The two days were soon over and it was time for Ciel and George to depart. Ciel was dressed in pale blue robes with silver embroidery, giving him a soft, scholarly appearance. George had meanwhile opted for plain black robes, which he did not fasten on properly. His whole air was that of a hooligan. Looking at their contrasting appearance when standing side by side, Gin’s lips twitched as he was reminded of a maiden being harassed by thug… it was especially so when George had his arm around Ciel’s shoulder, saying something that had Ciel blushing a faint pink; it was just unfortunate that his son had to be the maiden…

“Take these” He handed the two of then a pair of jade pendants “They are disguise talismans. You two stand out too much so this will help you look a little more like the locals. There’s also a protection spell in there in case of emergencies.” Gin looked at the two of them and then focused on George. “Take care and come back safe.”

“We will, father.” Ciel smiled at him and Scarlet and the both of them left via the east exit.

“They will be fine.” Scarlet leaned her head on her husband’s shoulder as she consoled him. She didn’t need to look at him to know that he had a sour look on his face.

“I know… let’s hope they return with the other two soon.” Gin also wished that his wife had not given them matching pendants complete with a lover’s knot.

*           *           *           *           *

They exited in a pine forest surrounded by beautiful mountains. Ciel breathed in the fresh air with a small smile. Since his accident, his parents had grounded him. It was nice to be out and about again, instead of just moving between the valley and the club. He gave George a brilliant smile and grabbed his hand.

“Let’s go.”

George gave him an indulgent smile before moving forward, his fingers intertwining with Ciel’s.

“All right. Which way?”

Ciel blushed a little, still unused to the blatant affection that George was showering him.

“If you don’t let go of my hand, I can’t check the map…”

George frowned, as if in a dilemma. “We’ll go this way then.” He chose a direction at random, his hand not letting go of Ciel's. Ciel didn’t know whether to laugh or cry; since when did George get so sticky?

“Let me go, it’ll only take five minutes to check the map.” He stopped and tugged at his hand lightly. George stared at him and released his hand with reluctance. Ciel gave him a smile and removed the map that his father gave him along with a compass from his spatial ring. While he was trying to decipher the map, he felt a weight on his shoulders and back. He turned to see George sticking to his back instead.

“You…”

“We should be here.” He suddenly pointed to a position marked on the map. “If the town your father says we should check is this one,” here he pointed to something Gin had circled. “Then we should go that way.” He pointed in a direction to the left of where they were standing.

Ciel stared at him. “Do you have a built in compass or something?”

“Centuries on the road left its mark.” George gave a wry smile before he kissed Ciel's unguarded  lips. “Let’s go.” He intertwined his fingers around Ciel’s again before pulling the frozen man in the direction he had indicated. George was really taking advantage of Ciel left and right. If it weren’t for the fact that Kou and Yue were missing, Ciel would have wondered if he was going for a lover’s vacation with George. They left the forest and started walking towards the town, which George had estimated to be about a day’s travel away. Ciel had also injected some of his mana into the compass-like tool that he had removed from his ring with the map. The needle spun wildly at first before pointing in the direction of the town. It indicated that Kou had travelled in that direction at least. The best option was then to investigate the town and hope that there would be clues to lead them to Kou and Yue.

They moved at a leisurely pace; since there had been no news from Kou or Yue for so long, even if they hurried, it was most likely that they would not find anything important.

As long as the compass pointed in a direction, Ciel wasn’t worried. That meant that Kou was alive; whether he was doing well was debateable but alive was enough. George started pointing in certain directions, telling Ciel about the specialities located in those areas. The most beautiful lake, best place to see the sunrise, where the stars were the clearest, where the mist met the clouds. He’d shunned human interaction but he found some solace in watching nature; its fleeting beauty and destructive properties. He promised Ciel that they would make a short detour if any of those places were on the way. Ciel smiled and nodded eagerly.

Contrary to expectations, there was no strange encounter as they made their way to town. The roads were bandit free and there was no eerie forest that they had to cross. Ciel grumbled a little at the lack of excitement but George only smiled; it was better that the journey be boring and monotonous… boring and monotonous was safe. Come nightfall, George moved the both of them away from the main road and found a relatively safe spot away from most prying eyes. There he built a fire and started preparing a meal. Ciel just sat and watched as George busied himself by the fire.

Truth be told, his father had prepared camping necessities as well, including a tent. But while the magical tent was fully furnished with a modern kitchen, it came with only one bed. Ciel wasn’t sure he wanted to share a bed with George yet. They’d started going out and the relationship was at its sweetest yet. He was still hesitant to bring things to the next level, preferring to take it slow. But he didn’t want to keep secrets from George… but making George sleep on the floor… but if he pulls it out later…

“What on earth are you thinking about?”

George appeared, passing a bowl of stew to Ciel. Ciel looked up at George and blankly accepted the bowl. His intense internal battle was at a stalemate but he was feeling guilty at even having the battle at all. Shouldn’t they be going through thick and thin together?

“Stop thinking about whatever it is you’re thinking and eat.”

Ciel came back to earth and nodded, spooning himself a mouthful. He blinked.

“This tastes like the one at the club.”

“Yes. Your mother must be the one who magicked them into these mini cubes… all I did was add water.”

“These instant cubes shouldn’t be seen by the locals. I don’t want to accidentally change anything…”

“You’ve got a point there. But we’ll only use them when we’re alone, don’t worry.”

They soon finished their food and George threw everything into the spatial ring that he had been provided. They sat in a silence that was slowly growing awkward. Ciel was wondering how to bring up the matter about the tent and George too seemed to have something on his mind. He finally broke the silence.

“Actually…” Ciel was startled out of his own reverie to look at him.

“Master Gin prepared some sort of magical home for us. It’s furnished but when I checked earlier, it only has one bed…”

Ciel breathed a sigh of relief. So his father had prepared one for both of them with the intention that they sleep separately. Nearly eight hundred and his father was still treating him like he was eighteen…

“I have one too. That was why I was dithering…”

George gave a laugh. “Well, what do you want to do?”

“I want to sleep under the stars.” It seemed like a romantic notion.

“All right.”

George got up and picked a surprised Ciel up. He leaned the both of them against a tree and covered them with a blanket from his ring. Ciel was snug against him but he could still see the glittering night sky. He involuntarily gasped.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” George had his arm around Ciel and was leaning his head against him, stroking Ciel’s arm.

“Mmm.” A warm arm, a hearty meal, a cooling breeze and calming scenery. Ciel couldn’t help it and gave a yawn. While the walk had been long, he hadn’t been that tired. He could only chalk it up to excitement at being on an adventure.

“Go to sleep if you’re tired. I’ll keep watch.”

Ciel did not reply as his eyes were already drooping. George’s voice was nothing more than a warm lullaby that helped to ease him straight into the sandman’s clutches. George gave a small smile as he watched the other man sleep. This was nothing like the fearful vigil over Ciel’s poison weakened body the last time he had him in his arms. This was the satisfied content of watching a loved one surrender to sleep because he trusts that he is safe. He gently slid his fingers down Ciel’s smooth cheek before he too closed his eyes, releasing his dragon slayer aura at the same time. Only someone much stronger or perhaps absolutely foolish would attempt to come near to disturb their rest.

When Ciel blearily opened his eyes the next day, he was greeted with piercing sunshine and the beautiful if raucous sounds of birdsong.  He sat up and stretched with a groan. He was never sleeping like this again… how foolish was he to think that it’d be romantic to sleep under the stars snuggled against each other? Now he felt stiff and sore and slightly damp from the dew.

“Good morning. Breakfast?” Ciel turned to see George coming out of a rather luxurious tent. Glamping at its best.

“You didn’t sleep in there after I fell asleep did you?”

George gave a laugh at his stiff and sullen look. “No. I just got too lazy to light the fire again. So I used the kitchen inside.” He offered Ciel a plate of French toast.

Ciel gratefully accepted and started eating. “Let’s sleep in the tent tonight…” He could see George trying his best to keep a straight face and felt a warm flush creep up his neck. “I’ve never slept outside before, all right? It just felt so… novel…”

George couldn’t take the downtrodden puppy face any longer and choked on his laughter. He then went over and gave him a kiss on his forehead. “All right. We’ll sleep on a proper bed tonight. Hurry up and finish your breakfast. After that we’ll continue our journey. If I’m right, we should make it to town by noon. Then you can sleep in an inn.”

The novelty of sleeping in an inn, combined with the placating caress from George consoled Ciel, who quickly finished his breakfast. Once done, they resumed their journey. As George predicted, the sun was at its highest when they arrived at the town.