#vampire changbin

You knew he wouldn’t bite. For one, he hadn’t turned yet, and for another, vampires seem to hold a virtue of needing consent before biting. 

His stone was in the shape of a ring and forgotten on his index finger. It took a bit, but you finally managed to slip it off without him noticing and jumped out his window, transforming into a cat before landing.

You ran to a silver store afterward, which is probably why Jisung hasn’t thrown you in a cell yet, but you couldn’t hide forever. So there you are, project completed and raising the ring back to its owner.

After hearing your explanation and apologies, Jisung slowly descends the front steps to meet you on the sidewalk, and you flinch with every step he takes. Finally, you feel a chill hand clasp on top of yours. You might as well have died right then and there from fear until you hear him laugh.

“It’s okay. Look up.”

You shakily do as he says and see an amused face.

“You’re Y/N, right? You have Professor Bang?”

“Y-yes,” you reply.

He closes your hand around the ring and steps back. “He’s also this dorm’s director. He knew you’d steal my Stone and gave me a fake one, see?” He pulls out a chain from around his neck to reveal the authentic stone hanging from it. “I didn’t think you could do it though, so I applaud you. Why return it though? If it were real, you could have had a vampire under your mercy.”

“Well, I--” you inwardly curse at your voice for shaking-- “It’s not mine, and it just seemed like the right thing to do, so here I am.”

He laughs again and snarls, which makes you jump and him let out another round of chuckles at your expense. 

“Sorry, sorry. I won’t do that again. You’re really afraid of vampires, aren’t you?”

“N-no?”

He rolls his eyes, amused. “Why choose one to steal from when you’re this scared?”

“He offered me the most extra credit for it,” you admit in a low voice.

“Bang Chan,” Jisung mutters, “he did that on purpose to mess with me, didn’t he?”

“W-well then, that’s all I wanted to say!” you exclaiming, hoping to end the conversation. “Please excuse me!” You stuff the bag of handmade sweets in his hands and speed away in an awkward combination of both walking and running.

Jisung watches with interest as your back disappears into the shrubbery. When you are gone, he turns back into the house and takes out a cookie. Chocolate chip. He bites into it and the chip he broke bursts into a pool of blood in his mouth. His eyes widen, and he wolfs down the rest of the treat with impatience. He really does need to see you again, especially after finishing the bag.

It doesn’t take much to find a vampire on campus. To compensate them for not being able to see their own reflection, Nature has made them all incredibly attractive, which means a lot of fangirls squealing and loosening their neckties when one is around. 

You inwardly sigh when you start hearing the familiar commotion from the door of the communal laboratory you are in. To make matters worse, the vampire is none other than the one you very much stole from.

He catches your eyes and smiles, making his way to the station in front of yours. You quickly look back at your tubes and try to look busy.

“Hey,” he greets regardless.

“Hi.”

He raises an eyebrow at your work, but leaves you to it and begins setting up his own work, an action you are most grateful for.

However, that doesn’t stop someone else from disturbing your peace.

“What are you working on?”

“Hyunjin! Why are you here?” you gasp at the werewolf’s sudden appearance by your side.

He looks at the instructions you are using and lets out a knowing “ahhh.” You were making perfume, a popular product females tend to use monthly to protect themselves from those with blood in their diets.

“Doesn’t the school provide you some? They’re like in every classroom in case someone get like a cut or something. Why do you keep making your own?”

“You said those smell bad.”

Jisung agrees that the body sprays the school provides smell like cheap rubbing alcohol, but the more pressing issue at the moment was why you are so familiar with a werewolf.

“Aww, you don’t have to work so hard for me,” Hyunjin purrs into you neck once he saw the vampire’s interest in your conversation.

“It’s not just for you, Hyunjin,” you say with a roll of your eyes. “If you don’t like it, I’m sure other predator species don’t either.”

Hyunjin doesn’t give up. “I know you love me. There’s no need to hide it!”

“Please stop. There’s other people around.”

“So you wanna go somewhere private?” he whispers just loud enough for only you and the male in front of you to hear.

Jisung crushes the test tube he was holding in his hands. Some of its contents splashes into another container of substances, causing pandemonium on his lab table. 

You scramble to his side. Some students are screaming at the bursts of fire and foul odor the reaction produced. 

“What were the reactants?” you ask Jisung.

“Nitrite and toad spit,” he answers, clearly shaken by the mess in front of him.

You run to the chemical closet for a bottle of mermaid pee from under the counter and pour it onto the table, successfully neutralizing the reaction. After the last drop of pee had fallen, you and Jisung are still staring at the mess, gasping in post-shock.

"You're amazing," he gasps. 

Coming back to reality and realizing what creature stood next to you, you quickly shrink back to Hyunjin who puts you posessively behind him and stares at Jisung. 

"Not really," you muster. 

Once the real peril has passed, Jisung's fans are quick to his side with towels and cleaning supplies. You forgo your own project, knowing some girl will carelessly knock over something anyway, and let Hyunjin drag you out of the lab. 

“Hey, Y/N.” Once outside, Hyunjin lets go of your hand but still sticks close by. “Be careful of Jisung. I think he has an agenda with you.”

“Just because werewolves and vampires don’t get along--”

“No, think about it. Have you ever seen a vampire in the school lab?” he cuts.

You shake your head.

“That’s because they’re filthy rich. They have their own lab in their dorm, so why else would he be there, right in front of you too, might I add?”

Back inside, Jisung looks for you in vain over the crowd. He doesn’t even have a project to work on; he had honestly just been trying to find the right window of time to ask for your cookie recipe and maybe get to know you a little better. Now, not only is he swamped by human flesh, he also found out you are in some sort of relationship with a werewolf. Sure, the feud between werewolves and vampires ended a century ago, but both communities still held lingering hatred. To make things worse, the way he was talking to you sure did not sit well with Jisung.

“Someone had sour blood,” comments Bang Chan as his junior slumps through the door.

“Hyung....” Jisung groans, flopping onto the couch next to him. “How’s Y/N like in class?”

Chan raises a brow. “Y/N? Why do you ask?”

“She’s so afraid of us. Doesn’t she freak out with you teaching?” 

“Well as a teacher, the school has my Stone, so I can’t go around biting people. She’s actually pretty comfortable with me. One of my favorite students too. Why? Want me to play wingman?”

“What? No! That’s not what I meant!”

Chan giggles. “You’re blushing~”

“That’s impossible!” Jisung retorts. “I haven’t had blood since lunch!”

The younger begins to stomp up the stairs angrily until Chan speaks again. “You’ve probably found out why she steers clear of us, right? You’ve seen the wolf?”

Jisung stops mid-step, prompting him to say more. 

“She’s probably heard a lot of warnings from him about us. They practically grew up together.”

“Are they together together?

“I don’t know that much. But do tell me, my lovely Jisung--” Chan smirks and rests his chin on the back of his wrist dramatically. “-- why the sudden interest in the witch?”

“You started it! Who the heck assigns thievery as an assignment anyway?” Jisung yells down and beelines to his room. However, Chan’s words linger in his head. Why indeed does he care? He recalls you wholeheartedly apologizing for your felony and how your eyes shifted with concentration while saving him from his potion disaster…

Jisung shakes his head. It’s those cookies. He just really wants more cookies.

Yet when he finds out Jeongin is paired with you on a project, he skips his classes for the afternoon to stay home.

You arrive at the vampires’ front porch-- the furthest you are willing to go into their territory-- to meet your partner. The male has already moved his supplies outside for the both of you, and the two of you work to mix a solution that best minimizes the effect of silver, an element that nullifies powers, out of the entire class.

“Hi freshmen,” Jisung teases softly while casually walking out of the house.

You bow politely and Jeongin mumbles something back.

“Lemonade?” he offers before peering over at your work. “Oh, I did this last year too. May I stay to watch?”

“I want apple juice,” Jeongin complains.

“Then get it yourself,” Jisung hisses into his ear and takes a seat on a swinging chair after setting a glass of refreshment by you and sipping on another himself.

You thank him, and Jeongin begrudgingly excuses himself to the kitchen.

“Y/N, I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Jisung starts.

Upon hearing your name, you bolt up straight and turn towards the sound.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” he chuckles. “I just wanted to know how you make those cookies. They were really good.” 

“Oh um, I just found a recipe from the library for chocolate chip cookies. Then I just froze blood and dipped it in chocolate for the chips,” you answer.

Jisung nods his head. “Do you know which book it was?”

“‘Neat Sweets,’ I believe. It is light green with brownies on the cover. I can make some more for you if you would like,” you offer apprehensively.

Jisung sits up with a smile. “Really? That’ll be great! Could you teach me how to do it too?”

More time with a vampire? Hyunjin would throw a fit. 

“I’ll write out the recipe for you,” you suggest while returning a nervous smile.

The way Jisung deflates back into his chair makes guilt churn in your stomach. You turn back to your work to test the first batch of solution.

“I’m back,” your partner announces.

“Jeongin, do you think you can mix the second set? I finished the first one, so I’ll write down some observations.”

“Sure,” he agrees, “how was the first set?”

“Pretty good. It made a thin layer of foam form around the silver, which will lessen its contact with the flesh. This second experiment should be better though since we’ll use heat to give more reactants energy to form the product.”

“Okay. I finished measuring the reactants. I just heat it now, right?”

“Yes.” You look over to his E flask. “Wait, the silver is supposed to be added after he--”

The solution begins bubbling. Realizing what is to happen, you reach to turn off the fire, but it is too late. Shards of silver ram into the sides of the flask and explode from it. Jeongin is still processing your instructions and unable to react. You turn and tackle the boy to the floor while feeling sharp shards pierce your arms and back. 

“Y/N? Y/N!” you hear as your eyes dim.

Jisung waits anxiously in his bat form by the window for you to wake up. Hyunjin was listed as your emergency contact, and the werewolf immediately kicked him and Jeongin out, especially after hearing how you wound up in the hospital in the first place. Hyunjin has yet to notice him, but when you blink awake however, the rodent begins to flap his wings a little too excitedly and ends up banging into the glass. 

Hyunjin snaps his head toward the noise with a scowl and gets up to close the blinds, much to Jisung’s disappointment.

“Hyunjin?” you call wearily.

“I’m here. Right here,” he assures, rushing to your side.

“What was that noise?”

“Just a bird. It should be gone now.” He makes sure to raise his voice at the last part. “How are you feeling?”

“Okay. What did the nurse say?”

“The silver was thin and didn’t go in too deep, but your magic system should be affected for a week. Otherwise, they said you should be fine.”

“May I go home today?”

“You could have been discharged once you wake up, but I’m not letting you go back to your dorm. I signed you in for tonight. With me.”

“Hyunjin, the vampires weren’t intentionally hurting me. I’ll be--”

“No, you’re not fine!” he shouts. “And it doesn’t matter what they were doing. You walked into their territory, without telling me, might I add, and was injured. You can’t go to that one place, Y/N; that’s literally all I ask. I can’t see you there; I can’t protect you there.”

“I don’t need to be--”

“Oh really? Even if they do this?” 

You feel his breath grazing your neck. You can tell he has turned by the fur on his skin, meaning sharp teeth are just millimeters from your skin. One paw pins down your shoulder, and the other is on the headboard behind you.

“Yes, even then,” you whisper. “I’m just a witch, Hyunjin. Don’t try to fight a vampire for me.”

He drops his head into your chest and gathers you into his arms. “No, don’t say that, Y/N. You don’t know how much that hurts me. You don’t know how much I worried when they told me vampires brought you to the hospital. You don’t know how much I wished I was there with you when that tube exploded…”

You rub behind his ears comfortingly while he shakes against your body. He completely lets his wolf form overtake him and you snuggle into his familiar fur with a purr.

You begin regretting your answer just two days after you said it when a ghoul has you pressed between a tree and his torso right on the outskirts of school. You had just gone grocery shopping, but now your milk is long forgotten by your feet. 

You should have called Hyunjin to walk you since the sun was threatening to set. There are a lot of 'should haves' you should have done, but you didn't, so there you are, basically magic-less and obviously much physically weaker than the ghoul. 

"Come on, don’t be difficult, sweetie. You know, I've been watching you for a while now, especially how your skirt swings when you pass my desk in the mornings."

"Please let me go," you plead. 

"Don't say things like that now," he chides. "You know, the red light district is populated mostly by lowly species like you, witchy."

He starts by kissing you from the base of your neck to your chin while working on your necktie with his fingers. You focus on how much magic you can muster. It certainly isn’t enough to fight him off, but perhaps you can send a spark into the sky to signal Hyunjin. You gather all that you have in urgency-- the ghoul is already traveling down your chest-- and fire. 

You watch in despair as your shot barely makes it past the shortest tree. You slump back, completely drained now, to accept your fate.

The ghoul cackles at your attempt. “What were you trying to do with that injury? I did my research before meeting you today, you know; I’m not trying to fight that wolf of yours. This is near the vampire dorm; there’s no way he is close enough to here to be able to see that.”

“He’s not the only one you should be looking out for if you mess with her though.”

The ghoul turns toward the voice and curses.

Within the second, Jisung is between the two of you. You can see him putting back up his human disguise as he faces you.

“Y/N, are you okay?”

You nod and shoot your hands up to your blouse to do the job of your buttons.

He gives a small smile and drapes his blazer over you. “Close your eyes for this, alright?”

You do as told and feel a wave of magic as Jisung drops his human cover again. You hear the ghoul beg for mercy and Jisung retorting something vile back. The two disappear for two minutes, probably with the vampire dragging your harasser to authorities. After the minutes, Jisung returns alone.

“Y/N, it’s alright now. You can open your eyes.”

Jisung stands a good distance from you. “You’re probably afraid of me too, so I can go if you want me to.”

“Wait!” you call and stumble to him to grab his shirt as he begins to turn away. “C-can you stay for a little bit? Just so I can regain myself?”

Jisung can’t help but let on a wide smile. “Of course. For as long as you need.”

He turns back towards you and buries your head in his chest while using his powers to radiate heat from there. 

“Thank you,” you mumble.

You walk up to the vampire’s dorm again, this time with a bag that contains Jisung’s blazer and more cookies. Hyunjin trails behind you with his hands up to indicate no harm. You couldn’t explain why you had Jisung’s jacket around you when he found you later that night, so he made you promise to let him come along when you returned it to its owner. He’d behave, you hope. Even Hyunjin knows he doesn’t stand a chance against a whole dorm of vampires, no matter how strong he is.

You knock on the door knocker, feeling less intimidated now. However, all the feelings resurface when an unknown vampire swings the door open. His hair is slicked back and his eyes blood red. Fangs protruded from mouth in a snarl. 

Hyunjin quickly moves you behind him. “We’re not here to fight; we just have something to return to Han Jisung.”

“Leave it on the steps and leave, Wolf.”

“Look here,” Hyunjin returns, “I’m trying to be cordial.”

“Changbin-hyung, leave them be. You’re scaring Y/N,” says another voice from inside. Jisung pushes past his friend to relieve you of your baggage. “Thanks Y/N. I’m sorry about that guy.” He then shifts his gaze to your companion and gives him a nod. If Hyunjin is your friend, Jisung supposes he should at least play nice.

“Alright then, we’re done here; let’s go, Y/N.” Hyunjin puts his arm around you and beings turning you around.

“I think Y/N can walk by herself,” Jisung calls after him. 

Not too nice.

Hyujin throws a look over his shoulder at the other male, but you agree with Jisung. 

You take the opportunity to turn back towards the house and bow at your waist. “Thank you for everything!”

Jisung feels a warmth creep up his features as he waves goodbye at you. 

“Mind telling me why that fiend has any reason to thank you?” Changbin interrogates his junior.

“I helped her. Isn’t it natural to thank someone you helped?”

“You helped her? She hangs around a wolf and she’s a witch.”

“She’s not a fiend,” Jisung frowns.

“Did you forget the savagery werewolves inflicted on our kind?”

“That was a war; we both acted barbarically. Besides, there are integration reforms now; we’re supposed to be comrades under the name of this school.” Jisung can't believe he's defending a werewolf of all things. Usually, he stood with Changbin against Chan on these topics. 

"And what have you to say about hanging out with a witch?"

"What do you have against a witch?"

"They're useless! Absolutely pathetic! You're a vampire, Jisung. You should find someone of higher caliber to interact with." He tugs on Jisung's ears which were reddening. "Let alone fancy," he whispers.

"I just ate! It happens!" Jisung protests. "Besides, your vampire elitism is ridiculous. She's Chan-hyung's top student. Over Jeongin, might I add."

"That's because he teaches classroom, not the important things."

"Worth isn't just measured on the battlefield."

Changbin just shakes his head. "Where is your pride, Jisung? We're known to graduate and serve in government or run corporations, and you're here trying to befriend a housemaid."

"Hyung! That's enough!"

You are standing outside the door, hand raised, ready to knock until you hear Changbin calling your kind useless and Jisung defending you. You had turned back because you had written out your cookie recipe out on paper but forgot to give it to Jisung. Perhaps it is better for you to just give it to Jeongin tomorrow now.

Hyunjin gives you a confused look when you turn back around without completing your mission. You return to his side and tell him not to worry about it as well as ask to go home. He transforms into his wolf form and carries you back for the price of a good petting session later.

You feel warm with your face buried into the fur of your best friend, but you suspect the warmth to also come from imagining Jisung’s pursed features as he stands up against his hyung for you.

Hyunjin turns his head to see you smiling peacefully on his back. He lets out a content hum and takes extra care to avoid the bumpy spots on the ground.

His yellow hair is slicked back. His eyes would be gleaming red if they aren’t closed. Heavy black shadows dusted eyelids. Worst of all, his mouth is around the side of your hand, sucking whatever he can.

Rather than receiving your recipe, Jisung had convinced you to show him how to do it. To be honest, you too want to know him better, so he didn’t have to try very hard. The day was going well-- he had rented out a communal kitchen, so Hyunjin can’t complain and Jisung wouldn’t be bombarded with fangirls-- until you tried to cut some butter that was a little too frozen.

The knife left droplets of red in its wake. Jisung has never smelled something so delicious before, and the very fact that the blood smells of you makes it all the more impossible for him to not drink.

And so, he drinks. He feels your warmth, breath, and life enter his system. His deadly fangs graze past your skin, ready to act should the cut cease to be enough.

“Jisung,” you try calling.

Your word falls onto deaf ears. The vampire just adjusts his grip on your hand which sends you into fight-or-flight. In panic, you reach for his Soul Stone that you know hangs around his neck.

“Jisung!” you try again once you feel the ring inside your palm.

His head shoots up, and his eyes widen once he realizes what he has been doing.

“Shoot, Y/N, I… Oh my goodness, Y/N I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry. Oh, why did I-- I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-- Shoot, shoot, shoot. I’m so sorry, Y/N. I swear that won’t happen again.” 

He bows and bows and bows while trying to read your expression every time he straightens back up. However, you display nothing but shock for him to see. You reach into your bag for a bottle of perfume and spray it. You feel it sting your wound before you bandage it up, an action that Jisung is quick to help you with, trying in anyway he can to make amends.

Jisung usually likes the smell of your perfume-- he’d search for it in the hallways in hopes of finding you-- but now it reminds him of why you have to use it in the first place: to ward off predators. To ward off him.

“Y/N, I’m sorry. Could you.... Could you say something?”

Your eyes snap up when prompted by the request. You take a step back and turn to hide your face in your hair, actions which tear Jisung apart, and take a sharp inhale. “Are you hungry?”

“I--I don’t know. Maybe. I have a snack in my bag, but you were just so-- I mean, I’m just so, so sorry, Y/N.”

You nod and put the butter in the microwave for a few seconds. Jisung doesn’t seem satisfied with your response.

“Would you feel better if I left?”

You turn towards him a little too slowly than he would like and shake your head. “It’s fine. You didn’t bite, and I know you didn’t mean it. I’m just… a little shocked and lightheaded.”

The microwave beeps and Jisung reaches for it from behind you, an action that makes you even more lightheaded. “Then let me help you. Just take a seat and tell me what to do, Y/N.”

You watch him scurry back and forths the kitchen with his brows furrowed, trying to make everything perfect. When he looks up at you with big doe eyes after stirring the batter, you can’t help but smile and feel your earlier shock ease away.

“Like this?” he asks with a quiver.

You let out a small laugh into your hand, much to the male’s surprise which, like everything else, is evident on his face.

“Not quite. Let me show you.”

You take the whisk and ignore his protests. After finishing the batter, the two of you roll bits of it into balls and spread them onto the cookie sheet. When the oven bell dings, the two of you excitedly throw on your mitts and take out two pans: one of blood cookies and another of regular chocolate chips. Jisung pops one into his mouth while it is still piping hot and you gently scold him for it. The earlier tension seems to be forgotten by the two of you.

Jisung looks fondly at you as you blow on your own cookie to cool it down. The one in his mouth doesn’t taste as good now after what he had eaten earlier. He knows he’ll never find anything as irresistible as your blood. He’s heard his hyungs have described the irresistibility and unique flavor of what he has just experienced before, and they all called it one thing: love.

Jisung went to bed happy that night. Bang Chan looked accomplished for some reason after seeing him return home with his head in the clouds. Changbin looked annoyed. Angry even. Well, Jisung decided, Changbin can suck it, and so can Hyunjin because he isn’t about to let you go. 

He went to bed happy, but he couldn’t stay that way.

Around two in the morning, the school emergency alarm goes off. Jisung throws on his school blazer and steps groggily outside to see vampires and other creatures piling into the courtyard.

“We are under attack. This is not a drill. Students, report to your homeroom teachers for further assignment,” repeats the speakers over and over.

The announcement is enough to send Jisung’s adrenaline going. “Chan!” he calls. “Channie-hyung!”

He finds the older vampire and clings onto the cuff of his shirt. “Hyung, Y/N is in your class. Take care of her please. She’s really smart. Put her in intelligence.”

“Jisung, that’s not for me to decide. I can’t play favorites and give her a safe position on my own.”

“Hyung…”

Bang Chan bites his lip and grumbles.

“Please,” says a voice, but it isn’t Jisung’s.

The vampires both turn to see a werewolf who slowly lowers his torso toward his sworn enemies. “Please look after her.”

“Hyunjin,” Chan begins. “Hyunjin, you don’t have to do that.”

The wolf straightens up and looks at Jisung. “Come on. Professor Kim is waiting for us.”

Jisung nods and gives Chan one more bow before following Hyunjin. All the while, he looks through the crowd in hopes to find you. He’s later assigned to a combat unit with Changbin and Hyunjin. He questions the decision made by the faculty, but decides he has better things to worry about.

At one point, he catches a glimpse of your hair, but you are gone before he could even call out to you, leaving him with nothing but the smell of your perfume. Changbin, unsure of why his two groupmates suddenly stopped dead in their tracks, urged them onward, rightfully reminding them of their mission.

The trio found and fought a couple enemy groups including goblins and witches. What struck them as odd however, was that the enemies all seemed savagedized. After a long day, the three finally decide to set up camp.

“So who’s taking first watch?” Hyunjin asks.

“Well not you; you’d probably kill us in our sleep,” Changbin scoffs.

“Hyung, Hyunjin had your back a couple of times today,” Jisung interjects before Hyunjin can argue back.

“Once,” Changbin corrects. “And I would have been fine without it.”

“Well I don’t trust Changbin either,” Hyunjin snaps back.

“Fine, I’ll take watch,” Jisung offers. “Is that fine with everyone?”

A grumble of agreement ripples between the two others and they settle down. Jisung sits against a tree with a sigh and watches as the fire they built crackle and pop. He sighs again when he looks at the other two who are sleeping as far away from the other as possible, and he sighs yet again when wondering how you are doing. 

After what feels like the hundred exaggerated exhales, he finally hears something that diverts his attention. Something rustled the bushes, sending Jisung to his feet. It sounds small, perhaps a squirrel or a racoon.

“Who is it?” Jisung growls just in case.

“Meow.”

A head of black fur pops out from the shrubbery. Jisung has only seen you transform into a cat once that night when you stole from him, but he immediately feels it in his veins that it is you. 

You run to his side, happy to see him, and jump into his arms when he holds them out for you.

“Y/N? You’re on field medicine?”

“Meow.”

He leans into your pelt. “I guess it could have been worse.”

You blush under your fur when you feel his face buried in your side. You look around in embarrassment and spot Hyunjin. You squirm around for Jisung to let you go to him.

“Wait,” says the vampire, now fully alert of something.

You perk up your ears and hear it too. Someone is coming. There’s two of them, and they are moving incredibly quickly.

Jisung puts you onto the tree he was leaning on. “Hide up there, okay? And don’t look down; I’m going to look… well, scary.” He offers you a small smile, never wanting to scare you like he did during the baking session again.

“Changbin-hyung, Hyunjin,” he calls out.

The two wake up just as the people in question arrive. They’re vampires, but they look different from Jisung and Changbin even when they’re turned. Their hair is unkempt rather than clean and slicked back. Their eyes are red but unfocused. Their nails lay long and yellow on their fingers.

“Just vampires? This will be easy,” scoffs Hyunjin.

“You wanna fight?” Changbin snarls back.

“Guys, stop,” Jisung scolds. “Something is off about these two.”

Changbin nods, now more serious. “You’re right. I think they’re the Soul Vampires.”

“Soul Vamps?”

“Vampires who have killed,” Jisung explains. “Biting is addictive for us, especially if we do it so much the person dies. We can absorb parts of their soul through our teeth, which is why it’s so addictive. It can make us stronger, but it can also send us into an insane spiral of thinking of nothing but our next prey.”

“I’ve never seen one before,” Changbin comments with a grunt as he blocks a move from a Soul Vamp. “I guess this is why all the enemies we fought today were so weird; the other side has been feeding off humans.”

“So basically, they’re just a stronger enemy,” Hyunjin reiterates while taking his wolf form.

“Well there’s three of us and only two of them, so it shouldn’t be a big deal.”

“Actually,” Hyunjin growls. “Look at their hands.”

Between the nails of the Soul Vampires is something reflective. Silver. The blood they’ve drunk is letting them heal faster than the silver is causing harm. Changbin lets out a curse, and the air thickens. 

An enemy lunges at Hyunjin. The wolf swivels around and pins his foe onto the ground. The vampire twists his arm around and swings silver at his paws. Hyunjin leaps backwards, unknowingly into the second vampire who is waiting with more silver.

Jisung luckily jumps in to push away the second adversary while Changbin wages a fight against the first.

“Thanks,” Hyunjin growls to Jisung.

“Sure.”

The two tag team and finally manage to drive off one of the Soul Vampires with only a few cuts and bruises. However, Changbin is not doing so well by himself. He lets out a grunt, and his comrades turn to find him on the floor with significant pieces of silver lodged into his right leg.

Jisung quickly blocks off the opponent from further hurting his friend. Hyunjin is also quick to the scene.

“Changbin! Prop yourself onto my back!”

“I’m not running away from a fight,” refuses the oldest of the three, “and I’m sure as heck not letting a werewolf help me.”

“Hyung!” Jisung opposes between struggling grunts. “You don’t have much of a choice; you can’t even stand!”

The Soul Vampire throws Jisung to the side and raises his hands which are loaded with silver.

“Grab my fur now!”

He doesn’t. Instead, he emits a blood-curdling scream as metal plunges into his body. He manages to avoid a few of them, but the other vampire throws enough to still knock him unconscious.

“Changbin-hyung!” Jisung cries, rushing to his side.

Hyunjin, seeing Jisung is distracted, headbutts the Soul Vampire in his stead before it can reach for more silver. The wolf chases the foe away, leaving just you and Jisung with an increasingly paling Changbin.

You open your eyes after hearing Changbin’s scream and jump from your tree to the fallen male.

“Y/N, Y/N,” Jisung cries desperately. “Do something. He’s… he’s…”

You release your transformation spell and throw open your medicine kit. You tear away the sticks, knowing silver will do more harm than blood loss, and toss it to the side. Your hands feel a sharp pain as your weak magic reacts with the metal, so you can only imagine what effect it must have on a creature like Changbin. Still, you move without ceasing until the very last piece is torn out.

Even after finishing, your hands sting.

“That’s not good,” you whisper.

“What is it?” Jisung whimpers.

You inspect your hands for the cause of the stinging and find a dusty substance. “Silver powder. It’s still inside him.”

“What can we do?”

“Remember the project Jeongin and I did? I found an even better method that uses a spell to reduce the effects of silver, but--”

“But?”

You bite your lip. “Nothing. It’s nothing. I’m going to start doing it. Do you have some blood in your bag? He’ll need to eat to gain energy.”

Jisung nods and feeds his hyung a packets of blood while you mix together a solution and pour it onto Changbin’s wounds while mumbling a spell. Jisung watches as the liquid solidifies around the silver under your command. He is in awe, but you are feeling something quite the opposite. 

You are just a lowly witch. Really, you deserve all the insults and jokes others throw at you for being weak. During the third round of pouring the solution-- about half way through removing enough silver for Changbin’s body to heal itself, you can already feel your breath getting shorter and your vision losing focus.

“Y/N, are you okay?” Jisung asks.

You nod and swipe sweat away from your forehead before continuing with batch number four. You spill batch number five onto your shaking hands and Jisung asks the question again, this time holding onto your shoulders to support you. You shake him off, now unable to process his complaints, and make another mix. You push through that one and make the last blend. You pour it onto Changbin’s wounds and feel Jisung grabbing your wrists to inhibit you from casting your spell. You vaguely realize Hyunjin returning and use the distraction to slip a hand out from Jisungs grasp. You mumble the words one last time then let your body fall into panicking but secure arms.

“Y/N!”

Jisung grips at the bars around your bed, staring at your from and willing it to wake up.  

"Are you mad at me?"

Jisung replies without looking back, "Why would I be mad?"

"If I had put my pride down and took Hyunjin's help, she wouldn't be like that right now."

Jisung finally turns to face Changbin who is sitting in the hospital bed beside yours. "I'm not. It is regrettable, but she was the one who decided to save you." He turns back away. "You should apologize to Hyunjin though. And thank Y/N when she wakes up."

Changbin looks down at his hands, processing Jisung's words. 

"They're assigning me to another unit within the hour," Jisung continues. “Like they did with Hyunjin.”

"I'll look after her."

The blonde raises a brow at his hyung.

"I'll care for her in your steed, so don't worry," Changbin reiterates.

Jisung lets a small smile spread. “Thanks, Hyung.”

“Sure.” Changbin weakly returns the expression. “Go give ‘em h*ll.”

Jisung gives a sharp nod and, after one last look at your sleeping body, goes to get his new assignment.

After his departure is Changbin’s turn to look at you.

“Y/N,” he begins uncertainly. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to say this to you when you’re awake, but um, Jisung’s right. I guess I let my pride get in the way of doing what is best, and you got hurt because of it. What I’m trying to say is, I’m, uh, I’m sorry and thank you for saving me. You’re not as worthless as I stereotyped you as; you definitely don’t deserve the things I said about you.” 

He scrutinizes your face, not sure why he is expecting a reaction. “And um, I guess I wanted to add that Jisung really likes you. He’s like a brother to me, so I want to make sure that whoever he chooses to spend the rest of his life with is worth it. It looks like he’s chosen you, so treat him well, okay? He can be a handful sometimes, but he’s honestly a ball of joy and love. Make him happy, and I promise I’ll, um, make sure you’re always happy too.”

You stir a little which sends Changbin’s heart racing, wondering if you heard the sap he just spewed. Luckily though, you seem to settle back into sleep.

You wake up the next morning. The first thing you notice is the lack of medical personnel attending the usually well-monitored hospital. Instead, a Changbin stares down at you while in crutches. You smell a tinge of blood in the air, and haggard breathing and coughing ripple through the halls.

Once confirming you’re awake, Changbin exits the room to hunt for an available nurse, a task that is proving to be increasingly difficult as the days of battle increases. The vampire is of little words. Still, he surprised you by tending to your every need from eating to helping you get to the bathroom.

Throughout the next three days, you slowly regain your strength with his help. The two of you learn that Soul Vampires are racking up casualties for your side. Twenty-six from your school has died from battle so far, six being just freshmen and four being well-trained seniors. Predator species on your side have been beginning to feed off family and friends in attempts to gain equal footing with them, which adds to the casualty count when someone loses control and kills their loved ones. 

There has yet to be a vampire to try doing so, however. For one, they’re too occupied on the front lines to meet with their loved ones. For another, their enemy is exactly what they fear they’ll be if they tried feeding off a human. 

Changbin looked grim when he was first presented with the idea of biting someone. You’ve tried to avoid the topic around him, but he is getting better rapidly, and will soon have to make the decision when he is sent to the front lines again. As a matter of fact, the day of departure is tomorrow.

“Mr. Changbin,” you address him as yet another wounded is wheeled past the two of you.

He looks at you from the corner of his eye, trying to look as cold as ever.

“I-if you decide to do it, I, er, can help you.”

He turns fully towards you and narrows his eyes, which makes you freeze, but you hold your ground.

“Why,” he interrogates you.

You don’t have a response. It seems natural; there’s a battle like no other, and the only way for your side to have a chance is for you to do this.

Changbin sighs at your lack of response. “Even if you’re willing. I’m not the one you should be saying that to.”

“Then take me to the field tomorrow for someone else to do it.”

“You’re not even discharged,” he scoffs.

“It doesn’t matter how I’m feeling for someone to bite me. Every second counts right now; we’re averaging a casualty an hour. We need someone who can stand a chance against those Soul Vampires to bite someone. Another vampire, namely.”

He continues analyzing you and breaking down the stereotypes he had of you. As much as he admires your courage, however, he had made a promise to keep you safe.

“I can’t,” he refuses.

“Why not? I can transform into a cat so my weight won’t strain your legs.”

“It’s not that. You’re willingness is admirable, I admit, but I’ve promised to keep you out of harm.”

“To whom?”

He gives you a look. You both know to whom.

“Then take me to him; I’ll get him to agree to let me be bit. You and I both know volunteers like me is the only way we can win this. There hasn’t been a vampire death yet, but I can’t imagine it’ll be long before there is one. We don’t know who it’ll be; it might even be him. What use will your promise be to a… well, a dead man?”

Changbin closes his eyes to give your words more weight. When he opens them again, his decision is clear. “Why wait until tomorrow then?

You thought your nose has gone blind to the metallic scent of blood in the hospital, but the smell is all the more sharp and pungent on the field. Bodies lay forgotten against trees or covered in dirt, strengthening your conviction more than ever.

You can’t tell if Jisung is furious or delighted. He asked Changbin to leave the two of you alone in the temporary military tent with ice in his voice but grips and regrips your arms while holding you fast in a hug as soon as the older male left.

“Y/N,” he mumbles, “why are you here? Are you all better now? When did you wake up? When did they discharge you? Did they treat you well? Did Changbin-hyung treat you well?”

“Jisung, I can’t breath,” you say while patting his back.

“Ah, sorry.” He lets you go but keeps his hands on your shoulders.

You offer him the best smile you can muster. “I’m fine.”

He sighs and smiles in relief. “So what are you doing here? They sent all the witches to unit 3.”

“Actually, I’m not here on orders; Changbin snuck me out.”

“What? That hyung, I’ll--”

You grab his wrist as he turns to find his victim. “Wait! I was the one who asked him to do it. I have something to ask of you.”

He looks back at you, giving you his full attention.

“Bite me.”

“What? No!”

“One of the vampires have to do it-- it’s the only way we can win-- and… and I rather it’d be you.”

“Do you know what that means? People have died from it! I’m not doing that to you.”

“I know what the process encompasses; I still think it’s the better option. I mean, look at what’s happening outside! We’re evidently losing; this is the only way.”

“No, I’m not doing it, and neither is anyone else. I’m going to ask the field medic to look after you. Then you’re going to unit 3.”

“Jisung--” you grab at his wrist again but miss and instead grab his sleeve. The fabric slips off his shoulder too easily, as if he doesn’t want it there, and reveal a near-fatal gash. It’s enough to make you wonder how he is even still conscious.

“Jisung,” you breath again, this time for a completely different reason.

He carefully pulls his shirt back on, careful not to agitate the wound, while staring at the ground.

“Jisung,” You whisper softer this time. “This can heal you. You won’t get hurt again and you can save everyone.”

“I know,” he replies, voice cracking. “But I can’t do this to you… You’re you… You’re… you’re… Do you know how I’d feel if I killed you?”

“And do you know how I would feel if you died out there while I stood here doing nothing?” you return gently. “You won’t kill me Jisung. Just take enough to not die yourself, okay?”

You slip his shirt off again to prove your point while brushing your hair to the side. Tears run down Jisung's face as your scent begins to overwhelm him, especially when you break the skin of your finger with your teeth and smear the blood over your neck. He leans forward, basically sobbing now, but stops. 

You look at him questioningly. He fumbles with something around his neck and rips it off. 

"Here. Make sure to tell me when to stop."

He slides his Soul Stone ring into your finger then bites. 

It hurts. It isn't as romantic or sexy as movies depict. Being bitten by a vampire is nothing but pain. The both of you are crying in different but shared aches, and you feel your knees give out. Jisung holds you up to his teeth still even though your body wants to be as far from him as possible. 

The ring burns against your finger, beckoning you to use it, but you will yourself to wait until the last moment. You want him to take what he needs, even as the world begins to blacken. You can see his wound closing rapidly and you focus on that. Then, as your vision finally wanes out, you mumble, "Jisung…"

But his fangs were already out of you moments before you said anything. Your blood was getting harder and harder to drink, and he wants nothing more than for him to drink harder and harder in return, but something stronger caused him to stop. 

Something much stronger. 

And so, he retracts himself instead and buries his head in your limp body, soaking it with tears. 

By the time you come to again, the battle is already almost over. More vampires decided to follow Jisung’s lead and consensually bit others, leading to only one death from the process. What also helped your side was Jeongin and Bang Chan taking your solution and pouring it over the soul vampires, rendering the silver they held useless. 

In just two days, you are able to stand by the front gate of your school, waiting to welcome your classmates home. The first person you see is none other than your best friend who runs over to you and swings you around.

“Y/N! We did it! We won!”

You share his excitement and pull him into a quick, tight hug. 

The moment comes to an end when you release him. Hyunjin’s face is etched with worry as he runs his thumb over the gauze on your neck.

“I’m fine, Hyunjin,” you reassure him while gently pulling his wrist away from you.

“He bit you…”

“I asked him to.”

Hyunjin frowns harder. “Why?” But he isn’t really asking.

“Y/N.”

You both turn towards the voice and see Jisung with a goofy grin on his face. He pulls you in a hug as well which makes a warm smile stretch across your face. He then leans back a little to see your face and brush your hair from it.

“You’re awake,” he breathes.

You nod. “For two days now.”

Hyunjin watches the two of you interact with a pang in his heart. He doesn’t miss the green ring around your finger which you try to take off and return to its owner.

“No, keep it,” urges Jisung.

“It’s your Soul Stone though,” you protest. “This is like giving me your everything!”

“You’ve already stolen my everything.” He chuckles at the double meaning of his words which makes your breath hitch. “Y/N, I’m in love with you; will you be my girlfriend?”

Something in your stomach makes you look towards Hyunjin, but he has turned away from your conversation and is intensely studying a tree. You see Changbin walking over and giving the wolf a rub on the shoulder and you a reassuring nod. 

You turn back to Jisung. “Yes.”