"Make sure you don't lose your money." I said, hooking the chain attached to Ryu's wallet to one of the belt loops on his jeans. "Are you both wearing sunscreen?"
    Ryu and Snake both nodded and I reached out to rub in a little bit of sunscreen Snake had missed on his nose. Snake gave me a dirty look and I could sense Kris sitting on the couch trying to contain his laughter, hiding behind the newspaper. 
    "Both of you have your phones with our numbers, right?" I asked. 
    "Oh my god, stop mothering us! We'll be fine; it's the county fair. The only thing that could happen to us is we get run over by a cow." Ryu said, tucking his phone inside his backpack. I rolled my eyes and pulled his hat lower on his head, shielding his face from the sun, and ruffled Snake's hair affectionately. 
    "Then watch out for cows." I smiled. Ryu rolled his eyes and grumbled good-naturedly, accepting the bottle of water I handed to him. 
    "Remember, you have school tomorrow, so don't stay out past midnight." I said sternly. 
    "But the fireworks are at midnight! We can't watch them and be at home at the same time!" Ryu whined. 
    I looked over at Kris for parental agreement, but he shrugged at me. I sighed, sitting down on the couch next to him and nodding. 
    "Fine. 12:30. No later!" I said when Ryu opened his mouth to argue. He rolled his eyes and closed his mouth with a sullen crossing of his arms, accepting the extra water bottles I handed to him. 
    "Stay hydrated, it will get hot outside in a few hours!" I called when they turned towards the door. "Make sure to wear your helmets when you're on the motorcycle!"
    "Tao!" Snake finally snapped, giving me a look that let me know he was clearly capable of taking care of both of them, and if I said anything else he would hit me. 
    "Alright, alright, I get it!" I said, raising my hands placatingly and walking to them to the front door. Snake and Ryu nodded appreciatively, walking through the front door and across the lawn. 
    I walked back to Kris and settled in next to him on the couch, reading the newspaper over his shoulder and playing with the hem of his t-shirt. The hem had been frayed from too many washes and the fabric was faded and super soft, perfect for running through my fingers until Kris paid attention to me. 
    "Hey, boo?" I said, poking his cheek. Kris wrinkled his nose, turning and looking me with the sternest face I had ever seen him use. 
    "Do not. Call me boo." Kris said firmly. I rolled my eyes, shifting so my legs were across his lap and my hands were resting on his chest.
    "Oh, hush. You get to call me pet names; why can't I call you a pet name?" I pouted. Kris folded the newspaper with an efficient crackle, setting it down next to him and wrapping one arm around my shoulders to gather me closer. 
    "Because you're a peach. I'm not a boo." Kris said, kissing my cheek. I sighed, rolling my eyes. 
    "How about cutie?" I asked. Kris glared, and I tried again. "Honey? Sweetheart? Darling?" 
    "Is there a point to this conversation?" Kris finally broke in. I nodded, forcing my wandering mind to focus, and smiled.
    "Want to go to the fair with me?" I asked. Kris stared at me for several speechless seconds, his mouth open, and I tapped the underside of his chin with two fingers to get him to close it. 
    "No!" Kris finally exclaimed. "You just want to go so you can spy on Ryu and Snake's unofficial official first date!" 
    "Pfff...I do not..." I pouted. "It'll be fun. We've never been to a fair!"
    "I took you to that place in Santa Cruz, didn't I? I fixed a flippin' Ferris wheel for you to ride on!" Kris said, his eyes wide. 
    "That didn't count; it was an amusement park and no one was there." I traded back easily, still pouting. 
    "No way. We'll go tomorrow when Ryu's at school." Kris said firmly, beginning to pick up the newspaper again. I stopped him with a fingertip on his wrist, doing my best to combine cute and seductive into my face. 
    "But I'll be at work!" I whined. 
    "Just call Suho and tell him you want the day off. You and I both know this is less of a job and more of a hobby that pays well." Kris said, raising one eyebrow at me. I huffed out a pouting sigh, crossing my arms. 
    "It'll be fun if we go! We can—we can see cows and go on rides and eat junk food!" I said.    
    "Do you even like cows?!" Kris broke in.
    "No, but I want to go!" I said. Kris met my eyes with a firm stare and I looked back at him as firmly as possible with my arms crossed. 
    When it had been a solid two minutes and both of us were still staring at each other, Kris began to blur and twitch at the edges. I frowned, confused, and Kris shimmered into a tiny dragon about the size of a large house cat.
    "Oh, that is so cheating!" I said, knowing he knew I wouldn't be able to resist tiny dragon aegyo. Kris chirped softly and I frowned down at him, determined not to give in. 
    I lasted about five seconds.
    "Oh, fine!" I snapped, uncrossing my arms. Kris chirped again and his mouth spread in a dragon's grin, exposing finely pointed teeth. 
     Kris curled up in my lap, my hand resting on his back and along his scales gently. He tilted his head back and my fingertips lightly up his belly to the silky soft tiny scales that covered his throat. There was a single large scale that was much harder than others, covering the vulnerable part of his throat, and I ran one fingernail around its edges carefully. Kris sprawled across my lap immediately like he was a puppet whose strings had been cut and I laughed, fondling his tiny horns. He gave a content purr and his eyes closed, his breaths evening out when he fell asleep. I shifted just slightly to pull the blanket over him, loving the weight of his body on mine. 
    We rested for about half an hour before I was thoroughly bored of my book and my legs were starting to cramp. I stopped my rhythmic down his spine, eyeing his rib cage slowly rising and falling against my fingertips. 
    "Kris~" I mumbled. One golden eye flickered open, fixing me with a sleepy version of Kris' signature 'what do you want now?' face. 
    "Come grocery shopping with me. Come on, it'll be fun." I poked his side gently, then rubbed my fingertips over the silky soft membranes of his wings. 
    Kris gave a grumble of protest, curling up so his wings covered his head and closing his eye. I smirked down at him, scooping him up in my arms and holding him in place when he struggled. 
    "You have no choice when you're this tiny and adorable!" I exclaimed, clutching him tightly to my chest and giggling when his head bumped my chin. 
    I hurried to the table at the bottom of the stairs, about to grab my keys and wallet when I felt Kris growing rapidly larger and heavier. He melted back into usual human form, becoming long limbs covered with heavy muscles, and I stumbled under his sudden weight. I took a few uncertain steps while I strained to balance his sudden length, tripping slightly and landing on my back with an audible exhalation of air. 
    Kris was sprawled out half on top of me and I wheezed, trying to catch my breath. He shook his head to clear it and then straddled me, shaking his finger scoldingly in my face. 
    "Zitao! When I am tiny, you are not allowed to dragon-nap me! Or call me adorable!" Kris scolded angrily, but his eyes were laughing at me and I smiled up at him.    
    "Whatever you say, cutie." I smirked, my hands resting on his chest. Kris spluttered angrily and crossed his arms, pinning my hands beneath his. 
    "I am not cute! And stop with the pet names!" Kris exclaimed, looking thoroughly exasperated with me. I giggled underneath him, squirming my hands around beneath his arms, poking at the sensitive spots between his ribs. 
    "Come on, let me up. You're heavy." I pouted, hitting the small of his back with my knees. Kris rolled his eyes, resting his arms on either side of my head and bracing his weight on them. 
    Kris skimmed the tip of his nose over mine, his eyes closing and his cologne filling my lungs. I took a dizzying breath of the hea