Park

"Why?"
He asked, stopping and turning to the other with suspicion and a mixture of other emotions written on his face. Maybe they were fake, an act to learn the truth, but Ren genuinely couldn't understand. That was why he was asking. Curiosity. Everything about his boss seemed so clear, yet at the same time, he didn't know anything at all. It was like looking through glass, except the glass turned out to be one of those two way mirrors. Of course, Ren didn't really have any right to be speaking about distance from others. His interest could not be sated without learning something, though, and he stared directly into TOP's eyes. Maybe the Fallen leader could shut off his mind, but the blonde boy had caught glimpses while they were talking, which only confused him more, if that was even possible. Mind games. The Don was playing mind games with him, whether he meant to or not, and Ren was walking into his web fully aware of the fact.
"Not those type of run ins, thought... Well, maybe. It's hard to tell. There was a time when I thought the shadows just fed on hatred and other darkness from beings' emotions, but then they could and would maul and rip apart anyone I let them on who wasn't strong to stop it. I don't know how or why or what, but there's something in the creatures of darkness that gives the darkness more power. I'll keep adapting and reining them in, but it's a very real chance that what happened at the nightclub could try to happen again. I won't let it, though." He shook his head at the other's offer, saying firmly, "If I'm going to be a tool and weapon, I won't allow myself to become a broken one. That's just too troublesome, and besides, I don't need any more weakness to be shown to the other Fallen at the station. You know, one of them could challenge me for my rank any day and the only way I'm giving it up is if they kill me. No choice about that, really, so I'll try to just avoid unnecessary pain and actually fight back. Besides, you're not kidding anyone. Losing the people isn't what you're worried about, at least in my case, right? It'll probably be quieter around, anyway. You just don't want to lose another pawn."
His unnaturally scathing words had a purpose to them, although Ren would never let it slip into his mind for the other to read. He wanted to know how TOP would react. Would he just ignore him, actually get mad, or something else? Ren was interested. After all, he was working for this guy. Might as well try to know him. At his offer, the blonde simply shrugged and set down his books.
"Suit yourself. Just be aware of the fact that I will look anything but comfortable and there may be some poor, caring soul who thinks you're being quite the ."

Seunghyun couldn't help but listen carefully to the words that Ren said... Because to be honest, he really didn't know much about the powers that his Underboss possessed. Sure, he might know that it was shadows and that it was extremely volatile, but almost nothing else... This was a perfect opportunity to know more. 
At the shiver that Ren made, that did not go unnoticed in the Fallen's eyes as the last book was dried and stacked on top of the others... Significantly puffier than they were before because of the expansion of the papers from the books. Oh well, that was what water did to books... But at the mention of the Vampire Leader, that was what really got Seunghyun's attention as his dark eyes snapped up to the standing Fallen. Absently patting the mother duck's head, so too did the Don straighten up as he scrutinized his Underboss. 
"Run-ins with the Vampire Leader? That doesn't seem unlikely as you DO live in the same building as him..." he muttered quietly before turning away towards the walkways and the edge of the park, "If it helps you, just tell me whenever this happens and I won't send you on a task that requires abilities, Ren. We can't afford to lose anyone, you know." 
Then his eyes landed critically on the Fallen once more as it was started that the Underboss was going to head home... "I believe I live on the other side of Seoul than you do... But if you wish, I can accommodate you part of the way to your house," he stated quietly, intense gaze still boring into Ren even as they began to walk out and leave the birds behind. "It's not going to be good for you to have wet clothes like that. I CAN dry them for you as I did with the books," a dry chuckle escaping out as he clarified himself, "No, I don't need you to strip. Just act like I'm hugging you and that'll be enough for me to work with," giving the Underboss a questioning look as to if the Fallen wanted that or not... 

It was almost unnerving, and definitely not something he was used to, the way his Boss's eyes were looking at him, practically taking him apart piece by piece and examining him. Ren had never received this much attention from anyone of his kind, very few others in general. They all feared and shunned him, and why not? He was almost closer to a Demon than a former Angel, at least in their eyes. So to have his boss, all of their's boss, at least pretending to care, was not something that was easy for him to comprehend.
So how was it that TOP always seemed to understand him, and yet at the same time not at all? Maybe it was a lack of information, or something like that. Perhaps he should listen. In all respects, the Don hadn't really done anything for him to have a reason to hate the man. Maybe Ren should listen, and now of all times seemed to be pretty appropriate. The consequences would be too severe, for him and for everyone.
"You know what's funny about the night? It's when the shadows are at their weakness. Science says that shadows are formed when an object blocks the light from its source. If there is no source, then technically there is no shadow. For that to be true, the same must be said on all of the other planes of reality, and it is. So nighttime is actually better than going now. I'm still trying to figure out how that works. It's just that I'm actually at my weakest on a full moon. The strongest shadows are natural ones. Ones caused by artificial light just can't compare.Still..." He paused, shivering slightly as a breeze blew through and he started feeling the effect of his drenched clothes, "It would be nice to find some shelter."
He watched as TOP continued to dry out his books, silently thanking him for the gesture as he addressed his lecturing.
"You know, Boss, I was actually a lot better at it before. Even at night, I could silence them... But then, I had a lot of run ins with the Vampire Boss, and not only was that unexpected, it had it's own effect. The night at the club was kind of the last thing the shadows needed, the last source that they had to feed on to truly become bothersome. I'll probably get them under control in a week, two weeks tops, but it's hard to show that I'm in control when I had to rely on them completely. I'm not even sure if I truly control this power. I never wanted it to begin with, you know."
He added the last part absently, standing up to sling the backpack over his shoulders and carefully pick up his books, taking care not to get them all wet again.
"Boss, I think I'll get going, then. Twilight is good enough for me. Could you join me, or do you live far away from this area? Where do you live, anyway?"

Seunghyun did not miss the fact that Ren had moved just as far away as he had come close to the boy... Seeing that his own shadow, thanks to the angle of the sun, was close to coming in contact with the Fallen's body. However, the Underboss did not seemed to be afraid of it... Just wary of the shadows right now. It was quite the unique and interesting situation for the Don at the moment, seeing as his own elemental powers didn't really have a mind or "will" of their own as the shadows did.
Though as soon as Ren started to explain out the details to him was when the Fallen really started to understand what was going on... It wasn't like that the Underboss was integrated with the shadows as Seunghyun was with water/ice. No, it was more of the fact that he was like their master, holding a leash over the shadows... But the best comparison to something like that would be a human leashing in a huge feral mountain cat. Sure, the power would be immense... But one sign of weakness or one moment of relaxation and it would turn on the owner.
Nodding grimly to his fellow Fallen's words, Seunghyun glanced towards the walkway that Ren was talking about... A short rueful laugh escaping from the Don's mouth as he shook his head in a slight bit of pity. "The sun is going to disappear eventually, Ren..." looking towards the late afternoon angle of the star, "And it's going to get dark. Might as well try to get home as soon as possible when you still have the advantage of day on your side." Turning his intense gaze back to the younger male, he picked up the book that he was occupied with before to resume his work.
There was a silence between them for a moment as he processed exactly what Ren was saying before speaking quietly, "Your powers exceed mine in strength... But the control you have over them are weak." Dark eyes flitted over for a brief moment before continuing on, "Even though I don't exactly have your unique elemental, I would advise you to start training them... Capture a bit of your shadows and slowly show them how much power you have OVER them. You have to ask yourself this question: Who controls the power? The shadows or you?" placing the dried book down before picking up the last one. Seunghyun now opted to remain silent... To just let the Underboss process what he had given him as advice.

It wasn't supposed to happen, especially in front of his self righteous, nosy boss of all people. Ren's stomach was churning with a mix of annoyance and fear. They had taught him that. To always fear the shadows, because they were powerful, while the Fallen was not. And now it was true, because they were trying to take him away, maybe even become his shadow because he had none. It was a creepy fact that was often overlooked, and when it really wasn't, sometimes Ren would have to steal something else's shadow for a short while. It was a bit tolling and tested his control, but not doing so would warrant unwanted suspicions.
He noticed when TOP moved closer away, could /feel/ the man's shadow trembling and fighting to break free. Admittedly his was less stronger than most because of the Fallen leader's residual light, so Ren managed to keep it under control as he moved away from the other, at least a good two to three feet. Thankfully, the crowd from school had all gone by, leaving the park relatively empty and quiet again.
"It..." He began, trying to figure out the best way to explain, "Well, it started after that incident at the nightclub, when I kind of lost it. That wasn't me. At least, most of it wasn't. Shadows exist on many levels of reality. It can be physical, but darkness can be interpreted as existing in the recesses of someone's mind as well. I have a sort of 'dark side,' as cliched as that sounds. It's not exactly a separate entity, more like the shadows gaining more strength over me or myself losing control. The shadows want me because I control them, and can make them real. If they can steal that power..." He trailed off, letting TOP's imagination fill in the rest of that scenario, before continuing with a small, wry smile, "It's only temporary, at least I'm pretty sure. This isn't the first time it's happened, nor will it probably be the last. Normally I can confine myself to my apartment and all is well, but..." he pointed towards the outskirts of the park, where tall building shaded the walkways, "I'm not sure if I can make it home. So I'm kind of stuck here. I didn't mean to startle you."

Even as this book was now banished of the excessive moisture, Seunghyun still continued to interestingly flip through it... This one was a Calculus book and as his dark eyes scanned the problems, a low chuckle escaping him as his mind quickly processed most of them without any problem. "School..." he murmured absently to himself even as that book was now closed and placed on top of the history one. At the quiet inquiry that Ren gave him, the Don didn't believe that he needed to really say anything to him about that... Just shot him a meaningful look that should say more than enough.
About to reach for the third, his gaze caught onto the sight of Ren looking at one of the ducklings, the animal returning his gaze with a barely audible "beep" and flapping its tiny wings. At the seemingly innocent sight that greeted his eyes, the Fallen simply smiled slightly to himself before flipping through the book... This one being a literature one before the sound made by the second-in-command instantly forced Seunghyun to almost drop the book from his hands.
Gaze shooting over to the male next to him, his hands held tightly onto the book, his eyes darted down from the stare that Ren had to the duckling that had managed to flip itself right-side up from that fall and was now waddling its way back over to its mother. Meeting the Fallen's eyes as the flat tone of the Underboss met his ears, Seunghyun could only gaze at him with a slight hint of worry behind that cool expression he usually kept if not a smirk on his face.
His eyebrows betrayed more emotion however, furrowing down slightly as he placed the still sopping book down on the grass and glanced around, making sure that no one else was around to hear them. "You lost control of them?" he asked quietly, noting that there really wasn't any shadows around with the overhanging of the sun... "When did this start, Ren?" dark eyes gazing intently at the male seated next to him, unable to help the worry that was growing inside of him...

"Own kind?"
He asked skeptically at the other's statement, no longer having any reason to inspect his books. He didn't feel like one of the Fallen, and as far as he knew, most of the other's felt the same way. They feared him and loathed him almost as much as the Demons, even if they didn't know why. Another reason why Ren went to the agonizing, boring school. Even he needed somewhat normal interactions with people to keep from going insane, but there was no sense of camaraderie with his fellow workers.
Ren watched with interest as the other went to work, vaguely intrigued by how much control he had over his powers. It was one of the things that set him apart as the Don. While Ren himself had very strong power and a very versatile one, he was practically a loose cannon waiting to happen. A ticking time bomb. The blonde unconsciously shook his head and decided to banish that thought for now, distracting himself by picking up one of the ducklings and examining it, gently and with an almost innocent curiosity. Animals interested him almost as much as his books. They weren't so judging. But somehow, they knew everything. One just had to ask them.
He let his guard down. He shouldn't have, but he got carried away and maybe it was partly because of the man beside him. Ren didn't forget how TOP had saved him. He knew the other had power, and he respected that. But his Boss couldn't, and shouldn't have to, save him from himself. The small shadow cast by the fluffy adorable little duckling stretched out, almost detaching itself before it had winded up Ren's arm and was at his throat in an instant. He let out a surprised yelp, dropping the duckling back to the grass, which thankfully was not that far and left the poor thing uninjured. Ren stared at his arms, his hands. One second. One second later, and the shadows would have had him. He blinked, and finally whispered in a flat, monotonous tone that he used only when he was upset... or scared.
"Hyung," His training still told him to use a form of address that would be much easier to explain than "boss," "They're after me."

The flinching that Ren made with the shadow, though even if he almost missed it, the Fallen still managed to notice it. A elegant eyebrow shot upwards at that reaction, instantly growing curious as to what the reason was... This was VERY interesting. Controlling shadows yet avoiding it now? The sitting in the sun made it even more intriguing but knowing that he wouldn't really get anything out of the male, Seunghyun simply decided not to say anything on the matter and pretend as if he hadn't noticed anything at all.
At the quiet mutter that sounded more or less reluctant, Seunghyun had a faint ghost of a smile as he cautiously made his way to stand next to Ren. A low chuckle could be heard as he tilted his head slightly to one side. "No need. The Fallen looks out for its own kind," he muttered back, dark eyes looking intently down at the seemingly innocent boy next to him. The birds still gave the Underboss a large width of avoidance, opting to stand over by the Don's side instead. Slowly lowering himself down onto the grass, making sure that there wasn't some ducks underneath, the Fallen reached out to pick up a sodden book into hand.
Flipping through the soaking pages, it seemed as if it wasn't too bad... But as he was doing so, Seunghyun was fully concentrated on banishing the moisture away from the sheets... It wasn't visible exactly to the eye, but tiny droplets of water lifted themselves off the paper and simply evaporated into the air. After a couple of flipping through the book like that, the pages were now nice and crinkly dry. While the book was still more or less wrinkled, at least there wasn't a hint of moisture in it as the Fallen skimmed through the pages.
"History, hm? How interesting..." he said quietly as he placed the significantly puffier book next to Ren again before picking another one and doing the same thing... Most of the birds by then had already gotten bored and wandered off nearby to people more willing to feed them, but still staying in a relatively close distance to Seunghyun. The few that were dedicated to the Fallen simply nestled in the grass next to him, a whole nest of tiny yellow ducklings settling down next to their mother and Seunghyun, soaking up the sun and warmth as the Don worked on drying out those books for Ren...

Ren continued on with his work in silence, ignoring the presence in front of him as he studied the damage done to his books. Thankfully, the ink wasn't running too badly, and they'd be usable for the rest of the year. It really didn't matter since he hardly used them anyway, but having to explain to the teacher, principle, and his classmates why he needed a whole new set of books would be incredibly bothersome. Sure he could easily pay for them, but that would attract too much attention and he didn't want that.
He let out another sigh, before looking up and studying TOP. He was dressed in normal clothes, which Ren had to admit looked quite good on the man, even with his face half hidden behind the sunglasses. The most curious and amusing sight was how all of the birds in the area crowded around him, even when he tried to throw food to get them to go further away. Apparently the ducks could sense something humans could not. That would explain why they were steering clear of Ren. The Fallen Underboss was in a very violate state as of yet, and that was why he accepted the vulnerability and attention of sitting out in the open sunlight rather than the shade of the tree nearby. He would never admit it even to himself, never even letting it surface in his mind, but he was subconsciously avoiding the shadows. They wanted to consume him, and he was responding by giving them their due respect and fear.
It was tempting to take the other up on his offer, since Ren himself was dripping wet. His school uniform was completely soaked, and the weight of his sodden sweater that he still insisted on wearing even when it was so nice outside, was very uncomfortable. As much as he didn't want to owe TOP anything, he didn't really have much of a choice in that situation.
"Would you? I'll make sure to repay you." He continued to mutter, not one who liked asking others for help. A cloud moved from where it was partially blocking the sun, and Ren visibly flinched when the other's shadow fell over him, making a subtle movement away from it as much as possible without seeming suspicious. No one could know about his current weakness, not even himself, and definitely not his Boss of all people.

A seemingly pleasant day today was... Or at least it was nice enough that Seunghyun felt that it was suitable for him to go outside and live a more or less "human" normal life. Even as a Fallen, he still desired to have a peaceful life... Or or as peaceful as it could get. This rare snippets of moments and times were hardly wasted by him to even just get a sample of what most humans took for granted, not having the pain that he always carried around on his shoulders...
Pulling on his usual black jacket and a cap to shield his eyes, Seunghyun still took the more precaution of even slipping on some oversized sunglasses as he planned where to go today... With the sun shining overhead and a relatively light and enjoyable breeze, why not the park?
The park was always somewhere that the Fallen had a special connection to. Maybe it was the sheer numbers of birds there that somehow still flocked towards him with food or not, but Seunghyun liked that place. And that was something that wasn't said often by the Don really. And the nice thing was that it was within walking distance from his penthouse...
Taking only about 15 minutes or so to stroll over to the recreational area, the instant he stepped foot near the lake was when the geese and ducks started to waddle after him. Maybe it was the remnants of angelic aura that drew animals near him, but in any case, he did have something for them. Occasionally throwing various pieces of broken corn to the birds, the Don also did keep an eye out for the people around him... Never letting down his guard when he was out of the police station or his penthouse.
Having came in the middle of the day, the students were out of their classes and milling around the place, much to the dislike of Seunghyun. He liked it when there wasn't many people here... Looks like many of the humans had the same mind track as him with this nice weather. Nevertheless, the Fallen simply ignored them and concentrated on the honking or quacking animals that crowded around his feet for more food until... A splashing could be heard.
That wasn't the splash of a small animal, it was something much larger. Dark eyes hidden behind sunglasses peering into the lake, the sight that met his gaze wasn't something Seunghyun was too fond of finding right now... Sighing quietly to himself, the Don gently shooed the ducks in front of him as he carefully made his way over to the overhanging shade of a willow tree bending over near the lake, the birds still crowding and following him where ever he went.
Noticing that Ren had flopped down in a sunny area, the Fallen still took his sweet time watching his second-in-command for a bit longer, thinking about what had happened a couple nights before... Seunghyun really didn't have any hard feelings towards the boy, and that was obvious when the muttered words from the Underboss made him chuckle quietly before making his way over to the sunlight.
Cocking his head to one side, the soaked pages of the books didn't escape his notice even as it was interesting to him to note that even the birds avoided crowding around Ren though... They simply now were in a mass around the back of Seunghyun's legs instead, gazing at the younger Fallen just as he was doing too.
"Ren, I can help dry your books for you," the Don stated quietly, absently throwing a couple pieces of food off to a side to make the birds disperse away from him to no effect. And it was true that he could, his water/ice elemental control having a lot more positive effects than one would think... Especially siphoning off moisture from something like paper.

Ren stayed with the throng of students walking home after school was out, passing through the park that was normally on his route. He was laughing and smiling with the rest of them, allowing his classmates to baby him and even occasionally performing aegyo at their request. Believe it or not, the Fallen was actually quite popular at his school, though not enough that he stood out too much. Popular with the students, that is. For all they knew, he was the adorable childish one who did what he wanted, whether that was skipping classes or refusing to do his homework. Still he could be found if you needed help on a particular problem and were willing to learn instead of just trying to leech off of him. In short, he blended in perfectly. Not too out of place in either direction to be talked about, and yet able to manipulate others if he so wished.
They all thought he was innocent, pure, their very own maknae.
It was sickening.
All of it was just an act he slipped into every day. It wasn't necessarily that he hated it. Ren just found it boring out of his mind, which is why he skipped class so often to find something else to do. Besides, there were always those arrogant s who insisted on taunting him and mocking him about his feminine appearance. On the several times when they had gotten too rough, it took a good deal of willpower to control himself and his shadows.
Today, he was in a rather bad mood. It hadn't been that long since the incident at the Night Club, and he he and the shadows were not getting along very well, never mind his relations with the Boss. The darkness was straining to break free, to feed off of him and his power to manifest them. It was bothersome, and if he got too agitated, then all hell could break loose.
So then, why was today the day when those self absorbed upperclassmen decided to especially target Ren? He was able to calmly and impassively deflect and ignore their taunts, but then one of them took it too far and shoved him into the railings of the bridge. A sharp stab of pain shot through Ren's head as he tried to control his anger, leading him to lose his balance and fall into the lake. When he broke to the surface, the many worried faces that had watched for him all showed signs of relief... but they left him. No one waited for him. It wasn't that Ren cared about it at all, but he wondered if any of them could see how shallow their relationship with the blonde really was.
When he climbed out of the thankfully rather clean lake water, Ren's eyes met those of someone he'd really rather not see at the moment. With an exasperated sigh, he sat down in a sunny spot in the grass and started going through his books in his backpack that had fallen with him, wondering how many of them were damaged beyond repair. It was a good thing he didn't take notes, in fact, there was hardly a sheet of now sopping wet notebook paper in his bag.
"You weren't supposed to see that."
He muttered under his breath at the man who he had noticed. His boss. Just great.