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Ciel heard a scream and gasped, reaching for someone who wasn't there.
He was surprised to find himself in the dark, engulfed in the comfort of his blankets. His brain took a minute to process, to understand he was safe in his bed.
Yet his head pounded, his body was damp with sweat and he felt as if someone was squeezing his throat. He was all too familiar with such a feeling, yet somehow that didn't help or make it any more bearable.
It startled Ciel when the door opened, even though his butler did it discreetly. In nights like these anything was able to put Ciel on edge.
"Sebastian?" The boy's voice was but a whisper, shaky and unsure. Yet the butler still was able to make out his name in the silence of the room.
"Young master? Was it another nightmare?" Sebastian approached the bed, setting the candlelights next to it. "I heard a scream." Your scream, specifically, he thought. No other scream pleased his ears quite as much as Ciel's, but that was a rather awful time to admit such a thing.
Illuminated by the candlelights Ciel looked even paler than usual. The sweat on his forehead and the fearful look on his eyes tapping into something inside Sebastian. It was at times like these he looked so similiar to the day when they first met.
A lot had changed since then. Sebastian himself now exceed in a role he never imaged he would play or even grow fond of. The same could be told about the child in front of him. His feelings towards Ciel were blurry, difficult to make out. He couldn't quite see the line between seasoning and playing with his food, or more accurately, turning him into a pet.
He couldn't deny he felt some level of affection towards the human, so he wouldn't. But that also wasn't to be admitted in such a moment.
"Is there anything that would help you calm down? Perhaps a warm cup of milk." The words flowed out of his mouth without any effort. Having memorized every line of his role it wasn't awfully difficult to play the butler.
His young master didn't answer, but rather wrapped himself further in the blankets and averted his gaze. Times like these were confusing at best, his nature fighting himself, these new feelings he considered a part of him. It was contradicting but as much as he bathed in the suffering he also wanted to prevent it. Maybe it was the actor in him responding accordingly, maintaining the perfect role.
He lifted his hand, reaching it towards the boy, giving him a chance to notice it and deny the touch if necessary. He didn't, allowing Sebastian to tilt his head up as to see it better.
"You're shaking an awful lot, may I check if you have a fever?" Ciel didn't answer, but his eyes travelled to Sebastian's, as if acknowledging he trusted him. And so, the butler stripped his right hand of the white glove and pressed it to the boy's forehead.
Despite the dampness and the heat from being wrapped on the blankets all night, his body was a bit cold, but still a normal temperature. This somewhat relieved Sebastian, knowing the boy had a fragile health was always a cause of worry.
"You seem to be physically well, young master." As he retreated his hand, Ciel almost instinctively leaned into it, as if he wished it stayed there. "Do you want me to stay?"
Ciel's expression morphed from fear to something akin of pleading. Sebastian answered with a gentle smile. "I'll stay for as long as you like, it's still quite early."
The butler stood by the bed, watching the boy as it usually happened. However, after a few minutes he heard Ciel's faint voice whispering, although he couldn't be so sure if he heard it right.
"I'm sorry, young master. What was that?"
"I'm cold, Sebastian. Warm me up." He considered mentioning he could light up the fireplace, but he knew the boy wasn't asking for that. Sebastian wasn't about to pass such an opportunity either. "Please." He whispered in a broken voice, so very different from the boy everybody else knew. Missing the usual commanding tone, the harsh and confident look gone from his eyes. This vulnerability was showed to Sebastian and Sebastian only.
"Of course, young master." Sebastian allowed his own features to be softened by the boy as he moved to lay beside him in bed.
Ciel let go of the blankets, as sign for Sebastian to arrange himself under them as well. This was new, unexpected and maybe too impulsive. But it wasn't scary. Ciel trusted him. His loyalty wasn't up to question. The boy could overthink that, what the contract meant, if Sebastian would in fact betray him if he could. But he didn't.
As the butler sat on the bed beside him the boy didn't hesitate in hugging him. His body so much bigger and warmer than his own. This being so powerful besides him, while he wasn't anything but a fragile child, so prone to breaking.
The demon accepted the hug, enveloping his small body with his as he pulled him closer. It was strange, this strong sense of protection that overcame Sebastian once in a while. Whether it was physical danger or moments like this, his own mind torturing him, he wished he could put a stop to it.
The closeness was new as well. It was very different from the usual one, such as when he bathed or dressed him. This was intimate, it felt like trust. Ciel was fragile on his arms, vulnerable in his hug. He could hear his loud heartbeat on the quiet room, calming down as the minutes passed. His breathing also slowed down, though it still sounded shaky and somewhat unpredictable on Sebastian's ears.
The boy smelled delicious. The warmth that radiated from his still body as the trembling subsided, when he finally relaxed enough to let go of fear and give way to a gentle sleep.
As the night grew darker and time wouldn't stop ticking by, Sebastian thought it was only fair to admire the moment and the boy that was clinging to him.
It was confusing and complicated, sometimes he played his role so well he almost felt human. The times when he felt this were extremely rare, but this was one of them.
The soft hair covered the face of the beautiful boy he held, his closed eyes concealing their contract. He could feel his small chest rising and falling as he breathed so close to him. The heart beating inside of him, such a small body keeping him alive.
On Sebastian's endless life, every century felt like a blink, still he wished this night would linger for just a while longer.