お帰り [Welcome Home] - Chapter Twenty-Five
Title: お帰り [Welcome Home]
Authors: curionenene and yeonah
Chapter: 25/?
Fandom: SS501 + Epik High Cameos
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, HyunJoong, and Tablo are played by curionenene , while JungMin, YoungSaeng, HyungJoon, Mithra and Thaestae are played by yeonah .
Yelping in alarm, YoungSaeng instinctively curled into his master's body as a shot rang out. Golden eyes opening again, everything seemed to stop as the kitten felt dampness on his fur, dampness that didn't belong to him as the strong smell of blood reached his nose.
"H...Hyun?"
“Ugh…I’m…fine…” HyunJoong groaned as he struggled back to his feet. Looking up, he saw the hunter taking aim again and bit down on his lip as he ran forward, ignoring the stabbing pain near his shoulder.
He would deal with that later; first, they needed to find a safe place to hide.
Staring at the red quickly soaking through the fabric of HyunJoong's shirt, YoungSaeng started to shake. HyunJoong had been shot...
Anger blasted through him. He wanted to find that gunman and tear him limb from limb. He wanted to kill him. But he couldn't do anything, nothing but keep an eye on the rooftops, watching for their assailant as HyunJoong ran.
The hunter was persistent - but as HyunJoong slowly got his bearings back, he got back the advantage of home ground. Running in a seemingly haphazard manner, HyunJoong managed to shake the hunter off, running into the nearest safe house he remembered the location off.
The minute they were inside, the adrenaline that had filled HyunJoong until then faded off, and he found himself gasping for breath as he staggered, falling to the floor at the sudden pain that shot through his back.
YoungSaeng landed on his feet as he was let go, and instantly reverted back to his human form, pulling HyunJoong into his arms. Tears prickled at his eyes as he whispered thank yous, gently pulling off his master's shirt to assess the damage. His skin paled even more. He'd lost so much blood...
"You're an idiot for running with this," he whispered, trying to slow the bleeding.
“Yeah…well…” HyunJoong’s voice was dry and crackled as he answered. “This…idiot…just saved your life…ugh…”
A tremor racked down HyunJoong’s spine and he shuddered. It probably wouldn’t have been so bad if he’d hadn’t used up all his energy in running - and now he was dry, leaving nothing at all to heal the wound.
Swallowing thickly, YoungSaeng looked around, but there was no one else nearby to help. What could he do? He didn't know how to heal; he had no knowledge of spells of any kind...
"Can you take my energy?" he asked shakily as he tried to stop the blood. It was the only thing he had to offer. He wasn't going to let HyunJoong die like this...
HyunJoong shook his head slowly, “Not without killing you.” He already had a hard time controlling spiritual energy in his normal state, let alone injured like this. His body needed a ridiculous amount of energy in order to sustain him, and a felinefolk like YoungSaeng wasn’t able to provide it.
Truth be told, YoungSaeng didn't care. He didn't care if it killed him, but he couldn't let HyunJoong die...
...Hadn't HyungJoon said there was one safe way to transfer energy?
"N-not even...with a bond?" he asked shakily.
“A…bond?” HyunJoong repeated slowly. It was getting hard to think, and his eyelids seemed to get heavier with every second. “I guess… that would… work… mm…”
He was losing him. YoungSaeng clenched his jaw tightly, eyes flashing. No...he wasn't going to lose him.
"Work with me, Hyun," he whispered, cradling HyunJoong close and reaching out with his energy, without a clue what he was doing but doing it anyways. "You're going to be okay, you hear me?"
He wasn't going to lose HyunJoong now.
“Work with… you…” HyunJoong murmured as he felt something warm reach out to him. It wasn’t very large, nor was it very powerful. But it secured itself to him nevertheless, and he reached back with his own depleted energy, securing them tightly together - weaving them into a tightly wound braid.
YoungSaeng drew in a shaky breath, feeling the connection. But it didn't scare him. It reassured him instead.
And he proceeded to give whatever energy he could offer through that connection, whispering soft words against HyunJoong's soft hair.
It was like taking from a bottomless well - as YoungSaeng pushed energy through the bond, it multiplied in HyunJoong, rebounding back half of it. And slowly, HyunJoong’s form began to glow a mysterious sheen, a blinding gold-green radiating out.
Slowly opening his eyes, YoungSaeng watched his master begin to glow, hoping that was a good sign. "You're going to be okay," he whispered, pushing out more energy, whatever he could, in the hopes that it would save his master's life.
There was so much energy, just so much. Even as a Merus, HyunJoong was hard-pressed to handle it all although he should have been able to.
It irritated him, this barrier that prevented him from doing so. And such a barrier, he felt, should be destroyed.
The gold-green glow intensified, flaring out like a starburst from HyunJoong’s body and somewhere, there was something like the sound of glass breaking.
Suddenly the light was brighter, too bright, YoungSaeng forced to close his eyes against it. What? Was this supposed to happen? It seemed a little excessive to heal, but he'd never seen a bond before...
He had to bring a hand over his eyes, gasping against the sudden flow of power.
The glow was gone as suddenly as it appeared. And with it, it revealed something strange.
“Ugh…” Hyunjoong groaned, his eyes opening before they fluttered close again at the headache pounding at his head. “What happened?”
YongSaeng's ears twitched at his master's voice, the felinefolk freezing.
His heart in his throat, he slowly lowered his hand, eyes opening to stare in shock at the human half in his arms. "H-Hyun?!"
HyunJoong winced at the shout, his head ringing. “Ah… please, keep your voice down… mmm…”
Slowly, he opened his eyes, noting the bare skin that they first met contact with. “…Are you naked?”
Clapping a hand over his mouth when he was told to keep his voice down, YoungSaeng continued to stare until the rest of the other's words reached him, the felinefolk turning a bright red. The disadvantage of shapeshifting...
But...
"I-I...Don't think I'm the only one with clothing problems right now..."
HyunJoong blinked at the words, but before he could respond, the door of the safe house burst open, and familiar voices reached them.
“See! I told you they were here- uh?” Tablo paused in the doorway as he took in the scene. Then bowing, he pushed Mithra and HyungJoon out, “Sorry, I must be interrupting.”
An embarrassed squeak left YoungSaeng, and he turned even redder, practically glowing as he fought the urge to shift back and hide somewhere for a long, long time.
"What's going on, are they all right?" HyungJoon's worried voice floated in, and the felinefolk hid his face in his hands.
"H-Hyun...look at yourself..."
HyunJoong looked away from the door and cast his confused gaze to YoungSaeng before redirecting it to himself.
It took a while to get the point that YoungSaeng was trying to make, since HyunJoong wasn’t entirely functioning 100% as of then. But slowly, he realized what YoungSaeng wanted him to notice. “…I’m an adult again.”
Peeking through his fingers at the other man, YoungSaeng nodded, smiling shakily. Tears of relief gathered in his eyes, relief that HyunJoong was all right and that he was back to normal. Completely bypassing the fact that he wasn't wearing a stitch of clothing and HyunJoong's clothing was torn and meant for someone half his current size, the felinefolk almost tackled his master over, burying his face in the other man's collar as he started to shake.
HyunJoong yelped at the sudden action, nearly falling over. “Hey, hey! Careful!” But there was no force behind the rebuke, and a smile slowly crept across his mouth as he hugged the felinefolk tight. “Everything’s all right now… No need to cry…”
Nodding against his master's chest, YoungSaeng tried to calm down, but he had so desperately missed this, he hadn't even known how much he missed seeing HyunJoong as he was until that instant. "I'm sorry," he whispered, choking a little, as he found he couldn't let go.
HyunJoong chortled, gently stroking through YoungSaeng’s hair. “What are you sorry about, silly cat? I’m just glad you’re okay…”
He leaned down, resting his cheek on YoungSaeng’s soft hair. It had been a while since he could hold the felinefolk like this, and he found that he had really missed it. It was hard to wrap your arms around someone when you were half their size.
"I'm glad you're okay too," YoungSaeng whispered, nuzzling closer and breathing in the earthy scent. He slowly managed to calm down again, purring softly as the tension left his frame.
It took him a few minutes to remember the clothing problem. "M...maybe we should find clothes," he mumbled, red again.
HyunJoong blinked, then, looking down at them both, remembered their predicament. “Oh… right.”
Slowly, he began to shift so that he could pull YoungSaeng up with him, but something met against his manhood, and he let out a sound that was somewhere between a yelp and a moan before he stopped it in absolute horror and embarrassment.
A surprised mix of a gasp and moan tore from the felinefolk, YoungSaeng exploding into a bright blush before he disappeared, the black kitten tumbling out of HyunJoong's lap and onto the floor.
HyunJoong blinked at the sudden lack of weight on him, and a bout of surprised laughter burst from him as he picked the kitten up. “I’m probably going to get scratched for saying this, but you’re too cute.”
Still recovering from the very sudden shift, YoungSaeng squirmed as he was picked up until he could lean up and very gently bite the tip of HyunJoong's nose in grumpy retaliation.
“Hey!” HyunJoong couldn’t help but laugh now, cradling YoungSaeng against his chest. “Try not to hurt this form straight after I change back into it.”
The black kitten settled down at that, curled up in HyunJoong's arms with his claws fully retracted to avoid scratching his master.
"Wow." HyungJoon had finally managed to get in past Tablo, far too curious about the change in HyunJoong's energy to really listen. The White Rabbit blinked at him in surprise. "How did you manage to change back? I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm glad for it, but I don't get how."
HyunJoong blinked, looking first at HyungJoon, then at the exasperated Tablo and Mithra behind him and grinned. “Well… we made a bond. I think. Earlier.”
"Really?" HyungJoon looked at them both closely, blinking, then smiled after a moment. "Congratulations, then?"
There was a worried note in his eyes though. Because even though HyunJoong appeared as an adult now...it wasn't over quite yet.
Tablo saw the cause of concern, and he thought he should voice it out for HyunJoong to know. “You know, you should stop pushing against the boundaries of the curse so much… you’re only going to tire yourself out.”
HyunJoong blinked, before the words registered to him. “So… this…” He gestured to himself. “Is only temporary?”
“I’m afraid so.” Tablo nodded. “But it looks as if you’ll have no problem regulating your energy now, since you’re actually able to disable the curse for quite a bit.”
YoungSaeng mewled in slight despair at that, heart sinking. He'd hoped the curse was gone completely, but now that he focused, he could still sense something off. Was it never going to go away?
No...they'd find a way to get rid of it. Even a bit of time without the curse was better than nothing. He nuzzled further into HyunJoong's arms, sticking his cold nose against the man's skin.
"This puts us in the right direction though," HyungJoon piped up. "If the bond was able to disable the curse a little, now we know what to look for and it should help us find a way to get rid of the curse for good."
HyunJoong smiled, nodding as he stroked careful fingers down YoungSaeng’s back. “Well, since I have this little bit of time now… I’d like to have it alone.”
Tablo was the first to get his meaning, and he nodded, blushing a little, before he pulled both Mithra and HyungJoon out.
Watching the others leave, YoungSaeng's eyes closed and he purred happily at the fingers running through his fur. It felt extremely relaxing, especially after everything that had just happened. After a bit he slowly opened his eyes again, looking up at HyunJoong. "Clothes," he reminded his master.
“All right, all right…” HyunJoong laughed, slowly pushing himself up. “Slave-driver.”
With YoungSaeng still cuddled in his hands, he began looking through the cupboards. “Hm… clothes, clothes, clothes… Nothing in this one… only a winding sheet…” And pulling it out, he draped it onto YoungSaeng, wrapping the kitten up like a baby. “Hehehe… so cute.”
Yowling in an almost playful protest, YoungSaeng squirmed to get free and ended up tangling all four legs somehow, faceplanting into the crook of HyunJoong's arm. "I don't think that's going to work."
HyunJoong laughed as he finally managed to locate some clothes. They seemed a bit big, but better than nothing. “Okay. I’ll put these on the floor and go over there to change.
Slowly letting YoungSaeng down, HyunJoong moved over to the side of the room, pulling up the old pair of jeans and plain white T-shit. “Mmm… feels good to be in adult clothes again~”
Disentangling himself from the sheet, YoungSaeng shifted back once HyunJoong's back was turned, pulling on the clothing left out for him. "Is it that different from child's clothing?" He asked, standing up and pulling the shirt over his head.
“Well…” HyunJoong shrugged. “It’s a little more fitting… and the stuff Tablo hyung gets me is always so big and I don’t know… girly. But then I guess it’s because I’ve mostly been in pajamas and stuff like that.”
“Done?” He asked, stopping himself in time before turning around. He didn’t want YoungSaeng to scratch him or anything.
"I think he was doing the girly part on purpose," YoungSaeng teased, padding up to HyunJoong. "Yeah, done." It had been a while since he'd had to look up at HyunJoong instead of crouch to his eye level.
HyunJoong grinned at the change in height. “Hmm… I like this too.” Emphasizing the height difference with his hand. “Wow… you’re so short now!”
YoungSaeng gave HyunJoong the evil eye. "Remind me to leave you there the next time JungMin decides to hang you on something."
HyunJoong pouted, something that looked a little out of place on his adult face. “You wouldn’t… you can’t resist my child begging form!”
"I can if I don't look," YoungSaeng countered, sticking his tongue out. "And it doesn't work when you're an adult, so don't even try."
“I’ll whine.” HyunJoong replied, before a grin stole onto his face. “Ahh… but as an adult, I can do this…”
And grabbing YoungSaeng, he began to tickle the felinefolk’s sides.
Eyes widening, YoungSaeng shrieked and struggled, laughing helplessly. "Y-yah! Stop!" Squirming in the human's grip, he yelped as he lost his footing and crashed into his master.
HyunJoong let out a soundless cry as he too lost his balance, and grabbing YoungSaeng as he fell, they both ended up in a heap on the floor. “Ow. Ow. Ow…”
YoungSaeng opened his eyes again, pushing himself up onto his hands and knees at the noises of pain. "I-I'm sorry!" He looked at the other man, hair nearly falling into HyunJoong's face as golden eyes blinked down at him in worry. "Are you okay?"
“Yeah… I’m fine…” HyunJoong trailed off as he stared into those worried golden eyes. And reaching up almost instinctively, he ran a thumb under YoungSaeng’s right eye. “You?”
Blinking, YoungSaeng nodded slowly, gaze caught by the other man's. The gentle touch under his eye caught his attention, the felinefolk needing to remind himself to breathe. "Yeah," he mumbled, wondering if he should move but not.
The gentle brush slowly turned into a gentle caress, and before HyunJoong could register in his mind what he was doing, he had already leaned up, brushing his lips against the felinefolk’s in a tender kiss.
It was like everything had stopped, YoungSaeng's eyes wide for a moment as he felt the gentle pressure of lips against his own. But the hesitation lasted only an instant, the human's scent and taste pulling him in and relaxing him as his golden eyes slowly closed. The felinefolk leaned down to ease the pressure for HyunJoong, gently kissing back, feeling how soft the man's lips were.
Somewhere, in the back of his mind, HyunJoong was surprised at the response. But that was all cast away at the feeling of soft lips against his, pressing back, wanting more. And more he did give, slowly and gently prodding with his tongue, begging permission for entry.
YoungSaeng had kissed HyunJoong before, but it had always been part of their cover in the hunter group. They'd never actually just...kissed, for the sake of kissing. And it was much nicer than YoungSaeng ever thought it would be.
When he felt the tongue against his lips, there was only a slight pause before he complied with the silent request, parting his lips to allow HyunJoong in.
More and more surprises seemed to await him today. HyunJoong did all he did with the nagging suspicion that once YoungSaeng snapped out of it, he’d be dumped onto his back and left with a howling meow in his ears as a black blur zipped out of the room. But none of that happened yet, and HyunJoong, greedy for all he could get, slipped his tongue in, exploring the cavernous warmth that was YoungSaeng’s mouth.
Although he'd been expecting it, YoungSaeng couldn't hold back the soft gasp that left him at the feeling of HyunJoong's tongue in his mouth. And rather than do any of the things HyunJoong expected, the felinefolk shivered and released a quiet moan before hesitantly returning the gesture, tongue brushing against HyunJoong's and pushing lightly. It seemed unlikely YoungSaeng would push him away anytime soon as he sank further and further into the kiss, mewling.
HyunJoong began to like the bond when he discovered that he didn’t have the need to breathe at all, not even as the kiss dragged long, and he found YoungSaeng’s tongue, prodding it into action and leading it into a slow dance around their mouths.
It took a moment for YoungSaeng to figure out what in the world he was doing, not used to anything like this, but once HyunJoong started to guide him through the intricate dance he gladly followed along. Becoming bolder the more time that passed, he pulled back slightly to flick his tongue against the human's upper lip and steal a quick breath before returning.
The sudden boldness caught HyunJoong by surprise, and he lost more breath than he would have gained before YoungSaeng came back. Then, nothing mattered as HyunJoong deepened the kiss, pressing harder, his hand snaking across YoungSaeng’s back, pushing their bodies closer together.
A mewl that slipped from the felinefolk told what he thought of the hand against his back, spine arching both into it and into the body below his own. The whisper against the other man's lips could have been some form of HyunJoong's name, but became impossible to interpret when it broke off into a moan, YoungSaeng sinking lower until his body was almost flush against HyunJoong's.
HyunJoong groaned at the contact, and he hungrily devoured YoungSaeng’s mouth, instinctively rolling his hips against the felinefolk’s.
Using a combination of physics and experience, HyunJoong flipped them both over so that he was now atop of YoungSaeng. And he broke off the kiss, eyes needy, but still considerate and worried for YoungSaeng’s feelings. “S-Saeng… if we go on… I’m afraid I won’t be able to stop…”
Gasping at the sudden change in position, YoungSaeng instinctively pushed his hips up off the ground to keep his tail from being crushed and accidentally ground against the other man, a moan escaping.
He definitely wasn't thinking straight, that he knew, but when HyunJoong broke off the kiss a whine of protest came from the one underneath, YoungSaeng staring up at HyunJoong with glazed over eyes.
...Screw thinking straight. He didn't want to stop; in fact, he couldn't remember ever wanting something this much before.
"Then don't," he whispered, one hand coming up to curl fingers into HyunJoong's collar, pulling him back down into a kiss.
HyunJoong would have gladly continued, but just as he was about to meet YoungSaeng’s lips, he jerked back, eyes widening as he let out a violent sneeze.
There was the sound of powder exploding then a thump as HyunJoong fell face first onto the felinefolk’s stomach.
Squeaking in alarm, YoungSaeng yelped at the sudden weight on his stomach, not as much as there should have been. Barely keeping his tail from being crushed, he opened his eyes and sat up, blinking down at the child in his lap. "..."
HyunJoong groaned, pushing himself up. Then looking down at himself, he made a face. “Aw… nuts…”
YoungSaeng tried not to turn red and utterly failed, as it finally occurred to him just what he'd agreed to. "It seems to...happen at random, doesn't it?" he mumbled, willing his heart rate to slow down.
“Unfortunately.” HyunJoong sighed, playing dejectedly with his oversized clothes. Internally he was cursing - that had been such a good moment, although he wasn’t sure what it was (and HyunJoong wasn’t the type to really question anything). Now, as a child, it would seem rather inappropriate to continue doing whatever he had been doing.
Watching his master, YoungSaeng slowly smiled. "I think a different set of clothes is in order," he chuckled, standing up and setting HyunJoong on his feet. "We should head back to HQ though...I don't think they'll have any kid-sized clothes here."
He tried to avoid thinking about the kiss, and why he'd kissed back...and that if HyunJoong hadn't changed back suddenly, YoungSaeng would have made no move to stop him from going farther.
“Alright.” HyunJoong sighed once more, before he smiled, wrapping his arms around YoungSaeng’s waist and burying his face in the felinefolk’s stomach. “By the way, thanks for saving me again.”
YoungSaeng blinked, and then wrapped his arms loosely around the human's shoulders, one hand running through HyunJoong's hair lightly. "You saved me too," he whispered. "Thank you so much, Hyun..."
HyunJoong chuckled, looking up with bright eyes. “I only did what you’d do for me! Anyway, I’m hungry. Let’s go get some food after I change~”
The smile reappeared on YoungSaeng's lips as he hugged HyunJoong lightly before letting go, his hand finding one that was smaller but equally warm. "All right, all right. What do you want to eat?"
“Steak and a nice glass of red wine to match.” HyunJoong replied in a sophisticated tone, looking entirely serious.
The felinefolk rolled his eyes. "You have expensive tastes, and they are never going to let a ten-year-old drink no matter how old you tell them you are." He pulled HyunJoong out of the room, amused.
HyunJoong’s lips quirked. “You actually believe that? I don’t enjoy alcohol as much as I seem to do, okay? What I really want is patbingsu!”
"Are you sure? You certainly go through soju pretty fast," YoungSaeng teased. "Patbingsu? There should be a place nearby." He didn't mention that patbingsu wasn't particularly filling, indulging his master.
"Oh." He paused, before pulling his hoodie up over his ears. The jeans he was wearing didn't have a hole for his tail so that was hidden anyways.
Noting the action, HyunJoong frowned and he tugged on YoungSaeng’s hand. “We can bring it back to the underground HQ if you want. We don’t need to eat out.”
"It's fine, it's been a while since we've been outside, no?" He knew HyunJoong must be getting tired of staying underground all the time, he knew he was. The hoodie wasn't that uncomfortable, and well, he was used to accidentally sitting on his tail by now.
HyunJoong stared knowingly at YoungSaeng, his gaze too astute on that childish face. But he let it go. He was pretty tired of staying underground. “All right… but I’ll eat quickly! Then we can go back and take a bubble bath together too!”
"Again?" YoungSaeng laughed, starting to walk again once he was sure his ears were covered. "If that's what you want...and no more dirty hands in my hair or I'm dumping you in upside-down."
“I won’t. I swear. Scout’s honor!” HyunJoong raised his free hand as he tottered alongside YoungSaeng.
"Were you even a Scout?" YoungSaeng watched the child beside him as they stepped out onto the street, smiling to himself.
“Details!” HyunJoong waved his hand vaguely in the air. “It doesn’t matter! Besides, it’s the thought that counts!”
"If you say so," the felinefolk chuckled. Perhaps it was the thought that counted.
Also he didn't exactly trust in HyunJoong's oath not to stick his dirty hands in his hair, he trusted him with so much more, and that was all that mattered.
HyunJoong grinned a little at the slightly patronizing tone in YoungSaeng’s voice. “Aish…” he mock-clutched at his heart. “People really don’t take children seriously!”
But that wasn’t true. YoungSaeng took him seriously, joking aside, even as a child. And somehow, that made his heart warm and smile bright.
"Especially if all children are like you," YoungSaeng teased. It was different, seeing this side of HyunJoong, but it was nice in a way. He felt like he understood him better.
“Meanie!” HyunJoong proclaimed, but seconds later, he burst out into laughter, finding their conversation utterly juvenile.
YoungSaeng couldn't help but laugh as well, eyes crinkling with mirth. "Sure sure," he grinned, messing up HyunJoong's hair. "Come on, let's find that patbingsu."
“Alright.” HyunJoong grinned through his messed hair, squeezing the hand in his. Silently, he smiled to himself as he pulled ahead, tugging. He had never been so happy in his life.
It was at that moment that he realized he was, in fact, in love.
Authors: curionenene and yeonah
Chapter: 25/?
Fandom: SS501 + Epik High Cameos
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, HyunJoong, and Tablo are played by curionenene , while JungMin, YoungSaeng, HyungJoon, Mithra and Thaestae are played by yeonah .
Yelping in alarm, YoungSaeng instinctively curled into his master's body as a shot rang out. Golden eyes opening again, everything seemed to stop as the kitten felt dampness on his fur, dampness that didn't belong to him as the strong smell of blood reached his nose.
"H...Hyun?"
“Ugh…I’m…fine…” HyunJoong groaned as he struggled back to his feet. Looking up, he saw the hunter taking aim again and bit down on his lip as he ran forward, ignoring the stabbing pain near his shoulder.
He would deal with that later; first, they needed to find a safe place to hide.
Staring at the red quickly soaking through the fabric of HyunJoong's shirt, YoungSaeng started to shake. HyunJoong had been shot...
Anger blasted through him. He wanted to find that gunman and tear him limb from limb. He wanted to kill him. But he couldn't do anything, nothing but keep an eye on the rooftops, watching for their assailant as HyunJoong ran.
The hunter was persistent - but as HyunJoong slowly got his bearings back, he got back the advantage of home ground. Running in a seemingly haphazard manner, HyunJoong managed to shake the hunter off, running into the nearest safe house he remembered the location off.
The minute they were inside, the adrenaline that had filled HyunJoong until then faded off, and he found himself gasping for breath as he staggered, falling to the floor at the sudden pain that shot through his back.
YoungSaeng landed on his feet as he was let go, and instantly reverted back to his human form, pulling HyunJoong into his arms. Tears prickled at his eyes as he whispered thank yous, gently pulling off his master's shirt to assess the damage. His skin paled even more. He'd lost so much blood...
"You're an idiot for running with this," he whispered, trying to slow the bleeding.
“Yeah…well…” HyunJoong’s voice was dry and crackled as he answered. “This…idiot…just saved your life…ugh…”
A tremor racked down HyunJoong’s spine and he shuddered. It probably wouldn’t have been so bad if he’d hadn’t used up all his energy in running - and now he was dry, leaving nothing at all to heal the wound.
Swallowing thickly, YoungSaeng looked around, but there was no one else nearby to help. What could he do? He didn't know how to heal; he had no knowledge of spells of any kind...
"Can you take my energy?" he asked shakily as he tried to stop the blood. It was the only thing he had to offer. He wasn't going to let HyunJoong die like this...
HyunJoong shook his head slowly, “Not without killing you.” He already had a hard time controlling spiritual energy in his normal state, let alone injured like this. His body needed a ridiculous amount of energy in order to sustain him, and a felinefolk like YoungSaeng wasn’t able to provide it.
Truth be told, YoungSaeng didn't care. He didn't care if it killed him, but he couldn't let HyunJoong die...
...Hadn't HyungJoon said there was one safe way to transfer energy?
"N-not even...with a bond?" he asked shakily.
“A…bond?” HyunJoong repeated slowly. It was getting hard to think, and his eyelids seemed to get heavier with every second. “I guess… that would… work… mm…”
He was losing him. YoungSaeng clenched his jaw tightly, eyes flashing. No...he wasn't going to lose him.
"Work with me, Hyun," he whispered, cradling HyunJoong close and reaching out with his energy, without a clue what he was doing but doing it anyways. "You're going to be okay, you hear me?"
He wasn't going to lose HyunJoong now.
“Work with… you…” HyunJoong murmured as he felt something warm reach out to him. It wasn’t very large, nor was it very powerful. But it secured itself to him nevertheless, and he reached back with his own depleted energy, securing them tightly together - weaving them into a tightly wound braid.
YoungSaeng drew in a shaky breath, feeling the connection. But it didn't scare him. It reassured him instead.
And he proceeded to give whatever energy he could offer through that connection, whispering soft words against HyunJoong's soft hair.
It was like taking from a bottomless well - as YoungSaeng pushed energy through the bond, it multiplied in HyunJoong, rebounding back half of it. And slowly, HyunJoong’s form began to glow a mysterious sheen, a blinding gold-green radiating out.
Slowly opening his eyes, YoungSaeng watched his master begin to glow, hoping that was a good sign. "You're going to be okay," he whispered, pushing out more energy, whatever he could, in the hopes that it would save his master's life.
There was so much energy, just so much. Even as a Merus, HyunJoong was hard-pressed to handle it all although he should have been able to.
It irritated him, this barrier that prevented him from doing so. And such a barrier, he felt, should be destroyed.
The gold-green glow intensified, flaring out like a starburst from HyunJoong’s body and somewhere, there was something like the sound of glass breaking.
Suddenly the light was brighter, too bright, YoungSaeng forced to close his eyes against it. What? Was this supposed to happen? It seemed a little excessive to heal, but he'd never seen a bond before...
He had to bring a hand over his eyes, gasping against the sudden flow of power.
The glow was gone as suddenly as it appeared. And with it, it revealed something strange.
“Ugh…” Hyunjoong groaned, his eyes opening before they fluttered close again at the headache pounding at his head. “What happened?”
YongSaeng's ears twitched at his master's voice, the felinefolk freezing.
His heart in his throat, he slowly lowered his hand, eyes opening to stare in shock at the human half in his arms. "H-Hyun?!"
HyunJoong winced at the shout, his head ringing. “Ah… please, keep your voice down… mmm…”
Slowly, he opened his eyes, noting the bare skin that they first met contact with. “…Are you naked?”
Clapping a hand over his mouth when he was told to keep his voice down, YoungSaeng continued to stare until the rest of the other's words reached him, the felinefolk turning a bright red. The disadvantage of shapeshifting...
But...
"I-I...Don't think I'm the only one with clothing problems right now..."
HyunJoong blinked at the words, but before he could respond, the door of the safe house burst open, and familiar voices reached them.
“See! I told you they were here- uh?” Tablo paused in the doorway as he took in the scene. Then bowing, he pushed Mithra and HyungJoon out, “Sorry, I must be interrupting.”
An embarrassed squeak left YoungSaeng, and he turned even redder, practically glowing as he fought the urge to shift back and hide somewhere for a long, long time.
"What's going on, are they all right?" HyungJoon's worried voice floated in, and the felinefolk hid his face in his hands.
"H-Hyun...look at yourself..."
HyunJoong looked away from the door and cast his confused gaze to YoungSaeng before redirecting it to himself.
It took a while to get the point that YoungSaeng was trying to make, since HyunJoong wasn’t entirely functioning 100% as of then. But slowly, he realized what YoungSaeng wanted him to notice. “…I’m an adult again.”
Peeking through his fingers at the other man, YoungSaeng nodded, smiling shakily. Tears of relief gathered in his eyes, relief that HyunJoong was all right and that he was back to normal. Completely bypassing the fact that he wasn't wearing a stitch of clothing and HyunJoong's clothing was torn and meant for someone half his current size, the felinefolk almost tackled his master over, burying his face in the other man's collar as he started to shake.
HyunJoong yelped at the sudden action, nearly falling over. “Hey, hey! Careful!” But there was no force behind the rebuke, and a smile slowly crept across his mouth as he hugged the felinefolk tight. “Everything’s all right now… No need to cry…”
Nodding against his master's chest, YoungSaeng tried to calm down, but he had so desperately missed this, he hadn't even known how much he missed seeing HyunJoong as he was until that instant. "I'm sorry," he whispered, choking a little, as he found he couldn't let go.
HyunJoong chortled, gently stroking through YoungSaeng’s hair. “What are you sorry about, silly cat? I’m just glad you’re okay…”
He leaned down, resting his cheek on YoungSaeng’s soft hair. It had been a while since he could hold the felinefolk like this, and he found that he had really missed it. It was hard to wrap your arms around someone when you were half their size.
"I'm glad you're okay too," YoungSaeng whispered, nuzzling closer and breathing in the earthy scent. He slowly managed to calm down again, purring softly as the tension left his frame.
It took him a few minutes to remember the clothing problem. "M...maybe we should find clothes," he mumbled, red again.
HyunJoong blinked, then, looking down at them both, remembered their predicament. “Oh… right.”
Slowly, he began to shift so that he could pull YoungSaeng up with him, but something met against his manhood, and he let out a sound that was somewhere between a yelp and a moan before he stopped it in absolute horror and embarrassment.
A surprised mix of a gasp and moan tore from the felinefolk, YoungSaeng exploding into a bright blush before he disappeared, the black kitten tumbling out of HyunJoong's lap and onto the floor.
HyunJoong blinked at the sudden lack of weight on him, and a bout of surprised laughter burst from him as he picked the kitten up. “I’m probably going to get scratched for saying this, but you’re too cute.”
Still recovering from the very sudden shift, YoungSaeng squirmed as he was picked up until he could lean up and very gently bite the tip of HyunJoong's nose in grumpy retaliation.
“Hey!” HyunJoong couldn’t help but laugh now, cradling YoungSaeng against his chest. “Try not to hurt this form straight after I change back into it.”
The black kitten settled down at that, curled up in HyunJoong's arms with his claws fully retracted to avoid scratching his master.
"Wow." HyungJoon had finally managed to get in past Tablo, far too curious about the change in HyunJoong's energy to really listen. The White Rabbit blinked at him in surprise. "How did you manage to change back? I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm glad for it, but I don't get how."
HyunJoong blinked, looking first at HyungJoon, then at the exasperated Tablo and Mithra behind him and grinned. “Well… we made a bond. I think. Earlier.”
"Really?" HyungJoon looked at them both closely, blinking, then smiled after a moment. "Congratulations, then?"
There was a worried note in his eyes though. Because even though HyunJoong appeared as an adult now...it wasn't over quite yet.
Tablo saw the cause of concern, and he thought he should voice it out for HyunJoong to know. “You know, you should stop pushing against the boundaries of the curse so much… you’re only going to tire yourself out.”
HyunJoong blinked, before the words registered to him. “So… this…” He gestured to himself. “Is only temporary?”
“I’m afraid so.” Tablo nodded. “But it looks as if you’ll have no problem regulating your energy now, since you’re actually able to disable the curse for quite a bit.”
YoungSaeng mewled in slight despair at that, heart sinking. He'd hoped the curse was gone completely, but now that he focused, he could still sense something off. Was it never going to go away?
No...they'd find a way to get rid of it. Even a bit of time without the curse was better than nothing. He nuzzled further into HyunJoong's arms, sticking his cold nose against the man's skin.
"This puts us in the right direction though," HyungJoon piped up. "If the bond was able to disable the curse a little, now we know what to look for and it should help us find a way to get rid of the curse for good."
HyunJoong smiled, nodding as he stroked careful fingers down YoungSaeng’s back. “Well, since I have this little bit of time now… I’d like to have it alone.”
Tablo was the first to get his meaning, and he nodded, blushing a little, before he pulled both Mithra and HyungJoon out.
Watching the others leave, YoungSaeng's eyes closed and he purred happily at the fingers running through his fur. It felt extremely relaxing, especially after everything that had just happened. After a bit he slowly opened his eyes again, looking up at HyunJoong. "Clothes," he reminded his master.
“All right, all right…” HyunJoong laughed, slowly pushing himself up. “Slave-driver.”
With YoungSaeng still cuddled in his hands, he began looking through the cupboards. “Hm… clothes, clothes, clothes… Nothing in this one… only a winding sheet…” And pulling it out, he draped it onto YoungSaeng, wrapping the kitten up like a baby. “Hehehe… so cute.”
Yowling in an almost playful protest, YoungSaeng squirmed to get free and ended up tangling all four legs somehow, faceplanting into the crook of HyunJoong's arm. "I don't think that's going to work."
HyunJoong laughed as he finally managed to locate some clothes. They seemed a bit big, but better than nothing. “Okay. I’ll put these on the floor and go over there to change.
Slowly letting YoungSaeng down, HyunJoong moved over to the side of the room, pulling up the old pair of jeans and plain white T-shit. “Mmm… feels good to be in adult clothes again~”
Disentangling himself from the sheet, YoungSaeng shifted back once HyunJoong's back was turned, pulling on the clothing left out for him. "Is it that different from child's clothing?" He asked, standing up and pulling the shirt over his head.
“Well…” HyunJoong shrugged. “It’s a little more fitting… and the stuff Tablo hyung gets me is always so big and I don’t know… girly. But then I guess it’s because I’ve mostly been in pajamas and stuff like that.”
“Done?” He asked, stopping himself in time before turning around. He didn’t want YoungSaeng to scratch him or anything.
"I think he was doing the girly part on purpose," YoungSaeng teased, padding up to HyunJoong. "Yeah, done." It had been a while since he'd had to look up at HyunJoong instead of crouch to his eye level.
HyunJoong grinned at the change in height. “Hmm… I like this too.” Emphasizing the height difference with his hand. “Wow… you’re so short now!”
YoungSaeng gave HyunJoong the evil eye. "Remind me to leave you there the next time JungMin decides to hang you on something."
HyunJoong pouted, something that looked a little out of place on his adult face. “You wouldn’t… you can’t resist my child begging form!”
"I can if I don't look," YoungSaeng countered, sticking his tongue out. "And it doesn't work when you're an adult, so don't even try."
“I’ll whine.” HyunJoong replied, before a grin stole onto his face. “Ahh… but as an adult, I can do this…”
And grabbing YoungSaeng, he began to tickle the felinefolk’s sides.
Eyes widening, YoungSaeng shrieked and struggled, laughing helplessly. "Y-yah! Stop!" Squirming in the human's grip, he yelped as he lost his footing and crashed into his master.
HyunJoong let out a soundless cry as he too lost his balance, and grabbing YoungSaeng as he fell, they both ended up in a heap on the floor. “Ow. Ow. Ow…”
YoungSaeng opened his eyes again, pushing himself up onto his hands and knees at the noises of pain. "I-I'm sorry!" He looked at the other man, hair nearly falling into HyunJoong's face as golden eyes blinked down at him in worry. "Are you okay?"
“Yeah… I’m fine…” HyunJoong trailed off as he stared into those worried golden eyes. And reaching up almost instinctively, he ran a thumb under YoungSaeng’s right eye. “You?”
Blinking, YoungSaeng nodded slowly, gaze caught by the other man's. The gentle touch under his eye caught his attention, the felinefolk needing to remind himself to breathe. "Yeah," he mumbled, wondering if he should move but not.
The gentle brush slowly turned into a gentle caress, and before HyunJoong could register in his mind what he was doing, he had already leaned up, brushing his lips against the felinefolk’s in a tender kiss.
It was like everything had stopped, YoungSaeng's eyes wide for a moment as he felt the gentle pressure of lips against his own. But the hesitation lasted only an instant, the human's scent and taste pulling him in and relaxing him as his golden eyes slowly closed. The felinefolk leaned down to ease the pressure for HyunJoong, gently kissing back, feeling how soft the man's lips were.
Somewhere, in the back of his mind, HyunJoong was surprised at the response. But that was all cast away at the feeling of soft lips against his, pressing back, wanting more. And more he did give, slowly and gently prodding with his tongue, begging permission for entry.
YoungSaeng had kissed HyunJoong before, but it had always been part of their cover in the hunter group. They'd never actually just...kissed, for the sake of kissing. And it was much nicer than YoungSaeng ever thought it would be.
When he felt the tongue against his lips, there was only a slight pause before he complied with the silent request, parting his lips to allow HyunJoong in.
More and more surprises seemed to await him today. HyunJoong did all he did with the nagging suspicion that once YoungSaeng snapped out of it, he’d be dumped onto his back and left with a howling meow in his ears as a black blur zipped out of the room. But none of that happened yet, and HyunJoong, greedy for all he could get, slipped his tongue in, exploring the cavernous warmth that was YoungSaeng’s mouth.
Although he'd been expecting it, YoungSaeng couldn't hold back the soft gasp that left him at the feeling of HyunJoong's tongue in his mouth. And rather than do any of the things HyunJoong expected, the felinefolk shivered and released a quiet moan before hesitantly returning the gesture, tongue brushing against HyunJoong's and pushing lightly. It seemed unlikely YoungSaeng would push him away anytime soon as he sank further and further into the kiss, mewling.
HyunJoong began to like the bond when he discovered that he didn’t have the need to breathe at all, not even as the kiss dragged long, and he found YoungSaeng’s tongue, prodding it into action and leading it into a slow dance around their mouths.
It took a moment for YoungSaeng to figure out what in the world he was doing, not used to anything like this, but once HyunJoong started to guide him through the intricate dance he gladly followed along. Becoming bolder the more time that passed, he pulled back slightly to flick his tongue against the human's upper lip and steal a quick breath before returning.
The sudden boldness caught HyunJoong by surprise, and he lost more breath than he would have gained before YoungSaeng came back. Then, nothing mattered as HyunJoong deepened the kiss, pressing harder, his hand snaking across YoungSaeng’s back, pushing their bodies closer together.
A mewl that slipped from the felinefolk told what he thought of the hand against his back, spine arching both into it and into the body below his own. The whisper against the other man's lips could have been some form of HyunJoong's name, but became impossible to interpret when it broke off into a moan, YoungSaeng sinking lower until his body was almost flush against HyunJoong's.
HyunJoong groaned at the contact, and he hungrily devoured YoungSaeng’s mouth, instinctively rolling his hips against the felinefolk’s.
Using a combination of physics and experience, HyunJoong flipped them both over so that he was now atop of YoungSaeng. And he broke off the kiss, eyes needy, but still considerate and worried for YoungSaeng’s feelings. “S-Saeng… if we go on… I’m afraid I won’t be able to stop…”
Gasping at the sudden change in position, YoungSaeng instinctively pushed his hips up off the ground to keep his tail from being crushed and accidentally ground against the other man, a moan escaping.
He definitely wasn't thinking straight, that he knew, but when HyunJoong broke off the kiss a whine of protest came from the one underneath, YoungSaeng staring up at HyunJoong with glazed over eyes.
...Screw thinking straight. He didn't want to stop; in fact, he couldn't remember ever wanting something this much before.
"Then don't," he whispered, one hand coming up to curl fingers into HyunJoong's collar, pulling him back down into a kiss.
HyunJoong would have gladly continued, but just as he was about to meet YoungSaeng’s lips, he jerked back, eyes widening as he let out a violent sneeze.
There was the sound of powder exploding then a thump as HyunJoong fell face first onto the felinefolk’s stomach.
Squeaking in alarm, YoungSaeng yelped at the sudden weight on his stomach, not as much as there should have been. Barely keeping his tail from being crushed, he opened his eyes and sat up, blinking down at the child in his lap. "..."
HyunJoong groaned, pushing himself up. Then looking down at himself, he made a face. “Aw… nuts…”
YoungSaeng tried not to turn red and utterly failed, as it finally occurred to him just what he'd agreed to. "It seems to...happen at random, doesn't it?" he mumbled, willing his heart rate to slow down.
“Unfortunately.” HyunJoong sighed, playing dejectedly with his oversized clothes. Internally he was cursing - that had been such a good moment, although he wasn’t sure what it was (and HyunJoong wasn’t the type to really question anything). Now, as a child, it would seem rather inappropriate to continue doing whatever he had been doing.
Watching his master, YoungSaeng slowly smiled. "I think a different set of clothes is in order," he chuckled, standing up and setting HyunJoong on his feet. "We should head back to HQ though...I don't think they'll have any kid-sized clothes here."
He tried to avoid thinking about the kiss, and why he'd kissed back...and that if HyunJoong hadn't changed back suddenly, YoungSaeng would have made no move to stop him from going farther.
“Alright.” HyunJoong sighed once more, before he smiled, wrapping his arms around YoungSaeng’s waist and burying his face in the felinefolk’s stomach. “By the way, thanks for saving me again.”
YoungSaeng blinked, and then wrapped his arms loosely around the human's shoulders, one hand running through HyunJoong's hair lightly. "You saved me too," he whispered. "Thank you so much, Hyun..."
HyunJoong chuckled, looking up with bright eyes. “I only did what you’d do for me! Anyway, I’m hungry. Let’s go get some food after I change~”
The smile reappeared on YoungSaeng's lips as he hugged HyunJoong lightly before letting go, his hand finding one that was smaller but equally warm. "All right, all right. What do you want to eat?"
“Steak and a nice glass of red wine to match.” HyunJoong replied in a sophisticated tone, looking entirely serious.
The felinefolk rolled his eyes. "You have expensive tastes, and they are never going to let a ten-year-old drink no matter how old you tell them you are." He pulled HyunJoong out of the room, amused.
HyunJoong’s lips quirked. “You actually believe that? I don’t enjoy alcohol as much as I seem to do, okay? What I really want is patbingsu!”
"Are you sure? You certainly go through soju pretty fast," YoungSaeng teased. "Patbingsu? There should be a place nearby." He didn't mention that patbingsu wasn't particularly filling, indulging his master.
"Oh." He paused, before pulling his hoodie up over his ears. The jeans he was wearing didn't have a hole for his tail so that was hidden anyways.
Noting the action, HyunJoong frowned and he tugged on YoungSaeng’s hand. “We can bring it back to the underground HQ if you want. We don’t need to eat out.”
"It's fine, it's been a while since we've been outside, no?" He knew HyunJoong must be getting tired of staying underground all the time, he knew he was. The hoodie wasn't that uncomfortable, and well, he was used to accidentally sitting on his tail by now.
HyunJoong stared knowingly at YoungSaeng, his gaze too astute on that childish face. But he let it go. He was pretty tired of staying underground. “All right… but I’ll eat quickly! Then we can go back and take a bubble bath together too!”
"Again?" YoungSaeng laughed, starting to walk again once he was sure his ears were covered. "If that's what you want...and no more dirty hands in my hair or I'm dumping you in upside-down."
“I won’t. I swear. Scout’s honor!” HyunJoong raised his free hand as he tottered alongside YoungSaeng.
"Were you even a Scout?" YoungSaeng watched the child beside him as they stepped out onto the street, smiling to himself.
“Details!” HyunJoong waved his hand vaguely in the air. “It doesn’t matter! Besides, it’s the thought that counts!”
"If you say so," the felinefolk chuckled. Perhaps it was the thought that counted.
Also he didn't exactly trust in HyunJoong's oath not to stick his dirty hands in his hair, he trusted him with so much more, and that was all that mattered.
HyunJoong grinned a little at the slightly patronizing tone in YoungSaeng’s voice. “Aish…” he mock-clutched at his heart. “People really don’t take children seriously!”
But that wasn’t true. YoungSaeng took him seriously, joking aside, even as a child. And somehow, that made his heart warm and smile bright.
"Especially if all children are like you," YoungSaeng teased. It was different, seeing this side of HyunJoong, but it was nice in a way. He felt like he understood him better.
“Meanie!” HyunJoong proclaimed, but seconds later, he burst out into laughter, finding their conversation utterly juvenile.
YoungSaeng couldn't help but laugh as well, eyes crinkling with mirth. "Sure sure," he grinned, messing up HyunJoong's hair. "Come on, let's find that patbingsu."
“Alright.” HyunJoong grinned through his messed hair, squeezing the hand in his. Silently, he smiled to himself as he pulled ahead, tugging. He had never been so happy in his life.
It was at that moment that he realized he was, in fact, in love.