TOCINO ARC - I. THE LETTER

"Nggh", Ciel Phantomhive, a young earl, woke up to the sun shining down onto his face. He sat up from his bed, rubbing his eyes to try to get the sleep away from them.

"Good morning, bocchan," Sebastian Michaelis, a butler clad in black, greeted his Master as he tied the curtains.

"Ohayou nii-san!~" Miel Phantomhive, the younger sister of Ciel, exclaimed, bursting into the room and going up to the side of her brother's enormous bed.

"Ah, Miel, ohayou," Ciel said in a monotone voice, albeit his shock of the sudden appearance of his sister.

"For today's breakfast, you will be having Mint Salad. As for the accompaniment, would you prefer scones or croissant?" Sebastian said while pouring Earl Grey tea for his master and Miel.

"The scones," Ciel replied, getting out of his bed.

"I'll have that as well!" Miel cheered.

After getting prepared for the day, Ciel and Miel were now sitting down at the dining hall having breakfast.

"What's my schedule for today?" Ciel asked Sebastian, setting down his fork on his plate.

Sebastian gave his Master's schedule in great detail. In this schedule were various lessons for the day, meetings and things he needs to carry out as Earl of the Phantomhive Household.

"And sir, a letter came in today from an acquaintance called the 'Asahinas'," Sebastian said while placing a silver tray on the table with the letter on it.

"Well, I don't believe I've heard from them in some time…" Ciel said, picking up the letter and reading the back that said: "To Earl Phantomhive". He opened the letter and read it.

Dear Earl Phantomhive,

It is I, Asahina Miwa. I believe we haven't had contact in some time. I'm sure you must be busy and have a lot going on, but I would be honored if your sister and you would attend my wedding which would be happening in 2 weeks time. I will be wedded to Hinata Rintarou, who I have met some time ago. My 13 sons and Rintarou's 3 daughters will be attending, and we hope that you could find time out of your busy schedule to attend. Thank you.

Regards,

Asahina Miwa

Ciel folded the letter and placed it back on the ridiculously spotless, silver tray. He silently sipped from his cup of tea.

"Bocchan?" Sebastian said while refilling his Master's cup of tea.

"A wedding." Ciel announced, taking once again. Another sip of tea.

"Omoshiroi~" Miel cheered, grinning.

"When will it be held and will you be attending, my Lord?" Sebastian asked.

"It will be in 2 weeks. And the Asahinas have been acquaintances with the Phantomhives for quite some time now… Is there something scheduled then?" Ciel asked putting down his tea.

"I don't believe so, Young Master," Sebastian said.

"Miel, what do you think?" Ciel said facing his younger sister, who wasn't a fan of long ceremonies.

"Etto.. It's the Asahinas', and we haven't seen them in some time... And I don't think there's anything planned on the day of the wedding, so wouldn't it be rude in a way to not go for…" Miel's eyes widened.

And so they attend the wedding.

They're having a good time, sharing laughs and conversations with the Asahinas.

However, at the table that was the most distant from everyone else, there was something strange that caught Miel Phantomhive's eye.

She didn't know what brought her to the table, but something about it, she didn't know what, simply made her feel rather weird inside. She can sense something...

"...iel!"

Her eyes widened.

"Miel!" Ciel called out, worried and confused.

"Eh… Ah, to not go for no apparent reason! Ehe~" Miel shuttered, tilting her head cutely and forcing a smile.

'What was that?' Miel wondered. 'A vision? Foresight?' The girl shook her head vigorously. 'No! Unlike me and most of the people in this mansion… The Asahinas are human. They're normal. Surely nothing could happen, right? ...Right?'

"Well, we haven't met personally in some time now, and I agree. Sebastian, we'll be attending that wedding. Keep my schedule on that day open," Ciel said, standing up from his seat.

"Yes, my Lord," Sebastian said while bowing.

Ciel proceeded back to his study for his normal duties with Miel trailing behind.

Time Skip: 3PM

"Ne, onii-san..." Miel mumbled, looking outside the large window of her brother's study.

"Nani? Mieru?" Ciel said, not taking his eyes away from his paperwork.

"You think Sebastian would really be OK with attending?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… These 'rituals'… He's a—"

Ciel interrupted, "He is the butler of the Phantomhive estate, what—"

Sebastian interrupted his own Master's saying this time.

"Then what type of Butler would I be?" Sebastian asked, closing the door to his master's study.

"Ah!" Miel exclaimed, facing him, eyes smiling. "What's today's snack?"

"Today's snack would be a Blueberry Lemon Cream Scones and Earl Grey tea" Sebastian said, laying down two plates of scones for his Master and Miel.

Ciel sighed, setting his paperwork aside. "Shall we eat now?"

"Hai!~" Miel cheered, taking a seat.

"Ne, Ciel, is there anything you plan to gain by going to that wedding?" Miel asked, setting her fork down.

"Of course not. I plan to go because our parents were close acquaintances with the past generation of Asahinas." Ciel stated, moving his plate to the side. He began continuing his paperwork.

"I thought you said the past didn't matter, since you're the Earl now," Miel said, suddenly finding the floor rather interesting to look at.

Ciel looked towards at his younger sister.

"You even made a scene of it with Lizzy-nee-chan," Miel recalled.

Ciel did indeed recall that. He sighed. "Miel, I'm sure you know what happens if we just ignore something from a close friend of the Phantomhives."

Miel's eyes widened just a bit. "Oh." She recalled that day. Actually, no, scratch that-that month when people started to ignore the Phantomhives because Ciel declined an invitation to this one party.

Ah, but of course, it was just a month.

"S-So... We'll attend the wedding?" Miel asked her brother.

Ciel nodded and started focusing on his paperwork.

After introducing the day's breakfast, Sebastian reminded Ciel of what was to happen today. "Master, as you've instructed, your only schedule for the day is Mrs. Asahina's wedding."

"Good," Ciel replied. "After breakfast, I'll take care of some paperwork and we'll be on our way. Is that alright, Miel?" The azure-haired boy faced his younger sister.

"Hai~" Miel cheered, biting down on her toast.

+—THE DAY OF THE WEDDING—+

After about fifteen minutes, Ciel finally stood up and said, "We will be going in twenty minutes, OK?"

Sebastian bowed down, his hand on his chest.

"Yes, My Lord."

Miel stood up as well, bouncing on her heels, and went to her room.

Ciel, Miel, and Sebastian were finally ready to go.

Ciel was in his usual formal attire, and had his can with him as always.

As for Miel, she wore a violet dress going down until her knees, with puffed sleeves and a three-layered skirt. The skirt's first layer stopped at her knees, the next right above her knees, and the last stopped at mid-thigh. Her shoes were purple and laced-up. And her hair was styled into a braid going down her shoulder, with flowery pins.

Like always, Sebastian was barking orders at Finnian, Mey-Rin, and Baldroy. "Finny, Mey-Rin, Bard, I expect the mansion to be spotless—SPOTLESS—and in one piece once we get back. Understood?" He emphasized 'spotless'.

"Yes sir!" Mey-Rin and Finny saluted, while Baldroy simply picked something out of his ear nodding slightly.

"We'll be going then," Ciel said, stepping out of the Phantomhive Mansion.

Once in the car, Miel started grinning madly while looking out the window. "Ahh~ I'm so excited~"

Ciel simply sighed, looking rather bored.

Sebastian noticed this and asked, "Is there something wrong, Young Master?"

Miel faced his brother as well.

Ciel shook his head and faced out the window. "Nothing of the sort."

+—CHAPTER END—+