Jooheon and Changkyun had been planning their next move when they'd both felt it, a flare of magical power, almost as though it were taunting them.

"Changkyun, I think we should-"

"Already on it," Changkyun interrupted, snapping his fingers and drawing from his own reserve of magic to teleport both himself and Jooheon into the apartment. "Where is-"

The front door burst open and Taehyung stumbled in, his eyes wide and his hair all messed up.

"Taehyung?" Changkyun asked, distracted for a moment before he frowned, snapping his head to the left. "I can't sense Hyungwon's signature...Hyungwon? Wonnie?" he called, entering and exiting Hyungwon's bedroom before checking his own.

Jooheon didn't move, just stared at Taehyung, a dark look in his eyes.

Changkyun returned a few minutes later after having checked the whole house. "Nothing, he's not here," Changkyun said, worry clear in his furrowed brow. He turned to Jooheon. "Do you think that he had something to do with the surge?"

"He's gone," Taehyung said, his legs shaking. After the two had disappeared, he'd stared at the empty patch of grass before running back to the apartment, his steps uneven. He'd almost fallen several times, managing to catch himself for the majority, but he had still ended up with a scraped knee.

"What do you mean?" Changkyun asked, worrying at his lip. "Where is he? He wouldn't have gone out, he knows how dangerous-"

"I asked him to come outside," Taehyung mumbled, looking down.

The apartment was quiet.

"You what?"

"I asked him-"

"You did that once, and maybe that was an honest mistake, but you purposefully went out of our way to endanger Hyungwon?" Changkyun asked, his voice a low growl. "After all you've done."

"I didn't want to!" Taehyung denied, raising both hands to his head and driving his fingers into his skull, trying to amplify his physical pain to match the emotional. "I didn't have a choice! He said-"

"He? He who?" Changkyun asked, his voice going quiet as his eyes turned completely black.

Taehyung stared in horror, unable to move. "H-He was going to hurt Jungkook, I couldn't-"

"He. Who?" Changkyun asked again, his voice once more a growl as he began advancing towards Taehyung. That's when he saw the broken collar in Taehyung's hand, and his hands lit up, clothed in darkness.

"Seungcheol," Taehyung whispered. "He took Hyungwon with him."

Changkyun raised his chin before parting his lips to bare his teeth. "You led Hyungwon to Seungcheol?" he snarled. "You let that bastard take Hyungwon?" He swiped with his right hand toward Taehyung, who flinched, just as Jooheon interrupted.

"Don't touch him," he snapped in a steely tone, looking at Changkyun rather than Taehyung. "You know what will happen, Changkyun."

Changkyun just stood in front of Taehyung, clenching and unclenching his fingers.

"Calm down," Jooheon instructed, and Changkyun whirled on his friend.

"Calm down? Calm down?" The second time, his voice was layer with deeper, guttural tones, and the sound horrified Taehyung, filling him with dread.

"We will figure something out," Jooheon said before glaring at Changkyun. "You're not in your right mind."

Changkyun clenched his fists as though contemplating punching Jooheon before he stormed out of the room, going into Hyungwon's bedroom and slamming the door.

"Thank-" Taehyung began before Jooheon glared at him. His words died in his throat.

"You foolish human," Jooheon hissed, his eyes narrowed to slits. He no longer looked mortal. "You have no idea the damage you have caused."

"I know I-"

"You know nothing."

Changkyun emerged from Hyungwon's bedroom, his eyes and hands returned to normal, although there was a tension in his body that he did not normally possess. He sat down on the couch, not bothering to look over at Taehyung as he addressed him.

"Seungcheol took Hyungwon?"

"Yes," Taehyung answered, wrapping his arms around himself. "He said if I didn't help, he would have-"

"I do not care," Changkyun interrupted coldly in a tone Taehyung had never heard from him before. "About what Seungcheol said to you. I do not care what threats he delivered. I do not care about why you betrayed someone who only ever trusted you completely." Changkyun swallowed, resting his bent elbows on his knees. "I care that Hyungwon is now in the hands of a witch other witches have nightmares of."

"I'm sorry, I just thought that Hyungwon-"

"You do not know Hyungwon!" Changkyun yelled, standing up abruptly and snapping his head to glare at Taehyung. "You speak as if two weeks have taught you anything! You do not know how long it took me to fix Hyungwon, how long it took me to reprogram the broken mess that he used to be. You do not know. And yet you have the gall to speak of him as though-"

Jooheon cut Changkyun off by resting a hand on his shoulder before speaking his own piece. "You've made your standing with the witches quite clear. You don't want us involved in your world, and yet you're more than willing to interrupt and destroy ours."

Taehyung sank against the wall. "I didn't mean to," he whispered softly. "My friend was in danger. How could I just..."

"Hyungwon has had his share of pain," Changkyun said, looking away once more as though he couldn't stand to gaze at Taehyung. "I promised him- I promised him that he'd never have to go back." Changkyun clenched his fists, squeezing his eyes shut before turning back towards Taehyung. "Give it to me."

"What?"

Changkyun nodded toward the object in Taehyung's hands, and he hesitated before holding it out.

Changkyun walked closer and took the collar, being careful not to touch Taehyung's skin, as it disgusted him. He hesitated before fastening the choker around his wrist as a bracelet, tucking in the extra material. "I'll return this to you," he whispered, pressing the silver heart against his lips. "I promise."