"You've a talent for this, my dear!"
My companion enthused, placing down a tea tray of specimen jars, bone shaped biscuits and a small jar of sugar. His nails were long and dark, but strangely immaculate. I know I would have been clinking and clacking all over the place if they had been on my hands. But he poured some freshly steeped tea into a jar without a sound to interrupt him.
"Thank you, sir. It's been a long road to hone those skills."
He plopped a specimen jar into my hand and gestured at the bone shaped shortbread cookies.
"We'll have ourselves a nice cuppa and then back to your tale. I feel we're just getting to the good stuff now!"
-vVv-
About 15 hours earlier.
Sebastian ran on a short detour to fetch my bonnet for me. And in absence of a mirror, graciously helped me don it to shield my face from the weak sunlight outside. A rare, sunny clear day in England's climate. I couldn't help but feel the faint brushes of his gloved fingers under my chin were calculated to unsettle me and make me blush. And unfortunately, he did elicit such a response. It tickled.
He was radiating a tiny hint of smugness at the faint pink that was obvious in my cheeks as he escorted me outside. Which, as Morgana said with her usual brutal honesty, was only partly because I was annoyed at being flustered. It was also because I was genuinely flustered. Lizzy looked positively delighted at my expression, which I had schooled into something more pleasant than the scowl I wanted to direct at the demon. It was apparently an indication for her that the tour had yielded the results she wished.
Sebastian gave his presentation of the tea. The words passed through me without registering much. His movements spoke more to me. Exact and polished. This was not an act of service, but a performance. He expounded on where the leaves were imported from and the value of the porcelain it was served in. Another way for the wealthy to flex their fortunes.
Perhaps a subtle barb at the pride so often manifested among the wealthy. A point which he and those like him could exploit.
51% of his name acquired.
I'll take that as a yes.
I needed more contact. In the OVA, the Guest ended up spilling tea on herself to get a second alone and make a phone call and confirm her orders. I don't think Guinivere had been told who she was supposed to target, just to infiltrate the party and get confirmation from there. No one could catch her attempt if she herself didn't know who her target was.
I took a careful sip of the tea, cradling my saucer properly before placing it down to try a nibble of the cake that was served for tea.
Why must it be so delicious...?
The rich, intense flavor of the tea was barely made tolerable by the addition of sugar, and then the cake's fruity sweetness and dry texture came along and wiped out any trace of unpleasant bitterness. It was perfectly balanced. Pairing the two had been an inspired decision.
The Crack is issuing a correction.
Oh come on, just because I didn't feel like spilling hot tea all over myself?!
I would have preferred to just listen quietly and ferret out more information. But as I was reaching for my cup again, there came an earth shattering bark from behind me that genuinely made me jump. The saucer fell into my lap and the teacup fell from my startled fingers splashing the lovely, sinfully perfect tea all over my skirt. I had enough layers on that I didn't feel an immediate burn, it just felt warm and damp.
I carefully picked up the undamaged cup and saucer from my lap.
"Quite lucky it isn't damaged." Lau's remarks made my eyes flick over to him as he gave a closed eye, very, very fake smile. "It would be a travesty to damage a cup so precious as that."
He said this just as a large blunt nose knocked me in the center of my back and made me jerk forward, nearly dropping the china I was holding. There was a heavy canine panting from behind me and I turned around to see Clifford the Big-Red-Dog's albino cousin behind me. About twice the size of a horse, sharp wolf-like ears and a curly, entirely domesticated canine tail wagging, Pluto the Hellhound was standing behind me and above me.
"Oh my."
Knowing how big the pup actually was was still very different from actually seeing it in person. He bent down and snuffled around my head with incredible enthusiasm and brought with him the faintest whiff of sulfur. I set the cup and saucer down on the stained tablecloth quickly and looked for a way out of the situation.
"Sebastian, what is he doing out of the back garden?"
Ciel sounded quite annoyed, but more like this was a minor annoyance rather than anything serious.
"I don't quite know myself, master."
Sebastian's usual opinion of dogs was leaking into his voice as Pluto sank into a play bow, panting and tail waving madly.
This posture means 'play' for a dog, but why is he doing it to me? I thought he only listened to Sebastian because he is a demon.
He heeds power. And as he is not hindered by a preconception of mortality, and has sharper senses than Sebastian, he can tell we have enough that he must respect.
"Is he...friendly?"
I asked in a hesitant tone.
"Pluto is far from harmless Miss Smithson, Sebastian shall see he is returned to his kennel and bring you a fresh change of clothes."
I wanna pet the giant puppy, but I really should still act afraid.
"Thank you, Lord Phantomhive. I'm afraid there will be no salvaging this dress."
From the tea stains on the skirt and bodice to the large doggy nose imprint and drool stains on the back, this dress was destined for the scrap bin to be repurposed into other items. And the nice new gloves that Sebastian had procured for me were also ruined. Elizabeth was also fussing around, not even batting an eye at the hellhound's presence. She was wiping at the worst of the stains on my dress with her napkin.
"Oh dear. This is such a lovely color on you too, Gwen."
I gave the girl a smile that felt more Me than the role I was supposed to be playing.
"Clothes are replaceable, Lizzy. But I doubt many people can claim they've seen a dog the size of an elephant. That is certainly quite unique."
If I had the chance, I would cuddle, play with and adore Pluto as the good boy deserved. And make sure that this wasn't the anime where Angela did something weird to his collar to make him go berserk and burn down London.
Will the Crack last long enough to potentially address Angela/Ash? Because they have always bothered me.
The Story will not allow for such a major deviation. A future instance without such a guided plot will be needed.
Lizzy and Paula went inside with me as Sebastian wrangled Pluto to put him out of sight and to where he could no longer cause trouble.
-vVv-
I had the plentiful memories of dealing with Victorian undergarments thanks to Gwen. So I could have managed those well enough on my own.
"At least let Paula help you get out of that ruined dress, Gwen. I can wait to get ready until you're settled."
Big green eyes looked up at me, pleading. I shook my head.
"Lizzy, you talked all the way here about how excited you were to wear your new dress and prepare for the party. You're the host's betrothed, it's only right that you shine along with him tonight."
I mostly wanted to snatch a moment unsupervised to check on Pluto's condition before the dress with my thaumaturgic link to him, the drool stain on my back, was whisked away to never be seen again. A mind compulsion was a worrisome thing and as long as no major characters were present, I should be able to push the script a little. The Guest did do plenty of suspicious things when she was left by herself to indicate her sinister motive. I could almost certainly do something within the bounds I was working with.
Once I sent Lizzy and Paula to their room, I was left alone in the guest room and somewhat at a loss for how to effectively reach the laces on my back to escape the confines of my Victorian day dress. I did manage to begin, stepping behind the changing screen and contorting myself with some effort. The knock on the door came without warning and startled me even though I'd half been expecting it.
In full awareness of what I am saying: That sneaky devil...!
Quite.
"Who is it?"
I called, pausing as if I didn't know exactly who was waiting beyond the threshold.
"It's Sebastian, Miss Smithson. I have the dress the young master ordered for you."
Now there was a pause that I left here on purpose. He was a single man, butler or not, asking to come into a room where the woman was a single lady who was less than fully dressed. I might not especially care who saw me less than fully clothed. Certainly not by Victorian standards. But Guinevere would have been born and raised in this era and therefore should care. Sebastian saved me from needing to figure out how to reply in character.
"I know it is unorthodox, Miss. But there is no handmaiden available to assist you. I shall be blindfolded the entire time to preserve your modesty."
It was a token gesture of politeness that I could probably just accept without much more issue. Though I was certain that for proper Phantomhive hospitality, another way would have been found. But not for me. Nope, I was suspicious. I pulled the character profile of a young woman around me who was going to be undressed and then redressed by a man she thought of as attractive. A faint flush traveled up my neck and I let my voice come out a little more quietly than normal.
"V-very well. Please come in."
I stayed hidden behind the changing screen as Sebastian entered and arranged a pale blue dress on the sofa.
I would not have minded wearing it even back home. It was light blue without being icy. A delicate color yet not a cold one. The embroidery on the skirt and how it would lay when on a subject gave it motion, while the pattern of frothy white petals spread up one side of the skirt. It gave the impression of a modestly blooming flower.
Sebastian also placed down the bustle and laid out the slight train that came with it. And the sleeves. Separate sleeves. The dress didn't have attached sleeves, but would rest in the middle of my upper arm with the help of an elastic.
And it also looked familiar. I had seen it on the tour. I wondered if it wouldn't be too out of character to remark on it.
"It's beautiful."
I observed, recalling now where I had seen it.
On the former Lady of the house, Rachel Phantomhive in one of the photos that remained of her. Sebastian gave me a brief glance, noting something about my expression... but he covered it up with a professional mask as well as a blindfold. Though I doubted that this did anything to hinder his senses or capabilities.
"Now then, Miss. Please pardon my rudeness"
-vVv-
I blushed and complied with the directions he gave me. I hesitated in every spot that felt right to hesitate at. Sebastian remained calm and professional, but I felt his attention move over every part of me. Taking it all in and searching for the thing about me that was setting off his instincts. That reflex that made him so effective at his role and such a competent survivor. He was blindfolded, so he likely couldn't outright see. But the rest of his senses were ringing and searching me head to toe.
He got an inkling that something is up because of Pluto, didn't he?
Yes.
I kept up the act as gloved hands helped me deftly into the dress, doing up the tiny row of hooks instead of buttons to help hide the seam of the bodice. After the second brush of his fingers on my back, I tensed up slightly. He had to be doing that on purpose...
Yes.
And the silence, other than a few soft-spoken, polite directions, he was silent. Seeming to memorize everything about me even without seeing me. I had goosebumps running down my arms even before he slid the open sleeves up my arms and tightened them perfectly so that they would remain where they were meant to without leaving a mark on my skin.
This Crack cannot run out soon enough.
But I bore with it for one reason and one reason only: Sebastian enjoyed the quiet chance he had to fluster me. And that meant...
87% of his Name acquired.
It was probably time to break the silence. I was fully dressed now, so Sebastian removed his blindfold and twisted my hair up into a braided bun with pearl topped pins and a lovely silk flower headpiece.
"Mr Sebastian, are you sure that Lord Phantomhive would like me to wear...this dress?"
"Certainly, my lady. He personally instructed me to bring this one specifically. He thought it would suit you."
And I couldn't say that it didn't. The pale blue color emphasized my blue eyes, the rosiness of my cheeks and the warm brown color of my disguised hair. Next to the pale dress color with the white flower in my hair, the contrast made that even more bright, making my skin look more porcelain and my hair even darker in the same stroke. With as much as contrasting colors and appearances featured in this era, it was an extremely tasteful choice of attire even if it was an older style.
"But it's too much. Lending me this dress, and the accessories too?"
Another flurry of goosebumps rushed down my spine as his fingers barely brushed the nape of my neck as he secured the pearl necklace that he had brought with him. Morgana was telling me what this string and this outfit was worth in this time period and it was not just a thoughtful gift, this was stunningly expensive. A unique, tailor made dress for a noblewoman with complementary, 100% real, accessories that may very likely have been family jewelry.
"As it was our dog's behavior that spoiled your other dress, Phantomhive hospitality demands nothing less in recompense than this Miss Smithson."
"There is living up to a reputation, sir but this is far exceeding any expectation I had of my time here."
I looked up at him in the mirror and he had a small, benign smile on his face.
"I am glad you didn't take too much of a fright at Pluto's sudden appearance. He can be quite startling for those who are unprepared for him."
"It will likely hit me in a few hours that a dog that size can even exist."
Hopefully once the Crack was over and I was no longer here.
"Now. Let's have a proper look. How does everything feel?"
The bustle was giving the dress a unique, yet flattering shape. The narrow overskirt's challenge was negated by the long slit and ample petticoat so I would not be quite so restricted in my movements. I took a few steps and belligerently wondered if Sebastian's stupid demonic competence could really do anything. He even found a pair of shoes that felt broken in and comfortable on my feet. And had quickly altered the dress to fit my frame perfectly without taking any measurements.
"It's stunning. I don't think I've ever felt quite like this in a dress."
And time for some oblique honesty. Because while what I had said could be a positive thing, I quite literally had never felt so exposed under another being's gaze as I had right now. So exposed or so discomfited.
"He will be pleased to hear that. My master would like for you to have this dress, with our compliments."
Yep, that's canon.
"Isn't this..."
I looked over at the picture of Rachel Phantomhive, the one who had personally arranged this room. And in the photo she was wearing the exact dress I had on right this moment.
"My master has a great deal of history to live up to. He tries to honor the past by living wholly in the present."
Uh, excuse me? This is a ten year old who got angry enough that he invoked a demon of wrath to get revenge on his abusers. And you haven't exactly been letting him move past that since you'll get a better meal out of it.
Oh if I had my spellbook, then I would have had so much more fun bantering with Sebastian. With the veneer of social politeness but able to converse more as equals.
"If that is what he wishes, then I gratefully accept his gift. It is beyond generous."
A few more polite platitudes later and Sebastian sent me off to the guest room to wait for the party to begin with Lizzy and Paula.
The guest room that would soon be filled with sleeping gas. In the Story, Paula and Lizzy had been untouched and the Guest was kidnapped. But my behavior and subsequent corrections had unbalanced that foregone conclusion. So their guaranteed safety was now unreliable.
What're the next few points of the OVA?
The Guest overhears Inspector Aberline speaking to Ciel and Sebastian about a string of disappearances of various young women. She goes and makes a phone call to confirm her job is to kill Sebastian and kidnap Ciel. Sebastian finds her and escorts her to the room minutes before the Guest is kidnapped.
And the call would be one coming in not one she made going out. So I quietly took the phone off of its cradle so that the call would not properly connect, and walked to the guest room.
I can give Gwen a better outcome than what they offer her. As long as I get a moment to myself, I can even begin writing it for her.
No one went into life planning on becoming an assassin. So Guinevere Smithson's history must have taken a turn at some point to lead her here. Where she was capable of infiltrating and interacting with nobles and even distant royals without raising undue alarm. I walked into the room where Paula was helping Lizzy with her stays and settled by the window.
How long until the gas starts coming?
You're ahead of schedule so about 40 minutes. Lizzy will still be in the process of dressing up when they come.
That was reasonable. The timeline of that particular episode never fully made sense. That apparently minutes after the Guest entered the room, she was kidnapped? He would either have had to gotten access to the house as a party guest or with the means to get past Sebastian. They were both equally unlikely since I knew that Ciel would never willingly invite the man anywhere. And there were other demons who were not as capable as Sebastian was.
So that left me with the puzzle of how the Viscount managed to spirit away a Phantomhive guest to an ocean liner, and get far enough away that there was no land in sight by the time she woke up. Sebastian managing to bring her back before a party that evening without a hair out of place could be explained away with 'because of course'. He was the titular character of the series after all. But what was the over dramatic perv's excuse?!
The OVA was largely geared towards those who are fans of Sebastian.
So there naturally had to be a moment when Sebastian can rescue the Guest from an undesired suitor and the Viscount made a good scapegoat. How did he even meet the Guest? Or Gwen rather since that is more relevant?
I believe we will have to 'retcon' the encounter to fit with how your actions are changing the Story.
I watched through the window as Finian towed Pluto along on a leash towards the back garden with the hellhound resisting in vain, his paws digging deep gouges in the dirt on either side of the path. The boy's strength was simply too much.
How anyone could delude themselves that the Phantomhive's were a normal household was beyond me.
True. The Guest was a temporary stand in. She didn't need to fit in the backstory for what she was there for. So what would be plausible? We haven't had time to really compose a backstory for her other than the default Guest.
Building a complimentary character into an existing narrative was not that hard. And parts of it would write itself if I gave the Story something good. I would need a time to actually pause and use my magic to hook it into the overarching narrative. Somewhere far enough away from Sebastian that he couldn't catch on to what I was doing.
Idea: Gwen encountered the Viscount when she was hired to get information on a missing young woman of his acquaintance. She had to flirt with him in order to keep her cover intact and then vanished. She was using another alias then. He managed to track her work and movements.
Smart and eccentric are traits that go hand in hand, but giving them to a perv is the worst. And what he's pulled off, plus managing to get out and stay out of jail would support that.
To a professional like Gwen appeared to be, someone who was dedicated to tracking your true identity and capable of doing so no matter what you did was annoying.
It is part of why she sought work from the Italians. It took her out of the country for a little while and helped her trail go cold.
How old is Gwen actually? She has to be old enough to have earned her reputation, but young enough that Lizzy would see her as a peer.
Undetermined.
Given Viscount Druitt's known taste, she couldn't be that old. And considering that and the fact that she was known as 'Mad Dog' as an assassin...it made a heartbreaking picture that she had been doing this from a very young age. Or had been doing very proficiently in a very small tltime period.
At this point, the number of people I would need to interact with to clear Gwen's history out and get her free and clear of the thug lifestyle she was currently trapped in was increasing. And the sicko I would soon be seeing topped the list. So I would need to do a bit of judicious editing on his memory to convince him that she had forever evaded him. Or maybe change up that there was one specific feature about her that he was mistaken about...
The Ferro family would be next.
How long will the Crack go for?
About 3 days.
It wasn't a lot of time, but it was enough time.
Ciel and Sebastian were a lockbox of secrets as it was. Letting Gwen discard that name and proceed under a new identity would be the next big step.
Unbidden, a memory drifted up from the past of the person whose shoes I was temporarily filling.
"My sweet song thrush."
And it was accompanied by a dim memory of some sensations. I covered my mouth to avoid showing Lizzy and Paula a grimace and continued to look demurely out the window.
Ok, Gwen. We'll see if we can get a few licks of payback in before the reapers and Sebastian get involved.
-vVv-
Paula was proficient at wrangling Lizzy into her clothes no matter how excited the both of them got. So in a flash Lizzy was standing in her cute pink dress, a light color that was somehow enhanced by her dark brown ribbons and accessories.
She twirled happily, and I couldn't help but smile and applaud a little.
Morgana could sense and I could see that this face was one she put on every day on purpose. To try and be a source of light in a world she knew was very dark and full of pain. And yet, she managed to do this, every day without fail ever since Ciel became the head of his family.
Not Ciel.
And she was dead serious about that and it rang as 100% true. That was something Rachel Phantomhive's dress knew. Something told me that that little tidbit was also going to be rather important to figure out. Later. Much later. It wasn't nearly as relevant as the need to survive this episode without causing a more permanent merger between this world and mine.
But the boy we met is the canon character who holds Sebastian's Contract.
Yes.
And his name is not Ciel.
No.
I had to consciously choose to focus on something else because I quite simply did not have the leisure to worry about it right now.
OK. I am wearing the dress of a former Lady Phantomhive. And the name has power even if Rachel herself did not have as much of a fighting spirit. I am in the role of someone who is apparently a practiced killer who is armed. Generally speaking, I should have plenty available to defend myself.
Lizzy and Paula were happily chattering with one another until Lizzy turned towards me and went still for an instant. I could see her mind flash backwards to when she had actually seen this dress. And the last time she had seen it.
"Oh...oh Gwen that dress..."
I rose and turned slowly, arms slightly outspread to give her a complete look.
"It's too generous a gift for me to ever repay, Lizzy."
Perhaps she might have thought it would be hers one day as she was Ciel's fiance. But if she minded him giving away his mother's dresses, she didn't show it. Not even Morgana could detect a hint of negative feelings behind the smile she gave me, clasping my hands warmly.
"Nonsense, my dear. You're a vision. And you absolutely must be sure that Ciel sees you in this dress tonight. Promise me that, won't you?"
There were even the beginnings of tears in her eyes and I could feel the grief for the happy times of her past that were
The importance of that was fairly evident to me. My current appearance of brown hair, like his mother, blue eyes, like his mother, and literally wearing one of her dresses? There was no way Ciel hadn't had this exact thought run through his mind when he instructed Sebastian to give me this item to wear. A moment of wistful indulgence to see me in it, and then he would banish it forever. Out of his life and taking with it the weakness it represented.
In the OVA, Sebastian dances with the Guest.
Which, given my observations, would only enhance the nostalgic image even further
"Of course, I wouldn't be so rude as to avoid my host."
I spoke this aloud with a shake of my head even as the image locked into place.
I had already noted that Sebastian resembled Vincent Phantomhive. To the young, their fathers often represented the strongest thing in their lives for better or for worse. So the newly summoned demon had assumed a form that his master most preferred as a means of reassurance and security.
Ciel had tolerated the presence of an assassin to use her like a doll to give him a refresher on likely one of his few good memories of his parents.
He is not certain if we are an assassin at this point. We have thrown him off enough that he is reconsidering us being a potential threat. He is now considering us as a potential pawn.
I followed Lizzy's gaze to the photos on the mantle of her aunt and uncle.
"Mr Sebastian showed me their portrait on his tour today."
I walked over to the pictures and this earned another smile from Lizzy, this one a bit more watery.
"They were good people, Gwen."
I offered Lizzy a handkerchief pulled from a pocket in the skirt. Because Rachel Phantomhive was a woman of impeccable taste and that meant she had pockets even in her formal attire.
"Don't spoil Paula's work, sweetheart. You've got a party to dazzle in a few hours."
She dabbed lightly at her eyes, giggling.
"Dear Gwen, tonight you shall be the belle of the ball. And if anyone dares to tell you otherwise, then I shall set them straight for you!"
I smelt it in the air. Heard a faint hissing as a sleeping gas started to enter the room. Not a full dose yet, but it was starting. It was hanging low in the air. But it was building fast.
Secret tunnel. There has to be one, where is it?
There is. But it's too far. Morgana showed me where the switch was to open the passageway, but there was no way to reach it while hauling the young girl beside me. Lizzy swayed on her feet, a hand rising to her head as her determined expression wavered.
"Ohh, I-"
Paula collapsed seconds before her mistress did. I scrambled over to the desk and stationary, holding my breath. I popped an ink bottle open pulling my glove up to hurriedly write on my arm. The nib of the pen scratched my skin a little but I persevered.
Esuna to purge the gas from my system. Rennervate to wake me in a timely manner.
And with that, I dried the writing with another murmured spell, and pulled my glove back into place to cover my work. I didn't dare do more with Sebastian so close by. The resealed ink bottle, and a clean pen slid into my pocket. It was not Freed's lacrima pen, which let me write my spells with maximum efficiency, but it was better than nothing.
Help me make this look natural. Then I swooned and fainted dead away. Morgana took an out of body perspective as the kidnapper entered and happily picked me up to whisk me away.
It really isn't good that I'm running out of fingers on one hand to count the number of times I've been kidnapped.
-vVv-
"You must have lived quite a storied life to be so nonchalant about abduction."
I took a small sip of tea from my specimen jar, just cool enough to be drinkable.
"That, sir, is an understatement."