An enormous beast, blacker than a starless, stormy night launched itself at Frederick, drowning him in its endless, insatiable darkness.
It was a creature that didn't belong to these times; an indomitable being, more ancient than the written human history. It emitted a power greater than a mortal's mind could comprehend. Its aura was terrifying, yet awe striking at the same time.
The beast tore, and it shredded, and it bit, painting the floor and the walls with crimson stains. Its roars resonated in the small space, muffling the man's screams and pleas for mercy. The being's wild, glowing eyes feasted on the human's agony. It was enjoying itself.
A soul crushing snap, and then... silence.
I blinked.
The beast was gone.
In its place stood Sebastian, tall and dignified, yet rage contorting his graceful features. I've never witnessed him so infuriated before.
But his face softened when he turned towards me; relieved.
He brought me into a tight embrace, pulling me against his strong chest, and we sank to the floor together. The demon was hot to the touch from the transformation and all the power still rushing through him, instantly warming up my cold limbs.
Sebastian buried his face in the crook of neck and breathed me in, as if not having seen me for ages and not mere minutes.
He held me as closely and tenderly as my mother held me when I was little and she was still alive. His strong arms created a shield between me and the rest of the world, and I finally found myself at ease.
I knew it then that I was safe.
I let myself sink completely into his arms. A long, shattered breath that I was holding finally found it's way out, making warm tears begin leaking uncontrollably down my face.
I sobbed and I cried, and Sebastian only clasped me tighter.
He kissed the top of my head, and caressed my back, and rocked me softly from side to side.
"I'm here now," he murmured, "it will all be okay."
As he spoke the words I knew they were the absolute truth, and that is when I knew it, clear as day.
Sebastian, I...
I love you.
Sebastian slipped out of his tailcoat and wrapped it over my shredded dress, hiding all the skin. He frowned when he saw the cuts on my stomach and chest, left by the dagger.
My body was still weakened by the drug and I wasn't able to support my own weight, so I fully gave myself to him. He handled me gently, the way a jeweller handles a diamond, and it made me warm inside.
"This isn't how I imagined you seeing me unclothed for the first time," I admitted weakly.
"We won't make it count," he responded, looking down at me with concern. Sebastian's slim eyebrows furrowed further when his eyes found the bruise forming on my right cheek.
"Did he... did he take you?"
I knew what he meant.
A pit formed in my stomach at the darkness that coated the demons eyes as he spoke the words. As if he was ready to travel all the way to the depths of hell and seek out Frederick's loathsome soul and make him live through all the kinds of tortures that the demon carried with him from the beginnings of ages. It was almost enough to make me feel sorry for Frederick. Almost.
I finally shook my head 'no'.
Perceivably relieved, Sebastian wrapped his arms tighter around me.
He leaned in towards my face, softly grazing his warm lips along my bruised cheek and planting a tender kiss over it.
At that moment, a bold voice came from the room's entrance, making me flinch from surprise. It said, "What a mess. Couldn't you be a tad bit tidier, Sebaschaaan."
I saw Sebastian's face drop, and that sparked my curiosity.
The voice belonged to a person in a bright red outfit who appeared in the corner of my vision. I wanted to get a better look at them, so I tilted my head to the side, also getting a view of the bloodbath that the demon had made. The sight made my stomach turn in revolt.
"Don't look," said the butler protectively, covering my eyes with a hand and pulling my face to his lean chest.
I didn't have the power to resist him.
I felt myself being lifted up into the air, as Sebastian picked me up bridal style.
"Leaving already?" The person in red spoke again.
Sebastian ignored them, heading out, unbothered.
He kept his hand secured over my eyes, and I got the feeling that it wasn't just the blood that he didn't want me to see.
"Pass my regards to William," Sebastian said at last.
"Sebaschaaaan," the person's voice died down as more and more distance fell between us and the cursed room where we'd left them.
Another few moments passed, but Sebastian still held my face to his chest. I began to think that maybe he was just enjoying our proximity.
I tried to wither my head out of his grasp, protesting, "staaahp, senpai!"
Sebastian glanced down at me and chuckled, "how did you call me?"
I bit my tongue only now realizing what I had said.
The demon used that term to make fun of me, but I never actually called him that before. Why did i say it now? I had no idea.
I tried to keep a straight face when I said, "I called you 'Sebastian' what else am I supposed to call you?"
"Hmmm," the black butler chimed, "that's not what I heard."
"Well you heard wrong. Maybe your old age is finally catching up to you," I lied, yet Sebastian was fully aware of it, judging by the amused smirk that he threw me. But even so, I wouldn't admit to it. I didn't want to give him yet another reason to make fun of me.
"You're blushing," Sebastian mused, smiling with teeth. When that didn't provoke a desired reaction from me, he said, "Y/N, call me 'senpai' from now on."
"What? No, I-"
"Aw, come on, say it again," his voice turned all low and smokey, setting off gentle flutters at the base of my stomach.
The demon unexpectedly bent down his head and, finding my ear with his hot mouth, slid his tongue along it.
I jolted and gasped, "Sebastian-"
"Tsk, wrong, kitten. Senpai. Try again," he whispered against my ear, then, catching my earlobe between his lips, softly grazed his teeth down the sensitive skin.
I whimpered with pleasure.
Sebastian pulled away to stare me down with his glowing eyes, "say it and I'll keep going."
I froze.
If I said it now, that would mean that he won.
I didn't want to loose. But I also wanted him to keep going.
I opened my mouth to speak, but at that moment a pair of Robinson's guards appeared from around a corner. One of them, a tall man with a beard, looked us up and down with authoritative eyes. His face twisted with surprise and confusion once he took in the crimson stains that decorated Sebastian's clothes, evidently being blood.
"Stay where you are," barked the guard, guiding the barrel of his rifle in our direction. His comrade, quickly catching up to the situation, did the same.
Sebastian clicked his tongue in disapproval. Rage and loathe contorted the elegant features of his face, and a ruby fire blazed around his elongated pupils as he eyed the two men from head to toe. He only revealed a tiny fraction of his true nature, yet the sight was terrifying enough to make a grown up man's blood run cold.
"My apologies, Master," Sebastian mused in a lowered voice, feeling his elongated fangs with his tongue, "but this sight won't be a pretty one."
He glared down at me with that animalistic expression, momentarily chilling my blood.
Not waiting for an answer, the butler threw the tailcoat - in which I was wrapped - over my head, cutting of my view of our surroundings, and pulled me in tightly against him. I didn't resist, partially because I was too weak to, but mostly because I trusted his decisions.
The demon shifted beneath me, and right away the men broke out in heart tearing screams.
I didn't know what was happening, but I felt sudden, immense heat radiate from Sebastian and from the space around me. The warmth was enough to make me start panting and beads of sweat start trickling down my neck.
My whole world was enclosed in darkness, but I felt Sebastian moving non-stop, as more men screamed somewhere ahead.
The heat was beginning to grow intolerable, and it was starting to get extremely hard to breathe under the thick coat.
"Just a bit longer," said a voice above me. I knew that the voice belonged to Sebastian, yet it sounded nothing like him. Rich and gruff, it revibrated in my chest and sent shivers down my lower back.
That voice must belong to his true form.
The thought made me anxious. If he was in fact in his true form, that meant that I was at the complete mercy of an ancient being that belonged to the depths of hell. Were those the hands of a man or a beast holding so tightly onto my frail body?
I wasn't sure that I wanted to know.
I squinted my eyes shut. Whatever Sebastian was, it didn't matter, because I trusted him more than I've ever trusted anybody.
I pressed my face to his hot chest.
Out of nowhere, drowsiness washed over my mind. I no longer knew whether it was an effect of the drug, or my body's response to the heat, or because I was simply exhausted, but I let it take me, at first reluctantly, and then with open arms, for I knew that no matter what happened I would be safe, as I was with my Sebastian.
The last thing I saw before darkness overtook my mind were dancing tongues of crimson fire, as tall as trees, devouring the mansion and all that lied within its walls.
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I made another illustration!! 😍
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