The carriage fell silent for a few moments whilst Ciel processed my words. I remained where I was, seated on the leather with a wide smile on my lips. It took a few seconds before the boy replied, but when he did, it was very slowly.
"So…. how exactly did he react? I would imagine someone such as him would be a bit…. Overly protective of his customers." Ciel questioned me with his head cocked to the side, his gloved fingers set in a steeple-like position. The way he had spoken led me to believe that he did not wish to offend Undertaker, though whether that was because of the fact he now knew we were acquainted, I did not know. If that was the reason, then I mentally applauded his polite manners and cautiousness.
"He reacted in the way you would imagine someone like him to react." My answer was simple, not detailed and thorough, and it had the effect I knew that it would on the young Lord. His eye gleamed with a brief flicker of curiosity, and I knew that he wished to know more than what I had told him. His sense of wanting to know seemed to overpower him for a moment, as he quickly blurted out yet another question.
"How so, exactly? You must have another story to tell?" I raised a quizzical eyebrow at this, smirking at his childish choice of words. He himself quickly realised what he had said and the tone of voice which he had used too, and how it must have come across as a brief wave of crimson fluttered across his pale cheeks, and he stuttered to get his next words out. "I mean, w-well, it's just t-that…" He stopped his rambling, and took a deep breathe, trying to regain his composure. This made me wonder exactly what problems he had in being a child; was he expected to act far older than his age more frequently than I realised? Though I was not oblivious to the fact he had to make adult decisions – he was the head of a large business and an Earl, after all – I would have thought he would at least have the opportunity to act his age at least every once in a while. However, from the way he constantly behaved, and the way he seemed to loathe being treated like a child and acting like one, my instincts were telling me that I was terribly wrong. That caused a brief wave of pity to sweep through me, but I hid any compassion I felt behind my usual mask.
"What I mean to say, is that the Undertaker is a rather mysterious figure – it would be interesting to know more about him. And you seem to know him rather well, or at least, that is how it comes across." Another smile tugged at my lips at the desperation of the boy's words; he did have a thirst for knowledge, I would give him that. "Surely, you can tell me what happened?" He was now leaning forward once again, hands clasping his knees in interest. Chuckling, I decided to give him a small ounce of what he wanted.
"All you need to know, Ciel," I shifted from my sitting position so I could bend over, my face but an inch from the young Earl's. Staring straight into his single blue eye, I decided I could scare him just a little bit. "Is that Undertaker is not to be messed with, especially when it comes to his guests. I barely escaped his shop alive, practically crawling out on all fours." The boy's eye widened and his mouth gaped open slightly, shocked at my words. I expected he simply knew Undertaker as the giggling, insane mess of a man that he pretended to be – not as the raging, dangerous, yet incredibly alluring man I knew him to be. "But do not worry Ciel; we became very close friends after that encounter. We both agreed to simply getting off on the wrong foot, and decided to make it up to each other by meeting up every now and then." A small chuckle flowed from my lips, and I crossed my hands over my dress. "And make it up to each other we did."
Before Ciel could question what I meant, the carriage came to a sudden halt, and, upon glancing out of the window, I realised that we must have come to our destination; if the giant sign that read 'Undertaker' that hung loosely upon the shop next to carriage was anything to go by. Smiling, I turned back to Ciel who was looking rather bored all of a sudden. He glanced at his watch briefly, and I silently questioned what he was waiting for. However, when the carriage door opened and a silky, gloved hand appeared, I realised what it was he was awaiting to happen. He nodded at me briefly, signalling that I should exit the carriage.
"Lady's first, Miss Mandetta." Smiling at his act of good manners, I got into a crouching position, as the roof would not permit me to stand at my full height as I believed it would allow Ciel to do. Gingerly stepping out of the carriage in my leather heels, I planted one foot firmly on the metal step, and went to climb off when my dress got snagged of the door.
As I have mentioned before, I was not used to wearing feminine clothing, and therefore, I was not used to moving around in it. My brain simply thought that I was dressed in tight and manoeuvrable cloth, as had been the case for most of the years of my existence – not the frilly skirts and heavy petticoats that I had recently been charged with wearing.
I lost my balance, and with nothing to grab onto, began to fall face first towards the floor. Closing my eyes, I braced myself for the impact of concrete and flesh, knowing that was what was about to occur. Obviously, this caused me to be surprised when two arms shot out of nowhere and wrapped themselves protectively around my waist. I was pulled out of the air and into a firm chest, my hands instinctively clutching at the clothing of whomever it was that had caught me. My action caused a low chuckle to emit from my savoir, and that made me look up. Instantly, I felt disgusted. Sebastian was looking down at me with a rather questionable glint in his eye, and a smirk set on his thin lips. I then realised that it was he who had caught me, and therefore he was the one with his arms around my waist and whose jacket I was clutching in shock.
"Are you quite alright, My Lady? Or do you need me to hold you up any longer?" The mocking tone in his voice did not go unnoticed, and my reaction was to snort and scoff in his face. Pushing him away, I regained my balance in these blasted heels, trying to make sure that they did not get stuck in between the cobblestones.
Ciel exited the carriage with one eyebrow raised – I had no doubt he had seen Sebastian's little rescue from out of the window. He seemed to not really care, however, as he walked past the pair of us and towards the ominous looking shop. I stared after him, surprised at his lack of speech when he had been rather talkative just a few minutes ago. When he realised that neither of us were following him, he peered back over his shoulder, the collar of his coat hiding the bottom of his face.
"Come Sebastian, we don't' have all day." The butler he was referring to placed a hand over his heart and bowed slightly.
"Yes, My Lord." Sebastian smirked at me, and I sent him a glare back, poking my tongue out slightly in a childish attempt of annoying him, yet all he did was chuckle yet again. Straightening out my skirts with my hand, I stepped forward, and began going towards the shop. That was, until a gloved hand fell down upon my shoulder and stopped me in my tracks.
"Let go of me Sebastian." I growled, my hands turning to fists at my sides. His grip tightened at my words.
"I'm afraid I can't let you go into that shop, Esmeralda. Not after what you told me." Those words caused me to blink for a few seconds, before a smile formed on my lips.
"Oh, Sebastian; don't tell me that you're jealous of 'Giggles', too?" Turning around, I crossed my arms, causing his hand to move from my shoulder back to his side. Sebastian looked down at me with a blank stare, though I could tell his eyes were very close to beginning to glow pink.
"No, it is not because of that, Esmeralda." The words left his mouth harshly, yet I did not flinch at his tone. Reaching into his coat pocket, he withdrew a piece of parchment that had been folded several times. He held it out to me expectantly, and after studying him and the paper for several seconds, I cautiously reached out and took it from him, having no idea what it was. Sebastian answered that question before I had even had a chance to voice it, however. "There is a local market just around the corner. We are almost out of some everyday cooking ingredients, so I wrote down a list of what we needed, and I am sending you to collect them." My eyes shot to him questioningly; why was he letting me wander the streets alone? Why wasn't he going in my place? "I would go instead, but my Master needs me here to acquire the information he seeks. Also, I believe I can trust you enough not to run off – as you and I both know, you have nowhere to go now." Frowning, I glared at him. Sebastian reached into his other pocket, and produced a small bag of what I could only guess was money. "Here," He said, handing the pouch to me. "That should be enough to cover any purchases you make."
He stepped to the side gracefully and placed a hand on my lower back, pushing me along in front of him a few metres. "It's just down the street; go to the end of the road and take a right; you'll know it when you see it." I felt his hand leave my back, telling me to begin moving on my own. Turning around to protest against him, my mouth opened ready to speak – but closed suddenly when my eyes saw that he was no longer there. I caught the edge of a tailcoat disappearing into the shop before the door closed, and a heavy sigh left my lips. Glancing down at the list in my hands, I scanned the many lines of text. The things that were needed were indeed everyday items, being trivial ingredients such as eggs, ham, milk and various fruits. Deciding that I had nothing better to do aside from wait out here in the cold, I began to walk down the street when I realised I had nothing to carry the ingredients in. Turning around once again, my eyes flickered over to the carriage. There, next to the driver's seat, was a wicker basket just waiting for me. Growling underneath my breath about how Sebastian was always prepared, I reached up and grabbed it, before angrily spinning around and walking towards my required destination.
The market was indeed easy to find, with dozens of fruit and food stalls lining the street that never seemed to end. There were no carriages here, just hundreds of commoners going about their daily lives and business. A jumble of voices echoed through the air, some shouting prices out to passers by, some calling out names of familiar faces, and some just plain shouting. Without even realising it, I had been sucked into the crowd like a vacuum, being pushed and shoved by everyone who went past me. Like a fish in a barrel, my head snapped left and right, my body spinning on the spot, leaving me with absolutely no sense of direction. My feet weaved throughout the throng of people, and I suddenly got the feeling of being entrapped, and a fear overcame me of not knowing what was going on around me. What with being an assassin, I did not enjoy the fact that I would not be able to sense someone sneaking up on me in a situation like this where I was surrounded by strangers, and the fact that I was way out of my comfort zone did not help. What with my profession being a rather shady one indeed, it did not require me to socialise with the people of the world – or more specifically, mortals. It had been many years since I had interacted with someone of a human nature, and whilst I had taken notice that the world was indeed changing around me, I had lost a large amount of my social skills in my years of being alone in luxurious solitude.
However, I was thankful that no one deemed me worthy of a second glance, and though I found this odd, considering the colour of my hair, I was grateful for the lack of attention I was receiving. If anything, it would make it easier for me to move around. My mind came to the conclusion that I simply came off as just another weirdo on the streets of London, the same as many of the street performers and artists; all of whom wore colourful clothing and had the most unusual hair styles for this era. Whilst I was insulted by the thought of being deemed a common street urchin, I was also thankful that not many people were paying me any attention – as I mentioned before, I was not used to being in a public area with a large amount of people; I was uncomfortable enough as it was, I didn't need everybody staring at me on top of that.
But, as if this wasn't enough, there was this feeling of being watched that I could not shake off; a burning sensation in my back that was the result of two eyes burning into my flesh, the shiver of fear that accompanied it creeping up my flesh slowly, freezing the blood in my veins. When the combined effect of both of these feelings became so strong that I could not ignore it any longer, I found my body acting on its own to relieve the stress I felt bubbling up inside of me. Abruptly pushing off to the side, deciding I needed to get to some sort of empty space, my breath caught in my throat as I walked. The crowd around me seemed to constrict around my delicate form, causing me to pick up my pace. With every step I took, it felt as though whoever was watching me was taking a stride as well, getting loser and closer to me every second – that feeling of being chased racing through my body. My mind was beginning to whirl, telling me to move faster, and so I did, using the hand that wasn't occupied by the basket to push my way selfishly through the swarm of humans. This situation was so alien to me, so new; I was not familiar with my surroundings, and had no idea who was who, and who was looking at me. This sense of ignorance was not a feeling I enjoyed, and as bile rose up in my throat, I began to jog. The crowd parted for me as I moved away from the hustle and bustle of the heart of the throng, and after what seemed like forever of trying to move away from those prying eyes and whoever they belonged to, I burst out of the crowd, slipping through the final layer of people.
Gasping in relief, I placed a hand over my racing heart, and forced my head back around to face the direction from whence I just came. My eyes darted to each and every person who walked by, trying to pinpoint who it was who had been watching me. Was it a member of The Silencer's? Had they come to track down their missing recruit? I doubted it. Had it been another member of the organisation who had gone missing, I wouldn't have put it past them, but this was me I was on about. I expected that if they even had suspicions about whether I had run into any trouble, they would have come to the conclusion that it wasn't anything I wouldn't be able to deal with.
Deciding to take this time to grasp a sense of direction, I looked around to get my bearings. Mentally, I marked out a map of where I had to go, being just about able to look over the heads of the crowd. If I was correct, I simple needed to travel in a zigzag direction across the market, and I would be done in no time. Allowing my breathing to get up to speed, I looked around at where I currently was, and, though I was still breathing heavily, a small smile came to my lips. I had in fact come out next to one of the stalls I needed to visit, simply by luck. Reaching into my pocket to grab the list Sebastian gave me and letting the wicker basket rest in the crook of my elbow, I scanned the list to see how much of each ingredient I needed to purchase. Once that was done, I put the list back into my pocket carefully, not wanting to lose it in this crowd, and leant down to grab at least a dozen shimmering emerald apples. The lady behind the counter watched me with an uninterested look ever present on her face, as I expected the maid uniform I had on had thrown off any suspicions she might have had of me wanting to steal her produce, which probably would have added some excitement to her otherwise boringly normal day. With the fruit securely in my basket, I straightened up to my full height, brushing down the fold in my dress, only for that feeling of someone watching me to suddenly flood back over my body. It was as though a hand made purely of ice was drifting over my flesh, and I had to tense the muscles in my body to repress shivering in front of the stall owner. And I wasn't exactly keen on making it obvious that I sensed someone's eyes on me; acting ignorant had caused me to live when I otherwise could have died in far too many situations previous to this one. I handed over the money for the apples smoothly, without a flaw in my normal behaviour. Unfolding the list once more, trying to act as ordinary and normal as possible, I picked out the next item I needed to buy and set off towards the stall on the other side of the street, that feeling of being watched not leaving me even as I – rather reluctantly, I might add -entered the crowd once more.
This was my routine for around about another hour; buying the goods I needed to as quickly as I was able, thinking that it was possible I could return to Sebastian in time to see Undertaker. The decades that had passed had not withered my memory of him in the slightest, as it was quite hard to forget someone who had characteristics such as he did. That simple thought of just seeing my old friend again was enough to conduct my duty with a smile on my face, though that expression of happiness was also just a mask for whoever was watching me. I was still aware of their presence and their eyes on my form – whether they knew I was aware, I did not know personally. Throughout my short shopping trip, that strange feeling of somebody looking at me refused to leave my mind and body even once, and that was reason enough to concern me. Only a professional tracker or someone with inhuman eye sight would have been able to keep track of me in the bustling streets of the market, even with my significant hair and eye colour. Anyone could move in and out of the throng of people that seemed to flow like a river through the streets, and anyone could do so with the utmost discretion.
And it wasn't even as if I felt the feeling leave me and then return shortly after, as though someone had lost sight of me only to spot me again a second later. It never left my body, meaning that this person's sight never left me. Someone was trying to track me, and whoever they were, they were beginning to freak me out. Extremely.
I was at the final stall, buying the last item that was on my list, when that burning sensation in my back intensified beyond belief, so much so I believed my clothes might soon became alight. I was no fool - whoever it was watching me now had a direct view. Feeling like a deer cornered by a pack of wolves, my instincts told me to do what I usual did in situations that didn't go my way; and that was to act as if everything was perfectly alright. My years of existence and experience I had in situations similar to this had taught me to know better than to turn around, and to aid in delaying any possible confrontation, I prolonged my purchase for a just a few more minutes. The vendor of this particular stall was a smiling, elderly woman who had the appearance of a stereotypical Grandmother from the fairytale books young children busied themselves with these days. A kind and gentle aura radiated from her, so I saw no problem in keeping her busy just a while longer than was necessary. She seemed to be preoccupied in staring and smiling softly at something located behind me, anyway. Either way, her attention was not on me – or so I thought.
"It seems to me, deary," She said quietly, smiling at me. Glancing up at her quickly from my crouching position I had whilst browsing the bottom shelf of her stall, I gave my attention to her. She laughed softly when her eyes met mine, and continued. "Yes, it seems to me, that you've got a bit of an admirer." Though she meant her words to be kind, I froze at them in fear, my breath silently snagging in my throat and my muscles going tense, giving me the appearance of a statue. She had just confirmed the fact that someone was indeed watching me right at this moment, yet she did not know it. My mind decided that my best bet was to go along with it, and not show the flicker of fear that I was feeling, or the fact that I did not know who it was watching me. Slowly, breathing steadily, I looked back up at her, smiling as gently as I could in the current circumstances.
"I know," Those words left my mouth slightly weaker than I would have liked, but the elderly lady seemed to be fine with my answer. Not appearing to have a problem with that being all that I said to her, she nodded gently, probably assuming I was familiar with the onlooker, whoever they were. However, fear still shook the insides of my body, my brain hurting with such a large amount of pressure. I could only hope that my 'admirer', whoever they were, was not aware that their presence had just been pointed out to me by the kind lady – otherwise, they might feel obligated to make themselves known, and I did not wish for that to happen.
However, as no one had made an attempt to have any contact with my physically yet, I still considered myself safe for the time being – there was still a small chance I could get away from this little outing without being confronted by anyone. Playing those thoughts over in my mind, I decided it would be for the best if I didn't freak out fully just yet. Turning my head slightly to the side, I made an attempt to peek at my so called 'admirer' yet I could not pin point them in the ever moving crowd behind me. It would make it incredibly easier if I could just see who they were; then, I could purposefully avoid them on my journey back to Sebastian. But, upon realising that I was going to have no such luck, I sighed. My hand reached out to give the elderly woman her deserved money, but suddenly hearing a loud voice made me slow my movements down.
"Claude? What on earth are you staring at?" My hand froze midair, along with my entire body. "That's all you've been doing all afternoon! Why aren't you paying any attention to me" Amethyst eyes widening slightly, but not enough for anyone to notice, I subtle bit my bottom lip, my hand turning white at the knuckles from clutching the money so hard.
"Claude! Answer me! What are you staring at?!" At least now I had a name – though be it a rather unusual one. Surely that would make me identifying my stalker much easier? But then I got the feeling of another pair of eyes landing on my form, and another shiver crept up my spine, one that I could surely not repress this time. Of course, this feeling of complete unease was only increased by the next words I heard. "Her? The girl with the white hair standing by the spice stall?" Obviously, that was enough to get me moving again, my mind telling me to get out of there as soon as possible. I quickly dropped the money into the elderly woman's hand and thanked her for her kind service, before pivoting on my right foot, turning to walk away from the stall, and hopefully in the other direction to my spectators.
"Ooooh! I can see her face now, and I know why you were staring! She's really pretty!" I quickened my pace further, yet the voice seemed to remain close to my retreating form. "Why don't go and talk to her?" I walked faster. "Do you want me to go?" Faster. "Stay here, I'll go and get her." Faster. Faster. Faster.
"Excuse me Miss?" A hand caught my wrist and caused me to stop suddenly in my movements. A quiet yelp escaped my lips as my body was pulled back abruptly in the opposite direction to the one I had been racing in, the action causing my shoulder to snap back sharply. Once the hand had a firm grip on my wrist, I was spun around quickly, much like a ballet dancer. Almost losing my balance again in these shoes, I instinctively reached for my thigh, ready to unsheathe the dagger that was always there upon my attacker. Finding that my weapon was not there, I cursed silently, and instead opened my mouth to shout at whomever it was that had grabbed me, about to give them a long lecture about sneaking up on unsuspecting woman. However, when I saw that no one was there in front of me, yet still felt the pressure of someone's grip around my wrist, complete and utter confusion raced through my mind as to who had grabbed me and why I couldn't see them.
Of course, that was until I looked down.
A boy who could have been no older than Ciel was hanging onto my wrist tightly; much like a child would to a mother. Bright blonde hair that seemed to reflect the light of the sun fell over his face to dust the edges of two large, sky blue eyes that sat in the middle of a face of pale, flawless skin. An almost insane looking smile sat on his lips, and I instantly got the same feeling I had with my current employer. Something was up with this boy….
"Hello! My name's Alois Trancy!" He took a step back and bowed deeply, still smiling widely. The boy then took my wrist he still had a hold of and raised it up towards his face, slipping his grip down so that he was holding my hand. He placed a gentle kiss upon my flesh, lingering a moment longer than was probably necessary and then looked up at me, still grinning as if he had just gotten a puppy for Christmas. When he opened his mouth again, I was expecting some snide or flirtatious remark, but what he actually said made me crease my brow in confusion. "May I ask for your name, Miss?" I will be honest, I did not expect a child of his age to be so inquisitive and yet so polite to a complete stranger – I could only guess that Ciel given me an incorrect impression about what teenage boy nobles were like these days.
A soft smile crept onto my lips at his happy and polite nature, and my defences relaxed a little bit. Deciding that he did not seem dangerous or problematic in any way, I curtseyed before him and answered his question. There was no harm in telling him my name, after all, as long as I did not reveal my last name.
"It's Esmeralda, My Lord. And might I say it's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Trancy." He smiled even wider at me. Seeing no harm in continuing to be polite to this lovely, yet possible over enthusiastic young boy, I kept my own smile present on my face. "Is there something I can help you with?"
Alois nodded, placing his hands together in a clasping motion and cocking his head to the side.
"Yes, there is." He said. "You see, my butler, Claude, likes you. He thinks you're pretty." My eyes widened ever so slightly at his statement. "But he isn't very good at talking to people, let alone pretty girls, so I decided I would come and talk to you for him." He looked up at me hopefully, his wide eyes shining like a pair of jewels. "Would you please come and meet him?" The sudden boldness of his question caused me to widen my eyes at him even further, and a light dust of crimson to settle on my cheeks. We had literally just met, and he was already asking me to meet his butler simply because the man had shown some sort of interest in my appearance. Did he think I would do whatever he asked me to without reason to do so?
Before I could reply, a shadow fell onto both me and Alois, shrouding us in darkness, and I sensed a figure standing at close proximity behind me. The aura they let out was not one that belonged to a happy person, and knowing that I did not have to turn around to realise who it was, I frowned deeply, annoyed at being interrupted.
"Esmeralda, I've been looking everywhere for you." The figure behind me said, and I dropped my head in defeat, sighing heavily. Could he not leave me alone at all? Was it impossible for him to just let me get on with the tasks I was set? "Come with me, my Master requires your assistan-" Sebastian didn't finish his sentence; the words dies on his tongue for reasons I was unaware of. He simply froze, dark red eyes locked onto the small boy in front of me. I heard a low growl emit from the bottom of his throat, and I wondered what had suddenly made this situation so hostile. Silence coated the three of us like a thick blanket, and I felt the invisible tension levels rise dramatically. Alois began to shake ever so slightly, and I felt a hand coil itself around my wrist, much like Alois had done moments ago. I was pulled back into Sebastian rather harshly, ending up with his mouth by my ear.
"Come. Now." His words were filled with malice, though the reason for that was one that evaded my knowledge. Either way, I knew I would be a fool to go against him when he spoke like that. Nodding softly, I allowed him to tug me away from Alois – who remained standing still, staring at me. Peering back over my shoulder, I was able to speak to him one last time before I was dragged away by a very pissed off butler.
"It was nice meeting you, Alois!" I said, waving with my free hand. Despite the spontaneous way he had introduced himself, I was beginning to like the boy – he just seemed pretty decent, and his enthusiastic ways were a nice change from the seriousness I had come to expect from Ciel. He waved back, albeit half heartedly, and a flash of confusion crossed my features. That expression quickly turned into pain as Sebastian suddenly tugged me around the corner with such brute force I thought that my arm would pop out of my socket.
"Ow! Sebastian, what is your problem? And where are we going?" My body was bent over at the waist, with Sebastian pulling me at a speed my sore and uneasy feet could not match. Trying my best to tug my wrist free, I assured him that I was perfectly capable of walking on my own if he just told me where it was we were headed. He chose, however, to not answer straight away, and I could tell he was angry with me again. But, just like before, I had no clue as to what had set him off. When he did finally answer, it was in an incredibly hostile tone of voice.
"My Master," Those two words seeped from his lips in a growl, his voice being much different to the silky tone he usually used when speaking them, "Mentioned to Undertaker that he had a new maid. When he asked for a name, my Master said yours." Pink flashed in Sebastian's eyes, and I put the puzzle pieces together before he said the next words. "So now, Undertaker refuses to give over any information until he sees you. He doubts that there is anyone else who shares the same name as you do, and who Ciel might possibly be getting mixed up with." So that was what Sebastian was pissed about. I chuckled at him, a smirk coming to my lips.
"Oh really? Remind me to thank Ciel for name-dropping later, won't you?" The butler growled at me, yet I just laughed again. Oh, this was just too perfect. I would get to see my old friend, and annoy Sebastian, and it was all thanks to his darling Master he spoke so highly of.
How incredibly amusing…..
A/N: Ugh, I had soooo much trouble writing this chapter. I know I said that Undertaker was going to be in the next one, but I tried writing a flash back for him, and quite frankly I just could not do it. Trust me, I promise that he will be in the next one, as you can probably guess from the ending of this chapter. I'd like to thank Just-Me-And-My-Brain for helping me overcome my brief writers block, and if you haven't checked out their Black Butler story, I would recommend you do so – it is awesome, especially for fans of William T Spears.
So, Alois and Claude, hmm? Don't worry, this isn't their only appearance in the story – both of them will be playing a huge role later one. Especially Claude, seeing as it has already been mentioned that Esmeralda knows him. Though how she knows him…?
I should be updating at a steady pace for a while now, seeing as I have quite a bit of free time. I also have each and everyone of the chapters planned and what they are each going to contain, even so far as to how it's going to end. However, if I don't update for a while, it's because I've either got severe writers block or my internet fails again.
As always, thank you for reading my story so far, and if you could, just write a few words about what you thought of it so far, or anything that you think could be improved. Constructive criticism is much appreciated. Byeeee!
