#IT WAS SO HORRIFYING DRAWING HIM WITHOUT HIS MUSTACHE FOR SO MANY PICTURES | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

kamino-ink · 6 years ago

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Burn | Seo Changbin

genre ⌁ vampire!au, supernatural!au, gothic horror, angst,,, angst,,, kinda fluff lmao

summary ⌁ your little brother, full of pure innocence and blooming life, was kidnapped by a cult on a remote island - your deadbeat dad doesn’t care to pay the ransom, leaving you to even make sure jeongin is still alive so you can rescue him. the cult is strange, but what’s even stranger is one of the oldest members of it - a mysterious man by the name of seo changbin.

word count ⌁ 8.3k

warning ⌁ violent at times, blood, - I mean it’s inspired by Apostle (great movie it’s on Netflix plz watch it 11/10)

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Luggage was a pain in the ass, to put it simply. You were forced to rummage through your closet for clothes decent enough for a destination you weren’t even sure had a proper weather broadcasting system - would it be a spot of frequent storms, or would it be covered in the shadows of thick clouds while the sun peeked weakly over the horizon? The problems of travelling to a remote island in, essentially, the middle of nowhere were agonizingly obnoxious and cruel.

And having to carry the somewhat heavy bag all the way through the main hub of town, where most everyone recognized your face in seconds? That was pure hell - most of the time. Though, considering the circumstances in which you were leaving, the people who would probably question your motives for leaving town stood idly by on the sidewalk, watching you pass by their shadows silently. Everyone knew why you were leaving, though they didn’t expect for you to come back... alive, that is.

“Please put your bags aside and hand us your tickets for the ship. Once we clear you, please go below deck and take a seat. We are scheduled to leave in about an hour.”

Your solemn gaze lifts from the wooden panels of the dock at the bay, drifting towards the older gentleman stood by a shattered post that tied the small carrier vessel to the docks. His lips were curled into an oddly bright smile as he dutifully started to scan the tickets of each boarding individual, as if he was looking for something.

Shit.

You glanced down at your cream colored ticket, comparing it to the one the man in front of you was holding loosely behind his back. While his was quite normal in appearance, sporting the same cream color and signatures, yours had a red stamp on the bottom right corner - it was the symbol of your family name, which was always stamped onto official certificates since your family name was the one that kept the town running. Having your father as mayor was not working out for you.

As if some other deity was looking out for your own well being, the woman behind you for some reason decided she had to shuffle through her luggage a couple feet away - though she clumsily dropped the papers she’d been holding under her arm.

“Here, let me help.” You offer to the brunette, startling her after you’d quietly crouched down beside her arched back.

“Thank you, mam - I accidently stuffed my cash into a pocket. I’m going to try and make a good first impression by tipping all of the staff.” She explains to you, a complete and utter stranger who is likely about to ruin any chance of her being treated as an equal on the island. Her airy voice rang in your ears as she continued to babble on and on about how excited she was to leave the mainland and join the island colony, something about her husband dying years ago and how she found solace in their scriptures.

Well, it appears as if you were just another hurdle in her life. Since her attention was solely on finding the green wads of cash in her suitcase, the frail woman didn't even seem to notice that her ticket had been snagged under her shoe. You hoped that she wouldn’t notice how you leaned in just a bit closer, your hand going to quickly tug the slip of paper from under her foot; you switched it with your own, holding it and waiting for her to be done.

She thanks you warmly, graciously taking what is technically your ticket before she gets back in line. Now feeling a bit more safe, you can only pray that nothing goes wrong when you calmly hand the switched ticket to the gentleman clad in a blue dress shirt and black pants. A droplet of beaded sweat dribbled down the back of your neck as you waited patiently for him to give you passage - what if you were found out? What then? Would you ever get to see your brother again-?

“Alright mam, you’re free to board the ship. Please make sure to keep hold of your luggage during the trip.”

You were free to go. After this ship ride to the island, you’d finally be able to start the hunt for your little brother.

You had to find him.

The island wasn’t as beautiful as you had been expecting it to be. Then again, you weren’t quite sure how to picture a cult running a colony all on their own.

The coastline was small, just barely enough sand for more than four people to stand on at a time before they had to be sent uphill. The rest of the island’s otherwise sandy blemish held pillars of cracked stone, creating a sort of eerie gray wall around the bottom section of the island itself.

The soles of your shoes sink into the grainy yellow sand as you step off of the pathetic excuse of a dock, your long trousers just short enough to not brush against the sand. Unlike most of the other passengers, you’d packed everything messily into a bag you could sling over your shoulders - which you silently patted yourself on the back for while watching as the first four struggled to roll their suitcases uphill or carry the weight of their luggage with their fingers. For a brief moment, you forget of the ticket swap, heading towards the end of the coastline towards a path of grass that led farther up the hill. Then, you look back for just a split second.

The woman you’d switched tickets with is being held back from the crowd of new arrivals by the entire crew from the ship, the pack of them surrounding her frail figure.

There was no time to feel guilty - you had done what you needed to do.

Choosing to brush off any hint of guilt or pity for the widowed woman, you make your way up the hill until you’re stood beside one of the other passengers, a burly, plump man with a skewed mustache that oddly resembled a rat’s tail. Just ahead was the village, with young children running amuck and laughing freely, their parents busying themselves by doing laundry outside or chopping firewood. Not one person there seemed remotely interested in any of the new arrivals, though you didn't think it was too big of a deal. The less attention you could draw to yourself, the better.

Eventually someone led your group of about nine people further into the village, mentioning how the church was at the very end of the stone path and the trading market had been closed down for a short while - although he neglected to explain why. Right in front of their church there was an older man with brown hair sat at a table, a single paper and pen resting neatly on it’s surface.

“This is where you’ll tell our village leader, Junmyeon, your names and he’ll give you the keys to your rooms. Since you’re all new, you’ll be group together in a bunker of sorts - don’t worry though, you’ll be able to have your own homes soon enough.” The man hummed, gesturing for the first person to approach the leader waiting patiently at his post.

Without thinking you step forward, not expressing any emotion as you come to the edge of the table where the leader was waiting. He looked up at you briefly, making eye contact before he grabbed his pen and started to ask questions. “What is your name?”

“Y/N.”

“No last name?”

“I was in an orphanage, sir. My caregivers never told me of my surname, nor did I ever try to find it.” That little comment wasn’t too much of a lie, in all honesty - for a good majority of your life, you’d been holed up in a pathetic orphanage that didn't even have running water. Even now, as young adult, you never knew what your surname from birth had been; you’d taken the name Yang from your father, instead.

Junmyeon nods in silence, not opting to pry further into your life story. “What can you provide for us, miss? We already have many women who do the cooking and cleaning-”

“I can chop firewood or do construction.” You interrupt, “I am a working woman, sir. I can handle labor.”

He pauses, quirking an eyebrow in fascination. All the other women, while extremely intelligent and hard workers, tended to choose work such as laundry or cooking simply so they could be closer to home with their children. “I can’t guarantee you’ll get a spot, but... I can have Kris evaluate how well you do with it all tomorrow.” Junmyeon slides one of the keys from the pile across the table, the dingy golden material scrapping a bit on the rough surface. “This is for the last room on the right. After you get settled, I might suggest getting to know some of the other townspeople or relaxing, as tomorrow will be the start of seeing how well you work.”

“Thank you, sir.” You utter quietly, turning your back to him.

“No - thank you, miss Y/N. Welcome to your new home.”

You had concluded with very little hesitation that this place was entirely, one-hundred percent - almost normal.

At first, mostly due to your inner rage and turmoil of knowing your brother was being kept captive somewhere on this god forsaken island, you has assumed that the cultists residing in the quaint but bustling village would be like those you read about in the storybooks your father kept in his study for church. The words scrawled along the thick paper of the books would describe in horrifying detail how cultists of any kind would make inhumane sacrifices to their deities; from cutting off the heads of lambs to burning babies alive while they chanted haunting mantras into the night sky.

But... that didn't seem to be the case at all.

Everyone was friendly, not one shrouded soul of anger in their midst. Many of the women in the village had made it their duty to approach you first and make good will with you, helping you adjust to life on the remote island by cooking you meals and offering to sew you new garments. One of the women, well, girls - her name was Yeri, and she was maybe a year or two younger than yourself. Each morning for the next five days she would make sure that you got out of bed and went to work (which had been approved of by the second leader, Kris) as you had a very close bond with your bed; mainly in which you never wanted to leave.

She was Jeongin’s age, too. Every time she’d make a silly joke or play an innocent prank on one of the older women, you’d be reminded of why you’d even come here in the first place; to find your brother - hopefully alive and well.

Though, one thing you had learned very quickly was that the village was not doing too well. Their crops would leak a sickly black goo sometimes, and a majority of their livestock would mysteriously die in the middle of the night when no one was allowed out of their rooms. You’d easily figured out that the whole ransom issue was brought on by their lack of supplies and goods, but of course that didn’t convince you to pity them any further.

“Y/N? Aren’t you going to eat?”

You’re snapped out of your inner monologue by Yeri, the blonde haired girl tilting her head cutely to the side in amusement. The wooden spoon held between your fingers was lifted almost instinctively up to your chapped lips at her question, as if to reassure the younger girl that you hadn’t forgotten about your meal. “Sorry, I suppose I dozed off.” You hum, quirking an eyebrow when an all too mischievous smile starts to work its way onto her pink lips.

“You’ve been staring at him for at least two minutes, obviously you dozed off!”

“I was not staring at anyone-”

“Yes you were, Y/N! Now he’s staring at you, too.” A giggle escapes her lips as she discretely points across the front of her porch, directly towards the hut across from her own. Your eyes drift over to the hut, only to make sudden eye contact with a man donning a long black trench coat and beige trousers. His hair was slicked into a strange hairdo you had never seen a man sport before, part of the curled fringe swaying in the gentle wind. His eyes seem to almost glisten in the sunlight, appearing almost... red.

And then he turns away, walking back into what you can only assume is his hut.

You're not sure why, but small flurries of goosebumps had dotted your skin after the eye contact had been broken. You choose to ignore the chill that ran up your spine, instead glancing back over to a now widely grinning Yeri. “Who - who was that? I don’t think I’ve seen him before.”

“Hm? Oh-! That’s Seo Changbin, he was one of the first people to come here about... I believe three years ago?”

“Three years? He doesn’t look a day over twenty.”

“I don’t know, honestly. Apparently he came here when he was about seventeen.”

You nod in understanding, turning your attention back to the bowl of soup that was only growing colder the longer you waited to finish it. As you lift the spoon back to your waiting lips once more, you swear that you spot a flash of red eyes staring you down from inside the hut the man had gone into.

Still you ignore it, sipping on your soup before it was time to go back to work.

“You’re miss... Y/N, correct?”

You just about jump out of your skin at the intrusion of someone's voice, low and raspy right beside you. With a turn of your head you recognize the man from before - Changbin. “Y-yes, sir. Can I... help you with anything?” The question slips past your lips easily, wondering if he was going to ask why you’d been subconsciously eyeing him down the other week.

For some reason the man, not too much taller than you, grabs onto your shoulder and tugs you closer - to the point your chest is almost pressed against his own. Your eyes widen in shock, but he doesn’t seem to care; too focused on looking around to see if anyone was paying too much attention to the pair of you nearly inches apart. He leans down suddenly, his lips brushing against the shell of your ear. “You would do well to inform me as to why you haven’t been participating in the bloodletting, doll. I am well aware that you’ve been taking blood from Kevin Moon’s jar.”

Fuck, the bloodletting.

Since this entire colony was founded upon the belief of some otherworldly deity, the townspeople had to pay their respects somehow - and in this case, they would spill some of their own blood into mason jars once a week each Sunday and place them outside of their doors, presumably so that they could offer their blood to their god.

You... really didn't care much for their beliefs; one, because they were a goddamn cult, and two, because you believed in the supernatural before you would a bloody god. And the man was right, you’d been pouring some of your neighbor’s blood into your jar so you wouldn't have to use your own.

“How - you have no proof, sir.” You object tersely after a moment of stunned silence. Yet he remains authentically calm, his eyes narrowed into slits as he slowly pulls his head back from beside yours.

“Proof? Doll, I have proof that you’re Yang Jeongin’s darling big sister - would be quite a shame if Junmyeon, Kris, or Minseok found out.” He hisses, as if he was growing impatient. “Do you understand the gravity of your situation, Yang Y/N? One slip up and you could be set to be purified tonight.”

You can feel them, the hint of tears starting to pool into the corners of your shaking eyes. How? How had you been found out? Were you too careless? Was Changbin just that good and deduced that the woman you’d switched tickets with was the innocent one in all of this? “I - please, sir, I just want my little brother back home - I beg you, don't say anything!”

Not once did you ever picture yourself close to tears, bowing to a man you barely knew and begging for him to have mercy on you - or rather, Jeongin.

“If you could let me finish, doll, you’d know that I have no intention of outing your sins to those men.” He murmurs, furrowing his brows in surprise when you make a move and there’s a sharp blade at his throat within seconds, just before he’d finished talking. “You couldn’t hurt me even if you tried - not with that pathetic blade, that is. Smart, though.”

“Should you plan to keep my secret then that must mean you want something in return. Not to offend you sir, but I won’t be on my knees for a man like this.” You grovel to him, a bit of confusion squandering your brain at how he hadn't flinched or made a move to push you away.

“While you are... extremely attractive, miss Y/N, I’m afraid that I am a good man and wouldn't ask for something so - risqué.” The dark haired man snorts, a hint of amusement painting his soft chuckle before he spoke again. “Keep that pesky blade at my throat if you might feel more comfortable, but all I ask of you is to follow me into the woods. There’s something I think you might want to see for yourself, and it involves your little brother.”

Now that caught your attention.

“Show me, now.”

“Whatever you say, doll. Come along then, we need to stay out of sight...”

You felt like you had been walking for hours, with Changbin ahead of you just by a couple feet. Your shoes crunched against the orange and yellow leaves scattered across the grassy ground of the dense woodland, the moon slowly becoming more prominent through the treetops as the sky began to grow darker.

“Stop here. Don’t make a sound.” Changbin instructs you out of nowhere before crouching down towards the ground, seemingly shifting through the grass and colored leaves until he grabbed what looked to be a stone. You do as he advices, stopping completely in your tracks.

His fingers grip tightly onto the gray stone in the palm of his hand, then he’s pulling his hand back and throwing the stone towards a tree trunk a few feet away. Within seconds of the stone hitting the bark covered trunk and making a loud bang, you hear another set of feet walking close by.

From behind a tree not too far away from where the two of you stood in utter silence emerged a grotesque figure - if you could even call it that. The body, which was absolutely torn to shreds with dead skin hanging from the bones and loose organs shifting around in its gut, lurched to where the sound had come from. A bag had been tightly tied over the thing’s head, effectively covering its likely mutilated face.

Changbin makes a sign for you to wait when he goes back to crouching where he had been just moments ago. The grass was suddenly pulled from the ground up, stuck to the top of a panel that he’d lifted up quietly. He gestures for you to go in, which you do, albeit with a bit of reluctance. You soundlessly drop down into what appears to be a short tunnel, at the end of it there was an oddly warm light seeping into the otherwise pitch black area.

“Sorry about that little fright back there,” Changbin mutters apologetically after he’d dropped down beside you, making sure the rusty ladder hadn't broken off the rocky crevice before he goes to stand in front of you yet again, “usually I can detect when it’s around - I suppose I got distracted.” This time he glances over at you quickly, reaching down to grab your wrist with his own cold fingers.

“What you’re about to see may feel... fake, or strange at first. But if you want your brother back you’re going to have to trust me on this entire thing.”

A soft noise of agreement bubbles from between your lips, knowing that you didn’t have much of a choice since he knew of your deadly secret. Seemingly satisfied with your consent, the man leads you through the thin tunnel and makes sure that neither of you accidently bump into a sharp rock jutting out of the walls. You eventually reach the end of the tunnel that seems to round out at the end into a cavern of sorts, Changbin’s grip tightening slightly on your wrist as if he was... worried.

When you walk inside the dimply lit cavern, you immediately understand why he had given you a bit of forewarning beforehand.

The wall to the left was drowning in dying vegetation, sickly looking vines tinted an ugly gray color drooping from various cracks in the stone. A patch of once beautiful red roses hung to the cold floor, their shaky petals close to dust as they brushed against the ground with even the smallest of breaths. In the center of if all was a deathly looking boy - he couldn’t have been any older than Jeongin and Yeri, at least by much.

His hair was an odd mix of faded orange and gray, dust riddling the top of his head like a powdered wig. His cheeks were stained with a thick layer of grime that hid what appeared to be little brown dots spread all across his nose. The corners of the boy’s lips were curled down, dried blood crusting over the chapped pink skin of his mouth.

“C-Changbin-” You start to whisper in concern for the boy, wanting desperately to rip the plants off of his skin and rid him of all the disgusting grime riddling his body.

The man shakes his head, letting go of your wrist as he takes a step closer to the boy, who clearly reacts to his presence and lets out a soft whine that makes you want to cry in sympathy. “This... this is their so called god. He was - part of my clan, but one day he and one of the other younger fledglings decided that they wanted to travel the world. They swore to keep in contact, but we never heard from them again - even after two years.”

He goes to crouch in front of the boy who he knew, grimacing at his disheveled state. “Felix is his name. Jisung went with him, though I can only guess he died a long time ago, as Felix chooses not to speak of him at all. Before all of us could leave to search for the boys together, another clan attacked and destroyed our homes. I watched my only friends burn alive as they told me to run and find our boys.”

“It took me about a year to find out that Felix had purchased a boat at the same dock you came from - it’s the only one those bastards use. I bought one as well, only to come here and find a shitty cult worshiping the corpse of my friend. Course they don’t realize that feeding him so much blood at once is only making him weaker, nor do they realize that he’s just a simple boy - not a god.”

The boy, Felix, lets out what sounds like a strained growl at Changbin’s last statement, causing him to roll his eyes. “You may believe that you’ve been blessed by a goddess, Lix, but there is no god here. There never has been, nor will there ever be.”

“Why can’t you just... take him away?” You ask almost inaudibly.

“Trust me, I’ve been trying to for years now. I don’t know why, but if he leaves this cave then he starts to - to burn alive.” Changbin explains gruffly, standing from his previous position on the floor to stand by Felix’s side. “Mixing so many different blood types together and forcing him to drink it all at once is toxic to our system. There’s only so much our bodies can take. Only reason this kid is still alive is because I help him.”

Mixed blood types? Fledglings and clans? Helping him?

“Changbin, what - holy shit!” You nearly choke on your own breath at the sight of the man leaning down to Felix’s shoulder and sinking his teeth - no, his fangs into the boy’s graying skin. As if paralyzed in shock, you can’t move your body or your stunned gaze away, quite literally forcing yourself to keep watching as Changbin… drains blood from Felix’s body.

When he pulls away, pearly white fangs now dripping with bright red blood, you’re quick to notice how the frail boy’s skin starts to become a bit more noticeable and clear, as if the green and black grime was slipping off of him. His hair was no mostly orange, albeit still faded, but there wasn’t any speck of gray or dust on his head. The brown spots spread across his cheeks and nose like little constellations were much more noticeable now, shining in the dim streaks of light from the single lantern hung on a crevice.

“I take some of the blood those bastards force him to drink so that he can live even a little bit longer... I once asked him if I could just, you know...” He starts to choke up a bit, clueing you in on what he’d been suggesting. Without thinking about the fact that you’d just witnessed the man drinking blood from another person, you step close to him and comfortingly place a hand on his tense shoulder, to which he relaxes just a little. “But Lix refused, said he’d haunt me if I killed him before he decided it was his time to go. He says that he needs to wait for something, and this is where Jeongin is involved.”

Your gaze meets the otherwise mute boy still tangled in the vegetation, which has now started to bloom again in light of being relieved of the blood. “... I’m listening.”

“Felix says that he can sense everyone, up there, that is. He can tell that Jeongin is pure - so pure that his blood can heal this place, the island. I don’t know why Lix wants to wait, in all honesty, but... because your brother’s blood is essentially pure, a vampire would have to have the human’s consent before drinking their blood if they wanted to use that healing power for themselves.”

Oh right, they’re vampires.

“I know I won’t be able to convince your brother to help Felix on my own - hell I can’t rescue him by myself. He’s trapped in the church cellar, and I... can’t go in, for obvious reasons,” he sighed, running his fingers through is slicked back hair, “we can help each other, Y/N. We get your brother out, get him to feed Felix some of his blood, and my friend can finally rest. Please, for the boys.”

Save Jeongin, help a vampire’s other vampire friend by feeding him your little brother’s blood, then leave.

“Jeongin will listen to me, I swear it. I’ll help you - and Felix.”

“I don’t understand why you won’t come with us, Changbin. We have a nice home in London with plenty of space.”

Changbin sighs softly at your confused pout, reaching over to ruffle your already messy head of hair in amusement. He pulls back to grab one of the tiny carrots off of his wooden plate, effectively shoving it between your lips as if to shut you up, much to your displeasure. “I - that does sound nice, doll, but since I’ve been feeding off of Felix who’s somehow connected to this damned island, I am also connected. I’ve tried to go with the other men to get supplies from the mainland, but my skin starts to burn and peel.” He mutters, his thin lips turning into a remorseful frown.

You wince at his sudden gloomy mood, chewing on the orange carrot before you place a hand on his thigh in comfort. “I’ll find a way to come back and take you home, I promise.”

“Home is wherever you are, doll.” The words slip through his lips with no hints of hesitation, surprising both of you to the point you’re positive your cheeks and his resemble that of a ripe tomato. “This place... it’s hell, and I don’t want you to stay any longer than you need to - or come back. When you and Jeongin leave they’ll know who you are; if you even took a step onto the docks ever again they’d spear you without blinking.”

“Enough of this depressing talk - let’s talk about the festival.” You respond after a moment of comfortable silence, leaning back against the wooden planks of the hut. Ever since the weeks had started to pass, you and Changbin had been devising a hopefully foolproof plan to rescue your brother and help Felix. Each passing hour, the church was guarded by two people in the front and with one guarding the door to the cellar where Jeongin was kept hidden away from the outside world. Since Changbin couldn’t step into the church himself, he had to create a plan where the guards would be gone long enough for you to sneak inside and free Jeongin - enter the festival.

At the last day of each month, the village would throw a giant festival to celebrate their god - Felix. What made you suspicious, though, was how the leaders were really pushing the success of this particular festival, especially since they’d been struggling to have a decent harvest and everyone had to ration the meat into thin slices that barely filled anyone up. Changbin guessed that they wanted to make sure everyone was in attendance so they could search the rooms of all the newcomers without arousing suspicion themselves.

It made sense, of course - but you’d fallen into a simple routine just like the other villagers; hell you’d moved in with Changbin after days of him insisting it was safer in case you were caught somehow. Having a vampire as your housemate was - oddly normal. He didn’t need to go prey on the villagers directly, as he got his blood supply from Felix, technically. It’s not like he was entirely different from a normal human much like yourself, although there were times where he would have to ask you to leave the room “because of your scent being too fucking strong,” whatever that meant.

“They’re going to be having two of the regular guards out front with them while they search the rooms. We should hopefully have at least thirty minutes to maybe an hour, if we’re lucky. I don’t know how you’re going to get past the guy by the cellar door, though...”

“I have a plan, don’t worry about it.” You reassure the quiet vampire, lowering your voice as a group of noisy kids starts to walk by the hut. “I can pick the lock on his chains and be out of there in just ten minutes, maybe fifteen if my plan doesn’t work. We need to think about how we’re going to sneak all the way to the docks.”

Changbin hums in agreement, crossing his arms over his chest as he thinks. “Most of them will be at the festival, of course, but we do need to be as careful as possible. I’ll be on the lookout for guards when we get there.”

“... I wish you could come with us, Changbin.” Your voice comes out a bit hoarse, raw emotion spilling into your words as you look over to the man with a somber gaze. He chuckles softly, going to wrap one of his arms around your shoulders, his cold touch comforting against your warm skin.

“So do I, doll. So do I.”

You weren’t too sure why you had to wear a dress to the festival - hell you were going to be leaving it as soon as Changbin gave you the signal. You look in the mirror with a huff, twirling around slightly and admiring the pretty dress clung to your body. Yeri had leant it to on behalf of her older sister, Irene, since the older woman had outgrown it over the years. It was quite cozy, being made of thicker material; faded yellow sunflowers decorated the cloth nicely, adding a pinch of uniqueness to the traditional dress.

“You look beautiful, doll.” Changbin tells you warmly as he steps into the bedroom, going to stand just inches behind you, his soft breathing fanning out onto the top of your head. He’s wearing a simple black suit with a yellow bowtie to match your dress color, the material a bit ruffled and loose on his body; though the look suited him quite well. His normally slicked back hair was allowed to breathe for once since you’d finally convinced him to “let the natural soft hair free.”

He looked good - too good.

“And you look dashing, Binnie.” You hum, snickering in amusement at how his nose scrunches in a playful annoyance.

“I told you to stop calling me that, doll,” he whines cutely, unbeknownst to himself as he drops his chin onto your shoulder, looking at your lonely reflection in the mirror, “I’m a creature of the night that feeds off of your kind’s blood, I shouldn’t have such silly petnames.”

“It’s adorable though, Binnie~ and you’re about as intimidating as a caterpillar, by the way.” You giggle.

He huffs in faux agitation, nuzzling his face into the crook of your neck. “Mm, you’re adorable.”

Your breath hitches in your throat at the compliment, and you just about choke on nothing when the vampire lets his sharp fangs trail across your neck down to your shoulder, all the way up to the strap of your dress. He repeats his actions when you say nothing in response, checking on your reflection in the mirror to make sure you aren’t showing signs of being uncomfortable; but this time around, he does it even slower and adds his lips into the mix. The sensation of his lips and fangs grazing your skin sends chills up your spine, the feeling something similar to euphoria.

You spin yourself around so that your face is now just an inch or two away from Changbin’s, the tables being turned when he seems to stutter a bit at your close proximity.

“Doll - I want to... to...” He tries to speak, though his small stutters are perfectly clear to you.

“Then do it, Changbin.” You urge him on quietly, blushing furiously when you feel his chilled fingertips dig into your hips through your dress.

“If I kiss you now, then I’ll be addicted, doll. I’ll be struggling to keep my hands off of you all night, and we have a job to do.” He breathes out against your lips, but you know full well he’s going to let it happen anyway by the way he leans in closer. “We might not see each other again after tonight, Y/N. Are you okay with that?”

“Of course not, Binnie. I want you to come home with us - but I will find a way to bring you back one day,” you say determinedly, shushing him when he begins to protest, “no - no arguments. Just... kiss me, please.”

“As you wish, doll.” He gulps, complying to your wish by finally closing the distance between your lips. His lips, much like the rest of his body, are frigid to the touch - but if anything it heightens the euphoric feeling more so than before, the way his cold lips move slowly against yours. Your hands find solace around his neck, with his fingertips still digging into your hips as if he’s trying to pull you even closer - it wasn't physically possible, but damn it all if he didn't try.

You stay like that for what feels like years, slowly kissing each other and occasionally fighting for dominance, with Changbin teasingly biting down on your sensitive lips using his fangs while you would retaliate with a move to poke your tongue between his lips. All good things must come to an end, though, as made evident by the town bell ringing to let everyone know the festival was beginning. You both reluctantly pull back, your lips slightly swollen if inspected close enough.

“Go ahead without me for now. I need to double check and make sure we have everything.” The vampire man breaks the silence, clearly resisting the urge to smash your lips together again.

You laugh softly and peck his lips, not being as strong willed as him, before going to leave the house. “Yeri will probably try to drag me off to dance, so just look for her if you can’t find me.”

Changbin nods in understanding, turning his back to you as he rummages through the bag.

“Oh my gosh Y/N, you look stunning! Changbin is going to want to eat you up!”

If only you knew, sweet little Yeri.

“May I remind you that we live together, you silly girl?” You tease her lightheartedly, flicking her nose with a laugh as she pouts and puffs out her cheeks. While you certainly wouldn't miss the townspeople, not including Changbin and the every quiet Felix, you had a soft spot for the girl.

The shorter girl sticks out her tongue childishly, crossing her arms as a mischievous glint flashes across her brown eyes. “You know, I bet he asked you to move in because he like-”

“Am I interrupting, ladies?” Your savior pipes up in quiet amusement from beside you, easily wrapping a hand around your waist and giving it a gentle squeeze; everything was ready.

Yeri blanks out for a good second, gaze snapping onto the way the man has so comfortably pulled you closer to his body. “Oh my god I have to tell Irene, she owes me now!” She squeals in excitement, turning away to sprint through the crowd and find her older sister.

“Did they... bet on us?” You breathe out in disbelief, shaking your head fondly as the bubbly girl leaves the two of you behind.

“It appears so, doll,” Changbin snorts, going to discretely pull you into the shadows and away from the growing crowd, “I went ahead and put the bag by the stairs leading into the front door. You do whatever you need to do, then give me the signal and I’ll toss you the bag.”

You nod as he goes over the plan for the fifth time that same day, his arm still secured tightly at your waist even when you reach the church. “Y/N, if anything goes wrong, run out of the building so I can pummel the bastard-”

“It’ll be just fine, Binnie. Now, shush and let me do my part.” You effectively shush him by placing yet another peck to his lips, leaving him frozen to the spot by the front door while you quietly open it and waltz inside, swaying a bit. The guard, a man you recalled to be Jackson Wang, raised his chin to come off as more intimidating while he gripped onto his spear.

“Mam, you are not permitted to-”

“Oh shush, Jackson,” you say snootily, boldly walking closer and closer until you’re maybe a foot away from his tense form, “you know better, call me Y/N. We are... friends, aren’t we?”

“W-well I-”

This is too easy.

“Good boy, Jackson! Now, I need a favor from you tonight - and tonight only.” You hum, innocently playing with the ends of your hair. Jackson’s mouth gaped open at your sultry attitude and you could see how his grip on the metal spear loosened a bit as he started to relax with your presence - for more than obvious reasons. “You know how I live with Changbin, right? Well, the shorty is seriously strict and won’t let me have any men over - in fact, he locked the door so I couldn't bring anyone home while he’s out in the festival.”

“But... I do know for a fact that you live alone. Maybe you could... go home and wait for me?” You ask him with a childish pout of your lips, taking it a step forward to speed up the process by placing your hands in the pockets of his dress pants. “Just one night, baby, that’s all I need... although, I might need another. And another. And another-”

“O-okay!” The muscular guard breathes out shakily, bringing a hand to your cheek and caressing it. “Wait here for a few minutes though, okay? If Junmyeon finds out I ditched for you he’d kill me.”

“No problem, baby. Now, shoo!” You giggle, sending him a wink as he rushes out of the church doors. You wait a moment before waving through the window, signaling Changbin to toss the bag into the now empty building. You catch it effortlessly before you open one of the hands that had been in his pockets.

Getting the key was far too easy. Poor Jackson is going to have a shitty punishment tomorrow.

You twist the key in the lock to the trapdoor, feeling your heartbeat start to accelerate in your chest when you flipped it open. In just seconds you’d be able to see him again - your baby brother. With that thought in mind, you practically leap down the ladder, turning to look around the extremely cramped cellar.

“Y-Y/N?”

God you missed his voice.

“Jeongin - oh my god-” You rush over to him, pulling him into the tightest embrace you can muster and attempting to hold back the waterworks.

You missed him, so much.

“How did you - why are you?” His voice is strained, likely from dehydration. You don’t fail to notice how sunken his normally plush cheeks have become, nor the creaking of his bones as you unlock his chains with a hairpin and cut off the unnecessary restrains binding his legs and wrists together with a knife from the bag.

“Angel we need to go, but I promise I’ll tell you everything soon.” You mutter quickly, helping the malnourished boy stand from the cellar flood. He struggles to stand on his own, so you boost him up the ladder and rush to follow him. “I need you to listen to me Jeongin - I have a friend who needs your help before we leave. It’s hard to explain, but I swear no one will hurt you.”

Jeongin nods weakly, leaning against your side for support as you lead him out of the church. “O-okay. It’ll be fine as l-long as you’re there.” He whispers hoarsely while you help him down the steps, though Changbin is quick to crouch down and force your brother onto his back.

“Kid, wrap your arms around my neck. We gotta do this fast, alright?”

“A-are you my sister’s boyfriend, mister?”

“... I can see why Yeri reminds you of him, doll.” Changbin snorts under his breath, careful to look around for any stray festival goers. The two of you walk through the woods in mostly silence, with you watching Jeongin so closely you’re afraid you might burn holes into the side of his sunken face.

“Shh, it’s close.” The vampire mutters quietly, clearly sensing the terrifying monster that protected the secret door of the tunnel close by. Since his hands are full, you opt to lean down and pick up a hefty rock, slinging it into a tree a good distance away. Almost immediately the creature wanders towards the sound, unable to see you opening the door and helping Jeongin down to the floor.

You quickly follow him, hoisting him up with an arm while you look up and wait for Changbin to follow. He peeks over the edge, offering a cheeky smirk before he stands up to climb down.

Bang!

Why is there blood on your face...?

Why was Changbin not climbing down...?

“Y-Y/N! Run, there’s ‘nother tunnel behind the lante-” The man shouts down at you through the tunnel entrance, giving you no time to process what the ever living fuck was happening before he slammed the hatch shut.

You can feel it - the dread seeping into your bones. The way your heart starts to clench and unclench madly in your chest even though you try your hardest to regulate your heavy breathing as you struggle to lead an exhausted Jeongin down the tunnel and into the cavern.

You see Felix, bound in his haunting garden of half-dead plants, waiting for you to arrive. When he sees Jeongin, his white eyes start to tear up - he knows that he’ll finally be free. You help Jeongin over the bundles of flowers so Felix is close enough to reach his neck, but you hesitate a little. “Angel, are you sure? You don’t even know wh-”

“I don’t c-care, Y/N, just let hi-him do what he needs t-to do.” He silences you with a single statement, to which you oblige. With a soft nod from the human boy, Felix sinks his fangs into his neck, letting out a whine of satisfaction - in seconds you could see the difference in how he appeared. His skin quickly changed into a honey-kissed color, his lips became smoother and red, and his normally faded orange hair brightened considerably. With a ‘pop’ he retracts his fangs, comfortably sinking into the garden that had now flourished from your brother’s blood.

“I am a god now, you know.” He speaks up suddenly, making you jump in shock at the resounding echo of his deep voice hinted with a foreign accent. “Changbin believes me, he just never wanted to admit it.”

You laugh in disbelief, helping Jeongin up from the flower patch. “I - I don’t understand, Felix.”

“I could only communicate with Changbin through our vampire connection, but I was far too weak to speak properly.” He explains softly, sending Jeongin a thankful smile. “Thank you, by the way.”

“Y-yeah, no problem.” The brunette breathes out shakily.

Felix looks back to you, lips curling into a bittersweet frown. “He’s critically injured, but not dead. He was shot by Junmyeon, but the creature took care of that.” He lets out a soft sign, inhaling the aroma of all the flowers around him. “Before you leave, please burn me. Use the lantern - when you lift it the secret passage the leaders used will open. Changbin is waiting for you.”

You nod in silence, helping Jeongin towards the wall. The second you take the lantern off of it’s perch another door opens, to which you gesture for the younger to go on ahead - for his sake.

“Felix... Changbin thinks of you as his little brother, and as a big sister I can vouch for him in saying that he will miss you, a lot. Forever, actually.” You tell the boy softly, looking him in the eyes as your grip on the handle of the burning lantern tightens in sorrow. “And I just wanted to say that - that I’ll make sure to come back for him.”

“Sweetheart, did he not tell you?” Felix asks you sincerely, rolling his eyes playfully at your confused pout. “The island is going to burn - it’s like a reset button. As I die, the island dies with me. Changbin might be able to leave before it happens but... he is destined to be the next god of this land.”

No.

“He’s to proud to admit that he is to be a god, and too concerned for your own well being to tell you the truth. He won’t be restrained like me - the colony did this, no one else. I was only lucky enough to be blessed by the last goddess of this land, she saved my life.”

“Whatever happens to him, know that Changbin loves you dearly, Y/N. He never would have gone to such lengths for anyone else in his life. Now... it is time for me to rest, please.” He finishes with a warm grin, keeping eye contact with you as you raise the lantern and finally throw it onto his body and the garden surrounding him.

You don’t stay long, worried about Jeongin and the supposedly waiting Changbin - but you do hear Felix’s last breath; a deep sigh of content.

“Changbin you bastard!” Is the first thing you say to the bleeding vampire when you emerge from the tunnel, though you still make the effort to hoist an arm under both him and Jeongin’s shoulders. “I cannot believe you didn't tell me about the whole god situation!”

“Damn kid, I told him not to mention it...” The injured vampire wheezes, clutching hopelessly at the gaping wound in his chest, “you need to go, the village is already burning. You have to reach the docks before the crowd does so you can both get on the ship-”

You huff in defiance, standing up straighter as you walk faster through the woodland, smelling the burning land close behind. “I am not leaving you, Binnie. We already established this. Lix said there’s a chance we can make it before you have to stay.”

With that final rebuttal everyone falls silent, not including the occasional grunt of pain from the vampire or the heavy breathing of your exhausted brother. Eventually you reach the top of the hill by the coastline, looking down to see that not too many other people had made it to the boat just yet - and two people were anxiously waiting just a few feet away... wait-

“You’re finally here- oh my god, what happened?” Yeri screeches in a panic at your limping trio, going to help Jeongin even though she didn’t know who he was to you. Irene is quick to follow, adjusting Jeongin as he starts to whine in pain as well.

“Long story, I’ll tell you later - help me get Ch- Changbin!” You’d turned your head to the side, only to watch in rising horror as he collapses from your arms onto the dead grass, a pool of his blood spilling onto his chest. You crouch down beside him, ignoring the growing blaze that only seemed to inch closer and closer with each passing second. “B-Binnie, please!”

He takes a struggled inhale of fresh air, reaching up with a hand to brush a tear from the corner of your eye. “Yo-you have to leave m-me ‘behind, doll. Go home with-”

“Home is wherever you are, Binnie.” You breathe out with a whimper, leaning down even closer as the flames lick the grass just a yard away.

You can hear the other three screaming at you to hurry, but you pay then no heed - not yet. You had to taste him one more time, you had to feel him one more time - because you never wanted to forget him.

You smash your lips onto his, crying softly as he weakly holds your cheek with his bloodied hand. An explosion of love and fireworks erupts between your moving lips, a new sort of euphoria rushing over your body. Underneath your closed eyelids, both you and Changbin’s eyes have started to glaze over in a white color. His blood, now pooling onto the grass, spurts into giant vines that burst through the ground and manage to intertwine into a protective dome around both of you and the three onlookers just inches away from helping you up.

The fire never touches you.

#skzwriters #stray kids #stray kids au #stray kids vampire au #stray kids supernatural au #seo changbin #changbin scenario #changbin imagine #stray kids scenarios #stray kids imagines #stray kids drabbles #stray kids fic #stray kids fluff #stray kids angst

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scamperingscribbles · 6 years ago

Text

Soldier

The door was still hanging off one hinge.

Poor old hinges— only created to finish one job, and by God, they would see it through to the bitter end. There had been three of them at the beginning, shiny and new— Pa had been so proud of their having been made of solid steel, his triumphant grin hadn’t wavered from beneath his dusty mustache that whole week.

“These boys is like armymen,” he’d said, dropping his screwdriver into the dust and thumping his tanned fist on the doorframe. “Won’t never give out, long as the sun shines above ‘em, and the sand keeps on a’blowin’ through the windows. They got a job to do, and they’re gonna do it right, yessir.”

He’d been right. For years they’d held their charge fast and strong, stoic and silent silver steel soldiers holding steady in the sunlight and the stars. Pa swore that there’d never been a better set of hinges, before or since. He cared about little things like that.

But oh, now, how the mighty had fallen. A massacre of twisted metal, rusted like blood in the dust; two thirds of the tiny army buried in years of drifting particles. They’d remained valiant to the end, trying to hold that old door to its frame with all their might. And the last steel soldier, burdened with a vendetta against the world and an entire door to itself, had held strong for thirteen long years as the sun beat down and the wind screamed murder and the dust blew thick and the ground cracked spiderwebs. It had rusted almost completely through, but damned if it would go out without a fight.

I tried not to disturb it as I stepped warily over the flaking welcome mat. It seemed that neither of us would benefit from getting in each other’s way.

Shockingly, given the relentless march of passing years, not much had changed since the last time I’d been in that house. My footsteps were muffled by the thick quilt of dust and sand that snugly wrapped everything the light could (and couldn’t) touch. Webs of spiders hung from the ceiling, and webs of light from the sun arced across the floor through the still-shattered windows. Sunlight webs differently than moonlight does, I believe.

That night, so many years ago, the moon had been full, drifting lightly in through the windows with the soft breath of the breeze. A moment’s reprieve from the summer heat, a caress on the cheek, a dance with the glittering stars— glittering stars, glittering shards, glittering glass spraying in all directions, slicing fiercely through the cool night air like bullets, thumping lamely on the sandy floor. Shouts from outside. I had hidden under my blankets. I didn’t like the noise.

When everything was quiet again, Pa came to my room. He sat down on the side of the bed. Reached down to the floor, picked up a star, twirled it through his calloused fingers; “Jus’ you wait,” he said. “You wait and see, lil’ miss— it’s all gonna be jus’ fine. Ain’t nobody gonna hurt you, ‘ceptin’ you, on your own terms.” I cocked my head to the side; I didn’t understand. He paused.

“Look,” he said, gesturing to the glass that rested in his palm. “This here piece of starlight could slice a hand open in one go, if’n a person were slow enough not to realize until it was too late. That makes it a weapon, see.” I nodded. That much I understood.

“See, you have the power to decide whether or not to pick up the weapon in the first place, lil’ miss. And if you’ve decided to go ahead and do that, you get to make another decision.” He began to twirl the glass through his fingers again. “You can decide to use it fer protection; keep it safe, keep it hidden, take it out to wave it around every once in awhile if need be, but mainly jus’ use it as your reminder that you got something stronger up your sleeves.” I shot a glance at my bare arms, pale in the moonlight, and made a mental note to ponder where stronger things were meant to go if I didn’t have any sleeves to keep them in. A sudden movement snapped me back to attention, as Pa shot his arm out like he’d tossed a skipping stone, the glass flashing in his palm one second and the next glinting brightly in the wall opposite us. He retracted his arm in the same fluid movement, and continued. “You can decide to use it against someone else, if’n they deserve it. Only if they deserve it, y’hear?” I nodded again. “Or,” he said, plucking another star from the sand, and placing it this time into my own chubby fingers. “Or, you can use it on yourself.” I blinked. “I don’t expect you to unnerstand that yet, but just know it’s in your toolbelt. Your arsenal. Your bandolier, hear me? It’s a last resort, lil’ miss, but you’ll unnerstand if it ever comes to that.” He closed my fingers gently around the shard, pressing the jagged edges into my skin just hard enough to sting a little. “Jus’ you wait,” he said again. I followed his eyes as they drifted toward the face of the moon, still beaming kaleidoscope patterns in the sandy floor from behind the shattered panes. “Jus’ you wait.”

Pa pulled a gun out from under the kitchen floorboards the next morning. I hadn’t known that we owned one. When I asked him where it’d come from, he just shook his head. “Don’t matter where it came from,” he said, polishing it with a soft cloth. “Only matters if’n it does what it’s supposed to.” He placed it on top of the bookshelf, next to the Picture.

The Picture had been taken back when I’d just been born. Pa, sans mustache, pale with sleep deprivation, and grinning so wide his face must’ve hurt. Myself, in his arms, with my eyes barely open, swaddled in a dusty blanket. And Ma. Ma, with her beautiful dark eyes and deep brown skin, smiling up at us both; an angel incarnate, and the two mortals she’d deemed her own. The folks from the town had taken her away when I was just old enough to stand. They’d come in the mid-afternoon back then, screaming about colored folk. Broke the door down. Never brought her back. Pa blamed that door for a year, for not holding steady when we needed it most.

The gun stayed on the bookshelf until night fell, hot, humid, and relentlessly seeping in through the walls. Too stuffy to sleep and slicked with sweat, I lay out on the sandy floorboards of the living room while Pa slumped back in a nearby chair, not much better off. I traced patterns of moonlight through the sand, until Pa shot bolt upright in his chair, and then froze.

He locked eyes with mine. Then he slid onto the floor next to me, and motioned for me to follow behind him. “We’re gonna play a game, lil’ miss,” he said, smiling under his mustache, and crawling away from me. I got up onto my hands and knees and crawled after him. We slid slowly through the house, looping around the chairs and table. When we stopped, we were in the kitchen. “We’re gonna play some hide and seek, see?” Pa said, reaching forward and silently prying up the floorboards. “Only, the trick is, while you hide, I’m gonna make sure no one comes seekin’ for you. That’s how we win. You stay put, you stay quiet, we win— easy as pie.” He motioned me towards the space where the floorboards had been and a small hole now was. “Go on, get,” he chuckled, gently pushing me forward into the space. I giggled. This was fun. I nestled into the sandy space, and looked up at him as he began to replace the floorboards above my head. His smile seemed a bit sadder all of a sudden, but perhaps it had just been a trick of the moonlight. “I’ll come and get you when we’ve won, lil’ miss,” he said, before replacing the last floorboard. “My lil’ starlight, my lil’ soldier— jus’ you wait.” Then the board slid into place, and all was darkness.

I heard him shuffle above me. I heard him stand, heard him walk to the place where the bookshelf would be. I heard the clicking of something metal. The rustling of some cloth. Then, the shouts began to pierce through the heat of the night, just audible now, as though far away but drawing nearer. I heard the door open, and then shut again. The shouting got louder.

I heard Pa’s voice. “Evening, ‘gents.”

“Russell, you know what we’re here for. Hand her over.”

“Y’all sure I can’t convince you to just walk away, leave her alone?”

“C’mon now, Russell. Don’t make this difficult. We’ve told you before we won’t have no Colored folk in this town. They don’t belong here, not even if their skin ain’t dark on the outside; it runs through the blood in their veins, see.”

“Yes, you’ve told me. I see I’m not gonna change your mind. Here, then. I’ve bundled her up.” A rustle of cloth, passed from one place to another. Silence.

“Russell, this ain’t—”

A gunshot. A scream. A horrified intake of breath from a crowd.

“Y’all should back off now, if’n you know what’s good for you.” His voice was steady, cutting through the air.

A rumble of anger, growing louder. Someone shouts. Then pandemonium. Too many voices, too many screams, gunshot after gunshot. I pressed my hands over my ears, curling smaller under the sand.

They’d gotten to the door. They were ramming against it, over and over, trying to get in. The house was shaking. Pa sounded far away, he wouldn’t be able to stop them. And the hinges, the soldiers, bending and bowing under the blows, held their charge with all their might until they could hold it no longer. A splintering of metal, and a roar. The battle had been lost.

“She ain’t there!” Pa’s voice came bellowing through the noise. The world, it seemed, put itself on “pause.”

“She ain’t in there,” he said. “I took her to a secret place just last night, after you fellas visited for her the first time. She’s long gone, now.”

“Then tell us where she went, Russell. It doesn’t matter how far she runs, her existence is an abomination against God, and her life is forfeit.”

“Well, I know where she is, and y’all don’t, right?”

“Right.”

“And I got the gun, and y’all don’t, right?”

Silence.

“Then the lord have mercy on all your souls, because you ain’t never gonna find her without me.”

A gunshot. A yell. A series of thuds, feet racing through the sand, away from the house. A series of words I didn’t know.

They stayed for a few minutes after that, talking. A few people came into the house, just to be sure; I could hear them above me. I didn’t move. I didn’t breathe. They looked in every room, and then left. There was a grunt from outside, followed by a noise as though someone had been hefted onto someone else’s back, and then the footsteps faded, and then the world was silent again.

I stayed under the floorboards for what seemed like an eternity after that. Pa had said the next county over was a day’s walk; all you had to do was start by following the morning sun, and by the time that it was at your back, he’d said, you’d be there. I waited until the light through the floorboards got a little brighter, and then pushed them aside, and crawled out of my hiding spot. I slipped into my tiny shoes. I filled Pa’s canteen with water, and slung it around my neck. I found the morning sun. I followed it, panting, on short chubby legs. I didn’t look back.

The floorboards had never been replaced, it seemed. Either no one had ever come back, or no one had cared enough to put them back in order. Or both. They still lay where I’d left them, now petrified and hardened by the passage of time. The space beneath them seemed so small now.

I walked over to the bookshelf. The Picture was still there, too; covered in dust and faded by sun, but still there. His smiling face next to hers and mine, frozen in time, eternally blissful. I put the fragment of memory in my bag. Then I left.

Stepping carefully out over the welcome mat again, I squinted in the light, and plodded through the dust to my car. It started up with a sputter, and I turned its nose away from the setting sun.

We mourn the fallen soldiers. We pray for the living ones. We march on with the losses of those that we love piled on our backs, urging us forward, reminding us what we fight for. We use their love to triumph in the battles we must face.

I put the Picture up on my dashboard. Fifty feet away, in the rearview mirror, the door fell off its last hinge and settled in the dust.

#creative writing #short story #soldier #historical fiction

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