Jinah waited for 5 days, trying to find an opening of entering into the Stray Kids house to deliver the warning. She underestimated the ability of the clan to build up defenses, especially the skills of I.N. 

It took her days until she found a weak link in his security, and even then it would be a small window. She had 2 minutes before his security would be back up. She had to be completely careful of Felix, who was rooming right next to Hyunjin. 

Jinah was hiding behind the bushes several yards away from the house when she saw the subtle light on cameras turn off. Clutching the warning, she sped to the house in a matter of seconds. If it was a normal human, they would not have seen the movement or have been able to identify her. However, she knew that this clan was trained to see small movements, and even her speed that she refined through training might not be enough.

She jumped onto the ledge window of Hyunjin’s room and picked the window. To her surprise, it triggered an alarm that could only be heard to vampires. It was of a higher frequency than any human could hear, and she realized that she had been tricked by I.N. She ran inside and threw the warning on his bed and leaped out of the window. Midway out, she heard the door to his room open, and prayed that she wasn’t seen. 

“She’s running out! Catch her.” Seungmin saw her first. She knew if Hyunjin, Lee Know, or Felix came after her she would have a very hard time escaping. The first two were fast, fast enough for rumours to spread that they were the fastest vampires in decades. Felix’s senses were too sharp to fool and he would chase her until she couldn’t. Glancing back, she realized that she was being chased by Changbin. She saw him reach for a gun and started running in zig zags, knowing he had an accurate aim.

He fired off two gunshots when he suddenly stopped running and turned back. Afraid it was a hoax and other members were after her, Jinah took a sharp right turn into a hiking trail. The smells of nature would throw them off for a bit. She took detours and ran for another half hour until she was sure no one was following her before she headed home.

Back at the Stray Kid’s house, Hyunjin was left standing in his room. When Seungmin yelled that someone was in his room, he knew that the vampire had fallen for Jeongin’s trap. Jeongin was able to make it seem like there were times in his security that would be empty and his cameras would be turned off. Although he did have to turn off his cameras, they were more on guard when that time came. 

After days of waiting, they thought the notes had stopped and were a little more relaxed than before. But when Seungmin yelled out that someone was in Hyunjin’s room, half of the clan ran up while Changbin, who was closest to the door, ran out.

When Hyunjin ran into his room, he was hit by a smell of subtle peaches and roses. It was a scent he knew, but didn’t know who it belonged to. Unsure it was from the vampire that was in his room moments ago, he turned to Felix. He knew that Felix also knew this smell when his eyebrows were knitted together in frustration, the knowledge of who it belonged to on the outskirts of his thoughts.

Bangchan, who realized something was going on, left the room muttering.

“I’m telling Changbin to come back. There’s something we missed.” 

Hyunjin, Jisung, and Felix remained in the room looking at the folded note on the bed.

“Yea we’re vampires but that doesn't mean we can read ink on paper that’s folded up.” Jisung sauntered up to the note, determining that there was no immediate threat that could come from the paper.

“Don’t go to the ball, lost prince. And if you must go, be prepared. Tell Yeji to put more guards around her. Only her.” 

It was silent after Felix read it out loud, knowing the rest of the clan would probably overhear him reading it.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say this vampire is trying to protect you and Yeji.” Changbin came back, cleaning his gun. 

“From what though?” Jisung had similar thoughts, but he didn’t know who the vampire was trying to warn them against.

“A lot of people do want to bring down the royals for their power.” Felix was doubtful of what he said. It made sense for the royals to be targeted.

“But what about me? How does she even know me?” Hyunjin ran his hand through his hair, frustrated at how they missed the vampire when they were literally in their room. 

“Who doesn’t know you? Luscious, long-haired, beautiful vampire.” Jisung winked at him, trying to lighten the mood. It worked momentarily when Hyunjin broke out in a chuckle. Shaking his head, he pushed out the members out of his room. 

Hours passed after Jinah’s risky mission and she was still alert just in case I.N tracked her down. She was going to have to go dress shopping for the mall soon, and had to make a plan of where she wanted to go and a general idea of what dress she wanted to wear. Trying to sleep off the nerves, Jinah kept turning and was hyper aware of any movements in the shadows.

The adrenaline of running away from one of the most well-known vampire clans was still rushing in her. Her head kept going down the rabbit hole of what-ifs.

What if it had been Lee Know that reacted the fastest and chased after her? What if Hyunjin caught her and questioned her? The what-ifs were never ending and seemed to be worse than the last one she thought of. 

Deciding she wasn’t going to sleep anytime soon, she threw on a jacket and went on a walk in the dark.

It took her another day and a half to be confident that Stray Kids weren’t looking for her. It was only then she went out to buy a dress for the royal ball. She had to take the caution so they wouldn’t be able to identify her when she went into the royal ball with the dress and mask. 

She spent hours searching for a dress that highlighted her features but gave her enough room to move around and fight, just in case the mission went wrong. It was hard to find both, since most dresses that hugged her body didn’t allow enough movement to run, much less fight. It was already the end of the day when she was visiting the last shop she had on her list. It was her most hopeful shop she had on her list. It was the largest dress boutique around and they only carried one, unique version of each dress so there was no way there would be overlap in her dress choice in ball.

“Welcome! Can I help you today?” 

“I’m looking for a dress. Do you have any that permits a lot of movements?” Jinah was exhausted from asking for the same dress and being disappointed every time. The worker disappeared behind rows of dresses before emerging with a dark navy dress. 

“I’m not sure if you’re a fan of this color, but I think it would really suit you!” The worker ushered her into the changing rooms.

Taking out the dress from the hanger, Jinah was able to see the entirety of the dress for the first time. The navy dress was so rich with color that without light shining on it, it seemed closer to black. When the light reflected off of it, you could see the navy clearly, and how it seemed to continue flowing. It had small silver dots stemming from the bust that was concentrated around the middle and flared down the dress. It looked like stars that were in the sky and falling down her dress. 

Slipping it on, Jinah was surprised to see a long slit across the right thigh. The shape of the dress hugged her behind but flared out loosely right under it, giving the illusion of a bigger and provided enough space to move around freely. 

“I brought a pair of heels, do you want to try it with the outfit?” The worker slipped her a pair of black heels that had a lace up around the ankles. She tried them on and was surprised that the worker brought her the correct foot size and that they were very comfortable to move around in. 

“How did you know my foot size?” Jinah turned to the worker that came back with a masquerade mask in her hand.

“I guessed. The range was pretty easy to guess and I got lucky getting the exact measurements.” Jinah nodded in understanding and accepted the mask. Putting it on, she admired how good the worker was with putting together the outfit. 

The mask was black with silver accents, matching with her dress and heels. Looking at herself in the mirror, she made eye contact with the worker smiling at her.

“You look beautiful, Jinah.” On reflex, Jinah responded with a thank you. Jinah was taking off the dress and walked to the cashier when she realized something startling. She had never told the worker her name. Unwilling to spend more time in the store, she hurried out after paying and leaving her address. She knew that if people tried to trace the address, they would realize that the building she was at had a very high security, nearly impossible to be broken into. 

She exited the doors when she felt a presence a few feet away from her. It was only one, so she decided to continue walking until it would actually become a problem. It was when she to another street when she felt more people following her. She could hear around 6 different footsteps slowly speed up behind her until they were in 2 arms reach of her. She started running and turned into a smaller alleyway to be away from the public’s eye to fight them when she saw 6 more members in the alley. 

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” Jinah groaned, knowing that this was going to be hard to get out of this alive. 

“Long time no see, Jinah.” The leader smirked at her, knowing that she was going to literally fight for her life.

“Shut up, S.Coups.”