Bittersweet:
Alois adored candy.
Taffy, butterscotch, chocolate caramels, peppermint canes, peanut brittle, maple suckers; he was infatuated by all of them. The consistency, the flavor, the warm feeling it left in his mouth and stomach – it was enough to make him sigh in pleasure at the mere thought. And what person did not enjoy the tasty delights? Particularly something like salt water taffy. Oh, how he loved salt water taffy above all else…
Yet, despite Alois's ardor for such confections, he was hardly privileged to consume them.
"The consumption of such childish food is unbecoming for one of your status."
"You mustn't. You shall spoil your dinner."
"I apologize, your highness, but we do not have the proper tools for such a food. Shall I prepare a chocolate raspberry ganache instead?"
Ganaches. Cakes. Tarts. Parfaits. None of them neared in comparison to candy. However delectable they may be, Alois would take a simple truffle over a cherry clafoutis any day.
Candy was simply divine.
-x-
He was entranced by it.
Light, fluffy – almost like wisps of pure cloud plucked from the sky and thrown onto a paper stick. If he had not seen children walking away from the stand and taking huge bites of it, he would have mistaken it for wool. But wasn't it? It had to be wool… but children were eating it – how could they? Such a thing did not look like it should be edible.
"Claude, what is that?" Alois demanded, freezing in his spot on the damp cobblestones.
His butler, in a movement as impassive as his expression, followed his charge's gaze. He pushed his glasses up at the bridge.
"Candy floss."
Alois's eyes widened. Candy floss? So he wasn't imagining it – you could eat it? His mouth began to stretch at the ends and he reached into his coat, withdrawing a small, violet coin purse.
Thrusting it at Claude, he said, "Go buy some for me." When the butler began to open his mouth in protest, Alois continued, "I don't give two shits about it being improper. I think you and I both know it something like that hardly matters." His expression sank briefly, darkly, but within a short span of just a few seconds, it lit up once more. "Ne, now go!"
Claude bent at the waist, muttering a "Yes, your highness," and, coin purse in hand, crossed the busy London street and entered the carnival. Alois watched him, leaning against the stone wall behind him and ignoring the people who gave him peculiar looks over the crude language he used towards his servant. "Too hell with you all," he murmured beneath his breath, never removing his stare from Claude's receding form. But the black clad butler remained in sight (or at least his head did) while waiting in line and even purchasing the treat.
When he began to walk back towards Alois, the flaxen haired boy looked down at paper bag in Claude's hand and then to the golden orbs that lie behind his glasses.
He licked his lips. He could not wait for his treat.
-x-
"Bloody hell Claude, I've waited for three hours. Give me the bag already."
"As you wish."
Eagerly snatching it away, Alois's eyes widened when he opened the mouth of the bag and saw his white, fluffy sweet inside. "Ah!" he gasped in joy, pulling off a glove and reaching in. A bit unsure of how to go about it, he lingered for a moment, but pinched his thumb and pointer down on the substance and pulled away.
He held it before himself, analyzing. It was sticky on his flesh and came together hard where his fingers held it, though the rest was still as wispy and light as when he had first seen it. Shifting his legs on the carriage seat, he opened his mouth and poked the candy floss in.
Well, it certainly was -.
"Oh!" he breathed, feeling the candy dissipate on his tongue almost the instant it made contact. He hardly had time to enjoy the consistency. But oh, it was so sweet, like sugar spun into cotton. It melted on his tongue and left his mouth feeling sticky and warm. Withdrawing his fingers, he realized some of the candy still clung to his finger tips. He licked it off.
"How incredible," he thought aloud to himself. He took out more and ate it. Once again, it seemed to dissolve almost instantaneously as he pressed and folded it with his tongue to the roof of his mouth. Glancing from the corner of his eye, he caught a set of amber irises staring at him. His lips jerked upwards.
Alois tilted his head slowly, his brow narrowing challengingly. "Claude, would you like to try some?"
But Claude did not reply; he merely looked at the boy, his face blank. Unwavering, Alois pinched some more candy floss between his fingers and held it out to the demon by his index, his eyes daring. Claude remained unmoving, not willing to act on his own accord, waiting for the order that would make the mark on his hand flare and tug.
"Eat it," Alois breathed.
Claude reached down and began to peel a white glove off.
"Ah!" Alois's voice stopped him. "No hands."
"… that -."
"Claude. Eat it."
The butler nodded his head. "Yes, your highness."
Reaching out, he grabbed the boy's small wrist and brought his hand closer. Without hesitation, he closed his mouth around the blonde's finger; Alois's pinking cheeks and tiny exhale did not going unnoticed. Quickly, without lingering, he swept the candy off the finger with his tongue and drew away, his mouth leaving a glossy sheen on Alois's finger. His expression remained unchanged through the entire exchange.
Alois's face twitched in exasperation. He pressed, "Do you like it?"
Claude returned his hand to his side. "No," he said, ever honest and blunt.
"How did it taste?"
His eyes narrowed.
"Terrible."
Alois laughed. He laughed and laughed and laughed and laughed. He laughed until his sides could no longer stand it, and then said through twisted lips, his voice shrill, "Of course it did! I suppose demons have no taste for anything humans eat, even the sweetest of foods." He exhaled, an airy and light sound. "How pitiable."
He took some candy floss from the bag, his finger still wet. His gaze never wavering from Claude's, he stuck it into his mouth, tasting the not just the sweet food, but the taste of his butler – bitter, heavy, almost rotten. But he smiled, sweeping the remnants of his saliva from his finger.
What a terrible taste indeed.
A/N: For the Kuroshitsuji forum's Thursday Crack Ficlet challenge! This is for last week's theme, which was 'Kuroshitsuji characters at a carnival'. I sort of cheated, but Claude did go to the carnival, however briefly! I didn't really do the challenge much justice, compared to others, but alas, I still did it. Feedback/critique is welcomed!