Today is a day where we're not doing normal work but we are doing the underworld work that the Phantomhives have been doing for years upon years. Today's case is a spontaneous combustion case in which there have been multiple victims in London. Of course the Queen would leave this to her loyal Watchdog and his pawns- Sebastian and I specifically. However, by the looks of things she has also left this to some 'Spider' fellow that we had never heard about before. At least, not Sebastian and I. Ciel on the other hand seems to know of it, but not about it in the slightest. It slightly troubles the three of us, but not to the point of paranoia or even phobia of the unknown.
"Having any issues, Sir Randall?" Ciel smiles out to the man looking over the fire stain on the wall and ground marking the place where the most recent victim died.
"Ciel Phantomhive!" The man exclaims in surprise, leaving the boy to show him an envelope with the Queen's mark on the wax that closes it.
"Why don't you tell me a bit about this case?" Ciel suggests.
"Well, there's not much to tell you about," Randall sighs out.
"What about the other cases? There were other ones like this one," Ciel presses.
"Ah, so those got to you too".
"Not until now," Ciel tricked the man, "I'll want to look at the records of these cases as well".
"I'm afraid I can't do that," Randall turns down. "The records of everything having to do with these cases, not even Scotland Yard can uncover them. Nor can you".
"Let's hope not. Phobia, Seba-," Ciel's taken by surprise at the sight of Sebastian admiring a mother cat and her litter of three kittens.
"Ahh, those large eyes knowing of nothing but innocence, and nothing of filth. Those tails that happily wave back and forth so nimbly. Those paws that are of an ever soft shade of pink!".
"Phobia, get him. We're leaving," Ciel mutters with a shake his head and a sigh as he bypasses the idiot butler.
"Come brother," I pick up the man of the same height as I, throwing him over my shoulder without a care, "Time to go".
"Ahh! I'm sorry Bocchan, the kittens were so cute I," Sebastian tries as he tries to wiggle his way off my shoulder. "Phobia, release me at once. I can walk from here. I have gathered myself again". Once in the carriage, which I threw him into, Sebastian and I sit next to one another next to Ciel. "What do you plan to do now?"
"Well, seeing as we cannot get Scotland Yard to help us, it looks like we'll have to go there," Ciel sighs out as we begin moving.
Next thing I know, I'm watching Sebastian tell a joke to the Undertaker who in turn causes things to shake and rattle as he bursts out laughing. "Who knew you could find someone with a sense of humor in this country?" The gray haired man grins out. This guy is obviously happy muttering to himself. "Now I'll show you what I promised to show you," he tells Ciel, wrapping an arm around him for a second before placing down a small square jar. Is it holding...Ashes?
"I told you I wanted to see the corpse of the victim," Ciel sighs out.
"Well, like I said, this is all that there was left of the happening. Burning at such a high temperature, it's obvious that only ashes would be left".
A few days later finds us at the funeral of the latest victim, a woman that was soon to be married to the man she loved. The would-of been groom stands amongst loved ones that support him with all they can at the moment. My brother, Master and I are in the back, the human of the three of us paying his respects personally to the dead woman.
"Bocchan," Sebastian states, looking in the direction of with a man dressed in black and a fat woman dressed in black and white and under a black umbrella walking behind him.
"Excuse us," the man speaks up, "I am Turner from the photo shop, I'm sorry to meet you in these sorrowful moments. However, we have finished the picture".
"She was this beautiful and yet," the woman speaks up, "We're so sorry". The groom-to-be tries to take the picture even though he's crying and his hands are shaking. However, said hands drop the picture and it breaks upon impact with the ground. "She really was beautiful". The two stay for the entire funeral, and when it's over they say their goodbyes before passing the three of us.
While Ciel seems to see something, as does Sebastian, I smell something. My eyes narrow and I take an extra whiff of the air around us. A metallic smell along with fire, it seems. Luckily, we're able to collect some of those particles that had come off the fat woman, and test them against the components in the ashes that the Undertaker had given to us. That night, I'm in Ciel's office, acting as a Guardian should, while Sebastian is off doing butler things.
There's a knock, "Excuse me," he enters and shows us a vial of what he had been testing. "We've finished testing the components from the ashes and what we got from the two at the shop. There is one that is the same in both: Iron magnesium. Such residue is given off when pictures are taken," he tells us. "I've also gotten product information from Lau. He had indeed been importing this type of magnesium, and almost all of it had been bought by this company".
"That much it too large a quantity for just taking photos," Ciel states smoothly.
"And the victims had too much in common. The women in these cases had both been newly wedded days before their photograph was taken in the...," Sebastian trails off.
"Turner's studio," I grunt out, as Ciel slides a clip into the butt of his gun. "Sebastian, Phobia, we're leaving. That couple knows the truth about these cases," the boy places his gun in his pocket and leads the way out of the room.
"Understood," we bow as one from our positions. Our arrival it seems is a bit on the late side, but not too much so as we easily catch sight of the one who had done it. The man's fat wife from earlier.
"Don't let her escape!" Ciel demands as we chase after her. But it seems, within her disillusion, she's planned ahead. As she skips along singing, she spreads the magnesium as she pleases, and then takes a picture of that area. The area explodes into fire, and she continues on her way. We discovered this first hand when she had turned and blown up a window before going on her merry way, leaving Sebastian to shield Ciel, and me to go further along after her. However, as we turn into an allyway, there's a call and a figure in red drops down on us. As I'm in the front, I'm forced to block the chainsaw, my glove getting ripped up but my skin being fine. That's an upside about being a Hell Hound; our fur and skin are both very strong.
"It's time for DEATH!" The man grins out as his chainsaw presses against my hand still.
"You...So you were the one pulling the strings behind all this, Grell!" Sebastian accuses from behind me.
"I have only drawn up a pretty red thread between Sebas-chan and myself, Phobi-chan!~" The red haired man coos as he and I push off one another and almost switch places. My heel slams into the top of his head. "Hey! What's with the rough treatment?!"
"You were asking for it, you attacked first," I sigh out, running a hand through my shaggy hair after retracting my claws. Darkness stitches together my glove.
"But I was just trying to hack apart the tension here!" He stands up for himself, holding his head still and pointing at me insistingly. "I was even chasing that pig and yet you!"
"You were chasing the woman?" Sebastian tilts his head.
"Is this freak someone you two know?" Ciel demands from behind Sebastian.
"He's someone who hunts souls; a Shinigami," I tell the boy.
"A Shinigami? Were there others like you around here?" Ciel questions the red head.
"He's come here for the souls that have died in the fire," Sebastian tells him now, "Am I correct?"
"Ahh, but now I've met up with you, Sebas-chan. Work is o~v~e~r~," the man gets into the demon's personal space, giving him a playful jab with each letter of the word 'over'. "And from here on out, you and I will have an adv~en~ture-," it seems he was going lean against my Tamer romantically. Was. Sebastian moved out of the way leaving him to face plant ever so gracefully. And so the red head just settles for trying to hug the butler, said butler easily dodging each and ever attempt.
"We don't have time to lose her, let's go!" Ciel leads the way, and I am first the follow the boy. Thus leaving Sebastian behind to deal with the clingy Grell. We end up near a clock tower, "Where did she go?" Ciel wonders to both himself and me.
My sharp eyes see the magnesium first, but then so do his, "Master, this way," I lead him into the tower. However, as we pass a window after climbing one set of multiple stairs, the window explodes. "Master!" I cry, and use my body as a shield against any and all fire and what not that tries to get to him. Luckily, it's nothing that would injure him even if I weren't here. I allow Ciel to lead the way up once more once I'm sure it's safe.
"Become happy! Become happy!" We come to the top floor at.
"This is the end, Margerete Turner," Ciel tells the woman.
"You've come to interupt my happiness? You can't! He told me so!" Who's 'he'? She holds up her camera, directly pointed at the two of us. She takes a picure and magnesium is spread. I move my body to shield Ciel's each and every time that she takes a picture and the air explodes. "What would you know about a man who you didn't like, who you married, who made you miserable?!" She demands. She backs us up into a pillar, my body crouched low and fingers splayed- but claws retracted- in front of the boy so that he has a clear shot but also someone to protect him. "I wanted a happy and romantic marriage! A nice man and a passionate love! I will burn everyone who stands in my way!"
It is here that Ciel is relaxed and laughing at her face. Something I can only imagine myself or Sebastian doing. The boy is learning. Still, I stand and relax, moving to the boy's side instead of in front of him "Ridiculous. If you're crying, fight against it! If you're regretting, walk forward! Only complaining on your own misfortune. You're nothing but a common pig!"
"Pig...A pig...A PIG!" The woman repeats, her hands shaking harshly as she holds the camera. "You called me a pig didn't you?!" As she screams out, the clock strikes twelve. Hmmm...We still have to capture her no matter what, Sebastian and I. The pig throws magnesium at us, and I pick up Ciel and move him behind the thin column we were against. "Anyone be they man or kid, if they call me pig I will burn them!" She declares proudly.
"What's taking you so long, Sebastian?" Ciel growls out as he removes his eye patch, "Come! Lest I let Phobia do the job for you!" Heh, what a cruel taunt. We both know he hates it when I play some sort of butler role behind is back. Such as giving the boy his food or drink, or fulfilling an order meant for him. The pig tries to take Grell and Sebastian down as they make their way up the side of the clock tower, Grell using his chainsaw and Sebastian running right behind him.
"Tch, damn. And I thought I was going to get some fun," I whine as I watch my brother put the woman in her place, kicking the camera out of her hand and into Grell's.
"Tell me everything you know," Ciel demands from my arms.
"You might as well as kill me!" The woman whimpers out, "That person told me, that if I did this beautiful men would fall in love with me". Pathetic.
"'That man?" Sebastian intones as I put Ciel down and fix my red button up's collar from under my suit, as well as my black tie.
"The man with the golden eyes! He told me!" However, she's cut off as she suddenly bursts into flames.
"What? Her soul is burning out too?! That's impossible!" Grell exclaims.
"Wait! You haven't told me anything!" Ciel lunges forward.
"Master!" Sebastian and I intone as one, but it is he who gathers him up. And it is I who pulls Grell out of his surprised state. He may not be able to be burned like that, but still. It's the thought that counts, right?
"I don't understand!" The Shinigami blubbers as he searches through a book of his, "How does a soul that I was supposed to collect burn out?! It must be here!" However, his attention is given to Sebastian as he gets closer to him than I like. "Well, I'll have to report this to Will so," he holds up the camera he had caught in his hands, "Let me keep this until then!" And then he goes off on his way after taking a picture.
"Bocchan," Sebastian speaks up, "You told me to capture that woman no matter what, but," he shows her a handful of ashes with magnesium in them.
"Turned to ashes, huh? Out of all her greed and turned insane. We will report to the Queen about this," Ciel tells him.
"Wanting to be loved," I sigh out, "What a human thing to go on a rampage for," I utter.
"It's laughable, isn't it?" Sebastian offers.
"That it is, brother," I chuckle just for effect.
"There's one thing that hasn't burnt out yet," Ciel steps in, putting his eye patch back on. "We still have to investigate Spider".
"Understood," Sebastian and I intone as one, he kneeling on his right knee, and I on my left, his right arm bend over his torso and my left doing the same. Our heads are bowed as our other arms are resting on the merely bent knees. Over all, we are opposites yet mirrors. Tamer and Tamed, brothers yet unrelated. A Crow and a Hound. Equal strength, but in different ways. Odd to get all sentimental, but I've been meaning to take a not of this all the same. Investigating should be fun.