Black Butler:

"The Family: Michaelis"

(Sequel to "The Maid's Child".)

By Axel Ingleson

-Chapter 04-

"Must you leave so early?" Desdenova asked Chase as he stood over the little stove in the home they shared. "I have breakfast almost ready."

"I know, my love. And I'm sorry. But my ship leaves on the hour, and that leaves me only fifteen minutes to get to the docks." Chase gave Desdenova a swift kiss, then headed for the door.

"But surely as a half-demon you're fast enough to run the distance in ten!"

"If I wished to be rude and knock over every person on the sidewalks, I probably could," Chase agreed. "But I'm afraid I've inherited the butler aesthetic from my father."

Desdenova smiled, sadly, at this, and gave Chase a kiss in return. "Don't forget my flowers."

"I won't," Chase promised, as he closed the door behind him.

Desdenova wanted to follow him, to wave him off at the docks. But he knew that he could not. Very few people knew of Chase's marriage to him, and none of them worked for the company that Chase worked for. If they ever found out that Chase had a husband, there was a good chance that Chase could lose his job. That was something that the new parents-to-be simply could not afford.

During the ride to the docks, Chase thought about the man he loved, and how sad he had seemed at Chase's departure. He hated to leave Desdenova behind. He knew he had a job to do, and that they needed the money. Especially now that there was a baby on the way. He wondered how much the rosebushes would grow while he was away. That brought to mind the promise of flowers. He would keep that promise. And they would be flowers such as Desdenova had never seen. Not simple daisies, but something more exotic.

Chase boarded the ship, making sure his demonic traits were carefully hidden beneath his mariner's coat.

"You really ought to consider growing a beard," one of his shipmates told him as they began to bring the crates down to the holding deck. "You don't really look like a proper sailor without one."

"Beards are for captains," Chase told him setting the box he was carrying on the proper shelf. "Besides, my father would hate it. Butler, you know. Can't stand them. He thinks they look unseemly."

"You know, I could never figure out why you came to work for this company when your father must work for someone very wealthy if he's a butler."

"I promised myself that I would never burden my father," Chase explained.

"He must be very proud of you."

"I'd like to think so," Chase smiled. "I'd like to think my whole family is proud."

"How many in your family?"

"I have two sisters, Bast and Felinity."

"Interesting names," his shipmate remarked.

"You know," Chase replied, "it occurs to me that you've still not given me yours."

"That would make us even, I suppose," the other man pointed out. "But since you asked, the name's Efrain Atwater, a right good name for someone in our line of work."

"Indeed it is," Chase agreed. "Mine's Chase Michaelis."

"Pleased to meet you, Chase," Efrain reached out a hand, but was forced to withdraw it to grab onto the shelf and steady himself. "Feels like we're on our way."

"Well, it's back to the open sea again. We'd better get on with stocking the crates before the others come down and give us hell."

They finished organizing the crates. This took a few hours since the contents had to be listed in the ship's registers and the ship's constant swaying made it tricky for them to carry the heaven containers.

By the time they finished, they heard shouts from above them. Chase went to see what the commotion was.

"Storm out of nowhere," the helmsman told him.

"Surely there is land nearby," Chase pointed out.

"There is," the helmsman agreed. "But unfortunately the rocks near the shorelines make it too risky for use to attempt a beaching. She's a good ship. She'll hold. Just stay below until it passes over. No sense in catching cold. The captain's in a right foul mood this journey. He'd probably dock your pay if you caught something and then passed it on to the rest of us."

Chase gave a curt nod, and returned to the cargo hold.

"Bad storm," he told Efrain.

"You think we'll survive it?"

"Hard to say," Chase admitted. "But with a bit of luck, we just might."