Summary: And Here Ciel thought that he would be the one saying goodbye early. "No Lizzy, don't you dare leave me! I...I'm not ready!" CielxLizzy

Note: Hello, Troublesome_Monkey_dono signing in! Honestly, I should be focusing my imagination on two unfinished fanfics right now. However, this idea kept me awake for weeks now. I'm not sure why. Actually, I was never a fan of this franchise, but I did find this particular couple endearingly cute. So anyway, I hope to finish this fanfiction quickly so I can focus on those that I neglected.

Disclaimer: Well, fanfiction implies, I own nothing regarding this franchise and its affiliates. I am merely here because I wish to write (not well, I might add) and enjoy myself.

CONTRITION

Chapter One: Waver

Ciel Phantomhive has always thought his fiancée was cute. There really was no real reason to believe otherwise. Elizabeth Midford had always, always been cute. Her face was adored by many, as it was an impeccable design outlining the beauty of her mother and layered with all the tenderness that the Marchioness lacked. The covers of frills she insists on wearing had always been immaculately designed to enhance the ever cherubic attitude that she possessed. Ciel was almost sure Lizzy was forever caught in a bubble of cuteness, a place perhaps that was painted with happiness and warmth that he often cringed away. Yes, Elizabeth Ethel Cordelia Midford, had always been considered cute.

And there were many times that Ciel had detested her for it.

At the youthful age of five, a very pretty Lizzy had learned that Ciel could never really refuse her. She found that there was a certain way she had managed to shape her face that would send the Young Earl in a frenzy of confusion, delight, and hot hot embarrassment. She wasn't quite sure what 'face' she would make, but she learned that a crinkle of her nose, doeful emerald eyes, and that certain pout had all but sent the lad toppling back in agreement to whatever her ridiculous demand would be. And so, as cunning as any toddler could manage, she had fully equipped this certain 'face' to her repertoire for later use.

And now, ten years later, she employed the same look on her childhood fiancé. She had hoped, perhaps in desperation, that it would be enough to coax the Young Earl away from his business for a small amount of time to unwind. She had fretted over the teen, who she found scribbling away on his desk, amidst towers of unsorted papers, pamphlets, and books. According to Sebastian, Ciel had been working through the night and had sent the sulking butler away after repeated attempts to make him rest.

"Well, that's all fine," she had said to Sebastian, "I shall draw him out." She had sent the Butler away to the market and run some errands in town, as she resolved to slip into the irate teen's office to lure him out with kind words and that certain 'face' of hers. She supposed that her method was crude, cliché, and quite ineffective given the certain circumstances. Ciel was as hard headed as she, conceivably more so when it came to his work. Ciel had demanded perfection and Funtom had operated on this basis alone.

Still, she must try, because that is her purpose. "Come now Ciel," she cooed out from where she stood. "The company will not be demolished in a day. Surely you could spare a few hours of rest." She was sorely tempted to add, "You look horrendous as it is." But, she kept to herself as she knew stroking a man's ego was better than challenging it. Even though Ciel would never admit it, he was sensitive with his appearance. While the two have finally breezed through puberty, gaining all the happy surprises that it offered, Ciel had managed to gain height but none of the weight. It had only cemented his visage as a sickly teen, sorely lacking in muscles and firmness. Quietly, she noted the present dark circles that outlined his tired blue eyes. He was paler than usual, she thought distastefully to herself. The ragged hair and rumpled attire was doing little to improve the stapled scowl marring her handsome beloved's face.

To her surprise, the flicker of anger had appeared in Ciel's irritated visage. He only spared a glance before returning to the paperwork on hand, hands furiously shuffling papers together in a mess his tired brain could only manage to understand. "Ciel," Lizzy began once more. Finally, she had edged closer, a firm hand placing itself on his right shoulder, "please."

"Later Lizzy," his clipped voice rasped out. He cleared it momentarily, irritation bubbling once he found his throat was painfully dry. He almost pushed Lizzy away as he reached for the pitcher of water and gulped down a glass quickly before passing her as he stretched his legs and strode over to a pile of books near his bookshelf. "In the meantime, I'd rather you go to the study and...read." He put a little more thought on what he thought Lizzy actually did if he was busy, but he found he couldn't think of any source of entertainment well worth enough for his bubbly fiancée.

Once he turned to her, a selected book on hand, he merely handed it to her and went on with his business. Lizzy took it silently, an unreadable expression on her face as she scanned a thick Book of Fairytales. One hand traced the cover mindlessly, her calm expression suddenly laced with insult. "Ciel," she drawled out slowly, "I'd rather you be in bed." She placed the book on his desk steadily, staring back at her beloved with a steely expression. "Or Perhaps you would enjoy a hot bath before bed?" She couldn't help muse out jokingly, "And I could even read these Fairytales to coax you to sleep. Wouldn't that be nice?"

She was hardly prepared for what came. There was a sharp sting on her left cheek and she stumbled back in surprise as the force had suddenly overcome her balance. Shaking hands placed themselves over her pain, and widened eyes openly stared at their source. "C-ciel!?" she yelped out quickly. Ciel was standing, right hand already bought up high, as if to slap her once more. She stared, openly horrified at his expression, before shouting, "Ciel Stop!" She could only brace herself once more once she spotted the fast movement of his hand. "Ciel!"

And Ciel willed his hands to stop. He wasn't sure what was happening now. He wasn't sure what had come over him. What was happening? The sudden realization dawned on his face and he bought his hand down, eyes wide with surprise and worry. "I-" he started out before choking. "I didn't..."

That was the moment when Lizzy finally broke. The look of betrayal flashed across her face and she pressed her hand harder against her throbbing cheek as she narrowed her tear stained eyes at him. Her delicate mouth and twisted into a scowl, lips pursing as she held back tears. Never, not once, had Ciel ever hit her. Not once. Until now. This time, there was no Sebastian to stop him.

She finally let out a whimper.

Arms engulfed her tiny frame then. She couldn't help but flinch at the action, half expecting Ciel to continue his rampage and push her away from his office with the strength he suddenly gained. But arms, held her tightly where she was, and she only heard Ciel sigh against her ear. Silently, she allowed herself to cry, accepting perhaps the hard fact that Ciel was having a hard time apologizing to her.

And Ciel was. It was never in his nature to openly apologize, as he had often acted with purpose and direction. Yet, as of this moment, he was abnormally confused. He was irritated, increasingly so, by just about everything. He found faults in his paperwork, that practically had him wanting to dispose of the cluster with an inferno of ashes and gunpowder. He found that the pang of hunger, thirst, and lack of sleep was finally hammering away at his disposition. And God forgive him, he found that his adorable and loving fiancée's presence was stifling and displeasing at the moment.

"I sound selfish," he thought to himself, as he bought the weeping Lizzy closer against him. "God, I'm selfish." He held tight on the girl that was now the source of his ever increasing irritation. He wasn't sure why he was so openly hostile with her at the moment. Even at his weakest, he had never faulted his fiancée before. So why now?

Critical eyes scanned her tear-stained face and he couldn't help but grow even more concerned as he felt the growing pool of irritation wash over his stomach like a wave. Why? Why was he so irritated at her? Why did her petty comment send him over the edge so quickly? Why did her sudden appearance warrant his desire to cringe away from her in annoyance? Why does her crying face suddenly inspire him to push away and scoff at her weakness? Why was he so...

"Ciel...," Lizzy's voice hitched near his ear. She pressed herself close to his chest, forehead pressed against the curve of his neck, and she silently held tight on the small of his back. "Do you hate me?"

Rage filled him then. Ciel was suddenly caught in a flurry of irritation, anger, displeasure, and pure unadulterated hatred. Arms held tight on the tense girl in his arms and he wrenched his face away to examine her. Why was he even with a woman like this? This one was so...she was so emotional, so broken, so pathetically weak? She, who basked in the sunny laughter of a colorful world, felt nothing for those who silently suffered away in the background. Why he did he bother feeling concern for a woman who felt that vanity was more important? Why did he tolerate and respect her when she held no respect to principles of organization, professionalism, and perfection? Why did he -

He stopped himself then and untangled away from her. These thoughts were dangerous now. He was too irritated to think clearly. He was too distraught to act properly. All he knew now was the anger and irritation he had felt towards the sharks he was dealing with was now wrongfully directed at his wonderful, adorable, loving fiancée. And here she was, upset and betrayed, asking of questions that he neither had the energy nor the brain cells to answer properly.

"Lizzy...," he trailed off tiredly. Tongue - tied and beyond any measure of wisdom or clarity, he merely sighed and nodded securely. He loved her. Of course he did. Who did not love Lizzy? Wearily, he watched as she blubbered for a moment before offering a handkerchief he forgot was shoved in his breast pocket.

"B...b-but if you love me...then why did you...?"

There it was again. The sudden bout of irritation that was rising from the pit of his stomach. It washed over him before he could stumble back and recover. Why was she even daft enough to question his love? He had practically showered her with everything she could possibly want. He had tolerated her presence since the fateful agreement six months ago that she would continue to live the remainder of the summer in his Manor in order for the 'lovebirds' to understand the 'responsibilities of raising a proper home together.' He had tolerated her daft ideas, followed her ridiculous requests, and she dare question his faithfulness to her?!

Silently, menacingly, Ciel caught himself sneering at her. "What do you think?" he growled back before he could clamp his mouth shut. He had barely enough time to think before he found Lizzy had bolted away, throwing open his office door and scampering off in wretched sobs.

Fuck.

"What did you do...?" he released a panic breath. He stared at the shaking hand that had, upon reflex, reached out for her. He found it was starting to throb and his panic doubled. "What the hell did you do?!"

"What do you mean she's not here!?" Ciel roared at the cowering servants, "She has to be here! Search again!" He sent Meyrin, Baldroy, and Finnian in a panic, legs and arms colliding in a jumble of confusion as they ran to and fro searching for the lost Lizzy. Ciel was seething were he stood, hand wrapped firmly on the wooden banister of the stairs, eyes scanning and brain thinking of endless possibilities. His lips were curled tightly into a frown so deep, Sebastian was sure it was sutured on by Grell himself.

A critical eye studied his young master and Sebastian subtly came to the conclusion that was obvious from the start. "Lady Elizabeth is not here Young Master," he announced with all the obvious tact of an amused demon. "Perhaps she's gone to home to visit her mother."

Ciel merely shot him a look, daring him to say more. He was well aware of that amused smirk that suddenly played around the demon's lips. Sebastian had a certain air about him. One that suggested he was well aware of what had ensued between the quarrelling love birds. While it was distressing to find Elizabeth had fled to god-knows-where, the amusement of finding his young master radiating waves of panic, irritation, and overbearing worry was enough for him to enjoy watching. It was delicious to watch.

"Then get off your damned lazy demonic behind and bring her back!" He spat venomously, one hand gripping the wooden banister tightly, he was sure he causing splinters of wood to press themselves against his exposed skin. With his jaw tightened like vice grip, he sauntered off to the safety of his bedroom, narrowingly dodging the open office door. He glanced briefly at the mess he left behind before muttering darkly under his breath. It was as if a behemoth had paraded around the room, throwing stacks of documents on the floor like confetti and throwing books and ornaments as though it were practicing darts with both eyes closed. All the hard work Ciel had done in the last few days were destroyed by anger, violence, and black ink. However, at the moment, Ciel could hardly care less.

And it bothered him more than he would care to admit. Work had always been a priority. It was hard work that had given him the life he led to today and it was hard work that gave him the unbridled privilege to call himself the Queen's Watch dog. It was hard work that gave him the chance to thwart his enemies. And it was thwarted by a silly five foot four, petite girl who spewed out colorful rainbows and flowers as if they were merely second nature. It was insulting really, how suddenly, all the hard work he had put into his career was quickly demolished by a bouncing ditzy blonde in a corset. All because she chose to run off god-knows-where doing god-knows-what with god-knows-who, without so much as sparing a word to anyone.

It revolted Ciel even more to realize how utterly lost he felt without her presence, when just a few months ago, he barely saw her. He didn't quite understand the sudden stigma he felt for Elizabeth. She was a constant presence in his life, he knew, and not once had he felt any sort of romantic attraction to her. Yet, it was frustrating to suddenly feel the attacks of panic, worry, and anger that bubbled in him like a cauldron overflowing with stew. Simply because she suddenly wasn't there.

"Well," resolved his deathly tired mind as he dropped himself onto his bed, "you shall see her later. And you will give her a piece of your mind." He calmed himself on his thought, letting it seep through his combusted, panicked, aching heart until it managed to soothe his wounds for the time being. And slowly, but surely, his eyes drooped until he fell into a restless sleep.

"Young Master, young master, please wake up." Ciel was roused awake by Sebastian's sudden intrusion. Grumbling, he noted that the butler had not bothered with using any small sense of proper decorum to wake him and chose to rouse him awake by simply shaking his shoulder has hard as he can without damaging him. Ciel wanted nothing more but to smack the demon butler back straight on his perfectly shallow face until it was bruised and bleeding. He was in deep slumber, he could tell, and was so close to catching that delightful transition into a restful, pleasant dream. That is until Sebastian had ripped him from his rightfully deserved slumber.

"What?!" he hissed out like a disgruntled cat, "What do you want now!?" A quick glance to the window indicated that it wasn't even close to dawn yet and while he understood that Sebastian thrived on staying active during the witching hours, he was hardly in the position to be awake after such a tiring day.

It was only until he cleared his dazed vision did he notice the hard, grim look that Sebastian had firmly stapled on his face. He watched Ciel almost wearily, as if he wasn't sure whether or not he might pounce like feral beast at any moment. It was then when he remembered what he had sent the demon to do. The spike of adrenaline pumped its way into his system so quickly, Ciel had enough energy to bolt upright and turn to his butler with all the focus he could muster. In his gut, he felt the coiling of worry, regret, distress, and anger burn once more as he remembered about his fiancée. "Lizzy, where is she? Is she here now?!"

He didn't even wait for Sebastian to answer as he pushed himself away from his cocoon of warmth and into the dark, cold hallway. Shivering slightly, he straightened himself up as he sauntered off to the opposite wing where Lizzy's room was, all the while practicing what he could say. He pointedly ignored Sebastian's constant calling as he walked off. He would say he's sorry, he resolved in his mind like a clockwork. He'll call himself an idiot, a selfish brute, an unworthy cretin undeserving of her. He'll call himself whatever she may believe he is and beg for her forgiveness. And he'll gather her into his arms and implore her to never stray again. To never leave so quickly, so suddenly, so heartbreakingly fast that he couldn't catch her. And he'll set rules, because that's what he thinks they need. They need rules to abide by to avoid all these unwanted fighting. Yes, rules. They'll talk about it. They'll talk about it all night if they have to.

Ciel manages to gather his wits once he reaches the end of the hallway where Lizzy's room was, only to note that it was quite odd that there was no light beyond the door. Lizzy enjoyed reading before she went to bed and would always keep a light close. Nevertheless, he resolved to enter. So, he gathered his breath and braced himself before knocking and entering.

"Lizzy, I-" he stopped short once he was greeted by utter darkness. The light had spilled into the room slowly, illuminating an empty bed. And all the air left Ciel's lungs, until the panic replaced it with such force he took a large step back and shouted, "Sebastian! Where is -"

"Young master," he heard Sebastian call out to him carefully. He was behind him, standing too close for comfort that Ciel was forced to take a tentative step forward. Sebastian placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and Ciel shivered upon contact. No, this was not the touch he wanted to feel tonight.

"Where is she?" Ciel asked. "She must be at her mothers. Didn't want to come back did she?" That's alright, he resolved to himself. Lizzy is stubborn as a mule. He imagined she had fought tooth and nail with Sebastian insisting she wouldn't come back. It was just like her. And that's alright. Because come morning, he'll dress his best. He'll go the Midfords and they shall talk. And he would say he's sorry, and call himself an idiot, a selfish brute, an unworthy cretin undeserving of her. And he'll gather her into his arms and implore her to never stray again. And they'll -

"Young Master, there's been an accident." Sebastian whispered softly to him. "You need to come at once."

Note: Okay, so that's the first chapter. So, obviously I have butchered the English language in one chapter alone. The amount of grammar mistakes I made there is laughable. But anyway, like I said, I have dreamt of this fanfiction for ages. And when I mean ages, I mean about a year. I started writing this a while ago and only had the time to write it during Christmas break. Yes, college life does that to you a lot. So hopefully, I get it done before I go back to school. Anyway, I hope you enjoy.

Please, R and R. I like to read reviews, no matter how insulting or fickle it is. I know I made plenty of mistakes, I don't deny that. But thank you for reading my story regardless. Happy Holidays and Happy New Years!