Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It's been a long day, Felix can attest to that. Honestly, he should be paid for going to college and getting so much stress, but he's the one paying for it. If the college directors think this is funny, well.

No one's laughing.

He sets his things down on his bed, not caring that the mattress is wrinklier than a ninety-year-old, and heads to the communal kitchen to perhaps get himself a snack. His nose wrinkles; Seungmin is back with that stupid incense thing, insisting it's calming for their stressed and overworked minds. Felix thinks it creates a headache more than anything, but everyone else seems to be good with it, so he lets it be.

When he opens the cupboard, he makes a sound of excitement. Thank goodness, conscientious Hyunjin has remembered it's his turn to do the groceries this week, and it's not wholegrain. Humming in satisfaction Felix grabs the bag and then some jam, spreading it generously over the pre-baked good. True, what Felix really wants is some nice gourmet ham and fresh crisp lettuce, but Seungmin is the one with the money, not him. Hm, maybe he should take Seungmin up on that someday.

As he turns around, something on the floor catches his eye. An eerily perfect circle and a star inside, drawn in rainbow shades of chalk. Felix rolls his eyes. Another artistic expedition by Jisung, he supposes. Wouldn't be the first time something like this has happened, he muses as he stares down at the motif, noting the smooth colour transition and straight lines. Even though Jisung is a dumbass, he's a dumbass who's good at what he does.

The more Felix stares at the circle, the more he’s reminded of what he used to do as a child, jumping into the hopscotch squares and pretending they were protective barriers, whilst shooting off his friends with imaginary bullets which actually didn’t do any harm to them. It was a good memory, of times when everything seemed smaller, less overwhelming. So, giving into his puerile urges, he seats himself in the middle of the circle with a sigh, not giving a fuck if any of his roommates walk in on this scene because they’ve done weirder things themselves. Like that one time Felix walked in on Seungmin screaming about Thomas the Train. That was a weird day.

Felix lets himself relax and invites peace to enter his mind. He’s pretty sure it’s called meditation , but he isn’t a white middle-aged woman, so he just calls it something really nice . He doesn’t remember the last time he’s felt this stress-free, even his dreams are plagued with visions of overdue essays and missed lessons. He can’t count the number of times he’s woken in cold sweat, worrying over a deadline that didn’t even exist. Everything’s just been so overwhelming and sometimes Felix can’t help but feel like he’s being pulled into a sucking, unrelenting vortex of Word documents and crappy convenience store food, left to suffer all alone in his loud solitude-

“Why me.”

Felix startles, eyes flying open at the foreign voice. What the fuck? That’s most definitely not any of his roommates, and he doesn’t recall the door being opened or closed. Damn, is he really that out of sorts? Who the fuck is that?

His questions aren’t really answered when he turns around to find a guy, dressed in all black, slouching and glaring at him through messily coiffed hair. He looks like a typical emo kid that’d sulk at the back of the lecture hall twenty-four-seven, but Felix's nerves tell him that he’s much, much more than just a brooding cynic. That, accompanied with the unfriendly growl in his tone, makes his presence seem intimidating.

They stare at each other for a few heartbeats, Felix still registering the newcomer’s emergence, and the other looking at him coldly, almost as if there’s pure ice in his gaze.

Finally, Felix regains his voice. “Who the fuck are you?” he demands, gathering his hands up into a defensive position, like his martial arts classes had taught him to. He’s pretty sure the forgotten jam sandwich in his right hand ruins the effect, though.

The stranger squints at him, like he’s wondering just how stupid Felix is. (Very much so, FYI, but not enough to not recognise stranger danger.) “Shouldn’t you know that? I’m here to respond to your call,” he huffs. “Frankly, no one can tell what the fuck you want, so I was sent here. Make this quick, I don’t want to make this painful for anybody.”

Felix blinks. “ Call ?” he holds his hands up, the uneaten jam sandwich flopping sadly as if to prove a point. “If you can’t see, I don’t have any phone on me. I only have this stupid sandwich which I intended to eat, before you showed up. How’d you even get here?”

The stranger looks outright outraged at this point. “What do you mean , how did I even get here? Even an idiot would know that Hell’s portals can open anywhere,” he replies scornfully. There’s a fire in his eyes and although it’s metaphorical, Felix’s skin crawls with heat. “The fuck kind of summoner are you?”

Felix is too tired to deal with this shit.

And yet, he tries to force some reason into his cognitive state, just so he can do exactly that. He takes a deep breath and exhales, shifting into a more awake position than hugging his knees. “Look, I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about, but I never intended to summon anybody. I just wanted a sandwich. Let me live, alright?”

The stranger snorts. “I know you meant that ironically, but I just gotta add that I can’t kill my summoner. Not good demon etiquette, ya feel me?” He shoots Felix a crooked grin, and something in Felix’s gut twists the wrong way. The apparent demon’s smile drops after that. “But seriously. What did you summon me for. Demons don’t get summoned to the mortal world unless someone actively reaches out and requests for something for the demon to fulfil. So what do you want done?” He holds a hand up, and even though nothing actually happens, the air becomes charged with dark energy. “I’ll have you know I can do a host of things. Death, money, knowledge, lust,” his voice lowers at the last one, like he’s in a fucking movie or something. “I can do all of it at the snap of the finger.”

“Like Thanos’ snap,” Felix murmurs absentmindedly, watching the demon lower his hand, only to shoot him an annoyed look.

“I hate that movie, everyone down there keeps referencing it and snapping to make random objects disappear, like my toothbrush . I really liked that toothbrush!” the demon ranted, almost childlike anger flashing on his face before the emotionless mask sweeps over it once more. “Alright, on with your request.”

Felix shakes his head slightly, as if that would wake him up from whatever hallucination he’s having. A demon , proffering up his hellish services to an irresponsible socially hazardous college student?

There has to be a nice way we can solve this without me getting hurt, he tells himself. If the demon is as erratic as any genie in the fables, whatever he wishes for will definitely come around to bite him in the ass.

“Uh,” he says, “good grades, I guess?”

The demon smirks, the closest thing to joy appearing on his face since he first appeared, although it looks more like cruel amusement. “Since you’re a first-timer, I’ll give you a chance. First and last warning, kiddo. Be a little more specific, or you’re gonna give me a lotta space to fuck around and not give you shit. I’ll ask you again: what do you want?”

Heck, it’s like Felix is back at a family reunion, all his older relatives asking, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” and Felix wanting to scream, “I DON’T KNOW!” but bullshitting something anyway to make them happy. Except… this has more consequences than just, “oh, I thought you were going to pick a better-paying profession”. No, this can actually yield results to benefit Felix. He feels his breath catch in his lungs. This isn’t good.

“I don’t know!” he confesses before he can stop himself. “I didn’t mean to summon you, I swear! My roommate just drew this stupid star on the ground and I thought it would be fun to sit in it while I ate. I don’t know what I want!”

The demon’s eyebrows draw close together in a frown at that. “Nice attempt to get out of this, but it takes more than just the star to summon us, kid. What about the incense? And the sigil on your shirt? They all point pretty obviously to intentional summoning.”

“What the fuck?” Felix demands to no one in particular. To fate, he supposes. “The incense is another one of my kooky roommates. The sigil on my shirt-” he glances down at his black shirt, one he recognises as getting from a quaint corner shop on a holiday in Europe a few years ago. “-is a fucking souvenir!” He looks back up at the demon almost desperately. “You gotta believe me. I didn’t want any of this to happen. I just wanted to eat my sandwich.”

An aggravated groan rips itself from the demon’s throat, and Felix flinches, fearing even though the demon explicitly stated a minute ago that he can’t kill Felix. The demon glares at the nearest object, which happens to be the kitchen island, his dark eyes glowing like coals until they fade away, and he once again establishes eye contact with a cowardly Felix. “Alright, simple,” he says calmly, too calmly, but Felix will take it. “Eat your sandwich, and I can go back.”

A moment passes. “What?” Felix asks, but the sandwich is already moving towards his mouth and he’s taking a large bite of it. Sue him, he’s a stress eater.

The demon rolls his eyes, as if it’s something terribly obvious. Not to Felix’s sleep-deprived mind, it isn’t!

“You entered the circle with a want in mind,” he explains awfully slowly, which Felix doesn’t mind too much, since his brain could crash any second now from all this insanity. “I come to fulfil that want. As soon as it’s done, the contract terminates and we can go our separate ways. Understand?”

Felix takes the second and final bite of his sandwich. “Bye, then.”

He waits. And waits.

Nothing. Happens.

The demon sighs, running a hand through his bowl cut hair and making it ruffle like tall windblown grass in a meadow. Felix doesn’t know where that imagery came from, all he knows is that now he wants to see this demon in a flower crown. “Chief called and said this ain’t it,” the demon grumbles. Felix’s mind trips over that reference. “Alright, what other hidden desires do you bury so deeply within your soul, waiting to be quenched?”

“Absolutely none?” Felix says. “I mean, I could really go for a nice long nap but-” he raises his arms and waves haphazardly as the demon starts at his statement. “-don’t do that! I have a lecture at 9am tomorrow and oversleeping is the last thing I need right now.”

“Well, make up your mind!” the demon growls. “When your request was received, it was extremely deep-rooted, an unimaginably strong thirst and need for something. Can you start from there?”

Strong thirst? The only thing Felix thirsts for is relief from this cruel and heartless world. Of course, he doesn’t say that aloud, but he feels a ripple of rejection run through his mind, telling him, no, that’s not it, it’s something else .

What is it? he inquires.

Sorry, wrong number , it says back.

Felix exhales and gets up and out of the circle. “Can-” he says haltingly. “-can I sleep on it?” He gives the demon a sheepish smile.

The demon gawks at Felix. “Sleep on it?” he says mockingly. “I suppose so, but where am I gonna stay? As long as I am tied to your soul by summoning contract my physical form can't move from this world, you know.”

“No, I didn't know,” Felix mumbles. “And… oh fun, you’re connected to my soul.”

The demon huffs angrily. Felix’s intrusive thought once again mutters, he actually looks kinda small doing that .

Jeez, gimme a break, would ya? Felix snaps back. I’m trying my best not to get mangled by an entity of hell here.

“If you’re thinking about connected Twilight style, I’m not sorry to disappoint,” the demon grouses. “I just can’t wander the earth freely, I kind of have to be somewhere within your vicinity wherever you are. Curse those pesky witches that figured out binding magic. I can’t even visit any good places in this oversized junkyard!”

Felix is pretty sure the demon is referring to the city he’s currently in, and he can’t frown because he honestly agrees. This place is a real fucking dump. “I mean… if you stay long enough I could bring you places, but it’s the middle of the semester so you’re gonna have to wait a while. And, in the meantime, can't you, I dunno, shapeshift or something? You could be like, and edgy mug or something. I'll say it's from that emo kid at the corner of the lecture theatre.”

Annoyance flares out from the demon's being. “No way,” he growls. “I'm not a fucking tool for your use, I'm a demon, and very much superior to you in every form and fashion. I'm not going to be relegated to a fucking paperweight .”

“Alright! Alright,” Felix holds his hands up in surrender. “Become a raven, then. Or something. I dunno, be a fucking kitty for all I care.” He pauses. “Actually, do become a kitten, Hyunjin's a dog person and he's been stealing my hoodies a lot lately.”

The demon actually bristles at that, and Felix thinks he sees some tendrils of darkness burst from his fingers before retreating as soon as it came. “You can't be serious,” he snaps. “I am not going to be a weak, mewling kitten -”

Felix cuts him off slyly. “What was that saying?” he says, feeling a little cheeky. “My wish is your command?” He bats his eyelashes innocently at the demon.

The demon stops, and there's still major irritation in his eyes as his power relents. “Fucking fine ,” he grits out. “Once this contract is over, I am killing you.”

Before Felix can even feel scared at that declaration, the demon disappears and in front of him instead stands a small, black ball of fur with green eyes, barely the size of both his hands together, looking up at him balefully. All thought of death threats fly out of his mind as he bites his lip to stop himself from cooing, but he can't stop the giggles that ensue.

Motherfucker- a stream of curses in a voice that's not his travels through his mind. His eyes widen. He never thought he'd have such vulgar words in his brain, ever.

“Oh, you can communicate telepathically?”

Like I said, I can do a whole host of things.

“Yeah, including turning into devastatingly adorable kittens!” Felix squeals as he goes to pick the tiny demon up. The cat hisses and Felix sees the flash of metal claws in its paw. He retracts his hand. Definitely a no-no.

“Alright, bedtime,” Felix says happily as he makes his way towards his room, the demon trailing reluctantly behind him, tail flicking every other second. Something strikes Felix's mind as he reaches the door.

“Right, what's your name?”

Silence.

“You know, if you won't tell me, I'm calling you Mr Cuddle-wuddles.”

Changbin , the voice fumes in his head, good fucking night.

Felix should not be fucking around with the demon this much, he muses after he settles things and climbs into bed, Changbin at his feet and making a note not to touch him, but he can't help it, it's too fun.

Is this what playing with fire feels like?

Chapter Text

The next day, as Felix sleepily munches on some toast, Seungmin shuffles out of his room, hair sticking out all over the place but otherwise looking perky and awake, as typical Seungmin does at fucking seven-thirty a.m. in the morning. “Good morning,” Felix murmurs, and Seungmin says something along the same lines back. Hyunjin and Jisung, being the smart people they are, chose lectures in the afternoon and evening, which Felix totally envies, but hey, it leaves more time for homework for Habitually Night Owl Felix. Guess who wins now, suckers.

Seungmin’s banging around the small kitchen (softly, he does most things softly, a stark contrast to one Han Jisung) when Felix’s door swings open and prowling out comes a tiny black kitten.

Oh, fuck, Felix thinks, because now that he’s had a few hours of fresh sleep in his system he remembers the animal ban they have on the place, but it’s fine, if Changbin doesn’t come out yet he can tell the demon to change into something else. He makes shooing motions at the demon, pulling exaggerated facial expressions to make his point, Changbin might be a demon but he certainly can’t be that rusty at charades, but the kitten just gives him a sharp look and continues walking, which makes Felix’s hand gestures even more urgent, hurry, before Seungmin sees-

“Felix, are you okay?"

Felix freezes and turns to face Seungmin. God, he can already feel his pulse quickening. He forces his hand to stay still and not fly up to his neck. Why did he have to develop the most obvious of nervous habits?

“Nothing! Nothing,” he chuckles, trying his best to smile at his poor, guileless roommate. “Just- just a fly-”

“Is that a cat ?”

“Ah, fuck,” Felix grumbles, turning around to glare at the culprit. Said culprit looks back with wide, innocent eyes. Felix fights the urge to toss those innocent eyes and the body with it straight out the window, soul binding be damned.

He stops there for a while more, some really stupid part of his brain thinking that if he stays quiet long enough, maybe Seungmin will unsee the cat.

“Felix?”

Seungmin did not unsee the cat.

Felix sighs, and watches as Changbin makes his way leisurely to the table, winding around the chair legs and stretching like a normal cat. Ha, what a trickster. “Yeah- yeah, I got it last night. From a friend. Who forgot to sterilise their cat.”

“Wow, I didn’t know you had other friends,” Seungmin comments offhandedly, which would have been fine if it was a biting comment, but there’s sincerity and genuine surprise ringing in every word. Felix scowls when he hears Changbin snicker in his mind. “You do know about the animal ban though, right?” the brunette continues.

Since he’s looking down at his coffee, Felix allows his hand to sneak up to his neck for a quick second before letting it dart back down. “I do,” he replies. “My friend’s looking for a new owner right now, he just really couldn’t handle so many cats at once.”

“Cool, cool,” Seungmin hums. “I just hope you know Hyunjin’s slightly allergic to cats.”

Felix allows an evil grin to spread on his face. His facial muscles kind of hurt from not being stretched in so long. “I know. That’s why I agreed.”

Seungmin grins along with him. “Nice. About fucking time that asshole learns the real owners of these hoodies.”

“You read my mind,” Felix declares, raising his glass of orange juice in a mock toast. “To overthrowing the king!”

Seungmin repeats the cheer, raising his mug of coffee, and they collapse into a fit of giggles after they take a generous gulp of their drink. (Hold on- didn’t Seungmin just boil that coffee?)

“Wait, who’s overthrowing who now?” a new voice interrupts.

“Jisung,” Felix says, turning to look at a dazed Jisung emerging from his room. “We’re going to overthrow the monarchy.”

Jisung, despite his sleep-riddled state, pouts, the morning making his cheeks look even puffier. “And you didn’t invite me? I’m hurt.”

“Sorry, only nobles allowed,” Seungmin snickers, moving to intercept Jisung, and hovers his hand a few centimetres above Jisung’s head. “You have to be this tall to join the ranks of the rich.”

“Fuck off,” Jisung grumbles, slapping Seungmin’s hand away and moving to get his own breakfast.

“Some things just can’t be helped, peasant,” Felix calls out with false sympathy in his voice.

“Good fucking morning to you too- Aagh!” Jisung suddenly yelps, jumping back and raising one leg up, looking down at the ground in terror.

“He found the cat,” says Seungmin gleefully.

“No shit, I found the cat,” Jisung complains, shooting Changbin one last venomous glare before walking to the kitchen, shaking his head scoldingly. “Isn’t there a pet ban on this place?”

“Felix is just a temporary sitter,” Seungmin explains, and Felix silently breathes a sigh of relief. He bought the story. “The cat’s going to find a new home soon.”

“It’d better,” Jisung mutters. “I’m a film minor, I know all about these sort of plot lines. They always form an emotional attachment after too long.”

Fat chance , Felix thinks, because he knows that this isn’t really a cat. It’s actually the literal spawn of Satan. “I know,” he says instead.

Jisung huffs and joins Felix at the table with his granola bar. “Does it have a name?”

Felix nods. “Yeah, Mr Cuddle-wuddle-”

Changbin hisses, and for a split second his green eyes flash blood red.

“Changbin!” Felix corrects himself hastily. “His name’s Changbin.”

“You need to get a better life,” Changbin deadpans, legs dangling off Felix’s bed. Once Felix went back to his room to pack up for the day’s lessons, Changbin changed back to his human form, saying that he needed to “stretch his molecules”, whatever the fuck that means. Felix quit physics the first chance he could, so he’s absolute clueless on this shit.

“I know right,” he replies, shoving his laptop into its case.

“Perhaps…” there’s an edge of cunning in Changbin’s voice as he says this. “Perhaps this is what you’re looking for? A better college, better roommates, better quality breakfast foods than just a pathetic granola bar?”

Felix frowns. “Hey, I like my roommates. I don’t want them taken away from me.”

Changbin tilts his head. His eyes, although not aimed at Felix directly, somehow still manage to send a shiver down his spine. “Honestly, now that I’ve seen them with my own two eyes, I can understand how you’ve managed to accidentally get yourself into a demonic contract. You guys are utterly hopeless fools.”

“Thanks, that’s the nicest compliment I’ve heard all day!” Felix smiles beatifically at Changbin.

“It’s still morning, bud,” Changbin mumbles. “But sure.”

Felix waves a cheery goodbye as he shuts the door. The smile drops once he’s out of Changbin’s sight.

The rest of the day is just as draining as the previous day. In fact, Felix becomes so tired that he actually forgets about Changbin for a few hours, until he’s sitting at his desk, scribbling a basic format for that stupid essay he really should do, and he suddenly hears a scream from outside.

“Ah,” he muses to himself. “Hyunjin’s found him.”

Banging and crashing sounds soon follow, and it dawns on Felix that it would totally be Hyunjin to try and chase the cat out. Except this is a demon cat. A demon cat with powers. Hah, Hyunjin’s totally fucked.

“Oh wait, fuck,” Felix realises. “Better make sure Changbin doesn’t burn the dorm down.” He’s already a broke college student in debt, causing damage would practically leave him penniless.

“Hyunjin!” he calls, dashing to the taller, panicking boy. “Hyunjin, stop!”

“What do you mean, stop?” Hyunjin’s brandishing a dish towel, lashing out threateningly at Changbin, who’s arching his back and spitting right back at him. “It’s a cat! In our dorm!”

“Yes, I’m well aware!” Felix exclaims, grabbing Hyunjin’s arms and trying to wrangle them down, but Hyunjin’s got well-toned swimmer arms, so they triumph effortlessly over Felix’s own stick arms. “Just- just calm down, alright? I can explain.”

“You’d fucking better ,” Hyunjin practically growls, giving Changbin the stink eye, and folds his arms. “You know about my allergy to cats.”

“Actually,” Felix says deviously, a smirk forming on his face, “it’s about that.”

A small light of terror appears in Hyunjin’s eyes. “About- about what?” he honest-to-god stammers.

“We’ve noticed that our hoodies have been going missing an awful lot lately,” Felix begins. “And guess where they reappear? In your dirty laundry pile.”

“Okay, look, man, I’m sorry about that-”

“ So !” Felix barrels on, ignoring Hyunjin’s protest. “So, we have decided to Hyunjin-proof our hoodies. With cat fur. Any time you try and wear any of our hoodies, bam ! Agonising itching. Rashes all over. Your nose will never stop running. Very effective, don’t you think?”

Hyunjin stands there, jaw agape incredulously for a whole five seconds. “Fuck. You,” he breathes out. “What kind of a dick move is that?”

Felix shrugs. “The vote was unanimous. Seungmin, Jisung and I all think you need to be put back in your place.”

The only thing that can come out of Hyunjin’s mouth is a disbelieving scoff. Felix, caught up in his wicked high, goes to pick up Changbin without thinking, and strokes the top of his small head. “Until next time,” he cackles, putting his ridiculously deep voice to good use as he retreats back to his room.

“FUCK YOU!” Hyunjin yells at the closing door, before turning around to his own room.

Felix laughs to himself as he sets the cat down and returns back to his desk, ready to tackle the essay after that nefarious pick-me-up-

Something grabs Felix by the back of his collar and drags him up and out of his chair, and he comes face-to-face with two dangerous glowing red eyes. “What the fuck ,” Changbin demands, “was that?”

“Ohmygod,” Felix panics, and the only thing he can see is red eyes, red eyes, this isn’t good, this is a demon, a DEMON, I’m so fucked . “Shit, I- I’m sorry.”

The eyes glow brighter. Felix nervously thinks that if they become too bright, they’ll cause a nuclear-level explosion. “You think you can just pick me up and pat my head , say sorry and get away with it?” Changbin snarls. “I’ve been holding back, boy, but if this happens again next time…”

He lets go, and Felix can breathe once more. “There won’t be a next time.”

In his fear-stricken daze, Felix forces his mind to something other the seething, otherworldly dark being right in his face. “You’re shorter than me,” he observes carelessly, more to himself than anyone else.

Changbin’s eyes flash red once more, and Felix’s heart does another somersault of panic. “Fuck off , Felix. I said I wouldn’t kill you, but that doesn’t mean I can’t.”

Felix, very much shaken, turns back to his essay.

Chapter Text

The next time Felix peers into the laundry pile, he’s pleased to see that his hoodies have been left untouched. Happily he snags them, hoisting it up like a trophy at Seungmin, who cheers as he lifts his own hoodies up.

“I hate you guys,” Hyunjin grumbles as he retrieves his load from the sofa. “I never knew you guys could be this evil.”

Felix shrugs. “You know what they say: desperate times, desperate measures.”

“At least the cat is cute,” Jisung adds.

“Ooh, already forming emotional attachments, I see!” Felix teases.

Jisung flips the bird. “Fuck off, I’m not getting emotionally attached to that asshole! I’m just saying it’s cute, is it illegal to say that a kitten looks cute ?”

“It’s true, though,” Seungmin confesses, “that cat’s kind of an asshole. One time, when I was heading out for a midnight snack, the cat was there, sitting on the counter, and I swear it was staring straight into my fucking soul as it slid the glass off the fucking counter . My foot still hurts from the cut!”

“Wait-” Hyunjin pouts at Seungmin. “ You were the one who ate all the chips?”

Seungmin jaw drops. “Did you miss the part where my foot got fucking cut by glass ?”

“Yeah, I got that,” says Hyunjin dismissively. “I’m just saying, I really wanted those chips.”

“ Fuck you! ”

Felix sniggers to himself as he enters his room and dumps his clothes on his bed. Changbin, who was lazing on said bed before Felix came, groans and rolls to the side before sitting up and swinging his legs off the edge of the bed, mainly because his legs can’t reach the floor. It seems to be a habit of his. “You’re in a good mood today,” he comments.

Felix pauses in his folding to look up at the demon. “Really?” he says, positively beaming. “Thanks! It’s all theatre training.”

“I can tell,” Changbin snorts. “You have four upcoming deadlines and zero sense of organisation. If it isn’t acting, I might actually be concerned.”

Felix exhales as thoughts of the impending assignments crash upon and flood his mind after a whole night of shoving it away. He deflates onto the bed. “Don’t remind me, please . I wanna die just thinking about it.” He glances sideways at Changbin. “Besides, I’ve been getting complaints of misconduct. Look, I know you’re a demon and you’re evil and all that shit but… could you please spare our wallets?”

“I dunno about that,” Changbin replies flippantly. “Last I checked, Kim Seungmin over there is pretty much rolling in it.”

“I’m talking about me here,” Felix hisses. “Seungmin may be rich, but I’m sure not! And you injured Seungmin! That’s a huge no-no.” he squeezes his eyes shut and presses his fingers against his pulse point. “...I worked really hard to get here, alright, I really don’t want to screw anything up. Just… please do this for me.”

Felix can practically hear the scorn dripping from Changbin’s words. “For you,” he mocks, “what human bullshit, you’re appealing to empathy that doesn’t even exist? Pathetic.” Felix tries not to wince at that, but Changbin continues, “There’s only so much you can do to cure boredom. What else can I do besides cause chaos when I can’t do anything else but be a cat around your roommates?”

Felix buries his face in his hands, running his palms repeatedly over his face as if that can scrub away the awful reality he was looking at. “Look,” he grits out, “I didn't even want this. You're just… stuck here? You can't go anywhere else? You'll just stay here until… until what again?”

Changbin sighs. “Three questions, all dumb,” he tsks, “I thought I already established this on the first night?”

Felix wracks his brain for his sleep-dazed, exhaustion-blurred recollections. "Right," he says, "you need to fulfil my desire or wish or something. Like a fucked up genie." 

Changbin hums in approval. "The idiot does think." 

Felix resists the urge to smack Changbin. "Alright, laugh it up, maybe I'll use my wish to grant you eternal torture." He isn't sure exactly whether that sort of rule applied: where the granter had no choice but to self-inflict should the wisher want so. But Changbin's mouth folds down into an almighty scowl with no sharp retort, and Felix decides it's true. He can't help sending Changbin a teasing grin, knowing that even though he is the undeniably weaker one, he still holds more power. Truly intoxicating, having power over a demon. 

I said I wouldn't kill you, but that doesn't mean I can't. 

Felix swallows his mental words. Never mind. 

Left with so many problems but nothing to say, he sighs and flops back on his bed, staring at the suspiciously stained ceiling. "Changbin," he calls out, "is there any way to stop time?" 

Felix compares Changbin's wheeze to a bullet flying into styrofoam, even though he's never heard one before, it just seems fitting. "Stop time?" the demon chuckles. "Human, there are many things I can manipulate, but the very essence of the fundamental stability of the universe, both known and unknown, is far out of my grasp. Like, waaay far. Like remote control on the coffee table when you're on the sofa kind of far."

"Dang," Felix mumbles. "That's hella far." 

Silence. “What else could I possibly wish for…?” Felix muses, wracking his brain so he can finally have one less nuisance to worry about. 

Changbin’s rough voice actually sounds helpful for a change. “You could think about my capabilities, for a start. I’m your standard, run-of-the-mill demon, which already places my power over fate much higher than yours ever will. Whose fate do you want to alter? Any death, disease or disaster you wish would befall someone? You want to curse someone to feel pain with every step for the rest of eternity, or make pizza always taste like dirty socks to them? You seem like the type to secretly hold a grudge, maybe against an abusive parent, there's plenty of those all the time-"

"No! No," Felix cuts in, frowning. "I'm perfectly happy with my parents, they even know my sexuality and shit. Considering all things I'd say I'm quite lucky in the parent department so… no. And for the record, I don't think I want to be the source of anyone's unneeded pain or suffering. Hyunjin doesn't count," he hastily adds, "I'm talking lifelong pains in the ass sort of suffering. That’s some real nasty mojo." 

Changbin actually nods thoughtfully , tilting his head to the side, looking into nothing and the sorts. The absurdity of the situation is almost laughable, it's as if Changbin actually cares about Felix's personal wellbeing. If he’s to be very honest with himself, it almost makes Changbin seem Smol, but Felix obviously knows better. “I cover a range of different facets, if you don’t want to inflict upon others, then it’s possible to benefit yourself as well.” He raises a warning eyebrow at Felix. “But remember: I am a creature of death and demise. If you wish to bring life or healing to anyone or anything, you’ll have to pay a price. And I may get severely injured in the process, but, that’s irrelevant.”

Irrelevant! An unprecedented voice inside Felix scoffs. Being injured is irrelevant, what a joke . He doesn’t voice these concerns out; he has no business being worried about a demon, of all people.

“No healing or life-bringing then,” he says instead, and he thinks Changbin’s eyes widen just a fraction of an inch. Satisfaction rises inside Felix at the fact that he managed to take a demon by surprise. What else did he say? he ponders. Something about knowledge? And, oh god, fucking lust, as if I have to time to think about sex of all things right now-

Before his train of thought can continue any further, chills run across Felix’s arms. Not the psychological, horror-type chills. The temperature in the room actually drops a few notches. Felix suppresses his shivers, thinking it’s just a draft (in a windowless room), but there’s movement in the corner of his eye. Changbin’s straightened from his relaxed state, eyes bright and alert, and glowing slightly red. Glowing red eyes is never a good sign, Felix thinks nervously.

“What’s going on?” he whispers, but in the deadly atmosphere it seems like he’s almost yelling. “Changbin…?”

Changbin doesn’t respond except for stretching his hand in front of Felix, to which Felix quickly scrambles back from. Changbin doesn’t do anything though, and his gaze seems focused enough, making the posture almost look protective .

Just as the metaphorical horror climax is reached, bright red flames erupt from the floor beside Felix’s bed, which should cause Felix to move even farther away, but he’s too paralysed from fear to move. Instead, he watches in terror as a ring of fire yawns open right in front of him, the inside of the circle opening to reveal more cauterising flames. Probably a portal from hell, considering all things. Tips of sharp, jagged horns emerge from the hellish hole, followed by a crown of night black hair, a forehead, a pair of catlike eyes, defined nose and jawline… and a blood red tuxedo, complete with leather gloves and a gold ring. Clearly a demon of class.

The apparent portal closes itself under the intruder’s polished black loafers, which Felix unnecessarily notes has silver chains. His gaze travels up the body to reach the face once more. In the demonic firelight the face looked intimidating, malevolent, but in the natural light of the room the sharp features are even more startling, signalling that this being definitely doesn’t belong, and the horns definitely aren’t helping.

In the time Felix has taken to fully take in the newcomer’s appearance, Changbin has already gotten up from the bed and come face-to-face with the demon, even though there’s a painfully clear height disadvantage. Why is Changbin so short and hornless if he can choose to change shape into anything he wants?

“What do you want?” Changbin spits, and Felix feels actual poison seeping from every word. “If you’re here to call me out for any bullshit reason, I am currently fulfilling a demonic soul bond contract,” he gestures waywardly at Felix, who actually shrinks away, “and would really like you to fuck off to where you came from.”

The euphemism in the statement kind of wears off when the meaning is literal, but Felix can tell that Changbin is royally pissed, which only raises more questions. He gulps and takes a leap of courage. “Who- who are you…?”

The demon’s eyes land on Felix, and even though they’re boring brown and not burning red, it feels like they’re burying into Felix’s soul. Felix tries to break the gaze. He finds that he can’t. Then the demon smiles; the kind of smile one would give a small, confused puppy or toddler. “Nothing to worry your cute human ass over,” he purrs, lips curling up languidly. His teeth are a little too sharp to be considered normal. Felix thinks he hears a small growl emitting from Changbin’s throat, but he ignores it. “Just normal Hell skirmishes, you know how it is.” Felix, in fact, does not know how it is, but he wisely decides not to voice that out. The demon turns to Changbin. “I come bearing bad news, but be grateful that it isn’t to your direct disadvantage.” He glances once more in Felix’s direction, who, knowing now that whatever it is it doesn’t concern him, doesn’t shy away as much. He really should have, considering what comes out of the demon’s mouth next. “This pretty little thing doesn’t really need to know about Hell’s affairs, why don’t we just…” He reaches out and covers Felix’s protesting face with a single hand.

When Felix comes to, Changbin’s on the other side of the tiny room, scowling at nothing in particular. To be fair, Changbin’s almost always scowling about one thing or another, but this scowl looks more… scowl-ey.

Felix decides to stop himself before he confuses himself into another coma.

He licks his lips - bone dry. Felix shifts himself, praying that he left at least a cup of water at his desk before he was knocked out by Tall, Dark and Demonic. At the sound of rustling blankets Changbin looks up at Felix. “Oh, you’re awake.”

Felix groans as he stretches his limbs, making his joints pop. “How long have I been out?”

“Enough for me to learn in great detail what has happened in the short span of my absence,” Changbin replies promptly, “and then some more.”

“‘And then some more?’” Felix echoes. “God, I need to finish folding the clothes then get started on my work!” He hastily rolls out of bed, landing with a ‘ fwump!’ on the floor, before brushing himself off and beginning his weekend task, way behind time.

Changbin steps out of his way, expressionless save pure skepticism in his eyes. “Why are you so dismayed? I’m not an expert in human anatomy, but I’m pretty sure your body needs a certain amount of sleep, which you haven’t been getting at all, considering with what you’ve been doing at night…”

Felix turns red at the memories of his recent late-night/crazy-early-morning gaming habits. “We don’t talk about the nights of shame,” he hisses. “What happens at night stays at night.”

“You need to be more careful with your tongue, boy,” Changbin mutters half under his breath. “I can think of many names at once who would take advantage of the statements you make.”

Felix’s ears catch on to the tiny lilt in his voice, though. He smiles sweetly at Changbin. “How kind of you, demon,” he says teasingly, “to show such generosity to a human such as me.”

He expects Changbin to sniff haughtily in response, or wave it off with a grunt. He doesn’t foresee Changbin freezing in place and staring at Felix blankly. The air quickly turns a shade of awkward as Felix clears his throat and shifts uncomfortably. “I mean… I really am thankful to you for not… murdering me in cold blood, I guess. Mighty considerate of you.”

Changbin seems to snap out of some sort of trance. “Yeah, whatever,” he mutters, and voluntarily, voluntarily , shifts back into a cat. Giving Felix one last unreadable glance he stalks off to jump onto his chair, before curling up and covering his eyes with his furry tail, clearly not wanting to talk. He must be really bothered by whatever the demon told him while Felix was out like a light.

Sighing, Felix carries on with his work.

Chapter Text

It’s been a week since the unprecedented visitor from Hell in Felix’s bedroom. The last place Felix hoped he would end up in is exactly where he is now: shivering and cowering under the frail safety of a blanket, the only thing shielding him from the horrors in front of his very eyes.

He quakes once more as yet another jumpscare occurs, he hates himself for being so scared no matter how many times it happens, but it’s not his fault the producers pulled it off so seamlessly! And he’s not the only one.

In fact, at least half of the dorm is quivering in their socks. It was all the dumb collective idea of their RAs, to have all the students gather for one off-peak session for any activity at all. It was a valiant initiative, really, but eventually it devolved into just a spontaneous movie screening. Somehow the RAs ballotted a horror movie, instead of anything else, like a violent action movie, or a cringey family comedy. And they had to screen a classic too: The Conjuring.

Felix is sure the girl who’s sitting a few mats away has screamed herself hoarse. He honestly thinks he would do the same, if it isn’t for the fact that he’s too terrified to do even that. Jisung’s at his side, shaking just as badly and squeezing his eyes tightly shut. From what Felix can gather from his peripheral vision, Hyunjin’s scared too, but not enough to keep his eyes off the screen, and Seungmin is there , just calmly eating popcorn. Felix is perpetual utter disbelief; how the fuck ?

Much later than Felix would have preferred, the movie draws to an end, but Felix is sure that isn’t the last he’s seen of that damn doll. Mostly because he’s seen that same face in posters around the area. Who the hell would want to voluntarily watch these sort of things?!

No, better not mention hell. Not so soon after. 

Jisung and Felix are equally jumpy as the dormies troop back to their room, jumping at every little sound and hunching in on themselves in fear. Seungmin actually has the gall to scoff at them. Jisung shoots him a petulant glare in response. Felix is more occupied peering at every corner, paranoid that something will jump out at him at any second, even though that’s… not how actual demons work, based on what he’s witnessed about a week ago. Still, one can never be too cautious.

No matter how Felix dreads it, he eventually has to enter his room. Gingerly shutting the door behind him, Felix slowly turns around, only to jump out of his skin when he sights Cat Changbin, in his inky black glory, curled up on his bed in a gloomy ball of darkness. At Felix’s sudden movement, the cat flicks one green eye open.

Taking in the sight of Felix’s frightened self, the cat nonchalantly unfurls itself and Changbin appears before Felix, and maybe it’s just Felix’s imagination, but he thinks he can see literal shadows emanating out of him, creeping claws waiting to grab him and consume his life force. He shoves the notion down; there’s Annabelle, and there’s Changbin. Two completely different canons.

Right?

Changbin, after a few more moments of dead silent observation, states, “You’re spooked.”

“Uh,” Felix subconsciously draws his arms closer to hug himself, “no shit.”

Changbin heaves an aggravated sigh, and hops off the bed. “What dumb thing happened to you this time?”

Felix hugs himself tighter as he shoots Changbin a tired glance. Usually it would be more along the lines of an irritated glare, but he’s just been frightened to his wit’s end and really doesn’t have strength in him to be physically mad at Changbin after almost losing his sanity to moving images of a porcelain doll. Which also happened to be possessed by a savage demon.

Felix eyes Changbin up and down once more. Throughout this demon’s stay, he’s been nothing more than a mild inconvenience, in opposition to Annabelle, which started terrorising from the beginning, Felix reasons with himself. But still, didn’t that demon also start with tiny pranks too?

Changbin rolls his eyes. “Come on, whatever it is, it can’t be that bad. You’re uninjured, your clothing is neat, your sweat levels don’t match your heart rate, which means you haven’t been running-”

“I watched a horror movie,” Felix decides not to let Changbin make any more creepy and invasive observations, lest he start to feel unsafe within his own damn bedroom.

A scowl of confusion flashes across Changbin’s face before it lightens in realisation, before falling once more into a scowl, this one of disapproval. “You mean the pointless human practice of watching moving images accompanied with audio with nothing but the sole purpose of inspiring uninhibited fear and the consequent paranoia for an undetermined period of time.”

“Yes, pointless!” Felix exclaims in agreement. “It’s so dumb, I can’t believe my RAs would ever think to mass screen a horror movie to us, out of all things.” Trauma-filled images flash through his mind once more, seemingly seared into his synapses. He burrows into his bed and buries his face in his pillow. “I will never look at dolls the same way again.”

“Look, whatever the content that you just witnessed, it’s not real,” Changbin’s unimpressed voice filters through the pillow. “I can’t help you on this one, fear is nothing like the fickle feelings within a demon’s control.”

“Yeah, but the thing is,” Felix protests, “it… kind of is real. The movie was about a demon , of all things, and guess what I currently have in my bedroom.” He looks up from his pillow, half expecting to see a ghastly white face with an unnerving grin hovering above him, ready to gobble him up for an evening snack, but thankfully just gets Changbin, with his usual bored expression on his face. “A demon!”

Changbin runs an aggravated hand through his hair. “You know, if you wanted me to leave, you could have just said so.” He once more shifts into a cat and makes for the door. Felix feels his heart leap into his throat.

“No- no!” he yelps. “That- that is not what I meant.”

Cat Changbin halts and looks back to eye Felix judgmentally. Then what do you want? he demands. First you say you don’t like my demonic presence here, then you say you don’t want me to leave. Make up your mind , human, I don’t have all evening to cater to your whims and fancies!

“Okay!” Felix holds his hands up in surrender. “I- I just want you to stay. I can’t stay alone in my room, I’ll scare myself into paralysis. Only human company’s going to keep me sane.”

Changbin doesn’t move from his position, only flicks his tail once. Your roommates are right outside. Why don’t you seek comfort from them?

Felix snorts. “Please, I’m pretty sure if I enter Hyunjin’s or Jisung’s room they’ll grab the nearest object and throw it at me in the name of the Lord. And Seungmin… that little bitch will probably just laugh and close the door in my face.”

Changbin stalks back to Felix and leans against the wall to his right as a human. “Have I not said before that you need to be more precise in your wordings? You’re probably figured out by now that it’s in our instinct to find loopholes in people’s words and use that against them.”

Felix switches his position and hugs the pillow to his chest. “I know. I’m just…” he eyes the shadows that inevitably lurk in his room. The desk, the chair, the doorway… “Really really scared.”

A chuckle suddenly emits from Changbin. Felix straightens up to shoot Changbin a bewildered look. “Oh, so now we’re laughing at my dumb irrational fears?”

“And what about it?” Changbin immediately challenges. “I just find it so amusing that you would be so terrified at ridiculous aspects of the human impression of demons, but your reaction upon meeting an actual demon was in fact the complete opposite.”

“What?” Felix gapes. “What- no, that’s different-”

“I really don’t see much difference, personally,” Changbin scoffs. “Both entities of hell, both with the high potential to maul you in ten thousand ways, really, the only thing different here is that one has you too afraid to even sleep in peace, and the other one has you laughing because I turned into a cat. "

Felix frowns. "Yeah, but it's not like you were gonna consume my soul at any given opportunity, right? Do you guys- do you guys actually eat people's souls?" 

Changbin's wrinkled nose is enough to give Felix his answer. "Not as a daily meal, no. The guys up there would never allow it. We can , if we want to, but most of the time we just… don't eat. Demons can't starve," he adds as Felix perks up with that question on the tip of his tongue, "we mostly just gain energy from Hell's aura, though technically we can feed off other people's energies. It definitely feels better when we do, because there's a lot more vitality in that." 

"Oh." Felix feels a little dazed from the onslaught of information. "So…" he pushes, just to confirm, "there really aren't demons like those in The Conjuring? That's just a bunch of made-up human bullshit?" 

"You're gonna have to describe them for me if you want me to be able to give you an accurate answer," Changbin replies, but one look at Felix's pale face and he seems to decide against it. "Just tell me the behavior." 

“So they do exist?” Felix breathes.

Changbin frowns. “I’m still not sure what you mean by that, but we do have less… civilised demons in Hell. They mostly live in the lower circles of Hell, y’know, further away from the surface so the big guy doesn’t slaughter us all for constant harassment of his beloved humans. I haven’t met many, personally, but from what I know the only languages they can speak are threats and insults, in order of fluency. Literally anything remotely nice said within their earshot might cause them to puke. Oh,” he adds quickly, “and they have a… grotesquely gruesome sense of humour.”

Felix swallows heavily. “Wonderful.”

Changbin, upon noticing Felix’s frightened state, sighs almost disappointedly. “Demons can’t come up to the surface unless summoned, so I think you can rest easy.”

“Yeah, I’m not worried about that-” Felix cuts himself off. “Wait, then what about that one time the horny guy paid a surprise visit?"

It takes a few awkward seconds and Changbin’s raised eyebrow to make Felix regret even knowing the word ‘horn’. “Oh my god, pretend I didn’t say that.”

Changbin appears to bite back a snigger. "I’ll try my best. And that horny guy-” he dodges Felix’s pillow with almost practiced ease, which has Felix sulking and pulling his next object of comfort, a bolster, into his lap, “-is a from one of the much higher circles of Hell, and although his level of shamelessness can definitely be questioned, he’s pretty okay in the head, I guess. He can summon himself up because he’s… how do I put it in your world’s perspective? He’s a courier, so to say. Not a particularly powerful demon, so he's allowed to pass through the shroud between Earth and Hell with relative ease. The rest have to be summoned-" an almost smug grin makes its way onto Changbin's lips, "-because we're just that powerful."

"Yeah, yeah, just casually flex your totally unfair power over me," Felix snorts, but then his damn brain decides to bring haunting images back to his mental vision. "Wait, so you're saying those bitchass demons can still be summoned up to Earth?" 

Changbin shrugs in an 'eh' motion. "Yeah, but I don't think any human in their right mind would ever want to summon a-" he stops himself. The look he then gives Felix is something so deadpan it almost looks like he's looking into a camera in a comedy. "There are, aren't there."

Felix's grimaced smile is enough to answer the question. Changbin folds his arms. "Well, I guess in that case, good luck to you. You're lucky though, so far I can't sense any psycho, deranged Satanists summoning anything too infernal." 

Felix hums noncommittally, subconsciously burying his face into his bolster already. "Thanks." 

A scoff sounds from Changbin. "What, sleepy already? Your stamina is pathetic." 

"Haven't you heard?" Felix grumbles back. "It's called post-adrenaline rush. That movie felt like a roller coaster five times over, with ten loop-de-loops each round. Don't fucking test me." 

Something creaks right outside Felix's door. Felix immediately scrambles to the farthest corner of his bed. 

The doorknob turns. It turns slowly. Felix's breath quickens. Something knocks slowly but firmly on the door. Felix practically ducks behind his bolster, although he mentally prepares for it to be of no use. The door cracks open… 

Felix blanches. "Whatthefuckwhydidyoudothatohmyfuckinggod." 

Seungmin lets out a devious cackle. "Just checking in, you know, making sure you aren’t being cornered by some-” his eyes gleam with something truly evil, “- doll-possessing demon.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Felix spots Cat Changbin innocuously licking his paw.

A large shudder wracks through Felix’s body, he doesn’t know out of leftover fear or fresh anger. “Oh my god, Seungmin, that’s too soon . Fuck off from whence you came, devil incarnate.”

Seungmin shuts the door with a final, cheery, almost innocent “goodnight!”. 

Felix exhales incredulously. He side eyes Changbin, who’s suave smirk is turning into something of a shit-eating grin . “That was you, wasn’t it? I can’t believe you’d-”

“What?” Changbin teases. “That a demon wouldn’t try to mess with your mind at your most vulnerable state? By the Lord Satan, you’re adorable.”

Genuinely having no retort to jab back with, Felix settles for a much lower angry pouting and sullen glare at the smug demon. “If I get nightmares, I’m coming after your ass.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Changbin scoffs. Felix throws his bolster at him.

(Still, when Felix crawls into bed, head swimming with haunting images and dreadful tinges, as he tediously convinces his mind that he’s safe, he almost feels like the darkness is pressing against him, but not suffocatingly so. In fact, it almost feels like a warm blanket around his cold, frightened soul. Or maybe that’s just him miraculously falling asleep.)

Felix startles when the door to his room is slid open. Panicked, he glances at Changbin, who’s been exploring the internet on his phone, discovering the incredible modern invention called the World Wide Web. The demon was feeling antsy again, spinning things around at random and making things crash and fall and startling Felix’s poor fragile heart while he was trying to concentrate on his work, so Felix gave up and finally did what all parents do with hyperactive kids: give them the device. 

(Here’s the best part: it worked .)

Thankfully, though, when Felix peers, the kitten’s back, looking innocently up at Seungmin as if he might not have been searching up porn just a few milliseconds ago. Felix doesn’t know if talking in other people’s minds also means being able to read them, but in any case he sends a few grateful thoughts to the demon for saving his ass from explaining why there’s a dark, brooding, fully grown man in his room using his phone.

“Hey, ‘Lix?”

Felix hums calmly, trying to pretend he didn’t just get a mini heart attack. Seungmin steps inside the room, but doesn’t close the door. Not a highly personal discussion, then. Felix hits save on the game he’s playing (he has his homework open in another tab, but Lord knows his lack of self-restraint), and turns to face Seungmin. "What is it?" 

Seungmin fiddles with his fingers a little, a deceiving cover for his true deviousness. Felix is quite sure he's used this tactic so many times in his youth it’s become a habit by now. “So… Hyunjin, Jisung and I have had a little conference,” he explains. A conference , he’s using his law student language, this is worse than Felix expected. “There’s been lots of little incidents happening lately,” he gestures to Changbin, who continues to look the perfect picture of guilelessness. “like scratched furniture and damaged tools. Pretty sure Jisung’s pile of rejected notebooks has been reduced to nothing but shreds . I mean, good riddance , it’s probably like a year old or something, and nothing else was severely damaged, but the remnants were… a pain in the ass the pick up to say the least.” He casts a baleful glance at Changbin, who evenly returns it. “Has your friend found anyone to adopt him yet?”

Felix swallows a sigh. “I’ll message him,” he promises emptily. “He hasn’t updated me yet.”

Seungmin shrugs, before stepping forward and scratching Changbin on the head. The demon freezes, apparently too shocked to respond. “I swear, sometimes I think this cutie is a demon in disguise.”

Felix almost lets out a guffaw at that, but he stops himself by forcefully biting his lip. He thinks he draws blood. “Alright, now shoo, I need to do my work.”

“Right, like completing your latest match is gonna be shown in your report,” Seungmin ripostes, but exits the room anyway.

Once he’s gone, Felix turns to Changbin, still in kitten form for some reason. “I don’t know whether I want to laugh ‘til my stomach hurts, or throw you out the window right this instant.”

Think about it , Changbin’s voice echoes in his head, instead of the demon physically shifting to verbally voice his thoughts. One gets you instant demise, one doesn’t. Simple choice.

“Yeah, at this point I don’t know which one I want more,” Felix snorts derisively, but doesn’t follow through with either of his threats. Changbin turns into a person once more and holds Felix’s phone out expectantly. Felix raises an eyebrow, but takes it and unlocks it anyway. “What, still haven’t had your fill yet?”

“I don’t think I ever will,” Changbin declares decisively, before turning back to the device, eyes enraptured by the fascinating screen. Felix stifles a chuckle; even demons aren’t immune to the Phone Addiction Disease.

Felix turns to his laptop, fully intending to actually get some shit done. He hums under his breath to keep himself occupied; he doesn’t know why the silence suddenly seems so big. He doesn’t even know why the silence is there. He decides to be grateful for this sudden blessing of serenity and gets to the grind.

A few hours pass before the words on the screen start to swim a little. Felix can feel a pain starting to pound at the back of his skull, insufferably insistent. He hisses softly, grabbing his water bottle to take a generous gulp. Dumb need for hydration. He returns back to his work. Still, the pain persists and he finds himself clutching his head while squinting at online statistics. Maybe if he took painkillers-

In his peripheral vision Felix spots a furry black lump soundlessly leaps onto his table and starts nudging his items around. Pushing his pencil case, pawing at his lamp, trodding on his keyboard-

“Hey- hey, hey!” Felix takes a few seconds to snap back to attention and swat lightly at Changbin. “What the fuck? Cut it out! I need to get this done by the day after tomorrow- not the backspace button! ”

He finally smacks Changbin off his precious laptop, and the kitten hisses fiercely at him. And not the gentle, wannabe scary kind of hiss; it sounds like a freaking water on hot oil, Felix has had nightmares about this exact situation. Surprisingly though, Changbin’s voice still doesn’t sound in Felix’s mind. “Alright, alright!” he holds his hands up in surrender. “I’m sorry, you asked for it. Do you want me to unlock my phone again? Might as well tell you the passcode at this rate.”

Look at the time, idiot! Felix takes a look at the digital clock on his laptop screen. Yikes, time passed faster than he anticipated.

But still.

“It’s only twelve forty-five!” he argues. “I haven’t finished my paper!”

Sleep. Now. Suddenly a fully grown man appears on Felix’s table, making Felix leap back, and his papers all flutter into a messy pile on the ground. Changbin makes quick work of saving Felix’s document before closing his laptop. So his days of lazing around weren’t just mindless inactivity. “You can finish tomorrow if you try hard enough,” the demon says sternly. “Right now, sleep is more paramount.”

Felix scoffs. “And who are you to decide when I should sleep? Any self-respecting student stays up past one to finish their work!”

“No, any self-respecting student would stave off their work until the last possible second to complete,” Changbin deadpans. “I can sense things around the dorm, boy, spending weeks cooped up here isn’t exactly the best idea for a creature of chaos like me. And you are obviously in no state to persist with your pointless essay.” His tone turns condescending, making Felix’s blood boil. “If you want to work yourself to near death, you’re more than welcome to do so, but even I wouldn’t make such a foolish mistake.”

Felix stares incredulously at Changbin for a few seconds, before huffing and bending down. His headache worsens, as does his general frustration. “At least let me get my notes back in order again…”

He half expects Changbin to offer him supernatural assistance, it happens in every drama possible, but the demon just sits there impatiently and watches the boy break his spine cleaning a mess he himself created. Felix glares at him indignantly. “What, just gonna sit there and not offer your incredible levitation powers?”

Changbin rolls his eyes, as if Felix should have known this long ago. “Creature of chaos, remember? If I try to put these things back for someone else, someone’s gonna come up here to complain, and probably drag me back by my horn, contract or no contract.”

“Oh, so you do have horns,” Felix mutters absentmindedly. “I wonder if I can hang ornaments on them during Christmas…”

“Dream on, human,” Changbin sniggers. “You’d probably have given your wish by then.”

Felix grasps the paper a little too hard. He shakes his head, and swipes up the last few sheets.

After the usual bedtime preparations, Felix collapses onto his bed, about two hours earlier than usual, and curls up on his side, letting the pain in his head wash over his being. His legs honest to goodness feel like jelly, if he stands up now he thinks he’ll probably flop over like a rag doll. He lets out a sigh, and snuggles further into the softness of his pillow. Now that he’s let himself rest, he can truly feel exhaustion washing over his bones.

“G’night,” he murmurs to no one in particular.

Of course, nothing replies, but he feels something jump on behind his neck. His heart skips a beat, but his body’s too drained to respond further than that. Then something warm and soft brushes against his nape, and a smile finds its way onto Felix’s tired lips, as his mind slowly drags itself into the endless abyss...

Felix wakes up with a painful bang on the floor. “ Ow! ”

His sleep-muddled mind takes a few seconds to awaken, before he looks up to find Changbin sitting cross-legged on his bed, looking down on him with annoyance. “Changbin, what the fu-” his eyes wander and catch sight of the clock. He narrows his eyes at the demon. “You made me sleep in!”

“No,” Changbin corrects smugly. “I woke you up before you could sleep in. Come on, chop chop, do you want to be late for class?”

Felix throws a pillow at Changbin before stepping out of the room. As he brushes his teeth, the events of the night before come flooding back in, and he almost chokes on his toothpaste. Did Changbin actually sleep beside Felix last night? What happens at night stays at night, he supposes.

When he enters the room again he’s pretty sure his cheeks are still tinged red, but there isn’t anything he can do about it, if he delays any more he’s sure to be late. So he hurriedly shoos Cat Changbin out of the room before changing and making sure all his things were packed. He can already smell the microwaved pastries being made by a probably sleepy Jisung; he just hopes nothing goes wrong-

Jisung shouts.

Ah. Felix openly grimaces. Nothing’s changed .

After a tiring morning of placating Jisung and his poor, trampled breakfast, and half-heartedly berating Changbin in the room as he gathers his stuff, Felix is all set for another, draining day. He honestly doesn’t see much coming out of it except perhaps some new notes and projects to do. So, lo and behold, when he enters the dorm again, feet dragging, he hears four simultaneous phone chimes, all coming to form a dissonant chorus of mundanity-breaking. Looking around confusedly at the other three occupants of the room, equally tired and equally confuzzled, Felix pulls his phone out.

College spirit rally! A message reads out bright and bold. Come one, come all from Haneul College, to student council’s latest initiative! Experience fun, food and games with your fellow peers, all while jamming to your favourite tunes! So bring your best looks, because it will be a night to remember!

“College spirit rally, huh?” Jisung muses aloud. “Sounds interesting.”

"Wanna go?" Felix asks conversationally. 

Seungmin snorts and shakes his head. “Hard pass for me. I bet it’s just a bunch of bullshit lies; a bad excuse for the soddy student council to get smashed, and if they're extremely lucky, maybe even get some. I mean, we all know how shitty our school council is.” He motions to another, smaller part of the message, the fine print, if one may. “And look: sponsorship. I bet vice-chair Kim Woojin just wants to flex his money, hm? How else would they be able to fund an entire, money-squandering night of pure fun and food?”

“Alright, alright, I think the school council’s been torn apart enough, Seungmin,” Hyunjin rushes to stop the law student before he can go on a full-on tirade. “Fine, so maybe it’s a good excuse for the Kims to show off their wealth. But it’s a free party for us! Maybe they really had something going on here, finals is just around the corner and it would be a great opportunity for students to unwind…”

“Ha,” Seungmin scoffs. “Look at you, ever the optimist.”

“More like opportunist!” Jisung waggles his eyebrows. “C’mon, think of it as a mini dormie bonding session! We’ve never actually gone out, you guys, this is the perfect excuse for us to get closer together and bond!”

“If there’s a sexual innuendo in that I’m ignoring it,” Seungmin announces.

"Siri: how to ban a word from a person's mouth," Felix mutters.

Jisung actually has the gall to look offended. "Hey, why do you guys always think I'm making dirty jokes, what's wrong with a little bondage anyway-" 

"Update: it's duct tape," Seungmin tags along beautifully. Jisung pouts. Seungmin makes a face back. Felix is roommates with a bunch of kindergarteners. 

"Oho." Hyunjin waggles his eyebrows. "Duct tape. Double kinky."

Seungmin and Felix smack Hyunjin in unison. Unfazed, Hyunjin turns to Seungmin.

“Please, Seungminnie?” Hyunjin wheedles, and wow, Seungminnie, Felix’s never heard of that before. Looks like the two are closer than he thought. “Just one night?”

"Do you know how insufferable you are?" Seungmin grits out, but relents anyway. "Fine. I bet no one's even gonna turn up to that joke of a jamboree. That's more drinks for us, I guess."

Chapter Text

"I'm starting to think," Hyunjin states, "that everyone else had the same mentality as Seungmin." 

Indeed, as the four look out from the packed, rusty old Toyota Corolla, there is quite the line of cars forming in what evidently is a top-class, crème de la crème neighbourhood, even more that what Seungmin can afford, and Seungmin's house has three storeys. These houses have three storeys, and a spacious backyard! 

There's loud music blaring and bright light flashing from what Felix identifies to be their designated location, along with silhouettes, skimpy to say the least, boisterously entering the party. Felix looks down at his dark ripped jeans and old leather jacket. Yep, Hyunjin's skin tight pants, loose black blouse and heavily shadowed eyes are definitely a better fit, even Jisung's muscle tee and silver chain belt look better. Then he looks at Seungmin's plain jeans and denim hoodie, saved only by a last-minute collaboration by Hyunjin and Jisung to dab on some eyeshadow and blush on the unwilling boy, and figures that, hey, at least he doesn't flop as badly as Seungmin. 

Speaking of the devil, Seungmin actually physically opens the car door before any of them can react, and makes to get out. "That's it, I'm leaving, you guys can get high on pot brownies or whatever but I am not sticking around to play sober driver-" 

Hyunjin reaches over to yank the door closed again. "Nuh-uh, Seungmin, we didn't sacrifice our makeup on your sad visuals for this." 

"I didn't ask to be sacrificed to!" Seungmin hisses back in true devil fashion, but stays put with a petulant pout on his face, and a "you're so gonna regret this" glower. Felix's gut kind of echoes the sentiments when he once more looks ahead at the scene before him, just waiting for a disaster à la cliche movie. He shoves the feeling away. If there's an impending disaster, all the more he should stay with his friends to make sure they're alright. Besides, what more can come out of a party like this other than a killer hangover? 

With a determined push Felix banishes any ominous thoughts out of his mind. He's going to have fun tonight!

When the four enter the house Hyunjin, ever the clingy one, grabs onto Jisung's and Felix's hand, which leads to Felix instinctively grabbing Seungmin's hand before the poor boy can get swallowed up by the crowd. They painstakingly navigate the crowd to the refreshments table, common goal in mind: score some free tidbits. Felix is proud to share a hive mind with his fellow dormies. 

Once they've settled down with some mini sandwiches and punch with a high probability of being spiked, with great effort they find a small, quiet corner near the back of the house to chat and make fun of other people's outfits as if they themselves are in any place to drop criticism. Suddenly Hyunjin lets out an impressed hum. "Hey, look over there, that guy doesn't look half bad." 

Jisung's line of sight follows his totally conspicuous pointer finger and whistles, "Yeah, man, that one's quite the looker. I might literally kill for those kind of combat boots." 

"What? Where?" Felix eagerly cranes his neck, going so far as to straighten his back to try and catch sight of this mysterious supposed hottie. "Combat boots?" 

Seungmin makes a mystified face. "I dunno about you, he looks decent, at best, but he gives me bad vibes. That kind of 'if you mess with me, I might just leave you barely alive' kind of vibe." 

"Great, you've found your twin," Hyunjin teases, then jerks back as Seungmin elbows him in the ribs. 

Amidst the pointless bickering Felix manages to follow Jisung's hungry gaze to the person that Hyunjin spotted- and his heart immediately flips the largest pile of pancakes it's ever flipped. 

Jisung must have seen the dumbstruck look on his face because he singsongs, "Oho, looks like we have a lover boy on our hands! You totally have the hots for him, Lix." 

Felix rushes to waves his hands in denial, but his head’s still spinning from shock and his vision’s kind of tunnelling because what , so it doesn’t really do anything convincing. “No, no!” he tries to salvage the situation. “I just thought he looked familiar…”

Seungmin sips the (definitely) spiked punch melodramatically. “This is the tea that I came for.”

“You’re drinking sugary alcohol, Seungmin, that’s, like, the farthest thing from leaf caffeine.” Felix’s hand subconsciously flies once more to his neck.

“What? It’s the meme that counts.”

“I hate it when you exploit my unending respect and reverence for memes,” is all Felix can grumble back. 

“Come on, go talk to him!” Felix falls forward when Jisung gives him a hard push. He looks back to shoot him a dirty look, but before he can retaliate Jisung gives him another shove. “Don’t be a wuss!”

“Do it for the gay!” Hyunjin cheers, actually sounding spirited. It seems he’s already feeling the effects of the alcohol. “Step out of your tiny closet, young queer, and spread your rainbow wings!”  He proceeds maniacally giggles at his words, and flops onto a horrified Seungmin behind him. Still, Seungmin instantly goes to hold Hyunjin’s arm before he can get out of hand and do something drastic like choke on his sandwich. Felix raises an insinuating eyebrow. Seungmin glares back, but Hyunjin, blissfully unaware, continues, "Hurry up and go get laid- I mean, go get some !”

Felix walks off, ears positively burning as Jisung turns to Hyunjin with, “Idiot, they mean the same thing!” He contemplates making a sharp turn to the refreshments table, just to get some sandwiches and be a wonderful crowd-disappointer, but then he notices a whole crowd of jocks there and decides he’s not going to get himself in that mess. So, seeing as his dumbass friends are still watching him with eager eagle eyes, he sighs loudly, and marches to Changbin. Changbin, who is only supposed to know that Felix is at a party, and that he promised he’ll be back before one. 

He meanders up to Changbin, trying to appear shy and not absolutely confused and pissed off as he says, “So, uh, my friends kinda dared me to talk to you. Act cool, act flirty, whatever, just don’t make things harder for me, alright?” Without waiting for Changbin’s agreement, he charges on. “What the fuck are you doing here?”

“You know, if you keep talking to me like that, I might just reject you,” Changbin plays suavely, whilst putting on an expression Felix has never seen before: a down-tilted head, raised eyebrows and half smirk. His brain immediately pins it as the playboy wannabe look, and files it under disgusting and never wanted in sight again .

Felix pretends to laugh delightedly at Changbin. He really does want to laugh, but with much more bite. He can already hear the scandalous whispers from his friends. “Please protect my eyes and never attempt that face again.”

Changbin’s smirk drops, and he turns away, hands in his infuriatingly tight leather pants. “Rejected.”

Despite his better judgement, Felix swiftly grabs Changbin’s wrist, probably eliciting excited gasps from his poor spectating roommates. He schools his face into something he hopes looks imploring, sheepish, reckless. Channel the inner twink, as his theatre coach would say Dang it, his eyes don’t sparkle enough for this shit. “Wait- okay, okay, fine, whatever, you’re cool, handsome, blah blah blah, now tell me why you’re here like a fucking stalker.”

The damn smirk reappears, but this time without the traumatising eyebrow raise. Felix doesn’t know which one is worse. With a slight glance towards Felix’s huddle of roommates, Changbin smoothly switches their hands’ positions, so that he’s the one holding Felix’s wrist, and wordlessly drags him off. Felix grimaces at his roommates’ cheers and woops; he’s going to have hell to explain when he gets back without hickeys.

Actually, he does have Hell to explain.

Felix wants to drown his cursed thoughts in spiked punch.

Changbin leads him into the corridor and to the bathroom. “Um, I don’t think that’s-” Felix begins, but before he can complete his sentence Changbin’s already yanked the door open to find… the quarterback and a cheerleader making out, near naked. Felix lunges forward to slam the door closed and pulls Changbin away from there. “Wise choice, but it’s almost always occupied.” He settles for a little alcove in the wall, home to an antique-looking table with what look like family photos and achievement certificates, though that certainly can’t be the collection in its entirety. Still… “Here’s a better place.” He turns to face Changbin, folding his arms expectantly. “So? What’s your reason? If you don’t tell me truthfully, I’ll call the extortionist.”

Changbin looks miffed as he, too, turns to face Felix. He offhandedly notes that his eyebrow is slitted. “Nice try, but those people only work on the big guys. Like, y’know, the cronies of the Dark Lord himself and other fallen angels. Real nasty pieces of work. I’m kind of a descendant from them, so I’m not so much anti-holy as I am just the darkness of the human soul, so to speak.”

Felix fishes into his shirt to pull out his, well, one could say it’s his family pendant. He waves it in front of Changbin. “So if I say ‘I banish you, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ’, you won’t burn up in ashes?”

Changbin hisses as his form starts smoking. Felix hastily puts his crucifix away. “Uh… I take it back? I restore you in the name of the Dark Lord Satan?” he almost spits, the words immediately leaving a vile taste in his mouth, but Changbin stops smouldering. “Nevermind. I’m... sorry.”

“Don’t,” Changbin grits out, “ ever say those two names, for my safety and yours. I think I’ve sufficiently answered your questions.” His eyes have taken on a red glow, which is… really never a good thing. Felix thinks he can see claws forming out of Changbin’s fingers, but, however much he wants to back off and back to his friends, he has to stand his ground.

Felix stops Changbin before he can walk away, maybe to regain his hellish power, maybe to lick his wounds a little and score a cute chick for the night. “Wait, not yet! You still haven’t told me what you’re doing here.”

Obnoxiously rolling his eyes, Changbin turns back to Felix, irises getting brighter by the second. “Alright, fine, apparently the vicinity that I need to be within is a lot smaller than I thought, so I had to follow the bond I have with your soul to find you here. Happy?” And with that, he stalks into the corridor, and into the crowd.

Felix stands there for a while, digesting what just happened in front of him, before shaking it off and resolving to find his friends, hickeys or no hickeys. It turns out to be harder than he expected, because they’re not at their previous spot when he goes to find them. That kind of sets his heart off into an uneven sort of pitter-patter, because his dormies are under the influence and on their own out there, which is never a good thing. So, figuring that they must be somewhere around the house, he sets off searching.

He soon gives up on the refreshments and moving into the immensely more perilous dance floor. Even though he thought he was mentally prepared, he doesn't think he can ever barricade his surprise from the movements pulsing around him, some on-beat, some disastrously off. (The worst part is, he thinks the off-beat dancers are sober .) He gets tossed and turned in the tide of drunken partygoers, trying to avoid naughty grinds and stray hands at all costs. But in a crowd where even millimetres don't exist, it's a little hard to do that. Just a little. 

Finally, he thinks he catches sight of a bleached head of hair with a style strikingly close to Hyunjin's at the edge of the crowd. Heart soaring with hope he bobs along the inebriated students, inching closer and closer to the surface of this tumultuous nightmarish ocean.

Then, something slides around his wrist and yanks him backwards away from his destination. Emphasis on some thing , not some one , because there's no way in hell a person's on the other end of the insidious grasp.

Felix turns and- yep, it's really a person. 

It's one of the girls he's seen around campus, usually hanging out with her "girlfriends", gossiping and checking her nailpolish, probably in college not for any of her brains, but for her parents' money. Felix has never thought much about her until now, but now that they're face-to-face, he can safely say the impression has hardly improved. He tries to tug his hand out of her grip, having watched enough dramas to accurately envision where this is going.

As expected, he doesn't pull free. 

"Hey sweetie," she purrs, "I'm Chelsea." Felix is starting to think the nails around his wrist is starting to look a lot more like claws. "You look cute." She looks Felix up and down, making him shifts uncomfortably under her gaze, but of course she doesn't notice. "Kind of innocent, really." Her nails creep farther up his arm and under his sleeve. Felix legitimately fears that they're going to pierce straight through his skin. "Want me to turn you into a real man tonight?" 

He once again tries to regain autonomy over his hand. It once again does not budge. "I think I'll pass," he tells her bluntly. 

Chelsea's heavily shadowed eyes widen. "Oh my, and what a deep voice!" she observes. Felix irrelevantly notes that this is turning into some twisted ass Little Red Riding Hood scenario. Oh, how the turns have tabled. 

"Yes, uh, it comes with the genes," he says helplessly. He considers wrenching his wrist out of her grip taekwondo-style, but she'd probably shriek and cause an unneeded scene, and the last thing Felix needs is a bad name in this absurdly tiny college. So he tries reason. With a drunk and clearly horny person. Wonders never cease. "I'm kind of looking for my friends right now, I'm sure you can find someone else to- uh- turn into a real man…" 

"Oh, they'll be fine," she scoffs, and tugs more insistently on his arm. "C'mon, don't be a tease, I'm sure we'll have a great time." 

Felix genuinely has no idea how to proceed from here without making a complete mess out of, well, everything , but before he can react, a new voice cuts in. 

"I hardly think a person like you can show anyone an experience at all," Changbin says, suddenly sidling beside Felix. He looks better, his hair is a little rumpled, but his eyes are no longer glowing red, back to its deep brown depths. Those eyes are currently fixing Chelsea with a hard stare that Felix has only seen once before... somewhere. He can't remember, nor does he care much to. 

A scowl forms on Chelsea's face, but Felix thinks he spots another glint in her eye. How uncommitted, but he'd definitely pick Changbin over himself any day, so, understandable. Still, what a hoe. "And who might you be?" she asks, her tone a tad icier, but still husky enough to appear somewhat seductive.

Changbin raises a slitted eyebrow. "None of your business. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to have a chat with my friend over here, so fuck off." 

Chelsea actually has to gall to keep her grip on Felix, and loop an arm around Changbin's. "Well, maybe we started off on the wrong foot. I'm just asking your friend here for a little fun, that's all. His looks are too pretty to be wasted." 

Changbin laughs harshly, and Felix hopes to never be on the receiving end of it. "How delusional of you. If he wanted to fuck you he'd have agreed ages ago, but from what I can see he hasn't shown an inkling of interest in your…" hehe eyes Chelsea up and down with distaste, "... sultry outfit. I think we can both safely assume that your business is done here," he ends pointedly. 

A livid expression crosses Chelsea's face before it's schooled into something a little more civil. Her hand slips off Felix, though, and he's about to breathe a sigh of relief until she turns to face Changbin, her expression back to its lustful state. "And what about you, hm? This sultry outfit can come off for you."

Felix thinks Changbin's eyes actually flash red, and for a second he believes Changbin will take Chelsea up on the offer, when he retorts, "I'd rather kiss him that go anywhere near your repulsive being." 

Not one, but both humans gape at his declaration. "With him ?" Chelsea gasps, at the same time Felix yelps, "You what ?" 

Changbin's expression remains unmoved. "You heard me. I'd rather make out with a guy than have intercourse with you. That's a pretty good rundown of how worthless I think you truly are." 

Felix swears that if he doesn't push his jaw back up it will slam straight onto the ground. Chelsea seems to have the same sentiments, but for entirely different reasons. "Oh, I see now," she giggles, and Felix wants to roundhouse her right here and now, because maybe only then she might gain some form of common sense. "You're just lying because you don't wanna give in so easily, hm? I'm smarter than that, I know you really want me." 

She can't be farther from the truth. 

Changbin too seems to realise that she's a lost cause, because he turns to Felix, eyes gleaming with something dangerous. "You wanna curse her for the rest of eternity?" 

Felix feels a little gobsmacked, he definitely did not see this coming of all possible scenarios. Still, he tries to recover quickly. "Uhh," he says, dragging it out. "No, no, I don't think so. She's not worth it." 

"Degradation!" Chelsea says giddily. "A favourite of mine." 

It's Felix's turn to look imploringly at Changbin. "Get her away from me, please ." 

"Gladly," Changbin sighs. "And I won't even use your wish, this one is all on me." A sudden smirk is all the warning he gets before he's whirled around to face Changbin, who then comes fatally close to Felix. "Y'know," he says lowly to Felix, "usually I can't be bothered to take things the extra mile, but I feel like changing things up tonight. What do you say you and I put on a show?" 

Felix shudders in his tight grip on his shoulders, but not in the same way as he did Chelsea's. Changbin's eyes are starting to glow dimly again, but Felix doesn't feel endangered by it, if anything it makes him even more alluring, something Felix can't resist, well he has to, for Pete's sake, but at the same time-

He barely whispers a "yeah" before the gap between them closes. 

Chapter Text

Felix feels like he's in a fever dream.

It's the weirdest and best fever dream ever . 

If asked what he would do at a party, his answers would range from getting high on pot brownies and jumping into the pool to smashing the dance floor with only Fortnite dances. Never would he have ever imagined kissing a demon. 

To be fair, it's a closed mouth kiss, and Changbin's doing most of the work, because Felix is an inexperienced baby , mind you. Pointy teeth, Changbin warns him between kisses, Makes fragile human flesh go owie . 

Felix kind of wants to smack Changbin for that, but he's too busy getting lost in feelings Changbin's bringing him. The warm mouth on his, the hand holding his waist just a little too tight, the fire that seems to take over his veins with every passing second, it makes him feel good. Really good. Up until that point he was frozen, shocked, but now he feels ready, ready to take it a step further, bring it a notch higher-

Changbin detaches from him. "Chelsea's gone," he utters, and his eyes seem to glow more intensely. Now that they're aimed at him Felix starts to feel a little unsafe, but he just lowkey made out with a demon, so blame him if his thought process is a little fuzzy. 

Felix wants to reach out, scream and run away from the scene, smash him mouth against Changbin's again, anything in reaction to this, but Changbin beats him to it once again. "I'll be back," he says, before disappearing into the crowd once more, leaving a dumbfounded Felix. 

Well , he tells himself consolingly as he slowly regains his senses and heads off once more to search for his dormies, at least he said he'll return . 

Fortunately, the head of hair Felix spotted before the whole fiasco reveals itself to indeed be his beanpole dormie. Highly unfortunately, judging from the teasing expressions on his dormies’ faces, they witnessed the whole scene. 

Jisung shakes his head in mock disappointment as Felix bashfully approaches them. "What was that posture ?" he chides when Felix is within earshot. "That is not how you kiss a hot guy, Lee Felix." 

"Even when he's shorter than you!" Hyunjin chips in, even more gone than before, because he's clinging to Seungmin like the world's gonna end. Despite his scowl Seungmin doesn't seem to mind, even playing with Hyunjin's hair from time to time. 

Felix feels a flush growing uninvited on his face. "Please, shut up. I never want to speak of it again." 

Hyunjin perks up, concerned. "Oh? It- it was consented, right?" 

"I'll throw hands at Hot Guy if I have to," Jisung adds, already making fists and lifting them in a fighting pose. 

Felix hastily shakes his head before his drunk dormies can start any shit up. "No! No, it was consented! I… I just…" he wracks his brain for a reason that doesn't consist of said hot guy being a literal demon . 

Thankfully, Jisung, self-proclaimed love guru, reads his body language totally wrongly and declares, "Ooh, I see how it is, you want to keep it to yourself, don't you? Don't worry," he winks at Felix and he kind of wants to melt into an unidentifiable puddle on the ground, "we'll indulge your selfishness. I'm just proud you even managed to score some at this ripe age of yours!" 

Felix can't help but scoff. "You're literally the same age as me." 

"I'm older by one day," Jisung faithfully reminds him. Felix playfully rolls his eyes. "And besides, I've already accepted my gay ass' condemnation to be forever single. I can no longer fight what fate has in store for me, but that doesn't mean I can't celebrate the happiness of my friends!" 

"Oh look, Jisung's being overdramatic again," Seungmin snorts. 

"You gotta at least have his number," Hyunjin pesters, apparently unbothered by being jostled by Jisung attempting to jab Seungmin for his statement other than absentmindedly swatting Seungmin for moving. Felix wished he had Drunk Hyunjin’s kind of chill.

"Uh-" Felix never thought of that. "Yyyyyeah, sure, I think he slipped it in my back pocket or something." He hopes his friends are too smashed to remember Changbin's hands were nowhere near his ass. 

Hyunjin claps delightedly, inadvertently granting Felix his wish. "Yes! Our Felix is finally getting banged!" Felix stutters, already feeling his face getting red. This is going to be hard to get out of.

He fishes for an argument. "Who will protect you from little Changbin then?" he teases. "I dunno about you, but I'm not gonna risk SPCA coming to haul my ass to an animal rights rehabilitation centre for locking Changbin in with nothing to keep him company."

"Oh yeah, Changbin, that bitch, except not really 'cuz he's a cat… and a guy, " Hyunjin hums, tipping onto Seungmin's lap. The younger, after giving Jisung’s finger a final twist, turns in time to catch Hyunjin before he rolls onto the floor. "Has your friend finally found a new owner for him?" 

Felix bites back a sigh. "He's still working on it." Deciding not to give his dormies any time to register through their alcohol-slowed minds, he barrels on, "You guys look… pretty smashed, to say the least. Wanna head home?" 

Seungmin looks down at the giggling Hyunjin, while Felix glances at Jisung, who's started humming to himself like a senile person in an old folks' home. "Do you think there'll be police alcohol checks on the highway at this time?" 

Before they well and truly leave, Felix excuses himself for a while, saying he needs to answer nature's call. As expected, it's just a poor excuse for what he actually needs to do: find that dumb demon before he attempts to enter the dorm through the window to avoid getting caught romcom style. 

(Did he say romcom? He meant just com. As in comedy.) 

After some extensive searching (and a frightening brief sighting of Chelsea), Felix finds Changbin in the backyard amongst tipsy students lurking in a corner, as all dark creatures do. His back is turned to the rest meaning Felix can't really see what's going on there, so he walks up to the demon and taps his shoulder. "Changbin?" 

At first, Changbin doesn't react, and Felix thinks he might have to smack him at this point, when he suddenly turns to face Felix once more. His usual glower is back, and his red eyes seem to bore into Felix's. Felix can't help but gulp. He kind of wants to splash water on him, just to stop his irises from incinerating him right on the spot, maybe even shove Changbin into the pool. Of course, he doesn’t do that, because Hell knows the fury that’d be unleashed on him and by proximity the poor, clueless drunks around him. (How has anyone not noticed the red eyes yet?)

"Hey, so, uh, my roommates are like… smashed as heck and I wanna get them home before someone breaks a table. You have to come with me, right? Because of the contract, and stuff."

Felix doesn't know why he's suddenly so awkward. Perhaps Felix was impacted more by the incident than he originally estimated. Don't get him wrong, he was never against kissing boys, in fact he's kissed a few before, but with Changbin… 

He doesn't want to dig in too deep. 

Changbin shakes his head, breaking Felix out of his semi-stupor. "Yeah, I'll turn into a bird and fly throw your window or something." He sighs and runs a hand through his tousled hair. "The stupid contract prohibits me from doing so many things sometimes I feel like a fucking human . You know, you should really make that wish sooner or later. Sooner is much preferred." 

"I'll- I'll get to that," Felix says absentmindedly, mind busy trying to piece together how this stunt can be successfully pulled off. He'd really rather Changbin accompany him home, maybe tailing behind as a stray animal or… can contracted demons possess people? Still, if Changbin has to take care of personal stuff, he won't get in the way, especially if doing otherwise might actually get him a one-way-ticket to the fiery underground. "But you gotta be back before we are. Takes about… half an hour for us to get home? Is that enough?" 

Changbin shakes his head dismissively. "I'll make it enough. Go on, I need to sort some things out alone." 

It clues Felix in that maybe Changbin's staying behind because he missed his monthly meditation sessions. He wouldn't be surprised if it was mandated in Hell, he's seen for himself just how capricious a normal demon is, what more an even more powerful one. 

Or maybe he's just high. 

… he's probably just high. 

Whatever the case, he turns around and tries to find his way to the front door, where his dormies are waiting. If Changbin wants to meditate in a room full of rowdy, sweaty drunks, then he can meditate in a room full of rowdy, sweaty drunks. Now, if only Felix could gain an iota of that amount of concentration for his classes. 

He's choosing between death metal and shrieking violin music as demonic meditation soundtracks when Seungmin, who despite his greatest protests still ended up being the sober driver, pulls into the lot. Hyunjin's already asleep in the backseat, and Jisung's lungs have tired themselves out from screaming Twice songs into the night air on the highway to no one but a few miserable birds. Felix and Seungmin exchange tired glances, and heave sighs in unison.

Hyunjin is infinitely more compliant than Jisung, shuffling according to Seungmin’s guiding hands, grumbling every now and then but otherwise being cooperative. Felix has the fortune of ushering Jisung into the building, up the lift and into the dorms. He barely stops himself from throwing Jisung out when the boy tugs at his dangling earring rather ungently, giggling, “Shiny!”

Looks like Hyunjin was the wrong dormie to gang up on.

As the four stumble into the dorm, Seungmin takes one glance at Felix’s harassed state and uncharacteristically insists on taking care of both Jisung and Hyunjin, even though the former boy normally grates on his nerves like gouda cheese on a grater. Usually Felix would deny and then proceed to secretly regret his terrible selflessness, but he has a window to check, and a demon to grant entry to.

As the saying goes, he’s disappointed but not surprised when he finds no avian creature outside his window, waiting impatiently for him to open up. He’s just grateful his dorm mates are either drunk or exhausted, there’s no way they’d miss the presence of a measly kitten that isn’t even supposed to be here.

Felix silently challenges fate to oppose that statement. 

No one opens the door.

Felix can finally breathe again. Fate is kind tonight.

Then he jumps so hard he tumbles off his chair with a crash when he hears an insistent tapping on the window. Before anyone can react, his door swings open, the unmistakable silhouette of Seungmin standing in the doorway.

“Felix? Are you okay?” Seungmin steps into the room, wary of a certain creature, but steps in anyway. “That sounded pretty painful.”

Felix groans as he pitifully peels himself from the very sleep-inviting floor. “I’m fine, just fine,” he grouses.

Seungmin doesn’t budge. “You sure? I know this isn’t the first time you’ve fallen.”

Felix really just wants Seungmin to scram so he can retrieve Changbin in peace, but he has higher priorities. He doesn’t move, just stares at Seungmin in disbelief and betrayal. “And you’ve never come to check on me until now?!”

Seungmin blinks for a few seconds, confusion clouding his face. Then his eyes widen in realisation, and take on a more disdainful look as he examines Felix, still lying on the ground. “Oh! That’s just because Normal Me didn’t give a shit,” he says candidly after a while, making Felix splutter, “but I guess tucking two people in bed really gives you the urge to be-” he shudders like he touched something slimy. Felix wishes he did. “-responsible. Terrible experience, I’d give half a star.” He steps forward to pat Felix on the head, then shoots Felix a cheeky grin as he slips once more out of the room. “Thanks for snapping me out of it!”

Felix gapes incredulously at the back of the closed door. A slam sounds from behind him, making him jump once more and turn his head so fast he almost snaps his own neck. At this point he kind of wishes it did.

“Making me resort to breaking and entering, huh?” Changbin mutters, back to his human form, looking down at Felix with something that looks like faint disappointment in his eyes.

Felix sighs and throws an arm over his eyes. "If I actually give a fuck I might just apologise." 

Changbin scoffs. “Get up, or I’ll step on your face.”

Felix is quick to scramble upright. “Or maybe you could fuck off.” Changbin gives him one last baleful look before turning into a cat again and stalking out, leaving Felix to dawdle in his own thoughts once more.

To be frank, Felix doesn’t know what level of awkward is appropriately awkward, but he’s pretty sure it should not be this low. Changbin doesn’t act any different from when he did a day ago. Felix doesn’t know if that’s a good thing or not, but he supposes it’s for the better. The last thing he needs is a main character role in a supernatural teen romance, he already has enough major problems on his very tiny hands, and a plot-mandated death will actually make him break the fourth wall to strangle his author. As Changbin turns into a cat to wander out and ruin someone else’s night, Felix silently tells himself, it was nothing. He’s a fucking demon, creature of chaos, doer of destruction, blah blah blah, you’re probably just one person in a long line of cute people he’s kissed. Stay in your lane, boi.

And he proceeds to very intentionally stay on the floor as Changbin bumps their damage records up one ceramic plate.

Chapter Text

fire and ice, lightning and wind

People rarely ever accurately predict Seungmin's superpower. They'd typically guess something psychic, or perhaps something more demure, more nature-related. They can't be farther from the reality. Despite what people perceive from his demeanour, Seungmin's eyes blaze as bright as the midday sun, accentuated even more so by the glowing embers intertwined within his flaming red hair. His gaze radiates heat, and he rarely speaks loosely, but when he does, his words burn and incinerate even the most impenetrable barriers. His skin scalds to the touch, each fingertip a tiny firecracker waiting to ignite yet another inferno. He's practically untouchable, and dangerously so.

Hyunjin's superpower, on the contrary, can almost always been guessed correctly on the first try. He doesn't even try to hide it. His black locks gleam lusciously, his every movement is flawlessly fluid, and his face radiates energy and life even as he's drenched in exhaustion. His voice, his touch, his smile soothes even the most turbulent soul. His giggles bubble like a gurgling stream, and his gaze as captivating as a sunset over an ocean. By that effect, almost every person he meets is instantly enamoured by his little quirks and charms, and even more so when they discover the gentle soul that he is at heart. But don't be fooled by his naive exterior; below that surface is a power of deepest depths that can drag down even the strongest fighter.

Jisung, similarly, is a dead giveaway from the get-go. Spritely, lively and unpredictable in every way, he never fails to surprise the people around him. (Whether it's a good or bad kind of surprise is up to debate.) His eyes seem spark and sparkle, and his words implode like mini explosions in their own right. His body is constantly surging with an energy surpassing all other vitality, seemingly summoning life force from a bottomless storm within, and this energy is not only limited to the physical. His mind is blade sharp, his every sense charged and ready to charge. The forces inside him are matched only by his passion and compassion, an ever swirling want to spark positive change in this world, to change the atmosphere and let freedom permeate the skies.

On the other hand, Felix startles those around him whenever he moves his feet as if they were floating on thin air, a spirit that can't ever be chained down. Despite his earth-rumbling voice, his inner soul flies higher than the highest flying birds, circling and soaring and following wherever the currents take it, ruffling the minds of the people around him in the meantime. He delights in spinning and twirling in the breeze, letting the air tousle his hair every way it wants. Somehow, it always manages to make him even more breathtaking. However, every foe who dares contend with him learns fast that he is a force to be reckoned with, as he slices with the strength of a tornado, and paralyses with the ferocity of a hurricane. Never to be mistaken as an airhead, his mind is full of soul and spirit, universal wisdom and ingenuity instilled into one, singular, tender but keen mind.

Chapter Text

Felix knows something’s wrong. He might not be the best at reading people, much less demons, but one look at Changbin right from the start of day and Felix can just tell he’s off. He can’t identify what exactly, but it’s like… everything about him’s been tilted by five degrees. His actions are strange, his expression is strange, and his eyes … while Felix is running around with a post-party headache trying to remember for the life of him what class he had today, Changbin mostly keeps his head down, letting his fringe sweep over his forehead as best he could. Even when Felix spared him a hasty good morning before he rushed out to prepare breakfast for two piteous hungover college students, all he got was a short grunt in return. Still, as he sweeps out the door, he accidentally catches Changbin’s eye, and lord , he feels like his entire being’s just been lasered with one glance. He quickly shuts the door and frowns to himself as he hurries to the kitchen. He’d better check up on him later, Hell knows what a really upset demon can do to a poor, defenceless college dorm.

Throughout classes Felix is uneasy, but he manages to get through with only one lecturer inviting him to see the nurse because he looks so pale. Once he’s released from his last class he yeets himself to the dorms, ignoring his stomach’s rumble for food. What’s the point of eating if there’s not gonna be a fridge to eat from?

When he opens the door, he yelps. Thankfully, not because the place is in ashes, or because his dormies are running around like headless chickens. No, he’s utterly terrified because all of the furniture is floating . It’s not, like, hover-in-the-air, crash-into-your-head kind of floating, everything just seems to be levitating three inches above the ground, moving up and down as if riding on a gentle tide, which is the exact opposite of what the entire situation is.

Only one person can do this.

Felix hesitates, halting his hand before it can hold and twist his bedroom door open. He knows he should get in there and try to deescalate whatever bizarre situation Changbin’s in, but if almost everything in the dorm is floating, that can not be just Changbin wanting to show his incredible powers off and freaking the fuck out of his dormies, although Felix wouldn’t put it past him. If compiled with his strange behavior in the morning… No, something is drastically wrong with Changbin.

Felix takes a deep breath. But I’m the summoner. Whatever happens, I have to take responsibility for it.

He opens the door.

It's honestly better than he expected. It really is. His expectations sincerely aligned with images of a monstrous being standing amongst the smoking ashes of his bed and desk, perhaps poised to attack him or maybe just doing… whatever demons do when they're super emotional. 

Instead he finds his stuff practically flying a foot above ground, spinning, doing flips, all orbiting around a singular being. It would be a majestic sight, if it weren't for the fact that Felix knows exactly what's the force that's causing it. 

His eyes focus on Changbin. He's not a grotesque beast of some sort, thankfully, still relatively human, save the evident horns protruding out of his head, probably a side-effect of… the ongoing phenomenon. 

Before Felix can call out to Changbin, his eyes snap up to meet Felix's wide ones, and violent shivers run down Felix's spine. There's something in Changbin's gaze that's almost feral, primordial, one could say… predatory. Immediately one of Changbin's hands flies up to clutch his cranium. "Boy," he rasps, but although he's not making an effort to raise his voice, Felix can hear the monosyllable almost too clearly, because it sounds like a dozen hellish voices are uls chorusing with his own voice, making it scrape against Felix’s ears with an edge of terror. “You shouldn’t have opened the door.”

Felix thought horror movies were frightening enough. The psychological terror on behalf of the innocent characters already sent a week of sleepless nights Felix’s way, and the jumpscares, the sounds, the sheer paranoia of the same thing happening to him petrifies him to a catatonic state. Although there (HOPEFULLY) aren’t any jumpscares, being immersed in the setting is making Felix’s childhood nightmares come to life. Especially because of that darn movie he’d been forced to watch a few weeks ago. Felix is so scared he thinks he’s gonna throw up, but he stands his ground, albeit extremely shakily, but still stands. He has to, until he can find out what’s wrong, and hopefully cook up a homemade solution, preferably without resorting to pulling out his cross again.

“Changbin,” he says softly, and wow, his voice is trembling more than a newborn lamb . He clears his throat and tries again, “Changbin.”

“I heard you the first time,” Changbin growls, and Felix finds that the initial shock is over, and the chorus of roaring voices doesn’t scare him as much. He straightens up a little more. “Get out.”

“What’s wrong?” Felix asks, ignoring Changbin’s command. “You need to tell me what’s going on.”

“I don’t have to tell you anything !” the sudden ferocity in the shout makes Felix visibly flinch back. “Now get out of the house, before…” Changbin’s expression drops into something softer, something more human than the god-awful snarl it was a few seconds ago. “Before anything happens.”

It takes a few moments, but it strikes Felix that Changbin’s asking him to get out of the vicinity before he gets hurt. He doesn’t know why it would concern Changbin so much, but maybe there’s something in the contract that states that whatever unwilled harm befalls the summoner also harms the demon. Hell if he knows.

“Okay!” he says back. “Okay, I’ll go out. But I still need to know what’s going on so I know when to come back!”

And come up with a suitable cover story for my dormies too , he notes to himself.

Changbin winces and Felix’s furniture starts spinning twice as fast. He thinks his own feet are being sucked into Changbin’s personal vortex, being tugged against his will towards the eye of the storm.

How ironic that the eye of the storm is said to be the most calm.

“It’s a solstice,” Changbin manages to say with what seems to be great effort. “It’s the time when the forces of Hell are at its most powerful. During these twenty-four hours creatures of Hell go fucking batshit crazy like you wouldn’t believe. I’m one of the less powerful demons, but during solstices I think we can level entire buildings. I’ve been trying to curb my power, but it’s too much concentrated chaos to control without letting some out. Do you know how much effort it’s taking right now to not-” He winces again. Felix feels the air leave his lungs in a breathless gasp. Changbin recovers. “-to not maul you to pieces? That’s why I need you to leave now . It’s not safe for you.”

Felix takes a step back towards the door, but pauses. Changbin, along with the cacophony of voices growls threateningly at him, but he has to clear up one last thing . “What about the entire dorm? If this isn’t the full extent of your power, what if you suddenly lose control?” He kept the unsaid opinion to himself: that Changbin won’t care enough about everyone else to not obliterate the building.

He makes a decision.

“I’m going to make a wish now,” he says resolutely.

“What?” Changbin staggers on his feet, but stays upright. “No!”

“I have to!” Felix argues, starting to cling to the doorway to prevent himself from being lifted and colliding with the sofa chair. “There isn’t any other option that doesn’t include subsequent severe legal action!”

“No,” Changbin grits out, there’s a steeliness in his voice that scares the conviction out of Felix’s chest. “It’s still not safe. You’re not experienced enough to direct my power away from all of this destruction with a mere soul-binding contract. There’s a reason why only the most powerful sorcerers and witches summon demons during solstices, they’re the only ones who can keep us in check. If you know what’s good for you, you are going to leave this place.”

Suddenly the tension in the room soars immensely. Felix tenses, as Changbin apparently did a few moments before him. "Someone's coming," Changbin breathes. 

Felix starts, letting the words clunk their way through his cognitive gears before taking off and rushing towards his door, anxious to intercept the newcomer before he has to explain why everything not permanently attached to the floor is currently floating two feet above his head. He never knew the ceiling was actually that high. 

He stops himself before he can yank the door open like a crazy madman would, and forces himself to agonisingly slowly open the door, stepping out like he's just out on a grocery run. Oh god, did he forget his wallet? 

As he shuts the door, he comes face to face with whom he supposes is the newcomer Changbin mentioned. He is… incredibly pale, skin almost looking like a girl's with its porcelain tone, although it's clear from his figure that he's of the male gender. His shock of curls springs out from his scalp, spilling out into his wide brown eyes. Unfortunately for Felix, those eyes are shining with a purpose. 

“Hi, uh” the newcomer greets before digs into the messenger bag before slowly creeping towards the door, eyeing it earnestly, “I think you should stand back.”

Felix spies a flash of silver in the messenger bag, and after getting over the what the fuck stage of acceptance he leaps to stop the newcomer from entering. “No- no, I- I don’t think that’s necessary.”

The newcomer’s eyebrows furrow. “‘Not necessary’? I don’t know if you can tell, but there is a colossal amount of darkness radiating from your dorm. It doesn’t take a genius to tell that you’ve foolishly summoned a demon on a solstice, kid. Do you know how powerful they can get on solstices? You were in and over your head, nothing is worth summoning a demon at this damn time with such inexperience. If I don’t wrangle this one under control, it’s going to fry the complex, and everyone inside it.”

Felix feels his stomach twist itself into knots even the most expert sailor wouldn’t be able to undo. So Changbin was right.

But still-

“What do you intend on doing?” he demands, still obstructing the newcomer’s path to his door. 

The newcomer squints at Felix in annoyance. His expression looks like one that Felix most definitely would not want to mess with on a normal day, but he can’t just let this person, however expert he is at this, march into his dorm and potentially- no, most likely harm his demon. 

“What do you think I’m going to do? I’m going to cut off the contract and send his ass back to Hell, if I don’t kill him in the process. Don’t get in the way kid, whatever you sought to gain through this careless decision can’t possibly be worth sacrificing everyone in this building.”

Felix panics even more. He might kill Changbin? No, he can’t let that happen, Changbin doesn’t deserve to be killed-

“No, nonono!” he waves his arms around like a damn air marshal before he can be pushed past. “Don’t kill him, please don’t kill him-" His mind races to think of alternatives. "I didn't just summon him, I did it a while ago and this suddenly just popped up, I swear he's not actually evil or anything." His mind races fast. "Is… Is there a way to limit his power long enough to get to… I dunno, some deserted abandoned place? There has to be, right?” He gazes desperately at him, hoping to transmit some sort of sincerity through pure eye contact, as if puppy eyes would do good against what’s clearly a demon-slayer.

He genuinely half-expected said demon slayer to just scoff and push right past him without a second thought. But instead, he actually maintains eye contact with Felix, scanning for ulterior motives or insidious intentions. Seemingly satisfied by what he's seen, he digs some more in, switching from his original objective. "I think it's possible," he says thoughtfully. "I might have to use some powerful stuff, but there's a high chance it won't backfire disastrously on us. I'd give about a… seventy-three percent chance?" 

"Right," Felix mutters. "High." Still, he won't protest, especially since he has no idea how to prevent any of this destruction beyond perhaps sucking everything into a giant tumbler and yeeting it as far as possible before it blows. This magnanimous demon hunter is probably his only hope. 

"I hope I don't regret this," the demon hunter mutters, before braving himself and entering the dorm.

Felix expects for there to be some resistance. Maybe the furniture would be the unfortunate pawns in the crossfire, maybe an invisible force would push the demon hunter out of the apartment like a parent with a petulant child. But there is no movement. If anything, everything goes lower. Felix breathes a sigh of relief. Changbin heard everything, meaning they weren't in imminent danger of being stabbed by kitchen knives. 

"He's in that room," Felix quickly informs, and the demon hunter spares no time rushing to said room, already pulling some things out from his mystical messenger bag. He stops Felix as he's about to tag along behind him. "I think it'd be better if you don't witness this part. Things could get really ugly fast, it's not anything for the faint of heart." 

Felix halts as instructed, despite his strong urge to protest and join the demon hunter in the room. But the words stick to him; he's just had one terrifying reminder of his fear of horror, he's pretty sure he doesn't need another, lest he suffer from another week-long round of nightmares. He tells himself he'll still rush in at any sign of danger, though. He might not be a badass demon hunter who eats Hellspawn for breakfast, but even he can tell this is not going to be a walk in the park. 

Actually, maybe it could be. It's just that everything in the park is on fire and upside down and infested by rabid bunnies, and he's trapped in a strait jacket and tied to a unicycle. Highly specific, but Felix has to be straight (even though he's really far from it): even that scenario is less wacky than this. 

Tentatively, he taps his foot rapidly against the floor, ears pricked at the general roaring ongoing in the room, which is a considerable amount. He jumps at every sharp sound and bites his lip at every dip in volume. It's probably the most nerve wracking moment of his life. 

Then everything comes down with an ear-ringing crash, then… dead silence. Felix feels his breath leave with the noise. Then, there's a click from the door.

The demon hunter emerges, looking hassled but intact, save a thin stream of blood carving its way down his forehead. Felix cranes his neck, searching for Changbin. If he's really honest, Changbin's short stature would probably be overpowered by the obviously larger demon's hunter. 

A frown comes upon his face he finds no small demon in sight. Panicked, he turns to the demon hunter. "Where is he?" 

The demon hunter just shoots him a wane smile and holds a thermos up. "Inside my lunchbox." He holds up a placating hand when Felix's expression only intensifies. "It's okay! He agreed to it. If not, this-" he gestures to the trickle of blood on his face, "-definitely would not have been the only affliction I'd have gotten. Frankly, I'm quite surprised, this demon is the first one I've seen submit so easily to forced possession." He hums contemplatively. "Actually, out of the stories of forced possessions I've heard, and trust me, I've heard a lot more than I've seen, this is the most cooperative demon in… ages." Felix can tell he's gazing at Felix with a new light in his eye, perhaps something with a tint of newfound respect.

He can’t help but let a surprised smile light up his face. He expected Changbin to put up a fight,  because he knows just how much the demon loathes being controlled, but apparently something better in him won out during the confrontation. At least, Felix hopes so.

As if on cue, the thermos suddenly shudders and flies out of the demon hunter’s hands and into his nose. Felix’s martial arts training kicks in and he catches it before it hits the floor. He knows how disastrous any supernatural thing dropping to the floor always results in. He’s not taking chances. 

The two simultaneously heave a sigh of relief. “I think we should get him somewhere remote, fast,” the demon hunter states as he rubs his nose, as if the realisation didn’t just literally slap him in the face. “I’ll drive.”

The trip to the car isn’t a long one, and before Felix knows it he’s in the front seat of a creaky, probably second-hand, if not third-hand, Hyundai Accent with a pine scent air freshener hanging from the rearview mirror, cradling a Tupperware thermos like it’s a bomb, on a journey to a set of abandoned warehouses to prevent a building demolition. Makes perfect sense.

When they have to stop at a traffic junction, the demon hunter suddenly slaps his forehead. “Oh my god, I’m so dumb, I haven’t introduced myself yet!” Although his eyes are still looking attentively at the road in front, Felix turns to see an amiable smile on his face, one that shows his dimples and makes the guy look five years younger. Felix likes it. “I’m Bang Chan. I live in the dorms of the college too, that’s why I managed to sense the disturbance and make it to your dorm. I, uh, hope you don’t mind the sudden intrusion.” The light turns green, and the car rumbles back to life. Felix clutches the thermos a little tighter.

“I’m Felix Lee,” Felix replies, because Social Convention. “I…” For a few seconds the ponders what exactly Chan needs to know about him. He decides to go with the only link the two currently share. “Like I said, I accidentally summoned this demon a while back, but I didn’t know what to wish for and so he just kind of… stayed around until now. It gets kind of annoying sometimes, honestly, when my dormmates are home he disguises himself as a cat and screws with them around the clock. A real pain in the ass.”

He thinks he feels the thermos vibrate irritatedly in his palms. He smacks it lightly with his fingers. You deserve it.

Chan hums thoughtfully. “That’s… quite the story.” The expression on his face turns thoughtful as he turns a corner. Felix lets him, and absentmindedly taps his fingers to the beat playing softly from the radio. Finally, Chan speaks up again. “I can’t help you on the wish situation, that’s for yourself to figure out, but I think I can help you with the… more dangerous aspect of this entire thing.” Chan nods to himself, as though making a pact. “We’ll talk more once we get this issue solved.” As he says this he pulls up, and with a start Felix realises they’re at the site. 

Hastily he scrambles out, thermos securely in his hands, hands gripped with purpose, and looks to Chan for help, because he really has no idea what to do.

Chan gestures for Felix to pass him the thermos. Once he has a hold on it he runs to the complex of warehouses. Felix rushes to keep up with him, and it’s a task , the entire place is an enormous labyrinth. Thankfully, he manages to tag along just fine and finds himself at the doors of a warehouse that looks like… any other, except this one has one Bang Chan slipping inside. Before he himself can enter, Chan’s already throwing the door open and running out, motioning urgently for Felix to do the same: scram.

Even though he wants to check on Changbin Felix can tell it would be the dumbest thing he’d ever do in his short life, and he’s mixed sodium and water “just because”, despite his teacher explicitly telling his class not to beforehand. He quickly gets the heck out of there. It almost feels like a low budget action movie. 

The two don't get very far before the ground trembles, and the giant building collapses in on itself with a tremendous roar.

Chapter Text

The first thing that echoes through the vicinity is a loud cough.

Felix hastily swipes at the dust blowing into his face, hacking at the amount of filth being kicked up by the destruction. Chan just looks on at the building, eyes filled with something that almost looks like sorrow. “My thermos,” he laments.

For a while the two just stand there, because, let Felix be frank, neither of them were in any way prepared for an entire building falling in on itself just like that. Felix has seen some crazy stuff, but the scale just keeps getting wilder and wilder. Chan regains his spirit first, shaking his head and running a hand through his curls, then moving his hand down to rub at his ear. Aha, nervous tic found. “So, uh,” he says, “is this the part where we scour the ruins for survivors?”

Felix stares at Chan incredulously. “I dunno man, you’re the expert, not me.”

Chan shakes his head. “You’re right, besides, demons are hardly little things, I don’t think something as meagre as a collapsing building should be able to finish the job.”

“You make them sound like cockroaches,” Felix snorts. What a disproportionate comparison.

Chan shrugs. “When you have the right tools and skill sets, yeah, they kind of just become cockroaches. Just with bigger egos and much larger destruction capacities.”

Felix has to physically bite his lip to keep himself from laughing aloud. Changbin as a roach is even more laughable than Changbin as a cat, but out of the kindness in his heart he decides he's not going to find joy in such demeaning things. Although the prospect is very tempting indeed. 

Instead, he switches topics. "Shouldn't Changbin have made some sort of dramatic entrance by now? Like… make the building erupt while stepping out of the falling embers sort of comeback?" 

"How about this," Chan proposes, "if he doesn't reappear within the next five minutes, we call it a day and leave him to his unknown fate." 

Before Felix can reply, something whizzes past Felix’s eyes and conks against Chan’s skull, causing the hunter to yelp and curl in on himself a little.

“I never should have brought this out for you.”

Despite himself, a grin splits across Felix’s face as he turns to greet the newcomer. Although his voice is still spine-chillingly demonic and his eyes as bright as burning coals, Changbin no longer looks like he can raze a city with just one gaze. “You’re alive!”

Changbin scoffs. “Of course I am, what, you thought something as puny as a building would be able to kill me?”

“Told you,” Chan’s smug tone gives Felix the strongest urge to roll his eyes. “Demons are hardy things.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?” Changbin raises an eyebrow. He sizes Chan up and down, face unreadable. “A hunter…” his voice lowers to a dangerous tone. “You think a juvenile like you can take on me? I promise, I will cause a very painful demise-”

“No!” Felix yelps, stepping in front of Changbin, if only to attract his attention away from Chan, who doesn’t even look fazed. “ No painful demises. He’s friendly, you’re friendly, everyone’s friendly, we can solve this like civil humans.” He takes a second glance at Changbin. “And demon.”

“But let’s be frank,” Chan cuts in, almost childishly, “I’d totally beat your ass.”

Changbin instantly bristles at the challenge, so much so that Felix sees actual tendrils of darkness extend from his back like cursed wings. “I’d like to see you try-”

“No,” Felix states firmly, feeling a strange surge of confidence in front of the two powerful beings. Probably stemming from his total disregard for personal safety. “We are not going to fight right now, I am hungry and extremely not here to deal with your petty bullshit. We’re going to eat.” With that, he marches to the car, feeling the stunned gazes of Chan and Changbin on his back. He stubbornly ignores them, and tugs the car handle.

He sheepishly turns back to Chan. “Could you unlock the car, please.”

“Okay, so,” Chan says while Felix gnaws on a chicken wing, “we need to do something about this. This arrangement can’t go on.”

Changbin shoots Chan an insolent glare. “If you dare do anything to me I’ll-”

“Calm down, would you?” Chan snaps back. “I’m saying this arrangement won’t work because it endangers people nearby at least four times a year, hence this is where I step in. I mean, if not for the fact that Felix over here seems to be quite attached to you for some inexplicable reason, I would absolutely decimate you, but unfortunately, he does. So as much as it pains me to, you survive, at least until you fulfil the contract. But this?” He gestures generally to Changbin’s appearance, red eyes barely shielded by a curtain of hair, sharp canines hidden by a mask Chan generously lent him. “This needs something done. We only have so many warehouses we can afford to blow up.”

“Well, what can we do?” Changbin growls. “It’s not like I can stop the solstices from happening, and I don’t suppose you can either.”

“I’m not saying I can,” Chan replies, evidently annoyed. “I’m just saying that I might know someone who can help us out of this predicament. Maybe. Might.”

“You’ve established the determiner three times, hunter,” Changbin grumbles. “If you’re so unsure about this someone , why bother telling us in the first place-”

“Jeesh, Changbin, give the guy a break.” Felix, finally done devouring his meal, pipes up. “We don’t have any other painless options, and I’d really rather go with that.” He shoots Changbin what he hopes is a piercing glance. “Just hold back your hostile sentiment for a few measly milliseconds and hear him out.”

The glower Changbin shoots him kind of makes him want to throw his chicken back up his throat, but the demon gratifyingly falls silent.

“Thank you,” Chan says gratefully. “Now, I don’t think I’m supposed to know this, my family would probably lynch me if they found out, but one of my relatives dabbles in demonic magic for a living. I’m not talking about my type of job, my family streak is very much anti-demon, I think at some point her side of the family thought making deals with demons was better than eradicating them and, surprise, surprise, both sides broke off and never talked to each other again. I’m quite sure I would never have known of her existence if not for the miracle of social media. According to her, the descendants have gotten... considerably less aggressive. I hope.”

“That’s a lot of tentativeness to place in such a risky situation,” Changbin comments. “I think we should-”

“Does it look like we have any other choice?” Felix asks exasperatedly, just about done with Changbin’s stubborn obstinacy against everything Chan says. 

“Calm down, I was just going to say that,” Changbin sighs, eyes flashing a brighter red before fading back to Normal Red. “If she’s not a hunter, there’s no reason for her to try and kill me, meaning the worst thing that she can possibly do is kick us out.” He pauses. “That, or try and kill Felix to inherit my soul contract and then Chan for heroically intervening.”

Felix’s ears ring for a few seconds. “I’m sorry, what?”

“She might try to kill you,” Changbin repeats simply, as if explaining it to a small child.

“Oh, joy,” Felix grumbles. His, what, third near-death encounter in the past twenty-four hours? He’s practically becoming a veteran at this point.

Changbin lets out a startled laugh, it grates on Felix’s ears like rough stone, but his ears pick up a hint of delight in there. He forces his lips not to turn upwards at the observation. “Why am I not surprised?”

“Okay, sorry to break up this wonderful flirt session you two are having,” Chan cuts in drily, “but I have an assignment due in less than ten hours and an old library printer to kick back to life, so how about we continue this in a place where I can’t hear you two discuss death over dinner and head on back?” He glances at Felix, whose gaze immediately flits down bashfully, trying not to show his red ears. “I’m sure Felix’s roommates are gonna get worried too.”

“Okay, okay, wait just a second-” Felix slurps up the last of his soda. “Alright, we can go now.”

When Felix gets back, Jisung's standing in the middle of the room, frowning very intensely. Felix's heart skips a beat. Not good. Changbin established earlier that he can't turn into a cat, he's having enough trouble not throwing something across the room already, which left Felix to desperately hope that the living room would be empty when he returns. 

Oh, how fate loves to taunt him.

“Hey ‘Lix,” Jisung says as Felix hastily shuts the door behind him, and therefore shutting out a very grumpy demon. “Is it just me, or does everything seem kind of… out of place here?”

Felix puts on his best confused expression as he scans the living room, of which many things are very much out of place. “Out of place? What are you talking about?”

Jisung scratches his head. “Yeah, no, I’m pretty sure I left my laptop on my coffee table, and now it’s on the sofa.” His gaze flies accusingly to Felix. “Did you take my laptop-”

“What- why would I take your laptop?” Felix protests, mind consistently flitting back to a very impatient and overpowered demon right outside his door.

“Oh my god did a burglar break into our house?” Jisung rants, hyperactive mind already disregarding the extremely improbable possibility of Felix ever wanting to go near his accursed device. “Do we have to report this to RA? I should report this to RA- no, this needs to go to the fucking principal’s office- ”

“No!” Felix yelps, perhaps a little too quickly, but he thinks he can kind of feel Changbin’s rage burning into his back with every passing second. “No- no need to call anybody, no one broke in and if anyone tries to conduct an investigation they’ll find Changbin and you’ll get into trouble for condoning the stay of an illegal animal in the dorms.” Wow, someone get him into the FBI, his sweet-talking skills need so much more recognition. He reels on, just praying that Jisung will be convinced and reenter his room where he will not see the very human demon entering the door. “I was looking for my phone in the living room and I must have misplaced everything, I’m sorry if I didn’t anticipate you suddenly developing OCD and deciding that your laptop must be on the coffee table, you messy slob.”

Jisung huffs, thrown completely off by Felix’s jab. “Fine, clearly someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed today.” He picks up his laptop and, hallelujah! , he stomps into his room.

After counting to three, Felix scrambles for the door. When he opens it, he’s met with an unimpressed Changbin. He’s just grateful he doesn’t look like he can cause another equivalent of a nuclear meltdown.

“Alright,” he says, once they’ve settled down in his room. He plops onto his chair and spins around. “Is it safe to say you’ve fulfilled your chaos agenda for the day? I mean, you just blew up a whole building, it must have been exhausting.”

Changbin sighs and pinches the bridge of his nose. “Trust me, my energy is replenished very quickly in these solstices, but it should be sufficiently depleted to get you and this unfortunate building through the night.” A scoff emits from his lips. “I’m sure Chan will make sure of that.”

Felix frowns. “Hey, stop talking about Chan like that, he literally offered to help us with this situation until-” His brain glitches. “-Until you grant my wish.”

“Let a demon live, will you,” Changbin grumbles back. 

“Hey, no, but,” Felix draws his knees up to hug them, getting comfortable, “why can’t you grant my wish on a solstice? I get the whole superpowered thing but... shouldn’t you have a decent control over it?” 

Changbin flicks Felix an annoyed glance that makes his stomach flip. Still, he opens his sharp-toothed mouth to entertain Felix. “It’s not that simple. On solstices, demons are supposed to lose control, it’s like, I dunno, probably Satan’s birthday or something. You know that dumb thing that people love to dress up as...” his eyebrows furrow for a second. “The, uh, the shapeshifter one…”

“You mean werewolves?” Felix questions.

Changbin nods. “Yeah, yeah, that. They don’t get a choice either, they’re, like, compelled by the moon or something to turn into a wolf and go on a blind killing rampage. Same principle, except most of us are conscious about what we’re doing. I’m referring to the traditional werewolf, by the way, not the utterly revolting Twilight teen romance sort of werewolf.”

“You seem to have a vendetta against Twilight,” Felix observes, “but continue.”

“So our beings start to fill with more anti-order. Anarchy. Whatever. I mean, it makes us do all sorts of crazy stuff down there, break our usual behaviour, get all sorts of random urges to do stuff that’s typically unholy or just fucks with people’s minds. I’m not the type, but I know of demons who just twist their necks a hundred and eighty degrees for the entire day just to screw with the souls of the damned, or maybe wrench a limb or two. We’ve even had trypophobia faces before.” His lip quirks up in a hint of a devious smile. “The reactions are amusing.”

Felix stares in horror at the demon. “What the fuck,” he says.

Changbin shrugs, red eyes glinting mischievously. “What can I say? Solstices are wild times. And also,” he coughs, like he needed to get something out of his throat, “it’s probably the reason why I did… that thing at the party.”

“Hm?” Felix stares distractedly at Changbin’s horns, which he realises stick out of his hair like tiny jagged baby goat horns. He kind of wants to boop them.

Changbin follows Felix’s line of sight until he reaches their target. An agitated growl rips from his throat before the small stubs stretch and curl out into two thick ram's horns, tips sharp and deadly to the touch, a much larger version of Horny Guy's. “Like what you see?” he sneers.

Felix pouts. “Aw, I can’t hang assorted Christmas ornaments on them,” he notes sadly. From what he can see, he can only tape two sad baubles to the curved ends.

“I-” Changbin looks personally offended, which is a hilarious look with the addition of the horns. “You will not hang Christmas ornaments on my horns.”

Felix shoots him a sly grin. “But what if I make that my wish?”

Changbin laughs derisively, the infernal chorus making it sound doubly evil. “Really? You’d give up an all-powerful demonic wish just for that?”

“Bet,” Felix retorts, looking determinedly at Changbin’s horns.

Changbin raises an eyebrow. “Is that I wish request I hear?” The lightbulb above them starts to flicker.

Felix is quick to scramble up. “Fuck, no, didn’t you just say you can’t grant wishes today? Besides, it’s ages ‘till Christmas, if I wanted to wish that, I would wish it on Christmas Day.”

The lightbulb continues to flicker. “Changbin!”

A lazy smirk flits across Changbin’s face. “Yes?”

Felix huffs angrily and folds his arms childishly. “Meanie.” He straightens to look at Changbin. “Changmean.” The lightbulb stops flickering. “Meanie Changmeanie.”

“Okay, okay, I stopped!” Changbin exclaims. “Please stop calling me those horrendous names.”

Felix giggles, delighted to have found a weak spot in Changbin. He stops, of course, but in his head he has a new catchphrase running through his mind.

Binnie Changbinnie .

Felix is staring at his Economics notes when suddenly a hand slams onto the desk. 

He looks up to find Changbin glowering behind him. “Oh, hey, you’re back. Did you have fun scaring the fuck out of random 1am passerbys?”

“You’re not scared of me,” Changbin says.

Felix blinks. “Sorry, what?”

He sent Changbin out through the window again to go wreak some more havoc during the early hours of the night when pretty much everything is a hallucination if one gets into it enough. He was so sure it would help calm the ansty demon, whom he had to entertain for the rest of the tiring afternoon to prevent a national disaster. Instead, Changbin seems more irritated than ever.

“You’re not scared of me,” Changbin repeats, as if that makes things any clearer.

“... am I supposed to be?” Felix struggles to follow the demon’s train of thought.

Changbin spins Felix’s chair around, arms bracketing the human in the meantime. Felix can’t help but flatten himself against the backing in the face of such an intimidating sight. But his confusion still isn’t cleared up.

“Changbin, I appreciate that you’re trying to fulfil your chaos meter for the day, but you’re gonna need to explain yourself-”

“It’s not natural,” Changbin snarls. “You’re nothing but a mere mortal, you should have screamed and cowered in fear when you first saw me like all those pathetic people on the streets. You’re literally not moving an inch!”

Felix stares at the demon. “Changbin, did you not see me this morning? I was quaking in my socks. And then you blew up an entire building!”

“But this afternoon,” Changbin shoots back, pressing even more intensely into Felix’s space, “you acted completely fine. You wanted to hang Christmas ornaments on my horns! I could literally maul you to death any second, and you were just there, acting like nothing in the world was wrong at all.” HIs hands grip the chair so tight Felix fears it might actually break. “Do you not have any sense of self-preservation?”

Despite the understandably terrifying situation a laugh still manages to escape Felix’s mouth. “I’m sorry, have you met me? I’d honestly jump into an acid fuse for ten bucks, if it came down to it.”

Finally the veritable light seems to die out in Changbin’s eyes, since they’re still glowing a dim charcoal red. “You’re insane,” he says.

Felix gives him a blank look. “And this is supposed to be news to me?”

Changbin gives him a sharp look in return. He opens his mouth, but closes it again, and instead flops onto Felix’s bed, spread-eagled and glaring at the ceiling instead. Poor ceiling. “Goodnight,” he growses.

Felix breathes a sigh of relief; Changbin seems to have tired out. He announces cordially, “If that’ll be all from you, I’ll be back to going blind from statistic graphs.”

As he turns around to face his mathematical nightmare, he catches sight of Changbin lazily flipping him the bird. He holds back a scoff and an eyeroll. What a child.

Chapter Text

Felix honestly thought that would be the only crisis of the school year.

He really, honestly, did.

Why does he say this? Because his fucking foresight didn’t work, and now there’s finals looming over the horizon, and he really needs to speak to whoever sold him this faulty foresight on eBay.

For the rest of the week, whenever he reaches home, the first thing he does is dump his bag loudly beside his bed, collapse onto the chair, sighing heavily as he does, and run his hands over his face like he wants to drag his skin off. Maybe he should, so that he can give the teachers the sight they deserve to see after dragging him through this mental torture. After the third day, Cat Changbin leaps up gracefully to land on the table, and then Felix’s head. Are you getting respiratory problems? Because you’ve been breathing hard a lot lately .

Felix is half tempted to irritably shake the demon off, in no mood at all to deal with him, but he knows enough to know that it’ll end up in him getting very nasty scratch marks and an unsatisfied demon, which is bad in all cases. So instead he slouches back onto the chair slowly enough for Changbin to readjust his weight, and tries to get some peace of mind for the first time in days.

You didn’t answer my question .

Felix makes a half-hearted grumbling sound in return, which sounds a lot like a petulant kid whining, but he’s so fucking tired, he figures he’s excused. He yelps when something sharp pricks at his head, multiple sharp things, in fact. “Ow, oh my god!” he exclaims. “What the fuck!”

Answer. The question.

“Jeez, if you wanna know so bad, I guess,” Felix grumbles. “My finals are coming up soon and my professors are just piling on the work like it’s a buffet and I’m the plate.” He groans, thinking about all the other things he has to study and memorise. “I’m just... really tired.”

There’s silence from Changbin as the demon seems to contemplate Felix’s words. Then he says, I could grant you photographic memory .

Felix frowns. That would be amazing, but... “It’s not fair, though, is it?”

This elicits a harsh chuckle from the demon. I dunno if you know this, but life isn’t exactly fair.

“Yep,” Felix agrees. “And once the teachers figure out something’s wrong with me, it’s to the dean’s office I go. Totally fair.”

Changbin falls silent, an unofficial touche from him. Felix can’t hold back the small smile it gives him; at least that’s one small victory amongst his many losses, most of them consisting of his sanity. After allowing himself a few moments of silence, he sits up, trying to revive his internal energy as he moves to grab his laptop. Changbin leaps to the safety of Felix’s desk before he can get toppled off, although he doesn’t look very happy about it. Regardless, Felix pulls up his notes and settles back on his chair, ready to stuff his brain full of overly necessary information again.

Felix was not having a good day. First, he slept through his alarm, which was set half an hour early so he would wake up in time to print out his assignment to submit. He was then startled awake by Changbin leaping on him twenty minutes later, panicked and a fair bit sore before Changbin did not hold back. He skipped breakfast to make it to the printing room in time, but his efforts were fruitless. By the time he reached, there was already a gargantuan queue of equally sleepy and anxious students. He checked his watch. Twenty five more minutes till class. 

It took him twenty two minutes to reach the front of the queue. The printer decided it was going to be petty on that day, and only spat out paper on each student's third try, which drastically slowed things down. Felix hastily made his three rounds before grabbing his papers, stuffing them in his laptop case, and sprinting to his lecture hall, which was... all the way across the campus.

He turned up three minutes late, and had to do the walk of shame to the TA to submit his essay, then proceed to trip on the way up the stairs to an empty seat. The people next to him shot him sympathetic looks, which comforted him a little, but not more than the lecturer's disapproving eye made him skittish. Fine. First lesson, done. Then during lunch, he originally arranged to meet up with a few friends, only to find out that they bailed on him to go to a new barbecue place down the road, with half-hearted promises to meet him and a few other people next time instead. To say he was peeved was an understatement. Okay, whatever, just munch his lunch and go on with the day.

His last lesson for the day was pretty uneventful, but the day had already dealt its damage. All throughout the lecture Felix couldn't help but run his fingers through his hair in retaliation to the irritation stirring inside him, which did nothing but mess up his hair even more. By the end of the day, Felix was thoroughly done with every single thing in the universe. He stormed back to the dorm building, gripping his laptop so tightly the cover might crack. He didn't care at that point; it was just another bad thing in this terrible fucking day.

As he was concluding his huffy stomp back to his dorm, he suddenly caught sight of a deal at the university's convenience store. An idea popped into his head. Really, it was a bad idea, he should really be trying his best to study for his finals with no spare thought for anything remotely distracting but still. Felix figured he deserved some slack, regardless of how resistant his target may be to his idea. He tried not to blush when he made the purchase, and hurriedly went up to his dorm.

Which leads him to where he is now.

When he enters the dorm, he’s glad to see no one in the house, which should be the case, because everyone has classes at this time, but Jisung has a tendency to skip whenever he feels like it’s too much effort. Felix’s quite sure Seungmin has done something about that already. Whatever the case, he wastes no time in heading to his room, one sole objective in mind.

“Changbin?” he calls out.

The demon doesn’t appear.

Felix sighs. “Changbin, I know you’re pretending to be a cat and everything, but if you’re actually taking a cat nap I have no words to say to you.”

When he enters his room, he sees a small ball of fluff curled up on his bed, right in the middle of his pillows. A throne fit for a self-entitled brat. Felix lets a scoff escape his lips. "Changbin, what the fuck, you're shitting me."

The cat in question opens one lazy green eye, before slowly shutting it back. A scowl twitches in Felix’s lips. Changbin is so asking for what Felix has in store for him. 

But he’s caught in indecision. Should he flip the pillow and send Changbin flying, and possibly incite the demon’s hellish wrath? Or should be stay safe and just dislocate the cat, which would definitely give Felix less personal satisfaction?

In the end, he chooses to tip Changbin off the pillows and onto the bed. So gracious.

“Changbin?” he pokes the black cap in his middle, and rapidly retracts his hand in case the claws decide to come out. (They don’t.) “Wake up, I have a surprise for you.”

No, Changbin grouses in his mind. Fuck off . I don’t want your stupid surprise .

“I didn’t want this miserable fucking day either, but here we are!” Felix flops down onto the bed dramatically, inadvertently bouncing Changbin and forcing the demon to stand up, if only to regain balance. Changbin shifts back into his human appearance, cross legged on the bed and looking down at Felix. ( Smol, Felix thinks.) Once Felix sees his face, he guesses it was done to probably to show how annoyed he is. “Oh my god,” he gasps, “you are turning into a lazy cat! I actually thought better of you-”

He stops when Changbin’s eyes flash red. “Try saying that again.”

Felix instantly backs off; he doesn’t want a grumpy and angry Changbin. “Alright, alright, I’m not sorry.” He shoots him a sheepish grin. “Anyways, today was fucking shitty. So-”

“-so you decided to pass that misery onto me,” Changbin guesses, deadpan.

Felix bit his lip. “Something like that.”

Changbin looks downward, glaring at the ground with venom. For a few seconds Felix wonders why, then realises that it’s the human equivalent of looking up to the heavens, to wonder what one did wrong for the Big Guy to send them this fate. Wow. Cultural parallels.

Felix fishes into the plastic bag and it rustles with something ominous, if the apprehensive glance Changbin shoots it gives any indication. Grinning like a kid who just found a candy store, Felix pulled out small capsules with thin black handles, holding them as one would hold lollipops. He would never admit it, but watching the light dying in Changbin’s eyes was a sweet sight to behold indeed, a highlight in the dreary day Felix has had.

Without control, giggles start spilling from his lips as Changbin just stares in sheer horror. To think that Felix held so much power over him all this time. “So?” he asks teasingly. “What do you think?”

Changbin’s shocked expression switches to glowering. “If I could I would vaporise you on the spot. I should vaporise you on the spot-”

“Oh come on!” Felix scoffs. “It’ll be fun! And you can just get rid of it later, you can change your appearance easy peasy.”

“No.” Changbin growls with finality. “I will not let you paint my nails.”

Felix waves the nail polish bottles around playfully. “Who said it was gonna be your nails?”

He waits gleefully as a look of pure terror settles in Changbin’s eyes as it dawns upon him what Felix intends to do. “You wouldn’t ,” he breathes, eyes actually widening in fear.

Twenty minutes later, and Felix is humming along softly to a song in his head, sitting quite comfortably on his bed, delicately angling his wrist just right as he creates his masterpiece. Each stroke is a new streak of artistry; each swirl is careful and precise-

“Can the colour even be seen ?” Changbin grumbles, nestled in a pile of pillows on the floor in front of Felix. Felix was surprised that it had only taken a bit of aegyo and subtle eyelash fluttering to get the demon to relent, but as he started on his project Changbin had made his dissatisfaction well verbalised. It didn’t matter; once Felix applied the first layer, he was a man on a mission. It made the judgemental look on the cashier’s face very much worth it. (Abashed, Felix had muttered that the polish was for his sister before he rushed out, but no one had to know that.)

“I mean,” Felix replies, “against the dark surface it takes a few layers, but after a while it gives off quite the handsome shimmer.” He gingerly rests his left hand on Changbin’s scalp as he puts on the last touch of orange. “Alright, the second colour is done.” He can’t stop grinning; this day has made a complete one-eighty. Felix gives himself a pat on the back for thinking of such a therapeutic activity. “I’m so glad I chose to paint the rainbow,” he gushes, giving the polish brush a generous dollop of yellow before applying it on the demon. “It just gives off such a colourful vibe , you get me?”

“No, I do not,” Changbin grouses grumpily. “You know full well that I am not colourful in any aspect except my language. This goes against my very essence , you little-”

Felix rolls his eyes playfully. “Yeah, yeah, it ruins your aesthetic, we get it, hipster Tumblr blog. This is the Gay Aesthetic, though, so if you think about it, it’s still chaotic. It’s caused so much anarchy within society I think it should still fit right in with your mayhem agenda. Think about it.” He carefully adds another strike of stark yellow on the thickening layer. “Plus, you’ll look great with some actual colour on you for once.”

Changbin makes a growling sound, but no more than that.

“Do you mind if I put on some tunes?” Felix pauses in his painting to reach for his phone, and promptly hits shuffle. A familiar intro rings from the speakers. “Oh yeah! This is my jam!”

“Please, turn that racket off,” Changbin complains. “This is already intolerable enough as it is.” He starts to move his head, causing Felix to squeak and hastily grab both sides of Changbin’s cranium to keep him in place.

“No!” he scolds, almost childishly. “No moving, Binnie. I’m not finished yet.”

“I-” Changbin makes a spluttering sound. “ Binnie ?” Felix sees the edges of his horns sharpen ever so slightly. “When I’m finished with you, you’ll-”

Felix just laughs and pats Changbin on his head. His hair’s actually really fluffy, kind of like a puppy’s. He’s feeling surprisingly light right now, enough to disregard all of the demon’s threats. Honestly, what does he have to lose? He’s enjoying himself far too much in this moment to bother with some petty ominous statements. If he dies, well, that’s his roommates’ problem. “I’ll thank you for ceasing my absolutely miserable existence on this cursed planet?” He bends over, coming to the downward curve in the horn. “Now hold still, I need to get this spot.”

As Felix approaches, his nose twitches. Letting his eyes focus on the task at hand, his mind wanders to try and pinpoint the scent that’s tickling his nostrils. Smells like… burnt firewood. And forest Febreze. No, not that, something fresher. Fresh soil.

As Felix thinks about it, he starts to recognise the scent… back from the party. The only other time they were in close proximity. It takes him a few more moments to realise that the scent is coming from the dark being in front of him. Unable to help himself he takes another big whiff. How the hell can demons smell this good? he wonders.

Changbin coughs loudly, startling Felix out of his reverie. “Are you done, gremlin?” he asks stiffly.

“I-” Felix rushes the last two strokes, figuring no one’s gonna be able to see the underside anyway. “Yes, yes, done.”

For the next few colours Felix tries as much as possible to lean in whenever he can, because Changbin’s scent should not smell this nice. Inexplicably, whenever it fills Felix’s senses something inside him feels a little more… complete . Not that he would ever say that aloud. This is a demon he’s dealing with; being complementary with an aspect of an infernal being can’t be good.

However, he doesn’t stop himself from openly grabbing a few strands of Changbin’s hair once he’s finally done with both horns. With deft fingers he starts threading them, like his sister once taught him. Changbin, of course, feels this, and his hand flies up to grab at Felix’s own. Felix heart skips a beat. His hand was warm. “What do you think you’re doing?” Changbin nearly snarls. The demon’s hand proceeds to nimbly travel up the small braid Felix has managed to weave. “What.”

“It’s something my sister taught me,” Felix volunteers. “It looks very pretty on you, trust me.”

Changbin scoffs. “I do not look pretty . I look idiotic. The nail polish was already testing it-” He suddenly shoots up into a standing position, making Felix fall back onto his bed from the speed. In a flash of an eye, Felix phone abruptly halts in its playing and makes a hacking sound like it just swallowed something wrong, which shouldn't even be possible . The horns retract, and Changbin aggressively undoes Felix’s braid. “Enough of this foolery. Don’t you have better things to do than play dress up ?” he asks with a mocking tone. The bag on the floor floats up, and, a few seconds later, so does Felix himself. 

The boy yelps, scrambling for any sort of handhold, but before he can regain his wits, he’s being plopped down at his desk, and his backpack (rather painfully) drops onto his lap.

“Ow!” Felix scowls, taking his heavy bag and setting it back down on the floor. “What the fuck -”

“An hour has passed, and your roommates are due to return anytime soon,” Changbin states, and he isn’t wrong. “My suggestion is to get something done before that bumbling buffoon comes back and disrupts the entire level.”

Felix doesn’t know who he’s referring to exactly, but, recalling his own tired sighs, caused by Jisung’s raucous singing practices, he has a pretty good clue.

And Changbin, as much as Felix wants to deny it, is absolutely right. And, gosh darn, he never thought it would actually work, but the horn painting session did wonders for his blood pressure. He remembers reading an article saying doing art is naturally therapeutic. He supposes it’s true.

Being the petty child he is, he heaves a heavy sigh, complete with a groan of pure exhaustion, but he gets down to work anyway. He thinks he sees Changbin roll his eyes at him before turning into a cat, and curling up once more in the middle of the bed.

"Hey, dude," someone whispers quietly to Felix. Felix looks up from his Economics textbook to the familiar voice, and doesn't find himself disappointed; in front of him is one Eric Sohn, looking very much alive and energetic unlike himself. He shares several classes with this boy, who inexplicably found Felix adorable on first sight and absolutely had to befriend, despite having eleven other guys in his friend group. Then again, they're all older than him, so it makes sense that he would want a friend the same age as him, although Felix was probably more of an Overwatch buddy than anything else, which he was fine with. After a while, though, college started getting more stressful and they both had to focus on their studies and other commitments, and sadly, their multiplayer Overwatch days ended. 

"Hey man," Felix replies instantly, glad to be setting his eyes at something much more pleasant than another stupid inflation graph. "What's up?" 

"My grades, probably never," Eric shoots back easily. "Anyways, some of my friends were thinking about going out this Saturday for a little drink, you know, to loosen up some of the finals stress. I figured it would be a good time to catch up and stuff. You up for it?”

Felix mentally checks his schedule, and figures that even if he does skip out on this invitation, the time wouldn’t contribute very productively to his progress (see: stress gaming). Besides, getting dead drunk sounds like a good relief from all the brain-crushing pressure he’s been under. What’s not to love?

“Sure!” he agrees amicably. “Just text me the details and I’ll be good to go.”

Eric shoots him a cheerful thumbs up. “Awesome! We’ll be headed to District Nine, so see what you wanna wear.”

“Cool,” Felix hums, running his options through his mind. District Nine: a local bar that had a bright neon red sign hanging on the front door, and perpetually ear-deafening beats blasting from it every time Felix walked past it. Seems like a good place for meeting strangers. But that’s not Felix’s goal, definitely not when he has a demon cat under his charge that shares the same room as him. 

“I think I won’t wear anything too naughty,” he decides. “I don’t really like to unwind by… taking people home.”

Eric shrugs. “Suit yourself, I’m not really the type either.” He claps Felix on the back, who tries not to wince at how solid it was, because he’s totally not a complete sleep-deprived weakling whose backbone solely comprises of black coffee and desperation. Totally. “I’ll get going then. See you Saturday?”

Felix returns Eric’s grin, although marginally more tired. How does Eric stay so alive ? “See you Saturday.”

Chapter Text

“Ooh lah lah,” Jisung comments when Felix emerges from his room, wearing his nicest distressed cotton shirt and ripped jeans, topped off with a flannel shirt he hasn’t touched since last year. “Where do you think you’re going?”

Felix shoots Jisung a weird look. “Out, obviously,” he says.

“Yeah, obviously ,” Hyunjin calls from the couch, focused on the drama playing on his phone. Felix doesn’t see how it would be obvious to him, but he trusts in the boy’s general observational skills. 

Changbin said pretty much the same thing when Felix grabbed the clothing items after much deliberation. He looked very displeased when Felix revealed his late night plans to him, because it meant that he’d have to travel with Felix in order to fulfil the contract obligations - until he learned that District 9 was an on-campus hangout spot, student-initiated and school-executive-council-ignored. From that point onwards he declared he didn’t care.

Jisung frowns at Hyunjin, ever-so-engrossed in his drama. “You know, since everything is so obvious to you, you wouldn’t mind if I talk about the spoilers I read on the Wikia page, would you?”

“That’s obviously a lie,” Hyunjin snorts.

A devious smirk appears on Jisung’s face, Felix is just glad he’s not at the receiving end of it. “Oh, really? What if I told you Jisoo gets fired from her job because her boss found out about-”

Hyunjin lets out an ungodly screech before Jisung can continue. “ Shut up , no, shush, shut your ever-yapping dirty mouth, you heathen of a coward-”

There’s a sound of a door opening. “Hey guys, what the fuck,” Seungmin complains. “I’m literally trying to do a graded assignment here and Hyunjin nearly blew my fucking ears off - oh hey, Felix, you going somewhere? - anyways, if you want to fight, you will do it in the public commons and not in my damn dorm, mind you. Good day.”

“Dude, this is our dorm too,” Jisung scowls. 

“Why is everyone asking me if I’m going somewhere?” Felix complains, on a totally different tangent from his irrelevant roommate. “Why can’t they just let me be and acknowledge that I can go out once in a while? Do I not have a social life?”

Silence. Judgement. Felix regrets his statement immediately.

“...hate to break it to you, ‘Lix, but you’re already in stage one of becoming a single old cat lady,” Seungmin deadpans.

“I know!” Felix wails dramatically. “I’m sorry I ever even suggested I have a social life, when we’re all gonna die alone and forgotten, with no one but our cats left to mourn-”

He stops when he feels himself being physically pushed towards the door. “Okay, okay, whatever, go and have a fucking social life and shit,” Seungmin grumbles, pushing harder for every struggling squirm Felix makes. “Jeez, the things that I have to do to get some goddamn peace in this place.” 

"Only for you Seungmin," Jisung calls out mockingly, only to back up in surrender when said person threateningly turns to him too. "Alright, alright, I'm sorry for cutting into your sacred study time, O Great One, I'll-" 

Felix shuts the door before he can witness Jisung's demise by angry law student first hand. 

The club is crowded. Felix doesn’t know why he’s so surprised by that fact, considering it’s around finals season, but he’s somehow still taken aback by the sheer number of people that have turned up for a good time. He pulls his phone out and texts Eric, deciding to just hang around the entrance first.

“Felix!” Soon, the boy shows up, followed by a few other people. Felix recognises them as some of Eric’s closer friends. They both look pretty amiable, dressed casually and politely waving hello to Felix.

“Eric!” Felix greets his only acquaintance there. “Hey, man.”

Eric grins, and his blond hair only brightens the grin. “Hey yourself, dude, you don’t look bad! I’m glad you turned up.”

Sheepishly Felix scratches the back of his neck. “Thanks. Glad to be here.”

With a fond smile on his face Eric gestures languidly to the two other people behind him. “I brought along a few friends, thought you might like to meet them. That’s Kevin, and that’s Jacob. I think you’ll get along well.”

Felix holds back a nervous laugh, and presents what he hopes is a friendly smile. “Hi!”

It turns out that Eric’s friend group is very accommodating. Although Felix definitely isn’t as involved or invested in their conversations and jokes, he can tell they’re trying their best to include him, which he appreciates. When their resident social media king, Younghoon, records a boomerang for his Instagram, they drag a blushing Felix to be in the middle, insisting that his bright smile and handsome face would make the video infinitely better. Despite the loud music and general nauseating smell of alcohol, Felix starts to ease up. He starts to feel glad he came tonight.

“Hey Felix!” one of the older guys, Hyunjae, he thinks, calls him over. “We’re gonna play a game, you want in?”

“Oh?” Felix peers over from a conversation with Sunwoo, intrigued. “What game?”

Hyunjae grins with a glint of mischief in his eyes. “I hope you have good aim; we’re gonna play beer pong.”

Felix stares at the table uneasily. “I dunno, guys… I’m not that good at throwing games.”

“C’mon!” Hyunjae laughs from beside him. “Don’t worry, I’m right here with you. We’re gonna beat their asses, just you wait.”

Felix liked the confidence of Hyunjae’s jab, but looking at the pretty large cups he would have to drink from should he lose, he could feel that confidence wavering fast. “I… alright. Who are we up against?”

“I’m game,” someone says, Juyeon, was it? Kevin follows closely behind, apparently eager to loosen up. Felix half-heartedly sizes them up. They shouldn’t be that hard to take down… right?

Juyeon takes the first shot. The ball lands squarely in the red cup in the middle, and suddenly, Felix feels… kinda screwed.

Ten minutes in and Felix and Hyunjae are downing their fifth cup. Felix can feel his mental control start to slip, but if he left Hyunjae to take the brunt of a punishment Felix was instrumental in causing, he would never forgive himself. So he presses on, firing the next ping pong ball into a corner cup, much to the chagrin of his opponents.

The game concludes, with Juyeon and Kevin being the obvious winners, and Eric leans in to Felix’s ear to yell over the new track that’s being played. “This song’s my jam! You wanna hit the dance floor?”

Felix, feeling high as a kite, giggles and instantly agrees to being dragged to the dance floor, although he has enough presence of mind to shoo Eric’s hands away when they come to pinch at his cheeks. Sober Felix would have absolutely minded the stench and lack of hygiene of the main dance area, but Drunk Felix was all for it. The dim lighting and flashing strobes made his brain kind of disoriented, but hey, as long as Eric was near him he would totally be fine.

Felix looks up. He can’t see Eric.

“Eh.” he shrugs it off. “Probably went to the bathroom or something.”

The next time Felix comes to from the alcohol-riddled daze he’s in, his limbs are aching and he feels sweat running down the back of his neck in rivulets. It’s a good time to take a break, he figures. He utters tiny apologies as he nudges his way off the dance floor, sighing in relief once he’s been released from its suffocating confines. He hangs out like this for a little while longer, leaning against the wall, head looking down, recuperating and laughing at random thoughts that slip into his head.

The thought that he really wants to be cuddled niggles its way in.

He tries to force it out, he really does, but the urge just grows in him and in his inebriated state, Felix was in no condition for self control.

So he wanders about the borders of the dance floor, not wanting to get caught up in that hellscape again, hoping to find Eric so that he could cling on. But something inside him tells him that cuddles alone wouldn’t be satisfactory. It isn’t just the what… but the who .

Felix is fifteen minutes into stumbling around the club when he suddenly rams into someone, making him flail and almost dramatically fall over, which he nearly would have done if not for the deft hands that caught his waist.

He looks up to see his saviour. “Seungminnie!” he gasps. “Hi! I didn’t know you would be here too.”

His roommate looks veritably annoyed as he rights Felix once more. “Dumbass, I came here looking for you! Your friends have already left the club, you idiot, I had to drag my ass all the way here from an exhausting study session all because of one Instagram story!”

Felix should be more sympathetic, but all he feels is the loss of warmth from Seungmin’s hands as the boy retracts them. “Cuddles!” he bubbles, throwing his hands up in the air and feels the world tip over. He’s tipping over? Or is that the table coming towards him?

Seungmin catches Felix before he can make very painful contact with the hard surface. “Yeah, nice try. No cuddles for you.”

Felix pouts petulantly. “But you can cuddle Hyunjin! No fair! Just because you’re in love with only him doesn’t mean he gets to keep everything for himself!”

“I-” Seungmin glares at his face, getting very obviously pink. “I should get rid of you while you’re so naive and defenceless-”

“Cuddles!” Felix cheers obliviously. He giggles. “Wanna cuddle Changbin.”

Seungmin blinks. “Yeah, I’m pretty sure he doesn’t wanna cuddle you. He’s a demon of a cat.”

“I think he’ll cuddle me,” Felix insists. “He likes me, but he doesn’t like to say it.” He wiggles his eyebrows at a bemused Seungmin. “I just know he does.”

Seungmin stares at Felix for a few bewildered seconds. “Sure, whatever you say.” He pats Felix’s back. “Time to get you home, dude, you’re totally wasted.”

Felix frowns. “Yes. I am wasted. I am a waste.”

“I’ll stop you before you continue that train of thought.” Seungmin pushes Felix through the throngs of people to the door, sending sharp glances at anyone who obstructs them. “I can’t believe I’m playing sober driver again .”

By the time they reach the dorm building, Felix is so drowsy he can’t see straight. He still laughs when Seungmin has to manhandle him into the lift, though, because his slender fingers accidentally press against a ticklish spot. He collapses on the door frame when they reach the dorm, and Seungmin watches as he slowly melts into a puddle on the floor. Seungmin shakes his head and unlocks the door, making sure the door is fully open before rolling his sleeves up and bending over. “Oh-kay, as much as I would love to leave you in a place where you can be publicly humiliated, RAs will come after my ass and I don’t need that when I have a graded essay due in two days.” HIs hands push against Felix’s deadweight body. “In you go.”

“Whee!” Felix squeals as he’s rolled into the dorm. “Ride!”

Jisung, who was on his phone before Felix’s dramatic entrance, looks up from the screen to stare at Felix absolutely delirious on the floor. “Dude, what the fuck happened to you?” he asks.

“Some of his friends dragged him to a bar and got him drunk. The eldritch below tells me they ditched him,” Seungmin grunts, still busy rolling Felix like a carpet towards his room. “And now he’s useless. Mind lending a hand?”

Jisung puts his phone down. “Sure man, I haven’t been working out lately anyways.”

Between the two of them, they get Felix to his room pretty quickly. When he’s been transported to his room, Felix flops onto the floor spreadeagled, already half asleep. The two dormmates stand there, looking at the malfunctioning boy.

“We should probably get him into something more comfortable,” Jisung says. He doesn’t move.

“We should.” Seungmin’s eyes trace Felix’s sad state, but he doesn’t budge either. “Do you think the cat can take care of it?”

They exchange glances, and shut the door behind them, and walk back into the living room.

Changbin delicately jumps onto the floor to stare disdainfully at Felix with his piercing green eyes. Felix giggles delightedly at the sight. “Binnie! Hi Binnie. Didn’t think I’d be-” he hiccups, “-seeing you so soon.”

What the fuck.

Felix furrows his eyebrows. “Why are you still a cat? Turn human! I like you better like that.”

Are you drunk?

Felix turns away from Changbin. “Not answering you. Turn human.”

“What the fuck, you’re so drunk.” Felix shifts back around, now that he can see Changbin in human form. “What did your friends do to you.”

“I have bad aim.” Felix grins.

Changbin looks at him, unimpressed. “Don’t tell me you got drunk on a game of beer pong .”

“Changbin!” Felix flings his arm towards the person in question, who’s starting to get a slight look of apprehension on his face. “Cuddles! Please.”

The demon raises an eyebrow at the seemingly outworldly request. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Cuddles!” Felix exclaims. “I want cuddles.”

Changbin scowls, moving away from Feilx. “No, why would I give you fucking cuddles -”

“Because I want some!” Felix stares wide-eyed at the demon. “And you’re the only one here.”

Changbin scoffs. “I’m not gonna-” his lip curls up, “ -cuddle you, go and hug your pillow or something, it’s the same thing.”

“No!” Felix protests. “Not the same. Doesn’t have the you smell.” He pouts, lower lip on full display.

Changbin just looks at him, clearly getting more and more confused with each passing drunken statement.

Felix gesticulates in the form of explanation. “You know! Your smell. Like… burning wood. And fresh soil. It’s a very nice smell, you know. Makes me feel happy.”

Changbin looks away to pinch the bridge of his nose. “Oh my god, you are so drunk. There is no way my smell can make you happy, I hope you realise that-”

“No!” Felix cuts in once more. “It makes me feel happy. Makes me feel safe. And happy. I wanna feel happy. Cuddles?” He tiredly holds his arms out to Changbin, who’s frozen still, face impassive. 

Changbin stares coldly for a few more seconds, and heaves the loudest sigh. “You’d better not remember this in the morning, or I’m killing you for real.”

Felix just grins delightedly as he pushes himself into a sitting position. Changbin approaches him with a very unsure expression, putting his hands forward like he’s feeling around in the dark for something, even though it’s perfectly bright thanks to the well-functioning lightbulb. The demon moves forward and lowers himself to Felix, but before they make contact, he halts. “Wait, hold on-”

Felix’s expression turns crestfallen. He really just wanted some cuddles. “Oh, alright, never mind then. Consent is important.” Dejectedly he gets on his feet, and shuffles towards his closet, intending to grab his pyjamas and go to bed cuddle-less.

Suddenly a warmth envelops his middle and he feels a presence behind him, not quite touching but more hovering. Strong, stable arms surround his waist and Felix bites his lip to keep from gasping. His eyes curl into crescents from the force of his giddy grin nonetheless. This is a nice feeling.

“I hope you’re happy,” Changbin growls with menace in his tone, but with his arms wrapped around Felix’s waist it doesn’t achieve the same effect. 

Felix is indeed, happy.

Felix wakes up feeling dizzy. He lets out a loud groan and rolls over to stuff his face in his pillow. Everything’s too bright, everything’s too loud -

Had a good sleep? Felix reluctantly turns his head at the feline figure perching at the edge of his bed. Changbin’s voice sounds mocking.

“Agh.” Felix winces as he struggles to simultaneously sit up and rifle through his memories of the night before. He catches glimpses of Eric’s friends, a few rounds of beer pong, the confident smirk of Ju… Juyeon? Farther than that… only flashing lights, and a faint smell of burnt wood and fresh earth. “What… what happened?”

Changbin flicks his tail once. You came back drunk out of your mind and giggling like a schoolgirl. Seungmin and Jisung had to roll you back to your room. Think about that. Roll you.

A wave of heat rushes across Felix’s cheeks at Changbin’s words. He buries his face in his hands. “Oh my god.”

“All I can say is that you’re lucky today’s a Sunday.” Changbin, suddenly a human, walks over to shove Felix out of bed. “Now go get yourself together.”

Felix falls in a spectacular flurry of blankets and weak flailing. “Changbin, what the fuck ,” he exclaims, fruitlessly trying to untangle himself in his dazed state. “Literally why.”

“What?” Changbin has the gall to sound innocent. “You owe me after what you made me do last night.”

Felix perks up, confused. “What do you mean -”

But Changbin’s already transformed back into a cat, stalking out of Felix’s room, tail high.

“ Felix! ” Hyunjin’s voice echoes throughout the dorm.

Felix scrambles up from his bed, startled from the sudden yell. Changbin sniffs, not even looking up from where he’s taking apart a Rubix cube. “He’s back,” he drones monotonously.

“ FELIX! ” Hyunjin shouts even more insistently, shortly followed by a “SHUT UP” from Jisung.

“Coming!” Felix, not having the faintest clue what Changbin was talking about, rushes out the door to stop Hyunjin from disrupting the entire block. He slides at the turn in the corridor and narrowly avoids crashing into the sofa, rounds the bend and-

“Oh hey!” he greets. Standing at the door is none other than Chan, with his trusty messenger bag and brilliant smile on his face.

“Hello!” Chan replies jovially. “Long time no see.” While he says this he gestures meaningfully to his bag, telling Felix that this is more than just a friendly visit. Felix instantly ushers Chan into his room in front of a highly confused Hyunjin. Felix will come up with a backstory later.

As soon as Chan steps through the door frame, Changbin shoots up from his seat like a cat startled from its napping spot. He almost looks like he’s gonna hiss at the hunter until Felix shushes him. “Goddamnit, I haven’t even managed to close the door yet!” he hastily slides the door shut. “Okay, go.”

He expects a whole other temper explosion, but Changbin just insolently glares at Chan but doesn’t move. “I’m fine ,” he says through gritted teeth. “Just habit.”

Felix, shocked, looks from Changbin, who’s drilling Chan with his stare but otherwise not attacking, to Chan, who’s calmly settling down against the wall opposite the demon, acting as if he were a casual study buddy and not his literal destined archenemy. Huh , Felix shrugs, plopping on his bed in between the two of them, progress .

“Alright, so,” Chan says once Felix gets himself comfortable, “I managed to contact my relative, not without difficulty, but long story short she’s willing to help us. For a price.”

Felix winces. Prices. What is life without it. The inevitable toll. With joy comes misery, with victory comes loss, with life comes death. To obtain two hundred dollars one must pass GO. There must be balance within the Force. Everything must be atoned for. Nothing comes free. Especially when it concerns dark magic, as every other story and drama has dutifully reminded him. He’s already calculating the numbers in his head. How much loss would be dealt on his perishing bank account? Would he have to pull a Rapunzel and give up his firstborn child? He apprehensively waits for Chan to continue.

“She wants a helper for her store.”

Chapter Text

The woman teepees her hands sternly, and Felix shifts uncomfortably in his seat. Beside him, Changbin silently glowers, as he always does. Her nails look like they could deal some serious damage.

On Felix’s other side, Chan gestures amiably. “So, basically, yeah. That’s our situation right now. Two college students fully occupied trying to scrape through their studies. I’m not sure how you’re able to work with that, if you’re looking for an effective assistant.” His motions seem relaxed enough, but Felix feels the tension in his every move.

Chan’s distant aunt, thrice removed (as according to her), raises an immaculately manicured eyebrow, which somehow manages to unnerve Felix even more. She’s a woman of imposing stature, with glowing skin seemingly untouched by old age, features so perfect Felix has a hard time seeing it as anything else but plastic surgery, even though he knows it’s probably something far more sinister, and cold eyes that seem to know too much. Even the small mole resting in the corner of her pursed lips looks intentionally placed there for enhancement. Her impressive, flawlessly pressed black period dress doesn’t help things either.

“I see,” she drawls slowly. “Either way, even if you were available, neither of you are skilled enough to meet the requirements of such a job.” Felix doesn’t know if he should be insulted by that. Chan’s probably going through a similar thought process. The slightest hint of a smirk twitches on Chan’s aunt’s blood red lips. “Nothing personal. But you haven’t listed down all of your possible offers.”

Confused, Felix and Chan exchange looks. Who else could help them fulfil this requisite? 

Slowly, Chan’s aunt’s gaze slides over to Felix’s demonic companion.

Changbin startles like he’s the kid who always sleeps in class getting picked by the teacher. “Me?”

Felix is equally befuddled. “But… the contract?” he murmurs. “I dunno where your shop is, but wherever it is, it probably isn’t close enough...”

Her laugh sends shivers down Felix’s spine, unlike the ones Changbin’s give. His ones were out of intimidation. These shivers were out of fright. “Oh, you naive, gullible thing,” Chan’s aunt purrs, and Felix finally knows what true chilling fear feels like. “You seem to forget who you’re dealing with here.”

Felix swallows dryly. “Right. Of course. Silly me.”

Chan’s aunt giggles dainty at that, but there’s nothing amusing about her tone. Felix doesn’t know if she’s being creepy on purpose or if it’s just her natural mannerism. He doesn’t know which option he prefers. “I am most definitely able to bend the rules of the demon soul contract, and for a free helper around my shop? I would do it without question.” She suddenly leans forward conspiratorially. “Monday. I open shop at nine, but I expect you there early so I can help with your little… solstice situation. I always stick to my word.” A sly smile slips onto her lips as she rises, clearly wanting to leave.

Felix still feel like he’s squinting in metaphorical fog. “Wait,” he calls, despite all his instincts screaming at him to just shut the fuck up and let the scary lady go somewhere far, far away, preferably not here . “Where does Changbin go?”

Chan’s aunt pauses. “He already knows,” she replies cryptically, before standing up and leaving with a sweep of her funeral-appropriate black dress.

Felix feels like he’s releasing a breath he never knew he was holding. “Oh jeez,” he breathes out. “She’s… definitely something else.”

Chan scratches his head sheepishly. “Yeah, I may have forgotten to warn you about that part. Her social skills are a bit… unusual.”

“I’m not surprised, seeing she’s your relative,” Changbin mutters, but before Felix can rise up to reprimand Changbin, the demon’s already singing under his breath, “Kidding.”

Chan doesn’t seem to take offence. Felix blinks in visible shock. How are the two getting along so swimmingly well? Maybe Changbin’s crankiness was just solstice stuff too.

"Right!" Chan stands up and brushes the imaginary dust off his pants. "Anyone up for lunch? I'd offer but… broke college student."

“Yo, what the fuck is this?” Jisung’s holler nearly makes Felix drop his sandwich. He scrambles to pause his movie and peer in the general direction of the disruption, which just so happened to be the kitchen.

Soon enough the provocateur himself emerges from the dark depths of their desolate excuse of a food preparation space. “Guys, you can’t be serious,” Jisung nearly fumes. Felix is really getting scared, thinking Jisung’s discovered that literally everyone else has found out about his secret cheesecake stash, and that Hyunjin had eaten all of it like the dumbass he would be. His breath catches as Jisung continues, “Why the fuck do we not have gummy worms?”

“Better question: why the fuck would we have gummy worms?” Seungmin yells back from his room.

Jisung looks offended, even though Seungmin isn’t even there to see. “What do you mean- I’ve always had gummy worms! I’ve always kept them in a specific place in the cupboard, you’d think people would have the decency to know when to respect someone’s personal property…”

“Oh, they were yours ?” Hyunjin’s voice, which sounds suspiciously like it’s coming from Seungmin’s room as well isn’t even tinged with a hint of guilt. “I didn’t see ‘Screaming Squirrel’ written on it anywhere.”

“ Hwang Hyunjin!” Jisung’s shriek is so shrill Felix actually has to leap up and shush him. Jisung pays him no heed and proceeds to fling open the door scream in the exact same decibel, “ You ate all my gummy worms?”

“ What ?” Hyunjin protests. Felix meanders over to witness the tea. Both Hyunjin and Seungmin are decked out in sleepwear (Felix stores this somewhere under Blackmail: Situations for Instant Embarrassment ), the lankier of the duo is on Seungmin’s bed, earbuds still in his ears. Seungmin, meanwhile, was looking from his work desk, laptop screen still bright and on some news article. “I was feeling peckish from the dramas and anything not explicitly labelled in a communal kitchen is pretty much free game, Han.”

“Hyunjin’s got a point, Jisung,” Seungmin tags on, and Jisung promptly shuts his mouth shut, because what can you really say against a law student in an argument?

Or that’s what Felix thought, until Jisung stubbornly points an accusing finger at Hyunjin. “You’re buying me a new pack.”

Hyunjin freezes from shock for a whole five seconds, before he regains his senses and objects, “Dude, have you seen the time?” True enough, when Felix takes a brief glance at Seungmin’s digital alarm, the hour is single-digit, and the sky outside is pitch black. “There’s no way the campus convenience store is open now. And even if it were, the offence was unintentional. As in: I don’t owe you anything, so in conclusion,” he folds his arms with a sense of finality, “no.”

But Jisung, dear, incredibly dumb Han Jisung, won’t take no for an answer. “Then go to one of those twenty-four-seven markets,” he insists.

“No.” Hyunjin’s tone is flat.

Jisung glares at his roommate for a few seconds, and Felix thinks he’s going to press again to get Hyunjin to do his bidding, but then he storms off to his own room, purpose burning in his eyes. “Fine, then I guess I’ll go get my gummies myself!”

“Ohoho,” Seungmin says again. “I wouldn’t do that if I want to live.”

Jisung turns around, evidently confused, as are his two fellow dormies. “What?”

Seungmin refers to his laptop, and ups the brightness as everyone else crowds around. “Midnight murders: police suspect active serial killer,” Hyunjin reads aloud for literally no one’s benefit, then murmurs, “What the fuck?”

“Yup,” Seungmin says, like he’s talking about the newest restaurant down the street and not a literal murderer . “No more late-night snack runs, I guess.”

Jisung sighs, a pout naturally forming on his face. Felix used to think it was the more adorable thing on earth, but he thinks it’s been subverted by something else… a certain tiny demon pops into his mind’s eye. Felix shoves it away. Shut up , he begs. I’m trying to be serious for once, for Pete’s sake. “I suppose I’ll have to get them in the morning,” Jisung says ruefully.

Seungmin nods, a pleased smile coming across his face. “Great, and ,” he checks his imaginary watch, “would you look at that? This week’s your turn on the groceries. Wonderful.”

Jisung’s scowl deepens. “What a funny twist of fate.”

“Hey,” Felix says conversationally later, when he’s in bed and Changbin is busy ripping his old notes to shreds with his little kitty claws. “Do you know about the murders happening lately?”

Changbin stops in his destruction and shifts into a human, a frown on his face. “What about them?”

Felix shrugs. “I dunno. Seungmin just showed us an article, apparently there’s someone killing people in the middle of the night here. Probably a serial killer or something. Anyways, that means a curfew for us, but I don’t think you’d have any trouble with murderers.” He shoots Changbin a confirmatory glance.

Changbin tilts his head pensively, and Felix resists the urge to tell him how cute he looks when he’s deep in thought and not on the verge of causing another scene of disaster. Especially because he’s sitting cross-legged on the floor and looking so small . “You’re right, I shouldn’t have any issues,” the demon replies. “Still, a serial murder case in a lame place like this ? I’m surprised.”

Felix shrugs. “Maybe that’s the point; perhaps they just wanted to spice things up a little.” He does a little shimmy with his shoulders for emphasis. “Bring a little more pizazz to this place. I mean, who doesn’t love a dramatic backstory of random mysterious killings of innocent people?” He wiggles his fingers mystically around to create atmosphere. “It’ll give the shadows flavour.”

Changbin just stares at Felix. “I really wonder who is the creature of hell out of the two of us.”

“You, obviously,” Felix says easily. “Now, if this mystery remains unsolved and in case I don’t finish an assignment on time you’re not stopping me from getting midnight ramyeon.”

“Mhm.” Changbin sounds unconvinced. “Get back to work, you emo wannabe.”

When Felix returns home, he doesn’t see Changbin. He doesn’t think much of it at first, but after about an hour with no feline in sight, he can’t deny the uneasy feeling that’s gathering in his gut. He settles down and tells himself to focus on his work for now. Whatever happened, surely Changbin would be able to handle it?

By evening time, when Seungmin’s come back with the daily haul of instant ramen, Changbin still hasn’t shown up. At this point Felix is close to panic. Where did Changbin go? Is he okay? What if he got into trouble with, like, a super hunter or something-

A circle of fire erupts out of thin air, right next to Felix’s bed and Felix screams, knocking his laptop over in his fright. He screams less when a familiar short demon exits from the circle.

“Oh my god.” Felix harshly exhales. He pauses at Changbin’s expression. It’s kind of angry, but also kind of sullen, like he’s a fast food employee coming back from a bad day of work. He’s grouchy . Felix tries hard not to find the scenario amusing. “Where’d you go?”

Changbin glares characteristically at Felix. “It’s Monday, where’d you think I went?”

Felix holds up a hand. “Wait, wait, I haven’t regrown my brain cells yet-” He hastily digs through his memories, Google search, keyword: Monday. He snaps his fingers. “Ah. Chan’s weird aunt.”

“As if you had brain cells to regrow, honestly,” Changbin snorts. “Of course Chan’s weird aunt! You were there when she made the deal, and it wasn’t even a week ago. How the hell have you forgotten about it so quickly-”

Disapprovingly, Felix shakes his head. “Changbin, Changbin, time and time again you underestimate my capacity to be a dumbass. You could literally threaten to throw me into the deepest layer of hell and I’d recite Jung’s Map of the Soul, in order of layer, right back to your face. I don’t know how this isn’t obvious to you.”

“I don’t know how I’m still putting up with you,” Changbin grumbles, storming to Felix’s bed and plopping himself on it. 

Felix doesn’t know where the sudden urge to join him comes from. “Did she manage to help you with the solstice thing?” he asks instead. 

Changbin shrugs, in a eh sort of way. He’s still not meeting Felix’s eyes, which he honestly finds a bit unsettling. “I think so. She pulled me to the back of the store and did some weird chanting shit, and then suddenly-” he fell silent.

A feeling of uneasiness settled over Felix. “Suddenly?” he prompts gently.

“Felt weird,” Changbin mutters, in a very un-Changbin-like manner. The smoulder is starting in his eyes again. Bad news.

Felix knits his eyebrows together, troubled. “Are… are you alright?” He instinctively crawls onto the bed, beside Changbin. Felix realises a second too late he’d probably only just flinch away and snap at him, but the demon stays put.

A couple of silent moments pass before Changbin shakes his head aggressively. “I’m fine,” he insists roughly, back to his old, brusque self. “Even if I no longer gain power during solstices, that means Chan won’t come knocking and I won’t have to spend another hour as a lunchbox .” Felix really wants to press, because Changbin can be quiet, but never unsettled , but Changbin’s already moving on. “Forget that,” he says brashly, “Ask me how work was. I need you to know how painful you’ve just made my whole life become.”

“Um…” Felix says, a little frightenedly, “How was work?”

Changbin shoots him a smile, a genuine-looking , teeth-showing smile that exposes his canines and now Felix is ten times as spooked as he was before. Changbin has never smiled like that, but now that he has, Felix is sure demons don’t have facial structures that suit anything but an insidious frown or a devilish smirk. And that smile, thankfully , is gone as soon as it’s there, replaced with a deep scowl that Felix is much more used to.

“She made me smile like that !” he hisses. “I swear, if I had to choose between working at that shop for the rest of my immortal days or losing said immortality, I’d welcome death with open arms!”

Felix looks bemusedly at Changbin. “That bad?”

“That bad,” Changbin confirms morosely, kicking his legs almost petulantly against the bed. “And she asked me to be nice to customers,” he gripes. “She asked me to be nice! And courteous!”

Felix just blinks. “Wow, the world must be coming to an end for you,” he responds soullessly.

Changbin glares spitefully at Felix, who shrugs innocently. The demon rolls his eyes and bulldozes on, “It’s like she wants me to be her fucking apprentice or something, no, get your priorities right, I am here to settle the score for the solstice, I am not going to take over your trade of your weird-ass fucking voodoo shop!”

“What did she have you do?” Felix asks, genuinely curious this time.

Changbin holds up a hand, and starts listing off with his fingers. “Learn the entire layout of the shop. Take morning inventory. Entertain customers. Smile while entertaining customers. Take more inventory. Rearrange two shelves because they weren’t ‘pleasing for customer consumption’, bitch please, just say it doesn’t fit the aesthetic and go. Entertain even more customers. Clean. Final inventory.” The fingers turn into claws. “She never even let me touch the money!”

Felix tries his very best to bite back a grin. “Oh no, not the money,” he says with as much sympathy as he can muster.

“And guess what she told me at the end of the day?” Changbin glares at the floor like it’s the shopkeeper herself. “She had the gall to say, ‘See you tomorrow, we’ll get you started on the talisman aisle.’ What the fuck is that supposed to mean? I’m actually going to have to help in the store.”

“Yes, well,” Felix interjects, a teasing smile on his face, “that is the role of a shop assistant.”

“Fuck off, I’m wallowing in my misery here,” Changbin complains, but his tone is so whiny that Felix can’t hold it anymore. He bursts into giggles, tipping onto his side. Through his laughter he can hear shifting, probably Changbin moving his glare onto him. “Are you laughing at my suffering?” he demands menacingly.

“No,” Felix gasps out. “Maybe. It’s just- it’s so funny .” He recovers from his fit of mirth, returning to face Changbin. The demon has a deadpan expression, like he’s already so used to Felix's antics, he knows to wait for an explanation. “I- you’re just so cute ,” he helplessly attempts to clarify.

Changbin’s eyes widen incredulously. “I’m cute ?” He spits out the last word like it’s absolute venom in his mouth.

“Like-” Felix gestures uselessly to the air. There’s no escaping now. No takesies-backsies. Now or never. “You’re just adorable , but… dark .” His hands come to form a circle, as if that will help the visualisation. “Cute and dark.” How eloquent.

“Has anyone told you how tiny your hands are?” Changbin suddenly says, staring intently at Felix’s hands. “They are very tiny.”

A sudden rush of heat rises to Felix’s cheeks. In a fit of panic, he makes a peace sign at Changbin. "Yeet?" 

"Very tiny, and very easy to crush,” Changbin continues, his stare turning into a glare. If this is Changbin’s idea of banter, he’s just as terrible as Felix is, so Felix decides to dwell on that instead of the unsubtle threat of his hands being crushed. He preferred his hands un -crushed, thank you very much.

“If you’re implying that I’m cuter than you,” he says aloud. “I’m flattered you think I’m cute.”

As Felix half-expects, Changbin clams up, and turns into a cat. A self-satisfied smile sneaks onto Felix’s face. Another win for the human. He’s getting good at this demon business.

Felix likes another Tweet while Changbin sits beside him, tackling the Rubik's cube again. (He still has not solved it, and honestly Felix can’t blame him.) 

Something drops. Felix looks up from his phone to find Changbin getting off his bed and walking towards the front door. He makes to call out for Changbin, when a screech sounds from outside Felix's room, a screech that sounds awfully like Hyunjin's. That grabs Felix's attention more, and before he can do anything, Changbin's already opening the door and walking out.

"What- Changbin, wait!" Felix leaps off his bed and hurries after him.

When he enters the common room, he walks into quite the scene. For unknown reasons Seungmin and Jisung decided to care enough about Hyunjin’s one specific shriek and emerged from their respective rooms, but Jisung settled for taking solace behind Seungmin’s skinny ass as they both duck in the corridor. Hyunjin, the culprit himself, probably ungracefully waltzed over to the opposite side of the living room in a complete panic in the way Hyunjin does. Felix’s eyes flit over to the entire cause of the commotion and his heart does the biggest loop-de-loop it’s ever done. It’s an all-too familiar sight: the markings of what looks like an intricately drawn circle, somewhere near the kitchen, right where Felix once summoned Changbin.

“Yo, who the fuck is Tiny, Dark and Handsome over here?” Hyunjin squints at Changbin, who is very notably still in human form . A slight panic runs down Felix’s spine.

“Hey, isn’t that the dude that Felix made out with that one time?” Jisung asks, and Felix’s panic turns into a cringe. Of course. They had to recognise him by that one incident. “Dude, how the fuck did you get in? Did you use the fire escape? Oh God, don’t tell me you two were doing it -”

Felix opts to tune Jisung’s panicked rambling in favour of wanting to smack Changbin for blowing his cover so easily, but wind starts whipping around, knocking things over and mussing his hair, and decides he can handle that later. For now, he calls out to the demon, who's kneeling beside the seemingly Satanic symbol glowing on the floor, touching the rim with his fingers and muttering something under his breath. "Changbin? What's going on?"

Changbin utters a few more syllables before calling back. "Someone from Hell is trying to reach the surface!"

Felix can't believe his ears. "Again?" he complains. "I'm sick of this."

"AGAIN?" Jisung breaks his babbling train of nonsense to repeat, horrified. "YOU MEAN THIS ISN’T THE FIRST TIME?"

"Duh, where else do you think Felix got his hot supernatural boyfriend?" Seungmin retorts, eyes not leaving the floor.

Felix, despite the perilous situation, feels his ears heat up. "He- he's not my boyfriend!"

"Yup, totally explains why you two were sucking face at Woojin's party!" Hyunjin says, now cowering behind the sofa, even though it doesn't really hold any protective integrity. Felix stammers, but can't think of a reply in time. "Now can someone please tell me who the fuck is trying to enter our broke-ass college dorm?"

Felix's eyes haven't left Changbin, whose eyebrows are even more furrowed and his mutterings even more intense. He bats away his annoying fringe, but the wind's getting so strong he can feel himself lifting off the ground. Wait- maybe they should call Chan in. He’d know what to do… probably.

Felix opens his mouth to make the suggestion when Changbin's eyes drastically widen and he yells out a "wait!" before there's an explosion of hellish light.

Chapter Text

How many explosions has Felix witnessed so far? Two?

Statistically speaking, that’s two times too many for an average college student.

When Felix is done blinking the spots out of his eyes, the first thing he does is yell.

Standing in the middle of the smoking circle, almost like deja vu, is yet another person. But as Felix squints… is that really? A body? The outline keeps flickering, almost like a shitty visualiser, and if Felix looks hard enough… maybe he can see the back of the room through the entire apparition. The… ghost? Spirit? Phantom? Looks at the four humans in the room, confusion evident in his eyes.

Jisung, ever observant, hollers, “IS THAT A GHOST?”

Hyunjin arches his back in pain and buries further behind the sofa in the typical dramatic Hyunjin style. “Jesus, yell a little louder, would you? I don’t think the next block heard.”

By this point, the ghost has noticed Changbin and is now facing towards him. Changbin isn’t showing any signs of aggression, in fact he looks almost concerned.

“Who the fuck are you?” Jisung demands, but when he’s using Seungmin as a human shield out of cowardice it kind of ruins the intimidation factor. That, and his puffy cheeks. “Begone, thot! Right in front of my salad! Bold of you to assume-”

“Jisung,” Felix says, “I don’t think-”

“-head, shoulders knees and toes, eyyy Macarena-”

“Jisung!” Felix shouts, and thank god for his deep voice, because it reverberates enough to burst through Jisung’s shock bubble and startle him back to sanity. What Felix isn’t thankful for is that now, there’s absolute silence in the living room, because everyone’s looking at him. Felix might as well make the most of it. He takes a deep breath. “He’s not here to hurt us. I- He-” he struggles to come up with a succinct enough explanation to summarise why he trusts Changbin, and why he would trust a ghost that literally just popped into their dorm by proxy. “It’s cool beans,” he finishes lately.

“Thank you, I was having trouble hearing anything with all the screaming your rowdy roommate was doing,” Changbin grumbles.

“Eye- it was validated!” Jisung argues, before pointing an accusatory finger towards the demon. “And you still haven’t explained who you are either! What have you been doing with Felix? In his own bedroom? How'd you even get in? Parkour?”

(Felix really should stop turning red at the innuendos. It’s not helping anything.)

“I've been lazing around his room and scratching his furniture, and only if a direct summoning of hell counts as a fire escape, if you really must know,” Changbin deadpans.

Seungmin frowns. “Wait… Lix called you Changbin- Changbin.” It’s his turn to point a finger. “You’re Felix’s cat!”

“You’re what?” Hyunjin shrieks.

Changbin lets a slow smirk come across his face, and lets out a low, devious chuckle. It visibly scares Hyunjin and Jisung, and creeps out Seungmin, but Felix is completely unaffected. “Congratulations, it appears you’re the smart one,” he muses, as his eyes turn red. “Surprise.”

"Wait, we've been living with a demon?" Jisung exclaims, backtracking into the corridor, and even farther away from the scene of the crime. "And Felix summoned you?"

"Accidental!" Felix yelps. "Accidental summoning. I literally wear a crucifix on me everyday, no way in hell would I intentionally summon a demon."

Jisung looks back and forth between Changbin and Felix. "No- no, wait- you gotta be-" Poor Confused Jisung shakes his head. "Are y'all stuck in some sort of weird roleplay thing? Because if you are, then-"

His voice stutters to a halt as dark shadows amass behind Changbin, to form large bat-like wings. His eyes start to smoulder. "Believe me now, pathetic mortal?" he growls.

Jisung is stunned into silence.

Showoff. Felix rolls his eyes, and he notices that the ghost does the same. (But really, Felix should really get Changbin and Jisung to interact more, even if it's only to keep the resident loudmouth shut for at least a few ounces of tranquility.) “Okay, cut the crap, Changbin, we have a guest, if you haven’t noticed.” He turns to the spectre, who up until now hasn’t revealed anything about himself. “And who might you be?”

Now that Felix can properly focus on him, he realises that this dead spirit is a kid; he doesn’t look a day past high school. His eyes, as pale as they are, seem to shine with childish innocence, even as the various dark scars on his arms and bloodied chest say differently. Despite being a ghost, Felix would totally take him to the arcade and give him whatever he wants, simply to see him happy and excited. The kid beams and, goddamn, that g r i n, is he a misplaced cherub or something?

Felix refuses to believe that he is pathetically whipped for a ghost barely even ten minutes into meeting him, but here he is. Whipped for a ghost barely even ten minutes into meeting him.

Said ghost kid says cheerfully, “Hi! I’m Yang Jeongin, and I- uh,” a small, adorable frown of concentration appears on his face. “Um. I’m dead.”

“Errr, sorry for your loss?” Hyunjin pipes up. Felix leans over to give him a quick whap on the head. “What? What else am I supposed to say?”

“Please shut up,” Felix begs. He addresses Jeongin again. “Why are you here?”

“Yeah, we were just getting to that,” Changbin cuts in. He narrows his eyes sharply at Jeongin, which is absolutely unwarranted, in Felix’s view, jeez, just look at the kid- “I, too, would very much like to know why, and more importantly, how, you did a reverse necromancy summoning, which, by the way, should be impossible and very, very illegal.”

Jeongin has the decency to look sheepish under the demon’s glare. “It was a long and complicated process that… mayormaynothavebeenobtainedfromtheforbiddenarchives.”

Changbin bristles. "What?"

"What?" Hyunjin echoes, but significantly more confused.

"What?" Felix and Seungmin say too, equally confused, also Jeongin mushed his words together.

“Forbidden archives?” Jisung asks, because listening to fast rap comes with natural advantages.

“Okay, okay, wait,” Felix cuts in, sensing they’re on a cusp of a huge revelation. “Why don’t we all just… sit down? Yeah. Sounds good. Talk it out over a nice cup of tea.” He glances over apologetically at Jeongin. “Sorry- uh- can you eat food?”

Jeongin shakes his head. “I don’t think so. Incorporeal body and all that. But it’s okay, I’m used to it.”

“Alright then.” Felix turns his dormies. “Go make your own tea, I forgot your favourites.”

Seungmin drinks a deep sip of his tea. “So.”

“So,” Hyunjin repeats over his Americano. They’ve all settled on the couch after a slightly messy affair of everyone collectively trying to make their hot drinks. Changbin decides to just stand and hover threateningly against the wall.

Changbin glares at Jeongin. “So.”

Jeongin, hovering over the sofa arm in a semblance of normalcy, looks at the demon earnestly, like how a little brother would try and excuse his breaking his older brother’s gaming console. “I promise I have a reason!” he blurts out. “I heard from Jihoon who heard from Soo-yang who heard from Daewoo who heard-” he cuts himself short when Changbin impatiently gestures for him to get one with it. “Kim’s here!” he finishes abruptly.

Felix doesn’t expect much of a reaction from Changbin to that response, but when he looks at the demon, he isn’t met with a scowl. Changbin’s jaw is too slack to be a scowl.

"Yes, it is I," Kim Seungmin says. “I am here.”

Jisung reaches over to smack Seungmin’s arm. “Dude, he’s not talking about you.” He immediately cowers away when Seungmin makes to smack him back.

“Then Kim who?” Hyunjin asks, while the two squabble over his lap. He shoots them an irritated look when the dispute gets messier. “Hey! Watch the Americano!”

“You’ve ever heard of the saying, ‘speak of the devil and he shall appear’?” Changbin says in lieu of explanation as Hyunjin breaks up the fight by forcibly wrapping his arms around Seungmin and tucking his head into Seungmin’s neck. Not the most conventional way, but judging from the way Seungmin freezes up and stops antagonising Jisung, Felix figures it works.

Jisung blinks, focused once more on the issue at hand. “Wait, don’t tell me this is some He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named bullshit.”

Jeongin shakes his head. “No, that was only because they were too afraid of him to say his name aloud. The truth is, names have power,” he states solemnly. “Saying his name is the equivalent to sending up a flare telling him your location. That never happened in Harry Potter.”

Jisung lets out an impressed whistle. “Man, you know your lore.”

Jeongin smiles wryly. “It happens when you died a gory death forty years ago and woke up to float around a place with nothing to do but while your time away eternally trapped in the veil between hell and earth.”

An awkward silence befalls the group. Hyunjin coughs into his fist. Jisung takes a long, embarrassed slurp of his tea.

Felix decides to bite the bullet. “Right, but we still don’t know who this ‘Kim’ is. What did he do that made a full fledged demon like Changbin over here actually feel fear?”

Changbin’s face shifts back into the fierce scowl Felix knows and loves. “That was not fear.”

“Right, keep telling yourself that,” Felix snorts.

“It’s fear,” Jeongin confirms, making Felix snicker. Changbin sends them an almighty scowl. They ignore it. “Back when he was alive, he caused huge problems for everyone above and below, but once he died, he was subdued, rather harshly, might I add.”

“Honestly, I don’t get how he’s still a problem,” Changbin grumbles. “I was told of this ages ago. He should have been taken care of a long time ago.”

Felix’s head is spinning with too many questions. “Would it be too much to ask to tell the story from the start? If he still hasn’t been caught, that probably means something.”

Changbin shrugs. “Fine, but only because he-” He inclines his head towards Seungmin, “-actually has the capability to think amongst the four of you.”

“Hey!” Jisung protests. “I can think too!”

“Proverbs 29:16, a fool uttereth all his mind, but a wise man keepeth it in till afterwards,” Jeongin recites under his breath.

Changbin grimaces, but motions in obvious agreement. “Jeongin just quoted the book. Don’t you humans consider it the epitome of wisdom? Perhaps take a leaf or two out of it, and that’s rich coming from me.”

“Hey, save the insults for later, would you?” Felix cuts in before Jisung can leap up and physically attack Changbin, which is maybe not the brightest idea out there. “I mean, I would love to see you two brawl, but maybe not while we still don’t know what’s going on?”

Changbin rolls his eyes condescendingly, but leaves it at that. Felix gestures for him to continue speaking. The demon replies with a raised eyebrow, like what do you want me to say?

Felix knits his eyebrows together. What the fuck is happening, maybe?

“Basically, Kim was a huge asshole. Like, astronomically so,” Changbin unhelpfully explains. The next exposition he provides is better. “He was a successful businessman, but on the business of religion.” Out of the corner of Felix’s eye, he notices it’s Jeongin’s turn to wince. “He led a cult, and got rich off the back of it.”

“It wasn’t any sort of cult,” Jeongin cuts in quietly. “He ran a Satanic cult.”

“Utter bullshit, if I’ve ever heard it,” Changbin says scornfully. “He proclaimed himself to be the heir of Satan, and the best part is, there were people who actually believed him. They’d pay him offerings, host ceremonies in his honour, have weekly sessions of worship for him… but it was all a sham. Fake. He never had such a claim to the throne, but the lie was so damn crazy it worked.” There’s a dark look in his eyes, something a little more than malevolence or mayhem; it looks incensed, haunted, almost. “It was really fucked up.”

“Changbin, don’t say those words,” Jeongin chastises, and Felix’s jaw drops a little, because he’s an actual BABY, who would ever want to cause his death?

“I mean,” Seungmin says skeptically, “I’d understand if it were a Christian-like cult, that makes more sense, but a Satanic one? Who’d follow that?”

Changbin’s nods slowly, registering the question. “Kim wasn’t dumb, he knew that any conscientious person would question the belief system and report it to some form of religious authority, so he picked his targets well. He’d pick random people off the street who were in a bad place, and introduce them to his ‘organisation’, his front of a charity to avoid raising suspicion. He’d give them money, let them get back on their feet, on the conditions that they attend every meeting that this organisation has. Of course, those were cult meetings, with Kim at its centre. If any of them tried to leave or back out, well, Kim had some pretty devout followers, who also weren’t afraid to use brute force.”

“Huh,” Hyunjin says thoughtfully, although he’s curled securely into Seungmin’s side, probably from the fright of the whole scenario.

Seungmin, however, was unbothered. “Wait, and you guys didn’t have a problem with them exploiting your name for their own gain?” he questions.

The demon’s eyes gleamed. “Usually, we wouldn’t bother ourselves with such inconsequential things, so what if someone uses the name of Satan to get money? We never copyrighted his name anyways. We only saw something of concern when Kim started getting… deranged. Somewhere along the line, as he got deeper and deeper into the lie he kept on propositioning himself as the true ruler of Hell, and…” A dark chuckle escapes Changbin. “The human mind can be a truly corrupted place. He himself started believing his lie. He started conducting experiments, trying to find ways to enter Hell, trying to find ways to usurp Satan from the position he was on, a mere human. He bribed a few hunters, figured out summoning magic, the whole shebang.” Suddenly his eyes turn a blood red. “Then he started killing demons.”

“Plot twist,” Jisung gasps.

Felix recoils at the sheer image. “He’d summon demons and kill them?” Felix gapes. When Changbin nods morosely in confirmation, he visibly shudders. “I… that’s so sick.” Uninvited, the strong urge to wrap his arms around Changbin rises in Felix, just to make sure he’s still there. Is Felix feeling protective? Of a demon?

“Didn’t stop him from doing what he did,” Changbin mutters, glaring at the floor. It was a tough appearance, but the fear was evident. “There's a theory that he did just to get Satan's attention. It sure worked, but not in the way he wanted, I would imagine. Nobody takes kindly to anyone slaughtering their minions. Satan made sure the next summoning he did, he sent up his strongest, most violent lackeys and dragged Kim down through that very same portal. And, normally, any show of strength would earn the head honcho’s respect, but Satan is a power-hungry creature. Any lunatic that even has the notion of taking over his throne is really going to get it.” The demon’s hand closes tightly into a fist. “We thought that was the end of it.”

“Even after Kim’s death, the cult is still up and running until today,” Jeongin continues explaining. “I’m not sure how many members there are, and they’ve mellowed out, but it’s definitely alive. They still operate like how they used to until today, but with Kim as a twisted martyr figure. They interpreted Kim’s disappearance as his success in his endeavour to overthrow Satan, which is very untrue.”

Out of the corner of Felix’s eye, Hyunjin is starting to look more and more uneasy. “Um,” he pipes up, “what’s the name of this cult?”

“They like to call themselves The Destined, which is the exact opposite of what they actually are,” Changbin replies easily, ready to move on to the next point, but-

Hyunjin’s mouth gapes open. “Oh.” His face turns very pale. “Oh.”

Seungmin perks up, concerned. “What? What is it?”

Wordlessly, Hyunjin stands up and shuffles his way towards his room, his mouth set in a grim line, and emerges with something in his hand. He shows it to Jeongin. “Do you recognise this?”

Jeongin takes one glance at the object and Felix would bet that if ghosts could blanch, his face would be whiter than a sheet of paper.

“What is it?” Jisung presses.

Jeongin stares pensively at the object, Felix squints, it’s a card. “This- this is the symbol of the cult,” he stammers out.

If Felix had a dollar for every awkward silence they’ve had in this entire conversation, he’d be able to get himself an ice cream.

“...what?” Jisung says.

“Hyunjin’s involved in a Satanic cult?” Seungmin gazes wide-eyed at his dormie.

Hyunjin sputters to amend. “Not involved! They like… gave me a business card and that was it! Nothing else, I promise!” Felix can’t shake the impression that he’s having an argument with his nonexistent girlfriend. “I always just… kept it on hand after that, y’know. Like... for memorabilia.”

“I dunno, what kind of memorable experience would you have had to have to keep the business card of a cult?” Jisung warily side-eyes the card.

“My friend dunked water on the cultist and dragged me away by the collar,” Hyunjin admits. “He’s religious.”

Jeongin’s eyes widen. “What I would give to see that.”

“Lemme see that.” Changbin plucks the card from Jeongin’s ectoplasmic hands. “Name, number, opening hours…” he mutters to himself, “... and no address. What kind of business card doesn’t have an address?”

“Clearly one of a Satanic cult.” Seungmin blows on his tea.

Changbin raises a finger to retaliate, then lowers it. "You," he says instead, looking at Hyunjin. "Do you have any more details?"

Hyunjin shrugs helplessly. "Like I said, I got dragged away by my collar. My friend never would have let me learn anything at all in the first place if he could have helped it."

Changbin huffs, annoyed. “We’ll have to try another lead then,” he says. “There's something in the back of my mind, but I can't recall what, so we'll have to fall back on the cult. This cult wouldn’t happen to have a website, would it?”

"If you're going to try and Google that shit on any of our devices you're using Incognito," Seungmin warns.

Changbin snorts. "What, do you take me for an idiot? Of course I will. I-” he abruptly freezes. His eyes are glowing red again. Everyone in the room tenses. Jisung ducks behind Hyunjin, who shoves him away, so he instead opts for Jeongin, who looks at him strangely. Felix vaguely thinks Changbin’s like a metal detector by this point, except for holy/hellish things.

“What is it?” Felix prompts gently.

“He’s back,” Changbin mutters.

“Who? Kim?” Hyunjin breathes, terror permeating his words.

A circle of fire rips itself in the air beside the sofa, and Jisung and Hyunjin scream, scrambling back. Through the raging hellfire, Felix squints and sees a silhouette walking through, but wait, that looks familiar-

“It’s you!” he blurts out.

The silhouette turns into a figure that steps through what clearly is a portal. Sharp, jagged horns, a smooth mauve suit, a suave smirk, the whole shebang, but Felix isn’t a stranger to this combination. Still, the intense stare is something new. Felix feels a shiver down his back as it silently surveys the room, scanning its occupants. Slowly and subtly, Jeongin floats away from the sofa arm.

Something yeets through the air. It’s a cushion. “Who are you?” Jisung demands, and oh, this is a familiar song and dance. The cushion drops from where it hooked on the left horn and makes a very sad fwump onto the floor. “What are you doing here? Are you Kim?”

A scoff. “Please, Kim wishes he had these good looks.” Felix has to admit, they are good looks. The newcomer turns to Changbin. “I believe you have something of my interest.”

Changbin heaves a sigh. “And I thought I was dramatic. What do you want, Minho?”

Minho. Such a common name for someone who’s entered Felix’s dorm in a circle of flames not once, but twice.

“Why do demons keep showing up in our house?” Hyunjin laments, emotionally pained.

“I didn’t know we had a Hell house party today,” Seungmin grumbles similarly.

Minho points at Jeongin. “Technically, he’s a deceased spirit, not a demon, and I am here to collect said spirit so he can return and explain to me exactly why he conducted his own reverse summoning, using a spell from one of the top classified grimoires in the forbidden archives.”

Jeongin shrinks under the accusing stare. Minho just frowns fiercely. “Why can’t I ever stand that look- You know what? You’ve been given too much power in the upper levels of Hell. You know precisely that you look too damn innocent, and then what? You use it to your own advantage. Amazingly devious, but it’s causing problems for me, so I don’t approve.”

Ah. So even the members of Hell are whipped for Jeongin. We been knew, sis.

Changbin roughly clears his throat. “If I may interrupt, Jeongin had a legitimate reason to come here.” Minho raises an eyebrow, but stays silent. “He was here to warn me of the presence of Kim in this town, who, by the way, should have been captured a long time ago.”

A scowl overtakes Minho’s features. “I know, I know, I’m working on it.”

Clearly not hard enough, Changbin mutters in Felix’s mind. Felix bites his lip harshly, trying very hard not to snicker. “Whatever useless stuff you’ve been doing, we’ve been working harder. Hyunjin here,” Changbin gestures to the human, who shakily waves his hand, “apparently has connections to Kim’s cult.”

“By which he means my friend physically assaulted a cult member with a bottle of mineral water,” Hyunjin rushes to correct.

The gears in Minho’s head start to turn. “Fine,” Minho fumes, still staring daggers at Jeongin, “I’ll let you off, just this once, only because you guys appear have a lead on Kim, which you didn’t bother to tell me about, and bringing you two in at the same time cuts down on paperwork.”

“Sorry, you were too far away and Changbin was the nearest person in the vicinity,” Jeongin shoots back cheekily.

“You little shit,” Minho mutters. Seconded, Changbin huffs to Felix. “So, what’s this lead you supposedly have?”

“We’ve discovered that Kim’s cult is still operating,” Changbin replies, “though not as violently as before, obviously, their activities haven’t made them show up on the Big Guy’s hit list. They’ve started to worship Kim-” he shudders slightly “- as a martyr.”

A growl starts in the base of Minho’s throat. “Oh, the gall-”

“They are taking this way too personally,” Jisung leans over to whisper to Felix.

“Dude, he killed demons, I’m not even surprised,” Felix whispers back.

In the meantime, it seems that Seungmin, Jeongin, Changbin and Minho are hunched over in one corner, seemingly discussing strategy. Lucky Seungmin. Getting born with brains.

Hyunjin gathers all the empty tea cups. “I’ll bring these to the kitchen. Maybe if I snort enough soap suds, I can remember something else about The Destined.”

“Best idea you’ve come up with all day,” Jisung says, narrowly ducking a hook from Hyunjin. Felix sighs and buries his face in one hand. This is going to be... fun.

Chapter Text

Felix shouldn’t do this.

But it’s just so tempting , they probably won’t even notice he did it-

No. Don’t do it. Don’t give in. This is very wrong, and very bad. You know better than this. How dare you. Dishonour on you. Dishonour on your whole family. Dishonour on your cow-

Felix flashes his hand out and sticks it through Jeongin.

The ghost tenses, and that’s it, Felix is done for, this is the last time he’ll ever see the light of day, he hasn’t even said goodbye to his family-

“That tickled,” Jeongin giggles, turning to face Felix, whose ears are slowly but surely getting hotter by the second.

Felix startles. “Ah! Um.” He gestures uselessly to the air. “There was a. Uh. Fly. Where you were.” Why can he never lie.

Jeongin shakes his head, a smile twitching on his translucent lips. “Nah, I get it. It’s the first time you’ve seen a ectoplasmic form of human consciousness, I don’t blame you for being curious.” He floats to the side of Felix’s bed and settles down, like a normal human would.

Felix furrows his eyebrows. “Wait, so, can you touch things? Like.” He motions towards Jeongin’s butt, which is very clearly on his bed. “You’re sitting down, but I can’t touch you.”

Jeongin sheepishly scratches his head. “Yeah, that tends to happen. Ghost can’t touch solid stuff unless we’re concentrating on not being incorporeal. So, say for example-” Suddenly his form drops, and sinks through the bed. The faint outline of his waist shimmers against the mattress like a moving slideshow screen. “This can happen.”

Out of morbid curiosity, Felix questions. “And if you concentrate now…?”

“Are you already corrupting Jeongin?” a new voice interrupts the conversation.

Felix looks up with a scowl at the intruder. “Says someone like you !” he retorts.

Changbin scoffs, and fully enters the room, arms folded. “Unlike you, I know when to choose my battles. Jeongin is too baby to feel good about corrupting.”

Jeongin perks up with a fierce frown, drifting back up to solidify on the bed once more. “Hey, I’ve been dead for forty years . I’m not baby.”

“Yeah, maybe, but you look like one.” Changbin advances, pushing Jeongin to the side and plonking himself down in his place. “Move, you’re sitting in my spot.”

At this, the ghost raises an eyebrow. “ Your spot, huh? I never knew you had a spot -”

“Shut. Up.” Changbin grits out.

Watching the two of them bicker, Felix feels something well within his heart. For a while, he can’t place it, so he just lets it grow, and grow, until it nearly fills his chest and makes his heart want to burst. He knows what this feeling is now.

Fondness.

Jeongin’s sharp eyes instantly identify Felix’s soft smile. Felix might be seeing things, or… did his smile just turn a fraction more devious?

Without another word, the ghost heaves a mighty shove, this one with solid hands, and Changbin, as per Newton’s Laws of Motion to which even demons are not immune to, tumbles into Felix. Felix wheezes as the breath is knocked out of him. “Oh, jeez , you’re heavy ,” he gasps out.

“Duh, what, you thought these guns were made out of styrofoam?” Changbin grumbles, propping himself up on one shoulder and rolling to Felix's left to glare at the instigator. “I swear on Satan’s throne, you little-”

Changbin’s glare falls on an empty bedspread. Jeongin appears to have made like a spirit and disappeared with the wind. “Damnit!” the demon curses aloud, although he looks like he could say a lot more choice words. Felix can see the murder glinting in Changbin’s eyes, which he thinks is a little uncalled for, it was just a bout of mischief from the childish ghost, after all. 

He rests a hand on Changbin’s arm. He feels his muscles tense under his touch, and quickly yanks his hand back. Why does his face feel so hot? “Don’t be mad at him,” Felix murmurs softly. “Jeongin’s just being a child, y'know playing pranks, getting up to no good. It's not something worth getting angry over.”

"But still, he's a brat ," Changbin huffs. A smile twitches on Felix's lips. 

"Yeah, okay, true that." 

A pillow floats up on its own and hurls itself towards the two. Changbin’s eyes flash red and the pillow flies back to where it came from. It hits the wall.

Felix stares at the pillow as it slides down the wall rather sadly. “Wait, Jeongin can do poltergeist shit? Like, make things float around with his mind and stuff?” He involuntarily shudders. “That’s kinda creepy.”

Changbin huffs. His eyes flash red once more as he makes the pillow rise from its place on the floor and back towards the bed. Felix holds his hands out, wanting something to hug, and he lets out a happy hum as the pillow drops right into his arms. “Some more powerful and cursed ghosts can make things move on their own, they have tons of anger in their spiritual essence and it converts to physical violence and all that good stuff,” Changbin replies. “Jeongin can just do what normal ghosts can do and turn invisible.”

Felix starts eyeing his surroundings warily. “... I don’t think that’s much better.”

Changbin opens his mouth to reply, when suddenly, he stiffens and gets off the bed, heading for the door. Felix pouts briefly, immediately missing the warmth that the demon offered him, but the pout soon dissipated when he realises that maybe Changbin’s actions probably don’t mean the best thing-

Felix rolls off his bed, leaving his pillow on the floor as he pursues Changbin.

By the time Felix skids into the living room, it’s too late.

Minho’s standing tersely by the sofa, glaring knives at the newcomer in the doorway, who looks like he’d rather not be here. Jeongin’s nowhere to be seen, and all of Felix’s roommates look like they got caught with their hand in the cookie jar.

“I promise, the horns coming out of his head are- are cosplay!” Jisung is currently bargaining with Chan. “His eyes aren’t actually on fire, he’s just… high! Like super fucking high. Just the marijuana talking, y’know, people gotta loosen up sometimes!...”

Minho stares at Jisung’s back as he pleads uselessly with the high-alert demon hunter. “Don’t bother with it, human,” he growls, crouching as if he’s going to launch himself straight at Chan. “I can handle a measly hunter.”

“I will not be charged with hosting a fight club in my own goddamn dorm!” Seungmin exclaims.

“First rule of fight club is: you don’t talk about fight club,” Minho retorts.

When Chan spots Changbin walking towards him, he instantly reaches for his messenger bag. “Changbin, what is the meaning of this-”

“It’s not what it seems!” Felix blurts out in Changbin’s place. As offensive as it can be, Chan’s more likely to take his word for it if it comes from his mouth, not Changbin’s. He vaults over the sofa, nearly whacking Hyunjin had he not made a dive for his head at that moment, and reaches Chan, a little breathless. “I can explain.”

“Changbin.” Minho’s voice is filled with repulse. “You’re on friendly terms with a demon hunter ?”

“I would never ,” Changbin replies, clearly affronted. “We’re more… bare acquaintances.”

“I’m hurt,” Chan says, looking as confused as ever.

Felix looks around at the invisible tensions hovering in the atmosphere and realises he’s gonna have to host an intervention… for the second time. Jeesh, can’t people just civilly sit down and come to a peaceful compromise without wanting to claw each other’s throats out?

“Seungminnie, how many tea bags do we have left?” he asks.

“Why does everyone come to me when they need to know what’s in this godforsaken dorm?” Seungmin grumbles. Felix just stares at him. Seungmin heaves a sigh. “Three.”

“Wonderful,” Chan says, catching onto Felix’s meaning like the amazing, sensible person he is. “We can have your invisible undead friend-” a sound that sounds suspiciously like choking comes from the dining table, “-make it while we talk this out.”

Minho visibly bristles, his eyes starting to glow a fierce purple. “I’d sooner tear your sclera out than sit down-”

Chan rolls his eyes. “Of course, I’m only kidding.” 

Felix looks up in horror. Did Chan come here with aggressive intent after all?

Chan gestures to the sofa, where Hyunjin still sits, huddled up in a corner. “I’d like to have a friendly conversation with our duo of intruders.” His eyes sweep the room like a balding middle-aged grade school teacher until they land on Seungmin. “... Sangmin can make the tea instead.”

“ Sangmin -” Jisung snickers, earning him a sharp elbow in his ribcage.

Changbin catches Felix's eye and subtly shakes his head. We need him for the discussion. He could prove useful.

As if on cue, Felix scrambles up. “No, no, it’s okay!” He intercepts Seungmin’s path to the kitchen. “You as our resident brain cell should go talk it out with the grown-ups. I can make the tea, it’s all good,” he looks Seungmin in the eye, “Sangmin.”

“I fucking hate it here,” Seungmin mutters, but walks to the sofa to join Chan.

By the time Felix walks out, precariously balancing piping hot mugs in his hands, Jeongin is sitting sulkily above the sofa, Hyunjin having vacated the sofa to relocate at the dining table with his phone and Jisung nowhere to be found, while Chan and the demons (a catchy name) are conversing… somewhat nicely. 

Chan runs a stressed hand through his hair. “Look, one accidental demon summoning, I can overlook, but if there are several intrusions with no prior summoning -”

“Technically,” Jeongin says crossly, “I summoned myself, and I’m not a demon, so I don’t even count.”

“Well you’d better be counting your blessings, and you’d better be counting me as one,” Chan grumbles. He turns to Changbin. “There’d better be a good reason for this.”

“I’m touched that you’d trust my judgement so much, hunter,” Changbin comments, voice dripping with saccharine sarcasm.

Chan rolls his eyes. “Don’t try and test the limits of my patience, Changbin. I can eviscerate all three of you within minutes if I wanted to.”

“Why is he still talking ?” Minho asks through gritted, slightly pointy teeth.

“Do you know anyone called Kim?” Seungmin, staying true to his title as the Resident Brain Cell, makes the first move in the discussion that's actually productive. Good on you, Seungmin. 

Chan frowns. "Kim? Like, the last name Kim?" His eyebrows furrow in understandable confusion. "You're gonna have to be more specific-" 

"Can't," Changbin cuts in, reclining lazily on the couch like he's still in cat form. "It's that Kim." 

Like that's gonna clear things up any more , Felix thinks, but to his surprise Chan's eyes widen in recognition.

"Wait, that Kim?" Chan echoes in horror. “As in, that one. The one. That-”

“We might as well say his goddamn name at this point,” Minho grumbles, clearly put out.

“Please don’t,” Chan says anxiously.

“Yes, now that we’ve established that it’s that Kim,” Seungmin continues, picking up the slack beautifully. “We have a problem, apparently, which is-”

“Kim’s back!” Jeongin chirps, rising a bit from the couch in his bid to cut to the chase before Seungmin, but he sinks back down at Chan’s baffled expression. “Sorry, I just wanted to be the one to say it. Summoned myself from Hell and everything to say that.”

Felix can’t help but pout at Jeongin’s crestfallen look. He’s just so fucking precious I can’t-

Chan nods. “Ah, so that’s why you appeared.” Confusion clouds his eyes once more. “Why did you have to come all the way here ?”

“That’s what I asked!” Minho huffs.

“Uh.” Jeongin squints suspiciously at Chan, like a first grader who’s been asked if the Joker is Batman’s sidekick. “Because he’s here ? Like here, in this area, here? And Changbin is the nearest to here ? And I had to get Minho’s attention too, no one in Hell listens to ghost gossip because they think eighty percent of it is bullshit, when it’s really not!” The ghost frowns. “Only seventy percent of it is.”

“Don’t tell me you’ve caused me all of this trouble because of a rumour , Jeongin,” Minho snarls. “If this turns out to be some false alarm running through your ectoplasmic circles I am throwing you into the coldest pit I can find once we return.”

“Joke’s on you, I’m from Busan,” Jeongin retorts. “And I swear, it is true. You guys,” he looks pointedly at Minho, “are just too blinded by all your stupid admin work to see what’s going on.” 

“They have admin work in Hell?” Felix flinches hard when Hyunjin’s voice suddenly whispers next to his ear.

“Don’t sneak up on me like that, that shit ain’t funny now!” Felix hisses back, clutching his chest as he recovers from his bout of panic. “And yeah, I mean, this is Hell we’re talking about. Admin work fits perfectly with the whole endless painful torture aesthetic.”

Hyunjin shrugs. “Eh, checks out.” He goes back to fiddling with his phone. 

Meanwhile, at the sofa, Jeongin turns to Seungmin. “There’s been a recent surge in murder cases here, right? Ones that take place in the middle of the night, that the police can’t solve?”

Seungmin frowns in concentration. “Yeah, I was reading an article about the other night, they suspect it’s a serial killer… but why-” His face slackens with realisation. “Oh.” He sits up in his seat. “Wait, you’re telling me that this was-”

“Kim’s doing,” Jeongin confirms solemnly.

“Wait wait wait.” Changbin holds a hand out, in his eyes Felix can tell he’s tired from being so clueless. “And how , exactly, did you manage to infer that from the fact that there are random murders? The police could be right, it could have just been a serial killer-”

Jeongin rolls his eyes. “I can’t believe I have to go through this with you. Okay.” He puts his hands together, like he’s about to do a serious BOI . “What happens when people die?”

Seungmin knits his eyebrows. “Their bodies stop functioning and they start to decompose after twenty-four hours-”

“Their spirits leave their mortal bodies,” Changbin deadpans.

“And where do these spirits go if they don’t go to Heaven?”

“Hell,” Chan says slowly.

Jeongin gestures to himself. “And who can they talk to if they’re in Hell?”

“Azazel’s buttcrack,” Minho mutters. Everyone’s heads turn to stare at him. 

“What?” Minho asks. No response. 

Minho rolls his eyes. “You,” he relents to Jeongin with a dramatic sigh.

Felix decides he’s never complaining about Changbin again.

“Thank you,” Jeongin says, rather all-importantly now that everyone is starting to take him seriously. “So me, being the kind, selfless ghost I am-”

“You stuffed molten lava in my suit jackets,” Minho mutters. “Multiple times. Do you know how hard it is to get igneous rocks out of your seams?”

Jeongin waves his protest away. “Semantics! My kind, generous self talked to the newcomers, and…” he shakes his head. “Boy, they weren’t happy. Some of them had no clue what killed them and most of them demanded to be taken back up the world of the living, which, sucks for them, they didn’t think to enter the forbidden archives to resummon themselves!” He spreads his arms with a winning grin. “In any case, how you die is always the hottest tea in ghost gossip circles, so it started spreading pretty fast that there were some strange details in how they were killed.” His face fell sombre. “Some of those details hit too close to home.”

Changbin’s eyes widen in realisation. “ Oh .”

Minho nods, a strangely glum look on his face. “Oh.”

Chan sighs heavily. “Oh.”

Seungmin looks around the impromptu circle, his cup of tea going cold in his hands. “What ‘oh’?” he demands. 

Chan shrugs. “I dunno about them, but I just realised I have an assignment overdue and I’m probably gonna have to do extra credit again.”

Poor Seungmin pinches the bridge of his nose. “My sincerest condolences.” He turns to everyone else. “Okay, diabolical dudes, what kind of mutual understanding have you guys established? Is it anything that concerns us? Should we know about this?”

The trio of hell creatures exchange oddly cautious looks. “... not really,” Jeongin finally says, as if deciding something. Felix wonders exactly what happened to make them so defensive all of a sudden. It clearly had to do with Jeongin’s past, that much was sure. Maybe Jeongin was his innocent younger brother, caught up in his brother’s evil doings and manipulations until  he suffered a tragic fate at the hands of some misled monster. Maybe he was a child born out of wedlock, cursed to forever live a child of a heartless maniac, death the only escape fathomable to such a horrible life. Maybe-

“Jeongin, what’s your last name?” Felix blurts out before he can help himself.

Jeongin blinks bemusedly at Felix. “Yang. Why?”

Ah. So there go those theories. “Never mind,” Felix mutters.

“In any case, we have two leads now,” Seungmin begins again. “Cults and murder cases. Sounds like the title of a shitty detective novel. Which one should we investigate first?”

“... if I had to pick between a cult and a psychopathic murderer,” Chan states nervously. “I’d go with the cult. That has a marginally larger chance of survival.”

“Fair enough,” Seungmin concedes, before pulling out his laptop. “I can’t believe I’ve contaminated my search history to Google the website of a Satanic cult, but I’ve managed to find it.” He squints. “It’s made using Google Sites.” He turns the laptop screen so that it faces everyone. "On the plus side, there's this huge unglam of Kim. That definitely helps with suspect identification."

Taking up a good portion of the home page, stares the cold, unfeeling gaze of a man sitting stoically in a business suit, with a glare so strong Felix is afraid it might break glass. He can feel shivers running down his spine just from meeting the eyes of the pixelated man. He doesn't want to find out what happens when he meets the real deal. 

"I dunno, he looks pretty professional here," Chan comments. Minho snickers loudly. 

"I said , there is a huge unglam of Kim," Seungmin repeats obstinately. 

At the side, Changbin quietly mutters to himself. Felix perks up at the sound, and apparently he isn't the only one who heard. "Care to share with the rest of the class, Changbin?" Minho asks sweetly, batting his eyelashes at the being beside him. 

The shorter demon stirs, like he's been dragged from a daze. "What? I was just thinking about why that picture looks so familiar… I swear I've seen it before somewhere up here. Definitely after Felix summoned me." 

It takes a moment before it clicks in Felix's head exactly what that means. "In my defence, I don't own an altar of Kim in my room," he says. 

Chan shoots Felix a confused look. "No one said you did?" 

"Changbin had a limited number of places he could go, the contract demands that we always be somewhere near each other," Felix rebuts. "He mostly stayed in my dorm room because I don't have enough of a social life to go anywhere off campus." He frowns thoughtfully at Changbin. " Were there any off-campus places I went to?" 

Changbin's eyebrows are furrowed, clearly deep in thought, and the sight of him actually being serious for once just does something funny in Felix's chest. "I dunno, I mean, there was that warehouse I blew up-" 

"You blew up a warehouse ?" Hyunjin and Seungmin simultaneously exclaim, eyes wide.

Jeongin pouts. “What I would have given to see that .”

“No more warehouses will be blown up,” Chan says firmly, like he’s talking to grade school kids.

Jeongin deflates dejectedly, and Felix is almost tempted to plant dynamite and do it himself just to see the ghost smile again. “Awww.”

“Hold on,” Hyunjin blurts out, turning to Felix. “Wasn’t Changbin the one you made out with at Woojin’s party?”

Jeongin’s torso sinks through the sofa from shock. “Tea!” he yells.

Felix feels his face flush a very deep red. He hastily buries his burning face in his hands. “Can we not talk about that?”

Meanwhile, Minho wiggles his eyebrows at Changbin, who doesn’t seem to be doing that well either, judging from his stony, stifled expression. “Ooh, you were really getting it on up here, huh?”

“I will snap off your horns and shove them up somewhere you will remember,” Changbin snarls, voicing out what Felix wanted to say internally. “But,” he heaves a heavy sigh, channeling weathered old man vibes, which could very well be possible, considering demons are immortal, “he has a good point.”

“I do?” Hyunjin asks.

“He does?” Felix says.

Hyunjin frowns at Felix. “Why do you sound so surprised.”

“How dare you question anything I say,” Changbin snorts, but his voice holds no malice. “Yes, the boy has a point. That… who? Woosan?”

“Woojin,” Chan supplies helpfully.

“Whatever,” Changbin says. “I’m seventy percent sure I saw Kim’s face at that little jamboree he had.”

“What happened to the other thirty percent?” Chan inquires curiously.

“Lost when he was busy sucking face with his boy toy, probably,” Minho snickers. Without warning a cushion flies off the sofa, and onto Minho’s face, practically burying itself in every crevice judging from the demon’s muffled protests. Feeling equally indignant, Felix exchanges glances with Changbin and makes a hitting gesture, silently seeking permission.

A familiar smirk crosses the demon’s lips, one that Felix’s heart does a pleasant flip at. Go for it .

With no hesitation Felix marches up, draws his arm back, and delivers a firm smack to the pillow. He huffs, all anger exerted, and leaps back to his place before the pillow drops to the floor, leaving behind a shell-shocked Minho, eyes wide and mouth agape. The sight doesn’t last long though, as Minho recollects his expression to shoot Changbin a harsh glare. “Hey, just because you’re jealous of my perfect nose doesn’t mean you can punch it in! I want compensation for anything you’ve done to my poor face!”

Felix braces himself, expecting Changbin to truthfully, but heartlessly, push him under the bus. Changbin scoffs and flips the bird at the other demon. “Get an uglier face then. And, for the record, your jokes aren’t funny.”

It takes all of Felix’s willpower to hold back his expression of shock, especially as Minho rises up in chagrin against Changbin. Changbin is taking the wrath that’s supposed to be aimed at Felix… Felix supposes Changbin did play a part in attacking Minho. Still, one would expect a diabolical being to be solely self-serving…

“ Kim !” Seungmin blurts out, effectively startling everyone, except Minho, who rolls his eyes for whatever reason.

“Yes… thanks for the timely reminder that that’s the topic we should be focusing on,” Chan replies, looking bemused.

Seungmin shakes his head eagerly, and his visible excitement is starting to spread to Felix too. “No, Kim ! Woojin’s full name is Kim Woojin !”

Changbin snaps to attention. “That’s it! I knew I saw that fucker somewhere! There was a hugeass portrait somewhere at the back of the house, that was him!”

Felix recalls no such portrait, but as he wracks his mind (very bashfully) for the events of that night… it must have been when Felix had left before Changbin.

“So Kim is a relative of the vice chair of the student council at our university…” Chan murmurs. “... and my classmate.”

Dead silence.

“Your what ?”