Prompt courtesy of @gingerly-writing
“So,” purred a voice from the shadows, “I take it one of those is for me?”
The thief froze, their gloved hand still buried in the case full of priceless rings, and swallowed hard. “Uh…maybe?”
“Oh, delightful. I’ve always wanted to see you on your knees.” - @gingerly-writing
The thief immediately laughed, too loud, too bright, to cover their swift retreat around the glass display case. The sounds of revelers just a room away suddenly seemed much louder. All it would take was a shout, and the thief would be caught in the act.
"Oh stop, you're making me blush!" the thief said, rolling the handful of gems and metals in their fingers, letting them flash. "Let's save that for the honeymoon."
The villain prowled out of the shadows like a tiger in formal wear. The thief tried not to gulp. The look... suited them. A lot. The thief had always been weak for beauty. Now look where that had gotten them.
"The honeymoon? I haven't said yes yet," the villain cooed, running a finger along the popped latch, the cut wires. "And it's never a good idea to assume someone will say yes. Even if they should."
"Oh." The thief pressed a hand to their mouth in mock surprise. "Darling, are we... talking about last week? You know it broke my heart to say no to your offer - did you get my letter explaining the situation?"
"I did." The villain kept pacing to the right, forcing the thief to circle widdershins around the display case. "Full points for style, by the way. I didn't even know you had personalized stationary. "
The thief shrugged. "I asked your secretary where you got yours." They let the rings flash again as their other hand slipped towards the knife in their pocket...
Thats when the villain made their move. Not over the display case but under it - through the table legs in a swirl of black fabric. The thief bolted - and made it just two steps before the villain's hands were on them, spinning them. A fortune in jewelry clattered to the floor and the villain had the thief held tight against them, wrists pinned behind their back.
"See now," the villain murmured in their ear. "This why I need you on this job, darling. Such attention to detail. The finesse. The follow through. I just can't take no for an answer," they breathed out gently and the thief shuddered. The villain shifted their grip, reached into a pocket with a free hand. "That's why I brought you a ring myself."
"You...?" The villain produced the ring with a flourish and for a second the thief stared blankly at it. Surely the villain wasn't proposing, not with an undistinguished engagement ring; a low quality diamond and indifferent workmanship, the kind of ring sold at mall jewelry stores to people like...
And then the thief recognized it and they felt the blood drain from their face. The villain smiled. They let go, pressed the ring into the thief's unresisting hand. "I suppose it's more a loan than a gift. But you can give it back to your mother when I'm done with you."
The villain stepped back abruptly to twitch their finery back to order. "I'll give you 5 minutes to straighten this up and meet me out front," they said with a wave of their hand at the case, the rings. "Grab me the emerald one. It will look divine with my eyes."