Archive of Our Own ^beta

Jimin loved rainy days. He loved the sound of rain, always opened his windows in the morning after a night of showers to let the smell fill his little house. Sitting near the window while there was a downpour was soothing – he usually read one of the many romance novels he owned, or just sat there with his eyes closed, focusing on the sound of the raindrops hitting the window.

As Jimin walked home in the rain, he revelled in being surrounded by all the water. He was an elemental witch, after all, with his biggest affinity being water. He could manipulate the four elements, but had always felt closest to the water – when he was a young boy, he snuck out often to go sit by the river near his house, giving his parents almost a heart attack the first time it happened. After that, his parents usually joined him before dragging him to bed.

Jimin finally neared the end of the sand path he’d been walking on for the past half an hour. He usually took his broom to go into town, but he’d anticipated the rain and wanted to enjoy it more, choosing to walk instead. He was close to his house now – a five-minute walk through the woods would lead to the meadow and lake where he had built his house when he turned twenty.

It had already been five years since then, he realised with a smile. Five years since he moved out and stood on his own legs. It had been mostly good – he had slowly built up his clientele by going into town and offering his magical services everywhere. The people had been wary at first, unsure of how a witch could have good intentions. But Jimin’s sweet smile and easy jokes had broken the ice quickly – when he flew into town, the people didn’t side-eye him anymore, but instead smiled and greeted him, striking up conversations.

The trees made way for an open field and Jimin sighed, relieved to be home again. He stepped forward, ready to brew some tea to warm himself up, when a soft meow stopped him in his tracks. Confused, Jimin looked around, inspecting the trees around him. Was a cat stuck somewhere?

A second meow helped him locate the cat – it was hiding in a pile of leaves, its black tail sticking out. Jimin snorted at the sight and approached slowly, not wanting to spook the poor thing. “Hi there, kitty,” he murmured softly. “How did you end up here?”

The leaves rustled as the cat poked its head out, ears moving around in alarm.

“It’s okay,” Jimin cooed, “do you want to come inside? It’s cold out in the rain, isn’t it?”

The cat meowed, almost like it had understood Jimin, and crept towards him, its movements slow and calculated. Jimin stretched out his arm, offering his hand to the cat, who started rubbing its little head against it. He cooed again. “Follow me, kitty.”

Jimin stood up and walked towards his house. He looked back occasionally to check if the cat was still following him and smiled when he saw it running to catch up to him. They entered the house together and Jimin took off his coat and boots – then noticed the cat sitting there, waiting for him.

“You seem like a smart one,” Jimin observed with a smile. The cat stared at him, its eyes a little droopy – it probably hadn’t slept much these past few days, the poor thing. “How does a bath sound?”

Jimin entered the bathroom, which was barely big enough to fit a tub, toilet, sink, and a small shelf. He plugged the tub and let the water run, checking his shelf for plants he could use. He settled on a mix of chamomile and lavender – a combination that would hopefully relax the cat enough for it to let Jimin wash it.

A small meow was all the warning Jimin got before the cat jumped straight into the bathtub, splashing water everywhere – and mostly on Jimin. He gasped, offended: “Hey!”

The cat just blinked at him once, then turned around and started wading in the water. The action was so uncatlike that Jimin couldn’t help but laugh. “All right, let’s get you clean.”

He took a washcloth and soaked it in the water before softly cleaning the cat’s black fur. “I wonder if you’re a boy or a girl. Wait,” Jimin giggled, “meow twice if you’re a boy, blink twice if you’re a girl.”

To his surprise, the cat actually meowed twice.

“You can understand me?” Jimin wondered. “That’s odd. But, well, I can’t be too surprised, I am a witch after all. I should be used to magical things.” He laughed again. “I feel silly for talking to a cat.”

The cat stood on its – his – hind paws and put his front paws on the edge of the tub, lifting his head close towards Jimin to nose his cheek.

“You’re so cute,” Jimin cooed, petting the cat behind his ears. “I should give you a name if you’re going to stay here. How do you feel about… Lavender?”

The cat dropped back onto his four paws, splashing water over Jimin again.

“So that’s a no,” he mumbled. “Hmm…” He looked around his tiny bathroom, trying to come up with ideas. “Bubbles?”

The cat actually hissed at that. Jimin lifted his arms in apology. “Sorry, sorry. You don’t like cutesy names, got it. I’ll think a little harder,” he promised.

He drained the tub and grabbed one of his softest towels to wrap around the cat, cradling the little thing in his arms. “All clean,” he exclaimed, pressing a quick kiss on the top of the cat’s head. He meowed, long and whiney, making Jimin laugh. “Maybe I should call you Mr Grumpy Pants.”

Jimin walked towards the main room again – a mix of the living room, kitchen, and study. “How does warm milk sound?”

The cat purred in reply, so Jimin took that as a yes. He heated up milk on his stove and poured water in a mug for his tea. He left the cat on the kitchen counter, still wrapped up in the towel – he was slowly falling asleep, Jimin noticed, blinking languidly as his tail swished lazily to the left and right.

Once the milk was warm enough, Jimin added a spoonful of honey to it and put it in a small bowl. He placed it in front of the cat, who immediately surged forward to drink it. “Poor thing, you must have been hungry,” Jimin murmured, scratching the cat behind his ears before finishing making his tea. He held the mug and closed his eyes, focusing on his powers to heat it up.

The steam of the hot tea reached his nose and he smiled. Why use a kettle when using his magic was faster?

He sat down on the couch and sighed. Another long day had passed. He had spent hours going from house to house to help out the villagers – for a small fee, of course, he couldn’t afford to offer his services for free. There had been more issues today than usual – the Kim family’s water pipes had busted, meaning they had no hot water, so Jimin had spent over two hours there to heat up their water so the entire family could shower.

At least his coin purse was full enough now to last him another two weeks.

He finished drinking his tea, the camomile helping him relax his muscles. He saw the cat jumping off the kitchen counter to saunter towards him and he smiled. “Come here,” he whispered.

The cat jumped on the couch, settling in Jimin’s lap. He started kneading Jimin’s legs, but he didn’t mind – it was nice to have company for a change, even if said company just put his claws in Jimin’s leg.

“That hurts”, Jimin whined. The cat stared up at him, blinking slowly and retracting his claws. “Thanks.”

Jimin sighed and leaned his head back. “You’re a good kitty,” he praised and resumed his petting. He nearly fell asleep like that – his fingers in soft hair, a warm body draped all over him… Had the cat always been this big?

Jimin opened his eyes and screamed. There wasn’t a cat on his lap – it was a man. A gorgeous man. A gorgeous, very much naked man.

“Who are you?” Jimin demanded, pushing him off his legs and throwing a pillow at him. The man fell off the couch with a loud thump and whined – weirdly enough, the sound still reminded Jimin of a cat.

“Why did you push me?” the man pouted, sitting up straight. He crossed his legs and put the pillow on top of them – Jimin would have to wash it, but it was better than staring at some stranger’s dick.

Jimin gaped at him. “You were naked and on top of me! Of course I pushed you off!”

The man blinked at him – the motion reminded Jimin so much of the cat that it became easier to believe that the little thing he found earlier had somehow transformed into a human. The man had cat-like features and Jimin wasn’t sure if it was because he used to be a cat before – but damn those cat-like eyes and pouty lips were attractive. He tried not to stare but already knew that he was failing.

“So it’s fine when I’m a cat but not when I’m a human? Rude,” the man mumbled.

Jimin huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. “Exactly.”

The man looked sad suddenly, hanging his head and avoiding eye contact with Jimin. “Sorry. I haven’t been around other people for so long it’s– it’s hard to know what’s okay and what isn’t.”

Oh. “I’m sorry,” Jimin said softly, “I panicked because this pretty cat suddenly turned into a pretty man. I shouldn’t have pushed you off the couch.”

The man looked up at him again, an excited shimmer in his eyes. “You think I’m pretty?” he asked, his voice small.

Jimin gulped and nodded. The man’s cheeks turned rosy and Jimin looked away, embarrassed.

“I’m Yoongi.”

“Jimin.”

It was silent between them and Jimin felt awkward. He never had to deal with this before – wasn’t sure if anyone had. Was there a guidebook for people whose cats suddenly turned human?

Yoongi cleared his throat. “Can I have some clothes?”

“Oh, yes, of course,” Jimin stammered. He quickly ran to his bedroom to retrieve underwear, sweatpants and a hoodie. “Here you go. I’ll just– I’ll turn around.”

He turned around and closed his eyes, waiting. He heard the rustling of clothes as Yoongi stood up and got dressed. “You can look now.”

Jimin turned to face Yoongi. Seeing him wearing Jimin’s clothes made him feel some type of way but he did his best to suppress it – there were more important things to discuss than how cute Yoongi looked in his oversized clothes.

“So, you used to be a cat,” Jimin began. He sat down on the couch and patted the space next to him. “Explain.”

Yoongi nodded and sat down. “The short story is that my ex didn’t like me so much after our break-up and cursed me. I become a cat at noon and a human at midnight, every day without fail.”

Jimin hummed. “There are tons of ways to break a curse. Why didn’t you look for a witch sooner?”

Yoongi scrunched his nose cutely. “My ex told all his friends not to help me and I don’t know any other witches who would be willing to help.”

“I can help?” Jimin offered, but it came out sounding more like a question. “Curses aren’t my speciality, but I have a couple of books on them. I’m sure one of the spells in there can help.”

“You’d help me?” Yoongi’s eyes widened, hopeful. “You won’t get in trouble or something, right?”

“Why would I? I don’t know your ex, so it’s not like they told me not to help you.” Jimin shrugged.

Yoongi moved closer and took Jimin’s hands in his. “Thank you so much,” he said, his voice serious. “I’ll do whatever I can to repay you! I’m a carpenter, I can help repair things. Or I can help in your garden.” Jimin raised his eyebrows at that and Yoongi blushed. “My ex had a garden. Told me every witch has one. So.”

“Okay, sure,” Jimin said. “You can help me, and I’ll help you. Fair exchange.”

Yoongi nodded eagerly. “Thank you so much,” he said again.

Jimin smiled. “It’s fine, no worries. Now get some rest, you can sleep on the couch. Here,” Jimin stood up and took the blankets from the blanket box he kept next to the couch, “you can use these.”

“Thank you,” Yoongi said.

Jimin giggled. “You thanked me three times in the past five minutes. It’s okay, Yoongi. I love helping people, it’s literally what I do for a living.”

Yoongi hummed, looking Jimin up and down. Jimin tried not to blush. “It suits you. Helping people.”

The witch laughed awkwardly and crossed his arms. “Thanks, I guess. Good night then.”

“Good night, Jimin.”

Jimin walked into his bedroom and closed the door behind him. He leaned against it and sighed. What a day.

◊◊◊

The next morning, Jimin woke up half an hour before sunrise. He felt exhausted – he had stayed up until 2 am thinking of possible cures for Yoongi’s curse, so he’d only gotten a handful hours of sleep.

He got dressed quietly, not wanting to wake Yoongi yet. It took him longer than usual to reach the front door – he had to sidestep multiple creaking wooden boards and nearly bumped into the kitchen counter due to the lack of light.

When Jimin finally stepped outside, he breathed in deeply to enjoy the morning air. He’d have to hurry if he wanted to finish his spell before sunrise.

With that thought in mind, he walked to his garden – his pride and joy. He plucked a lemon, some mint, sage, and lavender, humming to himself softly. When he entered the house again, Yoongi stirred on the couch and made a whiney noise of protest. Jimin bit his lip to not start laughing.

He cut the lemon in half and sprinkled salt on top of it, then chopped up the mint and lavender. Yoongi made the same whiney noise but sat up this time. His hair was a mess, sticking in all directions, and he yawned – the sight wasn’t good for Jimin’s heart. He didn’t know why everything Yoongi did made him want to coo, but Jimin blamed it on having seen him in his cat form first.

“Good morning, sleepyhead,” Jimin greeted, filling a bowl with water and putting the chopped up lavender and mint in it.

Yoongi turned his head, squinting in Jimin’s direction. “Morning,” he slurred. He rubbed his eyes sleepily. “What’re you doing? The sun isn’t even up yet.”

“But it will be in ten minutes,” Jimin retorted. “I’m preparing the first spell.”

Yoongi’s eyes widened, all the sleepiness in him gone now. “Oh, that’s good. Can I help with something?”

“You can put out some white candles. They’re in the drawer next to the bookshelf.”

Yoongi nodded and did as Jimin asked. The witch finished his own preparations: he put the bowl on the coffee table and pointed for Yoongi to put the candles next to it. He held up the sage in one hand and one half of the lemon in the other.

“So what now?” Yoongi asked, eager.

“You just stand still,” Jimin ordered. He focused on his magic to light up the sage and candles, then made the water in the bowl run softly like a stream. Yoongi stared wide-eyed at all the magical things happening at once, but Jimin tried to ignore him – distractions during spellwork were hardly good. He slowly moved his arms, spreading the smoke from the sage all around Yoongi. He made circular movements above Yoongi’s head with the lemon, softly chanting as he did so. Yoongi kept eye contact with him the entire time.

Once the sunset started, Jimin was finished. He released his grip on the water, letting it return to its still state, and put down the sage. “Now we bury the lemon,” he explained, “and we wait until tomorrow to see if it worked.”

“Okay,” Yoongi breathed out. He looked a little overwhelmed as he looked around the room and bit his nails. Jimin softly took Yoongi’s hand to make him stop.

“It’s going to be fine,” he reassured. “If this doesn’t work, we’ll try something else, okay?”

Yoongi nodded.  They walked outside to bury the lemon in the garden. Jimin didn’t notice they were still holding hands until he let go to take the trowel off the ground. He squatted down, ignoring his red cheeks, and buried the lemon quickly.

“There, all done. We’ll have to see if you still turn into a cat tomorrow at noon, because it takes some time for the spell to work.”

“Okay. So, what do we do in the meantime?”

“You can join me for some errands? We’ll leave in the afternoon so you don’t turn into a cat suddenly,” Jimin joked, winking. Yoongi grinned at him, a sweet gummy smile, and Jimin felt his heart skip a beat. That can’t be good.

“Is there anything that needs fixing? So I can keep busy until noon.”

Jimin nodded. “Follow me.”

They went back indoors, Jimin shivering as the cold from the early morning made way for the warmth of his home. “One of the shelves in the kitchen cupboard seems a bit wobbly and I’m scared it’s going to break soon. So if you could replace it that’d be great.”

Yoongi nodded. “I’ll need new wood though. Do you happen to have any tools?”

“I don’t…” Jimin drifted off, thinking. He snapped his fingers. “Mr Choi from the woodshop owes me a favour. You can go to him and tell him I sent you, then get all the materials you need.”

“Okay, that sounds good. Do you have measurement tape?”

“That I do, here.” Jimin rummaged through one of the kitchen drawers until he found the tape and handed it over to Yoongi, who started measuring the cupboard. “We can go to Mr Choi after eating breakfast.”

“Sounds good.”

◊◊◊

The lemon spell didn’t work. Neither did the daily cleansings, the rosewater treatment, or the pine and cedar spell. Jimin was running out of ideas, but Yoongi didn’t seem to be in a hurry – he was busy renovating Jimin’s entire house. In the two weeks that he had been staying at Jimin’s place, he built brand-new cupboards, a bigger bed, and a new desk. Jimin felt guilty for not paying him, but Yoongi reminded him all the effort Jimin put in trying to reverse Yoongi’s curse was payment enough.

After two weeks went by without any luck, Jimin decided to go to the higher-ups for help – he obviously couldn’t do this on his own, he realised as he stared at Yoongi in his cat form.

“Sorry,” he sighed. “I thought this one would work…”

Yoongi climbed on top of the couch to sit in Jimin’s lap. He butted his head against Jimin’s stomach and Jimin gave in, scratching the cat behind his ears. It was weird – human Yoongi rarely initiated contact, staying a safe distance away from Jimin, but cat Yoongi was the most affectionate thing Jimin had ever seen. He followed Jimin around the house all day, accompanied him on his errands, even slept in his bed until he turned human again. Jimin had caught multiple glimpses of a naked Yoongi scurrying out of the bedroom to go change and sleep on the couch. He’d offer him to sleep in his bed, but also felt like that might be too much – Yoongi was probably only affectionate towards him because his cat form demanded it. Human Yoongi might not appreciate a sleepy, clingy Jimin.

“I know someone,” Jimin began. Yoongi looked up at him, ears flicking around in curiosity. “A warlock named Namjoon. We went to school together, you know. He’ll help me, we’re friends.” Jimin smiled at Yoongi and picked him up, moving him close to his face. “We’ll find a cure.”

Yoongi meowed and licked Jimin’s nose as if thanking him. Jimin laughed. “You’re like a dog!”

If Jimin didn’t know the cat he was holding was Yoongi, he’d be more spooked about the fact that a cat just rolled his eyes at him.

The witch yawned. “Let’s have a nap,” he suggested, before lying down fully on the couch. Yoongi settled on Jimin’s stomach, forming a little black circle. He meowed softly. “Sweet dreams to you too,” Jimin murmured.

◊◊◊

They went to Namjoon’s place that evening. It was past sunset, probably nearing ten pm. He wanted to give Yoongi a chance to talk to Namjoon personally – as a human – but he also didn’t want to wait until the next morning to ask the warlock for advice.

Jimin took out his broom and waited outside for Yoongi. The cat came running out of the trees, having to do his “business” before leaving.

“You ready?”

Yoongi meowed. Jimin was surprised by how anxious the meow sounded. “Don’t worry, my broom is perfectly safe,” the witch reassured him. “Come on.”

Jimin put the broom between his legs and patted it, silently ordering Yoongi to jump on top. He nearly fell to the ground when Yoongi jumped directly on his shoulder. “Hey! Warn me next time!”

Yoongi made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a snort.

“Don’t get sarcastic with me, mister,” Jimin reprimanded him. “Hold on tight, I’m taking off.”

Yoongi’s claws dug into Jimin’s shoulder as he used his wind magic to fly. He soared through the sky, the cold night air refreshing – he hadn’t used his broom since Yoongi arrived and he had missed it.

The trees slowly changed into the familiar sand path, then into the houses from the village Jimin regularly visited. They travelled for about half an hour before the familiar woods of Namjoon’s territory came into view. “We’re here!” Jimin shouted, hoping Yoongi could hear his voice over the wind.

He descended slowly, decreasing his speed as he looked for Namjoon’s house. The warlock had renovated an old, abandoned castle. It wasn’t the biggest castle, but still spacious enough to fit all of Namjoon’s books and plants in every single room. It fitted Namjoon’s personality well.

The castle finally came into view and Jimin landed. Once he planted his feet on the ground, Yoongi jumped off his shoulder and rolled around on the ground, meowing loudly.

“Drama queen,” Jimin huffed.

The front door opened and Namjoon came rushing out, his black robes billowing around him. Where Jimin liked to dress more like the humans from the village, Namjoon embraced tradition – he was always dressed in the old-fashioned, traditional warlock gowns. “Minnie!”

“Hi, Joonie,” Jimin greeted, a big smile on his face. He hugged Namjoon in greeting, but let go when he felt someone paw at his legs. He picked Yoongi up – it wasn’t like him to interrupt Jimin when he was talking to someone. He never whined like this when Jimin was in conversation with one of his regulars.

“Did you finally get a familiar?” Namjoon asked. He was looking at Yoongi and stretched out his hand to pet him, but Yoongi hissed at him. The warlock’s eyes widened and he quickly pulled back his arm. “Feisty.”

“I don’t know why he’s acting like this,” Jimin apologised. He glared at Yoongi. “That’s not how you treat my friends, Yoongi!”

“He can understand you?” Namjoon wondered, looking between Jimin and Yoongi with interest.

“That’s why I’m here, actually,” Jimin admitted, “Yoongi is not a cat, he’s human. His ex cursed him and I’ve tried all the spells I know, but nothing seems to work.”

Namjoon hummed in understanding. He gestured towards the front door: “Let’s go inside where it’s warmer. I think I have some book on animal curses.”

Jimin bowed gratefully and followed him inside. They walked through the entrance hall and up the staircase, towards one of the many libraries. When they entered it, the fireplace was on, warming up the entire room. The chaise near it was occupied by a man Jimin had never met before.

“Jin,” Namjoon said. His voice sounded fond – were they together?

The man – Jin? – looked up from the book he was reading. He smiled when he noticed Jimin. “Oh, we have company?” He stood up gracefully to offer Jimin his hand. Jimin noticed he was dressed similarly to Namjoon, but his robes were a dark red. “Hi, I’m Seokjin. I’m studying under Namjoon,” he explained.

Jimin side-eyed Namjoon, who was turning redder by the second. “Nice to meet you, Seokjin. I’m Jimin and this is Yoongi.” He held up Yoongi as a way of introducing him. Seokjin cooed at him and Jimin tried to ignore the weird pang of jealousy he felt. Yoongi seemed to sense it though – he hid his face in Jimin’s neck, not acknowledging Seokjin in the slightest.

“Yoongi is human,” Namjoon explained. “Jimin needs our help breaking his curse.”

“Say no more,” Seokjin said, confidently striding towards one of the bookshelves and browsing it.

“Please, sit,” Namjoon offered. “Do you want anything to drink? Tea, coffee?”

“Tea would be great.” Jimin sat down in the chaise next to the one Seokjin previously sat in. Yoongi got comfortable on Jimin’s stomach, softly kneading his sweater. “Could you maybe heat up some milk for Yoongi?”

Namjoon smiled, dimples appearing. “Of course. Be right back.”

As Namjoon left the room, Seokjin walked towards Jimin again. He was holding a stack of books. “These are all on animal curses,” he said proudly. “Namjoon’s library is truly amazing.”

“It is,” Jimin agreed, smiling. “Thank you for helping, Seokjin. I know it’s late.”

Seokjin made a dismissive gesture with his hands. “Nonsense. Namjoon’s friends are my friends and I’d love to help.”

Namjoon returned then, holding a mug of steaming tea in one hand and a small bowl of milk in the other. He handed them to Jimin, who put the bowl on the floor. Yoongi jumped off his stomach to drink it, ears flicking around in content.

“Have you found anything, Jin?” Seokjin held up the books. Namjoon smiled. “Well done.”

Namjoon was too busy taking one of the books from Seokjin and browsing it to notice the way Seokjin's cheeks turned red, but Jimin sure did. He raised his eyebrows at the man, who zipped his lips at Jimin. The witch giggled and Namjoon looked up. “What’s funny?”

“Nothing,” Jimin and Seokjin said at the same time, making both of them laugh. Namjoon smiled and sighed, shaking his head softly before focusing on the book again.

Seokjin and Jimin each took a book too and started browsing it, looking for curses similar to Yoongi’s and their cures. Jimin didn’t notice the time, but it must have turned midnight, because suddenly the little black cat lying at Jimin’s feet was a naked Yoongi. Namjoon gasped and Seokjin screamed.

“I’m sorry,” Yoongi apologised, using his hands to cover up his important parts.

“Oh god, I forgot,” Jimin squeaked, “I didn’t bring any clothes, I’m so sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Namjoon laughed. Seokjin was covering his eyes with his hands but peeked through his fingers so it wasn’t very effective. “I’ll go get some clothes.”

Namjoon left the library to fetch some clothes. Jimin handed Yoongi the pillow from the chaise to cover himself with until Namjoon returned.

“Thanks,” he murmured. “I lost track of time or I would have moved somewhere else before changing.”

“It’s okay,” Jimin said softly. He carded his fingers through Yoongi’s hair to help him calm down, similar to how he petted Yoongi when he was in his cat form. To Jimin’s surprise, Yoongi didn’t shy away from the touch – instead, he leaned into it, closing his eyes. If he were still a cat, he’d be purring for sure.

“Here.” Namjoon walked into the library again, holding a stack of clothes. “You’re probably not used to wearing robes, but they’re comfortable, I promise.”

Yoongi took them. “Thank you so much, Namjoon.”

“No problem.” Namjoon turned around and covered his eyes. “Go ahead.”

Seokjin mimicked him, giving Yoongi privacy. Jimin was about to do the same when Yoongi stood up and started getting dressed. Jimin caught glimpses of soft, pale skin before he remembered to close his eyes.

“I’m ready,” Yoongi said.

“Let’s continue then,” Namjoon suggested, turning around again and clasping his hands together.

They stayed up late reading all the books Seokjin had found, trying to find a curse similar to Yoongi’s. Yoongi couldn’t help much, so he stayed busy stoking the fire and bringing everyone tea or coffee after Namjoon showed him where the kitchen was.

When it was nearing three am, Namjoon gasped: “Of course!”

Jimin looked up from the page he was reading. Yoongi stirred next to him – he had fallen asleep about half an hour ago, but woke up now that Namjoon had broken the silence. Jimin missed the feeling of Yoongi’s head leaning against his shoulder.

“Of course what?” Yoongi asked curiously. He looked sleepy – he was squinting his eyes, his mouth pouty and slightly open.

“Fairies!” When no one said anything, Namjoon continued: “Fairy dust breaks the hardest of curses. You need to go into the forest and ask a fairy for help.”

“Can we go tomorrow? I’m tired,” Yoongi whined. He closed his eyes and snuggled into Jimin’s shoulder.

Jimin lifted his hand to pet Yoongi’s hair. “We can, don’t worry.”

“It’s late. You can sleep here tonight, if you want,” Namjoon offered.

Jimin smiled, relieved. He didn’t know if his broom could carry the weight of two grown men and even if it could, he was afraid Yoongi would fall asleep and lose his grip, falling off. “That’d be nice, thanks.”

“Follow me.”

Yoongi and Jimin wished Seokjin goodnight before following Namjoon. The hallways were much colder than the library and Jimin shivered. He couldn’t wait to lie down in bed, warm and comfortable. Yoongi walked close to him, their arms brushing.

“This is the only guest room I have,” Namjoon said, sounding apologetic. “I turned most rooms into libraries…”

“That’s okay, Joonie,” Jimin assured. He entered the room, lighting the fireplace with a flick of his wrist. “Thanks for letting us stay.”

“It’s no problem. Good night, Minnie, Yoongi.”

“Good night.”

Namjoon closed the door behind him and Jimin turned to take in the room. It was big enough for a fireplace, a queen-sized bed, and a closet.

Wait.

“There’s only one bed,” Jimin murmured.

Yoongi stared at the bed with sleepy eyes. “I could sleep on the floor near the fire if you’re uncomfortable,” he offered reluctantly.

“No, no, it’s fine,” Jimin said. “It’s a big bed, we can share.”

“If you’re sure,” Yoongi yawned. He dragged his feet towards the bed and let himself fall on top of it, sighing in relief. Jimin smiled and walked over to put the covers over Yoongi.

“Good night,” the witch whispered and he pressed a kiss on top of Yoongi’s head without thinking. He looked into the closet and found sleeping robes – leave it to Namjoon to leave clothes for guests. Quietly, as to not disturb Yoongi in his sleep, Jimin changed, then crawled into bed.

He didn’t know how long he laid there, near the edge of the bed to give Yoongi as much space as physically possible without falling off the bed, but at one point during the night he felt Yoongi shuffle closer. Jimin wasn’t sure if he was asleep or not, or maybe Yoongi thought Jimin was already fast asleep – either way, Jimin kept quiet as he felt arms snake around his waist, pulling him closer.

Yoongi was warm – warmer than the thick sheets on top of them, warmer than the dying embers in the fireplace – and Jimin breathed out, letting his muscles relax. His back was pressed against Yoongi’s chest, and he could feel soft puffs of warm air against his neck, ticklish.

He would have enjoyed it for longer if he hadn’t fallen asleep within minutes.

◊◊◊

The next morning, Jimin woke up surrounded by warmth. Disoriented, he tried to move and found that he couldn’t – the weight on top of him was too heavy. It was then that everything came back to him: the single bed, Yoongi holding him close, falling asleep surrounded by Yoongi’s body heat. Jimin felt the blush rise to his cheeks.

He opened his eyes to see what was blocking his movements and discovered that it was none other than Yoongi – somehow, during the middle of the night, they had shifted until Jimin was lying on his stomach, Yoongi’s body draped all over him. He could feel Yoongi drool a little and he should probably be grossed out, but he only felt endearment.

Jimin had two options: he could forcefully push Yoongi off him or wait until Yoongi woke up and climbed off Jimin himself. The second option seemed more embarrassing – he’d rather have Yoongi stay ignorant about their sleep shenanigans. So, with a big grunt Jimin pushed himself up until Yoongi rolled off him.

Panting, Jimin moved until he was sitting up. He glanced at Yoongi, who was lying on his back now, face scrunched up in discontent. “Wake up, Yoongi,” Jimin muttered, carefully shaking Yoongi’s shoulder.

“’s cold,” Yoongi grunted.

Jimin laughed. “You can bring the blanket with you to breakfast.”

Yoongi nodded, mollified. Jimin got up and got dressed quickly, taking advantage of Yoongi’s sleepiness to make sure he wasn’t peeking at him. When he was dressed, he took Yoongi’s hands and helped him stand up. Yoongi was about to complain again – his pout was a tell-tale sign Jimin had come to recognise over the past few weeks – so the witch quickly took the blanket from the bed and draped it over Yoongi’s shoulders like a cape.

Yoongi smiled at him, content. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome. Now let’s get some food into you.”

They left the guest room together and followed the scent of bacon. Namjoon was in the kitchen making breakfast while Seokjin sat by the dinner table, reading.

“Right on time,” Namjoon said cheerfully. Jimin smiled.

They ate breakfast together while talking about today’s mission. Namjoon told them where they were most likely to find fairies and how to approach them. Jimin soaked up all the information, wanting to be as prepared as possible. Yoongi looked sleepy as he nibbled on his toast and Jimin couldn’t resist petting his head softly.

They waited until noon to leave. It would be faster to go by broom and Yoongi refused to sit on the broom in his human form. He thanked Namjoon and Seokjin for their hospitality right before the change happened – Namjoon’s cloak was lying crumpled on the floor and Yoongi emerged from it, meowing loudly. He walked towards Jimin and curled his tail over the witch’s leg.

Jimin cooed and picked Yoongi up. “We’ll take our leave now.”

“Take care, Minnie,” Namjoon said.

“I will.”

Yoongi crawled out of Jimin’s arms to go sit on his shoulder as Jimin took his broom. He took off and immediately felt Yoongi’s claws digging into his skin – one ride on the broom apparently wasn’t enough to get rid of Yoongi’s fear.

It didn’t take them long to arrive at the lake Namjoon had mentioned. It was surrounded by trees and wildflowers, almost impossible to see if you weren’t looking down on it from the sky. Jimin landed carefully – he didn’t want to trample the flowers and possibly offend the fairies.

 Yoongi jumped off his shoulder and Jimin quickly warned him not to roll around in the flowers. Yoongi meowed, almost sounding offended, and rubbed Jimin’s legs impatiently. “Yeah, yeah, we’ll go look for them.”

Jimin observed his surroundings. There were lily pads in the water, and bulrushes and pickerel weeds near the shore. Jimin knew fairies liked to hide in those, so he slowly approached the water and squatted down on his heels. He looked closely, trying to discern small movements, until a flash of blue caught his attention.

“Hello there,” he whispered. He didn’t want to scare any possible fairies away.

Yoongi moved closer to the water, his movements slow. Before Jimin could warn him, a fairy rushed forward from the weeds, clamping onto Yoongi’s nose. Yoongi backed away, bewildered, and shook his head left and right. The fairy’s grip was tight, though, and Jimin could hear airy giggles.

“Yoongi, calm down,” Jimin chuckled. He scratched Yoongi’s back, trying to soothe him. Yoongi’s panic subsided visibly – he stopped his wild movements and turned his face towards Jimin, as if pleading get that thing off my face.

The witch giggled and moved his hand closer, palms up. “You can sit on here, little one. I don’t think Yoongi appreciates you holding onto him.”

The fairy flew away from Yoongi’s face and landed on Jimin’s hand. It was bigger than Jimin would have expected, roughly the size of his hand, and dressed fully in blue – blue wings, blue pointy hat, a blue dress made from lily leaves. Blue hair peeked from under its hat, falling into its wide eyes.

“You are so pretty!”

Jimin blushed at the compliment. “Thank you, you are too. I’m Jimin, what’s your name?”

“I’m Taehyung but everyone calls me Taetae!” the fairy said, sounding excited.

“Nice to meet you, Taetae. Are you by yourself?”

“No, my friends are hiding in the water.” Taehyung leaned forward and beckoned Jimin closer, as if sharing a secret. “They’re scared of humans.”

“Good thing I’m not an ordinary human,” Jimin winked. “I’m a witch.”

Before Taehyung could reply, a flash of bright red flew past and landed right on Jimin’s chest. Little hands clasped onto his sweater tightly. “A witch?”

“Koo!”

Jimin looked down at the fairy. This one was wearing the same outfit as Taehyung, except all of it was red – the wings, the dress, even the hair. “Hi there. Koo?”

“Short for Jungkook,” the fairy whispered. “Are you really a witch?”

“I sure am.”

“You can do magic?”

Jimin chose not to reply and instead let small bubbles of water rise from the lake and drift towards where they were sitting. Jungkook gasped while Taehyung clapped and cheered.

“Look, it’s Hobi!”

The fairies started giggling loudly as one of the bubbles came closer. Jimin had accidentally dragged one of the fairies out of the water and trapped it in a bubble. “Oh no, I’m so sorry!”

He held his hand under the bubble and popped it open. The fairy fell straight into his hand, pouty and with crossed arms. This one was dressed fully in orange – Jimin sensed all the fairies liked to dress according to their hair colour.

“What if I had fallen?” the orange fairy whined.

“But you didn’t,” Jimin retorted, “I caught you.”

The fairy huffed. Jungkook let go of Jimin’s sweater to fly towards his friend. “It’s okay, Hobi! Jimin is kind and pretty. And he’s a witch.” He whispered the last part. Jimin bit his lip to keep from laughing.

“Hobi, meet Jimin. Jimin this is Hoseok, or Hobi as we call him.”

Yoongi seemed to have had enough of Jimin not giving him attention, because he meowed loudly and stood on his hind paws, putting his front paws against Jimin’s chest.

“I would pet you, but my hands are full.”

Another annoyed meow. Jimin laughed and moved his two hands together. “Taetae, can you get on my other hand?”

“Sure!”

With his free hand, Jimin scratched behind Yoongi’s ear, earning loud purrs. “Believe it or not, but Yoongi is human.”

“Yoongi?” Hoseok asked.

Jimin pointed at Yoongi.

“The kitty!” Jungkook gasped. “Did you change him?”

“I didn’t, but his ex did,” Jimin explained. “And I heard fairy dust helps with the strongest of curses.”

All three fairies puffed their chests out at that, proud to have such a good reputation.

“So you want our help?” Hoseok asked. Jimin nodded. “We’ll help in exchange for a secret.”

“A secret?”

Hoseok nodded. “We don’t go around giving fairy dust left and right. Fair is fair: you get fairy dust, we get a secret.”

Jimin mulled it over. He didn’t have any deep, dark secrets, and he doubted the fairies would be content with a story of one of his drunken nights out that ended in him sneaking out of his room to crash at Namjoon’s.

Yoongi lifted his paws from Jimin’s chest and sat down. He meowed, but this time it was aimed towards the fairies.

“You have a secret?” Taehyung asked, clasping his hands together. He jumped off Jimin’s hand to fly in front of Yoongi. “Do tell! It counts,” he reassured Jimin.

Jimin was curious what kind of secret Yoongi had. If only he could understand meowing.

Jungkook and Hoseok flew towards Yoongi too and Jimin dropped his hands on his thighs. Yoongi meowed twice and all the fairies gasped, glancing between Yoongi and Jimin with wide eyes and even wider smiles.

“What? What is it?” Jimin asked nervously.

“Nothing!” the three fairies replied in harmony, before giggling. Yoongi glanced at him, then looked away again.

“That was a juicy secret,” Hoseok smiled, “We’ll give you the fairy dust. Come.” He flew away from the lake and closer to the meadow surrounding them. Jimin followed, Yoongi trailing close behind.

Jungkook and Taehyung joined Hoseok. They held hands and formed a circle.

“Come stand under us, Yoongi,” Jungkook said. Yoongi obediently did so. The fairies started flying in circles, fast, and sprinkled fairy dust on top of the cat. Yoongi closed his eyes as bright lights surrounded him, red and blue and orange.

Slowly, Yoongi’s transformation happened. His whiskers retracted, his paws turned into limbs, and in a matter of seconds, human Yoongi was standing in front of him. Seeing him naked didn’t fluster Jimin this time, only brought back a sense of déjà-vu – it reminded him of the first time Yoongi changed in front of him.

Yoongi was staring at his hands in awe. He looked up at Jimin and laughed, amazed. The look of awe didn’t leave his eyes as he rushed forward and engulfed the witch in a hug. “You did it!”

“I mean, the fairies did it,” Jimin laughed. He felt a little embarrassed now that a fully naked Yoongi was holding him so close, but he didn’t want to pull away.

“You did it,” Yoongi repeated his previous statement. He pulled back a little, but not too far – just far enough to raise his arms and cup Jimin’s cheeks. “Thank you,” he whispered.

They stared at each other, keeping eye contact. Yoongi’s gaze dropped to Jimin’s lips a couple of times. Jimin licked them nervously. Did Yoongi…?

Yoongi moved closer then, glancing from Jimin’s lips to his eyes and back. “Can I…” he whispered.

Jimin inhaled sharply and nodded.

Yoongi’s lips were on his then, and like Yoongi himself they were warm and comfortable, familiar somehow. Jimin kissed him back, winding his hands around Yoongi’s neck to pull him even closer, nakedness be damned.

They were interrupted by three giggling fairies. Jimin stopped their kiss to glance behind Yoongi – they were nudging each other with big grins. “What’s so funny?”

“Yoongi-” Taehyung said in between giggles, “he- his secret-”

Yoongi turned around in a flash. “Don’t you dare.”

“He said-”

“No!”

“He loves you!” Hoseok blurted out. His friends giggled and whined, loud Hobis and I wanted to tell hims.

Yoongi froze. Jimin grabbed his arm to turn him around and was faced with an embarrassed Yoongi – his face was bright red, eyes downcast. “You love me?”

Yoongi glanced up before quickly looking down again. He nodded curtly.

Jimin lifted Yoongi’s head up with his finger, forcing Yoongi to maintain eye contact with him. “I love you too,” whispered before pressing a kiss on Yoongi’s lips.

“You do?”

“I do,” Jimin confirmed. “And because I love you, you’ll be happy to hear I brought Namjoon’s cloak with me so you won’t have to walk through the forest naked and possibly flash someone.”

Yoongi snorted, then laughed, his squeaky giggles music to Jimin’s ears. Jimin wanted to hear the sound for the rest of his life.

It seemed like a weight had fallen of Yoongi’s shoulders now that his curse was broken – before, he hadn’t been sad exactly, but he didn’t seem happy either. Now, he was laughing freely, showing off the most beautiful smile Jimin had ever seen. It made him want to kiss Yoongi senseless.

◊◊◊

“You’re sure about this, right?”

“A hundred per cent,” Jimin confirmed. He moved his head left and right, trying to catch a glimpse from Yoongi through the trees. “I wouldn’t have asked him if I wasn’t.”

Namjoon chuckled. “That’s true I guess. Still, marrying is a big commitment.”

“He’s worth it.” Jimin’s voice was serious. Namjoon smiled.

Jimin readjusted the flower crown on top of his head one more time – Yoongi had a matching one, Jimin knew, and he couldn’t wait to finally see him wear it.

“It’s time,” Namjoon announced. “Good luck!” He hugged Jimin tightly before taking off, walking towards the meadow. The same meadow where Jimin had broken Yoongi’s curse. The same meadow where they kissed for the first time, where they confessed their love for each other. It had been months since then – blissful months, filled with late-night talks, cuddling on the couch, and kissing, so much kissing. Jimin smiled. He adored Yoongi.

At Namjoon’s cue, Jimin stepped out of the forest and into the clearing. He looked to his right and finally – Yoongi, his Yoongi. He looked more beautiful with the flower crown than Jimin could have imagined. When they made eye contact, Yoongi gave him a radiant smile and Jimin had to choke back tears.

They walked through the meadow in tandem, their steps matching. Namjoon and Seokjin stood before them as their witnesses, waiting next to the flower arch they had made together as a gift for Jimin and Yoongi’s wedding.

Hoseok, Taehyung and Jungkook were loudly cheering. They were all dressed in a soft shade of pink, matching the flowers in his and Yoongi’s flower crowns. Jimin smiled when he noticed this.

They reached the flower arch and turned to face each other. Yoongi reached out first and grabbed Jimin’s hands tightly – they were a little clammy, but Jimin didn’t mind. He was sure his own felt clammy too.

The fairies flew over to tie their hands together with a thin, white cloth. They rushed off then, whisper-yelling go on then and don’t mind us.

“Jimin,” Yoongi began. “You met me at one of the lowest points in my life – alone, soaking wet, and cursed, literally,” he snorted. “But you stayed by my side and helped me regain my sense of self again. I felt lost before, but you stood by me as I stumbled and tried to find myself. You saved me from my curse, and some might call you a saviour for that, but I just call you Jimin.”

Jimin’s throat constricted as he tried to hold back tears. He sniffled once and saw the way Yoongi’s smile softened.

“I fell for you hard and fast,” Yoongi continued, “and it’s the best thing that has ever happened to me. I hope to spend the rest of my life with you, by your side. I promise to build you a home, to fix what’s broken, and to provide what you need.”

Just when Jimin thought Yoongi was finished, he added in a whisper: “I love you.”

It was hard to form sentences when Yoongi had just said all that. Jimin blinked, trying to make the tears stay back. He had prepared a whole speech for this moment, but the words failed him and he was speechless.

In the end, he simply whispered: “You know.”

And Yoongi smiled at him, pure adoration in his eyes. “I know.”