Warning: Fluff, slight demon angst, yaoi if you squint hard, and Ciel's general attitude.
I know, I know, I have actual chapter fics to write, but no. This little "idea" had me so distracted for three days in school, I just had to write it down!
Just a little 1,000 or so word drabble on the musings of Sebastian's silver pocket watch. I may end up drawing this out a little bit into a five chaptered thing with more of the delicious yaoi, but only if you like this enough. Enjoy!
Sebastian has fondness for few things in the mortal world, and possesses even fewer items of his own. He is rather fond of cats, souls, a beautiful pastry, a finely tuned and crafted violin, and his silver pocket watch. He possesses as little as the seven or so cats hidden in the wardrobe in his bedroom and, once again, that same silver pocket watch. Falling into an even smaller category of things he is both fond of and possesses is one specific item; that gleaming, ornately carved silver pocket watch.
This item captures Sebastian's attention for more than one reason. The first of these reasons is that Sebastian is intrigued with the human system of telling time. The way clocks tick, the way humans live and die by the clock. In fact, he was apprenticed to the great grandson of the developer of this universal system for a short time. The second of these reasons is the way he'd come to possess the watch, in such a small gesture that did mean too much for Sebastian's comfort. He looks back on it occasionally in the long, dull hours of the night when his nightly work is finished and reflects on the watch, and Sebastian smiles every time.
Sebastian had been working at the Phantomhive manor for nearly three years, and soon enough, someone was bound to ask the question. On this particular day, a cold, cloudy December fifteenth to be exact, the maid Mey Rin got just a little bit too curious about the butler.
"Mister Sebastian?" The maid asked nervously. "I, I know you're busy, but I just 'ave a question to ask, if that's okay."
"What is it, Mey Rin?" Sebastian asks shortly, never stopping in preparing his master's evening tea trolley to bring to the study.
"Well, the young master's birthday was yesterday, and Finny and Bard and I, we were just thinkin' that we ne'er celebrated your birthday," The girl ducks her head, adverting her eyes, her cheeks reddening noticeably. Sebastian can even hear her heart speeding up.
"I do not need nor want a birthday celebration," Sebastian answers. "My only duty is to serve the young master, and a celebration would only get in the way of that. Now please excuse me, the young lord will be getting quite impatient for his tea." Without waiting for an answer, Sebastian pushes the trolley past the girl and out of the kitchen, ending the conversation without ever giving a proper answer to her obvious question.
X_-*-_X
"Master," Sebastian calls, knocking lightly on the door. "I have prepared your tea."
"Come in Sebastian," Earl Ciel calls from the other side. Sebastian opens the door and pulls the trolley after him, nudges the door closed, and busies himself preparing the snack. As he works, he is all too aware of Ciel's eyes on his back, watching him openly.
"Sebastian," Ciel finally says as Sebastian is serving him, amusement softening his usually cold sapphire eye. "When is your birthday?"
"Why do you wish to know, my lord?" Sebastian counters. Word truly does travel quickly in this manor, but this is just odd. Perhaps a coincidence? No, the young master has never been interested in him before.
"Don't question me," Ciel demands. "Now tell me when your birthday is, Sebastian. And yes, that's an order."
"January twentieth, my lord," Sebastian answers.
"Very well," Ciel says distantly, tapping the feather of his quill lightly against his lips in a pondering gesture. "You may go."
"Yes my lord," Sebastian bows shallowly, pushing the tea trolley back out the study door and away down the hall. He sighs to himself, letting a smirk stretch his lips. The young master will find a way to use this information, Sebastian is sure of it.
X_-*-_X
That January twentieth is a dreary, grey day, with clean, cold snow dusting everything in an ivory haze. The sky is a flat, tasteless grey, as if giving homage to the dark butler who just happens to not be celebrating his birthday.
He honestly expects those three idiots of servants to slap on party hats and start grinning like fools every time he walks past, but the day goes fairly normally (or as normal as possible in the Phantomhive manor). Sebastian keeps everything running smoothly as always, from breakfast up until the snow outside finally stops falling and day melts into nighttime.
He knocks lightly on the bedroom door where Ciel was waiting patiently for the butler to return with a clean nightshirt.
"Come in, Sebastian," Ciel calls lazily, and the butler obliges. He places the nightshirt delicately on the bed and goes to work untying the laces of Ciel's shoes.
"You've been very scatterbrained today, Sebastian. Most unlike you," Ciel comments. Sebastian can hear the satisfied smirk in his voice. "Forgetting to replace my nightshirts, you've even misplaced your tailcoat haven't you?"
Sebastian narrows his eyes and carefully plucks off Ciel's sock. "I merely left it in here when I went to fetch your nightshirt," The demon defends calmly.
"How out of character," Ciel remarks coolly. "Is something on your mind?"
"No, master, nothing to trouble yourself with," Sebastian assures.
"I was almost certain there was something special about today," Ciel's smirk grows. "Did you not schedule anything?"
"No, master," Sebastian repeats calmly. He knows what Ciel's trying to do, and it simply won't work. "There was nothing important today."
He finishes the final button on Ciel's collar, tugging the duvet over his slim shoulders when Ciel finally lays down. Sebastian slips on his tailcoat, retrieves the candelabra from the nightstand, and leaves the room without another word.
X_-*-_X
It is very late when Sebastian retires to his bedroom to find something to occupy him until morning. He unbuttons the heavy tailcoat, but as his fingers skim over the fabric, he feels a slim something in the breast pocket that he didn't notice until just now. Perhaps he is slipping, Sebastian thinks with a frown as he fishes out. He holds the small box up to the candlelight. It's pristine white and wrapped with a sloppy little black bow on the top.
Sebastian chuckles as he opens the box, but he cuts himself off. Inside is an exquisite silver pocket watch, glowing in the candle light. He slips it out of its cotton bed and runs his fingers over the delicate carvings. This is certainly much too exquisite for a mere butler to own. This item belongs to a king. Smiling gently, he pops the lid open with a satisfying click. The face is just as beautiful as the outside of the watch.
He holds it closer to the candle light before closing it abruptly and stuffing it back into the box. When he sees this small detail, he considers throwing the watch away. He even makes it to his door, his gloved hand resting on the handle, clenching it so tightly its a miracle the metal doesn't bend in his hand.
But in the end, Sebastian keeps the watch, and occasionally when he's having a particularly rough day or an exceptionally dull night, he pops it open and reads the French inscribed on the inside of the lid, written so small that anyone else would have passed it by.
Jusqu'a la fin des temps
KYA!
I had a lot of fun writing this.
For those of you who haven't seen/read the Book of Murder arc, both Sebastian and Ciel speak French.
Please review! K'bye!