A/N: Well, here it is boys and girls, yaoi-fans of all kinds! My first Kuroshitsuji chapter-fic featuring a complex coupling that may result in more than what you've bargained for! I'm very proud of how this has turned out so be sure to review! :3
Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji. D:
The laughter of children filled the crisp autumn air of London. Outside, on the Cathedral courtyard, a group of Catholic children played with a ball. They tossed it and kicked it to one another, laughing, yelling, and taking advantage of one of the sunnier days in Britain. A blonde-haired boy held the ball over his head, laughing.
"Hey! Serel!" He called. An older boy with even whiter-blonde hair looked over at the sound of his name and held his hands up in anticipation. After he caught the ball, the boy named Serel looked out at the vast expanse of the courtyard. Most of the children were close by, calling for him to pass the ball. But, just outside the circle of children was the boy he he had chosen as his target. He tossed the ball high up and hard.
"Catch, Grell!"
"H-huh?" A younger boy with shaggy, fiery red hair and striking green eyes looked over at the crowd of children. The ball sailed over his head in that moment and he flushed as he heard the annoyed groans of the children ring out.
"Gre~ll! Go get the ball!"
"S-sorry! Be right back!"
Grell turned and hurried in the direction the ball had flown, trying to go as fast as he little legs would carry him. He stopped a ways away, looking around frantically. The cries of the children urging him to hurry echoed behind him. Suddenly, something bright red caught his eye and he looked to his right to see a bed of roses...and the ball just within it's boundaries! Excitedly, Grell hurried towards the roses, stumbling to his hands and knees to retrieve the ball. He hesitated a moment, a little nervous about sticking his arms into a bed of roses where thorns were inevitable. Regardless of his fear of getting pricked, he began to reach for the ball.
"Ow!" Grell whimpered, retreating from the roses and wincing. He looked at his left index finger to see an impressive cut. Bright red blood oozed from the torn skin, running down his finger and dripping off his pale knuckle onto his scuffed boots. Despite the throbbing pain, he became perplexed by the blood.
"It's so...red," Grell whispered, awe-struck by the beautiful color. He had never noticed how beautiful red seemed to be until he saw it in the form of blood.
"Sutcliffe," A stern voice sounded behind him. Grell turned quickly, knowing that only one person addressed him by his last name. A much older boy with slicked black hair and thin-rimmed glasses stared imploringly down at him, a dark brow cocked.
"Hurry and retrieve the ball, we're going in for prayer."
"Oh!" Grell nodded and grabbed the ball from within the rose bed, wincing a bit as more cuts appeared along his arms. "Sorry, William!"
The older boy, William, said nothing but instead turned around and held out a hand. "Let's go."
Grell smiled at William, the very boy who had raised him since his abandonment, and grasped the older one's hand with the hand that was painted red.
He felt the slick warmth of sweat run down the side of his pale face, mixing with the dripping blood that oozed from a split lower lip. His hair was mused and a bruise was coloring itself brightly above his right eyebrow. He groaned in frustration, this was certainly no way to treat a lady! The man that stood yards from him – his attacker clad in black – smiled devilishly while his eyes glowed a brilliant red.
"Are you finished, Grell?" His voice was soft and smooth yet tantalizingly fatal. Grell felt his knees lock in admiration.
"If you wouldn't so rudely aim for my face, I would play with you all night, Sebas-chan!"
The attacker, Sebastian, winced at this perverse comment. "I highly recommend you cease with those obnoxious comments. They are hardly appropriate in this scenario, or in any for that matter."
Grell grinned toothily, his fang-like teeth stained pink from the numerous blows to the face. "Do not deny your love for me, Sebby! You and I are lovers, destined to be together but fate insists on tearing us apart! Oh, how romantic! Let us depart into the moonlight forever! Sebast- oof!"
Before Grell could even complete his hundredth proclamation of love for Sebastian, the raven-haired man promptly rushed to him and plunged a fist right into Grell's jaw. The ginger felt himself being propelled backwards before he felt the painful contact with cobblestone. He moaned as he held his head with one hand, the other groping for something to aid in his standing up. Suddenly, he felt his hand touch slick leather. Looking up, he noticed Sebastian had appeared beside him; Grell's hand was resting on his shoe. Giving into his feelings of love rather than fanatical panic, Grell began to aim his groping hand for a much higher up yet more private place of Sebastian's slender body. It was only then that he felt a foot press down roughly onto his neck. Grell wheezed in surprise, feeling his lungs collapsing within his body. He flailed about, trying desperately to beg for his life but found that words could not be formed. He wheezed while hot tears spilled from the corners of his eyes and across his temples into his hairline.
"Release him immediately, demon." A sharp voice sounded suddenly. The pressure on Grell's neck lessened slightly but not enough for him to be able to breathe. He wheezed in relief regardless of his situation. Squeezing his eyes shut for a moment, he forced them back open to see the familiar polished, bespectacled figure of William T. Spears. His scythe in hand was extended forward and stopped just before the demon's face. Sebastian smirked. He crushed his foot down again and Grell began to cough and wheeze harder than before. William stared down at Grell for a moment and watched as his face become tinged with a slight blue.
"I said release him. I do not wish to have to deal with you tonight." William pushed his scythe forth just a bit, forcing Sebastian to take a reluctant step back to avoid it. Grell felt Sebastian's foot step off his windpipe and he gasped for air, taking it in by the second and relishing in the relief of being able to breathe again. The ginger tried to move but found that he was too light-headed and weak to do so. So, instead of fighting his physical handicap, he chose to watch both William and Sebastian silently. Sebastian lifted his hands in compliance.
"I believe I have asked you to keep a good watch on this one," The demon countered, smirking. William called back his scythe and used the bladed tips to adjust his glasses. He scoffed under his breath.
"Keep in mind that it also 'this one's' job to venture out in order to claim souls – ones that are better off out of your dirty hands. Though I do not doubt that Grell attempted to see you despite his common sense."
Sebastian chuckled and closed his eyes, holding a hand over his heart, looking almost apologetic; William knew better, however. "This was the only way I felt suitable for him." With that said, Sebastian locked eyes with Grell, fierce anger burning through the ginger's skull. Grell bit his lip and cast a worried glance at William. Almost immediately, William appeared beside Grell, scythe extended again and pointed defensively towards the demon.
"Go back to that master brat of yours and leave Grell alone. I have come to collect him. Again, I do apologize for the trouble he has caused you here." William cast a glance around the Phantomhive grounds before glaring back at Sebastian.
"Goodnight, William." Sebastian said politely, smiling a sickly-sweet yet deceivingly fake smile. William said nothing as he proceeded to bend down and hoist Grell into his arms. Keeping his death scythe poised in his hands beneath Grell, he turned and jumped easily over the great gates that lead out from the Phantomhive mansion.
The first hour traveling back to the Death God Dispatch offices was eerily silent. Grell remained curled in William's arms, trying to feign sleep so William wouldn't start lecturing him on what an inconsistent and horrible Reaper he was. All the while, William knew that Grell was awake but was simply trying to come up with exactly he wanted to say and in the meantime, remained quiet. Finally, he spoke.
"You really enjoy giving me another sleepless night, don't you, Grell?"
Silence.
"I had to stop what I was doing – which was more paperwork about you, might I add – to come save you from that bloody demon. Honestly, Grell, what makes you completely ignore your duties as a Reaper?"
Again, silence.
"Grell, talk to me."
A muffled (yet fake) response.
"Grell Sutcliffe."
And with that, William stopped and immediately moved his arms, dropping Grell onto the ground with a loud squeal and thump!
"HEY! William!" Grell whined, anger shining in his golden eyes. "That is no way to treat a lady! Can't you cut me some slack?" The ginger pointed behind them. "I was almost killed!"
William stepped over Grell and cast an unfeeling glance back. "No, I can't cut you any slack, Sutcliffe. You got yourself into that predicament, which in turn, has given me yet another two days of paperwork at best. I won't be surprised if the supervisor decides to yell at the both of us again..."
William, by this point, had continued walking, Scythe propped against his shoulder as he continued. Grell watched after him and his fading speech before he sighed and got up slowly. He finally caught up with William despite being sore and remained quiet as William stalked in front of him. It was going to be a long night's journey back.
William was more than a little relieved to be back in his own office. The other Reapers who worked alongside William had long since left and it was completely quiet. Well, for the most part. William couldn't help but glare at the red-haired disturbance that had collapsed in the chair in front of his desk.
"It's so nice to sit down!" Grell sighed, smiling to himself. William rolled his eyes as he sat down and pulled out a quill to continue his paperwork. Glancing at his own pocket-watch, he stifled a groan.
"Only one-thirty in the morning.."
"What was that, Will?" Grell inquired, interrupting himself in his useless babble. William did not look up and merely continued to stay quiet. Grell pouted at being ignored and leaned forward, watching the older man's quick scribbling along dotted lines and rapid scratching out in other bits of text. After minutes of this, William abruptly stopped and glowered up at the ginger.
"Is there anything you need, Grell?"
Grell's golden eyes revealed a brief hurt from William's words but he shook his head immediately before sitting silently, watching the hands of his own pocket-watch tick away. After several moments, Grell began to fidget; this was something William had expected. When he knew Grell wouldn't catch him, he looked up and watched the ginger.
Grell's hair was still mused and blood had encrusted itself along his brow, lip, and chin. His clothing was wrinkled and spotted with more blood and dirt. William sighed as he continued to look at Grell's distasteful appearance. Though he immediately set back to work as soon as Grell turned to look at him. Soon enough, William heard Grell sigh impatiently. The bespectacled reaper thought it best to ignore it.
"Willii~iam.." Grell whined a moment later. William sighed and set his quill down slowly. Glaring up at the ginger, he waited for the other to continue.
"Why am I here?"
William was taken aback by this statement; for once the red-head had made a valid point. Why was Grell there? William fixed his spectacles with a finger before looking back down at this paperwork.
"You may leave then, if you feel your job has been completed."
Grell smiled excitedly before standing and heading out the door. "Thanks Will!" were the last words William heard before a prompt slamming of a door was heard and clacking heels faded into silence.
It was nice, after barely surviving another encounter with Sebastian Michaelis, to lay down beneath the cool sheets of his own bed. Grell slowly took off his glasses and began to replay the events back in his head. Above him a loud bumping was heard – perhaps the drunken blokes finally fell asleep. Grell sighed and shut his eyes. It was hard, sometimes, to stay in an old inn with such obnoxious humans. But the rent to stay in a room like this for such an extended period of time was agreeable and it was in the heart of London so he had plenty to do during the day – that is, if he didn't already dread that William was going to bog him down with twenty times the amount of work he already attempted (and failed) to do. Grell frowned and turned onto his side. Exhaustion was finally settling in and Grell was already feeling the effects of his most recent beating. Sleep pressed in on him and relaxed his body and allowed him to clear his mind. Before he allowed himself to be carried off into sleep, Grell couldn't help but hope that William wouldn't be quite so harsh in his punishments.
"Maybe he'll go easy on me."
A/N: Oh, Grell, don't be so sure about that. Ku ku ku 3
Just in case you didn't know, Et Avec La Mort is French for "And With Death." You'll see what significance the title has in later chapters. Chapter 2 is coming soon! 8D