The walk back to the cottage was a quiet one. Though their mission had been completed, the silent truce still remained. Nobody said a word, as though they were afraid the bonds that had grown between them throughout the journey would shatter like glass and they’d be back to where they started, at odds with each other, three seconds from killing the ones in front of them as their statuses intended them to.

Hakyeon walked beside Taekwoon, glancing in his direction on and off, itching to say the words that were on his mind. Was this the end? He still had so many questions he wanted to ask Taekwoon. On top of that, there was the matter of Hongbin. Taekwoon had promised to take him into their coven, but would he ever see them again?

Sanghyuk seemed to harbour the same problem. Long ago, he’d slid his hand into Hongbin’s and was holding it tightly, ignoring the cold that leeched into his fingertips. For all they knew, these were the last moments they would ever spend together.

When the chalet door closed shut behind them, shutting them from the rest of the world, they took a breath, looking around at the world that had been theirs for nearly a week. A journey, with the people they looked upon as their mortal enemies, united by a common purpose. It was like thousands of old stories come to life, enemies, turned allies. It was over now. Was it even possible for them to return to fighting?

Hyunseung’s silver rod pierced the floor in the middle of the living room, point up in the ground as it trembled from the force it was tossed at. The dark haired slayer stared at it with distant eyes, reaching up to run his fingers over the bite on his neck, tracing the scar with his fingertips.

“I can’t,” he said suddenly.

“Hyunseung?” Yoseob tilted his head curiously.

“How am I supposed to go back and fight vampires now?”

The silence that followed these words was so complete, nobody even dared to breathe. Hakyeon closed his eyes, feeling a tear rush from his eye just before he hid it with his hand, pressing it to his face.

“I can’t,” Hyunseung rasped.

Gikwang ran a hand down his face, Junhyung’s arm instantly sliding around his shoulder in comfort.

“I can’t do it either,” Sanghyuk whispered, his hand still clasping Hongbin’s tightly.

“Do it,” Taekwoon’s voice cut through the silence, forcing all eyes onto him.

“Taekwoon...” Hakyeon said softly.

“Fight vampires,” Taekwoon went on, his eyes focused on the floor. “Find the ones that are like Yunho. Find them, and kill every last one of them,”

“But—“ Sanghyuk was cut off by Taekwoon raising his hand, silencing him immediately.

“Yunho isn’t the only vampire of his kind. My coven and I might have settled for a life of avoiding interacting with slayers, but there are countless others that kill hundreds every day without hesitation. Those are the ones you need to find, and those are the ones you need to destroy,” his words complete, Taekwoon his heel and walked out of the room, disappearing down the hallway, leaving behind silence once more.

“He’s right,” Doojoon said after a moment. “We swore to protect people. We’re going to do just that,”

Hyunseung’s hands trembled for a moment before he reached out and yanked the rod out of the floor, running his fingers over the slightly tarnished silver. He clenched it tightly and nodded.

“That, I will fight for,” he said quietly.

Jaejoong allowed himself to smile for a moment, his mind whirling with thoughts of all that had happened. Sliding his hands into his pockets as he turned to follow Taekwoon, he flinched, a burning pain in his fingertips. Something made of silver was in his pocket.

Tao’s charms, he remembered numbly.

Wrapping his fingers in his sleeve, he reached in once more, drawing out the silver chain and clinking charms. Tao’s head lifted, his lip trembling for the briefest of moments as Jaejoong approached him.

“These are yours,” Jaejoong said softly, holding them out.

The silver caught the light, sparkling off of the charms; a scorpion; a snowflake; a drop of water; a whirlwind; a proud dragon, spreading its wings wide.

Tao’s fingers wrapped around the charms as he trembled, the tears flooding from his eyes as he clutched them to his chest and let out a sob.

We will always be together.

...

Taekwoon stood alone on the back porch, staring up at the dark sky as the stars glittered from above. He took a shaky breath, closing his eyes as he wondered where the fate of his coven lied now. He couldn’t deny it would be a change, especially after working for so long with the group of them. He never thought he’d grow fond of a bunch of mortals, but now, he couldn’t help but harbour an urge to protect and keep them safe.

Allies indeed, he thought silently.

Hakyeon’s spicy scent washed around him as he leaned against the railing beside him. Taekwoon didn’t even need to look over, acknowledging his presence with a simple shift to the side, giving the slayer more room to stand beside him if he wished.

“What now?” Hakyeon asked softly.

“I don’t know,” Taekwoon replied, his voice just as quiet.

For a moment, they stood in silence. Hakyeon gulped noisily, a tear streaking down his cheek once more. He moved to wipe it away before Taekwoon could notice, but of course, the vampire already had. He reached out and pulled the slayer into a hug, his chin resting on his head. For a moment, Hakyeon let out a shudder, fearing getting bitten like what happened last time. He wrapped his arms around Taekwoon in return, burying his face in his cold chest.

“Does this have to be goodbye?” Hakyeon rasped.

“No,” Taekwoon replied, closing his eyes. “My coven and I live in an old mansion barely a day from where we met you. I’ll show you where it is, and whenever you need anything at all, please stop by,” he knew he was being bold, telling a slayer his only safe haven, but the mere thought of never seeing Hakyeon again twisted his heart in ways he couldn’t explain. A part of him wanted to bite Hakyeon and make him immortal so they never would have to say goodbye, but he didn’t dare do such a thing without permission. If Hakyeon wanted it, then maybe he would, but right now, he would let the slayer keep his mortality.

“Thank you...” Hakyeon whispered. “Please, take care of Hongbin for me,”

“I will,” Taekwoon promised.

...

Yoochun had talked to Junsu. Though his friend was hesitant to even let him go, he eventually nodded, allowing him to do what he wanted to do. Though the thought of leaving Junsu hurt, he would never ask him to follow his path. He’d made the decision the moment he read Jaejoong’s journal, and he knew he wouldn’t go back on it.

He found Jaejoong outside on the lawn, lying in the grass as he stared up at the starlit sky. Swallowing nervously, Yoochun slid up beside him and sat down. Jaejoong immediately leapt into a sitting position, his lips curling into a smile at the sight of his old friend.

“Yoochun,” he greeted, his green eyes sparkling.

“Jaejoong,” Yoochun smiled back, biting his lip as he looked away, trying not to get enchanted by his best friend’s beauty. “Can we walk?”

Jaejoong nodded, immediately getting to his feet with a surprising amount of grace. Yoochun felt clunky as he stood up beside him. He fell into step beside his friend, allowing himself to relax as they headed into the forest, following the dimly lit trails of the woods. It was silent, as was to be expected. Jaejoong’s presence sent every animal and insect into hiding.

After they’d been walking for a few minutes in silence, Yoochun decided to speak, looking over at Jaejoong almost nervously.

“I’m going to take a guess and say you already knew I was coming,”

Jaejoong shook his head, much to his surprise. “I decided I didn’t want to know what the future was going to be just yet. I guess in a way I’m...scared of what it holds,”

“Why don’t you check then?” Yoochun asked. “If not for yourself, then for me. Will you see my future?”

Jaejoong looked over at him, frowning lightly. “I don’t...I can’t. What if I don’t like it? What if you don’t like it?”

“As long as it involves you, I don’t think I could hate it,” Yoochun said quietly.

Jaejoong blinked, startled by these words. “Yoochun...your future and mine...” he sighed softly, bowing his head as he stopped his walking. “We’re on separate paths now. Yours lies with the slayers. Mine lies with the vampires,”

Yoochun shook his head. “No,” he swallowed, glancing away for a moment. “Jaejoong I...want you to change me,”

Just as he expected, Jaejoong didn’t respond immediately, staring at him as though he were crazy. He began to shake his head, slowly at first, then more furiously.

“No,” he said. “I can’t. I won’t,”

“I want you to,” Yoochun the journal tucked inside his jacket. “I’ve already talked to Junsu and he said I could go if it’s what I really wanted. And I really do want it, Jaejoong. Please,”

“No,” Jaejoong shook his head again. “You don’t want it. It’s not as glorious and amazing as you think it is. I don’t want you to follow this path. I don’t want you to become a monster like me,”

“I don’t think you’re a monster,” Yoochun said quietly. “Taekwoon isn’t either, neither is Jaehwan or Wonshik. And Hongbin...he’s amazing. He’s taken it so well. You should see him and Sanghyuk. It’s like he never changed in the first place,”

“We can be like that,” Jaejoong clenched his fists. “I can’t change you, Yoochun. I won’t do it,”

“Please,” Yoochun bowed his head, finally sliding the journal out from the inside of his jacket. “Let me stay with you,”

Jaejoong’s eyes locked on the journal for a moment, recognition slowly sliding across his features. His eyes widened as he realized what it meant, his lips parting in surprise.

“O-Oh,” he rasped. “Y-Yoochun...”

“I love you too, Jaejoong,” Yoochun said quietly, his eyes still on the ground. “That’s why...I don’t ever want to watch you go. I want to stay with you and walk by your side, even if it means becoming a vampire. I want to catch fireflies like when we were kids and bake apple pies we’ll probably never eat, watch stupid movies and fall asleep with my arms around you—though I guess vampires don’t sleep, huh?”

“Y-Yoochun...” Jaejoong’s voice choked.

“Look at my future, Jaejoong. Tell me I’m joking,” Yoochun had tears on his face, his expression filled with worry and fear; fear that Jaejoong would never agree to what he was saying.

Though fear clouded his heart, Jaejoong did what Yoochun asked. He looked into his best friend’s future. He saw a future where Yoochun would live out the rest of his days as a mortal, broken and lost without him. Then he saw a future with Yoochun by his side. They would walk hand in hand through fields beneath moonlight, sneaking quick kisses behind their coven mate’s backs and laughing and joking as the time flew by around them. It was the future Jaejoong had always wanted, but lost the moment he’d been bitten. He could have it back now.

“If...it’s what you really want,” Jaejoong whispered, his voice clouded with emotions.

Yoochun nodded, stepping forward and wrapping his arms around the vampire tightly. “It’s what I want,”

Jaejoong’s cold hand found Yoochun’s hot skin, feeling the blood rushing beneath it as he angled his head upwards. He pressed his lips against Yoochun’s waiting ones, feeling the other shiver with delight beneath him. He returned the kiss with a gentle one of his own, only pulling away when Jaejoong began to pepper soft kisses down his neck.

“Jaejoong...” Yoochun whispered.

“I’ll be here,” Jaejoong said softly, his lips brushing Yoochun’s throat. “When you wake up, I’ll be right here,”

Yoochun merely nodded, closing his eyes as he braced himself for what was to come.

Jaejoong’s fangs dug into his neck, the cold fire rushing through his veins almost immediately. He let out a shout, Jaejoong’s arms supporting him around his back as his legs gave out. Yoochun shuddered, his hands clenching into fists against the shirt of the one in front of him, his voice ripped away from him as the pain only grew.

Clutching his friend tightly, Jaejoong didn’t dare taste a single drop of Yoochun’s blood. It was too sweet, too delicate and lovely. He dug his fangs deeper, feeling him shudder in his arms as more venom flooded through him. Jaejoong didn’t let go until Yoochun’s heart stopped beating. Letting out a soft sob, Jaejoong lowered Yoochun to the ground, running his fingers over his pale cheeks, grief thudding through him. What if he’d done it wrong? What if he’d killed Yoochun for good? He couldn’t bear to think of such things, but he couldn’t help but do so. The future had told him Yoochun would wake up, but he couldn’t help but feel scared.

Laying down beside his friend, Jaejoong slid an arm around Yoochun’s waist, burying his face in the crook of his neck. He would wait. He didn’t care how long it took for Yoochun to open his eyes. He would be right here, beside him, until that very moment.

Perhaps, Jaejoong thought, I should’ve collected blood for him first, but no, he realized, the future whispering to him once more. Everything would be alright. Jaejoong would be perfectly capable of controlling Yoochun. He would teach him everything he needed to know, and everything would be okay.

The sky had begun to turn grey with dawn when Yoochun’s eyelids began to flutter. Jaejoong crouched over him, running his hand over his friend’s cheek.

“Yoochun,” he said softly, waiting for that moment he would open his eyes and see him.

“Jae...” Yoochun mumbled. His eyes opened slowly, pale, apple green; the exact shade of the granny smiths growing in the orchard behind his mother’s house.

“Chun,” Jaejoong whispered, pulling his hand away from his face.

“Apple pie...” Yoochun breathed, closing his eyes as he reached for Jaejoong’s hand, holding it in his own.

“What...?” Jaejoong frowned.

“You smell like apple pie...” his voice was a sigh, gentle, like a warm breeze. “Just like the one we made...I can smell the cinnamon...”

They say the more certain a newborn vampire is of the scent of their creator, the deeper the bond between them. Yunho had said that. He still didn’t know if it was true or not, but Yoochun had wrapped an arm around him, burying his face in Jaejoong’s chest.

“It’s all there,” Yoochun murmured. “The pie, the fresh air blowing in from the window...it’s like being back there with you...”

As Jaejoong’s lips curled into a smile, he began to smell the scent wafting from Yoochun’s skin. The orchards behind Jaejoong’s family farm house had been Yoochun’s favourite place to play. He was always eating the fruits off the trees, and that’s what he smelled like now. Apples, peaches, pears, scents of fresh oranges and sweet plums...the distant smell of yesterday’s rain, and the warm breeze blowing through the trees... Jaejoong could hear the laughter as they ran between the trees, playing tag, and jumping over fallen fruits. Yoochun’s scent was more than just a simple smell. It was a memory.

Their memory.

...

Though at first, Taekwoon had been furious take not one, but two new vampires into his coven, he let it go, seeing how happy Jaejoong was by Yoochun’s side. Silently, he wondered if he would ever be as happy as they seemed to be.

“Your family is growing, Taekwoon,” Jaehwan said teasingly, winking a shimmering silver eye.

“Shut up,” Taekwoon sighed, not really meaning it.

Jaehwan let out a laugh, reaching over to playfully ruffle Taekwoon’s hair. The elder shot him a glare, the expression softening immediately. He couldn’t be mad at Jaehwan in the slightest. Not for long at least.

For days, the group had been travelling steadily away from the chalet, heading back towards the train yard they’d met in. The vampires, of course, had to take a quick detour barely a day before to feed, but the slayers didn’t even try to stop them, merely continuing on their way, letting them catch up on their own.

When at last the train yard emerged into view from the forest, a faint sort of sorrow had settled over the group. This was goodbye. Though they’d travelled together to fight for a common cause, they couldn’t stick together. There would be too many questions asked, and other clans and covens simply wouldn’t understand.

“This is our home base now,” Doojoon said calmly, gesturing to the train yard. “Please stop by if you ever need anything,”

“You as well,” Taekwoon said calmly. He’d already shown the slayers where his coven’s mansion was.

“Honestly?” Hakyeon was smiling brightly, his toothy grin nearly infectious. “I doubt you’ll ever need our help, but we certainly could use yours,”

“Where will you, Sanghyuk and Junsu go, Hakyeon?” Yoochun asked.

“We’ll stay with Doojoon’s group. We’ve lost two members,” he laughed lightly. “The least we can do is help them out,”

“Tao will be staying with us too,” Gikwang prompted, nodding with a smile.

Jaejoong smiled, glancing towards the Chinese slayer. “Tao, it was great seeing you again,”

“You as well,” Tao replied, smiling in return. The charms of his brothers glittered across his neck, every last one of them by his side in spirit for as long as he would continue to live. “Don’t let it be the last time,”

“Of course not,” Jaejoong replied.

Doojoon folded his hands behind his back, taking one final glance at the group of vampires in front of him. “I will pass your story down to as many people and generations as I can in hopes that you can remain in peace. Just don’t break the promises you made to us,”

“Thank you,” Taekwoon bowed his head briefly. “We won’t fail you,” they’d sworn to never kill a mortal. Feeding was a necessarily evil, but at the very least they could avoid killing while they were at it.

For a final time, Hongbin pulled Sanghyuk into a tight hug, patting the top of his head tenderly.

“Take care of yourself, little baby,” he said, smiling cheekily.

“I’m not a baby!” Sanghyuk whined. “God, I’ll look older than you in a few years,”

Hongbin laughed. “That’s probably true, but you’ll always be a little baby to me,”

“,” Sanghyuk muttered.

Hongbin laughed harder, the sound filling the area with a bright, relaxed warmth.

“So...” Hakyeon said quietly, his eyes glancing towards Taekwoon.

“Goodbye,” The golden eyed vampire said, keeping it quick and brief.

“Until next time,” Hakyeon corrected, his lips curling into a smile once more.

“Right,” Taekwoon nodded briefly. “Time to go,”

One by one, the vampire their heels, taking one final glance back at the slayers who had become their friends before disappearing into the trees. The slayers waved briefly, allowing them to depart. Though they had already faded into the distance, it didn’t change the bond they felt towards them. They might not have been mortal, but they were brothers all the same.

.

.

.

A/N: That’s all folks!

Although...I feel bad for ruining so many people’s ships. I realize how easy it would be for me to turn the tables and turn it into a YunJae fanfic – the question is should I even do it? Should I switch Yoochun to Yunho and Junsu to Changmin? I could do it. But I’d rather focus on other stories.

To those of you who read from start to finish, thank you. I really appreciate it a lot~ I spent several long months writing this and I’m proud of how it came out. So it makes me really happy that there were some people who took the time to read it, even if I did wreck your ships haha (tbh I wrecked mine too LAUGHS)

Thank you, thank you, thank you <3

With love <3

~starlitskies