We Are Bulletproof

For half a second, as Susumu reached out to flick Rae's head to the side, Josh had an instinctive reaction to lunge. It was... oh, some stupid remnant protective instinct, he supposed. Wolves were notoriously protective of their territory and of their own. Josh bit the inside of his cheek until he tasted blood, watching Susumu touching Rae and doing something to the area behind his ear.

It seemed to be finished quite quickly, though Josh's eyes bored a hole through him afterwards, scrutinizing the sly smile on his face. So this was the kind of man that the fox chose to shack up with, was it? Josh almost laughed. Rae was definitely better off with him than with an idiot who let himself fall in with a witch like this. Besides, now he could take Rae away from the influence of this man, even if he had to get Susumu to curse him in the first place.

"You work quick," was his off-hand comment, playing it off as though nothing untoward had just happened. As if Josh was accustomed to seeing witches cursing people close to him on a daily basis. He was actually quite impressed, but like hell he was going to let Susumu know that. Josh looked over his shoulder again to make sure the coast was clear, then turned back to Susumu with a smile of his own. But his was dark more than devious.

"I'd better like it, witch, or I'll be back. And not just for you." He cast another look at Rae, laying there unconscious with bandages all over him. But he would live and he would wake up hopefully with a different set of memories than he fell asleep with. Josh nodded curtly; their transaction was complete. "I'll uphold my end of the bargain, don't you worry. You just have to be there with open arms to catch him." He glanced over his shoulder again. "You have my number. We'll be in touch." He left without a good-bye but he didn't think that Susumu would be holding his breath waiting for it.

Not a moment too soon, too, because just as he turned the corner he heard Alva's voice, with a softer female one—probably a nurse, approaching Rae's room. Josh smiled again to himself, grimly this time. He had put everything into this idea. It had better work.

Warily, Josh watched the witch. He hovered by the door to keep an eye on the hallway outside and to give himself an avenue of escape if things went wrong. Something told him, though, that the witch wouldn't turn on him. "Good. I need you to make a potion..." Josh frowned at the small bag that the witch pulled out and dipped his fingers into, not knowing the substance contained within. He stepped back a pace, just in case.

It didn't take long to outline his idea, and how they could be mutually beneficial to one another. Josh was articulate, cunning, and determined. He had worked out all of the facets of his idea, and knew the risks. But those risks were worth the payout, as far as he was concerned, and he was fairly certain that the witch would agree. They each had their uses; the witch had magic and Josh had the power of intimidation over... certain people.

He kept his expression neutral, however, as he spoke and his eyes never left the witch, especially as he was now standing by Rae. After he had finished, he crossed his arms. The fox might return soon so he had to make sure the witch was on board now. "Do we have a deal?"

As soon as the fox left the room and the witch gave confirmation, Josh eased himself out from around the corner. He'd been watching and waiting, knowing that where the fox was, his witch boyfriend wouldn't be far behind—especially if he thought that the fox was in danger from Josh, the big baddie. And to be fair, Josh had enjoyed slapping him earlier. It let out some of his pent-up frustrations, plus it seemed to really spook the little cripple.

What? As if Josh had any qualms about hitting a cripple. He would have killed and eaten—yes, eaten—Alva long ago if not for Rae. All this time, he'd been holding back because of Rae, and because he knew that if he was found to lay a finger on him, Rae would be lost. His new plan, however, would ensure that Rae fell straight into his waiting hands.

In passing, he swept up the tiny camera that he'd planted in the row of seats opposite Rae's room. No fancy magical shit for Josh, this was purely a convenience of technology. He tucked it into his pocket and quickly entered the room. Alva would likely return because Josh didn't see him leaving without the witch, but Josh was confident that he could relay his plan to the witch in a few sentences. The witch wasn't stupid; he more than anyone would pick up on what Josh meant.

"I'm guessing he'll be back soon, so I'll make this quick," Josh said as soon as he entered the room—but not too far in, not so far that he couldn't get himself out of this was a trap. "If you're serious about what we discussed, then listen up."

Sure, I'll be there once the fox leaves.

Well this time it's serious. I'm sick and tired of them constantly hanging on to one another.

We end this once and for all for them, if they can't do it themselves.

Josh was not used to being ignored.

Normally he didn't have to work very hard to be noticed; there was something about him that made people look up and take notice. Going through life as the center of attention made it difficult now to stare at the face of his phone, black and silent, and be okay with it, especially because it was Rae that he waited on. Rae who normally responded if only to insult him was conspicuously quiet now.

Unsettled, Josh kicked away a chair that stood between himself and his bed. He dropped heavily onto the mattress and slid one hand behind his head, letting the other with the phone in it fall beside him. After the previous night's fiasco, Rae dropped off the face of the planet. Josh had gone down to the police station earlier that day to see if they had taken Rae there, but they hadn't. He probably ought to have stayed long enough to see where they took Rae the night before but at the time, his only instinct was to get away.

Besides, he thought that Rae would call him once he changed back and let him know where he was.  Then Josh could reluctantly drive there, pick him up, make a snarky comment about how Rae was 'losing his touch' and things would return to the way they were. That was how it played out in his own mind but obviously Rae insisted on being a pain in the ass, being nowhere to be found.

So not the police station then. It wasn't as if Rae was dying. He was just being kept somewhere, probably feeling sorry for himself, and Josh didn't want to be subjected to that. Yes, yes, loyalty was important to Rae but he was the one who had to ruin everything by confessing.

Josh knew it wasn't real.

Those feelings Rae professed to having for him weren't completely Josh's. Part of him still wanted the fox and Josh couldn't stand it. He couldn't accept Rae's feelings when Rae had them for someone else and frankly, Josh felt like he was being lied to when Rae claimed to love him. Rae didn't love him, Rae was desperate to be loved. Those were two patently different things.

It burned inside, burned down deep, boring a hole straight on through to the other side. If Rae didn't feel about him the way he felt about Rae, then it wasn't enough for Josh. His feelings didn't come cheap; Rae wasn't earning them by dithering between Josh and an undeserving cripple.

Suddenly, his phone went off and almost embarrassingly eagerly Josh brought it up to look. Aldon? His lip curled as he flicked open the message to read the frantic text. Aldon was asking him about what happened the night before, giving far more information that he probably should have handed to someone like Josh. Well, they were friends, weren't they? Sometimes Aldon was almost useful. Once Josh got past the slew of exclamation marks, he found out that Rae had ended up at the shelter, having been abducted by animal control services. Josh did laugh a little nastily at that.

Josh: Is he still at the pound?

Aldon: No! Alva got there and convinced him to go to the hospital! I'm gonna go pick him up and bring him over to my place in a bit.

Josh: And who told you to do that?

Aldon: Um... nobody. It was my idea!

Josh's brows lifted in skepticism. Right. It was Aldon's bright idea to take Rae in, instead of letting him go home with Josh, who was his lover. That had the fox's scent all over it. So Alva was back in the picture, was he? How sweet—now he was playing hero. Josh dropped his phone and got up abruptly, stirred into action by a cold and ugly fury rising up inside. Just when he was beginning to think that he had Rae, Alva came around to ruin everything. That fox ruined everything.

He couldn't just stay away, could he? Couldn't let well enough alone. Even when he already had someone—when he had all those other people in his life doting on him and fawning over him just because he was in a wheelchair—he still had to dig his claws in deep with Rae. How selfish could one person get? Well a wolf's fangs could sink in deeper than a fox's claws. Josh snarled softly in the privacy of his bedroom, as he stalked over to his closet to pull on a leather jacket. It was beginning to rain, and the temperature was dropping; he wasn't going out in the thin sweater that he was currently wearing.

Where was he going?

The hospital.

It was time to get rid of that fox once and for all. If he couldn't outright kill him, then maybe he could out-smart him. There was more than one way to skin a fox, after all. Maybe brute-forcing things wasn't working for him; he needed to change up his tactics.

Where the fox was, his little witch was sure to also be there, and Josh had long been toying with the idea of employing his unique set of skills. Witches were a problematic lot but Josh honestly was beginning to think that he and this particular witch had a lot in common, especially after he heard stories from Aldon about the witch using memory charms on the fox and his little cousin and friends. And Rae. Really, the idea came to Josh after Rae's memories of the fox resumed. It sort of just... clicked.

Yes. Yes... He could take the fox out of Rae's life once and for all, and not have to dirty his hands...

Looking at his own reflection in the mirror, Josh smiled thinly to himself. It was more of a self-satisfied smirk, really. He adjusted his collar, smoothed back his hair and then turned to grab his phone and car keys. It was a short drive down to the hospital, and once there all he had to do was find the fox and wait. And didn't they always say—all good things come to those who wait?

Well, he was going to wait for that witch to come to him.

Then get him out of here.
I'll meet you in Rae's room in 30 minutes.

No tricks, witch. I'll be coming alone.

Now, now, I don't ask you how you spy on others, don't ask me how I get my information.

I'm still at the hospital, yes.
Can you get rid of the fox?

You didn't think that you're the only one with eyes everywhere, did you? ;)

You can alter those memories all you like but can you do that for every single person who knows Rae and the fox? No, I don't think so.
I have it all planned out but we should talk in person. You wouldn't want little Alva to see these texts, would you?

Where can I meet you?

We are going to help each other.
I want the fox out of Rae's life and you presumably want Rae out of the way as well. If we work together to separate them, then we both get what we want.

Or do you enjoy watching the fox pine over Rae, holding his hand and snivelling over him?

Don't you want him to cling to you instead?

The way he's doing right now?

You want the fox, and I want the wolf. Don't you think we can come to some form of an agreement?

I have a proposition for you, witch, one that will enable us both to get what we want.

[ID says Joshua Kang]

@Shimizu Susumu

The cops didn't see him slipping away. It wasn't hard to melt into the crowd emerging from the club to see what was going on, and then making his way to his car to join the fleet of other cars vacating the premises. Josh briefly saw animal control pulling up and thought it almost fitting that Rae was going to be tossed into the pound. He lived more like an animal than a human these days.

Maybe Josh had something to do with that, though. Didn't he always deride Rae for being too civilized? Didn't he purposely go out of his way to entice the animal out of him? He liked Rae when he was spirited and fiery but this was neither spirited nor fiery. This was desperation. This was... an epiphany of some kind, no doubt. Josh wasn't stupid, he had eyes and ears and a working brain big enough to put together the pieces of the puzzle.

He drove around town for a long while afterwards with the windows down, letting in the damp, earthy air. There was something organic about the smell of rain, of the light scent of dirt and pine that always hovered around town since they were surrounded mostly by woodlands. Josh didn't have a destination; he drove and drove and drove and let the winding roads take him where they willed.

Was it worth it? This fight? Did Rae even have it in him to keep tearing himself up that way? Josh didn't want a broken toy. He wasn't in the business of wiping away tears and stitching up hearts. He was a career heart-breaker. Somehow he never imagined that his own heart could be affected in some way. Before Rae, it was all about the sex and the domination. The power. The superiority. Josh was insufferable and he knew it, and they all knew it too but nobody cared because it was a game.

What was this now? Not a game. Not a fun game. Why was he even here, cradling someone else's broken remains in the hands that were made to destroy rather than heal?

At a stop light, he rested his elbow against the open window and wiped a hand over his face, feeling tired and... heavy. Restless. His legs didn't know how to arrange themselves and his hands slid up and down on the steering wheel, guiding the car mindlessly. Damnit. And damn him. Why couldn't Rae just get over it? Just... get over him and be grateful that Josh bothered with his sorry ass at all?

They could've been so good together. There was obvious chemistry between them from the first meeting and the sexual tension that simmered just underneath the surface made everything so exciting and amusing at first. Josh was even willing to admit that he could see himself with Rae in some capacity--although not monogamously--but it was obvious that the fox wasn't ever going to be completely out of the picture. Rae was broken. Being with Josh somehow made the cracks bigger, made him needier, more restless. He saw it coming, though. Maybe he didn't want to acknowledge it but deep down, Josh knew that things weren't the same anymore.

Even Aldon didn't act like--okay, Aldon was worse. If there was ONE single sliver of a silver lining it was that Rae, at least, wasn't Aldon.

HONK HOOONK!

The angry driver behind him slammed on the horn and Josh glared into his rearview mirror venomously. He sped away from the intersection and swerved abruptly off-road to let the asshole pass him by. Josh leaned back in his seat and stupidly pulled out his phone. Who would he even call? What friends did he have that he wanted to talk to aside from Aldon and Rae? Aldon was useless and Rae was probably tased out of his fucking mind by now. No message from Rae either, which was a given; wolves didn't have pockets to hide phones in when they shifted.

Still. His hand tightened on the phone until he heard an ominous crack and then he let it drop listlessly onto the passenger's seat beside him. Josh reclined the seat and laid back, closed his eyes and let the sound of cars and rain sweep over him.

The fight seemed to be an euphemism for the way that Rae's life was going. It wasn't going well. He watched them mobbing Rae and saw Rae falling, rising, falling, rising in an endless loop. There was no quit in him; Rae was the kind of stupid that would fight until he died. Something in him couldn't just give up and lay down and Josh wasn't sure it was all pride anymore.

Josh could have stepped in at any time but he didn't. He wasn't afraid of getting hurt and he was no stranger to a bloody, vicious fight but tonight something stood in the way. Maybe if he stepped in and got his hands dirty, it would reveal too much. Maybe if he helped, it would show that he gave a damn about someone other than himself. The conversation from earlier wouldn't get out of his mind. Love. Love. Love. It made everyone weak and stupid.

For long moments Josh watched, unflinching even as Rae fell and got up only to stop, waiting for something that didn't happen. The group walked away laughing, nursing their own wounds but seven or eight against one wasn't much of a fair fight even against a full-grown feral. Josh put a foot forward at last only to stop again as Rae shifted and attacked the group again. But they weren't humans. There were shifters, what looked like a witch, maybe a vampire.

If he didn't intervene, they probably would have killed Rae. Josh stepped forward again but the sound of a mournful howl stopped him cold. He looked down for a moment, let out a breath, closed his eyes. The sounds of animals snarling and roaring and the impact of bodies on bodies became louder in the absence of sight. Josh wanted to leap into the fray but again, something stopped him. Something was different in Rae tonight; he was changed even before he got to the bar. Something was different in Josh, too.

"...shit." He opened his eyes when he heard sirens approaching and saw the blue and red lights growing brighter. Police cruisers glided into view and there were guns drawn, the sound of shouting, scuffling and tasers being fired. Josh saw the bodies falling and convulsing, saw the cops crowding and wrestling with just about everyone. Even then he could have probably helped Rae but he turned away. He couldn't help Rae from the inside of a jail cell, which was where he would end up if he got himself involved now.

Whatever Rae was on, Josh didn't want in on it—for once. He looked at the nonsense that Rae was sending and his lip curled in disgust. If that was meant to be a joke, well, it had just missed its target audience. And Rae was a shitty comedian anyway. Unimpressed and annoyed, Josh tucked his phone away into his back pocket and turned to the man at the end of the bar who was drinking the drink he ordered.

It wasn't as if Josh was going to bend him over the bar then and there. He went over to chat the guy up while he waited for Rae to eventually come storming in. Good little predictable puppy—he'd come if only to snarl and snap and to let Josh know in no uncertain terms that he was pissed off. And then... what? Rae's plans never seemed to extend beyond unleashing his own explosive emotions.

Good thing Josh knew how to lead.

He briefly looked around once in a while for Rae but Rae took his sweet ass time getting to the strip club. Meanwhile, strippers danced onto and off of the stage and it was loud and the lights were gaudy and garish. This was Josh's scene. He seemed to have an instinct to buck against the expectations of the straight-laced upper-class society that he was born into. Everything he was expected to do, he did the opposite.

Maybe that was why, when the commotion across the room turned nearly every head, Josh continued sipping his drink. He heard the cursing and saw fists being thrown out of the corner of his eye. Security guards mobbed the area and dragged a few people out of the door. Josh elected to finish his drink before sliding off of the bar stool and leaving his bemused new friend.

Outside, he let out a soft breath and glanced around. Having just rained, it was wet and humid; he smelled the damp earth and felt moisture settling against his skin. The commotion had spilled out into the parking lot so Josh walked himself on over. That was Rae's fight, not his; he hadn't entered a strip club with any intentions of biting someone's throat out. With a kind of calloused amusement, Josh hung back to watch and to let Rae's temper run its course. He had to admit that Rae's assailants weren't doing a bad job against him. Probably supers. Well, Rae wouldn't die.