#zerotsuba

"Good to see you again, Little Red."

Subaki hated his face, the way the dastard's lone eye seemed to pierce through him to his very soul. The redhead struggled desperately on the ground, attempting any maneuver to throw Niles off of him, but the Nohrian simply placed his hand—that filthy hand—to keep Subaki pinned to the ground.

"Keep your hands off of me!"

"Oho, but on the contrary, this is what? The third time I've caught you on Nohrian territory? In this same spot, my area to patrol, in fact." Subaki loathed his voice, the way it drew out agonizingly, as if every syllable were pointed to taunt him. "If I had to take a guess, you were anticipating an encounter like this, maybe even hoping. So no, I won't keep my hands to myself. Admit it—you've been waiting for this very moment."

"I'd rather be tortured for the rest of my life then even entertain something like that." He tried bucking out of resistance, but Niles simply pressed into him, keeping Subaki trapped in place.

"Oh, don't worry, I can make that happen," Niles smirked, sending a trickle through his spin. "Drag you back to the depths of our finest dungeons where you'll be under my personal supervision, my very own canary. I've always imagined what this pretty face would look like crying with raw screams through gritted teeth. And the best part—you'd get to see me every single day."

"You're sick," Subaki spat, only to watch as that grin grew ever wider.

Niles simply shrugged. "Oh, no need for flattery. But since we're here, have you ever had the pleasure of owning a pet cat before?"

"I'm allergic."

"Heh, pity. Perhaps I can torment you by filling your cell with the fluffiest kittens," the thief chuckled lightly to himself, the first normal response Subaki might have ever observed from him. "But anyway, I've had plenty of stray cats as friends growing up. And something I find myself looking back at fondly is how I managed to find companionship in familiarity with them. Isn't that just touching?"

Subaki blinked up at the other, the image of someone like him befriending animals a bit absurd. "I'm not sure how to answer that."

"Aren't you the slightest bit curious, though?"

"Not really."

"Well, you don't get a choice," Niles smirked, yet there was something behind his expression that Subaki found himself failing to grasp in its entirety. "It's fascinating how even when a cat is at their most desperate, they still find time to toy with their prey. And more often then not, they even let them go. 'Why?', I've always wondered. And it wasn't until I found myself in the same position many times that I realized there's a certain thrill in doing so."

"All I'm getting is that you're a sadist with a twisted sense of joy."

"Hm, maybe. The idea of giving them a taste of what could be does appeal to me, yes. But that's not the point—because there's power in being the one to grant mercy. And it gives me a.. specific sense of being, one that I enjoy... if you'd like to interpret it that way."

Subaki creased his eyes. "So then grant me mercy and release me."

"Oh, of course, my little canary," Niles lowered his head, his lone eye boring through Subaki's very being, "but let's not forget that I'm the cat in this moment... and you're my prey—my toy."

Subaki froze as Niles lifted a balled-up fist into the air. Expecting the worst, he squeezed his eyes shut, a last intake of breath to soften the blow.

But it never came.

"AagHH—Hah-ahahaha—?!"

His vocal chords reacted in choked panic before his body could even process what was happening—Niles fingers were on him, and not just touching, but tickling. It started exploratory, little touches that puzzled Subaki as Niles thumbed across his clothing, but soon quickly escalated. Subaki's body reacted with each little touch, jerking against his fingers and squirming to get away; it was abundantly clear that this man had done this before, the way his fingers effortlessly danced to across Subaki's torso to elicit different sounds with just barely an indent of effort.

"HaH—aH! W-What are you dohohing?!"

"Granting mercy," Niles chuckled with a lick of his lips, his hands expertly chasing the way Subaki's body shifted, easily piercing Subaki's clothing with sensations from simple pokes to his ribs and a squeeze to his side. "It comes in many forms, you see.. this being just one of them.

"N-Noho! This is—ahahaha—ridiculous!" Subaki's protests dissolved into uncontrolled laughter as Niles' fingers found a particularly sensitive spot along his ribs. The knight's composure shattered entirely, his attempts to maintain dignity crumbling with every twitch and jerk. "A-Ahahaha!"

"Ridiculous?" Niles mused, his voice dripping with amusement. "I think it's rather fitting for someone like you." His fingers skittered upward, testing along Subaki's sides.

"Ahaha—wait, not theHEHEre!" Subaki's protests grew more frantic as Niles discovered his underarms, his body arching futilely against the ground.

"My, my, this birdie can sing," Niles' grin turned downright wicked. He lightened his touch to maddening, feather-light strokes that somehow felt worse than the more aggressive tickling.

Subaki's laughter turned breathless, tears pricking at the corners of his eyes. "I-I'll—I'll get you bahahack for this! Nohoho!"

"Will you now?" Niles paused, giving Subaki a moment to catch his breath, though his hands remained threateningly in place. "That almost sounds like you're planning to return. Again."

Subaki's face flushed crimson, whether from exertion or embarrassment, he couldn't tell. "That's not—"

"Save it." Niles withdrew his hands entirely and stood, extending one to help Subaki up. "Run along now, little canary. Before I change my mind about that mercy."

Subaki stared at the offered hand, suspicious, but eventually took it. As he was pulled to his feet, Niles leaned in close enough to whisper.

"Same time next week?"

Before Subaki could respond, or process the odd flutter in his chest, Niles was already melting back into the shadows of the forest, leaving only his infuriating laugh echoing between the trees.

Subaki huffed as he brushed the dirt from his body, his normally sleek hair a disheveled mess. He hurried back to the border, questioning why he even came to this place as often as he did. And yet, he could barely make out the sound of Niles' voice in his head, tempting him: