It's been a while, it has. I'm truly sorry that I haven't updated for so long! I've been busy with god-knows-how-much schoolwork; it's positively dreadful...
Here's chapter seven! Hope you enjoy!
"Bocchan!" The contract mark in Ciel's eye burned painfully, sending waves of pain down his spine. With brutal impatience, the demon drove his nails deep into the angel's back and tore the two white wings from their body. Splitting screams echoed through the candle-lit dungeon, adding to the incessant, nauseating throbbing in the heir's head.
"Se-Sebastian," the young heir whimpered, bringing his bloodied hands to his ears. "Please... make it stop…" Following a sudden sharp crack, the shrill notes abruptly ended, and Ciel's hands fell back to the stone below him. His breath came in shallow rasps, struggling to capture more oxygen as blood filled his lungs.
"Bocchan—" Sebastian cut off as a strange sensation washed over him. Finding himself immobilized, the demon hissed.
"It's too late," Ash laughed. "Too late now." Sebastian's eyes narrowed. "You thought you could kill me? Hah! This fight was over before it began. Know your place, demon," it spat. "It's not your place to interfere with the will of God."
"What are you—"
"God has a plan for everyone. For instance, this boy will become an angel," the heavenly being smiled, kneeling down beside the young boy as it changed to its female form. With maternal tenderness, the angel stroked his blue-black hair, beginning the transfer of angelic life to the boy's limp body.
"You bastard," Sebastian hissed. She merely laughed. "It's not your place to interfere with a contract. This boy vowed to give me his soul of his own free will. Maybe becoming an angel was his destiny, but his soul belongs to me now."
"Oh stop acting like this boy is the last meal you'll ever get. It's not like you can't find another—"
"Looks like you're stuck in quite a difficult spot, hmmm, Bassie?" Flashing an insidious smirk, the flamboyant, cross-dressing, red-headed shinigami strolled into the dungeon. "Now, if I rescue your little toy, what'll you do for me, Bassie?"
"I'll refrain from killing you," Sebastian growled, barring his teeth.
"Oh! You're just so handsome when you threaten me!" Grell pulled out his chainsaw, revving it. "I hope you know that you'll owe me quite a few favors for this," he smirked. The shinigami's crimson trench coat fluttered as his curiously strong arms threw the chainsaw in a wide arc, severing the angel's head. "They become completely immobile when they transfer themselves, did you know that?" The shinigami laughed. "If I hadn't shown up, she'd have had no problems, though…" The invisible bindings holding the demon broke, and he got to his feet slowly, for his limbs felt weak and he was very light-lightheaded.
"Oh, I forgot to mention: that spell would have sucked the life out of you if I hadn't shown up…" Grell smiled, revealing his deadly teeth.
"Why are you here anyways?" Sebastian groaned, lifting the earl's limp body gently into his arms.
"Well, usually we don't interfere with the affairs of angel's and demons; it's not our place you see," the shinigami commented. "But I felt your outright distress, and I simply couldn't help myself! Oh, William won't let me out of the office for a month! All that blasted paperwork! But I did it for you, Bassie. For you, I'd endure years of shelving cinematic records and filing death lists!" Grell dropped to his knees and proceeded to pray to the heavens that Will would not assign him to the file rooms. "And you will owe me greatly for this. A fool could see that that boy isn't just an afternoon snack to you…Oh, woe is me! Romeo has chosen another over his beautiful Juliet—"
"Will you shut up!" The young heir blinked his eyes open. "There's no need to be so obnoxious."
"Bocchan," Sebastian looked down to find a new insignia on the boy's left eye. A seven pointed star stared back up into the demon's crimson gaze. Additionally, the boy's face had become substantially more beautiful (if such a thing were even possible). Goosebumps rose on Ciel's pale skin. Sebastian analyzed the heir's heartbreaking face for a moment and sighed, drawing the boy a bit closer to himself.
"I'll see you soon, Bassie!" The reaper stood, grinned, and promptly disappeared.
"Sebastian, take me home now." The young heir closed his eyes, resting his head gently against the demon's shoulder.
"Yes, my lord." Sebastian lifted the earl's hand gently to his lips and headed out the doors of the dungeon.
As it turned out, the complex had been built directly beneath the most populated region of London. Silently, the demon stepped out into the bustling nightlife of the city. Opera season was well underway; silk and fur-clad aristocrats filled the streets, their heels hitting the pavement with small clicks as they made their way from the opera house.
"I can walk now," the earl sighed. Sebastian placed him down gently. Silently, the two continued.
Streetlamps cast their warm glow onto the streets, and vendors filled the square, for many customers frequented this place on performance days. Occasionally, Sebastian caught a snippet of chatter about the composer or one of the actors. With a start, Sebastian's trained ear caught a voice he recognized, a voice he really had hoped he would not encounter.
"Ah, the Earl Phantomhive," Lau hummed contentedly. "What brings you to London this evening?" Lau had changed attire for the evening. His usually unkempt hair had been slicked back, and he wore a black silk-lined suit with an indigo neck-tie. Ran Mao stood next to him, dressed in a long, embroidered, watery-blue cheongsam, split daringly high up the side so that it revealed most of her thigh. Her hair had been swept up into a single bun, high up on her head, and a single red rose was tucked into the side.
"I stopped here to visit Undertaker and ended up staying a bit later than I had planned."
"Well then, perhaps you'd like to stop in at my estate tonight. I'd been hoping for company tonight."
"I'm afraid I'm not properly dressed to be going anywhere tonight," the earl sighed. Ciel wore his casual green suit. "It's been a rather long day, and I still have paperwork to attend to."
"All the more reason to come, right Ran Mao?" He went on. "Why not let the paperwork wait a while, hm?" Lau smiled, opening his eyes ever so slightly.
"Very well," Ciel sighed. "It would be nice to take my mind off the day."
"Now then, where have you really been today?" Lau chuckled to himself, lifting his pipe to his thin lips.
"I don't think I quite understand what you're asking," Ciel replied, a bit startled.
"Come now. If you'd been to Undertaker, surely I'd be bombarded with questions by now…You haven't heard of the new case yet, have you? Been at your vacation home, my lord?" Lau reclined on the sofa, grinning ear to ear.
"I'd hardly use that euphemism for the place I've been. But while you're in such a generous mood, what do you know of the current case, Lau?" The Earl of Phantomhive pouted, obviously dismayed by the need to obtain information from the drug-trafficking ambassador.
"Now, now, information is never free, my lord…But I suppose I am in a rather generous mood…"
"You're lucky I don't sell you and your opium den out," Ciel growled, growing agitated. "Just answer my question already; I'm tired of your games."
"Rumor has it that there've been some unexplained murders in the underground of London…"
"Go on," Ciel sighed.
"You expect me to know everything when I'm not even a direct source. Wouldn't you prefer to get the details from your beloved Undertaker, hm?" The heir gritted his teeth in frustration.
"Lau—"
"Good evenin' m' lord…" A familiar chuckle sounded in Ciel's ear, and two sets of black lacquered nails came to a rest on the boy's shoulders.
"It's nice to see you Undertaker. It's been a while," Lau greeted. "Please have a seat." Undertaker took one of the plush armchairs by the fire. With a sigh, he reclined, folding his fingers onto his chest.
"Well, it's nothing like my coffins back at home, but it's comfortable enough," Undertaker mused.
"May I offer you something to drink? I've quite a few imported liquors."
"Wine would be nice," Undertaker smiled. "Red of course." The silver-haired ex-shinigami let his eyes briefly take in his surroundings. Lau's den hosted a wide variety of oriental furniture and artifacts. A dim orange glow from the fireplace illuminated the main sitting area, and candles lined the walls, casting their light upon calligraphy hangings, and lavish loveseats. Smoke from Lau's pipe danced around the room in little streams, and the scent of opium thickened the air. Undertaker's eyes drifted to the beautiful Phantomhive boy. With his eyes closed, Undertaker thought the boy slightly resembled an angel. An almost silver glow hovered about his figure.
"Ran Mao, can you fetch me a bottle from the cabinet?" Silently, the Chinese beauty rose and drifted out of the room. "Now, let's discuss the case, shall we?" Lau smiled.
"There've been some wonderful corpses coming into my shop," Undertaker grinned. "All torn up, bloodied, burned even…and they're all children." The Phantomhive's eyes snapped open.
"Children?" Ciel inquired.
"Indeed. They go missn' for a while, then they show up dead in the river. There's one more thing though… They've all got a curious mark…" Ciel's eyes widened; he already knew the nature of these murders. He of all people knew. "It's a brand mark. Usually find 'em on the left side."
"It's them," the earl said quietly. "It's that blasted cult."
"You've seen this before then?" Lau inquired, a curious smirk playing at his lips. To Ciel's relief, Ran Mao reentered, carrying a green-glass bottle in one delicate hand and three crystal glasses in the other. Wordlessly, she handed out the glasses, one to Undertaker, one to Ciel, one to Lau. With inhuman grace, the small Chinese assassin uncorked the bottle and poured the red liquid into each of their glasses. Ciel watched as the wine cascaded down one side of his glass and splashed up the other. Not a drop was spilled.
When she had finished, the girl re-corked the bottle and placed it onto the side table, settling on Lau's lap. The young earl frowned in distaste and proceeded to sample the wine.
"Now then, will the Earl of Phantomhive entertain us with the events of his day?" The young boy tightened his grip on the crystal, staring steadily at Lau who seemed to take no notice of the boy's obvious uneasiness.
Grudgingly, Ciel forced a half-lie. "I've been in the underground of London today. I don't care to speak of it at the moment." Closing his eyes, the heir leaned back into the cushions, nursing at the intoxicating liquid in his glass. "It's been a long day," he sighed. A slight pink blush had set in on the earl's high cheeks, and Sebastian, who had been standing behind the sofa for the entirety of the visit, noted that it might be best to return to the mansion soon.
"I think it would be best if my lord retired home soon," Sebastian voiced. In his head, Ciel silently thanked whatever hint had finally gotten through the demon's thick skull. Of course, he had probably noted all of them, Ciel thought. The demon enjoyed playing with his food.
"Yes. It would be a shame if the earl woke up feeling ill," Undertaker chuckled. Being just fourteen, Ciel had a very low tolerance for alcohol. Very low…
"It's been quite a day, hasn't it Ran Mao?"
That night, Ciel barely slept. His mind wandered to the cult, the children. He saw himself, crouched helplessly in the corner, blood pouring onto the cold stone, into the murky puddles of condensation on the floors. He saw the angel and it's bloodied wings, the white of its gown stained with crimson. He saw his parents and their faces, sewn together.
When he slept, he dreamt of the flamboyant red-headed shinigami and of Lau and his unyielding smirk. He dreamt of Undertaker and his glass of wine… Of that ever present smile and the long, black, cotton robes he wore. Ciel dreamt of Sebastian too, and the night became, quite suddenly, more bearable.
Thanks for everyone who has reviewed! I love feedback, yes I do!
Sophia