Yay! I finally wrote the first chapter of my first fanfiction story! So I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, and when you're done, please tell me how you felt about it by reviewing. :)

Disclaimer: I don't own Blackbutler or any of its characters.

Chapter 1: The Arrival of a Timid Young Governess

The butler's eyes were red, and they were the first thing I noticed. They weren't a bright red, mind you, but the warm color of dying embers. Those eyes of his were quite unusual, quite striking, and he was incredibly handsome with his chiseled features, slim, tall figure, and perfectly tussled raven hair. That was why I stood like a mute idiot before him, gawking like I'd never seen a handsome young gentleman in my life.

Yes, I had seen them before in my occasional visits to town, but I never had the gall to speak to one. You see dear reader, for most of my life I was raised in a very strict, religious all-girls' boarding schooling, and when I was eighteen I graduated to become a teacher there until I turned twenty, my current age.

The butler regarded my luggage and plain attire with mild interest, and I become embarrassed under his gaze. He must have thought I was quite the homely little school girl with my ugly brown dress buttoned right up to the neck and my chestnut hair in prim braid down my back. He must not be used to such plainness as the butler of a great mansion with beautiful ladies, shinning silver and maids in black-and-white standing all in a row to feast his eyes upon.

"Miss Eliza Goodly, the new governess, I presume?" He said with a charming smile.

"Yes..." I managed to force out, the color quickly rising to my cheeks.

"Welcome to the Phantomhive manor. I am Sebastian Michaelis, the head butler here. Your luggage will be attended to by a servant. Now if you follow me, I will give you a tour of your new home."

He proceeded to lead me through the doorway, and once I set foot in the foyer I was dumbstruck by the grandeur of the place. I had never seen such beauty in my life from the crystal chandeliers to the elegant furniture and the massive Romantic paintings on the walls. And to think I would live here! Coming from a meager life in a Spartan boarding school, this was like a wonderful dream come to life.

Sebastian showed me every nook and cranny of the massive mansion, and I followed him, the whole place never ceasing to amaze me. The butler described each room and its use to me, but I'm afraid I wasn't much of a conversationalist. I was too fearful that I would say the wrong thing, causing much embarrassment for myself. So I remained silent, that is, until he mentioned the fact that the house only had four servants, including him.

"Just four servants for the upkeep of such a large house!" I exclaimed.

Sebastian gave me an inscrutable smirk. "You seem to doubt the abilities of a small group of people, Miss Goodly."

"No, it's not that," I hastily corrected myself. "It's just that in the books I've read, it seems that a large amount of servants is needed for the upkeep of these grand houses, especially more than one butler."

"Well, my lady, I am simply one Hell of a butler," he replied with an odd look in his red eyes.

I couldn't help but chuckle a little, "I daresay, I'll take your word for that, Mr. Sebastian."

He then came to a sudden stop near a large mahogany door. "This is the Earl Phantomhive's office. You are permitted to meet him now if you want."

"Yes, I would like to meet my new pupil if he isn't too busy," I replied with a hesitant smile.

Sebastian promptly swung the door open, revealing a stately office dominated by a large oak desk. Sitting behind it was none other than Ciel Phantomhive who was currently occupied with doing paperwork. He was a thin boy, almost frail for the age of twelve, with dark hair and a large blue eye. The other was covered by an eye patch.

"My lord," Sebastian said, "May I introduce you to your new governess, Miss Eliza Goodly."

I approached his desk, trying to hide how nervous I was. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

The boy looked up from his work and gave me a look I could only describe as jaded. I had never seen that expression on a twelve-year-old, and it gave me an unsettling feeling. "I trust you'll begin teaching tomorrow?" He said curtly.

"Yes," I answered, "if you see fit, of course."

"I hope you will remember I have a very busy schedule," he said, "and that I cannot devote all my day to learning. In fact, most of the time I will be working so I will have little time to attend to my studies."

"I understand, sir."

"Good, you are dismissed."

I left without another word, and Sebastian closed the door behind me. "You must excuse the young master," he said. "He isn't the most sociable person in the world. Now if you follow me, I'll show you the bedroom you'll be occupying."

He led me down a series of stylishly furnished hallways, finally arriving at the door to my quarters. When he opened it I nearly fainted with surprise. The room wasn't sumptuous by any means, but it was a lovely little place, and high above any sort of meager accommodation I expected to receive.

The bedroom itself consisted of a small twin bed, its sheets a pristine white, a stately oak dresser, a sturdy desk and chair which I planned to sit at many a night, scribbling letters to my friends at the boarding school, and a large mirror. A picture window looked out to the verdant gardens that surrounded the estate, and the wallpaper was a tasteful blue. Yes, I could get used to occupying a room such as this.

"Is your room suitable?" asked Sebastian.

"Yes," I answered. "In fact, it's wonderful. Thank you for giving me a tour, it's much appreciated."

He gave me a closed-eyed smile, and put his hand on his heart. "The pleasure is all mine." He departed without another word, leaving me to explore my new habitat.

It didn't take long for the maid to arrive with my luggage, although she struggled with the weight of it. "Where would you like me to put these?" She asked. Her shrill voice was peppered with a cockney accent.

"You can just set them down on the floor," I replied, but I was far too late. The trunks fell from her clumsy arms, hitting the floor with a crash. To make matters worse, one of the buckles came undone and spilled every piece my clothing including my undergarments.

Naturally, the maid burned with embarrassment. "I'm so sorry, miss, I am!" She cried. She hurried to stuff my clothes back in the trunk, but I attempted to stop her before she reached for an undergarment.

"That's quite alright," I said quickly. "I can handle this myself.

Again, I was far too late. Her hand had grabbed one of my unmentionables and upon realizing what she was holding, her face turned a deeper shade of crimson than it already was. With a little cry, she dropped it, and began to apologize profusely. "I'm so sorry, miss, I didn't know!"

"Yes, I realize it's a mistake," I replied, attempting to alleviate the situation. "But I think you should leave me to clean this up myself."

The maid did a quick curtsy and scurried out of my room, closing the door behind her, and all I could think when I regarded the few articles of clothing I had spilled onto the floor was oh dear…

When I finished putting my clothing neatly away in my dresser, I went to work on organizing the bulk of my luggage: books. Some of them were textbooks on the subjects I was to teach my new pupil, but most were novels. As I set them on my desk, I noticed how ratty they looked with their tattered covers and frayed edges, yet I knew I wouldn't trade them even for the queen's crown jewels. You see, these books are so precious to me because they were what started it all. Ah, I see I have confused you, dear reader so in order to help you understand, I will give you a brief account of my life so far.

My father died when I was quite young, and when he passed he left my mother to raise me by herself. She had no assistance since both her parents were dead, and her in-laws wanted nothing to do with her. To make matters worse, the only income she had was a small amount of inheritance money.

It was a Godsend when she found out that Fairfax Academy, a charity boarding school funded by a few wealthy benefactors, had a place open for me. If she contributed a small amount of money to the school each month, they would take me in, clothe me, feed me, educate me, and give me a place to sleep. This, my mother saw, would be the best way to give me a proper education and a better life than what she could provide herself. So at the age of six, I was sent off to live there.

The school itself, as I mentioned before, was a Spartan place. It was a world of plain clothes and walls with strict rules and teachers. There, I was taught that women should be demure, respectful and kind and that I should be complacent and happy with everyday chores and a prosaic life. I was given a decent education, but the head of the school was a clergyman who made sure to instill us with religious knowledge. When he visited the school, he couldn't help but gather all his unwilling students, and make never-ending speeches to us of the dangers of temptation, which leads us to commit ungodly acts. In order to prevent this we had to live peaceful lives, depriving ourselves of material things like silk dresses and fine food, and strive to be gentle and pious.

For a time, I believed all this prattle, that is, until a summer night of my fifteenth year. I lay in my bed, unable to sleep, while the other girls in the large room lined with twin beds were lost in their dreams. That was when I noticed a friend of mine in another bed beside mine was up reading a book in the dark.

"What are you reading?" I whispered to her.

I startled her, but she soon recovered herself. "Don't tell anyone," she said. "I'm reading a romance novel."

I thought for a moment of the rhetoric that was pounded into my head for the past nine years, about temptation which leads to sin. Novels of any kind were banned from the school, and any book that wasn't the Bible or a textbook was labeled sinful by our teachers. Therefore, if she was caught reading by a superior, she would surely be punished. But then again, it was just a silly romance novel. "Alright," I replied, "as long as you lend it to me when you're done."

When the book finally fell into my hands, I was addicted from the first page. It spoke of passion and adventure far away from any place I had ever known. The two lovers acted on impulse, and they weren't judged by any law or group of people. These characters were free and happy, far happier than I was.

The novel had set my heart aflame for more, and so the next time I was permitted to go to town I spent all the pin money my mother sent me on penny gothic novels from the drug store. In order not to get caught, I read them at night by weak candlelight and hid my growing collection under a loose floorboard.

Not only did these books fuel my act of rebellion in hiding them, but they brought to life a new side of me. Underneath the sweet girl who dutifully followed the boarding school rules, a passionate and headstrong woman was developing inside me who constantly fought to get out. Every day I had to smother her in order to get through my chores and lessons, but it was becoming increasingly difficult. It wasn't long before I realized that the girl I was trying to be wasn't me anymore. She was simply a disguise, a mask I wore to prevent punishment or trouble, and the real me was the woman.

Another problem the novels created was that they stirred me to question the very life I was brought up to believe. Did living a dull life full of menial chores really lead to happiness? Everyone around me seemed to think so. But the heroines in my romances lived far differently, and they seemed much happier than us, so did the ladies in town in their fine dresses who were supposed to be victims of materialism.

It was all very confusing, and soon all I wished to do was leave so I could figure these things out for myself. But where would I go? My mother certainly wasn't in the position to take me in again, and I had no relations to speak of. I felt I was doomed to graduate and become a teacher at Fairfax Academy for the rest of my life. Then it donned on me. A young lady of my education could always become a governess, teaching wealthy young children.

I then devised a plan on how I would go about becoming one. Once I graduated, I would teach at Fairfax for a year or two, and then when I built up my experience and references I would advertise in the newspaper for a position. I knew it wouldn't be an exciting way of life, but at least I would be free from the school, leaving me to figure out who I am and what I wanted to believe. And after that, I would finally be content with my life like I was supposed to be, or at least I hoped.

So the rest of my life I went by this plan of action until now that I had finally achieved my goal. As I put away my books, I caught a glance at myself in the mirror. Yes, I was very plain indeed. Yet on closer inspection, my brown eyes were large and my heart-shaped face was graced with high cheek bones. I was even well-figured underneath my ugly dress. Perhaps when I earned my pay I could buy a more stylish dress. Perhaps there was something more to me than a religious school girl.

Ceil wasn't lying when he said that he would have little time for his studies. With running his household and the prosperous Phantomhive toy company, he could only afford a bit of algebra in the morning, a spot of history at teatime, and maybe a smidge of English or French in the evening. Because I spent such little time teaching, I didn't have to make up lesson plans. Therefore, during much of the day I was left to my own devices.

Thankfully Ceil gave me free reign in his ample library so I went on a heyday, reading whatever I pleased. The absolute literary freedom was a wonderful change from the few books I managed to scrounge every month in order to satiate my appetite. In the weeks that followed I spent most of my time lounging in the library, pouring over everything from atlases to history books and lengthy classics. But even I could tire from constant reading so the rest of my time I spent making friends with the servants.

I learned that the maid who dropped my trunk was named Meyrin, and we made fast friends being the only two females in the mansion. Although she refused my offers of help at first, I eventually came to assist her in some of her chores, predominantly because she was prone to sudden bouts of clumsiness. I especially kept an eye out when she cleaned the banisters because once she mistook shoe polish for cleaner and scrubbed the banisters with it. The Lord knows those glasses of hers didn't help her one bit with her work.

I also made friends with the gardener, Finny. He was a sweet boy, but he certainly didn't know his own strength so occasionally I would plant flowers with him so he wouldn't accidently crush them with his hidden power. I still to this day haven't the faintest clue of what Tanaka did around the house, but I tried to make myself useful to him by making his tea.

The servant I didn't make friends with right away was Bard who I first met after he caused an explosion in the kitchen by attempting to use bombs to cook. Since then, we frequently got into arguments about whether or not one could use explosives to properly cook a meal. His point was that it was a faster way to do things, but I countered that it would always ruin the meal and destroy the kitchen. Neither one of us came to an agreement in the argument.

Sebastian and I neither became friends or enemies. You might think me a silly fool, but he made me uneasy. It certainly wasn't anything he did or said. He was always polite and respectful towards me, and frankly, I think he preferred me above the servants because I didn't cause any trouble. There was just something about him that seemed alien to me. Although my brain called me an idiot for thinking such things, the very core of me could tell that there was something wrong with this man. Sebastian practically ran the household by himself because all the servants were completely incompetent, and he never took off the façade of the perfect butler. It was all very strange. Not to mention, I was sure he didn't sleep because even late at night when everyone else was slumbering and I found myself reading by candlelight, I could still hear his measured footsteps walking past my room.

Yet besides the mystery of Sebastian, the days went by pretty regularly. My existence was comfortable and much better than what my life would have been if I had stayed at school or went to live with my mother, but it wasn't the adventurous life that a young woman craves. I didn't expect excitement when I applied for the job, but I yearned for it regardless. Little did I know that my life would suddenly change when Ciel and Sebastian abruptly left for the city and took me along with them.

Okay, I know what you're thinking right now: Becca just wrote the most boring first chapter I've ever read in my life, and I'm so pissed that she just wasted my time. Well don't worry! I promise the next chapter will be much more exciting. I even left this one on a cliffhanger...kind of...