Kuroshitsuji © Yana Toboso
OCs © reaper-of-lost-souls
A/N: BAM ANOTHER CHAPTER! I hope I didn't startle you TOO much… okay I'm glad XD Just no more worries now, since the cliff hanger is over… for the most part. Well as always ENJOY!
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The shinigami gulped, seeing a flash of red stand in front of him and save him from a vicious blow to the chest. If that child hadn't showed up he would have been died, leaving little William without a father and alone in this damp world. He let out shaky gasps as he tried to compose himself and snap back to his senses, unable to find strength as his death scythe dropped to the ground beside him.
"Mr. Spears!" a fellow shinigami called to him, dashing over to him and shaking him. "Mr. Spears come on! The demon has fled and – Spears?..."
"I-I'm alright," he sighed as he shook the chilling sensation of death off of his shoulders and looked over at the other man with a smile, "I am fine…"
The shingiami helped him off of the ground and grabbed his death scythe for him, bringing him along down the road towards the other shinigamis that waited for them. "What happened to Mr. Spears?" one of them frowned.
"I-I'm not sure," the other frowned, "but regardless where are the demons now?"
"They all took off to the river," the other explained, "which was very peculiar. We ran in and took all of them out except for the ones who could swim and fly away fleeing from us."
"I see…" the shingiami sighed, "Well I'll take Spears back. He's shaking and won't talk to me."
"How irregular," the other nodded in understand, watching as the shinigami took Mr. Spears through a portal and disappeared from their sights. "… Where's Undertaker?"
"He disappeared and hasn't come back yet –"
"Oh you're looking for me~?" Undertaker appeared behind them, a few of the shinigamis jumping back startled at the threatening presence before them.
"Y-yes," the shinigami shook as he coughed and tried to compel himself in front of the legend. "… Did you find that being that is holding one of our death scythes?"
"Not at all," the Undertaker lied, a wide grin upon his face that made the other shinigami shudder. "By the way," he said changing the subject, "did we lose anyone tonight?"
"Nope," he answered, "but Mr. Spears is shaking over something –"
"Ah alright," Undertaker nodded, "then give me his soul's list and I'll complete it for him."
"B-but sir –"
"That's an order," Undertaker told him casually, "and if anyone asks I'll be showing up back to work at midnight." The shinigami nodded and sighed, nodding to the rest of them as they took off to leave legend to his work.
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One of the young children emerged early for the day, taking on Grell's responsibility for making breakfast for the other children. When they made it to the river they gasped, running back to the building to wake everyone up. "T-there's a dead body in the water!" the child screamed, the older children running down to the water to investigate.
A few of them gasped, trudging into the water and pulling the dead body out. "G-grell?" a girl quivered her bottom lip, noticing the bright red hair and torn up clothes the young body had on.
David pushed through the crowd and grabbed Grell, quickly noticing the wound on his chest as he bit down on his bottom lip. "H-he may still be alive," he shivered slightly, "but he needs some air." The children moved away from him as he examined Grell, noticing his breathing had stopped, but his heart was still beating. "Come on Grell," he growled as he tried all he could to wake him up, "you can't die on us right now. Come on! Wake up!"
He shook him till he heard a soft mumble, the eyes turning to the body as Grell coughed up blood. "O-wie…" Grell groaned, gripping his chest tightly in agonizing pain as he felt warm blood coming back out of his chest.
"Quick bring him inside!" David told the other children, a group of them grabbing Grell's body and pulling him into the building. Grell laid on the ground whimpering to himself, unable to keep his eyes open for a second longer. "I-it's alright," David talked to him as Grell's eyelids began to flicker, "I'll keep you safe." Unable to keep his eyes open Grell fell into a deep slumber, his hand gripping tightly into his bag for the wet doll that lay inside.
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"My goodness Grell," David sighed as he finished wrapping his chest. Grell winced as the other boy poked his wound, clutching his doll tightly to his side. "… What happened?"
"I-I don't want to talk about it," Grell pouted, "just… no. You should go to sleep. You have to work tomorrow." David nodded and gave him a gentle pat on the back, leaving Grell sitting on his blanket with his doll clutched in his arms. Grell looked around at all the children and sighed, unable to sleep as he felt pain rippling throughout his whole body. He stood up and left the building, leaning against the wall next to the trash as he curled up as a tiny ball on the ground. He began to quietly sob to himself, rocking back and forth as he tried to calm himself down.
There was pain everywhere, reaching from the top of his head to the bottom of his toes. Grell didn't know what hurt more: the physical pain he was feeling from the deep gash in his chest, the infection in his arm, the bruise he had gotten when he fell into the water, or the metal pain he was experiencing inside of his mind. He had just given up himself to a filthy old human! Wha… was he now a whore? He knew it would have been either him of that Leon kid, but still… he felt sick to his stomach. Angry, frustration filled his mind, but yet killing the old gnat still didn't seem enough. Grell sighed; he let his anger get the better of him. That's why he ended up with this pain in his chest… but he couldn't let the demon escape without showing it whose boss… right? He sniffled, wiping the tears from his face with the back of his sleeve before pressing his face into his doll's chest. He was all alone now and the only thing standing between him and Death was these children he had sworn to protect. Grell coughed into his hand, wondering if his decision to keep the children safe would only be for nothing. He couldn't stand not knowing, pressing his head between his knees and continuing to cry.
"G-grell?" he heard a voice next to him, his eyes looking up in horror to see Essie walking towards him with a frown on her face. "G-grell… you…" she sniffled, rubbing her eyes as she tried to keep herself from crying. "I-I… if this is a bad time –"
"No it's quite alright," Grell told her, ushering her over and letting her sit down next to him. "… Something on your mind?"
"Y-you could say that," Essie answered him, looking up to the being sitting next to her. Her lip quivered, noticing how puffy and tired Grell's eyes were. She gently grabbed for his arm, bringing it down from his knee and setting her head upon it. She closed her eyes and began to cry quietly, her small hands wrapping around his arm and refusing to let him go. "M-mommy…" she sniffled, gripping her doll tightly as she kept a firm grip on Grell, "I-I'm glad you're back."
Grell didn't look at the child, only heard her silently sob next to him. He wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to him, pulling her into a tight hug as he held back tears. "I-t's alright Essie," he told her, "I won't leave you… not ever."
"V-vous promettre?" she looked up her face turning puffy from the tears that fell down her cheek.
He smiled and wiped the tears from her eyes, causing Essie to smile back at him. "I promise," Grell grinned, "that I will not leave you till the day you pass away from this earth." Essie nodded and giggled, setting her head back on his arm and holding him tightly. She let out a yawn and closed her eyes, the warmth radiating from him soothing her to sleep. Grell looked down at the girl and ran a hand through her light brunette hair and chuckled lightly. No, this all wasn't for nothing and if he could let even this little child live on then he couldn't even let Death stop him now.
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"F-father?" William knocked on the door of his father's office, cautiously walking inside and standing at the door. He moved the new broad-circular glasses on his nose nervously, rubbing his shoulder as he stared at the shinigami sitting at the office desk. "W-will you be coming for dinner tonight?"
"No," he answered him, not giving him a proper answer in William's mind.
"Why not?" William frowned. "I-I thought you said you would come home today –"
"I-I'm sorry William," he sighed, "but there is a lot of work to get done –"
"It's only work with you isn't it!" William huffed. "You don't come home anymore! Not since… since mother… I was at least hoping you'd come home to dinner like you always do…" He sighed as he turned around, putting his hands into his pockets and began to walk down the hallway.
His father looked up and down casted his eyes, ashamed for his stiffness. "Wait William," he said in a whisper, the boy peeking his head back into the office with a cheerless look on his face.
The man stood up and disorderly shoved the papers on his desk into a briefcase, William hesitantly walking back into the room confused. "F-father?" William questioned his actions, "W-what are you –"
"I can finish the paperwork at home," he huffed. William's eyes lit up as his father threw his coat over his shoulders and walked to the door, ushering the boy out the door and locking the office behind him. "Come William," his father said as he grabbed hold of William's hand, "let's go home." William held a wide smile on his face, his enthusiasm going through the roof. For his father to think of him before work… well it was unusual in his mind. Something must have happened today, but he didn't have the heart to ask him. He will take the simple jester of the love his father was giving him and took it to heart, hoping the feeling of glee wouldn't leave him as they walked down the white painted hallway.
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Grell kept his back pressed up against the wall, unable to move as he gripped the death scythe in his hand tightly. Everything in his body hurt and it took extra efforts to even move his legs let alone hold the scythe in his hand. Regardless he wanted to stand guard, his green shinigami eyes cold and narrow, showing no signs of joy as he watched late bystanders walk by in the gloomy streets of London. He quickly saw movement, noticing a demon rushing by trying to get into the secured building. Grell ran after it and let out a battle cry, his arm irritating him as he slashed the demon in half. Once another came into his sights he ran after that one, then another, then another…
As time went on his infected arm became more inflamed, making Grell bit his lip in pain as he slashed the demons into two. Panting he leaned up against the wall of an alley, gripping his arm tightly as his chest was unable to keep up with his actions. The demons stopped coming then, but the pain in his arm was becoming too great for him to keep unnoticed. Grell slammed his arm against the wall, holding it still with his foot as he held up his scythe to it. He breathed heavily, knowing the sting would be great and could possibly kill him, but he couldn't take the pain anymore and threw the blade of the scythe into his arm. Grell closed his eyes as his hand lowered onto his arm, gritting his teeth in pain waiting to let out a scream.
He paused, feeling a firm grip on his arm as the force of the grip caused Grell to drop the scythe. Grell turned around and gasped, seeing dark green and yellow eyes upon him. "NO LET ME GO!" he cried out, trying to force the shinigami to let go of him as his knees gave out and he laid hanging above the ground. He growled with irritation as the man only held him, his infected arm lying limp on his body.
"I never thought you would actually do it," the Undertaker huffed, wiggling Grell's arm as Grell tried to pull away from him. "I thought you were stronger –"
"Well I'm not!" Grell yelled at him, tears streaming down his face and falling to the ground. "I'm only a child! Now let me go! –"
"No," he hissed roughly, "not until you promise~ you won't hurt yourself with the death scythe."
Grell bit down on his bottom lip and looked away, the Undertaker letting out a sigh and pressing the boy up against the wall. With one swipe of his finger Grell watched as the death scythe on the ground flew into the older shinigami's hand, the man setting it down on a nearby box before turning his attention back to the boy. "W-what are you doing here anyways?" Grell grumbled under his breath. "I asked you to leave me alone and you won't? What type of old man are you –"
"Grell Sutcliff, have you ever~ been taught to respect your elders?" Undertaker said in a deep voice, causing Grell to close his mouth and look up at him with a glare in his eyes. "… Now if you're done yelling~ I brought something for your arm." Grell blinked in confusion as the man's free hand went into his coat, the Undertaker pulling out a jar of weird orange glowing glop. "If you put this on your wounds then you'll heal faster… but for the infection on your arm I'll have to physically cut open your arm to get rid of the poison –"
"W-what? How do you know –"
"I do other~ things then just reap little boy," he snickered, setting the jar down on the box beside them before leering over Grell. "… I can't exactly stay in the shadows any longer if you're going to do something drastic like chop off your own limbs. If anything, let a professional~ do that," Undertaker grinned, a chill going down Grell's spine as he stared up at him. "Now will you be compliant or will I have to tie you up?" Grell didn't give him an answer, only glaring up at the Undertaker as he felt the grip around his arm loosen. He cursed under his breath as the shinigami released him, still unsure if he should trust him. Then again, didn't he save him more than once? There should be a reason why he shouldn't trust the legend's words, but yet he was still afraid. He had never been this cowardly before, but because of the events that had transpired earlier Grell was getting weary of this game the older man was playing. Deciding he had no choice he unbuttoned his coat and shirt, setting them to the side as he exposed his multiple bandages to the Undertaker. The Undertaker smiled at the boy's decision, turning Grell as he found the end of his bandages and began to untie them.
He hummed a small-bouncy tune to himself, Grell raising an eyebrow as he watched the Undertaker unwrap his bandages. As Undertaker began to uncover his skin did the man really see all the battle scars the little boy had. Grell had faint healing scars all over him, probably dating back years back before he even thought about running away. There were more scabs and bruises on the boy's body, fading down his stomach and disappearing into the pants he was wearing. If it were any other boy they would have complained about all the scars the boy had gotten, but not Grell. No, he kept the news of his wounds hidden until he was forced into the infirmary for one reason or another. Undertaker discarded the pathetic excuse of bandages to the ground and pulled out a big black bag he had hidden under his robe, Grell raising an eyebrow as the man set the bag down and rummaged through its contents. "Now bite down on this and be careful with your teeth," Undertaker told him in a stern, but calm tone. "Say awwww~" he stuck his tongue out, Grell shaking his head at the man's face and stuck out his tongue. The man took a small piece of cloth and pressed it on the top and bottom of Grell's tongue, his tongue retreating back into his mouth as the man went back to rummaging through his bag. Undertaker took out a clean cloth and set it on the box, taking out various tools he'd need: cloth, clean bandages, a needle with thread, scissors, water, and a spoon. Then he untwisted the cap of the jar and set it aside, placing the spoon inside and putting his attention back on Grell. "Hold still and try not to squirm," he told the boy, Grell clutching his eyes closed and waiting for the pain come back. Undertaker chuckled, the boy cracking his eyes open as he watched the shinigami grab the scissors. "You don't have to be so serious," he snickered, Grell grumbling under his breath till the man grabbed hold of his infected arm. Grell closed his eyes and waiting for a pain in his arm, gritting his teeth tightly as he felt the scissors rip into his arm.
Undertaker worked as fast as he could, knowing that the boy's wound could heal back up before he was done. He grabbed the water and flushed out the goop from the boy's arm, cleaning the wound with cloth before washing it out again. He started to hear the boy screaming in pain, trying the best he could to keep his voice quiet as blood began to trickle down from his mouth. "Calm down~" he giggled, "I'm almost done." Still taking his time he cleaned out the water and grabbed the orange goo from the jar, gently patting it down with the spoon and spreading it around his cut and throughout the redness along his arm. Grell's eyes flickered from the cool feeling on his arm, a different feel from the pain he had been experiencing for the past months. Once he was done Undertaker set the spoon back into the jar, grabbing his needle and thread and threading the wound closed. Everything he did would only be temporary, but if Grell had any wits then he'd know to not overwork his arm for a while. Grell opened his eyes and watched the Undertaker, the man threading his wound closed and pulling tightly with his teeth before tying everything off. He set a piece of cloth on his wound before grabbing the bandages, wrapping them around his arm and placing his arm into a tight cast. "My, my~" the Undertaker giggled lightly to himself, "I would have thought a little lad would have screamed from the pain."
Grell blinked at the man's comment before a smile graced his mouth, the boy using his other hand to pull the cloth from his mouth and let his tongue roam free. "Well I'm not like other lads~ I suppose," he huffed, the older man giggling at the boy once he was done wrapping him up. "Now thanks but –"
"I'm not done yet," Undertaker stopped him, pressing a hand against the top of the boy's chest and causing him to halt. "I still need to wrap your chest." Grell sighed and went back against the wall, using the wall to keep himself upright as the shinigami went back to cleaning up his wounds. The only major wounds the boy had would be the one on his arm and one on his chest, both caused by demons. You can never know with demons if they had poison on the tips of their claws or not, so Undertaker kept that thought in mind as he went back to his supplies and took out water. He flushed the caked blood on the boy's chest, Grell wincing at the sting. Wiping his chest dry with cloth, he took out the orange goo and pressed it against his chest, a shudder escaping Grell's voice as he coated his wound with the medicine. "You know this is only temporary," the Undertaker explained, "and if not treated properly then you may develop scars and even develop problems using your body properly –"
"Okay fine," Grell huffed, "and I'm alright with that."
"I'm guessing you're not going back yet?" Undertaker asked, beginning to wrap his chest with bandages as Grell let out a sigh.
"Yep –"
"Good," the man snickered. "It's always fun to watch you every night… and you're welcome by the way."
"W-with what? –"
"Do you think your body would have been able to float up stream without any assistance~?" Undertaker smirked, the smile of his face suddenly diminishing as he finished up with the bandage and tied it off. "Do be careful boy. There's only so much a shinigami can take. We don't last forever."
"I-I know," Grell sighed as he grabbed his shirt and buttoned it back on, "b-but I made a promise I want to keep."
"Oh?" the man asked, suddenly becoming intrigued with the boy's words. "What promise~?"
"A promise to myself," Grell explained as he put his clothes back on, "that I would keep the souls inside of that building safe. A promise to a little human girl that I will stay with her till she dies… that's really the gist of it." He sighed, leaning against the wall and gently putting a hand against his chest. "I-I don't know… this whole running away thing is pretty silly, but what can I do? I can't go back to the shinigami realm… I have nowhere to return to. You said it yourself; I will be put to death if I go back. So why should I? It will be better to save human souls from demons till it kills me, even if it's only a little fragment of the bigger picture… that's all." He looked over at the legendary shinigami as he put his things away, hiding them back into his robes with a grin on his face. "… I doubt you understand," Grell sighed again, "since you said you're only watching me because I'm amusing~. Well… I guess I am aren't I, but I just want to find a place. I can't find it with shinigamis so why not here? And yes, I know interfering with humans is a bad thing, but I don't care. There's no rules that says I can't… right?"
"There's probably some rule you're breaking," the Undertaker shrugged, "but I never cared for the rules; made up by a bunch of snobby shinigamis to make everything difficult for the rest of us. All we have to do is come to earth and reap a human soul, that's it. It is our job and nothing more. These excess things, rules and regulations, are nothing more than nescience placed by the council in my opinion."
"Huh," Grell thought to himself as he staggered over to the box and grabbed his death scythe. "I didn't know there were others who thought that way," he snickered lightly.
"Well~ there's not a lot of shinigamis out there who think like me," Undertaker chuckled before letting out a sigh. "I'm old. I think you can figure that out by now… I've been here for eons and all I've been doing is work, work, and more work. This lifestyle… I'm getting old for this game of cat and mouse. That's why I find watching you amusing. You keep me entertained," the man snickered.
Grell cracked a smile, starting to see past the tough exterior the council had placed the man in and seeing the soft, insane interior the man truly had. Not all shinigmais are as they seem, as humans aren't always as they seem. He had always known this, but seeing the Undertaker act differently than he had anticipated was changing his view on the world. Yes, perhaps the shinigamis has rules he dislikes, but that doesn't mean he can't bend them a bit. If this old shinigami can do it and be legendary why can't he? He'd have to rethink things a little, but for now he'd stay. He owed it to at least to Essie to stay till she died, then perhaps he'd think of returning… maybe… "Thank you Undertaker," Grell smiled, "I-I hope I see you again."
"You'll always~ see me," the man smirked, "You only have to look." Grell snickered at Undertaker's comment, watching as he disappeared and vanished into a portal. Grell let out a sigh, turning around and heading back for the rundown building, the place where he will always call home.
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A/N: Oh wow William? Didn't think you'd see him huh? XD Well anyways this was just the little conclusion to the demon fiasco. Now we're back to the plot in the next chapter, but if you still have OC requests say them now! I may have room for more, but that depends on your OC of course ^^ Anyways I hope you've enjoyed this. BYE!
vous promettre – French – you promise