That Butler, New Face

That Butler, Activated 4

"—Now then," Undertaker said, once he had served everyone their tea, and they were all seated. Chêne stared at her 'teacup,' wondering if she could trust something that had been served to her in a glass beaker that had probably already been used to mix the different preservatives, like formaldehyde, that were used to preserve dead bodies. Those chemicals would've killed any germs, but the thought was gruesome... Chêne decided she wasn't all that thirsty, as did Ciel. Madame Red, Grell, and Lau looked a little green around the gills as they too stared at their beakers of tea.

"You want to hear about the Jack the Ripper,  yesss?" Undertaker said as he opened an urn containing bone-shaped cookies... at least, Chêne hoped they were cookies. She had given him the recipe for Lacey's favorite 'skeleton sugar cookies', but Chêne had usually used a skull shaped cookie cutter for it. The shape of these almost looked like dog biscuits. "The Yard's starting to get their knickers in a bunch about it now, but... this isn't the first time I've had a client like that," Undertaker told them.

"!!" Ciel and the others said.

'So, these murders have been going on for longer than they let the public believe...' Chêne thought nervously. Now they were getting into the gory details.

"Not the first time? What do you mean?" Madam Red asked.

"Have you seen other corpses with similar wounds?" Chêne asked. She had a feeling she knew that answer to that already, but she didn't want to let on just how much she knew about the Jack the Ripper of her world, since it would make her look incredibly suspicious to anyone who didn't know her... circumstances.

"Yes, very good, little Miss Maid," Undertaker said as he munched on a bone cookie. Undertaker held out the urn/cookie jar to Chêne. "A reward for you~!" he said, grinning a  little creepily. She smiled wryly, and decided to try a cookie, out of curiosity. The cookies were probably safe, since they looked the same as when she used to make them... the only thing that was different was the shape.

"Heheh... thanks," Chêne said, laughing wryly as she took a cookie and started to nibble on it. Ciel sweat-dropped as he watched her eat it. So she wouldn't touch the tea, but she had no problem eating cookies that had been kept in an urn...?

"In the past, there've been a number of cases... involving murdered whores," Undertaker explained. Undertaker noticed how Ciel was staring at Chêne. "Fancy a biscuit, Milord?" He asked Ciel, grinning.

"I'll pass," Ciel said, sweat-dropping. Chêne hadn't gagged or dropped dead yet, but better safe than sorry.

"But their intensity and cruelty continues to escalate," Undertaker said, continuing his explanation, and shrugging as he closed the cookie urn. "The yard failed to take notice because the murders weren't terribly bloody at the outset... but all the prostitutes killed in Whitechapel had a little something in common."

"Something in common...?" Ciel asked.

"... You say?" Sebastian finished. Chêne was on the edge of her seat, munching on the cookie, like an entranced moviegoer, who was absentmindedly stuffing their face with popcorn.

"Well, what could it be? What ever could it be? Wouldn't you like to know?" Undertaker taunted Ciel as he leered at the young earl.

"Ugh..." Ciel said, frowning slightly as he and Chêne sweat-dropped. Of course he wasn't going to make things easy for them.

"I see. That's how it is. Being an undertaker is only his façade for normal society," Lau said. "How much do you want for the information?"  Undertaker perked up at that.

"How much?" Undertaker said, suddenly lunging towards Lau. "I do not desire a single one of the queen's coins!" Lau and Madam Red flinched in surprise. Undertaker whipped his head around. His eyes gleamed as he locked onto his new target, Ciel. Undertaker loomed over Ciel, who flinched, sweating nervously. "Now, Milord... Give it to me..." Undertaker said, drooling slightly as he held Ciel's face with his hands.