Author's Note: Hello all! So, basically, this story is sort of an AU of my other story, "Tilt." This is based off of my original story drafts for my character Isabella, with her being younger in this and not joining the Shinigami, and this will probably be shorter while following the anime and manga less. Also, this story is going to slowly get a LOT darker, hence the M rating, and I intend to focus in more on character development and such. Anyway, I hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji.

Chapter 1: His Isabella.

He was bored.

Boredom was a dangerous thing for a demon. When a being possesses such power and is left to its own devices amongst weak creatures such as humans, one can only imagine the damage that could ensue. The demon butler walked steadily down the hall, lost in thought as he recalled his previous master.

Ah, now that had been a dull human. Such basic wants and pleasures, drowning himself in booze and loose women. Honestly, Sebastian should have just finished that deal quickly and left. He spent a majority of his time simply trailing the man or wandering the streets of London, looking for some form of entertainment…

And then he spotted her.

Such a curious child. So rare were her kind, especially ones with the potential for such raw power. She captured his attention quite quickly, and he soon after decided to keep her for himself. A rare treasure, finding one so innocent yet born so tainted… after all, half-demons were rare.

He still could not believe his foolishness at letting her slip from his grasp.

Sebastian had just finished repairing the back wall of the manner with those two buffoons, and all his other tasks had been finished earlier, leaving him with nothing to do except allow these unwanted thoughts to creep forward. Now was the time of day where he normally assisted Ciel with his business work or with any current lessons, but his master had yet to return from town with Tanaka and Mey-Rin. He could only imagine the trouble that clumsy maid could have caused—

"Sebastian!"

Ah, there they were.

Within a moment's time, he reached the mansion staircase and descended slowly into the main foyer. "Welcome back, my Lord. I hope things went smoothly in town."

The young Earl Phantomhive stood at the base of the stairs, clad in his usual dark blue suit and black eye patch, though oddly enough, he carried a wicker basket in his hands. As far as acknowledging Sebastian, though, he merely scoffed before turning a pointed expression towards Mey-Rin, who was practically shaking in excitement over something.

"Sebastian!" she cried out. "We got you a gift!"

The demon butler allowed a shocked look to fall over his face. "That was not necessary—"

"We did not seek it out," Ciel interrupted, his face trying portray disinterest, but amusement flashed in his visible eye as he held out the basket. "Just take it. I had to carry the damn thing so that Mey-Rin would not hurt her with her clumsiness."

"Her?..." he asked while carefully taking the basket from his Master.

"Oh, she is perfect!" the maid squealed in delight. "She knocked our Young Master out of the way of a carriage, and then we realized she didn't bother his allergies, so I insisted we give her to you!"

"Allergies? What do you…" Sebastian's eyes widened as realization dawned on him. He whipped open the top of the basket, and almost swooned at the sight.

"She's a bit malnourished," Mey-Rin stated as the butler delicately lifted out a fast asleep, sleek black cat from the confines of the basket, her fur shining with a lovely dark bluish sheen. "But she is so sweet and gorgeous, and we couldn't pass her up with the allergy thing. Ain't she lovely!"

Cradling the cat like she was made of glass, Sebastian marveled over her. "She's perfect…" As Mey-Rin had stated, the cat was certainly thin, but not sickly looking, fortunately. She dozed in his arms, curling into the warmth of his chest while flexing her claws into his dress shirt. But, when her eyes cracked open and gazed up at him, he felt his heart leap up into his throat.

"Her eyes…"

"Not a word of it, Sebastian." The harsh remark from his Master broke the butler's gaze from the cat. Ciel looked away at a wall, and Sebastian could understand why. "You will be solely responsible for her. Should we have guests, she must stay in your quarters, but otherwise, she may be left lose so long as she does not damage anything."

"Of course, my Lord," Sebastian responded with a bow, clutching the now alert and loudly purring cat close.

With a nod, Ciel moved to walk away. "Very well. Take an hour or so to deal with her, and then come see me in my study."

As the young Lord strode towards the stairs, he could hear Baldroy and Finnian rush forward to greet the new inhabitant of the mansion. "Oh, she is so pretty!" Finny shouted. "What are you going to name her?!"

Before the butler could speak, Baldroy snatched the cat up and held her out in front of him. "You could name her Pepper." The cat began to growl, and Baldroy held her further out from him. "Or not…"

Mey-Rin grabbed the cat and cuddled her close. "What about Baby! She is really cute like one, yes…"

Then, Finny scooped the cat out of her arms and squeezed her to his chest, causing the cat to start flailing in his arms in a panic. "Oh, you should name her something like Lola! Or Violet! Or—"

A sharp pain shot through the back of Finny's head from a smack as Sebastian reclaimed his now frightened feline. "Please refrain from crushing my cat," Sebastian stiffly stated, scowling at the young man. Inwardly, he cringed at all the names suggested, unsure of how to go about naming his precious new pet.

"Belle."

All eyes turned towards Ciel who stood at the top of the stairs, staring directly at Sebastian with a purposeful gaze. Sebastian gave a casual smirk. "A perfect name, my Lord."

Ciel nodded and finally strode away, while Sebastian turned his gaze back to the cat in his arms. She met his gaze, and Sebastian had to agree with the name. The perfect name for the beautiful creature who held such hauntingly familiar eyes.

The dark blood red eyes of their dearly departed Isabella.