A/N: It's been what, 1.5 years? The way the last time I updated this story (or at all) was right before starting college. Now I'm about to enter my last finals season as an undergrad student, go into my last summer, and then go to pharmacy school 💀. Hooray, college :/
Whoever's still here... I'm amazed with the amount of my bullshit you're putting up with. Still thankful though. A lot has happened these near two years. Your girl is burnt out but she's trying her best :')
Yes, she was also motivated by the release of the new anime season.
The queen kept smiling despite the uproar she had caused and turned to face you with her still-amused expression. You could only heave a deep sigh of exasperation.
"Your Majesty... the horse is still on top of John," you pointed out as politely as possible. "Please end his suffering."
"Oh my, you're quite right."
Everyone sweatdropped as the queen casually directed her horse away from her poor attendant. There went her dignified image...
"Are you alright, John?" You helped the man up.
"I am perfectly fine, my lady."
"...You're bleeding everywhere."
"I am perfectly fine. Now, Her Majesty has something to say," the man deflected, blood still dripping from his head.
With a roll of your eyes, you grabbed a handkerchief and forced it into his hands.
"Stem the bleeding."
"...Thank you, my lady."
He did so obediently before directing your attention back to the queen as he went to help her down from her horse.
"The curry show was indeed exciting. With the fragrance in the room, I was reminded of the time I had curry with Albert on White Island," Queen Victoria began with a smile.
Oh. Oh no, was your only thought the moment the late king's name was spoken. There was a pause. Then...
"Oh, Albeeeert...." The queen went down on her knees with a sob. "I want to eat curry with you also!"
The crowd awkwardly stared. John simply kneeled down and spoke to her with a King Albert doll as you all watched on.
"Her Majesty seems like quite the complex character," Lau mused.
"Tell me about it," you mumbled at the same time Ciel said "Don't talk like that."
The boy's eyes snapped to you. "Just because it's true doesn't mean you should agree!" he hissed.
"But it's true. You even said it is just now."
"Still...!"
"Ahem!" Queen Victoria cleared her throat, straightening once again. "As I have received an invitation to be a judge, I have one vote, don't I?"
The crowd shifted, suddenly excited to hear her verdict.
"I have chosen... Funtom Company's butler, Sebastian. This is for you."
"WAIT, WHY?!" Harold West demanded before anyone could celebrate. "How could we lose to a doughnut stuffed with curry?!"
"Take a look around you," the queen responded cooly. She gestured to everyone in the hall, pausing at the children in particular.
Predictably, they made much larger messes than the adults around them, curry all over their faces and spilling onto their clothes unless they were eating the curry bun. Turning to the servants, you could see Finny with a wide and messy-with-curry smile.
With an affectionate sigh, you dabbed at his lips with a napkin.
"Are you enjoying the curry bun that much?" You asked with a smile. Well, either way, he helped out a lot by showcasing his eating habits.
Finny turned beet red, stuttering gibberish even after you had backed off.
"Haha, what are you getting so embarrassed for? It's satisfying watching you eat it so happily." You laughed obliviously, simply thinking the boy cute.
You turned back to face Queen Victoria again, unaware of Bard and Mey-rin stepping up to pat the gardener on the shoulders in emotional support. The queen had by now turned her focus to a lost Agni, presenting him with a gentle smile.
"Mr. Agni, was it?" she asked. "Your curry's flavor did not lose. It was a curry I would like to enjoy at the white tower."
"I do not deserve such words," Agni muttered, looking at the floor.
Having spoken her piece, Queen Victoria turned to you.
"Well done today, my dear."
"Thank you, your majesty."
She hummed in acknowledgement and moved away to look at the other curries. With that, you turned to face Agni.
"It really did look delicious, Agni," you chimed. "I was planning to have a taste after this, but I wanted to say that you made the competition quite fierce. You can be proud of your ability."
"Still, I have failed my duty."
Sighing, you rested a hand on his arm, giving him a reassuring pat.
"Agni, this loss is not a failure on your part. You cannot control the will and feelings of another person, regardless of their relationship to Prince Soma. You have done your best. You fought to protect his feelings. That in itself is you performing your duty, if not going beyond the expectations for your position."
Looking down, you could see that his fist was clenched. Softly, you grabbed his hands, unfurling his fingers, paying no attention to his tiny flinch of surprise.
"Do not blame yourself for this. And trust your prince to be strong enough to handle the truth. I believe that he has grown a little since the last time you saw him."
"Miss (Y/n)..." Agni teared up. "Thank—"
"MY LORD!"
Agni was interrupted by a shrill shout, one that had his eyes widening in horror. A young Indian woman rushed to West, and you knew immediately that it must be Meena. This was confirmed by Soma's shout of surprise not a second later.
"Meena!" Soma cried, rushing to pull her in a hug. "I've been looking for you for so long! You must have been so worried when you were kidnapped. But I finally found you. You don't have to worry anymore, so let's go home together!"
Agni trembled next to you.
"Agni," you muttered quietly, concerned. It was like he had already forgotten your words in his despair.
"Prince... Are you some kind of idiot?" Meena's voice was full of disdain. "Who do you think you are?! Come home with you? Don't make me laugh! Who would want to go back to that place?!"
By now, you could see that Ciel and Sebastian had caught on to what was going on. Agni fell to his knees as Meena continued her tirade.
"I'm sorry I didn't want to live bound by my social class! I took great pains to sneak out of India!"
"So you... wanted to... with West," Soma stammered.
"Of course. Even a child understands which is better between an ordinary cook and a rich wife. And I'm sick of such a selfish master!"
Agni was trembling, tears of blood streaming down his face, and you couldn't help but crouch down to comfort him regardless of etiquette.
"I didn't want him to learn the truth..." he sobbed near silently.
"Agni," you frowned. You reached our and wiped his tears before squeezing his shoulder to keep him from sinking further into the floor. "Look up. Look at your prince."
"But I—"
"Please." You could see in Soma's eyes that while he was hurt, there was a quiet determination in him. A mature look of understanding that you'd yet to see from him before, and you knew there would be no temper tantrum or childish cries.
Agni slowly raised his head as Soma spoke.
"Is that so," the prince said. Calm and even. "I'm sorry."
It was enough to make Agni's tears stop in their tracks, probably from the shock.
"Even though we were so close, I didn't understand Meena's feelings even a little bit. I'm sorry that I never thought about how I was being a bother, and for chasing you to England. Still, thank you for everything until now," Soma said.
Your expression softened the more he spoke. He was somehow making you quite proud. Perhaps it was the change, the clear development in his attitude since you'd first met.
"I was always blaming others until now. Being alone was my parents' fault. Meena's disappearance was West's fault. I was wrong. I did nothing but complain. No one would love a brat like that. But..." Soma walked up to Agni, and you nudged the butler gently on his back in support. "You stayed by my side."
Soma bent down to look Agni in the eye, and you pulled away to give them their moment.
"You stayed by my side even when we were separated. I've given you nothing but trouble until now, but will you stay by my side and still be my khan-sama? Agni?"
Agni began crying again, although this time, the tears were crystal clear.
"Yes."
"Well, it appears everything turned out for the best. Isn't that good, my dear? Boy?"
Queen Victoria came up once again, although not without addressing Ciel as well. You hid a smile as the young earl blushed and tried to tell the queen to stop calling him that. He's still a cute kid.
"Anyway," Ciel cleared his throat. "Your majesty, why did you come all this way today?"
"Well, I was at St. Sophia University's choir concert, but I heard both of your companies were competing in the curry fair, and I had to come see you. After all, I don't see my dear fox all too often anymore, and you only ever send letters and never visit."
Ciel looked away with dark eyes.
"Someone like me shouldn't be around Your Majesty very often."
"Ciel," you frowned.
"Please don't say such things," the queen said, patting his head. "You're so young but you already perform your duty just like your father Vincent."
Ciel remained quiet, and you silently placed your hand on his shoulder in quiet support. And then, the queen brought up Albert and sent herself into another round of tears, making you sweatdrop. As she cried on the ground, you pulled Ciel into a quick side hug that he would never admit he relaxed into.
"Don't talk about yourself like that," you whispered softly. He didn't reply, refusing to look at you, and you sighed, turning to look back at the spectacle of the queen.
It took another conversation with the Albert puppet before she was back on her feet again, but it seemed she had done what she'd wanted and was ready to leave. With a few parting words, she took off on her horse... leaving John behind. You were about to say something when he quietly slipped something into your hands.
"This is...?"
"From her majesty."
"I see. Speaking of, shouldn't you be following her now?" You raised a brow when he continued to just stand there.
"Ah." He straightened in realization and you could only watch with exasperation as he chased after the queen. You shook your head fondly. They were the same as ever. I wonder how the Charles duo is doing.
You tucked whatever John had passed you away just as Soma called out, "Ciel! (Y/n)!"
"Yes, Prince Soma?" You turned curiously.
"Thank you for winning. You have my gratitude."
Would you look at that. The bratty prince really grew up a lot in just a few days.
"There's no need to thank us," you waved him off.
"It wasn't really for you," Ciel added on. "It was for our own sakes."
"But the situation with Agni resolving itself was a nice bonus. I'm glad you're back and away from West, Agni," you finished with a smile in the Indian butler's direction. The man looked a bit embarrassed, earning a miniature side eye from everyone.
"Ciel, (Y/n)." Soma spoke again. The two of you turned to look at him questioningly. "If I'd never come to England, I probably wouldn't have learned the things I did. I would've stayed selfish and ignorant. But from now on, I want to try to learn all sorts of things. Someday, I'll become a great man who won't lose to anyone and show you!"
You were surprised by his determination, to say the least. But it wasn't an unpleasant surprise. Far from it. This prince before you was still naive, but he was a far cry from the brat that you had first met in the alleyway. Your face softened into an amused smile. Soma felt his entire body warm up, seeing that smile. It was the first time you'd looked at him like that.
"You've changed, prince. I look forward to who you'll become."
"I-I..." Soma stumbled over his words, unsure of how to handle the sudden thumping in his chest.
Ciel scowled. Good grief, not another one, he thought petulantly.
"If you just say it, it won't happen," the earl grumbled, effectively ruining the mood.
"It will!" Soma exclaimed, offended.
"Ah, of course," Ciel returned blandly.
"My, my, no need to fight," Sebastian cut in.
"Ah, that's right! Sebastian, congratulations!" Bard grinned, wrapping an arm around the demon's shoulders.
"Congratulations!" The other two of the idiotic trio chimed in.
"Oh! And Miss (Y/n) too!" Mey-Rin added.
"Yeah, you both did it!" Finny nodded along.
"I must admit, the idea of a curry bun was rather interesting. It seems the young marchioness is full of surprises," Lau said from behind you. "Though I suppose that shouldn't surprise me anymore."
You turned to see him giving you an amused smirk. Ran-Mao peeked out from his side.
"Interesting," she said plainly, staring at you. Somehow, that made you feel the most flustered. Maybe it was how simple and loaded the word was?
"Thank you, all of you. But regardless, as much as it pains me to admit it, Sebastian was the one that executed it perfectly for the judges today."
"I'm glad to see that you've finally accepted who the credit should go to, my lady," Sebastian leered. You glared in return.
"Shut up."
"My, my, such a crass way of speaking for a lady of your standing."
I should just strangle him.
The two of you were interrupted by Agni suddenly kneeling at your feet.
"Sir Sebastian, Miss (Y/n)," he uttered lowly. "I wonder how I should apologize for everything."
"Agni..." You knelt down, putting a calming hand on his shoulder before he could panic. "There's no need to apologize, as nothing you've done needs our forgiveness."
"At first, I regretted accompanying the prince to England, but now, I think it was a good thing. We've both learned a lot from you all. I feel that I must thank you somehow."
"My, we've already got something out of this situation. I think that's thanks enough." You smiled and patted him reassuringly.
"You've already been apologizing from the beginning," Sebastian added. "Regardless, we each fought for our own reasons. That's all there is to it. There's no need to thank us."
"Now stand up," you urged gently. You held out a hand, which he took shyly, and you pulled him up. With both butlers towering at either of your sides, you started walking forward. "The sun is setting, so let's go home."
The others followed like little ducklings. You let Sebastian and Agni chat in front of you, looking back to check on Ciel, the disaster trio, and then finally, Soma. Absently, you noted that Lau had disappeared, although you weren't too concerned.
Soma, who had surprised you quite a bit today, caught your eyes. A moment passed. And then his face scrunched up as tears filled his eyes.
Ah, he did seem to be taking things a little too well earlier. I suppose it's all catching up to him now.
With no warning, the prince flung himself onto you, knocking the breath out of you despite the fact you remained upright.
"What the—" Ciel spluttered at the sight in front of him, affronted that this buffoon practically tackled his sister. "What are you doing to her?!"
"UWAHHH," Soma sobbed. Loudly. And in your ear too.
You sighed, secretly a lot less annoyed by his antics than before, and patted his back.
"There, there," you drawled. Your new little soft spot for him didn't mean that you appreciated the snot he was wiping on you though.
"MEENAAaaAaaA"
As Soma continued to cry, you just patted his fluffy hair and held out a handkerchief.
"It's over now, prince. No need to waste your tears on that girl any longer."
Of course, he just kept crying, and you sighed once again before pressing the handkerchief to his face. Soma sniffled, trying to ignore the heat slowly creeping onto his face as you wiped his tears for him. You cringed a little as the snot dripped over his lips.
"Are you done crying now?"
"M-Mhm." Soma sniffed again, nodding.
"Good. No more tears. Not for her." You left no room for argument in your voice.
"Okay." Soma nodded, more firm despite his red-rimmed eyes.
With an approving nod, you led him by the hand to Agni, passing the prince to his butler. After all, the best comfort would probably come from the person who knew the prince best. You didn't notice the embarrassed look on Soma's face, nor the slight glare on Sebastian's. Agni did, and he just gave you a grateful smile in response.
"I'm glad that the prince and I came here to England."
"Oh?" You and Sebastian both looked at him curiously. Agni had probably gone through the most trouble by coming here.
"Yes, both the prince and I were able to make good friends."
The words were so pure and wholesome that you couldn't help the beaming smile on your face.
"It's been a pleasure getting to know you as well. I'm happy to be considered a friend."
Meanwhile, Sebastian pondered to himself.
"Friends, is it? That's the first time anyone has said that to me."
"That's not much of a surprise, now is it?" you jibed. Sebastian twitched and pinched you. Hard. "OW, you fu—"
"It wouldn't do to express such uncouth language in public, would it, my lady?"
You flipped him off. Soma looked between the two of you in confusion. Agni laughed. And once again, the sun set on you and Sebastian at each other's throats.
~-~-~-~-~-~-
It was later back at the mansion that you turned to Ciel, pulling out what John had given to you.
"Hm? What's that?"
You looked down at the tickets in your hand. Noah's Ark Circus. I see. You passed them over.
"Our next assignment from Her Majesty. I suppose we'll be investigating the circus coming to town."
"And what exactly about this circus are we looking at at?" Ciel asked.
"I'd assume it's kidnapping."
"Kidnapping?"
"Noah's Ark Circus. I've been hearing things about a trail of kidnappings following their performances. It would make sense that they're suspect. It seems too much of a coincidence for kidnappings to occur in every location they arrive at, in that order as well. Most likely, Her Majesty wishes for us to investigate and see if there is any evidence of such cases."
"Very well. I suppose we'll have to mark the performance in the schedule. Sebastian," Ciel called out.
"I will do so immediately, my lord."
Your gaze remained on the tickets, deep in thought. Noah's Ark Circus, huh? I doubt we're going to see anything with just the performance. Oh well, I'll figure it out later.
~-~-~-~-~-~-
You let out your longest sigh for the day, exhausted. You could've started your investigation if not for one minor detail.
"(Y/n)~!"
Soma attempted to tackle you in a hug from behind, which you dodged and quickly ran from.
Once he was out of sight, you let out a groan of frustration. Today, Randall would be arriving to discuss the Anglo-Indian incidents. The problem? Two of the most involved people were currently residing in the manor. Soma had given up on annoying Ciel and was now chasing you around, throwing himself at you left and right. And Agni... Actually, you hadn't seen Agni yet.
"Miss (Y/n)?"
Ah. Speak of the angel.
"Hello, Agni. Did you need something?"
"Not at all. I was just helping the others around the manor when I saw you."
"I hope they didn't cause too much trouble," you said. Already, you could imagine what kind of messes Agni probably had to clear up.
"No, no, it's no trouble at all. Besides, everyone seems to love it here. I cannot fault them for their earnestness."
"Well, they certainly are well-meaning. I can appreciate that sentiment," you agreed. It was why you were so fond of them despite the extreme spike in blood pressure they tended to give you.
"I imagine Miss (Y/n) and Sir Ciel have done a lot for them."
You hummed. "Is that so?"
"Yes. It seems they are quite fond of the two of you."
You felt a small smile grow on your face. You couldn't deny that you'd grown fond of them as well.
"Now, was there anything I could help you with, Miss (Y/n)?" Agni asked. "You looked rather troubled before I got here."
"Well..." You hesitated. This wouldn't hurt his feelings would it? "Actually, we'll be having guests for dinner today. It might be better if both you and Prince Soma were to remain away for the time being."
"Eh...?"
"What she means is that you and the prince should probably leave the manor," another voice cut in.
"Sebastian," you snapped. "I didn't mean it like that. I just meant he should remain out of sight while Randall was here. And to keep Soma in line."
"And they can do that by leaving the manor," Sebastian stated blandly. Was he salty that you seemed to favor the other butler? Yes. Of course not.
"M-May I ask why?" Agni looked utterly confused and flustered. "Did we do something wrong?"
"It's nothing against you," you reassured. "It's just that the guests are from the Scotland Yard, and the lead investigator in the Anglo-Indian incidents wished to discuss them with us."
"Could it be he came to capture me?!" Agni panicked.
"Of course not," Sebastian said, unimpressed. "No one knows the identity of the culprit. Please calm yourself."
"Well, Sebastian is unfortunately right for once." A glare burned into your skull. "There's no need to worry so much. And regardless, we have no plans to turn you in."
"Still, those incidents were my fault. Shouldn't I be punished properly for my sins?"
"Agni, please. You've already gone through a lot. I'd say you've faced punishment already," you frowned. Not to mention it wouldn't be good for the Yard to see that we've bonded with the culprit. They might get the wrong idea. Especially that old fuck, Randall.
Agni only looked sullen.
"Don't tell me you want to turn yourself in?"
Agni flinched guiltily. This time, Sebastian frowned, clearly disapproving.
"If you were not here, what would happen to Prince Soma? Will you break your promise to stay by his side?"
"But—"
"No, that's enough, Agni," you cut in. "The incidents have already been resolved, and you've been punished enough. Prince Soma needs you to stay by his side, so do not turn yourself in for something you should no longer feel guilty for. Instead, you will stay with Prince Soma, out of sight of our guests this evening. Is that understood?"
Agni looked to the floor. It made you feel a little bad, like you'd kicked a puppy. But you stood your ground. It was for everyone's sake.
~-~-~-~-~-~-
That had happened earlier, so why was it that you and Sebastian were desperately trying to keep Agni hidden now? There wasn't much you could do, having to be inconspicuous with your powers as a result of Randall and Abberline constantly speaking to you.
At least it was amusing to see Sebastian at the end of his rope while dealing with Agni and Soma. Although the stress of Agni being so close tor revealing himself definitely put a damper on it. By now, Ciel was handling most of the conversation, so the other two men had let up on you. As a result, you ambled behind them, keeping a lookout.
You sensed Agni before you actually saw him. Your eyes widened, darting to Sebastian, who was still on the upper floor after dealing with Soma, before darting back to the door. Just as the door opened, you grabbed Agni and covered his mouth with your hand. At the same time, Sebastian, who hadn't anticipated your reaction speed, had gotten all the lights to go out.
In the dark, you could feel Agni's lips against your palm and the heat of his face. Ignoring that and taking advantage of the darkness, you quickly shoved him back through the doors and down the hallway a fair distance. Once you were certain you were out of earshot, you backed him into the wall with a glare.
"What are you doing, exactly?" you asked, finally removing your hand from his mouth.
"I-I..." Unfortunately, Agni could only stutter, flustered by the proximity of your face.
"I thought we told you to stay out of sight."
"But I—"
"That's enough with that. Listen, Agni. We're trying to protect not only you and Prince Soma, but ourselves as well. Please consider that you are not the only one who would receive punishment and trouble should you reveal yourself here in this manor, which associates you with us."
"I...I hadn't thought about that..." Agni mumbled, looking down. "I apologize, for causing you so much trouble."
"Look, no more apologizing, okay? Seriously, this guilt complex of yours is something else."
Agni opened his mouth to apologize again, but you only shushed him with a finger to his lips. What could you say to get him to stop?
"Let me protect my friends, alright?"
That seemed to do the trick, because he teared up and nodded.
"Good, now keep yourself out of sight with Prince Soma."
You watched him leave, letting out a sigh of relief now that it was finally over.
...
Of course you spoke too soon. Soma had ambled into the dining hall just as you and Ciel were about to close off the discussion. Agni followed right after, seemingly trying to get the prince back to his room. It was a bit surprising to see that your talk really had changed his mind about turning himself in. Although Soma clearly just never worked according to plan either.
"They're... Indians?" Randall looked baffled. You withheld a groan.
"These two are the Prince of Bengal, Soma, and his servant Agni," Ciel explained. He had that look on his face, the one that was polite but irritated. Unfortunately, there was no hiding the two at this point, so you'd just have to roll with it.
"But they..." Abberline looked just as confused.
"These two are our friends, and are therefore residing in the manor as guests at the moment," you smiled thinly.
"That's right," Ciel sighed.
"Ciel~! (Y/n)~! You admitted that we're friends! You really think of me that way!"
Soma wrapped his arms around your neck with a beaming smile, practically choking you.
"Who's a friend?!" Ciel twitched. "And let go of her!"
"Cielllll~" Soma launched himself at the young boy too, bringing him into a hug.
You sweatdropped as Ciel struggled in the prince's grip. Lord Randall looked just as bemused, which was slowly turning into annoyance at not understanding the situation. Sebastian seemed to read the situation and poured him a drink.
"Apologies for the fuss," he said in that "gentlemanly" tone of his. "Now, to settle this incident, let me offer this as congratulations."
That seemed to appease the old man and his successor enough.
It's finally over.
What you wouldn't give to just go to bed and forget this day ever happened.
~-~-~-~-~-~-
With the Soma and Agni situation finally resolved, Ciel having relocated them to his London townhouse, you could relax a bit. You had to give the boy credit—he certainly knew how to take advantage of people's goodwill and earnestness. Using the prince's desire for independence to manipulate him into leaving you all alone... you almost felt sorry. But it was probably better off those two didn't get too involved in the mess your work brought about.
You adjusted your coat again, feeling the wind blow your hair into your face. The circus tickets rested comfortably in your pocket as you took Sebastian's hand and stepped into the carriage.
It wasn't long before the performance. It was time to investigate a circus.
A/N: We have reached the circus arc, woo. Will I finish it or will it finish me? Who knows...