Ciel woke up early the next morning, sighing a bit to himself as he rolled over in bed. As he opened his eyes, he quickly registered that everything was still the same; his brother was soundly sleeping in his own bed just across the way.

So, sleeping normally wasn't enough to break the curse. He needed to try something else, it seemed.

"Hm...Cedric?" His twin asked sleepily as he sat up in bed, rubbing his eyes. "Do you want me to help dress you?"

"No! I can do that myself!" Ciel declined, quickly sliding out of bed. His clothes from the previous day were all wrinkled and rumpled.

"No, you can't," His brother sighed as he got out of bed as well. "Let me do it," He pulled Ciel out of bed quite easily, starting to undress him.

"Hm..." Ciel pouted. If he was never kidnapped, then that cursed branding mark wouldn't have marred his flesh, right? So it was fine to be naked in front of others, right?

"Mother wanted us to wear these today," His brother motioned over to two light suits made for day-wear in pale green and yellow. The colours chosen looked quite girly to Ciel, but somehow he knew protesting wouldn't get him anywhere at all.

"Do you still feel ill today?" His brother asked in concern as they both finished getting dressed. Before Ciel could move away, his twin placed the back of his hand on his forehead. "You don't feel warm at all!"

"I still feel a bit out-of-it," He admitted. "I hope there won't be much excitement today,"

"The Midfords are preparing to leave, as is Uncle Dee and Sieglinde. So maybe," His brother shrugged. "Anyway, it's time for breakfast!"

Ciel simply nodded and hurried after his brother, arriving at the breakfast table and subtly sighing in relief when he just saw his parents there. He wasn't in the mood for more excitement.

"How are you feeling today?" Vincent immediately asked upon Ciel sitting down.

"Did you have another nightmare?" Rachel asked in concern.

"No, I feel perfectly fine," He reassured them as he started to eat. "I am sorry for giving everyone such a fright yesterday."

"I think you should be apologizing to your fiancée," Vincent scolded lightly. "Nobody was more hurt by your claims than she,"

"I'll apologize to her the next time I see her," Ciel still had very little appetite, but managed to eat his bowl of porridge while picking at the remainder of his food. His parents nodded in approval as everyone else finished and they went their separate ways.

Ciel wandered around the halls of the manor, taking care to not run into anybody who would try and chat with him, delaying him. He already had a location in mind and hoped it was still in the same place as it was in his manor; thankfully, it was. He carefully turned the shiny doorknob and watched as it swung open widely to reveal a dark blue room that smelled of wood finish and pipe smoke.

It was a comforting, familiar smell that Ciel started to get lost in before he shook his head, remembering his goal. It was only a matter of time before his father walked in and caught him, he figured.

A large mahogany desk was in front of the window, as well as several bookshelves aligned on one wall and a large table with several chairs around it. Ciel stared at that; what was it for? He didn't remember his father ever owning that.

He walked over to the bookshelves and ran his finger along the spines, finding them to be mainly books on nature and science for whatever reason. A picture was placed near the top, which Ciel stood on his tiptoes and jumped to try and reach, but to no avail. He glanced down and realized in horror that he wore simple flat boots, no heel to be seen. The bookshelf towered over him.

He retreated to the desk to find another picture there; it boasted the four members of the family sitting together in the grass happily. It was a picture he had seen before, so he ignored it and glanced at the papers on Vincent's desk.

All business-related...not a single one having to do with Ciel's own company. Obviously, Ciel in this universe never had a reason to start his own business, nor would he likely be allowed to.

He tried to pull open the drawers, only to find that they were locked. That didn't surprise him; they likely contained valuable or damning things for Vincent. Both weren't likely to see the light of day.

Ciel started to read the papers closer when he heard rapid footsteps approaching the room, making him freeze. He ducked under the desk and folded himself up, holding his breath in the hopes whoever showed up wouldn't notice him.

The footsteps dwindled before they couldn't be heard anymore, but Ciel still heard soft padding footsteps wander inside and accidentally gasped in surprise.

"Woof! Woof!" Sebastian darted over to where Ciel was hidden and continued to loudly bark, ignoring Ciel's protests for him to be quiet.

"Sebastian? Where are you?" His brother called out. "Did you find something, boy?" He grinned as he hurried over. Sebastian's barks grew more excited as the twin leaned over and smirked at Ciel's current position. "Wow, I never took you for being much of a troublemaker," He gently scratched Sebastian behind the ear.

"I'm not a troublemaker, I was just looking for something," Ciel protested, slowly standing up and dusting himself off. The large dog glared at him.

"In Father's personal office? The one he told us to never enter?" The smirk grew wider.

"What's your excuse?" Ciel then walked out, sighing a bit as the twin and Sebastian followed him.

"I'm not going to ignore our dog barking eagerly over something," The twin smirked yet again.

"What does Father's business deal with?" Ciel asked curiously. "He had more papers on his desk than normal,"

"Railroads, or something boring like that," His brother waved his hand dismissively. "Are you going to pitch that ridiculous idea of yours again? The one about selling toys?"

"No...?" Ciel blinked. "Besides, if I had a company, I would want to sell more than just toys. Candy too, and clothes probably. And feel-better food,"

"Stuff for children?" His brother smiled. "Makes sense. You'll always forever be a child at heart. It's almost sickening,"

"What are we doing today?" Ciel asked instead.

"Hm? I think Mother and Father are taking me and Lizzy out for a boat-ride," He shrugged.

"Am I invited?"

"Why would you be invited? Too much sun gives you a headache, you know that!" He snickered. "You get to stay here with your manly fiancée and dull cousin," With that, his brother took off running again, leaving Ciel behind.

He blinked, feeling a familiar sense of aching in his chest. Why was he hurt over not being invited? Such a lively activity wasn't his ideal way to spend the day, yet he still felt left-out. Even the idea of having the manor to himself mainly to explore some more held very little appeal for him. He still felt an ache in his chest.

Sebastian growling at him brought him out of his thoughts, and he started to back away nervously, hitting his back against the wall. "Come on, don't hurt me..." He held out his hands to try and look less threatening. Still, Sebastian didn't let up and continued growling at him.

"Cedric?" Where are you?" Rachel's voice rang out through the hall, and Ciel suddenly coughed as Sebastian perked up and dashed off, wagging his tail for his mistress. She smiled happily and gave him a pat before noticing her son. "Cedric? Are you alright?"

Ciel coughed again before nodding. "Yes...!"

"I think you should go back to bed," She gently but firmly grabbed her son's hand, ignoring his protests as she led him back to his bedroom and sat him down in bed. "Just rest. I think you've been having too much excitement lately,"

On anyone else, that tone would have sounded condescending and smug, but it sounded genuine in Rachel's voice. Even her blue eyes shimmered with worry. They were so similar to his.

"Maybe," He agreed to appease her. "I'm just sad I couldn't go out boating with you,"

"I know, your father and I really wanted you to come with us, but Ciel suggested that it would be best if you stayed since you haven't been yourself lately. Plus, too much sun gives you a headache," She gently brushed some hair away from his face, making him flinch.

The sun made him sick? How delicate was he in this world?

"I don't want to sit here bored all day. Isn't there a place I could play pool or cards or something?" Ciel asked as sweetly as he could muster, making Rachel chuckle.

"My little boy is developing some adult interests, hm? I wouldn't have expected you to like such things!" She continued to giggle. "Well, Edward will be here still, and so will Sieglinde. I'm sure the three of you could come up with something,"

"A lot of reading," Ciel mumbled under his breath, but Rachel smiled.

"Yes! Exactly! You two could tell each other fairy-tales!" She then gave Ciel a gentle kiss on his forehead before leaving the room. "We'll be back by sundown,"

"Alright," Ciel stifled a cough and decided he'd get out of bed the very second they left. He wasn't sick, there was no reason for them to coddle him as such. He may not have wanted to join them, but there was also no way he was going to spend an entire day in bed, listening to Edward and Sieglinde read him childrens' stories.

"I'll bring you back a picture!" A somber yet feminine voice reached his ears, and Ciel glanced over at the doorway to see Elizabeth there, partially hidden by the doorframe. She was wearing an outfit that resembled a dark blue sailor suit, complete with a hat. Golden buttons went down the sides. "It'll be a good one, for you," Earrings shaped like flowers jiggled in time with her head motions; the same shade of yellow as her hair.

"A picture would be nice," Ciel said, not looking over at her. Elizabeth made no further move to get closer.

"I truly wish you could come, but it's for the best. You don't want to get sick,"

"I've been out in the sun plenty of times before without falling ill. I most certainly won't get sick this time. Nor will I get burned,"

"Ciel cares about you a lot," Then Elizabeth turned on her heel and dashed off, her skirt swishing around with her.

Ciel sighed as he swallowed down another cough and threw himself down onto his pillow, feeling the ache again. He also felt something else, something darker, something stranger. He glanced over at the bedroom window, flinching simply because there was nothing there.

He remained in bed for what seemed like several hours, hearing the bustle of his family and Elizabeth before everything suddenly calmed down, indicating they had left. A maid arrived with a tray full of hearty food.

"Lord Cedric, are you awake?" She gently shook him. "Time for lunch,"

"Is it something sweet?" He mumbled without thinking, sitting up. He felt as though he hadn't touched a dessert in days.

"It's milk soup with a topping of apples and cinnamon," The maid motioned to the bowl. "Sweeter than normal, but Earl Phantomhive said you would benefit from a meal like this. He said you were to be served in your room,"

"I'd rather eat with Edward and Sieglinde," Ciel declined, staring at the tray set out in his lap. The maid shook her head.

"Earl Phantomhive, as well as the Countess, have both ordered you to remain in bed for today,"

"I would like to eat at the dining table. I am not a child," He grumbled.

"Please do not be difficult about it, Lord Cedric. You may take it up with them when they return," She then left the room, making Ciel groan.

Not allowed to leave his room? Having to eat meals off a tray? He really was coddled crazily in this universe. And it was about to drive him mad.

"Lord Cedric!" Sieglinde's voice reached his ears, and he looked over to see her being rolled into the room by Edward, both sporting smiles on their faces. She had a small stack of books in her lap.

"Great, I suppose you two are here to amuse me in my time of weakness," Ciel chided.

Edward frowned a bit. "What's gotten into you? You normally love our company,"

"I'd much rather be with my family instead of holed up in my room like an invalid," He sighed. "Besides, Elizabeth is your sister. Why aren't you with her and my family?"

"Mother insisted I stay to help her and Father pack," Edward grumbled. "As if she needs the help,"

"Is that milk soup?!" Sieglinde's eyes lit up. "It looks delicious!"

"You can have it," Ciel handed her the bowl, and she instantly took it and began to eat it voraciously. She didn't slurp, but she ate rapidly and some liquid dribbled down her chin.

"Are you sure you don't want any? It's super sweet and good!" She gasped again. "I know! I'll feed it to you!"

"Wait-" Ciel protested before she wheeled herself closer to the bed and shoved the spoon into his mouth, making him choke.

"Lady Sieglinde!" Edward scolded, pushing her back away from the bed. "Be careful!"

"Hmph," She pouted.

Ciel managed to swallow the soup and yanked the spoon out of his mouth, blushing heavily. "It tastes like porridge, but sweeter,"

"I don't get the fuss. You have it all of the time," Edward raised an eyebrow, but didn't question further.

"Now you two are just going to read me fairy-tales until they get back," Ciel fingered the edge of his blanket.

"We were, but..." Edward moved the tray aside and sat down on Ciel's bed. "Something is obviously troubling you. Why don't you tell your favourite cousin what's wrong?" He pointed to himself with a grin.

"Nobody believes me. My parents are dead, Ciel and I were sold to some cult, he died, and I escaped! Elizabeth is my fiancée, Sieglinde and Diedrich aren't related, and you despise me!" It all poured out of Ciel in an instant. "I suddenly woke up and everything was like this,"

"I despise you?" Edward asked in genuine surprise. "The only person I could ever dislike is...never mind. The important thing is that this is your life! Just rid all thoughts of that nightmare from your mind!"

"It wasn't a dream," Ciel mumbled. "And even if it was, what then? Am I just supposed to easily settle back into a life like this that's so drastically different from what I've known?"

Sieglinde awkwardly fingered the page edges of her books.

Edward remained quiet as well, simply placing a hand on his own head.

"Not to mention, everyone treats me like a child," Ciel added quietly.

Sieglinde placed the empty bowl on Ciel's tray and continued to sit there quietly, as did the boys. Nobody said or did anything for a while until Edward stood back up.

"We're your friends and family, Cedric. We want to help you," He finally admitted.

"What could you two do?" Ciel questioned. "You two seem to be just as coddled as me,"

Sieglinde smiled. "Lady Angelica tells me it's quite improper, but I have a very active mind! If I could, I'd become a chemist! I'm sure Lord Edward and I could figure something out together!"

Edward nodded. "My family has a history of...knowing things. If anyone can figure this out, it'd be me,"

Ciel stared at the two, doubting how helpful they could be but ultimately not questioning it. At least he had some allies in this world, and they weren't the worst allies to have. He remembered Edward as wanting to do anything for his family, and Sieglinde having a very scientifically-minded mind. If the two of them truly wanted to help him, then they could.

"Now then," Sieglinde opened up one of her books with a smile. "The Youth Who Set Out to Learn What Fear Was,"

Ciel slammed his head into his large pillow. It was going to be a long afternoon.

####

He must have fallen asleep, as he woke up to an empty room painted orange and Sebastian barking like mad.

"They must be home," He slowly crawled out of bed and smoothed out his clothes, running into the parlor to greet them.

"We're home!" His brother cheered happily, pulling Ciel into a tight hug. "I hope you didn't miss us too much,"

"Did you enjoy your afternoon?" Rachel smiled kindly. "That milk soup was my idea. It always cheers me up when I'm ill,"

"I refuse to be confined to my room any longer," Ciel stated in a serious tone. "I am not ill, therefore, I would like the freedom to explore,"

Vincent frowned slightly. "You may not be ill, but one can not deny that you have frail health. Your mother and I are just looking out for you,"

"I can function just fine on my own,"

"But what if you overwork yourself? Then you'll die early on and leave me all alone!" His brother suddenly cried. "We've been together since birth, it'd be selfish of you to die without me..."

Rachel clasped her hands together. "Cedric is right, we've been ignoring him for the past few days, haven't we?" She sighed. "Especially since he'll be off to Weston soon and we won't see him until the end of summer...would you like to scrapbook with me?"

"Scrapbooking?" Ciel asked in confusion. When had his mother ever taken up such a hobby?

She nodded. "Yes, I have lots of cute books full of pictures of us. Some are even coloured by Ciel, Elizabeth, you, and Sieglinde!"

Scrapbooking would be a way to get his mind off things, as well as see how much had changed in his life throughout the years. He found himself nodding.

"Wonderful! Follow me then!" She led Ciel to her bedroom and into a smaller room that smelt of pine and rose. He felt drowsy and comforted by the scent. "My craft room," She reminded him, and Ciel noticed a large easel set up for painting as well as a writing desk, sewing corner, and sitting area. He somehow knew Rachel spent countless hours in that very room, strengthening her womanly skills.

Rachel soon found a stack of recent scrapbooks all dressed in green foil and set them on the coffee table, motioning for Ciel to sit beside her. He did so, taking in her usual ponytail and dark red graham dress.

"Which one would you like to work on?" She asked politely, spreading them all out. They were all dated by year.

"What was the last one we worked on?" He asked instead, looking them all over.

"This one," She pointed to a smaller one labeled '1887'.

"That one then,"

She smiled and moved the other ones aside, pulling it open. "Look, you've coloured a lot of these before," She moved closer to Ciel as she showed him the pictures.

Many were indeed messily coloured-in, but Ciel didn't care about that. He could only watch in increasing discomfort as the pictures grew more personal; detailing a life that was not his.

"You and Ciel's first day at Weston!" Rachel pointed to the picture proudly. In it, Ciel looked nervous in his baggy uniform while his brother smiled proudly. "Edward took that one,"

Somehow he believed it.

"This one is cute," She giggled as she pointed to a picture of Sieglinde and Diedrich both looking overwhelmed when they were confronted by a large table of dinner; Vincent smiled in the background behind a slice of cake.

Another was of Elizabeth and his brother on a simple spring picnic; her face was partially hidden by her parasol so her expression was hard to read.

Eventually, Ciel looked away, making Rachel concerned.

"Cedric? Are you alright? Do you feel sick?" She started to check his temperature before he wiggled away.

"I'm fine! Just...overwhelmed by the memories,"

"I understand. Some of these memories are quite hard to recall. That's why I'm happy I took up scrapbooking when I did," She pulled some lilacs out of her pocket. "Here,"

"What do I do with these?" He asked.

"Press them onto whichever page you want, leave them for a bit, then they'll leave a beautiful print," She smiled.

Ciel was quite positive that wasn't how that worked, but he bit back that comment and did as he was told, pressing the lilacs onto random pages that featured Sieglinde or Elizabeth. Rachel watched over happily.

"There," He announced, swallowing down another cough. Rachel smiled at his work.

"Those pages will look beautiful now, all because of you," She pinched his cheek, making him flinch. "Now come on, time for bed,"

"Already? What about dinner?" He asked in surprise.

"Do you feel like eating dinner?"

"No, but-"

"Then dinner's not for you," Rachel helped him up. "No sense in making you overeat and get an upset stomach, right?"

Ciel simply stared at her as she led him into his bedroom and sent for a maid to undress him. He still wasn't very comfortable with a stranger touching him, but found he was too tired to resist as she gently slipped a white nightshirt onto him, then tucked him in.

"Good night!" She smiled as she turned out the light.

As Ciel fell asleep, he became aware of the dark feeling in his presence again, but was unable to find a source as his eyelids grew heavy and he fell asleep.

####

Edward gently closed the snaps on Frances' suitcase, sighing a bit in relief. "I finished packing everything, Mother," He told her, while Frances nodded in approval.

"Good job," She said.

"It's always so sad when we have to leave Ciel and Cedric!" Elizabeth cried. "I always find myself counting down the days until we can return!"

"That's what Lady Sieglinde is for! To keep you company throughout the school year!" Alexis reminded her with a smile.

"Yes, my dear friend...but Big Brother is lucky! He gets to see them all-year-round!"

"It's more of a curse than a blessing," Edward sighed.

"I do wonder what's gotten into Cedric's head as of late, accusing everyone of things they haven't done and just being rude in general," Frances commented in an annoyed tone.

"Likely just spring fever. His asthma gets bad around this time of year, he could just be delirious," Alexis soothed her.

"Delirious without a fever though?"

"I'll talk to him after we go back to school. I'm sure once he's away from everyone and is less overwhelmed, he'll go back to normal," Edward said confidently, though inside he wasn't too sure. For someone as sweet and compassionate as Cedric was normally to suddenly turn distant and uptight was quite worrying, and Edward wasn't sure if there even was an answer.

#####

"May you please read me a fairy-tale?" Sieglinde asked Diedrich nicely as a maid tucked her into bed. She wore a simple nightgown with a matching bonnet tinted orange.

"I think we've already read every single book the Phantomhives have," Diedrich responded.

"I don't care! I love them a lot!"

"How about I just tell one from memory then? I need to leave soon," He sat at her bedside.

"Yes!"

"Which one?"

"Rapunzel!"

Diedrich then began to tell her the story, gently kissing her forehead and turning out the lights when she fell asleep in the middle of it.

####

"Cedric is really not acting like himself lately. I'm really worried," Rachel took out her earrings as she prepared herself for bed. They were simple ones; white pearls. "He's not sick, but...even earlier when we were scrapbooking, he didn't seem into it. He flinched at my touch and generally seemed out-of-it,"

Vincent nodded, sitting in his chair reading a book. "I agree. Though he's always been a sensitive child. That nightmare he had about us likely scared him senseless,"

"But...is it really normal for someone to be distant and flinchy after a nightmare?" Rachel stared off at nothing.

"He'll be off to Weston in a day or two and off our hands. The return will be good for him, surrounded by other boys his age and not feeling overwhelmed by Lady Sieglinde or Lady Elizabeth," He turned a page.

"I suppose, but...he's my son! I'm worried about him," She picked up her hairbrush, then set it back down.

"Easy now," Vincent was at her side in a minute, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Don't overexcite yourself and get sick,"

Rachel leaned into his touch. "Sorry...maybe I really am overthinking this. Maybe by the time Cedric returns for summer break, he'll be back to normal," She smiled. "That's something to look forward to,"