お帰り [Welcome Home] - Chapter Eight
Title: お帰り [Welcome Home]
Authors: curionenene and yeonah
Chapter: 8/?
Fandom: SS501
Pairings: KyuMin, HyunSaeng
Rating: PG-16
Warning: Angst, AU
Summary: Black and white... white and black. It isn't always possible to tell what is good and what is evil; and four players in the never-ending fight for freedom would know. In a world where things are painted by shades of grey, taking a stand could mean life or death. And the struggle to be free, truly free, may tear them apart until there is nothing left but ash.
A/N: KyuJong and HyunJoong are played by curionenene , while JungMin and YoungSaeng are played by yeonah .
YoungSaeng stared at him for a moment. Then the meaning of HyunJoong's words hit him, and his eyes widened as his cheeks flushed a dark red. "W...What?"
In bed with HyunJoong?
It took him a moment to wrap his mind around the idea, keeping his mouth shut in case he started stammering. "Y-you mean..."
'He doesn't mean actually DOING it!' YoungSaeng screamed at himself mentally. 'Just pretending! Get a grip!'
When he felt that he could breathe again, YoungSaeng drew in a shaky breath, looking at the floor and bright red. "W-well...it would...work, I think...it's a logical excuse..."
Trying not to flail, the felinefolk shifted around nervously. "But we have no way to prove that's...w-what I was doing."
Following that train of thought, his eyes widened and he went even redder. No, there was a way they could prove it. He just wasn't sure if his sanity was up to the task.
HyunJoong refused to look at YoungSaeng after that - if he did, he was sure that he would turn into a human heater with the heat he was radiating. He licked his lips nervously, wincing at YoungSaeng’s question about proof.
There was silence for a moment as HyunJoong’s quick mind provided the solution to that. And it took all his self-control not to ram his head into a wall from mortification. “Er…”
YoungSaeng took the chance of looking up at HyunJoong, and instantly wanted to hide under the couch. He couldn't do this. There had to be another way.
But compared to the other two solutions, he thought this one had more of a chance of being pulled off. And less painful for sure.
A faint whine escaped the felinefolk. "I-i-it...would work better than the o-other ideas..." If he managed not to die in the process.
What mortified him the most was that it didn't actually sound all that bad.
HyunJoong looked up at the whine, then his brain shorted out at YoungSaeng’s verdict. Staring blankly at YoungSaeng he blinked, once, twice, then three times. And before he could stop it, he blurted out. “You mean you’re actually considering it?”
He hoped that didn’t sound… too excited.
Quivering where he stood, YoungSaeng stared back at HyunJoong, at a loss for what to say. What was he supposed to say?
"I-it sounds better than being beaten up," he whispered finally, a complete tomato. "I-if we just...leave...marks on each other..." He would die before he could finish his sentence. "That should be convincing enough, no? O-or..."
Would they actually have to…
HyunJoong was pretty sure that the two of them combined could provide heating for a small country for a year. He swallowed at the implication, shaking his head. “No, no. I think m-marks will be…j-just fine…”
Marks…great…how were they going to manage that?
YoungSaeng nodded, struggling to wrap his mind around the situation. "I-I suppose we should...get it over with?" Logically, if they had been...in bed...the marks would have to have been there for some time before they arrive at HQ later today. Realistically? YoungSaeng wanted to hide and never come out.
“……” HyunJoong was beginning to regret ever bringing up the idea. He hadn’t been intimate with anyone ever since…yeah. But anyway, this was YoungSaeng, and he knew how bad the felinefolk was with intimacy, and…besides, this was just all so wrong.
But he too saw the logic in carrying out this course, and so, even though he didn’t really want to (or did he?), he nodded and walked to his room, his face entirely red by now.
YoungSaeng held back another whine. Already skittish about this, his mind balked completely at the idea of being in HyunJoong's room. Because 'bedroom' meant 'bed', and he hoped HyunJoong wasn't expecting that of him, climbing on the bed and-
Stepping on those thoughts before they could get out of hand, YoungSaeng drew in a shaky breath and followed HyunJoong. He could barely have the man in arms reach at times; the last two nights had been flukes, that was it. Of course he was going to be nervous.
Pausing just inside the room, YoungSaeng lingered in the doorway, brown eyes looking everywhere but HyunJoong. "W-what now?"
HyunJoong gulped, pressing his burning forehead to the wall. He wasn’t exactly sure about this, probably equally skittish as YoungSaeng at the thought of such intimate proximity. Sure, HyunJoong liked hugs, clinging and glomping and things like that - but those were absolutely innocent…and noncommittal.
‘It’s just… marks. Just marks. We’re not doing it. Ah…damnit.’ HyunJoong ran a frustrated hand through his hair. He closed his eyes, trying to reason with himself that the faster they got it over and done with, the faster they could put it out of their minds. “Er...well…I dunno…I guess we could…er…kiss…standing up or…s-something. For…a s-start at least…”
Kiss. YoungSaeng nodded slowly, taking uncertain steps forward. He'd kissed before...a long, long time ago...so it shouldn't be too hard, right? 'It's HyunJoong,' he told himself firmly. As much as the idea reassured him (because of all the people he knew, the hunter was one of his top trusted at this point), it scared him as well.
Even as he argued with himself mentally, YoungSaeng kept walking forward, until he found himself in front of his master. Staring up at the human for a moment, YoungSaeng swallowed thickly, steeling himself before standing up on his toes, lips ghosting over HyunJoong's as the felinefolk tried to avoid making contact in any other way, the image it created almost comical as he leaned forward across the gap between them.
HyunJoong stiffened when YoungSaeng was suddenly in front of him, leaning in close. His breath caught in his throat, a sudden lump forming when YoungSaeng’s lips brushed against his, and it took all his courage not to push YoungSaeng away.
Swallowing (not that it did any good), he leaned forward as well, trying to help the process, his hands stiffly by his side as well, so as not to make any unnecessary contact.
YoungSaeng was shaking, both from nerves and from the effort of holding himself away at such an awkward angle. Normally it would be no problem to make sure there was no accidental brush of arms or clothing, but the felinefolk had temporarily forgotten that with his tail bound as it was, his balance was next to none.
So when he tried leaning in a little more, to apply actual pressure to the kiss, the extra degrees caused him to tip forward, the felinefolk breaking the kiss with a yelp as he pin wheeled his arms and crashed into HyunJoong.
HyunJoong had thought that everything was going fine (as fine as it could be between them), discounting the fact that they’d actually have to touch each other soon since well…proof of their explanation kind of needed contact. But slow was good…
Then suddenly, YoungSaeng let out a yelp, and seconds later, HyunJoong had a felinefolk crashing into him. Normally, it would have been an easy matter to catch YoungSaeng, but this time, he was flustered, his hands were glued to his sides, and there was the matter of him leaning forward.
And so, he toppled over with YoungSaeng with a yell, crashing to the floor in an unorganized heap.
Eyes shut tightly in reflex, YoungSaeng slowly opened them again, blinking. When he saw he was on top of HyunJoong now, nose-to-nose practically, his ears flattened and he balked instantly.
"I-I-I'm sorry!" he cried out, trying to push himself back up off HyunJoong, except that their legs were tangled together and when he tried, he ended up slipping and falling back down with his head buried in HyunJoong's neck, an 'oof' escaping him.
HyunJoong groaned when his head hit the floor, his vision blacking out momentarily before it came back and was filled with a pair of golden eyes. He stared at them for a while, when suddenly they were gone, and his body was protesting at his legs being roughly separated from something else that was warm and not exactly undesirable.
Seconds later, his mind caught up just as YoungSaeng fell back onto him, his head buried into the crook of his neck and HyunJoong turned a bright red, releasing a rather strange noise.
It was too much contact for YoungSaeng, far too much. He could feel HyunJoong's heart beating against his chest, their legs twined together, their hips...the felinefolk shut his eyes tightly, trying to remember what had gotten them into this situation in the first place.
Right, marking.
Scrambling for anything that could distract him before he shifted and ran for the safety of the couch, YoungSaeng slowly managed to push himself up onto his elbows and knees, face still dangerously close to the human's neck.
He doubted he would ever be able to get this close again if he got off now, so he tried to focus on the marking idea. "Sh-should I...mark you here?" YoungSaeng asked, trying and failing to hide how out of his depth he was as his breath ghosted lightly over the exposed skin of HyunJoong's neck.
HyunJoong stiffened a little when YoungSaeng’s breath tickled his skin and he almost balked then, the contact too much a reminder of the man of his past. But he forced himself still, reminding himself that this was YoungSaeng - the felinefolk who was probably even more awkward about this than he was. YoungSaeng, someone he knew would never take advantage of him, someone he trusted.
And so, he swallowed, screwing his eyes shut as he nodded quickly, “G-go ahead.”
YoungSaeng bit back another whine, allowing himself a moment to consider chickening out, before he hesitantly leaned in. His lips met HyunJoong's neck first, the felinefolk's ears brushing against his master's cheek as he rested there for a moment. One thing at a time.
Then, slowly, he started to kiss the spot he'd chosen, nipping at the soft skin. He could have gone fast and gotten it over quickly, but YoungSaeng didn't want to accidentally hurt HyunJoong with his tiny fangs. So he went slowly and gently, eyes shut tightly as he worked at the spot with lips, teeth and occasionally tongue when he was worried he was being too rough. He was never going to be able to look the hunter in the eye after this.
HyunJoong closed his eyes as YoungSaeng began to work on his skin and at the very first kiss, HyunJoong felt a low moan bubbling up, which he had to work to force back down. He didn’t want to frighten YoungSaeng away.
It was taking an agonizingly long time, and HyunJoong could feel himself being aroused even though he didn’t mean to be. Finally, he lifted his arm to his lips, biting the back of it to muffle the sounds of pleasure that were inevitably trying to force their way out of his mouth.
Struggling to concentrate on his task and nothing else, YoungSaeng's ears twitched slightly as he picked up on changes in HyunJoong's breathing, and every now and then a faint noise that never made it past the human's lips. The felinefolk felt his blush deepen even further, if that was even possible, as he continued nipping and sucking gently.
When he was satisfied with the mark he'd left on the other man's skin, YoungSaeng slowly moved his head back and sat up properly on his hands and knees, staring down at HyunJoong with flushed cheeks and moist, slightly parted lips.
HyunJoong opened his eyes when he felt the pressure on his skin lift, and he stared up at YoungSaeng, his mind entirely out of it, his eyes unfocused, taking in the flushed cheeks and parted lips.
Instinctively, he sat up as well and leaned in close, before pausing, something at the back of his brain warning him that he might be pushed away.
YoungSaeng scooted back slightly so that HyunJoong could sit up properly, and ended up kneeling with his legs on either side of the other man's waist. He wasn't paying as much attention to that part as he probably should though, golden eyes locked with HyunJoong's.
When the human leaned in, YoungSaeng stiffened instinctively, eyes wide. After a moment, he swallowed and gave a tiny nod.
He should have been surprised perhaps, but HyunJoong’s eyes were glazed and his brain unfocused, and so he just pressed forward, closing his eyes as his lips touched the felinefolk’s - something he’d never thought he’d ever do.
The contact was much more solid than the first, failed attempt at a kiss, YoungSaeng frozen for a moment as he struggled to keep up. Then he gave up thinking completely, hesitantly leaning forward as well to help with the kiss. His eyes fluttered shut, one hand slowly lifting to touch HyunJoong's hair, the locks that slipped through his fingers softer than he would have thought.
HyunJoong had expected hands to be pushing him away, or perhaps a sound of protest, or at least some struggling. But there was none of that - only an acceptance and then a reprociation. And least to say, HyunJoong was confused.
He couldn’t even remember why they were doing this, just that they were, and it was awkward yet enjoyable at the same time.
It was getting harder for the felinefolk to think, mind becoming foggy as he leaned into the kiss a little more. He remembered, the first time HyunJoong had tried making contact with him, jumping out of his skin and giving the man long, deep scratches across his arm. YoungSaeng hated physical contact, and did anything possible to get out of it. It brought back bad memories and thoughts of pain.
But how did that explain why he was the one pressing closer now?
His hands shook as he slowly moved his fingers through HyunJoong's hair, then along the line of his jaw, mapping out his face with a gentle touch.
Hyunjoong was beginning to find it hard to breath, and he wondered if perhaps, he was really under the covers now, his face muffled by a pillow, and this was all really just a dream. But then, he shivered as YoungSaeng’s hands grazed across his skin, the action tickling his heightened nerves - and then he knew that all this was real.
And that if he didn’t surface from the kiss soon, he’d probably die of apoplexy.
So, he broke the kiss, breaths heavy and hard as he stared incomprehensibly at the felinefolk just inches away from his face.
Suddenly the warm lips against his own were gone, and YoungSaeng's eyes snapped open again, meeting the gaze of the hunter right in front of him. Panting for breath (he hadn't been in desperate need of it, but he'd forgotten that HyunJoong was human and couldn't hold his breath as long as he could), the felinefolk stared right back, mind struggling to restart itself.
As soon as it did, his face burned bright red, and YoungSaeng let out a strangled whine, ears flattening. What was he doing? Kissing wasn't going to leave the marks they needed. In fact, it made it all the more difficult because YoungSaeng hadn't wanted to stop. If HyunJoong hadn't needed to breath, he could have kissed him all day.
Shaking, the felinefolk shut his eyes tightly and ducked his head down like a pet being scolded, trying to ignore all the places their bodies were touching, how warm HyunJoong was, how terrified out of his wits he was, and how despite all that he hadn't really minded the kiss.
HyunJoong mind wasn’t as fast as YoungSaeng’s, and he was still trying to figure out what had happened when the felinefolk let out a sound of fear and HyunJoong started, alarmed, wondering what wrong he had done this time.
“I’m sorry!” HyunJoong immediately said even though he didn’t know what he was apologizing for. “Ah…sorry…YoungSaeng…sorry…are you…ok-”
Then he remembered.
“AH! I’M SORRY!” HyunJoong leapt up, taking a few fast but unsteady steps back and crashed into the bed, flipping over it from momentum and landing on the floor - the other side of the bed. “OW!”
YoungSaeng yelped when he was suddenly dumped on the floor, a gasp of pain escaping him as his tail was crushed yet again. Hurriedly pushing himself up into a crouching position to spare it, he stared at where he could see HyunJoong's feet sticking up in the air on the other side of the bed.
He wanted to ask if his master was all right but he couldn't breathe, shaking violently as his fingers curled against the floor, claws making scratches in the wood. It took his all not to shift and get the hell out of there, and even then it was probably only because his mind hadn't fully grasped the situation yet that he hadn't taken off.
Once again his body was doing things, and he had been powerless to stop it.
Only this time, it hadn't been HyunJoong playing with his ears. It had been something much, much deeper. Another choked whine escaped the felinefolk, the only noise he seemed capable of making as he closed his eyes again, trying to calm down and failing. His face burned and his head span. Why?
HyunJoong groaned from his uncomfortable position, sliding his legs off the bed and pushing himself up, grabbing onto the soft mattress like a shipwrecked man. He buried his head into the mattress, trying to clear the stars from his eyes for a moment before he looked up, his eyes widening at the frightened stance that YoungSaeng was in.
“Young…Saeng…?” He asked cautiously, not exactly sure as to what he could do, being utterly confused himself.
YoungSaeng didn't reply right away, couldn't reply, the felinefolk so far gone he couldn't even form human words. Struggling to think, he choked back a terrified mewl and hid his face against one knee, shaking.
Finally, after what seemed like centuries, he was able to peer up at HyunJoong, golden eyes watery. The fear in them was the same as the day they'd met.
"I-I'm sorry," he choked out, badly rattled. "I'm sorry."
“W-what?” HyunJoong blinked, pushing himself to his feet, making his way around the bed and kneeling in front of the felinefolk. “Why are you sorry, YoungSaeng? This is…my fault. Again…”
He sighed, rubbing his face for a moment before he held out a hand to the felinefolk, a request for forgiveness. “So…I’m sorry.”
Stiffening as HyunJoong approached him, YoungSaeng stared at the offered hand, face still red as a tomato.
"B-but I...” He resisted the temptation to touch his lips. Looking up at HyunJoong, then back at his hand, the felinefolk swallowed thickly.
Once his claws had retracted, he shakily lifted one hand, hesitantly touching fingers to HyunJoong's, looking up at him again.
HyunJoong didn’t press YoungSaeng, only held his hand there, waiting, as if dealing with a very frightened young cat. Very much like the first time they had met.
“Well…give up on the marking idea.” HyunJoong said slowly. “I’ll think of something else.”
YoungSaeng's breathing was slowly evening out again, though he remained jittery and on edge. He wanted to agree with finding something else, nerves shattered. But he knew their options were limited, and it was YoungSaeng's own fault they were in this situation in the first place.
And they had already started. The felinefolk's eyes found the prominent mark on HyunJoong's neck, and he had to work to control his breathing again.
"I-it's okay," he whispered. "This is the best way. I just...need a moment." Needed a moment to recover before he bolted. The warmth of HyunJoong's hand was comforting.
“A-are you sure?” HyunJoong stuttered at YoungSaeng’s answer, thinking it default that YoungSaeng would take up his offer. And his own cheeks flamed, following the felinefolk’s line of sight and his hand flew up to touch the mark YoungSaeng had made on him.
The felinefolk nodded stiffly, going even redder as HyunJoong covered the mark. Drawing a shaky breath and going to sit down, he inhaled sharply and jumped back into a crouch when he sat on his tail. Damn the stupid pair of jeans...
"I-if it's okay...can I change out of these and come back?" he asked quietly, looking everywhere but at HyunJoong.
“G-go ahead.” HyunJoong nodded, his line of sight drifting everywhere - it inevitably went back to YoungSaeng before shooting off to some random place, the process repeating itself every few seconds.
God, what was wrong with him. He had promised himself never to do something that made YoungSaeng uncomfortable, and even older was the promise to himself that he would never get intimate with another again…
That kiss…what exactly was it?
YoungSaeng gave an inward sigh of relief and stood, hand falling out of HyunJoong's. He left the room, trying not to appear like he was running away, and retreated to the guest bedroom. Though he didn't actually sleep in the room, preferring the couch, his few belongings were kept there.
It only took a minute to change out of the baggy jeans and into one of those with a hole in the back for his tail. It was a relief not to have it crushed anymore. Sighing softly, YoungSaeng turned and looked at himself in the mirror, pressing one hand to a flushed cheek. Then, slowly, his fingers traced his lips, slightly sore from lack of use.
It took another minute to prepare himself mentally. YoungSaeng didn't like not feeling in control of what he did. Maybe he should ask for no more kissing. It definitely wasn't helping him keep a clear head.
When he was ready, he padded silently over to HyunJoong's room again and stepped in, hovering in the doorway and looking at the floor.
HyunJoong had shifted from his place on the floor to his bed, lying upside down, pillow on his face, trying to hide its lobster redness from the world. What had he been thinking, suggesting that? And what had YoungSaeng been thinking, agreeing to it? Talking their way out of things would have been a more sensible, if not risky, idea.
Seeing HyunJoong lying on his bed, YoungSaeng swallowed and hesitantly padded closer. "H...HyunJoong?" He paused a meter away from the bed, golden eyes uneasy. Why could they never do things the easy way?
HyunJoong jumped at the call, pulling the pillow off his face and turning so that he could look at YoungSaeng. “Ah…sorry…I was just…hmm…” HyunJoong tilted his head as he observed the ears on YoungSaeng’s head and an idea suddenly struck him.
“Do you think…you could make marks like these…as a kitten?” He suddenly asked, gesturing to the mark YoungSaeng made earlier.
YoungSaeng shrank back slightly when HyunJoong jumped, before blinking at him in confusion at the question. His eyes followed the gesture to the mark, and he blushed again before considering it.
"I...think I could, yeah." He nodded slowly. It wasn't that bad of an idea...and would prevent the kissing at least. It wouldn't work when it was time for HyunJoong to mark him, but one thing at a time.
He carefully loosened the collar of his shirt so he wouldn't choke himself while shifting. It happened far too often for his liking. "Er...where..should I mark you?" he mumbled, bright red.
HyunJoong’s eyes brightened, glad that at least this way, perhaps YoungSaeng wouldn’t be so self-conscious about it. Then that hard-earned victory was washed away by YoungSaeng’s next question. “Er…where?” HyunJoong repeated dumbly, before he sighed, swallowing.
“Here…I guess.” HyunJoong finally answered, pointing to the area on his neck near to his jaw then to his collarbone. “And…here…I guess. The rest…we’ll just pretend are there. They’ll be covered up by the clothes anyway…” He really hoped YoungSaeng wouldn’t ask how he knew where to mark…
YoungSaeng nodded slowly, before taking a deep breath to calm himself. It was different as a cat; he could just pretend they were playing around or something. Pausing for a moment, he closed his eyes and shifted, clothing falling to the floor in a heap.
It took the black kitten a moment to wiggle himself free, but once he was out he jumped up onto the bed beside HyunJoong. Padding quietly up to just under HyunJoong’s head, he looked at his master for a moment to make sure this was okay before lowering his head to the spot near the human's jaw, nipping at the skin carefully.
HyunJoong let out a soft giggle when the black kitten padding up to his collarbone, the kitten’s fur tickling the underside of his chin, and he lifted up a hesitant hand, stroking the kitten’s soft black fur, encouraging him. He smiled at how innocent this all seemed all of a sudden now that YoungSaeng was in his cat form.
Hearing the giggle, YoungSaeng batted HyunJoong's nose lightly with one paw as if to reprimand him, except he was really kind of glad the awkward, suffocating atmosphere had faded somewhat.
Of course, the hand stroking his fur posed a whole other problem. Biting and lapping at the slowly reddening skin, YoungSaeng twitched and purred a little when fingers found a sensitive spot.
HyunJoong’s hand froze and lifted at the purr, blinking. Most people would have continued stroking that spot, but not HyunJoong - and especially not with YoungSaeng. “Er…sorry.”
When the hand was lifted, to even YoungSaeng's surprise he released a yowl of protest. The reason why was easily masked though, because he'd been leaning into the touch and when the support of HyunJoong's hand was gone, the black kitten flopped onto his side on the bed.
Rolling himself back onto his stomach, YoungSaeng blinked golden eyes at HyunJoong before scooting close enough to continue what he had been doing.
“Oops.” HyunJoong said in a way of an apology, watching rather dazedly as YoungSaeng flopped onto the bed with a protest before shaking himself up and resuming what he was doing. It took all of HyunJoong’s effort not to let out a cooing sound and to resume scratching behind YoungSaeng’s ear.
Instead, he lay still as YoungSaeng continued his administrations, restraining any giggling sound or whatsoever.
Working at the spot with teeth and rough tongue, YoungSaeng was able to raise a mark similar to the one he'd left earlier, though not the exact same. As long as it looked close enough though, that was good for him. Pulling back, YoungSaeng shook himself slightly, looking at HyunJoong and mewling.
When he turned his attention towards the second spot HyunJoong had pointed out, he found that the angle was rather awkward from where he was beside the human. Tilting his head slightly to one side and debating, after a moment YoungSaeng leapt up onto HyunJoong's chest, turning himself so that he could get at the man's collarbone that way and dragging HyunJoong's shirt collar down slightly by hooking tiny claws into the material.
“Need help?” Hyunjoong asked, helping to hold down his shirt collar. It was a rather odd scene with the human talking to a cat, and even more odd that the cat was responding like a human would.
“Hmm…you’re getting heavier…” HyunJoong commented randomly, sitting upwards slightly so he could look at YoungSaeng with a sparkle in his eye that was teasing.
Mewling in thanks when HyunJoong held down his shirt collar, YoungSaeng stopped and stared at his master when HyunJoong commented on his weight. "You said I was getting thinner a few days ago, make up your mind!" he yowled, batting the man's nose again and nearly tumbling off HyunJoong's chest when the human shifted.
HyunJoong could guess what YoungSaeng had said and chuckled. “That was as a human. But I think cat-wise, you’re putting on weight.” It made absolutely no sense at all, but HyunJoong said it with a face as straight as a line.
“Woah, careful.” HyunJoong quickly righted YoungSaeng when the felinefolk nearly fell off his chest, unable to resist ghosting his hands lightly on YoungSaeng’s ears.
"You are criminally insane, I'm sure of it," YoungSaeng grumbled, letting HyunJoong fix his position. When the gentle hand brushed against his ears again, they twitched slightly in response, the felinefolk's eyes half-closing in a cat look of contentment.
Laying down on HyunJoong's chest, YoungSaeng scooted up so he could reach the man's collarbone, nipping at the soft skin as his tail waved behind him.
HyunJoong resisted laughing for a bit more, before he gave up, bursting into uncontrollable giggles, nearly knocking YoungSaeng off in the process. “Aigoo…” HyunJoong complained as he righted YoungSaeng again. “Stop tickling me on purpose!”
Yelping and scrambling for footing again, YoungSaeng gave a cat-like sigh. "I'm not doing anything!" he protested, before he paused, and that mischievous look appeared again.
The second HyunJoong's hands had righted him on his chest, the black kitten pounced, sticking his cold nose against HyunJoong's neck and purposely licking every ticklish spot he could find.
HyunJoong shrieked when his sensitive spots on his neck were suddenly attacked. “No! NO! Ahahahaha! Stop! Saeng!”
He giggled, while at the same time trying not to move too much, or YoungSaeng would have indeed been thrown off the Hunter.
If he had been in his human form, YoungSaeng would have laughed at the reactions, carefully maintaining his footing and continuing the assault.
He'd never actually played around with HyunJoong before, goofing around like they were now, but he always had looked at things a bit differently while in his cat form. He felt safer like this, less of a target for...well, anything.
Letting up, he balanced forward so he could look right into HyunJoong's eyes. "THAT was doing it on purpose," he stated smugly, tail waving like a banner.
Once HyunJoong stopped laughing, he looked into YoungSaeng’s golden eyes, full of smugness and rolled his own eyes, amused. “Alright, alright. I get your point. No need to wave your tail around in victory like a dog.” HyunJoong lifted a finger and poked the black kitten’s side.
"I am NOT a dog, you overly domesticated monkey," YoungSaeng hissed in pretend anger. When he was poked, he retaliated by nipping the tip of HyunJoong's nose gently.
HyunJoong jerked his nose away from YoungSaeng, glaring at the kitten when he tried his stunt. He sat up and picked YoungSaeng off his chest, holding him up so that he could glare at YoungSaeng properly. “Ahem.”
YoungSaeng yelped when he was picked up and dangled over thin air. Not even a month ago, YoungSaeng had given HyunJoong identical scratches on both hands when he'd tried picking him up like this, and glared at him for the rest of the day while rubbing his sore ribcage.
Wiggling for a moment to try getting free, YoungSaeng glared at HyunJoong right back...and stuck his tongue out like a child.
HyunJoong stared at the tongue, stunned. Okay…that was new. He tilted his head, quirking an eyebrow before a slow smile crept over his lips and another giggle escaped. “Childish much?”'
YoungSaeng squirmed more in a bid to be put down. "I can always go back to clawing your face off if you like," he mewled at the man, before trying to paw at HyunJoong's nose again, what was quickly becoming his favorite target.
“Stop that.” HyunJoong shifted YoungSaeng away from his face to protect his nose. “I still need it.” He chuckled, shaking his head before putting YoungSaeng down. “Technically…if you give me scratches and stuff, I suppose it could contribute to our explanation…at least, it worked when I implied to the other hunters that’s where all the scratches came from when we first met.”
"You TOLD them that?" YoungSaeng yelped, getting his feet back under him. He glared at HyunJoong for a moment before his eyes went to the man's collar. "Yah, I'm not done yet!" He pounced back into HyunJoong's lap and hooked his front paws into the man's shirt, nosing his collar.
“I didn’t tell them that!” HyunJoong shook his head in alarm. “I only implied…whatever they thought is in the end is not my dirty laundry. And you don’t need to kill my shirt, just tell me.”
He was about to lie down again when a mischievous smile crossed his face. And without warning, in the guise of helping YoungSaeng pull open his collar, HyunJoong carefully but quickly tipped the felinefolk into his shirt.
Not noticing what HyunJoong was doing until the last second, the black kitten yelped as he was suddenly down the hunter's shirt, sandwiched between skin and cloth. "YAH! WHAT THE HELL HYUNJOONG?!"
Flailing around inside the shirt, YoungSaeng managed to get himself facing up. All that was seen from the darkness inside the shirt was a pair of golden eyes glaring up at the man. "You are so lucky I'm not tearing you to ribbons..."
HyunJoong chuckled, the vibrations racking his frame from how hard he was holding his howling laughter. He peered down into his shirt, his brown eyes laughing back at the annoyed golden eyes. “Maybe I am, but for now, I’m just amused.”
Then he carefully reached inside his shirt from the bottom, pulling YoungSaeng out again. “That was seriously priceless.”
"For you," YoungSaeng grumbled. "You smell." He wrinkled his nose at his master, biting the human's finger grumpily.
These were things neither of them would even think of doing if YoungSaeng were in his normal form. It was interesting how much things changed when one wasn't humanoid. It amused him at times...and saddened him others.
HyunJoong laughed. “Of course I do, I have a nose.” And as if to demonstrate this fact, he wrinkled his nose, making a show of sniffing.
Then he slowly put YoungSaeng down, letting out a sigh, “But you are right, maybe I should go take a bath or something…and we’ll think of how to…mark you after I do…”
YoungSaeng blinked up at him, and winced slightly. He didn't even know how he was going to deal with that. After a moment he nodded slowly, curling up where HyunJoong had placed him on the bed. They needed to report to HQ again soon too, and that was going to be...interesting. A worried mewl left him.
HyunJoong turned from where he had bent down to gather his towel and some new clothes, smiling at the kitten curled up on his bed. “Don’t worry, YoungSaeng. Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it fine. I’m sure of it.”
But as confident as he sounded, HyunJoong knew that it would take a lot of convincing on his part to get YoungSaeng out of trouble, and even then, they would not be scot-free. The scathing remarks and glares were going to be even worse than usual for a while.
The black kitten just looked at him, as if saying that he knew they would have trouble with this one. While he was glad HyunJoong was refusing to let him take the full blame, he was also worried that if not done properly this plan of leaving marks could expose them. He decided firmly that as much as he didn't like the idea of HyunJoong marking him, he would deal. It was better than the alternative.
HyunJoong chuckled at the look before walking out of the room, his towel and sleeping clothes slung over his shoulder. He didn’t really care what the other hunters said, and only hoped that the higher ups in the HQ would be appeased. Frankly, he knew that it was impossible trying to plan for everything that might happen - they could only deal with it the best they could when things came.
And that was what HyunJoong planned to do.
YoungSaeng watched his master leave the room before sighing and putting his head down. Worried thoughts clouded his mind before he fell into a light sleep, snuggling into the warmth of HyunJoong's bed where the man had been laying a few moments ago.
HyunJoong returned half an hour later to find the felinefolk sleeping in the warmth of his bed. He smiled and sat down gently, careful not to wake YoungSaeng, and curled up around the kitten, closing his eyes as well. They both had had a long day, and solving their problem could wait.
Perhaps in the morning, an idea would come to HyunJoong that would get rid of all of their problems.
YoungSaeng didn't move as the bed shifted around him, tired. Once HyunJoong had settled down, the kitten slowly shifted closer in his sleep, snuggling against the human's warm body.
A gentle purr left him before the felinefolk fell silent again.
Authors: curionenene and yeonah
Chapter: 8/?
Fandom: SS501
Pairings: KyuMin, HyunSaeng
Rating: PG-16
Warning: Angst, AU
Summary: Black and white... white and black. It isn't always possible to tell what is good and what is evil; and four players in the never-ending fight for freedom would know. In a world where things are painted by shades of grey, taking a stand could mean life or death. And the struggle to be free, truly free, may tear them apart until there is nothing left but ash.
A/N: KyuJong and HyunJoong are played by curionenene , while JungMin and YoungSaeng are played by yeonah .
YoungSaeng stared at him for a moment. Then the meaning of HyunJoong's words hit him, and his eyes widened as his cheeks flushed a dark red. "W...What?"
In bed with HyunJoong?
It took him a moment to wrap his mind around the idea, keeping his mouth shut in case he started stammering. "Y-you mean..."
'He doesn't mean actually DOING it!' YoungSaeng screamed at himself mentally. 'Just pretending! Get a grip!'
When he felt that he could breathe again, YoungSaeng drew in a shaky breath, looking at the floor and bright red. "W-well...it would...work, I think...it's a logical excuse..."
Trying not to flail, the felinefolk shifted around nervously. "But we have no way to prove that's...w-what I was doing."
Following that train of thought, his eyes widened and he went even redder. No, there was a way they could prove it. He just wasn't sure if his sanity was up to the task.
HyunJoong refused to look at YoungSaeng after that - if he did, he was sure that he would turn into a human heater with the heat he was radiating. He licked his lips nervously, wincing at YoungSaeng’s question about proof.
There was silence for a moment as HyunJoong’s quick mind provided the solution to that. And it took all his self-control not to ram his head into a wall from mortification. “Er…”
YoungSaeng took the chance of looking up at HyunJoong, and instantly wanted to hide under the couch. He couldn't do this. There had to be another way.
But compared to the other two solutions, he thought this one had more of a chance of being pulled off. And less painful for sure.
A faint whine escaped the felinefolk. "I-i-it...would work better than the o-other ideas..." If he managed not to die in the process.
What mortified him the most was that it didn't actually sound all that bad.
HyunJoong looked up at the whine, then his brain shorted out at YoungSaeng’s verdict. Staring blankly at YoungSaeng he blinked, once, twice, then three times. And before he could stop it, he blurted out. “You mean you’re actually considering it?”
He hoped that didn’t sound… too excited.
Quivering where he stood, YoungSaeng stared back at HyunJoong, at a loss for what to say. What was he supposed to say?
"I-it sounds better than being beaten up," he whispered finally, a complete tomato. "I-if we just...leave...marks on each other..." He would die before he could finish his sentence. "That should be convincing enough, no? O-or..."
Would they actually have to…
HyunJoong was pretty sure that the two of them combined could provide heating for a small country for a year. He swallowed at the implication, shaking his head. “No, no. I think m-marks will be…j-just fine…”
Marks…great…how were they going to manage that?
YoungSaeng nodded, struggling to wrap his mind around the situation. "I-I suppose we should...get it over with?" Logically, if they had been...in bed...the marks would have to have been there for some time before they arrive at HQ later today. Realistically? YoungSaeng wanted to hide and never come out.
“……” HyunJoong was beginning to regret ever bringing up the idea. He hadn’t been intimate with anyone ever since…yeah. But anyway, this was YoungSaeng, and he knew how bad the felinefolk was with intimacy, and…besides, this was just all so wrong.
But he too saw the logic in carrying out this course, and so, even though he didn’t really want to (or did he?), he nodded and walked to his room, his face entirely red by now.
YoungSaeng held back another whine. Already skittish about this, his mind balked completely at the idea of being in HyunJoong's room. Because 'bedroom' meant 'bed', and he hoped HyunJoong wasn't expecting that of him, climbing on the bed and-
Stepping on those thoughts before they could get out of hand, YoungSaeng drew in a shaky breath and followed HyunJoong. He could barely have the man in arms reach at times; the last two nights had been flukes, that was it. Of course he was going to be nervous.
Pausing just inside the room, YoungSaeng lingered in the doorway, brown eyes looking everywhere but HyunJoong. "W-what now?"
HyunJoong gulped, pressing his burning forehead to the wall. He wasn’t exactly sure about this, probably equally skittish as YoungSaeng at the thought of such intimate proximity. Sure, HyunJoong liked hugs, clinging and glomping and things like that - but those were absolutely innocent…and noncommittal.
‘It’s just… marks. Just marks. We’re not doing it. Ah…damnit.’ HyunJoong ran a frustrated hand through his hair. He closed his eyes, trying to reason with himself that the faster they got it over and done with, the faster they could put it out of their minds. “Er...well…I dunno…I guess we could…er…kiss…standing up or…s-something. For…a s-start at least…”
Kiss. YoungSaeng nodded slowly, taking uncertain steps forward. He'd kissed before...a long, long time ago...so it shouldn't be too hard, right? 'It's HyunJoong,' he told himself firmly. As much as the idea reassured him (because of all the people he knew, the hunter was one of his top trusted at this point), it scared him as well.
Even as he argued with himself mentally, YoungSaeng kept walking forward, until he found himself in front of his master. Staring up at the human for a moment, YoungSaeng swallowed thickly, steeling himself before standing up on his toes, lips ghosting over HyunJoong's as the felinefolk tried to avoid making contact in any other way, the image it created almost comical as he leaned forward across the gap between them.
HyunJoong stiffened when YoungSaeng was suddenly in front of him, leaning in close. His breath caught in his throat, a sudden lump forming when YoungSaeng’s lips brushed against his, and it took all his courage not to push YoungSaeng away.
Swallowing (not that it did any good), he leaned forward as well, trying to help the process, his hands stiffly by his side as well, so as not to make any unnecessary contact.
YoungSaeng was shaking, both from nerves and from the effort of holding himself away at such an awkward angle. Normally it would be no problem to make sure there was no accidental brush of arms or clothing, but the felinefolk had temporarily forgotten that with his tail bound as it was, his balance was next to none.
So when he tried leaning in a little more, to apply actual pressure to the kiss, the extra degrees caused him to tip forward, the felinefolk breaking the kiss with a yelp as he pin wheeled his arms and crashed into HyunJoong.
HyunJoong had thought that everything was going fine (as fine as it could be between them), discounting the fact that they’d actually have to touch each other soon since well…proof of their explanation kind of needed contact. But slow was good…
Then suddenly, YoungSaeng let out a yelp, and seconds later, HyunJoong had a felinefolk crashing into him. Normally, it would have been an easy matter to catch YoungSaeng, but this time, he was flustered, his hands were glued to his sides, and there was the matter of him leaning forward.
And so, he toppled over with YoungSaeng with a yell, crashing to the floor in an unorganized heap.
Eyes shut tightly in reflex, YoungSaeng slowly opened them again, blinking. When he saw he was on top of HyunJoong now, nose-to-nose practically, his ears flattened and he balked instantly.
"I-I-I'm sorry!" he cried out, trying to push himself back up off HyunJoong, except that their legs were tangled together and when he tried, he ended up slipping and falling back down with his head buried in HyunJoong's neck, an 'oof' escaping him.
HyunJoong groaned when his head hit the floor, his vision blacking out momentarily before it came back and was filled with a pair of golden eyes. He stared at them for a while, when suddenly they were gone, and his body was protesting at his legs being roughly separated from something else that was warm and not exactly undesirable.
Seconds later, his mind caught up just as YoungSaeng fell back onto him, his head buried into the crook of his neck and HyunJoong turned a bright red, releasing a rather strange noise.
It was too much contact for YoungSaeng, far too much. He could feel HyunJoong's heart beating against his chest, their legs twined together, their hips...the felinefolk shut his eyes tightly, trying to remember what had gotten them into this situation in the first place.
Right, marking.
Scrambling for anything that could distract him before he shifted and ran for the safety of the couch, YoungSaeng slowly managed to push himself up onto his elbows and knees, face still dangerously close to the human's neck.
He doubted he would ever be able to get this close again if he got off now, so he tried to focus on the marking idea. "Sh-should I...mark you here?" YoungSaeng asked, trying and failing to hide how out of his depth he was as his breath ghosted lightly over the exposed skin of HyunJoong's neck.
HyunJoong stiffened a little when YoungSaeng’s breath tickled his skin and he almost balked then, the contact too much a reminder of the man of his past. But he forced himself still, reminding himself that this was YoungSaeng - the felinefolk who was probably even more awkward about this than he was. YoungSaeng, someone he knew would never take advantage of him, someone he trusted.
And so, he swallowed, screwing his eyes shut as he nodded quickly, “G-go ahead.”
YoungSaeng bit back another whine, allowing himself a moment to consider chickening out, before he hesitantly leaned in. His lips met HyunJoong's neck first, the felinefolk's ears brushing against his master's cheek as he rested there for a moment. One thing at a time.
Then, slowly, he started to kiss the spot he'd chosen, nipping at the soft skin. He could have gone fast and gotten it over quickly, but YoungSaeng didn't want to accidentally hurt HyunJoong with his tiny fangs. So he went slowly and gently, eyes shut tightly as he worked at the spot with lips, teeth and occasionally tongue when he was worried he was being too rough. He was never going to be able to look the hunter in the eye after this.
HyunJoong closed his eyes as YoungSaeng began to work on his skin and at the very first kiss, HyunJoong felt a low moan bubbling up, which he had to work to force back down. He didn’t want to frighten YoungSaeng away.
It was taking an agonizingly long time, and HyunJoong could feel himself being aroused even though he didn’t mean to be. Finally, he lifted his arm to his lips, biting the back of it to muffle the sounds of pleasure that were inevitably trying to force their way out of his mouth.
Struggling to concentrate on his task and nothing else, YoungSaeng's ears twitched slightly as he picked up on changes in HyunJoong's breathing, and every now and then a faint noise that never made it past the human's lips. The felinefolk felt his blush deepen even further, if that was even possible, as he continued nipping and sucking gently.
When he was satisfied with the mark he'd left on the other man's skin, YoungSaeng slowly moved his head back and sat up properly on his hands and knees, staring down at HyunJoong with flushed cheeks and moist, slightly parted lips.
HyunJoong opened his eyes when he felt the pressure on his skin lift, and he stared up at YoungSaeng, his mind entirely out of it, his eyes unfocused, taking in the flushed cheeks and parted lips.
Instinctively, he sat up as well and leaned in close, before pausing, something at the back of his brain warning him that he might be pushed away.
YoungSaeng scooted back slightly so that HyunJoong could sit up properly, and ended up kneeling with his legs on either side of the other man's waist. He wasn't paying as much attention to that part as he probably should though, golden eyes locked with HyunJoong's.
When the human leaned in, YoungSaeng stiffened instinctively, eyes wide. After a moment, he swallowed and gave a tiny nod.
He should have been surprised perhaps, but HyunJoong’s eyes were glazed and his brain unfocused, and so he just pressed forward, closing his eyes as his lips touched the felinefolk’s - something he’d never thought he’d ever do.
The contact was much more solid than the first, failed attempt at a kiss, YoungSaeng frozen for a moment as he struggled to keep up. Then he gave up thinking completely, hesitantly leaning forward as well to help with the kiss. His eyes fluttered shut, one hand slowly lifting to touch HyunJoong's hair, the locks that slipped through his fingers softer than he would have thought.
HyunJoong had expected hands to be pushing him away, or perhaps a sound of protest, or at least some struggling. But there was none of that - only an acceptance and then a reprociation. And least to say, HyunJoong was confused.
He couldn’t even remember why they were doing this, just that they were, and it was awkward yet enjoyable at the same time.
It was getting harder for the felinefolk to think, mind becoming foggy as he leaned into the kiss a little more. He remembered, the first time HyunJoong had tried making contact with him, jumping out of his skin and giving the man long, deep scratches across his arm. YoungSaeng hated physical contact, and did anything possible to get out of it. It brought back bad memories and thoughts of pain.
But how did that explain why he was the one pressing closer now?
His hands shook as he slowly moved his fingers through HyunJoong's hair, then along the line of his jaw, mapping out his face with a gentle touch.
Hyunjoong was beginning to find it hard to breath, and he wondered if perhaps, he was really under the covers now, his face muffled by a pillow, and this was all really just a dream. But then, he shivered as YoungSaeng’s hands grazed across his skin, the action tickling his heightened nerves - and then he knew that all this was real.
And that if he didn’t surface from the kiss soon, he’d probably die of apoplexy.
So, he broke the kiss, breaths heavy and hard as he stared incomprehensibly at the felinefolk just inches away from his face.
Suddenly the warm lips against his own were gone, and YoungSaeng's eyes snapped open again, meeting the gaze of the hunter right in front of him. Panting for breath (he hadn't been in desperate need of it, but he'd forgotten that HyunJoong was human and couldn't hold his breath as long as he could), the felinefolk stared right back, mind struggling to restart itself.
As soon as it did, his face burned bright red, and YoungSaeng let out a strangled whine, ears flattening. What was he doing? Kissing wasn't going to leave the marks they needed. In fact, it made it all the more difficult because YoungSaeng hadn't wanted to stop. If HyunJoong hadn't needed to breath, he could have kissed him all day.
Shaking, the felinefolk shut his eyes tightly and ducked his head down like a pet being scolded, trying to ignore all the places their bodies were touching, how warm HyunJoong was, how terrified out of his wits he was, and how despite all that he hadn't really minded the kiss.
HyunJoong mind wasn’t as fast as YoungSaeng’s, and he was still trying to figure out what had happened when the felinefolk let out a sound of fear and HyunJoong started, alarmed, wondering what wrong he had done this time.
“I’m sorry!” HyunJoong immediately said even though he didn’t know what he was apologizing for. “Ah…sorry…YoungSaeng…sorry…are you…ok-”
Then he remembered.
“AH! I’M SORRY!” HyunJoong leapt up, taking a few fast but unsteady steps back and crashed into the bed, flipping over it from momentum and landing on the floor - the other side of the bed. “OW!”
YoungSaeng yelped when he was suddenly dumped on the floor, a gasp of pain escaping him as his tail was crushed yet again. Hurriedly pushing himself up into a crouching position to spare it, he stared at where he could see HyunJoong's feet sticking up in the air on the other side of the bed.
He wanted to ask if his master was all right but he couldn't breathe, shaking violently as his fingers curled against the floor, claws making scratches in the wood. It took his all not to shift and get the hell out of there, and even then it was probably only because his mind hadn't fully grasped the situation yet that he hadn't taken off.
Once again his body was doing things, and he had been powerless to stop it.
Only this time, it hadn't been HyunJoong playing with his ears. It had been something much, much deeper. Another choked whine escaped the felinefolk, the only noise he seemed capable of making as he closed his eyes again, trying to calm down and failing. His face burned and his head span. Why?
HyunJoong groaned from his uncomfortable position, sliding his legs off the bed and pushing himself up, grabbing onto the soft mattress like a shipwrecked man. He buried his head into the mattress, trying to clear the stars from his eyes for a moment before he looked up, his eyes widening at the frightened stance that YoungSaeng was in.
“Young…Saeng…?” He asked cautiously, not exactly sure as to what he could do, being utterly confused himself.
YoungSaeng didn't reply right away, couldn't reply, the felinefolk so far gone he couldn't even form human words. Struggling to think, he choked back a terrified mewl and hid his face against one knee, shaking.
Finally, after what seemed like centuries, he was able to peer up at HyunJoong, golden eyes watery. The fear in them was the same as the day they'd met.
"I-I'm sorry," he choked out, badly rattled. "I'm sorry."
“W-what?” HyunJoong blinked, pushing himself to his feet, making his way around the bed and kneeling in front of the felinefolk. “Why are you sorry, YoungSaeng? This is…my fault. Again…”
He sighed, rubbing his face for a moment before he held out a hand to the felinefolk, a request for forgiveness. “So…I’m sorry.”
Stiffening as HyunJoong approached him, YoungSaeng stared at the offered hand, face still red as a tomato.
"B-but I...” He resisted the temptation to touch his lips. Looking up at HyunJoong, then back at his hand, the felinefolk swallowed thickly.
Once his claws had retracted, he shakily lifted one hand, hesitantly touching fingers to HyunJoong's, looking up at him again.
HyunJoong didn’t press YoungSaeng, only held his hand there, waiting, as if dealing with a very frightened young cat. Very much like the first time they had met.
“Well…give up on the marking idea.” HyunJoong said slowly. “I’ll think of something else.”
YoungSaeng's breathing was slowly evening out again, though he remained jittery and on edge. He wanted to agree with finding something else, nerves shattered. But he knew their options were limited, and it was YoungSaeng's own fault they were in this situation in the first place.
And they had already started. The felinefolk's eyes found the prominent mark on HyunJoong's neck, and he had to work to control his breathing again.
"I-it's okay," he whispered. "This is the best way. I just...need a moment." Needed a moment to recover before he bolted. The warmth of HyunJoong's hand was comforting.
“A-are you sure?” HyunJoong stuttered at YoungSaeng’s answer, thinking it default that YoungSaeng would take up his offer. And his own cheeks flamed, following the felinefolk’s line of sight and his hand flew up to touch the mark YoungSaeng had made on him.
The felinefolk nodded stiffly, going even redder as HyunJoong covered the mark. Drawing a shaky breath and going to sit down, he inhaled sharply and jumped back into a crouch when he sat on his tail. Damn the stupid pair of jeans...
"I-if it's okay...can I change out of these and come back?" he asked quietly, looking everywhere but at HyunJoong.
“G-go ahead.” HyunJoong nodded, his line of sight drifting everywhere - it inevitably went back to YoungSaeng before shooting off to some random place, the process repeating itself every few seconds.
God, what was wrong with him. He had promised himself never to do something that made YoungSaeng uncomfortable, and even older was the promise to himself that he would never get intimate with another again…
That kiss…what exactly was it?
YoungSaeng gave an inward sigh of relief and stood, hand falling out of HyunJoong's. He left the room, trying not to appear like he was running away, and retreated to the guest bedroom. Though he didn't actually sleep in the room, preferring the couch, his few belongings were kept there.
It only took a minute to change out of the baggy jeans and into one of those with a hole in the back for his tail. It was a relief not to have it crushed anymore. Sighing softly, YoungSaeng turned and looked at himself in the mirror, pressing one hand to a flushed cheek. Then, slowly, his fingers traced his lips, slightly sore from lack of use.
It took another minute to prepare himself mentally. YoungSaeng didn't like not feeling in control of what he did. Maybe he should ask for no more kissing. It definitely wasn't helping him keep a clear head.
When he was ready, he padded silently over to HyunJoong's room again and stepped in, hovering in the doorway and looking at the floor.
HyunJoong had shifted from his place on the floor to his bed, lying upside down, pillow on his face, trying to hide its lobster redness from the world. What had he been thinking, suggesting that? And what had YoungSaeng been thinking, agreeing to it? Talking their way out of things would have been a more sensible, if not risky, idea.
Seeing HyunJoong lying on his bed, YoungSaeng swallowed and hesitantly padded closer. "H...HyunJoong?" He paused a meter away from the bed, golden eyes uneasy. Why could they never do things the easy way?
HyunJoong jumped at the call, pulling the pillow off his face and turning so that he could look at YoungSaeng. “Ah…sorry…I was just…hmm…” HyunJoong tilted his head as he observed the ears on YoungSaeng’s head and an idea suddenly struck him.
“Do you think…you could make marks like these…as a kitten?” He suddenly asked, gesturing to the mark YoungSaeng made earlier.
YoungSaeng shrank back slightly when HyunJoong jumped, before blinking at him in confusion at the question. His eyes followed the gesture to the mark, and he blushed again before considering it.
"I...think I could, yeah." He nodded slowly. It wasn't that bad of an idea...and would prevent the kissing at least. It wouldn't work when it was time for HyunJoong to mark him, but one thing at a time.
He carefully loosened the collar of his shirt so he wouldn't choke himself while shifting. It happened far too often for his liking. "Er...where..should I mark you?" he mumbled, bright red.
HyunJoong’s eyes brightened, glad that at least this way, perhaps YoungSaeng wouldn’t be so self-conscious about it. Then that hard-earned victory was washed away by YoungSaeng’s next question. “Er…where?” HyunJoong repeated dumbly, before he sighed, swallowing.
“Here…I guess.” HyunJoong finally answered, pointing to the area on his neck near to his jaw then to his collarbone. “And…here…I guess. The rest…we’ll just pretend are there. They’ll be covered up by the clothes anyway…” He really hoped YoungSaeng wouldn’t ask how he knew where to mark…
YoungSaeng nodded slowly, before taking a deep breath to calm himself. It was different as a cat; he could just pretend they were playing around or something. Pausing for a moment, he closed his eyes and shifted, clothing falling to the floor in a heap.
It took the black kitten a moment to wiggle himself free, but once he was out he jumped up onto the bed beside HyunJoong. Padding quietly up to just under HyunJoong’s head, he looked at his master for a moment to make sure this was okay before lowering his head to the spot near the human's jaw, nipping at the skin carefully.
HyunJoong let out a soft giggle when the black kitten padding up to his collarbone, the kitten’s fur tickling the underside of his chin, and he lifted up a hesitant hand, stroking the kitten’s soft black fur, encouraging him. He smiled at how innocent this all seemed all of a sudden now that YoungSaeng was in his cat form.
Hearing the giggle, YoungSaeng batted HyunJoong's nose lightly with one paw as if to reprimand him, except he was really kind of glad the awkward, suffocating atmosphere had faded somewhat.
Of course, the hand stroking his fur posed a whole other problem. Biting and lapping at the slowly reddening skin, YoungSaeng twitched and purred a little when fingers found a sensitive spot.
HyunJoong’s hand froze and lifted at the purr, blinking. Most people would have continued stroking that spot, but not HyunJoong - and especially not with YoungSaeng. “Er…sorry.”
When the hand was lifted, to even YoungSaeng's surprise he released a yowl of protest. The reason why was easily masked though, because he'd been leaning into the touch and when the support of HyunJoong's hand was gone, the black kitten flopped onto his side on the bed.
Rolling himself back onto his stomach, YoungSaeng blinked golden eyes at HyunJoong before scooting close enough to continue what he had been doing.
“Oops.” HyunJoong said in a way of an apology, watching rather dazedly as YoungSaeng flopped onto the bed with a protest before shaking himself up and resuming what he was doing. It took all of HyunJoong’s effort not to let out a cooing sound and to resume scratching behind YoungSaeng’s ear.
Instead, he lay still as YoungSaeng continued his administrations, restraining any giggling sound or whatsoever.
Working at the spot with teeth and rough tongue, YoungSaeng was able to raise a mark similar to the one he'd left earlier, though not the exact same. As long as it looked close enough though, that was good for him. Pulling back, YoungSaeng shook himself slightly, looking at HyunJoong and mewling.
When he turned his attention towards the second spot HyunJoong had pointed out, he found that the angle was rather awkward from where he was beside the human. Tilting his head slightly to one side and debating, after a moment YoungSaeng leapt up onto HyunJoong's chest, turning himself so that he could get at the man's collarbone that way and dragging HyunJoong's shirt collar down slightly by hooking tiny claws into the material.
“Need help?” Hyunjoong asked, helping to hold down his shirt collar. It was a rather odd scene with the human talking to a cat, and even more odd that the cat was responding like a human would.
“Hmm…you’re getting heavier…” HyunJoong commented randomly, sitting upwards slightly so he could look at YoungSaeng with a sparkle in his eye that was teasing.
Mewling in thanks when HyunJoong held down his shirt collar, YoungSaeng stopped and stared at his master when HyunJoong commented on his weight. "You said I was getting thinner a few days ago, make up your mind!" he yowled, batting the man's nose again and nearly tumbling off HyunJoong's chest when the human shifted.
HyunJoong could guess what YoungSaeng had said and chuckled. “That was as a human. But I think cat-wise, you’re putting on weight.” It made absolutely no sense at all, but HyunJoong said it with a face as straight as a line.
“Woah, careful.” HyunJoong quickly righted YoungSaeng when the felinefolk nearly fell off his chest, unable to resist ghosting his hands lightly on YoungSaeng’s ears.
"You are criminally insane, I'm sure of it," YoungSaeng grumbled, letting HyunJoong fix his position. When the gentle hand brushed against his ears again, they twitched slightly in response, the felinefolk's eyes half-closing in a cat look of contentment.
Laying down on HyunJoong's chest, YoungSaeng scooted up so he could reach the man's collarbone, nipping at the soft skin as his tail waved behind him.
HyunJoong resisted laughing for a bit more, before he gave up, bursting into uncontrollable giggles, nearly knocking YoungSaeng off in the process. “Aigoo…” HyunJoong complained as he righted YoungSaeng again. “Stop tickling me on purpose!”
Yelping and scrambling for footing again, YoungSaeng gave a cat-like sigh. "I'm not doing anything!" he protested, before he paused, and that mischievous look appeared again.
The second HyunJoong's hands had righted him on his chest, the black kitten pounced, sticking his cold nose against HyunJoong's neck and purposely licking every ticklish spot he could find.
HyunJoong shrieked when his sensitive spots on his neck were suddenly attacked. “No! NO! Ahahahaha! Stop! Saeng!”
He giggled, while at the same time trying not to move too much, or YoungSaeng would have indeed been thrown off the Hunter.
If he had been in his human form, YoungSaeng would have laughed at the reactions, carefully maintaining his footing and continuing the assault.
He'd never actually played around with HyunJoong before, goofing around like they were now, but he always had looked at things a bit differently while in his cat form. He felt safer like this, less of a target for...well, anything.
Letting up, he balanced forward so he could look right into HyunJoong's eyes. "THAT was doing it on purpose," he stated smugly, tail waving like a banner.
Once HyunJoong stopped laughing, he looked into YoungSaeng’s golden eyes, full of smugness and rolled his own eyes, amused. “Alright, alright. I get your point. No need to wave your tail around in victory like a dog.” HyunJoong lifted a finger and poked the black kitten’s side.
"I am NOT a dog, you overly domesticated monkey," YoungSaeng hissed in pretend anger. When he was poked, he retaliated by nipping the tip of HyunJoong's nose gently.
HyunJoong jerked his nose away from YoungSaeng, glaring at the kitten when he tried his stunt. He sat up and picked YoungSaeng off his chest, holding him up so that he could glare at YoungSaeng properly. “Ahem.”
YoungSaeng yelped when he was picked up and dangled over thin air. Not even a month ago, YoungSaeng had given HyunJoong identical scratches on both hands when he'd tried picking him up like this, and glared at him for the rest of the day while rubbing his sore ribcage.
Wiggling for a moment to try getting free, YoungSaeng glared at HyunJoong right back...and stuck his tongue out like a child.
HyunJoong stared at the tongue, stunned. Okay…that was new. He tilted his head, quirking an eyebrow before a slow smile crept over his lips and another giggle escaped. “Childish much?”'
YoungSaeng squirmed more in a bid to be put down. "I can always go back to clawing your face off if you like," he mewled at the man, before trying to paw at HyunJoong's nose again, what was quickly becoming his favorite target.
“Stop that.” HyunJoong shifted YoungSaeng away from his face to protect his nose. “I still need it.” He chuckled, shaking his head before putting YoungSaeng down. “Technically…if you give me scratches and stuff, I suppose it could contribute to our explanation…at least, it worked when I implied to the other hunters that’s where all the scratches came from when we first met.”
"You TOLD them that?" YoungSaeng yelped, getting his feet back under him. He glared at HyunJoong for a moment before his eyes went to the man's collar. "Yah, I'm not done yet!" He pounced back into HyunJoong's lap and hooked his front paws into the man's shirt, nosing his collar.
“I didn’t tell them that!” HyunJoong shook his head in alarm. “I only implied…whatever they thought is in the end is not my dirty laundry. And you don’t need to kill my shirt, just tell me.”
He was about to lie down again when a mischievous smile crossed his face. And without warning, in the guise of helping YoungSaeng pull open his collar, HyunJoong carefully but quickly tipped the felinefolk into his shirt.
Not noticing what HyunJoong was doing until the last second, the black kitten yelped as he was suddenly down the hunter's shirt, sandwiched between skin and cloth. "YAH! WHAT THE HELL HYUNJOONG?!"
Flailing around inside the shirt, YoungSaeng managed to get himself facing up. All that was seen from the darkness inside the shirt was a pair of golden eyes glaring up at the man. "You are so lucky I'm not tearing you to ribbons..."
HyunJoong chuckled, the vibrations racking his frame from how hard he was holding his howling laughter. He peered down into his shirt, his brown eyes laughing back at the annoyed golden eyes. “Maybe I am, but for now, I’m just amused.”
Then he carefully reached inside his shirt from the bottom, pulling YoungSaeng out again. “That was seriously priceless.”
"For you," YoungSaeng grumbled. "You smell." He wrinkled his nose at his master, biting the human's finger grumpily.
These were things neither of them would even think of doing if YoungSaeng were in his normal form. It was interesting how much things changed when one wasn't humanoid. It amused him at times...and saddened him others.
HyunJoong laughed. “Of course I do, I have a nose.” And as if to demonstrate this fact, he wrinkled his nose, making a show of sniffing.
Then he slowly put YoungSaeng down, letting out a sigh, “But you are right, maybe I should go take a bath or something…and we’ll think of how to…mark you after I do…”
YoungSaeng blinked up at him, and winced slightly. He didn't even know how he was going to deal with that. After a moment he nodded slowly, curling up where HyunJoong had placed him on the bed. They needed to report to HQ again soon too, and that was going to be...interesting. A worried mewl left him.
HyunJoong turned from where he had bent down to gather his towel and some new clothes, smiling at the kitten curled up on his bed. “Don’t worry, YoungSaeng. Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it fine. I’m sure of it.”
But as confident as he sounded, HyunJoong knew that it would take a lot of convincing on his part to get YoungSaeng out of trouble, and even then, they would not be scot-free. The scathing remarks and glares were going to be even worse than usual for a while.
The black kitten just looked at him, as if saying that he knew they would have trouble with this one. While he was glad HyunJoong was refusing to let him take the full blame, he was also worried that if not done properly this plan of leaving marks could expose them. He decided firmly that as much as he didn't like the idea of HyunJoong marking him, he would deal. It was better than the alternative.
HyunJoong chuckled at the look before walking out of the room, his towel and sleeping clothes slung over his shoulder. He didn’t really care what the other hunters said, and only hoped that the higher ups in the HQ would be appeased. Frankly, he knew that it was impossible trying to plan for everything that might happen - they could only deal with it the best they could when things came.
And that was what HyunJoong planned to do.
YoungSaeng watched his master leave the room before sighing and putting his head down. Worried thoughts clouded his mind before he fell into a light sleep, snuggling into the warmth of HyunJoong's bed where the man had been laying a few moments ago.
HyunJoong returned half an hour later to find the felinefolk sleeping in the warmth of his bed. He smiled and sat down gently, careful not to wake YoungSaeng, and curled up around the kitten, closing his eyes as well. They both had had a long day, and solving their problem could wait.
Perhaps in the morning, an idea would come to HyunJoong that would get rid of all of their problems.
YoungSaeng didn't move as the bed shifted around him, tired. Once HyunJoong had settled down, the kitten slowly shifted closer in his sleep, snuggling against the human's warm body.
A gentle purr left him before the felinefolk fell silent again.