A/N: Would you look at that? It's Sunday!~ I feel like an eternity has passed from last Sunday to this one, partially because I've been enduring my third insufferable week of bandcamp, which is over 12 hours a day, and I've been sick as fuck with who knows what... Alright, I'll stop complaining x) Anyhow, I want to thank Thegraybluekitten, Sprankles, emberstar55, beyond-the-night, promocat, Totawaii, VampireSiren, and pantsutan for their reviews! I'd also like to thank thateyepatch for continued support! I know I talk about it every week, but seriously, your kind words are my reason for writing. Despite my aspiration, I actually don't have much confidence so far as writing, so your feedback means everything to me. I love you guys.
Also, I hereby sell my soul to Thegraybluekitten for the riveting reviews I've received on this fanfiction as well as others, as they are my primary reason to continue ^-^ That will cost you one cookie... What's that? pantsutan already gave me a cookie? Okay, my soul is totally for free then~ Also, Sprankles- when can we have that wedding ceremony?
Chapter 7 Songs:
Time Is Running Out- Muse
Demolition Lovers- My Chemical Romance
This Is How I Disappear- My Chemical Romance
HEY. YOU THERE. YEAH, YOU, THE CUTE ONE... You should check out Incubus and Best Left Unspoken. :) Some phenomenal shit right there~
Disclaimer: I'm running out of creative ways to tell you guys that I'm not Yana Toboso...
Warning: I suppose I should warn you that there's more mild violence/gore, but it didn't perturb anybody last time. x)
Chapter 7:
A vivid cerulean sky greeted the Earl of Phantomhive when he awoke, the sunlight casting a crisp, butter-yellow brightness in the otherwise dreary room. It was so brilliant that even when he closed his eyes again, the backs of his eyelids seemed to glow scarlet. Scowling, he blinked several times, trying to collect his wits about him. How late is it? He panicked, grimace deepening, and snapped his head to the side, meeting a pair of crimson eyes.
"What the hell, Sebastian?" his first words of the day were groaned out in a plaintive voice thick with sleep. "What time is it? Why didn't you wake me up?"
"I believe it is about two in the afternoon, my lord," he responded with an exasperated smile. "And I did wake you up, three times I believe, once every hour." The demon gestured to the corner of the room; on the floor were the shattered remnants of an oil lantern that had previously belonged on the nightstand, one which Ciel assumed he had hurled at the butler while he was half-asleep.
"After the third time, you semi-coherently ordered that I 'leave you the hell alone and go pick some goddamned flowers or something'," Sebastian added a little bitterly, gesturing at the bedside table. In place of the demolished oil lamp, a cheap vase full of flowers now sat on its surface. "Ever since, I've been waiting for you to awake, as you advised."
The genuine smirk of amusement Ciel wore at the news was brief, and he lifted a hand to his mouth, stifling a yawn. Something was bugging him…
His butler walked off to retrieve something else, making a few offhanded comments about how he had been easier to wake up as a human, which didn't seem quite right, but hey, maybe adolescence was to blame.
"Wait!" Ciel lurched upright in the bed. "We were supposed to have new papers made and processed this morning for Vivienne… now we're behind schedule…"
"Not to worry, young master," Sebastian emerged from another room, salver in hand. "I took the liberty of preparing the girl's papers, as well as scoping out a property and possible responsible servants for her, while you were sleeping."
Ciel slumped, relieved at the pleasant news but disappointed that he'd hardly accomplished anything. "So you've done everything on your own?"
"Don't look discouraged, now. One of the primary reasons I delegated the duties to myself was for the schedule's sake alone. In the long run, this is simply more convenient for the both of us. We aren't permitted to stay another night above this tavern, anyhow."
"Not permitted?" Ciel raised an eyebrow. "As in the man is audacious enough to kick us out?"
"Unfortunately so, my lord. The owner of the tavern says he received several noise complaints from his other tenants, and prefers we lodge elsewhere in the future. He pulled me aside as I was coming back with your flowers."
Ciel stared dumbly at Sebastian for a moment or two, but as soon as the last night's escapades unfolded in his mind and he realized what the complaints were for, the blood rushed to his cheeks.
Meaning to change the subject, Ciel loudly cleared his throat and glanced away sternly. "Well… thank you for finishing that up for me last night, Sebastian." The butler snickered, and Ciel, flustered, spat out, "I meant finishing Vivienne's papers!"
"I know, my lord. What else could you have meant?" Sebastian smiled, composing himself.
Damn demon. How irritating.
The earl was further beside himself when he realized the beverage Sebastian presented to him on the platter was a tall glass of water. He looked at him petulantly.
"I've prepared tea for you as well, young master, but as your caretaker I would advise you drink this beforehand," he explained. "I'm well aware of your demonic disposition, but you seem so attached to this humanoid form, and recover more slowly than other demons. You should take care of simple health maintenance."
Ciel lifted the heavy glass with one hand, eying it thoughtfully. He smacked his lips together; yes, his mouth was dry, but not fretfully so. "I'm really not even that thirsty, Sebastian."
"If you insist, my lord. I only recommend it because I would not want you becoming weary or dehydrated," he conversed as Ciel lifted the glass to his lips anyways. "After all, you did release a rather copious amount of sem—"
He was cut off as a spray of water shot from Ciel's mouth in astonishment. The boy coughed and sputtered for a second before angrily chucking the entire cup of water at Sebastian's head. The butler dodged to the side, and the glass sailed through the air, only to shatter on the opposite wall, clinking to the ground in sparkling fragments and spattering a large wet stain across the wood. Sebastian's lips twitched upwards at the corners.
"I suppose I'll bring in the tea, then. Though I do suggest you don't hurl it across the room as well. We are guests here, after all."
"No promises," Ciel grunted.
He had wondered at first if the ordeal between them would change after the night before. Now, however, the only thing that had changed was Sebastian's demeanor. When Ciel had first become a demon, his butler was solemn and almost self-pitying in his solitude; in recent weeks, and especially over the last couple of days, he had been reinvigorated to his regular, infuriating self.
Ciel nearly regretted slinging his glass of water across the room; on pondering his butler's self-pleased antics, his mouth had become eerily dry.
"Actually, Vivienne, I think Sebastian is a perfect name for a dog," Ciel beamed a little too amiably.
He surveyed Sebastian's reaction in his peripheral vision; a noticeable flinch, followed by a painfully placid smile and a nod of agreement. The little girl's eyes, which were regularly the dull slate grey of dirty rainwater, seemed to sparkle with new liveliness at hearing Ciel's approval of her promised pet's name. At the mention of his own namesake, Sebastian looked far less overjoyed.
The rickety carriage bumped down the beaten dirt path, jostling its inhabitants; the four had nearly reached their destination, a homely yet regal estate where Vivienne would be staying while her country house was under construction. The demon pair had gone to retrieve mother and daughter directly after departing from the hotel above the tavern. Unfortunately, they encountered their neighbors from last night upon leaving, who looked horrified on discovering that the copulative couple was a young boy and his older male servant. The Phantomhive boy shrugged off their indecent mumblings with an impressive glower, and it was Sebastian's gaze, stoic and a bit too pleasant, that silenced them. Afterwards, the four had swiftly boarded up and traveled in fair weather for the remainder of the journey. One of Vivienne's necessities to living happily, apparently, had been a puppy; she was all too eager to tell her new friends about her intentions for names, despite how obviously uncomfortable her mother was with how chummy she was with the demons.
Several minutes later, the carriage driver announced their approaching arrival, and soon enough, the wizened tires were groaning as they came to a halt. The girl burst from the doorway, skeletal limbs flailing, and was soon bustling and scrambling over the vast lawn towards her assigned maid and new pup. Ciel waved Camilla out after her child, bidding she say goodbye, and watched the woman sluggishly exit the carriage.
"It seems so petty," Ciel remarked once Camilla was out of earshot. "Looking at how insignificant everything is. Surely people have given their lives for less, and I might have seen the way they did, once… but it all seems pathetic now, in a way. I can't explain it."
Sebastian Michaelis laughed outright. "It has come to my attention, my lord, that you degrade demons, despite being one now, and you equally condescend on humans, though you've been human as well. It makes me wonder if you really do have no shame."
The earl's nose wrinkled at his servant's suggestive language, and he narrowed his sapphire eyes. What did he imply by that? "Shame? Not for you."
Sebastian only chuckled. Ciel obdurately ignored it, pointedly looking out the window to watch Camilla attempting to pry herself from her daughter's grasp. He gently clicked his tongue, impatient.
"My lord, if it is not too bold of me to say, you may want to watch your tongue prior to the… procedure. One can never have a truly grateful soul, but the contract is only of worth if the soul goes willingly."
"Why does it matter what she thinks?" Ciel drawled. "She's inconsequential. She'll cease to exist. By the time we're done, there won't be a place in hell left for her."
Sebastian's mouth hinted the phantom of a smile, elated with the boy's unintentional irony, and couldn't help leaning closer to the younger demon. "So well spoken, my lord."
"I trust that you're ready," Sebastian spoke warmly, "but we couldn't possibly accept your soul without fulfilling our side of the bargain. You said you wished for your daughter's protection."
The demons waited for her to expand on her instructions, yet she stood petrified, shaking with fists clenched, a curtain of fair hair cascading over her face. It was extremely unclear what she was experiencing, be it fear, regret, or misery, but as the pair was bound to the woman, the torrent of emotions whirling inside of her was obvious.
"… I said I wanted her to be safe, but I never said I wanted you to be the ones protecting her," she started at last, voice tense and oscillating as she began to lift her head. "In fact, I don't want you to stay near her, watching her. I meant it with every fiber of my being when I said I wanted to save her from this life, so she wouldn't be a thing like me. Not in any way. And if there's one thing she needs protecting from, it's people— no, monsters— like you!"
She had gone rigid on her final outburst, and with her face in view, the tears prickling at the corners of her eyes glistened; she wore an uncharacteristic expression of virulent fury, chest heaving with uneven breath. Glinting in her eyes, in this caged instant, was the passionate emotion Sebastian had been waiting for. Hatred.
It was amorphous as to where her hate stemmed from initially, but it had all coalesced together, and was finally ignited by the panic of her last moments alive. Ever since they left Vivienne, she had practically been trembling with distraught, like a cork ready to pop. But she wasn't afraid; she was angry. Camilla Croft was not so spent after all, despite her outcast, debilitating lifestyle; she had enough energy for one final fight, to express her detest at her fate, her luck, her world— and now, at her able targets, the monsters who were soon to devour her. To Sebastian's satisfaction, she was now ready.
Faithlessness. Nobility. Persistence. Satiation. Sentimentality for Ciel's sweet tooth. And now, this beautiful dosage of loathing, the last yet most potent seasoning to the soul, which seemed to sear it to perfection. He had to be swift and meticulous in order to keep her in this state for Ciel's sake. Calm her enough so that she would detach from this mortal life willingly, yet slaughter her before this coveted hatred could fade.
"My lady, I promise you," he swore solemnly, addressing her with his permanent butler's etiquette, "we will never lay a finger on your daughter; to dream of it would be traitorous. We will also ascertain that no other creature of our realm dares to venture near her. Your little girl will be granted entrance to heaven when she dies, and her mortal life will be peaceful as well. Don't be afraid; for her or for yourself. I assure you that I have performed similar procedures hundreds of times, and you are safe within my hands." His gloved palm slipped the sleeve of her soiled gown over her shoulder, staring with diluted interest at the insignia present there, where she had requested it be. "It will be painless, not including some instances that may feel a bit painful for the purpose of teaching my master his lesson, and that's only to make a point of the method."
Ciel Phantomhive caught himself glowering at Sebastian's tender gesture towards the woman. Obviously, she was nothing more than prey for either of them, but there was something nostalgic for Ciel in the way he touched her. Though Sebastian looked far less fixated with her, Ciel recalled Sebastian caressing him in the same manner, and an uneasy knot began twisting in his stomach. One of both jealousy and… uncertainty.
"You didn't need to tell her she was my first contract, you know," Ciel snapped, releasing some of his irritation.
"Whatever happened to her opinion being inconsequential?"
The boy sighed at his butler's playful jape, before straightening up and striding forwards, keen on his lesson. Camilla had been soothed by Sebastian's reassurances, and though she still shook lightly, she was steadfast in her decision.
"Now, young master, the first step of the process is to kill the body. It isn't required that the life be extinguished first, but even if the soul is willing, the human body will naturally resist. It is mortal nature to quarrel against death, and cannot be helped. Therefore, a swift demise is very convenient, on both sides."
He spoke of the grim events with a ghastly enthusiasm, recounting the methods of soul devouring as if it were no more than a simple business transaction.
"Of course, killing the human is an infinitely versatile matter. Some demons enjoy the kill most, actually, for reasons I cannot fathom… Anyhow, you can kill your prey however you see fit. Traditional weaponry, a quick slash of claws, complete annihilation, a slit throat or broken neck," he listed. "I myself prefer a neat and tidy death, one that leaves little physical proof on the corpse, and doesn't obstruct the removal of the soul. A beautifully clean kill… Like so."
At his final words he turned, smile unfaltering, and tapped Camilla on the temple. A sickening crack rang out when the tip of his finger struck her skull, and the astonishment registered on her face for an instant before her body dropped to the ground. Her hair was fanned out beneath her like a flaxen halo, and her face still donned its shocked expression; the only difference now was a clean, bloodless dent in her head. She was dead.
The earl started at watching the woman fall so quickly, but the death itself did not disturb him; he had seen and caused far too many bodies in his time.
"So you can kill them gently, too?" he inquired.
"Yes, if that's what you'd like to call it," his butler said absentmindedly, kneeling down beside Camilla's cadaver.
"…Would a kiss work?"
"Yes," Sebastian answered, but he glanced at Ciel out of the corner of his eye, exhibiting more interest.
"Is that what you planned to do to me, then?"
"No, my lord," Sebastian's answer was cogent. "...You told me to etch the pain of being alive into your soul. So that's how I planned to take you, alive. More anguish and suffering than any human should have to endure. As you desired."
A thrill shuddered across Ciel's spine from the cold honesty, yet his countenance remained impassive. He was well aware that his demon couldn't lie, but he was certainly capable of omitting detail. Were those the lurid lengths Sebastian would go to, just to act on Ciel's utmost desires? Unsure of how to feel, Ciel stared at his butler in curiosity. Sebastian, whether obliviously or purposefully, continued to adjust and position the body before them as if the exchange had never passed between them, and then glanced at Ciel, to confirm that he was ready to move on.
"Now comes the extraction," he lectured pleasantly. "This also has endless possibilities. Even so, a demon of my years and caliber is expected no less of than to be able to slip the soul cleanly from its cask. That is all that bodies are; protective containers, if you will. If a demon goes about razing humans and stealing the souls, a most messy and unpalatable practice, it will have to be hasty, and usually involves destroying the body as well. However, as we have a permissive contract, we can take all the time we'd like. How would you prefer it?"
He started on another alien tangent, describing specific means, as Ciel stared blankly. It could easily be coaxed out with a flick of the tongue, he said, or a laceration could be incised, like a dissection, and it could be removed wholly. A whole soul is important, he said. That was why he advised a clean kill; it was no use fishing around in a damaged body for a soul's broken pieces, and utterly unappetizing to pick the pieces clean from shreds of flesh and bone splinters.
Ciel did not make a decision, so Sebastian bid that he observe, and suddenly, leaned in to kiss the dead woman. The watching boy nearly blanched, feeling increasingly uncomfortable, until he realized that Sebastian was not kissing Camilla, but rather extending his tongue into her. It was an eerie spectacle, watching him slowly and sweetly beckon her soul forth, rummaging inside of her with macabre intention. The demon's slotted magenta eyes seemed to glow brighter, and he languidly extracted his tongue, coaxing out the woman's soul along with it. Even after he withdrew, the woman remained slack-jawed and glaze-eyed, somehow looking even more grey and lifeless than she had before.
Sebastian's lips parted ever so slightly and he exhaled; from his mouth, the soul spiraled forth, and levitated in the palms of his hands. This type of soul was nothing Ciel had ever seen before. A silvery translucent hue, it flashed iridescent color as it undulated and rippled beneath the sunlight, looking to be some surreal texture that was both gelatinous and wispy, yet hardly tangible. Though it was barely even palpable, Ciel was magnetized by its beauty, and had never hungered for anything so badly before. Every soul he had consumed prior was naught in comparison. He remembered how, though less luminous, the other bodiless souls had looked similar, despite being so withered from age and wear. They had deteriorated at his touch, crumbling to powdery dust in his palms, and he had shoveled handfuls into his mouth, starved and still unsatisfied. Those were no more than hemorrhaging wraiths, though; not even comparable to ghosts.
"Young master, it is crucial, if you want to be humane, to completely sever body and soul," Sebastian digressed, before kneading his fingers into the silky soul. He thumbed the edge of it, and Ciel was shocked to see a disturbance vibrate through the air, like a rift in space. When he peered closer, however, he noticed a half-visible, silvery thread of mist connecting the soul to the woman's mouth. The soul had not been detached from the body; a botched performance, for the purpose of educating Ciel. "Otherwise, the results could be… unpleasant."
With that, he buried his fingers deep within the hazy silver and twisted, a fissure branching through the center. At the same instant, Camilla's corpse arched into the air with a jerk, bending backwards to an excruciating angle, and an earsplitting, unearthly howl split the air.
Ciel leapt back a foot, bewildered at the gruesome image, his face blenching with a sick pallor. "B-but she's dead!" he exclaimed hoarsely, not even bothering to cover his shock.
"Correct. Killing the body stops it from resisting, and does stultify conscious pain; however, death alone does not end pain. You of all people should understand this," Sebastian grinned darkly. "The body is dead, but the body, full of nerves and senses, is the physical manifestation of the soul. If still connected, it cannot only make use of the body's senses, but also use it to express its agony. It's a delicate thing, really. A free soul feels no 'physical' pain. Emotional pain is another thing entirely, but souls scream silently."
With another brutal rip, a tormented wail punctured the air. The woman's figure was now crippled into a distorted pose, almost as if her form mirrored her soul's disposition; as Sebastian inched his hands further apart, her very skin looked ready to split at the seams.
"Alright, that's enough, I get it!" Ciel spat out in a single breath, after another ear-shattering screech wracked the levitating corpse. Without further ado, Sebastian snapped the foggy thread, and the sound stopped instantly, Camilla's body buckling to the ground a final time.
Ciel was still astonished and pallid, but he walked forwards as soon as the string dissipated into thin air. A single drop of sweat rolled over his temple, and he wiped it off with the back of his glove.
Due to his candid fear, the sweat alone was saturated with his essence, and the mere scent made Sebastian want to drop the soul in his hands to pursue a new target, even if he knew it would be useless, but he resisted.
The boy had finally composed himself, and was now standing before Sebastian, entranced by the soul once more. His lips were parted, mouth watering, as he hovered closer and closer to his butler's hands. Looking satisfied, Sebastian entwined his finger in the thick of the soul and wound it about the digit, then extended it to feed his master, inserting it into his mouth. Watching the boy hesitantly suck on his finger, he gently rubbed his thumb across the boy's full bottom lip, smiling softly. Ciel's eyelids twitched, before fluttering open; his irises were now an illuminated fuchsia, and his demon's mark glowed vibrant with vigor. Teeth lightly grazed his finger, and the elder demon yanked his finger from the boy's mouth before he could bite him, reluctant to believe in Ciel's self-control. A hasty tug, and Sebastian completed his earlier tear, dividing the soul in two; Camilla Croft was no more, and not even reapers would be able to salvage what was left of her. Slowly, he guided the fragments of the soul up to both Ciel's mouth and his own, watching with surprise as the boy greedily and ravenously lunged forwards, devouring it messily in seconds, like a depraved beast. The butler gaped for a second before sucking his share into his own mouth. He was unimpressed with the flavor, but still exuberant from the satisfaction of finally being able to eat. As it slipped tenderly around his tongue, he lost himself in bliss, and hardly noticed Ciel scouring his hand for any traces left behind, eyes wide and frantic.
More. There has to be more. That lone thought ricocheted through his head, pounding and echoing through the chambers of his mind harder with each second that his mouth stayed empty. Only intrinsic thoughts swarmed inside of him now, as if consuming souls was the most instinctual thing in the world. He had felt hunger before, and dissatisfaction; but he couldn't have predicted the bounds of a starvation this severe, roiling in his gut, and he had never considered that raw hunger alone could drive a demon into want and madness. Yet now, after finally sampling something so splendid and divine, he understood, and he understood it better than anything he had ever acknowledged before. The primal, inherent need became urgent, and every instant he wasn't devouring Camilla, he felt as if he himself were waning, wasting away. He was entirely engulfed, possessed by this mesmerizing passion for the taste. So when he saw the faint gleam of silver on his butler's lips, he dove forwards to claim it.
Sebastian's eyes snapped open when he felt the warm lips press forcefully against his own; he had never expected the boy to do something so brazenly audacious in his right mind. However, when he felt Ciel's tongue shove its way into his mouth, he realized that the boy probably still wasn't in his right mind. There was a reckless abandon in the way Ciel kissed him, some wild fervor in the way he gasped into his lips and swept his tongue along the inside of his mouth, almost as if he was… foraging for something. Sebastian's thoughts processed slowly in his trance, intoxicated and pleased by his master's forward advances, as well as by the concocted savor of Ciel and Camilla rolling over his tongue. Even so, it took him seconds to realize what Ciel meant to do. The unruly brat was trying to eat the soul right out of his mouth. He had managed to devour far more than his own portion before Sebastian pried him away. In a heartbeat, Ciel had left Sebastian's side for the corpse's.
The raven-haired butler scowled, slightly annoyed that not only had the younger demon kissed him with that manipulative intention, but that he had also made off with a large helping of his meal. However, he could recall his first taste of a quality soul, and knew his master's desperation could hardly be helped. With a sigh, he approached the boy.
Ciel retracted his tongue from the woman in horror; he had stretched as far as he could down her gullet, lapped at her insides for any scant trace of her soul, but Sebastian had done his job too cleanly. The carcass was empty. How the hell is it empty? It's the goddamned body, there must be something left! Panicking, he wondered if he was not going deep enough.
Gripping the top and bottom of her mouth, he violently tore it apart in a single motion; the flesh ripped jagged down the sides of her face, exposing the slick muscle and taut tendons beneath as it peeled away. With another grunt, Ciel wrenched once more, watching in satisfaction as the sinews snapped and her jaw dislocated with a crack, her face falling open; the force of the shove was applied directly on her gums, and her teeth in the front popped out and dangled like bloodied kernels of popcorn. Ciel plunged downwards again, now that he had made access easier. Regardless, as soon as he breached the gaping cavity, he was wrapped in an embrace and lugged away from the body.
Frenzied, Ciel writhed and kicked, trying to peel himself out if his butler's arms, spitting livid threats. Sebastian waited for the induced bloodlust to dispel from his system, listening as the vile insults turned to pitiable groans, and then to silence.
Once the boy was still, having affirmed it to himself that nothing remained, Sebastian released him. Crouching down, Sebastian wiped the dead woman's blood from his master's soft cheeks, ignoring the smudged, rusty stains left on his gloves. Ciel was not ashamed of his conduct; in fact, he could hardly recall all that had happened, smothered in incessant desire. Despite how rousing the event had been, and how empty it had left him feeling, he had never felt so powerful an exhilaration and contradictory fulfillment in his life.
"Sebastian… thank you," Ciel spoke softly; his face was stoic as always, but some thrill sparkled in his eyes, something reminiscent of the genuine smile he'd lost.
"The pleasure is all mine, my lord," Sebastian claimed, seeming to already have forgiven his behavior in light. "In fact, you practiced restraint much better than I assumed you would."
Ciel tilted his head liltingly to the side, catching sight of Camilla's brutally disfigured face, and cringed. He'd been completely aware of what he was doing at the time, yet now for some reason, the sight of her mutilated mouth nauseated him. He knew that he was demon, but he never wanted to consider the level of monstrosity he'd transitioned into.
"It's a shame about her face," Ciel reckoned, frowning.
"Indeed, young master. I pity whoever discovers the body, or has to solve the case," he noted simply. "I doubt there will be much lasting uproar… even so, it's always unfortunate to destroy a perfectly good body."
Ciel glowered; something about the comment irked him. "Why do you make such a fuss over bodies anyways? They're hardly the important part."
"Bodies can be important. A container is just about as valuable as whatever it holds."
"So what is the value of a container when it's empty?"
Sebastian smirked at the riled reply, sensing his master's misdirected envy. "True. I suppose I would be a pessimist as well if my glass wasn't always full."
Now what does he mean by that? He couldn't possibly be referring to Ciel's unreachable soul, all of the scent and taste without the fodder. Yet it was apparent that was it, and Sebastian's lust for his soul seemed to keep his state of mind consistent.
"And I suppose if your cup was empty, my body would be fair game?" Ciel smiled bitterly.
"Of course not. I could never destroy your body."
When Ciel didn't reply, Sebastian took it as permission to continue, hoping, if anything, to evoke a self-conscious blush. "Naturally, there is always a special pleasure that comes with ruining pretty things. I'm sure most demons channel that satisfaction; the feeling one can gather only from corrupting the innocent and shattering the frail. A pleasure not only confined to demon-kind, actually. But a perfect body, an image of the soul itself, is something to be cherished. If it is not too bold of me to say, you are a very beautiful container, young master."
Ciel Phantomhive tensed at his butler's unassuming words, feeling a hand run through his dark teal locks. Something was bothering him. A container… was that all he was? An empty husk?
He may as well accept it; he was in love with his butler. Sebastian had purchased his soul, but he had stolen his heart.
And from what he knew, his butler loved his soul. Yet now, the notion wasn't as reassuring as he thought. After he had tasted Camilla, he understood pure bloodlust for souls. It was obvious to him he had never loved Camilla, or even been particularly fond of her, not at any point in the past and not now, and he could never see obsessing over any single soul to the point Sebastian did. But he had wanted her, more honestly and fervently in a single instant than he had ever wanted anything in his life prior, in a way that drowned all inhibitions, as well as momentary sanity. The type of passion which, past certain bounds, could plausibly be confused with love. He had never posed questions or concerns about Sebastian's hunger before, and hated himself for doing so now… but as he had thought before, love is almost impossible to earn, even if hunger is ten-a-penny. He had involuntarily given his away to another demon, without a second thought, but that didn't mean he'd be granted a thing in return.
He could tell himself that he was more than a simple cask all he wanted; after all, no one wasted their time on empty cookie jars. But Sebastian never wasted any of his time, did he? He always filched some of the flavor he coveted, even without devouring him, through any means necessary. Touched intimately and distastefully to satisfy the puckish hunger of whom he loved. For once, the unshakable Ciel Phantomhive found something that he could not tolerate.
Though he knew he had a literal eternity, he suddenly felt as if he was running out of time. He needed to discover if this amorous desire was truly for him, and not derived from appetite. And he already had the solution.
"Sebastian. There's somewhere that I want to go."
A/N: I'm sorry to say this, but this fanfiction will be coming to an end sooner than I anticipated... The plot may wrap up in a few more chapters... I thought I should just inform you. :3
THIS IS IMPORTANT AND ALSO IRRELEVANT: Incubus was intended to be completely finished, but due to many opinionated reviews asking for more, I'm considering adding an epliogue just to wrap things up. What do you think?
Please review, lovelies! And check out my other fics, if it wouldn't be too much of a bother! :D
