Author's Note: New story! So not much to say…
Just tell me the usual good, bad, and overall. Reviews welcome – and the more reviews, the more it motivates me to write :] So, if you like it, tell your friends. Tell your neighbours. Hell, tell your friend's neighbours. Just tell me if I should continue or not. Thank you!
Disclaimer: I do not own Black Butler.
Screams Unheard
"Sebastian!" A loud, ordering voice called forth, echoing throughout the large Victorian-styled bedroom not seen in common peasant homes. The young child that gave the command was seated upright in his pristine four-post canopy bed, waiting to be tended to. All was quiet in his bedroom and as he motionlessly sat, he noticed how the light emitted from the moon splayed darker versions of certain objects on his walls and floor. Some of these shadows held interesting and – dare he say creepy – shapes, causing his already heightened senses to become all the more sensitive.
That was when the young heir noticed one of the shadows move abruptly. He jerked involuntarily and his eyes frantically scanned the area, his blood pumping and his heart racing.
"Yes, my Lord?" came a voice amidst the suspicious shadow. When the voice was heard, the boy relaxed his muscles a bit, coming down from his adrenaline rush.
Ciel Phantomhive gave a soundless sigh and turned his head towards the butler who had stepped into the room, able to be seen by the light of the moon now. "Why haven't you brought any candles with you?" Ciel asked, surly. It was a moment before Sebastian answered.
"Have I frightened you, young Master?" Sebastian questioned back, a smile fit for the devil dancing across his face. This caused Ciel to grit his teeth and clench his fists in his blankets.
"Forget it," the young Phantomhive heir retorted, "just don't let it happen again. And that is an order." Ciel breathed another quiet sigh as he tried to steady his beating heart, annoyance settling in his stomach at the fact that his butler would "forget" such a routine thing as candles at night.
"Of course, my Lord," Sebastian agreed with a bow and a hand on his chest. "Now, how shall I be of service to you at this late hour?"
"I want to know who is making such a ruckus," the dark-haired boy snapped, as if it should've been obvious as to why he was complaining. Although, Sebastian just looked at his young master with a puzzled gaze. And after a few moments, it got on Ciel's nerves.
"What?" Ciel barked at his butler.
"Are you sure you heard someone? Everyone in the manor, besides you and I, are asleep."
"That can't be," Ciel shouted, "I distinctly heard someone making a racket outside my bedroom door!" Ciel had a mixture of anger and anxiety chiseled into his features and, without another moment's hesitation, had ordered Sebastian to search the entire household for the one who had woken him up.
It only took about ten minutes for the demon butler to rummage through the entire Phantomhive estate before coming back empty handed. Ciel didn't take this news very well.
"I heard it! Someone was outside my bedroom and they woke me up!" Ciel growled.
"What exactly did you hear?" Sebastian asked. "Couldn't it be possible that you were just dreaming?"
This time when Ciel spoke, it came out almost like a whisper as he stared down at his blanketed legs. "I… I don't know. It sounded like someone shouting. Or maybe screaming? It seems as soon as I woke up it disappeared…" Ciel let his voice drift off, his mind working to try and piece together some kind of answer to this little mystery.
As he pondered and pondered, his eyelids became heavier and his head flicked back upright every so often. Eventually, Ciel decided on resting his head back against his pillows, and before he closed his eyes for some well-needed rest, he turned to Sebastian and uttered, "I order you to stay here until I fall asleep." He did not wait for a reply. Ciel simply rolled his head in the opposite direction and settled in for the night once again.
Nonetheless, Sebsatian bowed slightly and placed a hand to his chest saying, "Yes, my Lord," with a bemused smirk that his master could not see. He pulled up a chair not too far away and sat down for the short wait. Ciel had asked him before to stay with him during the night, so it wasn't anything new.
As Sebastian gazed upon his master's steadily breathing form, he couldn't help but think the soul he would one day get to feast on. Oh, how he wondered when that day would be…
But he would settle for tending to his Lord's needs until that day, doing whatever it is that he ordered. And that included sitting at his bedside, waiting for the young heir to fall asleep.
Although, even Sebastian noticed the way Ciel's face scrunched and contorted in a way he'd never seen before.
Must be one hell of a dream.
"Young Master?" Sebastain's voice rang out. At this, Ciel Phantomhive jerked his head up from its spot on the desk in front of him with a snort. "Honestly, sleeping during the day – why bother getting up if you're just going to resume your slumber in your office?" Sebastian inquired happily as he poured the morning's tea into a ceramic blue and white cup and placed it on a matching tea plate.
"Oh, shut up," Ciel mumbled as he was handed the tea. Before saying anything else, the Phantomhive heir grasped the fine china's handle between his index finger and thumb and drank the contents deeply; he managed to finish the entire thing in a few seconds time. With a satisfied sigh, Ciel set the china back down onto the plate and intertwined his fingers to create a sort of hammock to rest his chin in. "What are the plans for today," Ciel yawned as he watch his butler pour him another cup of the sweet-smelling tea.
"At eleven o'clock you have a History and Stocks lesson with Mr. Platters," Sebastian read from a white piece of paper as he handed a small dish of toast and scones to his master, "Then at one-thirty, I've scheduled a violin lesson for you. After that, you're pretty much free."
Ciel paused in his toast-nibbling and lazily rolled his eyes over towards the demon-in-disguise. "That's it? Nothing from the Queen?"
"It would seem the Queen has no need for her guard dog these days." Sebastian smiled softly, slipping the latest newspaper out from under his arm and placing it on the desk for Ciel to see. The front-page story was nothing more than an upcoming spring fair – no mysterious murders, no criminals on the loose, not even a miniscule robbery was reported. Ciel picked up the black and white print to examine it further, flipping through the pages, scanning for some kind of story that would catch his interest.
The Phantomhive heir skimmed and re-skimmed the newspaper for what seemed like hours until finally he was sick of looking at it and threw the nuisance to the floor. Ciel slumped back in his oversized velvet chair and let his chin rest against his chest in defeat. It was like the young boy wasn't happy unless he was one step closer to exacting his revenge.
"Is there anything else I can do for you, young Master?" Sebastian asked smoothly.
"Leave me," was the small reply given.
"As you wish." And with that, the demon butler about-faced and walked out of the room. Ciel gave an audible sigh before relishing in the silence. It was at this moment that he realized how tired he still was; his night had been disturbed by nonsensical worries.
The dark-haired boy thought about how he only had two events planned for today – and how the Queen had no use for him recently. If nothing is going on, then I can't get any closer to punishing the people that defiled my family's name. There haven't been any clues lately, and even less evidence of those people turning up anytime soon. Ciel could feel his eyelids growing heavier as he delved deeper and deeper into his thoughts. How am I supposed to achieve my goal when no progress is being made? Perhaps I could order Sebastian –
Suddenly, a loud shriek pierced Ciel's ears, interrupting his train of thought and causing him to jerk upright at once. The noise sent the heir's heart thumping and his blood racing as he tried to come up with an answer for the disturbance. "Sebastian!" Ciel ordered angrily. It wasn't long before the large double-doors creaked open to reveal the black clothes of the demon butler. His maroon eyes casted over the form of his young master as he fully entered the room.
"Yes, my Lord?" Sebastian inquired. He could tell right away that something was amiss by the way Ciel's body was tense and how his face matched that of last night's; anger mixed with anxiety adorning his features once again.
"I want to know who the hell is screaming like that," the Phantomhive boy ground out through grit teeth. Sebastian wore a slight frown for a moment, just peering down at Ciel like he had three heads.
"I'm sorry, Sir," the butler apologized, "but no one has uttered a sound. Bardroy is in the kitchen, Maylene is scrubbing floors, and Finnian is out back gardening – even if they were to make a fuss, they're all too far away for you to hear."
"That can't be," Ciel proclaimed. "Someone was screaming in the halls right outside my door!"
Sebastian walked closer to the eye-patch-wearing child as he said, "I was right down the hall balancing numbers in your account books and I haven't heard anything." This statement had Ciel gritting his teeth and clenching his fists on his knees. Out of nowhere, Sebastian grabbed Ciel's chin and tilted the twelve-year-old's face toward him, examining him. "Might I suggest cancelling your first appointment today? Your looks do indeed portray last night's disrupted slumber. Perhaps you should spend the morning catching up on your sleep instead?"
The young master squinted his eyes at Sebastian, and then slapped his hand away from his face. "I will do no such thing. I have only two appointments to attend today; I will not let a disturbed sleep affect today's errands. I am the Earl Phantomhive and, therefore, will act as such," Ciel finished as he toyed with the antique ring that held a very prominent blue diamond in the center. Sebastian took a small step away from his master and bowed.
"Yes, my Lord," the butler answered. As he straightened out his body, he gazed questioningly at the grey-haired boy who seemed to be in deep thought. Sebastian couldn't help but wonder how the day's actions would play out with the way the morning was turning out.
Nonetheless, he would show the best hospitality he could possibly muster to their guests – after all, what kind of butler would he be if he couldn't manage that much?