Chapter Twelve: Dress up and Makeup

After what felt like an eternity of agony, despite the pain pills, Ciel was finally dressed. He'd insisted upon having a bath before dressing, mostly because he felt rather grimy after his recent adventures. And what an experience that had been!

The bathroom was not like what he was used to, though it definitely held similarities. But it was rather strange to have the toilet in the same room as the bathtub. And the toilet had looked rather funny as well. But he'd figured out how to use it, after a little while of staring at it. The Japanese had some very strange ways of doing things, he decided.

But the bath! It had running water, a convenience he had not at all anticipated. And the temperature came out just right. It was a marvel not to have to wait for the water to be heated by stove or other contrivance. And the further contraption of a showerhead gave his aching muscles a better massage that he had ever dreamed was possible from such a device. He'd discovered what it was for, quite by accident while Sebastian had been scrubbing his back. Both he and the butler had gotten soaked, but that was of little consequence. He decided he'd have to look into creating something similar once he returned home.

The one thing that had really gotten to him, however, was the absurd amount of cleaning products he'd found in the bathroom. Not only was there the separate soap for hair and body, but special hair conditioner and a rather odd assortment of other odds and ends that he'd assumed where used for washing, though only a few actually resembled the sponge and cloth he was used to using. He had no idea why there were several different varieties of the hair and body soap. He found at least three separate bottles of each, each promising different results.

And then there was the whole scented part of the soap. Why was it scented like strawberries? And how did they make it pink in color without it staining the skin? He'd sniffed it and almost immediately rejected it for one of the… less delicate scents. The pink one had to belong to Tohru. The idea had, admittedly, made him blush ever so slightly, along with the knowledge that everyone shared the same bathroom, more or less.

Despite all the finery of the modernly convenient bathroom, getting dressed had been another matter entirely. Somehow, probably in the dead of night, Sebastian had managed to clean his clothes so that they were fresh and ready for him once he was done with his bath. He'd put the borrowed nightclothes to one side, not sure what to do with them. The hard part had come when he'd had to put on his shirt and jacket, forcing him to move his injured arm in ways that had made him clench his teeth and his eyes to water.

But it was done and he was officially presentable for the public eye once more, at least by his standards. It did not surprise him that Sebastian had also somehow managed to clean his own attire, including drying it from the whole shower experience. He'd learned what it was called from Tohru. It was too embarrassing to ask the other males in the household. Besides, he rather thought it would have been odd had he not known what it was, considering it was likely that every household had one.

So, fed and dressed, he carefully made his way down the stairs, followed by his faithful butler. They both stopped at the bottom of the stairs when they saw Tohru almost dancing around the room with a feather duster, brushing it over the various furnishings in the main room.

She was happily humming to herself and did not immediately notice their presence, but once she caught sight of them, out of the corner of her eye, she stopped, a smile on her face. "Good morning! Were you ready to go out and explore the area?"

Ciel received a gentle nudge from behind. He cleared his throat. "Ahem. I would be honored if you would give me a tour of your city," he said politely. It felt funny to have is arm in a sling, rather trussed up like a turkey. But it reminded him not to jostle it, which was very important.

Tohru put her duster away, skipping back over to them. "You know, you don't have to be so formal with me. After all, we're fairly casual here." She laughed lightly in amusement, and then glanced at his face, noticing his black eye. "Oh! That's right! I haven't even asked you how you're feeling!"

Ciel smiled back at her. "That's all right. Despite this," and he touched his visible eye with his left hand, "I think I feel rather well. I think it makes me rather dashing, don't you?"

Tohru smiled. "You always look dashing, Ciel," she admitted. If only they could convince Kyo to dress up more!

Shigure chose that moment to walk out of his office. He paused as he entered the room. "My! My! Don't we look handsome! Though, I have to say, that patch does make you look rather rogue-ish, or maybe like a pirate! I think it people might think you were in some kind of fight."

Sebastian took that moment to step forward. "It is an unfortunate disadvantage," he agreed. "The young master has worn this patch for several years now, after he lost sight in that eye due to a very unfortunate incident."

Shigure nodded sagely. "Ah. I wondered about that. Hatori used to wear a patch over his one eye too, for similar reasons, though he does still retain some of his sight in that eye. It wouldn't surprise me, however, if people decided to poke fun at your young master because of it, along with the black eye."

Tohru stewed over this for a moment. "You're right," she said. "It might cause some problems, but I know what we can do about it! I'll be right back!" She raced up the stairs and towards the bathroom where she rummaged around in a drawer she rarely used. After finding what she was looking for, she ran back downstairs with a small box. "We can use this!"

All three males looked at her rather oddly. Shigure was the first to crack a smile. "What an interesting idea, Tohru," he said in amusement, "but will he but up for the challenge?" He rubbed at his chin almost thoughtfully, resisting the urge to rub his hands together almost gleefully.

Ciel eyed the box with a bit of misgiving. "How will that help with my black eye?"

Sebastian found he was intrigued as well, though he rather thought he knew what was inside. "Would I be correct in guessing that this box contains cosmetics?"

Ciel's eyes widened at the suggestion and he backed up a few steps, running into his butler as he waved his good arm. "No! I refuse!"

Tohru held up the box. "Come on, Ciel! I only want to use some of the base to cover the bruising around your eye! It will make it less obvious! Promise! Even though I don't usually wear any, I do know what I'm doing! Uo taught me! And you can wash it off when we get back! Besides, lots of guys wear makeup now days."

Shigure nodded at this declaration. "It's true. I know quite a few men who wear makeup for various reasons." He didn't add that those males who he did know who wore makeup were usually cross-dressers or on the stage. He just wanted to see the young boy wear some because the idea was amusing.

Ciel turned to look up at Sebastian, his visible eye wide with a hint of confusion and a bit of pleading. He wasn't sure what he should do in this situation. If he were confronting Lizzy, he'd probably just give in. But should he this time?

Sebastian grinned back at his master. "I think it would not be a bad idea," he said, a glint of amusement in his eyes. "After all, young master, it would not do to allow the general masses have an opportunity to ridicule you due to circumstances under which you had no real control. I think it might not be a bad idea to allow Miss Tohru to "conceal" the evidence of your incident."

Ciel scowled at this. He definitely did not like the idea whatsoever, but he was also outnumbered. And short of ordering Sebastian to not allow this to happen, something that could be seen as really childish, he supposed it wouldn't hurt for him to give in. "Fine. But only enough to hide the bruising."

Tohru beamed at him. "Okay! Not a problem! Why don't you come over and sit down so I can do this more easily?" She walked over to the couch, setting her box of cosmetics on the coffee table.

With a bit of a sigh, Ciel came over and sat down opposite her, his free hand sitting idly in his lap. He really wished he had something, like his cane handle, to fiddle with though. He scrunched up his face as he closed his eye. "Just don't get any in my eye," he admonished.

Tohru had, meanwhile, had taken off the cap to a small tube of foundation, squirting a small amount on her finger. "Don't worry! I won't!" She started smoothing the light colored makeup over the boy's bluish-purple bruises on his face, being careful to stay as far away from his eye as was possible, given the circumstances.

Taking out a powder puff, she lightly dabbed over the makeup to set it with a complimentary powder that, oddly enough, matched his pale skin without looking caked on. She gave him a few more dabs with a light pink, to match the tone of his other cheek, then sat back. "I'm done! You can open your eyes now."

Ciel hesitantly opened his eye, almost absently feeling at the makeup-covered part of his face with his hand.

"Careful that you don't smear it," Tohru advised. "Even though I've set it with powder, it can still get smudged." She began packing up her little box. "Why don't you go look in the mirror? There's one in the bathroom just outside, near the kitchen." She finished packing her box and went upstairs to return it to its drawer.

Sebastian walked over to observed Tohru's handiwork. "If I didn't know what had happened, I would almost believe that you had never had a blackened eye," he said.

Shigure smirked. "Isn't she really something? To think she could do something as remarkable as disguise a black eye! Tohru really is something special!" He chuckled to himself.

Ciel stood and went to look for the restroom he'd been directed to, wondering if the makeup had done the job he'd been told it did, still not entirely believing it. The paste felt weird against his skin, though he was sure that if he ignored it, he'd probably eventually forget it was there.

Sebastian stayed behind with Shigure. He glanced over at the writer with a more serious expression. "Master Shigure, might I inquire as to whether or not Master Kyo has returned? I don't believe I have seen him yet this morning."

Shigure's expression darkened a bit, becoming more thoughtful. "No, you're not mistaken. He hasn't turned up yet, and I have to admit, it does worry me a bit. Sure he'll disappear for a while, though usually for less time than say, Hatsuharu would. And he does it even less now that Tohru's here. Hmm. Most unsettling."

Sebastian put one hand thoughtfully on his chin. "I find I must agree." It was indeed very unsettling. He'd have to keep an eye out for the boy while they were out and about. It was entirely possible that something very unfortunate had occurred to the lad, in which case investigating the matter was definitely called for. And the sooner, the better. He did, after all, have his master's orders to make sure things were well with the two friends.

Ciel stared at his reflection in the mirror. He had to admit that he did look rather tired. But he also had to admit that Tohru's handiwork was fairly good. If it had not been for the slight swelling around his eye, and a slight discoloration, he would never believe he'd received a shiner.

He bit his lip in thought. Well, that was one problem solved, for now at any rate. He needn't fear going out in public and being ridiculed for being a ruffian of some nature, but there were still several points that needed taking care of. The first was that he definitely needed to blend in better with his surroundings. His attire, though apparently appropriate for the eighteenth century, was not proper for his current setting. There was also the matter of their missing quarry, and now Kyo.

He supposed they would have to employ methods similar to their investigation from back when Tohru and Kyo had been in his time. He doubted he'd be in any real danger so long as he stayed close to Tohru. After all, no one but her and Kyo knew who he was. He could send Sebastian out to investigate in short bursts, knowing his butler would always come should he have need.

With that decided, he turned away from the mirror. Time to rejoin the others and get their investigation underway.

Tohru returned to the main room as Ciel came back in from his trip to see the outcome of his mini-makeover. She smiled at his slightly discomfited expression, but could tell he was at least partially pleased by the outcome. "Looks like we're all ready! I checked to see if Yuki wanted to come, but he's still asleep. I've learned from experience that it's best not to wake him before he's ready."

Shigure resisted the urge to let out a loud guffaw at this explanation from Tohru, which was, indeed, at least to some point, true. Yuki was not a morning person, and how he managed to get up every day for school, remaining chipper as he left, was beyond him. He was usually more like a zombie, though, so that might have had something to do with it.

Sebastian raised a brow at this declaration but didn't question it. "Very well then, shall we be off?" He smiled grandly. "Is master Shigure intending to join us on this venture?"

The writer put up his hands in protest. "Oh no! I have a deadline that I have to meet this time. My editor is already threatening to do all kinds of dire things. You kids go along and enjoy yourselves. I'll just be here, sitting at my computer, slaving away." He put a hand dramatically up to his forehead, head thrown back as though he were in despair.

Ciel blinked. It was suddenly hard to resist the urge to either let his jaw drop or to let out a snort. He wasn't sure which he wanted to do, so he just stared at the older man with wide eyes, stretching the bruised muscles in ways that caused him to twinge ever so slightly.

Tohru shook her head, an amused smile on her face. "Don't mind him," she said, glancing over at Ciel, "Shigure does a lot of stuff like that. I'm told it helps his creative juices flow."

"That's right!" Shigure grinned. "So you kids should get going! You don't want to be out too late now, right?"

Sebastian gave him a wry glance, wondering if he was being included in the "kids" group that the man was referring to, but decided to overlook it. "Master Shigure is quite right. We should probably be on our way. Miss Tohru, if you would be so kind as to lead the way?"

Tohru nodded. "Just let me get my bag!" She quickly ran to get it, having forgotten it upstairs.