How I ended up (Forgotten Mistake by BtsPeace)

Chapter 5 - His Butler, Headache

Victorian Era, Phantomhive Manor

Ciel was once again in his home. Currently in his bed, Ciel was laying awake in the deep of the night. It had been seven months since he'd made his contract. He'd been humiliated, tortured and forced to be a participant in unspeakable acts; he still had no idea who could have such hatred for his family that they'd sold him to such despicable vermin.

This led the ten year old noble to think about his new butler. The man, demon actually, was near intolerable. He couldn't cook, or prepare tea, or even assist him in dressing himself properly. Ciel would have taken to dressing himself, since he'd always felt a little uncomfortable allowing another to dress him and so had normally done it himself, but he was far too injured. He could hardly sit let alone bend over to put on his pants, trousers, socks or shoes. His hands were still recovering from the burns and breakages. Thankfully the damned demon knew how to heal, so there wouldn't be any scarring. Still, it was insufferable how incompetent the soul eating git was.

Not to mention the creature had the gall to talk back! It made Ciel fume with anger, and remember all his late father's lessons to restrain his temper.

"Remember, your anger is a weapon, and so you must be able to decide when and where to use it," Ciel murmured into the dark of his bed chambers. Those were the words his father had told him when he'd lost his temper once. Tanaka had been teaching him a game from Japan called Go, and it was much more difficult than chess. When Ciel had lost again, for the fifth time, he'd acted out as a child his age would.

His father had reprimanded him, explaining that he did not have the luxury of behaving as a child. He was a Phantomhive and they had different responsibilities, and his father had no idea when Ciel may have to take his place as Earl. Ciel had been around eight and a half when the incident had occurred.

Was that when I first realised how dangerous Father's duty to the Queen was? The injured boy thought to himself. It must have been, for he remembered his father's sad smile at the shock on his face. "We all die, Ciel, but in our family that tends to happen earlier than we either want or expect."

"...Why can't I..."

The door to his room opened without any sound and the demon he'd named Sebastian came in. "My Lord? Is everything alright?" the demon asked when he saw the boy still awake in the soft candlelight. "I came to check on you, to make sure you were sleeping peacefully."

"...I cannot seem to sleep tonight," Ciel responded after a moment. He was debating if he should confide in his demonic servant. It felt so beneath him somehow. If the demon were Tanaka instead, Ciel knew he wouldn't hesitate to speak his mind or express his vulnerability. This wasn't Tanaka, he didn't know this demon, and he certainly didn't trust him either. This demon may be his servant, but he was only serving Ciel so he could eat the young Earl's soul. This demon was only loyal to him because he would eventually become a meal. Nothing more, and nothing less.

"Are your wounds giving you discomfort or pain?" asked the tall creature beside his bed. Ciel resisted the urge to sigh, and he struggled to sit up in his massive bed. Sebastian had placed him in the Master suite chambers once they'd moved into this replica of his ancestral home. He knew the demon would not leave until he'd learned what had prevented him from sleep; it was one of the few things the demon did not need instruction in when it came to serving a noble.

"My injuries aren't what are preventing my sleep," Ciel said looking out the massive window rather than looking at his servant. "Merely the thoughts running about in my head are deterring me."

"Do you wish to speak your mind, my Lord? It may help."

Should he accept this demon's offer of listening? Did he dare give such power to this demon? Ciel didn't know, he had not spoken much at all to the being that now served him, except for cutting remarks, sarcastic compliments, and critiques that held nothing but malice. They were perfect strangers; merely a young lord and the demonic servant that would one day eat his soul. Ciel had never let their relationship morph into anything beyond that, which was against his usual kind and friendly nature. This demon may be his servant now, but would eat him after Ciel's desire for revenge had been sated. Ciel did not wish to grow close to the being that would bring his damnation, but the current offer of an ear to use was tempting.