'And let me die another day... I am too young and too afraid. I am in love with my vanity, the mirror held nothing but the perfection and satisfaction in my life.

And let me die another day... Here comes my seventeen and eighteen years, passing by like a lightning in my eyes. I want to live and be alive, and scream, and dance, and feel the joy and pain,

But as I lay dying in my death bed, I watch as the light goes by without blinking... Today is the day I die...'

"Those girls are not mermaids. Maybe they once were, but now they became the sea witches. I am sure you've heard of the Little Mermaids story, no? The wicked sea witch that steals Ariel's voice?" Sungjae explained. Hana stared at him amusedly, "I never know you know such details about human's fairy tale..."

"Well... I happened to live in your world for quite some time. It's a very wonderful place I'd like to visit someday again."

Sehun left both of them because Sungjae had personally requested so. He wanted to talk to Hana alone, and at the same time, to put his spell on her. Of course Hana didn't need to know so much. He simply wished to make the silly girl relax, because she looked tense all the time.

"You've been to my world?" Hana felt weird saying my world, as if she was claiming it for her own. Sungjae smiled softly at her, "Yes, I think the time in your world then, was called, the 18th century? Anyway... It's a long, long story back, but it does bring back good memories."

Hana smiled back at him. He looked gentle. His eyes were still vacant, but other than that, he was gentle. And soft. And pleasant. Hana's shoulder flattened a little, a motion which Sungjae noticed. "Hana, Dear... I hope I don't sound too rude to you, but can I ask how do you meet Sehun?"

"It's all because of this Mark I have. I don't even know what it means! And Sehun won't tell me anything." Hana frowned, as her Mark burnt again, and she bit back the pain. Sungjae's eyes furrowed, "Didn't Sehun tell you anything about it? About the Mark on your back?"

Hana shook her head, looking as confused as ever. The Mark seemed so important to a lot of people, but the girl couldn't understand why. Sungjae sighed and blamed Sehun's secrecy for it. He was the type that wouldn't reveal anything he deemed unimportant for him. The Mark, however was no joking matter. Sehun should've told the girl.

"Well, let's not discuss that now," Sungjae gently said, "It won't be pleasant to worry you so much."

Worry. Hana just stared at Sungjae. As always, nobody would tell her what was going on. She hated it, being treated like a small kid. But being the passive, sensitive girl she was, Hana kept it bottled inside, and Sungjae was scared that this girl would explode one day soon, and things would get ugly.

"Is there any kind of sport you take in school?" Sungjae asked, and without the girl knowing, he was actually taking her to his weapon chamber. The light dimmed a little as soon as Sungjae and Hana entered. The fireflies flew around and out, until the two were the ones left in the room.

With a flick of his hands, fire lit up on the torchlight, and the room instantly became hotter and brighter. Hana stared at the witch, absolutely adoring his magic. This was exactly like her childhood dream. Full of dreams, and magics, and enchanted creatures, though she wouldn't exactly call Sungjae a creature. Look at the guy! He looked as human as any human would, except for the eyes.

"Well... I do take swimming," Hana carefully said and looked around. There were golds. Pure, heavy golds, and there were lots of them here. If gold were priced the same way human perceived, Sungjae must be freaking loaded, which reminded her of Sehun. "But I used to take archery in elementary school and junior high."

Sungjae opened one specific treasure chest. And smiled when he looked at his antique collection inside. Most of those were merely collected because of its beauty, or for its history, or for many other reasons he had forgotten long ago.

"You took archery before? Why? Not a lot of people would take that," Sungjae asked, running his hands through the weapons. One was a sword, the fiery flame reflected through the blade. He smiled gently. Hana stood by his side, "Out of boredom, I guess. I adored Legolas a lot back then. He was a crazy obsession of mine." And she blushed hard. "Legolas is a... uhm, an elf prince from our fantasy story."

Sungjae couldn't help but chuckle. Well, what wouldn't you do when you were just a kid?

"And you remember the archery lesson still, aye?"

Hana laughed all of a sudden, her eyes forming two adorable crescents. Sungjae found himself being drawn to the sound of her laughter, an effect he realized well since she was a Marked being, and a very special one, on top of that.

"A little to none. I only remember how to pull the strings."

"Well," Sungjae pulled out something he'd been searching for, a golden string bow and wooden arrows. There were stacks of them, placed neatly in a bag. "With time, comes practice. With practice, comes perfection." He handed her the bow and arrows. "Can I trust you with this? To protect yourself from harm when Sehun isn't around."

Hana stared at those things like they were aliens.

"There will come time when you have to stand for yourself instead of clinging to Sehun at all time. I was thinking of giving you sword and let Sehun teaches you, even if it will take years to master it. But since you've learnt archery... And you can't touch blood, I figure this would be best for you."

Her heart was drumming in a very fast pace. What Sungjae said was true. She couldn't depend on Sehun at all time. Hana couldn't be a damsel in distress at all time. Sure, learning and remembering archery all over again would be hard and it would take a long time, but this was better than nothing.

"I will... Well, I must live with this if I want to live..." Hana timidly said and reached out to take the bow and arrows. The bow was surprisingly very light. The arrows might even weighed slightly more. The wood color was a perfect camouflage. It wouldn't stand out much. The string was special. The bold gold color was very rare. She pulled on it.

Sungjae suddenly laughed out loud, "Oh, Hana, dear, do you know what the string is made of?" Hana stopped pulling and glanced at him innocently. "It's made of a dragon beard. An old Chinese ball, that was what I called the dragon." Hana's eyes widened. "But he's dead now, of course."

There was no sign of remorse in his eyes. No trace of sadness in his expression. He reminded her a bit of Sehun. Cold, hard, strong, but emotionless.

"This life isn't easy, Hana. The first few years, you will hunk solely on the whole immortality idea. But after a few centuries, it becomes so plain and boring. You keep on repeating the same routine again. And it all becomes meaningless."

Hana looked at him. It was true what he said theoretically. She wanted to live. She hadn't seen enough, hadn't really tasted the world's cruelty yet. But for now... Really just for now, she wanted to live up a little, be a little braver, smile a little more... And let go of those that didn't deserve her the way she was...

***

"Kris."

Kris stared at the man he dreaded the most. Jaejoong stepped inside his house, his face dark and grim, a face so unpleasant that Kris himself, felt the feeling swirling inside him like poison. He hated it.

"My house is off-limit for the Shadows," Kris stated. It was true that Kris was overly protective about his territorial. "Apparently you don't get the message very well, blood er." Jaejoong hissed.

"If it weren't for Sehun, I wouldn't be here. He broke the rule by bringing a human, a Marked being, to the Shadow world. And that human, happens to be mine!" Jaejoong growled. He rarely got pissed, but when he did, it was utterly horrifying. Kris stood his ground, but he wouldn't lie about the fear creeping slowly to his heart.

"And?" Kris asked back, "What do you want me to do, then? I've got things that I think is more important than your petty brotherly fight."

"Petty, you said?" Jaejoong repeated, his eyes flashing dangerous. He clenched his hands to two tight fists, ready to punch anyone nearby. "This matter can be huge. If I don't get the girl in a few days, I will throw a war to those who stand my way. And that includes you, and your other Fallen friends. Don't think I won't fight the Elders and other clan leaders for this matter. She is my mate. I have to claim her before Sehun does!"

And there, Jaejoong finally said it. The girl, the final piece to his rightful throne. If he couldn't get the girl before Sehun, then all his efforts would be wasted. And besides... This girl could be his one true mate. He couldn't lose her. Even the thought of it sent cold shivers down his spine.

"What a disgusting, filthy thought," Kris coldly spoke, "It's nothing short of what I expected from you." Jaejoong silently glared at Kris. He didn't want to fight him because their abilities were on the same level. Such a shame Kris had to leave the elvish clan. He might just be next in line to be the leader.

"However..." Kris continued, "I have promised to help you. I can't risk a war at hand. But if you do insist on that, I'll kill you first beforehand." Jaejoong's lips curved up a sadistic smirk. Yes, he'd like to have that kind of bloody fight with Kris someday. "What do you want me to do?"

"Well, firstly, I'd like a Portal to the other world. And you must go with me."

Kris didn't need to question Jaejoong any further. This greedy man only had two purposes in his head. One, to kill his brother. Two, to find his mate. And so, with a simple wave of hand, a small storm was pulsing above his palm, before the size grew to the same height as Kris. "Think of a place."

Jaejoong hissed and grabbed Kris by his arms. Kris, who seemed utterly disgusted by this act, kept quiet until he felt the familiar nauseating sensation and the world went spinning around. He didn't have the time to grab his weapon, but that didn't matter much. Kris was as dangerous as he was, with or without weapon.

When his feet touched the ground again, he looked at a very familiar black castle. Jaejoong smirked. His castle was as gloomy as he remembered it to be. It looked the same as how the fairy tale book had described it. The vampires castle was built above a lake, and the sky was forever dark. There would be no sun in this place.

"Home sweet home."