Chapter Eleven: Wake-up Call

Ciel woke with a vile headache. In fact, his entire body seemed to ache. He groaned as he put one hand up to his forehead and opened his eyes to stare at a ceiling that wasn't familiar. Where was he? The sheets around him felt different from what he was used to as well. They weren't silk. Perhaps they were cotton? He wasn't entirely sure. And the nightclothes he was wearing were definitely not his.

A light knock sounded on his door. "Young master?" Before he could answer, Sebastian had opened the door and entered, a tray in one hand, which he set down on the desk where Ciel's clothes were still sitting from the night before. He closed the door behind him.

Ciel winced as the light was turned on. "Ugh! Turn that light off! It hurts my eyes!" He rolled over to one side, facing the wall, hunched a bit as he favored his injured shoulder.

Sebastian turned the light off again but moved to open the curtains over the door that led to the outside deck. The more natural light was less intense. "I apologize," he said as he turned back to his young charge, his dark suit immaculate despite not having been laundered from the previous day's adventures. "Is that more agreeable, my lord?"

The boy peeked out from his blankets, squinting a bit as his eyes adjusted. "Where am I? What happened?" He rolled back over and took a swift breath as the pain in his shoulder momentarily clouded his senses. He cradled his arm.

The butler moved forward to help him to a sitting position. After all, it was the dominant side his master had injured. "Allow me," he said as he took out a square of linen and formed a sling for the arm. "We are currently lodged at the home of Shigure Sohma, along with his cousin Yuki, and Miss Tohru. Kyo, I am told, normally lodges here as well, but he has gone missing, as we learned last night. While we were ascertaining this information, you were injured by almost falling off the roof. I was able to catch you before you fell but you did sustain some injuries as a result, for which I must humbly apologize." He moved to bow deeply once he'd secured the sling.

Ciel leaned back against the pillows, which had been propped up for him. "Ugh. My head is pounding." He put his free hand up to his temple and winced again.

Sebastian turned to the tray, which contained a small teapot with plate and saucer, along with a bowl of warm water and a small crock of porridge with a bowl and spoon. He took a small towel from the bowl of water and wrung it out, then returned to his master and pressed it lightly against his bruised face. "I know it hurts, young master, but please bear with it. You managed to hit your head into the ladder as I caught you. Dr. Sohma believes there is the possibility of a concussion. At the very least, you have sustained quite a remarkable black eye."

The young earl moved his hand to rest over the small towel. The warm water did help the pain. "What a fine sight I must look," he said a bit bitterly. "I don't suppose we have any leads yet to our quarry?"

The butler returned to the tray, where he poured a cup of steaming tea. He placed the bowl of water onto the desk and moved the tray over to his master, setting it gently on his lap. "I'm afraid not. It is my hope, however, that during the course of the day, we may be able to ascertain some clues to her whereabouts. However, we will have to do so discreetly."

Ciel rearranged himself to sit a bit more comfortably as the tray was placed on his lap, putting the damp towel down next to the small crock. He took up the tea and sipped, puckering his lips at the bitter taste. "Sebastian, what kind of tea is this? It's not Earl Grey."

Sebastian smiled. "No. It is a special blend Miss Tohru concocted. Apparently it's a family recipe that is supposed to encourage the immune system and promote energy. Perhaps you will find the porridge more suitable. It is nutritional and should be gentle on your stomach. I watched her prepare it. Also, the doctor has prescribed that you stay on liquids and soft foods for at least a day, taking in as much liquid as possible as you are quite dehydrated."

Ciel made a face. "I'd rather eat the usual things," he said a bit sulkily. He knew, in the end, that he'd probably end up doing what they wanted him to, at least in this case. After all, the last time he'd had some form of illness, Sebastian had gone against him, with Prince Soma's help, and made him "follow doctors orders", in a manner of speaking. He rolled his eyes, wincing slightly from the pounding in his head. "Fine."

Sebastian removed the lid from the crock, but, despite his attention being partially diverted, he did not miss the slight change in expression on his master's face. "Does your head hurt," he inquired fallaciously. It was, perhaps, a bit of a rhetorical question, as he was quite sure that not only did his master have a raging headache, but that his entire body ached. He just wondered if the boy would admit to it.

Ciel picked up the spoon with his non-dominant hand. It had to be the wrong one that was injured, he grumbled to himself as he attempted to scoop some of the food onto the spoon and ended up having it dribble off as he brought it to his mouth, spilling the warm mess down his front. He put the spoon down in disgust. "This isn't going to work!"

A timid knock came from the door and both butler and boy turned heads to look towards it. "Um, Ciel, is it okay if I come in?" Tohru's sweet voice came through the light wood.

Sebastian raised an inquisitive brow towards his master, who let out an exasperated sigh. It would be a bit improper for the young lady to come into the room of a young man, especially one who was not exactly dressed, but seeing as the circumstances were somewhat different than usual, and that Tohru was more of the caregiver, it would not be overly imprudent to allow the advance. "The door is open," he called out for her benefit as he moved to tie his master's eye patch in place, not because she didn't know about the seal but because they didn't know who else might decide to drop in.

Tohru cautiously opened the door and entered the room, leaving the door open in an almost self-conscious manner. "Good morning," she greeted with a bit of a bow. "I know it was probably a bit forward of me but I went ahead and had the prescription Hatori gave you filled and brought it back." She held out the pharmacy bag for the butler to take. "I thought that you might need the pain medication he prescribed." She patted at her pockets. "Oh, and I thought it might make it easier for you to eat your porridge if you had this. I made it thin just in case." She held out a straw.

Sebastian took the straw in his gloved hands and passed it onto the wide-eyed Ciel. "That was very thoughtful of you," he complimented her with a smile.

Tohru blushed slightly. "It was nothing! I mean, I know how hard it is when you can't use your dominant hand." She held up hers for emphasis. "I've injured mine before you see."

Ciel glanced up at this admonition, the straw between his fingers. The small device certainly made drinking a lot easier. The porridge, after all, was thin enough that he could suck it up without any trouble. And despite his grumpy mood, he had to admit that it did taste good, almost as good as anything Sebastian would have made under the same circumstances. "When was this?"

She blushed a bit more. "Oh! It's been several months now! And it was a complete accident! But it's all right now. I mean, Ritsu didn't mean for it to happen, cutting my hand, that is."

The two males exchanged glances. Neither knew whom she was talking about, but the event was probably as she said, an accident. "I am relieved that it didn't cause any lasting harm," Ciel offered soliticiously before returning to his porridge. He blinked when Sebastian placed one of the prescribed pills on his napkin, and then remembered what it was for and took it with some more tea, resisting the urge to gag at the flavor.

Tohru clapped her hands together, a smile on her face. "Well! I don't know when you want to go ahead and see the city, but whenever you're ready, we can go. I'll just be downstairs doing some chores." She left the room, closing the door behind her.

Ciel fiddled with his straw for a moment. "You know, Sebastian, the more I learn about Tohru, the more confused I become. She is not like any other girl I've ever met and it seems rather unfair that she should be put in the position she finds herself. I am sure that if she had been born during my time, she would have been born a duchess."

Sebastian chuckled lightly at the thought. "Perhaps you are right. She is indeed a most intriguing young woman. And I would not be at all surprised if she were to continue to surprise us both in the future. In fact, I look forward to it."

Ciel rolled his eyes. "Just don't get any bright ideas about her," he admonished. "After all, you already have a standing order as far as she is concerned."

Sebastian bowed.

Momiji Sohma bounced around in excitement. It was such a beautiful day, and he was planning on going to visit Tohru since they both didn't have school and she didn't work. He'd checked just to be sure. He hoped to invite her, and maybe Yuki and Kyo, to go out and just goof around. After all, what else was there to do on such a nice day?

He skipped down the sidewalk on his way. She would be so surprised to see him. And, maybe, if he were lucky, she'd have some kind of goody made that he could snack on. That was always a bonus. After all, he loved Tohru's cooking.

He trotted past the school building, slowing slightly as he noticed Saki Hanajima sitting out front, reading a book. His footsteps came to a halt in front of her and he bent at the waist, until he was almost bowing in front of her, trying to see what she was reading. "Hi there! What're you reading?" He gave her a rather goofy grin.

Hana looked up from her book. She had only been passively reading it, keeping a mental eye out for Tessa and what she might be trying to do at the school. But, apparently, her presence there had deterred the transfer student from doing much of anything. Her stomach growled slightly as the clock struck the hour. Lunchtime. "Hello Momiji," she greeted him in her usual quiet and mysterious voice. "I'm enlightening my mind."

Momiji leaned back, and then spun around. "I'm going to see Tohru! I was thinking of inviting her to go on a picnic with me!"

Hana eyed him up and down, noting a lack of food on his part, but the thought of a picnic was not a bad one, and she was hungry. "Would you mind if I joined you?" She stood languidly, closing her book. "I've been meaning to visit Tohru myself."

Momiji blinked, then shrugged. "Sure!" There was no harm in letting another person tag along, even though he'd been hoping to get some more time with her. He spun around again, arms out like an airplane's wings. "Maybe we can buy bentos! Let's go!" He jumped ahead, arms still spread out as he zigzagged on the sidewalk.

Hana let out a slight sigh. This would leave the school unguarded, but she couldn't sit out in front of the building forever. And she wasn't even sure of what Tessa wanted, just that it probably wasn't good. She'd caught a hint of a potentially malicious wave coming from her, and she didn't overly like it.

Tessa peered over from her lookout point. The strange mortal was leaving the area. Finally. This was definitely putting her timeline out of sorts. Her eye twitched with irritation. Perhaps she would test her knew found tool on this girl, just for the fun of it. After all, it would be fitting, considering she'd delayed things long enough.

She quickly looked around, just in case someone else decided to come along and deter her investigation, and quickly darted towards the back entrance of the school building. Opening the door was a piece of cake. She didn't even need the key. A few words, a flick of the wrist, and she was in.

The halls were quiet. The lights were off, and even though there were windows, what light did make it inside was diffused, not that it bothered Tessa. Nothing bothered Tessa. Except not knowing things. But that would soon change.

After making a few false turns, she finally made it to the correct hallway that led to the student records room. Another few flicks of her wrist, and a few muttered words, found her inside the room, where she actually did turn on the light. There were no visible windows here, and she found the imitation light almost soothing somehow.

Near the front of the room sat a contraption she'd learned was called a computer, but she didn't bother with that. Even though she'd learned what it was called, and had pretended she knew how to use one in class, she definitely did not prefer it to the older method of written word. And she more than happy to find that the student records were also kept in a written form. Now all she had do was sift through them to find the information she wanted.