Chapter Text
Baby had forgot.
Two hundred plus years in the demon realm had that effect. Once fully consumed by Gwi-Ma, everything that you were and every memory you had became scrambled like a jigsaw puzzle, except there was no hope in putting the pieces back together. Baby was sure he had multiple pieces missing - pieces long tucked away under dusty carpets or swallowed by the chaos of life and death. He didn’t remember how he died. Hell, he didn’t remember his name.
He had a name, sure, they all did, but rarely did Gwi-Ma allow you to remember it. It was all about control. it was apart of his game. He took the pieces of the puzzle that gave you purpose and self worth and hid them away. Your past identity was his to manipulate, and whatever was left standing at the end of his torturous game was the outcome he chose. He called the shots - not young, newly fallen demons. Not ANY demon, really, but rank and authority came with time and favor.
Baby learned upon his “inauguration” that most humans-turned-demon were automatically labeled a “reaper.” All demons fed on souls, but Reapers were tasked with corrupting souls. They were the ones Gwi-Ma sent up to the human world to entice and enslave. They were his sirens. Successful Reapers retained their human appearance, more-so than others.
Baby had died young. That much Gwi-Ma allowed him to know. He wasn’t quite a child by human standards, but not a full grown adult. He was an in-between. He was old enough to have developed an adult male’s anatomy, but his face remained youthful and fair. It was one of the many reasons he was so successful in enticing souls. He could appeal to the hardest of hearts with his large eyes and adolescent features, and his words and empty promises rolled off of his tongue like honey. No human could resist him.
He rose in the ranks quickly. He did what he had to do to make his eternal fate tolerable. Whatever guilt or sympathy he had for the humans he enticed was shoved down deep within his hollowed soul in order to keep Gwi-Ma’s rage directed elsewhere. He saw what happened to those who displeased Gwi-Ma. Gwi-Ma made sure to make every demon in the realm watch. The reapers, keepers, water demons, imps - everyone. As long as he avoided Gwi-Ma’s wrath, he would continue to ignore the parts of him that remained remotely human.
Then he met Jinu.
Jinu was one of the few lucky bastards to keep his name. With his name came a constant replay of the horrible choices he had made in life, but still, Baby was jealous. Jinu was favored, and with favor came freedom. Like Baby, Jinu did what he had to in order to maintain Gwi-Ma’s favor, but Jinu could come and go as he pleased. Baby envied him and idolized him.
With Jinu came a tag along of three other demons. They didn’t know their real names either, but he grew to know them as Abby, Romance, and Mystery. Abby or “Abs” due to the demon’s insanely perfect body, and Romance was beautiful, even by human standards. While he never grew to understand their reasons for having turned into Reapers, he assumed it had something to do with vanity. Supposedly, that was a sin.
And then there was Mystery. Mystery didn’t speak much. When he did talk, it was simple one liners or little grunts. He had been a Reaper at one time, but his infatuation with the hell hounds had earned him the title of a Keeper - someone who was in charge of a lesser demonic form - hell hounds being considered the lesser. Mystery took pride in his demon dogs, so much so that he picked up on a few of their physical and vocal traits.
The boy band idea was Jinu’s. In life, Jinu had been a musician and a good one at that. His voice was beautiful, and the way he played the bipa - effortless. He was made to create music, and even death couldn’t rob him of his talent.
To Baby’s surprise, Abby, Romance, and Mystery could all sing as well. Abby was a baritone. His voice was rich and sultry, a “crooner.” Romance and Mystery were both tenors, and their ranges were slightly higher than Jinu’s. Romance’s voice was breathy and airy like a little bird floating on the wind, while Mystery’s voice had a slight whine to it. They all blended beautifully together, there was no reason for them to need him.
But they did. Jinu said they needed a rapper for this to work.
Rappers were a new thing. They had grown in popularity over the last couple of decades. They were rhythmic story tellers and quick witted lyricists. Jinu was adamant that Baby could do it. Baby had gained a reputation in hell for being sly and silver tongued, (hence his ability to easily convince a human to embrace their sins), so with a shrug Jinu simply said “why not put that silver tongue to better use?” There was no need for talent to be wasted.
It took a little bit of convincing and practice, but it was a skill Baby easily mastered. Jinu had been right - he was a natural. Jinu told him with his huskier voice and natural cadence, he’d have the humans eating out of the palm of his hand. It was one of the very few compliments he had ever received, and for the first time in well, forever, Baby actually felt excited to be apart of something.
Instead of emotional turmoil and despair, Baby felt something akin to (dare he say it?) joy. He felt a sense of belonging. The others seemed just as invested, and during whatever time they had to themselves, they practiced.
It didn’t take much to persuade Gwi-Ma.
All it took was a snap of Jinu’s fingers and Gwi-Ma took the bait. The promise of fresh souls was enough for the demon king to send the five of them top side with little-to-no regulations. All he wanted was souls and for the hunters to be eliminated. Both would take time, but with a steady supply of souls trickling in and their popularity sky rocketing, Gwi-Ma had no reason to suspect they’d fail. He kept an eye on them, occasionally summoning them back to hell for updates and threatening reminders as to what would befall them should they fail, but otherwise he let them be. Baby had never felt so free in his entire existence.
The two weeks they spent in competition with Huntrix were a beautiful but chaotic frenzy. Baby was exhausted, but in the best way. He and his fellow comrades did everything together. They moved and existed as one. With them, Baby felt complete. He felt like he mattered - that he mattered to them. He was so high in his ecstasy that he paid little-to-no attention to the bonds the others were forming with the hunters. He didn’t care that they toyed with them. Every little snarky comment and the flirtatious banter was, in his opinion, a simple ruse to get under the girls’ skin. He didn’t think any of them were getting attached. But, when Jinu stepped in front of the half-demon hunter and bore the weight of Gwi-Ma’s wrath, it became shockingly apparent that it wasn’t a ruse - it was real.
Baby didn’t have time to feel betrayed. Chaos was devouring them. Between the smoke and the screams and the fire, Baby couldn’t form a coherent thought.
He attempted to help Mystery combat the Huntrix rapper, Zoey, but with a quick shove, Baby lost his footing. He watched from the stage floor as she carved her knives into Mystery’s face - as Mira drove her weapon into Abby’s abdomen. He wanted to scream. He was losing everything and yet he couldn’t bring himself to get off the floor. He felt defeated. What point was there in fighting when the four souls he cared about were dissipating in clouds of ash? Baby would rather be gutted by one of the hunter’s blades than be the soul survivor of whatever torturous existence came next.
The stage rattled and equipment tumbled from the ceiling. Baby didn’t care. A stage light fell dangerously close, but he he didn’t move. It wasn’t until a flash of pink hair and a warm, familiar body grabbed him and shoved him aside that he felt something, but that something was soon engulfed in darkness.
The weight of a body covered him, protecting him from the falling debris. He felt lips in his hair, a muffled voice repeating his name. Claws gripped his robe, holding him close until the rumbles and screams tapered off. Soon, he was surrounded by silence. How long he sat in the silence, he didn’t know. His skin tingled and the world around him grew bright and overbearing. It wasn’t until he felt a hand rattle his shoulder that he realized he wasn’t alone. Crouching in front of him was Romance.
Romance had been the warm body against his. Romance had held him close and shielded him. Romance hadn’t been killed. Romance was right here, maybe looking a little worse for wear, but he was tangible - real.
A high pitched ringing reverberated in his skull as he reached out towards his fellow demon, confusion washing over his face. As the ringing dimmed pain pulsed behind his eardrums. He was able to make out Romance repeating his name, but it wasn’t his distorted hearing that bothered him, it was the fact that Romance was…human.
The blue skin, gone. His markings, gone. Those piercing yellow eyes, surprisingly brown. No claws, just perfectly manicured fingers gripping his as he was hauled to his feet.
Baby looked down at his own hands to find his skin porcelain. Dirt and ash clung to his skin, but as far as he could tell his completion matched Ro’s.
Baby ran his tongue over his teeth to find his canines smooth, and he coughed. What in the name of Gwi-Ma…?
Wait. Gwi-Ma. His brain was quiet. He could no longer hear him. He could no longer feel him. The weight of the demon king was gone, and while that weight had been a burden, without him Baby felt hollow. Instead, he now felt every ache and pain, and the pressure behind his ears became more and more bothersome.
Baby couldn’t recall feeling pain like this before. It wasn’t unbearable, no, but it was different. Demon’s didn’t feel physical pain like humans did, but rather they inflicted it. This was a completely new sensation, and Baby did not care for it at all. He didn’t care for the fact that his lungs now burned when he held his breath, nor that breathing in itself was a necessity. He could tell by the grimace on Romance’s face that he was experiencing similar sensations, and he suddenly felt like crying.
He couldn’t cry though, not now. Not in front of Romance, and not in front of the trio of hunters that now assisted Abby, Mystery, and Jinu hobble across the stage.
He was flabbergasted. They were supposed to be dead - he had watched them die. And yet, here they were. Clawless, fangless, and undoubtedly human.
Come to find out, when Jinu sacrificed himself for Rumi his soul was redeemed, and somehow due to the emotional ties he had with the four other Saja Boys, their souls were redeemed as well. Instead of dying, they were reborn. It made absolutely no sense to Baby, and yet here they all stood - whole and human.
Apparently it was something Jinu and Rumi planned behind the rest of their backs. Well, sort of. It didn’t set well with Baby, but he stood quiet and listened as they explained that Rumi had found a book on demonology in someone named Celine’s living quarters. She took it and read it. The book gave instructions on how demons could buy back their souls, or redeem them. Granted, Jinu sacrificing himself for Rumi hadn’t been apart of the plan, but it still resulted in their desired outcome.
Baby wondered if that book would have any cure-alls for memory loss. Here he stood, completely human, with still no recollection of who he was or who he had been prior to the demon realm. Maybe those memories came with time. Maybe they would never come at all. None of this made sense. None if this was logical, but what else was there?
Although the debate lasted quite some time, the hunters agreed that the Saja boys would reside with them - temporarily. Mira wasn’t happy about it at all, but they had the spare rooms and what better way for her to keep her eyes on them then having them all under the same roof? Besides, she warned that if any of them so much as made a questionable move, she’d end them. Zoey had giggled and told them that no, Mira wouldn’t “end them,” but Baby wasn’t so sure.
He wasn’t thrilled with this plan, but he begrudgingly trailed after them and filed into an unmarked black SUV that took them all back to the Huntrix's penthouse. The drive was awkward, but snapping his fingers and transporting himself wherever he needed to go was no longer an option.
They were given rooms, food (because food was a necessity now), and a set of rules they had to follow in order to keep Mira sated. They had to constantly bathe, eat, drink, and sleep. It was an endless and exhausting cycle, ridiculously redundant Baby thought, but it was essential. Without that cycle their human bodies would fall apart, and after a few minor mishaps, Baby realized just how essential that cycle was.
It took time adjusting to their human bodies as well as their three female roommates that hovered over them like skittish mother hens, but slowly they fell into a comforting routine. So much so that it was time for a comeback - a joint comeback.
They’d still remain separate groups, but they would now be signed under the same label and share practice space. It was agreed that Bobby would manage them both, and for the time being, their temporary living situation would become permanent.
And so here they were, two months later in a practice room doused in sweat, rehearing the same choreography over and over. A comeback meant new songs, and new songs meant new choreography. They could rehearse all day without breaking a sweat as demons, but now Baby could feel his body protesting and it had only been 2 hours.
“Jinu, dude, give us a break…” Abby wined, plopping down ungracefully by Romance’s side.
“This is beyond torturous!”
Mystery hummed in agreement, while Romance flopped down next to his bulkier comrade.
“I agree,” he said, pushing sweaty pink bangs away from his face. “I almost prefer Gwi-Ma’s torture to this.”
Jinu scoffed and rolled his eyes. His cheeks were pink and sweat beaded his brow, but he was otherwise un-winded.
“Oh stop wining you guys,” he said, eyeing the four sad lumps on the floor. “Comeback is in 3 weeks. We’ve got to master this choreography and we're no where close!”
“Besides, look at the girls, they’ve practically perfected their choreography already…”
“True,” Abby nodded, “but they’ve been doing this how long now? We’ve been human for 2 months… 2 months, Jinu! We’re practically babies! No offense, Baby.”
“None taken,” Baby said, voice monotoned and soft.
Jinu huffed and placed his hands on his hips, giving them an exasperated look.
“You’re being ridiculous, Abs.”
“So? Just please let me lay down for 5 more minutes…”
“You’ve just had a break 20 minutes ago.”
“And, your point is?” Romance chimed in, cracking open the bottle of water Mystery handed to him. Baby waved the bottle Mystery passed to him away, murmuring he might throw up if he chugged it right now. Mystery grunted and drank it instead.
“My point is we’ve got a deadline to meet and we won’t meet that deadline if you all aren’t willing to put in the work.”
Jinu knew this was physically grueling. He felt his muscles protest too, but if they wanted to keep their position as “idols,” they needed to keep going. Practice made perfect, and after the fiasco that was their last stage performance, they had to be perfect.
“Come on,” he urged, motioning for the group to stand. “Up! Just 30 more minutes and we’re done for today. I promise, just 30 more.”
Romance groaned dramatically but pushed himself to his feet, while Abby begrudgingly followed.
“Fine,” Abby said, using Mystery’s shoulder as support. “Whatever, 30 more minutes, but I swear if we go over 30 minutes - even if it is just 31 minutes - I’m making you sleep out on the couch. And I’ll tell Rumi not to take pity on you!”
“And I’m calling dibs on your second helping,” Romance chimed in, tying his pink hair up into a loose pony tail. “Myst, be sure to tell Zoey to give Jinu’s second helping to me tonight.”
“Will do,” Mystery said quietly, smirking.
“Okay, okay!” Jinu said, eyes rolling. “I get it! 30 minutes, tops. Big babies…” the last words were muttered under his breath as he turned back to restart the track. The boys began to fall into place behind him, pushing and shoving each other playfully as they found their positions.
Baby got up to follow but he staggered, hands groping the wall as an anchor. For some reason, the action caused his vision to blur and his knees buckle. What the hell?
He felt tired, yes, but this felt wrong. Maybe he didn’t drink enough water?
Baby shook his head, trying to rid his brain from the fog that overtook his senses and felt a soft but present throb behind his eyes. He hadn’t slept the best the night before, or the night before that, but surely that wasn’t a big deal.
He blinked a few times, widening his eyes in an attempt to stop the room from tilting and took another hesitant step forward.
“Yo B, you good?” Abby called over his shoulder, glancing back at the cerulean haired boy as he stumbled closer.
“Yeah, I just…”
Baby stopped. He couldn’t finish the sentence. He physically couldn’t finish the sentence. His jaw felt stiff and he broke out in a cold sweat. He felt panic tighten within his chest. A soft but unnatural croak pushed past his lips as he went rigid.
“B?” Abby turned, concern creasing his brow. “Baby?”
The concern in Abby’s voice caused Romance to turn around, and Mystery took a cautious step towards Baby.
But Baby couldn’t answer. He could hear them, but his mouth wouldn’t cooperate. His eyes had gone blurry and he felt his body start to tremor - no, shake. The shake was subtle, gradually progressing down his torso, but then his hand twitched unnaturally and all hell broke loose.
“BABY!”
He heard someone shout, though his jumbled brain couldn’t decipher whose voice it was. There was panic in that voice - the same panic that surged through his body. But why were they scared? Were they experiencing the same physical shutdown? Was it Gwi-Ma? Was Gwi-Ma back?
Baby felt his legs give out as his eyes rolled back into his head. He felt arms catch him before he fully hit the ground, but despite the embrace his head snapped back and cracked against the hard wooden floor. He registered pain flooding his skull before his body completely betrayed him.
Darkness overtook his line of vision, and Baby had no choice but to embrace it. The array of voices above him tapered out into a barely audible hum, and Baby suddenly knew no more.