"Stop pushing it and come back to bed." whined the blonde, squinting so that the light stayed out of his eyes as he watched his husband trying to flex his arm again. "You're going to hurt yourself."

"I just want it to be healed already!" impatiently replied his beau. "Two weeks should be more than enough time! It still hurts!"

After getting out of the house for one day, Ciel became increasingly discontent with his arm being injured still. Thus, as he sat on the edge of the bed, he stretched his muscles and tried his best to move his arm. While he did find better mobility than the day before, he still couldn't lift it too high and he still didn't have full dexterity in his hand.

"Patience, my darling. You'll be all healed up soon." reminded Alois, reaching out and tugging on the back of his beau's undergarments, as it was the only thing he could both reach and get a hold on. "I'm not done with you yet."

"The last time it took me this long to heal an injury, it was in Paris in the forties!"

"And your dick still works." nodded the menace. "Extremely well, I might add."

With a sigh, Ciel laid back down and allowed his husband to crawl all over him. Laying his head on the bluenette's chest, Alois had to vocalise an observation. "Your heart's racing..."

"I don't feel good." huffed the Watchdog. "I just want this to stop..."

"What's wrong, dear?" the menace questioned further, finally propping himself up on his elbows. "What are you feeling?"

"I don't know… Anxious… Mad… Like I'm too weak to do anything..."

"Are you still afraid of being attacked?"

"...Yes..." sheepishly admitted Ciel, turning his head slightly to avert his gaze. "I feel like a trapped animal that's about to snap… I'm… trying to not do that. It would be wrong of me."

"What, you mean going up to some random person and scaring the piss out of them?"

"Yeah… It's awful, but I want it… It's so petty… I actually feel the need to put someone else down in order to make me feel better about myself. Isn't that just sad?"

"Kind of." Alois admitted while stroking the other's hair. "Sometimes, I want it, too, though. I want to feel strong. It makes you feel safer, doesn't it?"

"It does. If you're the scariest beast in the room, nothing will want to touch you." the Watchdog replied. "I just… I don't like it… I'm too weak to be good for anything. I certainly can't do my job while I'm like this. I also feel like a burden on you."

"Me? Why?"

"You keep having to do everything yourself. Then, in addition to that, you also have to take care of me. Isn't it annoying?"

"Would you say that if the positions were reversed?"

"Of course not!"

"There's your answer." Alois plainly stated, looking very thoughtfully at his spouse before leaning in to kiss his forehead. The thing that drew them both together so strongly was that out of everyone they had ever met, they had never met anyone who understood them better than their spouse. It was what happens when both of them have rather unfortunate childhoods. From their first meeting, Alois discovered something very vital to Ciel's character, even if he had no appreciation for him at the time.

Ciel liked power. Honestly and truly, he did. He liked having the upper hand. He liked remaining in control. It was safe. He wasn't vulnerable to attack. Yet, when he was weakened, he had a tendency to panic in short spurts. It happened when they dueled until Jim stopped to gloat about a victory he hadn't yet earned, leaving himself open. If he hadn't done that, things would have ended very differently, as Alois had the superior strength, stamina, and disregard for arbitrary dueling rules.

Yet, Alois felt as though it was reasonable. Having your family killed on your birthday and being captured and tortured by a cult would do that to someone. Alois knew that his husband never wanted to feel helpless again, but alas, it wasn't to be. Ciel had too much of a conscience now to fix things the easy way. Instead, he would have to wait until he regained his strength, but that would take a few more days, at the latest.

"You're going to be perfectly fine. Just let me support you for a while." the menace insisted. "It's no trouble at all."

"Even if you do, I don't think I'll stop worrying." sighed his beau. Running a hand through his husband's hair, Ciel stopped and kissed his head. "I feel extremely insecure for what looks like no reason whatsoever."

"I get that too sometimes. You'll get better, though." Pausing, Alois debated on whether or not it was appropriate to ask. "Is it because you're a Phantomhive."

"That's part of it, no doubt." Ciel stated while staring up at the ceiling. "There's some 'noble family pride', but also? It's dangerous. Things have been dangerous since I was ten. It's like I live in a completely different world from other people sometimes. Not everyone's family business involves possibly getting assassinated or murdered."

"That constant feeling that someone might be out to get you is still there… Yeah… I understand that, too..."

"It's not just me, either. They could get you, too. Anybody. I could always bring you back again, but I would still be devastated..."

Alois simply watched his husband's face as he spoke, hearing many layers within his words. Being able to care for other people was a privilege that was scarce to Ciel. It was precious above all other things. Now that he had people he loved and cared for again, the Watchdog was more determined than ever to keep them safe. At the same time, however, the feeling of losing everything again was on his mind. That innocent and terrified ten-year-old boy was still very much there, despite being older now. Leaning down, Alois placed a rather tender, yet chaste kiss to the man's lips.

"Try not to worry so much." the blonde stated. "I'm here. I'll always be here. I promised you, didn't I? I also assume that you're going to honour your promise to stick around, too, aren't you?"

"Of course." Ciel replied. "I'll stay by your side."

"I love you." his beau declared, gently stroking Ciel's cheek with his thumb. "I want you to get better soon too, but we have to be patient, okay? You'll heal. You'll go back to the way you were, even though you're already still a powerful demon."

"You flatter me. Right now, I feel as weak as an ordinary human."

Eyebrows turning upward and lips forming a pout, the blonde laid back down at the other's side, holding him close. "What will it take to convince you? Stubborn idiot..."

"A miracle, probably." the bluenette stated. "Though, it makes me wonder about how weak demons really are. We seem unstoppable, but it you hit us just right, we're kind of useless. Someone I knew said something like that. He said 'There is no such thing as true immortality.' As the most powerful vampire who ever lived, he is proof of that. He fell in battle, too..."

"For fuck's sake!" Alois barked while pulling away. He propped himself up on his hands and looked down at the Watchdog with both hurt and anger. Icy blue eyes grew wetter and struggled not to leak. "It's just an arm! You're not dying! I don't want that pseudo-philosophical or whatever bullshit! Quit talking about death and shit!"

Ciel was genuinely frightened for a few moments. His husband was angry. Genuinely angry and hurt. The bluenette could certainly see how he could have been being a downer. It was indeed a bit heavy to lay on Alois all at once, especially since Alois was just as attached to Ciel as Ciel was to him.

"You're not going anywhere." the blonde continued to scold. "I won't let you. So don't even think about it."

"I'm sorry..." the Wathdog answered. "I didn't mean to be so… morbid..."

Laying back down with the other man, it was Alois' turn to sigh. "I know. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell… I guess I'm just not as good at comforting people."

"That was supposed to be comforting?"

"Again, I'm not good at it… I don't know what to say when my husband starts talking about death like he's going to die any day, now… I want you to feel better… Really, I do. I wish I knew how to help..."

"You're already doing a lot." Ciel informed, putting his good arm around the menace. "It's good to know someone cares."

"Even if you are attacked, I still have your back. I can protect you. Everyone will." Alois stated. "This isn't like when you were a kid. You've got me and Sebastian… I'm pretty sure that Elizabeth and Integra would come as soon as a call is made, and half of HELLSING, too. You have an army behind you, Ciel. The burden isn't all on you."

"I know, honey… I'm sorry." softly answered the Watchdog. Reaching up, he caressed the other's face. "I shouldn't have thoughts that dark..."

"No, it's not- it's not that you shouldn't think. It's the being depressed part combined with the thinking about death, part..."

"I would never end myself."

"I know that. Maybe… Maybe I was being unreasonable… It makes me sad to think about the possibility of one of us dying..."

"Neither of us would know what to do without each other, would we?"

"No..." the blonde answered, laying back down with his head against his beau's shoulder. "I don't like it..."

"I've been sort of a downer all this time, even when everything will be alright in the end. You've been doing your best and I'm grateful… Even if you were kind of pushy..."

"I was trying to cheer you up. I asked a few of the operatives around HELLSING what would be best to help, but I don't think I executed it right."

"You go around asking people about their missing limbs?"

"Uh… If you put it like that, it sounds kinda shitty..."

"Who did you even ask?"

"Suyin Chu of the Intel department." the menace bluntly answered. "We passed each other in the hall and she said she hopes you get well soon. I only really asked because she brought it up."

"How did it go?" his husband questioned.

"She said she'd be tempted to hit you with her leg if you don't calm down." A small smile appeared on the blonde's face at the image.

"Really? I never expected she'd make jokes like that."

"The alternative is that she's not joking."

"Now that's something to think about." Ciel mused. "I'm gonna have to watch out for that..."

"The next evolution in antifreak weaponry."

"I'll try to stay positive, though." said the bluenette, running his hand through the other's hair. "Just try to accept that it might not come naturally and be patient with me."

"Attempts will be made." sighed Alois, placing a hand on Ciel's chest and running his fingers along the muscle. "I'm sorry for being a dick, though. It's not about my feelings right now."

"No, it's good to know what you're thinking and feeling. We're communicating. That's a critical part to a relationship."

"You're too good to me." giggled the lion. "I love you when you're mean, but I love it when you're sweet with me even more."

"You like that I'm mean to people who aren't you, don't you?"

"Guilty as charged."

"Mm-hm. In that case, I sentence you to cuddle with me a bit longer." smiled the Watchdog, turning over on his side in order to face his spouse completely and wrapping his arm around the other's middle. Between the couple's giggling, they managed to press their lips together a few times. With the little mobility he had in his other arm, he tried to put it around Alois as well, smiling widely when he did.


A/N: I honestly don't like this chapter. I was very distracted while typing all of it. Finals goin' on, y'know? So I honestly have no idea what was happening throughout this chapter. I also couldn't think of a title for it.

I want something to happen, but I really have no ideas...

What do all of you think? What should I do?

Oh, and I got a question:

"Is Dust Blaster the ripoff of Rust Blaster by Yana Tobosao?" by raynaheart23

Yup. It's a parody like "Devil Bulter." The director of both movies, Nana Hitsugi, is actually this universe's Yana Toboso, only instead of a mangaka, she makes movies.

Until the next chapter, my duckies~!