Jung-hyuk was smiling down at him.

"Jung-hyuk ah?" Ha-neul mumbled. "I thought you were dead."

"So-na!" Jung-hyuk said, and Ha-neul's head snapped to the side. So-na lay beside him on the grass, sleeping.

She woke up when Jung-hyuk called her. "Mmm, Hyukkie. What are you doing here?" Her smile was slow and lazy, full of warmth.

"I thought I'd come and pick you up. Shouldn't you be in class right now?"

"No, I got let out early. Come sit beside me, Hyukkie."

Ha-neul stood up slowly as Jung-hyuk sat cross-legged next to So-na. "Jung-hyuk ah?" Ha-neul said tentatively. "Can you see me?"

But Jung-hyuk couldn't. He looked right through Ha-neul, down the grassy slope at the building that gleamed white in the sunlight. Ha-neul recognized it. It was So-na's college, where Jung-hyuk had first spotted her. An old ache started hurting again. It intensified when Ha-neul heard his name. "Ha-neul hyung," Jung-hyuk said, and Ha-neul leaned forward.

"Hyuk-ah--"

"Ha-neul hyung is feeling a little better today. He's less depressed. He didn't even throw anything at me." Jung-hyuk chuckled, and Ha-neul closed his eyes, exhaling.

"Do you think the Mara finally left him?" So-na asked.

"He left the Mara," Jung-hyuk said. He sounded so proud. "I always knew hyung was too strong for them."

So-na smiled and took Jung-hyuk's hand, placing it over her stomach. "Yes," she said. "He's strong. He'll be a good role model for our child, ne?"

Jung-hyuk rubbed her stomach, smiling lovingly. "Yes, he will. And hey, guess what?"

"Hmm?"

"Ha-neul came up with a name for the baby. Well, if he's a boy, that is."

"Oh? What is it?"

"He said we should name him 'Seung-ri.' Victory." Jung-hyuk laughed. "You know, so he can overcome everything and succeed."

"Seung-ri…Seung-ri ah," So-na murmured. "I like it."

"Lee Seung-ri," Jung-hyuk said, kissing So-na. "Our little victory."

Ha-neul closed his eyes, swallowing. He hadn't even remembered that, remembered the time he'd half joked to Jung-hyuk that he should name his son Seung-ri. Seung-ri ah, I gave you your name. He smiled, even though his throat felt thick and choked. I gave you your name.

Well, do you think you could have given me a less corny name?

The grassy knoll faded, and Ha-neul opened his eyes. He saw the curved roof and, when he turned his head, the cream-colored walls. An Asclepieion temple. "Seung-ri ah," he murmured, hearing the boy sitting up in the bed next to his. "Didn't I say it was rude to break into people's minds?"

"I wasn't in yours. You were in mine."

Ha-neul turned his face towards Seung-ri. "What? How?"

Seung-ri was pale, but otherwise he looked fine. "You kept saying, 'Jung-hyuk, Jung-hyuk, Jung-hyuk,' in your sleep. Matthias said you were trying to find him--find him in your head, but you got me instead because I'm his son."

"How did you pick up that memory here?"

"I was born here," Seung-ri muttered. "At least, that's why my foster parents told me. 'Cause my mom had…complications. They couldn't handle it in a regular hospital, without magic. I guess… I guess a part of her is still here."

"Your birth was one of the happiest moments in her life," Ha-neul said quietly.

Seung-ri was silent, and then he said, "…Ha-neul?"

"Yes?"

"Why,…why didn't you keep track of me after my parents died? I mean, you're friends with some of the Guardians, right? Didn't they tell you that the Asclepieion took me in?"

"I…I didn't want to. Well, maybe I would have, but when your mother died, your father just fell apart. I had to take care of him. Then he died, and I…" Ha-neul breathed in deeply, then exhaled. "And I did ask once about you. They said you had your father's eyes. I didn't think I could handle it."

Seung-ri whispered, "You were all friends. Ki-hyun could handle seeing me."

"How often did he come by?"

"Once or twice a month. He always said I looked more and more like my dad all the time…"

Ha-neul sighed.

"Do I really look like him?"

Ha-neul looked at Seung-ri again, and for a moment his vision wavered. Seung-ri was slumped over, all of his confidence and bravado gone. He looked very tired, and instead of seeing Ki-hyun, Ha-neul saw Jung-hyuk, torn and vulnerable. He turned away. "Yes," he whispered. "You're the spitting image of him."

Seung-ri didn't speak for a very long time, so finally Ha-neul changed the subject. "Who brought me here?"

"Matthias. He came back for you."

"Care to tell me what you were doing in the middle of a pack of werewolves?"

"It was a mistake, okay? Some of the guys said we were going out for some drinks, but then they walked into that apartment and before I knew it they were hounding the werewolves. Bunch of cowards. They left me as soon as it got rough."

"You know, I'm too tired to bother you about rules."

Seung-ri ignored the comment. "I saw you fight," he said.

"You were passed out."

"Not all of the time. I saw."

"Ah."

"Maybe you're more than just a bitter old man," Seung-ri said slowly. "And maybe…there are some things I can learn from you."

"Like not to attack werewolves?" Ha-neul smiled wryly at Seung-ri.

"Shut up! You know what I mean."

"It pains me that you had to see proof of my abilities before you asked to be my student."

"Well, excuse me. So will you teach me or not?"

"Manners, Seung-ri ah."

"Will you teach me, sir?"

Ha-neul leaned back against the pillows, sighing. It took a werewolf attack to make some progress with Seung-ri, apparently. "Yes, I will teach you."

Seung-ri grinned, just as Alan Halifax walked into the room and said, "Ha-neul, we have a problem."

Ha-neul groaned. "More problems? I just got ripped apart by werewolves. What more problems do I have?"

"Werewolves are exactly your problem," Alan said, glancing at Seung-ri, who looked down. "Your ward and his friends attacked Jude Fenrir's wolves."

Ha-neul groaned. "No."

"Yes. How many other werewolves do you know who live together as a pack?"

"Who's Jude Fenrir?" Seung-ri asked.

"He's the leader of a group of werewolves," Ha-neul said. "And he's a friend of mine, but that's beside the point. The point is--"

"--that Jude was on your list of recruits," Alan finished. "And right, now, he's very angry, friend or no."

"Oh god." Ha-neul groaned. "I need blood. And a very, very long nap. Then I can handle this. Oh, and Seung-ri?"

"Uh, yes?" Seung-ri looked nervous: Alan was glaring at him.

"Your first lesson from me is, 'Know when to apologize.'"

"What does that mean?"

"It means," Ha-neul said, "that I'm going to go apologize to Jude Fenrir. And you're coming with me."

Jude Fenrir was willing to accept an apology, especially when he found out that Seung-ri had been unwilling and even left behind. "So that was Ki-hyun's group, hmm?" he said when Ha-neul and Seung-ri came by. "Well, I guess that means I should join your group, Ha-neul. Better safe than sorry, after all."

Jude was one of the many who began trickling into Ha-neul's group as summer wore on. Ha-neul was glad, because he was doing his job with minimal trouble (minus the one incident with the werewolves, of course), and Seung-ri was behaving. He showed more than the minimum amount of respect to Ha-neul now, and although Ha-neul would rather that Seung-ri respected him for something more than his ability to fight, he was still glad.

And it wasn't just respect. Seung-ri was grateful to Ha-neul for coming to save him, and that gratitude somehow translated into affection. He liked to call Ha-neul over and show off what he had learned that day, and he would punch Ha-neul in the arm when he couldn't find enough words to express himself. Ha-neul knew Seung-ri was trying to win his approval and affection in his own way, and on top of that Seung-ri's training was going very well.
Seung-ri hadn't been lying when he said he was very good. Ha-neul rarely saw anyone with so much raw talent. He even enjoyed teaching Seung-ri, because the boy picked up things quickly and wanted to know more, more, more. Ha-neul saw less and less of Ki-hyun in him, except during his bursts of egomania and anger. But even then Ha-neul thought of him as Seung-ri, not Ki-hyun--and not as Jung-hyuk, either. Only rarely did his nostalgia get the better of him, making Ha-neul think of Seung-ri as a second Jung-hyuk to protect, a second Ki-hyun to guide in the right direction.

Seung-ri hated being compared to his father, though. The day he started calling Ha-neul "hyung," they had a fight.

Ha-neul was deep in Nietzsche, sitting on the couch with his legs crossed, when Seung-ri walked into the living room and said, "Ha-neul hyung--"

Ha-neul's heart stopped for a fraction of a second. "Ha-neul hyung, you're the best hyung I could ever ask for. You know that, right?" "Jung-hyuk," he whispered.

"No," Seung-ri said, voice sharp and hurt. "Seung-ri. Jesus, I--"

"I'm sorry," Ha-neul said. "I'm sorry. You just… you sounded exactly like your father when you called me hyung."

"But I'm not! And I really hate it when you say stuff like, 'You sound like your father,' or 'You look exactly like him right now,' or--or just--I hate it. Okay? I'm not my dad." Seung-ri glared at Ha-neul. "I'm me."

"I'm sorry, Seung-ri ah." Ha-neul patted the spot next to him. "Come sit with me."

Seung-ri sat down on the couch, scowl fading slightly. "Maybe I shouldn't call you hyung anymore."

"No, no, you should. I like it."

"Why, because it's what my dad called you?"

"No, because it means you must like me at least a little bit now." Ha-neul smiled. "Do you?"

"Yeah right! In your dreams, hyung." Seung-ri punched Ha-neul's shoulder.

Ha-neul rubbed his shoulder. "Ow. So what did you come out here for? I thought you were training in your room."

"I got bored predicting cards. And…I have a question."

"Ah. By all means, ask."

Seung-ri suddenly looked nervous. He cleared his throat and said, "Um. Well. Your cards have some memories in them, and I saw you and… I guess it was my mom and dad. You guys were hanging out together. And I was wondering… How did my parents die?"

Ha-neul stopped smiling, but he made an effort to sound normal, not as if Seung-ri had just asked the question he most wanted to avoid. Finally, he said, "Your mother…was killed."

"Was my dad killed, too?" Seung-ri asked quietly.

"No. She was home alone with you." Ha-neul closed his eyes. "Your father…killed himself. He couldn't stand it without her."

"Is that why the Asclepieion took me? Because my dad didn't want me?"

"Don't say it like that, Seung-ri ah."

"Tell me the truth!" Seung-ri's initial nervousness had disappeared, replaced with an intensity bordering on anger. "Tell me the truth, Ha-neul hyung. My dad didn't want me. You didn't want me. Not even Ki-hyun really wanted me."

"Seung-ri--"

"Do you even want me now?" Seung-ri whispered. "Or do I remind you too much of my dad?"

"Seung-ri ah, I do like you, for yourself. I regret that Jung-hyuk died, but I don't resent you because you look or sound like him. I do want you here."

Seung-ri stared at several book on the table, and they began levitating. "Why do you call me that?" he muttered.

"Call you what?"

"Seung-ri ah. What does 'ah' mean?"

"It doesn't mean anything." Ha-neul chuckled. "It's just something you add at the end, to be affectionate."

Seung-ri looked away, and the books thudded to the table. "So you really do like me?" he asked.

"Yes, of course. I already said that. Why so many questions tonight, Seung-ri ah?"

"Because I want to know the answers."

"You've learned, Seung-ri." Ha-neul smiled. "And yes. Believe me when I say I really do like you."

"Okay," Seung-ri said, still surly but flushing slightly.

Ha-neul opened his book again. "Are you going to go out anywhere tonight?" he asked. Seung-ri still left the apartment from time to time, although he always told Ha-neul where he was going--and he always went alone.

"No."

"No?"

"Yeah. I think I'll just stay home tonight," Seung-ri said. "If you'll teach me how to use your throwing knives."

Ha-neul raised an eyebrow. "They're not play toys, you know." Seung-ri looked crestfallen, but then the pack of cards floated from their room and hovered above his head. Ha-neul smiled. "So we'll be using these cards, if that's all right with you."

Seung-ri punched him in the arm again and said, "Quit teasing me, hyung."

Ha-neul chuckled. "Don't hit your teacher. It's disrespectful."

"Whatever. Just show me. Please, hyung."

Ha-neul stayed up late with Seung-ri, teaching him the finer points of control needed to manipulate the cards. He was happy, but he didn't know why until they went to bed and Seung-ri mumbled, "Good night, Ha-neul hyung." Then he realized it was because his life had finally fallen back into rhythm, and even though it was a different one, it was warmer, and less lonely.

The rhythm was shaken again all too soon. Matthias came by Ha-neul's house to tell him that Ki-hyun was stepping things up: more humans were turning up dead, with no other wounds than two tiny puncture marks on their neck; the amount of new vampires was increasing, like it hadn't for at least two hundred years; and the werewolves were all sticking together, wary of being attacked by Ki-hyun's group.

"Ki-hyun has a special hatred for werewolves," Ha-neul said. "On his hierarchy of living beings, they're probably at the very bottom."

"Ki-hyun said that werewolves are savage and wild," Seung-ri said. He was sitting on the couch next to Ha-neul, manipulating cards with his mind.

Matthias shook his head. "That's a lie. Werewolves normally keep to themselves, but they're not wild. Just wary."

"And they're hardly savage."

"Hyung!" Seung-ri exclaimed. "They ripped you apart. They almost killed you. How could you say they're not savage?"

"They were injured and angry. I would have attacked anyone threatening, too."

Seung-ri frowned. The cards stacked themselves neatly on the table. "You could have died," he mumbled.

Matthias smiled. "You sound concerned, Seung-ri."

"What?! Hell no! I'm just saying because if he died I wouldn't have an apartment to live in."

Ha-neul and Matthias chuckled. Seung-ri sulked for the rest of the night, until Matthias left and Ha-neul rested a hand on his shoulder. "Were you really concerned about me?" he asked, smiling gently.

"Not at first," Seung-ri admitted. "I mean, I didn't think about it until later, when you stopped annoying me as much. I thought, you know, I might miss you if you died." Seung-ri scratched the back of his head, flushing.

"I won't die just yet," Ha-neul said, and ruffled Seung-ri's hair.

Even though it got to the point where Ha-neul and his team had to actually confront Ki-hyun's bands of vampires and involve themselves in skirmishes, and even though Ha-neul became thin and worn down, he continued to reassure Seung-ri that he would live. Seung-ri said, "Hyung, I'm not a baby. I don't need to be comforted or whatever." But every time Ha-neul left with Matthias, Seung-ri stayed up to wait for him. He would be tense and nervous, unable to relax until he had checked Ha-neul for wounds, or until Ha-neul gave him some physical sign of reassurance: a pat on the shoulder, a smile, a hair ruffling.

'I wonder if you're worried about me or Ki-hyun," Ha-neul said once, half joking.

But Seung-ri answered him seriously. "I'm worried about both of you. I don't want you guys killing each other."

"Seung-ri ah, we're on opposite sides."

"But I'm on nobody's side. You can't make me hate Ki-hyun, and I can't hate you either, even if you're fucking annoying. I just want you guys to not get hurt."

"That's impossible, Seung-ri ah."

"Nothing's impossible. Everything's malleable."

Ha-neul was silent for a moment, and then he smiled. "That's not Ki-hyun's saying. It's the Asclepieion's."

"Yeah. I know."

Ha-neul brushed a hand over Seung-ri's hair. "I can't avoid hurting Ki-hyun, Seung-ri. I wish you would just let go of him."

"I can't. He turned me. We have a blood tie. And besides, I--"

"Still respect him? Does power still matter to you, Seung-ri?"

"Yes," said Seung-ri quietly.

"Why?"

"Because, if I'm powerful people will recognize me. I won't be a shadow. I won't be a reminder of someone else." Seung-ri walked past Ha-neul, leaving him standing alone. "I'll be my own person."

There came the day when Matthias said, "We have information that Ki-hyun is planning to attack Jude Fenrir's wolves--all of them."

"At once? Is he insane?"

"Not really. They're still weak from this month's transformation, and they're grouped together, besides. And Ki-hyun has a large group organized. He's even going himself."

Ha-neul cursed quietly in Korean. "So what are we going to do?"

"Alan says this is the perfect chance to trap Ki-hyun. We could ambush him." Matthias looked weary and less than happy with that idea.

Seung-ri didn't look happy, either, when he walked in on them. "Ambush who?" he asked. "Ki-hyun?"

"Go practice," Ha-neul said tiredly. "This doesn't concern you, Seung-ri."

"Hell yes it does! You're going to trap Ki-hyun, and you might even hurt him--"

"Seung-ri ah." Ha-neul's voice was flat. "I'm going to ask you right now to consider your loyalties very carefully. What are you more concerned about? The safety of some innocent werewolves--people--or the safety of Ki-hyun, who wants to kill them?"

Seung-ri was silent.

"Answer me, Seung-ri."

"Ha-neul, don't push him."

"With all due respect, Matthias, I didn't ask you. I asked Seung-ri."

"You're an asshole, hyung," Seung-ri said, and left the room. The door to the bedroom slammed shut, and Ha-neul sighed.

"Tell everyone to get ready," Ha-neul said. "Alan is right. This is a perfect opportunity to stop Ki-hyun."

"What about Seung-ri?"

"He'll be fine. I can't stop this just because he's concerned for Ki-hyun."

"All right," Matthias said. He filled Ha-neul in on the details, and then left.

Ha-neul knocked on the bedroom door. "Seung-ri," he called. "You need to let me in, you know. I'm a little too old to be sleeping on the couch."

"Shut up. I'm pissed at you right now."

"Yes, I'm very well aware of that."

"Well. Good for you."

"Seung-ri, I can't apologize for what I need to do. But I will for what I said. It was unfair."

"Whatever."

"Can I make it up to you in any way?"

"I don't know." Beat. "Maybe you could sleep on the couch, so I wouldn't have to look at your fucking annoying face."

Ha-neul chuckled tiredly. "Seung-ri ah, I don't have the energy to argue with you tonight. Just please bring me an extra pillow to the couch." He walked over to the living room and sat down on the couch, rubbing his forehead. A few moments later, a pillow thumped him on the back of the head.

"Here," Seung-ri said. "Don't get a backache or whatever."

Ha-neul took the pillow. "You're really not going to let me into the room?"

"No." Seung-ri turned away. "I want to be alone tonight."

When he was gone, Ha-neul lay down on the couch and covered his face with the pillow. "Jung-hyuk," he mumbled, "if you happen to be a ghost hovering around, I would really appreciate some help with your son."

Of course, there was no answer. Jung-hyuk couldn't be a ghost. Ghosts existed because they wanted to stay, and Jung-hyuk had wanted nothing more than to leave this world.

Ha-neul was supposed to meet his team the next day, to go over the plan of attack. Seung-ri was still upset, though, so Ha-neul decided to buy him some food from the local Korean restaurant. He remembered that Seung-ri had mentioned wanting to try bulgolgi. It was worth a try; besides training, the other thing that Seung-ri liked was food. He was always more receptive at breakfast or dinner if Ha-neul bought something good.

Opening the door to the apartment, Ha-neul called, "Seung-ri ah, I bought some food. And you are not allowed to eat in the bedroom, so I suggest you come out." There was no answer. Ha-neul frowned; he set the cartons down in the kitchen and walked to the bedroom. The door was slightly ajar, but Ha-neul pushed it open all the way.

Seung-ri was sitting on the bed. Ha-neul's throwing knives were all scattered on it, except for one that Seung-ri held in his hand. Ha-neul willed his heart to beat normally. There was a memory ingrained in those knives that Ha-neul didn't want Seung-ri to know--at least, not until Ha-neul could find the words to explain it to him. "Seung-ri," he said. "Put those away. I recall telling you that they're not play--"

"It's true. You killed my dad." Seung-ri's voice was hollow. "You killed him, you stabbed him in the heart." He looked up at Ha-neul, glaring. His voice rose. "You bastard! You were his best friend--"

"Wait, let me explain--" The knife flew straight at Ha-neul's face. He waved it aside, and it embedded itself in the wall. "Seung-ri!"

"Seung-ri doesn't need any explanations," a smooth voice behind Ha-neul said. "I think what he saw was clear enough."

Ha-neul tensed, but his voice was as pleasant and detached as ever when he said, "Ki-hyun. I thought I told you to never show your pathetic face around me ever again."

"Ah, but Seung-ri invited me over, and could hardly refuse." Ki-hyun stepped into the room and walked around Ha-neul, appraising him. "He seemed very upset when I came," Ki-hyun said softly, black-black eyes flickering with too many subtle emotions, one after the other, for Ha-neul to identify. "He said something about Ha-neul hyung planning to trap me. He wanted to warn me, beg me not to attack innocent people." Ki-hyun's lips curled into a sneer. "He seemed just as worried for you as he was for me. And I asked him why--why do you care so much about the man who killed your father?"

"Seung-ri," Ha-neul said. "Don't listen to him. He doesn't know anything."

"I know you killed Jung-hyuk. I know you put a knife through his heart. Of course, Seung-ri didn't believe 

me at first. He didn't believe that his beloved hyung would do something like that." Ki-hyun smiled, and it was triumphant. "So I told him, 'Why don't you go check your hyung's knives? He used one of them to kill your father.'"

"And what did you use to kill So-na?" Ha-neul asked quietly.

"Shut up!" Ki-hyun lashed out at Ha-neul, eyes now angry. "That has nothing to do with this!"

Ha-neul ducked Ki-hyun's punch and kicked his legs out from under him. "Seung-ri!" he called as Ki-hyun fell. "Listen to me. I can explain everything to you. Your mo--"

But Seung-ri shouted, "Shut up! I don't want to listen to you. You fucking lied to me!"

Ki-hyun took advantage of Ha-neul's distraction. He leaped up and wrapped an arm around Ha-neul's neck, locking him into a stranglehold. "Didn't it make you sick?" he hissed into Ha-neul's hear. "Every time you lied to him? Every time you called you hyung? Look at him, Ha-neul. He looks exactly like Jung-hyuk. Didn't you feel any guilt?"

Ha-neul grunted and rammed his elbow into Ki-hyun's stomach. Ki-hyun's grip loosened by a fraction, but it was enough. Ha-neul used his telekinesis, sending Ki-hyun against the wall. He waved his hand, and in an instant all the knives on the bed were hurtling towards Ki-hyun.

Ki-hyun rolled out of the way. Most of the knives thudded into the wall. Several changed directions and came back towards Ha-neul, who caught them and threw two at Ki-hyun. Ki-hyun deflected them into the wall, but a third one, launched a split second after the others, caught him in the shoulder. He hissed and yanked it out carelessly.

The scent of blood spread through the room, and the hair on the back of Ha-neul's neck rose. He knew it was having the same effect on Seung-ri and Ki-hyun: dizzying, intoxicating. Ki-hyun stood up slowly, clutching his shoulder. He took his hand away from the wound and licked the blood off, his eyes not leaving Ha-neul's.

Ha-neul growled slightly. He fought off the cloying scent and the looseness in his muscles as his body reacted to the blood and Ki-hyun's actions. "Ki-hyun," he said slowly. "If we keep fighting, I'm not going to stop until you're dead."

Seung-ri gasped. "Hyung--"

Ha-neul winced. How could Seung-ri still call him that? But he ignored Seung-ri's words and kept speaking to Ki-hyun. "I might have let you go before because we were friends, but not now, when you're attacking people for no reason." The knives plucked themselves from the wall or the floor and hovered around Ha-neul again as he looked steadily at Ki-hyun.

Ki-hyun laughed. "What, are you talking about those werewolves?" He licked his lips and grinned. "I'll let you in on a little secret, Ha-neul ah. Someone in my group accidentally let slip that the attack has been moved up to tonight. I'm sure the very prepared Alan Halifax has already notified your team of this change, and when they can't reach you, they'll just go ahead and rush to those animals' aid." Ki-hyun chuckled. "Imagine their surprise when they find my team waiting for them."

Ha-neul's eyes widened. "You bastard."

"I gave Jin-ho orders to do as he pleased. You know how he is, Ha-neul. He'll rip your team to shreds--after, of course, he has some fun with them."

Seung-ri, who had been frozen, stood up, his face pale. "Ki-hyun, you can't! They--they don't have anything to do with this."

"Stay where you are," Ha-neul snapped when Seung-ri stepped towards them. "Don't get involved in this."

"You can't tell me what to do--"

"Seung-ri!"

One of Ha-neul's knives was wrested from his loosened concentration. It flew towards Seung-ri, and Ha-neul barely managed to stop it.

Ki-hyun grinned and covered the distance between Ha-neul and him in one leap, pinning Ha-neul to the floor. "You should have let that one go," he said as the knife resumed its course and struck Seung-ri in the arm.

Seung-ri cried out, and Ha-neul gritted his teeth. He punched Ki-hyun in the face and rolled over, switching their positions. "Don't hurt him," he said, and punched him again, this time with a satisfying crunch.

Ki-hyun only laughed at him. "You know the blood excites you, Ha-neul. How long as it been since you've smelled fresh blood? That packaged, stale slop the Asclepieion gives out must be so tiring."

It was true. It had been years since Ha-neul had been exposed to newly spilt blood, and it was making him feel feral and predatory. He raised his hand, about to punch Ki-hyun again so he would stop talking, but Ki-hyun grabbed his wrist as it came down and bit into it, drinking Ha-neul's blood.

Ha-neul growled in pain and surprise, catching Ki-hyun across the face with his other fist. But Ki-hyun only sank his fangs in deeper. Ha-neul knew he couldn't let this go on, because he was losing control. He couldn't think clearly; he was running on instinct and sensations, and it would be too easy for Ki-hyun to exploit that.

Oh, but Ha-neul ah, I already am.

Images exploded in Ha-neul's mind: Jung-hyuk dying, bloody and pale. Jung-hyuk being torn apart by black, shapeless things. Jung-hyuk glaring accusingly at Ha-neul and saying, "I didn't want to die, hyung. Why did you kill me?"

Ha-neul didn't hear himself shouting, "No! Jung-hyuk, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I thought it was for the best. Jung-hyuk! I'm sorry!" He didn't see Ki-hyun lean up and head butt him, and he didn't hear Seung-ri cry out, "No! Don't, Ki-hyun!" as Ki-hyun slammed his head against the floor repeatedly, knocking him out cold.

The voices woke him up.

"You fool! What do you mean, he wouldn't die?"

"Exactly that! I must have stabbed him twenty times, but the wound just healed over, and then he had me trapped against the wall--"

"Because he's immortal, you idiot! Next time you run into him, I want you to keep stabbing until he stays dead."

Ha-neul opened his eyes slowly and tried to move his arms and legs. They were tied to a chair, though, and he sighed. No luck. He looked around, trying to figure out where he was. It wasn't so hard: he was still in his apartment, in his own room, even. Ha-neul frowned and organized his thoughts as well as he could, considering the dull ache in his head. Ki-hyun hadn't killed him. Ki-hyun was angry about…something. Something about someone not dying. A slight smile tugged at Ha-neul's lips: could he have been talking about Matthias?

Ki-hyun stormed into the room then, still spitting insults at Jin-ho, who was covered in cuts and burns. "You're an incompetent moron. Tell me why I shouldn't kill you right now!"

"Jin-ho," Ha-neul said, looking as casual as he could tied to a chair. "How did the ambush go? I trust it was a fun experience for you?"

Jin-ho growled. "You know, I've always hated you and your smart mouth. Maybe I should rip out your tongue."

Ki-hyun glared at Jin-ho, then arranged his features into a more composed expression when he when he turned his gaze on Ha-neul. "Jin-ho had some difficulties with your team. I was going to make you watch them suffer and die, but this rather puts a damper on things, so." He smiled maliciously. "There's been a change of plans."

"Is that so." Ha-neul was relieved that Matthias and the others were (most likely) all right, but the smirk on Ki-hyun's face made him apprehensive. His nervousness only increased when Seung-ri walked into the room, still pale, his wound bandaged. "Seung-ri ah," Ha-neul said quietly, heart beating hard.

"Don't call me that," Seung-ri snapped. He looked at Ki-hyun. "What's going on?"

"Ah, Seung-ri. I was just informing Ha-neul of a slight change in the plans."

Seung-ri frowned. "What plans?"

Ki-hyun strolled over to the bedside drawer, where Ha-neul's knives had been arranged neatly. Humming, he selected one and stood behind Ha-neul, one hand on the back of his neck. Ha-neul shivered and growled. Ki-hyun smirked. "The plans for your revenge, of course," he said quietly.

"Wh-what?" Seung-ri's eyes widened.

"Revenge," Ki-hyun repeated. "You do want to avenge your father, don't you?"

"I--"

"Come here, Seung-ri." Ki-hyun beckoned to him, and Seung-ri walked over. Ki-hyun handed him the knife. "Just one stab," he murmured. "Right in the heart. Just like he did to your father."

"Wait, Seung-ri." Ha-neul spoke quickly. "Don't do it. He's not looking out for you. He just wants me gone because I'm a threat to him--"

"Well, now that you mention it, without you your team might take a while to recover. How convenient. I never thought of that, but it's like killing two birds with one stone, isn't it?" Ki-hyun asked, smirking.

"Don't do his dirty work for him, Seung-ri. Think about what he's doing. He's killing people for no reason--"

"The weak deserve to die," Ki-hyun said. "Only the strong live. You haven't forgotten that, have you, Seung-ri?"

"The strong live to protect the weak. That's what your father believed."

"Shut up!" Seung-ri's voice was angry, but his eyes were frightened. "You have no right to talk about my dad. You killed him." The hand holding the knife trembled as Seung-ri raised it. "You killed him," he whispered.

Ha-neul looked into Seung-ri's gray-blue eyes, and all he saw was a confused, frightened boy whose hurt and betrayal made Ha-neul's heart ache. So he closed his eyes and said, "Yes, I killed him--but only because he asked me to, after Ki-hyun killed your mother and he couldn't live anymore."

"No!" The howl came from Ki-hyun. He shouted, "Seung-ri, it doesn't matter. Kill him!"

Seung-ri didn't listen to him. Instead, he said, "You killed my mom? Why? Why?"

"Because she deserved to. She was weak!" Ki-hyun glared, and Seung-ri's eyes suddenly dilated. He froze, staring at something only he could see. His hand, once limp, raised the knife again.

"Bastard!" Ha-neul swore. "Get out of his head!" He threw Ki-hyun against the wall again, hard enough to daze the other vampire. Jin-ho lunged forward, but he was forced back as well, head cracking sharply against the wall. He slumped to the ground, unconscious.

Seung-ri blinked rapidly and looked at Ha-neul. "You--"

"Seung-ri, we don't have a lot of time. They're going to be up any minute now--"

"I want to know the truth," Seung-ri said shakily, not moving. "I want to know you're not lying to me again."

Ha-neul looked back at him. They were running out of time, but Seung-ri deserved to know the truth, didn't he? He sighed and closed his eyes. Fine. If you don't believe what I say, you can see for yourself.

Seung-ri was shocked. Ha-neul hyung? Why am I in your mind? What does this have to do with anything?

See for yourself, Seung-ri ah. Look at my memories.

Ha-neul was bitten by a stranger with beautiful golden eyes. He was young then, and he hadn't learned to resist the allure of swaying hips, a glimpse of bare skin, a secretive smile. The transformation was swift and painful. Ha-neul woke up with fire in his veins and a craving for blood.

Jung-hyuk's eyes were the misty gray of the ocean by candlelight. Ha-neul was a little older, but he still couldn't resist Jung-hyuk's innocence, his gasp of surprise and pleasure when Ha-neul licked up his erection, long and slow. Ha-neul meant to leave him come morning, but Jung-hyuk ran after him, crying 

his name. In the pale predawn, the bite marks on his neck were barely visible. "What did you do to me, hyung?"

It was enough that Jung-hyuk followed him around, but Ki-hyun's black-black eyes brooked no refusal. He straddled Ha-neul when Ha-neul tried to get out of bed, and he said, "Take me with you." Ha-neul shook his head, but Jung-hyuk laughed from the other side of the bed: "Let him come with us, hyung," and Ki-hyun's kiss sealed the deal.

Ha-neul knew Jung-hyuk saw him more and more as an older brother as they grew older, but Ki-hyun was different. Ki-hyun was infatuated with Ha-neul; and he was infatuated with Jung-hyuk, too. He followed both of them around, hanging on their every word, craving their attention. He clung to Ha-neul and said, "Promise me you won't leave me, hyung." Ha-neul patted his back awkwardly in silent assent, and Ki-hyun held out his arms for Jung-hyuk. "Hyukkie, you won't leave me either, right?" Jung-hyuk nodded and returned the hug, murmuring promises of forever.

The years flew by, and instead of growing up, Ha-neul only grew more arrogant. He was powerful, he was special. That was what the Mara whispered to him as he threw a knife between a werewolf's eyes, Ki-hyun fighting beside him, and the whispers erased the disappointment in Jung-hyuk's eyes.

Ha-neul could feel himself corroding from the inside, so he tore himself from the Mara bit by bit. Jung-hyuk was overjoyed when he welcomed Ha-neul back, but then his smile faltered and he asked, "Where's Ki-hyun hyung? You brought him back, didn't you? He's with you, right?" Ha-neul shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, Jung-hyuk ah. I'm sorry. I failed him."

So-na's smile was like sunlight filtering through a window. Ha-neul knew Jung-hyuk was in love with her, and it hurt, but he accepted it. Ki-hyun couldn't, though; Ki-hyun was hurt and betrayed and angry, and Ha-neul could see the Mara filling the cracks in his heart, all the cracks Ha-neul couldn't prevent or heal.

Then it was time for Jung-hyuk's heart to be cracked apart and splintered, and Ki-hyun was the one who did it. So-na lay on the kitchen floor, broken and bloodied. Her lovely smile was gone, replaced by a look of terror. Jung-hyuk screamed and screamed and screamed, even when Ha-neul held him, and So-na's name mingled with the cries of her baby, sobbing upstairs.

Jung-hyuk didn't eat or sleep. He was pale, sickly. Ha-neul hated seeing him like this, like a shadow of everything. "Jung-hyuk," he said. "You need to drink some blood. Come on. You can't sit like that forever." But Jung-hyuk just looked at him and said, "Kill me, hyung. Please, I'm begging you: help me die. I can't live without her." And Ha-neul thought, "But I can't live without you."

The knife went into Jung-hyuk's heart cleanly. He gripped Ha-neul's hand and drove it in deeper. "So-na…So-na…" he whispered, and died as Ha-neul cried brokenly.

"She was weak. She didn't deserve Jung-hyuk. He was ours," Ki-hyun said. But Ha-neul just glared at him and said, "Don't ever come near me again, Ki-hyun. We're done. I never want to see you anymore, do you understand?" He walked away, ignoring Ki-hyun's calls: "Hyung! Hyung! Don't leave me!"

There was a boy outside Ha-neul's front door. In the artificial lights, his eyes were the blue of the ocean on a sunny day. Ha-neul smiled at him. "Hey hyung," the boy said. "I bought some take out. Wanna share?" He smiled, too, and his smile was like sunlight filtering through a window, and Ha-neul thought--

"No!" Seung-ri's scream broke through the memory. He stared in horror at Ki-hyun, who stood behind Ha-neul, panting.

The knife made a sickening sound as Ki-hyun pulled it out of Ha-neul's throat. "You should have killed me when you had the chance, hyung," he said, and diverted the knife Seung-ri threw at him.

Ha-neul's vision flickered black as the blood poured out of his throat. Vaguely, he was aware of Seung-ri's sob of outrage as he launched himself at Ki-hyun. He saw the door open and Matthias and Jude Fenrir, both battered, rush in. But none of it really registered in his mind, not even Jin-ho scrambling out the door when Jude tried to stake him, or Matthias trying to pry Seung-ri off Ki-hyun, who was being slowly strangled.

"Seung-ri! Seung-ri, it's all right," Matthias said. "You don't have to kill him."

"Let the kid kill him," Jude said, growling. "We have to worry about Ha-neul right now--he's dying." He untied Ha-neul quickly.

"Took…you…long…enough," Ha-neul managed to say. His lips stretched into a smile.

"You talk too much. Please, be quiet." Jude gestured impatiently at Matthias, who left Seung-ri. "Matthias, I hope you have enough energy to transport him to the temple. I'll stay and handle the kid." Matthias nodded and wrapped an arm around Ha-neul. As Ha-neul felt himself disappear, he heard Jude say, "Don't die on us, Ha-neul Moon. You've still got a lot to do."

He wanted to rest, but the voice kept calling to him. Hyung, hyung, hyung! Please don't leave me.

Just let me sleep, please.

Damn you! You can't die. You owe me, for lying, and--and--hyung, am I not worth enough for you to keep living?

"Am I not worth living for, Jung-hyuk? Am I not enough?"

He had to come back. Ha-neul struggled out of the darkness; he cracked open his eyes, and groaned when Seung-ri threw his arms around him. "Hyung! You're alive!"

"That is quite obvious," he croaked. "But there was really no need to break into my mind, you know."

Seung-ri mumbled, "The Healers said it would help. They said you were really close to dying, but if you had a reason to come back--"

"Ah," Ha-neul said quietly. He smiled. "Then thank you." Then his eyes fell on Seung-ri's bandaged cheek, and he sat up, wincing as the blood rushed to his head. "What happened to you?!"

"Oh. Um." Seung-ri looked down. "Ki-hyun got away. Jude was pulling me off him, 'cause he seemed pretty dead, but then he grabbed the knife and sliced my cheek. I'm okay, though. Um. You're not mad at me, are you?"

"Why would I be mad at you?"

"Because I let Ki-hyun get away."

Ha-neul chuckled. "No, Seung-ri ah. I'm not mad at you. This means I still have a job to do, yes? I've got a reason to live."

"Hey!" Seung-ri scowled. "There should be other reasons. Like, you know me."

"Of course," Ha-neul said quietly. "You're the most important reason."

Seung-ri blushed. "Yeah. Okay. And promise me something, hyung."

"Of course."

"Don't dwell on the past so much. Okay? Start over. With me. 'Cause you're--well, you're pretty important to me, too. You know?"

Ha-neul smiled and squeezed Seung-ri's hand. "All right."

"Good. And um. Just remember, I'm not my dad." Seung-ri swallowed. "I wouldn't want to leave you."

"Thank you."

"Yeah. Sure. I guess you should get some rest now. You've still got a lot of work to do."

Ha-neul sighed. "I know, but I think for now, I'm just going to lie here and enjoy your company. Is that all right?"

Seung-ri nodded and smiled. "Yeah, of course."

Ha-neul closed his eyes and didn't wonder if Jung-hyuk was hovering around as a ghost. But he supposed if he was, he would be content.