Story: A Touch of Colour in the Gray

Book 1: Shading the Black.

Date: January 25, 2021, corrected August 2023

Beta: Fluffyluffy (2020) and Nobody (2023)

Fandom: D Gray Man

Disclaimer: No, I don't own D Gray Man, and I'm not making any money on this story.

Summary: After landing in the 19th century, Estelle, taking the name Eve, becomes Tricia Kamelott's lady-in-waiting. Eve quickly becomes aware of the social and gender differences of the time and begins to fear for her future, especially when Road, the twins, Tyki and even Allen arrive. But the exorcist leaves for India and the twins are sent to boarding school. She meets Baroness Lucie Belle, the twins' older sister and her feline counterpart. She gets into a fight with Tyki, who nearly kills her with his Noah powers, starts a correspondence with Conan Doyles and again nearly dies of Tuberculosis. Yeah : D

Chapter trigger: Near drowning. And lots of Christmas fluff.

It's back to school tomorrow... I love what I do, but there's always a little twinge of sadness when the holidays come to an end... Let's hope the motivation comes back when I get going :')

Enjoy your reading!

Shading the Black Chapter 40 : Frozen Lake

Saturday 25th December 1886

Quite frankly, when I went to bed that night, after the strangest Christmas Eve party I'd ever been to (I'd seen Sheryl mimic an ostrich! Sheryl. Miming. An. Ostrich. Road can work miracles...)I had expected an explosive awakening with little devils jumping in my bed and choking me with a misplaced elbow.

And it did happen, yeah.

But after waking up.

No, I'd been gently woken up by the soft sound of a piano playing through my bedroom door. Rolling over, I slowly opened my eyes, pulled my duvet closer and... screamed as Road burst through the door and jumped onto my bed.

"Rooooaaaaad." I groaned as I tried to push her away from me, already feeling the bruises popping out. She didn't care at all, of course, and the little demon only tugged at the duvet until I was on the carpet floor.

"Come on Vivi, hurry up!" She whined as she let go of the blanket to get off the bed.

"Give me a second to get dressed... just… I don't know… go wake Tyki up." I mumbled, feeling no pity for him, even as Road let out a squeal of delight and ran out of my room in a flash. I didn't even have time to get up before I heard a muffled "Roaaahmpfff-!". Ouch, that sounded painful. Closing the door that the fury had left open (and seeing poor Tyki with his head in the pillow, Road sitting on his back by the door of the room opposite), I dressed quickly, embellishing my dress and woollen stockings with a warm shawl that Berthe had kindly knitted for my recovery. It wasn't as good as a kigurumi, but hey, it was nice too.

Ready, I hesitated for a second before going out into the corridor and heading towards the piano, the music still echoing in the air. I didn't dare disturb the masters of the house, and Tyki was still dead in his bed, despite Road's violent efforts to get him to move. Unsurprisingly, it was the Earl who was playing and he had left the door open for us to enjoy. It felt strange and at the same time warmed my heart that they had respected my Christmas memories so much, they had even thought of the signal!

"Evelyne! Come on in." Smiled the Earl as he stopped playing for a second. Oh yeah. Evelyn. Somewhere between my recovery and now, Sheryl had started calling me 'Miss Evelyne' instead of his usual 'Miss Campbell'. I was pretty sure he knew it wasn't my name, but it must have been like the twins' names where he always insisted on calling them David and Jasper. Why he'd suddenly decided to call me by my 'first name', though, I had no idea and was far too terrified to ask. In any case, the Earl must have heard it, because he too had started calling me Evelyne instead of the newfangled 'Miss Eve' he'd dubbed me in the early days of my convalescence. And since I had no intention to contradict the patriarch of the Noahs...

Yeah, Evelyne was good too, I guess.

Blinking, I noticed a little late that the Earl in question was actually moving over to make room for me on the bench. Assuming that was where I was supposed to sit, I joined him at the piano with a smile. The days when I used to hide in broom cupboards to avoid him seemed so far away. "Why don't we do a little Duet?" he smiled back.

"The one from last week?" I asked, already placing my hands. He nodded and I moved my fingers, concentrated but relaxed at the same time. We continued playing for a good twenty minutes more before other members of the family started to join us. When Devit finally stumbled through the door, still looking half-asleep, everyone went downstairs to the living room where we usually spent our evenings. The room was just as beautiful as the day before, and in even better shape, as the decorations broken by Jasdero when he tripped over the carpet had been cleaned. You couldn't even see the mulled wine stain that Lulu the cat had spilt when she jumped on the table. However, it had changed a little, as a small pile of well-wrapped presents lay under the tree. I'd bumped into Tyki on my way to drop mine off during the night, and we'd gone there together (which was extremely reassuring. I hated wandering around the manor alone at night). But there were still no presents when we put them on, and I wondered if the others would put them on. I guess they had, because ours were all the way underneath, barely visible behind a big orange box with little bears on it.

"Well, Evelyne, how should we proceed?" the Earl asked curiously as we took our places on the sofas.

I knew and practised different traditions of opening presents for different Christmases, but as I was lazy... "The youngest one chooses one and takes it to the person for whom it is intended." I smiled and Road rushed over to the pile. Jasdero looked a little disappointed, so I asked him if he could help Road distribute. He gave me a big smile and nodded seriously before rushing to the pile and searching with her. Note that the twins had made an effort to dress for the occasion, leaving the ripped jeans they'd been wearing more and more lately for their formal black school trousers.

"The first one's for Daddy!" Road exclaimed before running over to Sheryl to give him her present.

Sheryl cooed at his cute daughter and graciously took the gift from her hand. With great care, even for him, he unwound the ribbon to reveal a drawing of stick figures which had obviously come from the little girl in front of him.

"It's wonderful! Look, darling." He said with the proudest look in the world as he handed the drawing to Tricia, who immediately broke into a matching smile. Exchanging glances with Tyki, I bit my lips to keep from laughing. Sheryl was truly bipolar, he who was so stern with a chef-d'oeuvre went into raptures over stickmen whenever Road was concerned.

"And this one's for you, Mother" Road smiled as he held out a strangely similar flat pack.

"Oh, how beautiful! It's Eve, you and me having tea in the greenhouse, isn't it?" She smiled before handing it to me, Road nodding with a satisfied expression. Glancing at the drawing, I raised my eyebrows in disbelief.

"How did she guess?" Tyki murmured beside me, and I could only agree. The green mass in the background could have been anything, really, and the three silhouettes behind the brown line looked barely human. I supposed the purple doodle could refer to me, but the other two...

Clearly, Road hadn't bothered. She could do a lot better than that if she wanted to. But at the same time, if the receivers were so happy no matter what she did...

"This one's for Devit!" Called Road and the morning went on like that. The gifts were quite funny when you thought about it, as they completely matched the personality of the giver, such as a top hat from the Earl for Tyki. There were very few gifts where I had any doubts about who had given it, but one look around and it was easy to find the anxious or satisfied face that accompanied the opening of the gift. The most sensational was undoubtedly Sheryl's present (or at least the biggest of Sheryl's presents) for Road. The box was quite large, almost reaching my knees (although it was a far cry from the huge brown box that had piqued my curiosity since I entered the room) and heavy. So heavy that it was Sheryl who carefully brought it to the middle of the room so that Road could open it.

And open it she did. With a broad sweep of her arm, she ripped off the ribbon and peeled off the lid before screaming so loudly with joy that even Sheryl made a move to cover his ears. And then, sticking her arms into the package, Road pulled out a little ball of white fur which she immediately set about strangling with her arms. It was the very definition of a death hug, and I was infinitely glad I wasn't the recipient. I winced with pity when the little ball made a pathetic sound, but fortunately, before I could intervene, Tricia was already on her feet, gently freeing the poor thing from Road's much too strong arms.

"May I see it, darling?" She asked tactfully and Road immediately released it into her hands.

"Isn't he so cute?" Road enthused as she looked over at our sofa, the one I was on with Tyki and the twins. Nodding briskly, not wanting anything untoward to happen to me, I quickly tried to steer on to the rest of the presents as Eliott came silently to rescue the poor puppy.

The next memorable gift was one of mine. They all were, to a certain extent. Some were funny, like the twins' colour bombs (which I was pretty sure they'd created with their power), some were too cute, like the mini top hat for Mr Fluffy that Road gave me, and some were a bit scary, like the elegant but stuffy and uncomfortable choker that Sheryl gifted me. But there was one in particular that was... indescribable.

The package was limp when Road placed it on my lap and, carefully tearing open the paper, I pulled out something soft and essentially purple. Very purple. Then, curiously, I began to pull at it... and pull... and pull... and pull... until I finally saw the end of it. It was a very, very, very long scarf of thick mauve wool. So long that I could do three loose turns around my neck and it was still dragging on the floor, even standing up. A pair of mittens and a pompom hat completed the ensemble and, putting them all on, I enjoyed their softness and warmth.

"Ah, I'm relieved, it looks fine, I wasn't sure about the size." Smiled the Earl.

"That's perfect, thank you very much!" I assured him, and the worst of it was that I wasn't even lying. And the honesty must have shown, because the Earl beamed even more. The others, on the other hand... well, Road and the twins weren't hiding their disgust, Sheryl and Tricia were smiling a little too hard to be true and Tyki was literally shaking with laughter on the sofa.

"You have the same awful tastes." Tyki murmured as I resumed my place beside him.

"You're the one with no taste. Look how soft it is!" I retorted, shoving one end of the scarf in his face, making him cough up wool. Small revenge.

"Wow, you can even put it around two people!" Jasdero marvelled as Tyki pretended to be strangled with his piece of scarf.

"Pfff, I'm sure we could ALL fit in it." Devit replied and Road suddenly had a contemplative look on her face before rushing onto my lap to slip her head into one of the turns of the scarf.

"Oh, you're so cute!" Tricia exclaimed before immediately turning to her husband. "We should give the Duke his present now, darling, it would be a wonderful occasion!" Sheryl nodded, his gaze still fixed on his adorable daughter, before blinking and regaining composure. He stood up, fetched a medium-sized package with a beautiful blue ribbon and handed it to the Earl, who received it with a curious air.

"Is that... a camera?" The Earl asked as he unwrapped the wooden box and the thin blocks of treated paper. Even from across the living room, it was easy for me to see that this was definitely not one of the big cameras of late XIX. In fact, it almost looked like a disposable camera from the 90s, but with steampunk packaging.

"It's not even on the market yet, it's a prototype from l'Académie des Sciences." Sheryl declared proudly as the Earl fiddled with the object with obvious enthusiasm.

"That's a wonderful idea, Sheryl!" He exclaimed before turning to the children's sofa, camera in hand. "Devit, why don't you come and stand next to your brother." He said as he pressed the device to his eye. Sullen, but miraculously obedient all the same, Devit shuffled his feet before collapsing on the sofa next to Jasdero, barely reacting when Road dropped the last bit of scarf on his head in a sort of clumsy veil.

"Ouistitiiii" I muttered under my breath as the Earl struggled with the camera settings, trying to guess how to take a picture.

"What?" Tyki muttered, and Road turned her head to look at me out of the corner of her eye.

"It's supposed to be the word that gives the most beautiful smile." I whispered back.

"Ouistitiiii" whispered Jasdero immediately and I looked at him puzzled before repeating it in my turn with a real laugh, Road and Tyki not taking long to follow suit. And without us even realising it, the Earl took the photo with an audible "clack", startling me.

The rest of the morning passed in the same vein, the initial embarrassment quickly forgotten as the atmosphere warmed up. However, the enormous package had still not been opened, and it was not until it was the only one left under the tree that the Earl gave Jasdero permission to take it.

"It says... Tyki, Eve, Devit, Jasdero and Road." Jasdero deciphered, his eyes squinting at the label.

"Is this for all of us?" Tyki exclaimed as Road was already removing the ribbon without waiting. Surprised to be included, I stood up and curiously joined the others in the middle of the living room. I'd just got there when Devit lifted the lid to reveal five magnificent brand new pairs of...

"Ice skates!" Road shouted as she dangled half inside the large box to grab the smallest white pair with the bright pink laces before diving back in to grab the others "Black and yellow for Jasdero, White and purple for Eve, Black and blue for Devit and Black and purple for Tyki!" She announced, handing them to each person concerned.

The skates were as nice as the professionals I'd seen on TV, nothing like the ones we sometimes hired, and the blade seemed so sharp that I was more afraid of cutting the ice than sliding on it.

Shoes weren't cheap in those days. Made of real leather, made to last and pass from hand to hand, only the well-off had several pairs, and it seemed a bit of a waste of money to make one just for the occasional winter skate. The others didn't seem to have my scruples, though. The twins looked curious, but it was Road and Tyki who were the most enthusiastic.

"Great! Mine had become too small." Tyki smiled, examining his skates with a knowing eye.

"That's what I thought I understood." Smiled the Earl with amusement and, now that I thought about it, it wasn't the first time I'd heard Tyki complained about it. "Road's as well, so I thought it would be a wonderful group activity, and I got some for everyone." And with that, sharp as a tack, he took another picture. I had a feeling he was going to be playing with his camera a lot over the next few days: the return of the papa-razzi.

"Oh, it's been so long since I've seen you skate Tyki!" Tricia smiled, before frowning with concern. "But isn't it a bit dangerous for the girls?" It was a bit of a strange question, Road had been doing it for years from what I understood? And she hadn't even hesitated when she'd made me ride.

"Don't worry Tricia, Road is very good and I have no doubt that Tyki will help Miss Evelyne if there are any problems." Sheryl replied, and I sat up immediately as her gaze fell on me. Her words sounded even more menacing with the name 'Evelyne' if that was possible.

"Oh yes, you're right, I'm sure with Tyki's help Eve will be fine." She immediately smiled at her husband, who then looked at her in surprise before opening his mouth, then pressing his lips together and turning his head away with a definite sulkiness that clearly resembled those Road knew how to do so well.

Two years and Tricia wasn't giving up, she was even winning against Sheryl! I was impressed...

"Daddy, can we go and try them on right now?" Road immediately asked, making Sheryl's glum expression disappear.

"It's already eleven o'clock, and it need time to get to the lake... after lunch, sweetheart." He said, and although the wording sounded like an injunction, his tone clearly implied a question. Fortunately, Road was hungry and didn't throw a fit.

While the servants prepared the meal, we had time to have a closer look at the presents. I'd kept the scarf on far too long for the rest of the present opening, but I had to take it off when the little puppy was brought back into the room and started running around. It's a good thing the adults, especially Sheryl, hadn't been around, or he would have flipped out when he saw the ball of fur jumping from piece of furniture to piece of furniture, damaging the poor Christmas tree and leaving drool stains on the armchairs. Road was obviously delighted, contemplating the destruction with ever-increasing love. A thought for John, who found himself desperately chasing after the dog to prevent further disasters. Clearly not the best promotion in the world...

"What are you going to call him?" Jasdero asked Road, as they crouched down in front of the dog. Exhausted from his mini-tornado, he had let himself fall onto the carpet and was allowing himself to be stroked without complaint. Just behind them, on the sofa, Devit was examining his new boots, Tyki was already immersed in one of his latest novels while I was curiously reading the score book I'd received. I'd tried to help Clarisse and the others when they'd come to try and mitigate the damage, but she'd made big eyes at me and I'd shaved awkwardly. Cleaning was far from my passion, but it still felt strange to be doing nothing to help...

"Hmmm, I'm not sure..." Road replied, tapping her chin with one finger. "Something in... B!"

"In B?" Jasdero repeated confusedly. "Like... Butter?"

"Butterfly?" suggested Tyki and I raised an eyebrow.

"Another animal, are you serious?" Devit growled, surprisingly concerned. "No, I need a real name like... er... Ba... Bel... Bernie?"

"Bernie..." murmured Road as if testing the name on her tongue. "Bernie, Berno, Berna..."

Oooh, we were getting a bit too close to Bernard for me and, firstly, the little dog clearly didn't look like a Bernard and, secondly, it was my Uncle's name and I didn't want to think about him every time I saw the animal. Hello, depression.

"And why not Berlingot? It's a kind of coloured triangular sweet with lines. In France at least, I don't know if there are any here."

"Oooh yes, I see, I've already eaten some!" Road exclaimed before picking up the little dog and bringing it before her eyes. "Okay! Berlingot it is." The puppy let out a pathetic yelp that sealed the deal.

It wasn't long before we were called to the table, and we left everything to join the adults. Yeah, me too. After two weeks of being included with the family whatever the activity, it shouldn't have been a surprise but... well, it was Christmas, wasn't it? But even Sheryl seemed to have given up glowering, so I did my best not to squirm too much in my chair. It was normal. Totally normal. Haha.

The meal went well, traditional (for me) and tasty. I couldn't resist having some more and was definitely ready for a nap when Road jumped to her feet, looking determined. Oh no. But yes, of course, her goodwill hadn't lasted much longer. As soon as we'd eaten our lunch, we went to the stables, our calves full of snow, to take the same little cart we'd used last summer to go swimming. Luckily there wasn't so much snow that the road was impassable, and soon we were climbing the embankment to discover a breathtaking view: the lake completely frozen over, and the fields covered in pure white snow glistening in the winter sun.

A minute later, we put on our skates and I watched curiously as Tyki did a few laps to test his. He certainly knew his stuff, and even for a neophyte, it wasn't hard to see the grace oozing from his body. Road was not to be outdone, however, and as soon as her warm-up lap was over, she tried a jump whose name I didn't know, but which looked pretty damn impressive up close.

"You're awfully good, you two! You've been hiding this talent from me!" I applauded when she finished her pirouette.

"I love skating, but last year the ice wasn't tick enough and anyway, I'd forgotten to buy new skates." Tyki explained as he lazily made his way back to us, as comfortable on the ice as he was on land, if not more so.

"And it's really solid this year?" Jasdero worried as Devit dubiously touched the ice with the tip of his blade.

"If the ice can take a jump from Road, you shouldn't have a problem." Tyki replied with a shrug.

"And what does that mean?" The young Noah shouted as she punched her uncle in the ribs, knocking Tyki to the ground with a suppressed groan. Without a glance, Road turned to me and held out her hands. "Come on Vivi, if I could teach that ingrate to skate, you shouldn't be a problem."

Careful not to point out that it was impossible for a ten-year-old girl to have taught her uncle to skate years ago, especially given his level, I gave her the most serious look I could muster.

"Are you sure it's not going to collapse under us? There are five of us after all." I say nervously, thinking back to all those disaster movies I'd seen.

"Of course." She said, rolling her eyes.

Wrinkling my own, I took her hands anyway and gingerly put one foot on the ice. "If I die here, it's your fault."

"You're being too dramatic, a little fall won't kill you and at worst, I'll catch you." Tyki replied as he got to his feet, his hand still rubbing his ribs. "Come on twins, let's show the girls we're the best." He grinned wildly, and I felt Road clasp her hands over mine.

Oh no...

"You wish..." Road replied, her voice dripping with malice. "No mercy." She whispered, making me shiver, before pulling me aside and starting a crash course in ice skating.

An hour later, we were still there... at the lake, that is, Road had abandoned me as soon as I knew how to do a trick without taking her hand. I think I was doing pretty well, but it was a bit hard to quantify when after ten minutes the twins were already skating across the ice as if they'd been born with skates on their feet. It's the Noah genes, totally the Noahs genes... I thought a little jealously as I painfully finished my third lap, the twins already racing and Tyki and Road in full jumping competition in the middle of the lake.

"Which one's better, Vivi?" Road shouted and I skated cautiously towards them to watch them jump more closely. They had to wait patiently for me to get up to their level, however, taking a long time to brake without hitting the ground again. At least this time I hadn't had to run into Tyki to stop myself. Still, he'd put his hands up just in case. Good mate.

"They're both great, I really can't tell which is better." I replied honestly after they had jumped again. Not that I would have decided either way, Road was too scary when she was angry, dodging was the best solution.

"You're no fun!" Road complained, stamping her foot, making me look nervously at the ice. "Well, then let's jump together, Tyki, she'll see better that way."

"I want to jump too!" Devit suddenly exclaimed, Jasdero right behind him. "Eve, you judge."

"You'll never do better than us on your first jump, Devit." Tyki replied lazily, but the younger Noah barely gave him an incensed look before moving into position.

"Don't you want to jump too, Jasdero?" I asked the second twin who had stayed next to me. He shook his head and replied that he was going to have a drink and skated towards the shore where we had left our things.

"Ready?" I sighed at Noah's far too competitive trio. "Jump!" I shouted and everything happened very quickly. Picking up speed, they jumped not far from me. Devit was the first to land, and he immediately slipped, falling on his bottom. Worried, I rushed towards him, not paying too much attention to the other two who fell awkwardly beside me, trying to avoid Devit. Of course, my sudden impetus caused me to fall next to Devit at about the same time as the other two landed. Suddenly there was a 'crack' and Road and Tyki jumped away as if by reflex, leaving Devit and me kneeling where we were, the ice cracking beneath us. Breathing hard, I immediately tried to move away, Devit doing the same on the other side. Unfortunately, in my panic, I couldn't get up and fell back onto the ice, exacerbating the cracks.

It had only taken a few seconds.

"Don't move!" Tyki exclaimed as Road helped Devit away. I froze and looked up at him, realising the dire situation. Tyki, Road and Devit were on one side of the crack while I was on the other. Jasdero was on the shore and much too far away and even though I wasn't moving, I could hear the snow cracking underneath me, ready to give way at any moment. "You have to stay calm, okay Eve?" He continued as he slowly walked around the crack without taking his eyes off me. "Try to back up while staying on the ground, but one foot after the other, slowly."

Nodding, I took a breath and began to lift a trembling knee to place it as gently as possible a few centimetres behind me, my eyes fixed on the ice. Once correctly positioned, I took another breath and shifted my weight onto it, raising one hand to...

Crack

The ice gave way beneath me. I barely had time to look up at Road before I was sinking into the icy water.

"Eve!" shouted someone, but I was too busy spitting water and trying to grab something solid to guess who. Unfortunately, the harder I tried to hold on, the more the ice broke around me, crumbling between my fingers into sharp shavings. Soon I couldn't feel my legs and my hands were burning. The heavy winter dress was a deadly accessory and entangled with my feet, preventing them from flapping to keep me afloat. And then, all of a sudden, I sank. Giving up trying to catch myself, I used my arms to get back into the open air, but I hit a wall. Painfully opening my eyes despite the cold, I watched in horror as my fists struck the ice above me with little force. Looking frantically left and right, I tried to locate the hole, but everything was blurred and indiscernible: I was trapped.

Panicking and my lungs burning from lack of air, I looked up again to suddenly see a hand appear in front of me in the water. I didn't even have a second to realise what was happening before the hand grabbed my coat and pulled me through the ice. Suddenly I was out in the open again and Tyki had me in an iron grip, his other hand wrapped around my hips as I gasped for breath. He'd pulled me through the ice and now our feet weren't even touching the ground. I was flying! I thought hysterically, but it was more accurate to say that Tyki was holding me up in the air. If he let go of me, I'd immediately fall back onto the ice and undoubtedly create a new hole.

"Okay... I often... get myself into… impossible… situations." I coughed before looking up at Tyki, referring to our argument. "But you certainly help me in it!"

"I admit it... you did warn us this time." He replied as he walked towards the shore, his breath strangely short, too. Sweat was beading on his forehead, and I wasn't sure if it was from the stress of having caught up with me or if using his powers on both of us was too difficult. "But I told you I'd catch you."

Too tired to think straight, I laughed nervously, relieved to be alive. The ice shifted a few centimetres below our feet and I watched it with wide, unfocused, worried eyes. They'd never shown me their powers so clearly before. So yes, it was a case of force majeure (for me) but I was worried about what it might mean in the long term. Or in the short term either, because Road looked far too serious for my sanity.

"Are you all right?" she asked me as Tyki set me down on the shore. Luckily he didn't let go of me straight away, because as soon as my feet touched the hard ground, my knees collapsed and I finally noticed how cold I was, shivering all over.

"A-... Alive" My teeth chattered and Jasdero reached over to put his jacket over my shoulders with a worried look on his face.

"Tricia will scream." Devit remarked, and at his brother's insistent look, he too took off his jacket and reluctantly wrapped it around me.

Wincing at the all-too-true statement, I sneezed as Road rubbed my arm. "Let's get you back to the manor quickly or you'll catch death." She said. "And I promised it wouldn't happen... this time."

...

Very reassuring, Road.

It's not gratuitous malice towards Eve, the fact of falling into the frozen lake has three purposes, 1) to show once and for all that the Noah knows that Eve knows about their powers, 2) to show that Eve and Tyki are still thinking about the problems raised by their arguments and 3)... :)

In short, I hope you all had a good holiday, and I wish you a very happy new year full of joy, accomplished projects and iron health for you and your loved ones (yes, that's precisely what I hope for myself). Think about letting a review on your way out, and see you on the 25th of next month!