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When Yoo Joonghuyk wakes up, there’s a ferret sitting on his chest.
He blinks the black spots out of his vision, noting the lack of noise or movement around him, and concludes that the Scenario is over. He looks down at his chest again, and the animal is still there. Now, it has noticed his consciousness and perks up, staring back at him with strangely intelligent eyes. Joonghyuk immediately tenses, sitting up quickly to dislodge the animal from his body. He has seen too many weird things to discount the possibility of this ferret being some kind of strange set-up from the Star Stream.
His decision is vindicated when the little white thing glares at him vindictively from the ground, scurrying around his feet while chittering in offense. When he still gives it no response, the thing comes closer and fruitlessly bites at his combat boots, its little fangs leaving tiny indents in the thick leather. He watches it warily for a moment before deeming it to be of no threat. Looking around, he surveys the sword slashes and claw marks etched deep into the ground, the broken stones of a temple, and the altar that has been cut in half. Frowning, he tries to recall why he has been lying on the ground in the first place.
Of course, it all ties back to that annoying rat.
He has spotted Kim Dokja slinking away from the rest of the party with his face glued to that blank phone of his: a sure sign of trouble. Obviously, he has followed after, only to get caught in an insane Hidden Scenario featuring talking animals that want to eat their livers of all things. Kim Dokja didn't look happy when he found out he had been followed, but Yoo Joonghyuk didn’t care. They ended up teaming up against the Scenario and cleared it, as far as he could tell. There is no message announcing he has failed, at least. So where the hell is Kim Dokja?
The ferret at his feet lets out a loud string of furious noise, standing on its hind legs and clawing at his pants, stopping occasionally only to glare at him with bright beady eyes, its chittering sound strangely like insults.
Then, while maintaining absolute eye-contact with him, the furry little thing reaches up with its paws, and, with a firm tug, undo his shoe laces.
For a moment, man and animal stand as still as some bizarre sculptures, staring at each other. Then, as fast as lightning, Yoo Joonghyuk bends down and clasps the cheeky thing in on scarred hand, locking its front paws against its long body, and lifts it up until they are eye-leveled. The ferret, which has immediately begun wriggling and kicking its little feet when it was airborned, stops its struggling and looks wide-eyed at Yoo Joonghyuk. It’s a very familiar expression.
“… Kim Dokja?”
Yoo Joonghyuk feels a headache coming on when the white ferret nods.
Right on cue, a brand new system message window pops up in front of him.
[Hidden Scenario: Animal Companion.
Category: Hidden
Difficulty: A
Time: 24 hours
Rewards: Your companion will return to his original form; 15,000 coins.
Penalty for Failure: Your companion will be stuck the way he is now.]
The ferret, Kim Dokja probably receives something similar, too. The little thing’s dark eyes scan the air, and it somehow manages to convey an expression of disbelief with that face.
“What?” Yoo Joonghyuk shakes him a little, feeling a bit vindictive, “Didn’t you foresee this?”
Held tightly in his grip with arms trapped next to his body, Kim Dokja makes ferret noises of protest while resumes struggling, curling his elongated body to try and scratch Joonghyuk’s hand with his little leg. If Joonghyuk wasn’t feeling so done with everything right now, he might have thought that this is kind of cute.
Unfortunately for Kim Dokja, Joonghyuk is not feeling very cherishable at the moment, so no amount of puppy-dog eyes can lessen the iron grip he has around his body.
“How did you even get like this?” he demands.
The ferret chitters back nonsensically.
Joonhyuk pinches the bridge of nose in exasperation, forcing out a calming breath.
“Nevermind. Do you know how to fix this?”
The silence that follows is very telling.
Joonghyuk glares at the ferret that is suddenly quite keen on not looking at him. He is suddenly hit with the absurd realization of the fact that somewhere along the way, he has gotten to know this annoying man so well that he can read his expression even when he has the face of a ferret.
“Don’t fool around, Kim Dokja.” He gives the ferret another good shake, “We only have 24 hours or you will be stuck like this.” He glares at him, “And do not tell me that you are fine with this.”
When the ferret continues to stay stubbornly silent, Yoo Joonghyuk scoffs and shakes him some more, “I can do this for as long as it takes, Dokja. Don’t test me.”
As Yoo Joonghyuk is beginning to wonder if this counts as animal abuse, a Midday Tryst window appears.
[Kim Dokja: ok stop i’ll takl]
Joonghyuk stops the animal abuse and stares at the message. Then, he glares at the ferret, “You could have done that this whole time? And what’s with the spellings?”
The ferret gives him a dirty look. At some point, his front paws has slipped out from where they were pinned between Joonghyuk’s palm and his own body. Those little paws are now moving clumsily through the air, interacting a window.
[Kim Dokja: hard to tpye like this]
Joonghyuk notices he didn’t answer his first question, but decides not to push. Instead, he focuses on the main problem, “Well, tell me how to fix this.”
No new message comes for a long time. Yoo Joonghyul scowls and tightens his grip around the little thing’s body. A deflated squeak bursts out of Dokja at the same time as a new Midday Tryst message.
[Kim Dokja: ok u bastadr i’ll tell u]
[Kim Dokja: first, bring me to my clohtes]
Dokja the ferret wiggles around and points his nose at something on the ground. Only then does Yoo Joonghyuk notice a pile of clothes tucked hazardously beneath a tree to the side. Approaching it, he makes out Dokja’s white coat quickly, and understands that the rest of his clothes are underneath it. With a start, Joonghyuk realizes that this means Kim Dokja is currently buck naked right now, squirming in the palm of his hand.
He dismisses that train of thought as fast as possible before it leads to… awkward situations and focuses on the job at hand. Clicking his tongue, he deposits Dokja the ferret by his pile of clothes and watches as the little white thing immediately disappears beneath the coat, rummaging through it. Joonghyuk feels an odd emotion rising within him as he tracks the little lump moving about underneath the coat. Unbiddenly, he reaches out a foot to nudge at it. The angry squeal that comes out makes the corner of his lips quirk upward a little. Eventually, Kim Dokja finds what he is looking for and emerges, shooting him a dirty look with his coat wrapped neatly around him.
Joonghyuk furrows his brows at the scene. He has thought that Dokja was looking for something, but it seems he just wanted to be covered up? What the hell is wrong with this guy’s sense of priority?
[Kim Dokja: ok, sit down. I cant do this whne u r up there]
Scowling, Joonghyuk sits down, feeling quite silly as he faces the ferret peeking out from underneath the coat.
“Alright, now what?”
Kim Dokja pauses; his hesitation clear on his face, and Joonghyuk is once again struck with how easily he is able to read him even in this form. It must be the eyes, he decides. Kim Dokja’s eyes are the most honest part about him.
Eventually, new messages come in:
[Kim Dokja: before we start, u haev to know i have nothing to do with this]
Yoo Joonghyuk grits his teeth, “Spit it out.”
The ferret gulps.
“Kim Dokja.” Yoo Joonghyuk hisses, his hands inching out for his neck.
[Kim Dokja: you have to kiss me]
All thoughts vacate from Yoo Joonghyuk’s head.
“What?”
The ferret throws him a resentful look.
[Kim Dokja: it’s not my idea ok? The scenario is based on the princess and the frog]
Yes, Yoo Joonghyuk is familiar with that story, having read it to Mia a few times before.
[Kim Dokja: of course, you don’t have to do this.]
[Kim Dokja: I can thikn of something else]
[Kim Dokja: besides, even if I’m stuck like this, I can still hepl with the furtue scenario]
Yoo Joonghyuk doesn’t let the fool type out anymore nonsensical messages. With a quick jerk of his hands, he scoops up the little ferret, carefully to not jostle him too much, and brushes his lips against his face.
The gesture is over in a flash, and Joonghyuk pulls back just in time to see the absolutely gobsmacked look on Kim Dokja’s ferret face. He doesn’t have enough time to fully appreciate the expression before smoke explodes from his hands, and the weight of a full-grown man is dropped onto his lap. Joonghyuk coughs, wincing against the harsh smell, but all irritation evaporates from his mind along with the smoke when he sees what is sitting between his legs.
KIm Dokja’s flustered face stares back at him, his dark eyes-wide and mouth agape in shock. His hair is tousled, sticking out at odd angles from all the rough-handling he endured as a ferret. He is buck-naked, only covered hazardously by the white coat he has wrapped himself in. However, with the way it is steadily slipping down his shoulders, Yoo Joonghyuk thinks it might have been more decent if he weren’t wearing anything at all.
“Uh, Yoo Joonghyuk,” Kim Dokja coughs, “the Scenario is over. You can let go of me now.”
Yoo Joonghyuk doesn’t move.
Kim Dokja’s glare is dampened by the blush still raging across his face, “What the hell is your problem, you sunfish basta–Agh?! Why are you hard?”
“This is your fault, Kim Dokja.” Joonghyuk growls as he tips the smaller man onto the grass, looming over him, “Take responsibility.”
Whatever Dokja was going to say is swallowed up by Joonghyuk’s mouth, and he finds himself with a brand new appreciation for that old childhood fairytale.