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Jeongin frowned, folding his arms across his chest as he leaned against the low brick wall across from the SIA performing arts building. He glared at the happy students piling out from the double doors into the late evening setting sun as they ran through the light rain drizzling down. They were so innocent— naive— of the terrors of the world with such simple worries. The boy was jealous of the straightforwardness of their lives— wished he could be like them before thinking better.
He sighed, rolling his eyes as the phone in his pocket started it's incessant buzzing for the third time in the last hour. Swallowing down the sarcastic remark on the tip of his tongue, he brought the cell phone to his ear after swiping right. "Yes, hyung?"
" You sound like you're frowning— why are you frowning ?"
Resisting the urge to roll his eyes again, Jeongin replied, "I'm not frowning, Heechul-hyung."
" I'm not frowning, Heechul-hyung, " the elder mocked, his normally deep voice kicking up to a high, nasally pitch. Jeongin could practically see his hyung's taunting smirk in his mind's eye. " You're always frowning, Jeonginnie. The day you smile is the day I'll willingly let a bloodsucker take a bite outta me. Anyways— have you located the target yet? "
Jeongin released a world weary sigh as he continued glaring at the trickle of students still exiting the building. "I wasn’t exactly given a clear target— 'tall, pale, dark hair— might have fangs?' Hyung— that's half of SIA's student population. I have no clue what I'm looking for."
Heechul groaned. " Then what are you still doing there? "
"Donghae-hyung told me not to come back without the monster," he deadpanned, scanning a group of boys who had just exited the building. They were chatting happily between themselves, one of the blonde boys leapt onto a dark haired man's back. The man smiled widely, reaching back to steady the slightly smaller boy as he kept walking. "Do you even know the species?"
The elder hummed thoughtfully, thinking for a moment, " I think Donghae-ah said it was an ancient— dragon, maybe? I know he said that it favored fire. "
Jeongin rolled his eyes, letting his head connect with the brick behind him. "Real helpful, hyung," he snipped out, glare intensifying as he watched the group of boys begin their trek towards wherever they were headed, most likely dinner or home or a goddamn movie like normal people Jeongin's age.
" Watch your tone, kid, " Heechul growled through the phone, making the younger shiver.
"Sorry, hyung," he muttered, closing his eyes against the approaching boys. "I guess I'm just tired."
Heechul sighed, voice softening, " You're alright, son. Give it another hour— if you don't spot the beast, come home and we'll investigate together tomorrow. Siwon-ah saved you some dinner. "
Jeongin scrunched his nose unhappily, hiding his disgust by humming noncommittally as he made a mental note to stop by the corner store on his way home to pick himself up something edible to eat for dinner instead of whatever Siwon might have concocted. "Okay, hyung. I'll see you in a bit."
" Stay safe, little desert fox ."
The boy rolled his eyes again, humming in farewell before hitting the end call button and slipping his phone back in his pocket. His head snapped up as loud laughter broke his train of thought; the group of boys were almost upon him, a few meters away as they made their way up the sidewalk. The second they were in hearing distance to Jeongin, they all froze as they glanced up, wide eyed, to look at the boy leaning against the wall. Jeongin’s frown deepened as he glared at the group. His eyes narrowed threateningly as the blonde boy slid off the other boy’s back as he stared at the human in shock.
“You...” he started, taking a jerking step forward.
Jeongin shoved his hands in his pockets, kicking off the wall as he took a few steps away from the coven of vampires. Their red eyes drooped in sadness as the dark haired boy who had been piggybacking the other brought up his hands in a placating manner. “My name is Bang Chan,” he started, smiling softly at the human. “Me and my coven go to school here. What’s your name?”
“Back off, bloodsucker,” he growled, taking another cautious step back.
Chan’s eyes widened, taking his own step away as his hopeful expression crumbled with shocked hurt.
“Hey,” another boy snapped, taking a few threatening steps closer. “Watch your mouth, kid. That’s no way to speak to your elders.”
Jeongin snorted, rolling his eyes as he partially turned his back on the group, “I refuse to acknowledge a beast as my elder.”
There was a series of shocked inhales as the vampires behind him stared at him in shock.
“You—” Chan started, “You can’t really mean that.”
“I do,” the human snarled, “The last thing I need is some b-grade horror movie plot invading my life. Kindly leave before I call in reinforcements.” He flashed his bracelet to the coven, his BR insignia a bright white on the black band around his wrist. The sky darkened ominously, tuning itself to the mood, as the rain began to come down harder.
The whole coven took a step back, staring at his wrist in horror. The smallest vampire grabbed at a blonde boy’s wrist in terror. “How can he— “
The blonde boy shook his head, wrapping his arms around the smaller as he pulled him back further behind Chan and the angry one. “I don’t know, hyung,” he whispered, eyes just as wide and shocked as the rest. “Hyung— we should leave.”
Chan shook his head, eyes still focused on Jeongin’s face. “Alright,” he murmured, raising his hands again. “We’ll leave. Can I at least get your name?”
“Why?” he hissed, turning to full face the vampire again.
“Because I’m curious,” he explained, a small, playful smile stretching across his lips. “You don’t go here. It’s a bit concerning that you’re hanging around. I just want to make sure me and my coven are safe.”
Jeongin scoffed, turning away from the man’s piercing eyes. “Jeongin.”
Chan smiled, eyes crinkling cutely, “It’s nice to meet you Jeongin. I’m sure we’ll see each other again. Hopefully, your views will have changed by then.”
He rolled his eyes. “They won’t,” he called behind him before fully turning and making his way down the sidewalk, leaving the confused, hurt group of vampires behind him just as the sky opened up and flooded the world around them.
“Where’s the kelpie?” Donghae hollered, coming up to grab Jeongin’s bicep roughly. “Why are you back without the beast?”
“Kelpie?” Jeongin asked, staring at the elder exasperatedly. “Hyung you didn’t say anything about a Kelpie.”
Donghae growled, shaking the boy angrily. “You idiot child. I needed that beast for the appeals tomorrow. Useless ,” he hissed, dragging the boy down the hall towards the closet.
“No,” Jeongin begged, yanking on his arm uselessly. “I’m sorry, hyung. I’ll— I’ll go back out and find it. Please— hyung!” Donghae ignored his struggling, yanking open the door and shoving the boy into the small space before slamming the door behind him. “No! Hyung, please!” Jeongin threw his body into the door, pounding it with his fists as his tears started.
“You’ll stay in there until the morning,” Donghae called through the door, clicking the lock into place before the tell-tale sound of a chair being dragged across the room and getting propped under the handle to keep the door secured broke through the younger’s consciousness. “So you don’t try to leave your punishment early like last time,” Donghae explained gleefully as Jeongin’s panic increased. He tapped on the door a few times as if he was lovingly patting the younger on the shoulder. “Next time, Jeongin-ah— don’t disappoint me.”
Jeongin cried, hearing his hyung’s steady footsteps recede from the closet door. He tried the handle, even knowing that it wasn’t going to budge, and cried as it didn’t even wiggle. He knew better than to try to escape his punishment again as he slid to the floor, curling up in the fetal position as he buried his head in his knees. Chan’s smiling face popped up behind his eyelids as he tried to forget that he was in his punishment closet. He whimpered, the young vampire’s red eyes dragging up old memories of another set of red eyes, sinister and hungry as it drained his mother. He shook his head, trying to banish those eyes from his memory as he attempted to concentrate on anything else. He could hear Siwon and Heechul further in the house, the soft clinking of plates and silverware as they ate with the rest of their unit. There was no chance anyone in his house would let him out before Donghae had deemed his punishment sufficient. Jeonin couldn’t help the angry scoff at the elder, knowing damn well that he had given him the wrong information just so that he could hear the younger cry. Siwon refused to let any of the members physically hurt Jeongin (at least permanently damage the boy— corrective smacks were commonplace for the youngest, after all) but that didn’t mean that they couldn’t release their anger out on him in other ways. Donghae’s and Seungmin’s favorite punishment was locking Jeongin in small spaces when he stepped out of line as they loved to listen to him cry.
The boy let his head drop back to the wall behind him as he sniffled pathetically. His mother’s screams echoed loudly through his head as he saw the vampire suck the life out of her through the crack of the closet door. She had thrown him in there when his father had gone down and the vampire tore into him. The door slammed shut before he could beg his mother to hide with him as she pushed a heavy wooden chest made out of mountain ash in front of the door so that neither the vampire nor Jeongin could open it. The vampire had hissed angrily when he realized that he couldn’t get to Jeongin that night, up ending everything in his parents’ bedroom before leaving the boy alone with his mother’s dead, unseeing eyes watching him through the crack in the closet door. Jeongin cried for what felt like days, intermittently pounding on the wood with his little fists as his mother began to decay. He was nearly dead by the time Heechul found him, pushing the chest out of the way and opening the door to the weak child inside. “You’re alright now ,” he had murmured, cradling Jeongin’s tiny body against his chest. “ Appa’s got you .”
Heechul had taken him home to Leeteuk who had embraced the boy with open arms. He never went to his parents’ funeral nor did he get to go back to his family home and get anything to remember them by. “ We’re your family now, little fox, ” Leeteuk had murmured, holding the boy close to his chest as he cried for his mom. “We’ll take care of you now .”
Siwon let Jeongin out early the next morning, Donghae standing forebodingly behind him as he pulled the younger boy up and into his arms. “You took your punishment so well, Jeonginnie,” he cooed, pressing a kiss to the younger’s cheek. “Let’s get some breakfast, huh?” He kept his arm around the boy as he led him to the dining room where a few of the other members were already seated. Donghae pressed a soft kiss to the top of his head before taking his own seat next to Ryeowook.
“You’ll be shadowing Eunhyuk today, Jeongin,” Leeteuk called from the head of the table. “There’s a bloodsucker he’s been tracking and he could use an extra set of hands.”
Jeongin nodded his head, keeping silent as Siwon placed a plate in front of him. Cautiously, he took a bite, knowing one wrong move would set any one of his hyungs off again. With no negative response to him eating, he dug in, eating Siwon’s overcooked japchae with gusto. The elder smiled fondly, pressing a kiss to the kid’s cheek before digging into his own meal. After everyone’s plates were cleared and Jeongin had all of the dishes put into the dishwasher, Eunhyuk wrapped his hand around the back of the younger’s neck and led him towards the garage.
“The vamp’s at SIA— don’t know what about performing arts attracts so many supernaturals. It’ll be done with class in two hours. We need to grab it before it gets to it’s coven that wait for it in the quad.”
The younger nodded in understanding as he moved to the passenger seat getting in as Eunhyuk loaded the trunk with weapons before getting in himself. As they were pulling away from the compound, Eunhyuk turned to glance at the younger in concern. “You alright, kid?”
Jeongin nodded wordlessly, turning to look out at the passing Seoul scenery.
Eunhyuk snorted, looking back to the road as he made his way to SIA. “Donghae is a dick, Innie. Heechul told me what happened. If I knew that it wouldn’t make it worse I would have come and gotten you last night.”
He shrugged, clenching his fists against his side. “It’s whatever, hyung,” he mumbled, opening the car door and exiting as they pulled into one of the crowded parking lots on campus. “I’m fine. Which building is the vampire in?”
“Building C,” Eunhyuk sighed, grabbing his bag as they made their way to the entrance. He shoved a wooden stake into the younger’s hands. “Follow my lead.”
Jeongin nodded determinedly, twirling the stake in his hands as he trailed behind the elder. Eunhyuk stood near the door to the building, glancing at his watch as he looked around him intermittently.
“Here he comes, be ready, little fox,” the elder murmured, readying his own stake as the doors opened and a few students began to trickle out. Eunhyuk leapt forward, pressing his stake against a tall blonde haired boy’s throat as he wrapped his arms around the other’s waist and pinning the vampire’s hands to his side. Jeongin leapt forward, pressing his own stake against the vampire's back as Eunhyuk growled, “Walk, bloodsucker. Let’s go.” The vampire was silent, glaring at Jeongin as Eunhyuk led the three of them back to the car. “Grab my rope, Jeongin-ah,” Eunhyuk demanded, jerking his head towards the trunk. Jeongin stepped away, sliding the stake into his belt holster as he moved to grab the rope laced with vervain. The vampire gasped at Jeongin began tying him up, whimpering as the rope touched his skin.
“Sorry,” Jeongin mumbled as he shifted the rope to rest over the vampire’s clothing instead.
He flinched as he felt a harsh slap to the back of his head as he finished securing the vampire. “You’re too soft,” Eunhyuk scolded, grabbing the tied up vampire and shoving him in the trunk. “This thing doesn’t deserve your compassion. It’s a creature, Jeongin. Did the bloodsucker that killed your mother show her any compassion when it ripped out her throat?”
Jeongin swallowed thickly as Eunhyuk slammed the trunk door shut on the shocked face of the vampire.
“Let’s go before its coven notices it's missing.”
Jeongin pulled desperately on the vampire as he tried to drag the larger man downstairs. “Please stop struggling,” the boy begged, slightly out of breath as he continued to pull the vampire’s struggling form. “Hyung just needs to ask you some questions and then he’ll let you go.”
The vampire scoffed, “How stupid do you think I am? I’m not going to willingly walk to my death.”
He shook his head, pulling again. “Hyung doesn’t kill beasts that don’t hurt humans.”
Eunhyuk growled when he saw Jeongin still struggling to get the vampire down the stairs. “Stop. Being. Soft,” he scolded as he reached out and pushed the two of them down the stairs roughly.
Jeongin yelped as his feet disappeared from under him. He grabbed a hold of the vampire, turning them so that the other didn’t land too harshly on the concrete floor. The boy groaned, dropping his head back against the floor as he took a moment to collect himself before carefully pushing the vampire to the side as he staggered to his feet, bowing lowly to Eunhyuk. “I’m sorry, hyung.”
The elder snorted, pushing Jeongin into the wall as he grabbed the vampire by the back of his shirt and dragged him into the interrogation room. Jeongin leaned on the wall as he made to limp back up the stairs before Eunhyuk’s voice boomed from the room behind him. “Get in here, Jeongin-ah.”
Jeongin’s eyes widened as he cautiously made his way into the room. “You— I never stay for interrogation, hyung.”
Eunhyuk rolled his eyes as he finished tying the vampire to the chair in the center of the room. “And clearly, us babying you has done nothing for you. You’re too nice , Jeongin. You need to toughen up.” He grinned at the younger, shaking the vampire fiercely. “You’re going to help Donghae today.”
The younger froze, staring at his hyung in horror as he shook his head. He took a step back, bumping into a solid body behind him and making him freeze again in terror. Donghae’s heavy hand dropped onto his shoulder, steering him further into the room against his will. “You’re gonna learn today, kid,” he chortled, shaking Jeongin’s shoulder roughly. He pushed the younger further into the room, making the kid stagger into the vampire.
He caught himself on the vampire’s chest, glancing up to catch the vampire’s pitying gaze as he pushed off of him. “Sorry,” he mumbled, awkwardly fixing his shirt as he turned to face his two hyungs again.
Donghae’s eyes narrowed as he watched Jeongin for a moment before reaching out and snatching the boy. He threw him against the wall, pointing angrily. “Sit and watch, Jeongin-ah.”
He turned back to the vampire, glaring menacingly as he grabbed an item off of the table on the other side of the room. He attached something shiny to his hand before winding back and punching the vampire in the face.
The vampire grunted as his head snapped to the side, spitting out a glob of blood as he turned back to face the human again. Jeongin’s eyes were wide, staring at Donghae in horror. “Hy— hyung,” he gasped. “Why—”
“Shut up , Jeongin,” the elder growled, turning back to face the boy. “This is what we do. We catch these sons of bitches and we teach them a lesson.”
Jeongin’s eyes widened, shaking his head in denial. “No— hyung. Leeteuk-hyung said that they deserved it— that— that the people you hurt, hurt others first.”
His head snapped to the side with the force of Donghae’s slap. “They’re not people . These are creatures. It doesn’t matter if they’ve hurt people yet. The fact of the matter is that they can and therefore we need to kill them before they do.”
The vampire snorted, “By that logic, you should kill yourself.”
“You’re not a person!” Donghae shouted, turning to spit at the vampire. “It doesn’t matter if I hurt things like you.”
“And Jeongin isn’t?” He asked, jerking his head towards the boy now cowering on the floor. “Last I smelled, that’s a human you’ve been beating on. Isn’t that who you’re trying to protect from things like me?”
Donghae growled, swiping this hand across the table and knocking everything to the floor. He picked up a stake before stalking forward and plunging it into the vampire’s stomach. The vampire gasped, dropping forward in his bindings as Donghae stepped back as he huffed angrily. “ Shut. Up,” he growled. He stomped towards Jeongin, pulling him up by his hair. “ This ? This is correcting a stupid, good-for-nothing, idiotic child .” He threw the boy away from him, letting Jeongin crash into the vampire’s legs. “This is how he learns.” The man stepped towards the door, Eunhyuk following closely behind. “I’ll leave you alone for awhile,” he decided, stepping out of the room. “Remind you who your true friends are, little fox.”
“No,” Jeongin gasped, crawling towards the door. “Please, hyung! I’m sorry! Please— don’t leave me!”
The door slammed shut with a resounding click as Donghae locked the door behind him. Jeongin was very sick of being locked inside of rooms by Donghae. He pushed himself up, staggering on unsteady feet over to the door where he used his fists to slam repeatedly against the metal.
“Hyung,” he begged, allowing his tears to make their way down his cheeks. “Please, hyung. Don’t leave me with the vampire— please .”
“We’ll be back in a few hours, Innie,” Eunhyuk called through the door, a hint of worry coloring his tone. “Don’t die while we’re gone.”
Jeongin sobbed openly, dropping down onto his knees as he let his forehead thunk against the cold metal of the door.
“I won’t hurt you,” the vampire whispered into the now-silent room. “You— you’re more capable of hurting me than I am of you right now.”
The boy sniffled pathetically, turning to look at the vampire through blurry eyes. He had a kind face as he watched the human break down in front of him. Jeongin cautiously scooted closer to the vampire as he observed him carefully. “That— that looks painful,” he whispered, eyeing the stake still in the vampire’s stomach.
“It is,” he responded, watching the boy’s movements carefully as Jeongin scooted a little closer. “You want to take it out for me?”
Jeongin’s eyes widened in horror, “Take it out ? Won’t— won’t that hurt you too?”
The vampire nodded, “It will but it will also allow my body to heal. I can’t heal with it still in me.” He wiggled his fingers where they were still bound to his sides. “And I can’t exactly remove it myself. Thank you— by the way— for keeping the rope off of my skin. Not many people in the resistance would be that kind.” The boy shrugged, trying to play it off as he hesitantly scooted closer again, now directly in front of the vampire. “My name is Yunho.”
Jeongin got up onto his knees, hesitantly placing his hands on Yunho’s to steady himself as he examined the stake sticking out of him. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, bowing his head. “I— They always said that— that they only hurt murderers. That they didn’t bother with the innocent monsters.”
“In their eyes, any non-human is a murdering monster,” Yunho explained, looking down at the boy sadly. “We’re all fair game to the Beast Resistance. Will you help me, Jeongin?” The human paused, head shooting up to stare at Yunho in shock before slowly nodding his head. He was rewarded with a blinding smile as Yunho gestured towards the stake with his chin. “Get this out of me, please? Do it fast.” He bit the inside of his cheek as Jeongin reached forward to grip the end of the stake. He nodded his head as he braced himself. Jeongin yanked the stake out of the elder quickly, wincing as blood oozed sluggishly from the open wound. “Thank you,” he gasped, dropping his head back as he allowed himself to acknowledge the pain running through his body. The two were silent for a few minutes, Jeongin having sat back on his heels as he stared at the bloody stake in his lap. “Why are you here, Jeongin-ah?” Yunho asked, breaking the quiet.
The boy looked at the vampire in confusion. “Because Donghae-hyung locked me in here?”
Yunho chuckled, shaking his head. “No, kiddo. Why are you with the BR? You’re not a killer— anyone can see that. And you care for others, even ‘beasts’ like me. Otherwise you would have left that stake in me.”
Jeongin shook his head. “I don’t— I don’t care.”
The blonde smiled softly at the younger boy. “It’s okay, kid. Wanna explain why locking you in here with me is a punishment for you? It’s got something to do with your mother right?”
The human nodded slowly. “A vampire killed my family. I— I was forced to watch as he— he ripped apart my mom.”
“So you’re scared of us— my kind.” Jeongin nodded hesitantly. Yunho’s face softened further as he watched the younger. “Not all of us are that bloodthirsty. The majority of us are just like you, Jeongin-ah. We just need a different food source to live. I’ve never drank from someone who wasn’t willing— neither has anyone in my coven. Most vampire covens are peaceful as long as we’re not provoked— no different from humans.”
Jeongin frowned, watching the vampire closely as he cautiously set the stake aside. “You— you’ve never hurt a human?”
Yunho shook his head. “Not one that didn’t try to hurt me first.”
The boy nodded, slowly reaching up to finger the bindings on the vampire. "I— I didn't want to hurt anyone," he admitted. "They're— hyungs are going to hurt you when they come back."
"They're hurting you, too, Jeongin," Yunho stated. "Not just me."
Jeongin shook his head. "I deserve it. I need to man up— they're just helping me." He cautiously began to undo the bindings around the vampire.
Yunho shook his head rubbing at his wrists once he was freed. "You don't deserve this, kiddo." He stood up, going over to press his ear against the door before nodding and reaching a hand down for Jeongin to take. "Come on, sweetheart. Let's get out of here before they come back."
The boy's eyes widened. "They— they actually left?" At Yunho’s nod, he sagged down, letting himself fall to the floor fully. "I thought— I thought they were close by. I didn't think they'd really leave me alone with a— with you."
Yunho crouched down, gently coaxing the boy back up. "It'll be okay, Jeongin-ah, hmm? Hyung will take care of you. I promise. Let's get out of here, alright?"
Jeongin slowly nodded, allowing the vampire to pull him up and towards the door. "It's locked."
The elder snorted, reaching out and turning the knob. Jeongin’s eyes widened as he heard the snap of the lock breaking off in the door at the force Yunho used. "Not anymore. Let's go." He pulled open the door, reaching back to lace his fingers with Jeongin’s as he brought the younger with him. Jeongin allowed himself to be led up the stairs, gripping tight to the cooler fingers clutching his own as he tried to stay upright despite the dizziness swimming around the corners of his vision.
As they neared the top of the stairs, there was the sound of a pressurized release of air just before a stake shot out from one of Ryeowook’s signature traps, piercing Yunho in the stomach again. The elder gasped, staggering as he fell backwards down the steps for the second time that night, bringing Jeongin with him. This time, he clutched the human to his chest, shielding the younger from the harsh landing with his own body.
“Hy— hyung,” Jeongin gasped, pushing up slightly to examine the elder in horror. “Oh my god.” He reached down, gripping the stake and quickly yanking it out like before, flinching when Yunho gasped in pain at the action. “Sorry— I’m sorry.”
Yunho shook his head, sitting up slightly to cup Jeongin’s wet cheeks. “You’re alright, Jeongin-ah. Did you get hurt?” At the younger’s firm headshake, Yunho smiled, “Good. Hyung’s happy to hear that. Let’s try again, shall we?”
“I think we’ve seen enough,” Leeteuk called, slowly making his way down the steps with his pressurized speargun at the ready. Before Yunho could move, Leeteuk pulled the trigger. The spear ripped through Jeongin’s spine and into the vampire’s abdomen.
The young human’s eyes widened in shock as the pain slowly registered before they rolled up into the back of his head as he dropped forward onto Yunho. “Jeongin-ah?” Yunho gasped, gripping at the young boy in his lap. He turned to the impassive leader now standing above them. “Why— why would you do that?”
Leeteuk laughed, reaching down to grab Yunho by the hair and dragging him back into the torture room. The vampire gasped, wrapping his arms around Jeongin to keep from hurting the boy more with unnecessary movement.
Donghae walked in after the three, Heechul following behind with a bored expression. “Was it really necessary to shoot my kid, Leeteukkie?” He complained as he folded his arms across his chest.
The leader snorted, pulling the spear roughly out of the two on the floor. “Like you weren’t about to do the same damn thing. The kid failed the test, Heechul. He’s obviously not cut out for this life.”
“So you kill him?” Yunho exclaimed, crying as he wrapped the boy up in his arms tightly.
“He’s not dead yet,” Heechul argued, stomping forward to yank Yunho’s head back by his hair. The vampire gasped, struggling in the hunter’s hold as his mouth was pried open by Donghae on his other side. “Ah, there’s those pearly whites.” He tapped one of Yunho’s fangs with a gloved finger. “Never seen a turn before.” Donghae held his mouth open as Heechul forcefully guided Yunho’s head down to Jeongin’s neck. The vampire whimpered against the human’s skin, trying to pull away to no avail.
“Fuckin— just bite him, you stupid bloodsucker,” Donghae growled, using both of his hands to forcefully puncture Jeongin’s skin with Yunho’s fangs. “Turn him.”
Yunho clutched at the small human’s body desperately, the multiple impalements having drastically depleted his energy reserves, giving him little more than fumes to work with. He definitely didn’t have enough to pull away. With regret, he began sucking, allowing Jeongin’s sweet honey-scented blood to invade his taste buds. He kept his hand on the younger’s pulse point, feeling for the moment the boy’s heart stopped. He closed his eyes in remorse as the boy’s final heartbeat pulsed under his fingertips and he pushed his venom into the bite.
Donghae laughed, a loud, mad sound as he released the vampire. The other hunter backed away too, frowning as he stared down at Jeongin’s still form in disappointment. “I had such high hopes for the kid,” he mumbled, looking away despondently.
Leeteuk stepped towards him, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. “I know, Chullie. I did too. It’s hard to lose a kid.”
Yunho snarled, glaring up at the hunters. “You didn’t lose him. You killed him.”
“We didn’t kill him,” Heechul growled back. “You’re the one who killed him.”
The vampire felt rage bubbling up in his veins, Jeongin’s blood running hot through his body. “You gave me no choice. You forced me to hurt him. You forced me to turn him. This is your fault.” He felt his powers skirt across the surface of his skin and he grinned.
Leeteuk rolled his eyes. “It doesn't matter. Facts are: You killed our son and said son is now a monster. Both of you are going to die now.”
“Better yet,” Yunho hissed, eyes turning black, “ Why don’t you all kill yourselves instead .”
All three of the men froze, eyes glazing over as they grabbed for their guns in a trance and pulled the trigger the second the muzzles were pointed at their heads. Yunho grunted, shakily standing up with Jeongin still cradled in his arms. He carefully made his way around the bodies on the floor and back up the stairs for the second time that night. This time there were no traps waiting for them as he made his way out into the early morning twilight. He carefully set Jeongin down on the ground as he broke open the trunk of the car they had kidnapped him in. Yunho grabbed his backpack, pulling out his phone and sending a small thank you to the gods above when he saw that it wasn’t out of battery.
Ignoring the multiple missed calls flashing on the screen, Yunho pulled up Hongjoong’s contact info and hit call. The phone didn’t even ring once before the leader picked up. “ Yunho-ah? ” the elder answered in a panic. “ Where are you? What happened? ”
Yunho sighed in relief, tucking the phone between his ear and his shoulder as he reached down to pick up Jeongin’s body again before making his way down the long winding driveway towards the road. “I’m going to drop you my location once I’m out of here, hyung,” he explained, looking behind him cautiously as he worked his way down the path. “I got nabbed by the BR but— I uh— have a problem.”
“ Are you hurt? ” He heard Seonghwa call from somewhere next to the elder. “ Are you okay? ”
Yunho shook his head, ducking out onto the deserted street outside of the compound. “I’m okay— ish.”
“ Ish? Ish ? Okayish is not okay, Jeong Yunho! ”
The vampire smiled fondly, sitting down on a nearby bench so that he could pull up his location services once he had situated Jeongin in his lap. “I’m really okay, hyung,” he soothed, hitting send. “I’ve sent you my location. I don’t want to stick around though so I’m going to keep heading south in a straight line. I’ll explain everything once I’m home.”
“ We’re on our way, Yunho-ah ,” Hongjoong replied, the sound of keys rattling and a slamming door echoing through the phone. “ Keep going, baby. We’ll find you .”
Yunho nodded his head. “I’ll see you in a few, hyung,” he replied before hanging up and pocketing his phone. He clutched Jeongin’s lean body, tucking him close to his chest as he stood up again and continued to make his way down the street. A few minutes later, he heard the telltale sounds of tires against asphalt, looking up to see Seonghwa’s SUV roll to a stop next to him.
“Yunho-ah,” he cried, jumping out of the car to embrace the younger. He pulled back, cupping Yunho’s cheeks as he examined the other thoroughly.
He eyed the boy in his covenmate’s arms but before he could say anything, Hongjoong intercepted, “Let’s discuss this once we’re off the streets.”
The two other vampires nodded, quickly entering the car as Hongjoong got into the driver’s seat. As he pulled back onto the road, the leader cleared his throat, looking at the younger through the rearview mirror. “So— let’s start with the most pressing question— who is that?”
Yunho shifted, tucking Jeongin closer to his chest as he used one of his hands to comb through the fledgling’s hair. “He’s— He’s my childe.”
Seonghwa and Hongjoong sucked in surprised gasps simultaneously. “You—” Hongjoong stuttered, eyes wide as he glanced at the younger through the rearview again. “You turned a human?”
The blonde sniffled sadly, burying his face in Jeongin’s hair. “I didn’t have a choice, hyung,” he cried. “They— they forced me. He’s— He tried to help me so they—'' He gasped, leaning against Seonghwa’s side when the elder wrapped his arm around him.
“You’re alright, baby,” the elder murmured, kissing the shell of his ear. “We’ll figure this out together. Do you know his name?”
“Jeongin. His name is Jeongin.”
Jeongin woke up with his senses cranked to two thousand percent. He whimpered, turning to bury his face further into the warm chest he was lying against. “Shh,” a voice murmured as fingers stroked through his hair soothingly. “You’re okay, Jeonginnie.”
He knew that voice. “Yunho-hyung?” he asked, flinching at the volume of his own voice.
Yunho hummed softly. “You’re alright, baby. Hyung’s got you.” He pressed a kiss to the shell of the fledgling’s ear as he rubbed his hand up and down the younger’s back. “Do you remember what happened?”
Jeongin nodded slowly. “Hyung shot you.”
“He shot you too, Innie-ah,” he elaborated. “He— he forced my fangs into your neck. I’m— I’m so sorry, Jeongin-ah,” he cried.
The boy shook his head, gripping at Yunho’s shoulders desperately. “No— hyung, please.”
He hushed the younger, rocking him gently as the boy cried. “It’ll be alright, sweetheart,” he murmured. “Hyung will take care of you.”
“I can’t be— please—” Jeongin gasped, working himself up in a panic as his new reality set in.
“Hey, hey. Look at me, baby,” Yunho murmured, sitting up so that the younger was situated in his lap “Remember what I promised you, kiddo? Hyung will take care of you. Everything will be okay, Jeongin.”
Jeongin shook his head, taking stuttering breaths into the elder’s chest. “I can’t . Hyung— I can’t be a— a bloodsucker. I can’t be what killed my family. Please— I—”
“You are a vampire, Jeongin,” Hongjoong affirmed, standing tersely in the doorway to the younger’s room. “No matter how it went down, you were turned and Yunho-ah is your sire. That makes you his childe and mine by extension.” He pushed off the door frame, slowly making his way to the bed where the two younger vampires were sitting before taking a seat on the edge of the bed next to them. Hongjoong reached up, softly brushing back their newest fledgling’s bangs from his tear-stricken face. “We’ll take care of you, sweet Innie.”
Jeongin’s lower lip trembled as he looked at his sire’s sire. “I didn’t want this,” he whispered brokenly.
“Very few of us do,” the elder responded bluntly, keeping his touch soft as he cupped their newest baby’s cheek. “But we learn how to live with it together.” He pulled the maknae into his lap, letting the youngest get accustomed to his spicy ginger scent. Jeongin gasped against his skin, clutching the back of the vampire’s shirt desperately. “It’ll be alright, sweet boy. I know it’s scary, Jeongin, but you’re not alone anymore.”
The boy sniffled, unconsciously mouthing at the elder’s skin as the leader’s scent finally calmed him down some. Hongjoong smiled softly, encouraging the fledgling’s subconscious teething as he motioned towards the door. Yunho nodded, carefully getting up from the bed before helping his sire up as well. The youngest grumbled uncomfortably as he was jostled. “Can walk,” he mumbled against Hongjoong’s skin.
Hongjoong chuckled fondly, adjusting the boy in his grip, “I’ve got you, sweetie.”
They made their way downstairs, Hongjoong diverting towards the living room while Yunho went to the kitchen to warm up a blood bag for the youngest. Jongho and Wooyoung were curled up against Seonghwa on the loveseat when he entered. The elder smiled at the three of them, looking around questioningly for the rest of his coven.
“Yeosang took Mingi and San to their dance practice,” Seonghwa explained, combing his fingers fondly through Jongho’s hair. Wooyoung pressed his face closer to the elder’s neck, watching Jeongin from the corner of his eye in distrust.
Hongjoong made his way over, sitting down gently on the sofa next to them. “Babies,” he murmured, shifting the fledgling so that he was sitting sideways across his lap. “This is Jeongin-ah. He’s Yunho-ah’s childe.”
Wooyoung snorted, rolling his eyes as he looked away. “Why are we playing host to a BR psychopath?”
The eldest reached up to swat the back of his head sharply as Hongjoong sighed sadly, rubbing Jeongin’s tensed back. “It doesn’t matter who he was before, Wooyoung. He’s one of us now and I don’t want to hear about you giving the kid a hard time— he’s got enough on his plate as it is.”
The younger rolled his eyes. “So we’re really going to just ignore the fact that he tried to kill Yunho-hyung?”
Jeongin shot up, staring at Wooyoung in horror as he shook his head profusely. “No— I— I didn’t think— I didn’t want to kill him.” He flinched, the light of the living room too much for his sensitive eyes. Hongjoong quickly tucked the younger back down into his chest as he shushed him gently. “I’m sorry—”
“You’re alright, sweetie,” he cooed, combing his fingers through the younger’s hair. Wooyoung and Jongho watched on with wide eyes as the newest member of their coven broke down in their sire’s arms. “We know you weren’t trying to hurt him. Those men just had your head all mixed up.”
The boy shook his head frantically. “I don’t want— I don’t want to be here,” he cried.
Yunho flinched in the doorway, coming forward with an armful of blood bags. He passed some to Seonghwa to give to their two maknaes before settling down on the couch next to his childe and sire. The vampire reached out to collect the panicking fledgling in his arms, quickly bringing the blood bag up to Jeongin’s lips and encouraging the younger to bite down. “It’s alright, baby,” he cooed, pressing a kiss to the younger’s temple as he finally began to suck. “There you go, good boy. Drink up.” Yunho turned to glare at the boys on the other couch. “Jeongin-ah had no control over what happened to him and this is going to be a rough transition for him. And we’re all going to support him.” Wooyoung looked away stubbornly making Yunho sigh. “The kid’s had a bad go of it, Wooyoung-ah. You weren’t there— thank god— so you didn’t see what they did to him in just the short amount of time we were together. I was ready to take him away with me before they ever forced my fangs into him and made him mine.”
Wooyoung’s eyes widened. “That bad?” he asked, hesitantly scooting closer to them.
The elder nodded, brushing his hand through his childe’s hair. “Yes, Wooyoung-ah. That bad. Fact is: this is my childe now and you will treat him with respect.”
Jongho snorted, pulling away from his own blood bag, “Never thought I’d see the day that Yunho-hyung sired somebody.”
The other maknae giggled, turning to bury his face in Seonghwa’s shoulder.
“Yah,” the vampire in question scolded, shaking his finger playfully at the younger members of his coven. “I’ll make a great sire— just you watch.”
Jeongin had been with Yunho’s coven for nearly four months when Hongjoong acknowledged the elephant that had been plaguing them since their newest maknae had joined them. The coven leader sighed heavily, leaning forward from his seat on the couch after everyone had finished their dinner. After that first day, Jeongin had gone silent, the kid had not said a single word since then, silently processing everything that had happened to him in such a short amount of time. This made it incredibly difficult for Yunho and the others to make sure that he was properly fed as the childe never asked to eat. Yunho was convinced that his fledgling was going to give him grey hairs before his time. Currently, he was on the couch with his childe tucked securely against his chest as San sat next to them, trying to teach Jeongin how to play go fish.
The boy bit his lip holding up three fingers causing San to groan good naturedly before handing over his three. Jeongin grinned widely, setting it in his growing pile of cards along with one of his own threes. “Are you sure you’ve never played this game before, Innie?” San whined, pouting at the maknae. Jeongin shook his head, fidgeting with the cards in his hands cutely before looking up at San questioningly. “Got any sevens?”
The younger grinned, pointing to the deck in the middle victoriously causing the brunette to sigh dramatically. He pulled from the deck before reaching out and pinching Jeongin’s cheeks affectionately.
“Who told you you were allowed to be this cute, huh?” he complained, cupping the younger’s face so that he couldn’t escape when he leaned forward to press a series of sloppy kisses to his cheeks. Jeongin giggled, trying to squirm away from the elder in vain. San froze, staring at the childe in shock. “You— Innie-ah— your laugh is so cute.” He pouted, moving in for another kiss. “Please laugh more often, kiddo.”
Jeongin looked down, biting his lip as he absorbed the elder’s words. The fledgling gave smiles rarely, and giggles even less so, still very unaccustomed to feeling safe enough to show emotions so freely. San released the boy, going back to their game. A few minutes later, a hoarse, nearly-silent, “ Okay, hyung, ” slipped out of the youngest’s mouth.
Yunho sucked in a deep breath, frantically turning the boy to face him. “Jeongin-ah?” he asked, brushing the younger’s hair back with his hand in an attempt to see his fledgling’s face better. “Baby? Did you just talk? Can— can you talk again for hyung? Please?” The maknae bit his lip, looking away from his sire in embarrassment making Yunho sigh and kiss the younger’s forehead. "It's alright, sweetie. You talk at your own pace. Hyung just misses your pretty voice."
The boy buried his face in Yunho’s chest, wrapping his arms around the elder's back in a tight hug. The leader watched all of this with a small, concerned frown. "You know... at some point, we're going to have to address why the kid smells like Bang Chan-hyun."
Jeongin froze, the name registering as his body went taut in Yunho's arms. "Baby?” He asked, carefully pulling the younger away from his body. "Do you know him?"
The boy shifted uncomfortably before cautiously whispering, “He’s the weird vampire.”
Hongjoong snorted, “‘The weird vampire.’ What is that supposed to mean, kid?”
He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know— he and his coven were just weird.”
“When did you meet them, Innie?” Yunho asked, finally allowing the boy to bury his face back into his chest.
“The— the day before I— before I took you. Donghae-hyung had sent me out to— to find a kelpie but— but didn’t tell me it was a kelpie I was looking for, you know? I think— I think he just wanted a reason to punish me. Leeteuk-hyung had been putting him under a lot of stress lately.” He flinched at the growls that sounded around him from that explanation. “I— Bang Chan had been leaving the campus with his coven and they just— just stopped in front of me. I wasn’t— I was really rude to him. I thought— I thought they had wanted me for their next meal or something.”
Hongjoong hummed thoughtfully, moving to crouch in front of their youngest as he cupped his cheeks. “I highly doubt they wanted to eat you, precious,” he cooed. He stood up, not before dropping a soft kiss on the top of Jeongin’s head, before moving towards the door. “I’m going to go call him. Kid’s scent isn’t a coincidence and if Hyung claimed him, I want to settle the dispute peacefully.”
Wooyoung snorted, hiding his face in Jongho’s shoulder. “Yes, please. We can’t fight them. The Stray Kids would decimate us.”
“We’re not going to fight them,” Seonghwa soothed, pulling the two of them into his chest. “Chan-hyung is reasonable and I’m sure we’ll be able to come to an agreement.”
Jeongin tensed, clutching at Yunho tightly. “You— you’re—”
“Shh, angel,” Yunho whispered, pressing tiny little kisses to his childe’s head. “You’re not going anywhere. You’ll stay right here with hyung, okay? I won’t let them take you from me, baby.”
The boy nodded, pressing his nose close to Yunho’s scent gland as he calmed himself with the elder’s warm vanilla. “Promise, hyung?”
“I promise, Innie,” he whispered, holding the boy tightly. “Hyung will take care of you— always.” He pulled the younger back slightly so that he could give the younger’s cheek a kiss. “You’re my childe, baby. I won’t give you up.”
Jeongin sniffled, nodding his head as he pressed himself closely to the elder. San squealed, flopping on top of the two of them. “Aish, Jeonginnie, stop being so cute!” He wiggled happily, leaning up to smack a wet kiss to the younger’s nose and giggling when the younger scrunched his it in response. “Don’t worry, hyungs love you too much to let Chan-hyung take you from us.” He smiled, reaching out to tickle the younger’s side making him squirm happily. San stood up, picking up their baby and moving him over to Wooyoung and Jongho despite Yunho’s protests. “Hush, hyung. Let the maknaes cuddle— you have to go to class anyways. We’ll take care of your baby while you’re gone.”
Yunho sighed, standing up before he made his way over to the maknae pile where Jeongin had become the filling of a Wooyoung/Jongho sandwich. “Be good while hyung is gone, okay?” He reminded the youngest, leaning down to press a soft kiss to Jeongin’s forehead before kissing both Wooyoung and Jongho. He grabbed the blanket off of the back of the couch, spreading it across the three of them as he tucked them in before making his way towards the door. Yunho picked up his backpack, reaching out for Mingi’s hand before the two of them left for their class.
Seonghwa sighed, shifting out from under the pile of maknaes before going over to where Hongjoong was facetiming the elder vampire in the other room. “ You mean to tell me you’ve had my mate in your home for the last four months and you just now deemed it necessary to tell me?”
The coven leader sighed, relaxing back against Seonghwa’s chest when the elder wrapped his arms around his waist. “He wasn’t in good shape when he came to us, Chan-hyung,” he explained. “Today was the first time he spoke since we met him.”
Chan sighed through the phone as he dropped his head on Minho’s shoulder tiredly. “ His name is Jeongin, right? We thought he left Seoul. ”
Minho scooted down into frame, frowning at the two through the screen. “ You say he turned?”
Hongjoong nodded, “Yeah, bastards really did a number on him.”
The blonde snorted, “No shit. The kid hated our guts when he met us. Bet he’s not taking the change well.”
“The kid’s been through some shit, Minho,” Seonghwa murmured, nuzzling into Hongjoong’s neck. “He’s fragile and scared and needs a lot of attention.”
Chan frowned, “ He’s ours.”
“He’s also Yunho’s childe, hyung,” Hongjoong reminded. “Yunho-ah will be back by eight. You can come by then if you’d like to meet with Jeonginnie.”
“Why can’t we come now? ” Minho frowned, pouting petulantly.
Seonghwa snorted, smiling into Hongjoong’s neck. “Because he’s Yunho’s childe,” he reiterated, “and you’re not meeting with the kid without his sire present.”
Chan’s frown deepened. “ We’ll be there at eight... Thank you for taking care of our mate .”
The elder hung up, leaving Hongjoong and Seonghwa in silence as they stared at the dark screen. “Well that was exciting,” the elder deadpanned.
Hongjoong sighed wearily. “Hyung’s not happy— that’s for sure. Would you text Yunho-ah and give him a heads up? I— I need to hold the babies.”
Seonghwa smiled at the younger fondly. “Of course, my love. Give the babies a little attention. I’m sure they’d appreciate some sire cuddles.” He kissed the leader’s cheek before walking off towards the bedrooms.
The leader smiled fondly when he came back into the living room. Wooyoung, who had been so weary of Jeongin when the kid had first arrived, had grown quite fond of the younger vampire and had him firmly tucked into his chest as Jongho snuggled into the baby’s back. Hongjoong made his way over to the couch, pulling Jongho onto his lap as he tucked Wooyoung, and by extension Jeongin, into his side. “The Stray Kids are going to come by later tonight once Yunho is back home to meet you, Innie,”
Jeongin shifted, looking up at Hongjoong inquisitively. “Why are they called the Stray Kids, hyung?”
Wooyoung giggled, squeezing the younger fondly. “Because none of them were actually sired by Chan-hyung— he adopted each of them into his coven when he found them.”
“I’m— He’s not going to take me— You won’t—” Jeongin stuttered, looking up at Hongjoong in panic.
“No, baby,” the elder assured. “You’ll stay right here with us until you choose to leave us and not a second sooner.”
Jeongin looked up at Hongjoong wide-eyed. “I— But I am going to have to leave eventually, aren’t I?”
He smiled softly, gently brushing the younger’s hair back. “You’re not our mate, angel. Eventually, you’ll find your mates and join their coven.” He leaned around Wooyoung to press a soft kiss to Jeongin’s cheek. “You’ll always be our baby first though. That will never change.”
“And— I’m— Stray kids are my— mates?”
“It sounds like it, sweetie. They’re good people though, Jeongin-ah. When you’re ready, they’ll take good care of you.”
Jeongin sniffed, burying his face into Wooyoung’s chest. “But I don’t want to leave hyungs.”
The blonde cooed, squeezing the maknae in his arms fondly. “Aww, baby, you can stay with hyungs as long as you’d like. And even after you decide to leave the nest, you’re still coming for game night every week,” Wooyoung pouted adorably at the younger. “Hyungs love you too much to let you leave forever.”
The baby shot him a wobbly smile, ducking his head back under the elder’s chin. “Good,” he mumbled. “I love hyungs, too.”
Yunho collected Jeongin the second he came through the front door. “You’re okay, sweetheart,” he murmured, “Hyung’s here. I won’t leave you.” He herded his fledgling back into the living room, accepting the blood bags from Yeosang on the way. The elder settled Jeongin in his lap before putting the mouthpiece of the bag to the younger’s lips. “Eat, baby.” Jeongin pouted, trying to pull away with little success. “I know you’re nervous, angel, but hyung will be by your side the whole time. You need to eat though. You don’t want to be a grumpy bumpkin when Chan-hyung comes do you?”
Jeongin glared at Yunho, begrudgingly piercing the bag with his fangs while the other maknaes giggled behind their hands. He heard Mingi gasp out a soft, “Grumpy bumpkin! ” as he slowly began to drain the bag.
He pulled his mouth away long enough to grumble, “I’ll show you a grumpy bumpkin,” making the others laugh openly. The happy atmosphere was interrupted by the doorbell ringing ominously through the house. Jeongin pulled away from the bloodbag, staring at the door fearfully.
Yunho petted his hair, pressing a soft kiss to his cheek before bringing the bag back up to his mouth. “Finish your dinner, Innie,” he whispered. “Chan-hyung can wait.”
He begrudgingly continued drinking as he heard Hongjoong get up to greet their guests. Jeongin turned to bury his head in Yunho’s chest petulantly. “Hey, hyung, Minho,” Hongjoong greeted, leading the elder into their home. “Come on in.”
“Thank you, Hongjoong-ah,” Chan murmured, spotting Jeongin almost immediately. The younger kept his face pointed away from the elder, not wanting to acknowledge why the man was here. He felt the air shift as Chan moved to crouch down in front of him. “Hi, Jeongin-ah. Do you remember me?”
Jeongin frowned, peeking out from Yunho’s chest to look at the new vampire. The man looked... soft. His dark hair was softly tousled, like he had just rolled out of bed, and was falling into his eyes. Chan was smiling at the younger encouragingly, dimples popping out from the corners of his cheeks, as he cocked his head. The fledgling nodded his head slowly before turning back into Yunho’s chest, determined to pretend like Chan wasn’t there for as long as physically possible.
Apparently, as long as possible, was approximately twenty seconds before Yunho pulled his now empty blood bag away from his mouth and forced the younger to sit up, bracing his childe’s back against his chest. “Don’t be like that, Innie,” he admonished, using the hand not holding the fledgling to him to push his hair out of his eyes. “Be nice to Chan-hyung. He just wants to get to know you.”
Chan’s smile turned a little sad as he held out his hand. “I think we got off on the wrong foot last time we met. My name is Bang Chan. I’m a second year music production major at Seoul Institute of the Arts. This is my covenmate Lee Minho, he’s a choreography major. We would very much like to get to know you.”
Jeongin stared at Chan’s hand like it was going to bite him for a solid minute before very cautiously taking it in his own for a timid handshake. His eyes widened at the warm spark that flowed through their palms. “What?”
The blonde Stray Kid whined, shuffling forward on his knees to press closely to the other two. Yunho shifted Jeongin off of his lap, scooting the boy onto the floor so that the three vampires were on the same level. The fledgling looked up at his sire in alarm, receiving a fond hair ruffle for his troubles. “I’m right here, baby. Get to know your mates. Hyung won’t leave you alone until you ask for it.”
Jeongin nodded slowly, turning back to face the other two vampires. “I’m Yang Jeongin. I’ve— I’ve never been to school.”
Chan tried to smile, the expression falling a bit short at the younger revelation. “That’s alright, Jeongin-ah. You’ll have plenty of time to go to school— study everything you could possibly dream of. One of the perks of having forever.” He winked. “What would you want to study first?”
He looked down, biting his lip as he whispered, “I— I really like to sing.”
Minho squealed, unable to help himself as he reached forward to thread his fingers through the fledgling’s. “God, you couldn’t get cuter if you tried. The kids are gonna love you.” He leaned closer, pressing a featherlight kiss to Jeongin’s cheek before pulling back.
“Would you like to hear about the rest of our coven, Jeongin-ah?” Chan asked.
The younger nodded hesitantly, trying to shoot the other two a small smile in return to their large bright ones as they excitedly began to describe each member in detail.
It was almost two months since Chan and Minho had met Jeongin for the second time and currently, the fledgling was watching a past performance of Minho’s on Hyunjin’s phone, his head resting in said vampire’s lap. Hyunjin’s fingers were scraping against his skull soothingly; Jeongin was convinced that if he could sleep, Hyunjin's fingers would have sent him into dreamland hours ago. Seungmin had joined their 'maknae cuddle party' nearly half an hour prior, making himself at home under Jeongin’s thighs.
"You should come over to our home, Innie," Seungmin said, absentmindedly massaging the younger’s thighs as he did. He kept his eyes carefully on the phone's screen so as to not pressure the maknae. "Channie-hyung bought us this giant flat screen that we use for our weekly movie nights. And we have this really big couch bed that we all cuddle on. It's big enough to fit all of us."
Jeongin peaked at the elder cautiously, "All of you?"
Seungmin smiled softly, nodding his head at the younger. "Yeah, Lixie and Sungie have been complaining about not having enough room for a full maknae cuddle over here with you. And Binnie-hyung is dying for you to see his garden." He threw a wink at the fledgling, "He's quite proud of it."
The maknae bit his lip as he thought about it, turning back to the video as a distraction. He looked up, catching Yunho’s eye who shot his childe an encouraging smile. Slowly, he nodded his head, turning to give Seungmin a tentative smile, “I’d like to see hyungs’ house.”
Hyunjin and Seungmin froze, staring down at their maknae in shock. “Really?” Hyunjin asked, twirling the younger’s hair in excitement. “You would really come to ours?”
He nodded his head, sitting up so that he was situated between the two of them. “I— I trust hyungs to take care of me,” he admitted softly, looking down at his lap in embarrassment. He caught Chan’s wide grin from the corner of his eye where the elder had been mid-conversation with Hongjoong.
“Tomorrow?” Hyungjin asked hopefully. “It’s movie night so hyung can show you the garden and then we can all watch a movie together.”
Jeongin looked to Yunho again, silently asking for his sire’s permission. “I can drop him off after I’m done with class tomorrow,” the elder offered, smiling at his fledgling like a proud parent. The boy nodded nervously. The idea of being out of his coven’s home for the first time since he had been changed terrified him but he felt like he was ready to try, especially if it was with the Stray Kids coven. He and Hyunjin, in particular, had grown very close over the past few months, the elder vampire making it his mission to be a safe and welcoming space for their newest maknae.
Shortly after meeting them all again for the second time, the coven had made sure that Jeongin knew that there was nothing to forgive with his past behavior. They had gotten the boy’s story from Yunho and Hongjoong, had their hearts broken all over again as they finally understood his hostility from their previous meeting. Felix had cried, running over to Jeongin’s startled form and embracing the younger tightly, refusing to let him go until the early morning hours. Eventually, Felix did let him go but not without many frantic kisses to the younger’s cheeks.
Jeongin was shaking. Yunho had come home after class to collect the fledgling for what the members of his coven had dubbed his ‘playdate’ with the Stray Kids and now they were sitting in the car outside of the other coven’s home as Jeongin had a silent meltdown in the passenger seat.
“It’ll be alright, Innie,” Yunho murmured, bringing a hand up to cup the nape of the younger’s neck in a comforting squeeze. “Hyung will come in with you and I’ll only leave if you ask me to, okay? But I know you’ve been dying to see Changbin-ah’s garden so we should stay at least long enough for him to give you a tour, no?”
The childe shakily nodded his head, gripping the door handle tightly. “I want to go, hyung,” he whispered, staring at the welcoming stone path that led up to the house as if it would come to life at any given moment. “I— I want to see hyungs. I just— I’m—”
“You’re scared,” the elder finished, rubbing soothing circles into the other’s skin. “And that’s alright. This is a big step you’re taking, baby. Hyung would be worried if you weren’t scared. But you’re not alone, remember? Hyung won’t leave you— you’re my childe and I love you too much to let anything bad happen to you.”
Jeongin took a deep, unneeded, steadying breath before slowly pushing the handle and stepping out onto the sidewalk. Yunho smiled proudly at his fledgling, getting out of the car as well. He came around the car, wrapping his arm around the younger’s shoulders as he led the way up to the house. They could hear Chan’s muffled scolding through the thick wood of the door. “ Yah, Sungie— Don’t crowd the kid when he gets here. Go sit down with Min-ah. ”
Jisung’s whine reverberated through the door, making Jeongin giggle into his hand. Yunho smiled brightly as he brought his hand up to knock on the door. The excitable vampire on the other side of the door squealed, before a scuffling and heavy thud sounded. The door was ripped open, Jisung’s smiling face greeting them as he opened the door wide enough to let the two of them in. “Hi, Innie!” he welcomed, skipping forward to wrap his arms around the younger in a tight hug. “I’m so happy to see you, maknae!” He turned to Yunho, “Hi, hyung. Are you staying?”
Yunho smiled, nodding his head. “Yeah, you know how irrationally protective sires can be.”
The blue haired boy grinned, winking conspiratorially. “Oh don’t I know it. Chan-hyung isn’t even my initiating sire and he’s still an overprotective fool.”
“That’s because you have no self-preservation instincts,” Chan complained, coming up behind the younger as he tried to rub his backside subtly. “Hello, Jeongin-ah, Yunho-ah. Welcome to our home, we’re happy to have you.”
Jeongin smiled shyly, cautiously stepping forward to wrap his arms around the leader in a tentative hug. Chan’s eyes widened, slowly returning the hug. It was the first time Jeongin initiated physical contact with anyone in his coven and he was not about to do anything to jeopardize the kid’s progress. He smiled behind the boy’s back, closing his eyes in satisfaction at having all of his mates in one place.
There was a shuffling from behind him and he reluctantly pulled back to spot Changbin’s small form coming around the corner from the backdoor. “Is that Jeonginnie?” The tiny vampire smiled widely when he caught sight of the maknae, shuffling forward to entwine their fingers in greeting. “Hi, baby. I’m really glad you decided to come.”
The boy shot him a hesitant smile, “Me too, hyung.”
Changbin grinned widely, gesturing with his chin towards where he came from. “Do you want to see my garden, Innie?”
The younger nodded, turning to look at Yunho questioningly.
“Do you want me to come with, or would you rather have some time with Bin-ah to yourself?” His sire asked, keeping his face open for the younger.
Jeongin paused, thinking about it for a few moments before looking at his sire hesitantly. “Will— will you be okay by yourself?”
Yunho smiled fondly, stepping forward to press a soft kiss to the younger’s forehead. “I’ll manage, sweetheart. You have fun with Bin-ah.”
The fledgling nodded in determination, turning back to Changbin as he said, “Yes, please, hyung.” Changbin bounced in place a few times before pulling gently on the younger’s arm as he led him out to the garden.
“He’s getting more comfortable with us, Yunho-ah,” Chan observed, smiling softly. “Will you be ready?”
“When my childe wants to part with me to come to you permanently? No— I’ll never be ready. But I’ll accept it and support him with everything I’ve got.” Yunho sighed, looking at the backdoor wistfully. “I never thought I would sire anyone in my existence— especially someone who assisted in kidnapping me for the BR but— he’s everything I could have ever wanted in a fledgling.” He turned to smirk at Chan. “Don’t think you’ll be able to monopolize his time, hyung. Even once he’s finally adapted enough to join your coven, he’ll always be my childe first and I expect to have a timeshare for him.”
Chan laughed boisterously, wrapping his arm around the taller vampire’s shoulders. “I think we can manage that much, Yunho-ah. I am forever grateful for you. For saving him and for taking care of him in my absence. I want to assure you that I will never take Jeongin-ah from you.”
Yunho smiled at the elder. “Thank you, hyung.”
Jeongin ran into the house excitedly, nearly barreling over his sire in his haste. “Hyung! Hyung, did you know that they have an enchanted roof? We can go outside in the sun here!”
“Only in the greenhouse, Innie,” Chan cautioned. “Junhui-hyung only warded the glass from the sun.”
The maknae nodded his head distractedly, “Hyung, I missed the sun so much! Changbin-hyung and I got to watch the sunset! And— and he has so many pretty flowers! It smells really nice out there— he smells really nice too— like his garden. It’s— it’s—”
“— Ylang Ylang,” Changbin offered, coming in from outside at a much more reasonable pace, smiling at the youngest fondly.
“Ylang Ylang! Binnie-hyung’s scent is Ylang Ylang and— it’s so sweet , hyung! Like him.”
Yunho laughed loudly, collecting the fledgling in his arms. “Is that so, Innie?”
Jeongin nodded, pulling away from his sire to look around the place a bit more. “Are we going to watch a movie, hyungs?” he asked, scuttling over to where he spotted a widely grinning Hyunjin and dive bombing the elder in his excitement.
“Of course we are, Jeongin-ah,” Minho admonished playfully, coming in from the kitchen with a handful of blood bags. “Maknaes need to eat first though.”
The youngest accepted his blood bag with a bow and a small, “Thank you, hyung, ” before biting into it without hesitation. Yunho watched wide eyed, smiling fondly as he watched his childe bloom under his mates’ attentions. He had settled himself in the recliner, content to allow his fledgling the space he needed to get to know the Stray Kids coven, when Jeongin suddenly looked over to him with a nervous, somewhat guilty look. “Uh— hyung?”
Yunho gave his childe his full attention, smiling encouragingly at the younger. “Yes, baby?”
“You can— uh, I mean, I think it’d be alright if— if you wanted to leave?”
The sire’s fond smile melted into apprehensive shock, “Are you sure, sweetheart? Because hyung doesn’t mind if you want me here.”
Jeongin slowly shook his head. “I— I trust hyungs. And— and I’m sure hyung wants to spend some time with his mates too.”
Yunho’s heart felt as if it were about to burst with affection for his childe. He stood up, moving to crouch in front of the younger and cupping his cheeks. “If you’re sure, Jeongin-ah.” At the younger’s determined nod, he smiled, pressing a kiss to the boy’s cheek. “How about I leave you with my cell phone? That way, when you’re ready to come home, you can call Hongjoong-hyung and we can come get you.”
The fledgling nodded his head happily. “That sounds like a good plan, hyung.”
Yunho gave his childe a proud smile, ruffling the younger’s hair before standing up. "You have fun, baby."
Jeongin nodded, tucking his head under Hyunjin’s chin as he smiled at his sire. "Hyung should have fun too."
He moved over to Chan, clapping the elder on the shoulder lightly. "Take care of my baby, hyung. Let me know if anything changes?"
Chan nodded his head, smiling at the vampire. "Jeonginne is safe with us. Go enjoy your free night."
Yunho giggled softly nodding his head before leaving the coven's house with one final wave.
Jeongin was convinced that if he could sleep, Felix's fingers would have knocked him out hours ago. The sweet, elder vampire had scooped the maknae from Hyunjin’s hold almost as soon as the movie had started, tucking him snugly in his lap for the first twenty minutes before Jisung had gotten jealous and made Jeongin spread out across both of their laps. He giggled softly when he felt Minho trace the arch of his foot with a gentle finger. “Tickles, hyung,” he whined, digging his face firmly into Felix’s thigh to hide his embarrassment.
Minho laughed loudly, pinching the younger’s toes as they tried to curl against his attack. “Aish, you’re too cute, Jeonginnie. How did you get so cute?”
The blue haired vampire in the middle of their pile whined, pouting at his hyung. “I’m cute too, right, hyung?”
“Of course, Sungie,” he responded, wrapping his arm around the other’s waist as he pulled him in for a side hug. “Hyung loves all of his dongsaengs very much.”
“And Chan-hyung!” Seungmin added from said leader’s lap on the other end of the couch bed.
“And Chan-hyung,” the elder agreed, kissing Jisung’s cheek affectionately. “I love all seven of my beautiful mates.”
Jeongin closed his eyes, tucking his face in Felix’s stomach, making the rest of the coven coo. He didn’t want to say it out loud, not comfortable enough to be confident in their positive reactions, but he was sure he was well on his way to loving his mates as well.
Just before the sun made its way above the horizon, Hongjoong knocked on the door to the Stray Kids’ home. The man was smiling widely as he opened his arms for Jeongin’s incoming form. “Hyungie!” he squealed, wrapping his arms around the elder tightly as he was picked up in a tight hug.
“Hi, Innie,” Hongjoong greeted, kissing the fledgling’s cheek. “Did you have fun?”
He nodded excitedly, wiggling to be put down so he could face the vampire fully. “Yeah, it was a lot of fun, hyung. Do— do you think I could come back tonight? There’s this all-night cat cafe that Minho-hyung wants to take me to.”
Hongjoong smiled fondly, ruffling the younger’s hair as he accepted Jeongin’s jacket from Changbin. He helped the younger slip his arms into it as he hummed. “I think we can manage that, baby.” He turned the younger around, zipping up the coat as the fledgling chattered excitedly about the horror movie they watched that had Felix hiding in his lap the whole time. Hongjoong highly suspected that the other vampire’s choice of seating had less to do with being scared than he let on to the younger. He smoothed down the front of the boy’s coat fondly.
“Sounds like you had a fun night.”
Jeongin nodded, reaching down to thread his fingers through the elder’s. “Yeah, I really love Stray Kids-hyungs a lot,” he admitted, oblivious to his mates’ frozen forms at his confession. “Did you have fun with Yunho-hyung?”
He laughed, nodding his head. “I did, baby, thank you. Are you ready to go home?” Jeongin nodded happily before freezing, pulling away from the elder.
“One sec, hyung.” The fledgling ran over to the couch-bed where Seungmin, Hyungjin, and Jisung were sprawled out. He crawled up the bed, plopping across all three of them in a weird, starfished hug, quickly stretching up to press quick kisses to each of their cheeks before scurrying away. Minho opened his arms from his place in the recliner where he and Felix were resting. The boy happily bent down, wrapping both of them in a tight group hung before giving each of them kisses as well. Hongjoong watched all of this with his cheek in between his teeth to suppress his fond laughs. The smallest Stray Kid stepped forward expectantly as Jeongin shuffled into his arms, leaning down to kiss Changbin’s neck before stepping towards Chan. The eldest giggled affectionately, happily accepting his armful of maknae.
“Have a good day, Innie,” Chan murmured, kissing the shell of the younger’s ear. “We’ll see you tonight.”
Yunho was curled up in the Ateez coven’s over-large bed, his head secured in San’s lap, when Jeongin raced in. Completely disregarding the elders’ lack of shirts, the childe jumped onto the bed and snuggled against his sire’s chest. “Good night, Innie?” Yunho asked hoarsely, pulling the younger impossibly closer as he ran his fingers through the other’s soft hair.
He nodded, pressing a kiss to the underside of his sire’s chin. “I don’t like that you were right but I’m happy you were right, too, hyung. I really like them.”
“Hyung is happy to hear that, baby,” Yunho murmured. "Hyung is also happy to have you in his arms again. I missed you tonight."
Jeongin rolled his eyes, pulling back to eye the elder’s bare chest suspiciously. "It doesn't look like you had time to miss me, hyung."
Yunho scoffed, lightly thwacking the back of his childe’s head before pulling him to his chest. "Aish, little brat. What did I ever do to deserve such disrespect?"
The boy wiggled upwards, planting a cheeky kiss to the elder’s nose before snuggling back down. "I love you very much, hyung. You're just really easy to pick on sometimes."
San giggled, reaching up to cover his mouth with his hand. "He's not wrong, hyungie."
Yunho groaned dramatically. "I'm feeling very attacked right now."
There was a snort from the doorway, Hongjoong leaning casually against the frame. "That's because you are, Yunho-ah. The babies are ganging up on you." He kicked off of the wall before making his way to the bed, wrapping himself around Jeongin’s back as he gave Yunho a knowing smirk. "Did the baby tell you about his plans for tomorrow?" At Yunho’s curious headshake, he squeezed the fledgling’s waist. "You want to tell your sire, angel?"
"Minho-hyung is gonna take me to a cat cafe," he mumbled into the elder’s chest.
"That sounds like fun, baby," Yunho murmured, petting the younger’s hair. “Hyung is happy to hear that you’re having so much fun with the Stray Kids coven.”
Jeongin nodded against the elder softly, smiling into the skin of his chest. “Thank you, hyungie,” he whispered, nuzzling as close as possible to his sire.
He chuckled, brushing back his childe’s hair fondly. “What for, baby?”
“For taking care of me. For saving me even after I hurt you. For helping me find my mates— everything. I love you, hyungie.”
The sire sniffed, hiding his face in his childe’s hair so that no one could see his tears. “I love you too, Jeonginnie. Hyung is so proud of you— you’ve come so far from the frightened, angry boy you were when I met you. I am so thankful I sired you— even if the circumstances weren’t ideal.”
Jeongin nodded, humming happily as Hongjoong rubbed his stomach fondly. “Me too, hyung. Me too.”
The second the sun had set behind the horizon, Jeongin was bouncing excitedly at the front door, hopping from foot to foot impatiently as he waited for Yunho to put his shoes on. He couldn’t help the small whine that escaped his lips as Yunho slowly stood up, stepping back to slip on a jacket.
“Coat, Innie,” the elder reminded, holding out the fledgling’s bright blue puffer coat.
The younger rolled his eyes, begrudgingly putting it on. “We don’t get cold, hyungie. Why do I need a coat?”
Yunho huffed, brushing down the front of his childe’s jacket. “Because I said so, Innie-ah. So listen to hyung.”
Wooyoung giggled from his seat on Mingi’s lap in the living room. “I thought you would have learned by now not to fight your overprotective sire, baby Innie,” he teased, leaning back against the taller vampire. “Just let hyung take care of you. It’s hard for him to see you growing up.”
The maknae frowned, looking at Yunho in concern which made the elder chuckle wetly, cupping Jeongin’s cheeks to press a soft kiss to the tip of his nose. “Don’t worry about me, sweetie,” he cooed. “Hyung is just a sentimental fool. And besides— I like seeing you all bundled up like this. It’s a cute look on you.”
Jeongin rolled his eyes fondly, pushing up on his tiptoes to give his sire a small kiss on his cheek in return. “Can we go then, hyungie?”
“Just a second, Innie,” Seonghwa called, coming up behind the two. He held out his hand, passing the youngest a phone.
“Who’s is this?” he asked, inspecting the foreign phone carefully.
“Your’s. With you going out with the Stray Kids coven, it only made sense for you to have your own phone,” the eldest explained, ruffling Jeongin’s hair affectionately.
“Really?” he asked, bouncing up and down excitedly.
“Yes, really. Please use it to call or text us whenever you want or need to.”
He nodded his head gratefully. “Thank you, hyung,” he said, hugging the device to his chest.
Yunho smiled fondly, wrapping his arm around the younger’s shoulders. “Ready to go, baby?”
The boy squealed, nodding frantically. “Yes, please, hyungie!”
Jisung had their maknae tucked securely in his arms. It was another movie night, a few months after their first date to the cat cafe and the elder was basking in having the youngest all to himself in the recliner. Jeongin rolled slightly, shifting so that his mouth was directly in line with the elder’s jugular. He mouthed at the skin softly, eyes half closed against the soft light of the television.
“You hungry, baby?” Jisung asked, petting the younger’s hair.
Jeongin shook his head, pulling back to look into the blue haired vampire’s eyes intensely. “Hyung?” he whispered, leaning in closely. “Can— can I—?” He looked down in embarrassment, shaking his head as he tried to tuck himself back down, chickening out.
“Hey, no— none of that, Innie,” Jisung cooed, pulling the younger back up to face him. “What do you need, baby?”
He bit his lip, his fang nearly piercing his lip until the elder gently pulled it out from between his teeth. “I— I really want to kiss hyung, “ he mumbled, looking down at his lap and missing Jisung’s face morphing into one of shocked excitement.
The elder vampire cupped his maknae’s cheeks, silently encouraging the younger to look up into his eyes. “Really?” At Jeongin’s nod, he wiggled happily, leaning forward to brush their noses together. He stilled, waiting patiently for the youngest to make the next move. Cautiously, Jeongin leaned forward, lightly pressing their lips together. He giggled against the other’s lips, pulling away to grin at him. “Aish,” Jisung pouted, “What’s so funny about kissing me?”
Jeongin shook his head. “I like kissing hyung,” he admitted, smiling widely. “I just— I really like kissing hyung and I’m happy about it.”
There was a chorus of coos around the room from the rest of the coven. “Ah, Innie!” Felix whined, crawling over to rest his chin on the maknae’s knee. “I want kisses too!”
The younger smiled widely, scooting off of Jisung’s lap so that he was level with the blonde. He stuck out his lips in an exaggerated pucker, making Felix squeal in excitement as he happily leaned forward to connect their mouths softly. Jeongin was convinced that if heaven was real then this was it. The rest of the coven quickly joined the two on the floor, taking turns to receive kisses from their maknae as the youngest giggled cutely at their enthusiasm.
They were interrupted by a knock at the door. Chan sighed, climbing out of the tangle of limbs to go let in Yunho making Jeongin pout. “I don’t want to leave, hyung,” he whined, looking up at his sire petulantly.
Yunho smiled, sitting down on the floor across from him. “You haven’t been home in three days, baby,” he said, cocking his head to the side as he watched the younger intently. “And you were only home for the day. You’ve been spending more time here than at home.”
Jeongin froze, looking at his hyung with wide eyes. “Really?” At Yunho’s nod, he looked down, feeling immense guilt well up in him.
“Hey— none of that, my childe. Hyung is happy. We knew that this was going to happen eventually.”
The younger nodded his head slowly before looking up to Chan in question. “You already have half of Hyunjin’s closet, baby. Whenever you’re ready to move in the rest of your things, so are we,” the leader offered, crouching down to kiss the fledgling’s temple.
“Will you be okay, hyung?” he asked, turning back to Yunho in question.
The elder laughed loudly, nodding his head as he leaned forward to press his own kiss to his childe’s cheek. “I’ll be just fine, sweetheart. You’ll still come over— once a week or San-ah might cry though. Okay?”
Jeongin nodded excitedly. “I can do that, hyungie. I’ll miss my sire and his mates too much otherwise.”
Yunho smiled fondly, standing back up. “Well then, I guess we should get the rest of your things out of my car, huh?”
The fledgling stood up in shock as everyone around him fell over in mirth. “Hyung!”