The next few weeks were terrifying for the Special Zone. While they had members of the Supernatural Relations department present in the Special Zone, buses showed up for Supernatural Residents to be transported to H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. headquarters in order to be interviewed for positions in the Town Welfare Department as well as the Fire Department. Only a set number of people were interviewed per day, so only that amount was brought into enemy territory for the day and brought back when they were done. Interviews were conducted at night as well for nocturnal residents, as they would need services as well and would need people to cover those shifts.
Still, it was a nerve-wrecking process. Luckily, residents were allowed to change their mind and back out. Many did, but a brave few didn't. The fact that they showed up said a lot about their character, it was believed, so many of them got positions. A few were rejected. It was helpful that the famed Lion and his assistant tagged along for the duration of the trip, reassuring the group and passed out their guest passes. They stayed with the group waiting in the hallway outside of the offices, finding them chairs to sit in so that they wouldn't have to stand for hours on end and making light conversation. When the buses came back hours later with all of the residents who left safe and sound, more people signed up again.
Residents were assigned on the basis of both what they interviewed for, and based on the interview itself. If the Supernatural Relations worker thought that someone was better suited for a different job, they were assigned there. Naturally, they could decline the position, but most didn't.
When positions were filled, they were then assigned to their stations. Supernatural Relations officials would run them through the tasks that were required of them, and show teach them protocol, rules, and regulations that must be followed for the process to run smoothly. The rest simply required practice. Even without the sign at the front of the building, the Town Welfare Center was fully staffed and operational. Other residents kept coming in with their concerns, needs, and suggestions, and all of them were processed. Even more businesses were created as a result, and as revenue increased, so did the state of living in the Special Zone. Naturally, citizens were thrilled, despite the fact that it took some time to get used to.
The plan was working. Illegal activity plummeted, just as H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. and the Convention of Twelve wanted. With their mission accomplished, both would be happy to leave things there, but The Lion and the representatives of the Special Zone were not having that.
In order to be truly self-efficient, they needed to police themselves, as H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. troops still harassed residents on a regular basis. One man was beaten senseless as he reentered the area after having completed a shift at his job at a human supermarket. The reason was that he was "out past curfew", which was an obvious lie. The representatives of the Special Supernatural Zone proposed that they instate a local police department that mimicked the one in the surrounding city. It would be similar to the Supernatural Welfare Center in that it had both representatives from H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. that would send headquarters status reports on a regular basis, but was predominantly made up of local residents. The Round Table was unsure about this, and so was H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. Further negotiation was required.
One thing that did get passed, however, was the proposition of giving the Special Zone and official name that would be chosen by the residents. It was seemingly trivial enough, that there was no reason to oppose the idea. Immediately and enthusiastically, Sister Dorothy and Baldassare returned to the Special Zone in order to discuss what the name should be.
What happened was that throughout the following week, people anonymously presented possible names for the town at the church and at the Town Welfare Center. Then, they had a task force at the Welfare Center to go through them all to find the best ones. The submissions were also run by the representatives of the Special Zone, who then picked the ones that the Round Table and H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. would most likely approve of. From there, the potential names were posted at the church and at the Welfare Center, and people signed up to vote, based on human democratic procedures. The age of eligibility varied amoung species—for elves, in particular, given that their development was extremely long in comparison to others. Everyone who could vote did, aside from a small minority.
The name that was chosen was "Gehenna". By popular demand, that was to be its name. Since they had no opinion on the matter, the Round Table allowed it, and the documentation regarding the Special Zone was changed. "Gehenna" would be the destination for the wicked—the supernaturals who couldn't pass in a human world.
After that, it was requested that they be allowed to adopt an official symbol in order to identify themselves and separate themselves from H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. While the cooperation of the organization was appreciated, it was expressed blatantly by the representatives of Gehenna that H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. has left a deep scar within the community, and that they could not all unite under that banner because of this. While the request confused the Council, Sir Integra permitted it. In all honesty, the residents were astonished by how benevolent the organization had been toward them. Some of them were suspicious. There was a bit unrest behind closed doors, and H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. was anticipating and planning for resistance. They had to be careful, or else undo everything that they had done. Should violence erupt, the human soldiers would have trouble responding non-violently.
Today, however, was one of celebration. With the hanging of the sign on the front of the building, the "Gehenna Town Welfare Administration Center" was officially complete. The moment right after one of the workers installing the sign shouted "It's on!" cheering erupted from the crowd watching from the street and from the windows of neighbouring buildings.
Alois, who was standing in the street with them shouted alongside the residents, genuinely happy that they did this. Never before had he seen such happiness in a group of people, and it filled him with pride to have been a part of it. Several residents near him shook his hand, while others patted him on the back. Some had tears in their eyes as they thanked him, but he could only smile in return. Gehenna. Alois helped rebuild Gehenna. Some of the taller elves hoisted him up in the air and seated him up on their shoulders as he uttered a small yelp in surprise. Looking down, however, his cheeks started hurting from the amount of joy in the air. People looked up at him and applauded, making him wonder why.
"Why are you cheering for me?" he loudly asked. "You're the ones who did all of the work!" His outburst only prompted more cheering. The noise levels in the town reached record volumes, breaking the one reached by construction!
His beau looked on, grinning up at him. The Phantomhive was immensely proud of the menace, and it showed on his face as clear as day. Brilliant. Alois was truly brilliant. He had come so far and accomplished so much. That was Jim Macken who changed this town. His determination and charity gave hope to the people who lived there, and his support pushed them onward into this very moment. His radiance shined through the crowd, but that could have just been Ciel focusing his sights on the man. The way he was held up above everyone's heads as he brightly smiled made him seem like the sun, and Ciel couldn't help but bask in its warmth for a moment, dazzled by the sight of the blonde.
It was then that Alois' gaze turn to him and that they locked eyes. For a moment, Alois' world came to a standstill as he saw the expression on the watchdog's face. A small blush appeared on his cheeks as he acknowledged the love that Ciel's visage conveyed, returning it. Eventually, he was forced to tear his eyes away in order to look down.
"Hey, can you put me down for a bit?" he asked the two elves that had hoisted into the air. Happily, they obliged, turning their celebration elsewhere when the blonde's shoes hit the concrete. The Lion then stalked his way through the crowd before pouncing on the other demon, wrapping his arms tightly around Ciel's shoulders. Others were doing the same, so it went largely unnoticed in terms of Alois' true affections.
"We're so close!" the blonde declared over the sound of cheering around them, rocking from side to side before pulling back. "This place is really turning around!"
"I'm so proud of you!" Ciel replied. "You've really changed this place with your bookshelves!"
"We're not done, though!" Alois stated. "We need to go all the way! We can't half-ass this!"
"Do it!" his beau grinned. "You can! You're doing so well! You're… You're amazing!"
He wanted to say it. He wanted to tell the menace that he loves him, and kiss him in a way that would make all of their previous kisses pale in comparison. This crowd, however, prevented Ciel from doing so. He would have to wait, and the mere thought of waiting was physically painful to him. Ciel's arms ached to be around the Macken and to hold him close. His voice wanted to call out to him and tell him everything he was thinking at that moment. He wanted to embrace the Lion, but couldn't. Not here. Not now.
The message persisted, however, and Ciel quickly tried to think of a way to discreetly convey his thoughts to the other without attracting attention. He used to have all kinds of methods for silent communication, but only Sebastian understood the majority of them, and he doubted that Alois could understand all but one or two. Thus, he picked one that he knew the menace could decipher.
"Give me your hand." He instructed, prompting the menace to obey. Once he had it, he turned it over so that the blonde's palm was facing the sky. With one hand, he held Alois' in place while he traced a pattern with the other. He only spelled out three words, but it was more than enough to make the blonde blush.
"I-L-O-V-E-Y-O-U" the Phantomhive had spelled out, flustering the menace. Alois then took his free hand and covered his mouth, trying to contain himself as his beau looked on, now embarrassed as well.
"You're so unfair." Accused the blonde. "Right when I can't do anything about it… You're… Augh! You're mean!"
"You started it." Replied the watchdog. "How else am I supposed to respond?"
"I don't know! Couldn't you wait?"
"No." Ciel bluntly stated, his answer almost lost in beneath the noise generated by the crowd around them.
Their resolve to keep building skyrocketed, and they all eventually dispersed in order to continue working on other buildings. There were only finishing touches left for the most part. The next big project was completing the fire station, but that wasn't far off from being done. The difficult part about that was teaching firefighters how to drive the trucks. Only a handful of buildings remained untouched, reserved in case something else is needed. Other than that, several businesses opened, and so did a workshop for people to build more things.
Build more, create more, make more. Gehenna was flourishing in comparison to several months ago. While it still had a long way to go, they were heading in the right direction. It was almost disturbing, just how smoothly things were going. It felt as though something bad about to happen was just around the corner.
