The Hybrid House

Angry or...?

The older woman moved through the building, her steps firm. She walked down the stairs and down another hallway. Pushing open the door, she stood for a moment and took in the utter mess of the room.

The panther was busy throwing a furious tantrum. Books were scattered all over the floor. The lamp lay in a broken, shattered mess. The bed was overturned and the mattress was shredded. Curtains were ripped and scraps lay around the room. Pillows were torn apart and feathers floated around the room. The dresser lay on its side while drawers lay in broken pieces while clothes were ripped into pieces. The closet door was ripped off its hinges and the mirror was cracked and scattered across the floor creating a cutting hazard.

A hazard that had sliced the feet of the angry hybrid who was busy destroying his room.

When there was nothing left to destroy the angry cat turned around and saw that he had an audience. "Miss Kay!" Shock filled his face and then shame followed. His ears laid down and his tail drooped and he sunk in on himself.

"Finished?" The older woman asked.

The cat couldn't answer. He knew he was in trouble. He had only been living at the Hybrid House for a month and fear warred with his anger that he probably just jeopardized his right to stay there. Stay at the only home he'd ever known in his short life.

He looked around at the tatters of all he'd been given by this woman who had been taking care of him for the last four weeks. The raging inferno that had been his emotions seemed to wilt under her stern and piercing gaze. Her grey hair, cut short, gave her stern square face a lively but forceful appearance. Her warm brown eyes were watching him, curiosity filled her gaze.

Curiosity? Shouldn't she be angry? Where he expected anger, there was nothing more than patience and a raised eyebrow.

He thought about her one-worded question. Was he finished? He looked around at the destruction. Truly, he shouldn't have overreacted, but he just couldn't help it. He'd never had anything before that he valued and realizing he'd destroyed all his new possessions suddenly made him sad.

He bowed his head, "Yes."

Miss Kay sighed and picked her way carefully across the room and walked up to him. He bunched his shoulders, expecting to get hit, and instead startled when she wrapped him in her arms and gave him a hug.

"I know it's hard learning to live with others, but it will come with time," She cooed softly, rubbing his back.

He laid his head on her shoulder and he took in the comfort she offered. Before he knew it, tears were falling down his cheeks. "Why wouldn't they let me be their friend?" he sobbed. "Why did they shut me out?"

"Oh, baby, they didn't do it to be mean," She replied softly, letting the poor panther cry out his frustration. "They are a new mate group and are just touchy right now about anyone new interfering."

"Mate group?" He raised his head and looked at her. "You mean, that's real?" His eyes were wide with disbelief.

She chuckled, "Living on the streets as you have done your whole life, mates were probably hard to come by, and harder to keep." Continuing to pat his back softly as she explained. "But when hybrids are calm and happy, they can find mates to begin sharing their lives with. Some are just like siblings, others are lovers."

"I thought those were myths they told us street cats so that we'd be more docile," he muttered. "Ways to enslave us so they could take advantage of us," he growled as he thought about the number of times others had tried to claim him as a mate, but then tried to sell him to the pleasure houses. Since human hybrids weren't seen as having equal status with full humans, the laws preventing prostitution and slavery weren't as enforced. Hybrids who didn't have protectors were easy targets.

"I know," she said understandingly. "But now that you have a home, you can learn the other things about being a hybrid that you may have not ever seen before or realized were blessings instead of curses."

He loved when she smiled at him. It was warm and never mean. She was kind but firm. Compassionate, but strict. He guessed that she had to be strict having so many animals living together like this. She never saw them as animals, though.  It was easy to let nature take over, he'd been doing it on the streets his whole life, but now, he had to control himself and that was something new he wasn't sure how to do.

"You'll make friends, but give it time. You need to become used to them just like they need to get used to you." She advised. "Just stay clear of new mate groups." she grinned.

He couldn't help but chuckle.

"Feeling better?" she asked him.

He nodded, his ears perked up a little, and his tail wrapped around her wrist in a moment of affection for her.

"Good, now, how about you clean up your room?" She asked giving him a hard stare.

"Yes, Ma'am." He bowed.

She pet him on the head, scratching behind his ears and along his jawline where he loved it so much. He leaned into the scratches and enjoyed the feel of her fingers against his skin. Eventually, the pleasure stopped and she took her hand away from his cheek after giving it a small pat of affection.

"I'll send Minho and Onew to help you take things to the bin outside," She said as she turned to leave the room.

"Oh, and Jungkook?" she stopped at the door and turned to him.

He looked up at her.

"Next time you are jealous, just talk to someone instead of destroying your room, okay? I only have so much money to go around." Miss Kay winked then gave him a smirk and left the room.

Jungkook looked at her slightly gobsmacked. Jealous? Him? Of what? Some stuck-ups who couldn't realize he just wanted to be friends? He scoffed. He huffed. What could she possibly know? Jealous....hardly.

As he picked up his room, leaving the destroyed items in the middle of the floor, he thought about how happy the hybrid group looked. He sighed. He hadn't known much about happiness when he was brought to the Hybrid House just four weeks ago. It took two full weeks for him to stop hissing at everyone. It took him another two weeks to even approach anyone to ask them if they wanted to sit and eat with him at lunch. Now here he was, rejected, with a destroyed room and his new guardian claiming he was jealous.

As if.

Well....maybe just a little. 

A/N:  Hello Lovers!   I'm back with a new potential story.  This is going to be a kpop menagerie.  You never know who might show up.  Do you have a bias you'd love to see?  What animal do you think they should be? I want to know.  lol  I plan on putting everyone in this thing.  A sort of hybrid soap opera sort of thing.  *shrugs* 

I'm still trying to flush out my kpop gothic horror, but until such time as I get that story off the ground, let's see if I can finally do something sweet and adorable.....  maybe.  lol