrist home was lavish and ornate and she couldn't really imagine being allowed inside, but if she could get this job-- if she could get enough money--

The older woman had laughed without a shred of humor and told Marian she was hired on a temporary basis. If she didn't mess up, she would have a job by the end of the week.

So when the door burst open and a girl wearing fine red clothing skidded straight into Marian's legs, Marian couldn't exactly feel she hadn't been warned. She was, however, surprised by the high-pitched, breathless way the girl's voice came out. "Mom?!"

Marian's heart sank, and she opened her mouth to say something, but before she could, the girl's face fell. "You're not my mom."

"No," Marian said, her heart aching a little. "I'm not your mom." She hesitated. "What's your name…?"

"Rutee," the girl said. Her voice had gone hard, but she scrubbed the back of her hand along her dry face. "You must be the new maid."

"My name is Marian. Marian Fustel." Marian hesitated and glanced up, hoping that nobody was around to overhear the conversation. "Are you Rutee Gilchrist…?"

"Who else would I be?" Rutee scowled and put her hands on her hips. "If you're not even related to my mom, you should have the decency to cut your hair instead of imitating her."

"Would it be alright if I wore it back, instead, young mistress?" Marian murmured. "Oh! I'm almost done, I could make you some hot chocolate…"

Rutee blinked, then frowned, then blinked again. "I…" Now she was the one looking up and around. "I… That's not one of your duties. Is it?"

Marian hesitated and weighed her options. Without any clear indication which answer Rutee would take better, Marian opted for honesty. "No, I just miss my mom, too." She licked her lips as Rutee's face transformed.

"I don't miss my mom," Rutee said. "My mom took my baby brother and ran out on us when I was very young. If she didn't want me, I don't want her. You don't know me." Before Marian could reply, Rutee kicked the leg of a nearby table, sending it skidding backwards hard enough that the vase on top of it teetered and crashed to the ground in a heap of broken pottery.

By the time Marian's heart sat back in her chest where it belonged, Rutee had vanished, but her cold, tightly-wound voice remained inside Marian's ribcage. She picked up the pottery quietly and didn't protest the disappointed look her superiors gave her as they informed her she wouldn't be getting the job.

She looked up as she left and thought she saw a little face in the window watching her leave. But she couldn't see clearly, and it was probably her imagination getting away from her. I'm sorry, she thought to that imaginary face.