Beta'ed by 'xlinnex' aka 'AmbiguousThoughts.'

x x x

Chapter 6

Kurt looked unsure, but curious at that suggestion. He smiled at the curiosity. At least Kurt seemed open to the idea and because of that he was going to give him the most he could from the experience.

"Wait here!" he said with restrained excitement, going to his hall closet to pull out some extra things.

Once he had what he needed, he went back to where the blanket had been laid out and set his things down. With them on hand, he turned to his CD shelf and found one that would help best set the environment. Sliding the CD into his stereo, he pressed play and smiled again when the sounds of nature and a stream flowed from the speakers softly.

He turned to see Kurt's ears perk forward with interest at the noise, eyes looking around the room. He resisted an amused laugh to turn his attention back to the things he had brought from his closet. Grabbing the small fan, he set it up and put it at an angle where the air would blow against them gently like a spring breeze.

With that done, he grabbed the two cans of air freshener and sprayed the pine scented one lightly, keeping an eye on Kurt in case the smell was too strong. Hybrids may not have as keen of senses as their animal counterparts but they were still higher than a human's.

Kurt's nose twitched lightly when the smell reached him, though he didn't seem bothered by it. Just curious like a kitten as he sniffed lightly. With the other can, he sprayed a few times to fill the room with a light lilac scent.

"It smells like outside!" Kurt said with surprise, taking a few small steps closer.

"That's the point." He grinned as he set the cans aside and looked around. Deeming it good enough he turned back to Kurt and approached him slowly.

Kurt's ears fell flat at his approach, his slim body tensing a little as he watched him. He stopped in his steps and held out a hand.

"Come now. Have I hurt you yet?" he asked gently, keeping eye contact.

Kurt fidgeted for about a minute before breathing deeply and exhaling slowly, surprising him when a pale hand reached out for his. He didn't move, instead letting Kurt come to him. When the slightly smaller hand touched his he wanted to pull Kurt in for a tight hug but resisted, knowing it would scare him.

"Thank you, Kurt. I'm happy you trust me in even the smallest amount. You're so brave," he praised the younger male, feeling his earlier affection grow when he took in how Kurt seemed to brighten a little at his words.

Giving the hand a testing tug, he led Kurt to the blanket when there was no sign of resistance and had him sit before he gathered the food from the table. He set it out between them before sitting down as well, holding back a small laugh when he noticed that Kurt would lean into the breeze when the fan passed air over him.

Once Kurt started eating he had to supervise to make sure that the still recovering hybrid didn't eat too fast or too much. As he watched Kurt completely relax, eating carefully and quietly, he hesitated to bring up what he wanted to ask. But he wanted to know—needed to know.

"Kurt?" he spoke slowly, setting his own bowl down.

Kurt replied with a questioning hum, glancing up at him.

"Why...were you outside yesterday? Especially in that storm?" he asked as delicately as possible, keeping an eye on Kurt's body language. He wasn't about to make him talk about it if he wasn't ready yet.

Kurt paused in his next bite, eyes widening a little. When a look of shame crossed over the pale face he wanted to take the question back.

"I...I don't know. I think I did something really bad. My foster parents said something about how I was getting too close to the age when the heat started and they didn't want to deal with it. I don't know what they meant but it must be really bad because Mr. Tom took me outside and l-left...," Kurt trailed off, pulling his knees to his chest and wrapping his arms and tail around them.

He took this information in with a frown. Foster parents? Well... that explained a little. He knew that there could be some pretty bad foster families out there, for hybrids and human children alike. There were people who only did it for the money and the government didn't get too involved since it kept the streets clean.

Gritting his teeth against the anger that was welling up in him, he tried to take more information from what Kurt had said. 'Age when the heat started'? If that was true then that should put Kurt between seventeen and eighteen. Most male hybrids reached their 'sexual maturity' around their eighteenth year. It was common knowledge. To everyone. So was the fact that when it came to the foster homes caring for hybrids, the family only had to care for the child until they were sixteen.

At sixteen hybrids were allowed to be 'for sale' as a general rule. So why hadn't Kurt's foster family set that up for him if they didn't want to deal with something like him going into heat as he got older? Sighing silently in frustration at these people, he was sure he knew the answer. The longer Kurt stayed, the more money they would receive.

It didn't take long for him to figure out why the family also decided to just dump Kurt instead of trying to find him a new home when he got too close to eighteen. There was no guarantee of when the heat would actually start once a hybrid was between the seventeenth and eighteenth year mark. And there was no guarantee on how long it would take to sell an abused hybrid—if they even bothered to risk it, which clearly they didn't.

Also, until the first heat, there would no telling whether Kurt would have more Tom tendencies or Queen—knowing really did help when it came to dealing with a hybrid in heat. Hybrids were a bit odd as when it came to the genders of their animal half and their human half... They weren't always the same. It was a bit of a myth that hybrids born from a hybrid mother would have a female animal and a male animal if the father was the hybrid. Since no one bothered to actually experiment with the theory it would probably stay a myth.

"Kurt?" he spoke up slowly after pulling himself from his thoughts. "Do...you know how old you are?"

Kurt looked up at him through his lashes again, blinking a few times before shaking his head. He had to bite back an annoyed sigh. If he ever got his hands on the people who did this to Kurt...

"Kurt. You—this isn't your fault. You weren't bad at all. Your foster parents are the bad ones." He tried to keep his voice even as he spoke, not wanting his anger to bleed through. He had to be calm and assuring for Kurt. "They never should have—"

He didn't get to finish what he was saying as his phone suddenly went off, distracting him. Quickly pulling it out, he looked at the screen to see that it was one of his patient's owners. He jumped to his feet, answering the call as he moved toward the kitchen. The call only took a couple of minutes before he hung up and moved to gather his things. He was needed for a house call.

He had forgotten about Kurt for a moment until he caught sight of him on his feet, looking scared as nervous eyes followed his movement to the door. As he opened the door to leave, he looked back at Kurt again to see him coming toward him slowly. "I'll be back!"

Stepping out, he paused in closing the door when he saw that Kurt was still coming toward him. Worried that he might try to leave, he tried to sound as reassuring as possible in his haste.

"Just stay here, okay?" he said with a quick smile before closing the door.

xXx

Kurt's heart was beating wildly as he made for the door, only to stop in his tracks when the door slammed shut. Where was the man going? Did he find his old home? Was that what the call had been about? Taking a few more steps forward, he stopped again at the sharp click of the lock. He had been locked in? Remembering what he had been told, 'just stay here...', he took a few steps back before sinking to his knees, determined to stay where he had been told to.

Everything so far had been so confusing and unusual for him. He didn't know what to make of it, though he couldn't deny that it made him uncomfortable. Everything was so different from home and he couldn't help feeling like he was being tricked or tested. He wasn't sure if he was passing or if the test would continue until the end and then he would be punished for whatever he had done wrong throughout.

Moving to sit on his butt, he brought his knees up and hugged them to his chest again as a small whimper climbed up his throat. Now he had to go to the bathroom, but he was too frightened to move. Plus, he didn't even know where he was supposed to go. Hopefully the man would come back soon.

Fifteen minutes later, Kurt found himself sobbing into his arms with shame and dread at the feel of the warm puddle spreading under him.

xXx

He hated the flu season if only because hybrid owners seemed to overreact a lot when it came to their pets getting sick. With that in mind, he made a mental note to make sure to give Kurt a shot as soon as possible to prevent him from catching the flu. He wouldn't have the time to care for Kurt if he ended up sick, what with the others, and Kurt was at a higher risk of getting it from him since he knew he had a few patients who would for sure fall sick before winter was over.

A small smile found its way to his face at the thought of Kurt. He really hoped that Kurt had finished eating once he had left. As he made it to his door he quickly fished out his keys and let himself in. Only to pause in the doorway, smile falling from his face, at the sight of Kurt crying on the floor.

"Kurt?" he questioned with concern as he quickly entered and watched Kurt's whole body tense lightly before he started crying harder. He wanted to ask what was wrong but got his answer when he took a step forward and Kurt shrank away from him, the sight and smell of urine catching his attention. Oh.

Setting his bag down, he shrugged off his coat and moved slowly to crouch down at Kurt's side. He took in the way the hybrid trembled before moving to wrap an arm around shaking shoulders.

"Hey... It's okay. We all have accidents," he said softly into a furry ear, watching with a light smile as it twitched against his warm breath. "Come on. Let's get you cleaned up."

Kurt didn't fight him as he moved his hands to thin arms and pulled the shorter boy to his feet. When a sniffling Kurt met his gaze with watery eyes, the affection he had for him grew. Guiding Kurt with a light hand on his arm, he led him to the bathroom.

"This is the bathroom. Now you know where it is the next time you have to go." He smiled at Kurt as he waved an arm around the room.

Kurt took the room in before looking back to him with a small frown. "But...this is your bathroom."

Blinking slowly at the statement, he gave the younger man a curious look. "Yes...it is. But you can use it."

"B-But—" Kurt started to stutter, clearly worried, until he had to stop him. He didn't want to hear what else Kurt had to have possibly dealt with at the hands of those people at the moment. Right now he just wanted to get Kurt cleaned up. And groomed a little while he was at it.

"Kurt, no. Let's just...shower," he said lightly, moving a hand to the small of Kurt's back to guide him toward the tub.

Kurt's eyes suddenly went wide as the hybrid came to a sudden halt before turning to look at him with pleading eyes. "I'm so sorry! Please! I-I w-won't do it again."

"I—why are you apologizing?" he asked, confused, as he foolishly continued to try to push Kurt toward the tub.

"I don't n-normally wet the floor! I promise!" Kurt gasped desperately, eyes shooting the shower head a frightened look. "P-Please! I d-don't n-need a shower!"

He opened his mouth to ask what Kurt was talking about only to pause, closing his mouth a second later when something Kurt had said earlier came to mind. About cold water. A frown fell over his face as he quickly released the hybrid from his hold and watched as Kurt nearly collapsed to the floor but managed to catch himself.

"Kurt, I wasn't going to... I—I only wanted to get you cleaned up," he explained softly when nervous blue eyes flicked hesitantly to his face. Kurt didn't respond to him in any way.

He sighed lightly before chewing on his bottom lip thoughtfully. He needed to figure out a way to get Kurt to trust him enough for a bath, at the very least. Because not only did Kurt need the urine cleaned off before he got a rash, but he just needed to be cleaned in general. From the state of his hair he looked as though he hadn't had a bath in at least a week.

"Kurt?" He waited until he had Kurt's full attention before continuing. "I'd really like to get you washed up. You'll feel so much better and I could finish my examination to make sure you're healthy. If you'd like...you can have a bath. I'll run the water and you can choose the temperature you want it at—I'll even add some of my mom's rose scented bath bubbles if you'd like."

Kurt looked away to stare at his hands for a minute before answering softly. "What are bath bubbles?"

He opened his mouth to explain before trying a different approach, hoping it would work. "Take a bath and I'll show you."

Kurt looked skeptical, eyes seeming to take him in as a whole while trying to figure him out.

"If you don't like it, we'll stop and think of something else. Okay?" he asked carefully, once again keeping eye contact.

Kurt stared back for a couple of minutes before slowly looking away again. "Okay."

-Chapter 6 End-