Hunger.
It was his constant companion. Whatever he did, no matter the time, hunger was always nagging at him. Sometimes stronger, other times weaker, but it never disappeared. Some part of him wanted to feast on the soul he protected every time he came near it. On some days it took all of his self-control to keep the beast inside of him tamed.
The first days had been the hardest. He hadn't been this close to humans in a long time. And pretending to be one for the sake of keeping up a facade had proven to be quite frustrating. Of course he could cope with that. He could look like a human, work like a human and fool everyone around him into believing that he was just a human being. But in front of his contractor who knew of his true nature keeping up the disguise of a butler was the most difficult task. Especially during the beginning of their contract the smell of that mouth-watering soul had driven him nearly crazy.
After living for a very, very long time the demon had grown tired of unworthy souls. They could be found anywhere and did nothing to satisfy his insatiable appetite. Instead, he longed for the special souls, those extremely rare ones with that intoxicating taste. And the boy's soul was just this kind of soul: pure, molded in darkness, risen from humiliation and despair, thirsting for power and revenge,...
When he had appeared before the boy for the first time the flavor of his exquisite soul had intensified his hunger even more. It had been an enormous struggle to restrain himself from ripping the boy's soul out and feasting on it right there. But he wasn't one of those gluttonous savages making a mess out of their meal controlled only by their hunger. He would take his time and savor every bit of this delicious feast.
So they had formed a contract and the demon had saved his new master from his abductors. Over the first months the demon that went by the name Sebastian now had had a hard time controlling his natural instincts, the desire to consume this delicious smelling soul right away almost overwhelming. Nevertheless, he had managed to hold the beast inside of him back without letting his new master take notice of his struggle. That had been leading to the fact that the boy had come to trust his savior which had added another flavor to his soul to spice it up even more.
Even now that the demon had learned to control his gnawing hunger at least to some extent there were still moments when it was extremely difficult. These situations occurred more often as the time passed by. Sebastian grew hungrier with each passing day.
Once again, it was one of these days when the hunger couldn't be ignored.
Ciel had just seen his aunt dying right in front of his eyes by the hands of the grim reaper Grell Sutcliff. Sebastian was now carrying his young charge on their way back to the mansion. At first the boy had violently refused to be touched by the demon, insisting to be able to stand on his own but after he had tripped again Sebastian had picked him up and Ciel had accepted it as he had been far too weak to argue with his butler.
The way back to the manor was quiet. Neither of them said a word. Ciel was exhausted and still shaken from the events he had just witnessed. And Sebastian didn't want to disturb the boy who was shivering slightly in his arms not only because he was freezing. The wound on Ciel's arm where Madame Red had cut him with a knife was still bleeding. The demon would always recognize the smell of his master's blood and had sensed it back where he had fought Grell. But there also had been other smells like the blood of Grell, Madame Red or his own. Now, however, as they were fleeing the scene and with his own wounds already healed the only taste that was left was Ciel's blood which contained the tempting flavor of his soul.
Sebastian tightened the grip on the boy. So weak, so fragile, so delicious… If he wanted he could devour his soul right now. No one was here to interfere, not that anyone could stop him anyway. The thought of such a feast was very alluring. Tonight's events had added yet another flavor which made Sebastian's meal even more irresistible. The feeling of betrayal from his own aunt and the disturbing image of her being killed by the reaper had burnt itself deep into the young one's mind and had left a tasty spice to his soul. So why not take it here and now when the scent was driving the hungry demon nearly mad…
"Sebastian…?"
He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard the weak voice of his master. When he saw the slightly shocked expression on Ciel's face he realized what kind of view he must had of him right now: glowing eyes, extended fangs and an iron grip on the boy's body. Quickly he regained his posture and smirked faintly.
"I apologize, my lord. I need to apply some pressure to your wound since it is still bleeding. Please bear with it for now. We'll be back at the manor in no time. Then, I will tend to it properly."
Ciel only nodded and Sebastian hurried to get home. He couldn't believe that he had nearly lost his control right now. To be sure not to be distracted by the enticing smell again, he held his breath for the rest of their trip.
By the time they arrived at the manor the wound had almost stopped bleeding. Sebastian sat the boy down in his bedroom. "I'll get some bandages and your promised tea." He excused himself and hurried out of the room. As soon as he closed the door he allowed himself to take a deep breath. Even though he wasn't that close to the boy anymore the sweet scent of his delicious meal was still very strong and made the demon's stomach almost growl. He ignored the strong desire to turn around and proceeded to get to the servants quarter where he quickly changed his clothes to get away from the smell that clung to them. After that, he prepared a chamomile tea in the kitchen and the fragrance of the tea actually helped removing the aroma of Ciel's blood from the demon's nose. He grabbed some bandage material and returned to his master's room with the tea.
As soon as he entered the bedroom he smelled the soul again and the hunger returned. But he didn't let his master take notice of that. "My lord, as promised I've made you a hot tea to warm you up."
Ciel took the cup. "Chamomile…"
"Indeed. It's good for calming one's nerves so that you can sleep." Sebastian smirked. "But before going to bed, I must insist that you take a bath. Your wound might have stopped bleeding but you could still get an infection if I don't clean it properly."
Like he had been the whole evening, Ciel was quiet during the bath as well. The death of yet another relative must have unsettled the boy even though he would never admit that to Sebastian. Only when he was dressed in his nightshirt and Sebastian had bandaged his arm he asked a question. "What happened to the body?"
Sebastian was more comfortable now that his charge had bathed and the wound had been taken care of. The only scent that was left was the boy's aura that always surrounded him and the demon had become accustomed to that.
"Scotland Yard will take care of it. There's no need for you to concern yourself with such things tonight."
"I'll need to arrange a funeral. I will talk to Undertaker about it. And I must write a letter to the Queen!"
Sebastian covered the boy with his blanket. "That can wait till tomorrow. For now, you should rest." He took the candlestick and went to leave when a quiet voice, almost a whisper, held him back.
"Stay… until I fall asleep!"
The demon grinned and returned to his master's bedside. "Yes, my lord." He blew out the candles and the room fell into darkness. He listened to the boy's soft breathing. I will stay by your side until the very end.
He had been nearly three years with the boy now. At the time they had formed their contract he had been hungry. By now, he was starving. Demons couldn't die of starvation but hunger could drive them mad to a point when feeding would be all they could think about. Then, no contract and no amount of self-control would prevent them from feasting on any soul available. But Sebastian was no primitive savage anymore. And although the special soul of his contractor made his mouth water with anticipation he would wait. Because when the boy would have achieved his revenge and the contract would be complete his soul would be even more delicious than it was now. It would be perfect. And for that it was worth waiting.