"Please don't leave, Mr. Sebastian." Mei-Rin pleaded, dressed in her usual maid attire, although she no longer held that position. Now that the last of the Phantomhives had finally died out it was left to the servants. They no longer were required to dress in such outfits, but that did not seem to dawn on them or if it did they paid it no heed. They seemed almost determined to uphold the façade that the Young Master was still alive and that Sebastian was not about to leave the manor. It was a feeble attempt that made the demon wonder, not for the first time, why humans behaved the way they did. The way they allowed their emotions to get the better of them. It was almost sickening how weak they were.

A soft laughter erupted from behind the maid, causing her to jump in surprise at the sight of the Undertaker now standing behind her, his eyes covered by his usual bangs.
"Ever the faithful dog, always ready to follow his master, even to the depths of hell."
Sebastian closed his eyes and felt a small smile grace his lips at the older reaper's words. How true they were.
"That I cannot deny. I merely wished to serve my master to the very best of my abilities."
To anyone else those words sounded as though he truly cared for the boy, but it was apparent to Undertaker that that was not the case. Not in the slightest. Demons were the embodiment of sin. They could not harvest remorse nor could they love. That was why the reaper was always intrigued by the butler. He and the young earl managed to keep his retired life interesting. He would never admit this to the demon, but a part of him believed that he would miss the master-butler pair. That feeling would not last, for the Undertaker was certain that he would be meeting Sebastian once more, although the circumstances would not be quite as pleasant as they were now. That thought made the silver haired man smile and giggle more.
Needless to say the maid was completely and utterly confused as to why the man's words to Sebastian were at all funny. In her mind hell was nothing to kid about. That was where demons roamed. However, she was not frightened by it. After her years of killing others she was certain that that was where she was going to end up anyway. There was no use being afraid of the place that you were destined to spend eternity once your life ended.
"Mr. Sebastian, why are you leaving?" Finny asked his voice low as several tears spilt from his emerald eyes. "Why won't you stay here with us?"
"I no longer have anything keeping me here. I am afraid I have to take my leave."
"But…" The gardener looked down at the ground, knowing that arguing with Sebastian was useless. "Will you at least visit?"
The demon opened his mouth to object, but the hopeful look in the youth's eyes caused him to hesitate. As much as he hated to admit it, this certain contract affected him slightly, in a way that no other had ever prior. He had made his first friend due to his young master. The very same Indian butler that once behaved demonic, nothing more than greed and wrath raging through him was now a very peaceful and caring man. Sebastian wondered for a moment whether or not it was possible that an evil being could indeed completely change.
"Yes, I shall return. You have my word. Please give the guests my farewell."
Without waiting for the maid and gardener to reply he turned and walked towards the door. He did not have time for a proper good bye. Knowing them they would not allow him to leave so easily if he stayed any longer. He had neither the time nor the patience to hear their continuous begging; instead he had other matters to attend to. But it felt strange to know that there were some that longed for his presence; ones who would risk their life just to ensure his safety. It was a very new and very odd feeling.
With those simple words the servants watched helplessly as the butler that had rescued them from a life of misery, the one that they considered family, walked out the door, disappearing into the darkness of the night. Mei-Rin grasped onto the other's words firmly, the only thing keeping her from breaking down in despair as she felt Finnian hug her, small sobs shaking his body. They had lost yet another member of their small family. But this time they did not completely lose the one they considered family. He had promised to return and they believed that he would. That brought a bit of content to the servants as they walked into the kitchen to speak to Bard, the Undertaker's amused laughs echoing throughout the now silent household.
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Sebastian didn't spare the manor another look as he stalked into the woods, the cool night wind nipping at the thin white dress shirt he wore. Behind him he could practically feel the depression illuminating from the manor, almost as though it was a thick fog. The butler wondered for a moment how his master would have reacted to see all the ones he considered friends breaking down as they wallowed in self-pity. That was yet another reason demons looked down on humans.
Once he journeyed far enough into the dense forest he found it acceptable to finally change his form. A portal to hell was nearby and he would not be able to enter it in his human form. With a slightly irritated sigh he felt his body begin to shift to that of his demon form. Black, feathery wings emerged from his back and black, curled horns that sprouted from his head glistened in the soft moonlight overhead. His black dress shoes shifted to high heeled boots and his pants and shirt tightened, now feeling like leather. It had been quite a bit of time since he had changed back to his true, unsightly form. If memory served the last time had been during the battle with the gender changing Ash/Angela. It was the first one strong enough to cause the crow butler to have to fall onto his last resort.
As he stepped through the portal he felt weightlessness for a moment before he landed gracefully with a light click of his heels on rocky soil. Within the blink of an eye the peaceful, dark woods surrounding him was replaced by a large, looming castle just before him. It was at the far end of the valley, between the jagged cliffs, perched on top of a looming mountain was a huge building. It resembled a castle, with its tall towers, thick columns and ice and snow that surrounded the windows like silver garlands that the servants used to place on the Christmas tree they insisted upon acquiring every year. The towers and walls climbed up the rock wall on both sides, and the roof was covered with ice crystals. A wide stone staircase lead up to a tall wooden door, and solid gray bricks lined the walls. It was several stories tall and it gave off a demeaning aura. Any other demon would have run off immediately, knowing better than to trespass on such land, but Sebastian was no ordinary demon. In fact this place did not frighten him in the slightest. To him this place could be described in no other way than being home. Memories of his young life played through his mind as he surveyed the terrain.
It was the colder season in hell and Sebastian found himself feeling a bit cold. This weather was quite unlike regular human snow and air. This was much more frigid and deadly. It would have frozen a human solid within a simple touch, killing them instantly. Demons, having much better resistance, found the snow to be nothing more than a burden and quite chilly.
Without allowing himself to be distracted by the familiar landscape the demon instead began the steep climb up the mountain, his father waiting impatiently above.

The ClaudeXSebastian pairing will officially begin in the next chapter under some partially unpleasant circumstances for the raven demon. Thank you for the reads/favorites/follows/reviews. :)