his gloves and her knives: a collection of kanej one-shots

dancing with the devil

a/n: hello there~~ thank you for reading! i haven't been posting for a while since i'm quite occupied with exams and revision at the moment, but well,, i'm back now :D i'm also currently working on an original story, so do look out for that when i'm finally done with it! hope you enjoy~

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Inej looked into the dirt-stained mirror and her own face stared back.

At least the dress she was wearing was beautiful. The indigo fabric billowed around her ankles and cinched at her waist, making her look more like the dream of a princess that had been ripped away. Well, she smiled wistfully, I don't know any princesses with six knives hidden under their dress.

It was courtesy of Kaz, of course. If the heist was to go well, the costumes needed to be prepared.

"You look... very much like a spoilt mercher's daughter."

Inej huffed. Kaz stood in the doorway to his room, disinterestedly glancing at Inej before looking away. They were in his quarters, preparing to infiltrate a large ball happening at the house of a tradesman with too many shady deals swept under the rug. Needless to say, he wouldn't see his profits after they were done with him.

They were to go undercover as guests, and Kaz had bought her this (unusually luxurious) dress for that very purpose. He was in his usual tailored suit. Obviously, his daily wardrobe was already drab enough.

"Why, thank you for the compliment." Sarcasm.

"You should be happy. You look extremely rich. Doesn't kruge just put a smile on your face?"

Inej turned away, fastening the knives on her ankles. She was braced against his bed as he walked past her, beginning to organise some papers on his desk.

"We sneak into the ball in the evening, Jesper will distract the guards and we will pretend that we're supposed to be there. Then, for around half an hour, we'll need to stall while Wylan does some scouting. You should probably pretend to dance--"

"Dance?" Inej looked at him incredulously.

Kaz's gaze was unshakeable.

"Yes, Inej. People tend to dance at balls."

"Dance with who?"

Kaz stood unmoving. He hadn't considered that.

Inej sighed and asked, "And what will you be doing?"

Once again, Kaz remained silent.

"Dancing as well, I suppose."

Kaz looked both constipated and elated at the same time.

"Yes. I suppose we will have to dance. You do know how to dance, don't you?"

Inej remained silent as Kaz walked forward, leaning on his desk beside her. He had the upper hand once more.

Inej fixed him with a stony glare. "Yes, I can dance. Saints, I was an acrobat for half of my life, Kaz!"

"Can you ballroom dance?"

" I suppose not, but neither can you."

Kaz shifted every so slightly so Inej could catch a glimpse of his profile.

"What makes you say that?"

Well then.

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"You should learn how to dance! It's a valuable skill. You can't rob someone if you can't pretend to be them."

"I do not understand why I will need this skill for this heist."

Kaz let out a breath. Inej was being petty. Perhaps he was being petty too. Maybe he just wanted her to dance with him.

"You will need it for future heists then."

"You aggravate me to no end, Kaz."

"As do you."

Inej glared at him through her long eyelashes.

"Fine then. Teach me."

Kaz had forgotten to factor in the fact that he was the only person around who could actually teach her how to dance.

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Inej was wearing gloves that reached till her elbows, and Kaz could never have been more grateful for this. As he slid one hand into her outstretched palm, he looked into her eyes. Wide, unblinking and focused. This would difficult for them both.

Inej's hand was warm, she radiated warmth, even through two layers of fabric. Kaz could feel his armor melting. He slowly directed Inej's hand towards his shoulder as they stepped closer. The room was silent, filled with only Inej's blue dress, Kaz's black suit and reflections of their figures in the mirror on the wall.

A hand on her waist would not be advisable for either of them.

He let his right hand hover an inch over Inej's waist and caught Inej's gaze.

"Is this okay?"

"Yes. Are you okay?"

Deep breaths.

"Yes."

Inej's soft curls framed her angular face, like a renaissance painting of a shattered glass vase. It wielded greater strength for having been broken. She smiled gently, and Kaz tried to pull himself into some semblance of a man for her. Two steps forward, two steps back. The only sound was the swishing of Inej's skirts and the click clack of Kaz's shoes. Kaz's hand still hovered over Inej's waist and Inej still hovered over the lock to Kaz's heart.

"You'll step on my shoes if you keep going like that."

"I'll step on your shoes if you keep nitpicking about everything."

I'd love to have you step all over me, my Wraith. She could stab her with her knives and he would continue to pray to her to absolve him of his sins.

As they danced in the darkening room, their heist forgotten, the only music that played was the beating of their hearts. A melancholy tune, though regular in nature, it made them feel at home. And when Inej slowly placed her head on Kaz's chest, she found out that their hearts were beating as one.

"Guys are y'all rea-- OKAY NEVER MIND CONTINUE DOING WHATEVER YOU WERE DOING OH MY GOD I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS FINALLY HAPPENING!"

Inej and Kaz whipped around to see Jesper, Wylan and Nina in the doorway. Jesper looked like an excited fangirl, Wylan was studiously looking at the floor and Nina was looking at them as if they were a plate of hot waffles.

The awkward silence was becoming very painful. Inej had half a mind to jump out of the window before Kaz cleared his throat. Straightening his tie, he said, "We should probably go now. It's getting late."

Inej's face was ablaze and she scooted away from Kaz as surreptitiously as she could. They would never live this down. Jesper would compare this to Kaz and Inej being caught having sex in public.

As they left the room, Nina whispered in Inej's ear, "You'd better be dancing like that at your wedding! You bring that brooding literal husband of yours and I'll bring the waffles."

Inej shook her head in exasperation, still smiling a little as she remembered how it felt to be dancing with the devil.

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a/n: i hope you enjoyed! this isn't very high quality since it's quite rushed, but do comment and vote  if you liked it bc comments, votes and constructive criticism are like caffeine for me-- 

do look out for my original story, 'a door apart', that i'll be posting in maybe a month or so and i hope you're doing great wherever you are!