Harihar 【Harith/Harley】

06 | cat ears

❝ six. ❞
cat ears

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Harith had noticed that Harley had been staring at him quite a lot these days.

It wasn't like it bothered him, it was just Harley after all. But he couldn't help but wonder what was wrong with him that got the mage staring at him like that. Was something wrong with his hair? His face? His clothes, maybe? He had checked himself in the mirror many times, only to find nothing out of the ordinary.

So what was causing Harley to stare at him?

It happened again while they were eating lunch together at the table. Harith was talking to Harley about his duel with Kimmy, only to find the mage looking at him as if he was trapped in some kind of daze. The Mage Genius was so distracted, he didn't even realise that he had stopped talking. Harith took this moment to examine the mage and found Harley not looking at him, but on top of his head. Slowly, he moved his hand and touched his head. Was there something on his head?

It was when he did that was when Harley snapped out of his stupor. The mage blinked a few times before shaking his head. He then gave him an apologetic smile. "Sorry, what were you saying again?"

Harith just looked at him with both of his brows raised. He then lowered his hand and ended up crossing his arms over his chest. "Mind telling me what's so interesting about my head?"

All of a sudden, Harley's face was flushed. He looked away, and Harith smiled in amusement when the mage mumbled, "It's nothing."

"Nothing?" Harith's grin grew just a little wider. He leaned forward and propped his face in his hand. "Come on, Harley, I caught you staring at me these past few days. Don't you think I deserve to know what's so interesting about me that got you staring?"

Harith could hear Harley saying something, but the words were inaudible.

"What was that?" he asked, cupping his ear. "I can't quite hear you."

"It's just... your ears."

"My ears?" Harith asked, his brows furrowing. He tugged at one of his ears. "What's wrong with them?"

"It's just..." Harley bit his lip and shook his head. He quickly grabbed his plate and stood up. "Forget I said anything. It's stupid, okay?"

"No, tell me," Harith said, grabbing the mage's arm before he could head over to the sink. Harley paused between his steps and had a contemplative look on his face. When Harley looked reluctant, Harith continued, "Whatever the reason is, I don't think it's stupid. I just want to know why you keep looking at me. I mean, I know you find me attractive, but–"

Harley used his free hand to punch his arm, and Harith smiled when the mage rolled his eyes. Harley then placed his plate down and crossed his arms. "If I tell you, promise me you won't laugh."

Harith grinned. "I promise."

Harley gave him a sceptical look. "I don't trust you, but I'm going to tell you anyway." He then looked away and sighed. Harith watched as the mage fidgeted nervously. "Can you... move your ears?"

A snort escaped from Harith, and he clamped his mouth shut to stop himself from bursting into a fit of laughter. He watched as Harley glowered at him before grabbing his plate again. He had to stop the mage from leaving by grabbing his arm. "Harley– Harley, wait. I didn't mean to laugh."

Harley batted his hand away. "Whatever, Harith. I told you it's stupid."

"No, no it's not," Harith said. He quickly gave the mage an apologetic smile. "I'm sorry, it's just that... the question was unexpected. But, to answer your question, yes, I can move my ears. Why?"

"Nothing, it's just–" Harley had that same, contemplative look again on his face. Harith thought that he would end up walking away, so he was surprised when the mage said, "When you say you can move them, it means you can move it on your own will?"

"Yeah," Harith said, smiling. He drooped his left ear and then drooped the right. He found Harley's face in awe when he did that, and he couldn't help but chuckle at the mage's expression. "Is that what all the staring is about?"

Harley's face turned red, and he instantly averted his gaze. Harith knew that it was a lie when he said, "No."

Seeing how embarrassed the mage was, Harith was tempted to tease him. However, he refrained himself from doing that. It took a lot of courage for Harley to say what was on his mind, and teasing him might lead him to never opening up again. He then noticed that Harley was looking at his ears longingly, and he suddenly had a rough idea on what the mage actually wanted.

"Do you want to touch them?" Harith asked, and he grinned when the mage looked surprised.

"Can I?" Harley asked, and Harith nodded his head. He tilted his head to the side so that he was closer to Harley's reach. The mage put his plate down and extended his hand. But, just as he was about to touch his ears, Harith watched as he hesitated, and his hand ended up hovering above them. The mage then asked again, "Are you sure?"

It was Harith's turn to roll his eyes. Swiftly, he grabbed Harley's hand and moved it so that the mage was now touching his ears. He watched as Harley almost pulled his hand away, but then, he felt the mage's fingers stroke his ear, and he couldn't help but hum in satisfaction when he did that.

"It's so soft," Harley said, and Harith could feel the mage's fingers massage his ears. It felt so good. He could feel his tail swaying lazily behind him. He then heard Harley say, "Does it hurt when I touch it?"

"Not at all. In fact, it's far from that," Harith said, his voice low. He could feel his eyes drooping as Harley continued to rub his ears. Harley had no idea how much his actions were affecting him. "Just– just keep doing that." He felt Harley's hand caressing an ear, and he let out a contented sigh. "Damn, I never knew it's this good when you touch them."

He could tell that Harley was smiling, and it was evident in his voice when he said, "I thought you don't like people touching your ears. I saw you yelling at Claude when he touched them the other day."

"That was Claude, not you," Harith murmured. He felt Harley's fingers pulling away, and he grabbed the mage's wrist to lead it back to his ears again. "No, don't stop. I like it when you touch them."

He heard Harley sigh, and he opened his eyes, only to find the mage giving him an apologetic look. "Harith, I would love to rub them, but we have to clean up first. I promise I'll rub them some more after this."

Harith frowned, and he didn't realise when his ears had drooped. "Fine."

He was surprised when Harley laughed. The mage then looked at him with a smile. "You're like a cat, you know."

"I'm a leonin, Harley. Not a cat," Harith said, his lips twitching upwards. But, inwardly, he felt like Harley wasn't entirely wrong. Leonins are somewhat like cats. His tail then swayed vigorously behind him as he asked, "But you're serious about rubbing them again?"

"If you let me," Harley said, collecting their plates on the table and bringing them to the sink. "And if you like me doing it, I can do it often. I love touching your ears."

"Then, you have my permission to touch them any time you want."

Harley looked at him, his face filled with anticipation. "Any time?"

Harith smiled. "Any time."

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note: sorry that this came out short. this is just a small idea i had in my head.