The Trouble with Grelliam (private for Grell-Lover and Slight)

[SlightPhobia]

It had been a relatively terrible day for Mr. Spears. Maybe he'd woken up on the wrong side of the bed, or maybe the day had finally done him in. There, in his division, had been hired the sloppiest, most unruly batch of reapers he'd ever seen. Paper after paper had been turned in with improper abbreviations, disordered pages, and lackluster writing. Some reports lacked critical details! Never had he stamped so many disapproval stamps on so many pages in a single day! If that wasn't bad enough, a couple of the cheeky newbies had stomped into his office after having their paperwork rejected. Approving junior members was generally a team effort between partners however, Grell had opted to go out to take care of some demon that had broken just enough leash laws to get himself exterminated... or was it a her? No matter, William didn't have time to worry about the workings of Grell's cases. He might have been leery about the case Grell had been given, but since when did Grell turn down the opportunity to kill?

For now, time passed slowly. His desk slowly cleared as he completed his tasks however, there was soon enough cause for concern. Sutcliff had been due back an hour ago. What the devil was he doing? Fashionably late was Grell's hallmark but that didn't mean William tolerated it well; particularly not if there was deadly force involved. William didn't like waiting for his partner to return. As often as he ranted about hating Grell... he was at the very least comfortable with Grell as a partner. Breaking in a new one would be....

[Grell-Lover]

(Thank you so much! So do you want to get us started?)

---------- Post added at 04:20 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:28 AM ----------

Grell soon enough was in the building, though he did not seem like himself. He usually was so flamboyant and happy, but right now he seemed like...a baby wanting a nap. He seemed very cranky, mouthing off to many of the other reapers. He had decided since the demon he was assigned to kill didn't seem harmless (and offered him a chocolate parfait which tasted a little funny) he let the demon go on its way. He knew Will would not be happy about it, but what did he care? He burst into Will's office without knocking-something Will often disapproved- and started to rant on how boring the mission was, saying that he was 'finished' even though he didn't exactly do as he was ordered.

[SlightPhobia]

Fortunately, no one had tattled on Grell just yet. Nothing set William in more curdled spirits than having to listen to a bratty rookie blather on about the misdemeanors of Grell Sutcliff. As annoying and rule breaking as he was, he was still superior in age and rank to all of the rookies. Were Sutcliff not in trouble all the time for rule breaking, he may have even outranked William. As it happened, experience had made a fine reaper out of the originally b-ranked reaper. He was now a triple-A ranked reaper; a senior triple-A at that. Not only was he a paper pusher and a reaper, but he was also an instructor. The same could be said of Grell though.

Crack! The door came flying open and as it did, William glared up from his papers; "Don't shove the --" His words never completed themselves. The door crashed against the door stop leaving yet another dent in the fine wood base of the door. It was a miracle the door stop hadn't been bashed in. The door stop had come as a reflection to the many knob-shaped holes that had been bashed into his office from similar intrusions. Those holes were long gone now. Only the wood dents in his door remained. Narrowing his eyes, he glared a cold, tundra moment at the reaper. Sutcliff knew better! "What is so important you feel the need to damage my office door, Sutcliff?" He spat in a rigid tone.

The rant about the boring nature of the mission was flatly ignored for a moment. Only once Grell shut his yap did William begin his retort. "To begin with, Sutcliff... for you to burst in an hour late after your scheduled arrival is impertinent. If you are going to show up an hour late, the least you could do is bring your paperwork." Pausing, he stacked his papers neatly and set them aside. He had more than enough done for today however, that didn't mean he wouldn't have hopped right back on the paperwork bandwagon had Grell stomped out to do his paperwork. Something told him it wouldn't be that easy to get the surly scarlet reaper to get his papers in order.

After some pause, William glanced up at Grell through the thick glass of his spectacles. There was a surprising, mild tone of concern in his voice. "IN any event, did all go as planned? You are not injured, are you? It took longer than usual for you to fall this demon. Did you bring the cinematic record?" His eyes weighed heavily on Grell, though for the time being they seemed more interested in discerning whether or not the mission had gone well and also that Grell was not hurt. How... kind. As kind as sterile old Will could get.

[XD If you have any dialogue, I recommend typing it out? It's difficult to guess what dialogue is / isn't if it's important. I can't have Will jump to conclusions if I'm not sure what was and wasn't said.]

[Grell-Lover]

Grell put his hands behind his head in a laid-back manner. Of course he didn't bring the stupid record or any paperwork. That was a dumb question. "I'm fine." He replied in response to the first question. If he could he would avoid the other questions. However he knew William better, and he knew William would press and needle him about the record and his absent paperwork.

"No, I don't have the record. The stupid demon seemed harmless enough, so...I let it go." The 'let it go' part was said with less confidence than the rest, but Grell made an attempt to remain cool-headed about what his superior was about to say. or yell, depending. When it came to records, Will was demanding. While Grell didn't really give a shit. Grell left out the part with the parfait; didn't need Will prying in on that and get his ass in even more trouble.

[SlightPhobia]

William watched the reaper pose in a very disrespectful way. In short, it was a very Grell sort of way to pose. It irritated William none the less. Frowning, he nudged his glasses up the bridge of his nose-- a deed he did often. "Fine?" he repeated tersely. The tense feeling was only going to grow. This would be a aphoristic chastisement.

Finally, Grell confessed that he had not dealt with the demon. Inside, William felt the fine willow branch of his patience snap in two. The day had piled him with so many unpleasantness. This was the glassy cherry on the top of the seven layer cow-pie cake of bullshit he'd dealt with. William would have never put the day into those words though. Crude and lewd weren't his specialties. "Sutcliff," he began in an entirely too calm and collected tone. "You're aware that I do not assign you missions. I do not make or devise missions, nor am I in charge of assigning them to the likes of you," he began. Of course Grell knew that! It was basic information. Newbies knew that H and R was in charge of mission assignment. Still, William pointed it out calmly as though Grell were none but a child.

Had William yelled and shouted, it might have ended up better for Grell. William tended to exchange blows quickly and concisely when he shouted. The sad truth was, William T. Spears rarely lifted his voice to shout; he didn't need to. The calmer he was in such a situation, the more severe the consequences tended to be. "In short," he breathed, lecturing the red-head dryly; "you have abandoned your mission and disregarded orders passed down to you from H and R. You're also aware that this is a punishable offence and will reflect poorly on both your record and mine, are you not?" Finally, he locked eyes with Grell's. His cold, piercing eyes rocketed straight through any protection reaper spectacles may have provided. When William truly glared someone down, it was a frigid experience; like a harsh smack to the wrist.

"Last week you abandoned your paperwork and turned in haphazard accounts of soul reapings that were barely by-the-book. Are you aware that I went to a discipline hearing on your behalf to intervene?" Not that he had praised Sutcliff in any way. He had more or less explained that he needed Sutcliff to lighten his load. He'd gotten Grell excused in the cheapest, least emotional, and least affectionate way possible. Such was William's way. "We're in prime season given that it's winter. Cholera and consumption are running at full performance. I am not about to report to your superiors that you have slacked off yet again, Sutcliff. Is that perfectly and singularly clear?"

William then wrenched open one of his desk drawers regardless of whether or not Grell had replied passively or not. Slapping a paper form down, he faced it so Grell would have to sit his ass down across from him and complete it. "It's an extension form. You will fill it out and turn it in however..." He trailed off. He'd had enough of Grell's tantrums. He'd had enough of his playboy affairs and his flamboyant gallivanting. Grell was very good at what he did-- William knew and appreciated that fact. Unfortunately, Grell was also undisciplined- a problem William fully intended to rectify.

What was he going to do with that hanging however? The way he glared Grell down suggested he was debating about requesting a partner transfer! That would have been unthinkably cruel though! The thought never crossed William's mind, but Grell had no way of knowing. "I'm sick and tired of this cavalier approach you take to your job." He spat the words plainly and without mercy. His mind was racing though. What was he going to do to fix this problem? If Grell turned in an application for a job extension, the H and R department would notify the department of Corrections. Grell would wind up punished. A Reaper's punishment usually involved unpaid leave, the confiscation of custom scythes, and even demotions. The thought was unnatural, but an image flickered through his mind. Somewhere earlier in the day he had stumbled by a very common scene. A shopkeeper had taken his younger employee across his knee in the back alley. William had seen it and immediately he recalled it in such a situation. The image shifted in his mind to one of him tanning Grell's hide. Tch! It seemed like something Grell might have liked and yet? What child liked spanking? None that he could name-- and he'd reaped hundreds upon thousands of them. Not a one had memories of relishing spanking.

Like that, his mind shifted into task mode. His glasses gleamed ominously. "When you turn in your paper at H and R, you will be turning in a disciplinary record as well. I have no intention of letting the corrections department let you off with a mere warning," he continued. It sounded like William might have been preparing to demand a pay cut for Grell. He wouldn't, would he?! His lowest desk drawer sounded and from there, he began rifling through forms. They existed, the precise form he wanted. Once he found the white slip, he placed it down before himself and began writing. The heading of the slip was printed in bright red ink. Corporal Punishment Record, it read. Now, that could have spelled out any number of things. Corporal punishment may have implied a sound beating with fists however, given the antiqued appearance of the form, Grell was probably well aware of what it meant. It was still legal too-- it was just considered taboo. Spanking children was still relevant to their firm... but to spank fully grown adult reapers? Filling out the form, William's pen blazed before Grell could do anything about it. Once he'd finished, he turned it to face Grell and slapped the pen down atop the page.

"This time, I am going to make sure you learn a valuable lesson, Sutcliff," William stated levelly. He was staring across the desk impassively-- ready to move in an instant if need be. "I'll punish you myself, precisely how I see fit." Pointing to the document, he indicated that Grell needed to sign. "Your name, please. Printed and signed." William left no room for compromise.

[Grell-Lover]

When Will had started lecturing with the description of what their purpose was, Grell rolled his eyes. "Even newbies know that, William." He kept his hands behind his head all the while, half-listening to the rubbish spewing from Will's mouth. When Grell caught the look in Will's eye about the Corrections facility, he was honestly frightened. Of course he couldn't really be demoted any further, but taking a pay cut, losing his scythe or even--losing his partner? It almost made Grell want to cry.

Grell then saw a flash of inspiration in Will's eyes. Oh, no...he saw Will take out a form, written with that red ink...no, no, NO! It wasn't! It couldn't be! But it was...when Will told him to sign it, Grell shook his head frantically, shouting, "No, Will! You-you can't do this to me! I'm not a kid! This is bullshit! You can't do this!"

[SlightPhobia]

Grell resisted, just as William predicted he might. The gentleman didn't seem to go anywhere and so as the reaper shook his head like a child, William pointed at the lines once more. "Printed name. Signature. Now," he commanded. His tone had become somewhat more stretched, though it was hardly a shout. Once he had calmly pointed out his demands, he stood and pushed his chair back in a menacing way. Without another word, he began unbuttoning his suit jacket. It didn't specifically hinder his movement, but sitting on the long hem of his suit jacket might have hindered his ability to lift his arm to properly spank the tar out of his partner.

Removing his jacket, he folded it quietly over the back of the chair and unbuttoned the cuffs of his sleeves. Slowly, meticulously, he rolled them up to his elbows and squared his gaze on Grell once more. He looked very much like a disgruntled papa about to lay down the law. The phase Just wait 'til your father gets home! paled in comparison to the look William gave Grell. Apparently papa was home and papa was not happy. "Allow me to make myself pungently clear. You will sign that document, you will do exactly as I say, and you will turn the forms into H and R today. Promptly." He concluded. Every will he spat had come out like acid. William wasn't screwing around or teasing. It seemed he had every intention to spank Sutcliff. He hadn't even disclosed he intended to pull the reaper's pants to his knees to do so either. For now, his gloves remained on. Perhaps that was small consolation. If he didn't have any skin-to-skin contact, maybe it would be less humiliating... "Stop stalling, Grell." He'd done it. He used the man's first name tersely. He rarely did that unless he was completely furious.

[Grell-Lover]

Grell shook his head once more, fearful now instead of cranky. "Please, Will. I'll...I'll behave..." As Will pushed his chair back and slowly removed his jacket and cuffs, Grell's hands flew to protect his bottom. The look Will gave him was clear, but Grell did not have the best judgment. Grell was slowly backing away, toward the door which was still wide open, several rookies peeking in to watch this turn of events. Grell was even surprised when he heard Will call him by his first name, which meant only one thing: he was in some deep shit.

[SlightPhobia]

As Grell quivered a fearful little promise to behave himself, William adjusted the rolled cuffs of his sleeves. His forearms looked particularly steel-like as did his palms. That didn't spell out good news for Grell's bottom. Grell reacted precisely the way a small child would have and as he did, his brows dipped down sternly. "Apparently you have suffered this sort of punishment before. My guess is you've angered the grim reaper at some point..." Or perhaps another superior? Maybe Grell had just been spanked by the corrections department. It was hard telling with Sutcliff. It would certainly be the first William spanking he endured.

William did not bother to shut the door for now. Instead, as Grell backed toward it, He stepped out from behind his desk and approached Grell. Reaching forward, he took hold of the reaper's forearm. In an instant, he wrenched him forward. For a moment, it appeared as though William intended to hug the man-- to hold him romantically. Pinning Grell against his chest, he draped one arm around the man to half hug him. It was a crushing hug though, one intended for restraint, not comfort. Drawing his hand high, where all could see, he brought his free palm down hard on Grell's vulnerable behind. Spanking him near the small of his back, the first spank landed a bit high, though not unintentionally. "I believe," he began, clapping a second spank just a bit lower than the first. His palm whipped down a third time in rapid procession. "...I told you to sign that document. Until you do," He paused again, spanking the mischevious reaper twice more square at the junction where his cheeks met. This time it was obviously and painfully at the center of Grell's skinny behind. "--I won't even bother recording, measuring, or counting these primary blows." If there was going to be a plead for the door to be shut, now was the time. William was quickly growing harder and harder in terms of harshness.

[Grell-Lover]

Grell was surprised when Will grabbed him, and was just plain shocked when these first spanks rained down. He looked toward the door, and noticed all of the rookies watching him get spanked. "I'LL SIGN IT! JUST STOP AND SHUT THE DAMN DOOR!" There it was. Grell had given in to Will's punishment, and that was not near the beginning.