That day was a turning point for Rap Monster, though it took him time to realize it.  Saving Suga had been reactionary, no thought needed.  And in doing so, he became firmly entrenched in their team as a whole.  It prompted a subtle shift in all their practices, where he was still occasionally a die hard offensive player against his better judgment, but they worked with him.

            Arguments still happened, as they were likely to, but more and more, it was someone else they were yelling at instead of him.  Even more interesting, he found that Jin kept leaving him to defend Suga when they were all on the same practice teams; it was a fact he was unsure how to interpret.  Should he be glad of the trust Jin placed in him or irritated that he was hobbled to Suga?  Not that he really considered being ‘stuck’ around him as bad a thing as it could have been.  Especially because gaining Suga’s approval from him participating well were weird highlights of his day.

            “Sleigh ride!” Suga called, snapping him out of his musings.  On cue, Rap Monster transformed and felt the cord slide into place, allowing him to pull Suga along with ease.

            Their opponents, Jimin and Jungkook, were ready for him, both taking defensive stances.  V was flying above, eyeing things out as he watched Suga in particular.  Rap Monster leaped to approach the boys but he wasn’t attacking.  They tried to counter him like he was and he scooped them into his arms, trapping both against his body as he rolled, the force sling-shoting Suga over his head.

            “Gotcha!” V crowed when he snagged Suga out of the air, but then he laughed as Jin slid by on his shell, using the force from trailing Suga to get as close to the mark zone as possible, ball in tow.

            “Yes!” Jin cheered with a huge grin on his face.  It was obvious by his exuberance that he didn’t usually score points in the games.  “I did it!”

            “We did it,” Rap Monster snorted while he released the giggling pair.

            “It’s a bear hug attack!” Jimin roared, chasing Jungkook out of the embrace with his arms in the air.

            “Yah!” Jungkook fled behind J-Hope who flinched when Jimin kept coming, ensnaring the other male instead.

            “It’s an immobilizing attack,” Rap Monster corrected, shifting back to his human guise and making a face at the first name.

            “When did you come up with that?” Suga asked while V set them both on the ground.

            “Just now,” he grinned cockily, planting his hands on his waist in satisfaction.

            “Show off,” V rolled his eyes, still somewhat impressed.

            “Yeah, yeah.  Why don’t we wrap it up for now?” Jin asked with a nod towards the stairwell.  “End on a high note?”

            They all laughed at his response and Suga nodded.  “Works for me.  I think you just want to soak in the heated pools.”

            “Oh!  Good idea!” J-Hope grinned, finally escaping Jimin so he could seek refuge behind V who held the other boy at bay with a hand in his face and a glare.

            Jimin made a disgruntled face and Jin hugged him from behind to guide him towards the door.  “Come on, Jiminnie.”  It didn’t take long for the others to file behind after they got started moving.

            Their group made a quick stop at the locker rooms to change out into more appropriate water shorts and rushed to the pools en mass.  All except Suga who walked slowly and kept as far from the pools as possible.  He paused to get a snack from the small ground floor café and nibbled on the treat from the safety of his chair with a covered drink nearby.  Rap Monster paused at the edge of the water and looked back at Suga who waved at him once, expression carefully pulled into a smile.

            He knew it was an act.  Or at least partially and that bothered him.  Throwing his towel over his shoulder, Rap Monster wandered into the café as well and took the other seat.  “Sup?”

            Suga didn’t look at him as he kept his eyes on the others.  “The usual.”

            “It you can’t join us,” he admitted honestly, flipping his chair around to rest his arms on the back of it.

            “I’ve gotten used to it,” Suga shrugged, giving Rap Monster a sidelong look.

            “Liar,” his companion snorted with a roll of his eyes.

            Suga chuckled at the word.  “Jin usually comes out pretty early to keep me company until the boys get bored,” he admitted before shifting in his seat to get a better look at Rap Monster.  “It wouldn’t kill me, you know.”

            The background noise in the café helped to keep their conversation semi-private and Rap Monster tilted his head in confusion.  “Then why are you so afraid of it?”  Even though it’d been several weeks since their match with the Infinites, Suga had yet to give a solid answer about why he was terrified of water and Rap Monster refused to get that information anywhere but from the source.  As a matter of pride of course.

            “Because I… dissolve,” he explained, scrunching his nose in irritation.  “See?” he offered, sticking just the tip of his finger into his water after he took the lid off.  When he pulled it back to show, Rap Monster could see the form already breaking up, flattening out against the rest of the finger.  Suga the moisture off and then held the finger up again so Rap Monster could see it regenerate before his eyes.

            “But if you can do that…” he trailed off, confused.

            “Only if I’m near it.  I can’t very well reconstitute myself in larger bodies of water.  And it hurts, thank you,” he added on with an affronted air.

            Rap Monster chuckled.  “I’d imagine.”

            “What are you doing over here bothering me anyway?” Suga asked after a brief pause of silence.

            “I never really did thank you,” he mumbled, resting his chin on his arms.

            “For what?” Suga snorted, waving the words away already.

            “For not being a .  I mean, you are sometimes,” Rap Monster amended with a smirk, “but you gave me another chance.”

            Suga shrugged and took a breath.  “You’re an but you’re not a bad person.”

            “Don’t you mean I was an ?”

            “Nope.  You still are.  Sometimes,” he added slyly.  He laughed when Rap Monster reached across the table to shove his arm.

            “Fine.  But I’ve gotten better,” he pointed out defensively, to which Suga nodded in agreement.  “So when do I get that rematch?” he asked, scooting closer in a weird hopping motion.

            “I can just tell you my name if you want to know so bad,” Suga laughed as he leaned across the table with one arm resting on the surface.

            “Nope,” Rap Monster shook his head, bright smile shining through.  “I wanna earn it.”

            “You have changed,” his companion laughed delightedly, shifting to rest his chin on his palm as he regarded Rap Monster for a long moment.  Rap Monster realized he liked the attention, especially since it gave him a chance to look right back in a strange staring contest that was anything but.

            “Hey Rapmon! Come-”

            They were both surprised to hear someone else vying for his attention and they looked just in time to see Jin shoving J-Hope into the other side of the pool, water disrupting his call.  “It’s okay!  You guys are fine,” he grinned and waved their attention off.

            “Never a dull moment,” Rap Monster chuckled with a shake of his head, glancing at Suga out of the corner of his eye.

            “Not with this bunch,” he agreed.  “How about tomorrow morning?”

            “Huh?  Oh yeah.  That’ll work,” Rap Monster grinned, more than ready to face off against him one on one.

            “Cool.  So I’ll see you at Sunny’s Tea Shop for breakfast then?” he asked, getting up to stuff the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth, before swallowing it down with water through a straw.

            “I still don’t understand that,” Rap Monster murmured with narrowed eyes and a shaking finger.

            Suga looked at the cup of water and shrugged as he swallowed his food.  “Neither do I, but it works.”

            “Lame, but yes.  Tomorrow morning is good for me,” he nodded, frowning when the older male started to walk off.  “Where you going?”

            “To take a nap!”

            “Lazy !”

            “I never said I wasn’t,” Suga grinned over his shoulder, the expression infectious.  He waved at the other boys from afar and headed off.

            “No you didn’t,” Rap Monster concurred as he got up to finally join the others in the heated pools.  He really did want to get in them.

            Breakfast at Sunny’s Tea Shop was uneventful but pleasant with just Rap Monster and Suga.  “They’ll come in later anyway.  I figure it might be nice to try a match without any distractions for once,” he winked, taking a sip of his tea before devouring another sausage slab.

            Rap Monster sipped on the black root tea, which he’d developed a curious liking for, and hummed to himself.  “That’ll be different.”  And possibly more difficult.  He was used to having the boys on the sidelines.  He wasn’t used to Suga’s absolute and undivided attention, the likes of which made him uneasy, in a weirdly good way.  There were a couple times he could recall the feeling from other occasions and he wasn’t sure whether he should be annoyed with himself or happy or what.

            “Good different or bad different?” Suga mused around a mouthful of food.

            It was a cute sight and Rap Monster snorted.  “Good different.”

            “Just checking,” he nodded once, retrieving another morsel to hold between his fingertips.

            “Why Suga?” he finally asked after a long pause where they just ate.

            “I wasn’t going to be called Sug or Sugar boy for the rest of my life,” he scoffed, pointing at his companion with the piece of bacon.  “And if they thought I was going to be offended by Suga, they were wrong, so it stuck.”

            “Cheeky bastard.”

            “You try dealing with being largely made of sugar.  It has its perks but it’s annoying as crap some days.  Do you know how hard it is to maintain my figure after leaving pieces of me all over the place when we’re done with matches?” he grumbled, chomping on another piece enthusiastically.  Well that explained the sticky residue he was always having to wash off.  “And I can’t even take a shower.  Not that I need to but I’ve heard they’re pretty awesome.”

            “They are,” Rap Monster rubbed it in just a touch, making Suga scowl.

            “.”

            “Sometimes,” he winked in response, downing the rest of his tea.  “And I’m ready when you are!”

            “Just a sec!” Suga urged, carefully finishing his drink and finishing off the meat platter.  “Let’s go!” he waved around his stuffed mouth, the words sounding muddled.

            Rap Monster just chuckled and waved at the waitress behind the counter as they headed out, making their way through the quiet streets of the town.  It wasn’t too early but most people took their time unless they had something to do.  An occasional monitor flew by overhead but that was all, followed by a passerby or two.

            “Preference?” Suga asked when they reached the moat, making sure he stayed exactly in the middle of the bridge.

            “Just a plain court,” Rap Monster nodded matter-of-factly.  It was where they’d started this interesting ride and that was where he wanted to beat him.

            “Sounds good,” he nodded as they stepped inside the interior.  “Morning Heechul,” he waved in greeting, flashing the chimaera man a smile.

            “Morning it is,” he replied with sleepy eyes.

            “Late night?” Rap Monster hedged carefully.

            “What night?” he shot back, brushing his hair out of his face.

            “Good night?” Suga joined in with a preemptive cringe.

            “Very good,” Heechul smirked, making them both relax even as they looked at each other questioningly.  “Oh go on.  You’re here for something or other.  Leave me to my miserable morning alone,” he pantomimed dramatically, earning no sympathy from either of them in the process.

            “He’s weird,” Rap Monster admitted when they reached the safety of the stairwell with a ball from the storage unit in tow.  Suga just shrugged and led the way, offering no comment to the contrary.

            When they reached the courts, Suga tossed him the ball with a smirk.  “You start.”

            “Nope,” Rap Monster grinned, placing it in the center.  “Fair and square this time.”

            “Suit yourself,” the other male shrugged, shaking his hands out and leaning over to rest his palms on his knees.

            “Ready when you are,” he smiled, mirroring Suga’s position.

            At the same time, they sprinted for the ball, but as Rap Monster expected, Suga got it first, using his crystalline cords to retrieve it early.  That was alright.  He had plenty of time to get it back.

            Back and forth, the pair sprinted over the court, stealing the ball between them with irritating frequency.  Rap Monster refused to transform for more than defensive measures, yet, and Suga had his hands full with trying to get around him long enough to score.  Since their first, terribly outmatched session, Rap Monster had become much more adept at changing between his forms and he could counter most of Suga’s efforts.

            It was only with great effort that Suga finally broke the stalemate with a lucky swoop that got him under Rap Monster’s guards and enabled him to end up in the mark zone, relatively uncontested.  “Finally!” he panted with a huge grin on his face.

            “Dammit!” Rap Monster chuckled, brushing himself off, senses saturated with sugar.  At least he smelled good.

            “You’ve gotten much better God of Destruction,” he tested, taking the ball with him.

            “The name’s Rap Monster, thank you.  And yes I have,” he cheered himself, one fist raised in a victory gesture.  “On to round two!” he exhaled gustily, bouncing in place.

            It proceeded much like their first round, only they were both quite serious this time around, with Rap Monster taking his monstrous form more often and Suga utilizing his tricks to their fullest.  Luck favored Rap Monster the second round, ending with him stretched out and the ball just in the mark zone with Suga holding onto his waist.

            “Well that didn’t work,” he laughed, staying where he was just lying across Rap Monster’s legs.

            “Not by a longshot,” he chuckled, pillowing his head on his arms while he took the opportunity to rest.  This was a tough match.  “You know I didn’t like you when we first met.”

            “I know,” Suga laughed softly, breath warm against Rap Monster’s back.

            “I respected your ability though,” he admitted with a nod.

            “And I respected your will to play.”

            “I was gonna get in, show them I could beat you, and take over from there,” Rap Monster went on, shaking his head at how absurd that sounded now.

            “Is that how it was supposed to go down?” Suga teased, clearly amused.  “Because that worked so well.”

            “Oh shut up.  I’m working on it,” he amended with a glance back at the light brown head.  “We’re tied now aren’t we?”

            “Oh yeah.  The game,” Suga commented, looking up to peer at his opponent, making Rap Monster’s back tingle when he used his lower back as a chin prop.  “I’m going, I’m going.”

            “Lazy ,” Rap Monster snorted, pushing himself to his feet as he tried to regain his calm.  Suga was doing a damn fine job of shaking it up just by being him.  And he had the gall to simply salute Rap Monster in response.  Ugh…

            Back and forth, back and forth.  One point for Rap Monster was followed by another for Suga and they ended up sitting back to back on the ground, catching their breath again.  “I like it out here,” Suga admitted, waving broadly to everywhere.

            “Me too.”

            “I think I like it more with you on the team though,” he nodded as if to himself.

            “Why?” Rap Monster prompted, looking over his shoulder.

            “Because I can trust you,” Suga explained, hand reaching up to point at him awkwardly.  “Not like I can’t trust the other guys too but-”

            Before he could second guess himself, Rap Monster reached up to grab his hand, holding it firm as he interrupted him.  “Of course you can trust me.”

            Suga smiled over his shoulder, examining Rap Monster’s profile, just as he was doing the same.  “I know.”  He carefully adjusted his hand to loosely thread his fingers between his companion’s.  “Maybe we should just leave it a tie at this point?” he suggested coyly, laughing in the back of his throat.

            “Oh no you don’t,” Rap Monster smiled back in a challenging manner.  “We aren’t done yet.  Get up,” he urged, clambering to his feet so he could pull Suga with him.

            “Aw.  But this is hard,” he whined, leaning against Rap Monster pitifully.

            “That’s your fault,” he reminded the shorter male with a finger in his face.  “You helped make me.”

            “Did I?” he wrinkled his nose.  “What was I thinking?”

            “Now you’re just being mean,” Rap Monster pouted.

            “Come on,” Suga snorted as he pat Rap Monster’s chest and pulled away reluctantly, their fingers holding out the longest.  “Next point is winner.”

            And so they attempted to make the final point with all their efforts.  Already exhausted, they weren’t up to par as much as usual and they finally hit an impasse when Rap Monster turned into his monstrous form to trap Suga in his arms while he was holding the ball.  Unfortunately, he couldn’t remove one without the other and so had to admit there was nothing he could do short of letting him go, which just wasn’t going to happen.

            “Now you’re being a sore loser,” Suga grumbled, holding onto his prize while Rap Monster resumed his human guise.  He ended up lying on top of Rap Monster with the ball pressing down on both of them.

            “Would you just let it go,” Rap Monster grumbled, arms still wrapped around Suga.

            “No.”

            “But you’re heavy with that thing,” he whined, shaking Suga lightly.  “And I call a truce.  We can try again another day.”

            “Now who’s being lazy?” Suga teased, though he did let go of the ball, shoving it to the side so it wouldn’t land on either of them.

            “Much better,” Rap Monster sighed, tightening his embrace comfortably.

            “You know you don’t have to keep holding onto me.”

            “I know.  Do you mind?”

            “Not really,” Suga shook his head, patting the hands resting against his abdomen.

            “Good.”

            They both took several long, calming breaths until Suga whispered, “Yoongi.  That’s my name.”

            “I was supposed to earn it, remember?” Rap Monster asked dryly.

            “You did,” Suga replied, turning in place so that he partially rolled off Rap Monster but ended up still resting on his torso.  “You more than earned it today,” he smiled, resting his head against Rap Monster’s chest.

            “I guess I can accept that,” he sighed, petting soft, tousled locks.

            “You better.”

            They both laughed at that and Rap Monster his lips.  “Would you be upset if I said I think I like you?”

            Suga shook his head.  “I figured you did.”

            “Hey,” Rap Monster objected, frowning at the male on his chest.  “I didn’t at first!”

            “I like you too,” Suga admitted, turning to look at his companion with sleepy eyes.  “Probably since you saved me.”  Rap Monster scratched the side of his face, not entirely sure if they were on the same page here.  “And, if we’ve called a truce, you need a shower,” he added with a wrinkled nose.

            “Well excuse me for sweating,” he rolled his eyes, sitting up slowly when Suga shifted off enough to do so.

            Suga leaned forward and planted a quick kiss on his cheek, grinning mischievously.  “You’re excused.”

            Rap Monster could feel his ears turning red as he just looked at Suga with narrowed eyes.  “Sneaky,” he pointed a finger at him.  “Which means you should get the ball.”

            With a pout, Suga turned to see where it was.  “But it’s so f-” He turned back to face Rap Monster and was startled into silence when the other male caught his chin and stole a quick kiss on the lips instead, winking before he ran off to get the ball himself.  “Now who’s sneaky!” he ranted, though a smile played on his lips anyway.

            “This guy!” Rap Monster posed with both thumbs pointing towards himself.

            “Ugh, you’re so stupid.”  Rap Monster shrugged at the pitiful insult and snatched the ball before making his way back over to give Suga a hand up.

            “And an .  Don’t forget,” he teased, leaning tauntingly close.

            “Nope.  Can’t forget that,” Suga agreed, stealing the ball and heading towards the doorway.

            Rap Monster jogged to catch up.  “We’ll still have to have another rematch you know.”  Suga raised a brow.  “To finish this.  I will beat you,” he added pointedly, which made Suga chuckle and Rap Monster frowned when he didn’t immediately understand why.

            “Okay,” Suga agreed, starting down the stairwell.

            “Ugh!  In the match!” Rap Monster shouted after him, voice reverberating up and down the flights of stairs.

            “I know,” Suga responded over his shoulder.

            “,” his companion muttered, though there was an amused smile on his face too.

            They both paused on the steps when the bottom floor vibrated unusually though, followed by what sounded like several shouts.  “What was that?” Suga asked, hurrying ahead while Rap Monster followed behind.

            As soon as they left the stairwell, they stepped into mayhem.  “Yah!” Rap Monster yelped, yanking Suga back against the wall with him when he saw a many headed creature flailing about, sprouting from the heated pools.  Tentacles waved erratically and he could see Heechul and Youngbae both trying to subdue it while Jungsu, the monitor, distracted it overhead.

            “We’re sorry!” Sungyeol and Myungsoo continued to flail while their teammates attempted to help as best they could.

            “Do something!” Hoya shouted as he clung to one of the heads, keeping the jaws shut tight while a tentacle yanked at his foot, trying to draw him loose.

            “Come on!” Suga urged, throwing the ball at the monster and roping a head to pull it into range.

            With fear lodged in his chest, Rap Monster followed, transforming so he could beat the head with both fists, trying to knock it unconscious.  Another head swung by to clamp onto his arm and he had to smack it off while tentacles tried to find purchase.  He noticed fireballs and lightning bolts peppering it so Heechul was doing his best and Youngbae was pounding at the creature with meaty fists, though he was bleeding from several cuts already.

            He tried to keep an eye on Suga but there was so much to draw his attention and watch out for.  Rap Monster made a marvelous target with his size and he kept drawing the monster’s ire.  With another savage smack, he watched a head recoil, noticed one of them had a crystalline cord around it, and then saw Suga trying to keep his distance while being useful.  The creature reared up and came down hard, sloshing a large gush of water out of the pools and onto the surface.

            “Water!” Suga yelled, his cry turning panicked when his line snapped, or disappeared, it was hard to say which, and careened backwards as water hit his feet.

            “Yoongi!” Rap Monster roared, lurching after him and falling on his face when a tentacle held firm.  “No!” he screeched, rearing back to bite the appendage off before turning back in time to see Suga fall over the edge of the crevasse.  Gouging the floor, Rap Monster hauled himself forward and over as well, reaching for Suga desperately.

            The bottom of the crevasse curved in case someone did fall, allowing them to slide out the opening and into the moat to take reduced fall damage.  Under normal circumstances, it was a great thing.  Now…

            Suga hit the bottom first and went limp, careening through the opening in the side.  Rap Monster crashed into the bottom ungracefully and scrambled to aim after the still falling male.  If he could just catch him before he hit the water.  “Yoongi!”  He cursed the wings flaps that slowed him down, dragging him back, and the water rose up too fast.  Too fast…  “No!” he grabbed for the other male, catching him up as they hit the water together.

            Murky water engulfed them and he could feel it seeping in, trying to get to Suga.  He couldn’t paddle for the surface either or risk more water coming in, but he had to.  Clutching the one arm as tight as he could against his body, he clawed for the surface, rising up to put his belly above water so he could get Suga free of the liquid.  But when he finally looked, Suga was soaked and mostly crumbling into granules against his torso.

            “No!  Yoongi!” he flailed, swiping for him in a motion that splashed more water on his belly unintentionally.  “No!  Don’t do this!” Rap Monster shouted hoarsely, gathering as much of the sugar into his hands as he could before the rest washed away, leaving him numb.  “Yoongi?” he asked in a trembling whisper while his hands shook and the water lapped quietly against him.

(a/n: So I'm a little worried this chapter feels slightly rushed, all things considered, but I'm working with a deadline.  >.>  You're free to let me know one way or the other.  hehe  But that little camarderie scene was fun to write, thank you, the ending notwithstanding.  -_-  I'm trying to get it finished up tonight so hopefully I'll have it all posted before the 20th. One (or two) more chapter left.  I'm not sure.  I might need an epilogue thing of sorts.  All things considered, I'm doing pretty well for length.  haha  Thanks so much for reading though!)