| "Yes, My Lord" and "Yes, My Butler" have nothing to do with each other but since they shared similar concepts I have bundled them together for convenience. c: |
Darkness consumes the light. That's a little known fact in this world. Sebastian glared at the curtains for not doing their job. He wanted nothing more than to enjoy this bed for another hour or two. He sighed. This game of being a demon butler had become tedious. The power of the contract compelled him to get up and move; to do exactly what he had been doing for the past...who knows how long. He sighed a second time, wishing with every demon bone in his body that he could wither away into the dust. He'd lived a long life as a demon. It was unfortunate that demons couldn't die.
He stood up and went to the curtains. He cringed as the light entered his eyes. The day was bright, cheerful, the exact opposite of how he was feeling. He sighed for the third time as he tied the curtains back. He stared at the view of the grass, trees, birds, and cursed it under his breath. He slipped into his old, now ragged, butler attire and went to wake up the young lord. However, he wasn't so young anymore. The body of a child and the age of a demon. Young in body and sometimes in mind but still up there in years. The Phantomhive manor had turned into a location of mystery for the public. Occasionally a stray human would wander in and get only the best of the Phantomhive hospitality...so much so that more humans would stray in afterwards and they'd add another legend to the seemingly deserted manor.
Sebastian walked through the halls. He counted the number of steps it took to get from the servant's hall to the young master's bedroom. The same walk he walked daily. The carpet had long since worn away. He sighed for the fourth time as he opened the door. His eyes adjusted to the darkness, cringing again as he opened the curtains. A hissing noise escaped his young master's lips as he retreated further into his bed.
"There is no need for me to wake up so early, Sebastian," he complained. Sebastian noticed the deepness of his voice. It wasn't that much different but it was still different. He buried the thought. Surely he just hadn't noticed it before. They had spent quite a bit of time together over the years. It must be his imagination.
"Young Master, you wouldn't want to become a lazy slob, now would you?" Sebastian grabbed the blanket and pulled it off in one swift motion. He didn't want to wake up either, but he had, all for the sake of this meaningless contract.
"My Lord?" Sebastian's eyes widened at the sight. He'd said the words as if they were a question, for the body before him did not look like the body of the young Ciel Phantomhive. It looked like all of those portraits of the late Vincent Phantomhive. However, without a doubt, he turned his head and opened his eyes. The contract symbol in his eye was proof enough. What had happened? Surely he didn't grow overnight. Ciel was doomed to be in the body of his young self...this wasn't right. Was he dreaming? Demons cannot dream. What was going on?
"Don't look so concerned, Sebastian," Ciel laughed. "Surely you recognize your master, right?" Ciel sat up. His head tilted with that childish gleam in his eyes.
Sebastian brought his hand to the bridge of his nose. He pressed that thin space between his eyes whilst closing them. He stood, with his free hand on his hip, trying desperately to wake up from this dream he was trapped in.
Ciel shifted in the bed. He sat on his knees and grabbed Sebastian's hand, forcing it away from his face. "You certainly seem out of sorts. Has this charade finally taken its toll on you? Sebastian, tell me, whatever is the matter with you?" Sebastian's eyes opened to see the face of his young master so close to his own. He wanted to take a step back, and moved his foot to do so, but Ciel's grip on his wrist was strong. There were many things that had changed overnight, it seemed. Ciel was finally learning how to be a demon all at once. This would lead to Sebastian's very demise.
"Nothing is wrong with me, My Lord," Sebastian averted his gaze. He looked at the ground, unable to maintain eye contact with Ciel looking like this. There was something about him that Sebastian didn't want to face. "I'm simply tired," he said. It wasn't a lie. He was tired. He was tired of living this life as a butler. The same thing, day in and day out, he wanted change...but that didn't necessarily mean he wanted Ciel to change.
"You do seem worn down," Ciel's hand cupped Sebastian's face whilst the other still clung to his wrist. He brushed his thumb underneath Sebastian's eye. "There bags under your eyes and various other lines of age."
"I apologize," Sebastian spoke. "If my appearance no longer suits your tastes. Maintaining a physical form such as this one requires quite a bit of energy, My Lord. There is a reason demons consume souls," he explained.
"I didn't say anything about that," Ciel sighed. "You will always suit my tastes, Sebastian," he grinned. The grin of the man seemed far less innocent than the smirk of the young Ciel Phantomhive. Neither one was innocent in any sense of the word, but there was a sense of unease in Sebastian. He still couldn't bring himself to look at Ciel in those eyes of his.
Ciel dragged Sebastian by the wrist onto the bed. "Sleep with me," he said. Sebastian, used to other forms of that phrase, began to think in quite the perverse fashion. He struggled to remove himself from Ciel's grasp and get off of the bed.
"A butler should not sleep with their master," he used his position as an excuse. Ciel refused and pulled harder.
"You said so yourself that you were tired. Sleep, we have nothing better to do." Ciel had a point and Sebastian had neither the energy or the will to refuse. He lay in the bed, after having kicked off his shoes, and lay stiffly staring at the ceiling. Each detail still intricate in this rundown building.
"No need to lay like such a board. Relax, Sebastian, I just want you to rest," Ciel said. Sebastian, lacking in a lot of options, rolled onto his side to face Ciel. He closed his eyes and felt the warmth of Ciel's bare chest. What was going on? Did he really have the will to ask?
"Relax, Sebastian, that's an order," Ciel snickered.
"Yes, My Lord," Sebastian replied. The lingering scent of the soul he once craved was no longer present on the body. Tears formed in Sebastian's eyes. Ciel was truly a demon. He knew this, and yet, the thought of it had never been something Sebastian had confronted head on. But, now he lay, in the arms of Ciel Phantomhive, quietly sobbing into his chest.
"You're...crying?"
"My apologies," Sebastian sighed for the fifth time that day. "I am not myself," he said.
"If you are not yourself, then who are you?" Ciel inquired.
"A demon, lingering on this world without purpose, like a ghost...wandering with regrets in an empty field," Sebastian's eyes remained closed. He could not see the shocked or concerned expression on his young master's face. His arms wrapped around Ciel without asking his brain for permission. His face further pressed itself against Ciel's chest, seeking comfort. "Please..." he whispered, barely audible. "Please...end my suffering." At one point in Sebastian's life, he had thought about living as a butler to spite Ciel. He was going to do the best of his ability to live without care, to play the game he'd been trapped in, but now...he no longer cared. He was broken. He was empty. He was the truest form of a demon there ever was...longing for nothing more than to end.
Ciel said nothing. He simply ran his hand through Sebastian's hair to comfort him. He ran his hand over and over. He played with Sebastian's hair. He'd longed to do this for quite some time. His hair was black, silky smooth, wonderful. He wouldn't let this chance pass him by.
