Poison and Bane

3. Saturdays are for Stakeouts.

"Enough with the respect, now tell me what you messed up this time."

Vangard had assigned a junior to each one of us so-called efficient hunters, at the beginning of the year. Kids that had just been enrolled into the program.

You needed to stand out to be a part of the Hunter clan. Something that links you to the supernatural and this kid had nothing. To top it, I had got him out of the entire bunch. Van thinks I can break him, break his core out from under his layers of awkwardness and fear. Somehow, where I was involved, Van's instincts ran haywire.

I had succeeded in nothing for the past half year with the kid. Except for covering up for me when I was sick or AWOL, there was nothing he was exceptionally good at.

I still hadn't told Van about it, but I didn't think he would make it through. I didn't say anything because that would mean I was giving up, and I wasn't a quitter. Not because I felt bad for the kid and wanted to try to help him. Nope that wasn't it.

"Sunbae-nim, believe me when I say none of this was my fault. I was practicing just like you had instructed me to. I was following your schedule as it was, but then Team Leader saw me practising alone and asked for you. I couldn't come up with a lie soon enough, and he was already walking off to complain about you, so I..."

Young Dong Woo was really pushing it now.

"Enough. Is that why you're standing out here, instead of following on your training like you're supposed to?"

His eyes widened at my statement. He bowed again, twice.

"Sunbae-nim, I apologise. That's not what I meant to do...."

"Get going now. I don't want to see you slacking. Get to work. And if Team Leader comes asking for me again, just tell him that my private life is private for a reason and that he needs to get one for himself instead of nosing in on other people's."

The boy gaped after me in shock, but hurried along as I walked to the entrance. The sound of people training, blows landing and punching bags creaking filled around me as I entered the centre.

Woo Bin waited with me by the doorway but I gestured for him to go on and he obliged. I looked up to see the lights on in Van's balcony office. The top of his booted feet were visible from being kept upon his desk. There seemed to be no one else there so I proceeded.

"You asked to see me?"

He swivelled around in his easy chair to face me.

"Ah yes, Gwendoline. Were you at your apartment? Aren't you supposed to be training as well?"

"I took the day off. I trained overnight for the past few days and it was catching up to me. I didn't think it would be that big a deal."

Van didn't seem to be listening to me. He was sorting through stuff in his drawer, pulling out papers and stuffing them back until he grabbed a file and slammed it on the desk.

"Got it. Now that you're well rested, you can get back on the field, Gwendoline."

"On the field? Tonight?"

"Yes. Have you lost your hearing as well?"

I gritted my teeth from lashing out at the comment. Van should know better than to doubt my claims and test my temper. The contempt must have been showing because he began to chuckle.

"I'm only joking, Gwendoline. Have a seat. This job calls for you."

"It isn't something to joke about, Van. It was a lycan not a tooth fairy." I remained standing.