Chapter 3: Cold tea
Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji.
It had been two days since Alice's visit to the Phantomhive manor and approximately one afternoon since she had received the latest letter from the Queen and neither of those two events were highly pleasing. The visit to the boy Earl naturally because of her failure to convince him to follow her plan and the Queen's letter because it actually comprised an invitation to a royal ball. Truth be told, Alice disliked social events and yet, she never failed to participate in one. She knew the importance of these gatherings better than anyone. If you wanted to find or leak information, this was the perfect occasion. If you wished to frame someone or catch them red-handed, again, the most suitable opportunity. Anything could be obtained under the pretence of such a gathering, you only had to keep your eyes open and your ears sharp.
Alice´s carriage stopped downtown as both she and her attendant Nora descended on the pavement, her long dress trailing a path as they strolled along towards her favourite bakery. While Nora was busy showing her all the new things displayed for sale in shops, Alice reflected on the Queen's invitation. Within her paragraphs, Alice had remembered a line of particular interest that said 'I hope to see you present at the ball Alice and also establish your acquaintance with some of our recently-returned guests such as Mr. Benjamin Sarrow.' She understood the Queen's message right away. Sarrow was going to be her next mission. From what she knew, Sarrow was quite the professional thief that smuggled important objects out of England to sell abroad for an impressive price and now that he was back in London, there was no doubt he would strike again. The Queen most likely wished to be informed of what treasure Sarrow planned on stealing next and thus preventing his criminal act. For this purpose, she felt she dreaded less the approaching date of the ball.
When they finally reached the bakery and opened the front door, a man in his forties made room for the two of them to enter by standing aside and bowing his head in sign of greeting. Alice and Nora thanked him politely and proceeded with their pace towards the counter, Alice's head turned in his direction. He was tall, stern-looking and with eyes so black you could not spot any light in them. Alice had never seen him before however, the impression he made on her would last her enough to want to find out his identity.
'Lady Alice, Nora! Welcome back,' a young woman greeted them behind the counter. 'You arrived at the perfect time, I've just taken out the lemon tarts from the oven, they're as fresh as they can be!' She chanted and revealed a tray full of goodies. Besides her, a little girl around six kept eyeing the tarts with subdued relish.
'They look delicious,' Alice praised, taking in the sweet smell of patisserie crafts and greedily looking around at all the tiny cakes and cookies spread methodically on shiny trays. 'I see your niece is eager to try them,' Alice giggled, referring to the little girl.
'Heh, Sophie here could eat the entire shop if she could,' the girl's aunt admitted.
'If only she could,' Alice said, smiling at the little girl who shyly hid behind her aunt Margret. 'We'll take the entire tray of your lemon tarts.'
'As always, you are so generous, Lady Alice. I'll wrap them up for you, please wait.'
Alice nodded in reply, waiting for her servant girl Nora to take out the money from her small coin pouch. While the tarts were being wrapped, Alice considered it wise to ask about a matter pressing to her.
'By the way, Margret. Who was that man who left earlier?'
'Ah, I don't really know, My Lady,' Margret responded, her back turned as she packaged the tarts as best as she could, 'but he was also very generous. He bought a few cookies and paid us far too much.'
'Is that so?' Alice inquired, suspicion asserting her features. 'Do you know who that man is, Sophie?' Alice kneeled down besides the brunette girl, her gloved hand patting her gently. Children always seemed to know more than adults did and their listening and observations skills were even more superior.
'No, My Lady,' Sophie denied, round eyes searching the young woman's face.
'Alright,' Alice dropped the matter, considering it wise not to pressure the girl anymore. They had already gone through so much in the past month. Margret's sister and at the same time the girl's mother, had died recently which left the entire shop and Sophie's well-being to be exclusively dealt by Margret and the grandfather. If it weren't for the shop, they wouldn't have had what to eat and therefore survive in today's harsh world and Sophie herself would have ended on the streets with the rest of the orphan children which was why the shop had to stand no matter whose death it witnessed.
The doorbell suddenly chimed, one more Lady stepping into the bakery shop with her own personal servant. Only a year older than Alice, Countess Amelia Redding was a beautiful blonde woman known throughout London to be the heart of any party, which, in her case, meant she was quite the gossiper. Upon approaching the counter and Alice altogether, Countess Amelia's smile instantly turned into a grin, eyes already inspecting Lady Arrington's attire for a potential fashion faux pass. When spotting none, she launched forward with a different approach.
'Lady Arrington, what a pleasure to see you so early in the morning! I can't believe we are frequenting the same bakery,' the young woman purred, slipping closer to Alice. 'I usually send my servants in but at time it's quite delightful to go pick whatever your heart desires directly from the shelf, don't you agree?'
'Absolutely,' Alice forced herself to answer. She had always been weary of that woman, her own sister Jane having warned her against nurturing any solid ties with her. They used to play together when they were children and even then, her true character would be buried underneath giggles and induced dramatic sighs. She enjoyed taking their toys and breaking them and manipulated everyone to her liking. In fact, Alice was quite envious of her skills.
'Half a pound of your chocolate cupcakes, Margret,' Amelia requested, leaving her servant girl to deal with the rest while she could focus entirely on Alice.
'I would like to congratulate you on your engagement, Alice,' Amelia dropped the formalities for old times sake. 'May you be as happy and fortunate as I am,' she whished to her, referring of course to her own marriage to Count Redding. She had married the Count almost a year ago, her father having secured for her a rather prosperous arrangement. Her wedding had been grand and elegant and while Count Redding was 24 years older than Amelia, he was quite the presentable gentleman. He also seemed to have sincere affection for the Marquis' daughter, despite her negative tendencies to irritate everyone with her superior behaviour.
'Thank you, Countess. I humbly accept your good thoughts,' Alice faked a smile, bowing her head shortly.
'You are most welcome,' she said, as she took off her silk gloves, revealing pure white hands. 'Married life changes you to be more lenient towards others, I have noticed. My husband's maturity has influenced me greatly, it seems. I hope it does not have the same effect on you though; giving the fact that your husband is still so green it would be troublesome if you reverted to a younger manner of reasoning. How old is Count Phantomhive, again? Ten?'
'He is thirteen,' Alice replied through gritted teeth, abstaining herself from slapping off the smirk from that woman's face.
'Oh, how lucky! You'll only have to wait one year before being able to legally marry him. He would still be a child but perhaps you could teach him a thing or two,' she went on spewing her mocking statements. Behind Alice, Nora paled, wondering how on earth her mistress maintained her calm. She almost attempted to say something in her defence but she knew from previous experiences that Lady Alice did not take well to other people defending her when she was perfectly capable of doing it herself.
'Yes, I am very lucky,' Alice finally began her offensive, a smile of her own blooming at the corners of her mouth. 'I will be one of the few wives in England to have a husband younger than herself. I dare say that is quite ideal, especially since old husbands seem to be the norm nowadays.'
While clearly not expecting it, Countess Redding had been offended. Her eyebrows instantly furrowed into a frown, eyes peering with savagery at Alice. How dare she make fun of her? How dare she think of herself highly just because she came from a better pedigree and had the Queen's favour? Amelia disliked Alice terribly. She envied her freedom and ability to obtain whatever she desired through stubbornness and well-planned wit. When Amelia first heard about Alice's engagement, she could not wait to torment her about it. To finally laugh in her face for not getting her way this time and for having to consequentially endure mockery from everyone. She had spread the news in her circle, she had made everyone believe this was the worst possible thing that could happen to Alice and she had personally started rumours about the girl being too undomesticated for any other man's taste other than that of a child. And now here she was, unaffected by whatever Amelia told her appearing more radiant than ever.
'I did not believe you thought of it as such, Alice. I personally lean towards a more mature man for you see, when Count Phantomhive reaches your age, he will realize that you are no longer as young as you are now and while he will be at the peak of his youth you will be at the end of yours,' the Countess hoped to deliver her final blow.
Alice, on the contrary, looked as if she was expecting that type of observation from her once childhood friend.
'You may be right, however…' Alice paused to arrange a lock of hair behind her ear, 'wouldn't the same thing be applied to your husband, Countess?'
Amelia frowned, not understanding her premise. She also instinctively backed away as Alice took a step forward into her imaginary territory.
'In five years' time you will also be at the end of your juvenescence and your husband will unmistakably look to his newly-wed friends and at their younger wives and he will start reconsidering your importance in his heart. After all,' Alice stressed, 'they say the older the husband, the younger the wife.'
Countess Redding's face turned red almost instantly. Her gloves were gripped so tightly between her fingers Alice was certain the creases would remain embedded in the material. She was about to thunder a round of insults she would deeply regret soon after when Alice courteously stopped her by invading her space even more, face nearing hers.
'Women have to remain united, Countess Redding. While indeed, women are the enemy, you can rest assured that when calamity strikes, you are able to find better allies in their ranks than in those of men.'
Just as quickly as she had ruffled her feathers, Amelia had just as quickly calmed down. The tension in her limbs dispersed and the vein threatening to pop earlier had buried itself deep beneath the skin again. There was truth in what Alice had said and while she did not want to admit it, Amelia had to hand over that win to Alice. It was in her best interest to be on good terms with Count Arrington's daughter. For a moment there, she almost forgot who she was talking to. If she ever crossed that invisible line, Amelia would make an enemy of the entire Arrington family and implicitly, the Queen.
'I'll see you at the Queen's ball, Lady Arrington,' the Countess silenced the conversation, shooting an ugly glare to her servant. 'Well, hurry up, girl! I still have that tailor appointment to get to.'
With their departure, the door was forcefully slammed behind them, no one daring to move an inch. Nora eventually built up her courage.
'My Lady,' she whispered.
'I'm fine. I was expecting to hear that from her,' Alice reassured, still slightly shook by her small anger. While she did handle the situation admirably, she could not help but be swayed by the Countess' words. Her fiancé was a child, there was no doubt about it. If her intentions were that of marriage, then perhaps Alice would be in even more torment knowing that her partner's height did not even reach her shoulders. But Alice did not plan to marry and in fact, perhaps it was better for her that Ciel Phantomhive was a young boy. It made things less complicated.
So let them talk, Alice thought to herself. Let them whisper and gossip and laugh at me. Let they congratulate the Earl for such a nice catch and mock me for my share of bad luck. In the end, I will be victorious.
A small tug at her dress averted Alice's attention down at Sophie, the little girl having approached her silently. She gazed at the girl's dirty hands, her palms filled with brown cookies.
'Please have some, My Lady. I baked them myself.'
'Sophie, what do you think you're doing, you stupid girl?!' Margret appeared from behind the corner ready to slap the girl's hands away only to be stopped by Alice's action of actually taking one of the cookies and chewing on it without reserve. It was creamy on the inside, chocolate filling spreading as soon as her teeth crunched it into pieces. In her poor attempt to cheer Alice up, Sophie had done quite a satisfactory job.
'Thank you, Sophie. It's very good,' she praised. 'Next time, bake a batch for me too, I'll buy them,' Alice promised the girl. Sophie's eyes filled with excitement, hands clapping with joy. She looked at Margret as if asking for permission and the moment Margret nodded, the little girl jumped into the air even more elated.
Children were really adorable, Alice mused. They were easy to attract to your side and you could make them listen to you if candy or promises of entertainment were involved. They were still pure and frank, which made her think of that fiancé child of hers as well. If only he could be this adorable too, she would even take him under her wing. But Ciel Phantomhive was not like that. Apart from his appearance, he hardly reminded her of a child. She wondered if there was even a time where he acted like one because it surely appeared as if he was made of stone. Whatever it was that happened to him, it must have been horrible enough to shape his character in a cold and ruthless manner. But that attitude of his worthy of kings was what irked Alice the most. Still just a young boy and already so certain he could have the world at his feet.
Nevertheless, Alice would never fall at his feet. No matter the circumstances, she would remain standing.
Benjamin Sarrow stepped out into the busy streets of London, picking up his pace. He had not been in this city for several years and while some things changed, the air of the capital had remained the same. Crossing over to the other side of the road, the man opened his small bag of cookies to give one a taste. They were truly delicious. It had been a good idea to visit that bakery, the taste of their patisserie products had also remained unchanged. He was greeted by the same overwhelming aroma of freshly baked dough and had been instantly transported back to that day, when he had entered the place for the first time and had been served by an entirely different shop attendant. He wanted to stay more, speak more, request more but other customers arrived which was why he had to leave immediately. No matter, he would return another day. For the moment, he had other plans.
In the left pocket of his coat, there was an envelope with an invitation. He did not deserve that invitation. The likes of him were never supposed to meet royalty and yet Queen Victoria herself requested for his presence at her ball. There was nothing more unsettling than a queen inviting a criminal to her soiree. Certainly she must have known that despite his opulence, everything he owned had been acquired through more or less unorthodox means therefore her decision to have him in her palace was without doubt a trap. One for the vermin he was for his acts of stealing, trading and exchanging so many valuable objects.
Even so, he would step into the trap willingly. This ball was the right occasion to get his hands on the information he so desperately needed, no matter how many obstacles there would be. He was a professional and most importantly, he was accustomed to deal with danger and its implications. He would do the usual and succeed.
Before that however, he needed some confirmations. His legs finally stopped him in front of a funeral parlour. Sarrow pushed open the entrance door, stepping into the dimly lit parlor. Candles were spread throughout the room, an eerie atmosphere prickling at his skin.
'I've come for some answers, Undertaker,' Sparrow uttered in the silence of the space.
From within the shadows, a dark silhouette emerged, quiet steps disturbing the floor. His long white hair hung loose on his shoulders, a wide grin beaming outward.
'Then I hope you are prepared to make me laugh,' Undertaker said, bony fingers fumbling in dark excitement.
'Really, Earl, that's why I keep telling you to come visit me more often at my shop! How am I supposed to make something spectacular on such a short notice, hmm? I'll just have to alter one of your unworn suits and hope it turns out for the best,' Nina Hopkins complained while measuring Ciel's arm length in the comfort of his own mansion.
'I don't need you to make something spectacular,' Ciel said, his harsh tone putting off the Phantomhive's personal tailor. 'Appropriate is what I'm expecting.'
Nina paused in her measurements, rising to her full height, hands on her hips to look at the earl disapprovingly.
'I'm afraid I don't do 'appropriate', Earl. It's either a masterpiece or nothing at all and I can't possibly allow my most important client to look ordinary at the Queen's ball. Please rest assured that I, Nina Hopkins, will perform a miracle today,' the overly-dramatic tailor proclaimed, her measuring tape extended once again.
Ciel sighed, letting the woman go on with her business as he stood perched on a chair at her disposal. In the background, Sebastian finished preparing a tray of refreshments and sandwiches for the female tailor's delight. He placed the serving plate right in the centre of a small table, careful not to disrupt his master nor Miss Nina, quite impressed by the woman's tenacity. She had responded to the house call immediately which suited them just fine; the Queen's invitation had arrived early and gave little time for preparations after all.
'But you know, Earl Phantomhive, you should be more particular about increasing the number of your attires, especially now since you're engaged.'
'I've been engaged before,' Ciel delivered another short reply.
'Yes, to Lady Midford. But now you are engaged to Lady Alice Arrington whose invitations to social events are by far, more numerous than those of your cousin's. You are aware of that, I presume,' Nina reminded him, pulling out a pouch of pins from her tailoring suitcase and beginning to pin down folds directly on the earl's coat cuffs.
Ciel frowned, not liking the implications.
'She is also at an age where she is supposed to make an appearance and interact with everyone.'
'It's not my business to accompany her to these useless events. I have more important matters to invest my energy into,' Ciel thundered.
'My, what a thing to say, Earl! It is your obligation as a future husband to accompany Lady Arrington,' Nina reminded Ciel. He looked down at her, wondering how on earth that woman managed to work and hold pins between her lips at the same time without swallowing any of them. He favoured his analytical gaze over a reply fact which did not go unnoticed by Nina. She finally adjusted the last pin and went over to her suitcase to take out various samples of fabric.
'You don't seem very pleased with this engagement. I dare say you should at least try to appear happier about it, Lady Arrington is one of the best arrangements in the entire city, my dear Earl,' Nina explained, draping each ribbon of fabric on Ciel's shoulder to see which one matched his complexion best. 'She is a proper lady down to her very last bone. It goes without saying that she is highly elegant and cultivated. Her manners are absolutely impeccable.'
Quite debatable, Ciel disagreed mutely, remembering the girl's outburst during her last visit to his home.
'Her needlework is simply exquisite, I've seen it myself,' Nina continued.
Yes, that always comes in handy, the young Earl ironically thought.
'And she dances like an angel!'
Don't they all? Ciel wondered, already satiated with how women insisted on exaggerating with everything. He could care less if she danced like an astral being or stumbled like a dumb goose.
'Not to mention she is just so incredibly pretty,' Nina declared, sneaking a glance at the Earl.
At that Ciel remained silent, both out loud and in the secrecy of his own mind, finding it unable to deny it. It was a harmful statement which he uncharacteristically let slide.
'Although…' Nina trailed off, trying to pick between a Byzantium purple or cerulean blue.
'Although?' Ciel repeated, visibly interested. Sebastian himself came closer to his master, posting himself in the vicinity of his sight.
'There are some bad rumours circulating about her. Something about being involved in the affairs of men and even participating in missions directly ordered by Queen Victoria herself,' Nina revealed, her voice suddenly lowering in intensity. 'That is slightly frightening, don't you think so? I can't possibly imagine someone as graceful as Lady Alice Arrington doing something so dangerous.'
Ciel, on the other hand, could picture it very well. She was her father's daughter after all and her reactions during her visit had been genuine of a woman who did more than take music lessons and participate in tea parties. Sebastian's small smile attested he too had read that girl for who she was but Ciel still had to ascertain if her real behaviour actually made matters more complicated than he had originally planned out. For that, he would have to observe Alice more.
'Speaking of rumours,' Ciel chose another discussion topic, 'I heard the Queen is inviting many unusual guests. One of them is a certain Mr. Benjamin Sarrow. I personally haven't heard anything about this man. Have you?' The dark-haired count asked Nina innocently.
Nina took a few seconds to consider, the name finally ringing up a bell.
'Ah! He is that wealthy trader, isn't he?'
Fancy word for a smuggler, but I suppose not everyone is aware of his bad habits, Ciel corrected her internally.
'Hmm, so he's a trader then? How very interesting,' Ciel remarked. 'But still, it's strange for someone such as himself to be invited to this type of event. He's not much around London either.'
'Perhaps he's looking for new trading prospects?' Nina suggested, already wrapping up her things and clearly satisfied with the work she had accomplished for that particular afternoon judging by her improved mood.
'Perhaps,' Ciel agreed. 'I was hoping there would be some unusual rumours about him as well.'
'Well, if it's rumours you're interested in Earl, I suggest looking elsewhere. A respectable tailor such as myself does not accommodate such habits,' Nina informed, fooling absolutely no one in the room. Even so, Ciel let the subject fade, sensing there was nothing else to pry out of that particular woman. Packing her things, Nina requested Mey-Rin for her hat which the maid somehow managed to bring over without tripping on her two feet.
'Well, I'm off now. I'll have your finished suit delivered tomorrow evening, Earl.'
'Thank you, Nina. I appreciate your help,' Ciel said, nodding to Mey-Rin to accompany her to her carriage.
'Ms. Nina is quite resourceful, isn't she?' Sebastian inquired his master, helping him come down from the chair. He then proceeded to dress him back in his previous vest, buttoning it up to his chest.
'Seamstresses usually are. What better spies to find than under the roof of many gathering gossiping ladies?' He insinuated about the perks of her occupation.
'And yet, she did not provide us with much information regarding Mr. Sparrow.'
'Unfortunately,' the boy narrowed his eyes in contemplation. 'Why is he back in London? What are his intentions? And most importantly, what is it that he wants to smuggle out?'
'Whatever it is, the Queen wishes to be informed.'
'It must be because she either has a hunch about what the object could be or better yet, she might be worried about the implications of such a theft.'
'In that case, it was quite wise of Her Majesty's part to organize this ball. It gives us the perfect opportunity to investigate,' Sebastian added.
'Correct. You've replied to confirm our attendance, haven't you?'
'But of course, Young Master,' Sebastian affirmed, a quick smirk morphing on his lips. 'The Arringtons have also confirmed their attendance.'
Ciel blinked his eyes confused by the information. 'And how would you know that?'
'Well, you see, Young Master, Lady Vanessa Arrington and I have kept in touch. She more than I though, for she has sent a maid to the estate this morning to inform us they will be attending and they were also hoping to see you there as well.'
'The nerve of that woman,' Ciel complained, flopping down in a chair. 'This meddling of hers might become a problem,' he reflected, thinking back on how subtly pushing Alice's mother was. 'Oi, make sure you keep her at a distance. I don't need additional worries.'
'Yes, Young Master.'
Ciel was not specifically surprised about them joining the ball. In fact, their invitation had probably been sent out first, long before his and as long as Alice would mind her own business and not do any unnecessary feats, everything would go according to plan. Nothing could go wrong, Ciel already thought of how to approach Benjamin Sarrow. So then, why was it that he continuously grasped at his hands, unable to relax his shoulders? Why was it that he had this unmistakable sense of foreboding?
Ciel sighed as he closed his eyes to try and regain control of his senses. It was that woman's fault. Alice. She was the one that could possibly overthrow everything, something inside his head whispered that poisonous conviction. She was not one to behave but not one to make a scene either. But he knew for a fact that if he placed her to stand somewhere, she would not yield, on the contrary, she would do the opposite.
Luckily for him, Ciel had Sebastian and no matter who stood in his way, his butler would always clear off his path.
A/N: Thank you so much for taking time to comment! Also, my gratitude to those who followed and added this story to their favourites! 3
Arces: So glad you commented again, thank you! I know what you mean, trust me! It's going to take a while before Alice finds out about Ciel's true nature, I plan on revealing it to her gradually but little by little, she is going to notice some things are not as they seem. I need to work on their bond first and carefully plan their interactions because I want everything to flow naturally. Hope to see you here next time! 3
lizyeh2000: And thank you for commenting! I understand the issue with the age gap but apparently, it's pretty much accurate. Boys at that age were considered mature enough to handle their own estate and start a family apparently. I don't plan to focus on this aspect severely but I do want to make it more like an adventure that brings these two people tightly together. Thank you again! :*
BornABurra: Hello again! To tell you the truth I was a bit disappointed by the lack of reaction for this fanfiction because I really thought it would be an interesting plot and time period to write about but it seems not many people like it. Which is why I was about to stop updating and not even write this third chapter anymore however I read your lengthy wonderful review and I realized I couldn't give up that easily. So this chapter is for you! This whole story will be a challenge for Ciel and also Alice. They come from the same world and yet the things they want are extremely different. They both have this pride that manifests in how they view each other – all figured out- but the circumstances that I will construct around them will make them doubt their initial impressions. Ciel plans on using Alice and discarding her when he's done, just as accurately as he did with so many people before her but he's going to be in for a surprise; Alice's maturity and experience will play a part in how this game will unfold, even if at times, she might act even more childish than Ciel. Well, someone has to in this relationship XD. Thank you so much again for your wonderful support.^^
