A Dinner at the Gelerthive Manor

     Sebastian Xweeaelis, was a very calm and collected butler, even when things turned crazy as Lavitti trimmed the trees too far back, or Marador tripped and broke all the dishes, Lug occasionally losing his cookbook and proceeding to cook without it even though everyone knows he'll start a fire in the oven trying to cook without that cookbook of his.

     Sebastian set the teapot and teacups gently on the metal tray, placing a teapot cosy over the teapot temporarily, he put a plate of breakfast that consisted of a small piece of salmon, a scone and some small-sized cheese turnovers. And of course, what would be a breakfast without the warm, Earl Grey tea, which was Ciel's favourite type of tea. Sebastian grabbed the metal tray, put it in his left paw and began to head out of the kitchen, where he was soon face-to-face with a currently-falling red Meerca, Marador.

     Sebastian, quickly caught her with one arm, while still balancing the metal tray almost perfectly still in his other paw, Marador looked up at Sebastian and blushed in embarrassment. "Oh, Fyora! I'm so sorry, Mister Sebastian! I was trying to go to the laundry room to wash some clothes and while I was thinking about it so hard, I done tripped over my feet being so clumsy!" Marador instantly blurted out. Sebastian shook his head, "It's quite alright, Marador. But please, do watch your step while heading down the halls from now on, if you would." Sebastian helped her stand up straight and dusted off his tailcoat.

     Marador swallowed, "I will sir! I'm sorry!" She then continued to wander towards the laundry room, where she was probably going to trip again, but maybe not fall this time, at least Sebastian sure did hope so. As Sebastian thought on the previous events involving Marador, he gently pushed open the young master's bedroom door, holding the metal tray in his one paw.

     He quietly set the metal tray on the table nearby Ciel's bed, which was really big, and had a mobile with various charms of enamel petpets and petpetpets hanging above it and headed over to the white curtains to open them. As the Shadow Xweetok opened the curtains, a shining ray of sunshine from the great out-of-doors, began to glow near Ciel's bed, slowly awakening the baby Gelert from his sleep.

     Sebastian then turned around with a soft smile, eyes closed in a grin: "Good Morning, my little lord," he said. He began to add as he walked over to the table, "Today's breakfast is a salmon cooked to perfection, a gently buttered scone and some freshly-baked cheese turnovers, and of course, as you always like and prefer, a warm cup of Earl Grey made in the blue and white teacup you have bought from Brightvale just a month ago." He explained what he had made for the little lord. Ciel was having such a good dream, one with lots of candy, obviously. However, he felt someone nudge his shoulder.

     Ciel yawned, "Oh good morning, Sebastian," he said, stretching his arms. "Thanks...will there be candy later?" He started to eat his breakfast, looking outside the window. The birds were chirping outside and the sun's rays reaching the bed.

     Sebastian laughed softly, "Knowing you, there will be candy before dinner, despite me kindly asking for you not to eat candy before you've had your dinner." His tail swayed a bit. Sebastian peered out of the window, only to see Lavitti cradling a petpetpet, Sebastian couldn't help but roll his eyes and let out a small laugh at the gardener Bori, that gardener was always getting distracted by anything wiggly. Sebastian walked over to the closet, looked around for some clothing for the little lord to wear and then brought the clothes over to the bed, waiting for Ciel to finish his breakfast so he could get him dressed for today.

     Ciel had visitors coming to the manor today, Dr. Clause, though he has no PHD.

     Clause liked to say he was more of a candy doctor, he brought supplies that were used to make candies and sweets such as Dyes, Extracts and other candy-making supplies.

     Sebastian was going to prepare the manor for his arrival once he had gotten Ciel ready for the day. Ciel finished his breakfast, placing the tray on the table next to him. Sebastian then helped him with putting on his outfit. It was slightly big, but he adjusted it with a bow on the back.

     "So, any visitors today, Sebastian," he asked, looking outside his room.

     Sebastian nodded, "Yes, Dr. Clause from the candy-making tool factory in Altador is coming to the manor this evening to pay a visit and bring over some of his dyes, extracts and other supplies for your factory." Sebastian explained, his paw resting on his chest, the other paw behind his back.

     He added, "I will be doing the preparations here shortly for his arrival, so until then, you can sit down and relax until Clause has arrived." Sebastian smiled warmly.

     Later, when Dr. Clause arrived, Ciel was the first to the door.

     Ciel's eyes widened with a little bit of excitement. He ran out of his bedroom, and slid down the bannister, landing on his feet. He then ran over past the maid and servants towards the doorway.

     "Hello, Dr. Clause," Ciel said, bowing down.

     Clause, who was a lofty Ixi held his arms open wide, "Ah! Ciel! Bello vederti! (Good to see you!)" He picked up Ciel and gave him a big hug. Clause looked at him, "Have you grown a bit?" Clause poked the baby Gelert’s cheek. Sebastian walked to the front door, "Hello Dr. Clause, how nice to see you again. Please come in." Sebastian bowed.

     Dr. Clause gently set down Ciel and smiled, walking into the manor. Sebastian glanced out the window, towards the garden and nearly lost his formal posture, Lavitti had snipped away half of the flowers in the garden and was cuddling a wild petpet.

     Sebastian frowned, but didn't let Clause or Ciel notice anything was different, "Now, let's get you to the drawing room where you two can discuss the candy-making tools and such." Sebastian cleared his throat and led Clause and Ciel to the drawing room.

     As he opened the door gently with his paw, Clause and Ciel walked in and sat down across from each other at a nice, coffee-brown table. Sebastian shut the door quietly and rushed to the garden. "Lavitti! What in Lord Darigan's name are you doing?!" Sebastian gasped.

     Lavitti looked at Sebastian, "Oh! Mister Sebastian! I accidentally snipped away too many flowers, and then I got distracted when I found this little petpet." Lavitti smiled softly.

     Sebastian sighed, put his paw on his head and looked at the poor flowers. Then he heard something breaking loudly near the pantry. "What now...." Sebastian rushed to the pantry indoors and saw Marador laying on the floor, dishes broken in front of her. The rug was wrinkled, so it was obvious Marador had tripped and fallen.

     Sebastian helped Marador up, "I'm sorry mister Sebastian, I-" Marador went to apologize but Sebastian put his paw up to his mouth as a way to say be quiet. "Marador, please clean this up if you would." Sebastian sighed, then finally heard an explosion in the kitchen.

     Sebastian mumbled and ran into the kitchen to see Lug, the dirty-blonde hair on his head burnt on the ends and soot all over his face. "Lug, did you try to cook without that cookbook again?" Sebastian glared at the Spotted Lupe.

     Lug was the cook of the manor; however, he couldn't cook at all without a cookbook. Right now, he was trying to put out a flaming pot of stew with a towel.

     "O-Oh! Hi, Sebastian, sorry about the mess," he said, covering the fire with the said towel. "I wasn't able to find my cookbook-." Suddenly, the cookbook fell from the shelf nearby the doorway, hitting Sebastian.

     "A-Ah, sorry, Sebastian," Lug said, rubbing the back of his head. "I guess I didn't check."

          Sebastian rubbed his head after the cookbook hit him in the head, he glared and grabbed the cookbook off the floor. "Well, I suppose the meal made for Dr. Clause's visit is ruined." Sebastian sighed.

     Sebastian then realized that the garden was a wreck, the dishes were broken, the meal was ruined and there weren’t many ingredients left to cook with.

     Sebastian stood there and thought for the longest time, then he finally announced: "I've got it!" His ears perking up. He peered over to Lug and smiled, his sharp teeth flaring. "Lug, I want you to take the meat we have in the icebox and cut it in half." Sebastian told Lug.

     Lug looked confused, but Sebastian didn't let it bother him and he ran off to see Lavitti and Marador.

     Marador was sweeping up the broken dishes when Sebastian opened the door, "Marador, do we still have those cups from Shenkuu that Old Man Jeeves brought over from the townhouse?" Sebastian asked.

     Marador pushed her glasses up with her paw, "U-Um, I think so, in the storage." Marador said. "Get those out for me please and set them on the dining table I've placed outside in the garden." Sebastian said then ran off to see Lavitti.

     Marador did a salute, "O-Oh okay sir! I will!" Marador nodded and nearly tripped on her own Meerca tail trying to get to the storage room.

     Sebastian walked out-of-doors to see Lavitti petting a petpetpet gently with his paw. "Lavitti." Sebastian looked down at him. "Hm~?" Lavitti looked up with his blue eyes.

     Sebastian spoke, "Do we have any seeds for any Shenkuu plants or flowers?" Sebastian asked. Lavitti thought then responded, "I think so. In the shed." Lavitti replied.

     Sebastian nodded, "Get those and plant them, don't water them, I'll do that. Okay, please? Thank you." Sebastian then scurried off. Lavitti nodded, "Okay!" He was proud, being asked to do something.

     Sebastian headed back over to Lug to see his progress, which was decent, since Lug had his cookbook, which listed many ways to slice meats.

     "Dr. Clause, can you tell me about your travels in Altador, please," Ciel asked, kicking lightly in his chair. He had always been interested in Dr. Clause as he was a candy expert in a sense, but he was also interested in what candies he brought over today as had been done with other visits.

     Dr. Clause replied, "Oh it's fun! I got to see the Altador Cup not too long ago! Wild crowd, wild teams, I say. Ahahaha!" Clause laughed. Clause then reached into his bag and pulled out two boxes.

     Dr. Clause set them on the table, "Okay, so this one box has some dyes in the colours of red, blue and yellow. Primary colours, they should be easy to mix, there are also some extracts, Lemon and Orange, might be useful, no?" Clause explained, then put his paw on the other box, "This box has some candies I picked up from the stands at that Altador Cup event, you can use them for research." He winked.

     Lug looked over from the cookbook to the cutting board. Cutting the meat, he started to look over the recipes and made sure to not set stuff on fire again. Soon, it started to simmer well. "The visitors will love this." He said to himself.

     Ciel laughed at Dr. Clause as he was quite the 'doctor'. "Oh, so what kinds of flavours are they? I really want to try one."

     Dr. Clause opened up the box and started to explain what was inside: "This here is an Altador Cup Cupcake, It's a banana cupcake topped with chocolate and vanilla icing. Then these are Altador Cup Cookies. Delicious way to celebrate a beloved event, I say. Look," He said as he picked one of the cookies up gently and held it up, "They're shaped like little Yooyus!" He snickered.

     Meanwhile, once Marador had given Sebastian the Shenkuu dishes and Lavitti had planted the seeds, Sebastian began to prepare the outdoor dining table for the dinner that Dr. Clause would be joining.

     Lug finished off the special meal with a hint of basil on top and started to call one of the servants over. "I finished the meal for the visitor, can you take it over to them, please? I need to work on the lord's favourite dessert." Lavitti walked in and grabbed the dish, "I will, Lug!" Lavitti proudly said and went off outdoors to the dining table in the garden where dinner would be served for today.

     Sebastian strangely, somehow, made the flowers and plants instantly bloom though Lavitti had just planted them. He then continued to set up the table. Once he had finished that, he had walked inside and headed to the drawing room. He gently knocked on the door and walked in. "Dr. Clause, if you would, please step into the garden, we have prepared a meal for your arrival." Sebastian said, bowing slightly.

     Ciel was incredibly excited for the meal as it meant one thing...candy.

     "Can I have one, please, Sebastian?"

     Sebastian looked at the baby Gelert and sighed, "Just one. I do not want you to spoil your appetite for dinner, after all, there will be dessert afterwards as well." Sebastian told him.

     Dr. Clause stood up, "I can't wait to see what has been cooked up!" Clause grinned and put his paws together.

     Sebastian lead Clause and Ciel, who was eating on a sweet that Dr. Clause had brought him back from Altador, and they soon were in the garden. Instead of the usual Neovian garden, due to Lavitti messing it up, Sebastian had fixed the half Lavitti messed up and turned it into a Shenkuu garden. There were small rock gardens, Shenkuu plants and flowers.

     Dr. Clause was surprised, "This garden! It's Benissimo! (Great!)" Clause was not expecting the Shenkuu aesthetic. Sebastian pulled out a chair for Ciel, and then for Clause. "Please, take your seats and I will bring today's meal." Sebastian bowed.

     Dr. Clause sat in the chair, still amazed by the garden.

     Sebastian headed over to Lavitti, who was waiting by the serving cart, "Thank you for bringing me the dishes and meal, Lavitti." Sebastian smiled. "Anytime sir!" Lavitti did a salute.

     Sebastian wheeled the cart over and put two silver domes, one in front of Clause and one in front of Ciel. He took the dome off for Ciel, as he was his butler and that's what butlers were supposed to do, and then he walked over and took the dome off of Clause's silver dish.

     Clause stood there, blank-faced. It was just a piece of meat with a little bit of basil sprinkled on top. It wasn't much of a dish at all. Sebastian noticed this and cleared his throat, "This dish is called Donburi. It is a specialty from Shenkuu, We have the warriors from ancient Shenkuu to thank for Donburi, a feast that serves many purposes," Sebastian started,

     "The contributor to society who has finished this task has put his feelings of thanks and gratitude into this food...." Sebastian kept on, then exclaimed: "That is Donburi!" Sebastian proudly stood.

     Dr. Clause stood, mouth open, "Wow! What a story! I am very thankful then!" Clause laughed heartily.

     Marador came, holding a teapot, she was going to be the one pouring the tea for everyone. She walked over, nervous because her glasses had broken earlier after tripping and falling,

     hence why the dishes were broken from earlier and they had to use the Shenkuu tea set. Marador approached the teacup that was on Clause's side of the table and hesitatingly began to pour the tea. Sebastian glanced and his red eyes widened, Lavitti nearly gasped out loud and Marador had no idea because she couldn't see.

     Lavitti ran over to Sebastian and whispered into his Xweetok ear, "S-she’s pouring the tea on the tablecloth!" Lavitti squealed. Sebastian frowned, luckily Clause had not noticed yet. Sebastian grabbed the tablecloth with his paws and pulled the tablecloth out from underneath everything.

     It was almost in slow-motion, the tablecloth slipping out from underneath all the dishes.

     There was only a gentle clatter of dishes and none of the dishes or anything involving the meals was bothered. Clause looked down and jumped, "Where'd the tablecloth go?!" Clause surprisedly asked.

     Sebastian smiled, "There was a stain, so my little lord told me to remove it. Please, continue." Sebastian might have lied a bit, saying it was ordered from Ciel, but Ciel didn't mind. Ciel wanted this visit to be calm.

     Ciel just watched as Sebastian pulled the tablecloth away from the table so smoothly, but he quickly focused again.

     Sebastian, this time, poured the tea for everyone.

     While Marador sat far away sulking because she had messed up yet again.

     Clause looked at Ciel, "I must say! This visit has been very pleasurable!" Clause said with a big grin on his face.

     Ciel replied, "Oh yes, it is, Dr. Clause. I have been waiting for your arrival." Adorning a soft smile on his face.

     Meanwhile, in the kitchen, Lug was looking over the cookbook for the dessert. "Wait, I have to wait for how long?" He decided that he wasn't willing to wait, so he pulled out a flamethrower to cook the dessert.

     Sebastian wondered what was taking Lug so long with the dessert, "Please, excuse me." Sebastian bowed and went to the kitchen, when he pushed open the door with his paw, he saw that Lug was using a flamethrower to cook the dessert.

     "What in- WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Sebastian went to speak, but knew the flamethrower was too loud, so he shouted over the noise of it.

     Ciel continued eating the Altador sweets Dr. Clause had offered. "Well, I have enjoyed these sweets you've offered, and I would like to show you my candy factory someday if you're interested.

     "That should be good," Lug said, looking at the burned dessert.

     "Wait, do you smell that," Ciel asked, sniffing the air.

     Sebastian slapped his own forehead, "Lug, out of the kitchen, now." Sebastian sighed and pointed his paw towards the doorway. "That is far from good, it's burnt." Sebastian then added.

     Sebastian knew what to do, as he'd been doing it all day, improvising.

     Sebastian instantly thought up a way to make dessert with such limited ingredients and began baking, despite Lug's complaining. Truth was, Sebastian happened to have fire powers, but he knew how not to burn the dessert, so it was quickly made and soon brought out, "Sorry for the delay, I have brought dessert." Sebastian set down the dish and took the silver dome off of it. It was a small collection of strawberry tarts with lightly whipped cream on top of each one.

     Sebastian smiled softly, "Enjoy." He bowed and stepped away from the table.

     Ciel, of course, was first to grab ahold of one. Clause grabbed one and took a bite. "This is splendid! Tremendous!" Clause exclaimed, he was a really good cook, so that said a lot. Sebastian smiled and bowed as a thank you, and waited until dessert was all done and the nightfall was coming closer as the time had passed while Clause had visited.

     Clause stood up, put on his top hat and looked at Ciel, "Thank you for this wonderful evening, it was truly something else!" Clause said to the small earl. "Once I get done with my vacation at Meridell, I'm coming back with new sweets and extracts and dyes, and hoping that we'll have a good time just like today!" Clause patted the baby Gelert’s blue hair with a smile. Clause grabbed his cane and said his goodbyes before heading off to his carriage and heading back to where he'd be staying. Sebastian was tired, but so was Ciel, so he had to help Ciel into bed before he could go to sleep himself. The servants had already fallen asleep though, as they were in the living room, on the couch, sleeping on each other’s shoulders.

     Ciel was sleepy, but he kept eating the strawberry tarts as he was escorted off to his bedroom. "Sebastian, can you make me some candy later?"

     He finished eating and got changed into a frilly nightgown, climbing into bed. He watched as Sebastian turned off the lamp next to his bed, and he started sleeping. Outside the manor grounds, a young boy on a tree was looking through binoculars. Twitching his yellow tail, he moved the binoculars around until he saw into Ciel's bedroom window. "Oh, little cousin. I've been looking everywhere for you." His Kacheek ears perked when he saw Ciel, "Ciel Edgar Gelerthive." He put down his binoculars and did a mischievous grin. His name was… Alois Lewis.