Revelations part 1

Honestly dont even remeber

Large blue eyes would sparkle up at Rachel who smiled down at her anxious son; his small body wiggling with excitement thinking about how one day, he too would be a great swordsman like his father.

Thinking back, Ciel recalled how happy he had been to receive his first foil on his tenth birthday. Vincent had been so proud to see his only child eagerly clutch the handle; holding the shining metal upright and gaping at the long, thin length. Rachel had chided her husband, asking if it wasn't a bit too early introducing Ciel to the art form. Vincent had laughed heartily, tucking his wife lovingly under his arm and assuring her that he would make sure that their son grew up with a proper respect for the sport. Unfortunately, that promise never came to be and Ciel had continued learning on his own, eventually loving fencing even more because it was a connection to what his parents would have wanted for him.

"Hey! Are you even listening to me?" Alois's voice cut through his friend's daydreaming and Ciel shook his head to rid himself of the memories clouding up his mind.

"I asked what you thought about that girl they found by the side of the road the other day." He gave the blond a confused look, not understanding how they had gotten on this topic.

"She went to school here, right?" Ciel thought out loud. "Her name was Essie, Elaine or something like that. Oh! You know who would know?" Snapping his fingers together in a moment of realization. "Elizabeth." As luck would have it, the two spied the golden haired girl standing outside the gymnasium building where Ciel was heading for fencing class. "Hey, Lizzie!" He called out and green eyes glanced up from the text message she was sending.

"Hi, guys!" She greeted, a broad smile lighting up her beautiful face. Lizzie pushed herself off the wall while pocketing the device in her skirt. "It's a good thing you showed up, Ciel. You were almost tardy again." She teased, winking at her friend.

Alois gasped as he looked down at his watch. "I have to go! Dammit, I'm going to be so late!" He excused before taking off in the opposite direction, practically running over people as he sprinted across the campus. Ciel rolled his eyes at the over exaggerated actions of his friend and nodded to Lizzie that they should go get changed for class.

In the men's locker room, he went about removing his jeans and hoodie; replacing them with the regulation pants, shirt and vest. Ciel hummed quietly to himself as he thought about the upcoming matches for the day. He would be facing off with Lizzie again, which was sure to be a challenge considering she had been practicing since the age of 9 and was on the same level if not slightly better than himself.

Elizabeth Midford was the only daughter of Vincent and Rachel's closest friends and as such, she and her older brother Edward had always been around when the two families visited and on holidays. The cheerful blonde was a year older than Ciel; however, that never seemed to bother either of them growing up. She was currently attending the same university, studying medicine, as her family was also a large contributor to the institution just like the Phantomhives had been.

Ciel respected Lizzie immensely, she was incredibly smart and funny, kind and caring, beautiful and charming; yet, what really drew his admiration was the girl's skill with the sword. Elizabeth was a phenom in the sport of fencing, besting all the women in the county and most of the men as well. Both of them were extremely competitive and neither would allow the other to go easy on each other during practice or tournaments. As such, they were the perfect partners for the sport and some would say, and hope, off the field as well. However, neither saw the other in that light and therefore had remained just friends throughout the years.

Walking out onto the mats, Ciel took a quick look around to find Lizzie stretching in the corner; her emerald eyes already intently sizing up the competition for the day. He walked over, placing the mask on the floor before bending over from the waist to give his back a good extension. Ciel winced as a sharp pain radiated through his shoulders, biting his lower lip to keep from groaning. Craning his neck, he looked up at his friend.

"So, Lizzie." He asked, catching her attention. "Did you know that girl the jogger found by the highway the other day? Alois said she went here." Ciel stood straight and proceeded to limber up his arms.

"Mmhhm." Lizzie nodded, glancing back to their classmates. "Her name was Elise. She was in my civics class." She turned to face Ciel and leaned in, lowering her voice. "Her funeral is tomorrow at the church, did you want to go?" He shook his head negatively.

"No, I just was wondering what happened. I mean, do the police know the cause of death?" Ciel whispered, not sure why they were being so secretive about it. Although it was rare to find a body just lying around in their small town, Elise's death wasn't the first tragic event that had taken place in their little community; his parents' murder was a fine example of that. "Do they suspect foul play?"

"Yes and no." She replied, picking up her equipment and motioning for Ciel to follow her to a mat. Walking side by side, Lizzie quickly filled in the blanks. "From what the county uncovered, she died of natural causes. Her heart just stopped suddenly and she asphyxiated in a matter of minutes; however, that doesn't explain what she was doing out in the middle of nowhere in the dead of night." They stopped to wait patiently for the current sparring to finish so they could have their turn.

"Must be nice to be the medical examiner's daughter." Ciel teased quietly, adrenaline starting to pump through his veins as he mentally prepared himself to face Lizzie in a few minutes. "Tell me, does your mom use her position to scare off your dates?" She shot him an evil grin.

"Only the ones I don't want to see anymore." Lizzie giggled before sliding on her mask. "And to think, boys usually have to fear the wrath of their date's father. They never see mom coming." Ciel chuckled at the image of the intimidating Frances Midford; county medical examiner and force to be reckoned with if you ever messed with one of her precious children. Even he would have had second thoughts about asking out Elizabeth if it meant having to face off with her mom. Thanks goodness he didn't see her as anything other than a friend.

Stepping out on the piste, the two competitors faced one another, every trace of playfulness gone as they readied themselves for the match. Ciel let the world fall away as he saluted his opponent; a smug grin spreading behind the wired mesh, knowing that one way or another he was going to win today.