That Butler, New Face

That Butler, Parleying

"Hey. What're you doing here?" Doll repeated when Ciel didn't answer her.

A bead of nervous sweat rolled down his cheek as he stared up at her. No. He couldn't let himself get caught here.

"Se—" he tried to summon the demon butler, but he had hesitated too long.

GRAB!

"Don't move," Doll commanded ominously as she leaned over him, keeping a firm grip on the startled boy's face with the hand she had suddenly placed over his mouth to silence him.

Damn—Now he couldn't even call Sebastian for help!!

"Heeey theeere, Doooll~!" Someone called out to her, causing Ciel to twitch.

His dire situation was getting worse and worse by the second!

"Wot's Doll doin'?" Dagger asked Snake, wondering why she wasn't answering and why she was crouching down by a bunch of crates.

Snake didn't reply. He was too busy shivering from the cold and consoling the snake perched on his shoulders. For some reason, the bloke always seemed to have one on him, and Dagger briefly wondered if Snake would talk at all without his scaly little friends to translate for. Whenever he spoke, it was to relay what one of his snakes had told him... Not that Dagger could blame Snake for being shy around other humans, not with his history...

"Snake!!" Doll shouted suddenly with wide eyes.

"!!" Ciel gasped, his expression darkening as he furrowed his brow. Just as he thought, she—!!

"A deadly snake was roamin' 'round," she deadpanned as she popped back up and spun around to face her fellow First Stringers, thrusting out her hand to show them the poisonous snake she had just found.

"Uwah!" Dagger cried. What was Doll thinking—picking up such a dangerous thing!?

"Don't we keep sayin' not to let these buggers have free rein of the place?" She chided Snake. She wasn't really mad, but he should be more careful. It'd be bad if someone actually got bitten.

"?" Ciel said, sweat dropping, while he watched from his hiding place. He wondered what Doll was up to. Hadn't she been about to turn him in just now...?

"Why ye—! Keep 'em to yer tent like ye ought!" Dagger shouted nervously, paling and breaking out into a nervous sweat when the snake started to writhe and hiss in her hand, trying to escape. "Eeeek!" He flinched in shock and screamed like a girl when Doll decided to let it go, and the snake slithered past him on its way back to its owner.

"..." Snake said as it joined the one already perched on his shoulder and started hissing something in his ear.

"I don't wanna give up the ghost all sudden 'n' unawares, like!" Dagger scolded Snake, sweat dropping. "Sheesh, give us a break, mate!"

"..." Doll said as she watched both of the guys walk away in opposite directions. Snake was probably headed back to warmth of his own tent, and Dagger was most likely going to get a bite at the dining tent since he had just been talking about how hungry he was.

FWIP.

Ciel flinched when she suddenly whipped her head back around to stare at him, a little startled.

"This way," she said, taking hold of his wrist to guide him.

"!?" Ciel said, beyond confused. Wait—what!?

"Quick!" She urged him, dragging him along, as she started to run.

"!?" he exclaimed, surprised. Could it be... she really was trying to help him? Why?