-:- Subject 13's Butler -:-
.:A Kuroshitsuji Fan Fiction:.

Author: AoUsagi

Summary: Ciel takes the leap into Oblivion, only to wake into a strange white-washed world of beeping machines and white-coats doctors. The only thing that seems real is Sebastian, who steals him away from the hellhole laboratory to save him from the sick sake of science.

BeforeNote:

Thank you all for your lovely reviews; I think it's safe to say that this story will be continued. I also think it's probably going to be the only one that's continued for a while now, as all my others, being on hiatus, have come to halt due to my terrible lack of imaginative ability and writers block.

I'll be writing more over the Christmas and New Year period, rest assured – and there will be the occasional update for my other stories, but this one is going to be my main focus for a while to come. I'm pretty over the top with ideas on how to get this one set up and going, and I hope I continue to please you all with the story.

Thanks again for taking the time to read – don't forget to review, though!

- Mercy

perhaps I should also mention that I have now officially graduated from high school now. It's only taken me twelve years too many! 8D


Chapter Two: The World That Was Is Nothing

-:-

Ciel found himself staring at the man before him. Sebastian returned the gaze, seemingly unfazed by the boy's shocked look. The entire room had gone quiet, although the sounds from the streets outside were still drifting in through the window.

"Three…what…?" the words wouldn't form proper sentences on his lips, and Ciel momentarily wondered if this was Sebastian's idea of a joke. But the whole atmosphere of the situation, the solemn stare of his butler, seemed to confirm that this was most certainly no jest.

"Well, technically not asleep, as such…" Finni said quietly from behind them, and they all turned to look at him. The boy swallowed as he suddenly realized that all eyes and ears were on him. "You were…kinda…put into, uh…"

"Perhaps I should explain," there was a tired note to Sebastian's voice, almost as if he'd been dreading this conversation for a long time. Ciel turned back to him, narrowing his eyes. Whatever was going on had better be explained good and proper, he thought, or else he'd be doing much more than squeezing fingers by the time his head stopped spinning.

There was a moment of quiet as they waited for Sebastian to begin, but the man merely rested his chin on one hand, his other dangling uselessly at his side, and he closed his eyes a moment, taking a long, deep breath before letting it out with an even deeper sigh.

"You were placed in several comatose states over the last three and a half years," he said quietly, and Ciel could hear a tinge of disgust in his voice. "In that time and within those comas, you were drugged, in order for you to be immersed into dream-like frames of mind, in which you would have experienced extraordinary grief, pain, loss, love, and other high-functioning emotions."

Ciel blinked. If he understood what half of what the man across from him was saying, he may have thought to reach over and slap Sebastian, because it sounded like a load of claptrap. But something made him hold back. Something that wasn't right.

"B-but, the mansion – what happened to it?" he murmured, looking around at the assembled group. "And…all of you – I thought I told you…"

"Told us what?" Mey-Rin asked, one eyebrow quirked. Ciel felt a twinge of irritation, thinking how that she would have usually held her tongue – she would have been more respectful. Usually.

"Told you – wait, how could you not remember? And what do you mean, I was drugged, Sebastian?" Ciel shot towards his butler. "Why didn't you save me before then, if this is even real? For all I know, this is a dream."

"If this is a dream, it sure is damn screwed up," Bardroy muttered grimly, folding the stethoscope over in his hands. "What're you gonna do, pinch yourself to wake up?"

"Bardroy," there was a hard undertone of disapproval in Sebastian's voice, and the cook fell quiet before Ceil could reply. All eyes were back on Sebastian as he redirected back to Ciel. "Now. None of this is going to make much sense. That's understandable."

"No it isn't!" Ciel snapped. "It's messed up – what on earth is going on? I want to wake up from this stupid dream!"

He stood suddenly, forgetting about the glass in his hands and letting it slip from his fingers. Everybody's eyes widened as the glass tumbled through the air before crashing onto the concrete floor at their feet. Shards of shattered glass covered in the bubbling water Mey-Rin had called lemonade splashed over Ciel's feet, and he gasped and stepped away in surprise, Bardroy taking him by the arm and pulling him back to stand away from the mess as Mey-Rin quickly knelt down to pick up the glass. Ciel watched, eyes wide. Usually, she would have tittered around, unsure of what to do, but this time, the girl moved smoothly and gracefully from the arm of the chair to the floor, her hands reaching for the shards that lay closest to Ciel's feet first.

"It's okay," Bard's voice murmured in his ear, and Ciel realized that he was trembling. How embarrassing – he tried to shake off the chef's hand, but Bard's grip was firm and he held him in place. "Hold on – let Mey-Rin clean up the glass. You're not wearin' shoes, and we don't want you to cut yourself."

"That's right," Finni chirped, sounding a little worried. "You're still pretty delicate right now, Ciel – you're bodies not used to being back out in the open yet, or even moving."

"You've gotta be a bit more careful," Mey-Rin said, picking up the shattered glass piece-by-piece. Finni headed into another room and returned with a ceramic plate, handing it to Mey-Rin to put the broken glass on. She got to her feet. "I'll be back in a tick with a broom."

She took the plate away, and Ciel found himself staring numbly at the floor where the glass had been. Sebastian stood, and he looked up to see just how tall Sebastian was – it had never quite dawned on him that he only stood as tall as the bottom of Sebastian's upper torso, and even though Sebastian was more skin and bones than anything, he still had an impressively daunting figure.

"You're just like that glass, Ciel," Sebastian said quietly. "You are so fragile right now, which is why this will take some getting used to."

"What will?" Ciel murmured as Mey-Rin returned, and Finni helped her to sweep the smaller shards of glass into a dustpan. "What are you all doing gathered here in this …this place and what the blazes did Mey-Rin mean when she said you'd all finally got me out of there? Out of where?"

Bardroy let Ciel go, and the boy turned to see the cook's surprised expression.

"What?"

"You…honestly don't remember?" Bardroy asked softly, but Sebastian held up a hand.

"That isn't important, Bard. What is important is that Ciel feel that he is safe here and that he can trust us, just the way he used to. Ciel, what was the last thing you can remember?" the black-haired man asked, and Ciel blinked.

"Uh – well…you were – we were going…somewhere…" it dawned in him that he suddenly had no memory of where Sebastian had planned on going. He remembered that words had been passed between them as the wind had whipped through their hair before the descent, and it felt for all the world that yes, he should be able to remember clearly, but the memory was fading, almost like a dream he'd promised himself he'd remember, but was now forgetting.

"Were you prepared for the…uh, going?" Sebastian asked, and Ciel chewed his lip nervously. It felt like he was being interrogated, and he didn't like that feeling. It made him feel small, defenceless – and he was made to feel this way by his butler, of all people. He hated it when Sebastian had made him feel this way.

"I felt…like I knew we were going," he said slowly, and Sebastian nodded along, giving him time to continue. "And…you – you were angry, but you didn't show it. As if you didn't want to show that you…"

He couldn't finish as he came to realize what he was saying. Mey-Rin had rejoined them from the kitchen area after stowing the broom away, and along with Finni, Bardroy and Sebastian, was watching him intently, their eyes wide as they waited. As if this was the most outrageous story they'd ever heard.

"As if I didn't want to show you that I what, Ciel?" Sebastian asked, his voice low, but it held no malice – instead, if anything, it was curious, as if he truly didn't remember the conversation that felt like an eternity ago. "What was it?"

Ciel found his lip trembling – if he didn't keep a hold on himself, he would cry, and that would make him look even more weak and pathetic than he did already. This …this dream, or whatever was happening, felt more like a nightmare.

"That you…hated me…" Ciel screwed up his face and quickly scrubbed the back of his hand across his eyes to brush away any tattle-tail tears before they managed to grow large enough to trickle down his cheeks. Finni let out a small gasp, but he clapped a hand over his mouth as he looked from boy to butler. Mey-Rin and Bardroy's eyes widened to the size of saucers, and when Ciel finally dared to raise his own eyes to Sebastian, he saw the look of shock on the mans face.

"C-Ciel…" Mey-Rin whispered, but Sebastian raised his hand to quiet her. He seemed to have absolute authority over the three of them; they all looked to him for the answers, and not to Ciel. What had happened? Why had Ciel been locked away wherever he had been and needed rescuing? Why didn't they acknowledge him as their master anymore?

"Well," Sebastian said after a pause that was perhaps a little too long for comfort. "I can't say I wasn't…thoroughly impressed with the whole situation, but I can say for certain that hating you, of all things, was not the intended impression."

Ciel couldn't fight back the tears anymore. He let them run free.

"Then why?!" he cried. He knew he was being childish but he felt entitled to it – just a bit. There was so much they were holding back from him; it was completely unfair in his eyes. "Why didn't you just eat my soul before that bastard Claude stole it?! Why didn't you protect me? Why are we damned to be the bane of each others existence for the rest of our lives?!"

His voice had gone from a childish squeak to a tantrum-like yell, and when he stopped, the entire house was quiet, everybody staring at him in shock. Sebastian especially. Ciel heaved a deep breath, glaring at them all, daring them to say something. Something to comfort him, something to calm him down. But instead, they just stared at him, gaping like fish out of water.

"Well?" He demanded, turning back to Sebastian. "Answer me, Sebastian!"

Sebastian was the first of the group to regain his composure, but before he could say anything, there was a soft knock from a door across the room that had remained unopened. It creaked open a crack, and the other suddenly flew into action – Mey-Rin pulled a handgun from the waistband of her pants and whirled to aim it at the door, Finni grabbed Ciel and pulled him back so that the older blonde boy was standing in front of him, and Bardroy pulled up a large shotgun from behind the settee, all of them watching the door as it opened far enough for someone to poke their head through.

It was the one person Ciel least expected to see.

"Whoa, whoa, hey!" Pluto said, stepping in and holding up his hands in surrender. "What'd I do this time guys?"

Everyone suddenly sagged, and Mey-Rin and Bard lowered their firearms with sighs of relief. Finnian stood up straight from his protective stance in front of Ciel, and Sebastian let out the breath he'd been holding.

"We were expecting someone else." He said, and Ciel watched, agape, as the young man standing in the doorway shrugged modestly. Ciel had never known that Pluto had been capable of speech.

"What, with me standing guard?" Pluto said through a rather thick cockney accent, a look of scepticism on his face. "Never. You gotta have more faith, doc – trust me occasionally, will ya? I wouldn't let no one come bargin' in – not after the mission."

"Then why are you here?" Bardroy asked, setting his rifle up against the wall. "I thought you were keeping and eye on the street."

"I was," Pluto said, yawning and stretching. "But I heard some yellin' from in here and I wanted to find out what was going on."

The demon hound in his human form nearly rivalled Bardroy in height, Ciel realized, and the silver-haired young man looked down on him like he would a child of five years old.

"Just the kid, though, huh?" he asked with a smile, and Ciel felt his cheeks colour with mortification. Sebastian nodded.

"Yes. However," he added, a slightly harsher sound tinting his voice. "The kid has a name, you know. First and foremost, he is one of us, and he will not be treated any other way. Especially not as a patient."

"Oh yeah," Pluto said sheepishly. "Sorry Ciel."

"How dare you call me that!" Ciel found a newborn anger welling up inside of him, and he turned on the others as well. "You lot, too! I may have dismissed you all, but you should still be respectful to my title! Why aren't any of you addressing me properly?!" Then, thinking of something else, he turned back to Pluto. "And you! You're supposed to be dead!"

"What?!" Pluto cried incredulously.

Another round of shocked stares greeted him, and, as before, Sebastian was the first to find his voice.

"I thought we'd established this," he muttered to himself in exasperation before looking up to address Ciel. "Whatever you can remember previously, Ciel, is a complete lie. You probably only remember us because of the memories of your life previous to the one you think you're still living. But the truth is, you've been under the influence of experimental drug testing."

Ciel went to object and retaliate, but the words dried up on his tongue – he'd never heard of anything this absurd, and it surprised him into silence.

"Hey," Pluto piped up suddenly, and Ciel turned to him. "I've got an idea. What year is it, Ciel?"

"W-what sort of question is that?" he asked. "It's eighteen-eighty-nine, you idiot!"

When silence greeted him one more time, he looked around at the surprise on everyone's faces.

"Wow," Bard breathed. "Those must have been pretty amazing drugs."

"Bardroy – this is serious," Sebastian snapped. "Ciel is incredibly disorientated right now, and while it's to be expected, being an ass won't help."

"So, uh – who wants to break the news to the kid, then?" asked Pluto, and they all looked around at each other nervously. Ciel waited for them to say something, anything – that would make more sense than this entire situation, but no one said a word.

"What?!" he cried. "What is it? Just tell me! I demand to know what the hell is going on!"

Mey-Rin and Finni exchanged glances again, before Finnian finally spoke after looking to Sebastian as well, who nodded.

"I-it's…uh…the year is two thousand and eleven, Ciel," he said quietly, and if they hadn't all had such serious expressions, Ciel would have called them all insane.

"Sheesh," Bard muttered. "He thinks he's been livin' a hundred and twenty-two years in the past."

"I-I don't understand," Ciel took a step back, away from them. "It's not possible. You're…you're all here, that much time can't have passed!" he turned to Sebastian, desperate for his help. "What happened?"

But Sebastian shook his head.

"I've told you what's happened, Ciel," he said. "And it's the truth. I wouldn't lie to you – I promised you that I would never lie. I also told you that this is going to be hard to accept."

Something clenched inside of Ciel's chest, and he felt like his heart was tearing in two – one part of him desperately wanted to believe Sebastian, because Sebastian didn't lie, wouldn't keep any secrets this big from him, and the other part wanted to run, far, far away, until he couldn't run anymore, because he didn't want to believe that this was real. It was too real to be real. He was somewhere in the future, somewhere he shouldn't be, without a clue what was really going on and only Sebastian. Sebastian, and Mey-Rin and Finni and Bardroy and Pluto. Where…where was Tanaka? The thought only briefly crossed his mind before Sebastian spoke again.

"Ciel," the mans voice was soft, and Ciel could almost have believed that he sounded caring, if he didn't already know the demons true nature.

"W-what?"

"Will you sit down? Sit, and talk to us. Help us to better understand what you've been through. You seem to believe that at some point in time, we were all subservient to you – and that's…sort of true," Sebastian said, sitting back down himself and resting his chin on his good hand, his wounded arm still hanging limply. "So tell us your story. Tell us everything, from start to finish."

Ciel looked down at him, and what he saw actually surprised him – Sebastian's eyes were pleading. Tired, worn out and exhausted, but there was a pleading look that was undeniable, and Ciel could have mistaken it for pity. He looked around at the rest of the group – Finni and Mey-Rin were standing close to each other, as if they needed each others support, Bardroy was watching him carefully, and Pluto was back at the door – a door that lead to the outside world – like a guard dog, his arms folded across his chest.

Everyone he'd ever truly come to think of as family was assembled. Everyone except for the Phantomhive steward, Mister Tanaka. They were watching, waiting. Their expressions held sadness, as if they pitied him for not understanding what was going on. But beyond the pity, Ciel could almost see that they cared.

He sat back down.

As he began to speak, Ciel allowed his gaze to wander from one person to the next – to Mey-Rin, who listened with some amazement as he described her klutziness as a maid, and how her obscurely massive glasses made her even worse. Then, to Finni – who blushed crimson as Ciel spoke of his tragic gardening, and to Bardroy, who would chuckle sheepishly as Ciel depicted his cooking skills and preferences with a flamethrower. To Pluto, who looked a little chuffed with himself when Ciel told about how he had been a demon hound who had protected the mansion and had extraordinary fire-breathing capabilities. And finally to Sebastian, who simply sat and listened in wonder, as Ciel found himself somewhat praising the butlers' works and accomplished feats.

Ciel spoke about the loss of his family, the torture of the cult, the rescue…and then the work of the Queen's watch dog, earl of London's underworld. As real as it all seemed to him, he could see the amazement growing on each of their faces as he recounted the past three years. How the angel Ashe had manipulated the Queen, how there was curry and ice sculpting contests that went wrong and were saved from devastation by the works of Sebastian, how they had inevitably crossed paths with the Death God Dispatch Society on more than one occasion.

Jack the Ripper, Sir Houndsworth, Elizabeth Midford and her maid Paula, Drocell Keinz, the moronic mortician the Undertaker and his corky antics, Sir Randall and detective Abberline, Grell Sutcliff, Angelina Durless, William T Spears, Angela, Lau and his demonette Ran Mau, Azzuro Vanel of the Ferro family – all of these people tumbled from Ciel's lips, their lives, their deaths, their paths that coincided with Ciel's search for vengeance for his own family and self. Claude Faustus and Alois Trancy; Hannah Annafellows and the Demon Triplets. Abberline's replacement on a runaway train. The things that happened – every detail that Ciel could possibly remember, he relayed to them. He found tears gathering in his eyes, wondering why they didn't remember all of these events, these things that happened. He wished, time and again, when he mentioned someone knew, for recognition to dawn on their faces and for them to pipe up with how they remembered when something he'd said had happened – but time and again he was disappointed as they only continued to listen and to watch, their expressions moving from sadness to surprise to shock and then, slowly, back to sadness.

As he recounted the final days that he could remember, the fights between himself and Alois that ended in bloodshed and tears, the demons dual that he was barely even aware of, and his own death and rebirth and leaving of London for Oblivion with Sebastian forever at his side, Ciel came to realize that tears weren't just gathering in his own eyes, but in Finni and Mey-Rin's too. When he finally fell quiet, the silence that drifted between them all was pierced only by the sounds of traffic somewhere outside the door that Pluto guarded.

"Wow," Bardroy murmured after the solemn atmosphere had sunk in. "That was…"

"Tragic," Sebastian finished. Ciel looked up, expecting to see Sebastian watching him mockingly, but the black haired man simply gazed back at him, his face completely void of any sign of emotion other than the slight downturn of his mouth – the barely noticeable touch of a frown on his forehead.

Ciel fidgeted uncomfortably, knowing that they were all silently judging him. Finni wiped away the tears and sniffled, but no one else really had the gal to speak for a while. Mey-Rin busied herself with bringing in more drinks from the kitchen – more of the lemonade, and poured everyone a glass. After speaking for such a long time, Ciel found his throat even drier than before, and he sucked down the fizzy lemon tasting beverage without question. It tingled on his tongue and it made his eyes water a little when he swallowed too much at once, but it was manageable enough and it did soothe his throat immensely. Finally, after a long time of everyone wrapped up in their own thoughts, Pluto was the one to break the silence.

"I think …I reckon I understand," he said slowly, and everybody turned their eyes to him. "It's like, he almost knew, subconsciously, y'know? Like he could almost hear what was happenin' outside the drug treatment and all, hear what we were sayin' – and whatever the hell he was dosed with warped it so that it seemed like the impossible really existed. In, like, the past but."

"Got enough 'likes' in that sentences, Plu?" Bardroy asked, somewhat bitterly, but he was shushed by Sebastian.

"Actually, that's not a bad theory." He said with consideration, and Pluto grinned smugly at Bard. Ciel waited for Sebastian, not daring to say anything. He still wasn't sure if anything they were saying was true, but he didn't exactly have any place to go or any way of figuring it out by himself in his current state. "I think…maybe Pluto's right."

"For real?" Finni breathed curiously. "Wow – that does actually make sense. It's as if…I dunno, Ciel could hear the conversations we had. Remembered stuff, you know? The chronology's a little bit messed up but most of the same stuff's there just on a different level. Like the treatment made it different."

"Yes, Finni," Sebastian nodded. "In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if Ciel never actually stopped fighting."

Ciel flinched a little as he realized the look Sebastian was giving him – it was like a mix of both intrigue and disgust, but there was a small smirk slowly spreading across Sebastian's features – it nearly reached the same size as the smirk that Ciel had grown used to seeing his butler wear with pride day in and day out.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," he murmured, and Sebastian nodded again.

"That's completely all right. We wouldn't expect you to – after all, we have a lot of explaining to do ourselves," he replied, and Ciel bit his lip. On the one hand, he wanted to know their side of the story, but on the other, he was frightened that it would be a lot worse than his.

"It's okay, Ciel," Mey-Rin said softly, coming and sitting next to him on the settee. She was still a little pink in the cheeks from trying to hold back her tears, but she smiled through it and gently took one of his hands in her own. "If you don't want to hear it, we won't say it."

"Say what…?" he asked, and Bardroy cleared his throat.

"Give you our side of it," the chef said a little gruffly. "It's…uh, kinda…"

"Violent." Sebastian said quietly from the other sofa. He still had his chin resting on his hand, and though his eyes were half lidded they remained carefully watching Ciel, as if making observations and calculations within his head for later use. "Bloody. Full of lies and backstabbing bastards and deceit. It's heartbreaking and sickening, Ciel Phantomhive, and if you do not wish to hear it, stop me now."

Ciel swallowed. So it was worse. At first, that though struck him as odd – what could possibly be worse than the pain and humiliation, the grief and anguish that he'd suffered through? How could Sebastian possibly claim that there was another story that was just as grave as his own? But then, he realized that this was possible, because wasn't everything else at this point?

"I-I don't know," he whispered. "I don't know anymore. I don't know if any of this is actually real – I haven't seen any proof of it."

He saw from the corner of his eye, Bardroy giving Sebastian a sideways glance. Sebastian returned the minute gesture before sighing and nodding to Bard, who silently left the room. Ciel turned to see him go, but Sebastian called his attention back.

"If you'd really like proof, then I will tell you something. Demons and Faustian contracts are pure myth, Ciel." He said, and Ciel blinked in surprise.

"B-but how can you…" he began as Bardroy returned with what looked like a small mirror. Sebastian raised his left hand, which he had previously kept palm-up, because it was his wounded arm, resting it on the sofa. He winced in pain and had to hold up his wrist with his other hand for Ciel to see the back of his hand.

It was bare.

Ciel opened his mouth to speak, but no sound left his lips. Then, Bardroy handed him the small mirror, and Ciel reached up to brush the hair from his eyes – more correctly, to brush the hair away from his right eye, which held the sign on the contract. He found himself trembling in fear as he blinked, hardly daring to believe what he was seeing.

His right eye was the very same sapphire blue as his left. He looked back at Sebastian, who watched him solemnly, the mans own dull crimson-to-brown eyes gazing back at his own, terrified blue orbs. Ciel looked back down at the mirror again, just to make sure there was no mistake.

"I-I…"

"There are no demons in this world like the one you think I am," Sebastian said, very quietly, his velvet voice holding both bitterness and pity. "There's only the bastards that did this to you."

-:-


AfterNote:

Yay another cliffy! 8D if you're a regular reader of mine, you're almost certain to know how fond I am of these things by now XD. So sorry about that, peoples – but I couldn't resist leaving it on another one of Sebastian's lines.

I'll certainly have fun with this story.

Please review. It's like….an addiction. Your wonderful words are my drug, you're all my dealers, and my crappy internet is my police.

REVIEW. And I will reign many more chapters upon you! 3

- Mercy