Title: T Time
Summary: Grell goes to great lengths trying to find out what William's middle name is.
Notes: I spent oh about an hour with a friend discussing William's middle name. It started off as her wondering what his middle name is. I told her I don't think that William's middle name has been revealed so we were trying to determine what it could be and why he just uses his initial. So this is for her. Blame her for how crazy and weird this might wind up being.
Grell Sutcliff ran a hand through his long red hair as he checked his reflection in the nearby window. It was early in the morning and he had just obtained the list of souls he had to collect that day. Figuring he had time to spare, he wanted to make sure he looked absolutely perfect.
The sound of his name being spoken aloud caused him to jump, losing focus on his perfect reflection. "Ah, it's just you, Ronald," he said dryly. "For once I'm glad to not see William T. Spears. I'm not ready for another demotion just yet"
Ronald tried to ignore the dreamily quality in Grell's voice as he spoke William's name. He inclined his head and asked, "What does the T stand for anyway?"
Grell blinked in confusion. "Why are you asking me?"
Ronald shrugged. "Well I assumed you would know everything about William..."
Grell put a hand on his hips and stared down the younger reaper. "What makes you think that I..." he trailed off as the object of their discussion walked by. Ignoring Ronald now, Grell hurried off after William.
"Oh William~" he called.
William stopped immediately but only turned his head slightly in acknowledgment of the redheaded reaper. He resisted the urge to shudder. Whenever Grell Sutcliff used his full first name, it hardly resulted in anything good.
"William," Grell began silkily, placing a hand on William's arm, "would you answer a question for me?" He batted his eyelashes as he spoke. Yes, William had told him often that something such as that would not sway him, but Grell knew he had to be lying.
"That depends on what it is," William said coldly. He shrugged off Grell's arm but otherwise did not move.
"What does the T stand for?" Grell had been smiling his best smile but at the look on William's face it quickly dissolved into a frown. "Your name..." he said slowly. "What is your middle name?"
"I don't have time for this," William said, pushing Grell again with his death scythe. "And you don't either. You have souls to collect."
Grell's lips formed into a pout but he did not go so far as to stamp him foot down. He crossed his arms over his chest and decided that if William wanted to keep his name from him, he absolutely had to know it.
"Well?" Ronald had joined Grell and was looking at the older reaper with curiosity. "Did he tell you?"
"Of course not," Grell said, flipping his long hair over his shoulder. "Just another way he wants to play hard to get is all," he added.
"Right," Ronald said nervously, "hard to get." He cleared his throat nervously and said, "Maybe you should forget it..."
"Quiet Ronald!" Grell said, flinging out his hand to silence Ronald, nearly hitting him in the face as he did. "I've got it! You distract him and I'll search through his desk and – "
"Senpai," Ronald said nervously, "I really do not want to be a part of this."
"Too bad, you started it!" Grell said. Before Ronald could run away, Grell rushed behind him and shoved him in the direction William had headed. "Go!"
Grell heard the annoyed groan from Ronald but ignored it. He hurried away from Ronald, taking a longer route towards William's office. He waited around the corner, peering towards William's door and hoping no one would sneak up on him. As soon as he saw Ronald approaching, he ducked out of sight.
He heard Ronald's knock, and the sounds of his voice and William's drifted towards Grell but he could not make out what they were saying. When he heard the door shut he winced but fumbled around in the inner pockets of his red long coat. Pulling out a compact, he opened it and used the mirror to peer around the corner.
He stifled a squeal of glee as he saw Ronald and William walking away, their heads close together as they discussed something Grell was sure did not matter to him. He returned the compact to his pocket and slipped down the corridor.
The door being locked was not an obstacle at all. Grell pulled a pin from his hair and wriggled it around in the lock until he heard a click. He smiled to himself. It was not the first time he had done that and probably would not be the last.
He slipped into the office, shutting the door behind him with a soft click. His shoes barely made a sound as he tiptoed over to the desk and sank down into the chair behind it. He smiled to himself but knew he had no time to waste basking in William's private office.
His trusty pin opened the top drawer of William's desk. Grell reached inside and, with no respect to their order, grabbed a handful of papers and spread them out on the desk. He skimmed the pages quickly and frowned. Many of the pages had been signed with the same signature: William T. Spears.
Grell reached for another stack. His hand froze in midair as he heard the sound of a key in the lock. Silently he cursed Ronald for not being able to keep William's attention long enough for him to snoop around.
His greenish-yellow gaze scanned the room, looking for a place to hide. There was none. He gulped loudly.
"What do you think you are doing in my office, Grell Sutcliff?"
Grell looked at everything but William. He did not have to look at him to know how William looked at that moment. He gripped his death scythe with one hand, the other still on the doorknob. He was frowning deeply, his eyes narrowed to appealing, but scary, greenish-yellow slits.
Grell pushed back the chair with a flourish, hoping his acting skills would get him out of possible trouble. "Oh this is your office!" he exclaimed. "Silly me, I thought it was mine. Well I'll just be going now. I have a lot of souls to collect!"
He dashed out of the room and down the hall before William could impale him on his death scythe. He did not stop until he had put some distance between himself and William.
He spotted Ronald just down the hall, talking with a female reaper. He stomped over to Ronald and rudely interrupted the conversation by grabbing Ronald's arm and steering him away from her. "You were supposed to distract him!" he hissed.
"I did!" Ronald said. "You didn't say how long you needed!"
Grell glanced away and exhaled loudly. "I have work to do," he muttered. "You help me think of an idea before lunch!"
He pushed past Ronald and the female reaper he had been talking to, anger and frustration practically oozed from every pore. Ronald and the female reaper exchanged looks. He shrugged while she shook her head, her long braid swinging behind her.
William would have been surprised to know that Grell was actually doing his work. He collected the souls appointed to him while ignoring any handsome man that walked by him. His thoughts were focused only on William's middle name and why he kept it hidden. Sebastian Michaelis could have walked by him and Grell most likely would not have even noticed him.
The lunch break did not come quickly enough for the red-loving Shinigami. He was not hungry but he was focused. He found William with Ronald and chose to stand back and watch for a moment or two.
William shook his head slowly at whatever it was Ronald was saying. Ronald appeared to be apologetic. Grell decided to go with the direct approach. He walked casually over to them then leaned his head against William's arm.
"I'm sorry I caused you some trouble this morning Will," he began sweetly, "but all I want is to know your middle name. Won't you tell me?"
William stared at Grell for a moment then turned to Ronald. "Do you think if I stand still long enough he'll leave me alone?"
That caused Grell to stamp his foot down. His hands balled into fists at his side and red streaked his cheeks. "This beautiful maiden is not going anywhere until you tell her your middle name!" he shouted, drawing attention to the three of them. "It is just a name! There is no need for such secrecy!"
William ignored the outburst and excused himself before leaving. Ronald pushed back his chair, ready to bolt if Grell decided to shout at him too.
"Senpai Grell," he said calmly, "you're just making Senpai William mad. Perhaps you should leave this alone?"
Grell stared after William, his hands still balled at his sides. "He made this personal!" he said darkly.
Ronald bit his lip nervously then glanced at his watch. "Look at the time," he said, leaping to his feet. "I really have to leave. Um, good luck?" he added before rushing away.
Grell did not even hear him. He stomped down the hall, his boots loudly clicking against the floor. He stormed past several offices before taking a left. The door he wanted was right in front of him. He tried it, sure it would unlocked. It was.
Inside the room stood several neat rows of boxes. He vowed to himself that he would stay in there until he found what he wanted, even if it took him days!
He began with the first box. He heaved it onto a nearby table and began to thumb through the neatly organized files inside. He made it through three boxes without finding a thing. As he started through the fourth box, he felt someone lurking nearby. Before he could turn fully, William extended his scythe, knocking the box from the table. William attempted another strike at Grell, coming very close to hitting his face.
Grell was furious. He grabbed the nearest object, which happened to be his ledger containing his death list, and flung it. It missed William by an inch.
"You do realize you could be demoted not only for snooping through personal files but also for attempting to strike a member of management?"
"You do realize that you nearly hit my face?" Grell shouted back. What happened next surprised even him. Before he could arm himself with his own death scythe, William had rushed him. Grell found himself flying through the air and out the door before landing painfully in the hall with his lower back against the opposite wall, the back of his head against the floor, and his feet danging uselessly in his face.
"I suggest you get to work," William said before leaving him in the awkward position.
Grell sighed wearily. He shut his eyes for a moment but opened them when someone appeared over him. Ronald crouched before him, peering down at him with concern.
"Senpai?" he asked softly. "Do you need any help?"
Grell groaned and rolled over, shifting himself so that he was laying on his side. "What is his problem?" he demanded.
"Perhaps," Ronald began nervously, "his middle name is a source of embarrasment?"
Grell narrowed his eyes at him. "Will doesn't get embarrassed."
"Then..." Ronald trailed off, trying to think of an excuse. "Then perhaps he just uses his middle initial to be... fancy?"
Grell rose to his feet and dusted himself off. "I suppose that is it," he said wearily. He did not want to accept that answer. He knew William had to have a middle name and had to have reason for using just the T. But he was tired and Ronald's reason did make sense. "Come on," he said weakly. "Let's get to work before we're both demoted."