That Maid; Exceptional
Chapter Seven
She left him there in the darkness between the two tents. Raika's body felt as light as a feather as she hopped from tent to tent. She balanced on the poles as a game replaying the events of the past few minutes.
They separated from their moment of passion.
"If you got the information you needed, you need to retrieve your master." She informed him. His smile was hidden in the darkness, but she could see it in his glowing eyes.
"And I will. I plan for us to take our leave in the morning." He answers; his body was still so close to hers. She could feel his breath on her face.
"Then I should take my leave as well." She made a motion to leave, but he remained in his place preventing her escape for the moment.
"You didn't really respond to me about what I said a moment ago." He stated. She slipped out of his arms and moved away from him with a smile. The disappointment was evident on his face.
"I did respond. Actions are louder." She smiles and winks at the male demon before giving a small wave and dashing off. He places his hand on his head and ruffles his hair. A content sigh left his lips as he too disappeared into the darkness to complete his master's bidding.
The travel back to the mansion was quicker than the trip she made days ago. She snuck into the mansion under the cover of darkness and made her way through the halls, not making a sound. The demon entered her mistress's room to find her small form sleeping under the covers. As soon as Raika was assured that Sheno was asleep and fine, she left the room.
She spent most of the night performing most of Sebastian's duties which consisted of cleaning up after a day's worth of mess from the other servants. Demons didn't feel fatigue. She never did. The sun was starting to approach the horizon by the time she was finished. Raika began making breakfast as Tanaka woke the other servants. Since Sebastian is gone, he was in charge of the house.
The day continued as usual. Sheno's teacher arrived and entertained her for most of the day. She protested to it quite often. The day felt like a blur to the small pink haired demon. The next day was the same. Tanaka spoke often with Sebastian at the town house. They had made quite a lot of progress in finding the missing children. But they had a minor setback or two.
It had been two whole days since Raika had seen Sebastian. Loneliness was beginning to set in. She didn't like it at all. Most of all, she didn't like depending on him to make this feeling go away.
She was startled min-afternoon to find a guest knocking on the door.
"Hello! CIEL!" A small girl shouts happily passing Raika. The demon watched her look around for the boy. her bright blonde hair bouncing and her green eyes dancing in the light of day.
"Excuse me Miss. The Earl is not in right now. Is there something I may assist you with?" Raika bowed politely.
"Ah! You must be new! You're so pretty. You would be prettier if you would wear something cuter." She smiles happily at the demon. Raika could see something evil working behind the innocent girl's eyes.
"Yes I am new here. My name is Raika servant to the house of Nightingale. I am sorry; this is the uniform that was made for me." She bows to the small girl.
"I am Ciel's fiancée, Elizabeth Ethel Cordelia Middleford." The Elizabeth smiles as she continues to search the room for Ciel.
"It is a pleasure to meet you. But as I said Earl Phantomhive is out of town. I do not know when he will return." Raika explains. The other servants now came to the entrance to meet the guest. They all bowed and welcomed her.
"You may stay if you like, until Master Phantomhive returns." Tanaka explains knowing that Elizabeth would stay whether she was invited to or not. Tanaka sent May-Rin to make sure her room is prepared for her. By now, Sheno's teacher was gone. The young Nightingale quickly ran down the stairs to stop half way and observe Elizabeth.
"Waaaa! You are so cute!" The blond girl ran to the small raven haired Nightingale. Sheno didn't know how to react to such a bubbly personality.
"Thank you." She smiled politely.
"I am Elizabeth Middleford, Ciel's fiancée. Judging from your clothing, you are not a servant." Elizabeth observed the lilac colored dress on Sheno.
"I am Sheno Nightingale. Ciel has been letting me stay here since the death of my big brother." Sheno explained.
"Ah! Ciel is so kind! We should be friends." Elizabeth smiled and hugged the smaller girl.
She sure moves fast…
"Would you two care for some tea?" Raika asks and gestures to the patio. The two girls nod and leave to sit outside. It pleased Raika to see Sheno with someone near her age. There were definitely a few years of difference between the two of them. But it was closer to her age than anyone in her life other than Ciel. Tanaka left to call over to the townhouse to inform Ciel of his fiancée's arrival. Sheno and Elizabeth hit it off very well. Raika could tell that Sheno was uncomfortable in the beginning. They warmed up to each other very quickly.
I think this is her first female friend that isn't related to her… Raika smiled as they chatted.
Friends seem like a nuisance. But how would I really know. Demons don't really have friends. They had relatives, lovers, and contracts. Sometimes demons worked together, or worked for a stronger demon. But there was no real friendship.
Could Falkir be considered a friend? Raika shook her head defiantly.
No, friends don't eat other friends. At least, I don't think they do. Her thoughts were halted by the laughter of the small girls, both sharing stories about their older brothers. Darkness took over the sky. Dinner was served and the two girls chatted more before bed. Raika made sure the two girls were prepared for bed that evening.
"Miss Raika?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes Lady Elizabeth?" Raika answered as she tied Elizabeth's nightgown.
"Does Sheno miss her older brother? I don't mean to pry! She seemed sad when we spoke earlier." Elizabeth turns to the demon.
"Yes, very much. She does not talk about it, but I have known the mistress since she was born. His death was not long ago." Raika answered as she escorted Elizabeth to the bed and tucked her in.
"But please understand. My mistress has not had a friend like Lady Elizabeth. She is happy when you two are together." The demon smiles as she takes the lamp on the night table.
"I am glad." Elizabeth yawns.
"I am as well. Good night Lady Elizabeth." Raika bows.
"Good night Raika." She relaxes in her bed as the demon left the room. She passed by the room of her small mistress. Her heightened hearing told her that the small girl was sleeping already.
The demon made her way around the mansion cleaning and preparing things for the next day. She stopped by a window to witness a group of people outside the mansion hiding under the cover of darkness. Raika also knew that the gardener was outside.
This will not end well… The demon quickly moved to the top of the mansion to observe the blond boy confront the guests. Her dress was hindering her. Nina had mentioned a strap inside the dress. She then realized that the woman who made this uniform put a strap on the inside to lift the skirts. She quickly found it and lifted her dress a bit, fastening it to one of the buttons on the outside.
Well, that's useful and incredibly provocative. The demon sighed as she imagined the tailor who made her dress. She snapped from her daze as she heard Finny talking to an intruder.
"I'm sorry" He told them "I was told not to let any strangers go inside while the young master is away." A tall bald man with tattoos did not hesitate to attack the small boy. Raika was moved to kill the man where he stood but faltered. The small boy's eyes made her stop dead. He let the large man hit him, knocking him to the ground. Finny quickly retaliated, throwing the bald man against the wall.
Raika did not believe the boy had the capacity to harm others. The man quickly got up and shouted a warning to his companions. The demoness was surprised once again when Finny killed the man by slamming him through the wall. His legs hung limply out from the hole made by the bald mans body.
She turned to notice May-Rin perched on the western rooftop. Her hands held a rifle. She took quick aim toward one of the two other uninvited guests and shot her straight through the head.
May-Rin turned and noticed the demon. Raika gave a quick wave and left to secure the mansion against other intruders.
the demoness made her way down the hallway silently, not making a noise. She stopped when her sharp eyes caught sight of someone making their way toward Elizabeth's room. Her eyes took on a glow with pleasure. With little effort, she managed to approach the guest from behind. His hand was on the doorknob, ready to enter the room. She moves swiftly and put her hand over his mouth, pulling him backward away from the door. The intruder, who she could tell was male, made a surprised noise.
In a fluid motion, she stuck her hand through the man's back. Her hand protruded through his chest, blood covered the wall along with her hand and arm. He died not long after he realized what had happened. She dropped the disgusting body, causing it to make a sick thud on the hard floor.
The sound of footsteps gave the demon pause. The sound of familiar shoes traveling at a leisurely pace told her of her new guest. Tanaka came down the hall in a deathly calm manner. He stopped for a second when he noticed the body pouring blood onto the floor and Raika covered in the aforementioned man's blood. She observed a gun in his hand. He was ready to fight as well.
"I will check on Miss Elizabeth. Please check on Miss Sheno." He instructed sternly. Raika nodded and quickly dashed down the hall to enter Sheno's room without making a noise. She heard soft footsteps in the room. Her eyes picked out a man approaching Sheno's sleeping form. Before he could touch the small girl, Raika grabbed his arm. Her rage was ready to boil over at the idea that this man thought he could harm her mistress. The force of her grip broke his wrist. He held back a shout.
"You will not touch her." She whispered to him. He took a swing at her with his free hand. Raika ducked to avoid his swing and covered his mouth. She pulled him out of the room to the hall with ease. Her body pinned his against the wall next to the door of Sheno's room.
"You can't stop all of us." He whispered to her. She could feel his anger and pain. It pleased her.
"I believe I can. This is your punishment for not knowing your enemies." Raika smiles in the darkness as she snapped his neck on the spot. She let the body slide down to the floor. The Nightingale maid closed Sheno's door and turned to listen for more intruders. Tanaka was closing Elizabeth's door.
"The noise woke her. I will stay here and watch over the young ladies." He whispered to her. She nodded but her response was cut off by the sound of a crash in the main hall.
Raika bolted from her spot to stop in the main hall. Finny hefted another statue across the front of the house. The intruders could not get close enough to attack the small gardener.
Two intruders bolted to the side toward the basement. Finny and Bard ran ahead to cut them off. Raika stayed behind to block their exit. Sh could hear Bard waiting for them in the storage room. Loud gunshots could be heard along with the smell of blood.
The scream of a woman cause the small demon to enter the kitchen. Raika knocked the woman into the wall. She was the woman Sebastian seduced back at the circus.
"You made a poor choice in coming here." Raika smiled at the woman, struggling to get up. The wall behind the demon blew open. Bard quickly grabbed the pink haired demon before she could do anything else. She felt herself being tossed up to another set of arms. She recognized the scent of Finny.
"Do you know the story of the Minnesota wheat flour mill that blew 18 people into the afterlife?" He asked as he climbed through the wall making a gesture to Finny. The small gardener held the demon tighter and moved quickly away from the hole she was just tossed through.
"I'm sorry, but these are our jobs." He said as he lit a cigarette. "To protect the Phantomhive family's secrets and pride." He tossed the match to the woman in the room. The explosion rocked the whole building. Raika felt the force of the explosion as she and Finny were tossed away. He landed on her and held himself up to protect her from any debris.
"Wow that was pretty incredible!" Finny smiled his usual smile as the three took a seat in the rubble.
"Ciel is going to be angry when he sees this." Bard smiles as well, his cigarette hanging out of his mouth.
"I believe it was necessary in order to protect Lady Elizabeth and Miss Sheno." Raika rationalizes, hoping that the butler does not execute them on the spot. The two men nod in agreement. May-Rin walks over to sit next to them.
"What a busy night!" She laughs.
"You are very good with those guns May-Rin." Raika patted the girl on her shoulder. She blushed that the complement. The two men laughed as she sputtered out a 'thank you' to the demon. This evening was very eventful. A small portion of her wished that every night was like this.
