Under The Colored Lights

Growl - Growl

Minseok finally felt well enough to pull his head from the trashcan, and together they slowly made their way into the mess hall. True to his word, Sehun was correct that they had indeed missed lunch, but Kyungsoo had come in clutch with several wrapped plates of pork belly and jajangmyeon.

"The noodles are probably swollen now, so in the future, don't be late! Give the new hyung a break!" Minseok read off of the Post-it note on the top of the places, and Sehun rolled his eyes.

"Typical Kyungsoo hyung. At least you can count on him to make sure you're fed, although, don't ever get on his bad side or you'll most definitely die." Sehun crumpled the note and tossed it into the designated recycle bin before grabbing some utensils.

"Come on hyung, let's go meet my animals and eat over there." Minseok hurried to follow the younger as they strode quickly out of the mess hall. Minseok wondered if he would ever get used to the way things moved around here. The pace was quite new, and he wasn't sure if it was just going to get faster from here on out or not.

"When did you start working with animals?" Minseok felt the need to ask, and Sehun got a goofy grin on his face as they entered a gated enclosure with fenced off sections connecting to huge trailers.

"I've always been with them. When I was younger, Li Feng found me amongst the animals. I was apparently abandoned with a birthday written on my arm or something. I don't remember it, but I remember growing up with the animals ever since. They're like family." Sehun walked towards the latch on the penned off area, and held a finger to his lips.

"Careful now. Don't make any startling movements since you're new. They will want to attack you if they think you're remotely frightening at all." He warned, and Minseok didn't have time to ask or comprehend fully before he pulled the latch up and suddenly a huge creature burst through the doors.

Minseok clearly didn't mean too, but he couldn't help his fight or flight mode. He let out a screech and jumped backward, and suddenly he was surrounded by twelve of the biggest wolves he had ever seen in his life. His heart pounded in his chest, threatening to escape, and he locked eyes with Sehun across the wolf barricade, and Sehun only smiled and mouthed, "Calm down." in his general direction.

Minseok was so glad that he had chosen to put down his food earlier, or he was sure that he would have thrown it somewhere in his imminent fright. The wolves began to close in on him, and he bit back a terrified squeak as a particularly big wolf nosed down his leg, snout dripping in drool and tongue lolling out to the side.

"They're like oversized dogs don't you think?" Minseok looked up to see Sehun chilling on the ground eating his food calmly, and next to him lay a beautiful white wolf with a coat too fluffy to define as an actual wolf.

"I can't say I feel the same way right now," Minseok held his breath as they continued to close in on him, "They look like they're going to eat me!" He whisper-yelled, and Sehun waved a hand at the wolves and clicked his tongue. They immediately backed off, and Minseok shakily walked over to where Sehun was sitting.

"Sit down, they were just sniffing out the company. At least you didn't get tackled. I think they kind of like you." Minseok struggled to unwrap his food when he finally joined Sehun on the ground, but he didn't feel like eating when the same wolf that licked him earlier was sneaking up on him from the side. Sehun spotted the wolf eventually, but he only laughed and pointed the wolf out too Minseok.

"That one likes you! That's Tanu. She's quite big for a female wolf don't you think?" Sehun giggled and Tanu inched forward eagerly at the mention of her name. She cocked her head to the side as Minseok turned to look at her, and when Minseok didn't move, she whined and scratched at the ground.

"Yeah, I can't tell if she wants to eat me or take my food." Minseok gritted out, his fear still very much peaked at being surrounded by a pack of wolves. Most were lazing around at the moment, but the fact that this Tanu wolf was nearest to him was still making him weary.

"Don't look so terrified! She's like an overgrown puppy. Try and offer her food, she might even put her head on your lap!" Sehun continued to encourage Minseok gently, and because Minseok trusted Sehun, he grabbed a piece of pork belly and tossed it to Tanu. He recoiled startled as her jaws quickly snapped around the meat in midair, but other than that, it wasn't so bad. Tanu quickly got nearer and nearer to him, but Minseok wasn't afraid anymore. He trusted Sehun, so if Sehun said it was okay, he would be okay.

"Try calling out to her." Sehun prodded, and Minseok nodded.

"Tanu, come here girl." he cooed softly, patting his lap as he moved his plate off to the side, and suddenly his lap was full of a very big and heavy female wolf head.

"Whoa..." he held his hands up as if he didn't want them to get crushed by the sudden addition of weight in his lap, and Tanu shifted her huge body, curling up next to Minseok just as the white wolf next to Sehun had.

"Pet her, it's okay, she won't bite. She definitely likes you." Sehun encouraged and Minseok softly patted her fur. She grumbled, a rumble rushing through Minseok's body as she breathed, and Minseok let out a breathless laugh at the feeling of her fur.

"She's not bad after all," he admitted after a minute of just petting her, and Sehun gave him a smug smile.

"I think you've found yourself a life companion hyung. Wolves don't just follow anyone in the world. You've been chosen. It's an honor hyung."

"Who's your life companion then? The one on your side, with the white coat?" Minseok responded, and Sehun looked down at the white wolf adoringly.

"This is Vivi. He's like the alpha of the pack. He's unique and fluffy. He's been around just as long as I have." he explained, and Minseok felt a slight pang of emotion at the way Sehun looked at Vivi. Tanu must have felt like she was being ignored, because she whined pitifully in his lap, and drew his attention back to her.

"You're already obeying her. I can tell you two will get along very well." Sehun chuckled, and Minseok had to bashfully admit that that might just be the case. Tanu was very cute if you just looked at her personality. Like an overgrown puppy for sure.

"I'm glad that Tanu likes you. It will make our act that much easier." Sehun added, and Minseok looked at all the wolves lounging around.

"Our act?" he wondered out loud, and Sehun laughed.

"The wolves run under us as we fly through the air. The trapeze act goes hand in hand with the wolf act. It's much more spectacular that way. Don't you think?" Minseok watched Sehun scratch Vivi's ears lovingly, and he could see why Sehun was on most of the front advertisements for the Exo'luxion circus. He was definitely a mood maker.

"Yo star-crossed lovers! Time to go to the fitting room!" They both looked up as Luhan waved them down from the other side of the protective fence. It was clear he was wary about actually entering with all the wolves glaring at him. Sehun waved back before getting up and shoving Vivi off his lap.

"We should go. You have to shove the wolves off your lap though, they won't move unless you show some strength behind it." Sehun began to round up all the wolves with several clicks of his tongue, and Minseok gently pushed Tanu off, not wanting to hurt her feelings. Thankfully Tanu seemed to understand, and lifted herself off of him, but not before placing a sloppy wet kiss on the side of his face. Minseok flailed around helplessly covered in drool while Tanu trotted away satisfied, and Sehun grinned at his predicament before handing him a towel.

"Get cleaned up before we go to the fitting room. You do not want drool stains on any of our outfits." Sehun informed him, and Minseok nodded.

"How often do you get these fittings? Is it every time you have a new show?" Minseok questioned as they locked up and left the area, and Sehun shook his head.

"Usually every season or so. Acts change sometimes, so we can change then if we want. But usually, we have several classic costumes that we keep all the time with several alternating uniforms just in case." Sehun explained.