This chapter is quite short and uneventful. I don't know about you guys but a peaceful, fluffy filler chapter is just what I needed after doing quadratics for two hours lmao
For anyone not from the UK, a jacket potato is a baked potato :-D
I don't own Kuroshitsuji.
~princess
When Ciel slowly opened his eyes due to the sun glaring in through the window, he was indeed in Sebastian's arms, held tightly to the older male's chest. He rolled over on the bed so that he was facing Sebastian and snuggled into him, feeling a little cold as it was early in the morning.
He was in his pyjamas and Sebastian was in a t-shirt and shorts, snoring quietly, looking dead to the world. Ciel tucked his head under Sebastian's chin, feeling a bit guilty. Sebastian must have been up for a while trying to get him warm and comfortable. He had never planned for Ciel to enter his life, but it was clear that he loved and adored the child with every inch of his being. Ciel frowned as he remembered how he had frightened the man last night and the boy looked solemn as he closed his eyes once more. He would stay with Sebastian no matter what.
After a while, the child sighed and opened his eyes again. He simply couldn't get to sleep. He wriggled out of Sebastian's arms and wandered around the cabin, climbing on top of a chair to see out of the window. The sea looked lovely with the sun shining on the water, and Ciel longed to go outside.
He settled for playing with his toys, having an imaginary game with them on the floor. A lamb and a gibbon were just about to have a fight when Sebastian awoke, panicking when Ciel wasn't in his arms. Had he been kidnapped? Had he magically disappeared? Irrational thoughts piled up inside his mind, until he sat up and laughed, noticing Ciel on the floor at the foot of the bed.
Ciel jumped a little, then grinned happily, hoisting himself onto the bed and crawling over to Sebastian. "Good morning," he said, as Sebastian picked him up and hugged him.
"How long have you been up?" asked Sebastian, grabbing a comb from his bag and brushing Ciel's unruly hair, trying to smooth it down.
Ciel shrugged. "Don't know." He squeaked in protest as the comb snagged on a knot.
"I'm sorry, I'll be more gentle," said Sebastian, smoothing out the knot with his fingers.
Ciel quickly got bored of sitting there. The child didn't see the point of having tidy hair anyway, so he crawled away and jumped off the bed, climbing onto the chair again. "Can we go to the beach? Pleeaase!"
"Of course," chuckled Sebastian, lifting him off the chair and placing him on the floor. "Find some clothes and I'll be ready in a few minutes."
They took the cliff path to the nearby village, which had a large beach. Ciel didn't get tired at all, although Sebastian was panting by the time they got there.
The beach was crowded with squealing, excited children and their parents and Ciel hung back, staying close to Sebastian. The man carried their mat and beach toys, and he set up camp close to the shade of the cliff, away from the people who were in the centre of the beach.
"We'll get lunch at the café in one hour," said Sebastian looking at his watch. "Would you like to go in the water?"
Ciel shook his head.
"All right, do you want to play with your toys then?" Sebastian kneeled down and began pulling things out of the bag. "Look, you've got a bucket and spade, you could build a sandcastle. And you've got a ball and a Frisbee."
The child's blue eyes lit up and he reached hesitantly for the bucket and spade. Sebastian nodded encouragingly and sat back on the mat to read his book, glancing up after every paragraph to check on Ciel.
Seeing that the boy was peacefully building a sandcastle, Sebastian decided to have a small nap. He didn't intend to fully drift off to sleep but he did, unfortunately not seeing the impish look in Ciel's eyes.
Waking with a start after feeling something soft on his feet, he saw that they had been buried in sand. The child who was responsible was sitting a few feet away, laughing delightedly.
"Bad Ciel!" scolded Sebastian light-heartedly, trying in vain to move his feet. "Goodness, this is thick, wet sand."
After sitting up and using his hands, he pulled his feet free. He wiped his hands on his trousers then reached for Ciel, grabbing him before the child could protest. Ciel grinned guiltily at him, then squirmed and giggled as Sebastian tickled his feet.
"I'm sorry," begged the child, squealing with laughter. "Sebastian!"
"It's called revenge," said Sebastian teasingly, ceasing his attack and ruffling Ciel's hair. "Have you finished your sandcastle?"
"Yes!" The child scrambled to his feet and pointed to the sandcastle proudly. "And I dug a moat Sebastian, look, but it wouldn't work when I put water in it."
Sebastian laughed. "Well, it's a magnificent castle."
"Can I go in the sea now? Please?"
Sebastian hesitated and glanced at his watch. "It's twelve o' clock, little one. Wouldn't you like to go and get lunch?"
"Yes!" declared the child, and Sebastian smiled as he began to pack the bags up. Since the mat wasn't very heavy, he rolled it up and handed it to Ciel.
"Do you think you could carry this for me?"
Ciel nodded and took the mat. The café was right next to the beach, and was called Melvin's Café. It was fairly busy, as people were now buying lunch as well as ice cream, but Sebastian spotted an empty table by the window. He hurried Ciel over to it and put the bag down on a chair.
"Look at the menu and choose a drink and something to eat," he said, sitting down opposite Ciel.
"I want a tuna baguette and diet coke," said the child, after scrutinizing the menu for a few moments.
"Did you forget a word?"
Ciel sighed dramatically. "Please." Sebastian opened his mouth to tell him off, but merely shook his head fondly when Ciel gave an adorable smile.
Sebastian went to order, after having decided that he wanted a jacket potato and lemonade. He returned to the table to find Ciel eating sugar lumps out of the little dish.
"Ciel! Stop it this instant!" He pulled the dish away before the pouting child could take another, and put it on the windowsill out of his reach. "You're not a horse."
"What are they for, then?" asked Ciel innocently.
"To put in a cup of tea, not to eat," said Sebastian. "I never knew anything like it. Look, our food's here."
The pair enjoyed a leisurely lunch and afterwards Ciel bought a chocolate ice cream. The day grew hotter and hotter and they both decided it was time for swimming.
Ciel had an inflatable dolphin that he pestered Sebastian to blow up. As he hurried to catch the child up, he took Ciel's hand. "Ciel! You're not to go out of your depth, and you're never to go in the water, without me, all right?"
Ciel nodded impatiently and Sebastian kept a firm hold of his hand. "Understand?"
"Yes, Sebastian!" Sebastian released him and they both stepped into the water, Ciel squealing and jumping back. "It's cold!"
"Come on!" laughed Sebastian, splashing him. "You sounded like a girl."
"Hey!" protested the child. "I'll show you!" He charged into the water, tripping over some seaweed as he did so. He would have plummeted into it face first if Sebastian had caught him under the arms, steadying him.
"Easy does it," teased the man. "Let's wade out slowly, all right?"
Ciel went out until his feet were just about touching the sandy floor. This was less than stomach height for Sebastian, but he stayed in the shallows with the child, playing with him. Ciel loved to dive under the water and come out somewhere else, and Sebastian played along by pretending to be shocked when Ciel surfaced.
At one point, Ciel stayed under the water for a few seconds longer. Sebastian panicked and crouched down to look for him, then gasped and spluttered as the child jumped onto his back from behind, laughing.
"You worried me!" said Sebastian, water dripping from his hair. "Sneaky, aren't you?"
Ciel giggled and swam horizontally to the shore, calling to Sebastian to try and catch him.
When the tide started to come in during the evening, Sebastian packed the bag again and took Ciel's hand to go back to the cliff path, to the child's dismay. He sulked as they walked.
"Cheer up," said Sebastian, picking him up in one arm as they neared the cabin. Ciel gazed at him forlornly. "We'll snuggle up on the sofa and watch a film, does that sound good? And we'll have pizza for tea."
Ciel smiled at that and clung to Sebastian, not used to being held in one arm.
Sebastian kept his word. They ended up watching Big Hero 6, Ciel's favourite film, but the child didn't make it through the entire thing. By the end he was curled up with his head on Sebastian's lap, eyes half closed.
"You look like you're asleep already," teased Sebastian, turning the TV off as the credits arrived. Ciel murmured sleepily in response and Sebastian stood up, holding the child in his arms. Ciel's head lolled against his chest, and he began to snore a little as Sebastian walked to their shared bedroom.
Sebastian placed him gently under the blankets and tucked him in, the closed the curtains quietly.