Chapter Text
The early morning sun began to filter through the windows in Rumi’s room. The girls were entering their second month of their three month hiatus that they more than enough earned. Meaning it has been two months since they defeated Gwi-ma and created a new Honmoon. Two months of healing and learning how to trust each other again. Two months of them growing closer and closer until they could no longer hide their feelings for each other.
Technically, Mira and Zoey had already confessed their feelings for each other and had been in a secret relationship for a year and a half now. However, they wanted Rumi to be a part of their relationship. All three of them were more or less soulmates, decreed by the Honmoon many years ago. It had chosen them to become hunters, to save the world, and to turn the Honmoon golden. Their fates and destinies were permanently intertwined. They were one-third of the same soul. Rumi was beyond ecstatic and relieved when she found out her friends felt the same way about her as she did them.
As Rumi began to slowly awaken, she thought back on the past two months. She was steadily learning how to accept her demon side, patterns and all. However, healing is not a linear process, and she still has bad days where she feels the need to hide her patterns under thick hoodies and baggy pants. There are days when the troublesome and annoying voices in the back of her head were louder than normal. They would remind Rumi of her betrayal, call her flawed and broken, and tell her that she would never really be accepted by those she loves.
On those days, Mira and Zoey hold her close and dispel all of her worries. They kiss her patterns and whisper oh so sweet affirmations in her ears. They remind Rumi that she is loved.
Rumi, with her eyes still closed, fully stretched her limbs and body across the bed, not unlike a cat. A yawn soon followed after before nuzzling back into her plush pillow.
Rumi cracked open her eyes when she heard a soft giggle come from beside her. As her vision adjusted to the sunlight, she saw Zoey staring at Rumi with a soft smile on her face. Rumi furrowed her eyebrows in response to Zoey’s giggles.
Zoey only quietly laughed again before speaking, “You’re so cute as you’re waking up.”
Rumi let out a huff, her voice raspy from sleep, “Why are you staring at me like a creep while I sleep?”
“Because it’s the only time you have your guard completely down, and you look peaceful.” Zoey pressed a kiss to Rumi’s forehead before tapping her on the nose with a small ‘boop.’
Rumi rolled her eyes, a traitorous smile on her face, before rolling onto her back. She patted at the space next to her expecting to find another body. However, the space next to her was empty, the occupant already gone.
“Where’s Mira?” Rumi turned to look at Zoey before yawning again.
“Oh, I think she went to make breakfa–” Zoey stopped mid-word, eyes huge.
“What?” was all Rumi could get out before Zoey –with a speed Rumi did not know she possessed– raised up and slung a leg over Rumi’s waist, effectively straddling her.
Rumi was a confused, sputtering mess. A blush crept up on her face as her patterns pulsed to the rhythm of her fluttering heartbeat. The blush spread to her ears as Zoey held Rumi’s face with her hands and face slowly inching towards Rumi’s. Time began to slow as Zoey’s thumb brushed against Rumi’s bottom lip. Rumi was close to blacking out purely from gay panic when all of the sudden Zoey shoved her thumb in Rumi’s mouth, seemingly in an attempt to pry open her mouth.
What?
“Zoey! What the hell!” Rumi attempted to push Zoey’s hands away before the other girl slightly tightened her grip on Rumi’s face.
“No! No wait! There’s something I need to check! Please!” Zoey begged as if her life depended on it.
Rumi quizzically stared up at her before relenting with a sigh, “Okay, fine. But if you do something weird, I’ll bite your fingers.”
“Promise?” Zoey winked with that look in her eyes.
Rumi’s brain seemed to short-circuit as she just opened her mouth. It’ll be easier if she just let Zoey complete her spur-of-the-moment mission.
Zoey gripped Rumi’s chin as she moved her face up and down and left and right. Her eyes were twinkling with excitement the entire time, and Rumi was becoming more and more confused.
What was so fascinating about her mouth?
Zoey’s thumb brushed across the tip of one of Rumi’s teeth, and Zoey let out a barely audible wince before pulling her thumb back. Rumi noticed a tiny bead of blood coming from Zoey’s thumb, and the wrinkles between Rumi’s eyebrows deepened.
“Ohmygod,” Zoey quickly whispered before using her tongue to swipe at the blood on her thumb, the same excitement never leaving her eyes.
“For real Zoey, what is going on?”
“MIRA!” Zoey yelled which immediately caused Rumi to flinch. “MIRA! COME HERE!”
Rapid footsteps can be heard as they get closer before the door to Rumi’s room bursts open. Mira crashes into the room with her weapon summoned and ready to strike, eyes quickly glancing around the room for the immediate threat. When she sees no threat, Mira dispels her weapon and crosses her arms.
“Zoey, what the hell? I thought there was an intruder.”
“Just, come here and look.” Zoey waves Mira over to where she is still straddling Rumi.
When Mira is next to them, Zoey shoots her a devious smile before using her thumb to lift up Rumi’s upper lip. Mira’s eyes grow wide for a second before a shit-eating grin spreads across her face.
“Well would you look at that.”
“I know, right!?” Zoey is practically shaking with unbridled joy.
Rumi, finally having enough, swats away Zoey’s hands. “Okay seriously guys, what is going on, and why is everyone so interested in my mouth all of the sudden?”
“We’re always interested in your mouth,” Mira teases.
Zoey places her hands on Rumi’s shoulders before exclaiming, “You have fangs!”
Rumi’s brain freezes as she immediately sits up with enough force to cause Zoey to tumble backwards. She flies out of bed, her leg getting caught in the tangled mess of the covers causing her to almost trip to the ground had Mira not caught her. Rumi rushes to the full body length mirror on her wall and opens her mouth.
Sure enough her top canines are longer than normal. Rumi ran the pad of her thumb against the bottom of one, blood immediately welling from the spot. And sharper than normal too, Rumi noted.
Rumi’s mind began to race with so many questions. Why did she grow fangs? Is she starting to turn into more of a demon? What’s next? Does this mean her demon half will overrun her human half one day? Will she become a danger to her girlfriends? Rumi’s patterns turned a darker pink, flickering anxiously.
“I can hear you spiraling. Hey, take a few deep breaths.” Mira appeared behind Rumi and wrapped her arms around the other woman. Zoey stood in front of Rumi, slipped her arms around Rumi’s waist, and tucked her head under her chin.
Rumi was effectively sandwiched between her girlfriends. The pressure and the small kisses Mira pressed against her neck helped Rumi ground herself. After a few minutes went by, Rumi let out a deep breath and went limp between the two girls, the fears leaving her body. Rumi brought one arm up to squeeze Mira’s arm and the other placed around Zoey to hug her.
“Thanks, girls. I’m fine now.”
Mira shot Rumi a glare through the mirror, and Rumi smiled sheepishly. “Okay, maybe not one hundred percent fine…”
Rumi sighed and extracted herself from in between the two girls. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as more questions swirled through her mind.
“Hey, tell us what’s going through that pretty, little brain of yours.” Mira placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
Rumi placed a hand on her chin in contemplation and began to slowly pace. “I don’t know why this is happening now. Is it because we created a new Honmoon, or could it be this is happening because I’m slowly starting to accept this side of me?”
Mira and Zoey both shared a glance before Zoey spoke up, “Either way, I think it’s kinda hot–”
Zoey let out a quiet ‘ow’ as Mira elbowed her in the side and hissed, “Zoey!”
“What? We were both thinking it!”
Rumi stopped pacing as her face became bright red. As if that weren’t bad enough, her patterns flashed with a light pink completely giving her away. Damn these patterns.
Mira’s face sported a cheshire grin. “Zoey, be careful. We don’t want our human mood ring to die of a gay heart attack.”
As if picking up on a subtle cue from Mira, Zoey sauntered towards Rumi and loosely hooked her arms around the taller girl’s neck. She leaned up, mere inches away from Rumi’s lips, about to go in for a kiss. Before she could, Rumi slightly pulled back.
“What if I bite you by accident? I- I don’t want to hurt you.” Nerves pooled in her stomach. Rumi doesn’t think she could live with herself if she hurt Zoey or Mira, especially if it came from one of her demon attributes.
Zoey looked up at Rumi with round doe eyes. Rumi knows she is in trouble because she could never say no to Zoey when she looked at her like that.
“What if I wanted you to,” Zoey whispered into Rumi’s ear, her breath tickling her ear.
Rumi shuddered at the action, and a part of her – the demon half – wanted to give in and see if Zoey really meant what she said. Rumi’s mouth opened and closed like a fish, struggling to find words to respond.
Zoey giggled before pulling away completely and giving Rumi space. “Not now, of course. But maybe later.”
Zoey gave her a wink before turning around to face Mira. Mira still had that annoying shit-eating grin on her face. She loves seeing Rumi flustered, and it’s even better watching Zoey be the one to do it. When Rumi met Mira’s gaze, Mira’s eyes held the same passion and curiosity that Rumi saw in Zoey’s eyes, but there was also something else there. Something more primal, like a want. A need.
Before Rumi could analyze her any further, Zoey grabbed Mira by the hand and began dragging her away. “Come on, I’m hungry!”
Rumi threw her head back and groaned. Her girlfriends would be the death of her, but Rumi is okay with that. Once Rumi takes a couple of deep breaths and her patterns turn back into their normal iridescent color, she joins Mira and Zoey in the kitchen.
The changes begin to slowly happen over time. However, it wasn’t always a visible change, and some had taken Rumi longer to notice. For example, her hearing has become a bit sharper. She’s able to distinguish her girlfriends’ footsteps all the way from their living room from her bedroom.
Her appetite has increased significantly. While Rumi could binge her fair share of snacks and ramen, she still had her limit. Now, though, she could devour a whole buffet and then some. It made her wonder if the constant hunger was a curse Gwi-ma put on all demons to further ensure their continuous suffering. Her heart felt a twinge of pain and pity for those demons.
Rumi also noticed that she could see better in the dark. She wasn’t sure how exactly it worked considering her, mostly, human biology. If she thinks about it too hard, she’ll develop a headache. It’s useful, so she doesn’t question it.
These small discoveries lead Rumi to her current situation. As she stands on top of the counter in the kitchen, she strains her ears for any sounds. All she hears are the quiet breaths Mira takes along with Zoey’s occasional snore. Zoey will vehemently deny that she snores, but Mira and Rumi know the truth.
Rumi couldn’t ignore the growing hunger, so she carefully and quietly slipped out from her girlfriends’ embraces and made her way towards the kitchen. With the help of her new ability, Rumi is able to navigate the kitchen without having to turn on any lights, lest she wake up Mira and Zoey. Standing on the countertop, Rumi quietly opens the cabinet door. She rummages around the cabinet for a minute before taking out a bag of her favorite chips. Rumi doesn’t even take the time to get off of the counter and sit in a chair like a normal person before opening the bag and shoving the chips in her mouth. Rumi is so engrossed in her chips that she doesn’t notice the soft patter of feet walking towards the kitchen. It isn’t until a light from a phone is pointed to her and a scream rips through the silence that she swerves her head around to look at the source.
“OHMYGOD RUMI!” Here is what Zoey sees:
Rumi, squatted on the counter while hunched over a bag of chips, eyes wide with surprise. Her patterns, which were faintly glowing before, light up slightly upon seeing Zoey. But that’s not all.
They stare at each other for a moment as Rumi slowly takes her hand out of the bag and plops another chip in her mouth. The silence stretches as she chews the chip before swallowing.
“Um, hi Zoey?” Rumi gives a small and nervous smile.
Zoey is still staring at her, mouth agape, eyes wide, and flashlight still trained on Rumi. Zoey blinks a couple of times as if she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. Shaking out of her momentary stupor, Zoey turns on the kitchen lights and points a finger at Rumi.
“You. Stay.” before turning on her heel and marching back to their bedroom.
Rumi just blinks before sitting on the counter. She’s slightly kicking her legs up and down as she continues to happily munch on her chips. If it weren’t two in the morning, Rumi might’ve been more concerned about waking up Zoey and potentially Mira. Mira could be really scary if you interrupt her beauty sleep. However, her tired and hunger-addled brain did not fully process the events.
Zoey comes back into the kitchen with Mira in tow. Mira is sleepily rubbing her eyes while angrily grumbling at Zoey for dragging her out of bed. As they stop in front of Rumi, Mira looks around the kitchen before her eyes land on Rumi. Mira studies Rumi for a minute before turning to Zoey.
“Okay, she’s having a late night snack. Why did you drag me out of bed for this?”
Zoey says nothing as she turns off the kitchen lights and shines her phone’s flashlight onto Rumi. Rumi blinks harshly, unable to see their reactions due to the blinding light in her eyes.
“Holy shit.”
“Yep.”
Rumi holds a hand up to block out the light before speaking, “Okay what are you guys doing?”
Zoey turns off her flashlight before putting her phone away and turning on the kitchen lights. “Your eyes do that glowy reflecty thing! Like a cat!”
“Or like a raccoon considering how we found you,” Mira said flatly.
“Huh. Weird, but I guess it makes sense with the whole, ya know, being able to see in the dark thing.” Rumi shoveled another handful of chips in her mouth. She will probably have more to say about it tomorrow, but right now Rumi doesn’t care.
“Your eyes were also golden in the dark, and when I shined my flashlight on them, they contracted into slits! Like a cat!” Zoey said excitedly, bouncing on the balls of her feet.
“Or like a lizard.” Mira teased.
“Mira! Lizards aren’t cute! Cats are cute! Rumi is cute! Therefore, Rumi is more like a cat,” Zoey huffed and crossed her arms.
“Your logic is flawless.” Mira rolled her eyes and turned around. “I’m going back to bed. Bring our gremlin of a girlfriend back when she’s finished devouring those chips.”
Once Mira left, Zoey slowly turned back towards Rumi and observed her for a moment. Rumi, who was still sitting on the counter finishing up the bag of chips, noticed how Zoey’s eyes were filled with pure elation. Zoey turned the lights off again and watched as Rumi’s normally brown eyes turned to gold. They even emitted a faint glow like her patterns.
“This is so cool!” Zoey quietly squealed.