That Butler, Substituted


I own nothing but my OC.

≤speech in Indian language≥

'thoughts'

"speech"

{setting/stage directions?}

SOUND EFFECTS

An entire sentence like this, without quotes, is narration for dreams or stuff like written letters.

=†=†=†=†= scene shift/time shift

—^—^—^— change of perspective/area of action within one specific time frame/location


Previously:

"Hnn?" said Lau, making Arthur glance curiously at him. "Committing this last murder would have been impossible for the confined earl, hmm?"

"!" Arthur gasped when he realized he was right, but then something about the look in the Chinese man's eyes when he opened them gave him a chill.

"This is all turning out to be very amusing indeed," Lau said with dark smile. A bead of cold sweat slid down the side of Arthur's face as he stared at him. Arthur slowly turned his attention away to the young earl. He could see the boy was trembling while his servants tried to comfort him. Finni put his jacket over his shoulders.

[He endured his sorrow, his small shoulders shaking with each racking sob. Yet no tears fell from his lone eyes, not even at the very end. Did his pride as head of the family lead him to act that way—or was it that… his tears had dried up completely…?]


{Ciel's Townhouse...}

SHHHHH.

The rain was pouring down in London, too.

"Prince Somaaa! Agni called. "Your meal is ready—" He opened the door to his princes' room and found him sitting in the window seat, staring quietly out at the gray sky. "… Prince Soma?"

"It certainly is pouring," Soma remarked. "It doesn't rain like this in Bengal even during the rainy season."

"You are right," Agni agreed.

"Surya—the sun—hasn't deigned to show his face either. The divine protection of Vishnu will be weakened thus… I feel a gloomy foreboding," Soma said solemnly. "We were put out because guests were coming, but… I'm worried about Ciel." For a moment, Agni seemed surprised, but then he smiled warmly at his prince's kind concern for his friend.

"All will be well. Lord Ciel has Mister Sebastian and Missus Chêne at his side," Agni reassured him. "There is nothing to worry about—"

=†=†=†=†=†=

{Phantomhive Manor…}

"What on earth is going on in this manor!?" Grimsby shouted. "Two people have been murdered in the space of one night!!" A bead of sweat rolled down the side of Arthur's face as he continued to examine Sebastian's body. Everyone was glancing around the room at each other with varying degrees of suspicion.

"A-And he was killed in such a..." Irene said, paling more and moving closer to Grimsby.

"Tell me about it. Runnin' him through with a fireplace poker… was just too much, man," Bard said, holding his head.

"!" Arthur gasped.

"What is it, Professor?" Chêne asked, taking a step closer to him and her husband's body. Ciel was in good hands with Finni and Mei-Rin.

"Uh… I'm not sure you should see this, Miss..." Arthur said hesitantly, shifting a little to block her view. She was already white as a sheet.

"I want to help. I want to catch my husband's killer," she stated firmly, managing to sound a lot calmer than she felt. Arthur's eyes widened in surprise.

"Husband?" Irene asked, also surprised.

'So she was married… and to the butler!?' Arthur thought. So much for his tale of thwarted romance. They clearly had their master's full blessing.

"Yeah. They just married this December," Bard explained helpfully. "Go ahead," he told Arthur. "Chêne's tougher than she looks."

"Well, if you're sure..." Arthur said reluctantly. He moved out of the way, revealing a nasty wound on the back of Sebastian's head, which he was holding a little bit above the floor with his hands. She covered her mouth when she saw it, but she stood her ground. "There are signs of trauma to the head. He may have been struck from behind while stoking the fire."

"And 'cos that didn't do him in, they finished him off with another blow to the chest, huh?" Bard said, furrowing his brow.

"Or maybe they didn't wait to see if he was dead and instead attacked him twice in quick succession..." Grey suggested. "Rather than a single attack, two attacks would have been sure to kill him."

"If that were the case, then wouldn't both attacks have come from behind?" Chêne asked. Grey almost looked surprised for a moment, but then he furrowed his brow.

"That's true…" he said.

"I'd have to agree," Arthur said. "It's strange, otherwise…"

"Eh?" Grey asked.

"If he did not die from the blow to the back of the head… why did the murderer go to the trouble of stabbing him from the front?" Arthur asked.

"!" Grimsby, Irene, and Woodley gasped.

"Yeah, it's like Chêne said. Normally you'd attack from the same direction if you're attacking twice," Bard said.

"Then maybe… there are multiple perpetrators," Arthur suggested seriously.

"Eeh!?" everyone gasped.

"For example, one spoke to him from the front to catch his attention, while… the second snuck up from behind and bludgeoned him in the head," Arthur mused solemnly, holding his chin with his brow furrowed. "Then the one in front delivered the finishing blow without pause."

"With only one weapon between them?" Chêne asked a little skeptically. "Even if they cleaned one weapon off and/or disposed of it, why leave the other for us to find? Unless you think two killers are trying to confuse us..."

"In any case, it is a fact that I sense not a shred of mercy or hesitation," Lau said, while Ran-Mao nodded in agreement. "The culprit or culprits managed to kill that butler, so they must be very—"

"Please just stop now!!" Finni cried suddenly, holding Ciel close. "How could you talk like that when the young master's right here…! Please consider the young master's feelings!"

"Finni!" Mei-Rin said urgently. She bowed to everyone in apology. "P-Please excuse our rudeness, please do!!"

"Finni… It's not that we don't care," Chêne said gently with a very sad smile, returning to them. "I just… I don't know what else to do, since we can't save Sebastian or bring him back… So I think we should focus on what we can do instead."

"M-Missus Chêne..." Finni said, suddenly feeling bad for making it sound like she didn't care. Although she seemed calmer, looking again, he could see she was trying hard not to cry again.

"… Well. He does have a poiiint!" Grey said, scratching his head. "We can stand around the corpse bandying theories about all we like, but it won't get us anywhere. So let's first carry this to the cellar. The discussion of the murderer's identity and the like can be continued afterward, perhaps over a meal or something."

"How could you take this so leisurely—!" Woodley exclaimed.

"You're right," Lau agreed calmly with Grey. "No good will come of rushing things."

"That's it, then!" Grey said brightly, turning to leave. "We'll leave you servants to handle the disposal of that thing." He paused in the doorway and looked back over his shoulder. "Oh, and… have breakfast ready as well, hm?" he told Chêne. "Surely that's something you can do."

"..." Tanaka bowed his head politely while the other servants watched him go in silence.

"I'm heading to the dining room first!" Grey declared. "I'm starving." Arthur frowned as he watched him go. He didn't think much of the way Grey had just talked to a recent widow and the deceased's friends. Woodley left as well.

"We're going too," Grimsby said, pulling Irene along.

"Ah..." Irene said, a little surprised. "Sorry for your loss..." she told Chêne on their way out.

"Sorry," Ran-Mao said too as she and Lau left.

"Thank you," Chêne said quietly.

"… Do as they said," Ciel ordered after a moment. "Take Sebastian to the Cellar. … I apologize for losing my composure."

"Not at all—!" Mei-Rin said, shaking her head.

"Young Master..." Finni said sadly, still feeling bad for him.

"I understand," Chêne said, full of sympathy. She had almost really lost it, too.

"Tanaka," Ciel said, getting the older servant's attention.

"Yes, Sir," Tanaka answered dutifully.

"Sebastian is dead. You are my butler from this day forth," Ciel told him. "I entrust you with the management of the manor and the supervision of the servants. … And this pin too… I return to your keeping." He held out the pin he had grabbed from Sebastian.

"The pin of head butler… this does bring back memories," Tanaka said, smiling softly with nostalgia. "Will an old man like me be equal to the duties, I wonder?"

"You need only do it until a replacement arrives," Ciel replied.

"As you wish, Sir," Tanaka said. He held his hand out to take the pin. "I shall accept it." Tanaka carefully pinned it to his jacket, then he clapped his hands.

CLAP. CLAP.

"Then let us first prepare for the morning baths," Tanaka said, getting down to business. "Chêne and Mei-Rin, please see to the hot water. Missus Chêne, please refrain from addressing the young master so casually in front of the guests. You slipped earlier." He looked at Finni and Bard. "As for you two, once you have moved Sebastian, please carry hot water to the young master's bathroom," he told them. "Quickly now!"

"Y—Yes, sir!" they all answered.

"..." Chêne paused for one moment to look back at her husband one last time. She clenched her fists and turned away, leaving the room with Mei-Rin. She promised herself that she would definitely find the person responsible.

"Now, Young Master, you will catch cold if you stay dressed like that," Tanaka said, taking charge of Ciel while the two maids left and Finni and Bard took care of Sebastian. "Let us see to getting you a change of clothing. The head of the Phantomhive family must not be shaken by the death of a mere servant. The master was never once seen to be losing his composure over such a trifle," he chided the young earl, referring to Ciel's father, Vincent.

"You are strict as usual… Old Man," Ciel said with a self-depreciating smile. Tanaka smiled back at him.

"Professor," Tanaka said, placing a pair of slippers on the floor in front of him. "I sincerely apologize that such events have taken—"

"No, no..." Arthur said. "He is far more in need of you than I… Please stay with the earl."

"I am deeply touched by your concern," Tanaka told him, bowing. "Let us go, Young Master," he said, guiding Ciel from the room. "You must not keep your guests waiting."

=†=†=†=†=†=

Lightning flashed outside while Ciel and his guests sat at the dinning table and tried to find their appetites for the delicious breakfast that had been served to them by Tanaka and Chêne. The only one who didn't seem to have any trouble eating was Grey, who had already tucked his napkin into his shirt.

"It's a great help that he took care of the meals in advance," Ciel commented about Sebastian as he finally took his napkin to put it in his lap. The young earl was wearing a black suit that day. As she was working, Chêne was still in her usual uniform. She felt numb now. She could feel herself going through the familiar motions of serving the guests, but her tears had dried up. She couldn't really afford to feel right now. Maybe when the guests were gone, but not now. Sebastian would want her to act like a professional. She could fall apart later.

"Smells yummy! Let's eaaat! I didn't eat this morning, so I'm famished!" Grey said brightly, holding his knife and fork at the ready. He took a bite. "Tastyyy!" That seemed to be the others' cue to eat as well, because one after the other, they all began to pick up their napkins and silverware and join him. All except for Irene.

"What's wrong, Irene?" Grimsby asked, concerned. "You've barely touched your plate!"

"I'm sorry," Irene apologized, holding her napkin to her mouth. "I don't have much of an appetite..." She didn't know how the others could possibly keep anything down after the bloody scene they all just witnessed. Grey was just eating the last morsel of food left on his plate when something caught his eye.

"Hey, if that's gonna go to waste, can I help myself to it?" he asked her, twirling his fork in his hand.

"Yes," Irene answered, holding up her plate. "Here yo..."

"No!" Grey said, stopping her. "Not yours… but the one next to you." He pointed at the plate in front of the empty chair beside hers.

"Eh?" Irene said. She looked over and saw what he was talking about. "Oh… you are right. There is an extra place here. Did the chef prepare one too many?" Chêne looked at her and the empty chair and furrowed her brow. That couldn't be it, because...

"The one who prepared breakfast was Sebastian," Ciel said. "He would never get the number of place settings wrong."

"Eh? Then who is it?" Irene asked. "Everyone is present and—oh! Mister Phelps is missing."

"You're right. I failed to notice because he doesn't have much of a presence. Hahaha!" Grimsby said.

"Now that you mention it, I haven't seen him all morning," said Lau.

"It seems he's really sleeping in!" Woodley said with a smile. "Haha..."

"..." Arthur stared at the empty chair with his brow furrowed, feeling troubled.

CLATTER.

"If I may!!!" the doctor said urgently, standing up so fast that his chair slid back. "What do you say… we go look… in the earl's bedroom?" he suggested grimly with his face cast partially in shadow.

"!" Ciel furrowed his brow. Grimsby and Irene became uneasy. "—I'll show you the way," Ciel said, standing up too. Lau opened his eyes and a bead of sweat rolled down the side of Woodley's face.

—^—^—^—

They all raced down the hall, up the stairs, and then down the hall leading to Ciel's room with Arthur in the lead.

"Turn right there!!" Ciel guided him. Arthur reached the double doors.

"Mister Phelps!!" he shouted, knocking on the doors. When he received no answer, he started banging.

BANG! BANG!

"Mister Phelps, please respond if you're there!!" he yelled anxiously. There was no answer again. Arthur stared at the doors with wide eyes, breaking out in a cold sweat. He tried to open the door himself. It wouldn't budge. "Kuh…! The lock, it's—!! My lord! Where is the key?"

"I don't know," Ciel replied shaking his head.

"Eh!?" Arthur said.

"Sebastian is the keeper of the key to my room, and only he knows where it is stored. Now that he's dead, even I couldn't tell you where to find it… Unless, Chêne?"

"No, Young Master. He never told me either," she replied. "He tried to keep work separate."

"…! Please stand back, Young Master! Missus Chêne!" Finni said, stepping forward. "I'll—!"

"Move," Grey ordered. He swung his blade and the four of them had to duck quickly to save their necks. Grey was swinging his sword again and had the doors sliding apart in pieces in the blink of an eye. Everyone, except for Lau and Ran-Mao stared at him with astonished and pale faces. Finni was so scared that he was unintentionally squeezing the life out of Ciel, so Chêne didn't have time to freak out, because she was too busy trying to calm him down and pry his arms open enough for Ciel to escape.

"Let's take care of this quick, okay?" Grey said coolly with a fork in his mouth, still holding the plate of food he had taken from Phelp's place. "I haven't had my dessert yet." As soon as they recovered from that shock, everyone rushed through the front room of Ciel's bedroom to the bedchamber.

"Mister Phelps!!" Arthur cried, throwing the door to the bedchamber open. "Eh…!?" he said when it felt like he had stepped on something. He looked down and paled when he saw a human hand next to his shoe. There was Phelps, sprawled out on the floor with drool around his mouth, clutching the rug in his hands as if he had been trying to crawl across the floor. His unseeing eyes were wide open. "Mister Phelps!!" Arthur cried, immediately falling to his knees to examine the man.

=†=†=†=†=†=

At that moment, outside on the manor's grounds, the owl Mei-Rin released flew over a wooded area through the rain. Suddenly, the bird screeched in alarm as it was snatched from the sky. Feathers that had come loose in the struggle floated down through the trees to rest in a puddle on the forest floor next to a footprint in the mud.