[PRP] Promise - Argintie X Kito [Finished]

[Katsura Zanshin]

Kito sat quietly at his desk, pouring over and balancing the books for Argintie's business. Almost everything was good. Almost. There was one marker that still hadn't been paid; a large amount too. Kito stared at the twenty thousand dollar loan that was supposed to have been paid back at the beginning of the month and started chewing on his lip. Most of the people who took loans from Gin were harmless, faceless nobodies but this guy - this guy Kito remembered vividly. The pen in his hand started tapping a nervous beat as the imp called the client to mind.

He had been huge, the biggest Chimera the Imp had ever seen. Not only taller than Gin, but broader, almost a mountain himself. He had been dressed nicely, though, three piece suit that strained to keep the mass of muscle contained, his accessories weren't off the rack either. However, the nice clothes did nothing to hide what had caused the Imp to sidle behind Gin's employees. No, what scared Kito the most was the big Chimera's eyes: cold, flat, dead-looking eyes. Eyes he'd seen on Argintie only when a deal had gone far, far South. Why did this man even need a loan? He looked perfectly capable of securing any denomination of cash he needed.

A loud CLACK startled Kito out of his reverie and he smiled up at the hallowed errand boy Gin had taken in. "Thank you, Rune! You make the best coffee!" Kito beamed up at the orange Imp, but merely got a polite but cool nod of acknowledgement. Kito sighed, shoulders slumping a titch. Rune still wasn't friendly, though Kito had done all in his power to get the hybrid to like him. Half frowning, Kito looked back down at the page and absent mindedly started tap-tapping his pen against his desk. What was he going to do? He didn't want to report this to Gin. He just had a really bad --  

[Katsura Zanshin]

"KITO! If you don't stop that incessant tapping, I'm going to string you up by your tail and turn you into a pinata!" Argintie snapped at the Imp, looking up in time to see Kito nearly fall out of his chair with a yelp of surprise. A few of the boys looked up, chuckled and went back to work; Kito being threatened was nothing new around here. Gin paid them no mind either, too busy glaring at his book-keeper. What was the matter with the damn Imp today? He'd been twitching like ants were building a hive in his fur. A glance at the calendar told Gin all he needed to know: It was the end of the month, someone was late paying up and Kito, the soft-hearted idiot, was worried.

Kito turned to send a guilty glance in Gin's direction and the Chimera narrowed his eyes and crooked a finger. "Bring the book," he said with a pointed glare when the Imp tried to head over without it. Kito stood in front of Gin's desk holding the book up between them like a shield. "Well? What is it this time? Single parent with ten kids? A bum trying to pull himself out of the gutter? Come on, what no account loser has your soft heart decided to shield this time?" Gin rolled his eyes, tail lashing lazily behind him as Kito's eyes looked at everything in the room except Gin. Odd. Even when he was pulling some boneheaded hero nonsense the Imp generally stood up to advocate for whoever needed an extension.

The Imp shuffled, opened the book, looked up, shuffled again. "Kito..." Gin purred, having a sudden realization. It wasn't just who it was on the books, it was the amount. "How much does this person owe me?"  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Oh, no. No, no , no. Gin thought Kito was trying to help the person on the books. No. Wrong. He just had a bad feeling about this account and he didn't want Gin, or anyone else here, to get involved. But the amount. The amount was far too high for their 'company' to just let it go. How was he going to explain that though? Gin would just think he was being silly. Again. The Imp's ears, always in a submissive position, drooped further.

Kito gulped audibly. "Well, it's...ah...it's qu-quite a bit of money. It's tweh..." Kito trailed off and shuffled nervously, his tail wrapping tightly around his legs. Gin raised an eyebrow at the Imp and he swallowed hard, his dry throat making a clicking sound. "Twenty. Thousand." Kito finally said, reluctantly. "But I'm not trying to extend the loan!" He waved his hands in frantic denial, the loose pages of the book fluttering loudly through the air. He almost hit himself in the face on accident. "I...I just think we should," Kito's face scrunched into a that expression you make when you know that your request is stupid and wont go over well, "forgive it entirely?"

Gin's stoney expression was really all Kito needed to see to know that his request was not sitting well. But what did the Imp expect one of the most powerful Mafia leaders in Below to do when faced with such a request? Throw flowers and worship Kito as the smarted person in the whole entire world? Highly unlikely.  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Argintie stared the Imp down with nothing more in his expression than a raised eyebrow. Never breaking his gaze, one claw went out to play with one of the many wooden figurines decorating his desk. He knew he was using his 'mafia look' on the poor Imp, but what the hell was Kito even thinking? Forgive twenty thousand? He wouldn't be able to keep his business going if he forgave a loan like that. Kito wasn't stupid, even when he let his soft heart get in the way of collecting a loan, it was always a postponement, not a complete exoneration of debt. Every client from that moment on would try to get out of their debt and heads would literally end up rolling. Kito knew that, so why?

"Kito," Gin leaned back in his chair, the hand playing with the figuring rising to rest thoughtfully against his chin. He watched the Imp make himself as small at the other male could get, "either explain yourself, or give the assignment out. I don't know what's gotten into your fluff-brain today, but this is unacceptable and you know it."

The Imp's green eyes dropped to the floor and he mumbled something straight into his neck fluff; a habit Kito hadn't expressed around him for years now. "Don't you dare mumble at me," Gin growled, his tail lashing in irritation. His sharp blue eyes cut to Rune and signaled the boy to get the hell out of his office and close the door behind him. "Now get over here and talk to me."  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Kito sniffled when the door closed, clutching the book to his chest. He was such a dimwit. He should have known this was how it was going to go down. His little heart pattered faster, leaping into his throat. He was so afraid he was shaking all over. The second Argintie told him to go over and talk to him, the Imp threw himself around the table and crawled into the Chimera's lap for a cuddle. "I-it's that Chimera!" Kito hiccuped loudly, "The scary one that took out the huge loan. He's l-late and I-I know you're going to take it on yourself because it's too dangerous."

Kito felt a gentle clawed hand stroke his hair and scritch at his ears as Gin's other hand took the ledger from Kito's clutched claws. The Imp watched cool blue eyes read over the information attached to the account and how delinquent the account had gotten. "Gin, please. I have a bad feeling about this one. Please, just let it go. I know it's a lot of money, I know it'll take a long time to recover from this, but I know you can do it. I know that this wont be as big a hit as you think it will be." The Imp pleaded. Gin closed the book with a loud snap that caused the anxious Imp to flinch and dropped the book on the desk.

Kito found himself deposited on the floor, looking up at the Chimera in confusion. The confusion increased when Gin gave him a kiss on the forehead, his nose, and then a nice proper kiss. What? Did...did he win? Was Gin not going to go? His hope rose, then dashed to pieces when Gin turned around and went to grab his coat. "No! Argintie!" Kito ran around and grabbed the front of Gin's shirt in his claws.  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Argintie looked down at the Imp and he felt what he always felt around Kito; a possessive, protective love that was fierce and surprising whenever it hit him. Gin leaned down and gave his Imp another kiss and stroked his hair soothingly. "Kito, I knew this was a set-up when he came in to ask for that money and I already have a plan. Now, remove your claws from my shirt unless you're planning on ripping it off and having your way with me."

The blush that bloomed across the Imp's face was beautiful to behold and Gin smirked down at Kito possessively. Kito's blush grew worse and he dropped Argintie's shirt and took a step away to pout. Gin continued to put his jacket on. "I'm going to be fine. I always am. Besides, it isn't like I'm not taking backup." The Chimera watched as Kito's tail twitched and then swept angrily back and forth. Not much got his Imp angry, but Argintie putting himself in danger did it. Still, the anger was better than Kito hiding from him. Argintie hated that.

Gin reached around the Imp and pulled Kito into him. "I am the biggest, baddest Chimera around. I run a mafia group for goodness sake, Kito. This brainless lump has nothing going for him except some height and a scary face. I will be home tonight."  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Kito whirled to face Gin, body tense and vibrating, claws clenched into fists, and tail held fluffed up and tense. "Promise me," Kito demanded, sea green eyes glaring intensely. Gin opened his mouth and Kito made a slashing motion with his arm before the Chimera could get a word out. "No. No humor, no flirtations. Just promise me. Promise you're not going to be reckless. Promise me, Gin."

Kito was scared. He had a bad feeling, and he always listened to his feelings. His gut instinct was right often enough that he trusted it implicitly. Something bad was going to happen with this account. Kito knew he couldn't stop Argintie, knew that he was just doing his job and making sure those loyal to him were going to be safe. But that was the problem. Argintie kept the others safe, but who was going to keep HIM safe? Kito knew it wasn't going to be him. The Imp was a complete pacifist with zero backbone. If Kito went, he'd just be in the way and make matters worse. He hated when Gin went out on these types of missions. When the accounts were opened by dangerous people.

Kito tried to keep his angry stance up, but all the tension was taking a lot out of him. He could barely stop his chin from trembling and he knew Argintie could see the stupid tears gathering in his eyes and making them look weak and watery. He would not cry. This wasn't a guilt-trip, this was about making Gin promise to be safe. "Promise me."  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Gin bit back a sigh; he could tell that his Imp was pretty worked up about this, and maybe a tiny part of him appreciated that Kito cared so much about Gin's well-being. The Chimera tilted Kito's face up with one claw and gave the Imp full eye contact. "I promise. I'll come home, safe and sound and in one piece. You just wait for me at home." The teeniest amount of tension left the Imp and Gin gave Kito another deep kiss to seal the promise. It was the best he could do, he wasn't about to let his business or reputation take a hit over Kito's worry; it would be far more dangerous in the long run to have to build back up. "Besides, I'm invincible, remember?" He winked as he left the office, calling a few of his trusted men to follow him out.

* * *

Gin stared at the ceiling of his bedroom knowing he had royally ******** this one up. He had broken his promise and had not come home in one piece. He groaned as he sat up in bed, wincing at the knife wound in his side. Kito was absolutely livid; he hadn't spoken a word to Gin since last night and he had barely even looked at the Chimera when he was caring for Gin. He had to fix this.

As if Gin's thoughts had called him, Kito entered the room carrying a tray, the smell of bacon wafting to the injured Chimera. However, the Imp stubbornly kept his eyes to the ground, not in submission but absolute anger. Argintie could tell from how stiffly the Imp walked and how Kito's tail swept the floor in tight, angry swishes. Gin was going to have to do something he rarely did.

"Kito..." He was answered by silence and the abrupt plop of the food tray across his lap. Poor choice on Kito's part. Argintie shot his hand out, grabbing hold of the immediately struggling Imp and pulling him onto the bed, sending breakfast flying everywhere. Gin felt his stitches pull, but didn't stop until he had Kito pinned in his lap and even then the Imp was straining to put as much difference between them as he could.

"I'm sorry." Kito stilled, one ear twitching back slightly in indication that the smaller boy was listening. Good, because Gin was only going to say this once and that was bad enough. "I promised to come home in one piece, but I got hurt. I'm sure you've heard the full story and know that I took the hit for one of the boys, just like I know that it doesn't matter how I got hurt, just that I did. So I'm sorry. But I'm home, I'm safe, and as long as we stop wrestling around in the bed and stop ripping my stitches out, I'll heal up just fine."

Kito squeaked and started struggling to get out of Gin's grasp again. "Kito, what did I just say about my stitches?" Gin growled. "Stop trying to escape, you twit."  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Kito turned his head and glared at Gin out of the corner of his eye, "I am not a twit, you...you idiot! I need to see your stitches, let go of me Argintie!" He didn't know if it was the uncharacteristic insult or his actual words, but Gin released him enough for Kito to spin in the Chimera's lap and rip his shirt up. Ignoring the bigger male's pervy comments and laughter, Kito inspected the wound. A couple of stitches had been pulled out and blood trickled down to soak into Gin's pants. Luckily the Imp had a bit of healing knowledge and tightened up the edges of the wound with magic to stop the bleeding, feeling bad that he couldn't heal it entirely. Suddenly he was mad all over again.

Kito jerked Argintie's shirt back down and leaned into Gin, ears back, eyes narrowed and fluffy tail switching back and forth. "You," he growled, hardly able to even form words he was so full of emotion. Anger, fear, happiness that his best friend wasn't dead. "You promised. All I asked was for you not to be reckless and you went and got stabbed ANYWAY! YOU COULD HAVE DIED!" Kito ended shouting at Gin from centimeters away, breathing hard.

Suddenly all the fight went out of him; ears and tail drooped, tears welled up in his eyes and he slumped against Gin's chest, sobbing into the pajama shirt and just completely ruining it. You could have died. What would I do then? I'm not anything without you. I wouldn't even be me without you."  

[Katsura Zanshin]

Argintie was a bit shocked that Kito would insult him, almost like hearing a person who never cursed dropping an F-bomb. If Argintie wasn't taking Kito's feelings seriously before, he'd definitely be taking them seriously now. He loosened his hold and allowed Kito to check his wound with a minimum of pervyness, though the simply adorable growl Kito leveled at him almost weakened his resolve to be a good patient. The shouting, though. Argintie winced at how loud the quiet Imp was getting...and at how much Argintie had obviously worried him. It was the sobbing that did him in. Stupid Imp, stupid heart.

Argintie tightened his hold and rubbed the Imp's back. "I know, I know. I'm the biggest a** in Below. But you're the biggest drama queen." Instead of the laugh he normally got, it was more sobs. "Kito, if I ever died, I know exactly what you would do. You'd turn into a hermit, move into a cave, never have another lover because I expressly forbid it even if I'm dead, and you'd make a million of your figurines to keep yourself fed. And every year you'd sneak into the graveyard in the dead of night to yell at me and probably knock over my gravestone." The sobs calmed and a watery giggle emerged from the teeny Imp.

"But that's never going to happen. I may get stabbed, I may get wounded, I may even land my dumb a** in the hospital, but I'll never get myself killed. I wont leave you. That's a promise you can count on." Kito looked up at him hopefully and Argintie growled down at him. "But if you ever tell anyone I've been this sappy, I'll string you up by your tail and leave you alone for a week." Kito simply laughed and lunged up for a kiss. Gin sighed happily, all was right in his world again.