Chapter 11

Apparently being a parlor maid meant that Luciana was to clean and tidy the reception rooms and living areas in the morning, then tidy the study and library and finally help Sebastian with refreshments in the afternoon and dinner time. And since she knew little to none about 'the proper way to serve' the butler had to teach her. He was a slave driver. 'Who would have thought...' She scoffed.

Luce readied herself for the day remembering the first few days at her new job. She thought of the way the head butler constantly loomed behind her, checking if there was even the tiniest mistake in her actions. When serving tea, the tea pot shouldn't be too high or too low, it had to be at the right angle and there shouldn't be any tea spilt. 'Obviously...' She'd grumble under her breath, only to be reprimanded by Sebastian. 'Talk about having the devil on your shoulder...' She sighed. Luckily that time was over.

It has now been a month since joining the Phantomhive household and well, she wouldn't lie, there were ups and downs. After all, the household was far from normal and she was quick to realize how that played into what Kat had meant with 'hilarious fails and mishaps'. Only she didn't find it all that funny.

On her first official day, Luce walked into the kitchen humming leisurely only to be almost blown to bits or nearly die of smoke inhalation. She blinked in shock of what had happened, lying on the floor still in one piece- luckily...so maybe that's a bit overdramatic but when she heard the cook being scolded by Sebastian for using dynamite while cooking, the girl could feel her brow twitch. 'Who in the world uses explosives to cook?!...Bard, that's who.' Annoyed she had dusted herself off and entered the kitchen, cursing under her breath. The butler and cook both turned to her. "That's quite a choice of words little lady." Bard then cowered at her ice cold glare. She smirked at the image in her head.

But her glare had lessened when she saw the state of Bard's hair and Luciana couldn't help but chuckle at his comical afro. She still couldn't believe it- that was normally something that happened only in cartoons. Luce shook her head as she dried off her face. Honestly, looking past his knack for explosions, Bard was actually really cool and chill. Luce would often play cards with him once all their duties were done. They would bet on cigarettes or snacks- nothing major.

Then there was Mey-Rin, her fellow maid who just happens to still be sleeping in her bed. Luciana sighed, turning to pick out her clothes for the day. Mey-Rin was a little on the hyperactive side which can be really tiring but it's fun to gossip with her. And it came to no surprise to our time traveler that the head butler entered the talk as their main topic. Luciana chuckled at the memory. Just at the mention of his name Mey-Rin had turned into a stuttering deep red blushing mess. But apparently Sebastian was nothing more than eye candy for her- really, really hot eye candy. Nevertheless, he was a dream that would never be achieved which was fine apparently, since the woman confessed to having her eyes set on a man she'd met in town. It was all very cute in Luciana's opinion and she would like Mey-Rin even more if Luce didn't have to constantly run after her and collect broken dishes. The girl sighed in defeat, 'never gonna happen...'

And who could forget the ever so innocent Finny? He literally killed the garden. Apparently the boy had used herbicide to water the lawn instead of- well, water. She laughed lightly. 'Okay that was kinda funny.' If only for the expression that Sebastian made. The butler just seemed at a loss of words and even a little amazed. It sure was a sight to see.

Lastly there is Tanaka; the old steward, he is most likely the only one who wouldn't mess up. 'Not that he did much anyways...' Luciana mused. He reminded her a little of Santa with his 'Ho ho ho' and...the new maid tilted her head thinking of what else she knew of the steward. "Well, his tea is nice." She mumbled quietly. That was really all she knew of him. The girl shrugged; at least there was one person who didn't give her a headache. All in all the days were tiring, but working hard under strict circumstances was nothing new to her so Luciana was quick to adapt. It was one of the things she picked up going from home to home and she didn't hate being here, it was actually really amusing.

The girl checked her new uniform in the mirror, straightening the apron. It was the same uniform Mey-Rin wore only hers was a darker shade of blue and without the headpiece. Instead, Luce had her black hair tied into a fashionable bun. She tightened her new white gloves before leaving the servant quarters. Sebastian had given them to her because she refused to remove her black nail polish. Why would she? It looked nice. The heels of her new knee high black boots were clicking as she walked down the corridors. She scowled remembering when the butler gave them to her and the smug grin he wore. It was so stupid. 'What kind of maid wears 4 inch heels?!' Yep, she practically shouted that at him. But later she had to begrudgingly admit that the heels were in fact quite comfortable and light. Luciana sighed; at least it wasn't the thin type of heel.

Sebastian and she had been getting along just fine. Despite her knowing he was a demon, she found him quite fun to be around- when he wasn't bossing her around that is. But the butler had been acting suspicious for days now and always tried to get on her nerves, like he wanted her to crack. Luce couldn't figure out why. He wasn't like that before. Could he have figured out she wasn't from here? And had he told Ciel of his suspicions yet?

A knock came from the front door interrupting her musings. She frowned. There shouldn't be any guests, at least not yet. When she was about to open the door a disheveled looking Ciel ran past her answering it. She sent a questioning look to the kid's ever following shadow who looked a little flustered himself. 'What the hell is going on?!'

"It has been a while, Marchioness Midford." A stern looking woman along with a bouncy blond stood before them. "As always, you have arrived earlier than expected." 'Oh, so this is our guest-'

"CIIIIIIEEL!"

Thank you for reading! See you readers on Saturday!