"Ah, Lord Phantomhive!" Paula greeted, surprise apparent in her tone "Forgive me, but I wasn't informed that you were going to visit today. Please, come in" the faithful servant stepped aside to make room for the unexpected guest and his butler.
The young Earl raised a hand "That won't be necessary. I won't take long; I am only here to leave something" the boy gestured to Sebastian.
The butler stepped forward carrying a large box in his hands "May I ask where I am to put this?" he asked smoothly.
Paula's eyes widened "Oh! T-that's quite alright, I may take care of that myself" she reassured as she reached for the said box. Sebastian handed the package to her with a nod.
"Is Elizabeth home?" Ciel queried.
The brunette maid frowned as she shook her head "I'm afraid not, my lord. She left with the Lady Midford not too long ago to go to town"
"I see. Please do give them my regards" with a slight nod, Ciel turned away and began walking back towards their carriage with Sebastian right on his heels.
"Will do, my lord! Safe travels to you!" Paula called out after them.
"I'm sure the Lady Elizabeth will be most pleased with your gifts, my lord" Sebastian remarked as they neared the carriage.
Ciel gave a non-committal hum in reply. His gifts to his betrothed were two of some of the finest crafted epees in all of Europe. The Phantomhive boy was not the gift-giving type. He usually only gave gifts to others if he owed them, wanted to get on their good side, or during the holidays.
But this particular instance didn't involve any of those circumstances.
He simply wanted to send a clear message to his fiancée—that he wouldn't hate her despite the fact that she was an incredibly talented swordsman.
For some reason, his fiancée had been frequenting his thoughts lately. Or perhaps 'frequenting' may not be the correct term, but she was certainly on his mind more than usual.
After everything that transpired weeks ago aboard the Campania, he felt like he had seen a side of Elizabeth that he never knew existed. He had no idea his cheerful, bubbly fiancée was such a fierce warrior. It was such an unexpected sight that even Sebastian was momentarily shocked. The image was something he could not rid his mind of—Lizzie, wielding two sabers, elegantly hacking through the heads of bizarre dolls as if she were dancing ballet.
It was definitely a sight to behold.
"A penny for your thoughts, young master?" Sebastian chimed as he opened the carriage door for the young lad.
Ciel shook his head as he climbed into the carriage with his butler's assistance.
The Earl knew it would do him no good to let the butler in on his thoughts.
The young Earl heaved a quiet sigh. He was in the middle of another boring discussion with nobles he wanted absolutely nothing to do with. He'd much rather lock himself in his office and drown in paperwork. But alas, social gatherings were unavoidable for someone of his stature, especially an event like this particular one—a ball hosted by a well-esteemed Duke of England.
"Earl Phantomhive" someone called, turning the attention of everyone in their little circle towards him "Pardon me, but I don't recall seeing you with your fiancée this evening"
Ciel inwardly whined. It was bad enough he had to deal with these kind of people, but for them to meddle in his personal life? He was a hair's breadth away from ordering Sebastian to murder them all.
"Yes, we did not attend this ball together. Unfortunately, I have not seen much of her in almost two months. My work has been rather demanding of my presence as of late"
Not too long after he dropped his gifts off the Midford Estate, the Queen tasked him to investigate the whereabouts of one Derrick Ardens. Shortly after that, he was assigned to Germany to look into a series of mysterious murders. His investigations took longer than he expected to say the least. That of course meant that he didn't get to interact much with his fiancée over that span of time. In fact, the only 'quality time' they really had together was when they danced in the post cricket tournament feast in Weston.
The noblewoman who shot him the question frowned, but Ciel could see that it was fake from a continent away "That is rather unfortunate. I am terribly sorry to hear that"
Ciel smiled at the nosy woman as he resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Before he could formulate a sugar-coated response to the noble, he saw a flash of curly blonde hair that he was very familiar with. The earl's smile turned a bit more genuine.
It seemed he had found a way out of this boring conversation.
"Speaking of which, I believe it is time for me to make up for my long absence. Please excuse me" Ciel declared with a bow before walking away from the circle of pretentious nobles and towards his fiancée.
As he approached his betrothed, he noticed that she was wearing a dress that she had raved about to him in the past (he was able to remember because she mentioned it every time she visited him). And as expected, it looked exquisite on her. While he had close to no interest in listening to about ninety-nine percent of what comes out of her mouth, he could understand why she was so enamored with the particular dress.
"May I have this dance, my lady?" the earl asked the blonde once he was within earshot.
Elizabeth, who had been in the middle of chatting with other girls her age, turned with a puzzled expression on her face. Her confusion turned into surprise a moment later as she let out a gasp and threw her arms around her fiancé.
"Ciel!" she cheered, burying her face in his neck.
The Earl of Phantomhive cringed. He had forgotten just how…energetic Elizabeth could be. He patted the girl's back in response "Indeed it has"
"Oh, how I've missed you!" the blonde pulled away and shot the young earl a radiant smile "How have you been?"
"Quite alright" he answered as he grabbed her by the hand and led her to the dance floor. The two took their positions and began to slow dance before Ciel returned the question "And you?" the earl was by no means fond of small talk, but he'd rather not have an awkward silence surround them.
Elizabeth perked up at the question "I'm doing well! We're planning to go on another trip to Spain to visit some of Father's relatives" her smile brightened further (if that was even possible) "Thank you for the lovely gifts by the way! I really love them!" the blonde's emerald eyes shone with admiration and affection for the young earl.
Ciel resisted the urge to squirm. The blonde was clearly pertaining to the epees he gifted her months ago. Perhaps she had forgotten to thank him before due to circumstances. He was more than certain that if they were in a different setting, one where their families' reputations weren't at stake, then he'd be gasping for air from how tight Elizabeth's embrace would be "You are welcome. I'm glad they were up to your standards"
The night went on with the two spending their time with each other and Elizabeth's family. After their dance, Elizabeth led Ciel to her family's table. The earl was pretty much forced to endure his uncle's back slaps, his auntie's lectures, his cousin's glares, and his fiancée's hugs.
Overall though, his evening could've been much worse.
After all, the Midford family was the most normal sight he'd seen in the past few months.
Ciel's temples throbbed.
He had been in the middle of finishing some important paperwork when his fiancée suddenly barged into his office and engulfed him in a bone-crushing hug. The action caught the earl off guard; so much so that he accidentally knocked his coffee mug aside. As a result, the remaining contents of his mug spilled all over his paperwork.
And just like that, all the work he'd put in for the past week was invalidated.
The earl was someone who took his work very seriously. He hated being disturbed, but he absolutely despised having his work meddled with.
He sighed.
"Oh no! I'm so sorry Ciel!" Elizabeth cried as she placed her hands over her mouth. Tears threatened to spill down her cheeks "I-I didn't mean to!"
The first thing Ciel did was to inspect his stack of papers. After a bit of rummaging, he found that the documents Her Majesty requested him to accomplish were unharmed.
Relief filled him.
At the very least he wouldn't have to bother the Queen to send him another copy of everything she wanted him to fill out.
In the background, Elizabeth was spewing countless apologies. She was spekaing at a rate so fast that the earl could barely understand what she was saying.
"Ohmygoodnessimsosorrypididntmeanto—"
"Are you hurt?" Ciel asked over the blonde's tirade.
This caused his fiancée to pause "Eh?" she stammered in confusion at his question.
"I asked if you were hurt. Were you burned anywhere?" the earl checked; it seemed she was spared from his warm beverage.
"O-oh, n-no I'm fine" tears managed to escape her emerald eyes despite her best efforts to hold them back "I'm so s-sorry, Ciel. Please forgive me"
Ciel exhaled and stood from his seat. He pulled out a handkerchief from his breast pocket and began dabbing his weeping fiancée's cheeks.
"It's alright. At least you weren't harmed. Sebastian," the earl hailed.
His faithful butler appeared seemingly out of thin air "Yes, young master?"
"Clean this mess. And prepare some tea for Elizabeth and I"
The demon butler bowed "At once, my lord"
"Come, Lizzy" Ciel beckoned.
"B-but I—" Elizabeth stammered.
"Like I said, it's alright. What's happened has happened. There's no use dwelling on it" Ciel explained as he wiped the last of her tears.
Slowly, Elizabeth's lips stretched into a crooked smile "Thank you"
Her smile was much easier to bear than her tears.
He clenched his fists.
His plan had worked, but it was nowhere near enough.
It was only a matter of time before everyone in London catches whiff of the Sphere Music Hall's behind-the-scenes. Once that happens he'll be able to focus his efforts on furthering his investigation and of course, saving Lizzy.
Lizzy.
The mere name of his betrothed intensified the maelstrom of emotions within him—confusion, annoyance, anxiety, and worry. The young Earl was usually a cool, calm, and collected individual; it was very uncanny of him to lose control of himself.
That is until his fiancé is involved.
Ciel grit his teeth.
What could possibly be going on that would cause Elizabeth to not only run away from home, but to run away from him as well?
Elizabeth usually jumped at the chance to visit him in the manor. Why did she act like she didn't want to be anywhere near him all of a sudden?
The Earl scoffed.
A part of him believed that something far more sinister than blood collection was going on in the Sphere Music Hall. And whatever that is, it's captivated Elizabeth enough to act like a completely different person.
It was just as he and Sebastian said; Elizabeth cannot be forced to return to them. She, and she alone, must make that decision.
There is no way to truly bind one's heart.
Then so be it.
He was going to get to the bottom of things, and he was going to bring to light whatever plans Blavat and his associates have set in motion.
A/N: I'm currently reading the Blue Cult arc in the manga and I must say, I didn't expect the Kuro manga to still be worth reading in 2020. The last time I read the manga was years ago and I just got around to finally catching up again. This collection of drabbles/subplots will focus mainly on OurCiel and Elizabeth's relationship. While I do understand that Kuroshitsuji isn't really about romance, I've always found their relationship to be fascinating. Just to make a few clarifications with regards to the timings of the events of this chapter: the first scene where Ciel gifts Elizabeth the epees takes place after the Campania Arc, the second and third scenes where they dance and Lizzy accidentally spills Ciel's coffee respectively both take place after the Emerald Witch arc and right before the Blue Cult arc, and the last scene takes place in the middle of the Blue Cult arc.
Hope you guys enjoyed this one. I'll see you next time!