A/N: KawaiinoChibi your wish is my command! I present chapter 10 of Blue Roses and hope you all like it. Also…and I'm just throwing this out there…if anyone wants to draw some fanart for this story I'd really like to see it! In the meantime a link to a picture of Amaline and Undertaker has been posted in my profile so go run and look at it!!
Disclaimer: All Kuroshitsuji characters are property of Yana Toboso. All OCs are property of Captain Spiral.
Warning: Clichéd bits of citrus have fallen into this chapter! OMG!
Chapter 10: Hide and Seek
It was late. Sebastian was the only one awake at this time, having put Ciel to bed hours beforehand, after the boy had relayed his suspicions of Amaline to him.
"I don't know if there my be someone pulling the strings or if she is acting on her own accord, but I want her apprehended." Ciel told Sebastian as they walked down the hallway. "That demon showing up now is too coincidental."
"Yes, My lord." The demonic butler nodded.
"And also, Sebastian, I doubt the police can deal with her. I wish to question her myself. I trust you'll take care of this?"
Sebastian smiled. "Of course, My lord."
With his masters orders playing in his mind he made his way out of the mansion. All he had to do was find the woman. Unfortunately, he knew, she wouldn't be so easy to find. He'd have to scour the whole city and hope she was in it. But, as always, he was up to the challenge. After all, what kind of butler would he be if he couldn't accomplish a task such as this?
Once he was out the entrance doors, he shot off into the night. The scenery passed by like blurs of blue, black, and grey paint blended together on a canvas.
To any humans still wandering the streets, he was but a sudden gust of wind to knock their hat off, or ruffle their skirts, for the slim few prostitutes that still roamed about, either out of stupidity or necessity.
His sharp eyes caught every miniscule movement of every human, rat, dog, cat, and bird, but he didn't see any clue to where the demoness might be located.
The searching went on for about another hour. Sebastian had entered every shop and store and weaved through every back alley until finally he stopped at one alley.
This particular alley was very thin and obscured by the buildings around it. They were constructed at an odd angle making the alley entrance crooked and thinner then the rest of it.
It obviously wasn't used much. There was hardly even trash littered about it. But that fact made it extremely easy to spot the form slumped against one of the walls.
It was a male, obviously poverty stricken judging by the rags that clothed him. A worn hat sat on top of his dirty brown hair and drooped down covering his eyes. He looked to be sleeping.
Sebastian lifted the hat up. The man's eyes were open and unseeing, almost like a blind man yet not. He breathed shallow breathes spaced too far apart to be natural. His skin was pale and cold and his heartbeat was, like his breathing, almost none existent.
The man was a breathing corpse. Soulless.
The man's left hand was clenched weakly at his side. Opening it, the butler found a blue petal. It hadn't yet begun to rot.
He remembered she had worn a blue rose in her hair at the ball and since natural blue roses did not exist, save for the one's she seemed to be able to obtain, it was doubtful it belonged to anyone else.
The husk of a human being and the petal's lack of withering indicated to Sebastian that Amaline was still in the city, as well as that she was not under a contract. She wouldn't need to be eating souls otherwise.
He picked up the delicate petal with his gloved index finger and thumb, turning it in front of his eyes in a critical inspection, as if it would tell him where she was located.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Demons did not require sleep, reapers did. So how was it, Undertaker wondered, that Amaline always managed to bogart his bed?
The personal chambers, like the bathroom, were much larger than one would expect.
In the middle of the large room sat a tudor four poster bed made of a dark, almost black wood. In the middle of the giant bed lay Amaline. She was dressed in a long white sleeping gown and her hair was out, splayed around her, taking up more of the comfortable space.
She wasn't under the covers. She looked as if she had hopped on the bed and passed out immediately, which she very well could've. Even if demons didn't require sleep, Undertaker learned that Amaline made a habit of getting it anyway, especially after bathes.
Amaline was, by all standards, a creature of leisure. One of the reasons why they got along so well, she was easy-going like him.
He walked along to the side of the bed. Unlike reapers, when demons did choose to sleep they actually breathed. Amaline's chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm and her lips were parted slightly.
The scene was so adorable that Undertaker almost didn't want to disturb it. Instead of picking the slumbering demon up and moving her, he just nudged her to the side a bit.
Amaline subconsciously took the hint and rolled over to get away from the disturbance, mewling a light protest.
Having made room, Undertaker crawled under the covers. Within moments he was asleep and any onlooker wouldn't have been able to tell him apart from any of the corpses he dealt with.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
It was about an hour before dawn broke. Sebastian stood in front of the locked Undertaker Shop door. He recalled the blue rose that had been in there during their last visit, a good lead on Amaline's location. He could have let himself in or even just broken in but the fact was he didn't want to make an enemy of the eccentric Undertaker.
Instead he knocked on the door and waited.
After a minute or two he heard a lock click and the door creaked open a bit. The Undertaker, sans hat, poked his head out of the entrance and stared at Sebastian in a questioning manner.
Ever polite, he asked. "What can I do for the Phantomhive butler at this hour?~"
Sebastian smiled his ever charming smile. "May I come in?"
He nodded and opened the door fully, letting the black butler enter.
Undertaker only owned one clock. It was old and hung upside down on the wall telling him that it was 10:25, or if read correctly, 3:55 am.
He removed his gaze from the clock back to Sebastian, who was inspecting the blue rose that rested in a beaker of water on the counter.
"A natural blue rose." Sebastian stated.
"Yes~ a gift~" Undertaker smiled. "I'm afraid, if your interested, you'll not be able to find one in any botanist shop around~" he jokingly quipped.
"I'm looking for the woman that gave this to you."
Undertaker had figured that. "Oh?~ Why would that be?~"
Sebastian held out his hand, the blue petal resting undisturbed in his palm. "Found on a… dead man…in an alley."
Undertaker quirked his eyebrow. He'd have to collect that body later. He knew the man was probably not dead. The seldom few soul meals that Amaline did consume were no secret to him. But he was close enough to it that he might as well be buried.
"She is a suspect in the case of Jack the Ripper, my master wishes to question her."
That caught Undertaker by surprise. The little Phantomhive thought Amaline was killing prostitutes? The thought of it made him let out a loud guffaw of laughter.
He calmed down after a bit and wiped a phantom tear from his eye. But before he could even decide whether or not to tell Sebastian anything the back door creaked open.
Both men turned to see said suspected woman, still in her nightgown, looking annoyed.
Amaline huffed. "What is so funny, Undertaker?!"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
She froze.
The sight of Sebastian in the shop was unexpected. Sebastian looked equally surprised to see her. Half of the surprise was probably caused by her state of undress, which Amaline remembered and promptly crossed her arms over her chest shifting uncomfortably on her feet.
Undertaker waved the flustered demoness over to him, smiling pleasantly. "Good morning~ It would seem we have a visitor, who wishes to speak with you~" he greeted, as if nothing was out of the ordinary.
Amaline's bare feet made no noise as she ghosted over to Undertaker, glaring at Sebastian the whole time.
Instead of dignifying the butler with a question she just stared at him until he spoke.
Not put off by the behavior in the slightest Sebastian began. "My master wishes to meet with you." he said, choosing his words wisely. He doubted she'd be so willing to come if he told her an interrogation was the purpose of the meeting.
Amaline looked at Undertaker at her side, but he just shrugged. She looked back to Sebastian. "Why?"
"He wishes to ask you a few questions." Sebastian answered, ignoring the mental questions nagging at his own mind. How did they know each other? It was difficult not to wonder about her presence in this place and especially difficult not to wonder about her walking out of the back room in only sleepwear.
The butler discreetly eyed the woman in front of him. The white sleeping gown she wore contrasted nicely with her tawny skin and left her arms bare, trailing all the way down her legs until stopping right above her ankles. Her carmine tresses, which had always been in a bun when he saw her, were now out. They ran down her back going from straight to wavy all the way down to her thighs.
The sight had been unexpected but most definitely not unpleasant.
"I have no interest in catering to some little boy, even if he is the Earl of Phantomhive." Amaline's voice broke through Sebastian's thought process.
That was not an answer he could accept. "My master has ordered your presence. I will accomplish this task," Sebastian stated his voice lowering. "by force if necessary."
Amaline's eyes narrowed at the threat and Undertaker frowned. Half a heartbeat later the front door was open and the woman was gone. Amaline did not respond well to threats.
Sebastian took off after her immediately. Undertaker was now alone in the shop. He glanced out the still open doorway.
He knew Amaline wasn't in any serious danger, but he still wanted to go after the woman. He couldn't help but worry for the she-demon he'd known for so long. She was important to him.
He'd trust Ciel and his butler not to harm her, he decided, though his amber eyes were flinty behind his bangs. Otherwise he'd deal with it.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
As Amaline jumped from rooftop to rooftop, she spared passing thoughts to being grateful. Grateful for not feeling the cold chill on her bare skin or the bite of shingles into her uncovered feet.
She spotted the beginnings of a forest ahead and made a dive for the trees. It wasn't the cover of the leaves she sought, but the company of those inhabiting the tree. As she dove, her body shifted, getting smaller. Shining onyx feathers sprouted to cover her and her arms, now wings, took her the rest of the way to the branches where at least three dozen other crows sat.
She perched herself amongst them and settled in, closing her still purple eyes to feign rest like the avians around her.
The crows hardly spared her a glance and even grouped closer together with the newcomer, staving off the cold morning air. They wouldn't move until the sun rose. They were murmuring about some owls that hunted the area until daytime. One crow asked if she'd mob the owl with them once the sun was up, but she declined.
Meanwhile Sebastian had lost track of the troublesome female. She was faster than he had expected. He stood on a roof looking in all directions.
She had been headed towards the forest so that's the direction he went in.
He walked in between the trees, scanning every inch around him, with no luck.
The sun was beginning to come up now. Soft pinkish rays of light broke through the leaves. Sebastian heard movement overhead, the rustling of feathers.
He looked up at the murder of crows settled in the branches above him. Some peered down at him in interest.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A particularly talkative crow sat on Amaline's right. He clicked his beak in a curious manner and addressed her. "Sister, there is a male human down below."
Amaline opened one eye and looked around. A lot of the crows had flown off, most likely to rush the owls from their territory. The chatterbox next to her was looking down at a familiar figure.
Amaline tried to ignore him, acting the part of indifferent bird, but she saw it, the glint in his eyes. He recognized her.
She cawed out an alarm call, prompting the rest of the crows to take flight in a cloud of black feathers. She joined them, hoping the sheer numbers and flurry of activity would throw Sebastian off.
She beat her wings hard, willing herself higher.
Suddenly two black talons grabbed at her. She made a startled dive, dodging around flapping wings. As she steadied out the talons came at her again, driving her lower. She was separated from the group now. Just her and Sebastian, also in crow form. His red eyes taunted her as he drove her closer and closer to the ground.
Finally, when she was too low to fly anymore, she shifted back. Sebastian followed suit, figuring her to have finally given up.
He was hardly out of transformation when she came at him, elongated nails slashing at him.
Every bit of her built up frustration at him came out as she attacked him. Sebastian barely dodged. She was faster then he remembered, perhaps she had been holding back during their competition.
She spun around, kicking at him viciously, too fast to dodge so he brought his arms up and let them take the brunt of it. His shoes made divots in the dirt as he was pushed back.
She was fast alright, but not as strong as him.
He repeatedly dodged the punches that came at him, then seeing an opening grabbed one arm and flipped her up and over him. She came down hard on her back and a sharp gasp escaped her.
She jumped up immediately and circled around him, her jaw clenched in anger. She let out a light snarl and jumped at him again. She grabbed his wrist and, using her momentum, swung him into the nearest tree.
Sebastian flipped, his feet making impact on the creaking wood. He propelled himself forward, tackling the demoness to the ground. Using his force of speed against him, Amaline flipped the butler off of her.
She jumped up and away from his punches putting fifteen feet between them.
She paused for a brief moment then proceeded to rush Sebastian, zigzagging around him. At the last second, about a foot in front of the demon, she circled around him. She raised her hands, entwining her fingers and clenching them together, then brought them down with a great force, aiming for the back of Sebastian's head.
Sebastian turned around and brought his own hands up, grabbing Amaline's hands.
She tried to wrestle her hands free, managing to release one, but he caught her wrist.
They struggled against each other for a bit before Sebastian finally kicked Amaline's legs out from under her, bringing them both down.
Amaline's wrists were held at either side of her head as Sebastian straddled her waist, making the kicking and flailing she was doing with her legs useless.
"Get off!" she hissed, falling still after a while. She'd chop off his arms! For all the trouble they've caused her, she wouldn't regret it in the least!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Sebastian didn't release the iron grip on the glowering woman below him. She was a mess. Her once pristine with nightgown was ripped and torn. There was a long tear in her skirt all the way up to her thigh from the force of her kicks and she was covered in dirt and leaves. Her long hair had twigs in it and she had scratches all over, though those were healing already.
He didn't look much better. His suit had faired better than a flimsy nightgown with only a few tears in the sleeves, but his hair was out of sorts, he was covered in dirt, dust, and foliage and his cheek had a long gash in it from her nails, also beginning to heal.
He examined her more carefully. Her interesting eyes were practically burning a hole through his skull. Her teeth were clenched together and her lips were pulled back in anger, making her elongated fangs easy to see.
She was a hellcat, trapped beneath him. Sebastian loved cats.
He tsked at her, regaining his smirk. "So violent." he admonished in a calm voice.
He lowered his face to an inch before hers. "We'll have to work on that." he whispered.
Moving both her wrists to one hand, he trailed his newly freed one down her arm then cupped her cheek.
Amaline turned her head and snapped at his fingers, missing barely. Sebastian chuckled.
"Now now, no nipping, kitten."
Amaline began struggling again, indignant of the nickname, cursing and hissing obscenities at the amused butler.
He stretched her arms up above her head, minimizing the amount of struggling she was capable of. The motion brought his body closer to hers and she could feel the heat coming from him. She nearly whimpered at her helplessness and immediately hated herself for it.
He lowered his face even more until she could feel his warm breathe on her neck. She froze. Soft lips ghosted above her caramel skin, sending a shiver down her spine. He loved it.
He parted his lips slightly, wanting to taste the satiny skin under them.
~*~*~*~*~*~*
Amaline's breathe hitched.
She could still feel his breathe on her throat, but he had stopped moving. Thankful, but confused, she wondered what happened.
Abruptly Sebastian stood up, yanking her up along with him. The sudden movement and force of the action had her stumbling against him and letting out a startled yelp.
He brought his free arm up around her tightly and jumped. His feet touched down on a tree branch and from there he began hopping from tree to tree until they reached the rooftops.
Sebastian frowned. This expedition had taken longer then he had thought. Ciel would be waking up soon. Not only did Sebastian have to be there to dress the boy and serve him breakfast, but he also had to get himself cleaned up to do so and present his master with the suspect wriggling in his arms for questioning.
His fun always seemed to be interrupted, he lamented. He tightened his grip on Amaline and smiled, but no matter for now.
A/N: Longest chapter! Sheesh, if Sebastian thinks he can't catch a break just imagine how Amaline feels.
If anyone wonders about my update schedule…I don't update until I have at least one new review. Sorry but I like to get feedback on the latest chapter before I put a new one out there so be kind and review purty please!