I held my tears back until I made it back into the Manor. Hardly caring who saw me, or what anyone thought, I sank to the floor and released the flood of feelings I had been holding back. I couldn't claim that all of my emotion was grief. Some was relief. Relief that I could finally let go of everything; I had no ties, all of my burdens had been lifted off of my back, and all my affairs were in order. Some was happiness. I was happy that my father wouldn't have to feel incredible sadness anymore. Some was anger. I wondered why all of this had to happen to me in the first place; why I was chosen to be dealt this hand. And some of it was gratitude. Gratitude that I had been fortunate enough to find Claude and accomplish all of the things I ever dreamed of doing.

I became aware of Claude's arms around me, and welcomed his embrace. I buried my face in his chest, putting out a minimal effort to calm myself. My demon was patient with me, running a gloved hand through my hair, holding me for as long as necessary.

"You'll check up on my father every once and a while, yes?" I asked, after I had finally calmed down. "Just to make sure he's happy."

"Of course, my lady," Claude said, without hesitation.

"Thank you," I whispered. I gathered myself off the floor and stood to my full height. Now was the moment. Was I ready to face death? After days of assuring myself I was, I finally realized I wasn't. I never would be. It wasn't because I was afraid of dying. It was because I was afraid of the unknown. I didn't know what would happen to me. I didn't know what it would feel like. I didn't know if anything would even exist for me anymore.

Yet, I was so ready to taste sweet relief. I was ready to end things at last. My unhappiness wouldn't matter. I had finished everything, my father was happy, my mother could rest. It seemed like it was only fair that now it was my turn to feel peace. Peace had seemed so unachievable, so far away, so… impossible mere months before. Now it was easily within my grasp, and I couldn't let my fear deprive me of such a commodity.

"I trust I can leave my affairs to you, as well?" I asked. "The Phantomhive family will need to be notified shortly after my death."

"I understand," Claude said, nodding. His golden eyes were searching my face with an expression I couldn't read. Yet, his gaze was oddly calming.

"I- I would like to die here in the Manor," I muttered softly. "If that's all right."

"Of course," Claude said, smiling softly. "You do realize you have time? You do not owe me your soul immediately."

"What reason have I to stay?" I asked, sadly.

Dahlia led me out into the garden. I felt it was an odd place to choose to die, though I said nothing. We walked in silence for several moments; Dahlia ran her fingers gently across the petals of the rows of flowers. There was a stone bench in the back of the garden, and it was at this bench that we stopped. Dahlia sighed and sat down, looking weary- though it wasn't really a surprise. The girl had been through so much.

Humans were always creatures I found to be incredibly queer. Just at the moment when I was sure I had figured them all out, an anomaly of sorts would cross my path. Some anomalies were terrible. Some were pleasant. I found that humans were capable of the widest range of emotions; those emotions could be weak in some, yet strong in others. Emotion was a large motivator, and I for one, was glad to not have to deal with the burden. Emotions were exactly that, a burden. If you couldn't control your emotions you'd be led to do things that you wouldn't normally do. If you could control the emotions within you, that didn't mean one didn't suffer. I had learned these sorts of things from my previous masters- all of whom were matured humans (at least in humanity's perspective). They were always thinking of themselves, trying to find loopholes in the contract, being controlled by common emotions such as anger, hatred, and jealousy. Yet, sitting before me, was a perfect example of a human anomaly. Dahlia was a young girl, even by human standards, though it seemed she was more mature than half of my previous masters. She was driven by emotions, like all humans. Even by typical emotions such as hatred. But there was also grief. And love. So few humans contracted with me to save another, and Dahlia had done just that. The tasks I had carried out would hardly benefit her in the long run. She was always caring about other people. How could a race so vile and corrupt have produced something so innocent and pure? How could such a good soul have blossomed from the filth it was surrounded by? Was I entirely ready to wipe it off the face of the earth?

Dahlia had been staring at me expectantly with a small smile as I became lost in my thoughts.

"I'm ready, Claude," she reminded me with a gentle whisper. I wasn't entirely sure how I felt, killing Dahlia. There was a range of… complexities running through my head. In all honesty, I could only contribute my hesitation to the fact that I was attached. Not in the sense that Ariadne was attached to Caine- who had also proven to be a human anomaly- yet it felt incredibly similar. Dahlia had always interested me. I had always been able to connect with her on some level, which was odd for someone like me. I hardly connected with my own kind, let alone a human. I felt like she had almost been cheated somehow. That someone as good as her shouldn't end up the way she was going to. She deserved a happy ending of her own, didn't she?

"What's wrong, Claude?" she asked, softly.

"There's something I could do for you," I said quickly, without entirely realizing I had said it until Dahlia's expression changed.

"There's nothing more you need to do," Dahlia smiled. "You've done everything I've asked. You've changed sorrow into joy, pain to relief, and fear into hope. And you have every right to take what is yours."

"Dahlia, you could-" I started. I felt like a fool. "Things don't have to end this way for you. You could become like me." Dahlia let out a laugh. It sounded tired and sad.

"What would be the purpose in that?" she inquired, her eyes sparkling a little. "I plan to merely become a part of you."

"Yes, I know that. But don't you think you deserve a happy ending?" I asked, voicing more of my thoughts aloud than I had really intended.

"Do you pity me?" she asked sadly. I didn't know how to respond. Was I feeling pity? "Do you feel sorry for the sad creature I've become?" she continued. "Claude, this is my happy ending. My father can finally be happy again. He may even remarry. My mother is finally at peace. Townnesend is locked away where she deserves to be. She has no chance of escaping. And as for me, I get to rest. Finally. I will be at peace, and I will never be alone. You said so yourself. I'd always be with you."

This is what Dahlia wanted. Not to live forever. Not to be powerful. She just wanted an ending.

How curious.

"You're ready to die, then?" I asked. Dahlia nodded in response, a look of peace finally settling over her face.

I quickly slipped out of my unusually caring demeanor. I smiled at her, finally paying attention to the emptiness inside myself. Dahlia would fill that void. It would be nice to finally satisfy my own urges. I had gone several years without doing so.

There were many ways to remove a soul. Most were painful. Most I enjoyed making painful. I enjoyed seeing my masters' pain; mostly because they actually began to believe that they held dominion over me. Causing them agony was just a final reminder that I had been the one in charge the whole time. As I aged, I would experiment with different ways to remove a soul. There were ways I preferred over others, as these methods kept the quality of the soul intact. However, there was only one way I knew to gently remove a soul. This method I had only used once or twice before, for masters who were anomalies much like Miss Grimm. I felt that these sorts of humans deserved some form of decency.

I leaned in towards Dahlia, who had closed her eyes. There was a slight smile upon her lips. As I drew closer to the girl, I breathed in the scent of her soul. It was incredibly tantalizing and tempting. And now it was mine. I let my lips brush softly against hers, resisting the urge to quickly pull her soul out, as it would cause incredible pain. Instead, I elected to slowly drain her life, minimizing her pain. Her soul was unlike anything I had ever tasted.

I saw a life flash through my mind. Dahlia's life- or what it could have been. Viewing a "could have been" life was always a nuance to me, and was part of the reason I enjoyed devouring souls so quickly. However, this time was different. Dahlia had such a long life left and I had time to see it all, as though it really happened. The Dahlia that could have been would have grown up shortly. Despite what the girl believed, she would have married. I caught a glimpse of her small fiery haired children, who enjoyed a much more pleasant experience than their mother. Dahlia would have stayed in contact with her father- who would have remained her father, not some other man- and been beside him the moment he died. After all of her experiences of travel, learning, loving, and living, she would grow old and die. Peacefully. The way she would have wanted.

When it was all over, I stood. Another contract was completed. I could feel Dahlia's presence gently pressing on my mind, where I knew it would remain for the better part of eternity. The peace and relief I felt was from Dahlia. And Dahlia would supply that feeling for the rest of my existence.