Welcome Back
Part 1
Winter was here.
The rapid fall of snow kept pouring down as he kept watching. His white gloved hand sat on the drapes of his window. He was standing still like a dead corpse, unmoving and unemotional as the only thing that seemed to be alive was the storm outside of his studies.
Chime
Chime
Chime
He slowly turned to look at the grandfather clock. He had stood there for an hour, his body still and motionless.
Chime
Chime
Chime
Looking back to the window, the harsh snow kept on falling quickly and more aggressively than before. The wind banged against the window, the naked trees clung to the ground and the trailed road leading to the mansion was being covered with a thick coat of white.
No roads.
No directions.
"…Ciel?"
His grip on the drapes tightened.
"It's late; you should go to bed darling."
Silence.
The storm kept on going. It was hauling and drowning out all other noises as it claimed the night.
The only thing that felt real.
"... I'm going to bed; I hope you don't stay up late again."
There was a hesitation in the air. It was as if there was something amiss but everything was in place. The clock kept on ticking, the papers were stacked perfectly on the desk, the storm kept on crying and the emptiness still lingered throughout the mansion.
"Please...come to bed."
He stood still, waiting.
There was a soft sigh but the hesitation didn't falter – it never did.
"Alright Ciel... good night."
Click.
There were no footsteps to be heard. He could still hear the blizzard whining, could still hear the bare tree branches hit one another. Until he heard them. The soft patter of Elizabeth's footsteps echoing through the mansion. They slowly disappeared in the long, hollow and empty hallways as they made their way to the master bedroom like every night.
He couldn't do anything but stand there. He couldn't move away from his spot. He couldn't go back to his chambers where his wife anxiously waited for him.
He gripped the drapes tighter.
All this, all of his property, all of his life, all of his existence – all of it was fake. The worthless laughs, the meaningless riches – everything was a void.
Looking intensely out to the dark night, the snow kept on rushing down to earth, so gracious and so brutal. Majestic, in its own way.
"...why?"
No one answered.
"...why?"
No one retorted back.
Clang!
The drapes fell to the floor as he pulled on them. The pole that kept the drapes on hold was askew as it clung to the other end of the wall. It bothered and angered him. With a frustrated yank, the other end of the pole fell to the floor leaving a long heavy drapery heap.
He stood there, looking down at the mess he had made.
It was a disaster.
It was destroyed.
It was useless.
Just like this place, just like the life he was living in. It needed no purpose but to decorate. It needed no purpose but to fill the empty spaces of the naked, exposed window.
Just like…
He shook his head and straightened himself up. He slicked his hair back, adjusted his collar, fixed his sleeves and moved away from the disarray.
He didn't have time to think about him. He didn't have time to think about trivial things.
With long and determined strides, he exited his studies.
Everyone that lived in this mansion were hypocrites.
Everyone.