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Soap had always been good at playing with other hybrids, more than happy to share both space and favorite humans with them. He could make friends with anyone, regardless if they were a dog like him, or a cat or a bird or anything in between. It was something he took great pride in.
So when Ghost joined the team—one of the very first wolf hybrids Soap had ever met in his life due to how rare they were—he'd been overconfident in his ability to make quick friends with him too.
While wolves and dogs were obviously not the same animal, they were similar enough that Soap knew what to expect. The best thing about dealing with fellow dog hybrids was that they were predictable. Learn a handful of facts about their breed, and they were incredibly easy to read and get to know. Ghost—at least in Soap's mind—would be no more difficult to deal with than a Doberman.
And while he hadn't been entirely wrong in his assessment, it hadn't been the walk in the dog park he'd been expecting.
Sharing spaces with him had been relatively straightforward. One side of the mess belonged to Ghost, the other to Soap. Same thing with the corridor in the barracks, and the gym. It was simple to understand and enforce. As long as Soap kept to his side of the room, he wouldn't be growled at. He was fine with that, he'd dealt with far more aggressive and possessive hybrids than Ghost in that regard.
Sharing food and items hadn't been too difficult either. Ghost preferred his snacks to be a bit more bloodied and raw than Soap did, but Soap didn't judge him for it. As long as he didn't have those dangerously sharp canines anywhere near his own flesh, Soap had no issue with Ghost's choice in food. He didn't even mind the way Ghost hoarded blankets as if his life depended on them. There were plenty of them to go around, even though Ghost had a bad habit of ripping them at times.
Things worked just fine, and they slowly got closer. Working side by side with a wolf turned out to be a surprising amount of fun, as Soap finally had a true rival, someone just as interested in a good hunt as he was.
They bonded over it a bit, no big deal. Ghost even told him "good job today" once, and shared his disgustingly raw jerky with him. Soap had held his head high for the rest of the week, and had happily chewed down the disgusting meat by his side, just to gain Ghost's approval.
Ghost had brought them closer by sharing some of his wolf side with Soap, so wasn't it only right for Soap to share something important for dogs with him in return?
It hadn't taken him many days to come up with a good idea. Dogs loved to play—it was one of the main reasons why Soap loved his job as much as he did. Every day was like never-ending playtime, but something in Ghost's behavior made it clear he didn't see things the same way. He didn't join Soap in bouncing around after a successful mission, he didn't bring a favorite toy with him wherever he went, and he never joined any of the other hybrids when they played together to blow off steam.
Maybe he just needed a bit of encouragement to let loose. Luckily for him, Soap was great at being encouraging. So one day, when the sun was high in the sky, and it was neither too hot nor too cold to function, Soap had sought him out. Ghost's shoulders were relaxed, his eyes closed and his head tilted back to get some sun on his face. He cracked an eye open as he heard Soap approaching.
"Mornin', L.T."
"Morning, Johnny."
Soap felt jittery in anticipation as he walked right up to him. Ghost raised an eyebrow in a silent question, eyes locking on the arm Soap still held hidden behind his back.
"What are you up to this time?"
"Nothing bad." Soap shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "I've noticed that you don't seem to play much, so I wanted to bring you this."
Soap presented the bright blue squeaky toy he'd had hidden behind his back. It was one of his favorites, but he didn't mind sharing. At least not with Ghost. Ghost was special in that way.
Ghost watched the toy with a blank face, not reacting as Soap tossed it onto the ground by his feet with a loud squeak. The sound was enough to make Soap's tail wag, knowing that it meant it was playtime. He took a few steps back, a spring in his step as he bounced around before circling in closer. Challenging Ghost to grab the toy first.
But Ghost didn't move. He only stood there, watching Soap bounce back and forth as he attempted to bring Ghost's instinctual need to play to the surface.
"C'mon L.T.," Soap complained loudly as he moved in close again, stomping a foot down on the toy several times in quick succession to make it squeak in the hopes of making Ghost do anything other than stand still and stare. "Play with me? It'll be fun, I promise."
Ghost had spent so much time frozen in the same spot that Soap couldn't hold back a high-pitched yelp as Ghost suddenly launched himself right at him. Rather than a playful shove or some friendly play-fighting, he wrestled Soap to the ground as if he was an enemy Ghost was preparing to take down and kill. For a few long, terrifying seconds, Soap believed he might have triggered the wrong instinct, causing Ghost to see him as something to hurt and maim rather than a playmate.
Soap yipped loudly, squirming around beneath Ghost as he attempted to push him off. This wasn't the playful kind of wrestling he'd taken part in as a pup. It was rough and violent, Ghost pinning him with a hand around his throat and a knee to the stomach, staring down at him unblinkingly as if daring him to move.
Soap didn't understand. He'd only wanted to play, why was Ghost being so mean to him?
He did his best to fight back, although it was difficult to when Ghost had already pinned him so effortlessly. A knee to his side did nothing, and neither did Soap's dull claws scratching at his chest. Ghost didn't seem to like Soap pushing back, as he let out a low growl before shifting his hand from Soap's throat to his shoulder, using the new leverage to flip him onto his stomach.
Soap couldn't help but growl in warning as his arms were pulled taut behind his back, held secure in one of Ghost's freakishly large hands. Yet another perk of being a wolf hybrid, he supposed. Fighting back was pointless, unless he wanted those sharp claws to sink into his skin and draw blood.
All of Ghost's weight pushed down on the backs of his thighs, not only leaving Soap unable to move, but also forcing all the air out of his lungs. And as if that wasn't humiliating enough, a wet maw pressed down against the back of his neck, sharp teeth resting against the skin, threatening to break it.
Soap had never felt so small in his life. Another low, warning growl left Ghost's throat, the sound vibrating against Soap's neck. Rather than making him want to growl in an attempt to fight back and protect himself, Soap could only shiver.
Something about this position, about feeling so small and helpless under a much larger predator, was making his mind go blank. He no longer wanted to fight back or push Ghost off him, content to just lie there, relaxing into the dirt below.
Was this why humans loved those weighted blankets so much? Soap understood them now, this was kind of nice, once you got over the shock of it all.
"Do you yield?"
The words were slightly slurred as they were pressed against Soap's skin, forcing another shiver out of him.
Did he want to yield? If he yielded, would Ghost let up on him? Did Soap really want that to happen? Couldn't they stay like this for just a little bit longer? Soap felt as if he was really, really close to figuring out something important about himself.
When Soap didn't answer, Ghost let out a snarl, the sound traveling straight down Soap's spine and making the base of his tail go stiff. Ghost didn't want to hurt him, he realized. But he would do it, to get his way. The realization had Soap feeling dizzy and immediately nodding in agreement, causing the sharp fangs to scrape against the back of his neck.
"I y-yield."
Soap pretended not to be disappointed when Ghost's canines disappeared from his neck, and the weight keeping him pinned to the ground eased up. It felt like a spell had been broken. As if he'd been seconds away from sinking into gentle, blissful sleep when something had startled him awake.
"Need a hand?"
Right. Soap couldn't just stay on the ground and hope that Ghost climbed on top of him again. He quickly made sure to relax his tail, letting it drop back against his thighs before pushing up onto his hands and knees.
"I'm good." Soap didn't look Ghost in the eye as he stood up, brushing the worst of the dirt from his clothes. "I'll catch you later. It was nice playing with you."
He didn't wait for a response before awkwardly shuffling back towards the barracks, having to keep reminding himself to keep his tail relaxed, even though he wanted nothing more than to lift it straight up and keep it there for Ghost to see.
Today had been confusing, in more ways than one.