Archive of Our Own

As they did every time they got a call, they reminded themselves to not get too attached, that this was temporary, that the hybrid they’d been asked to foster would only be there until they found their forever family.

They reminded their cat hybrid Yoongi that it was temporary, too, though they weren’t worried about him getting attached.

Just be kind to him, Yoongi-yah, and he’ll be on his way before you know it.

As always, Yoongi was unimpressed with the whole thing. They’d had foster hybrids go through their home before, and while some had been tolerable, some had been nothing more than nuisances that his owners doted on (almost) as much as they doted on him. But Yoongi knew every place he could hide if he wanted to get away, and he knew the very best ways to annoy his humans if he wanted revenge, but having another hybrid in his space was, more than anything, an annoyance.

Still, he was on very good behavior when the new hybrid arrived, his fluffy white tail flicking with aggravation, his arms crossed over his chest, his eyes set into a lazy glare and his lips pursed in an indifferent scowl.

But when the black-eared bunny hybrid walked in, his head hung low and a too-big hoodie helping him hide, Yoongi caught the tiniest whiff of his scent and huffed and rolled his eyes.

Temporary, he thought. There’s no way in hell I’m letting him be temporary.

His owners were too surprised to stop Yoongi from pushing the bunny to the ground, sitting heavy on his chest and pulling his hair sharply to force him to meet his eyes. Tears swam in his eyes as they flickered over Yoongi’s face, his bunny heart beating rabbit-fast.

“Be good for me,” Yoongi growled. And somehow, between that and a blink, the bunny’s fear faded away, his heart racing for another reason entirely.

When the others managed to forcibly pull Yoongi away, the bunny let out a pitiful whimper. It was the first noise he had made since they’d picked him up, and even as Hoseok dropped to his knees with a frantic “Jungkook, are you okay?”, Namjoon’s surprise made him loosen his grip on Yoongi just enough for him to jerk out of his hold and plop back down on the bunny’s chest.

Jungkook took his hand in his own and Yoongi stared at him, ears twitching.

“Mine,” he decided.

The bunny nodded, staring up at him with wide, starry eyes. Good.

He was vaguely aware of his humans yelling at him to get off and much more aware of the hands pulling him away, but Jungkook didn’t look away, and that was good enough for Yoongi. For now.

“What the fuck are you doing, Yoongi?” Jin asked as Namjoon pulled him up again, the only one strong enough to do so when Yoongi made himself heavy and boneless.

Yoongi’s tail flicked as he huffed. “Mine,” he stated again, even though it didn’t need reiterating. They should know he was his.

“He’s not yours, baby,” Jimin said, though he threw a hand over his heart in surprise when Yoongi snarled at him, baring his teeth.

“Mine,” he insisted.

“Are you hurt?” Hoseok asked Jungkook. Yoongi’s attention snapped to him. He’d better not be hurt. He didn’t hurt him. If someone else hurt him—

Jungkook shook his head, still staring up at him. Yoongi was being held inches off the ground but Jungkook looked at him like he was still the most commanding presence in the room. Good.

“Kitty,” Jungkook whined softly.

Yoongi scowled, patience worn too thin to tolerate Namjoon holding him back any more. He sank his claws into his hand briefly, just enough for him to gasp and let him go. He sat by Jungkook’s side this time, cupping his face in his hands and tilting it to check for injury, picking up each ear more gently than he handled anything else, peering at it to check for scrapes. There weren’t any new ones, but there were a few scars toward the end of one, and Yoongi scowled before pressing a kiss to the marks.

“Mine,” he muttered again. Jungkook nodded, curling up abruptly, putting his head on Yoongi’s lap. He pet his hair firmly before yanking it, glaring when Jungkook met his eyes. “Mine. Don’t think you’re in charge.”

Jungkook blinked before nodding, nuzzling into Yoongi’s lap once more.

“What the fuck?” Taehyung asked breaking the baffled silence of the humans staring at them.

Yoongi huffed, gently scritching the base of one of Jungkook’s silky ears. “Mine.”

“He’s not—” Jin started.

Yoongi glared at him—rarely did he mouth off to his only hyung, but this was important. “If you try to take him, we’ll run away together and live in a shed and eat trash and get dirty and he’ll still be mine.”

“Jungkook?” Jimin said after a moment, voice wavering unsurely. “Are you—?”

Jungkook nodded, content under the predator’s touch. “Kitty.”

“We—” Jimin continued, biting his lip. “We should show you to your room, Jungkook-ah, it’s—”

“Mine,” Yoongi repeated, annoyed. “My room.”

“Yoongi,” Hoseok tried to be stern. He usually succeeded, but there was no amount of sternness that would tear his bunny from his arms. “He’s not a toy—”

“Kitty,” Jungkook whimpered quietly, his thumb nearly in his mouth. “So s’eepy.”

Yoongi nodded once, decisively. “We’ll sleep. Come.”

Jungkook rubbed his eyes as he sat up, standing on shaky legs. He was taller than Yoongi, not insignificantly so. That didn’t matter, though, not when he was Yoongi’s.

“Mine,” he said again, matter-of-factly, just to remind the room.

Jungkook gave him a little bunny smile that melted Yoongi’s heart. He scowled to keep from crying.

“Mine.”

-

No other hybrid had ever been in Yoongi’s room before. It was strictly off-limits, and usually locked just in case whenever they were fostering someone. But he didn’t cringe at the way Jungkook stumbled over the rug, didn’t wince at the cute sniff-sniff-sniff of his pink-tinged nose, didn’t feel the urge to shove him back out the door. Instead, he watched with badly-hidden worry as he explored—Jungkook was his, and his room was his. He needed his things to get along.

“Smells good,” Jungkook said finally, his bare toes scrunching the fluffy rug. Yoongi watched them, pleased.

“Good. Lay down. Wait—” Jungkook blinked at him. “Off. Your clothes.”

Jungkook blinked again. “All of them?”

Yoongi furrowed his brows, considering. “Preferably. But at least your shirt. Too—sterile.”

“Oh.” Jungkook blinked before sniffing the collar of his shirt. “Yeah. Don’t smell good.”

Yoongi clicked his tongue as he realized the tantalizing obvious. “Here, you can wear something of mine.”

Jungkook brightened. “Smell like kitty.”

He didn’t even like when his owners called him kitty, not unless he was being particularly cute or particularly cuddly. But this was his bunny. He was allowed. “Yes. You need to smell like me.”

Jungkook smiled, bright and pleased. “Okay.”

Jungkook had just stripped down (blushing but not hiding from Yoongi’s lingering gaze, the way the cat instinctively licked his lips at the sight of his cute little cock) and put on one of Yoongi’s too-long t-shirts when there was a timid knock on the door.

“Hyung?” Jimin called from behind it.

Yoongi scowled, glancing at Jungkook’s shaking hands before going to the door, opening it just enough to meet Jimin’s eyes. “What?”

“Hyung,” Jimin repeated softly, standing on tiptoes to try to see Jungkook, pouting when Yoongi angled himself so he couldn’t. “Yoongi, baby, there are rules.”

Yoongi frowned, unimpressed. “So?”

“So—” Jimin sighed, shoulders slumping. It looked like he knew this would not be a fun conversation. “He can’t stay in your room. Foster laws state he has to have his own space, that he can’t share—”

Yoongi closed the door, huffing aggravatedly when Jimin hurriedly kept it open with his foot.

“He can spend time here—” he tried to placate, “but he can’t sleep with you, just like he can’t sleep with us, you know—”

“Mine,” Yoongi nearly growled. “He’s mine.”

“He’s not, though, sweetheart. He’s his own hybrid—” he pushed the door open with his shoulder when Yoongi tried to close it again, “and he’s only here for—”

The thought of them—of anyone—daring to take away his bunny made Yoongi see red. “He’s mine. Adopt him, then, file whatever bullshit paperwork you need to, he’s not leaving.”

“He hasn’t even been here a day,” Jimin said, almost perplexed. “You—do you know him, Yoongi? From before, or—”

Yoongi furrowed his brows. “No. So?”

“It’s not that he’s not a sweetheart—” Jimin said, loudly enough to make sure Jungkook heard him, “but we just met him, baby. How do you know—”

Yoongi made sure Jimin wouldn’t get hurt before slamming the door in his face, pointedly locking it behind him. Jungkook stared at him with wide eyes, shiny with tears, his nails biting into his wrists. Yoongi furrowed his brows, gently taking his hands in his own to stop him, rubbing his thumbs over the red marks they’d left.

“Not ‘llowed to be here?” he asked quietly, bunny ears drooping worriedly.

“Don’t listen to him. You’re where you’re supposed to be. Right?”

Jungkook bit his lip before nodding. “With kitty-hyung?”

Yoongi nodded once, satisfied. “With kitty-hyung.”

“I like your nest,” Jungkook mumbled when they settled into it, seeming so much smaller than Yoongi all tucked in to cozy blankets and freshly-fluffed pillows.

It was not a nest, and Yoongi had stubbornly corrected his owners many times before, cats didn’t nest, but—Jungkook thought it was a nest. It was a nest. “Good.” He blinked. “Thanks.”

Jungkook nodded, rubbing a fuzzy blanket against his cheek. Yoongi settled beside him, laying on his side to give him yet another good look. He blinked at Jungkook and Jungkook blinked at him, nothing but trust in his eyes.

“You have a hole in your lip,” Yoongi stated.

Jungkook smiled bashfully. “I pierced it. When I—ah.”

“When you—?”

“When I ran away.” He tongued where his piercing used to be, watching him carefully. “My owners were mean.”

Yoongi frowned, cupping his cheek. “I’ll kill them.”

Jungkook giggled, pressing into Yoongi’s touch. “S’okay. I got away.” He pouted, though, reaching up to tug his ear. “The shelter took my piercings out.”

Yoongi blinked. “I’ll kill them.”

Jungkook laughed, then, a silly, bright thing that made Yoongi warm from the inside out. “No, kitty-hyung. They were nice. Minus that.” His smile wavered after that. “Didn’t want me to be unadoptable.”

“You’re mine,” Yoongi said quickly. “I’ll adopt you.”

“You’re a kitty,” Jungkook smiled. “Can’t.”

Yoongi scowled. “My people will, then.”

Jungkook pursed his lips, glancing at the door. “They don’t want to.”

“So? They will. You’re mine.”

Jungkook nodded, worry still in his eyes, in the way he bit his lip.

“Trust your hyung,” he said sternly, wriggling so he could cuddle Jungkook close, holding him against his chest.

Jungkook relaxed under his touch, nodding. Good. Yoongi kissed the base of each ear in turn, ending with his nose pressed between them, breathing him in. He’d used the shelter’s generic, scentless shampoo, but—he’d be covered in Yoongi’s scent soon enough. He could stand the assault on his nose for just this one nap.

“Good boy,” he mumbled. Even in his sleep, Jungkook’s scent went sweet and proud.

-

“You have to come down for dinner,” Hoseok told them (told Yoongi) sternly, after several refusals to open the door. “You don’t want Jungkook to go hungry, do you?”

Yoongi scowled, looking at Jungkook. He was too skinny. Yoongi needed to fatten him up, make his bunny nice and healthy. “Bring us a tray.”

“You have to come down,” Hoseok repeated. “You can’t lock yourself in your room forever—you can’t keep Jungkook locked up—”

“I don’t mind,” Jungkook said helpfully, looking at Yoongi with wide, trusting eyes.

Yoongi nodded. “Good boy.” He raised his voice to make sure Hoseok could hear him. “Yes, I can. Jungkook said I could.”

“Yoongi—” Hoseok groaned; there was a thump on the door as he rested his forehead against it. “Please. We need to talk about all of this—”

Yoongi saw an opportunity and leapt for it, opening the door enough for Hoseok to stumble but not enough for him to fall in. “We can talk if you give me what I want.”

“Yoongi—” Hoseok groaned, “that’s not how talking works—”

“Yes it is. I tell you what I want, and you say yes. That’s how it works.”

“We can’t just keep Jungkook—”

Yoongi slammed the door.

“Without talking about it!” Hoseok half-yelled, voice stressed and strangled. “Yoongi, I’m not saying we can’t—”

“I need you to say we will or I’m not opening the door. Jungkookie and I will climb out the window. You’ll never see us again.”

Hoseok was quiet for a long moment and his tired, resigned sigh admittedly broke Yoongi’s heart. “Please don’t say that, baby. I love you s-so—”

Hoseok’s tears were, unfortunately, something Yoongi had never been able to handle. He threw the door open and cupped his face in his hands, quickly thumbing his tears away before they could fall down his cheeks. “Hoseokie.”

“When have we ever not given you what you want, huh?” Hoseok asked quietly, touching Yoongi’s waist. “Why would this be any different? We just—we have to talk, Yoongi. All of us. Please.”

Yoongi stared into his eyes for a long moment before nodding once. “Don’t take him from me. He’s mine.”

Hoseok gave him a pursed-lipped smile. “We’ll work it out.”

That wasn’t a promise, but—Yoongi glanced back at Jungkook, the way his ears perked hopefully even as his teeth worried at his lip.

“Fine.”

-

Guilt settled in as soon as Jimin placed Jungkook’s file in front of him. He grabbed Jungkook’s hand where it rested on Yoongi’s lap, squeezing it tightly. Jungkook hummed, nuzzling into his shoulder.

“So he needs antibiotics every eight hours—”

“Did I miss it?” Yoongi mumbled, ears pressing against his head.

Jimin softened, giving him a little smile. “No. He can take them after dinner. And these vitamins after breakfast—”

Jungkook pouted, rubbing his cheek on Yoongi’s shoulder again. “Don’t like ‘em.”

“It’s not forever,” Jimin promised him with a gentle smile. “Just until you get your strength up.”

“My bunny’s strong,” Yoongi objected immediately, putting an arm around Jungkook’s shoulders.

Jungkook sank into his touch. “Not that strong,” he admitted quietly.

Yoongi frowned. “Why?”

Jungkook whined, squeezing his hand.

“Well—” Jin said, watching Jungkook carefully for any objections. “He was on his own for nearly a year, baby. I can’t imagine it was easy to get healthy food.”

“Any food,” Jungkook mumbled.

“Or any food,” Jin agreed gently. “And I doubt it was easy to get a good night’s sleep, either.”

Jungkook shook his head. “Scary.”

“It gets cold,” Yoongi said abruptly, the thought of Jungkook shivering in the snow too much to bear. He bundled Jungkook against his chest, nuzzling his soft ears.

Jungkook whined again, nodding before cuddling as close as he could manage, not stopping until he was straddling Yoongi’s lap, his weight heavy but, Yoongi realized, not nearly heavy enough. “Don’t like cold, kitty-hyung.”

“No,” Yoongi agreed. “I’ll keep you warm.”

“So—” Namjoon started, sharing a sidelong glance with the rest, “it would be good for Jungkook to have space of his own after not having one for so long, don’t you think?”

No, Yoongi didn’t think, but—he tugged Jungkook’s hair to study his face. He relaxed at what he saw.

“Want to stay with kitty-hyung. Good nest.”

Yoongi nodded once, satisfied. “Mine.”

When it was time for Jungkook to take his medicine, combatting the shelter cough and ear infections that had yet to clear completely, it was Yoongi who batted his hands away when he tried to take it by himself. Jungkook let his hands fall to his lap easily, looking up at Yoongi as he make sure he drank it down, holding an electrolyte-heavy drink to his lips afterwards to chase the taste away.

The others allowed them to retreat to Yoongi’s room without argument, waiting until they were solidly settled and out of earshot to whisper amongst themselves.

“We can’t just adopt him” Namjoon said, almost regretfully. “We don’t know him at all, we haven’t been around him more than—what, nine hours now? And most of that he was holed up in Yoongi’s room.”

“Where he shouldn’t even be.” Hoseok sighed heavily, burying his head in his hands.

“Hyung said he doesn’t know him,” Jimin offered, pulling a knee to his chest. “I thought maybe they’d met before we adopted him, but—he’s never like this, I’m so confused.”

“They could have just—imprinted,” Taehyung said. “I’ve never seen it, but it’s not out of the question. And I wouldn’t mind having another hybrid—”

Jimin groaned, shoving Taehyung’s shoulder. “Baby, you don’t know him either!”

Taehyung shrugged. “No, but he’s cute. People have adopted hybrids for less.”

“Irresponsible people, maybe.”

“We’re not irresponsible!” Taehyung argued with a frown. “D’you guys really think this is a fight Yoongi will lose? It doesn’t even have to be a fight, really. We just need to ask for this to be Jungkook’s home visit.”

“We don’t know him,” Hoseok repeated. “He could just be—incompatible with us and we just don’t know it yet. If we give Yoongi hope—”

“Jungkook has hope, too,” Taehyung interrupted, pouting at him. “He hasn’t had a home for a year, and before that he had a terrible home. He was silent the whole ride here, and the shelter said he was nervous and jumpy and flinched and we needed to be patient because he thinks we’re going to hurt him—”

“And Yoongi pounced on him the second we walked through the door!”

Namjoon rubbed Hoseok’s back. “It wasn’t a good start,” he agreed.

Jimin glanced between them, hugging his leg. “Jungkook didn’t seem to mind it, though. He liked it.”

“That doesn’t make it acceptable,” Namjoon reasoned. “I have half a mind to think we should, ah—” he winced, curling his lip, “punish Yoongi. But I don’t think that would help anything.”

“No, it wouldn’t,” Jin said firmly.

He and Hoseok might have been the most stern of them all, but they very rarely were disciplinarians. They weren’t conventional hybrid owners, from what they knew. They’d only laid a hand on Yoongi when he’d asked for a spanking or two, and certainly never took advantage of his hard-won trust and affection. Even he would admit that, if anything, Yoongi dominating Jungkook, for lack of a better word, would be the most justifiable reason to punish him that he’d ever encountered, but still. They didn’t understand, he knew. And to punish him for their lack of understanding, no matter how confusing and stressful it was, was not how they should act.

“The problem might just solve itself,” Hoseok sighed. “It might just be a—phase, or something like it. When the newness wears off—ah. We just need to make sure to not—promise adoption, to either of them.”

“We wouldn’t go back on it, though, right?” Taehyung asked, an innocent worry on his face. “I won’t promise them, but—but if we did, we wouldn’t not, right?”

Hoseok pursed his lips. “We’ll see. We’ll keep an open mind, I’m not saying we won’t adopt him in the end.”

Taehyung frowned but nodded, satisfied enough. “It would be nice, though, wouldn’t it? Having another hybrid around?”

“We’d have to stop fostering if we do keep him,” Namjoon reminded.

Out of all of them, Taehyung loved their fosters the most—and that was saying something, considering how much care they all poured into their rehabilitations. There was only one spare bedroom, though, and—even if Yoongi refused to let the bunny out of his bed, they would never deny Jungkook his very own space.

Namjoon frowned at himself, shaking his head. Even that thought felt too much like commitment.

“I know,” Taehyung mumbled. “I just—I don’t want you guys to say no without even giving him a chance.”

Jimin squeezed the nape of his neck comfortingly, pulling him close to kiss his temple. “We won’t, baby bear.”

“We should try to separate them, at least a little. It can’t be healthy for them to build a dependence on each other from the get go. Especially if we don’t end up adopting him.” Hoseok gave Taehyung a soft smile at the quiet whine he let out. “I’m not saying we won’t, sweetheart. But we need to keep Jungkook’s wellbeing in mind, no matter what.”

“I’ve never seen Yoongi even really tolerate another hybrid, especially in his space,” Jimin hummed. “It’s kind of endearing, isn’t it? Did you see how he kissed his ears—”

Taehyung whined louder, cuddling into Jimin’s shoulder. “They’re so cute, both of them. He’s being so gentle—”

“Our Yoongi’s always gentle at heart. But—” Jin gave a helpless shrug, “it’s—it’s very cute. It’s extremely cute.”

Namjoon grinned, almost guiltily. “Both of them, individually, together—”

“Please—” Hoseok groaned, “don’t make me be the bad guy, I’m begging you—”

“We won’t, we won’t,” Jimin assured. “We need to make sure they have time away from each other, we need to get to know Jungkook, we need to see if this will fade away. We’re with you.”

Hoseok sighed, but—he knew they’d have his back. “Thank you.”

“We’ll feel it out,” Jin said, running a hand through Hoseok’s hair and smiling when he pushed into the touch. “We’ll do what’s right, as soon as we figure out what that actually is.”

-

“You’re mine,” Yoongi reminded Jungkook sternly, pinning him down by his shoulders. He was glad he knew about rabbit customs; he was more glad Jungkook knew his place. He nodded happily, staring up at him with wide eyes and excitedly twitching ears.

Yoongi’s tongue wasn’t nearly as rough as his ancestors and half-relatives but it did its job, making sure the base of Jungkook’s ears were smoothed and groomed and clean. Yoongi pulled a face when he had to move his head way back to free his tongue of Jungkook’s hair, but it was worth it to hear his bunny’s purr—not chest-deep like Yoongi’s, sure, but his chittering teeth made Yoongi’s heart warm brightly all the same.

Jungkook tugged his shirt after Yoongi reached the tip of his black ears. “Kitty-hyung? My turn?”

Yoongi squinted at him.

“I’m yours,” Jungkook assured him with a little bunny smile, nose wrinkling. “Wanna, please?”

Yoongi nodded after a moment’s consideration, flopping down beside him. His tail thumped when Jungkook rolled on top of him, though he relaxed at Jungkook’s repeated “I’m yours.” It didn’t take long for a purr of his own to erupt When Jungkook groomed his ears in messy, unpracticed licks, his fingers subconsciously massaging Yoongi’s shoulders as he held him down. He wrapped his fluffy tail around Jungkook’s bare leg, smiling into his pillow when Jungkook wriggled happily, making sure to keep his leg in Yoongi’s possession.

“Good boy,” he mumbled, endlessly endeared when Jungkook seemed to short out, needing to shake to get his pride out. “Good boy,” he repeated. “Mine.”

“Kitty-hyung’s good boy?” Jungkook had a little lisp that made Yoongi want to kill anyone and anything who had ever hurt him, from his old owners to fences that had given him splinters.

“Kitty-hyung’s good boy.” He let out a displeased growl when there was a knock on the door. “What?”

Namjoon hesitated before opening the door enough to bravely poke his head in, thankfully not daring to do more than that. “I thought we could show Jungkook his room. How does that sound?”

No matter how pleasant and open Namjoon made his voice sound, the suggestion of Jungkook leaving set Yoongi’s teeth on edge. He wriggled until Jungkook fell to the side, tucking the bunny under his arm as he sat up. “No.”

“Yoongi—” Namjoon sighed before putting on a smile, turning to Jungkook. “Jungkook. May I show you your room? We picked out some nesting materials I’d love you to check out.”

Jungkook stared at him for a moment before his starry eyes began to well with tears, his lip shaking. “Leave here?”

“Well—” Namjoon faltered, glancing between them. “Yes, but it’s just down the hall—”

Tears spilled over, falling down his cheeks in pitiful droplets, whimpers catching in his throat. “Leave kitty-hyung?”

“Just—just for a little bit, sweetheart. It would be nice to know where your own space is, wouldn’t it?”

“No,” Yoongi snarled, glaring at him. “He’s mine.”

“He’s not yours, Yoongi,” Namjoon did his best to be firm without setting Jungkook off anymore, but he nearly stumbled in uninvited when Jungkook let out a tiny wail.

“I’m kitty-hyung’s!” he cried, gripping Yoongi’s arm.

Yoongi nodded once, glaring at Namjoon. “You made him cry.”

“I didn’t mean to!” Namjoon said, holding his hands up placatingly. “We just need Jungkook to have a room to himself, Yoongi, you know this—”

“No, ‘cause he’s mine,” Yoongi huffed, petting Jungkook’s hair with tenderness that did not match the hardness in his eyes.

“Yoongi, Jungkook—you have to. We have to comply with—” Jungkook met his eyes and the words died in Namjoon’s throat. “We have to—” he cleared his throat. “We—”

Jungkook’s lip quivered, his voice incredibly sad and resigned. “Gonna take me from kitty-hyung?”

Namjoon stared at him for a long moment. “They shouldn’t have asked me to do this,” he said to himself. “It’s okay, sweetheart. You can stay for now. We—we can show you tomorrow.”

Jungkook burrowed under the blankets as soon as Namjoon said he didn’t have to, surrounding himself in the comfort and safety of Yoongi’s nest. Yoongi pet his covered back as he stared at Namjoon, refusing to blink until Namjoon backed out of the door.

“I’ll—I’ll leave you, uh—do you—need anything?”

Yoongi shook his head slowly, still unblinking.

Namjoon shifted uncomfortably before giving in. “Love you, Yoongi, uh—take care of him, okay?”

“He’s mine,” Yoongi said with a suspicious squint.

“He’s—okay,” Namjoon said. “Okay, love you, bye—”

“Well?” Jin said when Namjoon came down. Namjoon winced at his crossed arms, the knowing quirk of his brow.

“No harm in showing him tomorrow, right?” he asked.

Jin slapped his ass lightly as he passed without a word.

-

Jin had thought about asking Taehyung to check on them the next morning, but the little giggles he heard behind the door would have brought his baby to tears within half a second. They would all try to do the very best thing for both of the hybrids, including separation, but—it would be harder for some than others.

The giggles quieted when Jin knocked on the door, though he couldn’t help but be pleased that they didn’t stop. “May I come in?”

Yoongi waited a long moment before saying, just loud enough for Jin to hear, "Fine.”

Jin put on a bright smile when he came in, sitting on Yoongi’s comfy desk chair and spinning casually around. “Did you sleep well, darlings?”

Jungkook was peeking at him from the pile of pillows Yoongi had clearly buried him in. The pillows moved as he nodded. Yoongi gave the pillows a pat before giving his own nod.

“Everyone but Taehyungie and I are at work today. I thought it would be a good time to give an actual tour of the house.”

Yoongi squinted at him suspiciously before looking to Jungkook, uncovering his head, tail flicking happily when his bunny ears perked up. “I can show you my sunny spots.”

“That’s a great idea!” Jin said. “Do you like sunning, too, sweetheart?”

Jungkook worried at his lip before shrugging. “I dunno. I’ve never really done that before.”

Jin nearly laughed when Yoongi’s tail puffed in alarm. “Let’s go.”

Jin did laugh at Yoongi’s eagerness as he pulled Jungkook out of his nest, though his laugh caught in his throat when Jungkook emerged in just one of Yoongi’s shirts, the pants he’d been wearing at dinner abandoned, his (admittedly incredibly cute) little cock just barely visible as he climbed out of bed. If they didn’t get in trouble for Yoongi pouncing on him as soon as he walked in the door, or for Jungkook being dragged into Yoongi’s room before he was even shown his own space, cuddled up in a bed he wasn’t supposed to be in—Jungkook being nearly naked, likely at their hybrid’s own hand, would have gotten him taken away immediately.

But he could imagine the fight that would ensue if he even implied Jungkook would be taken out of Yoongi’s grasp; he cleared his throat and slapped his hands on his thighs as he stood. “Should we start upstairs, then?”

Yoongi pursed his lips in thought. “There’s a good sunny spot in the big room.”

“There is,” Jin encouraged, even though starting in the shared-by-all bedroom would be even more inappropriate. There was a more infrequently used sunny spot in the guest bedroom, and if Yoongi wanted to give him a full tour of them, Jungkook might see the nice blankets and nesting materials they’d found for him, might want to build a nice little burrow of his own instead of Yoongi’s—

He smiled, holding out his hand for Yoongi, bringing it to his lips to kiss his knuckles as soon as he took it. He was glad that Yoongi blushed happily as he always did, ducking his head shyly like it wasn’t one of his favorite things. He bit his lip when Yoongi took Jungkook’s hand in his other, though, lacing their fingers together and tugging the bunny close to his side.

“Sunny spots,” Yoongi muttered. “Then we come back here.”

Jin didn’t argue. Hopefully, at the very least, the hybrids find a comfy spot downstairs and Jin would be able to convince them to take a break from each other. No matter how cute he knew they’d be all curled up together in the sun. It would be cuter if he knew they were appropriately independent and not breaking fostering protocols one after another.

He led them to the biggest bedroom, enough mattresses to fit seven on their very-custom bedframe, an absurd variety of blankets and pillows and stuffed animals strewn about. The sun hit just right on one of the bottom corners and Yoongi wasted no time pulling Jungkook to it, flopping on the cooling blanket that was always there for him and tugging Jungkook to lay on top of him, chest to chest.

Trepidatious though he was, Jin would never be able to deny how sweet the whole scene was. Their kitty wrapping himself around a floppy-eared bunny, Jungkook’s tail twitching happily over his ass. Even Jungkook’s nudity was endearing, he had to admit—he wouldn’t admit it to anyone else, but, for now—

Maybe Taehyungie was right, he thought. Another hybrid in the house would hardly be a curse.

He sat carefully on the edge of the bed a little way away from them, watching Yoongi grip and ungrip Jungkook’s sides in a way that he would absolutely not say was kneading. “Whenever Yoongi goes missing, this is the first place we check.”

“S’nice,” Jungkook mumbled against Yoongi’s chest. “Love warm.”

Yoongi responded with a pleased purr. “Yes.”

“Never got warm like this,” Jungkook mumbled after a moment. 

Jin steeled himself; he knew very little about Jungkook’s life, only what succinct and relatively emotionless notes had been in the files the shelter had sent with him, but he knew it had hardly been all good.

“Why?” Yoongi demanded.

“Could never go missing like hyung,” he said, letting out a content sigh as he rested his cheek against his chest. “Owners kept me in my kennel most of the time. Wasn’t near any windows.”

“I’ll kill them,” Yoongi growled immediately. Jin couldn’t blame him.

Jungkook giggled, turning his head to nose at him, pressing a kiss over his shirt. “You said so already.”

“I meant it.”

Jungkook was still smiling as he settled back down, stretching happily at the way the sun warmed his legs. “S’okay. Here now.”

Yoongi squeezed him close, wrapping his legs around Jungkook’s to keep him even closer. “Here now,” he agreed.

“Yoongi, love, why don’t you show him your other sunny spots? Don’t you think he’d like them?” He wasn’t necessarily proud of taking advantage of Jungkook’s heartbreakingly casual reveal, but it was a convenient one. “Maybe the one in the kitchen?”

Yoongi frowned as he considered before nodding. “The breakfast nook.”

Jungkook giggled. “Sounds fancy.”

“It is,” Yoongi said solemnly. “Come.”

Jungkook giggled again. “Have to let go of me first, kitty-hyung.”

Yoongi rolled over, standing with some amount of difficulty, never once letting him go. “No.” 

They stayed tangled together as Jin led them downstairs, giving Hoseok a shrug when he passed them and giving Taehyung a pointed look when he just barely muffled a gasp. Given how Yoongi glanced at Taehyung and Jungkook’s ears twitched at the sound, though, it hadn’t been quite muffled enough.

“Taehyungie,” Yoongi said, and Jin knew he had won their youngest’s heart all over again.

He refused to think about how Jungkook was younger, pushing the thought of youngest for now away as far as he could. He was a sucker for youth, he nearly sighed. Innocence captured his heart so easily in his old age. No matter that Taehyung’s innocence was more theoretical than anything, given how he talked during—heated moments.

“Hi, Yoongi-hyung,” Taehyung said, voice strangled. “How are you?”

Yoongi squinted at him before nodding once, turning Jungkook around in his arms to face him. “This is my bunny.”

Taehyung let out a tiny whine, holding his own face in his hands. “Y-yeah, so I’ve heard. Nice to meet you, Jungkook.”

Jungkook nodded, cheeks a bit pink even as he proudly confirmed, “M’kitty-hyung’s.”

“You’re precious—” Taehyung gushed. Jin closed his eyes, shoulders sagging. No reeling him back now. “You’re such a cute bunny, Jungkook-ah, such lovely ears—”

“Kitty-hyung groomed them,” Jungkook said, tugging the end of one.

“They’re very neat,” Taehyung praised, hands twitching at his sides.

Yoongi took a long look at Taehyung before turning his gaze to Jungkook, cupping his cheek to make him meet his eyes. Jin wasn’t sure what he saw, but he was shocked when Yoongi reached forward and grabbed one of Taehyung’s hands, bringing it to Jungkook’s other ear. Jungkook blinked but didn’t flinch away, tilting his head as Taehyung gently, timidly pet it.

“Silky,” he praised quietly, like it might shatter the moment if he was any louder.

Jungkook trilled happily, blushing sweetly.

“Taehyung has earrings,” Yoongi said.

Jungkook blinked. “Oh—”

He could feel Taehyung pause as he felt the little bumps where his piercings used to be. “Would you like to have some, Jungkookie? I have so many, Jiminie has even more—”

“Oh,” Jungkook blinked again, ducking his head, “I-I don’t—don’t feel obligated, Taehyung-ssi—”

“I don’t,” Taehyung rushed. “We—oh, I’d love to dress you up—if you’d let me, obviously, and you can pick—you’re so cute, sweetheart, I—”

“We’re showing Jungkook Yoongi’s sunny spots,” Jin interrupted. “Maybe you can show Jungkook your closet later.”

Even if it meant allowing Taehyung to get more attached, at least it might break some attachment if he could distract Yoongi somewhere else. He might regret it given the way Taehyung’s eyes lit up, but—sacrifices had to be made, especially if Jungkook’s wellbeing was at stake.

Taehyung beamed. “Yes, please. I’m so glad you’re here, bunny.”

Jungkook looked so absurdly shy and pleased and happy that Jin had to look away, clearing his throat. “Come on, you two, before the sun sets.”

“It’s a good moon spot, too,” Yoongi pouted. “But—sun is warmer. For my bunny.”

Jungkook looked even more flattered at the consideration and hurriedly bundled into Yoongi’s chest, nuzzling into his shoulder even though he had to duck down to do so.

Taehyung gave Jin the most pleading look he’d ever seen and he had to look away. He squeezed Taehyung’s shoulder as he passed him, though. Whether it was an apology or supplication or a promise, though, he wasn’t sure.

-

No matter how much they tried (how much Jin and Hoseok and Namjoon tried, more accurately, with Jimin and Taehyung content to watch the hybrids cuddle at any given moment) to separate them, Yoongi and Jungkook found each other after half an hour max apart.

They had become at least a little immune to Yoongi’s displeased yowls and aggravated glares, but Jungkook’s quiet whimpers and pleading looks and starry-eyed tears were much more unfamiliar—and much harder to ignore. Even Hoseok had to let Yoongi into the bathroom when the cat prowled outside it, pacing and occasionally checking to see if the door was still locked, letting out a displeased yowl every time it was.

Jungkook looked at him from the bathtub with pleading eyes that were so bright they could have blinded him, and Hoseok had no choice but to give in.

Yoongi pushed his way inside as soon as he heard the lock snick, hurrying to kneel by the tub and pull Jungkook close, uncaring of the way he dripped on him, even though wet fabric was one of Yoongi’s least favorite things. He paused when he caught sight of what Hoseok had been helping him with, though.

Deep, inflamed scratches on his back, a healing bite on his shoulder. The result of the fight that had led him to the shelter, unable to hide from hybrid control after a restaurant reported an injured hybrid in their alley. He tried to run, of course, but he rolled his ankle when he tripped and found himself in for-his-own-safety restraints before he could scramble away. He couldn’t reach them enough to clean them by himself, and Hoseok had been trained the most in hybrid medical care, so—

Hoseok was almost glad to see Yoongi’s shock. At least that meant they hadn’t been rolling around completely naked.

“My baby,” Yoongi mumbled, hovering over him almost frozen, staring at his wounds.

“S’okay,” Jungkook assured gently, tugging on Yoongi’s shirt. “Doesn’t hurt.”

Given how he had flinched at Hoseok’s every touch, no matter how light they were, he knew that was an exaggeration. Even though he hadn’t seen it, Yoongi’s skeptical frown showed he didn’t believe it either.

Hoseok softened a little, reaching to give Yoongi’s nape a comforting squeeze. “They’re healing nicely,” he promised, “should barely even scar.”

“My bunny,” Yoongi said quietly, stroking his ear. He frowned before glancing at Hoseok. “Show me how.”

“How—?”

“How to take care of my bunny. Please.”

Hoseok nearly melted at his soft tone. For all he liked to pretend he had sharp teeth and sharper claws, he was more caring than anyone Hoseok had ever met—and he’d met all of his partners, so that was saying something. “Is that okay with you, Jungkook?”

Jungkook nodded quickly, leaning into Yoongi’s touch.

“Okay,” Hoseok said. He couldn’t help but give Jungkook’s ear a pet of his own before getting back to work. He couldn’t help but notice that Jungkook flinched so much less when he was cuddled up to Yoongi, even when Hoseok had to apply a salve that stung.

Yoongi gave him so many soft kisses, so many reassuring strokes—

Fuck, he thought. Jin wouldn’t like this.

Sure enough—

“Hobah,” Jin pleaded, throwing his head back. “Please. Baby. Please.”

“I just said he was a sweet boy! What’s wrong with that?”

“Your tone, Seok. I know that tone. That tone is ‘Doesn’t a vacation sound nice, hyung? Don’t you think this house is nicer than the other? Don’t you think Taehyungie and Jimin are just so perfect?’” He didn’t let up at Hoseok’s pout. “‘Don’t you think Jungkook is a sweet boy?’”

“Well—” Hoseok kicked lightly at his ankle. “Isn’t he?”

Jin groaned.

-

Yoongi was purring loud enough that Namjoon felt it running through him where Yoongi rested his head on his lap, both of them lounging on the patio as they watched Jungkook run around in the garden, darting from one end of the pond to the edge of the house to the rope swing on a tree and back again. He had so much energy that it made Namjoon tired to even watch him, though it warmed his heart to see.

Yoongi’s purr stuttered as he took a deep, content breath. It didn’t catch in his chest when Jungkook took a tumble, so Namjoon cut his own yell off short, his panic quelling when Jungkook sprang up right away, giggling as he leapt over the short fence around the garden.

“Jinnie-hyung said he’s been kenneled before.”

“Caged,” Yoongi corrected. “Jungkook said it was really small. It would have been big if he was a full shifter like they wanted him to be.”

Namjoon blinked. “He can’t help that.”

“They didn’t care. They were mean to my bunny.”

“Well—” Namjoon said, heart aching in his chest when Jungkook flopped onto the ground, flat on his back and laughing up at the sun. “No one will be mean to him again.”

Yoongi’s purr started up again, louder than ever.

Jungkook ran over to them after a few moments of catching his breath, beaming when Yoongi handed him his own glass of cold tea when he sat beside them. “I love running.”

“I can tell,” Namjoon said.

Jungkook looked up at him when he rested a broad hand on Jungkook’s head; he held onto Namjoon’s wrist before he nuzzled close to Yoongi, burying his face in Yoongi’s warm tummy, letting go of Namjoon’s hand when he was sure he wouldn’t move.

When Jin came out with a tray of cut fruit, he took one look at Namjoon and took a deep breath, setting the tray down and ignoring his guilty smile.

It had only been a week. Jungkook was still practically a stranger, no matter how sweet he was. If he had to be the one voice of reason, so be it.

-

Jungkook looked so small in the back seat of the car, especially without Yoongi beside him as he had been the past two weeks. He was silent as he watched out the window, as Jin and Jimin talked in the front, as they pulled up to the hyrbid doctor’s office and led him out of the car. He was silent as they checked him in for his appointment, as Jin chatted with the familiar receptionist, as Jimin guided him to the waiting area and sat beside him.

He was silent throughout the checkup, only muttering short answers when the doctor asked him something that the humans weren’t sure about, or letting out brief hums of acknowledgement when he was told do do something.

“Is he always this quiet?” the doctor asked.

Jimin laughed a little, shaking his head. “He’s never loud, but he and our hybrid can make some noise when they’re playing together.”

“He gets along well with your hybrid, then? That’s good to hear.”

“Well—” Jin started. He stopped and looked at Jungkook. “Could I talk to you outside, doctor?”

Jimin reached out for Jungkook’s hand when the door closed, pouting a little when Jungkook didn’t immediately take it. The bunny was an affectionate thing, always eager for touch even when it wasn’t Yoongi giving it to him. The quiet sniffle Jungkook let out when Jimin touched his knee nearly made Jimin jump in alarm.

“Sweetheart?”

Jungkook sniffled again, then again, before a tiny, heartbreaking sob broke through. He covered his face with his hands, ducking his head so his ears would fall and cover him even more. “S-sorry—”

“Darling—” Jimin clicked his tongue, abandoning his own seat in favor of sitting on the exam table next to him. “I didn’t know you were so frightened of the doctor, baby, I’m sorry I—”

“You’re gonna send me away,” Jungkook said. It wasn’t accusatory or angry, it was just—

“Jungkook,” Jimin said after a caught-off-guard moment. “What do you mean?”

“G-gonna—gonna send me b-back to the shelter. Don’t wanna go—I’m sorry, I’ll b-be good, I’ll be better—”

“You are good, sweetheart. Why would we send you back?”

Jungkook sniffled and looked up at him. “N-not yours.”

Jimin hugged him to his chest so he wouldn’t see his anxious glance at the door, almost hoping that Jin would come in and be able to explain that that was not what was happening. Because what could he say, really? Jungkook wasn’t theirs, and Jimin was struggling to find some other reassurance that didn’t require Jungkook’s blind faith.

Jungkook wasn’t theirs, no matter how often (extraordinarily often) Yoongi claimed he was his. He was a foster hybrid; he was meant to leave them at some point, he was meant to find his forever home, one that was never supposed to be their own. Though they thought they’d done a good job hiding their foster-owner conversations from the hybrids, it was clear that Jungkook knew Jin was telling the doctor about his dependence on Yoongi. It was more clear that Jungkook expected the doctor to tell them that the fix to that particular problem was to send Jungkook away.

He shouldn’t tell Jungkook that they wouldn’t, because that wasn’t his call to make, and he didn’t want to give him false hope or false promises—but Jungkook’s fingers shook where they’d grabbed onto Jimin’s shirt, his breath hitched pitifully in his chest, his entire body seemed to exude sorrow and anxiety.

“We’re not sending you away, baby,” Jimin assured him quietly. “Jinnie-hyung just needs to talk to the doctor about some things. That doesn’t mean you’re going away.”

“N-not yours,” Jungkook reminded him.

“Well—no, you’re not,” Jimin admitted, rubbing the small of Jungkook’s back, staying away from the nearly-healed bite and scratches the doctor had been examining. “But that doesn’t mean we won’t take care of you.”

Jungkook sniffled, shaking his head. “N-not being good. M’sorry.”

“What? You’re angel, bunny, you’re being so good—”

“N-not s’posed to sleep with kitty-hyung. Or w-wear his clothes. Or t-take showers with him. O-or—”

Admittedly, Jimin hadn’t known that last part, but he refused to balk in surprise. “You and Yoongi have an—unconventional friendship from what we’ve experienced with fosters before, but that doesn’t mean you’re being bad. We just want to make sure the two of you are being healthy, hm? We don’t want to do things that will be bad for you in the long run.”

“L-like be kitty-hyung’s.”

His voice was so small and sad and sure and Jimin wanted to swallow all of his worries so Jungkook would never have to taste them again. “We just want you to be safe,” he eventually settled on.

Jungkook sniffled. “W-won’t send me away?”

“Not today, baby,” he promised.

When Jungkook met his eyes, they were swimming with tears, wet trails running down his cheeks where they had spilled over. “G-gotta let me say goodbye, please, wh-when—when—”

Jimin couldn’t help but sniffle right along with him, hurrying to wipe his own eyes before tears could fall. He tucked Jungkook close again, kissing his ear. “Hush, baby, none of that. We don’t need to think sad thoughts, hm? We’re going to get treats to take home after this, remember what I promised? And we can get your kitty-hyung’s favorites, I can’t imagine how delighted he’ll be when his favorite bunny boy hand-delivers them to him—”

Jimin was very, very glad that Jin didn’t come in and immediately render all of Jimin’s assurances into lies.

“You’re all set,” the doctor told them happily, giving Jungkook’s shoulder a squeeze. “Finish off your antibiotics, take your vitamins, and eat your vegetables, and you’ll be a healthy rabbit in no time.”

Jungkook nodded once shallowly. “Thanks.”

“Time to get our treats and go home,” Jimin said pointedly, looking at Jin over Jungkook’s shoulder. “Right, hyung?”

Jin raised his brows. “Right.”

Jimin’s heart could have melted in his chest when Jungkook’s hand found his own as they stood, hooking their pinkies together like it was all Jungkook could stand as they walked to the car.

By the time they arrived back at the house with a bag overflowing with sweet and savory snacks alike (everything Jimin had seen Jungkook look at for more than half a second), it was like Jungkook hadn’t cried in the slightest, hadn’t doubted that they’d be letting him walk back through the doors. Not that he had to, though.

Yoongi ran to the car and threw open the door, pulling Jungkook out to rub their cheeks together, his fluffy tail flicking anxiously. “My bunny, my bunny—”

“Kitty-hyung,” Jungkook mumbled, hugging him close and scenting him back. “Missed you.”

“Mine,” Yoongi said, licking his jaw. “Good. Here. Mine.”

Jungkook nodded, sinking into his touch all the more.

-

Jin did everything he could. He listened to the doctor’s recommendations, he followed fostering guidelines, he scoured the internet for advice and blogs and listicles, and still.

Jungkook snuck out of his own room within half an hour of being tucked in under one of Yoongi’s blankets; the scent of it wasn’t enough to settle him, of course not, he needed the real thing.

Yoongi crawled over all of them to sit beside Jungkook during meals, feeding him from his own plate enough that, at three weeks in, they started feeding them from just one.

Jungkook ran laps around the pond as Yoongi lounged in the sun; Yoongi allowed Jungkook to help him with his intensive tail maintenance routine; Jungkook whispered his sad past life to Yoongi and allowed Yoongi to whisper it to the others; Yoongi looked at Jungkook with as much devotion, if not more, as the bunny felt for him.

And when Jin started to catch moments where they weren’t attached at the hip—Jungkook helping Namjoon in the garden, Yoongi listening to Taehyung learning tunes on the piano, Jungkook drawing in one room while Yoongi read in another—even their tangled-together, you’re mine-I’m yours moments felt more natural.

Natural enough that he forgot they weren’t each others’ until the shelter called.

“We have a family interested in adopting Jungkook,” the worker told him with a pleasant delight that Jin found much too distasteful for the message she was giving him. “What’s a good time this week that they could visit? Alternatively, of course, whether by this family or another, Jungkook is ready to be adopted and he’ll be snatched up soon, we can set a room aside for him here if—”

“We’re adopting him,” he interrupted. Six pairs of eyes snapped to him immediately, none without shock. “I’ll send in the paperwork today. Is email okay or should I fax?”

The worker cleared her throat after a moment. “Ah. Email would work fine, Seokjin-ssi.”

“Wonderful. Goodbye.”

“Good—”

Jungkook’s lip was wobbling when Jin hung up, his starry eyes starrier than ever. “Really?”

Yoongi spared Jin a brief, grateful kiss before he tackled Jungkook to the ground, scenting him with even more vigor than he had that very first day they met.

“Mine,” he muttered into Jungkook’s skin, kissing away his silent tears, nuzzling their noses together. “Mine, mine, ours, mine—”

“Yours,” Jungkook whispered. He wrapped himself around Yoongi suddenly, breaking out of the shock that had been keeping him still. “Kitty-hyung—”

If Jin hadn’t ended up with a lapful of Taehyung and Hoseok pressing kisses to his hair, he might have laid right on the floor with them, but he’d give them their own little moments. Now that Jungkook was theirs, officially—or would be as soon as they sent in the appropriate forms—he was sure that both of the hybrids would end up in the big bed more often than not.

Jin let out a heavy sigh, hugging Taehyung close. “Like you all didn’t know this was coming. He’s been Yoongi’s since the beginning, right?”

“Shut up, hyung,” Jimin said fondly, only leaning on his side when Jin let out an expected offended yell, snuggling closer when he put his arm around Jimin’s shoulders.

Namjoon hummed. “We should get him a collar.”

Yoongi jerked to look at him with a glare. “Mine. He wears my collars.”

“You don’t even wear your collars,” Hoseok laughed.

Yoongi scowled. “So Jungkook can.”

Jungkook rolled so Yoongi was under him in what could be considered a display of dominance, if not for the pleased rumbly purr that immediately erupted.

“Good,” Yoongi mumbled, nipping his shoulder. “Mine.”

“Kitty-hyung’s.”

“We should file that paperwork,” Hoseok said, one hand on Jimin’s head, the other petting Jin’s hair.

“One more minute,” Taehyung mumbled into Jin’s shoulder, voice clearly teary. “Maybe five.”

“Maybe five,” Jin agreed with a grin. “Think they’ll eat off their own plates now?”

Namjoon snorted. “No.”

“Ah, well,” Jin sighed and shrugged. “I guess it can’t hurt.”

(‘Maybe five’ turned into a half hour of watching their hybrids kiss each other with a possessive, slow-burning fervor that had Jungkook’s pretty bunny tail twitching happily. It was a beautiful view, and it was one that would undoubtedly last a lifetime.)