Thief

Theme: #7 – Tell

'You're watching that gem again,' Kurama said quietly.

Hiei slipped it back over his head. 'Yeah, so?'

'You only do that when something's wrong.' He leaned against the other side of the window ledge Hiei was sitting on; for once, Hiei's perch was wide enough to be comfortable.

'Go away,' Hiei said bluntly.

'This jewel of yours,' Kurama murmured, watching it sway on his chest with each breath. 'It's really very beautiful when it catches the light.' He moved closer, into the half-circle of Hiei's body. 'Do your tears form gems as well?'

Hiei flinched, from the words and the intimacy. 'None of your business.'

'I'm a thief. Everything's my business. So do they?'

'No,' Hiei muttered. 'Fine? They don't.'

Kurama nuzzled into his throat briefly, an almost animal gesture of affection, and Hiei huffed. The fox swung his legs up, shifting until he lay between Hiei's legs, back resting against his chest, and Hiei reflexively wrapped his arms around him. There was silence for almost an hour as they lay together.

'Pity,' Kurama murmured.

'Hnh?' Hiei said fuzzily. He'd nearly fallen asleep.

'I can't help but wonder. What colour would they have been?' He reached up, gripped Hiei's face with one hand, looked at him thoughtfully, upside down. 'Ice-blue? But that's not your power. Black for your hair?' he ran his fingers over it, an unsettling caress. 'Red for your eyes, for fire? Would they reflect light or absorb it?'

'Why is this so interesting?'

Kurama sighed. 'Because it's you.' He slid the teargem in his hand thoughtfully between finger and thumb, assesing it with a jeweler's eye.

Hiei stared, and snatched it back. 'When did you get that?' He fumbled at his throat and was displeased to find the leather cord neatly untangled. 'I was watching your hands all the time.'

'I undid it with my teeth,' Kurama said smugly. 'When I kissed your neck. You really have to pay more attention.'

Hiei itched to punch him, but that would have disturbed them, and the warmth was comfortable.

'What's so interesting about me?' he asked instead.

'Nothing,' Kurama pouted. 'You're an uninteresting person.'

'Then you're an idiot.' Hiei closed his eyes again.

'In answer to your question, I wondered what it might take to get a gem from you. It would have been quite a challenge to steal from you, since I can't imagine you'd simply give me one. And I wanted to know the truth.'

'I haven't cried in centuries.'

'Neither have I.' He toyed with Hiei's scarf, slipping his fingers under it, brushing over his collarbone, fastening the gem back on. His green eyes glowed eerily in the darkness. 'It's a pity I can't get a gem of yours. I suppose I'll have to settle for stealing you instead.'

'You idiot,' Hiei retorted, strangely exhilarated by the look in his eyes. 'I'm not something you can steal.'

'If you say so, Hiei,' Kurama said lazily, shutting his eyes. 'If you say so.'