A/n: Thanks to everyone who's reading this. This chapter is unbeta'd do to technical difficulties.

XxxxxX

For the first time in a long time, I had a smile on my face as I entered the kitchen. I was going to make my young master breakfast for the first time in over a century.

His parents had already left the residence over an hour ago. From the way they talked, it seemed as though they would not be returning anytime soon. This made me happy. I would be able to spend all day with my young master, then.

I decided I would make him his favorite strawberry scones, first of all. After those were in the oven, I began to search for tea. (They organized their kitchen completely different from how I used to.) Unfortunately, the only thing I could find was Irish breakfast tea. Why nobles such as the Phantomhives would even bother purchasing this, I don't know. Perhaps the young master's parents had a certain liking for it?

I then rummaged through their odd looking ice box, searching for inspiration. I wanted to make a good impression, after all. I finally came to a decision when I saw flour and a bag of oranges next together. I had only made crepes Suzette a few times before, but the young master always seemed to enjoy it.

It took but a minute or two to learn how to use the new oven. Before too long, I had breakfast complete and loaded onto the cart. I deposited the food onto the dining table before continuing to my lord's room. I smiled at the sight of him sleeping peacefully. It was something I never thought I would see again. I almost did not want to wake him, but it best to start the day as soon as possible.

Leaving the cart by his bed, I went to fetch a pair of his clothing. I'm afraid it took a bit of time to find something presentable. He had many plain shirts and trousers made of denim, of all things. I finally selected a blue button-up shirt a pair of the denim trousers. His shoes were also odd. They were blue and black in color, and had a very small heels. Perhaps this master wasn't trying to improve his height.

I opened the curtains after I returned to the bedroom. If I had a physical body, I might have winced at the sudden flood of light that came into the room.

"Good morning, young master!" I called. I was usually not so loud. It was a side effect of my good mood, I suppose.

I had to resist the urge to laugh as he sat up in shock. Perhaps he thought I was a mere dream? And I must admit, it was always amusing to see him flustered.

"W-What the hell are you doing?" he demanded in an unsteady voice.

I raised a brow at that. I thought it was quite obvious that I had come to prepare him for the day. Hm, maybe he required a few moments to come to full awareness.

"My lord, I am here to help you prepare for the day," I answered, being sure to speak slowly. "It is already past nine o'clock. You don't want to miss breakfast, do you?"

"For your information, I usually sleep till at least noon on the weekends," he growled. "And I thought I told you to go away!"

Sleeping until noon? How lazy of him. I would have to break him of that habit.

"That was last night," I said as I began to pour the tea. I must admit that I did have a habit of purposefully finding loopholes in my master's orders. I had to keep him sharp. "Today, I have prepared, ahem, Irish breakfast tea. Your family's selection is unfortunately lacking at the moment, but I prepared this the best I could. I hope it is to your liking." I then offered him the delicate cup.

He stared at it like I was offering him something unsavory. "How the devil did you prepare this?" he asked. "I thought you were a bloody spirit!"

Ah. I suppose that would seem confusing. "Indeed I am, young master, but I'm quite talented at manipulating objects," I replied. Quite talented. "Rest assured, I shall be able to serve you with ease." And I would do everything in my power to do so. I held out the cup again.

He slowly took it from he and took a small sip. His eyes widened in surprise in delight. I couldn't help but smirk at that. It seemed I still had my touch.

"I trust you like it, my lord?" I asked in a teasing tone.

As expected, he gave me a sharp look. I was surprised at how much I had missed those.

"Another thing, why do you keep referring to me as 'your lord'? I am not of nobility," he stated.

That shocked me still. True, the Phantomhives were not very high on the peerage rank, but to deny their nobility all together? What was happening here?

"You are of the Phantomhive family, yes?" I asked.

"Yes, I am," he answered. "But although we are wealthy, my family has not been considered nobility for many years."

I could feel my high spirits slowly lowering. "How many years, if you don't mind my asking?" I asked. I felt as though I already knew the answer.

"Ever since the 1880's," he replied. "Since this very house...burned down."

I couldn't help the feeling of sadness that overcame me. I would not have been surprised if my previous master's blood was actually blue. And now his family had been stripped of their title. The young master sometime thought that the queen was against him. He must have been right. But, no matter. This boy still had the blood of nobles in his veins, and he acted the part well.

"Well, no matter what, I will always consider you of high blood, my lord," I told him. I wanted him to know that I still respected his position. "You even act as though that were the case."

He obviously did not know how to respond to that. He merely grumbled and placed the cup back on the cart.

I carefully lifted the outfit I had brought him. I hoped that he would hold still this time. "Now, my lord, shall we dress you?" I asked. I reached to take off the his shirt.

To my surprise, he moved away from me. "Hey!" he cried. "What do you think you're doing?"

Even if he did not yet trust me, this was an average duty for a servant such as myself. I needed to quickly get him to his breakfast. He was obviously disoriented in the mornings.

"I am trying to dress you," I explained slowly. "But first we must remove the clothes you are already wearing."

"I am perfectly capable of dressing myself!" he exclaimed indignantly.

I had to suppress the urge to laugh aloud at that. Just like his ancestor, this boy seemed completely incapable of taking care of himself. The one time his predecessor tried to dress himself, he ended up with all the buttons on his shirt wrong and his trousers were on backwards.

Fine, I thought. Let the child indulge himself. "Alright then, if you insist," I said as I handed him the bundle.

He huffed and began to remove his top. "Feel free to turn your back!" he snapped at me.

I chuckled and did as I was told. "Please hurry, young master," I said. "I would hate for your breakfast to get cold."

I could not wait for the rest of the day to start.

XxxxxxX

It was remarkable how easy this child was to irritate. He scowled when I told him I had prepared him breakfast. He scowled when I followed him to the table. He scowled when I pulled the chair out for him and tied a napkin around his neck. And he scowled when he ate his food, even though I could tell he was enjoying it. Ah, yes, this young master would most definitely be fun to serve.

"Are you finished, sir?" I asked when he set his cutlery down.

"Yes, I am. And, um, thank you," he added.

I was both surprised and happy to hear that. In all my time as a servant, no one had ever thanked me for anything, especially not my young master. I was merely doing my job. "No need to thank me, my lord," I said. "I am merely doing my duty as your servant. Now, I shall take those dishes back to the kitchen. I shall return soon."

I placed the dishes on a tray and quickly went into the kitchen. This ability to go to room-to- room quickly was very convenient. It took me less than a minute to clean the dishes and put them away.

I believe I surprised my master when I appeared by his side. He visibly jumped and almost knocked his chair over. "Ah! You're back already?" he asked, sounding shocked.

I smirked and held a finger to his lips. "What sort of butler would I be if I couldn't go to the kitchen and return to my master's side in less than a minute?" That gesture and phrase were a bit of a...trademark of mine.

"Uh, right," he said. My, my. Such crude language. Another habit I shall have to rid him of.

"Now, young master, did you have any plans for the day?" I asked. I cared not what he answered. I would be able to resume my duties no matter what his plans were.

"Well, I was planning on exploring the house and grounds more throughly," he revealed.

Most excellent. I had been wanting to acquaintance him with his home. "Very good, sir," I said. "With your permission, I shall give you a tour. I think you might be quite interested in this house's history."

"Hm, alright," he responded.

I couldn't help but smile. This day was turning out quite well so far.

XxxxxxX

I spent the next several hours showing him the house. I told him about everything I knew, from the tiles on the roof to where the wallpaper came from. I especially talked of my previous master. I believe that irked my new master a bit. But if my theory was correct, and they were indeed the same person, than I doing him a favor. Perhaps he would remember something from the past if I spoke of it enough.

I made sure to show him all of my first young master's favorite rooms. Such as the game room, the ballroom, and the library. It was as we were in there that he asked me a question.

"Sebastian," he said. "Who exactly rebuilt this manor? Why would they even bother?"

I really should have been expecting that question. I don't believe Mr. Landers ever told them who did. "I rebuilt it, young master," I answered. I couldn't keep the pride out of my voice. It was quite an accomplishment, if I do say so myself.

"You did?" he asked incredulously. "How is that even possible? You're not even alive!"

How very blunt. But I supposed that would be any rational person's reaction. "Oh, it did take quite a bit of time," I said. A bit of an understatement, there "But I simply couldn't allow my master's house to stay in such a horrid state. And if I hadn't, you would not be here now, would you?"

"I suppose not," he said quietly.

Then, to my horror, he noticed the door to the room where I kept my previous master's remains. I couldn't let him see that just yet. It would most likely unnerve him. Normal homes did not have long deceased residents entombed in its rooms.

"Oh my, look at the time!" I exclaimed in an attempt to distract him. "It is already time for afternoon tea. I'm afraid we've missed your lunch, young master. Please forgive me for this grievous error."

"It's alright," he said. "I didn't feel hungry, anyway."

I almost sighed in relief. He took the bait. It was past luncheon hour, though. I would have to endeavor to be more punctual. "Even so, let's prepare that tea," I pushed. "I'm afraid that we won't have time to tour the grounds today. I hope that young master is not too disappointed?"

"No, we can do it some other time," he responded.

My mouth twitched a bit. Some other time, eh? I knew that when his curiosity was peaked, the young master would stop at nothing to find out what he wanted. I knew that I would have to show him the room sometime soon.

But for now, I would make him afternoon tea and pretend that everything was normal.

XxxxxxX

A/N: Next chapter should definitely be better. You know, I've had "Heat Of The Moment" stuck in my head all day. I almost typed " I finally came to a decision when I saw flour telling me what your heart meant" at one point. Yeah.

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