The warm water of the bath swirling around him did wonders to take away the stress of an entire day's work. The scented soaps that Sebastian had blended personally created a soothing fragrance, gentle and not overwhelming, just like the way he preferred his tea.

Sebastian hummed a little as he ran the washcloth down his front, and Ciel snorted internally when he realized that he was humming Tartini's violin sonata in G minor. Honestly, the Devil's Trill at this late hour? Could his demon butler be anymore stereotypical?

Ciel fidgeted a little, catching sight of those long, elegant fingers gripping the washcloth and diligently scrubbing him clean. As those fingers traced their way across his skin, he had the chance to take a good, hard look at Sebastian's hands.

Come to think of it, it had been a long time since he'd seen Sebastian's hands. When they first made the contract, he had left the details of his appearance up to the butler, just as long as he looked human. Did Sebastian paint his nails to keep them that glossy shade of black? Was it something which came from being a demon? If he had taken his human form in order to serve at his side as a butler, was the colour of his fingernails something he thought that Ciel would desire as well? But that didn't make any sense to him. Why would Sebastian presume that he would want him to have fingernails painted in that vulgar shade, so reminiscent of the dead?

"Young master?"

Sebastian sounded concerned and Ciel realised that he had unknowingly stiffened as he stared down at those long, tapered fingers.

"No, it's nothing," he forced himself to say.

He could just hear the gears in that demonic brain clicking.

There was no way he was going to lower himself to ask Sebastian about his hands. He would not give that infuriating butler a chance to laugh at such vulgar enthusiasm to learn about matters wholly irrelevant to him. In fact, he could hear Sebastian's voice in his head right now and even picture him smirking as he would murmur:

"Why, I didn't know you cared, young master!"

" – for it?"

"Huh?" he said in confusion, looking up at Sebastian, only to see his amused, smiling visage.

"I was wondering if the young master was tired of the vanilla scent, and would prefer to switch to the raspberry scrub?"

"No, it's fine," he replied shortly, going back to examining Sebastian's nails.

"The Young Master seems to have taken a liking to this one's fingernails." It wasn't a question, and Ciel knew better than to treat it as such. Sebastian was aware of his staring, and that only made it harder for him to ask whatever that was on his mind.

"Don't presume to know what I like or don't like," he said grumpily.

"Forgive me, for I thought that the young master might have been curious about their colour, as unusual as it is among your human race."

He snapped his head backwards, eyes wide and disbelieving as Sebastian practically sparkled in the lowered light of the bathroom, still smiling that angelic smile at him. Ciel snorted, half amused and half annoyed by the infuriating way that butler always seemed to penetrate his thoughts. His hand fell against the water, splashing some of it on the floor as he stood up abruptly from the bath, and Sebastian began to dry him off with a fluffy towel.

"It certainly is a morbid shade" was all he was willing to say on the subject.

Long fingers combed through his hair, detangling some of the wet strands as he stood there quietly, enjoying the feel of his hair being dried and combed through. He was almost falling asleep on his feet as he was dressed for bed, with Sebastian deftly buttoning up his pyjamas, when the demon began to speak; his voice a murmuring brook against the silence of the night.

"Humans are very fragile creatures, aren't they? They can be hurt by almost anything, not only weaponry, but even the food they eat, the people by their side, the ties which bind them and make them helpless to do anything but submit to the construct of fate."

"I don't believe in fate."

"Ah? The young master doesn't believe that it was preordained that I should have been watching on that night, waiting to respond to your call?"

"You're a demon," Ciel sighed, looking up from his mug of steaming hot milk, "Any place which promises grotesque murders and ritualistic dismemberment, is probably a place of perpetual bliss for you. Were you always there?"

"For demons with a longer lifespan than most, it is only natural that we develop an instinct in reading the pulses beneath the tide of history, letting us know of the ones with the greatest potential to break out from the monotony of the human condition. The reckless urge to devour was all I knew for a long time, before I spotted the flicker of your soul, a burning aquamarine among the squalid filth, calling out to me."

"With these hands…" Ciel murmured, blinking back sleep as he reached out to take Sebastian's hand, missing the momentary look of surprise which appeared on the butler's face.

Sebastian smiled in spite of himself when Ciel seemed to come to his senses, retracting his hand hastily but not before he had caught the boy's smaller hand in his and sank to his knee, such that they were at eye level.

"Sebastian…!"

"Where I went, the wreckage of pestilence and famine and war was left in my wake, and still my hands have brought about rains of blood and the passage of kings and the births of the lowest, mortal creatures that did nothing but waited for death. But in this form, every part of me was created only to be your most powerful piece, to help you achieve your goal."

"But, I'm sure the young master already knows that, doesn't he?" Sebastian smiled as he peeled back the covers and waited for him to settle comfortably in bed, tucking him in and adjusting his pillows.

"I do, but…" Ciel's words were cut off by a yawn as he gestured sleepily at his hands.

"I see, the young master is still concerned about their unusual colour, isn't he? Honestly, what a child you can be, sometimes."

"It's not my fault you're incredibly longwinded and incapable of giving a direct answer."

"Oh? Has the young master asked a question?"

And then they were back to themselves again, when Sebastian sniped at him and Ciel could gladly order him to lick his boots. This was the way it should be, Ciel thought, as his eyes began to close and he had to concede the point to Sebastian however grudgingly. He was still curious though, and his butler probably knew him too well to know that he would give up that easily even if he caved that night.

From the side of his bed, he could hear the soothing tone of his butler's voice inform him quietly:

"The countless deaths that have been wrought by my hands make this tone of ebony particularly appealing. It is a reminder of the blackness of eternal night, of the sins that cannot be erased and the hatred that stretches beyond hell – black is the colour of concealment, and the blood spilt across these hands cannot be seen. That's all there is to it."

Ciel heaved a sigh, his voice emerging somewhat muffled against the pillow.

"Never forget that you are under my employment and as long as you serve me, the weight of the deaths you bear, the sins committed in deference to my will, are entirely borne by me."

Sebastian's eyes widened in shock.

"Wear your gloves next time. Now, go away, you're being a nuisance and I need my sleep." Ciel grumped, turning his back to Sebastian as he buried himself under the thick covers.

"Yes, my lord."

He did not have to look up to know Sebastian was smiling.

.

.

.

Omake:

"I can't believe it's just for convenience. How crass." Ciel sniffed.

Sebastian smiled even wider, his eyes curving into their familiar crescents.

"That, and the fact that it is also an extremely flattering shade. If the young master is envious, perhaps…ah where did I leave it?" he said anxiously, patting his numerous pockets.

"…"

"Oh, here it is!" Sebastian exclaimed, waving a bottle of black nail polish around excitedly.

"GET AWAY FROM ME, YOU FREAK."

.

.

A/N: I couldn't resist putting the omake in~! By the way, did anyone else find it really odd that in the anime, Sebastian still wears his gloves even when he's helping Ciel to bathe? o_O

EDIT: I posted this as a one-shot, because it really doesn't go with the darker theme of the short story collection. I'm sorry for re-posting! m(_ _)m