A Promise is a Promise (Black Butler Fanfiction)

A Promise is a Promise (Chapter 2) The Trip

"So that's that then!"

Alois Trancy leaned over from his standing position and planted his hands down on the table in front of him.

"You're incredibly energetic for a person who was blind stinking drunk last night," commented Ciel drily, "and why am I getting roped into this?" It was the morning after the Phantomhive party and Alois was, indeed, suspiciously bright eyed and healthy-looking.

Alois just grinned at him. "A promise is a promise!" he said.

After Ciel had half-carried the incapacitated boy to his room the previous night and sent for Claude, he had returned to his own bedchamber, supposing that that would be the end of the matter. He was mistaken. At 8 o'clock the next morning, Alois had noisily burst into his room, jumped on his bed and declared with a flourish that Ciel was coming with him on a trip to London. When Ciel objected, Alois reminded him of his promise not to leave him alone.

Convenient how he remembered that, thought Ciel, suspecting more and more that Alois hadn't been as drunk as he let on. Turning to Sebastian behind him, he let out a sigh.

"Go and inform everyone that I'll be away from the mansion for a week. And get my things packed."

Sebastian, who was finding his master's discomfort rather amusing, bowed and said "Yes, my Lord," before leaving.

Ciel stood up too. "Are you happy now?" he asked Alois moodily. Alois giggled and strode out of the room, possibly in search of the poor maid Hannah, whom he seemed to take some pleasure out of bullying.

Sinking into his chair, Ciel said wearily to himself; "How did this happen to me?"

--

"Young Master, your luggage is ready!" screeched Mey-Rin, the maid, before bumping into Finny and sending him sprawling into Bardroy, the cook. "Hey, watch it!" Bard complained. Fortunately, Sebastian had managed to catch the boxes Mey-Rin was carrying before there could be an accident. Handing them to his master, Sebastian confirmed.

"We're all set, my Lord."

"Good," Ciel said. Before he could turn to go, however, he was waylaid by Finny.

"If you don't mind my asking, Young Master, where is it that you're going?"

Bard cuffed him one. "You're only asking that now?! 'E's going to stay with that Trancy kid in his house in London for a bit. I guess even the Young Master needs a holiday once in a while."

"Believe me, it wasn't by choice," muttered Ciel darkly under his breath.

--

"We're almost here!" Alois said cheerily, leaning his head and arms out of the carriage window and scuffing the seat with his boots. The carriage went over another bump and Ciel groaned. The ride had been a rough one. Alois pulled his head back inside.

"You don't get carriage-sick, do you?"

"Not usually, but you didn't tell me it would be such a bumpy ride." Ciel replied.

Alois crawled over the seat towards him. "Lighten up, will you? You're always so glum." He laughed. "You sound like an old man!"

"I do not!" Ciel retorted.

Alois laughed again. "You're so funny when you're getting annoy-" The carriage jolted over a particularly large bump, jerking Alois off balance and sending him tumbling into Ciel's lap. Ciel grunted as the boy landed on his stomach. Righting himself, Alois stuck his head out of the carriage window. "Hey, Claude!" he yelled.

"My apologies," came the reply from Claude, who was sitting in the driver's seat next to Sebastian, taking his turn to steer the carriage.

"Honestly! Sebastian's a better driver than you, you're useless!" Alois shouted back, then put his head back inside. If Claude was at all offended by this, he did not show it. Sebastian shot him a triumphant glance (They had previously had a little bet to see who could go over the least potholes) then took the reins.

Ciel was very glad indeed when they got to the townhouse.

--

Dinner was a silent affair. What with Ciel brooding over the fact he had to spend a week with this irritating boy, and Alois too busy stuffing his face to say much, the quiet was not broken until Hannah came in and announced timidly that their room was ready.

"Wait, this place only has one bedroom?" Ciel asked.

"Well, this place belonged to the late Earl Trancy, and now there's only me around, so... I suppose it wasn't a problem till now," Alois passed off as an explanation.

"This gets worse and worse," Ciel muttered to Sebastian as he left the table.

--

Later that night, Ciel lay tucked up in bed next to Alois. Turning his head to look at the sleeping earl, he asked, "Why did I make that promise to you? It doesn't make any sense..." He didn't expect an answer, and didn't get one. That was the last thing he thought as he drifted off into the empty darkness of his dreams.

--

He woke up with a start in the middle of the night. He felt uncomfortable, and there was a quiet snuffling noise in his ear. Looking round, he started, realizing that Alois was spread halfway across the bed with one arm and leg draped over him and was gently snoring in his ear. "How'd he manage to get like that in his sleep?" He wondered to himself. "No wonder I woke up... so heavy..." . He sighed, shifted Alois a little, and went back to sleep.

--

"Good morning!"

Ciel snapped open his eyes, and found himself staring straight into two very bright blue ones. Alois' smiling face was about two inches from his.

"Aargh!"

He sat up abruptly, and instinctively reached for his eyepatch, then remembered he didn't need to hide his seal around Alois. Alois picked it up and handed it to him.

"Nice to see you're finally awake!" he grinned.

"Just how early do you wake up, anyway?" Ciel groaned. He was not a morning person, and Sebastian usually had to come in and shake him awake. He looked at the clock. It read half 7.

"Oh, I woke up about 10 minutes ago," Alois replied.

Has he been sitting staring at me the whole time? thought Ciel. Flopping back down, he moaned "It's too early. Go back to sleep." And with that, he stuffed the pillow over his head.

"Aw, c'mon!" Alois protested. Shuffling up, he reached forward and grabbed the pillow clean out of Ciel's hands. Ciel lay there in shock for a moment, then sat up.

"Give it back!"

"Make me," Alois grinned.

Ciel picked up Alois' pillow, and whacked him square in the face with it.

"Is that a challenge?" Alois asked, grinning even wider.

"Yes, I believe it is." Ciel answered with a smirk.

Soon enough the two of them were whacking each other with their pillows, getting feathers everywhere and having a splendid pillow fight. To his amazement, Ciel found himself actually laughing. For the second time since he came here, he wondered: What am I doing? But his body didn't seem to be listening to him, and soon the two of them were collapsed in an exhausted heap, with feathers falling around them like snow.

Ciel, still breathing heavily, pushed himself up and then blushed suddenly, realizing what an awkward position they were in.

When Sebastian and Claude came in a little while later, they were met by a curious scene: Ciel was perched on one side of the bed, still slightly red in the face, and Alois was lying on his back on the other side, looking rather perplexed and surrounded by feathers.

Claude looked unimpressed by the mess; Sebastian smiled, raised one sculpted eyebrow and asked in mock surprise: "My Young Master, having a pillow fight?"

"Oh, shut up." Ciel said, blushing furiously and looking daggers at Alois, who laughed hard at the image of Earl Phantomhive being teased by his butler.

This was the last straw for Ciel. "That's it!" he exploded. "I'm going to kill this guy!!"