"He looks almost cute when he's sleeping. A bit more like a 'Ciel' and a lot less like an Earl."
"Doesn't he though. That all changes as soon as those eyes open." Sebastian sighed as the doctor flailed in surprise.
"You! What? When did you get back here?"
"And why wasn't it sooner?" The child next to him asked, sitting up and causing Arthur to jump once more.
"I didn't realize, my Lord you're awake?" He asked, his cheeks turning a deep red. He had just been talking to himself, he hadn't known he had an audience.
Sebastian bowed as Ciel stretched his free hand out. "Give me my pillow this instance."
"Uh, a pillow?" Arthur asked, as Sebastian went to replace the other pillow.
"Not just any pillow," the butler said, "You might call it a security blanket of sorts." He finished in a mocking tone, as if he were speaking to a toddler rather than his master.
"No, actually," Ciel snapped as he laid back down, resting one hand underneath. The chain attached to his wrist clunk with the movement. "I would just call it a comfortable pillow."
Sebastian smiled, again more mockingly than a butler should to their master. "Is there anything else? A soothing lullaby?"
Ciel turned over on his side, facing away from his butler. "Hush, you. I have never asked you to sing to me, not once. That's enough fooling around for one night. You're a nuisance, go back to your room. I'm sleeping now." He tucked the blanket underneath his chin and closed his eyes.
"My apologies, my lord. I shall resume my duties immediately." Sebastian tucked him in more securely and the young lord was snoring almost immediately.
"All ready?!" Arthur asked in shock.
Sebastian looked up at him, bowing his head slightly. "Doctor, you have been terribly inconvenienced. I am very sorry."
"No worries," he replied, looking down at Ciel with a sympathetic gaze. "The poor Earl, he's truly only thirteen, eh? It must terrify him to be mixed up in something like this."
Sebastian looked surprised, "Oh. So then you don't believe him to be the murderer."
"Not at all, I simply cannot imagine him doing something so cold-blooded."
Sebastian gave a small smile, "I must say I'm glad to hear it. Well, Doctor, I shall leave him in your hands. I'm sure you will look after him."
Sebastian then left the room, leaving a rather confused doctor behind.
0-0-0-0
Outside the storm raged on, well into the night.
The Phantomhive butler continued around the house, and finally stopped with a stab through his stomach, and dropped to the floor. His master's orders were to not move until it was the right time.
No matter what.
0-0-0-0
Upstairs Ciel slept restlessly, tossing and turning in his bed, as horrible dreams played in his head.
Throughout the hours of sleep he had managed to roll completely over, the chain attached to his wrist wrapping around his body with the movement.
It held Ciel's arms to his side, the right hand folded up to be pinned to his chest.
Any other night, he would wake up from the nightmares fine. A sudden jolt, sitting up, realizing he was in his room, reassuring they were dead, and laying back down. It was a common occurrence, which had only increased since the circus incident, as it would be for anyone else; demon protector or not.
But tonight wasn't any other night. Tonight he had a chain wrapped securely around his torso that kept him lying helplessly on his stomach.
His eyes shot opened after a rather painful memory came to play in his mind, and he tried to move his arms to sit up. He made a choking sound upon realizing his arms were pinned to his body, and suddenly he was 10 years old again.
He cried out loudly as he struggled to get free of his binds, and found the they were only made tighter.
He wasn't in the cage, what did they want with him?!
Arthur jolted awake to the sound of the young lord, and sat up to see him struggling to get free of the chain that had wrapped around him. His eye was squeezed shut, and both it and the covered one already had tears streaming down his face.
"HELP ME, PLEASE, SOMEBODY! ANYBODY!"
"Lord!" Arthur jumped to him, grabbing the chain and then his shoulder to help him untangle himself, but Ciel only struggled to get out of his hold.
"Don't hurt me, please!" He sobbed, still trying to get away, his eyes closed shut.
"Don't hurt you?" Arthur asked, and the door swung open. The other guests came storming in to see what was happening to their host, and gapped at the sight of Ciel struggling to get away from Arthur.
"What is going on?!" Woodley asked, pushing to get to the front of the group along with Earl Grey.
"What are you doing to the young Lord?" The Earl exclaimed, and in Arthur's distraction Ciel finally managed to pull his shoulder away from Arthur.
"He just woke up like this, I swear!" The doctor quickly shouted.
"A likely story! You were trying to kill him!" Woodley accused, and Ciel managed to get himself off the bed, the chain coming loose as he hit the ground.
His back and head hit hard, knocking the air out of him and causing his vision to blur even more than it already was. He felt the chains dig into his back as he landed on them, but they were loose enough to get out of. He looked up at the ceiling, then looked to the figures gathered near him as he struggled out of the bindings.
His mind flashed back and forth, seeing darkened, blurry figures, then the figures turning into horrible men in hoods. He was on the floor; he was on a large stone table. He didn't know which was real.
He sat up as quickly as he could, moving backwards until he felt a tug at his wrist. He gave another cry, seeing the chain still attached to him, he was still trapped.
"Let me go! Please, just let me go!" He struggled with the chain on his wrist, trying to pull his hand free regardless of the cuts that were already forming. "Just let me go!" The last word was drawn out in a sob, as he continued to try to get himself free.
"He hasn't had a fit like this in years!" Bard said as he and the other servants finally made it to his room.
"Well, you heard him," Lau said calmly. "Unlock the chain."
Arthur looked at the Chinese man for a moment before nodding vigorously, pointing to Ciel's desk. "It's there, on the desk. Just out of our reach."
Grimsby rushed over, grabbing the key and quickly kneeling in front of Ciel. When he tried to grab his wrist, the young boy only shouted again;
"Don't touch me!" Flashes of memories kept playing through his mind; countless cult members picking and prodding at him and touching him and hurting him, and he struggled to get away when his wrist was grabbed again. He wasn't strong enough to pull his arm away. "Please!"
"Young Lord, please calm down!" Grimsby said as he stumbled with the key.
He finally got the chain unlocked, and Ciel yanked his wrist back, holding it to his chest with the other hand. He brought his knees up and tucked his head down, trying to make himself as small as possible. His chest still heaved, and his breathing had turned into hiccups.
His head started to clear, though it still throbbed. He realized he wasn't chained up anymore, but he was still afraid to look.
Which was real? He didn't know if he wanted to find out.
The people around him were silent for a long few moments, before Finny moved to kneel where Grimsby had just been.
"Young Lord?" He asked, tears in his own eyes after seeing his master like that.
Ciel didn't respond, not right away, but slowly, his hand reached up to his eye and he felt the softness of the cotton eyepatch he wore to bed. He had heard another kid's voice, maybe…
He stayed tucked up for another moment, before slowly looking towards the sound of the voice.
His vision was still blurry, but someone had lit a candle, and he could make out the face of first Finny, and then of his guests, no longer just dark strangers.
He hiccupped again, resting his head back on his knees.
"They're all dead," he repeated to himself in a whispered voice.
"Young master, what happened?" Mei Rin asked, kneeling down next to Finny, keeping the distance Ciel had put between them.
He didn't answer her, just repeated his mantra over and over, ignoring everyone in the room. He didn't care about them; he was still far two panicked to be embarrassed.
"Hey, where the hell is Sebastian? He's the one who's s'posed to help'im with these things." Bard asked, and there were a few comments back, saying they should go look for him.
Sebastian.
He remembered now, Sebastian was downstairs on his orders, lying dead. That's why he didn't come. He was safe. Sebastian wouldn't let anyone hurt him like that. Not again. Not ever again.
His crying stopped, though he continued to hiccup, and now he was starting to feel embarrassed. Humiliated, more like it actually.
"Go away." He said, quietly at first.
"What was that?" Grey asked, and Ciel's head shot up, a vicious look on his face.
"GO AWAY! GET AWAY FROM ME! THE WHOLE LOT OF YOU! LEAVE!" He tucked his face back into his arms, he didn't want to see anyone.
The group looked shocked, before they slowly started backing out.
"Should we really leave him all alone?" Arthur asked, and Ciel reached his hand out, grabbing Finny's wrist before he stood up.
"He'll stay. I won't be alone." Finny looked back at the young master, surprised. Ciel didn't look at him, though, just turned his head to the side and tried to wipe away his tears.
"Alright, young master. Call us if you need anything." Mei Rin said before everyone finally left.
0-0-0-0
Sebastian laid on the floor in the empty guest room, lying soaked in his own blood.
He heard someone call his name.
His orders to lie dead no matter what prevented him to come to the aid of his young master, to assure him he was safe. He was sure he was the only one who could, he had saved him after all.
He heard footsteps approach him.
Demon or not, he still cared for the wellbeing of the child. It wouldn't be the first time he had soothed nightmares, nor did he doubt it would have been the last. They seemed to be a constant in his young master's life. Though he was sure having a chain attached to his hand had not made anything easier.
The door opened.
Well, on with the show.
Mei Rin screamed.