Hey all! Sorry for a lack of comic updates for a bit now, It's been a crazy stressful start to the year and I'm currently in the process of moving (albiet a short distance which I'm thankful for) due to no longer being able to afford rent in my own place and I'm trying to get all moved before June! So bear with. The next page is also pretty detailed and for some reason William's head in exactly one panel is giving me grief so... blame him.
But! With that being said I went and did one of these ship dynamics things quick for fun and thought I'd chat about this and a lil' about how the endgame ship for the comic with some bits about lore and characterization for this AU comic :)
Detailed ramblings below! - If you can't see the watermark the template is by ChimChiri <3
1 - Sexuality
So, I've sort of talked about this before but I wanted to bring it up again to say - yes my version of William is strictly gay, full stop, and it's rather important to his character arch as he's very closeted and something he struggles with a lot. It is also historically relevant to the time I've set his human life to have been (which I'll get into a little later)
THAT BEING SAID, I doubt my silly comic would ever gain that much traction, but because I've seen shipping wars start over dumber reasons, if you ship William with another adult that happens to be femme/female presenting, I do not care LOL, I think any ships are valid and I would never consider myself an authority, even if you want to ship this version of william within the specific lore of this comic, I really don't mind, and I don't think its something worth ripping each other apart over. So thought I'd just say that now. :D
But yes, W2L William is fully gay and yes Sebwill is endgame (but it's going to be a sloooowwww burn. So strap in!)
2 - Age
I've put William's age at how old he is at the start of the comic, so he's 293 in 1888 at the start of the comic, and died when he was about 25 years old. ((EDIT IM DUMB HE'S 301 BECAUSE HE DIED AT THE AGE OF 25 IN 1612 IDK WHY I DID A DUMB)) If anyone feels like doing some math and checking out what was going on in England the year that he died, it might give some hints on where I'm going with things!
As for Sebastian.... I'm not sure he even remembers how old he is anymore. Get back to him on it.
3 - Introverted v Extroverted
This is likely self explanatory but William gets severely worn out by people, he gets his most grumpy when he's tired of having people around him. Sebastian l o v e s attention and being around people, so looks like poor William is a victim of the extrovert distribution system /jk jk
4 - Charismatic v Akward
This one was a little odd to think about, because, obviously William is a manager, he has to be a good communicator, and generally he is, but if I were to say... assign him charisma points on an RPG sheet (which I might do eventually, that seems like a fun idea lol) I would probably put him smack dab in the middle. Good act communicating straight up facts, not especially good at picking up cues at perhaps when he's come accross as mean or too blunt - that's where I'd say he's a little more akward.
As for Sebastian, he is absolutely a demon with a silver tongue, and while I head cannon that often doesn't get certain things humans do, he's just so gosh darn annoyingly charming that he gets away with it. Hence the high charisma points.
5 - Pessimist v Optomist
I feel like its hard to be a reaper and be ACTUALLY optomistic. Sebastian however, is confident he has a long life ahead of him and likes it that way, so what does he have to worry about? Must be nice not to have existential dread or be affected by larger human politics....
6 - Chaotic v Organized
Sebastian is pretty dang organized (as should one hell of a....) but William just blows him out of the water. He likes things a very specific way and he's the type where making planners, spreadsheets, and efficient systems relaxes him. If Sebastian is ever 'chaotic' its absolutely specifically to mess with someone.
7 - Peaceful v Confrontational
Sebastian isn't particularly shy at all about facing down conflict, He would not be fun to get into an argument with because boy howdy will he make it personal.
William isn't quite as jabbing, but again, he is... blunt, and he does have a temper on him despite trying to keep cool. That being said he doesn't actually like getting to that point, so he will sometimes avoid conflict because he genuinely doesn't like getting mad... but sometimes people just make that hard for him.
8 - Night Owl v Early bird
I put Seb on both ends because he doesn't need to sleep, so he can do whatever, I imagine if he has a partner that needs sleep he'll just adapt to whatever their schedule is.
I think potentially by nature William is an early bird, but he's had to work overtime SO much that he's basically just flipped at this point, so now he hates mornings.
9 - Many prior relationships v No prior relationships
This one is a little tricky for William because it kind of depends on how you define a "relationship". He has certainly tried for the sake of fitting expectations put upon him. In terms of being with someone he was actually attracted to, lets just say he had his heart broken pretty badly. He's not exactly inexperienced but mans has had it rough in that department.
Sebastian is of course, an immortal demon. He's gotten around, jury is out on if most of those encounters could be considered 'relationships', maybe a few when he was a little """younger""".
10 - Overprotective v Relax
Once Sebastian actually has something or someone, he does NOT like it being taken away, it can ebb a little into being a control freak at times.
William is feircly loyal to those he's bonded to, and will absolutely go out of his way to help them even if he seems like he doesn't care, he just doesn't quite go as far as Sebastian can tend to.
11 - Little Spoon v Big Spoon
They definitely trade, it just tends to lean towards William being the little spoon because he tends to like sleeping where he can see an open door if he wakes up in the middle of the night for very real trauma related reasons.
12 - No Pet Names v Uses Many Pet Names
When they get to that point, William has a couple for Sebastian if he's feeling especially affectionate, though most often if not his name he might just use 'Darling', but Sebastian has SO SO many its actually crazy, he found out about the concept once and he will try them all at least once, and has a solid few he uses regularly
13 - Only Homecooked Food v Take Out Everyday
William absolutely prefers homecooked meals, but you know... with what time?? He also frankly sucks at cooking himself, this man's brain turns off in the kitchen, something about it overwhelms him or he gets distracted easily. He IS however very good at making drinks/brewing coffee, man was either a barista or a bartender in another life where he could handle being around people that often more.
Sebastian is... Sebastian. While he might not eat human food often himself, he has grown to appreciate the artistry of it, and loves to show off. However he definitely struggles to not use his abilities to speed things along. Perhaps if William told him he's making "fast food" he'd be appalled and be able to slow down lol
14 - Afraid of bugs v Carries bugs outside
So Sebastian will actually often if he can take bugs to feed spiders or birds if he sees them around specifically, he's honoring his ''''brother'''' in a way, and if he sees a spider he'll move it to a safe spot out of the way.
Now here's the thing with William, he doesn't necessarily hate bugs or spiders, but some of them make him... uncomfortable. What he actually really hates and is terrified of is rats, which... couldn't be me, but I think you'd be scared of them too if you've been nibbled on by them before in a dark enclosed space, or had bugs drop on your head and unable to get away from them at a young age. Though in general he's more likely be be grossed out or get sick from seeing bugs, not particularly /afraid/. Keep in mind too in his time such creatures were associated with plagues and pestilence. William would likely think modern cleaning solutions and showers are the best inventions humans ever came up with.
15 - Silver Tongue v Potty Mouth
These two are both very proper british gentleman... however William is slightly more likely to swear than Sebastian.
16 - Party Animal v Home Body
Sebastian loves himself a good gathering, especially if he's the center of attention, but he's not a 'go partying every night' sort either, he burnt out on that ages ago. William absolutely would rather stay home, if you want him to go out you're in for 15 minutes or more of arguing with him.
17 - Stubbornness!
William may just be the king of stubborn, with Sebastian lagging only slightly behind.
18 - Jealousy
William gets a normal amount of jealous , he certainly can feel it, but its not over the top.
Sebastian... oh boy, he's sometimes actually toxic about it. The one point he has others who get severely jealous is he doesn't accuse the object of his affection of cheating or being up to something, but he absolutely gets envious easily at anyone giving or getting attention from the person he loves and will absolutely try to one up them. If someone decides to get especially bold... well... they're in danger lol
19 - Confidence
Sebastian frankly could stand to get a little more humble, like actually more humble not fake humble. While William absolutely needs to opposite and to eventually learn he deserves better than what he got.
20 - Showing affection
They both tend to show affection physically... words are hard! Its more that William prefers to show affection in private with a still lingering feeling that he'll be judged or harmed, while Sebastian wants to show off his partner and how close they are to everyone.
21 - First Emotions
I don't think Sebastian knew what it was for a long time, but he absolutely fell for William right away, but he keeps it to himself both because he doesn't realize he's fallen for him but also because it's rather compicated for them to be together to begin with even when the feeling is mutual.
William is obviously on guard for a lot of reasons, and he's technically supposed to kill demons on site so.... ..... but he can't help but start to like the stupid demon as time passes
Both of them suck at talking about it and getting together because they're idiots.
22 - Handling Money
This was funny to think about because I've never thought about it. As a demon Sebastian could actually have money falling out of his ass if he really wanted to. So... he could have as much as he wanted at any given time and have no concept of saving. He could perhaps coach a human through it, but for himself he really doesn't care lmao.
William grew up decently well off, but he agonizes over getting literally anything for himself so... pretty frugal.
Annnnd that's it! If you stuck around thank you for reading my ramblings for fun!
Hi! So I wrote this for @devilmichaelis because they give me so much inspiration to write SebWill and I was really feeling them lately, so I chose to write something wintery and soft! I hope you enjoy! <3
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Snow drifts down in small, soft, flakes, blanketing the entirety of London in a sheet of white. There’s the satisfying crunch of footsteps in the freshly fallen powder and muted, muffled thumps of snow collapsing from overburdened branches. It was the first real snowfall of the season, something WIlliam took the time to admire, if even just for a moment.
He was a contrast against the pale environment around him with his black suit and dark hair; the delicate flakes resting on his black gloved palm he held up to the sky. Although not a reaper assigned to collections, William feigned annoyance when he was told to clean up after a co-worker as leaving his office was a luxury he rarely afforded himself.
So he just stands there, drawing in a deep breath, letting the cold air fill his lungs. The dampness settles into his hair and the chill nips at his cheeks, yet it’s a relief to feel anything beyond the stifling atmosphere of his small, boxed in, office.
The silence as well is welcomed.
The sounds of the realm became more and more unbearable, to the point even the sound of his own pen was grating on what little nerves he had left. The silence now is exactly what he needed; a reprieve.
Winter, to him, means peace; solitude. It’s a stillness and everything he desires yet something rarely given as his subordinates are either incompetent or overconfident.
A sound snaps him from his thoughts and it's not an animal. Despite how soft the landing is, a mortal could mistake it for some type of bird (a raven or crow) yet William knows all too well what truly made that sound.
In a blink, he spins on his heels and shoots out his scythe, the clippers embedding themselves into the treetrunk behind the demon that stands there, not even flinching when the sharp point barely clips his ear—a demon that looks untouched by the falling snow. “Am I not allowed a moment to myself?” William asks, speaking more to the universe than the butler.
“I wasn’t aware you wanted such.” Sebastian comments with a wry smile, “surely you would not send me away when I’ve not had the chance to be with you in quite a few weeks.”
William’s eyes flick warily over the demon, refusing to lower his guard, “you would stay whether I wanted you to or not.” William snaps, “and wipe that look off your face, demon.”
With a blink, Sebastian’s signature smirk returns as he runs the tips of his gloved fingers along the metal pole of William’s scythe, “you can’t fault me for wanting to see you.”
“I can when you disrupt my time alone.”
Sebastian begins walking toward him, dragging his fingers lazily along the pole as he approaches, “you know your time with me is much the same, for we both enjoy our solitude.”
William keeps that tight grip on his scythe, despite knowing Sebastian’s correct. There was a reason he sought out the demon from time to time, a reason that went beyond physical intimacy; a reason he doesn’t see the need to not make the demon work for, even just a little bit. “That’s not my fault, is it, demon? You’re the one who chose to accept the deal to be the butler of a child.”
Sebastian pauses and, for once in quite a long time, William feels truly watched as the demon’s gaze roams over him, as if the creature is dissecting him with his eyes alone. “You were overwhelmed, weren’t you? Your presence in the mortal world was not of a lackadaisical whim, but because you were near your breaking point.” Sebastian’s eyes meet back with William’s, “am I correct?”
William feels his eyebrow twitch. Right then, perhaps making Sebastian work for it will not simply be teasing now. “You do not understand the importance of my work and you never will, for a beast like you will always fail to understand.”
Sebastian continues forward, ignoring the bitter bite to William’s tone, “perhaps, but I can understand when a reaper has far too much to bear on his shoulders.”
“And how are you so certain about that?”
Sebastian hums, “you have not greeted me with such hostility in a very long time.”
Hostility?
The previous times he’d met Sebastian since this entire arrangement started, flashed through his mind and the demon’s right. He’d greeted the butler with almost welcoming arms, as if being with him was a relief, a weakness he should have never shown and yet, that is exactly what Sebastian has become. When did that happen exactly?
How?
Perhaps it’s the sudden shock of the realisation, but he finally lowers his guard, telescoping his scythe back to a reasonable length, holding it at his side like a staff and using the tips of the clippers to adjust his glasses. “I do not appreciate your assumptions.”
“Your actions tell me they are far more than assumptions.”
“Reagrdless, it means very little when there’s nothing you could do about it.” William states, turning his back on the demon, “now allow me time to be alone.”
The proof he didn’t want in how he’s found comfort with the demon comes when he doesn’t even flinch or tense when Sebastian places a hand on his hip, “you’ve been alone with me plenty of times before and not once have you lamented that you are not truly alone.”
Again, Sebastian’s right. He’d never admit it to Sebastian, or anyone—he’s still having difficulty admitting it to himself—but the demon’s presence is a welcome one, to some degree. The butler somewhat understands the stress of keeping one’s eye on so many places, of being the only competent being when it comes to daily duties, of being plagued with never-ending tasks. Yes, their work is significantly different (and William will not argue when he says his work is more important), there is a commonality that affords William a small bit more tolerance for Sebastian compared to other demons.
Still, can he really just allow himself to be this…familliar so easily? “Leave me be, demon. I don’t have time for you.”
Sebastian is not deterred by the ice of his words, “once again, your actions prove to me what your words will not.” William feels him inch closer behind him, “you’ve not pushed me away.”
“Because I know you’re too bloody stubborn. The more I push, the tighter you hold.”
He’s not at all surprised to feel the hand on his hip tighten but the second hand landing on his other hip does make him tense. “I would, yes, because from what I recall, you quite enjoy when I hold you like this.”
Knowing exactly what the demon’s implying, William yanks himself free with a bit more force than necessary, nudging up his spectacles to gather himself again, “noxious creature.”
Sebastian only laughs, “will you drop this facade of yours now? Or will I need to work to break through those walls you continuously put up?”
William takes a step forward, “all you need to do is leave me alo—”
One second he’s staring straight ahead of him.
The next he’s staring up at the cloudy white sky, watching the snowflakes spiral downward with his scythe dropped on the ground.
It takes him almost too long to realise what’s just happened before pure, unadulterated, embarrassment consumes him and all he can do is hide his face behind the palm of his hand, refusing to look at the tea-brown eyes that stare bemusedly down at him, a look that gives way to pure amusement. Easily, he’d caught the reaper in his arms, as if it were the end to a dance. Being this close only makes Sebastian's muted laughter all that more unbearable, “never speak a word of this to anyone.” he forces out, trying to sound as stern as possible.
“Now why would I keep such an entertaining accident to myself?” asks the demon with his enjoyment colouring every, mocking, word.
William lowers his palm, glaring at him but there’s no actual heat behind it, “have I mentioned how much I dislike you?”
“Oh dislike? That's an improvement!" Sebastian smirks, “only three letters away from admitting that you like me.”
William simply blinks, the red on his cheeks offsetting any unimpressed look the reaper tries to maintain. “Allow me up.” he says, trying to get his feet under himself only to recall it was ice he’d slipped on from a hidden frozen pond under the snow.
He barely gets one foot steady and Sebastian’s hands are only just letting him go when he’s unable to find proper footing; he goes down a second time, taking Sebastian with him when he scrambles to find support.
The cold from the snow seeps into the fabric of his clothes but the warmth from Sebastian hovering above him counteracts the chill. While William knows very well that Sebastian could have easily saved the both of them from the tumble, he also can’t deny he’s upset of how they've landed. “I thought Mr. Spears was light on his feet.” Sebastian comments, hands either side of William’s head, grinning down at the reaper.
He was. Normally. But the embarrassment from the first slip set his entire being off balance. “Shut up.”
“Mm, and how will you make me?”
William finally gives in, giving the demon what he wants. His fingers grab Sebastian’s tie and he yanks the demon down for a kiss he leans up to meet.
It’s sweet and a little warm.
It’s affectionate, something William has a hard time using to describe the demon, and yet, he does. He can.
Tilting his head, he hears the demon sigh—no. That wasn’t Sebastian. That was him. The realisation should mortify him even more than he is, but, it doesn’t. Sebastian just embraces him further as a hand cups the back of his head while the other hand finds one of his to intertwine their fingers. It’s like all the pressure, all the stress, all the weight on his shoulders, has been lifted for these few, brief, moments; moments William will allow himself to indulge in as his arm wraps around Sebastian’s shoulders, pulling him closer, squeezing Sebastian’s hand tighter.
It’s not just the kiss that’s sweet and a little warm.
For a demon that’s not technically alive and a reaper who’s known for being cold, William’s found no place warmer than being in Sebastian’s embrace.
And maybe he wanted that kiss too.
Maybe he wanted it more than the silence he desired.
Maybe, Sebastian was right. He could enjoy the peace of being alone but that didn’t mean he needed to be alone to have that peace.
Or really, maybe, that peace was simply being with Sebastian after all.
