He’s lost in a trance, staring at her without blinking like some kind of reptile waiting to see who makes the first move. Her smile is warm if not misplaced, though something about it puts him off. She’s very much like a human doll, the air surrounding her somehow so still and unreal. It’s as if she’s in her own little bubble and Jihun is watching from the outside.

“You’re a little early,” she says, a slight accent in her words. Her voice sounds foreign. “I’m never good with timing though.”

“I–” He pauses. What exactly is he supposed to say in this situation? He doesn’t exactly know how to respond to her. “Uh, Youjin wanted me to get you.”

“He’s hurt, isn’t he? I told him to be careful.” She shrugs, not seeming to caring one way or the other and Jihun is suspecting that the two must not be very close. “I finally get to meet you and he’s probably up there huffing and puffing.”

“About that– what exactly do you mean by that?”

“It’s just as I said,” she bats her eyelashes at him. “I’ve been expecting you.”

“I still have no idea what that means. This is my first time meeting you, how can you be expecting someone you’ve never even met?”

“You need to have more of an open mind, you know that?” She shakes her head at him as if he’s just the silliest boy in the world before striding past him to the stairs. “We really shouldn’t keep Youjin waiting any longer though.”

His co-worker is still sprawled out on the tiny couch, groaning about a wound that Jihun can only imagine must hurt more than bleeding out in an alley. The girl practically glides to his side, concern not showing the least bit on her face as she plops down on his feet.

He rolls his eyes at her. “Injured person here.”

“Don’t be a big baby,” she says, mimicking his eye roll. “You took the potion didn’t you?”

“I did, so we should hurry up and talk before I pass out.”

“What was that– potion thingy he took?” Jihun can’t help but ask, standing awkwardly beside the two.

“It’s like a healing spell, but– contained,” the girl explains with a nod of her head. “It induces a sort of processed and sped up coma so that one’s wounds can heal much quicker. You took it before.”

“See, the thing is, I don’t remember taking one, but apparently I did?”

“I gave it to you after you were–” Youjin begins, but is immediately interrupted by the girl.

“You were on the floor dying,” she says with a very placid tone. “A failed attempt to turn you into a daywalker.”

“A what–”

“Daywalker. It’s a type of creature that’s almost like a vampire, but not quite. Isn’t that what that’s for?” She points to a lone blood bag sitting beside Youjin’s backpack.

“Oh, right. I grabbed that before we left,” Youjin says dismissively. “It’d be a whole mess if you weren’t fed.”

“Is that why I–” Jihun can’t seem to find the words he’s looking for. Instead he nods his head in the direction of the blood bag. “Because I’m a daywater or whatever?”

“Daywalker,” she corrects. “And yes. You’re the creation of a vampire, but not exactly in your case. I can’t say for sure, but for some reason you were dying when you were found. Youjin managed to save your life by giving you the potion. It healed you, however your body seems to have mimicked the transformation anyways.”

Jihun has a hard time following her explanation, instead asking, “Mimicked the transformation? So, I’m– I’m not human anymore or what?”

“Not exactly,” she blinks her pale blue eyes at him as if examining him, except it feels more like she’s looking somewhere deeper within him, almost like she isn’t looking at him at all. “Your current state is a little difficult. You’re a daywalker in many ways, but also, not. I can’t fully explain it now since this is something I couldn’t even foresee.”

“She’s clairvoyant,” Youjin explains. “She sees the future.”

Jihun blinks at the two. Are they serious? “A fortune teller?”

“Seriously, you need to have more of an open mind. I’m not some tacky con artist, I am clairvoyant. I look deep into the fates of the living and can see their futures.” She huffs at him as if he were an idiot.

“Can you stop treating me like I’m clueless? I mean, I am, but what do you expect? These aren’t exactly topics that they teach in elementary school, how am I supposed to know what the hell daywalkers and clairvoyants are?”

“Look,” Youjin says sternly, “I’m just gonna get straight to it. Elkie and I were sent here to protect you and you back to The Hunter’s Association. I can’t really say anymore, but you’ll find out everything when we get back.”

“I’m Elkie!” She points out cheerfully while raising her hand.

Jihun stares at her incredulously. “Yeah, I figured that bit out, but– The Hunter’s Association? You guys work with them? What could they want with me?”

“You’ll find out when we get back,” Youjin states again, looking much more tired. “We leave at dawn.”

“I can’t go,” Jihun immediately says. “I can’t just leave.”

Youjin shoots him an annoyed look and Jihun can tell that he’s a grumpy person when he’s sleepy. “We leave at dawn.”

“I can’t leave,” Jihun repeats, thinking about how he has unfinished business. He can’t suddenly leave without Heejun either, can he? They have things to do here, vampires to find and revenge or whatever to take. There’s all types of illegal things he and Heejun have been doing too and he doesn’t think The Hunter’s Association would be lenient despite sending an team to bring him to their headquarters. Besides, who’s to say that Jihun can even trust what Youjin or Elkie are even saying? Sure, it did seem like Youjin was intent on saving Jihun (especially back with what happened with Inseong) but what if it was all a ruse to gain his trust? What if they weren’t with The Hunter’s Association or worse, what if they were and they were using Jihun to get info on Seungjun or Inseong?

And it’s not like he suddenly cares about them or something, no– that’s far from it. Jihun isn’t done getting the necessary information out of them. There’s more information from the two that he knows he can get and he knows that those two are sure to have it. If he could just talk to Seungjun, ask him about anything he could know about that night all those years ago, then maybe he and Heejun could get one step closer to finding the vampires that ruined their lives. Jihun can’t leave now.

“I can’t leave without my friend,” he says, hoping that maybe he’ll be able to slip away with this opportunity.

“Heejun,” says Elkie, a knowing look in her eyes. “The one you grew up with.”

“How do you–”

“I’ve seen many things about you,” she explains with a soft smile. “Of course you can’t go without Heejun.”

He’s frightened now. Clearly, she wasn’t lying about the whole fortune telling thing, but exactly just how much does she know? Could she possibly be seeing what he was thinking about doing right now? About how he was going to convince them to let him leave so he could get Heejun and resume their life of jumping from one place to the other? What part of his fate was she looking at right now?

“I can’t leave without Heejun,” he confirms, though he fears his voice wavers.

Youjin sighs, his eyes drooping as the potion’s effects take place. “You return before dawn.” It’s a command, but it’s slurred and mumbled against his sleep induced mind.

If anything, even if Elkie were to know of his intentions, Jihun could perhaps overpower her in escaping with Youjin so clearly out of it right now. Instead of saying anything else, she nods encouragingly at him.

“I’ll be back before then,” he lies, picking up the blood bag into his hand as his mouth begins to slowly salivate from the thought of getting to drink the red fluid. He’ll have to try and hold off for tonight though. He’s going to have to hurry and get Heejun to move before Youjin wakes up.

-

By the time he reaches the apartment complex, the rain has completely stopped and he can see the yellow glow of light coming from the window where he knows Heejun must be awake. He quickly makes his way up, trying to keep quiet despite the loud and erratic thumps of his heart. How much time do they have before Youjin wakes up and begins searching for them? Can they even manage to hide if Elkie can look into their fates or whatever? Would they be forced to go to The Hunter’s Association? God, what if they were in some kind of trouble and that’s why Youjin was sent to find Jihun? Had he thrown Heejun right into the fray of another bad situation?

“You’re home early,” Heejun says when Jihun finally manages to get the front door open, his hands still shaking from the cold or perhaps from the anxiety. “And you’re soaking. Didn’t you bring an umbrella with you, Hun?”

“Yeah, I forgot that at work–” He pauses, looking at Heejun as if he’s just let the other down again. How many times does he have to keep repeating this same mistake?

Heejun seems small, smaller than usual with his goddamn oversized sweater and outgrown bangs. He looks like a kid and again and it’s not like he could have grown up anyways. The life they’ve led is hardly worth calling a childhood and how could the other have grown from any of this? Where exactly was Jihun trying to go with Heejun?

“Is something wrong?” Heejun asks, a knit in his brow. His intuition is still sharp despite what looks like bags under his eyes. How has Jihun not noticed those before?

“No– I mean– yes. Look, we’ve got to go. There’s a hunter who’s trying to bring me into The Hunter’s Association and–”

“A hunter?” Heejun interrupts, “Jihun, you’re kidding me, right? You want to leave when there’s a hunter here to help us? Maybe he knows something about that night, maybe he can help us and–”

“He won’t. He said that he was tasked with bringing me in, what do you think that means? It means The Hunter’s Association wants something from me or I did something and I’m in trouble, I don’t know. Plus, I don’t think I should go in my current situation.”

Heejun’s eyes shoot down to the blood bag that Jihun holds in his hand. The two stare at each other in silence for a moment before Heejun stands, grabbing his bag and shoving as many belongings in it as he can. Jihun watches the other for a minute before coming back to reality and he too fills his bag with things. They pack like that and Jihun can’t tell what’s going through Heejun’s mind right now, but he knows he’s right: They can’t go to The Hunter’s Association like this.

“Where are we going?” Heejun asks, pulling a small tin box from under the kitchen sink. He opens it briefly to check its contents before closing it and shoving the box into his bag. “Are we even able to hide from a hunter?”

“I don’t know,” Jihun answers, looking nervous. “There was a girl with him. They said she’s a clairvoyant, but I’m not too sure about her.”

“Holy ,” Heejun says under his breath. “Why does it feel like all our fights are losing ones?”

“We’ll be fine,” Jihun assures, but he isn’t even positive the voice that comes out is his. “We just need to go to a place that she wouldn’t expect.”

“Uh, okay, how about my work place?”

“No, she knows about you. She probably knows where to find your work place.”

“The old house?”

“Maybe, but I don’t feel like that place is safe anymore.”

“Jihun, there isn’t a whole ton of options for us–”

“This girl knew who you were, Heejun. They were there that night this all started, they turned me blue, they knew I was going to take the job at the supermarket and so Youjin took one too, they’ve literally come prepared for all this and for what? For me, Heejun, they– they–”

“You need to breathe,” he says, arms on Jihun’s shoulders and brow knitted very tight. “Breathe and think.”

He shuts his eyes and does as he’s told, inhaling air and exhaling. There has been one thing particularly bothering Jihun and it could be the escape they need. He blinks his eyes open at Heejun and tugs insistently on his sleeve. “I know where we need to go.”

“Okay–” Heejun says as he’s pulled out the door with Jihun. “But, mind telling me what’s up this time?”

“Elkie – the clairvoyant – said something that’s stuck with me for a while. She said she looks into the fates of the living. That’s you and I, we’re living. But, Youjin didn’t know about Inseong. He didn’t know why Inseong was there or that Inseong would even show up. To him, that was just another vampire.”

“Wait, wait, who are Youjin and Inseong?” Heejun asks as the two make their way down the stairs.

“Youjin’s my co-worker – the hunter – and Inseong is the other vampire, the one you get along with,” Jihun says as Heejun makes a very disturbed face, but he rushes the other onwards and continues explaining, “I think Elkie and Youjin are aware of Seungjun and Inseong. I mean, she knew I had turned into a daywalker thingy and that I need to drink blood, but she doesn’t know their names– she doesn’t know them. She doesn’t see them in her fortune telling or whatever, she can’t look into their fates because they’re not living. You get it? They know Seungjun and Inseong exist because Youjin has physically seen them, but Elkie can’t see them. She doesn’t see when they cross paths with us.”

“They’re blank spaces to her,” Heejun states, a tiny spark of realization flashing through his eyes. “Oh God, Jihun. You aren’t ing saying that you want to–”

“We have to find them– again. I mean, we would end up having to no matter what, right?”

“What? We’re going to go stay with a bunch of vampires? That’s what they want, Jihun. They want us in their hands.”

The two are out on the streets now, the road slick with rainwater and the streetlights dimly shining. Heejun has a look of indifference on his face and Jihun knows that he’s stretching things too far now. “Do we have a choice?” He says, grabbing onto Heejun’s arm. He’ll drag the other behind him if he has to. “They can hide us.”

“We don’t even know what the Hunter’s Association wants,” Heejun reasons. “They could just be trying to help–”

“I can’t go to them,” Jihun says, a painful tug pulling in the back of his head. He isn’t sure what this feeling is, but he can’t go, he just knows he can’t. “We can’t trust them.”

“But we can trust the vampires? We can trust monsters that kill and feed on blood?” The words are sharp and stab Jihun right in the chest. He grips the bag in his hand.

“Why’re you being like this? Why is everything a ing fight with you? I’m just trying to do what’s best for us.”

“Asking vampires to help us is what’s best for us? What the is wrong with you. They’re the enemy, Jihun. They’re the ones who did this to us and just– they ed everything up– look at what they did to you. You’re changing and I don’t mean the whole daywalker crap, you’re making rash decisions and acting like the bloodsuckers are our allies–”

“Look at me!” Jihun shouts, anger bubbling out of him. “I am a bloodsucker now. I literally have to drink this to function and it’s all that’s on my mind, okay? We just have to ing accept that. Now, you either come with me or not, because I am not going to waste my time arguing with you in the middle of the street.”

Heejun blinks wildly at Jihun, a torn look on his face from the choice that Jihun has just given him. Splitting up has never been a given for the two– ever. Maybe Heejun is right, maybe Jihun is changing, but it doesn’t matter anymore. People don’t stay the same and Jihun knows that he and Heejun were not meant to be together forever. His mind feels like it’s jumping back and forth between decisions and part of him wants to take the words back, but he knows that he’s at least right about this. They can’t spend all night arguing over where to go and Jihun is dead set on going to Seungjun.

“You’re right,” Heejun says, voice weak. There’s this sort of sadness in Heejun’s eyes and Jihun can feel a lump begin to grow in his throat.

-

“Good morning there,” a voice calls out to him and it stirs Heejun awake. He blinks up, vision still blurry and eyes puffy. There’s a girl crouched beside him, her face looming over his as he realizes he’s lying down on some sort of lime green couch. The girl smiles brightly at him and Heejun can feel his heart begin to beat faster. She’s breath takingly beautiful, but something about her seems strange– like how he feels when around the vampires.

She pulls back her long golden hair behind her ear and takes a step back to allow Heejun to sit up. He looks around and sees he’s in some sort of weird bauble shop, mysterious little things lined up neatly on shelves. There’s a backroom entrance being hidden behind a beaded curtain and something about it has Heejun looking curiously before the girl pops her face right back into his view.

“Where am I?” He asks hesitantly, trying hard to recall what exactly happened last night that would lead him to be in such an unfamiliar place.

“You’re in my store,” she answers immediately. “I’m the owner, Hani.”

“Hani? Nice to meet you, I suppose?” He anxiously looks around, “I’m Heejun. How exactly did I wind up here?”

“I don’t know,” she says with the same dippy smile on her face. Heejun can only blink incredulously at her. “I just found you here on my couch.”

“Did I break in here?” He asks, disbelief flooding his system. “I didn’t do anything weird or illegal did I?”

“My door is open and welcome to those who seek my help,” she says, a mysterious tone to her voice despite her warm appearance. “You must be in a real pickle if you managed to get in here without me noticing.”

“Uhm,” he hesitates, a bad feeling bubbling in his stomach. “What kind of store is this exactly?”

Her lips curve in a devious smirk and something about it has Heejun rethinking his first impression of her. “You’ve had a rough night, haven’t you? I can tell.”

“Yeah,” he easily confesses, slowly recalling the memories. “I–”

“You can stay for as long as you like,” she says. “Though by night, my clientele usually changes.”

He purses his lips at her cryptic words. “You didn’t answer my question…”

“I think you can figure it on your own,” she says before twirling away in a delicate swoop. “Just look around, what kind of place does this look like?”

“A bad tourist attraction,” Heejun answers truthfully, staring at the obviously placed crystal ball centered in the store front. It’s dull and rests typically on a velvet pillow. A stack of worn tarot cards are beside it along with fairy lights draping the table and a sign that reads: COME GET YOUR FORTUNE READ. “You a con artist or something?”

“How rude,” she says, though the smile doesn’t waver once from her face. It’s almost like the muscles have frozen in place and she can’t stop smiling no matter what she feels. “I run an honest business.”

“Are you..” He hesitates, wondering if the words that pour from his mouth sound stupid or not. “The clairvoyant?”

She glides ever so smoothly to the crystal ball, waving a delicate hand over it as if absorbing it’s prophetic aura before returning her attention to Heejun. “Oh,” she says with disappointment despite the same grin plastered on her face and Heejun thinks it’s looking extremely ridiculous despite how beautiful she may appear.

“What? What is it? Did you see something?” He asks with worry, curious what could have caused her to change her tone.

Immediately she lets out a giggle and though the sound is sweet and somehow enchanting, Heejun feels a chill shoot down his spine. This girl is beginning to get creepier and creepier.

“I was just joking with you,” she says, covering with her hand as if to mask the laughter. Heejun suddenly thinks that storming out of this sociopath’s store wouldn’t be such a bad thing. “I’m not the clairvoyant, but I’m surprised you know about it. You said your name was Heejun, correct? Well, I guess I can tell you who I am if you tell me a little of who you are.”

His first and foremost reaction is to blink at her before pursing his lips and contemplating what she’s offering. A deal to exchange information because clearly they both are tied together by some kind of fate that has Heejun walking into her store without so much as a reason to. The memory of last night has come back fully to him– the argument with Jihun and Heejun’s mindless wandering that led him a quiet little shop decorated with red lanterns. The door had opened by itself for him when he approached it and he was so exhausted that he walked in without thinking twice, collapsing almost immediately as he made contact with the ugly lime green couch situated in the corner of the store front. He was still too out of it to have realized it when he first woke, but the entire place was buzzing with some kind of magic that reminded Heejun of all the supernatural things he was quickly becoming unnaturally accustomed to.

Hani especially was radiating with magic, almost as if everything in the room was simply just an extension of her. There was something off putting about her and Heejun was already suspecting what it could be.

“You’re not human, are you?” He asks, his eyes squinting in accusation. Her expression remains unchanged and Heejun lets out a heavy sigh. “Alright, what do you wanna know about me?”

“Goodie,” she squeals, patting the top of the crystal ball as if she were patting Heejun’s head. “Well, what exactly brings you here?”

“I don’t know, I just wound up here,” he answers, frowning because he was expecting a much more direct question.

“That’s not what I meant,” Hani shakes her head. “I meant here.”

He stares at her for a moment before pursing his lips again. “I’m looking for someone, two people actually. I heard there was a possibility they were here and that’s why I’m also here.”

“I guess you didn’t find them,” she says and turns her back to Heejun, her fingers still fiddling with the ball in front of her. “You know, I’m very good at finding people.”

“Sure you’re not the clairvoyant?” He asks once more.

Hani lets out a very small laugh. “No, but I’m something I guess you’d call close. By day I offer my services to humans with petty little problems such as their fortunes or by selling charms. I can’t see the future, you know? That’s a gift so little are born with, but I can make very close predictions for a small fee.”

“I can feel it,” Heejun says, staring at her back that seems colder without her smiling face. “This place is full of magic.”

“You’re sharp,” she says. “Normal humans can’t perceive those things.”

Tentatively, Heejun pulls the sleeve of his sweater upwards, revealing a star surrounded by ancient script tattooed across his pale skin. The ward fizzes softly and Hani turns to inspect the scene before her. “It’s because of this that I can.”

“How interesting,” she mumbles to herself and it almost seems as if the smile on her face widens. Slowly she glides back to his side and instinctively he pulls back. Hani doesn’t make any other motion to get closer, but she extends her own arm out, hand wrapping around a strange ring on her finger. She takes the ring off unceremoniously and like some kind of freaky sci-fi special, she transforms into a completely different person. The gold locks are gone and the smile has too melted from the girl in front of Heejun and he in a sharp breath. Her face seems almost sharper and her eyes more calculating as if she’s finally seeing Heejun properly.

“I’m a witch,” she says casually, finding humor in Heejun’s widened eyes. “This is my usual form.”

“A w-witch,” he embarrassingly stutters and then manages to finally blink. “Well that explains the feel of this place.”

She laughs, however this time it isn’t a sweet sound, but much more husky and almost mocking. “I seldom show this form to humans, but at night I prefer to work in a more natural state.”

“I’m in a witch’s lair,” he says with disbelief, taking in Hani’s appearance. “I don’t know which is worst.”

“This is my store,” she says with annoyance, “Not a lair. I’m not a monster, you know? And what do you mean by not knowing which is worst.”

“Nothing,” Heejun says quickly, suddenly confirming that this place isn’t going to be completely friendly ground. “I’ve just been running into bad things left and right lately.”

Her eyes seem almost blank as she stares at him, but she quickly lets his vague excuse go, instead slipping the ring on to transform back into Creepy-McSmiles-A-Lot. “The offer still stands. Stay as long as you like. Business hours for you will be open tonight.”

“What–”

“I told you, didn’t I? I’m very good at finding people, but I require a small fee for my services.”

The ward on his forearm begins fizzing a bit stronger now and Heejun can see the look of anticipation on the witch’s face.

so, i'm not too big on adding author's notes to what i post on aff, but i usually add them onto ao3 so if you go to the link there that i have on the foreword then you can read the a/n i added to chapter six that has some character info that i may or may not actually get to in the fic.