(no subject)
SEBASTIAN MICHAELIS
... the devil wants to know
SERIES: Kuroshitsuji.
TIMELINE: Chapter 29. Leaving Noah’s Ark Circus.
AGE: Unknown. Looks to be in his mid-twenties.
GENDER: Male.
PROFESSION: Drug Trafficker.
THE LIFE → Sebastian has lived several different lifetimes of several different shades, however, little to nothing is known about his life prior to stepping into his most recent shoes as butler to the young Earl of Phantomhive. A testimony of his life’s secrecy is shown in his interactions with the shinigami, Grell Sutcliff, who uses a technique tailored to replay the events of a person’s life and finds himself thoroughly disappointed when he taps into Sebastian’s subconscious only to discover the mundane happenings of this butler’s daily life.
… For Sebastian spends his day as any keeper of a household should; cooking, cleaning, and diverting calamity, but most importantly, looking after his young master, Ciel Phantomhive. The two forged a contract three years prior during a cult ritual in which Ciel was earmarked for sacrifice to a demon. That demon was none other than Sebastian. In exchange for saving the boy’s life and allowing him to become his master, Sebastian will one day claim his human soul, but until that day, he promises to serve him, live for him, and protect him.
For those that don’t know better, and it’s almost impossible to know better, they live relatively normal lives, with Sebastian in the background, using his unnatural talents to highlight his master in the foreground. As watchdog to the Queen of England, Ciel is often charged with solving the cases of dank, dark, and dirty in the underworld sectors. Fortunately, he has Sebastian at his back, and together they even managed to crack the mystery of Jack the Ripper, uncovering the killer as both Ciel’s aunt, Madam Red and shinigami, Grell Sutcliff.
Sebastian and Ciel’s most recent assignment was an investigation of missing children that seemed to correlate the movements of a traveling circus. Through Sebastian’s flair and aptitude, they were able to infiltrate the circus without suspicion under the guise of prospective performers. Having discovered the information his master requested, the pair summarily departed from the circus, but it would seem this case is to be put on hold, and Ciel Phantomhive is in for a rude awakening when he finds his right hand gone, spirited away to the none too promising city of Toshima.
THE BUTLER → If a mansion is truly defined by a butler’s service, let it be said that the Phantomhive residence is the most well-endowed estate in all of London. In terms of duty, Sebastian is nothing short of a miracle worker and he seems to have unlimited faculties with which to make it all happen. He is highly adaptive in any situation, especially in matters pertaining to the young master’s reputation, and always knows what steps to take in order to avoid disaster. More often than not, he is required to react within a moment’s notice or less. During these times, we see Sebastian at his best, usually performing dazzling stunts of inhuman proportions that challenge most laws of time, space, and physics while maintaining the disguise of being no more than a butler doing his job.
With habits of unchecked perfectionism, it’s no surprise that Sebastian sometimes has the inklings of a slave driver. The other servants in the house are charmed by him, yet strangely terrified of him, but really, they’re just terrified of disappointing him-and they always do. It turns out that the cook, and the maid, and the gardener are all good for nothing, and Sebastian usually winds up doing all the jobs in the mansion alone; not to mention cleaning up after the idio- … I mean, the help. This always turns out for the better, of course, but he doesn’t expect much from them and with good reason. In dealing with the other employees of the house, and even his master at times, a sort of glossed disdain for humans settles in the back of his mind, concealed cleverly by a warm smile.
That doesn’t mean he won’t lay down the law, and he’s even prone to using tough love tactics on his own master. He is responsible for most aspects of Ciel’s well-being as his butler, his protector, but also as his teacher, and while he does everything in his power to better him, he does find some dark pleasure in his young master’s shortcomings.
Fortunately, Sebastian is quick on his feet; resourceful and very inventive so that the pitfalls of others fail to stop him from getting things done. A highlight of his talents and personality would be a rather humorous preoccupation with time. Sebastian is privy to achieving record feats in no time at all with almost no effort at all, and he’ll gently fret if he finds himself a few minutes behind schedule, despite the fact that he may have just single-handedly leveled an entire floor of heavily armed security in a matter of seconds.
Unbelievable as it may be, Sebastian has this way of being perfect at everything he does, which may not be the best thing for a spoiled young master, but it certainly makes the Phantomhive name look good.
THE DEMON → There’s no such thing as God...
If those aren’t the love-sweet words that any demon longs to hear ... It was these selfsame words that summoned him from the deep to Ciel Phantomhive’s side. Heavenly Father forsaken, Sebastian welcomed the boy with a deal: a lifetime of protection and impeccable service at the very easy cost of his soul. He rescued Ciel from imprisonment at the hands of his debauched tormentors and slaughtered the entire mass responsible at his new master’s command. Three years later, the boy and his demon appear to the world as no more than a boy and his butler, but the pentagram that binds them knows the secret of the tale. Until Ciel’s very last breath, he is Sebastian’s lord and master to command as he chooses …
Controlled and docile though he seems, Sebastian is, as he says, a demon through and through. He has an inherent thirst for the living, one he claims to have suppressed over the years and states further that he is only interested in souls of a higher echelon, though he’s rather unspecific about the qualities that make them so. When confronted by a wary shinigami, Sebastian reassures him that he is already “collared”, indicating that he’ll only do as his master commands, but Sebastian is not without his own free will and he has teasing ways of letting Ciel know as much.
Despite his intimacies with humans, Sebastian is removed and ever so wonderfully far. His is the smile of one who knows, one who’s seen several lifetimes of humans and understands too much about them to take them very seriously. He’s a bit of a sadist, a sadist that will hurt you if necessary and may even find polite loopholes through which to do it. He uses gentle words to strike ruthless blows and exercises that same lack of remorse in the business of taking lives. Somehow, this fails to impede his charm and dependent upon your tastes, you may find him twice as charming when he has you in a fright.
Sebastian does not physically require sleep. According to him, demons enjoy it as a luxury at best. By that same rule, it is implied that he doesn’t require sustenance, either. Though he is impervious to death at the hands of most weaponry, Sebastian does sustain the damage of an injury if only for an instant. The weapon caliber correlates the rate of recovery, but he usually rights himself in a matter of moments. When Ciel questions his “slow” resuscitation after being gunned down on one occasion, Sebastian casually quips that the firearms of the 1800’s are a step up from those of the 1700’s. While his delay was actually a ploy to ruffle his master, one can assume that weapons of the actual present century and beyond will at least give his system a bit of a shock.
More than preternatural strength, speed, and reflexes, Sebastian has a certifiable magic touch. In his hands, the ordinary becomes the extraordinary, because he has the very rare talent of creating something out of mostly nothing. Whether it’s producing Eden from a garden wasteland, repairing a shattered ring, or turning simple silverware into flying projectiles of death, he has a wondrous knack for making the impossible possible.
THE MASTER → His relationship with Ciel Phantomhive is not unlike what you’d expect of any master and servant, but with a few quirks. The young earl has come to rely on the demon as his arms, legs, and whatever else should suit his immediate needs. This can lead to amusing, potentially dangerous, situations when Sebastian leaves him to his own instruments. Ciel’s wish is his command, but he’s not above taunting his master with the occasional soft-blown insult and he receives them in kind as part of an altogether comfortable routine.
Despite glaring implications that he’s just guarding an investment, Sebastian never lies to Ciel and always seems to have his best interests in mind. They have their dubious gray moments that depict a closeness beyond the formality, particularly in Sebastian’s kind little indulgences, but his master doesn’t always respond kindly. Even if Ciel often forgets he’s a child, Sebastian never does, and he often provides him the subtle guidance he needs to be the little gentleman he’s expected to be.
THE CONTACTS → In-game relationships coming soon.
TRIVIA
- → Terribly, horribly, distractedly fond of cats.
→ Detests dogs and will frighten them with a glance.
→ Has a special method of steeping that ensures a perfect cup of tea each and every time.
→ Bakes the most sinful sweets you've ever sunk your teeth into.
→ Predisposed to internal monologue, particularly when he's in the middle of a work task, where he'll gloss and map out the steps he needs to perform in an organized manner.
→ Wears gloves to conceal the demonic coloring of his fingernails as well as the contract imprinted on the back of his left hand.
→ Exposing the contract provides a boost in overall strength that increases if the mark in Ciel's eye is likewise exposed.