Ebony lashes slowly fluttered open, the grey hues behind them constricting slightly at the sudden contact with the unforgiving rays of sunlight shining through the window and onto his ghostly pale features.

"Nngh..." Hades groaned, his face contorting in pain as he came to; his entire body ached, making it a dreadfully difficult task to sit up.

"Would you like some assistance?" An unfamiliar voice spoke up from the other side of the room, immediately snapping the young boy into reality.

His head shot in the direction it had come from, and his gaze landed on a certain butler clad in black. Confused and surprised, the boy jolted up and shrieked, falling out of the bed and onto the floor. "Ouch..."

The butler let out a small giggle, never faltering from his position across the room with a tray in hand. "I apologize for startling you, little lord, I assure you it was not my intent. However, it's relieving to see that you're well enough to produce such... energetic reactions."

Hades simply pursed his lips together and nodded his head, his brows furrowed nervously as his eyes locked on the ground in front of him.

Once again, Sebastian smirked at the boy's demeanor. Just a few minutes ago the kid had looked like a corpse, and now here he is putting on a show. He bowed apologetically, "Forgive me, it really must be quite a shock to be greeted by a stranger just moments after waking up in an unfamiliar room."

"You don't say." Another voice spoke up, this time from the doorway.

"Young master." The butler grinned as he turned around to face to bluenette, "I was just about to call for you."

Ciel ignored the servant and brushed right by him, swiftly making his way over to the trembling boy on the floor. "As shy as ever, I see." He noted, his lips curling upwards into the faintest of smiles. "Are you okay?"

Hades accepted the hand Ciel held out, standing up as he nodded his head softly. "Y-Yeah... Thank you."

"Sebastian." Ciel uttered sternly, turning to glance back at the butler as he narrowed his gaze. "Go ahead and tend to the rest of your duties for the day. I need to talk to Hades alone."

"Yes, my lord." The servant bowed his head before placing the tray in his hand onto the nightstand and leaving, shutting the large oaken door behind him.

The moment Sebastian had left the room- "Ciel!" Hades exclaimed, throwing his arms around the bluenette before he even had the chance to turn back around. "I'm so glad to see you!" The boy leaned back just enough to take a good look at the other, but to still have his arms wrapped loosely around his waist. "Whoa, did you get taller?! Gosh, you're not even wearing platforms and you're taller than me! Ah, I missed you so mu-"

"Hades." Ciel interrupted in a low voice, brows furrowed and gaze solemn. While Hades' usual bubbly personality was endearing to see, right now was not the time to be messing around. Ciel was seriously worried about him, so much so, that it actually took all he had to keep his composure.

Hades pulled away from him and took a step back, awkwardly scratching the back of his head as he let out a nervous laugh. "Ah, haha... I guess it's no time to be talking about your height, huh? Sorry..." Thin digits ran through ebony locks before the arm ultimately dropped back down to the boy's side, and he lowered his head. "I guess you heard what happened..? I don't know what to do, or where to go from here... I kind of just want to-" Pastel lips pursed together before the sentence could be finished, and Hades forced a bright smile as he rose his face once more. "Lets save this conversation for later, okay? I'm still- No... I just want to have fun with you; like we usually do."

It was obvious he didn't want to talk about what happened. Painfully obvious. It was a mixture of admirable yet heartbreaking to see how hard he was trying to retain his usual bright, positive attitude. While Ciel wanted answers, he could understand how Hades was feeling right now for the most part. It'd be best to just drop it for the time being, and be there to comfort his dear friend. Everyone and everything in the world is against him right now- at the very least Ciel could try to help him cheer up, even if it's only for a short while.

"You're right." Ciel spoke up, offering the boy a closed-eye smile. "But first, lets worry about your injuries. Sebastian will clean and dress your wounds and give you a fresh set of clothes, and then we can do whatever you'd like." Honestly, Ciel had wanted the demon to tend to the boy's wounds earlier, but Hades fidgeted around in his sleep too much, so it just wasn't possible to get it done with the precision they both desired.

There was a hint of hesitation in his smile, but it went unnoticed. "I hope sweets are included in that offer."

Hades sat atop a small table in the washroom and Ciel remained out of the way to the side of the room whilst Sebastian tended to the injuries on the boy's legs, and luckily, none of them were very serious. He mostly had small cuts and scrapes, accompanied by a few bruises here and there, but there was nothing life-threatening. The worst visible wound he had was a cut on his face that resembled a knife slash going over his left eye. It wasn't a very deep cut, but it'd most likely leave a scar. Regardless, Sebastian wrapped a bandage around the boy's head to cover it since he did have some other cuts and marks hidden in his hair.

"You'll need to remove your blouse so I can take care of any lesions on the torso." The butler instructed, pulling out a fresh rag to wash the wounds with.

Hades protectively held the collar of his shirt in one swift movement, smiling awkwardly as he let out a nervous laugh. "Oh, haha, um... My torso's fine, actually, so there's no need for it to get checked out."

The butler's brows furrowed and his lips had parted as if he were about to say something, but-

"Then, we're done here." Ciel spoke up, stepping forward as he shifted his gaze from Hades to Sebastian. "Prepare a cake large enough for three servings. Miriam will be here soon, so-"

"Miriam is coming?!" Hades interrupted, staring at the bluenette with faintly widened eyes. The expression his gaze held was unreadable; it was a mystery as to whether it was fear or excitement.

This reaction threw Ciel off a little bit, and he completely stopped what he was saying beforehand to peer over questioningly at the boy. "Yes, I sent word to her just moments after Sebastian carried you inside because I made a promise to her. Why? Is there a problem?"

His features had shifted to yet another beaming smile as he shook his head, hopping down from the table he was sitting on. "No, not at all; I was just surprised. I didn't expect to get to see Miriam so soon."

The two continued to converse amongst themselves, completely forgetting about the servant that loomed across the room. Sebastian had watched them both closely as a small smirk had begun to tug at the corners of his lips. Unnoticed by the others, he left the room without a word to make preparations for the oncoming meeting.

"The little lord is surely interesting..."