rayemma oneshots & other

Taking Care of You

• Short

No spoiler warning!

Note: day 2

Ever since Ray found out his best friend was a werewolf, he'd been cooking a lot more often.

How did he find out she was a werewolf? Well, Don always thought she was, considering all the insane rumors circulating around her family. That she had twenty or more adopted siblings. That the twins chew on guests' shoes. That they keep copious amounts of meat in their freezer. That howling comes from their backyard on full moons.

But, Ray had always brushed it off. Don was always trying to start drama anyway. So he ignored the rumors, and accepted that Emma was just an eccentric girl with a unique family.

Then he had this impulse. 

What if she really did behave like a wolf, and she was just hiding it?

So, while he was sitting in the school courtyard having lunch with her, he decided to throw a bone from the chicken he'd been eating.

And, like a dog would, she ran after it.

Then there was the moment when Emma slowly turned back to look at him, with that bone in her mouth, sweating, because she knew there was some major explaining to do. 

Ray's best friend was a werewolf. But Emma was already so weird that he wasn't really surprised.

He learned a lot of new things about her then. That she hid these giant fluffy ears in her hair. That all her family were werewolves too, and that her two dads were forces to be reckoned with. That she'd get tired and irritated if she couldn't eat meat. That they all had long nails that grew back overnight after trimming.

In return for keeping her identity secret at school, Ray requested one thing. To actually see her as a werewolf.

So, she came over to his house on a night with a full moon. They sat side by side on his bed, drizzled in the moonlight through the glass.

And, all at once, Emma's clothes shrunk to reveal her true form. A small, harmless orange puppy.

"...is that it?" Ray had asked, while blinking in disbelief.

"Don't laugh," she squeaked, tiny ears pointed downwards.

Unfortunately, Ray laughed until he cried. Emma bit his ankle with her little teeth.

Her being a werewolf didn't change much at all about their friendship, except that… Emma started asking a lot more favors. Now that she was comfortable hanging out on full moons, Ray found himself making full dinners for a very hungry, impatient dog.

He worked like a fully booked chef at a five star restaurant, four pans simmering at once with different dishes while the puppy Emma (who was at least five times smaller than him) sat at the table giving orders.

"And I want chicken too-"

"Yeah, I'm working on it."

"What about steak-"

"That too."

Then he sat down and had dinner with a ravenous dog who wagged her tail the whole way through. He might have complained, but seeing her smile was worth it all.

By the end of the night, he'd finish the dishes and pick up the satisfied puppy, and they'd fall asleep on the couch.

"You know, I don't think you're worth all the work you make me do," Ray joked, patting her head.

"But you still do it anyway!" Emma chirped, curled up in his lap. "Thank you, Ray."

Ray always fell asleep with a smile on his face.

"Yeah, whatever." 

He'd wake up with the sun in his face, piercing through the blinds at an ungodly hour. His lap felt significantly heavier than it did last night.

And there was Emma, but fully human again. With her floppy ears sprawled over his sleeve, arms wrapped around his, and…

She was chewing on him.

Ray promptly smacked her on the head until she bolted awake. "Hey, stupid, you're not a dog anymore. Get off me."

Emma stared at him in a daze for a second, then looked at his sleeve that she'd just put dents in, and shrieked. "Sorry! I'm so sorry!"

"That's the fifth time you've ruined one of my jackets, Emma."

"Sorry… I'll buy you a replacement soon, I promise!"

Ray sighed. "Why do you even do that?"

Emma looked guiltily at him, with an actual puppy's eyes.

"...I'm hungry again."

"Really?"

"I'm sorry!!"

Ray was best friends with an eternally hungry werewolf, or werepuppy. Good thing he knew how to cook.