Author's Note: And here is the next installment of Caym. Thank you again for your support, it's always great to see that people are following and enjoying this. I apologise for the slight delay in uploading this, but due to schoolwork and power cuts and such, life just got in the way a little. I hope you enjoy this chapter, nonetheless.

Warnings: Once again, not many. A little gruesome imagery, but nothing too dreadful yet.

Caym

"Young master, it is time for you to wake up."

Large, cerulean eyes slid groggily open just in time to see the elderly man pull back the curtains. They blinked slowly - once, twice - and the boy tugged the covers back further from where they were gathered around his chin, at once grimacing as this allowed a short gust of chilly morning air into the cocoon that had been formed during the night. Quite swiftly, the meeting of the night before presented itself to his memory and he stared, wide eyed with relief at the butler's back as he neatly tucked the curtains into place. It seemed that perhaps the demon had meant no harm to the old man after all.

"Today shall be most eventful," Tanaka continued. "It is the last day that I shall be serving the young master in such a manner."

At this, Ciel sat bolt upright in bed, his heart feeling as though it was constricting in panic. Perhaps the thing had done something to the old man after all. "What? What do you mean?"

But the butler simply regarded the boy with a small, warm smile. "My position within the household has been changed. After this morning, I shall be assuming my new position as house steward. I shall be dealing with the staff financial matters."

"But... why? Don't you like this job?"

The man held his gaze for a moment, before giving a small sigh as though fatigued and bending down to begin dressing the boy as he had done for so many years now, the same old dance. "I am an old man, young master. I am unable to sufficiently perform the tasks that being the Phantomhive butler requires. A new butler has been employed to fill my place."

Ciel wondered whether or not it was in fact possible for human blood to become ice, for he could swear that the red fluid filling his own veins and frozen. It trickled back to him, the memories like chilled water through a child's tender fingers. Last night the thing had mentioned the prospect of becoming his butler and Ciel had argued that they already had a butler, that they did not need another one. This could only mean one thing, of course, that it was the creature, the demon, that was filling the old man's position. Still, at least Tanaka was unharmed.

"And so," the butler (previous butler, it would seem) continued, taking no notice of the child's silence as he tugged woolen socks up to the boy's shins, followed by the shiny black shoes and a meticulous straightening of the red breast knot on his chest. "The young master's presence is required at breakfast this morning, where he will meet the new butler, Sebastian Michaelis."

Sebastian. It was true, then. It had to be. The name only confirmed it. The name that he had awarded the creature just before his eye had been plucked from his head.

The child shook his head defiantly. "I don't want a new butler. I want you," and with all the anger that a small boy can muster, he stared at Tanaka, the betrayal evident in his eyes. "The new butler won't know what to do. He won't know how to wash me or dress me, or make my hot milk before bed," Ciel exclaimed, horrified at the grave injustice that had been done to him.

The old man seemed taken aback. After all, Ciel had always been a placid child, never one to retaliate, nor to defy an adult's wishes. "I'm afraid there is nothing that can be done, young master. As of today, I am no longer butler to the Phantomhive family. Mr Michaelis is quite competent, I can assure you. You will be perfectly well cared for in his hands."

Ciel almost wanted to laugh at it, if it wasn't such a grave matter. He was anything but safe in the monster's hands. The memories of those gleaming red eyes still haunted him, and for a little moment, the healing wound that was left of his eye seemed to ache with renewed intensity for a moment, though he ignored this with nought but the smallest of winces. Ciel was a brave boy now. He had to defend himself, and how could he do that if he could not even handle a little pain? He was thinking now, though. How on earth would a monster like that be let into the house? Had he used some sort of trickery on his parents? A childish image of the thing wearing a top hat and scarf along with a fake mustache. His lips curled a little in a reluctant little smile. The old man seemed relieved that the boy's mood had lightened somewhat.

"Now then, young master. Time for breakfast."

:: ::

The boy felt as though he was committing himself to a death sentence as he approached the dining room, peeping cautiously around the corner with custom shyness. What he saw, he had not quite expected. There was his father, sitting at the head of the table as always with the morning paper open in front of him, and his mother, angelic, to his right hand side, her back straight and slender hands folded in her lap. What surprised him was the dark figure looming ominously over his father's shoulder, smirk firmly in place. He could see that this was the creature, the resemblance was still there, yet it looked entirely different. It could almost pass as human. The skin was still snowy white, the sharp facial features still much the same, the hair still jet black, soft and feathery, but somehow more tame than it had been previously. The complexion was flawless, not a single ounce of the previous decay visible and the hands that had been taloned were now encased neatly in sleek, white gloves. No more were the smoking clothes, nor the priest-like collar, replaced instead by a full butler's uniform, the Phantomhive badge already glinting dimly in the light on his chest. But it was the eyes that the boy noticed the most, no longer luminously red, but muted to a deep burgundy in colour.

The child hovered by the door, cautious, and unwilling to go any further into the room. The butler looked up first and quickly noticed him, his smirk widening. Ciel glared balefully back at him.

"Ciel." He was almost taken by surprise, having almost forgotten about his parents' presence. His father was first to speak, giving a nod of greeting. "This is Sebastian Michaelis. He will be our new butler now."

"Good morning, young master," the demon intoned and his voice, Ciel noted, his voice had not changed at all. Still that same smooth timbre, promising Heaven and offering Hell instead. The newly appointed butler stepped smoothly to the side so that a direct path was now offered to Ciel to approach him, and he held out one gloved hand in offering. The child did not move.

"You will have to forgive my son," his father stated. "He is a little shy around those he does not know well. I am sure you will become accustomed to each other well enough in due time. Ciel," he father looked at him, addressing him directly now. "Come forward and greet Sebastian."

As always, his father's voice was asserting though gentle, but still the boy could not find it in himself to move. His instincts shrieked at him to get away from the disguised monster, but he remained rooted to the spot. It was not until his mother also encouraged him, with a warning, "Ciel," that he woodenly took one step forward. His limbs felt heavy, as though he himself had become one of the little toy soldiers that he had assembled so precisely the previous day and it was all he could do to walk steadily forward, towards the grinning man and the hand that was still extended to him.

He finally reached his destination, and one small hand made its way unsteadily forward, only to be engulfed quickly by the gloved one. The demon, Sebastian's, hands were no longer clammy as they had been before, but warm and soft due to the coating of finely made white gloves.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, young master Ciel," the demon smirked, bend over at the waist so as to bring their heights closer, yet the boy was still easily put in his shadow. The boy said nothing in return, merely staring back at the new butler until his hand was released and his seat was pulled out for him, allowing to take his seat. Sebastian leaned over to speak in his master's ear and Ciel felt the driving need to pull back, pull away from the monster, but he stayed convincingly put. "This morning we have poached egg with a side of scone, English breakfast muffin, or toast. Which would suit young master today?"

"Scone," the child answered quickly, unwilling to talk to the butler for too long, and his choice was presented to him, still warm with condiments in small, glossy white pots and a small cup of milk based tea placed in front of him.

He had quickly as the tall figure retreated back into the shadows, buttering his scone with childishly clumsy fingers, licking the flecks of glistening red jam off his knuckles and the heel of his hand when his parents were not looking so that he wouldn't be scolded, all the while aware of the butler in the corner who took in his every move. Gruesome scenarios began playing out in his head, the what-ifs that children can often struggle with: what if we were robbed? What if there was no sun? What if we didn't have any servants? What if...? And one of those dreadful what-ifs was tormenting him now as he pictured the butler standing behind his father with a butter knife in his hand, and that butter knife being raised up and swinging straight back down again, whoosh, right into his father's head. Ciel dropped his line of vision back to his breakfast, but swiftly found that he wasn't hungry anymore.

"Father, I'm not hungry. May I be excused?"

Neither Vincent nor Rachel looked entirely satisfied, but eventually his father gave a, "Very well," nonetheless and he was free to leave the stifling confines of Sebastian's gaze.

He had not gotten very far at all, had only made it to the large sitting room near the front of the manor to slump down on the floor bedside the faithful family dog, small hands woven into thick dark fur and cheek resting on a softly rising and falling flank, when he heard the demon's voice again.

"Young master."

Looking up slightly, he was greeted by the sight of shiny, black shoes and then long legs and neat torso and then he was staring directly at the hateful face. He said nothing, instead continuing the weave his hands into the dog's fur. The man (thing) before him pulled a face of disgust when he saw the dog by his feet.

"Ah. So this is the animal that has become my namesake."

"What do you want?"

Sebastian seemed to return to his senses at that, his gaze returning to the small boy deemed his master. "Why, I have not fulfilled my end of our deal yet. I said that I would aid you in becoming a great man, did I not? I am prepared to keep that promise. With my help, you cannot possibly fail in any endeavor. With my help, you will be running your father's company in no time."

That pulled him in a little. For as long as he could remember, Ciel had striven to be like his father, had aimed to take over the company when the time came for his father to retire. But even so, he did not like the creature before him, had seen its true face and capabilities. "You lied," he stated shortly but accusingly, his cheeks never once leaving the warmth of the dog's fur. But there had been hesitation there and he had fallen back lamely on the same excuse and he knew that Sebastian had seen that.

"Ah, I did not, my little master. You see, lying and keeping you unaware are two completely different matters. I did not tell you that I would not take your eye; I simply did not tell you that I would, you see? And was it not for the best? Now that our bargain has been initiated, I shall never disobey you and all it took was one little eye to... how shall I phrase it? Sweeten the deal. I shall never lie to you, young master. It is against my nature. Even demons such as I have our policies; we are not uncivilised beings. I believe you will learn this quickly as well. You are still very young and have plenty of room to grow."

"You won't lie to me?" The child repeated, one large, very blue eye peering up at the tall man in suspicion, staring searchingly for any hint of a faux statement.

"Never," the demon assured him and this settled him fairly quickly.

"However, I have not come to you without reason," Sebastian continued, holding out one gloved hand for the child to inspect. There, lying in the palm of the butler's hand, was a small, white medical patch. "It would seem that your aunt left this for you when she last visited yesterday and assured the previous butler that it would be best for you to begin wearing it today. Would you allow me to change your bandages for this?"

The child stared at him for a moment, considering whether or not he could be harmed during such a process. However, there was not a hint of bad atmosphere around the butler, nor any seeming compulsion to harm him, and so he nodded his consent. "Yes."

"Yes?" the butler repeated softly, in a nearly child-friendly manner, and Ciel soon found himself relaxing as the an knelt by his side, gentle, gloved fingers working with the bandage, removing it quickly but carefully in a nature far removed from that of the previous night, when all it had taken was the swipe of a talon and the bandages had tumbled off. The boy winced at the cool air hit the open wound and kept his fingers trailing through the dog's soft fur in a nearly compulsive manner. "Don't fuss now," the butler warned him gently. "This won't be but a moment." Swiftly, the softness of the bandages was replaced by the medical patch and the boy felt the butler's fingers working at the ties of the patch at the back of his head. It was not long before the man withdrew, burgundy eyes remaining focused on the small boy. "There now," he stated softly with a deceivingly light hearted, crescent moon shaped smile. All too quickly, the previous knowledge of the thing that the servant had been was melting quickly from the child's mind, frosting melting off a cake on a hot day, and he was becoming a charming fairy tail character of handsome face and trustworthy smile. Tanaka's replacement; Tanaka's better. Someone to tuck him in and bring him warm milk, someone whose hand he may hold. An adult that was truly devoted to him. It was startlingly easy to forget the rotting flesh and the sharp claws for as long as that smile stayed on his face, as long as those dark lashes remained lowered.

"Isn't that better, young master?" the butler pressed and Ciel gave a little nod, because yes, the small patch on his eye was far better than the heat of all those bandages pressing against his hair. As though reading his thoughts, Sebastian was quickly but meticulously straightening his hair for him, running gloved fingers through the silken, if rumpled, strands. "I believe we shall have to fix that later now that all those dreadful bandages are gone," he murmured, perhaps more to himself than to his little master. "Now. The young master did not eat very much at breakfast, did he? Perhaps he would like a little snack." The butler suggested smoothly and with childish ease, the boy was drawn in by the strange red eyes and the soft voice, nodding decidedly.

:: ::

The demon watched from his act of perfectly arranging the fine crystal on show in the cabinets in the small drawing room as his little master ate away happily at the little choux pastries he had prepared and served in no time at all, indulging the boy in allowing him to eat somewhere that was not the dining room. ("But I'm not supposed to eat in here." "Think of this as a special treat, little master. Our little secret, hm?") After all, it would be no bother at all to remove any crumbs or stains left behind. However, Sebastian noted with a hint of amusement, it seemed that the child was meticulous in his cleanliness when it came to sweets, as though not willing to waste a single sugary morsel. His master (and wasn't that hilarious in itself? That the pretty little runt was the one he answered to, even if the child did not realise it) seemed even smaller by the flickering light of the fire that he so adored, like a lazy little kitten. And Sebastian had warned him thoroughly not to get too close to the flames, though it was with great reluctance. For the demon would be all too delighted to see the tiny body combust into flames, silken hair being eaten by it, little cotton clothes being decayed by the roaring, animate monster and flesh being bitten into, porcelain bones charred...

A human child was a peculiar thing. Though the soul lacked the flavouring of true evil, the soul of an innocent was something light, fluffed, like the desserts that he would come to prepare for the child in their hundreds. However, the soul would never be filling, never be satisfactory. This was an experiment that the demon had been interested in trying for a little while now. If he started early, could he tailor the soul to his liking? Many of the souls he had devoured over the centuries, over the millennia, were... overly spiced. Salty, greasy, fattening, whatever label that humans liked to plaster on these sensations. A soul was something to be handled delicately, and Sebastian liked to think of himself as something of a connoisseur. If the core of this little boy's being could be saturated in sin just-so, it would surely make for a delectable meal, something that the demon would remember on the tip of his rotting tongue for years.

And perhaps, just perhaps, he would be able to grab a little appetiser while the soul was still relatively untainted. The child seemed to trust him well enough in the course of only a day. How easy it was to lure these infants to him; a trustworthy face, a sickeningly soft voice and the promise of friendship, of treats and secrets and all manner of things that little boys delighted in. This was something that should be encouraged for as long as he could bear. The stronger the bond, the less aware the child would be that something sinister lay just underneath the water, and how delightfully horrified he would be to discover that his childhood friend had never been such. It made the demon's hollow, putrid stomach quiver with anticipation just thinking about it, made gloved fingers clench around the neck of a crystal vase with just enough control that it would not shatter under the pressure. This was not too difficult, Sebastian realised. He was learning and growing as though he himself was a mere babe. How long it had been since he had taken a more human form, one in which his ability and power should be restrained so as to blend. It was as easy as swimming, as natural as breathing, to remember these menial things.

The child's body undulated in a deep, groggy sigh as he lounged, a little princeling, by the hearth. Clumsy little fingers creeped upwards and wound, still grubby with sugar, into the once-clean strands of dark hair in a tired, subconscious movement. The demon was both repulsed by the pathetic little creature and enthralled. Such a sweet little thing, precious to his loving parents, yet so much hassle, so uncultured at this young age. The beast gave a little sigh (ah, yes, these mannerisms were not overly foreign to him at all.)

He made his way towards the dosing cherub and long, treacherous fingers gently guided the winding fingers away from those silken locks, dabbing at the corners of rose petal lips to rid them of the remaining sugar.

"Now, little master, such a mess you've made." The visible, wide blue eye was clouded by fatigue. "Time for your bath, I think, and then to bed with you."

But, to his surprise, the child shook his head. "Don't want..." he managed to mumble, before he interrupted himself with a wide yawn, plump little cheeks colouring just slightly and eyes moistening with his tiredness. The demon's previously smooth brow furrowed as he inspected the drowsy boy. Human children were terribly strange creatures, his thought decidedly. Ones that he was not used to, at that. His contractors had always been adults, of course, but here stood this little child, a child that had wanted someone to trust, someone to play with. And instead he had received Hell.

"Pardon me, young master?"

"Don't want bed," the child protested in a slurred mumble, his lower lip protruding defiantly a little, though even this seemed to be a great effort.

"Now, little master, don't be stubborn. As a child, you need plenty of rest. Come, now." One gloved hand was held out to the boy and, obediently, a small, warm hand made its was slowly into his palm and the boy trudged after him out of the room as though following his caregiver. Though, Sebastian supposed, that was his role now. In these first few years, he was the apron strings that the child could cling to. And, in future, his ladder to success, his sword and his shield to rise to power, no matter what actions must be taken; no matter what sacrifices were required.

You are in for quite the surprise, little master. Just another two years until you are bigger and stronger and you understand the world a little better, and we will have obtained your very dizziest daydreams.

Quite the surprise, indeed.

:: ::

Isaiah 14:12

"How you are fallen from Heaven, O Day Star, Son of Dawn! How you are cut down to the ground, you who laid the nations low!"

:: ::

Secondary AN: I feel as though I've deceived you all terribly regarding Tanaka! It seems a few of you were quite worried about him, but alas, for now he is safe. I just wanted to put you all on edge a little. I don't like doing things in an orthodox manner, and actually going through with anything right now just seems a bit too predictable. I want to strike when you aren't expecting it, so forgive me for that. I also hope you enjoyed hearing a little from Sebastian's point of view for a change, though I don't think his little excerpts will be too frequent. Just a little here and there to break things up. Oh and regarding Sebastian's true form, it isn't gone for good, you will be seeing more of it in subsequent chapters.

In the next chapter, we'll see butler and master get accustomed to each other a little more, and Ciel being lulled into a false sense of security, so I hope to see you then!