A/N: Well, we have finally arrived at the final chapter (epilogue) of this story. Thanks so much to all you lovely readers. This story never would've gotten as far as it did without you, because I'm generally uninspired a great deal of the time. Anyway, on to chapter twenty three, which is back in Sebastian's point of view!

Warnings: squishy-ness

Spring came upon us faster than we had expected. Though it had been a troublesome winter, I felt that they were the best days of my life. Ciel was by my side every minute I was home. I never would have expected him to be so clingy. I figured he was just trying to keep warm at first, but when the warmer weather came, he didn't break his habit of curling up in my arms and falling asleep. It was more than I ever could've hoped for.

Although he still had a hard time talking about his past (justifiably, I suppose), he was much more talkative than I had ever seen him. I found out soon that we had many of the same interests, the most prominent being our keen interest in sweets. But I also learned that he was raised to take interest in worldly topics, such as religion and politics (though he wasn't entirely immersed in either). I myself try my hardest to avoid those subjects, but that didn't mean I wasn't well versed in them. As it would happen, our opinions regarding various taboo matters were very similar, if not identical.

Besides learning more about my darling little Ciel, the remainder of the winter was nightmarish. I struggled to keep (what was left of) my utilities on. There were several close calls with the water and we actually had lost our gas for a few days. I tried my hardest to keep Ciel warm but I found that he was so frail that even my body heat didn't do much to warm his shivering bones.

By the middle of February, my mortgage debt became unmanageable. It was apparent that I would soon be losing my house, thus I decided I would need a more substantial job to be able to take care of Ciel. He was as patient as ever, not complaining once about living the way we had been, even though I could tell he wanted to. I applied for a job at the University of Bristol. Within a matter of weeks, I was contacted for an interview (I had bought a cheap cellular in lieu of attempting to pay my mortgage) and was hired on the spot. So, a week later, after my house was repossessed, Ciel and I packed up and moved to a flat in Bristol.

The month of March saw things looking up for us. My new job paid much better than London Metro. I found that I could now afford to spend as much money as I needed on my bills, all the while gradually paying off my debts. I was even able to buy a few frivolous items for Ciel. I expected him to refuse them and insist that I return them, but he accepted them happily. Apparently he rather missed being spoiled.

By April, I had decided (though I didn't find it all too necessary) to provide Ciel with home education. He agreed that it was best, further explaining that he loves to learn new things. So, every weekday, while I was at work, Ciel studied. When I returned home, I would administer tests to him, which he always passed effortlessly. I attempted to teach him how to play the violin but soon found that he wasn't nearly as good at learning new skills as he was at learning academics. But when it came to the matter of academics, he was diligent. He even insisted on attending a few of my seminars, under the guise of my nephew. I just couldn't refuse him.

It was now springtime and the weather was comfortably warm. I had expected it to be much more wet than it had been, not that I was complaining. I liked the rain, but only when I didn't have to be out in it. Unlike my old house, which was a simple 8 minute walk from my workplace, my new flat was about a 10 minute drive from the university. I missed being able to go home for lunch, but the pay was certainly worth it.

I drove home from work (twenty minutes later than I should have been) on a beautiful spring afternoon, feeling a desperate need to see Ciel again, after the day I had. Oh, how I hated my line of work. The moment I walked in our tiny little flat, my adorable lover ceased his studies and met me at the door.

"What took you so long?" he asked, with his head buried in my sternum and his arms wrapped tightly around my abdomen. Anytime I came home late he would scold me for making him worry. I could understand why, he had already lost so much. I scooped him up into my arms and gave him a needy kiss.

"I'm sorry, love. About twenty of my students stayed late because they couldn't distinguish the rudimentary differences between ferromagnetism and paramagnetism. It was a tiresome day," I sighed, setting him back down on the floor, "How are your studies coming along?"

"Fine, but I'm kind of tired. I think I'm done for the day," he said, stretching his arms over his head.

"Oh? Since when did the child ever get to decide when his studies are finished?" I asked playfully, knowing well that Ciel would do whatever he pleased and nobody would tell him otherwise.

"Since the child could easily lock the adult away on molestation charges," he smirked. What a great brat he could be sometimes. It was always a delight though, even when it was irritating.

"Aww, come now. You wouldn't do that, would you?" I whined, feigning concern. He just laughed and plopped down on the sofa. I took a seat beside him. He scooted closer to me and snuggled into my side, as had become customary for us. I never tired of the feeling of his tiny frame clutching onto my arm.

There were times, as I would be driving home, that I would fear finding the flat empty upon my return. I don't really think I'll ever be rid of that fear. But it wasn't anything that I couldn't tolerate, as long as Ciel was there when I got home, to give me a warm hug and an eager kiss.

I was almost sure that Ciel would have lost his appeal once I learned everything about him, but I have only become more interested in him. I had to conclude that, what had begun as an unhealthy obsession, had morphed into something far more dangerous; a boundless love. Of course, this I already knew. I never imagined that I would find love, especially not in the form of a boy nearly twelve years my junior. In fact, I don't think I wanted to find it. But I suppose no one ever really finds love anyway, love finds them.

Our future was terrifyingly uncertain. There were so many ways for this to end poorly. However, I couldn't be bothered to care about the future at the moment. I had Ciel now, and that was all that really mattered. Whatever obstacles lie ahead in our future would have to be handled then. I glanced down at Ciel to discover that he had fallen asleep on my arm. Regardless of what may happen in the future, I could be sure of one thing; my little pauper would never leave me.

A/N: Time for a super long author's note. So to start off, I almost always leave open endings to my stories. The reason being, I love extending invitations to readers to continue them. Not because I am too lazy to do it myself, I just want to know what direction someone else might take the story. So, if anyone would like to pick up the story (or maybe do a little oneshot about Ciel and Sebastian's future adventures) please feel free. I only ask that you let me know, so that I can link to it (so watchers of this story will know there is a continuation) and so that I can read it as well. XD I hope no one was too disappointed that the final chapter was so short (it is more of an epilogue anyway). I feel that this was a nice place to leave my installment of the story. So, I would like to leave you all with a heartfelt thank you. I am truly honored that so many of you liked this thing enough to stick with it! I love you guys!

Title: There is no reason for Sebastian to compare Ciel's mysterious behavior to that of an animal. He now knows everything he needs to know about the boy, thus he can see the real Ciel. He is a class all his own.

::PART 2:: Hello again, lovely readers! I re-uploaded this chapter to inform you that there is now a continuation of this story, if you haven't seen it already. Sebastian and Ciel's adventures are now being written by the wonderful ShannySkyGem! If you are interested in reading about them, you can find the story here - http:/ /www. fanfiction. net/s/7830496/1/Sebastian_and_the_Pauper_Part_2# (without the spaces, of course). Please do check it out, it is quite adorable. ^w^