you left your shadow here ; yeonbin

2 - gold rush

With nightfall, a breeze was beginning to pick up, just cold enough to chill what dampness lay like a sheen of sweat on the uneven cobblestone. Though, the clouds that had released a thin drizzle that afternoon had already drifted past and allowed Yeonjun a glimpse at the silver silhouette of the soon-to-be full moon from where he was crouching on the rooftops of the city.

Only a few houses separated him from the town hall where the mayor and his daughter celebrated her solemn engagement, the family heirloom only two storeys above their chinking glasses.

The golden glow of street lamps mingled with the moon's silver reflection on the damp streets, ceding Lunar Deity the perfect irony to strike.

Yeonjun casted a glance at the tower clock. Golden alit, the needles were yet to strike ten o'clock, too early for Yeonjun to move forward. Beomgyu was already sneaking around and inside the building, invisible to the guards and visitors' eyes — only Kai and Taehyun could feel his presence.

Beomgyu usually designed the outline by taking care of the circumstances while Yeonjun painted the tableau and brought it home. Yeonjun had always found it interesting that it wasn't the lack of light that let Beomgyu disappear, because while he melted perfectly into the shadow of a prospering tree on a sunny day, the black of the night rendered him a just as unmistakable figure as everyone else. While fire was Yeonjun's marionette, light and darkness were Beomgyu's — he could disappear behind every darkened shade or swallow up the light in every room and leave everyone in complete blindness.

In the meantime, Taehyun and Kai kept an eye on the situation from inside the event, picking up on anyone breeding bad blood and suspicion. Their telepathic abilities weren't suitable for combat, yet all the more effective when it came to undercover information hunting and presenting the distraction — reading the general state of mind, auras, and thoughts in a room drained them, yes, but hadn't ever resulted in side effects that disabled them on the spot. And for that very worst-case run-through they were to stay paired and attentive of each other at all times.

Yeonjun's fingers were cold and numb under his leather gloves — antagonistic tapping and drumming against slick stone uncoiled some of his nerves but wouldn't thaw the frost inside. Spreading some warmth into his fingertips wouldn't have done any harm, but he was stubborn and believed that a tiny amount of pain and discomfort kept him on high-alert.

There were five minutes left until ten when Yeonjun decided to bridge the remaining rooftops, so he would be as close to the scene as he could get without abandoning the safety of his towering position.

The mayor's office was located on the backside of the building — much to their luck — and Yeonjun had a clear view of the window that Beomgyu would pry open for him about…

Now.

The window remained closed, framework still perfectly angular on checkered glass, and Yeonjun suddenly wished for Taehyun's ability to feel lively presence. It wasn't like Beomgyu to be late. Yeonjun had already slipped his mask over his face, but the black synthetic was suddenly interfering with his ability to breathe instead of welcoming him devious and invincible.

Kai had once insisted to tailor the masks, to personalise them, but Yeonjun had protested strictly against it. As much as he liked the idea of them painting the town red in sparkly disguise, what bigger breadcrumbs could they possibly leave out in the open than their silver and golden glow. They were at the top of the government's hit list already, and other gangs knew who they were, they needn't know where and when they had a hand in on top of everything.

They had eventually agreed on the tattoo behind their ears remaining their only personal and unique distinctive feature — a string of stars twirling around a crescent moon like an ivy twine. It was unflashy enough and well hidden underneath the synthetic mask during errands.