I looked back this fanfic (which was my first one ever) and thought of all the grammar mistakes, all the purple prose and all the overwritten paragraphs I wrote. My perfectionist senses were tingling, so I tasked myself with the duty of rewriting the beginning to improve it (in some way at least).

Note: words in italics are thoughts and words between these *...* are sound effects

Enjoy reading and excuse my amateurish past-self who wrote the rest of the chapters!~ (n_n)

Cat of Truth and Spider of Lies.

~ Epilogue ~

Two young earls titled the Dog and the Spider served the Queen and fulfilled the duties she bestowed upon them, with deadly efficiency. The Dog's duty was to sentence anyone who opposed Her Majesty's laws into the darkness, while the Spider's duty was to destroy them within the darkness. However, before the condemned were destroyed there was another creature involved. That creature was a young countess titled the Cat, her duty came between the two. It was her job to pass the final judgement on the condemned, to see if they could redeem themselves, before leaving them in fate's hands.

The final judgement was a process comparable to sorting souls into their rightful place from purgatory, or comparable to a shinigami deciding the future of the 'dead' by watching their cinematic records. In order to pass the final judgement, the Cat had to slink deep into the condemned one's psyche and claw out their true thoughts, emotions and desires. The Cat saw it as the most invasive and shameless task of all but still did it because it had to be done.

Alice, the Cat and the young countess of the Nightrave manor, was still a child but she matured enough to know that the world and its people hid a sinister side.

The butler pulled back the reins and stopped the dark steeds in their tracks. The wheels of the horse-drawn carriage clattered to a halt on the Spider's territory.

A girl with purplish back hair stepped out the carriage, brushed imaginary dust off her black and purple Gothic Victorian dress, and drew in and out three deep breaths. Sweat rolled down her face and mixed feelings of dread and anticipation twisted in her gut.

'Go forth.' She thought while her amethyst eyes shone. 'I need to now, more than ever.'

She strode forth with her shoulders square and headed towards the Spider's manor, his lair. She stopped directly in front of the closed entrance and reached for the door knocker. Her palms got clammy and her nerves roared for round six against her forced resolve.

"There's no turning back,'' She said in a strong, clear voice that betrayed her inner one. "I will fulfill my duty as the Queen's Cat."

Meanwhile, her butler led the steeds to the nearby stable and contemplated the meaning of life. 'Damn it to hell, life's meaningless.' He thought with a frown. Deep contemplation was never his forte, it was better to leave it to the angels.

"Lucian, where are you...?"

The butler's ears perked up at the sound of his seal-bound contractor's quavering voice.

The sun rays increased in warmth around the girl who stood frozen, she didn't dare knock.

'Alois Trancy, the one who sent me those unsettling letters...I'm doubting your sanity.' She thought.

Within milliseconds, her butler fled to the scene and stood beside her. 'No matter how independent she wants to be, she'll still need to depend on me.' He thought while he combed his gloved hand through his black and silver streaked hair. He faked a cough to gain her attention and gave her a crooked grin when he had it. "You called for me young miss?"

"Christ!" Alice jolted in surprise and glanced around. When their eyes met, a grateful smile spread across her face. Lucian was a fine Nightrave butler and all but sometimes his positively monstrous grin, the one where his 'fangs' showed, scared the life out of her.

Lucian flicked his fingers twice. "Chop, chop, missus! We haven't got eternity! ...Well, you haven't got eternity but-"

*KNOCK KNOCK* Hollow, wooden echoes resounded throughout the manor.

Alice sighed tiredly and released the knocker, then she crossed her arms and tossed Lucian a look that said: 'Tell me more, Sherlock.'

"Welcome to the Trancy manor, miss Alice. Your butler is welcome too. You may call me Claude. The young earl has been expecting you so I shall promptly have you two meet in the guest room." The owner of the flat, deep voice alerted the two.

Alice last saw her petite shadow drowning in a larger, looming one that rose from the depths of despair. She looked up and saw a black-haired butler with piercing golden eyes.

"Thank you and your master for your hospitality." Alice hid her anxiety behind a polite, smiling facade and followed Claude into the gaudy manor. Lucian followed suit with more wariness than her.

The younger butler felt a shot of adrenaline shoot through his veins. His fingers inched towards the sharpened knives he hid in his blazer. 'Did Trancy seal the deal with this guy?' He glared at Trancy's impassive butler. 'Claude huh? You better not steal my prey.'

Claude sensed Lucian's crimson-eyed glare and turned to the side, their eyes locked. A silent and tense stare-down ensured.

Alice left the butlers to their devices and hurried over to an antique lounge chair where she sat cross-legged. She gazed around the room with heightened awareness and thought of reasons why her butler looked so agitated. 'I'm not hyper aware like him but I can sense something off here too.'

Earlier, when she passed the halls and glanced out a window, she swore she saw triplets and a tanned woman speedily carrying what seemed to be a massive, stone sculpture of a medieval dragon across the rose garden. Transporting a sculpture of that size, shape and material with their bare hands, while not breaking into sweat or breaking their fingers, looked like an incredible feat for people with extraordinary strength and endurance. She was perplexed. They couldn't all be actual demons, right?

"All hail me, for your king has arrived!"

A loud, boyish voice snapped Alice out of her thoughts.

"Oh? So this is what Alice Nightrave, the Queen's Cat, looks like~!" A blonde boy in a crimson frock coat bounded into the room, his blue eyes sparkled with delight. He merrily skipped towards her as if she was his new toy or pet.

Alice's mind drew a blank card but she found her words eventually.

"You must be Alois Trancy," She shot up, outstretched her hand for it to be shaken and gave him her friendliest smile, courtesy was key. "I read your letters and heard about you from Her Majesty. She says you're very spirited, stylish and...unique! It's an honour to finally meet you, royal Spider!"

Alois nodded and kept his smug grin plastered on. "That's right, I'm all of that and more. Now let's skip the formalities and..." Alois snatched her hand into his and mirrored her smile. "Play a game with me, Alice."

The last thing he said sounded like an irrefutable order. Alice winced, his tight grip on her threatened to crush her bones. What should she do? Just do as he says and hope for the best? No, she didn't want to regret listening to him, but she didn't want to regret not listening to him either. This seemed like a damned-either-way situation and no one but her could forge her own fate.

"When we play," He slowly learned forward and whispered into her ear. "I won't hold back just because you're a girl. I treat all my playmates equally you see..."

His warm breath on her ear and his tightening grip on her cracking fingers made her act on reflex. She used her free hand to grab hold of his hand over hers then she stepped back, pulled him with her and swung him to the side. He gasped and loosened his grip slightly. She wasted no time in prying his fingers off her.

Alois swung her to the side in retaliation with more force than necessary and refused to let go. He clamped his other hand over hers, now neither of them had their hands free. Alice stomped on his feet and pushed her weight onto him, she hoped he'd give up and let go but he didn't. He stumbled back and hit the edge of waist-high table. He hissed in pain, bent out his arms and pushed her off him. Their hands were still stacked together. She retreated backwards, while he advanced forwards. Her heart was pounding while she tried to pull her hands free. He swung her towards the wall but she stepped out and traded places with him, from there they spun like a rickety carousel and ungraciously bashed each other into walls and furniture.

Alice glared at Alois. "Unhand me! I will not tolerate you dragging me into your so-called games!"

"Who's doing the dragging, you disgusting stray?!"

"What did you call me, you wretched vermin?!"

Lucian and Claude watched the amusing scene unfold before them. Both Alois and Alice weren't backing away in defeat and both were too stubborn to admit the childishness of it all. This time, the adolescents had a stare-down.

"Oi, you two..." Said Lucian while he picked his ear. "Quit that crazy tango and don't abandon your duties!"

Claude pushed his gleaming glasses up the bridge of his nose. "As the butler of a household held in high esteem, please be refined and professional in all your endeavors. Not only for your mistress' sake but for your own, so that you might not bring shame to yourself."

"Haah?" Lucian threw Claude a hideous look that reminded him of a drunk yankee. "Are you secretly insulting me, four-eyes?"

Claude hid his revulsion under a cool facade and scrutinised the Nightrave butler. Lucian just proved that teenage demons these days severely lacked in the tact and intellect department.

Meanwhile, the triplets and Hannah who finished their manual labor, peered into the guest room from the side of a wide archway.

Thompson grumbled and wore a faint grimace. "The room's a pig sty."

"Alois is acting like a douche as per usual." Cantebury dead-panned and turned away.

"What did you expect from a foolish brat like him?" Timber crossed his arms and scoffed.

Hannah simply watched the adolescents fight amongst themselves. She sighed then turned to face the triplets. "We will return here to clean up the mess after this ends. For now we should fulfill our usual duties and await the arrival of Ciel Phantomhive and his butler Sebastian, they will be arriving soon."

Shortly after, the triplets and Hannah silently left to do their duties, like any dedicated servant would.

Alice shook her tousled, long hair out of her face and tried to keep calm. "Do you bear a grudge against me? We meet and then this happens."

Alois clicked his tongue and scowled. "That's for you to find out. A lot happens when I meet people..."

Her hard glare softened when she felt his hands tremble over hers. She searched for his eyes that were obscured his bangs and hoped to find some kind of hidden truth in them. "A lot of good happens," She said. "When you meet the right people."

He averted her gaze, pulled away, released her and spoke. "Let's make a deal, I'll let you leave once I'm satisfied with your visit."

"I'll accept the conditions as long as there's no 'funny business behind my back. You know what will happen if you mess with me right?"

"Fine, and you know what will happen if you mess with me right?"

'I'll kick your assets if you mess with me, what will you do?' Alice passed on the message through a challenging stare.

He stared back with just as much, if not more intensity than her .

To the butlers that witnessed their contractors engage in a mental battle, ominous auras were seething from and engulfing the two adolescents. A flaring, bright crimson aura engulfed Alois while a billowing, dark purple aura engulfed Alice. Both of them looked like devil incarnates but that didn't please the demons.

Alois stood to his full height, he was taller than Alice by at least ten centimeters. Alois's death stare was enough to threaten Alice into a hole where she'd end up in a wonderland called Hell.

Alice tried to appear intimidating too, by standing on her toes and sharpening her awkward stare.

He watched her feeble attempts and released a high-pitched, unstable laugh. "Working with you will be interesting!" He smirked at her.

She planted her feet firmly on the ground and smirked back. "I think Her Majesty wanted us to cooperate because she knew it would be...interesting."

Huzzah! What did you think? Did you like it, hate it, love it, stake it?

Thanx for reading! Please tell me your comments in the review box below! 'Cause I'd like to know and you know that don't you?~