Thick fog covered the river Thames like a white, milky blanket. A black horse broke through the mist, drawing a carriage over London Bridge which was leading out of the city. A full moon slowly rose up into the sky and it seemed the carriage was the only vehicle wanting to leave the city at an hour like this.

A pair of bright, emerald eyes glanced off the window of the carriage, thoughtfully watching the moon. The young woman thought about the last discussion with her parents.

"Mum, I don't want to leave you! Why do you send me away?"

"It is the best for you if you leave the city for a while. The best for your safety, my dear," her mother's voice echoed through her mind as Annie leaned her forehead against the glass and sighed heavily.

"I don't even know who that Earl of Phantomhive is! What if he's cruel? What if he's beating me? I'm not a servant!" she had cried while her father had stored her suitcase into the carriage.

"He won't abuse you, Annie. The Phantomhive mansion might be the safest place for you now. Don't worry about us. Everything will be fine. Once our problems are solved you'll come back. I promise," her father had said and placed a soft kiss on top of her head.

She had no clue what kind of difficulties her parents had, but it must have been a matter of delicacy and maybe even dangerous if they send their only daughter out of the city and onto a stranger's mansion somewhere in the outskirts of London.

She had just turned eighteen not that long ago and already missed her friends back in their little townhouse. They were part of the new created middle-class, not rich and not poor. Her father invested into the upcoming expansion of the rail network and made some good money with it.

Annie had learned to read, calculate and write from a personal tutor her father saved money for. He always wanted her to become an intellectual and independent woman, which was quite unusual in these times.

She snapped out of her thoughts as the carriage bumped through a pothole on the road and finally came to a halt. She checked her golden pocket-watch with the little portrait of her family inside and was more than surprised that she had already reached her destination after just two hours. It was barely nine in the evening and she sighed heavily as she stepped out of the carriage.

She wrapped her black woolen coat around herself and took her suitcase. She hadn't packed much, for she expected to return home in no more than two weeks. Her father had said the Earl of Phantomhive would need a new servant for a certain amount of time and though Annie had not that much experience as a servant, her parents had decided to send her to the mansion anyway.

Now that she stood in front of the gigantic building which was made of grey stone and marble, she gulped and felt more than nervous. She had seen a couple of upper-class mansions before, mostly during her few vacations with her parents, but this was by far the biggest she had ever seen. And much to her discomfort it was surrounded by a quite large and creepy forest.

She cast a nervous glance around her shoulder and saw the carriage slowly disappearing down the road. Finally she turned and walked up the long stairway which was leading her closer towards the front door. With shaky breath and trembling hands she knocked against the heavy wooden double-door. A fresh autumn evening breeze played with her long, golden hair and made her shiver a bit.

'Come on, open the door,' she thought impatiently and cast another glance back towards the forest.

"Welcome to Phantomhive Manor, Miss Conroy," a velvety voice suddenly spoke up. She winced and squealed in shock. She placed a hand on her chest and let out a relieved breath as she saw the butler of the mansion in front of her.

"You scared me to death," she said and caught the hint of a smile on his lips while he watched her intently.

"That was not my intention. Please, step inside—," he signaled her with a gesture of his gloved hand to step into the entry hall and took the suitcase out of her hand.

"Oh, that's really not necessary," she protested. He raised his hand to silence her. She blinked at him in surprise and nodded in defeat.

"Right—my name is Annie Conroy," she offered her hand to him. He watched her blankly before he shook her hand wordlessly. "And your name is—?" she asked confused. He let go of her hand and moved up the flight of stairs.

"Sebastian Michaelis. I'm the butler of Master Phantomhive. Follow me; I will lead you to your room. It is late already and you will have to get up early tomorrow."

"I do?" she asked and followed him up the stairs and along a hallway. Her gaze drifted along the wall with all those old paintings, and nearly bumped into him as he stopped in front of a door to her left.

"Yes. Your shift starts at sharp six. I want to see you in the kitchen on time," he replied and opened the door for her. He stepped inside and placed her suitcase on a chair close to the window.

Annie placed her coat on the bed and turned around to ask for the direction to the kitchen, but the butler was already gone. She frowned and huffed confused about the fact that she didn't hear him leave nor that he had closed the door.

'What a strange man. How should I know where the kitchen is?' she thought while she unpacked her suitcase and hung her clothes into the wardrobe where she also found a maid uniform. She picked it up and stepped in front of the mirror, holding the uniform close against her body.

A smile flashed over her face before she closed the wardrobe again and began to inspect the room. The walls were painted in a soft hue of ivory. A four-poster canopy bed made of mahogany was positioned against the wall. A night table made of carved wood stood beside the bed. A large mirror was hanging at the wall and a couple of paintings in gold frames hung at both sides of the bed.

A comfy armchair and a small table stood in front of the window, and a vase with blue and white flowers was placed on top of the table. Everything was beautifully decorated and the color of the room made Annie feel like home on instant. She smiled and changed her clothes into a white nightgown. After washing her face and cleaning her teeth she closed the curtains, slipped under the blanket and fell asleep immediately.

"Has she arrived, Sebastian?"

"Yes, young Master. I showed her to her room and told her what time her shift begins tomorrow. Everything's in order," Sebastian replied while he prepared the young Earl for his bedtime.

Ciel Phantomhive watched his butler curiously before he asked, "What do you think about her? Will she be more useful as a servant than the rest?"

He slipped under his blanket and leaned against the headboard of his bed. The butler watched his master, his crimson colored eyes turned thoughtful as he replied vaguely,

"That has yet to be seen."

He put the light of the candles out. The faint light of the moon fell into the room as the only source of light.

"Shall I close the curtains?" Sebastian asked and shifted towards the window.

"No, it's fine. You may retire for the night now. And your task for tomorrow is to make sure the new girl doesn't crash as much as Mey-Rin," Ciel mumbled as his head touched the fluffy pillow.

"Yes, my Lord," Sebastian tilted his head and left the room.

Silently he headed down the hallway. He stopped in front of Annie's room for a moment and stared thoughtfully at the closed door. After a couple of seconds he shook his head and moved on. He entered his own bedroom and lowered onto his bed. Slowly he began to undress himself and placed his shirt, tailcoat and gloves neatly folded onto the dresser.

Though he actually had no need to sleep, he decided to try and slumber a bit. Once his head touched the pillow he closed his eyes. A smile flashed over his face as he remembered the moment he had opened the front door and found that young girl in front of him. She had been so nervous though he sensed she was not an average girl. She had a strong soul, a beautiful face—his eyes opened again and stared at the ceiling.

'What are you doing here? She is the new servant and nothing more. Don't get too attached to her!' he chided himself and turned around to stare out of the window. The moon stood at its highest point and sent its pale light into the room. With a sigh, Sebastian checked his pocket-watch. It was already past midnight which meant he'd see Annie again in no more than five hours. The mere thought made him feel strangely excited.

He grumbled and dressed again. Instead of lying in bed and thinking about that girl he could also get down to the kitchen and make sure the pantry was full and check if they need any new goods from town.

Everything was better than taking a rest. Everything was better than giving in to these strange new feelings.

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