Chapter 4: Phantomhive Moenia
Ciel returned to the fairy park and opened the left door with the Garden key. Just as he was about to go through the door, he felt a static feeling race at his arm. Now that was odd; he hadn't touched the doorknob yet. He looked around the area and he saw nothing but fireflies…
…But are they really fireflies? He stared at a firefly slowly approaching him. On second thought, maybe it isn't really a firefly. It was blue and was glowing so brightly that it surpassed a normal firefly's glow…
The firefly suddenly exploded when it made contact with him. A small scream escaped his lips and he collapsed; a great shock ran throughout his body that he felt he was being electrocuted. It died down a while later but it made his senses numb and his vision blurry. He could still see numerous blurry puffs of the blue 'fireflies' floating towards him. He had to get away, but his legs were still numb from the shock. He crawled on his stomach; dragging the rest of his body with his arms. He had to go a safe distance away from the fireflies. He crawled to the furthest corner of the area and pleaded his body to recover faster.
The fireflies were fast approaching him. There were four of them, and if the first one paralyzed him like this, what would happen to him if all four of them were to hit him? His feet were getting their feeling back, but they remained unresponsive. Ciel panicked.
Just when the fireflies were an inch from his body, they suddenly died away. They disappeared like a light from a bulb that was switched off. He stared at the air where the fireflies were before they suddenly vanished into thin air.
"What an odd bug." He muttered. "All the more reason I should get out of here fast!" He got to his feet and ran to the door.
He came to an empty corridor. There were more doors down the corridor but most of them were locked in the inside. There was this one red door that didn't have a doorknob or a keyhole. Ciel knew that anything with the color red on it was dangerous, but that's his theory about the color anyway. He just took note of the details the door had; it had an odd shaped cavity that consisted of three horizontal bars and a vertical bar intersecting the three bars in the center. Also, there was a small picture of a black, stick person just below the odd-shaped cavity. The picture resembled that of a puppet… but he wasn't sure.
"DOLLY!!!" A gleeful shout echoed the corridor.
The doll-loving menace had returned once again. Ciel jumped. "Not now…!" And he ran back to the door he had just come through. He heard a loud rumble which was almost like a boom of thunder; the menace had busted a wall from the end of the corridor with the use of his bare fists.
"CII-ELL!! Ih!!" The man yelled as he came running towards the boy. Ciel continued to run to places where his legs and mind could take him on impulse. There was absolutely no time to think of anything!
He went to the route of the music room, and he was absolutely sure he had lost his pursuer because he didn't hear his call of "Dolly!" or anything from him. But he should still hide; he went back to the demented music room once again. The sight of the wooden statue irked him out of his concentration.
"Where is YOU?!!" He heard the man call faintly.
Damn! His pursuer was fast approaching… He closed the door as quietly as possible, hoping that his pursuer will not come here to check. But still, he had to hide. He set his eyes on an idle bookcase placed on the left of the lounging chairs. The bookcase was placed near the wall, though the bookcase provided some appropriate spacing for people to walk around it. That space might be suitable for him to hide.
He sat on the floor and leaned on the bookcase. But in doing so, it emitted a creaking sound and almost tipped over. "Shoot! Be quiet!" He grabbed any groove he could get his hand in to pull the bookcase back in place.
…And there was silence; though it was not complete since Ciel could hear his heart pounding and his breathing was like that of panting dog. He was still afraid of getting caught by this man… and the other one who made that damned statue… and the one who brought him in this freakish manor… and being paralyzed by those fireflies…
There was just so much to be afraid of and it didn't do him well…
"Where is YOU?!!" A gleeful, nightmarish giggle sounded throughout the room added to the boy's fear that he was found... almost… His pursuer surveyed the room. The boy soundlessly stood up from his resting position to get ready to run anytime. But the pursuer's face suddenly appeared to his left and the boy's nerves were quickly terrified and not at all ready. "BOO!!" screamed the man in insane happiness. Ciel scampered quickly to the opposite side but the man seemed to have expected this action and jumped out to block him.
"What do I do?!" Ciel thought.
"Let'sh… p-pu-lay! Ciii-ell…!!" The man giggled and hopped about happily. But the thought of a game with him was a freakish one…
…Wait, this bookcase seems to be unstable. And his pursuer is behind it. Then, add force to the equation, then…
He ran backwards to the wall behind him to charge his momentum. Then, he kicked at his heels as hard and fast as he can and charged onto the unstable bookcase. It completely tipped over and his pursuer's yowl was enough to tell that his plan was a success. The menace seemed to have been crushed under the weight of the bookcase and its contents. Ciel curiously prowled around the man to see if he was unconscious. But unfortunately, he wasn't; the man probably got angry and seemed to snap and snarl at him. Ciel quickly dashed to the way out and locked the door.
"A bookcase isn't enough to stop this thing!" Ciel panted. "I must… I must get away… at all… costs…" He refused the temptation to rest and dragged his body to run back to his destination and examine everything closely. But he had to work more quickly…
He went back to the corridor with the red door. And this time, he examined all the other doors a second time. Luckily, the beautiful maid came out from one of the locked doors he had passed by.
"Ah… Uhm… excuse me!" He called out.
The maid turned and faced him. Ciel approached her to start the conversation.
"Could… could…y…you…tell me where…the master of the… house… is?" He asked in a flustered face. It was embarrassing asking a person when you're completely exhausted, sore and breathless altogether. But the maid, instead of answering, turned her back at him and walked away; ignoring him altogether. He couldn't believe it! "Did I displease her? Definitely…" Of course he did; he panted like a dog!
Anyways, she had left the door open. At least she had helped a bit. He went inside the room and was surprised to find out that he had ended up in the kitchen! "This manor is very odd! The rooms are not in sync with each other… perhaps the rooms do not really matter where they are placed…" He thought.
He took a step and that action made his balance wobble in and out; dizziness was also starting to kick in. This is bad… "…Urghh… enough thinking… I feel faint…" He looked around the kitchen; the area was simple and handy. There were wide and long table tops and the cabinets were conveniently placed just above the stove. Also, the place was neat and clean… well, save for the chopped up meat left on the table top. The maid must have been preparing food when she was probably called to go to somewhere.
Oddly enough, the meat was giving off a strong, foul odor. The smell made him more dizzy and tired…
"DOLLY!!!" His deranged pursuer shot out from behind the table top. The boy almost had a heart attack and fell to the floor. Exactly how his pursuer recovered from the music room, he didn't have the ounce to know. He dashed out to the open door and ran as fast as his already sore body could take him. The doors that were previously locked were suddenly open, but he did not care anymore and just entered into one of them and kept on running.
It was getting darker; thunder was beginning to growl; the manor seemed to be getting larger. Ciel ultimately did not know where he had ended up, but he could not stop running; his heart would seem to burst any minute; his breath in loud vacuuming gasps; and his completely sore and sweat-drenched body has been worked out to its critical limit. His pursuer seemed to be getting happier and happier and never seemed to tire.
Ciel's ankle sprained when he took off running after he had tripped from a stone step. Now that he apparently slowed down, his pursuer was as happy as ever. Though, he seemed tired as well.
"Play…no more…" The man growled. The flash of lightning outside illuminated his furious magenta eyes. "Dolly… come…COME!!!" He reached out his hands to grab him. But Ciel still forced his weak little body to crawl away… far and away…
At this time, the man got angry and picked him up by his vest. Lifting the boy up, he said, "Dolly… BAD! P-pu-PUNISH!!"
"HELP!!!" Ciel screamed.
"EXIRE' PLUTO!!!" An angry voice loudly echoed throughout the area, defeating the volume of the harsh rain that had started pouring outside. In an instant, the man let go of the boy and instantly fled.
Ciel remained motionless on the floor, too tired and sore to move.
"I'm dreadfully sorry, young master."
Wait, this voice…
"Are you alright?"
No… it isn't…
"Let me help you up…" An arm levered his body off the floor and the other arm gently guided him to stand up. But he couldn't, so he remained in the stranger's arms. "I am Ash, the castle's keeper. You are safe now."
"M-my parents…" Ciel asked weakly; his eyes were blurry and he did not have the thought of looking at the stranger's face or anywhere to help him identify his savior. What mattered was that he was safe. "Where are they…?"
There was a moment of silence. Then, his savior finally answered, "I'm sorry to say that Master Vincent and Mistress Rachel are now deceased."
"Dead…?" The boy repeated in a whisper.
The man continued on. "You, Ciel Phantomhive, are the sole heir of Phantomhive Castle and all its estates. Upon the circumstances, you have just gained possession of the dowry."
"Castle…?" The boy repeated unconsciously. And then, his nightmare invaded his mind once more… the accident, the screams, the laughter, his father's death… the prophecy… his mind couldn't take all the events at once. The thoughts of everything ran through his head; questions were answered but more and more questions formed and his headache and fatigue consumed his consciousness altogether. He then sagged limp into the man's arms.
"You've had a long day." said the man as he lifted the boy up in his arms. "Your bed has been prepared." He said in a soothing voice as he made his way back to the new lord's bedroom.
A/n: I introduced the pesky Luminessants! Right! So far we have:
Fiona Belli - Ciel Phantomhive
Debilitas - Pluto (though I admit that I put in some of Finny qualities in him; the strength and the eyes as the mix)
Riccardo - Ash (I'll explain! But wait for the right time 'kay?)
Next up: Ciel will get a dog, similar to what happens to Fiona when she finds Hewie. Now guess who will Ciel find!
Replies:
chu chu banato! – Ermm… no, it's not Sebby. Keep guessing who wants to impregnate Ciel. Thanks a lot; now have another tart!