A/N: Hello~ I've got a new story here :D I'll be honest and say that this one is only half finished, and I really wanted to wait until it was all done, but I just needed to post/update something. I've come to resent being dormant on this site for months at a time. Anyway, aside from my own personal writing issues and lack of self-restraint, please read and enjoy!

Warnings: **for the first four chapters** dark themes, blood/gore, mention of sex, very minor mention of noncon sex, disturbing images

Disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji

Silent Abyss

Chapter One

Descent

The air crackled with thunder, dividing the heaven from earth. Tears and blood fell from the sky in the form of rain as hundreds of unseen beings battled to their last breath, their cries of hate, vengeance and excitement swallowed up in the clouds and mist. Wings of white and black bled crimson as flesh was torn apart midstride as one being charged against another. A never ending war…the angels were winning.

Sebastian watched with a snarl as one of his comrades was slain to shreds by the innocent beings of rapture and without hesitation his mighty wings threw him forward, his powerful claws slicing through the opposing being. The battle ensued, and before he knew it, he was engulfed.

His wings were torn and his body was beaten. His will was strong, but the actual momentum was waning and he couldn't keep himself afloat. Cherub faces splattered with black blood sneered at him, forcing him down. Sebastian growled, curling in defense as he realized there were suddenly too many to handle by himself. Yet he swiped at them, kicking out with everything he had until he was unaware of his entire body being pommelled down at a rate he couldn't keep up with.

The daemon choked on the fluids stuck in his throat as something hit his back with brutal force, nearly breaking him into two. His claws grappled fruitlessly at the passing air around him, his glowing cerise eyes searching frantically for his assailant but finding none. There was a sudden burning sensation consuming his body next, and then an all too familiar shift of his form.

It was a fleeting thought, but Sebastian knew that he had broken through the barrier between the earth and heaven. His claws receded and his wings shriveled painfully into his mangled and bloodied back. Toughened skin thinned considerably, and his bones shifted to accommodate his disguised form.

Sebastian screamed upon impact.

…

It was quiet save the twittering of bluebirds through the steady freezing rain. The scent of fresh air and clean cut grass woke him from his haze. Red eyes shifted, their owner's body completely broken and only just beginning to heal. Sebastian sampled the air as a way to figuring out where he was, but the vast landscape of various plants and a very large home in the distance quickly gave him an answer.

Sighing, he rolled onto his back with excruciating pain, swearing in his foreign tongue at the agony and at his own impotence. How pathetic, a daemon of hell reduced to a bloody pulp by some archangels, left to wallow on the earth among pitiful humans. An insult, a fate worse than death. His fingers dug uselessly into the softened ground, his fingernails collecting dirt and mud.

After a while he managed to content himself with staring at the clouded sky through the willow branches that hung over him, idly wondering if his kind had progressed any. It was truly an everlasting campaign…he'd been fighting for well over a thousand years now, and he was still considered young. How much longer would it last?

Black was starting to blot his vision when the rain became a drizzle. The clouds parted here and there, allowing the early morning sun to kiss the land with its misty glow. A cool sensation had started to run through his body and Sebastian knew that he'd be fully healed in a couple days' time. As the rain started up again to a sudden downpour, the daemon let himself fall completely vulnerable.

"Mmm…Ciel."

Said boy let out a shaky breath and lowered himself to the warm sheets. They were soft and smelled of their combined musk. He reached for his pillow and buried his face in it with a soft sigh as he closed his eyes with hopes of drifting away.

Smooth arms snaked around his waist as full breasts pressed flush against the middle of his back, a forehead leaning to rest against his shoulder. "I love you," Elizabeth murmured, planting light kisses on his skin. Ciel shivered, but said nothing.

Had it truly been a year? The seventeen year old couldn't believe it. He thought of the date – October twenty-first – with regret and he winced as Elizabeth hugged him tighter. A lax sigh escaped her swollen lips, and Ciel felt her unwind against him completely, sleep capturing her easily.

Blue eyes stared at the drawn drapes, wondering if the moon's light would peek through the rain, clouds and the curtain's cracks. The sweat on his body was cooling and he trembled. The idea of drawing a nice warm bath was a pleasing one, but the even breaths against the back of his neck stayed him. He stifled a groan, wanting nothing more than to slip out of his wife's embrace.

It wasn't that he didn't love Elizabeth, his wife, his cousin. He loved his childhood friend dearly, but marriage had proven to be a step taken too far. Ciel regretted not cancelling the marriage. The only reason he'd gone through with it was because of…

Perhaps if their wedding hadn't been set for October twenty-first, perhaps his stance on his and Elizabeth's relationship would be better. The Middlefords surely knew that that date was…Frances especially. Why in the name of all that was good did they pick this sorry date?

An anger Ciel didn't realize he had accumulating in his stomach until he found his knuckles colored white from clutching the comforter so hard caught him off guard and he shook his head. He was being ridiculous; he shouldn't let his temper flare because of some date that held little importance to everyone but himself. He had no reason to be so selfish.

The resentment quickly traded places with an all too familiar pang of wretchedness. It was harder to shake away than his temper and hot tears suddenly lined the rims of his eyes. Elizabeth cuddled closer to him for warmth, or perhaps to unconsciously comfort him as he silently confronted his past daemons.

Exhaustion was at last settling and Ciel blinked away his unshed tears, hoping his head would feel heavy and fuzzy. A couple minutes passed as he started to drift, but before he completely succumbed to sleep, he whispered to the empty night, "Rest in peace, mother, father."

…

A hand was on his shoulder, shaking him out of a half formed nightmare and into a groggy alertness. "Master," Tanaka's voice wavered in an out. With each repeat of his title, the butler's voice became more and more urgent. "My lord, there's an emergency."

Groaning, Ciel reluctantly opened his eyes to a blurry room. Elizabeth was still wrapped around him, sound asleep. Stifling a yawn he asked, "What's the matter? It's…" a yawn, "…early."

The lines of age became absurdly clear on Tanaka's worn face as he frowned. "A stranger has been found in the northwest gardens. He's badly injured."

Forgetting his modesty Ciel shot up, the blankets pooling around his hips. Tanaka politely turned away as part of Elizabeth's chest was revealed. Shuffling out of bed, Ciel graciously took a bathrobe his butler offered him. "Have you brought this man inside?"

"We managed to bring him to the greenhouse, my lord. We didn't want to upset his injuries – it's clear he needs medical attention." As Ciel tied his robe, he went to the wardrobe and pulled out a heavy coat. The master of the house slipped it on along with some slippers and both men quietly left the bedroom. As they went down the hallway, Ciel drew aside a frightened maid and instructed her to stay near the bedchamber should Elizabeth wake.

The early morning air was blistering and misty after a night's frigid rain but Ciel didn't complain as he kept behind Tanaka, maintaining the fast pace to the faraway greenhouse building. He sighed with relief when they walked into the soothing warmth and plant aroma-filled building, but he was far from controlling his shivers.

"We placed him by the dead-nettles, sir," Tanaka remarked as they traveled the small and winding path to the heart of the building. They came to the strange man who was surrounded by three worrisome gardeners. The butler shooed them away, allowing Ciel to have a look in able to assess a decision.

The man was a bloodied and bruised mess that shouldn't have by any rights been alive. Scrapes and cuts oozed dark, slow flowing blood, but most of it had more or less frozen to the blackened patches of skin. He was extremely pale, the cold enhancing his washed out color. His clothes were torn to pieces and hardly recognizable; the man was nearly naked.

Ciel 'hmphed'. "Well, someone's obviously been through hell and back. Where again did you find him?"

One of the bundled up gardeners stepped forward. "By the willow trees on the northwest side, sir."

"Does he have an identity?"

"None that we could find."

"And he's alive?"

"Barely, sir."

Ciel thought, his eyes glued to the unconscious and battered man. "When did you find him? And was he ever awake?"

The gardeners glanced at Tanaka nervously, then to the stranger. "A quarter to six, my lord," one of them spoke. "He hasn't opened his eyes or shown any kind of consciousness since we found him."

Cocking his head, Ciel considered the situation quickly, thinking of Elizabeth, what the man could be – a vicious killer? – and then shook his head. "You three are to bring him to a guest bedroom. Tanaka, call Mr. Anders; tell him it's an emergency and that this man cannot be moved to a hospital under any condition."

The four servants bowed dutifully. "Yes, my lord."

It was nearly eight in the morning when the family physician arrived, calm as ever and prepared for the worst. Tanaka had answered the door and led the gentleman up the lavish staircase and to the third guestroom. Earl Phantomhive, a manservant and three maids surrounded the large bed over the partly cleaned stranger. Ciel greeted the doctor as Tanaka made their presence known.

"Mr. Anders, thank you for coming on such short notice. We've had quite a surprise this morning." He quickly relayed everything he knew to the older man before letting the physician get down to work.

Within the time that the doctor had been working, Ciel had taken his morning meal and dressed for the day. Elizabeth woke around half past nine and instantly noticed the upset face of her husband. He told her all that had transpired, his golden-haired wife aghast with worry and a bit of fear when the word "stranger" came up.

"He didn't have a weapon on him, did he?" she asked curiously, her voice wavering a little. She looked a little faint.

Ciel sighed softly, glancing into his nearly empty teacup. They were in the small conservatory overlooking the soon to be dreary garden. Sunshine cascaded through the windows and warmed the two through their clothes. "He was in tatters; we don't even know who he is. If he'd been carrying a weapon, he lost it long ago." Elizabeth said nothing, but looked down at her hands and Ciel was sure that she was wringing them.

With his brows knitting together, Ciel stood up and went over to the girl, leaning down a little to be eyelevel with her. A kind smile spread his lips as he took one of her gloved hands, and he kissed the knuckles in reassurance. "I promise I'll protect you, Elizabeth. If he lifts even his smallest finger in the wrong way, I won't let him near you."

Green eyes danced lovingly. "Oh Ciel…" She leaned forward and pecked him gently on the lips, a light pink flush dusting her apple cheeks. The previous worry disappeared from her face and she stood up, clutching Ciel's hand tighter within her own. "I'll be in the drawing room finishing up my thank you letters; may you please come and get me when the physician's done?"

Returning the kiss upon her temple, the boy nodded. "Of course."

In her mind's eye, Elizabeth had imagined a monster of a man to be in their home. A wild look would blaze in his yellowed eyes, his body grotesquely beefy, red, and swarmed with un-groomed hair. He'd be middle-aged and untidy; hardly the image of a proper English gentleman like the men she knew and loved.

Instead she found herself trying with all her might to hide a blush as Ciel led her into the guestroom. From the doorway she could see that this stranger was not what she imagined, and it wasn't just his naked skin that flustered her. While Ciel talked with Mr. Anders she kept close by, pretending to listen to the list of injuries and instructions for care, but her emerald eyes continuously crept to the bed.

A long body, perhaps a head and shoulders and a half over Ciel lay on the bed under the thin white sheet. Pale skin that nearly matched the cloth peeked out from the man's waist up, his arms cascading down his sides in a lazy manner. Fine, lithe muscles bulged pleasantly underneath his skin, and a small jab of…something she couldn't quite identify shot through her being as she considered the numerous bandages pulled over his unmoving body. Clenching her hands into her dress, Elizabeth continued with her observation, her lips parting as her eyes traveled up his outstretched neck and to his finely sculpted jaw. His head had been gently pushed to the side facing her, and she wished with all her heart for any excuse to take a closer look.

"…quite a few broken ribs – it's amazing nothing vital was punctured, but the bruising on the inside as well as the outside will probably last a couple…"

Ebony locks that were messily combed framed the stranger's angular face, appearing soft to the touch. Long eyelashes slept against high cheekbones, and down a long nose were pale yet pursed lips. Elizabeth's hands grew sweaty and her heart thumped as she vividly imagined what this man would be like awake and healthy, the thought alone causing her face to heat up further.

"…alright? Elizabeth?" Ciel touched her arm gently, snapping her out of her fantasies and causing her to start. Before she could say anything, her husband placed a hand against her forehead, his eyes showing concern. "Is it too warm in here? Do you feel unwell?"

Coming to her senses quickly the girl patted down her dress, wiping her hands in the process, and managed a confident smile with a short laugh. "I'm fine, darling," she said convincingly, watching with a bit of confusion as the worry dashed from Ciel's eyes the moment she said so. "But it is a tad warmer than I expected it to be today – I'll go change into something lighter, alright?" Before her husband could reply, she hurriedly kissed him on the cheek before making a hasty retreat with one of the maids in tow.

Lifting his brows, Ciel watched his wife leave in embarrassment, but quickly dismissed the odd behavior, knowing that sometimes even Elizabeth had her unexplained moments. Turning back to the physician, he inquired, "When do you think he'll wake up?"

The man slapped his hands together in thought, his gaze drifting to his mysterious patient. "Hm…with the amount of injuries he's sustained, I would say about a week at most, three or four days at the least." He paused for a moment to scratch his chin. "However, if he doesn't regain any consciousness within a week and a half – given that he's still breathing, of course – please give me a call. Otherwise he should come around when he's ready. Just make sure he's properly nourished and drinks plenty of water."

Nodding, Ciel watched as the man took the liberty to pull the blanket up to the man's chin before grabbing his coat and top hat from a nearby chair. The earl said his goodbyes and a gracious thank you before allowing Tanaka to see the physician out. The last two maids were ordered away for the time being as Ciel went to the bedside to get a better look at his unexpected guest.

A man probably in his mid-twenties lay before him, battered and broken. His chest rose and fell underneath the blanket very shallowly and as Ciel's eyes traced the bruises that littered the only visible part of his body, he thought of the other as handsome. Sneering at his own fleeting thought Ciel continued to stare, thinking up possible theories of who'd trespass onto his manor.

'Probably some washed-up son of an underground boss,' he thought with an ironic laugh. 'How pathetic…having been beaten up by your own kind before I get the chance.'

This reminded him…he hadn't received a letter from the Queen to act as the Watchdog for a couple weeks now. Surely there would be a letter for him today. But if not, perhaps this man wasn't part of the underworld after all. So what would that make this man?

Deciding to wait on the matter, Ciel pushed to issue to the back of his mind as he turned on his heel, calling for the maid who stood just outside to keep an eye on the bedroom as well as to follow the doctor's orders. Stopping the girl with a gentle hand on her shoulder as she nodded furiously and started forward, Ciel added as an afterthought, "And keep the door locked when you're done with your duties."

"Understood, sir."

'Come…'

The scent was strong, sickly sweet and naïve, but it would be good enough. His stomach ached, it was starved – he was starved. His body didn't move but it twitched ceaselessly, waiting for the right moment to strike, to pounce, to feed.

'Come to me, my darling.'

Slushy rain melted the outside world and Elizabeth bundled herself up before she left the bedroom. Paula followed her dutifully down the hallway, remarking on the unfortunate weather and suggesting that they play a game or toil in boundless crafts for the afternoon. The lady didn't remark on her servant's upbeat attitude as she passed her husband's office with an almost timid step before gliding down a flight of stairs.

"Paula, you managed to get the shift today, didn't you?" Elizabeth asked over her shoulder as she walked down the east wing.

"O-of course, my lady," the brown haired girl replied sweetly, fishing the key out of her apron. She handed it to her superior when they stopped in front of the guest's room. "Should I fetch some porridge and warm tea?"

Elizabeth nodded, her stomach's butterflies starting to awaken as she turned to the door's lock. "Yes, please. And knock before you come in." She waited for Paula to bow and leave before sliding the key into its socket and unlocking the door.

It had been three days since their mysterious guest had arrived and Elizabeth couldn't suppress not being within the man's presence any longer. She knew it wasn't proper of her, stealing into a strange man's room while he was unconscious to fawn over him, but what harm would it do? She slid in through the barely opened door, softly clicking it shut behind her. The last servant had banked the fireplace which warmed the room pleasantly despite the coldness lapping at the large bay windows.

Moving with grace to the windows, she pulled the curtains shut and lit a few candles before eagerly dragging a chair to the bedside. Settling down comfortably, she held her breath as the consequences of her actions trickled through her mind, but she squashed the scary thoughts down. Ciel would never know – he was buried in the company work. She had also forced Paula to swear not to tell anyone that she'd be visiting their guest today. The worst that could happen would be a halfhearted scolding from Ciel – and she knew that routine from childhood.

Relaxing her face and clutching her pastel pink dress instead, Elizabeth turned her attention onto better things. The man had yet to wake up, but over the past few days it was obvious that his injuries were healing. Most of the bruises had faded to dull smudges along his skin, and that was only his face. With jittery fingers she peeled back the comforter, a blush spreading over her face as she got an up close and personal look at the man's chest covered in bandages.

Spots of dark red stained the tightly bound dressings here and there, but the healing injuries were far from the lady's mind. Bright and innocent green eyes raked over the exposed flesh, noticing how toned and well sculpted the man was. Holding back a giggle, she slowly pulled a dainty glove off and carefully reached out to touch. Surprisingly the flesh was warm and hard under her hand, and Elizabeth shivered. Her fingers curved along the man's upper anatomy, feeling through the bandages and along half-mangled ribs, over a taut and slightly bruised stomach. His breathing was just as shallow as she remembered it, and his heart thumped a slow, steady beat.

Her hand lightly traced his partly exposed navel before drifting to the peak of a hipbone and she froze, unsure of what she was doing exactly. She thought of Ciel again and a pang of guilt rattled her, causing her to blink and draw her hand back. 'Don't,' her mind whispered, the good, proper English girl in her stopping her from doing what she wanted. Instead with a shaky breath, Elizabeth physically turned in her chair, her eyes landing on the man's face.

Scooting closer, she let the back of her hands press against the man's hollow cheek, gasping slightly at the softness. She couldn't feel any stubble on the stranger's face, leading her to believe that he was much younger than he looked. Leaning ever closer, she took delight in running her fingers through what she rightly guessed to be silky hair, her thumb smoothing over slightly ruffled but thin eyebrows and then ghosting over creamy eyelids.

Letting out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding, Elizabeth shook herself as she sat back. "Who are you?" she whispered in her defense, feeling giddy as she recalled one of her books. "A prince, perhaps? Have you come to whisk me away from my darling Ciel?" She frowned at her own pretty words and hugged herself.

"He wouldn't," she mumbled sadly.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, followed by Paula's mousy voice. Hiking her skirts and blinking away the melancholy from her face, Elizabeth trotted to the door and hastily ushered the servant in, turning the lock after her. Paula held a tray with a steaming teapot, biscuits, and a bowl of porridge and placed it on the bedside table, awaiting further instruction.

Sinking back into her chair, Elizabeth requested, "Stay and help me sit him up; it'll be easier to nurse him that way."

Nodding, Paula pulled the covers up to the man's chest before assisting her lady in the task. "We must be careful, my lady. The physician said he had a strained muscle in his back and a few broken ribs; we wouldn't want to undo the healing."

"Of course."

Slowly the two women managed to sit the guest up, propping him against fluffy pillows, neither of them noticing the small twinges of tension that passed through the man's face. When the task was done Elizabeth sat for a moment, contemplating what she wanted to do next. "…Paula, I'll – I'll see to his nutrition. Please wait outside. If anyone asks, tell them George and Denise are taking care of things."

With the smallest of smiles the delicate servant asked no questions, curtsied, and stepped out of the room. Elizabeth sighed with relief, a little surprised – if not a little suspicious – that her request didn't require any effort.

Eyeing the tray of food, the lady dismissed it as she focused on something she had yet to truly analyze. Cautiously, as if she were a little child doing something she ought not to do, she sat herself on the edge of the mattress, sidling up nice and close to the stranger and his alluring beauty. Taking her other glove off, she delicately turned the man's face toward her, cupping the side of his cheek for balance as her free fingers danced to his slightly parted lips. With a hitch in her breath, she marveled at how supple they were.

'I wonder…' her thought trailed. Ciel was pushed to the back of her mind as she went under some kind of spell, leaning closer and closer, the mattress underneath her dipping as she added more weight. Their heat fused, their noses barely touched and when she was just a breath away from tasting those pale lips for herself…

Abruptly a shock of red eyes opened, and Elizabeth screamed for her life.

It was such a fleeting noise, perhaps the shriek of bluebirds, but Ciel couldn't be certain. It came a second time but it was washed out, and as the earl turned to the soaked window he deduced it as being the horrid weather and wild animals. He went back to his work, scratching pen on parchment and overlooking some letters long overdue for reading.

The sound of something crashing came next, along with a yell that was far from any wild animal. It echoed a couple times more and Ciel expected an explanation to come bursting through his office doors, but Tanaka never came. No one did. There was a loud thump upstairs, and his heart started to hammer.

Reaching into his desk drawer he pulled out his pistol, ready and loaded. On slightly shaky legs he headed to the exit, quietly murmuring to himself to keep calm, telling himself that it wouldn't be a repeat of the past.

Nothing was amiss when he opened the doors to an empty hallway. He held his weapon close as he skirted down the carpeted and painting adorned path, carefully listening to any other sounds. When he neared the staircase his ears perked as several horrifying sounds echoed loudly, all seemingly coming from different directions.

'Find Elizabeth,' he told himself, quickly thinking of the time and where she usually spent the late afternoon. Thankfully he realized that the drawing room was on the same floor he currently resided, and he bolted as quietly as he could, only to find the room cold and empty.

It would be a fool's errand to check every room, Ciel was well aware. He hadn't heard a shriek that sounded like her yet, but then again, they hadn't either. Another gurgling scream ripped through the hallway, making his spine shiver, and he ducked into a spare bedroom for cover, his mind scattered as he tried to think of a plan.

Save for the unexplained screams, the house was quiet. He couldn't hear his staff running, or chaos of any kind. His heart thumped in his ears, deafening him. He looked to the window, watching the sloshy rain for a moment, considering the idea of making a run for it and getting help. For an instant he thought of using the telephone, but the room he was in didn't have one. Ciel jumped when a rather large bang accompanied by an extremely terrifying scream echoed right over his head.

'That's where…'

Without too much thought Ciel dashed to the staircase and flew up the stairs to the third floor. Surely he hadn't picked up a killer…how could one man cause this much unseen chaos? he thought erratically, trying to make sense of it. When he reached the top of the stairs he froze in horror the moment his foot stepped onto the blood-soaked carpet.

A massacre.

Instinctively Ciel's arms shot out with the gun clasped tightly in his hands. The smell hit him as he took a step forward into the darkened hallway, his blue eyes wide with shock and fear. What was going on? Who broke into his mansion? What had invaded his home?

He had to sidestep over ripped and minced pieces of his staff, and it caused his stomach to turn uncomfortably. Ciel shivered with a hardly suppressed cry as the bloodstained body of his elderly butler crossed his path, yet the boy willed himself to keep moving, a dark shadow tiptoeing behind him. Furniture that mainly consisted of small sofas, paintings and vases were all shattered and overturned. The creamy wallpaper was torn, hanging from the walls and coated with the red sticky fluid. Ciel bit his tongue and swallowed the bile that threatened to rise.

Finally he was able to set his sights on the guest bedroom a couple doors down. Despite his courage that had carried him this far, Ciel was shaking almost uncontrollably. There was no one to help him; everything since he'd reached the third floor had gone eerily silent. Coming to the half opened door that was oddly marked with five stained scratches, Ciel swallowed his nerves before thrusting himself weapon first into the room. He almost dropped his pistol.

"ELIZABETH-!"

A/N: …it kind of just gets worse from here…like, seriously ((goes in hiding)) Oh, and updates will be every other Sunday! It'll give me time to finish up on the second part (I hope) if I space the chapters that are already done out like this. Hopefully that's fair...right? Thanks for reading, and I enjoy critiques/friendly feedback for breakfast om-nom-nom!