Coco: Hello~ How is everyone?
Before we start the story, I just want to go over a few things with you guys first. As I pointed out before this would be a mix of both the manga and anime. So, far I've been following the manga. However, the next chapter will be starting in the anime. The reason why I'm doing this is because in the manga the next chapter would be about Elizabeth coming to the manor and reigning her cute terror on everyone and then the following chapter would be the 'rat' trouble Ciel has with the Italian mafia. In the anime, however, these two events are switched.
I'll be following the anime and switching these two events. Mostly to have more time with Butler Grell XD Because that was fun. And I'm sure Lavender will try to find some way to use Grell's incompetence as a butler to make Sebastian's life harder. Everyone has to have their hobbies, ya know. I might have her plans backfire on her, however, just for fun XD
Anyway, I'll probably be doing this kind of thing in future chapters. Blending anime and manga differences to my preferences. Just thought I'd five you guys a head's up.
Now, shall we begin the chapter?~
"And I believe that's another win for me, Ciel." Lavender said with a grin and amused gleam in her eyes.
Ciel tsked unhappily as he glared down at the chessboard. After dominating her in the last game, she suggested a new game. He should have asked what it was before agreeing to it because if he had known she had chess in mind, he would have said no. He's never beaten her in chess. No matter what kind of tactic he tries.
"I thought it'd be easier to handle you considering how tired you've been lately." Ciel confessed.
Lavender chuckled slightly at his confession. Leave it to Ciel to try and take advantage of her when she's a bit sleep deprived.
"Too bad for you that I've learned how to function quite well like this." Lavender said as she sat back in her chair and crossed one leg over her knee.
Ciel frowned as he studied her face closely. Though there were dark circles under the woman's eyes, her eyes were just as sharp as ever. Taking in every detail in front of her with well-practiced ease. A habit from her days as the Queen's Watchdog.
She once told Ciel she had been taught how to read body language as easily as reading a book. That she trained to notice even the most miniscule of changes within a person or even within her surroundings. That way she would be ready for any possible threat that might occur, or so she could plan accordingly to any changes that might be about to occur. One of the many skills, she had learned and perfected to earn her title.
However, the human body could only handle going so long without proper rest. And while Lavender has stated that she's learned how to handle functioning while lacking sleep for long periods, he knew that wouldn't last. And he couldn't afford to have one of his chess pieces not functioning at 100%.
"Lavi," Ciel began. "Tomorrow, I wish for you to take the day off."
Lavender, who had been resetting the board, looked up in surprised at Ciel. She didn't have any scheduled time off for another month or so, which made Ciel's statement quite unexpected.
"I am also ordering you not to consume any caffeine starting tomorrow and until I decide otherwise." Ciel said.
Lavender frowned now understanding what her young master was up to. While there are some good intentions behind his actions, she knew she'd be suffering a little bit too. After all, her body is used to being given caffeine at least once a day. Once she stops drinking it, she'll be plagued with headaches as her body tries to adapt to no longer having caffeine. Not to mention, until she can truly force herself to sleep, her job performance might suffer. However, she kept all this to herself as she sighed at Ciel.
"If I must, Young Master." Lavender said. "Though I must say, knowing you care enough about me to make such an order really warms this cold, black heart of mine."
She reached across the table to ruffle Ciel's hair, which had him grunting in annoyance and shoving her hand away.
"Knock it off," Ciel grumbled. "And call for Sebastian. I would like something sweet to eat before dinner."
Lavender hummed for a moment as she thought about declining Ciel's request. After all, if he ate something sweet now, it'd ruin his appetite for later. However, if she did call Sebastian up here for Ciel, he'd have to leave his work behind…making it that much easier for the three troublemakers to make their moves. Lavender smiled sweetly.
"As you wish, Young Master." Lavender said.
Ciel's brow quirked suspiciously at her radiant smile. He then watched her as she walked over to the bell near his desk with what he could have sworn was a pep in her step. She rung the bell twice before returning to Ciel to start another game of chess.
"You seemed a little bit too happy to be doing that," Ciel commented.
"Whatever do you mean, Ciel?" Lavender asked innocently.
Ciel stared at her a moment longer before smirking. He didn't know exactly what she was thinking, but he could make an educated guess that whatever it was, she knew she had just created more work for Sebastian. Or at least threw some kind of wrench into his plans. The small smirk on the young Earl's face then dropped as he looked down at the board in front of them.
"We're not playing this again." Ciel said. "Pick something else."
Lavender grinned at the boy while knowing he was tired of being beaten. However, she decided not to comment that as she went to putting away the board and pieces into their proper box. As she returned the box to the shelf and prepared to choose a different game, Sebastian walked into the room.
"Young Master," Sebastian greeted. "What may I do for you?"
His eyes then cut over the Lavender as if to say 'that Lavender could not?', which had the woman looking over her shoulder to smirk at him in return.
"I'm hungry." Ciel said simply. "Make me something sweet to eat."
As Lavender expected, Sebastian turned down Ciel's request stating Ciel would ruin his dinner. Even when Ciel persisted, Sebastian told him no a second time. Ciel huffed in annoyance as he looked away from his butler.
"If that's all, Young Master, I would like to return to the preparations for Lord Chlaus' arrival." Sebastian said.
When Ciel told Sebastian—unhappily—that he was dismissed, Lavender chuckled. This had both males turning to look at her.
"Yes, you better hurry back, Sebastian." Lavender said. "I'd say by now the others have figured out about our guest and wish to offer their help. You shouldn't keep them waiting."
Sebastian seemed confused for a moment what she meant before it dawned on him. His eyes widened slightly, but before he could react, someone wailing in despair and shock could be heard from outside.
"Ah, that's poor Finni," Lavender said as she stepped away from the bookcase.
Not a moment later there was a high-pitched shriek followed by the sound of a crash and porcelain shattering.
"Mey-Rin must have been trying to get down the tea sets again," Lavender hummed thoughtfully as she cupped her chin. "And with those two disasters, that only leaves the pyromaniac whom we call the chef."
She gave Sebastian a smirk as she said this before all of them were distracted by the sound of a small explosion going off. Though small, it shook the foundation a bit.
"Right on time." Lavender said as Sebastian's brow twitched. "If only you had had help to keep eye on them, hmm, Sebastian?"
As Ciel was smirking from his seat, Sebastian gave Lavender a look of pure irritation.
"Yes, it seems as if I made an error." Sebastian reluctantly agreed.
"Well, I'm sure that being the hell of a butler that you are that you'll be able to rectify whatever little mishaps the others created." Lavender said. "However, please, don't be too cross with them, Sebastian. After all, they meant well."
One of Sebastian's hairs seemed to poke out of place in that instance as Lavender was almost struggling to hold in her laughter.
"I must really thank you for insisting that I remain here with the Young Master." Lavender said. "I'm afraid the task that now stands before you would be too stressful for my poor nerves to handle."
She said this while placing her hand on her cheek and giving what might sound like a sympathetic sigh for the poor butler. Despite the clear annoyance in Sebastian's eyes, the butler smiled at Lavender.
"Happy to help, my lady." Sebastian said. "And not to worry, I will have everything in perfect condition by the time Lord Chlaus arrives."
Despite hating that he insists on calling her that from time to time, Lavender was too content at the moment to care. And seeing that he hadn't managed to get to her, Sebastian seemed almost disappointed. He then made his leave to go and see just what the troublesome trio had managed to destroy in his moment away from his work.
"I almost feel sorry for him," Lavender said once he was gone before she sighed, "…Well, the feeling's gone."
She said this part with a shrug as Ciel shook his head in amusement at the woman. She then chose a new game for them to play before retaking her seat across from Ciel. As she settled into the game, she had to admit to herself that she was curious on how Sebastian would save the day this time. She supposed she would just have to wait and see.
Lavender looked out at the large stone garden after Sebastian finished planting the last of the irises.
"I must admit I'm impressed." Lavender said to the demon who stepped up beside her.
Sebastian looked smug when hearing her words, but she ignored that look on his face as she carefully crouched down—mindful of her skirt—to take a closer look at the irises. They were lovely shades of blues, pinks, and purples that stood out against the grey stones of the garden. Though only few bunches of them dotted the landscape, it was a beautiful scene.
"Let's just hope our lovely fellow servants don't question how you managed to get the iris bulbs to bloom in such a few short hours." Lavender added as she reached out to gently caress one of the flower petals.
Of course, him managing to put this entire garden together at all was impossible for a normal human to do. But no matter how many times he does anything questionable in front of Bardroy, Finni, and Mey-Rin, they never question it. Sebastian chuckled.
"I believe that isn't something we will have to concern ourselves with," Sebastian stated confidently as he watched Lavender. "…I've noticed you seem to enjoy being out here in the garden, Lavender…However, I never asked…Do you enjoy flowers?"
It's something he's noticed in the two years they've known each other. He's often found her in the garden during her breaks or her off days. There have been a few times where he found her resting underneath the largest tree in the garden. A book in her lap…opened to the last page she had been reading before she had dozed off.
"I suppose." Lavender said as she stopped admiring the flowers to stand.
She remembers the first time she saw flowers. Or at least the first time that her memory can recall. She had been halfway in between living on the streets and the orphanage her parents dumped her at. She had been running down the street to get away from a shopkeeper who she had just stolen from. During her escape, she passed a flower shop and the vibrancy of the plants had made her stop in her tracks. She had never seen so many different colors in one place. In her world of grey, it had been such a wonderful, unexpected change.
Of course, stopping to stare at the beautiful flowers ended up with her getting caught by the shopkeeper. The beating she had earned wasn't pleasant, but that part of that particular memory seemed so insignificant. She had returned to the shop a few times to admire the flowers, but she never tried to take any. After all, she didn't have the means to care for them, and as a child, it had felt wrong to her to take something so pretty just for it to wilt away in her care.
"It seems that you like them quite a lot." Sebastian commented when seeing the far off look in her eyes, which broke her away from her thoughts.
"What does it matter if I do?" Lavender questioned with a quirked brow. "Is it really that surprising?"
Her tone almost sounded defensive as she narrowed her eyes at Sebastian. The man chuckled as he was reminded of a small kitten whose hackles were raised in irritation. The small scrunch of Lavender's nose only sealed the image in his mind as he gazed down at her in mirth. Lavender then scoffed when seeing his look.
"Come on," she said turning back towards the inside of the house. "Lord Chlaus should be here at any moment. We need to be ready to greet him."
"Of course, my lady." Sebastian said as he followed her.
She shot him a look of annoyance over her shoulder but said nothing as they entered the house. The others were already lining up by the door as Ciel was outside waiting for their guest on the front steps. As Lavender assured Finni and Mey-Rin's uniforms were straightened and wrinkled free, Sebastian gave Bardroy a very pointed look as the man was carrying an unlit cigarette in between his lips. Bardroy sweat-dropped and quickly removed said object from his mouth. As the sound of a car pulling up was heard, Sebastian and Lavender took their spots.
The servants stood on either side of the door with two rows of three. Lavender stood at the front of the line of the right side of the door with Tanaka after her and Mey-Rin after him. Across her from was Sebastian with Finni and then Bardroy falling in line after. As the door began to open, all six servants bowed to their guest who Ciel was leading inside.
"Welcome, Lord Chlaus." They all spoke in unison.
Chlaus paused in the doorway as he looked around with awe falling over his face.
"This is…the house looks wonderful." Chlaus complimented.
Sebastian's smile almost seemed to widen at the praise, which had Lavender mentally rolling her eyes. She never liked it when people paid the demon a compliment even if unintentional. Or even if it wasn't exactly a compliment directed at him. It made his ego inflate. However, she kept her expression warm as she and Sebastian stepped up to Chlaus.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Lord Chlaus." Sebastian said.
"We're happy to have you here with us again, sir." Lavender added.
Chlaus smiled warmly at the two as Finni offered to take his coat and hat for him.
"Long time no see, Sebastian." Chlaus said. "And, Lavender, you are looking as exquisite as ever."
As Lavender thanked Chlaus for his kind words, the man placed his hat on Finni's head causing the boy to blink in surprise.
"It seems like there are some new faces here too." Chlaus commented.
His comment reminded Lavender that it has been quite some time since they've hosted Chlaus. During his last visit there had only been her, Sebastian, and Tanaka working here at the manor.
"You have something to talk about with the master." Sebastian said as he stepped towards the doors leading to the garden. "I'll make the preparations for dinner right away. Please go through to the courtyard."
Chlaus looked confused by this as Sebastian grabbed the handle to the door. He turned to smile at Chlaus.
"I have been told by the master to prepare hospitality which rewards your efforts this time," Sebastian said. "I'll be happy if it meets your expectations. Please make yourself at home."
He then led Chlaus and Ciel out to the courtyard where the prior gasped in awe at the sight of the garden. As Sebastian, who was seating their guest and young master, and Chlaus had a brief discussion about the stone garden, Lavender brought out the tea, which was also Japanese along with the cups being used. Chlaus chuckled when noticing this.
"Even the tea is Japanese, isn't it?" Chlaus said. "You and Sebastian are truly perfectionists, Lavender."
"I do thank you for the compliment, Lord Chlaus." Lavender said. "However, I had no hand in this. Sebastian and the rest the staff are the ones who worked so hard to ensure you have a wonderful evening with us."
Chlaus smiled at Lavender's honesty. And while she might have wanted to see Sebastian struggle earlier due to him not allowing her to help, she wouldn't take credit away from him for his work. Moreover, while they might not have helped a lot, the others did have more of a hand in preparing for Chlaus' arrival than she did. Said people were currently hiding and watching as Sebastian and Lavender took care of their guest.
The two excused themselves to grab dinner for the two nobles as Ciel and Chlaus conversed. Though Lavender looked to be focused solely on the task in front of her, she watched closely as Ciel and Chlaus exchanged the goods Ciel had mentioned earlier. The goods seemed to be some kind of game. A clever ruse she supposed.
Dinner was then served. Sebastian placed the main course in front of Chlaus who seemed underwhelmed by the bowl of raw meat in front of him. Ciel, whom Lavender was serving, looked at her with a quirked brow. She only smiled at him in response.
"The preparations for the evening meal are complete," Sebastian said as he bowed. "Sorry to keep you waiting. On today's menu is our house chef Bardroy's donburi."
Chlaus blinked down at the bowl before looking to both Lavender and Sebastian who maintained their smiles.
"This is dinner?" Chlaus questioned receiving a confirmation from Sebastian. "Is this Kyoto cuisine or something?"
"Did you not know, Lord Chlaus?" Sebastian inquired getting another look of confusion from the man. "Donburi is a dish from ancient Japan that was used to reward workers. It was a fish that symbolized rewarding workers after their work was over. That's the dish called Donburi!"
As Chlaus looked at Sebastian in awe, Lavender allowed herself a moment to roll her eyes for real this time. Ciel noticed her look of annoyance, which had the corners of his lips twitching up in amusement.
"It is said that the dish 'houhan' was only eaten in the royal court. However, commoners also wanted to try it and this was the origin of Donburi. Furthermore, I thought Lord Chlaus would be tired of sophisticated food. To allow you to simply savor the high-quality meat, I have prepared it in this style."
Behind the butler peeking out between the doors, the other servants oohed and awed at Sebastian. Once again amazed by their butler. Chlaus suddenly started laughing as he came out of his dazed state.
"Hahaha, Ciel, this is great!" He said. "You always surprise me. There are a lot of people in this industry who lack humor, but you're not one of them, so it seems things will be interesting from now on."
"It's an honor." Ciel said as he accepted Chlaus's praise.
As Chlaus paid Sebastian another compliment, the others were celebrating a job well done. Well, Lavender wasn't as there was still more to do before the night was over. She turned to Mey-Rin as Chlaus began to enjoy his food as he conversed with Ciel.
"To ensure that the wine is to your liking, a wine from Italy has been prepared." Lavender said as she gestured to Mey-Rin.
Said maid didn't move an inch causing Sebastian, who moved beside Lavender, to sigh.
"Mey-Rin," he called out the redhead's name.
"Yes?" She murmured shyly.
Sebastian sighed again then leaned close to the woman to whisper in her ear. Lavender frowned because that was a mistake on Sebastian's part. She could see how quickly Mey-Rin's cheeks turned as red as her hair. Steam seemed to be flying off the woman's head as she unsteadily grabbed the wine.
'This isn't going to end well,' Lavender thought as Sebastian moved to Ciel's side. 'He really needs to pay more attention to how he affects Mey-Rin. Either he doesn't notice, or he doesn't care, but either way it causes us problems when he gets her flustered.'
As if to prove her mentally spoken point, Mey-Rin, who had walked up to the table unsteadily, poured the wine…missing the glass entirely and staining the tablecloth. As the others gasped in horror—Chlaus luckily still oblivious to this mishap—Lavender inwardly groaned in exasperation. She was starting to think that she should have been the one to pour the wine.
In a flash, Lavender and Sebastian both moved. Lavender quickly but gently bumped Mey-Rin out of the way into the arms of Finni and Bard as she fluidly took the bottle from her hands. In that same instant, Sebastian pulled the tablecloth from the table without so much as disturbing anything else on the table. By the time Chlaus had realized anything happened, Lavender was settling a filled glass of wine down in front of him.
"I hope the wine is to your liking, Lord Chlaus." Lavender said as she smiled sweetly.
"Ah, I am sure it will be," Chlaus said before blinking and realizing something. "Where did the tablecloth go?!"
Ciel, who had been surprised by the sudden movements of his butler and housekeeper, soon recovered as he smirked at Chlaus.
"There was some dirt on the tablecloth." Ciel explained. "Please, don't take notice of it."
"I apologize." Sebastian added. "Please, take your time and enjoy your meal."
He and Lavender then excused themselves inside, so to leave the nobles to talk. Once inside, both let out a sigh of relief. Finni and Bard began praising Sebastian as Tanaka could be seen fanning Mey-Rin in the background with a napkin. The poor thing looks to have passed out.
'The hard part is behind us now,' Lavender thought. 'Now we just have to get through dessert.'
Lavender let out a small yawn as she stepped out of her bathroom dressed for bed. She was running a towel through her damp hair one last time before tossing it back inside the bathroom where she'd pick it up later.
The rest of the night with Chlaus had been a success with no further mishaps as the others had been kept away from their guest until his departure. After helping clean up the kitchen and doing the rest of the evening chores, everyone retired to their rooms. Well, Lavender had a feeling Sebastian was roaming around the manor as he normally does.
He had explained to her once that his kind don't need sleep. And a part of her was almost envious. However, the more rational side thought that sounded terrible Though she was plagued with bad dreams that only left her tired due to losing precious hours of sleep…she knew she'd miss her naps in the garden or the comfort of falling asleep in her mass of pillows.
Lavender sighed prepared to have another weird dream filled night when she noticed a vase suddenly sitting on her nightstand. A vase filled with irises. Like the ones from the garden. She blinked in confusion before moving forward to take a closer look at the beautiful flowers. She gently touched their soft petals.
'Why would he leave these here?' she thought while knowing only one person could have done this. 'Just what is that demon's game?'
She then noticed an envelope leaning against the vase. She picked it up and opened it to see a neatly written letter.
I do hope the flowers are to your liking, my lady. Pleasant dreams and please do be sure to get plenty of rest tomorrow.
—Sebastian
Lavender stared at the words on the page a few more seconds before she finally huffed and shoved the letter back in the envelope. She slapped it on the nightstand beside the flowers.
'Damn demon and his weird actions,' Lavender thought in annoyance. 'Just what the hell goes on in that brain of his?'
She let out another huff of annoyance as she jerked the covers back, so she could climb into bed. She pulled the covers up to her chest then turned over to snuggle as deeply as she could into her pillows. She stared at the wall for a bit as she sighed.
'I don't even know if I will be able to sleep,' she thought. 'I was so tired throughout the day, but now that I can finally sleep…I'm on high alert. Do those dreams…do they actually scare me?'
She wanted to say that they didn't. However, as she lay here awake unable to close her eyes and relax, she knew she couldn't. To an extent, she supposed they did cause her unease. After all, the last dream ended with her dying and losing the one person who was most important to her. She lost Delcan…her life and ended up in an unfamiliar time. And this new dream wasn't exactly full of sunshine and rainbows.
'Just why am I having these dreams?' she wondered. 'Just what could this weird gift of mine mean?'
She laid there for another couple of hours with her head spinning with confused, worried thoughts before sleep finally swept her away. As her eyes laid closed and her breathing evened out, a figure stepped out from the shadows of her room.
"Finally asleep," Sebastian hummed quietly.
He moved closer to Lavender's bed to lean over woman as she slept. He reached out to brush back a strand of her hair from her face with the back of his finger. She shifted slightly but didn't wake as Sebastian's finger returned to gently stroke her cheek.
Sebastian's lips curled up as he gazed at his vulnerable, little mate. Seeing her like this had the possessive side of him wanting to climb into the bed with her and hold her close mixing her scent with his own. However, he refrained from doing so as he leaned in closer to Lavender. His lips brushed against her brow before gliding across her temple and ending just under her eye.
"Sleep well, my lady." Sebastian hummed as he pulled away.
He disappeared back into the shadows as Lavender turned over in her sleep to snuggle into a pillow. Completely unaware of the demon lurking within the shadows of her room.
Coco: And that's the end of that~ Next chapter will be an original chapter featuring Lavender's day off. Will most likely feature flashbacks to show more of Lavender's life during the two years since she fell back through time. How she adjusted as a servant and maybe even a few first meetings between her and the staff. Not sure what all I'll include but after that we'll be dealing with some Italian mafia goons. I'm sure Lavender will enjoy that considering how much she dislikes the Italians considering who killed her XD
Anyways, you guys keep being your amazingly beautiful, awesome selves and remember to stay safe out there. Later~