<em>That bitch</em>, Min Yu thought bitterly. He tried not to let his expression shift into anything ugly as Frederick told him he was seeing the opera with. Min Yu almost succeeded in it. His mouth and the hold of his gaze retained his impassivity, but there was subtle tightening at the corner of his eyes. Just a small twitch, but it was enough of a crack in his expression to let Frederick know Min Yu wasn’t pleased with his sire’s companion for the night. It seemed silly that Min Yu would even care who Frederick dallied with. He hated the opera and Min Yu had been particularly frosty these past few months, shunning any and all forms of affection between them. Even on the few rare nights that Min Yu did show up to share Frederick’s bed he curled up at the edge of it and growled at any suggestion of contact or conversation.<br/><br/>But it hadn’t always been like that.<br/><br/>Min Yu didn’t know what to call the thing that went on between them. They were sire and fledgling, but they were sometimes more than that. As a human Min Yu had never had the sort of relationship he had with Frederick. During his sophomore year of high school his family had stayed in a city long enough for Min Yu to make friends and get asked on his first date that had led to having his first and only boyfriend. It’d been all movies and unsupervised parties out in the woods, shy touching and slow kisses. But that had fallen apart when Min Yu’s family had packed up and pursued another hunt. After that Min Yu had never gotten the chance to date again, was never in the same place long enough to take friends, and so had just started hooking up whenever the opportunity popped up.<br/><br/>He wasn’t dating his sire. Frederick wasn’t his boyfriend. Going to see operas and ballets, attending auctions and art gallery openings might have seemed like dates, but they never felt like it. They felt more like lessons. And it wasn’t like Frederick was a just a hook up either, because Min Yu woke up every night and saw him. They lived together in the same house and they usually ate together. Frederick tried to teach him things (though Min Yu just wasn’t a good student or listener), took care of all his needs, and protected him from the rest of Arklow. It wasn’t just sex.<br/><br/>Min Yu supposed Frederick would be superfluous and call them something like lover and beloved if he pushed for his sire to name it, but Min Yu never broached the subject. They just didn’t talk about it much. It happened, but only when Min Yu wanted and he couldn’t deny the thrill he got out of that. They only had sex when Min Yu pressed himself into Frederick and asked for it. Min Yu didn’t know why he had started it between them in the first place, why he had curled up in Frederick’s lap one night five years and knocked a book out of his sire’s hand and asked for a kiss.<br/><br/>Maybe it was because he had always found something enticing about the older man, even when Min Yu had been mortal and terrified of him. Maybe it had been the way Min Yu had seen how Frederick watched him when he was sure Min Yu wasn’t paying any attention. Or maybe he had done it just because it had seemed like the right thing to do when he had been freshly turned, lost and wanting comfort; needing comfort – seeking proof that Frederick liked him and wanted him. That his sure wasn’t going to destroy him or leave. Min Yu had never been a very good fledgling from the start, but he had still been a fledgling. Still was, technically. And at one point he had reveled in Frederick’s power, had wanted to roll around and bask in it. But that hadn’t lasted very long. He’d gotten over his clingy phase in what seemed like weeks. And then Frederick had become someone not to be pleased, but someone to be challenged.<br/><br/>When Min Yu had sex with Frederick now he didn’t do it because it seemed like the right thing. He just did it because he wanted it and liked how easy it was to entice Frederick into screwing him, despite all the rough patches and difficulties in their relationship – whatever that relationship between them was. But their relationship was changing, and not in the direction Min Yu wanted it to go. Frederick wanted to give it a name.<em>Mates</em>.<br/><br/>Min Yu stared up at Frederick’s as his sire’s large hand cupped his face and the pad of his thumb caressed his soft and pale skin. There wasn’t anything in Min Yu’s eyes. They were just dark and reflective, like looking into a mirror with the bathroom door closed and the light turned off. It had just been the evening before that Frederick had brought up the subject of bonding. Min Yu had promised to<em>think about it </em>to get his sure to back off about it. And Min Yu had given it a lot of thought during the day. He had a lot of thoughts about it, and he had decided to do something about them. Min Yu had crafted all his thoughts into a risky but well laid out plan. Frederick may have thought bonding was the only option they had left, but Min Yu had crafted out another option. And he was choosing his, whether or not Frederick would be pleased with it. And he knew his sire wouldn’t be.<br/><br/>He closed his eyes and latched onto the fading notes of Frederick’s accent. Much as he hated his sire most of the time, even Min Yu couldn’t deny that there was something sweet and soft to Frederick’s voice, especially when his words were wrapped in his accent. It was good to hear that his sire was tired. Min Yu could only hope that would serve him well when Frederick learned what he had done – what he was going to go do, once Frederick was out of the mansion.<br/><br/>“Yeah. I’ve thought about it,” Min Yu said softly and nuzzled the side of his face into Frederick’s gentle hand. He blinked his eyes opened and looked up at Frederick for a moment, turning his expression soft and slightly vulnerable. Frederick always told him not to lie, not to even try it, but Min Yu had learned how to lie best from watching Frederick interact with all those people like Sorcha.<br/><br/>Min Yu stepped closer to his sire and reached up for the scarf. He artfully looped it around Frederick’s neck and settled it into place in an artful manner. When he had finished he set his thin hands on his sire’s broad shoulders and rocked to his tippy toes so he could bury his face into the crook of Frederick’s neck, taking in the scent of his soap and the softness of the scarf.<br/><br/>“Will you be home before sun up?” Min Yu asked. There was a tiny edge of plea in his voice. How strange Min Yu would be so impassive and then act so sugary. How he would refuse and deny and ignore Frederick's prior talks of bonding and now suddenly encourage it. But that’s how he so often was with Frederick. Cold and than hot, sharp and than soft.<br/><br/>“We can talk more about bonding when you get back. And I’ll do something special for you,” he whispered as he moved his face close enough to let his lips drag over Frederick’s jaw without really kissing him. After a second Min Yu let himself drop back down flat on his feet.