The Scourge of the Demon Hunters—Act 23

Soon after preparing Ciel for bed, Sebastian appeared at Louisa’s door. Louisa lay in her bed, waiting for him; he approached and held out his hand. “Come with me,” he said. She took his hand and allowed him to pull her up out of bed. Wrapping his arms around her, he brought her in close and kissed her. Louisa responded, opening her lips and giving his tongue access to her mouth.

Sebastian scooped her up into his arms and held her tight to his chest. Moving over to the window, he opened it and stepped out onto the balcony. Without warning, he leapt up to the roof, causing Louisa to gasp and hold him tighter. Sebastian moved swiftly and soundlessly across the roof to a flat area at the back of the house. Placing her back on her feet, he kissed her, and a blanket appeared over his arm. Laying it down, Sebastian pulled Louisa down to sit beside him; wrapping his arms around her, they resumed their kiss, leaving Louisa breathless.

“Since we need to be extra careful and quiet while we are here, I thought we might take in the night sky; humans rarely look up to see the world beyond them,” said Sebastian.

“The city is almost beautiful from up here,” replied Louisa.

Sebastian moved his arm and trailed his fingers up Louisa’s leg as she moved closer, undoing the buttons on his shirt. As Sebastian leant in to kiss her, a flash of red caught his eye. As the shape moved towards them, Sebastian let out a low, menacing growl. Before Louisa could question the sudden change in his mood, the red shape appeared on the roof and spoke.

“OH BASSY, how could you? And with a mere girl. You’ll break my heart.”

Louisa looked between them confused and unsure of what was happening. Sensing her apprehension, Sebastian spoke.

“This is Grell Sutcliffe, reaper of souls and perpetual pain who should by rights have already joined his onetime mistress in the underworld.”

Grell grinned, showing a mouthful of pointed teeth. Louisa reciprocated, her eyes turning black and her features shifting momentarily to their demon form.

“Oh, not so much a mere girl. Still, Bassy, how could you?” said Grell, dramatically pressing his hand to his heart and throwing back his head.

“What are you doing here, Grell?” asked Sebastian, his dislike of the reaper still very clear in his voice.

“Well, I saw you up here with her, and I thought I would stop you from making a huge mistake, but I can see now that I am far too late for that.” Grell’s eyes narrowed as he glared at Louisa. She simply smiled back; for all his bluster, he posed no obvious threat to them.

Sebastian, however, was getting increasingly impatient with the reaper. “I meant what are you doing in London, you half-wit.”

“Oh, you wound me, I’m working, of course, deary. Trying to keep on Will’s good side before he demotes me any further, but for you, I’d stop.”

Sebastian growled louder this time and showed his own perfectly formed, needle-like teeth. Grell took that as his cue to leave. “Goodbye for now, then. Find me when you are ready to experience the real thing,” he called as he leapt off the roof.

Louisa placed her hand on Sebastian’s face, guiding his attention back to her. “He cannot come between us, do not fret so much.”

“I know my love, but he is more dangerous than he seems and should not be underestimated.” He continued, “It would seem that we are to get no peace up here either tonight.”

“Then let’s go back inside and find a way to keep each other quiet,” Louisa said with a mischievous grin spreading across her face.

Returning the grin, Sebastian replied, “I have a few ideas.”

Taking hold of her once more, he gracefully leapt across the roof and back down onto the balcony outside her window. Once inside, Louisa grasped Sebastian by his tie and pulled him to her. As they kissed, Louisa undid his tie and drew it from around his neck, letting it fall to the ground AS She moved to the buttons of his waistcoat and shirt. She opened his shirt and her mouth left his and began to kiss down his neck and chest. Catching sight of the perfectly circular bite mark that she had left on his chest, she ran her fingers across it and looked up at Sebastian.

“It would seem that you are able to leave your mark on me, as I am on you,” he said, lifting her nightgown off over her head and running his thumb over the mark on her left breast, which, like his, was as clear as it was when it was made. Sebastian’s mind wandered back to Undertaker and his parting gift of information, but his contemplation was cut short as Louisa knelt in front of him, her lips grazing his stomach as her fingers undid his trousers.

*****

Much later.

Moving to lay beside her, Sebastian reached behind her head and released his tie. Removing it, he leaned in and kissed along the line that it had left.

“You did well, my love, not to transform and bite through, your control is near perfect.” Louisa smiled and kissed him.

“I think I prefer not having to be so controlled, though,” she replied.

“As do I; it will not be forever. The time will come when there are no constraints on us, and I will be freely yours, and yours alone.”

“But you will always need contracts?” she asked, confused.

“Yes, but not all need to be this complex or drawn out,” Sebastian replied, “You are my focus, the only one I want to be bound to.” He pulled her in close to him as he spoke and Louisa wrapped her arms around him, not wanting to let him go.

As she lay there wrapped in the one she loved, her mind drifted back to her parents and the love they had. With the seal broken, her memories of her parents were much clearer, as was the love and joy they had as a family. Lost in thought, she suddenly remembered what Undertaker had said to Sebastian.

Sitting up suddenly, she said, “Remove it; he said you could remove the tattoo now, what did he mean?”

Propping himself up on his forearm, Sebastian looked at her, “I don’t know how he knew, but yes, I was trying to find a way of removing the tattoo. I wanted you to be free of it.”

“Can you?” she asked, almost pleading.

“I don’t know, we have such a strong connection that I may be able to move matter through your body, but I might hurt you, damage you, I don’t know.” Sebastian showed the same fear that had been present at the Undertaker’s.

“He said there was enough of you in me now?”

“He can only have meant the marks,” Sebastian responded, before smirking and adding, “as well as the other fluids I tend to fill you with.” Louisa smiled, pushed him in the chest, and the tension released just a little.

“I want you to try,” she said. “It would be good to be free of it, and make it harder for them to recognise me, should, no, when we come across the Order.”

Sebastian pulled her back down to him, kissed her, and replied, “If you are sure, then we will try tomorrow, but only with the young master’s agreement. He is your guardian after all.”

Louisa settled in his arms, her eyes heavy with the need for sleep, “Yes, my love, he is, for now.”