That Butler, New Face

That Butler, Engaged 2

"Yaaay~! We're finally here~!" Finni cheered happily as he bounced up and down in his seat, eyes sparkling with excitement, as he looked around in every direction he could manage, as they rolled down the road behind Ciel's carriage.

"It's so exciting, yes it is~!" Mei-Rin gushed enthusiastically. "I can't believe Miss Chêne really asked me to be her bride's maid~!" Chêne and Ciel had already explained the situation to the others before their departure.

"Hoh, hoh, hoh," Mister Tanaka chuckled softly in agreement as he drove the servants' carriage. They had finally arrived in the neighboring town of Penbrook, the location of their latest case. Actually, even though it was called a town, Penbrook was closer to being a village, judging by the sparse amount of locals out and about. It did have a certain quaint charm, though. The air was even fresher out here than at the Phantomhive manor since they were even further away from the city. Bard smirked wryly as he took a drag on his cigarette and exhaled.

"Yeah, never thought I'd actually see the day those two got hitched... even if it's just a cover," the chef said, shaking his head out of bemusement. "But, we're not here to play. Chêne's gonna be in serious danger posin' as a bride, so we have to stay on our guard, got it?" he reminded them seriously. After hearing the details of this investigation, Bard had been surprised that Ciel and Sebastian would let Chêne become the target of a serial killer, but with them and Sebastian there to protect her, there was no way the shooter's bullet would hit its mark this time... as long as those two could stay focused and remember the wedding was all just for show... He sweat-dropped. Mei-Rin and Finni looked like they hadn't heard a word he had just said, because they were happily chattering away without a care in the word.

'Sorry, Chêne... maybe you're not as safe as we originally thought...' Bard thought, sighing as he exhaled the smoke in his lungs.

{The town of Penbrook, the Black Pony Inn...}

"Right. We still have one hour to prepare ourselves, before we must be at the church for the wedding," Sebastian announced after consulting his pocket watch once they had signed in and brought the luggage up. Ciel had rented one room for the men to change in and one for Mei-Rin and Chêne to change in. Formal clothes were not meant to be traveled in, after all. Sebastian, Ciel, and Chêne had no doubts that if the three stooges had been allowed to wear their wedding clothes, something would've happened to damage them. They're not sure what it might have been, but they weren't taking any chances. The Inn was within a stone's throw of the local Catholic church, St. Peter's, so it was within easy walking distance for the ladies in their dainty heels and elegant gowns.

"So, what're our parts again?" Finni asked Sebastian as he and Bard started pulling on their dress-shirts. Sebastian had already finished helping Ciel change, and Mister Tanaka was surprisingly fast for an old man, so the two of them had already gone downstairs to have some tea while they waited for the others to finish.

"You, Finni, shall be the ring-bearer. Be careful—very careful," Sebastian stated seriously as he handed Finni the small satin pillow the wedding ring was tied to. He didn't even want to think about what Chêne's reaction might be like if they lost the family heirloom he had ben given by Grandma Willow to use for just such an occasion... Sebastian pulled on his wedding jacket and straightened his tie. "And Bard will be playing the part of my groomsman," he added carelessly as he stepped out of the room and shut the door behind him.

"... Hey, wait a sec! Why did Finni get such a serious speech, when you said my role like it was an afterthought, dammit!?" Bard shouted incredulously after him.

"Ah, this is...!" Finni gasped when he looked at the ring on the pillow.

"Whoa...!" Bard said, his eyes widening when he too saw the beautiful ring. In this time period, it was more common for only one ring to be exchanged when the vows were said, as the custom of using double wedding rings for both the man and woman had not been established as of yet. Most wedding rings, especially those belonging to the lower class, were usually simple bands of gold with the couple's names and wedding date engraved into inside of the band. When wedding rings had jewels on them, the jewels were usually pearls and/or diamonds, but this ring... this ring had diamonds and emeralds! The chef whistled in appreciation. The gems looked pretty high quality, and they sparkled in the light. The design was simple but elegant. This was not the ring of a serving girl! Just looking at it made Bard's wallet hurt. How on earth did Sebastian afford a ring like this!?