dreamgirl: Okay, a little IMPORTANT announcement to everyone. I have altered the story a bit. You may of may not have noticed that I changed Ciel's age. Originally, I had him be ten, but I switched it to eleven. Now, due, again, to certain reasons (and to fit perfectly with my plans) he is now ten-years-old. Sorry if this inconveniences anyone.

NOTICE!!!!: Kuroshitsuji season 2 will begin on January 31, 2010. It has been confirmed. So I hope to finish before then and see how our endings even out. Anyway....

disclaimer: I do not own Kuroshitsuji, end of story.

Chapter 7

After the events at the castle and the carnival, Ciel and Sebastian returned to Phantomhive Manor. The young Phantomhive earl was just about ready to go to sleep when his butler made it impossible to do so.

Sebastian held out a letter with a stamp on the back, "When was the young master going to tell me about this?"

Ciel was already in bed and found it a hassle to sit up, so he rolled over, "Now, what are you going on about?"

Sebastian closed the door and let his young master have a better look at the envelope without handing it to him. As Ciel rubbed his eyes and squinted to see what Sebastian was holding, he froze.

"Um…th-that's nothing important. Just put it away for now".

Ciel shoved himself under the covers and pretended to go to sleep. He felt the bed sink and slowly uncovered the sheets just to be surprised by Sebastian laying on top of him.

"When did the Queen deliver this to the young master without my knowledge?"

Ciel gulped but put on his best poker face. The boy's eyes turned into slits and he sat up to meet Sebastian face-to-face.

"If you must know, before leaving, Her Majesty gave me that letter hidden in a bouquet of flowers".

Sebastian interrupted, "And you thought I wouldn't find it?"

Ciel pouted, "Whatever, it is none of your concern. Whether or not I do the assignment now or never is nothing you should be worried about".

Sebastian got up and walked towards the door.

"I guess I was right", he said without turning around.

"About what?"

"Oh, nothing", there was a hint of mockery in the demon's voice.

Now, Ciel was tempted to know, "I order you to tell me!"

Sebastian smiled as he kept his back to his master.

Slowly the butler turned, "You are still a child".

"Excuse me?"

Sebastian kept a straight face, "What happened to the Phantomhive's prideful heir? It seems you choose any form that suits you. Did you not say you would take the bull by the horns? Hypocrisy, one of the ugliest human traits. And I hate humans".

Ciel felt his mouth hang open, speechless. The murderous aura he felt coming from his butler made him keep his back straight.

"It seems you have no morals. As if, you change your standards to benefit the situation. You truly are no better than a demon…" the butler spat.

Ciel wasn't sure whether to be upset or insulted. The confusion in Ciel's head was too great to be described in words. So, he did the one thing he could do at the moment. He outstretched his arm and opened his hand. It was as if Sebastian knew exactly what to say and knew exactly what his master would do. He placed the letter into Ciel's hand, bowed, and walked out of the room.

Ciel looked at the envelope in his hands and was tempted to open it…but he refrained. One would think that he did not open it because he would wait for the daytime to come up with a plan, but that wasn't it at all. The truth was…he was afraid. The ten-year-old knew that once he opened the letter, his life would not be the same. It may have sounded a bit over-dramatic, but it was the complete honesty. He had seen what his father had gone through each and every time he accepted an assignment. It was like signing your own death warrant. Or like making a contract with the Devil. And he knew what that was like.

Ciel glanced at the letter again as he placed it safely under his pillow. He would wait for the perfect moment, when he was physically and mentally prepared. First, he had to gather up his logical strength…

The next morning, Ciel had already been wide-awake when his butler came in to open his curtains and wake him up.

"You're up already, young master?" Sebastian asked, though, already knowing why.

"I couldn't get much sleep last night, as you very well know", Ciel said as he stayed lying down on his back.

"I am sorry, milord, but your schedule is busy today. You cannot just lay in bed all day".

"And what if I intend to?" Ciel turned over to lie on his side.

Sebastian didn't really answer, he just gave his young master a look that basically said, 'You really don't want to do that'.

Ciel did not have the gall, nor the energy to deal with a demon at the moment; his thoughts solely based on the assignment.

After a few moments, Ciel's eyes became fixated onto his butler. The way his hair swiftly moved across his face. Sebastian's hair was long, he noticed, but seemed as neat as can be. His almost pale-white skin seemed to compliment his ruby-red eyes and his ebony hair. It was hard to believe this person was a demon. Even his motions seemed flawless and near-perfection.

The fact that Ciel thoughts had wandered off in this direction was beyond him. How in the world could he think the demon was…beautiful? Ciel knew he wasn't one for sodomistic practices, nor did he like it, but he couldn't restrain himself from feeling somewhat attracted to Sebastian. Maybe it was just the fact that he was, indeed, a demon. One who had no morals. One who had no human emotions. One who wouldn't betray him because of the "bond", rather contract, they had.

Yes, a demon was just the person he needed to study.

The ten-year-old boy randomly said, "Teach me".

Sebastian paused to look at the boy questioningly, "May I asked what I am to teach you my lord?"

Ciel practically hopped off his bed and softened out the wrinkles in his nightgown, "You are a demon, am I right?"

"Yes, my lord", said demon really had no idea where this was going.

"Well, then, I want, no, I order you to teach me how to be like a demon", Ciel said with a very serious face on.

It took all the strength in the world to not laugh disrespectfully at his master. Sebastian didn't even know he had the ability to laugh, which surprised him even more. Honestly, what was his young earl thinking of? To imitate a demon? Preposterous!

"I beg your pardon?"

"I will continue this discussion after you dress me for the day, now get to it!" Ciel was still as spoiled as ever, no matter what hardships he went through.

Sebastian really had no other choice than to do as his master ordered him and slid him out of his nightgown. He settled it into a drawer and retrieved a brown outfit with a black collar and a red ribbon. He dressed his young master and flattened out any creases. He then placed perfectly polished black shoes on his master's feet.

"Now, what was it again, young master?"

Ciel cleared his throat and began to walk towards the door, "You had said you hated the hypocrisy in humans. Rather, you hate the way humans behave, do you not?"

Sebastian just gave a silent nod.

"Well, I cannot help that I am human, but I can try not to act like it. Do you see where I am getting at, Sebastian?"

The butler nodded, "Yes, in fact, I do. So, what you are saying is if you can portray yourself as a demon, than the human part of you will demolish?"

Ciel stalked down the halls with his butler in tow, "Not per se, but close to it. You said so before, that my moral standards were like those of a demon. So, I thought to myself, 'if my traits are those of a human's, yet those of a demon's, my will and power will become great to those of lower standards'. It may all sound like babble, but trust me on this. And so, I would like to take 'Demon Lessons', if you will, to gather qualities that of a demon. And who a better person to ask than a demon himself, that is you, Sebastian!"

He was mad. Or so humans would believe. Sebastian just saw his master in a new light. Intelligent, mature, yet very naïve. Probably the only interesting human he has met so far.

Sebastian smirked and evil-like grin; How very intriguing.

Ciel decided to skip breakfast, feeling that his idea was much more important than some mere mortal necessity.

When both males arrived at the office, Ciel spun around to meet his butler, "So, what do you say?"

Sebastian, with no hesitation, kneeled down and placed a hand over his heart and bowed his head, "Yes, my lord".

Now it was Ciel's turn to grin, "Excellent. And so it begins".

Once the door to the study room had been opened, nothing would, or could for that matter, revert to how things were before. It was a game. Rather, it was a game of life and death.

Games had rules, but Ciel never played by the rules.

"I could be mean,

I could be angry,

You know I could be just like you.

[...]

I could be cold,

I could be ruthless,

You know I could be just like you."

-"Just Like You" by Three Days Grace

dreamgirl: Sort of a cliffy, ne? Sorry if it's too short. I'll be adding the next chapter, hopefully, by tomorrow. It may seem confusing, but it will all be sorted out in the next few chapters. In the meantime, PLEASE REVIEW!!!