The White Butterfly of Phantomhive

Chapter 3: Lord Phantomhive. Kidnapped.

It has only been a few days since Mei arrived at the Phantomhive manor, and Mr. Damiano hasn't shown his face around since his visit. However, things weren't as bad as initially perceived. Everything has been rather quiet around the manor, other than the occasional ruckus caused by the other servants. As Mei thought, in Kirika's letter, she had requested for her to stay/live with them while she and her grandmother worked in their newest shop/museum. Mei had found out about it as Lord Phantomhive had given her an extra key to the manor and had given his permission to explore the place whenever she wished. She had learned that his full name was Ciel Phantomhive.

To her surprised, he had already been notified of her request in advanced, which is why he had prepared a room for her to begin with. The two of them didn't exactly interacted with each other much, except during meal times, but other than that... They've barely spoke a word to each other. During the past few days, Mei had gotten acquainted with the rest of the servants of the manor. The first was Baldroy; an American with dirty blond hair and turquoise eyes. He dresses in a standard chef's outfit, which includes a long white apron. Based on the many times she'd seen him, Baldroy always has a cigarette dangling from his mouth and goggles hanging loosely around his neck. She grew accustom to hear explosions coming from the kitchen as she knew that was a sign of him 'cooking'.

The second was the gardener, Finnian. A young boy, only a year older than her, with large, turquoise eyes and pale skin. He has short, messy, strawberry-blond hair clipped back with five red bobby pins — two on his right and three on his left. Finnian wears a plain top with red piping around the collar and plaid pants along with black knee-high boots. He also sports a straw hat around his neck. Mei grew accustom to hear the various crashes and thuds, as well as the sound of crying from him, throughout the manor as she knew that was a sign of him messing something up.

Then there was Mey-Rin. The maid. From her, the crashes of glass, plates and other fragile items, and her screams indicated her sheer clumsiness. Finally, there was Mr. Tanaka, the fun-sized old man. He was the family's steward and the former head butler. He was old and quiet, so he didn't do too much, thus he didn't cause any trouble whatsoever. Despite that, he's quite reliable with simple tasks and pleasant to be around.

With Sebastian Michaelis, however, it was hard to explain. While they had their fair share of conversations from time to time, Mei couldn't help but feel a little uneasy around him. She didn't forget what she saw that night and wasn't sure how to process it. Mei had seen things similar to it, but that color was in a different league all together. She'd also been noticing that Sebastian had a unreadable look in his eyes whenever he stared at her. Still...Sebastian was always nice to her and treats her well. Maybe she's just reading too much into things.

Right now, she was with Ciel in the Drawing room with three other guests he had for the day having tea. He thought it would be better, and less of a hassle, if she were to be introduced as she was now a resident of the manor. Mei was properly introduce to Madam Red; a well-known doctor in the city, Lau; a Chinese nobleman, and his friend, Ran-Mao. Along with Madam Red's butler, Grell. Ciel had just finished a meeting with several other nobles, including the police commissioner of Scotland Yard, Sir Arthur Randall. They were discussing of the possibility that one of the guests might be a smuggler.

"So, do you believe the drag trafficker you're after was one of your guests today?" Lau asked setting down his tea. Lau was a tall man with short black hair. As a Chinese nobleman, Lau dresses in sumptuous Chinese clothing, which includes a Changshan. What Mei found odd about him was that he never once opened his eyes. It's a wonder how he could see anything at all.

"Perhaps." Phantomhive said.

"Why not leave the extermination to Lau? A rat knows best where the rats' nest is, doesn't he?" Madam Red said. As her name suggested, she was cladded in red. She had red eyes and crimson hair that is kept in a bobcut. She is cladded in red lipstick and clothing, which consists of a red skirt and matching waistcoat, and a ruffled white blouse.