Work Text:
Time healed nothing.
It only let wounds fester, cloaked in scars that still burned like the night they were freshly inflicted.
Ciel bolted upright in bed, eyes hot with tears. He realized a moment later that he’d been screaming, more from the ache in his throat than being able to process the sound. In his nightmares, there was almost always someone screaming, either him, his twin, the other children, or even the cultists being slaughtered by his monstrosity of a butler.
It was sickening that he felt anything about how they were murdered. The sea of blood and carcasses deserved none of his sympathy, but the sheer shock of it all had traumatized him anyway. He hated every recognizably human bit of flesh he could pick out in his all too vivid memories, yet the nausea and fear that gripped him was potent regardless.
He thought of Sebastian and groaned, bowing his head as he rubbed his eyes.
Horrid beast.
As if summoned by his thoughts, there was a light knock at the door.
“You know the rules,” Ciel muttered, voice scratchy from his screaming. He curled into a ball, gripping the comforter around him. He didn’t want to see his butler, standing with a candelabra, gently inquiring if he desired any milk.
He didn’t want to see that face which had so often been nonchalantly covered in blood.
He didn’t want to see any adult hands, which only seemed capable of cruelty.
No, Ciel had given Sebastian new guidelines to abide by, should he attempt to soothe Ciel’s nerves.
The candles went out with a soft puff of air, only leaving moonlight to illuminate his bedroom. Ciel raised his head, eyes widening when it appeared that Sebastian was doing as he was told.
A massive black dog, perhaps more akin to a wolf than a dog, slowly padded into the room. Ciel could make out the hound’s thick fur and glistening claws, outlined by a silver sheen. Perhaps the most telling clue as to its nature was a gleaming pentacle at its neck, undoubtedly attached to a collar. The beast quietly pushed the door closed with a hind leg, as if it was trying to be polite.
“You think your manners and aesthetics matter one whit when you’re on all fours as an animal?” drawled Ciel, the nerve he'd had to gather to make the quip already dousing his fright.
He didn’t get anything but a huff in response.
Sebastian stayed low to the ground, as though he was on the prowl. Ciel had requested that he not be touched by him in human hands due to his night terrors, yet Sebastian seemed intent on being intimidating anyway.
It honestly calmed Ciel down.
Finally, he was acting out his true nature. At least someone in the world was.
Sebastian’s eyes met Ciel’s. He growled, crimson slits narrowing as he stared down Ciel. He looked every bit a hellhound— huge, vicious, deadly, and so pitch black it was like watching shadows themselves move. Ciel followed his motions and rolled his eyes.
“Enough with the theatrics. Up!”
Fluid as ink, Sebastian leapt onto the bed, sinking down hard into the mattress. Ciel wouldn’t be surprised if Sebastian weighed at least twice as much as Ciel’s small body. Sebastian leaned forward, ears pointed up as he sniffed Ciel, snout nudging Ciel’s neck.
“Foul thing.” Ciel let the insult out, but it had no bite behind it. He sighed, shoulders slumping as he hugged his knees tighter to his chest. Crying was exhausting. He felt more drained than before he’d gone to bed, and the day had been a long one.
Sebastian was never deterred by insults before, and he wasn’t going to start then either. He walked around Ciel in a circle, as if he was mimicking a domestic dog’s habit of turning around before sleeping. He laid down, enclosing Ciel in an embrace with his body, brilliant red eyes fixed on Ciel’s face as he rested his head on the bed.
Ciel’s muscles relaxed, soaking in his hellhound’s incredible warmth.
“Time is supposed to make memories fade, is it? They only ever come back with the same intensity. How annoying. I’d rather have a perfect recollection of something useful.”
He allowed himself to lean back against Sebastian. Sebastian’s steady, slow breathing all around him was already working to lull him back into drowsiness, even if Ciel doubted that he needed to bother breathing. Ciel let his knees straighten out in front of him, exhaling with relief as tension drained out of him. He was safe, protected, and comfortable. A soft hum escaped his lips.
Sebastian took the chance to lay his head in Ciel’s lap. He looked up at Ciel expectantly.
“What?” asked Ciel, rubbing his eyes again.
Thump thump thump thump.
Sebastian’s tail hit the bed over and over again, wagging so strongly that Ciel’s nightshirt rippled with the generated breeze.
“Sebastian,” he scolded, the fake reprimand dissolving into a genuine laugh. The last of the tightness and apprehension in his chest faded as Ciel indulged Sebastian, stroking his warm fur from the top of his head down his upper back. His coat was soft and luxurious, welcoming Ciel as his hand sunk into the slight give, gliding down with the direction of Sebastian’s fur.
It was so tempting to use both hands that Ciel gave in, grinning as he rubbed Sebastian’s sides.
“Mutt,” said Ciel fondly, watching Sebastian pant with his tongue out. He didn’t know if Sebastian actually enjoyed being petted, but it was amusing to Ciel regardless.
His hellhound. Loyal, mischievous, and dramatic.
Ciel yawned, eyes falling closed. “Perhaps tonight is salvageable," he muttered, turning over and using Sebastian’s body as a pillow. He embraced Sebastian from the side, ignoring the idea of it being his butler and reminding himself that Sebastian was his dog for the time being. The fur he was lying on top of and the fluffy tail that Sebastian rested over his small body was enough to make him feel as warm as he would be when submerged in a hot bath.
Thinking only of the softness encasing him from all around, Ciel drifted off into blissfully dreamless sleep.
-~-
Ciel woke up feeling fully refreshed, which was odd in and of itself.
He was somewhere exceedingly comfortable and soft, enveloped in bone-deep warmth. There was a low, soothing rumble from somewhere close by that made Ciel want to fall back asleep, as it would be so easy to do so. He drowsily nuzzled against something fluffy, once again met with a quiet vibration that he felt in his chest.
Reluctantly, Ciel opened his eyes.
At first, it seemed as though it was still nighttime. He was met with pure darkness, darker than even his room had been.
Then he sat up into the light of the morning, staring at the scene before him.
Sebastian, still in his canine form, was fast asleep.
Ciel must have slept with his face buried in Sebastian’s pelt, which was one thing, but that was nothing compared to watching his demon snore. He covered his mouth to stop a burst of laughter, fighting it down as he noted Sebastian drooling on the bedspread, wickedly sharp fangs dormant and exposed in his sleep.
“Unbelievable.” Ciel snorted, chest heaving with mirth.
Sebastian had always had sensitive hearing, and his hound form was no exception. He raised his head, blinking and looking around. He tried to speak, potentially, but all that came out was a confused whine.
Ciel clutched his sides, howling with laughter. “You’re the worst demon there is! Look at you, you fell asleep!”
Sebastian barked, standing up and looking around, as though there was some other explanation for this. His frantic gaze met Ciel’s and Ciel continued laughing, mocking him as much as he could. When it was clear that Sebastian had indeed fallen asleep, plain and simple, without a single excuse, he seemed to decide that there was nothing he had to say for himself. He remained in dog form, lowering his head to the bed in a bow and covering his eyes with his paws, ashamed.
“What are you doing?!” exclaimed Ciel.
All he got was a whine in response.
Sebastian sounded like a puppy.
Ciel folded his arms. “Is that all? What if we’d been attacked in the night?” he pressed. He doubted that Sebastian would have actually let anything harm him, but still.
Sebastian quickly raised his head, whining urgently in his throat. He licked Ciel’s cheek, not once, but in a barrage of affection and reassurance that knocked Ciel backwards.
“Augh! Wretched creature!” Ciel spluttered, turning his head but still laughing as Sebastian vehemently apologized. He raised his hands up, half petting, half pushing Sebastian off of himself, which Sebastian obeyed. “Change back at once!” he ordered.
An order was an order, and neither of them were ready.
Sebastian reverted to his human form, only to topple down on top of Ciel again, landing on his hands and knees on either side of Ciel’s body, eyes wide with shock.
“I am terribly sorry, my lord—”
“Pfft, hahaha!”
Ciel, unbothered by Sebastian’s proximity to him, simply continued to laugh at his expense. “I will never let you live this down, you hear me?”
Sebastian got off of the bed with the most grace he’d had all morning, hardly even needing to brush himself off to be presentable. “What transpired is regrettable, however, I assure you that—”
“How did it happen?” Ciel wheezed, sitting back up. “Tell me honestly. That’s an order.”
Sebastian grit his teeth, rubbing his temples. “I got too into the role, I suppose. Sleep was more alluring to me than it had ever been before.”
“Really?” pressed Ciel, grinning as he leaned forward. “How long has it been since you slept? Demons don’t even need it, yet here you are, weakened for a moment and you fall right into it.” His smugness lit his eyes up with glee, watching Sebastian squirm with delight.
It took a moment for Sebastian to reply.
“Aside from when you forced me to rest after the incident aboard the Campania? About a century, sir.” He bowed stiffly. “It won’t happen again.”
Ciel paused. “That long?”
“As you said. I don’t require it.”
Hmm. “Would you say you’re well-rested?”
Sebastian grimaced. “Now I am, yes.”
“Luxury or not, it seems you need it more often than a century. Do tell me next time.” Ciel smirked. “I may even let you sleep in my bed again, since you liked it so much.”
Never living it down. Never ever.
Sebastian sighed, strained. “Is that all, my lord? I have many neglected duties to attend to, as you may have guessed.”
“Fine.” Ciel watched Sebastian leave with amusement. “Fetch me my paper, to start!” he called out. "And breakfast, and tea, and a dessert to make it up to me!"
Sebastian managed to smile, the sort of smile he usually had on his face before murdering someone in cold blood. “Yes, my lord.”
Ciel snickered to himself. “Good dog.”