Previously:
'In keeping with the tradition of Weston College… the opposing teams are fairly determined by drawing lots,' Ciel thought, getting serious.
"You there. Lend me your hat," Agares said to Clayton.
'However, it has already been decided who Blue House is to play against,' Ciel thought, watching Agares drop the tiles into Clayton's hat. 'That's because—'
"Now then, all housemasters—come forward to draw lots!" Agares said. Sebastian and the other housemasters stepped onto the stage to do as Agares said. The Green House housemaster was a man with strong features, a goatee and thick buzzcut. The Red House housemaster was a dandy-looking older gentleman who had blonde hair and a classic mustache. He also wore a cap decorated with a feather. The Violet House housemaster was an eccentric-looking fellow with a gaunt face and dark curly hair. The three of them and Sebastian prepared to reach into the hat at once to remove a tile at the same time.
'I trust Sebastian to do his job,' Ciel thought. 'A 'preliminary' celebration, was it? Don't be daft. The game's already begun!'
"We will now announce the teams for the first fixture!" Agares said.
'The 'miracle of sapphires'? What a joke,' Ciel thought, smirking.
=†=†=†=†=†=
'I don't believe in miracles,' Ciel thought as he stepped onto the field the next day with the rest of his team. The crowd in the stands were cheering loudly. 'So I'll snatch up the victory by force!' He stood facing the Scarlet Foxes, determined to win.
That Butler, Scheming
The teams for Red House and Blue House stood facing each other on the field while the crowd cheered for the start of the first match.
"Well then, the first match of the inter-house cricket tournament—the Sapphire Owls of Blue House vs. The Scarlet Foxes of Red House—will now begin!" the commentator announced.
"What unfortunate luck for you to be pitted against Red House at the outset, Lawrence," Edgar said.
"Hmph," Lawerence said with his brow furrowed.
"I may lose to you in chess, but I won't lose at cricket!" Soma told Ciel with a grin.
"We'll see about that," Ciel said. The umpire flipped a coin.
"Red House fields first! Blue House change into your vests," the umpire said. "In this tournament, each match will consist of two innings of twenty overs maximum!" Blue House changed into their knitted vests, as they were told to, and then everyone took up their positions on the field. Lawrence was set up to be the first striker, while Clayton took the nonstriker position. Soma was the bowler, standing at the same end of the pitch as Clayton and the umpire.
"Play!" the umpire said.
"Soma Asam Kadar. I'm a right arm," Soma introduced himself to Lawrence, tossing the cricket ball from one hand to the other with great force and speed.
"Whenever you're ready," Lawrence said, prepared to do his best.
"A showdown between the elephant prince and the P4 right off!?" a boy in the Blue House section of the stands cheered excitedly.
"Go get 'em house captaiiin!!" another boy cheered.
"Blue House! Blue House!" a third boy cheered.
"Here I come!" Soma said. He swung his arm and hurled the ball toward Lawrence.
'What velocity!!!' Lawrence thought, alarmed. He swung the bat but missed the fast ball, which hit the ground, bounced, bowled over all of the wickets in one go, and zoomed into the waiting glove of the wicket keeper.
"Out!" the umpire declared.
"Bowled out already!?" a boy cheering for Blue House cried in dismay, holding his head.
"Sports just aren't our cup of tea, after all!" Another boy said, half hiding his face behind his hand.
"Kuh…!" Lawrence said, frustrated.
'He's as skilled at cricket as he made himself out to be, it would seem,' Ciel thought as a bead of sweat slid down his face. Clayton stepped up to bat, and Soma whirled his am around.
"Here I go!" Soma said.
"Come on then, Kadar!" Clayton said bravely.
"Hah!" Soma said, hurling the ball at him. It hit the ground in front of Clayton and bounced up.
"Ah!?" Clayton said, swinging his bat to hit it away before it hit him. The ball popped up high above him.
"Fellows, it's up in the air!" someone on the Red House team shouted.
"Kuh! I was forced to hit it," Clayton thought, frustrated. Judging by the trajectory, he could already guess the outcome. The ball sailed right into Edgar's hands.
"Nice fly ball. " Edgar said, giving the ball a light kiss.
"Caught!! Two outs!" the umpire said.
"Kyaaah! Lord Redddmond! You are so diviiine!" cheered some girls in the stands.
"Dammit…!!" Clayton said, cursing his defeat.
"Say, let's pick up… the pace!!" Soma said as he prepared to take out the next player. He tried the same trick again.
"Eep!" the striker said as he quickly moved the bat to shield himself. The ball was deflected at a low angle and hit the ground, bouncing away.
"What luck! The ball fell!" a spectator exclaimed.
"Yes! Yes!" Lawrence and Clayton cheered.
"Ah wah wah wah wah wah!!" the striker cried as he ran to the next wicket while the Blue House supporters cheered. A member of the Red House team dived to catch the ball and quickly threw it to the wicket keeper, who used it to knock down the wicket before the striker could reach it. "Argh!"
"Run out!" the umpire said. The Red House supporters cheered.
"Aw, shucks," Bard said, watching from his spot on the lawn in front of the barrier between the rest of the spectators and the field. He, Tanaka, Finni, Mei-Rin, and Lacey all sat on a large blanket on the ground, while Chêne sat in a chair next to Lizzie, who was also in a chair, sitting under the shade of an umbrella. Paula stood behind Lizzie, and McMillan sat in another chair. "This is no good..."
"Hoh! Hoh!" Tanaka said.
"Hey! Hey! How come the Blue House players are leaving the field so fast?" Finni asked, while Mei-Rin, Chêne, Lizzie, Paula, and McMillan watched anxiously.
"If the wicket behind the batsman's put down, he's been bowled, and it means he's out on the spot," Bard explained. "If the batsman hits the ball, but it's caught before it bounces on the ground, he's also out. If the batsman's wicket is put down while he's not in his crease, he's out then too."
"Most of that was obvious just from watching, but what's a crease?" Lacey asked.
"It's the equivalent of a batter's box in baseball," Bard replied.
"So those were all terrible plays we saw..." Finni said, mortified on the young master's behalf.
"Uwaaa… Just how pathetic a bunch of sissies is Blue House made up of anyway…?" Mei-Rin said, also mortified.
"What an awful thing to say, Miss Maid!!" McMillan cried, shocked by her harsh words.
"We've only seen three batters so far. Things might improve," Chêne said hopefully. She couldn't see Ciel going down without a fight.
"That's right! We have to bear up and cheer our hearts out! Ciiiiel! Give it all you've got! I know you can do iiit!!" Lizzie yelled.
"The young master ain't even playin' yet!" Bard said, sweat-dropping.
"Now that you mention it, why're there only two Blue House players on the field?" Mei-Rin asked.
"We made the trip here to see the young masterrrr!" Finni said.
"Don't tell me you don't know the rules either?" Bard said.
"Eh heh heh..." Finni and Mei-Rin said, rubbing the backs of their necks.
"Cricket is a game played between two teams of eleven players. Some say baseball's modeled on it. Although baseball's the more minor sport outside my good ol' U.S. of A.," Bard said.
"Is that true, what he said about baseball?" Lacey asked Chêne. Chêne shrugged. She could've sworn baseball was more popular, but perhaps things were different in this world at this time.
"Its most distinguishing features are the 'wickets,' which consist of three stumps, and two batsmen on the field of play," Bard explained. "In cricket, the teams attack and defend the wickets. The batsman protects his wicket while batting, and the bowler attacks to put down the opponent's wicket. To score, the two batsmen must run between the wickets to their opposite creases after the ball's been hit, earning their team one run. On top of that, if the batted ball touches or crosses the boundary after bouncing, the batting team scores four runs. If the ball passes over the boundary without bouncing, the batting team scores six runs. What you might call a home run. When a bowler has bowled six times, another bowler takes over. This is called an 'over.' On the other hand, a batsman can continue hitting until he is out. One innings equals ten outs, or dismissals. Then the batting and fielding teams switch. Unlike baseball, one innings takes a long time to play. In traditional cricket, a match consists of two innings each and takes about five days to finish."
"So long!!" Finni, Mei-Rin, and Lacey exclaimed. "Five days for one match!?"
"Please tell me that's not the case today..." Chêne said, sweat-dropping.
"Right? So today, an innings can end not only by the number of outs but by the number of bowls too… It's kinda like a special rule," Bard said. "A match goes to innings, with each innings restricted to twenty total overs, so the teams change sides after ten overs (sixty bowls). So the whole tournament'll be over by the end of the day."
"Since cricket takes so long to play, there're intervals for teatime every two hours," McMillan said.
"My, how refiiined~!" Mei-Rin said.
"And as the Phantomhive chef, I even baked an extra-special meat pie!" Bard said, picking up the picnic basket that was sitting behind him. "See!?" He opened the basket and revealed a vaguely pie-like object that had a broken lattice crust and various mysterious ingredients showing through. The only recognizable things poking out of the pie were sunny-side-up eggs and a fish. The whole thing was burnt and gave off a foul smell. There was a heavy sense of doom.
"E-eek!!" Mei-Rin and Finni said, startled as they imagined what would happen if they let Bard feed Lizzie that pie. Death from such a poisonous dish was sure to be instantaneous! The Phantomhives would be accused of poisoning the Midfords!
"Th-This is..." Finni said anxiously as they both paled.
"If Lady Elizabeth eats this..." Mei-Rin said nervously.
"There's Missus Chêne to think of too..." Finni added fearfully. Sebastian would slaughter them.
"So hang in there until lunch!" Bard said proudly.
"Wh-Wh-Wh-What do we dooo!?" Finni asked Mei-Rin.
"Hohhh..." Tanaka said.
"Ah bah bah bah bah!" Mei-Rin whimpered.
"What are you panicking about over there?" Chêne asked them, sweat-dropping.
"They're freaking out because Bard's trying to kill us," Lacey said bluntly. "Look." She held up the basket with the pie for Chêne to see.
"Hey!" Bard said indignantly.
"What happened to the sandwiches we made?" Chêne asked Lacey.
"They're right here," Lacey said, producing another picnic basket.
"Sandwiches?" Mei-Rin and Finni asked.
"Sorry, I didn't have much energy, so there's only sandwiches, but Lacey and I made a bunch," Chêne said. "There's cured ham and mustard, cucumber with mint cream cheese, smoked salmon with lemon butter, egg salad with cress, and coronation chicken."
"Sandwiches~! And they're all normal~!" Mei-Rin and Finni cheered, super relieved.
"Hoh! Hoh!" Tanaka said, smiling.
"Yay! We're all going to live!" Finni said.
"There won't be a scandal!" Mei-Rin said.
"Heeey!?" Bard protested.
"Oh, dear me. What is that lot getting up to over there, I wonder…?" Sebastian said, sighing, as he looked in their direction. "A pregnant woman should be eating something more substantial than just sandwiches..."
"Ten overs," the umpire announced.
"Oh my. Already time to switch off, I see… but…. To have managed a mere twenty-one runs is just..."
WHACK!
Soma grinned as he hit the ball with the bat.
"Catch it, Clayton!" Lawrence said when he saw that it was heading in his fag's direction.
"Understood!!" Clayton said. He managed to get under the ball, but he ended up 'catching' it with his face.
"CLAYTONNN!" Lawrence shouted with concern when he saw the harsh impact.
"OOBMPHH!" Clayton exclaimed in pain as the ball bounced away before he could grab it with his hands.
"Leave it to the bookworms of Blue House!" a Red House boy said in the stands as they burst with laughter.
"They'll never get anywhere like that!" another Red House boy said.
"Damn!" Ciel cursed, running to intercept the ball. He managed to snatch it up and threw it to the wicket keeper, but the batsmen finished their runs without a problem.
"Three runs!!" the umpire said.
"Looks like it's my turn," Edgar said, tying his hair up in a higher pony tail. "Ready when you are," he said confidently.
"Kyaaah! Lord Redddmonnnd~!!" the female spectators cheered, dazzled by his good looks.
"Next up… is Redmond!" Lawrence said, gritting his teeth. "Brace yourself, Koward!" he called to the bowler.
"Right!" Koward said. He threw a slow ball at Redmond.
"I-It's slow!?" one of the boys supporting Red House said, taken aback.
"What's with that flagging ball?" another asked teasingly.
"Give it a good smash, House Captain!!" a third boy cheered.
'No. This is their strategy,' Redmond thought. 'Balls from a fast bowler are difficult to bat, but striking them usually results in long hits. Slow balls are the opposite—he ventured a slow ball to prevent a long hit! However—!' He smirked as he adjusted his stance.
"L-Look! What kind of stance if that!?" a boy from Red House asked.
'The speed of the ball doesn't matter in the slightest to me!!' Redmond thought. He spun around at speed and slammed his bat into the ball. 'Crimson tornado!!' With a mighty whack! the ball flew into the air and passed over the boundary without bouncing.
"Whoooooooa!! A six!!" a boy cheering on Red House said.
"Way to go, Red House!" another boy cheered.
"It seemed like he was danciiing~! " a woman cheered.
"I wouldn't expect anything less of my dear nephew…!!" Viscount Druitt declared grandly with a sparkling aura, holding a red rose.
'A slog engineered to fly even farther due to the centrifugal force created by spinning, hm?' Sebastian thought with his arms crossed. 'Still, to be able to hit the ball squarely at its midpoint while revolving like that… most impressive.'
"Come on then. I'll take any ball you've got," Redmond said slyly. "The dance of this game has only just begun."
"Kuh…! Field deeper!!" Lawrence ordered.
"Right!" the bowler said.
"My, my," a mysterious figure said as they watched the game, focusing on Ciel. "What a very much one-sided match… but—you still possess that card, don't you? Hmm… my lord?" The figure was none other than Lau, and Ran-Mao was with him.
"Say. You there..." a man in a top hat said to Lau with a serious expression. "Give me a red card!"
"Aww. My good man. Going with the sure bet, I see!" Lau said, giving him a betting slip. Behind Lau was a board that had the odds for the match on it. He had Red house at 4 and Blue House at 108. The board was attached to a carriage, which several girls who worked for him were posing on and around in sexy outfits. They were surrounded by a crowd of men.
"Red for me as well!" another man said.
"Give me one over here too!!" said another.
"Yes, yes. Be right with yooou~!" Lau said. "Come, come! These festivities are held only once a year! Aren't there any gallant hearts who'll put their money on Blue House, the long shot~!?"
"Goodness… Gambling on sacred school grounds… I see that fellow is up to his old tricks too," Sebastian said, watching Lau's shenanigans from a distance.
=†=†=†=†=†=
When they quit for tea, the Blue House had a score of twenty-one and Red House had eighty. There was a heavy atmosphere of gloom hanging over the table that the Blue Team was eating at.
"I should be next to bowl after all," Lawrence said.
"Please wait!" Ciel said. "Weren't you saving that for the final match—"
"But if we lose here, there won't be a final for us," Lawrence said.
"We still have one innings. I'm sure we'll get out chance!" Ciel said.
"We can't allow them to score more runs. Don't you agree, coach?" Lawerence asked, turning to look at their housemaster. All he saw was an empty chair with Sebastian's academic robes, rosary, and glasses on it. "Coach? Where has Mister Michaelis gone!?" Lawrence asked anxiously.
"Perhaps he's in the lavatory," Ciel said calmly.
"At a time like this!" Clayton said nervously.
"In any case, we should not be changing our game plan without consulting our coach!" Ciel said.
"But..." Lawrence said.
"I'm batting next. Won't you leave this to me?" Ciel asked seriously.
"… Do you have a plan?" Lawrence asked.
"I do! I'll find a way to turn the tables and get us back into the game, you'll see!" Ciel promised.
—^—^—^—
Over at Red House's cricket pavilion, some underclassmen were still setting out the food for the players.
"Our good old Red House is going to breeze to victory in this match!" one of the boys said.
"But we knew that already, didn't we?" another said, smiling.
"Would you chaps stop chatting and help ready the—oh?" said a third boy, who was holding a plate of sandwiches. "What happened to the meat pie that was here?" he asked, looking at the empty pie stand.
"Maybe you forgot to put it out with the rest?" the first boy suggested.
"No, that can't—" the third boy started to protest when a fourth boy lifted the cloche over another plate to reveal the lost meat pie.
"Oh! Isn't this it?" the fourth boy said.
"Who was it!? Who moved it theeere~!!?" the third boy asked, looking at the meat pie, which had a gorgeous flaky crust and smelled divine.
"Isn't the tea ready yet? Hurry up!" someone called to them.
"Let's serve it quick," the third boy said, deciding to forget the mystery for a moment.
"This match has been so easy to play, it feels like I'm simply taking a stroll," Edgar said, relaxing on lawn chairs with Soma and their wicket keeper.
"So our true opponent is Green House again this year, eh?" the wicket keeper said.
"Sorry to keep you all waiting!" Joanne said, approaching them with a tray that held plates with slices of the meat pie on it. The third boy came with him, carrying cups of tea.
"Ohh! Now that looks tasty. But is it made of beef?" Soma asked. "My religious beliefs forbid me to eat beef."
"No, I believe it is chicken," Joanne said with a smile.
"How very considerate! Then give me the biggest piece, do!" Soma said brightly.
'Hm? Was it really a chicken pie?' the third boy wondered. He could've sworn it was beef. Joanne bowed his head to Edgar and moved on to serve others. Edgar smiled at him.
"Perhaps I'll have Harcourt bowl next?" Edgar said.
"Will he be all right with those slender arms of his?" Soma asked.
"In this situation, a gentleman must give his opponent a handicap," Edgar said, eating his pie. "Besides, cricket is 'a game to be taken in' as well. And the spectators will be glad of the sight of beauteous players."
"Ohhh? Is that right?" Soma said.
—^—^—^—
Hmm. So that's what 'coronation chicken' tastes like," Lacey said, enjoying one of the sandwiches she and Chêne had made. Chêne was hungry, so they decided to eat some of the sandwiches early as a snack. "It's creamy yet tangy and fruity yet savory..."
"Right?" Chêne said, eating a coronation chicken sandwich herself.
"These sandwiches are really good~!" Finni said, enjoying the smoked salmon with lemon butter.
"Delicious, yes~!" Mei-Rin agreed, munching on an egg salad with cress.
"And they're cut in cute shapes~!" Lizzie said, amused that her cucumber with mint cream cheese sandwich was shaped like a heart.
"Tch. Showoffs..." Bard said, a little annoyed that no one wanted his pie. "Well, I'm gonna have me some meat pie!" He turned to open the basket, but it was gone, and so was Tanaka. "Huh!?"
—^—^—^—
At the Blue House pavilion, Sebastian had just made a swift reappearance.
"Ah! Where were you, coach!?" Clayton asked anxiously.
"I do apologize. I went to the lavatory," Sebastian said with a straight face.
"You took ages! For goodness sakes!!" another member of the team said nervously.
—^—^—^—
Both teams resumed their places on the field so the game could pick up where it left off, with Joanne as the bowler and Ciel as the striker.
"The second innings will now begin!" the umpire announced. Sebastian put his glasses back on.
"Let's both give it everything we've got… Phantomhive," Joanne said, feeling bad about going all out against a friend but determined to do his best for his team.
"Of course, Harcourt," Ciel said with an understanding expression.
"Ooh, I say! What a fetching showdown this will be!" Viscount Druitt said, watching the match with opera glasses, blushing. "But that boy with the eyepatch… I feel sure I've seen him before..." Joanne gripped the ball, got a short running start, and threw the ball with all his might. The ball flew at Ciel with a fierce spin on it.
'Spin bowling!' Ciel thought, eyes widening slightly. He quickly moved his bat to defend the wicket as the ball bounced up off the ground. "Kuh!" He gritted his teeth against the force behind it.
"Hey, that was a nice ball," Soma said.
"That's my fag!" Edgar said proudly.
"Nice trick," Lacey remarked over by the spectators.
"Trick?" Finni asked.
"In cricket bowling, one bounce of the ball is allowed. A ball with a fast spin on it will bounce near the batsman's legs and dramatically change the trajectory!" Bard explained as the ball was passed back to Joanne for the next throw.
"Hyah!!" Joanne said, throwing another spinning ball.
"Kuh!" Ciel said as he defended again and the ball struck the bat with a loud crack! Again, the ball was returned to Joanne, who bowled another spinning ball. Ciel gritted his teeth as he deflected the ball away from the wicket.
"Why, he's got his hands full just defending!!" Clayton said, watching from the sidelines with Lawrence.
"No, wait..." Lawrence said. 'Those aren't the eyes of a fellow who's already chucked it in!!' Ciel's expression was fierce. He fully intended to keep fighting.
'However, he can't totally read the course of the ball,' Edgar thought. 'He won't be able to hit Harcourt's bowls.' "Your balls have more spin now! Finish him off with your next bowl!" he told Joanne. Joanne nodded.
'I'm sorry—Phantomhive,' he thought, preparing to bowl again.
"This—will be the end!!" Lawrence said as he, Clayton, and Sebastian watched Ciel anxiously. The ball dropped from Joanne's hand, and his knees buckled. He fell to the ground, landing with a thud.
"What's wrong, Harcourt!?" Edgar asked, concerned.
"Urgh!!" the boy next to him groaned suddenly, clutching his stomach.
"What the—!?" Soma exclaimed when the boys around him began dropping like flies. "What's happening!?"
"M—" Edgar said as his eyes widened and a pained expression came onto his face as he clutched at his stomach. "My stomach…!" The dropped ball rolled harmlessly up against Ciel's foot. Ciel wore an expression of devious triumph. He smirked as he looked at Sebastian.
'Looks like the time has come,' Ciel thought.
««« Flashback «««
Sebastian strolled across the Red House pavilion in his butler uniform to prevent the students from recognizing him. He carried a chicken pie under a silver cloche.
"Our good old house is going to breeze to victory in this match!" one of the boys setting up the food said.
"But we knew that already, didn't we?" another boy said, grinning. While they were goofing around, Sebastian removed the beef pie and left the chicken pie behind.
"Would you chaps stop chatting and help ready the—oh? What happened to the meat pie that was here?" a third boy asked as Sebastian walked away with it.
»»» End Flashback »»»
'Batting isn't the only way to turn the tables,' Ciel thought, watching the Red House team suffer with a dark sense of superiority. 'So tell me, how was it? How did you like the taste of meat pie with a dash of extra-strength purgative added to it!?'
"We can't expose the spectators here to such a shameful sight..." Edgar groaned gravely.
"Retreat!! Retreat!!" another team member called. They mustered up the strength to crawl off the field.
"Wait! We've left one behind!!" someone said when they realized Joanne was still lying where he had dropped.
"I can't…!" Joanne said weakly, panting and covered in sweat with a flushed face. "If I move now, I'll…!"
"Harcourt!!" Edgar yelled anxiously. "I'll come rescue y—" The wicket keeper grabbed him and held him back.
"Don't act in haste. You're a prefect!" the wicket keeper said. They both paled as their stomachs gurgled.
"Ah…!!" Joanne cried as the unthinkable happened.
"Harcoooourt!" Edgar screamed with tears running down his face while the wicket keeper and another boy held him back, imagining Joanne's beaming smile as he saluted him.
"Oh dear…! Quel tragedy!!" Viscount Druit gasped. "But…! That boy is most fine!!"
"Hey, are you all right!!?" Soma asked Joanne as he half carried him off the field. Joanne was limp, too mortified to speak. Ciel, the other batsman, and the umpire stood on the field in silence.
"Er… Um… Ahem," the umpire said. "The Scarlet Foxes are unable to continue playing and will therefore withdraw from the match. Thus, the first match goes to the Sapphire Owls!!"
"EH…" Lawrence and the rest of the Blue House team exclaimed, shocked. "EEEEEEEEH!!?" The sound echoed far beyond the field and the stadium.
Meanwhile, Sebastian was walking while holding a picnic basket. Someone stepped out to meet him.
"Mister Tanaka!?" Sebastian said, surprised. He was just going to see the others.
"Hoh! Hoh! Hoh! Well, well, Housemaster Michaelis," 'real' Tanaka said with a smile, tipping his hat.
"What splendid timing. Please have this for your lunch," Sebastian said, handing over the basket.
"Ohh, thank you. Beef mince pie, eh?" Tanaka said, checking the contents. "But… just one thing, if I may."
"?" Sebastian said.
"Surely, partaking of this will not give me an upset stomach?" Tanaka asked with a wink.
"Pfft!" Sebastian laughed. "Certainly not,"
"I am looking forward to… a second 'miracle of sapphires,'" Tanaka said as he turned to leave, giving Sebastian a thumbs up. He intended to give Chêne the biggest slice of the meat pie.
"Yes, sir," Sebastian said as he bowed.
