AN: Just some general info! I have read the manga, as well as watched both seasons of the anime. For the purpose of this story, the story was based around the manga more than the anime. I did my best to briefly describe past events in the manga tastefully during the story, so that anyone who hasn't read the manga won't be too lost! This is my first Kuroshitsuji story, so I would love reviews to let me know how it is!
Warnings: This story is rated Mature. It will involve some violence, gore, and more likely than not a lemon farther along. This story is boyXboy as well, so if you're disturbed by such things, please feel free to leave now.
Pairings: GrellxUndertaker, one-sided GrellxWilliam and GrellxRonald (because, well, it's Grell...), and maybe some WilliamxRonald later on in the story.
Chapter One: Boredom
Grell sighed to himself for the fifth time within the hour. Papers flooded his desk as he threw them down, a large cluster of them fluttering silently to the floor.
The red-headed reaper shook his head, long strands of hair being thrown over his thin shoulders, trying to bring himself to concentrate on the task at hand. The words on the paperwork all seemed to run together, and the causes of death seemed too general to catch Grell's interest. Dying of old age, a heart attack, of illness... Such boring, human deaths had long ago lost their morbid spark.
As Grell stood to gather up his fallen work, his eyes drifted to Ronald Knox, whose desk stood a few feet away from Grell's own. The bi-color haired young man gave a mischievous smile as he tossed a paper of his own into the pile, and Grell responded with a wink.
"Wanna come down here and help me out, Ronnie-boy?" Grell asked flirtatiously as be used his finger to beckon the younger male towards him, watching as the other flushed a bit at his lewd comment.
Ronald seemed to shrug off any disturbance though, as he stood and made his way over to help Grell pick up the mess that littered the floor between them. The two gathered up the fallen pile of paperwork, and Ronald handed them to Grell, a curious look in his eyes.
"Grell-sempai, is something bothering you? These past few months you seem like you just can't stand to be here. I'm getting kind of worried." Ronald admitted, his eyes fixated on the older man.
"I'm fine Ronnie-dear, just a lot on my mind as of late! But oh how you flatter a beautiful young woman such as myself with your worries! Perhaps I should turn my attention from the lovely William to you? Though you're not nearly as cold as Will… Hand~some…." Grell trailed off with a dreamie look in his eyes.
Ronald laughed and rolled his eyes in response, returned to his desk and leaving Grell with his thoughts once again.
Taking a seat and grabbing his pen, Grell mindlessly filled out his paperwork. He glanced at the name of an elderly woman whose life he had taken just yesterday. Her name and picture marred the paper, along with her place and cause of death. Grell took his pen to the comment box, jotting down 'No additional comments,' before moving on to the next paper.
Grell allowed his thoughts to drift again as he continued his paperwork. Speaking of his William in such a way had brought up forbidden thoughts of another cold-hearted man that had passed though his life years ago, Sebastian.
The demon had left his life just as quickly and silently as he had entered it, disappearing along with his young master years ago. And with him left adventure and excitement, Grell was sad to say. The chaos and fun that Ciel and Sebas-chan had caused had been the keystone in Grell's life. He enjoyed it, thrived on it, it had made his boring existence worth living. He had wholly emerged himself in the chaotic lifestyle and trembled at the revitalized feeling he was granted.
After the pair had left, however, life had become stagnant. There were no more adventures, no more interesting and handsome demons, no more sneaking away from work to feel the fiery passion that was a fight to the death.
Even field work was becoming a chore. At one point in time, Grell would have happily abandoned his paperwork to run to the mortal world and do what he did best, reap souls. After seventy eight years of reaping souls though, Grell had ran out of imaginative ways to kill the living.
As Grell signed his last paper, he turned his attention to William's door down the hall. Grell silently contemplated bring up his problem with his boss, but felt unsure. What if this was a normal feeling for reapers to experience after a while? What if it was not?
The thought that his feelings may be abnormal made Grell hesitate, but stress and boredom demanded answers. His mind made up, Grell picked up his stack of papers and strolled to William's closed office door. He tapped the door lightly, but opened it without waiting to be granted entrance.
"Hello Will! I have a lovely gift for you, unless you would prefer to have me instead?" Grell asked, wiggling his hips seductively as he blew a kiss to William.
Said reaper didn't look up from his paperwork, instead adjusting his glasses and turning to the next page of reports. Grell tossed his stack of papers onto the desk with a loud thud, breaking William's concentration. Cold acidic-colored eyes flew up, giving an annoyed glare. Grell gave a bright, mock-innocent smile.
"Please refrain from tossing your work on my desk so haphazardly Mr. Sutcliff." William told him firmly, his deep and cold voice causing Grell to shiver in excitement.
"Perhaps I was trying to get them to fall? To see you bent over to pick them up would surely set my soul on fire~." Grell purred, eyeing his annoyed boss.
William set his paperwork down and began to rub his temples, visibly annoyed and stressed by Grell's presence in his office. After a few deep breaths, William turned his attention back to his subordinate.
"Is there a reason that you're still lingering in my office, Mr. Sutcliff?" William asked, his steady gaze holding Grell's own.
"Actually," Grell began as he took a seat across from William, "I would like to ask you a question." He revealed.
"Fine, ask away if it will get you out of here sooner." William allowed, threading his fingers together as his hands rested on his desk.
"Well," Grell began, "Have you ever heard of any instances where a reaper becomes… bored?"
William gave a flat look.
"You'll have to be more specific."
"Well, lately I feel like reaping has become less interesting. The hours drag on, Will. I swear that the only thing that keeps me coming here day after day is your lovely, cruel face." Grell coo'd as he puckered his lips.
William rolled his eyes, but Grell could tell by the distant look in his eyes that he was searching his mind for the correct answer to give. Always a thinker, his William.
"Well, of course you're not the only reaper who has had this issue." William said suddenly, slightly startling Grell. "But the fact of the matter is, is that what you are feeling is completely normal. This job is strict, and requires quite a bit of paperwork, as I know you already know. The majority of deaths are very basic and uninteresting, as can be the lives that we review while reaping. But that's simply how it is. Your job will never be more than this, and once you realize and accept that, you're going to feel much better." William finished firmly.
Grell considered William's words. It was true that he would never escape his paperwork, nor would the deaths of the living be any more interesting. But could he be happy with such a boring existence?
"And what if I don't feel better?" Grell asked.
"Then perhaps this job just isn't for you." William said seriously.
Grell shifted uncomfortably. That was not something he wanted either, to give up his job. Grell quickly masked any discomfort he felt with a flirty smile and a wink.
"Thank you Will.~ I knew I could count on you to help me! Like a brave knight coming to the aid of his Princess…" Grell trailed off, his eyes fogged with a romantic glee.
William quickly put a stop to any romantic notions with a quick whack to the head with his death scythe, much to Grell's displeasure. Grell yelped and winced as he grabbed a hold of his throbbing skull, eyes filling with fake tears.
"Oh, William is so cruel! Don't you know that this is no way to treat a woman? I'm delicate, Will!" Grell cried out dramatically, hanging his throbbing head. William rolled his eyes.
"Get back to work, Sutcliff. Honestly." William snapped, turning his attention away from the flamboyant red head and back to the papers covering his desk.
Grell ran around the desk and gave a very unwilling William a hug before sprinting out the door. As he went to the scythe dispensing counter to retrieve his scythe, Grell allowed the light-hearted smile he kept plastered to his face to slip. William's answers offered him no comfort. If Grell was not a reaper, what was he? Killing was one of the few things he was particularly good at, being a reaper was only natural. And yet, here he stood, unsatisfied with life.
Grell accepted his modified chainsaw scythe and signed his paperwork, handing the documents back to the young woman at the counter. On his way out of the building, Grell stopped at his desk to gather a neglected paper that had been shoved inside a drawer, his to-die list for the day.
'Only five today.' Grell thought to himself, flipping through the pages to check times of death.
Nodding to himself, Grell made his way down to the main area of the library, where teleportation occurred. Concentrating, Grell created his portal and headed out for another day of work.
The blade of his chainsaw sliced into the young man, and Grell watched as he gasped in pain. His cinematic records soon flooded the room, but Grell gained control of them quickly, assessing them. The man was a business man, but his business had gone under a few weeks ago. The man had attempted suicide while his wife and daughter were away from the house today, and death was finally claiming him.
'Coward.' Grell couldn't help but think, 'Leaving your wife and child to fend for themselves. No income, no one to lean on, and dealing with the loss of a loved one.'
The cinematic record ended, and Grell watched as the man took his last gasping breath before falling dead. As Grell turned to leave out the window, he heard the house door open. As he walked down the street, Grell heard the shocked and anguished screams and sobs of a wife finding her husband dead on the floor, pooled in blood and slits on his wrists.
"So unfulfilling." Grell said with a sigh as he made his way through the back ally. "Where is the excitement and passion? Death used to be so much more fulfilling when Sabas-chan was here. Damn brat taking my man away from me." Grell muttered with a pout.
Grell allowed his thoughts to drift as he walked on, heading farther into the dark back alleys of the city. William's words came to mind again, suggesting that perhaps reaping was not his calling. 'But I am death! Of course I should be a reaper! It's just a slump, too many uninteresting souls and the overwhelming paperwork. It's got to get better!' Grell whined inside his own mind, turning a corner to yet another alley.
"I hope that it gets better." Grell whispered to himself.
"Hehehe, do you usually make it a habit to talk to yourself?" A deep, eerie voice called from a bit TOO close behind him.
Grell jumped and spun in surprise. His acid green eyes were met with the site of the alarmingly wide smile of a man who was still much too close to him. Grell took a quick step back, taking in the black robes that covered even his hands, as well as long silver hair what seemed to cover half the man's face. An elongated hat rested on the man's head. A sense of familiarity washed over Grell as he recognized exactly who had snuck up on him.
"Don't you know better than to sneak up on a lovely woman such as myself? A wanted man and a beautiful damsel in a back alley together, so scandalous!" Grell cried out, allowing a grin to invade his features as his grip tightened on his death scythe. "It's a good thing that this damsel isn't in distress."
Grell's grin turned to a look of confusion and annoyance as the Undertaker erupted into laughter. His deep voice filled the alley, and only served to annoy Grell more.
"And what is so funny? Don't you realize that you're about to be captured and taken in for questioning? You crazy old man." Grell snarled, a glare fixated on the amused older man.
"Captured, by you? M'dear, you couldn't take me in with another reaper at your side, nor with a demon working against me." The Undertaker erupted in a fit of laughter at the look of annoyance on the reapers face, "You don't scare me, little reaper."
Grell momentarily allowed his mind to drift back to the last time he had seen the ex-reaper. The Campania. The man had edited the cinematic records of the diseased, reanimating them and allowed them to run amuck all over the ship, killing many people. Undertaker had escaped after slicing the ship in half, and the Reaper Association had been unable to find him due to lack of workers.
"I'm not weak." Grell said firmly, lifting his chainsaw scythe up slightly, ready to fight if necessary. "And if you dare to say that I am, I'll certainly prove you wrong." Grell snapped.
"Now now M'dear. I didn't follow you to fight you, I simply wanted to talk. Catch up for old times' sake." Undertaker said with a large grin, tilting his head slightly as thought the action would make him seem more welcoming. "I've been away for far too long, and you're the first familiar face I've seen. It's so lonely without smile and laughter around, don't you agree?"
With that, the black clad man turned away from Grell and began to walk. Grell hesitated, even when he saw the Undertaker's finger curling, motioning for him to follow. Curiosity won out in the end though, and Grell slowly trailed after the fugitive.
Grell followed silently as the Undertaker led him through the alleyway's once again, heading towards his shop no doubt. His long silver hair strung along behind him, and Grell couldn't help but stare. The man was dangerous, and Grell knew he was being foolish by following an enemy who was obviously stronger than himself to a secluded place.
Even with that knowledge though, the rush of excitement forced him onward. Memories of danger and adventure flooded his mind, bring back nostalgic feelings of the past. Thoughts of a red eyed demon, of fights and blood and pain. Images of a stunning silver haired reaper, a hero turned villain, a reaper turned mad scientist. It drew him in like a moth to a flame, out and away from the stagnant existence he had lived in for the last few years.
As they neared the shop, Undertaker hesitated at the door, instead opting to wait for Grell and hold the door for him.
"After you, M'dear." Undertaker said with a light chuckle.
Grell responded with a glare, huffing as he passed through the door.
"Don't think for a second that holding the door for a lady will make me forget about your past misdeeds. I still haven't forgiven you for injuring my face during our last fight." The red headed reaper said, earning a few more giggles from the Undertaker, who followed him inside and closed the shop door.
"Hehehe, what a violent guest I have today. How wonderfully amusing!" Undertaker announced happily.
Grell could feel his anger raging, how dare this man make a mockery of him? He wasn't here for the Undertakers amusement! Grell picked up a glass jar, the closest object to him besides his scythe, and whipped it at the Undertaker.
"Don't mock me!" Grell snapped, watching the jar explode next to the Undertakers head.
Grell watched the large grin slip from the Undertaker's face. A moment later, Grell found himself shoved up against the door to the Undertakers shop, the larger man holding him by his throat. Dropping his scythe in shock, Grell immediately brought his hands up to try and pry the Undertaker away from his neck, though his actions only seemed to cause the man to hold firmer.
"It's very unbecoming for a lovely young woman such as yourself to so carelessly toss around the possessions of another, don't you agree? Now, I would love to go make some tea for us, so that we may sit and chat for our visit. Do you think that you can behave yourself?" Undertaker asked in a mockingly light tone, the gleam of his eyes barely visible under the veil of silver hair.
Grell nodded, ignoring his body as it heated up from the close proximity of the other man. With a loud laugh, the Undertaker released his grip on Grell's slender throat, moving a hand to his shoulders to hold the red head up as blood rushed back into his skull. After a moment, the grinning Undertaker released Grell completely and turned, wandering into what Grell assumed was the kitchen.
Pulling himself away from the door, Grell wandered further into the shop, taking a seat on a dusty coffin. The shop was as dark as he remembered, painted in shadows and dark colors. The dust showed the years of inactivity at the shop, and Grell knew that the Undertaker must have just recently traveled back into the city.
Grell waited, listening to the clanking of dishes and silverware as the Undertaker moved around in the other room. Crossing his legs, Grell gave the shop a once-over yet again. He recalled his first time entering the shop, back then he was playing a ditzy butler for Madam Red. He seemed to recall the Undertaker emerging of a coffin, scaring most of the group at the time…
"Tea, tea, tea…" The Undertaker sang as he giggled to himself, holding two porcelain cups and successfully pulling Grell from his thoughts.
Grell took the cup that was handed to him, the smell of sweet, hot tea drifting over him. Grell watched as the Undertaker took a seat on the coffin opposing his own. After a moment of silence, Grell spoke up.
"So when did you get back into town?" Grell asked casually, as though the strange man hadn't been strangling him just minutes before.
"Hmm? Just a day or so ago. I've missed my work so much, you see. I do so enjoy my clients." Undertaker chuckled.
"You mean experimenting on them, "Grell hissed. "You made that much clear the last time we met."
Undertaker burst out into loud, obnoxious laughter.
"Though I will admit that there is a certain fascination with reanimating the dead, I missed my job as a mortician much more. I make the bodies of the diseased beautiful, and people are so much more beautiful after death, don't you think? They lack the taint of their dark minds, no more lies fall from their mouths." Undertaker said with a large smile, his head tilted as he rested his tea cup on the coffin he sat on.
"Yes," Grell couldn't help but agree, "There is a beauty in death. Such passionate words from you, Undertaker! A girl could fall in love with such passion, best be careful!" Grell said with a smile and a wink, causing the Undertaker to cackle.
"Oh M'dear you flatter me! How much more pleasant you are after a good throttling, perhaps I should do it more often?" Undertaker asked between laughs, bringing his elongated sleeve up to cover his grinning mouth.
"Promises, promises." Grell said, taking a sip of his tea. "But enough with the small talk, you invited me here for one reason or another, right? Not even a complete fool would invite an enemy back to their home for tea, so why am I here?"
"One would think that only a complete fool would follow an enemy back to their home, especially knowing that their enemy could easily eliminate them, hmm?" Undertaker said with an eerie smile, "But you're right, I didn't invite you here for a tea party. I've been trying to get in touch with the Earl and his demon butler, only to find that they're no longer in the area. Do you know what happened to them?"
Grell hesitated. He could always demand payment for such information, a kiss from the handsome yet awkward man would surely be suitable, but the threat of a possible death also loomed in his mind.
"They disappeared." Grell answered honestly. "A few months after you did, actually. The servants said that they woke up one morning and the pair were gone, along with their possessions. I checked the death ledgers, but the kid wasn't on them, so he still has his soul. But oh how stagnant life has became since they left, taking all their troublemaking with them! What is a girl supposed to do?" Grell cried out as he fake-swooned, almost knocking over his cup of tea in the process.
"Hehe, I see. Yes, life will be rather boring now won't it? But people will come and go, and with my connections I doubt I'll be bored for long." Undertaker said smiling, pulling a jar full of bone shaped biscuits out of seemingly nowhere, happily munching away.
Grell immediately pulled himself upright again, remembering his own predicament. Though the Undertaker was a deserter, perhaps the older man had once found himself in a similar situation? Certainly he was old enough to have experienced it, if it was normal.
"May I ask you a question, Undertaker-dearest?" Grell coo'd, catching the Undertakers attention.
"I require payment for my information, M'dear. Prime laughter is what I seek!" The Undertaker said before shoving another biscuit into his mouth.
"But you've been laughing at me since we got here!" Grell whined, pouting.
To his surprise and annoyance, the Undertaker began to laugh yet again.
"This is true, hehe. I suppose since you are my first guest in years I will allow you to ask free of charge." Undertaker allowed.
"During your time as a reaper, did you ever doubt that it was what you were meant to do?" Grell questioned, noticing the look of surprise on the Undertaker's face.
"Well of course, how do you think I got into the situation I'm in?" Undertaker asked with a laugh.
"So it's normal then? Does it get better? Was it the reason that you decided to leave?" Grell questioned, his eyes growing big and looking almost childish with wonder.
"My, my, so many questions! I wouldn't say that it's normal, and in my own experience it didn't get better." Undertaker confirmed, reveling the unpleasant truth to Grell. "And although my reasons for leaving are my own, that stagnant feeling certainly did make the decision easy."
"But why not just retire?" Grell questioned curiously, standing and wandering over to the Undertaker who offered him a cookie. Grell accepted and took a seat next to him, his questioning eyes searching for any answers that he could be granted.
"Why not indeed. You wait for a replacement, have to train them… Retirement takes years. I knew I was finished, and I knew that the branch was short staffed so no one could be sent to search me out. Those who could've been sent could have been disposed of easily, so why wait?" The Undertaker said with a soft laugh, his deep voice echoing throughout the shop.
The truth of his words rang in Grell's ears. Retirement for reapers was a long process. And feeling as he did now, Grell couldn't imagine staying on another twenty to thirty years to train some kid to fill his place.
"So please tell me, why this line of questioning? Hmm, is Miss Grell possibly thinking about leaving the Reaper Association? Hehe." Undertaker asked teasingly.
"I never said that!" Grell snapped, "I'm… I'm just…" Grell trailed off, sighing to himself.
Grell didn't even know how to finish that sentence. Staying sounded unbearable, he knew he wouldn't be able to tolerate training some brat for years, and he wasn't sure he could take the guilt of being a deserter and leaving his friends.
"It's not an easy decision, you know." Undertaker said softly, allowing his smiling face to fall passive and serious for a moment. "You'll sacrifice either way, and no matter what, you'll be surrounded by death. Though I have come to enjoy that aspect of my life." Undertaker said with a smile.
Grell managed to give a small smile to the silver haired man before finishing his tea.
"I'll have to be going. William will hit me with his death scythe if I take too long." Grell said with a soft laugh, bringing a large toothy smile to his face to mask any feeling that may choose to reveal themselves.
"Hehe, of course M'dear! Please feel free to visit anytime, and perhaps next time after I've dusted you'll be interested in trying out one of my custom made coffins? I would've offered today, but offering a dusty coffin to a lovely young woman such as yourself would have been rude, don't you think?" Undertaker giggled, swiping at the dust with a finger.
"I won't tell them you're here." Grell said suddenly, and watched as the Undertaker nodded in response, a knowing smile plastered to his pale face.
As Grell returned his tea cup to the grinning Undertaker and gathered his death scythe, he couldn't help but think that he would most likely be visiting the Undertaker again soon.
AN: I want to apologize in advance for any grammatical or spelling mistakes! Let me know if you see any, and I'll do my best to edit them out! And of course, review! I would love to know what you think so far, and if everyone is in character? Chapter two is being written as we speak, with four pages already done. :)