Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket or Black Butler. They, and their characters, belong to their respective creators.

Chapter Six - Consequentials

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Kyo woke with a start, almost jumping out of his chair. His hair was standing on end, muscles tense. For a moment, he had no idea where he was.

Tanaka bowed apologetically. "My apologies. I didn't mean to startle you." He dropped his hand. He'd only barely touched the youth. It was a good thing he was still quite nimble or he might have been knocked over by the sudden awakening.

Memory flooded Kyo's brain. He looked around the room. Besides Tanaka, Mey-Rin was also present. Tohru was still asleep. And he was wearing his school uniform, fairly rumbled from being slept in. He also had a crick in his neck.

Tanaka waited patiently for his charge to sort things out. "When you weren't in your room, I thought you might have wandered over here to check on your friend. Mey-Rin was kind enough to check for me. If you would be so good as to return to your room to... freshen up, the Young Master has requested that you breakfast with him this morning."

Kyo's stomach growled. Even though he'd eaten a lot the day before, there was always room for more, unless it involved leeks or onions. He just didn't like the idea of leaving Tohru alone. He looked uncertainly at her still form.

Tanaka easily read his uncertainty. "Mey-Rin will continue to look after her so there is no need to worry. I'm sure that once breakfast is finished, there will be time enough to return. This way please." He opened the door into the hallway, fully expecting Kyo to follow.

The boy bit his lip, still undecided. Tohru would tell him it was rude not to go to something he was invited to, especially if the person inviting was giving them lodgings. But he also didn't know how she was doing, just that she was still asleep, with the occasional cough escaping between her lips. She looked peaceful enough, though. With a sigh, he followed Tanaka back to his room.

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Ciel frowned as he turned to a new page of his newspaper. It was a day old. He'd already read it. And Sebastian had yet to bring out breakfast. He only had tea to tide him over, knowing full well that Bard would not have done any of the actual cooking. He looked up as the door opened and Kyo walked in, wearing the same clothes from last night, followed by Tanaka.

Kyo walked over to the much smaller table. He was tempted to ask why they were having breakfast in a different room, but decided against it. It was less drafty this way, and there was a window so he could see outside instead of just staring at a covered wall. Without being urged, he took the only other seat at the table.

At that moment, Sebastian entered the room carrying a covered tray. "My apologies for being late. There was a slight delay in the kitchen." He set the tray in the middle of the table and removed the lid. Steam drifted up from several serving bowls. Bard followed behind him, carrying a basket of fresh scones, which he placed on the table, then left. He had a kitchen to clean. Again.

"This morning's meal consists of scones with fresh current preserves and blotted cream, along with poached eggs and browned breakfast sausage." He talked as he served, presenting the plates with a flourish. "To accent the meal, there is the choice of freshly squeezed orange juice or Earl Grey."

Ciel folded his newspaper and placed it to one side. "Earl Grey," he indicated as he placed his napkin on his lap. He watched as Tanaka poured orange juice for Kyo.

Sebastian poured the tea and stepped aside. "I almost forgot, the morning paper." He produced the print and placed it on top of the older newspaper. "It took some doing to retrieve this morning."

The earl smiled. "I'm sure it did. I hope you weren't up too late, nor up too early for such a trivial matter. Though I would like to know the state of the roads since you were about this morning." He knew that his butler had not really used the roads, or the usual means, to procure the morning edition.

Sebastian returned the smile. "The bridge is still flooded with the water from the river, and the roads are quite muddy, enough to cause any carriage significant delays. Someone determined enough could, perhaps, still make it through, though it would take them some time."

Ciel gave a disinterested wave of the hand. "Very well. That will do. I hope, however, that you took care of a few other matters while you were about this morning?"

"Of course."

He took up a scone and began spreading it with jam. "Excellent. Are we, then, to expect an addition to our party later this afternoon?"

"I do believe so."

Kyo, meanwhile, was ravenously eating his food, not paying attention to the conversation between master and butler. Even though the food wasn't what he was used to, it wasn't bad, though he did wish for something a little more familiar. But it would do, for now. His attention was finally piqued by a change in conversation.

"I intend to check on the girl once breakfast is complete," Sebastian was saying, "as it is very unlikely that any doctor can be brought in today with the roads as they are."

The little green monster fired up in Kyo's stomach and he put his utensils down.

The butler turned slightly his way, smiling. "Of course, Mey-Rin will be present for propriety's sake."

Ciel swallowed his bite of sausage, giving a bored expression. "Of course. Please inform me of her condition as soon as you know."

Sebastian bowed. Such a nicely rehearsed conversation, he thought in amusement. They were both playing their part so well.

Kyo sat up. "You'd better let me be there too," he warned.

Ciel almost smirked. Perhaps Sebastian was right about him being jealous. If nothing else, he was definitely being overly protective, which probably meant he felt strongly for her.

"As the young sir wishes," Sebastian confirmed as he turned back to Ciel. "More tea?"

Ciel leaned back in his chair. "No. That will be all." He glanced at the top page of his newspaper. The headline was slightly blurred from rainwater but one of the more prominent words indicated more unrest. He sighed. Yet another thing to worry about.

Sebastian checked his pocket watch. "Don't forget your art lesson at ten." He chuckled to himself upon hearing Ciel's sigh.

Hearing that he wasn't going to be barred from Tohru's room, Kyo's mind went off on various tangents to the point that he was no longer paying attention to what else was being said. He fully intended to rush up to Tohru's room the moment he was free from this stupid breakfast.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tohru groaned. She felt so warm and comfortable, despite the tickle in her throat. But it was a little too light for sleeping. In fact, it was lighter than it usually was when she got up. Oh no! She sat up in a panic, her heart pounding. "School!" She began fumbling with the bedding in a frenzied. In her confused state, she didn't recognize where she was, but she managed to get the heavy bedding off of her and looked around, realizing something was wrong. She gasped, an act that left her coughing.

Mey-Rin jumped up from her chair where she'd been trying to mend one of Finni's shirts. "Mistress!" She wasn't sure why the girl had exclaimed so suddenly, but she knew that she was in no condition to be going anywhere, not coughing like she was. She ran over, not sure what to do, other than to try and persuade her to not get out of bed, not that it was necessary at the moment.

Tohru was coughing so hard that she couldn't focus on anything but trying to stop. It didn't help that her heart was still pounding from her moment of panic, encouraging her breathing to also be accelerated.

Kyo suddenly burst into the room. "Tohru!" He ran over to the other side of the bed and sat down on the mattress, sliding closer to her. "Tohru! What's wrong?" He was incredibly tempted to pull her towards himself but knew that wouldn't be wise, even though Mey-Rin already knew about his secret, more or less.

Mey-Rin looked up as Kyo stormed in, but her gaze remained on the door as Sebastian's tall form entered not more than a few seconds later. She moved towards him. "Oh, Mr. Sebastian! Can't you do something?"

Sebastian moved into the room and glanced around to evaluate the situation. "Bring some cool water in a basin and some clean cloths," he instructed as he moved to her vacated spot and sat on the edge of the bed, ignoring the chair. "Also, the pot on the stove and a clean glass." Sometimes he had to be quite specific.

Mey-Rin quickly ran out of the room to find the requested items, her apron flying.

Kyo was at a loss as to what he could do except put a hand on her back and pat her while she continued to cough. He wasn't sure if it sounded like she was choking or coughing because she was sick. Maybe both.

"Allow me," Sebastian said, moving Kyo's hand aside to replace it with his own. He placed his other hand near her stomach to support her, feeling the intensity of the muscle contractions. "We need to wait out the coughing spell," he said by way of explanation when Kyo looked like he was going to protest. "Miss Tohru, please try to breathe as normally as possible." It took another couple of minutes for Tohru to stop coughing while Sebastian supported her from behind and Kyo watched helplessly.

Mey-Rin ran into the room at about the time she'd finally stopped, water sloshing in the basin she carried, clean towels flung over one shoulder. "Mr. Sebastian! I brought the water!" Behind her, Bard carried the kettle and cup he'd wanted.

The butler helped Tohru lay back, gently easing her onto the pillows he'd repositioned to make her lie a bit more upright. She was still breathing fairly hard. "Very good. Please place it on the bedside table here." He pointed to the small table next to him.

Water sloshed from the bowl as she put it in the spot he indicated, spilling onto the wood surface. He let out a sigh but used one of the small towels she'd brought to mop up the mess before dipping it into the water, getting his glove wet. "Bother these," he said as he left the hand towel in the water and stripped off the glove on his right hand.

Kyo stared at the long, black nails the glove had hidden. What kind of butler had black nails? What was with this guy? And why had he only taken off one glove?

Sebastian moved his right hand to Tohru's forehead. It was quite warm, warmer than last night. But that might have been partly due to the coughing spell or the heat from the fire.

"I need... to go... to school," Tohru mumbled, her eyes half closed. The faces in front of her swirled to the point that she couldn't really recognize them. Was that Hatori bending over her, with Shigure behind his shoulder holding a steaming kettle? "I'll... be late... for school. Can't... be late..."

"I don't think you'll be going to school today," Sebastian said as he picked up the towel and wrung it out. "Just lie quietly. You can go when you're feeling better." He placed the cloth on her forehead. "But you should rest now. You gave everyone quite the scare."

Kyo scowled. Scare was an understatement. He'd thought she was dying.

Sebastian looked over his shoulder at the chef. "Bard, would you be so kind as to pour a cup from that kettle and place it on the table next to the water for me?"

Bard almost jumped at being called so suddenly. He'd been staring. "O'course!" He quickly poured the bitter smelling stuff into the cup and set it down as instructed while Sebastian turned his attention back to his patient.

Kyo watched him, once again, place his fingers on Tohru's neck to feel for swelling. However, he didn't like how he seemed to let his fingers linger longer than was probably necessary.

Sebastian breathed in deeply. This girl before him... she had one of the purest souls he'd ever encountered. He took the moment to savor the aroma of her soul as he felt her lifeblood pulsing under his fingertips. It would be so easy to... but no. She was a guest and he had not been instructed to do anything but care for her, which he would do without fail. But he allowed his fingers to linger a moment longer before removing them.

Turning, he deftly picked up the cup without so much as looking to see where it had been placed. "Can you sit up a little," he asked, transferring the cup from his left hand to his right so that he could ease his left under her back. With his help, she sat up a bit. Her eyes were still clouded and he wondered if she knew where she was. "Sip this, slowly," he instructed.

Tohru obediently put her hands out to grab the cup, putting them around his ungloved one, and lifted the cup to her lips. It was bitter, like the drink last night, only there were some other flavors mixed in that she didn't know. What were they?

"Drink it all," he said, feeling for her breath through the hand on her back. He didn't want to go about the show of placing his ear against her again. It wasn't strictly necessary. He could feel and hear what he needed to know. "This should help you breathe easier, but it will make you sleep. An unfortunate side effect, I'm afraid."

"She needs to sleep anyway," Kyo said crossly.

Sebastian smiled. "You're probably right. Though I do believe part of her difficulty came from trying to breathe things she shouldn't. Generally speaking, only fish can breathe water," he added by way of explanation.

Tohru's tongue felt funny from the drink, a bit tingly. "This tastes funny, Hatori" she commented, her eyes drooping.

Sebastian blinked. Perhaps the elevated fever wasn't entirely a result of her coughing after all. "It is an infusion of various medicinal herbs, none of which will do you any harm, all of which will do you much good so be a good girl and finish drinking it."

Tohru nodded slightly. "Okay." She sipped the remainder obediently, though the last few drops made her want to gag a bit. They were so bitter. But medicine wasn't supposed to taste good so she resisted, leaving the cup in Sebastian's hand as she leaned back against the pillows.

Sebastian removed the cloth from her forehead. It was warm. He put it back in the cool water and looked around for the maid. "Mey-Rin, please continue to apply this cold compress, rinsing it every few minutes for about another hour. Surely that is something you can manage."

Mey-Rin jumped over. "Of course, Mr. Sebastian! I'll do my best!"

The butler stood, picking up the teapot and cup as he went. "Bard, shouldn't you be in the kitchen? There's no need stare at our guests."

Bard came to himself again, realizing that he had been staring. The girl had an uncommon kind of beauty. "Right! Sorry, Mr. Sebastian." He scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment. "Still need to finish cleaning up my mess." He grinned as he turned to leave the room, taking the pot and cup from Sebastian before going.

Kyo stared after him, not sure what to make of this rather strange staff. Akito wouldn't have put up with anything like that, he was sure.

"Come," Sebastian said as he stood waiting at the door. "It is best to let Miss Tohru rest in peace. She will probably sleep for several hours. If you would like, there is a rather large library, or you may accompany me to the Young Master's art lesson, which is to begin in," he checked his pocket watch, "about ten minutes."

Kyo grumbled under his breath, but decided he'd join the butler. He could keep an eye on him that way.

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Lau lazily lounged on a divan, several of the women who worked for him surrounding him, including Ran Mao, his adoptive little sister and bodyguard. All the women wore high slit Chinese dresses with short skirts in various colors of silk. Lau's own attire was more modest, being more traditional in nature, though still of bright coloring.

He waved at the smoke surrounding him, making it curl as it dispersed around him. "So the young earl has invited us over today," he said. "I wonder what schemes he has cooking this time." He was half inclined to ignore the invitation, knowing full well that it was more of a summons. Well, he'd never really let such things bother him before, and it would be a change of scene from the opium den. And the earl was always fun to be around, and tease.

Ran Mao snuggled up against him. She was never really far from his side, nor did she ever say much. But Lau trusted her completely. And her talents were more far reaching than most people knew or realized.

"Shall we go, then," Lau asked her affectionately.

Ran Mao blinked up at him, her face remaining expressionless.

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The afternoon had come, finally. Ciel had never been so happy to see the second part of the day. Lunch was over with. Most of his lessons were also completed. Now he could try and relax a little before teatime, or so he hoped. There was still his music lesson. However, the best part was that the sky was finally clearing. Even the slight drizzle had stopped.

His guests had remained quiet most of the morning. As far as he knew, Tohru was still sleeping and had been most of the morning. He'd been reassured that the young lady was mostly afflicted with a fever at this point, though she still had a slight cough. And Kyo had hidden himself in the library pouring over books of little consequence; at least after he'd decided it was pointless to watch Sebastian tutor him.

Ciel stared out the window. The sky was a beautiful blue color, washed clean by the rain. Finni could be seen on the grounds below, running joyfully around in his rubbers. He was half tempted to join him.

Sebastian entered the room, pausing to watch him. After a moment, he decided it was time to move things along. "Young Master, it is time for your music lesson."

Ciel didn't turn around. "What do you have me playing this time?"

Sebastian mused for a moment, wonder how he'd react to the news. It was probably better to just get it done and over with. After all, if the Young Master didn't push himself, he would never become truly accomplished. "Bach's Toccata & Fugue in d minor for the violin." He proceeded to set up the music stand with the appropriate sheet music, making sure to lay his master's violin within easy reach, still in its case.

Ciel nearly choked. What was it with him and Bach pieces? "Are you trying to make a fool of me? Why do you keep choosing such hard pieces?"

The older man smiled in amusement. "To make you grow, of course. One cannot grow stronger without adversity."

Ciel grumbled, but moved to the music stand and opened his case. Despite his complaints, he actually liked playing, even if the music presented more of a challenge than he thought he was ready for. One could get lost in music, not having to worry about the mundane things of every day life. Music set one's soul at ease.

He lifted the instrument and made sure it was in tune before contemplating the music in front of him. The main problem with Bach pieces, especially those in d minor, was that one had to play them with the right emotion or it came out entirely wrong. Taking a deep breath, he put his bow to the strings and began to play.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Music floated down the corridors, unrestricted by closed doors. Kyo caught faint hints of it in the library as he scowled over an encyclopedia. He'd been looking through all of them, trying to determine if the year he'd been given the other day was correct, and that they really had gone back in time. So far, he'd seen far too much about England, very badly written stuff about Japan, but had not yet ruled out the possibility that Sebastian had lied.

He set the book aside. Encyclopedias were getting him nowhere. Sure they contained a lot of information, but they weren't telling him what he wanted to know, the actual date. He ran his fingers agitatedly through his hair; stopping when something caught his eye, a newspaper, possibly the same one Ciel had been reading that morning.

He went over to investigate, gingerly turning the earmarked pages. He didn't know if he dared pay attention to the date at the top or not. Instead, he postponed it by browsing the headlines. Incessant rain. Political parties. Royal galas. They all meant nothing to him. One article did catch his attention, something about strange occurrences near the docks. There was nothing specific, except that some people were supposedly missing.

Kyo turned the page. More crap. He sighed. Well, he might as well get the inevitable out of the way. He flipped back to the front page and looked at the date. He suddenly couldn't breathe. Instead, he gasped, choking on spit. His eyes went wide. Was this a joke? It defied everything he knew, but there it was, the shocking truth, 1889 as clear as day.

He put the paper down very carefully. It took another moment or two to remember how to breathe. He felt like a fish out of water, and he didn't even like water.

The main door opened and Mey-Rin popped her head in. She looked around quickly. "Not here," she said to herself, then quickly popped back out, shutting the door behind her, leaving Kyo blinking. Who was she looking for, he wondered. But that was secondary importance to his discovery.

Unless this was some sick joke, and he really hoped it was, then his reality had just been dumped on its head, leaving him hanging. He still didn't know how to explain their being in England, but a century back in time, practically confirmed, was something else entirely. The main problem, however, was not that they had gone back in time, but how they could get back to their own and he had no ideas. One thing was certain, he wasn't going to tell Tohru about any of this until he'd figured out a way to get them out of this mess.