Sebastian closed the door and laughed softly.

"Well, that was a complete bust!" Ciel said loudly. "He didn't even take into consideration that Inky may not have caused my fever!"

"At least he did not prescribe you bed rest and broth soups," Sebastian said.

"No," Ciel sighed. "But his prescription is one that I cannot possibly abide by."

"You mean to do away with the pest yourself, sir?"

"Of course." Ciel stood and walked to the window to watch the downpour. "Those who attempt to destroy me, corporeal or not, should not expect to walk away without receiving punishment."

"What is you plan then, Young Master?" Sebastian asked.

Ciel turned to the Butler. "You seem to know what it is we're dealing with. This is the perfect opportunity to utilise your beastly knowledge."

"I do have an idea of what type of pest may be harassing you," Sebastian smiled. "But if I may first clarify a few questions I have." He held his chin with his right hand and his crooked elbow with the other. "The creature is very diminutive, yes?"

"It is," Ciel answered.

"Its behaviour is blatantly harmful, yet it insists that it does not want to hurt you."

Ciel nodded.

"And it is desperate for your attention and companionship."

"Desperate enough to kill me."

"That would do it." Sebastian put down his arms and looked straight at the Young Master. "It is an imp."

"An... imp?" Ciel raised an eyebrow. "As in, 'The Bottle Imp?'"

"Exactly," the Butler bowed his head. "Very good allusion, my Lord."

Ciel laughed shortly. He had just finished Stevenson's short story the night before. "But then that means that it has a physical form?" Ciel asked.

"Yes." The Butler seemed slightly worried. "That is why this is so disconcerting. The act of possessing a human requires a tremendous amount of strength. Imps are not physically very powerful at all so they must find other ways to wreak their havoc."

"So it manipulates my thoughts rather than my body."

"Correct," Sebastian said. "But because of their general weakness, it cannot be too far away from you. Yet I was never aware of its presence."

"I asked it why that was," Ciel said, "in my dreams. It said that it only revealed itself to those who were 'willing to share the space.' What does that mean?"

"It is a defence mechanism," Sebastian explained. "Much like a chameleon uses its ever-shifting skin to blend into its surroundings, an imp conceals itself from predators using magic." He pondered for a moment before he said, "Hmm... Those humans did have a few things right at least."

"Like what?"

"We are both here occupying its 'space,' as you say, and yet it only pursues you. It is much easier to manipulate you rather than me because you are a child," Sebastian said easily. "Because of your 'vivd imagination,' you do not automatically question things that seem impractical. Also, in dreams it is commonplace to readily accept a reality that you normally never would were you awake. And on top of all of that, you are extremely ill. Your head is in a vulnerable place- as were the heads of its other victims."

"Alright then," Ciel sullenly said. He did not much appreciate the generalisation of his brain function, but he let it go. "So this imp- it's not really a demon then?"

"Er..." Sebastian began. Normally he made it a point not to discuss those types of things with humans, but it was a special occasion. "'Demon' is a very broad term. Technically speaking, it is a demon." Ciel looked confused. "Think of it as the word 'dog,'" Sebastian put things in a context that the Master would understand. "A terrier is a dog. But so is a German Shepard. Also a Shiba-Inu. There are possibly more differences than there are similarities and yet they're all canines. They share a common ancestor."

"So then, Inky is also out to consume my soul?"

"No, no," Sebastian assured. "Even though it is a demon, it is the lowest of the low. Because it is not a resident of Hell, there is no need for it, and indeed it has no desire, to reap souls for Satan."

Ciel's confusion grew. "Why then are they considered to be demons?"

"When we Devils walk the Earth, we leave behind us much residual energy, you see," Sebastian explained. "This energy then collects in different places. Some of it goes on to corrupt already living things, but sometimes enough energy collects in the shadows that entirely new entities form- imps being among those. Depending on how much energy is present, an imp may be obscenely annoying but ultimately harmless, as they tend to be, or they can become very vicious, like Inky. They have all the malevolence of a Devil with nothing of the strength or purpose. Really a waste of space, they are."

Ciel sighed and shook his cloudy head. Too much information. "So," he began as he attempted to sift through the facts he had just been given to find an appropriate solution, "I assume exorcism would be ineffective."

"It would," said Sebastian. "Seeing as you are not truly possessed, as in your body is not being inhabited by anything other than your own self, exorcism would be quite pointless."

"What about banishment? There must be some kind of spell for that."

"I am sure there is," Sebastian said slowly, "but, if what you tell me is true, we are trespassers. We have no right to tell it to leave this place if this is indeed its home. Banishing charms are very strong forms of magick and they have hefty consequences, especially for a being like myself who is cut from the same cloth. We do not want to upset the Balance by using magick."

"What then can we do?" Ciel grew frustrated. "I will be damned! -again- if Inky walks away from this unscathed!"

"Perhaps I could accompany you into your dreams," Sebastian suggested.

"Beg pardon?"

"If I cannot detect its presence," Sebastian said, "it may very well be useless to try to sniff it out. However, since we know for a fact that it can directly influence you when you dream, who's to say we cannot try to reverse that affect?"

"Go on," Ciel urged.

"It is a bit of a long shot," Sebastian advised, so as to not get the Young Master's hopes up, "but if I make myself willing to 'share the space' and we fall asleep at the same moment, then it may appear to me as well."

Ciel laughed. "And then we just tell it to leave me alone, is that it?"

"Essentially," Sebastian said. Ciel stared at him. "What? Are you not curious to see what would happen? Besides, I thought you liked intimidation games."

"I have to say, though," Ciel said, "even after not sleeping a wink last night, I am not in the least bit tired."

"Just say the word, my Lord," Sebastian bowed. "I will put you to sleep."

"What? Are you going to give me a lecture on modern Russian architecture again?" Ciel joked.

"I was thinking of something a little more forward."

"Don't you dare say you'll sing me a lullaby!" Ciel pointed an accusatory finger at the Butler.

"There is a pressure point on the back of the neck," Sebastian explained, "that when pressed causes one to lose consciousness."

Ciel put his hand to his neck. "Sounds painful," he commented.

"Not at all," Sebastian said. "You will wake up with a nasty headache, though."

"I am very used to those," said Ciel. "But what about you?"

"I can fall asleep at will. No need to wonder about me."

"And what if Inky doesn't appear to you as well? What if it takes that opportunity to finish me off?"

"If I do not sense you or the other straight away, I will awaken myself and the Young Master immediately."

"Fine," Ciel consented at length. "But if this doesn't work and Inky ends up killing me, I blame you."

"As you should," Sebastian said.

"And you would not be allowed claim my soul."

"I am aware of our terms of agreement, sir."

"Then, Sebastian, I command you," Ciel recited the words that had become so reflexive for him, "send me off to meet this repulsive little imp, and follow after me."

Sebastian kneeled, placing his right hand over his heart. "Yes, my Lord." He lifted the Young Master and carried him back to the settee. He laid him out and propped his head up on a pillow. "'Goodnight, sweet prince, and may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.'" He grabbed the side of Ciel's neck and he was gone. "Now then," he said. He seated himself on the armchair and closed his eyes. Surely, if a mere imp could project its being into a dream willingly, the upper-most level of demon could do the same. There's a first time for everything, even for one as old as Sebastian. He took a deep breath and departed into the world of dreams.

Note to the Readers: About all the demonology related bits? Yep. I made all that up. But it sounds pretty legit, right? :P