Y/n squared her stance, catching her breath as she faced off against Yujin. They circled each other, moving through quick exchanges of punches, blocks, and kicks. Yujin's movements were sharp and fast, her strikes always targeting Y/n's weak points. Y/n countered, her own attacks calculated but forceful, testing Yujin's defenses. She had definitely improved since the attack.
After a few rounds of physical combat, Y/n allowed a surge of her magic to flow, flames flickering along her hands and casting an orange glow over the training ground. She aimed a swift punch toward Yujin, flames blazing from her fist. But Yujin reacted with startling speed, catching Y/n's wrist mid-swing, forcing her flaming hand down to the side.
"Not bad, but..." Yujin grinned, keeping Y/n's arm pinned. "You'll have to do better than that."
Y/n smirked back, swiftly changing tactics. She wrenched her hand free and jumped back, raising her palm toward Yujin, summoning her flames with the intent to launch a blast. But, to her shock, nothing happened. Her hand remained empty, no heat, no flame, no anything.
"What?" Y/n muttered, glancing at her hand, confused.
Yujin didn't waste the opening. She sidestepped and pressed her hand to Y/n's shoulder, making a mock slicing gesture across Y/n's neck with a sly grin. "Anddd... you're dead," she teased, tapping Y/n's shoulder for good measure.
Y/n groaned, stepping back and looking at her hand again. As if on cue, her flames flickered back to life, as if nothing had happened. Bewildered, she extinguished and reignited them, finding they worked perfectly.
"Uh, what was that?" she muttered, glancing at Yujin with a frown. "It was like... my flame just vanished for no reason."
Yujin crossed her arms, "Maybe you were too focused on the idea of the attack and not on the flame itself. Or maybe..." She raised an eyebrow. "You're so attached to the flame that it only shows up when it wants to."
Y/n rolled her eyes, trying to shake off her unease. "Yeah, right. But seriously... that's never happened before."
"Well," Yujin shrugged, "at least you've got less than a week to work on that before we're in real trouble."
And with that, they started sparring again.
-
From the balcony, the girls leaned on the railing, their attention fully on the sparring match below. Dani and Hyein, both watching Yujin for the first time, truth to be honest, were captivated.
"They're pretty close, aren't they?" Dani mused, noting the way they moved as if they'd done this a hundred times before.
"Yeah, they are," Hanni replied. "Yujin was Y/n's teammate in the Elites. They've been through a lot of mission together."
Hyein leaned forward on the balcony, eyes sparkling with mischief as she watched Y/n and Yujin spar below. With a smirk, she glanced at Minji and Hanni.
"You know," Hyein began slyly, nudging Hanni with her elbow, "if either of you two don't make a move fast, it looks like Yujin might just steal Y/n away! I mean, look at them." She raised an eyebrow, gesturing to Y/n and Yujin exchanging quick, practiced blows. "They've got some serious chemistry down there. Kinda looks like something, right?"
The comment earned a few chuckles, especially from Haerin, who stifled a laugh behind her hand, clearly amused by something the others hadn't caught on to. Minji just laughed it off, entirely unbothered, her eyes glinted with the calm confidence of someone who knew the whole truth.
Hanni, on the other hand, didn't find it as funny. She pouted, casting a thoughtful glance toward Y/n and Yujin sparring so naturally together. "Lucky Yujin..." she muttered, half to herself, half to the others.
Noticing Hanni's expression, Minji's amusement changed into something else.
There was something in the way Hanni's eyes softened, as she watched Y/n and Yujin spar, something that hinted at an emotion Minji wasn't sure she was ready to confront.
A quiet concern crept into Minji's heart as she mulled over the thought. 'What if... Hanni feels the same way about Y/n as I do?' The idea settled uneasily in her mind, and for a brief moment, Minji couldn't help but wonder if the closeness she shared with Y/n was something Hanni also wanted, something Hanni also needed.
But Minji couldn't push it further. Instead, she softened her gaze and tried to brush it off with a casual tone, "Hanni," Minji started "don't worry. Y/n and I... we're good. She's not going anywhere." Casually dropped a slight hint.
She watched Hanni for a second, searching for any hint of doubt or understanding in her eyes. But Hanni simply nodded, though there was a hesitation in her movements, as if she was still processing something. Minji quickly looked away, knowing that right now wasn't the time for a confrontation. She would have to wait for the right moment, the one where they could talk, really talk, about what was really going on in their hearts.
For now, Minji simply focused on the sparring below, trying to distract herself from the uncertainty she was feeling about the relationship between Y/n and Hanni.
-
As they continued sparring, Y/n's focus narrowed as she prepared to launch another flame attack. Her hands heated up, a bright yellow flame sparking to life, but the moment Yujin touched her wrist, directing it upward, the flame sputtered out completely. Bewildered, Y/n blinked down at her hands, trying to summon the flame again, but nothing came. Not even a flicker.
Yujin smirked, clearly enjoying the confusion on Y/n's face, and with a playful shove, she pushed her back a few steps. As soon as Yujin's hand left her, the flame leapt back to life in Y/n's hands, as if it had just been waiting for permission to ignite again.
"Y/n," Yujin snickered, crossing her arms and watching Y/n fumble with her flames. "Seriously? You haven't figured it out yet?"
Y/n huffed, "Figured out what? That my flames have some kind of switch that only you seem to control?" She gestured at her hands. "Do I have an on-off button I didn't know about or something?"
"Oh, come on, it's not that complicated." Yujin leaned in, "I can nullify people's magic when I touch them. You know, like... poof," she mimed her fingers flicking out a candle flame, "no magic. And then when I touch you back" she waved her hand like a magician revealing a trick, "ta-da! Magic's back."
Y/n stared at her, processing this supposed super skill as if Yujin were trying to explain quantum physics. "...Okay, you're gonna have to explain that again. Like, in baby words."
"Fine, baby words. Here we go." She held up her hand, wiggling her fingers with exaggerated drama. "I touch you-" she tapped Y/n's shoulder, "-and your magic goes bye-bye."
"Right," Y/n replied slowly, "So when you touch me... no flame?"
"Exactly!" Yujin said, giving an exaggerated thumbs-up. "Then I touch you again-" she wiggled her fingers again, "-magic's back. Understand, grasshopper?"
"So you can just... turn me off like a light switch?"
"What do you mean turning you off? That's offensive, but yeah, pretty much. And do you forget that I can turn you on "like a light switch" too?" Yujin smirked.
"Psst, Miss, I have a girlfriend watching us here"
Yujin covered her mouth with her hand, "Oops, sorry"
Y/n narrowed her eyes at her own hands. She made a little flame with her fingers, then tapped herself on the shoulder and dramatically whispered, "Poof. No flame. This is insane."
"Come on, you can't tell me you've never seen an ability nullifier before." Yujin couldn't hold back her laughter.
"Well," Y/n shrugged, "It's hard to notice when I'm busy fighting for my life."
"Oh, right, poor little Y/n, can't keep track of all her friends' abilities." Yujin put on an annoying voice, reaching over to pinch Y/n's cheek.
Y/n playfully slapped her hand away, whispering Yujin quietly "Excuse me, Miss, I have a girlfriend over there"
Yujin chuckled, rolling her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, no need to remind me every 5 minutes. I get it. Trust me, I'm very aware."
"Good," she teased, nudging Yujin's shoulder. "Just making sure we're crystal clear."
Yujin raised her hands in surrender, "Understood, Miss 'Taken.' Now let's talk about something else your girlfriend comes out here and thinks I'm up to something suspicious."
Yujin straightened up, "Alright, Y/n, let's talk about the beast," she began.
"Right. Do you think of any plan?"
Yujin took a deep breath. "If our hunch is correct, that this beast is a hybrid between demon and beast, then we're facing a problem that goes beyond brute strength or speed. A hybrid could mean he's got demonic magic to boost his beastly agility. In other words, he's fast, strong, and unpredictable with his powers."
Y/n let out a low whistle. "That's a terrifying combo."
"Exactly," Yujin agreed, "Which means, if I can touch him, even just for a split second, I can nullify his magic. No more demonic boost, he'll just be left with his agility."
Y/n nodded along. "Then we just have to deal with his speed, which will make him way easier to track."
"Right," Yujin continued, "While I'm busy getting close enough to shut down his magic, I'll need you to keep him distracted. Keep him engaged, keep him moving, and force him into a position where I can land a touch. Once his powers are out, we'll have a much better shot."
Y/n clenched her fists, "Got it. I'll be there to draw his focus away from you, set you up for that touch. Just say the word, and I'll be ready."
She reached out, clapping Y/n on the shoulder. "We'll make a good team for this."
Y/n met her gaze, "Together, we'll make this work," she promised. "But before that, can you touch me again, so I can use my powers?"