Warning: Mild Language, Slightly Descriptive Violence and Gore, Innuendos~

This is a gender bend story, gais. I couldn't fit it into the summary, so I'm telling you from the get go. Dun like? Please leave! Kaythanxbye, and enjoy~

*Prologue*

It was a day marked by an outlandishly blue sky; crystal clear without the mar of a single cloud. Songbirds twittered gloriously, huddled with their spouses in abundant groupings of love nests perched high in the trees that bordered the conspicuous landmark in the short distance. The forbidding white obstruction, which sat as majestically as a duke's extensive palace, could be identified as nothing other than the Reaper's Library.

From its immaculate marble exterior, everything looked to be serene and within proper order. That is, until a ghastly shriek rang out from within its intimidating walls, startling the common life outside. All the surrounding birds scattered to the winds . . .

"No, no, NO! This can't be happening!" Heels clicked furiously across the surface of the perfectly chiseled flooring, disturbing a particular strip of the walkway endlessly as the vibrantly dressed man paced across it. Splendidly long, lavish red hair drifted behind his slender form with each sharp turn on his toes, nails gnashing between quaintly constructed teeth. Every now and then, he would stop in his tracks and train his anxious auburn eyes on a certain shelf. One shelf where it was painfully apparent that a peculiarly important book, documenting the life of an infamous rouge, was missing. And it was all his fault.

His brows furrowed hopelessly, as if some thorough glaring would suddenly make the book appear back in its rightful place and nullify all his qualms. Alas, no such thing happened, and he returned to his fruitless pacing. My life is completely over! This time, William will be ruthless towards me. He moaned his frustration aloud. This transgression was going to top all his other offenses; he prayed with all his might that he could get out of this one with just the loss of his job.

This book was one of the most consequential in all of the Reaper Library's establishment. There were only so many books of the like to account for in the first place. This man's life displayed such vividly dire schemes that even the reapers feared the wrong person ever bearing witness to them again. This man had been a Maestro of Madness in his time! Perhaps he hadn't lasted a chance to pursue the fruition of his own wicked vices, but surely . . .

Ohoho, surely! That wasn't necessarily the case for the man he had lent the book to recently! Of course, at the time, the stranger had looked like nothing more than a cockroach in a trench coat, and so he had naively forked the account over without so much as an identification check. But who was to say he wasn't some undercover mastermind looking for the next greatest feat? Or an understudy of the deceased villain in question? Or, confound it, the very offspring of the man, looking to seek vengeance on the reapers that had sentenced his poor sire to death?

He grabbed at the roots of his hair, so tempted to yank every lustrous lock from his scalp. How could he have been so stupid?! William wouldn't have even authorized him to lend that blasted book to the Undertaker himself-for obvious reasons, but still! And yet, he had practically given it away in a complimentary gift basket to some scab off the street. Not to mention, said scum had the audacity to play him for a sucker by returning some pitiful replica of the book, extending his return without permission.

Even so, he couldn't really have hoped for a break! No, he hadn't even noticed how inauthentic the parcel was, and ended up registering the faux biography in place of the real one. Dummy. To add further insult to injury, somehow-and he still couldn't figure this out himself-the bastard found a way to bypass both him and William, and took back the copy, keeping both it and the original. Which brought him to the situation he was in now.

Although, it probably wouldn't have mattered in the end: the original book hadn't been on the premises since he'd first checked it out. But the fact that he couldn't even keep the fake in store was gonna be the straw. He dropped to his knees and sobbed pitifully. This farce wouldn't carry out much longer. His life was going to end no matter which way he looked at it. But he still had a decision to make: confront William about what happened himself, or let William discover it on his own.

"I can't! I'm a coward!" he cried out dramatically, clutching his hands together in remembrance of all the other beatings he had suffered by William's hands. Or feet. Or Death Scythe. They had been so agonizing; censorious and delightful. He sweat-dropped as a crooked smile graced his lips. Clearly, the punishments weren't supposed to be enjoyable, but he had endured so many as a reaper, he had become something of a masochist.

He chaffed his thighs together in excitement. Yes, that deliciously stinging, numbing pain. But he frowned once more when he realized that this means of discipline would be much different. If he calculated the severity of the mistake he had made this time, it would equate to approximately all of those dreadful scenarios-the suffering from each multiplied by 100-accumulated into one intensely excruciating thrashing.

"Grell." He immediately huddled into an upright fetal position, screaming silently into his lap. Or was it that his scream was so high pitched that only a dog could hear? He halfheartedly waited for a canine in the far distance to reply with a howl of physical discomfort. He caught his breath as William hoisted him up roughly by his hair. He couldn't even bear to look at the man after he righted his appearance, smearing mascara all over his splotchy cheeks as he wiped away his tears. "Grell, did you really think I hadn't noticed . . . ?"

"N-noticed what?" he replied with a bright smile, enthusiastically pouring on the obliviousness. His heart was pouding so hard in anticipation, he was beginning to hope the heavens would be gracious enough to let him pass on peacefully by leave of a spontaneous heart attack. He was nowhere near ready to even attempt to worm his way out of this situation. He hadn't mentally prepared himself to sweet talk, make excuses, or hightail it out of there. He sighed internally. Even if he tried to run, where the hell was he going to go?

He tensed into stone stillness when William suddenly adjusted his glasses; the first sign that he was struggling to contain his annoyance. A shudder etched down the redhead's spine. The other opened his mouth to speak, but apparently decided he wasn't worth his words, and motioned towards the damning piece of evidence. Grell reluctantly looked towards the shelf, his shoulders automatically slumping in defeat.

"Don't think that for a minute, I hadn't noticed that book was gone from the day it left this building. To think I was willing to give you any sort of fighting chance to retrieve it back in its original form." He sighed, his voice rumbling ominously in his throat. "I strategically positioned it there so that you wouldn't be able to reach it in the first place."

Grell flinched pathetically when William moved to massage his temple. The other felt not even a smidgen of satisfaction that he had such an effect on him.

"I'm so sorry, Will! What are you g-going to do to me?" Just then, for a fleeting moment, William pinned him with such an horrific glare, he was sure to have nightmares about the hellish glint in the other's golden-green eyes. He merely sighed once more and shrugged his shoulders.

"The task should be simple enough. Get the book back before something terible happens to it." Grell's eyes widened as the other turned on his heel and walked away. That's it? He shakily released the breath that he was holding, his eyes glued to William's retreating back. This wasn't like Will at all. This was the worst thing Grell had ever done in his entire line of employment, and he was just brushing it off as something minor?

"Thank the heavens!" he cheered, springing into the air. "I won't let you down!" he called after him, even though he had already disappeared from sight. But he couldn't ignore the dull worry that pained his heart. This couldn't possibly be the end of it. He slapped his cheeks. Just be grateful that this is all he's requesting! Stop instigating everything! He wanted to trust in his own words, but he couldn't. Maybe Will had the blues? He pondered it endlessly as he went to complete whatever other work lied about the library.

He had to admit, the whole of London had been a bit melancholy since Ciel Phantomhive had passed, and his butler, Sebastian Michaelis, had departed to who-knew-where. His heart clenched and his groin ached at the mere thought of that disgraceful demon. But he would have never thought that William would actually be mourning the lack of his presence, now that they were getting tons more business than they ever could since he had first arrived in town.

Grell huffed with the completion of his work, deciding not to bust his brains over the matter. Maybe William was finally coming to respect him as a fellow reaper. That filled his torso with warm, surging pride. He definitely couldn't disappoint him, now. As he headed down to the lobby of the library, he decided that he was going to go out and get some leads right that moment. He couldn't help but blanch when the minute he opened the doors to the lowermost floor, William was right there to greet him. "Grell-"

"Y-yes! I'm going right now to retrieve that book!" he chirped hastily, involuntatily trying to move around the other. He was stopped by Will's firm grip on his bicep, and he quickly resumed the spot he was previously occupying.

"That isn't what I was going to say," he murmured with a raised brow, smoothing his bang over. "Since we're both done with our work for the day, I thought we could do something together to commemorate our long-standing partnership."

Grell's eyes automatically lit with gratification. What a fantastic dream he was having! Something must have been in the air, because he was almost positive William was not standing before him, right now, asking him on a date. There was just no way! But the possessive grip, which he just noticed was still on his arm, was all too realistic. He swooned dramatically, instantly forgetting the situation at hand until William cleared his throat rather loudly. When his vision focused again, he could see the other's eyes narrowing with growing impatience. "Or perhaps you're too busy?"

"Oh, not at all! I would like that quite a lot," Grell said quickly, pushing the hunt for the book into the recesses of his mind and touching the hand that still held his arm. "I never would have thought you would ask me something like this. It's a dream come true, frankly!"

"Don't get so excited. I didn't say I was treating," he announced strictly, adjusting his glasses and turning on his heel, swiftly walking away. Grell cheered to himself, dancing a little jig before he dotingly skipped after him.

"Where are you spiriting me away to?" he singsonged, earning an annoyed glance from William. He quickly resumed walking like a normal person, and Will looked towards the exit again, his expression turning withdrawn.

"Oh, I don't know," he replied, sounding a bit absent-minded. "Perhaps we'll see a movie."

"Oh! Can it be a steamy romance? Or a sultry drama! Let's rent a porno!" Automatically, he stopped in his tracks and shielded his face. He hadn't meant to let that one slip, but he was completely expecting a square punch to the face and the cancellation of their date. But when he heard Will's footfalls continue unceasingly away from him, his hands dropped to his sides. Amazing. What's going on with Will today? He slowly followed the other in a trance, his mind racing with different things that could be bothering his fellow reaper.

In no time, Grell had completely disregarded anything having to do with William's could-be internal conflict. He was just happy to be there with the other man. This meant that there was a chance that they could become good friends. Or good lovers, Grell thought, his brows raising suggestively. Although he didn't always admit it, William was definitely number two on his list. He used to be number one, until Grell had come to know the irresistible man that was Sebastian Michaelis. Will had since become his number two, but since Sebastian had disappeared from the picture . . .

He sighed to himself. He was such a whore, but he couldn't help it! He was desperate for love, and Sebastian had never given it to him! Not to mention, he had been too soft with his rejection. When he'd gone, Grell was left high and dry. If William hadn't taken this first step between them, he would have willingly jumping into any inviting man's bed at this point.

His thoughts were interrupted when he saw Will pointing at a movie title. "'Unrequited Love'? That sounds so boring," he drawled, before touching his finger to his chin. "Actually, that sounds quite befitting of the life of someone I know . . . erm, was the preview any good?"

"Haven't see it. Just picking something out of random," Will replied monotonously. "Didn't you say you wanted to see a romance?"

"Yes! A steamy romance, not some gushing sounding crap-"

"Can you sirs please hurry?" the cashier urged impatiently.

"Two for 'Unrequited Love', please!" Grell blurted out with a start. Will shook his head as he went to retrieve his wallet, but Grell quickly stopped him. "P-Please, allow me!" Pulling out his own cutesy, customized wallet, he paid for their tickets. As he reached for the outstretched tickets, it suddenly hit him: that bastard had called him a man! "Oh, and by the way! I'll have you know that I'm a wo-WHOA!" He squealed as William jerked him away by the collar towards the concession stand.

"Want some popcorn?" he murmured, glancing down at Grell. He shook his head as he adjusted his collar, trying to suppress how hurt he had been by that man's insult. Not that he disliked being a man . . . it was just that he was clearly a woman. "Come on. The advertisements should be finishing up," he called, taking the tickets from the redhead and passing them off to the ticket-ripper.

"All the way back; last theatre to your right." William walked there with long, swift strides, completely ignoring a clamoring Grell that begged him to slow down. He kept on with his uproar until they finally reached their destination, which was a mediocre little side space that was practically abandoned.

"Just the two of us~" Grell teased. Will immediately moved forward and chose their seats somewhere amongst the middle rows. As he sat, Grell passed over him to get the seat closest to the wall. He snuggled up to Will like an infatuated lover, surprised that the other didn't scowl or bash him in the face. In fact, William didn't seem to have any malicious aura resonating from him at all. It kind of unsettled him. This is too strange, he thought, slowly withdrawing his arms from him. He should be angry, not treating me-well, even though I paid for it-he shouldn't be accompanying me to a movie! He watched his profile closely, looking for any signs that he might be plotting something superbly diabolical in that twisted mind of his. But there would be no way of him knowing; William was the King of Poker Faces.

"What is it?" he suddenly said without so much as a glance towards him, and Grell nearly jumped out of his skin, blushing in embarrassment that he had been caught staring.

"N-nothing. Just wondering what made you pick this movie," he lied, turning back in his seat and staring at the screen. It began with a woman watching a man from afar, she on a bridge while he drifted gracefully on a gondola. Grell immediately sighed. Already, this movie reminds me of him and I . . . He slumped down in the comfortable chair, preparing to hate the movie with all his immortal soul.

"You dumb broad!" Grell called out. William sighed for the twentieth time since the movie had reached its third quarter. Thank goodness the theatre was still empty, or everyone would have been miffed about Grell's impulsive conversation with the fictional characters. "He told you exactly what to do, and you screwed it up! How stupid can you be?!"

"Well, isn't that ironic?" William quipped, directing a pointed look in Grell's direction. Grell sheepishly leaned away and Will sighed again. "At least she's trying her best, She doesn't mean to mess up."

"Well, no one blatantly tries to screw anything up, but people still get mad about it right?" Grell fired back, feeling defensive about his observation.

"It's different." Grell's expression quickly turned incredulous, waiting for him to explain himself. "People give others jobs depending on their capabilities. If a job is something you can complete flawlessly within your caliber, and you still mess it up, of course people will be angry."

"And so, her task wasn't of her capabilities?" he argued.

"Evidently, no. You don't know what you're capable of until you try. It was a poor misjudgment on his behalf. She's fragile and inexperienced," he murmured, his eyes gleaming tenderly towards the heroine. "He was being too hard on her."

"Oh? So it's because she's a woman that it's okay for her to mess up?" William sighed yet again, and he took that as confirmation on his accusation. Grell shook his head in disbelief. "Then, why doesn't that mentality apply to me, Will?"

"You aren't a woman, Grell," he growled, glaring at the other. "And if that was anything near what I meant, it wouldn't apply because you aren't even human. You shouldn't mess up any of the jobs given to you." Grell bared his teeth as Will narrowed his eyes. "Where does your brain go when you're on the job? Did I miscalculate that you have a brain at all?"

"Go to hell, Will! I didn't come here to take this from you!" Grell sobbed, springing up from his seat and shoving pass him to run to the exit. He ran without a whim of where he was going, blinded by his own tears. He couldn't believe how catastrophic this had become. And that he had said something so reckless to him in the end! His stomach suddenly lurched. He sensed something dark lurking around him, and he ran faster, taking to the tree tops. He had to make it back to his apartment before something bad happened.

Grell dragged his feet towards the door. He had cried his heart out on that exhilarating run, and now, he just wanted to take a long bath and go to sleep. Perhaps even in the tub, if he felt inclined. His head was down as he prepared his keys, but when he looked upward, his heart stopped for a few good minutes.

William stood leaned against the door, his arms and ankles crossed as he glared towards Grell. His eyes glinted golden in the ominous moonlight. "Welcome home, Sutcliffe," he said in his normal tone, standing upright and looking towards the starry sky. "What a lovely way to end such a solemn movie. By the way," he looked at Grell, his expression dead pan as he uttered the chilling words: "the girl dies."

Grell swallowed thickly as the other slowly moved towards him, and then around him, leaning his lips towards his ear as he murmured: "Go on. Let us in." Grell nodded, shivering almost noticeably as he went forward and sheathed the key in the gears. He slowly turned it, and then the knob when the lock was free, stepping aside to let the other in before shutting the door behind the both of them. He went to lock it back, but William swiftly grabbed his wrist. "Leave it. I'm leaving after I've completed what I came to do."

"What might that be?" he whispered, not really caring to know what it was. Although his nipples tingled shamelessly with expectation, he really just wanted the other to leave. He was too exhausted to endure anything the other planned to do to him. Grell's eyes widened then. That's right. What reason would he have come here?

"You have the nerve to speak to me so callously after I was so cordial about the work incident?" Grell's head snapped up, but before he could turn to confront William, he felt a sharp pain in the nape of his neck, his head snapping back. He collapsed against the door and slid to the floor, instantly stunted by the blow to his spine. Still, he tried to track the other in his peripheral vision as he squatted beside him, smiling wickedly.

"Perhaps it was better for you to be completely relaxed for this. The tenser you are, the more it hurts." That's when Grell registered that he couldn't even flex his muscles. He felt stupendously relaxed, but this type of laxness was more unnerving than pleasant. "You know you ruined everything when you ran off like that . . . I truly don't appreciate how you did it, either." He stood up and stomped him in the side. Grell felt the air in his lungs billow out of him, but he didn't feel any pain. Just pressure. "How badly do I have to beat you for you to understand that your screw ups aren't okay?"

This time, he stomped him in the head, and he flinched. He definitely felt the pain that time. Tears welled to his eyes once more. He didn't care about this punishment. Frankly, he wanted to postpone it so that he could sleep. Yeah, it didn't take any physical labor on his behalf to take this beating, but nonetheless . . .

"It seems I have to beat you within a centimeter of your death," he mocked, grabbing the other by the neck and lifting him off the floor. He slammed his back against the door. "No matter. That can easily be arranged." He licked his lips at the fear that was clearly displayed in Grell's eyes. "I am truly fed up with you this time, Grell. I'll show you now . . . the ultimate chastisement for an utterly failed reaper."

Grell moaned and whimpered nonstop as he sulked in the scalding hot water of the bath. After William had beaten the Hell, Heaven and Purgatory out of him, he had gathered enough chivalry about him to draw him one and help him inside. I'll be sleeping in the tub after all, he thought to himself, his eyes misting over in misery. His body throbbed dully, and he could tell right away that the pain would be searing in the morning. He had such deep gashes and horrible bruising. And the grotesque swelling! What a way to paint him black to compliment his beloved red . . .

He felt broken, in every meaning of the word. There wasn't a shred of strength to even scrub the dirt of the day away from his disfigured form. He had never experienced such monumental brutality. And Sebastian's form of greeting had always been pretty brutal. He never wanted to see Will's face again after what happened. To think he had ever considered courting that monster. And he had made sure that his parting words would be affixed to his mind for as long as it was necessary to remember them:

"[I want that book back in the exact same condition it disappeared in. I don't care how you do it; just make sure it's done before that bloody heathen gets any ideas. You better not fail me, Grell, or I swear on everything good: when that man brings this world to ruin, I will outlive every living thing to ensure I murder you personally.]"

Grell wanted so bad to shudder. Perhaps he did, and he couldn't even feel it. He sobbed internally, his face too compacted for the sound to escape what was recognizable of his lips. All he could do was recall what Will had said in the theatre. It wasn't fair! Women had everything going for them. And people always thought it abnormal of him to want to become one.

That wasn't his fault! Maybe if there was some equality all around, he would be wholeheartedly thankful for the gender he was. I want so badly to actually become a woman, he thought, despite the concussion he was beginning to suffer. William would never lay his hands on me again. I could screw up as much as I wanted without so much as a thought of what it would cost me. He closed his eyes-even though they were technically welded shut already. How wonderful it would be . . . to obtain the power of breasts . . . I'd have everyone's love and respect then.

The next morning, he awoke by start of some hideous snoring. He looked around frantically, confused when he heard the sloshing of water. He realized he was in his bathroom, but with no recollection of how he had gotten there. He shrugged and stretched his limbs, delighting at how refreshed he felt. The birds outside were twittering so beautifully. He felt like he had just discarded some heavy burden from a past time. What that burden was, he couldn't remember, but he was grateful that it was gone.

As he stood from the tub, he looked at his hands and stuck his tongue out. "Ewww, I'm pruning! How long have I been in here?" He blinked a bit and cleared his throat. "Is that . . . me?" he squeaked. His voice sounded oddly . . . feminine. It was so high-pitched and unusual. "Must be a sore throat. Some type of sneaky seasonal cold," he said dismissively, looking past his hands at the tub water. He screamed, springing out of the tub so fast, he slipped on the floor and almost landed on his face. The water was muddied by blood, puss and dirt. "I was bathing in THAT?!" he cried, reluctantly dunking his hand in to drain the water. He shook the residue off in disgust as he rushed to the sink to clean himself up. But when he got there, the sight in the mirror had him even more floored.

A beautiful woman was staring back at him. She was so identical to what he looked like, with her vibrant red hair-which was impossibly way silkier than his had ever been-and her golden, red lashed eyes. Her features were so petite and contained a world of child-like innocence that flooded his heart completely. Her succulent skin looked longingly soft and smooth. In the first heterosexual impulse he had ever felt, he wanted to stroke it thoroughly, and possibly incite some color in its porcelain likeness . . .

Then it occurred to him. He slowly-ever so slowly-reached up and touched his own face, just to have the mirror mimic him. His eyes widened to saucers. That's ME?! He immediately pressed his hands against the glass and looked closer. It was him! Immediately, a smile spread on his petal soft pink lips. "I'm a woman!" he screamed, leaping all around the wet floor until he slipped and fell upon his tender breasts. He yelped and sat upright, looking down at them. The pain that shot through him was bordering excruciating, but felt exhilarating all at once. To his slight dismay, they were only moderately sized. But their shape and perkiness made up for their lacking in substance, and he quickly sprang towards the mirror again to assess them.

Locking his arms above his head, he inspected them all around and completely liked what he saw. What lovely nipples! As appealing as the most delectable soft pink candies! Well . . . until . . . A mischievous smirk danced on his mouth as he reached up to tweak them slightly. He gasped in surprise and wonder. Fantastically sensitive, too! And firm all over . . . my, there's lots of substance here after all! He squealed, sizing them up as he walked to his bedroom to utilize his full length mirror. "Ahhhhhn~! I'm delicious all over!" he giggled, turning around to shake his generous tush in the reflecting glass. That's when he noticed the likeness of a woman sitting in the corner of the room, and he gasped, covering himself in shame as he turned to look at her.

He'd never seen the likes of her before. Dressed completely in black garb, she had long white hair, golden eyes almost as intriguing as his, and exotic mocha colored skin. "Who the heck are you?!" he squeaked. A dazzling white smile lit her face, and he found he was a bit intimidated in his newfound maiden's body.

"My, you've forgotten me already? And after I've bestowed such a nice gift to you," she drawled in a silky tone, pushing away from the corner to stroll towards him. "I'll reintroduce myself . . . I'm Saber Blacke. I'm a . . . dimension traveling witch, you can say?" she smirked, as her eyes raked down his voluptuous body. "I guess you can call me your fairy godmother. You seem to have summoned me here with your plea to become a woman."

Grell raised his brows at that explanation before he blinked in disbelief. "You . . . you made me into a woman? But how?" he said, stepping toward her in wonder.

"Like this, my dear," she murmured, swiftly grabbing Grell by the chin and pulling him into a fleeting, yet thorough kiss. His cheeks flamed as she pulled away and smiled. "Well, too bad it doesn't work both ways so I could better demonstrate, but yes. You can say I'm responsible for your miraculous transformation."

"Well, thank you!" he cried, pulling her into his arms and hugging his naked body to her with all his might. "This is a dream come true! I never thought it would be possible!" He released her to glance at himself in the mirror again. "I'm capable of so much now . . ."

"Be careful how you abuse your powers," Saber said nonchalantly, folding her arms. "You can be really reckless with it and blow your whole cover, or use it for something productive. Like, saaay . . . getting something back and proving a point to someone?" Grell gasped and turned to her, grabbing her shoulders.

"Oh my goodness, you're right! William! I can't let him see me like this!" He sped over to his dresser and started throwing clothes around. "I have to get out of here and get that book back . . . and you know . . . enjoy my maidenhood a little." He quickly got dressed in his old butler clothing. Oddly, he didn't have any dresses to don, and any of his other clothing would have been too obvious. He came back to right himself in the mirror, proud of how much better he looked in his clothing, now that he had tits and a rounder arse. He turned back to Saber and gave a big, cheery smile. "Well then, wish me luck, fairy godmother! Watch over me, please!"

He ran out of the room and out the front door. Where he was headed to? No idea. Saber stood there for a moment before sighing, plopping down on the bed and looking at the mark on the palm of her right hand. Of course she had been joking about Grell summoning her here with his wish, but she really couldn't see it any other way. She had had no real plan of where she wanted to go when she'd cast her traveling spell . . . she'd just appeared here, and now she couldn't leave until her powers recharged enough to cast another.

"What a bummer . . . coming here of all places. Wherever here is," she said in a dreary tone, dropping her chin into her hand. "Oh well . . . I might as well get acquainted with this place while I'm forced to stay." Suddenly, a big smile spread on her face as her eyes glittered mischievously. "It isn't like I haven't a lively heroine to keep me entertained. I wonder how his friends will react to his change of gender? Mmmm . . . I hate surprises, but we'll just have to wait and see, shall we?"