Hi guys! Well, here it is. My first Black Butler story. The reason I wrote this story is because I liked Doll/Freckles and I hated how Toboso killed her off. She could have brought so much to the series if he had let her live. Also, I'm a bit of a Ciel/Doll shipper. Out of all the women in Ciel's life, I feel that Doll would be the only one that could potential bring any sort of joy into Ciel's life. Anyway, I do not own Kuroshitsuji, its characters, or its locations. They are all owned by Yana Toboso, Square Enix, A-1 Pictures, and Funimation.

"I WON'T FORGIVE!" The girl known as Doll yelled to the young boy and the man who was carrying him as her adoptive father's house burned behind them. "I WON'T FORGIVE YOU, SMILE!" She continued as she pulled out a knife from her clothing and charged at the two.

As she ran towards them, the wind blew aside the fragment of hair that covered her left eye. Ciel Phantomhive was shocked at what he saw. Where a normal eye should have been, there was instead what looked like a burn mark over it, causing said eye to be deformed with only a slit to indicate the sclera. As he continued to look at the tears that flowed out of both eyes, it finally dawned on Ciel that he and Doll were almost similar. Both were damaged, both were lost, and both were left alone in the world with no true family. He felt a pang in his chest and a feeling that he thought would never arise again: pity.

"Sebastian," he addressed to the butler as the young girl made her way closer and closer to them. "Knock her out."

"As you wish, my Lord." Sebastian replied as he set Ciel down on the ground. With lightning speed, Sebastian made his way behind Doll and raised his right hand flat. "My deepest apologies." He said as the side of his hand came down to connect with the back of Doll's neck.

Doll let out a gasp as she felt her entire body go limp. She soon lost her footing and landed on the dirt path, the knife skidding until it rested at Ciel's feet. In a last-ditch effort, Doll reached out a hand in the hopes of grabbing the young lord. "Won't...forgive...you." She struggled to say before she slipped out of consciousness.

'I'm sorry.' Ciel thought as he looked at the face of the girl who thought he was her friend, tears still visible from both eyes. He then turned to his faithful butler. "Sebastian," he said, "Take Doll and I home."

"May I ask why, my Lord?" Sebastian said with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you questioning me?" Ciel asked in annoyance. "I gave you an order: take Doll and I back to the manor!"

"Of course, my young Lord." Sebastian said with a bow and a smug grin. "After all, I am bound to serve you until you have fulfilled your goals. That was the term to our contract, after all." He then picked up Doll and slung her over his right shoulder. After he cradled Ciel in his left arm, he said, "I would advise you wrap your arms around my neck, my Lord. It will be a rather bumpy ride." As soon as Ciel secured himself, the demon butler lept forward and sprinted toward the Phantomhive Manor as the Kelvin Manor continued to burn behind them.

"Doll...Doll..."

The circus performer opened her eyes to see herself surrounded by darkness. She tried to move to find the person behind the voice, but couldn't move for some reason.

"Doll...Doll..."

She turned her head and soon was face to face with Joker, who was looking at her with sadness. "J-Joker?" She asked in shock.

"Live for us, Doll." He said quietly. "Live for us." And with that, he turned and walked away from her.

"Wait, Joker!" She cried as she saw him slowly fade away. "Don't leave me!"

"Come back!" Doll cried out as she sat up and extended her hand out. But she realized that she was reaching out for nothing. Instead of a bright light, there was a small desk with a writing quill and a bottle of ink. 'A dream,' she thought in frustration as she retracted her hand and placed it over her deformed eye. 'It was only a dream.' As she looked around, she noticed that she was lying in what looked like a queen-sized bed. Another good look showed that she was perhaps in a guest room at some elaborate house.

'Where am I?' she wondered. 'The las thing I remember was Father's house burning down and there was Smile and Bla-' Her eye widened as she remembered the pain in the back of her neck. Confusion soon turned to anger as she remembered the boy claiming that he murdered her family.

A sudden knock at the door jolted her from her thoughts. "Are you awake, Ms. Doll?" an elderly voice called out. "I've brought you your breakfast." Doll scan the room; if this was the only way she could escape her confinement and look for Smile, she needed something to defend herself. Her eye soon fell on a letter-opener that was on a nightstand to her right. She quickly grabbed it and ducked against a wall that blocked the view of the door. "Are you decent?" the elderly voice asked.

"Yes." Doll called out, trying to calm her tone of voice. "Come in." She heard the door open up and the rustle of a dinner cart moving closer and closer. Soon, an old man in his 60s with a dinner cart rounded the corner and stopped when he noticed the bed was empty.

Without a moment's hesitation, Doll lunged at the old man, hoping to at least injure him in order to get information. The old man, however, dodged the letter-opener and shoved her onto the ground. He then placed his left knee on her back to pin her down, placed his left hand on her shoulder, and twisted her arm around and up with his left. He began to move her arm further up, causing Doll to feel pain.

"You seem to be in some discomfort." The man said calmly as he kept his grip. "I'm terribly sorry, but I believe we can get off to a better start if you were to let go of the letter-opener."

"I'm not letting go until I get some answers!" Doll snapped, trying to ignore the pain in her arm. "First, where am I, and second, who are you?"

"Well to answer your first question, my dear, you are currently in the home of the Earl Ciel Phantomhive." The old man said with a smile. "As for me, my name is Tanaka. I am a steward for the young earl."

"You work fer him?" Doll asked. "Then take me to him, you hear? Take me to-AAAHHH!" She cried out as Tanaka raised her arm to the point of nearly breaking it.

"I can assure you, my dear, that I will take you to see Lord Phantomhive," Tanaka said, "right after you eat, bathe, and get dressed. But before any of that, I must insist that you drop the letter-opener." Despite wanting to resist, Doll knew that if she wanted to confront this Phantomhive boy, she would have to let go of the weapon. Besides, something about Tanaka made her feel as though he didn't want to hurt her intentionally. She loosened her grip, causing the letter-opener to slip out of her hand and clatter to the floor.

"Excellent." Tanaka said as he let go of Doll's arm and lifted his knee. Doll sat up immediately and held her arm in pain. "Once again," Tanaka said as he bowed in her direction, "I'm terribly sorry for any discomfort I may have caused you."

"Well, that's what I get for trying to attack old men." Doll said. Tanaka replied in kind with a chuckle.

"Now then," he said as he clapped his hands together, "if you would kindly sit at the desk, I shall bring your breakfast over." Doll took her place at the desk and waited while Tanaka brought over the covered silver tray. He then lifted the tray to reveal boiled eggs in eggcups, a heaping of bacon, a plate of roasted potatoes, toast with raspberry jam, and a cup of Earl Grey tea. Doll's mouth watered as she caught a whiff of the delicious aroma. "The young lord told me of the journey you had last night. He believed that you hadn't eaten much since then. Now," he continued as he made his way to the bedroom door, "I shall leave you to your meal. Once you are finished, please go to the bathtub and cleanse yourself. Afterwards, you shall dress yourself and meet me outside this door. Only then will I take you to see Lord Phantomhive." And with that, Tanaka took his leave.

Doll stared down at the food and began shoveling in her mouth. Her eyes watered with pure delight at how good it was. It was perhaps one of the best breakfasts she ever had. Once she had finished, she made her way to the bathroom and got into the tub. The water was extremely warm and soothing. She scrubbed every part of her body and dried herself. Much to her surprise, when she came out of the bathroom, she found the clothes she wore last night on the chair she had sat in a few minutes ago. She soon began to dress herself; the clothes felt clean and fresh, as though someone had just scrubbed and dried them. 'But that's impossible.' Doll thought as she felt her clothes. 'Nobody's that good.'

Shaking off this suspicion, Doll soon made her way to the door and opened it. Standing outside her room was Tanaka, along with a young woman who was dressed like a maid and wore glasses that were slightly cracked in one lens.

"Ah," Tanaka said. "Glad to see you're fully dressed and ready for the day."

"Yes," Doll nodded in agreement. "And thanks for the meal, Mr. Tanaka. It was right delicious."

"Oh, I had nothing to do with the meal." Tanaka said with a chuckle. "That would be Sebastian's doing."

"Sebastian?" Doll asked in surprise. "Are you referrin' to 'Black'?"

"Yes," Tanaka said. "Well, while he may be known to you as 'Black', he is known by everyone else as Sebastian. He is the head butler at this manor. He tends to the young master's every need, whether it's to serve his meals or to assist him with his guests. By the way, Ms. Doll," he said as he gestured to the young maid next to him, "this is Ms. Mey-Rin. She is also a servant of the manor."

"A pleasure to meet you, miss." Mey-Rin said as she bowed toward Doll. "I'm terribly sorry to have to do this."

"Have to do wha-HEY!" Doll cried out in surprise as Mey-Rin began to pat parts of her body up and down.

"You must understand that after the incident with the letter-opener, Ms. Doll," Tanaka explained, "we cannot run the risk of letting you see the young master with a weapon on you." Doll shot a glare at the old man.

"There doesn't appear to be anything on her, Tanaka." Mey-Rin said as she finished searching Doll.

"Very well, then." Tanaka said as he gestured down the hall. "If you would kindly follow me, Ms. Doll." Doll nodded and followed the old man. She saw numerous portraits of earls and countesses on the walls as they continued their journey. One portrait, however, caught her eye. It consisted of a man with black hair standing next to a woman with strawberry-blond hair. In her lap was what looked like a six-year-old Ciel Phantomhive.

"Pardon me," Doll said as Tanaka turned to see what she was looking at. "But is this..."

"Yes," Tanaka said as he looked at the portrait with a smile. "This was the old family portrait of the young master and his parents, Earl Vincent Phantomhive and his wife Countess Rachel Dalles-Phantomhive."

"They all look so happy." Doll said as she found herself smiling at the young Ciel.

"Indeed," Tanaka said with a hint of sadness in his voice. "Those were better days."

'Were?' Doll thought as she looked at the servant with confusion.

"A tale for the young master to tell." Tanaka said. "But for now, let us be on our way."

After walking for what felt like hours, they finally came across a set of oak doors with an emblem of two eagles and two oddly-shaped metal hinges. "The Phantomhive family crest." Tanaka said, taking note of Doll's intrigue. "Now, beyond this door, I believe that all of your questions will be answered." Just as Doll was about to reach for the door handle, Tanaka placed a hand on her wrist. "Are you sure you want to go in there?" He asked with concern. "For once you open those doors, there is no going back. And if you do ask the young master your questions, I fear you may not like the answers."

"I have to know, Mr. Tanaka." Doll said as she looked at the oak doors. "I have to know the reason why Ciel Phantomhive spared me. And more importantly, I need to know why he killed my family."

"Very well then," Tanaka said as he let go of her wrist and bowed. "I shall bid you good day...and good luck." And with that, the old man took his leave.

Doll's gaze turned to the double-doors; she grasped the handle and took a deep breath. 'All right,' She thought, 'here goes.' Slowly, she opened the doors to reveal an enormous study with bookcases, a lounge table and chair, and a large desk with a leather chair.

"How nice of you to join us." A familiar voice said. Doll turned her attention to the man standing next to the desk. Not to her surprise, it was Sebastian, dressed in his signature black suit. "I hope Tanaka was helpful toward you." Doll could only nod her head in approval. Her gaze then turned to the leather chair and the occupant sitting in it. It was Ciel Phantomhive, dressed in a ruffled shirt and a blue coat and leggings instead of the rags he wore while with the circus. She also noticed that instead of the Japanese eyepatch that he had at the circus, he now sported a black one over his right eye. Anger began to boil inside Doll as she looked at the boy who had ordered the executions of her family while her fists began to clench.

"Sit." Ciel said as he pointed to a chair that was in front of the desk. Doll, not averting her gaze from him, walked over and plopped down into the chair. "I am sure you have many questions, to which I will try to answer fully."

"You're damn right I do!" Doll said as she slam a fist onto one of the armrests. "But the biggest question I have is this: WHY DID YOU KILL MY FAMILY?"

Though she was looking at him with the utmost hatred, Ciel's face never faltered as he continued to look at Doll. "I suppose in order to answer that question, I would have to tell you what happened to me. Three years ago, on my tenth birthday, my parents were murdered."

'Oh great, a pity story.' Doll thought angrily.

"I was held captive by a secret organization of upper-class men and women for years along with various other children." Ciel continued. "We were beaten, tortured, and even branded. But worst of all...we were sacrificed."

"Sure you were." Doll said with a snide attitude. "And I'm the bloody queen of England."

Ciel then rose from his chair and made his way around the desk until he was closer to Doll. Then, he began to unbutton his outer coat. Once it fell to the floor, he then turned around and unbuttoned his shirt. He slid it slowly off his shoulders and down his back until it rested around his hips, giving Doll a full view of his back. Her checks turned a bright pink as she saw the sight before her. Then her eyes fell on a symbol that seemed to be branded into his skin. As she leaned in closer, her eyes widen in shock as she recognized the crest with the two serpents entwined with each other.

"That's...that's Fa-...Father's..." She couldn't even say it.

"Yes," Ciel said as Sebastian began to redress him. "It's the same crest that was on Kelvin's ring. He was part of the group that kidnapped me, but he wasn't with them when they had me. Their sole purpose was to sacrifice children in the hopes of summoning a demon." He made his way back to his chair and sat down. "For months, I prayed to God to help me. But in the end, he never answered them. Finally, after months of sacrifices, a demon was finally summoned in front of the organization. But it wasn't they who him." He added with a smile. At this, Ciel loosened the string attached to his eyepatch until it fell onto the desk. He then opened his right eye to reveal a purple pentagram where an eyeball should be; Doll gasped in shock by what she saw. "It was me." Ciel said with an air of pride. "I was the one who summoned the demon. It was I who made the contract with him and ordered him to kill the occupants in the chambers."

Doll found herself shaking from this news. 'This...this is impossible!' she thought. 'How can any of what he's sayin' actually be true?'

"Quite a fascinating story, isn't it?" Sebastian's voice said close to Doll's right ear. Doll cried out in surprise, stumbled out of the chair, and landed on the floor. "You must have known back at the circus that I am no ordinary butler, my dear." Sebastian said as he loomed over the girl. His eyes suddenly changed from light-brown to bright-red. "Nor human, for that matter." He added as a black aura of menace began to form around him. Doll wanted to scream at the top of her lungs as she looked at the monstrosity before her, but all that came out were raspy gasps as the demon returned to his human form.

"C-Ciel Ph-Phantomhive..." Doll stuttered as she turned to look at the boy, who was smiling as though he were an imp playing a cruel trick. "W-What the bloody hell are you?"

"I am known by many names." Ciel said as he reattached his eyepatch. "But I am mostly called 'the Queen's Guard Dog'. As head of the Phantomhive family, it is my duty to police the underworld and act upon her Majesty's orders when something threatens her empire."

"But, I don't understand." Doll said as she slowly sat back into her chair. "What does your role and what happened to you years ago have to do with you killing my family?"

"There were numerous reports of children missing throughout the country." Ciel said. "From what I gathered from my contacts, they had all occurred when the Noah's Ark Circus was in their towns."

"So you were ordered by the Queen to look into them, eh?" Doll asked.

"Indeed." Ciel stated with a nod. "Sebastian and I were tasked to pose as circus performers and use that cover to gather more information. We soon discovered a picture of you, your family, and Kelvin. When I recognized the crest on his ring, I knew that these abductions were somehow similar to mine. When we decided to visit Kelvin, my suspicions were confirmed. He was indeed holding the children captive and performing the ritual on his own."

As Ciel continued his story, Doll felt as though she was torn. On one hand, she didn't want to believe the horrible things that Ciel was saying. But on the other, she felt as though he was telling her the truth. Maybe Father wasn't the kind-hearted man she and the others thought he was. Maybe he was nothing more than a deranged, psychotic bastard. If she was being honest with herself, neither she nor any of the other performers knew what Father wanted with the children they kidnapped.

"Those children were suffering a fate so much worse than death." Ciel said. "And to make matters worse, it turned out that Doctor was involved."

"You're lying!" Doll said as she rose from her chair. "Father may have been all the things you say he is, but Doc's different. He's kind-hearted, he treats us when we need him, he-"

"Was just as psychotic as Kelvin was." Ciel interrupted, not wanting to hear the false traits of the mad man. "Once the children were sacrificed, Kelvin gave their bones to Doctor. Doctor then used those bones to create body parts."

"Body parts?" Doll asked. "What kind of body parts would be made from the bones of children?"

"What do you think Joker's, Beast's, and Dagger's appendages were made of?" Ciel asked.

Doll's eyes widened in shock and her face paled. "That's...that's ain't true. You're...you're bloody lying."

"I wish I was." Ciel said as he gazed down at his desk sadly.

Doll's face pivoted down to her knees. There was no way any of this could be true; she felt as though she was going to be violently sick. "Joker had the same reaction when it was revealed to him the origin of his arm." Ciel said, noticing the paleness of Doll's face.

"And the others?" Doll asked, once she had composed herself enough to talk. "Beast, Dagger, Jumbo, Peter, Wendy...how did they die?"

"My servants." Ciel said. "Beast and the others may be skilled, but my servants are trained killers. Their duty is to protect the manor and, thus, myself from any intruders who wish to cause harm." Seeing Doll's angry face, Ciel added, "It was never my full intention to have them killed, Doll. Only to arrest them and have them pay for their crimes." His eye widen a bit, however, when he heard a small chuckle from the girl.

"Even if you had tried to talk them into surrenderin', they wouldn't even listen." Doll said as she smiled softly. "Knowing the lot of them, they would have died fighting." Ciel couldn't help but smile a little himself as he remembered the troupe as well. At times, they could be stubborn, obnoxious, and ignorant fools. However, they also displayed acts of loyalty, caring, and dedication towards their way of life and to each other.

"Now that you know the truth," Ciel said once he shook the memories of the performers out of his thoughts, "What do you plan to do now that they are gone?"

At this, Doll rose from her chair, all the while not breaking her eye contact from Ciel. Sebastian began to move in front of Ciel, but the young earl raised a hand, indicating to his loyal butler that no actions were needed. The butler nodded in understanding and slowly backed away. "There's a workhouse on the outskirts of London that we called Renbourn. It houses all the other orphans that Kelvin had under his care." Doll said. "I plan to travel there, gather 'em, and then..." she paused for a bit before she said, "I'm not sure what will happen from there."

"I see," Ciel said as he stood up and turned to his butler. "Sebastian," he ordered, "Find out what town the Renbourn Workhouse is and procure three train tickets for tomorrow."

"Of course, my Lord." The butler said as he bowed to the young master.

"Three?" Doll asked quizzically as she looked at Ciel.

"Indeed." Ciel said. "Sebastian and I will be going with you to Renbourn Workhouse. Now that Baron Kelvin is dead, the house will need someone to supervise it. Since I am the one that killed him, I feel it an obligation to see it myself and possibly take over."

This sudden announcement, however, caused Doll to clench her fists in anger as she glared at the young earl. "Don't you dare think that this little declaration you've just made isn't going to get you on me good side." Doll in a deep threatening tone. "I hate you, Ciel Phantomhive. You killed my family; I wouldn't forgive you for what you did for the rest of me days. And when I am reunited with me brothers and sisters at the workhouse, I never want to see you ever again." And with that, she stormed over to the door and swung it open to leave. Before she did, however, she turned to the boy while still keeping a stern face and asked, "What did you do to their bodies?"

"We couldn't find the bodies of Dagger and Beast," Ciel said, "But we were able to locate the bodies of Peter, Wendy, and Jumbo. All three are buried over by the edge of the forest, if you wish to pay your respects."

Doll nodded and began to close the door, but not before uttering a small "Thank you" before shutting the door entirely. She then made her way down the hall until she came across a cushioned bench. It was only when she sat down on it that she covered her mouth and began to cry. She stayed there for what seemed like ages.

After a while, she then made her way throughout the mansion to know her surroundings. The hallways seemed to go on for miles; it was like an elaborate maze. If she had to guess, Doll would say that the Phantomhive Manor was much larger and more elaborate than Kelvin's manor.

After a while, she saw the maid Mey-Rin carrying a large stack of plates that looked like they were about to fall. "Um, Ms. Mey-Rin..." Doll said as she nervously looked up at the stack of dinnerware, "Do you need any help?"

"Oh, Ms. Doll!" Mey-Rin said excitedly as she peeked out from behind the plates. "Don't worry about me, I've got all of this under con-GAH!" She cried out as she slipped and the plates flew up into the air. As they descended, however, Doll felt something race past her in a hurry. A second later, Sebastian was holding a balanced set of plates in each hand as though they had miraculously stacked on top of each other perfectly.

"Mey-Rin." Sebastian said with a hint of exhaustion in his voice. "How many times have I told you to not carry so many plates at once?"

"So sorry, Sebastian!" Mey-Rin said as she stood up all flustered and bowing before the butler. "It was right foolish of me to do so."

"Are you alright, Ms. Rin?" Doll asked as she looked at the maid with concern. "You ain't hurt, are you?"

"Oh, I'm fine, Ms. Doll." Mey-Rin said with a smile. "Thank you so much for your concern, though. I best get the drinking glasses for tonight's dinner." And with that, she ran off.

'What is with the blokes in this bloody manor?' Doll thought.

"If you wish," Sebastian said as his voice snapped Doll from her thoughts, "You could go outside to the manor and have a look around. It's such a pleasant day; quite rare to have in London."

Doll didn't say anything, but decided to take Sebastian's advice and went out into the gardens. The gardens were just as elaborate and beautiful as the manor itself. Bushes with different types of flowers ran along the garden in a perfect line. So perfect that not one branch stuck out oddly. Off in the distance, she could see a large, glass greenhouse and an equally large hedge maze. And in the center, she noticed a small table with two small chairs around it. 'Must be where Ciel sits when he has company over.' She thought.

"Oi! Who's there?" A voice called out, causing Doll to jump in surprise. Standing to her right at the base of the stairs leading to the garden was a young boy who looked to be about 16 years old. He had on brown pants, a tan shirt and work gloves. Situated around his neck with rope was a small sunhat. He was also carrying a small tank of what smelled like weed killer. As he made his way to her, his once stern face turned into one of surprise and excitement. "Oh, you must be the girl the young master brought home last night!" He said in a more chipper tone.

"Um...yeah, I am." Doll said, unsure of how to such a sudden change of character in a person.

"Name's Finnian." The boy said with a smile. "I'm the gardener here at the manor. I was just about to use this weed killer 'ere to take care of the plants when you showed up."

"Ah." Doll said in response and then asked, "Tell me somethin'. Why do you work for such a mean and cruel master like Ciel Phantomhive?"

"Oh, well the young master may be a bit harsh at times and can seem ungrateful." Finnian said with a small smile. "But it's because of him and Sebastian that we servants are able to do things other than killing."

"Killing?" Doll asked in confusion.

At this, Finnian's smile lessened slightly. "Yeah." He said. "Before we servants came to the manor, all we ever knew was to kill. Bard, the chef, 'e was a former sergeant in the American Army. Before she came here, Mey-Rin was a merc for hire who didn't care who she killed, as long as she got paid. As for meself," He stopped as he placed the hat on his head and leaned back so that Doll could see the code "S-012" tattooed on the back of his neck, "I was experimented on by these blokes who wanted to turn me into a super-soldier. They injected me with this stuff that gave me super-strength. They wanted to make me into a monster."

While hearing the tale, Doll couldn't help but feel a little sadden for the three servants. They were all damaged just like her. "But how does any of that have to do with Phantomhive?" She asked.

"Oh, well," Finnian said with a regained smile as he continued to pump the weeds around the garden, "Sebastian and the young master came to each of us. Sebastian taught us how to do our own jobs and the young master gave us all the things we wanted. Like me, after being cooped up in that God-awful place for so long, all I ever wanted to do was be outside. This here job lets me have that option and I couldn't be more grateful to the young mas-"

"Uh, Finny?" Doll said as she pointed at the shrubbery with a deadpanned expression. "The...plants..."

"Why; what's wrong with-GAH!" Finnian cried out as he saw that the bush he had been spraying was dry, brown, and brittle. "I must 'ave used too much extra-strength weed killer. I've killed it!"

"Killed another bush again, Finnian?" Once again, the sound of Sebastian's voice from behind caused Doll to jump a little in terror.

'Can't he approach others in front of 'em like a normal person?' Doll thought in annoyance.

"Well then, Finnian," Sebastian said exhaustedly, "it would appear that we will have to purchase and plant a new one. Finnian," he continued as he glanced at the boy, "perhaps it would be best if you were to work in the greenhouse for the day. I doubt you'll be able to kill as much plant-life in there than if you were to work outside."

At this, Finnian's face lit up with delight; he always loved working in the greenhouse. "Blimey, that would be excellent!" He said with excitement. "Thanks Sebas-"

"BOOM!"

A sudden explosion rocked the estate, causing Doll and Finnian to fall to the ground with Sebastian standing perfectly still. "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL WAS THAT?" Doll cried out in terror. "WAS THAT CANNONFIRE?"

"Highly doubtful." Sebastian said coolly. "More than likely, that was the chef Baldroy. No doubt he ended up burning tonight's dinner...again."

"Maybe we ought to go check up on him." Finnian suggested. At this, all three made their way to the side of the house where they came across a large brick oven set up outside with smoke billowing out of it. On the ground beside it was a man in his mid-30s covered head to toe in black soot and coughing profusely. "Bard!" Finnian said as he ran toward the man. "Bard, you alright?"

"Yeah, well," Bard said as he stood up, "I tried to cook the meat faster, so I use me flamethrower thinkin' that would work."

'What bloody chef uses a flamethrower thinkin' it'll cook a meal faster?' Doll thought in utter bewilderment.

"At least this time you didn't blow up the kitchen, Baldroy." Sebastian said in a monotone voice. "Finnian," he added as he glanced back at the boy, "why don't you help out Baldroy instead?" Finnian nodded as he began to stoke the fire for the brick oven. "And Ms. Doll," Sebastian continued as his gaze turned to the girl and he pointed a finger at the outskirts of the woods, "I believe what you are looking for is right there."

Doll's gaze fell on six makeshift crosses with freshly dug-up dirt at the base of three of them. As she made her way closer, she was able to make out the writing on each of them:

Jumbo

Peter

Wendy

Dagger

Beast

Joker

"Though we couldn't find the remains of the last three," Sebastian said, "the young lord insisted that they should have their own graves. Now if you excuse me, I have to solve whatever other problems the servants have caused." And with that, he took his leave.

Doll stared at the crosses and felt her legs give out as she fell to her knees. She cast her head downwards as fresh tears began to flow from her eyes. This was the final destination for her family: crudely dug graves and wooden crosses held together by twine. 'They deserve bette'.' She thought to herself. She soon wiped away her tears and stood up, wiping away the dirt that was on her pants. 'Tomorrow, I'll be free from Phantomhive.' She thought. 'Soon...I can get the rest of me brothers and sisters and we can leave all this behind.' And with a small smile at the crosses, she went off to see what else the manor had to offer.

And with that, the first chapter has come to an end. Sorry if the ending feels rushed; I wanted to get this chapter out there because I have been writing it for months now. Also, sorry if Doll, Mey-Rin, Baldroy, and Finnian's dialect is hard to understand. I was never good at writing choppy English dialogue.

Anyway, if you do end up liking it and want more, don't forget to favorite, comment and follow.

Until then, this is AnimeFan299110 encouraging you all to enjoy this chapter. You see, I am simply one hell of an author.