Chapter 12

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If Ciel was unfair to his cousin for not letting her take part in the case yesterday, then today he was being extremely spiteful due to his failed attempt to close it.

"What are you doing just sitting around!?" the boy shouted at his cousin. "You want to be useful don't you? Then do something!"

"You're the one who failed yesterday!" Luna retorted, standing up from her seat in anger. "Don't put the blame on me!"

Ciel's eyes widened as her words sunk in. Setting the papers he was examining down, he glared at the girl who was visibly shaking. "If you're not going to be useful, then leave." At the dismissal in his tone, she hurried out of the room in tears.

"Now, now, Young Master," Sebastian started, serving him another cup of hot tea. "Such harsh words?" The butler made a displeased face, mocking him.

The young earl directed his glare at his butler. "Stay out of this."

"Of course, My Lord." The butler bowed, his lips curved into a smile. A family feud between the young master and his cousin will surely be a hefty source of entertainment. Taking away the unused teacups with him, Sebastian took his leave, intending to start with the preparations for lunch.

Upon entering the kitchen, he was taken by surprise to find the cousin rummaging through the cupboards and counter, creating a mess—that he would undoubtedly have to clean up. Just the thought of it caused a tick in his eye.

He cleared his throat loudly. "Lady Luna, may I inquire to what you are looking for?"

The lady in question merely spared him a tear stained glance before going back to making a mess out of the kitchen. Sebastian had to calm himself with a deep breath before opening his mouth. "Milady—"

"Chocolate," she cut him off.

The butler blinked. "I want chocolate."

"I understand milady, I'll retrieve the chocolate for you, so if you could please take a seat…" Sebastian trailed off, realizing that the lady wasn't paying him any attention. It would seem that she was purposely making a mess out of the kitchen to release her pent up frustration and anger. Feeling unusually kind, he walked towards her and grabbed her hands gently.

She looked up at him, a snarl forming on her lips. "What do you—"

"Please calm yourself down, Lady Luna." At the mention of her name, she ceased all forms of struggling. From the close proximity, Sebastian could see the tears slowly forming and he held back a sigh. Releasing the grip on her hands, he patted her shoulder and kneeled down to her level.

"Milady…" Her tears were now rolling freely down her face, and the butler had to suppress an eye roll—how emotionally fragile humans are.

"I h-hate him!" She sniffed, wiping her face with her sleeves. But with the amount of tears she was producing, there really was no point. "I hate Ciel!"

From his pocket, the butler took out a clean handkerchief and began dabbing the crying girl's face gently, drying her tears. "I must apologize for my master's harsh words." She hiccupped. "As you must have already known, he tends to be…" he tries to find the right word, "Unpleasant, when angered."

"Y-yes." She hiccupped, "But it's not my fault that he failed!" Instead of achieving the intended effect, the girl only cried harder.

"The young master never insinuated that the fault was yours milady," Sebastian explained, lowering his tone so that it might soothe her—and hopefully stop the waterworks. "He merely wasn't in the mood to tolerate any dawdling."

The lady pouted, her face expressing indignation. "I wasn't dawdling." The butler smiled in relief, seeing that she has calmed down enough to become her irritating self. He dried the remaining tears on the lady's face and stands up, opening an untouched cupboard and retrieving a chocolate bar.

He handed the sweet confectionary with a charming smile, wishing to cease the tender emotional moment. Just like he predicted, a blush coated the lady's cheeks immediately, followed with a stammer of gratitude.

Feeling a sense of accomplishment, Sebastian smiled to himself. With the efficiency that only he could manage, the butler quickly cleaned the various mess of items thrown out of the cupboard and set out the ingredients and utensils needed to cook today's lunch. Taking off his tailcoat, he was about to usher the lady out of the kitchen when she suddenly came up behind him.

"Can I help?"

Sebastian had to blink away his surprise before turning around. "Milady?"

She wriggled her hands together and fidgeted, seemingly nervous. "I-I'd like to help you… May I?"

Deeming it best that he allows her to do what she wants—it's either that or the inevitable waterworks that will follow after his decline—the butler swallowed his words.

"Certainly." With a smile, Sebastian handed her a knife and chopping board. Surely she could handle that much, couldn't she?

"Today we will be preparing fish and chips for lunch!" The lady continued to stare at him, seeming at a loss. It was as expected; the girl must've never set foot in a kitchen her whole life. Keeping a smile on his face, Sebastian took out the fish, potatoes and spices. Setting the ingredients on the counter, he beckoned the clueless girl towards him.

He gestured to the potatoes. "Would you like to skin them?"

Luna grinned. "I think I can do that, yes." She prodded the brown vegetables before grabbing one. Sebastian watched quietly as she attempted to peel away just the skin, repeatedly digging in her knife too deep. Even the three servants at home were much better than this spoiled brat.

"Do you need help?" He offered, a knife already in his hand. It wouldn't do him any good to have the lady injure herself with such a trivial task.

Her face was as readable as a book, and the butler couldn't help himself as her conflicting emotions expressed itself, he smiled. Clearly the girl wanted to be thought of as competent, yet she lacks the skills to function like a normal human being. Taking the potato from her hands, he showed her how to peel the vegetable correctly—nothing less than perfection.

"Oh, so that's how you do it…" Her gaze never wavered from the vegetable in his hands, but the crestfallen expression she wore was so obvious he was tempted to ignore it. Finishing his menial example quickly, he cut the potato neatly, stacking them on a plate.

"I'll do the rest!"

Sebastian nodded, turning to preparing the fish and other ingredients. He worked efficiently and cleanly, nothing short of perfection, all the while keeping an eye on the girl who's each skinned potato became progressively better—although the butler will have to re-do her work to make it at the very least presentable. But knowing that she most likely has never used a knife her whole life, he had to admit it was fast progress she was making. He knew that he would have been done with preparing lunch much sooner had the girl stayed out of his way, but then the young master would have him fetch her, and she'd be in a much worse mood.

It wasn't the most efficient solution, but the most effective.

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The smell of wonderfully cooked fish wafted through the dining room. Luna sat herself down on a chair, unable to keep the wide grin off her face. She helped make today's lunch—although her potatoes weren't cut to perfection like Sebastian's, she was still proud of this achievement. And although she sustained injuries, just a few minor cuts on her fingers, she found it worth the pain.

Sebastian served the dish, elegant as ever, reciting the name and the desserts, just as always. Luna was tempted to dig in straight away, but she noticed the lack of occupants in the room.

"Where are the others?" she asked, looking up at the butler.

"Regretfully, the Young Master will not be joining for lunch," he announced, "And neither will Madam Red, seeing as she has work to attend to at the hospital."

The lady's face fell instantly, and Sebastian could sense the sour mood seeping out of her. "However, milady, you may join the Young Master in his study after lunch."

Luna considered it; helping Ciel read through countless papers and making conclusions. And then she suddenly remembered the fight. Now that she was calm enough to think back, it was pretty pointless. Although his rage was uncalled for, her outburst was a bit… too much.

She shook her head. "I think I'll pass."

The butler nodded and excused himself out, leaving only herself in the room. And although the dish was undeniably splendid, Luna could not bring herself to enjoy it fully. She felt the need to say something; clear up the mess with her cousin—to apologize. But Ciel wouldn't take it seriously, he'd just wave it off.

A sigh escaped the girl. "Freedom, huh?"

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Taking a deep breath, Luna braved herself to knock on the young Earl's study.

Once. Twice.

Her eye twitched in annoyance. "Even if you don't give me permission, I'm still coming in."

Just as she raised her knuckles to knock for the third time, the door opened. Entering the room, she uttered a quick thanks to the ever-present butler before approaching the Earl's desk. Tall stacks of paper were piled neatly across the surface and Luna could only blink, amazed; her cousin's work load is no joke.

"What do you need, Luna?" came Ciel's voice from behind the turned seat.

"I want to help."

Ciel turned around. "Really?" He asked in disbelief.

"Yes!" Luna almost shouted, indignant. "I can be useful if I want to!"

"Yes, well," he paused, looking over to the side, "you can help sort the papers, or something."

And that's how an hour later, Luna found herself squinting at the mess of papers around her, trying to find some sort of semblance among the chaos. The piles that she had meticulously separated from each other were mixed together and all she wanted to do was to burn it all into ashes.

"I think the papers hate me." She huffed, slouching forward.

"Don't be absurd," the Earl said, eyeing her. "You messed those up on purpose."

The girl groaned as she face planted into the floor, lying on the papers and deliberately scrunching them up. "I don't like this!"

Ciel raised his visible eyebrow. "Oh? Were you expecting something fun?"

"Nooo!" Luna answered childishly, thumping the floor with her hands. "I just don't want to do this anymore."

"That's very ladylike of you." He sipped his tea.

"Mock me all you want, I'm not doing this anymore." The earl rolled his visible eye. He wasn't expecting any help from the girl in the first place, but really, all she did was complain and roll around on the floor.

"If you recall, you were the one who offered to help," Ciel called out, picking up the document he was oh so carefully analyzing before the interruption. He tried reading the words, but one could read only so much before the words start to blur together.

Luna's reply was muffled.

"What?" Ciel strained to make out the words.

"I want to be useful!" She yelled, thumping on the floorboards again for emphasis. Ciel smiled; she was such a child.

The door to the study opened and Sebastian entered with a cart of tea and dessert. The Earl pursed his lips in anticipation of the lecture his cousin will be getting. And just as expected, the butler's eyes narrowed in disapproval at the girl lying on the floor.

"Lady Luna," he addressed her.

"What?" came the muffled reply. Ciel snickered in anticipation.

"How can you call yourself a lady—" Luna cut him off, "Birthright!"

Sebastian's forced smile twitched. "Yes, but for a lady such as yourself it is improper to lie on the floor—"

"I don't care!"

With a displeased look on his face, the butler swiftly picked the girl up and set her on the nearest chair. "Now isn't that much better?" Luna scowled.

"No."

Sebastian shook his head. "What a…stubborn relative you have Young Master."

Ciel gave a nonchalant shrug, focused on his work. "Entertain her or something, I'm busy."

"I'm right here, you know!" The lady called out, frowning. "And I'm not even being a bother." Begrudgingly, she accepted the cup of tea Sebastian offered, along with the slice of pie he brought. Viciously eating the first bite, she didn't expect the onslaught of flavors on her tongue.

"Wow," she whispered quietly, looking at the plate in her hand wide eyed.

Sebastian gave her a look. "Is something the matter Milady?"

She shook her head. "No, it's just…" She tried to find the right words, "Your desserts are the best!" In three whole bites she finished her slice and the butler watched with thinly veiled disapproval.

"Keep stuffing yourself and soon you'll find your dresses too tight," the Earl commented, eyeing her.

"Please," she waved him off, "I'm far from fat!" Although she was nowhere near plump, she wasn't skin and bones either. And with the rapid amount of sweets she was consuming, weight gain would be inevitable.

"Keep that up and you will be." Ciel gestured to the plate in her hands. Luna blew raspberries at him in defiance.

Listening to the banter between his master and the lady, Sebastian chuckled into his hand. It seems that in his absence the two had mended their relationship and was back to the default ridiculous exchanges. The mood was light and the butler preferred it this way.

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Luna flinched as lightning strikes in the distance, lighting up the room momentarily. She found herself self aware of her tremors, seeing that the other inhabitants of the room weren't even fazed by the thunder. Both Ciel and Sebastian continued on with their work; the former reciting the documents and the butler taking notes.

She sighed, "I hope the storm ends soon."

"Still working?" Carrying a chessboard, Madam Red entered the study with a bright smile on her face. Grell trailed behind nervously and Luna wondered if the butler ever stopped fidgeting.

"Come, play chess with me, Ciel." With a swipe of her hand she sent the piles of papers flying and set the chessboard on the now empty desk. "You too, Luna."

"But we're not done yet," Luna tried to reason, reluctant to play. It's not that she doesn't find the madam unpleasant, quite the contrary; it's just that Jack the Ripper is still on the run and they're nowhere near his trail.

"Too much work isn't good for you, now won't you come and spend some time with your aunt?" She beckoned her niece and nephew over, a smile on her face. Relenting, Luna walked over to her red headed aunt and sat down. Ciel sighed and did the same.

A few minutes into the game and Luna found herself dozing off. She was dimly aware of the serious note of the conversation taking place, and tried to focus on that.

"Sebastian is no more than a chess piece." She jerked herself awake at those words, blinking rapidly. What? "If I win using a piece that moves on its own, it won't be considered as my victory." What is he talking about?

Finding the topic way out of her head, the lady dozed off again.

"…Even Luna, " she jerked awake at the mention of her name. "Wouldn't wish for it."

"The thought of revenge never crossed my mind." What? "Revenge won't bring back the dead, won't give them any sort of consolation whatsoever." Ciel looked up, the face of determination. "I returned not for my ancestors, but for myself. I want those who have tarnished the Phantomhive name to go through the same hell that I went through."

He moved a piece. "Checkmate."

Madam Red rubbed her head in defeat, "Ah, with this you've beaten me 46 times." And just like that the tension in the air disappeared. "I still remember the day you were born, I was just starting out as a nurse—didn't know what to do." She laughed. "Sweet little Ciel, I felt like I needed to protect you."

Standing up, the madam rubbed the boy's head affectionately. "I can't have children, but I've already thought of you as my own." Luna bowed her head down, feeling incredibly intrusive in this tender moment. "If only I can stop you from dwelling further into this underworld business…"

The Earl gently pushed her hand away. "I am now here because I choose to, and I won't regret it." Taking the madam by surprise, he kissed her cheek. "It's been fun."

Madam Red smiled. "Next time I won't lose, Ciel."

"Goodnight." He left the room with a smile of his own.

Watching the exchange Luna felt out of place. She wasn't as close to the madam as her younger cousin, only seeing her during special occasions. And even then her attention would be focused on her younger cousins; Ciel and Lizzy. But she still loved her, even though not related by blood. Whenever they met the madam would tell her how much she reminded her of her younger self, with how Luna always has her hair braided into two that fell to her shoulders.

"Luna," she looked up. "Run while you still can."

"What?"

"Don't get involved in the dangerous affairs of the underworld," The madam pleaded, a hand on the girl's cheek. "You have so much more to live for."

Luna could only stare at her, confused. She didn't know what to say. Why was the madam even saying these things so suddenly?

She took the hand that held her cheek and cradled it gently. "I can't promise anything, Aunt Ann." The madam's eye widened at the use of her name, "But whatever happens, I won't regret it." Where did that sudden wisdom even come from?

Madam Red looked down, a rueful smile on her face. "I can't dissuade you either."

"I guess not," Luna smiled. The atmosphere was unbearable, too tender, she didn't know how to react. Wanting to escape, she quickly excused herself out of the study and into her room.

It was too sudden. Too much like a goodbye from the madam, and she hated it. What does it even mean? With these unpleasant thoughts in mind, Luna retired to her room, unable to sleep until late in the night when the storm had settled down. Because if she knew anything; she'd know that everything has changed.

Chapter 12/END

Author's Note

Two updates in one month, it's like Christmas! Thank you for putting up with me and my unbelievably slow pace, hopefully the Ripper arc will end in the next chapter. Reviews, constructive criticism, flames (although I don't really recommend this one) are welcome!