Catboy!AU: Cuddles are the Best Medicine, Part 1

[moehakase]

Don slips on his apron and smiles as he sets to work gathering the ingredients for lunch. Today’s menu is meant to be a surprise; he’d banished Marvelous from the kitchen (amidst increasingly pleading protests) just so he’d be able to keep it a secret. It’s going to be an absolute feast - baked chicken stuffed with cream cheese and bacon, sauteed spinach and mushrooms, cheese toast with pesto, pasta in tomato sauce with zucchini and eggplant, fried apples with cinnamon, and fruit parfaits with sweet cream for dessert. Marvelous is used to big meals, of course, but they’re not always elaborate ones (though they are always delicious), so Don takes a lot of pride in being able to put together a truly exceptional spread.

The prep is going to take him ages, since he’s doing it all by himself, but it’s worth it for the joy of surprising Marvelous. He figures he might as well round up all the ingredients at once, just to make sure he actually has everything he needs, though Marvelous’s kitchen is so well-stocked he hardly thinks he needs to worry. The meat and vegetables are right in the refrigerator, of course, as is the cheese and some of the fruit. The apples are in the basket on the counter, and the bread is in its cupboard as always. He sets it all out and takes stock of it before moving on to the spices, taking each one out of the spice rack with care. Before long, he’s gathered everything he needs.

Everything except the pasta, that is.

Marvelous keeps the pasta up on the very highest shelf in one of the tall cupboards above the counter. He doesn’t seem to have any trouble reaching it himself with just the help of the kitchen stool, but he has certain height and reach advantages that Don doesn’t. Even getting up on his tiptoes on the stool, the pasta is just out of Don’s reach. He steps down from it, tail swishing with frustration. He could go get Marvelous and ask him to get the pasta down for him, but that would ruin the whole surprise of the meal! He’ll have to get it some other way.

Don frowns, tail still swishing as he thinks about it. He really only needs a bit more of a boost, so there should be something he can use... He looks over at the dining table chairs. He’s never stood on one, but they always seem sturdy enough when he sits on them, so they ought to be fine. It’s only for a second anyway.

Don picks up one of the chairs and carries it over to put it in front of the counter. He takes a quick step up onto it, using his tail to keep his balance. The pasta is all easily within reach now. He scans the shelf for the box of penne, and spots it in the back. He reaches for it and the chair wobbles. He starts to lose his footing just as he grabs the box, and he’s a split second too late to jump safely off when he hears the wood crack. He yelps with surprise as he falls, too startled and thrown off-balance to make a good attempt at catching himself, and cries out when his foot hits the floor and a blaze of pain shoots up his leg. He lands hard, taking most of the impact with his hands and forearms. He only just manages not to hit his head.

For a moment Don just lies on the floor, tears in his eyes from the shock and pain of his fall. His heart is racing, and he’s struggling to catch his breath. He tries to push himself back to his feet but his leg surges with pain and he cries out again, his yell dying down into a sob as he clutches his hurt ankle.

Comments

[foodispriority]

Marvelous isn't sulking. 

He just happens to be sitting on the couch, glaring sideways at the kitchen door with his arms folded because he feels like it. Not because he has been effectively banned from his happy place. Even if Don did smile so convincingly and widen his eyes and promise it would be so worth it in the end. Marvelous trusts Don, but it is such a sacrifice to make! To leave the kitchen and not go back in! For hours! And hours! Maybe not at all the entire day! 

He's pretty sure he can already smell food. 

He tried putting the TV on but of course it was programmed to a cooking channel when it flickered to life, and watching it just made him hungry, and horny. But he's banned from the kitchen and therefore also from some very excellent ways to sate both of those desires. Don knows food preparation is seriously sexy, so to deny Marvelous the pleasure of watching him doing it means it must be really important to him. 

Marvelous isn't sulking anyway. 

It's silent in the room until he hears the crash, accompanied by a yell, that comes from the kitchen. Marvelous jumps to his feet immediately. As he rushes towards the door the thing that registers foremost in his mind is that if it had been a simple accident that sounded worse than it actually was Don would have already called to him through the door not to come in, and that he would deal with it. Not to mention that as Marvelous puts his hands on the door he hears Don's sudden cry of pain. 

"I don't care what you said, I'm coming in," Marv says flatly, and walks in to find Don and one of the dining chairs collapsed on the floor. Marv can see the way Don's eyes are watering, his hands clasping his ankle. 

What were you doing? Why did you take a risk like that? Marvelous clamps his mouth shut on any harsh words, and panics.

"What can I do?" He asks. "Can you get up? Is it broken?" 

(He will feel pretty stupid later for sulking, that's for sure.)

[moehakase]

Hardly a moment passes before Marvelous comes through the door. Don shies back a bit out of a protective instinct - not because he’s afraid of Marvelous, but because the pain of his injury had sent his mind back to being cornered and scared in an alley, and he hasn’t been able to unlearn the instincts he’d developed just to stay alive on the street. But it passes when Marvelous speaks to him, clearly concerned. He’s never given Don any reason to be frightened of him; he’s always been kind to Don, from the moment they met, and Don trusts him.

Still, he’s shaken up, ears twitching nervously as he looks up at Marvelous. “M-Marvelous,” he sobs, still clutching his ankle in pain. “I can’t get up, I tried b-but it hurts too much.” He whimpers and his ears droop. “I d-don’t think it’s broken, but I can’t tell...”

Don takes a quick look around himself. The pasta had thankfully been in a sealed bag, so it hadn’t spilled when he’d dropped it. The chair, on the other hand, looks at least as bad as Don feels, with one leg split nearly in half and jutting out at a sharp angle. A knot of panic tightens in Don’s chest. He’s broken Marvelous’s chair. This is exactly the kind of thing that Don had sworn not to do - what if Marvelous gets angry with him for it and throws him out? Don hasn’t known him to be that kind of person, but some of Don’s worries about humans have been harder to assuage than others.

“I’m sorry,” he says, tears welling in his eyes. “I didn’t mean to break the chair, it was an accident! I’m so sorry, please don’t be angry with me...”

[foodispriority]

Marvelous does notice the way Don flinches when he first walks in, but he knows what it's like to be injured and protective over that part of yourself even if it's causing you pain, so he simply registers that Don does it but doesn't react to it.

Don recovers himself fairly quickly from that, but he's visibly upset; tears spilling down his cheeks as he stammers his words. Marvelous wants to scoop him up and hold him tight, and he will, but that won't actually help anything right this second. He crouches down and brushes Don's hair away from his forehead. His skin is pale from shock.

"Don't move," Marvelous insists. Don is always apologizing for things that aren't his fault! He doesn't have worry about getting up if he physically can't because of the pain, that would be a ridiculous expectation. And it may be obvious from the tightness in his words, but even though it hurts that much he doesn't complain. "You're being really brave."

He hopes he sounds reassuring because he hasn't got a clue what to do now. The last thing he wants to do is touch Don's ankle when he isn't a doctor. It might hurt him more. But then something Don says makes him forget he's supposed to be doing something anyway.

"The chair?" He asks in confusion. "What chair?"

He knows what chair, but he hadn't been thinking about that at all! Why is Don?

"I don't care about that," he says, gesturing in the general direction of it without bothering to look at it. His eyes are on Don right now. "I can replace a chair. We can't replace you."

[moehakase]

Marvelous crouching down beside him and touching him - telling him he’s brave - soothes Don a little. He leans his head toward Marvelous’s hand, and reaches out to cling to him.

Marvelous doesn’t seem angry with him. He doesn’t seem to care about the chair at all - he flat out says that he cares more about Don. The clench of panic in Don’s chest loosens as the reassurance sinks in. His lower lip trembles, and he leans forward to lay his forehead on Marvelous’s shoulder.

“I just wanted to cook a good meal for you,” he says, sniffling. Why did it have to turn out like this? He’d just wanted to do something to make Marvelous happy, but he’s put them both in distress instead.

Still, he knows there’s no point in feeling sorry for himself over it right this second. He raises his head and looks up at Marvelous. “C-can you help me up? I don’t want to stay on the floor, and m-maybe we could... put some ice on it?”

[foodispriority]

Thank goodness Don knows what he's doing; ice is a really good suggestion, probably! To numb the pain and all, to soothe it temporarily until they can get his ankle looked at properly. Marvelous's first assumption would be to take Don to his own doctor, but something in his mind reminds him idly that catpeople tend to have veterinary physicians. The reason he knows that is because he knows one. A plan of action starts to form in his mind.

Marvelous wraps arms around Don as he leans in and holds tight to Marv, squeezing gently as Don sniffles on his shoulder. Good things don't usually go wrong, and Marvelous can still salvage this for Don yet.

"You always make me good meals," he assures Don. "They're all delicious. But that doesn't mean I'm getting used to it!" Heaven forbid Marvelous wake up one day and be jaded about food.

"Let's get you up first," he says, and before Don can attempt to walk on his ankle again (Marvelous just knows he will try to!) Marvelous slips one arm under Don's legs and the other around his back and lifts him up off of the floor completely to carry him back into the living room and lay him down on the sofa.

[moehakase]

You always make me good meals. Don smiles a little at that, even through his tears and pain. It’s good to hear that Marvelous still appreciates his cooking even when Don isn’t trying to make something that’ll completely blow him away. Though, knowing how much Marvelous loves food, maybe everything blows him away.

For a moment Don thinks that Marvelous will be helping him to stand back up, maybe by letting Don rest his weight on him so that he won’t have to stand on his hurt ankle, but then Marvelous slips his arm beneath Don’s legs and Don realizes that’s not what’s going to happen. He wraps his arms around Marvelous’s neck and holds on tightly as Marvelous picks him up.

Don’s first thought is that Marvelous has never carried him like this before. Marvelous has held him in his lap like this, gathered up in his arms with Don’s head resting on his shoulder, but he hasn’t actually lifted him in this position. It’s a surprisingly comfortable way to be carried.

His second thought is that even though he’s shaken up and in pain, and Marvelous is carrying him in a way he’s not used to, he doesn’t feel unsafe at all. Marvelous’s arms feel strong and steady beneath him. It hadn’t even occurred to Don to be afraid that Marvelous might drop him. He rests his head on Marvelous’s shoulder as they cross the room towards the sofa.

When they get there, Marvelous lowers him carefully, and Don raises his hurt leg so that it won’t touch the sofa at the same time as the rest of him, giving Marvelous time to slip a pillow underneath it. Don winces as he lowers his injured ankle onto the pillow, and when he looks, he can see that the skin is already turning red and starting to swell. It’s throbbing with pain, the hurt radiating up into his calf. He whimpers and looks away from it, focusing his eyes up at Marvelous instead.

[foodispriority]

Don seems almost relaxed in his arms as Marvelous carries him over to the sofa; as much as he can be whilst in pain, anyway. He clings tight, but Marvelous can tell by the way Don rests his head on Marv's shoulder that it isn't because he's scared. He just wants to hold on in return. The trust Don has in him only makes it more important to Marvelous to do everything he can for Don and be worthy of that trust. He's almost over-careful as he lowers Don onto the sofa, not wanting to knock his injured ankle, but Don is ahead of him a little, and thinks to raise his leg up so as not to take the full weight of the impact. It's a perfect opportunity to put a pillow under Don's foot so that he can at least prop it on something more forgiving than the flat sofa cushion, he can rest it at the angle most comfortable for him.

Perhaps if it were broken it would be more obvious that something was wrong; a bone out of place might have thrown Don's foot out of alignment, so Marvelous is also pretty sure they're safe on that score. But the injury looks angry and inflamed, and what he and Don can't see might be just as complicated to heal. Don's whimper suggests he might be thinking along the same lines. Marvelous reminds himself there's more he can do yet.

"Ice," he says, finally remembering what else Don had said after the 'can you help me off of the floor' part. His brain doesn't feel fuzzy but it's definitely working a little slower than usual. And every so often his words come out sounding kind of flat. It can't be shock, he's not the type to suffer that. It wasn't even his injury! "I'll get some ice for your ankle. And a dishcloth to wrap it in."

He reaches out to thread his fingers through Don's hair before he heads back into the kitchen. "I know someone who can take a look at your ankle. He's a really good doctor; he has his own surgery just for treating catpeople. He'll make you feel better in no time."

[moehakase]

“Thank you,” says Don when Marvelous offers to get the ice for him. “And, could you put the meat and vegetables back in the fridge? I don’t want them to spoil...” He pouts a little at the thought of the ingredients just sitting there, waiting to be prepared.

Marvelous slips a comforting hand into Don’s hair, but his words make Don’s chest go tight. A doctor? Don knows, of course, that logically calling a doctor is the only solution - Marvelous can’t fix his ankle, and Don certainly can’t do it himself, either. There’s no way around it.

But that means letting another human look at him and touch him while he’s at his most vulnerable. Exposing his injury to someone who could easily hurt him worse. He wants to believe that Marvelous wouldn’t put him anywhere near someone like that, but he can’t help being scared all the same.

When Marvelous comes back with the ice, Don manages to speak up about it. “I-I don’t know about calling a doctor,” he says, his ears lowered. “He’s a human, what if he...” Don bites his lip and lowers his eyes, not wanting to finish that sentence aloud when his mind is already doing it for him with a hundred different fears. “I know I need a doctor, b-but. I’m scared.”

[foodispriority]

Marvelous heads to the kitchen to get the ice - and put the food away, on Don's orders! He may not love food in quite the same way Marvelous does, but he certainly treats it better! Marv hadn't been thinking about any of that at all, but if meat and vegetables stay sitting out they definitely won't be at their best, which is important for both cooking and eating. He hasn't a clue what Don was going to cook but there's chicken and bacon, and four different kinds of vegetable. There's also the pasta sitting forlornly on the floor not far from the broken chair. Marvelous doesn't particularly care about the chair at all, but it makes sense to push it to one side for now, out of the way, so that he can put the food back. He does it as quickly as he can in order to get back to Don sooner with the ice; it's probably not in the right places compared to how he used to do it, and kind of shoved hurriedly into the fridge, but Don can pout at him for that later when he's feeling better.

He wraps the ice in a clean dishcloth and carries it back in to Don, sitting down on the very edge of the sofa cushion. He's about to lower the makeshift ice-pack onto Don's ankle as slowly as he can when Don speaks. Marvelous waits, just in case Don doesn't want him to do it, but to put it on himself. But that's not what he says at all.

I'm scared.

Marvelous puts the ice down on the sofa and scoots closer to Don, placing a hand over his.

"Yeah," he says. "He's a human. And I know that scares you. But he's one of the good guys. I wouldn't let anyone near you who was going to hurt you."

[moehakase]

Don looks up at Marvelous. His scent is hard to read as usual, but his eyes are sincere. And as hard as it is for Don to remember it sometimes, there are other good humans besides Marvelous. Don has been fortunate enough to know quite a few, throughout his life; that there are cruel humans out there doesn’t mean that there aren’t kind ones, too. And he knows he can trust Marvelous, even if he can’t help feeling afraid at the same time.

“Okay,” he says softly, clinging to Marvelous’s hand. “As long as you’re here, it’s alright.” There’s a nervous twitch in his ears and tail still - he’s pretty sure he’ll be feeling afraid until this human doctor, whoever he is, proves that there’s nothing to be afraid of, but having Marvelous around will make things a little easier.

Don’s ankle throbs with pain again, and he sucks in a sharp breath before remembering the ice. “You can put the ice on, I’m ready,” he says. He’s pretty sure it’s going to sting, at first, even though it’s sure to make him feel better after a little while, so he closes his eyes and braces himself, turning to hide his face in Marvelous’s shoulder.

[foodispriority]

"It will be alright," Marvelous says, and he's not just saying it to try and convince himself; he means it, and he'll make sure what he says turns out to be true. He trusts Sid anyway, so that isn't the issue. Making sure Don is happy and comfortable is. Marvelous threads the fingers of his free hand into Don's hair, sensing from the way Don's ears twitch that he still isn't entirely sure about this. A moment later he hisses, and Marvelous is reminded - literally - that the ice is still sitting there, not on Don's ankle.

"I'll be gentle," he promises. He doesn't think saying, "I'll try to be gentle" will help here. So he'll just have to be careful, won't he. Don buries his face in Marvelous's shoulder and Marv runs his hand through Don's hair and down to the back of his neck to cup his hand there and hold onto him. "Be brave," he says, as he lifts his hand away from Don's and reaches for the ice pack.

He doesn't just mean whilst the ice is going on.

He lowers the bundle of ice slowly so that only a little of it makes contact with Don's ankle at a time, and makes sure not to put any of his own weight onto it as it settles. The soothing noises that are coming out of his mouth now don't actually resemble words at all, but he's sure that doesn't matter.

[moehakase]

Don lets out a sharp whimper as the cold ice pack first touches his ankle. It stings, just like he’d expected it to, cold against the heat of his inflamed injury. He clings to Marvelous’s shirt, and Marvelous holds him steady with a hand at the back of his neck. Marvelous is being gentle, as he’d promised, lowering the ice pack slowly and carefully so that Don won’t be startled from having all that coldness put on him at once. He’s making comforting noises, too, which is helping to soothe Don’s nerves, and reminds him of what Marvelous had said a moment ago.

It will be alright. Be brave.

Don holds his breath as Marvelous continues to lower the ice pack onto his ankle, so that he won’t end up whimpering again. It hurts, but not so badly that he can’t bear it, and Marvelous being here to comfort him makes it much easier. He believes in Marvelous’s words; Marvelous has always done everything he possibly could to take care of Don from the moment they met, not out of any sense of obligation but because he genuinely wants Don to be comfortable and happy, and Don loves him for it.

He clings to Marvelous for a moment longer, feeling the cold of the ice starting to ease the pain in his ankle as the initial sting fades, before realizing that he can feel both of Marvelous’s hands on him now. Don lifts his head and peers up at Marvelous. “I-Is it over already?”

[foodispriority]

It's not nice for Marvelous to have to hear Don cry out in pain as he puts the ice on Don's ankle, no matter how good his intentions, or how quickly Don silences himself afterwards. He keeps reminding himself that they're doing the right thing if they don't want Don's injury to get any worse than it is already.

It seems to take forever; it surprises him a little when Don asks if it's over already! He recovers himself quickly, voice steady as he replies, "all done. That wasn't so bad, was it?"

He puts his arms around Don properly, but loosely so that Don can relax back and still be in his arms. He knows well enough by now to leave it a few minutes before he makes his next suggestion, allowing Don to calm down a little and just sit there with him.

"I think we've done what we can," he says softly, "so maybe I should call my friend now and get him to come and take a look at your ankle?"

Marvelous can definitely convince Sid to make a house-call; he's a very persuasive individual. And every time they've run into one another at the coffee shop Sid has ended up chatting away about his job and how much he loves it. Marvelous might spend an indecent amount of time during the (mostly one-sided) conversation just watching the way Sid's strong, firm looking hands wrap around his coffee cup, but he listens well enough to pick up on the general idea of what's being said! He'll come over when he realises how important it is to Marvelous and, more importantly, to Don.

[moehakase]

Don still can’t believe it’s already over - it hadn’t seemed to take that long, and the ice is really helping. The throbbing in his ankle has lessened, and the sharp pain is becoming more of a dull ache. “Yeah,” he says, nodding. “Not so bad.”

He leans back and rests in Marvelous’s arms, laying his head on Marvelous’s shoulder. He closes his eyes and tries to relax, taking in the feeling of Marvelous’s comforting embrace, of being surrounded by his scent. For a while, Marvelous’s scent had been strange to him, but now there’s not many aromas that could possibly soothe him more. The smell of books, perhaps - of old paper and leather. Or the smell of wood burning in a stove, like the one in the house where he used to live. Marvelous doesn’t smell like either of these things; he smells like food and hair products and human musk. And he smells a little like Don, too.

After a few minutes, Marvelous speaks again. Don’s stomach twists with nervousness at the mention of the doctor, but his tension eases a little when he realizes that Marvelous is planning to have the doctor come to them. He won’t have to move from here, won’t have to have Marvelous carry him out to a cab full of too many human smells, won’t have to go into an unfamiliar hospital to be treated by an unfamiliar doctor. He can just stay right where he is, in the safety of Marvelous’s territory. It doesn’t completely cure his fears, but he feels better just knowing that he won’t have to leave his home in order to be treated.

Don nods. “I think so,” he says. He sits up properly to give Marvelous room to let go of him and get up. “Go ahead and call.”

[ajoeface]

[ ooc: continue to part two ]