Chapter 5: Initiation, Japan

There was a sharp rap on Sebastian's door. The door opened with a bang.

"Sebastian, it is 6 o'clock, time to get-."

Klaus inspected the scene in front of him. The room was spotless, the bed made and the curtains drawn open to meet the rising sun as it made its appearance, the soft light gently illuminating the room. But there was no Sebastian.

Klaus frowned. If Sebastian was not in his room, then where was he? He wandered through the mansion searching for Sebastian. He opened the doors to countless rooms but found nothing out of place in their interiors. In fact, every room he entered was spotless, the blue and gold décor sparkling in the early morning sun.

He finally found Sebastian in the kitchen. By this time it was well past seven thirty. Sebastian had long since finished breakfast preparations and had nearly finished making lunch for Nagi. He didn't look up as Klaus came into the kitchen, intent on arranging everything perfectly into the bento, but instead acknowledged his presence with a 'good morning'.

Klaus tapped his foot impatiently, waiting for Sebastian to give him his attention.

After a moment, Sebastian looked up, wiping his hands on a tea towel, Nagi's lunch laid out perfectly in the bento box. He put the lid on the box and tied the cloth around it with care.

"Was there something you wanted, Klaus?" A smiling Sebastian enquired.

Klaus shook himself at the other man's words, having been focused on his mistress' lunch. It had looked divine. "Ah yes. It is time for you initiation." He brought one hand up to his face and adjusted his glasses, which gleamed brightly. "Follow me." He turned on heel and strode out of the kitchen, expecting the other man to follow after. Sebastian stayed where he was as he leisurely put away the unused ingredients and equipment. Klaus returned a moment later when he realised that the butler wasn't right behind him. His brow twitched in annoyance. "Hurry up," he snapped.

"One moment." Sebastian took his time and carefully put everything back in its rightful place, seemingly oblivious to the annoyance it caused the other man. When he had finished he left the preparation area and walked over to the door, making a sweeping motion and smiling at the head butler. "After you."

Klaus' brow twitched once again and strode out of the room, irritation stiffening his stride. He heard the footsteps of the temporary butler behind him and smiled, thinking about all the trials he was about to put him through.

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Sebastian stood in the centre of the room, refusing to kneel before someone who was not his master. The head butler standing across from him, his glasses glinting dangerously. The room's interior strongly resembled that of a dojo meshed with a study. On the panelled walls hung portraits of previous head butler and they watched on sternly, observing the spectacle that was about to take place. At one end of the room, the wooden floor was hidden by a large Persian rug on which sat a large leather writing desk and office chair. Behind the desk stood an overflowing bookshelf and a couple of filing cabinets frame by two large windows.

"Now, Sebastian, it's time for your imitation. You must pass this initiation in order to remain as a butler here. It is a trial that all butlers who wish to serve the Sanzenin Family must face." Klaus adjusted his glasses in anticipation, the lenses improbably catching the light. He made his way around to the desk and pressed a button. A door opened with a gentle whoosh. Beyond the door was a corridor lit with a bare light globe and a set of stairs descending into the unknown. Klaus sat down at his desk and told Sebastian to enter the corridor. Sebastian crossed the threshold and the door slid shut behind him. Klaus pressed another couple of buttons on his desk and a panel of monitor came down and blinked into life. Klaus smiled; this was going to be fun.

It took him a moment to locate Sebastian on the displays. He was further into the underground labyrinth than expected. He had already passed through the first room; various household items cum weapons lying strewn in his wake. The butler seemed unruffled; in fact he was smiling slightly as if in enjoyment. Klaus frowned; this was not how it was supposed to go. Sebastian was now entering the next chamber. The nursing robot number eight stirred to life.

"I have been waiting for you," it said in its pixelated voice. "It is so very boring down here, alone, with no one to play with." It would have smiled manically, if it were in its programing. It turned it cylindrical orange metal body to face the butler dead on. The robot pulled back on metallic tube covered arm and launched a lightning fast punch at his face, its arm extending to cover the distance. The hand came to an abrupt halt about a hand width from Sebastian's face, his own hand having caught the blow. He curled his fingers around the cold metal fist he had captured and began to squeeze. He moved his hand from in front of his face so he could look directly at the robot.

"If you wanted to play why did you not just say so?" With that last word he crushed the fist in his hand with the ease that one might scrunch a piece of paper and threw the ruined appendage away as if in disgust. The robot retracted its arm back to its natural length, its ruined hand sparking. The anger that always lay just underneath the surface erupted.

"I hate butlers. It is because of butlers that I got put down here."

Eight's eyes burned red and the secret panels in it torso and head opened to reveal rows of gleaming missiles and fired them at him without a moment's warning. Sebastian leapt backwards out of the way of the deadly assault. He backs into the wall as the first to missiles land to either side of him. He can't more back any further to get out of range. He scans the rapidly approaching rockets, looking for a way through. A spilt second later he launches himself across the room, skidding to a crouched halt behind the orange robot as the missile rained on the spot he had been standing, each hit resounded through the concrete walls and caused the ground to tremor with the force from each blast. The last projectile detonated revealing the hole it had gouged out of the solid concrete wall, twisted pieces of metal the remains of the steel reenforcement and rubble and dust continued to rain down. Sebastian brushed concrete dust off his clothes. He sighed. "Oh look. You've gone and gotten my clothes dirty. Now, that won't do. It looks like you need to be punished." Before Eight could respond and turn its hate-filled eyes on its sworn enemy - the butler, Sebastian flicked his wrists and knives appeared in his hands. He flung them at the robot and they buried themselves in the back of its neck utterly destroying the override and control panel as well as the motherboard. The robot toppled over with a hollow metallic clang, its limbs twitching as its systems shut down and the glow of its eyes faded away into nothing. Sebastian turned his back on the listless, mangled metal mess that lay on the floor surrounded by rubble the hilts of the knives that had brought about its downfall protruding from its neck like porcupine spines, and strode out of the room, flicking dust from his uniform until it was returned to its usual pristine state.

Sebastian now stood at the crossroads. At his back was the path he had just taken and the corridor continued to the left and right of him before they both disappeared around corners. Sebastian stood for a moment contemplating his options. He then turned to look directly at the hidden camera mounted in the wall and smiled. He very deliberately chose the left option and began to walk down the corridor, his heels clicking loudly on the concrete floor, as if he knew what was in store. Klaus frowned. He cannot know what's down there! If I'm not mistaken at the end of left fork is the worst room in the labyrinth. But he seems to know exactly what he's doing, to so easily evade the traps of the maze. During his musing Sebastian had advanced to the threshold of the room. He opened the nondescript door smoothly, its utilitarian façade telling nothing of the horrors that lay beyond it. The door swung outwards on its well-oiled hinge. Sebastian stopped, then calmly stepped forwards through the doorway...and kept on walking. His first step over the threshold unleashed the monsters. A fearsome beast burst from through the doorway at the other end of the room and slid to a halt, its claws leaving deep scratches in the solid concrete floor. Its gnarled face pulled back in a horrific snarl and its beady hate filled eyes were glaring with their full force at the figure that was still motionless in the other doorway, it was the kind of stare that would make any other man lose control of his bowel functions or at the very least make him quiver in fear. The beast dug its paws into the ground and bunched its muscles, ready to pounce. Sebastian took a step forward, then another. The beast rushed forward, charging at him. The butler seemed unruffled. He took another step forward; it was if the beast wasn't even there. The beast snarled its breath coming out in hot clouds as it launched itself at the unruffled man that had invaded its territory. It launched itself at and through Sebastian. The beast flickered and disappeared. Before the last pixel had dissipated Sebastian was under attack yet again. Projectiles launched themselves from the wall. Sebastian kept his trajectory and kept up his slow, steady pace forward, dodging the projectiles with not a movement wasted. He was moving so fast that his image shimmered like a mirage.

He stepped over the boundary and there was utter silence. It was like a physical presence after the chaos of the last few minutes. Sebastian looked over his shoulder at the path of carnage that had been wrought in his wake and his only visible response was the slow creep of corners of his mouth into his characteristic smug smirk.

Klaus, from his position behind the panel of monitors, released a breath that he hadn't realised he was holding. He closed his eyes letting his racing heart settle down into its normal rhythm. He was relieved but also somehow afraid. How did he get through the labyrinth without even a scratch? It shouldn't be possible. He went through it as if he were just going for a stroll in the park. Just who is this man? He cannot be human.

A door crashed open with a bang and there was a sudden rush of air as a black blur speed across the room. Klaus was startled out of his musing. He looked around him, not knowing what was going on and saw the door, the exit to the labyrinth, flung open and felt the ambient temperature drop. Out of the corner of his eye he saw a reflection in the monitors. Sebastian was standing directly behind him smiling in a serene, self-satisfied way but there was something about his manner that sent shivers down Klaus' spine. When did he…?

Sebastian leaned forward and put his lips close to Klaus' ear. "Satisfied?"

Klaus felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise. He gulped, begging his courage not to desert him now. He took a breath and pulled himself together and plastered a fake smile on his face. "Yes. You passed." A slight pause. "In flying colours. How did you manage that? I've never seen anyone go through the labyrinth like that! It was more than amazing, it was terrific. Who are you?"

Sebastian smile grew wider. "I'm just a hell of a butler."

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A/N Ahhh It's been a long time since my last update. My humble apologies to everyone who has been reading and thank you for your continued support.
Your feedback is always welcome. If anyone has any situations they want to see characters in or characters they want to see more of etc feel free to pm me.
Un/fortunately, it looks like the next chapter will have plot (it's a travesty, isn't it? XD). It's partly written but as per usual with me there's no telling when I'll have it done. All I can say is Undertaker makes an appearance.

cut away scene from above: The hail of missiles on the shook the mansion to the foundations. In her bedroom, Nagi roused from her dreams. Ah an earthquake? She yawned and waited for the shaking to stop then rolled over and went back to sleep. As she felt the building begin to shake, Maria facepalmed and thought: What on earth in Klaus doing?