When he woke up, he was back in London. His aches and pains were gone. Ciel opened his eyes to find himself in the H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. medical wing.

The room smelled like medicine and cleaning products and was obnoxiously plain. White decorated the walls, ceiling, and the tiles on the floor, while the furniture in the room was either grey or metallic. It always was disturbing to the bluenette, but what was even more disturbing to him was how he had no idea what day it was. His cellphone would have told him the date, but alas, it had been stolen by Black Annis upon his initial capture, never to be seen again. Hopefully, he would be able to replace both it and his work files.

His eyes scanned the room to see a fresh set of clothes placed on top of the dresser on the other side of the room. The bluenette uttered a grunt as he stretched his arms and shoulders, noting the bandages that wrapped around his hands and forearms. After getting up out of bed, and feeling cold hit his backside, he also noticed that he was wearing a hospital gown. He must have been especially out of it, if he was able to be dressed while unconscious.

After getting dressed and noting more bandages on his face in the mirror, he was told that he had been asleep for three days. He had been drained both mentally and physically, so when he and the others were lifted via helicopter to H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. headquarters, he promptly fell asleep as he was being patched up. His stab wounds had healed with in the first day, but the black marks on his hands and face where his skin peeled away were taking more time to recover. The boy noticed that there were red patches of skin on his face, presumably where they had already sealed shut. That was scary. He almost became a beast!

The boy got ahold of a telephone and called his butler in order to take him home. He missed his mansion and wanted a proper bath. He was sad to hear, though, that he wasn't able to visit Alois in his condition. He wasn't given details as to why, no matter how hard he pressed, but by the contract that marked his tongue, he was certain that the boy was alright.

That was embarrassing. Now that Ciel thought about it, he could have sensed that Alois was still alive at any time during the battle. His brain simply shut down as he saw the boy fall, and reason failed him. It was visibly obvious to him, as he looked at his reflection in the chrome of the elevator on his way to the lobby. Ciel uttered a sigh. There was no way that Alois was going to let him live that down.

As for the others, Doctor Ackerman said that they were treated for minor injuries and were promptly sent home. All but Preston, that is. The Phantomhive boy was somewhat shocked to hear about his condition. The boy was still somewhat facing a problematic patch, as he was closely observed by the H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. research department. They managed to make the growths on his torso cease growing, but they couldn't get the boy to wake up, even though he was stable. According to the doctor, the boy was in a bit of a coma. They weren't quite sure when he would be coming out of it, either.

Sebastian came to pick the lad up in the Rolls Royce, opening the door for the lad as he got into the vehicle. The butler was genuinely happy to have his master back, as the household simply wasn't the same without its head. He was an odd man. It was somewhat strange to see him so excited.

According to the butler, the others went on with life as usual, for the most part. Audrey went back to work and was a bit bummed about leaving the reapers. He seemed to feel as though he made the right decision, though. Travis went back to school after a few days of rest and so did Daniel and Kristopherson, however, the two weren't on very good terms anymore.

Admittedly, Ciel was somewhat shocked to learn that Daniel had kissed the faux-blonde, but at the same time, he somehow figured that it would happen eventually. From the explanation he was given, the Phantomhive could hardly blame Kristopherson for reacting the way he did. It must be rough for them both, given the fact that they now share a flat, from what the butler told him. So much had changed in his absence, and it was only two weeks!

The Phantomhive was a tad disappointed that he didn't get to see his beau off on his first day of school, but found great amusement in the story about how his butler rounded the blonde up and dropped him. He was saddened, though, hearing about how Alois handled things almost coldly. He didn't mean to spark such a reaction in his capture, but as long as the blonde was alright, all was well.

A content sigh escaped his lips as the car approached the manor. For having burned down again for the umpteenth time, Sebastian had repaired it perfectly. Finally, he was home again and could relax a bit, thanks to the blonde menace. Not only did Jim ensure his rescue, but he also did most of his paperwork in his absence. The blonde's productivity when he was serious was almost frightening.

Ciel opened the door and stepped out of the car, taking a moment to stretch his legs a bit before walking up the steps to the manor. His butler opened the front door and held it open for him as he entered the household. There, he was met by a peculiar sensation; one that made his eyes light up. Quickly, he looked back to the butler, confused.

"Oh? Has the surprise been ruined already?" the man asked, closing the door behind them. "It would appear that your senses have gotten sharper." He arched an eyebrow as his master continued to stare.

"Well, go!" Sebastian instructed, pointing toward the stairs. To that, the bluenette quickly threw off his coat before taking off.

"Honestly, that boy makes you lose all common sense…" the man muttered as he pick up his master's coat from the floor and watching after him.

Ciel ran up the stairs and down the hall, trying to find what he was looking for. The lad almost tripped over poor Luka in the process. The boy only smiled and pointed.

"He's that way." The youngest of the Macken brothers said. "In your office, probably."

"Thanks." The Phantomhive replied, pausing to pat the boy on the head.

And so, Ciel made his way toward his office, like Luka had suggested, and to his delight, the trail grew stronger as he approached. Soon, his contract led him to a door and he stopped. His target was just on the other side, but somehow, he felt somewhat nervous. Hesitantly, the bluenette gripped the doorknob and gave it a twist, opening the door and removing his obstacle.

Upon entering his office, he noticed that the chair behind his desk was turned away to face the window. He shut the door felt a smile on his face as the person sitting in his seat turned around. It was Alois, contrary to what the good workers at H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. and Sebastian led him to believe. He sat, wearing his suit pants and a dress shirt, stroking a stuffed platypus with a grin.

"So you came at last, Mister Phantomhive." Alois mused. "I've been expecting you~!"

"Jim…" Ciel began, watching as the other boy stood up and placed the platypus on the desk in front of him.

The blonde trotted around the desk and made a beeline for the Phantomhive boy. He Ciel not been greatly anticipating this, he might have been knocked to the ground as his beau pounced, wrapping his arms around his waist and locking the bluenette in a tight hug. It was almost immediately returned by the Phantomhive as he made them sway from side to side. Alois kissed his cheek as he ran his hands through blonde locks.

"Welcome back." The menace stated, nuzzling his beau.

"It's so good to be back." Ciel replied, kissing his boyfriend's temple. "I see you've kept everything in order, too."

"It sucked a whole lot, and not in a good way." The other boy replied, closing his eyes and enjoying the bluenette's presence. "Heard you fought a dragon."

"Yeah, and it wasn't fun. Still, I had to for my princess." Teased the Phantomhive, earning a giggle. Alois pulled back, slightly, placing his hands on the sides of Ciel's head and examining it.

"I think you might look worse with the bandages…"

"At least I'm not covered in blood and dirt anymore."

"Hmm…" hummed the blonde, running his fingers through the Phantomhive's hair. "I did notice that you smelled a lot better."

"I still want a bath in my own bathroom. The showers at H.E.L.L.S.I.N.G. are rubbish." Ciel said. "I also really need a cup of tea…"

"No, Ciel, you don't understand." Alois replied, cupping the bluenette's cheeks. "I'm having a severe deficiency of hugs and kisses. If I don't have smooches and attention, soon, I might die! For real this time!"

"Oh, no, I think you're right." Spoke the Phantomhive, playing along with a smile. "But the situation may in fact be worse than we feared, though…"

"Oh yeah? Why's that?"

"I think the condition might be contagious." He said, leaning in and pecking the blonde on the lips before pressing their foreheads together.

"This amount is insufficient." Alois replied. "Surely you can do better."

"Of course I can. If I couldn't, then what kind of boyfriend would I be?"

"One that did butler impressions instead of actually kissing me." The blonde answered before pulling his beau in for another kiss.

The bluenette's eyes fluttered shut and he sighed through his nose. Oh, how he missed this. His grip on the other boy tightened as their lips moved in unison. Alois did the same as he tried to take all of the kisses that he was deprived of at once, causing his beau to grin against his mouth. It was their first, proper kiss in over two weeks and it was everything they needed at that moment. Finally, they forced themselves apart again, touching foreheads and rubbing noses.

"Are you trying to take my soul, or something?" Ciel teased, noting his beau's unintentional aggression. He chuckled as a blush formed on the other boy's face.

"No…" embarrassedly replied the Macken, averting his eyes. "I just missed you a lot…"

With a grin, the Phantomhive moved the blonde's head so that he was looking directly at him. "I missed you too. So…"

"Eep!" Alois squeaked as the Phantomhive boy picked him up and carried him over to one of the office's unbearably uncomfortable couches. Ciel sat down with the Macken boy seated sideways in his lap and wrapped his arms around the lad's waist. He leaned his head up so that he could meet his beau for another quick kiss.

"Much better." He said. "We have all the time in the world to catch up, so we can take it slow and really enjoy it."

"Perv." Alois accused. Still, he kissed his beau again, regardless. Ciel knew him all too well. He enjoyed slow starts and gentle touches; it was the only time that he didn't mind a slow pace. It was probably for the best, as well, seeing as though he didn't feel like anything too intense at the moment.

He rubbed the Phantomhive's shoulders and tangled his fingers in his hair, occasionally massaging the boy's scalp in a soothing fashion. Part of him felt as though they should really be talking and catching up, but the rest of him was enraptured by the bluenette's taste and softness. The boy was warm, like a small, steady flame. It encased the blonde as he was held, something that he had desperately wanted over the past few weeks. Truly, Alois would most certainly perish without affection.

Soon, he found himself on top of the boy as Ciel leaned back on the sofa as he ran his tongue across his beau's bottom lip. Immediately, he was granted access to the Phantomhive's mouth, both shuddering as their tongues made contact. It was almost intoxicating, how touching their contract marks together felt. Alois put both elbows on either side of the bluenette's head for better reach while his beau began to rub the small of his back. His breath hitched slightly as Ciel uttered a low groan.

That was when the blonde forced himself to separate from the Phantomhive, leaving a small strand of saliva that connected their lips before it broke and pooled at the bluenette's chin. Alois shifted so that he could wipe it away with his thumb before pausing to catch his breath. He was breathing heavily, and so was the boy beneath him.

"Sorry…" he said. "I don't really feel like going much further right now…"

"It's alright." Ciel said with a nod. "I was honestly hopping for a bit of cuddling. We have all of the time in the world for that later." The Macken boy grinned before leaning back down and pecking the boy on the lips.

"Those contracts are quite something, though…" he noted. He paused for a moment before asking: "Hey... do you think I can see it?"

With that, the bluenette opened his mouth and extended his tongue. Lo, and behold, there was a pentacle tattooed on the muscle's surface. It had vine-like swirls between the points of the star like how Ciel's had circles, and had three lines with dots on the end stemming from the top point in the center. That was it. That was Alois' mark. He smiled a goofy grin at the sight, excited about the fact that he had marked Ciel as his.

"Your turn." The bluenette said finally, instructing the other boy to show off his brand. Upon seeing it, a proud look adorned his visage.

"Yes, yes, this is good." He said, rewrapping his arms around the blonde. "You're mine."

"And you are mine." Alois said, scooting over so that he was positioned almost between the other boy and the back of the couch. He rested his head against Ciel's chest and snaked his arms around the lad's waist.

"Always." The Phantomhive said leaning his head over to kiss the top of his beau's hair. "I don't intend on letting you go anytime soon."

"How about never?"

"Perfect." He said with a grin, causing the other boy to giggle.

"So do you intend to allow me to mooch off of you forever?" Alois asked.

"You're not 'mooching', you're my assistant. You earn your keep."

"I suppose. Though, I'm sure Sebastian would do a better job."

"Sebastian would do a better at my job." The bluenette answered. "I'm not sure if there's a job that he can't do."

"Dog breeder?"

"Ooh, that's a good one." Ciel said. "I'll have to remember that."

Silence ensued, as neither of them were quite sure of what to say after that. They both simply laid there on the couch with their bodies tangled together. Neither of them were complaining. They were simply content with just being close to one another. Alois nuzzled into the crook of the Phantomhive's neck, kissing it before simply staying put. To his surprise, Ciel chuckled.

"What is it?" the blonde asked, causing the bluenette to shake his head.

"It's nothing." Ciel stated. "I just remembered that one time before we started dating, were we danced together because we skipped out on the school dance. Sebastian interrupted us before I could kiss you."

"I thought I was the one who tried to kiss you?"

"Maybe we both did. I thought it was odd that your face got so close, but I didn't think about it because I was convinced that I screwed up."

"I wonder what would've happened if we had kissed?" the menace mused, sitting up slightly in order to look at the bluenette. "Do you think things would end up the way they are now?"

"I'm not sure, but I wouldn't want to change it." Said his beau, sitting up as well. "It's just another funny story we have."

"Funny stories are important…" Alois stated. He arched an eyebrow at the other boy as Ciel stood up. "What are you doing?"

"Well, I was thinking that I might ask you to dance." his boyfriend replied, holding out a hand to the blonde with a small smile.

"But there's no music?" said the Macken boy, taking the lad's hand and standing up, regardless of that fact.

"We don't need it, do we?" Ciel said, taking the other boy's waist in one hand, while keeping that of his beau in the other. Instinctively, Alois placed his free hand on his partner's shoulder. He looked up at the bluenette and smiled.

"I guess we don't." he said as he began to follow the other boy's lead. "I thought you didn't like dancing?"

"How can I? It's a devil's specialty, after all." The Phantomhive jested, prompting a chuckle from the other boy. To his surprise, the Macken lad took his hand away from his shoulder and used it to cup his cheek. Ciel's eyes fluttered shut as his beau leaned in.

"That's true." Alois said against his lips. "Devils do like to dance."

The End

A/N: It physically pained me to write those last two words... I want to cry...

But, still, it isn't really "the end", though, now is it? Oh, no. I still have stories to tell with these nerds, so even though this story is over, there's still going to be more adventures with the demonic duo and the sensational seven. Why do you think I left you hanging in some spots?

Watch out for me and the "Devils Like To..." in the Cielois section, 'cause we'll be back very soon. You think I wasn't gonna do a sequel? Come, now, if I couldn't do this much, then what kind of author would I be?

Thus, it will be the same as usual...

Until the next chapter, my duckies~!