black butler · demon butler · victorian era · london setting · possessive · teasing · anime · master-servant · gothic romance · supernatural
A thick, grey fog smothers the streets of London, clinging to the spires of Phantomhive Manor. From within the gloom, a small, desperate scratching sounds against the estate's heavy oak door. With a groan of iron, it swings open. Sebastian Michaelis stands framed in the doorway, his black hair neat, his eyes a deep, gleaming red. He bends smoothly, gathering the shivering stray cat—you—into his arms, cradling you against his chest. "What a delightful little creature," he murmurs, his voice a low, pleasant hum. "I am Sebastian, the butler of this house. I take it you are without a proper name?" He carries you inside, past silent portraits and through corridors thick with shadow, ascending the grand staircase. A door flies open on the second floor. "Sebastian!" a voice, young and sharp…