A/N: HEY GUYS!
I would have posted another chapter yesterday, but then I got invited to go out somewhere… and I'm still feeling pretty sick. I'm just reviewing a chapter or two so I can do something. I was going to go on a walk today… but then it snowed. Geeze, and here I was excited for summer weather.
Well, whatever. Can't have it all, I guess
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
After a good night sleep, and a long day of work, finally the two of you were sitting at dinner, chewing on leftover beef stew and slices of loaf bread. The two of you fell silent after you returned to the human world, and you weren't sure if it was because of you… or Undertaker was just thinking.
You've only seen him like this when he's working very critically on something, or some client rubbed him the wrong way, but today it was different.
You decided to start, sighing to yourself before talking. "Did I… do something wrong? I didn't realize you were so worried about me. Not that it bothers me too much, but I'm just concerned," you began, giving him a curious look across the table, trying to analyze his movements, his posture. His movement to sit up, a tad straighter, and the sigh that left his breath as he continued to think. "… I'm sorry?" you decided to say in an unsure tone, but the unsure tone in your voice made him smirk, and quickly shook his head.
"No need for apologies. In fact… maybe I should apologize. I haven't been entirely honest about who I was –"
"If you're concerned about the whole 'legend' thing, don't be. Unlike most reapers, I don't care," you told him, slurping on some of your stew before gently setting down the bowl before continuing. "It's just a title. That's not who you are. And for you, apparently, that's in the past… right?"
"Certainly," he chuckled to himself, lowly, pausing for a moment before sighing again, shaking his head, and causing you to give him a curious look. "N-no… I feel cruel for the fact that I know so much about you, yet you attempt to keep your secrets to your chest. Here I am, knowing more about you then you do about me."
"… Do you want to tell me something?" you decided to say, noticing the hesitative expression on his face, and then you shrugged. "You don't have to. You have no obligation to."
"… My name isn't really the Undertaker. I took that… name after I came here, to the human world," he began, thinking for a moment before giving you a meek smile in return. "As far as I understand it, I'm one of the last legends alive and existing, in this current day and age. Some call me Legendary Death, but at the work place it was always Mr. Death."
"Hmm… Do you not have a name?" you asked in an intrigued tone, but he simply smirked in response.
"Yes, actually, but I'd rather not use it. It brings back terrible memories," he explained, causing you to nod your head slightly.
"I get that. I don't particularly care to remember my family, either. If I hadn't been a reaper, I may have become one just by committing suicide at a young age," you decided to say, causing him to frown at your confession.
"… You say that so casually. That shouldn't be healthy."
"It's not, but I do. Because it's the truth, and I don't like lying," you explained, giving him a stern look before your gaze grew soft and a tad unsure. "… What else did you overhear? I'm serious. I-I need to know."
"Hmm…" he mumbled to himself, but as you continued to pout he set his spoon down into his bowl, lacing his fingers together and placing his chin on top of his hands. "You have some very interesting thoughts about us reapers, but that's not what bothers me. In fact, I believe you are a very smart and influential woman, my dear."
"… Thanks?" you responded, unsure if you should thank him or not, and he grinned to himself before his eyes fell, staring at something on the table before continuing solemnly.
"However… you told that woman you are also known as Phantom. Why? Don't tell me those reapers slapped the label of legend on a mere child," he frowned, and you gave him a curious look before sighing and rubbing the back of your neck.
"Kind of… I'm no legend. Not at all, but we do and did need to use code names. Especially me, at first. Except for my brother, no one really knew I was a half bred, and my father thought I had died… Fine," you sighed to yourself, your blue eyes growing serious as you stared at the man across the table. "I'll tell you the reason, if you promise to never tell another soul. Even your informers. Even the high council. No one needs to know this. Especially now. There's no reason."
"I promise," he responded, and you gave him a hesitant look, but he continued with a grin, "I wouldn't disclose my own personal information if I thought you couldn't keep your secrets. I can only say that I will keep your own secrets to my own chest… as long as you insist upon it. Of course."
"Of course," you smirked, but then you slowly pouted, your hand moving the meat and vegetable chunks in your bowl, wondering if you should really tell him, but… well… what can you lose, at this point? "… I've been avoiding my surname for a reason," you began, a tired and dark look settling over your face. "My family, both human and reaper, have a past I want to avoid, but… I don't think I can, anymore. At least with the human side, but hey. Maybe coming clean with everything will make me feel better," you decided to say, turning your gaze to the Undertaker as you continued solemnly.
"My name is Clara, Clara W. Phantomhive," you began, pausing for the man to process that information as you continued as seriously as you could muster, without running off and hiding away somewhere over the fact you came clean. "I prefer the name Lara. And… the devils know me as Phantom," you continued, causing him to give you a curious look, as you continued with a smirk. "Rather, my enemies know me as the Phantom. My abilities enable me to appear and disappear at will. I can sneak up on my enemies rather effectively, these days…
"… Do you hate me?" you decided to say, causing the man to give you a confused look.
"What? N-no… why, should I?" he asked, and you gave him a meek smile, but you avoided any eye contact with the man.
"Don't you understand? Eventually, the Phantomhives leave their duties as the royal watchdog… We have a good reason to, but by the time I'm born any sort of loyalty to the crown or any thoughts about 'duty' have been tossed aside. Still, we are frequent targets by the supernatural. Demons, angels, fey, you name it. Anyone and everyone…
"I kept that secret from you because I was afraid," you continued in a meeker tone of voice, "b-because… I… hate it. Being a Phantomhive. Thinking I need to constantly be doing something, while knowing that it's a wasted effort. I'll end up dead, and life moves on. And after hearing what the council really had in mind when I was born and began to grow… I'm sickened. I'm disgusted with myself," you told him, moving your head upward to give him an uneasy look. "I get it, if you hate me. Despise me now. It wouldn't be the first time someone hates my very existence. In fact, I shouldn't even be here, so… I'm… I'm sorry for being misleading," you decided to say, but before you knew it you felt arms wrapping around your shoulders, and a chin propped up upon your head.
"Stop feeling sorry for yourself, young Phantomhive."
"B-but –"
"Look… I'm sorry if you thought I would be mad. On the contrary, this just shows your family bloodline exists for generations to come," he smiled to himself before he continued to frown, "but… seeing you this way is unbecoming of a lady –"
"I'm not a lady. Stop saying that! We lost our titles as earls and I'm not some Victorian noble woman. Stop saying that! –"
"Regardless what you think, I see you as a lady. You want to know why?" he spoke, your eyebrows scrunching together in confusion as he continued in a soft tone of voice. "It's because… you are a young lady, who is strong willed and witty for her age. You already know who and what you are, and you never back down from a challenge. Perhaps I enjoy the laughter you bring me, but to be honest… I'm glad you came to my store. It's as if you dropped out of heaven," he chuckled to himself, earning him a slight scoff in return.
"That's kind of a cheesy line, Undertaker."
"Perhaps~, but I'm not insulting you because I'm calling you lady. In fact, it's a form of respect. Not a sign of stupidity."
"… Maybe, but I'm no lady. I'm not. If you just knew of everything I've done… I doubt you'd like that side of me," you decided to say, but he scoffed in response.
"I could say the same thing about myself, but didn't you say that is in the past? Besides, what's amazing about humans is how quickly they can change. From kind innocent souls to greedy murders, and then back again to kind hearted individuals. It's amazing to watch," he snickered to himself, while you gave him a curious glance, before sighing to yourself.
"I just… feel stuck. Stuck between two worlds. It's hard, sometimes, and my thoughts can be rather dark… Finding peace amongst the dead is the best I can hope for," you decided to say, turning your head slightly to look up at him. "But I am surprised you put up with me. I can be a bit of a bitch, at times."
"Gah! Perhaps, but it's still enjoyable to watch!" he giggled, and you huffed at him, but then you felt the oddest thing:
He kissed you, on the back of your head, before he stood up and went back around the table to his seat, while you looked at him wide eyed, as if he just told you the craziest thing on the face of the earth. "… Let's not have any tension between us, alright young one?"
"Ah… I-I suppose…" you mumbled, giving him an unsure look before you turned to your food and decided you needed to finish it before it gets cold. But as you ate, you couldn't help but let a content smile appear on your face. "… I'm glad, though."
"What for?" he asked, and you gave him a light smile in return.
"That the kids are okay. That they didn't actually die… We lost some, but we didn't lose everyone. And at the very least… no one thinks I'm dead, anymore," you smiled meekly to yourself, crunching on your slice of bread before you sighed underneath your breath. "… Though… is it just me, or do they not want me around?" you decided to ask, and he gave you a light smile in response.
"I'm assuming your Rosie friend wants you to live a human life. Not have to worry about the affairs of the reapers."
"Y-yeah, but –"
"The real question is: do you still want to be human?" he decided to ask, and you gave him a slightly surprised, but then unsure look in response, causing the man to nod and slurp at his bowl. "… Be who you want to be, young Phantomhive. You alone will know what to do."
"Hmm… don't call me Phantomhive, either," you scoffed in disgust, causing the man to giggle underneath his breath.
"Whatever you say, my lady~" he grinned, and he began to laugh as you let out a low growl in response, but then you grew quiet, sighing and then picking at your food as you thought over his words.
What you want to do? That… is something different. You've never thought about what you want to do. Usually, the choices have been made for you, in one form or another. Your parents. Brother. The reapers. It's not like you really had a choice… well… you did make a choice, but would you really abandon someone in a life and death situation? That's simply not your style.
But thinking about yourself… that's hard…
But you do have some spending money, that doesn't really need to be used for food or clothes. Maybe you could buy something for yourself? Just a little something you can enjoy.
Maybe?
At least, so you can waste some time… and try to enjoy this human existence you agreed to live within. It doesn't mean you don't miss the reapers, the orphanage… Rosie, but it just means you need a break. A nice, long, necessary break.
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Since today was a slow day, you decided to make your way out into London, a basket under one arm and a shopping list in the other, intent on finding something fun to occupy your time. Doing art… maybe a book you could read… something. Something exciting.
After all, now that you're not as stressed out as you used to be, it's about time you do something exciting… right?
But, there was work to be done, of course. You first stopped by a few floral shops Undertaker frequently uses, ordering a few bouquets, some of them specific, for some of your newer guests… It's still hard to use that word, guests, for corpses, but whatever. Patients, guests… it'll work. Then, you went to the local seafood market down by the docks, buying some food you hoped will be relatively tasty, for the next few days. Then, you began to make your way through the busier side of London, the shopping district. There, you could find practically everything… and you mean everything.
The moment you noticed an 'Oriental' style teahouse, you had to go inside and take a look. "… Hello?" you spoke in a curious tone, noticing the front store to the teahouse was vacant, but then you noticed a whole array of teas, your eyes quickly taking a look at the prices. "… Huh. Not bad," you mumbled to yourself, deep in thought as you began to look around, reading the labels as you walked as you tried to find something that fit your fancy.
Which led you to a different table, entirely. It was full of much smaller containers of tea leaves, placed into smaller bags. It was very cheap compared to the big pound bags, but you could tell it would be less expensive to buy the entire pound. But, this way, you can try a few different flavors before deciding on anything too concrete.
You grabbed some green tea. Regular green tea, a fruity berry green tea mix, and you were surprised to unearth an apple flavor, though it seemed to be outdated.
Whatever. That never stopped you before!
Then, of course, the black tea. English breakfast, of course, but also a Chinese style black tea, and a Japanese style black tea. You grabbed two Japanese bags. Then, a 'winter' blend, which you might as well try, and oh! A cherry blossom bag! You had to grab that tea.
After grabbing much more then you thought you'd be spending, you quickly made your way to the black teas, grabbing another cherry blossom bag, this time the one pounder, and calmly made your way to the shop's counter. You noticed there was a fairly young man standing behind the counter, with squinty almond eyes and black locks of hair, like a typical Asian, but you had a feeling he was… in his late twenties? "Good morning. Sorry for intruding, but I wasn't sure if someone was in."
"It is fine. We do not get many visitors," he explained with a smile, causing you to slightly nod in return.
"Well, I'll be honest, I'm glad I found a place like this. Nàme, Hónglián Huā Lóng ba?" you smirked, causing the man's eyes to light up at your words.
"A! Nǐ zhīdào pǔtōnghuà ma?"
"Basic Mandarin. Just to get by. But I'm not the best at it," you chuckled nervously, while the man grinned.
"It alright. English is hard, as well."
"Indeed," you grinned, watching as the man calculated your purchase on a calculator, a scrap of paper, using a pen in his hand, and you gave him a curious look before looking around the room. "It makes me wonder," you mumbled to yourself, before turning your attention to the man. "… Sir?"
"Shì?" he asked, and you continued as calmly as you could muster.
"Are there other Oriental styled businesses around here? Asian, like China and Japan specifically. Or even the Pacific Ocean islands? I'm new in London, so I do not know," you spoke in perfectly mustered Mandarin, and you watched as the man paused, glancing you over, before giving you a light smile in response.
"A white woman born in Asia?"
"Born in America, but I spent half of my life in Asia. Japan, specifically," you told him, and he grinned from ear to ear.
"Ah! You speak Mandarin very well for a Japanese lady! Hmm… sadly, there are not many here. No good restaurants, either. I'm just hoping to make some business."
"It's alright. I was just asking," you decided to tell him in a nervous tone, realizing maybe he was new at being here in London, as well. "… Well, if this tea is good, I'll certainly be back."
"Tell your friends," he responded, but you smirked in response.
"Of course I will. Considering its Asian tea, it's probably the best! I prefer it over any European blend," you told him, and he chuckled lightly in response.
"Hǎo, Liánghǎo… I could recommend a place, two blocks away, but it may not be suitable for a lady, such as yourself."
"… I'll just look around. Thank you, sir."
"You're welcome," he responded, giving you a wave after you accepted the brown paper bag full of your tea. You were grinning from ear to ear as you left, and you hope this is as great as you are hoping it is.
It's been a while since you had Asian tea. When the apocalypse happened, luxuries like tea from a far off country wasn't something you could easily access, and they were terribly expensive. These prices though… well, you still have some cash. Maybe you'll stop by a candy store?
Instead, you found a cute little bakery, and you stepped inside and took a curious look around. A German bakery, it looks like, which reminds you of the bakery that's only a ten minute drive from your house. You sighed. That's right… you don't live in the future anymore, which means this is your reality. Still, the pastries look good, and you decided to buy two of three different items before calling it a day.
However, the moment you rounded the corner and noticed the mortuary building, you saw a carriage seated right in the front, meaning someone was inside. You sighed to yourself, trying to muster a bit of a smile, until you saw who was standing by the carriage doors. "Oh. Good afternoon, Mr. Tanaka."
"Lady Clara, is it?"
"That's right," you chuckled lightly, before turning your attention to the doors. "… Do you think I can just go in or…"
"The master is intruding on your residency. We should be apologizing, not yourself."
"True," you responded, pausing for a moment before turning to the man. "Say, ah, considering your last name, are you from Japan?" you decided to ask, noticing the man was giving you a critical gaze before chuckling lightly underneath his breath.
"Hai, I am, but that was many years ago. Too many to count."
"I had a feeling," you smirked, noticing he wasn't giving you the best look in return, only to stare at you suspiciously as you took out one of the many little tea bags you bought. "Here. You can have this. It's Japanese blended black tea."
"I-I couldn't possibly –"
"I have two. In fact, I need a second opinion," you began in a thoughtful tone, causing the man to give you a curious look in return. "I just stumbled upon a new teahouse, you see. Oriental. More Asian then it is Indian. But the tea looks delicious, and if it is I promised I'll recommend the place," you explained, and he gave you a light smile in return.
"I see. You are a very informative woman, my lady."
"If you say so," you responded in almost perfect Japanese. One of the only languages, besides English, you can actually say correctly without thinking too hard. Noticing his shocked expression, you put your finger to your lips and gave him a slight wink, before continuing, "Enjoy the rest of your evening, Tanaka-sensei."
"As do you, Lady Clara," he smiled, watching as you walked into the mortuary.
Only to see Undertaker laughing on the floor, and Vincent chuckling lightly at the man's response. "… Oh boy," you rolled your eyes, watching as Vincent turned to you with a grin, while Undertaker was gasping like a fish on the ground. "… I bought some fish. I hope you have a good recipe for it."
"Y-yes!... Yes," he snickered, trying to breathe, and you calmly set your basket of goodies down on a nearby table, not upon a coffin or casket because then it'd start to smell like fish, before turning your attention to the earl.
"I'm glad to see you didn't die, earl."
"Of course. What sort of Phantomhive would I be if I couldn't deal with two demons?" he smirked, causing you to raise a curious eyebrow at him.
"Indeed. Not a very effective one," you stated, bluntly, before you turned your attention to Undertaker, and then let out a tired sigh. "By the way, I put in our floral orders for the next few days. Hopefully we'll have enough for the funerals."
"Good job, my lady," Undertaker snickered, and you gave the two of them curious looks before sighing once more to yourself.
"Fine. Have a good rest of your day, Vincent. I'm going to put my stuff away."
"You enjoy your evening, Lady Clara," he responded with his own smirk, and before you could growl, you paused, before sighing and brushing off your frustration, causing the two men to give each other curious looks.
Well, it doesn't matter what you think. Either way, you had some fish you needed to go preserve, and you were more interested in drinking your tea then anything else, right now. Sure, you were curious to why the man was here, but honestly, you didn't care.
Pastries and tea were on your mind, right now. And nothing is going to stop your pursuit for a sweet treat!
! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !
Bold and italics sentences/phrases – are spoken in a different language, but to make it easier I'm just going to write the conversation, mostly, in English
Also, I'm mainly using google translate, so I apologize if the translations are a bit strange. I did try to pick the better translation suggestions, but if you speak the language and it's wrong, then I do apologize.
! #$%^&*()
Nàme, Hónglián Huā Lóng ba? [Chinese] – So, Red Lotus Dragon, huh?
A! Nǐ zhīdào pǔtōnghuà ma? [Chinese] – What! Do you know Mandarin?
Shì? [Chinese] – Yes?
Hǎo, Liánghǎo [Chinese] – good, 'very' good
Hai [Japanese] – yes