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Published:
2025-04-15
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2025-09-24
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5/?
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Little Jin-Woo

Summary:

Short drabbles (stuff/?) about whatever comes to mind with Jin-Woo as the main character, of course AGERE relatted because this is self-indulgent and it helps me cope.

-THIS IS NOT A KINK-

Requests are open!!!

Notes:

Leave your requests in the comments and I will be doing the work as soon as possible!!!

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Chapter 1: What is Agere?

Chapter Text

Age regression

It refers to a mental and emotional state in which a person reverts to behaviors, thoughts, and emotions associated with an earlier stage of development. This regression can be subtle, such as acting more childlike during stressful situations, or more pronounced, such as an adult mentally returning to a childhood state.

 

The concept of age regression:

 

It is not a mental illness:

Age regression is not considered a mental illness in itself, but it can be a symptom of other conditions or a coping mechanism in response to stress.

 

It can be voluntary or involuntary:

Some individuals may seek out age regression as a form of comfort or distraction, while in other cases, it may occur involuntarily and serve as a warning sign.

 

It can appear in varying degrees:

The regression can be mild, such as occasionally adopting childish behaviors, or more extreme, like losing the ability to communicate or regressing to an infant-like state.

 

It can be useful in therapy:

In some cases, age regression is used in therapy as a way to explore past experiences and help individuals process trauma.

 

Causes and factors that may influence age regression:

 

Stress, trauma, or difficult situations: 

Age regression can be a natural response to stress or traumatic experiences, serving as a way to seek comfort or protection.

 

Mental health issues:

Certain mental health conditions, such as borderline personality disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), or schizophrenia, may be associated with age regression.

 

Family dysfunction:  

Problems in the family environment, such as abuse or neglect, can contribute to the development of regressive coping mechanisms.

 

Need for attention:

In some cases, regressive behaviors may be a way of seeking attention or care.

 

Important considerations:

 

Age regression is not the same as hypnotic regression:

Hypnotic regression is a therapeutic technique used to explore past experiences, while age regression is an emotional or behavioral response.

Age regression is NOT a kink.

Chapter 2: Not always strong.

Summary:

Little Jin-woo for the first time?!

Notes:

I'm not sorry!!! I'm gonna start posting what I already have, this might have a sequence or might not, I don't really know....

Enjoy and don't forget to leave your requests in the comment section!

Chapter Text

Ever since becoming the Shadow Monarch, Sung Jin-Woo rarely allowed himself a moment of weakness. Like seriously, not even time to properly breathe has this guy!. To the world, he was invincible. To his shadows, an absolute ruler. To himself… a machine that couldn't stop. A proper ruler... A MONARCH.

 

But lately, something felt off. Strange and... Fuzzy. There's something not quite right you see.

 

He would wake up with his mind blank, clutching his blankets tightly, a strange sense of having cried in his sleep filling him like a balloon about to pop. What's more strange ... In moments of solitude, when he could tell no one else was watching, keeping an eye on him, he felt the urge to curl up in corners, to listen to soft songs, to stop talking… as if his soul were searching for refuge in simplicity—in smallness. In... Nothing but everything.

 

What could possibly be wrong?. He doesn't know...

 

He tried to ignore it, to push it aside to the deepest parts of his brain, where you usually let the annoying voice that demands attention or wants you to do something stupid out of the blue. It works. Until it doesn't , and one night, after a brutal gate battle, everything collapses, he's done, tho... He doesn't know that YET.

 

Moon bright and shinning in the sky, everything is silent and he staggered into his apartment. Moved out of the one with his mom and sister to let them have a place away from the stink of the blood from enemies and things he might bring home. It's NOT because of injuries that he acts like this, but from emotional exhaustion. He's so done. Jin-Woo dropped his coat, sat on the floor… and didn’t move. Disconnected for real. That was it, a little switch in his brain and ... POOF.

 

Beru emerged from his shadow, his antennae trembling with concern as he tried to understand what was happening, why his liege was so plain, so ... 'Small?'

 

“Igris,” he chirped immediately to the oldest shadow, catching his attention and revealing something indeed was WRONG. “My liege is unwell!”

 

Igris appeared swiftly, the crest from his helmet swiftly moving with his movements, like a practiced dance. He approached silently, knelt in front of Jin-Woo, and watched him carefully. Jin-Woo wasn’t crying, wasn't moving, wasn't hut.... but his eyes were empty. Almost souless.

 

“My liege…” Igris said softly. As if scared the other night break at any given point if he spoke wrong to him. “What do you feel?”

 

Jin-Woo shook his head. He couldn’t explain it. How could he?. It was something he didn't know, he didn't get. Thinking hard about it, he only knew he wanted… a hug. And maybe… some praise. Why was he thinking that? It was ridiculous. Why?. How?. HELP.

 

But before he could panic and maybe a scene, freak out and hurt himself or something, Beru was already moving. Without asking, he wrapped Jin-Woo in a thick, soft blanket—like a cocoon. Making sure to keep him warm, safe... SAFE.

 

“Shhh…” He said softly, with the tone and warmth you use to talk to a frightened child. “You don’t have to talk right now, my little prince,” Beru whispered now, using a voice he never used in battle. A voice only meant for him. “Just rest. You’re safe here.”

 

Igris didn’t speak further. He sat beside them and offered his hand in silent reassurance, wanting to make it clear he was there. Jin-Woo, without knowing why, took it, holding it with his, now feeling smaller in comparison to the shadow's bigger one, hand, curling his fingers on the armor and fidgeting with it to calm his nerves. And then he felt it—an internal click. As if his whole body exhaled. As if everything was right, okay.

 

He curled up instinctively, like his mind was slipping backward—away from fights, from screams, from blood, from being the responsible one, the MONARCH. He leaned against Beru, rested his head on his shoulder, and closed his eyes, first fluttering then, as if adjusting slowly to the change, little by little, one small step at a time.

 

“I feel… small,” he whispered, like a confession. Like a secret no one else was supposed to know, to get, to understand.

 

Beru and Igris exchanged a look. They KNEW. They felt it, the connection that shared naming it clear something was different, the monarch was in a delicate state, fragile and lovable.

 

“That’s okay,” Igris said gently, almost like a murmur that wanted to be reassuring, to take a heavy burned from his shoulders. “Even kings have the right to be small”

 

Jin-Woo didn’t respond, what would he way anyways?. He didn't get it still, but it seems like his shadows dis, they knew something he didn't. For now, he would let them take care of him, he would just... Let go. And for the first time in ages, he didn’t feel like he had to hold it all together. To be strong and reliable. To be their king. He let himself be cared for. Let his mind drift to a safer place. To a content somewhere inside his mind that spoke of warmth and care, of blank and cotton candy like dreams. And in the arms of his shadows—not as the King, but as, perhaps right now, a young lad—he fell asleep. Perhaps tomorrow he could ask, but... It was too hard to think about it right now. Everything was just fine.

Chapter 3: Suspicion. Beru's theory.

Summary:

Little talk between Beru and Igris. What's the topic? Of course, theyr liege.

Notes:

Don't have much to say~ just working on stuff still, this is gonna be quite short.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

The Shadow Castle was quiet that evening. They had moved their like from the department to the secluded castle, just to ensure theyr little king was safe, protected and well taken care of. Jin-Woo was asleep, curled up under a mountain of the softest more comfortable blankets, his soft breathing echoing through the chamber like a lullaby for his guarding shadows.

 

Beru stood near the corner, perched against the wall with his arms crossed, watching the soft rise and fall of his King's chest while something seemed to be running wild and uncontrollably inside his head. A thought.

 

Igris approached in silence, his crest dancing with each movement and noticing the thoughtful posture of his comrade. Intrigued, he leaned closer, mirroring the pose with the arms crossed over his chest and discretely keeping an eye on his liege from the corner of his eye.

 

“Something on your mind, Beru?” he asked, tone soft as if to not make any sound and wake up their sleeping king.

 

Beru let out a dramatic sigh, one claw tapping his chin as if he was trying to organize everything inside his head before speaking.

 

“I have a theory,” he said, with the seriousness of a general preparing for war that he only idea after receiving a direct order from Jin-Woo himself.

 

Igris blinked, as if caught of guests for a moment before nodding, making a movement to ask him to keep going with it. “A theory?”

 

Beru nodded slowly. “Yes. I believe… our beloved King… is an age regressor.” The words left his mouth feeling strangely fitting perfectly, as if it was something they already knew but juts barely acknowledged. The elephant in the room.

 

Igris tilted his head, the crest moving win him like a soft feather. “And ...what leads you to this conclusion?”

 

Beru’s glowing eyes sparkled with intensity, the kind that someone has when they know they've got the upper hand, that know something their opponents don't.

 

“I was watching one of those human dramas. ‘Hearts of the lonely prince.’”

 

Igris blinked, flabbergasted as if that he was hearing was completely... True. He knew it was.

 

“...What?”

 

Beru lifted one claw, the one that was scratching his chin absentmindedly, as if reciting wisdom from an ancient scroll that he'd read a little while ago.

 

—In episode 17, the noble Duke's son began acting small, —Like our liege— after his mother vanished. He changed, seeking company, soft caresses, having childish attitudes and demeanor, clung to his maids, and avoided adult things with they became too much for him. The Lady Healer said he was experiencing… emotional age regression. She explained it to the Duke! It had been due to the impact of losing his beloved mother, the stressful situation pushed his brain to seek for a way to cope... Age regression wast the answer.

 

Igris narrowed his eyes, blinking owlishly as if processing the new information and adjusting it for the actual situation with his king.

 

“That’s… a drama” Igris blinked again, slower this time. “…You learned psychology from a drama?”

 

“It’s not just any drama, Igris! The signs are all there. The mood swings, more like exhaustion and blocking out emotions! his fondness for soft textures, mostly the blankets that we used to cocoon him, the way he clings to his blankets after rough battles, the way he unconsciously seeks our presence …” Beru waved a claw like a lawyer presenting evidence. “And you saw it too, he was completely out of it before I acted as if he was....”

 

“A child...”

 

Igris folded his arms, completing the sentence and finally accepting it.

 

“You're saying... our liege reverts to a childlike mental state to cope with the emotional weight of being... Our king?”

 

Beru pointed triumphantly. “Exactly! That is basically textbook ‘age regression.’ He finds comfort in safety, in being small, in seeking guidance and letting himself just ... Be. And who gives him that safety?”

 

“…Us,” Igris finished quietly, looking toward the sleeping figure and finally realizing the whole level of the issue at hand.

 

“Correct,” said Beru with a satisfied nod. “We are... his caregivers, whether he realizes it or not. We are the ones who provide the safety, the comfort, the... Love”

 

There was a long silence. Then Igris spoke again, voice low and measured.

 

“Should... we tell him?”

 

Beru smiled, shaking his head slowly as if knowing it wasn't... A sensitive topic, better handled with ultimate carefulness, a rare softness crossing his monstrous features as he glanced at Jin-Woo's sleeping features once again.

 

“No. Not yet. Let him find out about it at his own pace. We’ll just… be here. Like always. To guide and adore him like we normally do, juts.... more meaningful now, with a higher purpose, if you get me”

 

And so, with the quiet hum of shadows around them and the warmth of the blanket pile guarding their King, the two ancient warriors stood vigil—not as generals, but as guardians of the child hidden within the Monarch of Shadows.

Notes:

I want to cry, just posted this on Wattpad, (I'm honestly panicking, like fir real HAH!) you might already know who i am, i regret nothing but also regret everything, Bye~

Chapter 4: Sinking information.

Summary:

Jin-woo listens to his shadows taking, wholesome endures!

Notes:

Hi! Well .. I gotta be honest, at first I was TERRIFIED of posting this, but I'm absolutely delighted to see how this story is being appreciated! I'm so glad you guys like it.

Please leave your requests (if you've got any) in the comment section!

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

The chamber was dim and still, save for the low, rumbling hum of the shadows that kept it cloaked in perfect strangely comforting warmth.

 

Jin-Woo stirred, eyes cracking open slowly as if they'd been stuck closed forever and head juts now managing to get them to obey and see the world again.

 

He didn’t move right away—too comfortable, cocooned under what had to be at least five blankets —Beru's courtesy—, soft and warm and lavender perfumed and just heavy enough to keep his thoughts from drifting too far, from disconnecting him again. He was safe here. As he always was.

 

But then he heard voices. Familiar soft ones with hushed tones as if trying to make sure be couldn't catch in them, or maybe more as so to not wake him up.

 

Beru and Igris. Near the far wall, speaking in hushed tones are the only source of light inside hr room with the otherworldly smoke like blue glowing something clinging to their forms, they probably assumed he couldn’t hear, still asleep.

 

He turned his head slightly, eyes half-lidded, dazed and soft and innocent, listening.

 

“We are… his caregivers, whether he realizes it or not,” Beru said gently. “We are the ones who provide the safety, the comfort, the... love.”

 

Love?

 

Jin-Woo blinked.

 

There was a small pause that fit him, felt like an eternity, followed by Igris’s low voice:  

 

“Should… we tell him?”

 

Beru answered with something that made Jin-Woo’s chest ache in a way he couldn’t describe the reasons as to why.

 

“No. Not yet. Let him find out about it at his own pace… We’ll just… be here. Like always.”

 

Jin-Woo didn’t understand everything they were talking about—“caregivers,” “regressor,” —the complicated words and careful tone when talking about it—but he felt it.

 

The meaning behind it all.

 

He shifted quietly under the blankets, sat up slowly while pushing the plush comforting blankets aside, hair messy like he always gets after a night is sleep —a good one,— and eyes still soft with remains of sleep. The moment the movement reached their senses, both Beru and Igris turned sharply—but neither moved, nether acted out.

 

Jin-Woo yawned, rubbing one eye with a softness that spoke of him still feeling fuzzy in cotton like dreams and comfortable something.

 

“…Were you talking about me?” he asked, voice light but unbothered not accusing, just curious. Wondering.

 

Beru froze. Igris tensed. They panicked.

 

Before either could respond, Jin-Woo smiled—just a little, shy and soft, unusual if big for his sister—and curled the blanket tighter around his shoulders like a cape. Of course he had to take one for comfort, it was his and he needed it.

 

“It’s okay,” he said. “You don’t have to explain.”

 

The two shadows shared a glance, silent and calculating, as if trying to understand the delta of his liege's benevolence.

 

“I don’t get the ... Umm... ‘regressor’ thing,” Jin-Woo admitted with a sheepish shrug. Looking so different from the usual stoic and hard to mess with Jin-Woo “Sounds like one of those weird web articles Jin-Ah reads out loud. The one about autism and all of that... you know?.”

 

Beru looked like he might combust trying to hold in a nervous buzz, pondering, contemplating.

 

“But…” Jin-Woo looked up at them, eyes quiet but sure and safe. “I don’t need to understand everything.”

 

He reached a hand out toward them, half a gesture, half a silent reassurance, tho, he didn't know if meant for himself or for them. 

 

“Because I trust you. Both of you. Always.”

 

And that—those few simple words—hit harder than any grand declaration could have. Like an ocean wave crashing on a sand castle and bringing it to nothin. Because it was Jin-Woo, who carried kingdoms and worlds and burdens and pain without flinching, now laying it all down with soft honesty. His heart open for them and vulnerably saying ‘im here, please love me’

 

Beru stepped forward first, composing and falling to one knee like the devoted one he is, taking the offered hand between his claws like it was sacred, like a porcelain china doll's previously crafted one. 

Igris followed, kneeling at Jin-Woo’s side, placing a steady hand over his heart in salute.

 

“You honor us, my liege,” Igris said quietly.

 

“You are our light,” Beru whispered.

 

Jin-Woo chuckled, cheeks with a slightly pinkish dust. “Okay, okay, now you're both being dramatic.”

 

And for a moment, it wasn’t about kings or wars or titles.  

It was just ... him, and the two shadows who would guard him with their lives—because he trusted them enough to be small, to be vulnerable, to be his true self.

 

And they would never let that trust go unanswered

Notes:

Also... Update... Haha.. I wasn't sure if I was gonna post a chapter or not, my birdie (pollito) died a few days ago, and I was .. devastated, I actually thought about ... Stuff, and yeah... But I'm still here, this helps me cope with that too, so please enjoy and leave kudos and comments, I really appreciate all the help!

Chapter 6: Quick update

Chapter Text

Just got an actual functioning computer, I had to delete my Wattpad account, I set up a few posts before that, I'm gonna be back to posting regularly by the end of the week, I got super sick because I broke up with my boyfriend, I got drenched, ite been cold, I was so overwhelmed I had a panick attack and now the flu thinks it's funny to fuck me up, life is good, please be patient with me, in trying hahaha

 

Also I've been thinking about taking down this work, should I?

Notes:

Any questions or comments (as long as they are respectful) are welcome! I look forward to your requests or comments!