Second Chances (KPop Demon Hunters)

A/N: Here's the new Chapter! Which also means the next FIVE chapters are up on my Patreon for early access!

The final big piece of the Sunlight Sisters' downfall is revealed.

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Rumi has to admit, part of her worries that she's putting too much pressure on Celine here. The older woman had just got done having a panic attack a little while ago after all. At the same time though, Rumi's secrets nearly choked the life out of her before Jinu came into the picture. And Celine's secrets are clearly choking the life out of her as well.

She certainly hadn't missed that there was no mention of her father or mother being involved in Jia's death. Jia died after Mi-yeong did, and her father was entirely absent by that point as well. What had happened? More than that, what exactly happened between her father and mother? Rumi had to know. She was pretty sure it was the only way they could all begin healing.

"… Your father did not force himself upon your mother. He did not have to. It was entirely consensual as I understand it."

Rumi's breath hitches as Celine finally speaks up. The older woman won't look her in the eye, but at least she's talking. That has to count for something… right? And now she thinks she knows why Celine is so afraid of her and Jinu getting together. It sounds like history repeated itself if her mom got together with a demon completely of her own volition.

"How did… how did they meet, exactly? What kept my mother from just… killing him on sight like the rest of the demons you all presumably fought?"

That gets a sharp look from Celine before she lets out a rattling sigh.

"You misunderstand, Rumi. Junho was not a demon when we first met him. He was our manager and completely human."

… What. Rumi's eyes widen and even Bobby's jaw drops as Celine delivers that bombshell to the two of them. In response to their stupefaction, Celine just stares down at her hands and lets out a rattling breath.

"I believe Junho was a good man… or at least tried to be. He could have treated us poorly if he wanted to but instead he saw himself as something of a bulwark between us and the label. Things weren't as good back then as we have it today. Sunlight Entertainment didn't exist yet and we were beholden to the company in a way I'm happy to say you and your girls have never been to anyone, not even me."

Rumi straightens up. She knows this part at least… the bad old days. She and the girls had been quick to regale Jinu with tales of how bad other idol groups had it in the modern era, but the truth was, the K-Pop Industry had been even worse once upon a time. Especially without Sunlight Entertainment and HUNTR/X to lead by example.

However, Celine has never talked about the Sunlight Sisters' manager before. And now Rumi knows why.

"We had an adversarial relationship with our label from the very start, of course. They wanted us to eat less and get skinnier but not only would that have been unhealthy even if we were normal idols… we weren't normal idols. Junho didn't know about the demon hunting until later on… perhaps if we'd told him sooner, things wouldn't have ended in tragedy."

Rumi fidgets but bites back her words. Celine is all over the place right now and rambling a little bit, but this isn't the time to be demanding that the older woman 'get to the point'. She's already getting more information about her father out of Celine than she has in her entire life so…

"Even without knowing our true purpose, Junho went to bat for us time and time again. He did everything he could to push back against the label on our behalf. We saw what he did and we appreciated it, all three of us did really. He became a friend to us all… but I suppose he became something more to Mi-yeong."

Right, or else Rumi wouldn't have existed. It seemed that her father and mother had a forbidden romance after all, it was just far more mundane than anything Rumi had ever suspected. Rather than the forbidden romance between a hunter and a demon, it was the forbidden romance between an idol and her manager. The kind of thing that would end careers… but not lives. Or at least, it shouldn't have anyways.

"I don't understand. If my father was just a human… then how did I turn out like this? How did I end up with patterns?"

Celine flinches as Rumi holds up her arms, the glowing iridescent patterns visible under her short-sleeved top. Even now, despite being filled with the Rainbow Honmoon itself, the older woman has a hard time even looking at them.

"… He made a deal with Gwi-Ma. I don't know what the deal was exactly, only that he must have made it sometime before you were conceived. And some of that, some of his deal… must have gotten into you."

Silence falls over the room as Rumi processes that and Celine hesitates. Finally, the retired hunter continues with a grimace.

"I've had a long time to consider what I learned that day… the day your mother died. Not to mention contemplating every day, month, and year that led us to that moment. I think… I believe that Junho must have made his deal with Gwi-Ma in exchange for the ability to protect us better. Truth be told, it was always strange how hard Junho was able to push back against the executives. He probably should have been fired a dozen times over and replaced with someone who would 'manage' us in a way the label wanted… but that never happened."

Letting out a shuddering breath, Celine looks down at her lap again.

"Because we kept him in the dark, Junho didn't know that Gwi-Ma was worse than any executive at the label could ever hope to be. By the time Mi-yeong told him about demons and brought him into the fold, it would have already been too late, I suspect. His deal would have already been made and hearing us talk about how all demons needed to die would have been more than enough for him to keep it a secret from us."

That did make sense. Rumi hated how much sense it made. Admittedly, she knows what the Sunlight Sisters' manager looks like, she just didn't know he was her father all this time. She can picture Junho in her mind's eye even now. A tall man with average features. She pictures him trying to do the best job he can, trying to protect the Sunlight Sisters from the predators lurking in the dark… and not always succeeding.

Comparing him to Bobby wouldn't be remotely fair. Bobby does an amazing job to be clear, but he also does it with the full backing of Sunlight Entertainment, as well as the understanding that he works for Rumi and her girls, they don't work for him. But HUNTR/X's arrangement with their manager is not normal. It's not industry standard, not even in the year 2025.

Rumi sees her father in her mind's eye starting to struggle. Failing her mother and Celine and Jia in small ways… but those small ways build up. They start to weigh on him, heavier and heavier. Until Gwi-Ma, opportunistic parasite that he is, manages to find purchase in Junho's mind. The desperate man starting to hear the voice of the Demon King himself… just like Jinu, four hundred years ago.

Letting out a shaky breath of her own, Rumi bites her lower lip almost hard enough to draw blood. She's shaking a bit, she realizes. Trembling, even. But they aren't done yet. The story isn't over yet. She needs to know how it all ends.

"What happened the day my mother died, Celine?"

Celine shudders, remaining quiet for a moment before speaking.

"Gwi-Ma happened. Everything boiled over, I think. Maybe Junho tried to fight it for as long as he could. Maybe he was struggling for ages and that made it all the worse when Gwi-Ma finally stopped letting him fight back. Your mother… your mother had just given birth to you a few days before and was still weak. Jia and I had only found out about her and Junho's relationship when we found out she was pregnant after it became impossible to hide."

Face crumpling, tears stream down Celine's cheeks.

"Jia was off placating the label. I had left to pick up some supplies. There shouldn't have been any danger though. They were at the Jeju Compound where the Honmoon is the strongest. There was no way that Gwi-Ma could have ripped a hole open to attack while we were away. But then… he didn't have to. He had someone on the inside. When I got back, it was already too late. Mi-yeong was on the floor bleeding and Junho was… transformed and looming over her. I struck without thinking. I killed your father then and there, Rumi. But I was too late to save your mother."

Celine had killed her father. But then… she'd HAD to kill her father, from the sound of things. A man that she'd known, a man Celine had considered a close friend… becoming a demon and mortally wounding the mother of his newborn child. She'd done the only thing she could do, just like with Jia.

"I held Mi-yeong in my arms as she died. She told me Junho didn't want to do it. How even as he'd transformed, his patterns flaring all across his body, he'd looked stricken. She claimed his body wasn't under his control, but his mouth was… and that he begged her to run, begged her to flee and escape from him."

Fresh tears fall down Celine's cheeks as she continues the sordid tale.

"She couldn't though. Even if she had been strong enough to get away from the house, you were in the very next room. Your mother would never abandon you. She knew she had to hold his attention until one of us got back. She had to stay and… and f-fight."

A choked sob explodes from Rumi's throat at that as her own tears finally begin to fall. Celine's arms encircle her instinctively and Rumi presses her face into her eomma her guardian's chest, just trying and failing to process all of it. Her mother, her father… even Jia. It all felt so senseless. Her voice breaks in a quiet wail as she cries out.

"Why? Why did they have to die?"

She's not sure she's even expecting an answer from Celine… but she gets one all the same.

"Gwi-Ma. He saw an opportunity to hurt us, to hurt the Honmoon, and he took it. He got into Junho's ear and turned him just like he always does. And when he saw how weak your mother was, he stopped holding back and threw everything he had into breaking Junho and turning him into a monster."

Celine shudders again and Rumi feels it, given how she's being held by the older woman.

"… Your mother begged me to protect you and keep you safe with her dying breath. Maybe… m-maybe if Jia had been there too, maybe if she could have made the same promise, things would have turned out differently. But she wasn't there. It was just me…"

Pulling her head back even though her own eyes still burn with tears; Rumi makes sure to look Celine directly in the eyes.

"You did a good job, Celine. You kept me safe. You kept your promise. D-Don't ever think you didn't."

For once, Celine doesn't try to argue against herself. Maybe because she's still a little too lost in the past to do so.

"… I used to fear Gwi-Ma would come for you in the early years. I used to be terrified that you might hear his voice, especially when your patterns first showed up. I knew you were a hunter, that the Honmoon should protect you… but I was so afraid that one day you would just be… gone. I think that's why I became so focused on the Golden Honmoon. I needed a solution. I needed a way to keep you out of Gwi-Ma's clutches and I convinced myself that the Golden Honmoon would be your salvation."

Smiling weakly, Celine shakes her head.

"I don't think Gwi-Ma ever even realized what you were, truth be told. I feel like if he'd known, he would have gone after you ten times as hard. In the end, it was all just a plot to destroy the Sunlight Sisters… a plot that ultimately succeeded."

Reaching down, Rumi takes Celine's hands in her own again, gripping them tightly.

"No. His plot failed Celine. It failed because of you. As long as one Sunlight Sister remained, as long as you kept protecting the Honmoon, Gwi-Ma failed. And you did. You kept the world safe all those years. Even with your heart broken in two, even with your soul torn asunder… you kept fighting."

Celine stares at her, wide eyed as Rumi speaks.

"Humanity owes you a debt that can never be repaid. The Rainbow Honmoon, our victory… it's as much yours as it is ours. None of this could have happened if you hadn't held the line. Never forget that."

The older woman can't find the words to respond, so after a moment, she just nods jerkily in response. And Rumi… well, Rumi can't think of a better time to do it. Moving her fingers so she intertwines them with Celine's, Rumi bites her lower lip, looking down at their joined hands for a moment. When she looks up, her eyes blaze with conviction.

"Mi-yeong will always be my mother. But you… you were my mom. I would like it if you would let me call you eomma from now on."

Celine's breath hitches and her face… her face crumples. For a moment, Rumi fears she's overstepped. This whole situation was already a lot and maybe she's finally gone too far. But then, even as fresh tears fall from Celine's eyes, she nods.

"I-I think I'd like that t-too…"

Oh and now Rumi is crying again. But at least they're crying together, holding one another once more. Her and her eomma… her mom. Fınd the newest release on novelꞁire.net

Truthfully, Rumi doesn't know how long they stay like that for. Only that when they finally pull apart, she only just remembers that Bobby is still there with them. He looks like he's not sure whether he should have gone or not but also like he wanted to stay close by in case either of them needed him for anything.

That was who Bobby was. Reliable. Dependable. Always there for you. For a moment, Rumi considers whether she needs to give him the shovel talk or not. This is now her eomma they're talking about after all. But in the end… she realizes that's not necessary. Maybe just a truncated version.

"… I approve, you know."

Both Bobby and Celine freeze at that, immediately catching on to what Rumi is talking about when she makes a point of reaching out with her other hand and grabbing ahold of Bobby. As she squeezes both their hands in her own, Rumi smiles a watery, tear stricken smile.

"I think you two are good for each other. I think you have the potential to make one another happy. Just… promise me you'll communicate okay? We can't hide anymore. Not from ourselves and not from each other. We're all so much better when we're being honest."

Bobby and Celine share a long look at that before both slowly nod.

"You're right, Rumi."

"I… I'll try. Please… hold me accountable."

Rumi just smiles, offering Bobby one of her hands. She's distinctly pleased when he takes it. Everything… everything is going to be okay.

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A/N: No flashback this time. Chapter might be a little too wordy for some people as a result, but I dunno, I just didn't have another flashback in me for some reason. Hope people still liked the reveal this way though!

Feedback is GREATLY appreciated, every comment helps me shape a story like this one!

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