Black Butler: The Stellar Dove

18.4

  "There, that's better..." I sighed with relief, finally catching my breath.

Beside me, Sebastian was chuckling.

"What's so funny!?" I asked.

"Aggressiveness and your voice do not mix well," he told me.

My face flushed from embarrassment as I realized how awkward I sounded. "I... I suppose I'm not the controlling type..."

"Yes, but luckily the big bad butler came to save the day."

I busted out with laughter as he pulled me into his arms, laying his head across mine. I soon realized he was inspecting my arms and head, checking for injury. "I'm not hurt at all, just a bit shaken," I told him. "You don't have to do that."

"Alright," he sighed, allowing me to lean back to see his face. The moment was about to reach its climax when Pluto jumped between us.

"Pluto!" I laughed as he licked the side of my face. "That was his kiss, you know." Pluto barked happily. "Well, I suppose I should finish walking this thing."

"I'll leave you to it, then," he told me as he began to walk away, quickly planting a kiss on my other cheek and shooting Pluto a look.

The rest of that chore went smoothly since he was in his human form. When I got back, I was nearly running late for the lesson, and had to change into my casual dress quickly.

"Ciel?" I knocked on the door of his office, entering slowly to find him semi-immersed in paperwork. "Are you ready?"

"Yes, I've been expecting you," he answered, drawing his attention away from the desk to me.

"I apologize for keeping you waiting," I told him. "I had an incident in the garden and had to change."

"It's forgiven," he sighed as he approached me. He was never in a good mood at all before his dancing lesson.

"Now, where did we leave off last time?" I asked with a cheerful tone, trying to take the edge off of it for him.

"Um, I had just gotten the positions down, I believe..."

And so we went along with the dancing lesson. He had the different positions fairly solid from yesterday. I decided to teach him to keep them while stepping to the rhythm. Next, we tried it together, but working with a partner seemed to throw him off track a bit more. Still, we practiced for at least a half hour until I noticed his stamina decreasing greatly while his frustration grew, then I decided to end the lesson early.

"I think we're finished for the day," I told him with an approving smile. "You've been improving a lot. I don't think we'll have to continue this much longer."

Ciel nodded, slumping down on the couch in both mental and physical exhaustion. "Then how will I get a break from my work?" he asked a bit jokingly.

"Well, I suppose you could teach me to play chess better if you really want an excuse," I smiled.

"I may have to take you up on that."

A few moments later, Sebastian entered the room with a snack tray to find us playing chess. "This doesn't look like dancing," he said sarcastically.

"We stopped early," Ciel said without emotion, his eyes focused on the board.

"You should see how far he's come along," I told Sebastian, keeping my eyes on my opponent.

"I've walked by and caught glances," he said, standing beside me and watching as Ciel made his move. I started nervously at the new position, placing a hand on my chin in thought. There was no safe move I could find, unless I wanted to sacrifice. "My lady, if I could suggest something..." Sebastian whispered in my ear. I smirked and followed his advice.

"That's not fair, you're on my side!" Ciel objected.

"My apologies, sir. Here, I believe you can still win if..." he went on to explain a strategy to him.

"That doesn't help either, you idiot! Now she knows exactly what I was going to do!"

I laughed at the two of them—Ciel red-faced with anger and Sebastian with his playful smile like he didn't even know he did something wrong. The butler chuckled, and Ciel laid his head in his hand. I could have sworn I saw the hint of a smile hidden in the shadows of his face.

Ciel went back to work after winning the game of chess, regardless of his butler's attempts to sabotage him. Sebastian and I went back to our own duties—mine going off to check on Bard, and his straightening the ballroom.

On the way to the kitchen, I couldn't resist walking by the room which the butler was in, peaking through the doors. He had just set down some cleaning supplies in the center of the room and was taking a moment to observe his work. I knew he knew I was there, and ever since that night, he had decided to take liberty to express his full abilities around me. I was about to get a show.