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shadequeen712 · 1 year

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Book of Shadows

Chapter Two - The Ghost of Sweet Revenge

Genre: witch au, demons, angst, poly relationship

Pairing: Seonghwa x Hongjoong x OC, San x Wooyoung

Warnings: Morally ambiguous characters, light torture (just bondage really) and a lot of dark magic

Notes: I know Wooyoung seems like a super possessive, jealous boyfriend right now, but I promise he’ll get better. And since this is a dark magic au, pretty much all of Ateez is gonna be morally ambiguous in this one. Hongjoong leans towards the darker side of morality for sure. It’s not quite a warning, but please keep it in mind.

The smell of saltwater assaulted the senses, and the ship rocked like a warning. Hongjoong steered the Horizon peacefully despite the horrible weather conditions, humming an old pirate tune to himself as he navigated the murky depths. The sky was blackening faster than he would have liked, but he knew they still had time to reach land. If rain were in the air, he would be able to smell it. But all he could sense was the sea below, guiding him like an old friend.

He was so focused on the ocean that he failed to notice a warm presence creeping up behind him. He nearly startled when he felt arms suddenly wrapped around his waist. Hongjoong smiled down at the long fingers knitted together, decorated by a single silver ring, engraved with the star-like crest of their coven. Hongjoong bore an identical tattoo on the back of his neck. Each one of them had the same mark- the mark of a witch, the symbol of their power.

"You're up early," Hongjoong said, half-turning to face Seonghwa. "You didn't have to get up with me."

Seonghwa tucked his face into Hongjoong's neck, speaking into the warm skin there. "You didn't have to get up without me. It's too cold when you're gone."

Hongjoong hummed, "The ship was too rocky for me to sleep. Besides, someone has to steer this thing."

"I thought it was Mingi's turn to steer the ship."

Hongjoong shook his head. "He's still fast asleep. And we both know he won't be getting up until this afternoon."

Despite the lack of moisture in the air, thunder crackled in the clouds above. Flashes of lightning revealed ghastly faces peering down at them like angry gods of old. Hongjoong felt the hair on his arms stand to attention, and he knew that this was no ordinary storm.

"Seonghwa, wake the others," Hongjoong ordered quickly, unraveling himself from the man's arms. Seonghwa stared at him in alarm, still disoriented and sleepy. But Hongjoong couldn't begin to explain the danger they suddenly found themselves in. He feared even speaking the name of the fearsome creature would seal their fates.

Seonghwa rushed off, seeing the grim look on Hongjoong's face. Hongjoong lingered, staring up at the sky, listening.

And then he heard the distant wailing, like a banshee proclaiming their imminent deaths. Hongjoong shut his eyes, feeling his insides turning. He knew what was coming, and why the creature was sent to find them. To find him. The magic they had, the magic stolen from the heavens to protect them from hunger and despair, belonged to the stars. Hongjoong was born into magic, but the others weren't as lucky. They were the outcasts of the world, the forgotten and the uncared for.

When he found Seonghwa standing on the roof's edge of his mansion, ready to throw his life away from the sheer unfairness of it all- Hongjoong didn't hesitate to call on the stars. He wished and prayed with everything in him, hoping that the stars would fill Seonghwa with light and laughter, with joy and life, so he could live to see another day.

Hongjoong never expected the stars to answer him. At that young age, he didn't understand that those distant stars were actually old souls, the souls of witches passed over. So when the lights came like he asked, filling up the empty rooftop that would soon be Seonghwa's grave - Hongjoong didn't waste a second. He took the light in his hands, whisked Seonghwa away from the edge, and fed him the stars.

Humans can never possess magic. It is the most absolute of magical rules, one that Hongjoong knew very well. And still, he could not leave this boy alone to die. Hongjoong knew that one day, the stars would punish him for stealing their souls, for interrupting their peaceful existence in heaven.

But now, the stars were angry with them. The souls were gathering in the heavens, coming to reclaim the magic that was never meant to be theirs. But Hongjoong would be damned if he let them take away everything he had ever worked for.

He gripped the wheel of the ship, feeling the light from his inner star glow. He started to pray again, but not to the old witches looking down on them with hatred. He prayed to the only power strong enough to fight them off.

If the forces of light would not accept them, then he would turn to their enemies, the shadows.

...

Aurora woke up in a cold sweat. She could still feel the light brush of Seonghwa's lips on her neck, and the smell of saltwater lingered as if she had recently been out to sea. Aurora wasn't sure why she was dreaming of Hongjoong's time out at sea, or why she was dreaming about him at all.

It made absolutely no sense to her. Aurora had said all but two words to the man, promised him a solution that she didn't even have, and then left as quickly as she came. And now that she had a moment of clarity, in which she realized that she was not an all-powerful witch like the rest of the coven but just an ordinary human with impressive manifestation abilities, she also realized that she was not the person they needed.

Hongjoong's rejection might have had something to do with her sudden dip in confidence. Also Wooyoung's outright disdain for her presence wasn't helpful either.

After visiting Hongjoong, Seonghwa had explained everything he could about what they needed from her. Like he said, she was a human with the heart of a witch. There were a few human souls that possessed an affinity for magic because they believed with everything in them, and apparently she was one of those rare individuals. And after hearing the news of her ex's untimely death, Aurora was not one to argue.

According to an ancient spell, a human's love could reverse the curse of a demon. It wasn't as cliche as true love's kiss, and not nearly as simple. She would have to learn to love Hongjoong, and he would have to learn to love her. With their mutual feelings overriding the dark magic, the old woman's skin would slip off of Hongjoong like an uncomfortable dress. Or at least, Seonghwa hoped as much. It was his first time attempting such an old magic after all. It was the stuff of fairytales.

Once Aurora heard her true purpose in all of this, that instead of learning magic or manifesting a happy ending, she would have to work for the attention of a man that wanted nothing to do with her, she promptly asked for San to take her home.

She just couldn't believe that this was what it came down to. Love? It was ridiculous. How could love fix a demon's curse?

The sound of a meow at her window startled her. She sat up in bed, looking out at the windowsill where San sat perched, getting drenched in the early afternoon rain. She crawled over and peered right into his big yellow eyes. "What do you want?" She asked.

He meowed again in response, pawing the glass.

"I'm not letting a grown man in my room," Aurora asserted. "Especially not one with a surly boyfriend."

"You're a grown woman," San said as a cat, which scared the shit out of Aurora, "And Wooyoung doesn't mean to be rude. He's just a little possessive."

"A little?" Aurora challenged. "I hugged you, and he glared at me like I grabbed your ass or something."

San rolled his eyes, and instead of waiting for Aurora to welcome him in like the last time, he simply leapt onto her bed from outside like the glass was invisible. He settled into a ball by her legs. "I don't care what he thinks. He's not my fucking owner."

"Have you told him that?" She asked. The urge to run her hand down his furry head was almost overwhelming, but she resisted. Things were just too weird now, with him actually being a real person. And Wooyoung was literally going to kill her if she put so much as a fingertip on San.

"I shouldn't have to," San said. He rubbed a paw over his face. "But no, not yet."

Aurora hummed, having already known the answer before she asked. "Again San, I'll ask. What are you doing here? What do you want?"

"You know why I'm here," San accused. "I want you to come back with me and save Hongjoong."

Aurora shook her head, throwing the sheets over San's tiny form and standing up from the bed. She stretched in place, not caring about her bare thighs or her head scarf. It was San that invaded her room without permission. "No can do. I'm not romancing someone that's already in a relationship. It's unethical. And it's weird that Seonghwa wants me to do it in the first place."

San growled and fought his way out of the covers, looking up at her with a sour face. "So putting a hex on someone is fine, but flirting is unethical?"

Aurora was reminded of Emery, how she wished him dead out of pure anger. She knew that it was wrong, and that she was going to be punished for it somehow. But to her, at the time, he had deserved it. Destroying a love as deep as Hongjoong and Seonghwa's, there was no excuse for that. They had done absolutely nothing to her.

It also might have been the fact that she knew, and I mean she really knew, that she had no chance in hell of winning over Hongjoong's heart. The man was simply impossible.

"Do you know what I have to do?" Aurora asked, walking towards her closet and shuffling through its contents, trying to find something to wear. Clearly the coven wasn't going to let her off the hook. "It's a hell of a lot more than flirting."

"I know that if you don't help him, he's going to die," San said with a chilling certainty.

Aurora paused at that, not knowing what to say. It's not that she didn't want to help Hongjoong. She still longed to see the man smile, to meet the badass witch of her dreams. But she felt so unworthy of attempting something like this, so unworthy of trying. How could she even dream of loving him? Better yet, how could she dream that he would love her back?

"Is there a way I can call you? I just need some time to think," Aurora decided.

San stood up from the bed suddenly. Aurora hadn't even noticed that he shifted into human form. He was much taller than her, looking down at her with a solemn expression. Aurora bravely stared back, waiting for him to speak.

He surprised her when he turned his head to the side and said, "Kiss my ear."

Aurora raised both eyebrows. "Huh?"

"Just do it," San demanded. "You said you wanted to learn magic."

She hesitated, but something inside of her just screamed to try it, to take the leap. So she leaned over and brushed her lips against his ear. San leaned back, satisfied. "A simple whispering spell. Now, I'll be able to hear anything you want to say to me. If you call me, I'll hear you."

"Really? That's so cool!" She exclaimed.

"I can teach you much more than this. I could help you make potions, learn the essential herbs. We could contact any dead relative that you wish to speak to. Anything you want, really," San proposed. "Just promise me that you'll really consider it. Hongjoong needs you."

She wanted to escape his imploring gaze that was convincing her by the second. Aurora knew that the coven was desperate, that they would do anything. She wasn't going to make them wait long. She just had to gather herself, and find the courage to do the impossible.

"I will," Aurora promised. Another promise that she wasn't sure how to keep.

Apparently, this was enough for him. Before she could say anything else, San walked right into her open closet. She stared after him. "San?"

But he had disappeared, vanishing between the rack of hanging clothes. Aurora stared into the empty dark space, her mind wandering.

...

"Did you convince her?" Seonghwa asked as soon as San crossed the threshold of the bookstore. He attempted to read San's facial expression, to find an inkling of hope in the man's blank frown.

San grinned at the question, waving away his concerns. It was an odd reaction, considering everything. "She's gonna do it."

"How can you be sure?" Seonghwa asked, trailing the man as he walked past the dimly-lit bookshelves and dispelled the illusion that hid their home from passersby. Pausing to turn and lock the front door with a flick of his hand, Seonghwa's long stride easily matched San's quick pace. He peered into the younger man's soul, awaiting an answer.

"She loves magic too much to refuse," San assured him. "Give it a day, and she'll be calling."

Seonghwa sighed. He just couldn't find it in himself to relax, despite San's optimism. From what he had seen of Aurora, she was strong-willed and hopeful, but also fragile and reckless. Although she might be determined to help, if something frightened her, or challenged her in a way that she couldn't handle, she was going to run. It had already happened once, thanks to Wooyoung's unacceptable attitude. And Hongjoong, Seonghwa couldn't even begin to deal with him. If anything would drive her away, it would be the intimidating members of his coven.

That left the job to more friendly members, like himself and San. Maybe Yunho if he could get the man to return from his trip to Atlantis, where he was busy finding a sea spell old and powerful enough to break Hongjoong's curse.

The rest of the coven was out of the question. Mingi was off in some far corner of the world, trying to pretend like everything was fine. Bringing him back right now would only increase the tension that everyone could feel, the faint strain on their magic due to the curse. Yeosang was busy searching every corner of every library and apothecary, hoping to find a way to save Hongjoong. Seonghwa didn't really want to interrupt him, because it was his way of staying busy and coping all at once.

Wooyoung occupied himself with scouring the cosmos for answers, reading the constellations in the hopes that it may give them some insight. The stars were much older than the sea, and the source of their magic, so Seonghwa left him to it, hoping for the best.

San was responsible for befriending Aurora, a position that he volunteered for. It was a fine distraction, and he honestly just liked being around her, away from it all. Any other time he was asking the spirits if they knew a way to break the spell, or if they knew any weaknesses of Azazel's that they could use. So far, there was nothing.

Seonghwa himself was busy threatening every lower-level demon he could find for information. Most of them echoed the same thing, that Azazel was unstoppable, that he was an all-powerful king of Hell, and that the coven was doomed to fail since they crossed him the first time. Seonghwa liked to throw holy water on the ones that were particularly nasty about it, the ones that laughed at the prospect of them facing off Azazel like it was the funniest thing in the world. It pissed him off to no end.

"I hope you're right," Seonghwa said. "Thank you for trying. It's up to her now."

San shook his head. "You don't need to thank me." He paused in his stride, turning to face Seonghwa in the middle of the hallway. It was sudden and confrontational, something that Seonghwa was unprepared for. "Aurora is my friend," San asserted, looking up at the older man pointedly.

"Of course-"

"I won't be a part of your plan. I like her, and I won't lie to her," San continued. "I know that you want to save Hongjoong, but please don't break her heart in the process."

Seonghwa was at a loss, feeling his stomach sink at the implication. San started up the grand staircase without another word, towards the room where he knew Wooyoung was waiting for him. He stared after the younger man, letting the weight of his accusation settle onto his shoulders. The weight somehow made him feel sick.

Seonghwa walked up the staircase after lingering for too long, thinking. He walked down the dark hall, and opened the door to his lover's stagnant room. "Hongjoong?"

The rumpled sheets did not stir. Seonghwa peered into the darkness, trying to make out the shape of Hongjoong's gray head of hair. He crept forward, his heart thumping for no apparent reason.

The reason became apparent, when he pulled the sheets back and stared at the empty space where Hongjoong was supposed to be.

...

Hongjoong liked walking through memories. It was his way of coping with the current reality, of dealing with the day to day. The memory he chose was an old one, when the coven were not yet witches but still young boys, playing their hand at being pirates. Hongjoong was born a witch, but the others weren't so lucky. They were rotting away in orphanages, on the streets, abandoned by their families for each a different reason. Yunho and Mingi came as a package, but the rest he found by traveling from city to city. He was looking for lost boys, ones that needed him. He hoped to assemble a family, to forge an unbreakable bond so that he would never have to face the reality of being alone again.

Seonghwa was not abandoned like the others. He was the son of a nobleman, highborn and well-fed. His life was easy, so easy it was boring. Hongjoong could see that the boy was bored, that he longed for adventure much like he once did.

Seonghwa approached him first. After he saved his life and filled him with magic, Hongjoong intended to abandon him. He was good at staying unseen, but Seonghwa was much too observant. He found the shadow witch before he could slip away, and practically begged to come with him; to join the crew.

Hongjoong shouldn't have let him come. He was trouble from the moment he stepped aboard the ship. His rich family caused quite a fuss looking for him. And Hongjoong soon realized why Seonghwa was so desperate to escape his home life. He was arranged to be married to a palace official's daughter; a woman that he was not in love with.

Seonghwa was too much like him, in love with the idea of adventure. He couldn't be bogged down by the formalities of the palace. So Hongjoong rescued him, putting a price on his own head in the process. He became the feared Pirate King, the ruthless man that ransacked the houses of noblemen. If only they knew he was so much more than that.

Giving the crew magic took a lot out of him. Giving humans immortality was no easy feat. It took the help of many witches, and a few demons, to accomplish what he wanted. Well, not really their help. Just their blood, and their souls.

He knew it was wrong. But Hongjoong was never a good witch. He lived in darkness, in shadows, and preyed on the weaklings he came across. It was simply his way of life. And Hongjoong would do anything for his boys. Anything to see them live, to see them thrive. And he knew that Seonghwa was really going to love magic.

The blood of his victims was the base of the spell, and their souls were the potion. He never told his boys what it was they were drinking, just told them to drink it entirely. And one by one, the spark of magic touched them, filled them with life. They never aged, and they grew more powerful by the day. Never again would someone manipulate or hurt them. They were more than able to protect themselves.

The blood magic took a toll on Hongjoong. It was the type of thing that wore on a person's soul, and seven deaths on a person's conscience- that was the kind of thing that attracted demons like no other. Demons loved the smell of blood, the smell of death on a person's hands. Hongjoong had a lot of death on his, and Azazel was a slave to his cravings.

Hongjoong figured it was simply his karma. He never should have taken the lives of helpless witches or friendly demons. But he never expected Azazel to punish the entire coven along with him, to use the blood magic as a weakness, a way to torture his boys. It was something he should have seen coming.

He paid the ultimate price for crossing paths with a king of hell. And for his many sins, he was finally going to die. In some ways, it was a relief.

Hongjoong watched the girl from the shadows, curious about why Seonghwa had brought her to him in the first place. And then San had told him, waltzing in to her bedroom like he lived there, and persuading her to try her luck at winning his heart. Hongjoong nearly laughed at the prospect. Who would want a heart as black as his?

The girl was lost, much like his boys were so long ago. She wanted magic just like they had; he could feel it. But he was no longer in a position to give it to her; to help anyone but himself. Hongjoong still had some powers lingering inside of him, but none strong enough to shed the skin he was trapped in; the skin that was killing him.

There was a link to her. Hongjoong couldn't figure it out, but the link was there. For some reason, he could feel her. And she could see into his past, much more than any human should be able to. She truly was a human with the heart of a witch.

Hongjoong settled into the corner of her room, content to watch her decide. He was more curious than anything. It was impossible, and she knew it too. But since he was bored, and she had sparked his interest, he kept watching.

Aurora turned towards him, like she could sense him sitting there. It was like she was staring right at him, unknowingly. He struggled to stay silent.

She turned away at the call of her grandmother, bounding out of her room with a youthful energy he couldn't even fathom. It was at that point that Hongjoong noticed the spirit in the room, trying to manifest himself into a physical presence. He narrowed his eyes at the young ghost, wondering who had the audacity to haunt such an innocent girl. The spirit was still struggling to manifest, as it was fairly new and had no focus. Hongjoong stood slowly, approaching him.

"Leave this place," Hongjoong said. He hated the raspy tone of his voice, the lack of bass in it.

The spirit seemed to consider his order, but ultimately decided to ignore Hongjoong. The witch wanted to laugh, but really it wasn't funny at all.

Hongjoong took hold of the spirit with one hand, capturing its essence with his bare fingers. "I told you to leave."

The ghost struggled, wanting to linger in her room. His aura glowed red with anger, with vengeance, and then Hongjoong understood. He wasn't just any spirit, but a vengeful one. Getting rid of him was not going to be a simple task.

Still, with his lingering powers and his boredom, it was a task that Hongjoong was up for. The last thing Seonghwa needed was another thing on his plate, when all his attention was on the lost cause of saving Hongjoong. He could do this much for his lover at least. And for the girl caught in the middle of it all.

"Come with me, now," Hongjoong hissed. And he clenched the spirit's aura in his fist until it howled. He could hear the girl returning to the room, looking for something. He dragged the ghost into the shadows, and away from Aurora for the time being.

...

Aurora felt a chill go down her spine, and she didn't know why. Her room felt strange- like it wasn't hers, and she felt the desperate urge to leave. Luckily her grandmother called her and she had the excuse to fly out of the room like a bat out of hell.

"Yeah?" She asked her grandma, who was clearly unsatisfied with her empty kitchen. She analyzed the sparse shelves of her fridge, sighing.

"We need to go to the grocery store. We can't survive off of delivery for much longer," Grandma said. Aurora jumped at the chance to leave the house, where she suddenly felt unsafe for the first time in her life.

"Okay, let me get my shoes," Aurora said. She slowly walked through the hall, hovering outside of the doorway. The dark feeling that had been there, so full of anger and resentment, was gone. She had felt it suddenly, the feeling that someone hated her guts, and wanted her dead. She wasn't sure how or why or who, but she didn't care. As long as it was gone.

She calmly slipped on her sneakers, and grabbed her jacket and purse. She stared into the empty room, at the corner where she could have sworn she saw a pair of eyes in the dark. Aurora knew it was probably the result of watching one too many horror movies, or maybe it was a lingering spirit from her walk through the ghost world with San. Either way, it had frightened her. Magic was a lot more frightening than she could have imagined.

"Come on, Aurora," her grandmother called from the front door. Aurora rushed out of the room with a full body shiver, dreading having to sleep in her bedroom at night.

She followed her grandma out the door, trying to calm her worries and think through the offer that San made to her. Learning magic was her lifelong dream, but was she willing to through away her dignity and risk her life to get it? It was no ordinary curse that plagued Hongjoong. He had angered a powerful demon, and if she got involved, she was likely to do the same.

Still, she couldn't help but feel for the witch even though she barely knew him. Hongjoong risked everything to save his coven, only to mark himself for death as a result. He cared for the witches so much that he threw away his life, and now they were doing everything they could to save him. How could Aurora do nothing when she was the key to saving his life? She might've been a killer, but she wasn't heartless.

Aurora's mind wandered as she roamed the aisles of the grocery store, picking up ingredients to make pasta. Her grandmother was right- they couldn't live off of DoorDash any longer. Her grandmother was busy touring the garden section for new pots, so she parted ways with her to make her way around the store. Aurora was trying to decide between making spaghetti and alfredo when a chill went up her spine, like someone's ghostly fingers were running along her back, up and down, up and down. She rotated her head, trying to shake the horrible feeling of cold fingertips on the back of her neck.

"You bitch," a faint voice suddenly whispered into her ear. "I'll kill you."

Aurora dropped the jar of spaghetti sauce she was holding, and the glass shattered across the tiled floor. Store-goers stared at her, watching her hands shake mid-air as tears welled in her eyes. Aurora whimpered, realizing all at once who the ghostly presence was that was following her around. She never thought that he would haunt her, or that he would know to hold her responsible for his death. It wasn't as if Aurora took a knife to Emery, but somehow the boy knew that she was the cause of his pain, and that was all that mattered.

Aurora wasn't equipped to handle a vengeful ghost on her own. She had no choice but to ask the coven for help. And if she asked them for help, they would expect her help with Hongjoong in return.

A store worker came to assess the damages in the aisle. Aurora greeted them with a shaky smile, promising to pay for the broken spaghetti sauce. Then she went to find her grandmother, to tell her to finish shopping without her. She had somewhere to be.

...

San came quickly at Aurora's call, almost like he had been waiting for it. He grinned at her, going in for a hug before he took in her sullen expression. His smile dropped, worry overtaking him in a split-second. "What happened? What's wrong?"

Aurora couldn't help but to cry at his concerned tone, sobs raking her body. He was going to find out how evil she was, how horrible of a person. If he though placing a hex on someone was bad, what would he think when she told him the truth? San would be disgusted at the sight of her.

She couldn't find the words. All she could do was cry because Emery's ghost was going to haunt her indefinitely. She cried even more because she knew that she deserved it. Wishing harm on someone for any reason made her a bad person, and even though there was no direct evidence linking her to Emery's murder, Aurora knew in her soul that she was the one who killed him.She knew Emery's personality; how angry he could get. He was going to haunt her until she died herself. He practically said as much in the store.

"Aurora, I need you to tell me what happened," Seonghwa said. She didn't even know when he had gotten there. Aurora called San to pick her up outside of the store, and now she was making a scene in the parking lot. People gawked at her as they walked in with their kids in hand, avoiding her like the plague. San must have called Seonghwa when she wouldn't answer him, because he knew that the man could get through to her. His comforting presence momentarily distracted her from worrying, as he gripped her shoulders lightly and turned her towards him.

"Emery," was all she could get out, before more tears escaped her eyes. Aurora was never much of a crybaby, but the thought of getting haunted by a ghost that she murdered was enough to make her inconsolable.

"Who the hell is Emery?" San demanded, as if he was going to bring him back to life and kill him all over again for making Aurora cry. Aurora managed to smile at him, though the tears made it look more like a grimace.

"Aurora," Seonghwa called, his voice taking on a more serious tone. "If you don't tell me, then I'm gonna have to pull it out of you."

She wondered what exactly he meant by that. Seonghwa didn't give her long to ponder over it, as he reached over and cupped her cheek with his large, warm hand. Aurora closed her eyes at the sensation, her cheeks warming under his touch. He rubbed the skin with delicate fingers, smoothing away her tears. Seonghwa truly had a talent for comforting people, because Aurora was already feeling better.

She opened her eyes to look at Seonghwa, peering at him through wet lashes. His gaze was not nearly as soft as his touch. The look in his eyes was so intense that he almost looked angry, and if he hadn't been smoothing over her round cheeks, she would think that he was. She wondered why he was looking at her so intently, and then she felt a tugging sensation at the corner of her mind.

"I want you to show me this person named Emery. Can you do that for me?" Seonghwa asked. He sounded out of breath, as if the effort of prying into her mind was taking the wind out of him.

Aurora felt Seonghwa prodding at her memories, prompting her to reveal everything about Emery. She was reluctant to show him what happened, to show him the source of shame that made her burst into tears. But she knew that Seonghwa would find out about her crime one way or another. There was no way she could hide such a huge secret from him.

"I'll show you," Aurora agreed, her heart thundering. Even the thought of him seeing what she did filled her with dread. What choice did she have, really? She couldn't hide her true nature any longer.

Seonghwa smiled, pleased to have her permission. He closed his eyes, feeling for the person named Emery that haunted Aurora's thoughts. As Seonghwa focused on searching her mind, San whisked them into the spirit world and away from curious onlookers.

...

Hongjoong cursed, having lost his grip on that God forsaken Emery Watson. He was a slippery spirit, the kind of ghost that no one could pin down for long. It was just his luck to have a nasty poltergeist on his hands when he didn't have the strength to ring its neck. And Emery was the worst of all, because not only was he angry, but he was also entitled. He believed that his life was robbed from him, which it technically was, but he also believed that he did nothing wrong in the first place. And Hongjoong knew for a fact that he had wronged Aurora, because he had seen it in his dreams. While lying around in his bedroom, breathing in the darkness, Hongjoong dreamed of Aurora. He dreamed of her at school, kissing an undeserving boy named Emery Watson. He watched as he touched her, coaxed her into submission and made her vulnerable for him. Then he saw the stupid boy discard her like she was nothing, and slut-shame her in front of everyone. Hongjoong writhed in bed with clenched fists, wanting to dig his overgrown nails into Emery's eye sockets.

And then he saw the way Aurora roasted him alive with nothing more than a look, and suddenly he felt intrigued. Her dark gaze was deadly, but also strangely beautiful. Hongjoong was surprised that such a cheerful-looking human had fire within her, enough to sear her enemies without so much as a spell. She made the boy turn and run without uttering a word, something that only the most powerful of witches could accomplish. Aurora was more than a human with the heart of a witch. She was a human with the potential to be the most powerful witch that ever lived. More powerful than him, even.

But now, that stupid ghost was going after her. He had already slipped away from the prison Hongjoong made for him in the spirit world. He had slithered back to Aurora like a little snake, and whispered threats into her ears that made her cry. Hongjoong seethed with the audacity of this boy, who somehow believed that he could intimidate a witch. Lingering spirits like him were usually hunted down by reapers, but Hongjoong couldn't wait for one to show itself. He had to get rid of Emery before he hurt Aurora.

Hongjoong snatched the boy up when his lips brushed Aurora's ear, tugging him along by the hair at the crown of his head. Emery looked much like he had in life; he had pale skin and curly hair that extended past his ears. It was perfect for Hongjoong's fingers to latch onto, yanking at the strands so hard that the boy screeched. He dragged him all the way from the grocery store in town, back to the prison he crafted out of shadow and bone. He actually used Emery's own body to make the cage, stretching his ribs out to make the bars, and fashioning his phalanges into chains. The shadows held the bones together so they wouldn't rattle too much, and the essence of the boy's flesh kept his spirit bound.

So how Emery escaped from the cage the first time, Hongjoong wasn't sure. He stared at the boy, watching as he groaned in pain from the skeletal hands latched onto his ankles. The hands rose out from the ground, keeping him firmly tied to the spiritual plane. Shadowy tendrils clenched around his wrists like handcuffs, keeping him from banging against the bars of the cage. Emery's head lolled as he moaned, coming to and glaring at his captor.

"Let me go, you bitch!" Emery spat. His face was a frightening mask of white, with dark pits for eyes and bared teeth. The anger made him scarier, causing his form to glow bright like an overheated lamp. Hongjoong couldn't care less how much energy Emery used. If he used too much of it, his soul would simply evaporate like fog in the autumn air. With Hongjoong's current appearance, it was no wonder that Emery used such a foul term. The withering skin of this form was deceiving, because underneath, Hongjoong was alight with furious energy. He felt more alive than he had in weeks, wondering how he was going to torture this evil spirit. Should he send him straight to hell, or play with him a little?

"Hyung?"

Hongjoong turned to see San making his way toward him, followed by Seonghwa and Aurora. San was guiding the both of them, as Seonghwa held Aurora in his arms and focused on finding out the truth. Hongjoong recognized the stance, understanding at once that Seonghwa was looking into her mind.

"San," Hongjoong greeted. "I was just handling this vengeful spirit named Emery."

At the sound of the boy's name, Aurora opened her eyes and broke the psychic connection. Seonghwa came to a second later, releasing her in favor of holding his forehead. Hongjoong knew that forming a psychic bond took a lot out of a witch, especially when it was not their specialty. He wondered what must have happened for Seonghwa to use such a taxing method of getting information.

Aurora took an unbalanced step forward, teetering on her feet like a newborn baby. The psychic bond took a lot out of her too, but she seemed to be recovering quickly, at least enough to recognized the ghost imprisoned before her eyes. "Emery?"

Emery looked up at the sound of her voice, yanking at the chains on his hands and feet. "You!"

She flinched back with wide eyes, horrified of the skeletal cage that he was trapped in. "What the hell is this? Why are you stuck here?"

"You're the one that killed me," Emery accused, his voice a horrible garble. It was like he was still choking up blood and trying to speak despite all. His form glowed even brighter, so bright that Aurora had to avert her eyes.

Hongjoong stepped in between Aurora and Emery, blocking her gaze. He glared at the spirit and his chains tightened to the point of pain. Then Hongjoong turned to face Aurora, trying not to panic at the fact that she interrupted his torturing session. "I found him lingering around your house, and again at the store. I brought him back to the spirit world and chained him up here."

Aurora looked Hongjoong up and down, confused at how he captured a ghost in his condition. "You were in my house?" She asked.

That was a valid question. Hongjoong panicked even more, blood leaving his face as he scrambled to find a suitable excuse for watching Aurora from the shadows. "I wanted to ask for your help. Personally." It was about the farthest from the actual truth that Hongjoong could get, but telling the girl that he followed her home because she intrigued him would not go over well.

"You want my help?" Aurora echoed, tilting her head to the side. "But you told me that I couldn't break the curse."

"I was wrong," Hongjoong admitted, because he was. He underestimated Aurora. He had no idea how powerful she was when he said that. He didn't know her strength of spirit, or her ability to kill someone with a look. If Hongjoong really admitted it to himself, he was mildly attracted to her. In a way, she was almost as fucked up as he was.

"Hongjoong," Seonghwa said, stepping forward with a pointed gaze. "What are you planning on doing with him?"

Just like always, Seonghwa could see through his pretense, straight to the darkness of his heart. Without Hongjoong saying a word, Seonghwa already knew what he intended and why he was keeping it a secret. Hongjoong had always loved him for that, because Seonghwa knew him better than anyone. However, at times like this, where he was practicing dark magic that no righteous person should see, he wished Seonghwa did not have such insight.

Because he knew that Seonghwa knew, Hongjoong sighed and came clean. "I was gonna torture him a bit. It's been a while since I've seen such a sleazy soul."

San didn't look very surprised to hear of Hongjoong's dark intent, but Aurora was taken aback. When she pictured the badass witch that put his life on the line for his boys, she never imagined that he would do something like this. Instead of being disgusted by his sinister nature, Aurora felt intrigued. Where San had shied away from cursing others, Hongjoong seemed the type to relish in doing so. While Seonghwa fussed Hongjoong out for his immorality, San worked on freeing Emery from his dark chains. The hedge witch was practiced with unruly spirits and could hold Emery with his power alone; no bondage necessary.

However, Emery was more vengeful than San anticipated. As soon as the ghost was free of his bony chains, he tackled Aurora. He flew past San and flung himself at her with such vengeance that no one could have prevented it. He slammed her into the ground and hissed at her like a wild animal, baring his teeth at her with black pits for eyes. Because of his relentless anger, Emery had begun the transformation into a depraved spirit. He looked more inhuman than before, more like a typical ghost in a horror movie.

Aurora didn't have a moment to brace herself before Emery was choking the life out of her lungs. Like this, he looked a bit like a flickering candle, burning red hot with anger and bloodlust. She contemplated life with what little consciousness she had left. Perhaps dying like this was what she deserved for killing him so easily. If that was the case, then she would submit to the cruel whims of fate.

Emery was yanked off her suddenly with the force of a typhoon and slammed into the ground. Seonghwa raised his arm, lifting the boy into the air and choking him out single-handedly. He looked at Aurora with concern. "Are you alright?" He asked, to which she nodded.

San hovered above her, checking the condition of her neck. She could tell it would bruise, but she felt like a little choking was the least of what she deserved to be honest. San frowned, letting his fingers brush the tender skin. Suddenly his hands glowed blue like cold stars, and she felt a chilling sensation wash over her like a cool shower. She shivered at the feeling at first, but then the pain ebbed, and her neck felt as good as new again.

"You're gonna be okay," San assured her with a smile. He cradled her head in his lap, blocking her view of what Seonghwa and Hongjoong were currently doing with Emery. Whatever it was couldn't be good.

...

Seonghwa held the boy up in the air, suspended by an invisible force. Emery flung himself around, shaking his legs and clawing the invisible hands on his neck desperately. Hongjoong looked on proudly, letting a devilish smile overtake him. Watching his lover fly off the handle always got him going.

"How dare you touch her," Seonghwa said, his voice thinned with anger. "I was thinking about helping you move on, and you do this? You really think you're innocent?"

The hands around Emery's neck squeezed and squeezed, and his aura became blue with the closeness of second death. Ghosts could actually die multiple times, if a powerful enough witch or demon took it upon themselves to try. That was how souls lingered in Hell for so long, getting tortured by kings of Hell like Azazel. It was how Hongjoong spent decades serving the demon, bringing him souls to wash in day by day.

"Darling," Hongjoong called, when it looked like Emery was near the end. "Maybe we should leave him to San? I was going to torture him a bit, but killing him twice might be excessive."

Seonghwa took Hongjoong's opinion into consideration silently, still grasping the spirit's neck. After a few moments, he released the Emery and let him drop to the ground. "Maybe you're right."

So it was decided that San would appease Emery and walk him through his cherished memories, as he did with every ghost that lingered in the human world. That way, he could feel connected to his life, and not be caught up in the circumstances of his death. Ghosts had a tendency to focus on the negativity and pain, rather than the good parts of their human existence. It was San's specialty to ease that pain and help them find happiness again, so that they could cross over.

Emery seemed unwilling at first, but with a searing look from Hongjoong and a threatening raise of Seonghwa's hand, he became a lot more cooperative. San assured them that he could handle the bratty spirit, and that he would be back in time for dinner. Hongjoong opened a portal to the manor with what little strength he had left, and the three of them walked out of the darkness together.

As soon as they crossed the house's threshold, Seonghwa steered Hongjoong into the nearest bathroom to check him for injuries. Though Hongjoong felt like his old, all-powerful self, he was still in the body of an elderly woman. Surely torturing vengeful spirits was not good for his joints.

"We'll only be a second, Aurora," Seonghwa said. "There should be plenty of leftover food in the fridge, if you want to help yourself."

Aurora nodded, still kind of in shock from it all. She wandered off in the direction of the kitchen, faintly remembering the way from her first time in the mansion. She passed the stairwell to upstairs, where the portrait of Hongjoong in all his red-haired glory hung like a centerpiece in a museum. She lingered, staring at the powerful witch that exhausted himself to save her from a vengeful spirit. Even in his current state, he was putting his life on the line for others. How could she not help someone that generous?

When Aurora walked into the kitchen, an unfamiliar man stood chopping up vegetables and sliding them into a sizzling pan. He had round cheeks and intense, dark eyes that zeroed in on the vegetables with precision. He wore a tight-fitting black sweater and jeans, with silver chains hanging from the pockets that jingled when he moved. His black hair fell over his forehead and covered his eyes as he leaned over the cutting board. If not for his pouted lips and puffed cheeks, she would have been fully intimidated by the witch.

He honestly looked like the lead singer of a rock band to Aurora. She stood, bewitched by his presence for a few seconds until the sharp voice of Wooyoung broke her out of the enchantment. "You look like a wreck," he said unkindly, stalking past her and into the kitchen like he owned he place.He slid onto one of the counter bar stools and tapped the table in front of the mysterious chef. "Jongho, are you getting high again?" Wooyoung asked, trying to catch the witch's attention. Jongho finally looked up, blinking at the new presence in front of him. He did look kind of high, but not so much that he didn't notice Aurora standing in the kitchen doorway and shuffling her feet together awkwardly. He smiled brightly, beckoning her inside.

"Come on in, I was just making dinner," he invited. Aurora listened, walking closer to the kitchen island and standing next to Wooyoung. "And to answer your rude ass question Woo, no I wasn't getting high."

"I'm older than you, brat," Wooyoung scolded. He slid a hand through his lavender locks, looking at Aurora again. She was struck again by his beauty, the sharpness of his jaw and the cool, directness of his gaze. "You really do look wrecked. Did something happen?"

Aurora figured that this was Wooyoung's round-about way of showing concern, and answered, "There was a vengeful ghost situation, but I'm okay. San is handling it."

Wooyoung frowned at the mention of San's name. "What happened?" He asked again, this time with intensity. "Where is he?"

She sat down on a bar stool and started recounting the day's events, starting from the encounter in the store with her grandmother to leaving San in the spirit world with Emery. Wooyoung didn't bite her head off when she told him, so it was safe to assume he didn't blame her for endangering his boyfriend. She knew that he was the possessive type, but for once he seemed chill about the situation.

"Should we give San some backup? I know Seonghwa's busy with Hongjoong, but maybe we could pop into the spirit world and check on him before dinner. Walking through memories is kind of taxing, especially with that kind of spirit," Jongho suggested.

"San can handle an angry ghost," Wooyoung assured, waving off his concern. "He'll be offended if we interrupt him now."

Aurora found his trust in San to be admirable, and couldn't keep herself from saying so. "You're such a supportive boyfriend," she complimented.

Wooyoung turned to her with furrowed brows, and for a second she worried that she'd offended him. But then he relaxed, not quite smiling but at least looking slightly less guarded. "Of course, we've been together for ages."

"They really have," Jongho agreed. "Almost as long as Hongjoong and Seonghwa."

Aurora saw the opportunity and couldn't help herself. "How did those two meet, by the way?" She was infinitely curious about their relationship, and about Hongjoong's past in particular. She wanted to know everything about him, from his first encounter with magic to his darkest secrets.

"I can tell you," Hongjoong piped up behind her. She turned in her seat to see Hongjoong standing in the kitchen doorway with Seonghwa close behind. Seonghwa's eyes lingered on Hongjoong as if he would suddenly collapse, and it reminded her of the way parents watched their newborn babies like hawks. If Wooyoung was a possessive kind of lover, than Seonghwa was the attentive type. She wondered what kind of lover Hongjoong might be.

"I'd like that," Aurora said, smiling at Hongjoong. She decided right then and there, if he wanted her help, she was more than willing to give it. She was far too invested in this coven to back out now anyway.

...

San led the surly ghost through his childhood, trying not to sigh. He had dealt with all kinds of nasty ghosts, from abusive spouses to murderers, but it was the first time in a while that he couldn't care less about the spirit he was escorting.

It was wrong of him, he knew. Letting personal feelings mix into his duties as a medium was almost criminal, because ghosts depended on him to pass on. Usually, he could set aside his feelings in favor of helping others, but his heart just wasn't in it this time. San knew that it had to do with Aurora. He was much more attached to her than he intended to be, and now it was affecting his work. He glared into the back of the boy's head as they walked through the memories of his many sexual conquests, all soon discarded after. San supposed he should feel sorrier for the boy, given his neglectful childhood that fed into his commitment issues.

Emery's mother never gave him the time of day, always staying late at work and going out on the weekends. His father died when he was young from unexpected heart failure, leaving a dysfunctional family in his wake. It was really Emery's uncles that raised him, taking him in when it was clear that his mother couldn't be bothered. Emery took that rejection to heart, and never trusted another woman again.

That led them to college, where Emery was fucking women left and right, and then throwing them away like used condoms. Aurora was one of the many he used, but it was slightly different. San could see that the boy actually did care for her at first, that he did enjoy laughing with her and making her laugh in turn. However, when Aurora slipped up one time after they finished fucking and said that she loved him, Emery short-circuited.

Emery didn't have any women in his life that loved him. He didn't know how to handle affection from anyone but his uncles, who raised him with as much care and joy as they could, and his friends who let him sleepover often when his mother was absent. So when Aurora said the L-word to him, it was like a huge red flag in his mind. He had to get as far away from her as possible, before she could abandon him the way his mother had.

So that brought San and Emery to that time in the cafeteria, when Emery told everyone about their sexual exploits. San watched as Aurora glared at Emery like she would kill him on the spot if only she could. And he knew that somehow, through some mysterious force in Aurora's body, she had done exactly that. She had killed Emery with a single glare like the witches of old that could raise hellfire. San knew it was wrong, that Aurora was wrong for letting her anger get the best of her. But he couldn't bring himself to hate her for it. If it was him, and his first-time lover had humiliated him and threw him away like it was nothing, he might have done something unholy as well. For as good of a witch San was, he always had that one part of him that wanted to indulge in dark magic.

His brothers were the same. All of them had a little taste for the dark arts, a little bit of the shadows within them. None of them told Hongjoong, but the methods that he used to obtain their magic stained them in ways he could not fully comprehend. Seonghwa leaned towards summoning demons rather than deities, while his own boyfriend dabbled in tangling up people's lives for fun, rather than helping them find clarity within the chaos.

San sometimes felt an urge to hurt the spirits that he helped, especially when they were douchebags like Emery. His fingers itched to call forth the reapers of purgatory, to have the boy suffer for all the hearts he had broken and discarded. But the hedge witch took a deep breath and stopped himself. Although he personally disliked Emery, the boy was not deserving of such a fate. He was a shameless fuckboy, but that was about it. Other spirits had done far worse and been redeemed.

When they reached the end of Emery's memories, where he collapsed onto his dorm room bed and boiled from the inside out, their surroundings became the darkness of the spirit world again, and Emery looked a lot calmer. With a promise from San to give his friends his sports equipment, and to hide the stash of panties beneath his bed from his uncles, Emery crossed into the spiritual plane of light and San's part was over.

He did deposit the sports equipment at the houses of his friends, but he left the panties alone. The ghost could suffer at least that much humiliation for what he did to Aurora.

By the time San came home, he was too exhausted for dinner. He slumped onto the bed fully-clothed, pressing his face into the cool sheets. San wished that Wooyoung would come and leap onto his back, that he would hold him until he fell asleep. But the chaos witch was mad at him, and they hadn't slept in the same room for days. He knew it was too much to ask.

He must have drifted off to sleep, because when he came to, there was a familiar weight on his back; the very one he had wished for. Wooyoung nuzzled into the nape of San's neck, inhaling his sweet scent. San looked over his shoulder, trying to catch a glimpse of his suddenly clingy boyfriend.

"Woo," San greeted, boneless and warm all over. "I missed you."

Wooyoung hummed, pressing kisses into San's neck. "I know. I'm sorry."

"Will you stay this time?" He asked the chaos witch, wondering if he would wander off into the night like he often did to practice magic. Some of the most chaotic things in life happened at night after all.

Wooyoung unglued himself from San's back, trying to get more comfortable. He landed on the side of the bed closest to the wall, the side where it would be impossible to escape without waking up San. "I'm not going anywhere." He rubbed a comforting hand across San's back, lulling him back to sleep.

San settled onto his arms with a smile, falling asleep to the gentle rhythm of his boyfriend's humming.

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