Obsession - Chapter 4: Abduction of the Earl
Note: I have made up the address for the Trancy manor.
Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji.
The sultry sun beats down against the back of Patricia as she scramble into London. The industrious city is attentively engaged in numerous activities, with people jostling their way through packed streets to come to a certain point in the course of travel. Large public buildings, made from portland stone, stand as the outer boundary for the walkways, constituted by paving stones. Factories, massive and imposing, are stationed nearby, with clouds of grey smoke puffing out from their monumental chimneys.
Patricia props on a bench to rest her sore legs. She dislikes crowds. With them teeming here and there like a swarm of bees, it acts as a component to her confusion while Patricia has attempted to endeavor herself through the winding streets in order to locate the Trancy manor. Her life in an idyllic village far prevails to that of her new life in a manor, no less. For that matter, being surrounded by such overwhelming tall structures, a multitude of people—most with aloof dispositions and donned in fancy, uncomfortable clothing—and mass-produced foods is absolutely bewildering for the woman indigenous to a rural lifestyle.
It is quite nostalgic to picture herself back in her old village. She would be tending fresh crops that would supply a rich and pure taste, unlike the manufactured goods here that taste as if they were rinsed in foot water beforehand. Back at the village, early in the morning, she would have been fishing by a lake with Alice by her side, and the birds would chirp, an occasional squirrel would scuttle by, and other calls from nature would sound. They mollify her nerves, and she would be breathing in unalloyed air.
Opening her eyes to the blazing sunlight, Patricia grimaces and tries to respire as shallowly as possible to not absorb in too much of the repugnant stench all around her. The air stinks of pollution and garbage among the streets, and although she is staring at the same sky that she would be staring at back at home, the sky here is morbid and tainted with smoke. How the beauty and magnificence of nature itself have crumbled here in this accursed city. People have long forgotten how to get down on their knees on dirt and farm, as shown when she witnesses a woman gasp at a barely perceivable blemish on her dress.
Sighing to herself, Patricia gathers to an upright position after determining that she has recuperated enough strength to traverse again. A survey of the extensive area leads to a conclusion that she should petition for help among the citizens here.
She scurries along, and views a couple of men that appear to be from the Indian descent. The shorter one is dressed in a royal ensemble, while the other one sports on a sherwani, in inclusion to a turban wrapped around his head. Seeing how they stand out the most out of the English men, Patricia decides to approach them.
"'Scuse me," Patricia says in her typical rough and raspy voice, which is hardened by years of manual labor. When she reach out to nudge on the shoulder of the royal guy, the taller counterpart steps up to grab her wrist, obviously protective of the former.
Retrieving her captured wrist disdainfully, she snaps, "Jeez, I was just gonna ask sumthin'. No need to be all touchy-grabby now."
"It's ok, Agni," the royal guy tells the taller man. Upon hearing his positive declaration that everything is fine, Agni retreats from the woman. The royal guy then beams at Patricia. "Hi, old lady! I'm Soma, the prince of Bengal. How may we come to your aid?"
Prince, eh? "I just need a lil' help with directions," Patricia informs, forbearing from feeling offended by his innocent jab at her age.
"Sure! Agni has memorized everywhere we have gone—and we have gone to a lot of places, so we will be happy to help," Soma affirms amicably, and puts a hand on his chest. "I, myself, have stayed in London for quite a while, so I know a thing or two."
"That's mighty fine," the woman replies, pleased that she has asked them after all. "Now can you help me with findin', er..." She pushes an errant fringe from her face as she taps into her memory for the address Alice has given. "Ah! 10081 Oxford Street."
"10081 Oxford Street..." Soma echos softly as if engrossed in a thought. He exchanges a glance with Agni, and there is a brief frown that manifests before he replaces the look of concern with a cheery smile. "Old lady, are you sure that is where you want to go? Because I think you might have mistaken the street with a different destination in mind." He leans in close with solemnity as if he is about to divulge a secret, and whispers, "I've heard that when people get older, their minds get a bit more senile, so they tend to forget or mix up things. But do not worry, for you have the prince of India to help you out!"
"First of all, boy, I ain't that old. I'm just fifty-three." She holds up two indurated fingers. "Second of all, I'm dang sure that that's where I wanna go. So can ya help me or not?"
Soma sighs, "I suppose..."
"Whoa... that's huge," Patricia breathes, getting a crick in her neck for staring at such a high and gargantuan building. Soma and Agni have successfully delivered her to the manor, as requested.
The manor is consisted of numerous stories, and wide windows have plastered on its walls, which reflect the sunlight brilliantly. The front yard is enormous, with freshly cut grass and blooming flowers dotting along the large expense of land. Birds soar in the sunny sky, and colorful butterflies flutter along the flora. The pavement to walk on winds along the yard intricately and encircles a prodigious fountain before leading to the majestic door.
This manor is incredibly similar to the Phantomhive manor in terms of size and refinement. Patricia trots along the sidewalk to approach the palatial building, and finds herself accompanied by the Indian duo.
"You two don't have to follow me. Thanks for bringin' me 'ere," she states her gratitude.
Soma shakes his head. "We will not follow you inside, but we will stay outside in case you need to call for help."
"How kind," Patricia murmurs with a smirk. "Although it won't be this lady that will be needin' help. Do you two happen to know the guy that lives in 'ere?"
Soma and Agni once again exchange an anxious glance before the former speaks up, "Well, we have seen in him in a couple of occasions, but we don't really know him, per-se. However, he is an enemy of Ciel, so that makes him my enemy as well!"
"You know Ciel?"
"Yes, he is my best friend!" Soma claims, his bronze eyes shimmering with pride. "So you know Ciel as well, I presume?"
"Eh, more or less." She thoughtfully pauses for a bit, her hand cupped under her chin. "So, if you guys know a lil' 'bout this Alois Trancy boy, do you think that he will listen to persuasion?"
"I sincerely do not think so," Agni answers in a deep and courteous voice.
"All right, then." Patricia begins to scrutinize the yard, picking up various stones and branches to inspect them, and then she tosses them aside when dissatisfied.
Intrigued by her queer actions, Soma interrogates, "What're you doing, old lady?"
"Lookin' for something strong, preferably sharp," she mutters while prodding the tip of a branch against her forefinger to test its piercing edge.
Of course, at this, Soma is slightly worried about her sanity, and says, "May I ask what is your business with Alois Trancy?"
Having established the branch in her possession as incompetent, she discards it and moves on to critically examine another branch. "Well, it's a long story. But long story short, this is how it goes. I have a lil', ah, daughter, you see, who is in love with Alois."
Soma and Agni are palpably astounded by this, their eyebrows raising in unison, and Patricia continues, "So anyhoo, she's a bit of a rebel, I guess, and she ran away to this manor here in order to reunite with 'im. However, that evil boy just locked her out the the cold and went to sleep, leaving her to wait outside for hours and hours!" The time that Alice has had to wait outside is a bit exaggerated, in all honesty, but Patricia is working to pull a tearjerker here. It is necessary to up this a few notches so that sympathy will be guaranteed. "Then afterward, she got seriously ill—to the point where she can die—but yet, she still wants to be with this Alois boy. So, of course, I must grant her possibly last wish."
"H-how horrible!" Soma whispers, appalled.
"This is unforgivably inhumane!" Agni speaks up, anger engraved onto his face, giving him a formidable flair. It is as if the aura emanating around him is obscured by wrath, and the Indian butler clenches his right hand fist. The hand, and respective forearm, is wrapped in bandages, so Patricia has been deluded to the idea that he has sprained it or so, but apparently it is fine—in fact, it appears powerful. "With my Right Hand of God, I declare that I will institute justice." He turns to Soma and bows lowly. "Please grant me permission to help this woman."
"Of course!" Soma assures.
"All right!" Patricia says with a wide grin. A little stretch of the truth now and then can't hurt. She scoffs at the impractical branches on the ground, and walks up to Agni for a closer inspection. Reaching out, she clasps onto his arm and feels his muscles, which she has to admit are quite impressive. "You're in shape. It will be no prob for you to carry a boy, right?"
"No problem at all."
"Now wait a minute!" the prince yells. "What do you mean 'carry a boy'? What are you up to, old lady?"
"Just watch and learn," Patricia tells him, and the grin on her lips broadens when he gawks at her questionably. "Ok, I'll need you two to do exactly as I say, all right?" She whispers to both of them her plan.
Agni nods to confirm that that he has received and understood her message. However, Soma, on the other hand, has his mouth agape, his expression stricken by utter shock. "This is crazy!" he hisses. "This is absolutely insane!"
She shrugs. "Then just stand aside, and don't interfere. Now this is the part where you watch and learn from this ol' lady, boy." She winks, but he does not feel comforted in the slightest. Patricia ignores his disapproval, stepping up to the manor's door, and knocks.
Humiliation is a bitch. Although abstract, it is likened to a fire, slowly licking up your insides with its malicious flames. Your soul undergoes a rapid combustion. Humiliation is an inexorable weight upon your shoulders that subjugates your head to bow toward the ground. It impels you to search for an inconspicuous corner and to place yourself there in grief.
That is what Alois Trancy is feeling at the moment.
He is indebted to that spiteful Earl of Phantomhive. The vindictive spirit of that jackass will no doubt incite him to take advantage of how vulnerable Alois is. Oh, the agony boiling and writhing within him. He is obliged to pay back his enemy, which, to Alois, is the same as enslaving himself.
How he hates to be controlled. How he feels every fiber of his body resist strongly to the concept that Phantomhive will soon enthrall him by pressing for the debt that he is liable to pay, although he cannot afford it so.
He is weak. Alois has worked so hard to climb to the top. He cannot allow for another person to rub dirt upon his face. No, that will not do.
It just so happens that at the moment that he is sitting alone on a couch to fume, Hannah Anafeloz, his useless maid passes by. When his eyes land on her, the belligerence within him peaks.
"Hannah!" he barks, and she stiffens entirely. With the crook of his finger, he beckons for her to come. At that, fear churns in the pit of her stomach, and her throat becomes arid. However, defying him would not end well, and so, Hannah steps up to her merciless master, who has a cruel smirk plastered on his lips.
"You're so tall, Hannah. My neck hurts just looking at you. Get down!" His foot drives forward, kicking her severely on the kneecap, and her stance disintegrates, causing her to collapse to her knees.
His fingers curl around her chin, the nails thrusting into the initial layer of her skin. "Hannah, oh, Hannah," Alois drones. "You must really like being so tall, right? I bet you just love looking down on me."
She whimpers out a "no," with her gaze averted to the ground. "What was that?" he demands impatiently.
Hannah looks at him and speaks louder, "N-no."
At the sight of her one indigo eye that is left intact, Alois feels even more degraded. "Didn't I teach you a lesson last time?" He kicks her square in the chest, and she falls to the ground. "Do not look at your master in the eye! Bitch, you don't deserve to look at me!"
Hannah does not reply. Incensed, Alois stands up and begins to kick her repeatedly in the stomach, and with each attack, he increases the strength. "You must think you can look down on me, don't you, Hannah. You must think that you're so much better, and I'm just dirt to be stepped on by you!"
He continues to vent out his anger on her physically, but Hannah merely lies there and allows for the blows to hit. "You whore! You're the one that does not deserve to even be near me! You are not equal to me, understand?"
He strikes her several more times before abruptly stopping. A sardonic smirk cracks on his lips, and Alois pulls her roughly by the hair to get her into the sitting position. "Why are you so quiet, Hannah?"
No reply. She does not return his gaze.
Cupping her chin once again, he squeezes it tautly. "This is boring if you don't scream. Why don't you show any expression at least?"
Hannah blinks.
Alois scowls with resentment. "Too good for me to scream, is that it? You cocky wench. I allow you to scream, Hannah."
She does not. Her lips are pressed together tightly until they turn white.
His patience wanes into nonexistence. With his forefinger and middle, he pries against the breach between her upper and lower lip. "Open your mouth and scream!" Although there are signs of resistance, she finally permits her mouth to open a bit. His fingers enter into the foreign territory and rest on her warm tongue. With his other hand, he tugs on her hair until her head is forced to recline back.
Wouldn't it be diverting if she is choked to death?
His fingers slide down deeper and deeper, and at this point, she begins to cough. "Oh, shut it, whore. You've gotten things stuffed down your throat before." With them extending far down her mouth, Hannah's eyes begin to water, and she gags.
Hearing the helplessness from Hannah brings a wide smile upon his face. "Isn't this nice, Hannah? Claude has to go off to run an errand for me, so it's just you and me. No one can help you—not that Claude would have anyway. So isn't it just sad for you?" He decides to omit the triplets as they are fairly useless.
She is gagging and choking at this point. Her raspy breaths for air are so pitiful, he has to laugh. "I've put up with you for a while now, but you irritate me. And now I'm going to—"
Knock.
Frowning at the sudden disruption, Alois is about to call for Claude. But soon he recalls that he is not there, which means the exercise that could have been avoided must take place.
Displeased, Alois withdraws his hand, and grimaces, wiping it against Hannah's shirt. "Here are your disgusting germs back." Subsequently, he shoves her to the ground. "Stay there and roll over like a dog."
Cackling at her pathetic state, Alois joyfully proceeds to the door to open it, and finds himself staring at a gigantic old woman who is not of acquaintance. After ogling at her unkempt dirty blonde hair, green eyes, and stalwart figure, he fails to find something of interest. Without concealing the crudeness in his tone, he asks, "Who the hell are you?"
"'Scuse me, young 'un," the woman starts, "but I'm lookin' for someone named Alois Trancy."
He smiles, but with little humor. "You're looking at him."
"Ah..." She studies him for a moment with careful consideration, which he is not all too pleased with.
"Now, honey, are you done gawking at me, because I have some business to attend to." The 'business' he speaks of is, of course, the revolting Hannah sprawled ungracefully on his living room floor.
"This will be done in a jiffy," she promises. "But first, can we talk outside? This is sumthin' important that concerns ya, too."
Alois raises an eyebrow, and glances behind him to check on his maid, who remains steadfast on the ground. Satisfied, he fabricates a nauseatingly sentimental smile at the woman, "Sure, sweet old lady. Anything for you." He steps out from the manor and closes the door behind him.
Once he finishes that, Alois directs a glare at the lady. "What the hell do you want?"
Although visibly taken back by his brusque change of mood, the old woman hastily changes her expression to that of politeness. "Look, young 'un, I want to talk 'bout a certain someone whom I'm sure ya know."
The bitterness of his glare does not mitigate. "Just spit it out; I don't have time for games."
The woman's eyebrow twitches subtly in annoyance, before she goes on after a slight suspension, "It's about my pumpkin, Alice."
Alois blinks a few times at this familiar name, and then it dawns to him, "Oh, Ciel's little sister!" He emits a laugh. "Why do you call her 'pumpkin'?"
"Long story. Let's just say she really likes pumpkin pie," the woman replies, impetuously waving away the topic. "I would think you would remember her after cruelly kickin' her out on her ass yesterday night."
The young earl tilts his head to the side in perplexity, his eyebrows knitted together in the center. "Yesterday night? I haven't seen her for a long time."
There is a bit of a hesitation before the woman coughs and says in a tone louder than necessary, "Lies! You know what you did!"
"Not really. Would you mind telling me what exactly did I do?" Alois skeptically says, folding his arms, as he peers into her face to search for any slip-ups which would indicate that she is prevaricating this story.
"I would not mind to tell of yer... yer sins!" she declares, rather impertinently confident. "Last night, she went to search for ya at yer house. However, you wouldn't let her in, and she had to stayed outside, waiting for ya, for hours an' hours!"
Naturally, Alois is surprised by this. "She came here?"
"Don't act innocent with me, boy! Yes, she did! And you know what else? Now she's sick after waitin' in the cold an' dark just fer ya!"
He sighs with a shrug, "Aw, the poor cutie is sick? Send her my regards." He has one hand on his doorknob at this point. "It's unfortunate to hear that she came here and waited, but I really didn't know. I think I was asleep, and who knows what the hell Claude does. So, sorry that she's ill. I hope she gets better soon." There is no note of a genuine apology in his tone. "Now if that's all, you just wasted two minutes of my life. Goodbye—"
"Coward!"
Pugnacious after being insulted, Alois turns fully to face her. "Excuse me?"
The woman looks grim and surly, as though she is two breaths away from punching him across the face. "You won't even own up to yer mistakes. You are nuthin' but a coward, ya hear me? Alice is dyin'!"
Alois' eyes widen at the news, and his heartbeat stops altogether. "Dying? What?" The woman pauses when she notices how astonished he is, but then he finishes, "She's dying from a little cold? Are you kidding me?" He barks out a derisive cackle and shakes his head in amusement.
Needless to say, the woman sends forth an intense scowl of pure hatred, but he merely brushes it off. "Look, old hag, don't go around in 'yer' stupid country voice and try to pick fights with me, understand?" He treacherously approaches her while sneering. "I admit, Alice is adorable, but if she somehow dies, just look on the bright side: Ciel will be so crushed, and that's when I stomp on his inflated ego."
"You... bastard."
He laughs scornfully. "Why do you care so much about Alice anyway?"
"'Cuz I'm 'er mum."
At the sound of those words, Agni leaps out from a bush and smacks Alois on the head with his right fist. Before he can even emit a cry, the earl blacks out instantaneously and crumples to the ground.
"How the hell did Alice fall in love with this ass?" Patricia grumbles, throwing her hands up at the sky to show her complete chagrin. When she has initially seen Alois, she acknowledged that he is quite handsome, and thought that Alice has done substantially well in her choosing. But then that guy begins to open his mouth to talk, and that's when all of the good impression fades away.
As much as she longs to strangle him, she knows that that will only make Alice depressed. And thus, she will just have to cope by reveling in the satisfaction that Agni has hit him hardon the head.
"All right," Patricia approves to Agni, who has hitched the unconscious Alois over his shoulder with ease. "Let's get going!"
The prince, who has hidden behind a bush, then reveals himself, swaying his head side to side in censure. "This is absolutely crazy—did I say this before? Do you realize what we are committing? A crime! We are kidnapping the Earl of Trancy, and in broad daylight, too! I mean if we get thrown in jail, I'll be fine because I'm a prince—and I'll also pay the coverage for my butler. But, old lady, I don't see how you can fend this off."
"Psh posh," she dismisses the matter with such indifference that Soma fears for her well-being, which will surely be harmed if she persists in this manner. "Now run, before one of his servants sees us."
At this, the three of them dash across the yard and into the busy streets of the city once again.
"Ab... so... lutely... insane!" Soma pants as he runs alongside them.
"Who cares as long as we bring this jackass to Alice?" Patricia counters, and they engage in a sort of a duel to see who can run faster. Despite how advanced in years the woman may seem, Soma must concede that she possesses portentous endurance, and he finds himself falling behind until Agni aids him.
Onlookers gaze at them with wonder, obviously suspicious of why there are three people bustling along so quickly while carrying someone who is clearly knocked out.
However, not all of them simply stared.
"Halt immediately, you three!" a harsh voice snaps. They skid to an unstable stop, and revolve around to see a bespectacled man with dark grey hair, beady eyes, a mustache, and thick sideburns. He is presented very professionally as he is dressed in a sophisticated suit.
Soma recognizes him, "Arthur Randall, the Scotland Yard commissioner!" He glances at his companions frantically, and hisses under his breath, "See? I told you this was a bad idea!"
"I must ask you for your business of stirring turmoil!" Randall yells in a fashion that is not in every respect polite. "Who is that you're carrying? And, do not try to resist. I am well-trained as a police to fight with suspicious criminals like you three!"
"Look 'ere, boy—erm, man," Patricia begins, with blatant disregard toward his distinguished occupation, "this is truly none ya business—"
"I'll make it my business," he retorts sternly, not batting an eyelash.
Agni lowers the body from his shoulder, and Patricia glances at him sharply. "What are ya doin', boy?"
"Here," he mutters, handing Alois over to Patricia. He then addresses to Soma, "I apologize, Master, but I have something to deal with right now, so I cannot accompany you. Lady, I ask of you kindly to go with my master. You both should depart from here. You must bring Alois Trancy to your daughter."
Patricia lugs the body of Alois over her shoulder as best as she can, straining her aged body. Fortunately, she is used to the labor, and manages to hold on. Without questioning his intentions in the slightest, she smoothly nods. "All right, that's mighty fine, boy."
"But, Agni!" Soma protests, and Patricia silences him with a glower.
"We're. Goin'."
"Hold on, is that Alois Trancy?" Randall acknowledges with astonishment, having observed as the boy is transferred from one person to another. However, the moment he has recognized the victim, Patricia and Soma make haste to dash away. "Get back here!"
He is about to chase after them, but Agni steps into place before him. "The one you will be dealing with is me."
"You," the commissioner seethes. "I don't have time to deal with children!"
Rather recklessly, Randall lunges forward with a punch, but Agni breezily evades it in a sidestep. Slightly embarrassed by how he has illustrated a fool of himself by punching at the air, he quickly executes a counterattack, whirling around to hit him.
Agni again parries this, causing Randall to stumble forward, his fist connecting with the air once more. "Just dodging, eh?" Randall disdainfully spits.
However, the moment he turns around, Agni has already assumed into a battle-ready stance; arms extended forward, and legs wide apart. He enacts a thrusting blow with his right fist, targeting the man's stomach.
The impact of the hit is tremendous, and instantly, his breath dissipates. Randall is thrown backward by the force and collides into a wall post. The speculators who are near him shriek and move aside.
Spluttering, Randall recovers and stands, wiping the saliva from his chin. He has evidently lost some of the smug look on his face, but he persists, charging forward. "Arrrgh!"
Agni blocks the fist with his arm and pushes it aside, only to bring up his other arm to defend against another quick punch from Randall. At this deadlock, the police commissioner drives out his leg in a kick.
However, the Indian butler has anticipated this, and leaps. From his position in the air, he places the palms of his hands on Randall's head as support while he flips up and over until he lands behind the man. Then, he pushes his elbows in the reverse direction to poke at Randall's spine, making the latter to stagger a few steps.
Agni spins around at the opportunity and swiftly jabs his fingers at the vital points along the back of Randall's neck. The receiver of the blows winces, and attempts to move, but it sends a sharp and piercing pain from his neck to the rest of his body.
"You are paralyzed," Agni explains, and he bows courteously. "I must be off now." With that announced, he disappears into the awe-inspired crowd, who, judging by their impressed expressions, yearn to acclaim the butler of his skill, but are too frightened of getting tossed in jail as a result of 'siding' with the criminal.
Gritting his teeth at the humiliation of losing a battle to a kid, no less, Randall vows to have the three of them arrested.
Fred Aberline, his rather useless subordinate, finally shows up and runs to his superior. "Lord Randall! What has happened while I was absent?"
Hence the uselessness.
Agni soon catches up with the pair, and he takes over the burden of carrying Alois.
"I like ya, boy! You're quite useful!" Patricia compliments, but does not say the same to Soma.
At long last, they reach the Phantomhive manor. Soma clambers up the doorsteps as quickly as possible and bursts in, in spite of the deficiency of an invitation. "Ciel! I was against this, but they abducted—"
"Oh, seeking for Young Master?" Finnian perks up, trimming the bushes near the front door with a pair of large scissors. "Sorry, but he and Sebastian went out to get a doctor for Alice."
"Good," Patricia mutters with satisfaction. "Now I can do what I want without no disruptions."
Soma gulps. He is beginning to regret getting involved in this.
The contact of cold water splashed on his face alerts him to a wake. Alois blinks slowly and groans at the excruciating throb on the side of his head. He does not recall what exactly has happened. The sole memory that he can gather is that he was talking to some strange old lady.
"Finally awake, boy?"
At the sound of the raucous voice, he peers up sharply to see the old lady! They are in a room of some sort—a regular guest room, by the looks of it. But, it is furnished quite extravagantly, and so he concludes that he is in a building owned by a noble.
When Alois fails to extract the desired movements from his limbs (which was to pin her for interrogation), it comes to his realization that there are taut ropes bound to his wrists and ankles, and he is tied to a chair.
His damp bangs send droplets of water to drip down his face, and irritation is incurred. "This is stupid. You know this is kidnapping, right?"
"That, I know," the woman says calmly and adds with an exasperating smile that he wishes he is able to spit at, "but, I don't care."
He laughs, gaining a bit of respect for the crazy old bat. "This is kinda entertaining, to be honest." Indubitably, Claude will rescue him anyway, so there is no need to panic or to access this seriously at all.
"So yer kidnapped, an' ya find this funny," the woman states to express how preposterous that sounds.
Shrugging, he says, "You're harmless, woman; I can tell that much by your eyes. Although you're quite daring, you will never lift a finger to injure or to kill me."
The woman snickers, "That's because I need you alive."
Alois frowns. "What is it that you're planning? A ransom?"
"No, no, no," she denies casually, cracking her knuckles. "I just need ya to do one lil' thing. And that is to keep Alice company."
Alois cannot abstain the look of shock and wonder written on his face. Incredulous, one of his eyebrows is arced, and he blurts out a rather prosaic response, "What?"
"Yer a lil' deaf at a young age, boy. It's simple. Just talk an' hang out with Alice, an' whatever other stuff that will make her happy."
Stupefied, he finds himself temporarily deprived of the ability to speak, before he remarks, "So... you led me outside my house, knock me out, carry me all the way here, risk the chance of getting thrown to prison for abducting me... just so I can talk to your daughter?"
She shrugs as if it sounds reasonable. "Pretty much."
"Hm..." Alois ponders for a brief moment, and then recollects something, "Hey, if you're Alice's mum, and she's Ciel's sister, does that make you Ciel's mum as well?"
"Nope," she answers tersely without including an explanation at all.
He frowns. "Then that makes no sense."
"Makes 'nuff sense to me." Ending the conversation there with him confused, the woman drags the boy out into the hallway and stops before a door. "This is Alice's room."
"I figured," he mutters, and his face is empty from expression, which is slightly disturbing.
"Hey, boy," Patricia warns, "don't try any funny business. I'm going to let you go so that you can go inside."
"All right."
"By the way," she begins, "you have to be in her company for an hour at least."
Alois looks up at her. "Why? She's sick. What am I supposed to do?"
"Just be you, the guy that's apparently so attractive to 'er." She then squeezes his arm, and although at a first glance, it may seem as though it is for the sake of consolation, but the compression on his arm is tight and menacing, causing Alois to wince. "If I come back in an hour, an' she's not well an' healthy..."
Her hand slides across her throat in a slick motion.
Alois elongates his sigh in an pretentiously histrionic manner, and a mocking smile forms. "I get it now. Poor old lady; your brain has rotted to the point where you're delusional. I amnot a doctor, honey."
She smacks him in the back of his head, and he whines at this. "Stupid boy, I already know that. But, again, I do not care. You go and make magic work."
"Lady, I'm not a magician either, sorry."
Her palm claps against his skull again, and she hurries to untie him. When he leaps freely out of his seat, Patricia spares him no chance to escape, and shoves open the door, then she grasps onto his shoulders.
Grinning happily, she proposes, "Have fun now!" Patricia raises a leg and kicks him right on his bottom, and he lands in the room. Before he can react, she closes and locks the door, smirking triumphantly.
Imagining a crowd cheering inside her mind, she slaps her hands together as if wiping off dirt. "Now that is the power of a mum."
