When She Was Otherwise

Blaire was vaguely aware of being dropped onto the ground, her knees slamming into the concrete and causing her to let out a strangled grunt. She peered up through the locks of slick hair obscuring her face to find that she had been dumped in front of a grubby bathtub. Her teeth chattered furiously and she could feel her head pulsing along with every beat of her heart as the sounds of running water filled the air.

"Leave us, if you please." Came from Sebastian. Blaire flinched as his voice bounced off of the tiled walls and sent vibrations through her skull. The other nodded, saying nothing as they scurried away. "Now then." Sebastian kneeled down beside her, his gloved hand coming to collar the woman and lift her so that her upper body was leaning over the quickly filling tub of water. "I think we should wash those cosmetics off of your face, don't you? No respectable lady hides her features behind makeup." And with that, he plunged her face into the freezing liquid before she could even register what he had said. She instinctively gasped as the frigid water tore into her, before realising what was happening and beginning to flail, struggling against the brute's ruthless grip. It was like trying to fight against cold, hard stone. Her head remained submerged for moments, her lungs desperately crying out for air. Her throat burned intensely as the polar water put her into a state of shock. Blaire regretted every moment in her life when she had taken breathing for granted. She wanted nothing more than to scream, than to lash out at who was holding her down. Never before had she felt so helpless.

Then just as she thought she was about to pass out, she was pulled from the icy clutches of the turbid liquid. She sputtered, coughing up the water she had swallowed and nearly gagging at the foul taste it left in her mouth. Her hand came to rest against her aching chest, but she barely got in a few breaths before her head was roughly dunked into the tub for a second time. With the haze beginning to lift from her mind, her first cogent thought in a while left her.

That fucking dickhead!

The worst part was that she was completely powerless to retaliate. He was a supernatural being with strength far beyond superior to her own. Nothing she could do would hurt him, and anything she could possibly say to anger him would only result in her being harmed again. For the first time, she allowed herself to let out tears of frustration. She gave up struggling and resigned to letting her hands clench around the ugly dress she was stuffed into.

The process of Sebastian allowing her a few shallow breaths, before pushing her back underwater continued, however many times, Blaire lost count. Her skin was now glacial to the touch, though numb to the woman herself and had adopted a blueish tinge. Now bored, Sebastian considered that he should stop. If he accidentally drowned her before she answered his questions, that would be most annoying. Acutely aware of Blaire's shivering and troubled breathing pattern, he swiftly grabbed the towels which had been left by the Matron. He placed one over her shoulders to tie around her soaked hair and brought the larger to embrace her, making quick work of drying her off, creating friction with his hands to both speed up the process and attempt to get rid of the concerning complexion she currently harboured.

Blaire looked at him in scorn as he worked. She didn't dare express the ill thoughts she had of him aloud, lest she have to go through that ever again. In fact, she never wanted to see another bathtub for as long as she lived.

"And now...I believe you know what I want from you. I've already asked you thrice, don't make me repeat myself again." He gripped the back of her neck, pulling her closer to him as he glared at her. "Or perhaps we could try something else to coerce you?" His breath ghosted against her face.

Blaire sent him a scathing glare of her own, before blowing out a breath of air which turned into a ragged cough. The occasional shudder forced its way down her spine and she had to clench her teeth together to prevent them from chattering. She closed her eyes, frowning as she finally gave in. She had to tell him. Even if he didn't believe her, even if he simply thought her to be crazier than he seemed to believe already, it wasn't worth being hurt. She struggled to speak with her swollen, still bloody tongue but she figured he would be able to understand what she was saying. "I... I'm from..." Her eyes came to rest at a random point on Sebastian's pristine white lab coat as she tried to work up the courage to say it. "...the future." She mumbled. She even felt like a lunatic saying the phrase out loud and stealing a glance at the demon's face, revealed he was thinking the same thing.

Sebastian raised an eyebrow. Had he been wrong about suspecting her to be sane? She had certainly seemed of a reasonable state of mind... He didn't like being wrong. Not one bit. It simply didn't happen. Humans couldn't travel in time, it was a physical impossibility, and she was definitely human. He sneered, before moving to dunk her into the water again in pure outrage. Millennia of being alive and a pathetic human female would make him question his competence?

At his sudden movements, she exclaimed, "There's more!"

He paused, still gripping her, ready to end her if she said one thing that he didn't like.

"I know... about you. And Ciel." She claimed breathlessly.

"Yes, I was aware." Came his blunt response as he listened with ill-contained impatience.

"But you don't know how much! I know about Ciel summoning you after his house got burned down by the Queen. I know about the three servants who are completely useless and are only kept around because they fight well. I know about how you're gonna eat Ciel's soul in exchange for giving him revenge against who killed his parents. And about the reapers and about what's going to happen, in the future. About Angela being an angel, who can change into Ash the Queen's butler,"

She struggled to catch her breath as she blurted out everything she could possibly think of off the top of her head. Everything she could remember about the show. Anything to avoid being dunked again. The beast listened to her muffled, though agitated words intently, his eyes sparkling in interest as she went on. A sinister grin crept its way across his face. She definitely wasn't a spy. No mere spy could know everything that she did. And even if she had been spying on the manor, he would have sensed her hovering presence long ago. Besides, she was much too brazen to be a spy. Too obvious and in the face of having her life endangered, too jittery. She was a plain and ordinary person. With an extraordinary gift.

"So, you're some sort of psychic then?" He questioned with a grin. A human with genuine foresight was unheard of. He had seen his fair share of charlatans and con artists claiming to have psychic abilities. The fakes were easy to spot a mile away. But this rare specimen could be of incredible use.

Blaire stared at him incredulously. "Wh- no I... I read about it in a series of, uh... books."

Adjusting the spectacles perched on his nose, Sebastian continued to peer at her. "What book is that?" He asked dangerously. Was she really just an ordinary fool?

"A book about you and Ciel. From the future...kind of." She cringed at having to refer to the manga as a book.

The look of contempt fell from Sebastian's face. No such book could possibly exist. She clearly had some kind of powers and was struggling to cope with them, thus deluding herself into believing she had read her visions in a book. She was merely human after all, likely trying to make sense of her foresight. Perhaps books were what triggered her visions? Oh, he truly hoped to Lucifer. Getting his hands on a genuinely sensitive human would be an invaluable asset. To the manor and also to him. He would have to be sure before he got his hopes up. He would double-check for any possible books about him and the young Lord.

"And, what was this book called?" He inquired, a strange tone lacing his voice. She stared at him. Did he believe her? But why would he ask about the book if she already said it was from the future?

"Black Butler." She said with hooded eyes before a sudden yawn escaped her. Upon raising her hand to her mouth, she realised just how stiff and sore she really was.

He looked at her for a moment, before moving to stand. "Alright then. That concludes your treatment for today. Come."

Biting back a snide remark, she made to follow, holding the plain towel around her slender form. She hissed as she put pressure on her fractured leg, making to limp after the demon. She struggled to keep pace with him as he marched through the drab halls, the noises from other patients once again chilling the young woman. She dreaded to think of what was being done to them. Quickly finding herself out of breath, she stopped to lean heavily against the stone wall. Its coolness was much appreciated as she rested her forehead against it.

Turning back with a sigh, Sebastian hurriedly made to gather the woman in his arms. "Incapable of even walking, are we?" He mocked.

"Put me down!" She yelled, her voice rippling throughout the vast corridor and combining with the tumultuous commotion of the rest of the hospital.

"You're slowing me down." He said, picking up the pace a little. He had a book to try and find before morning broke. Even for him, it could prove to be quite the endeavour. She had claimed it was from the future, but that simply couldn't be true. He could consult the Grim Reapers, however, no doubt they would wish to take her from him and examine her themselves. He gripped her a little tighter. There was no way he would risk it.

"You're not taking me back to that padded cell again, are you?... Please don't..."

He glanced down at her. "I have no other option. You don't even belong in here and there is nowhere else for you. I would advise you to keep your head down. I'll be back for you soon."

His promise did not comfort Blaire in the slightest. "For more treatment? No thanks." She mumbled.

The demon briefly considered dropping the infuriating woman on her backside. Though he quickly decided against it. If she were to be useful, she would need to be as unscathed as possible. Torturing her to get her to co-operate, while amusing, while fun, was time-consuming and could result in her untimely demise. She was just another fragile human who would need to be taken care of.

Except, this human, might just prove to be more valuable than any contract bearer ever could.

As promised, Sebastian had dropped her back in the padded cell, to her utter indignation. She had cursed him out, receiving only a smug grin as the door was slammed shut, locking her in once more. Without a single lamp, the room was now suspended in total darkness. She had no idea what time it was, only being aware of her own fatigue. Aching all over, she had little choice but to lay on the cold, hard ground. She took the towel from her still-damp hair and folded it into a makeshift pillow, using the larger as a blanket.

She wanted her own bed. She wanted to be home again, with her family and friends. Stuck in the past, so far removed from what was familiar was a notion so disturbing, her stomach began to churn. She was unable to stop the violent shivering which overcame her. Everything hurt so much. She turned to lay on her back, dark eyes gazing up into the indifferent, empty abyss of the ceiling. As she continued to lay there, she couldn't help but feel like she had made a terrible mistake in blurting all of that out to Sebastian.

Let all your fears be gone

And lie here wasted