A/N: This is a very intense chapter. Like really, this is extremely intense. I cried more than once when I was writing it. Also, this whole chapter is a flashback. It's about Sebastian's past. Finally, we learn what made Sebastian the way he is. It's not pretty.
"Claude! Get the boy! We don't have very much time before the police get here-"
"He isn't here, Hannah!" The man hissed. He kicked a stack of papers, sending them flying across the room. The furniture in the little room was strewn about, haphazardly, just barely intact. "Where have you gone, Sebastian?!"
"Shut up, do you want the whole neighbourhood to hear?" The woman named Hannah strode across to Claude, putting a hand over his mouth. "Sebastian will come to us on his own."
"But you just said we were out of time-"
Hannah placed a hand on Claude's shoulder and turned him around. "See, he's right there."
Sebastian, extremely emaciated and pale, appeared from behind an overturned sofa. "I'm-I'm sorry," he said, softly. "I should have come when you called me."
"Damn right you should have," Hannah said, tersely. "We're going on a trip, Sebastian. We won't be coming back."
Sebastian nodded. "Should I pack?" He blushed, slightly, with embarrassment. I have nothing to pack. I own nothing.
Claude laughed. "We don't have time, Sebastian. The police will be here-"
"Idiot!" Hannah yelled. "Why the hell would you tell him-"
"He already knows, Hannah. He may be a little brat, but he's smart." Claude looked at Sebastian, sizing him up, eyes flickering hungrily. "You're smart, right, Sebastian?"
"Yes sir-" Sebastian's skin crawled.
"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Daddy?" Claude laughed again. "So tell me, Sebastian, do you know who we are?"
Hannah frowned. "Let's just go, Claude. You can talk to him as much as you want in the car."
Claude spun around to face her. His eyes went from hungry to dark. "Talk?...Well, if that's how you want to put it." His lips curled.
Sebastian took a few steps backward. "I-I don't want to go with you." He shut his eyes in frustration. You don't have a choice, Sebastian. He wanted to scream. He wanted to run. But there was no one to hear him. No one to run to. He was alone.
"What did you say?" Hannah took a step towards him, opening her hand, ready to grab him. "How old are you, Sebastian?"
"Twelve-"
"Right. Who are your legal guardians?"
"You and him-"
"Right again. So answer me this, Sebastian: Do you have to go wih us?"
Sebastian closed his eyes again, trying to blink away his tears. His heart was screaming and his mind swimming. He felt as if he couldn't breathe. "Please," he said suddenly, letting the tears fall freely. "Please don't make me!" I need to run away. I'll find someone, I know I will. I won't be alone.
"Shut up," Claude said, harshly, slapping Sebastian across the face, leaving a bright red lash. Hannah grabbed him, wrapping him in a deathly embrace. "Let's go, son," she said mockingly.
"No," Sebastian whispered, too quiet for anyone to hear. "Don't let me drown," he said to no one in particular.
Hannah shoved him into the back seat of their damaged, ugly car. Claude slid into the driver's seat, Hannah taking her place next to him. They were sure to lock the doors, preventing Sebastian from escaping.
What if I broke the windows? I could shatter them...Sebastian shook his head. Anything that could possibly be used as a weapon was in the front of the car, tucked safely away with Hannah and Claude. And besides, Sebastian didn't stand a chance. He was far too weak to do anything. He was a scrawny, malnourished, helpless, child. There was nothing he could do.
Claude wove in and out of traffic, going far above the speed limit. After several minutes of silence, he turned to Hannah. They started talking, and of course, as usual, their conversation turned into an argument. Typical Hannah/Claude behavior. Sebastian tuned them out, closing his eyes against the seat, trying hard to relax, trying hard to stop his heart from thumping out of his chest. Maybe it would be nice if it just stopped completely. Maybe this nightmare would be over.
After what seemed like a few hours, when they were far from their cheap flat and questionable neighbourhood, Claude pulled to the side of the road. Sebastian opened his eyes. They were somewhere on the outskirts of London, in the suburbs. Claude opened the door and left the car.
Sebastian watched him cautiously. Hannah slid into the driver's seat. She turned once, glancing at Sebastian, menacingly.
What are they planning? Sebastian looked out the window. Claude was taking a drag of a cigarette. Sebastian crossed his fingers. Go back to the front seat. Don't come back here, don't you dare. But of course, he knew better. He knew what would happen. Claude would toss the cigarette to the side of the road. He would open the door to Sebastian's side of the car. He would slither in like the snake he was and press his cold, lifeless, lips to Sebastian's. He would touch Sebastian in places Sebastian didn't want to be touched...
And Sebastian would take it. He wouldn't scream. He wouldn't cry. He would just endure it. No matter how painful it was, no matter how sick and wrong it was, there was nothing he could do. Who would listen to the shy foster boy with no friends?
Hannah glanced in the rear view mirror, smiling knowingly. "Are you alright, Sebby?" She said in a babyish tone. "Ha! Of course you aren't." She turned back to the road, and started the engine.
Claude tossed the cigarette. Sebastian clenched his fists, letting his knuckles turn white. Please don't do this again. Please, I'm begging you. He wanted to throw up. Claude opened the door. "Hello," he breathed, the stench of cigarette smoke evident.
I hate you. Sebastian turned away, ignoring the man.
"Look at me!" Claude grabbed Sebastian's face, forcing their eyes to meet. Hannah began to drive, immediately stepping on the gas pedal. "We can make it to the border in two hours if we hurry, then we can get on the ferry to Ireland-"
"Shut up, Hannah," Claude whispered. He was looking at Sebastian with pure lust. Sebastian felt the urge to hit him.
You deserve to die. Claude suddenly bent downwards, pinning Sebastian to the seat. He balanced himself over the boy, casting a dark shadow over Sebastian's face. Sebastian braced himself. Here we go again. Claude kissed him, sloppily, all the while laughing.
Hannah glanced in the mirror every so often, smiling.
Die. You son of a bitch, please die. Claude fumbled with Sebastian's jeans, unsteadily unzipping them. Sebastian laid back, trying desperately to think of something else, trying to pretend that this wasn't happening. Unfortunately, that was becoming harder and harder to do.
"Don't make a sound, boy," Claude whispered, unzipping his own jeans and letting his underwear fall across the seat.
Hannah was laughing madly now, not even paying attention to the road. She let the wheel go and turned around to see the scene playing out behind her.
Claude was moving his hands up and down Sebastian's sides, caressing him, roughly. Sebastian felt nothing but coldness and hatred. Claude kissed him again, and turned him over. Sebastian shivered. Don't do this to me. Claude had never done this, had never gone this far before. Sebastian wanted to jump up and run. That was impossible.
And then it happened. One moment Hannah was laughing, the next, she wasn't. She had gone silent. Claude was crumpled up on the ground, blood dripping from his mouth.
Sebastian jumped up, quickly putting on his clothing, too shocked to really comprehend what had happened. The doors were crumpled, the car, a mass of debris. Sebastian was completely uninjured, completely alright. Unaffected by the crash. He stared at Claude's lifeless body. It would have been comical if not for the fact that it was real, Claude's naked lower half and bloody upper half. Blood dripped from his lips and from a gash in his side. Something had hit him, knocking him off Sebastian and into the floor. His eyes were still open, though they lifeless, Sebastian could still picture the hungry, lusty look. He closed them, gingerly, and shivered, turning his gaze to Hannah.
She was in far worse shape. The front of the car had gotten the most damage. Her body was a tangled mess. Arms mangled, legs mutilated. Sebastian swallowed the vomit that was welling up inside him. He pushed his way out of the car and onto the gruesome scene.
They had crashed on a country road, maybe ten minutes away from civilization. Surely someone had seen, surely someone would come for Sebastian. Surely someone would be his saviour.
He surveyed the wreck; it was evident they had collided with someone. There was another car, perhaps in even worse condition. Sebastian ran to it quickly. It was unrecognizable; Sebastian feared what the bodies inside might look like. He took a deep breath and tried to dig into the wreck. He gently moved the loose debris, making his way into the front seats. He chocked back a scream. There were two people, one, unrecognizingly human, the other, extremely pale and bloody.
Sebastian looked away from the ugly, contorted being and focused on the person whom he was sure was still alive. He placed a hand on their forehead, still warm, though he could feel the life hurriedly leaving them. "You're going to be alright," he said quietly, trying to blink tears away."You're going to be alright."
The person's eyes fluttered open, looking at Sebastian with fear. "What happened?" A woman's voice. Sebastian shook his head.
"My-my husband...is he okay?"
A tear fell from Sebastian's face and hit the woman's cheek. She closed her eyes. "My son, he's going to be an orphan-"
Sebastian picked her up, as gently as possible, making sure her battered condition wouldn't be worsened. She whimpered when her leg brushed a jagged piece of glass. A cut opened, crimson splattering what was once a windshield. "You're going to live," he said forcefully. "Your son will not be an orphan.
"You're going to be alright," Sebastian said again, this time more frantically. The woman's eyes fluttered open and closed every few seconds, life so quickly fading. Sebastian brought her safely to the side of the road, kneeling down with her in his lap. "Don't die," he whispered. "Don't die."
The woman stared up at him, face pale. "Thank you," she said.
"For what?" Sebastian's tear stained eyes widened.
"You saved me." The woman smiled.
Sebastian's tears dripped onto her shirt.
"Why are you crying?" She asked. She tried to bring a hand up to Sebastian's face. She grimaced.
Sebastian took her hand and squeezed it, tightly. "This shouldn't have happened," he whispered, voice shaking. "You don't deserve this."
"What is your name?"
"Sebastian Michaelis."
"Rachel Phantomhive." Rachel smiled. "Well, Sebastian, misery does love company." She looked into his eyes. "Please don't cry." Rachel's smile faltered. "Please don't cry, Sebastian." Tears began to well up in her own eyes. Sebastian could feel her growing colder by the second. "Just stay with me, Sebastian. Stay with me." Rachel's grip began to slacken, her fingers slipping.
No. Please, Rachel. Please stay with me. Rachel's eyes closed, her hand went limp. She was dead. "No!" Sebastian screamed. "No!" He shook her, sobs wracking his body. "Wake up, wake up, Rachel! You don't deserve this, you don't deserve to die!" He shook her again, screaming for her to wake up, screaming for her not to leave him.
Blood stained his face and hands, a scarlet river ran down his cheeks. "I don't want to be alone," Sebastian yelled. "I don't want to be alone." He stood up, trying to wipe tears and blood out of his eyes. His vision went blurry with red. "I don't want to be alone. I don't want to be alone." Sebastian repeated it over and over again until his voice went hoarse.
He scratched and itched at the blood, becoming suddenly furious. Suddenly hating it, suddenly hating the reminder that he hadn't saved her. He hadn't saved this perfect stranger, this perfect woman who didn't deserve to die the way she had. She was young, she had a whole life ahead of her. And now, what had she left behind? A family? A child? And now that child would be an orphan, just like him. I hope whoever you are, that you don't end up like me.
…
"Sebastian Michaelis?"
Sebastian looked up, groggily. He was in a spotless hospital room, laying under pristine white sheets. He looked around confusedly. There was a nurse, staring at him with concern, and what was that? Sympathy? Sympathy for what?
"Your guardians, Claude Faustus and Hannah Anafeloz were killed in the crash."
"Who?"
Sebastian Michaelis forgot.