By the way, I think my fanfic doesn't really have a time set in the manga or the anime...lets just say RANDOM TIME that's beneficial to me (and you).
First, Yorkshire is a real region in England and I chose it for random reasons... don't ask what those random reasons are. Also I want to repeat, I felt like being ODDLY specific and did my research; the only thing not real are of course the murders, completely from my imagination YEA.
Secondly, Fluffy McFluffykins has officially been promoted to Master Fluff after this chapter –pompoms in hand– Go Sebby!
Disclaimer: Toboso Yana...I ENVY YOU! She owns Kuroshitsuji! –continues to rant about it–
The skies around the Phantomhive manor were darkening as a thundercloud was approaching by the southwest. Sebastian was preparing their leave to begin the investigation of the murders happening in the Yorkshire County. As the earl exited the mansion, cane in hand, he recalled the order from the Queen.
Stop the gruesome murders occuring in York that frighten the townsfolk at all costs.
After they both entered the extravagant horse carriage and exited the mansion, its horses continued to ride past London, heading northward.
It was definitely going to be along ride. If they needed to stop the killer, Ciel and his butler Sebastian would first need to reach Yorkshire County...which was very far from their manor located in the outskirts of London. The trip would take about a week to reach said county on horse. He would need to stop in the cities of Luton, Northampton, Leicester, Nottingham, Sheffield, Leeds...until finally entering York, city where the criminal was taking his victims. Ciel had taken refuge in a nobleman accomplice's home upon arriving, near midnight, and gave the order to Sebastian to investigate while he slept.
After awaking the next morning, fully rested, his butler had gathered up the suspects' names, if they had alibis or not, the victims' profile, cause of death, place and date of occurrence, and of course, clues left behind. As Ciel ran over the information gathered, he saw the pattern.
It was a large city, but the victims died in mostly the same area, two or three streets apart maybe. Most of the victims were from noble houses and between the ages of 12 and 15, all male. A victim had been killed every four days around midnight, in the same way as the others. That is, with a soft but deadly cut across the throat, presumed to be the original cause of death, and a large deep gash in the abdomen seemed to have been given after the victim's death. Also, the poor victims' eyes had been gouged out, but only the right eye. The murders had started six weeks ago now, two of them being murdered while the Earl Phantomhive was traveling to the city. Ten young boys had been killed now, and it was causing quite the commotion between the noble houses, fear and animosity brewing. All the suspects were from opposing noble families, thought to have good reasons to do such. And it was precisely because of the suspects that problems had formed between the nobles.
It had to be resolved soon, as the Queen had asked, but Ciel understood something more of the murders. He just couldn't put his finger on it.
"My lord." Ciel snapped out of his thoughts and turned from the chair he was currently sitting on, papers in hand, toward his butler.
"Yes, is there something new?" He asked, standing from the chair.
"No, but I suggest it would be wise to go out into town, see the murder scenes with our own eyes." The butler grabbed a coat for the boy. "After all, it won't do any good staying here to get rid of the pest causing commotions amongst the nobles here." He dressed the boy with the long jacket and gestured to the door on the other side of the room. "Shall we?"
"Hmph. You seem to have taken a bit more of time searching. Where you looking for the reaper assigned here?" A short scoff left his lips.
"I may have, but for the investigation, my lord. After all, if he was posted here, I am to assume he reaped the victim's souls." Sebastian looked at the time. "Sadly, I was unable to find him, but it doesn't matter now, we really must hurry if you want to return to the manor quickly." Although Sebastian had the same indifferent face, inside he was truly very worried. He did not find the redhead anywhere, and he searched high and low. Unless he was purposely hiding from him, Sebastian should have found Grell easily.
"Let's hurry then." was Ciel's response. It was true and he didn't want to discuss, he only felt like getting the investigation over with and go back home. They were both sure the manor was in danger in the hands of the servants.
A squirming older man whimpered on the floor as a much younger one pointed a gun to his face, amused.
"So, now are you going to tell me what you saw?" A small smirk rose to the young boy's lips.
"I-I'm telling you, tha-that's all!" The man managed to say while pushing himself back against the wall, pinning himself more. "I closed my shop and headed to my house when I heard a loud scream! I-I only saw the boy after falling to the floor, I swear!"
"He seems to be telling the truth, my lord." A taller man said calmly. "Another dead end perhaps?" His red eyes glowed slightly, but only for an instant.
Ciel huffed. "I'm getting bored." He lifted his gun from the man now stuck to the wall. "Sebastian. Maybe you can see if it is indeed just what he says?"
The butler approached the boy and kneeled. "Yes, my lord." His figure grew closer to the older man as the younger boy simply stepped aside, sheer boredom written over his face. "Is this all you have to say, sir?"
The butler's figure emanated a dark aura, further frightening the man below, slowly closing the gap keeping the human safe.
"Is it?"
The older man saw his doom before him and broke out. "Wait!" The taller man stopped. "T-the only other thi-thing I remember is that after I s-saw the boy fall, a shadow disappeared outside the corner of my eye! But that's it! Nothing more!"
Sebastian stood up. "Thank you, Sir Campbell." He turned on his heel and followed after his master, now leaving the dirty, empty street and spoke with a smile. "Have a nice day."
The earl had seen every crime scene and questioned every eyewitness and suspect. It was all too boring for him. Something struck him as odd when passing by the York Graveyard seeing a familiar figure venture inside.
"Stop the carriage."
"My lord?" Ciel exited the horse carriage and ran to the graveyard, Sebastian, intrigued, following behind.
The boy didn't stop until he confirmed what he had wondered. And it was a wonder, alright. Just in front of his form, the Undertaker was humming a dark tune, preparing a grave for one of the victim's body, the most recent it seemed. It was probably a wealthy noble since the casket he saw on the floor next to the mortician was quite expensive and grand. How the undertaker managed to make such extravagant coffin without money (since he hated the Queen's money) was...unimaginable and impressive to say the least.
"Oooh, well if it isn't the eeeearl." The Undertaker turned to see the young boy behind him, grinning. "I have to say, I didn't expect to meet with you so soon. Or here, so far away from London~." A few soft giggles (deep, gleeful yet macabre giggles) after speaking his words.
"Same here, Undertaker. I have a few questions to ask you if you don't mind." He glanced at the coffin and sighed.
"Hmmm, are you sure you can pay me for information, earl? You didn't seem to have any jokes left for me the last time you requested my services..." He said between chuckles with the usual grin plastered on his face.
"Well, I'm sure my butler can take my place, right Sebastian?" Both of them, as if on cue, turned their heads and looked at the butler expectantly.
Taking into consideration it was two-against-one, Sebastian agreed. 'It appears I have no choice in the matter...' "Of course my lord."
"Well then!" The happy-go-lucky mortician yelled "Why don't you follow me to my current quarters?" He skipped joyfully toward an unnoticed morgue. "I can't wait for my first-rate laugh now~." He went into a fit of more macabre giggles and continued to skip along the stone path, clicking his heels and continuing the dark song, humming.
The two males left behind only raised a brow and followed the obviously-deranged silver haired mortician.
They were uncomfortably seated on two coffins after Sebastian told his humorous joke, leaving the insane, heavily cloaked man coughing and spitting, trying to breathe.
He said something about seeing 'utopia' again. Both Ciel and Sebastian sweat-dropped.
He was currently composed, but still grinning (his face must be stuck like that by now...Ciel and Sebastian had never seen him not grinning, except when laughing) and had taken the liberty of making tea for the two visitors.
"Here my little earl~. Some Earl Grey for you and your butler." He presented the tea in...beakers. One has to admit, it saved the time measuring how much was poured.
"Thank you." Ciel accepted the strange tea. He was used to having tea served like this from the mortician.
"I must decline, Undertaker. I dedicate all my bei-"
"Alright then, butler." Undertaker took the beaker in his sleeved hands and chugged it down. "Gg-I must say, you're missing out~. My tea is very delicious." He said in between gulps.
"Well, shouldn't we get back to business?" Ciel took one last sip from the beaker and set it down beside the casket. "I believe you owe me some information on these murders."
"Aah, of course, of course." He took the empty beaker next to the earl and placed it next to the other. "Hmm...Where should I start…? Oh yes! Maybe the most important..." The mortician circled the young boy. "My guests tell me that the murderer is uninterested in killing~."
"How so?" Ciel asked. If you don't want to kill, why do so in the first place?
"I mean the cuts were fast and sloppy, earl~. The poor dear's stitches make zigzags over the stomach, really." He poked the young boy's neck. "It looks more like the murders are a warning, or...a trap. If you noticed, my guests were indeed very alike, but don't you think they're more like you, young earl?"
The earl's eyes widened realizing so. "You mean the killer wants me as his victim, right? That is the reason for all of this."
"Yes yes, its al a farce to attract the Queen's Watchdog aaaaall the way from the outskirts of London. Don't you think it's a long way from home, hmm?"
"...Indeed it is." Sebastian answered. The butler seemed to have been ignoring their conversation and instead recalled the places he had checked last night for the reaper. It really did worry him.
"Then I suppose the criminal will have his wish granted. I don't plan on running away from a challenge after all." The young boy said confidently.
"My dear lord, the killer is certainly calling you out. But you should know...it isn't only one murderer, but two." He emphasized.
"Two? How do you know that?" said Ciel. Really, the Undertaker may have lost his mind but he always knew everything.
"It's simple, my little earl. The victim's stomach and neck wounds were made by scratches, not by weapons. And both are different from each other~. Veeery different." Undertaker stepped back to get a biscuit and proceeded to eat it (where did he get the biscuit?). "I would shay with comffidence it wash not made by a humam...or humams." He spoke while eating the biscuit.
Both Ciel and Sebastian, who came back from his little world, looked with a look of stupefaction at the mortician. "...I'm sorry what was that?"
He swallowed. "I said it wasn't made by humans, my dear simpletons. I apologize, I couldn't resist eating one anymore~. And the killers are possibly two hungry demons." Undertaker chuckled.
"Y-you..." Ciel stopped to think. 'The Undertaker knew about a demon's existence?' Sebastian also was shocked, but not surprised entirely, the man was knowledgeable.
"Yes, earl, and as a reaper I should know about them, naturally."
"...YOU'RE A REAPER?" Both shouted in unison.
"Oh, I didn't tell you? Oops~."
One summary later, the two understood the Undertaker was a recognized reaper and he already knew of the butler and the young boy's situation. It was getting late and so the earl excused himself, thanking the silver haired reaper for the information.
"Be careful~."
As the butler lead his master to the stone path outside, Undertaker called back at him.
"Wait, butler. I should give you personally some advice before you leave."
"Advice, sir?" The butler, not comprehending, spoke up.
"Yes, I noticed you were a little distracted by something, and I think I know whaat~."
Sebastian showed an expression of disbelief. "Now, now, I will only give a few words that might help your distress, I assure you. I know that you're worried about the little reaper; I've seen the ginger enough times around here, lying about, bragging about how you acted toward her was so romantic, but felt unsure if it would be your true feelings, seeing it would be a dream-come-true to her," he paused, glancing through his long bangs at the butler, "And you see, demons only get one chance at love -and I do not mean lust or mindless pairing, you've experienced that I'm sure- I mean true love, butler. And trust my words, I know what I speak; I've lived long enough to understand from a glimpse what goes on in other's minds. I'm sure being wholehearted and caring to another is a new thing, but it comes with the feeling. A demon much like yourself will never see such devotion again from another being, much less a reaper~." His voice turned husky and monotone. "Do not let go of it."
The demon stood frozen momentarily, sinking in all the words into his aged brain. Undertaker was being uncharacteristically generous for someone who gives advice and information for quality laughs.
"...I...You—well, thank you, sir..." He was at a loss for words.
Now the serious air around them gone, Undertaker spoke once again. "Now go to your little master, he'll suspect we were talking for too long. I hope to see you two again in London~!" A small wave of good-bye from the butler and he was again by the young master, helping him to the horse carriage. Sebastian boarded the front and whipped the horses to continue their original route.
Love...was that it?
He kept thinking about Grell as he led the trip to the nobleman's house. For some reason, an image of the redhead, crying on his shoulders, heartbroken, was on his mind, and it would not leave. It was as if the fragile reaper was saying 'don't let go', 'don't leave me' with every tear falling from his face... It was what the reaper wanted, to be held, to be caressed...to be loved. And in that one night, what felt like ages ago, Sebastian had given it to Grell, unknowingly but willingly.
And he could not bear to part with the feeling anymore. What the mortician had said was true, he would never have this chance again; hell, the demon had lived for such a long time and never even thought about love once for himself. It was unnecessarily.
As he reached the home of the earl's acquaintance, his mind was determined.
No. I will not let go of you. Ever.
To be continued…
ALL HAIL THE POWERFUL SAGE OF DEATH! I gotta tell you, fluffier than this it cannot get...OR CAN IT?