All the indiscreet murmurs and evident whispers floating around the church were not only becoming obnoxious, but rather gratuitous as well. Friends and families who should be crying and mourning the loss of a loved one where instead mumbling about how her life was wasted being a doctor, about how she could have had an extravagant life and another wealthy marriage with her beautiful appearance. Sitting in the pew behind me, I could hear a woman speak to her husband about how scandalous the whole affair with Madame Red had been and how she completely wished Angelina would have just accepted her fate of not being able to become a mother. Apparently, no one really knew how she had passed away, which fed their hunger for gossip. Oh, how she would have loved to be among the others to join in with the whispers.
"Did you place the flowers?" I asked Rodric with a small sigh. I felt his hand pull the dark veil out of my face, and I was able to see the red roses clearly now. They adorned her coffin and contrasted beautifully with the bleached scenery, though I couldn't help but cringe. Madame Red would not have loved the lack of... well, red. Luckily to aid this abnormality, Rodric had skillfully arranged the roses to be placed throughout the inside of the church. At the front of the aisle, right in the center was a girl with long, blonde curled ringlets of hair tied in two pigtails. She was sobbing softly, and her handkerchief continued to dab her tears dry as her muffled cries echoed in the large room. I had never seen this girl before, though she seemed to have been rather fond of Madame Red. Listening to the priest begin to speak once again, I lowered my veil. My scar had not healed yet and I was not in the mood to be bombarded with questions about it. However, there was still a certain problem I needed to address that pestered me more than the scar and the mysterious blonde girl; Ciel Phantomhive was nowhere in sight.
"She has departed from us now, as all mankind must leave earth, as someday we all must." he continued as Rodric and I bit back our smirks, amused at the blind faith these foolish citizens had, "Her flesh will turn into ashes, but her spirit will remain with the Lord."
Even through this amusement, I continued to scan the cathedral for the boy with the beautiful blue eyes and eye-patch.
"May God watch over her eternal soul, and keep--"
The doors to the church flew open at that moment, abruptly cutting off the priest. Every head turned towards the entrance to see who could be interrupting this depressing event so dramatically, and as the wind from outside blew the petals off the scarlet roses Rodric had placed, the person everyone was searching for appeared.
"You're here..." I mumbled, letting a small smile grow upon my lips. Ciel Phantomhive.
"Is that the Phantomhive boy?"
He walked down the aisle coolly, holding a bright red dress in his arm while Sebastian waited at the doorway, seemingly hiding from the public eye. All attention was now towards Ciel, and he paid no attention to anyone else.
"With a scarlet dress..."
"How inappropriate."
The clicks of his shoes with each step further silenced the people within the church. As he approached the middle of the aisle, the more noticeable his expression was: devoid of emotion, just as Sebastian seemed to be as he looked on inside from his post at the door. There was a red rose pinned to the front of his black suit, and half of his hair was gelled back, his eye-patch seemingly matching the entire attire. It was clear he was ignoring the undue whispers, as his only focus was getting to his deceased relative. I stood up along with the rest, noticing his determined gait.
"Not so. Think of how she loved the color red."
Finally, Ciel reached both women and paused, his shoulders square as he looked into the casket. He did not grace the sniffling girl with a second glance and instead jumped over the first few steps where she had been bent over in tears, landing beside the intricate box. He looked down at his beloved and departed Aunt Angelina, now expressing a sorrowful and desolate smile.
"White flowers and plain dresses didn't suit you in life, and they don't now."
"Poetic," I mumbled, then waved my hand to Rodric, indicating to go and play a part in Sebastian's task. He bowed his head and stepped out of the pew quietly, slipping out of the church without a sound.
"You belong in red," Ciel continued, taking off his red rose and tucking the flower into her ruby hair, "the color of passion, the color of spider lilies..."
I felt an ache deep within my chest as Ciel spoke. Yuki had looked at me with the same expression when my mother had died. I understood what it felt like to lose someone special.
"Farewell, Aunt An," Ciel spoke, pulling me out of my thoughts. The girl with blonde curls gazed at him, her hands clasped tightly to her chest. She turned to watch everyone when her eyes locked onto the entrance, where again the petals began to float inside. Only this time, it was clear that Sebastian, Rodric and a man with incredibly long gray hair and dark robes were to blame for this beautiful scene. There was a small coach filled to the brim with red roses, and everyone watched in awe. Ciel had outdone himself.
...London bridge is falling down, falling down, falling down...
Why would children be playing nearby a funeral service? My eyes strained to see past the small carriage and find the source of the nursery rhyme, but it was to no avail since I had the laced headdress on. Breathing in deeply and brushing off the odd tune, I calmly stepped out of my pew and into the aisle, stepping towards Ciel. The girl made room for me as I reached for the casket and even Ciel moved away as I pulled out my own red rose, placing it in Madame Red's hands and clasping them shut.
"Repose en paix1, Madame Red," I mumbled.
-
The light coming in through the window brightened the hallway as the sun began to set, and Lau gave us both a questioning look. "You're not going to report the true identity of Jack the Ripper to the Queen? After everything you both went through?"
"I don't think it's necessary. She simply instructed us to stop the incidents. And now, we have seen to that." Ciel responded, looking out the vast amount of windows. Ciel's eye was dry but I could see his wavering emotions. Lau was tugging at these heart strings purposely, the lousy drug trafficker.
"When did it become your job to watch over your keepers, Lau?" I asked, placing a hand on Ciel's shoulder. Both demon butlers shared a look, but I brushed it off with a sneer. Demons would never know the pain humans often felt. But in a world as cruel as this, it's break or be broken. Ciel did not strike me as one to be easily broken, but neither did my parents. And now they're both six feet underground.
"Your world is full of quicksand, and you keep letting yourself sink further and further in," Lau said with a smirk, his eyes closed, "but even if you reach the point of no return, and all looks lost, you'll still never call out for help."
Ciel's eye twitched with agitation but stayed silent.
"No, none of us will hear Lord Phantomhive's pathetic screams. The Queen's Dog is too proud for that. This makes you a formidable opponent. I'll have to be careful around you."
My hand dropped from its perch on Ciel's shoulder and I flattened my black dress out, my eyes flitting from the marble floor to Lau. "Now that you mention it, opium dens are beginning to become a problem. If you want to get out, now's the time."
Lau chuckled and raised his arms, shrugging his shoulders as he did so. "If I did that, I'd have to think of another business to run, and that sounds like more trouble than it's worth."
"Well, you could always go back to your home country." Ciel finally commented.
"Oh, but I haven't exhausted my interest in this country quite yet," Lau said, pushing himself away from the window. Ciel pulled out his top hat and Lau bent down between Ciel and me, whispering into his ear loud enough for me to listen.
"Or for that matter, in you, my lord and countess. I fully expect more interesting challenges from you both"
I watched Lau walk away, uninterested in his speech. There was something that needed to be done.
"We have somewhere to go. Come." I command, walking away from the Queen's Watchdog and his butler. Rodric follows me closely behind and I pause, glancing back at them. "I need you to come with me, Phantomhive. It involves us both."
-
"This is her?"
"Yes, indeed it is." I sighed, finally pulling away at the veil that had shadowed my face all evening. I gripped the material in my hand as I looked down at the gravestone, my eyes clouded with pity.
"My last customer from the Jack the Ripper." The strange long haired man said. Rodric and Sebastian had informed me that he was, in fact, the Undertaker. An informant of sorts. I had to admit, he gave off an unsettling aura. Following our orders, both demons were waiting at the bottom of the hill with separate carriages to take each of us back to our respective manors. The Undertaker volunteered to personally escort us to Mary Jane Kelly's grave, and Ciel had agreed since he apparently knew him much better than I did.
"Apparently she was an immigrant. She had no family in the country to claim her body." I continued to explain. Ciel stared at me from my side and I ignored him, knowing he would probably find this act of kindness foolish. "If she hadn't been there when she was, I'm sure the events would have taken a different turn."
"So our kindhearted Countess here hired me to pretty her up, even had this gravestone erected." The Undertaker chuckled, leaning against his shovel beside me, "A truly noble act on her part, eh?"
He prodded at my cheek with his long fingernails and I cringed in disgust, slapping his hand away every so often as he spoke. Noble? Me giving her a proper resting burial is noble?
"This isn't noble at all." I spat, finally shoving him away angrily. "The noble thing to do would have been to save her. It would have been to help her and give her a chance at a better life than what she was living... And I could have if I had not let my passion for competition shroud my better judgment... But no, I had to catch them before Ciel. Apprehending Jack the Ripper was more important. I didn't think my actions through... and lives were lost..."
"You're not wrong, Adelina," Ciel interjected, stepping in. He pointed his cane to the grave, inflamed. "If I would have just paid more attention to detail, maybe Madame Red would have been saved... but I too was caught up in the order from the Queen. All I wanted to do was catch them."
"You regret what you did, my Nobles?"
"No. I don't." Ciel and I both replied, glaring at the Undertaker. He giggled and swayed back and forth, his shovel digging deeper and deeper into the earth below us.
"Jack the Ripper is gone forever, and I've done exactly as Her Majesty asked me."
Ciel was right of course. Our duties were to the Queen, and to the Queen alone. Nothing else mattered in our line of work.
"There's nothing to regret. We can only hope that we made the right choice."
"Victoria, eh? I don't much like her. She just sits back and watches while you do all her dirty work for her. Doesn't seem fair to me." Undertaker scoffed, to which I glared at him for.
"There's no point in complaining about fairness. The world itself is unfair and cruel; everyone must deal with what place they are put in, no matter how unfair, how dark or how low." I snapped, throwing my veil to the ground. "There's only two types of people in this world: those who break and those who are broken."
At this, Undertaker tried to hug me while Ciel watched, cringing. After a while, I managed to finally shove him off, and when I thought I was free, he snatched me by the collar of my dress, pulling me close enough to be able to smell the dog treats in his breath.
"I didn't-- Stop--!"
I could hear Ciel's shocked gasp behind me and he took a few steps towards us, his voice entirely critical. "Undertaker, let her go this instant."
I began shaking with fury and slight panic. The last time I had been grabbed this roughly was when...
...She's a whore! A noble whore!...
...Break her! She's nothing more than fine china waiting to be cracked!...
I felt myself suddenly stumble back and I shut my eyes, falling into someone's arms. Ciel looking down at me quickly before snapping his head back up to face the Undertaker, who was chuckling as if he had just heard a joke and not thrown me a few feet backward.
"Lord Phantomhive, you should be wary of the path down which duty will take you; Countess DelMare may not have seen all of you yet, but the more you two understand each other, the less you will want to have known."
"And we wouldn't want that now, would we?" I spat, glaring at him.
He ignored me and began walking away, swinging his shovel in circles down the hill. "Do come by if you should need my assistance again. Your first impression had made a lasting one, Lady DelMare."
We watched him disappear down the slope, and I eventually realized I was still hanging in Ciel's arms. Quickly pulling away with an embarrassed expression, I sighed and picked up the bouquet of flowers the Undertaker had left behind, brushing off the dirt that had fallen on them. The day was darkening.
-
The white flowers on her grave blew in the wind, and Ciel somewhat awkwardly placed a hand on my shoulder, making a small smile break out on my features.
"It was noble." He said and my smile instantly vanished.
"Don't make me repeat myself. What I did wasn't noble..."
"I would have done the same," Ciel admitted, looking down at the tomb.
I spun to glare at him, not wanting to be patronized. "Tell me, Ciel. Why didn't you kill her?"
Ciel blinked a few times before stepping back, his surprised expression shifting to a more grave one as I continued on, not caring if I struck a nerve. I was growing weary and fed up with being canonized for each action that I make for being a woman. I don't make decisions out of mercy, I make them with intentions to create a better path for myself.
"Your own aunt was threatening you. It seemed like she was going to take your life. You could have stopped her. You could have defended yourself if you wanted to, but you hesitated. I saw the gun hidden in your waistline, Ciel. Even then, you refused to draw your gun. Even after I threw myself in harm's way to make sure you stayed unharmed, you refused to draw your weapon.
"Were you afraid of killing Madam Red? With your own hands? Would it have been easier for you if she was a stranger instead of someone who was your own flesh and blood? It may have been my decision to put myself in danger for you, but you could have stopped this Jack the Ripper business before I needed to even consider that choice."
I was breathing unevenly now, but I didn't care. Most of my emotions stayed bottled up until a point like this happened. Deep down I regretted yelling at him like this, but I also wanted to know why. Finally, Ciel spoke, closing his eye.
"I held back because it was not my job." he answered, to which I raised an eyebrow in amusement at his coolness.
"Then whose job was it then, Ciel Phantomhive."
"My butler." he said, and before I could speak, he held a finger up for me to allow him to continue. "Our contract demands that he serve me and that he protect me with his very life until I achieve my goal. Until that time I'm not worried for my safety. Identical to yours."
No, not identical. A crucial and important detail that differs my end to yours...
"Am I wrong?"
"I suppose not," I admitted, seeing his reasoning. "She was a pawn then; a lost piece."
Ciel smirked slightly and nodded, crossing his arms and glancing at the grave once again. "One wrong move can cost your life. Just like chess. She hesitated and lost sight of her next move. That's all there is to it. That's why I don't hesitate."
"Well then," I said, curtsying slowly. "I bid you a good night, Lord Phantomhive. May your pieces fall in place, and may you avoid the traps your opponents set for you. I hope we meet again soon."
Ciel nodded and bowed his head, extending his hand to me. Out of common courtesy, I gave him my own hand and he brought it to his lips, repeating the process that we made when we first met. "And to you as well, Countess DelMare. I hope that your scar heals soon. It would be a shame to have to be reminded of this day every time we meet."
With that, I walked away, taking my time to get down the steep hill carefully. Sebastian was making his way towards the top of the hill and he paused to bow lowly to me as we passed each other by, bidding me a good night. A good night it would be if I didn't have nightmares to keep me awake.
-
"Bendable souls are forbidden, you do recall that ruling, don't you Rodric?"
The Crow demon sneered, stepping out of the dark shadows of the trees behind him. Meters in front of him stood the being that would soon become his comrade; his partner throughout both their malevolent journeys to reach the ultimate goal. A delectable and utterly mouthwatering meal.
"I am perfectly aware, Sebastian. And you recall that we are both demons that refuse to follow conduct?"
Sebastian Michaelis chuckled, the sound no longer foreign to the other. He had come to learn that this demon was one of the snidest and derisive creatures in the Underworld. Although, he was also one of the most respected and superior, along with the Spider demon and himself, the Snake demon.
"I'm surprised to see you working above in the same line as myself," Sebastian admitted, continuing on. He finally stood face to face with Rodric Maldoris. Both demons smirked wide, seeing how their heights continued to match even after transformation. "As tedious as being a butler is, there never is a dull day."
Rodric shook his head slightly, his hair sweeping itself back to allow more room for crimson eyes to meet mauve ones.
"I'm sure you have your own reasons for taking on this contract," Rodric responded while raising his hand to his pocket. "Which is why we're here, is it not?"
Sebastian mimicked the other's movement and pulled out a colorless rose, it's petals dripping bleached hues in the midst of the night. Both demons held their roses high, the moonlight brightening the scene. Sebastian pulled out his sharpened blade and easily sliced into his porcelain skin, letting the drops of ruby fall to the ground before dipping the rose below it, tainting its petals a vermilion tint.
"My master's soul is attracted to hers," Sebastian said, bringing his wrist to his lips. "And it bends towards it in such a mortal manner that it must be mutual."
The Snake demon opened his own skin and nodded, letting his blood fall onto the petals just as the other had. "The first time her soul bent, it was so sudden that I nearly lost my grip on it. I know when it bends now, so I am able to keep it under control. But because of your master, it stretches to him far more than I had ever seen it do before."
With a snap of both wrists, the roses were flicked into the air and caught, repeating the same process as before. White roses were now tinted a violet-black, and each carefully pocketed the flowers with a small bow of their heads.
"Bendable souls are unusually rare. No mortal knows how to contract a demon before birth. I cannot wait to see if my Master's soul is compatible with hers, because if it is... this will be one hell of an adventure."
-
| R E F E R E N C E P O I N T S |
1.) "Repose en paix," means Rest peacefully or Rest in peace in French
-
...My Countess orders, I obey; Anyone who dares interfere, will have Hell to pay...