The Downfall of the King and the Duke:

Everything had to be just right down to the tee. Sappoto-san finally got out of that room and helped Buppha in the kitchen. I was nice to see her out and helping someone else out for a change. I didn�t even have to persuade her to do so. In fact, it nearly surprised me to actually see her there in the kitchen, helping out. I had to take a second look. She turned to me with a tray in her hands.

�Hitomi-chan?� she asked. (I was surprised that she remembered my fake name.) I blinked at her for a long second.

�You�re helping out?� she asked.

�Yes,� she said. I stared at her for a long time.

�But why?� I asked.

�Buppha-san asked me to,� she said. The older woman paused for a moment. �Is that bad?� Somehow, I couldn�t help but to smile at her. I shook my head.

�No,� I said. �It�s fine, I�m just help to see you being social for a change.� Her eyes lit up at my words.

�You mean it?� she asked.

�Yep,� I said. �In fact, I�ll get out of your way.�

�Thank you,� she said. I gracefully stepped aside and let her through. Sappoto-san made her way outside. I turned to Buppha in the kitchen. She stayed over the stove with her back turned to me.

�Are you okay with doing this?� I asked.

�Yes,� she told me. I shuffled my feet for a bit.

�You think your father will be okay with this?� I asked.

�I doubt it,� she replied. �But he has to learn the truth, right?� I nodded a bit, but I had the feeling that this wasn�t the way to do it. Surely, there had to be a better way. Surely there had to be.

�Do you need any help?� I asked.

�No,� Buppha replied. �Malee is asking for you outside.� I perked up at those words.

�Malee�s asking for me?� I asked.

�Yes,� the oldest sister said. �She wants you to help set up the decorations.� It took a moment for that to sink in.

�Oh,� I said. �Yeah, yeah. Of course. Where is she?�

�Backyard,� Buppha replied.

�Right,� I said. �Thanks.� Then, I headed out the back door. Why did I even get that excited?, I thought. Give up, already! She�s straight and you have a boyfriend AND a girlfriend. No more cheating. Just stop now! I looked around outside from the porch. Malee and Sroy carrying boxes over to the garden.

�What�s all of those?� I asked.

�Decorations!� Sroy replied. I raised an eyebrow at her.

�Decorations?� I asked.

�Of course,� Malee said. �We�re having a big celebration after all.� I blinked at her, really lost.

�Big celebration?� I asked.

�Why yes,� Malee replied. �Our brother is home after all.� I nodded as I saw the plan unfolding in my head.

�Oh,� I said. �Is there anything you need me to do?� I asked.

�Yes, could you grab a couple of boxes for us?� my angel asked. I nodded in a happy-dreamy way.

�Okay�� I said. I wandered over and picked up a box. We all carried them over to a huge gazebo in the center of the garden. I let off a low whistle. Whoa! I hadn�t expected all of this! I happened to look towards the house and saw the �king� looking out the window at us. Just by the distressed look on his face, I could tell that he hadn�t expected this. I only smirked to myself. How are you and your little buddy going to get out of this one, huh?, I thought.

Just a couple of more hours to go.

By sundown, the party began. Sappoto-san and I watched as the people walked through the gates to the backyard. I took glances back at the �king� and �duke� sitting at the big table in the center of the gazebo. Look at them trying to keep a brave face through this. I can�t wait to see how these rats weasel their way out of this. I counted all of the people that came to this dinner party. I could�ve sworn that all of Bangkok had shown up for this occasion. I turned to Sappoto-san.

�Have you seen all of these people here?� I asked. She shook her head.

�No�� she murmured.

�Me neither,� I said. Once most of the people had gone into the yard, Sappoto-san and I followed behind. We took our seats at the main table. I kept my eyes on the �king� and �duke� the whole time. For some reason, the �king� looks much more relaxed, cocky even. I wondered how long that would last for the party was over.

Dinner was just amazing. My favorite was the roast lamb. Buppha did a wonderful job with the tenderness and spices. The flavor made my eyes water. Sappoto-san smiled at me the whole time.

�Good?� she asked.

�Yes!� I cheered.

�I helped her out with it,� Sappoto-san said.

�Did you now?� I asked. She nodded at me.

�Well, you did good,� I admitted. Her little eyes lit up.

�Really? You mean it?� she asked.

�Yes,� I said. My older friend smiled and took a bite herself.

�You�re right,� she said. I smiled at her. Anuwat-san tapped his glass and rose to his feet. We all looked up at him.

�Everyone!� he announced. �I have called you all here today to announce the reunion between my family and my son! It�s been so long since my first wife left with my only son. I thought that I would never see him again. That was until today.� He turned to his fake son. The �king� rose to his feet.

�Father� he called out. Anuwat-san raised his arms out as if to hug him. Anuwat-san�s wife and daughters rolled their eyes. I counted down to failure in my head.

�Wait!� we all heard someone yell. The father, �king,� and �duke� all looked up to see the real Mamoru. He came off of the porch and out to us on the gazebo. I nudged Sappoto-san on the arm to show her the looks on the �king� and �duke�s� faces. The �duke� looked like he had just crapped his pants. The �king� still had that cocky look on his face. I counted down to the moment that he would crumble. The aging Anuwat-san raised an eyebrow at him.

�Who might you be, son?� he asked. The real Mamoru walked over to our table.

�Father,� he said. �I am your son, Mamoru!� His father�s glass hit the table and shattered.