*hides behind Sebastian dakimakura* DON'T KILL ME!
*throws this to appease them*
"While that may be so," Sebastian frowned, the edges of his lips tugging down as he watched Bard with a sharp eye. "Humans are a creature known for their lying. We'll have to keep a close watch on him."
As if sensing our gazes, the cook looked up towards Sebastian and I, shooting us a grin and a wink.
"He will also need to work on being inconspicuous." Sebastian stated blandly.
I shrugged. "Eh, I'm sure he'll stop eventually; it's just the novelty of being able to tease us. It'll wear itself out."
The raised black eyebrow indicated a coming question. "The novelty of teasing us?"
"Well," Shrugging, I conceded. "The novelty of teasing you." If his expression was anything to go by, he wasn't particularly amused. "Bard teases me all the time. He's never had dirt on you though; and thus, the first experience of being able to tease the stick-up-his-ass-butler-that-can-decapitate-you-in -three-seconds-without-worrying-too-much-about-sai d-decapitation is a thrill."
"Miss Constance." I smiled innocently up at the demon, who's eyebrows were beginning to furrow. "I am a demon, and could not keep up with the logic—or to be more precise, the lack thereof—in that."
The glare that situated on my face did little to cause the demon to spontaneously combust.
TCTCTC
"It's about time you stopped crying!"
I snickered at poor Ciel. "Oh, calm down. His emotions aren't as calloused as yours are."
The glare Ciel shot me made me grin, which he only shook his head at in exasperation. "Soma, don't wipe your nose on your sleeve, here use this…."
Instead of a handkerchief, Ciel pulled out an envelope. "This is–! When did this get put into my pocket?!"
"Eh? Who's it from?" Peering over his shoulder, I blinked at the queen's seal. "Huh. The queen must be a ninja."
"Actually, it was Her Majesty's man that put it in there but a moment ago." Sebastian commented, popping my bubble of a ninja queen.
"Why didn't you tell me?!"
"You did not ask."
I facepalmed as Sebastian trolled Ciel. "So, Ciel, what did Queen Ninja assign you this time?"
Ciel's eyebrow ticked at my reference to his position, and started to growl something out when he looked into the envelope, removing three slips of paper. "Tickets?"
"Perhaps they are Christmas gifts? For her dear boy." The demon said, slipping on his coat, which caused me different levels of blush. Thankfully, Ciel was too busy threatening him to see the color in my face.
"Do you want to die?"
I just patted the poor boy on the back. "Calm down, McMuffin." My words only agitated Ciel further, though it may have just been due to the dumbfounded feeling I inspired within him. "Welp, let's go home; I want to listen to Adam Levine as I enjoy a nice cup of tea." I commented, envisioning the singer's hips with a grin.
Ciel shot me a look before doing something akin to rolling his eyes, but making a sound of agreement. "While I do not know who Adam Levine is, I'm tired and could do with a hot cup of tea."
"Very well, Sir." Sebastian took the offered letter and pocketed it. "I shall brew a high-grade Assam upon our return. And for dinner, I shall put everything into making the very best curry-"
"Sebastian, you're not funny." I deadpanned, feeling a bit green around the gills.
The demon smirked down at me, mirth dancing in his eyes. "Oh? But Miss Constance, your butler just won the royal warrant in a curry contest. Surely-"
"You can drop the jokes." Ciel commented, his eye twitching slightly as he too looked a bit sick. "I don't want to lay eyes on anything so much as resembling curry."
Sebastian gave a small bow. "Very good sir."
I walked next to Ciel, before halting a moment so I fall into step with Sebastian. "Say, what are those tickets for? I highly doubt they're for the movies."
Both master and servant shot me a look before Sebastian pulled the envelope out of his coat, looking at its contents.
"They are for…the circus."
My eyes lit up.
I'd never been to the circus before.
TCTCTC
As it was, waiting for dinner to get finished was rather boring, and Ciel had decided to take a nap meaning I couldn't bug him. And god knows I wasn't about to try and find Soma; I had sat with Sebastian in the driver's seat on the carriage just to avoid sitting with the prat, now that he was a blubbering mess with his emotions flying back and forth faster than a pregnant woman's.
Fuck that; I wasn't about to willingly seek him out.
And so, because of that, I found myself at the piano.
I had hoped, with my improved hearing, that I would be able to pick out the different keys that made up the song; but it seemed I was still able to fail.
Letting out a groan, my face met the piano.
Behind me, I heard a small chuckle; peeking under my arm, I discovered Sebastian leaning against the door frame, amused at my antics. "Hey, it's not nice to laugh at girls you know."
He chuckled, walking towards me. "Then it is good you are a woman." I pouted slightly, lifting my head and looking up at the demon. "If you would not mind my asking, what is it you're trying to do?"
Wow, I must have failed on cosmic proportions if he couldn't guess what I was trying to do. "I'm trying to use my amazing hearing to pick out the notes from the song on my phone and learn how to play it on piano."
I have no idea how he did it, but he managed to look amused and appalled at the same time. "Miss Constance, you have been listening to this piece of music for just under an hour."
Sebastian didn't wilt under my glare, depressingly. Rather, he smiled down at me softly, and I again felt something in the cosmos shift; Sebastian and sweet smiles just didn't happen. And here they happened multiple times this past week.
It was far too unsettling.
"Would you like me to play it for you?"
I opened my mouth, intent on telling him no because I wanted to be the one to learn it, when I realized he was just wanting to be...well, nice. He had no ulterior motive—at least not one I could see, seeing as he could get laid by me whenever the fancy struck him—and giving a small nod, I scooted over for him to have access to the center of the piano.
"Do you need to listen to it?" I asked, watching as he slid in, lifting the tails of his coat so he wouldn't sit on them.
The demon chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "Constance, I was perfectly able to hear it the first time you played it and every time after that; it has already been committed to my memory, albeit unwillingly." I blushed slightly, pouting, watching as he placed his fingers over the keys, hesitating a moment before looking at me. "Why the sudden wish to learn this song?"
Awkwardly, I blushed and looked away, rubbing the side of my neck as I looked down at the keys. "It's from one of my favorite movies; it's called 'The Portrait' which is essentially the accompaniment for the love song of the movie." The demon's eyebrow rose at my apparent sappiness, and I swatted his arm. "Don't give me that look; I'm still a female."
Sebastian shook his head, still slightly amused. "You said this is the love song and yet its base melody is rather depressing. I find it rather difficult to believe it to be a love song, that is all."
I deadpanned as he practically hit the nail on the head. "It is depressing." If I stumped Sebastian—which I think I might have as he glanced back up at me—it was hidden fairly well in his expression. Sighing, I decided I had no choice. "Here, I'll explain it. In three days on a luxury cruise ship, a third class passenger and a first class passenger fall in love-" Sebastian gave a small scoff. "Oi, don't you dare criticize my favorite movie. Anyways, the ship hits an iceberg and sinks in the north Atlantic, and the guy freezes to death because the lifeboats didn't come back in time."
His eyebrow arched, looking slightly amused. "Indeed, that would explain the basis for a depressing melody."
I stuck my tongue out at the demon. "Told you it was a love song. Now, are you going to play the song for me or not?"
Giving a small chuckle, Sebastian once again placed his fingers on the piano keys, however this time he pressed into them, his fingers fluidly moving over the notes, keeping the pace of the original song.
A somber smile settled on my face as I watched his hands dance steadily over the piano, effortless and beautifully. At some point, I leaned my head against his shoulder, my eyes following his roaming hands as he delicately pressed into the keys, his fingers stretching across to reach the notes.
"Miss Constance." I picked my head up slightly to look at Sebastian. "I am curious; do you believe what you said earlier in regards to marriage?"
My mind blanked. What had I said earlier about marriage?
"Oh." I sat up as I remembered the Mina situation. "You mean the whole 'you don't have to be married for god to recognize your love' thing, right?"
Sebastian chuckled as he played the Titanic song. "Yes, Constance, I am referring to that."
I looked down at the piano, considering it. "I do. Marriage is only used to be recognized by the state-er, sorry, that's America." The demon raised a perfect black eyebrow. "The only reason people marry is so the government recognizes them as one. I would expect God to recognize two people in love as one whether or not they share the same name." A sigh escaped me after another moment. "But I suppose it wouldn't matter for us. God wouldn't recognize us whether or not we were married."
"Why do you say that?"
My gaze met Sebastian's and saw him appearing to be honestly confused. "Wha-because. God is God. Ruler of heaven and possessor of an army of Angels. You know, kind of the opposite of demons?"
"Constance." He gave a light chuckle, shaking his head. "God, while arrogant, does not discriminate against demons." I was sure I wore a 'what the actual fuck' look. "All demons were once angels, albeit fallen now. He does not forget this. The Angels, however, have over time; Angels are born, unlike demons. And with each generation, the idea that Angels and Demons are the same become even further lost on them."
I kept my gaze adverted, watching the fluid movements of Sebastian's hands. "Sebastian, have you any idea what it is like to fall?"
To my surprise, Sebastian hit a wrong key, but quickly fixed the error. "Why the question, Miss Constance?"
I shrugged, fiddling with my hands, unsure if I should continue; I had already shocked Sebastian into hitting the wrong note once. "I don't know; just curious, I guess."
A moment of silence spanned between us with only the piano sounding before the demon finally spoke. "I myself did not fall; Satan did. However..." He considered his thoughts before speaking again. "I have seen it."
My silence told him to continue.
"When a fallen angel falls, they truly do fall from the heavens." I blinked in surprise. "The weight of their sins makes them too heavy for their wings to support them, and they fall. The entrance to Hell will open in the earth, which is perhaps where the idea that Hell is below Earth's surface originated from."
That actually made sense, what with the whole 'Hell being underground.' "But how did you see it exactly? Wouldn't that be...I don't know, rare or something?" I honestly didn't imagine Angels fell too often, and I received a nod from the demon.
"You are correct; I have only witnessed it once. I was in a contract at the time with Mary Boleyn, and was returning from Anne Boleyn's execution." I openly gaped. The fucking Boleyn sisters?! "It takes six seconds for an angel to fall from the heavens and enter Hell." Holy shit. "The rate of which they fall causes their wings to tear out of their back."
I stayed quiet for a few minutes. "That's...horrible."
His next words were spoken softly, as he neared the ending of the piece. "Indeed it is."
"You know, you didn't have to play it for me." I mumbled, and he came to the final few measures.
I couldn't see his face, but I liked to think he was smiling softly.
"Yes, my mistress, I am aware."
TCTCTC
"Miss Constance, it is time to awaken."
Groaning, I huddled further under my covers; becoming a weird half demon-human thing had done nothing to curb my insistence to be lazy. "Come on, can't I just lie in bed all day for once?" I knew my answer before I even asked the question.
"No." Sebastian replied, and my eyes rolled; why did I have to be right? "Perhaps once you get further into your pregnancy, I might allow it."
That popped me out of my covers. "Really?"
The demon looked at me slightly appalled. "Do you genuinely believe I would not care for my mate while she is in a delicate state?"
Well, considering none of his mates had made it through the pregnancy before, I had reason to doubt. "You don't really want me to answer that do you?" Earning one of Sebastian's glares, I grinned. "Good." Yawning and stretching like a cat, I peered up at the demon as I flopped back into my bed. "So what are we doing today that won't allow me to lie in bed like a lazy ass?"
The demon sighed at my antics, setting down the tray with my breakfast, pulling back the covers and situating me in an upright position before placing the tray in my lap. Awesome; it wasn't too often Sebastian allowed me to have breakfast in bed. The last time I did was almost half a year ago, and I'd spilt orange juice all over my sheets; it had annoyed Sebastian enough he had forbid me from eating in bed. "Scotland Yard Commissioner Lord Randall shall be joining us for dinner this evening-"
"Whach?!" I yelled through my scone, swallowing it before speaking again. "Why is that dickwad coming over?"
Again, I received a sigh from Sebastian as he viewed my horrible manners. "Do try not to speak with your mouth full, Miss Constance." I shrugged and rolled my eyes, grabbing my juice, being careful not to spill. "Lord Randall shall be joining us as he is to pay the family of Phantomhive for help in solving the case."
Staring at Sebastian, I comprehended what he said. "...we get paid for the underworld cases we solve?" He gave a curt nod, pouring me tea. Huh. I didn't know that. "But we don't exist. So wouldn't someone realize money's going missing?"
Sebastian chuckled, placing my tea cup onto my tray. "On paper, it gets classed as 'rewards' rather than payment for services."
"Oh." I commented, drinking some of the milk on my tray. "So, how did the press react to a butler for the Funtom Company winning the Royal Warrant?" I teased, grinning.
"There was much shock overall, it seemed. However the writer of the article expressed their congratulations to the Young Master." His eyes glanced over towards me. "It was also noted that this was your first time in a public setting."
I blinked multiple times, my chewing having halted before I swallowed. "What? But I was in public during my 'Introduction to Society' thing." Though that was in our own home. "And I've been in public lots of times.
"Pictures were not taken, Miss Constance, as it was here at our manor and photographs were not allowed. And you've never been to a public function, Miss Constance." Grabbing it from his cart, he handed me the paper already opened to a specific page with two separate articles; the first was something about Noah's Ark Circus –which I'd have to ask Sebastian about later– and a slightly smaller column about me.
"Holy shit." Were the first words out of my mouth as I blinked, flabbergasted. "The elusive and unwedded Lady Phantomhive makes her first appearance in public… seen giving a young child a Funtom Chocolate Bar… mystery as to why she is still not married, nor has there been any announcement of a fiancé; however, with the care she showed the young boy as an obvious premeditator to her future role as a mother, it would not be unfounded if she got a numerous amount of proposals in the following weeks." I eyes roamed down the rest of the column before I looked up at Sebastian, completely dumbfounded and at a loss for words.
"Miss Constance?"
I didn't acknowledge him, instead looking back at the article. "I'm not sure if I should be awed at the fact I have an entire article to myself, or upset at the writer in general." I snorted. "'The elusive and unwedded Lady Phantomhive.' They describe me like I'm some rare endangered species."
"Are you not?" My gaze rose to meet Sebastian's, my eyebrow twitching. "You are an unmarried Phantomhive. You very well could be viewed as a rare and endangered species."
Hmphing, I looked back at the paper nonchalantly. "You're not helping your chances in getting laid in the near future."
"I'm sure last night will tide me over for a few days."
My face burned scarlet.
TCTCTC
I was on my way back inside –having already made a snow angel– after a walk in the snow, and found Finny straining to make his broom reach the top of a tree to dust the snow off.
"Good morning Finny!" I chirped, waving. His current train of thought vanished when he saw me, giving a big smile and stretching his arm high in a wave.
"Good morning, Miss Tabby!" He halted for a moment before his smile got even wider. "Miss Tabby! Miss Tabby! Do you have an idea on how I could reach the snow at the top of the tree?!"
I looked up at the tree where Finny couldn't reach the last two and a half feet of snow. "…did you try shaking it?"
"Ah!" The boy turned on spot and wrapped his arms around the tree to start shaking it.
Except he uprooted it.
"Wah! Miss Tabby! What do I do?!"
Why the ever loving hell was he asking me this?! "I don't know, stick it back in the ground?!"
He did so, and it seemed to stay for the most part. At least until we could get Sebastian to superman over and fix it.
"I'll…just go find Sebastian and let him know about the tree." I said, sneaking away, not wanting to be seen at the scene of the crime.
TCTCTC
I was currently scouting the halls in an attempt to find the demon butler –and had been for about half an hour– when a large explosion shook the house, no doubt coming from the kitchen.
And where the explosion was, Sebastian would be.
Having now discovered where the demon would be, I decided there was no rush; Sebastian would scold the chef and get annoyed with him before ordering him to clean up and leave the cooking to himself. As the kitchen was only a floor below me, I knew I'd get to the kitchen before Sebastian had even finished.
So imagine my surprise when I see Sebastian looking around the corner into the kitchen as he leaned against the wall.
"Sebastian?"
He continued to watch Bard –and Agni, as it appeared– for another second before looking down at me and pushing off the wall.
"Yes, Miss Constance?"
I blinked, confused. "Is something the matter?"
Anything that I had seen on his face previously vanished, and a coy smirk took its place with a perfectly arched black eyebrow. "No. Whatever would give you that idea?"
I stared hard at him, though his smirk never faltered. "Does it upset you?" I commented, looking back at Agni and Bard, who were successfully cleaning without a problem. "I saw him helping Finny too after I came back inside to find you." When I glanced back up at his face, any and all emotion had left. "Why?"
To my surprise, he sneered; I don't think he'd ever sneered at me before; and if he had, it was certainly so rare I didn't remember it. "Something so trivial does not upset me."
I tilted my head as he walked off. "It must." My words froze him mid-step. "If there wasn't a problem, you would have given me a blank look and asked what I meant." He turned around to look at me, his eyes slightly widened in surprise. "Instead you tried to cover it with one of your teasing smirks, and then brush it off with attitude. Do not think I can't read you, Sebastian. I've read Heart of Darkness and The Scarlet Letter; you may be one damn hard book, but I'm not illiterate."
He stared at me for a second longer before turning on his heel and continuing on his way.
I gave a huff, staring after the man in the silent hall.
"You're certainly more literate than me."
I jumped about a foot in the air.
"Bard! Don't sneak up on people!" I screeched, whacking him in the arm. He gave a yelp and a groan.
"Damn girl! Don't go bruising me! Be more aware of your surroundings!"
I stared at him flatly, though I did feel a bit bad. I hadn't gotten use to any of my extra strength, so what I had thought was a light hit probably was bruising. "Sorry, sorry." Sighing, I shook my head. "Sometimes that man is just so damn infuriating."
"Oh?" Bard grinned, lighting up a cigarette. "Do tell me all your woes." When I glared, he motioned for me to continue. "Seriously, this is some good gossip, especially if it's about your relationship with him."
Rolling my eyes, I found myself shaking my head again. "He just thinks he's better than me because he's older."
"Well, he is, isn't he?" When my murderous eyes landed on the chef, he held his hands up in surrender. "Oi! Let me finish! He's older and has more life experience. Granted, he's not as old as me," HA! That was a laugh. "But I imagine something in his past taught him to put a mask up. And he's had years to perfect that mask." My eyes fell to the ground; he was right, in a sense. "By the way, I heard your guys' celebration last night. You're a bit loud when not everyone is asleep."
As my face turned red, I reminded myself his head would likely implode if I tried to punch him in the nose.
TCTCTC
I trekked after Sebastian, intent on asking why he was upset, when I came across Agni and Maylene sitting on the main stairway in the foyer, half the railing black on one side. My face flattened.
"Maylene, did you use shoe polisher again?"
The poor blind maid jumped. "Miss Tabby! You scared me, yes you did!" Blinking, she looked down at the railing before deflating heavily. "Ah, yes Miss Tabby, I did, I did."
Agni too looked up at me. "Subaha acchā, Miss Tabby."
I smiled a bit at the Hindi, able to figure out the meaning, having heard Soma say it once before. "Good morning, Agni. Though it's a late good morning."
"Thank you." He gave a small bow, walking up the steps as Maylene started to clean, following me as I continued my search for the demon. "Are you searching for something, Miss Tabby? Would you like me to help?"
Slowly, I shifted my gaze towards him. "Mmm, I'm just looking for Sebastian. I have a bone to pick with him."
The poor Indian man blinked. "I'm afraid I do not understand. You have to pick his bone…?"
I snorted before I could cover it. "Er, it's a phrase. He's made me a tad bit upset, so I need to talk to him." I shrugged at his still confused look. "Hey, I didn't make up the English language."
Agni gave a small smile. "Ah, I suppose so. English is a very difficult language." And yet you speak it almost flawlessly. "Would you like me to help you find Mister Sebastian?"
I had to think about that for a second. "Probably not. If I do find him, I'll likely yell at him and make him angry at me, which wouldn't be pretty." Agni just blinked. Repeatedly. "What?"
"I have never seen Mister Sebastian mad. I thought he didn't get angered easily."
Another snort escaped me. "Sebastian…hides it well. To be honest, he has anger management problems."
If the look Agni was giving me was anything to go on, it would appear I grew a second head.
Though when I felt the aura behind me, I realized it was just Sebastian.
I didn't even turn around to greet him. "Oh, hello Sebastian. I see you've decided to stop evading me."
"Miss Constance." I almost wanted to cry with how chilly his voice was. "I wasn't aware it was socially acceptable to talk about one's problems."
Closing my eyes, I smiled painfully as I turned to him. "Of course it is. I don't really care if you tell people I have a brother complex." Opening my eyes, I saw him giving me an unamused look, which I deemed safe to relax. "By the way, I want to talk to you. I didn't finish my conversation when you so rudely walked away."
"Perhaps I ended it for a reason." Sebastian stated plainly, walking past both me and Agni. I stared open mouthed, before my face turned red with anger.
I could physically feel myself puff up before I ran, launching myself at his back.
"Miss Constance!"
"Sebastian Michaelis!" I yelled, wrapping myself around him awkwardly; I had my arms around his neck, one leg hitched on his hip, while the other was hiked up over his arm as he tried to detach himself from me. "You do not walk away from me when I am trying to talk to you!"
"Constance!" I think I had utterly stumped Sebastian, considering he wasn't angry yet; that alone was a major feat. "I request you remove yourself from my person!"
"No! You won't listen to me otherwise!"
Sebastian relaxed his position, though he was still standing up right, and I could feel the muscles in his back and stomach tensing to hold himself up properly. "Miss Constance, I must go serve the young master lunch." He looked at me out the side of his eye. "It is time for lunch for you as well, Miss Constance."
"I'm not hungry." I stated as a rebuttal. "And you can just deal with me on your back since you decided to try and evade me."
Slowly, I could feel irritation begin to grow within him.
TCTCTC
"…Tabby, why are you clinging to Sebastian's back?"
I shrugged. "He decided he was going to try and ignore me and evade me."
Sebastian's eyebrow twitched. "She figured she could keep up with me if she latched herself onto my person."
To be honest, I think Ciel was amused, though he was hiding it well, save for the ever so slight twitches on his lips.
"And why did you try and evade Tabby?"
I grinned. "Because he just discovered I can read him better than he thought."
Both Ciel and Sebastian looked at me flabbergasted. Ciel because the idea of anyone being able to read Sebastian was mind boggling, Sebastian because I could have just ousted our relationship.
Ciel, to my amusement, leaned forward and placed his chin on his hand. "And what have you discovered in reading him?"
Again, I shrugged my shoulders. "He's upset over something." Now I could feel anger begin to pool in his aura; I still hadn't asked Sebastian about that… "Oi, don't get mad at me just because I speak the truth."
Ciel blinked. "How did you know he was getting mad…?"
"I'm psychic, boy-o." Ciel shot me the most muddled expression I had ever seen on his face. "Didn't you know women were psychic?"
It seemed Ciel didn't believe me.
"No! Really! I can feel auras! Sebastian's highly annoyed." I pointed out, and Ciel gave me a point blank stare.
"I do believe anyone would be able to pick that up."
TCTCTC
"Miss Constance, would you be willing to get down yet?" Sebastian asked, heaving an annoyed breath.
"Are you willing to stop evading me?" I asked in rebuttal, giving him a pointed look.
"Miss Constance." I could feel his patience slipping. "I need to prepare dinner, and you need to prepare for dinner." Well, he was right. "Could this perhaps wait until after our guests have gone and the young master is asleep?"
Sighing, I released my hold on him, my stiff arms unlatching before my legs so I fell back onto my butt, a yelp escaping me. It didn't really surprise me though that the demon had taken off as soon as he was free. I sat up with a groan, rubbing my neck that had gotten a crick at some point, glaring in the demon's general direction he had gone. Why did it matter so much if he was jealous of Agni or something? Besides, he didn't have a reason to be; it wasn't like Agni was going to take his job or something.
It was pointless to dwell on the matter for now though, I decided. It was four in the afternoon, and we had a guest coming at seven.
So I left to take a two and a half hour bath.
TCTCTC
"Miss Constance!"
I jumped, splashing water out of the bathtub, groggily jerking my head to look at where the voice came, and spotting a blurry Sebastian.
"Mmm?" A yawn tore from my mouth, and I rubbed my eyes.
"It is six thirty three and our guests will be here in half an hour." I looked back at Sebastian to find him in focus now that I had rubbed the sleep from my eyes. "Do you wish to embarrass the young master by being late?"
Groaning, I stood up out of the cold bathwater, only to get wrapped in a towel and hefted out of the tub, the demon patting my dry.
"Miss Constance, why are you blushing?"
I jerked slightly, annoyed as I did feel a blush on my cheeks; but he hadn't even raised his head to look at my face. "I'm not blushing!"
He lifted his head to gaze up at me, his face level with my naval. "Miss Constance, I can feel the rise in heat coming from you."
My lips pursed into a thin line, though my face was still red. "And what if that is coming from between my legs and not my face, hmm?"
"Then we would have been able to remedy that had you not fallen asleep in the tub."
I pouted, and followed Sebastian into my room after he had patted me dry, still blushing like a little Japanese school girl confessing to her senpai, despite the fact Sebastian and I had had sex before.
I think I would always blush when it came to being naked in front of Sebastian.
TCTCTC
Walking back towards Ciel's office, I nearly knocked the poor boy down turning a corner, Ciel only just barely steadying himself while I fell back and landed on my ass.
He sighed, but helped me up nonetheless. "Tabby, shouldn't you be going to greet our guests? I just heard them arrive."
My lips pursed. "I didn't want to greet them myself; I don't like the Commissioner."
This it seemed amused him. "You'd be hard pressed to find someone that did." I honestly didn't doubt this. "Come on, let's go."
Nodding, I followed Ciel to the foyer and down the steps.
"Well, well. Lord Commissioner." I looked down at the three people on the main floor as Ciel spoke his greetings. "Welcome to the Phantomhive Manor."
We stepped onto the floor, and I nodded my head by way of greeting the commissioner and the red head detective; Abberline, or something?
"Dinner is served." Ciel said, motioning towards the right. "If you would please come this way…"
I stood and waited for the two men to pass, and looked back at Sebastian to whispered for whoever is on the other side of the door to go to their room.
"Hey…" I whispered, drawing Sebastian's attention as he speed-walked to catch up. "Who-"
"Mister Agni." Sebastian drawled bitterly. "He seems it is necessary to turn himself in."
I made a sound of understanding, which he took as his dismissal to return to his sped up speed, leading us through the house to the dining room.
"I'm well aware that you don't wish to dine with the likes of me, but…" Ciel started, sounding amused. "This has been tradition for generations." It had? I knew the Commissioner had come to dinner before, but I had never been aware of why; nor had I ever joined before. "It's rare to see you bring someone along. Is he a candidate for your successor? You are at that age, after all."
Both myself and Abberline snickered, though the Commissioner ignored the jab at his age. "If you hadn't made an appearance at the crime scene, he would never have come to know anything!"
"Eh?" The commissioner turned to look back at me. "Didn't you know? We'd already met him before. I think Ciel met him during the Jack the Ripper case, even. I didn't meet him until the hope diamond case."
It was to my humor the Commissioner sputtered. "Wha-"
"I don't mind having him know," Ciel interrupted before he could have an aneurism. "But you're the one who can't afford to have our relationship become public, right?"
I didn't have to see the Commissioner's face to know he was annoyed and perhaps even closer to that aneurism.
Sebastian however, was staring back behind us wide eyed.
Turning to look back, I barely caught a glimpse of Agni before Sebastian slammed the door shut on his face, causing the rest of our group to jump and turn to look at the demon.
"I beg your pardon." Sebastian gave a small bow. "The door was open so…"
Ciel only rolled his eyes. "If the door fits poorly, have it fixed at once."
That wasn't exactly the problem, Ciel.
Sebastian locked the door, hissing darkly at Agni before continuing forward through the portrait hall, which Abberline seemed to enjoy immensely, gushing over the pictures.
The Commissioner, not so much.
"All of these paintings are gloomy!" I glared at him. "They are indeed worthy of a hive of phantoms!"
I strode up next to him, and glared strongly while Abberline excitingly looked at the Ophelia painting that Lord Randall had just bashed.
"You know," I started. "Just because we look like a hive of phantoms doesn't mean we are."
He sneered down at me. "Oh? Then what are you?"
God damn, he really pissed me off. "We're humans, just like you and every other soul on this planet." I spat, annoyed. "We have feelings despite what you seem to think."
I don't think he particularly agreed, because he continued to turn his nose up at me like I was nothing more than the dirt of society.
"He appreciates art." Ciel said conversationally to the Commissioner, and I noticed Sebastian starting to shut every curtain window; I barely caught a sliver of Agni before he disappeared from the window. "Should you not seriously consider a transition of power?"
"Appreciating art does not make him of any use as a detective!"
I turned away from Sebastian and to the commissioner again. "Oh? What if a particular case involves a famous piece getting stolen, or perhaps the involvement of a fake piece? It would help if a detective would be able to recognize that." I pointed out.
He only gritted his teeth in return.
"Everyone," We looked up to Sebastian, who opened the doors for us to continue. "This way please. The table has already been se-T?!" I don't think anyone else noticed it, but I could hear the hiss of agitation in the demon's voice; I didn't have to turn to know what it was.
"Heeey, Ciiieel-"
When I turned around, Sebastian was gone from behind us, and I could feel absolute terror wafting from Soma on the landing above.
Grinning, I turned back around, only to spot Agni opening the door.
Time seemed to freeze for a second before a cold inky blackness covered us.
"What?! What is going on?!" The commissioner shouted, a slightly frantic sound to his voice. I myself had my eyebrows furrowed; this wasn't regular darkness. If it was, I'd be able to see thanks to the moonlight outside; but it was jet black.
It was Sebastian's demon that had engulfed us.
"WAH! It's pitch black!" I jerked at a few sounds composing of clatters, stomps and thuds, hearing them coming from both where I knew the detective and commissioner to be, as well as where I knew Agni to be.
Did Agni fall down?
"And you call yourself a detective?! You should be ashamed of yourself!"
The blackness dispersed as Sebastian held up a candelabra, illuminating the room.
"My apologies. The lights seem to have gone out." Looking up, I discovered that the candles on in the chandelier had indeed gone out, and there was no Agni in sight.
"Was it the wind or something, Sebastian?" Ciel asked, looking all for the world that of an innocent child who was playing host.
"Yes. It was something…other than the wind."
Way to be inconspicuous, I thought, rubbing a hand down my face at the Commissioner's questioning glance.
"The dining room is that way. Come, let us go."
I could hear a light shuffling and pleads for what might have been help coming from behind the other door, and couldn't help but wonder what Sebastian had done to Agni.
TCTCTC
"Now that we're settled in, let's get down to business." I looked at Ciel, who sat to my right in confusion.
"Indeed." This time, I turned to the opposite end of the table. "I do not wish to stay in this creepy doghouse forever."
Pursing my lips, I forced myself to not make a snarky comment as he pulled out an envelope and set it on a tray that Sebastian brought to Ciel. Casually breaking the Ciel, he pulled out the single strip of paper, his eyes glancing over it before giving a small sigh.
"Well, this amount is to be expected from a case of that level, hmm?"
Leaning over, I stretched my neck to see that we had gotten ten pounds. "Well, it's better than nothing, yeah?"
"What is that?!"
I jumped slightly as the detective inspector shrieked, and begrudgingly noticed I was the only one to do so.
"We're you kept in the dark about this, Mister Successor?" Ciel teased, holding up the check. "The commissioners have long run errands for the queen, you see…and they take the trouble of bringing food to the dog house." A sneer started to twitch onto Lord Randall's face; obviously he wanted nothing more than to deny what Ciel was saying…but it was likely all true; at least, everything that had been said so far was. "Phantomhive is a special government agency kept secret from the general public. Therefore, their funding and recompense is not included in the national budget."
Abberline was slowly loosing color.
"Without legal evidence, you cannot declare to the citizens that we exist…" Ciel's deranged grin widened. "…thus, our high expenses are paid for by none other than you, Scotland Yard."
Looking at Lord Randall, I saw his jaw clench as well as a vein protrude from his forehead, and momentarily wondered if he was going to have an aneurism.
"On paper, it gets chalked up to 'rewards', just as for Barnaby and the other police dogs." Ciel finished, a dark amused glint in his eye.
Honestly, Ciel would make a fine demon.
"No!" This time I didn't jump when Abberline raised his voice and jumped up, instead turning my head to look at him. "That's almost like a bribe–"
"Almost?" I cut in, my own lips turning up in a grin. "Mr. Abberline, there is no 'almost' about it." He looked over at me, his eyes widened in disbelief as he lowered himself back into his seat. "It's the very definition of a bribe."
Ciel it seemed, appeared rather pleased with what I had said. "This has been the custom for generations." A pleasant smile fell onto the boy's face, the air lightening only slightly. "Come, I have procured the choicest champagne to commemorate the end of this affair." I wrinkled my nose lightly; champagne was nasty ass shit. "Let's have a toast."
Again, the detective inspector jumped up out of his seat. "But the culprits have not been arrested y-"
"Enough, Abberline."
I looked to the commissioner in surprise. "Both Her Majesty and Phantomhive have declared the affair to be 'over' so the perpetrators no longer exist."
The doors swung open, a bang echoing in the nearly silent room. I could feel myself pale and sweatdrop as our guest turned back around to look at Agni standing in the open doorway, looking tired and worn out, loose rope hanging off him.
"Agni…?" I tilted my head slightly; obviously, Sebastian had tied him up in those ropes. So how'd he get out. "Wha-"
"About those incidents!" Agni yelled, sounding rushed. "The truth is–"
He didn't say anymore as I saw a wine bottle cork shoot off from behind me, hitting him square in the jaw with enough force to knock him off his feet.
I blinked, watching the cork bounce back to Sebastian's open hand. "Was that really necessary?" I whispered as Agni sat up, holding his mouth in obvious pain.
"Oh dear, pardon me." Sebastian said, not sounding particularly sorry. "Are you unhurt?"
Agni gave a stiff nod, still holding his mouth, when the almighty Prince entered the room, mumbling about how he was starving.
Sighing, I dropped my face into my hands.
"Who are they?" Abberline asked, leaning forward slightly to see Agni as well.
"Idiotic Indians." I spat in disbelief. Honestly; how could they both be so stupid as to ignore what Sebastian told them?
"Indians?" Lord Randall said, looking to me in surprise.
"Lord Randall, I apologize for the fuss." Raising my head, I looked to Ciel, noticing him sigh in defeat. "These two are Soma, Prince of Bengal, and Agni, the Prince's attendant." The boy's jaw clenched. "They are friends," Ciel almost spat the word like it was acid, holding back only slightly. "Who are staying on at our manor to learn about British culture."
Soma didn't seem to hear anything after the word 'friend'.
"Ciel!" Soma shrieked, tackling the young earl in a hug. "You finally acknowledged it! You consider me your best friend!"
Ciel appeared to forget he had guests, and started fighting tooth and nail to escape the Prince's hold. "Who are you calling my best fri-GUEH!" He cut off as Soma tightened his hold, nuzzling his cheek against Ciel's.
"Cieeeeel!"
"You're choking me, enough already!"
Leaning forward, I tapped Soma on the shoulder, who loosened his hold on Ciel slightly to turn and look at me. "You really should let go; if you choke him to death, he can't be your best friend, yeah?"
Soma gave a gasp of horror, letting go of Ciel. "Yes, you are right, Tabby!" He nodded fiercely, looking down at Ciel and fixing his bow, to my amusement.
"Miss Constance, would you like any champagne?"
Turning my gaze away from the teens, I found a bright 'Say yes and I might kill you' smile coming from the demon's face.
"Er, no thank you, Sebastian. I really don't like champagne, so the answer will always be no."
Sebastian nodded, then stood up straight and looked to his master, who gave a sigh.
"Then, once more, let us toast to the end of this affair." Everyone held their glasses up.
"Cheers!"
I watched as the men all drank their champagne, Soma downing it quickly. "Wow, Tabby, you don't like this stuff?!" Soma asked, looking into his cup. "It's delicious!"
A sneer eased up onto my face. "I've always hated it. I was given champagne at my cousin's wedding-" Edward's reincarnation's, specifically. "-and absolutely detested it. I plan on never drinking that abomination ever again, thank you very much."
Dinner was brought out not but five minutes later, Agni and Soma joining us at the table, Agni staying helpfully silent while the commissioner and Ciel shot hidden insults back and forth across the table, both Abberline and Soma too ignorant to catch them.
"I swear to god…" I mumbled, as Randall slipped in another insult of us being nothing but dogs. Honestly, did the man have no other insults?
Ciel ended up replying something about how we were at least properly trained compared to the dogs of the yard or some such nonsense.
"Excuse me, gentlemen." I interrupted, and both Ciel and the commissioner turned to look at me. "While I understand your reputations may be on the line, may I point out that neither of you hold the other in high standing anyways?" I glanced back and forth between them. "In other words, trying to prove you're better than the other only lowers your standing even more."
I heard a 'tch' sound come from the commissioner, who begrudgingly agreed with me. "My apologies, we should not be having a conversation like this in front of a woman such as yourself."
My eyebrow rose slightly, and I went back to eating. "I don't particularly mind the insults; just the fact that they're the same ones being used over and over again gets very boring."
It looked like Randall wanted to give an insulting retort, but refrained from doing so as it must have been rude to insult a lady, however I knew from Sebastian's 'etiquette' teachings that a woman was allowed to insult a man as long as it was in a round about way.
"But I shouldn't judge to hard, I suppose." I commented, playing with my food slightly. "The dogs of the yard only know one trick, so they can't help it."
I felt all powerful when Randall started turning a purple color.
TCTCTC
Ciel had just walked into the room after escorting Lord Randall and Abberline out of the manor, both Soma and Agni kneeling as I had suggested -ordered- Agni already starting his groveling as he threw himself as flat as possible on the ground in front of Ciel, who sat in his chair.
"Forgive meee!" Agni cried, in obvious pain from sitting on their heels. "Mister Sebastian stopped me many times, but I just–!"
"I don't care if you give yourself up at a place that has nothing to do with me, but don't involve me any further! I've had enough!"Ciel yelled, his eyebrow twitching in anger. I bit my lips between my teeth and puffed my cheeks out, amused.
"He's right, Agni." Soma said, staring his khansama down. "Do not cause trouble for my best friend. I forbid you to surrender yourself." Agni opened his mouth to make a rebuttal, however Soma beat him to it. "This is a command!"
Sulking, Agni's shoulder's drooped. "Jo aagyaa…"
Was it seriously that easy?
"Well, my dear friend Ciel has given us his personal permission to stay, so let us go to bed, Agni." I deadpanned.
"You would have stayed even if Ciel didn't give his permission." I pointed out, staring at the two of them flatly.
"Very well." Ciel said, sighing in resolution. "I give you leave to stay." No doubt my expression was incredulous. "But! Those who do not earn their keep aren't welcome here."
Soma blinked, and I stared at Ciel, trying to understand. "Wait. You're saying he has to get a job?" The Prince and I shared a look before we both burst out laughing. Soma get a job?! The day hell freezes over!
"Earn my keep?! Me, a prince?!" Soma said, his laughter calming down. Ciel looked a tad bit annoyed at our reaction, shooting me a glare.
"Yes. I'll pay you wages in exchange. In other words, that money will be truly yours because you'll have earned it yourself." I shot Ciel a look; Ciel was going to pay him? If he planned on hiring him in one of his factories, it'd be burned down to the ground in a week. "You're going to become a fine gentlemen who doesn't rely on his parents, right?"
Soma seemed in awe of the belief Ciel had in him, and smiled brightly. "Indeed, indeed! What should I do?"
I looked to Ciel, raising an eyebrow as he smirked. "Let's see…why don't I have you and Agni go to London to manage my town house?" The deadpanned expression again fell onto my face. "It's a difficult job. I can't ask just anybody to do it. Think you can handle it?"
As Soma jumped up and proclaimed to taking the job, I followed Ciel out of the room.
"Er…you're giving Soma leave to stay in the London town house?"
I earned a very scathing look. "Yes, what is your point?"
My lips pursed. "You do know Soma can cause as much havoc as all three of the servants, right?"
Ciel brushed me off. "Then less reason for me to go to London."
Shaking my head, I looked up at Sebastian, who had an eyebrow raised. "What is it?"
Watching Ciel walk off, he lifted his hand to his chin. "I just wonder when the young master will remember we need to go to London in a few days' time."
I made a slight groan; god damn it. We would be escaping Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum only to walk right back to them. Groaning again, I decided to change the subject. "So, why were you evading me earlier?"
Sebastian's jaw flexed before he spoke. "I am merely not comfortable with the power he wields being around you."
What?
"What?" Honestly, that was his problem? "Agni's not going to do anything to me."
I earned a lovely glare. "Certainly you can sense a holy presence in him."
My answer was a shrug. "To be honest, I haven't tried. I've figured out that it was his aura I could feel whenever there was an overwhelming sense of guilt in the room, but that's always overpowered anything else. So no, I haven't sensed any sort of holy presence in him."
"Ah." Sebastian gazed down at me, an innocent expression on his face. "You mentioned you can feel auras. Can you see them as well?"
At this, I shook my head. "Nope. I mean, I know Alexia could see auras…" Sebastian nodded, but it was stiff. "So I think there's like…residue or something, which allows me to sense it."
"Could you sense them when you were human?"
"Sorta. It was more of an impression than anything." Sebastian nodded in understanding. "Especially yours. I could always feel it coming, thought I chalk that up to you being a demon. But now that I'm in this weird state of half-n-half," He looked bemused for a moment. "I can sense even human emotions better. It's just…weird."
He opened my door for me –I wasn't even aware we had arrived at my room– and made a sound of understanding. "Most demons tend to have impressions as you explained you used to when you were human. It is why demons go mad and indiscriminately devour souls in the first years of their lives."
I blinked, paling. "W-what?"
Despite the topic, Sebastian smiled down at me. "The impressions of the souls overwhelm them, that is merely all." Like that helped!
"But-!"
"Constance, you are already use to it. You can feel auras." I still looked up at him wide eyed. "The soul is the aura, Constance. You have already mastered it, and will not be overwhelmed by it."
That calmed me down a bit. "Did…did it overwhelm you?"
There was hesitation before he answered. "Yes. It was the overwhelming feeling that urged me to consume Amortia's soul."
Multiple times I opened my mouth and closed it, only to open it back up again. "But…wasn't she a demon? I thought demon's didn't have souls in the same sense as humans?"
"Most don't." Sebastian agreed, and I noticed his eyes looked a tad bit dull. "But Amortia wasn't converted into a demon by another. She made herself into a demon."
I blinked. "What does that have to do with it, though?"
He gazed down at me, and I felt my heartbreak a tiny bit by how hurt he looked. "Never before had a human turned themselves into a demon, and never have they since. Because she turned on her own, she kept her soul. She was a demon with a soul."
If I surprised him by burying my face in his chest, he didn't particularly show it, instead choosing to envelope me in his arms.
*scuttles* Sorry I haven't updated in forever TTATT I procrastinated so horribly on this chapter. I went to Maine with the intention to finish it...and didn't. In fact, I didn't even work on this chapter. But I did work on the Titanic arc, and the clue arc? *smiles awkwardly.* But yeah, I got home August 1st (technically july 31st, but after getting back to LAX, we went to ihop(10 in the morning) I literally slept the rest of the day. Then I procrastinated in general all together for a month, then I discovered Free! and Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan.
For those that have watched it, they know why I was preoccupied. To those that don't, I had so many feels I was just a blob and couldn't do anything productive.
But yeah! My writer's block(and art block :successkid:) are gone, so I'm good to go! The next chapter's gonna be shorter (like, way shorter sob) but it's finished, and 53 is almost done. I might have a couple more pages to write out. So, I'll update again tomorrow or Saturday. Not quite sure yet. I will update on October 28th, though~ if only just because Oct 28th is Tabby's birthday.
I'll also probably change the story picture soon.
See you all soon~
-updated 2013.10.24-
ohshittoday'smycousin'sbirthdaycrapcrapcrap
