c021

"She's gone," Hani pants into her phone, bracing her hands on her knees as she stands in the middle of an Okpo sidewalk, barely able to breathe. She's scoured every possible place where Ji-ah could have run, to no avail. The girl has vanished."I can't find her—not anywhere. She's disappeared." Her gray sweater is soaked in sweat, and her black combat boots are thoroughly dirtied with grime. Her jacket hasn't fared much better."She wasn't in her room, was she?"

Seokga's voice crackles back to her through the cellphone. "No. She's not anywhere in the hotel. But we have a bigger problem. The precinct isn't answering my calls. Something has happened."

Somehow, that's not surprising at all. Hani wipes her brow, her hand coming away damp with sweat. "Great. That's just great," she wheezes.

There is a long pause on the other end. "Hani," Seokga finally says, and she's surprised to find that his usually cool tone is somewhat…awkward.

Perhaps it has something to do with this morning.

Despite her better instincts, Hani fell asleep once again in Seokga's arms…and awoke to find him standing on the opposite end of the room, staring at his hands with a look of abject horror.

Which is certainly not a boost for her confidence.

Hani hasn't been able to prevent herself from wondering what Seokga's embrace meant. Whether his unconscious mind had been channeling his emotions through his body. Whether he is…fond of her.

But no.

It is more likely that Seokga mistook her for a teddy bear.

And she's fine with that.

Truly.

Right?

"What?" Hani asks, arching a brow.

"I…" The god sounds hesitant, and Hani frowns, tapping her foot impatiently. It is unlike Seokga to be so cautious. The pause this time is longer, and Hani's frown deepens. She wonders whether he knows she awoke in his arms and instead of rolling away, did the very opposite. Yet he can't possibly know—he was asleep.

Wasn't he?

"I think something may have happened to Shim," he finishes raggedly.

Hani blinks. That is…not where she expected the conversation to go. Nor did she ever expect to hear Seokga sound so…so sad. She honestly didn't think he was capable of such an emotion, or that he even cared about the haetae chief.

"He's not picking up," Seokga continues. "We need to leave Ji-ah. I need to know what happened, and what we should do now."

"Wait. Leave Ji-ah?" Hani shakes her head. "Seokga, we can't just leave her here. If the eoduksini is hunting for her…"

"If the eoduksini is hunting for her, it will find and kill her." Seokga now sounds irascible. It's almost a relief. "Yes, Hani. I know. But we cannot waste time—valuable time—scouring Okpo for a girl who already gave us all the information she has and is not willing to be found. The way that I see it, we can either twiddle our thumbs here and hope that Ji-ah turns up again, or we can visit the yojeong to learn what happened at the precinct, and what our next steps should be. For me, the choice is obvious."

The yojeong.

Hani blinks.

The gossamer-winged creatures are notoriously elusive, many preferring to dwell here, far away from large cities such as New Sinsi, Seoul, and Busan—far, far, far away. While creatures such as haetae, dokkaebi, gumiho, and even the bulgasari have adapted to modern life, many yojeong prefer keeping to the old ways. Prefer living in the wilderness to living in the bustling cities, prefer surrounding themselves with other fairies rather than joining a melting pot of human and creature alike. Hani tightens her grip on her phone. Although the yojeong are famous for their unnatural wisdom, they're equally notorious for their inability to speak in anything but vague, wily riddles. She does not quite see how the yojeong can help their case, and informs Seokga as such.

"Seokga," she says, "where would we even find a yojeong?" Geoje has a large yojeong population, certainly, but Hani highly doubts their ability to locate one of the elusive fairies. They're sly, clever things.

But Seokga makes a noise that is partially a sigh, partially a mumbled curse. "I may know of one's whereabouts. And they may have…scrying abilities."

Scrying abilities.Those could be incredibly useful. Hani's brows rise in interest. "Oh? How do you know of them?"

"Unimportant. The point is," Seokga continues before Hani can fully question him, "that she resides here. On Geoje. There's a mountain here. Daegeumsan. It's an hour away from Okpo. If we depart now, we can reach the yojeong just after noon."

"But Ji-ah—"

"I'm not taking no for an answer," he snaps back. "Something's happened in New Sinsi. Nobody is picking up my calls. Shim—" There's a strangled sound, as if the god is swallowing hard. "This could change the course of our investigation and determine our next steps. This information is valuable."

She sighs. Seokga has a point.

Foolish girl. She can only hope Choi Ji-ah is capable of fending for herself.

The knife that the girl threw at her head certainly insinuatesso.

Seokga evidently hears her sigh. The choice has been made. "Where are you?" he asks urgently. "I'll bring the Jaguar around."

The drive to Daegeumsan is heavy with suffocatingly awkward silence, layered with Seokga's clear pain at the thought of losing Shim.

Hani tried to talk about it with him, and he quickly shut it down. But his knuckles are white around the steering wheel and his breathing is almost labored as he breaks every traffic law in existence. He's had Hani dial Shim every five minutes, but the haetae still hasn't picked up. The precinct general line has been silent, as well, along with the numbers of other haetae officers.

She calls Somi—but judging from the background chatter, she's working, and can't speak long.

"I'm sorry, unnie, I don't know. I haven't heard anything…"

"What about Hyun-tae?" Hani asks desperately. "Is he there? Working part-time?"

"Not right now," Somi replied tremulously. "He—he was called into his…other job early."

That's not a good sign. If the jeoseung saja are busy today, that means there have been many deaths.

"I could go by later if you want?"

"No, darling," Hani says quickly. "Don't. Stay far away from there. Go straight home after your shift." She's put Somi in enough danger already. "I'll let you get back to work now."

"Wait, Hani, I—"

But she can hear a voice impatiently ordering an iced Americano, and can't let Somi risk Minji's wrath. She hangs up and glances over at Seokga. He doesn't look too good, and his clear anxiety pulls on something in her chest.

"So," she finally says, staring straight ahead at the winding road bringing them out of Okpo.

"So," Seokga repeats, stiffening almost imperceptibly.

"At least we know who the eoduksini has possessed."

"We didn't act when we had the chance. Now, Dok-hyun's probably murdered everybody at the precinct. He could be anywhere by now."

Hani swallows hard. "Right."

"But the yojeong will have answers," he says, pressing down on the gas even harder, "for a price."

"A price?" Hani cocks her head warily. "How much, exactly?"

"The yojeong like to trade in bargains. There's no telling what this one will ask for."

"You said that the yojeong we're visiting is a she," Hani says slowly, suspicion scratching at the door of her mind. Suspicion and…jealousy? She scowls. Surely not. "What's her name? How do you know her?" Her voice, thankfully, comes out light and curious.

"Her name is Suk Aeri," Seokga mutters. "I…encountered her, once, some years after my fall."

Interesting.Hani narrows her eyes. "By ‘encountered,' do you mean—"

"I mean that—" Seokga sighs through his nose and glares at her out of the corner of his eye. "I mean," he repeats tightly, "that Suk Aeri and I had a brief romantic encounter once, many, many, many years ago."

"I see," Hani replies slowly, a smile of amusement stretching her lips wide, even as traitorous envy tugs at her chest. "You slept with her."

Seokga seethes in silence.

"You slept with her," Hani repeats, and can't help asking, "Have you spoken to her since?"

His lack of response is answer enough.

"And now you're asking her for a favor?" Hani clucks her tongue. "Wow. You really do lack manners, huh?"

"Not," he snaps, "a favor. A bargain. There is a difference."

"Did you at least cook her breakfast before leaving?"

"Kim Hani," Seokga says thinly, "stop talking."

She does not. "Do you have kids? Demigod kids?" Hani watches with interest as the trickster god chokes on his own spit.

"The other members of the pantheon have a whole gaggle of them running around," she adds as Seokga continues to sputter. "Especially Hasegyeong. I see them all the time at the Creature Café. The cattle god has a whole herd of them." She snorts at her own joke as Seokga clears his throat, seemingly beginning to collect himself. "I think it's a valid question," she concludes as he glares at her from the corner of his eye. "You have dalliances, chances are you have kids, as well."

"I," Seokga replies, "am considering throwing you out of my car."

Hani waits. Seokga sighs.

"How many?" she presses.

"Two hundred since my exile," he slowly replies through his teeth. "Give or take. They're terrifying and most of them end up in jail for thievery, arson, forgery, and murder. Most of them also break out of jail." There's a note of triumph to his voice, underneath his exasperation.

"Would I recognize any names?"

"Likely."

Hani waits, wagering that Seokga's pride in his undoubtedly diabolical children will loosen his lips. It does. And she's relieved to see that there's a touch of amusement on his face, even amongst the clear worry for Shim.

"There was Yi Hang-bok," Seokga says, his tone almost nonchalant—save for the faint undercurrent of smug satisfaction as Hani's brows raise.

"The lord of Oseong?" Hani asks skeptically. The man was infamous for his pranks. Hani had often heard his stories told in jumaks over bowls of makgeolli and through peals of laughter. "Didn't he…"

"Win a riddle contest against a dokkaebi? Yes."

"I was going to say, didn't he spread a rumor about his friend's wife?" It's coming back to her now, and she crinkles her nose in disgust. "He said she was unfaithful, so in retribution, she tricked him into eating rice cakes stuffed with po—"

"Hani," snaps Seokga, "if you really believe that—"

She smirks. "Is it true?"

A long pause, punctuated only by Seokga's exasperated sigh. "Yes."

"You must be a proud father."

"Stop annoying me." But the corners of his lips twitch. "Do you have…any?"

"Any children?" Hani asks, and when he nods, she cackles. "Gods, no. Can you imagine me as a mother?"

Seokga is silent for a moment, and she thinks he's about to say something halfway nice, but then— "Call Shim again."

Again, the haetae doesn't pick up. The Jaguar screeches to a stop on the side of a rural road, next to which is a thick expanse of forest leading toward a distant mountain peak. Daegeumsan. Wearily, Hani walks to the forest's edge alongside Seokga. Another day, another hike.

Gods, she is so sick of hikes. "Please tell me that there aren't any baegopeun gwisin in here."

"One can never be sure," Seokga replies with a razor-sharp smirk bordering on the edge of malice.

Godsdamn it.

They quickly make their way into the forest, shoes crunching on fallen branches and clumps of weeds. In March it's not the middle of wintertime, but it's not quite spring, either—near the mountain, the air is still the dry sort of cold so native to Korean winters. It's also thick with the smell of wet wood, and frosty dew glistens on the tall grass that tickles Hani's hands as she walks. Birds sing in the looming trees above, fluttering their wings as their sweet song soars through the afternoon air. Eventually a small trail, partially obscured by the forest's undergrowth, emerges—a trail leading upward, toward the mist-shrouded mountain of Daegeumsan.

Her bitten leg only slightly protests in pain as their hike continues on. Seokga has tended to her wounds well. She glances at him out of the corner of her eye. The early orange afternoon sunlight bathes him in a golden glow, illuminating his handsome profile and deep green eyes. He cuts a striking figure as he strides through the forest, his eyes scanning the lush foliage. Hani tears her gaze away, even as something in her heart stumbles.

Perhaps a half hour later, when the elevation has risen considerably, Seokga turns to Hani. "We'll go off the path now," he says, gesturing to the deep forestry lining their trail. "Nothing here has changed much in the past centuries. If I remember it right, Suk Aeri is not far away."

"No," a sweet, ethereal voice murmurs just behind Hani. "No, she is not."

Startled, Hani whirls.

And for the first time in her immortal life, Kim Hani meets the eye of a yojeong.

The fairy is hovering a few feet off the ground, her gossamer, large rosy wings fluttering as she smiles down at Seokga and Hani with full lips. They are almost butterfly wings, lovely and sparkling under the spring sunlight. She is clad in a traditional hanbok, the jeogori a petal pink, the chima a flawless white. The gorum ribbon is a shimmering lavender, matching the color of the daenggi knotted at her glossy black braid's base. Her eyes, a hazel so light that it is almost golden, rove over Hani first before moving to Seokga, whose face has contorted itself into an exceptionally impressive grimace.

"Hello, Seokga," the yojeong croons, slowly lowering her slipper to the ground and tilting her head with a smile that appears, at first, sweet—until one notices the cruel glint in those hazel eyes. "It has been a while." She bows, but it is a mocking one, filled with spite.

"You startled me." Seokga's voice is tight with irritation as he bows back stiffly. "Hello, Suk Aeri," he says in the formal tongue—and that is when Hani realizes, with a slight start, that Seokga and she have both been speaking in banmal, the informal. Not to mock, not to deride—just casually.

But for how long? When did she make that shift? When did she stop speaking in the informal only to mock him and start speaking to him as a friend?

When did he begin to allow that?

Was it before or after she woke in his arms?

Not important.

Hani has much larger things to worry about.

But—how long has it been since she spoke to him in the formal?

Aeri is eyeing Seokga with a vast amount of dislike only somewhat hidden behind that sweet smile. "You fled from this mountain as quickly as a scalded cat," she murmurs, "and you return centuries later, with another woman." She flicks her eyes to Hani, who is surprised to see that the cold cruelty is immediately replaced by genuine kindness. "You should run while you still can," she warns.

"Oh, I plan on it," Hani replies, instantly warming to the yojeong.

The two creatures exchange matching smiles before Aeri turns back to Seokga, who looks as if he's started to get a very, very large headache. "What is it, exactly, that you want? Certainly not pleasure, since you're here with her. Unless…" The yojeong tilts her head and sends another smile in Hani's direction. Hani fights back a laugh.

Seokga scowls. "How long were you following us?"

"A while," the fairy admits, shrugging her slender shoulders. "I was curious to see why you came to my mountain."

"Your mountain? I thought that Daegeumsan belonged to a mountain god."

"It did," Aeri replies saccharinely, "until I kicked him off. This mountain is mine, now. I own it." She taps a delicate ear with a finger. "The trees whisper things to me. They say that you have come for a bargain. That you wish to use my scrying ability."

Hani glances around at the trees with wary curiosity. Their leaves rustle in the wind, sounding much like hushed whispers.

"The trees speak the truth."

"Ah." Aeri arches a brow. "Why do you seek my gift?"

It is Hani's turn to speak up. "There is an eoduksini ravaging my city. New Sinsi." She watches as Aeri takes this in, her lips parting slightly. "We had it contained; we think it escaped and attacked the precinct. We need to know where it is, and what we should do next."

"A demon of darkness from King Yeomra's realm," she muses. "In your city, you say? And you're trying to stop it. I see, Seokga, that you have not yet fulfilled your debt to Hwanin." She chuckles. "Very well. I will find this eoduksini for you—for a price."

"What do you want?" Hani asks curiously.

Aeri tilts her head, tapping her chin in contemplation. "Hmm."

"We do not have the luxury of time, Aeri," Seokga says irritably. "Do hurry up."

"Hmm," Aeri says again, and Hani suspects that she does so only to annoy Seokga. "Hmm."

Seokga scowls. "You dawdle."

Hani's ears prick as the trees begin rustling again, whispering to Aeri, whose eyes widen in…delight? Curiosity? She looks between Seokga and Hani once more, cocking her head as her lips curl into a half-moon. "As you wish," she replies. "I have decided on my price. I shall give you what you seek…"

Hani holds her breath. Seokga seems to be doing the same.

"…if you share a kiss with the wine-eyed," Aeri finishes with a smug little smirk.

It takes Hani a too-long moment to realize that she is the wine-eyed.

Oh. Oh.

Aeri winks at her almost encouragingly before Hani slowly, very slowly, moves her eyes to Seokga—who has gone an alarming shade of white. "Aeri," he grinds out through a clenched jaw, "don't be ridiculous. What's next? You have us fornicate before you? Voyeurism is a perversion."

She straightens and crosses her arms. "I am not being ridiculous, or perverted." Her wings seem to quiver in rage—but then she composes herself. "A kiss for a clue. That is my bargain."

Hani swallows hard, hating how her heart has begun to pound against her chest. In dread, she tells herself. My heart has begun to pound in dread. Lots and lots and lots of dread.

Seokga runs a hand through his hair. "Hani," he says, his voice quiet, "if you don't want to…"

"It's fine," she says—a little too quickly. Her face heats. "For the clue."

"For the clue," he agrees.

Aeri is watching all of this in visible amusement. "For the clue," she echoes. The branches above rustle, as if laughing in agreement.

Hani swallows her nerves, taking a step closer to Seokga and peering up into his green eyes that seem much darker than usual. The scowl on his face has softened, and his expression is gentle as he brushes a stray piece of hair out of her eyes.

The surrounding trees quiet in anticipation.

As she stands on her tiptoes to reach Seokga's lips, his hand slides around her waist.

"Are you sure?" Seokga asks softly.

In answer, Hani slants her lips against his.

His lips are warm and silken against her own, his hand firm and steady on her waist. Hani's breath hitches in her throat as Seokga runs a hand through her hair, his palm pausing so he cups her cheek and their kiss deepens—as something that sounds suspiciously like a purr rumbles deep in his throat. He tastes like ferns and fire and coffee—and to her shock, she finds she doesn't quite mind it.

This,a small voice whispers in the back of her mind, why does this feel so right?

Because it is right,she answers slowly. Because despite everything, despite it all…Somehow, this is right.

Seokga's lips are soft, the kiss gentle and slow and deep…almost lazy, as if the pair of them have all the time in the world. Her mouth melds deeper into his, and another noise vibrates in Seokga's throat—hoarse and hungry all at once. Her blood warms, and Hani runs her hands up his chest, marveling at the way it's rising and falling in an uneven rhythm, marveling at the hard muscle underneath the fabric, marveling at the sheer existence of him. She gasps slightly as his hands rove down to her waist, pressing her closer to him.

This is right.

But there is a time and place for everything, and Hani is very aware of Aeri's voracious stare. Shakily, she pulls away, gazing at Seokga. The god is staring at her as if he's never seen her before, shocked. "Hani," he whispers, his voice more guttural than ever. She watches as he raises a trembling hand to his lips. His eyes are wide and dark. "Hani."

She swallows hard, breathing heavily, not daring to look away from him—

"Well," Aeri's voice cuts in, "that certainly was fascinating." The yojeong looks impossibly entertained as she claps her hands together in a smattering of applause. "Bravo, bravo. In return…I will give you what you wish to know." With that, she closes her eyes, and the trees begin to whisper once again, growing in cadence until the trio is surrounded by an ocean of murmurs, rising and falling like waves in the sea.

"Hani," Seokga whispers as Aeri doesn't stir, still scrying. "Hani, I—"

But he cuts off as Aeri's eyes flare open, burning a brilliant shade of gold. Aeri opens her mouth, allowing an unfamiliar voice to swirl through the forest. It is deep and vibrating, so at odds with her previously merry tone. "The precinct has fallen. Within its walls, darkness abounds. Yet the haetae you hound is alive and well."

"Shim," Seokga breathes in relief, closing his eyes and staggering back. "Oh, thank fuck—"

But Aeri isn't done. Wind begins to whip through the forest and the trees shake frantically. Aeri rises even higher in the air, her arms spreading. "The ones you seek are closer than you imagine…"

The ones.

Hani stiffens.

If Aeri reveals her identity as the Scarlet Fox…if all her efforts to spare herself and Somi are thwarted…

"…but you are alone, god, in a sea of deception. Let your mind not be fooled by surface perceptions. Look to the one with the eyes of the weary. Look to the one with the eyes of the teary. There, you will find verity, hidden beneath insincerity."

The forest, once again, falls abruptly silent.

Aeri falls silent, as well.

But a moment later, her eyes fly open. They have returned to a pale, glittering hazel. "Well," she says, her voice back to its normal pitch, glowering at Seokga, "now that we're done with that…Get off my mountain."