Humbled ((Undertaker X Reader))

Act Four: Deathly

Ciel took another sip of tea, emptying his cup as he set it back down and met my eyes once more,
"Confirm something for me, will you? You're a noble yourself, are you not? What on earth are you doing working in a place like this? Rather undignified, isn't it?"
How did he... How did he know?!
I double-checked the clothes I was wearing, earning a chuckle from the boy like he could read my thoughts,
"Please, it's obvious. You can wear a shabby dress but you'd do better controlling that sharp tongue if you want to hide your status."
"Well, for your information, I don't really presume it's any of your business why I'm helping out here."
The boy's eyes flashed a suspicion but whatever he was going to say, the earl kept quiet when the two men suddenly returned once more.
The butler approached his master and whispered something in his ear. I couldn't hear the specifics, but Ciel's eyes widened as he looked up to Sebastian,
"Are you positive?"
Without another word, the butler nodded, encouraging Ciel to pull himself up,
"Fine, we'll look into it then," He suddenly paused, thinking for a second more before he shivered with discomfort, "Actually, I want you to investigate that place."
"Oh my, you sound nervous? Pray tell, are you afraid?"

The two visitors were no longer paying attention to us as they moved to the door, their hushed speaking for each other only. Was that it then? All that trouble and they were just going to leave?
How annoying, and here I thought the Phantomhives were a family to be scared of.

When the door closed, the Undertaker turned his focus to me,
"Wasn't that fun? I do love when the little earl visits."
Fun? What part of that was fun?!
"Why do you let him talk to you like that?" I pushed myself to my feet to challenge the mortician myself, "You know you don't deserve that, right? He was a proper mule the entire time."
I didn't see The Undertaker's face while his back was to me, but his head rose and he hummed thoughtfully before giving a quiet chuckle,
"It's entertaining~ He's got quite the mouth on him, much like you, in fact. I don't mind it at all, I even find his attitude a little cute for a tiny child. Reminds you of a chihuahua, doesn't it?"
Cute? Yeah, I couldn't see it. No matter how young Phantomhive was, manners were manners. I never spoke to my parents in such a way at Ciel's age-
Well, I do now, much worse than that, but I'd say they've deserved it.
Suddenly, Undertaker turned back to face me,
"Oh yes! Your little mark, how is it feeling? It's still quite red."

That's right, I almost forgot about it. I touched it gently, feeling the festering stinging. Damn that man, how dare he put his hands on me.

"It'll be fine. Let's not talk about it.," Actually... I raised my head to examine the mortician carefully, "What about you? I hardly know much about you yet, now do I? Are you going to tell me more or not?"
For a strange reason, I didn't feel any hint of bubbling anger. Something in me told me I should, but when I forced my attitude as I spoke to Undertaker to make up for it, it didn't feel natural.
Why? Why was I not angry?! What was happening to me? I felt this way at the church too, what was going on with me?
The man cocked his head, his arms withdrawn into his chest curiously,
"Me? You would hardly care about an old man like me, even if I told you."
What a load of bull!
Why did he always evade questions about himself, what the hell was he hiding?
I thought back to the strange weapon before quickly shaking it off. No, I couldn't confront him directly, I already tried that.
Seemingly noticing my thinking, the man grinned,
"Are you that disappointed? I need to do something out in town. You're not scheduled today, so I'll let you stay here. Rest up, that little mark won't heal itself."
Sure, whatever-
Wait a second, what?
The Undertaker took my confusion at his words to slip away. Before I knew it, I was standing alone in the shop.
Damn it, throwing me off like that to avoid talking again!
No way, I wasn't going to just stay here alone!
How did he move so quickly?
Without thinking, I rushed out of the shop to try following the mortician.
Looking left, then right, I only saw a flash of his silver hair brushing past the street corner.
I took off running, suddenly not caring about anyone staring at me.
This damned guy, making me run! I was a noble, how dare he-!
As I made it to the corner, The Undertaker had already vanished.
Where... Do I go from here?
No, if I thought about it, I'd waste time and lose him for sure.
I pushed on, moving forward in hopes of catching a glimpse once again. This speed was... Inhuman!
As I ran, I looked down alley after alley, only ever seeing trash.

Then I heard a quiet bang, screeching me to a halt.
My eyes turned down the alley it came from, yet I bristled with nerves. What... Was that?
"Undertaker?" I called out, allowing my voice to carry down the shaded path, "Is that you?"
No response...
Was it safe to investigate? Should I?
Everything in my heart was telling me not to and keep going, but what if I ended up being wrong?
I should check, shouldn't I?
Damn it.

Carefully, I moved forward, pushing myself down the alley.
It was full of trash and smelled, forcing me to cover my nose as I continued.
The alley diverged into a left behind the building, and as I reached the corner, I peeked down the path.
"Hello?"
I called but... Huh, empty.
My nerves melted away, only making me feel a bit dumb.
It was empty, there was nobody else here, what was I doing?
Man, what a waste of time. I was about to keep forward and continue my attempted follow, but before I did, a quiet thud fell behind me.
What...
Before I could turn around, I heard something sharp clang, and an arm wrapped around my shoulders, holding me tight against the body that had appeared.
Crap, crap who was it?! Who followed me? Was I going to die? Was I going to become just another victim?
"Oh stop wiggling around," A male's voice complained, his grip tightening, "I'm trying to help you!"
Yeah, right! Why would I believe something like that?!
I pushed against the hold tighter before I changed direction and attempted to force myself backward.
The change in direction caused the man to huff in annoyed pain, but he wouldn't let go,
"Why are you nobles always so quick to walk into danger?! Look down, woman!"
Huh?
I hardly believed him, yet I did as I was commanded, and right in front of my feet was a prepared bear trap. Who the-
Who put something like that in an alley?!
"Don't you believe me now? You're not on my schedule, got it?!"
"What the hell is that doing here?"
I didn't trust whoever suddenly grabbed me, of course, but seeing how they stopped me from walking into a literal trap, perhaps, maybe, I was more willing to hear them out, even if they were still holding onto me.
"Geez, you really have no idea," He sighed as he relaxed his hold, "It's for stray dogs, the butcher set it out to prevent them from going through his trash. I've been watching this block all week, and I'm tired of stopping people from stepping into one. What happened to make humans so quick to walk into a sketchy alley? Just turn back around already."
"I can't," I snapped back, "I'm trying to pursue him; The Undertaker, he went this way, didn't he?"

The stranger hesitated quietly before suddenly dropping his arm,
"Are you serious? You're trying to follow that guy? Why for? Do you know him? Are you..." He giggled, "Are you an item?"
"No way-!"
I finally turned back to meet the stranger's eyes.
Right away, my vision flooded with a ravishing red.
The long red hair flowed around the stranger like a wall of fire, his eyes shining a warm emerald green behind his glasses
I didn't stare long when I noticed the charged chainsaw in his other arm. What... What the hell?!
Instinct kicked in and I stumbled back, making the red stranger lurch forward to grab me once again before I fell into the bear trap laying in wait.
He sighed, like saving me a second time was an inconvenience,
"Humans, honestly."
With a tug, I was pulled back to steady feet.
This guy-! Must he be so rude? I almost didn't want to say thank you with a tone like that. Yet his phrasings... He spoke like he wasn't one himself.
"While I appreciate you saving me," I pulled my hand away, "I'm going to get back to my pursuit before I lose him completely."
When I turned around, the redhead was swiftly at my side,
"Hey wait, you're just going to leave without so much as a thank you?! Why do you need to find The Undertaker so quickly anyway? What's the big idea?"