True to her word, Elizabeth came to the Phantomhive estate to visit with Ciel, but not before Alois set off. The blonde decided to take Luka out and finally finish their task with the church of Gehenna so that he would be out of the way. He still wasn't on very good terms with the bluenette in the first place, as when he arrived home the previous day, he simply gave Ciel a quick run-down of his conversation with Integra before scurrying off. The Watchdog didn't mind, although he thought that the behaviour was odd.

Alois was given as much space as he wanted from the bluenette. If he wanted to spend time with Ciel, the menace was more than welcome, but Ciel wasn't going to force any interactions. If Alois needed something from him, he would come. It was as simple as that.

It took a lot of will-power, but somehow, the Watchdog managed despite his gnawing desire to see the menace. Ciel missed seeing Alois' face everyday and hearing his voice so much that it caused him physical pain. There was never a moment when the dull ache of his heart was absent, persisting even when he tried his best and failed to sleep. Although Alois couldn't remember, Ciel did. He still loved the menace with all of his heart. Tiredness filled every action he performed and every thought he conjured from the despair of being without his Alois.

Ciel's body felt heavy and his mind was foggy. He did his very best to function and he managed somewhat, but ultimately, the distance from the menace benefited him by giving him time to recharge. With no energy and no drive, the Watchdog was desperate to distract himself with work and was aided when he was given permission to attend Wakefield's party. While planning, however, he found his attention waning even when he tried to force it. Instead, his focus turned to nothing in particular, like his head was filled with static.

Oftentimes, he would find himself daydreaming about his beloved, only to shake the thought away once he realised it was there due to the fact that he deemed it "inappropriate" to have such desires for someone who he believed to not think of him in the same way. Still, although he gave his best efforts, his lips would crave his husband's and his arms ached to hold him in a firm embrace. He wanted to run his fingers through those flaxen locks and tell the other man over and over again how much he loved him. Even if Ciel told him thousands upon thousands of times, it would never be enough.

Elizabeth arrived and since the Watchdog was the only one home, he forced himself to move despite feeling like his limbs were made of concrete. It took him a lot longer than usual to reach the front door in order to allow the woman inside, but once she saw him, she knew why.

Even while smiling and trying to be sociable when he greeted Elizabeth, the man looked sombre. A grim undertone lingered with every gesture, word, or expression that the bluenette made. When Elizabeth hugged him as greeting, he lingered, surprising her. She knew why. She knew that warmth and happiness had become scarce in the Phantomhive household, and she was determined to set things in motion to the best of her ability.

She would have been led to the drawing room, but she insisted in coming with him while he made tea. As she watched him, she saw patiently on a stool next to the counter. It gave her an opportunity to observe the damages, somewhat. The man was dressed in a way that was somewhat sloppy, yet wore earrings that were a tad flashy. Elizabeth recognised them as being a pair that Alois had given him for Christmas, but she kept this to herself. Soon, the demon walked over to her with a tray with two cups of tea sitting on top of this with their matching saucers and all of the necessities. Setting it down, Ciel spoke.

"So, to what do I owe the pleasure of having you here?" he asked in an attempt to be playful. It fell flat only because Elizabeth could see that he was unwell, although she understood the joke.

"I come here every week, you know. I have to check up on my favourite cousin and see how things are going." Elizabeth replied.

"Well, they're 'going'." Ciel said.

"Well, or..?"

"They're just… 'going'."

"I see..." nodded the woman, understanding somewhat. "'Life goes on', is it?"

"Everyone is alive and we don't hate each other, so there's that." the Watchdog said before pausing. "I think, at least..."

"Alois doesn't hate you. He's just confused, is all." the woman stated, picking up her cup by the handle with the saucer underneath.

"Understandable, with what he's been going through. He's been avoiding me, lately, so I suppose my imagination simply has been getting the better of me."

"We spoke yesterday while he was at headquarters. He said he was afraid of moving forward in case he loses what he has now."

"That's like him."

"Is it?"

"Indeed. He's always been afraid of losing what happiness he has. Sometimes, the fear affects his judgment." Ciel replied while hoisting himself up to sit on the edge of the counter. "I wish I could help him."

"You have been avoiding him as well, it seems." pointed out Elizabeth, setting her drink down after taking a few sips. "Why do you not pursue him?"

"He has enough to worry about without throwing matters of the heart into the mix."

"But this is a matter of the heart." the woman reminded. "His memories are tied to who he is, and his feelings are affected by what he recalls. I believe he remembered something that troubled him. He didn't give any clues as to what, however."

When she was met with nothing but silence from the demon, she added the question: "Are you giving up?"

To this, Ciel uttered a sigh. "Honestly, I don't think I could, even if I wanted to." he said. "Even if I said I did and gave it my all, I will still want Jim. I still love him. That's not going to change anytime soon."

"You need to talk to him more." Elizabeth said. "If you keep trying to stay away from him, I think you might go mad."

"I think you may be right. But, if Jim doesn't want to see me, then he doesn't want to see me."

"How do you know he doesn't?"

"He said so."

"And you believe that?"

"What am I supposed to do?" the Watchdog questioned, turning to face his relative. "Force him to hang out with me? I don't think that's going to help me be likeable, Lizzie."

"That's not what I mean. I mean just… little things. Even just sitting in the same room as him. You don't even have to talk."

"How will that help?"

"Let him get used to your presence." Elizabeth clarified. "Then you can talk with more ease."

"I sort of understand what you're saying," Ciel mused, despite his apprehension. "I could probably try. I can't guarantee results, however."

"Well, you need to get somewhere if you intend to woo him again." the woman said, perplexed as she was met with silence. "You are planning on it, aren't you?"

"I don't know." sighed the bluenette. "I want to. I want to so badly, but… I don't want to come across as forceful or aggressive. I want Jim to chose me of his own free will. If he doesn't, then I suppose that's alright, too."

"Is it really?" questioned Elizabeth with an arched eyebrow and a questioning look.

"No… It really isn't..." Ciel said. "I wish I were so noble as to mean that, but… There's no way I can give up on him. He's got me hopelessly in love with him and doesn't even know it."

"I believe the common expression used by modern men is 'being in the friendzone', is it not?"

"Pathetic men, maybe. Then again, I am a rather sad individual at the moment. I miss him… He's always right there, but he's not at the same time. It's painful. There's no way to stop it, though."

"How did you convince him the first time?" questioned the woman.

"What?"

"How did you win Alois over before?" she clarified. "Couldn't you do that?"

"Ugh… How long ago was that? Six years, maybe?" the bluenette pondered aloud. "I don't really remember. It just sort of… happened. We both fancied each other on our own, and then next thing I know, Jim is suggesting that he fancies me and asks how I felt about him. We've been together ever since."

"That's not very romantic."

"We were awkward teenagers. How 'romantic' are we supposed to be? That took practice. We got much better later on."

"Then why don't you do that?" questioned Elizabeth, prompting her cousin to blush slightly.

"Well, that's only for us when we were in a relationship." Ciel informed, now looking away with a slight indignant pout. "I don't know how to flirt with him like this."

"You'll figure out something. Just be honest and trust your intuition."

"Are you an expert or something?"

"I managed before becoming engaged to Isaac."

"I'm not sure if sword fighting someone counts as 'flirting' with them."

"Then you simply aren't doing it right." jested the angel with a grin. "But then again, that might not be what Alois responds to. You know him well, so I'm sure you can figure out something more to his tastes."

"Perhaps this will be the mission I will actually die on..."

Playfully, the woman swatted Ciel's shoulder at that. "Don't talk like that. Everything will be fine." Despite saying this, the Watchdog hesitated in answering.

"Maybe." he said at last, seeming unconvinced. "I don't want to get too hopeful..."

"Do you think he won't fall for you?"

"I don't know. I just… I don't want it to hurt any worse if he doesn't." the bluenette stated, slouching where he sat. "I don't think my heart could take it. He's my world. I doubt I could ever love anyone like I love him. If I don't get too hopeful, it may soften the blow and I might be able to heal a bit, even though full recovery seems unlikely."

"Something tells me that Alois won't be impressed if you're too timid. Best gain some confidence, soon. Come to think of it, Alois is a lot like Isaac..."

"Don't even joke like that."

"I would never." stated the woman at the demon's abrupt change in tone. He snapped at her, but she smiled regardless. Elizabeth simply took it as a sign that her cousin still had some fight left in him. "I could never do that to you. It is nice to see that you haven't given up entirely, though. You're still territorial."

"He never was my territory. He's a free man."

"Liar. I've seen you stare people down for getting too 'friendly' with your husband, before. Though it always seemed a bit overkill, it was a way that you showed your affections in a bizarre way. You have always given him room to breathe, though. You're very good at balancing things."

"I'm not going to pursue him like a dog looking for a mate." Ciel scoffed.

"Then pursue him like a man who is serious about loving him." chastised the angel. "You've already gone through most of the stages of grief, so I believe that you're stable enough."

That was true. In fact, Ciel was rather surprised with himself over how well he was doing. He was still saddened. He still longed for his husband and missed him. Yet, he tried his best to reach a state where he could accept the situation. For the most part, he did, and it was all thanks to Alois, himself. Had they remained separated, Ciel would have been stuck in perpetual grief, lamenting the loss of his spouse. Now, had the menace died, his rage would span a thousand years, at the very least, reigning destruction on whatever lies before him. Alois was critical for maintaining calm, as his presence continuously reminded him that the menace was still around. It comforted the Watchdog, and yet, Ciel found himself wanting more. As much as he tried to convince himself otherwise, he really wouldn't be content until Alois was his once more.

Ciel ached to be at the blondes side again and have him in his arms. He longed to tell Alois that he loved him, so much so that it caused him agony unseen by others who failed to look closely. It was astonishing how being robbed of three mere words could have such a profound impact on the bluenette's well-being. Sometimes, when Ciel was alone, it started to get to him, causing the cracks in his heart to grow wider as things appeared progressively hopeless. Those words; he wanted to say them desperately. He wanted to hear them, too. The desire grew and grew with each passing day. It frustrated him. There was no way that he would be able to last eternity without saying them and he knew it.

They all knew it. That's why Elizabeth came to speak with her relative. She knew that Ciel loved the menace dearly and knew that the man was his new favourite. She supported him in every way and did not want the Watchdog to let go of someone who brought so much light into his life. Never before did she think she would be seeing Ciel laughing, joking, and smiling casually as often as she did now. It was all Alois' doing. Even though Ciel wanted to "be the bigger person" and let the blonde go, Elizabeth knew that he simply didn't have it in him. Thus, she wanted to help him regain his love, so the two can be happy and the family could be whole once more.

Standing up again, Ciel finally faced the woman. "I would like to try." he said. "What is the worst that could happen? He could just say 'no', is all." Unfortunately, he made the mistake of pondering what he just said.

"Oh, god, what if he does?" he lamented, placing a hand on top of the counter and leaning on it as he hunched over. "What if I make a mistake and make him hate me?"

"Poppycock!" blurted out the Hellsing as she abruptly stood, placing her hands on the man's shoulders and looking him in the eye with a determined expression. "Somewhere in there, Alois still loves you! That doesn't go away that easily! All you need to do, is relax and treat him as you normally would. Throw a little bit of charm in every so often as well."

"I'm not convinced, but I appreciate the sentiment..." Ciel replied, grabbing hold of the woman's hands and removing them from himself. "Honestly, I don't think I'm all that charming, but I hear that I do alright."

"Most girls hold appreciation for the 'mysterious type', you know."

"Am I mysterious?"

"Only to those who don't speak your language." Elizabeth giggled. "Otherwise, you wear your heart on your sleeve."

"I should try harder then." the Watchdog jested, only for the woman to be alerted by the sound of her cellphone going off.

"Sorry." she apologised while reaching for the device and viewing the screen. After pausing to read the message, she looked up.

"I'm afraid something's come up." informed the woman. "Sorry, but I must cut our conversation short."

"It's alright. I know you'll be back sometime next week, at the latest." answered the bluenette, placing a hand in his pocket. Smiling, the woman stood on her toes while using the demon's shoulder for balance in order to kiss his cheek.

"I'll see you again soon!" she waved as she made her way out of the room. The gesture was returned by the bluenette as she passed through the door. Elizabeth paused as she almost ran into another.

"Oh! I'm sorry, Alois! I was just leaving." Ciel heard from the hallway, causing the colour to drain from his face. Quickly, he turned around to clear the tray and take care of the now empty teacups as moments passed and the menace approached.

"You're back early." noted the Watchdog in an attempt to acknowledge the other's presence by use of small talk.

"We ran out of things to do." stated Alois opening the refrigerator. "I see you talked to Lizzie."

"Yes." The answer was unbearably short as Ciel had nothing to say. While the woman was here, he built things up in his head where he would be more confident than this, but conversing with Alois proved more difficult than he anticipated.

Silence was looming over the room as the hair on the back of the bluenette's neck stood on end. Holes were being burned into the back of his skull by the menace's stare, forcing him into a near panic as he tried to figure out what he had done wrong. Eventually, however, Alois spoke up and shared his thoughts.

"I thought you and her were over?" the blonde asked. There was a hint of hesitance in his voice, while the rest of it came out as a tad confrontational.

"Pardon?"

"I saw you two flirting." Alois stated while leaning against the door. "It's gross, mate. Last time I checked, kissing your cousin is illegal in the modern era."

"What?" Now Ciel needed to turn around and face the blonde, as he couldn't figure out if the other man was joking or not from his voice alone. Confusion was written across the poor Watchdog's face as he analyzed the situation, only to come to the conclusion that Alois was serious.

"Oh, no," he insisted while raising a hand. A nervous chuckle escaped him as he softly shook his head. "It's nothing like that. Just some banter. As for the kiss, that's just Elizabeth. You may not recall, but she usually kisses your cheek as well."

"Awfully convenient, isn't it?"

"Are you suggesting that I may not be telling the truth?" inquired the Watchdog, doing his best to maintain his calm. "Just because I work for a private military as well as the government, essentially performing murder for hire, does not mean that I am a liar. I am wounded at your insinuation."

The blonde rolled his eyes at his housemate's jest, uncertain of what to make of it. Alois couldn't tell if the man was indeed being truthful. His head told him that there was no proof that he was, but his gut told him that Ciel could be trusted. These two conflicting messages caused a somewhat irritable disposition to arise from the menace over the past few days, but now there was another emotion thrown in the mix. It was jealousy. Alois didn't want to admit it to himself, but it was there, clear as day. Ciel knew it, too.

"Yeah, right. You're shady. Don't blame me if I find you suspicious."

"That is true, but there are things that even I won't do. Committing incestuous acts is one of them."

"You were engaged to her at one point, weren't you?"

"Yes." answered the bluenette. "When I was a child. In the Victorian era. As arranged by our parents. I ultimately did not choose her because I developed a choice. Granted, I do love her since she's family, but nothing more beyond that, I assure you."

"Why not?"

"It's disgusting, for one. Then there's the simple fact that I do not love her in a romantic sense." Pausing, he finally looked over his shoulder at the menace. "Why? Are you interested?"

"What?!" barked the menace, almost dropping his juice. He only boosted the Watchdog's confidence by blushing. "No! You mean Elizabeth?"

"Sure." Ciel answered, leaving it open to refer to either of them, still.

"No." scoffed the menace. "She's a nice girl and I like her, but I don't like like her."

"Oh? Is that the case? Is she not your type?"

"No, not really..."

"What is, if you don't mind my asking?" questioned the bluenette under the guise of small talk while cleaning up.

"I-" Alois tried to say something, but didn't quite have the words right away. Furthermore, he didn't want to reveal too much. "I… I'm not really sure… What about you?"

"Oh… That's a tough one..." the Watchdog pretended to ponder. Turning around, he walked toward the menace. "I suppose I prefer blondes."

It was such an off-handed comment, but it had an effect on Alois. His cheeks turned darker and his eyes stared straight ahead. Opening his mouth, he tried to say something, but no words would form. Before he knew it, Ciel was passing him on his way out of the kitchen.

"If you'll excuse me, I have to do some planning." Ciel stated. "We still need a plan for what we're going to do on the night of Wakefield's party. We can pick this up again in a bit, if you want."

"O-okay?" Alois managed to let out, still stunned while trying to conceal the fact to no avail. He was only able to compose himself once the other demon had already left the room.

Truthfully, Alois didn't know how to feel or even what to think about Ciel's remark, but he couldn't help but think that it related to himself, personally. He felt arrogant in doing so, so he tried his best to escape the thought, but it persisted. Just what was Ciel trying to do? Was he being flirted with? It mixed in with all of his other conflicting thoughts and feelings on Ciel, confusing him further.

He both wanted and was afraid of Ciel. He didn't want the bluenette to get too close, but craved it at the same time. It was a clash of thoughts of both fear of being hurt, and of thoughts of a more amorous nature. How was he supposed to deal with this? What was he supposed to do? Elizabeth told him to relax and follow his happiness, but he was still afraid. The fear lingered, alerting him that this would not change overnight.

Alois had no idea as to what he was going to do when the time came for him to go on this mission with the bluenette. He didn't know what to expect. All he did know was that it was going to be a long night, so he had better be preparing himself for it. His heart would need it, too.


A/N: It's 5 in the morning and I may be dying.

I tried.

I forgot to do Character Shet last time... I meant to, but I forgot... I was too focused on next arc shit... My bad...

Speaking of which, a good point was made by Socially Awkward Oreo Monster.

"It's not necessary that all countries have a government organisation? A lot of countries rely on their private organisations as well.
Countries like turkey, Korea or India or Pakistan are all about private organisations or establishment earning by working with, and not for, the government. It's something that popped in my brain, about the whole 'dealing with supernatural' organisations. It's seems like a brilliant idea and I'm eager to get to that arc should you write it"

I didn't mean that they had to necessarily be a government agency. Technically, even H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. falls more into the category of being a Private Military Company (In other words, a mercenary group) that is simply contracted exclusively by the U.K. and the Round Table Conference. Probably why most of the people on their payroll are "former" mercenaries from smaller PMCs that were bought out. From the way I worded things, though, I did kind of imply that, and I'm sorry for any confusion!

These groups could be anything. The idea is simply that they are from and/or operate in a specific country. They could be a government agency, a private military company, part of a religious group, a family-run organization, a local group, a collection of small "clubs" or fraternities/sororities/whatever, or simply be left to a couple of drifter-type vigilantes. Whatever is most likely. Sometimes, these things might intersect.

They don't even have to rely on their own specific group. Some countries may borrow from a neighbouring nation, or in the case of the Iscariot organization, have support from a global group. Iscariot is based in Italy, but also has jurisdiction in Southern Ireland and Brazil. They may not even have exclusive jurisdiction, and may interact with local groups. Who knows? Really, it depends on what is most appropriate to that particular area.

They also don't have to be named with acronyms. It's just that that Americans like them for some reason.

Ah, I love talking about this stuff. It's really interesting. I'm afraid that I might be building it up too much, though... I don't want the arc to be disappointing... (At this rate, I'm afraid of it being underwhelming *sob*)

Until the next chapter, my duckies...


CHARACTER SHET

Question: "To Travis: did you and Patty do it? Did you?! Haha, how is going with you two?" by Turdupolis Fishie

Travis: "Well... *ahem* Yes. We're doing well. My mother almost suffocated Patty with affection when she saw her last week, but is otherwise alive, if not in possession of more sweaters than normal."