a/n: Hello hello! Welcome to this new story--it isn't terribly original, but I'm just trying to get back into the groove of things. Enjoy! (This chapter is unedited for now).

Part One

The moment the doors opened, whispers burst forth into the air. Junmyeon sighed and sat back in his seat, rubbing at his temples. The younger students burst into excited chatter while the older students had a wide array of reaction. Some of them sat up straighter in their seats, their eyes narrowing with envy. Some of the others started adjusting their clothes and hair, hoping to be noticed. Some pretended to be disinterested with the whole affair, but Junmyeon knew that they were just itching to be noticed as well.

A few seconds passed, and then Junmyeon got to his feet. “Well?” Junmyeon tapped his foot impatiently. “Are you all going to just stand there, or are you going to take your seats?”

The chatter instantly stopped, and Junmyeon heard a stray hairpin burst out of someone’s hair and land on the ground with a faint clink. Junmyeon rolled his eyes and folded his arms. “You don’t frighten me,” Junmyeon said firmly. “Take your seats. The Headmaster will be here soon.”

Yifan, the leader of the group students standing in the doorway, smirked. “I suppose we aren’t known as the Great Twelve for nothing.” He stepped into the classroom, the other students following his lead. “Isn’t that right, Junmyeon?”

Junmyeon sighed through his nose as Yifan and his friends walked right up to him and took the six open seats on Junmyeon’s right. He sat down silently, not bothering to respond as Yifan and his team made themselves comfortable.

Six months ago, the Academy had seen fit to take his class of twelve and divide them in half. Junmyeon lead one half, and Yifan lead the other. Junmyeon had no problems with being split up—after all, the teachers at the Academy knew exactly what they were doing. They probably had a mission coming up by the end of the year that depended on their ability to work in separate teams. Meanwhile, Yifan still seemed furious about the whole affair.

“Where is your team anyways?” Yifan sat back in his seat and stretched. Junmyeon forced himself not to blush when Yifan’s shirt rode up to reveal his toned stomach.

“I don’t know,” Junmyeon said patiently. “I’m only their leader in the training rooms. Outside, we are all on equal ground.” Junmyeon sent a pointed look at the five other members of Yifan’s team, who were pretending not to listen to their conversation.

Yifan hummed thoughtfully. “I don’t think I lead them outside of our training.”

“And yet when you came in, who was the one leading the group into the room?” Junmyeon raised an eyebrow.

“It was mostly Luhan’s idea.” Yifan slouched back down in his seat. “You know he loves the attention.”

Junmyeon laughed a little at that. “Yeah. I know.” The doors opened again, and Junmyeon’s spine straightened when the headmaster to the Academy walked in. A hush spread out across the room as the Headmaster slowly walked to his place at the podium.

“Good morning, my students.”

“Good morning, sir,” everyone chorused back.

The headmaster gazed out at all of them for a few moments before he started speaking again. “As you know, you are the best of the best. Every year, students have been weeded out from your classes. Weaklings will continue to be removed until you reach your final year.” The headmaster looked straight at Junmyeon, and then at Yifan. “We cannot tolerate weakness. The Nation of Mountains must appear strong, especially to our enemies—The Desert Nation and the Land of Pines.” The headmaster drew his shoulders back. “Feel proud to be sitting in this room today. You are our nation’s best, and you will continue to keep our nation safe from outside forces.”

Junmyeon smiled at that, feeling a small surge of pride. Junmyeon had been recruited into the academy at age eleven. His parents were prominent commanders in the army at the time, and had felt honored that Junmyeon had been chosen for such a prestigious school.

Junmyeon had to say that he missed them, even though he’d barely seen them at all for the past seven years. But he’d found his family here, in his classmates. What had started out as a class of one hundred students had dwindled every year, until finally, in their seventh year, all that remained were the so-called “Great Twelve”: Yifan, Luhan, Minseok, Jongdae, Zitao, Yixing, Kyungsoo, Chanyeol, Sehun, Baekhyun, Jongin, and of course, himself. The twelve of them were tightly knit, even though they’d been split into two groups. Junmyeon valued every one of them dearly, even though they all had their own faults.

“I have brought you here today to tell of you of a new threat.”

Whispering broke out across the room. Everyone knew that they were on the edge of war with the Land of Pines, who were trying to expand their borders. Junmyeon frowned slightly and glanced over at Yifan. None of their teachers or training officers had spoken of a new threat to Junmyeon and his team.

To his surprise, Yifan’s mouth was set in a thin line, his eyes an odd mixture of anger and resignation. Yifan must know what the threat was. Junmyeon pressed his lips together. Did that mean that Yifan had already encountered it? But how? Was Yifan’s team already being deployed into battles? Was the real difference between their teams that Yifan’s team was more skilled than Junmyeon’s?

But that was impossible. Junmyeon turned away to face the front again. Junmyeon and Minseok’s teamwork was legendary. Legendary! It rivaled that of top agents that they had faced in reconnaissance and recovery missions that they had been on. It rivaled the top agents that the Nation of Mountains currently had among their ranks. In terms of abilities, Junmyeon would have to say that his team was equal to Yifan’s—but in terms of teamwork, Junmyeon’s team far outstripped Yifan’s.

Junmyeon tried to quell his thoughts. Junmyeon was competitive by nature, and that had helped him keep his place in the Academy’s ranks as he pushed himself to be the very best water elemental in his class. But with his brothers, it would only lead to conflict.

The headmaster let the whispering go on for a few more moments. “Who of you in this room know of the Tree of Life?”

Junmyeon blinked in surprise and raised his hand along with everyone else. The Tree of Life was what gave all elemental users of powers. It was one of the first lessons they learned after arriving at the academy.

“Good. Now as you know, our powers rely on balance. Balance between energy and movement. Balance between support and opposition. And thus, there is also a balance to the great energy from the Tree of Life.”

“The Red Forces,” someone whispered on Junmyeon’s left. Junmyeon shivered and stared at the headmaster. The Red Forces were a dark, shadowy organization—feared by all, but only seen by very few. Little was ever spoken of them.

“It has come to our attention that the Red Forces have started actively recruiting to their ranks once more.” The Headmaster’s lip curled in a sneer. “They seek to support the Land of Pines in their endeavors. They have started to focus their recruitment attempts on our school.”

The room was absolutely silent, and Junmyeon was pretty sure that some of the students were holding their breath. The younger classes had gone pale and quiet.

“Rest assured, our teachers and staff will do their best to protect you from their influences. Because of this threat to our security, we have enlisted some new rules.” The headmaster pulled a list out of his pocket and began to read.

Junmyeon listened with interest. Some rules made sense—visits home were being reduced, although they would be made up for with increased time for phonecalls. A curfew would be set on the student dorms. Teachers would students between classes. Access to the outdoor training grounds would be restricted.

“And finally, the Eighth Floor of the compound is forbidden access to all.” The headmaster put the list back into his pocket. “You must all be worried and afraid, but your teachers and peers will all be here to support you and guide you as you consider your studies. These rules will go into effect immediately. I will leave Vice Principal Cho to organize the teachers and lead you back to your classes.” The headmaster left the room, and Junmyeon turned to Yifan as their vice principal began calling out class names.

“You knew,” Junmyeon said softly. Luhan, Chanyeol, Zitao, Sehun and Jongdae were talking amongst themselves, and Junmyeon wasn’t worried that they were listening. “Yifan.”

Yifan gave him a look. “Of course I knew.”

“How?” Junmyeon’s fist tightened in his pockets. “They said that the Red Forces were trying to recruit from here, but…” Junmyeon hesitated.

Junmyeon had lied to Yifan when he’d confronted him earlier. Junmyeon had always been afraid of Yifan—Yifan was powerful and charismatic. On the first day at the academy, Junmyeon had always strived to become as powerful as Yifan, but he didn’t think he’d ever succeeded. Yifan was a true master of the element of Flight, and he could do things Junmyeon had never read in any book.

Junmyeon also knew that Yifan was power hungry. Yifan had fought for a position of power, and he he’d held onto it in their first year together, fighting and snapping at anyone who dared to challenge him. Making him one of the team leaders must’ve been a no-brainer for their teachers, but at the same time, Junmyeon worried.

“But what?” Yifan glared at him outright, and Junmyeon flinched in his seat. “Say it. I dare you.”

Junmyeon was suddenly very aware of the fat that Luha, Zitao, Sehun, Chanyeol and Jongdae had stopped talking and were staring at them. Junmyeon his lips and opened his mouth. “I…”

“CLASS EIGHT,” Vice Principal Cho bellowed, and Junmyeon realized that the entire room was empty except for them.

Junmyeon jumped out of his seat. “Sir! I’m sorry.” He bowed as the other boys also got out of their seats.

“Junmyeon, where is the rest of your team?”

Junmyeon hesitated. Should he tell the truth in front of Yifan?

Vice Principal Cho waved his hand. “Never mind. Go find them, and the twelve of you are to report to your dorm immediately after.”

“Yes sir.” Junmyeon lead the way out of the classroom. When they were out in the hallway, Junmyeon turned to Yifan. “You six head back to the dorm. I’ll go get my team.”

“You know where they all are?” Yifan raised an eyebrow at him.

Junmyeon shrugged. “I have my guesses.” Junmyeon turned away and started off in the opposite direction from their dorms. “See you lot in a bit.”

The moment he turned the corner, Junmyeon broke into a full out run, darting past a class of third years being escorted by a teacher. Junmyeon didn’t stop until he reached the outdoor training grounds and paused at the gate.

The headmaster said that access would be restricted—but since his team had been absent from the assembly, surely this small infraction would be ignored?

Junmyeon pushed open the gate just in time to see Baekhyun rolling out of the way to avoid a falling boulder.

Junmyeon clapped his hands loudly, and the five boys in the arena stopped what they were doing to look at him.

“How’s the extra training going?”

The five of them relaxed out of their fighting stances and jogged over to him. Minseok patted him on the back. Junmyeon smiled at him, and turned to the other four. Jongin had dropped to a crouch on the ground, Kyungsoo was staring at him with his hands in his pockets, and Yixing was gazing off in the distance. Baekhyun was currently cozying up to Minseok, ignoring the older boy’s annoyance at how sweaty and warm it was.

Junmyeon sighed and reached down to wipe a smudge of dirt off of Jongin’s forehead. “I hope you all had a chance to spar.”

Jongin shrugged. “Baekhyun and I were the last pair.” He patted Junmyeon’s wrist. “Thanks.”

Junmyeon smiled down at him, and then took a deep breath. How should he break this news? “They said that the Red Forces are starting to recruit again, and they’re focusing on the academy.” Junmyeon drew his hand back, and Jongin slowly rose from his crouch. Yixing’s eyes snapped to meet Junmyeon’s, and Junmyeon bit his lip. “They’ve put down some new rules. Access to this practice ground is restricted. We’re getting fewer visits home, and we have to be escorted by teachers between classes.” Junmyeon frowned. “Vice Principal Cho wants us to all head back to our dorm now.”

“Huh.” Baekhyun drew away from Minseok and scuffed at the ground with his foot. “But how do they know the Red Forces are targeting here?”

Junmyeon turned away and began to lead his team out of the compound. “It makes sense,” Junmyeon said after a moment. “We’re the top warriors in training in the whole country. They’d want people like us to join them.”

“Yeah, but the Red Forces are so…vague. They haven’t done anything concrete in the past. Why would the academy start taking things so seriously now?” Yixing asked softly.

Junmyeon swallowed hard. “I don’t know,” he said nonchalantly. “Maybe they’ll tell us later.”

The rest of the walk back to their dorm was quiet and subdued. Even Baekhyun, who normally took every chance he could to wreak havoc, was quiet. Junmyeon knew that the news was troubling—but they’d probably all be back to their old selves once they’d had a chance to sit down and think things through.

The Red Forces were feared by every elemental user. Like the headmaster had said, their elemental powers focused on balance. The Red Forces were their natural born enemies, destined to keep them in check. But the Red Forces had been reduced to shadows and dust after the Great War thirty years ago—long before any of their time.

Junmyeon felt a beat of fear. The threat of impending war, and the fact that he and his classmates would graduate soon meant that soon, the twelve of them would be deployed into the army. They would fight real battles—not just small missions to retrieve an item, civilians, or gather information. (Although their missions had taken on increasing amounts of significance in the past couple of years.) With this additional stress, Junmyeon wouldn’t be surprised if their teachers gave them mandatory visits to the school psychology department.

Just as Junmyeon was about to pass into the dorm, Minseok stopped him with an arm on his shoulder.

“You do know? Don’t you,” Minseok said in a low voice. The rest of the team had already gone inside, and Junmyeon could hear the conversation picking up within. “Why the academy is taking this so seriously?”

Junmyeon bit his lip. He trusted Minseok the most out of everyone on his team—but somehow, he couldn’t be sure of how Minseok would react. “I have my suspicions,” Junmyeon said at last. “But I don’t know for sure.”

Minseok frowned at that and opened his mouth to argue, but Jongdae poked his head outside. “Are you two going to come in?”

“Yes,” Junmyeon said quickly, easily sliding away from Minseok. Minseok made a frustrated noise and moved to follow him, and Junmyeon had the sinking feeling that their conversation wasn’t over just yet.

Junmyeon wasn’t surprised to see everyone crowded together in the common room of their dorm. Behind the common room, a hallway lead to the six rooms that the twelve of them shared.

Junmyeon looked around and let himself relax a little. It had been at least a week since all twelve of them had been able to get together and talk, and even if it was this kind of circumstance bringing them together, Junmyeon was glad.

“Will they still restrict our access to the outside training grounds?” Luhan asked.

Kyungsoo scoffed. “We’re probably the prime targets for recruitment. I’d be surprised if they let us out of sight at all.”

“You think they’d station a guard in our dorm?” Jongin seemed intrigued by the prospect.

“I doubt it,” Junmyeon said quietly, all eleven of them turning to look at him. “They probably already have some kind of surveillance equipment in here anyways.”

The others froze, looking shocked, and Junmyeon frowned. “Are you all serious? We’ve been in an academy that has taught us that surveillance is a key part of our job, and you never suspected that they’ve been watching us this whole time?”

Yifan recovered first. “I don’t suppose you’d happen to know where the bug might be?”

“No,” Junmyeon said firmly. And even if he did know, he wouldn’t tell Yifan. Not with his current suspicions.

There was another pause, and then Baekhyun changed the subject.

Junmyeon walked over to sit down beside Yifan on the couch. The rest of the boys, for whatever reason, had decided to sit on the floor around their coffee table, chattering eagerly with each other about the results of their training.

“How’re you holding up?”

Junmyeon stared at Yifan in surprise. This was an absolute turnaround from the animosity that Yifan had shown him less than an hour before. “I’m fine.” Junmyeon looked away. “The team’s training is going really well. I’m proud.”

“You should be.” Yifan stretched and then dropped one arm behind Junmyeon’s shoulders. Junmyeon didn’t blush, even though he screamed internally. “I was worried, at the beginning. The twelve of us had gotten so close, and I thought we would be ripped apart when we got split up.”

“Sometimes a bit of distance is good, especially since no one has been removed from our class for two years now.” Junmyeon leaned back, resting his head against Yifan’s arm. It felt good to have someone he could rely on, who understood the struggles he was going through.

“Did you think they’d weed someone out last year?” Yifan asked curiously.

“I was a little worried,” Junmyeon admitted. Last year, Jongin’s oldest sister had been struggling with an illness, which had made Jongin worried and distracted enough to affect his performance. But Jongin was still here this year, so that was that.

“I wonder what the other kids who were with us are doing now,” Yifan said thoughtfully.

Junmyeon took his head off of Yifan’s arm and curled up in his seat, resting his chin on his knees. “Some probably went back to civilian life. Some probably went into the civilian army. I think that Luna got back under the psychology department.”

“She’s probably learning all kinds of mind-ery over there.” Yifan let his arm drop to rest on Junmyeon’s shoulders, and Junmyeon couldn’t help the blush that rose to his cheeks this time. Junmyeon worked hard to make sure that Yifan wouldn’t notice that Junmyeon liked him, but sometimes, he wondered how good his act really was.

“If someone had tried to force me to stop practicing magic, I would’ve found another way back,” Junmyeon said quietly. “It’s…irresistible.”

“Hm.” Yifan stared blankly at the wall, and Junmyeon sighed softly.

A sharp knock on the door put an end to the conversation as all twelve boys got to their feet. Minseok opened the door, and to their surprise, the headmaster himself walked into the room.

All twelve of them dropped into the ninety degree bow of respect, and held it.

“Rise.”

Junmyeon slowly straightened up, eyeing the headmaster with fear. Was he here to punish his team for not coming to the assembly? Junmyeon had been the one to suggest the extra sparring practice.

“Junmyeon.”

Junmyeon snapped to attention, looking the headmaster right in the eyes.

“Don’t worry. I’m not here to address that.”

Junmyeon nodded stiffly and looked away. The headmaster had an uncanny ability to guess what anyone was thinking at a given moment.

“All twelve of you are aware of this new threat, yes?” The headmaster looked intently at them as they nodded. “Good. You’ll understand then, that your class will have the highest security. You will not be allowed to leave your dorms for anything besides meals and training. You will always be escorted by myself or Vice Principal Cho.”

Junmyeon couldn’t hide his small start of surprise. Escorted by the headmaster himself?

But then, given his misgivings about Yifan, Junmyeon supposed that it wasn’t completely unwarranted.

“Unlike the rest of the school, you will not be permitted any further contact with your families for the time being,” the headmaster said sternly. “No visits. No phonecalls. Only teacher-approved correspondence may be approved for special cases.”

Jongin let out a small noise at that, but Junmyeon shook his head at him. It would be best to avoid conflict with the headmaster. They had all witnessed the headmaster’s great power during training sessions, and Junmyeon didn’t dare to put any of them in the way of his wrath.

Junmyeon glanced over at Yifan, and raised an eyebrow when he saw that Yifan’s teeth were gritted, and his hands were clenched in tight fists.

“Is there something you would like to say, Yifan?”

“No, Headmaster,” was Yifan’s quick response. Nevertheless, Junmyeon didn’t see any hint of relaxation in Yifan’s posture.

The headmaster looked amused, but moved on. “Are there any questions?”

“Will we be permitted to use the outside training grounds?” Luhan asked.

“Only in special cases.” The headmaster looked at the twelve of them. “These rules will be maintained very strictly. If you act out of line, there will be…disastrous consequences.” He his heel and left the room.

Junmyeon let out a small sigh and collapsed back onto the couch. The Headmaster was an imposing man, but he also made a point of projecting his elemental energy out through a room to intimidate those within it. Junmyeon wiped at the sweat on his forehead—he hated being enveloped in someone else’s energy. He could stand short contact with it—longer with his team members, but he absolutely hated being in close proximity to the headmaster for that reason.

“Well, we’ll be spending a lot more time together,” Yifan said in a low voice. “Any objections or fights you have with others should be taken care of out in the training rooms if possible.”

Junmyeon shot Yifan a look. “They’ll probably also have us take mandatory sessions with Psychology,” Junmyeon said quietly. “That is an equally good time to blow off steam.”

Junmyeon glared at Yifan, and Yifan glared right back at him. Yifan knew how Junmyeon felt about fighting things out. With certain types of people, such as Yifan himself, Zitao and Luhan who understood physical interaction best, that would work. However, for more introspective sorts like Yixing or himself, talking was also a perfectly valid outlet.

“That’s enough,” Minseok said firmly, and Junmyeon looked away. Minseok had a blush rising in his cheeks, but his voice and stance were firm as he looked between the two leaders. “Don’t go starting something this quickly.”

“Thank you, Minseok.” Junmyeon got to his feet and patted Minseok’s back. “I’m going to go lie down for a bit. Sehun?”

Sehun, his roommate, waved him away and continued his conversation with Jongin. Junmyeon shrugged and wandered into his room, sighing as soon as he hit the mattress. Sometimes, Sehun liked to join him and chat for a bit, but perhaps now wasn’t the right time.

Junmyeon rolled onto his side and closed his eyes. He’d just take a short nap, until their next schedule. He closed his eyes and fell asleep to the sound of his classmates’ quiet conversation in the living room.

Junmyeon dreamed of red mist and grasping hands. He was quite sure that Yifan made a brief appearance in the dream—in fact, Junmyeon had been searching for something. Had it been Yifan?

Junmyeon sat bolt upright. The digital clock at his bedside read 2:00 a.m., and Junmyeon suppressed a groan. He’d only meant to take a short nap—but he supposed that they hadn’t had anything else in their schedule for the rest of the day, or else someone would’ve woken him up.

Junmyeon quietly slipped out of the room, determined not to disturb Sehun. Sometimes, Kyungsoo remembered to bring back extra food if one of them slept through dinner—

Junmyeon paused. Chanyeol and Yifan were talking quietly in the living room.

Junmyeon had always thought it was a curious choice to put Yifan and Chanyeol on the same team. Chanyeol was equally ambitious as Yifan, although Junmyeon supposed that Chanyeol had gotten used to Yifan being the leader.

“What’d it say?” Chanyeol was asking, and Junmyeon held his breath.

“Just a time and a place.” Yifan sounded worried, and Junmyeon blinked. “Their intentions were clear.”

“We’re going to be on lockdown for who knows how long.”

Yifan snorted at that. “Why do you think we’re talking about this?” Then he paused. “Someone’s awake.”

Junmyeon froze, and then slowly backed away two steps. Then he walked forward two steps and leaned against the doorframe. “What’re you two doing up this late?”

“You finally woke up.” Yifan smirked at him, and Junmyeon rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

Chanyeol got up from his seat. “I’m going to bed.” He brushed past Junmyeon, and Junmyeon let him go.

Yifan remained seated.

“Is everything okay?” Junmyeon ventured further into the living room.

“How much did you hear?”

“Nothing,” Junmyeon said instantly, lying through his teeth. “I just thought I’d make sure everything was alright.”

To his surprise, Yifan let out a long sigh and stood up. “Junmyeon.”

“Yes?” Junmyeon forced himself not to move back when Yifan walked towards him.

Yifan came to a stop when they were nearly toe-to-toe. Junmyeon forced himself not to move even as a small spot of stubble above Yifan’s upper lip caught his eye. If he wasn’t careful…

“You know that despite everything…I care about everyone. You know that, right?”

Junmyeon tilted his head up in surprise. “Of course,” Junmyeon said quietly. Despite everything. What could that mean? Yifan’s nature? Some argument they’d had in the past? How they’d drifted apart over time?

But even though the words were loaded with unknown meaning, Junmyeon knew that Yifan still cared about all of them.

Yifan pulled him into a brief hug, and Junmyeon’s breath caught. Yifan wasn’t big on touching—in fact, Junmyeon could count the times Yifan had hugged him on one hand. And yet, there they were.

Just as Junmyeon was about to lift his hands to return the hug, Yifan let go. “Good night,” he said quietly, his eyes searching Junmyeon’s face.

Junmyeon wasn’t sure what Yifan saw in his expression, but he forced himself to remain neutral. “Good night,” Junmyeon said quietly.

Yifan left the room, and Junmyeon slowly sank down onto a chair, his hunger forgotten. What on earth had that all been about?

Junmyeon had to wonder what Yifan had chosen to talk to Chanyeol about. It couldn’t be anything too secretive, given that Junmyeon had just informed them all that their dormitory was probably bugged. Junmyeon rubbed at his forehead, sighed and then went into the kitchen. To his relief, there was a small box of food with his name on it, and Junmyeon made a note to thank Kyungsoo when the other woke up.

Living under such tight security was nerve-wracking. As the headmaster had promised, he escorted them between most of their classes and trainings. Junmyeon supposed that at least he was getting practice maintaining his cool in the presence of such overwhelming elemental energy—but other than that, things were grim. The twelve of them barely spoke while they were at the dorm. They’d started training together as group of twelve again to make their schedules easier, and when they returned to the dorms, the twelve of them would usually fight over the showers and then collapse into an exhausted sleep until the next day.

Junmyeon was impressed with the progress Yifan’s team had made. Their teamwork was better than Junmyeon had been expecting, but was still no match for Junmyeon and his team. Junmyeon felt his chest puff up a bit with pride as he thought of how well his team worked together. They’d soundly won the sparring match their teachers had set up between them thanks to all of their practice together.

Junmyeon vaguely wondered if this was some kind of evaluation for his and Yifan’s performances. It was only four more months until their graduation date, and the instructors and headmaster were probably deciding where exactly to place them in the elemental ranks. Junmyeon could only hope that he would bring honor to his parents and family with his assignment.

Junmyeon sighed at the thought of his family. He was worried—his aunt, uncle and their three nieces lived near the border with the Land of Pines. The area must be tense, and Junmyeon would’ve advised them to get out now as the threat of war seemed increasingly likely, but he was still forbidden from communicating with the outside world.

It had been nearly a month, and Junmyeon was anxious. There was no sign that the security would be letting up, but Junmyeon hadn’t expected much. Either they would be with this kind of security until they graduated, or the war would break out first and their teachers would be deployed to the front lines. Junmyeon would be surprised if things didn’t turn out that way.

“Can you believe we’re going to graduate in three months?” Junmyeon turned to Yifan and smiled. Yifan had been increasingly tense lately. Not in public—but when it was just him and Junmyeon. Junmyeon didn’t know if he should be flattered that Yifan felt he could show his feelings to him, or if he should be hurt that Yifan was always lashing out at him.

Yifan looked surprised. “Yeah, I guess we are.” He rubbed at his face with a towel. “I hadn’t realized that it would be so soon.”

“Yeah.” Junmyeon sat back on his hands. Today, Junmyeon and Yifan had agreed to train together in a practice room. One of their training captains was sitting outside of the door to make sure they didn’t go anywhere they weren’t supposed to. “What do you think will happen when we leave?”

“What do you mean?” Yifan frowned. “They’ll deploy us into the military. That’s what happened to everyone else.”

“Yeah, but do you think they’ll let us talk to our families again?” Junmyeon stared at a corner of the room where grey paint was chipping. There was a small whole that Junmyeon had blasted with some of his water earlier. “I’m…worried.”

“Why?”

 Junmyeon turned to stare at Yifan. “Why am I worried about my family?” he repeated.

Yifan just shrugged.

Junmyeon wondered if something had gone wrong between Yifan and his parents. “I have some family near the war zone. I want to know how they are,” Junmyeon said at last.

“I see.”

The air was so thick with tension that Junmyeon visibly shrugged his shoulders—only to realize that part of the reason he was feeling so uncomfortable was that Yifan was projecting his elemental energy everywhere. “Yifan.”

“What?”

Junmyeon frowned. “Relax. Your energy is going to make me vomit.”

Yifan snorted and got to his feet. There was a little push, and Junmyeon nearly fell over with how dizzy he felt, but then it passed.

“You’re so weak, Junmyeon.” Yifan sneered down at him and went out into the hallway, leaving Junmyeon sitting on the ground in shock.

Yifan had never spoken to him that way. Junmyeon frowned. Had he done something to make Yifan angry? And what did Yifan mean by weak—Junmyeon scowled and clenched his fist. Someday, Yifan was going to acknowledge how strong Junmyeon had become. He would’ve thought that Yifan had acknowledged him by agreeing to all of the practice that they’d been doing together lately, and in the past, but perhaps not.

Junmyeon got to his feet and went outside. Unsurprisingly, Yifan didn’t spare him a glance when he came out of the room. However, to his surprise, there was no teacher in sight, and Chanyeol had joined them.

“…Tonight, Chanyeol.”

“Okay,” Chanyeol mumbled. He stiffened when he saw Junmyeon. “Junmyeon! I didn’t know you and Yifan practiced together.”

“We haven’t in a while,” Junmyeon said easily. “I thought it would be good for us. After all, there’s a high probability that the two of us would paired in the field frequently for missions.”

Chanyeol flinched, and Junmyeon frowned. “Is something wrong?”

“No, nothing.” Chanyeol rubbed at the back of his neck awkwardly. “I just…had a chill.”

“A chill.” Junmyeon gave Chanyeol a disbelieving look. Chanyeol had impeccable control of his elemental energy, fire, and his core temperature was often a bit higher than normal. “Right.” Junmyeon turned to Yifan. “Where’s the teacher?”

Yifan pointed down the corridor to the training instructor who was jogging towards them.

“I’m sorry boys, I just went to get some water.” The instructor nodded in greeting to Chanyeol. “Shall I you three back to your rooms?”

The four of them set off through the academy, none of them speaking. Junmyeon’s eyes flickered between Yifan and Chanyeol’s faces, but both of them had settled into stony impassivity.

Junmyeon felt a beat of disappointment in his heart. Had he failed? As a leader, he wanted to be someone that anyone could come to with their problems, but Chanyeol and Yifan seemed to have gone to a place he couldn’t reach.

Junmyeon frowned. A month ago, Yifan had mentioned something vague about a time and place to Chanyeol. And just now, Junmyeon was sure that Yifan had said ‘tonight’.

Junmyeon had found no information to confirm or disprove his theory that the Red Forces had approached Yifan to recruit him. Junmyeon felt a sudden pang of fear. Yifan had told Junmyeon that he cared about all of them—so he wouldn’t consider joining them. Right?

You’re so weak, Junmyeon.

The words echoed in his mind, and Junmyeon couldn’t bring himself to even try and set his thoughts straight.

Junmyeon bumped into Minseok when they made it back to the dorm. “Minseok.”

“Yeah?” Minseok paused in the doorway.

Junmyeon glanced behind him, and saw that Yifan and Chanyeol had gone to their rooms.

Junmyeon took a deep breath. All of this could mean nothing—but if his instincts were right…

“Tonight.” Junmyeon bit his lip. “Keep an ear open for anyone trying to leave. Would you?”

Minseok frowned. “Is something wrong?”

Junmyeon looked away. “I…don’t know.” You’re weak, Junmyeon. “Just stay sharp tonight.”

Minseok gave him a critical look, and then nodded. “Okay. I’ll see you in a bit.”

Junmyeon nodded and went into his room. Sehun was out, probably practicing with Luhan. Luhan was Sehun’s favorite, out of their batch. Sehun was always going out of his way to spend time with him. Always talking about him. Junmyeon marveled that Sehun was lucky enough to be able to express all those feelings towards Luhan. Junmyeon didn’t dare speak about his feelings. He had a feeling that if he tried to cling to Yifan, he would be hurt even more than he was now.

Junmyeon closed his eyes and let out a heavy sigh. The tension in the academy was taking a toll on his mind—he should probably go in to see a counselor tomorrow.

Junmyeon busied himself with oiling and cleaning his weapons for the rest of the evening. Sehun came back into the room and wrinkled his nose at the mess of rags and grease that covered Junmyeon’s side of the room.

“Are you getting ready for some hand-to-hand combat?”

“No.” Junmyeon held a dagger up to his eyes. “I just realized that I haven’t done an inventory in a while.”

“Jongin would disapprove. He’s uptight about that stuff.”

“That’s because Jongin’s ability has lead him to specialize in close combat,” Junmyeon said patiently, carefully packing his things away. “And he’s the best at it in our year.”

“He is.” Sehun lay down on his mattress as Junmyeon began to clean up. “Junmyeon…”

“Yeah?” Junmyeon looked over at his roommate. Even though they’d been recruited into the same class, Sehun was three years younger than him. Normally, Junmyeon didn’t think he was too soft-hearted with his roommate, but with Sehun staring up at him with open, troubled eyes, Junmyeon couldn’t help but feel his heart break a little. “What’s wrong?”

“I could ask the same of you,” Sehun said at last. “You’ve been…tense lately. And I heard you, talking to Minseok at the door.”

Junmyeon smiled at that. “Everyone’s tense,” he said after a moment. “I think it’s making me more nervous. I’ll probably go in to Psych tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Sehun rolled onto his back. “You can talk to me if you need to, you know.”

“I know,” Junmyeon said gently. “Thanks.”

“You depend on Minseok and Yifan the most,” Sehun grumbled, and Junmyeon smiled at that. “But I’m here too.”

“Thank you, Sehun. That really means a lot.” Junmyeon crossed the room and ruffled Sehun’s hair. Sehun whined, but didn’t move away from his hand.

Junmyeon smiled and went back to cleaning up. Maybe he had neglected Sehun this past month—after all, he’d been so busy with his team training before, and Yifan and he would have to schedule practices around each other. Junmyeon just hoped that Sehun wouldn’t hold it against him too much.

That night, Junmyeon made sure to take a caffeine pill before bed. He lay on his mattress, listening alertly for the sound of anyone moving. The house passed by on the clock. It was midnight—then one, then two…

Junmyeon felt himself falling into a meditative state as the only sounds that stirred through the room was Sehun’s soft breathing. Junmyeon slowly sat up in his bed, and then froze.

Someone’s door had opened.

Junmyeon didn’t move, his heart thudding in his ears. Maybe they would just go the bathroom? Or maybe they were hungry—

Footsteps softly went past Junmyeon’s door towards the entryway, and Junmyeon knew he had to do something. Junmyeon quietly got out of bed and silently slipped out of his room, quietly thanking his past self for oiling the hinges and putting a dampening cloth around the doorjamb. He knew that he might have a reason for wanting to sneak out of his room quietly, whether it was Sehun’s peace of mind, or whether he wanted some time to himself without anyone talking to him.

Junmyeon stood silently. He didn’t hear anything else in the dorm. Junmyeon slowly, silently crept towards their common room, his feet not making any noise. Junmyeon saw the shadow of Minseok’s door opening, and then closing, and then Minseok was right behind him.

Minseok tilted his head as if to ask if Junmyeon had seen anything. Junmyeon shook his head and raised a finger to his lips. Together, they slowly edged around the corner, looking to see if anyone was in the common room.

Silence and darkness met their eyes. Junmyeon frowned. He could’ve sworn that he’d heard the people moving towards the common room. Junmyeon took a step forward, and then froze.

The entry door was open.

Junmyeon whirled around and stared at Minseok, who was staring at the door in shock.

“Minseok.”

Minseok snapped to attention. Junmyeon used his commanding voice. “I’m going to go and see what’s going on. Get a headcount of everyone else. Try not to wake anyone if you can, and then come join me. I’ll leave a trail for where I go.”

“We could get in so much trouble for this,” Minseok said softly, his eyes sharp with concern. “You heard the headmaster—he’ll punish us terribly, even if we’re this close to graduating.”

Junmyeon shook his head. “I think its Yifan and Chanyeol.” Junmyeon glanced back at the open door. “You don’t have to follow me if you don’t want. Just send me a signal if I’m right or not.”

Minseok stared at him for a moment, and then nodded slowly. “I’ll catch up with you in a minute.” He turned around, and Junmyeon darted out the door and into the hallway. He frowned, for a moment. Left or right?

And then he saw it. A red scrap of tissue paper lay at the end of the corridor, and Junmyeon went toward it. He picked it up, and surveyed it closely. It looked normal. Junmyeon pocketed it, left a small pool of water on the floor, and continued.

Junmyeon followed the corridor until he came to another intersection. One was a doorway that lead to the emergency staircase in the compound. The other way lead towards a wing of training facilities. Junmyeon frowned. It would take too much time to check the training facilities on his own and then go back—

Junmyeon’s eyes widened when he heard footsteps coming from the around the corridor. He leaped into the emergency stairwell and crouched down, his back against the door. The footsteps continued past him, and Junmyeon let out a small sigh of relief. He let a small drop of water trickle out from beneath the door, and got to his feet, surveying the stairwell. What was taking Minseok so long to catch up with him?

Junmyeon stared when he saw a red thread caught on the railing of the landing a flight above him. Red paper and now red thread—this seemed almost too easy. As if he was being led somewhere.

But who would be leading him? Junmyeon frowned and pulled out the knife he’d taken with him from his belt. He went up the stairs and grabbed the red thread as he passed and left another signal for Minseok to follow him as he continued up the stairs.

The stairs were accessible from each roof. Junmyeon dismissed the idea of the fourth and fifth floor—those only had classrooms for the first and second year classes. There was no reason for Yifan and Chanyeol to go there. The sixth and seventh floor were teacher dormitories, and there was no way they would go there either, especially if they were going to be discrete. That meant either the red thread hadn’t been a clue and they had gone to the basement, or…

Junmyeon hesitated. The headmaster had stated that the eight floor of the compound was forbidden to everyone. Junmyeon would be risking everything if he dared to investigate the eighth floor.

Junmyeon swallowed harshly. Junmyeon didn’t want to believe that Yifan and Chanyeol were doing something wrong—he hoped with all his heart that Yifan and Chanyeol had just gone to train, whether it was on a third floor room, or one of the specialized rooms in the basement. But somehow, Junmyeon knew that that wasn’t the case. Yifan wouldn’t risk being caught breaking the rules for something as simple as training.

Junmyeon took a deep breath, and started up the stairs for the eight floor.

Junmyeon reached the top landing and peered through the window, trying to see through—but the window was too grimy and dusty to see anything. Junmyeon pressed his ear to the door, but he couldn’t hear anything.

Junmyeon didn’t like diving into situations without an idea of his surroundings, but he had no choice. Junmyeon left another pool of water on the stairs and pushed the door open.

To his surprise, he wasn’t met by a maze of corridors, like all the other floors of the compound. Instead, the entire floor was open, interspersed with the occasional support column for the roof. There was a thick layer of dust on the floor, and Junmyeon crouched down, frowning. Why was this floor forbidden? Unless…

Junmyeon ducked and kicked upwards as someone dropped down on him from above. There was the satisfying feeling of his foot connecting into someone’s side and an answering grunt.

Junmyeon jumped away, and found himself staring at Chanyeol, who was staring back at him with amazement. “Junmyeon?”

“Chanyeol,” Junmyeon said evenly. “Who else were you expecting?”

Chanyeol shook his head. “No one,” he said at last.

“Where’s Yifan?” Junmyeon asked, his heart leaping up into his throat. Was he too late?

Suddenly, there was warmth at his back, and Junmyeon twisted, stabbing with his knife and springing away from the person behind him. There was a small drop of blood on the dagger, and Yifan stared passively at him as Junmyeon glanced between him and Chanyeol.

“What are you two doing here?” Junmyeon asked, his voice cracking slightly.

“I could ask the same of you. You just tried to stab both of us with a knife,” Yifan said lightly.

“Yifan.” Junmyeon let his barriers fall, and gave Yifan the most honest look he could manage. “Don’t joke around.”

Yifan met his gaze, surprise flickering across his face before it faded to resignation.

“You know,” Yifan said quietly. “You’ve figured it all out.”

Chanyeol let out a surprised noise, but Junmyeon ignored him. “So you were approached by the Red Forces,” Junmyeon said softly, and Yifan nodded in confirmation. “But that doesn’t explain why you’re here, in this forbidden section of the school. Yifan…”

Yifan’s gaze changed from weary resignation to fiery anger. “You know why,” Yifan said softly. “Say why we’re here. Say it.”

Junmyeon felt something break inside of him. “You’re going to accept?” he whispered softly. Tears came unbidden to his eyes, and one spilled down his cheek, dripping onto the dusty cement at his feet.

Yifan looked shocked. “Junmyeon…” He took a step towards Junmyeon, when something suddenly came crashing from the ceiling between them.

Junmyeon jumped back, his arms raised. A figure in a long, scarlet cloak stood between him and Yifan, and Junmyeon blinked. Was this person the source of the red paper and red thread?

“You brought two friends with you, Yifan. How unexpected.”

The stranger had his face hidden in the cowl of his cloak, and Junmyeon swallowed harshly. Where the was Minseok? Had Minseok chickened out on him and stayed back in the dorm? But he’d said that he would come…

“I needed their help to slip away,” Yifan said after a moment.

Junmyeon found his voice again. “Yifan!”

“Junmyeon, shut up!” Chanyeol yelled, and Junmyeon flinched. He’d nearly forgotten that Chanyeol was there. Junmyeon turned to Chanyeol and stared.

“Not you too,” Junmyeon said softly, staring at Chanyeol. “Please.”

Chanyeol looked away. “I’m sorry.”

The cloaked figure started to laugh. “I see,” the figure said gasping. “So! One friend and one enemy, is that right?”

Junmyeon felt his palms start to sweat, but he forced himself to stay calm. He’d faced these situations on missions. It was three to one, and Junmyeon didn’t think that he would be able to take them head-on, but the least he could do was raise a ruckus and get help.

Junmyeon lifted his hands and gathered his energy. He lowered his body into his fighting stance, and glared at the cloaked figure. “I can’t let them go with you.”

The figure tilted his head to the side. “And how will you stop me?”

There were no visible sources of water in the room, but human bodies were excellent at producing moisture when he needed water. Junmyeon pulled the sweat from his palms and drove a jet of water sharply into the cement floor. The floor cracked and crumbled at the hooded figure’s feet, and a fissure spread out across the room with Junmyeon on one side and the three men on the other. Junmyeon let half of the water splash through onto whichever teacher’s quarters he’d chosen to disturb, and pulled the rest back into a ball that hovered in front of him.

“They’ll raise the alarm,” Junmyeon said determinedly. “You’re doomed.”

The red cloaked figure started to laugh again, when suddenly the door on the fire escape opened and Minseok came bursting through.

“Catch!” Minseok shouted, flinging the bucket of water he was carrying with him into the air as he sprinted to join Junmyeon.

Junmyeon pulled the water to join the ball hovering at his waist and leveled a look at Minseok. “This is what took you so long?” he hissed.

“We’d be defenseless without the water,” Minseok muttered under his breath. “And you know it.”

“Do you know what’s going on?” Junmyeon kept his eyes on Yifan, Chanyeol and the cloaked figure, who had come together to form a triangle. Each person was facing outward, their eyes on Junmyeon, waiting for him to attack.

“Sort of.” Minseok lifted a palm and turned a small blob of Junmyeon’s water into ice, pulling it towards him. “Chanyeol came to me two weeks ago, and I…made some guesses.”

“The Red Forces came for Yifan. Yifan asked Chanyeol to join him,” Junmyeon said quietly. “They’re going to accept.”

Minseok blinked, his face settling into a steely calm. “We can’t let them.”

Junmyeon nodded, and drew his left foot back, lifting his palm. “I’ve tried to alert someone as best I can.”

Minseok nodded, and Junmyeon clapped his hands, releasing the water onto their opponents. The red-cloaked figure jumped upwards to avoid it, and Yifan and Chanyeol sprang apart. Junmyeon separated the water into two currents as Minseok began throwing shards of ice at their opponents, forcing them to twist and dodge out of the way.

There was a shout from the doorway, and Junmyeon felt a small wave of relief when he saw two teachers on the landing. One sprang into the room while the other ran back to the stairs, presumably to sound the alarm. The red cloaked figure sprang towards the teacher, and Junmyeon let himself focus on Chanyeol and Yifan.

Chanyeol and Yifan knew the strategy that Minseok and Junmyeon were trying to execute, and as a result, were trying to stay as far away from each other as possible so that Junmyeon would waste his energy.

Minseok sent a well-timed flurry of ice spikes that pushed Chanyeol and Yifan together. Junmyeon’s water caught up to them, and Minseok yelled and froze the two of them into two large blocks of ice.

Junmyeon ran across the floor towards them, jumping over the fissure in the cement. Minseok followed him, and then stopped suddenly.

“Chanyeol’s melting the ice,” Minseok said through gritted teeth, and pushed his hands towards Chanyeol. “I’ll have to contain him.”

“Okay.” Junmyeon stepped towards Yifan, only for the red-cloaked figure to drop down directly in front of him. The figure was now bearing a sword, which he swung at Junmyeon. Junmyeon ducked, and the figure cracked Yifan’s ice shell open, setting him free.

Minseok cried out, and then dropped to a crouch, sweat dripping down his face. “Use it, Junmyeon!” he gritted out. “I’ll handle Chanyeol for now.”

Junmyeon pulled the water towards him and glared fiercely at his two opponents. “It isn’t too late to stop this, Yifan!” Junmyeon whipped the water towards the cloaked figure, who jumped out of the way. Yifan flung at dagger at Junmyeon, and Junmyeon fell backwards to avoid it, bringing his water back towards him. He snapped the water behind the cloaked man’s knees, and he fell to the ground.

Yifan flung a barrage of daggers and knives towards Junmyeon, and Junmyeon was forced to run and dodge them, unable to concentrate his attention on incapacitating the red figure.

Junmyeon tried to get back towards Minseok, but luckily Yifan and the cloaked figure seemed to have their attention focused entirely on him. Junmyeon glanced back and felt his blood run cold when he saw the teacher lying limply on the ground in a puddle of blood.

Junmyeon flipped out of the way as Yifan started to close in on him, and he swung his legs out to kick the cloaked figure away from him. Junmyeon tried to draw them away from Minseok and Chanyeol, but then Minseok screamed, Chanyeol bellowed, and a rush of steam filled the room.

Junmyeon jumped up to the ceiling to crouch on a support beam, and saw Minseok lying on the ground unconscious, his energy spent. Chanyeol was running towards Yifan and the cloaked figure, who were trying to figure out where Junmyeon had gone.

It was back to three on one. Junmyeon let the steam linger in the air, unwilling to reveal his location. Against all three of them, he was doomed. But someone had gone for help, so as long as Junmyeon could hold them off—

A huge energy charged through the room, and Junmyeon fell from the rafters, nausea unsettling his stomach as he writhed weakly on the ground. Yifan, Chanyeol and the cloaked figure staggered and turned to stare at the figure who had appeared in the center of the room.

“Headmaster,” Junmyeon croaked, coughing as his throat and stomach convulsed.

“You’ve done well, Junmyeon.” The headmaster acknowledged him with a nod. “You know then, what is happening?”

Junmyeon nodded weakly and tried to force himself to his feet. Yifan, Chanyeol and the cloaked figure wouldn’t wait to strike, especially given the state he was in. “I—”

Junmyeon found himself in the cage of Yifan’s embrace, one arm pressed firmly against his waist. The other held a knife to his throat. Junmyeon closed his eyes and despaired.

“Yifan,” Junmyeon whispered weakly, barely able to keep himself upright as the headmaster’s energy overpowered all of his senses. It felt foreign and Junmyeon’s entire being rejected the sensation. “You would dare to turn your knife on me?”

“I told you,” Yifan murmured in his ear, his low voice sending a thrill down Junmyeon’s spine. “You’re weak. This is what I would do for power.”

The headmaster was at a standstill, wary of moving to attack Chanyeol and the cloaked figure while Junmyeon was being held hostage.

“I thought you said that you cared about us,” Junmyeon murmured. “Do we really…mean nothing to you?”

Yifan’s grip on his waist tightened, and he didn’t respond.

“Why would you join them?” Junmyeon whispered. “Why?”

The headmaster raised a hand, Yifan pressed his knife against Junmyeon’s throat. Junmyeon felt the sharp edge cut into his skin, and he whimpered involuntarily.

The headmaster froze, and Yifan relaxed slightly. “Power,” Yifan answered at last. “Unimaginable power.”

“You have unimaginable power,” Junmyeon argued back, the sting of his wound helping to distract from his nausea. “You can do things the world hasn’t seen, Yifan. And what about us? Your friends?”

Yifan didn’t respond. “One move, and I’ll kill him,” he called out.

The headmaster seemed resigned. Meanwhile, the cloaked figure and Chanyeol seemed to have gotten their bearings, and rushed over to Yifan.

“Can you handle things from here?” The cloaked figure asked. The voice was low and smooth, and Junmyeon decided that it was probably a man’s voice.

“I think so.” Yifan’s voice was steady as he took a step backwards, dragging Junmyeon with him. “You two go ahead. I’ll follow.”

“Hm.” The cloaked figure surveyed the two of them for a moment. “See you soon.” The man grabbed Chanyeol, and they vanished into wisps of shadow.

Junmyeon stared. The only person in the world who he knew could teleport like that was Jongin—and Jongin did it in the exact same way, with shadows sloughing off of his body when he reappeared. That hadn’t been Jongin had it? Or did Jongin have a relative who’d run off to the Red Forces?

Yifan continued to walk backwards, dragging Junmyeon with him, until they were below a hole in the ceiling. Junmyeon supposed that Chanyeol or the cloaked figure must’ve created it during the battle.

Yifan flew them through the whole, and the headmaster followed, agilely pulling himself through.

Yifan continued to walk backwards, and the headmaster continued to advance, until Junmyeon and Yifan were at the edge of the roof.

“No further,” Yifan said clearly, pressing the knife to the wound again. Junmyeon flinched as the wound stung fiercely, and he whimpered again, unable to contain himself as the Headmaster increased the command of his presence, determined to bend Yifan’s energy to his will.

Junmyeon sagged against Yifan completely, unable to keep his balance. Yifan’s arm tightened around his waist, and Junmyeon had the sudden thought that Junmyeon would be indescribably happy with this situation, if only the context was different.

Yifan flipped the knife in his hand, and the Headmaster stopped, his face going pale.

“I’ve attached an explosive to this knife. If you try and come towards Junmyeon within the next five minutes, it’ll go off.” Yifan threw the knife down between Junmyeon’s feet, and it quivered in the stone. “I’m going to leave him here.”

“Yifan.” The headmaster gave Yifan a surprisingly gentle look. “You are making a grave mistake. I can help you.”

Yifan snorted at that. “You can’t help me.” Yifan’s voice cracked. “I already know that you were planning to take Junmyeon as your apprentice after graduation.”

“That is true.” The headmaster didn’t move. “Is this why you’re defecting? You’ve found a stronger master?”

“Yes,” Yifan said after a beat of silence. Junmyeon moved slightly, trying to get his bearings back as the Headmaster decreased his presence, allowing Junmyeon to breathe. Yifan instinctively clutched onto Junmyeon tighter. “That’s why I’m going. To gain power that you couldn’t possibly give me.”

“I see.” The Headmaster gave Yifan a disappointed look.

Suddenly, something exploded between them, and dark waves of smoke rippled out into the night.

“It would seem that your help has arrived,” the Headmaster said from within the grey shadows.

“It would seem so,” Yifan agreed.

Junmyeon put his weight on his own two feet, and Yifan eased his grip on Junmyeon’s waist.

Junmyeon should put an end to this now. He should twist around in Yifan’s grip and hit the pressure point on his neck. He should…

Instead, Junmyeon slowly turned around in Yifan’s arms. He reached up and touched Yifan’s cheek.

He gave Yifan a look that conveyed all the feelings he’d been afraid to show, and Yifan gazed calmly at him.

Junmyeon stood on his toes and pressed a soft, chaste kiss to Yifan’s lips.

Yifan kissed him back, and tears welled up in Junmyeon’s eyes again.

Yifan broke the kiss, and Junmyeon stood for a moment, staring up at him.

“Please don’t go,” Junmyeon whispered.

Yifan kissed him again, and Junmyeon felt Yifan’s fingers jab sharply into his neck. Junmyeon dropped to his knees, barely avoiding hitting his head against the cement. He collapsed into a heap on his side, his eyes focusing on Yifan launching himself into the air and speeding off into the night. Junmyeon closed his eyes, and knew no more.

a/n: So that's it for part one! I wanted to go ahead and post this--I'll be on vacation for the next few days, but part two is currently in progress. I hope to post it by Monday evening. Thanks so much for reading and enjoying, and comments are greatly appreciated!