Authors Note: Ha Ha, alrighty... This is my first ever fanfic, EVER! So the more comments from the peanut gallery and the general heckling the better! A little back story then, I had never grown up with any cartoons and had no childhood in general, but now, since i have a bunch of nerd friends, i have been introduced to the wonderful genre of ANIME! I'm learning Japanese at the moment and my friend suggested for me to read the Black Butler manga series online (in english!) so i could get the hang of reading in the opposite direction. I really enjoyed it! I love the Victorian era and the odd supernatural twist was very neat! I do a lot of story telling, and i had a kinda funny idea with some of the black butler characters, *sigh* especially Sebastian! my friend laughed hysterically and suggested that i write a fanfic for it! So here i am!
Oh! and before i forget, the official disclaimer, i do not own any of the black butler stories or characters or anything. i have a couple characters of my own creation running around so please don't be offended if they're not as incredibly awesome as the rest.
so, without further adieu, ENJOY!
"What do you have to be embarrassed about? Honestly, nobody even cares what Ben has to say! Nobody really believes that you have an imaginary friend or anything."
I hadn't thought about my friend in a while. It was too strange to think of him after not seeing him in over a year. I debated whether i should tell Lillian the truth or not. I watched the willowy blonde effortlessly twisted up her golden maine in a low bun using a couple of pencils on her desk. She was a good friend. She was pretty nice for someone several years older then I. Besides the occasional mothering streak she had at times, she treated me as an equal, a very rare thing for a 16 year old. To be honest, she is pretty much my only friend. I am already in 10th grade and only 13 years old. To explain how i got there, i was bored, aced a couple tests, and found myself being offered a place in the state's best high school. I know, I don't quite get it either. Some classes were boring rather then the challenge I was warned about. Most people ignored me, I usually prefer it that way anyhow. but Lillian was the sole exception, and after she befriended me, the rest seemed to at least tolerated me. I didn't really want to ruin that by bringing up a childish thing like my supposedly imaginary friend who used to visited me in my dreams. She gave me a funny look. Her blue/green eyes were silently searching for an answer behind my large dark golden gray eyes. I felt i owed it to her as a friend to tell her everything.
"Well, he wasn't imaginary, at least i don't think he was. His name is Sebastian and whenever I slept he would come in my dreams and we would play games and he would sing for me and play his violin and..."
I felt my voice die down involuntarily. I stared at the pink carpeted ground of Lillian's room and tried to avoid looking a her inevitable "The poor crazy girl face" I was sure to find there. After several moments without any mocking laughter or anything. I looked up and to my surprise and delight, I saw a contemplating look on her face rather then the dreaded morbid pity i expected. She grinned at my apparent startled face.
"Ha! you're usually so stoic, it's good to know that you do have some emotion! You actually look pretty funny!"
I grinned as well. In my entire 13 years of existence, Lillian was the only one whose toothy smile was contagious to everyone around her.
"I've been learning about dream stuff in this book Sky gave me for our 1 year dating anniversary. Could i try analyzing one of your dreams with this mysterious Sebastian?"
I couldn't refuse her. I was too happy! Never before had anyone wanted to give Sebastian another thought besides "poor child, her mind's really gone." At that moment, I would've done anything for my friend.
"Sure!" I replied.
"Awesome! Alright... let me see..." her perfectly manicured green nails on her long fingers skipped and danced through the pages of the book she had found conveniently in her purse.
I felt my smile widen as I looked at her purse of wonder. It was a small mint green purse that had everything in it, and i mean everything! I had once asked her about her purse after she had pulled out not only an umbrella, flashlight, several magazines, my missing earring, coffee mix and loads of other things from the small bag. she returned the earring, winked and told me it was magic. I really don't believe in such things, but to see her take out a easily 500 page book from the tiny purse, it was hard not to feel that it had some wormhole or a genie in a lamp in the deepest pocket.
"Aha" she cried triumphantly, her green tipped finger hovering over the page. "i found it! "recurring dreams" subtopic of "people" now tell me," she spoke in a funny midwestern accent, mimicking our english teacher. "do you know the person in your dreams."
"I've gotten to know him pretty well, but I've never met him while i'm awake if that's what your asking."
She nodded slowly, a spitting image of our despised teacher, all she needed was the small glasses on the tip of her nose and the tightly wound elaborate bun on the top of her skull and she could be mistaken for her twin. I couldn't help but laugh. She then continued, reading directly from the book.
"Describe what the person looks like."
this was an even harder question. I thought for a moment then replied,
"Sebastian is very tall, though I don't think he would be able to exactly be measured. he has straight long raven black hair, his eyes have a rich, almost reddish rust hue to them and he always wears this certain smile, maybe more of a smirk i guess..."
"oh! dreamy!" she then went back to her dry teacher mode and continued "What does he wear in your dreams"
"This very old fashioned tailcoat. he is a butler to a rich estate owned by a child..."
I started to notice how ridiculous I sounded. I tried to explain in more detail how I used to go to bed, then (in my dream presumably) I would wake up to this beautiful violin music and he would greet me with his usual "good morning Kitten" I kinda just shut up after I saw her eyebrow raise at his nickname for me. I was saved from having to elaborate on his love of kittens when my dad called. I spoke with him and announced awkwardly to my friend that i had to leave, she said something about how this "character" of mine reminded her of some Japanese cartoon Sky had told her about, but I didn't really pay any attention. I walked out of her room without a backwards look and dreaded the rest of my life.
"It would appear that the young master is rather hopeless in this particular area." I said after the 3rd time he stepped on my foot. Ceil raised his brilliant blue eye to meet my own and glared. He then lowered his gaze back down to his feet and muttered something along the lines of "this whole thing is useless..." I tapped him sharply on the top of his head and said
"If you only look at your feet while dancing your partner might feel a bit offended that you feel the sight of your own shoes are prettier then her face."
He shoved me away and sat down in the large chair by the fireplace. i felt my thoughts wander back to that one time...
"Hey! Mr. Sebastian!"
"Yes Kitten?"
"Can you teach me how to dance?"
"Why does the little girl want to learn how to dance?As far as i understand,dancing isn't a important skill for the average 7 year old to know."
"It isn't really, it just seems so pretty! Today at school we had a ballerina come and dance for us and since my daddy doesn't know how to dance I wondered if you of anybody would know!"
"I doubt any of the dances I know would suit you. I have never yet had the pleasure to learn ballet." The small girl looked dismayed. Her large eyes looked sorrowfully up at the tall handsome man. After several moments of that she grinned up at him leapt from his lap twirled and said,
"Don't worry! I'll be the best dancer there ever was even with out anyone else's help! I"ll teach myself everything I'll need to know and I'll work super hard and everything!" She bowed gracefully in her little childish way. The man chuckled and applauded her. The next time he saw her, about several days later, she had already mastered the basic steps to ballet, mastered the grace and expressionless look of a professional ballerina, and had prepared a small clip of "the sugarplum faeries" dance from "The Nutcracker" and did her own mini ballet performance just for him. He was no longer shocked at these bursts of creative energy and determination from the tiny girl. He had long ago discovered the restless curiosity and innocence of a kitten in the small girl not to mention the raw talent, grace, and potential beauty and intelligence of the specimen.
I was honestly shocked that lately my thoughts wandered to my little "Kitten" more often. I hadn't had time to see her since my master's birthday and I was starting to long for the innocent laughter and the intelligence of my kitten in a human form. I always felt calmer around her and she always found a way to make me laugh no matter how chaotic my day was, no matter how much I had to clean up after everyone's mistakes, even the times like this where the young master started to wear on my patience. It was times like these where i missed my darling Kitten. If it were her I had to teach instead of him, it would be a different story, but as it was, he was just wasting my time by not even bothering to really try. It was almost tea time anyway, so I asked permission to prepare it.
I truly do respect Ceil in my own way, I suppose. He is just so different from any human I have ever met, including Kitten. he is an interesting balance of virtue and vice, but I had underestimated his perceptiveness when he asked me if I had a cat hidden somewhere to feed. I smiled and assured him that I had not (unfortunately...) he gave me an odd look and dismissed me. But, before I reached the door, he gave me an odd order. He said
"Sebastian, I have been invited to that Viscount Druid's estate for a masquerade ball. I need someone to distract him while I investigate for the stolen pearls. I have reason to believe one of his guests will try to plant them on the Viscount in a attempt to frame him. As tempting as it is to let that creep get away with it and see the Viscount druid behind bars again, my orders were to find the duchess's pearls and see that the thief is put to justice."
"Forgive me young master, but i am a little confused as to what, precisely, my instructions are."
"Must i spell it out for you? I need someone else to wear the dress this time and I don't think you could pull it off as well as some proper lady would." I couldn't help but smile at the bitterness in my young master's voice. the memoery of my young master in a frilly pink dress and pig tails to infiltrate an earlier event of the Viscount Druids was fresh in my mind. He read my smile and glared. After a moment or so i asked
"This young lady to distract the fine Viscount Druid will be your compainion for the night i presume? Do you have any preferences?"
"It doesn't matter what I like, just what the Viscount likes. She should be around my age to make it believable, but be adult enough for him. She should be graceful, charming, pretty as well as smart enough to not get kidnaped or something..."
"...like you did?"
"That's different! oh, nevermind... but you understand what I understand what i want!"
"Don't worry master, I'll handle everything"
i left the room and stood outside of the door for an instant and smiled. i already knew the perfect young lady to accompany the young master.