Chapter 19

"Feeling Guilty"

Song: Lala Lala, James S. Levine (AHS Coven OST)

It had been a few days since the incident with Ciel, and Naomi was finally getting comfortable again under his presence. She had an unofficial date with him tonight… they were going to eat at a fancy restaurant for dinner. As she was putting on her best dress for the outing, she felt Kashi nagging at the back of her mind. "I know, I know…" Naomi spoke to herself. "You're going to be furious at me." Naomi caught her own eyes in the mirror and stared. "I'm doing the right thing, right?"

A knock at her bedroom door startled her. Breaking her gaze from the mirror, she walked over to the door and opened it. Standing there was Sebastian. "Are you ready, Milady?" Naomi smiled and nodded, stopping quickly to put on her shoes. The butler led Naomi out of the hotel, and waiting at the end of the walk was a horse drawn buggy. Standing at its door was Ciel, in a fancy suit. Naomi smiled, walking up to him. "Good afternoon, sir." She said, jokingly. Ciel smiled, and opened the door for her, to which she took his hand and was assisted inside. Ciel followed her with Sebastian's assistance, and shut the door behind them, going up front to drive.

The dating couple sat in awkward silence for about fifteen minutes before they arrived at the restaurant. Naomi followed in silence as he escorted her inside, and to a table in a far corner. The place was packed; Naomi had heard of it, and apparently, some people waited months to get in. Looking at her menu, she smiled at Ciel. "Thank you for taking me here; you really didn't have to pick someplace so fancy." The earl nodded, picking up his own menu. "Of course I did; only the best for my lady."

Naomi blushed, but was saved when a waiter came over to ask for their orders. It wasn't far into their meal that Ciel moved his questions off his date and directed them towards her friends… specifically Kashi. Naomi watched with weary eyes as Ciel cut his steak, and casually asked question after question about her green-eyed friend. The questions started out vague… like if she knew her favorite hobbies. It didn't take long, however, for the questions to become more specific.

"What would you say her worst trait is?"

Naomi swallowed, unsure of how to respond. This was supposed to be a date, but Ciel seemed interested only in Kashi. "Um, well…" An image of Kashi being all pouty when Naomi headed out of the guild with Natsu popped into her mind. "She can be a bit clingy and jealous, I guess." Ciel nodded, taking a bite of his food. After a moment of silence, he swallowed, and continued.

"Was she somewhat erratic in her behavior?"

Naomi remembered how Kashi could go from pure joy to pathetic crying in a matter of minutes. Yes, she was erratic, but she felt it be best not to tell Ciel that, so she shook her head.

"Did she ever self harm, or threaten herself or someone else?"

She shook her head, although deep down something told her that wasn't exactly true. But how could she be sure, when her memories were erased? While Naomi was deep in thought, Ciel decided to punch with his biggest question.

"Is there anything that could lead you to believe Kashi might have violent tendencies?" Naomi gasped, placing her utensils down beside her plate. She excused herself to the bathroom, and sitting down on one of the toilets to think and calm down her anger towards the young earl, she got a series of flashbacks. All of them consisting of Kashi lashing out at someone, usually verbally, but she did remember one time where she punched Leo for touching her in an unwelcomed, flirtatious manner. Kashi didn't seem like one to be an angry person, but Naomi was getting flashbacks from an unfamiliar perspective of her friend. Was she violent? "No," Naomi thought to herself. "Everybody has bad days."

After ten minutes Naomi returned to her food, and Ciel acted as if she had never left. "To answer your question…" Naomi started, sitting back into her chair. "Kashi is not a violent person. As far as I can remember, which isn't much mind you, I've never seen her exchange more than a few unsavory words in times of conflict."

Ciel nodded, seemingly unhappy with this answer, and stayed silent. Naomi tried asking about the servants back at the manor, but Ciel replied in short sentences that left no opening for conversation. He had obviously been fishing for more information about Kashi to see if he could convict her, and still had nothing to go on. His plan failed. But at least Naomi wasn't blind to it.

Over dessert, the silence was broken with a sigh from Ciel. "I'm sorry; I should be asking questions about you. I'm so used to working, I forget when to leave it at home." Naomi blinked, surprised he would even mention it as a problem. Confused thoughts running through her mind, she nodded. "Thank you." When they were done eating, Ciel stood first, and wrapped arms with Naomi's when she stood from her chair. He led her out to their ride and helped her in first like a total gentleman, and made small talk on the way home. Ultimately, he didn't ask anymore questions about her or Kashi, and when they got back inside their hotel, Ciel accompanied her to her bedroom door.

Ciel bent down, taking one of Naomi's hands and gently pressing his lips to the back of them. Naomi's blood ran cold as an image of Natsu doing the exact same thing flashed over her vision. She smiled. "G-goodnight." The earl nodded, and left her to herself.

Without another word, she walked across her bedroom and flopped down onto the bed. "Why do I feel like I'm betraying him? I don't even remember much about that pink haired guy…" Rolling over, she stared up at the ceiling. "And Ciel… why is he so interested in Kashi?" She quickly dozed off, pondering the possible relationship between her and Natsu…

If only she could remember more about her past…