Whispers of a siren
Title: Whispers of a siren
Pairing(s): Chanyeol/Baekhyun
Rating: pg-13
Genre: fluff, fantasy, romance, siren!Baekhyun
Length: 1.9k words
Summary: And at that moment, Chanyeol realized that the Sirens had a more fatal weapon than their song, namely their silence. And though admittedly such a thing never happened, it is still conceivable that someone might possibly have escaped from their singing; but from their silence certainly never.
Warnings:
Author's Note:
Throughout hundreds of years it had been a custom for young men to be sent out in the wilderness to survive on their own for two months, as soon as the men turned eighteen.
On the men’s eighteenth birthday the town would throw them a ceremony party, in which they would receive their first jade pendant, cut out in their family’s official animal. Jades were known to protect, and to keep evil creatures at bay, and such qualities were valued for the young men who had to face many things out in the wilderness.
The wilderness surrounding Chanyeol’s village was especially known as the home for the most cruel and vicious of Sirens. But the power of the Jade would keep the young men out of the Sirens’ claws, in most cases.
There were still stories about young men who were lured into the traps of the skillful seductresses. Men who were pulled into the water, some drowned, but most speared on sharp rocks, for everyone to know how powerful each Siren was. Some of the most monstrous Sirens lived of human meat, of the blood of their victims.
And so the young men were taught through their whole lives, to stay far away from Sirens.
And Chanyeol surely planned to do so.
It was late autumn when Chanyeol turned eighteen and received his first jade pendant in the cut of a phoenix. He felt ready, more than many did, and the whole village had no doubt than he would return home - that he would win in the battle against the wilderness.
The parting between Chanyeol and his family was quite easy because of that. He left with the promise of returning.
And surely as predicted, Chanyeol had an easy time surviving even as a whole week passed. A whole week which was spent in comfort - as much comfort as the wilderness provided - and with deep thoughts.
Chanyeol had always been a dreamer. Even though he was quite intelligent, he had the heart of an adventurer. And soon, the comfort of what he had created in the wilderness became boring. He wanted excitement, but in his head he could hear the continuing voices of his parents and the elders of the village, telling him not to stray off too much from his path, telling him about how dangerous it could be out there.
But also, Chanyeol had never been very good at following orders.
So after a week spent in comfort, he wandered further into the no-man’s land with his dagger clutched tightly in his hand, and his sword secured in his belt. He was adventurous, yes, but he didn’t want to take any chances. Who knew what was hiding out there?
He met nothing, however. As the sun slowly disappeared in the horizon, and as his legs grew tired, danger was still to show. He didn’t hesitate before setting up his camp nearby, just for the night, as the area seemed peaceful. Even more peaceful did he feel when he fell asleep to the calming sound of water in the distance.
Looking back, it may not have been the brightest idea Chanyeol have ever had. But Chanyeol didn’t realize that before he woke up and he ended up staring into a pair of bright yellow eyes. He reacted quickly, sitting up while grasping his jade pendant in his left hand, while the right one grasped the knife that had been placed on the ground beside him.
However, the creature in front of him didn’t get ready to attack in any way. It kept its distance - probably because of the jade around Chanyeol’s neck - but its eyes were wide with curiosity.
It was clear that it was a Siren in front of Chanyeol. Its hair was still wet, fresh from where it had just been in the water, and down its shoulders, arms, chest and legs were dark feathers - feathers which despite their darkness still seemed to shine with a golden hue. Where the feathers didn’t cover was patches of pale skin, and on its head was a golden headpiece which was matched with the shining golden jewelry covering the creature’s arm and neck.
Sharp knifelike fangs were shown through the parting of lips which were colored a pale pink, and though this creature was known as a deadly murderer, Chanyeol felt more captivated by this creature than afraid.
It was surely more beautiful than any woman he had ever seen - and yet it was also more handsome than any man he had ever seen. It sounded like a weird combination, really, but it seemed to describe eerie - and yet ethereal - being in front of him.
It felt as if he reached out to the beautiful creature in front of him, it would simply disappear into thin air. Or, more realistically, he would probably have his arm bitten off. Neither one sounded extremely pleasing, so he decided not to.
The creature seemed to have the same inner battle, and it looked so close to decide to reach out to Chanyeol, until its gaze fell onto the jade around the male’s neck, and it decided also to not reach out.
There they sat, just staring at each other with burning curiosity.
Until Chanyeol decided that enough was enough. Since the creature didn’t seem unfriendly in any kind of way, he decided he might as well continue his daily tasks. And so he did. Even though the beautiful bright yellow eyes that followed him were awfully distracting, he managed to make a fire and dig out the left-over deer meat he had packaged carefully from the other day.
He prepared the meat thoroughly, occasionally casting glances at the curious Siren, who had as time passed moved closer to the fire - closer to Chanyeol.
Chanyeol had earlier decided that if the creature wanted to kill him, he would have done so a long time ago. So he didn’t see the beautiful being as much of a threat, which some may argue, could be quite a stupid decision, But after all, Chanyeol had not been known to make the wisest decisions.
But when the meat had finished cooking and Chanyeol prepared to eat, the eyes on him felt as heavy as ever before.
Dark eyes met now amber ones, and it made Chanyeol swallow thickly. He looked down at is meat, before realizing why the Siren was now eyeing him with such intensity.
He took some of the cooked meat, put it on a plate and slid it carefully towards the creature, before pulling back. Sirens ate meat, right?
They did apparently, as the creature smiled widely - which made it looks strangely beautiful, despite the fangs - before devouring the meat. Though it ate kind of like a wild animal, it looked surprisingly lithe in its movements. It fascinated Chanyeol to no end. And as the day passed, the Siren stayed by his side.
He had almost gotten used to the other’s presence, when suddenly, as the dark swallowed the forest, the Siren seemed to disappear so sudden, that Chanyeol questioned himself if it had even been there in the first place.
It seemed that he hadn’t imagined it all, when he woke up the next morning with a pile of freshly caught fish almost right in front of his face, a grinning Siren sitting behind it.
Obviously, Chanyeol was surprised by the sudden gesture. But he didn’t complain about receiving free
food.
And so, he ended up cooking the fish over the fire for him and the Siren.
Days passed on like this. The Siren disappearing at night and appearing again with fish in the morning, for itself and Chanyeol to eat.
Chanyeol had never stayed in one place for so long, it was dangerous staying for too long in a place like this, but he couldn’t get himself to break the comfortable daily rhythm he had with the creature. But though it was comfortable, Chanyeol somehow longed for more.
He was truly captivated by everything the Siren did. It was clear that the Siren was a monster, with those sharp fangs and shining yellow eyes - not to forget those dark feathers, but somehow as time passed, Chanyeol saw past all that.
It was as if he came to know the feeling of the creature’s soul, that he became trusting towards it. Again, another stupid decision, and Chanyeol decided that since he was already so deep into bad decisions, he might as well continue.
So after their shared dinner that night, which of course had consisted of fish, Chanyeol sat up straight with his gaze set on the Siren. The creature seemed confused - but as curious as always - as Chanyeol reached behind his own neck, to open the chain that kept the jade pendant properly secured around his neck. He took it off for the first time in almost a month, and put it down on the patch of grass a few feet away.
When the Siren had realized what Chanyeol had done, it eyed him with eyes full of confusing emotions, before oh, it blossomed into bright emotions of happiness, its eyes turning into the palest yellow it had ever been.
The creature crept closer, and for a moment Chanyeol may have feared for his life, especially as soon as he saw how sharp those fangs really were.
But Chanyeol’s fears were soon put to an end, as all the creature seemed to want to do, was touch Chanyeol. If the gentle dance of fingertips against his neck and collarbone - where the jade pendant had been - could be called touching.
The Siren seemed to be extra careful with its touches, as if it was afraid of hurting Chanyeol, and it left the human puzzled. How could a creature as gentle and beautiful, be as cruel a monster as the Sirens in the tales that Chanyeol had been told?
“Mate.”
Chanyeol blinked dumbly. “What?”
The Siren spoke no more, before connecting their lips.
Even if Chanyeol had intended pull away, it had turned out to be more difficult with the Siren climbing into his lap. All will to complain disappeared completely, and he found his hands resting on the creature’s hips, fingers digging into the soft feathers.
That night they made love under the stars.
And at that moment, Chanyeol realized that the Sirens had a more fatal weapon than their song, namely their silence. And though admittedly such a thing never happened, it is still conceivable that someone might possibly have escaped from their singing; but from their silence certainly never.
He had fallen for a Siren through its silence.
Days passed like that, with Chanyeol being head-over-heels for a monster, who apparently had a soft spot for the human. And those days turned into a month, and soon neared that day where Chanyeol was to return home from the wilderness, the day he had to leave the Siren behind.
Chanyeol wasn’t sure if the Siren had any knowledge about such things as human traditions, but it seemed to sense that something was nearing - something that could take its human away. It made the Siren desperate, and Chanyeol clearly noticed it.
The creature had always been clingy, but those last days Chanyeol had in the wilderness, Chanyeol barely had a second to himself. He didn’t mind the attention one bit, but the closer the Siren was - the more passionate lovemaking they had - the thought of returning home, made Chanyeol weary.
And as the day came of his departure, he made his probably most stupid decision yet.