𝟏𝟕𝟕𝟐 | 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐫𝐝 𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐭𝐲

- ♦♦♦ -

Seonghwa moved with purpose, pushing them all through the doorway out into the battering rain. They pushed through the pouring water, Seonghwa tightening his grip on Hongjoong's collar as he gave him no chance to get away. They headed toward the outskirts of the town, moving into the wilds beyond, the broad forests that bordered the land. Branches whipped against their skin, the underbrush thick and entangled as they chose an uncleared path through the terrain. Seonghwa thought it was the safest choice, for now at least.

Hongjoong stumbled along, his senses seemingly still muddled from the change in his body. The rain made the ground slick, and his boots slipped in the mud, but Seonghwa did not let go of him, pushing him under another branch. San and Yunho followed close behind, the earth squelching with every step they took.

Wherever they were going did not make much of a difference when it came to the question of finding safety from possible hunters. Seonghwa knew they came by now and then, and when words spread of the notorious corsair's rise from the dead and furious bloodthirst there would be no doubt it would attract hunters from all over the country. Seonghwa did not need to sit around and wait for his theory to be fulfilled. However, within the forest, everything seemed so quiet, making Seonghwa slow down and turn around to face his worried fledglings. They could have a say in the direction of where to go.

San clung to Yunho's arm, his other arm pulling at the full sack hoisted on his shoulder. But his eyes never met Seonghwa's as they were fiery throwing daggers at Hongjoong by his side. Seonghwa tightened his hold on the corsair, shoving him a step behind himself as to block San's line of vision.

"Do not," he sternly said.

The interruption had a low growl bubbling up his throat, full of so much hidden wrath, "Seonghwa, this man- he tried to murder you before! Why in the world are you trying to protect him now?! You should be the one cutting off his head right now!"

Huffing, Seonghwa pursed his lips as he considered the younger's rage speaking its voice. "What if he does it again? And this time you truly die?"

"He can't," Seonghwa stated simply. Water trickled down his forehead, running into the corners of his mouth before dripping toward the ground.

"You do not know of that. You were gone for a decade, Seonghwa, we had to survive without you around for nearly ten years! All because of him! So do not tell me what he is or is not capable of, because that man is damned of any redemption. And I will definitely not be loosing you because of that bastard coming and sheer ruining our perfectly peaceful life!" By now Yunho had both his arms wrapped around the younger to keep him from throwing himself at the newly turned vampire. His chest heaved and sank with the furious breaths of air he was pulling down, his throat pulsing with threats and hisses.

Suddenly, Seonghwa strode forward, his fingers grasping for San's face as he pointed it toward his own eyesight, brows pulled together as their noses nearly touched, "It is different now."

The younger's eyes flickered with the intensity of Seonghwa's grip on his face, his teeth ground together as the rage still coursed through him, "Different? How can it be any different?" San sneered, red eyes glowing provokingly as his words dripped with disbelief. The cold rain soaked through their clothes. "Seonghwa, he hurt you, terribly," one of San's arms broke free from Yunho's grasp, the hand making its way into Seonghwa's wet cloak, "He is by far not worth keeping."

Seonghwa's grip didn't loosen even as San made his point clear. The fear was as prominent in his eyes as his rage was, and Seonghwa understood his perspective. Yet, he chose it was not enough to end Hongjoong's life this instant.

"He may not be, but neither would it be clever to abandon a newly turned vampire who possibly could make one of the greatest threats to our existence. Humans are not supposed to know of us, but if we leave him all alone here he will be found and stand no chance against hiding his true self from those believers. They will find out, and soon they will realise that any weapon cannot kill him. Words will spread." His hardened expression softened the slightest when he felt the tremble of San's fingers on him, "If he wants to survive, he will have to follow by my rules, and you know that, San."

The lightest of a sneer pressed up against his face blending with the touch of wind. San was mad. But he knew his boundaries around Seonghwa and instead, he inhaled sharply through his nose, visibly trying to collect himself, "Do you really expect this fool will follow any rules? He's lived off pirating his entire life!? I would fear he does not even know what following a rule would even mean."

"I said it is different now," Seonghwa drew the final line, the tip of San's nose pressing against his cheek as he growled lowly, vibrating full of authority.

San yanked himself out of Seonghwa's slacking hold, shaking his head as he returned to Yunho's arms, "I cannot even contempt to believe you right now," he said, glaring at the man behind Seonghwa, "I'll kill you if you hurt him again! Do you hear me, you piece of pathetic scum?"

For an obvious reason, Seonghwa found himself in the slightest of surprise, when Hongjoong finally decided to speak his mind despite having had his chance to run off. "Uh, what be ye blabberin' about? Fer ye information do I not be speakin' the language ye roll on yer tongue as we speak. If ye would be so kind an' fill me in?"

Seonghwa's eyes darted to Yunho's sudden change of expression, grim humour stroking across his features in a way that made Seonghwa's stomach clench.

"Great, the pirate does not even speak our native language," he said, and Seonghwa could only imagine how he already was plotting to use it to their advantage.

Seonghwa ignored his fledgling's challenging raise of an eyebrow, as his own expression fell neutral as he spoke in Portuguese, "Stay by my side if you want to live. For now, we will have to fare as long we can across the country and find a place to rest. Do you not follow by my rules, I will let my fledglings do whatever they please with you. And they will not be any gentle."

There was a short pause before a sudden, unforeseen laugh broke out from behind, making Seonghwa stiffen even so more at the words leaving those cruel lips, "Oh, so ye be playin' the master role, Seong'wa, interesting.."

His heels skidded in the mud, body turning without a single flutter with an eye before his hands suddenly were around Hongjoong's throat, squeezing so hard that the other's body was struck with a strain panic, pulsing underneath the skin Seonghwa's palms touched. His hands flew up around Seonghwa's arms with sudden piercing fear that Seonghwa easily detected from his screaming eyes. A trauma that cut deep into him, forcing his body into a state of desperation of clawing fingers and kicking legs in the air. Seonghwa did not hurt him, but the reaction was just as effective to shut him up when he finally fell limp in his hold.

Seonghwa bared his teeth down at the silent corsair, "See, you will follow my lead and nothing will happen."

♦

The following run was nothing but silence and to Seonghwa, that either meant Hongjoong must have understood his simple conditions or he just chose to keep quiet for now to see where Seonghwa's hastening plans were taking them.

The rain was still falling, making their flight excessively easier as it obviously slowed down any possible followers. But Seonghwa knew they needed somewhere to rest, rather soon. And they needed blood. Lots of blood.

The group had passed through the forest a while ago, heading east across the bare, steep terrain. Seonghwa's eyes raked through the windy air, searching for any lights in the distance. They were far from any thoroughfare, meaning they surely would not pass any living human being in the current direction they were going, but Seonghwa did not dare change their course when he barely knew the land around him.

As the miles passed and the chill of the rain soaked through their clothes, Seonghwa's senses remained sharp, flicking between the damp forest and the distant horizon in the dark. His mind, though, was clouded with the weight of his decisions-twirling around the one that involved keeping Hongjoong alive despite every reason told him not to. The corsair remained silent even when the sleek, calculation in his eyes once in a while glanced back at Seonghwa in a way that he still could not figure out what was the true meaning behind. However, he knew the pirate must be thinking, weighing his odds, figuring out how he could maneuver in this strange new world that he had been thrust into.

It wasn't the first time Seonghwa had encountered a look like that; humans were made of complexity, yet very pattern-like in their articulations which made it easy to understand their expressions of emotions. But that Hongjoong wore this look in his eyes bothered him more than it should. He did not trust it- not with a person like Hongjoong, who had lived a life of deception and bloodshed. But, his instinct told him that killing him was not the answer, not yet at least, as he found himself partly curious about Hongjoong's origin and why he by their first encounter had known how to kill Seonghwa.

San's biting words still echoed in his mind, the sting of betrayal in the younger vampire's voice still fresh. He couldn't blame San; the boy had seen the worst of it, losing years of his life to the aftermath of a feud Seonghwa had never meant to start. And yet, even though San's anger made perfect sense, Seonghwa couldn't shake the nagging feeling that there was something more to Hongjoong's presence here.

The corsair had been a threat, once, but now? Seonghwa's head ran through the possibilities. A weapon, a pawn, or something more. Something he could control.

Hongjoong was quite a bright man, and Seonghwa knew he would eventually listen to him if he wanted to survive.

The wind picked up again, and the chill of it bit into his skin. His eyes briefly shifted over to Yunho and San, both of whom had fallen into a tense silence behind him. As always, Yunho was keeping his emotions threaded close to himself as he did not reveal much of himself, but Seonghwa could feel the low hum of uncertainty in his aura. His hands were visibly rubbing against San's arm, as he helped him to contain his simmering fury.

Seonghwa's eyes narrowed when he turned his head again- a faint flicker of light on the distant horizon, barely visible through the thick fog and rain. His eyes slid down to the pirate by his side, his head tilting slightly. Then he spoke up to his fledglings in their native language, pointing toward the faint glow, "That's where we are heading," he told them, sensing their instant relief. Yunho combed his fingers through the soaked strands of his hair, adjusting the ends out of his eyes.

His hand hauled Hongjoong a sudden step forward as he continued their walk again, "It seems like a small village. We need shelter. You do not get to speak unless I tell you to, understand? And do not try anything foolish, Hongjoong. I will make sure you regret it."

He gave him no answer, but Seonghwa could feel his sharp gaze as if piercing through him even if his eyes were set in another direction. The challenge was unmistakable. Seonghwa ignored it and increased his pace, the urgency of their need for safety propelling him forward.

As the group pressed on, Seonghwa felt how the tension between them thickened, but the village loomed closer now and he heard the dilating nostrils on his side. As if trouble were coming even before the actual taste.

Greeneries slid around their legs, scratching their wet clothes as they moved down the rocky landscape in the darkness. Everything was drowning in water, so, Seonghwa knew they would find no trouble erasing their red traces after them.

Yunho raised his hand by the closest door they got to while San still clung to his other arm, his body seemingly fixed to his side. The heat of his eyes glowed in the darkness when faint footsteps echoed through the building. But suddenly, they came to a halt. Seonghwa's nose tickled, his eyes drawing across the faint light from an oil lamp in a windowsill further down the house. There, in another window, a pair of widened, fearful eyes spied through the ruffles of the curtains and Seonghwa's chest rumbled by its own.

"Yunho, he has seen us through the windows already."

Yunho's shoulder slammed against the wooden door, breaking it open as he pulled San with him inside, their belongings thrown on the ground. The man disappeared from the window a moment later, his heavy footsteps through the rooms slowly fading with stretching suspense.

Hongjoong moaned in pain as Seonghwa yanked his head back by his hair, the sound muffling itself by the guttural growl coming afterward as he smelled the blood in the air.

A woman came crashing out through the door, screaming her lungs off as a grueling San chased her. Soon blood sprayed across the ground, the sound dying from her lips as her tongue was ripped out through her throat. And Hongjoong was about pulling Seonghwa's wrists off from how much his entire being was writhing around with bloodlust.

Growing noises escaped the buildings further down, and Seonghwa viewed the surroundings of a handful of awakening humans streaming out of their homes at the screams in the middle of the night. And then, Seonghwa let Hongjoong loose to follow his instincts.

∞