All was quiet at Phantomhive manor. It didn't have its usual liveliness, as the masters of the house were somewhat gloomy. The blonde Phantomhive, in particular had a cloud of her his head and it only followed him when he went out. School was difficult as he sat in class and hardly picked up anything his professors were saying. Ordinarily, he was energetic and always asking questions, but now, he was quiet. He didn't want to be in a classroom full of humans. Somehow, he just felt like an alien, even though no one else could see it. He assumed it to be the byproduct of being seen by Blackwood and the guilt of knowing of the true reason why his friend died. It was made even worse as more news came in.

H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. couldn't find Blackwood anywhere. He wasn't in his apartment, which appeared to be ransacked, although the furniture was still there. Items were strewn about like it had been hit by a tornado. Further intelligence picked up that he had taken an enormous sum of money out of his bank account, and that he had booked a one-way flight to Norway. They knew what airport he had dropped off at, but they had no idea where he had gone from there.

Needless to say, Alois was bummed. He trudged through his classes, making sure he was there physically in hopes of compensating for not being there mentally. It didn't work quite well, and a few teachers asked him if he was alright as a result. The blonde gave some excuse along the lines of "it's just been a rough week" without giving any details. This particular day, he took a taxi to school, as he simply didn't feel like driving himself. It was a fact that he would remember later on as it was time to go home.

Thus, after a long day, the menace furrowed his brows and scoffed at himself for being so foolish. As he walked toward the front gate, the man pulled his phone out of his pocket and scrolled down his list of contacts for his usual taxi service, only to stop as he approached. As he got closer, confusion spread across his face as he saw people, primarily women, loitering around it. Now, it wasn't uncommon for a few groups to stay and socialise, but this quantity was. With a shrug, Alois simply assumed that it was the usual college nonsense unfolding. He thought that maybe there was a school or club event going on, or perhaps a fight had broken out. What Alois ended up seeing was indeed unusual, and perhaps the thing he least expected.

His husband was sitting in the parking lot near the entrance on the seat of his motorbike, wearing the strangest outfit he had seen on the man yet. Ciel was wearing jeans, which was extremely bizarre, as Alois was completely unaware that he owned such a thing. Granted, the Watchdog was still wearing a white shirt and tie, which was expected. Ciel considered himself naked without a shirt with a collar, after all. Perhaps the strangest garment on him, however, was the fact that he was wearing what appeared to be a leather jacket. Alois felt as though he had seen a similar outfit on Sebastian, but he would never have even dreamed of his spouse wearing something like it. The bluenette sat with his helmet set on the handlbars while he fiddled with his cellphone. Sensing Alois, however, he looked up, and smiled, putting the device away.

"What in god's name are you wearing?" the menace questioned as he approached, prompting the other to look down at his attire.

"I know, it's a bit silly..." Ciel bashfully replied. "The jeans are new, so I thought I'd try them on, but I saw that some men wear them with shirts with buttons." he explained, meeting his spouse's gaze. "The jacket was Sebastian, however. He stopped me on my way out and insisted on it..."

"Good for him!" his husband replied, looking him up and down. "You look… Well, I'll just be blunt: pretty sexy."

"Y-you think so?" blushed the Watchdog, leaning over to meet the blonde as Alois leaned in for a quick kiss. The action seemed to dissuade some onlookers, causing them to wander off.

"Don't get all bashful on me, now. Then again, even though you're dressed like a hero from some action flick, you're still my dopey Ciel." Alois teased, holding the other man's hand with one hand and fiddling with the strap of his backpack with his other. "So, what're you doing here?"

"Sebastian said you didn't take the car this morning," he bluenette answered, "so I thought I'd stop by and see if you needed picking up while I'm on my way home."

"Oh, so he noticed..." Alois' spouse watched his face carefully as he trailed off. There was no need to question as to why Alois did things this way. Ciel knew that sometimes, one simply didn't feel like driving, and from the time the menace had been having lately, the Watchdog couldn't blame him. Thus, without words, he lifted Alois' hand to his lips and placed a kiss on his ring before letting go altogether and reaching behind him to grab the other man's helmet for him.

"Come on, then." Ciel stated, handing the headgear to Alois. "Let's go home. Unless there's anywhere else you would like to stop by first, that is."

"Nah, home sounds nice." the menace replied, taking his helmet and putting it on his head while the other did the same. Even though his smiled, his words came out in an almost sigh. He swung his leg over the side of the bike and sat down on the seat, wrapping his arms around the Watchdog's waist and holding fast. With one hand on the handlebars, Ciel grabbed the blonde's arm and squeezed it lightly.

"Hold on to me tight, okay?" he asked, knowing that the menace was already doing so.

He mostly said it for Alois' benefit, urging him to use this as a moment to hold onto him for comfort as much as safety. Then, with both hands on the handlebars, Ciel kicked up the kickstand and revved the motor before taking off. Behind him, the blonde sighed again, but this time because of the security he felt while clinging onto Ciel on the back of the motorbike.

While he couldn't admit it during the ride, the bluenette's appearance made his heart flutter, and his sweetness made him melt. Ciel's shoulders were slightly wider than his own, and he was slightly more muscular, and the menace was indeed a fan. He was a big fan of the Watchdog's in general, but he liked the opportunity to cling onto him like this. He was rather keen on the situation, and Alois was very flattered that his spouse took a detour to come get him. He knew the map, and it was a bit of a ways off course. Today was the day that Ciel helped Daniel and his sister sort out their inheritance from their father.

In truth, Alois just wanted to enjoy the ride, as he loved being on the back of Ciel's motorcyle so, but many questions plagued him. He wondered how Daniel was feeling and if he was going to feel better soon. He wondered if Daniel suspected foul play. He wanted to know so many things, but now, they would have to wait, as the Watchdog couldn't hear him while the bike was moving.

He had to wait until they arrived home, and by then, he wasn't sure how appropriate it was to bring it up. After pulling into the garage, the man hopped off the back and took off his helmet, putting it away. The menace then turned around when he heard the sound of the engine switching off to see the bluenette do the same. Ciel's hair was a mess from the helmet, prompting the menace to want to fix it for him, but at the same time, he found it appealing. Still, he had other things on his mind, so he couldn't appreciate it adequately.

"Penny for them?" asked the Watchdog, hopping off of his bike and putting up his own helmet. The man looked to Alois with a concerned expression, but he hid it to the best of his ability.

"I'd like to put my stuff away first, I think." Alois said, allowing the other to kiss his cheek.

"Alright. In the meantime, I'll give this jacket back to Sebastian."

"Why the hell does Sebastian own one of those?"

"Did you expect me to?"

"I didn't expect you to own a pair of jeans. Anything is possible." the menace said as he headed inside the mansion.

Smiling, the Watchdog followed after him, but they split up shortly after as their destinations differed. Soon after Ciel set foot in the house, he began taking off his butler's jacket as the man in question stood by. The man clad in black promptly took the garment and turned his head to glance up the stairs after the menace.

"How did it go?" inquired the butler, looking back to Ciel. The master of the house sighed.

"Well, he seems better." the bluenette replied. "Mostly, all he had to say was questions about my choice in attire."

"Really?" Sebastian pondered, reaching up to rub his chin. "I was sure that it would make him feel better."

"I'm not even sure what to make of that." Ciel replied. "I'm just going to go up and talk to him. Talking always helps. He probably wants to know how Daniel was doing during our meeting."

"Well, hop to it, then." ushered on the butler. "It's dreadful seeing him so down and out."

"I thought you like taking over missions for him?"

"True, but I also care about the well-being of the Phantomhive family."

"The duties of a butler?"

"Yes, sir."

"I'll try my best." the Phantomhive said, looking up at the stairs. He then made an effort to climb them and search for his beau.

It didn't take long at all. Ciel knocked against the doorframe with his knuckles as he peeked his head into the master bedroom. Alois was there with his bag in a chair and his shoes off. They stayed in the path as the man had taken them off while on his way to the bed, where he sprawled out with his arm over his eyes to shield them from the light.

"Hello?" the Watchdog greeted. "Are there any objections to me coming in."

"You may proceed." groaned the menace in response, hardly moving a muscle.

He could hear the sound of Ciel removing his tie and putting it away, along with the clinking of his belt buckle as he removed that as well. Alois groaned once again as he felt the other man lay down on the bed with him and scoot closer. Still, the menace made no attempt to flee and instead rolled over to pull Ciel in, wrapping his arms around him and burying his head into his chest. While he felt horrible, he did find some comfort in his husband's arms, and sighed when a kiss was placed on his forehead.

"Rough day?" Ciel asked, reaching up with one hand and stroking the blonde's hair.

"Yeah..." answered the other. "I just feel tired… Not physically, but like, emotionally..."

"Still worried?"

"You know it..." With the menace's reply, Ciel kissed him again, doing his best to soothe him.

"Don't worry, dear." the bluenette said reassuringly. "Everything will be all ticketyboo before you know it."

"Your fifties-speak is stupid..."

"Not helping?"

"A little, actually." Alois said. "I just… I just want everything to be okay..." he added with a sigh, building himself up to ask the question: "How were they?"

"They were good." answered Ciel, knowing he was talking about the Westley's. "In fact, they were both taking things really well. They said that they thought they should be more sad than they are, but I told them that it's more complicated than that. They have a complicated relationship with their father, and it's not a very good one. They never exactly held him in high esteem."

"But he's their father, isn't he?" inquired the menace.

"He is, but he wasn't kind to them as well. More than anything, they were concerned with how they were going to carry on from now on. Daniel asked me to help him gain custody of his sister, and they want to live together. He's determined to find himself a job to make sure he gives off a good image and ensure custody. I told him that I would look around. He's also coming to terms with the fact that he just really doesn't want to be a politician."

Pausing, he squeezed Alois tighter with one arm and continued to play with his hair with the other. "See?" he asked. "It's going to be alright."

"Do they know about the hit?" hesitantly questioned Alois, looking up at his beau as they laid together.

"No." Ciel stated. "They deem their father responsible. They don't know anything. They actually seem rather keen."

"Yeah?" the menace asked, finally pulling his head away from the other's chest to face him directly. "Why's that?"

"Well, it kind of gives them a means to start over, I suppose. Samantha gets to escape that house and live with the only family member she likes, and Daniel gets to see his sister every day. I think that will help Daniel immensely. Moreover, he's free to do as he likes, now. It seems to me like he has always possessed this idea of what he is supposed to be like from his father. He's supposed to be a successful politician and make his family proud. Now, that weight isn't there, and he has to decide for himself."

"I see..." the menace replied, ducking his head back down and pressing his forehead against his husband's chest.

He was glad. He was so glad. It eased his guilt slightly, although it did not completely disappear. The weight on his chest had lessened just a bit, and his eyes began to water. The relief he felt was almost overwhelming. His annoyance at Daniel's previous misdeed had been replaced with guilt for his own. How on earth could he be so complicit in the assassination of a friend's parent? Even if it did do some good, what if there was a next time and it didn't? Alois was still worried.

"Everything will be alright." his husband cooed, keeping him in a comfortable hold. The man was doing everything in his power to make the blonde feel better. It pained him to see Alois beat himself up, but he knew that he could not rush it. Sometimes, it is best to feel, so that's what he did.

The pair laid there for what seemed like ages. In reality, it was only slightly over half an hour. Ciel continued his ministrations while Alois tried his best to calm down. Alois knew that it would be best to talk about his feelings, especially since he had trained the Watchdog to do the same for him over the years, slowly but surely. He knew that it was helpful and may provide him insight, but he wished to wait until his eyes were drier and his voice was less likely to break.

Closing his eyes, he focused on the other man's arm around him and his hand in his hair. It was nice. It always was. While the bluenette was a lethal assassin and brutal secret agent, he was also one of a kind man- perhaps one the kindest that Alois had ever known. The thought that such a man could kill was strange, even though he had seen Ciel do it countless times. The Watchdog had mastered the art of separating his work from his personal life, it seemed. Alois knew it was a skill that he should learn, but it was difficult for him to do so, simply because it was an almost impossible skill for most.

"Ciel?" he finally called, prompting the other's attention. His voice was a tad raspy, so he quickly tried to clear it in hopes of remedying this.

"Yes, dear?" softly replied the bluenette, closing his own eyes and focusing on the sound of his husband's voice.

"Do you think I'm a bad person?" Alois questioned and braced himself for a response. What he received, however, was another kiss and a reassuring smile.

"Of course you're not." Ciel stated. "You're beautiful inside and out. You're kind and considerate of others, even going to the extent of looming over the consequences of your work. I really admire that about you, you know. You always go all out when helping people. It's really quite amazing to see."

"But I-" the menace pulled back in order to protest, but quickly, he realised that he couldn't think of anything to say. His mouth closed and he furrowed his brow, trying to come up with a reason why he was horrible.

"And besides," continued the Watchdog in place of the blonde, "if you're a bad person, then I'm even worse. I'm the one who killed Mister Westley. I even came up with the plan to do it."

"But you are kind!" Alois objected, sitting up on the bed. "Even right now, you're comforting me and doing your best… If you were cruel, you wouldn't try so hard..."

"Then what does that make you?" the Watchdog replied, sitting up with him. "If that's the case, then you are a far better person than I. Logic is on your side, Jim." Pausing, the bluenette kissed the man's cheek.

"But you feel the way that you feel, regardless. It'll pass, though. I promise." Ciel added, reaching down to hold Alois' hands firmly in his own. "I'll be right here by your side until it does."

"But you have other things to do..."

"As do you. I vowed to support you no matter what happens on the day we married, but I promised you long before, and my love for you forbids me to ever break a promise."

Against his wishes, the corners of Alois' mouth turned upwards ever-so slightly, inviting Ciel's smile to widen as well. Once again, the bluenette brought the other's hands to his lips, kissing them. It was a gesture that the man did often, and it made Alois' heart flutter each time.

"Why do you do that?" the blonde questioned. "You always kiss my hands, especially my ring..."

"Because I love you." Ciel answered bluntly, as if he had said something as obvious as stating that the sky is blue. "A kiss on the hand is an expression of that. In olden times, however, a kiss on one's signet ring indicated fidelity. I am loyal to you, however, not another family."

"But aren't you loyal to the Phantomhives?"

"You are a Phantomhive, and I prefer you to the old concept of noble families that were based upon image and lineage, rather than love and devotion."

"God, you're such a hopeless romantic..." Alois stated, his expression betraying him and causing a smile to graze his reddened face. In return, his spouse grinned as well.

"I can't help it." the Watchdog answered. "I've discovered that I quite like expressing my affections rather than hiding them. I want you to know how I feel, and always know how precious you are."

"I'm trying to be sad, Ciel..."

"And?"

"You're making it difficult..."

"I'm doing my job correctly, then." mused the blue Phantomhive. "If you can't feel sad, you shouldn't force yourself anymore than you should force yourself to be happy."

"I know…" Alois said. "I just feel responsible."

"Then that's how you feel." answered Ciel. "If there's one thing you taught me, it's that expressing oneself is important to one's well-being. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?"

"Mm-mm." replied the other, bouncing his blonde locks as he shook his head. "I just kind of want to hang out, now. I don't really want to talk about it anymore. Can we go do something else?"

"So you have wished it..." Ciel began, pausing to peck the man on the lips. "Then so it shall be." The gesture and the bluenette's words invited a giggle out of his spouse at his silliness.

"You're so fucking weird..."

"I love you, too, muffin."


A/N: Whelp...

This was an odd chapter, and I can't really put my finger on as to why. It just feels funny...

Maybe it's because Ciel uses so many petnames and does stuff like that? I think Ciel started calling Alois by petnames because he figured out that Alois really likes it. He probably likes the response he gets, so he got into the habit...

That's my justification, anyway...

The next chapters are going to be odd because I'm out of notes for the arc. Hold onto your hats, y'all...

Until the next chapter, my duckies~!


CHARACTER SHET

Question: "Question for Integera Hellsing: What are some of your hobbies?" by marleyrockstar

Integra: "Whenever I have a small amount of freetime, a lot of it gets dedicated to sitting down and enjoying the peace and quiet. I do enjoy talking with my grandmother and Seras about nothing in particular as well, however. Sometimes, I read, but I'm picky when it comes to books. I'm honestly not sure what else to do with myself."

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Question: "Question for Dan and Sam: What was their relationship with Nathan?" by Honeycloud of RiverClan

Daniel: "He's a fuckin' prick, and he's useless, too."

Samantha: "Exhausting. Infuriating. Not helpful at all. He spends a lot of time going out and doing god knows what, but when he's home, he's in his room. When he's not and I'm forced to talk to him, he usually dishes out some insult or put-down, but he can't take them to save his life. He's a spoiled manchild who can't take care of himself. I imagine he'll have blown his inheritance on rubbish in a few years and wind up homeless, or begging mum to allow him to stay with her, but I know she'll want none of that."

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Question: "Dear Sebastion, Have you thought about teaching with Sister Dorothy if/when Luka Attends her school? You are on hell of a teacher after all;)" by Guest.

Sebastian: "I'm not entirely certain if I could. Certainly, I could try, but I also need time to maintain the estate, as I am the only servant manning the place."