The serial kisser || ATEEZ OT8

19| Vampire deer

𝟏𝟔𝟔𝟏 | 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐤

1 year later

- ♦♦♦ -

After Yunho's incident, it seemed like San had knocked some sense into the older - with Seonghwa only assuming so. The threatening gaze that he several times had caught San sending Yunho was his indication of how he must be right about his assumption.

Seonghwa had only been more careful of heading out following the knowledge that the villagers had discovered the cadavers of the group of travelers a couple of weeks after the incident had happened. This time though, it did not seem like they believed that it had been the doing of a wild animal. But another human. A few months later he heard stiffly from his fledglings that they had attended the execution of the murderer.

How humans were so blind.

By that time, Yunho had only just been allowed to roam freely outside the hanok.

Seonghwa had for a long time been thinking of moving away from San's homelands, believing that it must be the right time to move on as they'd caused too many horrors on these grounds. But he simply just has not found the right time to inform them of a departure. For several months now, had Seonghwa been preparing chests for storage of his most valuable belongings, waiting for the weather to change from biting frost to a warm shade of early spring for easier traveling. And now that the sun's rays dripped down his face like golden liquid he found the time perfect.

Seonghwa sighed in the warmth embracing his cool body, eyes closing as he enjoyed his seat in the sun and fresh forest wind.

But in that same seat Seonghwa also soon had to make a drastic change to his plans. His fingers twitched when he sensed someone silently trailing along a path behind the hanok. Seonghwa furrowed his brows at the disturbance and sniffed the air, trying to figure out who it may be. But the smell was too faint, drowning in the wilderness. Seonghwa opened his eyes and put his legs down from the stone he bathed on, letting his body twist around to his right and looking for the intruder.

The sight was nothing he had prepared himself to find. But neither one there should have surprised him to that extent.

It was San. Carefully stepping over a few branches with a little fawn bunched up in his arms. His newly cut hair had Seonghwa see his worried expression perfectly. Then he smelled the blood. Everywhere.

Slowly, Seonghwa got up from his seat when San came trotting the rest of the way over to him.

"Seonghwa-ssi!" he called and Seonghwa pursed his lips with dissatisfaction.

His eyes locked with San's, seeing how the other swallowed nervously. Seonghwa's eyes slid down on the innocent animal, before returning to the younger vampire again, "What is this now?"

"I.." San started glancing down at the fawn, "I found him before the hunting villagers would.. they... I saw them kill his mother."

At the named dead mother deer, the fawn suddenly made a tiny snort, its legs loosely kicking around as if it understood what was said. San calmly handled the little creature and waited until it paused again. He mostly looked apologetically toward it.

"San, you should not bring wild animals home. They are meant to live in the wild - not to be domesticated."

The younger desperately looked up at him, sadness swirling around his pupils, "I told you his mother was killed! I saw it with my own eyes!"

Seonghwa folded his arms, "Then you should have let him be."

Offended, San let a gasp slip out, his gaze hardening as if he forgot who he was talking to, "He would die on his own. He is only so young that he still needs help with finding food."