Feverish

By Wolfic

A/N: My very first Yuletide Treasures fanfic, as well as my very first BL (Boys Love) fanfic.

He stood there.

In a small stone room with nothing more than the simple necessities of a wooden desk and a low bed, a young man stood, staring out the single window.

Moonlight, silver and pure, spilled forth from that window, its radiance bathing his slim frame, its splendor caressing his still face with its gentle glow.

Even the tiny squeak of the door opening didn't stir his features, as Kurapika turned his head slightly to regard Leorio's entry into the room.

His face, with its pale complexion and ethereal shine, didn't tremble with the evening cold.

His fair blond locks did not sway with his sudden movement.

And his eyes, his crimson red eyes, did not return to their calming and familiar blue.

Those red, red eyes sought out Leorio with the same glaring intensity he had placed upon the moon.

The same tranquil and silent anger.

Those eyes were strange. Could the limited and simple words of humans convey the feelings evoked by those eyes?

They were like blood-splattered rubies.

Beautiful and magnificent. The mere sight stole your breath away from your startled lips. Before those eyes you are compelled towards addiction, towards obsession. You want those eyes, that beauty. You want to hold those unnatural gems and keep them for yourself.

But at the same time you are repulsed and disgusted. You shudder to see those eyes, brought on by such turmoil of anger and agitation. The blood that splatters their origins, the slaughter the surrounds their presence, the hatred that fuels their shimmer, strikes you with fear. Terror alarms your soul and you shake and sweat and cry from the encounter.

Those are the eyes of the fabled Kurata clan.

But Leorio didn't care for such thoughts.

His calm expression twisted into one of mild annoyance as he dumped his bag of freshly bought materials on the table and took a few long strides towards his friend.

"Oi Kurapika! How many times do I have to remind you! A sick person should be resting in bed! You're fever isn't going to get any better if you keep getting out of bed every time I leave."

The loud scolding was lost on Kurapika, for he did not respond as Leorio would have expected.

He did not smile kindly at Leorio's predictable expression of worry for his well-being.

Nor he did not return to bed like any sensible patient would do.

He simply stared at Leorio, his eyes burning and twisting with emotions and his body as still as the moon floating behind him.

This cool demeanor only annoyed Leorio more.

"Kurapika! Did you hear me? Get back to bed!" Leorio's right finger jabbed stiffly towards the bed to punctuate his statement.

Ignoring the loud verbal order, Kurapika took one small step closer towards his tall friend.

"You know Leorio….." he began softly with a voice so raspy and fragile, "You've been ordering me around a lot lately."

He took another step closer, this time using his left foot.

"Always yelling at me."

Kurapika drew closer, stepping with his right foot.

"Always wearing that annoyed expression."

Left.

"Thinking I don't know what is the correct thing to do."

Right.

"And I've realized something."

And now he was right in front of him, those luminescent eyes glancing up towards Leorio.

"You must think very highly of yourself, don't you?"

The roles had reversed.

Now Leorio did not respond. Not because he didn't want to, but because he didn't know how. He could only stare back, his wide gaze peering through his tiny black sunglasses at this menacing figure who had lost all traces of his usual friendly warmth.

"You claim to know what to do with sick people, but can I really trust your knowledge? Do you even have a medical license yet? Do you think you have the medical authority to care for my health?"

Blunt and sharp accusations tore at Leorio's ears, the sharp truth leaving behind stinging wounds.

"You are weak. You couldn't even force me to follow your orders if you wanted to. You may have relied on your brutish strength during the exam, but now, you have nothing. You can't even do Hatsu."

This Kurapika was unfamiliar to Leorio. This was not the cool headed and straightforward Kurapika that he knew.

This was the revenge driven Kurapika, with a heart gripped with hatred, and hands that weaved death.

Kurapika grabbed Leorio's tie and roughly yanked him down so that their faces were leveled with one another.

Those blood red eyes seeping with hatred enraptured Leorio in their gaze.

"No words? Can you even fight back if you wanted to? What can you do if I do this?"

A sharp yank of the tie crashed Leorio's lips against Kurapika's own.

Leorio's eyes widened at the action and the torrent of sensations that now assailed him.

Kurapika's lips were soft, smooth, and burned against his lips.

His scorching tongue broke into his mouth, singeing his insides and spread that blazing fire deep into his body.

Leorio had already known what the problem with Kurapika was. Such recognizable symptoms were easy to make a diagnosis from.

Kurapika was delirious. His feverish state of mind had clouded his judgment and drove him to such a state of actions.

This was most likely the reason why Kurapika had responded in such a manner.

Leorio knew this. He knew that this intimate action may be nothing more than the result of delirium. And yet, with hope inside, he still found himself wrapping his long arms around Kurapika's slim frame, and holding his seemingly brittle body close to his own.

Kurapika's leaned in close against Leorio propelling his body backwards against the wall.

Amid their throes of passion, and the charred heat of desire, Leorio managed to recollect what little of his reasonable mind was left, so that he could understand this new revelation he had realized form this close encounter.

Kurapika was hot.

His body was burning up. A thin layer of sweat coated his skin and his temperature had increased significantly since yesterday, the last time he had checked Kurapika's temperature.

Breaking away from the kiss, Leorio quickly scooped up Kurapika's flimsy body into his arms and transferred him over to the bed.

What little energy and what little emotions, that Kurapika had left were already escaping him as he didn't resist to this sudden treatment.

"You idiot!" Leorio roared as he gathered the blankets and covered Kurapika with them "Why didn't you tell me your temperature was already this bad?"

Kurapika looked at him weakly, the red in his eyes were muddled, swirling in a blotted sea of dull reds and bright blues.

"I feel cold, Leorio."

Snatching Kurapika's small left hand, Leorio held it tight between both of his hands, his head was turned away at a stubborn angle to cover his embarrassment at such an intimate gesture.

"Hey Leorio."

"What is it?" Leorio offhandedly replied.

"Do you ever regret it?"

"Regret what?" Leorio shifted his attention on Kurapika.

"Regret not becoming like us. Gon and Killua went to the Celestial Tower, I found a master. We all trained hard to master our Nen. Do you regret not being able to do the same?"

A moment of silence passed between the two. Leorio stared deeply into Kurapika's eyes, before breaking out into a deep, hearty laughter.

"What are you mumbling about? I never wanted to become a fighter. I wanted to be a doctor. And that's what I will become. Besides, I don't need Hatsu or Nen to be on your level. I can already do something better than all three of you."

Kurapika weary eyes held faded strength, but they still maintained curiosity.

"I can take care of you three far better than anyone else. I can't say I'd be able to rely on you three to do the same for me, if I were to ever fall ill." Leorio grinned widely at his own boastful comment.

And Kurapika allowed one rare smile to dance across his lips before his eyes closed.

Gripping the limp hand even tighter, Leorio still held Kurapika's hand as he watched over the sleeping figure.

And the moonlight, ever still silver, and ever still pure, shined on these two figures, embracing their stillness with its ever bright serenity as it watched over them through the night.