Chapter 2
A wave of realization hit me, and I opened my mouth to speak, finding my words croaked and my throat throbbing. "Where am I?"
"You should lay back down, Miss." The same deep voice gently pressed my shoulders back onto the mattress and I looked up to see a decidedly good-looking face staring back down at me.
"You are currently in Phantomhive Manor." A new voice this time, and I looked over to see a boy, who couldn't have been older than me, crossing the room. "My name is Earl Ciel Phantomhive, and I am the master of this estate."
Wrinkling my nose in confusion, I spoke softly, to not further anger my throat "Am I in London?" I asked. Maybe these boys were part of the QYO as well.
"Not far from it. I found you passed out on the lawn. You've been asleep with fever for two days. Might I ask how you got here?"
I scratched my head. These kids spoke weird, but maybe it was just a posh thing. "Well I'm from Tennessee. I got into the Queen's Youth Orchestra, and I met a man named Grell at the airport, he was supposed to pick me up. I fell asleep. Now I'm here." I nodded to further affirm my story.
The boy, Ciel, raised his eyebrows and immediately turned towards his friend. "The hyperactive freak shinigami, Grell?" The tall man in black cocked his head and began to speak.
"Well, young master, it would explain how a young maiden managed to get onto the garden, unnoticed by me." His expression turned to slight concern.
"Tennessee, isn't that part of America?" Ciel then spoke to himself, "Well that would explain her strange accent, but what of her even stranger clothes?"
I looked down and realized they were both in Victorian Era garb. "Speak for yourself," I said, checking to see if I was still in my T-shirt and jean shorts, realizing in annoyance that I was in a frilly white nightgown. "Why are you dressed like it's the 1800's?" I asked, and they looked at me, Ciel with pity, and the other one, with thinly veiled amusement.
"Because it is." Ciel stated. Deciding that I needed to learn the other guys name, I cleared my throat to get their attention.
"First of all," I started, "What's you're name?" I directed my question to the tall one in black, "Second of all, thanks for taking care of me while I was sick, that was actually really nice of you." And it was, because they just as easily could have dumped me on the street. I sighed, "And third of all, it's 2013. You may be dressed funny, but I know the 1800's were 200 years ago."
The tall one in black responded, "My name is Sebastian Michealis, and I am butler to this household. Nursing you back to health was my pleasure, merely a courtesy of the Phantomhive hospitality, and my master's prerogative as such." He ignored the "third of all", to my frustration.
"I'm so confused." I whined, voicing my concerns. Suddenly, I had an idea. "Look, Mr. Sebastian, can you please grab my bag?" He motioned to my little drawstring neatly placed on the table, in question, and I nodded. Bringing it to me I looked toward Ciel.
"You might want to see this. Grabbing my phone out, I turned it on and it lit up. Both of their eyes widened in shock and I chuckled. Frowning at the no signal bar, I clicked the calendar app, and showed them the date and time. "Look, it says 7/20/13. That was the date, last time I had signal."
"What is this device?" Ciel asked me with a mixed look of wonder and horror in his eyes.
"A phone. An iPhone 4 to be exact. A hand-me-down from my brother." I frowned. "I was supposed to call him actually." My signal-less phone was currently at 92%. If what these kids were saying was true, any plugs they had would not work, and I needed to conserve my battery.
"It doesn't have any signal, and I can't use internet." I bit my lip and felt my eyebrows furrowing together, "But I still want to conserve the battery, I don't think I can charge it here."
Ciel nodded, but he obviously didn't completely understand. Something about all of this was so familiar. Why did it feel like I'd seen these kids before?
Ciel massaged his temples and heaved a sigh. "I believe you." He glanced at Sebastian than back at me, "I've learned over the years that I can't pick and choose what I think is real. You've shown me your device, and an interference from the shinigami would not be unheard of." He nodded coming to a decision.
"Sebastian, prepare a room in the main wing, next to mine for this girl. She will remain here as a guest until her situation is resolved, and she can get home. I want to see how she progresses, and I would like to make an audience with Grell." As he walked out of the door, hands clasped behind his back, he cleared his throat. "And I never got your name, Miss."
"It's Emma Bradley. But you can just call me Emma." Wow, had I given a lot of personal information to a stranger. But at this point, I didn't care. For whatever reason, I trusted this boy and his butler; they probably saved my life, and didn't plan to kick me out just yet.
"Miss Bradley, Sebastian has prepared breakfast in the kitchen, if you care to join me, he can help get you decent." And with that he had left the room.
"Hey, Sebastian?" I said once he had left, "Is he telling the truth?" I needed to know, and Sebastian didn't look like the type to play tricks. The corner of his lips turned up, and he gave a smile identical to that of a chesire cat.
"The young master doesn't lie, Miss Bradley. It is the 7th month, but I'm afraid that it's July of 1887." He gave me a look of pity. "For now though, it's breakfast time, and the young master would like to eat with you."
"I think I have an extra change of clothes in my bag, I can change myself." He bowed his head, and took a step towards the door.
"Of course, Miss Bradley, I'll be right outside if you need anything." With that, the door shut and I breathed a sigh of relief. Finally alone. Letting confused tears run down my face, I came to the realization that I might be here for the foreseeable future.
The question at this point was where was here. Obviously neither the boy nor his butler had any reason to lie to me, but it was so absurd to think that I had jumped back in time so far.
Something about the two was so familiar though. I could have sworn I had heard the name Ciel Phantomhive before. Raking through my mind, I shrugged my shoulders after coming to no conclusion. After all, I probably needed to start getting ready.
I grabbed my suitcase, which was next to the dresser where by bag had been, and pulled out one of the pairs of ripped jean shorts, and a T-shirt from the Muse: The 2nd Law tour.
Even with the fan on, I guess the lack of AC in the summer made the room incredibly hot. My shorts were probably considered too short, but hell if I was going to walk around in a floor length dress and a corset.
Pulling my brown waves into a ponytail, I cursed my height. I was not tall enough to see myself in the mirror. However I looked would have to be good enough.
I opened the door to see Sebastian, who raised his eyebrows in surprise. "This is what you choose to wear?" His tone was almost criticizing, but I chose to not make a witty retort, unsure of how he would react.
I shrugged, walking down the hallway, and hoping I was going in the right direction. I must have been, because he didn't correct me. As soon as the delicious smell of sausage, eggs, and pastries hit my nose, my stomach rumbled. "I'm hungry."