~8~
Burning.
Fire.
The world is made of fire.
Red, black, orange, yellow.
The colours of fire.
White.
The shining colour of a soul.
The soul of the Phoenix.
The golden bird expanded its golden wings and took flight out of the flames of the fire.
'Is that what happened to me? When fire took over the manor of Phantomhive and devoured my parents?'
Passion.
Fire again.
The world is made of fire.
Red, black, orange, yellow.
The colours of passion.
White.
The brilliant colour of the purest soul.
The soul of a phoenix.
'My soul.'
Ciel opened his eyes.
It was an odd sensation that ran through his small body.
He suddenly felt as if he were a hundred years old and knew all the secrets of the world.
Perhaps he did, stored up somewhere in his little head. Locked in the memories of his past.
Or, maybe, in the memories of his soul.
The young master rolled onto his side to find another in his bed, with his trousers and his shirt on. The shirt was undone, allowing a good view of what lay beneath. "G'morning." Ciel said groggily.
"Afternoon." Sebastian corrected. "It's a little after twelve."
"Why didn't you wake me?"
Sebastian moved some of the young one's hair out of the uncovered violet eye. "Because you needed to rest, my Love." he said simply. "What with you have those terrible nightmares and then me making love to you, I imagine you haven't had much sleep over the past couple of days."
Remembering what had happened last time, Ciel resisted the urge to poke his tongue out at the older demon. He closed his eyes again and shifted closer to Sebastian, seeking the warmth only his lover could give. Said lover chuckled and embraced his master.
After a few minutes of silence, Ciel looked up at Sebastian, "Where's Lau and his . . . Lover." he asked.
"They're out." Sebastian answered. "They have a business to run, you know."
"I know." Ciel said with a yawn and sat up then froze as an odd sort of burning sensation came over him, running through his veins.
"Ciel?"
The young Lord didn't answer.
"Ciel, what's . . . ?"
"It. . .It's nothing, Sebastian." Ciel said. "I just felt strange for a moment there." The young one shook off the feeling and turned to Sebastian with a smile. "Stop worrying, you'll end up having a panic attack every time something odd happens and I don't have time for that."
Ciel squealed as Sebastian grabbed him and pinned him to the mattress. "I hate you." Ciel hissed.
Sebastian laughed. "No, you don't. I'm far too irresistible."
"Not to mention that you're so modest too." Ciel retorted sarcastically.
"I know. How people manage to keep their hands off me, I will never know." Sebastian joked.
"Maybe because there's nothing attractive about you."
Sebastian faked a look of surprise and hurt. "What? You don't think I'm handsome?"
"Nope." Ciel said.
The elder grinned. "See, young Master," he said positioning himself between the younger's legs, "You're saying one thing but. . ." he kissed the lily white neck beneath him "but your body. . ." he wiggled a little, making a moan escape from the trapped young demon as the little lord's eyes closed ". . .Is saying another."
Ciel's eyes flew open and Sebastian had time to see an odd fiery spark in the master's mismatched eyes before the young one used his demon strength, for the first time, and tackled the older until the younger was on top. Sebastian was too surprised to say anything before Ciel dipped down and kissed him gently. He giggled. "My, Sebastian. I think you're loosing your touch." the young one said before getting off his lover and getting dressed.
"Since when do you use your full strength?" Sebastian asked, sitting back up.
Ciel looked around at him, confused. "I did?"
Sebastian nodded.
"Huh." Ciel said going back to buttoning up the blue shirt he had selected. "I should pay more attention to what I'm doing."
"Ciel. . ." Sebastian began but was cut off by a sigh from his master.
"I'm loosing control." Ciel said mellifluously. He looked back at the other demon. "Did this happen when you were young too?"
Sebastian frown, trying to remember his childhood. It was a little hazy but he could remember the confusion and the slight lacking in control over his strength he had when he hit puberty. "Yes."
"Then it's a demon thing." Ciel said pulling on his trousers. "Not anything else."
"No." Sebastian confirmed. "It passes within a few years."
Ciel let out a relieved breath through his nose and put on his eye patch.
"What's the schedule for today?" Ciel asked in an attempt to appear calm but his voice wavered.
Sebastian climbed out of bed and pulled the young one into him. "It's empty for today, my Lord." Sebastian told him softly. Ciel buried his face in Sebastian's chest that was curiously smooth for a man but, after all, he was a demon. "We should go and see the Undertaker. He may know what else this Demon King business has in store for us."
"Can't we stay in bed?" Ciel asked, his voice muffled by the chest his face was against.
Sebastian chuckled. "As appealing as that sounds; no, we can't." he released the young master and looked down at him. "You really are so adorable in the morning."
Ciel narrowed his visible eye, grabbed Sebastian's open shirt and roughly yanked the elder down for a heart-stopping, opened mouth kiss. "I am not adorable." the young Lord hissed when he pulled back.
A grin spread across the elder's face. "Not?"
Ciel didn't even dignify that with an answer. He only turned away from his Lover and resumed dressing.
Yes, defiantly adorable, my Lord.
Outside the Undertaker's shop, Ciel waited patiently for the load bark of laughter that announced the man in question would tell them anything they wanted to know.
The laughter came but also came the shocked, tearful and fluttery voice of Ciel's (ex?)fiancée, the young Lady Elizabeth. "Ciel?" she called, uncertainly. Ciel looked up to see the blonde beauty, dressed in her usual pink attire, only about sixty feet from where he stood.
Panicked, Ciel hurried into the shop. "Elizabeth just saw me." Ciel told Sebastian.
Sebastian shoved Ciel into an empty coffin and closed the lid before turning to the Undertaker. "Not a word about the young Lord, understood?"
Undertaker nodded gravely.
Lady Elizabeth entered the Undertaker's shop. "Sebastian?" she said in surprise.
"My Lady." Sebastian greeted with a bow. "what brings you in here?"
"I. . . well, I though. . .it sounds silly, really but, I could have sworn I saw Ciel come in here." Lizzie said.
"My Lady, Ciel isn't. . .of this world anymore." Sebastian said.
"Yes, I know but. . ." she let out a sigh and Ciel, from inside the coffin, winced.
"We all wish he could come out of the coffin but, I'm afraid that's not quite possible." it was amazing how the butler managed to tell the truth but make it sound like a lie. It was incredibly useful, especially now.
"I know." Lizzie repeated. "thank you, Sebastian. For understanding but, then again, you two were close."
"He was a good master."
Undertaker coughed.
"Oh, come off it." Elizabeth said suddenly abnormally irritable. "I know you loved him in your way."
"He was more of a friend, yes." Sebastian agreed.
Another fake cough from the Undertaker.
Elizabeth nodded. "Well, it was lovely to see you again, Sebastian." she said.
"Charmed, as always, my Lady." Sebastian said bowing once again.
And the little Lady left.
Ciel pushed the lid off the coffin and sat up. "Hell, I should really be more careful."
Sebastian agreed.
They turned to the Undertaker.
"So, now she's gone, care to tell us what on earth the whole King of the Demon realm fiasco had lined up for us?" Ciel said.
Undertaker grinned. "Fire." he said.
"We know." Ciel snapped.
"And the raging pits of hell."
"No kidding."
"And your world will be made of fire."
That shut the young master up as he remembered his dream.
"Red, black, orange, yellow. The colours of passion. White. The brilliant colour of the purest soul. The soul of a phoenix." the Undertaker and the young master said together, making Sebastian uneasy.
"My soul." Ciel whispered.
"You already know what it means, little Lord." Undertaker said. "It's all there in the back of your head. You just have to break down the boundaries that separate this life's memories with your others. And do me a favour? Don't get yourself killed this life time."
Ciel nodded and swallowed. "Seb. . .Sebastian?" the little Lord said not removing his gaze from the Undertaker. "I want to go home now."
"Yes, my Lord."
Sebastian followed Ciel out of the Undertaker's workshop.
He was watching the young Lord with discomfort. It wasn't that he was not used to odd things happening around the young one, it was the fact that Ciel seemed to know exactly what the undertaker was on about. And the Undertaker was as insane as a psychopath. In fact, Sebastian was pretty sure Undertaker was a psychopath.
Yes, he was a Reaper but, judging by the reapers the two lovers currently knew, all reapers were psychos. Take Grell for example. Alright, Grell had acted more. . .normal than usual, showing some signs of sanity under that mass of red, but he still had a personality that should allow him to fit in the nuthouse easy enough.
Sebastian walked behind Ciel in silence until Ciel turned to look at his butler. "Are you alright?"
Sebastian smiled none too convincingly. "I'm fine, my Lord."
"Right, and I'm a teapot." Ciel retorted sarcastically.
The elder laughed. "Well, with the amount of tea you used to consume is anything to go by. . ."
"If you finish that sentence, I will be forced to order you to silence."
The older of the two grinned. Ciel sounded serious enough but Sebastian knew better. He didn't, however, finish his sentence. They climbed into a the carriage that had brought them there and, watching for unwelcome familiar faces, got into the carriage.
Neither of the two spoke through out the journey home.
Sebastian opened his mouth a numerous amount of times but always closed shut it again.
Ciel watched Sebastian do this but made no comment.
Finally, the carriage pulled up outside the manor. Ciel hopped out and made his way inside. Sebastian let out a sigh and followed. As soon as the door was closed, however, Ciel jumped him. Sebastian found himself up against the wall and being kissed hungrily by his small lover with such passion, Sebastian wouldn't have noticed if they were on fire.