ღ Chen's and Kyungsoo's apartment

Jaejoong kept silent as he listened to the exchange of replies between the three other people in the room, somehow sensing that the thunderbird felt uneasy about those too. His smile seemed weird, or maybe it was just because the panther was used to Chen's joking attitude, while now they were talking about serious things. Jaejoong didn't put too much thought into this though, his attention falling on the merman for a bit. At least the creature was rather agreeable, unlike he had expected of Chen's friend. And his boyfriend too, although he seemed a little weird. But again... All of them were weird here, and the feline should probably not wonder how he ended up here with them.
Jaejoong glanced at Chen, responding, "It's not like I didn't live there for a while." He said quietly, following Chen towards the living room, realizing that this piece of information was actually new to the thunderbird. Anyhow, it wasn't a secret, and he figured he would eventually find out about his life. Not that there was much to find out.

Lay looked at Chen, waiting to see his reaction. He had somehow expected not to get a very positive one to the announcement, since they obviously didn't get along very well. He couldn't really judge him, since, after all, he would have felt uneasy too if their roles had been reversed. He smiled though, and although Chen didn't seem to be so comfortable with the idea, the prince smiled back slightly. "Thank you."
He turned a little towards Kyungsoo, who was, once again talking about that thing called movie, which he had no idea what it was, but glancing at the other two present in the room, he seemed to be the only clueless one there, and he didn't dare ask, only eyeing Kyungsoo curiously. Who knew what sort of extraordinary invention oh humans that was that he hadn't yet discovered?

Chen let out a breath he wasn't even aware he was holding as the relationship was announced. Somehow he felt a bit uneasy about it, he knew how fond Kyungsoo was of this guy, but something was just off. Like their fate wouldn't be easy. But it was not in his place to judge them or advice the naive merman against it either.
"Well, congratulations then." He said with sort of a stiff smile but it wasn't fake either. He let out a laugh as Kyungsoo once again whined about putting on a movie. "Alright alright, lets put on a movie." He said and glanced over at the shifter. "Can you believe they live without technology over there?" He asked with a laugh and shuffled over towards the livingroom area. "Soo, which movie are you planning on seeing?"

Kyungsoo couldnt help but to give in to the grin that was tugging on the corner of his lips. Hearing the prince actually say that they were together was surreal and amazing and he didn't want to hear anything else for the rest of his life. That just had to be the best day in his life. He was a bit confused why Chen looked at the prince instead of him but he guessed there was something he was missing about their interaction but decided not to care. As long as Chen wasn't rude, which he had no reason to being.
"So.. mooovie?" He said again, since the thunderbird had promised him it he saw no reason to not put it on now.

[uhm.. has it really been three whole weeks? omfg im so soorryyy /snuggles/]

"Of course, how could you do such a thing?" Jaejoong muttered before his attention unintentionally focused on Kyungsoo and his boyfriend as Chen spoke to them. Now, it wasn't really his business, but it seemed that the two hadn't been officially together before him and Chen got there, at least that he inferred from the thunderbird's words. He remained silent, listening to the other's answer, looking at Chen afterwards to see his reaction.

Lay was beginning to get used to Kyungsoo's warmth so close to his and to the younger boy nuzzling next to him, but he struggled internally not to allow himself to grow very familiar with these actions, because they both new that they weren't going to happen too often. He coiled his arm around Kyungsoo's shoulder though, keeping him close to him, because he still had to enjoy his presence while he could. The prince shifted his gaze on Chen when he inquired Kyungsoo about any possible news, figuring that they would have to tell them sooner or later, not that it was a secret. Well, it was, but not one about which Chen didn't have to find out. Seeing that he was looking at him instead of the merman, Lay inferred that he was waiting for what he had to say regarding this. He glanced at Kyungsoo and then looked back at Chen, thinking that telling him wasn't a problem. "In fact... Yes, we're together now." He found it pretty awkward, to talk about it, because of so many reasons, like the fact that he didn't even know Chen very well and the fact that he hadn't had the occasion to announce something like this before.

Chen almost wanted to smack the shifter for mentioning his bribe. But he didnt want to be too violent, he did none the less shove him a bit in annoyance, whining.
"Of course I didnt lie." He said with a hmph. Now the display of affection between the merman and his friend was kind of ticking him a bit, and he just wanted to confirm something. He kind of assumed something had happened because they hadnt been that clingy last time he witnessed their interactions. "Soo, do you have some news to share with me? Like why you are trying to grow attached to this guy.." He said, looking at the taller of the too even though he had seemingly aimed the question to the merman, he was more interested in what his friend had to say. "And yes ill help you with the movie just stop with the eyes." He said and shielded himself from the deadly puppy eyes.

{god my dryspell is horrible >_< what is roleplaying? TT}
Kyungsoo beamed when the other accepted his brownie, watching in anticipation as he tried it. He didnt make any funny facial expressions so he assumed he at least didnt hate them. Now everyone wasnt as into sugary goodness as he was so maybe a brownie wasnt the best choice. But at least the prince had liked them and that was what mattered most to him. Now he was a little unsure of what to do, since this was Chens place so it wasnt like he would be the one deciding everything. Maybe he should get Chen to help him out with the movie he wanted to watch. He let the warmth from the prince calm his uneasy heart, breathing in his scent as he nuzzled in to the warmth.
"Chen chen, can you help me put on a movie, please?" He said and blinked his large eyes in the sdirection of the thunderbird.

A tiny smile settled on Jaejoong's lips at the boy's... he thought he could count it as a compliment. Not that he cared too much about other panthers. He didn't really know other panthers in the first place. However, he had seen one merman before, however strange that might sound for a half-demon half-panther. "You don't have to. I know how it looks. Unless they are different for every merman." The man blinked when he was offered what Chen had treated as bribe not too much time ago. Jaejoong wasn't a person with a sweet tooth, but he didn't necessarily mind eating sweets. Besides, he wanted to confirm if Chen had said the truth regarding Kyungsoo's dessert, so he murmured a 'thanks' taking the piece the boy held out to him before taking a bite from it. Not bad. He wasn't the one who could appreciate Kyungsoo's brownies the most in this world, but he couldn't say they weren't tasty. "At least Chen didn't tell me lies when trying to bribe me to come here." he added, glancing at the said man.

If Lay hadn't seen Jaejoong's human form prior his transformation, he would have felt the urge to pet the large animal as well, friendly and approachable as it seemed like that. Maybe all cats were the same after all. The prince mentally chuckled at that thought. Maybe he shouldn't fear about Kyungsoo's apparent trust in the feline this time. He couldn't say the same thing about Chen though, or at least not now. Maybe the merman would convince him later, but Lay surely wouldn't give in that easily. He glanced in Jaejoong's direction, curious for his reaction, when Kyungsoo offered him his brownies. The man didn't really seem like the type to enjoy sweets, but who knows?

Chen felt a bit left out of thie conversation but strangely he didnt mind not being the center of attention and just quietly watch them talk. Or well, Kyungsoo was the one talking the most. He almost laughed when the merman offered some brownies as thanks, glancing at Jaejoong as he remembered their earlier fonversation when he tried to bribe the shifter into coming along to his apartment. He then let his eyes shift over to Lay, wondering what kind of thoughts the guy would be having, if he had any hostile thoughts towards the shifter, since he should feel protective over the merman. He knew how frustrating Kyungsoos innocent mind could be from times, since there was alot of people who would take advantage of that. But Chen was confident Jaejoong wouldnt do anything to Kyungsoo, if anything he would just ignore his existence. But Chen had a feeling that would not be the case either.

Kyungsoo was really happy to have petted the panther, even though he technically had been petting a person he met for the first time this day it didnt really bother him. The fur was warm and soft and the shifter looked much more approachable in his cat form. Once the other returned to his human form Kyungsoo did feel a bit shy about it. He stood up and dusted off his knees before going back to curl himself in to the princes side.
"Thank you for showing me, now I have a good first impression of panthers." He said and smiled shyly. He kind of wondered what their reaction would be if they found out about Lays true identity, did they even know about the royality from the kingdoms of the other side? Would they act differently if they knew. He decided to not say anything, he was just a mere merman after all and it was Lays own business if he wanted them to know or not. "I would show you my fin but im not that natural at tranforming back to legs so im afraid that would have to be some other time." He said, wanting to repay the other for his kindness but he wasnt sure how, he remembered the brownies he had made and grinned. Cutting a large piece and held it out for the shifter. "Here, I made some brownies. Its not much but please take this as my gratitude." He said with a sincere look in his eyes.

Jaejoong scooted a little closer when Kyungsoo touched his fur, not able to hold back his purring at the feeling. It was one of the habits he wasn't so proud of, but he couldn't really help it when he was in this form. Maybe he should have thought about this before he made up his mind to show Kyungsoo his true form, and he could predict Chen was going to about it later. He allowed the other to hug him, although he was a little taken aback by the boy's actions. It seemed Chen really did have weird friends after all. He would have laughed at the statement about Chen if he could, and he would have said that indeed it was, so he just nodded in response. He then took a few steps back changing into his previous form, although it was more comfortable for him that way.

Lay wasn't really expecting the other to listen to Kyungsoo's request, judging by his cold appearance, so he was a little surprised when he shifted his form. Like ha had said, it wasn't the first time for him to see a panther, so he was nearly as amazed by the animal as Kyungsoo was, but it was still a beautiful sight. He was almost afraid though when Kyungsoo embraced the feline, his protective side appearing again, but it seemed he was just thinking too much about it, because Jaejoong didn't seem like he would hurt the boy in any way. Kyungsoo's gullibility kind of worried him though, and he frowned at the merman's words, but he didn't comment anything on it.

Chen had never seen the shifter transform fully, only seen his tail on a previous occasion. So he didnt actually know what to expect when the man agreed to show Kyungsoo. He stepped back, anticipating this perhaps as much as Kyungsoo was and stayed silent through the process. It was a bit strange, seeing a huge cat in place of the handsome man, but judging by Kyungsoos reaction the merman was very pleased, seemingly treating it like a real cat. He snickered at the thought of a fish petting a cat. He scowled when Kyungsoo made a reference to him.. He wasnt that bad of a friend was he? He had taken the merman in without getting much in return anyway, sure he hadnt really done much for the shifter but it the situation came up he would probably do anything. He watched quietly instead of saying anything though.

Kyungsoo hadnt really expected the shifter to comply to his request, sqealing in delight when the other said he would how him. He watched with wide eyes as the other fully transformed, he didnt expect the creature to look so real. Though he supposed he wasnt sure what to expect. The cat like animal was mersmerizing and without much thought Kyungsoo extended a hand and touched the fur, smile widening when it came in contact with it.
"Woah, its so thick, panthers are beautiful creatures." He said in wonder as he couldnt take his hands off the shifter. He hugged the big cat, though it was quite unplanned he did anyway. "It must be hard being friends with Chen and all." He said and sent the thunderbird a look. "But i can be your friend too." He said and released the animal with a sincere smile. He was down on his knees by now, still amazed by the magestic cat.

Jaejoong remained silent, watching Kyungsoo with slightly wild eyes, not having expected the boy's curious rambling coming from the other, but he supposed it was somewhat a relief to see that he wasn't that afraid of him actually. Needless to say, he didn't think Kyungsoo would ask him to show him his true form. He raised an eyebrow in Chen's direction, hearing that the younger had never seen his thunderbird form, but he supposed it was kind of complicated to show it to him when they lived in the city. He had seen it once, so he knew that it wasn't quite so easy as it was for him to shapeshift. Jaejoong didn't really know how to react to the request at first, but after pondering for a bit, taking into consideration the fact that Kyungsoo wasn't as repugnant as Chen, he decided it was alright. "I suppose I can show you." he responded quietly before motioning for Chen to make him more space. After a bit, in place of the human-looking Jaejoong stood a feline, clad in black fur, looking up at Kyungsoo. He stepped closer to the boy, tail slowly balancing behind him.

Lay couldn't hold back a chuckle this time around at Kyungsoo's demeanor, but he figured it was normal, since Kyungsoo had lived his entire life in the ocean. He still found his plethora of questions endearing though, but he couldn't be sure about Jaejoong. He glanced at Chen though, for a brief moment, wondering just why the man wouldn't show his true form to Kyungsoo. Everyone was entitled to have their own secrets, but it still bothered him, especially since he still had no idea what he was. His train of thoughts was, once again, interrupted as Kyungsoo continued to speak. "There are quite a few in the forest. And I met some before." he answered, looking down at the boy, before curiously eyeing Jaejoong, awaiting his response.

Chen scowled and slapped the others arm again, but it was probably some truth to it. They wouldnt be friends if any of them was human. He almost expected the shifter to give in to Kyungsoos curious eyes and tell his whole lifestory, he knew the impact of those eyes directed at you, it was damn hard to resist. He couldnt hold back a fond smile as Kyungsoo went on his usual curiousity spree, asking too many questions without waiting for answers. It was cute, like always. He wondered if the shifter was bothered by it though and glanced over at him.

Kyungsoo was really really curious to know what the other was and anticipated him telling it. Once he was told he looked up at Lay and crinkled his nose.
"We don't have those in the ocean, are there many in the forest?" He asked the prince before looking over at the shifter with intruiged eyes. "Can you show me? I mean if its alright its ok if you cant I just really really want to see. Chen doesnt want to shift in front of me, he says he will never show his true form to me and I think its unfair because he has seen my true form." He said and mumbled towards the end. "But i saw panthers on tv they are like huge cats i think their tail would be so soft." He rambled, looking up at Lay again. "Have you met a panther before?" he asked before waiting for some answers, he realized he had demanded quite a few of them and chewed his lip, did he get too excited again?

Chen's friend, Jaejoong noticed, was nothing like him fortunately. He was actually quite the opposite. He was small - even though Chen wasn't Michael Jordan himself - and seemingly innocent, and so was his boyfriend, and he wanted to snicker at the contrast between them, wondering how they had managed to gather together. He didn't though, only looking at the boy inching closer to him, inspecting him. It felt weird and awkward. Jaejoong knew very well the feeling of being watched and checked out, but this was a completely different thing as Kyungsoo was probably trying to figure out what he was or something like that. He figured he was right when he assumed he would be scared of him seeing him retreating next to his boyfriend. Understandable.
"I don't think I'd be hanging out with this guy if I were human." Jaejoong wasn't particularly fond of talking about himself, but that didn't mean it was a secret. At least half of it. "I'm a shifter. A panther." This was enough for now, since Kyungsoo would most probably be frightened if he were to find out he was a demon, and Jaejoong had no intention of doing that to him, even though demons weren't necessarily evil, how most consider them to be. Most of them are, but it's not a rule. The misconception still existed though, so he just decided to keep /that/ a secret for now.

Lay eyed the new guy curiously, taking in his bored expression and vapid greeting. The fact that he was Chen's friend gave the prince a sense of suspicion towards Jaejoong as well, but maybe that was because he was too protective over Kyungsoo. Despite this, Jaejoong didn't look quite as mischievous as Chen. He didn't actually appeared to be willing to be here in the first place, which only made his friend seem even stranger than before. He watched as Kyungsoo stepped closer to the man, probably as curious about him as he was, but he didn't seem to get any answer as he stepped back next to him, plastering to his side, asking Chen if he's friend was human. The merman was like a scared child at that moment, and Lay held back a chuckle - it wasn't really the moment to be amused, since he himself didn't feel comfortable with these guys around - and gave Kyungsoo's hand a gentle, comforting squeeze.

It was a strange moment for Chen, he had lived alone so long before Kyungsoo and before becoming friends with Jaejoong that introducing the two closest people in his life was just bizarre. He kept his eyes on Kyungsoo, genuinely curious about his reaction. He secretly really hoped for them to get along well. He almost held his breath when Kyungsoo stepped closer, not having any sense of personal space as usual. The moment was long, of Kyungsoo just staring up at the guy. chen almost squealed at the sight but refrained from doing so.. It didnt seem appropriate. Then the shorter backed away again, seemingly disturbed and Chen frowned at that. But he then laughed at the mermans question.
"Do you want to answer him?" He asked and glanced over at the shifter, since he wasnt really the right guy to out his identity, though he knew there was more to Jaejoong than even he knew,

Kyungsoo looked at the figure next to the thunderbird, seing pale skin, broad shoulders, tired eyes and he looked almost like a vampire to Kyungsoo. But he didnt see any fangs so he ruled that option out of the way. When Chen said he called the other sugarpuff he couldnt help but to giggle. He could understand why the nickname wasnt allowed though. He focused his eyes over at the mysterious guy again, hig big eyes wandering over his form in interest. If Lays whole existence was bright then this guy was darkness, it gave him weird chills and he wondered what kind of creature the other was. Without thinking he inched closer to the stranger, Jaejoong he reminded himself in his head, until he was right in front of him. He almost expected his skin to be covered in scales or something, or his eyes to have an unusual color or maybe some horns but he didnt. He stared for a while, trying to spot something that would give away what he was but in the end he came up short and pouted. He took a step back and buried himself into Lays side, glancing over at the strange guy.
"Is he human?" He asked Chen carefully, he didnt want to offend anyone but he was just really curious to know the origin of this guy.

@☼ Chen ☼ Jaejoong wasn't actually expecting Chen's friend to be in his bedroom doing dirty things, although he couldn't be sure of anything, because he had no idea what kind of friend the thunderbird could have besides him, although he hadn't really used that term to describe their relationship before and didn't think he would do that out loud ever. He walked beside Chen, in the kitchen, catching sight of - what a surprise - two lovebirds holding hands. He looked at both of them individually, trying to guess which one was Kyungsoo before realizing that it was the shorter one, judging by the direction of Chen's gaze. He wanted to roll his eyes at the mention of his nickname in something that was meant to be a whisper, but kind of failed, because everyone could hear it. It took him a few long moments before he remembered about some things called manners, that he didn't usually use. "Hey." was all he said in Kyungsoo and his boyfriend's direction.

@♒ Kyungsoo ♒ The moment Lay heard the voices in the hallway, he was sure that one of them belonged to Chen, while the second one was quite unfamiliar to him, so he figured it was that friend he was talking about. He found himself smiling back to Kyungsoo before the said person walked inside the kitchen. He tilted his head to the side slightly when Chen looked at him and raised an eyebrow, then remembered they were holding hands, and he held back a chuckle at that. He then took in the image of the man standing beside Chen, and hearing the nickname the other had for him clearly - obviously, the whisper attempt wasn't necessary - wondered if Kyungsoo's friend used it as a joke, seeing that it didn't seem to fit Jaejoong one bit.

@✹ Jaejoong ✹ Chen shrugged to the question, he just hoped they werent doing nasty things in his bedroom. Though Kyungsoo was really far too innocent to be doing nasty things in the first place, though he had those thoughts when they first met they never got anywhere physically and since they now live together he guessed that was good. He was quite surprised hearing Kyungsoos voice coming from the kitchen.
"He's just around this corner." He snickered to Jaejoong. He walked in to the small kitchen, it only took a split second before he took in the appearance of hand holding, puffy lips and rosy cheeks and he raised an eyebrow when he looked at the taller of the two, recalling their conversation earlier about what intentions he had. "Baby soo~ I want you to meet my friend Jaejoong, I have a better nickname for him but I promised to stop colling him that." He said and clamped a hand down on the shifters shoulder. "Its sugarpuff by the way." He whispered loudly to the merman who giggled in response.

@ღ Prince Lay ღ Kyungsoo strained his ears, hearing some voices from the hallway and figured it was probably Chen talking to his friend. He realized he still had his legs hooked around the princes waist and reluctantly removed them and hopped down from the counter, still holding on to the others hand though.
"Chen?" He called out, frowning in concentration, he was frustrated because his hearing wasnt even half as good above water as it was under. So when things were at a distance he had some slight issues hearing them properly. He sqeeezed the elementals hand and gave him a smile.

@☼ Chen ☼ "I was just kidding... I think." A little naughty smile settled on Jaejoong's lips, probably the first one today. The man didn't know if what Chen said was meant to be a joke, but if it wasn't, he couldn't help but wonder why the other even found him that interesting, because he didn't consider himself to be that intriguing. He was just a morose musician running a bar anonymously. "Yeah, I guess so..." he said before the elevator came to a halt. "Yeah." he said as he stepped inside, glancing around a little before taking off his own jacket and shoes. "So where your pet? Or friend, or whatever he is."

@♒ Kyungsoo ♒ Lay grinned, tangling his fingers with Kyungsoo's, wondering when was the last time his cheeks hurt from smiling right now. As expected he couldn't remember, because it seemed to be too far away, but he didn't need to anyway. How he realized something though. He needed Kyungsoo, and he would need him even more from here on, even though he would have to cope with it, especially later on. His train of thoughts was interrupted when the younger spoke. "What is that?" he said before he heard a door opening, glancing to his side. "Is he back?"