The duo had a wonderful time during their outing. Alois marveled at the works of artwork in the museum, and Ciel marveled at Alois while trying to come up with things to say about each work. The man smiled as his beau gasped and stood in awe at some of the paintings and resisted the urge to reach out and touch them. Ciel resisted the urge to reach out and touch Alois in turn. It was an odd afternoon as the bluenette tried to stay focused on the artwork he was discussing while occasionally dropping hints as to his predicament. Alois, however, was not perceptive.

No, that wasn't true. Alois could see what the Watchdog was doing, but he simply disregarded it because of the couple's current habits. He was trying to convince himself that he was seeing things that weren't really there, despite his senses picking up what the other wanted just as he always had. Ciel was very easy to read.

It would take more than subtlety to alert the menace this time, it seemed. This time, Ciel would have to be more direct and express his wishes. While he flirted on their date, he was confused as to the lack of reaction from the menace. Ordinarily, the blonde would at lease say something. If he was into it, he would respond. If he wasn't, he would tell Ciel so. Surely, he would have to talk to the man once they were alone.

The time would eventually come after the pair returned home. Despite their worries, they still had a pleasant time together. They still smiled and laughed. Both were still secure in the knowledge that the other loved them, which was a wonderful place for them to be. After putting up their coats, both of them headed upstairs in order to change into something more comfortable. In Alois' case, he would change into a T-shirt or V-neck and a pair of pajama pants or shorts, while for the bluenette, it meant removing his tie along with his belt, and unbuttoning the first button or so on his shirt while rolling up his sleeves.

Both of them were comfortable with changing in each others' presence, so while Ciel was putting away his tie, belt, and shoes, Alois changed clothes at the same time. The only problem was the mirror that hung on the wall next to the wardrobe with the blunette's tie-rack inside. Of course he had to sneak a few glances. He could see the other man's back as he removed his shirt, and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.

"Why, hello, Michelangelo..." he internally mused before catching the thought and immediately thinking it was silly. Shaking his head, he missed the other man putting a fresh shirt on covering his pale back that the bluenette likened to marble. Ciel kicked himself a bit for that, but at least it was a V-neck and showed off the blonde's collarbone. Very slowly, the Watchdog continued to put away his things while keeping his eye on the mirror, prolonging his need to stand there as much as possible. It paid off, as the menace unfastened his belt next.

"Oof..." the bluenette accidentally let out as his husband dropped his trousers. Alois had discovered years ago that Ciel prefers him in briefs, so that is what the blonde had plenty of, and the Watchdog reacted accordingly. He did, however, immediately regret his staring as the menace looked over his shoulder at him. Through the mirror, their eyes met as Alois noticed it. Subsequently, he noticed the bluenette's actions and saw the deepening blush of a man that has just been caught peeping.

Ciel abruptly finished putting his things away and swiftly closed the wardrobe door with a loud clatter. It took him a few seconds to debate on whether or not he was going to speak or flee, and all the while, the menace simply carried on with getting dressed as though nothing had happened. It should be noted, however, that the blonde smiled as he did. Taking a deep breath, Ciel tried to speak, choosing honesty, as the other was his spouse and he was comfortable with him, even if he had embarrassed himself greatly..

"Jim-" he began, only to be cut off as a pair of arms wrapped around his waist and a chin settled on his shoulder.

"It's okay to look, you know." the menace grinned, giving his spouse a squeeze.

"I know. I was just staring a bit harder than I meant to..." bashfully answered Ciel, looking in the mirror again. He was relieved to see his spouse smiling at him, but still was rather embarrassed.

"Really? How hard did you intend to stare?"

"Jim..."

The blonde giggled as his spouse groaned, taking great delight in the man's bashfulness. "I thought I was just imagining it, but were you coming onto me earlier?" he questioned.

"W-well… Yes, if you're up to it..." Ciel replied, turning his head in order to look at the other directly. Still standing behind the bluenette, Alois took one arm from around the man's waist and tangled the fingers of their left hands together. With a firm grasp on the other man, the menace turned his head with his eyes closed, placing a kiss just behind Ciel's jaw.

"I like that idea." answered the blonde Phantomhive. His grip loosened and his husband smiled before turning around to face him. Once he did, however, it fell as the blonde was no longer smiling. It was certainly a cause for concern, as the man was playful only moments ago and Ciel's worry appeared on his face.

"What is it?" the bluenette questioned as he gently moved flaxen locks behind his spouse's ear. Silently, the menace reached up and grabbed the man's hand, holding it in his own.

"Can we talk first?" he asked, prompting the other to raise his brow.

"Certainly..." Ciel stated, concerned where this was going. From what he heard from pop culture, this was never a good question to be asked, but he allowed himself to be brought into the bedroom and sat down on the bed next to the menace as the man still held onto his hand.

His heart and mind raced and he braced himself for whatever was to come. Was Alois not perceptive to his techniques anymore? Was he bored? Or worse! What if Ciel had done something wrong, or simply wasn't as attractive as he was before? These were the kinds of thoughts that circled around in his head as he waited for the menace to find the words he needed. While Ciel was patient, he was hardly calm past his exterior.

Despite his concerns, his spouse still sat close enough that they were touching. The blonde was still gripping the other man's hand, using it as reassurance for himself, as much as his husband. Alois was sure that his worries were nothing, but he had to make sure.

"Well, uh… I'm not sure how to say this, so I'm just going to be blunt." Alois began, instilling further suspense in the bluenette. "Is that okay?"

"Sure. Whatever you need." Alois could see the worry on Ciel's face as he replied, so he made things quick.

"Well, we haven't been doing it as much lately, and I was wondering if something was wrong..." the menace answered, wearing a blush of his own as well. "Ever since the break started, it's been less and less… Is there something wrong? Is the way we usually do things boring, or what?"

His blush darkened as the Watchdog let out his tension in the form of a loud cough at the inquiry. Granted, the bluenette did look a bit relieved, but now the menace was embarrassed. "Hey! I thought it would be better to bring it up with you..."

"No, no, it's not that. When you said you wanted to talk, I kind of built it up in my head to be worse than this." admitted the bluenette. Taking a moment to compose himself, he took the blonde's hands in his. "I'm sorry I worried you." he said. "I didn't mean to. Making love with you isn't boring at all. It's just that I've been wanting a different kind of intimacy with you as of late… It's more... sensual. I've just been having a good time being with you and being close to you. When bedtime comes around, I've been wanting to just hold you."

"I thought it was gonna be something like that..." Alois sighed with relief, closing his eyes and leaning his head on his husband's shoulders. "Usually when breaks come around, we go at it more. When it started being less, I kinda got worried."

"I can see that. I'm really flattered that you noticed a change in habits, actually."

"I'm a detective, you know! It's only natural that I noticed something!"

"You're right." smiled Ciel, putting an arm around his spouse and leaning his head so that he was resting it on top of Alois'. "I'm sorry I made you worry, though. For the record, I still have a libido, I was just distracted from it because I wanted to dote on you in less sexual ways even more."

"Well, do you still feel like making an exception?" questioned the menace, placing a hand on the other's thigh with a sly grin. It was quickly returned at the action as Ciel lifted his head and placed a quick kiss to his husband's lips. One of the Watchdog's hands made it to Alois' hip as he turned to completely face his spouse as they sat on the bed.

"Definitely." Ciel replied, kissing the man again. "I have to make up for lost time, after all." While the blonde giggled, the bluenette continued to kiss his cheeks and lips before gently pulling the blonde down with him as he laid on the bed. Then he worked on the man's neck. They continued their banter into the night until they became too distracted. They certainly did have a lot of catching up to do, but they would have fun doing so without a single doubt.


A/N: Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who's booty is the finest of them all?

Depends on who you ask...

This was actually done last night, but I was waiting on some more "Character Shet" questions.

I wonder what I'm going to write today? I really wanna do more with Ciel and Alois, but the most interesting idea I had doesn't focus on them... It is important that I get this issue settled before this month ends in DLTP-Time, though...

I think that's what I'm gonna do... If you guys have suggestions for arcs, please tell me! Even if it's little relationship stuff like this one, here. That stuff is incredibly important.

Until the next chapter, my duckies~!


CHARACTER SHET

Question: "For the Demonic Duo, have you forgotten about Preston" by Him.

Ciel: "Of course we haven't. It just isn't our primary task at the moment. H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. is still searching for him with their Intelligence Department and Foreign Affairs are still working on it almost around the clock with very few leads, as of now. They're having trouble with just narrowing down the country he's in, and getting the permissions needed to work. They suspect that Preston abandoned his boat."