⋆✴︎˚cat ⋆˚꩜

You turn your head slightly to plant a soft kiss against his slightly sweaty hairline, “I missed you too, Peter.” You lift your hand to scratch his scalp softly and you swear he's about to start purring against your skin.  

He lifts his head from you and surveys the variety of makeup items lying about the vanity. “Where are you going?”

“I have a girls night tonight, remember? We’re gonna go to the bar that's across the coffee shop you like.” 

Recognition flashes in his eyes as you mention this to him again, “No—yeah I remember you telling me about that. I forgot, I’m sorry.” 

“It’s okay,” you smile at him through the mirror. “Was the night bad tonight?” 

“Very,” he says as he starts peeling the red and blue suit off and replacing it with a pair of sweatpants and an old shirt with a chemistry joke printed on the front of it. “But it's better now I’m here with you.” 

You smile at him over your shoulder as you start applying primer to your skin.

“Can I sit with you while you get ready?” 

“Of course, Pete. You don't gonna ask.”

He grabs the small ottoman you keep in the corner of the bedroom and uses that to sit next to you. Neither of you say much due to Peter’s exhaustion and your concentration, and instead let the music fill the silence between you both. 

As you reach for your blush—the one makeup item you really spurge on because the formula is incomparable—you accidentally knock it over, sending it tumbling to its end. You close your eyes just waiting to hear the sound of the packaging shattering on the floor, but it never comes. You dare to peak an eye open and see the product safely cocooned in Peter's hand. 

“Peter! You saved my blush!” You beam at him as he carefully places it back onto the desk, this time closer to the middle just in case. You lean over your seat to pepper kisses across his face. “Thank you, thank you, thank you baby.”  

He laughs and as you pull away, you notice the obvious pink tint now staining his cheeks. “It was nothing,” he says as he awkwardly pulls on the end of his shirt. “If I couldn’t save your makeup, then I don’t think I’d be qualified to save people.” 

“That Peter tingle of yours is no joke,” you proclaim before giving him one more kiss, this time to his lips. It doesn’t take him long to register the kiss and reciprocate it back, bringing his hand up to rest against the side of your neck and pull you slightly closer. You gently smile into the kiss, before reluctantly pulling from him, but he chases your lips, wanting more. “I have to finish getting ready, Pete.”

He sighs dramatically, leaning back, “Fine.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll give you double the kisses when I get back.” 

“Triple.”

You laugh but nod, “Triple the kisses it is then.” 

You start adding the finishing touches to the makeup, completing the look to match your outfit. You set the last product down and stand up from the chair to do a couple of turns for Peter now that you're fully dressed with the makeup down. “What do you think?”

“You look… stunning.” He whispers as his eyes scan every detail you put into your outfit tonight. He stands from the ottoman, intertwines your fingers, then pulls you gently so you’re standing in front of him. “I don’t know what I did to deserve you, but I’m grateful.”

You smile up at him and tenderly squeeze his hand three times. He’s looking down at you with such devoted love that you can’t stop the heat spreading across your face. “Probably all that good karma that comes from being a hero.” 

He laughs quietly, pressing a feather light kiss to your lips, not wanting to ruin the makeup you spent so long working on. Your phone pinging multiple times pulls your attention away from him and you read the text from your friend telling you the uber you're all sharing is out front. 

“Okay, I gotta go.”

“You’ll call me if you need anything, right?” 

“Always.” You press one last lingering kiss to his lips, “I love you.”

“I love you too, baby. Be safe.”

“Leon?” you mumbled, cracking your eyes open, voice coated heavy with sleep and medication. His scent was strong enough to relax you, it always did, admittedly. His face carried a twisted hollowness that was etched into it, but as soon as your sweet voice fell on his ears, his tail began to swish side to side, and the adrenaline that was hammered into him vanished.

“I’m home, sweetheart,” Leon kicked his shoes off, placing himself in front of you, crouching.

“You’re back early,” you whispered, eyes big and dilated, he could almost see his outline in them. Usually they were sly, cold and calculating, always figuring out your next exit. But now, you had completely surrendered to the pain. Kitten-like and adorable.

“Needed to see you,” he said simply, his eyes flicked across you, searching for any fault or discomfort as wolves do when caring for their pack. He placed his arms on the couch, leaning against them, tilting his head in the same direction in which you were leaning against the pillows. Scenting you and nuzzling into the crook of your neck was his biggest desire, but in your fragile condition he was limited.

However, even if you weren’t injured, scaring you away from him was a deep-rooted fear that had rotted in the back of his mind. Losing the only sense of warmth that he could hold in within a cold and disheartening world like this—it was an unbearable thought to him.

“You worry too much,” you shook your head slightly, but as soon as you tried to sit up to pet him, a stinging hot pain scorched right through your side, and an unfiltered gasp flew from your lips. You instinctively folded back in on yourself, hand shooting to your side where the pain was blooming, tail puffed up.

You had only been here for a few days now, after a catastrophe in Eastern Europe where you caught yourself in crossfire with the BSAA. A group of brutes, you always thought, brutes on steroids even, and unfortunately, you had gotten on their nerves for too long. Long enough for Chris Redfield himself to take you down, despite his knowledge of your relationship with Leon. Of course, cat hybrids enjoy teasing, testing boundaries, how much they can push before you snap. Bear hybrids, like the Redfields, don’t enjoy threatening behaviour in the slightest.

The result of that is now clear in your current state.

Leon’s hand reached under your chin, bringing it up to look at him. You met his sharp blue eyes, cold and icy, and your expression relaxed, eyes curious and soft.

“Hey. I know you’ll get through this. You’re a brave girl,” he cooed, his fingers brushing along your cheek, “and I’m too scared to lose you again.”

Words weren’t exactly your friends, they never left your mouth correctly, landing flat and monotonous. His words weren’t vulnerable often, and this pitiful hatred towards yourself built up when you couldn’t find the correct vocabulary that was suited to handling these sorts of conversations. 

Your eyes followed his fingers, then, letting him rub your ears. A soft purring cadence left you, but you were far too overcome in exhaustion to be embarrassed about it. So, instead, your fingers twirling around the floppy parts of his hair before letting go.

“Can I see your injury, baby?” he asked, pressing a kiss to your forehead. You nodded slowly, shifting yourself carefully to allow him to pull up the loose shirt (his), and reveal the blood-soaked bandages, some of it dried and patchy on your skin. Tracing the blood was muddied violet bruises, blossoming across your side.

“Oh, kitty,” he examined, fingers hovering above the wound, “I think you might’ve torn your stitches. Let me stitch you up again.”

“You don’t have to do all of this for me, Leon. I can handle myself,” you pushed his hand away, tail swishing once.

His ears dropped. Pushing away his assistance when you were essentially dying on his couch, was a new level of stubborn he had never seen before. Sure, you had your cold moments when the two of you came across each other on missions but there were glances that didn’t go unnoticed, paths cleared that were appreciated and ammo that was left as gifts. Cats were sly and calculating whereas wolves were pack-dependent and able to conquer long distances. However, the two relied on dusk, intertwining the polar opposites. Wolves relied on each other. Cats were territorial.

Trusting him, he knew, was something that couldn’t be repaired if broken.

“Don’t say that. You know, if I didn’t find you in time, you would’ve been—” his voice raised, but then he stopped, his sigh felt on your skin, “C’mon, sweetheart. Don’t start playing this game with me. Not right now.”           

You let out a grumble before rolling your eyes and resting your head back onto the pillow in defeat. He smiled a little at your surrender before pushing himself up to grab the med kit from the bathroom.

From your small stay here, you noticed how untouched everything went in his apartment. The way the light slipped from his curtains and highlighted every dust particle floating aimlessly in the air. It made you feel like you were in a collection of his life, a museum, rather than his home. His cupboards were empty, apart from a few standard cans. He only filled them up due to your presence. His vase was empty. He only placed flowers in them due to your presence.

Maybe you bleeding out on his couch wasn’t exactly the way he wished to have you in his apartment, but his instinctive urge to take care of you overrode everything else.

“I’m going to numb the area, okay?” he warned softly, peeling back the bandages and dabbing antiseptic onto a cloth.

“Just be careful, Leon,” you murmured, when there was no one else you trusted more than him. He knew that already, considering the way your tail curled around him.

“Of course,” he said before cleaning your wound. The antiseptic flared pain into your side again, your face tensing before rubbing anaesthesia into your skin. While he waited for it to numb, he tucked your hair out of your face, his thumb slowly brushing under your eye.

“Okay, just going to prepare the needle now. Everything still okay, hun?”

You nodded, tail curling tighter around him.

“Good girl,” he whispered as he worked the needle through your skin, the words melting like honey through your ears.

You laid there, quiet and still, his perfect patient. His arms shifted around you, clearly tense.

“Just this last bit, can you do that for me, kitty?” he asked, his other hand resting above your thigh.

“Yes, Dr Kennedy,” you teased, offering him a small smirk. He shook his head slightly with a laugh, his chest easing. Your stomach fluttered seeing the boyish smile loosen something youthful within him.

“All done,” he packed up the kit, finishing by wrapping you in clean bandages, “Now c’mon, lemme on the couch too.”

You scooted over, and Leon lowered himself carefully behind you, his arms caging you in a hungry hug. His wagging tail tickled your leg and you soon felt something warm dragging through your hair and ears.

“Are you grooming me?” you turned around, raising an eyebrow at the old man, who had a shit-eating smile on his face. Utterly whipped by the pretty kitty laid in front of him. The mysterious one that had him on his toes every time he came across her, the one that always teased him for always remaining one step behind her. Nevertheless, your age was no match for his experience, and despite how much you claimed he could never catch up, he always did—and faster than expected. A quality like that, of course, had you most curious.

“Gotta make sure my favourite patient is satisfied,” his eyes focused on yours, half-lidded and sleepy on an overdose of your affection. His devotion always surprised you; it was unconditional almost, binded and eternal. Wolves were incredibly loyal, but loyal to a cat was an anomaly, a doubt within you that kept you pondering whether if the universe really had fated the two of you together or it was just tragic luck.

“Hm, okay, puppy,” you pouted, turning back, a smirk playing on your face.

“Puppy?” he grumbled, a faint pink dusting his cheeks. He continued licking you anyway, his grey stubble brushing through your hair until a small purr began to vibrate through your chest.

a/n: sorry this isn't up to my usual standard. just wanted 2 post something before i get busy again. this leawn isnt my usual leawn but whatever... im gonna be writing a mercenary reader x leon soon... this is just the prototype