The sound of retching and splashing could be heard coming from the hallway bathroom on the second floor. Pitch-black eyes teared up and their owner's nose ran as the taste of vomit filled his mouth. There was no diagnosable physical illness by any traditional sense that could be found. Revy's body wouldn't let him get sick through viruses and bacteria. This was something different that couldn't be cured by a pill. The body was reacting to the brain. Or rather, Revy was reacting to what the body's previous owner had endured.

Beggars can't be choosers, Revy liked to think under ordinary circumstances. After all, it was he who decided to use this body as a host, not Alois. The menace merely gave him permission to continue using it. Perhaps it was a step up from drifting aimlessly and possessing corpses with a lot of unfinished business and settling it for the owner. Now he was possessing a corpse belonging to a person with unfinished business and it also taking care of it themselves. Really, this shouldn't be Revy's problem, but the scars from channeling Alois' soul and living as him for even a few hours was enough to make it that way.

There were times when Revy resented this body. He was never really comfortable with the way it looked or the idea that it had belonged to someone else. Being undead, too, while didn't feel much different than being alive as far as he knew, wasn't very nice by just the idea of it alone. Worst of all, though, Revy simply didn't like being in the old body. "I'm the one who really has it bad." he would think. "His brain's only affected. I'm the one who has the body, too. Don't you know how gross I feel?"

That really got him angry. While Alois was flouncing around in a brand new, squeaky clean body, Revy was wearing a junker of a meat suit. And Alois had the nerve to cry about it? Revy didn't think that Alois was aware, but Revy knew what he was up to. The younger Macken had a nasty habit of staying up late at night and also had a tendency to walk around when his back and shoulders started to get stiff from sitting at his desk on his computer for hours on end. He heard them talking. He heard them talking several times. He heard how Alois intended to kill every last trace of the Trancy legacy and how he had killed three already. The menace was still mulling over exactly what method to use for the fourth, but he was going to go through with it soon. Why didn't Alois say anything to him? Didn't he know that this was his problem? The conversation from that night pissed him off, too.

Revy felt for him. Really, he did. He knew. He knew how Alois was feeling. He knew why Alois needed to do this. He couldn't even fault him for feeling the way that he did. The seething anger he felt wasn't born from a place of hatred. It was hurt. Revy understood, so why didn't Alois tell him? Why did he keep it only between the other adults in the house. Revy is an adult too! Surely, he can handle the conversation.

"Who am I kidding?" Revy asked himself as he slowly laid back on the floor. The cold tiles felt pleasant against his burning skin and he slowly closed his eyes. Grunting, he added: "I can't handle it at all..."

His face scrunched before his eyes flickered open. Closing them in this state was not a good thing. He saw things. Heard things. Smelled things. "Hurk!" Immediately, he shot up and leaned back over the bowl. It passed though, leaving him breathless.

After a while, he was able to leave the bathroom. He looked terrible. There were red circles around his eyes and he looked pale. A layer of sweat coated his skin, but he felt freezing. Closing the door behind him while walking out into the hallway, he met the butler. The older man simply looked at him with raised brows, somewhat surprised by his appearance.

"Master Revy, are you alright?" he questioned. "Do you need anything?"

"I need a fag." Revy answered in a strained voice, surprising himself. "I'm going out for a bit."

"Alright. Please do tell me if you require any assistance." Sebastian knew better than to try to argue with a lad Revy's age. He was still rebellious and had something to prove. Thus, he simply allowed Revy to slip back to his room without a fuss. He would definitely be telling the Phantomhives in the morning, however.

Once in his room, Revy kicked around the clothes on the floor before finally locating and picking up his coat. After putting it on, he checked his pockets and found a lighter. It was just a cheap one from a gas station, as were the cigarettes that went with it. Walking over to his rather sparse bookshelf, he picked up one an old copy of some boring novel he was forced to read for school. He had hollowed it out and hidden his cigarettes inside. Shoving them into his pockets, he left the room, turning off the lights and shutting the door as he went.

Ciel and Alois were busy, so he didn't need to worry about accidentally running into either of them as he made his descent downstairs to the foyer. The Watchdog didn't mind if Revy smoked, since he was an adult who could make his own decisions, but Alois was likely to scold him about it. It didn't matter that he couldn't get drunk or high on drugs due to his regenerative abilities, Alois still didn't like him doing them. Revy smoked mostly for the sensation of holding and smelling a cigarette. It didn't matter. The receptors in Revy's brain regenerated too, so addiction wasn't really a problem. He just liked it. Somehow, it made him feel closer to something he hadn't seen in a long time, although he wasn't really sure what that was.

Once he was outside, the cold air his his cheeks and he shivered. It was getting later in the year and the time of night didn't help, either. Still, he found it oddly sobering. Sniffling, he rubbed his nose before taking a seat on the front steps and looking out at the darkened lawn. All he could see was the illuminated driveway, but that was fine. He didn't go outside for the scenery. He went to hopefully clear his head.

The flicker of the lighter's flame lit up momentarily as he held a cigarette between his lips. It was quickly replaced by a dull, orange glow as Revy took a deep breath. The smoke that emitted from his mouth when he exhaled mixed with the mist caused by the cold air around him. Somehow, he felt oddly nostalgic for seemingly worse times. The scent made him think of unkempt bars that never checked for I.D.s with terrible, amateur bands playing at them. All of those washed up losers thought they were going to make it big and had the terrible, put-on edge to emphasize their point. They were offensive to a T and thought that they could get and do whatever they wanted. Revy recalled record players and cassette tapes, cheap beer and dirty ashtrays, too. What was he doing? Even though he had a feeling that he didn't want that life for himself anymore, he occassionally thought he might like to see a show. It wouldn't be that dangerous. Ciel had given him a knife for Christmas and he knew he wouldn't get in any trouble with the police if something happened. Times had changed, however, and he wondered if one could even find those places anymore. Instead of terrible bands that thought they were going to be rockstars, it seemed like the thing now was terrible Djs and crappy rappers. That didn't seem like a lot of fun. Maybe it was best to just stay home.

Despite his complaining, Revy still felt as though his life was better off with the Phantomhives. It was hard. Revy would never admit it, but he actually quite liked Alois, too. Maybe that's part of the reason it hurt so much that he wouldn't talk to him about his plans. They had the exact experience. Well, Revy experienced it through him, but the results were still the same. He felt absolutely sick to his stomach. Good on Alois for killing them all off. If Revy had a fraction of the ability, he figured that he'd probably join his older brother.

Maybe revenge wasn't in his narrative, however. More than anything, Revy just wanted it gone. He didn't want it to affect him anymore. He just wanted to live well and bask in the privilege this new life had brought him. It was difficult to, when he was vomiting his guts out at two in the morning. Now the taste mixed with his cigarette and it wasn't very nice. Maybe he should have vaped instead, but he liked the "old-school" factor of the cigarette more. He wasn't about to run back inside and exchange it.

When he was done, he needed to get rid of the butt. Sebastian would have his head if he simply dropped it where he stood. He felt better, though. He still felt like garbage, but he felt like slightly more pleasant garbage. Something about being outside on the estate grounds felt safe and comfortable, despite knowing it's past of being attacked. It certainly wasn't the Trancy estate, so it was fine by him. Any place was better than that one.

Even though he had all of his memories up to the age of fourteen, Revy still couldn't quite grasp how his brother could stomach going back to that house even on occasion, let alone confront Trancy scum. Revy just wanted to leave it all there and never look back. He couldn't, however, because for him, it really was all in his head.

"Uuuuugh..." he groaned, leaning forward as he tried to decide whether or not he was going to throw up again. He already had to deal with the dysphoria of his body not originally belonging to him, he also had the cope with the defilement he felt when he remembered what it and subsequently he had been through. How on earth did Alois manage to do what he did? The menace killed four of those monsters and as far as Revy knew, seemed to have only cried once. Maybe it was age? Maybe Alois was just different. Much to his disappointment, Revy already knew that it was the latter. As much as Revy tried to differentiate himself from his brother, there were still things he envied.

An hour had passed in total and he still felt badly. He wanted to go out and do something, but he didn't know what he could go out and do at three in the morning on his own. He didn't think that either of his friends would be up to go anywhere with him. Samantha, that goody two-shoes, was probably asleep, as far as he knew. Geraldine might be awake, but might not be in the mood for any mischief so late and especially on such short notice.

With no other options, he decided that he should go back inside. He was freezing by this point and bored, too. Sitting outside on his own wasn't helping him anymore. Thus, he stood up and climbed back up the steps before opening the door and stepping inside. He shuddered as the warm air suddenly engulfed him. Still not ready to attempt going to bed, he continued to walk around, eventually ending up in the green room. It was never understood by him how it got its name, given how it was not green in the slightest.

"You're still up?" called a voice behind him. Turning his head, Revy found the bluenette sitting down in one of the chairs, drinking a cup of wine on his own. "I thought you might have gone to bed, by now."

"I could say the same for you." Revy answered. "What're doing? Shouldn't you be with Jim? Wait, why are you drinking?"

"Taste and warmth, mostly. Jim's passed out by now. He had a rough day." Ciel informed, twirling the liquid in his glass. He held it by the stem and looked rather posh in his posturing, despite seeming tired. He was also a bit misleading. The younger Macken knew how rough of a day he had, or at least he could make a guess. Alois had been crying. "I'll go back and check on him in a bit. I thought I might unwind for the day a bit before heading off to join him."

Pausing, he reached over and grabbed the bottle before holding it up. "Want a glass?" he questioned, causing Revy to arch his brow.

"Aren't you supposed to tell me that drinking is bad or something?" the Macken asked.

"No. You're old enough to drink, so it's your choice to make. No pressure."

The younger man watched Ciel's face for a moment in order to figure out if he was serious. Then, he wordlessly picked up one of the empty glasses from the cupboard and held it out. Equally silent, his brother-in-law took the cork out of the bottle and poured it before Revy decided to take a seat, himself. It didn't feel awkward in the slightest to sit together anymore. They had lived in the same house for long enough.

In fact, they got along rather well. Ciel understood Revy's need to prove himself and create his own sense of personhood, while to Revy, Ciel was just "chill." It was nice to have a brother-in-law that had connections and told him neat things about knives. After the Macken got over most of his homophobia, he realised that even though the Phantomhive was attracted to his counterpart, he wasn't at all attracted to Revy himself. He referred to the revenant as: "an infant." Once that was established, it was easy to get over the rest.

Ciel was cool. He was the sort of man who was powerful enough to beat a man much larger than him to a pulp and then sue him for getting blood on his suit. He had the swagger of a proper, old-timey gentleman, but the politics of someone who was rather moderate, if not progressively-leaning. Ciel wasn't afraid of walking down the street holding his husband's hand, because he knew that if anyone tried to start anything, there would be a trip to the hospital involved, and they wouldn't be the pankcake being loaded into the ambulance. He was well-spoken and looked classy in his suits, looked handsome and somewhat rugged with his eyepatch, and had a certain unmistakable air about him that was just out of this world. He was above it all, but earnestly tried to bring himself down to earth. Part of Revy wanted some of that for himself. It was a little bit punk, perhaps?

"Are you going to apply for HELLSING?" the bluenette suddenly asked, bringing Revy back to reality.

"Huh?" the younger man asked. "Oh, yeah. I just haven't, yet… Will I have to wear a suit?"

"Probably, if you're going to sit in the office." Ciel paused to take a sip of his wine. "You could always work from home, I suppose, but working in an office probably has its perks, too."

"Like what?"

"Getting out of the house, and all that. I usually work from home when I'm not doing this boot camp thing, and since Jim quit college, we've both been trying to do things elsewhere just so we don't feel claustrophobic. You could always go back to school."

"Nah, it feels like kind of a waste if I'm just gonna do this HELLSING thing. All I gotta do is be mean on the internet." Revy held his glass by the bowl and took a rather large swig, lacking the tact of his brother-in-law, but Ciel didn't mind in the slightest. It wasn't important. "I don't have a suit, though. I don't much care for them. They all look the same."

"Not exactly true. You can get then in different colours and styles. We could probably find you something a bit louder. Trust me, if you can come up with it, it probably exists. Tell me when you want to try applying and I'll help you find something tolerable."

"Sounds fun..." said the revenant. He wondered how Ciel could possibly find something suited to his tastes, but then again, Ciel was pulling off the "bad guy" look very well, so perhaps he was underestimating him. "Getting out of the house sounds good. I don't like being stuck here all day. Gerry and Sam are off doing their own things, so we can't hang out all of the time."

"Right. I hear that Geraldine was considering Olympic training."

"What?!"

"I don't know if she's actually serious." Ciel admitted. "You know how dry her sense of humour is. It could just be a joke."

"I haven't heard anything like that..." Revy sounded a bit dejected at that. "It wouldn't be surprising. She's won almost everything she's ever competed in. The Olympics are just the next step, I guess."

Pausing, Ciel gauged his reaction and tried not to smile when he replied. "Revy, do you like Geraldine?"

"Don't be gross." the other said without a second thought, causing the Phantomhive to chuckle a bit. He could take his answer as truth. "Gerry's really cool, but she's scary as fuck. She hates men, too, so even if I did find her attractive, she would quite literally kill me."

"Do you think she's… you know?"

"A huge, raging, lesbian?" continued the Macken. "No idea. Don't wanna assume. It's none of my business. Either way, I'm not interested. There is nothing about her or Sam that's appealing to me. Okay? And before you say anything, no, I don't look at guys, either."

"Just wondering." Holding up his hands in surrender, Ciel maintained his very casual tone, yet he didn't pursue it further.

Looking down into his glass, Revy pondered for a moment. The thought had crossed his mind before, and he wasn't sure what he liked. It appeared to be fine, however. Everyone around him was fine with whatever, one, the other, both, or none, it didn't matter. While Revy wasn't knowledgeable enough or willing to confess to anything, he wasn't going to lash out this time, much to the Phantomhive's surprise. He was growing up and Ciel was glad for him.

"So, what are your plans when you get your job?" the bluenette questioned. "Are you going to move out? You can stay here for as long as you like, if you don't think you're ready or want to save up some, first. No one minds."

"What, you're not going to just kick me out?" Revy asked with an arched eyebrow, only for his cheeks to turn a light shade of pink at the almost jovial laughter from his brother-in-law.

"No? That would be a terrible idea!" Ciel told him. "Kicking you out and leaving you to fend for yourself would be incredibly difficult on you. You're a young man with no prior experience, who has never lived on his own before, and more importantly than that, you're in the middle of London and you don't have much savings. No, if you want to move out, we'll help you with rent or housepayments until you get on your feet."

"Are apartments that expensive?" sweated the revenant, sitting up straight now with an almost respectful twinge to his tone of voice.

"In London? Very. You could move further out to somewhere cheaper, but you'd be far away from home. If you were to need help with something, it would take longer to either go to you or for you to come here. Then there's the fact that you need to know where a witch is so you can buy glamour…" trailed off the Phantomhive, setting his glass down and leaning back while staring into space. "This will take some planning. It's not impossible in the slightest, but it's something that will need talked about when the time comes."

"Uuuuugh! I don't wanna be a grownup! It's so haaaaarrrddd!" whined the revenantt, slouching in his seat while still being sure to balance his glass. "It sucks..."

"Just think about how hard it would be if you didn't have wealthy family with business contacts and money to spare. Then you will see 'hard.'"

"I still have Jim's old memories, you know. I know how he used to live on the streets." Revy said, sitting up just enough to take a drink. "He mugged people at the age of ten. Ten! Sometimes, I kinda wonder how he's handling being a rich guy fair and square."

"He's quite chivalrous, actually. He uses his money primarily on other people." There was a certain fondness to the bluenette's words as he twirled the last mouthful of wine left in his glass. "He is by no means anything like most of the wealthy elites out there, but that's a good thing. He's probably the most incredible person I've ever met."

"Ugh, gross..." the younger man said with a scrunched face.

"What?"

"Can either of you talk about each other without getting all mushy for like, five seconds?"

"What would you rather I say, then?"

Pausing, the revenant hesitated for a moment before coming out with: "What about whatever he's been up to, lately? With the murder?"

"Sounds like you already know a bit..." the Phantomhive replied. "It doesn't really matter where. I can't discuss it in to much detail, as it is Jim's business to divulge, not mine..."

"It's my business, too..." his brother-in-law huffed before chugging the rest of his glass. Ciel finished up what was left in his own before setting it down on the table next to his chair. Then, he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees with a sigh.

"What do you need to know?" he asked. "I'll tell you what I can."

Revy couldn't answer right away as he was gasping for air. Once he was done, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "I don't get why he's gotta do it." the Macken said, holding out his glass to be refilled. "I've been spending all my time and energy just trying to forget and move on. It it's so bad for him, why does he do it?"

"I don't know if I have a solid answer for that." Ciel confessed, setting the bottle back down after tending to Revy's glass. "I'm not him. What I gather, however, both from what he's told me and from knowing him, is that he just can't stand the fact that they're still out there, existing and continuing to do the same thing over and over again. He feels a moral obligation to not only put an end to it, but also to get justice for every other person they've imprisoned. Jim is… like that. He's quite the positive force."

"I've heard him crying. You call that 'positive?'"

"He's doing what he can with the issues that he has. This is the way that he feels can best help him, so I'm in no place to stop him."

"It's not like I'm not mad, too..." Revy furrowed his brow as he stared into the glass, watching his purple reflection staring back at him. "I want them to die, too. It would be better if they just offed themselves. Do the world a favour. Is actually going after them- like, seeking them out, really good for him, though? I want to be as far away from them as possible. I could never do that."

"Jim isn't you, though, Revy." reminded the Phantomhive, drawing the other's gaze. "All this time, you've said that you don't want to be like him. You want to be you're own separate person. Well, you are. That means that Jim isn't always going to do things your way, either."

"So you're saying that I can't get mad that he does things differently just like he can't get mad that I do?"

"Precisely."

"Even if what I think he's doing is fucking insane?" the Macken questioned further.

"Yes."

"You're both crazy..." accused the revenant. "I know why you're like this, but still… Why aren't I like this?"

"You… I don't want to sound like I'm discrediting you or undermining your own experiences, first of all." stated the bluenette, holding out a hand almost as if to stop the other from charging at him. "Perhaps it is because you've been through all of this without the control of being able to make your own decisions during it. You were being dragged along by Jim, almost. Part of our strangeness is simply that we've learned to adapt and found our own ways that work. Because we've had to learn it for ourselves, it's become this… almost intrinsic part of who we are. The way we think all sort of coincides with the fact that we were forced to make the decisions that we did and do the things that we had to in order to survive and keep carrying on. Does that make sense?"

"I guess..." reluctantly conceded Revy. "I just… I have my ways. I don't understand his. Not understanding his is frustrating, y'know? Like, I know all of his shit, right? I know it better than even you. But then I just don't get him, anyway. It's like I'm being excluded or something. Pisses me off… After all this time of trying to separate myself from him, I still can't stand not being able to know what he's thinking!"

"You're connected, that's why. You remember his entire life up until the age of fourteen, don't you?"

"Yeah. And it ain't pretty..." Reclining on the couch, the other man looked up at the ceiling. "It's like… It's hard to tell where I end and I begin… Sometimes, I feel like I should be like him, or like I'm not holding up." Abruptly, he sat up to look at his brother-in-law. "Don't tell him I said that."

"Cross my heart." Ciel chuckled. "Do you feel like you ever need to compete with him?"

"Not 'compete,' but… I dunno. Like I need to somehow live up to what he became. I haven't done anything. I've just sat here and hung around with friends and shit."

"Jim did all of those things, too. He wasn't always like this. It took a lot of time for him to build himself up like this. When he was your age, he went to college and then felt like such a failure for having to drop it because of work. Even he has feelings of inadequacy." Pausing, the bluenette thought about how to phrase what he was going to say for a moment before adding: "In our world, we're surrounded by people with all of this prestige. Pure pedigrees and titles for days..."

"'For days?'" audibly gawked the younger man, interrupting his brother-in-law. "Where are you getting these phrases? You're supposed to be old and stuffy."

"Jim, obviously." bluntly informed the Watchdog. "Anyway, it's hard to be a part of that world and not have any of that. Dropping out of college really got to him for a while… You'll find your own way. I have no doubt that you'll get there, someday. You just need to work at it and stay on task."

"Hmmmm..." Revy let out a raspy hum as he thought about it. Then, he let out a sigh. "I think I'd like to start working at HELLSING." he said, prompting Ciel to smile.

"Do you want me to get it sorted for you?"

"Is it something I can do by myself?"

"Not all of it. You can fill out the paperwork yourself, though."

"Fair enough." the revenant replied. "Does the offer to help me buy a suit still stand?"

"Yes, but it would be good if it could wait until boot camp is over." Ciel answered. "Or, if you're alright with it, you could ask Jim and he could take you earlier."

That was a problem. Revy was getting tired of sitting around the house all day and he hadn't the slightest clue when Ciel would be done with the camp. While Alois was right there, the younger Macken knew that his brother was in a rough spot and might not be in the mood to put up with Revy's grouchiness. Furthermore, how embarrassing would Alois act on their shopping venture? Probably very. Still, what options did Revy have? Sebastian was a possibility, but he would probably dress him in something stuffy and uncomfortable. Maybe asking his brother if he was up for it was a good idea after all.

"I can ask him..." Revy said, finally sitting up again. "Think tomorrow will be a good time?"

"I don't know. Depends on how he's feeling. Just watch him and make a call on it." With that, Ciel stood up, taking his glass and nudging the bottle closer to the other. "Speaking of Jim, I should go see how he's doing. Goodnight, Revy."

"'Night, Ciel." the other replied, waiting until the Watchdog's back was turned and he was halway out the door to reach over and grab the bottle. He stopped to read the label before looking to his glass. With that, he set the glass down and drank from the bottle, like the true delinquent he was.

Meanwhile, the Watchdog retreated upstairs and quietly crept into the master bedroom. His husband was resting on his side, so he couldn't tell that Jim was awake until he rolled over and waved at him. Ciel smiled and picked up the pace a bit, walking normally over to his beau to hold onto his raised hand.

"Not sleeping, darling?" the bluenette inquired. Alois opened his eyes and uttered a long sigh, trying to not sacrifice the comfortable position he was in to look at his spouse.

"No dice, Pooh bear..." he mumbled, causing Ciel to chuckle. Leaning down, the Watchdog kissed the back of his hand before gently setting it back down on the bed, where it quickly retreated beneath the covers.

"I'll be right back." Ciel said, tucking a lock of the other's hair behind his ear. With that, he retreated to the dressing room and stripped down. He debated on whether he would shower that night or in the morning. He figured that he shouldn't keep his husband waiting for too long, so he chose the latter, cleaning up a little with a damp washcloth before getting dressed for bed and brushing his teeth.

When he returned, Alois was on his side again, curled into a ball. Quietly, he lifted the blanket and crawled into bed, ignoring his usual habit to simply plop down into his pillow as to not violently shake the entire mattress. As soon as his positioned himself and got comfortable, his husband took the fact that he had stopped moving as the prime opportunity to roll over and face him, using him as a pillow and squeezing him firmly in his arms.

"Mmn~!" hummed the menace, nuzzling against the other man's chest. "This is better."

"Comfortable?"

"Yeah. This is nice. I needed this." Finally, Alois was smiling. He let out a sigh of contentment as he lay there. He had been wondering what he needed since he had calmed down and it turned out, this was it. While he was far from being perfectly alright and over his problems, things seemed to be lighter for at least that moment. Much to Ciel's relief, his husband's body finally relaxed slightly from its incredibly tense state.

"I'm glad you're feeling a bit better." the bluenette replied. "Again, I'm sorry for earlier… In the future, I'll ask what you need instead of assuming."

To that, the blonde snorted. "No use worrying about it now. Thanks, though. It's sweet. God, I'm so tired… I don't want to sleep, though..."

"At least rest for a bit. The mental strain is not good for you."

"Are you calling me dumb?"

"What? No! I-"

"I'm messing with you." Alois said. "I know what you meant. You can dim the light a bit, if you want. Is it okay if we don't turn it completely off?"

"Yeah. It's fine." Since the Watchdog was being used as a pillow, he wasn't allowed to move much. He couldn't use his eye to figure out where the remote for the light was, so he was forced to grope around on top of his nightstand until he felt something vaguely shaped like it. He dialed down the brightness in the room before setting it back and putting both arms back under the comforter with a bit of a sigh of his own.

"Today was stressful… Let's hope that tomorrow will be better..."

"Yeah. I hope it will be, too."

"I love you..."

"I love you, too."

Surprisingly, the menace chuckled at that. "We're so disgusting..." he said. He was joking, however. "The world is ending one minute, and then the next, we're mushy. What the fuck is up with that? Is this a normal thing couples do?"

"I don't know. You're the only person I've ever loved romantically, and I don't really want to know the answer for other people." the bluenette replied, shutting his eyes. "I guess it could be..."

Alois tried to suppress his smile as he could physically feel his husband relaxing beneath him and starting to doze off. Ciel's breathing slowed, only to pick up the pace a bit when Alois shifted to kiss his chin before returning to his previous spot. "Huh?" sleepily asked the bluenette, unaware of just how much time had passed.

"Just giving you a goodnight kiss. Go to sleep." the menace instructed, prompting the other man to raise his head to kiss flaxen locks.

Dropping it back down onto his pillow, Ciel replied, although he wasn't nearly as articulate as usual: "Love you, Jimmy..."

"Love you, too Pooch." Alois said, closing his own eyes in hopes of perhaps joining him. "Even if you call me 'Jimmy.'"


A/N: "Other M" is for "Other Macken." Metroid: Other M the game sucked really bad...

This chapter took way longer than I wanted it to, but what can you do? I kinda wanted a break from the usual characters, so I tried something new. The idea came to me while reading a Fanficception by TimeTrees on AO3 called "Whose Absence Seems Absurd." Got me thinking about this kid. Hopefully, y'all aren't too disappointed. We'll return to the usual stuff next time. But maybe with a little spin? Who knows...

The songs for this chapter are "October and April" by The Rasmus, "Take My Leave of You" by Ólafur Arnalds (feat. Arnór Dan) and "These Days" by Nico.

Not a lot of Blink182, shockingly. Is that even allowed?

Ah... What else...

I had stuff to say about the previous chapter, but I totally forgot what it was... There was just a lot going on...

Until the next chapter, my duckies~!