Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Rumi clung onto the back of the blue tiger as it trotted across the sky, a stupid smile plastered on its face. The creature had seemed so pleased with itself when, after days of stalking her balcony to no avail, she accepted the letter it had dropped before her feet. She didn’t think it was a stretch to say the tiger probably thought it had single-handedly gotten her to accept. Either it believed she had taken pity or it had successfully endeared itself to her, and those lines of thinking weren’t entirely incorrect. Even when she had ignored the letters, she sometimes ended up letting the tiger into her room where it would curl up next to the bed and watch her as she worked. Regardless, it was the tiger that she was beginning to grow fond of and not that condescending demon.

Jinu must have placed a curse on her or some sort of enchantment when the Saja Boys disrupted their fan sign event. There was a feeling she hadn't been able to shake since then: a buzz under her skin that refused to let her have any peace. It had to be his fault. The suspicion that the feeling would go away upon seeing him again wouldn’t leave her alone. 

While compulsion goaded her, she blamed this decision entirely on curiosity. The need to know more had taunted her for long enough. She was getting sloppy because of the tension growing inside her mind. That surely could only be blamed on the turmoil caused by her demon half. It was her fault so many lives were lost because she couldn’t resolve the issues she had failed to bury. She had failed to douse the fire and quell the heat growing inside. The Honmoon would never become golden and her patterns would never fade if she kept forgetting her place.

Still, she hoped that this meeting wouldn’t be what proved she had been right to be distrustful of Jinu. The letters had never been sent at such a dead hour before. It was late enough into the night that it could almost be considered early morning.

A voice in the back of her head that sounded identical to Celine chided her for entertaining a demon for this long. If the demon wanted to see her now of all times, then he mustn’t want to chance anyone intruding. It was an obvious trap.

Regardless of her knowing better, she had accepted one of the letters Jinu had been persistently sending and hopped onto the back of the tiger when it lowered itself for her to get on. Even with everything the demon had done and how many people had been killed because of him, Jinu was the only one willing to give her answers.

Despite him being a demon, it wasn’t like there was anyone else she could turn to about the part that her father had burdened her with. 

The tiger purred when she began petting its head, pressing up into her palm. She felt like she was giving up by doing this, but the soft comfort of fur between her fingers made her feel slightly better. Even if Jinu was tricking her, she didn’t think the tiger was capable of the thought level necessary to be a part of any plot. At times, she didn’t think Jinu was either, but he was always quick to remind her that he was a demon for a reason. Any mischievous smile or stupid joke was easily replaced with the most unsettlingly wide smirk, but she couldn’t help hoping that the clumsy idiot she had seen was who Jinu really was. 

Speaking of the clumsy idiot…

As the tiger began to descend into the city, she could see Jinu waving up at her in what looked to be an empty park. She could barely make out the magpie circling him like a halo. Trees and other greenery surrounded him, but there was not a single soul to be found. Maybe that was for the best. If anything happened, no one would be harmed. 

She hesitantly waved back. A light blush dusted her cheeks, her hand dropping, when the demon beamed as soon as she acknowledged him. There was a strange heaviness in her throat that she gulped down, fists tensing up against the back of the tiger. The small bit of dignity she had was keeping her from shoving her face into its fur to hide.

No one was denying that the demon was attractive, but she couldn’t understand why she reacted to him like this. There was a simmering sensation that had never left her gut since the first time she laid eyes on him. This went beyond a physical attraction and she questioned why she did not have the will to brush it aside. 

They weren’t compatible at all.

They were on opposite sides of a never-ending war. 

Rumi had to find the strength to disregard the humanity he had shown her because she couldn’t allow herself to be stupid enough to believe a demon would hesitate to kill her.

When the tiger landed in front of Jinu, she finally noticed that the demon was holding something against his chest with the hand he wasn’t using to wave. As she directed her attention to the object, she realized it was a blanket. Cartoon depictions of cats and dogs littered the fabric, playing with each other like they weren’t natural enemies. It felt so reminiscent of the pajama bottoms she had worn during the only other time she had accepted Jinu’s invitation. 

“Are you making fun of me?” She accused, hopping off the tiger. If she was childish for wearing pajamas with teddy bears and trains, he was childish for referring to trains as choo-choo trains and getting cutesy blankets to taunt her. However, a tinge of guilt hit when Jinu’s face dropped. She hadn’t meant for the question to come out as harshly as it did. 

“What? No, I thought it was adorable,” he pouted. He looked down at the blanket to inspect it, reassuring himself that he had been correct, before shoving it towards. “Look at their precious little faces. How could you say no to them?”

He lightly shook the blanket as if he had to draw her attention to it, as if it wasn’t a centimeter from her. She tried not to make eye contact with the puppies whose tongues were sticking out and the kittens cuddling against them. If it weren’t Jinu in front of her, she would definitely be gushing over the blanket, but she had to remain composed. This wasn't Zoey sharing a video compilation on proper turtle care or Mira showing off her recent haul from a shopping spree. Instead, she pulled the blanket down so that she could stare down Jinu. A stern expression planted itself on her features. She was a serious hunter who didn’t have the time to play around, but the attempt at intimidation was lost on him. 

“I thought you would like it,” he shrugged, pulling the blanket out of her grip. Rumi pursed her lips while watching Jinu check over the blanket like it meant something to him. “It was my first purchase, so don’t ruin it.”

“First purchase?” The disbelief in her tone didn’t go unnoticed by the demon and he almost seemed thrilled to share.

“The soda collab and merch sales have brought in some money, so I decided not to waste it. I was this close-,” he brought his thumb and pointer finger together to emphasize his point,” -to commissioning a Saja Friend blanket, but I didn’t think you would appreciate it.”

He was right to assume that because she was barely wrapping her head around the blanket being purchased with his blood money. However, Rumi began to think about the plushie Zoey had failed to hide in her room. It was a napping blue lion with the top of its face covered with a purple mane in a manner that was strikingly similar to a certain Saja Boy. Whenever Rumi checked in on Mira and Zoey sleeping, she would always find the youngest drooling on the lion being snuggled to death in her arms.

“I wouldn’t have minded a Boogy blanket,” she admitted, tilting her head to the side in mock consideration. Rumi lied, “He’s my favorite.” 

Jinu gasped in mock offense, “You don’t like Boss?”

“He’s kind of generic,” and as she said this she saw Jinu begin to be genuinely annoyed. This made her continue, “He’s just a purple lion without a distinct personality. It was like you didn’t even try with him. At least the rest of them have distinct traits. Like Bloom, for example, is clearly a mischievous and evil little shit. He is trying to hide behind a childlike act with that diaper, but I see the malice in his eyes.”

"That's because Baby is exactly like that," Jinu defended, but it only made Rumi more curious.

"Are they all based on your personalities?" Rumi mused, "Does that mean your personality is just leader? Is that why you don't have an archetype name like the others?"

The demon huffed, grumbling, “Boss does a little peace sign and his eyebrows are different sizes. He is adorable and doesn’t deserve your slander.”

It was almost cute how defensive he was over his mascot.

“Whatever you say, Leader, but a peace sign isn’t a personality,” she quickly informed him, patting him on the shoulder like he was a child to calm down. Jinu's mouth pressed into a firm line at her giving him his own nickname.

Rumi had to stop herself from smiling or giggling at the situation. She could catch bits of Jinu muttering under his breath. It was something about Mystery designing all of the lions, so obviously his would be the best one. She didn’t dwell too long on that piece of information because then suddenly Jinu went quiet.

Their eyes met and the demon saw the joy she had taken out of teasing him. A light exhale escaped his lips, a remnant of a chuckle, as a grin began to form. He studied her, yet Rumi didn’t feel intruded upon. She felt honored in a way to be what he refused to look away from. It wasn’t until she saw him sniff the air that she became perplexed, but he was equally so. His brows furrowed as soon as he caught whatever smell had wafted towards him. 

“I want to try something,” he suddenly said.

It confused her even more when the demon turned away from her and began to walk further into the park. This single action brought her back down to reality. Jinu wasn’t just some man and she wasn’t just some woman. She shouldn’t feel this giddy over interacting with him and she shouldn’t feel so light.

She turned to look at the tiger to see if maybe it had any idea what was happening, but it only gave her an empty stare before it started walking too.

She murmured to herself, “Right… following the demon further into the woods is a good idea.”

The tiger nudged at her to move and she sighed in defeat. She reluctantly began walking after Jinu.

“This is a great idea.”

The magpie chirped as if to mock her, swirling around her head. Maybe it could tell how much she was denying. It was a pain to keep up with the demon. There was no sense in the direction he was going. Rumi assumed he was being led entirely by instinct. She had to keep dodging branches and squeezing herself through areas of the park that had clearly never been visited by anyone else before. The demon seeped through bushes like blood and she kept almost losing him despite all of her training. 

Yet she didn’t.

There was a soft perfume that trailed behind him that she followed. The smell of flowers in the air was so clear and she was surprised by how pleasant it was. It reminded her of the fields she had run through as child and the flowers Celine used to braid into her hair. She didn’t think Jinu wore any cologne, but this was proving otherwise. She sought out the scent, ignoring the flame growing in her stomach as she got closer to the source. 

She braced herself for an attack upon entering the clearing but only found Jinu smiling at her once again. With the leaves clinging to her pajamas and hair, she couldn’t find it in herself to smile back. The tiger and magpie were slowly rising out of the portal they had teleported from, taunting her with the fact she hadn’t been brought along. She chided herself for not just scaling the trees instead of going through them. 

“You found me,” Jinu said softly. There was a hint of surprise in his voice yet he seemed so pleased. 

Rumi blew a strand of hair out of her face that had been loosened from her braid by a stray branch. Swiping off the leaves that had decided to coat her, she inquired, “Was the other clearing not good enough?”

He hummed, pressing the blanket close to his chest. His eyes shined while he glanced around, “It didn’t smell right.”

“Of course,” Rumi deadpanned. “That makes perfect sense.”

Were demons this strange all the time? What was there to prove by dragging her through a forest? He was not hot enough to get away with this behavior. Rumi steamed in silence with her arms crossed to protect herself from the briskness of the night. She impatiently watched while Jinu laid out the blanket onto the grass, flattening it out as much as he could. 

Realization dawned on her when Jinu’s expectant gaze turned to her. This was what he had been planning: relaxation away from their responsibilities. The night was cool and the view of the city was nice enough. His scent dancing in the clearing added to the sense of comfort and, for a second, she could believe the thoughtfulness was genuine. It was almost endearing, but the gesture was quickly ruined. 

The tiger had taken the blanket as an invitation. They both could do nothing but watch as it circled the cats and puppies before plopping down. It sat down on its tail, loafing perfectly on top of the fabric. The magpie perched on top of the tiger’s head.

Jinu glared at the tiger. The tiger attempted to glare back but its eyes kept straying away from the demon. Therefore, the magpie glared and squawked at Jinu for it. The demon gave up, not wanting to disturb either of the creatures. Instead, he turned his gaze to Rumi.

“That didn’t go as planned,” Jinu sheepishly admitted. 

“I don't know what else you expected.” Rumi motioned to the tiger that had started nibbling on the grass next to the blanket, “It is basically a giant kitten.”

Jinu said with a reluctant fondness, "He was even worse as a kitten. If I didn't give him attention for two seconds, he would hide under my hanbok. Sometimes, he still tries to do that because he forgets how big he has gotten."

Moments like this lured her into a false sense of security. For a second, she almost forgot she wasn’t talking to a demon as Jinu revealed parts of him that were so human. She was simply talking with a friend like Mira or Zoey, but faint glimpses of the demon patterns painting them both reminded her how wrong this mindset was.

This realization didn’t stop her from taking note of the slight frown on Jinu’s face. It didn’t save her from the niggling desire to do anything to fix the expression that wasn’t caused by her. It didn’t quell the discomfort she felt at allowing disappointment to permeate through the clearing. It didn’t keep her from moving towards where the tiger had settled and sitting against it on the blanket.

“We can still sit down. I'm sure that is what he wanted anyway,” she found herself saying, the tiger purring in agreement. She patted the spot next to her, beckoning Jinu, “Come on.”

When he sat by her side without hesitation, a smile fought to place itself on her face that she forced down. There was something about him following her order that caused satisfaction to coil inside. He seemed so content to obey. His eyes closed as he settled against the tiger with his arms crossed behind his head. He let out a sigh before decompressing into the fluff.

Rumi peered over at him once it became clear that Jinu wasn’t paying any attention to his surroundings. She found her gaze trailing up and down, mapping out every part of his body. The demon had no right to look so good in jeans paired with a plain black hoodie. Every part of him had been sculpted to draw attention from the bit of his stomach peeking out from his clothes to his dewy skin. It almost pissed Rumi off how innocent he seemed, tricking her into feeling the need to protect him.

An attempt was hesitantly made to stray her thoughts away from how soft his eyelashes looked and how unblemished his neck was. Ignoring the demon next to her and the red tint taking over her face, she allowed herself to relax into the tiger. She steadied her breathing, feeling the fur between her fingers to center her mind. No one had ever wound her up this much before and nothing was different enough about Jinu for her to react to him like this. 

Tension vibrated under her skin as she tried to remain composed, forcing herself to stop peeking over at Jinu. Instead, she turned her sight to the magpie perched on the head of the tiger. The bird was still wearing that little gat on its head. Even though she doubted it to be true, she imagined Jinu making that hat for the bird. It had to take some dedication to find the materials necessary. Time had to be put into threading together the horsehair and bamboo. It wouldn’t take as long as a normal one, but it would still require attention to detail. 

For a brief moment, she pictured the tiger in the same hat. It would look ridiculous for the creature to wear a hat so small if Jinu were to have made the gat for it originally. However, she began to remember what Jinu had said about the tiger throwing tantrums as a cub and there was an increasing likelihood that Jinu had raised it in the absence of the family he had left behind. The gat would’ve fit the tiger perfectly when it was smaller and still able to cling to Jinu's legs.

That type of gift required some level of nurturing instinct. It wasn’t a trait she believed a demon could have, but Jinu was so contrary to everything she had ever known. Despite him being a killer, she could visualize Jinu with a tiny cub in his arms that he soothed and protected from the harsh reality of the demon realm. She could imagine a cub cradled in comfort, ignorant to the burden carried by its guardian as it never had to want for anything. Sickeningly sweet thoughts raced faster until she could no longer keep up with them. 

He would be such a good m-

It dawned on her how close she was to Jinu. Practically no distance had been left between them and the content fragrance coming from the demon was overwhelming. Nonsensical thoughts and desires swirled through Rumi’s head. Her teeth were itching to dig into something. Instinct wanted to tear flesh from bone and claim what was rightfully hers.

She covered her face with her hands, biting into the cuffs of the jacket she was wearing to stop the want from spreading throughout. Embarrassment hit in waves as she pierced through the fabric, digging into her own palm. It didn’t hurt, but she noticed how unnaturally sharp her canines were. This realization was what pained her. She could feel the marks burning and teeth sharpening into her skin.

What is wrong with me? 

She found herself asking this over and over again. Shame with hints of confusion was the sole force keeping her from getting any closer to Jinu. Primal desire beat inside her chest and it was like forcing her heart to stop when she denied herself the proximity. 

Her legs pressed up against her torso as she curled up, cradling herself. She brought comfort to her mind like she had as a child when Celine would braid her hair in the same pattern as her mother’s. It was the position she would get in when the shame reached down into her soul and the patterns stained her like ink. 

It was the only comfort she had when Celine would remind her of all that had been lost because she existed. It had never been her surrogate mother's intention, but it always felt like everything would've been better off without her.

She didn’t care if Jinu noticed what she was doing anymore as long as she stopped thinking about him. If she glanced at him, she feared she would attach to him like a parasite.

Only one of them had to fear being devoured by a demon and it wasn’t her.

She couldn’t pretend to not know what she was feeling anymore. 

Lust.

And it scared her how strong it had become.

Chapter Text

There was blood flowing out from her palms. While the majority of the liquid was absorbed by the fabric of the jacket, some of it had started to trickle down her arms. Stains of crimson spread above hidden marks of purple, but she was unable to process anything beyond the puncture of teeth into her own flesh. Leaves rustled in the wind, a chill invited itself into the clearing, and Rumi could sense none of it. She was lost from reality, her breathing becoming more rushed with each passing second. Her eyes were open wide, but she could not see further than the pain she had inflicted upon herself. That single layer of gray polyester was maintaining what little composure Rumi had left.

The tang of metal hit her tongue, coating the inside of her mouth. It tasted wrong, but she still bit down harder. She wanted more, needed more, yet this thirst refused to be quenched. Instinct wasn’t unsettled by the blood. It didn’t shun or run away from the attempts to ease a parched soul. 

It simply hated that she was drinking from the wrong person, draining herself instead of the one nature had handed to her on a silver platter. 

“Rumi, are you okay?”

The words fell in a muffled heap against her ears, but she still perked up at the voice. A purr built up in her throat upon hearing the soothing timbre, but it was quickly broken apart. The light in the darkness was suffocating her as much as it was saving her. She uncurled from the ball she had been trapped in, arms falling down to the side after she tore her fangs out her hands. With how weak her limbs felt, it was like nothing remained in her veins. 

Maybe she had already bled herself dry and fire was burning her from the inside out because she had ended up in hell. 

A whimper broke the silence, answering Jinu’s question even if she had not been able to understand it. Sweat dampened skin as a heat descended upon her. Breathing began to take up too much effort. She was far from okay.

“When did you get hurt?” 

The demon next to her asked in shock, his tone disbelieving. While the stench of blood had stolen his attention from a brief reprieve, the situation had become more daunting and real upon seeing how drenched the sleeves of Rumi’s jacket were.

She was still turned away from Jinu and, underneath the constant pleading of instinct, there was a reminder to not look back. She might’ve been able to listen to this last remnant of consciousness if he hadn’t reached out. 

He placed a hand on her shoulder, unknowing to the turmoil his presence was causing, and it was like lightning struck. She pushed down a scream that nearly tore through her throat. Electricity incinerated every nerve, culminating at his touch. 

As she snapped around, she seized Jinu’s hand in her own. Surprise and concern were clear on his face, but she could no longer discern any emotion. 

Just that it was him. 

His gaze went from the blood dribbling down her lips to the rips in the jacket’s cuffs. Gore stamped onto his pale skin when Rumi tightened the grip she had on him. His eyes widened as he tried to take in everything that was in front of him. He was able to get a semblance of an idea of what was happening when her right iris began to produce a subtle glow. 

When she tried to yank him closer, Jinu ripped his hand away. He had no time to think about how his hand was smeared with her blood when he separated from her. A plume of maroon smoke erupted around him, but, when it settled, he remained exactly where he had been before.

In front of Rumi.

If she had the capacity to feel offended, she would’ve felt it at him attempting to teleport away. However, that emotion wasn’t necessary because he had failed to escape long before this. If only he had lost her in the forest. 

Shock kept him frozen. He gawked at Rumi and the patterns melting onto her skin, realization dawning on him far too late. 

“Shit, you’re presenting.”

Jinu scrambled to get his feet under him, attempting to sprint back into the woods so he could lose her. He was able to make it a few meters from the blanket before instinct decided that level of insolence was enough. 

He’s running from you.

The fog in her thoughts teased and it stopped her in her tracks. She smacked at her head with a growl, cradling it as the voices got louder. Her nails tangled into her braid as they elongated into claws. For a moment, she was back to curling in on herself. Her sight blurred and became heavy, but then she caught a whiff of a wonderful aroma.

Can’t you smell the fear?

It was the flowers from before, but they were more pungent. They were laced with emotion that she could almost savor on her tongue. It left much to be desired and she had to get closer to devour it entirely. She rose on unsteady feet, a tremor running through her, but she launched towards Jinu with her remaining strength. 

This urge consuming her entirely could only be solved through distance, yet she refused to allow him to create it. 

With a lunge, she grappled Jinu's leg and tore into the muscle. As quickly as he had gotten up, he smacked into the ground. A pained gasp was forced out of his lungs with the force of him falling. Curses filled the air when Rumi began to drag him back towards her, cutting her way down his leg as she pulled. He clung to the earth to no avail. Lines of dirt and grass were dug up with his attempts to claw himself away.

Even when he was finally underneath her where he belonged, he struggled. Kicks and shoves were met with Rumi bracing her knee against his back and forcing him down. 

What sort of alpha are you?

She pinned her front against him and a snarl ripped through, vibrating into his ear.

“Submit,” Rumi ordered.

Jinu went limp. Eyes fell down to ogle the back of his neck as his skin distorted into a purple hue. Patterns similar to hers began to mar him. Their shine lured her closer. She found herself pressing her lips against them in a horrible attempt to try and taste them. As she traced the lines with her mouth, the demon began to lightly shake.

You can’t even protect him from yourself.

With a single motion, she flipped him from his stomach onto his back, sliding between his legs and hiking them up. She didn’t even have to order him to wrap them around her waist. As she leaned down, she secured herself to the crook of his neck. A wave of comfort and security flooded her senses as she deeply inhaled.

This wasn’t the smell she had become familiar with when it came to demons. They stunk of decomposition, rot, and human waste. She was used to that, so this obvious distinction from what she assumed to be the norm only enticed her more. The aroma mixed with that of grass, a hint of petrichor, and she didn’t appreciate the interference. However, this slight change didn’t alter how inviting the fragrance was becoming. 

There was desire in his scent. While it made her feel needy, she was far too gone to feel flustered. Her body began to tremble with the amount of want she was experiencing. It was too much for her to contain and she didn’t wish to anymore.

Hands began to dance along the hem of Jinu’s hoodie, lifting it up as they snaked under his shirt to travel along his torso. The touch was like fire against cool skin and the demon chased the heat. Rumi ended up settling her palms on top of his stomach, splaying her fingers across it. There was a bit of protectiveness in this action and a softness that hadn’t been afforded to Jinu earlier. 

It was only right for her to claim what was hers. 

She nuzzled her nose against him and a purr quivered out of his throat. It was music far more valuable to her than anything she had ever created herself. Alongside the vibration hitting her nose, she could smell the pleasure. 

This satisfaction, this reciprocal yearning, explained the hands that had found their way to the small of her back. It explained why she was being pulled forward by the legs squeezing around her. They were becoming inseparable, molding seamlessly into the other. Nails pierced through her jacket into her back, clawing down as she mouthed at his neck once again.

Just as she had ripped through his jeans to ensure their proximity earlier, he was ruining her jacket to bring her closer. Tatters of cloth began to slip away, but she didn’t pay it any mind. If he needed something to grip onto, who was she to stop him? Besides, her own hands had migrated up to his chest. While she couldn’t find it in herself to leave a single mark on his stomach, she mauled the meat of his chest without hesitation. Ethereal ichor oozed through her fingers, blemishing Jinu’s hoodie and shirt.

No part of Rumi was in charge when her teeth graced the edge of his throat and bit down without remorse. As her fangs drove further into him, a soft moan was elicited from Jinu, yet this wasn’t the only sound to reach her. 

Barely a human and barely a demon. Only an abomination would force herself onto someone like this. 

Rumi froze, the daze fading away. She tried to blink away the fog left in her mind and was left with a slowly building horror. Dread hit as she became aware of the skin in her teeth and the blood spilling. Her hands unclenched, resulting in a soft groan from Jinu that made her flinch, before she ripped them out from under the hoodie. 

After dislodging from his neck, she pushed up from Jinu and was met with the shimmer of golden eyes.

“Fuck me,” he begged, a growing lust in his gaze that had now been lost on her end. 

She was confined by nails lodged into her back and the noticeable growth between his legs pressing against her front. The pain that had been delayed by adrenaline was beginning to ebb in. Everything stung, cutting deeper than she had ever experienced. 

Deceit, however, hurt the most. 

“What is wrong with you?!?” Rumi cried out as she slapped him across the face. The shock of the hit was enough for him to let go of her, so she quickly shoved herself off of him and stood up.

Her legs nearly fell out from under her as she took a few steps back, but she remained composed. She reached over her shoulder to touch her back, tracing the slashes. Color left her face upon noticing her bra had been cut and was only being kept up by a single strap. Rumi was familiar with the cruelty of demons, but this showed a level of depravity that she had hoped to never live through. This showed that the demon before her was irredeemable.

Fear was replaced with rage as she drew her sword. 

Jinu was rubbing against the scarlet handprint left on his cheek, kneeling a meter or so away from her. Blood wrapped around his throat. Despite the slight confusion, his eyes were blown and they gleamed with hunger. There was a flush on his face that would have blended in with the blood if it weren’t for the fact that he was in his demon form. The veneer of humanity was gone, replaced by the hideous truth. She was able to see him for the demon he was.

It would make what she was about to do a lot easier. She wouldn’t have to stare at the man she had reluctantly grown fond of. 

The tip of her blade forced Jinu’s focus on her as she placed it under his chin. The hand cradling his cheek dropped down to his side. His gaze fell briefly towards the weapon before rising back up to her. She wanted him to suffer, to plead or fight, before she killed him, yet she was met with emptiness.

It was unsettling.

“And now you’re going to kill me,” he laughed, catching his breath with every heave of his chest. An eerie smile began to spread, wider than a human mouth would be able to go, as his pupils turned into slits. He tilted his head to the side, barely avoiding the blade, “Good to know where a hunter’s morality lies. Consent, seriously? That was too far for you? Not struggling or trying to get away?”

Jinu tried to appear confident, but Rumi saw the slight tremble in his smile and the caution in his stare. It was like he was expecting her to do something besides kill him, but she wouldn’t let some demon trick her. She wouldn’t let his words deter or confuse her. 

But it got her to look down at the hand holding her sword.

To see past the blood.

She stared down and saw the patterns, tracing them with her eyes as she began to hyperventilate. No sense could be made out of the flashes of memory she was barely able to grasp. A headache grew as she strove to remember what happened. 

Faint recollections of an unnatural desire were all she was able to conjure up. It was the feeling that had been plaguing her and now all she could think was that it must have been fabricated by Jinu. She wouldn’t have felt that way otherwise. He must have been trying to lower her guard and orchestrated all of this just to mess with her. She was an idiot to think there was a shred of humanity left in him. 

This was his fault.

You know that isn’t true.

She remembered that voice…

The echo of desperate limbs landed all at once against her body, paralyzing her with the realization of how each attempt was weaker than the last. She was now able to pay heed to the indications of struggle around her, but it was too late. Disturbed lines of grass in the ground and the jagged wounds that ran behind torn jeans were reminders that she was not the one who fought to get away. Jinu was disheveled. Sweat and blood plastered strands of hair to his face. He dared to speak up against her, yet he couldn’t hold eye contact. There was apprehension in the air.

She was the reason behind it.

This wasn’t evoking terror from her enemy because she was going to kill them. It wasn’t because she was a hunter trying to purge the world of their kind. She had always been a threat to demons but not like this. 

“What is wrong with me?” She whispered, the sword fading away. 

Tension released from Jinu in droves as a sigh of relief escaped. Using both of his hands, he pushed back his hair. He did his best to collect himself before acknowledging the other demon falling apart in front of him. 

“Everything is fine,” he assured her, pushing himself off the ground to a standing position. He cringed upon putting pressure on his legs, but this didn’t keep him from approaching her. “This is normal for a presentation. I’m just surprised you didn’t leave more marks.”

He glanced himself over before testing the area around his neck with his hand, humming when his fingertips came back soaked. 

“Okay, that’s good at least. It hasn’t healed, so we won't be spending eternity together,” he wiped his hand against the front of his hoodie.

Rumi had no idea what the fuck he talking about. None of the words coming out of his mouth were making any sense. He was too calm and she did not like how he was inching closer to her. The panic she was experiencing was translating into her features and scent, her spirit cracking with every attempt to understand what had gone wrong. 

“You didn't hurt me,” Jinu tried to placate her upon recognizing the aroma surrounding him, but it wasn’t enough. She could see his legs and the blooming sheen of wet blood on his chest. She could see the bruises beginning to form on his face. Still, he continued to try and soothe her.

“If I was in any real danger, the tiger would’ve stepped in,” Jinu explained, motioning behind her.

Her head whipped around to where said tiger was watching her. She had completely forgotten that the tiger and magpie were there. The tiger stared her down and judged her with precision. Within seconds, its gaze began to separate down the middle. All seriousness had left its body as it rolled over onto its back, begging for scritches.

“See?” Jinu let out a strained chuckle. “He couldn’t care less about me right now. He trusts that you have control.”

This didn’t make her feel any better. It didn’t placate the voice relentlessly taunting every thought she had. She didn’t think there was anything he could say or do that would take away the shame. She had tried to separate herself from her demon side for her entire life, yet this was the byproduct of all her effort. Maybe nature was something she could never escape.

When he tried to reach out to her, he was only smacked away in her panic. She couldn’t let him near her again. She didn't know what she would do. 

“Don’t touch me,” she barked, the sound warbling unnaturally. It was far deeper than Jinu had ever heard her voice go. Their patterns burned with light as rings of red erupted from where Rumi stood. The Honmoon shook underneath them. Both were taken by surprise, but it was the uneasiness in Jinu’s gaze that set her off.

“I’m sorry,” she held herself, backing away from Jinu like he was the predator and not her. “It was a mistake. I didn’t meant to-”

Tears pricked at her eyes. It dawned on her that she truly had no chance if the Honmoon became golden. The patterns would never disappear because she would be dragged down into the demon realm and she deserved it. Under all the pain and anxiety, the heat remained boiling inside of her. It had never left. If anything, trying to push it aside made it more intense. Instinct pushed to lull her towards Jinu, but she fought against it and sprinted in the opposite direction into the woods. 

Her ultimate goal was to get as far away from Jinu as possible. Even as the demon yelled after her, she refused to turn back and allow the possibility of her losing control again. She didn’t stop until she could no longer smell his scent behind her. Exhaustion was what eventually crippled her as she slumped against a tree. She didn't know how far into the park she had ended up, but it didn't matter to her as long as she was alone.

She wanted to scream, yet all she could manage to do was murmur into her hands. 

“What am I?” She begged the darkness to answer and it did.

A demon unable to control her instinct. You’re a monster. You’re a mistake.

She couldn’t disagree.

Chapter Text

Mere minutes were all that were necessary to undo what Rumi had spent the entirety of her life trying to rectify. If seconds could erase years of discipline, then the walls she had made were never strong enough to begin with. She built upon a corroding base and prayed the roof wouldn’t fall in during every storm. It was almost like she had wanted to fail. Doubt chipped away at her until she was left with nothing but the demon she had hidden inside. 

As she roamed through the park, she wondered if it would be worth it to return home. She wondered if she deserved to. If she was capable of treating an enemy like that, she feared what she would do to those close to her. However, she didn’t have much of a choice. Rumi had nowhere else to go, nowhere she could go where she wouldn’t be found. She also couldn't disappear on Mira and Zoey when they were so close to turning the Honmoon gold.

As soon as sunlight began to trickle through the leaves, she realized she had to make up her mind. She didn’t want to think of the aftermath of someone noticing her gone or a civilian taking a picture of her looking like she had fought with a wild animal. To return without raising questions, she couldn’t be indecisive and had to move with what little cover she had left. Scaling up the penthouse would be much easier that way. 

Begrudgingly was the best way to describe her journey back to the penthouse. Every few seconds her attention would turn to the patterns on her skin, checking if they were still there. These glances became more frequent whenever there was a Saja Boys billboard in the vicinity. Guilt would be forced down as she ignored the blaring lights to the best of her ability. She couldn't stand the idea of seeing any of their faces at the moment, even if it was just a photo or video. 

Rumi hadn’t brought her phone with her, so she didn’t know how ragged her appearance was until she was making her way up a building. Upon seeing her reflection in a window, she froze.

Dried blood was smeared over the lower half of her face. She had felt it, but she did not realize how bad it looked until then. Her braid was matted and more hair was out of the braid than was in it. The jacket she was wearing and the shirt under it were beyond saving with the giant tears in the back and bloodstains. She looked every part the demon she pretended that she wasn’t.

Under all of the disgust she held towards the image she saw, there was the itch to keep the clothing because there was still a faint smell of him…

All of her clothes were going to go straight into an incinerator.

As she got closer and closer to the penthouse, it seemed like the patterns had begun to recede back to what they had been before everything had gone wrong. That was the easiest way for her to describe and wrap her head around the horrific actions she had committed. The subtle glow that appeared whenever she stared at something had faded away. She was no longer cutting her tongue whenever she ran it across her teeth. 

That form dissolving aided in creating a guise of calm. Even if there was still a buzz running through her, the fervid emotions were dormant for now. She would simply ignore how instinct was screaming that it would inevitably return. This was a problem she could deal with later or, even better, never have to deal with again. 

Maybe she was still human enough for the Honmoon to only take away the demon half of her.

As long as the patterns remained only on her upper arms and neck, she could make it through this. She could grit her teeth and pull herself along until the Idol Awards.

That would have to be enough for now. 

It wasn’t until she hopped over the railing onto her balcony that she felt like she was actually able to breathe. She rushed into her room, locking every door that could be used by someone to enter. She needed privacy until she had dealt with herself. She needed to make it look like nothing had happened. 

Within seconds, she was in her bathroom, stripping and throwing every single article of clothing into the trash can by the sink. Tying up the trash bag, she placed it by the bathroom door so she wouldn’t forget to dispose of the evidence. 

She didn’t imagine that she would forget, but she refused to chance it. 

Rumi shoved her face under the faucet and rubbed her face raw to get the blood off. She had to stop herself from gagging upon realizing that she had consumed all the blood that had been in her mouth. She then actually threw up into the sink when she remembered the demon flesh she had swallowed down. Soon after, she brushed her teeth to get the taste of sick and metal out.

Standing in front of the mirror, she began to undo her braid and detangle her hair as best as she could. She ran her fingers through it until she was satisfied because she did not want to ruin a good brush for this. Guiding her hair over her shoulder, she turned around to get a look at her back to check the damage. She winced upon seeing ten lines etched the entire way down that were obviously caused by another person. The bleeding had stopped so there were some victories. 

Stepping into the shower, she turned the water on as hot as it would go. She wanted to scald off the old layer of skin and the blood and the grass and the smell. She wanted to forget it all for a minute or two. While she enjoyed the warmth running down her skin, she could ignore the sting of guilt and the patterns reminding her of what she had done. It felt nice to wash away the grime with water and soap. She cleaned every inch of her body before beginning to deal with her hair. She knew that would be harder to conquer so she pushed it off until the end. Enough blood had crusted and clumped together that there were multiple knots she had been unable to comb her fingers through. Luckily, the water had loosened up enough of these wads that she was able to get them out.

Reaching for the shampoo, she uncapped the bottle and was smacked in the face with the aroma of cherry blossoms. Her breath hitched as fangs pricked against her lips. In a panic, she dropped the bottle with a resounding thud onto the tile and covered her nose with both hands. She stared down at it like it would explode at any moment before using her foot to nudge it to the other side of the shower.

Slowly, she lowered her hands and peered at her arms. Nothing had changed. The patterns were still where they were meant to be. Everything was fine. 

Rumi wasn’t thinking about how she hadn’t been able to pinpoint the exact flower Jinu smelled like until then. 

She was simply mulling over how unnecessary using shampoo was and how she really didn’t need to use it. There was already so much product in her hair, so it would just get greasy. Settling for a giant glob of conditioner that smelled like oranges and nothing like any flower, let alone cherry blossoms, was completely coincidental. 

After she had washed the conditioner out and finished her shower, she did not walk across her bathroom while soaking wet to untie the trash bag and shove the shampoo bottle in there like it was toxic waste that was burning her skin away. 

That would have been an overreaction and Rumi had never overreacted in her entire life. 

Obviously, she instead went straight to drying off with a towel and blow drying her hair and soaking up the water that had somehow gotten all over the floor when she didn't throw away the shampoo. She ended up putting her hair into a simple braid because she did not have the energy to go through her usual routine. There was some relief in finally being able to look into the mirror and see herself again.

Moving her braid to the side, she checked her back for the second time and was surprised to see how the wounds had already started scarring over. The sting of them had ebbed away in the shower, but she had assumed it was because she was getting used to the feeling. While she was unnerved by what she could only assume was the byproduct of her demonic side, she appreciated how she wouldn’t need to dress her back in bandages now. It would make everything easier to hide.

After making sure the bathroom was as pristine as when she first entered, she grabbed the trash bag and made her way to the incinerator in her closet. Sometimes an outfit was beyond saving, so it was necessary to have a way to dispose of it without raising any questions. It was certainly easier than starting a bonfire on her balcony.  

It was as she started getting dressed for bed that she realized how relieved she was that she hadn’t worn her favorite hoodie out that night. This meant she could now get comfy in the soft fabric and appreciate how it smelled like Mira and Zoey. She hadn’t noticed before how her friends clung to cloth, but it was so obvious now. While there was no distinct scent she could pick up, there was Mira’s sturdiness and Zoey’s vitality. She pulled the strings of the hoodie to close it as much as she could to bury herself in the aroma. 

It made her want to seek them out, to check on them, and to ensure they were safe. 

Rumi glanced between her bed and the door, bringing the hood down as she contemplated. While she did believe she shouldn’t be around other people at the moment, it didn’t stop how she couldn’t stand the thought of being alone. Whether it was a good idea or not, she ended up in the hallway connecting all of their rooms and began to walk to Mira’s. She was hesitant to open the door, tensing up her hand before slowly turning the knob. The door was opened just enough for her to peek in to see that Mira was asleep before Rumi closed it behind her. She let out a sigh that was a mixture of disappointment and relief.

While she would have liked to bother Mira, her friend deserved rest and could be pretty grouchy when woken up unexpectedly. Besides, the calm on Mira’s face in her sleep was enough to satisfy instinct. Even with everything falling apart around them, Mira was able to have some semblance of peace. It was Rumi’s job to protect that and she didn’t think she had been doing a good job with that recently. With how she had been doubting the lyrics of Takedown and questioning their mission as hunters, she had lost one of her priorities: Zoey and Mira. There was no one else in the world that she trusted more than them, yet she proved time and time again why they shouldn’t trust her. 

Celine was right. 

It was better if they never knew about all the lies and how the demon kept finding its way to the surface. As a group, they all would be able to leave everything behind once the Golden Honmoon was achieved and focus on Huntr/x. She didn’t need to overcomplicate things. 

It would be selfish of her to. 

Zoey’s door was pushed open with a lot less timidity. She had become more sure in her desire to check up on her bandmates. Unlike with Mira, Rumi was greeted by two sources of light: the lamp on the nightstand and the computer monitor. Zoey sat with her legs crossed on a gaming chair, talking into her headphone mic as she fiddled with the mouse. Rumi studied the screen and was able to recognize the blocky world that Zoey was in. However, this wasn’t just regular Minecraft. If Rumi remembered correctly from the hour-long presentation she sat through, Zoey was one of the top ten wheat farmers in Hypixel SkyBlock and she took that position very seriously.

The maknae was playing at six in the morning and, based on the eye bags Rumi could make out, she had been at it for the entire night. Currently, there was a player with the handle SeoulEater999 harvesting wheat while Zoey was quickly planting seeds to replace them. 

“Could you go faster?” Zoey groaned into the mic, thunking her head onto the desk. “I want to go to sleep within the next century and I had to harvest all by myself for like thirty minutes.”

Rumi watched as she turned quiet, as if listening to the other end, before picking up her head to resume placing the seeds, “Okay, you’re right. Your roommate did have a medical emergency and that takes precedence. I know I shouldn’t be asking this, but is he doing better now?”

Zoey spoke softly and with a concern that made it evident that she was close with whoever she was playing with. It made Rumi not want to interrupt. The younger having friends outside of her and Mira was a good development. Rumi was familiar with how isolating growing up without friends could be. 

Still, she would like to know more about this person Zoey was speaking to. It seemed reasonable to want to vet whoever this individual was to make sure they wouldn’t hurt Zoey in any way. As far as she knew, this person looked exactly like their Minecraft skin: a white sheep in a wolf onesie. Rumi thought it was cute how they were matching because Zoey’s skin was a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It was the skin she had kept since her middle school emo phase and this phase explained why Zoey’s handle was xX46WrittenInBl00d64Xx. Rumi always found it endearing whenever Hunters asked for them to sign old photos of them. Zoey's was usually an old yearbook picture of her with braces, hair covering one side of her face, and an aggressive amount of black eyeliner around the one visible eye. It was a very cute photo.

“Like a dog?” Zoey asked incredulously, breaking Rumi out of her thoughts. Zoey’s eyes bulged and her mouth was agape. Whatever her friend had told her had shaken her to her core. She tilted her head, thinking it through, before shrugging like nothing had happened. “You’re going to have to explain how all of this works in detail to me one of these days because I still can’t wrap my head around that thing you told me earlier. I guess what they say is true: the day you stop learning is the day you stop living.”

It was then that Rumi decided to head back to her room. Zoey was clearly preoccupied and having a good time without her there. However, as she began to back away, Zoey noticed movement in her periphery. She swiveled around in her chair to look at the doorway and was met with Rumi giving her a strained smile. 

“Hey, Rumi,” Zoey beamed as she brought her headphones down around her neck. “Sorry for not noticing you sooner. I’m like barely cognitive right now.”

“It’s fine," Rumi wrung her hands, "I didn’t want to interrupt, but do you mind if I sleep in here with you? At least for a few hours?”

They were both going to have to be up soon, yet she knew neither of them would pass up the chance for a quick nap.

“Of course! Let me log off and we can snuggle,” Zoey grinned, motioning for Rumi to get on her bed. Rumi felt a little special with how willing Zoey was to immediately drop everything for her. She didn’t think she deserved that. 

She plopped herself down onto Zoey’s bed, being careful not to disturb the pile of plushies. Zoey had kept her favorite stuffed animal gifted at each fan meet while donating the rest. The only plushie that Rumi could make out that wasn’t a fan gift was Boogy at the front of the pile. The lion was clearly Zoey's favorite of the favorites. As Rumi got under the covers and laid her head down on the pillow, it felt like the lion was judging her from behind its mane. 

She wondered how tied the Saja Boys merch was to the demons. 

Did it know what she had done?

Regardless, she turned it around so that it was facing the plushie pile.

She made herself comfy while she watched Zoey put her headphones back on. 

“Hey, Garam, we will have to continue this later. Make sure whoever stole your laptop last time doesn’t destroy anything while I’m off world. I know one of your roommates ruined my villagers’ harvesting efficiency through entity cramming and I'm guessing it was Daeun. I will kill you both next time I see you if a single block is missing.” She turned deadly serious at this last part before chirping out, “Okay, thank you. Bye bye.” Zoey waved at her screen while turning it off like her friend could see her doing it and Rumi began to question if she had a camera on. 

She didn’t have enough time to ponder this before Zoey launched herself onto the bed right next to her, melting into the mattress. Zoey had clearly been planning to sleep for a while now based on the matching Chococat pajama bottoms and top. She must have gotten caught up in the game or in hanging out with her friend.

“Who was that?” Rumi asked, unable to stave off her curiosity for any longer.

A muffled and questioning sound vibrated through the mattress as Zoey had planted her face firmly into a pillow, so Rumi clarified, “The person you were playing with?”

Zoey picked her face up, propping herself up on her elbows as she looked over at Rumi. “Oh, that was-,” she paused. She glanced over at the Boogy plush that had been turned around before grabbing it and firmly holding it to her chest. Rumi sent her a judgmental look that she ignored. Zoey continued, “-one of my old friends from California. I recently got back into contact with him. He spills all the recent tea about… my old classmates.”

That explained why she was up all night. He probably woke up early so that they could game together, but there was something off about how she was saying it. She was lying about something, but Rumi was too tired to really care. If anything, she was more focused on how Zoey had never mentioned this friend before. Maybe they had a falling out before Zoey moved to Korea to become a trainee. This line of thinking didn’t help to endear the friend to her. Zoey had been bullied while in school because of her interests and hobbies. There had been far too many times that these same classmates had tried to reach out to her after she had become famous. Rumi hoped this Garam didn't seek out to reconnect with ulterior motives. Zoey didn't deserve to be hurt by some selfish asshole.

Pursing her lips, Zoey kept glancing at Rumi like she wanted something. Her face was beginning to tint slightly blue as if she was holding her breath. If years around Zoey had taught her anything, this could mean only one thing.

“You want to gossip about what you’ve learned about your old classmates?”

“Please,” she whined, flopping herself over Rumi. “Let me tell you. It’s so hard to keep to myself. I have no one to talk to about it and Garam is the most monotone person ever. He isn't getting how mind-blowing what he is saying because it's the norm for him. He shares things so offhandedly. The fact he doesn't seem to care means he isn't telling me everything and I need to know. I have to talk to someone about the few details he has told me or I'm going to explode.” Rumi was weak to the pleading puppy eyes sent her way.

Zoey giddily clapped when Rumi nodded, moving to get under the covers with her. With Boogy between them, she started, “So there were these two guys in my graduating class: Jaehyun and Beomseok. They were like jocks and I thought they were total womanizers. I even had a crush on one of them for a bit. Though, Beomseok was pretty toned and dreamy.” A bit of drool came out as she reminisced before shaking herself out of it. “But that’s not important. I learned they’re married and have been dating since high school.” She paused for dramatic effect, expecting a reaction from Rumi but she was not getting it.

“Dating who?”

“Each other,” Zoey slowed down each word to add emphasis. 

“Really?”

“Gay people do exist, Rumi.”

“I know that. I live with two,” she joked.

“Hey, I’m bi,” Zoey poked Rumi in the side. Rumi laughed lightly at this, causing Zoey to pout, “You’re not being a good ally.”

“Continue the story.”

Zoey rolled her eyes, “Anyway, apparently they’re trying to con-” She stumbled into the word, confusing Rumi, before readjusting what she was going to say. “They’re looking to adopt right now which-,” Zoey made explosions noises as she used her hands to mimic her head exploding, “,-my mind but good for them. I just never thought about it being something they could do. I never really thought about the lives of my classmates.”

“Yeah,” Rumi agreed, murmuring, “There is always so much more to a person than what’s on the surface.” She pushed away thoughts of demons and Jinu.

“Garam is friends with them and I can’t help but think, if things had been different, I could've been close with them too. They seem like they really care about him,” Zoey confided.

She yawned, getting closer to Rumi as she quickly fell asleep. Rumi felt herself falling into the crook of Zoey’s neck. It wasn’t like with Jinu. The protective instinct was there, but it was more familial. It was less of a scent and more of a presence, a comforting reminder. As Rumi held Zoey, she allowed herself to succumb to sleep and the brief peace it would bring to her mind.

Chapter Text

Rumi woke up to the feeling of dewy grass underneath her, tickling at her nose and enveloping her body in a slight chill. As she opened her eyes to darkness, her brows furrowed. She looked to the sky, only to see the unending darkness of the night sky instead of the ceiling of Zoey’s room. Panic set in on realizing the displacement. Hastily sitting up, she scanned her surroundings and was met with the forest clearing she had tried so hard to escape from. 

“How…”

A deep ache built in her skull as she failed to remember how she ended up back there. No memory could be conjured up, yet she could feel the prickle of eyes watching her. This wasn’t something that had just happened or that she had done to herself. There was someone else observing. Her vision blurred when she stood up, but she pushed through the temporary hindrance. She trudged towards the edge of the clearing, dirt clinging to the soles of her feet. As the pain grew, she pressed her hand against her temple in an attempt to quell the discomfort. She couldn’t stop moving. Not when she had no idea who had brought her here. 

It was likely a demon, but it had caught her off guard and separated her from her bandmates. It had done this without alerting anyone and that was something to be concerned about. This could surely not be any normal demon.

As she tried to reach into the energy of the Honmoon to summon her weapon, she found herself empty-handed. Again, she tried to reach into those blue waves, dipping in deeper until all of her felt like a blur, but the weapon never materialized. Her heart dropped upon realizing she had been cut off from the Honmoon. 

What do you think will happen to you when it becomes golden?

It was that voice again, piercing into her mind without regard. She was so close to entering the forest, but all she could do was cradle her head while the agony intensified. It was sharp and relentless, taking all her strength to not crumble to the ground. An onslaught of shame drowned out every other emotion. It crawled under the patterns, itching in a way she could not get rid of. The scalding burn of it was so intense that she had to stop herself from peeling off her skin. 

You are not any different from the demons you slaughter. 

Flames erupted in front of her, cutting her off from the woods. Despite the smoke blazing in her eyes and clogging her nose, she was finally able to reach clarity. The voice had simmered away while the fire surrounded the clearing. She stepped back away from the flames, moving back towards the center of the grass as far away from the inferno as she could be. Her eyes raced, pupils shaking, as she tried to find an exit. 

There was nothing.

Vibrant purple flames blocked her in, demonic in nature and just as unrelenting. She prayed she was the only one in the clearing, but it was futile. A presence leaned down behind her, breathing against her ear and hovering against her back. As soon as the warm air brushed against her skin, she whipped around to see who it was.

Nothing.

It was nothing again. 

This demon was messing with her like she was some sort of plaything, batting at her until she broke. Was she not worth an actual fight? If it wanted to piss her off, it succeeded. She was this close to working her way through the fire when she felt the hair on the back of her neck begin to prickle. 

“You mated me,” a voice whispered from behind her, immediately grabbing her attention. She looked back, frowning when she was greeted only by flames. She sighed, returning her gaze to the center.

However, it was different this time. 

A demon stood in front of her, but it wasn’t just any demon. It was Jinu. He was in human form, but his patterns were bright and bleeding through. All the wounds she had inflicted on him were gone and the clothes he had worn that night were completely intact. He was unscathed.

“Jinu,” she called out, running up to him. This must have been set up by him. While she was confused, she was still relieved. “You’re okay. I was so worried. I’m sorry.” 

She grabbed his hands with her own, humming contently at the touch and watching how the patterns danced on his skin. It was terrible to say that she thought they suited him far more than they suited her. While she could separate from Jinu briefly, she couldn’t escape how close she wanted to be to him. 

However, heat began to rise against her palms as the touch of his skin began to burn. It felt wrong to her instincts. She hissed at the sting, ripping her hands away. 

She looked up into his eyes and the disgust that stared back at her stole the breath from her lungs.

“Did you think me telling you my past was some sort of invitation?” He accused, shoving her away. 

Unlike before, she let him create distance. Rumi tried to meet his gaze, but the blaze reflected in it with a fury. Any kindness, false or not, that he had afforded her was gone. This was how she expected a demon to treat her, yet it hurt now that it was coming from him.

“What?” She moved back as he approached her. “No, I didn’t-”

Jinu scoffed, “Did you believe you could replace the family I lost?”

One of his hands gravitated towards his stomach, settling near the bottom. For a moment, she could swear there was a flicker of a soft curve. Even though her mind was perplexed, her instinct wasn’t. Blood rushed and pounded in her ears, a flush spreading on her face. She shook her head, shaking away thoughts of getting closer, as she centered herself. 

“No, of course not,” she tried to explain. “How could I?”

Clenching his jaw, Jinu glared at her like she was some sort of liar or idiot. While Rumi had done a lot to him, she had no idea what he was referring to. There was something she wasn’t grasping. 

There was something off about Jinu.

“You’re an alpha with no shame,” Jinu scowled, towering over her, “You take whatever you want from those who you think are below you.”

She cowered away, but then she began to process what he had said and the ridiculousness of it set in. 

“What-,” she squinted at him, standing up straight. “What are you even talking about? What is an alpha?”

Any rage on Jinu’s face immediately vanished and was replaced by confusion. If anything, he looked at her with concern. Good. They were both confused now.

“You don't know what an alpha is?” He tested the waters. She shook her head. His voice rose, “Do you not know anything about being a demon?”

“I mean,” she tilted her head to the side, scratching at the back of her neck, “Not really? The most I know is from what you told me.”

“Jinu?” His eyes widened at her before he paused. He pointed towards himself in horror, “Jinu? He was the only one who told you anything about being a demon?”

“That is correct,” Rumi answered, becoming more and more bewildered by him referring to himself in third person. 

He shoved his face into his hands, groaning into them as he mumbled, “Did Celine even try? Did she actually think the hunters would achieve the Golden Honmoon before you came of age?”

“Why would that matter?”

The temperature dropped, the flames fading away, and the freeze reached down into Rumi’s bones. Jinu’s face went slack as he looked up at her, gold peeking out from emotionless eyes.

“Of all people, I thought she would treat you differently, yet your ignorance makes everything so much easier.” He studied Rumi and a grin scarred his features. A laugh echoed through the clear, yet his mouth never moved until he spoke. “Humans always surprise me with the lengths they will go to hide selfishness with righteousness. They act like a force of nature is so wicked and then abuse their free will to inflict pain on others under the guise of protection.”

Her legs were planted where she stood as Jinu reached out to her. She tried to run away, but she couldn’t do more than flinch.

“I wonder if she hates you,” he mused, grabbing her braid and letting the whole length of it flow through his fingers. He smirked at the dread she was staring at him with. Leaning in, he murmured next to her ear, “Or does she hate that you represent everything that she failed to protect?”

The proximity was what finally allowed the fog in her mind to dwindle. As she inhaled, his scent was as empty as him. There were no cherry blossoms or comfort, only a veneer. It began to dawn on her who he actually was.

“You’re not Jinu, are you?” She asked as he pulled away. This is what Jinu had told her about, the constant pestering in his mind.

“No,” Gwi-Ma answered like there was no reason to hide anymore. It wasn’t like he feared her. He was only amused. “I can’t say I am.”

As the words left his lips, the world around her began to fade as she shot up in bed next to Zoey. It was an immediate plunge back to reality that did not care about how hard her heart was beating or how haggard her breathing was. Sweat coated her entire body. It was like she was still in the clearing. She hurriedly scanned the room and there was nobody there except for her and Zoey. 

She sighed, laying back down. The squish of the mattress underneath her was a welcome change. It didn’t seem like she had to be awake just yet, but her mind was racing. She pulled the comforter close, trying to think over all that the demon had said. It was as she recalled what the demon king had said about Celine that doubt began to creep in. Deep down, she wanted to believe that Celine had kept information about her demon half away from her because it was for the best, yet…

Gwi-Ma had still entered her dreams. He had been whispering alongside her thoughts like she was just another demon. The Golden Honmoon might be forever out of her reach because of this. All those years of hiding meant nothing in the long run and she was left behind to pick up pieces she didn’t even know how to sort. She told herself that Celine was looking out for her. However, if Gwi-Ma knew the cause of the incident with Jinu, then shouldn’t Celine as well? The demon certainly hinted towards it. Maybe the assault could have been avoided if she understood more about demons. Maybe she wouldn’t have ever felt the shame that gave Gwi-Ma an opening. 

Her eyelids became heavy with the weight of sleep and guilt. As her thoughts began to drift away, a single mocking voice was left. 

Good luck, hunter.

Chapter Text

As a child, Jinu’s father had told him stories of soul reapers created from oblivion that were to be treated with respect if one wanted to reach the afterlife. His father also warned of people paying for the sins they committed in life through work as a reaper. When his father died, it was his responsibility as the eldest son to prepare the funeral rites while his mother recovered from his sister’s birth. Among the countless other rituals and offerings, he had made sure to leave out three sets of bowls of rice, shoes, and utensils for the reapers. They traveled in trios and not a single one could be scorned or a soul would be doomed to wander for eternity in search of the afterlife. 

Even if his soul had ended up damned, he made sure his father’s wasn’t.

While a lot of the minor details had been left out, it turned out the bulk of what Jinu had believed in as a human was correct. This should have aided him in adjusting to his existence as a reaper, but the overlooked intricacies changed everything. 

At first, he was unable to view his presentation as anything other than a punishment. It was immediate retribution for abandoning his sister and mother. If he was unable to live with dignity as a man, then he deserved to be disgraced as a woman and experience every hardship that he left his family vulnerable to. 

Nature was cruel, but it was not malicious. This was something he realized only when he had existed longer as a demon than he had as a human. Still, his nature had made it impossible to squeeze his eyes shut and ignore all that he had renounced to rot. It shoved his face down into the ground, forcing him to come to terms with what had happened. It didn’t take refusal or struggling or submitting. It ruined his mind as it took away what little control he had left of his body. Every passing year was spent living through isolating heats where his instincts begged for comfort from people that were likely long dead. Even as the centuries passed and he surrounded himself with other demons, there was a faint voice crying out for his family that never dwindled. 

Back then, the Honmoon had been new, but the hunters had recognized the necessity of reapers getting through. For the first few decades, Jinu guided souls by himself. He kept away from other demons and rarely spoke to anyone.

He was called selfish for that behavior and he supposed that was in character. Gwi-Ma had never liked how he would never come to his beck and call, always needing to be summoned.

It wasn’t uncommon for reapers to work by themselves or even to keep only to duos. It was hard to find people to trust. He had heard of traditional trios, but he had never encountered one until he had been sent out to collect the souls of a village where disease had wiped out everyone except one person. The rites had fallen on their shoulders and no one would be able to do the same for them when they inevitably died.

Wandering through the village, a trail of souls followed behind him, for they were lured in by the sound of his bipa. It was as he was walking that he noticed a figure in one of the houses. He had assumed it was the sole survivor, but then this person turned upon hearing his music, upon feeling his gaze on them, and he was met with yellow eyes. As they approached him, he realized too late that the demon was a male alpha. Fear hit as soon as he processed the scent. If it weren’t for the person this demon dragged out behind himself, Jinu would’ve chanced returning to the demon realm a few souls short. 

The new demon was nearly identical to the other, black hanbok and face covered in the shadow of his gat, but he had tusks curling out from under his lips and carried a sweeter scent than his companion. Jinu hadn’t met many male omegas in his time as a demon and, if he did meet any, they kept it to themselves. However, it was the third member of their party that surprised him the most. On the back of the omega, there was a baby secured in a fabric carrier and peeking over their father’s shoulder to stare at Jinu with the most judgmental eyes. The golden irises were surrounded by light lavender skin, black wisps of hair, and faint patterns already marking this baby the property of Gwi-Ma at such a young age. With rice clutched in their hand, the baby gnawed at the offering while their parents walked up to Jinu. 

Despite not wanting to talk to them, the two other reapers introduced themselves to him as Minjun and Jiwoo. They were lovers who had been military officers in Baekje during the Three Kingdoms Period. They had become demons under Yeomra's reign, Gwi-Ma's father, and this demon lord had liked tricking the most cunning humans to prove his own superiority. For over a thousand years, they had been paying for the shame of trading their men’s lives, their kingdom’s existence, for their own safety. While they had mated as soon as they became demons, it was only recently that they had decided to expand their family. Minjun had blushed while his omega bragged about being successful during the first cycle they tried.

They introduced Jinu to their son with fanged smiles on their faces that he couldn’t understand, showing off their kid like some sort of prize. As Jinu was stared down by this baby, the realization dawned on him that this child had never known humanity and his parents were so far removed from their prior life that there was nothing to pass down.

When they left after collecting their portion of the souls, Jinu felt a distaste for this small family. It was not because they were deserving of the hatred but because they had somehow redefined their situation. He didn’t want to think about what type of monster he had to be if these demons who had killed hundreds could find happiness when he couldn’t.

It was easier to hate them, but he kept running into them. 

They never turned him away or fought for territory like some of the other reapers. It truly seemed that they just wanted to talk to him, yet he was waiting for something to prove his distrust was not misplaced. He was no longer familiar with kindness that didn’t come without a price.

The doubt didn’t start to fade away until he found a tiger cub abandoned in the demon realm. He had nearly left it behind when he happened upon it, but it had followed him as he played his bipa, like so many lost souls did, until he found himself picking it up in his arms. He told himself it was too slow and he didn’t want it to hinder him by not keeping up. In reality, it had been so long since he had embraced anything and its vacant eyes were oddly endearing. It wasn’t long after he had started taking the cub out with him to reap souls that a magpie began to attach itself to him too. It would always bother the tiger until the cub would start whining and hide underneath his hanbok. That seemed to be where it felt safest and most secure.

The first time the couple saw him with his new companions they laughed before congratulating him on finding his own trio. When they had all finished reaping their respective souls, Jinu had stayed to talk with them instead of immediately leaving like he had always done before. Jiwoo had plopped down his child next to the cub, asking Jinu if it would be alright for his baby to play with Jinu’s. While flustered at first by the question, Jinu had allowed it, even if he didn’t acknowledge how the cub had been referred to as his child. He hadn’t even named the cub yet. The poor thing didn’t deserve to be treated as his.

Out of his periphery, he watched as the cub curled up with the demon child, purring while the baby softly chewed on its tail. The magpie perched next to them, keeping an eye on both of the cubs. Jinu's heart seemed to truly beat for the first time in decades, but it stopped again upon remembering his sister and how she used to teethe using his fingers. 

Even if she hadn’t died when he shunned them, she would’ve been dead by then of old age.

There was nothing to reconcile.

Gwi-Ma was sure to keep reminding him of that. 

And he was still here, alive and raising a tiger cub like some sort of replacement. It was another kind of betrayal. He didn’t think he could go any lower, but he kept surprising himself. 

This almost caused him to reject the other omega’s offer to hold his son and, to this day, he did not regret his decision to accept. He had many regrets, but he would’ve never met and surrounded himself with the demons he was now with if it were not for that choice. 

As he awkwardly held the child in his arms, the baby began to cry upon recognizing how uncomfortable he was. He tried to hand back the kid to one of his parents, but they denied his attempts. Minjun instead told him to scent the baby to calm him down. When Jinu looked at him in confusion and desperation, the alpha explained that this would help the baby recognize him as pack. 

Pack.

It was a concept he had scorned as he tried to separate himself from the demon he had become. He had tried to hold onto the shrapnel of his humanity and it left him with nothing but scars. It left him with as much as he had given to others.

Jinu gave in, letting the baby settle their face into the crook of his neck, as he rocked back and forth. The child’s scent was faint with a slight musky quality and, despite not understanding how, he knew the child would one day present as a beta. He could sense the future of this child before his tusks were even done growing in and he wanted to ensure this baby would have that future. There were very few things one could protect in the demon realm. Your mind and body couldn’t be protected because they weren’t yours anymore, but you could protect those around you. 

Nature was cruel, but it presented opportunities for connection. 

With full demonborns aging slower than humans, Jinu watched as that child grew up throughout the centuries. He watched as that child presented and proved his senses correct by becoming a beta. He met Beomseok, Jaehyun, and Daeun, gathering them into the small pack they had formed despite the shame never wanting him to move forward.

Unlike the other members of the Saja Boys, unlike the other members of their pack, Garam was born a Jeoseung Saja. 

Over the years, he became familiar with how different demonborn were from humans who had become demons. He had seen how they came of age and reached maturity, so he felt like a fucking idiot for not thinking Rumi would be the same. 

Jinu would have to say that it hadn’t been his worst experience with an alpha. Of course, the adrenaline had yet to stop pumping through him and none of his wounds had started healing yet, but he could already tell this was a far better outcome than what happened during his own presentation. It wasn’t the best either though. If he had known releasing his scent would cause her to present, he wouldn’t have been so flippant about it. 

There was just a deep hidden part of him that hadn’t felt so alone when she broke her way into the forest clearing. His heart had raced as he remembered the mating runs he had always watched from afar, never joining in fear of tying another to him. Beomseok and Jaehyun always teased him about his apprehension towards the practice because it had worked out fine for them. Blindly being chased by some random alpha through scent alone had never seemed thrilling until Rumi was the one doing it. 

It spoke of some compatibility. 

Even if he was lying to her.

Even if he was going to betray the understanding that had been built between them.

He had forgotten his purpose in meeting her by enveloping himself in the comfort of her earthy scent, yet it had caught up to him. Not only had he figured out the cause of her shame for Gwi-Ma, he had created more. 

The faint aroma of dewy morning grass and tilled soil had followed Rumi since he had realized she was born of a demon. He usually didn’t scent humans because they reeked of uncooked meat, but her fragrance had been so obvious when he finally searched it out. It was an alpha’s scent, so he had assumed she had already presented. 

He assumed she was more human than she actually was.

And maybe she too had assumed he was more human than he actually was.

Complacency – and interest – had led to him overlooking centuries of learning how the demonborn worked. It wasn’t until his instincts refused to allow him to leave and her scent began growing stronger beside him, mixing with blood and want, that he began to remember. 

Chapter Text

“Derpy, you were not helpful at all,” Jinu sighed, staring off into the forestline where Rumi had disappeared into. For a moment, he had thought about chasing after her, but the sharp pain that shot through his legs convinced him otherwise. Jinu would have to let her go for now.

When he turned to chide the tiger more, it peered up at him with pleading and expectant eyes that turned down towards its tummy as if trying to entice Jinu to pet it. The hunter had run off without patting Derpy. 

Both of them were disappointed by Rumi leaving it seemed. 

“Don’t look at me like that,” but he was already moving towards the tiger, wincing as he kneeled down in front of it. He wiped the blood off his palms the best that he could on what remained of his jeans before letting his hands sink into the tiger’s fur. 

Brushing through the soft fluff gave Jinu time to come down from the shock that was surging through him. The feeling had started when Rumi first launched herself at him, but it solidified when she had rejected him. Even if he hadn’t initially wanted the alpha to force herself on him, instinct didn’t care. All instinct saw was another demon who had wrenched away in disgust in the middle of mating him, severing the bond instead of completing it. A hole had been left behind and it was torn open as soon as she had run away from him. 

His omega was more wounded than his body. 

It was retribution in a way for him to be abandoned like this, but Jinu wasn’t entirely sure Rumi was aware of what had happened between them. She had seemed even more terrified than he had been. Her patterns had glowed with such ferocity and the gold of her eyes never stopped searching for danger until she realized that she was the threat. He had never seen her lose her composure so completely. She was frazzled, clothes in disarray and braid coming undone. It was not the typical image he had in mind when thinking of the hunter.

He didn’t even want to imagine what he looked like. He could feel the blood congealing all over his body and that was enough of a confirmation that any human would think that he had escaped being murdered. It wasn’t far off from the truth.

Jinu glanced to the side of the tiger, noticing the blanket that had been left behind in the scuffle. The puppies and kittens stared up innocently at him, and he felt slightly bad about what this blanket had almost been forced to witness. He had wanted to get closer to Rumi, needed to with the order Gwi-Ma had given him, but he never believed it would go as far as it had. At least she had seemed to enjoy the quiet while it lasted.

The fabric appeared relatively clean for something that had a giant tiger rolling all over it with grass underneath. With one hand petting Derpy, he used the other to lightly pry the blanket out from under the tiger. He crumpled it up, pressing his nose into it and taking in a deep breath. 

Her scent clung to the blanket, calming him more than anything else. The heat growing deep in his stomach was satisfied by the perfume of early morning rain. 

Jinu lifted his hand off of Derpy to stand up, folding the blanket as the tiger and magpie watched him. While there was a slight disappointment from Derpy’s end, Sussie was judging him with how carefully he was handling the blanket just because it held Rumi’s scent. The bird narrowed its eye upon seeing him once again sniff at the blanket.

It wasn’t his fault that his omega was begging him to add it to his nest.

“We should head back now,” Jinu announced once the blanket was secure against his chest. Based on how there was still an itch under his skin, he wouldn’t be able to teleport any time soon and he didn’t think he would be able to walk back in his current condition. 

The Saja Boys were currently squatting in the penthouse of a deceased producer when they weren’t in the pack house back in the demon realm. The prior tenant had died of a heart attack right before they debuted and had been reaped by Jaehyun, Beomseok, and Daeun. They had been a trio for as long as Jinu had known them, so he wasn’t surprised by them going off together to handle a case. However, he was surprised by them coming back and raving about how the guy had a built-in practice room. It had seemed convenient at the time, so they just kind of made themselves at home and didn’t think too much about how long the producer’s automatic payments would last. 

Was there a dead body currently shoved into their freezer? Yes.

Was the dead body chopped up with the majority of it gone? Also yes. It wasn’t like the man had given any offerings and it wasn't uncommon for reapers to take anything that was available as payment. 

When Jinu had come back from confronting Rumi about her demon heritage during the first time she had accepted his letter, he had been greeted with Daeun and Garam extracting the organs from the corpse and storing the meat away in sealed bags. Jinu had paused in the middle of the kitchen, sent a polite smile when Garam waved at him, and immediately turned around to walk to his room. Their kitchen island was thankfully easy to clean up. 

Rumor was that if one consumed enough souls or flesh, a demon could become human. It was one of the reasons why human meat was the main import brought in by the few demons that could make it through the Honmoon. The meat was fantastic for bartering and could get a lot more than random human belongings. Many demons, even those who had never been human, were desperate for an escape from the demon realm. Jinu had never seen a transformation like this happen, but he couldn’t say it wasn’t true either. Demons went missing all the time and he couldn’t help but hope some of them had found a way out.

Body parts that no one wanted were thrown to Derpy, the bones were used for broth, and the rest was divided up between the pack members. Minjun and Jiwoo had not raised their son to be wasteful. Everything was first come first serve with names being sharpied onto each bag. Jinu had many qualms against eating human remains, but he also wasn’t about to let Jae steal the lungs away from him like he had a couple years prior. He liked how fluffy healthy ones were — practically melting on his tongue whenever they were cooked — and the other omega could no longer use cravings as an excuse to hoard them.

At least the neighbors hadn’t asked any questions. They had been teleporting into the penthouse, so it was more of a matter of the humans noticing that the original owner had disappeared. They could only assume the guy was a recluse because no one had visited or left any messages on the phone they eventually destroyed.

Regardless, Jinu could not teleport into the penthouse by himself at the moment. With a long stretch that nearly knocked him over, Derpy got up and tilted its head as it waited. Jinu climbed on top of the tiger, quietly apologizing for any mess that transferred from him onto the blue fur. Sussie perched on Jinu’s head and made itself comfortable.

The demon had always been fascinated by how the tiger could so seamlessly squeeze through the Honmoon to get to wherever it wanted. Derpy had frightened him the first time it had happened because the cub had disappeared without a trace during the middle of a reaping. When the cub had reappeared, it had seemed pretty content with itself because it took the place of his bipa in his arms for the rest of the trip. The ability was simply the nature of the type of magical creature that Derpy was, but he had never imagined how young they were when they started teleporting.

Even when he was transporting souls, the transition from the demon realm was never as simple as it was for Derpy. The Honmoon had to be ripped through or a spot that was already weak had to be found. These imperfections were becoming more and more rare with each passing generation.

Jinu ignored his patterns glowing as Derpy descended through the Honmoon. It was a quick process that was only slightly uncomfortable because the Honmoon was fighting for him not to cross. It felt like he was being crushed for a millisecond between both of the realms, the marks searing into his flesh, yet Derpy ascended into the penthouse without any fanfare. The pressure ceased and Jinu slid off the tiger. Derpy had transported them into the entrance hallway and, while he would’ve preferred his room, he was sure he could make it back there without anyone noticing. Although, based on how Derpy was nudging for him to take his shoes off, there might have been a reason for teleporting there. He had raised the tiger too well.

As he kicked off his sneakers with plans of disposing of them later, Derpy cleaned off its paws on the entryway rug. It then poked at Jinu’s shoes until they were nicely lined up with those of the other members on the floor. Jinu had tried to help, putting the blanket under his arm so that he could lean down and move the shoes, but Derpy kept purposely messing up all of his attempts. Only when Derpy completed the task itself was the tiger content enough to head off to Jinu’s room. Jinu was used to this behavior by now.

Sussie had already flown off long before this. When it had left, the magpie had made sure to make its opinion clear by rolling its eyes at Jinu attempting to help.

His limping was slowly going away. Each step felt steadier than the last as he made his way to his room. Derpy kept close to him, providing some support. Embracing the blanket, he trudged into the living room area with thoughts of collapsing into his nest guiding him.

When he had entered the living room, he hadn’t questioned the fact that the lights were on. It wasn’t uncommon for them to not turn off the lights. None of them had the instinct to reach out and smack the light switch whenever they left a room. 

Therefore, he hadn’t thought much of walking by the couch until he was close enough to see pink hair peeking out over the back. His gaze shot to Beomseok laying down with Jae on top of him. Their legs were tangled together with Beomseok only wearing pajama bottoms decorated with purple hearts while Jaehyun was wearing the matching top. The mates were lazily making out. Beomseok’s hand had fallen to his omega’s hips, thumbing at the shirt’s hem. Jae softly clutched onto his alpha’s chest as they melted together.

It was a tender moment, but Jinu could recognize their aftercare. The bonds on both of their necks were freshly healed. Jinu could make out the fading bites littering Beomseok’s entire torso and the ones Jae’s boxers were failing to hide. In their human forms, the marks were even more obvious than they usually were. He was sure they had enjoyed discovering and experimenting with that.

Jinu looked away. They were luckily occupied enough not to notice him, but that didn’t explain the tightness in his throat. This was not a unique scenario that he had walked in on. He had intruded on far worse and far more private moments than this, yet his nose twitched at his pack members’ scents mixing together. 

He was exasperated by how the honey and sage overwhelmed what little he had left of her.

Why should they have what you don’t? They aren’t any better than you.

Envy wracked through him and left a bitter yet familiar taste on his tongue. Warmth and nausea coiled deep inside his stomach. His chest felt heavy with the weight of hands trailing up his body. Thoughts of her pressed against him, taking everything she wanted from him, raced through his mind. He ignored the recollections of how she desired nothing from him. She had thrown him aside like he was worthless.

Maybe she realized she deserved more than a selfish omega. You would leave her behind as quickly as you did your family. You have already lied to her.

He hunched forward at the impact of memory: the desperate screams of his sister, the disappointment in his mother’s gaze, and now the abhorrence that Rumi had aimed towards him. This was all he deserved, centuries of suffering and dejection until every echo of him was wiped from existence.

There was nothing left of the man he was before temptation whispered in his ear. He was as much a stranger to himself as he had treated his family. 

He half-expected Gwi-Ma to summon him, berate him in person, and shame him for the lengths he was willing to go to get rid of the memories. 

But what else could he have offered her when he only had his body?

However, the presence in the back of his head was ripped away as quickly as it arrived. It snapped every thread holding him together. When he grabbed the couch for support, legs nearly buckling out underneath him, Beomseok opened his eyes at the tremor sent through the furniture. They stared at each other for a few seconds too long before the alpha finally pulled out of the kiss with his mate. Jaehyun huffed as Beomseok sat up – pulling the omega into a straddle on his lap – before realizing exactly why. 

“Jinu,” the alpha started, looking the haggard demon in front of him up and down. He took in the blood, the vacant stare, and wondered if Jinu had gotten into a fight. “Why are you not in your human form?”

Jaehyun studied the other omega just as intensely, but Jinu was beyond thinking about anything at the moment. Instead of answering, his attention briefly fell onto Derpy trotting past him towards the doggy bed they had next to the one lone chair in the living room. Before Derpy settled into the bed, he pressed his forehead against the hand of someone sitting in the chair and trilled as he received some head scratches.

Jinu had to be out of it because how did he not notice Garam lounging in the middle of the room? The beta was playing on a laptop with headphones on and Jinu could make a pretty good guess about what he had used his Soda Pop money on. He was wearing sweatpants and a hoodie with his hair swept to one side, keeping one of his eyes visible. It scared Jinu at times how much Garam looked like his omega father, Jiwoo.

He had the type of face a person wouldn’t mind seeing before they died, even if he was the one stabbing them through the heart. 

Unlike the couple, Garam was not wearing his human disguise. He wasn’t even in his modified demon form because his tusks weren’t transformed into earrings. They were curled out from under his lips and confidently on display. Keeping up the facade was especially exhausting for him because his form was of someone who had never existed. Copying was much easier. Of all the members, Garam was the one who was in his human form the least.

This musing was what made him finally respond to Beomseok.

“Garam can be like this all the time, but I can’t?” He griped, motioning towards the beta with enough force it hurt his arm. His first thought wasn’t anything related to the slight discomfort. His first thought was him wondering why that came out so whiny. 

Everything burned.

“You hate your demon form,” Beomseok explained, sending his mate a confused look. He continued, brushing it off as a joke, “Which I understand. There’s a reason you’re not the visual.” He cockily gestured to his toned body and the omega draped over him. 

Jinu’s vision blurred before he could think of a comeback. He clutched onto the blanket and that brought him back down to the room for the time being. Suffocating himself with her scent was keeping him aware. He fidgeted slightly, itching to get to his room, but he couldn’t move with Beomseok’s gaze on him. 

Jaehyun, however, was more preoccupied with the chair Jinu had directed his attention to. Slowly turning his head, the color in Jaehyun’s face left as soon as he recognized Garam. It was not an uncommon occurrence for the beta to sneak up or silently appear out of nowhere, but this didn’t make it less disconcerting. Centuries of this behavior and Jae was taken off guard every single time. 

“How long have you been sitting there?” A brief chuckle that failed to hide how disturbed he felt broke through. The beta lowered his headphones in acknowledgement. 

“Longer than you guys have been here,” Garam deadpanned, not looking up from the laptop.

“Why didn’t you say anything?!?”

The beta shrugged, “I’ve been playing Minecraft.” Garam lifted up the laptop, turning it so that Jaehyun could see the screen. The older member squinted at what appeared to be blocky fields of wheat.

The nonchalant answer did very little to settle Jaehyun.

“What the fuck is Minecraft?” He murmured to himself.

Sweat trickled down the back of Jinu’s neck. The lights and the noises and the smells were too much. Lucidity was ebbing away. The little support he had was gone because Derpy had already fallen asleep on the doggy bed. At least the pain from the wounds was gone, but that was because he couldn’t feel his body. Fog surrounded him and was only briefly broken by the scent of smoke forcing its way through. 

“Where have you been while I’ve been working?” A voice accused Jinu, causing the omega to turn around as best as he could. It was more of him reacting to stimulation than anything.

The source of the new aroma stood in the entranceway that led to the practice room, still decked out in his “Baby” clothes. A lit cigarette dangled between his fingers, but this wasn’t the cause of the scent. Daeun naturally smelled of smoldering embers.

“Don’t you mean while we’ve been working?” Jae asked in offense, looking over his shoulder at the newest intruder.

“No, actually,” Daeun glared at the omega. He lifted the cigarette up, drawing deeply before releasing a plume of smoke that only obscured Jinu’s thoughts further. Flicking ash towards the mates, Daeun pointed at them as he complained, “You all fucked off as soon as we got here. It would’ve been nice to have some more choreo refined by now.”

Despite still needing to figure out what was up with Jinu, Beomseok glanced away from their leader to the tiny alpha.

“We did some cardio. I think that has to count for something,” he smirked at Daeun from behind his mate. The omega had fully turned around and was now sitting comfortably in his mate’s lap. Jae smiled softly when Beomseok laid his head on his shoulder, lightly nipping at the omega’s mating bond.

Daeun rolled his eyes at the display, “You can’t fuck on stage. Besides, we both know the only person doing cardio in your relationship is Jaehyun.”

“I don’t know. I think we could get plenty of souls if we fucked during a performance. You could join if you want,” Jae teased, laying his gaze heavy on Daeun. Sweet honey dripped as the omega lifted his alpha’s chin up. Tracing his fingers along Beomseok’s jawline, the omega forced the alpha to crane his neck and expose the hickey lining his throat. He grinned while showing off what he had done to his alpha. With half-lidded eyes, want leaked into every word of his proposal, “I’m sure Beomseok wouldn’t mind being knotted.”

“Might not even be able to feel it coming from him, but I could put his oral fixation to good use,” Beomseok bit his lip, ogling Daeun as he took another drag from his cigarette. As revulsion became plain on Daeun’s face, the mates burst out laughing. They understood how to bother Daeun better than anyone.

When the laughter died down, Daeun flipped the older alpha off, “Beomseok, I hope the hunters kill you.” 

“Use the time it takes me to regenerate wisely because I will be coming after your ass first, Daeun.”

“Come in your mate's ass first, you son of a whore.”

“Don’t you dare call my mother that!” 

Beomseok attempted to launch himself off the couch, his patterns bleeding through his skin, only to be forced down by his mate. He whined against Jae’s neck before sighing in defeat. He would have to attack Daeun later.

“You told me I would only be producing, not this bullshit,” Daeun addressed Jinu upon the other alpha being placated. “The Idol Awards are almost here and I refuse to make a debut album. I am not doing promo, Jinu.”

Said placated alpha mumbled into his mate’s neck, “We have time. Stop being dramatic.”

"Time? It's in a few days and you haven't even finished the Your Idol choreo yet. All you've done is give yourself the most obnoxious entrance."

"Choreography actually takes effort, Daeun," Beomseok remarked, looking up, "Unlike pressing buttons on a computer and compiling sound bites that you stole off the internet."

"I will ruin the Your Idol performance and you'll see how important my work is when Gwi-Ma erases us all from existence."

Jinu was used to the trio arguing like this, specifically the two alphas butting heads. They usually didn’t mean anything by it. This was how they entertained themselves. He often joined them, but right now their voices were particularly grating and annoying. Scrounging up what was left of his energy, Jinu focused on how to get out of there while also ending everything as quickly as possible. 

“Garam, has anyone been working tonight?” He pinched the bridge of his nose, squeezing his eyes shut in an attempt to push down the headache forming. This was worse than dealing with them during dance practice.

“Nope,” the word popped.

Jinu nodded to himself, “This is why you’re my favorite. Honesty.”

He lumbered towards the younger alpha, growing more and more pissed off as the odor of smoke enveloped him. The comfort of the blanket was gone as he had settled it onto the couch before approaching Daeun. He didn’t want the other alpha’s scent to taint it. 

Snatching the cigarette out of Daeun’s hand, Jinu stubbed it out with his thumb before throwing it to the ground. Singing his flesh brought back some clarity. Burning the outside was preferable to the burn growing on the inside. Before the alpha could even think of murmuring a complaint, Jinu cornered him into the edge of the entryway.

“Get off everybody’s ass, Daeun,” the omega towered over the alpha. He waited for the alpha to tilt his head in submission before snarling, “You aren’t the one in charge here. Don’t act like you aren’t a waste of my fucking time. It won’t take me more than a minute to find your replacement.”

That came out a bit harsher than he had intended.

And that did not go unnoticed. 

Daeun peeked up at him, studying his face. The air in the room was frigid. Jinu's scent had wilted and rotted away, stuffing up the room. Everyone was as taken aback as the alpha. Jinu could be ruthless, but he was never this blunt. He said things along these lines whenever they messed up choreography, yet that was also deserved in most cases. It felt more like Jinu’s restraint was gone, but that wasn’t it either.

The omega's eyes flitted around, searching for an exit despite the fact that he was currently in control. His body was tense. Panic glowed in his gaze and his breathing was stunted. Bruises on his face blended into his skintone. There was a gaping wound on his neck and his clothing was drenched in red. Daeun glanced down, his own anger rising when he saw the claw marks running down Jinu’s legs. 

What was worse was the smell that covered the omega from head to toe. A terrible musk that spoke of ownership without regard to who was being claimed. Now that he was closer to the omega, the scent was undeniable. He gritted his teeth, barely satiating the urge to rip out the throat of whoever did this.

“What alpha did this to you?”

Chapter Text

“Did he just put that out with his hand?” Beomseok whispered to his mate, words barely getting picked up by Jinu. The alpha blinked at the crumpled cigarette that had been tossed to the ground. 

However, Jaehyun heard the question about as much as Jinu did. The younger omega had shot up from his spot on the couch, eliciting a slight grimace from the alpha he was sitting on, at Daeun’s question.

“What alpha did this to you?”

Fumes of hostility prickled around Daeun, a sizzling hatred beginning to fester. Jinu saw the anger towards his prior threats of kicking Daeun out get defused within seconds and be replaced by loathing towards whoever had harmed him. He could discern some hurt that remained, yet that was overpowered by concern. 

It didn’t make Jinu feel any less guilty about what he had said though. Rationality was catching up with him and he was coming to terms with how he had gone about everything in the least logical way possible. Leaving would have been simple. He could’ve made it to his room. Instead, he stayed and released every bit of his pent up energy by belittling Daeun, but the alpha was able to recognize that he wasn’t in his right mind. 

He could barely think at all, so his omega was pulling him along to get support.

“I didn’t mean that,” he slurred out, tears building up with each word. The tears remained lodged in his eyes as his emotions fluctuated between rage and dejection. If he said anything else, he knew he would either start crying or yelling. He refused to do either in front of his pack, so he remained silent. Daeun didn’t deserve the brunt of this and Jinu also didn’t wish to be vulnerable.

The alpha’s face softened, but Jaehyun squeezed between them before he could let out any assurance. Daeun backed away from the two omegas when Jae began to release his scent to quell Jinu’s distress. Jaehyun grabbed Jinu’s hands, inspecting them. His lips pursed at the dried blood under the other omega’s fingernails. The grip only became tighter when Jinu tried to pull away. 

“What happened?” Jaehyun begged to know, eyes flitting across his entire body. “You looked like you were ripped apart.” 

The assumptions were clear on Jaehyun’s face, so Jinu looked away in shame. Jaehyun was so close to the truth, yet he couldn’t be further from it. 

He wanted her back. 

He needed her to be there. 

Why had she left him?

Why did he feel like he was dying without her?

The words were sand on his tongue. Everything would cascade out if he opened his mouth and it would burn him with it.

“Jinu,” Jaehyun spoke lightly and the omega realized some tears had escaped. He tried to blink them away, but it did nothing to hide how weak he was. Jaehyun reiterated the question Jinu had yet to answer, “Who did this?”

The aroma of sweet nectar dug deep as Jaehyun pressed their wrists together, trying to soothe an answer out of the other omega by rubbing the glands together. A brief tranquility washed over Jinu as his omega was satisfied. 

“There was a demon who was presenting and…” He murmured, dwindling off near the end. 

The hands holding his fell away, Jaehyun covering his mouth in a daze. His voice was as far away as his gaze when he said to himself, “This is what happens when there is a sudden influx of demons.”

Jinu couldn’t deny Jaehyun’s line of thinking entirely. If it weren’t for them trying to destroy the Honmoon, Jinu wouldn’t have been in the position for this to happen and the hundreds of soulless husks wouldn’t have been created. However, there was a glimmer running down Jaehyun’s arm with a shame that shouldn’t have been his. 

“How did you escape?” Beomseok interjected. “You should be a chew toy by now.”

“I didn’t-”

Daeun scoffed, “He practically is. Get over here, Beomseok.” The last part was an order, forcing Beomseok up off the couch. The aggression Daeun held for whoever did this was palpable. His hands and jaw were clenched. Everything about him was tense and it only got worse when Beomseok got closer. 

The older alpha grimaced, finally recognizing the marks on Jinu’s body. There was a desperation for release in each gash that could have only come from a demon presenting, gouging into flesh when they couldn’t find a hole to fuck.

A clacking sound broke the silence, Garam typing quickly on his laptop before closing it. He set the laptop and his headphones down on the chair before standing up. When he was about to walk over, he paused and turned his nose up to sniff the air. His gaze turned down to Derpy before shifting to the blanket Jinu had left on the couch. He remained silent, but he sent an inquisitive look towards Jinu that the omega couldn’t ignore. 

At that moment, Jinu was able to discern that he was beginning to put things together. As a beta, Garam had a better sense of smell than the rest of them, even if his own scent was more bland. 

“Why didn’t Derpy intervene?” Garam ended up asking as he approached. “I can smell the alpha on him.”

“I handled it.” 

Saying that Derpy trusted Rumi wouldn’t have sufficed, but the way Garam’s eye narrowed at him told him that answer wasn’t acceptable either.

“Did you kill them?” Jaehyun wondered with a hint of hope in his tone.

He shook his head.

The other omega grabbed him by the shoulders, staring him down with a flicker of gold in his eyes, before he requested, “Next time, kill them.” 

While Jaehyun was certainly thinking of forcing a demon to regenerate to buy time, Jinu did not think that would work for Rumi. The demand and all his other actions, however, showed a level of care and concern that he hadn’t seen from Jaehyun in a while. 

Once Jinu nodded in affirmation, Jaehyun tugged on his hand, “Come on. Let’s clean you up before you get blood everywhere.”

Jaehyun dragged him, and subsequently the rest of the group, towards his and Beomseok’s room. It was one of the two guest rooms that had been depressingly dusty when they broke in. Daeun and Garam shared the other one while Jinu took the producer’s old room with Derpy and Sussie. 

Upon entering the couple’s room, Jinu was barely able to register their unmade bed and sex-stained sheets before he was shoved into their bathroom. He was finally let go of when Jaehyun made a beeline for the towel racks above the toilet, everyone funneling in behind them. Beomseok brushed past him to help Jaehyun. 

“Why did this guy only have white towels?” Jae griped while handing off every hand towel and washcloth to his mate. “This penthouse has the blandest color palette.”

“I don’t think he imagined ever cleaning blood off someone, babe.”

Jaehyun rolled his eyes before pointing towards the sink, “Wet those and-.” He aimed a finger at Jinu, ordering, “Strip.”

Jinu nervously chuckled, “Not even going to try and take me out first?” It did seem like being around his pack was calming him. At least speaking didn’t feel like a chore anymore, but he also didn’t want to share all of how Rumi had branded him. 

As Jaehyun’s mouth pressed into a thin line, it became clear that the other omega was not as amused by his joke. He lifted up a hand between them, fingers slowly turning into claws with an ombre of purple going into pale skin. “Jinu, strip or I tear your clothes off,” he threatened. 

That was the Jaehyun he was familiar with. 

He could only huff in indignation as he began to strip down to his boxers in front of all of his band members. Jaehyun’s claws didn’t slink away until he was about halfway done. His jeans were easy enough to peel off along with his hoodie, but his shirt was a struggle to get off with how wet it still was. He had to pull it off with the main focus being on separating it from his chest without flicking blood everywhere. 

It was barely a shirt anymore, let alone a gray one.

After throwing the dirty clothes into the corner, Jaehyun pushed him down to sit on top of the toilet seat. Beomseok handed his mate one of the wet towels as the omega kneeled down in front of Jinu. Daeun watched from where he was leaning on the doorframe while Beomseok settled an elbow onto Garam’s shoulder. 

Jaehyun lifted Jinu’s right leg as he began to clean it off. It was slow-going, for Jae kept inspecting each individual claw mark to see how healed each was and how deep they still were. He understood the necessity of it though. His pack member had to check that everything was actually healing as it should. If it was healing faster or slower than it should, that could pose a serious problem. Every once in a while he would flinch when Jae pried away blood that was stubbornly clumping to his leg hair.

“Did they drag you?” Beomseok asked after one of his knees was cleaned off, revealing skin that had been rubbed raw.

“They launched at me when I started running and dragged me across the ground.”

A small, “Damn,” came out with a wince.

“So there is just a feral alpha running around Seoul right now?” Daeun said through gritted teeth, his fingers digging into his arms as he crossed them. 

“Not as feral as they could be."

“Have they not gone fully into rut yet?”

“I wouldn’t be here if they had," he admitted. If Rumi hadn't pulled back, he would've let her do anything and it was only a small part of him that detested this fact.

Daeun thought that over for a second before saying with an eerie calm, “Then they shouldn’t be far from where they attacked you.”

“Don’t,” Jinu snarled at the insinuation, the reaction coming out before he could stop it. Jaehyun stopped where he was, curiously glancing up at Jinu as the other omega stared apologetically at Daeun. Jinu exhaled, calming down. “It’s not worth it,” he reassured Daeun, gaze falling away. 

Jaehyun changed out towels before moving up to Jinu’s chest, motioning for him to lean down. Jinu gave in because it was preferable to the other option which was most likely Jaehyun straddling him. He knew Beomseok would not have been as opposed to the position as he should be. 

The cloth trailed down his chest for a second, Jaehyun’s eyes following the lacerations. “The marks on your chest stop…” Jae placed his hand right above Jinu’s stomach, flustering him. He let out a soft humorless laugh. “... here. I guess alphas always have the same priority.”

Beomseok got off of Garam, sitting down behind his mate as a vacant stare began to settle on Jaehyun’s face. The alpha’s hands found their way around his mate’s waist as his palms settled on his abdomen. He placed a kiss against the crook of the omega’s neck before resting his head against it. 

“You know it,” the alpha smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. His smile was barely one before it turned downwards. The alpha held the omega tighter, comforting himself just as much as he was comforting his mate. The earthy fragrance of sage filled the room, causing Garam's nose to wrinkle. 

Jinu was unsure if he should ask, if he even deserved to ask, but he saw how Jaehyun was clenching both of his hands. 

“How have you been doing?”

Surprise brought Jaehyun out of his thoughts, but it was welcome and Jinu could tell Beomseok was thankful. He resumed wiping off Jinu as he spoke. 

“Better but-,” he paused. A flicker of thin lines, barely full patterns, began to appear on his palms. He steadied his breathing, waiting for them to disappear as his eyes could not leave them, before he continued, “You know how it is. The shame never fades.”

Jinu didn’t have much experience with pregnancy. When his mother had been pregnant with his sister, it was one of his responsibilities to help minimize her stress. This mainly meant covering her duties and being obedient. He remembered her speaking to the child that had yet to greet the world, but he had viewed the entire process from the lens of someone who would never have to go through it. He learned from his father remaining strong by his mother’s side, dying in silence not to worry her. Stress would have harmed the child, yet it was all for nothing in the end.

Jiwoo was the first omega he had encountered who had carried a child, but he had not been there when Jiwoo was pregnant. Still, Jiwoo had been the one to explain some of the intricacies of demon reproduction to him. It took a while for Jinu to come to terms with what his body was now capable of.

Jaehyun’s pregnancy was the only one he had been around for the entirety of and understood the implications of. Even if he had no mate, Jaehyun’s pain and happiness could’ve just as easily been his. Jiwoo guided him through the months just as he did Jaehyun. It was the closest he had ever been to the other two omegas. 

It was the closest their pack had ever been.

Chunhee was born roughly a decade prior. She was born with light lilac skin and a scrunched face, her screams blending in seamlessly with the crying of her parents. Little patterns trailed across her skin, showing the inherent nature of shame, and she had the scent of sweet milk. After the cord was cut, Beomseok had passed her around to be scented by each pack member before laying her on Jae’s chest. The omega had held her so gently, hands rising with each of her breaths. The new parents had been in such awe of what they had created. The scorned son of a concubine and the son of a gisaeng had done more than they were ever destined to do. 

When the afterbirth began to pass, Beomseok had offered to hold her, but Jaehyun had asked to hold her for just a bit longer. Beomseok still regretted not refusing the request, if only to have spared his mate the pain. As the afterbirth finally passed, Chunhee’s marks began to glow, quickly overtaking her entire body. Jinu remembered the confusion that had fogged all of their reactions until Jaehyun started screaming. It was not from pain but from anguish as the omega watched his daughter dissolve, transferring her patterns onto him.

She would always be his greatest shame.

“We’re waiting until after all of this is over to try again,” Jae revealed softly, the unoccupied hands moving to cover his mate's.

Beomseok nodded, “When the Honmoon is gone, Gwi-Ma promised to us that he would undo Jaehyun’s deal.”

Jaehyun had been the child of a nobleman and an unwanted concubine. Just as his father hated his mother, his father hated him. They were ostracised from the rest of the household and, when they were acknowledged, treated cruelly. It wasn’t until a voice started whispering in his ear that it didn’t have to be like this that he felt some hope in his situation. The voice told him it could ensure the end of his father’s bloodline if Jaehyun followed its guidance. The other omega never shared how it had been done, but Jinu was familiar with the look in his eyes whenever he talked about his deal: he had slaughtered his entire household and carried no remorse until it was too late.

Ending his father’s bloodline had extended into the afterlife and no child of his could exist when the deal was still in effect. Gwi-Ma had made sure to remind him of this.

“I didn’t know that is what you requested from Gwi-Ma,” Jinu murmured.

Jae shrugged, working his way up to Jinu’s neck, “You never asked.”

Jinu sat silently, pondering over his decisions. They all had heard his request, yet he had never given a thought to theirs. He was aware of how his desire to erase the memories of his shame were selfish, but this was a reminder he couldn’t ignore. They wanted to create a family while he wanted to forget his.

The other omega forced his chin to tilt up, craning Jinu’s neck so that he would have better access to where the alpha had torn into his mating gland. It was after Jaehyun cleaned off a good portion of his gland that the younger omega finally let out a sigh of relief. 

“I was worried it had healed,” Jae confessed, gently flaking away the blood to make sure it hadn't scarred over. Jinu flinched at the sensation. He didn’t think it would be appropriate to mention the disappointment at Jae verifying what he had discovered earlier. 

“It was one of the first things I checked," he said instead.

“You have yet to be tied down, Jinu,” Beomseok reached over his mate to pat Jinu’s shoulder. With a smile, he made light of the situation. “That’s good news for the Pride.”

Daeun spoke up, nails still digging into his arms, “Those freaks would tie him down if they could. Did you see all the funeral wreaths they sent to the Huntr/x building after that joint signing? The only reason we didn't get any is because we don't have a building. Some of the fans are fucking crazy. Sure, I want the hunters to suffer too, but I’m not so public about it. I only know these fans aren’t demons because they lack shame.”

“Remember, those fans aren’t real ones,” Garam supplied, but it was clear he was just repeating a common phrase he had heard other groups spout. It was more joke than sincerity.

“Those crazy bastards are causing more damage to Huntr/x than we are.” Daeun chuckled, “Maybe they are the real fans and the normal ones aren’t.”

Jinu began to slowly clench his hands under the rim of the toilet seat, failing to contain his emotions over what Daeun was saying.

He remembered the wreaths and what they meant. The disapproval and satisfaction of fans was always waning and waxing. A lot of the wreaths had only two words: Rumi, leave. People had not been receptive to the videos or pictures that had come out of the two of them from that fan signing. It compounded people’s complaints about line distribution and promotional material. Even people who were fans of Rumi were begging her to leave her group like they couldn’t recognize how much Mira and Zoey meant to her. They couldn’t see beyond the persona they had imposed on a stranger.

“Ignore them, Jinu,” Jaehyun murmured, his mate sulking at being chastised. Jinu let go of the toilet seat, settling his hands in his lap. He wasn’t supposed to be caring this much about Rumi, but the thoughts kept running away from him. Faint wisps of cherry blossom circled him and Jaehyun pursed his lips upon the scent floating towards him.

When Jaehyun pulled him completely down and shoved his nose into Jinu’s neck, Jinu was taken aback. 

“Can you try to shift to your human form for me?” Jaehyun asked hurriedly, pulling away. There was a panic building in his gaze that did not bode well. “You weren’t able to teleport back, right?”

“Yeah, Derpy got me back,” Jinu confirmed before attempting to transform. He stared at his hand, feeling the familiar tingle running through his body, and nothing happened. His hands were still lavender and marred with patterns, blood still under his claws.

Jaehyun’s and his eyes widened in horror. They were both thinking the same thing. While not being able to teleport could be explained by the proximity of the alpha, Jinu should’ve been able to shift by now.

“Garam, get over here,” Jaehyun beckoned the beta over then ordered, “Scent him.”

The younger member awkwardly leaned over the mated couple to reach Jinu. His hair fell back down over his eyes as he rubbed his cheek against the scent gland on the opposite side of Jinu’s mating gland. When pulled away, he kneeled down next to Jaehyun. The omega patted his head for complying before fixing his hair to the side again. 

“Pre-heat, right?” Jaehyun asked, almost afraid to. When Garam nodded, Jaehyun sucked his teeth. He grimaced as he looked up at Jinu, “That explains how you’ve been acting…”

“Fuck,” Jinu breathlessly whispered, squeezing his eyes shut as he covered his mouth with hands.

“That damn alpha triggered his heat?” Daeun seethed. “Excuse me for a second.” He finally released his hands from his arms, unclenching and clenching them in the air as if stretching them out, before making his way out of the bathroom.

As he disappeared from view, they heard him release a scream.

“He won’t be able to perform like this,” Jaehyun murmured, confirming all their fears. His bottom lip quivered from shock. The younger omega wasn’t just worried about himself. He was worried about what would happen to all of them. Gwi-Ma had never accepted failure before. They couldn’t imagine he would make an exception for them.

The sound of wood crashing and shattering against another surface resonated through the bathroom.

“What about the Idol Awards?” Garam stood up, backing up against the wall. His voice went flat, “It’s in a few days.”

Jinu’s hands ran down his face as he mulled everything over. They wouldn’t be able to use another demon to mimic him because demons couldn’t mimic other demons. Even if it was possible, the energy would be wrong and the fans would be able to pick up on it if Huntr/x didn’t first. It would be a weakness, a visual hole, and it could undo the work they had done.

“You guys can perform without me,” he ended up saying to everyone’s surprise. He remained as composed as he could be. “We can save Your Idol for later. You can sing Soda Pop normally at the Idol Awards. You only have to figure out how to distribute my lines.”

“I’M GOING TO FUCKING KILL THEM!!!” The yelling broke through the wall.

“It’s a five person choreo, Jinu! It won’t translate well into-,” Beomseok stopped upon his mate looking back to glare at him. He sighed in defeat, “I can figure it out.”

Daeun rushed back into the room, disheveled and breathing heavily. He braced against the doorframe, staring Jinu dead in the eye, “Talking this through doesn’t matter. Even if we figure out how to perform without you, Huntr/x will still-”

“They won’t be able to achieve the Golden Honmoon,” Jinu interrupted him, catching every off guard with his claim. 

It was the confidence that bothered Jaehyun. Jinu hadn’t hesitated. It wasn’t like he was gloating either. It truly seemed like their leader was stating an undeniable fact and not even one he was particularly fond of.

Jaehyun narrowed his gaze at Jinu. “You know something we don’t,” he accused. Before Jinu could even deny what had been said, Garam spoke up. 

“It was her, wasn’t it?” He started slowly, tilting his head. He waited for Jinu to brush off what he said, but the omega said nothing. “I recognize her scent. Their leader was the one who did this to you.”

“If this is how she is now, how do you think she will be in the middle of her rut? The Idol Awards is going to be a disaster for Huntr/x.” All of their eyes fell on him and he did his best to avoid eye contact. “We still have time.”

Rumi had no support system. Despite Gwi-Ma announcing her true nature to the demon realm and this information spreading to the majority of its inhabitants, nobody close to her knew she was half-demon. No one who mattered knew what she was experiencing. She would drown in this. 

And he would let it happen…

Daeun cracked his knuckles, growling, “Now it’s personal.”

There was too much understanding in the faces of all the members. They didn’t appear shocked by this news and that bothered Jinu more than it should. Jaehyun looked up at him with pursed lips, contemplating the purposeful apathy on Jinu’s face. Beomseok stared with soft pity while Garam was still hoping that Jinu would take back what he had said. Under the anger, Daeun carried a weariness.

“Why didn’t you say this earlier, Jinu?” Jaehyun pressed, his gaze hardening when Jinu refused to answer. The silence gave more away than he would have.

“Gwi-Ma won’t like the delay,” Beomseok piped up when it became apparent no one else was going to speak. There was no point in pushing Jinu right now. “You know how impatient he has gotten.”

Breaking away from the doorframe, Daeun walked towards the couple and Jinu before leaning against the sink. For a second, he hesitated, eyes scanning the other members of his pack. It didn’t seem like any of them had any other ideas. 

“This might be to our advantage,” he started. “We can’t go on the offensive during the Idol Awards, but we may not have to.” He turned his gaze to Beomseok, directing a question towards him, “I know your presentation was different from mine, so can you remind me what happened during yours?

“I tried to suppress it,” Beomseok answered, confused as to why Daeun was asking. The other alpha already knew what his first rut had been like. He had never hidden his disgust at feeling the uncontrollable lust that happened during presentation. After everything he had witnessed as a human, he hadn’t wanted to release it.

“And how did that feel?”

“It felt like I was dying again. Oh.”

The realization dawned on Jinu when it hit the alpha. There were only a few scenarios that could happen. Rumi would either be unable to perform like Jinu or she would push through to the Idol Awards. However, she was willing to do anything to get rid of her patterns and achieve the Golden Honmoon, so she would force herself through the pain to get to the Idol Awards. Unlike demons that had been turned and thrown into presentation, she had a semi-pack that could hypothetically keep her calm enough until then. Even if he was a beta, Garam’s presentation had gone relatively smooth because of the presence of his pack.

It was when outsiders intruded that problems occurred. 

Performing was intense and there was the overstimulation of the stage, of the crowd. If she somehow managed to reel in her alpha, her body would reject itself as she had rejected her instincts until she had no choice but to give in.

“If there is an accident on stage in front of thousands that they can’t later deny, the company would be under fire. Their manager? Their work ethic? Their mental and physical health? It would all be questioned.” A manic gleam appeared in Daeun’s eyes as he realized there was hope. They wouldn’t be killed just yet. “We’ve been focusing on the short term. If we ensure that the Honmoon can’t be rebuilt after it is destroyed, Gwi-Ma will allow us more time.”

What was supposed to be a relief sounded damning to Jinu.

Chapter Text

Every tear in the Honmoon was a reminder of how far they had come, how little they had to go. As Jinu stood in the living room, he was able to glimpse the rips set alight like fire in the city. While he had not necessarily taken pride out of it before, he at least had experienced some satisfaction in seeing the work his pack had done. Every new break was a step closer to his mind finally being his again. 

However, he now stared at the demonic energy pouring into the human realm, at every mutilation to the barrier that had stood strong for almost four centuries, and felt empty. 

Doubt was never supposed to creep in, but it was becoming harder to deny. The confidence he had put on in front of his pack had grated against him. They made plans on how to move forward, how to handle the Idol Awards, and what should’ve relieved him made him feel like he was falling apart. The part of him that was reassured by the competency of his pack members was overwhelmed by instinct. Everything paled in comparison to the thoughts of betraying his alpha.

He had washed off the remnants of her, scrubbing his hands clean under the sink as his pack spoke around him. It didn’t make him feel any better and, as he dried off, he excused himself from the bathroom. His parting words left Beomseok in charge while he was out of commission and asking the alpha not to tear apart the other members during practice.

As the only one with a background in dance, the alpha had acted as their main choreographer. His mother had been a performer talented in the arts and medicine, so it was hard to keep Beomseok from picking up some skills while growing up in the courtesan house. Any change to the Soda Pop performance, especially with line distribution, would drastically change the choreography, so it made the most sense to leave Beomseok in charge.

Jinu imagined Garam would end up covering the majority of his lines because the beta was the closest to the center when he sang and had the vocal range to hit the higher notes. He believed his pack would be able to pull it off in the end. It was only a matter of if they would be allowed to. Even the guilt he held towards Rumi couldn’t completely hide the apprehension towards Gwi-Ma.

Walking out of the mated couple’s room, he had spared a quick glance to the shattered nightstand laying crumpled against the wall. He shied away from staring at it too long because it was a reminder of the lengths Daeun would go for the pack. Even if the alpha didn't always act like he cared about them, Jinu knew how much they meant to him. Daeun simply didn't want to be disappointed and left to suffer again by the people who were supposed to support him. Regardless of all that, Daeun couldn't hide his rage at the fact that a demon had tried to rape him. The alpha’s intentions were in every splinter and newly-exposed sharp edge. His aggressive desire for revenge was evident.

Despite what his instinct wanted, Jinu passed by the blanket doused in Rumi’s scent, attempting to prove his loyalty to those who weren’t even there to see it. He still had some control left under the compulsions, yet that would disappear once his heat hit. There wouldn’t be much he could do about instinct when his thighs became coated with slick and his mind was fogged by longing. The start of his mating cycle would be undeniable because his body would contort against his will, replacing the genitalia he was born with. While the process was not as jarring as the first time, it had never stopped being uncomfortable.

Instinct swore the blanket would make everything better. The reassurance of his alpha would make the shame go away, but Jinu forced his gaze to the window encompassing the majority of the opposite wall. The window sat behind where Derpy was curled up sleeping in its dog bed, Sussie having come back from wherever it had gone to burrow in the tiger’s fur for the night. As he stared out into the city below, his attention was drawn towards a distant light. It was a newer hole in the Honmoon, for he had never seen it before. As he looked closer at the new tear and the surrounding environment, it began to seem familiar. It was a refuge of green in the middle of the city and the fact it could be seen from the penthouse was exactly why he had picked it out. 

It was the park where he had met with Rumi.

There was a crack in Honmoon where there shouldn’t be one. He hadn’t thought there was anyone else in the park near where they were. A tear couldn’t have been created unless a fan was near the area, unaware of how they were giving up their soul, but Jinu hadn’t sensed anyone. The only tampering that could’ve happened was when the Honmoon had trembled under Rumi.

He didn’t put too much thought into it at that moment. His head was pounding at each reminder of the alpha, so he finally trudged his way back to his room. The composure he had gained by being around his pack was ebbing away. 

Entering the room, he turned around as he closed the door, leaning his forehead against it with closed eyes. For a second, he focused on breathing and the cool of the wood against his skin. There was very little comfort in an inanimate object, but it was all he had. There was nothing more than what he deserved. She was gone and he had left himself with nothing.

Breathing was more a habit than anything. A reaction to fear and exertion that he had never been able to get rid of. After over twenty years of doing it instinctively, he couldn't stop. He didn’t need to breathe, but the freshness of oxygen hitting the back of his throat quelled the pain. His heart beat superficially and blood flowed in his veins like a mockery to what he once was. The pack had to teach Garam how to breathe like a human before they debuted and he found himself running through the breathing exercises they had taught the beta.

He inhaled, holding it in for a few seconds, before exhaling until his lungs were empty. The slight buzz it created was nice, clearing out his mind and forcing him to focus on the task at hand. As he inhaled again, he took in the quiet of the room. It wasn’t often that he was alone in there. His thoughts were usually accompanied by Derpy snoring or purring in the bed. Sometimes Sussie would chirp and preen in the birdcage he had put by the dresser. The tiger napped as often as a house cat while Jinu only slept when he wanted a reprieve, so the room was more Derpy’s than his. 

As the silence spread around him, he listened to the hum of the air conditioning and the noise breaking in from the city. It was when he heard a shuffle of movement behind him that his ears pricked up. His eyes opened at the sound, sensing the other presence in the room.

“The drawing is right, as juvenile as it is. You did have a beautiful soul,” the intruder announced upon realizing they had been noticed. Their voice was soft and had a playful tone, but there was an unnatural quality to it. He could hear the smirk in their inflection: “It’s a pity that you wasted it.”

Jinu knew they were referring to the fanwork he had been gifted at the joint signing. He had ended up placing it on the nightstand, unsure of what to do with it but not wanting to get rid of it either. The depiction of him as an angel contrasted everything he had been for the past few centuries. While Rumi had told him to listen to the voices lifting him up instead, he didn’t believe he had a right to when their praise was based on lies. If they knew the real him, they would be as disgusted as he was.

The intruder seemed to agree with this sentiment.

Turning around, Jinu readied his claws in case he needed to fight the demon behind him. He was still only wearing his boxers and couldn’t teleport away, so he was prone to any attack. There was nothing lucky about his position except for the fact he hadn’t gone fully into heat. If this demon wasn’t here for business reasons, he could only assume it was to take advantage.

His breath hitched as soon as he saw who was behind him, tensing up. While he had not lost the intention of defending himself yet, there was hesitation. His claws remained at his side in wait. Want muddled the panic coursing through him. Sitting on the edge of the bed was a familiar face. Her hair was nicely pleated and there was a confidence in the air that contradicted how she had fled from him. The clothes she was wearing were different too, unstained and not at all what she had worn previously that night. As teddy bears stared up at him from pajama bottoms, he recognized that she was wearing what she had the first time he invited her to meet up.

Everything about her felt off. There was a faint scent surrounding her, an imitation of petrichor that seemed more like a distant recollection than something in front of him. Her scent was already not that strong, but the potency had been completely lost. It was devoid of any substance, any emotion or identifier. 

If he didn’t know better, it could’ve been anyone’s scent. Her voice, an echo of what it was, could’ve been a stranger’s voice. She had not yet looked at him, still staring at the nightstand where the art was located, but Jinu already knew there would be nothing behind those eyes. This was a copy of Rumi he realized and his omega felt like it was being taunted.

The imposter’s gaze glided from the art to Jinu, finally acknowledging him. It tilted her head sharply, pensive as it studied the state the reaper was in.

“You don’t seem thrilled to see me,” it observed, chuckling at Jinu’s caution. There was a level of assuredness that Jinu had never heard in Rumi’s voice. Every bit of shame she held was gone.

It wasn’t possible for another demon to mimic her, yet he couldn’t deny what was in front of him. There was only one entity capable of this, but that was even less likely to happen. There was no way that he could’ve slipped through the Honmoon and yet what else could it be?

“Your power has grown faster than I realized,” he tested, putting on a front of calm as he spoke. The tension fell away while he forced himself to relax. Being in the human realm had provided some separation from Gwi-Ma, even if he could be summoned at any time, but that appeared to be gone now. That small shred of freedom was eviscerated.

His line of thinking was confirmed when a smile began to etch into Rumi’s face. 

“I thought you would enjoy seeing what you have accomplished.”

Gwi-Ma pushed himself up from the bed, yet there was no imprint as he did so. There was not even a dip in the mattress where he had been sitting.

“As the Honmoon dwindles, certain abilities have returned to me. While I cannot access the human realm yet, I have more control of the perception of those who bear my mark.” The demon approached Jinu, staring up at him. Rumi’s mouth was still upturned in amusement, but her eyes were devoid of anything. There was emotion, yet it was only surface-level. Nothing went deeper than the outside. The form was a shell of who it was imitating. Jinu couldn’t shy away as the figure got even closer, barely any distance left between them. Still, it felt like there was nothing in front of him.  

“I’m not truly here, Jinu,” Gwi-Ma mockingly comforted him. Even if Jinu was holding himself together, the demon understood the reaper well enough to know he was never wanted. “This is the culmination of your memory. See?” Her hand reached up to cup his cheek, phasing through to prove a point.

“Although, sensation is also stored in the mind,” Gwi-Ma mused, bringing the hand right back over his cheek and resting her palm next to it. For a moment, all Jinu could detect was a slight tingle against his skin, but it quickly developed into a soft touch. It was warm and soothing, something he would’ve leaned into if not for where it was coming from. In fact, he could feel the touch compressing as if that was exactly what he had done in the past.

“A mother’s touch.”

Jinu almost recoiled at Gwi-Ma announcing that. He didn’t need the demon lord to bombard him with his memories when this subtle touch was enough for guilt to seep in. This touch, caring and unasking of anything in return, was what he had traded for an empty life. After centuries of only being punished through memories of his shame, the positive recollection almost stung. He was unused to this, but the comfort was soon taken away. As quickly as it had been brought to the surface, the memory of his mother was lost to the recesses of his mind.

There was no time to mourn it before Gwi-Ma let the hand cascade down to Jinu’s chest, stopping right above the faded scars. They were healing nicely after the blood had been cleaned off, but it was clear what they were and what had caused them.

“She left quite the mark on you. How territorial,” Gwi-Ma barked out a laugh. It was haughty, only becoming louder when he looked at the bite on Jinu’s neck. It sounded wrong coming from Rumi as it was Gwi-Ma's laugh spilling from her, but the omega could only chuckle uncomfortably in return. 

“I promised I would find the source of her shame. She has no control over her demon half and it terrifies her. This fear will be her downfall.”

Jinu tried to speak like she wasn’t starting to matter to him, like Gwi-Ma hadn’t taunted him over what a bad omega he was for her. However, maybe it was the taunting that made him not reveal everything. He didn’t divulge how it seemed a lot of the fear and disgust came from not understanding her demon heritage, or that her main fear was being rejected by those close to her because of it. He didn't go in to how she was isolating herself.

“You did well, Jinu,” Gwi-Ma grinned, displaying the fangs he had only briefly seen on Rumi, “You have not only harvested more souls than any other demon since the creation of the Honmoon, you have given me a hunter. In only a few days, you will also hand me the human realm.”

It seemed him triggering her presentation had been what sent her over the edge, generating enough shame for Gwi-Ma to slip into her mind. It was his fault, but, even as his omega screamed at him, he couldn’t stop himself from pushing forward. There was another thing that had to be addressed. 

The delay.

In the coming days, Gwi-Ma would not be conquering the human realm as he believed and Jinu would have to be the one to bring it to his attention. 

“The destruction of the Honmoon is inevitable,” he started, hoping to appease Gwi-Ma as much as possible before he continued, “But we are going to need more time. With my heat-”

Pain registered before the shock set in, a burn encompassing the entirety of his cheek. He didn’t even flinch away from it because it hadn’t truly hurt. It was the surprise that had done more damage and stopped him in the middle of his sentence. The slap was like a light one given to a child, for the coarse hand did not intend to cause damage, only punish. Jinu could remember the feel of his father’s palm, but he couldn’t recall his face. If it weren’t for his shame and the constant reminders, he knew he would not remember what his mother or sister looked like either.

“You don’t have a shred of filial piety. If only your mother realized that sooner.” Gwi-Ma sneered, shaking the hand off of the apparition like it had actually touched him and was now sullied by his filth. He wasn’t even worth being slapped. “I’ve been patient with your plan and you ask me to wait longer because of a heat? Your arrogance is astounding. I should let a horde of alphas have their way with you. That should end it early.”

“Their leader will be in rut during the Idol Awards. There is no telling what she will do. The hunters will be just as disadvantaged as us, if not more. Our work will not be undone,” Jinu promised, but Gwi-Ma was not impressed. He couldn't even fully explain what Daeun had thought up. His pack had been right to be worried about Gwi-Ma's reaction, yet Jinu hadn't thought of how the demon lord would react to his heat. He feared Gwi-Ma following through with his threat because the only way to end a cycle prematurely was to fulfill its biological objective: conception.

“It sounds to me like you are biding your time,” Gwi-Ma gave him a knowing look, “Or maybe you wish to fail.”

A wave of memory crashed down upon him. Jinu withdrew into himself as he was forced to relive Rumi’s abandonment. She seemed more revolted in recollection, disgust turning her lip and hatred in her eyes. Gwi-Ma understood the guilt his omega felt towards being unable to satisfy the alpha, practically chasing her away in the perspective of his instincts. 

“You will lose her when she finds out. She only hesitated to kill you tonight because of the lies you have told her,” Gwi-Ma reminded him. Jinu clutched his head, tears building as he was trapped in the past. His vision blurred and all he could see was her. Any attempt to escape was met with a debilitating headache and being plunged back into memory.

While the demon lord knew about Jinu’s attraction to Rumi, he also knew that the omega was inherently selfish. It didn’t matter that Jinu had begged to be fucked. It didn’t matter that the omega had never before yearned for someone to knot and breed him during one of his heats. That had all been ripped away and Jinu was as much of a shell of the fake presence before him. Gwi-Ma had long ago figured out Jinu. When the cracks started to appear, only a little bit of pressure needed to be applied to break through. 

“Is this hunter worth suffering for more than your family was?”

Jinu had stopped breathing, even though his chest was heaving in panic. He had given up the veneer of humanity for just a moment and it gave him the small grace he needed to think.

“She tore through the Honmoon,” he choked out, acknowledging what he had seen before and realizing it for what it truly was. In doing so, he reminded himself that he was nothing more than a self-serving omega. As the memories were still not letting up, he emphasized, “By herself without meaning to. If you manipulate her, imagine the damage that could be done.”

At that, the memories finally faded away and Jinu could go back to the lie of breathing.

Gwi-Ma looked up at him and this time he was able to perfectly copy the disgust in Rumi’s eyes. “You are lucky that I am willing to give you more time. You have until her next rut or your entire pack will be erased.”

“Thank you,” he submitted. It was more time than he had expected. If her ruts were regular, they had six months. However, he didn’t entirely understand why that was the constraint, but it wasn’t his place to question it. He was simply relieved that Gwi-Ma would allow his pack to continue with their plan and that the demon lord wouldn't try to intervene with his heat.

“But this generosity doesn’t come without payment.”

“I think I have already proven that I am willing to give anything.”

He had shown time and time again that he would put himself above others. Gwi-Ma wasn’t surprised that he acted no differently here. Even as Jinu tried to appear collected, pulling himself back together after the onslaught of shame, it made him uneasy how Gwi-Ma leered at him. The demon lord grinned, satisfied by his answer for now, “Humans squander their free will so easily. The task will be simple enough. You should be thankful for what I’m going to ask.” Jinu didn’t imagine any task given to him by the demon lord would make him thankful, but he wasn't in a position to refuse.

“I remember her father. He was a liar who hid his true intentions and a sentimental idiot,” Gwi-Ma spoke with disdain. The demon lord considered Jinu, “You remind me of him. Just like you, he thought the brief connection he shared with another was enough to erase who he was. However, you are different from him in one regard. We both know how selfish humans are. We know they aren’t worth anything. They aren’t worth your sacrifices.” 

There was an almost imperceptible shift in Rumi’s face, but there was enough of a difference that Jinu noticed. For a second, her features were replaced by those of another. It was someone he had seen on a magazine cover only: Ryu Miyeong of the Sunlight Sisters or Rumi’s mother. Her features were nearly a perfect blend into her daughter’s, but the slight changes made Jinu wonder if those traits of Rumi’s came from her father. While he had obviously known about her demon heritage, he had never dwelled on the identity of Rumi’s father. He had never thought about how he could be similar to this unknown demon.

“Despite his betrayal, I offered him the opportunity to raise his daughter in the demon realm, but he scorned me. I let him run off to his hunter mate because I knew how it would turn out: his child was stolen from him, his lover killed, and he was bound to the demon realm as I had been. Are you going to let yourself be destroyed like he was, Jinu?” Gwi-Ma asked, reminding the omega of what would happen if he turned away this opportunity or if his loyalty wavered further. However, Jinu did not miss the implications of what Gwi-Ma had said. Rumi’s parents had been mated and, while Gwi-Ma had disposed of her father, it was likely that another hunter had killed her mother. By allowing themselves into each other’s world, they were killed by their own.

Gwi-Ma waited for a confirmation, for the fight to leave Jinu entirely, before making his request: “You need to do what her father refused. Tie her to the demon realm.”

“I found the source of her marks. You have gotten into her mind. What more could I do?” Jinu genuinely wondered.

“The hunter is not yet under my control.”

After everything he had done, it was still not enough. Rumi remained out of the complete control of Gwi-Ma. He may have infiltrated her mind, but he did not have her soul. He could not use her abilities against the hunters or the Honmoon. Jinu didn’t know whether to be relieved or not because it seemed like he was going to be taking the brunt of this outcome. If Rumi didn’t make a deal and the shame wasn’t enough, there was one other way to give her to Gwi-Ma.

“I can use what I learned against her,” he offered, trying to present an alternative to what Gwi-Ma was surely suggesting. “If she carries more shame, that will make her easier to-,” but the omega was cut off.

“Jinu, you know what I need you to do. Stop wasting time with meaningless suggestions.”

Once again, Rumi’s hand was lifted up, but this time it settled in the crook of his neck above where she had pierced into his mating gland. Instead of a palm pressing against his skin, he could feel teeth tracing against his gland. Rumi’s father had bought her some time by refusing to relinquish her to Gwi-Ma, but that could be rectified. There was sacrifice in having another half. A bond would allow her to be controlled through her mate. 

Through Jinu.

“Do you still want the memories gone?” Her gaze hardened as her hand was pulled away. It was asked in a volume barely above a whisper, forcing Jinu to listen and hold every word close. It didn’t matter if he was doing this for his pack or for time. This deal boiled down to one thing and he couldn’t escape it. He had gone forward with the boy band plans with hopes of freedom, but he was giving up so much in the pursuit of it.

Regardless, he answered, “Yes…”

“Then can you do this?” Gwi-Ma goaded.

“Of course, I can,” Jinu hid under a veneer of confidence. Even if he had no choice, he needed to act like he did or he would break. “Like you said, it’s a simple task. She already almost mated me and a lone alpha will be easy to manipulate.”

“That is what I like about you, Jinu. You’re advantageous to a fault. Don’t disappoint me,” Gwi-Ma gave a final warning. As if to remind Jinu of how little he mattered, the apparition disappeared in an instant and Jinu was left all alone. 

Jinu sank down to the floor, sitting down with his head in his hands. He didn’t even want to try to make it to the bed. The timeframe he was given made sense now. Gwi-Ma was kind enough to give him a few months to get acclimated to how he would have to use his body as a tool. It had hurt to be rejected by the one his omega claimed to be his alpha, but at least the lucid parts of him knew it was for the best. The disgust she had felt towards him would be nothing compared to the loathing that was surely the only outcome to them bonding. They would never be able to leave the other and would be trapped together. Gwi-Ma would never allow him to be free.

Chapter Text

In June of 2000, the Sunlight Sisters released their sixth studio album Sunshine in celebration of their tenth anniversary. It was their final album because Ryu Miyeong’s death was announced to the public only a few weeks later. She had been found unresponsive in her apartment by her members and was pronounced dead by emergency responders upon arrival. Her cause of death was reported to be cardiac arrest. At first, many fans speculated this has been a result of the stress of the idol lifestyle on a pre-existing heart condition, but there was no further confirmation on the cause of death. The most the public knew was that, at only twenty-eight, Ryu Miyeong had been taken far before her time was up. 

While the burial and funeral ceremony were private affairs, the funeral hall had been open to fans and the public to pay their respects. It was also open to the media, so the arrival of the remaining Sunlight Sisters had been televised. The youngest member, Hana, had entered the venue alone. Her face had been blank, but her eyes were red and dried tears were evident on her cheeks. Celine’s entrance happened minutes later, allowing the two of them to stay separated during the entire service. In fact, they were never seen near each other ever again by the public. 

The leader had been resolute as she had entered the funeral hall, holding a bundle in her arms. A newborn, swaddled in a blanket and wearing a baby beanie, rested close to her chest. The child was clothed in shades appropriate for mourning. Celine held onto the baby like she expected it to leave her as easily as its mother had. 

As fans were blindsided by the death of Ryu Miyeong, they were even more shocked by the existence of her daughter, Rumi. At only two months the poor child had lost everything. Her mother was dead and, when Celine became her official guardian, many wondered where her father was. The man’s identity was unknown and Celine never addressed the various rumors that resulted from this.

Had he abandoned his family?

Was he another celebrity? Or was he a civilian?

Had Miyeong even known the identity of her child’s father?

Was he dead prematurely like his lover?

Many were upset at the company the Sunlight Sisters were under. Miyeong’s schedule never let up during the entirety of her pregnancy. She had never stopped working, never stopped giving it her all, and some speculated that it was due to post-partum complications that Miyeong had suffered a cardiac arrest. Her body had never been allowed to rest.

As the remaining members drew away from each other and fans began to question the ethics of the company, it didn’t surprise anyone when it was announced shortly after the funeral that the Sunlight Sisters had disbanded. Hana soon left the public eye while Celine tried to maintain the legacy of Miyeong through her daughter.

The debut of Huntr/x had been long-awaited since Celine had first brought along a purple-haired child as her guest to the 2006 Idol Awards. It was inevitable. The group simply needed other members and a name, but Rumi had trained her entire life to be her mother’s legacy.

But she found herself falling into her father’s shadow.

Rumi knew only slightly more than the public did about him. He had been a demon and that was all Celine had shared. The woman who was her surrogate mother would get silent, a pain crossing her eyes that was quickly shoved down, whenever Rumi brought him up as a child. At some point, she learned to stop talking about her parents.

Celine had made sure she knew a bit more about her mother however. At an early age Rumi learned that what had been told to the public was a fabrication. Her mother had died as a hunter, not because of cardiac arrest. An autopsy had never been done and Celine had paid someone off to forge the documents. Celine never spoke of the specifics, but Rumi always had the inkling that her mother had died for her. If she had never been born, her mother would still be alive.

Heartlight was the main track of Sunshine. Fans theorized it was written for Rumi as Miyeong was credited as the only writer. She would’ve been pregnant during its production, so it was a logical conclusion. However, Rumi had always thought it was about the Honmoon and how it was strengthened through the connection of the people listening to the Sunlight Sisters. It was about protecting something that would outlast the music, that would outlast the name of the song and the life of the singer. 

This was the song that Zoey was humming in the kitchen, pouring pancake batter onto a skillet as she prepared breakfast for herself. She had already finished up the food for Mira and Rumi, serving it to them as they sat at the kitchen island overhang. It was common for them to switch-off cooking for everyone else, especially if one of the members was craving a certain food. Today Zoey had wanted the comfort of an American breakfast, even if she was unable to find any potatoes to make hashbrowns.

A stack of pancakes with eggs sunnyside up for eyes and bacon for a smile was staring up at Rumi while Mira had already started digging into her meal. Rumi couldn’t discern if it was the food or the melody that was making her stomach churn. Whenever she listened to the Sunlight Sisters, there was a sense of forlorn that she couldn’t shake, but she would never imagine telling Zoey to stop humming or singing their songs. Zoey had been a fan of the group long before Rumi had met her.

The maknae had an extensive Sunlight Sisters collection and her love of the group never dwindled, even after meeting one of her idols and training under her. If anything, it made her love the group even more because she could appreciate how they had protected the world. Zoey had been extra conscious of the fact that Rumi was the daughter of the Ryu Miyeong, especially as someone who was a Miyeong bias. It had been a bit awkward when they first met.

Mira, on the other hand, hadn’t been into the Sunlight Sisters or known anything about them. She had a passing crush on Hana as a child, but that was the extent of her knowledge until she had been recruited. She had sat through a few video compilations and video essays since then. These had been supplied by Zoey of course. At times it felt like Zoey knew more about Rumi’s mother than she did.

Regardless, she would never force Zoey to hide her interests. The group had gotten her through tough times and inspired her to pursue music. Her earlier notebooks from high school were decorated with scraps of a Sunlight Sisters’ exclusive magazine that had been ripped apart by her classmates. Rumi never wanted Zoey to feel like those assholes had made her feel ever again.

If she was truthful with herself, it wasn’t the song making her feel uneasy or even the food. It was something she had been pushing to the back of her mind. Her mouth itched, teeth aching. She could feel the remnants of him against her front, his pulse under her lips. If she started eating, she feared she would bite through her own tongue or the fork. Hands clenching on her lap, her mind raced with thoughts of ripping through flesh and how she should’ve held on for longer. This fascination on her fangs piercing through his throat made no sense to her, yet it had been the first injury the demon had checked.

Gwi-Ma had called her an alpha. He accused her of taking what she wanted from those beneath her. She wondered if that was why Jinu had stared at her with such trepidation. Was being an alpha the reason she felt like she was falling apart?

A small solace was that she couldn’t sense the demon lord’s presence in her head anymore, but every moment of silence left her waiting for his return. If demons had to experience Gwi-Ma constantly in their mind and their instincts goading them, no wonder they acted like they did. Rumi barely had any control over herself when she was alone with her thoughts. She felt better around Mira and Zoey, but she couldn’t tell if it was because she was putting on an act in order to not worry them or because she actually felt better. 

She would just have to push forward until the Idol Awards and the feeling would fade. Gwi-Ma would be gone.

Jinu would be gone…

If the Honmoon dragged him back down to the demon realm, she didn’t imagine she had any chance.

Mira poked at the yolk of her pancake’s egg eyes after having eaten the bottom half of its face, watching the yellow yolk flow down the side of the pancake stack. She was still wearing her pajamas, just as Zoey and Rumi were, and the long-sleeved sweater dress she was wearing was only her second favorite. It was the plain pink one instead of the one that had a cute bear on it, but Mira liked it regardless because of the soft material. There were bags under all of their eyes and none of them had set out to get ready for the day quite yet. Mira hadn't even put in her contacts, wearing her golden circular frames instead. They had a busy day ahead of them with practice and patrols. They were going off in duos for today so at least one person could relax for a few hours. They didn’t imagine they would be able to do that in the coming days with the impending Idol Awards and the increasing amount of demons shoving their way through the Honmoon. However, for the next few hours, they would be allowed some peace.

“I can’t believe you didn’t invite me this morning,” Mira said to Rumi, breaking the half-demon out of her thoughts. Mira’s words were muffled by the pancake-egg combo she had started chewing on. 

“What?” Rumi startled. She started to eat to hide an uneasy smile that was beginning to develop, picking up her fork and slicing into the pancake with it. “What would I even invite you to?” She could only imagine that Mira was referring to meeting Jinu in the park. She could only think about how Mira would view her if she knew about the extent of what she had done.

Mira raised a brow at Rumi’s behavior, clarifying, “To cuddle?”

“Oh, that’s what you’re talking about,” Rumi murmured to herself, setting her fork down. Mira had no idea what had happened between her and Jinu. They wouldn’t be disgusted by her yet, so she decided to answer truthfully. “I didn’t want to wake you up.”

The younger hummed at that before picking up her phone and turning it over to show Rumi the screen. She gave Rumi a slight smirk as her leader took in what was on the phone, “I took a picture. It’s my homescreen now.”

“When did you even manage to take that? Zoey and I got up before you. We had to drag you out of bed for breakfast.” Rumi squinted at the photo. Even with the organized lines of apps on top of it, it was clear who the photo was of. She was snuggling against the back of the maknae with her acting as the big spoon, Zoey as the middle spoon, and Boogy as the little spoon. Mira must’ve really liked the photo if she was willing to ignore the Saja Boys merch and Rumi could see why she would be so fond of the photo. Both her and Zoey seemed so content in the comfort of the other.

“I’m a light sleeper and you check in on us practically every night,” she shrugged, taking the phone back. “I just waited a bit before going out. Zoey knows I take my best pictures when you’re asleep.”

“Her candid shots are fantastic. She lets me print them out for my diaries,” Zoey gushed, flipping her pancakes off of the pan and onto her plate with a single swift movement. 

That explained how Mira even knew about them cuddling together, but there was another thing that she had said that caught her attention. There were more important matters than the fact that Mira took pictures of her sleeping. 

“You… you know about me checking on you guys?”

“It’s like having a big protective Mama Bear and we’re the cubs.” Zoey smiled as she decorated her pancake stack with scrambled eggs and bacon. Taking her plate, she sat down on the stool on the other side of Rumi from Mira. “It makes me feel safe.”

“And cozy,” Mira added.

“Secure even.” Zoey’s eyes shined, hands clasping together.

Mira teased, “That’s a synonym.”

“Uh then-,” her eyebrows knitted as she thought through words, before looking over to Mira for approval, “Jubilant?”

“How fancy.”

“I am a very fancy individual,” Zoey spoke primly, straightening out her back and sticking her nose up. She let out a soft giggle as she relaxed, pouring syrup all over her pancakes before diving in.

“Neither of you are bothered by it?” Rumi asked softly. Despite the disbelief and shock, a small part of her was preening at her actions being appreciated. 

“No, why would we be?” Mira said offhandedly, scrolling on her phone. “It clearly makes you and us feel better.”

Rumi fidgeted with her fork and picked at the pancake face, mumbling, “I don’t know. It might seem… creepy.”

“Rumi,” Mira side-eyed her, “I’ve seen you deepthroat an entire gimbap roll and swallow it whole. You practically unhinged your jaw. It was sick as hell.”

“I don’t see how that’s relevant.”

“The point is that you do weirder things all the time,” she emphasized.

“Yeah,” Zoey butted in, “You watching us sleep has surpassed creepy and turned all the way around to being sweet.”

Both of her band members surprised her with how genuine they were being. It wasn’t that they weren’t usually this truthful, but she was shocked that they didn’t seem weirded out by her behavior. In fact, they felt safe. Her instincts had protected those around her instead of ripping them apart, taking everything from them that it wanted. In this way, her mind was her own. Around Mira and Zoey, she had a semblance of control. She wouldn’t hurt them as she had him.

As she took all of it in, she allowed herself to start eating again. Zoey made the pancake with an insane amount of vanilla, so they were extra delicious and they didn’t deserve to go to waste. She got comfortable, enjoying the taste and the smells swirling around her. Mira was scrolling through short videos Zoey had sent to her through social media and Zoey was mowing her way through her breakfast.

Everything was fine.

It was when Zoey’s phone vibrated, a text notification popping up, that Rumi’s attention was drawn away from the pancakes. Zoey quickly snatched up her phone before Rumi could read who it was from. The maknae held the phone close, leaning slightly away from Rumi so that the older couldn’t see who she was texting back. A smile grew on Zoey’s face, her feet beginning to lightly swing back and forth, and a few giggles escaped as she continued to text whoever was on the other end. She was completely infatuated, a blissful expression seeping through. It was like she had completely forgotten about Rumi and Mira being right next to her.

Putting her own phone down, Mira glanced over at Rumi and caught her gaze. “How interesting,” Mira mused, lips turning up slightly. She settled her elbow on the island, placing her cheek against her hand as she peered over at Zoey acting like a lovesick fool.

“Yes, very interesting, Mira,” Rumi smiled mischievously in return. She had relaxed enough to be able to enjoy the moment and the newfound ability to tease Zoey. All she had to do was push down the voices that told her she didn’t deserve any of this.

Mira and her had the same idea it seemed because both of them moved closer to Zoey at the same time. Mira had gotten up from her stool and had shoved her way between Rumi and Zoey while Rumi had leaned in ever closer. She tried to peek over Zoey’s phone to take a glance at the screen, but Zoey only pressed the device closer to her chest.

“Guys, stop,” she warned, turning around so her back was pressed against the edge of the island. She stared them both down, “You can’t look at my screen."

“Could you tell us who you’re texting?” Mira asked, putting her hands together in a pleading gesture. “We promise not to intrude.”

Zoey hid her face behind the phone, doing her best to ignore the pleading looks that were being sent her way.

“Please?” Rumi begged and that broke her.

She bit her lip, thinking it over as she lowered the phone. Zoey sighed, admitting defeat while Rumi and Mira celebrated a silent victory. Finally, she admitted who it was: “I started talking to someone and I’m meeting up with them today before practice. If that’s okay…”

“Of course, Zoey,” Rumi assured her. She deserved a life outside of being a hunter. “It’s fine as long as it doesn’t interfere with patrol.”

“It won’t. I promise,” she said a little too firmly. Zoey would never let anything take priority over their mission or group, even her affection.

Mira crossed her arms, looking Zoey up and down. “Like talking talking or talking ?” She questioned suggestively.

Zoey blushed , “Talking...”

“Man or woman.” Mira pushed further, testing her luck on how much she would be able to find out.

“Genderfluid but she is preferring she/her pronouns at the moment,” Zoey shared. She scrolled through her photo album until she deemed a photo to be appropriate, handing over the device to Rumi. “Look at my soon-to-be wife. I knew she was perfect the moment I convinced her to have Miyeong as her bias.” She seemed elated to be able to show off, turning bubbly as Mira looked over Rumi’s shoulder to get a look at the screen.

The photo depicted a dimlit bar where Zoey was lounging on the lap of another woman who was sitting on a barstool. Zoey was leaning into her as both of them did aegyo towards whatever stranger was taking the picture. Each made a half heart with their hand, holding it up against their cheek. All Rumi could think as she stared at the photo was that Dispatch would have a field day if they had been the ones to capture this photo.

Lipstick marks were all over Zoey’s face, peppering down her neck. Her face glowed from intoxication and she beamed at the camera with mussed up hair. It was clear she hadn’t wanted to be recognized because her hair was down. Red lipstick was smeared over the other person’s mouth as they gave an unsure smile. The unknown woman wore high-waisted jeans that hugged her figure and a cropped shirt that was falling dangerously off both of her shoulders. Rumi could make out what looked to be a hickey forming between her breasts.

The most distinct features however were her canine bite piercings and her black hair styled in a wolf cut that covered her eyes.

As Rumi glanced up at the time stamp, it seemed that the photo had been taken a few weeks ago. Zoey had been hiding this for a while. How had Zoey even been able to find the time to meet up with this person? Rumi felt slightly sad at the fact that the maknae hadn’t trusted them with this information. However, she was still relieved that Zoey was getting out of her shell more and meeting more people. She simply would’ve felt better if she had known earlier. She couldn’t protect Zoey if she wasn’t allowed to.

“Damn, she’s hot,” Mira whistled. “Your taste is so good when it’s not a cis man.”

“Don’t need to remind me,” Zoey covered her reddening cheeks with her hands, flustered.

“That doesn’t seem like only talking,” Rumi observed. “Are you already together?” She asked in a tone that was a bit more accusatory than she meant. A hint of sorrow flickered in Zoey’s eyes for a second. 

“No,” she fiddled with her fingers, “I’m waiting until the Golden Honmoon is achieved and seeing what happens after that.”

Rumi didn’t appreciate the sadness coming off of Zoey. Even if it was no longer visible on Zoey outwardly, it was like it was almost tangible in the air, hitting Rumi’s nose until she couldn’t deny it any longer. She wanted to distract Zoey from this feeling, so she queried, “What is your height difference?” She had noticed how long the legs of the other had been, despite Zoey’s and her torso being roughly the same size. In some ways, Rumi was realizing that Zoey may have a type.

Zoey brightened up again at the question. “Eleven inches,” she bragged.

“In a real measurement system, please,” Mira requested.

“Twenty-six centimeters and she likes wearing platforms.”

Leaning her head back, Mira groaned to the ceiling, “You’re so lucky.”

“I know, right?” Zoey squealed, clapping in excitement. “Good thing I’m great at climbing. She can lift me up and show me things I’ve never seen before. Like the top of Mira’s head or the top shelf in all of our cupboards. I have the suspicion that you hid my birthday presents up there.”

Mira chuckled, amused by how excited Zoey was to talk about her crush, “Do we get a name to match the face or?”

At that, Zoey halted. She pulled her chin to her neck, mumbling the name in embarrassment. None of her words could be deciphered. 

“I didn’t quite hear that.”

“Um,” she quickly glanced at Rumi before murmuring, “Garam.”

“Garam?” Rumi’s brows furrowed when she processed what Zoey had said. “Like the guy you were playing Minecraft with a few hours ago? That Garam?”

“They’re the same person,” Zoey revealed sheepishly, avoiding Rumi’s eyes.

“You know who this is?” Mira slowly turned her head to look at Rumi. Clearly offended and slightly confused, she asked, “Why am I the last person to find out?”

Rumi was too busy wrapping her head around everything to answer Mira. Zoey didn’t have two different relationships that she had never been told about. Zoey had one big relationship she didn’t know about. That explained the couple-themed Minecraft skins, but it didn’t explain the anger simmering under her skin upon realizing she had been kept in the dark. She should’ve known. Zoey should’ve told her.

“I thought you said she was your classmate in California,” her voice rose unintentionally, causing Zoey to flinch. This brought her back to reality and she chided herself for being irrationally angry. “What about your other classmates that she is living with?”

“They were all exchange students?” Zoey laughed uncomfortably, eyes flitting around. She cleared her throat with a cough into her hand.

“You say that like you’re hiding something,” Mira squinted, getting up in her face.

“What?” Zoey’s voice cracked, leaning away. Her eyes were getting wider and her shoulders were scrunching up to her ears. She rushed through her words, “I’m not hiding anything. I have no reason to lie about this. I just met up with her in Seoul recently and we really hit it off. When we become official, I will let you guys meet her. You both are really important to me and I will drop her if she gives you bad vibes.”

Mira backed away, allowing Zoey to calm down, before saying, “I’m sure if you like her we will too.”

“I hope so,” but Zoey sounded unsure.

With their life, it was hard to be able to connect with someone. Even if they weren’t hunters, being an idol did not line up with dating or having a personal life at times. Dating a civilian was a risk. Mira and Rumi wanted to reassure Zoey and let her know it was okay to have another person besides them.

“We could invite her to the bathhouse with us,” Mira offered, playfully nudging her shoulder against Rumi’s. “Right, Rumi?”

“Yeah, that sounds nice,” Rumi agreed without thought.

“Wait, what?” Mira stared at her in shock. “Zoey getting a partner is what makes you finally agree?”

“If they are getting together after the Golden Honmoon, then I will go,” she explained. If the patterns were gone and she wasn’t dragged to the demon realm herself, she would obviously want to go with them. It had always seemed relaxing based on their descriptions. “It’s an important occasion. I also want to see how blushy Zoey will get around her new partner when they’re both naked.”

“I didn’t think of that,” Zoey shielded her face with her hands, flushing completely. She softly screamed into her palms.

“See,” Rumi pointed at Zoey freaking out. “That is a good reason to go.”

“I swear I will defeat those demons just for you, Rumi,” Mira took Rumi by the shoulders, swiveling her around to look her straight in the eyes. “It isn’t even about saving the world anymore. This is way more important.”

As she pulled her hands down from her face, Zoey settled one hand in the air between them, waiting for the other members to join her. There was a reinvigorated twinkle in her eyes. Mira joined quickly, placing her hand on top of Zoey’s. Together they stared at Rumi in anticipation. For a moment, the leader hesitated. 

Only a few hours before these hands had been covered in blood. She could feel the marks searing on her throat and arms, threatening to reveal the patterns. Her actions stained her and she didn’t want to spread her rot to them, but they were waiting in anticipation. She couldn’t deny this simple act because then it would be clear that everything was fake. Ignoring what was building inside her, she allowed herself to absorb the excitement of her members. As she did this, she finally put her hand in the middle on top of theirs.

“For the Honmoon,” Rumi started, her gaze sliding over Mira and Zoey.

“For the bathhouse,” Mira grinned.

“For a partner,” Zoey beamed. 

“For the fans!” They all shouted, lifting their hands up to the sky.

Chapter Text

The vast expanse of the demon realm was as breathtaking as it was intimidating. He could spend multiple lifetimes walking in a single direction and never run into the same landmark twice. Teleportation was convenient in a land like this, for Jinu feared he would have gotten lost a long time ago otherwise. The majority of the realm was unconquered, left to the whims of Gwi-Ma and nature, but there were organized communities if one knew where to look. Typically, one wouldn’t see a mixture of demons unless they found themselves in one of the larger trading hubs or in Gwi-Ma’s court. Demons kept to their own kind or kept to themselves in seclusion. It was only recently that this first half had best described Jinu. He had spent the past couple of decades following a mated couple around, watching their child slowly grow, because they had formed a pack bond. A concept that was so foreign to humans was becoming his norm. It had been better than being alone so far but listening to his instincts had never gotten easier. As he studied the three new reapers in front of him, he wondered if this was what his instincts had intended.

Jinu leaned against a pillar outside of the doorway to a kumiho pack house, strumming his bipa quietly to not disturb those inside. The intention was to provide background noise and not impose on the meeting occurring. Minjun was reaching an agreement with the kumiho pack's head alpha. The reaper pack would be granted the ability to settle in the area under the kumiho’s protection while the kumiho were given first pick of whatever spoils they brought back from the human realm. Flesh was the main diet of the fox-spirits and, with the Honmoon strengthening each passing year, it was much harder for them to break through to acquire it. The reapers were not as restricted. 

If it weren’t for the gift of good will Minjun and Jiwoo had offered, Jinu would’ve stayed by their sides as the meeting progressed. However, his repulsion towards watching them devour a human, even if the person was dead, was too much to grit his teeth through. Just the thought of cannibalizing its remains made him queasy, so he had left with the excuse of keeping an eye on Garam. Leaving a nomadic life behind was worth more to him than forcing others to uphold his morals.

The child played in the courtyard with Derpy and Sussie, being entertained by the three new reapers. It was certainly a better sight than witnessing someone being ripped apart. There was very little difference in the scent of an alive human and a dead human. Both smelled like uncooked meat and waste, solidifying the purpose of humans in the eyes of most demons. It had yet to stop making him uncomfortable.

Plucking at the strings in search of a melody, he didn’t pay much mind to Jiwoo walking up beside him. Jinu could only assume things were finishing up inside. The older omega stood in silence, taking in those in the courtyard and the music trilling around them, before turning to Jinu.

“For someone who claims to want to be alone, you seek out others a lot,” Jiwoo said in amusement. As blood dripped from the tip of one of his tusks to his face, the omega swiped it away with his hand before licking the liquid away. Jinu grimaced slightly.

Stepping away from the pillar, Jinu secured the bipa to his back. He sighed, using his hand to gesture to the three reapers, “You were the ones who said you wanted a pack. Here they are.”

With claiming their own territory, it was necessary to expand the pack. It would make them safer, it would make Garam safer, and he told himself that this was why his instincts had approved of those three.

“Where did you find these people? They seem-,” Jiwoo paused, choosing his next word carefully, “-interesting.” At that, Jinu understood that Jiwoo was open to these three joining their pack. He would’ve been far more harsh otherwise. The older omega straightened out his back, observing the three interacting with his son with a sharp eye. Jinu imagined he was thinking of how best to use these newcomers and how to take them apart if necessary. Jiwoo could be an imposing figure without meaning to be, reminding Jinu that his alpha wasn’t the only one who had been a military official. There was a strange equalization in the demon realm. One’s caste as a human meant nothing. Garam would’ve been raised as nobility in the human realm, yet he was nothing more than a commoner here.

Jinu had to remind himself that Garam wouldn’t have existed if his parents had remained in the human realm.

“It would be more correct to say Derpy found them,” he admitted. 

The cub had grown a lot over the past few decades, but it still had a bit to go before it reached its full size. However, it hadn’t grown much in personality or common sense. That was primarily the origin of its name. It was as kind and trusting as it had been when Jinu first picked it up. That was how he ended up losing the tiger during an assignment, only to find the creature splayed out on its back while getting pats from an unknown reaper trio.

The group consisted of two alphas and an omega, but Jinu could detect that the omega was mated to the taller of the two alphas. This made him feel less uneasy about approaching them and stealing Derpy back. It was as he got closer that their scents washed over him and, against his better judgement, he listened to the part of his instinct telling him to let them follow him back to his pack. Despite doing everything in his power not to, Jinu had become more attuned to his demon instincts and was better at discerning the meaning of scents. 

They had introduced themselves as Jaehyun, Beomseok, and Daeun. They had been a trio for as long as Daeun had been an alpha. The mated pair had watched over his presentation, guarding him to make sure no one took advantage of him and to make sure he didn’t take advantage of anyone else. Jinu wasn’t sure what they got out of that arrangement. While they had not formed a pack, they were seeking to join one.

“Have you seen them before, hyung?” Jinu asked, glancing at the trio. They were letting Garam chase them around the courtyard. Derpy couldn’t decide if it wanted to be chased or join Garam’s side, finding itself running back and forth in confusion.

“I’ve seen the mates, but the small one is new.” Jiwoo let out a light chuckle as Beomseok snuck up behind his child, lifting the kid to the sky while they squealed in surprise. “Well, newer than you and the other two. You have only been around for over a century, Jinu. That hardly counts as existing.” 

A century was nothing to someone who had experience a millennia. Jinu hoped he didn’t exist long enough for his concept of time to be warped, yet it was already happening. Garam was half his age and also half his height. He was a child in every sense of the word, but he had lived longer than the majority of humanity.

“Garam seems to like them at least,” he said instead of the thoughts swirling through his mind. “He hasn’t tried to bite them yet.”

Jiwoo nodded, “Not even a single nip or bark. It’s impressive. He hasn’t taken to strangers this fast since you.” A soft gaze went from Garam to the younger omega, an assuring smile sent Jinu’s way.

Before Jinu could appreciate the compliment, the two omegas gaped at Garam as he punctured the jugular of the alpha holding him, tusks piercing in and out of the skin. It seemed the alpha had gotten a bit too close to his own mate for the child’s liking. It might have been the smug look on the alpha’s face while he held his mate close that caused the issue.

“Oh,” Jiwoo winced, “There it is. I don’t imagine the tusks make that comfortable. Hopefully, he doesn’t have to regenerate.”

As the alpha struggled to rip the child away from his neck, Garam only held on tighter. The child tore off the alpha’s gat and tanggeon, grappling for a more secure grip and ended up undoing the topknot during the tussle. The long hair subsequently freed from this action was what Garam ended up using to hold on. Sussie cackled from atop Derpy, goading the child on. The alpha’s mate shrieked, but it wasn’t because of the alpha being attacked. 

“Stop fighting back, Beomseok! He’s just a kid!” The omega chided, failing to coax Garam away. 

“This is what happens when you try to intimidate a child,” the smaller alpha spoke up, stepping back from the mess in front of him. The omega glared at his other companion, but the alpha only shrugged. “I refuse to get involved again, Jaehyun. Last time, Beomseok wasn’t the only one who had to regenerate.” Jinu was starting to understand why the trio might be searching out a pack.

He was about to step in when Jiwoo pulled him back, shaking his head. He would only get caught in the crossfire. It wasn’t worth it. Instead, Jiwoo pulled him along as they went into the pack house. Inside, Minjun kneeled at a table with a kumiho couple on the other side, sipping herbal tea. Jinu avoided looking at the skeleton laid between them, some remnants of meat sticking to the bones. The head alpha of the kumiho pack kept tearing off chunks of muscle as she spoke to Minjun, breaking the meat into smaller pieces to hand to her omega and the small fox pup in the omega’s lap. While the mothers had taken a more humanoid form with their patterns and some fox traits visible, their daughter had stubbornly remained a fox.

“Minjun,” Jiwoo called, causing his alpha to hum in acknowledgement. Of the two of them, the alpha was the more stoic one. “Does demon flesh taste better than human?”

“Our kind tastes bitter,” Minjun informed his husband, not missing a single beat while Jinu was taken aback by the question and answer. The alpha understood what his omega was intending to do. “It depends on the demon species. I’ve heard kumiho taste just like foxes.” He sipped his tea, looking to the head alpha for confirmation. 

Her omega smiled, revealing a mouth full of jagged fangs. “We do,” she purred, answering instead of her alpha. She lifted up her pup, nipping softly at their cheeks, “Don’t we, little one?”

The pup wiggled in her mother’s grip, a poof of smoke erupting around her before a small toddler threw herself into the waiting arms of the kumiho alpha. “Appa,” the girl whined, tail curling around herself and hands tugging at her mother’s hanbok, “Eomma is trying to eat me.” The girl’s ears flattened against her head as she pressed her face into her mother’s chest.

“Why don’t you play with the reaper pup if your Eomma is so scary?” The alpha teased, causing the girl to shake her head and cling even closer. As the two mated kumiho intertwined their tails, amused by their daughter’s refusal, the alpha acknowledged Jiwoo. “It would be easier to dislodge him with something tastier,” she said, ears flicking as she listened to the struggle outside.

The head kumiho nodded in approval as Minjun separated a femur from the body, shreds of muscle still attached to it, and handed it to his partner. Jiwoo gave thanks to everyone in the room before heading out, Jinu following behind him. He was beginning to have an inclination of what Jiwoo intended to do with the femur, but it didn’t make him less disturbed.

“Garam! Get over here!” Jiwoo yelled out, waving the femur for his son to see. Golden eyes shined as soon as they saw the bone, turning pupils to slits. Garam pried away from the alpha, who luckily seemed more shocked than in pain, before running up to Jiwoo. A sizable chunk of his throat was gone, but he was otherwise standing. Jinu could already see the muscle beginning to stitch itself back together. Still, the alpha feigned weakness, leaning into his omega’s side. His partner allowed it with a slight smile.

The young demon stood in front of Jiwoo, salivating at the bone as he patiently waited with his hands behind his back. Jiwoo temporarily handed the femur to Jinu who held the bone as far from his body as possible. The older omega kneeled down and took the sleeve of his hanbok, bunching it up in his hand to use it to wipe the gore off his son’s face. Garam scrunched up his face, clearly discontent but willing to go through with it to get a treat.

Jiwoo took the bone back from Jinu and handed it over to his son. The child beamed, clutching onto the bone that was roughly a fourth of his height, “Thank you, Eomma.”

The omega patted his son’s head, “Remember to share with Derpy. He’s growing too.” Garam nodded, running off to sit next to the cub. As the child began to chew on the bone, he offered the other end for Derpy to nibble on.

“That should tire them out,” Jiwoo sighed with the exhaustion of someone who had been raising a feral child for over seven decades. He didn’t need to be able to see Jinu to know that the omega was side-eyeing him. “After you carry your own child, you can judge me.”

Jinu forgot sometimes what his body was now capable of, only being reminded of it every time his cycle came around or in instances like this. He couldn’t imagine bringing a baby into this realm, but it wouldn’t be the worst thing. At least Garam wasn’t starving because his parents’ attempts at busking failed to bring in any money. A corroding bipa and a hoarse voice begging every passerby for a chance were not the only things separating Garam from death.

He thought of the kumiho child and how devoted her mothers had seemed to be. Having a daughter would be nice; a little girl that looked more like his sister than him. His daughter would have her kindness and the hope in her eyes that he had destroyed. His ears rang with her pleas, yelling for him because she had not understood his betrayal as quickly as their mother.

You would trade your own child for a better life like you did them .

Jinu tried to deny that line of thinking. He tried to imagine a kinder life where he had someone else he could share his music with. He would soothe his daughter with simple melodies, yet she would be forced to listen to a stolen voice. He didn’t trust himself to not break and give in to another chance. Another child didn’t deserve to suffer through his whims.

“You’re going to have to accept this at some point,” Jiwoo interrupted, eyeing the patterns shimmering up Jinu’s neck.

“Accept what?” Jinu scoffed, voice rising. “That I’m a demon? That I’m an omega? That my body isn’t my own?” Staring down at the marks disfiguring his hands, he couldn’t help being disgusted by the purple hue and claws. His fists clenched as the revulsion set in. 

“That you can’t go back, Jinu,” and the pity in Jiwoo’s eyes made him feel sick. “Your family is gone. The world you knew is gone. You’re young, so I don’t fault you for not understanding but you will one day. When you are the last of your people, when your language is dead and your kingdom is destroyed, you will know. Nothing can last forever, Jinu. Not even memory or shame.”

“Easy for you to say. There is no humanity left in you to feel anything,” Jinu snapped. He wanted to hurt Jiwoo. He wanted the other omega to suffer because he knew better than anyone that what he was saying was a lie.

Demons were made of emotion: their shame, guilt, and desire. It was why they were so easily guided by instinct, so Jinu wasn’t surprised by the growl growing in Jiwoo’s throat. As his patterns burned and eyes gleamed, Jinu knew he had reached the omega’s shame. Even after all this time, he still carried guilt and it had evolved. Abandoning their men on the battlefield was no longer the only thing allowing Gwi-Ma to control the two lovers. Their son’s existence brought them guilt. It didn’t matter much they accepted that they were now demons because Gwi-Ma would always bring back the doubt. By accepting what they had become, they doomed their son.

He had never had a soul.

He would never be human.

But the anger faded quickly from Jiwoo’s eyes. The omega calmed himself down, forgiving what Jinu had said far too easily. Annoyance, however, was still present as the omega complained. “I never liked Yeomra, but he at least stayed out of our business once we became demons. His part in our judgement was over, so he saw no reason to get involved. Everything changed when Gwi-Ma rose to power. Maybe his son will be different.” Jiwoo put a hand on Jinu’s shoulder, giving it a light squeeze. “Hopefully, you will find a mate by the time Gwi-Ma is usurped. Sharing the shame with another is comforting in its own way.”

With that, Jiwoo left Jinu to dwell in his own silence, going up to talk with the three reapers. He introduced himself and apologized to Beomseok for his son’s behavior.

Jinu had ignored Jiwoo’s wish back then, more offended by it than anything. Binding himself to someone else had seemed like the least appealing thing he could do with eternity. Even with how the two mated couples in his pack described being mated, it didn’t help. He had mainly focused on the negative aspects of mating: their guilt was shared, they could feel the pain of the other’s regeneration, and Gwi-Ma could use one to control the other. He had avoided Jaehyun and Beomseok’s attempts to get him into a mating run, but he was never able to completely ignore the discussions of being drawn to someone else’s scent. 

A perfume of honey guided Beomseok during their mating run and a sage aroma was what kept Jaehyun from slitting the throat of the alpha trailing him. Scent was what brought Jiwoo and Minjun back together after they had been initially separated in the demon realm, finding each other in the midst of the presentations because no distance was able to separate them. Sharing and becoming familiar with their scents was what made them a pack.

He had never felt the specific pull the mates spoke of. He could sense who he could trust and who was a threat, but he had never been left needing more. He had never been insatiable until the scent of petrichor invaded every part of his mind left unoccupied by Gwi-Ma. Jiwoo wouldn’t have to worry about him not finding a mate before Gwi-Ma’s reign ended because him mating Rumi would solidify his rule for the rest of time.

Chapter Text

There was a bale of turtles drawn in green marker in the middle of the mirror. Rumi only knew a turtle grouping was called a bale because of the videos Zoey had sent her, but the fact was not important to what she was currently doing. She was staring at the bale, at the cartoony turtle depictions and their completely vacant eyes, as she went through choreo because they were what was used to indicate the center. It was easier to get lost in the motion when looking at them. If she thought too hardly about anything other than the music or those turtles, she did not know what would happen. 

Huntr/x had been going through the Takedown choreography in their company’s practice room for the past few hours. While Rumi was wearing shorts, she was forced to wear a hoodie to cover her patterns and it was slowly becoming a cocoon of sweat. Scratch that. It was now quickly becoming a cocoon of sweat, trapping her in a heat death spiral. The fabric of the shirt underneath stuck to her skin, sweat was dripping down the nape of her neck, and she had to push through exhaustion to keep her dancing from becoming sluggish. Moments like this made her regret having long hair. She was seconds away from giving herself a buzzcut and calling it a day. 

Rumi didn’t want to even think about how gross she must smell, but neither of her bandmates had thrown a stick of deodorant at her or doused her in an aggressive mist of perfume yet so it hopefully wasn’t too bad. A small solace was that she couldn’t smell herself. The company must have installed a new air purifier into the practice room because there was only the aroma of rain. It was pleasant and soothing. Mira had been the one to bring it up first, complimenting the subtle scent choice, and Rumi hadn’t been able to ignore it since then. 

After they finished their most recent full run-through, Rumi found herself rushing to the case of bottled water in the corner of the room. Upon realizing the bottles carried a slight chill, she picked up two. She pressed one against her neck in a feeble attempt to cool herself down. With the other, she used one hand to twist off the cap, flicking it off to the ground before she started chugging its contents. As the plastic crunched under the force of her drinking, hands clenching around the crinkled bottle, Zoey looked to her with concern. 

“Are you feeling alright, Rumi?” The younger asked as she got her own bottle.

“I’m fine,” Rumi exclaimed. Realizing the bottle was empty, she tossed it into the trash and lifted the other bottle away from her neck. The cool liquid was bringing back some clarity to her mind. As she opened up the second bottle, she gave a reassuring smile, “Just thirsty. We can start back up in a few minutes.”

All her bandmates saw was a strained grin, their leader drenched in sweat, and Rumi guzzling down another bottle like she was dying of dehydration. Mira glanced down at the discarded cap on the floor, motioning with her eyes towards Rumi when Zoey handed her a bottle. Zoey pursed her lips before nodding. 

“Maybe we should take a longer break,” Mira offered. She sipped her own water and watched as Rumi finished her second bottle. “It isn’t like we don’t have practice at the venue later today. We could get something to eat. I heard there was a new hot pot place that opened up a few blocks away.”

“A break sounds great, Mira,” Zoey agreed. She pushed further, placing a hand on Rumi’s shoulder, “Doesn’t it, Rumi?”

The leader stiffened up at being touched unexpectedly, eyes shooting to Zoey’s hand. She relaxed upon remembering who she was surrounded by, but there was a brief moment where her fingers dipped into the Honmoon in search of her weapon. This reaction shocked her more than the touch. There was no reason for her to be on guard at the moment. Patrol had gone well yesterday, the missing people reports were decreasing, and Zoey had come back happy from her date. Everything was going right. Takedown was coming together, her doubt towards it quieting a bit, and they were so close to the Idol Awards. The Golden Honmoon was in their reach.

Jinu hadn’t sent her a letter the prior night.

Rumi had stayed up the entire night, waiting for the tiger or magpie to appear, only to be greeted by the sun before she saw any hint of them. It was a reminder that whatever understanding had been created between them was slaughtered as soon as she had dug her claws into his flesh. She had done something irreversible. Before everything had gone wrong, she had briefly humored the thought of sending a letter to him. She planned to ask him to help her with sabotaging the Saja Boys during the Idol Awards so the Golden Honmoon could be secured. Jinu didn’t deserve to be a demon and have Gwi-Ma whispering in his ear for eternity for a mistake. 

But she did.

She deserved it.

Rumi lowered the bottle, swiping away some of the sweat on her forehead as she swiped away the thoughts. These emotions could only serve as an opening for Gwi-Ma, so she pushed them down. As she felt the burning of her skin, she paused, wondering if she had developed a fever. She couldn’t keep pushing herself like this or she wouldn’t be able to perform at the Idol Awards. The netizen reaction to backing out of another performance after they skipped the Golden live performance would not be pretty. She didn't want to disappoint the fans again. Rumi sighed in defeat, “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to-”

Ripples of blue erupted around them, starting under their feet and rising to the ceiling before disappearing. The lines of lights shimmered and Rumi could sense them running under her skin alongside her patterns. It didn’t hurt, but it was a discomfort that had never happened before. She stumbled backwards, feeling like she was pulled with the energy. Dropping the bottle, both hands went out at her sides to steady herself. Rumi stared at the ground in shock before her head ripped upwards, taking in the bewildered expressions of Mira and Zoey. They had seen it too. “Did the Honmoon just heal?” She asked breathlessly, unable to process the itch running up her arms.

“It could’ve been from our practice?” Zoey proposed but she seemed unsure and uneasy. Her gaze flicked around, expecting something to shift in the air again. Good things like this didn’t just happen.

“No, that can’t be it,” Mira’s brows furrowed together. “There is no audience. No fans. Did we have any videos set to release?”

Zoey and Rumi shaking their heads at the same time did not bode well. It wasn’t rare for a certain video or picture to go viral, resulting in enough of a boost in their fan count that the Honmoon would become ever so slightly stronger. However, this was more than that. This could only be the result of people returning to Huntr/x and dropping the Saja Boys in droves.

They all jumped at the door slamming open before quickly composing themselves upon seeing a frantic Bobby. “Girls!” Their manager announced, quickly swiping on his phone as he approached them. “I am so sorry to be bothering you in the middle of practice, but YM Entertainment has just released a statement.” He turned his phone around, forcing it into Zoey’s face.

“Who is under YM Entertainment?” She questioned, grabbing the phone from Bobby. Bringing it down so the others could read what was on the screen, Zoey continued, “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of them before-” Her eyes widened as she finally registered what she was looking at, “Oh my God.”

“They’re the company the Saja Boys are under. I thought you all would know that because of your friendly rivalry,” Bobby explained.

“Yeah,” Mira sent a knowing chuckle to Rumi and Zoey, “Friendly rivalry.” However, Zoey didn’t react at all, engrossed in the statement she was reading. The other two members had no choice but to join in. The statement read:

[NOTICE] Saja Boys Jinu’s Health and Upcoming Schedule

Hello, this is YM Entertainment. 

We are making an announcement regarding Saja Boys’ Jinu not participating in the group’s schedule. 

Due to health concerns, Jinu was recently taken to the hospital. In accordance with the doctor's recommendation, he has currently halted all involvement with scheduled group activities and is resting. 

Therefore, he will not be participating in the group performance or attending the upcoming Idol Awards. He will be returning to activities when physically able.

We apologize to fans who have eagerly awaited the Saja Boys’ performance at the Idol Awards and will do our best to aid Jinu in his recovery so that he can return in full health to his fans as soon as possible.

After handing the phone back to Bobby, they all turned around to huddle together.

“This is very suspicious,” Mira spoke softly so Bobby couldn’t hear. “What are they planning?”

“Demons can’t get sick. Unless they can,” Zoey’s face dropped. She whisper-yelled as she shook Mira violently, begging for answers, “Is demon flu contagious?!?”

Mira waited for the shaking to stop before saying, “What is even the angle? They’re purposely sabotaging themselves.”

They all paused at this. They had seen how the Honmoon had healed as what they could only assume to be a reaction to this statement. Mira spoke as if this was an intentional decision, yet Rumi was beginning to wonder if they had no other choice. Images of Jinu struggling to stand, covered in blood and with dread in his eyes, flashed through her mind. The demon had not been left in a state to perform. She had wanted to sabotage the Saja Boys but not like this. 

“What if he got hurt?” Rumi wondered out loud, grabbing the attention of her bandmates but not for the right reasons.

Mira grit her teeth, disbelief and a slight hint of betrayal slipping into her tone, “What if he got hurt ? Rumi, are you hearing yourself? Demons heal quickly and regenerate. Besides, who would’ve even hurt him? We haven’t encountered any of the Saja Boys during our patrols.”

“It could’ve been another demon,” Rumi murmured, hands clenching at her sides.

“Even if it was, why should we care?” Mira tried to make her see sense. “This is good. Their leader is out of the way. They will fall apart without him. If we’re lucky, Gwi-Ma disposed of him.”

It was the fact that Rumi could tell that Mira meant every word of that last sentence that made her instincts scream. Everything froze around her as she zeroed in on Mira. She could feel a growl beginning to build in her throat and fangs starting to prick at the back of her lips. The patterns sizzled, urging her to rip Mira apart piece by piece for daring to say that. As she glared at Mira, a hurt passed over the other woman’s face before she returned the harsh stare.

Zoey’s gaze went between the two of them, sensing the building tension. She fidgeted with her hands, deciding if she should even say anything, before she suggested, “What if it was like a demon mating cycle thing and Jinu can’t perform because his cycle was triggered by some random demon?”

This broke the staring contest going on between Mira and Rumi, relieving some of the pressure in the air. As Rumi calmed down, she questioned why she had responded like that to what Mira said. It wasn’t like she hadn’t heard Mira say worse things about Jinu, but this had been what set her off. It didn’t make any sense. For a moment, she had considered mauling Mira over nothing. It wasn’t lost on her how perplexed Mira seemed to be, but Mira covered it up before Rumi could apologize.

“That is an oddly specific theory, but I don’t think demons reproduce,” Mira smirked with some humor, pretending the past few seconds hadn’t happened. While Rumi obviously knew demons could have children, she couldn’t help but agree with Mira’s sentiment.

The maknae laughed uncomfortably, “Yeah, that was a silly idea, but no matter what happened it doesn't take away that the Saja Boys will still be at a disadvantage. Even if they’re performing before us, we should be able to achieve the Golden Honmoon.”

Mira nodded, the spark in her eyes returning, “They will be sent back to the demon realm before the awards can even be announced.” 

Without their leader, the Saja Boys would become disorganized. Rumi had seen how the other members of the group deflated as soon as they were out of sight of the public. She wasn’t entirely sure they were capable of acting independently from Jinu. There were a few things he had said about them that made her think otherwise, but nothing she had seen proved it. She wondered how much control Gwi-Ma had over them and if they were in a similar situation to Jinu. Regardless of that, no one could deny that Jinu was the most popular member of the Saja Boys. His absence would create enough of a rift between the group and their fans. 

“We can win this!” Zoey exclaimed a little too loudly. She covered her mouth upon realizing Bobby had definitely heard her.

“I don’t think we should celebrate someone being unable to perform but I also really want you to win, even if your performance will not affect the results at all because that isn’t how the Idol Awards works and they will probably win Best New Artist because you guys literally can’t. I believe you can win!” Bobby whooped, proving once again that he was supportive above all else. As the three bandmates slowly turned out of their huddle, he gave a thumbs up, “You guys don’t have to worry about what happened. Insider information has let me know that Jinu has the flu. He will be fine in a week or so.”

“I was hoping they would come up with something more interesting,” Mira muttered under her breath, crossing her arms. “Like a stabbing or car accident.”

“Wait,” Rumi put up her hand to stop Bobby, “Insider information? Who exactly told you this?”

Bobby rubbed the back of his neck in embarrassment, shrinking as three gazes narrowed in on him, “I might have kept a little secret from you guys, but it is time to come clean. While Rumi was able to handle the fan sign situation-.” He turned to Rumi, praising her with slightly teary eyes, “Quite spectacularly I might add. I was very proud,” before his features hardened. “That didn’t erase how rude it was for the Saja Boys to barge in. A lot of fans loved your groups interacting, but there was also a lot of backlash that resulted from it. I obviously had to get in contact with their manager. I was planning to do this already with everything that has been happening, but that fan sign really forced my hand. Their manager got me into a joint call with their CEO and I gave them a piece of my mind.” All Rumi could imagine was Bobby yelling over the phone at what was most likely two demons and putting himself at the top of their hit list. The Saja Boys having a manager did explain the collaborations and merchandise though.

“Is their CEO’s name Yeon Minjun?” Zoey piped up, a curious look crossing her face.

Bobby seemed genuinely surprised by the question. “Yes, the company was actually named after and founded by him. Have you heard of him?”

“No,” Zoey answered without hesitation.

“Well, even if you haven’t, I want you all to know that Minjun and Jiwoo were very understanding and reasonable people.”

“You’re on a first name basis with them?”

“Well, I’m technically only on a first name basis with Jiwoo-hyung, but-”

“HYUNG?!?” The three Huntr/x members cried out. Their manager thought he was only colluding with the enemy, but he was actually getting dangerously close to a demon. His life could be on the line. 

“He sent me a gift basket as an apology. It had persimmons in it and they were delicious,” Bobby stammered, doing his best to defend himself like he couldn’t have been poisoned. “After the Idol Awards, we are going to have an official meeting, but the three of us have a group chat. We share Saja Boys and Huntr/x fan content when we see it on social media. Getting close to them is the best way to ensure your private lives remain private.”

“That’s really thoughtful, Bobby,” Mira’s eyes softened. She then deadpanned, losing all emotion, “But you didn’t have to do that.” They would have preferred if he never involved himself with any demons ever.

Ignoring the last part, Bobby gushed, “It’s no problem. I always want the best for you three. Besides, it is nice to be able to talk with others who understand what working in this field is like. It’s good to get away from the numbers and just relax. Even if we’re competing with them, they’re still people too.” He seemed genuinely happy and they didn’t have the heart to order him to never speak with those demons again. It wasn’t like they could tell him the truth of their identities. They would have to check in on him more frequently until the Idol Awards was over, but it wasn’t like this would be a problem for much longer.

“Look at this beautiful fanart they shared with me,” Bobby’s face lit up, once again showing them his screen. Mira indulged his request first, taking in the art of Zoey sitting on her lap with Rumi snaking an arm around her neck. There was very little distance left between any of them, Rumi’s other hand trailing the hem of Zoey’s crop top. Mira’s eyes flicked down to the signature at the corner of the picture.

Mira grabbed the phone, studying even closer as Rumi and Zoey glanced over her shoulders. She exhaled lightly in amusement, “Bobby, this is Polytr/x fanart. I recognize the artist.”

“It is?” The color in Bobby’s face drained away. Embarrassed and bewildered, he questioned, “Why would they send that? You’re practically my children.”

He tried to grab back the phone, but Mira held it up out of his reach. While Rumi wouldn’t have supported taking his phone like this in another situation, she could now see that Mira was scrolling through the messages. It was important to see what all these demons were saying to Bobby. They could be manipulating him for all they knew. The further up Mira scrolled, the more obvious a certain trend became. Contrary to this trend, the two demons seemed to have more variety in the art they sent: platonic, romantic, Polytr/x, Zoemira, Rumira, and Zoerumi. They were not leaving a single stone unturned. It seemed like they were genuinely just showing every art they happened upon. However, of all the art Bobby was sending, there was one thing most of them had in common. 

“It’s probably because you have been mainly sending them PolySaja fanart,” Mira observed, saying what they were all thinking. Her brows furrowed, becoming miffed, “Some of these are really good actually. They haven’t been around long. How is there so much poly fanart? At least no one is sharing Miromabby.”

“I thought it was just group fanart,” Bobby squeaked after Mira finally gave his phone back to him. She had pulled up a specific fanart for him to see. It displayed Jinu between Romance and Abby, flustered as he was squished against Abby’s chest. Abby was holding Romance’s waist to pull both of them closer, staring at Romance with an undeniable lust. There were two little blobs in the white background that seemed to be Mystery sipping at a boba tea and Baby using a pair of binoculars. As Bobby stared down at it, realization hit, “Oh no. I’m seeing it now. I messed up.”

There was a strange churning in Rumi’s stomach at seeing Jinu pressed against Abby. She didn’t care about Romance or the little blobs that looked like they were meters away. Something about the stupid smug look on Abby in this fanart was pissing her off, but she shook it away. She clasped her hands together instead, turning to Mira, “You mentioned a hot pot place? How about we all head over there right now? You can come too, Bobby.” They had wasted enough time on this.

Bobby pulled a black card out of nowhere. “Then the meal will be on me.”

They may all be millionaires, but none of the members of Huntr/x would ever pass up a free meal. As Mira and Zoey cheered Bobby on, Rumi peered down at the bottle and cap she had discarded. She picked them up, throwing everything away while the group of four walked out of the practice room. The warmth under her skin had begun to dissipate. Rumi was certain this break would fix the weariness building in her mind. Watching the three most important people to her laugh and smile, she couldn't help but join in and she knew things were going to work out.

There had been over a hundred people on the train and they had all been taken in seconds, demons sweeping through the carriages while they were focused on the threat above. Except, Rumi hadn’t been focused. That wouldn’t be the right word to use. She had fumbled everything, allowing herself to be taken down for only a few seconds. However, a few seconds had been the difference between life and death for the dozens of citizens that she had failed. There had been no one to save when they finally remembered the passengers, remembered the ones they were supposed to protect. 

If she hadn’t snapped at Mira and if she hadn’t sowed doubt in Takedown, then they might have been organized enough to stop what had happened. There had already been so many lost to the Honmoon falling apart, yet she had allowed the heat coiling inside control her actions. She should have taken getting angry at Mira in the practice room as a sign. She shouldn’t have grown complacent at the Honmoon healing because it was ripped through again like nothing had changed. No ground had been lost by the demons.

Rumi had ended up heading to the roof of the Huntr/x building after she had parted ways with her group. She had watched the sun set, sitting on the ledge as the tears in the Honmoon illuminated the horizon. Once again, she waited. 

For a sign.

For anything.

But she was mainly waiting for the tiger. It felt ironic to be waiting for something she had ignored and pushed away so many times.

Not a single speck of blue fur came into her sight during the hours she waited. She didn’t know what she wanted to do exactly. She couldn’t tell if she wanted to convince Jinu to help or if she wanted to kill him. The better half of her wanted to end his existence and send him back to the demon realm, yet there was still the part that needed to be assured that the Honmoon wouldn’t take her too. Rubbing at her arms through the white hoodie, she remembered the smoldering sting that had run through them.

Bringing her knees up to her chest, she rested against them. She couldn’t deny that she also wished to know if he was alright. All she had were false visions created by Gwi-Ma during her dream and those weren’t exactly promising. Grabbing her phone out of her sweatpants’ pocket, Rumi checked the time and mulled over going back into the penthouse. There was the familiar itch to make sure Mira and Zoey were alright, even if they had parted on bad terms. She wanted to apologize, but she remained where she was. She scrolled through her phone instead, going through her recent messages to see if they had sent anything.

They hadn’t.

Their individual names and their group chat were at the top of the screen followed by Bobby and then Celine. Rumi stared at Celine’s contact, pressing it before she could register what she was doing. Their texts were rather lackluster. Every once in a while Celine would send an article raving about Huntr/x or some random fan edit and it made Rumi feel like she was doing something right. Celine didn’t know about any of the problems she was facing or the patterns growing, but the ex-hunter did know about the Saja Boys and the Honmoon. She had seen it crumbling, so Rumi couldn’t hide that information from her.

Her thumb hovered over the call button. Letting out a sigh, Rumi clicked it, holding the phone up to her ear as she listened to it ring. It was against her better judgement, but she needed to hear Celine. She needed to prove Gwi-Ma’s taunts wrong. She pressed her forehead against her knees as each ring passed, only perking up once she heard the call being picked up. Celine was reliable and would never turn Rumi away when in need, even if her advice was not always the best.

“Rumi, it’s so early. Why are you awake? Did something happen with your patterns?” Celine sounded like she had slept as much as Rumi that night. Both of them couldn’t close their eyes, waiting anxiously for whatever was going to happen next. Neither was lowering their guard.

“No, but-,” Rumi hesitated. She remembered what Celine always said, ‘We are hunters. Voices strong. Your faults and fears must never be seen.’ The question plaguing her wasn’t a fault or fear. She was simply a hunter seeking information so that she could better protect the human realm. Even before what happened with Jinu, ignorance had hindered her, so she asked, “What is an alpha?”

“Where did you hear that word?” Celine responded too quickly, too surprised and too urgent.

Too emotional.

Rumi made up a lie, “The leader of the Saja Boys said something about… being one. I was wondering if that was a demon type or-”

“Stay away from him,” Celine interjected harshly, words sharpened by a desperation Rumi couldn’t fathom. “In public, don’t interact unless completely necessary. If he gets too close, kill him before he touches you.”

Shock washed over Rumi. Her mouth became dry and the hold she had on the phone tightened. She wondered if this was the advice Celine would give to Zoey and Mira if either learned of what Gwi-Ma had called her. She swallowed down a tinge of fear at that thought, asking, “Are alphas more dangerous than other demons?”

“They have less control of their instincts. They are filled with bloodlust and a desire to force themselves on those they think are below them,” Celine explained and parts of it were almost verbatim of what Jinu had said in the dream, of what Gwi-Ma had accused her of. She took whatever she wanted from those she thought were below her.

“I feel like you should’ve told us this before,” and she couldn’t continue as she wanted. She couldn’t say that she wished Celine had said this before she had attacked Jinu, before Gwi-Ma entered her mind, and before she had snapped at Mira.

“There was no reason to, Rumi. None of you have ever interacted with a demon long enough for this to matter. I didn’t think it was necessary to teach this generation of hunters the demons’ hierarchy system.”

“Hierarchy system?” Rumi pressed when it became clear Celine wasn’t going to share more.

Celine sighed but gave in. There was no reason to not share. “Demons have an instinctual hierarchy system with three tiers. I was taught to distinguish between the tiers through the traits of the three members of the demon lord bloodline. The demon lord before Gwi-Ma was Yeomra and he was a beta. He was also a shapeshifting trickster who used his wits and cunning to deceive humans into giving up their souls. While he is no longer demon lord, Gwi-Ma does not hold power over him and he watches the affairs of his child and grandchild from afar. Gwi-Ma is an alpha and makes deals to exert control over any weaker than he is, refusing to allow anyone to rise to his status. His insatiable greed is what led to the creation of the Honmoon. Gunha, Gwi-Ma’s successor and son, is an omega. He would blend in with humans, seducing them so they would give their lives and humanity willingly to him. Gwi-Ma holds power over him but not complete control.”

There was a lot to unpack. Rumi realized there was so much that Celine had hidden from not only her but Mira and Zoey. An entire bloodline had been hidden from them. There were things Celine had been taught that they were kept in the dark about. A voice deep down wondered if Celine kept these secrets so no one would be able to discover her demon heritage. 

“All demons can be divided into these tiers?” Rumi tested.

“Yes.”

“What was my father?”

“Rumi, that isn’t-”

“Was my father an alpha?” She questioned. Despite fearing the answer, she needed to know.

Celine stayed quiet, the silence deafening. Rumi almost hung up, but then the older hunter spoke and confirmed everything: “Your sire was an alpha.”

“So I could be an alpha? I could be like Gwi-Ma?” Tears pricked at her eyes, voice growing hoarse. “What would you do if I ended up hurting someone?”

“No, Rumi,” Celine chided, drying the tears. She would never acknowledge the other half of Rumi. “Even with your patterns, you don’t have demonic instincts. The Golden Honmoon is within your reach. It is a waste of time to worry about this.”

“I guess you’re right,” Rumi agreed because what else could she do?

Celine hummed, “Make sure to stay away from the Saja Boys for the time being.”

If she truly believed you had no demonic instincts, why does she want you to stay away from him?

Rumi’s breath hitched at the voice intruding her mind, but she couldn’t let Celine know that Gwi-Ma had already entered her mind. She couldn’t let Celine know she was more of a demon than the other hunter had ever imagined. 

“I can do that,” Rumi murmured, closing her eyes and focusing on quelling the headache beginning to form. “Love you, Celine.”

“Stay safe, Rumi,” Celine said, hanging up. Rumi almost laughed in shock at how abrupt it was. 

After putting her phone back into her pocket, Rumi’s head found its way into her hands. There was a throbbing sensation that she already knew the origin of. She had been waiting for something on this roof and this was what she had wrought.

It seems there is very little difference between demons and hunters in the end. The same shame plagues everyone’s mind. Maybe she thought by not saying anything you wouldn’t present, but it is too late for that.

Rumi did her best to ignore what the voice was whispering into her ear. She remembered times when Celine would come back from slaying demons when she was a child. Celine was a lone hunter left behind by her sisters, going against the demons on her own, and she would often get hurt as a result. Rumi remembered curling up in Celine’s bed as the woman held her, tiny eyes staring at bandages and wounds in terror. She had been petrified of the idea of losing another mother. Celine had protected her. Celine loved her. Her actions spoke louder than words.

“Celine gave me the information she thought I would need. It’s not her fault that I’m-,” she drew away from her hands, studying them like Jinu’s blood was still on them, “-this.”

For a moment, the silence persisted and Rumi prayed it was because Gwi-Ma had left. However, a chuckle soon broke through the quiet, feeling more real than any words the demon lord had ever forced into her heard. “Those I control rarely talk back,” and the sound of it was more present. It was like everything else had only been an extension and now she was truly talking to Gwi-Ma like she had in the dream. “I’m used to groveling, but this is far more entertaining.” Was that all the demons under him were? Entertainment?

“What do you want?” Rumi demanded, glaring into the darkness of the horizon.

“You should already know what I want, hunter,” Gwi-Ma stated smugly. “Freedom, but isn’t that what you want too? Freedom from your instincts. I could help with that. It would be so easy to cut you off from them.”

She growled at nothing, “Don’t waste your time trying to make a deal with me, Gwi-Ma. When the Golden Honmoon is created, you will be gone from my head as you rot in the demon realm.”

“Temperamental,” Gwi-Ma tutted. “I suppose I should’ve expected that with how you tore into Jinu. It will take him a few days to recover from what you did.”

The insinuation wasn’t lost on her. Jinu was unable to perform because of what she had done. She grew quiet, failing to convince even herself, “That was a mistake.”

Gwi-Ma adopted a mockingly soothing tone, “Of course, your sire made the same one and it created you. How could anyone expect a child from that union to have control? It is too much to ask of an abomination like you.”

She had never thought her parents had some fantastical romance, but she had at least hoped that her conception had been consensual. She had hoped there was some love between them, but there might have been a reason for Celine’s reluctance to talk about her father. The hunter had saved her from the heartbreak and hurt she was experiencing right then.

“The instincts will pass,” she choked the words out. “My demon half will be gone.”

“What makes you think the demon part of you will go away? Your mind and blood is that of a demon’s. Will the Honmoon take that away too? Will you be an empty husk or just a broken soul left behind?” A raucous laughter erupted, causing Rumi to wince. It died down after a few seconds. His tone became stern, threatening, “I know you felt it. It was pulling you down with the rest of us.”

“You are trying to create doubt. The patterns will disappear,” she asserted.

“With that level of blind hope, you sound like your father.”

Rumi’s heart dropped at the comparison. Her fire dimmed as she whispered, “Don’t compare me to that monster.”

No one responded. Gwi-Ma had left her alone with her thoughts because he knew there was nothing more he could do. He had already done enough damage. Rumi wondered how she could uphold her mother’s legacy when she had already fallen into the chasm left behind by her father. She was a mistake. She had never been anything more than that.

As she slipped back from the ledge onto the roof of the building, she pushed down her fear and doubt. Celine had been right in some way. She couldn’t deal with this now. The Idol Awards were happening the following night. It was only a few hours away. She couldn’t allow the cracks forming in her mind to stop them from securing the Golden Honmoon. Even if she wasn’t entirely sure she would be left on the same side as Zoey and Mira, it wouldn’t stop her from dedicating herself to the mission.

She would rather die than become her father.

Chapter Text

Takedown wasn’t the song that united them. It wasn’t the song that would resonate the most with their fans. It wasn’t even what represented them best, but it would be the song that would seal the Golden Honmoon. There wasn’t any other song they had in their entire discography that spelled out their mission as hunters so clearly. It was meant to be hateful because they were condemning every demon to an eternity with Gwi-Ma. It was all the demons were worth.

Mira had been right. She usually was. They didn’t have enough time to change the lyrics and Takedown was nothing more than what they had put into it. Their intensity and fears seeped into every word. Maybe there had been a part of Rumi that had known better, but it had been drowned out by the other voices on that rooftop. The lyrics were a reminder of everything she had to lose if they failed.

In the morning, she apologized to Mira and Zoey for everything that had happened over the past few days, but it felt hollow. While her bandmates spoke of their insecurities and how much Huntr/x had helped them realize the strength in their faults, Rumi shied away from talking about her own defects. Mira and Zoey spoke with an honesty she had yet to find. Both talked about their pasts: Mira’s personality being seen as a liability and Zoey’s interests being shamed. Rumi listened, she reassured, and she hid everything away because she didn’t deserve the same kindness she afforded them. As scared as she was of losing them, she was more terrified of being abandoned. She claimed all their fears were the demons talking, yet they didn’t understand how close the demons truly were.

Rumi didn’t elaborate on how being free of the demons may include being free of her. 

She went through the day with a heaviness in her heart, trudging through an apprehension that kept growing with each passing minute. It wasn’t entirely from anxiety over what was to come. Some of it came from how closed in and trapped she felt. While her throat no longer felt strained, her head was clouded. Every thought was strained and it only got worse when they arrived at the venue for the Idol Awards. As the stylists crowded around her, an uneasy sensation began to develop, fidgeting inside her bones and moving under her skin. There was something implanting itself inside of her mind and it wasn’t Gwi-Ma completely. An exhaustion plagued her and she was stringing herself along until the end. Even if it was unlikely to happen, she was already dreaming of going back home to pass out on the couch with Mira and Zoey.

For their Takedown performance, they had ended up deciding to use the outfit they had worn to hunt the Saja Boys during the variety show they had guest-starred on. It seemed a waste to not use them, even with how the black leather had betrayed them. She had mended the sleeve Jinu had torn through, only briefly thinking of the strip of cloth he had wrapped around her arm that she had stored in her nightstand. Of course, Huntr/x had to get rid of the more obvious signs in their outfits that the song was about the Saja Boys. The Kill Saja nails were no longer, but they were maintaining a darker and more mature tone for Takedown. They had the passion in their eyes necessary for the song to be well-received. Nothing was more powerful than a song reveal and they could play off the incident at the variety show as a teaser. They could hopefully bring back fans that were disappointed by the lack of a Golden live performance.

The leather was not helping the itch at all, but Rumi was getting better at tuning it out alongside the murmurs of everyone else around her. However, the silent blaze remained under the surface, waiting for her to lower her guard. She was vigilant around the stylists and stage technicians, meticulously controlling every action. The cracks weren’t supposed to show. It was easier to pull herself together when it was just Mira and Zoey around her. It was like having a weight lifted from her shoulders, yet it wasn’t possible to have only them.

Rumi only had to get through their performance, the Honmoon turning gold, and the awards being announced. Then they could all enjoy a three-month hiatus and put everything behind them. This was the outcome that Rumi was focused on, ignoring everything else to the best of her ability. It was all running as smoothly as it could until they walked past the Saja Boys backstage.

Both groups had recently left their respective dressing rooms with the Saja Boys preparing to go on stage and Huntr/x heading towards the green room. Rumi held her head high as she was flanked by her bandmates, staring straight ahead and barely glancing at the four remaining members of the Saja Boys. It seemed like they also had decided to go with a darker color palette for the Idol Awards performance. Excluding Romance, their clothes displayed their patterns. The demons all carried themselves with a confidence similar to her own group, but Jinu’s absence was blaring. Abby and Romance stood side by side in the front, shoulders practically touching, with Mystery and Baby trailing behind them. Despite their proximity, Rumi couldn’t help but see the gap where Jinu would’ve been. He would’ve stood between his two pink-haired members, pretending that he wasn’t looking at her just as she pretended not to look at his bandmates now. 

There was something in the air she couldn’t quite grasp, chalking it up to nerves or the tension between the groups. It wasn’t until she got closer to Romance, nearly brushing past him and having him settle in her periphery, that she took notice of what it was. 

Cherry blossoms.

The scent of cherry blossoms drifted by her. 

It was next to Rumi, coaxing her like a melody and she had no choice but to reach back. Like in the park, like on the train, instinct forcibly guided her. She turned and her hand thrusted towards the source of the aroma, twisting it back towards her where it was supposed to be.

She remembered Jinu.

She remembered him struggling against her.

And she didn’t care. The capacity to feel shame, let alone understand why she felt it, was gone.

All she knew was there was now a warm body against her own, her nose plunging into his neck in search of that inviting scent. For a moment, all that was there was the flowery perfume and she melted into it. This was where she was meant to be, yet the comfort quickly faded. While the scent remained slightly floral, there was an earthy warmth that almost made her recoil. The sweetness of it was different and crisp against her senses, the aroma changing within milliseconds from the flowers she craved to the odor of honey. Only then did she take in the pink hair running down the nape of the neck she had dove into. Primal desire had clouded her better judgement and intuition.

Abby reacted faster than she was able to process who she had actually grabbed, pivoting around to rip him out of her grip. A golden sheen stared down at her as he pushed the other demon behind him. With fangs bared and deep growl settling between them, it was like Abby was no longer trying to hide his demonic traits. He towered over her, yet he wasn’t moving to attack. They were at a stand-still and as Rumi finally peered at who was behind him she realized Abby was protecting her more than he was protecting his fellow demon. 

When Abby had pushed Romance behind him, he had kept a hand holding the other pink-haired demon back. Some of Romance’s demonic features were beginning to bleed to the surface as well, but what struck Rumi most was the stare he was sending her way. It wasn’t like it had been with Jinu. There was no fear or timidity, only dead eyes devoid of any emotion. His face was eerily blank as he honed in on her. She could make out his nails slowly extending into claws the longer Abby held onto him.

Zoey and Mira were tense and on guard by her side, but they weren’t at the front of her mind. Rumi had remained locked in instinct. Her nose had picked up a faint recollection of the flowery scent as it curled around the demon before her and all she could imagine was him pressed up against what was hers. She had witnessed how close the man got to the other members of the Saja Boys. In the bathhouse, she had seen firsthand how little space he left between himself and Jinu. Her fists clenched, her teeth grinding as she scowled at Abby. With him looming over her, she crouched slightly, fully intending to launch herself at him. Petrichor swirled between them. 

The yellow gleam in Abby’s eyes dimmed, returning the color to that of a human’s, as he recognized her intent. Almost sighing in disbelief at what he would have to do, the demon pulled the collar of his button-up to expose the crook of his neck. The illusion flickered over this small expanse, revealing a patch of purple skin and trailing patterns. However, it became clear that what he was trying to show her was the bite mark that had scarred over because it was almost embarrassing how quickly it calmed her. He gave her a pointed look as he backed away, trusting that now she understood that he was claimed and somehow she did. Deep down she had comprehended what the mark meant, soothing the grating voice that warned her that he would steal Jinu.

For a second, she wondered if Abby was also an alpha and that was why she couldn’t allow him to best her in any way.

“I always knew you wanted a piece of me, Rumi,” Abby smirked, brushing her prior aggression off. His glance briefly went to Zoey and Mira beside her. The two hunters were waiting for a single wrong move, waiting for an opportunity or opening. He winked at them both, “Everyone eventually does and it would be a shame not to share. It’s good you’re all finally willing to admit it.”

He let go of Romance then, allowing the other demon to slide up next to him. Abby rested his arm on Romance’s shoulder and leaned against him. Both had reverted to their human forms, falling back into their personas. Romance joined Abby in the taunting, voice low and seductive, “Mira, it looks like you have some competition. Don’t worry. I only have eyes for you.” Passion had returned to his gaze and, despite the annoyed glare Mira aimed at him, it didn’t turn sour like it had with Rumi. 

Mira grimaced, disgusted and enraged, “Like I want your attention. Do you already know you’re going to lose? Is that why you blatantly attacked us in public? Trying to get one last chance in? It’s a bit pathetic, even for you.”

“Are you jealous? I could’ve gotten closer to you instead if you wanted. You just have to ask.” Romance hid a growing smile behind his hand, giving her a quick once-over. “Use your words, Mira. We’re both adults here. Although, one of us might be more mature than the other.”

“I think the word you’re searching for is older. You’re ancient and practically decaying. It explains how stunted all of the Soda Pop performances have been.”

“No, try more experienced. It would sound so much sweeter coming from you,” Romance literally purred and it pissed off Mira even more. Zoey was becoming more bewildered with each passing remark, head turning back and forth with each new taunt.

An unspoken line had been crossed by Rumi, yet Romance was going along with the belief that he had started the altercation. She watched as Romance wrapped an arm around Abby’s waist as he continued to exasperate Mira, squeezing Abby ever so slightly closer. A tinge of guilt settled into her stomach. Rumi had overestimated the control she had over her instincts. Just the insinuation of Jinu’s existence was enough to pull her down. 

While the smell of cherry blossoms was still evident and scratching away at her senses, she noticed there were more undertones than the honey. There were hints of sage and of burning ash. The scent of rot was gone from the demons, yet one scent was becoming just as overpowering. The smoke was becoming suffocating, covering any remnants of the blossoms she had sought out. Its intensity was quickly explained as Rumi wasn’t the only one unable to quell instinct it seemed.

As she had focused on Romance poking at Mira, Baby had remained inconspicuous by Mystery’s side and was able to approach her without much fanfare until he grabbed her by the back of the neck, wrenching her face right in front of his. It shocked Mira and Romance out of their bickering. Unlike before, Zoey and Mira drew their weapons, but Baby showed no concern to the woldo and taesin knives aimed at him. Contrary to Romance, there was almost too much emotion in the glare Baby was giving her. It was full of deep-seated rage and disgust.

“Was Jinu not enough? You have to force yourself on Jae too? Control your instincts.” He spoke through gritted teeth, pupils sharpening and voice quiet enough for only her to hear. Even if her bandmates hadn’t seen everything that happened, he had. His touch stung against her neck, yet she couldn’t find the anger she had felt towards Abby. Baby’s words cut through the last shreds of trust she had in herself. If the scent had not faded on Romance, she couldn’t help but believe that she would have done the same thing to him as she did to Jinu and she could tell that Baby also believed this.

Her actions, the possibility of what she might have done again, had sparked enough fury that the demon had abandoned the pretense of not only his persona but Romance’s as well. Jae. Romance had a name and it was a reminder that the demons were more than what she had been allowed to see. Jinu had to trust them at least a bit because they knew of her heritage. They knew she had lost control and that she had hurt him. They cared for each other to some capacity.

“You will not destroy everything I have worked for, hunter,” he hissed. Claws began sharpening against her neck, threatening to break through. Even though it would’ve been easy for her to stop Baby, she allowed it to happen because a part of her believed she deserved it. However, he let go before he could pierce through. He had finally acknowledged Zoey and Mira poised to not just subdue but kill him.

He huffed in annoyance, but he still separated from her. With that, the Saja Boys turned away from them and began to head to their stage. Romance and Abby stayed attached to each other, and Rumi could make out how Abby leaned down to whisper into Romance’s ear. The smoke fumes refused to diminish in intensity even as Baby walked away with his group. The only one who looked back was Mystery, but Rumi had no clue who exactly he was staring at between the three of them. 

The silence lasted for only so long.

“See you in hell, Rumi! I’ll save you a spot,” Baby shouted without looking back, flipping her off over his shoulder. Mystery snarled at her with a snap of his teeth to emphasize the point. If they went down, so would she. 

“We’ll see you in hell!” Zoey yelled in retaliation, securing herself to Rumi’s side. She cradled her head with hands, mumbling, “What am I even saying? That makes no sense.”

“They’re just trying to get into our heads before the big performance with these desperate attacks and weird flirting,” Mira scoffed when the Saja Boys were fully out of sight, rolling her eyes. Upon seeing how Rumi remained quiet, her face softened slightly and she placed a hand on her leader’s shoulder. She reassured her members, “This is a good sign. They know we have them beat. They’re bound to be dragged back to the demon realm. The Golden Honmoon is practically ours already.”

“Yeah,” Rumi gave a strained smile, “This will all be over soon and we won’t have to deal with their stupid antics ever again.” Mira nodded in agreement. 

Zoey patted her back, “That’s the spirit! We can’t let those demons get us down. Come on. Let’s get to the green room so Bobby doesn’t have to worry about where we are.”

There wasn’t much Rumi could do as Zoey began dragging her along to the green room. It was something she was used to. She often trailed behind the maknae as Zoey pulled her along. Like every other time, it was welcomed. However, it was now welcomed for a different reason. It allowed her to not think about where they were going, turning her thoughts off as Mira quietly complained beside her and Zoey piped up every once in a while. Still, even as she tried to hide from what had happened, she couldn’t escape wondering if she would be able to perform if such a small thing was able to set her off.

Chapter Text

The aroma of cherry blossoms swirled around her and beckoned her closer. Rumi’s breath hitched upon the intrusion, suffocating on the scent of him. She stumbled forward as if being pulled by his vacant gaze. It was empty as her mind, unseeing of what was approaching. 

Her eyes flitted down to between his legs, bent and spread wide in invitation. Fingers were nestled between the folds. With every curl and push deeper, the patterns lining his entrance pulsed. They were in a desperate search of what only Rumi could give him.