after jungkook goes out of his way to help a sickly-looking stranger on a rainy night, the universe chooses to reward him in the most bizarre and unexpected way possible - with a nest of overprotective vampire sugar-daddies.
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When Jungkook next opens his eyes, there's no trace of the debilitating migraine that had plagued him since the early hours of the morning. He still feels tired, but the bone-deep exhaustion has lessened significantly and the fogginess in his brain has receded, leaving him free to think clearly for the first time in what seems like decades.
His eyelids feel a little sticky, and he blinks a few times, trying to get his vision to focus properly. There's an unfamiliar ceiling above him (covered in...green moss and tiny white flowers, for some reason), and it takes him a moment to recall the events of the afternoon, feeling a twinge of belated embarrassment as he remembers the whole fainting-in-front-of-Tae's-nestmates thing. It's only a little twinge, though, because the memory of how gently they'd all cared for him in the aftermath fills his chest with fluttering warmth all over again.
Jungkook turns his head, enjoying how pain-free the movement is now that his migraine has finally gone, eyes scanning his surroundings. Even though his headache has abated, he's grateful for the dim lighting – his eyes still feel tired and scratchy, despite his recent catnap. There aren't any ceiling lights (although to be honest, it's a little hard to tell with all that moss), the spacious area illuminated by a single standing lamp over in the far corner. He seems to be in some sort of examination room, similar in style to a couple of the healer-clinics that Jungkook's grandparents had taken him to as a kid. There's modern medical technology dotted around here and there (a wall-mounted computer, an ECG machine, something that might be a blood gas analyser) but there are also multiple bookshelves lined with leather-bound tomes, dozens of little glass jars filled with various herbs and tinctures, and bunches of dried plants strung up in a neat row along the far wall. The room smells faintly sweet - lemon grass, mint, lavender, and a dozen other barely-perceptible scents that soothe his nose - and Jungkook breathes it in deeply, feeling his strength return with every fragrant inhale.
It's been years since he last went to a healer. Being mostly human, he tends to use the nearby hospital on the rare occasions that he does get sick or needs a check-up. Healer clinics are usually catered more towards Faes and Were-folk and Shifters, basically all non-human races. Not that regular hospitals can't handle any and all medical emergencies regardless of species, but often the illnesses that affect humans differ greatly to that of other beings, and each species' unique physiology means that the method of treatment can't simply be a blanket protocol for everyone. Where regular doctors rely predominantly on science and technology to guide their treatment, healers use these tools in conjunction with their own individual talents; specifically, their ability to connect with the earth and its elements, and their innate understanding of herb lore and natural remedies. In many ways, the art of healing is still something of a mystery to those who don't possess the gift, but like all forms of natural magic it's deeply respected by both human and supernatural communities alike.
"Kookie?"
There's movement from a shadowy corner near the door, and Jungkook's gaze flickers over to where Taehyung is unfolding himself from his curled-up position in a small leather armchair. The vampire's eyes meet his gaze, and a relieved smile blooms quickly as he crosses the room in a few brisk strides to perch on the edge of Jungkook's examination bed, a hand splaying gently over the younger man's sternum.
