Where's My Wonderland?
Chapter The Third: A Familiar Dinner
***Warning: Manga spoilers!***
As the carriage pulled to a stop, Sebastian realized something. Those idiots called servants had messed everything up, and he had no choice but to use his magick to save the gardens, dishes, and dinner. He did it all in an instant and smiled smugly as he opened the main doors for his master and that Jada girl.
Ciel looked annoyed and Jada practically skipped along behind him, giggling.
Sebastian's smile lingered on his face as he opened the carriage doors.
The man stepped out, in a soft brown suit and a patterned tie. He had a fedora styled had and a scarf around his neck. His hair was greying, long and tied up with string on the back of his neck. Smile lines were obvious beneath his kind looking eyes. He smiled when he saw Ciel.
"It has been awhile since I came here."
Ciel nodded. "You came, Clause." He nearly sounded excited, but fringed boredom. Clause wrapped Ciel up in a bone crushing hug, and to his credit, the Earl did not flinch.
"*Buona sera! Ciel! How have you been? Oh, you haven't grown at all." He had a booming, cheerful laugh.
"Too bad." Ciel pouted.
"And who is this lovely lady?" The aged man turned to Jada.
"Oh, I'm Jada West." She smiled. Clause stood there like he was waiting for something, and after a second Jada started blushing. She held out her hand. Clause took her hand with an amused grin and placed a small kiss on her knuckles.
"I am honored to have met you." There was an awkward moment of silence.
"Shall we go inside?" Ciel was getting impatient, and he gestured towards the open door, then started towards it himself.
Suddenly there were several voices.
"Welcome, Sir Clause!" Tanaka, Meirin, Finny, Bard and Sebastian were lined up and bowing with smiles. Sebastian stepped forward and greeted the guest,
"We've been awaiting you, Sir Clause." Finny took the man's coat and scurried away with Bard and Tanaka.
"Sebastian! It's been awhile!"
While the men conversed Jada slipped away quietly.
So she was in the manga universe. "Damn!" She thought, "Now I don't know who killed Ciel's parents." Sighing, she took note of her surroundings. This hallway was particularly dusty, surprisingly. Why hadn't Sebastian dusted recently?
Jada turned the corner of the hallway and opened a door. Her mouth made a small 'o' as she found herself outside. This part of the garden was gone, replaced by sand and rocks.
"The Japanese rock garden." Jada smiled, then tugged on her dress. It was hotter out here than it had looked. The girl started to tug on the bottom of the dress she was borrowing, but stopped when she saw the dining table on the balcony. Sir Clause was alone, happily munching on the Beef Donburi.
Where was Ciel?
Suddenly a hand grabbed her shoulder and Jada lashed out, swiping at her attacker.
"I know Kung Fu! Don't mess with me!" She yelled, but then flushed when a very suprised Ciel blinked at her.
His left cheek was turning pink where Jada had scratched him. He reached up and checked for blood, and let out a small breath when his fingers came back clean.
"Oh, Ciel I am so sorry! Here, let me fix it!" Jada squeaked, but then looked at her empty hands. She didn't have anything to help him.
"How are you going to fix this? It is just a little scratch." Ciel waved her off, but then he grabbed her shoulder again. "Don't wander around my manor by yourself." He ordered, and the way he spoke gripped Jada's heart in a cold fist.
She nodded and looked down. Even though she loved Ciel, he had only just met her and probably wouldn't hesitate to shoot her, if need be. Jada was on thin ice, and she needed to tread carefully.
'Don't anger the head of the house.' Jada's mother's words rang in her ears and she stepped back.
"I apologize, Earl. I won't anymore."
Ciel's eye narrowed as he studied her, his dark blue hair swaying gently in the warm breeze. He then held out his arm to her, satisfied.
"Alright. I suppose you should join us for the remainder of dinner, I'm sure Clause will not mind."
Jada gingerly linked her arm with his, and they cut through the rock garden to the balcony. How long had she wandered around the manor? It hadn't been long, had it?
"Sebastian, bring another chair." Ciel barked at his butler, and sat back down at the head of the table. While Jada stood next to the young Earl, waiting for her chair, Clause waved her over.
"Hello! It's nice to see you again, Miss West. Have you tried this donburi?" He asked, and placed his chopsticks in the bowl with a contented sigh.
"Oh, no, I haven't. I'm sure it's quite good though." Jada giggled, and gratefully sat in the chair Sebastian had brought her.
Ciel watched his two guests with mild interest. He'd known Clause since he was a little boy, and he was a long-time family friend. There wasn't much else to say, but this Jada West girl, on the other hand, was surrounded by questions. She had just appeared in his garden, barely clothed and from America. She wasn't pretty, her waist was too wide, her face was too plain, and her hair was too short and fizzed. She had no family here, besides her possible father.
The Earl sighed. He had a feeling this girl would cause a lot of trouble for him.
It was his butler's voice that pierced through his musings.
"Today's wine was specially chosen to compliment soy sauce. I hope you enjoy it." Meirin was standing next to him, her hands on a food tray. On the food tray was the wine cooler with the bottle of wine. The maid wasn't moving, she just stood there with a little smile on her face.
"Meirin!" Sebastian sighed.
"Y-Yes?"
He got closer and whispered in the ditzy maid's ear, "It's not 'Yes?'. Don't just stand there idly. Pour the wine."
Meirin snapped up to attention and picked the wine bottle up, wobbling over to the table. Her face was red and she was muttering.
Clause was looking over at the rock garden. "I wish they had these in Italy." He sighed, and didn't notice as the maid completely missed the wine glass. The dark, purple liquid started spreading over the table cloth, ruining the crisp, white fabric.
Finny and Bard were freaking out from their spot in the bushes.
"She spilled it!"
"AHHHHHHH!"
Ciel was just beginning to panic, when his demon butler acted. In less than a second, the soiled tablecloth was gone, and the polished wood underneath was revealed.
Jada was breathless. It was one thing to see this on TV, but in real life, it was so much better.
Meirin was dragged away by Finny and Bard, and by then Clause had noticed the tablecloth's absence.
"Huh? Where'd it go?" He exclaimed, looking up to his host.
Ciel smirked, "A speck of dirt, most unsightly. I had it removed, don't let to worry you."
Jada was still unable to speak, but glared at the demon as he bowed.
"Excuse the interruption. Please continue the meal at your leisure." He left with the dirty tablecloth and a sigh. It was ruined.
"Your butler is quite skillful." Clause complimented, impressed.
"Skillful?" Ciel scoffed. "He is a Phantomhive servant, and as such he should be able to accomplish such things."
"That's so strict!" Clause grinned, "But surely his extraordinary talent isn't because you are so strict, am I correct?"
"Naturally. But I didn't hire him just for his cooking abilities. Even though I still haven't tasted sweets more delicious than Sebastian's." Ciel stared at his warped reflection on his spoon, and passed it between his fingers as he spoke.
"Heh..." Clause burst into laughter. "Ha ha ha! Sweets are important to you, aren't they?"
"I look forward to today's dessert." Was the only reply the Italian man received.
Jada sat in the middle of the table, feeling forgotten by both nobles. She had started to doze off, her eyelids fluttering shut.
"Miss West! Do you like sweets?" Claude asked her.
"Hmm? Ah! Oh, yes, occasionally. I prefer salty things myself."
Ciel frowned, but then shrugged. "Not everyone can like sweets."
Jada tilted her head up and looked at the sky. While they were talking, night had fallen, and the stars had come out.
She gasped at the sky, and leaned back further. Back home, you really couldn't see the stars. It was one of the cons of city life. Out here, though, the stars shined and you could see them all, sparkling together. They swirled together in the most fluent ways and they dazzled as one, with whites, light purples and dark blues blending to make a beautiful night sky.
Ciel and Clause looked at the girl then smiled at each other.
Then Sebastian came out, rolling a food tray.
"The after-dinner dessert is ready!"
After dessert, Ciel's guest was happily taken back home.
Ciel started to go back into his manor, his butler in tow. Then some movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. It was Jada. She was still out on the balcony, looking at the sky. The brunette was sitting on the steps, a small smile on her face. The soft light of the moon caressed her face, and for a second he could call her pretty. Ciel told his butler to go inside, and headed over to the girl.
"Have you never seen stars before?" Ciel questioned as he stood above her.
She jumped when he spoke, "Ah!" but calmed down when she saw the Earl.
"Ciel. Well, back home you can't see them. I've always wanted to, and now that I can..." The girl trailed off, and just looked back up.
"It's beautiful, isn't it, Earl?"
He glanced up, but all he saw was the same night sky he saw every day. Nothing special about it, but something compelled him to agree.
"I suppose." Ciel said, and there was a moment of calmness.
The pair sat in silence, surrounded by the stars.
Sebastian watched the little scene unfold from the manor, and his lips formed a frown.
A/N: Just to be clear, this story will be following the manga but Alois will be in it. How, you wonder? Just wait and see. :3
For all those people who only watched the anime, don't read on if you don't want spoilers. Seriously. Because I don't want a bunch of reviews or PMs about how I ruined the manga for you. There was a warning at the top of the chapter.
Sorry it's a little late, tons of drama has been happening with my family, and this is the only story I've updated since Halloween. So consider yourselves lucky, lol. ;)
As always, reviews are loved, and make me want to write more!
~whovianfangirl
11/17/14