Hiya guys! I'm back~ I realize the subject matter in this chapter, and all chapters, really, may be sensitive material for some people. Please keep in mind I have no experience with sexual abuse. Mom likes to watch Criminal Minds, and so did I, before it became too disturbing for me. That is the source of my knowledge base on the subject. Anyways, on with the show and thanks to Aishitsuji!
Note: Hints of SebastianxClaude! Sorry! I'm trying to find a way to get the SebastianxCiel going, and, well, it just happened. Sorry!
The atmosphere was tense at the Phantomhive estate. Ciel's parents sat in a chair together across from Dr. Michaelis. Ciel had chosen to sit in a chair on his own, closer to Sebastian. He knew the tense atmosphere was only going to get worse, and he didn't want to be anywhere near his parents when they either yelled at him or smothered him in pity. It was Rachel Phantomhive who spoke first, breaking the silence.
"What is it, Dr. Michaelis? You said there was something serious regarding Ciel's condition. Is everything all right?" Sebastian took a deep breath.
"Mr. and Mrs. Phantomhive, Ciel had a minor attack yesterday during our session." Rachel gasped as Sebastian continued, "You see, I was monitoring Ciel's heart as I normally do, when I happened to accidentally brush his chest. The reaction was...startling. Ciel recoiled from me, and fell off the couch on to the floor, where he blacked out for a few minutes. After he woke up, I questioned him as to why he had reacted so negatively against my touch. He told me his previous doctor, Dr. Faustus, had been...touching him inappropriately."
"Dr. Michaelis," Vincent cut in, "I'm not sure exactly what our son said to you, but we can assure you, Dr. Faustus never did any such thing to our child. Dr. Faustus always greeted Ciel with a smile, and was never inappropriate with him." Sebastian sighed.
"Mr. and Mrs. Phantomhive, did Dr. Faustus ever ask for something of Ciel's? Perhaps a toy Ciel brought with him, or an accessory he frequently wore, to keep as a reminder of Ciel?" Rachel nodded enthusiastically.
"Ciel had a teddy bear he used to play with. When he decided he was too old to play with teddy bears and wanted to throw it away, Dr. Faustus said he had a young son who might enjoy it. I remember he said he could tell Ciel loved his teddy, because it smelled like him." Horror suddenly dawned on Rachel's face. "You can't mean-" Sebastian nodded.
"I suspect he might have intended to keep it as a keepsake, a trophy of sorts, if you will."
"So...you mean..." Vincent faltered, unable to finish the sentence, while Rachel's eyes filled with tears.
"All this time...and we never knew, even though he'd tried to tell us..." Rachel flung herself at her son, weeping hysterically. "I'm so sorry, honey! I'm so sorry!"
"Rachel." Said Vincent warningly, taking note of Ciel's sudden shortness of breath. Rachel pulled away immediately and settled back into her chair, where Vincent handed her a kleenex. Turning his attention back to Sebastian, he asked, "What do we do?"
"The first thing to do would be to go to the police. Ciel, if he is willing, can give a detailed account of Dr. Faustus' behavior towards him, and we'll see if anything strikes a chord with other families. With luck, we can build a case against him and strip him of his license, maybe even send him to prison. Would you be willing to testify against Dr. Faustus, Ciel?" Ciel nodded.
"I'll do whatever it takes to put that bastard behind bars."
"Ciel, watch your language." Rachel scolded. Ciel raised an eyebrow, but corrected himself with, "put that creep behind bars, then."
"Alright, then," Said Sebastian, "the first thing we need to do is hire a lawyer."
xxx
After a few days of digging, it was discovered that Dr. Faustus had never been married, and had never adopted children. With this and Ciel's testimony, the police obtained a warrant to search Dr. Faustus' home and office, where they found a shelf neatly stacked with toys, Ciel's teddy bear among them. The police were soon able to link the toys with all of the young boys Dr. Faustus had ever treated. The families were informed, and a few of the boys, who had gained immunity to the anesthesia like Ciel, agreed to testify. With all this evidence, it was easy to arrest Dr. Faustus on multiple counts of sexual abuse of a minor. Witnesses were questioned, Dr. Faustus was interrogated, and the trial date was set.
Even with this latest development, Ciel continued his therapy sessions for his heart. Ciel parents soon found out that he occasionally talked about the abuse he had suffered with Dr. Michaelis, so they set up a separate therapy session. Dr. Michaelis wasn't actually a certified therapist, but if Ciel talked, it didn't matter. Ciel's parents beamed as Ciel went into yet another talk session with Dr. Michaelis. He was so much more comfortable with this doctor, and it made his parents happy. They wondered if Ciel was attracted to the doctor's charming personality.
Once inside Sebastian's office, Ciel settled himself on his favourite chair, one that was soft and comfortable. He felt like he could easily fall asleep in it.
"How are you doing today, Ciel?"
"Sort of okay. I...had a nightmare last night."
"Do you want to talk about it?" Ciel hummed a quick approval before speaking.
"It's...odd. I never used to have dreams before, but I guess now, with everything happening..." Sebastian smiled encouragingly.
"It's alright, Ciel. Things will get better soon, and the dreams will go away. Can you tell me what your dream was about?"
Well, it was...Dr. Faustus, well...he was upset that I told you what he was doing, and he..." Ciel begins to blush, and looks away. Sebastian arches an eyebrow, confused at the odd reaction.
"Yes?" He gently asks.
"He...tied me up and made me watch while he...did bad things to you." Sebastian blinked.
"Me?" Ciel nods, still refusing to look at Sebastian as he speaks again. "I...you're the first person who believed me, and you made my heart better. Everything has gotten so much better since you've been around, but I worry that Dr. Faustus knows who you are and he'll take that away from me." Ciel's eyes begin to tear up slightly. "I don't ever want that man to touch me, or you, or anyone else, ever again." Touched, Sebastian draws Ciel into a tight, comforting embrace.
"It's alright, Ciel. He'll never hurt you ever again, I promise. And nobody is going to take me away from you, either. Dr. Faustus will be going to prison for a long time, where he won't be able to touch anybody ever again." Ciel nods, then snuggles into Sebastian's chest.
"I'm glad that you became my doctor. I...I like that you can hold me without me being afraid. It feels...nice." Sebastian smiled.
"I'm glad, Ciel. I'm glad that you're happy." As Ciel pulls away, an idea suddenly occurs to him. "Say, Ciel, would you be willing to come have dinner with me?" Ciel stares at him.
"With you? You mean...at your place?" Sebastian nods, then winks.
"I'll have you know I'm an excellent cook. Many people have said the food I cook is devilishly good. So, what do you say?" Ciel beamed. "I'll tell my parents."
So, I think that's this chapter! I was going to put in "I'm one hell of a cook", but I thought that would be too obvious. So I stuck with "devilishly good". Review, please~