Unruly Servant

Unruly Servant (chapter 21)

Chapter Twenty-one

Asthma.

I really shouldn't have found it surprising. Ciel was already a very small and helpless human, why not add an illness that makes this more so? Still for some unknown reason it upset me to see him like this. So pale and yet so flushed. He looked incredibly weak, something he fought his hardest to reveal. There was something distinctive wrong with it. This was not like Ciel Phantomhive.

I gazed down at him gently as I pressed a hot rag to his forehead. Beneath my hand he drew in a shallow breath, the only sign he was even alive still. His heart beat was low, even hard for a demon to catch the soft sound, but thankfully even.

Apparently the boy had done a fair job in hiding his illness, even Sebastian hadn't known. I couldn't refrain the upwards tweak of my lips at the reminder of his reaction to the surprising attack. It hadn't sat well with the demon, that was for certain. The butler had been rather peeved with the young master, going emotionally beyond what even a contracted demon should have. I didn't want to begin jumping to any conclusions about the relationship those two share, but I had a sinking feeling it was more than just contractor and demon.

I turned away to stir the damp cloth I had replaced into the steaming kettle of boiling water. The temperature would have easily burnt human flesh, but felt little more than warm to me. Using my gleaming ebony nails, I dragged the rag lazily through the water till it was steaming like the water around it. When it came time to replace the rag currently on Ciel's forehead, this one would be ready.

It was humorous to think that I had come to be the one watching over Ciel while Sebastian did lord knows what. But it had been under whatever the small earl had ordered. The brief exchange the two shared in morse code hadn't gone unnoticed by me before Sebastian had vanished. It was impossible to decipher what had transpired without knowing the exact pattern Ciel had tapped into Sebastian's palm. Therefore I could only wait until he returned or Ciel woke up to be allowed access to their investigation.

A shallow cough drew my attention back to the bed, where Ciel was peeking through his lashes. The sapphire orb seemed dazed, likely from the fever that I was currently trying to have him sweat off. The steaming rags however were not nearly as effective as a pile of blankets and an iron coal heater would have been, but alas I had to make use of what the circus could provide us with.

"Te..ssa?" He asked when his glazed eye fought to focus on my face.

I smiled softly and pressed a hand to his forehead, taking care to be ever gentle. The skin beneath my hand radiated heat, but I found it reliving that it was lower than what it had been at the start of the evening. I removed my hand and placed the fresh rag on his forehead after wringing the excess water from the rough cloth.

"It's a bit too early to be saying good morning just yet," I laughed lightly. "But it seems as if the worst of your fever has passed with the night. Are you feeling any better?"

Ciel tilted his head in a slightly nod, which was enough for me. I quickly pressed a hand to his shoulder to prevent him from trying anything more, which he succumbed to with as much dignity as he could with a face flushed with fever.

"Ha-... Has Sebastian returned yet?" He asked in a quiet voice.

I slid him a quick glance as I dropped the first rag into the kettle at my feet. Repeating the same process as I had with the second, I had to brush a stray curl from my face when the raising steam caused it to stick to the skin of my temple.

Sighing, I sat upright once more. "No, he hasn't. I'm sure that when he does he'll wake you to let you know. He's just as worried about your condition as I am."