Chapter Text
Bora stared up at the apartment complex. Red, rusted and looming over her as did every building in Seoul. She took in the fading ivy that crawled up along the brick walls, trying to get as close to the sun as possible. This was apartment complex at least looked nice than four previous ones. Her bag rustled, swinging from her shoulder as a head popped up. Black eyes peered back at her, long folded ears slipped from the sides of the bag. Bora chuckled, tucking the deep navy ears back in and patting her head.
“I should just do it, shouldn’t I?” Bora asked. The sweet bunny just blinked back at her. With a deep exhale, she pushed the button on the intercom.
“Hello?” A voice rang from the intercom in front of her.
“Uh, h-hi.” She stuttered a bit, taking a deep breath. “This is Bora, I called about the apartment?”
“Oh, yeah. I’ll buzz you in.” Just then the lock on the door popped and Bora stepped inside.
She rode the elevator up to the third floor and quickly walked down the hall to the apartment, where she knocked twice before stepping back. The door swung open and on the other side stood a bright smiling girl with bright red hair.
“Hi, Bora, right?” She nodded at the red head, feeling a bit disarmed at the wide smile she was receiving. “I’m Minji, come in.” She moved to the side, allowing for Bora to step into a rather spacious living room. “First things first, I’m a djinn, I hope that’s all right?” Minji smirked at the subtly alarmed look Bora gave her.
“Oh, yeah.” Bora nodded. “I’m a witch and this is my familiar, Siyeon.” She gestured to the bunny curled inside her bag.
“Oh my!” Minji squealed. “You have a familiar, she’s so cute.” She gushed, peering closer into the bag to see the soft navy bunny blink up at her. “Does she always stay a bunny?” Minji asked, fighting the urge to stroke the bunny’s soft looking ears.
“No, she likes to range from small animals. But you’ll probably see her as a human sometimes.” Bora explained.
“Ah, so I’ll be getting two roommates today?” Minji teased.
“I hope that’s okay?” Bora asked, swaying from foot to foot.
“Yeah, but you’ll be paying rent for two. Is that okay?” Minji explained, receiving a nod in return from Bora who had fully expected that. “Great, then I’ll show you the rooms big enough for two beds. Now we only need two more roommates and we can totally afford this apartment.” Minji snorted.
Bora didn’t really know what to say to that, she just smiled in reply. They walked through the living room. A tattered blue rug with a brownish looking couch that seemed frayed at the ends was all that was there for furnishings. To the left was a small kitchen. Just three feet of counter space, a stove and oven, a fridge and a microwave. No dishwasher, but a decent sink. Bora had known it wasn’t the nicest apartment, but finding an affordable place in Seoul was next to impossible. Down the hall was one bathroom that they’d all share and three rooms. The rooms were small.
Minji had already claimed her room. It was the smallest room and that was her argument for it being a single. Bora wasn’t going to argue with her. One of the other rooms was a more manageable size, but wouldn’t fit more than one bed comfortably and it was right next to the bathroom. The other room, next to Minji’s was perhaps the same size and the one that Bora picked, considering it only had one closet. Siyeon wouldn’t need a closet. If and when she decided to be human she would just mooch off of Bora’s clothes.
Bora’s bed was a double and would fit in the room, but would be taking up much of the space. But Bora could deal. She could do this. Siyeon also seemed happy as she hopped about the room. Plus, Minji seemed nice enough.
X X X
Minji was busy on the phone fielding new roommates when Bora’s stuff arrived. They had just filled out all the paperwork yesterday and Bora had transferred her share of the rent. Minji set down the phone after a disappointing conversation with a possible roommate and watched as Bora brought in a few boxes. There was a guy helping her, he looked kind of old. Possibly her dad, Minji decided. Bora and the man dragged in four boxes and two large suit cases. At some point Siyeon, the cute bunny familiar hoped up on the kitchen counter next to Minji. She stroked Siyeon’s ears as Bora and the man brought in the bed frame and then the mattress.
Still leaning against the counter, Siyeon in her arms now, she watched Bora say goodbye to the man with a hug. “That went pretty fast.” She spoke up as Bora turned toward her.
“Yeah, I could go for a nap now.” She sighed. “But I still don’t quite have a bed.”
“Let me help.” Minji offered, setting the navy bunny down on the kitchen floor. “Next week a new possible roommate is coming by.”
“Okay, what’s their name?”
“Wendy.” Minji twitched a bit at this. “She sounded Korean, but I don’t know. Guess we’ll find out.”
Bora just nodded at this. She picked up her mattress and flipped it onto the bed frame from the ground. “Can you help me move it?”
They moved the bed to the center of the room, window to the right and door to the left. Minji helped her make the bed once Bora located the sheets. They laughed as they realized they had the sheets backwards. They were done in no time. Bora collapsed face first into her bed with a loud groan.
“I don’t want to unpack.” She whined.
“Do it later. Come on, let’s go make dinner.” Minji offered instead.
They found Siyeon sitting on the frayed couch, not doing anything but blinking at the wall. “Really?” Bora scooped the bunny up. “You could have helped you know?” She tapped the bunny on her nose. Siyeon merely twitched in response.
“What are we making?” Bora asked, leaning against the counter, setting Siyeon down beside her. “And where are we eating?” She asked after a quick glance around the space, realizing there was no table in sight.
“Hmm, well, I don’t know, but I’m starving so, you need to feed me.” Minji just giggled. “I usually just eat in my room or on the couch. I don’t really care.” She shrugged.
“Huh,” Bora huffed. She riffled through the fridge to discover that there wasn’t much in terms of ingredients. Wasn’t much in terms of anything, actually. “Order out?” She offered. Minji just squealed with delight.
They sat on the tattered rug, food spread out in between them over the vast fading blue tint of the rug. Siyeon was comfortably situated in Bora’s lap stealing bits of food from her plate. Minji was shoveling bites of vegetables and rice in her mouth as quickly as she could swallow. It was comfortably quiet.
“So what does Siyeon eat?”
“Anything, whatever she wants. She usually only really eats while human though.” Bora explained.
“When will I get to see this human form?” Minji’s eyes seemed to sparkle in their crappy lighting.
“Soon, I guess. I don’t really know.” She shrugged in response.
“Do you have any control over Siyeon?” Minji pressed.
“Hmm, not really.” Bora shrugged. “Familiars pick their witches. Siyeon could leave whenever she wants to. Her job is more or less to protect me and enhance my magic. But only if she wants to.” She explained.
“I’ve heard that only really powerful and old witches have familiars.” Minji leaned forward, elbows on the table, hair almost in her food.
“Not necessarily.” Bora looked down at Siyeon feeling a soft smile spread over her lips. “It depends on the familiar. They’re a subtype of demon, so they are pretty powerful creatures. But they can’t often control their magic by themselves. Witches and familiars have a mutually beneficial relationship. We’re like conduits for each other. And so Siyeon was looking for a new witch when she found me. Familiars can be picky about their witches, obviously. The more practiced and experienced the witch is, the more power the familiar will have. But sometimes familiars just like to have companions just as much as anyone else. That’s why Siyeon became my familiar.”
“How long have you guys known each other?” Minji asked.
“Hmm, a long time.” Bora hummed in thought. “I think I was maybe five or six when Siyeon found me caught in an electric storm.”
“Electric storm? How?” Bora chuckled at the vague memory and the astonished look on Minji’s face.
“Well, I think I was throwing a tantrum and before my mom could calm me down sparks and wind started to pick up around me. I guess I freaked out and it got worse. That’s when Siyeon appeared before me. She picked me up and we bonded.” Bora pulled down the collar of her shirt to show Minji the branded hangulof Siyeon’s name under her collarbone. “The electric storm stopped after that.”
“Wow,” Minji gapped at the thick sharp lines under Bora’s collarbone. “That’s kind of cool. So, your power kind of feeds off each other?” Minji asked.
“Yeah, we’ll always be stronger together.” Bora smiled at the thought.
The clean-up was irritating. Minji had eaten a good chunk of food and the left over to go boxes fit in the fridge just fine, but Minji had left Bora to do all the washing. Siyeon just sat on the counter watching Bora huff at the number of dishes Minji had managed to use. There were only two of them, she didn’t know how they dirtied this many dishes.
“You know, I thought you were gonna use magic to clean the dishes?” Minji popped back into the kitchen, giving Bora a curious look.
“Oh,” Bora wanted to smack her head into the counter. She stepped back from the soapy dishes and twisted one of the rings on her finger, a dark blue gem and sliver band. She hummed a jumble of words that didn’t make much sense to Minji and the plates lifted into the air.
The faucet turned, washing the soap off the floating dishes and a rag lifted in the air to dry them. Cabinets flew open as glasses found their places on the shelves. Siyeon squeaked as plate nearly hit her head. Bora quickly snatched her up and the magic seemed to intensify as soap started squirting into the sink and the sponges went to work. Minji took a firm step out of the kitchen as cabinets slammed close.
Bora took hold of her ring again as the last plate found its spot on the shelves. Everything seized. She closed the last open cabinets and turned to Minji who looked a bit pale. “Sometimes my magic has a bit of a mind of its own.” She shrugged, hugging Siyeon to her chest.
Minji was beginning to think that Bora was a bit modest in her magical ability. That Siyeon definitely picked her for more than just companionship. They left to their separate rooms after that.
Bora wasn’t that startled when she felt hands wrap around her and a face bury into her neck. “When are you going to show yourself to Minji?”
“Hmm,” Siyeon hummed, cuddling closer. “That was a cute story you told her.”
“It was true.” Bora huffed.
“Yeah, vaguely.” Siyeon agreed. “You weren’t really throwing a tantrum.”
“Close enough, I don’t really remember anyway.” Bora yawned. “Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.” Siyeon replied, nuzzling into Bora’s back. She didn’t have much use for sleeping, but she did enjoy holding onto Bora while she slept. Something about it felt safe.
X X X
The next day Bora spent her time unpacking. Siyeon lounged on her bed, splayed out with her tail whipping back and forth with every sigh Bora let out. This was the third vial she unpacked that had shattered in the move. She had enough sense to not be transporting any finished potions, but shattered vials were inconvenient no matter what. Whether being filled with ingredients or not. Now Bora had to go buy at least another new set.
Siyeon’s ears twitched as footsteps sounded outside their door. Minji knocked quickly before sticking her head in. “Bora!” She giggled, getting the witch’s attention.
“Hum?” She replied, setting the vials – that hadn’t broken in the move – back into their holster.
“I’m going shopping, wanna come?” She asked, fixing her gaze on the navy cat residing on the bed.
“I don’t really need anything at the moment.” Bora murmured, finally turning to face the red headed djinn.
“It’s food shopping, I figured you might want to pick out some stuff? Some snacks?” Minji tried, still studying the navy colored cat whose tail was whipping back and forth angrily.
“Oh, do you think there is an herb section?” Bora asked, standing up with a few rows of vials in her hands now.
“Probably,” She shrugged. “Probably an entire store. We could google it?” She suggested.
“Okay,” Bora agreed.
“Is Siyeon coming along?” Minji asked, her gaze sliding back to the navy cat. “I don’t think they’ll let us bring her inside?”
Siyeon let out a hiss before promptly jumping down and sliding under the bed. “Hmm, no I guess not.” Bora said as she set her vials down on a clear surface. “Can I keep my herbs in the kitchen?”
“As long as they’re not gonna kill me, sure.” Minji agreed.
“I don’t make anything that dangerous.” Bora huffed. “Bye Siyeon, be back soon.”
“Just label your stuff, okay?” She said as they headed out. Bora nodded in agreement. “So I meant to ask, can you only do magic with your rings?” Minji asked now that they were out on the street.
“Depends,” Bora started. “Magic is hard to control. It courses through my blood and is in every fiber of my being. I am magic. Things like rings, wands, brooms and that type of stuff just helps to channel the magic. Unexperienced witches have trouble controlling the direction and intensity of their magic. Familiars are really good for controlling the magic. I haven’t had a magical outburst since I bonded with Siyeon. I mostly use the rings as an on and off button for my magic. Other objects can be used of course. Lots of witches used to use sticks, easily accessible and what not to channel their magic through a single point. That’s how wands were created. I could snap my fingers and make it rain right now, but I’d prefer to stick with the rings, it’s like turning on and off a faucet. Sorry I’m rambling.” Bora chuckled.
“No it’s fine, I asked. It’s really interesting. I haven’t learned much about witches, honestly. Do you have a wand? What effect does Siyeon exactly have on your magic?” Minji asks, steering the conversation in the direction she wants. Something about magical outburst hit a nerve with the djinn.
“I don’t have a wand; I just stick to the rings.” Bora explained. “It’s a little complicated. Depending on the magic level a witch has, they could have trouble containing their and influxes of emotion can obviously trigger some expression of their magic. So, bonding with Siyeon has bonded my magic to her. It can’t just burst from me anymore. Siyeon has to be present and willing to lend me the power now, even though it’s my power. I guess we share it now.” Bora continued to explain as they entered the market. “A downside to the bonding is that I’m never going to be at full power by myself. I can do simple stuff without Siyeon, but not much more. An upside however is that I’m even more powerful than before because I also draw from Siyeon. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship.” Bora shrugged, as if that explained everything.
Minji had many questions, none with answers she was looking forward to hearing. She grabbed a basket and handed it to Bora before grabbing a basket for herself.
“How does your wish granting work?” Bora asked as they grabbed various items off the shelves. Bora grabbed a few things she knew Siyeon would like.
“Ya know, someone wishes for something and I grant it. However I want to.” Minji shrugged.
“Hmm,” Bora hummed even though that wasn’t much as an answer. If anything, her preconceived notions of djinn were triggered by that statement.
“So on Tuesday, Wendy will be coming to check out the apartment. On Friday, Seulgi we’ll be coming by. Can you be here for that?” Minji asked, switching topics effortlessly.
“Yeah, that’s not a problem. Who is Seulgi? I only remember Wendy.” Bora asked.
“A girl I talked to this morning. Her and Wendy are the least disappointing roommate options so far. We’ll see how it goes.” Minji shrugged off, disappearing down an aisle. “What do you do for work?” She asked once Bora caught up to her.
“Make and sell potions.” Bora said as she pulled a few more things off the shelf.
“Oh, like for other witches? They buy that?”
“Yeah, it was my specialty in college. It’s the same as buying premade food at a market.” Bora gestured to the already seasoned and cooked chicken in front of them. “Witches can make their own potions, just like you and I can cook our own chicken. But an expert does it better. We’re less likely to poison ourselves. That goes for both the chicken and potions.” Bora chuckled.
“Makes sense.” Minji nodded. “Can other creatures buy them?”
“Yeah, but there is a certain expert level to some potions. They have to have a license to purchase some types. Generally, those are only sold to witches. But yeah, anyone can buy a potion or two. Hair serums and whatnot. Easy stuff that most witches could probably whip up if they had taken a herbology class or something. I’ve sold stuff to humans too.” She explains. “What’s your job?”
“Nothing fun.” Minji frowned at that. “Just a receptionist. I answer phones.”
“Oh,” Bora didn’t have anything to say to that. Minji didn’t seem particularly pleased by her current working status. But they were soon distracted as they entered an aisle dedicated to herbs. The herbologist in Bora jumped out and she soon became lost in picking the right herbs for her future projects and gathering seeds to start her own private herb collection.
Minji wandered off down a different aisle to pick up some cleaning supplies. A fond smile tickling at the corner of her lips. Bora was kind of adorable.