CHAPTER 2
Chronologically, Renfrew Phantomhive was over a century and half years old, but physically he was just ten, in the body of Johnny Lazarus—a young boy whom his spirit had taken possession of when a demon left the young boy's body in a graveyard after using it for a nefarious but unsuccessful purpose.
And after all that time being a spirit in a world that moved-on without him, Renfrew found it a delight to be back in the pleasure of being a kid again, and in such, having fun playing in a sandbox Sebastian had made for him in the back courtyard.
It had been a spur of the moment idea by Sebastian when Renfrew was found making a castle of mud in the courtyard one day after a heavy rainfall—a thing a kid did. After a 150 years, Renfrew had experienced countless things in his time that should've made him "grow-up" a little and building castles in mud was one thing that he should have grown out of, but he didn't care. He was still a kid.
He had died a kid when he accidentally killed himself with his father's gun when attempting to convey to his father to treat him better after countless periods of physical and emotional abuse, and now again in being a kid—or in the body of one—so why not do what kids do?
Sebastian stood watching with curiosity as Renfrew built a rudimentary but interesting representation of the Royal Palace, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, and the head of the Great Sphinx of Egypt. But in order for the sand not to crumble, the sand structures had to remain intact, and with a little demon magic, each one remained together with burned sand turned into glass crystal by fire.
"Quite extraordinary, Master Renfrew, that you are able to build each from memory," Sebastian said. "Did you actually visit Italy and Egypt while you were a spirit?"
"I did, I visited the world to fend off boredom," Renny—a nickname Lukas had give him—said. "I also saw other spirits wallow in their own self pity because they could not cross-over, trapped between words for all eternity, and I didn't want to be like that. So I visited the world and saw a lot of interesting things."
Sebastian took a closer look at the head of the Great Sphinx. Only recently within the past fifty years had the Great Sphinx's body been unearthed after centuries of being buried under sand. "So, this is what the Sphinx looked like when you visited Egypt…merely a head peaking out of the sands of time. You are quite a sculptor, Master Renfrew. So much detail. And I have noticed you have taken up painting, as well. Your room is adored with canvases."
"Yes, I like art. But I still have so much more to learn. I am no longer immortal, and in his new body I will grow old and then eventually die, but I wish to experience a great deal more before my time comes."
"And you will, Master Renfrew. You are quite intelligent. Would you like me to show you how London appeared before modern times?"
"I would like to see that." Renfrew looked around. "But I have used up most of the sand."
"No need to worry." Sebastian turned, and then waved a hand across a barren piece of ground adjacent to the sandbox, and suddenly the ground began to quake slightly and structures began to emerge and erect themselves, building a small village-like town. When the moderate cityscape settled next to a body of water, that doubled as the River Thames, the duo stepped next to it. "This is what London appeared like just before the fire that destroyed it in 1666."
"The fire your son Decco started at the bakery in Puddling Lane, right?"
"Correct, along with two of his demon cohorts," Sebastian said, "which then began a chain of events that lead me to becoming the Phantomhive butler. But I didn't know he was my son at the time, we were long time rivals. And the events that transpired over the years is known as a time paradox. Decco was born in 1671, but he was stolen by Morning Star and taken back centuries in time and trained to become a minion. But Decco grew arrogant, belligerent, disrespectful and cocky, and attempted to overthrow Morning Star. We fought many times over the years."
"I am glad he was stopped. Do you think his body is one of those still buried under mounds of ash and lava in the remains of ancient Pompeii where you sent him in punishment for his transgressions?"
"One only hopes, Master Renfrew."
"What do you mean? Do you suspect something else may have occurred?"
"Demons are notorious survivors," Sebastian said, "and those with great power, like my son, always find a way to survive even the slimmest of odds through their own pain and strife. However, I did take his powers away from him when I sent him back through time to the place of my birth. How fitting it was to leave Decco to die in the very place of my rebirth in becoming a demon."
"That's good," Renfrew said with a relieving grin. "I would hate to see him again. He was dangerous."
"Indeed, and he would have destroyed the very fabric of time if he had been allowed to succeed in his plan to usurp Morning Star as ruler of Hell."
Suddenly Sebastian snapped his head back towards the Mansion, as if he heard something not audible to Renfrew's ears. But somehow Renfrew also felt a disturbance, and also looked sharply towards the house. Even though Renfrew's spirit was anchored to a human body, he still kept a strange channeling ability with the otherworld, and that even meant events involving Vincent, his pet ghost cat.
"Master Ciel?" Sebastian said. "I heard a scream."
Renfrew signed annoyed. "What trouble has Vincent and cousin Ciel gotten into now?"
To be continued…
