Author's Note:

Hey guys, just a quick little note before you read the chapter. Since school just started for me, updates are now going to be a little less consistent as I am taking a lot of AP classes, resulting me probably getting a lot of homework as such. So even if it takes a long while between updates, note that I am working on it and I will do my best to keep as many updates going as possible.

Anyways, hope you will enjoy the chapter and please review!

"Seb...as...tian...wake...up... Sebastian, please...wake up..."

I felt a gentle pair of hands take a hold of my shoulders, moving me very slightly. I blinked a couple of times, my senses feeling numb. My mind was blank, not a single thought going through as I felt myself being forced to wake up.

"Sebastian."

I glanced up, staring blankly at Edna's blurry red figure, dressed like she was about to head out of the manor.

"Sebastian, it is time for us to get going," she whispered softly. "I need you to pack and get dress before the others wake up."

"...Okay..."

My voice was hoarse and rough, like I hadn't had anything to drink in weeks. I sat up, still having a tight grip on my red coat, however, my movements were weak and stiff.

"The medication Martha gave you last night must have worked better than she had intended it to," I faintly heard Edna comment, putting her hand on my cheek as she looked into my eyes. "Sebastian, once your done getting ready, promise me you won't leave this room until I come back for you, alright?"

"...As you wish..."

I stared at her, a lopsided grin on my face as I was entranced by her red beauty. Edna smiled back.

"Good. I'll be right back."

Without a single sound coming from her footsteps, she left the room and closed the door behind her. I blinked a couple of times, sitting dumbfounded on my bed as I tried to remember what she wanted me to do.

...Get dress, was it? Yes, she wanted me to get dress because something about London... London, where the red colored whores lived...

Absentmindedly, I took off my clothes I had on from yesterday and put on a fresh uniform, although I replaced my black tailcoat with my full red one instead. I barely recalled Edna saying something about me packing...so I took out my suitcase and packed up all my things.

By the time I had finished packing and dressing myself completely, my senses slowly regained their sensitivity and my thinking became clearer. I looked out the window of my bedroom, now realizing that it was still fairly dark outside. Wait...what time is it, and why did Edna come into my room just to get me ready for a trip?

At the same moment I finally regained my mind's clarity, I heard a very soft knock on the door and Edna carefully made her entrance.

"Good, you're ready," she said with a smile. "Come, Sebastian, we don't have much time."

"'Don't have much time?'" I questioned. "Edna, what is going on?"

"We're going to London, you and I."

She took a hold of my hand.

"You had a long day yesterday, so I don't know if you remember much," Edna said, her eyes locking into mine. "But I'll explain when we are on the road."

She sighed.

"Just trust me, Sebastian."

I blinked, noticing that there was a tired look in her gaze.

"...Very well," I finally said. "However, if this is just about getting me to see a doctor, I find it highly unnecessary."

Edna's eyes hardened but she said nothing in reply.

Taking a hold of my luggage, Edna and I left my room and made our way quietly through the dark manor. Once we were outside the manor's walls, Edna quickened her pace, to the point I had a hard time keeping up with her. We walked over to the stables, where there was a carriage all prepared for us.

"Is Martha or Christine ready?" I asked when I had put my luggage into the carriage. "I don't see either of their bags, or even Daniel's."

Edna said nothing reply, refusing to look at me.

"...Get inside the carriage."

Without warning, she climbed up to the driver's seat. My eyes widened. As quick as I could, I climbed up to the passenger's seat of the carriage, just as Edna took the reigns.

"Edna, you mean to tell me when you said, 'you and I are going to London' you literally meant just the two of us?"

She nodded.

"That is why I was pushing you to get ready so fast so the others won't try to stop us."

She then started the horses in a trot and began to drive away from the manor. I should have stopped her, lead her back home and stop this attempt to run away. What kept me back from doing so was the fact that I could sense something was troubling her, and if I were to try and grab control of the horses right now, there was a high chance she could get hurt.

"...So, are you now going to tell me what all of this is about?" I asked, breaking the silence between us. "You know how inappropriate this looks, a butler and his mistress riding a carriage in the early morning without anyone else knowing!"

Edna kept her eyes on the road.

"Yes, and I am terribly sorry for this. But with everything that has been happening, from Meriwether to your memory episodes, I had to think quickly."

She paused, focusing all of her attention momentarily on her driving as she steadied the horses through the countryside.

"While your health is the top priority, there are...a few things I need to tell you. Things that I cannot afford anyone else to overhear, and the townhouse is the only place I know where we can be truly alone."

Her grip tightened on the reigns.

"I understand that I am asking a lot from you, but please, Sebastian, I need you to trust me."

I sat back against the seat, a puzzled look in my gaze as I tried to guess what was going on through my lady's mind. Though this was incredibly suspicious, I did not find myself disagreeing with her actions. This situation, the intense, unsure emotions I could feel coming from Edna's soul... I've felt them myself before, and through a feeling in my subconscious, I felt that I knew what she would want to discuss.

And my heart skipped a beat with that thought.

"...I trust you with my life, my lady," I said to her, my body relaxing itself. "But won't the others try to start looking for us once they notice we are gone?"

Edna shook her head.

"I wrote a note in my bedroom saying that I was taking you to London for medical purposes. And because Lord Black is still here, I need most of my servants at the manor to take care of his needs while I'm away, as I have to be present to pay for any expenses. Martha will see the note and will not question it, telling the other servants as well."

"I see," I replied. "Hopefully we won't be gone for them to get worried or anything."

Edna gave a small chuckle.

"Oh don't worry. I'm known to make disappearances like this every once and awhile. They'll know I'll be back, especially since I dragged you along."

She looked over at me for a second.

"So sit back, Sebastian, and relax as your mistress will get you to London safely!"

And so she did.

For a noblewoman, Edna seemed experienced in driving a carriage and was able to make the long drive all the way to London. I offered multiple times to drive, me feeling like I was failing my duties as a butler to let her drive like this, but she flat out refused my assistance every single time. She claimed that I was the one who needed to be cared for, not her, and that status does not matter.

...She truly had a strange way of thinking things, but her strong will to have things go her way was something I couldn't help but admire.

Since we left the manor so bloody early, it was late afternoon by the time we arrived at the townhouse. Together we parked the carriage and took our luggage inside.

"Sebastian, would you mind setting my things in my room while I go see if I can contact a doctor?" Edna asked over her shoulder. "With us in the city at the moment, I have a better chance getting you an appointment with one."

I nodded in reply, taking a hold of her bag while she wandered off to use the phone. Setting my things to the side, I climbed up the stairs and went up to her room. I felt a sense of curiosity come over me, as I've always wondered what my lady's room would look like. I don't know why I cared so much, but it made my body go warm with the thought.

Once I was in her bedroom, I was very surprised to see how old fashion it was. The furniture looked like it was at least over fifty years old, the wood darker with age with a very old fashion smell to it. The room was also filled with very light colors, whites, lavenders, and light blues from the wallpaper to the sheets on the bed. Somehow...this soft spoken room did not fit Edna and her red hot, passionate personality.

After I had gently sat her luggage beside her bed, out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse that there was a photograph on her nightstand. Slowly, I picked it up, noticing that something was off about it. The photograph itself wasn't shocking, as it was just a picture of an elderly noblewoman with her servants around her like they were at some summer picnic. What threw me off about it however was that one of the young maids in the picture had a striking resemblance to Edna, as she had the same long hair and dark eyes, along with an older maid who looked familiar as well. I felt my nose twitch, for I could pick up the stale smell of human blood and death.

"Ah, there you are."

I turned around to see Edna standing in the doorway. She rested her head against the door frame, a concerned look in her eyes.

"You alright, Sebastian? You seem awfully stiff."

It took a moment for me to answer.

"...I'm fine. Just got lost in thought for a second."

I sat the picture down and approached her.

"Did you get in contact with a doctor?" I asked.

Edna sighed heavily.

"I did, but they still refuse to give you an appointment this soon. Unless you were dying, the best I could do was get you an appointment later in the week."

"Are the doctors really that busy?"

"Perhaps, or they just don't know how to treat for a case like yours. It is hard to say."

There was a small silence, a nervous look appearing in Edna's gaze.

"...Well, I guess we should start unpacking our things and all," I finally said, only now realizing that I was with Edna alone in her bedroom. "I'll be downstairs if you need me, and-"

"Wait, Sebastian!"

Quickly getting herself all the way in the room, Edna closed the door. I could see her body tense up, sense so many emotions going through her as she leaned her back against the door.

"I...cannot do this anymore," she muttered, though it seemed she was talking mostly to herself than to me. "I need you tell you the truth before I no longer have any control."

"Uh...what are you talking about?"

I slowly approached her. With her head hung low, I gently put my fingers under her chin and lifted her head up to meet my gaze.

"Edna..."

I would say more, but the closeness we had and the way we were positioned made my voice trail off. In a quick flash, Edna's breaking look was replaced with another woman's fearful expression, the same woman who I saw within Edna last night. My eyes widened, but before I could lose myself again to my memory, Edna spoke to where she snapped me out of it.

"I know this isn't fair of me to burden you with this with all that your suffering with." Her voice cracked. "But the longer I'm with you the more it hurts that I have to lie and distant myself from you. Sebastian...you are not like any other man I've ever met, and to hurt you would be like hurting myself."

Getting herself out of my grasp, Edna brought some distance between us, having her back face me.

"Tell me, do you remember how I told you that the late Lady Holloway was my mentor?" she unexpectedly asked. "And that she died twelve years ago?"

"...Yes, I do," I answered. "And I also know that your current manor was once hers, where she and all of her servants were murdered."

I heard a faint laugh come from her.

"Not quite. All were killed except two maids, who disappeared almost right after the murders were reported to the Scotland Yard."

She let out a heavy sigh.

"...Sebastian, you were looking at that photograph on my nightstand earlier, correct? Did you notice anything about it?"

"...I did, actually."

Going back to the nightstand, I picked it up and studied that said photograph again.

"I noticed that one of the maids resembled you a lot," I stated. "A lot younger of course, but she has your exact hair and eyes."

"And she is the girl right next to the noblewoman, correct?"

"...Yes..."

I looked up at her, my gaze hardening.

"...Edna, just where are you going with this?"

With small hesitation, Edna tuned herself to face me, where I could see a small tear escaping her.

"...The reason why that girl looks like me is because she is me," she confessed, her voice cracking with emotion. "That picture was taken when Lady Holloway took me in as a maid, because she took pity on me for wandering London's streets all by myself with nowhere to go."

My eyes widened.

"...W-what?"

Edna gave a small laugh.

"Is it really that shocking to you? I thought you would have had at least some suspicion, with how kindly I treat you and the others. Or the fact that I made you a butler instead of a footman, a mistake that no noble born would make."

I blinked a couple of times, still in shock of what I was hearing.

"...I-if you are not a noble, then how did you...?"

"Though deceit and manipulation. It is as simple as that."

A sad smile came across her face.

"After my lady had died so tragically and no answers were found, I was beyond grief and even more so when I knew Lady Holloway's estate and everything she had ever known would go to waste. With determination and use of the right people, I was able to get a fake name as an inheritor of her fortune on her will, as I had access to it within the blood stained manor. I became Lady Edna Redwood in order to keep Holloway's name alive in some way, and perhaps even find out what really happened to her and avenge her death."

"So...your name isn't really Edna?"

Edna nodded her head.

"Indeed. I was born under the name of Edith Ayre, a poor American girl who came to England as a chance to gain a fortune. However, my fascination with the nobility was short-lived once I saw how corrupted and arrogant they were. And then when I was at my darkest moment, Lady Holloway saved me..."

Her eyes clouded with grief, clutching one of her fists tightly in order to keep her emotions under control. I could not believe what I was hearing. I knew Edna was different, but I could never imagine this would be the reason! This...this...

"...Do any of the others know?" I finally asked, "and if you are a fake, how did you get all your money?"

"Only Martha knows the truth," Edna answered sincerely. "And that is only because she was the other maid that escaped with me, when she was Matilda Gavan. As for the others, either they are completely fooled by my act or are just going along with me for they respect me. I do not know."

She took in a deep breath of air.

"As for my money, since my new name was on the will, for I did not want to use my real one to risk the chance of being caught, I automatically inherited Lady Holloway's fortune. But it was short-lived, and with trial and error did I eventually lose all her business. Eventually, it resulted me having to arrange deals with people on the black market in order to make some income without coming out as fake nobility."

I studied Edna for a long moment, taking the time to put all she had said to me into deep thought.

"If you have not told any of the other servants before," I questioned slowly, "why are you all of a sudden telling me?"

Edna gave a small, broken laugh, her eyes watering as her dark brown eyes met my yellow-green ones.

"It is because I am falling in love with you," she answered in a choked up voice. "The more I get to know you, the longer I'm with you... You have brought happiness to my life when there was none for a long time. Sebastian, with Lord Black here...it is a matter of time before he finds out the truth. And then I will be ruined and humiliated."

She walked up to me, bringing herself so close that our faces were inches apart.

"I tell you this now because even though seeing the betrayal on Daniel, Simon, Jasper, and Christine's faces will hurt me greatly...I cannot bear the thought of you hating me! I have to tell you myself before I have no control over what Lord Black does... I-I..."

She finally lost it, tears pouring out of her eyes as she fell to her knees. I watched her for a moment, a cold, unnatural feeling going through me.

With a strong headache coming on, I knelt down to Edna's level. Gingerly, I wiped a single tear from her cheek, her flinching at my touch. She looked up at me, her eyes wide and red.

Though she was in great distress, though she was breaking down after holding in her fears and stress for so long, I could still find great beauty within her. Without even realizing it, I found myself leaning in closer and closer to her. I then kissed her, and as soon as our lips met, great passion came out of me.

I could no longer hold back, as the harder and more I kissed her, flashbacks came to me of another woman who I fell in love with. A woman just as powerful, strange, tragic, and beautifully colored in red...

It did not take long for Edna to start kissing me back, and for me to fully lose myself to my desires and memories of the past...