This Could Have Been a Lot Simpler If You’d Knocked

by TayWakes

Summary:

It had been a good few weeks since the Idol awards when Rumi had finally worked up the courage to explain everything to Mira and Zoey.

They of course, had been able to fit most of the puzzle together on their own though.

What with Rumi’s patterns, the discovery of her secret relationship with Jinu, the defeat of Gwi-ma, the sealing of the iris honmoon, and Rumi’s insistence that the Saja Boys stay at the Huntr/x tower while they settled back into mortal life, the two girls were able to quickly identify key points that they had previously overlooked in the ongoings of Rumi’s life.

Her aforementioned secret boyfriend, for example.

Jinu’s double crossing had been a shock to them both, of course. One moment they had been fighting for their lives against hordes of spindly black monsters on the catwalks of the arena, and the next they had both looked over their shoulders to find Rumi’s lips locked against her sworn enemy as his clawed fingers ran rampant through her wild hair.

There were certainly better ways to have broken it to them, Rumi had admitted sheepishly.

Chapter 1: Chapter One

It had been a good few weeks since the Idol awards when Rumi had finally worked up the courage to explain everything to Mira and Zoey.

 

They of course, had been able to fit most of the puzzle together on their own though.

 

What with Rumi’s patterns, the discovery of her secret relationship with Jinu, the defeat of Gwi-ma, the sealing of the iris honmoon, and Rumi’s insistence that the Saja Boys stay at the Huntr/x tower while they settled back into mortal life, the two girls were able to quickly identify key points that they had previously overlooked in the ongoings of Rumi’s life.

 

Her aforementioned secret boyfriend, for example.

 

Jinu’s double crossing had been a shock to them both, of course. One moment they had been fighting for their lives against hordes of spindly black monsters on the catwalks of the arena, and the next they had both looked over their shoulders to find Rumi’s lips locked against her sworn enemy as his clawed fingers ran rampant through her wild hair.

 

There were certainly better ways to have broken it to them, Rumi had admitted sheepishly.

 

After the battle was over and the eight of them had regressed deep backstage, it had quickly delved into a large and chaotic shouting match, no one quite sure what to think or say after what had just happened.

 

But the jist of their problem was that they couldn’t bring themselves to kill the Saja Boys after they had helped defeat Gwi-ma, and the group was now without a manager, without legal identities, and without a home.

 

Mira and Zoey had both been reluctant at first to allow the demons access into their tower, the place where they ate, slept, showered, and all other manners of activities that allowed them to let their guards down, but Rumi had been persuasive, and after many long confessions and apologies from the boys, they had finally cleared out a few spare bedrooms for the five of them on the condition that they pitch in with dishes and laundry along with all the other chores.

 

It had been awkward at first, Rumi and Jinu being the only ones of the two groups that would go even remotely near each other, but after a lot of encouragement from both sides, they had slowly integrated the demons and the demon hunters into a somewhat normal domestic routine.

 

They couldn’t help but admit after a while that the Saja Boys did make for excellent company. Zoey and Mys had grown close over their time making morning coffee for each other, and Mira spent most of her time sparring with Abby and Rom in their private gym, enjoying the new challenges they put to her fighting technique.

 

Baby just kept to himself mostly, discovering much to Zoey’s amusement that he was quite the master mixer when it came to making cocktails in their large storeroom behind the small barstool counter in their kitchen, his addicting concoctions making for some wildly drunk game nights when none of them felt like sleeping.

 

And Jinu? For a man who had never enjoyed an ounce of physical touch his entire existence, he had been practically attached at the hip to Rumi since Gwi-ma’s defeat. His hands were all over her, whether it be fiddling with the end of her braid, slipping a hand into the back pocket of her jeans, or just a simple little caress of his pinky as they passed each other in the hallway.

 

Jinu was an absolute sucker for her attention.

 

Bobby had even negotiated a deal between the two bands, rehearsals running late into the night for their upcoming single, one that Jinu and Zoey had both admitted had been their proudest lyrical work so far.

 

Life was better than it had ever been for all eight of them.

 

Which brought Rumi to finally tackle the only loose end she had left between her and the girls.

 

One night, long after the five demons had bid their goodnights to their girls, - Jinu leaving a simmering kiss on Rumi’s forehead with a soft ‘good luck’ as he went - Rumi had timidly asked Zoey and Mira to stay back with her a little while longer, clearing a spot on the couch for them as they carefully settled beside her - like she was some sort of animal that would be frightened away at any sudden movements.

 

They had a nagging feeling about what was about to tell them.

 

“I’ve needed to talk to you guys.” Rumi said softly in the dim light, a slight shake to her voice as her eyes darted everywhere else but the two of them. “For..a while now, I think.”

 

“We don’t want to rush you.” Zoey said quickly, reaching out to take one of Rumi’s limp hands in hers to pull her gaze to the two of them.

 

This seemed to ground Rumi a little more, her eyes moving to Zoey’s as her voice became a little more firm. “No, no I’m ready. I finally know what to say. I..I practiced with Jinu last night and everything.” She giggled nervously. “Trust me, I think I’m gonna feel a lot better if I just get it all out. It’s been bottled up for a while now.”

 

“We’re listening.” Mira told her, pulling a pillow to her chest as she leaned towards Rumi. “We’d never judge you, and we support you, no matter what. We would never make that mistake again.”

 

“Thank you, Mira.” Rumi whispered, her other hand reaching for hers as the two girls held her carefully, patiently awaiting Rumi’s next words with nothing but acceptance written across their faces. “I guess I should start with my parents.”

 

Rumi told them everything that night. About her patterns, about Celine, about Jinu, and about the thing she had been most reclusive about her entire life.

 

How she felt.

 

Mira and Zoey listened closely, gasping occasionally as Rumi revealed secrets she had never spoken into words before. It was a credit to them how calmly they took every detail, Rumi’s inner storm calming drastically as she broke through wall after wall before them, their acceptance only fueling her desire to split herself open and bare everything to them.

 

It was challenging speaking badly about Celine, even after everything she had done. She still felt programmed to praise her every movement, to defend her every decision like a godly word. Her scars still ran deep, clenching into her as she finally allowed herself to talk about every insecurity Celine had forced upon her, every withering look, every time she had made Rumi hate her body and the father she had never known.

 

She hated the person Celine had pressed around her like molding clay, trying to form her into a nothing more than an agreeable plastic doll with patternless porcelain skin.

 

And Mira and Zoey just listened, never once looking away.

 

“Celine?” Mira gasped, covering her mouth with her hands. “But you were like a daughter to her! Why would she ever tell you those things?”

 

“It’s not like they were your fault!” Zoey argued, eyes narrowed as she gripped Rumi’s hand tighter. “You didn’t choose to have them.”

 

“They weren’t and she knew that.” Rumi said quickly. “But it never stopped the prejudice, the one she had been taught her entire life. Half of me was evil to her, and whether she meant to or not, she had taught me to think the same.”

 

Rumi closed her eyes tightly, a single tear slipping through her tightly closed walls.

 

“Back when we were trainee’s, I had asked her almost weekly to reconsider keeping it a secret from you too. Every time you left for the bathhouse, or when you went to the lake house in the summer, I wanted so badly to come with you. Celine made me stay, picked out the turtlenecks and the long sleeved shirts that would hide my patterns from you. She told me…she told me you would kill me without hesitation if you ever found out.”

 

Mira was standing up in an instant, pacing the living room with her fists clenched at the sides of her polar bear nightdress. “I can’t believe I looked up to her for so long.” She growled, her eyes flashing blue with the honmoon’s magic as though itching to summon her gleaming scythe to hand. “Rumi, what she did to you.. That’s not right. She made her love conditional for you.”

 

“It..It wasn’t that serious.” Rumi stuttered out, as if not even believing the words herself as she spoke them.

 

“Wasn’t that serious?” Zoey repeated slowly. “She kept you from us for years! It would have been a shock, it was a shock when we found out, but we would have gotten around to it almost instantly with a good long discussion about it!”

 

“I always just thought she was hard on you because you were our leader.” Zoe said guilty, her voice warbling slightly as she looked at her feet in shame.

 

“It was partly because of that.” Rumi confirmed. “Back when we were building up towards the golden honmoon, Celine promised me that when we closed the gate to the demon world for good, my patterns would vanish alongside them.” Rumi looked bitterly across the room, her voice slightly muffled by her sleeve. “I think she wanted them gone more than I did, and so she projected a lot until I craved it as much as her.”

 

“Rumi..” Mira signed, reaching across the small expanse between them to pull Rumi to her chest, hugging her deeply as Zoey settled in beside them. “You were perfect, with or without patterns.”

 

“You have no idea how much that means to me.” Rumi signed gratefully, the big lump in her chest smoothing out as she was finally able to take a deep breath again.

 

They hugged, they cried, they held each other in steel-locked grasps as the city below them quickly drifted off to sleep, the sounds of the cars and the distant music fading to a steady hum as the night quickly shifted to the witching hour.

 

But Rumi didn’t care that her eyes were red or puffy, or that the three of them were going to be absolutely wiped during tomorrow's rehearsal for their upcoming music video, or even that she had absolutely ruined her shirt with her running mascara. Nothing mattered.

 

Mira and Zoey were finally beside her. No more secrets stood between the trio, no more lies to split them apart in times of desperation, and no more doubt about whether or not she had the support they offered when push came to shove.

 

They were with her. All of her.

 

They had decided unanimously that they all needed to distance themselves from Celine in the meantime, none of them even knowing how to begin handling the situation.

 

They didn’t even know if this was something they would able to repair.

 

After they had all bid each other goodnight, Rumi had snuck back down the hallway to her bedroom, cracking the door open as quietly as she could to avoid waking up Jinu.

 

She slipped into the bathroom, washing her face and brushing her teeth through drooping eyelids, and lazily pulling out her braid in long violet ropes until it hung loosely by her ankles, wrapping around her and her black pajamas like a flowy veil.

 

Then, carefully as her socked feet could manage, she settled into the bed as lightly as she could, knowing Jinu was one of the most insanely light sleepers in the world.

 

“Hmm, that you?” A drowsily-laced voice echoed lowly from behind her as Rumi settled into a distant spooning position.

 

“Damn it, you just can’t sleep through anything, can you?” Rumi sighed playfully, rolling her eyes and spinning around to face the sleepy demon on the other side of the pillows.

 

Jinu’s chocolate brown eyes just beamed up at her through his mass of shiny black hair, hanging down over his forehead like an onyx cloud as he sat up a little further, the sheets slipping down his bare chest to reveal a pair of men's choo choo train pajama pants.

 

She had never thought she could love a person more than the day he proudly ripped open his Amazon package to present them to her, claiming that they matched now.

 

“You’re starting to look like Mys.” Rumi giggled, playfully ruffling her fingers through the tuft on the front of his head until it laid a little more how he usually styled it.

 

“I’ll take that as a compliment.” Jinu teased, his hands traversing across the mattress between them until they were wrapping carefully around Rumi’s waist, pulling her across the seven inch expanse until they were resting chest to chest, foreheads pressed together as their voices dropped to a whisper. “You’ve said it yourself, Mys looks good with that haircut.”

 

“But I don’t want Mys!” Rumi giggled as his fingers slipped underneath her old tour shirt and traced lazy designs in the skin on her lower back and made her shiver with tickles. She retaliated by bringing her own hands around to stroke the length of his jaw, bringing his lips a mere breath away from hers. “I want you.”

 

She kissed him lazily, allowing Jinu to prop her up onto his shoulder as her lips moved impossibly in sync with his. She felt the prod of two warm objects running along her bottom lip, and opened her eyes slightly, seeing that Jinu had shifted over to his demon form while they had been wrapped up in each other. His forked tongue ran the length of his upper and lower lips simultaneously, patterns awakening hers as they spread across her body in bright purple flashes.

 

“If you wanted to see my patterns, you could have just asked.” Rumi said, breaking apart from Jinu to pull his hands from her shirt, pinning them down above his head as her hips shifted to straddle his pelvis.

 

He looked dazed, daresay high. Like he had been whacked across the head with a concerning amount of force.

 

His pupils were blown wide, trailing up and down her body like she was some sort of ethereal creature, his lips parted slightly as his forked tongue flicked wantonly across the corner of his mouth.

 

The things this man did.

 

“God, Rumi. You’re so beautiful.” He gasped, his eyes meeting hers with nothing but a lifetime's promise of devotion echoed across his face. “So beautiful. I could spend the rest of my life like this, trapped underneath you as the moon paints your face like that.”

 

“You’re so sappy.” Rumi groaned, swooping down to peck his lips and then popping back up, gauging his reaction to her words. “And cheesy.” Peck. “And old.” Peck.

 

“You know, where I come from, it’s extremely looked down upon to disrespect your elders.” Jinu whined, easily slipping out of her hold and cradling her body as he wrapped his legs around her, turning them both back over into their original position.

 

“Where I come from, you’re still young as fuck.” Rumi quipped back as her fingers threaded through his, her claws brushing against his as their skin blotted purple together, two ink stains over satin sheets. “You had to ask me to change a set of batteries for you yesterday.”

 

“Well I didn’t know you were supposed to use a screwdriver for that silly little chunk of metal.” Jinu said bitterly, the word screwdriver still unfamiliar on his two-pronged tongue, having not existed at the same time as the little tool.

 

“It’s okay.” Rumi said, finally relenting their little teasing game as she pushed herself up against him with all her might, his warm skin pressing into her nose as she inhaled him deeply, the very smell of him bringing her to euphoria as she curled herself around him. “That’s what I’m here for.”

 

“Lucky me.” He smiled, letting his leg fall over her waist as he let his claws sink back into his human hands, ridding himself of the sharp points as he let his hands roam across Rumi’s body with a fervent possessiveness, as if he were defending her body from the very darkness itself. “How did it go with Mira and Zoey?”

 

“Really well, actually.” Rumi told him. “Thank you for practicing with me last night, it really helped me be able to get through all that.”

 

“Of course.” Jinu said quickly. “Anything, Rumi. Anything you need.”

 

“I need to get to sleep.” Rumi yawned, even just the thought of tomorrow’s early morning making her groan out loud. “And I need a goodnight kiss.”

 

“I can provide for both of those.” Jinu said with a certain level of smugness in his tone. He captured her lips with his, pressing the full weight of his devotion into their connection as both of their patterns pulsed happily, lighting up the room in dazzling lavender clouds.

 

Jinu pulled Rumi to his chest again, almost blanketing her with his body as strong shoulders closed in from both sides, his head coming to rest above hers with his chin tucking her safely into the crook of her neck.

 

“Did you ever wonder why I’m a light sleeper?” Jinu suddenly asked as Rumi was finally able to close her eyes, letting the light of their bodies fade into black as her nose nuzzled into his skin.

 

“Mmnm.” Rumi hummed into his skin.

 

“Back when I was alive,” Jinu said, his voice barely above a whisper as soft fingers ran across her scalp. “My bipa was my livelihood, my only way to earn the next day's meal. I defended it with my life, learning very early on that anything that wasn’t secured down was pickpocketed into thin air.”

 

Rumi listened intently, not daring to break this rare moment of a glance into Jinu’s past.

 

“So every night, I would hold my bipa, just like this.” He said, gripping Rumi tightly against him to emphasize his point. “And when I felt passing fingers on the street reach for its neck, I’d be able to wake up quickly enough to take it back.”

 

Jinu’s hug grew tender, as though bracing for Rumi to suddenly be ripped from him the same way as his bipa had almost been all those years ago. “I know it’s not going to come true.” He said softly. “But if anything ever happens to you, I’ll be here, and I’ll be able to feel it and to help you. Whether you’re sick, or cramping, or you just need me to grab your toothbrush or something.”

 

His hand slipped over Rumi’s, holding her fingers steady. “I’ll always be here for you.”

 

Not able to fight her closed eyelids back open, Rumi just pressed open-mouthed kisses against the divot of muscle between his shoulders and his smooth pectorals. “I love you, Jinu.” She was able to move her sleepy lips just enough to say.

“I love you too, Rumi.” He breathed. “Sleep. I’ve got you.”

And Rumi drifted into a warm, dreamless sleep.

Chapter 2: Chapter Two

A few weeks passed by after that night in what felt like a surreal blur.

Life without secrets was new to Rumi, and she almost felt like a lizard that had just shed its tough, protective skin, leaving her in something brighter, something fresher, something raw and soft.

 

Short sleeved shirts were something Rumi was still getting used to in her daily routine. Mira and Zoey had known about her patterns since the hijacked song, but only after their talk had she actually had the confidence to grab tank top from the back of her closet, her more permanent patterns peeking out from the shoulder straps and dripping down her arms in the full light of day for the first time.

 

She had expected a scene, maybe an encouraging passing comment from them that would make her greatly overthink things, but the two just nodded good morning to her and handed her a bowl of strawberries. They hadn’t even glanced at her patterns once the entirety of breakfast.

 

Rumi felt like she was floating through the rest of her day.

 

It seemed that this happy little bubble she had created around her life would never pop, everything falling perfectly into place as the eight idols grew closer and closer together. Everything was perfect. Everything was amazing.

 

That is until Celine showed up.

 

It had been just an ordinary morning for them, Rumi waking beside Jinu and coaxing him to the breakfast table, where Zoey was busy cooking bacon above a steaming pan.

 

“Smells incredible.” Jinu moaned, throwing himself down in his usual seat and piling Zoey’s homemade pumpkin pancakes onto his plate.

 

Rumi reached her one demon clawed hand across the table and grabbed a few blueberries from the small dish there, playfully leaning over to pop a few of the little delights into Jinu’s open mouth.

 

She was starting to enjoy the advantages of her demon attributes in everyday life. While she still couldn't shift into a full demon form due to her half heritage, she had started to keep her more savage attributes while in mixed company. Her claws made it easy to wrap around the bowl, and her one golden eye was a nifty night-light for midnight snacks.

 

“What are you - oh. Oh those are quite good.” Jinu moaned, letting the flavor run down his throat with a soft moan and reaching to pull the dish closer to him.

 

Jinu’s love language - according to Jinu - was words of affirmation. Something simple and common that still upheld his so-called image of being the cool, calm, and collected leader of the most popular boy band in the world.

 

Rumi knew without a doubt that it was food.

 

It wasn’t something she ever teased him about, knowing full well the kind of situation he had been forced to grow up in that would have absolutely caused this kind of infatuation, but it didn’t stop her from smiling widely every time his eyes lit up at the sight of his smiling in content as he allowed himself to fall apart over every meal.

 

She felt his sharp chin dig into the side of her shoulder as he settled into her, his nose pressing softly against the side of her cheek as his lean frame closed in around her like a weighted blanket. “You spoil me.”

 

“Come now, don’t be modest.” Rumi laughed, leaning back against him as she turned her head slightly to catch the corner of his lips with hers. “Someone’s gotta keep you fed, you little monster.”

 

“Little monster?” Jinu chuckled against her lips, his eyes flashing liquid gold behind his closed eyelids as that beautiful purple hue seeped into his skin like ink, his patterns erupting up and down his arms like lightning as he bared sharpened canines at her in a mocking snarl. “You know, most demons would find that highly insulting.”

 

“But you’re so cute!” Rumi pouted, a large smirk breaking through her facade as she watched Jinu’s brows narrow at her. She reached up, undeterred by his intimidating frame to cup her hands around his cheeks, squeezing them slightly in her grasp like she would with Derpy’s face when she was cooing him. “Little monster.” She said in a high baby voice as he rolled his flashing eyes at her.

 

“Outrageous.” He managed to get out between his squished lips.

 

“You know you love it.” Rumi whispered against the iridescent skin on the column of his neck, her ghosting breath sending shivers down Jinu’s spine as she gently traced a jagged bolt running the length of his arm.

 

“Oh good god, what the fuck is wrong with you two?” Mira’s tired voice suddenly echoed from the hallway, her polar bear pajamas swishing angrily around her frame as she flopped down in the chair furthest from the two, glaring at them through rounded glasses.

 

“Jeez, okay..” Rumi mumbled sarcastically, throwing her hands up dramatically and getting off of Jinu, walking back towards the kitchen where Zoey was still mixing more pancake batter. “Sorry for being comfortable in my own house.”

 

Mira just rolled her eyes, burying her puffy face in her crossed arms as Jinu wordlessly poured her a glass of orange juice as a peace offering to the violent energy she had brought to the table.

 

“What’s up with her?” Rumi whispered to Zoey as she helped crush up chocolate chips for the next batch.

 

Zoey just nodded subtly across the room with a sly, suggestive smirk on her face.

 

“What are you -“ Rumi started to ask, but then Rom and Abby suddenly emerged from the same hallway that Mira had just come from, both wearing large sweaters that carefully hid the columns of their necks and chests, and both smiling widely.

 

Rumi just turned back to Zoey with wide eyes, not daring to believe what she was implying.

 

“Yeah, she had a night.” Zoey whispered conspiratorially, winking quickly before Mira noticed.

 

“Abby. Rom.” Mira acknowledged monotonously.

 

“Hey.” They both echoed back in a sultry whisper, settling on either side of her and leaning in as close to her as they dared.

 

“About time..” Rumi breathed in Zoey’s ear before straightening back up, raising up her cutting board. “Chocolate chips are ready.”

 

“Just throw them in the bowl.” Zoey said. “And then we can start pouring the batter onto the pan and hopefully -“

 

“Hey girls.” A soft voice sounded from behind them. Rumi spun around to find Mys had entered the kitchen, arms outstretched towards Rumi as he gestured for the cutting board. “Rumi, I’ll help her out. You go sit down.”

 

“Are you sure?” Rumi asked him. “I’ve really got it covered.”

 

“I’m sure.” He grinned. “You go sit, I’ve got this.”

 

“Thank you.” Rumi sighed gratefully, not wanting to admit that it was really sweet to see all of the tactics that the incredibly shy demon used as an excuse to spend more time with Zoey.

 

Mys took the chocolate chips from her, popping a few in his mouth, and followed Zoey’s instructions, effortlessly whipping the batter onto the griddle in little perfect circles.

 

“You’re an angel.” Zoey sighed, leaning into his side as he worked.

 

Mys just couldn’t help the blush rising to his cheeks at her words.

 

Rumi just stood in awe for a moment, walking back to lean against the wall and taking in the full scope of the scene before her.

 

Zoey and Mys flirting over the stovetop, Mira and Rom deep in conversation about deadlifting form (and how his was atrocious), and Jinu and Abby tracking down a deck of cards so that they could play gin over their feast of a breakfast - Jinu and herself still hued purple and glowing.

 

This fondness, this pride in her heart as she glanced over her mismatched family. They all fumbled lazily around the kitchen, unaware of her loving gaze as she stood there adoring every little action, every gesture, every smile.

 

Was this what motherhood was supposed to feel like? That parental instinct to gather them all up and never let them go, to accept every flaw and crack with open arms, to give each and every one of them the entire world?

 

If it was, she was sure now that Celine had never felt that for her.

 

“They look happy.” A deep mumble said from beside her.

 

She turned to find Baby standing beside her, also looking out over the group with what she was sure to be the same look glittering in her own eyes.

 

“They do.” She agreed.

 

“You did that, you know.” He told her passively, folding his arms across his body as he watched Mira tell Rom off for almost spilling her milk glass, Jinu summoning paper towels from the kitchen with manic energy as the liquid seeped into the placemat.

 

“Oh, please.” Rumi rolled her yellow and onyx eyes. “You’re the one mixing the drinks, you make them get along.” She of course, was referring to the first night the eight of them had actually decided to try bearing each other's company, too drunk to do anything else but talk until they didn’t seem to want to stop. “That right there is on you.”

 

“Whatever you say.” He chuckled, rolling his shoulders off the wall at the sound of Zoey slapping a new stack of pancakes down on his plate and calling him over. “Just know at least that I did it by accident. You put these pieces together. Without you, I don’t even know where we would have ended up.”

 

“You would have been fine without us.” Rumi dismissed with a smile.

 

“Really though?” Baby said with a knowing grin as he left, making her stop and pause, mulling over his words with a little more seriousness.

 

Could Baby actually have a small point? 

But how could all the credit belong to her when it had only been up to the rest of them to accept each other? She had no say in their decision to open up… unless she had been a little more influential in her actions than she had previously thought. 

She had never felt like an actual leader within their group. She had played the role, acted the bits she needed to for the fan interviews and choreography, but she had never expected Zoey and Mira to actually respect her as a higher authority. They were a team, equal in every way.

Rumi was so lost in her thoughts that it took her a few seconds longer than usual to register a strange noise echoing from the living room, the large white door separating the two rooms muffling most of the sound.

Rumi approached the door suspiciously, straining her ears for another sign of the noise. It almost sounded like..pacing?

Frantic footsteps were definitely running back and forth behind the door, clicking loudly on the tile floor as they went.

Had Bobby arrived early today? They had only revealed their true situation to him last week, but already he was back to his cheerful carefree self, even telling Rumi that he thought her patterns were pretty. He wasn’t supposed to be here until two o’clock.. had something happened at the label?

The footsteps suddenly got louder and louder, telling Rumi that whoever was inside their tower was coming for the kitchen next.

Without thinking, Rumi grabbed the handle and pulled the door open, the cheerful “Hi, Bobby!” already bubbling up in her throat as she raised her taloned hand to greet him into the kitchen.

Instead, she found herself standing face to face with Celine. 

Holy shit.

Celine was in their house.

 

Her ears seemed to go mute, buzzing with an absent energy and plunging her underwater.

 

Rumi couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. She hadn’t talked to Celine in over four months, had cut all contact, all communication, all updates from her.

 

This couldn’t possibly be happening. She had still needed time, had barely even come up with an inkling of what to say to her. She hadn’t even fully processed their last encounter.

 

Celine’s eyes were wide in shock, taking in Rumi’s appearance like a scientist would at a failing nuclear core. It was worse than the look she had given her under the old magnolia tree during their fight, something sour, something cruel.

 

Her brain was shutting down, her senses misfiring and sending her glowing patterns into a flitting frenzy as her eyes seemed to go black in the corners of her vision, her smile fading into the deep recesses of her mind as her worst fear seemed to come true before her. 

She had shown her patterns. She had broken Celine’s most punished rule. 

And Celine knew.

 

Her sparking patterns seemed to send Celine into overdrive as well, the elder hunter’s eyes flashing with a trained malice as the light bounced the doorframe around them, the two opposites clashing in a terrifying supernova where the stars seemed to stand still.

 

Her lips were twitching slightly, as if the words ‘cover them up’ were bubbling up her throat with no regard, like a primal instinct to destroy the image before her.

Jinu - ever the perceptive man he was - seemed to be able to tell that something was off, even when the breakfast table was hidden from view around the door.

 

“Rumi?” He called, standing quickly and jogging around the corner with a growing urgency. “What’s wrong?”

 

His lavender frame breached Celine’s field of vision, and then suddenly two glowing scythes were clutched madly in her hands as she sidestepped Rumi to face off against Jinu, who still clad in nothing but sweatpants, mismatched pink socks, and a Stray Kids t-shirt.

 

“You!” She hollered, the laugher from the kitchen falling dead silent as the other six rushed over to see what was happening. “Is this your doing you filthy demon? Why did you force her patterns out?”

 

“Celine?” Zoey gasped as she saw her, immediately putting herself between her mentor and Mys, gesturing frantically at him to stay back from the blades.

 

Celine obviously assumed this to be an ambush, and none of their rushed words and explanations could calm her as she readied for a fight.

 

“Girls, listen to me!” Celine shouted, her eyes daring between Jinu, Rom, Abby, Mys, and Baby with hatred flowing from her ice-cold gaze. “I need you all to get as far away from here as possible. I can handle them.”

 

“No!” Mira shouted, her own blade materializing swiftly in her hands, as well as in Rom and Abby’s. “They’re not here to hurt us, Celine! They’re our guests! What the fuck are you doing here?”

 

Celine just tightened her hold on her weapons, not believing a word. “Is this why they wouldn’t pick up their phones?” She hissed at the boys. “You’ve been holding them captive here for your own sick pleasures? You’re all animals!”

 

It must have been quite the sight, the three girls in their pajamas, Mys wearing Zoey’s pink cooking apron, Baby still with a bottle of whipped cream clasped in his fist, and Rumi’s features shifting human as quickly as she could make them as Jinu carefully coaxed her to step back into his body, away from Celine.

 

But Rumi’s feet couldn’t move. It was like she had passed out while still conscious, a passenger in her own mind as she tried to pull all her demon bits deep into her body, back into the little box where Celine couldn’t berate them.

 

The woman saw this, and raised her weapon again, pinning Jinu against the wall and pressing the blade to his throat, mere centimeters away from his clavicle. “You dare corrupt Rumi into exposing herself..”

 

“Leave him alone!” Rumi suddenly screamed, demon voice rumbling the room as the honmoon lit up pink around her. She snapped out of her trance in an instant and moved like a winged snake. If anyone took Jinu away from her again..

 

A large staff materialized in her hands, Rumi not even thinking as she threw her body between the two, knocking Celine’s scythe away from Jinu and kicking her feet against the woman’s chest as hard as she could. This sent Celine rolling backwards as Rumi braced herself in front of Jinu, seething with rage as her pointed fangs flashed ominously at her before she hid them from sight.

“Are you okay?” She whispered to Jinu, her human hand gripping his own tightly as her eyes scanned his neck for any signs of a cut.

 

“I’m okay.” He quickly reassured her. “I’m okay, Rumi. Everything is okay.”

 

Nothing is okay…nothing ever will be. Cover the patterns, get rid of them, hide, flee, cover, hide….

 

Zoey and Mira instantly came to her side as Celine recovered, weapons raised as Abby quickly grabbed Jinu’s shoulders and pulled him away from the fray, the girls moving as one to block them from Celine’s grasp.

 

”We don’t want to hurt you!” Zoey told her quickly. “Just please, calm down! We can talk about this!”

 

”You’re…working with them?” Celine gasped at Rumi and Jinu, watching in what seemed to be sheer horror as Rumi gripped Jinu’s hand even tighter with her own.

 

“How is it any of your business?” Mira asked her incredulously. “We made it very clear that we did not want to see you again.”

 

”They’re holding you hostage!” Celine argued.

 

”No, we were eating breakfast!” Mira quipped back. “Like normal people, Celine!”

It was like the worst K-drama brought to life, each word sending them all further down the rabbit hole of all things that could have gone wrong this morning.

 

“How can none of you see what they’re doing to you?” Celine asked in desperation, like she was the last sane person left in the room. “Those creatures, they’re nothing but manipulative monsters! They’ve turned you against me, turned you to Gwi-ma to free him of his prison!”

These creatures..monsters..demons..me.

 

“We killed Gwi-ma!” Baby shouted at her, his large eyes flashing dangerously as he pointed one threatening finger at her. ”Don’t you ever associate us with him!”

 

“Manipulative monsters?” Mira rasped slowly, tasting the vile poison in the words on her own tongue, the rage she had felt towards Celine in the past week coming to a standstill before erupting out of her. “You really are a heartless wench! Is this really how we let you treat Rumi all those years?”

 

”No, no! I meant those demons-“ Celine tried to backtrack.

 

”I am those demons!” Rumi spat at her attempt to fix her words. “Don’t act like you actually try to distinct the two!”

 

Behind her calculating eyes, Rumi could see nothing but Celine’s face as she messed up a vocal riff, could feel nothing but another scratchy coat being pulled hastily over her shoulders, could hear nothing but Celine telling her to work harder. Do better. Be stronger.

 

Be human, as she had put it once.

 

“I didn’t - she couldn’t - you were supposed to be rid of them! They never had to know!” Celine said.

 

“And why the hell not?” Zoey hissed, closing in on Celine from the right like she was cornered prey. “You made her hide a part of herself she had never even needed to be ashamed of in the first place! You used her!”

 

Even though the words were true, it still pierced her heart to hear those cutting facts spoken out loud and not denied.

 

“Look what’s come of it!” Celine roared, gesturing to what was once a scene of domestic tranquility. “Demons are running wild through your house! Rumi is uncovered in the light of day!”

 

“So what?” Mira shouted again. “What are you so afraid of? Are you afraid of looking at her and seeing nothing but the reminder that you failed to keep her in a box? We were almost killed and it was your fault! You kept secrets between us all! Hell, you turned your blade on her when she needed you the most, we all did!”

 

“You told them.” Celine said to Rumi, eyes growing cold at the supposed betrayal.

 

It wasn’t a question.

 

“Why do you think we cut contact?” Mira sneered. “We didn’t want to see you, and you - what, - broke into our home? I trusted you, Celine. I trusted you because you told us that you loved us. You never loved us! You loved yourself, and your ideals, and your endless craving for perfection!”

 

“Why would you ever treat Rumi the way you did?” Zoey asked her incredulously. “Why would you hide a part of her that we would have loved from the beginning if you’d just given us the chance?”

 

It was something about these words that finally pushed Celine off the deep end.

“Because demons are monsters!” Celine cried, as if they had suddenly broken some massive dam inside her, the sheer volume sending the room into complete silence. “Monsters, Zoey! I tried to mold Rumi into something she could never be, and I paid the price for it! Look at her!” Celine pointed at Rumi in her striped appearance, sending shock waves of fear into Rumi’s system. “She’s broken! How else was I supposed to fix it?”

 

Rumi felt her knees buckle, her disassociation response to her years of trauma overwhelming her senses as her brain tried desperately to turn itself off to avoid hearing the words she had dreaded spoken aloud her entire life.

 

It was like some sort of sleeper agent had been dormant inside her, awakening to its programmed code phrase and flooding her body with poison.

Strong arms caught her, Rumi’s vision still fuzzy and dark as she tried to fight through the smoke clogging her senses. She heard muffled shouting, a large clanging sound, and a thud as something hard hit the floor.

 

“What’s happening?” She choked out through panicked breaths, blinking her eyes wildly to try to regain her vision.

 

Her eyes wouldn’t work. She saw nothing but sparking white dots in a sea of black, not even able to hear her own words as they left her mouth, filling her brain with the vibrations of her words.

 

“Shh, I’m right here, everything is going to be fine.” Jinu’s voice echoed distantly above her. “Come back to me, Rumi, can you do that?”

 

Rumi fought, eyes wide open, to see something, anything. To feel anything at all.

 

Colors were beginning to appear in big blobby shapes as she felt Jinu’s warm hands trace across her back, the smell of him intoxicating her nose and encouraging her to take a long, deep breath in. The oxygen flooded her brain, causing her hearing to return slowly as well.

 

It was like she was rushing upwards through a large body of water, her body just anticipating the moment her face would break the surface.

 

Finally, she opened her eyes again to find that she could see again, Jinu’s terrified face hovering above her as her hands reached wildly for his face. He leaned down, offering it to her without hesitation, and she quickly threaded her fingers through his hair, pulling him close as he cradled her to him.

 

They were on the floor, the rest of the Saja Boys all crowded around her with a mish-mash of different items to try to help her recover from her spell.

 

She reached for the glass of water that Abby was offering her, and took a long sip, the liquid creating a cooling sensation in her stomach that grounded her back in her body, the after effects of her adrenaline shots making her muscles shake in exhaustion.

 

“Rumi, what happened?” Jinu asked softly, holding his palm gently over her chest to encourage her to keep breathing evenly.

 

“I…I don’t know.” Rumi gasped, her face slick with sweat. “I - I think I used to do this when Celine yelled at me, but I’ve never had it..I mean - it’s never been that bad -“

 

“She gave you a trauma response.” Zoey stated, as if she couldn’t quite believe it either. “She gave you a fucking trauma response.”

 

“She..” Rumi repeated, as if forgetting who they were talking about. Then she shot up off the floor. “Where’s Celine?”

 

“I knocked her out.” Mira told her, from afar, calling attention to herself standing poised over Celine’s unconscious body with her own staff. “I didn’t know how else to make her stop. She was going rabid!”

 

“We knocked her out…” Rumi repeated faintly. Thoughts were forming, scattered across her head, but Jinu stopped her.

 

“Don’t you dare start feeling bad.” He told her. “That woman should never know sympathy again.”

 

“You’re not broken, Rumi.” Rom told her with a small smile. “You never were.”

 

“Celine is the broken one.” Zoey said fervently. “You may not have had Gwi-ma in your head all those years, but you had her, and she corrupted you. We should have seen it sooner, should have warned you! But..we didn’t. And we’re sorry.”

 

“It’s not your fault.” Rumi rushed out, gesturing the two girls over to her desperately. Mys grabbed the staff from Mira’s hands, guarding Celine as Mira and Zoey rushed over to Rumi, enveloping her in a crushing hug as Jinu leaned his torso back to give them space, his legs still creding Rumi’s body beneath him.

 

“Jinu?” Zoey said after a while, her voice uncharacteristically low. “Take Rumi back up to her room. We can take care of this.”

 

“I’ve got her.” Jinu told her, like a soldier being assigned on his first mission.

 

Rumi wanted to argue, wanted nothing more than to stay and to fight to protect her friends. Her attacks may not be physical, but her own trembling body proved that Celine’s words cut deeper than any blade.

 

“Don’t worry about us.” Mira said, as if she could read Rumi’s mind. “We’ll be fine. You can rest.”

 

Jinu stood, Rumi’s head swimming with the movement, and he began walking her carefully back through the kitchen, the half-finished breakfast suddenly looking cold and mocking.

 

As Jinu walked, a long blistering strip of white hot metal seemed to burn through his body, turning his blood to steel as he walked, stiffening his arms and legs until he wanted to do nothing more than spin right back around and launch himself headfirst at the deceitful woman who had caused this.

 

While no injuries lay present on her body, Jinu knew Celine had rifted a hole with her words that Jinu could never have known about, even after hearing it from Rumi herself not a few months ago.

 

Rumi seemed to already have fallen back asleep, the chemicals still running through her blood and making her feel lightheaded as she accidentally drifted away.

 

Only one thought lay present in Jinu’s mind as he carefully tucked Rumi below her covers, laying on top of her the way she liked him whenever she was feeling distressed.

 

No one was ever going to hurt Rumi like that ever again.

 

And by god he was going to make sure of it.

Notes:

How’s everyone feeling about the story so far? I’m actually quite dissatisfied with this chapter, but I wanted to get it out and test the waters.

I don’t feel like I really captured Celine’s essence that well, and it’s making it hard to write chapter three. Will someone please tell me if it sounds okay, or if this is cringe? Im so sleep deprived I can’t even tell.

Chapter 3: Chapter Three

All in all, this was not how Zoey and Mira had predicted their morning to unfold.

 

Pancakes? Yes. Sleepy kisses from their respective boys? Of course. Some afternoon choreography and then a monstrous dinner where Rumi and Jinu would inevitably end up stealing all the food from each others plates? Obviously.

But not this.

 

Not dealing with one of the most uptight people in their entire life going full psychopath on their best friend.

 

Their mentor was still passed out cold on the floor, the six bandmates lining the edge of the couch and just watching her as they waited for her to finally stir, checking their watches occasionally to time how long she had been out.

 

It was almost like some sort of messed up reality TV show in a sense, except instead of watching the characters navigate the tense environment around them, they were experiencing it firsthand.

 

It was still even just hard to process what had just happened. The scene had delved into chaos so quickly that they could do nothing but relive it over and over in their minds until they could fully absorb what Celine had just done.

 

They had still been angry with her, still known that she had not treated Rumi well, but to witness Celine lose all barriers, all regard for her usual cutting subtext and to tell Rumi that she was broken? It had hurt them both more than they could ever prepare for.

 

“You fucking decked her.” Zoey said lazily after a while, Celine still not moving. 

 

“She deserved it.” Mira stated, eyes burning with anger at the sleeping figure. The sunlight streaming in through the open window seemed to lead her vision slightly to the left, where the open elevator doors sat innocently in the wall. 

 

Zoey followed her gaze questioningly. 

 

“We could almost just..” Mira said slowly, gesturing with her hands like she was rolling out pizza dough and then mimicking pushing the down button. 

 

“No!” Zoey said, even through the sudden laughter bubbling up in her throat as the Saja Boys offered a grin as well. “The sheer amount of press we would get from that when they find her in the lobby-“

 

“Do I look like I care? She broke into our home!”

 

“Yeah.” Zoey said, her tone turning serious again. “And Rumi just had to be the one who opened the door..” She groaned tiredly. “I can’t believe she kept that all inside her for so long. To watch that…oh god. Rumi’s panic attack was really scary.”

 

Mira nodded along with her, Rom reaching and and gently holding her hand as Abby rubbed her shoulders comfortingly. 

 

“No one deserves that.” Baby said sadly, glancing up towards where they knew Rumi’s bedroom was. 

 

“Don’t worry about her right now.” Mys told him comfortingly. “Jinu’s taking care of it. Let’s worry about Celine.”

 

It was almost as if hearing her name triggered her to awaken at that very moment. She shifted slightly, the six of them turning to her with hackles raised, as if she might jump for them again like a feral beast.

 

“What…happened?” She groaned, rubbing her temple. 

 

“Nice of you to join us.” Rom spat at her as she wheeled on them, unstable on her feet. 

 

“You hit me.” She said to Mira, surprise evident in her tone. Her silky black hair swished angrily as she spoke.

 

“You hurt Rumi.” Mira told her simply, crossing her arms and glaring at her viciously. 

 

It was a strange dynamic, the once-students turning into the interrogators in the events of a single morning, the power dynamics shifting wildly as Celine seemed to grasp madly at what little influence she had left.

 

“I never meant to hurt her.” Celine said earnestly, as if this somehow unraveled the web of control she had spun inside Rumi for the past twenty years. “I just…”

 

“You just told her she was broken.” Abby finished for her, one brow raised to his hairline. “Simple mistake, I’m sure.”

 

Celine just stood there, looking down at her feet.

 

“Why the fuck did you go batshit back there?” Mira hissed. “You didn’t even let her talk. You just walked all over her like you usually do! Not even to mention the things you said to her!” 

 

“I thought you were being attacked!” 

 

Zoey reached for Mys’s hand, as if trying to further prove what they had been telling her since she had arrived. “Again, no attacks! They are guests! She had literally been spooning blueberries into his mouth before you came in.”

 

“Why?” Celine asked sharply. “Why are they even here?”

 

“Do we really need a reason?” Zoey asked with her brows raised. “It doesn’t concern you.”

 

“It does when they’re influencing Rumi the way they are!” Celine spat, seeming to gear right back up into her aggressive stance, making Mira summon her staff again threateningly.

 

“Don’t make me.”  

 

 She surveyed Celine with a glowering expression, as if even the act of looking at her was burning acid into her eyes. “Do her patterns really bother you that much? We’ve been hunting demons for over seven years now, longer than you had been when Rumi was born. We accepted her in a day. Why couldn’t you?”

 

Celine hung her head, her shoulders stiffening as she seemed to try to gather the words. “I…you don’t know the full story.”

 

“Enlighten us.” Baby spat.

 

Celine took a deep, shuttering breath, seeming to try to control herself more as she was demanded an explanation from the demon. “No.” She said plainly, crossing her arms and glowering at Mira and Zoey. “You first. Why are there demons living jn your tower?”

 

You’re still on about that?” Mira said, rolling her eyes. “Fine. But only to further convince you not to try to murder them again. Two head traumas in one hour can’t be good for you, can it?”

 

She gestured lazily towards the four boys. “Gwi-ma sent them up from hell to pose as a rival band to tear apart the honmoon, but they revolted against him after the idol awards and helped us defeat Gwi-ma for good. After that, they needed a place to stay, and so we offered our spare dorms.”

 

Celine fixed her with a cold stare. “What reason did you have to trust that a demon would turn on its master?”

 

“And there you go again!” Zoey suddenly exploded, rising quickly to glare at Celine as she threw her arms up in the air. “Demons this and demons that, always grouping them up into your two-dimentional archetype! This is exactly what we’re taking about with you! This mindset? This is why Rumi is the way she is!”

 

Celine’s expression turned darker than a moonless sky. “Did you ever consider, just for a moment, that I was trying to do what was right?” She hissed in a stiff voice. “We are Hunters! A hunter is held inches from the very definition of perfection! Why wallow in shame when the solution lies just ahead of you? She had every opportunity to change, every chance to get rid of her scars and she never so much as lifted a finger! Is that really who you want continuing the legacy?” 

 

“Oh my god, this is some of your traditional bullshit, isn’t it?” Mira groaned, rubbing her temples as a dull ache began to form behind them at the very sound of Celine’s voice. “Our faults and fears must never be seen, or whatever that nonsense you used to spout was?”

 

Celine just snapped her jaw closed, not meeting Mira’s eyes. 

 

“Speak, we know you want to.”

 

Celine paused for a few more minutes, and then finally spoke, regret pouring from her like a thick slime as the memory surfaced in her head. “I could have prevented this, you know.” She said, almost longingly. “If I’d only killed Rumi’s father when I had the chance, instead of letting him sneak around with her mother night after night when they thought I’d gone to sleep. If I’d just trusted myself, trusted that demons were evil, this never would have happened.”

 

And suddenly, there it was. The heart of the issue, the core of her motivations across these many years as their only mentor and teacher.

 

“That’s it.” Zoey gasped, eyes wide. “You…all that time…Rumi was your shame. The one that ‘must never be seen.’ It’s Rumi.”

 

Mira’s face also dawned with the same relocation, looking at the pathetic woman before her in nothing but pure disgust. “The patterns, the hiding, the shaming, the diets - You…I don’t even know what to say. You’re..you’re vile!”

 

“I was doing my duty!”

 

“But to let your duty get in the way of your love for her?” Zoey cried. “Not everything that’s ‘broken’ needs to be fixed! It was never about Rumi or her own shame, it was about yours!”

 

Celine seemed to deflate at these words as suddenly as if she had been punctured, all her lies spilling out of her like organs as she seemed to finally realize what this conversation had brought them to.

 

She had nothing more to hide.

 

All the energy seemed to drain out of her as she realized that she was cornered, checkmated with her back against the wall.

 

”We didn’t preform our duty by letting the Saja boys live after the demons were banished.” Mira spoke. “And guess what? It was the best fucking decision we’d ever made. Why can’t you see the happiness in the world when it’s dangling right in front of you? Me? I’m happy with my friends. Rumi is happy with Jinu, and he treats her better than you ever did, Celine.”

 

The venom dripped from her tongue like a savage elixir when she said the older idols name.

 

”Listen.” Zoey spoke, a sharp finality to her tone as straightened her shoulders menacingly, daggers glittering in the tips of her palms as if waiting to be materialized into solid matter. “You turned us into the people we are today.” She began. “You gave us skills, and powers, and you taught us how to fight. We owe you our success, and for that and that only, we are grateful.”

 

 She walked now, placing herself squarely in front of Celine with a hard look blazing in her eyes. “But our respect stops there. You took an innocent child and you taught her to hate herself. You taught her to shut herself down without your approval, and you made her dependent on success. You are not welcome in our lives any longer, Celine. You are going to walk yourself into that elevator, where you will take it down to the lobby and out of this building. You will go back to your home, and you will never bother us again. You will never be associated with us ever again, and if you try absolutely anything against us, you will be facing the full might of the Huntr/x PR team alongside Bobby and his contacts.”

 

She raised a threatening eyebrow at the woman. “Do you understand?”

 

Celine could only nod fervently, a hint of fear sparking in her eyes as the rest of the group stood as well, signaling for her to start walking, offering no sympathy for her as they coarsed her back towards the elevator. 

There was nothing left for her to do. No more excuses and tragic reasonings to disguise her movies anymore. Just her, faced head on with her own manipulative behavior like her own demonic patterns, stretching across every memory, every spoke word, every action.

 

“What if you need my help?” Celine tried arguing faintly, already knowing that it was hopeless.

 

“We won’t.” Zoey said simply, forcing her over the threshold of the elevator and slamming the side of her fist against the down button. 

 

“We never did.”

 

Notes:

Thank you so much for reading! Part two coming soon, but this does well as a one-shot for now. Come back later to see Jinu handing Celine’s ass to her.