~A black ribbon floating through the air. Innocence lost without a care. An innocent black ribbon flapping in the wind.~

Cackling. He was cackling.

The irony was what made him laugh out loud. The pain was what it hid.

''Tom, Tom, he was a piper's son,

He learned to play when he was young."

''There was nothing! Everything they wanted to protect was gone!"

A gust of wind blew through the barren land Ciel and his butler were standing on, making the surrounding plants and trees rustle. It was the only sound besides the boy's mad laughter that could be heard. Even Sebastian was at a loss of words for the scene in front of him.

"And they didn't know! They were so desperate to do it—and they all died!''

The duo had gone to find what it was that the Circus crew was protecting. They had wanted to see the orphanage its members were willing to lay down their lives for for. When they arrived at their destination, however, it was empty. Completely abandoned. And it had been that way for years. There was nothing but rubble where the building once stood.

''We mock their desperate wishes and trample them like insects," Ciel continued, bellowing as loud as he could. "We're more demonic than demons are!" Sebastian remained silent, staring at his master. Never had he heard a laugh so twisted. Never had he seen a boy so broken.

Ciel grimaced, casting his gaze downward. He brought a hand to his chest and closed it into a tight fist, as if he was clutching something. "I'm just like them. I'm full of the same ugliness they were."

Then his head shot back up, and he spread his arms out wide. His voice boomed like a canon. "This is how humans are! This is how WE are, Sebastian!''

The breeze picked up again, carrying Ciel's words through the air. Sebastian responded in the only way he could: ''Yes, indeed."

"And all the tune that he could play

Was over the hills and far away,"

As the breeze became more prominent, a strong gust managed to tear the ribbon off of Ciel's top hat. It unwound itself from the base, stretching out into a silky black line. Feeling a slight tug, Ciel turned around, only to gaze helplessly at the ribbon as it flew upwards. It twisted and fluttered in the wind, making its way over to Sebastian. The butler reached upwards in an attempt to grab it, though it just ended up grazing his fingertips.

The ribbon continued to float higher, heading in the same direction of the sunset. Ciel stared at it, bemused.

"Over the hills is a great way off.

The wind shall blow my top-knot off."

Suddenly, the boy began to feel like he was drifting. An unexplainable sensation overtook him, making him feel as if he wasn't really there at all…

Ciel sat up in bed. He was panting, gripping the sheets tightly. His eyes darted around the room everything was clouded in darkness. It was the middle of the night.

Ciel brought his hands up to his face, looking at his palms. They were shaking. It was just a dream, it was a just a dream, he told himself. Though he knew for a fact it was far more than just a dream. Everything he had just experienced really happened. He was the one who had been responsible for the Circus members' deaths. He had betrayed the only friend he made at the circus. He even abandoned the children he was supposed to save.

And all of a sudden, he began to feel something—the same heart wrenching feeling he felt when he first visited the orphanage over six months ago: guilt.

I'm full of the same ugliness they were. This is how humans are Sebastian. This is how WE are.

Ciel slammed his fists on the mattress, cursing under his breath. Why am I think of this now? It doesn't matter. What's done is done. The thought was quickly replaced with another, more irritating one. Sebastian will come to check on me once he realizes I'm up. I will NOT let him see me in this state.

A crooked smile formed on the Earl's face. Digging his nails into his palms, he let out a low chuckle. Then slowly, ever so slowly, he laid back down to go to sleep…

"And they all stopped to hear him play,

'Over the hills and far away'."