The liquid was warm as it flowed into Chanyeol's mouth, his eyes clamped shut so that his entire focus was on the animal between his arms. It was limp and dying and even though it's blood was unlike that of what awaited him at school, it would be more than enough to keep his hunger at bay until at least later that week. The soft rustling of the leaves next to him had Chanyeol forcing his eyes open, only for his gaze to land on Kyungsoo and Jongin who were both finished with their meal. The three of them had been lucky enough to have come across a small gathering of wild boar, these creatures of nature were freakishly large. They were hybrid animals, a creature born from an average pig and a more common branch of boar. Chanyeol couldn't help but relate these creatures to his dear younger brother who was often shamed for his mixed blood, many vampires believe in blood purity and only feast on animals from a direct nature line which in turns explains their desire to have pureblood vampires in their family rather than including those who had been turned. It was an old way of thinking -possibly stretching back to the time of the crusades- yet as Chanyeol always liked to remind himself, those old traditions were on their way out of vampire custom. 

Chanyeol obviously thought very differently in comparison to others, he for one treasured his younger brother even if he was the result of his father's betrayal to his Appa. Don't get him wrong Chanyeol started off hating his younger brother as his birth truly symbolized the ending of his parent's marriage, but with age came maturity. Chanyeol learned to understand the position that both Katherine and Suho had found themselves in and instead of fighting for the king's attention, they turned their attention to each other and their children. He was glad in a way that they joined together rather than spending eternity as rivals, he simply couldn't imagine what life would have been like without his brother by his side. 

"Are you finished yet?" Kyungsoo huffed, pouring water from his packed bag over his mate's bloodied hands. Chanyeol released a grunt in response, his tongue savoring the taste of the iron-rich blood. It was something that made hunting animals that much easier than humans. The wild creatures were forced to feed on either meat or leaves and in the wild boars case, the overproduction of dark leafy greens provided these pigs with the suited amount of iron-rich blood which was just perfect for a hunting vampire. Humans either had too much or too little, oftentimes a vampire was better off going 'vegan' than feasting on a mortal with terrible blood. However, that didn't mean that the scent in which their blood carried didn't affect them, it was always tempting (Kyungsoo swore that it was because vampires had been hunting humans for years that their instincts just couldn't help themselves) but most of the time it just wasn't worth the trouble.

"He needs more than we do and you know that." Jongin chuckled while pulling out a handkerchief from Kyungsoo's backpack to dry his cleaned hands. Chanyeol felt the heat of their stare bore holes into his face, morphing his expression from one being filled with bliss to one full of frustration. He hated people watching him feed, he wasn't much of a blood drinker only doing it when absolutely necessary in order to keep his body alive. "We only have a certain amount of hours with the humans, Chanyeol decided that bringing his mate out to eat after school would be a good idea."

"It wasn't mine," Chanyeol growled, finally tossing the carcass of the wild boar to the side. He glanced down at his clothing and was relieved to find that not one single drop of blood had gotten into the fabric, he wasn't in the mood to return home to change even though he knew that they could make it with more than enough time to spare. It was Kyungsoo's idea that they arrive together to hold up the story that they were family members coming from another school, which thankfully wasn't too far past the truth so it would require less acting. Jongin was particularly happy about this rouse, recalling his younger brother's reaction when Katherine explained things to them over dinner the previous night. "Baekhyun wanted to bring me out after school yesterday so that he could catch me up to speed with the school work. I wasn't prepared for that and I couldn't deny him another time so I offered to take him out today, at least I can prepare myself for what I should expect."

"I can't wait to meet him!" Kyungsoo shrieked, jumping up and down happily. Chanyeol watched as his lips curled upwards into a bright smile, his hands clapping together against his chest. Kyungsoo was only ever as happy as this when it was Christmas or when he was tasked with a challenging meal for the castle's inhabits. The Prince of Darkness watched as Jongin's face morphed into that stupid love-struck facial expression that he wore whenever Kyungsoo was around, a shiver running down his spine. It wasn't that he was uncomfortable, he had just seen enough of their love to last him a life-time (and he was a vampire, they had many of those). "What time did you say he usually arrives at?"

"Well for as long as I've known him Yixing has always followed a schedule, since he has been a knight for most of his life I doubt that such a habit would cease to exist. He likes being early but I know that with Baekhyun he allows room for possible delays, if I was to offer a best guess I would assume that Yixing would get them both to school roughly twenty to fifteen minutes before the first bell."

"A bell?" Jongin wondered, tilting his head to the side in confusion. Chanyeol expected nothing less from his younger brother, both of them had been shielded from modern education, their classes had always been run by Minho who would call upon them in their chambers before beginning the lesson which would go on until Chanyeol was called into a meeting or Jongin couldn't concentrate any longer. The young prince was glad that his younger brother would have Kyungsoo with him, as the vampire was the only one out of the three of them who had actually attended school (well the vampire version) before. 

"It will be what controls your day," Kyungsoo explained to his mate in plain Korean, slinging his backpack over his shoulder. "it will determine when we can be dismissed from class in order to attend the next. It will tell us when it is time to eat as well as when the day is finished!"

"I don't know how I feel about living my life according to a bell." The youngest son of the king muttered below his breath. Chanyeol let out a chuckle while Kyungsoo merely rolled his eyes, fed up with his boyfriend's way of thinking. "At least I have some of Kyungsoo's cooking with me, that will at least make the day seem a little brighter!" 

"I'm just glad you agreed to cook for us," Chanyeol bowed his head in thanks to his brother's mate, Kyungsoo's cheeks flaring in embarrassment. It wasn't every day that Chanyeol used his 'princely' voice on him, he had yet to get used to it. "I know that Baekhyun's going to love it!" 

"You sound like you're hoping to fatten him up!" Jongin let out a hysterical laugh, the shriek echoing in Chanyeol's and Kyungsoo's eardrums. They each let out a whine, turning to glare at Jongin who simply shrugged their death stare away.

"You'll understand why when you see him later." Chanyeol whispered below his breath, his eyes trailing off into the distance ahead. They had about an hour before school started and they were just 9 kilometers away from Seoul. At first they figured that they could grab the bus (which would have taken them 58 minutes) but then realised that they had spent so much time trying to find something to hunt that they were better off running.

Running wasn't something that Kyungsoo in particular liked, he often complained about it and how he hated how the fast exercise just made him even more hungry. He had thankfully packed his bag with a few small snacks that he figured he could eat between classes, he knew that Jongin would complain about having no food so he had made sure to pack some extra into his mate's backpack without the youngest son of the king realizing. 

As the three of them took off down the mountain, jumping and dodging roots and branches Kyungsoo couldn't help but remember everything that Chanyeol made sure to tell him that morning at breakfast time. Katherine had made sure to join them in the kitchen wearing her pure white Victorian sleepwear dress, matched with a beautiful navy bathrobe which was very clearly in modern design. Kyungsoo couldn't help but laugh at the memory, recalling how he thought that they looked like an average human family getting ready for school with their single mother. Even though he wasn't apart of their family by blood, being Jongin's mate had a guaranteed entry to the family just like Baekhyun would have even if he was a human. 

This simple fact had Kyungsoo's interest peaked, he had never been around humans long enough to learn about them. He had obviously heard the stories about how humans hunted them for some time, burning them at the stake after labeling them witches which was well off the mark in his opinion. He hoped that Baekhyun wouldn't cause them harm and he certainly hoped that they would get along well, knowing how much it would mean to Chanyeol if they did. 

"I'll race you to the school!" Chanyeol called over his shoulder to them, Kyungsoo blinking himself back into reality. Before he could tell the prince that both he and Jongin didn't know where the school was located, Kyungsoo was left in the dust after both of the king's son ran off in hopes of getting there first. 

He let out a howl of laughter before picking up his speed, the last thing he wanted to do was be left behind to find the school all on his own. Thankfully he managed to catch up to them quite quickly, possibly the fastest that he has ran in his long life. They were off the mountain by now and making their way into the city center were Kyungsoo could only assume the school building was located, since he had never been this deep into human territory before. 

They didn't need to worry about being seen by the humans since they were running so quickly that it was physically impossible for a mortal's eye to catch them. However what the prince and his brother didn't account for was that their sudden appearance could cause the humans to question their eyesight, so Kyungsoo did the only smart thing available to them at that very moment. He started to slow down after his family turned the corner, he jogged at a more human sped. 

He watched with pursed lips as Chanyeol and Jongin shoved each other out of the way as they rushed through the school gates, Kyungsoo rolled his eyes having suspected something like this to happen in the beginning. He followed behind them, keeping to a more humane pace as he entered into the parking lot. To Kyungsoo's relief there wasn't that many students present but they had turned their attention to the three of them, this just made the anxiety in Kyungsoo's stomach to bubble over. 

"What the hell is wrong with the two of you?" he hissed, keeping his voice down as he attempted to smile at the few students who looked in their general direction. "You could have caused a scene, outed our existence to everyone here! Chanyeol you're lucky that Baekhyun wasn't here to see that, your mate may be human but you said that he's too clued in! Jongin must I remind you that winning a made up race is fine as long as no one knows how on earth you've done it!"

"Relax Soo, we just got carried away from all the energy we now have. I promise we won't place ourselves in danger again. It was a one time thing and now that we got it out of our system we can move on and forget that it ever happened!" Chanyeol announced, seemingly liking the sound of his own voice. His back was straighter, his head was held a little higher and his chest was puffed out. His eyes were crinkled and his lips were pulled back into that devilish smile that Suho had been warned about ever since Chanyeol was young, the prince was by all means attractive and almost everyone in the vampire world expected him to turn out like a player. 

Kyungsoo shared the same relief as Katherine and Suho did when Chanyeol seemed to have little to no interest in anyone apart from his mate, but the young prince had yet to control his actions. If he listened hard enough Kyungsoo was pretty sure that the girls who were trying so hard to look natural were telling each other just how they were going to get into Chanyeol's pants, it made him a little uncomfortable but he supposed that it was a feeling he would have to get used to over the coming days. After all if they switched their gazes to Jongin then he would have to get involved. 

"Are you going to show us to the office now or not?" Kyungsoo snapped himself out of his thoughts, craning his head back to look at the prince whose gaze quickly scanned the parking lot.

"I can show you guys around but I literally only know the way around my classes, when Baekhyun arrives I'm sure he can show you the proper way. But for now let's get your schedules and your lockers!"

"So not only will I be ordered around by a bell but now I have a set schedule? Kyung I don't think I can do it!" Jongin dramatically sighed, the back of his palm hitting against his forehead. Kyungsoo stared at his mate in utter confusion, possibly wondering how on earth the universe thought that Kim Jongin was the right one for him. He wasn't allowed to issue his response since Chanyeol had taken a good grip onto his shoulder and led them both into the school hallways.

Now, Kyungsoo had gone to school before (granted it was with a bunch of other vampires) but he was pretty sure that the attention he and his family members were receiving right now was unlike anything before. Students were crowding in the hallways, their jaws hanging open as Chanyeol continued to push him and Jongin through the crowd. Kyungsoo made sure to take in everyone's appearance. He could tell who belonged to the popular group and who was interested in music, anime and mangas. He found himself offering a small smile to anyone who seemed nervous about them, he hoped that his grin would make them feel at ease. There was no way any of their trio would be getting themselves involved with other humans in this school, they were here for Byun Baekhyun and Baekhyun only. It didn't seem that different from his old school though. 

"Oh what did I do in my previous life to have such beautiful men attend our school?" A girl with pigtails gasped to her friend who appeared to be frozen in her spot by her locker. Kyungsoo followed Chanyeol and Jongin's lead and ignored her. They knew they were attractive, it came with being vampires. They had to appear good looking to others so that they could lure them in and feast on them, although thankfully that tradition has long since been abolished.

"Do Kyungsoo and Kim Jongin?" The woman sitting behind the desk asked without looking up from her computer screen. Kyungsoo quickly sent a glance around the room, the office in which this lady worked was quite small but apparently she made the most of it. He noted that she had a child from the various drawing hanging around the walls, each one titled with the name 'Adam' in different colours crayons. A small smile pulled up on his lips as he approached her desk, hands curling over the ledge of the counter. 

"That's us ma'am." he smiled and bowed politely, happily accepting the pile of papers she had held out for him. He noticed the cute little brown bear paperclip in the upper left hand corner.  Jongin had been staring down at his own paperclip in confusion, he wasn't able to tell whether the creature was a raccoon or a panda. Chanyeol simply huffed in distaste when he realised that he had received a plain one the day before.

"That was completely unfair," the young prince huffed after they had exited the office. Kyungsoo rolled his eyes and set off in a general direction, still not completely sure of where he was going. "I want an animal paper clip too!"

"If we waited  for Baekhyun at his locker would he feel overwhelmed by our presence?" Kyungsoo wondered, choosing to ignore the conversation happening behind him over a stupid animal paperclip. Jongin seemed to be complaining about his own gift, claiming that it didn't even look like an animal he had ever seen before.

"It's down this hallway, number 421." Chanyeol supplied the information before jumping back into persuading his younger brother to hand over his paperclip, completely forgetting that there was more to Kyungsoo's question.

The vampire scanned the small rectangular shapes in each of the locker doors, the numbers zooming by as he picked up his speed knowing to keep his actions human-like. As he approached the more crowded area of the hallway he was overwhelmed with the scent of blood, the more humans in the halls the more their scent seemed to increase. The chef could almost smell it on the walls, or in the slight breeze that had continuously blown to him thanks to the open window right behind the crowd. They were jocks, overbearing, mindless jocks. Kyungsoo despised them by just looking at them, the way they carried themselves was anything but proper. If he focused hard enough he could catch the ever so faint smell of smoke clinging to their bodies, masked heavily with the scent of some rather cheap (in his opinion) aftershave that wasn't even pleasurable on his nostrils.

"What insensible creatures," Kyungsoo hummed, leaning against Baekhyun's locker once he found it. His eyes were locked on the group of jocks who were playfully pushing each other around, not even willing to apologise to someone they nearly caused to fall over. "how Baekhyun is able to keep up with their shenanigans every week I will never understand."

"You guys know how I feel about jocks," Chanyeol stated through gritted teeth, his gaze also locked on the group of athletes ahead of them. None of them matched the description of Wonho so Kyungsoo was glad that Chanyeol wouldn't be causing any unnecessary drama on their first day (technically the prince's second). "they better watch their ing backs."

"Language." Kyungsoo choired, surprised by himself for even commenting. He supposes that it was muscle memory at this point since living with Chanyeol and his family was like one big bowl of paper slips, on each one written a curse word. Before breakfast was over almost the entirety of the bowl had been emptied and at this point Kyungsoo just wished that someone would listen to him when it came to swearing. He didn't find it polite or very royal-family like at all.

"Why are there three languages on my schedule?" Jongin gasped, pushing himself away from the locker only for his eyes to stay on the paper. Kyungsoo sent Chanyeol a glance but the young prince just shrugged his shoulders.

"I have three too."

"What are they?" Kyungsoo questioned, not even bothering to get closer to his mate in order to see the schedule he had already placed into his backpack.

"Korean, English and Japanese, I didn't know that I would be learning something completely new while I was here! I thought you said we had covered the course material years ago!"

"Keep your voice down!" Kyungsoo hissed, glaring daggers into his mate's direction. Jongin's lower lip came out in a pout, his shoulders releasing the tension they had gained the moment his eyes laid on the piece of paper in his hands. "You're blowing this well out of proposition, as Katherine said we will only be attending this school until Kris returns. After that we will be going straight back to homeschooling with Minho."

"We did get taught Japanese," Chanyeol stared at his brother in utter confusion. "what do you mean that you can't remember it?!"

"I think that's pretty self-explanatory." Jongin deadpanned, looking from his brother to his schedule and back again. "And there I was thinking that I wasn't going to fail anything while I was here!"

"Lay did you see that?" Baekhyun gasped, turning to look at his teacher after he witnessed the stunt out in the parking lot that morning. When Lay turned his gaze away from the contents of his briefcase Baekhyun received his answer, his neighbour hadn't just seen what he did. "Never-mind." he stated before his friend could comment any further. 

"Isn't that Chanyeol?" Lay wondered, pointing with his index finger out of the car's windscreen. Baekhyun pretended like he had already seen his mate and moved forward in his seat, displaying a bright smile on his lips. 

"Do you know whose with him? I don't think I've ever seen them here before?" 

"You haven't" Lay agreed, dipping his head in a nodding manner. Baekhyun turned to him, wondering what he could possibly mean by the tone he was using. He didn't need to voice his thoughts since the teacher was quick to continue. "the boy standing to his left is actually his younger brother Jongin, I have yet to be introduced to the other but I suspect that he's also part of the family." 

"I wonder what they're doing here.." Baekhyun mumbled below his breath as he finally stepped out of the car, Lay hot on his tail. "Did you notice the bagpacks they were wearing? Do you think that they have transfered too?" 

"It's a possibility!" Lay shrugged his shoulders, leaning back into his car in order to pull out his briefcase. Baekhyun slung his school bag over his shoulder and slammed the car door closed, before waiting patiently at the hood of the car for his professor to join him. They took their time walking through the doors, Baekhyun ultimately buzzing in excitement of seeing his mate again. 

Like yesterday Baekhyun noticed that many students had their attention elsewhere, avoiding the usual conversation they would have on an average day. However, unlike yesterday Baekhyun had a fair idea as to what was causing such attention, his grin only growing larger in size when he noticed Chanyeol standing next to his locker. Their eyes met over the sea of students, Chanyeol's frowning lips curling upwards as he pushed by others in hopes of getting to him quicker. Baekhyun let out a giggle when he collided his cheek against the taller's chest, his arms wrapped tightly around his torso. 

"Good morning" Chanyeol beamed, looking down at him with crinkling eyes. 

"Good morning to you too, did you sleep well last night?" Baekhyun questioned, his brows furrowing together in the centre of his forehead. "I was worried that you might have lost sleep with the work-load." 

"Don't worry your pretty little brain about me Baek, I'm fine and to answer your question Yes I did eventually get to sleep. But only after I finished answering these two's questions." Chanyeol tilted his head backwards, making Baekhyun turn his head to see where he was gesturing to. 

Two boys stood frozen by his locker, stiff like a pair of statues at his favourite art gallery. Baekhyun found himself pulling away from his mate in order to stand up taller and approach the mysterious boys before him, they were both very attractive but he just figured that it ran in Chanyeol's family's genes. 

"This is my half-brother Jongin and his mate Kyungsoo." Chanyeol introduced the two males who were both gaping like fishes in front of Baekhyun, all signs of confidence having flown out the window. 

"Mate?" Baekhyun gasped, turning to look at Kyungsoo who he had just realised was around his height. "You guys are like us?" 

"A little," Kyungsoo teased, looking up at Chanyeol once he was able to speak. "but believe me Jongin is worse." 

"I am hurt." Jongin confessed into the air, clutching his chest as he faked a sob in Kyungsoo's direction. The boy rolling his eyes rather than spearing him a glance. 

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you Baekhyun, Chanyeol has been talking quite a bit about you these past couple days. He's been driving us crazy twenty-four-seven!" Kyungsoo explained to the boy whose brow raised in suspicion, but when he turned to Chanyeol to confirm his mate refused to look him in the eye. 

"The pleasure is all mine, truly." the boy stressed, holding onto the hand Kyungsoo had held out to him. "I wish that I could say the same but I'd be lucky to learn anything about Chanyeol's family, he seems only interested in asking how I've been and about my life." 

"Our families complicated," Jongin chuckled nervously, scratching his neck with a shy smile on his lips. "trust me when we say that you're not missing out on much." 

"I've been waiting so long to meet you," Kyungsoo gushed, pulling Baekhyun closer to his locker so that they were in a more immediate conversation. "you don't understand how crazy those two are. You can only imagine the suffering I've had to go through alone, at least now I have someone to help me out a little." 

Baekhyun couldn't help but laugh at that, instantly his mind was made up. Kyungsoo would be someone from Chanyeol's family that he was going to get along with very well. "I wouldn't have it any other way, I'm glad I get to make a new friend. I don't know if Chanyeol has already told you this but I don't have many of them so I will surely treasure this!" 

"You're adorable." Kyungsoo cooed, reaching forward and ruffling Baekhyun's hair. The art lover could tell that he had been hesitant at first but Baekhyun loved skin-slap so he was more than happy to lean into Kyungsoo's touch when it came.  

"Can I ask you something really quickly?" Baekhyun lowered his voice after having moved closer to Kyungsoo. They both threw a glance at the others and found them immerged in a conversation, Lay more than likely spending time getting to know a now fully grown Jongin. 

"Of course!" Kyungsoo nodded his head, his brows furrowed in concentration. 

Baekhyun took a deep breath, his fingers playing around with his sweater hem. "It's a little personal, you don't have to answer if you don't want to after all we have just met-" 

"I feel like I know you all my life with the way Chanyeol talks about you, honestly Baekhyun you can ask me anything and I will tell you the answer honestly!" Kyungsoo looked like he meant his words on a more serious level, his eyes boring holes into Baekhyun's face. For some reason the human felt himself relax at that. 

"It's hard not to when you hear him talk about it twenty four seven, but I get it. According to Chanyeol, Jongin did the exact same thing when he met me."

"Chanyeol introduced you as Jongin's mate, I was just wondering how did you two meet?"

"You're really asking me what my mate locator was aren't you?" Kyungsoo teased, gently bumping their shoulder's together. Baekhyun could feel the blood rush to his cheeks as he nodded awaiting for his answer. "You and Chanyeol met because of your body's connection through ink right?" Baekhyun nodded. "Ours was quite similar but more on the common side of a mate locator," he paused to chuckle. "we could sense things the other has."

"That sounds so cool!" Baekhyun gasped, his eyes widening in surprise. He leaned forward just a inch more, his vast interest making Kyungsoo's smile broaden. 

"It started off small, I had this lingering taste of kiwi in my mouth even though I hadn't eaten one. Eventually I could hear the music he was listening to, I think he started to realise it around then because I swear he was purposely torturing me by playing 'My Heart Will Go On' from Titanic on repeat for days."

Baekhyun let out a laugh at the comment and the slight glare that Kyungsoo had sent in Jongin's direction.

"We sort of just stumbled upon each other after that, I could taste the bitterness of an orange on my tongue at a party and I found myself looking around only for my eyes to lay on him. His fingers covered in the juice and even though it wasn't a nice first meeting there isn't anything that I would change about it."

"You guys look cute together, I can see the love practically swimming in your eyes. How long have you two been dating?"

"Oh um.." he paused, his eyes shifting back to the boys standing a couple steps away from them. "A couple years now."

"Woah, congratulations! I wish you both happiness in your relationship in the future!" Baekhyun beamed, raising his clenched fist as a 'fighting' pose. Kyungsoo chuckled but thanked him nonetheless. 

"Chanyeol talks about you all the time," Kyungsoo spoke in a slightly lower tone, Baekhyun almost having to strain his hearing just to listen. "he's been waiting to meet his mate for a long time. His entire life in fact, now that he has found you he won't stop talking about you. Just yesterday morning he was walking around the kitchen vibrating in excitement of seeing you, he looked like a puppy."

Baekhyun noticed that Kyungsoo had been around Chanyeol and his brother almost every time Chanyeol talked about him, he couldn't help but wonder if Kyungsoo perhaps stayed over at their house a lot or possibly even lived there? 

"It was definitely a surprise seeing how he transferred for me, I never expected it." 

"He's been talking about it since he met you, he's wanted to be around you a lot more as I'm sure you're aware. Jongin and I were quite keen on meeting you too so when Chanyeol's parents was finalizing the transfer we asked them to allow us to do the same thing." 

Baekhyun took note of how Kyungsoo had claimed of Chanyeol's parents as a plural force rather than the parent that Chanyeol had spoken of yesterday. It probably held no meaning but Baekhyun couldn't help but pick up on it, more so than anything else. 

"Well in that case let me grab my books first and then I'll give you both a tour of our school!" Baekhyun beamed, turning around and messing around with his locker's dial. His mind was turning with the new information he had required so soon, the strange sudden appearance of Chanyeol and Jongin in the parking lot just moments ago and not to mention the strange yet small clues Kyungsoo was unknowingly giving him. Nana was connected to Lay in some way given her shocked expression when she had seen him when he entered Baekhyun's apartment the other day, and he knew that Lay worked with Chanyeol's family before. 

The artist let out a soft groan at the incoming headache, although thankfully the hallway had begun to get louder so no-one heard it.