Chapter 10: Sebastian POV

I watched as the Tutor and the young master ran out into the garden and were confronted by Finnian. I looked at the Tutor, trying to see anything beyond the outside. The man was not Human, I was certain of that, but what he was was unclear to me. I backed away from the window and turned to the Master as he shrugged on his coat.

"My Lord," I said, still looking out the window for a moment. "The Tutor."

"Yes? What about the man? He seems capable enough, and Lizzy said he got Vincent to pack up the silverware he and Bard were counting." My Master turned and looked over his shoulder. "Seems we are overflowing with spoons again."

I gave a small smile. "I would apologize, but it's futile."

He nodded. "I'll order a few more dozen knives and forks." He paused as he walked towards me. "Or just knives?"

"You are too kind, my Lord. However, the Tutor," I said, shifting his mind back to important tasks. "He doesn't seem to be Human."

The Master paused and sighed, and came and joined me at the window. He looked down at the now empty garden. "Sebastian, what do you mean?"

"I tested him, my Lord. And he is not Human. I," I searched to make sure I was sure of my words, "can not tell you what he is, only what he is not. It's most perplexing."

"Well, when you have time, look into it. But, obviously you are not throwing yourself down upon my child and trying to save him, so Mr. Hyde doesn't seem to be perplexing you enough to be concerned about it." He turned and walked over to the bag I packed for our trip to France for the King. "If he can discipline Vincent, make him into a kind, well mannered, and ready to be seen in public, young man, does it matter what he is? Hell, I have a Demon as a Butler, an Assassin for a Maid, an American Army strategist as my Cook, and a discarded science experiment as a Gardener. Frankly, another supernatural being around here doesn't surprise me, even it it is the Tutor."

I turned and eyed the Master. He was right; we had an odd collection of Humans and myself, so why was I so worried? I glanced outside once more and followed the Master out the door and down the long hall to the main stairs. I tugged at my gloves absentmindedly and studied the back of my Master's head. There was a calm about the house, despite my discovery of the presence of something else here. I frowned; the Tutor hadn't even been with us for 12 hours and already he was troubling me. But the Master was correct; Vincent needed a firm hand on him, and if the Tutor provided that, than who was I to stop him or question? After all, in the proper way of addressing the Tutor's importance to the family, he was placed above me. He had every right to confront me. I simply had placed the paper in the file to see if my suspicions, my senses, were true.

"Sebastian, make sure my wife and her brother are doing well," my Master said as we rounded the steps and went down the short hall to his study. "Even after all this time Edward still doesn't like me." He paused and turned. "And send flowers to her mother. Just because I want to."

"Yes my Lord," I replied and walked the opposite direction, looking into the receiving room and made sure Edward Midford was not in need of any refreshments, and my Mistress was comfortable. My job was to be a Butler to all the house, not simply serve my Master. I protected each member, but it was my Master who was my main concern. I walked down to the Kitchen and found the Tutor standing by the counter and sipping tea. I imagined Tanaka would do the same.

"I see you found the Kitchens fine," I said, moving past him. "Anything else you require?"

He turned and looked at me for a moment. "No, I have found all I need, thank you."

I nodded and looked at him. His short dark brown hair and dark-rimmed glasses seemed to melt together, making his green eyes seem strangely dull under the medium thick glass. They were not like Mey-Rin's, which were also tinted to further dampen her sharp sight, but they were not simply for reading. Next I assessed his dress, and did not find him lacking in style or in price. He wore a white long sleeve shirt, much like my own, and a dark blue-black vest, small silver threads running around the seams and in the fabric, but no real pattern to it. His black slacks and shoes were not out of the ordinary, and seemed standard. He truly seemed like an unremarkable Human. He simply did not smell like a Human - not like my Master and the other Servants. Even my Master was wonderfully fragrant to me since we shared the Contract and I could detect him anywhere he went.

"Mr. Hyde, tell me about yourself," I said as I poured water into the kettle.

"I don't have to tell you anything," he simply remarked.

"Yes, that is true, however, I have been with the Master for almost his whole life. His interest in his son is also my business. And as the Tutor, that means I have to accommodate the staff to help you as well. We are used to taking care of no more than three in the house," I said stoking the fire under the kettle. "I hope you will find this post as amiable as your previous one."

"I think it has started off with a rather odd series of events, but I don't see why it will not get better."

"Very good, Mr. Hyde." I let the conversation die; no need to push the man. The kettle was soon hot and I poured the water over the oriental serving kettle and the tea leaves. I looked up and saw the Tutor watching how I was making tea - the same way I had for the past many years - as if it fascinated him. I finished pouring the water and picked up the silver strainer and tapped it a few times, letting any water drip through. I placed the now steeped tea and two tea cups and a small platter of cucumber sandwiches that were in the refrigerator, on the silver platter I liked. It has good balance and I always polished it at night.

"Mister Sebastian," the Tutor said, stopping me as I picked up the tray. "Young Master Vincent, has he always been troubled?"

I turned and met his gaze. I placed the tray down and went through my mind quickly and came up with the answer: "Not when he was a small child. His mischievous and almost destructive attitude did not present itself until he was sent away to his first school."

"First school?"

"Yes, young Master Vincent has been kicked out of no less than four - his first one was the longest, being there from the age of 4 to 6, then over break he was transferred, and was kicked out of his second school at age 7, then 7 and half, and recently, after turning 8 mid-summer, in late July." I looked at him. "It is in the file I gave you."

"Yes… I just finished reading it. Thank you," he said, now distant and thinking about something rather hard. I looked him over once more and picked up my tray.

"Any further inquiries I can assist you with?"

"No, no, you were most helpful."

He turned back to look out the windows over the sink and sipped at his cooling tea. Something in my answers troubled him greatly. I thought about them while I walked up to deliver the tea to my Mistress and her brother. Young Master Vincent was a child my Master and Mistress were overjoyed to deliver. My Mistress had tried to become with child for several years and, even so with my Master's childhood, my Master was also disappointed there wasn't the sound of baby feet sooner after they were married. It certainly was not for a lack of trying. And there were some hopeful moments, and some bitter disappointments when it was discovered that it was not meant to be. I could do nothing besides stand beside my Master as he did his job, over saw the businesses, and would stop and stare out the window, turning and sometimes with tears in his eyes, he would ask for more tea. I knew he needed a moment alone, and I would try not to listen as he would sometimes sob at the loss of another almost child. My Mistress was in a similar state, and Mey-Rin would often hurry to do her chores once my Mistress was consoled and in bed.

The young Master was a joyous surprise and I never questioned the overly doating mother my Mistress turned into. Even my Master would walk by a toy shop and we would order something for him on our journeys. He had something to live for, even more than his wife. But I still was hungry for his Soul. Yet the emotions of unconditional love that now flowered and flowed in the Master's Soul was even more delicious.

I effortlessly flowed into the grand room my Master had claimed as his domain and the hub of the activity for both his businesses and the King's business. Here, surrounded by plain white walls, dominating windows, hung with dark blue velvet curtains, was the soul of my Master's house.

"Sebastian," my Master said, as he continued to write a letter. "The King sent word that we are to be guests at his residence and to prepare for a rather interesting time." He signed his correspondence, a flair at the end in his stroke, and then looked up. "It's all very tiresome. This business," he said, folding the paper and casting his eyes about the desk, "my son. And now a possible non-Human tutor. Oh, dear, what did I saw to get you smiling?"

I eyed him and felt that my mouth had twitched in anticipation, in longing. "It does help to hear about your desperation."

"I'm not desperate. Don't think I am desperate, I'm tired. A big difference. There have been more trying times in my past, this is only a small setback."

"A setback, my Lord?" I was getting to the heart of this Contract again, and I didn't have to bring it up. "And how shall we proceed?"

"Not the way you are thinking," he muttered. He looked up and sighed. "Sebastian, I will deliver you your meal, but I have… I have a life worth being around for. My businesses are expanding, my family is needing me, and the King is counting on me. They are all separate, and connected, I understand. Our bond is strong, and I know you do what you must to satisfy yourself, but we will continue tracking down those who kidnapped me and murdered my parents." The Master got up and gathered his letters and looked down at them for a moment and then up at me. "My son. Do you have plans for him?"

I eyed the man before me and calculated my words. Did I have plans for the young Master? Of course I would be delighted to stay on and take a Contract with him when he was older. Continue to guide a King's Watchdog into the next century, to watch how so much changed, and guide that change. But to tell my Master, the father of the boy, of my desires?

"Sebastian," he said, coming closer. He was eyeing me and I could see he already knew some of my answer. "Do not lie to me. You swore never to do that."

"I can not say my exact intentions toward the young Master, because I am not sure myself. I do have a Contract with you, my Lord, and that is my main mission to fulfil. I imagine having your son enter into a Contract with me is not a prospect you wish to think about, however," I paused and looked at him in the eye. "You have provided much to my substance. Not only as a Demon, but also to my understanding as Humans. Humans have fascinated me for a long time. And I still learn more about them as you grow older, have more interactions. The revenge you once sought with such fervor is no longer the driving factor for what you do. You built your name as the King's Watchdog and chose to pour your anger in that, even when it would have been expected for you to finally give yourself over to me." I paused again and looked at the eye I had Marked. I took his eye patch off and relished the way he didn't flinch, at the intimate gesture shared between us. "At any time your revenge could be fulfilled, only order me, my Lord, and I will finish my investigation."

He looked at me and sighed. "So simple. And very complicated."

"Yes, simple and very complicated," I said, sweeping my thumb over his right cheek and close to the Contract. It glowed and I felt the heat of our bond. "Yes, so simple and so very complicated."