Vengence is like a poison. It eats you from the inside – it nibbles gently at first, then begins to gnaw at you, and then swallows you whole before you even realize that you have given yourself up. It blinds you – all you can see is the injutice done to you. It makes your blood boil, and your entire being craves to make others suffer.

Why should you be the only one who suffers in this life?

Others must suffer.... others must suffer as much as you have.

The wolf was kind to them, though – they were put out of their misery in a few hours. He was not.

His senses sharp, he heard the crack of twigs beneath a pair of feet he knew very well. The boy was looking for him.

As though by reflex, the wolf moved away from the boy. He wasn't about to go back there, with his head bowed and his tail tucked between his legs. There was one quote he liked to keep in mind: 'The lion and the tiger might be more powerful, but the wolf does not perform in the circus.'

Let me stay here a while longer, he said silently. Please. I have not yet discovered all there is to see in the forest.

He went deeper into the forest, seeking refuge in it's darkness. Twigs cracked again – this time more clumsily. Who dared step foot in his forest? As soon as he could smell that hated scent – the scent of a human – his hackles rose. It was instinctive.

Without his permission, his soul began to scream for more blood.

It was like watching a movie – he felt disconnected with his actions, as the vengence that had already swallowed him up drove him forward, as though he were a puppet controlled by invisible strings.

****

Namjoon sat up in bed as though his pillow had caught fire, his thoughts interrupted.

What was this?

He took a deep breath, and tried to zero in on what had disturbed him so profoundly. Ah... there it was – an overpowering feeling of negativity.

Without thinking about it twice, Namjoon was up in one fluid movement and out the door in the next. It was the wolf – he knew it was.

Maybe this would be the moment he would catch it.

The wolf must have been feeling these negative things very strongly to have affected Namjoon this much – usually he only picked up negative emotions when he concentrated on the person or area.

Mist lay over the ground like a soft, see-through blanket, and drops of silver dew hugged the tips of blades of grass. The moon was just leaving, making way for the rising sun.

He followed the feeling into the forest, going on and on and on, past the heart of the forest where Yoongi lived, to the opposite side. He had rarely been to this part – it was a place both he and Yoongi wanted to avoid. With every step he took, the feeling grew stronger.

Finally, it was so strong that he knew the source of it was close by – very close. Cautiously, he peered through the thicket – and he finally saw it.

A black wolf was crouched over something – what was it?

Namjoon narrowed his eyes, trying to make it out, but it was too far away.

The wolf suddenly stiffened, and turned it's head sharply in his direction. Namjoon froze – had the wolf sensed his presence or smelled it? He didn't smell like a human, the wolf must be puzzled as to what he was.

Puzzled or not, the wolf was off like a shot, streaking through the forest and out of sight before Namjoon could react.

Damn it, how could he have let it get away so quickly? He should have been faster!

Mentally cursing himself, Namjoon hurried to the spot where the wolf had been crouched over. The sight that greeted him as he approached was one which would have curdled any mortal being's blood.

Namjoon couldn't feel anything like that – all he could think about was the great waste of lives this wolf was creating – as of now, it has attacked three people in less than a month.

****

Yoongi could not stay at Su Ji's house since Grandma was coming back.

"Why don't you come to school today?" asked Su Ji as they hurriedly gobbled down their breakfast.

Yoongi shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "Should I?"

"It's been quite a while since you came to class, am I right?"

"Oho," he said with a grin. "Someone has been watching for me. That is a pretty nice way to pass time – daydreaming about me."

She rolled her eyes. "Think whatever you want."

"Don't try to deny the fact that you notice if I am there or not."

Su Ji stood up and gathered her empty plate. "I never denied anything," she said. "And gosh, what happened to you? You don't seem like the type, but you like to tease a lot, don't you?” She took his plate as well and dumped them in the sink – she would to them later. However, she realized that if Grandma saw them she would do them.

She the tap and squeezed some dish soap onto the sponge and began to wash the plate.

Yoongi propped up his head on his hands and watched, but after a minute or two he joined her at the sink, grabbing the dish towel with one hand and a washed plate in the other.

"So you are drying without me telling you to," said Su Ji, handing him the other plate.

"Are you complaining?"

"Hell no," she said, laughing.

"All right, because if you were-"

"I already said I'm not!"

After the dishes were put away, Yoongi realized that he would have to get his uniform from his house – his messy and cluttered house, which would give any rational person an excuse to lecture him on the importance of a hygenic and clean environment.

"I'll just go now and get my unform really quickly," he said, already half way to the door.

"Let me come with you," called Su Ji.

"Why? I'll be right back-"

"I've never seen where you live," she cut in.

"That's ok," he said and there was a hint of nervousness in his voice.

"Well, you have seen the place where I live so its only fair if I get to see yours."

"Trust me, there's nothing to see."

"That makes me want to see it even more!" Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

Yoongi was out the door before she had the chance to insist even more on coming with him – phew, that was close! Anyway, his house was too little to be of any interest, they shoud just stay at her place. Except it would be harder, since her grandmother was coming back this afternoon.

Of course, that was a good thing – it meant her father was well. But at the same time, he was disappointed, because that meant he wouldn't be able to see her as often.

By the time he had finished thinking of all this, he was already home – he had zipped through the forest in record speed. When he opened the door, the sight that greeted him was one that caused dismay – clothes lay strewn across the floor, and packets of food were piled all over the place. Good thing she wasn't coming.

It took a few minutes for him to find his uniform – it was at the bottom of the pile of clothes, and he quickly pulled them on and smoothed the white shirt – aish, it had a stain! But no matter, his blue coat covered it up.

After tying up his shoelaces, he ran back to Su Ji's and met her just as she was getting out the door.

“I was going to come see you,” she said.

“Next time,” he said, making a mental note to clean up sometime soon.

She looked at him again, suspicious.

“We would have been much slower if you came!” he protested. “See, we're already a bit late, where is that Kim Namjoon who'll take us and-”

“He isn't coming,” she said, taking his arm. “He sent me a text saying he wasn't coming to school today.”

Yoongi frowned. “Is he finally going to be a lazy bum and bunk school?”

“I don't know,” she replied, and they started walking down the road. “I guess he does have a lot to do now – you know, what with the attacks.”

Yoongi nodded slowly. “Yeah… I guess he does.”

It was strange… the mention of the attacks sent a kind of numbness to the pit of his stomach. This was all too familiar – it reminded him so much of what had happened a few years ago.

They walked in silence, and she let go of his arm when they reached the bus stop.

“I'll get going now,” said Yoongi.

“Wait, aren't you going to come in the bus?” she asked.

“I don't know...”

“Were you planning to walk all the way?”

He nodd