Tale 001

'The Demon is more than Indifferent'

Constantly, Sebastian congratulated himself on his choice of prey.

His human, the fragile boy Ciel Phantomhive, was a challenge. Had been since the tender age of ten. And for as delicate and breakable his exterior was, his insides reminded Sebastian of layers upon layers of silk; invincible, irresistible to the touch, and something to become lost in. Only recently has that last part begun to really make sense.

His Master challenged him in a way no other prey had ever done.

When Sebastian poked too much on his outsides the boy would slide one cobalt blue eye away from him, fix his face into indifference, and retreat. Or as Sebastian had taken to calling it;

He would hide.

For the most part, it had never really bothered the butler before; especially when his imperious little lord was younger. But after that fateful day in Paris, the marked moment of abandonment, his Master had never quite looked at him the same. Always, there was some measure of detachment. After the Ash confrontation, Ciel hadn't brought it up again, but Sebastian knew; his Master would never forgive him for it. The punishment was unstated and yet immovable. Ciel trusted him with everything he physically could, but no longer did Ciel trust Sebastian with anything intangible. It was a rare moment when the demon cursed himself for his actions but, that was one of them.

Now, at the ripe age of fourteen, things were changing; not within Ciel. No. Within Sebastian.

His tolerance for those moments when Ciel would simply stare at him, just to cast his gaze elsewhere and hide away in his mind: those moments when Ciel would pose Sebastian with a question then never really listen for the answer: those moments when Ciel would purposefully confront his enemies rather than calling for his butler, heedless of his own death or demise, almost as if he were trying to spill the demon's dinner on the street…!

It was taking all the ancient creature had to hold his peace. Never before had he had trouble of bringing a human's attention to himself. Never before had he known the cold impotency of being ignored! His kind were not ignored! They were sensual, alluring, and dangerous creatures that evoked lust, fear, envy, longing, selfishness, evil, greed, sometimes singularly, sometimes all together. They were a threat to all creatures and treated either with wary avoidance or wary respect, but they were always acknowledged. When he had signed that contract, the boy had needed him. NEEDED Sebastian to keep him safe, to rebuild his life, to supplement a custodial relationship, to guide him, to exact his revenge. And all the while Sebastian had fed off of the attention as his kind were wont to do. It was the nature of the contract. No demon would ever sign a contract on the premise of being some decorative statue, not to be interacted with, not to be the apex of the contractor's emotions and attentions!

Sebastian took a silent, deep breath in the shadow of the carriage. One of the best kept secrets Sebastian had, was that his emotions were as volatile as his face was impassive. Such was the nature of demons; born in the lake of fire from a marriage of explosive malignancy. He found himself gazing once again on the averted face of his Master while they rode back from London.

"Is something the matter?" Ciel lilted, while continuing to stare at the blue-black sky. His voice had subtle changes in its adolescence yet remained a refined, British tenor of youth.

Sebastian's garnet eyes narrowed. "Are you asking simply to create sound or do you truly wish to know the answer to your question?"

For the first time since leaving the city, Ciel turned to face his butler. He raised a brow. "You've been in an uncommonly sour mood today; pray tell, what has you in such a fix?"

Sebastian felt it, that slight tingle that came from having his alluringly complex human's attention. He sat back against his seat. "Is it really myself that has been in a mood, Young Master?"

Ciel leaned his face against his raised fist and crossed his legs. "I don't know what you mean, Sebastian. I feel the same as I always do. Are you insinuating that I've been mistreating you?"

Sebastian wondered, with suspicion, if his little human was more knowledgeable on the inner workings of demons than he let on. The butler bowed from the waist. "Of course not, My Lord."

And just like that, Ciel let the subject go, back to facing the window.

And just like that, Sebastian felt his ire building.