Blackthorn Manor

Part 5

If you were stopping to consider the facts, you might find them odd. Might find it strange that you are not flailing about, that you seem to know exactly where you are going. You run on instinct, relying on a sense you cannot feel – it is only at the edge of the wood that you slow. Dripping evergreens tower over you, spiny firs reaching up towards the clouds – their wobbly fingers scratch at the sky, as though they might strike.

This is when you turn to stare up at the lawn.

Far away, the manse sits on the hill. A sliver of light spills onto grass, warm and secure and for a moment, you consider turning back. If you did, no one would know. You could return, brew yourself a cup of tea and fall asleep in your bed. When Seokjin eventually arrives, you could pretend not to know about Yoongi – but then you stiffen. Yoongi.

Resolve hardened, you plunge into the forest. Branches whip your face, pushing you back as you shove on through darkness. It is difficult to see and you fall several times, making your way through the muck. Soon, blood and bruises coat the length of your limbs; the red mixes with rain, streaming down skin to fall flat on the floor.

While you search, time itself seems to slow. It could be minutes, hours, seconds before you come upon the edge of a clearing. You hover, stopped by the circular space you stand before – too perfect to be natural. At the center of said circle are two figures. Or, only one of them is standing; the other one kneels, helpless before the feet of the first.

It stares at its captor, seeking mercy but even as an outsider, you know the attempt to be futile. There is no love, no emotion in the other one's stance – that much is obvious when lightning strikes from above.

It illuminates the expression of the first, making you gasp and recoil. You recognize that man.

Min Yoongi.

Yoongi is the attacker here, not the one on the ground – you were wrong, you realize and as soon as you do, you notice the knife in his hand. Yoongi moves fast, stepping forward to grasp the man by his collar. The other is pulled upwards and Yoongi snarls, livid while plunging the knife into his throat. You gasp, turning away to retch into your palms.

The scream the other makes is – alarming. The sound is too high, too alien to be human and when you turn to look, what you see is confusing. On the ground where the victim once knelt, something clutches his throat but – now that you see him, you are uncertain whether to call it a man. With its head thrown back and mouth agape, you can see only shadow. Stark, swirling darkness, just like the shadows you saw earlier this morning at breakfast.

Your blood turns to ice, feet rooted in mulch. The shadows are visible for only a moment before the thing collapses again, twitching hard on the dirt. Yoongi does not move, knife still held aloft – the length of it is gleams, silver in his hand. You realize why he stays vigilant when the creature (whom you thought previously dead), inhales suddenly to launch itself at Yoongi's chest.

Yoongi whirls around, grasping the thing by its neck. He stabs – once, twice, three times – through the thing's heart. Or, where you imagine its heart would be, since the result is that the thing roughly explodes. There is no better word for it – one moment it exists and the next, the entire clearing is splattered with a foul, black substance. You gasp, turning away – but not fast enough to escape the full wrath.

The stench is horrid, full of rot and decay, as though the seedy underbelly of earth has been given life. Tremblingly, your fingers wipe at your face and when you pull them away, you stare to ascertain it is real. Turning your hand over and over before you, you forget for a moment that you are not alone.

Yoongi clears his throat.

Head snapping upwards, your stomach sinks as you realize the danger. Yoongi stands before you the clearing, slowly cleaning his knife. The weapon is the only clean part about him, since the rest of his skin is now splattered with blood.

"So," he exhales, low. "What are you doing here, Y/N. Why are you here, alone in the woods?"

Not knowing how to respond, you take a careful step backwards. Keeping your face expressionless, only your eyes move while you survey the clearing. You are searching for an out, any way out – and Yoongi's lip curls, because he sees the same thing that you do.

The only way out is through him.

"You..." Your voice is only a whisper, barely a croak. "You killed him."

Yoongi shrugs, almost bored. "Not him, it. I killed it."

Licking your lips, you stare at the speckled matter on the ground. "And what," you manage to ask, "was it?"

"A demon."

Eyes widening, your gaze snaps upwards. "A... what?"

"A demon," Yoongi repeats, taking a casual step forward.

Tonight, Yoongi is not dressed in his usual ensemble. Gone are the heavy sweaters and in their place he wears some sort of gear – leather and cloth which must be waterproof, judging by the storm. Gone, too are his glasses – he looks good, you realize. Really good. Wincing, you berate yourself for thinking this. It is improper and has no bearing upon the moment.

Indeed, when his gaze lifts to yours, Yoongi is undeniably angry. "You were warned not to enter the forest," he says, examining his knife. "I warned you. I told you it was for your own good and still, you left. You disobeyed me and followed. Why?"

It seems clear Min Yoongi expects a response and, although you are not pleased with the method of interrogation – he is the one holding a knife. "I heard a scream," you say honestly. "I heard someone scream and I thought it was you."

"Me?" Yoongi seems surprised by this, as though whatever he thought you might say, it was not that. "Why would you think that?"

"Well," you say, trying to refrain from the obvious. "We live alone on the hill. The scream I heard was male, so I put two and two together."

"Ah." Yoongi nods, lips pressed tightly together. It is probably your imagination, but he seems almost disappointed again. "I see. Your logic was flawed, then. It led you to the wrong conclusion because you made the assumption that we are alone on this hill."

"Are we not?" you ask, uncertain why your voice drops.

Yoongi tilts his head. He is not a very tall man, but there is a way he carries himself which makes him imposing.

"Haven't you ever wondered," he says, taking another step forward. "Why this place always seems dark? Why it is always so cold? Why," he continues, barely a hair's breadth away, "I live all alone? Have you not wondered why my family has lived here like this for thousands of years?"

Thousands. Mind buzzing, you do not point out the obvious fact that your kind have not occupied this land for thousands of years.

"This land is built on a schism," Yoongi explains, cocking a brow. "We stand on a crack between worlds, an entryway between good and evil. This place," he adds, seeing your frown, "is where dark comes to life and the paranormal is normal."

When you continue to stare, not comprehending, he smiles.

"It is where demons appear," Yoongi whispers, almost sensual. "It is where I live so that I, a demon hunter, can kill them."

"You're a – a what?" you stammer, unable to look away.

"A demon hunter," Yoongi affirms, sliding his knife through his belt. "Which leaves me with just one question, Y/N."

This seems an oversimplification. Already, you have several questions to ask and it has only been five minutes since his explanation. If what Min Yoongi says is true, it means the world as you know it has come to an end. Or rather, the world as you knew it never existed at all.

Somehow, this makes you feel the rain and cold once again. "What is the question?" you ask past trembling lips.

Yoongi tilts his head. "The advertisement I wrote, the one you called me to answer. It was written in a language only demons and demon hunters can understand. Which begs the question, Y/N," he murmurs, bending low to your face. "Which of the two are you?"

Author's Note: Hello! This is a one shot. I will not be writing more in this universe.