Once upon a time,

there lived two little elves.

Their names were Jinah and Zelo...

"Eeeep! Stop it, stop it, stop it, you jerk!"

"Hahaha! Can't get away from me, Jinah!"

... and they hated each other more than anything in this world.

Shrieking, you ran around the corner and nearly crashed into Himchan. He blinked cluelessly as you grabbed onto him, trying to hide yourself behind his taller physique.

"Save me! He's trying to get paint on my clothes!"

Zelo appeared, holding an automatic paintball shooter and cackling like a madman. "You can't hide forever, Jinah! Totomato will hunt you down wherever you go." Loading the gun with an aqua paintball, he aimed it gleefully in your direction. It didn't matter that you were shielding yourself with a very confused Himchan. As long as he got to see a nice, colourful mess on somebody, he would be happy enough. "Prepare yourself for the blue blob of doom-"

Before the armed elf could finish, a large hand grabbed him by the back of his collar. Dropping his weapon in surprise, Zelo squeaked as he was lifted above the ground. "Hey, what are you doing? Let me go! You can't stop me right now! Do you know who I am? My name is Zelo, almighty Lord and ruler of the M.E.S.S. Elves-"

"What exactly is going on here?" Yongguk's deep voice was easily heard over Zelo's yelling. He let go of the pink-haired elf with a scowl, and jabbed a finger at the paint arsenal on the floor.

"You, brat. Where did you get that." He wasn't asking so much as demanding an answer.

Zelo bounded to his feet. "From the last humans we visited!" He grinned cheerfully, indignation and outrage at Yongguk already forgotten. With his long limbs, Zelo reached over and snagged his toy from where he'd dropped it. "They left twenty minutes after we came, and you said not to return until we did at least some of the mission. So me and Jongup hyung decided to poke around, and found this baby on the back porch."

Yongguk snatched the gun from Zelo's hands just as some new elves approached down the hallway. "I thought I made the rules pretty clear," he snapped, ignoring the fresh set of outcries. "No interfering with the lives of humans. No being captured by them. And absolutely no taking any of their possessions at all."

"Yeah, Zelo." You stuck out your tongue, finally stepping out from behind Himchan.

"And you." The muscular elf turned to you with the same irritated look he'd given your assailant. "How many times do I have to tell you to stop picking fights with Zelo? It's bad enough that I have to run M.E.S.S. with the two of you running wild, but listening to your arguments day and night on top of that? Do you have any idea how many bottles of aspirin I go through in a week?"

"Yeah, Jinah," the elf in question mimicked your tone, but stopped when another heavy glare was shot his way.

You pouted. "That's not fair! It was Zelo who started it, you know it is! He's the one who always fights with me first!"

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Nuh-uh! Prove it, Pointy Ears!"

"How the heck am I supposed to prove that? Videotape us every time we go near each other? And that's not an insult if we both have pointed ears, you booger-faced giraffe!"

"Okay, enough!" Yongguk roared. He grabbed the two of you just as you were about to leap for each other's throats. Heatedly, you struggled to get free from his grasp ("Let me at 'im! Let me at 'im!"), but the commander was just too strong for you. He held you and the equally as protesting Zelo at arm's length apart. 'Here we go again...'

"This is the fourth time this week I've had to talk to you, and it isn't even Wednesday yet! How many times do we have to go through this routine before your tiny little elf brains get it? Zelo!" He swung his sharp gaze at the younger male. "Return that paint gun to the humans you stole it from! I don't care if you think it's fun to run around and make a mess with that thing, just get it back before you turn headquarters into a rainbow war zone."

"Borrowed," Zelo muttered under his breath. "I didn't steal it, I borrowed it."

Yongguk glowered at him before turning to face you. "Jinah, you will learn to get along with Zelo if it's the last thing you do. You are both a member of M.E.S.S., under my supreme rule and command. I will not have my subordinates fighting amongst themselves like a pack of wild wolf cubs."

He finally released his hold on you. Immediately, you ran to where Himchan was amusedly watching with the others, and cowered behind his back once more.

"Leader's mean," you sulked. The raven-haired elf laughed, and patted the top of your head.

"There, there. You say that like you're surprised or something."

Youngjae snorted beside him. The blonde pushed his wire-rimmed glasses further up his nose. "You're one to talk. Didn't you once come crying to me because he put you on bathroom duty for a month?"

Himchan appeared indignant. "Of course not! That was only because I got cleaning spray in my eyes. It had nothing to do with the fact that Leader was being a complete son of a-"

"Mmhmm. You keep telling yourself that."

"Jung Daehyun! Why are you butting into this now?! And I thought you were on my side, you little-"

"Quiet!" All of the chattering came to an instant halt. Yongguk glared at the group of elves before him, looking at each silent face individually. It wasn't a wonder that he was the head elf in charge- Yongguk had an aura so intimidating, even Zelo didn't dare speak up when he showed his commanding side. "I was going to call you all to the meeting room, but since we're here now, I might as well get it over with. I want you to get an early start today, anyways."

At this, everybody stood up straighter and gave their utmost attention to the leader. He may have tolerated (somewhat) the bickering and roughhousing that took place, but he expected each and every one of his agents to be serious about their assignments as M.E.S.S. Elves (otherwise known as the Mischief Elves' Secret Society Elves).

Yongguk continued in his deep, raspy voice. "In partners, you will be given a street in the selected neighbourhood, a few blocks away from our last targets. The houses will most likely be empty, as I hear there's a festival downtown tonight. You know how humans like their little celebrations. However, some of the lazy ones may be staying home, so be careful to those who happen to be hitting those houses.

"The pairings, as you probably already know, are as follows: With me watching over from headquarters, Daehyun and Youngjae will take Street A. Jongup and Zelo are assigned Street B- Wait. Hold on a second. Where's Jongup?" He paused and glanced around, finally realizing that the brunette was missing from the scene.

Zelo piped up. "He's in bed, sick. When we went on our last mission, the one I got the paint gun from, he ate a whole bag of chocolates left on the kitchen table. Guess he forgot about the fact that elves don't really do well with cocoa." Snickering, he readjusted the pointed hat he wore on his head.

The Big Boss elf briefly closed his eyes, looking like he was trying to stop a major headache from coming. "That idiot... I thought he would've learned from the last three times he ate that sickening stuff..." Then he snapped his eyes open once again.

"Okay, change of plans. Daehyun and Youngjae, the two of you will still go to Street A together. Street B, instead of Jongup and Zelo, will be taken by Himchan and myself." Here, you thought you heard the inky-haired male groan with despair. "And Street C... Will be assigned to Zelo and Jinah."

"What?!" you couldn't help but burst at this news. Had the boss gone completely off his rocker? He knew just how great the two of you got along (which was about as well as Harry did with Voldemort, Snape, and Malfoy combined). You felt that if you went with Zelo, there wouldn't be any guarantees you'd come out unscathed and still in one piece (whether because of the humans or either of you, who knew).

Said crazy leader narrowed his eyes. "Street C will be taken by Zelo and Jinah," he repeated, voice full of authority. Behind him, Zelo smirked and waggled his fingers at you, clearly not as concerned with the change of partners as you were. "You will carry out the mission as you would have with Himchan or Jongup- that is, quickly, efficiently, and working as a team. Put your differences aside for tonight, you two. This is official M.E.S.S. business. That means, as mischief elves, you will wreak havoc and chaos to the human world by the means of misplaced belongings, juvenile pranks, and catastrophic messes that we are so named after. Working together. Not fighting."

He gazed at you a moment longer for good measure. It was all you could do to keep from screaming in frustration.

"Any questions? None? Good. I expect everybody to be back by midnight, which gives you a solid five hours. You all know what to do- rip up books, upturn furniture, throw food on the walls, whatever. Anything you'd think a true mischief elf would do in their state of trickery. Good luck, and be careful not to be seen." Yongguk began to stride down the hall, dragging a whining Himchan after him. The other pair quickly followed, probably not wanting to stick around and see what new fights you'd get into with Zelo.

"See you later, you two! Behave yourselves!" Youngjae waved. Daehyun simply nodded. They disappeared after the commander, leaving you to be alone with the bane of your existence.

"So, Jinah." Zelo came up behind you. Slinging an arm over your shoulders, he looked down at you with dancing eyes. "Are you ready to have the time of your life?"

You wanted to kill Jongup for eating those chocolates.

---------------

"Ninety-nine bottles of beer on the wall, ninety-nine bottles of beer! Take one down, pass it around, ninety-eight bottles of beer on the wall-"

"Can you be quiet for just one second?" you snapped at your partner. He looked up from the wall he was drawing on, sending you a roguish grin over his shoulder.

"Nah, I don't think so. See, the song doesn't end 'till you get all the way down to zero. Hey, you wanna sing along? Ninety-eight bottles of beer on the wall, ninety-eight bottles of beer! Take one down..."

You sighed. Only an hour had passed since your arrival, but somehow, it felt more like an eternity. You decided that this was God's subtle way of punishing you, making you pay for all the times you'd quarreled and given Yongguk a headache. It didn't help that Zelo had spent that eternity singing a whole playlist of annoying songs. He'd also pelted your head with blueberries, locked you in the bathroom for fifteen minutes, and just been a major pest in general.

"Hey, Jinah!" he now yelled at you. The little (tall) elf waved you over to the dresser he was standing on. "Come and see what I drew! Isn't it beautiful?"

Scowling, you left the mess you were making on the bookcase and went over to the dresser. It loomed over you like you imagined the beanstalk would have with Jack, but you, already used to climbing such huge furniture, resignedly began your trek ahead. Humans, you thought, were like giants compared to mischief elves. It felt like you were hiking up Mount Everest to join your partner, and when you did, he looked like a tiny doll waiting beside the enormous vase of flowers.

"What took you so long?" he snickered. You pointedly ignored him as you stared at the scribbling on the wall.

"What is that?"

Zelo grinned. He tossed his marker to the side, gesturing at his masterpiece like he was showing off da Vinci's Mona Lisa. "It's us, can't you tell? Look, there's you, about to be squished by that giant human foot. You tripped and landed in some sticky gum, that's why you can't escape. And here's me, holding Leader's ray gun and coming in to save you!"

You didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the horrible excuse for a drawing you were seeing. "What are you talking about? That looks nothing like me."

"Really? I don't know, I think the likeness is pretty good. I made the shape of your head exactly like it is in real life: big and super inflated."

"Hey! I do not have a big head!"

Just as you were about to lunge for the laughing male, the front door swung open in the main hall, and new voices boomed in the air. "I can't believe you forgot the festival tickets here! It took forever to drive there with the traffic, and now we have to go through it all over again!"

You and Zelo froze in place. "The humans!" you hissed, eyes wide with shock. "They're back early!"

"Well, don't just stand there!" Zelo grabbed your hands and ran towards the flower vase. "We can hide behind here, come on!" He stepped in between the vase and the wall just as one of the humans walked in, grumbling loudly to herself. Quickly, Zelo pulled you in beside him. You could feel his warm breath as he pressed closer to you, the fast beat of his heart thumping like a drum in his chest.

"And do you know how long we have to wait in the admittance line- Holy cow! What happened to the living room?" Footsteps thudded on the floor, sounding like an earthquake taking place inside the house. "Junho! I thought Mom told you to clean up before we left!"

"I did!" a faint voice yelled back. You clung onto Zelo with a tighter grip (although later, you would vehemently deny that you'd ever done such a thing). Surprisingly, he didn't say a word about it. All he did was bring you closer towards him, holding you with a warm, comforting hand.

There was a pause, then the rustling of paper as the human girl grabbed the tickets off the counter. "You at cleaning. Whatever, just do it again when we get back. Mom and Dad are waiting for us." She hurried out of the room. A minute later, you heard the door slam shut, signaling that the house was human-free once more.

You waited a bit longer to make certain they were gone, then pushed the pink-haired elf away. "Good job, Zelo! Thanks to you, we almost got caught by those humans!"

"What? How's it my fault? I hid us in time for them not to see us, dummy!"

"I was talking about your stupid drawing!" You pointed angrily at the stick figures on the wall. "Your ugly picture distracted me so much, I forgot to stay on look-out!"

Zelo glared at you. The cozy "moment" (if you could call it that) you'd shared behind the vase was long gone. The two of you now stood with angry sparks flying in the air. "Well, excuse me for trying to make a joke. You're so uptight, Jinah, seriously. You don't know how much it gets on my nerves-"

"I get on your nerves?" you cut him off. "No, I think you mean that you get on mine. You're so annoying, it's unbelievable! You say that I'm uptight? At least I don't shoot others with paintballs! I don't sing dumb songs for an hour long! I don't pick fights for no good reason! Why do you always start those stupid fights? Why do you always bother me so much? Just get away from me!"

A painfully loud silence followed your words. Then: "Fine. I guess I'll go somewhere else, to a place where I can't bother you to death." He stomped towards the edge of the dresser. You watched as he began to climb down, and disappeared from sight. A part of you told yourself to be happy. You should have felt satisfaction, triumph, and pleasure at your victory... Shouldn't you? After all, Zelo was gone. You had won.

Instead, you found yourself feeling absolutely miserable in his wake of leave.

'Stupid Zelo.' Spinning on the heel of your foot, you stalked away in the direction opposite of where he'd gone. 'Stupid, stupid, stupid pink-haired guy. Arrgghhh, he's such a jerk. I should just forget about him. He's an idiot, anyways. It's not my fault that he's so annoying.' You glared at the sketched he had made, the one of you being attacked by the human and him rushing in to save you.

"He can't even draw properly..."

Then something else caught your attention. Frowning, you turned your head to see a drawing you hadn't noticed before. It was etched beside the one the artist himself had shown you, scribbled in bright blue ink: Zelo + Jinah Forever!, he'd written. A big heart encased the words, giving off a pleasant feeling of happiness and (dare you say it?) love.

'Oh, geez.' You stared at it before letting out a deep, defeated kind of sigh.

"I'm going to have to fix this, aren't I...?"

-----------------

You found Zelo sitting at the end of the kitchen counter, legs dangling over the edge. He had his back turned to you, but didn't show any signs of having heard you approach (he had to have, though- the huffing you were doing from your climb could have woken up a sleeping bear).

"Zelo?" You tried to catch your breath. Still not turning around, the elf answered you in a moody voice.

"What."

Uh-oh. You guessed that he was still feeling angry with you. Not that you blamed him. That had been some pretty harsh stuff you'd said to him, after all. "Umm, about before..."

He snorted. "Oh, right. Is that why you're here? Because you remembered some other nice things you wanted to tell me?"

"No! I didn't come here to fight with you!" you snapped, automatically flaring up. Then you reminded yourself what you were doing there in the first place, and grudgingly tried again. "I came to apologize..."

"Hmm? Sorry, what was that?"

'Why isn't he turning to face me yet?' You twitched. It looked like Zelo wasn't going to make this any easier for you, even if you did happen to deserve it (like Himchan always said, karma at it's worst was tougher than Yongguk out for blood). "I said, I'm here to apologize. You know, for... For what happened earlier. I was just mad, and I don't even know why. I only said those things to get you mad as well. I... I'm sorry, Zelo." Boy, you didn't know how much of your pride had just gone down the drain.

Zelo nodded. "So, you're sorry." His tone of voice made it clear that he was about as interested in your words as he would have been with a dead fly. "Hmm... You're sorry..."

That was it. You felt the last of your patience snap as you heard his indifferent reply. Here you were, trying to be the bigger elf and make up for your actions, and that was all Zelo had to say? What a... What a jerk! He didn't even have the decency to look at you, staring instead at the silent kitchen before him.

You grabbed his shoulders, forcing him to finally face your direction. "Yes, I'm sorry! I never meant any of what I said! Do you want me to get down on my knees? Come on, Zelo, forgive me, and I promise not to yell at you like that again-" You stopped dead in your tracks when you saw the look on his face. "You-! Why are you laughing?"

He chortled at your outraged expression. "What, you didn't really think I was mad, did you?" You stared at him with an open mouth. Actually, that was exactly what you had thought for the past half hour... Only don't tell him that, for goodness' sake.

"You tricked me!" Spluttering, you pointed at him with an accusing finger. "You meanie! I was being serious, you know! I gave you what was probably the best apology I ever made, and you were just pretending to be angry?"

Grinning, Zelo clambered to his feet. "Uh-huh. And it went beautifully, if you ask me. Maybe I should give up being a mischief elf and become an actor. I bet I could put that Rain human out of business."

Forget Jongup, you were going to kill this guy.

"And before you ask, I'll tell you why. I was only pretending to be mad because, as mean as you were, I was never really upset. I mean, I was at the beginning, but I forgave you after awhile. I can never stay mad at you for long, Jinah."

You stared at him. Your mind was still trying to process the fact that he had simply been acting the whole time. "You... What?" Your companion rolled his eyes at your lack of brain function.

"I forgive you," he repeated. "Look, I know we fight a lot, and that's probably my fault, I admit. But I never mean the things I say, and I know you don't either. We're friends, right? Friends argue sometimes. We do, all the time. But they always make up afterwards. I can't remember a time when we didn't end up laughing after a fight, walking away to eat ice cream together or whatever. Because we're friends."

"Oh," you said, blinking up at him. "Okay. Err... Thank you. I'm glad you forgive me."

Not for the first time that night, Zelo grinned at you impishly. While it would have bugged the heck out of you before, you didn't mind it so much now. In fact, you kind of liked it. His smile was playful, mischievous, and very much full of Zelo. "Of course you're glad," he laughed. "You can never stay mad at me for very long, either."

Once upon a time,

there lived two little elves.

Their names were Jinah and Zelo...

He offered you his hand. "Now that that's settled, I think it's time we get back to business. Leader wouldn't be happy if he found out we were slacking off tonight."

You smiled, and took his hand. It was warm, and reminded you of how he'd held you protectively while hiding from the humans. "That's not the only thing he'd complain about. He still hasn't found out about the stink bomb you put in his bed."

... and they loved each other from the bottom of their hearts.

Yay, Zelo's is done! Would you guys believe that this is actually the THIRD oneshot I wrote for him? I originally had two other ideas, but they were kinda too depressing (I'll use them for other idols soon :D)

Anyways, I just wanna apologize for the length of my oneshots. I've noticed that they're kinda long (the ones I wrote for Zelo before are like, 10 pg essays D8). From now on, I'll do my best to shorten them! Make them sweet and simple for you ^w^ ... unless you want those super long oneshots. I dun noe.

If anybody is confused about this story: Basically, Jinah and B.A.P. are elves. More specifically, they're Mischief Elves. Their job is to, like, pull pranks and make the humans' lives hell by leaving their house a mess. They're kinda like poltergeists, or pixies. Ask away if you have any other questions...

Thanks for reading! I love you guys ♥