Little Miss Hood

Chapter One

Ciel sat at the edge of the table with his legs crossed. He tapped his fingers on the edge of the plate, staring at the food as if it was poisoned. He sighed, for perhaps the third time, wondering why he had never bothered to try and meet the wolf before. He was so handsome. So tall. So infatuating. He simply must see him again.

"Are you quite alright?" his father, Vincent, asked. "You've sighed so many times and I haven't even talked to you yet."

"Huh?" Ciel dropped his fork and looked up at his father.

"What's the matter with you?" his father asked, concerned.

"Ah, well, nothing really, I was just wondering why you got cursed in the first place..." Ciel lied. It was true that he had thought of the reasons before, but had never bothered to ask his father about them. Now was a good a time as any.

His father looked quite bewildered with that statement. His eyes widened ever so slightly and the tips of his ears turned a bit red. Ciel wasn't expecting this type of reaction. Now he was even more curious than before. "Humans and wolves don't particularly get along, you know?" his father laughed, albeit nervously. "I got a bit too close to one of them and the wolf leader placed a curse on me to make sure I'd never get close to that particular wolf again."

"Tell me more," Ciel leaned his chin on his folded hands as his elbows rested against the table.

"I'm afraid I can't tell you more than that," Vincent scratched the side of his face. "It's a side effect of the curse. I'm not allowed to go into much detail. However, I suppose one day you might find out for yourself. That is, should a wolf tell you. I wouldn't recommend it. The wolf I got to know was nice and all but the others can be rather ruthless. Your cloak is the only thing that protects you from them. Their under oath not to harm you."

"Side effect of the curse?" Ciel inquired.

"More like a promise to the current chief of wolves," Vincent let out a laugh. "Breaking oath is a very serious crime in the wolf culture."

"You know quite a bit about them, don't you?"

"Ah," Vincent averted his gaze. "You could say that."

"I suppose I should go back into town," Ciel stood up.

"But, you've barely eaten anything..." Vincent stretched out his hand to grab Ciel's but the boy was already too far away. He watched as his son left in such a hurry. What would the boy's mother think? Hopefully he didn't get back too soon. That would simply add more fuel to the fire for her. She already hated Vincent enough as it was. She didn't need more excuses to try and believe Ciel hated him just as much.

Ciel walked the familiar path. He looked left and he looked right. The feeling of eyes on him was gone. He wondered if he would ever meet that wolf again. Sebastian? Was it? Surely they would cross paths eventually. Ciel stopped dead in his tracks, closed his eyes, and let out a long sigh. What exactly was he planning to do once he saw Sebastian again? Get to know him? Look how well that turned out for his father. He should forget about the handsome wolf. It was safer that way.

He opened his eyes and took a single step forward. Sebastian stood, in front of him, grinning down with those pointy teeth of his. "Hello," the wolf said. "You're a bit earlier than usual, you know? Did something happen?" Sebastian looked past Ciel to the manor.

"No, nothing happened," Ciel replied. "I just thought I would go into town earlier today. That's all." Ciel took a step to the left and continued walking as if Sebastian wasn't there at all. The wolf promptly turned around and walked with him. His tail playfully swinging from side to side as his ear twitched.

"You wanted to see me, don't lie to yourself," Sebastian laughed.

"That's not the case at all. Why would I want to see you? You're a wolf, a big bad scary wolf. I am a human. Naturally you're the first thing I would try to avoid."

"A big bad scary wolf?" Sebastian placed his hand over his heart. "I am truly hurt you would think such a thing. I took this form specifically so you wouldn't think I was scary. Did it not work?" Sebastian bit his lower lip. His ears flopped down and his tail drooped. His pace slowed and Ciel was a good few feet in front of him.

Ciel, feeling guilty, turned around to face the wolf. "No, you're not scary at all. Why should I be frightened of you when I have my cloak?" Sebastian's ears and tail perked up and he quickly joined up with Ciel once more. The two continued walking along the worn path.

"I'm so glad you say that," Sebastian grinned. "I did put so much effort into this appearance."

"Into that appearance?" Ciel glanced to his side and eyed Sebastian up and down. He then shook his head and let out a sigh before facing forward again. "One would think you had just woken up out of a ditch. Are you quite certain you tried to look like that?"

"Do I not suit your tastes? I can try again..." Sebastian insisted.

"It's hard enough getting used to that appearance. Don't change it up on me. I don't like surprises, Mr. Big Bad Wolf," Ciel snickered. The wolf puffed out his cheeks and pouted.

"If you don't like the way I look, I can and would like to change it," Sebastian frowned.

"The way you look is just fine. If, and only if, you actually decided to take a bath," Ciel held a hand up to his nose. "You smell like outside."

"What does outside smell like?" Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "And why are you so contradictory, Little Miss Hood?"

"Because I can be. And, obviously outside smells like outside. Why, we are outside right now, aren't we? Can't you smell it?" Ciel moved his basket from one hand to the other as he walked. They were almost to the village.

Sebastian lifted his head to sniff the air. "I still don't understand what you mean. But, I will try my best to look better on your way home from the village. Enjoy yourself, Little Miss Hood," Sebastian winked and ran into the woods. Ciel smiled. He was looking forward to his return visit to the manor.