Color One - Red
Seeing Red
Dorian giggled as he slipped on his favorite bright red shirt, smoothing it into place and then turning to look at himself in a full-length mirror. It never failed to get a rise out of the Major when he wore it, he thought,
The Earl was not disappointed. The moment the Major saw him, he loudly expressed his displeasure with his choice of wardrobe. Well...that and the fact that he was interfering with his mission once again.
As the Major ranted on, Dorian sat watching, enthralled. The way he moved, the sound of his voice, the way he pointed his finger at him in a vain attempt to frighten him away. It wasn't until the officer grabbed him that Dorian returned to reality with a jolt. He found himself being dragged to his feet and thrust out the door, which slammed loudly behind him.
My God, he's so sexy when he's angry, Dorian thought with a sigh as he walked away. Then he giggled. Red always makes him see red.
*
"Get down, you idiot Limey!" the Major yelled above the shouts and sounds of gunfire, grabbing the Earl by the shoulder and pushing him into better cover.
Dorian did not resist the rough shove, ducking down, closing his eyes, and covering his ears as the Major's gun exploded several times as he returned fire. The noise grew so loud he felt like he was in the middle of a war zone instead of out on a pier outside a warehouse. He gave an alarmed cry when something large and heavy fell on him.
At first, Dorian thought something had fallen from the stacked pallets he was using for cover. To his horror, he discovered it was the Major, who was bleeding profusely. The Earl pulled the officer into cover, staring helplessly down at him a few seconds before he was putting his hands to the wound in a vain attempt to stop the bleeding.
The Major gave a sharp cry and then gritted his teeth to hold back a scream of pain from the pressure being applied to his wound. "Dammit!"
"Stay with me, Major," the Earl said as he looking around for anything he could use to staunch the bleeding. Nothing. Finally, he pulled off his shirt, bunching it up and jamming it over the wound.
"You and your flashy red shirts..." the Major growled weakly.
"At least the blood won't show," Dorian said in as upbeat a tone as he could manage. But it didn't seem to help.
Blood. So much blood. Seeping through the shirt, through fingers, onto the floor. Red. Blood red. A river of red...flowing away from the Major's body, pouring into the real river flowing beneath them.
Dorian saw the Major's eyes roll back into his head...
"Stay with me, Major!"
Felt his body go limp...
"Major, please..."
His breathing slowing to a stop...
"Klaus!"
*
Dorian sat bolt upright, his eyes wide, gasping to catch his breath. He put a hand to his chest, feeling his heart racing.
"Another bad dream?" came the quiet inquiry from beside him.
Dorian felt a hand gently rubbing his back and turned to the man beside him in bed. He leaned down, planting a gentle kiss on his mouth before lying down again. "I keep remembering..." He closed his eyes and gave way to a shudder. "I thought you were gonna die."
Klaus drew a deep breath, shifting position slightly, winching as he did so. His shoulder was still in bandages. He opened his mouth, only to close it again.
"I know what you're gonna say. You have a dangerous job, blah, blah, blah..."
"You're lucky you didn't get yourself killed, you idiot thief," Klaus said without venom. "Wearing that bright red--"
"I'm never wearing red again!" Dorian cried, much to Klaus's surprise.
"Never?"
Dorian shook his head. "Never."
Klaus's eyes flickered, a smile curling the edges of his mouth. "What am I gonna yell at you about now?"
This question was enough to clear the dark cloud from the room, chased away by the Earl's bright smile. "I'm sure you'll find something," he said as he snuggled close, being careful not to touch Klaus's injured shoulder. He smiled all the more when the man's free arm moved to wrap around him. "I'd like to spend the next twenty years finding something new for you to yell about."
"You idiot."
* * *