Seal or No Seal.
A/N: …I don't even know wtf this even is.
"What on earth were you thinking?"
"I…I just thought that using the flame thrower would be faster. It makes sense if you think about-"
"Just get back to work. I'll take care of the damage." Sebastian surveyed the room, taking in the charred remains of the kitchen as well as the scent of obvious failure. Or, maybe that was just the burning chicken flesh. Either way, the butler was not pleased in the least.
Bard observed the other sympathetically as Sebastian contemplated where to begin. "Eh…sorry about that. I can help if you-"
Raising his gloved hand to silence the cook, Sebastian glared menacingly before turning back to a critically melted pot. "Hurry up and fix something else. The young master will have his lunch on time – whether you cook it or not."
That was all it took for the blonde to hurry to the storage room for fresh food.
Not wanting to get his ivory gloves dirty, Sebastian swiftly removed both articles, placed them safely on the counter, and got to work.
It only took a few minutes for the demon to restore every charred inch of the seemingly irreparable kitchen to its original state, but in complete contrast to the now pristine room, his long pale fingers were now dirtier than the mind of the Viscount Druitt. He would have easily rinsed them off in the kitchen sink, but Bard was currently using unorthodox methods to stuff a turkey over the drain. The last thing the butler wanted to do was defile the young master's turkey, much less, get involved in whatever it was Bard was doing to the poor bird. So, he resolved to use the sink in the upstairs bathroom, hoping that his master wouldn't require the facilities until he was finished.
The long bright hallway seemed empty enough; not a single soul disrupted the quietude of the path from the kitchen to the bathroom, and after reaffirming this fact by looking left and right, Sebastian made a break for it. Having the young master catch his hands in such a state of disarray was unthinkable, and if that were to happen, he just wouldn't be worth his salt.
Light from the vast windows illuminated the comforting, masterless vacancy of the spacious bathroom, and as Sebastian turned on the water, he began to think. Staring blankly into the mirror led to his mind occupying itself with miscellaneous things; the young master's lunch, – which was hopefully ready by now – the young master's study that needed to be straightened, the young master's left eye, which had taken on such a gorgeous sapphire undertone as of late… "…What?" That last thought had appeared out of nowhere, and the demon had to blink a few times to reposition his thoughts. However, as he cast his eyes downward into the sink, he noticed something else that wasn't quite right. The pale white flesh of his hands was now visible, but somehow, they looked a bit too clean. "Hm…that's strange." Sebastian peered into the sink at the two manly appendages, trying to figure out what had changed about them. It wasn't until he saw the steady stream of inky black water that flowed idly down the drain that it struck him.
The contract mark was gone.
To make matters even more baffling, it wasn't like the symbol had disappeared due to a breach of contract; it had simply – from what the butler could see – washed off. The almighty demonic seal of agreement between himself and the young master had been reduced to an inky smudge upon the top of his hand. There was only one thought running through the male's mind at that moment: "Shit." Sebastian stood unmoving over the sink as the rushing tap continued to carry the powerful alliance towards a random sewage pipe in the middle of the city. "The young master is going to have me killed for this…" He mumbled under his breath.
Not wanting to do further damage to the emblem, he jerked his wrist from under the stream as he racked his mind for a solution. Wait a second. Scarlet eyes widened a fraction of an inch as another, less intimidating thought entered his mind. Without hesitation, the corners of his thin lips curled up to form a gruesome grin only capable for a field of Hell. I'm free. It was perfect; no more orders, no more insolent child for a master, no more incompetent servants! But, just as the butler was about to waltz out of the Phantomhive mansion to adopt as many cats as he could carry, he realized something that made his stomach sink. No more soul. Shit.
"No. NO. This cannot happen." Once again, Sebastian shook his head vigorously to erase all irrational thought. He opened drawers and turned over towels in hopes of finding something in the room that could fix this unimaginable blunder, but halted in his tracks once a light, solemn voice came closer to the bathroom door.
"Tanaka, if you would kindly tell Alois Trancy that I would rather cross-dress than attend one of his parties…"
It was the young master, and he was getting closer and closer to the door. Sebastian lunged at the door and locked it with a sigh of relief as soon as Ciel unsuccessfully turned the knob. "I have to find a way out of this." As soon as the words left his lips, he realized that he had said them aloud and began to worry that the master had heard him.
A stern knock erupted from the bathroom door. "Sebastian? Is that you in there?"
The butler's eyes closed in defeat as he imagined the boy discovering the missing mark, and thinking happily that his soul was no longer contractually obligated to a demon. "Yes, young master," He said truthfully, and he found that although the seal was gone, he still was unable to lie to the other. "I was just…making sure that once you came in everything would be to your liking. But it's not ready yet." Holistically, it wasn't far from the truth, so as Ciel furrowed his thin brows on the other side of the door, he couldn't detect any sign of a lie.
"Alright…" Ciel said as he inconspicuously crossed his legs. "Just hurry up." As he was about to leave, he heard a series of shuffling noises echoing in the bathroom, followed by Sebastian's exasperated groans.
"Yes, my lord." Now where in the Hell is that bath sponge?
Although silenced followed, Ciel's shadow stretched under the door. He wouldn't leave just yet; not until he figured out just what it was that his butler was doing to keep him away. Clearing his throat, the boy started to make assumptions. "Sebastian?"
At the moment, the older male was attempting to stuff a sponge down the drain, hoping that when he pulled it up, the liquid form of the contract would be soaked up and squeezed out onto his hand once more. "Yes master?" Came the strained response as the sponge refused to cooperate.
With a nervous sigh, Ciel continued the conversation he never thought he would be having with the demon. "What exactly are you…well…you know, it's perfectly natural to…uhm…" Somehow, the well thought out sentence in his head had not emerged the way he wanted it to.
Sebastian let the sponge be for a moment while he imagined the blush that had surely come to the young master's face. "No my lord. I can assure you that it's nothing of the sort." He stared at his blank hand once more. "You just wouldn't believe it if I told you."
Another long pause increased the awkwardness of the situation until Ciel decided that he, in fact, did not want to know what Sebastian was doing in there after all. "Alright…well, as I've said before, hurry it up in there." It was quite uncharacteristic of him to leave the butler to his work without demanding that he know everything about the situation if there were questions, but the child's obscure understanding – paired with his current state of I-have-to-go-to-the-bathroom-but-I-have-no-desire-to-interrupt-whatever-you're-doing-in-there – caused Ciel to turn swiftly around and shuffle to another room.
Sebastian listened intently for his master to leave, and once the Earl was gone, he went back to his sponge.
Following three more failed attempts to retrieve the liquidized contract that involved the sponge, a bath brush, and a rubber ducky, the idea that he still had his gloves materialized into the butler's mind. This way, he could still appear before his master without being found out. Instead of risking a long walk back to the kitchen, Sebastian excavated a new pair from his tailcoat pocket. While he put them on, he came across the pocket watch that was also on his person, and sighed heavily at the quick hands. Now on top of all of this, I'm running behind schedule. He thought, then discerned that he could still clean the master's study and look for something to restore the seal at the same time.
When he entered the office, there was nothing that jumped out at him as an obvious tool. Sebastian scanned the room stealthily as he dusted, passing over books and papers until he found it.
A perfectly inky fountain pen rested in the inkwell; its brass shell glimmered in the late afternoon sunlight as if it were beckoning the older male. How nice. The demon grinned, taking the pen into his fingers and holding it gently – as if it were a sacred object – and rightfully so. This small, ink-filled writing apparatus would be the object that secured his claim to the young master's soul.
Ever so carefully, as Sebastian decided that he would simply redraw the contract, he began scratching the pen against his skin while his shoulders arched with eagerness. His red eyes sparkled wildly in anticipation after each delicate, black stroke of the quill pen traced the faded outline left by the Faustian seal. "Yes…almost there…" He could see the semblance already; everything was falling into place until…
"Sebastian…?" Ciel stood curiously behind the butler as the later froze once more.
"Yes my lord," Subtly replacing his gloves, he made sure to hide the pen so the boy wouldn't suspect anything.
However, in Ciel's mind, his servant was starting to look more and more suspicious. After all, Ciel was in an awkward phase of maturing, and considering all the signs Sebastian had been giving, his teenage mind could only come to one conclusion. "I'm…done with the bathroom if you need it."
Sebastian nearly laughed. "I promise you, it isn't what it looks like." He snuck a sideways glance beneath his left glove, only to find a smeared remnant of the makeshift seal. With a disgruntled sigh, Sebastian turned forward to face his master.
"Good." Ciel ran a hand through his dark hair and then continued to speak. "In that case, I need you to do something for me."
"Anything, my lord."
The younger of the two ambled over to the window and pushed open the thick curtains. "See that cow out there, Sebastian?"
"That one right there, sir?" A gloved finger pointed straight to the misplaced animal.
"Yes. That one."
Since the master had never been one to associate with animals, Sebastian tried to guess the most logical thing he could do for the master concerning the animal. "Would you like me to get rid of it, my lord?"
A brisk, somewhat satirical stream of air came from Ciel's nose as the corner of his mouth twitched slightly. "No." The boy gazed lazily out the window and without taking his eyes off the cow, gave the demon his order. "I'd like you to milk it for me Sebastian."
Right away, the older male raised an eyebrow. The request came across as more than strange; not only had he never asked for something as arbitrary as this, but before then, Ciel had shown an obvious distaste for unpasteurized milk. Yet, an order was an order, and – seal or no seal – he had to oblige. As he bowed and prepared to complete the request, he couldn't help but wonder if the kid's contract was still intact under the tightly tied eye patch. Nevertheless, Sebastian set out to milk the cow as Ciel had asked.
Finally, after struggling with the beast for half-an-hour, a very agitated demon returned to the study where Ciel was waiting. "As you've requested, young master." He held a large glass of freshly squeezed milk towards the child, but instead of taking it, Ciel waved it away.
"I never said I wanted any milk; Bard brought me lunch while you were out there. I just wanted to…make sure that the cow was profitable before I sold it to someone."
Sebastian's brows connected into a thin line of confusion before he nodded. "Anything else before I go to empty this out my lord?"
Ciel pondered for a second, putting a finger to his lips as if he was trying to search his mind for something to keep the butler busy. "As a matter of fact," He started, bringing a sense of worry about the nature of the task to Sebastian's chest. "My feet have ben getting extremely cold lately. Make me some booties."
Again, Sebastian was left in a state of perplexity. "…Booties, master?"
"Yes. Do not question me, I want booties. Now go knit them or something."
"Right away."
I wonder why the young master is making these strange orders. It's not like him to…The deliberation went unfinished when, right on the pearly skin of his left hand, a faded version of the original supernatural seal appeared. A second inspection headed the same results. Excitedly, the demon contemplated abandoning the master's commands for just a moment while he tried to rub the mark back into existence, but Ciel's impatient calls reached his ears before he could even stroke the back of his hand.
"Sebastiaaaan! My feet are getting awfully chilly. I-I think I can see ice starting to form on my pinky toe! Sebastian, hurry with those booties or I might have to amputate my feet with a butter knife to save the rest of my legs!"
The butler hung his head; the seal would have to wait until later. Regretfully, he pulled the cotton gloves over his hand and sought out some knitting needles.
"Here are the booties you've asked for, young master." Holding out the pink and white knitted articles of footwear rather shamelessly towards the cross-armed child, the butler knelt down to slide the thick socks onto the young lord's feet. As he did so, Sebastian couldn't help but wonder about the order. Yes he's a child, but isn't he too old and too dignified to wear baby booties? Directly after watching the younger's toes wiggle slightly in satisfaction, a certain familiar warmness pulsed through his left hand. So as not to worry his master, Sebastian waited to examine his hand calmly until Ciel turned to walk away, and sure enough, the original mark had materialized moreover. Scarlet eyes narrowed in question as Ciel opened his pampered mouth yet again.
"Sebastian," The boy said, still facing away from the butler with both arms connected loosely behind his back. "I'm going to need you to paint a portrait of my nose."
Blatantly refusing to scrub the back of his head out of dissent in the name of butler aesthetics, as well as forcing that "You can't be serious" to stay lodged within the confines of his throat, Sebastian did the only thing he could do; bowed respectfully and went to go find the paint brushes.
When he returned to the study, the young lord was lounging atop his office chair, expectantly swinging his bootied feet, and leaning dramatically to the left with a signature pout set across his features. "That took you long enough."
"May I ask why you would like such a portrait to be commissioned, my lord?"
After a moment of serious thinking, Ciel responded. "Longevity, Sebastian." The childish pout remained on his lips all the same. "After looking at the noses of several of my older acquaintances – namely Sir Randall of Scotland Yard – I just…" The young charge placed two elegant fingers at each side of the bridge of his own nose and shook his head in disapproval. "Well, I don't have to explain it, you can figure it out."
Without continuing to irritate his master with his undeterred urge to ask questions, Sebastian nodded and held a brush to the canvas. "Alright young master, please look over here."
"It's alright, I suppose." The azure-haired child reached out and swiped a satisfied finger over the masterpiece; of course, the demon had cranked out an exact rendition of the younger one's nose, but the Earl of Phantomhive couldn't bring himself to shower a mere servant with due complements.
"As long as it is to your liking, my lord." Just then, the demon seal fluttered upon his skin, and it was then that the realization slapped him in the face harder than the diamond encrusted side of Ciel's ring hand. The atypical recognition of the solution was incredulously obvious, and yet, astonishingly indefinite. With slightly anxious eyes and a faint grin tugging at his lips, Sebastian took a step towards the child. "Do you require anything else this evening?"
"Hmm…not particularly." The boy arched his back, weary from sitting in the same spot for over fifteen minutes. Had Sebastian been a mortal artist, the painting would have taken almost a full day. "I just wish to stretch out for a bit."
"Are you certain, my lord? Ask me anything; I'll do anything."
The younger one paused mid-stretch to contemplate the statement. "…Anything…"
"Yes."
"…Anything?"
"Anything."
"Alright then Sebastian. I've been saving this list for an occasion such as this." He padded over to his desk and retrieved a long roll of paper that was hidden beneath several documents. "Now," Ciel instructed; as he pushed the list of one hundred tasks towards his butler's chest it unraveled even more, stopping a few inches from their feet. "You said anything, and since demons cannot lie I expect no hesitation or difficulties."
A sly glance at the top of the list resulted in a swift cock of the servant's eyebrow, but nothing more. "Of course." Alphabetize the meat collection...arrange breakfast, lunch, dinner and desert for tomorrow…give young master Ciel a piggy back ride…
The cough that slipped through the older male's teeth after reading more of the list made Ciel's haughty pout stretch further towards his chin. "Complete this list before tomorrow morning – and by morning I mean 11:59 pm tonight. That's an order."
Although most of the requests on the list were borderline insane, Sebastian couldn't wait to test his theory; the more ridiculous the order, the bolder the seal would become upon completion – the stronger the bond would grow. "Yes, my lord." Not even the fact that he had to check every crevice in the house for demon rats could wipe the smirk from the servant's face; so once again, he got to work.
As soon as Sebastian reached number twenty-five – comb young master Ciel's eye lashes one at a time – a slight tickle irritated his skin as the mark fluttered coolly on his skin.
At number forty-six, which involved a wooden chest of drawers, the corset dress, and Bard's flamethrower, he could feel the powerful essence of their bond burning and electrifying under the cotton glove.
Eighty-nine instructed Sebastian to construct an eye patch for himself, just so he could see the world through his master's eyes and experience the difficulties Ciel went through on a daily basis. When he removed it per command of number ninety, the blinding light that struck his scarlet orb was still able to distinguish the darkening circle through his left hand's fabric cover.
Almost at the end of the list, Sebastian dressed Ciel in his nightshirt and tucked him into the covers, then checked under the bed and behind the curtains for any assassins or assailants for number ninety-nine. The butler then paused, and further examining the bottom of the paper. "But, there are only ninety-nine commands listed here."
Ciel didn't bother to turn over as his tired body weighed him down. "Do you know why I ordered you to do such ridiculous things, Sebastian?"
Letting the paper rest at his hip, Sebastian blinked twice. "I couldn't say, young master."
A moment of silence passed; the gentle whisper of the evening breeze against the window was the only thing that penetrated the wordlessness until…"I felt like our…connection…if you will, had grown weaker. I just needed to know that you'd stay, no matter how outrageous the tasks." When the child heard no response, he continued after burying his warming face into his pillow. "I mean, that is, I wanted to see how much you really wanted my soul – how far you would be willing to go to preserve this contract. And, seeing as you are still here…you've performed satisfactory enough."
Sebastian's theory had been correct. He took a moment, but eventually the demon was able to formulate a sentence. "I gave my promise; I would be by your side until the very moment this contract is complete – no matter how outrageous the order – and demons do not lie." A gloved hand came to rest at his chest while the other hand lifted the list to his face once more. "So, about the number of tasks on this list…"
"Flip it over."
On the back, written in small, yet noble letters, was assignment number one hundred: Don't leave until I fall asleep. Candlelight illuminated the miniscule upward twitch of lips as the servant read over the words once more.
"And that's an order." Ciel mumbled, his nearly inaudible voice thick with sleep.
Without hesitation, the boy's chest began to rise and fall into a perfect, peaceful rhythm that signified the completion of Sebastian's tasks.
Bringing his fully restored contract hand to his chest, Sebastian replied the only way he knew how to.
"Yes, my lord."
A/N: So. Now that that's out of my system, back to Black Twilight. Not that anybody reads that crap anyways. ;p I just graduated by the way; and the plethora of unnecessary, overpriced graduate activities has kept me from writing my story…but this one congealed out of nowhere I suppose. It is a one-shot and is written grammatically as such. I hope you feel inclined to review. In the change that you might not, I will do it for you. "(So many time skips! Whhhhyyyy! You suck. – Anonymous.)" No but seriously…don't say that.
Edit: Uhm. I realized it would help if those little, horizontal lines (the time skips!) were ACTUALLY THERE. They don't really transfer from word to here...which sucks. Sorry I guess I should've actually edited it on here rather than word. Anyways...yeah. Review!