♊︎Year 5067, Month 8, Day 8, Time 4:22 am♊︎
☯︎︎
"Wake up," A soft whisper makes its way to his ear, having the opposite effect of what it wants him to do. "San, please, wake up. We have to get going." The source of the voice nudges him gently, successfully stirring him awake.
San's eyes flutter open to the empty spot on the bed next to him and wrinkled sheets, the thoughts of last night coming back to him now that he's escaped the endless abyss of sleep. Craning his neck over his shoulder, he realized that Kurenai was the one waking him up. At some point, Kurenai, who was just in his arms, traded her spot with the pillow he's now hugging close to him. San huffs, his lips pushing out into a pout and his brows pinching up.
"What time is it?"
"4:22 am," Kurenai answers, helping him sit upright so that he doesn't mess up his stitches. San groans as he sits up, holding onto Kurenai's arms a little while longer which makes her crouch down between his legs.
"How long have you been up?" San yawns, the drowsy effects of sleep still keeping a tight grip on him.
"Maybe like an hour before I woke you up, but you were so deep in sleep that I thought I'd let you rest a little while longer." Kurenai smiles up at him even though he frowns, setting her hands on his thighs to balance herself.
"You're the one that needs to rest more than me." San chides, lifting a hand to run it through Kurenai's hair where the small traces of her earlier shower remain.
"You're right." Kurenai sighs, giving his thighs a small squeeze and standing up straight. "I woke up with a terrible headache. I'm just not sure if it's from the cosmopolitans I had, the fighting I did, or the impact of those memories."
"Probably a mixture." San guesses, cracking a smile. The tattooed woman keeps her smile, her eyes drifting to her feet with her hands on her hips. She jumps into action a moment after, moving around the room and looking for some new, clean bandages for the mulleted man.
"Anyways, how's your back?" She queries, finding a fresh roll of bandage wrap and ushering San over to the stool. He gets up, his face contorting into a grimace as he moves, still not completely healed.
"It still hurts but it's not like yesterday." He tells her, taking a seat on the stool and pulling his shirt over his head. "How's your lip and thigh?"
"My thigh is healing pretty well, as for my lip..." she drawls, undoing the bandages on his back. "It would be better if you hadn't kissed me so hard yesterday." Detecting the playful lilt in her tone, San smirks as he looks over his shoulder.
"Are you calling me a bad kisser?" He plays along, waiting for her to finish with the bandages.
"I never said that, but if the shoe fits," She shrugs innocently, finishing up the last knot and squeezing his shoulder. Kurenai walks around him until she's standing in front, both her hands behind her back and her head tilted to the side. "Does the shoe fit?"
"Why don't we see? People usually say second's a charm." Smugly wrapping his arms around her waist, he pulls her into a quick kiss that arouses loud giggles in both of them. San can feel her smiling into the kiss, both her hands resting on either side of his face even when she pulls back. "So?"
"Yeah, a terrible kisser," Kurenai scrunches up her nose, a huge smile decorating her features. It's genuine, warm, and carefree, something San rarely gets to see on her these days. Resting his chin on her shoulder, he sighs.
"San?" The woman suddenly calls and he hums in response. "I have a question... about one of your tattoos." San looks up at Kurenai, their faces only a couple of inches apart.
"Ask away."
" 'In Perpetuum te Unum Diem' what does it mean to you?" She doesn't hesitate to ask, making San chuckle.
"Literally translated, it means 'Forever and a Day,' but to me, it's our saying. Our promise to each other." He explains, his answer lining up with what she learned from her memory revival. "To stay with each other 'Forever and a Day'." He leans back and lifts his right arm to show off his tattoo, letting Kurenai's fingers skim over the inked skin. "We both got it tattooed on us—."
"After we passed the Subject Proficiency Test to become one of Meister's official Subjects," Kurenai recalls, feeling that specific memory bubble up in her mind. "You were such a crybaby at the tattoo parlor, I had to hold your hand the whole time." She laughs, San following along with a bashful smile. "I don't remember where I got mine, though."
"You got yours..." San moves his hands to her hips, looking up at her for permission and she nods, lifting the oversized shirt she had on. "Here. On your hip bone." Tugging the edge of her spandex down a little, San reveals the tattoo there, the wording and font being a replica of his. It's crazy to Kurenai that she's lived with it this long and doesn't even remember it until now.
Kurenai opens her mouth to ask something else when the door to San's room suddenly opens to reveal the youngest member of their team standing at the doorway, frozen and wide-eyed. San and Kurenai both turn to each other perplexed, turning back to face the younger man when he clears his throat.
"Did I, uh, Am I interrupting something?"
"No? Why would you—?" San stops mid-sentence when he realizes the position he and Kurenai are in with her standing between his legs and his hand holding down the side of her spandex. They both seem to realize this at the same time, pulling away from each other with flushed faces and racing hearts.
"We— we were just talking." Kurenai attempts to clear the air but somehow makes it a million times worse when Jongho bites down on his lip to hold back his laughter.
"Right."
"I-Is there something you need?" San changes topics, desperately trying to move on.
"Yes, actually. I brought breakfast. It's downstairs."
"Oh, thanks. We'll be right there." San expressed his gratitude, waiting for Jongho to leave before jumping into action. "We should head down before he starts to talk."
"Yes, yes, of course. Don't forget to throw on a shirt." Kurenai reminds him, getting a head start to the dining room.
She strolls out of the room and down the hall that leads to the stairs, looking around at the pine-green colored wallpaper that covers the walls of the hall. A large array of pictures she hadn't noticed on her way up decorate them, their shiny golden frames and glass covers catching her attention.
Pictures of an old couple who Kurenai assumes to be San's grandparents are displayed, their large smiles and crescent eyes warming her heart. Among this vast collection are photos of a child with cat-like eyes and cute little dimples on either cheek. Moments of this child's life from him playing in a sandbox to him graduating from middle school are frozen in time, kept safely behind the glass covers in single shots.
Kurenai smiles to herself, looking back to see the grown man that the child in the photos had become. He walks over to her with the same ever-warming, dimpled smile.
"I had forgotten about these pictures." He muses when he arrives where she is at the top of the staircase. "My grandparents loved pictures. Me, not so much."
"Oh, but you look so adorable in them." Kurenai teases, nudging his ribs and getting ushered down the stairs by San.
"Yeah, yeah. Hurry up and get down the stairs, would you?" He complains, walking behind her as she descends. They both chat about the photos up until they get to the opening on the bottom floor where they're met with Jongho and Olivia sitting down at the dining table.
San continues walking toward the couple, leaving Kurenai to stand to the side as she searches the room for the pink-haired woman that should be here.
"Jongho, where's Juniper?" Kurenai finally vocalizes the thought, both her eyebrows drawn together. Jongho swallows the food in his mouth, covering his mouth with his hand to answer.
"She left with a purple-haired man named Vael. Apparently, she'd texted him her location and he came by to pick her up for business purposes. Either way, she told me to tell you that she left you a note in the microwave." The mechanic points at the small machine, going right back to eating his food.
The other people resume their conversation, only San keeping an eye on Kurenai as she walks over to the microwave to retrieve the letter. Once there, Kurenai takes out a white piece of lined paper folded in three and opens it ever so carefully.
Her eyes skim over the delicate handwriting on the paper, taking in its information as quickly as possible.
"What's wrong?" San asks from the seat across from Jongho and Olivia, noticing how hard she's staring at the paper and quirking an eyebrow in her direction. Kurenai slowly lifts her head, her eyes still glued to the letter even a couple of seconds after she's fully lifted her head.
"She had to leave with Vael to scout the ruins of The Succubus. It was leveled by MALUS." The tattooed woman pokes her cheeks with her tongue, her eyebrows furrowing even deeper than before.
"Oh, that's terrible." Olivia expresses, concern laced into her expression. "Did she say anything else?"
"Mm, that's all she mentioned about The Succubus. She also says that she'll be stopping by our dorms in the next two days to give us the information I had asked for. Besides that, there's nothing else of any substance." Kurenai summarizes, leaving out the more personal contents in the letter that included an apology for Juniper's words the night before.
Clearing her throat and stuffing the paper into the pocket of the oversized flannel she's wearing, Kurenai pushes the letter and its words out of her mind to sit down and enjoy her breakfast. San pulls her chair out for her and she grins in return.
"So," San begins, diving right back into his prior conversation with Jongho. "How long have you two known each other?"
While unpacking her platter of pancakes and eggs, Kurenai looks up at the couple across from her curiously, invested in this topic.
"For about 3 years, I wanna say. We met because I accidentally crashed into her car while on an assignment." Jongho sheepishly rubs the back of his neck, glancing at Olivia who's smiling brightly at him in reminiscence.
"I remember that. I was late for an interview with Max to get admitted into the research program he was working on at the time."
"Wait, does that mean you weren't a MALUS subject when you met?" Kurenai questions, taking the first bite of her food.
"Yeah, I still wasn't a subject until a year later, and by that time Jongho and I..." The girl trails off, giving Kurenai a wistful smile. Kurenai nods, stuffing more food into her mouth. "It doesn't really matter, though. Now that Max is dead and all." Olivia continues, playing with her food.
Kurenai almost chokes on her food, swallowing it down harshly and coughing multiple times which prompts San to rub her back worriedly. San and Jongho meet eyes for a split second, realizing why Kurenai reacted this way.
"I-I'm sorry. Did I— Did I say something wrong?" Olivia apologizes and San waves her off with a comforting smile.
"No, no. You're perfectly fine." He assures the cutely-haired woman but she doesn't seem too sure. Finally, Kurenai clears her throat and looks at Olivia, a wave of guilt washing over her as the innocent woman peers back.
"You were under Max." The tattooed woman states more than she asks, like a personal confirmation. "What—?"
"I already know what happened." Olivia interrupts, leaving Kurenai with a boatload of confusion. The former looks down at her plate, pushing her food aside lazily with her fork. "Jongho told me how Max died. He told me you... you know." Olivia brings two fingers to her temple to mimic a gun and makes a popping sound with her mouth.
"Olivia, I'm so sorry. I never— I didn't want to hurt his subjects with what I did. It was never my intention. It wasn't even why I visited him." Kurenai looks down at her lap, too ashamed to look the woman in her eye. San slides a hand into hers, giving her a small but comforting squeeze.
"Did he tell you to?" Olivia digs, her voice coming out small. Kurenai only manages a nod, pressing her lips together into a thin line and closing her eyes. She expects Olivia to lash out, to kick and scream and shout, but her next words surprise them all. "Thank you."
"What?" Kurenai's head shoots up to look at Olivia, looking for any signs of anger or sarcasm but only finding a genuine, self-less smile.
"Thank you for doing it. Max... He was acting differently these last few months. He was even more distressed and paranoid than usual. It hurt to see him that way." Olivia sniffs, clenching a napkin with one hand. "Now, he can rest. Peacefully, I hope. Thanks to you."
The curly-haired woman quickly dabs at her eyes, blinking several times before going back to eating as if nothing happened.
It was an unexpected reaction, strange even, but at least it took a bit of the heavy burden in her heart away.
☯︎
Sneaking back in was a lot of things, but the one thing it wasn't was easy. At least, not when you lived with trained assassins like these.
It had been about an hour since they left San's old house, arriving at their dorms just before sunrise. They expected everyone to be asleep as they crept in through the underground garage to avoid the Main Street cameras. After successfully parking the car in Jongho's garage, the two pairs split off in different directions. Jongho and Olivia headed up to the dorms while San and Kurenai sneakily made their way to Kurenai's temporary room.
What they didn't expect to find as they made their way over and opened the door, was the people waiting inside.
"Where have you two been?" A gruff voice speaks up from inside the room, belonging to none other than their favorite bombs expert.
"Yeosang?" Kurenai asks, getting temporarily blinded as the man in question turns on the lights suddenly. When her vision focused again, she notices that there are two other men on either side of Yeosang. "What are you guys doing in my room—?"
"Aht, aht, aht! Yeosang asked first." Wooyoung, who's standing to Yeosang's left, interrupts.
"We went out," Kurenai answers stiffly, but it's not enough to satisfy their curiosities.
"Where to, exactly?" Yunho pitches in this time, standing on Yeosang's left. Kurenai huffs, rolling her eyes when San answers for her.
"We went to The Succubus. Kurenai had a contact there and I joined her to meet them."
"But..." Yeosang draws out, expecting something more.
"But while there, we were ambushed by MALUS. There was an undercover MALUS guard posted at the entrance. My best bet is that the Meisters started planting agents in places they know I'd go to in search of asylum." Kurenai moves on over to her bed, noticing the large black bag on her bed and eyeing it before she lays down with a sigh. "Getting out of there was hell."
"Wait, you're telling us you ran into MALUS and escaped?! Just you two? And with no injuries!" Wooyoung exclaims, his pitch hurting Kurenai's ears.
"Well, we had my contact's help and Jongho, who we ran into there. I also got pretty banged up. I have a cut on my thigh that'll add in just nicely to my scar collection." Kurenai gives them all a tight-lipped smile. "San seems to be competing with me considering he earned himself a sizable injury on his lower back. Nothing fatal, though."
"Did he act like he was dying?" Yunho pokes fun making the man they're talking about frown.
"Oh, you should've seen him! I had to carry him out of the building while injured myself." Kurenai goes along with the joke, smirking playfully at San who shakes his head.
"Yeah, yeah. Say what you want. Only I know how I felt in that moment." San defends himself, crossing his arms over his chest. "And for the record, I felt like I was dying."
"Drama King!" Wooyoung dismisses the man's defense, walking over him and wrapping a hand around his neck. "Well, whatever you two were doing or not at The Succubus," The tattoo artist makes an effort of stressing where they were. "I'm taking San to get a thorough checkout with Seonghwa. See ya!"
The younger man pulls San away, ignoring his protests and complaints of wanting to stay by Kurenai's side a little while longer. Kurenai watches them go, unknowingly staring with a smile that's a little too fond— something that Yeosang and Yunho catch onto.
"Ahem," Yeosang clears his throat, grabbing the woman's attention with a start. "So, you went to The Succubus with San." He starts once he's sure the mulleted man is out of earshot. Kurenai scowls, not enjoying what he's implying.
"We told you already. We went because I had a contact. He wasn't supposed to go originally, but I dragged him along so that he didn't get a chance to run back and warn you all of my whereabouts."
"That's reasonable." Yunho decides after a moment, twirling a pen in his hand. "But it's hard to believe that's all you two did considering the red marks going down your neck, his oversized clothes you're wearing, and the way you keep looking at him."
A hand flies to her neck, covering up the hickeys the taller man was talking about as the blood drains from her face in embarrassment. That embarrassment soon turns into anger when she hears both Yunho and Yeosang laughing at her flustered state.
"Haha, you're hilarious." She sarcastically states, standing up and walking over to the small mirror atop one of the cabinets in the room to check the spots the men were talking about. And they were right when they said they were noticeable.
A small trail of red bruises run down from her jaw to her collarbone and even a little further under the flannel. Thoughts of what happened between her and San last night fill up her mind and she curses the man in her head for leaving her so marked up.
"That idiot," she mumbles under her breath though it holds no venom. Turning to the men who were watching her watch herself, she sets both hands on her hips and pokes her cheek with her tongue. "I'm guessing you're now going to use this as blackmail. Am I right, Kang Yeosang?"
"That would be correct." Yeosang nods, making her scoff.
"Well, then. What do you wanna know?" She gives in quickly, trying to avoid involving more people in her romantic life.
"I wanna know who you were meeting and what information you were planning to get from them." He lays out his terms with no sugarcoating, just the way Kurenai liked.
"Fine." She surrenders, leaning back on the cabinet the mirror was on. "I was going to meet Lady Succubus, the woman that runs or ran The Succubus. She was going to give me info on Candy's whereabouts."
"Candy's whereabouts?" Yeosang echoes, shooting up out of the chair he was sitting on and turning back to look at Yunho who was just as intrigued as him. "What did she tell you? What did she find? Did you find Candy?"
"Yeosang, slow your ass down. Let the poor woman talk." Yunho sets a hand atop Yeosang's shoulder, calming him even just for a moment.
"She wasn't able to tell me because when I finally made a deal with her on what I would give her in return for the information, we were attacked." Kurenai sees Yeosang's shoulders slump, an action that twists Kurenai's stomach. "Luckily, she told me she'd come by later to give me the information we agreed on. It includes Candy's whereabouts."
"Seriously? Are you sure she's trustworthy?" Yeosang's spirit lifts a little, easing the tension in the room.
"I'm sure," Kurenai assures the man, walking over to him and setting a hand on his shoulder. "We'll get her back soon, Yeosang. I promise." Yeosang moves his hand up to place it over Kurenai's, the edges of his lips tilting up slightly at her promise.
"Thank you." He casts his eyes down, moving them toward Yunho afterward as if waiting for something which strikes Kurenai as odd. Yunho looks just as lost as she does at first, soon realizing what the other man wants.
"Oh, yes! Mingi left me an envelope for you before he went off to work. He also said he left something for you in that trunk over there." The tall man points with a nimble finger to a treasure trunk resting against the end of Kurenai's bed. He hands her the envelope as well, stepping back next to Yeosang as both men wait for her to open the envelope. "That's what we originally came down here to deliver to you when we found out you had run away."
Kurenai eyes them suspiciously, wondering what the hell they're planning as she turns the envelope over and finds no ink marks. Getting drawn in by her curiosity, she opens the covering to reveal a creme-colored parchment inside of it with an elegant cursive that belongs to none other than MALUS' rising Model, Song Mingi.
"So what is it?" Yunho asks eagerly, looking just as nosy as Yeosang. Kurenai takes out the creme-colored paper, reading the words in cursive:
𝓓𝓲𝓷𝓷𝓮𝓻 @ 𝓛'𝓔𝓷𝓭𝓻𝓸𝓲𝓽
𝓣𝓸𝓶𝓸𝓻𝓻𝔀, 7𝓹𝓶
𝓟.𝓢. 𝓒𝓱𝓮𝓬𝓴 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓣𝓻𝓾𝓷𝓴!
Quickly, the tattooed woman moves towards the trunk, placing the invitation on her bed and clicking the locks open to lift the top, inside of the trunk lies a moderately large round box. It's pink in color and glossy with a red ribbon tied around it. Taking the box out of where it was stuffed in the trunk, Kurenai sets it on top of the trunk after she closes it, untying the ribbon and sliding off the box's lid. Just as she had expected, inside the box lies a designer dress too expensive for her pockets. A treat from Mingi, as always.
"Kurenai, what's wrong—?"
"He's inviting me to dinner tomorrow night," Kurenai informs the two other men, her voice staying as flat as possible to not let out any sign of what she feels. Yeosang sighs when he hears her announcement and Yunho whistles, clicking his tongue right after with a shake of his head. "I knew this would happen."
"What would happen?" Yeosang presses, crossing his arms as he leans further back on his chair.
"This!" Kurenai flails her arm in the box's direction, setting her hand on her hips with a troubled look. "I told him I wanted to cut everything between us off before I came into the team, but I got drunk one night and we made out and then I got black listed and now—."
"Now, he thinks you two have a chance." Yeosang finalizes, as keen as ever. "Then, what's holding you back?"
Kurenai glances at Yeosang and then at Yunho, battling on whether she wants to delve into the topic. She's also not sure how much she can say considering Mingi's best friend is in the room.
"It's San, isn't it?" Yunho suddenly pulls Kurenai out of her inner thoughts, surprising her. "The team has noticed you two getting rather... close. Mingi was worried you'd leave him for San which looks like the case now."
"Ughhh!" Kurenai groans, throwing herself down on her bed to stare up at the ceiling. "I told him! I told him we were done and he—!" She pauses. "I messed up. I gave him mixed signals."
"Kurenai, what the hell happened while you were out?" Yeosang querries again, sternly this time. "San was staring at you as if you were his only reason to live and you were in lalaland as well, so, please, for the love of god, cut me the crap and tell me what the heck happened."
"I—," She pauses, pressing her lips together. "I think I may have regained my memory." Both men's jaws drop to the floor at that instant, their eyes expressing no other emotion besides total shock.
"But I thought you said every time you tried remembering, something would block it off?" Yunho reminds her of her words, unable to process what she's saying.
"Yes, I know what I said, but I regained them somehow. Not all of them, though, only my memories with San."
"Now, how does that work?" Yeosang asks, somewhat skeptical.
"I think there's a trigger, some action I make or place I go to that awakens these memories." She gives her hypothesis, looking back and forth between the men when she sees their uncertainty. "I know this sounds crazy, heck, even I wouldn't believe myself! But you have to believe me."
There's a long pause.
"Kurenai, I don't know what it is you are going through or what's happening to you, but I do know that our Meisters aren't exactly transparent either," Yeosang states with a grim expression, his eyes portraying a look of betrayal hidden by mounds of resentment.
"Yeosang, what are you trying to say—?"
"The Meisters have lied to us. In more ways than one. They've lied to us about our value. They've lied to us about our pasts. And they lie to us about our present." Yeosang cuts Yunho off.
"But they've given us life. They've given you life. Don't you remember your life before all of this? It was falling apart and the Meisters saved you!"
"The Meisters saved me?" Yeosang scoffs, looking over at Yunho with blazing eyes. His voice steadily rises with every syllable that falls past his lips. "They might have saved you from the hell you were living but they sure as hell didn't save me!"
"Except they did!" Yunho's voice rises as well to meet Yeosang's. The sudden turn of aggression that their conversation took was beginning to alarm Kurenai.
"Guys, c'mon. There's a better way to settle this than by yelling your asses off at each other."
"No! No, please, Yunho, enlighten me on how much the Meisters have done for us! Go on!" Yeosang mocks, angering the taller man.
"My childhood was hell. My dad was an alcoholic and my mother had left me and my siblings to rot with that bastard. He rarely worked, only when he got his ass sober enough to get up and do something, but he'd just spend it all on his freaking addiction. We were dirt poor because of him, living in the slums of Answer district while I busted my ass off to bring back at least a buck for bread." Yunho's eyes begin to tear up. "Then, one day I was saved and taken out of that hell-hole I called home, and do you know who it was that took me out of there? Ursula-Freaking-Pathway!"
"She saved you for what?! To live a life of high crime which you were so desperately trying to get out of? To make you work for murderous psychopaths that will kill you if you stop doing their bidding?" Yeosang's veins threaten to burst out of his neck from how hard he's yelling at the taller man. Yunho fumes where he stands with his hands clenched at his sides, gathering up every ounce of self-control in his body to keep from beating the man before him.
"I did what I had to do to protect my siblings." Yunho reels in his anger, leveling his voice.
"Yeah? And where are they now? Do you even know?"
"That's not fair--."
"Open your eyes, Yunho! For goodness sake, Open them!" Yeosang trembles as he shouts at the top of his lungs. "You don't even know how they are much less where they are! You can't keep living off of every word The Duchess says! They could be dead for all you knoa!" The younger man pauses, noticing the tension in the other's shoulders. "Wake your blind-ass up, Yunho. The Meisters... they're not on our side anymore."
The taller man casts his eyes down, the tension in his shoulder dissipating the longer the three of them remain in silence. It feels like an eternity has passed before someone makes a move and it's Yunho, freeing himself from how planted his feet were on the floor and moving past Kurenai and Yeosang to exit the room wordlessly. Slamming the door behind him, he leaves the other two alone.
Kurenai cranes her neck to stare at the door, only hearing as Yeosang slumps down in his chair defeatedly. Turning back to him, she chews on her bottom lip and thinks of what to say but to no avail. Thankfully, Yeosang finds the words to fill the empty and awkward air around them.
"I'm sorry you had to hear that." He apologizes; his head hanging between his shoulders, using his thighs to prop his elbows on. "I just— I wish he'd see other his own eyes, you know. He and Wooyoung are both so... blinded. They have no idea what kind of people the Meisters truly are."
"Yeah," Kurenai agrees, hugging her stomach as a shiver slithers down her spine to remind her of the scars Evan has left her with. "I wish they'd see, too."
Yeosang sighs, resting his back against his chair and taking a lighter out of his pocket, a metal one. He clicks in on and off, staring at it intently as if the tiny fire the lighter lights will burn his worries away.
"Who's is that?" The question slips past her lips, stopping the man mid-way of his turning the lighter on. He purses his lips.
"Evan's." He answers with a steady voice, going back to turning the lighter on and off. Never once had she seen him using it in the time they've known each other, so it was odd seeing him use it now as if it were a daily thing.
"Didn't take you for a smoker." She jokes and Yeosang's lip draws into a small smile.
"Neither did I." He chuckles softly, his eyebrows creasing soon after. "This was the first present Evan gave me after I moved in with him. I was only 10 at the time." He closes the lighter sharply, closing his hand around the object as if he wanted to crush it. "Do you know why he gave it to me?"
"Mm, no. You've never told me. Heck, I didn't even know you owned a fancy metal lighter." Something in Kurenai's gut twists, an ominous feeling preparing her for whatever truth is about to spill past Yeosang's lips.
"He gave it to me as a reminder. A token of his mercy towards me. Or maybe it's his way of taunting me, I'll never know. I do know that it was a lighter just like this one that he used to set my house on fire." Yeosang pauses, waiting for it to sink in. "It's sick."
"Yeosang—."
"Evan killed my parents but the coward didn't have the balls to kill me, and I swore since the day I found out that I'd pay him back for making me lose everything I loved. That was the reason I joined. The reason I decided to let him take me under his hideous wing to train me so that I could— so that I could see him die." Tears collect at his eyes, some beginning to overflow. "But it seems that once again he and the Meisters have taken everything I love from me."
His words nick at Kurenai's skin, hitting way too close to home. These people— these monsters— have taken everything away from them. Their lives, their youth, their dreams, and their futures. How much more are they willing to let the Meisters take away from them?
How much longer will Kurenai wait until MALUS takes away the things she lives once more?
They've e already done it once and with Candy's situation she knows they wouldn't hesitate to do it again.
And again.
And again.
Until she's left with no one to love and nothing to hope for. Because that's the fate of MALUS subjects. That's the fate of everyone in her team.