I wish to make a contract with you.
Sebastian was thinking about uttering the words. How would she react? He sensed no point of regret or terror in her, only her terror in him. She had not yet trusted him, completely. For when she awoke, she backed away from him and tried to quickly shove on her clothes.
"Do you not wish to shower, first?" Sebastian spoke, hints of insincerity in his voice. It wasn't detectable, only with assumption.
And, she did so. With no wishes that he were to join her. Sebastian, only used to Victorian times, had not yet been accustomed to what the present day had held for him. Curiosity was his only grant, here, and so far- that had gotten him... somewhere. Just, not nowhere.
Raira, however, was... not exactly enjoying his company. Slightly. She did, she didn't. She wished he hadn't invaded the boxes in her closet, or any other things that remained personal to her- at least he didn't check the actual clothes. Dear God, if he made her wear that, she would've been out within 5 seconds.
During her shower, she only filled the tub and sank her head low into the water, eyes above level and nose below. She thought that Sebastian would only stay a day. It appeared he would stay with her until he said so, which would- more than likely- be absolute hell for her.
Where was he from? His words were rather large in vocabulary, yet... his behavior. Polite, and voracious. She could call the cops on him, and he would be gone- but, more than likely, he would stop her and the cops in their tracks.
She couldn't win. She made him tell her what he was, apparently- with it being, more than likely, his hands. His nails, a cloudy black, with a somewhat illuminated symbol- some how, she obtained the idea that he was a demon.
When her shower was finished, she left in a Malboro towel. It was her favorite- a towel that covered her well enough to let her pull it around her shoulders and let it go down to her knees.
"Do you smoke?" Sebastian asked her, as she left the room.
"Ah, no, my... mother, did. It's a gift from my Father." The thought made her voice quiver.
"Is there an issue, madam?" He spoke, his voice having no mistakes, no errors or quirks. It was soothing.
"My mom," she spoke quietly. "I don't like talking about her. But, I care for my father, dearly. He wasn't happy when my mother passed away. And, he's been there for me, through a lot. I just... would hate the thought of him, leaving me, like she did..."
She left, and readied her day like she would any day. Sebastian was exploring her apartment, how small it was- only the bed seemed to be fit for two. She had not intended that, no, for her bed at home was a twin. Her mother insisted on a queen for... just such an occasion, she had remembered. She walked out of the bathroom, and sat on the couch. The microwave beeped, and Sebastian placed the meal from earlier on the table in front of her.
She didn't look at him. She didn't breathe. Instead, the light pink returned to her cheeks, as she turned on the TV.
"Are you angry at me, Raira?" He spoke, caressing her cheek. His hair fell over his ears, a piece of his hair falling over one of his eyes.
She still had the idea of not speaking. Sebastian only chuckled and left her to eat her meal.
"...where are you from?" She spoke, quietly at first.
"Pardon?" His inquiry, more gentle than his other sentences.
"Where, are, you, from?" She said again. "You... aren't from here, correct?"
"As I have said before, I am a representative of the Phantomhive estate- but they are long from gone. Long from this world, as of right now," He said, a hint of sadness in his voice. "I'm only here... to get what I needed from him; to offer you, something."
She stopped eating. "Such as?"
"In due time, I will give you details. But for now, young one," the world seemed to disappear around her. "You are my pet."
Only then did her heart speed up, only then did it become harder to swallow.
Sebastian's mouth was nibbling on her neck.
"No, stop-!" She moaned, trying to push him away.
His hand was moving to her shoulder, then lower...
The doorbell rung.
"I-I'll get it!" Raira yelled, leaving Sebastian's touch. He sighed, left for the shower, and let Raira do what she was going to do.
She unlocked the door, and opened it- Victor was standing there with a smile. "Uh.. hi..." He said, awkwardly. He had no idea what to say.
"Hey," she smiled, scratching her head. Victor looked at her neck, seeing the purple mark on the side of it. Raira slowly caught on, and tried explaining with a lie.
"It's a bruise," She laughed as she spoke. "I was cleaning up around and a box with old possessions fell and hit it." She rubbed her hand along the mark Sebastian had left, feeling herself blush.
Why did he choose there, of all places...?
"Well, I just came to check on you," He smiled again. "your neighbors said they heard you in pain, last night."
She blushed even harder. "I did get hit pretty hard, huh?" She giggled. "Well, thanks, anyway. I need to make a quick call, though. Don't you have work?"
"Nope, I have the day off. I was supposed to be covering a shift, is all. Don't you?"
"I can't, ha. I'm not feeling all too well."
The shower could be heard, from the area they were in. Victor wasn't an idiot- he knew someone else was in there.
"Who's in the shower?" He asked, with obvious suspicion.
"A visiting friend of mine, I forgot to mention." She smiled, awkwardly. "I guess I should've mentioned this earlier..."
Shit.
Victor simply nodded. "Well, I'm in room 380, if you need me." He didn't ask questions, he let it be.
They waved, and he was off. That was all there was to it.
Victor had, actually, not believed her story. Before pressing the bell, the wife next door had come outside with a smirk.
"Ahh, don't hurt her so much, this time!" She laughed. "Already back for more? It's only been a couple of hours!"
"What?" Victor asked, his suspicion gathering.
"Oh, you know what I mean!" She waved her hand in a shooing manner. "You seemed to be rough with her."
He was blushing.
"What exactly... did you hear?"
"It sounded painful, at first, deary. But, with that noise, you seem... energetic. Be careful, young'n! You don't want her to end up like me- almost addicted!"
"Wait, no, I wasn't here thi-"
She left, to go back into her room. Victor made a disgusted face at the nymphomaniac, but rang the doorbell anyway.
She walked over to her desk, and turned on her desktop. Remembering that Jen wanted to speak to her earlier, she logged onto Skype. 18 unread messages.
(2:15) Rairai: it was 6 in the morning when you texted me dumbass
JennyPenny: lol sorry i need to tell you something
Rairai: what?
JennyPenny: vid chat its essier to explain
Easier whoops
(2:16) Rairai: thats fine lemme get my webcam real quick
JennyPenny: k
(2:17) Rairai: k one sec
The "dial-up" noise occurred, and soon she saw her best friend's face. Though, she wasn't in her usual home, she was in a large, windowed loft.
"When'd you get that?" Raira asked, smiling. "You got a job?"
"Yeeeah, I did!" Jen was moving her shoulders in an uneven pattern. "I got a job with my dad."
"What do you do?" Raira asked, minimizing the window, to attend to her document to fax to her boss. You could only see Jen in the corner. Not herself, no one else.
"I just make the deliveries. Like, if he needs to bring documents to his boss, I'll have to run over to him. It's pretty often, though, so I pretty much get the less than his pay," she explained. "it's not that bad a job. And, besides, it let me pay for the present I sent you!"
Raira sighed.
"God, Jen, do you have no shame? When'd you get off the minor credit card?"
"A week before your birthday! Lucky, lucky, fufufu~"
"I hate you, right now." Raira sighed, addressing the final line of the document with 'with my regards, Raira.'
"But, baby! I love you!" She stopped, and smiled. "Ray, who's that?"
"What do you..." She turned around. Sebastian, a towel around his waist, and another drying his hair, stood right behind her. She quickly turned around, her face a bright pink. She was looking away from him, obviously embarrassed. She quickly turned off the "show camera" option, leaving only her voice on. "You don't need to see that." She sighed. She turned to him. "Go do... something!"
"Ahhh, my little Ray's embarrassed!" Jen giggled. "Who is he, your boyfriend? Noo, he's stealing away my Rairai!"
Sebastian moved over to her, nibbling on her ear.
"N-no!" She responded, to both actions.
"Whatever," Jen spat. "Call you later, that's all I had to show you. Bye, Raira~"
Call ended, duration 1:45
"H-hey, what the hell was that?" Raira hissed at him, resting his chin on her shoulder.
"Your request was for me, to do 'something'. Therefore, 'something' could be 'anything'. I did so, as your demand." He spoke, smoothly.
"Jeez, and Jen was the one who sent..." she stopped. "N-nevermind. Can you at least get dressed? I need to buy more water, I used it when I thought you needed it." She looked at him as he left for the spare closet, in the living room. It was full of casual clothes, suits, and what Sebastian had been wearing before. Her brother had told her to keep them there for when he gets drunk and has nowhere to go, but for Sebastian to already find out; he more than likely investigated the entire home. He grabbed the same clothes as before, only without the coat, and dressed in the kitchen- behind the overview counter.
"You're not going to run away, are you?" He asked, a hint of sincerity in his tone.
"Where would I go?" she raised an eyebrow. He simply chuckled and walked over to her.
"Come back soon, pet." He whispered in her ear.
When Raira left the room, her legs quivering, her neighbors had already set out down the hall.
"Ah, Raira, deary!" Ms. Nanemt yelled, turning to her. "Has he finished up already?"
"What?" She asked, not aware of the 'slang terms' yet.
"I must say, he lasted a lot longer last time." Mr. Nanemt laughed. "What, did you use stronger techniques?"
"No, what? I'm not..." Suddenly, it hit her. She blushed like mad. "Wait! No! We didn't-"
"Raira, you forgot this." Sebastian called after her, her wallet in his hand.
"Ohhh, you took two this time?" It was the wife, speaking this time.
"What!?" Raira backed away from them. She bumped into Sebastian, who handed her her wallet. "Thank you..." She said, softly.
"Hmm, how is she, young lad?" Said Mr. Nanemt. "She sounded happy, this morning. How was recently? Say, was the other boy as strong as this one?"
Raira sighed, she gave up. Turning around, she hid her face in Sebastian's chest.
"Can I just go back home?" She whispered to him.
"I assure you, I'm the only one who has gone as far as touching her. We have done nothing with another individual." He smiled. Raira widened her eyes, as she felt one hand slip into her pants. From their distance, they couldn't see.
"Well, be careful with her!" The husband resumed. "She seems quite delicate. How many times did she... you know?"
"Oh, Jonathan, leave the girl alone."
"Nnnmm...!" Raira buried her face into his vest.
"3." Sebastian hid her moan with his reply. His fingers moving along her. She couldn't hold her breath any longer, she was breathing quickly against his chest, the smell of him flooding her lungs, clouding her mind.
"Ahh, in all that time?" They chuckled and resumed their journey.
"Goodbye, now!" They said in unison.
Sebastian waited until the elevator had completely closed to strike conversation with the poor girl, who was having an issue with standing. He stopped, luckily, and continued to walk down the hall with her. "Water, was it?" He asked. "That was all you needed?
She nodded.
"We shall be off, then." He smiled. They continued walking down the hall, not once had they looked at each other.
"I-idiot. Doing that in front of people..." She whispered.
"What was that?" Sebastian asked her. He seemed closer than she remembered.
"I'm just... tired." She sighed. "I can get water on my own, you know."
"I had to give you your wallet, correct? I'm useful, in many ways."
Raira shook her head, and they left for the grocery store a block away.
"Your neighbors," Sebastian spoke. "they're quite odd."
"If you're listening to them, all you hear is drunk yelling and sex." She sighed. "I thought the apartment I rented out was good, for its price! I can see why my landlord set it so low... I thought it was for the WINDOW. But NOOOOO."
Sebastian only chuckled at her mumbling. "Do you only walk for transportation?" He looked around. "It would seem that has been the only way I've seen you getting around."
She shrugged. "It's worth it, sometimes." The mail truck slowed down by her.
"Ms. Merin! You have.. 1 letter, and a package!" He smiled, handing her her mail, and driving away. She placed the envelope in her coat pocket, while carrying the box, and continued walking. Her books made obvious imprints in the snow, untouched. The cold made her smile, and walk forward. By the time they had reached the grocery store, the grey sky had begun showering them with snow- making the car outside covered.
She purchased 5 gallons of water, and 3 granola bars. Her excuse, she drinks a lot of water. Which, she does, and 5 gallons is enough to last her a week or so. On the journey home, Sebastian had means in asking the young misses questions.
"More about your family," he chose for a category. "What are they like?"
"I have a brother, and my dad. My mom died when I was seven, my brother 11, from... something we call Cancer. In the lungs. She smoked, a lot, so that was the main cause of it. And, my dad, he didn't handle it well. He turned into an alcoholic, even offering swigs of it to my brother and I."
Her pace in walking grew slower. "We never accepted any of it. It's illegal to drink under the age of 21."
Sebastian nodded and let her continue. "I worry about him, often, because I know that he hates being alone. He has my brother, true, but.. he lives in DC, also. My dad is all the way back in Washington. Which is where... my step mom comes in."
"Step mom?" Sebastian asked.
"It's a phrase for children who's mothers have passed, or were involved in divorce, and their father has remarried. The new woman is considered your mother." She continued. "She doesn't really like me. It's not my grades, I'm an honor student and had the highest GPA in high school. It might be my personality, though. We're the exact opposite."
Sebastian thought about it.
"Yes, even... that." She groaned. "Her clothing, too. Overall, I love my dad. He's a nice guy, really, you just.. need to look past his before decisions."
"And, you... who were the Phantomhives?" Raira asked.
Sebastian sighed. "Would you prefer a seat, rather than walking? The story itself is quite long."
"There's a bench, right there," She pointed. It was hooded, due to the recent snowfall. She grabbed a granola bar from the bag.
"As a demon, we find those who are full of regret and hatred- locate them, and offer them a contract. The year 1886- I formed a contract with the 'Queen's Guard dog', Ciel Phantomhive, after his parents were killed in a fire. He was abducted, branded, and almost sold away, before I reached him. I would be his loyal butler, at his side, until he achieved full revenge. However, 2 years later, we experienced a slight issue. The Queen, whom he had served for quite a long time, had a... butler, as well. That butler was also a her, and she had been the ones to murder the Young Master's parents."
Raira remained silent.
"She believed that anything sullied, unclean, was not fit to be on this planet."
"His parents were unclean?"
"I believe so." He spoke once more. "She believed the entire city of London was unclean. She and he wanted a clean world, to be cleansed by fire. And, once I had stopped him and her, I was to have the Young Master's soul in my possession.. yet, at a point of weakness, it was stolen from me. In the end, he too became a demon, and I was to never devour his soul. I would remain his loyal butler for eternity."
"Then, how are you here?"
"The very reason I made a contract with him oh so long ago." He looked at her, eyes a glowing red. "To devour one's soul."
She was paralyzed under his gaze.
"However, I sense only a small point of hatred or regret in you. Your soul, enriched with happiness and delight, tastes rather.. disgusting, to me."
"Thanks?"
He ignored her. "But, if Demons are famished, they go into a state that drives them mad for pleasure. Until I find someone to sign a contract with, you are to be under my control. You were too kind to me, it would seem."
She had no clue whether or not to be upset. The cold was getting to her, for she was shivering in her sweater and boots.
"My, you're chilled to the bone. Come inside, I will make you some tea."
She nodded, and walked with him to the complex's elevator.
Almost immediately after she and him had arrived in the room, she reached into her pocket and opened the first letter.
Hello, lovely individual! Your lovely friend Leo here! Did'ya forget about me? Hope you didn't. Well, now you'll remember me! Look under this note card for a... 'busty' surprise! BWAHAHA!
She lifted up the card, to find pornography DVDs. "Beautiful Asian Anal", "Cocks in the Cowgirl"... 3 others. Why was she friends with such idiots? God. She closed the box quickly, hiding it.
"Onto the next one!" she proclaimed.
Aloha, from Hawaii!
Ooh, happy birthday, and happy new year, sweet heart! How's school? Are you happy? Do you have a boyfriend yet? Ah, I'm sorry. I'm invading, aren't I? Father's habit... oh, Woe is me, Raira! When shalt I see thou once more~?
Write back, baby doll. Love you.
-Daddy
She smiled at her Dad's tendency to send in postcards with the wrong setting on them. He had no intentions of leaving his beloved city of Seattle, and was to stay there for a while... she thought. At least, she hoped.
"Who might that be from?" Sebastian asked, placing a cup of honey-milk tea on the table, with a saucer.
"My father." She smiled.
He didn't let 'Nat' sign it?
"He didn't let my step mom sign it, I guess. Best birthday present ever." She walked over to her bulletin board, and placed the post card on it, and pushed a pin dramatically into it. "...ought to hold it."
She sat back on the couch, when her phone started ringing.
Her brother was calling.
"Hello?" She asked.
"Raira, Dad's been admitted to the hospital."
Everything was quiet.
"W-what? When? Just now?" She stuttered.
"No, he had a heart attack 2 hours ago. I'm packing my things, and heading to the airport. You should too. I'll pay for our tickets, if you want."
"No, no. I ca... I can't let you do that, Jase, I'm paying for my own."
"Alright, I'm picking you up in 3 hours."
Beep beep beep
Hospitalized...?
Quickly, she gulped down the tea and ran for the suitcase under her bed. She threw in as many clothes as she needed, almost all of them- even the "lacey" ones, and none of the toys. If she would need them, which she didn't, they would be there.
"Oh? What seems to be the matter?" Sebastian asked, hovering over her.
"M-my dad, he's... had a heart attack. Not feeling well, we're going to... the airport."
"Well, it appears I'll have to go with you."
Dear God, please no.
"Do you have to?" She turned to him. "I have enough money for the both of us to go, but I would save a lot on-"
Sebastian placed a finger on her lip. "Oh, I'll be accompanying you."
She shrugged her shoulders. She did find Sebastian attractive and sort of polite, yes, but... point being, he only saw her as a slave. She didn't mind him coming along, but he was only doing so for his needs.
He packed the casual clothes in a black duffel bag, and they were sitting on the couch, waiting for the three hours to pass.
"No, what do I tell my brother?" She asked. "I can't lie to him... what would I call you? Friend? B..."
She blushed.
"I would like to believe that I'm your partner, yes. But, the title itself is completely up to you." He smiled at her.
4:45. They had 2 hours left until Jason would come to pick them up.
"I guess.. I could watch TV, the apartment it tidied up, there's no food in the fridge... and... everything. I've already told my landlord that I won't be home until further notice, but to bill me on my credit card..."
She sighed.
"Ah, are these those 'Digital Versatile Discs' I've been hearing of?" Sebastian asked, picking up the box and sifting through the packaging foam. Before he saw anything, Raira stole the box away from him. She had no intention of watching those things, especially with reasoning to be with Sebastian.
"Mm? What's this?" He asked. One of the DVDs had fallen out of the box.
Noooooo... damn it!
"They sell things with this sort of imagery?" He asked, flipping it around.
"Y-yeah. It was another present that came in late."
He looked at her. "We have quite an amount of time left. Do you wish to watch it?"
"N-no." She mumbled.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"Yes."
"Yes it is, then."
He popped the disc out of the case, putting it into the DVD player. Raira covered her eyes.
"This DVD has not yet been rated.. under the circumstances that you are not 18 or older, please eject of the item. Viewer's discretion is advised."
"Hmmm?" He asked, clicking the remote down to "PLAY ALL". Already, was she blushing a bright red, seeing the image of a woman riding a man on the screen.
The film started in a man's room, he was watching rated M for Mature things, feeling himself- when a woman was watching from a crack in the door. She too, was touching herself, but trying her hardest to be undetectable. No, it was unsuccessful. And, with luck, the doorbell rung. Quickly, Raira turned off the TV, hid the case in the box, and grabbed her suit case. Sebastian rose from the couch, still not having his coat on- it was packed safely in his bag.
"Ready to go?" Jason asked. "You have everything, right? You're good? And, you..."
He diverted his attention to Sebastian. "Who is he?"
"Well, uh... Jason, this is Sebastian Michaelis, my.. boyfriend.." She was trying not to look at him. "He's one year older than me. We have the same classes, down at campus."
After an awkward silence, he simply patted her on the head. "Way to be social."
And, with that, they set out.