I am back faithful readers after so many weeks of absence. I have been away at work on the base and have not had the time or the energy to pursue writing. I however have not forgotten you. I have also recently put up a new story for Yu-gi-Oh!GX.

Happy Fourth of July Everyone!

Warning Warnings: usual with the addition of racism, rude people, injury of a favorite character, supernatural, and spoilers.

Chapter 20: Commiserated circumstances

The English countryside had freed itself from winter's cold grasp and was now in the midst of spring. The farmers of London saw this as a good sign. The spring harvest would bring in some much needed income and prosperity. Yet try as some might, their concerns were on a different matter. Two tan-skinned young men rode inside an ornamented buggy toward their destination. They had arrived in London after about a month at sea and having gone through the pain staking process of assigning a buggy that would take them to their destination.

It was not such a bad thing to have to wait; it was the trials they confronted. Aside from the cold looks and the racist slurs from less polite citizens, it was all worth it. They would soon get to see their old friend, Ciel. Agni sat in nervous stillness. For weeks now, he had several disturbing visions. He was not necessarily certain but he knew for a fact that Ciel was in danger. He did not dare tell Soma who was beyond worried since he received news the adolescent had been admitted to a clinic in the lower countryside. Agni also wanted to prevent any further distress as it would most certainly bring about unpleasant memories. He never wanted to see his majesty in that state ever again. Agni gave an exasperated huff when he noticed the young prince staring expectantly out the window.

"Your majesty, you must relax. Young lord Ciel will be alright, I promise" he stated uneasily. Soma inhaled sharply. "I am just nervous of what we will see that bothers me so much. The last I heard, he was half-starved and on the verge of death. What makes you so sure it won't be the same?" he half-yelled with eyes swimming. Agni blew a halted breath. He wanted to assure his master but did not know how since he was unsure himself. Immediately, all was silent between the two. Finally the carriage halted. The two men stared at the window in awe of the imposing building. Agni gazed at the prince with stern eyes.

"Your majesty, I understand how anxious you are to see the young earl but we must exercise caution. For this, we must go over some rules" he enunciated briskly. Soma gulped. He might have been a prince but Agni could be quite harsh and strict when he could be. He had always respected the white haired man for this quality. Agni then put up his fingers.

"Rule one: do not speak unless the supervisor addresses you as such". Soma nodded. Agni continued putting up another finger.

"Rule two: when you do go to meet Ciel, do not call him by his last name. It is most likely, he would like to keep a low profile and not cause any unnecessary stress upon the lad". Soma nodded in return.

"Rule three: Do not ask Ciel any unsettling question like; his weight, his experiences in the building, or if anyone from home has come to visit. Ciel will be most unwilling to answer such".

"Rule four: If any of the orderlies or other patients insults you, do show restraint and self-control. The last thing we need is to prove to them that we are indeed as barbaric as they claim us to be". Soma scrunched his nose at that. The hell was he going to be bow down and be treated like a third class citizen just because he was a different color than his peers or that he followed customs that a bunch of ignorant white people couldn't fathom. However, if it was for Ciel's sake he would do it.

"Finally rule five: No wandering off to explore without an escort. And by escort I really mean me" Agni emphasized cryptically. Soma glanced at his confidant with confliction. Finally, he relented with a curt nod. "Alright Agni, I will do as you say. With a smile, the two left the carriage; much to the relief of the coachman who had been waiting rather impatiently for his two charges to leave. Agni apologized to the coachman with the payment of several gold coins and that he (Agni and Soma) would not be long. The two then went up to the gates where they were stopped by the two guard dogs or should I say bullies; Travis and Douglas. They sneered in distaste at the two natives at the gate.

"State your name, business, and then get the hell out!" Travis barked. Agni grimaced. "We are here to speak with the warden if it pleases you" Agni said politely though he meant otherwise.

"Beat it dark skinned heathens. Go back to the rat hole where you came from!" Douglas snarled. Agni growled. "Who the hell are you calling heathens you sallow faced Neanderthal?!" Before many more harsh slurs could be exchanged, a new voice entered the fray. At once, the dean came down with an utmost un-amused expression.

"Ahhh, dean we were just explaining to these two young men here that…" Douglas tried to explain but was stopped by a stern look from the man.

"You mean you were being utterly rude to guest who are simply here to visit. I swear it feels like I wonder why I even hired you two to begin with" he retorted harshly. Before the two nimrods could retort, the dean approached the two men. "What can I do you for gentlemen?"

Agni bowed before him. "We are here to see young lord Ciel. He is a friend of ours" he explained. Zephyr examined both the men critically checking for any ill intent from the two. At finding none, he ushered the two in giving the two guards nasty looks. "Do not think of this as the end of my little lecture. I will see both of you tonight" he warned. The two men instantly paled.

Ciel was down in the gardens watching the antics of the few residents who were allowed to venture outside. He saw no sign of that nympho…thank goodness. He watched Fifi chasing after a ball that Marcus had thrown to her. Sonya and the rest of her crew heckled Marcus saying he threw like a girl or something along those lines. Ciel rolled his eyes at the childish display. Samuel was somewhere in the more shaded areas of the gardens. (1) It was ironic considering that Samuel hated dark places. The young Earl erased his thoughts of the red haired anger management case. He instead opted to soak in the sun rays that graced the place. He loved days like this. At the mansion, he could wander through the gardens on days when he did not have a ton of paper work to tend to or any business trips. The sun would sift through the trees and lightly brush him with warmth and he would skim the flowers with his fingers. It was not to say this place was any more a paradise for him but the Back Alley was a nice change from the cramped white room he was confined to most of the time. He stood up from the fountain and stretched himself. Out of the corner of his visible eye, he spotted Rita staring solemnly at the bed of flowers next to her. He recalled Sebastian's words.

He would not dare to admit but from his standing, there were times she did look somewhat similar to his mother. On days when Rita was not obsessing with her waist size, she would almost appear to glow when she laughed or talked to him. Rachel Phantomhive certainly did not have the emaciated or distraught look to her eyes like the teen. He was half way to having a heart attack when he saw Chelsea fall backwards on top of her. Apparently, Chelsea and Andromeda had a bit of an argument about something which invoked "Cora" to come out. Luckily, Sonya was there to stop the fray before it escalated. It did little to cease his worries for the blonde female. It was to his relief the said female sit herself up. Suddenly a voice from inside the building called out to him. (2) The dean was dressed in a Prussian blue tweed suit and his trademark brown hair was slicked back.

"Forgive me for interrupting your day out young lad but there are two young men who wish to see you". Ciel glanced in confusion at the man. He sat up and waved his friends off. They watched their comrade enter the building leaving them to wonder who was here to visit their friend.

()

Samuel watched from behind the thicket of trees at the idiotic display of the residents as they played. In his mind, it was idiotic. How could they just prance and skip about as if they weren't inside a prison? His anger began to boil as Fifi kept on barking. God how desperately he wanted to strangle the pest for having pretended she was a dog. She was a human. She should act like it. He wanted to hit the doctors for acting so casual in regards to the girl. He didn't see it as an act of violence when he sought to put the dog-girl in her place or unjust when he would set it straight out to others for stopping him. If anything, it was hypocritical for saying they should just let things run their course when they were practically pouring pills down her throat to normalize her. And Marcus was the worst. He would defend the girl when she acted out of sorts or would erupt into barking fit during the most inappropriate times. To make things worse, Marcus at times threatened a few times to put him in solitary confinement himself. Sure, he could take on Marcus and beat him in one fell swoop however it would give the doctors an ultimatum to place him in solitary confinement. With an irritated sneer, Samuel sat himself up and headed back inside the building for his room. He knew that if he had stayed just a while longer, he would have killed Fifi.

He stomped inside ignoring the wearied stares of the people as he passed.

"Good let them all fear me" he thought with malice. It wasn't like love had ever gotten me anywhere".

"Samuel" a masculine voice greeted him. The red head huffed and turned to face the person responsible for interrupting his musings. "What do you want Nathan? Don't you have some patient you need to get to or something because I am not in the mood" he sneered before turning away.

Nathaniel frowned. "Well seeing as how you are one of my patients, I do have to tend to you" he retorted hotly. Samuel inhaled sharply. "Make it quick doc because I would very much like to get to my room before I seriously beat the crap out of somebody!" If the dean seemed offended by the choice words of the hot tempered man, he didn't show it. "I noticed you did not enjoy your time outside as everyone else. I was certain that the shady spot in the back would have been enough of a private place for you". Samuel glared at the doctor. Condescending Bastard.

"If you are trying to make light of something, it's not funny. Now if you will excuse me doctor…I would very much like to get to my room so I can rest" he snapped before stomping donw the hallway. As the man made for his room, the doctor spoke.

"Is perhaps your unreasonable anger is because of today?" he asked sympathetically. Samuel skid to a halt. His face swam with a whole range of emotions. Neither of them were happy. He felt a sense of dread come upon him. When he awoke that very morning and saw the date marked on the calendar, he knew what today was. It was the day he was ultimately left all alone in this world.

"Samuel, it is true I can't understand your sorrow nor the pain you feel". With this Samuel stomped back toward the older man's direction before stopping right before him. The force of his stomps were so great that they caused the hallway to shake. "You-don't-understand?" he snarled. "What don't you understand? My parents ABANDONED me! They hated me! When they finally got the change to get rid of me, they took it! What more do you need to understand?!

At this point, Samuel's face was red, his eyes had unshed tears, and was breathing heavily. His fist were clenched and prepared to usher a barrage of blows onto the dean. Nathaniel glanced at him with remorse. "Samuel, you were not abandoned. Both your parents died in a carriage accident. The day you were sent away, it broke both their hearts and pained them so much. They were on their way to visit you in hopes their presence would help break you of your cycle of anger". Samuel scoffed.

"My mother maybe. My father…didn't want nothing to do with me the minute he learned his only son was a fucking basket case! He never gave a damn about me. Hell, did you know he tried to convince my mother to put me up for adoption or put up in some reformatory school more than a few times? The only reason he didn't was because my mother would always beg him not to! Paternal love? Don't make me laugh! It's never done me any good!"

With that the man stomped away once again leaving the dean to himself. He shook his head sadly and rubbed his temples. "I should have never told you, Samuel. I am so sorry. Don't let your anger be the death of you".

Ciel!

The earl was caught off guard when he was swept up into a tight embrace and spun around rapidly. His brain didn't have time to register as soon as he entered the office when a flash of purple, tan, and white grabbed him from out of the blue. The boy caught a whiff of persimmon and mint. That meant one thing. He quickly pushed off his assailant and confronted him with a hard stare.

"Soma!Agni! What are you doing here?" he yelled out. Soma opened his mouth to answer but was stopped by Agni's outstretched arm. "Once we heard the news that you had been admitted to this place, we just came by to see how you were fairing" he lied uneasily. Agni was not too sure how to approach Ciel with the truth behind their visit. Should he tell the boy about the disturbing visions or should he just stick to the story he and Soma agreed on? Ciel folded his arms and tapped his foot impatiently. He leered menacingly at Soma who stood there like a deer in the headlights.

"Well, Soma? Is what Agni tells me the truth…your majesty?" he sneered bitterly. Soma gulped. He was well aware the young earl had a temper and could be quite snarky when he wanted to be. It was well a shock to see the Earl in such an emaciated state. For one, he looked more pallid and skeletal. He gulped before reigning in his emotions. "Agni is speaking the truth. We had been a tad worried of not having seen you in so many months. Even more so when we had gotten word that you had been admitted to the hospital" he explained calmly.

Ciel folded his arms and tapped his foot. He stared at the two Indians with a wearied gaze. Finally he spoke. "Fine, he sighed, I will humor you and say I believe your story. So now what?"

Agni inhaled. "We don't have to do anything if that is what you wish. We can sit here and you can speak of your stay in this place" he offered. Soma stood up. "Or we could tour the vicinity if you would like" he asked. Ciel nodded leaving no further room for questioning. He was not in the mood for any more annoyances. "Tour it is then" Agni consented.

()

"Master Ciel, please slow down" Agni pleaded tiredly. Ciel paid no mind as he continued to impatiently speed up his footing. He would stop only briefly to describe a room or particular area before continuing on his way, much to the displeasure of the nobles. Ciel made sure to avoid the hallway where the mirror room was. That was his area and no one else's. He stopped atop some stairs and gestured downwards.

"Down this row of stairs is an area for the patients to come outside when they want to vent out or just to get some fresh air. We call it the Back Alley. I know it sounds like a droll place but it is actually quite lovely. Just wait and see". Soma and Agni wiped some sweat from their forehead and followed after the sapphire haired brat. For a half-starved individual, Ciel sure could walk fast. They reached the final step just as Ciel opened the door. Their eyes widened at the large garden before them. It was a bit smaller than the palace gardens back in India but still looked just as glorious. They stepped outside and looked around.

"Well, what do you think?" the lad asked. Soma smiled. "It is very beautiful although it could do without the fence surrounding it" he commented. Soma and Ciel both agreed. Agni had his attention elsewhere. A terrible feeling had washed over him since he arrived at the clinic. He couldn't pinpoint it but he knew it had something to do with Ciel's worsening condition. Forgetting his earlier decree to the prince, he left the two unknowing onlookers and walked away. Meanwhile, Soma walked through the garden alongside Ciel who would shift his gaze from left to right.

"What are you searching for Ciel?" the prince asked. Ciel smiled nervously. "Just looking out for a man named Samuel. Like me, he is an unwilling patient at this place and he is quite mean. I was fortunate enough to escape him the last couple of times but I am not so sure if he saw you. He has quite a vicious temper…more so than mine". Soma shivered trying to picture anyone whose temper rivaled young Ciel's or that man's. They reached the end of the path back into the exposed field. A loud cry greeted the two.

"Ciel! Hey Ciel!"

The two teens turned to the direction of six teen girls greeted them. Soma blushed as these quite gorgeous females came toward him. (3) At 18 years of age, he was a young man in his prime and had quite an eye for beauty. The girls back home were quite a sight and could give the women of his kingdom a run for their money. Ciel on the other hand was far too busy praying that none of the girls embarrassed him.

"Ciel! Oi Ciel! There you are. How you doing?" inquired a blonde female wearing a white hospital frock. The blond pulled her hair off her face revealing her light blue eyes. She then noticed the older man next to Ciel. "Hey Ciel, who is this guy with you? You never mentioned him" she asked bluntly. Ciel nervously glanced at Soma. "Oh this. He is uh…uh a very good friend of my family" he answered quickly in a happy tone. Everyone glanced at Ciel with quizzical gazes. Sonya looked over to Soma for verification. The other girls stared at Soma with a mix of weariness and curiosity. Andromeda blushed and pulled some hair behind her ears. Ciel answered.

"Why yes, he is a very good friend of my family introduced by my uncle Sean. He and Agni-" Ciel then realized that Agni was nowhere in sight. "Soma, where is Agni?" he asked. Soma spun around a few times before narrowing his eyes in anger. "I am not sure but I am sure he will come around" he said seriously. Igraine stepped forth. "Who is Agni?" she asked. Soma clenched his fist and pushed past Ciel.

"Someone who is going to be in a lot of trouble when I get my hands on him" he retorted. That hypocrite! Telling me not to go anywhere without him and then going off by himself. The violet haired prince stomped back into the building leaving several bewildered onlookers. Chelsea stepped up. "What was that all about?" she asked. Ciel shrugged his shoulders because he was honestly unsure of what happened.

With Agni...

Agni walked up the long stretch of stairs leading away from the Back Alley. He put his hand to the wall to get a good sense of what he was searching for. He walked past ignoring the looks of the nurses and doctors he passed by. He was through with worrying what these people thought anyway. The former Brahman felt his heart racing. He was not sure what he would find. He just knew that he had to confront whatever it was that was holding residence in the facility. He reached a dimly lit hallway with several flickering lights. His eyes scanned the area until it came upon a singular door. There was no label, not that he could read English anyway. He stepped before it, sensing the presence inside.

He opened the door and stepped inside. His dark eyes glanced upon a room full of broken mirrors and glass. He tiptoed around the tiny fragments of glass and searched the place. His eye then caught sight of a large mirror that seemed to be completely unharmed. He stepped forward and stopped suddenly feeling a very dark and foreboding feelings coming from the relic. He glared at it.

"Show me your secrets" he commanded. Agni gasped when the mirror took on an eerie blue glow before revealing the figure of a feminine version of Ciel. Agni stepped back a bit startled before recovering. 'Anna' smirked at him.

"Greetings and to who do I owe the pleasure" she purred. Agni glowered at it. "Who are you? And what are you doing taking refuge inside a mirror taking the form of master Ciel?" Anna chuckled darkly. "I go by many names but you can call me Anna. Ciel does". Agni did not falter his glare. "I have seen many unnatural things in my day but you have to be far more the foulest. I know for certain you are not some innocent young girl" he accused. Anna crossed her arms and pouted fakely. "Not me. Surely I a young girl could not do harm inside my translucent tomb".

Agni became angry. "(4) Show yourself you rakshasha. Come out of that relic and face me!"

Anna grinned revealing sharp teeth. "As you wish" the spectre answered. Suddenly as if by magic, the creature sifted through the mirror. Agni gasped as the room became engulfed in deep shadows.

Ciel and Soma searched the facility accompanied by the La Dominicas. Well, actually Ciel led the way and the other girls flirted with the un-protesting prince. It made sense since Soma was the closest to their age and the only other man closest to their age was Marcus. Ciel finally grew impatient with the situation and growled out.

"If you are not too busy flirting, you can use some of that energy into helping me find your confidant!" Ciel snapped. Soma immediately stopped brushing a flirtatious 'Tessa' off his arm. He cleared his throat. "Not that I wouldn't want to talk more with you lovely ladies but now I have to go find my wayward advisor and give him a piece of my mind". Each of the girls agreed reluctantly. Rita walked up to Ciel and tapped his shoulder. "Mind telling me what in the world is going on?" she inquired. Ciel looked at her nervously. He was about to answer when suddenly a loud explosion shook the whole building. At once pandemonium seized the clinic.

The people who had landed on the ground stood up shakily. Agni stood up regaining his composure before remembering Agni.

"Agni!" he cried out before breaking off into a sprint. A startled Ciel cried out to the frantic man. He shakily stood up on his bone thin legs. He sprinted after Soma desperate to catch up. A pained cry caught his ears. When he finally found Soma, he came upon a most heart wrenching sight. Soma was standing over the cut up and mangled body of the white haired Brahman. Blood flowed loosely from his wounds and his chest heaved up and down in shallow breaths. Breaking from his shock he ran over to the distraught prince.

The nurses rushed Agni to the I.C.U. forcing Soma to wait outside. "Agni, I-I-I'm so sorry". Soma looked away from Ciel and sat down in one of the chairs putting his face into his hands. Ciel gulped feeling his eyes tearing up. If he had been more watchful, Agni would not have been injured. He took a seat next to the Indian noble and waited for news of Agni's condition. Finally after an hour or so, the dean stepped out of the I.C.U.

He approached Soma who looked up the doctor with worried eyes. "Your friend is fine. He will be bed-ridden for some time but he will need additional care at a certified hospital. I already made calls for an ambulance to transport him. Fear not Prince Soma, your friend will live" he assured gently. Soma smiled in relief. It was like Dr. Zephyr said. An ambulance had indeed arrived and Agni had been slowly wheeled to the vehicle with Soma by his side. All Ciel could do was watch helplessly from a window. Soma turned briefly to the window Ciel was watching from and waved sadly. Ciel returned the greeting. Soma's words echoed in his mind.

"I will come by to see when I can. I shall write to you on Agni's welfare but for now I am not certain. Take care of yourself and be careful, young master Ciel".

Now, he was alone in his room. This time around he did not protest when Clarice brought him some food. He slowly ate each bite before numbly thanking the nurse. Clarice gave the boy a sympathetic gaze and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. She told him that if he ever needed someone to talk with, she would be there. He glanced over at the clock. It was still a bit early but still a close many hours to lights out. His mind kept going to Agni. The former Brahman had been rather fidgety when he arrived and seemed reluctant to reveal his true intentions. Last he saw the man; he had been coming from the direction of the hall where the Mirror Room was. But that is impossible, how could he have thought to look there? Could Anna have done something? It wasn't possible; she was just a mirror spirit. (A/N: oh how wrong you are, dear bocchan).

The dark sapphire haired lad felt the need to shake off these troubling thoughts and go for a stroll before bedtime. He started for the gardens; perhaps the clear night air would do him some good. As he neared a corner, his ears perked up the faint sound of sniffing (?). Instinctively, he went to inspect it. He tiptoed toward the source and poked his head around a corner. His eye narrowed at seeing the turned back of a teen with sandy brown hair down to his shoulder dressed in a standard male British garb. The young man continued to sniff and sob quietly, rubbing his eyes now and then. Ciel was about to ask for the man's identity but widened when the man finally turned around. Sapphire eyes widened upon seeing a familiar face that he never expected to see here in all places.

It had been weeks since he last saw the boy. The boy's cropped brown hair was slightly longer, had reddish-brown eyes, paler skin, and his body was thinner but still kept its broad build. Now, there was something off. Never did his fencing partner ever cried. Not even after the time he grazed his left eye with the butt end of the sword. Now, his eyes were totally bloodshot, there were bags underneath, and tears ran down in streams. Forgetting himself, Ciel finally found his voice.

"Collin McCrullin?"

At once the two young men stood a hair length apart. Both stared at one another in apparent shock and apprehension. There were no words exchanged. Collin wiped off his remaining tears and smirked deviously at his rival.

"So this is where you have been hiding out, eh Phantomhive?" with that said, it would be the beginning of a series of questions that neither was willing to answer.

And so we meet again Collin McCrullin, next chapter. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. It took me a long while to write it. Rest assured, Agni will live to see another day. He will just be banged up a bit. What was the mysterious entity that he faced that was so "foul" and enough to cause external damage? Is Anna really who she says she is? You will have to stay tuned and find out.

I feel some sympathy for Samuel believe it or not. His anger toward his parents is not completely unjustified though I believe his mother is what made them more tolerable. Now the only people in his life that truly understood him are now gone. Of course in that time, prescription medicines were not completely accessible and had yet to be properly developed. Ironically, that still seems the case.

Anyone want to take a guess as to what substance Collin was getting into? Give you hint: the same as Marcus.

Next Chapter: Collin reveals to Ciel about himself and the reason for the unbridled resentment toward the Phantomhive heir.

Chapter Footnotes:

(1) Refer to chapter 14.

(2) A moderate to rich blue color often accentuated with a greenish to gray tint.

(3) There are many examples of this, both anime and OVA. In one instance, he finds himself attracted to Mey-Rin, going so far as to tell her to strip at some point.

(4) In Indian mythology, rakshashas are shape-shifting demons.