Chapter Text
Rumi just wanted to relax.
It’s been a long week, what with Golden releasing and her voice going to crap and her patterns spreading. And honestly, she just really wanted to take a nap.
So that’s exactly what she intended to do.
Mira and Zoey had gone out to dine and shop (they had only so many hours of relaxation before they were back at it yet again with interviews and photoshoots and the typical chaos that idol life brought), so Rumi decided to use her ailing voice as an excuse to stay home and veg all day.
She had her fuzzy socks and oversized sweater on, and her new favorite kdrama was already queued up on the living room big screen.
Now all she needed were some snacks.
Hotteok alone wouldn’t cut it, so she made some hot chocolate and popcorn. And a cup of ramyeon. And some boba tea. And she just had to have a couple dozen slices of cucumber. And a little bowl of rice. And some icecream. But only a little.
She cuddled up on the couch with her favorite fleece blankie, food piled high on the coffee table. Blissfully alone.
All and all, the day was shaping up to be a great one.
She was midway through her light snack when she heard a familiar chuffing sound. She smiled, rolling her eyes playfully as she moved to open the balcony door where her new animal friend was sure to be.
She couldn’t be too angry that the big blue tiger had interrupted her day of relaxation. If anything, he’d add to it by serving as an extra plush pillow (if he was in the mood to snuggle, of course).
And there was a small part of her that hoped he was there to pass along a note from a certain someone.
“Hey there buddy,” she cooed, smiling wide at the tiger’s ridiculous eyeballs. He purred as she scratched beneath his chin. “How are you doing my darling boy?”
“Could be better,” came a familiar voice.
"AHHHHH!" Rumi jumped back with a terrified scream, her heart pounding loudly in her chest. Her fear was quickly replaced with confusion as she stared at the mystical cat, trying to figure out how it was speaking with Jinu’s voice. Was this a new method of communication the demon was trying out?
“Jinu…?” She tried. She had half a mind to pry the tiger’s mouth open to check if there was a sound device sitting on his tongue.
“Here,” the voice came again, oddly soft.
“What—“
“Down here.”
Rumi peered down where she could hear the voice originating, and found her brain short circuiting. Because laying on the nape of the tiger’s neck, nearly buried beneath the downy blue fur, was a teeny tiny Jinu doll.
“What.” Was all she could manage to say. But despite all the furious blinking she was currently doing, the tiny Jinu remained. And it looked immaculate. It had the same infuriatingly perfect milky skin that Jinu did, the same deep brown eyes. Its jaw was chiseled and it wore the same casual outfit he’d normally wear around her. She was especially impressed by its tiny laced shoes. They weren’t even plastic, a true feat of craftsmanship considering the doll was only a couple inches larger than the span of her hand. It was a perfect replica of her demon rival turned acquaintance. Hell, it even had rooted hair. A collector's item, clearly.
“Wow, you look so real,” she commented, reaching her hand down to inspect the doll.
“Maybe because I am real,” the doll said.
“AHHHH!” Rumi jumped another several feet in the air, holding her hands against her chest to keep her heart from bursting out of it. She blinked furiously again, just for good measure, but nothing she did cleared away the visual of the doll rolling its eyes in exasperation.
“I know. Crazy stuff, huh?” It said, mouth moving perfectly in sync with its voice.
She looked closer, noticing the finer details she’d somehow missed before. Most notably, the steady rising and falling of its chest.
“Oh my gosh,” she breathed. “Jinu?”
“The one and only,” he flashed a tired smile.
“But how— why—“
“Honestly I’m surprised this is coming as such a shock to you. We teleport and make hearts out of thin air. Is it such a reach that we can shrink ourselves too?”
“But… but you’re so small!” she exclaimed, and suddenly she couldn’t stop herself from smiling, because little Jinu was so adorable!
“Yeah, well, I wouldn’t have come all the way out to see you if I wasn’t stuck this size,” he grumbled.
“You’re stuck?” She couldn’t help the giggle that erupted from her mouth.
“Yeah.” He huffed, looking so very angry as his miniature brows furrowed. It was darling. “Gwi-Ma has quite a tendency for humiliating punishments. Keeping me shrunken down seems to be one of his new favorites.”
“What did you do?” she asked conspiratorially, as if she was sharing in some sort of after-school gossip with the girls and not a literal tiny demon boy.
“Nothing,” he mumbled evasively as he settled himself further into the blue fur he was resting in. “Just… I’m stuck this way for awhile and I… I kinda… need your help.”
“My help with what?” She laughed, folding her arms across her chest. “Un-shrinking you?”
“No,” something morphed in his expression. “I… I can’t really move.”
Rumi’s smile dropped. “Why not?”
He shifted restlessly where he lay. “I kinda got into a fight after Gwi-Ma banished me back to the human world, and I might’ve gotten myself hurt a little.”
Alarm jolted through Rumi for a split second before she shifted into action mode. No wonder Jinu was laying so stiffly. It was almost as if the very idea of moving a muscle pained him. “Where are you hurt?” Her hands fluttered above him, but she had no clue how to handle a wounded doll-sized demon.
“Kinda all over,” he admitted with a wince. He tried to sit up on his elbows only to fall back against the tiger’s pelt with a hiss. “But mostly this area.” He motioned vaguely to his torso.
“Okay, okay,” Rumi muttered to herself. “Just... let me just grab a few things. Stay right there.”
“Will do,” he complied. Not like he had much of a choice anyways.
Rumi hustled to the kitchen, rifling through drawers and cabinets to find the first aid kit. Theirs was particularly loaded, and had everything they could ever possibly need for non life-threatening injuries. She spread a plush dishtowel out on the countertop so Jinu would have a place to sit. After a moment’s consideration, she grabbed another one, rolling it up so he’d have some sort of back support.
Another giggle unwillingly left her at the absurdity of the situation.
When she returned to Jinu and the tiger out on the balcony, it looked like the demon had fallen asleep. “Jinu?” she called anxiously, reaching her hands out in trepidation.
“Still alive,” he muttered, peaking an eye open. He looked exceptionally pale.
She twisted her hands in front of herself. “So, how injured are you exactly?“
A beat passed. “I’ve had worse.”
“Can I move you?”
“Yeah,” he sat up on his elbows so she’d have better access. His arms were shaking.
She lowered her hands down, planning to loop her fingers beneath him as carefully as she could.
He flinched when her thumb grazed his side. ”Not there please!”
She abruptly pulled her hands back. “Sorry! I’m so sorry. How, where can I…?” She prodded him again and he yelped. “I barely touched you!”
“Yeah, but you’re like a thousand times my size!” He complained, scooting away from her massive looming fingers. He held his hand protectively over his side. “I think—I think I might’ve broken something.”
That wasn’t good.
“Okay,” she breathed, trying hard to reign in her emotions. “Okay. Let’s just get you over to the counter to see what we’re dealing with. Can you handle that?”
He nodded, sitting up again. Derpy held himself impressively still.
Rumi gently lifted Jinu into her hands, cupping him in her palms. Her fingers hovered like a giant cage around him, casting looming shadows over him.
“You good?” she asked when he squeezed his eyes shut at the movement.
He nodded jerkily, curling in on himself slightly.
It felt like she was holding a little bird. He was so light, and his ribs felt like toothpicks beneath his skin. She could feel his heart beating like a tiny drum against her palm. She had to keep herself from making a sound of adoration as she quickly carried him over to the kitchen island. He let out the breath he’d been holding as she set him against the rolled up towel. His little chest rose and fell a bit too rapidly for her liking.
“Let’s see what the damage is,” she motioned to his hoodie and he nodded, trying and failing to pull it over his head. She swatted his hands away with her index finger, maybe a little too hard (she was finding it difficult to gauge her own strength against his), and tugged on the fabric. “Arms up,” she ordered.
He tried to comply, but was only able to raise his limbs halfway. She carefully shimmied the hoodie up his back, nearly lifting him off his rear when it caught on his elbows. He let out a long-suffering groan once the offending article was finally off of him.
She pursed her lips at what she found underneath. There was a large mottling of bruises over his collarbone, weaving down to his ribs. Like some sort of blunt force trauma. She pressed her finger carefully against the skin, eliciting a pained moan from the demon. His little ribs shifted dangerously with her touch. "You definitely have some broken ribs," she murmured apologetically.
"I figured," he quipped.
But Rumi was already onto the next, trying to figure out just what it was that she was looking at. Because sitting above the nasty bruising was some sort of… pink binding? It was wrapped across the demon’s stomach almost all the way around to his back. The edges of it were bunched up, like he’d struggled to smooth it out in his haste to get it on. It was covered in smiling cartoon watermelons. “Jinu,” she said lowly.
“Yeah?” he looked up at her innocently through dark lashes.
“Is that a bandaid.”
“Maybe.”
“Are you an idiot.”
“How do you mean.”
“Why on EARTH would you do that to yourself?!”
He had the audacity to look offended. “Do what— I was bleeding! I needed something—“
“Do you realize that this is gonna hurt like hell to get off?”
He blinked, looking down at the absolutely GIANT bandaid spanning his torso. “Oh,” he said, voice small.
Rumi pinched the bridge of her nose. “Do you think you’re still bleeding under there?”
“Uh, probably not. Hopefully.” He picked absently at one of the edges of the bandaid.
Rumi sighed. “Alright. Let’s just—“ she groaned in exasperation, fighting the urge to rip her hair out.
“I’m sorry,” Jinu said, looking too much like a kicked puppy. His eyes were glistening like dewdrops. Her own eyes watered at the cuteness of it all, and she found she couldn’t stay angry at him for long.
Even though she still thought he was a complete imbecile.
“No, no, it’s okay,” she said, forcing a smile. “You’re the one I’m worried about.”
“It’s fine,” he shrugged. “It can’t be all that bad to get off, right?”
That’s right. He was a 400 year old immortal demon. He’d probably never used a bandaid his entire life.
“Nope, not bad at all!” she chirped, trying to keep the tension off of her face.
He lifted his arms to give her better access to his back where the ends of the bandaid nearly met. She pinched the edge, praying to any higher power that would listen that she could get it off in one go.
“Ready?” she asked, hoping to herself he’d say no so she wouldn’t have to do this to him.
“Yep,” he popped the ‘p.’ Oh, he was completely clueless.
“One… two…” and she yanked the bandaid off. Or at least half of it.
But she couldn’t dwell on it for long because Jinu let out an ear-splitting scream as the adhesive ripped across his skin. She was surprised his little lungs had it in them to let out a sound so loud. He pounded his tiny fists against the towel as pain-induced tears streamed down his face.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” she cried. She tried pressing her fingers against the sensitive skin to quell the sting a bit. He recoiled, looking betrayed.
“What the hell was that?!” he grit out shakily. “You said it wouldn’t be that bad and that was SO bad!”
“I’m sorry,” she repeated again. His heart was thundering beneath the pads of her fingers. She gently pulled back the loose part of the bandaid, revealing two long scratches across his torso. They were still steadily weeping red blood. She inhaled sharply, eyes wide. “How did this happen?!”
Jinu averted his eyes, still trying to regain his breath. “Gwi-Ma dropped me in front of some cats. Took my ability to teleport away.”
Horror rose in Rumi’s throat at the revelation. She fought hard not to imagine tiny Jinu fighting for his life against massive felines, batting their paws and claws at him as he fought desperately to get away on legs much too small.
But Jinu didn’t look horrified about it like she felt. He looked… embarrassed. “Luckily Derpy managed to show up just in time,” he smiled as the blue tiger lumbered over. He looked ready to gift Jinu a slobbery tongue bath, but the demon held his hand out in warning.
“I’m so sorry, Jinu,” Rumi whispered. “That’s awful.”
Jinu shrugged. “I’m alright.” He looked back down at his belly, finally noticing the bandaid still hanging on. He let his head thud roughly against the folded towel in defeat. “Ah, excellent.”
“We can wait a few minutes before trying again, if you want,” Rumi offered.
“Nah, it’s alright,” Jinu smiled. “Let’s just get it over with.”
“You sure?” His tears still hadn’t even dried from the first attempt.
He nodded resolutely, clenching his jaw and squeezing his eyes shut. “Just do it.”
And Rumi ripped the bandaid clean off. But this time Jinu didn’t make a single noise besides the sharp exhale he let out of his nose. As she held her fingers against his reddened side to ease the pain, she began to worry he wasn’t even breathing.
“Jinu?”
“Mmmmhmmm,” he managed, eyes still screwed shut.
“You still with me?”
“Mmmmmm. Yes,” he said, squinting up at her. His jaw was locked so tight she wondered if his teeth would crack under the pressure.
“Good,” she breathed. She tore open a packet of gauze, pressing it to the wound over his stomach. The edges looked a little too inflamed for her liking. But Jinu didn’t make a noise as he let her staunch the blood flow. “Are these scratches from house cats by chance?”
“No, I’m pretty sure they were strays. It happened outside in the city somewhere.”
Dammit.
She searched through the kit for antibiotic cream. “Cat scratches are filthy, so we gotta make sure it doesn’t get infected” she said, pulling the cream out and setting it to the side. She grabbed a clean cloth and wet it under the faucet. He winced when she brought it to his abdomen, washing the tacky blood away.
She worked quietly for a while until the blood began to clot. She unscrewed the tub of ointment and put the slightest amount on the tip of her finger. A low groan escaped Jinu’s throat as she gently spread it over the cuts.
“I’m sorry,” she murmured, trying hard to concentrate because his body was so small and it was so hard to tell if she was coating the wound too much or too little.
“It’s fine,” he wheezed. “My fault for picking a fight with a cat.”
She laughed, causing him to laugh too, his chest rising with every burst of sound beneath her fingers. He reached up with tiny hands to grab her index finger, holding it and looking at her graciously. “Thank you for helping me, Rumi.”
The sudden thought occurred to her that she could crush him right now, if she wanted to. It’d be so easy. He was so fragile, so small. His bones would cave in easily under the pressure of her fist.
Celine would’ve definitely encouraged it.
Her eyes widened at the horrific intrusive thought.
Cut you up and lose control and rip out your heart. She hated those lyrics now more than she ever had.
Something swelled within her then that she couldn’t contain. A strange sort of protectiveness that she’d never imagine she’d be able to feel for a demon. Suddenly she had the desperate desire to scoop Jinu up into her hands and hold him close, bottle him up somewhere safe, where Gwi-Ma and Celine and her friends could never find him. He was far too vulnerable to be left like this. She couldn't leave him without her protection.
But instead, she reached out to pat him gently on the head. “Of course,” she grinned. She cleaned off her hands and wrapped a thin gauze around his torso, making sure not to wind it too tight. It was difficult work, maneuvering around Jinu’s tiny body. Her hands felt too big, too clumsy to be treating someone so small. Luckily he was compliant with her requests, moving his arms out of the way and keeping still. She taped the edges of the gauze smooth with a satisfied smile. “Anywhere else in need of treatment? Please don’t tell me you have another bandaid hidden somewhere.”
“No more bandaids,” he chuckled. “Just wounded pride.”
She smiled, holding out her finger for him to use as an anchor to stand. He wavered on wobbly legs, and she steadied him with her free hand pressed firmly against his back.
“Thanks,” he said again, looking strangely shy. A faint blush rose up his neck.
“Don’t mention it,” she assured. She looked out at the afternoon shadows filling the room. Mira and Zoey still wouldn’t be home for awhile. “How long do you think until you’re normal sized again?”
He held a hand up, counting something on his fingers. “Uh, like twelve, thirteen hours? Maybe?”
“Thirteen hours?” she gawked. “Why so long?”
“Usually Gwi-Ma’s spells wear off after a day, so I’m guessing that’s all the time left until I’m back to normal.”
Rumi’s mouth twisted in thought. “Okay. We can work with that,” she said. She held out her hand to Jinu, who cautiously stepped on. “We have awhile until the girls are back, so… you wanna hang out here for awhile?”
“You mean, you want me?” he stuttered. “I mean, you want me to stay? Here? With you?”
“Of course!” she exclaimed. “I can’t just leave you out on the streets to roam. You’ll get stepped on in like, 0.2 seconds. Or carried off by a hawk.”
“That would suck,” he admitted. Then a smirk grew on his face, smarmy and so like the Jinu she knew. “Do I get to stay the night?” He quirked his eyebrows.
“I don’t have to accommodate you, you know,” she warned, contemplating dropping him (carefully) to the floor. But there was no real heat behind her words.
“Alright, sorry.” He held up his hands as the shyness returned. “But I do need somewhere to stay tonight. If that’s okay.” The words rushed out of him quickly in his nervousness.
Rumi worried her lip a little at the thought. If Mira and Zoey found out, they’d kill Jinu on the spot. But he was so teeny, and probably very easy to hide if it came down to it…
He gave her the slightest of pouts, eyes sparkling like glittering stars.
Curse him for manipulating her with his cuteness.
“Oh, alright,” she relented.
He grinned.
She walked them over to the couch, setting Jinu down on the cushions and plopping herself down next to him. She reached for the popcorn, stuffing a fistful into her mouth. She glanced down at Jinu who was eyeing the yellow kernels wistfully. She selected a particularly large piece and handed it to him. It was nearly the size of his head. He took a happy chomp out of it, tiny chewing noises coming from his mouth as he ate.
She reached for the remote, which was also nearly the size of her demon companion, and clicked the TV on. The sound of some basic drama played in the background, but Rumi couldn’t really digest any of it. Because Jinu was sitting next to her, nearly microscopic against the massive cream couch, wiggling his feet and munching away at a single popcorn that was much too big for him.
She frowned at the bare skin of his upper torso. The white bandages were already beginning to spot with red. It was clear to her that having him put his shirt back on would cause too much strain on his aching body.
“Are you cold?” she asked.
He glanced up at her between bites. “A little,” he said, voice garbled behind the popcorn.
“Come here,” she offered, holding her hand out. He scrambled gingerly to his feet to stand on her hand, holding onto her thumb as balance as she brought him up to her shoulder. She kept her hand close to steady him so he wouldn’t fall, and he quickly sat himself down.
She tried to ignore the fact that his little bum was sitting on her shoulder.
She brought the fleece blanket up to her chin, allowing Jinu to pull it around himself so she didn’t accidentally suffocate him with the equivalent of five tons of blanket. He shuffled around for a minute, sending tickles up her neck.
“Could you settle it down already?” she teased as he scooted around to find a better position. He finally settled close to her neck, taking another miniature bite out of his popcorn. “Comfortable?”
“Very,” he replied, but his eyes were glued to the TV. It must’ve looked like the largest theater screen in the world to him.
She let the sound of the show drone on as background noise, unable to fully focus. Her mind kept drifting to her tiny charge.
What was she going to do? Not about the shrunken demon problem, but about the Idol Awards. Her growing patterns. Gwi-Ma.
Would Jinu finally agree to help her?
She hoped so. Because with every passing day, every passing minute, she found herself caring for him more and more.
And if the Golden Honmoon was truly everything Celine made it out to be, then maybe, just maybe, it’d be willing to save Jinu too. If it could make an exception for her, a tainted half-demon, it could make an exception for a harmless demon boy who only wanted to be free.
Only, there was a part of Rumi that knew that Jinu wasn’t harmless. Not even a little. He’d lured thousands of their fans away. Paved the way for their souls to be stolen. Tore ragged fissures into the Honmoon, allowing hundreds of demons to spill out. Jinu wasn’t some innocent bystander, as much as Rumi wanted to believe he was.
But it was so difficult to see him as the monstrous demon Gwi-Ma had made him to be. Especially when he was nestled so cozily against her neck.
After awhile, she felt his body shift slightly. She tensed for a moment when his head rested close to her jawline. She peered down to look at his face, only to find him fast asleep, mouth parted slightly.
She smiled, pulling the blanket higher over his shoulders and holding it against him. She felt his chest rise and fall gently against her palm, small puffs of air ghosting against her skin. She left her hand against him as he slept. She hoped it shielded him from the voices, even just a little.