Granted, the only thing that meant was that they started going out at night instead. It was still warm, but with the sun gone, Yoongi was less irritable from the lack of combined heat and the light. It also meant that they were more likely to run into interesting people along the way. In the weeks that followed, Hunters were not an uncommon appearance, and Jungkook became privy to a wider cast of individuals who mostly… prowled at night.

                On more than one occasion, he flinched when a trio of gargoyles, of all things, flew overhead on surprisingly quiet wings. They were an oddity for sure but having finally ventured from their long-time home in an old cemetery, they followed the human that had piqued their interest. According to Yoongi, Jonghyun was also from a smaller city on the main continent. He could have moved to Guanhai but he apparently liked the idea of a new start in Tradeborough, a city historically renowned for humans and magical creatures living together. That didn’t make the shock of seeing gargoyles flying overhead any less surprising but it was pretty cool to Jungkook.

                He also saw a human that looked slightly demonic if the flash of brimstone-colored eyes was any indication. They were walking with another human though so he couldn’t be sure. When he asked Yoongi about it, the vampire shrugged and waved it off. “So long as it isn’t hurting anyone, best to leave it well enough alone.”

                “But aren’t they… bad?” he couldn’t help but ask with a slight frown.

                Yoongi shrugged again. “Some are. Some aren’t. Much like humans,” he added with a grin that didn’t reach his eyes.

                “Ouch,” Jungkook winced with an equally flat laugh.

                “The bad ones have a knack for drawing attention to themselves. The rest…” he trailed off with a nod in the direction the probable demon had been in.

                When Jungkook looked for himself, the pair were gone. “Huh,” he hummed, scratching at the side of his neck uncertainly. To be fair, those were some of the more interesting creatures he was vaguely introduced to, but one that he would probably work with more often, after the turning anyway, was the local werewolf pack.

                Not surprisingly, they were most active in the evenings and any of their number could be seen racing about the city in either form. One in particular seemed intent upon harrying Yoongi every chance he got, though he never got far. Still, seeing a wolf the size of a large pony come up close at any time was always nerve wracking for Jungkook.

                “!” he yelped again when the looming shadow veered close for the second time that week. Reactively, he grabbed onto Yoongi’s arm and tried to hide behind the vampire before his flight response wore off enough to breathe normally again.

                “It’s alright,” Yoongi promised, patting his mentee’s hand without looking at him, dark eyes shining as he tracked something in the shadows. “It’s just Jackson. Again.”

                “Jackson needs to stop sneaking up on me,” Jungkook grumbled, remaining where he was behind the vampire as he tried to spot the were he was watching. He inhaled slightly when a shadow within the shadows moved and then made a choked surprised sound at the sudden hiss Yoongi issued.

                Jackson yelped and then whined. He slunk into a dim bit of light, the murky darkness of his fur obvious for a second longer before he flattened his ears with his head hung low and then slunk off with a low tail. Yoongi huffed once and shook his head. “You’d think he was still a pup with how he tries to play with everyone.”

                Reluctantly, Jungkook eased himself back into place at Yoongi’s side, though he left one hand lightly clinging to the vampire’s sleeve for extended reassurance. He saw Yoongi notice but was grateful when he didn’t say anything about it. “If he’s not a pup, how does he rank in the pack?”

                Yoongi barked a laugh and answered, “Second if you were going by strength. It’s true that Taeyang is considered the Alpha but he does not call himself as such. And Jackson is a step under him. They’re all as big as he is though. Well, almost. Joy is the youngest but she’s still growing and even she is the size of a small pony.”

                “Yeesh,” Jungkook grimaced, rubbing at his arm reflexively. “I know you’re strong but why was he so scared of you if he’s the second in the pack?” he asked, feeling both secure in that thought and slightly nervous. His fingers tightened on Yoongi’s sleeve almost unconsciously.

                “In his wolf form, he’s fast but not a good fighter. No match for a Rank 3 vampire,” Yoongi explained as if he was stating mere fact. “In his were form, he might offer a challenge, but he knows better than to pick a fight with me. Wonho will play with him sometimes and it apparently gives them ideas when it comes to other vampires,” he huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

                “Oh,” Jungkook hummed, letting himself drift just a bit closer to Yoongi. He was at least a little happy when he thought he saw the side of the vampire’s mouth tick up once in the beginnings of a smile.

                “Come on then. Let’s continue our stroll of the buffer zone,” he grinned, turning his face to the night sky as he let the weak moonlight bathe his pale skin.

                Personally, Jungkook loved it when he did that. The vampire looked luminous in those moments. His hair shone like spun silver and his face had a soft glow that was almost magical. “Sure,” he hummed in agreement, belatedly shaking himself free of his hypnosis before Yoongi could look over and see his expression.

                For a while, that was the most notable encounter Jungkook could recall, but their strangest one came in July, only a few weeks before he was scheduled to be turned. The evening started off like normal, but as they made their way through the last of the Buffer Zone and into the outskirts of the Green Zone, he felt Yoongi’s demeanor change. It was like the air itself shifted and a stillness fell over the vampire that even Jungkook could see. “What is it?” he whispered, informed enough to not raise his voice when the vampire acted like this.

                “Shh,” was Yoongi’s quiet response with a finger over his lips. He dropped his hand and gently grabbed Jungkook’s wrist to pull him closer. “There’s an Exile nearby,” he warned, the explanation enough to make Jungkook’s stomach drop.

                He inhaled in surprise and clapped a hand over his mouth to make sure he didn’t make any further sound. Instead, he shifted closer to Yoongi and tried to see what the vampire saw. His sight was still terrible at night but it explained the different feel in the air. He also figured there might be something more to the situation than just an Exile though. Yoongi would have been nervous about it but he probably would have played it cool. After all, the Exiles mostly liked to tease, despite or perhaps because of their sheer power.

                “There’s something else here,” he whispered, answering Jungkook’s unspoken question. “Come on,” he urged, pulling his mentee’s hand closer as a whisper of sound unfurled behind him.

                Jungkook’s skin tingled from being so close to Yoongi. His back prickled from the vampire’s cloak swirling behind him protectively. And he had a nervous ball of tension in his gut from the possibility of an Exile and something else being nearby. He wanted to scream from the sheer tension of it all, but he bit his tongue instead.

                “There,” Yoongi hissed quietly as he pointed ahead, his finger tracking a pair of gold dots in the darkness.

                Inhaling and holding his breath, Jungkook tracked the gold and only belatedly realized they were eyes. “What is-” He stiffened entirely when Yoongi’s hand reached up to cover his mouth as he pulled him down and enfolded them in his cloak, leaving a mere slit to see through as they hid beneath the inky folds.

                Branches shook and crackled slightly. Footsteps sounded in the distance. The sound of a heavy breath and a panicked run. More footsteps. A desperate gasp as something whistled before glancing off the cloak as the golden eyes moved their direction. Jungkook flinched and made a muffled sound in the back of his throat.

                It died entirely when a new voice emerged from the darkness. “Not the best place to stop.”

                Beside him, even Yoongi tensed as another shadow floated by and then turned into the form of a… an Exile. Golden eyes froze in surprise or fear and then Jungkook could see movement behind him. At least two figures, one much larger than the other. It had to be a magical creature.

                As casually as if he was taking a stroll, the Exile seemed to float over the ground to gently guide golden eyes behind him while he batted away the next projectile with transparent ease. “My my,” he purred, obviously taking in the appearances of the two before him. “What would poachers like you be doing out here?” he wondered, an almost childish lilt to his voice.

                “That’s Kazuya,” Yoongi murmured in obvious confusion, no doubt talking about the golden eyed man hiding behind the Exile. Shadows moved in the darkness and became partially visible. Jungkook could only see their outline, one humanoid and one cat looking creature, but Yoongi obviously had a better line of sight. “Rakshasa,” he hissed, the sound closer to a growl.

                Jungkook would have bet money they were about on par with a wendigo for degree of likeability.

                “We’ve no quarrel with you, Exile,” the rakshasa growled, tail twitching catlike behind it.

                “Oh, but I’ve a quarrel with you if you are truly chasing this lovely creature behind me,” he grinned, liquid shadow pouring from his back in a form similar to Yoongi’s cloak. “You and your friends,” he added, the smile still obvious in his voice as the cloak split into two and disappeared into the darkness to snag something. Two yelps emerged before two bodies followed and tumbled to their feet when they were thrown near the other visible poachers. The rakshasa growled reactively, earning the Exile’s laughter. “Oh no!” he feigned in mock fear and laughed. “One, two, three, four poachers,” he counted, his pale hand dancing in the moonlight. “This might actually be fun.”

                The humanoid beside the rakshasa reached a hand to place on its arm and shook her head. “It’s not worth it right now,” she explained, her voice just barely reaching where Yoongi and Jungkook were huddled.

                “Right now?” the Exile questioned, head tilting to the side curiously. “Oh no, no, no,” he corrected, shaking a finger at them. “Not ever,” he promised, seeming to disappear in a puff of black smoke. All four stepped back defensively. Darkness bloomed behind them and the center two promptly flew through the air backwards. They screamed reactively but before the other two could even start to respond, they too were launched away, one after the other.

                In front of their hiding spot, golden eyes crouched low and looked around defensively, tracking the sounds as the encounter wound down as quickly as it had started. Jungkook felt like he might explode from his sheer inability to see what was going on. All he had were the sounds of rustling brush and pained or surprised cries and he could only wonder if they’d be next for some reason.

                And then, just like that, the Exile popped back into view in front of them. Several yards behind golden eyes but in clear sight. Languidly, he stretched his arms above his head and made a relaxed sound. “Enough play time. Run along little poachers,” he called, looking over his shoulder. “Know that this one is under my protection,” he called, his voice turning hard on the following comment. “Try again, and next time we won’t be playing.” He tilted his head to listen and nodded when he was satisfied they were gone.

                “Yixing,” the golden eyed man called uncertainly as he stood up to meet the Exile when he approached.

                “Kazuya, my dear. You could have told me poachers were onto you sooner you know,” he chided, actually patting the other man on the head in a reassuring manner.

                “That would imply a favor from an Exile,” he responded, carefully ducking out from under the Exile’s hand. “A dangerous thing to have hanging over one’s head,” Kazuya explained as his golden eyes faded to a more normal brown color.

                “Ugh,” the Exile groaned, rolling his eyes in a very human gesture. “I meant what I said. If I have to get rid of this batch of poachers permanently too, I will,” he shrugged like he was talking about an amusing but potentially troublesome pest in one’s backyard.

                “I shall simply hope it does not have to come to that,” Kazuya answered with a polite bow.

                “Fine, fine you irritatingly honorable creature,” he laughed, shooing the other man away with his hands like fluttering butterflies. “Off with you. I imagine you’re busy and I’ve another matter to attend to.” Kazuya raised a brow questionably and then sniffed as if he was testing for something. “Go on,” Yixing added once more with another shooing gesture.

                Kazuya pursed his lips and let his eyes wander once before he focused on the Exile again and pointed, “Be nice.”

                “When am I not?” he asked innocently. At Kazuya’s glance towards the space where the Exile had just beaten the poachers into submission, he grinned. “That’s different.” But the other man didn’t press the point before he turned to head into the city boundaries at a reasonably fast pace. When he was gone, Yixing moved again and Jungkook couldn’t stop his panicked bleat of sound when the vampire squatted to peer into the slat of Yoongi’s protective cloak. “I told you this wasn’t a good place to hide,” he grinned, tapping on the barrier in such a way that it shuddered and seemed to unravel upon an unspoken command.

                Yoongi winced at the forced break of his defenses and stood up to push Jungkook behind him. “You didn’t leave me much choice, Yixing,” he explained, ending with the name in a stiff greeting.

                “You could have run away,” the Exile shrugged, leaning to get a better look at Jungkook behind him. It made Jungkook nervous and he tried to sink lower to not be so obvious a target.

                “I could have,” Yoongi admitted, stepping so that he interrupted the Exile’s line of sight again. “But with me being in the Coven and you being an Exile, I am practically bound to keep an eye on you when you’re in the city,” he explained as flippantly as he could. Jungkook could tell he was putting on a brave front.

                “Ah. But you’ve got new blood tonight. That should have been reason enough to flee,” he crooned, swaying to the other side to peer at Jungkook over Yoongi’s shoulder.

                Yoongi sidestepped to intervene again. “And because I have new blood with me tonight, it was even more reason to stay. Knowing you, you would have handled things here and still followed us to see for yourself,” he grumbled resignedly.

                Yixing audibly sighed and laughed once. “You know me too well, Yoongi. I am curious about this one,” he added, fading to smoke in front of them.

                Part of Jungkook knew the Exile was moving closer to him. Probably behind him. Another part of him realized Yoongi was trying to do the same. And yet, neither realization helped stifle the sheer fear that rose up as pointed fingertips touched his shoulders and a presence appeared at his back. Prickles like knives jabbed at the back of his neck and he tried to lean forward and away while his eyes widened reactively.

                “Yixing!” Yoongi snarled as his cloak wrapped around Jungkook and swung him behind while he stepped into the space the human had been in. It brought him face to face with the Exile himself.

                “Oh! So touchy,” Yixing smiled under the short fluff of his brown bangs, more amused than offended.

                Jungkook’s heart hammered in his chest as he nearly forgot to breathe. His arms were pinned to his sides while he was wrapped in the cloak, but Yoongi was between him and the Exile again, allowing him to relax just a touch.

                “Don’t,” Yoongi said simply, the single word more like a plea than a demand.

                The Exile’s smile softened then and he looked at Jungkook once, the expression searching more than anything. Then he focused on Yoongi again and sighed, “I hope this one treats you better than the last. Then again, that would also require you to take care of him too,” he shrugged, leaning so close their noses almost touched. To his credit, Yoongi didn’t flinch. “Oh, you’re getting better at this,” Yixing grinned, sincere façade breaking as he closed the distance between them to steal a quick kiss and then vanished with a strange whooshing sound.

                “Gyah…” Yoongi gasped as he stepped back while the cloak around Jungkook loosened quickly. He scrubbed at his lips once and then turned to steady Jungkook with one hand, his other rising to cup his cheek. “Are you okay?” he asked, visibly scouring his body inch by inch to make sure for himself he was unharmed.

               Jungkook didn’t actually know. He couldn’t have said anything if he wanted to, both from the run in with the Exile and then the desperate fear on Yoongi’s face as he looked at him. Fear for him.

               “Your heart’s beating so fast,” the vampire frowned as he rested the hand that was on Jungkook’s shoulder on his chest instead. His brow creased with worry as he stared at where Jungkook’s heart would be before looking up to meet his dark eyes.

                It was too much. Jungkook took a small breath and stepped forward to throw his arms around the vampire, holding tight as if Yoongi was his only anchor in the world.

                “Jungkook?” Yoongi whispered, hands tentatively resting on his side and shoulder.

                “Just hold me right now,” he pleaded, ducking his face into Yoongi’s shoulder as he closed his eyes and let the vampire’s solid presence ground him in that moment. “Please,” he added, his voice muffled against the fabric of his shirt.

                “Okay,” Yoongi answered a half-second later. One hand settled firm around his back and the other gently caressed the back of his head and neck.

                The tension he was feeling bled away like water running off his skin. His heartbeat slowed down as well, returning to a more normal pace. And in its wake came the low of crashing adrenaline. Jungkook exhaled and swallowed hard, turning his head to rest it on Yoongi’s shoulder like a pillow.

                “You’re okay,” Yoongi soothed, the back of Jungkook’s head with a light hand. “You can rest now if you want. I’ll get us home safely,” he promised.

                Fragments of reluctant thought rose up to try and argue the point. He didn’t need to sleep… He didn’t want to burden Yoongi like that… He’d be fine in a minute… But all of them stayed shuttered behind his lips as he simply nodded and whispered, “Okay.”

                Yoongi’s touch was feather soft as he whispered, “Sleep now.” And just like that, Jungkook did.

                Claws out, fangs bared, and cloak writhing behind him like a living monstrosity, Yoongi tore at Namjoon with reckless abandon and frantic energy. The open space of the basement swallowed most of the sounds of their combat. Despite their frenzy, it was almost eerily quiet beyond the whisper of cloth and the rapid intake of breath from surprise or pain.

                Sharp nails grazed past well fitted clothes. A near miss. A snap of Yoongi’s lighter dropped him into the shadow realms. He popped out again behind the coven leader, striking fast. Namjoon’s cloak twitched to attack in return and Yoongi darted aside, moving faster than the human eye could easily follow.

                Namjoon kept pace with him and landed a glancing blow to his shoulder with a loose fist. Yoongi stumbled aside but righted himself quickly, cloak flapping like wings to launch him back at the elder vampire. Namjoon held his ground and locked fists with his coven member. The fact the vampire lord had more strength than Yoongi only served to irritate him further and he threw a tentacle volley of cloak attacks at his opponent, scowling when each was batted away with minimal effort. He grunted with wide eyes when Namjoon suddenly ‘pushed’ him away, freeing his feet from the floor for a second.

                “Dammit!” Yoongi snarled, landing in a slightly crouched position. When he tried to sprint forward again, he growled as his feet remained planted. Dark eyes flashed when he saw Namjoon’s hands moving, accompanying the shifting shadows at their feet. Frustrated, he tore at the floor with his claws and shredded some of the shadows binding him in place.

                “Enough, Yoongi,” Namjoon called softly, jumping back on light feet when the younger vampire followed doggedly.

                “No it’s not!” he snapped in response, closing at last to exchange a flurry of claw strikes. In close quarters, the strength difference wasn’t quite as obvious. Block, block, strike, duck, strike, lunge! The sound of cloth tearing followed closely by the scent of blood that wasn’t his made Yoongi’s eyes widen in surprise.

                “Enough!” Namjoon stated again, sharper this time as he used Yoongi’s moment of hesitation. One powerful hand grabbed the younger vampire’s throat and forcefully guided him to the ground. “Stop,” he commanded, staring into Yoongi’s eyes intently.

                The coven leader’s power sank into him and made movement impossible, despite his fluttering rage. Pinned and his momentum slain, he finally let the excess energy bleed from him, leaving him feeling weak and… troubled. “Ugh,” he groaned, scrubbing both hands over his face when Namjoon stood up and relaxed his command.

                “Well. Now that that’s out of your system…” he trailed off, brushing at his sleeves and eyeing the tear with a thoughtful look. “Care to talk about it?”

                “Not really,” Yoongi grumbled without looking up.

                “Yoongi,” the other vampire warned.

                Taking an unnecessary breath, Yoongi dropped his arms and tilted his head to look at Namjoon. The vampire lord knew he’d run into an Exile but that was about it. The encounter had left him more wound than he cared to admit and he knew it had to do with Jungkook, but he didn’t want to really explore why. At least not deeply. But Namjoon was also not a fool. Two and two would always equal four around him… At least he could start with something easy first though. “Kamenashi Kazuya is something special,” he explained, relaxing further so that he could pull out the bolt he’d retrieved after the poachers had hit his cloak.

                Namjoon hummed in the back of his throat and accepted the bolt with slender careful fingers, eyeing it intently as he did so. “I’ve suspected as much for a little while. What did you see?” he asked, storing the bolt in his own pocket instead.

                “Golden eyes and he refused to transform into his natural form even under duress,” he added, sitting up to loop his arms around his knees, hands clasped in front of him. Namjoon nodded for him to continue when it was obvious he was holding something back. “Yixing said he’s under his protection too. He’s probably the reason the last batch of poachers just disappeared.”

                “That is interesting,” Namjoon nodded with a curious smile. It was well known the Exiles did not take a personal interest in anyone unless they were interesting or… exceedingly rare. “We’ll have to see what we can find.” His silence was not encouraging though. As soon as he filed that bit of information away for later, his thoughts came back to the more delicate matter of Yoongi’s trainee. Namjoon took a small breath as he easily collapsed in front of Yoongi to sit before him in a relaxed pose. “So…” he prompted, hand gesturing for Yoongi to tell him the rest of the story.

                He really didn’t want to. Staring at the snowy-haired vampire, he made a face but then exhaled in frustration. “He put his hands on Jungkook. Wanted to taste him,” he scowled, fangs lengthening reflexively at the memory. It was fortunate Jungkook hadn’t been able to see it, but Yoongi would not soon forget Yixing’s partially open mouth and pointed fangs just ready to nip at the bare skin of his mentee’s flawless neck. He frowned slightly at the choice of flawless in his mental description and shook his head when Namjoon responded.

                “Rude but not entirely unexpected from an Exile,” he grimaced. “They try because they can.”

                “I know!” Yoongi snapped, flexing his hands in useless irritation.

                “Touchy,” Namjoon laughed once, his smile widening when Yoongi glared at him for it. “Oh. Yixing said that too, didn’t he?”

                “Shut up,” Yoongi grumbled, looking away.

                “You could just consider it a good thing that you like him at least a little bit,” the elder vampire shrugged, hands gesturing to either side of him. It earned him another glare that made him laugh once more. “That’s right,” he chuckled, placing the back of his hand to his forehead and leaning his head back. “You’re the tragic vampire who can’t let anyone get close to him.”

                “I’m not that dramatic,” Yoongi muttered in faint disgust.

                “But you’re not denying it either,” Namjoon retorted as he dropped his hand and resumed his relaxed pose. “Besides, I’m still here.”

                “You don’t count,” he shot back without looking at him.

                “Oof! I would be hurt if I didn’t know better,” the vampire lord tsked, shaking a finger at him. Yoongi didn’t respond beyond waving a dismissive hand at him. “Ah well. If nothing else, you did successfully protect your ward from the Exile and brought him back safely, so there’s something to be said for that,” Namjoon encouraged, standing up and brushing at his clothes out of habit. “And he’ll be turning next month which should allow you to be less antsy.”

                “If he still wants to turn after this,” he couldn’t help but say in a slightly dejected tone.

                “Have a little faith, youngling,” Namjoon laughed once as he literally patted Yoongi on the head. It made Yoongi swipe at the hand but it was gone before he could hit it. “And go check on him after you eat something. You know it’ll make you feel better,” he added as he turned to head up the stairs and out of the basement.

                Yoongi wanted to gripe at him more but with no target left, he had only his thoughts and all they entailed. Namjoon could read him pretty well, and he trusted the vampire lord, but even he wouldn’t easily admit just how worried he’d been about Jungkook after Yixing left. He could still hear the hammering sound of his heart echoing in his ears. Could still feel the warmth of Jungkook’s breath against his shoulder, and the frightened but relieved press of his body as he held tight.

                It was impossible not to notice that the human was interested in him too. And that made it all the more difficult to keep him at arm’s length. His track record with mentees was not good. Despite that, it was hard to not want to get close to Jungkook. He made it so easy… but humans were easily attracted to the mystery of a vampire. They were curious or sometimes inadvertently hypnotized by them. And part of him was certain that Jungkook’s interest would fade when he turned. The mystery wasn’t as compelling when one was a vampire after all.

                “Just a few more weeks,” he reminded himself, chewing on his bottom lip distractedly. Then Jungkook would turn – hopefully – and there’d be a new dynamic to figure out. But for now… he was feeling antsy with not having checked in on him since they got back. Was he sleeping well? If Yixing gave him nightmares, he was going to have to… do something to the Exile to make him pay. Or something. “Ugh!” he groaned, pressing on his temples with his palms before he stood up and hurried to go get food at least. “Idiot,” he grumbled to himself as he went up the stairs.

(a/n: The gargoyles mentioned here feature in a oneshot I've done previously and are with the Nu'est boys. haha If you're interested in the link, you can check out the story here: https://www.asianfanfics.com/story/view/1041607/gargoyles-and-spirits Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!)