Raychaell: All right! Here's a brand new chapter for you all! Enjoy it my dears, and yes, Ciel will have more presence in this chapter!
Claudia: Will I meet the shorty at last?
Raychaell: Sigh… 1. Ciel is not a SHORTY! 2. Yes, you'll be meeting him at last… Anyways, read and review!
William: *clears throat* Ahem, Miss Dionzeros, I believe you forgot to do the disclaimer.
Raychaell: I did? *Checks* Crap! I did! Sorry! I do not own Black Butler, only my own OCs!
Ciel stared out of the window of his car in deep thought. The car was currently being driven by Sebastian, whose red eyes flicked to the image of his young master who was lost in thought. It had been an hour ever since Sebastian had returned to his young master's side and reported that he had found frustratingly little information about the Crimson and Black Roses. Ciel had been shocked with the news. After all, with such an unusual title, it should have been easy for Sebastian to find out at least something useful about his mysterious new allies.
Then again, there was something about the Black Rose that he was able to find out. Apparently, there were rumors circulating around the Underworld that the Black Rose was back and ready to destroy any obstacles in his path. The rumors also whispered about how the Rose was connected to the mysterious new competitor, who had named himself Rouge, for the position of head of the Underworld. Just who or what was the Black Rose?
"Young Master? We've arrived." Sebastian's voice broke Ciel out of his reverie. Shaking his head to clear the mental cobwebs in his mind, Ciel picked up his cane, his single cerulean blue eye now full of determination to enjoy the party the best he could. Sebastian was already at his door and opened it to allow Ciel to step out.
The Earl was dressed in light blue spring attire, top hat in place and hair neatly combed. He stored down the red carpet in his black dress shoes, ignoring the usual throng of reporters at the entrance. Sebastian, having handed the keys to the car over to the valet, was a few steps behind him in his usual black suit.
The two of them caused fervor among the reporters. After all, the Earl Phantomhive was apparently the last of his line and had appeared a few years back with the mysterious black clad butler who caused women who saw him to sigh in hopes that the devilishly handsome man would notice them. But the Earl was also well known for rebuilding the Funtom Company and making its mark as one of the world's best toy and confectionary companies. And to top it all off, the Earl was just a 15 year old child (A/N: Yea, I know he was 13 - 14 when he became a demon but I thought Ciel wouldn't want to be stuck as a kid all the time. So he's 15. Just bear with it, will ya?) It was simply amazing!
Ignoring the reporters and the flashing light bulbs, Ciel strode forwards to meet the host of party, Countess Amelia Webster. The middle-aged woman was, as always, dressed in one of her outlandish attires, which did nothing to improve her image. Today, she was dressed in a pasty yellow summer dress; its multiple ruffles serving only to make the Countess look fatter than she usually was. She also wore a white sunhat which had a pink ribbon tied around the crown. The Countess' fluttering fingers dripped multiple rings, most of which Ciel was sure suited the woman when she was younger.
Hiding his thoughts behind a polite smile, Ciel bowed politely towards the older woman. "Hello there, Countess Amelia. It's a pleasure meeting you. Thank you again for inviting me to your party. I hope you like my products exhibition so far."
Ciel greeted her. The Countess, once again fluttered around, thanking him for his attendance and the exhibition complimenting his and Sebastian's appearance, occasionally giving Sebastian a flirtatious wink. This only served to disgust the older demon, for both Ciel and Sebastian had heard about the numerous lovers the Countess had and invited to her bed whenever her aged husband, Count Harold Webster, had to leave the town or country for a business meeting.
Behind them, there was another flurry of clicks and eagerly shouted questions as the reporters found another newsworthy subject. Must be another celebrity the Countess invited, Ciel thought wearily. He watched as the Countess fluttered forwards to the latest guest. Due to her heavy bulk blocking him, Ciel could not get a clear view of the guest. A glance at Sebastian's slightly frustrated expression told him that the older demon could not catch a glimpse as well.
"Ah, Earl Phantomhive! Meet Lady Claudia Darius, head of her family and owner of Darius Enterprises. And joining us too is her butler, William de Sentis." The Countess exclaimed in her over enthusiasm. She turned to reveal one of the most beautiful girls he had ever seen.
Ebony hair was pinned behind an elegant braid by amethyst hairpins, with the rest of her hair flowing down her back. Her black hair framed her heart shaped face while two red fabric roses pinned onto darker red ribbons wrapped around her neck as a choker. She also wore a vest with an inner white corset peeping above the inside. Ruby teardrops hung from her ears as earrings. Amethyst eyes gazed with curiosity at Ciel and dainty low-heeled black shoes peeped out from beneath her dress. The dress she wore was of a darker shade of violet and flowed down her waist in multiple ruffles while thin lacy lavender arm warmers that ended in ruffled sleeves covered her arms.
She's so beautiful was the only thing Ciel could think of as he stared at her. Next to him, Sebastian managed to stop looking at her enough to see her butler, William. He was dressed in a dark blue suit with a while collared shirt beneath. A long red ribbon was seen around his neck and his long blonde hair that was let down was tied back with an equally red ribbon. Icy blue eyes that were seen behind a pair of frameless glasses watched his mistress with a possessive gaze and rose to meet Sebastian's red eyes with a fierce look of determination. She's mine, his eyes said. On his face however, was a pleasant smile that greeted both him and the Countess, who hovered around watching the two young nobles.
Claudia was the one who broke the silence first. "Hello there, I am Lady Claudia Rosario Alicia Darius, head of Darius Enterprises. Pleased to make your acquaintance. And you are…" Her question hung on the air as she tilted her head slightly to express her curiosity.
Ciel seemed to quickly snap out of his daze and, quickly composing himself, he answered her. "I am the Earl Ciel Phantomhive, head of the Funtom Company. It is a pleasure to meet you too." William bowed towards Ciel even as his mistress dipped into a low curtsy in greeting. Ciel and Sebastian bowed in response and exchanged brief smiles with the other two while the Countess watched with a beaming smile.
"Now that you have met and exchanged greetings, go in and enjoy the party! I have some welcoming to do! Ta ta!" And with that overenthusiastic good bye, the Countess left to harass another celebrity who had just arrived behind them.
"May I have the honor of escorting a beautiful young lady like you in?" Ciel offered even as he turned and raised his right arm. Claudia curtsied again, and grinned.
"Of course, my Lord." With that, she took Ciel's arm and walked in with him while the other two followed a few steps behind them. The scene of the two of them acting like a couple caused another flurry of light bulbs and also caused a barrage of shouted questions which all four ignored as they crossed the carpet into the party. Once in, William tapped Claudia's shoulder to get her attention. Claudia turned her head slightly and raised her eyes to his. William smiled and silently nodded towards an empty tent in the corner of the field in which the party was held. Claudia's eyes followed his gaze and at once understood the silent message he was giving her. She turned her head back towards Ciel, who had noticed the quick exchange between the two. Tilting her head with a smile, Claudia asked, "William was just asking if we would like to step out of the hot sun and have a seat there. Shall we, my Lord?"
Ciel answered with a smile," Of course, and please, call me Ciel. My lord makes me feel ancient." Claudia gave way to a light chuckle at this and nodded towards William to lead the way. William complied with a smile and a bow towards the young nobles before leading them both towards the tent. Once they were there, both sat down on the seats provided. Meanwhile, Sebastian was silently impressed. He had noticed the tent a split second after William did but then again, that was because he was still puzzling over the reason behind William's gaze and the silent message he had gotten from William. She's mine. Those two words just puzzled him further. Never mind, he thought to himself, I'll think about it later. He turned his attention back to Ciel, who was currently engaged in a discussion with Claudia.
"So, Lady Darius," Ciel began.
"Just call me Claudia. Lady Darius makes me feel old too!" Claudia interrupted with a chuckle. All Ciel could think of when he heard her laughter was, she has a nice laugh. He mentally shook his head at that. He was a demon after all, and shouldn't be falling for her, a mere mortal.
"So Claudia, I see you too have been pressed into accepting the invitation from the Countess. Isn't that right?"
"Yes, but my original intention when I first received the invitation was to decline of course, since I -" Claudia was interrupted mid sentence by an annoyed yowl. All four of them looked down to see…
A cat. A black cat to be exact. Emerald eyes stared with annoyance at Claudia as the cat yowled again. While Sebastian stood still, transfixed by the cat's beauty, Claudia gave way to soft laughter and picked up the cat, which had a purple ribbon around the neck and a silver bell hanging from it. It made a soft yet pleasant tinkling noise whenever the cat moved.
Claudia returned her attention to Ciel even as she placed the cat in her lap, where it curled up preparing to go to sleep. "Sorry about that, Ciel, but as you can see, Casshern here was rather annoyed about hiding beneath my skirt." She apologized.
"You mean to say…" Ciel trailed off in sudden realization.
"Yes, Casshern here belongs to me. He's my best friend and while I usually leave him at home while I go to parties, he insisted on joining me this time. My guess is that he was bored of staying at my manor all the time."
Sebastian spoke at last, but as Ciel feared, it was in a dreamy tone as the older demon had, once again, gone into a cat loving frenzy. " What a magnificent cat he is. With such beauty and grace, not to mention such glossy fur that had been brushed to perfection, he truly is beautiful."
Ciel mentally face palmed while Claudia and William exchanged amused looks. William spoke first. " Judging by your tone, I assume Mr. Michaelis is a cat lover at heart too?"
Please don't say or nod yes, Sebastian. Please! Ciel mentally pleaded. However, his mental plea went unheard as Sebastian nodded eagerly with an exuberant grin. Claudia laughed merrily while Ciel let his forehead smack the table. That cat – loving demon was truly going overboard now. Here he was, trying to impress the younger girl, but Sebastian was ruining things with his cat fetish. He would never be able to leave a good impression this way!
"Don't worry. I don't mind your butler. It was rather expected seeing as to how many of my friends usually love to see Casshern more than me whenever they visit me. After all, Casshern is beautiful." Ciel's hope rose at the merry tone in Claudia's voice. Quickly straightening himself, he adopted a cool manner and began speaking.
"Your cat is indeed a beauty but why would you hide him?"
"That's because the Countess disapproves of animals during her parties. She thinks they make a mess everywhere they go."
"Does he?"
"Nope. Casshern is very well trained and intelligent enough to understand my mood sometimes. I first met him when my parents died when I was twelve."
"Wait, your parents are dead?"
"Yea. They were killed in a fire at our townhouse. I didn't exactly quite understand my parents' deaths then, and was always cooped up in my room at the main mansion crying away. During that time, William had not joined me yet. I was weeping in my room when Casshern, who was just a kitten and born a few weeks before my parents' death, stumbled into my room accidentally. When he saw me crying, he became curious and tried to lick my tears away. I disliked him at first for bothering me, but he never gave up and just continued to comfort me by purring to me or doing funny antics. I eventually fell in love with him and named him Casshern."
"How about William? When did he join you?"
"That, is a story for another time and place. I am not fit to tell it anyways and it will be William's choice to tell it when he wishes. Now that I've told my story, why don't you tell yours?"
"Me? I do not have much of a story to tell you."
"You'll be surprised about how many people say that, but" At this, Claudia leaned forward slightly and placed her left hand on Ciel's right arm. Ciel froze in surprise at this. Normally, he would have yanked his hand away at a stranger's touch, but Claudia's hand… It felt warm… When he looked into her amethyst eyes, he felt like he was drowning in those amethyst pools. He couldn't look away from her eyes, not that he wanted to. Her earnest gaze made him feel like he was melting in her eyes. Claudia spoke again, never breaking eye contact.
"Can you tell me?"
Ciel felt his lips move as he answered her. "Yes." From there, he carefully spoke of his family history, managing to keep a clear enough head to bend the truth to fit the current times.
"My family was killed in a fire too, when I was eleven (A/N: I have no idea what age he was when Ciel's family died so I'll just assume he was eleven when he met Sebastian.) and the police never found out who did it. I was alone for a while, until I recruited Sebastian and he has been my butler ever since." There, short and sweet, without revealing too much about himself. But she continued to hold his gaze, and he could feel himself drowning, drowning in her eyes…
"RRIINNNGGG!" A phone went off nearby making Claudia blink in surprise. The moment eye contact was broken, Ciel felt himself slump back into his chair. His head felt cloudy for some reason and he could have sworn he heard her voice in his mind whispering away. Sebastian placed an anxious hand on Ciel's shoulder. Ciel placed a hand on top of the older demon's and nodded to show that he was fine. Sebastian's red eyes were full of anxiety but it cleared the moment Ciel indicated that he was fine.
"Sorry about this, but I have to take a call. May I be excused, Milady?" William apologized, while Casshern yowled his annoyance at the rude awakening. Claudia merely chuckled and nodded her permission. William bowed again in apology before moving out of the tent to take the call.
The moment William left, Claudia turned her bright eyes back to Ciel, who straightened himself. She asked, "So why are you here at this party, Ciel?"
Ciel quickly replied, "That is because I had to give an exhibition to the Countess, whom, as many know, is an avid fan of my company products. What about you? " That was partially true, but he couldn't tell her that the Queen had ordered him to attend and meet the mysterious Crimson Rose. Then again, could it be that Claudia was the one he was looking for? Claudia's voice broke him from his reverie. "I attended because the Countess was my mother's college classmate. Also, I wanted to see how my roses were coping."
"Your roses?"
"Yes. One of the things my family is well known for is our excellent breeding of premium roses. We have even opened a chain of flower stalls to sell our flowers."
"Ah, so your company focuses on flower breeding?"
"Not exactly. We are also well known for our rose themed and pharmaceutical products. But in the end, it's the roses that everyone likes. We even have a Royal Warrant for it!" Claudia gave way to a light chuckle at this. Ciel did too, but his mind was racing with possibilities. Could she be the Crimson Rose? He thought to himself. But before he could open his mouth to ask her, they were interrupted by William's return. He bent down towards Claudia and, screening his lips and Claudia's ear with his gloved hand, he whispered something to her. With his demon hearing, Ciel was able to hear the following conversation.
"Milady, there's been a small mishap at the science department. Your immediate presence is required."
Claudia gave way to a grimace at this. She quickly got up while Casshern scrambled to the ground. "My apologies, Ciel, but it seems that my presence is required at my company so I must leave."
Ciel quickly rose with her and shook his head firmly in reply. "It is of no trouble to me. I just hope that it's nothing too serious. Thank you anyway for chatting with me for I was afraid of being bored to death during the party." Claudia smiled at this, and after a quick curtsy from her and a low bow from William, both of them left the tent hurriedly.
Ciel watched the both of them leave as he sat down. The moment they were out of earshot, he spoke. "Sebastian, what do you think of Claudia and William?"
Sebastian pondered the question for a while before replying, "I think Lady Claudia is suitable for you if you ever think of getting engaged, my Lord, but it's her butler who bothers me."
Ciel blushed furiously at the comment about Claudia but raised his startled gaze towards Sebastian when he spoke about William. "How so?" He asked.
"Well, Mr. Sentis is a human for sure, but also not quite human . Did you notice how possessive he was of his mistress when we first met? Also, Claudia isn't ordinary too. I would say she's the same as Mr. Sentis but she exudes a different aura. With such a fragrance around her, I'm surprised that no demon has claimed her soul yet."
"Your point being…?
"Young Master, I would advise you to be careful around her." Ciel pondered Sebastian's words carefully. It wasn't often Sebastian said things like this, and he was curious anyway of Claudia. Just who is she?
In a factory far from the party venue, a furious shout could be heard.
"WHAT ON EARTH HAVE YOU IDIOTS DONE THIS TIME?"
Claudia was fuming away as her angry gaze settled on the rows of cringing scientists before her. She had been so close to hypnotizing Ciel and learning the secrets he hid, but then she was interrupted by the call William received, therefore breaking whatever hold she had over him. William however, merely hid a smile at his mistress' fury and pitied the poor scientists who currently bore the marks of another disastrous experiment. Soot marks could be seen on them and their hair was all puffed up like an Afro hairstyle.
"I warned you just last week that I wanted less explosions and more successful experiments! But what do I get instead? Half – HALF - The equipment is wrecked and some are beyond repair! How on earth am I going to explain all this to the insurance company?"
"WE'RE SO SORRY MISS DARIUS! PLEASE FORGIVE US!" The scientists all cried in unison. Claudia's eyebrow twitched; it was a sign that she was very mad and was about to have a headache. The scientists all cringed in wait for the furious lecture they were about to receive but raised their heads in surprise to hear her let out a weary sigh. William, upon seeing his mistress' exhaustion, pulled up a chair for her to slump into. Claudia sank gratefully into it, her hands draped across the armrests as her head leaned back. She closed her eyes for a few minutes before opening them to reveal a weary gaze. She spoke then.
"I'll forgive you guys on account that you got me out of a boring party, but ifthis havoc occurs again when I'm in the middle of something interesting, I'll dock your wages!" She had barely finished speaking before a great cheer started by the scientists rose in volume and drowned out the rest of her words. Claudia sighed again, but this time with a smile as she surveyed the scientists. She could never stay mad at them since they were like her second family with their crazy antics. Casshern meowed from her feet, asking to be picked up. Chuckling softly, Claudia picked him up before gesturing William forward.
William obeyed and stepped towards to his mistress. "Yes, Lady Claudia?"
Claudia's smile was quickly replaced by a devilish smirk that usually sent chills up the spines of those who saw it. "Inform Rouge that I have met the Watchdog and tell him, Let the games begin." William bowed at this, and with a smirk matching his mistress', he replied, "Yes, my Lady, my Rose."
Later at home, Claudia smiled to herself as she watched the full moon outside her window of her bedroom while Casshern was fast asleep on her pillow. Watching the moon, she whispered softly.
"Soon you will be my pawn to control, Ciel Phantomhive. This I swear upon my title as the Crimson Rose!"
Raychaell: And Chapter 2 is done! Love it? Review then!
Claudia: You want Ciel to FALL IN LOVE WITH ME?
Raychaell: Yup!
Claudia: But I'm not interested in him!
Raychaell: *shrugs* Then treat him like your pawn then. After all, you are the Crimson Rose. Surely you can do that?
Claudia: Idiot.
Raychaell: If you guys don't review, I'll give Casshern to Sebastian!
Claudia: NOOO! If you want to save Casshern, please review!