Seoyeon glanced up as another firework went off. She kept trying to tell herself that she didn’t care that she was alone in her house for the celebration. Her family was too many hours away to go back for two nights. She just couldn’t afford it. Her friends, the ones that were over 21 had gone out clubbing, and the ones that were under had gone back home or were out with their significant other. Plus, she had homework. Her paper was due on Sunday evening, and she had a test in organic chemistry on Monday. Her fingers paused on the keyboard as another firework went off, close by. Would she be able to see it? She reached out, turning the sound system that had been playing since the celebration started down. It had been working pretty well, blocking out all but the loudest of the fireworks.

                Pulling on her leather jacket just in case something not so friendly fell from the sky, she pulled on her shoes and stepped out. Even her neighbors had more of a life than she did. The parking lot of her apartment complex was nearly abandoned. Only the old man’s truck sat there. That she had expected, he was a little jumpy around loud unexpected noises. Her sound system was fine, since it was if not a consistent genre at least continuous. Plus, she went out of her way to not listen to anything that was .

                Walking a little farther into the parking lot she looked towards the sound of the fire crackers. There, just between the trees she could see a glimmer of light. It was gone by the time she managed to find a spot to watch. She sighed, her hands slipping into her pockets as she leaned back on her heels.

                A flicker of motion caught her attention. Her gaze dropped, a slight frown crossing her lips. Was that a fox? Whatever it was, it was small, and furred. She just caught sight of the collar when the creature ducked under the neighbor’s decorative bridge. Hissing under her breath she started across the street. The thing was someone’s dog. Pulling the belt from around her waist, she jogged across the street, being sure to keep far enough to the right that the poor thing wouldn’t think she was going to attack it. Getting the belt fully off she reached for her pocket. Did she have anything to entice it with? She did. Pulling the bag out, she paused. Why did she have a bag of carrots? Ah, that was right. She had put them in her jacket for a snack that morning since the convenience store was going to be closed. Good, that meant they were fresh.

                Looping the belt over her shoulders, she crouched low enough to see the form hiding under the bridge. Even this close she wasn’t sure it was really a dog. The only thing she was sure of was the light reflecting off the tag. She couldn’t make out what it said though. Inching closer she whistled lowly. The dog started, wiggling around until it was facing her. Rather than come out or anything it back farther under the bridge.

                “Hey, it’s alright.” She opened the bag, drawing one of the carrots out. Dogs could eat carrots right? Her father’s husky loved them so they weren’t deadly. “Come on, I’m not gonna hurt you.” She crept a step closer, stretching out with one of the carrots. “Let’s get away from the fireworks alright?” The fox dog whined, trying to back farther under the bridge. Seoyeon stopped, holding perfectly still.

                Somewhere behind them a bottle rocket went off. The dog gave a cry that sounded more like a scream than anything else. Then it was in her lap. Seoyeon fell back, just catching herself on her elbows as the dog twisted. Soft fur brushed over her arm, its head stuck under her back. The rest probably would have followed if it had the strength to burrow under her. Seoyeon wrapped her arms around the small form, one hand closing over its mouth. It fought a little, until she hauled them both to her feet.

                It was definitely a smallish dog, with incredibly soft well groomed fur and a curled tail. It struggled for a moment, trying to get free of her hands. When another firework went off it whined, the jaws in her hand trying to open. A jerk and its head got under the edge of her jacket. She nearly dropped the dog and it wiggled and struggled until it’s head was all the way in her jacket. The shoulder probably would have followed, toppling her over again if she didn’t the jacket. She wrapped it around the dog, who had stopped struggling. It stuck it’s head into the arm of her jacket, and just sat there shivering.

                “Alright, alright.” She wrapped the jacket over the dog, and turned. “Let’s get you inside.” Two more fireworks went off in the time it took her to get back to her apartment. Both times the dog tried to borrow further into the arm of her jacket. Then when she opened the door to her apartment it started to struggle again. This time instead of trying to hide it tried to get out of the jacket. Kicking the door shut she let the dog drop onto the carpet. It lunged at the door, at least until another firework went off.

                Yelping, the dog flashed across the living room and under the couch. Seoyeon sighed, running a hand back through her hair. “Great, just great” Being careful not to flop too hard onto the couch, she opened her laptop back up. “Just stay under there or where I can see you.” It wouldn’t be hard. The bedroom door was closed, the bathroom couldn’t really be hurt. It was just the kitchen and even that would clean up pretty easily. Reaching back, she turned the volume on the sound system back up.

                She had gotten nearly a page of her essay done when the dog decided it was brave enough to peek out from under the couch. She glanced down at the dark nose peeking out, white fur surrounded it. A paw followed, and then more of the nose. A brush of red golden fur where the head started to widen. She shifted just a touch and it disappeared. Closing the lap top she swung her feet over. The dog was still under the couch when she returned from the kitchen, although it was at least fully visible now. It still looked like a fox.

                Setting the bowl of water down within an easy enough reaching distance she climbed back onto the couch. Curling up into her corner she opened up the laptop. As it turned out, the breed was easy to find. It was the first breed that pulled up when she looked up dogs that looked like foxes.

                She leaned sideways to where the nose was poking out again. “So you’re a Shiba Inu. Seems specific enough to me that someone is missing you.” The nose retreated when she first started talking although by the time she finished it was poking out again. “If you’d come out and let me see your collar I could get you home.” The nose poked out a little farther, sniffing towards the water. Seoyeon just sighed, going back to her paper.

                She did her best not to act like she noticed at the dog inched out. Any time she so much as paused typing it would freeze. Eventually it was far enough out that she could get a better look at it. The fur was well groomed, although a few burrs were snagged on one side. Probably happened while it was running. The pretty white paws were stained with dust although it didn’t seem to be anything to worry about. It gave the water a hesitant sniff, before starting to drink. Slowly, and as quietly as she could, Seoyeon set the laptop to the side. Her feet crossed, cutting the dog off from escaping back under the couch. It had finished with the water, and was sniffing around the edges of the bowl. At least until brushed her hand along its fur.

                It was amazing how tense the little body could get. Still, it didn’t turn or flee. It didn’t even scream or growl. “There we go.” Her other hand caught the edge of the collar. It was an expensive piece, done out of black leather although the edges showed a little bit of wear. She wasn’t sure the dog was even breathing as she turned the collar until she could see the tag. One side said the dog’s name in big letter, or at least she hoped it was the dog’s name. The other side listed a phone number. “Alright Rap Mon, let’s see if your owner will answer the phone.”

                They didn’t. The phone just rang off into space while she stared at the dog. It still hadn’t moved. Did she somehow break it? Sighing she hung up the phone. Patting the dog’s shoulder, she stood. “We’ll try again later.”

                Rap Mon moved while she was up. By the time she came out of the bedroom with one of the spare blankets he was back under the couch. He wasn’t shaking anymore, which she guessed was a good thing. Now had he not been staring at her with an eerie level of intelligence she would have been happier. She dropped the blanket on the floor beside the couch, making sure that it was rumbled up enough that he wouldn’t have too much trouble trying to make it into a bed. Then she climbed up onto the couch.

                He didn’t come back out in the time it took her to finish her paper. Glancing under the edge of the couch, she found Rap Mon still awake, and still staring at her. Shivering, she turned the sound system off and got up. “Creepy dog. I can feel you staring at me.” She could, it was like two lazers in her back as she the tv and got her blanket out of her room. She turned off the light and then flopped back onto the couch, normally this time.

                Seoyeon didn’t bother with the news, flipping straight to a movie. Something nice and light. She couldn’t deal with a horror or thriller flick with a strange dog. Especially when the strange dog decided to crawl up onto the couch. It was her turn to stare as it oh so carefully picked its way across to the curve of her side. There it paused, looking at her with one paw just barely touching her stomach. It was the only time he had touched her during the whole ordeal. The tail wagged once when she continued to stare, the dog tapping her side.

                Slowly she reached out, running her hand over the creature’s head. It leaned into the touch, and then turned. A single circle and it curled into her side. Its head settled on its paws, staring at the screen.

                Seoyeon shook her head, looking back to the movie. “Yup, creepy dog. Way too intelligent.” It didn’t really move through the entire movie, beyond jumping each time there was a firework loud enough to overcome the sound system. When she switched to another movie the ears pricked up. Its head raised slightly, and then set back down. It was snoring slightly half way through.

                Seoyeon reached down, cautiously setting her hand on the soft fur. The dog didn’t move. Sitting up just a touch, she brushed her hand down. It stayed asleep through her slowly and carefully removing the burrs. Or at least she thought it had until she sat back. The dog shifted, putting its nose, and then head under her hand. When she started to move away, it climbed up onto her stomach and laid down. Smirking faintly, she set her hand on the tilted head. Rap Mon smiled. There was no other word for the expression. The ears laid off to either side, the eyes squeezed shut, and the lips drawn back in an intimidation of the human expression. When she laughed, the ears pricked forward. A moment later the expression was back, only the top lip drawn back a touch, showing just a hint of closed teeth.

                The teeth disappeared as she turned her attention back to the movie. The smile remained however, even as the dog started to snore again, just so long as her hand continued to scratch behind the his ears.

                She was debating on watching a third movie or actually going to sleep, when someone down the street decided to light off a round of fire crackers. Rap Mon started up. A moment later she had a furry headrest. Her hand came up, scratching behind the shivering ears. “Alright, we’ll watch a third movie.”

                During the third movie, since Rap Mon stayed as her headrest, and would occasionally whine at the fireworks, she talked. Mainly it was comments about the main love relationship, the plot having very little to actually do with the movie. Rap Mon listened to the entire thing, occasionally whining or wagging his tail in accordance. When her stomach growled halfway through, she pushed up.

                Rap Mon sat patiently next to her feet the entire time she was making food, staring at her hands. It was still creepy, although now that she was talking to him it wasn’t enough to give her nightmares. She made her own dish, and considering the ingredients for a long time, set a much smaller dish on the ground. Rap Mon sniffed it once before starting to eat. He was done before she had even made a dent in hers, pawing at the edge of the dish.

                “I’m not giving you any more. Your owner is going to be mad enough at me as it is.” Rap Mon huffed, and trotted back to the couch. Seoyeon raised an eyebrow before going back to her serving. When she finished, Rap Mon sat up. He jumped off the couch, circling around her feet until she sat back down. He waited until she was settled before jumping back up. He picked his way across to a position where her hand could easily sit on his head and scratch. The ending was sweet, as she commented to a Rap Mon who might or might not have been asleep. Certainly he didn’t move as she turned the tv off. One hand stretched back behind her head. She could just sleep on the couch. She did it often enough. Her eyes slid closed, her hand stilling.

***

                She woke up on her stomach, not an unusual occurrence when she slept on the couch. One hand was flung off over the side, fingers threaded through Rap Mon’s fur. Frowning slightly, she drew her fingers through the rough silk. Had it been that long? Turning her head to the side she opened one eye.

                A man was stretched out on the floor beside the couch. Seoyeon jerked her hand back from his white hair, biting off the scream. Not that it mattered. The man shifted, the blanket that she had laid out for Rap Mon sliding off his shoulders as he pushed up on to his elbows, revealing the white collared shirt. His hands swept over his face, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. Not that they were very successful. One hand combed back through his hair even as his head turned. Dark eyes scrolled across the entire room, before looking her way. They stopped on her, staring for a long moment. He turned to look at the rest of the room, then to her again, and groaned. Folding his arms he buried his head in them.

                When he gave no further indication of life, she cautiously poked him with a toe. “Wh-who are you? What are you doing in my house?”

                “That’s complicated to explain.” His voice was muffled through his arms. After a moment he brought his head up. Sitting up just enough that he could set his head on his hand, he considered her. “I’m sorry. I overslept by accident.” His eyes trailed to the carpet. “Your floor is very comfortable.”

                Seoyeon had drawn her foot back, sitting curling in a ball on the couch. “How did you get in?”

                He winced, not looking up. “You dragged me in.” He sat up slowly, catching the edge of the blanket before it could dip into Rap Mon’s water. Setting the fabric aside he reached up he up button the first button of the shirt. The tie was already loose, the knot nearly at the third button. Under the shirt, he was wearing a collar.

                “What the hell are you talking about?” Seoyeon edged back farther. She most certainly had not dragged a strange man into her house. And what had happened to the dog?

                “I panicked and lost myself. By the time I came back around, I was under your couch. I’m sorry about that by the way.” Turning the collar, he undid the clasp. It came away easily, the man rubbing at the skin. His shoulders rolled back, stretching. Then he looked to her again. “I’d like to thank you, for taking me in when I wasn’t myself.”

                Seoyeon barely heard him. Her eyes were on the collar held so lightly in his hand. Black leather that was worn around the edges, the dog tag catching in the light. RAP MON “Yo-your…why are you wearing that collar.”

                He lifted it, considering. “So that the pound doesn’t think I’m a stray.” His eyes looked up, lines appearing across his forehead. “I don’t think that’s an answer that’s going to comfort you though.”

                “Th-the pound?” She shifted back a touch farther. The man just watched, making no motion to come after her just yet. “What are you saying? That you were…were Rap Mon?”

                “Am. I am Rap Mon, although my human name is Kim Namjoon.” His hand came up, rubbing at the skin around his throat. “I have the interesting circumstance of turning into a dog during certain nights. I can change any time I want, although if I fall asleep I’ll turn back to human.” He glanced at the floor again. “I had meant to wake up first and turn back.” He smiled, the expression scarily similar to the dog’s. “You haven’t screamed or thrown anything though, so I’m ahead.”

                “You…you were the dog. You let me carry you in my jacket. You even had me scratch behind your ears.”

                One hand came up to rub behind his ear, his eyes off to the side. “The jacket part I don’t remember. As I said, I kind of lost myself. For the ears…in dog form it is very pleasant.” Sitting up just a touch he set a hand on the edge of the couch. “Do you want me to turn back into dog form? You can close your eyes, and when you open them it will be a dream.”

                She jerked her head from side to side. It wouldn’t work that way. She was painfully aware of how real this was. “No.”

                She jumped as he lightly touched her arm. When had he gotten that close? He tilted his head to the side just a touch. “What would you like to do then?” His skin was soft, and warm even though it was just his fingers. Her own tingled, remembering what his fur had felt like. His hair had felt so similar. Was it really the same or had she been too asleep to notice the difference.

                She jerked to a stop when she realized she was reaching out to see. Namjoon hadn’t moved, his eyes watching her face. She swallowed, leaving her hand hanging in the air. “Can you influence my thoughts?”

                “No.” His eyes closed as her fingers slid through his hair. Some expression crossed, just a brief flash but enough to make her freeze. It had almost looked like pain. When she jerked her hand back his eyes opened. He let out a shuttering breathing and then brought his hand up. He cupped her cheek lightly, making sure that she could move away if she wanted to. “In the third movie, you talked about how cool it was that her boyfriend was more than human.” The smile spread slowly, his head ducking. “Do you want to see what the real life version would be like?”

 

((So this story was really random, and started because of my current guest who really is hiding under the couch. He looks more like a lab mix who was hiding under the neighbors car barking every time a firework went off. Calling his owners in the morning since they didn't answer when I tried to call earlier.))