"Sebastian, we have new orders from the Queen. We leave at once," the young Earl ordered curtly.

"Yes, my lord," was his demon butler's simple reply.

It was a cloudy day as usual, and the dark sky matched Ciel's mood. He had suffered through a sleepless night because of terrible nightmares. The terrified screams and lick of flames replayed again and again in his mind and it was driving him insane. Still, he knew where his duties lie.

As the two left the Estate in a carriage, a light sprinkle of rain brought out an earthy smell on the pavement. Strangely, Ciel found it comforting. Perhaps it was because the water repelled the thoughts of fire from his mind. Unfortunately, though, the comforting feeling was shattered as they reached their destination.

Smoke curled up in the sky, dancing like snakes over the building as flames engulfed it mercilessly. Ciel's heart sank deep in his small chest and an overpowering sense of anxiety overtook his mind.

Sebastian sensed this in his master, and put a comforting hand on Ciel's shoulder.

"My lord?" he prompted. When Ciel didn't answer, he tried again. "Master, are you alright? Would you like to leave?"

"N-no! We have a job to do and we must do it!" Ciel exclaimed with more confidence than he felt. He already lost his parents to a fire. If he could save anyone else from the same fate, he must, for their sake. He forgot about revenge, took a shaky breath in attempt to curb the nausea building up in his stomach, and stepped out of the carriage into the rain.

Smoke entered his lungs as he neared the house, making it almost unbearable to breathe.

Damn my weak lungs, he thought irritably, cursing his asthma. The familiar aching of coughing burned his lungs like the fire he was nearing. Sebastian took one of his gloves up and held it up to Ciel's face.

"Breathe into this. It should help," he added.

Ciel took it gratefully and breathed through it. The glove held his butler's familiar scent. It was hard describe, since he had never smelled anything comparable, but it was not a bad smell at all. It was…warm.

Tears stung his eyes and Ciel blinked them back. He stopped to cough and gasped at how painful it had become. It was as if he was engulfed by the fire-body and mind. But he had to go help the victims. He had to.

Sebastian had let his master come this far because he had known that Ciel would object to being treated like a child, but he could not allow him to be harmed. "Stop. Young master, I cannot allow you to go any further."

Ciel did stop. "What?" he managed to say in between his wheezing.

"I said stop. Please. The smoke is making your asthma flare up, and I cannot allow you to go any further. You may be my master, but I am your butler, and your health is of concern to me."

"Only because you want me to live longer so my soul is more tasty!" Ciel spat angrily.

Sebastian's face fell. "That isn't true. Not at all. Please, I beg you to-"

"I order you to-" Ciel's coughing cut off his sentence. He fell to his knees. Everything-his skin, his chest-burned. He hated to admit it, but Sebastian was right. He couldn't save the people in the building. Not him, but Sebastian could. He changed his order. "I order you to save whoever is in that building!" he managed to exclaim.

The demon quickly carried his master back to the carriage before sprinting into the fire.

Please let them be okay, Ciel silently prayed. Please let Sebastian be okay… all he could think about was burning bodies and screams and charred flesh. He clutched his head and moaned, willing for the pain and memories to leave.

Sebastian had only been gone about five minutes, but it had seemed like years to Ciel.

"Everyone is alright. Nobody was harmed," Sebastian assured his master quietly. "The fire is gone as well," he added.

Ciel was silent, but the tears that slipped down his closed eyes spoke volumes to Sebastian. He took the boy back to the Estate. Enough was enough for today.