05. Fur

"It's itchy"
"It's warm. Shut up"
"It's ugly."
"So are you. Now shut up."
"It smells funny."
Killer snarled at him, "Then fucking freeze for all I care!" He jerked away, crawling out of the cubby they'd nested down in for the night before stalking off, leaving Kidd shivering in the ugly monstrosity that he was pretty sure had been thrown out for good reason. He knew beggars couldn't be choosers, but this thing couldn't possibly be a real coat. He was pretty sure it was some animal's actual skin and the body had just rotted out and left it's fur behind.
Kidd sulked in the dark hole, nose wrinkled at the weird wet small of the coat. It was far smaller than their last place, but Killer had insisted they move once the weather changed. And then he'd packed it with all the cloth and paper trash he could find until the two of them barely fit anymore.
A month ago it had been unbearable. Last week it had been a claustrophobic nightmare. Half an hour ago, it had been a warm safe - if not smell, itchy - place to sleep. Kidd pulled the coat to his chin, watching the open space warily. Eventually, everyone left and never came back again. He wondered if this would be the time Killer didn't come back.
Little frozen flakes of snow were starting to cling to the cold metal scrap at the mouth of their shelter. Still no Killer.
Well good riddance. At least this time Kidd would know why. He'd leave his ungrateful ass behind too if he could.
Still.. Still, there was a hurt that Kidd didn't like at all, a painful knot in his chest that just got worse when he sniffed back the hot angry tears that threatened. He threaded his arms through the coat sleeves and hugged himself just so he didn't feel so alone, staring at the dark shadows of insulation.

"Killer?" he wasn't begging. He didn't Beg, not anymore. But..

"What?" came a dull reply and Kidd scrambled out from the shelter, looking frantically around to see Killer sitting in the snow above the crawl-way, knees pulled up to his chin, hunched in on himself.

He looked as miserable as Kidd felt.

Kidd looked away, scrubbing at his own face, before sniffing disdainfully. "What are you doing, sitting out here like that. You stupid or something?"

Killer just shrugged, talking to his knees, "The way you where bitching, didn't seem like you wanted me around right now." His hair had curled a bit when it was still warm enough to melt the snow, and now the flakes clung to the wild edges like a white halo, making it look twice as thick as normal.

It was going to be a whole ordeal to try and get it dried now. Kidd scowled. "So you are stupid."

Killer chuckled, his stupid little fwa fwa laugh that had Kidd rolling his eyes.

"Would you get back inside before you turn into Am Fear Liath Mòror or some shit?"

"I dunno. Being that tall might be cool."

"Tch. Good luck with that," Kidd snickered, pulling the coat up higher and staring at Killer until the teen got the hint and got up. It took some negotiating, but they crawled back inside, Kidd frowning at the wet cold chill that had ensnared Killer and followed them into the dark.

Killer's face was pale, a hint of blue at his lips and fingers, and Kidd did not like at all how Killer refused to nestle back under the coat with him, like he was suddenly afraid to touch him. Which was really stupid because they'd never had that problem before.

"You can stop being dumb now," Kidd told him matter-of-fact, kicking at him a little to get Killer to stop trying to cuddle him from outside the coat. "Seriously, you're practically a Grayman already, get under the coat."

It was hard to see Killer's expression like this, but Kidd could picture it in his mind, that pout he did where his nose scrunched up and the lips went flat and he looked completely unamused with what ever shit Kidd was caught up in at the time. Only this time, it was trying to get Killer warmed back up and Kidd was starting to worry just a little bit.

"I'm... You'll get cold."

"And I'll warm you back up - world balances itself out. Now come one, we don't have all night!"

One day... one day he'd be Boss, Kidd decided, he'd be Boss and he'd have all the nicest clothes and him and Killer would have those pretty fur coats that didn't smell funny. They'd have clothes that wouldn't itch and and would belong to just them. Killer wouldn't have to dig clothes out of the trash anymore or beg Victoria for old things that she'd outgrown. And he wouldn't have to worry about making them last or trying to patch them up for Kidd to wear next. No more wrappings around shoes because the soles came off, or Killer trying to fold old newspapers up in a way to replace them entirely when Kidd accidentally lost one in the Heaps running away from the dogs.
Kidd looked away from the piling snow, burying his face in the crook of Killer's neck, coat pulled up high to fight the chill.

One day.