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

Jinu has been in worse binds than this lol.

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Well, this was awkward. As Jinu finds himself kneeling on the floor of HUNTR/X's penthouse, their mentor looms over him with a slightly manic and entirely smug smirk on her face. Rumi, meanwhile, has moved over to Zoey and Mira to keep them from doing anything… unwise.

Rationally, Jinu understands why Rumi isn't standing up for him even if it does hurt a little bit. On the other hand…

"What the hell Celine?! He was cooperating!"

Bobby isn't as willing to say nothing in the face of perceived injustice. The stout manager steps forward angrily, his hands curled into fists at his side. Celine barely even spares him a glance. She only has eyes for Jinu even as she speaks in what she probably thinks is a level tone.

"He was manipulating us, Bobby. It's what the more intelligent demons like this one do. They aim to exploit your weaknesses and test the bonds of those closest to you. That's how they get to you… that's how Gwi-Ma gets to you."

You know, he really hadn't expected the Last Sunlight Sister to be so… hopped up on stimulants. Maybe he'd just caught her at a bad time, but Jinu hadn't been lying when he said he'd heard many, many stories of Celine over the years. She was nothing less than Death Incarnate down in the demon realm. So dangerous that some demons actually preferred HUNTR/X's tenure better compared to when it was just Celine running around.

Right now though? She's clearly drugged herself to the gills and avoided sleeping for far too long. It's making her sloppy. Jinu can use that.

Before Bobby can say anything else, Jinu pipes up, cutting off the other man with a simple smile and nod.

"It's alright Bobby. Take a step back, I'm fine."

Funnily enough, it's even true. Celine's little threat about being able to send him back to the demon realm now that she has him locked down like this… well, it WOULD be scary all things considered if it wasn't for one simple problem. She clearly didn't know what she was dealing with.

Even now, Jinu can feel the Honmoon within him reacting to the Honmoon enclosing him. And even if they aren't exactly the same… like recognizes like. More than that, Jinu has his soul… and neither the original Honmoon nor the Rainbow Honmoon is designed to harm or restrain anything or anyone with their own soul.

Technically, if he wanted to, he could rise to his feet and step out of this trap right now. He wouldn't even have to damage the original Honmoon to do it. It would be as simple as shedding a blanket. But given that even being held by the Honmoon felt like little more than being hugged by said blanket, Jinu decides to bide his time and let Celine dig herself a deeper hole. So long as she thinks she has the upper hand, she might be willing to do some of his work for him, after all.

Bobby still doesn't look too sure, so Jinu just smiles more confidently, gesturing with his head for Bobby to step back. Of course, Celine doesn't like that and her fingers are grasping his jaw a moment later, forcing him to turn back to her.

"Don't talk to him. You talk to me, demon. Tell me what you've done to the Honmoon. Who exactly are you working for?"

Judging by the way Rumi and her girls all stiffen at that, the last question wasn't something any of them were expecting from Celine. Hm, interesting.

"So you're ready to accept that I'm not on Gwi-Ma's side at the very least."

Celine narrows her eyes and snarls.

"I'm asking the questions here! But no… no, I know you're not on Gwi-Ma's side. If he'd found a way to interact with the Honmoon like you do, he would have ripped it apart. Not… infected it like you have. So I ask again, who are you working for and what is your faction's goals?"

Faction. For a moment, Jinu is confused. But then he thinks he starts to get it. Celine has to have heard the truth by now. From Bobby. From the girls. But she refuses to believe it. She refuses to accept that Jinu was brought here by the Honmoon. So she's concocted another theory in her head, one where he's part of some rebel faction in the demon realm working against Gwi-Ma on their own thing.

Jinu snorts derisively.

"There is no faction, hunter. You of all people should know that's impossible. Gwi-Ma controls all demons through their marks. He can look through their senses and summon any would be traitors to his throne in a heartbeat to reduce them to ash. Any rebellion would be doomed before it could even get off the ground. I'm the only demon who he can't control… and that's because the Honmoon protects me from him."

"Impossible."

Jinu flashes his teeth in a grin at Celine's immediate and frankly predictable reaction.

"Oh no, it's possible. And it's right in front of your eyes. You're just too blinded by your own self-delusions to see it."

Scoffing, Celine lets go of his chin and takes a step back, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Fine then. Let's pretend for a split second that I believe you, even though I obviously don't. Why is your so-called Honmoon better than the Golden Honmoon? The Golden Honmoon will be perfect. It will seal the demon realm away forever and save uncountable future souls in the process. We hunters will finally be able to rest after working tirelessly for four very long centuries."

Jinu silently considers Celine for a long moment. If it were just the two of them and he could be certain of their privacy, he might have revealed his knowledge of Rumi's parentage then and there.

Sure, this was the woman who had raised Rumi to be ashamed of herself… but it was also the woman who had gone against everything she'd ever been taught to help a half-demon reach adulthood. Most other hunters would have probably 'taken care of the problem' long before now.

Instead, Celine had gone out of her way to protect Rumi even at the potential expense to her precious Honmoon. Jinu should know, he'd used Rumi's fears and shame to great effect in the previous timeline to tear apart the old Honmoon.

As such… he wanted to believe that Celine truly did care for Rumi. Alas, with everyone that was present, he couldn't exactly blurt out that he knew the truth and believed the Golden Honmoon would hurt Rumi specifically, now could he? Ah… but then, Celine herself had opened the door to another avenue of attack, hadn't she? Earlier, when she'd all but admitted to the others that she knew half-demons were real.

Smiling softly, Jinu tilts his head to the side.

"And what will the Honmoon do to half-demons when its finally Golden and perfect?"

Celine stiffens. Rumi freezes where she's currently standing between Zoey and Mira, holding their hands. Fortunately for Rumi, her bandmates are more focused on Celine and him right now than they are her. So is Bobby.

After a moment, Celine scowls angrily.

"That's not… relevant."

Jinu raises a single brow.

"Isn't it? The Golden Honmoon is meant to seal away all demons, separating the demon realm and the human world forever. Right? But what happens to the half-demons when the Honmoon turns gold? What happens to them, hunter?"

He can tell from the twitching in Celine's eyes that she wants to look to Rumi right now. But she has more self-control than that. Finally, scowling angrily, Celine just snarls.

"They'll be fine! So long as they've stayed human, so long as they haven't given in to their demonic halves, then when the Golden Honmoon is in place, their patterns will disappear! They will be fully human, the demon parts of them banished for all eternity!"

She says it with such clarity and conviction that behind her, Jinu catches glimpses of Rumi nodding along and even Mira and Zoey looking relieved. But then, those three have been conditioned to trust Celine. Bobby isn't so convinced when Jinu glances over at him. His brow is furrowed and his lips are pursed in thought. Good man, Bobby.

But of course, Jinu isn't done yet. He looks Celine directly in the eye and smiles sadly.

"And how do you know that?"

The retired hunter freezes, caught out by the question. She'd sounded so certain mere moments ago. And yet… Jinu knew a liar when he saw one. Especially someone who was so well-versed… at lying to themselves. He presses the attack, leaning forward a little bit for emphasis.

"The Honmoon has never been turned gold before. The Golden Honmoon is an unrealized dream you said yourself that you've been working towards for four hundred years. So how do you know what will happen to any half-demons when the Honmoon goes Golden? How do you know they will really be safe?"

Celine's mouth opens and closes wordlessly for several moments. And then…

"I… I just do. It has to… has to work that way."

And there it is. You could hear a pin drop as the penthouse goes silent. Even Celine seems to realize that she's fucked up, because she looks first to Bobby and then Rumi and her girls with a startled expression on her face. Jinu would feel bad about manipulating her down this path… if it wasn't so helpful to his ultimate goals.

The look on Rumi's face is particularly heartbreaking though. He didn't want to hurt her, but he needed her to see this. He needed her to know that Celine didn't have all the answers… that she wasn't some omnipotent source of truth who never lied.

Of course, Celine isn't too happy when she finally realizes how bad he's made her look, even if it was her own words that had done the damage. And seeing as she's not about to take her anger and frustration out on anyone else… Jinu isn't surprised when she whirls back to him, eyes narrowing and lips pulled back in a toothy snarl.

"Enough! You twist my words and continue to manipulate the conversation! All to hide from the real answers I seek! I've asked you what you're doing to the Honmoon demon, and time and time again you have obfuscated and distracted! I'm done! Zoey, hand me one of your shin-kals!"

Zoey freezes up at being asked for a throwing knife. Specifically, one of her Honmoon empowered spirit weapons.

"Wha- w-why?"

Whipping her head around, Celine narrows her eyes at Zoey.

"Just do it."

"… I can't."

Oh dear. Jinu knew he'd made inroads with the youngest member of HUNTR/X thanks to Derpy, but disobeying Celine for him? Damn. For a moment, Celine looks like she's going to blow a gasket. Jinu swears he can see real steam coming out of her ears. Then, she turns to Mira.

"Fine! Mira, your gok-do!"

But Mira just stares back at Celine, her jaw set rather firmly. She doesn't say anything… but the refusal is clear all the same. Celine's nostrils flare as her eyes finally turn to Rumi, to the girl she raised who Jinu knows will have the hardest time of all saying no to her… even if she tries to.

However, before Celine can demand Rumi's saingeom from her, Zoey suddenly speaks up.

"He has a soul Celine! Jinu has a s-soul!"

The veteran hunter stops dead in her tracks, going still again as she processes those words.

"… What?"

Taking that as an encouraging sign, Zoey nods emphatically.

"The Honmoon gave him his soul back! He's like Angel, you know? I really think he's on our side!"

Mira groans.

"Zoey you've gotta stop with the referen-"

"Angel? The character from Buffy the Vampire Slayer?"

Rumi and Mira give Celine the strangest looks while Zoey just nods energetically.

"Yeah! Just like Angel was a vampire with a soul, Jinu is a demon with a soul! And that means he's a good guy! Because the Honmoon made him that way!"

Jinu has no idea what they're talking about. He's definitely not an angel and he doesn't know what 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' is. Or even what vampires are supposed to be. He also doesn't know why the entire exchange between Zoey and Celine seems to be giving both Rumi and Mira serious mental damage either.

What he does know is that some part of that gibberish seems to get through to Celine, who was literally about to try to torture him with a Honmoon Weapon mere seconds ago. Now, instead, she turns back to him, staring at him incredulously.

"… Impossible."

Jinu raises an eyebrow, deciding now might be as good a time as any to prove his bona fides. At the same time, Celine HAS been a bitch… so he can't help but be a little antagonistic with her.

"So sweet, so easy on the eyes, but hideous on the inside

Whole life spreading lies, but you can't hide, baby, nice try"

Celine's face scrunches up in distaste as he sings to her, especially given the lyrics he's using. However, her eyes nevertheless dart down and go wide at the sight of his soul, now glowing bright in his chest.

"… No. It's a trick. Has to be. Yes… it DOES have to be, because if you actually had a soul the Honmoon wouldn't be able to hold you! Nice try demon, but I see right through you!"

Alright then. Apparently they were doing this now. With a sigh, Jinu stands up. He doesn't tear through the threads of Honmoon 'holding him in place'… he doesn't have to. Instead, they open up for him, letting him rise from whatever Celine had done as easily as if he was rising out of bed in the morning.

Of course, this isn't entirely without consequences. The Rainbow Honmoon had been hard at work while he was covered in the original Honmoon's threads and even as Jinu rises, the patch of the Honmoon that Celine had 'sealed' him into… has turned iridescent just like the hole that Jinu had repaired the other night.

Jinu steps out of the disturbed circle of now Rainbow Honmoon Celine had used to try and trap him and walks over to the counter where he'd dropped all those snacks they'd picked up on their way up to the penthouse. Recognizing one of them as something he'd quite enjoyed in the original timeline, Jinu grabs the bag, tears it open, and starts munching on the shrimp crackers within.

Turning back around, he leans against the counter and meets the stares of everyone else with one of his own.

"What? I'm hungry."

After a beat, Bobby suddenly claps his hands together.

"Alright! Intermission time. I don't know about you guys but I am BEAT. How about we table this until the morning? I'll get your usual apartment downstairs set up for you Celine and another guest apartment ready for Jinu. We can continue this after everyone has had a good night's rest."

Celine rears back as if struck.

"What? No, we need to-!"

But Bobby puts his foot down, much to Jinu's amusement.

"Sorry, I realize that I phrased that as a suggestion. Old habits from being a pushover and everything. Let me correct myself. We WILL be tabling this until morning and Celine, you WILL be going to bed. You look like you've been up for over two days straight at this point! How you're even still on your feet, I don't know."

"But-"

"No buts! If Jinu here was actually a threat, he's already proven that he could have killed you any time he wanted, probably before Rumi, Mira, or Zoey could have even so much as blinked!"

Celine's jaw works for a few moments as she's forced to chew on that. Finally though, she just huffs and shakes her head, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Bobby… usually you have to have some sort of leverage if you're going to issue an ultimatum like this."

But Bobby… Bobby just smiles. It's not a nice smile. It definitely doesn't reach his eyes.

"Oh but I do have leverage, Celine. You want an ultimatum? Alright then, here's my ultimatum. We're all going to bed. YOU are going to sleep. And if you refuse, then I'll have Jinu take me, the tiger, and the bird somewhere else in the city so WE can at least get some rest."

The reactions to that are immediate. Zoey gasps and lets out a heartbroken 'no!' that seems more directed at the idea of losing Derpy than Bobby. Mira whistles low and shakes her head with a quiet 'diabolical'. And Rumi? Rumi clears her throat and steps forward.

"… I think Bobby is right, Celine. We're all tired. We could all use the chance to look on all of this with fresh eyes after a good night's rest. And the demon… Jinu, has had every opportunity to run or to kill Bobby or… do whatever he wants, really. Whatever he's truly planning, he's not going to turn on us tonight. So we might as well take advantage of that fact."

That finally seems to get through to Celine. She stares at Rumi for a long moment and Jinu can't even begin to imagine the silent conversation going on between the two women. Really, he's just happy to hear his actual name from Rumi's lips for the first time this go around. Progress! Finally though, Celine's shoulders slump and she hangs her head.

"Very well."

And just like that… they're apparently all going to bed. Well damn. Somehow, this had turned out better than he thought it would.

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A/N: Jinu: "I'm gonna sing some of their nonexistent diss track at her, lol."

Rumi, Mira, Zoey, and Bobby: "Was Jinu just flirting with Celine?"

Also

Bobby: "An 'unfortunately integral part of this current generation of hunters', am I? Well then, I better start fucking acting like it!"

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

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