The following characters: Undertaker, Ceil Phantomhive, Viscount and Sebastian Michealis belong to the creator of Kuroshitsuji (Black Butler)- Yana Toboso. The characters: Cassidy Holmes, Eliza and Adam are my own original characters. As always, positive criticism is welcome.
CHAPTER ONE – THE STRANGEST ENCOUNTER
She sighed as the folder was placed on her desk before her, looking up at her colleague, with unsure eyes. A sorrowful look crossed his face as he looked down at the beautiful young woman. "Cassidy, this just came in from the Undertaker are you sure you want to handle this case?" "Of course I do Adam. It's late now so I'll go down to the Undertaker first thing in the morning." Adam looked at her and sighed ruffling up his messy golden locks, flicking his match to the opposite side of his mouth. She let out a deep gentle breath and stood up pulling her long black trench coat off from the back of her seat and picking up her umbrella when he placed a hand on her shoulder. "You know your one gutsy woman Cassy, you know to be in a job where men are the majority and woman steer clear. But we are truly lucky to have you with us, you really live up to your standards as one of the best detectives alongside the legendary Sherlock Holmes." She smiled at his comment. "You forget the legendary Sherlock Holmes was my great grandfather Adam. I must be off it is getting dreadfully late and this glorious London weather is truly living up to its expectations, I shall see you in the morning after I have gone to identify the body." She said pulling on her long coat.
Opening the door of her office she walked into the dead building, it seemed her and Adam were always the only two that were given the serious cases and the only two brave enough to go the extra mile when it came to finding the truth about any case handed to them. Opening the main doors to the old building she walked head on into one of London's very own famous storms. Gathering it wouldn't be smart to make use of her umbrella she gently pulled up the collar of her coat for warmth from the pouring rain and sharp icy cold wind. She sighed remembering that she wouldn't have time to visit the undertaker in the morning as she had a meeting and in so decided it best to make her way to him as he was much closer to where she currently was. She had only been there once before as a trainee when she had to watch an autopsy on a body and just remembering that day made her skin crawl.
She walked down the main street the only audible sound was that of her heeled boots clicking on the cobble stones in the raging storm as she turned into a blackened alley, its only form of light provided by the occasional violent flashes of lightning. She shivered as the cold wind blew against her when she saw dull light emanating from a dusty old window. Her hand met the icy cold kiss of the antique door handle as she pushed it down hearing the faint click of it opening. Taking a deep steady breath she entered the funeral parlor and closed the door behind her. She was greeted by the warm glow of candles and the almost unbearable stench of death, which caused her stomach to do a small flip. "Hello is anyone here?" she asked in a soft voice as she walked between the various coffins that littered the front of the parlor. "I am Cassidy Holmes, chief detective of the London detective branch, I have come to identify a body linking with the case I was assigned." She swallowed looking around her with wide eyes.
"I was only expecting you in the morning." Answered an eerie, muffled voice, this startled her as she continued walking around the front of the shop when the lid of a coffin near to her opened. A pale face with a toothy grin spread across it met her and she couldn't help but scream from fright. Cupping her mouth in embarrassment she looked at the man curiously feeling her cheeks flush a deep shade of red. "My goodness my dear you are positively drenched from that pretty little head of yours all the way down to your toes, come let us get you all dried up and in some dry clothing before you catch a dreaded cold." He said as he climbed out the coffin and led her to the back of the shop. He walked into a room and she heard him shuffling around din the dark scratching for something. When he appeared again he held out a midnight blue and black dress then led her to another room and let her change.
When she emerged he smiled his toothy smile, the dress looked stunning on her contrasting perfectly with her pale skin, her long jet black hair still damp from the rain outside hung in long delicate spirals as her pale slate eyes rested on his cautiously. A hand as pale as his own from the cold clung to a folder which she wearily held out to him. Taking it from her he paged through it. "Oh dear, it seems there is a slight problem my dear my new guest is a male and not a female." She looked up at him and sighed. "Yet another dead end, but May I still see the body sir?" he grinned a wide grin and walked over to a table with a sheet gently rested over it concealing the body that occupied it. Standing next to the eerie man he started to pull the sheet down. Tangled jet black locks followed by pale ash skin, followed by to jet black crescent moons resting on very pronounced cheek bones, a slender nose and full lips pale blue in color stared back at her as she sharply caught her breath. "I'd show you the rest of him my dear but I have still to clean him up, his death was rather gory to be honest. He is going to be quite a bit of work to make him presentable once again for his funeral." He spoke as if it was an everyday occurrence which to be honest it was. He sounded almost gleeful as he spoke about the body before them.
When the Undertaker received no response from the young woman beside him he covered the body once more and looked down at the taunt features of the girl which were riddled with indescribable pain and hurt. To him it was a sin to see such an expression on such a beautiful face. Carefully he placed a pale, jet black nailed finger under her chin bringing her gaze from the corpse to meet his. "Do you know him personally?" he questioned the glee still in his tone as he looked at her through his thick bangs. She simply nodded to shocked to utter even a word to the man before her but still fighting the tears to keep a strong yet broken façade. The Undertaker led her away from the body to a back room, sitting her down and disappearing into another room. When he emerged he placed a blanket over her slender shoulders then vanished again only to return with some tea and his favorite bone shaped cookies.
He handed her the tea and chuckled as he heard the cup rattle gently on its saucer as she held it. Curiously he placed the back of his hand against her cheek and his smile vanished. "For a living lady my dear you feel as cold as death itself, come sit by the fire and warm up or you surely going to catch more than just a cold and we don't want that now do we." She looked down at the steaming cup of tea in her hands and nodded scooting over and kneeling in front of the small fire that burnt in the fire place. "Thank you for your hospitality sir." She said in a barely audible voice. The man simply smiled as he sat beside her. Sitting silently she stared at the man curiously as she sipped her tea. He grinned and held out a cookie for her. Taking it gently she thanked him and observed it before nibbling on it. The clock on the wall chimed indicating it was midnight breaking the silence that filled the room when finally she spoke in a soft voice.
"That man is my father. He went missing shortly after my eighteenth birthday and ever since then I have searched for him. He left no note as to why he had left or where he was going. He left on a night such as tonight. A year later I started attending the academy he and my great grandfather attended and with that I passed out following in my great grandfather's shoes. I was driven by the need to find my father, after my mother died and my sister married I was left with only the hope of finding my father. I never heard from my sister because she hated me due to the fact that when my great grandfather died he bequeathed his entire estate to me. I hoped one day the sounds of laughter would once again fill those cold stone walls, but hoping was too much." He looked down at the young woman and felt a faint blush cross his pale cheeks when she curled up at his side and rested her head on his lap. He sat dead still resting his hand on her arm as she fell asleep.
When he looked down at her tiny sleeping figure he was taken by her features, color had returned to her skin and she seemed almost to glow in the fading light of the fire as it slowly burnt out. Gently he brushed her cheek with his hand almost reveling in the warmth he felt.