#making kav change where something is like 10 times. deliberately makes things as annoying as possible

[bestiatexere]

what even is this idk @lachalaine

From the familiar scent that had lingered on the path and that still floated around his front door, Kavik knew his brother was already inside the house (and had been there for a while).

Huh. Chesh was early? That was a rare occurrence for sure unless…he was up to something.

Of course.

Kavik rubbed his face and mentally prepared himself for what might come. Was it going to be a confetti explosion again? A hundred strings of twinkling lights wrapped around every surface? Or maybe, irritating Christmas songs playing each time he moved?

It had been a while since Chesh last did something crazy or went overboard. He loves this time of year, Kavik reminded himself in the effort to increase his tolerance, it helps him, just go with it.

Pushing down the dread, he opened the door and headed inside the house. His eyes immediately swept around for traces of trouble or Chesh, but aside from the shoes, travel bag, and clothes strewn around the entryway, there were no traces of the younger shifter’s antics.

No confetti. No lights. No songs or even decorations.

Kavik stepped further inside with slow, soundless steps while continuing his visual search. Nothing was out of place...How unnerving...He made his way through to the lounge, vigilant the entire journey, eyes restless.

Like the rest of the house, this room was designed with nature in mind, in natural tones and materials so that the shifter blood and soul would feel at ease. It was an open plan space, with support beams mimicking trees, and the impression that fauna and wildlife were blending into the building, welcoming each other.

The animal hearts were relaxed and free here, unlike within the stifling concrete and metal of the cities.

And there was Chesh. Unsurprisingly shirtless (shifters took every opportunity to be free from clothes) and flopped face down on the couch. Kavik approached with a frown and then jabbed a finger against his brother’s shoulder as if to wake him.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Kavik asked, his words heavy and blunt like a hammer, cracking the silence, his focus absolute.

Chesh flinched and groaned at the sudden touch, turning his head to eye him with a petulant pout, “What was that for?”

Kavik was immediately reminded of when 5 year old Chesh would give him that same look after being told it was time to get up or that he wouldn’t get his way. The image was clear in his mind, the little boy with messy curls, bright eyes, and expressions that would change in an instant. Chesh had been, and would always be, an emotional sort, the type who swung from mood to mood and wore his heart on his sleeve. To a degree, anyway. He hid things from most people, charmed his way out of reach, never let anyone see him down unless it was for some other purpose of his...

After growing up together, Kavik could tell (with 90% accuracy) when Chesh was being genuine or not, and it helped that he was one of the few that his brother did lower his guard and pretenses around.

The way Chesh currently slumped on the couch, like a fallen puppet whose strings of motivation and life had been cut, told him that something was not right. It was…uncharacteristic of Chesh to be so still and unenergized.

Kavik’s hard tone came again. “Just tell me. What’s wrong with you?”

“What do you mean? There’s nothing wrong with me.”

“Yeah, there is. There’s no Christmas shit all over the place. Where’s all the tinsel and lights?”

“Huh?” Chesh glanced around with a touch of confusion, a frown forming again. “You hate all that stuff.”

Hasn’t stopped you before, Kavik wanted to say with a snort, but instead he gave a little shrug and countered, “But you love it, always make a mess of my place with it. And besides, I don’t really hate it, I just don’t wanna do it or have it all through my house.”

Chesh blinked and seemed to take a minute to process that, then he shrugged too but otherwise made no move. “Oh, well, I just don’t feel like it this year.”

“That’s my point,” Kavik said with a roll of his eyes, “What’s wrong with you?”

“It’s not very nice asking it like that. And it’s the first thing you’ve said to me. Don’t I even get a hello anymore?”

He could sense the faux hurt Chesh was gathering, the attempt at guilt-tripping and distraction. Oh, here we go. He pinned him with a serious look to cut it off, “You’re avoiding the question.”

Perhaps Chesh realised that there was no fooling him, because he then sighed and seemed to somehow slump down more with a defeated grumble, “There’s nothing wrong with me, I’m just tired...”

With a slow breath to try shove down his frustration, Kavik rubbed his forehead and then studied his brother once more. Chesh was right, there was nothing wrong with him…physically at least. He was still fit and healthy, no scent of sickness on him. The emotional indicators were a little strange (seeming to signal a deep sadness) which would explain the current mood…but what he found most unusual was the strong presence of a human’s scent on him, and the fact that it seemed to have partially merged with Chesh’s own scent signature.

It was the sort of thing that happened when a shifter started to bond with someone else, most often when a pair became long-term mates at least. Had Chesh really connected with someone so much? With a human?

“There’s nothing wrong with me,” repeated Chesh, likely feeling the stare burning into him.

Bullshit.

But Kavik didn’t push further, choosing instead to ask, “Where have you been hanging around lately? You haven’t been to your place much and you haven’t gone around bothering me and everyone else in a while.”

“Aww, have you missed me?” The teasing, playful tone Chesh was most known for finally made an appearance, along with a smile. And it made Kavik roll his eyes yet again.

“No. Just answer the damn question.”

Chesh’s face, though half pressed against the couch, lit up with a momentary grin at the irritated response. It then faded, and he turned his face against the couch more, his voice a mumble, “I made a friend, that’s all...Is that okay?”

The question, despite being quiet, held the trace of a challenge. Rarely did Chesh ever push like that, even during his ‘rebellious’ phase as a teen. Strange.

Kavik’s expression tightened, but he took another breath and then relaxed and sat himself on one of the armchairs. “Depends if it’s gonna be a problem or not…-”

And it could easily become a big problem.

“-Why you getting so close to a human anyway? It’s affecting you.”

They both heard it. Chesh’s heartbeat speeding up.

Kavik watched him closely; watched the way his eyes darted away, and how he chewed his lip in an almost guilty way. He saw the faint flush on his cheeks and the moment the casual, nonchalant appearance took over his features to cover up the worry.

Chesh spoke the lies easily, “It’s not. It’s just that I’m around her a lot, yknow? It’s just scent transfer and all.”

Easily spoken, yes, but Kavik was not the easily convinced type. He raised an eyebrow and adjusted himself in the chair, affecting a more relaxed and nonthreatening position.

“Uh huh, right…” he said slowly, “So who is ‘she’?”

The heartbeat, which had just started to settle down, kicked into higher gear once again. Funny, how the sign of life was such a dead giveaway...

Hesitation permeated every inch of Chesh, brought in and held there by reluctance. He looked like someone who would make a run for it out the nearest exit at any moment, shouting something like ‘you’ll never take me alive!’

What was the big deal? Was he in some sort of trouble? Was the woman dangerous?

He’s not gonna answer…

Should he push him? Or just drop it? Curiosity and a certain protectiveness and worry prodded at him to push and push, but his logical side warned him that it might go very wrong. Chesh might close up completely and leave, the usually buried stubbornness coming out to the forefront and digging in.

Hmm. Maybe it was time to give Chesh a taste of his own medicine. A dose of guilt-tripping shouldn’t be too hard to come up with, right? Kavik was the direct sort (Chesh only liked to be so when it suited him) and disliked mucking around with games and manipulation, but it couldn’t be beyond his capabilities to mimic his brother’s methods. Just because he didn’t usually bother with it, didn’t mean he would be bad at it, did it? All he had to do was what he would do and get him talking-

“Jackie...”

The name came out in a sigh from Chesh and drew Kavik’s complete attention back to him, in time for him to see a soft smile brighten.

And suddenly Chesh twisted around and sat up, his words spilling out in a rush of energy, “She’s Jackie, and she’s the best. She’s really funny, and cute and so pretty and she’s a DJ and she has a cute kittycat called Lemon. She has amazing purple hair, Jackie I mean, not Lemon, Lemon is a white fluff ball. Jackie is not a fluff ball, except sometimes in the morning if her hair is crazy…but she is sooo cute and short! And really good at petting and cuddles and she has such a nice voice and she loves swimming and diving and she has treasures! And she has really pretty eyes and the best smile and laugh…”

The energy evaporated and Chesh trailed off, his eyes unfocused, his mind clearly elsewhere. If Kavik was the fanciful type, he might have imagined seeing love hearts floating around his brother’s head, like in some sort of cartoon. As it was, he could pick up on the emotional signals from him, the subtle scents that were now as obvious as flashing neon lights, and were perhaps the equivalent to the floating hearts, telling him that Chesh was filled with affection for this human, and their bond was growing stronger with each minute spent together.

Holy shit.

Silence flooded the room with its heavy presence, creating heightened awareness of what had just been said.

Chesh, who was never usually the type to be affected by embarrassment, held a faint blush once again and turned his face away to hide it.

Jackie. Funny. Cute. Pretty. Purple. Short. Petting.

It took a moment for Kavik to process the key words, and the fact he had never heard Chesh ramble about a woman like that before. Cute animals, games, movies, food, places…yes, he’d heard many excited rambles from his brother about those things, but…another person? No, it just didn’t happen. Unless famous people counted perhaps. Was this woman famous? It sounded as if Chesh almost idolised her…

There were feelings there in any case. Maybe Chesh would give everything away now.

Kavik let the silence sit for a moment longer before going against his usual behaviour and breaking it, “So…you’re ‘friends’ with this ‘Jackie’?”

“Yeah…” It was another of those lovey-dovey sighs, but was followed by a hesitant hum and addition, “Kinda.”

“Kinda.” Kavik repeated it flatly. Leopards were generally patient, able to wait until the right moment to strike during a hunt, but this had gone on too long. He wanted answers already, it wasn’t normally so difficult to get them! 

“What the hell does that mean?” he asked, forcing a growl out of his voice, “You’re either friends or something else. How’d you meet her? At a club? Or what, is she one of your hook-ups but you got attached?”

“No!” The scandalised look accompanying that emphatic answer might have been funny in a different situation. It was hard to believe that Chesh would linger long enough with someone to get attached…oh but maybe the reaction was more to do with not wanting to relegate the woman to the side of meaningless sexual encounters?

An ache began to push into Kavik’s head and eyes, as if he’d spent too long staring at a complex puzzle. Something was going on. Chesh was changing, had already changed, and he’d missed it, clueless about what his little brother was going through. His heart and stomach sunk with the failure but were lifted by a sense of determination to improve.

He rubbed at his temples and huffed out a breath. Frustration at himself and at being in the dark was starting to turn into confusion and curiosity, “So you’re not fucking her?”

He wasn’t sure what he expected from the crude question, another emphatic ‘No’ maybe…but Chesh gave a short, low growling huff instead and looked away.

“Of course I’m not…”

‘Of course I’m not’…Kavik’s mind stumbled over the words. He even leaned back further in his chair, as if distance from his brother would somehow help him see the bigger picture of what he meant.

Of course? As in…obviously? As in…’don’t be ridiculous, there’s no way I would’.

His brother. Chesh. The playboy. The flirt. The guy whose sex-drive was through the roof and who had the charm and looks to never have to spend the night alone…was not having sex with the woman he clearly had feelings for? ‘Of course.’

The headache grew stronger. Maybe everything was being thought about a bit too much.

“Alright then...” said Kavik, starting to have an uncharacteristically creative worry that he might have walked into some sort of alternate universe when he’d entered the house. It was simply too strange to see Chesh this way. ‘Jackie’ must be one special woman. “Does she know what you are?”

Chesh sighed and flopped back on the couch. “No…She doesn’t even know I exist.”

Relief eased Kavik’s shoulders, but confusion scrunched his face as he processed the second statement, which was not even delivered in an overly dramatic fashion for once. “…What?”

“She doesn’t know me.” Chesh’s hands came up and covered his face, muffling the next words, “We…haven’t actually met properly.”

If the human scent wasn’t all over him, Kavik might have thought Chesh had well and truly gone nuts, and he might have doubted whether or not the human really was human. A witch seemed more likely. Some sort of love spell being involved would make sense.

“What do you mean you haven’t met? Who the hell is she?”

Chesh seemed to realise he’d said too much, he lowered his hands but avoided eye contact and appeared to find the couch cushions very interesting. But then there was a casual shrug. “I’m kinda…her…roommate? Uh…Pet? As a leopard…She, uh…calls him Kit.”

The recollection gave Chesh a smile, but apparently woke up ‘Kit.’ Kavik caught sight of the leopard in his brother’s eyes, and there was a light imprint of rosettes along his skin, a proper shift threatening to happen. Chesh shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. There was a faint, feline whine, but Chesh cut it off with a soothing ‘shh’ to his other side under his breath. He must have regained full control then, as the signs of the shift disappeared like they’d never been.

Likely to pretend that small incident hadn’t happened, Chesh spoke up again, this time with an explanation. “It was night and I was at the park, in a tree because I needed some nature time, y’know? And then she came along, and I accidentally scared her and made her hit her head a few times, and I couldn’t just shift back, but I wanted to make sure she was okay and all and then just…I dunno…I ended up staying at her place for a bit…and then more. And I really like it there…with her. We watch movies and stuff together and she pets me lots and she smells really nice and she’s so cuddly and soft. She decorated her place all pretty and Christmassy, but she’s gone to be with her family for the holidays…which is good, because I can be here without her wondering where I am…so it just works out well really…”

Silence settled in once again as the words faded and Kavik tried to wrap his head around them.

Oh, if only there was a rewind button, so that the rushed-out story could be recounted again (and maybe ‘paused’ so there could be a Q&A session). Maybe it would make more sense the second time. The only thing that was clear to him was that Chesh was trying not to miss the woman. And he was failing completely.

It was coming together now. He understood why the leopard had to be talked down moments ago, and why Chesh was struggling and moping. Shifters were not wholly human and were not wholly animal. They were both, two sides, two souls. Both needed acknowledgement and attention, especially from loved ones. It was never a good idea to suppress one side over the other…but of course there wasn’t much choice in this situation, Jackie was a clueless human, and that was another reason for caution.

“You need to be careful, Chesh, I don’t want SIAP on my ass. You know what could happen. Hell, it’s a miracle they haven’t already taken you in about this.”

Supernatural Incidents and Awareness Prevention. They weren’t afraid to interfere for ‘the greater good’ and wipe memories of humans that got too close to things they shouldn’t, the ones that freaked out and risked the balance of things.

Chesh winced, looking very much like he had just been punched in every vulnerable spot he had. No doubt he was imagining being banned from ever seeing Jackie again, at the very least. “Yeah…I’ll be careful. It’ll all be fine though, I’m sure she’ll…be okay with it.”

He didn’t sound all that sure. Kavik knew his brother well enough to know he would be second guessing ever telling Jackie about being a shifter, for fear of bringing the organisation down on her. 

But Chesh wouldn’t have to worry. Nothing was going to happen to him or to his human. It was a big brother’s job to take care of the younger and to stop bad things from happening after all, and Kavik might not have been perfect, but he was a damn good big brother when it came to protecting and things like this. He would do whatever he had to in order to protect the pair.

His mind was already running through the various possibilities and what he might have to do. It would be best if he gathered some more info on Jackie, gauged what sort of person she was, and it was probably a good idea to check in with his SIAP contact soon too, she might be able to see if there was anything going on there. 

With all of that in the back of his mind, he nodded at Chesh.

“Yeah, she sounds crazy enough to handle it,” he said, “She is living with a leopard already. Hasn’t she even questioned that?”

Chesh hummed and shrugged, “Sometimes she gets kinda suspicious of me…but I think she doesn’t wanna know or think about it, but…” He sighed and went on, “I wanna meet her properly. Talk to her…”

After he trailed off yet again, Kavik thought that was it, and he almost asked him what was stopping him from meeting her, but then Chesh grinned and added, “I did bump into her once, in person, nearly knocked her over. She was so cute, all dazed. And man, her hair has the most amazing colours in it! And it looks so soft and pretty, I just wanna touch it…But I can’t…”

Although he could understand and sympathise with the struggle Chesh had, of the position of being unable to do the simplest things with a loved one, of having to deny instincts and parts of himself…he didn’t really want to hear any more. Chesh gushing so much and being so lovesick was just too damn weird.

“Alright, alright, enough about all that.” Kavik stood and moved around the couch, lightly shoving his brother’s head on the way past. “Getcha ass up.”

Chesh huffed and tried to bat the hand away, rolling off the couch and following with a pout as he did so, “Why?”

“Because we’re gonna decorate this damn place.”

“But you-“

“Yeah, well you need a distraction and I know you like this shit.  S’better than having you mope around or be mushy, so hurry up and grab the box of stuff from wherever you hide it.”

His inner ‘Chesh sense’ started to ring in alarm. Oh no.

He tensed in preparation and half turned, in time for Chesh to dramatically fling himself on him like dying man onto his only hope. Kavik’s face screwed up and he huffed at the contact, having to adjust his stance so their combined weight wouldn’t topple them to the ground.

“The fuck are you doing? Get off me.”

Of course Chesh did the opposite and climbed up to cling even more with a whine, “But Kaaaaviiiiiiii…I miss her so much! I need lots of hugs!”

The statement was followed by the grip increasing and Chesh pressing his cheek against his in great affection. Kavik tried to turn his face away from him and pry him off, “That’s not my problem. Just don’t think about her.”

The crushing hug relented slightly, and Chesh seemed to be considering things.

“Just don’t think about her? Hmm…well I guess you’re right, decorating probably would be a great distraction…”

The Chesh sense started to ring again, and Kavik’s dread kicked in.

“But I dunno if it’s distracting enough, yknow?” Chesh went on, “It might not take up enough of my thoughts, because I do miss her sooo much. And she is the most amazing, most beautiful, bestest woman ever. And she doesn’t know who I am and its really sad and everything.”

They might be cat shifters, but Chesh had mastered the ‘puppy-eyes’ technique and was now aiming it fully at Kavik (who’s expression had not changed from distaste since the uncomfortable hug began).

“I could talk about it forever and ever…” added Chesh.

And Kavik sighed. “Unless...?”

There was a thoughtful (but unconvincing) hum, “Well…it would probably take up more thought if I had to tell you where to put all the decorations and stuff…don’t you think? Directing you instead of us both just doing whatever we want on our own.”

You little shit.

“...Fine. You can boss me around this one time, but no more hugging and no more going on about your woman.”

Chesh grinned and climbed down, clearly satisfied now that he had gotten what he wanted from the situation. He patted the top of Kavik’s head (earning a growl from him) and then went off to find the boxes of lights, tinsel, and baubles.

Regret was already knocking, but surely an annoyingly bossy and high-spirited Chesh, back to his manipulative trickster self, was better than a lovesick and mopey one…wasn’t it? It was okay as long as he was happy…right?

A tinsel tangled Kavik, only ten minutes in the future, would struggle to keep that in mind.