Of Flesh, Fur, and Fang - Chapter Twelve
Of Flesh, Fur, and Fang
Chapter Twelve
Torn couldn’t even begin to describe the way Kyuhyun was feeling. On one hand he could feel the sweet slide of their bodies as Zhou mi rocked against him and the delicious burn of arousal shooting through him. On the other hand the knowledge of what they were doing, and more importantly, that this wasn’t truly Zhou mi he was dealing with, made him pause.
Kyuhyun tightened his grip on the other teen’s hips and held him firmly in place. A frustrated growl slipped from the lips of the one above him and he couldn’t help the rumbled response that bubbled from his own throat. “No,” he murmured gruffly, much to the protest of his own Beast.
Above him, violet eyes narrowed. “You are mate, and ours to claim,” the voice that was Zhou mi’s yet at the same time was not, said roughly.
“I agree with that,” Kyuhyun muttered before he could stop himself and then sighed, “and I wouldn’t stop you if you were Zhou mi, but you aren’t, are you?”
“We are one,” the teen growled, irritated.
Kyuhyun chuckled, amused by the reaction. “I understand that, but you are Zhou mi’s Beast aren’t you, the one that he thinks doesn’t exist.” There was no answer so Kyuhyun continued. “You are different then every other Beast I know. Normal Beasts have to be controlled to a point or there will be trouble, yet you don’t.”
The creature paused for a minute, working its jaw as if debating what to answer. He could tell it was irritated, likely due to the fact that Kyuhyun could hold him still with little effort. “I exist to protect him,” it said finally.
“And this?” Kyuhyun pressed. “How does this protect him?”
“He is sleeping. I desire our mate,” it said simply.
“If you are supposed to protect him, how do you think he is going to feel when he wakes up in the morning, knowing what we did?”
There was a snarl of frustration then, and Zhou mi leaned down and nipped at his ear. “You torture us and yourselves,” he growled.
“I’m a masochist like that,” Kyuhyun replied with a smirk. Inside him there was a resounding snort of agreement from his Beast.
“I will have you,” the Beast purred, before pressing his lips passionately to Kyuhyun’s. He could hardly refuse that and he returned it for a moment, moaning as Zhou mi’s fingers found their way to the sensitive parts of his body.
“Zhou mi,” Kyuhyun growled, tearing his mouth away.
The teen above his stilled and then cocked a lopsided smirk. “Fine, but know what you are passing up.” His fingers twisted and tightened in a delicious way that had Kyuhyun gasping in pleasure and arching up for more before he could stop himself. Then, Zhou mi pressed down onto him, resting his full weight on Kyuhyun’s body and relaxing completely. In the next moment his head was lolling on Kyuhyun’s shoulder and soft snores were puffing past his lips.
Kyuhyun glared up at the ceiling in disgust. Why oh why did he have to be the type of man who wanted to do things the right way? Inside his mind, his Beast laughed at him. Kyuhyun firmly told him to shove it somewhere vile and set about shifting the now dead weight of Zhou mi to a more comfortable position. A bit of squirming settled most of his weight along Kyuhyun’s side and resting on the floor instead of on his lungs.
As much as he knew he should, Kyuhyun couldn’t bring himself to get up and go back to his room. It had been hard enough to say no to Zhou mi. It was impossible to walk away altogether. Kyuhyun knew he was in for a long sleepless night and with a great degree of humor, his Beast agreed.
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Daylight was just beginning to filtering in the windows when Zhou mi felt something beneath him shift. He murmured in half wakefulness and snuggled his way back into the warmth beside him. Something was stroking along his spine, slowly. He could still feel the heat pulling at him, but it was only a quiet murmur in the back of his mind that he couldn’t bring himself to care about at the moment. He was warm and content against something that smelled particularly delicious and comforting all at the same time.
The hand paused for a moment and Zhou mi wiggled, trying to encourage it to continue. “Zhou mi,” the quiet voice sounded strained very near to his head. “I’m trying very hard to not do anything to you but if you keep wiggling like that on me, I won’t be able to stop myself.”
Zhou mi lifted his head, blinking in confusion. His bed, no matter how warm it was, should never talk to him in the morning. Eyes flecked through with gold watched him as he shifted and he smiled sheepishly at Kyuhyun. The previous night came flooding back to him, right up until the point he had fallen asleep on the couch. How he had ended up on the floor nearly on top of Kyuhyun, he had no memory of.
“How did we get down here?” Zhou mi asked softly.
Kyuhyun’s eyebrows rose. “How much do you remember?”
“Nothing after I fell asleep,” he admitted slowly.
“Then we are going to have to have a very long talk later.” At Zhou mi’s panicked look Kyuhyun immediately corrected himself. “Nothing happened that you will regret we just need to talk later. Not now because if you don’t,” Kyuhyun’s hand grasped Zhou mi’s thigh tightly and held it, “stop that, the conversation will be pointless.”
It took Zhou mi a moment to realize that Kyuhyun was holding his leg still, the same leg that was thrown over one of Kyuhyun’s and had been rubbing against him sensually. Apparently the heat was much more present then he had thought it was. “Sorry,” Zhou mi murmured, trying to pull it away.
Kyuhyun’s hand held firm and a moment later he surged upwards. With a squeak of surprise Zhou mi sprawled onto his back as Kyuhyun hovered over him, pinning him there. “I am trying so hard,” Kyuhyun growled out. Zhou mi could tell he was irritated, but whether it was with him or himself he couldn’t be sure. “But I want you, more than I should.” The whispered admission made something inside of Zhou mi clench.
He felt bad for being essentially responsible for the state of self loathing he could see Kyuhyun sinking into. In truth, Zhou mi wasn’t as opposed to the idea of them being together as he thought he would be. It felt nice to be lying beneath Kyuhyun and even with as wound up as the werewolf was, he wasn’t feeling any fear. Zhou mi didn’t think just the heat was to blame for that. “Maybe,” Zhou mi said softly, “that is because I want you too.”
“Don’t say that!” Kyuhyun responded harshly, leaving Zhou mi completely baffled for a moment. A look of broken defeat settled on Kyuhyun’s face. “If you say that I won’t be able to control myself. I’ll have to take you.”
Zhou mi waited for fear at the warning to curl up in him, yet it didn’t. Smiling, he reached up and hooked his hands behind the werewolf’s neck. “Then I guess it is a good thing that I am a Quieter, isn’t it Kui Xian?”
Kyuhyun’s eyes widened for a moment and then he relaxed, his face morphing into relief. “How do you do that?”
“I don’t know,” Zhou mi admitted. “I just don’t want for you to be in pain or fighting yourself and it sort of happens.”
“It’s nice,” Kyuhyun murmured pressing the foreheads together.
Zhou mi would have been content to lay there like that, allowing the reality of what he had just agreed to sink into his brain fully, but Leeteuk’s voice rang from the kitchen involving warnings about food and possibility of being late. The pair colored almost in unison and Kyuhyun pulled himself up offering his hand down to Zhou mi. When they were both standing nose to nose, they stared at each other for a long moment.
“I had better go get ready for school,” Kyuhyun murmured, but he made no move to leave.
“Yeah, I should probably head home or something,” Zhou mi replied not moving either.
“Ew not in the living room!” was the cat call that rang out from the direction of the kitchen and broke their spell.
Kyuhyun coughed, “Yeah I’ll go this way,” he jerked his thumb in the direction of the stairs to the second floor and then moved the way he had indicated.
“I’ll go this way,” Zhou mi agreed, turning and facing the exact opposite direction. There, standing in the entryway to the kitchen directly in front of him was Kangin with arms crossed and a smile on his face. Zhou mi froze, unsure what he should do.
“Well done,” Kangin told him, his smile morphing into a grin. “Now come in the kitchen and have some breakfast.” Zhou mi had no choice but to obey.
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Dust puffed up in a small cloud as his body hit the ground for the sixth time in the last three minutes. Groaning, Zhou mi rolled to his hands and knees and glared at the man who had thrown him across the yard yet again.
Kangin grinned at him. “Don’t glare at me. Get faster.”
Zhou mi wanted to snap that it would be easier if he was actually allowed to stay on his feet for more than a few seconds, but he bit down that retort. It wouldn’t do any good to protest anyway. Kangin had been fairly insistent that morning when he had all but ordered Zhou mi to stay for some sort of self-defence training while everyone else headed off to work or school or wherever else they were going, although thus far Zhou mi couldn’t tell if it was really training or some form of torture.
“I don’t know how,” he admitted, climbing to his feet and brushing off his clothing again.
“You have never been in a fight before?” Kangin sounded skeptical.
“Not one that I actually fought in,” Zhou mi muttered.
“And your parents didn’t have you take any martial arts classes or anything like that?”
“No.”
Kangin sighed heavily. “Look, I can only show you how to use your greatest weapon, your speed.”
It was Zhou mi’s turn to be skeptical. Kangin had shown him nothing but how to be thrown into the dirt all morning. A laugh sounded from behind him and he whirled startled. There sitting on a rock was a young woman with a round face. Her hair was blond and seemed to glow as the morning sun fell on it. “Hello?” Zhou mi said tentatively. She didn’t smell like a werewolf or a human, but like something else entirely. The scent reminded him of warm things of summer and there was a distinct scent of sun warmed grass lingering about her.
“Hello,” she returned. “Aw Kangin you got a kitty and didn’t tell me,” at those words her mouth turned into an adorable pout.
“He’s not mine yet, Sunny,” Kangin returned and Zhou mi found that he had trouble reading the Alpha’s expression.
She giggled and between one moment and the next she had disappeared from the rock and reappeared behind Kangin with her arms around the man’s neck. He tensed at the sudden motion but did nothing else to stop her. “That’s my good puppy,” she purred. “You’re aroused, why isn’t your mate here to take care of that?”
“Leeteuk works. You know that,” Kangin muttered, sounding a bit irritated.
Sunny’s hands drifted down over his chest. “Yet you continue to siphon his heat from him. Such a nice Alpha to care for one that isn’t even yours.”
“What does she mean?” Zhou mi asked, curious.
Kangin sighed. “As an Alpha I can pull many things from any wolf, anger, fear, emotions of all sorts. That’s how an Alpha helps a new wolf learn to control his Beast, by taking most of it upon himself. I can also draw off lust to help you with your heat.”
“But I’m not one of your wolves,” Zhou mi muttered, not entirely sure if it was true anymore.
“No you’re not,” Kangin agreed. “Some Alphas can do it to an extent with any wolf as long as they are close. I can take most of it from you when you are near me.”
“And he is so nice to do it too,” Sunny said brightly. “Taking all of that lust into himself without any outlet for it.”
Kangin growled. “I have done this several times before, it’s fine.” Sunny giggled and in a shimmer of light, she vanished from Kangin’s back and reappeared on the rock.
“I don’t have to stay,” Zhou mi insisted, “I’ve lived through this before.”
“Ignore her,” Kangin ordered. “She just wants to get you alone. Sunny is a Fae.”
“A Fae?” Zhou mi asked, startled. Of all the things he had thought she might be, that wasn’t one of them.
“A part of the Fair Folk,” Sunny’s voice took on a musical quality as she spoke. “Fae of light and life.”
“But,” Zhou mi looked at Sunny and tried to form the words. He had never seen a Fae before but he had always imagined they would look somewhat different than she did.
“She looks normal. Human,” Kangin told him. “But she isn’t.”
“Glamour,” Zhou mi said with a nod, recalling what his mother had once told him.
“Yes, and she isn’t as friendly as she looks even though she is generally peaceable around us. Never thank her for anything,” Kangin instructed firmly.
Sunny pouted. “You are ruining all of my fun.”
“The last thing I would want is for you to have this nice innocent boy in your debt,” Kangin replied with false sweetness dripping from his words.
“But he is so adorable,” she said with a smile, rising from the rock and moving towards Zhou mi.
Zhou mi watched her approach warily. This was the first time he had ever seen a Fae up close and she looked so normal it was confusing. If he didn’t know that Fae were easily offended, he might have asked to see what she looked like in reality, but his mother’s warnings rang in his head, keeping him silent and still as she approached.
Sunny’s fingers traced around his shoulders as she circled him, inspecting him as if he was some sort of specimen. “Very tall,” she murmured, “and well-bred. This is a strong one, a good addition to your pack.”
Kangin growled. “I don’t need your permission to add wolves to my pack.”
“No,” she smiled. “But if you add him, I will give you my Blessing.” Zhou mi inhaled sharply. A blessing from a Fae was a very powerful thing, rarely spoken about and even more scarcely given.
“Do not try to persuade him with your games!” Kangin’s tone was sharp and Zhou mi was surprised by the anger he heard there.
“Of course not,” Sunny said her hand drifting lower as she continued to circle him. “He is, of course, free to make his own choice.”
Zhou mi swallowed thickly. He knew that he could say accept or decline the offer that Kangin had made days ago and that Kangin would never sway him one way or another, at least not intentionally. Yet if there was a Fae involved, that changed things.
“I could never force him to join your pack,” Sunny continued conversationally. Zhou mi watched her, remaining still as she circled him. “Although I will say if he doesn’t your pack may not-” she bit off her words with a quiet gasp and stilled by his hip. “Tzina,” she breathed so softly he hardly heard it. A moment later she was standing before him with her hands held tightly to her chest. “May I see her, just for a moment?”
It took Zhou mi a minute to figure out what she was asking for as he followed her gaze to his hip where he still wore the dagger his mother had given him. He had gotten in the habit of putting it on each morning, yet he was surprised he had remembered to put it on when Kangin had brought him home to change his clothing. “Um sure,” he replied. He had no idea what the etiquette in this situation would be, but he imagined if she could see the dagger then it wouldn’t hurt her.
Carefully he slid it from its sheath and passed it to her hilt first. She nearly snatched it from his fingers in her eagerness and offered him a look that he imagined might express apology from anyone else. “Oh my Tzina,” she cooed and then began murmuring softly in a language Zhou mi didn’t recognize as she traced her fingers over the blade.
Beyond her Kangin appeared to be a strange mixture of confused and tense. He couldn’t see the dagger, Zhou mi realized, which meant that he would have no idea what exactly was going on. Zhou mi was attempting to decide on a good way to explain it to the man when Sunny suddenly held the dagger back out to him. “She likes you,” she said gently as he took it from her fingers. “I did not realize that you were the child of the Wild One. Her protections over you are strong for me not to know it.”
Zhou mi accepted the dagger and slipped it back where it belonged while he tried to process what she had said. He assumed that the ‘Wild One’ referred to his mother, whom he had never heard called that before. While he was certain that his mother did have some sort of protection around him, the way the Fae spoke of it made it sound more powerful than he even knew.
“So,” Sunny said suddenly clapping her hands and spinning to face Kangin. Her voice was bright and cheery and the Alpha simply shook his head. “I see that you are teaching the young one to fight. I shall help.”
“While the offer is generous,” Kangin said before Zhou mi could reply. “We will have to decline.”
Sunny sighed heavily. “I offer my help freely and without requirement of payment from you or yours or the young pup which I intend to help. Is that acceptable?”
“No debt will be incurred?” Kangin clarified.
“None.”
“Then on your word as a Fae, you may offer your help,” Kangin replied after a moment.
Sunny clapped happily and spun to face Zhou mi again. “Excellent. Now little pup, the Alpha is big and bulky and has no idea how to teach but to do. Pay attention and I will show you where and how to strike and how to move so that none can counter you.”
Kangin huffed more in irritation then anger and Zhou mi nodded. He only had a moment to move closer before Sunny was off, launching into an explanation of where and how to hit an opponent to be the most effective, leaving Zhou mi’s mind scrambling to keep up.
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“Good. Very good!” Sunny exclaimed excitedly as Zhou mi managed to not only land a hit on Kangin’s abdomen, but managed to dance backwards out of the Alpha’s returning blow as well. Panting, Zhou mi shook his hand trying to relieve the twinge of pain that hitting tightly packed muscle had shot through it.
Sunny walked between them, looking at both as if she was some great director instead of an instructor. “Now we need someone to challenge Zhou mi’s speed,” she mused. Then she brightened. “Eunhyuk, be a dear and come here.”
As if truly summoned by her, Zhou mi heard the sound of a car pulling up and the engine cutting. A few moments later, Eunhyuk stepped around the house, stripping out of his suit coat and dress shirt as he did so.
“Out of work early?” Kangin asked offering him a questioning look.
“No,” Eunhyuk said with a grin. “Sunny just called in part of what I owe her. I figure a few bumps while helping Zhou mi learn to take care of himself is one of the best ways I could repay her.”
Kangin scowled. “Sunny we agreed that his payment of his debt would always go through me as his Alpha,” his voice carried warning.
“Of course we did,” she said waving her hand. “Kangin, Alpha of the pack. I wish to have Eunhyuk, whom is indebted to me, pay back a portion of that debt by aiding in teaching your pup. Will you permit it?”
“How much of the debt?” Kangin pressed.
“A quarter of his debt will be paid by what he does today,” she responded promptly.
“Only a quarter?”
“I am being generous. I gave him life. He owes me an equal debt. This in no way begins to amount to the value of that,” Sunny said crossly.
Kangin glanced from Eunhyuk and then back to her. “Fine. If Eunhyuk accepts, it will be as you said.”
“I accept,” Eunhyuk said eagerly.
“Excellent,” Sunny said brightly. “Now Eunhyuk I want you to attack Zhou mi as if your very life depends on defeating him, because it very well may.” The smile she directed at him had such a dangerous edge that Eunhyuk took a step backwards. “Pup,” she said turning to face Zhou mi. “Defend yourself as if you are fighting to live, because you will be.”
Zhou mi swallowed and turned to face Eunhyuk. The older man offered him a grin. “I’ll try not to break any bones,” Eunhyuk told him.
“Thanks, I think,” was all Zhou mi had time to say, before he was forced to use every single skill he had learned that morning.
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Someone somewhere was laughing at him, that much Kyuhyun was sure of. The one day when all he wanted was to get home, just had to be the single day where thing after thing kept him behind at school. First he had agreed to stay five extra minutes to go over a difficult math equation with a student. Then a teacher had stopped him in the hall and engaged him in a conversation that he had trouble extracting himself from. After that he had been forced to wait for Yoona to finish whatever it was that was keeping her - he was too impatient to bother remembering what it had been - before walking home. When they had neared the house, Leeteuk had sent his phone a list of things that he needed to pick up from the grocery store, and Kyuhyun had been forced to head there instead of home.
By the time he struggled in the door with bags tucked under both arms, he wanted nothing more than to find Zhou mi and demand answers from him. Their conversation from the morning had played through his mind again and again during the day, until he had become so worked up from it that he couldn’t figure out what it meant. Were they flirting? Dating? Engaged? Going to become mates that evening? Just talking? Or some strange combination of everything? Kyuhyun had no answer and that irritated him.
“Welcome home,” Siwon greeted him as he opened the front door. Kyuhyun instantly shoved the bags into the startled man’s arms and followed his nose to what he really wanted.
It led him through the house to the kitchen table. There Zhou mi sat with his back to the archway where Kyuhyun stood, bent over a textbook. Jaejoong was at the stove preparing something and Leeteuk was sitting across the table pointing out something in the text. The teacher glanced up and smiled at Kyuhyun before returning his attention to the student he was working with.
Kyuhyun inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of the house and everything in it. Zhou mi’s scent, still flavored with the arousal of his lingering heat, stuck out to him clearly. “Zhou mi,” he all but purred, glad to be back where the teen was.
“Welcome home, Kyuhyun,” Zhou mi greeted softly, not looking up from what he was doing.
Kyuhyun frowned. He had never thought the sound of his real name could sound so wrong coming out of anyone’s mouth but it did. More important than that, Zhou mi’s tone was all wrong. There was something he was hiding and as sure as Kyuhyun was of that fact, he hated it. Zhou mi should never have to hide anything, not from them.
Quickly he moved behind Zhou mi and placed a hand on his shoulder. “What is wrong?” he murmured.
“Nothing,” Zhou mi answered, tipping his head down towards his book.
A growl slipped from Kyuhyun’s throat. “You won’t look at me. Why?”
“It’s nothing you did. It’s nothing. I’m just going to finish up my homework and go home,” Zhou mi replied.
Kyuhyun didn’t like the way he was avoiding looking at him one bit. His hands grabbed the back of the chair and he pulled it away from the table so that he could get around in front of Zhou mi, yet when he did so, Zhou mi turned his head to the side as if hiding something.
“Let it be Kyuhyun,” Leeteuk told him and he could feel the beginnings of a command there. He ignored it.
Gently his fingers reached out and turned Zhou mi’s face towards him. The first thing he noticed was the wary eyes that stared back at him, the second was the dark purple splotch that was feathered over the teen’s cheek. Anger burned in Kyuhyun at the sight of it. Someone had hit Zhou mi, hit him hard enough to bruise, and no one had stopped it. Someone had hurt what was theirs. Someone had hurt their mate.
‘They will pay,’ the Beast growled angrily in his mind. ‘No one hurts him. No one.’
“Who?” Kyuhyun growled. He knew his eyes were flashing golden but he didn’t care. For once he agreed fully with his Beast. Whoever was responsible would pay.
“It’s nothing. It isn’t his fault. We were training. Sunny showed me some things and he just got a lucky hit,” Zhou mi said immediately.
“Who?!” Kyuhyun demanded.
“Kyuhyun!” Leeteuk said sharply. “That is enough!” there was a command in his voice but Kyuhyun found it easy to ignore in favor of his anger.
“What are you going to do?” Zhou mi asked boldly. “Kill him for helping me learn?”
“Yes!” Kyuhyun snarled. “He hit you!”
“So did Kangin! He tossed me around all morning,” Kyuhyun could tell there was irritation rising in Zhou mi as the teen stood to his feet so they were standing nose to nose. As good as it felt to have his mate standing in the midst of his anger unafraid, there were more pressing matters to attend to.
“Are you going to try and kill Kangin too?” Zhou mi continued. “Just because Eunhyuk got in a lucky shot doesn’t mean you have to do anything to him!” Zhou mi’s eyes widened the moment after he said it and he lunged towards Kyuhyun. It was too late. Kyuhyun, having already started moving and much more experience at dodging, slipped easily past his grasp and charged up the stairs.
Through the pack bonds he knew that Eunhyuk was in his room with Taeyeon and he bounded there. Kyuhyun didn’t bother with knocking, choosing instead to smash in the door. It flew across the room and splinted against the far wall. Instantly Taeyeon dropped to the ground and rolled onto her back exposing her vulnerable stomach to him. He ignored her in favor of the man laying on the bed.
Eunhyuk’s eyes were closed but his breathing was heavy and Kyuhyun could smell his fear. The man had his arms spread away from his body and his head tipped back, bearing both his throat and stomach to Kyuhyun. The pose of submission was the only that kept Kyuhyun from tearing him apart the moment he had entered his room. “You hit him!” he snarled.
“It was an accident,” Eunhyuk whimpered.
“You hurt him!” Kyuhyun could feel his body beginning to change, his limbs twisting as his body began to shift in his anger.
A pitiful whine came from the man on the bed. “I didn’t mean to. It was a training exercise, to teach him how to take care of himself.” Kyuhyun snarled, a vicious sound somewhere between human and Beast as his face began to change past the point where it could form proper speech.
“Kyuhyun!” a voice behind him shouted and a moment later he was tackled from behind. His half formed limbs tangled him and he collapsed in a heap to the ground with another body on top of his. He turned his face towards the person and saw Zhou mi on top of him anger in his eyes. Before he could even attempt to move, the Chinese teen pulled back his fist and then smashed it into Kyuhyun’s face. The impact barely phased him, as his healing abilities kicked in and took care of any damage almost immediately, but the action itself kept him frozen.
“If this is the way it is going to be,” Zhou mi growled angrily, “then we are done.”
Chapter Thirteen
Masterlist
AN: Hehe I would say I was sorry about the cliff hanger but well that would be lieing and I try not to do that so... But I am sorry this took so long. Last week was increadibly busy. Then this week when I had the time to write the muses were silent. Then suddenly, out of no where the SHINee muses maul me (SuJu was just sitting back and cheering them on) and unleash a new and very rabid plot bunny on me. Took a day or two to shove that little sucker in a cage and to cut a deal with Taemin. I think they will all wait patiently until it is there turn now... of course with them you never really know... Anyway, hope you enjoyed this little up date. It's getting there. ^_^ Also this is un-betaed because my wonderful beta is really busy and on the exact opposite schedule I am. Feel free, as always, to point out any mistakes!
Chapter Twelve
Torn couldn’t even begin to describe the way Kyuhyun was feeling. On one hand he could feel the sweet slide of their bodies as Zhou mi rocked against him and the delicious burn of arousal shooting through him. On the other hand the knowledge of what they were doing, and more importantly, that this wasn’t truly Zhou mi he was dealing with, made him pause.
Kyuhyun tightened his grip on the other teen’s hips and held him firmly in place. A frustrated growl slipped from the lips of the one above him and he couldn’t help the rumbled response that bubbled from his own throat. “No,” he murmured gruffly, much to the protest of his own Beast.
Above him, violet eyes narrowed. “You are mate, and ours to claim,” the voice that was Zhou mi’s yet at the same time was not, said roughly.
“I agree with that,” Kyuhyun muttered before he could stop himself and then sighed, “and I wouldn’t stop you if you were Zhou mi, but you aren’t, are you?”
“We are one,” the teen growled, irritated.
Kyuhyun chuckled, amused by the reaction. “I understand that, but you are Zhou mi’s Beast aren’t you, the one that he thinks doesn’t exist.” There was no answer so Kyuhyun continued. “You are different then every other Beast I know. Normal Beasts have to be controlled to a point or there will be trouble, yet you don’t.”
The creature paused for a minute, working its jaw as if debating what to answer. He could tell it was irritated, likely due to the fact that Kyuhyun could hold him still with little effort. “I exist to protect him,” it said finally.
“And this?” Kyuhyun pressed. “How does this protect him?”
“He is sleeping. I desire our mate,” it said simply.
“If you are supposed to protect him, how do you think he is going to feel when he wakes up in the morning, knowing what we did?”
There was a snarl of frustration then, and Zhou mi leaned down and nipped at his ear. “You torture us and yourselves,” he growled.
“I’m a masochist like that,” Kyuhyun replied with a smirk. Inside him there was a resounding snort of agreement from his Beast.
“I will have you,” the Beast purred, before pressing his lips passionately to Kyuhyun’s. He could hardly refuse that and he returned it for a moment, moaning as Zhou mi’s fingers found their way to the sensitive parts of his body.
“Zhou mi,” Kyuhyun growled, tearing his mouth away.
The teen above his stilled and then cocked a lopsided smirk. “Fine, but know what you are passing up.” His fingers twisted and tightened in a delicious way that had Kyuhyun gasping in pleasure and arching up for more before he could stop himself. Then, Zhou mi pressed down onto him, resting his full weight on Kyuhyun’s body and relaxing completely. In the next moment his head was lolling on Kyuhyun’s shoulder and soft snores were puffing past his lips.
Kyuhyun glared up at the ceiling in disgust. Why oh why did he have to be the type of man who wanted to do things the right way? Inside his mind, his Beast laughed at him. Kyuhyun firmly told him to shove it somewhere vile and set about shifting the now dead weight of Zhou mi to a more comfortable position. A bit of squirming settled most of his weight along Kyuhyun’s side and resting on the floor instead of on his lungs.
As much as he knew he should, Kyuhyun couldn’t bring himself to get up and go back to his room. It had been hard enough to say no to Zhou mi. It was impossible to walk away altogether. Kyuhyun knew he was in for a long sleepless night and with a great degree of humor, his Beast agreed.
▪▫▪☼▪▫▪
Daylight was just beginning to filtering in the windows when Zhou mi felt something beneath him shift. He murmured in half wakefulness and snuggled his way back into the warmth beside him. Something was stroking along his spine, slowly. He could still feel the heat pulling at him, but it was only a quiet murmur in the back of his mind that he couldn’t bring himself to care about at the moment. He was warm and content against something that smelled particularly delicious and comforting all at the same time.
The hand paused for a moment and Zhou mi wiggled, trying to encourage it to continue. “Zhou mi,” the quiet voice sounded strained very near to his head. “I’m trying very hard to not do anything to you but if you keep wiggling like that on me, I won’t be able to stop myself.”
Zhou mi lifted his head, blinking in confusion. His bed, no matter how warm it was, should never talk to him in the morning. Eyes flecked through with gold watched him as he shifted and he smiled sheepishly at Kyuhyun. The previous night came flooding back to him, right up until the point he had fallen asleep on the couch. How he had ended up on the floor nearly on top of Kyuhyun, he had no memory of.
“How did we get down here?” Zhou mi asked softly.
Kyuhyun’s eyebrows rose. “How much do you remember?”
“Nothing after I fell asleep,” he admitted slowly.
“Then we are going to have to have a very long talk later.” At Zhou mi’s panicked look Kyuhyun immediately corrected himself. “Nothing happened that you will regret we just need to talk later. Not now because if you don’t,” Kyuhyun’s hand grasped Zhou mi’s thigh tightly and held it, “stop that, the conversation will be pointless.”
It took Zhou mi a moment to realize that Kyuhyun was holding his leg still, the same leg that was thrown over one of Kyuhyun’s and had been rubbing against him sensually. Apparently the heat was much more present then he had thought it was. “Sorry,” Zhou mi murmured, trying to pull it away.
Kyuhyun’s hand held firm and a moment later he surged upwards. With a squeak of surprise Zhou mi sprawled onto his back as Kyuhyun hovered over him, pinning him there. “I am trying so hard,” Kyuhyun growled out. Zhou mi could tell he was irritated, but whether it was with him or himself he couldn’t be sure. “But I want you, more than I should.” The whispered admission made something inside of Zhou mi clench.
He felt bad for being essentially responsible for the state of self loathing he could see Kyuhyun sinking into. In truth, Zhou mi wasn’t as opposed to the idea of them being together as he thought he would be. It felt nice to be lying beneath Kyuhyun and even with as wound up as the werewolf was, he wasn’t feeling any fear. Zhou mi didn’t think just the heat was to blame for that. “Maybe,” Zhou mi said softly, “that is because I want you too.”
“Don’t say that!” Kyuhyun responded harshly, leaving Zhou mi completely baffled for a moment. A look of broken defeat settled on Kyuhyun’s face. “If you say that I won’t be able to control myself. I’ll have to take you.”
Zhou mi waited for fear at the warning to curl up in him, yet it didn’t. Smiling, he reached up and hooked his hands behind the werewolf’s neck. “Then I guess it is a good thing that I am a Quieter, isn’t it Kui Xian?”
Kyuhyun’s eyes widened for a moment and then he relaxed, his face morphing into relief. “How do you do that?”
“I don’t know,” Zhou mi admitted. “I just don’t want for you to be in pain or fighting yourself and it sort of happens.”
“It’s nice,” Kyuhyun murmured pressing the foreheads together.
Zhou mi would have been content to lay there like that, allowing the reality of what he had just agreed to sink into his brain fully, but Leeteuk’s voice rang from the kitchen involving warnings about food and possibility of being late. The pair colored almost in unison and Kyuhyun pulled himself up offering his hand down to Zhou mi. When they were both standing nose to nose, they stared at each other for a long moment.
“I had better go get ready for school,” Kyuhyun murmured, but he made no move to leave.
“Yeah, I should probably head home or something,” Zhou mi replied not moving either.
“Ew not in the living room!” was the cat call that rang out from the direction of the kitchen and broke their spell.
Kyuhyun coughed, “Yeah I’ll go this way,” he jerked his thumb in the direction of the stairs to the second floor and then moved the way he had indicated.
“I’ll go this way,” Zhou mi agreed, turning and facing the exact opposite direction. There, standing in the entryway to the kitchen directly in front of him was Kangin with arms crossed and a smile on his face. Zhou mi froze, unsure what he should do.
“Well done,” Kangin told him, his smile morphing into a grin. “Now come in the kitchen and have some breakfast.” Zhou mi had no choice but to obey.
▪▫▪☼▪▫▪
Dust puffed up in a small cloud as his body hit the ground for the sixth time in the last three minutes. Groaning, Zhou mi rolled to his hands and knees and glared at the man who had thrown him across the yard yet again.
Kangin grinned at him. “Don’t glare at me. Get faster.”
Zhou mi wanted to snap that it would be easier if he was actually allowed to stay on his feet for more than a few seconds, but he bit down that retort. It wouldn’t do any good to protest anyway. Kangin had been fairly insistent that morning when he had all but ordered Zhou mi to stay for some sort of self-defence training while everyone else headed off to work or school or wherever else they were going, although thus far Zhou mi couldn’t tell if it was really training or some form of torture.
“I don’t know how,” he admitted, climbing to his feet and brushing off his clothing again.
“You have never been in a fight before?” Kangin sounded skeptical.
“Not one that I actually fought in,” Zhou mi muttered.
“And your parents didn’t have you take any martial arts classes or anything like that?”
“No.”
Kangin sighed heavily. “Look, I can only show you how to use your greatest weapon, your speed.”
It was Zhou mi’s turn to be skeptical. Kangin had shown him nothing but how to be thrown into the dirt all morning. A laugh sounded from behind him and he whirled startled. There sitting on a rock was a young woman with a round face. Her hair was blond and seemed to glow as the morning sun fell on it. “Hello?” Zhou mi said tentatively. She didn’t smell like a werewolf or a human, but like something else entirely. The scent reminded him of warm things of summer and there was a distinct scent of sun warmed grass lingering about her.
“Hello,” she returned. “Aw Kangin you got a kitty and didn’t tell me,” at those words her mouth turned into an adorable pout.
“He’s not mine yet, Sunny,” Kangin returned and Zhou mi found that he had trouble reading the Alpha’s expression.
She giggled and between one moment and the next she had disappeared from the rock and reappeared behind Kangin with her arms around the man’s neck. He tensed at the sudden motion but did nothing else to stop her. “That’s my good puppy,” she purred. “You’re aroused, why isn’t your mate here to take care of that?”
“Leeteuk works. You know that,” Kangin muttered, sounding a bit irritated.
Sunny’s hands drifted down over his chest. “Yet you continue to siphon his heat from him. Such a nice Alpha to care for one that isn’t even yours.”
“What does she mean?” Zhou mi asked, curious.
Kangin sighed. “As an Alpha I can pull many things from any wolf, anger, fear, emotions of all sorts. That’s how an Alpha helps a new wolf learn to control his Beast, by taking most of it upon himself. I can also draw off lust to help you with your heat.”
“But I’m not one of your wolves,” Zhou mi muttered, not entirely sure if it was true anymore.
“No you’re not,” Kangin agreed. “Some Alphas can do it to an extent with any wolf as long as they are close. I can take most of it from you when you are near me.”
“And he is so nice to do it too,” Sunny said brightly. “Taking all of that lust into himself without any outlet for it.”
Kangin growled. “I have done this several times before, it’s fine.” Sunny giggled and in a shimmer of light, she vanished from Kangin’s back and reappeared on the rock.
“I don’t have to stay,” Zhou mi insisted, “I’ve lived through this before.”
“Ignore her,” Kangin ordered. “She just wants to get you alone. Sunny is a Fae.”
“A Fae?” Zhou mi asked, startled. Of all the things he had thought she might be, that wasn’t one of them.
“A part of the Fair Folk,” Sunny’s voice took on a musical quality as she spoke. “Fae of light and life.”
“But,” Zhou mi looked at Sunny and tried to form the words. He had never seen a Fae before but he had always imagined they would look somewhat different than she did.
“She looks normal. Human,” Kangin told him. “But she isn’t.”
“Glamour,” Zhou mi said with a nod, recalling what his mother had once told him.
“Yes, and she isn’t as friendly as she looks even though she is generally peaceable around us. Never thank her for anything,” Kangin instructed firmly.
Sunny pouted. “You are ruining all of my fun.”
“The last thing I would want is for you to have this nice innocent boy in your debt,” Kangin replied with false sweetness dripping from his words.
“But he is so adorable,” she said with a smile, rising from the rock and moving towards Zhou mi.
Zhou mi watched her approach warily. This was the first time he had ever seen a Fae up close and she looked so normal it was confusing. If he didn’t know that Fae were easily offended, he might have asked to see what she looked like in reality, but his mother’s warnings rang in his head, keeping him silent and still as she approached.
Sunny’s fingers traced around his shoulders as she circled him, inspecting him as if he was some sort of specimen. “Very tall,” she murmured, “and well-bred. This is a strong one, a good addition to your pack.”
Kangin growled. “I don’t need your permission to add wolves to my pack.”
“No,” she smiled. “But if you add him, I will give you my Blessing.” Zhou mi inhaled sharply. A blessing from a Fae was a very powerful thing, rarely spoken about and even more scarcely given.
“Do not try to persuade him with your games!” Kangin’s tone was sharp and Zhou mi was surprised by the anger he heard there.
“Of course not,” Sunny said her hand drifting lower as she continued to circle him. “He is, of course, free to make his own choice.”
Zhou mi swallowed thickly. He knew that he could say accept or decline the offer that Kangin had made days ago and that Kangin would never sway him one way or another, at least not intentionally. Yet if there was a Fae involved, that changed things.
“I could never force him to join your pack,” Sunny continued conversationally. Zhou mi watched her, remaining still as she circled him. “Although I will say if he doesn’t your pack may not-” she bit off her words with a quiet gasp and stilled by his hip. “Tzina,” she breathed so softly he hardly heard it. A moment later she was standing before him with her hands held tightly to her chest. “May I see her, just for a moment?”
It took Zhou mi a minute to figure out what she was asking for as he followed her gaze to his hip where he still wore the dagger his mother had given him. He had gotten in the habit of putting it on each morning, yet he was surprised he had remembered to put it on when Kangin had brought him home to change his clothing. “Um sure,” he replied. He had no idea what the etiquette in this situation would be, but he imagined if she could see the dagger then it wouldn’t hurt her.
Carefully he slid it from its sheath and passed it to her hilt first. She nearly snatched it from his fingers in her eagerness and offered him a look that he imagined might express apology from anyone else. “Oh my Tzina,” she cooed and then began murmuring softly in a language Zhou mi didn’t recognize as she traced her fingers over the blade.
Beyond her Kangin appeared to be a strange mixture of confused and tense. He couldn’t see the dagger, Zhou mi realized, which meant that he would have no idea what exactly was going on. Zhou mi was attempting to decide on a good way to explain it to the man when Sunny suddenly held the dagger back out to him. “She likes you,” she said gently as he took it from her fingers. “I did not realize that you were the child of the Wild One. Her protections over you are strong for me not to know it.”
Zhou mi accepted the dagger and slipped it back where it belonged while he tried to process what she had said. He assumed that the ‘Wild One’ referred to his mother, whom he had never heard called that before. While he was certain that his mother did have some sort of protection around him, the way the Fae spoke of it made it sound more powerful than he even knew.
“So,” Sunny said suddenly clapping her hands and spinning to face Kangin. Her voice was bright and cheery and the Alpha simply shook his head. “I see that you are teaching the young one to fight. I shall help.”
“While the offer is generous,” Kangin said before Zhou mi could reply. “We will have to decline.”
Sunny sighed heavily. “I offer my help freely and without requirement of payment from you or yours or the young pup which I intend to help. Is that acceptable?”
“No debt will be incurred?” Kangin clarified.
“None.”
“Then on your word as a Fae, you may offer your help,” Kangin replied after a moment.
Sunny clapped happily and spun to face Zhou mi again. “Excellent. Now little pup, the Alpha is big and bulky and has no idea how to teach but to do. Pay attention and I will show you where and how to strike and how to move so that none can counter you.”
Kangin huffed more in irritation then anger and Zhou mi nodded. He only had a moment to move closer before Sunny was off, launching into an explanation of where and how to hit an opponent to be the most effective, leaving Zhou mi’s mind scrambling to keep up.
▪▫▪☼▪▫▪
“Good. Very good!” Sunny exclaimed excitedly as Zhou mi managed to not only land a hit on Kangin’s abdomen, but managed to dance backwards out of the Alpha’s returning blow as well. Panting, Zhou mi shook his hand trying to relieve the twinge of pain that hitting tightly packed muscle had shot through it.
Sunny walked between them, looking at both as if she was some great director instead of an instructor. “Now we need someone to challenge Zhou mi’s speed,” she mused. Then she brightened. “Eunhyuk, be a dear and come here.”
As if truly summoned by her, Zhou mi heard the sound of a car pulling up and the engine cutting. A few moments later, Eunhyuk stepped around the house, stripping out of his suit coat and dress shirt as he did so.
“Out of work early?” Kangin asked offering him a questioning look.
“No,” Eunhyuk said with a grin. “Sunny just called in part of what I owe her. I figure a few bumps while helping Zhou mi learn to take care of himself is one of the best ways I could repay her.”
Kangin scowled. “Sunny we agreed that his payment of his debt would always go through me as his Alpha,” his voice carried warning.
“Of course we did,” she said waving her hand. “Kangin, Alpha of the pack. I wish to have Eunhyuk, whom is indebted to me, pay back a portion of that debt by aiding in teaching your pup. Will you permit it?”
“How much of the debt?” Kangin pressed.
“A quarter of his debt will be paid by what he does today,” she responded promptly.
“Only a quarter?”
“I am being generous. I gave him life. He owes me an equal debt. This in no way begins to amount to the value of that,” Sunny said crossly.
Kangin glanced from Eunhyuk and then back to her. “Fine. If Eunhyuk accepts, it will be as you said.”
“I accept,” Eunhyuk said eagerly.
“Excellent,” Sunny said brightly. “Now Eunhyuk I want you to attack Zhou mi as if your very life depends on defeating him, because it very well may.” The smile she directed at him had such a dangerous edge that Eunhyuk took a step backwards. “Pup,” she said turning to face Zhou mi. “Defend yourself as if you are fighting to live, because you will be.”
Zhou mi swallowed and turned to face Eunhyuk. The older man offered him a grin. “I’ll try not to break any bones,” Eunhyuk told him.
“Thanks, I think,” was all Zhou mi had time to say, before he was forced to use every single skill he had learned that morning.
▪▫▪☼▪▫▪
Someone somewhere was laughing at him, that much Kyuhyun was sure of. The one day when all he wanted was to get home, just had to be the single day where thing after thing kept him behind at school. First he had agreed to stay five extra minutes to go over a difficult math equation with a student. Then a teacher had stopped him in the hall and engaged him in a conversation that he had trouble extracting himself from. After that he had been forced to wait for Yoona to finish whatever it was that was keeping her - he was too impatient to bother remembering what it had been - before walking home. When they had neared the house, Leeteuk had sent his phone a list of things that he needed to pick up from the grocery store, and Kyuhyun had been forced to head there instead of home.
By the time he struggled in the door with bags tucked under both arms, he wanted nothing more than to find Zhou mi and demand answers from him. Their conversation from the morning had played through his mind again and again during the day, until he had become so worked up from it that he couldn’t figure out what it meant. Were they flirting? Dating? Engaged? Going to become mates that evening? Just talking? Or some strange combination of everything? Kyuhyun had no answer and that irritated him.
“Welcome home,” Siwon greeted him as he opened the front door. Kyuhyun instantly shoved the bags into the startled man’s arms and followed his nose to what he really wanted.
It led him through the house to the kitchen table. There Zhou mi sat with his back to the archway where Kyuhyun stood, bent over a textbook. Jaejoong was at the stove preparing something and Leeteuk was sitting across the table pointing out something in the text. The teacher glanced up and smiled at Kyuhyun before returning his attention to the student he was working with.
Kyuhyun inhaled deeply, taking in the scent of the house and everything in it. Zhou mi’s scent, still flavored with the arousal of his lingering heat, stuck out to him clearly. “Zhou mi,” he all but purred, glad to be back where the teen was.
“Welcome home, Kyuhyun,” Zhou mi greeted softly, not looking up from what he was doing.
Kyuhyun frowned. He had never thought the sound of his real name could sound so wrong coming out of anyone’s mouth but it did. More important than that, Zhou mi’s tone was all wrong. There was something he was hiding and as sure as Kyuhyun was of that fact, he hated it. Zhou mi should never have to hide anything, not from them.
Quickly he moved behind Zhou mi and placed a hand on his shoulder. “What is wrong?” he murmured.
“Nothing,” Zhou mi answered, tipping his head down towards his book.
A growl slipped from Kyuhyun’s throat. “You won’t look at me. Why?”
“It’s nothing you did. It’s nothing. I’m just going to finish up my homework and go home,” Zhou mi replied.
Kyuhyun didn’t like the way he was avoiding looking at him one bit. His hands grabbed the back of the chair and he pulled it away from the table so that he could get around in front of Zhou mi, yet when he did so, Zhou mi turned his head to the side as if hiding something.
“Let it be Kyuhyun,” Leeteuk told him and he could feel the beginnings of a command there. He ignored it.
Gently his fingers reached out and turned Zhou mi’s face towards him. The first thing he noticed was the wary eyes that stared back at him, the second was the dark purple splotch that was feathered over the teen’s cheek. Anger burned in Kyuhyun at the sight of it. Someone had hit Zhou mi, hit him hard enough to bruise, and no one had stopped it. Someone had hurt what was theirs. Someone had hurt their mate.
‘They will pay,’ the Beast growled angrily in his mind. ‘No one hurts him. No one.’
“Who?” Kyuhyun growled. He knew his eyes were flashing golden but he didn’t care. For once he agreed fully with his Beast. Whoever was responsible would pay.
“It’s nothing. It isn’t his fault. We were training. Sunny showed me some things and he just got a lucky hit,” Zhou mi said immediately.
“Who?!” Kyuhyun demanded.
“Kyuhyun!” Leeteuk said sharply. “That is enough!” there was a command in his voice but Kyuhyun found it easy to ignore in favor of his anger.
“What are you going to do?” Zhou mi asked boldly. “Kill him for helping me learn?”
“Yes!” Kyuhyun snarled. “He hit you!”
“So did Kangin! He tossed me around all morning,” Kyuhyun could tell there was irritation rising in Zhou mi as the teen stood to his feet so they were standing nose to nose. As good as it felt to have his mate standing in the midst of his anger unafraid, there were more pressing matters to attend to.
“Are you going to try and kill Kangin too?” Zhou mi continued. “Just because Eunhyuk got in a lucky shot doesn’t mean you have to do anything to him!” Zhou mi’s eyes widened the moment after he said it and he lunged towards Kyuhyun. It was too late. Kyuhyun, having already started moving and much more experience at dodging, slipped easily past his grasp and charged up the stairs.
Through the pack bonds he knew that Eunhyuk was in his room with Taeyeon and he bounded there. Kyuhyun didn’t bother with knocking, choosing instead to smash in the door. It flew across the room and splinted against the far wall. Instantly Taeyeon dropped to the ground and rolled onto her back exposing her vulnerable stomach to him. He ignored her in favor of the man laying on the bed.
Eunhyuk’s eyes were closed but his breathing was heavy and Kyuhyun could smell his fear. The man had his arms spread away from his body and his head tipped back, bearing both his throat and stomach to Kyuhyun. The pose of submission was the only that kept Kyuhyun from tearing him apart the moment he had entered his room. “You hit him!” he snarled.
“It was an accident,” Eunhyuk whimpered.
“You hurt him!” Kyuhyun could feel his body beginning to change, his limbs twisting as his body began to shift in his anger.
A pitiful whine came from the man on the bed. “I didn’t mean to. It was a training exercise, to teach him how to take care of himself.” Kyuhyun snarled, a vicious sound somewhere between human and Beast as his face began to change past the point where it could form proper speech.
“Kyuhyun!” a voice behind him shouted and a moment later he was tackled from behind. His half formed limbs tangled him and he collapsed in a heap to the ground with another body on top of his. He turned his face towards the person and saw Zhou mi on top of him anger in his eyes. Before he could even attempt to move, the Chinese teen pulled back his fist and then smashed it into Kyuhyun’s face. The impact barely phased him, as his healing abilities kicked in and took care of any damage almost immediately, but the action itself kept him frozen.
“If this is the way it is going to be,” Zhou mi growled angrily, “then we are done.”
Chapter Thirteen
Masterlist
AN: Hehe I would say I was sorry about the cliff hanger but well that would be lieing and I try not to do that so... But I am sorry this took so long. Last week was increadibly busy. Then this week when I had the time to write the muses were silent. Then suddenly, out of no where the SHINee muses maul me (SuJu was just sitting back and cheering them on) and unleash a new and very rabid plot bunny on me. Took a day or two to shove that little sucker in a cage and to cut a deal with Taemin. I think they will all wait patiently until it is there turn now... of course with them you never really know... Anyway, hope you enjoyed this little up date. It's getting there. ^_^ Also this is un-betaed because my wonderful beta is really busy and on the exact opposite schedule I am. Feel free, as always, to point out any mistakes!