Nadir ◈ Seungjin

20 ◈ Passing the Guard

"Should we split up? Stay as pairs?"

"Probably should split up. We can cover more ground that way."

Seungmin nodded along to their words, his own steps trailing shortly behind the other three marching along the city sidewalk. The main drag to the nightclub encroaching up ahead; The busied flow of early evening traffic blasting down the wide streets at incredible speeds, hardly waiting a moment or a beat to see the broad stoplights beaming up ahead; Other pedestrians, citizens, civilians in the port city, wandering ahead, behind, around them, passing by the four, never giving them more than a glance when their eyes peeled off their company, some young, some old, some worn down, some done up, on the same path they were traveling; The few spotted trees which boarded the sidewalk, the miniscule proof of sentience, of being in an otherwise mechanical realm of shifting gears and constant tires burning out [A/N: HAHA] in endless office jobs paid by tears spilled.

Waiting for the moment the day falls, when no one searches for a number or a time. When hands reach for vices. To sip at the gauntlet poured with dark. Filled up to the brim with that scented liquid. Crimson red, scarlet ichor, the taste of addiction on feral tongues and in devil eyes.

The two devils walked ahead of them again, Minho trailing shortly behind with his own squared off posture and huffed breaths furious with the mere presence of them. Seungmin dragging behind the rest. Giving himself enough distance to defend himself should any one of them turn on him, turn to bite him and rip his throat from his neck.

But also enough of a barrier to observe the other three. Take them in, watch their details as they walked. Jisung, how he seemed to bounce on the ball of his foot with his chin tipped and a pleasant smile plastered unwavering, hands laced tightly behind his back over the same atypical lump protruding his tucked shirt. Hyunjin, the heavier steps, the slight round of his shoulders and the hunch of his gaze barely in front of him, clawed hands bundled up by his side, muscles writhing like serpents slithering beneath his skin, aching to break free. Minho, strutting, he tended to strut, confidently, one step, then the other, rooted in his mind of his actions, his choices, unable to be broken free once he set himself in that stone pillar of rage.

By comparison to those three, the Mimic had an unsettling walking pattern. One food in front of the other, heel to toe. Languid, trained, and serene in it's movements. Even the shadow he saw in the nightclub moved with the same drawn back shoulders, smoldering gaze like wildfires scorching humid jungles, almost inhuman in it's comfort with that uncomfortable walking pattern. Similar to Hyunjin's snake-like ripples but more... Noble.

With a tripped step, Jisung flipped around. Walking backwards as he looked to Hyunjin, asking with that same smile in a quiet tone, "Number?"

"Three," He answered.

"One."

"Zero."

"Bitch," The human clicked his tongue and turned back around.

The reaction earning a slight laughter from Hyunjin, an airy noise blown proudly from his nose in a snort.

Seungmin quirked an eyebrow at them. Observing the pair as they brushed off their previous interaction and continued on. Jisung cheerfully humming a note low in his throat by the vampire's side, Hyunjin with his wriggling shambles hardly having to keep up in his long steps devouring the world beneath him. Plus, the only person in that trio Seungmin could vaguely begin to count on, Minho; The way his steps seemed to slow for a moment, eyebrows furrowing heavily down as he pressed his lips down, gaze darting between those two as an obvious puzzlement came over him, the clear distinction of trying to pick the pieces one by one to understand the shapes they collected in.