A/N: HEY GUYS! Long time no see? Meh, I've been having work on and off last week, and this week it'll be a lot busier, so I may not have the energy to post chapters. So, I'll be trying to do a few more reviews today! At least this one. Maybe two?

The whole '3 games' thing was just a ploy to keep me writing… and then this 'arc' turned into almost 10 chapters. Great. OH WELL! I've enjoyed writing this part. It was a lot of fun, for me. In fact, I was going to add more, probably end the week off and have Undertaker and Clara say their goodbyes, but I decided to cut it off, a bit abruptly, towards the end. I got kind of tired being at the mansion, but hey! I got Clara to interact with more people, and we get to see the two little Phantomhive twins!

I decided to not give the youngest a name… yet. I mean, we don't know his name, and honestly I don't want to make up a name, and then his name changes in canon. I don't know… maybe I'll make it easier on myself and add a name for him later, but for now there is the 'younger twin' and the 'older twin', and of course the older twin is Ciel. I've personally thought of names the younger twin could have… Maybe Cyrus? Or even Cedric, after his grandfather? Or maybe even Finnian. But I'm guessing the younger twin's actual name is French, considering Ciel is a French inspired name. Or could be German. Don't know. But, heck, we, as the audience, may never get to know the boy's real name, in the manga, which sucks because I'm super curious!

Anyways, I suppose I'll end this little note here. I hope you guys are ENJOYING your weekend, and see you later!

! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !

You tried your hardest to seem interested, letting Countess Rachel show you around the estate with a beaming smile on her face, but honestly… you already know most of the house, but you nodded your head and would occasionally give her a smile as she showed you around.

You know where the servant's quarters are, the kitchen, the dining room and the grand ballroom. The various guest rooms of the second story, the master bedroom, the main Phantomhive office, and even the other rooms that were for chatting in, which felt like extra random space, but whatever. The bathrooms used for anyone who may show up, and the fact that every bedroom had a connecting bathroom in one way or another.

Yes… you know a whole lot about this building already… but there was that half of the building you haven't seen before. The parts that were deteriorated. Completely torn apart. Nonexistent… that is what fascinated you. Though, to be fair, most of the other half of the building was a mirror image of the other half, to an extent. Guest bedrooms, bathrooms, closet spaces. Sitting rooms, another library that you didn't know ever existed…

Yeah. It was practically the same, but you could tell there was a bit of charm to this place. A bliss and joyfulness that you never saw before.

This was a home, and you couldn't help but keep a smile on your face as the lady of the household showed you around.

Though… you could tell she was starting to get tired, and luckily the two of you were entering another sitting room. "And this room is our game room," she continued with a smile on her face, though it seemed a tad strained. "Where we keep most of our fun little board games, an exquisite chess set, and where my dear husband likes to play pool…"

"… We can sit down if you wish," you decided to say, but you frowned as she quickly shook her head.

"No, no. I'm fine! –"

"Well, if you don't mind, I'd like to sit down. I didn't realize how big this mansion is. I never stayed in such a big place, like this," you chuckled nervously, calmly sitting down into a chair before the woman could object, but instead of getting angry or irritated, she smiled, maybe a tad apologetically and yet relieved, and calmly sat down into a chair to catch her breath as you continued. "I wouldn't be surprised if I get lost."

"Not to worry. If you have any questions, myself or one of the servants can help you," she smiled, and you grinned in response.

"Sounds delightful, and once again, thank you for inviting us… I know I kind of forced Undertaker to come along, and I'm not sure if you like the man or not, but he's a bit of an antisocial male. If it were up to him, he'd be spending his days in the mortuary with the doors locked."

"I understand," she chuckled lightly into her hand, smiling in amusement at your words. "My husband is quite the opposite, but… I'm glad Lord Undertaker has found an interesting assistant.

"Though, I do not want to offend you, but I am curious as to why a lovely lady such as yourself isn't married, by now. Did something happen?" she asked in a curious tone, but when she noticed your hesitant look she quickly laughed it off. "You do not have to tell me! I was just curious! Vincent will bring very… interesting people over, from time to time. You do not seem to be part of my husband's… affairs for the Queen, so I was simply wondering."

"It's alright. It's a normal question to ask," you smirked, holding up a hand so she would stop apologizing, and then you sat there, a thoughtful look overcoming your face as you decided on how to tell this woman about your 'reasons'. Not that you need to explain yourself, but… she is Countess Phantomhive. "… Well, I can tell you, but if I hear you spreading gossip about me I won't be particularly happy," you decided to say, waiting for her response, and she gasped at your words.

"I would never! If you wish to keep our conversation a secret, I most certainly will."

"It's not really a secret. Just… I don't like talking about myself, very often," you decided to tell her, giving her a meek smile, before you sighed to yourself and scratched the back of your neck. "Well, I guess I'll start by saying, I grew up in a family of undertakers, I suppose you English types call them. Gravediggers, morticians… whatever. So, I noticed Undertaker advertising for an apprenticeship, and I was surprised when he said yes, when I walked in and asked. Most of the time, I'm turned away at the door, or the men think… they can use me for other reasons," you stated, a bit bluntly, but she smiled meekly in response.

"The wrong type of man can be an atrocious one. Ungentlemanlike."

"Indeed," you smirked, glad that she didn't seem disgusted, and you continued. "… As for why I'm not married… I never was forced into an arranged marriage. I was given the choice to choose for myself… and my parents died, so I have to live and work for myself. I know I'm not exactly a proper lady, but I do work hard. And yes, I know I'm attractive, and that can, in turn, attract the wrong attention," you scoffed, causing the woman to giggle lightly underneath her breath.

"It's nice to see a hard working woman. Though, I wouldn't necessary say you're improper."

"Thank you, Mrs. Phantomhive, but I'm still a bit unsure with this whole… ah, etiquette stuff your society strives for."

"It's quite alright. And please, call me Rachel," she told you, and you nodded your head as you sighed lightly to yourself. "… So, your relationship with the Undertaker," she began, her questioning causing you to give her a curious look as she continued in a calm voice, "are you… on friendly terms?"

"I wouldn't stick around if he was mean to me," you decided to say, but you know what she meant. "… The Undertaker is a nice man," you began, thinking for a moment before continuing. "Perhaps too nice. Kind of like a good Samaritan. He never asked for me to do anything, only that I could stay and work, and I'd get paid for it. It's not much, but considering that we share room and board, I don't mind the lack of funds… I used to worry about why he would want me to stay.

"After all, for a man to expect a woman to stay with them, you could only expect an ulterior motive," you stated, but then you smiled lightly to yourself, "but we enjoy each other's company. He makes me laugh, I make him laugh, and we both work hard at our craft. He has taught me a few new tricks of the trade… and maybe one day I'll move on, but for now, I'll be sticking around," you honestly told her, giving her a curious glance before smirking over at her. "Did that answer satisfy you?"

"Indeed," she chuckled lightly, sitting up in her chair as she sighed to herself. "It must be nice. The Undertaker has always scared me, but he seems a lot more… happy, lately. Not as sinister," she honestly told you, and you couldn't stop yourself from smiling lightly at her words. "Though, you seem like an interesting individual as well, Lady Clara."

"Well, if I can call you Rachel, you need to call me Lara," you told her, before chuckling, "and thank you. I'm going to take that comment as a win. Being a unique individual is better then being normal. At least, that's how I see things," you told her, and she nodded her head lightly in response.

"… Especially since you have told me a lot about your time in London, without ever meeting me in person! I do enjoy your letters."

"Thank you. I enjoy your letters as well. Thank you for the advice," you chuckled lightly at her wide smile. "Your kids sound so darling, and the stories you have about Vincent," you continued with a smirk, but she grinned to herself.

"I'm sorry for writing such stories, but for the record you started it."

"I'm just glad you didn't feel disgusted –"

"Not at all! So, did the florist really kill the candy maker?"

"It was a vicious triangle of love. That's what I'm assuming," you stated with a shrug, but before she could continue the two of you heard chattering and running, followed by two little boys running into the room, both of them gripping each other's hand tightly.

"Lady Graves! There you are!" the older twin, Ciel shouted, and the younger one held up a book, waiting for you to grab it as the older one continued with an excited jump in his step. "We decided on what we wanted!"

"Wanted? Are you demanding things from our guest, boys?" you heard Rachel say in a stern, yet motherly voice, and the boys looked down, seemingly ashamed. "I apologize –"

"Ah no. I should explain. Or… why don't you two explain?" you smirked at them, causing the woman to give you a slightly curious look, but the boys quickly took over the conversation.

And the youngest one started.

"Mother, Lady Graves told us she would play with us while they stay at the mansion."

"And, she told us she'll play whatever three games we come up with!" the oldest cheered, pointing to the book they had given you as you gave it a curious look. "We talked it over, and figured it out."

"Would your mother approve of these games, if we were to play them?" you asked in a curious tone, the two boys looking at each other, and you could tell Rachel was amused by the unsure looks on their faces. "… Well? Lay it on me. What did you two decide?"

"Okay!" the oldest one began. "I want to play a game outside! Something fun! But all we know is tag or hide and seek, so… maybe you have a fun game?" he asked, and you let out a light hum, pretending you were thinking as the other one began.

"I want you to read us that book," the younger one stated, pointing to the book as he continued. "Father and mother never want us to learn about medical stuff. Maybe you can teach us something?"

"You seem smart!" the other one stated, interrupting his younger brother, you noticed the boy didn't seem to mind. "Like Aunt Red!"

"Well… is it alright with you?" you asked, handing the book over to their mother, and she chuckled lightly as she looked at the book, tucking a strand of blonde hair behind her ear.

"Of course. Sounds delightful. As long as you don't give them nightmares, Lady Lara."

"No promises," you smirked in reply, taking the book back as you eyed the two of them curiously. "And~? What's the third game?"

"Chess!" they both cheered at the same time, their sudden cheer was enough to startle you, just slightly, causing Rachel to giggle lightly at your shock.

"We always win, except with father," the older one explained.

"Can you play chess?" the youngest one asked, and you couldn't help but smirk crudely.

"Play? Well, of course I know how to play chess. In fact," you chuckled, putting a hand on your chest as you grinned deviously, "I once won an award. First place in a chess competition in my hometown. Beat all the little boys and girls, and a few young adults, as well.

"So yes," you continued, noticing their excitement and their mother's amusement at how dramatic you were being, "I know how to play chess. The real question is, can you beat a champion~?"

"Mother. Can we play chess before dinner?" the older one asked, his eyes bright and beaming as he tried to get his mother to cave in to his request.

She simply chuckled lightly in reply. "Lady Lara, if you don't mind –"

"I don't mind. You can finish your tour later, if you wish. Which chess set will we use? –"

"You can use the set in the room," she told you with a smile, standing to her feet only to walk over to her sons, giving them both a gentle kiss on the forehead. "Mommy will be right back. I'll be checking up on father."

"Yes mum!" they stated in response, their heads turning back to you as you stood up, putting the medical book down on a table, before walking over to the chess set and carefully bringing it over to the chairs. You could tell they both wanted to say something, but you stayed calm and waited, eventually sitting down behind the chess set and watching as the boys both approached the empty chair, a bit unsure, as you began to set the chess pieces onto the board.

"… Who's playing first?" you heard the youngest ask, and you gave the two of them a sly smirk before looking back to the set and humming to yourself as you set the chess table, you being black and the boys being white.

"Whoever wants to play first… or, why don't you both play at the same time? You may need twice the luck, when you're up against me," you smirked, and they both huffed at your challenge.

"Come on! Let's do this," Ciel stated with a snort, nudging his younger brother into sitting in the chair. "We can show her what the Phantomhives can do, right?"

"Yes," the younger responded, determination on his face, and you calmly sat back, gesturing to the board.

"Well then, I'll be black, you boys can be white. You move first."

"A-ah… that pawn?"

"Maybe this one," the younger stated, pointing to a different pawn to the one his brother was pointing to, but before the older one could object the younger leaned over his chair, whispering something into his brother's ear, and he nodded in response.

"Good idea."

"I move D2 to D3," the younger spoke, moving his pawn upward on the board, before waiting patiently for your move.

You smiled lightly, but decided to play a bit reckless to see how these boys will react.

If they'll see through your bluff or believe you don't know what you're doing. The most fun, in chess, is catching your opponents off guard. "Good boys. Then I'll move my D7 to D5," you stated, noticing the confused looks on their faces, and the older boy scoffed.

"She's playing us as fools. Let's be smart."

"Right," the younger stated, leaning over his chair to talk to his brother, and you calmly sat back in your chair, crossing one leg on top of the other, as you calmly waited for their next move.

! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !

"Not fair!" the oldest cry out, while the younger one let out a tired groan, sinking into his seat while the oldest hit his hands against the table where the chess set currently was residing upon. "This must be a trick! No one can win so many times in a row."

"Unless they're father," the younger one stated, as if the answer was obvious, but the oldest scoffed and slumped back into the chair he had grown accustomed to sitting in, or rather standing upon.

"Now, now. Don't be so angry. Would it be any sort of victory if I let you win?" you smirked as you slowly rose to your feet, yawning and stretching your sore limbs while they both looked rather distort.

"N-no."

"Exactly… I could tell you how I win so easily, but you have to keep it a secret," you grinned, giving the boys a wink as you put a finger over your lips, and the two twins glanced at each other, before looking back to you and nodding, excitedly, while their previous anger dwindled to be overshadowed by their own curiosity. "… Okay then," you began, sitting back down as you calmly began to reset the chess board with a thoughtful look on your face.

"The solution is very simple, if you think about it. A reason why people like to play chess is the same reason why people will play a game like poker… or any sort of board game. It's strategy, and a bit of luck. With card games, it's the luck of the draw if you'll be close to a quick win or not, but with chess and checkers, it's all about your own decisions. Which is why I personally enjoy the game.

"My strategy, you see, is reading my opponents," you continued, holding up a bishop and pointing to the youngest. "For example, I know you like to strategize a bit more, younger brother, think ahead, but your older brother's insistence causes you to faulter in your decision making, even if you have a better strategy in mind," you told them, but you put the bishop down and continued, "but~, even with those setbacks, you always come up with a new strategy. So what makes it easy, for me? Getting the two of you to disagree on what piece to move.

"And you, older brother," you stated, pointing a rook in his general direction to get his attention before you set the piece properly down on the board, "you are a very direct, offensive chess player. By yourself, you would be very aggressive and you could easily win. You take pieces, as well as lose pieces, but in the end I'm sure you would win, but playing offensively has its setbacks. When you don't work together, you both argue about how the next move will go. There's no strategy agreed amongst the two of you, which is why you continue to lose, when you play together like this," you told them, placing a few more pieces properly onto the chess board before smirking to yourself.

"But don't get me wrong. Both ways of playing chess are perfectly acceptable. That's why most people cannot beat you. Working together, you have the best of both strategies, an offensive and defensive set up, but when someone can see through that strength… and weakness, you make it easy to win. Just by how you play," you told them, pausing for a moment before leaning onto the board and giving them both a light smirk. "Did you notice how I played? Phantom twins?"

"A-ah… I-I don't know," the youngest one spoke, and the older one nodded his head.

"Yeah! When you started to make it easy, you made the game harder. I don't get it! –"

"It's easy," you told them, holding up a finger so they wouldn't start yelling again, and you put a finger to your lips, indicating that they should keep quiet, before you continued calmly. "Once you think about it. Unlike most players, who will fight one way or the other, I do both. I jump between defensive, to offensive, then back to defensive. It's a way to confuse your opponents.

"For, you see, knowing how to play the field in both ways is the best way to play chess, or any game for that matter. In some instances, you need to be on your guard and strategize so you don't lose too many pieces… and on the other hand, there are times you need to take the offensive approach, demolishing your foes with quick swipes. So, since you love to play chess so much," you continued, standing back to your feet and noticing the boys' eyes were following you like excitable puppies, "why don't you try that approach? Reading your opponents'' moves? The more times you play, with a variety of others, the easier it becomes to read a person. Trust me. Learning how to read the moves of others will help you, in playing chess and in the long game of life… Okay?" you asked, wondering if they got all that, and they quickly nodded their heads, as if to say they heard you.

"Great. I think it's dinnertime. We should head to your dining room before someone comes looking for us, hmm~?"

"Yes'um!" they both exclaimed at once, though they didn't seem as excited to leave as they were to play chess, but you smiled to yourself, holding open the door and insisting they walk through, first, before they began to skip and rush down the hallway.

"Do be a gentleman and show a young lady where the dining room is, eh? I'm not familiar with your residency," you chuckled at them, watching in amusement as they both looked at each other, before they rushed over, the younger one gripping your hand while the older one was pointing down the hallway.

"This way!" he cheered, practically leaving his brother behind, but you smirked, pretending that you were following the boys, but in actuality you know exactly where the dining room is.

It's just more amusing to watch their confused and excitable reactions.

"Mummy!" you heard the older one shouting the moment he reached the dining room, while you let the younger one tugged you into the room, before he let go of your hand, giving you a quick and nervous bow, before rushing off to join the hug his older brother started.

"Boys! I was wondering where you were."

"We were going to send a search party to find the three of you," you heard Vincent say, causing you to give him a look before you shrugged and smirked, causing the man to give you a curious glance as you looked at the long table and noticed Undertaker had stood on his feet, holding out a chair with a goofy grin on his face.

You sighed to yourself, making your way over to your seat while you heard the children excitedly explaining everything that had happened within the past few hours. … "Every single time! We lost!"

"Lost, dear Ciel?" Rachel asked, and the younger one nodded his head in response.

"She beat us! In chess! Father, you should play with Lady Lara. She's just as good as you."

"Maybe better," the younger one stated with a shrug, already crawling up into his seat, and thanking his mother as he was scooted up closer to the table, while Rachel picked up his twin and placed him in a seat right next to him; the two between Vincent and Rachel at the dinner table.

"Better~?" Vincent responded with an intrigued voice, giving you a look while you thanked Undertaker as he scooted your chair in before you properly sat down, and as you began to look around you noticed his staring, but you gave him a glare in response.

"Nuh uh. Not that I don't mind beating people in chess, but don't the boys want to play two more games with me, am I right?" you decided to say, the man giving you a confused look, but the boys had already turned their attention to the food.

"Right!" the oldest exclaimed, suddenly looking over to his father. "The Lady Lara wants to play three games with us!"

"We already played one. Chess," the younger one stated, but the older one continued.

"So, can they stay? Pleassse~?" the boy whined, before he felt a pat on his head, and huffed as Vincent began to laugh rather lightly in response.

"She is not a pet, my child, but of course. If Undertaker and his assistant don't mind staying for a few more nights," Vincent responded, but you gave Undertaker an annoyed look, which caused the man to snicker slightly at your irritated stare.

"… We agreed that we're staying for a week. At least. And we purposefully made time to stay for a while, am I right Undertaker?"

"Perhaps~" he snickered, but when you nudged him the shoulder, letting out a huff as he continued to giggle. You sighed before giving the children a light smile.

"Tell you what, we have more days. You both can sleep and we'll resume our game playing tomorrow… alright?"

"Yes'um!" the two boys cheered, causing their parents to chuckle lightly at the boys' enthusiasm, but you smiled lightly to yourself before glancing over at Undertaker, only for your good mood to turn a tad annoyed.

"… What?"

"You're quite amusing," Undertaker stated, causing you to roll your eyes, but you couldn't stop yourself from looking to the delicious looking food as dinner finally began to present itself to you, and your stomach was on the verge of outright grumbling.

Dang. You didn't realize all of these activities have gotten you hungry, and the moment you noticed the others had started eating, you dug into your food, too hungry to really care if you looked more like a carnivore then a normal, polite and dignified human.