As always, Kurama was there when he got home. Sitting quietly and staring at the door, patient, quiet.
"I know," Hiei sighed, kicking off his boots and tossing his cloak unceremoniously to the floor, "I'm late again. Don't lecture me." Green eyes bore into him, penetrating, accusing.
Mumbling grumpily, Hiei passed him, going into their small kitchen to fix a drink. The scent of the liquor was more than welcome after the day he'd been through... Huffing, he decided to try his hand at apologizing, swirling ice in the delicate glass, "I would have been home earlier... Mukuro kept me late. Insisted the other guards should relieve me before I could come home."
In the dark living room, the clock ticked. It was unsettling. It was familiar.
"Fox," he started, biting down the apology on the tip of his tongue, "I would have come home if I could have...you know that, right...?"
Green eyes. Dark. Accusing.
With a tired sigh, the koorime knelt before his mate. The ice bobbed in the glass. The smell of alcohol turned his stomach. Gently, he placed his hand upon Kurama's knee, searching the pale face for forgiveness. Anything at all...
He stared. Face betraying nothing.
"I've missed you..." Hiei's whisper was deafening. Gently, so carefully, he reached out to brush a lock of sanguine hair from Kurama's forehead. He stroked his bangs, noting with a sense of irony that Kurama's hair was...quite damaged...
"I'll make a deal with you," he murmered, "I'll stay home. All month. If you'll just...talk to me...come back to me... Alright?"
Kurama stared.
A fly paused on long lashes.
Hiei watched it travel over a faded emerald eye.
Kurama was starting to smell...
"I'll run us a nice, hot bath. I'll clean up in here. Then we can talk. Would you agree to that?"
Kurama's lips had begun to pull away, revealing once-white teeth, the tip of a dark, silent tongue.
A whisper of motion, Hiei gently placed a kiss there. Unresponsive. Cold. Still.
As always.
"Don't be sad... I'll make it better."
Stiff limbs refusing to cooperate. Clothes fell to the carpet with small noise.
Kurama would need new clothes soon... The flies were coming back.
Gently, Hiei lifted the body in his arms. There was no resistance. As always, Kurama's head fell to his shoulder.
The bathwater quickly sullied. Brown, red. Ugly.
Kurama hated ugly things.
He set another fingernail on the counter. 1 2 3. To join all the others.
Tucked in, safe and sound, Kurama stared. "Shh...its time to go to sleep... We'll talk more in the morning."
He reached across the bed, sliding pale eyelids closed. Gently smoothing sanguine hair, letting the stray locks fall onto the sheets.
Hiei kissed him, long, gentle, hardly daring to breathe.
"Sleep well fox..."
Perhaps Kurama would feel better in the morning.
"...I love you."