"Oppa.....I think....we're in the Vampire Shadowrealm." I whispered, shivering when an eerie wind blew against me.

Doojoon rubbed his hands together, his breath coming up in little puffs of smoke. "Let's just go back home the way we came from, then."

I turned around but found nothing but more trees circling us. "The Gateway is gone!"

Doojoon looked horrified, then yelped in surprise when there was a tiny pop of light and Yoseob, Junhyung, Kikwang, Hyunseung, and Dongwoon appeared out of thin air and fell to the ground.

"What the -- how did YOU guys get here?"

"Gateway, obviously." Junhyung muttered, standing up and dusting himself off.

"Oh, I see...." Kikwang said calmly as he touched the air at the spot where they had appeared from. "So the Gateway is only a one-way portal. Maybe if I tweak it a little when we return........."

"That's not important right now, prince." Hyunseung innterupted. "We need to find another Gateway that can take us back home."

"Can't we stay here?" Yoseob asked, his eyes shining in excitement. He's never been in the Vampire Shadowrealm before.

Dongwoon glared at him. "And what will happen to Jimi and her brother?"

Yoseob's smile fell. "Oh, yeah. Right. Okay, change that. Our first priority is to get Jimi and Doojoon hyung back to Earth."

"Agree with you completely on that." Doojoon muttered. "This place is creeping me out. And I'm starving."

"Is there a......a town, or something?" I asked hopefully.

Junhyung breathed in deeply. "Yes. I can smell a town a few miles down." He pointed to a dark, small, almost invisible trail in the dark forest. "This should take us straight there."

I followed behind them, trembling, and it wasn't just from the cold now. The forest looked not just dark -- it was pitch-black. Then I realized it WAS pitch-black. The bark was rough and coarse and the colour of coal, and you couldn't tell where the jet-black leaves ended and the midnight sky began.

I felt something lightly touch my back and I gave a small yelp of fright, shivered, and whirled around. "Oppa, don't do that! It scares me!"

Doojoon frowned at me. "What are you talking about? I wasn't doing anything."

"But something touched my back just now.............."

Dongwoon, who was right beside me, stiffened and tensed up. Everyone stopped walking.

Suddenly, he grabbed me by the waist, lifted me up, and jumped -- a second before a tree branch the width of a man's leg came crashing down at the exact spot I was in before.

I screamed. "OPPA!!!!!!"

Yoseob caught Doojoon in the chest and pushed him away, just when another branch appeared out of the gloom -- this one thicker than a man's waist -- and smashed downwards.

It caught Yoseob, and with a grunt of strength he pushed back. The tree branch trembled, still trying to pound Yoseob into the ground.

"Yoseob!" I screamed.

My voice gave Yoseob a burst of strength, and with a roar he snapped the branch away.

A loud, eerie, haunting moan screeched into my ears. I could see the dark outline of a tree swaying back and forth. The howling was coming from the tree -- almost as if it was screaming in pain.

"The trees.........are alive." I whispered.

"! I forgot about this!" Junhyung hissed. "Keep back! Keep in the very middle of the trail! If you see a branch, break it, you got that?"

Dongwoon kept a tight hold to my waist. "U-um....Dongwoon....you can let go now."

He shook his head fiercely. "Not until you're safe." His grip around you tightened slightly when his eyes flashed red. His fangs slid in and out of his teeth as he fought for control over his bloodlust.

Doojoon appeared and firmly pushed Dongwoon away from me. "I'm her brother, I'll protect her." He snarled quietly. Dongwoon growled at him but let him put an arm around you and lead you in the middle of the trail.

"You okay?" He whispered.

"J-just a bit c-cold." I said, shivering violently as another huge gust of wind blew around me.

"Here." Doojoon wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tightly, rubbing my arms and shoulders to create friction. He took my hands and gently blew warm air on them so they wouldn't freeze.

"How come y-you're not c-cold?" I demanded.

"I'm wearing a sweater -- you're wearing a tank top." He said, smirking. He used the sleeves of his sweater to rub my cheeks until they turned red.

"Thank you, oppa." I said, smiling sweetly at him.

Behind us, the creatures were seething in anger. Hyunseung felt his hand twitch down to the silver gun at his waist. Woah, wait.........why do I care? I only care about Jimi's blood and killing the criminals, that's why I stayed in the first place........so why do I feel like KILLING that human?

Junhyung clenched his hands tightly into fists, gritting his teeth. Dammit.....that bastard human better not be TOO close to Jimi, or I might not be able to control myself. Don't you DARE with Jimi like that in front of me again or I WILL kill you..........

Kikwang glared at Doojoon's head, suddenly wishing he could invent a way to actually throw daggers at people using only your eyes. YOU SON OF A , that's MY bride you're snuggling with! Brother-in-law or not, don't get so close........

Dongwoon was so furious that HE wasn't the one comforting me that the tree branches began to shrink back and howl in fright, and the two moons in the sky trembled.

We didn't notice. I beamed at Doojoon as he continued to warm me up. He kissed my forehead. "We're almost there, then we can warm up in front of a fire, okay?"

"Right, oppa." I said happily, immdiately cheered up at the very thought of a fire.

Yoseob seemed to be the only one unfazed by the closeness.

"Aren't you pissed, Yoseob?" Junhyung hissed. He knew after all those annoying days of him obsessing over that picture of us that Yoseob loved me, long before he became a Dhampir.

Yoseob shrugged. "I've been Jimi's best friend for eight years. Hyung is always like that to her. At first, I was really jealous and angry, but I've gotten used to it, I'm still jealous." He smirked. "I just have better control over my feelings than you NON-HUMANS do."

"Who are you calling NON-HUMAN, Dhampir brat?" Hyunseung hissed, his hand once again twitching to his gun. "I'm a Dhampir too! I'm your sunbae!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, sunbae-nim." Yoseob snickered. "You totally crossed the line of humanity years ago. I'm the only one here that still has human feelings and emotions."

"We have human emotions too." Kikwang muttered sullenly.

I turned around. "What are you all chattering about?" I giggled when I saw Kikwang pouting, looking like a sulky child.

"Awwww, what's the matter, Kikwang?"

Kikwang brightened up and hugged me tightly. Doojoon winced but didn't move this time. "They're being mean to me, Jiiiimiiiiii." He whined.

I patted his back lightly. "Guys, don't be mean to Kikwang. You know how sensitive he is."

"Yup. I'm a very, very sensitive guy." Kikwang said happily. "That means I deserve special attention, right?"

"Sure." I said, patting his head.

Dongwoon growled in jealousy. I'M the only one Jimi can pet!!! No fair!

Junhyung flexed his hands. "Yah, prince, you wanna know how fast I can rip a head off?"

Hyunseung slowly started to draw out his silver dagger. "Let me help you there, criminal."

Yoseob rolled his eyes and just dragged me away from them.

"Yoseob....." I gave a small "YEEK" sound when I heard fighting and violence behind me. Kikwang, Junhyung, Hyunseung, and Dongwoon were going at it. Doojoon was watching in amusement from a safe distance.

"S-shouldn't we stop them? They might get hurt!" I said, worried.

Yoseob's harsh expression softened and he gently smiled at me. Only you can be so worried about the safety of monsters, Jimi.

"They'll be fine. Hyunseung won't actually kill them, although I really don't mind if he injures Junhyung, and Dongwoon might give them a couple of bruises, but he won't actually kill them too. It's just playful fighting, Jimi."

I nodded, not that convinced. Yoseob just leaned backwards and stared up at the moons.

I stared at them too. "It's kind of pretty, you know. In a strange, dangerous way." I grinned at him. "Like you."

Yoseob turned red. "W-what?"

"Well, you ARE handsome, you know, now that you're half-Vampire and everything. And you were already cute when you were human. But you're strange and dangerous, and different, in ways I cannot even begin to understand."

Yoseob frowned, his feelings hurt. "So.........I'm strange and dangerous?"

I recognized his sad pout and giggled, pinching his cheek. "Aww, Yoseob, don't be like that. You ARE strange and dangerous, you know you are. But you're a GOOD strange and dangerous. Because you are my Yoseob. You will never be strange or dangerous to me, and if you are, you will still be my Yoseob."

Yoseob felt a warm, tingling feeling in his fingers, and a smile played on his face. I love how you say "My Yoseob"..........................

Doojoon noticed the two of us staring at the moon together and smirked. He knew Yoseob had been in love with his sister ever since they first met, and even though he'd rather his beloved sister didn't end up with ANY of these inhuman creatures, if he had to choose, it would be Yoseob hands down. He knew Yoseob almost as well as he knew me, and he knew when it came down to it Yoseob would do anything to protect me.

"Yah, lovebirds!" He teased. "Are you gonna stop the fight or what?"

Yoseob turned bright red and quickly ran over to stop the fight. I turned pink. "Oppa!"

"What?" He snickered.

"Don't say that, honestly! Yoseob and I are best friends! Don't go making things awkward!"

"Okay, okay." He pinched my cheeks. "You're just so cute when you're embarassed."

Yoseob heard what I said and he frowned as he pulled a wrestling Junhyung and Kikwang apart. My words unintentionally sent sharp pangs into his heart.

Is that all I'll ever be to you, Jimi? Your best friend? Is that the only love you will ever give me?