It's A Free Market For Ass-Kicking

Slowly, he turns to Robby with a sheepish grin. 

Robby nods his head up and back, and Dennis gently extricates himself from Jack, prying his sleeping hand away from his tail and padding over to Robby with a grin. 

He puts a hand on Dennis' shoulder and leads him safely down the hallway before he asks, "what were you doing, hmm?" 

Dennis yawns. "I woke up so was just watching him. He has freckles. I just wanted to touch one. Sorry." 

"It's okay Den. Maybe we let him sleep a bit now though yeah? Wanna come hang out with me downstairs?" 

"Yeah!" 

"Good boy, come on then puppy." 

Dennis flushes a wonderful pink and follows him without question downstairs. But when they get into the kitchen he starts to squirm, shifting on his little brand new socked feet. 

"What's up pup?" 

Dennis bites his lip, "do you wanna try it?" 

"Try what?" 

"The like, no-talking puppy stuff." 

See, Michael knows that Jack thinks his desire to adopt a hybrid comes from the dog he nearly adopted as a child before his bubbe found it a new home with people who were much more equip to care for it. It had broken his little heart. He'd cried about it for days. He'd told Jack this story what- years ago- when they were both still fresh faced and laughing over beers, pretending not to be wildly attracted to each other. Jack's clearly remembered it, and when he pitched Robby the idea of adopting a hybrid together he'd seen the story reflected back at him in Jack's eyes. 

Michael is happy to let him believe it. 

Really though its all about devotion and control. 

He loves Jack, more than anything, he'd be quite happy with Jack for the rest of their lives but … 

It's just that he feels like his life is slipping by faster and faster, and he sees people die every single day, people with hopes and dreams and loves and untouched potential. People who probably never got to experience things in their lives that they wanted to try. Were too ashamed to try. Didn't have time to try before- 

See, Michael has been thinking a lot about mortality since Adamson, in a way he knows scares Jack. 

It's just that he doesn't want to die having never… it sounds stupid, even when he says it to himself. Having never fulfilled his fantasy of fucking a sweet omega hybrid? Fuck off Robinavitch. This is why, despite all Jack does to encourage him, he can't talk to Jack about this. Why he kept it not so successfully hidden from him for so long. 

Worse, too, Michael thinks, because it's not even entirely sexual. 

Devotion. Jack won't let him dote on him or baby him or coo and praise him. He'll try to an extent but that just isn't him, and Michael doesn't want to show his love to Jack that way. Not when he has a million better ways to show it that Jack is on board with. And Jack is devoted to him, too, but on a deeper level and sometimes… sometimes Michael lays in bed at night and thinks about what it would be like to have that in its base form. 

The way a dog loves it's master. The way a hybrid might love him. The raw simplicity of it. 

Devotion and- 

This is why he can't just get a dog. Because it's also about control. And the control is sexual. 

Michael is not unaware of his desire to take charge and lead. Would have been a piss poor career choice to go for the big job if he didn't. He, too, knows this desire has a tendency to leak like a dripping faucet into other aspects of his life. 

In a way that sometimes makes him feel a little sick to his stomach, the way he wants to have a someone eat from the palm of his hand and squirm on his lap and tease them until they blink into subspace, all whiney and perfect and waiting with baited breath for his command. Jack bottoms, gets all bratty and desperate, but he never- he never just-

Michael loves the sex they have, the push and pull and the equality of it all. He'd be quite happy with Jack for the rest of his life. He would. 

But as always Jack sees him, even when he doesn't want to be seen. 

"Oh- " Robby stammers, cock twitching. "I think we should probably wait for Jack before we do anything um-" 

Dennis flushes beet red and squirms. "Not that! Unless that's- I just meant- I guess I thought when it's gonna just be us that I would act like your puppy all the time even when were not doing sex stuff. Or?" 

"I mean-" Robby rubs the back of his neck. "That is what I was thinking yeah." 

Dennis nods, "Cool, yeah." 

"Do you want to try it?" 

He narrows his eyes as the kid avoids looking at him.

"I just…" 

"You can tell me puppy, it's okay." 

"I just don't want to mess up? Like maybe we do a trial run where- where I can still ask questions and you can tell me if you want something different. I want to be good." 

Robby frowns, "puppy you are go-" 

"I'm not though. I know I'm not. I was- sometimes I wish I was one of the hybrids who couldn't talk and then I wouldn't be so much trouble and everything would be simpler. I got in trouble a lot growing up Robby, I know I'm not good." 

As he speaks, Dennis' ears slowly fold back against his head, and Robby's heart breaks for him. Maybe this is what Jack meant when he said he wanted a rescue. Maybe he knew that Robby's bleeding heart would have no defence against this. 

"Okay pup, come on, lets go sit on the couch and have a little chat." 

Dennis' ears flatten fully, and he follows Robby to the couch like he's walking to his own grave. 

He sits the pup over his lap so his lets stretch across the cushions and runs a soothing hand through his hair and ears until the kid calms down a little. 

"Dens, listen to me okay? This is all super fun and exciting right? But it's also new for all of us. Theres going to be stuff we don't get right, or we try and don't like, and all three of us can change our minds at any time yeah? That doesn't make us bad. Me and Jack, well we'd prefer if you didn't throw our things about, break our plates and glasses, chew on our furniture or pee on our clothes-" 

Dennis takes the bait. "I would never do that." 

"I know Dens, because you're such a good boy right?" He ruffles Dennis' hair. "Heres what I'm thinking, which mind you puppy, might change when we start doing this because I've never lived with a hybrid before either- what I'm thinking is that it would be really nice to come home to you baby, to give you a little cuddle and maybe play a little, actually play, make some dinner and we both eat- maybe I can feed you little bits and you can sit by me and take it from my fingers, cuddle up with me while we watch TV or I do admin work on my laptop, if you need anything you can paw at me or whine or bark and maybe it could be a fun little game for us both to figure out what you need? I want to give you what you need Dens. We can talk about the sexual stuff later with Jack but… none of that means you can't speak if you want to, or need to. I'm not- this isn't- I don't want that. I want you to want to be like that with me, it won't work if you don't and that's okay too. Is that something you… want?" 

Dennis chews on his bottom lip. "Yeah, I really… I really want to try that. That sounds like… really good to me Robby." 

"Yeah puppy?" 

"Yeah. I was- I meant what I said before, I really like just being more like a proper hybrid? It's nice not to think simple sometimes." 

Like a dumb little pup. He thinks, but doesn't say yet. 

"Still wanna try it out? A little hybrid-" He waggles his eyebrows and Dennis puffs out a laugh, "-approach? How about until Jack wakes up, we give it a go and if you have any questions just speak up pup, and if either of us don't like anything we just say. A little trial run?" 

"Could we-" Dennis stops again, and Robby waits patiently until he finds his words. "-maybe we could like. You've just adopted me right? We could play like you're- like I am one of the hybrids without speech capacity? For a little bit." 

~

"Now puppy-"

Dennis is knelt in his kitchen, sat back on his heels and blinking up at Robby with the most adoring face he's ever seen, ears fully pricked up and waiting. 

"- you've been a very good boy so far. I know you're desperate to explore, but if you keep being such a good boy for me I promise I'll give you a treat, would you like that hmm? Would you like that Dens?" 

Dennis whines, following it up with a little excited yip as his tail swishes so hard it wiggles his body, just like at the store. 

Robby feels like he's gonna fucking pass out. He feels like he's on the precipice of getting everything he's ever fucking wanted and he's not sure what he's done to deserve it. Like on his birthday, when his bubbe would hand him his carefully wrapped present and for a second before he unwrapped it, it could be any of the things he'd been too shy to hint at, because he wouldn't want to be trouble. 

"Good boy. Here, you can have one now for sitting so good." The wiggles increase, and Dennis opens his mouth and carefully slips out his tongue. 

His cock twitches as he places the gummy bear into Dennis' mouth, waiting until he closes and sucks at his fingers a little before pulling back. Dennis hums happily. 

"That nice?" He ruffles Dennis' ears. "Come on let me show you the living room." 

Because he hasn't got his collar on yet- Michael thought best to wait for Jack- he slows his walk and drops his hand to play with Dennis' hair as he crawls besides him. When they make it through, Dennis looks to the dog bed, back to Robby, then back the bed and lets out these puffy excited whining noises. 

"Now what's all that about pup? Hmm? So dramatic. Go on then, go try your new bed." 

Dennis yips and tumbles into it, rolling around and stretching and rubbing his face all over it. Scent is important for omega hybrids, Robby has read, especially dog-hybrids. So he comes over and plays with his boy, ruffling his ears and roughhousing him a little until he hopes both of their scents are on the fabric. Right up until Dennis gets real squirmy, rubbing his legs together and-

Ohhhh. 

Robby narrows his eyes. 

"Puppy are you getting excited?" 

Dennis whines pitifully, looking up at Robby with big pitiful eyes. 

"No puppy, we can't-" He's interrupted by a louder whine and the spreading of legs. "Dens, no. We have to wait for Jack." 

Dennis pouts, looking ridiculously human when he does, and Robby is helpless to the laugh that bubbles out of him. 

"Come sit between my legs like a good pup and you can have a treat." 

Dennis contemplates this, but ultimately gives in and nods. Lovely. 

"Okay pup stay- that's right, good boy, stay there-" he makes his way to the sofa and sits. "Okayyy- come! Come boy!" 

And like a dream Dennis does, scrambling to him and nudging apart his legs to be able to sit on the floor between them, balancing his head on Robby's knee and peering up at him while his tail hits Robby's shin with each wag. He parts his little mouth, and FUCK does Robby wish the treat he could give him is his cock. Instead, he slips in another gummybear- green this time. 

"A little treat for a good little boy. Now, see this?" He points to the couch. "You're only allowed up here when we- me or Jack- say okay puppy?" 

Dennis pauses, blinking a little as he comes to. With two fingers he taps on Robby's knee and gently says his name. When Robby gives him the obvious all clear, he asks, "is that all the time? Or just when I'm like this?" 

"Oh- oh just when you're like this. It's- we don't have to-"

"No I think its fun, I was just wonderin' is all." 

"Okay then, sure, just when you're like this. I doubt Jack will do the same when its just you to though." 

Dennis nods, and then gives a little huff of a bark, butting his head against Robby's knee. 

"Okay, because it's new you can come up puppy, come on up you get, that's it, want to cuddle on my lap? Up puppy! Oh that's a god boy here have another treat." 

Dennis hums happily around Robby's fingers, his tongue- slightly rougher than a humans- wiggles between Robby's fingers. 

"Aren't you just the sweetest thing." He coos, pressing a kiss to Dennis' forehead and letting Dennis' suck on his fingers. 

~

"Well, isn't this a lovely sight?" Jack mumbles from the doorway, his sleep soft eyes crinking when he yawns, ending it in a smile. 

"Jack!" Dennis yips, completely forgetting, it seems, his promise to be quiet and trying to wiggle out of Robby's hold. He lets him, watching with delight as he bounds over to Jack and nearly knocks him sideways with the force at which he goes in for a hug. 

Jack lets out a big old man huff. 

"Woke up to see you'd snook out on me." He mumbles as he presses a kiss into the kids curls. 

"Robby came and got me." Dennis says, snitch.

"Did he now?" He looks up at Jack, but Jack's eyes are filled to be brim with fondness. "Hope you didn't get up to too much fun without me?"" 

"Well," he drawls, watching Dennis tense up in Jack's arms. "He did get extra squirmy playing about in his little bed, but he was a good boy and waited for you." 

"Oh really? Well I think we should reward such good behaviour don't you Robby?

I do think Jack is more brazen with it (he drives a Santa Fe I dont CAREEEEE) and talks openly about how messy his dog is, "I need more stimulating activities, he's always so excited and can't ever calm down" and makes Dennis squirm as he answers questions that coworkers ask him.

Robbby is...Robby is quietly alarming with it. Blink and you miss it type of teasing. Someone asks him if he's got any plans this weekend and he doesn't even bat an eye responding, "No, bad weather on the forecast. My pup doesn't like storms so we'll be at home." and Dennis kinda falters because a few people know he has aversions to storms, but not many. Or someone is asking about how the puppy phase is going bc they're thinking about getting a dog (Langdon is screaming don't do it in the background) and Robby says "Oh, I got lucky. My boy's never causing too much trouble. I could go without him licking me as much as he does"

(or alternatively "I could go without him peeing every time he gets so excited but you can't really blame the sweet thing")

No because puppy Dennis getting so excited when he hears their keys turning in the lock when he's been home alone. Those keys mean his daddy and dad are home and they're going to tell him that he's such a good boy and give him kisses and belly rubs and if he's exceptionally good he might even get something in his puppy parts.

So he just learns to associate those keys with meaning he's about to get showered in praise and affection and attention. That he's about to be reminded of whose good boy he is.

But on the flip side...oof bratty Dennis who has been having a very off day, hasn't been taking any breaks or checking in with his doms, purposefully having a little more bite behind his words. After a particularly nasty encounter or show of attitude, he's alone and trying to get some charting done. He hears those keys moving and glances over to see Robby or Jack casually tossing them up and down in the air, eyes on him, smiling at him with a little more intensity, something borderline scary, and it sends a shiver down his spine. Because he knows he's been caught and crossed a line and now he's going to be put right back into his place of being their perfect boy.

Jack is sooooo good at just calling Dennis out on his bullshit. He doesn't give him time to talk around it or make up excuses. He just calls Dennis out for doing the exact things he's not supposed to be doing.

"You're tired because you're spending your days off out on that farm instead of actually resting."

"You won't tell people no because you don't think you're allowed to, so I'm telling you no and you can blame me."

Which means most of the time, Jack and Dennis don't have to have those long conversations about Things that he needs to work on. Jack's new hobby is Dennis and Dennis's new hobby is taking care of himself.

Food is always going to be hard with Dennis. Food insecurity, food waste, that struggle of never learning what he actually enjoys fueling his body with. Food for him is a luxury at times, something that he doesn't indulge in because money can always be spent in better ways. Smarter ways.

Jack takes away the thinking aspect of it. He sees that hole in Dennis's behavioral patterns and figures out how to address it without making it a Thing. He prefers not to make things a Thing if he doesn't have to.

But this? This is a Thing.

"Then why aren't you?"

And Dennis is sputtering and trying to find the words to get Jack to back off, to throw him off of his current attack. But Jack just looks down at him with one of these slutty things -

and waits, patiently, for Dennis to say something. Anything. Get one word out, kid, come on.

"If you know what you're supposed to be doing, why are you not doing it? If you want to be over my knee so bad, kiddo, you can just ask me." You know I always give you what you want."

"That's not-" Dennis tries to protest but it's really no use. His voice is too high pitched to hide the lie. And Jack is next to impossible to lie to anyway.

"It's not? Not even a little?"

"No."

Jack picks up whatever snack he had just placed in front of Dennis and holds it out in front of his mouth with a smug expression.

"No? Okay. How about this? You eat and then I'll give you a reward. And we can both pretend you're really upset about it later. How does that sound?"