Side Effects [ClaudeXCiel] chp5

The next morning found the spider demon passed out on the bed. The earl was lying awake staring at the ceiling on the other side of the bed. His body had been trembling too much let him walk to a spare bedroom separate from the spider demon and therefore had a very interrupted sleep, jolting awake after short naps in fear of being raped again.

Claude groaned softly as he awoke, “W-what happened? Where am I?” He sat up on the edge of the bed and held his head with one hand, obviously with a worse headache than when he awoke the previous day. Ciel ignored the demon, and continued to stare at the ceiling, which he was now quite familiar with.

Ciel turns his head to the side slightly to look at the spider demon, with a blank expression on his face.

“I should lay off the sherry a little more...” Claude told himself out aloud, thinking that he was alone, running a hand through his hair and stood up to leave the room.

“You think”? Ciel stated, his eyes not breaking away from Claude. Surprised to hear he wasn’t alone Claude turned to face the voice.

“Oh hell, don't tell me...” not wanting to hear an answer he left the room to fetch his uniform that had been left to dry in the laundry.

Claude returned properly dressed in his butler attire, to find the boy now sitting up against the headboard staring down at nothing in particular and ignoring the spider’s presence.

“You’re awfully quiet...”

Ciel looked out the window.

“If I had done something to harm you last night... I am regretful...I shall be returning to my master's manor now.”

Ciel sighed and gathered his words; Claude noticed this and stood patiently waiting to hear them.

“Y-You made a fool out of me,” Ciel choked slightly. Claude’s gold eyes widen slightly, in surprise. The boy continued, “You know... you say 'odd' things when you’re drunk and you do 'odd' things.”

“Odd, Your highness?” It wasn’t like he had never gotten drunk before.
Ciel’s voice was trembling. “Are you saying you don't remember what you did last night?”
The boy clenches his fists.

“That is correct...” Claude responded calmly.

“Then let it remain that way then,” he unclenched his fists and walked out of the room.

"..... Is there anything I can do to repay you for my ‘behaviour’?" Claude inquired in a neutral tone, following behind.

“What do you expect I do? Hmmm….” The earl got an idea and lead Claude down to the cellar. They stopped at the far back corner where a golden orb spider had seemingly been undisturbed for a fair while. It had weaved an impressively large web which glistened in and out of visibility under the candle light. Claude had a feeling Ciel hadn’t brought him down to drink more Sherry.

"Hoheo Taralna Rondero Tarel!" Ciel suddenly exclaimed. Claude’s eyes flashed pink and focused solely on Ciel. The earl pointed a finger at the spider, “Kill it.” He ordered simply.

"... Y-y.... Yes young lord" Claude uttered hesitantly, slowly raising an arm steadily towards the unsuspecting arachnid. How dare he use my summoning against me! He carefully plucked the golden orb off of its web, trying to ignore the stress he was causing to a fellow creature; its legs running a marathon and pincers snapping air. Had it been any other beast, and he wouldn’t have thought twice about it, but this was a familiar… He gave a sigh, remembering he had the earl staring down his every move like a hawk and squished it.

“It is done…” Claude said stoically, his eyes returned to gold and narrowed at Ciel.

“Good.” The boy turned to walk off back upstairs. Claude took a few moments of silence gazing mournfully at the dead spider guts on his pristine white gloves. He finally made his way back up to Ciel who was trying to light a fire in the fire place of his office.

Claude stood in the doorway, “That was some neat trickery you learned...” Ciel looked over his shoulder then paid his attention back to the fireplace. “Aren't you mad at me..?”

“Oh I am annoyed… I dare think what else you could make me do...” There was a hint of mockery in his cold voice.

Ciel didn’t reply, still trying to light the fire. Claude just stood there silently, the desire to help the earl having been extinguished. The earl gave up his attempt to light the fire and just sits there, in the cold. “You don’t have to be here, you can go, and you probably hate me now anyway.”

“I was on my way back…” The Trancy butler found no more reason to stay and left the earl alone as he wished, his mood was bitter.

Was I too harsh..? No! He deserved it for what he did… Ciel left to find Bard to ask him to light the fireplaces for him.

Claude returned to the Trancy manor and was glomped by Alois immediately upon his arrival. The blond was crying over how he thought Claude was gone too long and had abandoned him like everyone does. Claude reassured to his master bowing to his knee that he will avoid making his unannounced departures a regular occurrence.

~~~*~~~

The young Earl sat on the bench in his garden, enjoying the sunlight while it lasted, kicking away at the grass.

“I want to know, it has been on my mind constantly for the last week now, what "odd things" did I say to hurt you?” Ciel jumped inside, if he earned a gold coin for every time the Trancy spider showed up unannounced he could fund a charity. But Claude couldn’t shake what he would have said to the earl that was deemed “odd”.  Alois had also noticed that something was annoying Claude so he told him go sort himself out and return when he was prepared to carry out his duties as a butler properly.

“You really don’t know do you?” The boy sighed, looking up at Claude. “You were drunk…” he began.

“I know that much…” The spider replied.

“You said that Sebastian 'might' have feelings for me...and then, uh...you pinned me to the bed and…” Ciel couldn’t continue he was too disgusted and embarrassed, and looked away.

“... So it looks like I was speaking my mind... that's all I need to know...” Claude’s voice was quieter than usual. Ciel just sat there and didn’t anything else.

“I guess I deserved my punishment then, but that likely isn't enough for you.” Claude asked.

“You expect me to punish you more?” The earl questioned slightly annoyed, he just wanted the demon to leave him alone…

“Well it doesn't seem like you are fully satisfied.”

“I don’t intend do go further in your punishment.”
The spider adjusted his glasses, “Very well.” There was no use arguing with an earl that had made up his mind.

“So why are you still here? Are you not still furious with me about the punishment I gave you?”

“No, I am no longer angry. I have accepted it knowing the full extent of my actions. There should be no repeats as I don't usually see my prey that way.”

Ciel just sat there staring into the distance.

“You should be with Trancy.”

“I know…”

~~~~*~~~~