Hello people! Welcome to the official first chappy of Memoirs in the Stars. I got a few reviews which motivated me to write really soon! I love you guys! Hope you enjoy the story! Any inaccuracies… NOT MY FAULT! Haha! :D Just sit back, read and enjoy!
Chapter 1: Innocence
To say the other servants were surprised when Ciel and Sebastian came back with an extra person would be an understatement. Not to mention the said extra person was a naked girl wrapped in a brown cloth from neck to knee and in Sebastian's arms.
Lightning cracked outside suddenly, making Maylene jump. Despite the heavy rain, the only one wet was the young girl. She was wide awake, an empty look in her eye. She wasn't even looking at the other servants, her eyes constantly on Sebastian, as if seeking safety. Safety was the wrong word, too foreign to her, comfort would be more suitable.
The servants didn't utter a word, well they almost did but the look Sebastian had in his eye along with the fact they were in shock made sure they didn't. Ciel and Sebastian walked right past them, only stopping when they were out of earshot.
"For now, your priority is this girl." Ciel ordered.
"Yes, my lord." Sebastian said.
Without another word, Ciel walked off. It was very uncharacteristic of him to say something like that. However, Sebastian had no say. He looked down at the young girl in his arms that was staring into him so intently. He didn't bother sending his prize-winning smile, she could already see through it.
Silence once again accompanied them as they walked. They reached the guest room soon, it was large and luxurious. After being on the street for what seemed to be forever, this room seemed to be unreal to her. The room even had a bathroom, something she hadn't even seen before. Sebastian carefully placed her on the large soft bed; she had never sat on something so soft.
"Wait here, Young Miss. I'll prepare a bath for you." Sebastian said gently, he patted her head softly.
Before his hand completely left her head she grabbed his gloved hand with both of her's.
"Please don't call me 'Young Miss', before you called me 'young one'." She said softly, "It's not my name… but, 'Young Miss' sounds so cold, I'd prefer you called me 'young one'."
"That was a mistake upon my part, Young Miss." Sebastian apologized, "I accidentally called you 'young one'. It would be disrespectful to call you 'young one' once again."
"Then give me a name…" She suggested quietly, she brought Sebastian's hand down to her cheek and cherished the feeling, "please, Mr. Michaelis."
"Then allow me to request you to call me by my name," Sebastian said politely, "Miss Licia."
"If my name is Licia, please just call me 'Licia'," Licia said more firmly, "Sebastian."
"Licia," Sebastian said allowing his smirk to reach his lips. Licia let go of his hand and he patted her head once again, "you're a very good girl."
Licia waited patiently, she heard running water and the sound of clothes rustling. Licia was a curious girl; she didn't know what was happening and really wanted to find out what was happening. She tried to stay still, Sebastian told her to wait here. She just couldn't help herself though!
Licia got off the bed quietly and walked towards the bathroom. She laid her hands on the wooden door and gently pushed it a crack. She looked in the small crack, trying to see what Sebastian was doing. Before she could really see anything the door opened fully and Sebastian stood in the doorway. Without a moment's waste, Sebastian lifted her off the ground, carrying her as he had done before.
"You really are as curious as a cat." Sebastian teased; he smiled and almost laughed when he saw the slightest bit of embarrassment run through her eyes, "How cute."
In less than a moment, Sebastian expertly unravelled the large brown cloth from her body and placed her in the filled bath tub.
"What an interesting mark that is." Sebastian commented, pointing at her neck.
Licia looked at her reflection in the water and almost yelped. On the front of her neck, in the centre, was a circle, it was a pentacle with intricate symbols and markings. Her mark was not unlike the one on Sebastian's left hand, a scripture in a language neither could read nor understand decorating the mark. Sebastian removed the glove on his right hand and tried to touch the circle but it only caused Licia flinched back. Licia placed both her hands on the marking, her whole body trembling.
"This thing… what is it…!?" Licia asked, he could see the cold fear flickering in her eyes, "It's so scary. I was fine before, now when I see it, it's so cold."
"Licia," Sebastian whispered soothingly, "it's all right," Sebastian placed his right hand on her head before sliding down to her cheek, "you're safe here. I'll protect you."
"You're lying, Sebastian." Licia said simply, she was still trembling, "I can tell. You aren't guaranteeing me anything; you're just making an empty promise."
"You are not wrong. However, I will do my duty to the best of my ability for as long as you allow me, Licia." Sebastian promised, he used his un-gloved hand to reach down and hold onto her two smaller ones, gently prying them away, "Allow me to bathe you, Licia."
"I-I…" Licia stuttered, the fear slowly leaving her, her eyes eventually losing their emotion, "Yes, Sebastian."
Sebastian first washed her long raven hair. Licia turned her back to him, showing porcelain bare back. Her black tresses tangled themselves in his fingers. Her wet hair spilled over her shoulders, the bubbles following them.
"My hair's really long, isn't it annoying?" Licia asked Sebastian, tilting her head slightly so she could see him.
"Is it your desire to cut it?" Sebastian answered, smiling at her.
"I-I've never cut my hair before. Is it painful?" Licia asked innocently.
"It isn't painful." Sebastian responded politely, "Would you like me to cut it for you?"
"Yes, Sebastian." Licia said quietly before turning her head to face the tiled wall.
Sebastian finished bathing Licia quite efficiently and soon enough was dressing her. He had prepared a powder white baby doll dress; it was simple, adorned with only a few ruffles. The only thing holding the dress up were two elastic ruffles acting as straps and the dress only reached above her knees. Sebastian set her on the bed once again, her hair pooling around her.
"Are you hungry?" Sebastian asked.
"No." Licia replied simply before her stomach growled in contradiction.
Sebastian almost laughed at her face, the way the red spread right across her features was almost unbearably hilarious.
"I didn't want to trouble Sebastian anymore." Licia said softly, "And I don't want Sebastian to leave me."
"Silly girl, I won't leave you. Only for a moment I will disappear and then I will be back." Sebastian reassured, he placed his hand on her head in comfort.
"I can believe that." Licia admitted before Sebastian stood up and left the room, only to return a moment later, as promised. In his hands was a tray, a lid was on top so Licia couldn't see what was inside but it smelt very good.
"Here you are," Sebastian said as he lifted off the lid, he continued to introduce the dishes on the tray. He stopped when he realised that the girl wasn't really listening to his words, "…Licia, are you listening?"
"I-I am…" Licia said shyly, "I just… I just don't know how to eat."
"Then allow me to feed you." Sebastian said with false kindness.
"Yes, Sebastian." Licia said quietly.
Sebastian then started to feed her. She wasn't resistant and just let him put her food in her mouth. Licia wasn't the neatest eater though, occasionally, the food somehow ended up on her face. Sebastian would just wipe it away though, smiling at her cluelessness.
When she finished eating and drank some water Sebastian guided her through a night routine. All the way up to tucking her into the large soft bed. He brushed her long bangs out of her face and placed his gloved hand on her small cheek. Licia placed both of her hands on top of his; silently wishing he would stay like that forever.
"Good night, Licia." Sebastian farewelled, using his other hand to pat her head.
"Good night, Sebastian." Licia responded, she let go of his hand reluctantly and he left her in the room.
Lonely.
She felt lonely. She felt lonely on the street and she felt lonely now. Luckily, sleep overtook quickly and let her leave her loneliness behind her.
When Sebastian walked in the next day, to say he was surprised, would be an understatement. The prepubescent girl from yesterday was no longer there, instead replaced with an older woman. Her features were more matured, her legs were longer, her hair grew even longer and her body was most definitely more developed. The dress from yesterday was now clearly too small, her legs were in full view and the dress was bursting at the seams. Her body looked only that of a 15 year old but it there was still a considerable difference. Licia was sitting at the side of her bed, staring at her fair skinned arm. Less than a moment later she registered his presence and whipped her head around to look at him straight in the eye.
Tears.
There were tears in her eyes. Eyes that showed confusion. Eyes that showed all her emotions. Eyes that showed that she didn't know what was happening. In those eyes, so much was revealed.
"Sebastian," Licia whispered, "I don't know. I don't know what's happening. It just happened."
Sebastian was at her side in seconds. Licia immediately embraced his middle, finding comfort in it. He could feel her body shaking, the fear and confusion spilling out all at once. All her emotions that hadn't surfaced before, were all finding their way up. She was no longer the porcelain doll she was last night. She was Licia.
"Last night, everything hurt. Then this happened. What's happening to me?" Licia choked out, she lifted her head to look him in the eye.
"You're developing, Licia." Sebastian said simply.
"Developing?" Licia pondered the term for a moment, "Developing into what?"
"Even I am not sure of that, but I'm sure it'll be alright."
Licia sat in a newly fitted dress in the bathroom. She stared at the mirror, the mark on her neck staring right back at her. A pair of scissors sat on the table top in front of her, its silver gleaming in the light. Without a second thought, Licia grabbed the pair of scissors. She didn't even flinch as she pointed the sharp end of the scissors with both hands at the mark on her neck. She then quickly plunged the sharp tool towards it.
Just before the scissors could reach her neck, however, a gloved hand halted her's. It was Sebastian, his hand firmly holding onto her's. Licia tried with all her might to inch it forward but Sebastian held firm. She bowed her head and her hands shook, tears fells from her eyes and landed pristinely on the metal scissors.
"It hurts… it hurts!" Licia cried, she was referring to the mark, "I don't like it. Why can't it stop?"
"Ending your life will not make it stop Licia." Sebastian said calmly, "It will only make it worse."
Sebastian gently pried the scissors from her quivering hands and Licia soon heard the sound of snipping. Her hair fell silently onto the ground, creating a small mess of raven strands.
After a few moments, Sebastian lifted her head from her lowered position, his hands on either side of her face. Her hair was considerably shorter and definitely less of a mess. (Strangely, the mess that was on the floor had disappeared from between the time Licia had bowed her head and when she had looked up.) Licia's eyes looked at her renewed hairstyle and soon lowered her gaze to the circle on her neck. Her hands still shook with confusion and fear before attempting to grasp her neck tightly. However, a long wide black ribbon fluttered in front of her neck and was tied appropriately around her neck. The ribbon was tied in a perfect bow at the back and the ends fluttered down to her hips.
"Does it still hurt, Licia?" Sebastian asked her as he placed his arms softly on her shoulders.
"I… No." Licia answered unsurely, "It doesn't hurt anymore."
"That's good." Sebastian said politely before she was lifted into his arms.
Licia most definitely had gotten older; she took up a lot more space in his arms than she had yesterday. Sebastian smiled in triumph as he saw the blush rise up on her cheeks.
"I believe you still have yet to get acquainted with the mansion." Sebastian said with a smile, despite the fact that she could see through it.
Licia thought that the mansion was too big for a small group of people to live in; hell, it was too big for an army to live in it. It had a million and two different rooms for different things, majority of the things done in them, Licia had never heard of. The tour was boring; the only thing that could be considered okay was the fact that she didn't have to walk. Sebastian seemed not to mind carrying her around.
Things only started to get interesting when they ran into three of the only other servants, Maylene, Bard and Finnian. At the sight, all three had a range of amusing reactions. Maylene pointed a trembling finger at the two, red with embarrassment and mumbling incoherent words. Bard took a few minutes to analyse the situation before leaving his mouth agape and moving his eyes between the two. Finnian on the other hand, was not surprised and smiled happily at the two. Then the unexpected happened.
Licia laughed.
Almost as soon as it left her lips she stopped it, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"I'm sorry; it's just that it was funny to see that." Licia said with a content smile.
"This is Licia; she will be starting work here soon." Sebastian introduced politely, trying to ignore the reactions he was receiving.
"M-Mr Sebastian! Are you and her… are you and her, y-you k-know… a y-you k-know…" Maylene stuttered, her sentence not even being stung together properly.
"Good job, Sebastian! You got with the new girl before we could even see her! She's a real beauty!" Bard congratulated only to receive a well earned glare from Sebastian. Sebastian had the sudden urge to strangle the chef until he turned purple.
"She's so pretty!" Finnian commented he was currently in a daze. She had green eyes like him and they were so pretty!
"Please continue with your work, Licia still has some things to do today." Sebastian said swiftly before walking right past the servants.
"Sebastian?" Licia asked quietly.
"Yes?" Sebastian responded efficiently.
"What did you mean?" Licia asked, "What did you mean that I'll be working here?"
"I apologise for not telling you soon, Licia. However, my Young Master has requested that once your development has stopped that you begin work here." Sebastian replied an apologetic look on his face.
"I… don't mind." Licia said slowly, confidence ringing in every word, "I don't mind if I get to be with Sebastian."
Days seemed to fly by and changes in Licia's seemed to have stabilised. Her personality seemed to be stable as well; she acted just like an innocent little child that knew nothing of the world. With her changes being at a minimal it almost seemed like she was ready to start work but Sebastian seemed suspicious. Demons usually aged like humans until they turned about 20 years old where their aging merely stopped, Licia was currently at the age of 15 at the most! Her personality was also a problem. Demons would never act like this. Some had short tempers, some were sadists, some were depressed and some were cheerful even! They were never innocent, though.
Sebastian was proved right, that one morning.
A constant annoying shaking woke up Licia from her surprisingly pleasant sleep. She twitched with annoyance before finally choosing to open her eyes fully. She could tell it was very early in the morning; the sun was barely even beginning to rise. At first, her vision was blurry, the only thing standing out being two red circles. Once her vision cleared she took a few minutes to comprehend her situation.
Sebastian was practically nose-to-nose with her, his wine coloured eyes looking straight into her mint green ones. Licia's face burned red with embarrassment as she soon realised exactly how close their bodies were. He was bending over the bed and his chest was hovering very close to her's.
"Are you feeling alright, Licia?" Sebastian asked with concern, she could see that it was fake though, "You're face is rather red."
Sebastian lifted his gloved hand to touch her reddening cheek, feeling the warmth that was radiating from her cheeks. After a few seconds of having him being a little too close for comfort, Licia pushed him away from her roughly, though he was skilled enough to keep his balance. She sat up in the bed, glaring straight at him.
Of course, she didn't realise that overnight her body had grown into that of a 20 year old and her clothes had merely been ripped to pieces. The bed sheets being the only things covering her had also, of course, fallen down when she sat up. All in all, her bare, fully developed, upper body was in clear view for Sebastian.
"Don't come so close to me, Sebastian!" Licia yelled, still unaware of her scandalous appearance.
"My, my…" Sebastian sighed, "It seemed that I was correct. This is most definitely your original form. Even your personality fits properly." Sebastian smirked as his eyes locked perfectly with her's, "It seems that your clothes did not fit properly last night, Licia."
Licia took less than a moment to figure out what he was talking about before scrambling to cover her chest up with the bed sheets.
"Listen, the girl you've been spending you're time with for the last few days isn't me!" Licia said seriously, her cheeks even redder than before, "I'm not the innocent little girl you've been with! I'm a demon!"
"I believe that was established when we first met." Sebastian pointed out, "Have your memories returned, Licia?"
"Wha-? I…" Licia stuttered, she looked away with embarrassment, "No, they haven't."
"And you're abilities?"
"Some of them…"
"And I can see that you're current form is your original form, am I correct?"
"Yes…"
"Then you are ready to start work as Phantmonhive's new maid today." Sebastian said with a smirk, he walked closer to her, closer than she liked, "You're new uniform is awaiting you in the bathroom."
"What are you talking about!?" Licia exclaimed, "I'm a bloody demon without a contract! You expect me to play maid in a perfectly innocent person's house? Are you crazy? I'm like a feral dog! I could bite you whenever I want!"
Before Licia could react Sebastian was once again invading her personal space. He bent down and tucked a loose hair behind her ear, whispering into the shell of her ear, his lips brushing against her at every word.
"You must have already noticed that I am also a demon." Sebastian smirked, he stood up and locked eyes with her, "You are no vile dog, you are merely a stray kitty that needs to be tamed."
Licia quickly snapped out of her shock before lashing out violently at the taller man, which, of course, he dodged expertly, "Stop coming so close to me!" Sebastian sent her another smirk, angering her even further, "I swear, if you ever do that again I literally will tear your pretty-boy face off and then stomp all over that stupid smirk of yours!" Licia huffed in annoyance, "I'll work here. I may be a demon, but I pay back my debts. Just don't blame me when I accidentally tear the whole place down."
Licia stood up, bed sheets covering her body up modestly, and quickly rushing towards the bathroom, where indeed a maid's dress was waiting for her. It looked like a French design, sporting white and black. It was an off-shoulder dress with long bell sleeves. It reached down to her knees, modestly covering enough but not looking too grandma-ish. It had many white ruffles and a single white bow in the centre of her chest. It was fitting around her bodice before flaring perfectly at her hips. She tied the matching apron around her hips, tying the bow nicely at the back. This dress was way too complicated for her liking.
Licia stared at the hair accessories staring back at her. There were two black ribbons and a typical maid's head band. The head band was black and white, complete with ruffles, a black rose was sewed on to the side and ribbons dangled from it, supposed to hang on the side of her head. She couldn't understand why they had such an extravagant combination for a maid. She sighed and slipped the head band on securely. She stared blankly at the two ribbons. She hoped they didn't want her to tie her hair in two pig tails. She quickly decided on braiding her hair and braided her hair and tied the black ribbons firmly.
Licia sighed at her appearance, here she was going to be a maid and her dress was one of the most luxurious things ever. She slipped on her thigh high white socks and black boots. She looked at her reflection comprehensively. How in the world was she going to hide that hideous looking mark on her neck?
Before another thought about the mark could cross Licia's mind, a wide black ribbon fluttered in front of her neck, just like the other day. This ribbon was shorter than the one before and was most certainly wider. Sebastian stood right behind her and tied the bow once again.
"I see you had no trouble with the dress." He said as if he didn't just walk into a room where she might have been naked.
"It's the world's most complicated dress." Licia retorted before realising that he had slipped in. Licia quickly shot out her elbow but he unfortunately caught it, "Don't just walk in like that! I could have been naked!"
"I have already seen your bare body so I don't understand why you are so flustered now." Sebastian pointed out blatantly, Licia's cheeks quickly turning red once again.
"You're such a pervert!" Licia accused, trying to catch him off guard by kicking his shin. He moved away efficiently, avoiding the blow without missing a step.
Sebastian lowered his grip from her elbow to her wrist and pulled it closer to him, "You didn't seem to mind so much before, Licia." Sebastian brought her hand to his lips and gave it a small peck, "It will be a pleasure working with you. Please meet in the lounge once you are finished."
Immediately after, Sebastian left the room entirely, his coat tails trailing after him. Licia dropped down to the floor once he was out of eye shot, her knees feeling weak. She placed her hands on her face and groaned into it. This was ridiculous. She hoped her strength would come back soon so she wouldn't look so pitifully weak next to a demon like him.
What the hell have I gotten myself into…!?
Sebastian smiled to himself as he continued to prepare for the day. She was most certainly an interesting woman. She was short tempered, easily embarrassed and quite violent when angered. He could tell from just then that she was a powerful demon, if only her strength were to return to her. She was unlike the girl she was before but at least this way…
It would be so much more fun to play with her.
How was that? I wanted to get this out really soon because the prologue was really pissing me off at how vague it is. I hope you enjoyed this not so exactly correct fic but I hope I got everything mostly correct! Tell me if the characters are weird or anything! Oh, and if anybody's wondering about Licia's name… Licia has the same meaning at Alice. I wanted to name her Alice because she was all confused and lost, like Alice in Wonderland. I realised that I have an affinity for 'A' names though so I went with the next best thing… an 'L' name! Haha! I know it's weird. Just hope you enjoyed it! The first bit of it it is a bit cheesy if you ask me though…
Review please, they make me happy and go high!
Ai Angel
Next Chapter: Mute (may change)