Geum JinJu was never a fan of people. It didn't matter who; she barely tolerated her community, and could come off as a downright to people who didn't know her. She didn't care too much though- she loved her family and a few select friends, and for her their affections were enough.

Geum JinJu never like mornings much either. Waking up with her toes freezing through the threadbare blanket she'd cocooned herself in never really appealed to her, and neither did listening to the cacophony of rats scurrying and squeaking beneath the thin floorboards. Then she'd either have to work or go to school- both of which she detested. She might be sounding like a pessimist, but she called herself a realist. "Why should I enjoy waking up to a world that ?" she'd complain as her mother dished her cold potato mash or worse- cold gruel. Her mother, ever the optimist, would click her tongue and tell her to be more positive.

She honestly couldn't see much to be positive about.

JinJu's family lived on the outskirts of Jaedue, the capital city of Indion, in a small 'Defective' community. Defective being what they were- no capabilities whatsoever.

Most people were born either Shapeshifter or Skinwalker- the former was rarer, thus more highly esteemed than the latter, who made up the middle class. Shapeshifters could do as the name suggested; they could shift into the shape of an animal at whim. Their animal was set at birth, with no possible way to change it. Generally the fiercer the animal, the better a fighter the Shifter would be- but not everybody was a fighter, so it didn't make that much of a difference. They were born safe, guaranteed of a comfortable life, and JinJu didn't think they had any reason to complain. 

Skinwalkers could shift into any shape they pleased- so long as they were carrying the pelt of the animal. JinJu had heard that in school young Skinwalkers were given basic pelts, and had to hunt for the rarer ones. Being a hunter was an esteemed position in Skinwalker society, but majority of them worked and lived just as the Shifters. Privileged.

JinJu was defective. She couldn't shift at all, and wasn't a 'Special'- one of those born with rare, sometimes strange abilities that somehow entitled them to wealthy nomadism- and was thus automatically of the lowest class. They lived in the slums, her parents and others in her community worked undesirable, low paying jobs. She was at the bottom of the food chain, and saw no possible way for her people to change it. How could her frail society fight against the majority of the population, who could all shift into strong, fierce, carnivorous animals? Right. They couldn't, and had no hope to ever do so.

That wasn't to say that JinJu wasn't going to try to fight the injustice. No, she was- she just wasn't going to drag her entire race down with her.

JinJu could fight. Her house was on the edge of a forest, and a few metres from a blacksmith with whose son she was on very good terms with. Thus, she was provided with weapons- no questions asked. Despite her hatred of mornings, she'd drag herself out of bed when the moon still somewhat hung in the sky, in the early, quietest hours of each new day. Then she'd go to the forest.

"Chanyeol, you idiot!"

JinJu watched on in horror as the tall boy sent a dagger flying towards a tree shy centimetres from her frozen body, felt the blade whistle past her face and heard the metal bury itself in the wood just behind her with a satisfying thump.

"You could've split my head open, fool!" Chanyeol grinned as he sauntered over to the embedded blade, sending a wink JinJu's way as he went behind her to the embedded weapon. She scoffed and whirled around to face him. "Well?"

Chanyeol chuckled, pulling the dagger out of the tree by the hilt. "JinJu, please. You know how good my aim is. There is no possible way I could've hit you- unless I wanted to, in which case you'd already be dead."

"Cocky," she murmured under her breath- but, much to Chanyeol's pleasure, she wasn't denying it. She set the wooden club she held in her hand- stained black courtesy of the tree she'd only just pummelled- and looked back to Chanyeol. "You up for a spar?"

"Thought you'd never ask." He flashed her a blinding smile before carefully sheathing his dagger, unclipping the belt around his waist and dropping the multiple weapons to the forest floor. His hand dipped into a pocket inside his jacket, where he withdrew a pouch that JinJu knew contained a set of shuriken, and dropped that to the ground too. He then stepped forward, into the centre of the ring of trees surrounding them, and adopted a prepared stance, waiting.

"You ready?" Chanyeol gave no answer, the glint in his eyes speaking volumes. A cool breeze stirred the leaves around them as silence befell the forest, both of them waiting for the other to make a move.

JinJu striked first. She darted forward, delivering a sharp jab just underneath Chanyeol's left rib with the side of her flattened hand before leaning backwards and jumping, pushing her legs into Chanyeol's chest, hard.

Chanyeol let out a pained grunt; his hands flew up however, encircling JinJu's ankles as she tried to retract her feet and tugging them ever closer to him. Her arms flew up to protect her head as it hit the ground, Chanyeol unceremoniously dropping the rest of her body to the floor and bending his knee up. JinJu rolled before his foot could come down on her stomach, curling