Thank you for reading! I don't own any of Black Butler! Please let me know if you enjoy! Updates every second and fourth Saturday!
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If Edward suspected anything or cared about what his wife may have been up to behind his back, he never mentioned a word about his conjectures.
Weeks passed.
Sebastian noticed that Ciel's husband failed to send a letter more than every fortnight to blandly inquire after his wife and daughter.
Each piece of Edward's correspondence lacked sincerity.
Sebastian began to wonder if Lord Midford's letters were all sent purely out of formal obligation instead of genuine interest?
It mattered little to him though, or Ciel, and over time, Elizabeth as well.
Lady Phantomhive and her daughter adopted Sebastian as gladly as he adopted them.
Whenever Elizabeth experienced nightmares, whenever she felt ill, whenever she wanted to share something or find a playmate, she no longer called for her father.
She called for Sebastian…...because Sebastian was the one who answered her, not Edward.
Sebastian was the one who cared for her, not Edward.
Sebastian was the one who comforted her, not Edward.
Tanaka remained in his room for the majority of each day, but those who saw the happenings in the Phantomhive household were sure to discuss their scandalous theories amongst themselves.
Baldroy and Mey-Rin knew perfectly well what Sebastian and Ciel declined to outwardly admit.
Finny and Snake were more naive about their mistress's private affairs.
Regardless, they listened to the older servants' gossip with wide eyes and eager ears.
The employees of the Phantomhive household were always careful to hold their gossip sessions after they knew that Sebastian had gone to tend Ciel for the evening, for fear of being caught and dismissed from their jobs.
That was another curiosity in itself for the servants, Sebastian's evenings spent preparing Ciel for sleep.
Sebastian could work with amazing speed to flawlessly accomplish the most difficult, tedious tasks in record time.
It was an odd thing indeed then, that the simple chore of putting Ciel to bed took the capable butler the entire night, every night, to complete.
Besides that, the servants had all noticed that the sheets on the bed in the butler's quarters never seemed to be wrinkled…...
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When Ciel's next heat cycle arrived, she spent it frivolously in Sebastian's arms and under his lips.
In the quiet of the largely empty manor, it was relatively easy for Lady Phantomhive to complain of a headache that plagued her all week long.
As she stated to the other servants, the pain simply demanded that Sebastian take her upstairs for frequent…...naps.
The servants had a good idea of their mistress's lies, but they said nothing and continued on with their work.
Ciel's temporary ailment did leave Elizabeth in Mey-Rin's care for much longer periods then usual, but Mey-Rin didn't mind.
It had been Mey-Rin who had held Ciel's hand when Elizabeth had been born.
She loved the happy, little girl as dearly as if the child were her own daughter.
Omegas instinctively gave, eager to please their alphas, wanting to fulfill their mate's desires, just as their alphas sought to soothe and provide.
As that wonderful week of Ciel's heat concluded, she lay in her nest one afternoon, glutted full of her lover.
The covers underneath them had been dampened by the perspiration from their efforts, but they ignored the wetness as they held each other close and exchanged hungry kisses.
Sebastian let his hands slip over Ciel's porcelain skin once more as she sighed and moved closer to him, eagerly awaiting her alpha to answer the addicting call of her pheromones and pull her back into his arms.
"How very greedy you are, my lady…….Is there no end to your avarice?" Sebastian chuckled after he pulled away from their kiss to whisper against her plump lips.
"Your job, Sebastian, is to satisfy me." Ciel haughtily commanded as she stared at him with her sapphire eyes brightly glowing, "...Not to ask me questions."
Ciel squeaked as Sebastian suddenly rolled her over in the sheets and clamped his hands down over her wrists.
His raven-black hair hung around the sides of his handsome face as he smirked down at Ciel and retorted, "That's where you're wrong, my lady...Satisfying you is my pleasure~."
Ciel cried out as Sebastian dove forward and clamped down over his favorite place on her delicate, pale throat.
Her eyes widened as warmth surged from her center.
Vaguely, in the happy haze of knowing that Sebastian did intend to have one more romp with her before they returned downstairs, she wondered to herself………...what did it matter if she took a mate?
……….What would it matter if she indulged in the luxury of giving herself wholly to someone of her own choosing?
In the past, Lady Phantomhive had been presented to Edward, but it had become painfully obvious over the years that he had rejected his gift.
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A month later, on a warm, pleasant day, Sebastian held a large parasol over Ciel and Elizabeth while the little family…..well, the Phantomhive ladies and their butler, took a relaxing stroll through the ground's blooming gardens.
Ciel did not seem particularly impressed by most of the beautiful flowers, however, Sebastian did notice that she paused for quite a while in front of the bush that grew white roses.
Elizabeth skipped along, happily surrounded by the walls of blossoms and the occasional visit from a passing butterfly.
The day was temperate, not sweltering, and that was why Sebastian raised an eyebrow when he noticed the color drain from Ciel's face.
"My lady, do you feel overheated?" He asked with a frown as he watched his mistress stumble.
"No…..I'm…...I'm ill, Sebastian." Ciel croaked as she raised a hand to her throat.
"...Mummy?" Elizabeth called as she turned around and looked at her mother worriedly.
Sebastian's eyes widened as Ciel leaned over a nearby bush to vomit.
He raced forward to hold her steady, but as soon as his hands touched her waist, he felt her hips sink into his palms as she fell.
Nothing came from Ciel's mouth except a startled gasp while the brightness of the garden faded into a black void.
Sebastian moved with his lover as she collapsed into his arms.
He managed to save Lady Phantomhive from a nasty collision with the stone pathway but that didn't stop the scream that rang out from tiny Elizabeth's throat, "MUMMMMYYY!"
"It's alright, my lady, it's alright….Your mother's exhausted, that's all." Sebastian said urgently as he masked his own concern to give little Elizabeth a reassuring smile, "I do apologize, but it seems that we must end our walk prematurely. Will you accompany me into the house, my lady, so that we can put your mother to bed? I'll have Mey-Rin return you to the gardens in a short while."
Elizabeth nodded quickly as she scurried over to Sebastian.
He kept his pace slow enough that his smallest mistress could keep up with his elegant strides, but Sebastian wished Elizabeth had been a little older so her legs could have been a little longer.
Mr. Michaelis suavely hid his true terror, but he secretly wanted to scream like Elizabeth.
What dreadful ailment had stricken his precious mate?
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Ciel had never seen such a sly smirk on Sebastian's face as she did when she opened her eyes sometime later.
She blinked for a moment and thought about what had happened.
The garden……
She had been in the garden, hadn't she?
Yes, she had been in the garden, with Elizabeth and Sebastian.
She had felt ill and-
"-Oh! Looks like someone is with us again!" A cheery voice chirped.
Ciel narrowed her eyes as she blinked in the direction of the sound.
Her mouth fell open in confusion while she watched the midwife who had delivered Elizabeth bustle around her bedside.
"Why-" Ciel began, but the midwife cut her off.
"-You've given the whole household quite the scare this afternoon, Lady Midford!" The midwife chirped in her annoyingly happy voice as she smiled down at Ciel, "First the doctor was summoned, then at his request, I came here to see you! It's been several years, has it not?! Congratulations, my lady!"
"...'Congratulations'?" Ciel repeated as she scowled, "I beg your pardon?...Congratulations for what? I don't understand."
Lady Phantomhive huffed angrily as she sat up in bed with an unhappy frown on her face.
The smirk on Sebastian's lips widened as the midwife happily informed her patient, "Why, you're in the family way again, my dear! I should hardly think this afternoon will be an isolated incident! Be wary of those long walks for the time being, you're fortunate that your butler was there to catch you today!"
The midwife's words sounded far away.
Ciel looked over at Sebastian and the possessive, predatory grin of proud glee on his face made Lady Phantomhive's eyes widen.
Suddenly, that awful feeling of nauseating dizziness returned.
Ciel sank back against the pillows with a hand to her head as she contemplated her grave mistake.
Well, had it been a true mistake or the inevitable result of negligence?
Either way, Ciel swallowed thickly while she mused over how she could escape the truth.
What believable excuse could she offer Edward when he found out that she had conceived her butler's child?