Snake's snakes

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The snakes are Snake's companions and footmen of the Phantomhive household. Although Snake has dozens of snakes, only nine usually speak through him.

Identified Snakes

Image	Name	Information
	Brontë
	Donne	He is a very small snake, and, thus, can subtly reside at the top of Snake's ear when he is travelling.
	Emily	She is a predominately red snake with some white and black bands, and a round black head. Her eyes are black as well. Emily speaks like an older sister.
	Goethe	He is an orange snake with white spots and round eyes. He is childish and friendly.
	Jonathan	He makes a discovery at the F.O.L. Orphanage.
	Keats	He is depicted both with a pattern on his back and as an unpatterned snake. Keats is often used as a guide.
	Oscar	He is a shiny two-toned snake with a dark green back and a lighter green stomach, but the tip of his tail is dull gray. His tongue is blue. Oscar has a rough temperament and speaks like a young man.
	Webster	He has a zig-zagged crossbanded pattern and comes from Queimada Island. His poison can kill a human within 30 seconds.
	Wilde	He is a black-and-brown-spotted python with vertical pupils and the largest of Snake's snakes. The widest part of his body measures between 4.72 and 5.12 inches (12 and 13cm) and his head is relatively small in relation to his body, being only the size of a small fist. Wilde is also quite sincere and speaks like a young man.
	Wordsworth	He is a dark brown snake with lighter brown and black crossbands. He speaks like an old man and is quite knowledgeable.
	/	The snake that killed Patrick Phelps. It is a black mamba, a highly venomous snake from Southern Africa; its victims die within an hour of being bitten. Black mambas are also the fastest land snakes in the world and excellent tree climbers.

History

Like Snake, the snakes were put on display at a freak show. When he was eventually rescued by the first-string members of the Noah's Ark Circus, Snake took all the captive snakes with him. Because none of them had any names, Jumbo offered to give names to them all, starting with Emily whom he named after Emily Brontë, the author of Wuthering Heights.

Plot

Circus Arc

In February 1889, Sebastian Michaelis and Ciel Phantomhive infiltrate Noah's Ark Circus to investigate the disappearance of several children. One night when most circus members are performing, Sebastian catches all freely roaming snakes and puts them in cages so that Ciel can search the tents of the first-string members. After the encore, Sebastian frees the snakes again; they hiss at him as he leaves the tent.

Shortly afterward, Doll catches a snake that slithered around Ciel. She hands it to Snake, reminding him not to let his snakes loose outside. Later, when all first-string circus members are gathered, Wordsworth informs them about Ciel and Sebastian's doings and adds that he does not know what their goal is.

Phantomhive Manor Murders Arc

A month later, Snake tracks down Ciel at Phantomhive Manor; he was searching for him because he believes Ciel is responsible for the sudden disappearance of the Noah's Ark Circus' first-string members. Snake sends a snake into the manor in search of Ciel. However, Patrick Phelps stayed in Ciel's room that night, and the snake mistakenly kills him instead.

Sebastian notices the slithering and follows the snake to the greenhouse Snake chose as his hiding place. Webster bites Sebastian and is surprised that Sebastian does not die from his poison. Snake and his snakes are then overwhelmed by Sebastian and locked in a crate. The next day, Sebastian presents his captive to Ciel and explains the happenings to him. Ciel then invites Snake to join his household.

Luxury Liner Arc

Sebastian announces a new addition to the household to Mey-Rin, Baldroy, Finnian, and Tanaka. Snake introduces himself and his snakes to them. Though they are all scared of the snakes at first, everyone but Baldroy quickly becomes friendly with them. A month later, Snake has to accompany Ciel and Sebastian on the Campania as part of his footman duties. The snakes are packed into a box and brought to the back freight storage room; only Donne remains with Snake, as he is small enough to fit on top of his ear.

The evening of the first class' dinner party, Snakes leaves the party to share his food with his snakes in the freight room. Right after Ciel and Elizabeth Midford find Snake and his snakes there, they are attacked by Bizarre Dolls. They climb on top of luggage to escape and are later rescued by Sebastian. Afterward, Ciel sends Sebastian to help his family while he, Snake, and Elizabeth follow Rian who came to the freight room earlier to his room. When they arrive in the 2nd boiler room, the Campania hits an iceberg and water gets into the ship. Ciel and Elizabeth get separated from Snake and Rian, and Snake sends them Keats to guide them through the duct.

Later, Snake rejoins Ciel, Elizabeth, and Sebastian. Together, they head to the deck where Ciel forfeits his seat on a rescue boat for Snake.

On Easter, Elizabeth organizes an egg hunt. Snake and his snakes participate alongside Ciel, Sebastian, Mey-Rin, Baldroy, Finnian, Nina Hopkins, Edward Midford, Soma Asman Kadar, Agni, Charles Grey, and Charles Phipps. Snake is paired with Finnian. Their team is disqualified after Phipps uses a snake-manipulating flute on Snake and his snakes.

Gallery

Manga

Oscar with Snake.

Oscar around Snake's shoulders.

Keats is thrown.

Anime

Snake dances with Oscar and Wilde.

Goethe and Wilde on Snake's shoulders.

Wilde, curled around a captured Snake.

Snake is with Goethe, Emily, Wordsworth, Oscar, Wilde, and Keats in the greenhouse of Phantomhive Manor.

Snake is about to throw Keats.

Concept Art

A page from a guidebook that came with the Book of Circus DVD/Blu-Rays

Trivia

• General
• Anime

Etymology

• All of Snake's named snakes share their name with an author or poet who was popular during the Victorian Era, particularly writers Jumbo has read from as he picked the names. Emily was named after Emily Brontë, Brontë may be from Emily Brontë too or one of the other Brontë sisters, Wordsworth from William Wordsworth, Goethe from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Oscar and Wilde from Oscar Wilde, Keats from John Keats, Donne from John Donne, Webster from either John Webster or Augusta Webster, and Jonathan from Jonathan Swift.
  • Multiple authors listed above have writings that are about the selling of one's soul. In Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray, the main character wants to stay young, but it ends up killing him. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is the author of Faust, in which the main character sells his soul for knowledge.

Out of Universe

• According to the official Kuroshitsuji character popularity poll, Snake's snakes are the forty-sixth most popular characters in the series, with 4 votes.

• In the Monthly GFantasy version of Chapter 90, Keats is unpatterned. He was given a pattern when it was re-released in tankōbon format.

One-colored Keats

• Each snake that Snake voices has a distinct accent and tone, reflecting the character Snake associates it with.
• While Keats' manga appearance varies, he is consistently depicted as an unpatterned white snake in the anime.