Chapter Text
Hunting was getting very dangerous these days.
Things used to be different before.
Back in the day, nobody knew of the existence of vampires like themselves. Humans had been so willfully ignorant of the world around them to take notice of other humans' disappearances or question strange happenings.
There had been a time where humans worried far more about finding food and earning money, that they didn't care about other people.
Humans learning to care about other humans was truly the downfall for vampires.
Who knew the thought of humans having empathy would be so infuriating?
Vampires used to be the only ones that truly understood the feeling of compassion. Back in the day, they used to be the only creatures that bound together, that formed covens, meanwhile humans turned blind eyes to horrendous assaults in the streets and starving children.
Vampires would never turn a blind eye to another in distress.
That was one thing about them that self-proclaimed vampire hunters never understood. The vampire bonds ran deep.
The bonds ran deeper than the water running a mile to their right, the vampires could hear it hitting roughly against the sides of the riverbed. It was deeper than the red of blood that soaked the grassy forest floor beneath their feet.
How humans thought that they could outdo vampires was ridiculous. It was laughable at best.
They could smell humans miles back, but vampires were amazing at one thing, patience, and humans would never understand that no matter how hard they tried.
The only question raging through the vampires' minds was how they hadn't noticed the presence of humans so close to their home.
Their coven house was on the outskirts. Hidden beneath the treeline was a small, heavy metal grate in the ground that when lifted would reveal the hidden bunker they'd used as shelter for years.
Many claimed these bunkers were built by humans, for emergency use, but they weren't.
They were vampire shelters. Hidden away from the threat of the sun. Huge, decorated nicely, comfortable and lived in. They were perfect homes.
Tonight, they wanted to hunt. Expecting to bring in an animal at the least, but instead they'd gotten blessed by the very rare thrum of heartbeats.
Perhaps it was because when they hunted, they typically walked towards the city rather than the river as they had done today.
It had still been a pleasant shock to get miles away from their home and be shot at with an arrow.
They ended it fast. Hunters could claim they had strength over vampires, but the truth was even three on three, their strength was negligible at best.
“Good thing Jimin isn't here.”
Seokjin had to laugh. His teeth shone in crimson as he pulled away from the man on the ground, licking off his teeth and glancing at Yoongi.
The other was already wiping his chin off in the human girl’s shirt. She looked a little younger than they typically went for, but the knife lying loosely in her grip made that guilty feeling go away.
Hunters weren't welcome near their coven.
They attacked unprovoked. They had no second thoughts. They tried going straight for their hearts.
Countless of their kind were slaughtered by them, so Seokjin didn't feel bad. He knew Yoongi would, later, because the other had always been soft inside.
“He's a messy vampire,” Hoseok agreed, laughing as he picked up the broken arrow on the ground, stepping right over his own meal - an older man - and picking up a handmade bow. “Should I keep this? Souvenir.”
Yoongi snorted as he stood up, “Put that down. Namjoon would shoot himself, he's too accident prone to be around that.”
Definitely true. Hoseok snapped the length of it in half before tossing it to the side and laughing, all dazed and fulfilled as he continued along on their walk.
“This was nice! What a beautiful night.”
It was. They'd been more hungry than any of them would admit to the others, and it wasn't that hunting was hard to do, not at all, it was that the older vampires had always been… cautious about leaving the youngers alone.
It wasn't his fault really. Times had changed over his lifespan, which made him always worry about their whereabouts and what they were up to.
It wouldn't be the first time they'd lost a fledgling, so they were very protective of their youngests.
“What is that, hyung?” Yoongi said suddenly, red eyes flickering to Seokjin with renewed interest, always more awake after a feed.
“Their home?” Hoseok guessed, laughing, “Hell, yeah! I could do with some more clothes. The kids want more games too.”
Seokjin frowned.
Between the treeline was a cabin. It was falling apart, all rusted and covered in broken nails. It looked like a strong storm would just take it flying away.
Humans were despicable creatures. Ruining the forest with such an eyesore should be a crime, because there was truly no reason for them to cut down trees and build this moldy mess.
They used to live in the city around humans every day. Vampires had more money than they could spend, but living around humans and dealing with their vain, arrogant, selfish ways was what pushed them away.
None of them wanted to go back. The forest was peaceful and calm. Beautiful.
Well, most of it was. Seokjin wanted to throw up looking at this monstrosity of a cabin. Truly it—
“Oh no.”
Immediately Yoongi and Hoseok stopped, the latter hanging on the railing, eyes flickering to Seokjin. The eldest grabbed his chest. His heart was tightening up painfully. It was a feeling that he hadn't felt in years.
Then, Yoongi groaned and sucked in a breath, while Hoseok hissed, “No way.”
Seokjin promptly jumped at the door and pushed it open, the scent of stale blood and fledgling was really strong. Overwhelming.
There were weapons piled up on the ground when he shoved the door open, but he paid that very little mind to storm into the cabin and find the cause of his tense chest.
That painfully tight soulmate bond that coven members shared.
The bond no human could ever understand.
Coven members weren't chosen at random. They were gifted. Chosen. They would fit together like puzzle pieces in any way the vampires wished them to.
They were soulmates, by the human definition of the word.
Raging, the trio were shoving open doors to find that soft, gentle scent of fledgling roaming around, absolutely needing to find it. Place a face to the cause of their bonds tightening up.
“H-Hyung.”
It came in the form of a soft, bloodthirsty snarl from the opposite end of the hall that made everyone run in. Hoseok was hanging in the doorway, expression gone flat, pale.
The sound of metal tinkered around and echoed even louder than the hissing of the fledgling.
Hoseok whispered, again, “Hyungs…” heartbroken. Aching. Longing.
There were no words they could say to comfort one another.
Chains wrapped around slender wrists and legs. They tinkered around with every painful looking lunge the fledgling tried to do at them. The poor thing was chained against a radiator, and normally that would be no match for a vampire.
But this was just a fledgling. And he was so thin and pale. There were open wounds littered all over him, long gashes littered his skin. Some of them were so deep that the muscles were visible.
They weren't healing up, it was clear the poor thing had never been fed, his eyes were sunken and empty. They were still black, because he'd never drunk blood before.
The fledgling looked so small in just some sweatpants crouched in the corner. Tiny. Couldn't be a year older than twenty at the latest. Hadn't been a vampire for long based on his soft, newborn scent.
It was clear the boy had no idea what was happening. He smelled them and thought food when he should be thinking home.
“Oh my god,” Yoongi swallowed, looking sick. He moved out into the hallway when Seokjin entered.
Hoseok wavered in the doorway, mouth open, eyes scanning the bedroom the boy was in. It was clearly a boy’s room, messy clothes strewn about, pictures on the walls.
There was a picture of him - the fledgling - of when he was a human. All doe eyes. Smiling ear to ear. There was a girl outside on the lawn beside him. He was such a pretty human, and he'd make an even prettier vampire.
Just not the way he was now.
“Hyung,” Hoseok mumbled, showing him, “I think he was a hunter.”
“Doesn't matter who he was. It matters who he is,” Seokjin argued, barely looking at the picture before he said, firmly, “Find his name. Don't look. I'll deal with him.”
As soon as Seokjin came close enough, the fledgling lashed out at him, scattering to hiss, pale gums on show and the poor thing didn't even have fangs yet.
Seokjin had never seen that before. Maybe it was because he had never fed. He was so malnourished and without a first feed he had nothing. No strength. No fangs. No sire.
The only thing the poor thing knew was pain.
This had to be the most painful thing to endure.
“Hi, fledgling,” Seokjin began over his little rumbling growls, “My name is Jin. You can call me hyung. I know you don't want to talk-”
The fledgling hissed at him, all tensed up, wrists struggling against his binds.
Seokjin sighed, reaching over towards the one on his ankle, “Alright, we'll get you out first.”
When he reached out to touch him, the boy flinched away. He balled up, kicked himself into the corner again. Still hissing. Still growling. Not out of anger, because he was terrified. More scared than he was aggressive.
Mouth dropping, Seokjin could only whisper, “We're not going to hurt you, honey. We want to help you.”
The fledgling stopped hissing, teeth showing, but his eyes flickered, processing, guarded. He glanced over Seokjin's shoulder when Hoseok approached and tucked his knees tighter.
“Jeon Jungkook?”
Eyebrows pulling together, the fledgling stared.
“That's your name, isn't it?” Hoseok asked softly, handing Seokjin a thick notebook. “It says it in your notebook. Did you like to draw? These drawings are so beautiful.”
Jungkook's hands slipped down his calves, leaning a little bit closer to look at his notebook like it was completely unfamiliar to him.
He definitely hadn't eaten. He had that foggy haze in his eyes, the one that saw everything as friend or foe, nothing in between, and made it hard to think clearly. To remember.
“Jungkook is a pretty name,” Hoseok smiled, shifting to sit on the end of the bed just out of Jungkook's reach, “for a pretty little fledgling. My name is Hoseok.”
Jungkook sucked in a breath. He relaxed a little, eyes flickering around the ground like he was utterly confused.
Seokjin placed his notebook down in his lap, curled fingers around it and said, very quietly, “Those people aren't going to come back, Jungkook. The ones that did this to you. And if you feel very carefully,” the vampire placed a hand on his own chest, “you can feel something right here that says hyung is telling the truth and would never lie to you. So let's calm down and we'll get you home.”
And that was the first word that came out of the fledgling's mouth, all scared and confused, croaking, “Home?”
Such a gentle voice, so sweet and delicate.
If he could, Seokjin would go back and rip those humans apart tenfold. Much more brutal than the snapped necks they'd gotten.
“Home,” Hoseok smiled, all cheery and bright as if the fledgling wasn't terrified. “We have a big family. That little pain you feel in your chest means you're one of us. You'd be our fledgling. I mean,” he looked at Seokjin, “we should feed him first though. He needs a sire, otherwise he's going to run into the city to feed.”
“I want to do it.”
They all turned to look at Yoongi. The other had crossed arms, leaning in the doorway, lips pressed in a line. “I'll do it.”
They hadn't noticed him even come back in, but Jungkook didn't flinch back, so it was clear the fledgling had noticed him.
“Jungkookie, you really need to feed.” Seokjin swallowed, nodding at Yoongi before looking at the fledgling with worried eyes, “And we'll take you home and give you anything you want. Hyungs promise. Aren't you hungry?”
Immediately a pink tongue ran over his pale lips. Jungkook hissed out the word, “Hungry.”
They cooed at him. He was all too cute, and honestly his restraint was pretty good for a fledgling, but that likely had to be a learned trait. Who knew how long he'd been sitting here learning to deal with the pain of hunger.
The worst part was that it wouldn't kill him either. He'd just waste away. Mindless. But he'd live.
Poor baby.
“Hyung,” Hoseok urged, visibly trying not to grab the fledgling, “get our little soulmate out of here.”
Yoongi bit his lip as he walked over, and as soon as he was within range Jungkook was sniffing loudly, rumbling with these little growls and trying not to attack him. It was cute the way his hands even curled into his pants to try not to hurt anyone.
He couldn't hurt them. Not really.
It wasn't that they were scared for themselves getting near him, they were more scared to scare him.
“You're such a good fledgling,” Seokjin mumbled, fingers almost touching Jungkook's ankle. “Look at that, Yoongi. He's so good for his sire. Never seen a fledgling this good. You're such a good boy, Jungkook.”
Yoongi hummed, still very guarded, and slipped down against the wall.
The second he bit into his wrist, Jungkook was all claws digging into him, his thin body curling around Yoongi’s side, snarling as best he could with his raw, dry throat. It came out all whimpery and painful.
The vampire visibly relaxed and pressed his wrist against his mouth, “There we go, fledgling.”
Jungkook cried. He whimpered and cried in a relieved way, eyes closing as he tried to bite at his wrist, tongue gathering all he could, dirty hands curling around Yoongi’s arm to hold him closer.
Hoseok sighed, his chin laying on the railing at the foot of the bed. “He's so cute. Drink up, precious.”
“Yeah,” Yoongi agreed, leaning against the wall, his hand moving to reach over for Jungkook's chained wrists, “he's pretty cute.”
“You think he's pretty.”
“He is.”
“Hyung is whipped.”
Yoongi pressed his lips in a line, “He's our soulmate. Don't make me regret agreeing to sire him.”
“You think he's pretty~” Hoseok sung.
Seokjin didn't even acknowledge their bickering. He reached down and snapped off the chains on Jungkook's ankles, immediately moving to do the same to the fledglings wrists now that he was distracted.
It was sad the way Jungkook didn't even move when he was unchained. He just breathed hard, so entirely hard, against Yoongi’s skin. Blood dripped down onto his chin and chest, staining his sweatpants.
When Jungkook opened his eyes they shined red, like they should. All healthily red. He looked more energized, less lost, but still hurt.
It would take a lot more than one feed to get this fledgling in good shape.
“Do you have anything you want to take with you?” Seokjin whispered, petting his hair from his ear. “Hyungs will grab them.”
Yoongi pulled away so he could answer and the fledgling cried actual tears. He sank into Yoongi’s lap and curled up, his hands balling up over his stomach. Jungkook sobbed. He didn't ask for more. He didn't attack him for more even though he clearly smelled the blood.
He wailed.
This fledgling needed a lot of healing.
“He doesn't need anything,” Hoseok said instantly, jumping up. “What he really needs is to leave this place. Let's go.”
“Come here,” Yoongi whispered, his voice quiet and gentle. “Sire will hold you. Come here, you can have more.”
Jungkook sniffled, didn't move a muscle until Yoongi reached down to brush his bloody chin, wiping it with the back of his hand. Jungkook was going to be a messy eater, that was clear. Worse than the others.
And that was okay. Perfectly okay.
“Come here, baby.”
Jungkook moved when Yoongi picked him up, wrapping his arms and legs loosely around him, nose pressing in the crook of his neck.
“Do you want me to…” Seokjin didn't finish. Jungkook was whining these very tired noises and Yoongi collected him like a baby in his arms, a hand clutching his head and another holding his hips. It was easy to hold him like that, he was so skinny.
“I know, baby,” Yoongi whispered as he carried Jungkook out. “Take a nap. Hyungs will feed you more later.”
Hoseok whistled a sound and grabbed Jungkook's notebook, “He's enjoying this way too much.”
Yoongi would never admit that.
***
“Um…”
Seokjin shushed them before anyone could say a word, tugging the door to the bunker shut and locking it.
By then, Yoongi was moving to place Jungkook down on the huge gray couch against the wall, shooting Jimin a glare when the younger came hopping closer with this loud coo, “Oh, he's cute!”
“He's hurt,” Namjoon noticed immediately, grimacing as he grabbed Jimin's arm and tugged him away. “Get back-”
“Hey!” Jimin complained, “He's my soulmate too. Yoongi hyung sired him and me, we're basically lovers already!”
“Chim,” Taehyung snorted, “me and you were both sired by hyung and I'm not sleeping with you.”
“Did it before though.”
“Yeah, like twenty years ago!”
“Still.”
Taehyung rolled his eyes and simmered, crossing his arms and watching Yoongi move away, rolling his shoulders. It was clear he'd been holding the other for a while.
“His name is Jungkook, and he is very hurt,” Hoseok released a breath and ducked into the kitchen to grab a washcloth. “Let hyungs take care of him. Give us some space.”
With Yoongi hovering over him, none of them really noticed the injuries all over Jungkook, but with nobody on him it was clear this fledgling had some serious damage. His forearms were slashed open and in a few places it looked as though muscle was peeking through.
His stomach had clear marks, as did his cheeks. He was very dirty and had blood drying all over his lower face and chest, but the fledgling was sleeping like a baby.
Jungkook sniffled a few times and smacked his lips. He looked very soft and gentle, his fingers curling and uncurling on his stomach like he was still so hungry.
There was no doubt that he was.
“He's a baby.”
“He's young,” Seokjin agreed, looking up at Namjoon, “Go get me some clothes for him.”
Jimin jumped on the couch again, plopping down beside Jungkook's head and asking Seokjin, “Why is he like this?”
“I don't know. We think he's from a hunting family.”
“Did you eat them?”
“Stop acting like we're feral animals. We drank them.”
“Do you think he's pretty?”
“Yes, Jimin.”
“He's a baby,” Jimin laughed, leaning down on his elbow and teasing Jungkook's hair. “I love him. He's my baby. Tae, we aren't the babies anymore. I'm going to cuddle him, squeeze him and love him to bits.”
Yoongi snorted, “He's not a doll, Jimin.”
“And then Taehyungie can dress him up and we'll play games together, right Tae?” Jimin finished, beaming. “Our life-sized babydoll.”
Taehyung rolled his eyes, but moved to lean over Jimin's back, hooking his chin over his shoulder and watching Seokjin accept a towel from Hoseok to wipe his face.
Jungkook whined. He scrunched up his nose and puffed out a handful of sharp breaths, obviously having a bad dream.
Clicking his tongue, Seokjin shooed Jimin's hand off of him in favor of petting Jungkook's forehead as he wiped away blood from his skin, all gentle and calm. The fledgling seemed to like that because he settled down a bit, rubbing his feet together in a comfortable motion.
“He likes hyungs,” Taehyung observed, looking at Seokjin. “How long has he been-”
“We don't know anything,” Seokjin sounded a little frustrated as he sat up, moving to grab the first aid kit off of the wall. “We just know he's a fledgling-”
“Baby,” Jimin supplied, unhelpfully.
“-and he has our bond. That's really it. He was chained to a wall and was more scared than a fledgling should be. Poor thing hadn't even fed yet. He was still black-eyed when we found him. Doesn't even have fangs yet for fucksake.”
Jimin frowned, his excited expression wiped off of his face as he sat up, plopping his chin on Taehyung's shoulder. “He won't play with us, will he?”
Annoyed, Yoongi rolled his eyes, but nobody commented on how inappropriate Jimin's questions were considering Jungkook's state. If they could block them out like Jimin and see the brighter side, they would.
But they also knew Jimin just didn't like anything like this. He didn't like to see his coven members in pain. It was easier for him to ignore the glaring fact that Jungkook was in so much pain.
“Alright,” Hoseok began, “we need to-”
The sound of clambering rang out down the stretching hallway, and that was one horrible thing about living in the bunker - when it was silent, everything echoed.
So Namjoon's heavy, clumsy footsteps sounded incredibly loud.
Jungkook stirred awake in an instant, eyes blown wide, scattering away the second he looked at Jimin and Taehyung. The fledgling wasn't hissing, he was making these soft, breathy, screechy sounds, like he didn't know whether to snarl or hiss or cry.
It was an indescribable feeling seeing the amount of fear on Jungkook's face.
He threw himself as far away as he could, scattering back, his head hitting the hard rock wall of the bunker and not even flinching as he balled up.
Cursing, Seokjin dropped the first aid kit on the ground and immediately threw a hand out at him, “It's okay. Shh, it's okay, Jungkook. We're friends, remember? Nobody is going to hurt you.”
Jungkook didn't look at him when Seokjin reached out for him, he stared at Jimin and Taehyung, and obviously couldn't read the absolute horrified looks on their faces because he was so overcome with his own fears to do so.
“Hyungs are still here. You want Yoongi hyung?” Seokjin tried, fingers brushing the end of his sweatpants, “Hyungs-”
Jungkook turned around abruptly, whimpering a scared sound and throwing himself into Seokjin's neck, knees to his chest, more burying himself than holding on.
Relieved, the eldest kissed his hair and tugged him closer, sitting on the edge of the couch and coaxing him to calm down with a few shushes and fingers running down his back.
“That's right, honey. Hyungs will take care of you,” Seokjin promised, resting his chin on Jungkook's shoulder. “You don't have to be scared. Just come to hyungs and we'll hold you.”
Jungkook didn't make a peep. Not at all. For a while Seokjin thought he was sleeping until he felt his fingers clutching loosely on his shirt.
Yoongi gnawed at his lip as he leaned against the opposite wall, “Jungkook, are you hungry?”
That would probably always work on Jungkook, the poor thing was all skin and bones. Of course he was hungry and even fear wasn't going to stop him from eating.
He turned to peer at Yoongi with wet, worried eyes.
“Hyung wants to hear you,” the elder whispered, incredibly soft as he started towards him. “Are you hungry?”
Jungkook sniffled, his eyes flickered to Hoseok when the other rubbed his chest from the doorway of the kitchen, then he relaxed a little bit more, looking down, “Hyung...”
It wasn't a yes or a no, but the answer was so clear they didn't need to hear a yes or a no.
Yoongi sat down beside them and found the healing bite on his right wrist quickly, opening it while Seokjin rubbed Jungkook's back.
Much more energetic now, Jungkook's impatience and hunger got the best of him and he snatched Yoongi’s arm. He curled over his lap holding his arm hostage and Seokjin cooed as he rubbed a hand over his side.
“I'm not going anywhere, slow down,” Yoongi urged, petting Jungkook’s hair off of his temple. “Look around, baby. Remember their faces.”
Seokjin held Jungkook tighter when the fledgling shifted in his lap, leaning over to see that Jungkook was listening to Yoongi. He was looking around.
Namjoon moved and placed clean clothes on the couch, Hoseok crossed his arms, Jimin's fingers tapped anxiously on his lap. Taehyung was frozen - he didn't even blink.
“They're never going to hurt you.”
Jungkook stopped sucking at the wound. He just laid there, cheek pressed onto Yoongi’s lap, breathing in lungfuls of his scent.
Being a fledgling was hard enough as is, but Jungkook wasn't used to their scents or any vampire smells for that matter. It showed in how calm he grew when he got to smell them.
Of course, they'd smell much better to the fledgling due to their bond, but right now everything was so overwhelming for him.
Yoongi leaned down, fingers draped over the side of his neck, “We can't help you if you don't talk with us, Jungkook,” his lips brushed over his ear, “Please talk to hyungs.”
Jungkook was compelled to. They knew Yoongi was his side and therefore there were perks the vampire had over him. One of them being that his influence on him was much stronger than everyone else's.
It was one of the reasons Hoseok never wanted to sire, he always knew he'd feel too guilty to tell anyone what to do, or even suggest it.
Yoongi was always the best at this, being demanding, but Seokjin was much better at affection. It was nice to see the elder forced into changing his ways a little bit.
“I…”
“There we go,” Hoseok whispered, shifting to sit on the edge of the couch beside Taehyung. “You can talk, Jungkook. Hyungs want to hear your voice.”
Jungkook swallowed when he shifted to sit up, his ribs poking out when he sucked in a deep breath and wrapped his arms around his stomach.
“Hurts.”
One word. But that was enough for Seokjin to coo at him and kiss his shoulder. It was enough for everyone to relax and that awkward bubble to burst.
“Where? Show hyung,” Yoongi demanded.
Jungkook paused, he blinked in thought before pointing a finger at his knee, “It hurts.”
“Oh, baby…”
Jimin's eyes flickered with a tease when Yoongi got up and grabbed Jungkook to sit him down on the couch and roll up his sweatpants, but he didn't say it. Especially not when Jungkook's knee was a blaring purple when his pants were rolled up.
“Looks like he's been bending his knees for a long time. Was he hiding or something?” Namjoon peered over the back of the couch, “Can I see?”
There was a hesitance to the oldest three, with Yoongi twisting his lips and shifting to sit down beside Jungkook, asking, “Is the other one like that?”
Jungkook nodded, eyes big, fingers holding loosely onto Yoongi’s shirt.
“Namjoon hyung is a big nerd,” Jimin blurted suddenly. “He's read like a million medical books and stuff. You should let him come closer.”
Jungkook startled a bit, visibly shaking, but when Namjoon walked around the couch and Yoongi grabbed his hand, he settled down.
Jimin smiled, “You should let me come close too!” he claimed, “Because I'm really the best hugger in this house and you really look like you need a hug. I'm also a big fan of your eyes. Wow, so big! You know, you-”
“God,” Yoongi groaned, “Shut up, Jimin.”
Jimin laughed, all cheerful and happy, laying in the cushions and meeting Jungkook's eyes as he sprawled out rather obnoxiously, fingers inching closer to Jungkook's foot.
The fledgling curled up his toes, but didn't move away. He turned to look at Seokjin and said again, “My knee hurts.”
“His knee hurts,” Jimin vouched, pouting. “Hyung, baby says his knee hurts.”
Jungkook released a tiny chuckle. It was incredibly small and more of a breathy huff, it bordered on annoyed, but everyone grinned wide.
“Didn't you hear?” Hoseok snorted and shoved Namjoon's arm, “Baby’s knee hurts, Joon. Help him.”
The fledgling ducked his head and fiddled with his hands when a hand curled around his foot and Jungkook's eyes went big when he looked down and saw Jimin rubbing his fingers over his ankle.
The vampire grinned big, all crescent eyes, “Do you want a hug now?”
“Park Jimin,” Seokjin growled and dropped his face in his hands, “you're so annoying. I swear on my life…”
“What?” Jimin pouted, “He likes it.”
Jungkook did, indeed, not shoo him off. Or flinch. So Seokjin supposed Jimin’s obnoxiousness came in handy.