"What the hell are you doing, mage?"
Had it been anyone else asking, the blond would summon one of his seemingly ever-present smiles and conjure up a satisfying, though not completely honest, answer. This, however, was Kurogane and Fai just glanced at him over his shoulder with heavy-lidded eye.
The world outside was perfectly still, the monotonous buzz of insects punctuated by steady knocking of the deer scarer coming from the distant part of the gardens. The air was dry and hot, making it almost impossible to breathe... Kurogane couldn't recall a summer harsher than this one and he could only imagine how much the mage - not accustomed to such a climate - was suffering right now. Despite Fai's best efforts to hide it, the ninja noticed his movements became sluggish and he could be usually found inside the castle, either sleeping or idly wandering along the halls.
There was also that strange, hollow look in his eye, caused by something other than the scorching heat of the sun.
"Cutting my hair... They're much too long..."
Kurogane couldn't deny that - heavy locks were hanging nearly at the man's waist, securing his neck and back from even the slightest cooling gust of wind.
"But... I guess I'm not doing so well..."
That was also true - the few strands Fai dealt with so far were uneven and seemed to have been rather torn off than cut. Kurogane sighed impatiently.
"The scissors," he commanded and sat behind the blond. Fai handled him the silver object without a word of protest and inclined his head a little. However, when Kurogane brushed the hair with his fingers, the mage suddenly tensed.
At first the black-haired man thought he tugged at his hair too hard.
Then he recalled who was the other person to cut Fai's hair.
Setting the scissors aside, he shifted his position and pulled the mage closer. He then buried his face in Fai's hair and kissed the top of his head.
"Kuro-sama..."
The ninja wanted to tell him to shut up, but instead he moved lower and, brushing the hair aside, slowly licked the pale neck, causing Fai to shudder and let out a small gasp. Lean hands found Kurogane's and guided them beneath the folds of the blond's yukata. The ninja backed away a little, surprised, but Fai only looked over his shoulder again, this time a tiny smile forming on his lips.
Before he knew it, Kurogane was already lying on the floor, Fai hovering inches above him with the same gentle smile. His yukata slid lower, tantalizingly exposing the man's slender shoulders, so pale they seemed to glow in the dimly lit room. While one of his hands struggled to fully unfasten Fai's clothing, the other was cautiously stroking the long strands, shimmering under the ninja's fingers like waves of molten gold.
It was a sheer blasphemy, but Kurogane couldn't help thinking the one he was caressing was an incarnation of the Sun Goddess, the bright hair forming a divine halo around the slender figure.
Unaware of the ninja's thoughts, the blond leaned into the touch with a pleased hum before lowering himself, so that his lips brushed the other man's ear. For a moment Fai struggled to say something, but in the end he only planted a shy kiss on top of his lover's ear.
Before giving in to overcoming waves of blissful oblivion, in each other's flushed faces and passion-glazed stares they could read the silent downfall of the unseen barrier, melting away in the surrounding heat.
Returning life to the single ice-blue eye.