---

---

---

---

”In-between events, but that’s not the only thing I have planned for us,” Caden said and popped some of the candy into his mouth.

---

---

---

---

Avery switched the remote into his other hand and draped his arm over Kimiko’s shoulders. He flipped through some of the movies, humming and hawing over a couple of them. Ultimately, he decided on a Brad Pitt movie called ‘Bullet Train’. Avery turns the surround sound on and the volume up a bit before he sets the remote aside and eats some of his snacks.

---

---

---

---

Nero wiggles happily with a little chuckle. “I figured as much.” They say before kissing Caden’s cheek and looking around again. They kick their feet a little as they do so.

---

---

---

---

Kiki tries her best to stay awake - the movie has a fun pace and she enjoys the absurdity of it all, but her eyelids feel heavy. She didn’t tell Avery, but she’s had a nightmare almost every night since her abduction and it’s starting to take a toll. She leans her head on his upper arm as her breathing slows.

---

---

---

---

---

---

The couple remain in Times Square for some time, enjoying each other’s company as well as the life of others. Conversation carries easily between the two of them about nothing and everything. Eventually, Caden convinces Nero to return to the hotel.

Caden now holds Nero in the elevator as they ride up to the Presidential Suite of the Mandarin Hotel on the fifty-third floor. The doors open up to reveal rich, red oak walls, and a skyline of New York that is breathtaking no matter the time of day. To the right of the living room and big bay windows, is a study, to left sits a kitchen and the master bedroom. A secondary bedroom is near the elevators but the couple will have no need of it this time.

Caden pulled off his jacket and tossed it onto the couch, looking at the skyline with an approving smile before he looks at Nero. ”Will it do, my little imp?”

---

---

---

---

Avery is thoroughly enjoying the movie, having never seen it before. He laughs at the fighting, and the insane storyline. After he ate some of the treats Kimiko got for them, he settled into the couch with Kimiko, resting his feet on the coffee table, and held her close. Eventually he hears her breathing change and she sinks into his side more. Avery glanced down and chuckled.

After the movie ends, Avery shuts everything off and picks up Kimiko carefully before transferring her to the bed in her room. Avery tucked her under the covers and kissed her forehead before he left her room.

With the bedroom door open in case Kimiko calls for him, Avery moves about the house, checking doors and windows. He goes upstairs to check that patio door before moving across the house to the greenhouse to secure those doors.

---

---

---

---

Nero looks around, clasping his hands behind their back as they peer around corners and take in the room. Dramatically, they sigh. “I guess it will do.” Their lips twitch in a smirk. So far, this ‘little break’ from researching and feeling guilt over Cassi has helped the little demon immensely.

“Have you been enjoying everything so far?” They ask. They know that Death & Co was something they hadn’t been to before, but they hope seeing the Empire State Building and Times Square wasn’t too boring for someone who’s already seen them both.

---

---

---

---

Kiki barely registers that she been carried off to her room. While on the couch, she barely had any dreams, mostly just conked out on Avery, but now dreams are starting to shift into view. It stays calm at first as her brain processes today’s events, but it’s not long before everything starts to twist into something more sinister.

In a very shabby, white dress, Kiki walks down a path where Terrance waits for her, accompanied by Levi and other wolves. The dress is too short, too revealing, and Kiki fidgets with it, uncomfortable as she makes her way to Terrance. Faceless people sit in chairs on either side of the path with bids.

Just as Kiki is about to turn and run in the other direction, something grabs her ankle and pulls her towards Terrance and Levi, whose smiles turn wider than normal. Kiki moves in her sleep, kicking her legs and mumbling ‘No!’.

---

---

---

---

---

---

Caden laughed and adjusted the rings on his fingers. ”I’ll make sure to book a hotel with two floors next time,” Caden said, smiling crookedly at Nero. He walked over to a tray of crystal decanters and poured himself a glass of scotch. He took a sip and sat down on the couch.

”I am enjoying myself immensely,” he assured Nero. Caden enjoyed taking time off, but it had been a while. He was definitely taking advantage of it this weekend.

---

---

---

---

After locking up the greenhouse, Avery made a pass through the guest rooms to ensure the windows were shut and locked before he rechecking the back door and then the front door. He sets a code on the keypad beside the door that would announce intruders unless the right code was put in. Every staff member had their own code, safeguarding the house when no one was around.

Just as Avery was setting the code, he felt a tingling go down his spine like he was being watched. Avery frowned and turned his head to the side. Wolves' senses were heightened to allow them to hear predators and prey up to ten miles away, and that had transferred to their human counterparts.

Avery heard shuffling of bed sheets and assumed Kimiko was just moving positions. He finished setting the code when he heard the first muffled sound of Kimiko saying no. Seconds later, Avery was standing in Kimiko’s doorway, eyes yellow, and scanned the room. No one was there physically aside from him and Kimiko, but Kimiko was clearly fighting something.

Avery’s brow creased, and he hurried to Kimiko’s side of the bed. He hesitated, unsure if he should grab her.

”Kiki? Kiki wake up,” he said loudly, hoping his voice would carry to wherever she was. Avery’s hands fluttered over her body, not touching her, but as the squirming and moaning got worse, he rested his hands firmly on either side of her face. At this point he didn’t care if she punched and kicked him, he just wanted her to wake up.

”Come on little fox. Wake up!”

---

---

---

---

Nero beams at Caden, flopping onto the couch and putting their head in Caden’s lap. “Good,” They say, reaching up to trace Caden’s jaw with their fingers and playing with his scruff. “Before you ask, I’ve also been enjoying myself immensely.” They tell him brightly before reaching up with their other hand so they can scratch both sides of his jaw.

---

---

---

---

More hands grab at her, the faceless people in the chairs not sparing her a glance as she’s dragged along the path. She struggles, twisting and turning, as she hears several voices, Terrance’s being the loudest, say ‘You’re mine.’

When she feels her face being held she lashes out until she hears the soothing voice of Avery. The nightmare begins to fade away as she opens her eyes to see Avery hovering over her. Her skin is drenched in sweat already and her chin wobbles despite her best efforts to not show that she just had another nightmare.

Kiki brushes his hands off of her face so she can sit up and throw herself at him in a hug, her arms wrapping around his neck and her face buried in the crook of it. Her tears flow freely, unable to stop. Kiki used to pride herself on her ability not to cry so easily. Sure, she’d tear up when she got particularly angry or frustrated, but that’s not what’s happening lately. These tears are from fear. Her whole body shakes as she tries to ground herself in reality and not dwell on the night terror.

---

---

---

---

---

---

”Good,” Caden said and wrapped his arm around Nero. He smirked while Nero scratched at Caden's beard. ”Is this your way of telling me you want me to shave?”

---

---

---

---

Kimiko gets a couple of hits on Avery and scratches up his arm before she comes around. When she pushed him away, Avery's worry increased until she threw her arms around him, holding herself close.

Avery immediately wrapped his arms around her, pulling her in closer and got on the bed. He moved her so she sat cradled in his lap while he rubbed her back, humming softly as she cried.

”I've got you, little fox. You aren't alone anymore,” Avery whispered.

---

---

---

---

Nero shakes their head with a pout. “I’d be very sad to see the beard gone.” They tell him. “I just like ‘scritching’ it.” They say, their lips curving upwards in a smile. They move their fingers to under Caden’s chin and scratch there.

---

---

---

---

Kiki’s tears flow freely as she holds herself close to Avery, barely realizing that she now sat in his lap. She doesn’t recognize the tune of what he’s humming, but it soon relaxes her enough that her body stops shaking and the tears slow down. Kiki sniffles, trying to take some deep breaths to steady herself.

“What are you humming?” She murmurs quietly, not moving from her position, head still buried. Little fox has started becoming a nickname that she immensely loves hearing from Avery’s lips.

---

---

---

---

---

---

Caden chuckled. ”Okay. It does feel nice,” he mused, seeming to purr while Nero went about their task.

---

---

---

---

Avery relaxed when he heard Kimiko finally speak. He continued to rub her back after initially stopping when she asked what he was humming.

”Oh, um… just a song… I wrote,” he said, sounding embarrassed about it.

---

---

---

---

Nero smirks like a cat at Caden’s near purr and continues the scratching. “Maybe I should start calling you Mein Kätzchen.” They tease lightheartedly. Seeing Caden’s enjoyment of it makes them happy. It’s such a nice moment in their own little bubble.

---

---

---

---

Kiki pulls her head out to look at Avery, her eyes wide. And just like that, the fox no longer has the nightmare lingering in their mind. “You wrote a song?” She asks, looking him in the eyes to try and see if he’s joking or teasing her at all.

---

---

---

---

---

---

"Well, the eyes are similar," Caden declared and opened his eyes to reveal the dragons. He blinked once and they switched to a cat's distinct green eye, before Caden blinked again and they returned to his normal blue-green colour.

---

---

---

---

Avery looked sheepishly at Kimiko before looking away. "Maaaybbbee. It's not like it's recorded or anything like that."

---

---

---

---

Nero reaches up more and cups both of Caden’s cheeks with their small hands. “You’re such a show-off… But I love it.” They beam up at him and pat his cheeks before letting go and sitting up. They scoot over and sit in his lap, cupping his cheeks once more and kissing him softly.

---

---

---

---

Kiki smiles and rests her forehead on Avery’s shoulder. “You’re certainly full of surprises.” She says before closing her eyes again.

“So, you sing… what else are you hiding?”

---

---

---

---

---

---

Caden grinned, completely unashamed at being called a show-off. He definitely was and it often worked in his favour. Especially when he was trying to put the fear of god in someone. Caden's arm shifts when Nero does. He rests his free hand on their hip, the other still holding his scotch glass. Caden kissed Nero back deeply, having missed them since the plane.

---

---

---

---

"Many, many things," Avery whispered and kissed the top of Kimiko's head. "Guess you're just going to have to stick around and find them out."

---

---

---

---

Nero isn’t expecting Caden to return the kiss deeply - they just meant to show their appreciation since Caden still had his glass of scotch - but they aren’t complaining. They shift in his lap, adding passion to the kiss.

---

---

---

---

“Oh, darn.” Kiki says sarcastically with a dry laugh. “Thanks for pulling me out of that dream, by the way.” She whispers while wrapping her arms more around Avery than around his neck and squeezing in a weird hug.

---

---

---

---

---

---

It was hard for Caden to want to do anything slow with Nero. After every kiss or every touch, Caden found himself craving more. He missed the feel of Nero on his skin every time they parted. Nero sitting in Caden’s lap was his favourite thing because he had them close even if nothing was happening, but when they were alone, it was hard not to go further.

Caden rubbed little circles into Nero’s hip, bunching up the side of their dress from the motion.

---

---

---

---

Avery held Kimiko tightly for a moment, burying his head into her hair and inhaling her scent. ”I didn’t know what to do… I didn’t make it worse, did I?”

---

---

---

---

Nero pulls away just barely for a moment, their lips almost touching still. “Did you want to set your drink down?” They ask with a small smirk. It still fascinates them how addicted Caden seems to be with them but how healthy it feels at the same time.

---

---

---

---

Kiki shook her head slightly. “I don’t think so… They were about to catch me, I think… But as soon as I heard ‘little fox’, I knew you were there somehow.” She tells him as her fingers move around on his back, tracing little designs with her finger tips or clutching his shirt. “How long were you trying to wake me up?”

---

---

---

---

---

---

”What, you don’t think I can do this with one hand?” Caden teased. He nipped Nero’s bottom lip before pulling back to look at them. ”Do you want to shower with me? Wash the day of travel off,” he asked.

---

---

---

---

”Not long, but I’m not sure how long you were fighting for. I was checking the front door and setting the alarm code when I heard you. I came running, but you were already in deep. I wasn’t sure I should touch you, but I didn’t know what else to do. On the upside, I know you probably put up one hell of a fight,” Avery said and revealed the scratches on his arms from Kimiko.

---

---

---

---

“I’m sure you could, but there’s no telling if I might knock it out of your hand accidentally.” Nero quips, kissing Caden’s lips again before dismounting off of his lap. “But yes, I would love a shower with you.”

---

---

---

---

“Oh bollocks.” Kiki hisses at the sight of the scratches and immediately gets up off the bed (and off Avery’s lap, she realizes) before dragging Avery into the bathroom. “My claws must have come out, I’m so sorry.” She says as she goes digging through cabinets and drawers to find something to clean it with.

---

---

---

---

---

---

Caden smiled and finished his scotch before setting the glass down and standing. ”Then follow me, my little imp,” Caden said and led Nero down the hallway into the master bedroom. ”Everything should be put away already. So, you can find your clothes in the closet or the dresser,” Caden told Nero.

He stripped off his t-shirt and tossed it on the end of the king-sized bed for now.

---

---

---

---

Avery watched Kimiko with amusement, letting her pull him into the bathroom. He watched her rummage around in the drawers for a moment before he laid a hand over hers. ”Kiki, I’m a werewolf. I have enhanced healing. I’m fine.”

---

---

---

---

Nero prances alongside Caden as he leads the way, happy to hear that they don’t have to do any unpacking. “Is this what having money is like?” They ask with a small chuckle. They turn their back to Caden for help with their dress’ zipper.

---

---

---

---

Kiki pauses from where they’re crouched on the ground to look at her hand that she had been using for support by holding the counter. Avery’s hand rests on top of it, she notices, before looking up at Caden. “I didn’t know if kitsune claws would do more damage or not.” She says with a sheepish laugh before standing.

---

---