A/N: Hey, guys. Only a short chapter this time and entirely from Sebastian's POV. Sorry it's been so long; life intervened and robbed me of writing time. Enjoy, and please R & R!

Chapter 10

Augustus had said that he would like to see me obedient and docile. After he broke the contract, I could only remember losing consciousness. I woke from that nightmare of a broken contract to a cavern deep underground. What he'd done had drained my strength almost to the point of death, and I could only lie on the cave floor and breathe. I had no idea where I was, how I'd gotten there, or if I would ever see daylight again. He got obedient. He got docile. He got them both in abundance. What he got was a demon who was scared practically out of his mind.

Fear was a difficult emotion for me to experience. I was not used to it. I was used to being in control of any situation in which I found myself, but here I was, practically paralyzed by fear. I did not dare move or speak for fear of bringing a dire fate down on my head. A Phantomhive butler should have been ashamed to give in to his fear, but for the first time in my life and for the first time as a Phantomhive butler, I was crippled by it.

It was so quiet in this cave. A candle held to the cave floor by its own wax was the only light I had and it did nothing to dispel the darkness that surrounded me. I could hear water dripping somewhere and the sound of my own breath, but nothing else. Where was Augustus? Where was I? Most importantly, where was my master?

When a demon is injured or close to death, taking nourishment is the surest way to recuperate. However, I was alone in the cave. There was nothing and no one there for me to eat and in my weakened state, I was mad with hunger. Did Augustus intend to leave me here until I was crazed by it?

No, that wouldn't do. That wouldn't do at all. I had to maintain my equanimity and my sense of self as much as possible. I had to remain in full possession of my faculties so I could escape. Keeping myself calm and managing to accomplish some small task would help with that. As it was, I knew that I was not going to meet my end lying on my back. I would at least be somewhat upright. Slowly, over time, I managed to move. First, my fingers, then an arm, and then the other arm…Next, my shoulders… The candle was a mere stub by the time I worked my way to a sitting position against the wall. I would have preferred to be on my feet, but sitting up was a start.

"Sebastian?"

The quiet voice startled me. I hadn't heard him approach, but he was there, standing at the entrance to the room I was in. "Augustus?"

"How are you feeling?"

He had to ask? "Not my best, truthfully," I answered. "Where am I?"

"This is a cave far below the house," he said. "There's an entrance to the tunnel leading to it in the wine cellar. This place was my home for many years." So saying, he knelt beside the guttering candle on the floor and pulled another from his coat. He lit it and embedded it in the pool of wax.

I was perplexed. "Your home?"

"Yes. Are you hungry?"

My entire being screamed for sustenance, but I fought it down. "No."

He looked at me, his eyes glowing. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"I don't think you're being entirely honest with me, Sebastian."

Once again, fear rose up to choke me. "I'm not lying; you asked if I was hungry. I'm not."

He chuckled, the sound of it echoing around the cavern. "But you are ravenous. You're famished. You're practically crazed with the need to eat something. Surely such sensations could not be defined but such a narrow term as 'hungry.' Well, if that is the case, then it is best if you eat."

I knew what was going to happen before he even finished the sentence. I fought him as best I could and struggled to turn my face away, but he held his gashed wrist to my mouth and forced me to swallow. While he fed me, anger flooded me. Who did he think he was, subjecting me to a broken contract, confinement, and forced, agonizing nourishment? Somehow, someway, things had to change.

I could feel his arms around me as the sensation caused by the feeding suffused me. My body quaked with it and I could barely hear my screams over my pounding heart. By the time my heartbeat slowed, my throat was raw, my body trembling, and I was wholly exhausted.

"That's better, isn't it?" Augusts said, stroking my sweat-soaked hair back from my brow. "Now that you're fed, it's time for you to rest, Sebastian."

I was too exhausted to fight him when he began to undress me. I was almost afraid again, but my fears were baseless since he merely put me into fresh clothes and wrapped me up in a soft comforter. A pillow found its way beneath my head, and I was perfectly comfortable. One would think that this being had been putting people to bed for ages. Perhaps he had, but I immediately squelched that thought as too strange for belief.

"There we are," Augustus said, tucking the edge of the comforter underneath my chin. "Nice and cozy."

"I don't understand you at all," I said, feeling my body relax into the embrace of my ersatz bed. "The easiest thing for you to do would be to kill me—taking care of me in my weakened state—plus, my interference…" I trailed off. I detested the bad habit of speaking before one thought, and here I was, babbling away.

"I've told you before, Sebastian," he said, patting my shoulder. "I don't wish to kill you. You interest me and despite the inconveniences you've caused me, I wish to keep you around."

Discouraged, I sighed. "Could you tell me what will happen to me?"

"Nothing bad," he assured me. "Why don't I tell you a story until you fall asleep?"

I stared at him. "I'm not a child."

"Nevertheless, I think a story will do you good. I know you enjoy reading novels and hearing stories, so why not listen?"

I did enjoy reading novels and listening to good storytellers (although how he knew that was beyond me), so I nodded. "All right, then." Why not humor him? I'd seen no sign that he was mad, but perhaps madness in an elemental was different.

Augustus took a seat beside me and began to stroke my hair.

"Stop that," I complained, trying to move my head. "I'm not a child, and I'm not some kind of pet."

He chuckled, his voice sonorous. "Are you so sure about either?" he asked, not moving his hand. "Be quiet and listen."

I felt all resistance drain from me and in my mind I used every curse I knew. He'd stolen my will again, the unconscionable bastard.

"Once, a long time ago, a being was born," he said, his fingers playing with my hair. "The world was already ancient, but the people who lived on it were young. The people, humans with short lives, interested the being. They lived so much in the few years allotted to them. As time went by, the being's interest grew. The being traveled and met the humans, talked with them, and learned about them. The being was traveling on a small island when he suddenly became ill. As quickly as he could, he entered a healing sleep, which is much like death, except that you are alive. Humans found him and while he slept, they moved him to a cavern below the earth. They believed this being was the embodiment or the incarnation of their god. When the being awoke, he was in the cave, which had been made as comfortable as a palace, and he had a group of worshippers to see to his every need. Since he was still very weak, he could not leave. Even when he regained some of his strength, he was still too weak to resist his human keepers. It took him years to regain his full strength, and by that time, two generations of humans had come and gone. Somehow, he found himself unable to leave. He only saw the sun on certain days that the humans considered holy. As time went by, certain people began to notice that the being was lonely, so they asked what they could do to help him be happy. He asked for companions."

He must have been truly weakened to take two generations of human lifespans to recuperate from his illness. Just as surprising was the fact that he wanted companions. What did the humans do, go out and hunt up elementals?

"His first companion was a young girl. Her father had been cruel, but she was beautiful and hardworking, so she was brought to live in the cave with the being. It wasn't long, though, before the being noticed that she was lonely and missed the sunlight, so he asked for more companions and for a small house to be built at the entrance of the cave. His human companions lived there much of the time, but each of them spent some time every day with the being, talking with him and keeping him from being lonely."

So, he'd been given humans for companions. What must that have been like for them? To suddenly be taken from the life you knew and told that you must stay with this being that was not human? To be his companion? I doubted there were words for their feelings upon learning such a thing.

"Years came and went. His first companions aged and died, and new companions were found. He loved each of them as if they were his own children. However, time was passing and humans were learning different things and changing. Worship of a new god replaced the old one, and the humans left the being in the cave and worshipped in churches. Most of them forgot him entirely, and only a few of them remembered the cave, but not the being who'd been worshipped. He was lonely once more, so he went out into the world to explore again. He traveled the world, noting the changes that had taken place, but he still felt lonely. After many years of wandering, he returned home to the island and found a place that had changed out of all recognition. Humans were everywhere. None of them were lonely. After a time watching them, the being realized that the best way to stop being lonely was to live as a human."

Ahh, so that was why…

"He returned to where he'd spent so much time being worshipped as a god. A stately home had been built on the ground over the entrance to the cave, an entrance that people had forgotten existed. The couple who lived there were elderly with one daughter who'd lost her husband and a baby granddaughter. The being set himself up as a gentleman and courted the daughter, eventually marrying her and becoming father to the little girl. The elderly couple died due to age and illness claimed his wife, but he still had his daughter. As time went by, he realized that there were children out there who needed his aid and protection, and there were willing humans who would become his servants in order to help those children…"

"And so Haven was founded," I concluded. "Your daughter knows what you are. Is she all right with the children being kidnapped from their homes and families?"

"She understands that it is to their benefit," Augustus told me. "With all these children, I will never be lonely again, and she will have companions throughout her lifetime. Eventually, all of these children will pair off and create more children, who will create more children, and so on. Once she is older, I would be very happy if Cecilia chose someone with whom to have children of her own. I will be a grandfather, and then a great-grandfather, and then a great-great grandfather…It will be lovely."

"Even your great-great grandchildren will die, Augustus," I said gently. "And those after them…"

He nodded. "I know. That is why I've been thinking," he said, his fingers playing with my hair again. "How wonderful it would be to have a companion that will live as long as I will…"

I failed to see how any of the children would live that long. "Impossible. Humans age and die."

"Yes, they do." He was still playing with my hair.

"So why…" Like a flash, I realized what he was driving at and felt panic begin. "Augustus…are you thinking that…I…what are you thinking?"

"A demon would make an ideal companion," he said, confirming my fears. "Demons live long lives, they do not sicken or die, yet they do not have the strength to fight me…like I said, ideal."

I wanted, more than anything else, to run away as fast as I could. He wanted me to be his companion? Madness! That would be like a lion taking a lamb for a companion! Sooner or later, the lion would get hungry…

"You need not fear me, Sebastian," he said gently, trailing his fingers down the side of my face. "Didn't I tell you you were special? You are as special among demons as Ciel Phantomhive is among humans."

"What are you planning?" I whispered, trying not to shiver. The quiet intensity in his voice frightened me more than anything else.

"If a human is taken away from all he knows, all familiar places and companions, and is kept by himself in a place from which he can't escape and is cared for by just one person, sooner or later, he will come to care about that person," Augustus said quietly. "It happens with kidnapped humans all the time. Humans form bonds with those around them. You know that. Sooner or later, Sebastian, you will come to care about me and you will wish to remain with me."

Horror was my first reaction. "No! Never!" Becoming his companion would be no better than being a glorified pet!

"Oh, yes," Augustus breathed, his eyes glowing. "After you have spent enough time by yourself, you will begin to look forward to my arrival each day, and you will be sad at my departure. Your days will start and end according to my comings and goings. You will crave my company, gladly eat when I feed you, and after I leave you alone, you will count the moments until I come back. Over time, you will not be able to remember your life before or imagine leaving me, and that is when you will be able to leave the cave for a short time. As more time passes, I will not have to keep you in the cave at all. By that time, you will be mine entirely, Sebastian. My sweet, dear Sebastian…"

Fear? Terror? Alarm? Panic? Dread? Could any of those feeble human words accurately describe how I was feeling? A pox on it, who needed words?

"I will bring you a few more comforts to make this place livable again," Augustus told me, smoothing my hair once more. "You should sleep in the meantime. You need your rest."

It was beginning already. I knew that kidnapped humans developed feelings for their captors when said captors took care of them, and Augustus was trying to do the same with me. Such things always started small…a comfortable dwelling…a place to sleep and enough to eat…and then, tiny expressions of concern for the captive's well-being to encourage him or her to remember that their captor was human…It was sickeningly simple.

"Wait," I said, as he got to his feet.

He smiled. "Missing me already?"

"The young master…"

Augustus' smile faded. "Ciel? What of him?"

"Is he all right?"

"At present, he is sleeping," Augustus said briskly, his tender manner suddenly more business-like. "He is not injured or ill."

"What have you done with him?" I could imagine any number of unpleasant possibilities…

"I could punish you by refusing to say, but that won't be conducive to the rapport I'm trying to build with you, Sebastian," he said dryly. "I know your erstwhile master is precious to you. He has not been harmed and he is sleeping. After the contract was broken, he lost consciousness, but soon he was up and had his feet under him and he proceeded to make life unrelenting hell for every adult in Haven."

"He…did?" Such a scenario was so normal and possible that I had a moment of unreality wash over me. One moment, I was hearing how this being planned to keep me imprisoned, and the next, I was hearing brat horror stories.

"He kept demanding to see you," Augustus sighed. "When he was told he could not, he threw the tantrum to end all tantrums and wrecked half the house. No one could believe that tiny body held so much untapped energy."

That comment brought the ghost of a smile to my face. The young master had incredible energy that was rarely revealed…unless we went into a bookshop. Then, the clerks trembled in fear and barred the doors to prevent the unsuspecting public from wandering into harm's way by entering the shop. I'd learned over the years that books were serious business for the young master. "I'm amazed you were able to calm him down."

Augustus huffed. "Who said anything about calming? He managed to clobber me in the head with a mantel clock and a Dresden figurine before I could force him into sleep. He slept a while in the infirmary, but then he woke up and proceeded to raise merry hell all over again. The cook nearly turned in her notice after he unleashed havoc in the kitchen and he got me in the face with a frying pan when I went to stop him." He stopped and gave me a long look. "How have you been able to stand him for a master these past few years?"

"I reminded myself to be patient," I said, my throat giving a creaky chuckle. "It's easier to catch flies with honey than with vinegar, you know."

He glared at me. "The absolute last thing that child needs is sugar, let me assure you."

"So is he asleep again?" I asked.

Augustus nodded. "Right now, he's in the best place for sleeping in the whole house, aside from here."

"The infirmary?" Having slept there myself, I knew that it was always quiet.

"No, he's in the place where we put the wild children when they need to calm down," he said, glancing at me. "He's been put to bed in the chapel."

The chapel had been one room that I'd not been allowed into unaccompanied. I'd been in there only once and I had not liked it. The very air seemed to press against one and it had been more than a little difficult for me to breathe. The silence in that place never allowed you to speak above a whisper and you always felt…watched… What must that place be like for the young master?

"You needn't worry about him; he's perfectly safe there," Augustus assured me. "He'll sleep well and feel much better when he wakes up; I promise."

I doubted that. If anything, he would be even angrier. Augustus would think legions had descended upon him once the young master was awake.

I fell asleep again after that. For the longest while, I slept, woke, was fed, was dressed in clean garments, and tucked back into bed. Gradually, the cave changed. More candles appeared, this time in candelabra and candlesticks. Carpets appeared on the floor. My bed became a proper bed with a frame, mattress, sheets, and comforter. There were large cushions to sit on and a low table where one could take a leisurely meal. In time, but became very home-like, indeed. Despite the changes, it was very, very easy to lose track of time. All the time I spent was spent toward a purpose, however. I could see the door entrance to the cave from my bed, and there was no door to block my way. Once I regained my strength, nothing could keep me in that cave a moment longer than I wished. Gradually, my strength returned and I took my first few, stumbling steps around the cave. Whenever Augustus was not there, I practiced. I pushed myself, and it wasn't long before I could walk normally. Running would be another matter entirely, but first, I would have to gather information, and that meant sneaking up to the house.

I took my courage in hand one day when I knew Augustus wasn't returning. I had no idea how long I'd been down there, and I had to find out what had happened to the young master. I made my way to the door and I put a foot across the threshold…

I came awake when water was dribbled onto my face. "Sebastian?"

My eyes creaked their way open. "What happened?" I croaked, the pain making it difficult to speak.

"You were foolish," Augustus said darkly. "Did you think it would be so easy to leave this cave? I don't intend to let you escape that easily, my Sebastian."

This time, when unconsciousness came for me, I welcomed it with open and thankful arms.