Chapter 3: Going Out

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji and Monoshitsuji.

7.30a.m, Friday.

"Urgh…" *Toss and turns*

Ashley looked over to the clock on her bedside table and saw that it was only 7.30. Looks like I've another 1 and ½ hours left of sleep… Before Regal wakes me up…

Regal… With that last thought, Ashley went back to sleep…

10a.m, Friday.

*Knock* *Knock*

*Ka-chak*

"Good morning, Mistress. It's time to wake up," Regal said while drawing the curtains. The sun was especially bright this morning and that caused Ashley to stir.

"Ugh… Good morning, Regal," she replied while scanning the room with blurry eyes.

"Where's Alice? She usually wakes me up along side you," Ashley asked.

"She's busy arranging the flowers in the main hall, downstairs, Mistress. I recalled that you were getting bored with seeing the same flower arrangement day in, day out, so I sent Alice to do it," he stated simply.

"Is there a problem, Mistress?" He asked.

"No, I guess not," she said.

"Your bath is ready, Mistress," he said with a smile.

"Ok. Thanks, Regal," she said and started walking towards the bathroom.

"Mistress?"

Ashley turned around and looked questioningly at him. "What is it?" concern clouding her voice. There was a hint of worry and amusement in his eyes.

"Ciel Phantomhive and Sebastian Michaelis will be coming by today at 5p.m for tea, Mistress," he replied. "As well as to discuss the current location of the settlements assigned you, himself and Alois by the Queen. He wishes to swap an assassination file too, Mistress," he added. He knew what her reaction would be like. He smirked at the thought and prepared himself for her outburst.

"WHAT? WHAT IS THAT STUPID NUT THINKING? I'M HAVING HOLIDAYS FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! IT'S TIME FOR ME TO RELAX AND THAT ASSHOLE THINKS HE CAN JUST POP IN FROM NEW YORK FOR FREAKING TEA?" she screamed.

Regal took a deep breath before speaking. He knew that Ashley was still fuming.

"Actually, Mistress, the letter Ciel sent was dated back a month ago. I suppose the letter just got lost in the mail, Mistress," he said, trying to calm her down.

"Whatever! I'm gonna take my bath," she replied while stomping into the bathroom and slamming the door behind her.

*Sigh* Ciel really does know how to turn her mood upside down… Regal started to arrange the bed sheets, took out Ashley's white underwear, matching bra and one of her pure silk white sundresses from 'Uluwatu'. Regal knew that she would accept the Ciel's 'intrusion' despite the earlier outburst. It was, after all, only polite.

20 minutes later, 10.25a.m.

*Ka-chak* (Bathroom door opening)

"Erm… Regal, could you turn and face the door, please?" Ashley said while poking her head out the bathroom.

"Of course, Mistress," he said, with a grin on his face.

"Mistress, I've seen you naked before. Why so embarrassed?"

Ashley was already inside the bedroom, her back facing him, her body completely nude after removing the towel from her now dry body, when he said that. Even without him having to look at her, he very well knew that she was blushing like crazy.

"Regal, STOP teasing me," she scolded.

She wore the underwear and bra first, and then set out to unzip the back of the sun dress. As soon as she stepped into the dress and pulled it up to mid-thigh, she felt pair of hands come from behind her. She felt goose bumps as he 'accidentally' touched her skin as he took the dress from her hands and pull it up her body, fit her hands through the respecting holes and zip her up.

She turned around to face him, but saw that he was already setting up the hair dryer at her dressing table. She walked the short distance and sat down in front of the mirror. He started up the hair dryer and slowly began brushing through her hair with the brush.

Something's up. He usually lets Alice handle my hair and clothes. But today… Something's different. As soon as she thought those thoughts, Regal switched off the hair dryer and asked whether her hair was to her liking. Ashley nodded her thanks. Perfect as usual. He was about to walk out the door when she grabbed his hand. He turned his head to look at her, his back still facing her.

"Mistress? Is something the matter?" He fully turned his body to face her and saw that her eyes were intense on his.

"Regal. What's up with you today? First, with Alice, then, my clothes, my hair… What's going on that you're not telling me?"

Without warning, he pulled her in for a hug. His right hand secured at her waist, while his left gently held her head to his shoulder, his head bent so that it was right next to her ear. So close that she could feel his breathe.

"Regal… What's wrong?"

"… I'm worried, Mistress," he replied softly.

"What are you worried about?"

"About you…"

"There's no need to worry about me if you're gonna be right with me, right?" she said, her voice lined with panic at the thought of Regal not being with her.

"Of course I'll be by your side always, Mistress… It's just that, I feel that we're running out of time," he said.

"Out of time…?" she asked questioningly.

"I feel that our days together, are running out…"

As soon as the words left his lips, Ashley felt as though his words were bullets that caused her heart to stop. Before she could do anything, her knees gave way. If it wasn't for Regal's hug, she would have fallen to the ground. He scooped her up into his arms and laid her down on the bed.

"Regal, are you telling me that I'm gonna die…?" she asked.

"Mistress, you misunderstand me. When I said that our time together is running out, I meant that I feel as though I am losing you to others around you. As though you'll trust someone more than you trust me. As though someone else will be closer to you than I ever was," he said. He was currently sitting on the edge of the bed, next to her.

She sat up and turned to face him, sitting on her calves (Japanese style). He was staring at the bed sheets, trying to avoid eye contact. She noticed this and said," Regal, I don't understand what made you feel that way, but listen when I tell you that you will never lose me, I will never trust anyone more than you and no one will be closer than you are to me. Understand?"

He still wasn't looking at her. She placed her hand under his chin and pulled his face up so that she could look him in the eyes. "Understand?" she repeated.

There was no escape for him. But he was captivated by her straight forwardness and the truth in her eyes. She truly meant every word spoken. "Yes, Mistress," he replied with a smile.

"Good!" she said happily. Very slowly, she placed both had on either side of his face and leaned in to kiss him softly on the lips. She let it linger for a little while before pulling away.

As Regal got up, he went to the shoe cabinet next to the giant two door closet, he got out a pair of white, suede, laced-up, high heeled shoes from 'Bimba and Lola'. Ashley now switched her seating position to her legs dangling off the bed so that Regal could lace up the shoes for her. He knelt on the ground and balanced her foot on his knee as he retrieved the shoe from the ground.

Once done, he got up from and dusted himself off as Ashley hopped off the bed. Regal gave her a once over as she twirled around for him. The dress was a bare-back with subtle white lace that rimmed the bottom of the dress and the ribbon on the back. It wasn't revealing, and made her look innocent. She was wearing white after all. He noticed how the dress fit her slender frame perfectly. It wasn't clingy or body-hugging. The dress was a little lose and flared out from the waist onwards. The dress ended at the knee.

Once done showing her clothes off to Regal, she rummaged through her accessory box and decided on wearing the beautiful 'Aztec' bangle and 'Aztec Medallion Locket from 'the House of Harlow' collection. The gold and black leather of the accessories clashed beautifully with her clothes.

As Ashley passed Regal who was holding the door open for her, she said," Please handle my changing of clothes and drying of my hair from now on. Ask Alice to do all the regular morning chores you handle while she's changing me. Just make sure it's not to strenuous on her, all right?"

He grinned, bowed at her feet, took her hand in his, kissed it and said," Of course, My Lady. As you wish."

Before she exited the room, she scooped up Raven in her arms and brought him downstairs with them. With that, they exited the room together, Regal closing the door behind them. As Ashley descended the stairs, she was greeted with a loud 'good morning' from Alice, Dee and Dum, and Lawrence.

Breakfast was already set up, and as she began to eat, she asked," So what's my schedule for today, Regal?"

"You are free today, except for tea with Ciel at 5p.m. Other that that, you are free to go wherever you wish to go, Mistress," answered Regal.

"I want to go to BSC. I miss that mall," she said.

All the servants began to smile like crazy. They knew that they'd be able to get out of the house if Ashley felt like going out. Ashley was kind to her servants, even though she NEVER called them her servants. To her, they were her friends. Her family. She would never refer to them as her servants, even though that was what they truly were. She loved taking them out with her, especially for lunch and shopping.

As if on queue, Alice, Dee and Dum started hooting and yelling with joy whereas Lawrence, who was 30 years old-the oldest among the four-smiled at the thought of them going out. He was mature for someone his age. Ashley rarely went out, with the exception of her 'assignments'. With school and homework five days a week, she took the weekends as her relaxation time. Going out was only on special occasions like birthdays or during the holidays when there was ample of time to spend.

Once finished with breakfast, Ashley turned her attention on Raven who stayed under the dining table next to her feet to avoid the sunlight that entered the room from the long windows. She kneeled down on the floor next to where Raven was stretched out under the table.

*Sigh* "Raven, come on out from under there," she said, trying to lure out the little wolf.

"Maybe, you shouldn't have brought him out. This is the brightest room in the whole house, besides your bedroom, Mistress," he said, chuckling.

"Shut up. I forgot that wolves are nocturnal, ok?" she said, pouting a little bit.

"Hahaha! Oh, Mistress…" he said as he knelt down behind her, hugged her around her waist and put his head in the crook of her neck.

She blushed at their awkward position and looked around to see if the others were still around. They weren't. She breathed a sigh of relief that they weren't seen by the others. What would they think? If they saw Regal and I like this…?

"Regal? Let me go! I need to get Raven out from under there!" she protested when he still hadn't let go of her.

"But, Mistress… You smell so good…" He said while nuzzling her neck, tempted to taste her skin like he usually did when he was teasing her.

"Regal, this is an order. Get off of me!" She said, exasperated.

"Of course, My Lady," he said nonchalantly.

She stretched her body to reach for Raven, and then pulled him into her lap. He instantly curled up into a little fur ball and fell asleep.

As quietly as possible, she carried Raven to his bed, avoiding sunlight in the house along the way with Regal following right behind her. When they reached the bedroom, Regal went in first to close the curtains. Once Ashley saw that the room was dark, she tucked Raven into his bed, grabbed her phone and bag, and quietly left the room as Regal closed the door silently behind him.

Downstairs-Entrance Hall, 11.30a.m.

"Mistress! I'm ready!" Alice said with a smile. She was wearing a simple pink tank top, a skirt with intricate pink floral designs, black ballerina flats and her usual black canvas sling bag. Her only accessory was an opal ring with a gold band. Everything that she was wearing was bought for her by Ashley.

The first thing Ashley looked at was the sling bag. She knew what was in that bag. Always. Because the contents always remained the same. The bag contained Alice's hand phone, wallet, two hand guns, several barrels of bullets and a dagger. Her main priority was to protect her Mistress. She would give up her own life to protect her. That's how loyal Alice was to Ashley. She owed so much to her. Ashley took her in when no one wanted her, fed her, clothed her, and gave purpose to her meaningless life.

Alice was a beautiful 30 year old, with deep red cascading curls that hang at waist length, serene features with gold eyes, sharp nose and a slight hint of freckles. A typical Victorian era beauty. Ashley and Regal stumbled upon her when they were in Italy on vacation 5 years ago. Their encounter was a strange one.

On the way back to the hotel they were staying at, they passed an alley. In the alley, they saw Alice, in a beautiful but tattered ball gown. She was lying on the ground, barely breathing, but not a scratch on her. The day they found her, was their last day in Italy. Therefore, it was convenient for them to take her back with them. Once she had woken up, she was fed, bathed and changed into new-and expensive-Italian clothes.

Alice couldn't remember anything about herself, only her name. Once the three of them returned to Malaysia, Ashley offered her a place to stay, but instead, Alice offered her services as a maid in return for a place to stay. Ashley tried to convince her that a maid was not necessary as she had Regal with her. After much convincing, Ashley gave up the discussion and allowed her to work as a maid for her.

However, that one faithful day, changed Alice's true position in the Flur-de-Lis household.

5 years ago

Ashley was out with Alice while Regal was taking care of the house. The time was around 7p.m when they headed out to buy some provisions for dinner. Even though Alice insisted that it was unnecessary for Ashley to go to the street market, Ashley tagged along anyway. Little did Ashley realize that there were a gang of bikers hanging around the area, but Alice noticed them.

She remembered what Regal told her before leaving the house: Please protect the mistress. At any cause. Don't hesitate to kill those who threaten her life unless she says not to kill them. I know what you are capable off.

Alice didn't quite understand what he said by that. What did her mean, 'I know what you are capable off' anyways? She felt the pocket in the black canvas bag Ashley bought for her when they were in Italy. Hidden in that pocket was a small handgun given to her by Regal. It was fully loaded.

What was he thinking? Giving me a gun? I don't even know how to use a gun, let alone touched a gun before! She had a frantic and worried look on her face. Ashley was currently buying some apples, obviously unaware of the danger lurking just around the corner.

But of course, Ashley knew that the bikers had intent to hurt them. She merely put up the act of an ignorant child. Regal and her had both knew that Alice was an excellent shooter, given any weapon, just from looking at her ever steady hands, even if Alice herself wasn't aware of her skill. They wanted to see how she would cope with this little obstacle. If Alice couldn't protect Ashley, Ashley would just have to protect her.

Once Ashley left the stall, the two headed back to the house. The time taken to walk to and fro was roughly 15 minutes on foot. Alice and Ashley both noticed that they were being followed, but neither of them said anything. There were a total 6 bikers, versus 2 females. How cowardly, Ashley thought to herself.

As she expected, the tallest of the group-the leader, she suspected- made a move to grab her from the back. His index finger was half an inch away from her back, when she heard a gun shot and a loud 'thud' behind her. She turned around to see Alice pointing the handgun that Regal gave to her where the leader's head was and the dead man with a hole in his skull. "Don't you dare touch my mistress with those filthy hands of yours!" she shouted at them.

Ashley smirked. 5 bullets left. 5 men to go. The two who stood behind the leader made a charge for Alice, but before they could even take a full step, Ashley heard the sound of two gun shots and the two men fell dead to the ground. Alice looked up to the remaining three men.

"Anyone left?" she asked menacingly.

The shortest of the three was the first to speak. "How dare you? You little bitch!" he screamed, full of rage. He pulled out a gun and aimed it at her. Ashley knew that Alice anticipated him taking out a gun. She was now leaning against the light post, watching the fight.

The moment he pulled the trigger, Alice swerved to the right. The bullet passed her, and in the blink of an eye, she aimed for his head and fired. Two bullets left. Two to go. The last two men made no move to attack, and from what Ashley could see in their eyes, they valued their lives more than taking revenge for their gang. Alice pointed the gun at the two retreating figures and was about to kill them when she felt a hand on hers. She turned her head to see her Mistress, smiling at her.

"That's enough, Alice. Let them go," Ashley said.

"But, Mistress-"

"It's ok, Alice. They won't hurt me," Ashley assured her.

Don't hesitate to kill those who threaten her life unless she says not to kill them. She remembered what Regal told her.

Alice slowly lowered the gun and turned her attention to her Mistress.

"Mistress, are you hurt?" she asked.

"Nope! I'm ok. Are you?"

"I'm fine, Mistress."

"That's good. Let's head back and have a nice meal," Ashley said with a smile.

Alice picked up the purchases and walked behind Ashley. When they reached the front porch, Ashley turned back and asked her," Alice, will you defend this home and it's Mistress from all enemies?"

Alice replied," Yes, Mistress."

"Then that will be your duty in this household, on top of your maid duties. Is that all right?"

"If my Mistress wishes, then I will do so," Alice replied.

Present day, Entrance Hall-11.45a.m.

Lawrence, Dee and Dum walked out of their rooms, dressed and ready. Lawrence was wearing a simple blue shirt with black denim jeans and a pair of dark brown leather dress shoes. Dee and Dum who were both 21 years old wore similar dark green t-shirts with fashionably torn dark blue jeans and casual Nike shoes.

Even though Ashley couldn't see, she knew that all her servants were carrying weapons with them. Lawrence always brought along a violin case which contained the most powerful rifle that money could buy, while Dee and Dum hid two knives each under their slightly baggy jeans. The four of them left first in the black Lexus while Ashley waited for Regal.

The moment Ashley turned her head to look at him descending the stairs, her heart quite literally stopped. His hair was at its usually long length. He was wearing a simple plain fitting white long sleeve t-shirt with a pair of loose black slacks and his usual black shoes. Even though he was so under-dressed, he never looked so good to her.

The white long sleeved t-shirt emphasized his toned chest and abs even more. The simple ensemble made him look more relaxed than he usually was, which, in Ashley's mind, made him look oh-so attractive. She didn't realize that she was staring at him until…

"Ahem!"

Ashley blushed when she realized that Regal noticed her staring at him.

"Mistress, see something you like?" He asked. He bent his body forward so that he was the same height as her and they were face to face. He had his infamous smirk on his face, his eyes locked onto hers.

She immediately looked away, face still burning. "Just go get the car, Regal. That's an order."

"Of course, Mistress. Would you like to take the Ferrari today?"

"Yep. I miss using that car," Ashley said. The Ferrari was her favourite. She absolutely loved the all leather interior and the exclusivity of the two-seater car.

"Please wait here while I go and get the car, Mistress," he said.

Ashley locked up the front door and waited at the front porch for the car. The black Ferrari pulled up at the front. She daintily climbed into the car and buckled up.

"Ready, Mistress?"

"All set."

Today was gonna be a blast.

Thanks for the read and sorry for the long update! Muahahahaha….. Been thinking of ideas… In the next chapter:-

Enter Ciel and Sebastian! *winks*