Disclaimer: Do not own.

Title: Word-Of-Mouth

Chapter 1 - Palaver


Click. He glanced up. Click. he narrowed his gaze on his cell screen. Click. His teeth gripped the inside of his lip. A clatter. The pen dropped. Click. He was staring at the screen but he was taking nothing in. His ears were just waiting for the click. It didn't come and he glanced up. The pen had found a new home. He added it to the ever growing list of things not to touch.

He was stretched out on the couch staring at the ceiling as his list of projects scrolled by. A red note was scribbled next to one and the scrolling slowed as he transferred the note into something permanent. He heard a click again and his eyes fell to the side again. Metal scraping against metal. He went back to his list. A scent he'd grown to know wafted through the air. He heard a muffled grumble and his eyes darted over. His eyes fell on the casing currently held between frowning lips. He shook his head. Another list popped up and he added ammunition. He minimized the list and went on with his double checking. He heard the click again and folded his legs under himself in a habit he would never admit to having as the other cushion shifted with it's new occupant. The television turned on but the volume was quickly muted. He went on with his list.

He was staring. The one time he had let anyone borrow any of his ties... He stalked forward and pulled the thin fabric roughly from the mouth it was currently in as the owner buttoned the shirt. "Can you keep anything out of your mouth?" He glanced at the tie. It was added to the list and he threw it harshly at the chest half-clothed chest. "Keep it." He glanced up at the shocked face as rough fingers rubbed now red lips. He had been a little too rough. He got no reply. The tie was retrieved and slid around a broad neck. He watched as the buttons were done and tie tied. He frowned at the tie. His fingers couldn't help but fix the tie. He folded the collar down and left the room with nothing else.

He heard his phone ringing from the other room. He had no desire to get it. The ring stopped abruptly and he heard a deep rumble. The conversation continued and he was slowly falling back to sleep with the rolling words sifting through the walls. The ring came again and was shut off abruptly. He could barely remember hearing the reply before he fell back to sleep. After the fifth call he couldn't fall back to sleep. The sheets slid down to pool in his lap. He opened his list and quickly skimmed through anything he might have missed for today. There were footsteps just outside his door a few seconds later. One day he would ask how he always knew when he was awake. The door opened and a smiling face was resting on it. "Are you ready?" He shifted back on the bed and nodded. A notepad and pen, one of the few not on his list, were pulled up and the edge of his bed was occupied. As he read down the details the pen bounced on his lips. It was something he'd seen many times before but something was different. He continued adding things as they were called out but he was mesmerized by the red pen as it flicked back and forth. Two fingers moved against each other lazily but the pen was erratic. He glanced up at the mouth spouting words and felt himself lean forward. At that feeling his attention jerked back to the list at hand. The voice had stopped and he glanced over to see the pen cap resting between soft lips. He blinked at his mental description. How would he know they were soft? He stretched and tried to shake the odd train of thought he was currently on.

He was alone. No clicking or muffled words. No reason for him to move his feet. No one to ruin his ties. He sighed at the silence. Something was wrong with him. He liked being by himself. He enjoyed the silence. He didn't miss the clatter of cleaning or of simply staying busy. He rolled off the couch in a fit and ran his fingers along the soft carpet. He needed to fix this. He rolled over and set to making a new to do list. A simple title. He merged the never touch list quickly and heard the door open. The job must have been finished. He checked the schedule in his head and glanced up impressed. "Miss me?" The voice called after discovering his position on the floor. He grumbled under his breath but didn't reply. His list was saved and he took the hand offered him.

He was failing miserably and it was starting to irritate him. So far he had only succeeded in one item. The do not touch list. He looked up when he heard footsteps and saw a raw green bean being held to the mouth he was supposed to avoid looking at. A plate of food was placed next to him and he poked at it before trying a green bean. His eyes moved to the fork as it slid slowly out of the mesmerizing mouth. The television was on, silently playing, and dark eyes were stuck on it. In that moment he hated the box as eyes that normally watched him with fascination were on another. He could feel the control he had worked so hard to keep over the past few months slipping away. He bit down on his lip to keep the barrage of words threatening to spew forth locked away. The fork moved again and he froze. His brain was a jumble. He fought the urge to touch the lips that closed over the food. He was going insane. Even more so. He diverted his eyes to the television when he caught movement. He kept his eyes on the screen until the meal was finished.

He woke up to cursing and darkness. He ventured out from his room and the cursing grew louder. A bright light hit him and he flinched. "Power went out." The light fell and he could see a disassembled gun spread out across the floor. "Couldn't sleep?" He asked with a yawn. The light flashed up and he covered his eyes. "Sorry. No, too much to do tomorrow." The light fell and he took a seat on the edge of the cloth out of the way but close enough that he could see in the slightly brighter darkness. The smell of oil was stronger and after a few seconds the light rose. He heard the sound of teeth on metal and new where the torch had gone. He was staring but he didn't care. The small light was focused on the dark metal. He watched deft fingers slide along the barrel. And found he couldn't look away. Mental alerts were popping up but he ignored them. For once what was going on in front of him was entertaining. The darkness was doing something to him. He could feel his barriers lowering. He heard the familiar click of reassembly but it was too late. The light flicked up to his face and he knew the hunger that had been growing in him was clear. "Jim?" The concern in Sebastian's voice brought his eyes up from the fingers they had been watching for some time. "Yeah?" He could hear the growl in his voice. This wasn't good. Suddenly the room exploded with light. The resultant flinch was all he needed to recover his control.

After the close call when the power went out he redid his list and forced himself to follow it. He could tell that it was bothering Sebastian. He was scrolling through his list when he felt the couch dip by his feet. He minimized the list and grabbed his phone before sliding from the couch and moving to his room. That was the sixth time that he had moved from the couch in the past week. He checked his phone when it chirped and frowned. -I'll just go to my room. You can have the couch.- He heard Sebastian's door shut and looked back to the couch. He preferred the couch to his bed, he never wanted to sleep on the couch, but sometimes his mind wanted to switch off when he hit his pillows. He looked across the room to the closed door and sighed. He continued to his room.

A few hours later a knock woke him. He glanced at the door. Who knocked. He stumbled to the door and opened it. Sebastian was standing just outside with a plate in his hand. He had a green bean hanging from his mouth. He fought the urge to slam the door in his face to keep him from wanting to eat the other end of the bean. He could have sworn that the sniper was doing it on purpose. He took the plate and Sebastian slid away. He watched as he sat on the couch and turned on the television. He took a step forward and a large warning screen popped up. He forced it away and continued until he was curled up on the couch.


A/N: My first attempt at a MorMor fic. FYI... I tend toward the cuddlier side... Less stabbing eachother... This is set before the series... and I don't think it'll even get to the series at all. Let me know what you think. I know its a little OOC... so if you agree let me know how you think I could get them more on character. I'm going crazy on .