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

Chapter Thirteen - Attack and Revelations

The moment Bard saw the carriage pull up to the Mansion, he was running out the door, despite Tanaka having told him to wait. "Young Master!" He stood at attention just outside the carriage as the driver got down and opened the door for the earl and his companion. "Any news?"

Ciel sighed. "No. But I take it there is none to report to me either?"

Bard's cigarette bounced as he spoke. "Sorry, no. No one's called asking for a ransom or anything. It's been pretty quiet. Well, unless you count Paula going into hysterics."

Ciel pursed his lips. "And Sebastian's not back yet?" He started walking towards the door of the manor.

Bard scratched his ear. "Not that I've seen, but he's always quiet and such. Sometimes it's hard to tell."

Kyo followed after them as they talked about the butler, which put his own mind back to thinking about the man. There was no possible way the guy was human, at least not a normal one. He'd seen the guy dart away as soon as they were safely in the carriage. He'd moved so fast it was almost hard to follow him. No one moved that fast, not even Kagura and she was fast.

Tanaka greeted them with a bow inside the main entryway. "Young Master, would you care to freshen up before the evening meal?" Finni stood beside him at attention. "Until Mr. Sebastian's return, I will attend you and have asked Finni to attend to master Kyo."

Ciel nodded. It had been a long and fruitless day. He still felt uneasy about things, unsettled in a way. He didn't believe that they had much time to figure things out, but he couldn't tell his fears to Tanaka. And with Sebastian not there, he didn't really feel like indulging those fears to Kyo. His guest didn't need any more fuel for his fire. He just hoped that the outburst he'd experienced back at the Undertaker's was merely a result of the pressure from certain events.

Kyo glared. Things were definitely not going well, but he followed the gardener up to his room. Maybe he could pump him for some information about the butler, he decided. After all, the guy worked with him. And even though figuring out what had happened to Tohru was important, he felt a niggling feeling that Sebastian needed to be investigated as well.

Finni closed the door to Kyo's room as he followed the orange-haired boy in. He wasn't entirely sure what he was supposed to do in this situation as he noticed Kyo immediately toss off his jacket and the hat he'd been wearing. Maybe he should pour him some water so he could wash his face?

He was in the process of pouring the water into a basin when Kyo whirled around from the window where he'd been glaring out at space.

"Hey."

The water splashed, spilling out onto the table. Finni stopped in shock. He'd get yelled at for sure!

Realizing he'd startled the gardener, Kyo threw the jacket at him. "Use that," he ordered.

Finni set the pitcher down and took the jacket as ordered, using it to mop up the water, wondering if using it was really all right, but the guest had told him to and he could use that excuse if anyone asked. He just hoped he wouldn't get yelled at for it later.

Kyo debated, feeling a bit flustered but still uptight. He ran one hand through his hair. If Tohru were there, she'd ask him to apologize. "Hey, sorry for startling you. It's just a lot has happened and when things are out of my control I get angry. And when she's not here, I get even more angry."

Finni stopped to stare at him. Was this guest apologizing to him? Had a guest ever done that before? Was it okay? "Ah! No! It's my fault! Don't worry about it," he said quickly, in case Sebastian happened to step in. He'd expect perfect hospitality no matter the circumstances.

Kyo rolled his eyes. "Hey, come on. Don't be so uptight. I just apologized, okay? If you really feel sorry about it, why don't you tell me a few things?"

Finni blinked at him. "A few things? Like what?"

Kyo decided he'd better tread a little more carefully. "How about you tell me about Sebastian. I mean, he's not exactly a typical guy or anything. What can he do?"

"Oh!" Finni suddenly became excited. "Mr. Sebastian is amazing! Bard often compares him to some guy called Superman! It's like he can do anything twice as fast as anyone! He's the most amazing cook! And even though the rest of us are clumsy, he keeps the Manor spotless!"

Put in a nickel and get a dollar's worth, Kyo thought as Finni continued to express Sebastian's many qualities. A superman, able to do everything despite the others' bumbling idiocies. Someone who was almost always with Ciel. Someone who could sometimes be as scary as a devil when he was angry, and yet someone who seemed to clearly enjoy doing what he was doing.

Finni kept going on and on. "And he really seems to like cats! Though the Young Master is allergic and all. It's like he has this soft spot for them."

Kyo thought of the irony. That was probably why he'd been allowed inside in the first place that stormy night when he was in cat form, because Sebastian had a deep love for cats. Well, he supposed he should be grateful for that much. Slowly he was building an interesting image of this man. Super human strength and speed, intuition and reflexes to match. There was no way such a man could exist. He was definitely not human, but if he wasn't human, what was he?

He hadn't paid a whole lot of attention to various legends and such growing up. He'd been too busy being angry about his fate, though some childhood stories popped up in his memories now and again, mostly stories of night creatures and… demons…. Was that the answer?

"Ah!"

Kyo startled from thought at Finni's exclamation. "What?"

Finni was looking at the clock. "You're going to be late for dinner! And I haven't finished my chores for the day! Mr. Sebastian's going to be so mad!"

Kyo rolled his eyes. Was that all? "Fine. I can find my way down without you so just go do whatever." He had enough information to at least get him going. If he had to, he'd stop by the library after he'd eaten, but the idea of Sebastian being, possibly, a demon was definitely an intriguing one. He wondered if it was true or if he was just letting his paranoia get to him.

Kyo walked into the dining room and stopped in surprise. Ciel was already sitting at the table, but Sebastian was by his side. Trying to act nonchalant, he thrust his hands into his pockets and sauntered over to the table.

Sebastian stood straight after having bent slightly to place Ciel's plate before him. He smiled knowingly as he moved to meet Kyo at his chair, sliding it in slightly after the boy had sat down. He then placed a plate of food in front of him with a slight bow. "Please enjoy the meal," he said simply before returning to Ciel's side.

Kyo picked at his plate, the silence echoing in the room as Ciel ate his food. It was too quiet. Where had the butler been? When had he returned? And what had he found out? So many questions floated in the air around him that he wasn't sure how long he could take it.

Ciel sipped his drink. Sebastian had only just returned and hadn't said a word to him. What was he waiting for? And then Kyo had entered the room and been served and they were still sitting in silence, though it was something he could stand. If Sebastian had not yet said anything, it was possible he didn't have anything yet to tell. He patted his lips with his napkin.

Sebastian stood silently. The clock ticked audibly from down the hall. Kyo had left the door open. A slight breeze blew across the room. "Pardon me," he said, excusing himself to shut the door, then returned to his place by Ciel's side.

The sound of cutlery hitting against china continued. Other than that, there was very little sound. It was getting on Kyo's nerves. With every passing moment, he felt more and more agitated. Were they keeping things from him? Was there nothing to report? Was Sebastian a demon or a human? These questions kept swimming around and around in his head in an angry storm cloud of thought.

With each passing second, he felt more and more angry. He chewed his food without tasting, gulping it down after only chewing a few times, reaching blindly for what was on his plate.

Ciel continued to eat his food as well, deep in thought. He was trying to figure out ways that someone could have kidnapped the two girls so quickly and without any trace. He wasn't having much success. Outside of having a lot of people involved, or something supernatural, nothing fit. But did this even have anything to do with the other disappearances? He still wasn't sure.

Kyo suddenly slammed his silverware onto the table, his fist clenched around the knife handle. He stood abruptly, his chair scraping across the floor. He had to know. He had to find out. "Ah!" he yelled out.

Ciel looked up as Kyo slammed his silverware down. His eyes went wide seeing him running full out at him with a knife in his hands. Had he lost it? "SEBAST-!"

In the blink of an eye, Sebastian was in motion, moving to intercept the orange-haired boy. A second later, he had him by the waist and partly over his shoulder as he moved halfway across the room without pausing.

Kyo felt the air suddenly being knocked from his lungs as Sebastian moved impossibly fast, removing him from the immediate area of the table and Ciel. He hadn't even thought before he acted. It had been a split second decision, and in less time than it had taken for him to begin, he was away from the situation.

His eyes went wide in shock. His muscles, already tensed, plunged the knife into Sebastian's back without him telling them to, or even thinking about telling them to do so. His mouth gaped open as he tried to breathe again.

Sebastian groaned slightly as the knife slid past a few ribs, but it was a minor wound in comparison to others he'd received in the past. He continued to firmly hold the boy above the ground, his feet dangling. He could feel his hostage's muscles tense and tighten, sense the emotions going through him through his sense of smell. He wasn't likely going to do anything for at least a moment, the butler decided.

Kyo found his lungs again. He was panting, sweat dropping off of him, his eyes still wide, hand still clenching the knife embedded in Sebastian's back.

Ciel stared at him in shock as well. Why had he suddenly done that? Why did he look shocked at it as well? He had to have snapped, reason leaving him, only know to return. That was the only explanation.

Sebastian turned enough that he could look at Ciel. "Young Master, are you all right? He did not harm you?"

Ciel shook his head.

"What would you have me do with this rather... impulsive guest?"

Ciel closed his eyes, masking his face over with unconcern. When he opened his eyes, they were masked as well. "I'm fine. Let him go. I think he's as shocked by what he did as we are."

Sebastian looked at him with raised eyebrows. "Are you sure, Young Master? He did just try to harm you."

Ciel set his jaw. "I'm sure, Sebastian. Release him."

Sebastian turned back. "Yes, My Lord." He slung Kyo around, making him let go of the knife by force, and set him on the ground where he seemed to almost crumple, still in shock. The butler took the knife still embedded in his back and pulled it out. "What a mess," he sighed as blood dripped from the utensil.

Kyo heaved on the floor. His mind was trying to catch up to what had just happened. Impossible speed. Impossible reflexes. Relatively unaffected by the knife he'd inadvertently stabbed into his flesh. He had to be that. He had to be. There was no other explanation. "What... are... you...?"

Sebastian looked down at the orange-haired boy, his eyes oh so red, his expression unreadable. "I am one hell of a butler."

The words tumbled around in Kyo's brain, clicking into place. It was true. All of it. "A demon," he almost croaked. "I knew it."

Ciel slid from his chair, his shoes clacking against the floor as he walked over. It would seem that he had seriously underestimated this pawn. Considering he came from an entirely different chess set, it shouldn't have been surprising. After all, he seemed to have been dealt a hand of the supernatural himself, with being cursed and everything. He stopped in front of Kyo.

Sebastian watched Ciel, wondering what he was going to do. He almost let out an audible protest as the boy removed the patch from his eye. Was it wise to reveal such a thing at this time? But it was not his to question.

Ciel dropped the patch at Kyo's feet. "It's true. Sebastian is a demon, and I am his master. I called him from the depths of hell as I was dying three years ago. In exchange for a chance to avenge myself, I am giving him my soul." He opened his right eye to clearly show the sign of his contract.

Kyo flinched as he saw the star shaped design on the earl's eye.

"Since you know what he is, I assume you know what he is capable of doing,"
Ciel continued coldly. "He will not let anyone end my life before my own mission is finished. I don't know what you intended with your little game but he could have easily ended things for you and then you would never have the chance to rescue your friend."

Kyo grit his teeth. It was true and he knew it. Sebastian could kill him in an instant and he'd probably not even know it had happened until it was already done. Standing up, he brushed off his clothes and picked up Ciel's patch, handing it back to him with barely visible trembling hands. "You might want that back," he said somewhat snidely. "You probably don't want just anyone to know about your little contract, just like I don't want anyone else to know about my curse."

Ciel looked evenly up at him as he took back the patch. "I think I understand you perfectly, Mr. Sohma."

Kyo stood firmly staring back. "No more secrets, not between us. We both got someone we care about missing."

Ciel agreed. "Very well. But I expect you to keep our secret as we will keep yours. Don't even tell Tohru or Elizabeth when we find them. They don't need to know about it."

"Heh," Kyo scoffed. "Tohru probably already knows, even though she'll deny it to the hilt and tell herself she doesn't have a clue. She may be dense, but she catches on to things you wouldn't expect."

He turned to include Sebastian in the conversation. "Hey, no hard feelings? I mean, I didn't intend to, you know, stab you or anything. I don't even know what I was thinking. I just suddenly was running with that knife like someone had possessed me or something."

Sebastian smiled wryly. "I thought it might be something like that," he said calmly. "Though, the next time you endanger my master's life, I will not simply remove you from the temptation."

Kyo felt chills run up and down his back. He knew the butler meant it. But there was something he definitely didn't get. "Hey, since you're so wonderful and have all of these insane abilities, why can't you find even a single clue about who took Tohru and Lizzy, or even where they are now?"

Ciel glanced over at Sebastian. Kyo had a point, though he also knew the demon wasn't without some limitations and he had to have something to go off of. "Unless you did discover something," he said, slightly accusingly.

Sebastian sighed. "I regret that I have yet to discover anything of real importance. It is true I investigated the locations where the bodies were found, but there were no clues that would allow me to trace them back to a common point. I must therefore conclude that they are either not related to the case at hand, or the culprits behind the crimes are far more clever than we usually deal with."

Kyo blinked. "Usually? You mean you do stuff like this all the time?"

Ciel sighed. Well, there was another cat out of the bag. And dinner was getting cold, not that he had much of an appetite left, which was kind of disappointing. He'd been looking forward to dessert. "I'm also the Queen's Watchdog, the one who takes care of the dirt under the carpet, so to speak. I keep the Underworld in check and take care of those deeds the Queen doesn't want to dirty her hands with."

Kyo couldn't help but stare in shock this time. Ciel was only thirteen! And he was expected to go into the depths of the scum of England and get rid of it? He tried to imagine some of his cousins doing something similar and couldn't. Well, maybe Hiro would try but he couldn't see him succeeding very well. Tohru would be appalled. "But that's…!"

Ciel walked back towards his chair. "Unorthodox? It's what the Phantomhive family has done for generations. Blood. Mayhem. Kidnappings. Murder. Everything you can possibly think of. I even had a hand in stopping Jack the Ripper."

Kyo felt himself getting angry again. No one should subject a kid to stuff like that. No one. "Jack the Ripper? Are the people here all insane! You're just a snot nosed kid! You should be out playing and enjoying life! Not chasing down serial killers and who knows what else! No kid should be subjected to stuff like that!"

Ciel stopped, turning back with a cold expression. "I was forced to watch my parents being brutally murdered. I was tortured and sold into slavery. I have already experienced every depravity humanity has to offer. Cleaning up the Queen's filth is small in comparison to what I've been through and already seen."

And Kyo thought he'd had it bad! A mother who had committed suicide. Being tormented by his relations on all sides and accused of murdering her. Being responsible for the death of Tohru's mother... Nothing in comparison to what this younger boy had gone through, and was probably still being forced to go through. He couldn't even imagine it without wanting to be sick.

Seeing Kyo turn a slight shade of green, Sebastian cleared his throat. "I will resume my investigation again immediately."

Ciel regained his seat. "Wait until after I've gone to bed. Who knows, I might need you for something."