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

Bobby and Jinu chillin' outside with Derpy~

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What a day. Hell, what a week. Bobby was doing his best to keep it all together of course, but he had to admit… he might just be reaching the end of his rope here.

Demons being real (and wanting to eat his soul) was one thing. His girls being demon hunters… yeah okay, that tracked. A demon with a soul saving his life not once, but twice… eh, sure. Hell, stabbing a few demons with his new Hon-Knife had even been pretty fun!

But… finding out that Celine had to kill Jia over two decades ago to save Rumi's life… that one, Bobby was struggling to wrap his head around. Especially because he was pretty sure at this point from context clues alone that the Honmoon definitely bound its hunters together on a soul deep level.

Meaning Celine had basically been forced to kill her soulmate just after losing her other soulmate, all to protect the latter's infant daughter. And she'd just… kept going, somehow. That kind of resilience, that kind of fortitude… Bobby could barely even begin to process it.

"Hey. You doing okay? You wanna pet Derpy a little bit, maybe?"

Blinking, Bobby turns to see Jinu over by the massive blue tiger in question. When Rumi had walked into the house mere minutes after Bobby sent that text, he'd asked her how she was there and her answer had been a simple 'Derpy'. So apparently the tiger was a taxi service that could rival helicopters, he supposed.

… He did look rather fluffy. It's just his fangs and claws were also very, very big.

"Is it… safe?"

Jinu, who is currently casually scratching behind the tiger's ear without a care in the world, raises an eyebrow before chuckling.

"Completely safe. C'mon Bobby, would I really save your life just to feed you to my pet tiger?"

… You know what, fair. And he really did look imminently cuddle-worthy. Letting out a resigned sigh, accepting that if he got eaten then he got eaten, Bobby walks over and thrusts his hand into the tiger's side before he can second guess himself.

"Holy shit he's so soft."

Jinu chuckles again as Bobby's other hand comes up to join the first. And then, completely throwing caution to the wind, he all but flings himself into Derpy's side, enjoying the feeling of total and utter fluff across his whole front for a moment.

Only a moment though, because then Derpy suddenly flops. Luckily, the tiger doesn't flop in Bobby's direction or he's pretty sure he would be crushed, but flopping in the other direction still results in Bobby yelping and faceplanting completely into the massive creature's belly.

Hearing Jinu's laughter through the fur covering his ears, Bobby wiggles for a few seconds before finally managing to flop onto his back. This leaves him still laying on Derpy but at least able to breathe and see the sky again.

"You good, Bobby?"

"Never been better Jinu. In fact, this feels amazing… almost as good as the bathhouse."

Jinu chuckles some more and Bobby smirks, eyes steadily becoming lidded as he just sort of sinks into Derpy's thick fur and belly.

"Hey, if you have any more bombshells you want to drop on me, now is the time. I can take 'em so long as I got my emotional support tiger."

He means it as a joke, to be clear. Just a little humor between bros, ya know? Only, Jinu is four hundred years old and clearly doesn't understand modern humor. Or the bro code. Because what Bobby means as a joke, Jinu takes completely seriously.

"… I'm from the future."

Bobby shoots up off of Derpy so fast the goddamn world spins.

"EXCUSE ME?!"

Jinu smiles apologetically and shrugs before looking off into the distance and sighing.

"Yeah. Sorry. That's why I've been doing everything I've been doing. I came back in time and realized I had a chance to make things go way better. So… here we are."

Bobby's mouth opens and closes soundlessly as he tries to process the demon's words. There's just no way… except at this point, who was Bobby to be a skeptic?

"If it helps, Rumi can confirm it. I accidentally gave her memories of the future when I transferred the Rainbow Honmoon to her this morning. That's why her patterns are iridescent now. Just… we haven't exactly had a chance to really sit down and talk everything out yet."

Huh. Right, thinking about it, Rumi's patterns WERE shimmering all the colors of the rainbow now, weren't they? Bobby just hadn't had a chance to really pay attention because he was too worried about Celine and what she'd told him.

The realization hits him then, like a punch to the gut.

"Shit… I died, didn't I?"

Jinu gives him a confused look.

"Huh? What makes you think that?"

Huffing, Bobby flops back onto Derpy's belly again. Any remaining fear of the big fluffy tiger is long gone. The damn thing is obviously more of a bed than an apex predator.

"I mean, you literally saved my life this time around, Jinu. I assume the demons succeeded in replacing me in the future and that's why you knew to rescue me when you did?"

Damn. He can only imagine how bad the future might have gone with him out of the picture. Especially if Celine's catastrophizing from the other night had any basis in reality.

"Oh. No, you didn't die Bobby. Not a single demon went after you. Heck, even when we did have someone impersonate you, we didn't actually kidnap you or anything."

What? Lifting his head, Bobby gives Jinu a confused look.

"We?"

Jinu pales… and then sighs, his shoulders slumping.

"… Yeah Bobby. 'We'. The reason nobody went after you in the other timeline is because the demons had a different plan… a plan that I came up with and orchestrated. A plan that almost worked. I told you before Bobby… I wasn't a good guy without a soul. And I didn't get my soul back until about… three minutes before the Honmoon sent me back in time."

… Oh. Fuck. Then again…

"You said Rumi knows? She remembers the future?"

Jinu quietly nods.

"And yet, she still trusts you enough to bring you here to the Jeju Compound."

The demon's face scrunches up at that.

"That doesn't mean much, Bobby. Rumi is… confused when it comes to me. You can't rely on her judgment in this case."

Bobby raises an eyebrow.

"Can't I? I've been relying on Rumi's judgment for over half a decade now you know, ever since I was hired to manage HUNTR/X. I'm certainly not in charge and Celine has had less and less of a say in things over the years. It's all Rumi at the end of the day. Our fearless leader. Why shouldn't I trust her when it comes to you?"

Growling, looking supremely frustrated, Jinu clenches his hands into fists.

"Because-!"

But before he can say anything more, there's movement from the house and Rumi and her girls come marching out like they're on a mission. Rumi in particular looks to be in what Bobby has always internally deemed 'Alpha Mode'. No more Sad Cat Rumi, this is Leader Rumi through and through.

"Bobby! I need you to contact the Tower and remove every ounce of alcohol from the premise immediately. And also move Celine's designated apartment to the one directly across from yours please. Then, if you could go and help Celine finish packing that would be greatly appreciated. She will be spending an indefinite period of time living at the Tower with us.

Hopping off of Derpy and giving the tiger a departing pat for being a good fluffy bed, Bobby snaps off a salute.

"Ma'am yes ma'am!"

Bobby doesn't bother asking what Rumi and the girls will be doing, he just gets on his phone and starts sending instructions.

"Jinu. You're with us."

Jinu though, has seemingly no sense of self-preservation when it comes to dealing with Leader Rumi.

"For what, exactly?"

Eyes blazing with something even Bobby can't quite describe Rumi just smirks as she chirps out a reply.

"Field Trip."

-x-X-x-

Jinu can't help but be a little… nervous as they leave Bobby and Derpy behind. Rumi has this strange energy to her that sort of reminds him of the first time they'd met on HER terms back in the original timeline. Where she'd jump scared him and then dictated exactly how the plan to defeat Gwi-Ma was going to go.

She marches with that same purpose now, while Zoey and Mira flank him on either side, making Jinu feel a little bit like a prisoner, or maybe like he's being marched to his own execution. He glances at the other two hunters, but beyond the old book tucked under Mira's arm and the smirks she and Zoey give him, he doesn't get anything else from them.

They go behind the house and into what Jinu recognizes as a graveyard. But it's not just a graveyard… no, the seonangdang tree in the center marks this as a shrine and Jinu feels something more than mere air fill his lungs as he steps into this sacred place.

None of them are singing… and yet, Jinu can almost hear a melody on the winds. He can FEEL the power of the Honmoon here like nowhere else. From there, it's not hard to figure out what this is. This… is the final resting place of generations upon generations of hunters.

They finally come to a stop in front of one gravestone in particular, one that Jinu can tell is extremely well cared for and constantly looked after. But then, he can guess why just by reading the name on the stone.

Ryu Mi-yeong

Rumi stops in front of it for a moment, letting out a sigh.

"… Hello, eomma. I miss you, always. And I love you, always. But I realize now… you're not the only one who deserves that title. And I know Celine isn't ready to hear it yet but I hope that I at least have your blessing… to call her eomma one day too."

Jinu blinks. On the one hand, he's extremely happy for Rumi. On the other hand, he can't help but feel like an intruder right now. But when he takes a step back, suddenly Zoey has one of his arms and Mira has the other and they're holding him in place.

And Rumi… Rumi glances back at him with a smirk.

"Oh and this is Jinu. He's a demon, as well as an idiot and a dork. But… I like to think you might approve all the same."

Approve? Approve of what? Jinu doesn't get a chance to ask though, because Rumi seems to be done. Finished, she turns on her heel, massive braid whipping around behind her as she raises an eyebrow at him where he's currently being held in place by her girls.

"You weren't trying to run, were you Jinu?"

Jinu scoffs.

"What? No, of course not. I just felt like… maybe I was intruding."

It's not Rumi who answers him this time, but Zoey.

"Well you weren't!"

And Mira.

"Yeah. After all… your little sister is buried somewhere around here as well, you know."

Jinu goes still at that. He hadn't even thought about it… but Mira is probably right so long as this shrine goes back that far. All the way to the beginning, that is. It certainly seems like it might be old enough and filled with enough stones…

"… Where? Do you… do you know?"

He hates how raspy his voice sounds in the moment. He hates how his eyes burn a little with the hope. At the same time, Jinu watches Mira and Zoey look to Rumi, to their leader. And he sees how the whole 'large and in charge' thing she's been doing since she came out of the house immediately falls apart as she blanches.

"… Uh oh."

Mira snorts in amusement.

"Uh oh? What do you mean, 'uh oh'?"

Zoey tilts her head to the side curiously.

"Rumi… you were the one who said Celine mentioned she had a hunter ancestor. Surely she would have taken you to see their grave, right?"

Rumi squirms, looking extremely caught out all of the sudden.

"I-I mean… maybe she did once, but I would have been just a kid! Most of the time, Celine only had us visit my mother's grave, not anyone else's!"

Then, looking around frantically, Rumi starts to read the stones.

"B-But it's got to be around here somewhere, right? Maybe there's a system or something! We just need to spread out and-!"

"Or we could just follow the bird."

Mira's sardonic tone cuts right through Rumi's panic and all of them turn to where the dancer is currently pointing. Jinu's brow furrows when he sees Sussie on one of the lower branches of the seonangdang tree, staring at them all in an exceptionally unimpressed manner.

"Yes! Mira that's perfect!"

Jinu's confusion only grows as Rumi marches them all over to the tree, Zoey and Mira dragging him along between them. DEFINITELY starting to feel like a prisoner now…

Though he can't dwell on that for long, not when Rumi stops and does a full ninety degree bow to Jinu's pet magpie.

"Sussie! Please show us to your summoner's grave!"

What? Summoner? Jinu opens his mouth to correct Rumi, but before he can Sussie lets out a squawk that sounds suspiciously like a sigh and takes flight. And of course, Rumi races after the damn bird like it's the secret to all her problems. As Jinu is dragged along by her fellow hunters, he tries to talk some sense into all three of them.

"W-Wait! What's going on? Sussie isn't going to know where Ahri's grave is, this is ridic… ulous…"

Except, much to Jinu's stupefaction, Sussie has in fact landed on a specific stone marker. And Derpy is laid out just behind it on his side, having teleported over at some point to sunbathe here. The thing is, the marker isn't… well, marked.

It's definitely old enough to be his sister's to be fair, because from the look of things, centuries of time, wind, and rain have eroded the stone's surface enough to make it unreadable at this point. But there's just no way it could actually be Ahri's stone…

Letting out a sigh, Jinu gives the two animals an amused shake of his head.

"You two…"

Then, he turns to the girls.

"Ladies, I appreciate the effort, but Derpy and Sussie wouldn't know where my sister's grave is anymore than I do. This might be their best guess… or it might just be another of Sussie's pranks."

Except… none of the three hunters look convinced. In fact, if anything they look amused. Mira in particular has this big smirk on her face.

"So. You think you created your pets, don't you?"

Blinking owlishly, Jinu chuckles.

"I mean… I know I created them. I made them almost four hundred years ago at a particularly low point in my early days as a demon. I needed the companionship."

Mira just cocks her head to the side.

"Yeah? Didn't have your soul back then, did ya?"

Narrowing his eyes, Jinu frowns in confusion.

"No? Of course not."

"No connection to the Honmoon either, I assume?"

Gritting his teeth, Jinu shakes his head wordlessly, wondering where she's going with this. Mira just hums… and then pulls the ancient-looking tome from her side.

"So tell me this… how did a soulless demon with no connection to the Honmoon create a pair of animals that are capable of interacting with the Honmoon? How did you, having been a demon for maybe twenty-ish years at most, manage to make pets that could teleport through the Honmoon and traverse it at their leisure?"

Uh… wait, what? Jinu slowly turns to stare at Sussie and Derpy. He hadn't… he'd never…

"Here. This is one of your sister's journals. I've taken the liberty of opening it to the relevant passage."

Mira shoves the book… no, the journal into Jinu's hands and taps one immaculate nail against the part she wants him to read. His eyes travel across the page, devouring the words within. Until finally, he gets to the end.

I'm sorry I could not do more, Jinu.

Jinu is not one for tears, normally. In fact, he hasn't properly cried in centuries. But by the time he reads those words, his eyes are burning and when a splotch of his tears hits the page, he jerks it away, not wanting to cry on it any further and risk ruining the ancient writing within.

Luckily, Mira is there to carefully take it back from him, allowing Jinu to drop to his knees and all but crawl forward to Ahri's gravestone… to her final resting place where Sussie sits atop the stone and Derpy lays stretched out behind it.

His guardian spirits, sent by his little sister almost four hundred years ago. To watch over a hopeless, worthless wretch like him. A broken sob leaves Jinu's lips, his body shaking as the tears fall and fall.

So lost in his grief and gratitude, he barely feels it when arms encircle him from all sides. First Rumi and then, more surprisingly, Zoey and Mira as well.

And for the first time in four hundred years, Jinu finds himself being held.

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A/N: Progress! Maybe?

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

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