Author's note: Hello my lovelies! Apologies for taking so long with this chapter, uni work got in the way. But, I received my first review via and feel so happy I couldn't wait to continue! So please enjoy!
Warnings: Sebaciel (hinted, mostly Sebastian's flirting) swearing and gore
That Butler, Ambushed
Ciel felt his eye twitch with annoyance then gasped at the sudden pain,
"Se…sebastian!" the boy cried, back arching and cheeks flushed. He felt the butler moving behind him, pressing closer,
"Please bear with it a little longer, my Young Lord" the butler replied stoically. "You've done this before, your body will get used to it" Ciel gritted his teeth,
"How…" he murmured before gasping again in pain. Sebastian pulled the strings of the corset one last time, closing the gap between the two sections "How can anyone get used to this?!"
Rachel knocked quietly on the train carriage door before entering with one of the dresses. She peeked in,
"Young Ma-Mistress, are you ready?" she asked, coming in at the affirmative grunt. She smiled at the scowling young master, his waist cinched into the corset that Sebastian was tying behind him. Holding up the elegant blue day dress to show, Ciel looked depressed and sighed, causing the housekeeper to look concerned "My Lady?"
"My only relief is that no one will be here who will recognise me" he grumbled, sighing heavily. He held his arms up, "Very well, Rachel, you may go now" He waited and noticed the girl hadn't moved, he scowled again, "Well?" The servant shifted uncomfortably,
"Apologies Young Lord, but Mr Sebastian believed it would be better if I were to dress you from now on" she explained. Ciel looked visibly startled and turned red,
"W-what? Why?!" he cried. He turned to glare at said butler who was hiding his grin and bowing,
"As a young lady, you would more commonly be dressed by female servants and not your butler, my Young Lady" the demon's smirk was unbearably smug, "As such, I thought it would be best for you to get adjusted to this arrangement straight away, since we don't know how long the case will take" Ciel growled low at the smug demon,
"You…." His voice was low and his eye promised revenge before regaining his self-control and huffing. "Fine! Rachel! Dress me at once! Sebastian! Leave and go fetch me my things! We'll be in the station soon" He watched as the butler bowed low,
"Yes My Lord. I mean my Lady" he grinned, receiving another glare and swat for this remark.
"You did that on purpose" the boy accused and watched as the butler walked out.
Rachel stepped forward, holding the dress open, and knelt down,
"Please, step into the dress My Lady" she offered. Pulling the dress up the boy's body and buttoning it at the back, she had to admit, the earl made a very convincing young lady.
"Do not mistake my participation in this for enjoyment, Rachel, and any comments on how good I look in this can be kept to yourself!" the boy snapped, clearly agitated. Rachel jumped guiltily,
"H-how did you know?" she asked. Ciel rubbed his head, feeling a headache coming on,
"I just know! It was obvious!" he snapped again, sitting down heavily and putting a foot out. Rachel looked thoughtful as she knelt, placing the earl's foot on her lap and pulling the stocking up the smooth milk white legs,
"I apologise, my Young Lord. I meant no mocking or harm to you" she said forlornly. She looked up at Ciel, who was looking at the window with a depressed face again,
"I know you didn't. And it's Young Lady, remember?" he looked back and noted the sad expression on her face. He forced a gentle smile, "Don't look so sad. You'll see Paris soon enough, I'm sure you've never been before, have you?" He hated the fake sweetness but didn't want to cope with a moping girl for the duration of the trip; better to cheer her up with silly thoughts of seeing the French sights and shopping. Girls liked that sort of thing, right? He watched her shake her head,
"Not in this lifetime, my Young Lady" she replied simply. Ciel frowned at the term,
'Not in this lifetime?' he scrutinised the young woman, who was still knelt as she tied his shoes. He mulled over his thoughts before opening his mouth,
"What exactly do you mean-" an ear-piercing whistle cut through the air, causing them both to flinch. At the same time, the pair were thrown through the air and hard against the wall of their cabin. Ciel watched Rachel's eyes widen then her arms wrap around him protectively. The last thing he saw was her concerned face and her cry of 'Young Master!' before his head connected with the hard wall and darkness swept up his vision.
When he came to, Ciel noticed immediately the sharp smell of smoke. His eyes snapped open, darting around as he took in his surroundings. Thick black smoke, choking out the light and burning his lungs, had filled the cabin. He coughed hard and crouched low, crawling towards the door.
As he moved, sharp jolts of pain ran up his side, knocking the breath out of him and causing him to collapse. He hissed in pain, grabbing his arm and looking down. The arm lay at an unnatural angle, sagging where it had become disjointed from his shoulder. Looking further down, he noticed the heavy bleeding and whitish shiny shard poking through the skin. Seeing the broken bone made his stomach churn and he vomited violently.
His mind started to race. His eyes scanned madly and spotted the bottom of the door. Gritting his teeth against the pain, dragging his limp arm, he crawled towards the door. It felt like eternity before he reached that door, gasping loudly for oxygen that just wasn't there. His vision began to blacken and he felt light-headed,
"S-S-S…Seba…." He croaked. Footsteps running up the hall outside the door. He paused and listened intently,
"Come! We have to get out of here now!" came a loud voice, muffled by door.
'French' Ciel realised. Well he was in France, so that wasn't what surprised him. No, it was the next voice,
"Relax, my friend. We still have plenty of time. If that idiot watchdog is on this train, he'll be burnt to a crisp before he can escape!" a calm voice replied in English. Ciel felt his heart thump hard; whoever they were, they knew he was on this train?
'No, they said "if". Which means they guessed when I would come and what train I would be on' Ciel thought over this information and listened harder, despite his lungs begging him to find an escape.
"They said the boy and his servants left yesterday morning to take the overnight train. It has to be this one!" came a third voice, in English heavily accented. Ciel scowled,
'Another Frenchman? So that makes three people here at least' he knew there was no escape through the corridor now. Even if he did open the door unnoticed, in his present condition he would never make it down the hall. Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder and another dart out to cover his mouth when he cried out. The figure pulled him close, keeping them both still to ensure they hadn't been heard before letting go. Ciel gasped for breath and turned, flinching in pain,
"W-who…?" he whispered, feeling someone press against his back, keeping him from facing them.
"It's me, Young Master. Rachel" the girl whispered back. He noticed her slide an arm forward, tapping out on his hand in Morse to Ciel's surprise.
"Young Master, this train has become dangerous. There are armed men throughout who seem to know you are here. We must leave at once. Do you permit me to carry you?" she tapped. Ciel nodded and felt himself being lifted as if he weighed nothing He coughed and squinted in the smoke, but found he couldn't see Rachel's face at all. "Please hold on tightly and close your eyes" she whispered, Ciel nodded again and swung his arm around her neck. He grimaced at the wet feeling on his chest,
'This isn't good, I must have sustained more injuries than I realised. At this rate, I might lose consciousness from blood loss' the boy felt them move to the other end of the cabin and suddenly heard the rush of air as the window opened. Shouts erupted from the hall,
"I heard a window open! Down here!" "Here! He's in here!" Ciel flinched as he heard the door crash open and gunshots fire. Then he felt them move out and the cold fresh air hit his face. He gasped and started taking in lungfuls of the sweet air until he felt dizzy again from hyperventilating. He heard the shouts and gunshots far away and the smell of smoke began to thin.
Eventually, they stopped and he felt Rachel lay him down on soft grass. He went to open his eyes and felt Rachel's hand press against his forehead, keeping them closed,
"Please lay back, my Lord. I must attend to your injuries" she stated. Ciel felt too tired to resist and Rachel's hand felt oddly soothing. Before he knew it, he was sound asleep.
Smoke… it was choking him as he ran. Flames. Everywhere, flames! All lapping greedily at whatever they could reach. Ciel cried out as part of the ceiling caved and skirted around it.
"Mother! Father!" he desperately strained to see, despite how much it caused his eyes to water. Rushing through door after door, he froze. There, laying in pools of their own blood, lay his parents. Ciel started to shake and tears rolled down his cheeks, forming trails in the soot covering his face.
"N-no…" he sobbed and ran. He ran blindly. "Please anyone! Help us! God! Please save us!"
Then the shadowy figures with their masks and cloaks, laughing cruelly to themselves. The searing pain in his side, branding him with his shame, and causing him to scream out as he struggled pathetically against his captors.
"Too weak… I'm… too weak…" he muttered, too tired for tears anymore.
Then the hands, dragging him away to the altar.
"No… no! I don't want to die! No please! Someone! Anyone!" Ciel reached out as the dagger fell.
"NO!" he cried, sitting up. His arm stayed frozen, stretched out in front of him, and he realised he was sweating. Two gloved hands took his outstretched and cupped it; he looked over into the gently smiling face of his butler, his demon. Sebastian looked slightly anxious, like he had been worried. Ciel looked around, they were on a green hillside in the middle of the country with him lying on the grass, Sebastian's tailcoat draped over him for warmth. He felt confused,
"S-Sebastian?" he panted, finally resting his arm and looking down into his lap. The butler kept hold of his hand,
"It seems our plans were predicted, you had a lucky escape" the butler murmured gently. Ciel looked down at his broken arm, shoulder back in its socket and now in a sling. He stroked it tenderly and felt the previous events come back and replay in his head hard and fast: the train ride, the crash, the men shouting in the corridor, Rachel saving him, the gunshots. Ciel startled in realisation,
"Rachel! Is she ok? The men… they started shooting at us" the boy's worry seemed to amuse the demon and Ciel growled, "Damn it you bastard! What happened? Where were you?"
Sebastian's mouth twisted into its trademark smirk,
"So many questions! My Young Master is always so curious. Shall I answer them in reverse?" the butler mocked. Ciel growled low,
"Answer me now! That's an order!" he hollered, almost snarling. Sebastian dipped into a bow from his seated position,
"Yes, My Lord" he complied before straightening. "I was brewing your tea when the train crashed and we were boarded. I managed to subdue many of them, but it seems they predicted some… resistance" the demon explain, eyes glowing pink for a second. Ciel frowned,
"An ambush from an enemy who knows us" he clarified. Sebastian nodded,
"It would seem we have a reputation even this far" the butler smirked. Ciel ignored this and looked thoughtful,
"So it would seem that someone knew the Queen would be concerned over the mobs in Paris and would send me to investigate" he twirled the blue diamond on his thumb as he spoke, mind whirring through all of these facts.
"Perhaps they used the mobs as a way to lure you out?" Sebastian suggested. Ciel shook his head,
"No, there's no way they could guarantee I'd come if that was the case. It's more likely someone intercepted the Queen's letter, read it, resealed it and then made their plan from there"
"Which would suggest…" started Sebastian, grinning.
"That we have a mole" Ciel finished, his face now serious as he looked at Sebastian. "Tell me, has the Queen hired any new servants lately? Was the letter delivered by one of her secretaries as usual?"
Sebastian chuckled at the serious nature of his Young Master,
"Oh Young Master, so suspicious and yet so innocent" he purred. Ciel looked taken aback,
"What? What do you mean?" he demanded, turning slightly red at the comment. Sebastian chuckled more and leant in,
"I mean that the interception would not necessarily have to be from the Queen's side, now would it?" the demon smirked so wide his fangs showed, "Humans are treacherous creatures regardless of their master. But then, so are unhuman creatures as well" Ciel scowled at the mysterious way his butler was talking.
"Enough of your foolish talk! Explain what you mean right now!" Ciel demanded, throwing Sebastian's hands off his own. Sebastian continued to smirk,
"I meant that the letter could also have been intercepted on our end, my Lord. When you ask if there were any new servants involved, you didn't think of your own estate" he grinned. "A nobleman should be able to keep track of who works for him, you know?"
The dawn of realisation spread across Ciel's face, he felt shocked at how long it had taken him to realise, they had only hired Rachel a week ago. It would be a simple thing to plan an attack under the guise of being a servant. He felt stupid, manipulated and betrayed. He was surprised to find his heart actually hurt a little bit at the thought of Rachel's betrayal.
"Which brings me to answer your first question" Sebastian continued, surprising Ciel more. He looked up at the demon,
"What?" he asked. Sebastian smiled,
"You asked how Rachel was correct? Perhaps you should ask her yourself" Ciel watched as Sebastian shifted out of the way to reveal the prone form of the young woman. Ciel felt shaken, as he shuffled nearer. The face was still, there was no breath, she looked almost peaceful in stark contrast to the ragged and torn clothing she wore. Her white apron was splattered with blood, her blood. No doubt from the many gunshots that littered her torso. But Ciel found himself gaping at the large open wound on her chest, glistening as it oozed and showing a peek of what lay within. Ciel felt bile rise in his throat again but swallowed it down. He turned his face away, his long fringe hiding his expression. This wound was typical of Sebastian, but he was surprised the demon had acted without an order. Ciel found his eyes drawn back to the girl's face, she truly looked like she was sleeping. He reached out and tenderly stroke one cold cheek.
Rachel startled awake,
"H-huh? Young Master?" she questioned. Ciel's scream could be heard for miles, along with Sebastian's laughter.
"I-I can explain" the girl started hesitantly, twiddling her fingers. Ciel panted hard,
"Well you had better!" he snapped between gasps for air. "How are you… When you like… what are you?" he finally settled on, his eyes still glued to the gaping hole in her chest. He could see through it to Sebastian on the other side, who was still trying to stifle his laughter. The sight of the laughing demon was enough to help the young lord regain his composure and overcome his fear.
"Please explain everything, Rachel" he asked, much calmer now. The girl looked away then sighed in defeat,
"Well… You see… I died about 90 years ago"
And we shall end this chapter here! Much more action this time! Next time, Rachel's true identity revealed and Ciel must decide what to do now! Did Rachel betray them? Find out next time! Please review and give me lots of feedback!