Pitch Black

It had been a while since she could last recall feeling so drained and exhausted, Katherine thought as she struggled to stay awake during her after dinner tea. Her mouth twisted slightly when she realized that she hadn't felt this way since she had been in Alois' grasp. The memories threatened to overcome her, drag down into the pits of darkness at the mere mention of his name. She wrapped her arms around herself to stop the sudden trembles and the racing of her heart. Ice flowed through her veins as she recalled the conversation that she had with Ciel. He had forced her to tell the entire story, all the while looking enraged and sick with disgust.

Having to remember every detail of that horrific experience was almost something she could not bear. She had momentarily fell into the that dark void during the tale, feeling the coldness of the prison cell on her flesh. Shaking her head, she forced those thoughts away and returned to the present where her fiance was regarding her carefully.

Embarrassed, she lifted her tea cup to her lips as her cheeks flushed red. It was an awkward silence that hung over them since the night before, yet he continued to observe. Setting her cup down with a sigh, she forced herself to meet his stare head on with one of her own. To her surprise, his own cheeks flushed and he looked away, clearing his throat.

Off to the side where Leo stood, she caught him roll his eyes slightly. Unable to hold it in, giving the situation, she laughed quietly. Suddenly she felt much better, drawn towards the light within the darkness that refused to relinquish her from it's grasp.

The atmosphere instantly grew tense, the auras coming from the demons that guarded them. Both of them stared out the windows with eyes blood red, features dark and alert.

Sebastian reached into his coat jacket and pulled out razor sharp silver knives. Leo whipped his body towards the two humans, fangs flashing.

"Run!" he shouted, just as the glass behind him exploded inwards.

Katherine felt her heart jump into her throat, unable to move as she stared. The stained glass trickled inwards, sparkling in the moonlight like falling stars. A third set of red eyes glowed from the darkness behind him, and her blood froze when a familiar pair of ice blue eyes followed. Alois had come for her, just as she had feared.

"Oh my god," she breathed in horror when Ciel reached across the table and grabbed her chilled hand tightly in his own. He jerked her to her feet, but she could not remove her eyes from the terrifying sight before her.

"Get a hold of yourself!" he shouted over the raging noise raining all around them. The dining hall had turned into an arena.

Claude had set down his master and was now occupying the other demons, moving swiftly around the room to keep them distracted. Alois stood in the moonlight, a knowing smirk on his lips as he regarded them.

"I've come to take you home, my dear," he said, his voice like oil and it made her lungs shrivel.

Ciel thought he had seen her afraid when they had encountered her before, but now she was unable to move. Her hand was ice cold in his own, and her body visibly shook in fear. Her eyes were wide saucers, unable to leave the form of the man who had tortured her. Cursing, I squeezed her hand tight and jerked her unmovable frame into my body.

"Kat, I need to you to focus. Sweetheart, look at me," he said urgently, trying to keep his voice gentle as he pried her chin so she would look at him. Her expression made his blood boil. She was white as snow, and was so very afraid. "We need to go now."

Her throat worked as she struggled to swallow, her breaths coming out quick and harsh. The slight squeeze she returned was the only confirmation he needed before he turned and ran, pulling her along.

"You can't run from me, Katherine! I will always find you!" Alois roared, blue eyes flashing with rage.

Ciel ran as fast as he could with Katherine being able to keep up. The further away they got, the more her senses sharpened until she had managed to return to her usual self. Her eyes were clear, her jaw set with anger. She pulled from his grasp when they rounded the next corner and glanced around, before stepping into the closest room.

"What are you doing?" he demanded, following her inside and stopped when he saw her tearing apart her lovely gown. She tore away the edges, bringing the hem just above her knees in layered tatters and kicked off her shoes.

When she finished, she turned to him and gave a nod. "I can move better, and run faster this way."

She grabbed his hand and slowly peered back out of the room, looking both ways before taking off down the hall. They ran and ran, listening to the crashing sounds and shouts coming closer with each step they took, until they ran out of luck.

Another demon, one neither of them had seen before stepped out from the shadows of the hall and smiled at them hungrily.

"I've been tasked with retrieving you, young princess," he said cheerfully, his eyes wide and crazed.

"Hmph," she said with distaste, masking her fear, "I do not recall that boy having another demon slave under his belt."

Those emerald green eyes bleed red as his smile widened. In his grasp, he twirled around his finger a star shaped razor.

"I'm going to have fun snatching you away, little miss," he promised ominously before disappearing from sight.

Katherine stared all around, hesitating. Where did he go?

Ciel grit his teeth, and pulled her away from the scene. "We can't just stand here!"

Katherine watched in horror as Alois' blue eyes appeared just beside them before he reached out and struck Ciel. His grip on her loosened and she was immediately torn away from him. Crying out, she struggled in the grasp of the strange demon who winked down at her.

"Gotcha."

Ciel climbed to his feet, spitting out the blood that welled in his mouth from Alois' hit. He didn't have to turn to see that Katherine was in the hands of the stray demon. Murderous rage made his blood boil as he glared at his nemesis. "Let her go."

That familiar irritating smirk made an appearance as Alois looked on smugly. "I don't think I will. After all," he said in a sly voice, licking his lips as his eyes trailed from him to his fiancee, "she is my property."

"She was and never will be yours, Alois!" he thundered with rage, his hands curled into tight fists. He was more then prepared to take on this psycho if it meant Katherine would be released.

Katherine watched on in horror as that familiar unsettling gleam appeared in those evil blue eyes. He was growing angry, and he was dangerous when things didn't go his way.

"KATHERINE!"

The demonic roar rattled the entire foundation, shaking the portraits on the wall and made her eyes grow wide.

"Leo!" she cried, wondering where he was and if he was hurt. "Sebastian, hurry!"

"That's enough out of you, my lady," the stranger said above her before lifting a hand and smashing out the window just behind them.

Her eyes grew wide when she realized what was about to happen. She struggled in his grasp until he got fed up and twisted her tresses up like a vice. She cried out when he gave her a good jerk, her scalp screaming with pain.

"You're not getting away, and if you want to keep your pretty head of hair, I suggest you obey," He gave another warning tug and she whimpered.

Ciel watched with dread as the demon grabbed Katherine up in his arms and with one last smile, jumped out the window. Her shattered cry echoed all around him, turning his blood to ice. She was gone. Without warning, he turned to Alois and lunged. They fell to the floor and Ciel used his anger to beat him to a bloody pulp. All the while, the crazed man laughed and laughed.

"You will never see her again, Phantomhive!" he crowed in delight, his face a bloody mess. "Maybe I shall return her depraved body to you when I'm finished with her, eh?"

Ciel punched him once more and shook him forcefully. "I am going to kill you Alois, and I'll make sure that she is right there with me. I will torture you and make sure that you stay alive enough to do it all over again for the rest of your sick, twisted existence," he promised darkly before he was jerked away just as Claude's gold daggers missed the tip of his nose.

Sebastian held on to his master, using a surprising amount of strength as the young man was trembling with unimaginable rage. His eyes were thin black slits, his features almost that of a beasts. It surprised the demon how powerful the human emotion could be.

Ciel watched as Alois was helped to his feet by his demon guardian, and smirked. "I've got what I wanted, Claude. I bid you goodnight, Phantomhive," he sang as the demon lifted him in his arms, "Don't let the bed bugs bite."

In a blink of an eye, they vanished from sight leaving them in a world of darkness and silence. Sebastian released his hold of his master and turned his gaze to the lesser demon who stared out the window as though his very soul had been ripped out. There was so much emotion behind his twisted expression for Sebastian to comprehend. Eyes flashing, he looked away from the shattered window to glare his master.

"You let her go," he accused angrily, his frame shivering in the moonlight. His fangs were elongated and he looked almost crazed with desperation.

Ciel gave a jolt in Sebastian's grasp, causing the demon to look down at him curiously. He watched carefully to see how his master would react this time to another long gone fiancee.

"Sebastian," he barked, catching the demon off guard for the first time. Even a chill went down his spine. Murderous, crazed eyes turned to glare back at him and sent a shiver of delight down his spine. "Find that son of a bitch and bring him to me. Dispose of that damn demon of his, " he ordered, his voice low, "bring her back to me and make sure he is alive."

A slow, hungry smile graced his lips. "Yes, my Lord."