People, this is an AU, where Bass is a Commander for the English Army, and CiCi is...er...well, take a wild guess. There may be OOC, and I think you will find that Ciel is more mangaverse than anything else (as in, he's more like the Ciel in the manga.) Also, Sebastian isn't a demon, and Ciel is a tricky little imp.

I thank the Hunchback of Notre Dame for this one.

WARNING; SebxCiel.

DISCLAIMER; I am not Yana Toboso. I do not own Kuro, or BB. I also may neglect to mention this later, so take note of it now.

"Once a year we throw a party in town! Once a year, we turn London upside down!"

The crowd watched, amused and entranced, as a pale boy pranced lithely around the square, his clear voice ringing for all to hear. Cerulean eyes danced as he rhymed laughingly, the performers all grinning while he lured he crowd in. The throng of Londoners grew by the second, more and more people coming to watch the Noah's Ark perform.

"Every man's a king, every king's a clown! Oh yes, hip-hip-hooray! Every one, its topsy-turvy day!"

Bowing dramatically, the child clad in black smiled brilliantly, and announced in a regal manner, "Come one, come all! Leave your brooms and stuffy rooms! Coop the hens and pen the mules! Come one, come all!"

The 'announcement' was met with laughter and excitement, as the boy punctuated each word with a skip, the troupe of performers weaving out from the centre of the square, some juggling, some dancing, some pulling ridiculous faces. A large man hefted a huge table out from what appeared to be a caravan, and a beautiful dark-haired woman carried barrels of wine onto it.

The crazy singing, done with sparkling eyes and a charm to rival even the most beatific of angels, rallied more and more people. "Close the courtrooms and the schools! It's a day for breaking rules! Come one, come all-come join..."

"The feast of fools!" all the performers sang in unison, laughing almost simultaneously.

The boy grinned widely, and bowed again, the crowd cheering. The applause was silenced by a man with orange coloured hair, who slid out from behind the giant, and cried out, "Welcome to the feast of fools! Come on in, drag up a stool! Leave behind your pointless fears; it's about to get crazy here!"

And there were the twins; passing mugs of beer around, smiling so sweetly that not even the most distinguished gentleman could resist the offer.

"Every one, here's a dare; try it out, if you care!" The man was singing, and the boy twirled and danced around the square again, as another performer strummed liltingly on a guitar.

"Watch the fun without a laugh! Pull it off and you get a staff!" He brandished a stick as though it were a golden wand (not that anyone was fooled.) Despite the uninspiring prize, people fought to keep straight faces as the troupe launched into their hilarious act. The painted faces clowning around, coupled with the circulating liquor and food resulted in a crowd laughing so hard that most were trying to catch their breaths.

After a few acts, the boy sped into the middle again, a child with blue-black hair and pale skin that glowed in the afternoon sun. "Now, time to crown the good fools' king! So make a face that's frightening; make it as ugly as a gargoyle's wing! The face that's ugliest will wear the king's head-ring!" he held up a pretty crown, and flashed a blinding beam at the crowd. Stillness reigned for a second, followed by an uproar of laughter. People pulled ridiculous faces, noblemen and peasants alike vying for attention from the famed 'Smile', hoping to be the 'King'.

"Put the foulest features on display! Be the king of topsy-turvy day!"

A man, hidden in the masses of people, raised an eyebrow. Scarlet eyes flickered to the boy laughing at the faces pulled by some people, and narrowed. What on earth? I leave London for two years, and come home to find this?!

Lord Michaelis watched with disdain as more and more people (nobles included) made idiots of themselves. A scowl, uncharacteristic in that he rarely betrayed emotion, twisted his face. He really should stop this. That imp was robbing the people of their money (see, there were people tossing coins into a box, held by a pretty girl; right there!) and making the upper class of London...look like a crowd of escapees from an asylum.

Suddenly, the boy with the entrancing eyes stared straight at him, and blinked. They locked eyes for a few seconds, and Lord Michaelis felt a sharp jolt. His instincts screamed at him that something distinctly bad was about to happen...and those eyes looked hauntingly familiar...

The scowl stayed on his face, however.

And the boy's face split into a smirk that honestly sent a shiver of foreboding down the noble's spine.

"AHA, WHAT HAVE WE HERE?! IS IT A FARCE, THIS UGLY LEER?!" he screeched in mock-horror, reciting the rhyme dramatically. He pointed straight at Sebastian, and the crowd turned to face him.

"Well, well, well, I do believe, we've found the ugliest we could conceive!"

What on earth?

The crowd burst into roars of applause, as a woman and the orange-haired man dragged the protesting noble into the middle of the square.

"Ladies and gentlemen, to you I sing; the Fool who will be crowned our king!"

"Pardon me, I will take no part in any such-"

He was cut off by a barrel of ale being emptied onto his head, and a crown being unceremoniously slammed on afterwards.

"Once a year, we throw a party in town; once a year we turn London upside down; one a year the ugliest wears a crown; people, its topsy-turvy day!" the performers sang, above the din.

And, sodden, wearing a farce crown for fools, and being laughed at by the majority of London, Lord Sebastian Michaelis deemed this the worst welcome back that he could have ever dreamed of.

The war was nothing to this.

A/N; so what do you think? Nice? Should I continue?