Mute (A Black Butler Fanfic)

Chapter 10

Dana's POV

MC is thrown to the floor, her head hitting the ground with a sickening thud. I rush forward, horror filling me, and cradle her limp body in my arms. I hold her tightly, glaring at that wretched woman through a thin veil of tears.

"Put my daughter down, you piece of filth!" She growls.

"You stay away from her." My voice trembles as the tears come thicker and faster. "She never did anything to hurt you and you're destroying everything she's ever had! How can you call yourself her mother when you never even look at her?!"

"Shut up!" She screams, her hand coming down to slap me again. I curl my arms tighter around MC, trying to shield her from the blow.

It never comes. I slowly raise my head, absorbing what's happening before me. Sebastian has grabbed her arm, completely halting her. A shocked look is plastered on her face. Ciel is striding over, totally at ease.

I forgot they were there at all.

"Well," Ciel drawled, opening his one visible eye to look at MC, "I've made up my mind as to who I shall pick as my fiance. I-"

"Oh have you?!" Carlotta squeals, jumping up and running eagerly toward Ciel.

He sidesteps her and walks over to me. I clutch MC tighter, fearing he would try to hurt her. I'm kind of suspicious of everyone at this point. But her simply leans down and brushes the hair out of her face. Something flickers in his eyes when he does it. Surprise? Confusion? I know I'm confused.

He straightens up, turning back to the woman and Carlotta. "I have chosen Mary-Clara to be my new fiance. She does seem to be the only sane one in this room. Not to mention everything her butler said." He turns to me slightly. "It is true, right?"

"E-every word." I breathe, not really believing this is happening.

"What?!" Carlotta shrieks. "Why choose her? She's not pretty or flirtatious like me! She doesn't care what she wears or what her hair looks like! Her eyes are weird and she's mute! Why would you ever choose her?"

"Because," Ciel says, "She has surprised me so many times in such a short amount of time I'm left in the dust. Breathless, blind and lost. She has shown loyalty by standing up for her butler. Love when she ran at midnight to her horses, knowing fully well she could have been eaten by wolves. Kindness when she stood outside with the doorman, just sharing the same air as him so he wouldn't be lonely. Logic when she steered us away from dinner to give the chef more time to cook, realizing it was early and the food wouldn't yet be ready." He glanced at her over his shoulder. "And self-pity when you walked down those stairs in a beautiful dress, where she had on something much simpler."

He turned his gaze back to them. "The only way that she would have ever felt self-pity with those traits is if you'd put her down, telling her she's not pretty and not smart. So, for the safety of my fiance's sanity, I will be taking her back to the Phantomhive estate with me. She will live with me until our wedding day, when she is free to move out if she chooses."

He turns around and begins to walk out. When he realizes we're all frozen in shock, he turns back around. "Oh, and I'll be taking her horses and personal butler with me."

"B-but you can't." The woman stutters, her freed hand now limp at her sides. Sebastian is gone. "We've already found a buyer. An anonymous call came in offering a few hundred dollars. I-It's already been confirmed-"

"Yes," he sighs, "that was Finny."

"Finny?"

"He is the caretaker of my mansion. He keeps the gardens and lawns looking good. Come along . . ."

"Dana." I say, standing up. My knee buckles beneath me and I start to fall. Sebastian catches me and MC in both arms.

He smiles at me. "You really should have listened. I told you that leg was going to take healing."

"R-right." I breathe. I can feel his arm through his coat. It's cold.

He hands MC to Lauren at the door. So he can carry me down the steps. I honestly don't know what to think at this point.

We're all in the carriage (except for Sebastian, he's driving) and it's about to pull away when two figures stride out the front door, hand-in-hand.

"Grace?" I call, leaning my head out the window. "Henry? What're you two doing out here?"

They smile at me. "We quit." Grace said.

My eyes widen. "What? Why?"

"Well," Henry begins. "We saw the whole thing play out through the kitchen doors and were quite inspired."

"We've been thinking about quitting for a while now-"

"But we just couldn't leave MC to the mercy of that monster-"

"So we stayed, knowing one day she'd find a good man to marry who saw her for who she was-"

"So we stayed with her-"

"But now that she's moving out-"

"We figured we might as well follow suit."

"That's amazing!" I say. "But how will you make money?"

"Oh," they share a look, "that's easy. We're going to start a restaurant."

I smile. "I'm so happy for y'all. We'll definitely come and try out the food."

They smile at me too. "Tell MC we'll miss her."

"I will. Goodbye!"

"Bye!"

The carriage pulls away and I pull my head back inside. Ciel across from MC. I'm next to MC.

She's still asleep.

"Will she be okay? That was a hard hit to the head..." I mutter, reaching behind her head and feeling for the bump. It's not huge, but it'll definitely be sore.

"She'll be okay." Ciel reassures. "She just needs time to heal and food."

I wonder what MC will think when she hears all of this.