“Jiyong.” Taeyeon said hollowly, eyeing her lover with hurt eyes.

“Tell me what Kiko said isn't true.” Jiyong's voice was eerily calm. “Tell me she's ing lying, Kim Taeyeon.” Taeyeon couldn't read Jiyong's face for once. It was smooth as porcelain, never breaking in it's facade.

“You would take a ’s word over my word?” Taeyeon's voice trembled.

“Just tell me if she's right!” Jiyong threw Kiko to the side and roared, storming over to grab her wrists, not caring that his outburst had caused Chaeyin to burst into tears. Youngbae grabbed her sisters, pulling them out of the room, and a part of her was grateful none of them were to witness the confrontation that might happen next.

Taeyeon felt tears prick her eyes.

“So what if she is?” She breathed the words that sealed her fate, and she watched as Jiyong recoil with horror, his face cracking to the hurt beneath. Tears watered her eyes. “I still love you, Jiyong.”

“You lied to me!” The horror and hurt in his voice pained her. “I thought..I thought you and Seunghyun had---”

“Neither of us could go through with it.” Taeyeon whispered, hands reaching to cup his face, only for Jiyong to recoil back. “I couldn't do that to you. I love you too much to give myself to someone else.” Jiyong shook his head.

“Jiyong..” Taeyeon felt her breath hitch.

“Don't.” Jiyong grabbed his head in agony. “Don't!” He screamed at her, eyes flaring a solid bright gold.

“She lied to you. No one lies to someone like you. A prince of your pedigree.” Kiko slowly picked herself up from the ground. “It's an insult.”

“Shut up!” Jiyong roared back at her, spittle flying from his lips. “You are no better!” His eyes darted wildly about, crazily. “Don't think I don't know what you were trying to do, Mizuhara!”

“I just wanted you to know the truth.” Kiko smiled coyly. “My every intention for you is as pure as snow.” She smiled slyly. “You can ask Sha.” Taeyeon's veins turned cold as the familiar looking dark mass billowed from Jiyong's necklace.

“Well, I can definitely vouch that Kiko's intentions are as pure as mine.” The demon crooned.

“Which I know you don't have either!” Jiyong snapped. “None of your intentions by staying by my side are pure at all, Sha.” The demon clamped his mouth reluctantly. “Don't think I don't know.” Sha shrugged.

“It's..not so bad, Jiyong.” Taeyeon reached towards him, her own heart aching in her chest as she watched Jiyong's torn expression. “You didn't know, and it's my fault I didn't say anything.” She sighed contentedly as he allowed her to make contact with his face gently. “I have as much blame as you do for killing our son.” Jiyong tore his face from her hands, taking a heavy step back.

“It's not..it's not..” He struggled with the correct words to use, his own tears gathering in his eyes. “All this time..” He sounded broken, and his cracking tone tore at Taeyeon's heartstrings. “I thought I was being better than him. That monster of a father that had always tried to kill me. I always tried to be..better.   To tell myself that I wasn't a monster. And then, now you tell me that I've  done what he always tried to do” His voice grew high pitched and hysterical. “I killed my own  child with my own hands!” He glared at Taeyeon through his hands, both still clasping his head in silent and pained agony. “Why didn't you tell me?” He straightened slightly, his eyes widening to a solid gold, childlike and yet horrifying at the same time as he made his conclusion. “It's your fault I'm a monster.” Taeyeon flinched at his words, taking in his sudden change in attitude and petulant voice. “You didn't tell me! It's all your ing fault!” His voice rose to a whine, and Taeyeon felt tears of frustration and helplessness prick her eyes.

I did.

She wanted to scream.

I wanted to stop you. I tried to stop you. I begged you.

Remember?

But you didn't listen.

She reached out a hand, only for Jiyong to shrink back, eyes half confused and narrowed.

“That's right.” Kiko purred softly, draping her arms gently over Jiyong, and Taeyeon's skin crawled. “It's all her fault.” A dark glow lit in her purple irises, and suddenly, Taeyeon's mouth clamped shut, her feet sticking to the floor. She couldn't move a muscle, let alone speak, and watched in horror and silence as Kiko shot her a sickening sweet smile, pulling Jiyong's hand gently as she took him away from her.

~~~~~~

“That was a surprisingly well played act, my dear Princess.” Sha watched as Kiko gently lowered an unconscious Jiyong to the wide bed, the mammoth size of the bedspreads immediately dwarfing his form. “Even I wouldn't have been able to pull off such a stunt and cause the emotional breakdown needed for Jiyong to succumb to our Demon King.” He chuckled. Kiko glared at him.

“You had that secret with you for years. But you didn't tell him either. So what's in it for you, watching Jiyong struggle with the demon king inside of him?” Sha grinned wolfishly at her question.

“You're young still, my dear Princess, so you don't realise, the true pleasures of demons is not when you kill someone or force someone to make a choice.” He cast his hand vaguely over Jiyong's still form. “It's only when you see someone battle with their innate nature and instinct to cling desperately to be another person----then you'll realise you've gotten a wonderful prey. Because when they realise that they can't escape from their fate and become who they desperately do not want to be, the revelation shatters them. It destroys them till there's nothing left. “ He grinned at the girl seated next to Jiyong. “Just like our sweet precious Jiyong.”  He blew a low note, a demon hum into the ears off the unconscious male and Jiyong's fingers twitched.

“What did you do?” Kiko panicked at the sudden jerk of Jiyong's fingertips. “He's not supposed to come out of his cocoon state yet!”

Sha grinned, somersaulting through the air

“I merely called out to him. He responds to his own kind’s call, Kiko.” Sha responded calmly, eyes never leaving the twitching fingers of Jiyong. “You'll see.”

Kiko shrieked as Jiyong suddenly bolted up in bed, his spine straightening like a ramrod and his dark fringe spilling over his eyes.

“My Lord.” Sha took on a fluid human form and knelt. “It's time for you to wake.” Jiyong raised a hand to his face, the soft downy hairs of his fringe mildly caressing his fingertips. His wide palm covered almost half of his face, and a odd but sinister grin spread across his face. The long lashes adorning his eyes fluttered and slowly opened, his teeth glinting sharply in the soft light, and Kiko in a deep breath.

His irises were a solid brilliant gold, specked with his old dusty brown, reminiscent of his more human days.

He grinned a sharp wide grin directly at Sha, eyes wide and half with rage and insanity.

“Aiyo, Sha.” The corners of his mouth quirked upwards, and he slowly bent his index finger downwards, thumb pressing hard on the finger near it's knuckle, the rest of thin lanky fingers spreading out slowly.

Crack.

The finger dislocated itself forcefully.

Jiyong tilted his head slightly, no sign of pain in his clear gold but brown specked eyes.