AN: I am so happy that you guys like this story. I was motivated by your comments thank you Hullanta and BlindKitten97 for your positive reviews. This chapter gave me a couple issues, but I am mostly pleased with the way it came out. This will be a much longer chapter than the usual ones due to events that happen outside what is shown in the episode.
'Wake up. Ouro You must wake from this state,' a voice filtered through her mind bringing her clarity.
'A fight? Why was there a fight again?' she questioned as she listened to the sounds of the fight trying to remember where she was and what was going on. The sounds of a chainsaw revving brought her back in an instant. 'CIEL,' was her last thought before her eyes snapped open from their half-closed state in time to see Sebastian kick the falling Grell to prevent him from hitting Ciel.
"Forgive me I misjudged the distance," Sebastian stated with a slight bow to Ciel his eyes tracking over the now alert form of Ouro. "I am glad to see that we did not lose you," he continued with another of his smiles that creeped her out.
"Sure demon," she scoffed. "I see you used your coat to jam the chain of the scythe," she noted as she moved to a more defensible position should the reaper decide to try and attack Ciel for any reason. "Though I believe that you were ordered to eliminate Jack the Ripper. The killer still lives," she pointed to Grell. "Are you going to leave an order unfinished?"
"I suppose so. Though I cannot kill a reaper with bare fists, perhaps his scythe will do the trick," Sebastian mused as he stepped forward and pulled the fallen saw from the ground and ripped the remains of his tailcoat out of the chain.
"Can you even kill an incarnation of Death?" she questioned as rose an eyebrow and tilted her head to the left.
"This scythe was meant to cut anything, perhaps even a reaper," Sebastian mused as he stalked closer to the crumpled form of Grell. A certain slow predatory grace enhancing his steps as his heels clicked upon the cobblestones.
"Wha- What are you thinking," Grell stuttered in fear of the approaching man as he quickly sat up but did not rise to his feet.
"I do not enjoy being kicked-" Sebastian started as he raised a leg with a bent knee.
"Who does dumbass?" Ouro snorted under her breath.
"But I do enjoy doing the kicking," he continued as he brought his foot down upon Grell's face. "Master. Despite his behavior, he is still a divine being," he informed, ignoring Grell's pleading. "Are you prepared for the consequences of killing a divine being?"
"Do you want me to repeat my order?" Ciel demanded in his usual tone, though an undercurrent of annoyance had snuck in.
"Very well my lord," Sebastian confirmed as his eyes flashed pink for a moment before returning to their burgundy color. "You scream so nicely Grell, I feel I should reward you… By killing you with your favorite toy," Sebastian stated as his smile widened in perverse pleasure at the prospect of ending Grell's life.
"Don't you want to know his killed his parents?" Grell wailed as he looked at the boy in desperation.
"Bargaining for your life that's quite pathetic," Ouro chuckled as a set of extensible shears shot out from above and blocked the downwards swing of the chainsaw. "Who in the pits?" she questioned as she followed the shaft to a figure on the rooftop, the barest glint of glasses could be caught from the shadowy silhouette.
"I apologize for interrupting your conversation," he began as he retracted the shears, "I am William T. Spears, an administrator at the Grim Reaper Staffing Association. I came to take charge of that reaper there," he continued using his shears to adjust his glasses.
"Will?.. William!" Grell exclaimed a smile blooming on his beaten and bloody face at the prospect of a rescue. "You came to save me!" he crowed as William stepped off his perch of a roof and slammed feet first into Grell's face.
"He may seem stuffy but I kinda like this reaper already," Ouro whispered to Ciel knowing full well that Sebastian could hear her.
"Temp worker Grell Sutcliff, you have violated regulations: first off, you killed those not on the To-Die list, second, you used a death scythe for which a permission form was not filed, and finally you attempted to leak information about the cause of death and identity of the murderer," he rattled off the violations from the book in his hand before disappearing it and stomping on Grell's head for emphasis.
"Never leak classified info even to prolong your life. First rule of any agency or organization," Ouro called out as she glared at Grell.
"Quite right miss," William addressed her before bowing in front of Sebastian and retrieving a card from his coat with his shears. "I am sorry for the trouble this wretch has caused," he stated with difficulty, "here is my card."
"Sebastian I will take the card," Oruo demanded as she stood and made her way as quickly as her injuries would allow before plucking the card from Sebastian's hand and slightly leaning her weight against him to keep from falling.
"Really I never thought I'd see the day when I'd bow my head to a noxious beast like you… This is a disgrace to the profession of grim reaper," William ground out.
"Then you should learn to keep a tighter leash on your agents Will. I could give you a few tips on how to curb the rouges like this one," Ouro stated with a wicked smirk as she looked to the bloody lump that was Grell.
"I agree with Ouro," Sebastian stated. "I wouldn't want them to cause any more trouble for us noxious beasts. Humans are very susceptible to temptation," he continued leaning forward as his voice dropped lower than usual, "When they are placed in the hellish bowels of despair. If a spider's thread appears before them that can get them out, they will cling to it without fail," he continued before standing straight again. "Any human would," he asserted as his voice returned to normal.
"Aren't you demons the ones who would take advantage of that? To deceive and prey upon them?" William questioned as he once more readjusted his glasses using his shears.
"Always did wonder how you came to be in the master's service," Ouro murmured as she leaned more of her weight into his side despite her disgust with him.
"I won't deny it."
"Though you seem to be a tame dog with a collar-" William continued as he partially turned and again adjusted his glasses to get a better look at Ciel.
"How many times is he going to adjust his glasses with those shears?" Ouro hissed to Sebastian. "Wonder if he's ever cut himself doing that?" she giggled.
"At least that makes you a lesser evil than the unprincipled, rabid dogs," he sighed, seemingly oblivious to Ouro's commentary. "Come Grell. We are leaving," he ordered as he grabbed the other reaper by his long hair and began dragging him off. "Honestly… We are already shorthanded, and now we won't be able to finish during regular hours today either. The board is going to scold us again, and we'll have to work more overtime," he berated as Sebastian shifted his stance to grab the chainsaw again and throw it at William's back.
"Don't forget his toy," Sebastian commented with is snake like smile when William glared at him after catching it between two fingers.
"Thank you," he acknowledged emotionlessly as he allowed the chainsaw to drop landing squarely on Grell's stomach. "Now please excuse me," he stated as he walked into the shadows.
"Well that was interesting," Ouro commented as she pushed herself off Sebastian and made her way towards Ciel the same as Sebastian.
"I apologize. I allowed half of Jack the Ripper to escape."
"It doesn't matter anymore…" Ciel breathed, his young body looked downright miserable.
"You're chilled to the bone. Let's hurry back to the townhouse. I'll make you some hot milk," Sebastian offered as he crouched next to the boy.
"Good idea," Ciel sighed as he hung his head further in exhaustion before standing up. Upon standing he quickly lost his balance to which Sebastian caught him only to be slapped away.
"Low blood pressure. Master you can't stand up so fast after sitting for so long," Ouro observed as she caught the stunned expression upon Sebastian's face.
"I can stand on my own… I'm just a little tired, that's all," Ciel stated softly as he gazed up at the moon.
"Master being the hour it is and we have no carriage readily available, I would suggest that you and Sebastian head back to the townhouse. I will find the Undertaker and ensure he takes care of Madame Red and ensures the cause of her death is kept under wraps. I shall see you in the morning," Ouro stated as she watched the boy's eyes droop.
"Are you sure you can take care of the matter in your present condition?" Sebastian questioned.
"I am capable of handling an incident such as this by myself thank you very much. Besides I believe someone should stay with the master tonight. I have seen far too many who have gone through similar situations and they are never the same, even with previous trauma."
"If you say you can handle it I will trust you to do so," Sebastian stated with a small sigh at how stubborn she was.
"This is my element now get him home and warmed up, not too fast though wouldn't want to shock his poor system," she acknowledged with a nod towards Ciel.
"Very well. I shall see you soon Ouro," he murmured as he picked up Ciel and moved towards her.
"Just. Go." She growled as she crouched next to Madame Red's body and removed a plastic bag from her cleavage. Inside the bag was a pair of gloves, a spool of surgical thread with a curved needle wrapped in two 4X4 gauze dressings and snugly wrapped in a black, gauze, roller bandage.
When Sebastian finally left the alley, she set about removing the items from the bag. First, she pulled on the gloves before she took one of the dressings and shoved it into the knife would she had received from Madame Red, hissing in pain. She then set about wrapping the bandage around herself to keep the pressure on the wound to help with further blood loss. Reaching behind herself she then felt the edges of the wound on her back, determining that she could suture part of it closed. Taking the other dressing, she rolled it up and placed it between her teeth before threading the needle and cutting a length with her teeth. Reaching behind herself, she used her flexibility to start the sutures about a halfway from the top of her right shoulder blade. Muffling her cries with the dressing, she worked quickly and methodically towards the top of her shoulder.
By the time she finished the first part, she was panting with pain. Knowing that the most sensitive spot was done she took a couple steadying breaths before tying off the thread and slipping the needle through the excess. She then grabbed her spool of thread again and cut another much longer thread before starting the process at her right hip and working along the gash towards the center of her back.
After several painful minutes, she was able to tie off the new length of thread. While there was still a portion of the wound that was not closed, she knew it would be less painful and less trouble for the time being, partially because the bandage covered it.
"Ugh I am not dragging this body through the streets," she groaned as she stood up and made her way towards the dress she had shredded off. "Time for the Hansel and Gretel technique," she muttered as she shredded the dress into strips of fabric that she could tie around items to lead her back. Tucking them into the waistband of her leggings, she found a ladder that led to a roof and began to climb.
When she reached the top, she tied a strip of cloth to the top of the ladder before moving towards the East where she remembered the Undertaker's place to be. As she moved she tied strips of cloth to each rooftop.
~~Time Skip~~
After a while she finally reached the Undertaker's, tired and chilled to the bone she nearly collapsed at his door. Raising her hand, she knocked before slumping against the doorframe. "Please don't be grumpy when woke at night," she pleaded as she closed her eyes for a moment until the door opened.
"Who is it?" came the crazed voice of the strange Undertaker.
"Ouro maid to the Phantomhive manor. I have two bodies I need you to take care of and not reveal the details of how they were found or their death," she answered as she continued to lean against the doorframe. "Unfortunately, I did not travel through the streets to reach you," she continued as she held out her last strip of cloth.
"You don't look too far from being one of my customers yourself my dear," he remarked as he took in her pale shaking form. "Come inside for a cup of tea and proper dress," he offered as he offered her an arm.
"I can walk on my own, but thank you for the offer of a warm drink," she stated as she made her way inside and plopped onto a casket with more force than she meant to. "Sorry it's been a rather long night and my injuries are finally beginning to affect me," she apologized.
"What injuries might those be my dear?"
"A stab wound and a large gash on my back. I did my best to stop most of the bleeding, but I didn't have much to work with."
"Let me see my dear."
"No, I'm fine I'll take care of it after this matter is over."
"I really must insist. I do not like seeing that color on someone among the living," he insisted as he brought her a beaker full of tea and a plate of bone shaped biscuits, prompting her to laugh. "What is it my dear?"
"It's nothing. Just the blood loss talking," she waved off as a wave of dizziness hit her forcing her to stabilize herself with one hand.
"I really must insist. I would hate for you to become one of my customers, also I wouldn't want your young master to be upset with me."
"Fine. Since you won't let the matter drop," she sighed as she began removing her bandage followed by her corset and camisole. "It's not like you haven't seen a woman naked before, besides I can handle myself if you try anything funny," she commented before hissing as her wounds pulled painfully.
"My my how did you receive so many scars?" he questioned as he grabbed the supplies he would need and ushered her into his workshop.
"I wasn't always a maid. I used to have a completely different job before I was hired by the Phantomhive manor. It was a different time," she trailed off as she followed him.
"Well dearie after I fix you up we will go find these bodies of yours," he offered as he took in the damage done to her in the better lighting of his workshop. "What caused this gash to your back?" he questioned as he traced his long nails along the edge of the gash.
"I didn't get a good look at the weapon," she lied as she shivered at the contact.
"Did you do these sutures?" he questioned as he inspected the surprisingly neat stitches.
"Yeah. Trick picked up from my previous line of work," she responded as her eyes dropped closed.
~~Time Skip~~
When the Undertaker finally finished addressing her injuries, he decided that he would need to wake her up for her to lead him to the bodies.
"It's time to wake up dearie," he called as he gently shook her watching as her eyes fluttered open.
"Wha- Where? Where am I?" she demanded as she moved suddenly, drawing a knife and holding it to his throat.
"Calm down dearie. You are in my parlor, you had some injuries that I dealt with for you. You were here to show me two bodies to be taken care of, but first there is the matter of my payment."
"I am assuming you would like a joke to make you laugh?"
"How did you know? We've never met."
"My master was complaining about it after he saw you last time."
"Yes, I would like the gift of laughter," he giggled manically as he flopped upon the work table.
"Fine. I don't do jokes much but here goes. Fair warning, I have a morbid sense of humor. What's black, white, and red? A nun that fell down a 100 flight of stairs," she paused, "What's black, white, and laughing? The nun that pushed her," she stated in a deadpan with a small smirk gracing her face.
"My you weren't joking about a morbid sense of humor, try again perhaps the next one will do the trick," he giggled as he looked at her noticing a strange aura about her.
"My family is like a treasure…You need a map and shovel to find them."
The room suddenly filled with laughter as he fell to the floor in a hysterical fit. "That one was quite funny," he guffawed as he pounded a fist on the ground.
"You've had your joke now could we retrieve the bodies?" she asked wearily as she began to redress.
"Yes, we can my dear, though you said you did not arrive through the streets."
"I find it easier to navigate from the rooftops," she admitted.
"I shall retrieve my cart. You can take your rooftops and I will follow you," he offered as he made his way to the front of the shop to retrieve his cart.
Grabbing a small candle from his shop, Ouro moved to the street and waited for the Undertaker, shivering as the cold air hit her exposed skin. "Fuck I hope that I get some of my cold climate gear from that think soon," she cursed as she rubbed her arms and moved from foot to foot in order to stay warm.
"All set dearie," Undertaker called as he waved his lamp.
It took some time for them to navigate their way through the streets but they eventually came upon the bodies.
"Madame Red and another victim of Jack the Ripper," she explained as she hopped from the last rung of the ladder. "I assume you can handle it from here?" she questioned as she took Sebastian's jacket from the corpse of Madame Red. "Though I might just leave the victim's body for Scotland Yard to find in the morning."
"Indeed. You take care now I wouldn't want you to end up as another of my customers," Undertaker responded as he bade her goodnight.
~~Time Skip~~
The next couple days had passed without incident as everyone prepared for Madame Red's funeral. All Ouro could do was lay in bed and recover with minimal chores around the townhouse, as the other servants had also joined them to help with preparations for Madame Red's funeral. She avoided the other servants because she did not want to hear their grieving over a woman she had quickly lost respect for. Instead she encouraged them to silently support Ciel.
When it came time for the funeral she refused to attend instead returning to the manor.
Holy scrap on a cracker. This was kinda fun to write, though I have noticed that there is a trend appearing in the chapters, Ouro always gets hurt. Rest assured the days of that is going to change within the next couple chapters. Also I find Undertaker a hard character to write if anyone is willing to give tips and hints feel free to PM me. Anyways drop your thoughts in the comments or PM me.
