"He's going to be upset when he wakes up..."

"Upset? He's going to be furious! How in blazes do we still have these security problems? Fix it, and find Alois!"

The voices sounded echoed and distorted as Ciel slowly began to regain conciousness. His body no longer had the piercing pain as it did before, but he still ached. His head was especially wonky as he tried his best to overcome grogginess. Taking in a deep breath, Ciel opened his eyes and saw white ceiling.

"He's waking up!" said one of the voices before shushing itself, alerting the bluenette's attention. Slowly, the man turned his head to see Elizabeth looking over her shoulder at him as she sat on the bed. With her was a soldier who seemed frightened as they stared at the Phantomhive as well.

"What's going on?" Ciel questioned while rubbing his contracted eye. His voice was groggy and his body was stiff as he tried to sit up. "Lizzie?"

"Ssh, just relax, now." the woman said, turning herself to face her cousin better while gesturing for him to lay back down. "You need to recover."

"Recover?" echoed the Phantomhive as he mentally retraced his steps. That's right, he was injured. That's why rough fabric was wrapped around his hand. Bringing the other to his abdomen, he applied pressure there, only to find that his wounds had closed, while a dull ache remained. Yes, he was shot while chasing Araneus.

"I'm sorry." he finally said. "I really lost my composure back there." Ignoring his relative's instructions, he remained seated. He was oblivious to the woman's concerned expression, as he was still not quite right. Sleep still had a bit of a hold on him, so he was oblivious to many things. Then, he finally asked the question that no one in that room wanted to hear.

"Where's Jim?" he casually inquired, looking to Elizabeth expectantly. When she didn't answer, he turned to the soldier. "I don't sense him. Has he gone home?"

Slowly but surely, confusion seeped in to the Phantomhive's expression as he was met with nothing but silence. His gaze turned back to Elizabeth as he beckoned her to answer without having words. His cousin couldn't even return his gaze right away. She turned her head to the side and took sudden interest in the floor.

As the sleep wore off even further, the man's concern grew. Shifting in bed, he moved so that he was sitting on his legs and could lean forward to grab the Hellsing's hand. Ciel was no fool. He could tell that something was severely wrong, and in the back of his mind, he knew what was going on. He knew what was happening. He simply didn't want to acknowledge it. The hope that he was mistaken was still there.

"Lizzie," he called, his voice soft but low. "Where is Jim?"

The woman opened her mouth, but no sound came out. She hesitated and closed it again, trying to take even just one more second to think of a way to explain what had happened. In the end, she knew that the harsh reality of things was that there was no way that she could lessen the blow to her cousin.

"We… We don't know..." she said finally. The Phantomhive blinked and took his hand away, allowing Elizabeth to fold hers in her lap.

The man looked befuddled. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion as he looked the woman over with a slight shake of his head. Then, a small, awkward smile appeared on his face as he let out a small chortle.

"Lizzie, this is no time for jokes." Ciel said. "Where is he? Has he got you in on one of his pranks?"

There was no answer right away. There was only more silence. Elizabeth brought a hand to her mouth in a subconscious attempt to hide her face, but her eyes were still watery.

"Oh, Ciel…" the woman began finally with a shake of her head. Her voice was strained as she tried to keep calm. "I'm so sorry..."

"What for?" questioned the bluenette. His smile as still there as his hope remained despite hanging on by a thread. Deep down, he knew. He knew it from the moment he saw her face. "Liz, just tell me where he is, okay?"

Taking in a deep breath, the Hellsing shook her head again. "I'm so sorry..." she repeated. "We… We couldn't..."

"Couldn't what?" Ciel blatantly interrupted her. In actuality, he didn't want to hear anything but what he wanted to hear and Elizabeth was about to contradict that.

Finally, the woman turned her head and looked her relative in the eye. Her face was flushed and her eyes looked as though they might leak at any moment. Her lips formed a thin line although they trembled somewhat. She knew. She knew how Ciel was going to react to the news. She knew it and there was nothing she could do to stop it. All that was left for her to do was tell the truth.

"Ciel," she began, "Jim's still missing. We're still searching for him."

"Come on, Elizabeth… It's not funny. The joke doesn't work, so… Just give it a rest..." the man's plea was met with silence, still, causing his smile to slowly fall. Suddenly, the room felt colder than before as Ciel's heart and body temperature fell. Reaching out, Ciel gently placed his hands on the woman's shoulders.

"Elizabeth, please..." he begged. "Are you serious? Please, just… Just tell me you're joking. Please. You can't be serious..."

"I'm so sorry, Ciel..." Elizabeth shook. "We're still searching for him."

"Araneus." the bluenette stated. "Where is he?"

"We don't know. He was in the Thames, too..."

With that, Ciel's grip tightened before rapidly relaxing. He returned to his original position, but remained seated on his knees. It was a joke. It had to be. Alois could swim. There was no way that he would be swept away. There was no way. Alois had to be somewhere. He would be found soon. But Araneus? The fact that he was missing was still worrisome.

Ciel's heart shook in his chest and his hands clenched and unclenched into fists. He stared blankly at the wall as he tried to remain calm. He needed to steady himself, but nothing was working. The turmoil and conflict began to show on his face as his jaw clenched and his breath became uneasy. Finally, his hands balled into fists once and for all, turning his knuckles completely white. Nothing but silence followed, apart from the rustling of blankets and the sound of bare feet hitting the floor.

"Ciel, you need to lay back down." Elizabeth called out as the man hastily put on slippers and grabbed a robe. Putting it on, he concealed the pajamas he was wearing a bit and tied the sash around his waist in a tight knot. "Ciel-!"

Her words fell on deaf ears as he forced his way past the soldier and walked out of the room. The woman stood up and made an attempt to follow him, but could see by the haste in his step that a storm was brewing. She just prayed for whoever he was going to speak with next.

Despite his attire, his presence alone was terrifying. The way he walked was imposing and his gaze tore through all that it set upon. His contract was exposed as he hadn't put on his eyepatch, frightening staff even further. Ciel made his way through the base like a raging inferno, sweeping everything around him into his rampage.

Making his way through the base, the Phantomhive stormed the Hellsing manor and made his way to the office of the organization's head. Placing both hands on the double door, he violently pushed them open and barged into Sir Integra's office. Although she was on the phone, he marched right up to her desk. He leaned forward and placed his knuckles on his surface, clenching his fists and glaring at the Hellsing until she decided to acknowledge him.

"He's here right now." Integra informed the person on the other end, telling them that she would take care of it before hanging up. Folding her hands in front of her, she didn't even have a chance to speak, for the moment she turned to face the demon, he did it for her.

"Where is Jim?" Ciel asked simply, but his expression indicated that there was much more there. With a sigh, Integra adjusted her spectacles and answered him.

"He is missing." She said plainly, getting straight to the point of things. "We haven't been able to recover him or Araneus and haven't the foggiest idea as to where they are."

"Why haven't you found them?" the Phantomhive hissed.

"We have helicopters and boats patrolling the Thames, but are unable to use divers. The current is too strong."

"Then I will go, myself!" Ciel insisted. "We have to find him."

"We will, Ciel, I assure you." Informed the Hellsing. Her voice was still calm, which annoyed the bluenette. Everything annoyed him at the moment and that would not change any time soon.

"Good, and while you're at it, fix the bloody security problems in this place!" barked the demon, raising his voice considerably. "For a military base, it is far to lax! Do you not have a security team?!"

"We do, but the guard watching the cameras fell asleep and did not catch Araneus escaping." Integra stated. "He has been dealt with and the footage has been analysed."

"Where is he?" demanded the demon. "Give him to me! I'll set him right!" It was frightening, the way Ciel spoke, striking his fist against his chest like an animal.

"You will do no such thing." replied the Hellsing, standing up from her seat. "You will do well to calm yourself before you do something that you will regret, Ciel."

"Calm down?" the Phantomhive asked. His voice was soft before his face contorted into a snarl. "You want me to calm down? That is my husband that's missing! You expect me to just calm down?! Do you know who else went missing at the same time?! You think I can just calm down knowing this and the fact that my husband is missing?! Huh, Integra?! I cannot simply calm down!"

His voice boomed and he exposed his teeth as he roared. His eyes were aflame as he spoke, releasing all of his anxiety on Integra while the woman stood idle. True, the gesture did stir a bit of fear in Integra's heart, given what Ciel was and who he was combined with his rage. She waited for a brief moment of quiet as the man ran out of words to say to her before answering.

"Get out." she ordered. "You are not to come back to this office until you get yourself under control. Go back to the infirmary and gather your things. You are not to be involved with our search until you can maintain your composure."

"I will speak my mind!" Ciel snapped back. "The security in this facility is a joke! You will find Jim, or so help me..."

"Or so help you what?" Integra questioned, catching the man completely off guard. She knew that he hadn't thought any of this through. He was just in a rage as a reaction to his fear for his spouse's well-being. She could understand that. What she would not do, however, is tolerate such treatment from anyone, whether they be damned, divine, or mundane.

Once that got out, Ciel's eyebrow twitched as he had nothing more to say. He had run out of ways to rant. There wasn't anything else he could say to Integra without getting in serious trouble or revealing what he was truly feeling.

Without another word, he hit his fist on the desk before promptly turning and storming back out the door again, leaving the woman alone. She wasn't fooled by his display. She knew that he hadn't anything more to say. She also knew that as he fumed, he was trying to come up with a plan to get his husband back. Sitting down in her seat again, Integra uttered a sigh. Although she wasn't as obvious as the Watchdog, she was worried as well, given the circumstance. Not only was she worried for the safety of her organization, she was worried for the menace as well, and prayed that a solution would come about swiftly.

Ciel, on the other hand, did not wait for the intelligence department to gather information or for the search team to complete their work. Instead, he went straight back to his room in the infirmary. Fortunately, he avoided Elizabeth in the process, as he did not feel like talking to her at the moment. Digging through his belongings, Ciel acquired his mobile phone and dialed his butler before placing the phone up against his ear.

"Sebastian?" he said as the butler picked up. "I assume you've heard the news." Ciel placed his hand against the dresser and leaned his weight on it as he tried his best to keep his tone relaxed.

"I need you to do something." the man added. "We're going to search the river near where Jim was captured, ourselves..."


A/N: Yo...

This is not good... Not good at all... I wonder how long this arc is gonna last? I have no idea, if I'm honest. I should start thinking about my ideas for the next one. I already have some stuff written down, I think. I wonder if any of them are any good?

They probably suck...

Everything is terrible.

Also, tell me how this is going, so far. I have no clue. I think it's moving a bit fast, if I'm honest...

Until the next chapter, my duckies~!


CHARACTER SHET

Question: "Hey Daniel, how's it going, living with your sister?" by blegh

Daniel: "It's going pretty good, so far. I think we both can agree than it's better than how things were before. I like seeing her every day. I really missed her. She's personalized her room, now, but I'm wondering if I should get an actual house..."