Guilty Pleasures

Sebastian x Grell
(Fair warning, this story sucks… I just wanted to write it. Ok, continue.)

I sighed, biting my lip slightly as I boiled water for my master’s tea. As of late, my mind had been rather preoccupied from my duties as a butler, something that I wasn’t exactly proud to admit. Of course, I still completed my chores (with flying colors, I might add), but my heart was not in the work. I just wasn’t in the mood to think about anything other than… him. Ugh, him. Just the fact that I thought of him made bile crawl its way up my throat, but I couldn’t help myself. Call it a guilty pleasure, if you will. That was what people called it nowadays, right? Back a century or so, it would simply be called forbidden, and that was what truly it felt like. Perhaps that what made it so enjoyable? Thoughts of him invaded my mind just when I wanted them the least, and made my day twice as hard as it already was. My schedule was too full with the help to be accommodating an unwelcome visitor. Still, no matter how much I try and put years of self-training to work, nothing worked. I could still hear his voice, picture the way he walked and the way he did that little hair flip. But first I should back up, and tell the story from the beginning.

This unlikely train started its wreck of a journey a few months back, on the night of Madame Red’s unfortunate demise. I could literally feel the anger and sorrow pulsing through my young master’s veins. He was so determined to kill the red-haired monster that had taken away his last fragment of family, and I was fully willing to do his dirty work. But as I fought, there was something… else happening to me. My heart was racing, my senses elevated, and my eyes simply devouring every move that the divine being made. This wasn’t how I felt during the other times I had fought, even for other masters. What was happening? The way we were fighting together, it was almost… pleasurable. It was a dance. The easiest thing to say what is was is that it was a courtship ritual of sorts, but I don’t expect anyone less than a demon to understand. No offense. Still, no matter the order I had to fulfill, I couldn’t help but smile as I fought to the height of abilities with Grell, the god of death, the forbidden fruit that I knew I had no right tasting. His constant flirtatious efforts didn’t ease my mind at all either, but merely reinforced my opinion that I was not the only one feeling this connection.

I don’t regret nearly killing Grell that night. My master’s orders come before my own personal gain, and at that point in time I was more than happy to do anything asked of me. I acted as if nothing was wrong, as if I detested Grell’s advances and wanted nothing more than for them to stop. Well, I will admit that I wasn’t entirely fond of the nicknames, but other than that I loved fighting with him. Not everyone can understand how intimate fighting another person is. Both people are forcing their minds to meld into one, to be able to predict their next move, and for two other-worldly beings it was an extremely personal thing. Heartbeats have been known to meld, eyes to lock for long periods of time, and (every once in a while) all fighting ceasing as the two people simply stare or mimic each other. I have no doubt that even humans such as yourselves have heard of love on the battlefield. That term is a little too literal for my conscious. I found myself harboring a small crush for the sharp-toothed drag queen. Call me a terrible person, but I truly couldn’t help myself.

A few months passed, and I found it easier to detach myself from these foreign feeling of admiration, instead busying myself with new chores. For example, I now had to take care of the pesky, clingy, mangy dog Pluto. Why that creature insists on being around me all the time I do not understand. Anyway, my life had more or less returned to normal under my master after that night, before he happened again. Grell decided to drop into my life once again, and I was forced to hide the elephant stomps of my heart to be able to seem normal to my master. I was actually glad that young Ciel was there. My feelings, apparently, had done nothing but intensified over the past few months and I found it nearly impossible to not give in to Grell’s disgusting fantasies, perhaps wanting to add a few of my own in the mix as well. Oh, he was simply irresistible. My mind wanted to hate Grell, but my heart wanted to love him, and in the end I was nothing but confused over what I truly wanted. I watched him simply jump away that night, smiling softly to myself as I imagined chasing after him and once again fighting in the woods. Only this time with a different outcome. Perhaps it was for the best that my young master held me back.

Now, I tried not to let any of these thoughts portray into my demeanor. I put on a face of disgust whenever Grell’s name was merely mentioned, even though my heart would start beating faster. I wanted to see him again. Even after I learned of Ciel’s agreement with the reaper about giving me to him for a day, I only wanted it more and more. Maybe I was only curious to see if those promised kisses lived up to their reputation, but it was a curiosity none the less that I couldn’t contain. The feelings only grew as weeks passed until they got to the point where I am now, struggling to work with thoughts of this guilty pleasure littering my mind like the pathetic filth of London a few centuries ago. Perhaps I was losing my touch. There was a time where I could charm anyone, even men, into wanting me with only so much as a smile. People told me that I still had a way with words, but if I couldn’t get Grell past romantic promises, was I past my glory days?

I sighed once more as I finished polishing the silverware, admiring how I could clearly see my reflection in its surface. No human would be able to see, but there was sadness in my eyes. Frankly said, I was lonely. I had had my young master for three years with no troubles, but now it appeared that it wasn’t enough. What was wrong with me? I was ripped from my thoughts a voice sounded through my head, summoning me to my master’s study. Why did Ciel need to see me? I hurried to his room, opening the door and bowing politely.

“May I be of assistance with something, master?”

Ciel looked at me over his papers, the one eye that I could see impassive as ever.

“Yes, Sebastian, there is something you can do. Lord Burwitch of the French extension of the company is coming for tea later this evening. I wish for you to prepare the house for the arrival of our guest, along with accommodations should he spend the night. And please bring me something sweet and flavored like vanilla.” All of a sudden, Ciel smiled, nearly knocking my composure out of balance. It was extremely unusual that the master should smile over something so trivial. He was up to something.

“Of course, young master,” I said, bowing once more, “I shall make sure everything is prepared for the arrival of our guest.” And with that, I left, biting the inside of my cheek lightly as I tried to figure out what Ciel might be up to.

Within the hour, beds were made and the manor was spotless, perfect for upholding the honor of the Phantomhive estate. I had brought the young master a small bowl of vanilla ice cream that wouldn’t melt, a recipe that I prided myself in both thinking up and mastering. He was impressed, but I got nothing more than minimal praise out of him. I did not mind. Being who I was, I was happy receiving any attention at all. I had set Mey-Rin, Finnian, and Baldroy on both containing Pluto out of sight and making sure not to burn the house down, making a last walk through of the house to make sure that everything was perfect.

Without warning, /he/ happened again. He was just there (in my mind, of course), with those half-rim glasses and that seductive smirk that made me want to cry out or punch something, although out of loathing or lust I could not say. I was trying everything I could to push away these feelings, convinced that otherwise I would be consumed by him. Everything about him made my senses high and my mind feel as if someone had scrambled it. His voice rang through my head at night, beckoning to me with such sweetness that I found myself having dreams for the first time I can ever remember. I see the gleam off his sharp teeth in the reflection of every piece of polished silver, and his spicy scent was perpetually stuck in my nose. Mm mm, his scent… It was like cinnamon and pine, mixed faintly with sweet roses. And chocolate. Oh, Grell smelled like such heavenly chocolate that it was hard sometimes to remember that he was a god of death. Not to mention that I was always covered in his scent after one of our battles, since we fought so closely. I could smell him now, the cinnamon mixing so sweetly with the chocolate that it created a sweet, tangy feeling in the nose. So rich, so divine, so… burning? I snapped out of my thoughts, realizing that I had been standing here for much longer than I intended. Promptly rushing to the kitchen, I just barely was able to save a chocolate cheesecake from becoming rancid and stinking up the entire manor.

It wasn’t long after that that Lord Burwitch arrived by automobile. I went out to greet him, accompanied by Mey-Rin, whom I was trying to teach proper greeting manners.

“Welcome, Lord Burwitch. My name is Sebastian, and on the behalf of the Phantomhive family I would like to express our full gratitude for you taking the time to visit.” I bowed politely, glancing at Mey-Rin for her to do the same.

“Oh, yes, welcome very much, sir!” She managed to stutter out, curtsying neatly.

“Oh my, what an estate! And such a lovely welcome!” The Lord pronounced, his accent heavy as he walked up to us. He did not have a character I particularly cared for. He seemed to be a little heavier than what was good for his reputation (meaning that he probably taxed the people of his land heavy enough to match his weight), and smelled like cabbage and coach car. Gray hairs stuck up oddly from his oiled locks and eyebrows, creating a perpetually disheveled appearance. Still, I gave nothing of my demon perceptions away and simply led our guest inside, smiling politely.

“Mey-Rin, do take the poor man’s coat. He must be tired after such a long journey.”

“Y-yes Sebastian!” The girl nodded and quickly hurried to Lord Burwitch’s side to relieve him of his jacket. The Lord looked surprised once more before smiling, gladly handing the other his coat.

“Such a warm welcome indeed! Lord Phantomhive has once again outdone himself with his great staff.” Mey-Rin blushed at that, and stood struck in self-consciousness for a moment before I could snap her out of it.

“It is simply our duty, sir. Mey-Rin, if you would be so kind as to make sure Lord Burwitch’s rooms are properly suitable.” I was certain they were; I had organized them myself. But the small girl wasted no time in taking the hint, bidding us both goodbye and scurrying off to another room. For all the complaints I had about her, she certainly was handy when it came to leaving.

I escorted Lord Burwitch personally to my master’s study, leaving afterwards to give them time to talk and to fetch the afternoon tea. Before long I had the tea cart upstairs and was pouring both of the Lords’ cups of fine, British tea, brewed extra strong for my master’s recent stress levels. However, this evening Ciel was smiling ever so slightly, a welcome change from his previous demeanor if a curious one. I couldn’t shake the feeling that the boy knew something I didn’t, and if there was one thing I truly hated it was important secrets being kept from me. The smile on my face was as genuine as I could make it, and the proceeding conversation between Ciel and Lord Burwitch passed without trouble. After serving the tea, I took my customary leave to go and prepare to bring forth the cheesecake.

As I was heading towards the kitchen (in fact, right as I was passing the door to the back patio), there was a timid knock on the heavy glass that led to a view of the back pathway. Sighing and wondering who on earth it could be, I walked to the door and opened it, a look of slight frustration clear on my face. The expression fell nearly instantly as I saw who it was, not even having time to mentally prepare myself before the voice hit me like a wave on a violent ocean.

“Bassy!” Grell’s voice split the air around me, and for a moment I forgot how to breathe. Here. He was here, at my home, Grell was here at my home and I had no idea why. My mind struggled to accept this new information before I was nearly tackled in a hug, stepping to the side just in time. Oh yeah, I remembered now. I must remain uninterested.

“Grell? What on earth are you doing here?”

The fallen reaper quickly bolted to his feet, grinning that wild grin and placing his hand on his hip.

“Now, Bassy, is that any way to greet a lady?”

I sighed and rested my forehead on the tips of my fingers, looking up at him through my thick, black bangs. “No, but considering that you are not a lady, I see no point in greeting you like one.”

Grell merely pouted, waving his hand in the air dramatically. His crimson hair frayed around him wildly, catching the light of the manor for a second and making stars dance across my vision.

“Bassy, please, you’re acting as if I was not a guest in your master’s manor.” Grell smirked, and I could feel his eyes burning holes into my face as my own eyes twitched. Damn, he had found my only weakness. Despite wanting to both banish him and claim him, it was only proper for a good butler to greet any and all guests that passed onto his master’s property. Still, I was grasping for loop holes.

“My master doesn’t know you’re here, so you are not properly a guest yet.”

Grell smirked devilishly at me, eyes deep with lust and mysteriousness. He spoke in a low tone that made shivers crawl up my spine, but luckily only two words escaped him:

“Does he?”

I couldn’t help but stare at Grell for a moment, searching his face with a small frown painted across my lips as I tried to figure out what his secrets were. After a minute or so of this, the other man broke the silence, laughing softly.

“Now, don’t be so crude~. It’s not that I don’t adore the feeling of your eyes grazing my skin, but I must ask that we go somewhere more private before any more of the visual foreplay unfolds.”

I groaned in fake annoyance, clutching my forehead once more and acting as if I wanted him to shut up. Apparently my act was believable, because the reaper pouted once more before continuing.

“Oh, you mustn’t take me so seriously. Well, for now. I didn’t even know that you were here, I am simply preforming my job as a…” Grell winked, doing that weird hand motion again over his eye and biting his tongue softly, “Deadly efficient grim reaper~.”

I had known exactly where he was going with that right before he said it, and just shook my head afterwards as I rolled my eyes.

“Fine, then I guess I have to ask… What are you doing here, Grell? It’s not that we don’t like seeing you, it’s just that my master has not exactly been craving your presence since the murder of Madame Red.”

“Is he still holding that over me? I told him that there were no hard feelings! Anyway, I am here to collect a corrupt soul for judgment. Don’t worry, not yours, although I would love to have your soul all for myself~.” Grell stepped closer before I could stop him, tracing one of his fingernails slowly up my jawline. I felt myself blush softly and suppressed it, softly pushing Grell’s hand aside, not mentioning that my soul was already starting to belong to him.

“I know for myself that your kind wouldn’t want my soul, if it was even that easily obtainable. Who is your target? Surely not one of the help? They may be obnoxious, but they haven’t exactly killed somebody.” Grell waved my suggestion away, rolling his eyes.

“Oblivious as always, Bassy~. I’m here for one Lord Burwitch. My, he certainly has been a naughty boy. Not as much as myself, but enough to earn him a top spot in my death book.” The maroon-loving man flipped out his tattered book to show me himself, but I didn’t even look at it, eyes fixed on his grinning face. Was there not a way to wipe that grin off? A sudden thought popped into my head about what I personally could do, but I would rather not share the details here. I kept looking for a long moment, before sighing and gesturing for him to continue.

“Fine, just make sure to do it outside. It’s a lot easier to clean blood out of grass than carpet.”

Grell didn’t need to be told twice, gasping like a love-struck little girl before jumping to tackle me in a hug. I step-sided him again, and he barely managed to save himself from once again sprawling out onto the floor.

“Bassy, you’ve never agreed to let me actually do my job before! Are you going soft on me~?”

“All your previous jobs have clashed with the wishes of my master. If he has no more need for Lord Burwitch, then I am not one to stand in your way.” I said simply, taking the pocket watch out of my pocket and sighing in frustration. I could barely concentrate with Grell so close to me, and I seriously needed to get back to work. “Now, leave to do whatever it is you need to do. I have a job to do myself, as well.”

Grell didn’t move, only laughing girlishly and winking at me.

“Oh, you can be so funny~. Certainly you knew that Ciel was expecting me. That’s why he invited Lord Burwitch here.”

I paused for a moment, mind racing through the past conversations with my master today. That’s why he was smiling. He knew that Grell would be coming and I would have to deal with him. Wait, if he knew that, did he know about my thoughts…? No, that was impossible. I had managed to make even Grell himself think that I wasn’t interested in him, so how would Ciel know? Unless he saw something in me at some point that pointed toward that… I didn’t have much time to think on that, as Grell kept talking as if we were the best of friends.

“You didn’t? Was my little Bassy lied to by his master? Anyway, no time to dwell on that, your little master told me to have you escort me to Lord Burwitch when I arrived~”

I groaned with reluctance, shaking my head and gesturing for him to follow. “Fine, I will escort you to his quarters. But first I must fetch their dessert.” With that I turned on my heel and left, not looking to see if Grell was following but able to feel him practically breathing down my neck.

I was happy to have the tray occupying my hands as I led Grell up to the young master’s office, glaring at him lightly when we arrived.

“Please, at least pull your jacket up your shoulders. It’s not very becoming.” It drove me insane how the man always wore the trench coat loose on his arms, and every time I saw him I had the overpowering urge to just fix his garments to make them look neater. Luckily, I had no need to actually touch the reaper, as he promptly fixed his jacket at my request.

“Better, Bassy?” He asked, raising his eyebrows to look more seductive. I kept my mouth as a straight line and simply gave a single nod, trying to ignore how much I enjoyed seeing him wearing his attire properly. Although he never wore it correctly, I had to admit that the jacket seemed to be personally tailored for him.

Pushing all unprofessional thoughts away, I politely knocked on Ciel’s door before entering.

“Master? I have brought your after-tea cake for you and your guest. Also, we have another visitor here to see you.” I stepped inside, placing the cake on the tea cart and nodding for Grell to enter the room. For one who was always flirting and over-the-top, he was surprisingly composed when he entered, bowing customarily. Ciel’s eyes noticeably widened, but he simply smiled at the arrival of his expected visitor.

“Lord Grell, how very nice to see you once more. I suppose you came to speak to Lord Burwitch for the same reason that I wanted to see him?”

Grell lit up at the sound of the proper title, and nodded kindly. “Indeed, Lord Phantomhive.”

Lord Burwitch himself looked confused at this sudden intrusion, and started to sweat slightly. “Excuse me, but who exactly are you? I am not sure if I would want to discuss such intimate matters with a stranger. Not after the recent attempts on my life.”

Ciel closed his eyes and nodded, “Lord Burwitch, this is master Grell of the Sutcliff estate in Canterbury. He has been taking up residence as of late in London and is a trusted acquaintance of mine. I assure you, there is nothing to fear from him. He wouldn’t try to take your life in all of his days.” The young master smiled once more, and I could almost hear him thinking that Grell wouldn’t try to take his life… He would. But the thing that surprised me the most was that Ciel so easily referred to Grell a friend after the things he had done.

“My Lord, may I have a word with you in private? Perhaps a walk through the garden?” Grell offered cordially, leaving Lord Burwitch no choice but to accept. The two left together, the more flamboyant one commencing to talk the ear off of the Lord. After a moment I turned to my master, frowning.

“Young master, may I inquire as to a few things?”

“Of course, Sebastian. Speak your mind.”

I took a deep breath, concentrating my thoughts. “First of all, why is Grell here at all?”

Ciel took a sip of tea, seeming to be his normal self. “Surely he already told you. He is to dispose of Lord Burwitch. I had business with the man, so I invited him here before Grell could get to him and informed the reaper of my plans. The rest is unfolding now.”

“Why was I not alerted of these plans?”

“Because I saw no need for you to be concerned. I know you do not care for Grell, but as it was an opportunity of mutual benefit, I had a feeling that you would not mind.”

“With due respect, sir, I do not believe that that was the reason.”

Ciel smiled at me, young eyes deep with understanding beyond his years. “Ok, the real reason I didn’t tell you was because I wanted to see how you’d react. You’ve been distracted since we saved Lizzy from the mansion, and I wanted to make sure that this was the real reason. It appears that I was right.”

I felt my body heat up, and closed my eyes for a moment. Still, I did not refute my master, because I had promised him that I’d never lie to him. “Alright, what business did you have to attend with Lord Burwitch? And what did he do to get a shinigami on his trail?”

“I had to see what his management strategy was and figure out how to remove him,” Ciel remarked amusedly, “He had gotten in a little too deep with the French mafia. The Funtom Company can’t have someone with such a terrible reputation running one of our branches. The last straw for the other-worldly beings was when he smuggled twenty metric tons of gold and opium over the border to his personal estate in Austria. Along with several accounts of rape and felony, he was overall a man deserving of his fate. The attempts on his life that he mentioned earlier were assassination attempts by the mafia to try and remove his title. They failed. We won’t.” Ciel finished his tea like what he had just revealed wasn’t a death sentence for a man, but rather a business strategy.

I nodded, smiling softly once more. “I admire your sight into future events.” I mulled over what he had said, placing away the Lord’s tea because he would not be finishing it. “Now, master, one last query.”

Ciel waited before waving for me to continue, causing me to smile. “How exactly did you know of Grell’s plans to kill Lord Burwitch?” The young master choked slightly on his tea, flushing before he could answer.

“As head of the Phantomhive estate, I know everything that goes on within my company! Even things such as this.” I could sense that his heart rate was elevated and that he was purposefully avoiding looking at me, causing me to smile. It must have been Grell’s idea, then.

“Of course, sir. Now, if you will excuse me.” I wheeled the cart to the door, opening it to walk out. My master’s voice stopped me before I was completely gone, just an afterthought of an idea spoken.

“Make sure that the accommodations made for Lord Burwitch are kept. It would be bad manners to not offer Grell a place to stay after our agreement.”

I nodded before closing the door behind me, smiling as I thought over what had just happened. Why did my chest feel so light? Perhaps I was just happy because I could still sense Grell outside with his fading victim. Or maybe it was that Ciel knew of my little guilty pleasure, and it relieved me that I didn’t have to hide it. Whatever it was, I loved the feeling, and hurried to clean up the remainder of the dishes.

As the night wore on, events passed quickly and in a timely manner. Grell finished his work and disposed of Lord Burwitch in the woods outside of the manor. Ciel made explanations to the families before any investigation could even think of starting, and I went through my evening chores with the nagging sense that I was being followed by a certain man cloaked in red. Before too much longer, the night had worn on to the time to turn in, and I prepared Ciel for bed before heading towards my own quarters. Grell was waiting outside my door, grinning at me as I rounded the corner. He had made preparations with my master earlier that he would prefer to spend the night instead of having to go back to whatever he did when he wasn’t in our lives.

“Alone at last, Bassy~ Oh, doesn’t it feel like we’re parents of little Ciel, and we can only be together at night after he has fallen asleep?”

I looked disinterestedly at Grell for a moment before shaking my head, unable to keep a small smile off my lips.

“I don’t like to think of it quite like that. I am perfectly fine being Ciel’s butler.” Grell pouted at my words, leaning forward as if to kiss me and staring up at my with those eyes that flashed between green and yellow.

“Oh, Bassy you’re no fun… Anyway, I believe that you were meant to show me to my room.”

“Right. Yes, I suppose so.” I rolled my eyes and gestured for Grell to follow me, actually hoping that I could sneak in the long way around so that I could spend a little bit more time with Grell. Said reaper behind me skipped up to walk right next to me, lacing our arms together. I didn’t exactly hold his arm back, but I didn’t push him away either. We idly started to talk, mostly him flirting with me and me gently pushing him away, but it grew quickly into stories about everything that had happened since we saw each other last. A small smile lit my face the entire way, and I found myself enjoying our brief time together.

All too soon we arrived at Grell’s rooms, and I was showing him inside but staying at the door.

“I hope that you find these rooms to your taste.”

“Oh, they’re quite to my taste, Bassy~ But there’s one thing missing.” Grell smiled, coming over and snatching my hand before I could react. My heart started to race and color started to rush to my face from the contact. We hadn’t exactly touched skin too often before, and I could swear that I saw sparks fly from where our hands connected.

“Grell, what are-“

“Spend the night with me~?”

I started to stutter softly, gently forcing my hand out of that beautiful, but surprisingly strong grip.

“Very sorry, but I’m afraid that I can’t stay here tonight, Grell.”

The man looked at me with such a sad look that I could feel my heart just tearing itself to pieces. God, how did he get his eyes to look like that? They were hypnotic the way they sucked you in and willed you to bend to every whim that Grell ever demanded. Ok, maybe that was just their effect on me. But still, just seeing the sadness pool in those topaz gems like a virus taking over a body was simply sickening to me.

“Oh, I see… Well, then, goodnight Sebby.” Even Grell’s voice was laced with disappointment, and I am actually rather embarrassed about what I did next. I left. I just nodded and left, unable to spend another moment in that room, feeling my willpower crumble without my control.

I retired to my bedroom, rubbing my tired face with my hands as I undressed and crawled into bed wearing my sleeping clothes. After a while of staring at the ceiling, I fell asleep, the dreams of that night once again rolling into my head like an oncoming storm. I still hadn’t determined if they were good dreams or not, but judging by the light-heartedness I obtained after every night I would be inclined to say that it was good. But every night, without fail, they would be about Grell.

Most nights the dreams were impossible and completely out of character for me, but I wasn’t one to complain about small things such as that. Tonight, Grell and I were fighting once again on the rooftop in the dark alley, trading remarks back in forth that were definitely suggestive of some sort of relationship. Only, this time, we weren’t fighting. We were dancing, twirling around in mid-air without touching and simply letting our bodies complement each other in the fluidness of our movements. We were water and air, heat and vapor in the way that we moved. Rain tumbled down around us, soaking us warmly to the bone and encasing our movements so completely that we were jealous of each other. How dare that water the sky was crying separate us so that we couldn’t touch as we spun and flew across the roofs of London? Lights glittered off the droplets as I laid chase to my crimson deer, darting faster and faster until we were both laughing with hysteria. The longer I went without Grell the more insane I became, and before long I was crazed with desire to simply touch the elusive skin that hovered inches from my fingertips.

We ran and ran, darting until we fell down off the roofs, tumbling until resting softly on our bed of raven black feathers. I reached out and grabbed the first thing I could find, and at last my prize was caught. Grell was once again within the prison of my arms, and I wasted no time in touching everywhere I could. I traced the pale skin of Grell’s neck, marveling the contrast between skin and hair before beginning to worship it with my lips. I couldn’t hear the moans, only rumbling thunder in the distance, but I could tell from the vibrations under my lips that he was letting out those delicious sounds. I kissed and he trembled, and we falling once again, cascading through time and space after finally finding each other. Neither of us cared. Now Grell was kissing me back, and scorching hot arms were being wrapped around my torso, bringing us closer together as we fell and let go of everything that we knew to be true.

One particularly loud shock of thunder jolted me from my sleep, making my heart race for merely a moment before I sighed into my pillow. I heard faint whimpers from behind me, and figured that Pluto had crawled into my bed again.

“Pluto, how many times have I-,“ I cut off, turning my head part way and freezing as I saw who truly was holding me. It was Grell, cowering into my back and gripping me tighter as the rain pelted the windows outside. I had lived in London long enough to get used to the freak rainstorms, but apparently my company had not.

“Grell, what are you doing here?”

All I received in return for a long while was a whimper, before a small, wavering voice spoke up, distinctively Grell’s.

“T-the thunder…” As if to prove his point, at that moment lightning flashed and thunder rocked through the house. The smaller yelped, clinging to me like a child. I sighed once more, trying to pry the reaper’s arms off of me.

“A grim reaper who tears all sizes and shapes of living creatures into fish food with a chainsaw and scissors is scared of thunder?”

Grell nodded, and whimpered again, making me hesitate before turning around. The other’s grip on me was so tight that for a moment he was pulled under me, and I myself was on top of him, but I quickly moved to the side before that certain train could continue. That would lead to the events of another night. I tried to turn Grell around as well, but (fearing that I would kick him out, I guess) the man resisted, leading to a ten minute struggle as to where our positions were going to be. Finally, I managed to turn him around, pulling the blankets over him since he hadn’t covered himself in his rush to be close.

“Fine, I can’t have you quivering in your bed all night. You may sleep in here, but only once, alright?” I asked, receiving a nod before laying my head back down on the pillow. I pulled Grell’s back to my chest, causing him to stutter a breath and heat start to instantly trade between us. I had heard that this was the fastest way to warm up in bed, and I was fine doing it now, wrapping my arms firmly around his waist. This elicited a soft purr from the death god, but at the moment I was too tired to properly think about the things that were surely crossing Grell’s mind.

'Just let me get away with this this once', I thought, burying my face in the other’s fluffy hair and starting to drift off. I was lost in the smell of cinnamon and chocolate, and Grell’s nightshirt felt smooth against my hands. Even through the tiredness I could tell how special this moment was for both of us, and right then I knew that Grell could feel exactly how I felt.

“You smell like licorice…” Grell murmured softly, pressing back against me as I chuckled deep in my throat. Apparently I wasn’t the only one enjoying the scents mingling in the room. “The type of licorice that dances over your tongue… I like it.”

“You smell like chocolate… I’ll have to eat you up, one day. I always liked chocolate.”

“If you can catch me, Bassy~.”

“Something’s telling me that you’ve already been caught.” So, cuddled together so very nicely, and both of our heart beats syncing with one another, both demon and reaper fell asleep with a smile on their faces.