Sebastian got Ciel's breakfast and moved to carry it to the large dining room to the young earl. He set the meal down in front of the other, uncovering it with ease before stepping back to let Ciel eat in peace.
"The tailor will be here in half an hour." Tanaka said, making the younger man jump in shock, as he'd been almost completely silent when walking into the room.
Sebastian held a hand over his heart as he worked to calm down once again. He nodded in understanding, looking over at the older man.
"I told her to come to the back entrance, but she never has before, so I'm sure she won't." Tanaka continued softly to the younger man. "She is an overbearing young woman, but she doesn't bite."
Sebastian nodded, part of him getting a bit nervous about the tailor and the idea of showing a strange woman his nude body, something he'd been told he had to save for his future wife only. Plus, he knew he was unhealthy and too thin, and therefore likely wouldn't be all that pleasant to look at.
"Who made this food? It doesn't taste like Bard's cooking." Ciel piped up after a few minutes of eating in silence. For once the food actually tasted rather good, instead of just edible like usual.
"I helped him out, master." Sebastian replied honestly to Ciel.
"Hmm. Help him out more often, then." Ciel replied easily before going back to eating his food.
Sebastian blinked a bit at the veiled praise and smiled softly. "I'll be sure to, sir." He replied before falling silent once again until Ciel had finished eating his food. When he was finished, Sebastian stepped forward to clear away the dishes as Ciel moved to leave the room.
Ciel glanced over to the side at Sebastian as the new servant worked to clear away the dirtied dishes. He crooked a finger to beckon Tanaka down closer to him.
"Let Baldroy know that, from here on out, Sebastian is to cook my food for me unless given prior notice." He whispered to the older butler, who nodded in reply.
Ciel glanced back at Sebastian as the young man worked in the clothes that were just a bit too large for his thin stature. He couldn't help but wonder what Sebastian would look like in a proper butler's uniform that was well tailored to suit his form and his assets. The earl stopped himself from thinking any further on the subject and, without a word, turned away and left the room to go up to his office and start on his work for the day.
Sebastian tended to the chores for a bit longer until a knocking on the front door interrupted him. He and Tanaka went to answer it, Tanaka taking charge for the most part while he acted as the man's shadow.
"Miss Hopkins, come in." Tanaka said to her, stepping aside as she walked in.
Sebastian felt his eyes widen at the sight of the woman. She was dressed relatively conventionally, save for the waistcoat and blouse that had been cut so low that a few less centimeters of fabric would have her falling out of her clothing right there on the doorstep.
"Ah, so this is my newest victim." Nina said with a smile as she stood in front of Sebastian, looking him up and down. "You look like you've seen a ghost, Little Butler. Do you have a mother?"
"I-yes." Sebastian replied, not quite sure how to respond to the woman.
"Then you should know that a pair of breasts are no big deal. Besides, you've been even closer to a pair in your lifetime. Plus, you need to flaunt your assets. These babies get me a lot of things for free." Nina replied to him, setting down her trunk of supplies and moving to take hold of his clothes and pull them taut against his body. "Dear God, you're practically swimming in this old thing. Alright, let's get to work then."
Tanaka nodded and led them off to the drawing room of the manor.
Nina set her things down and got them all arranged. "You, Little Butler. Go ahead and strip for me." She directed.
Sebastian swallowed and looked over at Tanaka, who just nodded to him. He sighed softly and obediently started to remove the old suit until he was standing in his socks and underpants, the cold air making goosebumps appear on his arms and thighs.
Nina looked up when the man stood in front of her, stripped nude. "Mother of God. Get some food for this boy. It's one thing to be healthily thin, it's another thing to see every rib through his skin." She said to Tanaka as she approached Sebastian.
"You must have had a rough time coming. They'll feed you well here, not to worry. You clothes will be a bit roomy now, but I give it a month until you've grown to fit them." Nina said softly to Sebastian before looking him over to take in his features and try to account for the weight he would gain once properly nourished. He had rather long legs, so a pair of high-waisted pants would accentuate them. His waist was rather small and he had nice hips. Overall, once he got some more meat on his bones, he would be conventionally attractive. Until then, he could get by with just his facial features if he needed it.
Nina examined him and measured him before setting to work on the designs for the uniform, quickly sketching various detailed designs of decorated uniforms that were meant to accentuate his youth and the high social status of his master.
Sebastian padded over to her to watch as she sketched away, the woman completely engrossed in what she was doing. He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off as the door to the room opened as Ciel walked in.
"How are things coming down here?" Ciel asked, sauntering over to stand next to his new, nude butler.
"Master. I thought you were working." Sebastian said, quickly crossing his arms over his chest in an attempt to cover his body at least a little bit.
"I was. Then, I got bored." Ciel replied simply, looking over at Sebastian.
Sebastian was about to comment on how little time Ciel had spent even trying to work, but he got cut off when Nina proudly showed them designs to ask them what they thought of them.
"It's too much. It's gaudy and unnecessarily decorated." Sebastian replied to her honestly.
"Well, tell us what you really think, Mr. Hardhead." Nina bit back with a frown to him.
"You're designing a uniform for the butler of an earl, not the other way around." Sebastian said to her easily.
Nina just wrinkled her nose at him in contempt before turning her attention to Ciel. "Your new butler's got a mouth on him, earl. Perhaps too much of one."
"No, he's right. The uniform looks more like one of the outfits you make for me rather than something for a servant." Ciel said easily.
Nina sighed and obediently drew a quick sketch of a much simpler uniform that would still accentuate Sebastian's features. The new design consisted of a pair of high-waisted black pants with a grey stripe down the sides of the legs, a white button down shirt, black necktie, grey and black waistcoat, a black double-breasted tailcoat, and a pair of white gloves.
"There. How's that?" She asked when she'd finished, showing the pair the new design.
"I like it a lot better." Sebastian said easily, looking down at Ciel to see what his opinion was.
"He's right, that more suitable for a butler." Ciel agreed as he looked over the design, watching as Nina leapt back into action, measuring Sebastian's nude body one more time to make sure all her numbers were perfectly accurate.
"I assume you will need multiple days to get these done?" Sebastian asked as Nina measured his long legs once again, asking him to hold one end of the measuring tape at his waist.
"Think again. I'm the best tailor in London, if not the entire British Empire, for a good reason. They'll be done in a few hours." Nina replied to him with a proud grin as she moved to measure the width of his hips once again before finishing up. "Now, you get dressed and get back to your work and check on me again in a couple hours." She said, patting his backside playfully.
Sebastian jumped at the little slap to his backside and moved to get dressed once again, gravitating over towards Ciel without any thought.
"Don't let her bother you. She treats everyone like that." Ciel said softly to his new butler as the other man got dressed and covered once again, looking up at the young man. "Also, from now on, you're going to be acting as my chef as well as my butler."
"Sir?" Sebastian asked in confusion at the new information as he tucked his shirt into his pants.
"You heard me. Bard's not that great of a chef and I'd rather eat food that's edible. He'll be useful in other ways." Ciel replied to him seriously. "So, add making my food to your list of duties. Speaking of which, I want cake with my tea this afternoon, so see to that. A chocolate cake, preferably."
Sebastian blinked at the onslaught of new information as he dressed himself. Now, not only did he have to figure out what exactly his duties as butler were, he had to worry about being the chef as well, starting with figuring out which of Ciel's fancy teas would go best with a chocolate cake that he would have to find the time to make in the next couple of hours.
"Oh, and if you have Tanaka help you, he'll let me know. So, don't have him help you on anything. It's better to learn by doing than just watching." Ciel said to him with a hard frown. In reality, he'd never arranged anything with Tanaka to make the old butler report back to him on whether or not Sebastian had ever needed help. He just wanted to see how well the new servant would hold up under pressure, as he wouldn't necessarily have Tanaka around to help him once he really got started as butler.
Sebastian stared in disbelief down at Ciel, wondering how on earth one person could possibly handle all the tasks the young earl had just given him without asking for any help from his senior.
"Is there a problem? If you can't handle it, you can go home to your parents, you know. Tell them you're too weak willed to handle the real world and go back to the comfort of poverty and starvation." Ciel said to him with a frown, maintaining eye contact all the while.
"There's not a problem with it at all, sir." Sebastian replied to him, wondering what on earth he had ever done to make Ciel want to treat him so harshly. Was the boy testing him, or was he always that much of a brat?
"Good, now get back to work." Ciel replied to him easily. "Oh, one last thing. Tomorrow you will come with me to town, so make sure a carriage will be ready after breakfast."
Sebastian nodded to Ciel obediently before giving a small bow and leaving the room to go off to figure out which of his duties he ought to attend to. Before he could get much thought in, though, he was cut off by a harsh shriek followed by a crash and the sound of a lot of glass breaking. He moved to rush over to the china cabinets the sound had come from, finding Mey-Rin on the floor with a set of teacups broken all around her.
"Mey-Rin, are you alright?" Sebastian asked curiously, moving to carefully help her to her feet and away from all the shards of broken glass.
"Ah, yes, I'll be alright. I'll have to try and be better about this next time, yes I will." Mey-Rin replied sheepishly.
"Yes you will." Sebastian agreed with a nod. "I assume you can take care of cleaning this all up?"
"Of course, Mr. Sebastian." She replied quickly with a nod.
Sebastian nodded and walked around the mess to get to work on planning Ciel's lunch in the kitchen and making sure everything was in order for his requested chocolate cake.
Ciel watched as Sebastian rushed off to do as he was told. He knew the threat of him sending Sebastian off to live in poverty and starvation once again if he didn't meet the standards that had been set for him. However, Ciel had no intention to heartlessly send the baker boy back to that tiny shack of a home, back to a life of never knowing the feeling of truly having a filled stomach. It would take a good while, but Ciel wanted to be able to see Sebastian smile as widely as he would whenever he'd serve him a slice of cake or whatever sweet he'd ordered at the bakery.
The other had always been so happy, his eyes lighting up with joy whenever he'd see him and give him his sweet. Ciel would often smile back, though whether it was because of the sweets he knew would be delicious or because of how contagious Sebastian's smile was, he couldn't be sure.
On the other hand, though, Ciel wanted to push Sebastian as hard as he could without breaking him. He wanted to make the other man the best butler in the British Empire, someone he could show off with pride. Sebastian was already tall and very attractive. All he had to do was help the other hone all the skills he needed to be a great butler and he would be set.
After a bit, Ciel left to let Nina work, heading back up to his study to try and work on his paper work. Usually, the paperwork wasn't too easy to focus on, but today seemed like it was even worse than usual. Ciel's mind kept going back to his new butler. He thought about the man's new haircut that seemed to suit him a lot better. He thought about how the man looked, standing almost totally nude in the drawing room, his ribs and spine clearly visible through his pale skin. On one hand, he was pitifully thin. On the other hand, though, he was still extremely attractive. When Ciel had let his eyes pan down the other's body, he saw the little dimples on his lower back just above his hips. His legs were long and slim, and if there was any hair on them, it was very light and fine. His hips, though, made Ciel force himself to look away after only a moment of staring. His backside was enough to make even the pious priest consider sinning for just a little bit. It wasn't too large or small or muscular. It was perfectly round and Ciel couldn't help but wonder if it was as soft to the touch as it looked.
After a while of daydreaming, the time had caught up with Ciel and suddenly Sebastian was knocking on his door, asking if he was ready to have lunch.
"Oh, yes. Bring it in." Ciel replied, clearing off a spot on his desk as Sebastian walked into the room with the light meal on a silver platter. Ciel watched as Sebastian moved about, the other man seeming tense and focused, as if mortally afraid of making a single mistake, especially in front of him. He didn't want Sebastian to be afraid of him, but he also found Sebastian's puppyish eagerness to please rather endearing.
Sebastian set the meal down on the desk in front of him with care, making sure everything was absolutely perfect.
"Have you checked in with Nina yet to see how she's doing?" Ciel asked as he moved to start eating the food, glancing up just in time to see the flicker of panic and uncertainty in Sebastian's eyes.
"No, sir, I haven't. I will as soon as you dismiss me, though." Sebastian replied honestly. He'd been so busy worrying and obsessing over making food and planning Ciel's lunch and snack that he'd completely forgotten about the tailor and that he was supposed to check in on her every so often, just in case.
Ciel nodded to Sebastian started to eat the salad and fish Sebastian had made for him, fighting the urge to sigh with pleasure at the taste of the food. If there was one thing Sebastian didn't need help with, it was cooking and baking. If nothing else, Sebastian definitely knew his way around a kitchen.
"I'll call you back up when I'm finished. You can go and check on Nina now." Ciel said to Sebastian, waving the young man off, watching as Sebastian nodded quickly, bowed, and hurried out of the room.
Sebastian rushed out of the room, sighing with relief when Ciel hadn't said anything bad to him or criticized anything in particular. He figured, if he kept up the momentum he was at, he would be able to get through that first day.
He went down to the drawing room, gently knocking on the door before opening it to look inside as the tailor worked away, almost at a feverish pace. "Miss Nina? How are things coming in here?" He asked, letting himself inside as he watched her at work.
Nina glanced over at him as he came over to her. "Oh, great timing. I need you to try that one on." She said, pointing to a finished suit lying off to the side in a neatly folded pile.
"You already finished one?" Sebastian asked in awe, moving over to the suit that was ready.
"Of course I did." She replied without looking away from her work.
"Then, what are you working on now?" Sebastian asked curiously, moving to strip down so he could change into the new suit.
"Well, you didn't think you'd just be getting one, did you? You need more than one uniform to get you by. You'll need three to five, I'd say."
Sebastian nodded and moved to pull on the new white shirt first, buttoning it up. He then pulled on the pants, blinking when he found that they fit his slim, long legs perfectly. He then tucked the shirt in, pulled on the tie, then the vest, and finally the black tailcoat.
Nina turned around to look at him after a bit, smiling a bit as she caught him admiring the suit. "I was right. It suits you." She said, getting up to examine him wearing her creation. It was a little loose, but he would soon fill it out as he got to a healthy weight. Otherwise, it fit him absolutely perfectly.
Ciel ate his lunch rather quickly, having a hard time restraining himself from the delicious meal. After deciding he didn't want to scream for his butler, he headed down the stairs to find Sebastian.
"Sebastian, you can take my dishes now." He said as he pushed open the door to the drawing room, pausing when he saw Sebastian in the new suit Nina had made for him. For whatever reason, he felt his voice catch in his throat and his heart start to pound at the sight.
"Do you like it master?" Sebastian asked him with a happy smile, turning his attention over to Ciel. That smile that showed off his perfect, white teeth and made his eyes sparkle and dance didn't help anything at all.
"It looks good. Nina did a good job." Ciel just replied after finding his voice again. With that, he ducked out of the room, oddly eager to get back to his paperwork and try to get the thought of Sebastian out of his head.