Only Human 20/33
Title: Only Human
Pairings: MinSu, YunChun, Kangin/Kyuhyun
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Changmin suspects the only place in the world where demons and humans live in peace is in danger, but apart from Heechul he is the only one. He is also the only demon to openly declare his love for a human slave.
Warnings: Supernatural, Angst
Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Not even the power to make people orgasm just by running my fingertips over their skin for a few seconds. I do in my mind though.
For cerinityks ♥
Poster by markieyumeutau ♥
“Changmin! Changmin, wake up, damn it!”
Changmin was vaguely aware of someone slapping his face, but also of the fact that it probably should have hurt more. His entire body was numb, he couldn’t even really feel it, was he dead?
“Give him more, I can’t feel energy in him at all.”
Was that Yunho’s voice?
“Do you think I don’t know that?! And I am, but he has to wake up and take Taemin’s. This is not enough.”
That was definitely Heechul.
Changmin could now feel a hand on his shoulder and he started to get back the feeling in his body from there. The hand was giving him energy. He needed energy so badly. More.
Energy. Soon there was only one thing he could think of. The voices drowned in the hunger that raged through his entire being, his survival instinct kicking in.
And then, not paying attention to the hands shaking his shoulders and slapping him again, he felt a weight on his stomach, a body, someone was straddling him, someone full of pure energy.
He tried to move a hand and the voices got louder, but he still didn’t listen to them. His hand was already where he wanted it to be. The human was holding it against his chest.
Changmin gasped and his eyes flew open. He was finally able to latch onto that energy, to pull it in, and he did.
The gap he felt inside of him slowly filled, but long before it was full strong hands grabbed his wrists and pinned them down. The human on top of him landed his chest like a dead weight.
“That’s enough for now, don’t kill him,” Heechul said. He lifted the unconscious body off Changmin and carried it away.
It took Changmin a while to calm himself down. He was still hungry, but it had become a somewhat bearable kind of hunger, and now that his mind was waking up, he started to realise what was happening. He also noticed Yunho yelling at him.
“What the hell, Changmin?! You can’t just go and die on us! Do you have any idea what-”
Changmin closed his eyes, trying to think, and immediately Yunho’s voice changed and he hovered over him, shaking his shoulders. “No, don’t, don’t close your eyes again.”
Changmin shook his head. He wasn’t so tired anymore that he couldn’t stay awake. “I’m fine.”
He noticed that he was lying on a bed when he felt Yunho sit back down on the edge of it. “Don’t.. scare me like that.”
Changmin would have been touched that Yunho cared about him that much, but that wasn’t the first thing on his mind once it started to work again.
He shot up. “Junsu!”
Yunho sighed and pushed him back down. “They left. Heechul’s plan worked. Nothing indicates that they were discovered.”
Changmin let out the breath he’d been holding and looked around.
Heechul had placed Taemin on a bed to his left and Yoochun was on his right, watching them, or watching Yunho.
There was a bandage around one of Yunho’s arms, but he didn’t seem badly wounded, so Changmin didn’t mention it. Yunho hated when he’d been too slow to avoid getting hit by an attack. Changmin was glad that he'd apparently made it back alive.
Heechul came back to them. He didn’t look very happy. “What happened? Explain to me why we came back from a long day of fighting to keep you safe to find you on the floor, drained of all your energy and as close to death as you can get.”
Changmin winced. “I gave it to Junsu.”
It had been stupid to give away too much and then use what he had left to convince Junsu that he was fine, but he’d been so worried. And it might help Junsu. That was what mattered most.
Heechul and Yunho were quiet for a while.
“You gave away all your energy, yourself?” Heechul asked. Changmin nodded.
Heechul sighed. “When I set you up with a human warrior to learn more about them I never meant for you to fall this badly in love.”
Changmin glared at him. Heechul raised his hands in defence. “Hey, I didn’t mean that in a bad way, I mean, I like Junsu, I’m happy for you, but this won’t be the last time you hurt because of him. I feel responsible.”
Yunho stood up from the bed and shot Changmin a look of disbelief, shaking his head. “You moron. Next time I find you unconscious on the floor I’m won't even bother to worry about you.”
For some reason that made Changmin angry. They made it sound like caring for Junsu was a bad thing. He sat up and glared at Yunho.
“What else can I do?! You’re making me stay here and wait. What do I need energy for? What would you do if it were you in my place and Yoochun out there?”
Yunho’s face hardened. “This isn’t about me, this is about you being an idiot.” He made a quick movement with his arms to emphasise his words, and immediately his face contorted in pain.
Changmin held back his retort and remembered that Yunho had fought hard today, to help Junsu and the others.
Yoochun stepped out of bed and was next to Yunho in a few seconds, worry etched on his face. He reached out to touch Yunho’s shoulder.
Yunho harshly pushed his hand away. “I told you, I’m fine! Can’t you just believe me? Let it go, and stay in bed!”
Hurt flashed over Yoochun’s face, but in the next second he hid it and lowered his head. “I’m sorry, master.”
Yunho opened his mouth to say something, but in the end only a sound of frustration came out and he turned around and left the room.
Yoochun went back to his bed and slid under the blanket, turning his back to them.
“What’s wrong with him?” Changmin asked. He was a bit shocked by Yunho’s outburst, and he hoped that he wasn’t the only cause of it. He felt sorry for Yoochun.
Heechul sat down next to him and held a hand above his chest to read his energy. “How do you feel?”
“Fine, but-”
“People died today, Changmin,” Heechul said. “And at one point when managing the shield became almost impossible, the enemy came very close to entering the city. Remember that Yunho has never been part of such a serious fight before, and he must have worried.” Heechul’s eyes rested on Yoochun’s back for a moment.
“And when we came back, counting our losses and feeling exhausted, he was the one to find you. He thought you were dead.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you..”
Heechul sighed. “You need more energy. Taemin has to rest, I’ll go get someone else.”
And then Changmin realised that the energy in his body wasn’t Junsu’s.
He felt horrible.
It wasn’t just that it made Junsu seem that much further away, he also felt like he’d cheated on him, even if it hadn’t been by choice.
“No. Don’t. I don’t need more.”
“Yes you do, you’re still weak.”
“I don’t want it.”
Heechul looked at him. “So now you’re going to starve yourself? Way to thank us for saving your life. And I know what happened last time you did that. Didn’t you almost kill Junsu? Who do you want it to be this time? Yoochun? Yunho will never forgive you.”
Changmin clenched his teeth.
“Look, I know you’re- ...no.” Heechul suddenly cut himself off.
“I’m sorry.”
Changmin had expected another lecture on how caring for Junsu too much was a bad thing. He was a bit taken aback by how serious Heechul sounded when he apologised.
“.. what for?”
Heechul turned around. “I can’t, I can’t tell you to stop your feelings for Junsu from controlling your life. I’m not the right person.”
Heechul had said something like before, about not being qualified to reprimand Changmin for being blinded by love.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t stop your father from sending him away,” Heechul continued. “I tried, I really did.”
Changmin had felt like punching Heechul for days because of how much he didn’t seem to care about his feelings at all, and now it turned out that he did? He always had?
Heechul wanted to say more, but at that moment the door opened and the king stormed in.
“Where is my son?!” He looked around and as soon as his eyes fell on Heechul and Changmin he ran to the bed. He was actually out of breath.
“I heard you were.. What happened?.. Are you okay? Who did this?!”
Changmin really didn’t want to talk to his father right now, but since he seemed worried, this was a perfect opportunity to show him how he felt.
“No, I’m not okay. Why? Because half of my soul got sent out into battle and if it doesn’t come back to me I’ll never be complete again, which is worse than dying, although I might do that too. Who did this? You.”
Changmin watched his father’s face twitch in anger, but he didn’t miss the little glimpse of doubt that flashed over it. He sincerely hoped he had made the man feel really guilty.
The king turned to Heechul. “Is he in danger of dying?”
“Not right now, sire.”
“Make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.” The king turned around and walked away.
Changmin glared at his father’s back until he disappeared. He wrapped his fingers around Junsu’s moon heart.
It was all he had left right now. A bit of Junsu’s energy locked inside a small stone. The idea of this being Junsu’s reflection that always stayed at his side was nice, but right now it wasn’t anywhere near enough.
Heechul looked at him and opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by a sob, very soft but heartbreaking.
They both turned their heads towards Yoochun and Changmin realised that Yunho still wasn’t back yet. He should have had plenty of time to calm down.
As if he’d heard his thoughts Yunho opened the door and walked in not a second later. He very slowly made his way to Yoochun’s bed and sat on the edge of it.
“Yoochun?”
Yoochun’s shoulders shook. He was probably biting his lip to keep another sound from escaping.
Yunho noticed and immediately leaned over him. “Yoochun, I’m so sorry.” He pushed the blanket down and carefully pulled Yoochun’s body into his arms. “I didn’t mean to yell at you. Forgive me?”
Yoochun was breathing in gasps and clutched at Yunho’s chest. Crying had probably hurt him and Yunho stroked his hair and whispered words against his cheek to pull him through it as his body slowly calmed down.
Changmin wondered how much of this Yunho would disappear once Yoochun’s body would be completely healed. Maybe he’d always stay like this on the inside.
A dull ache spread through Changmin’s heart as he watched them together. Even if he tried not to be jealous, they reminded him of Junsu. Because he had seen it, this sweet side that had been hidden inside Yunho all along.
Junsu had also seen something in Heechul. He had always said that Heechul was jealous of them, and a long time ago he’d said something about Heechul being sad but hiding it.
Changmin turned to Heechul. “What are you hiding?”
Heechul’s eyes widened. “What do you mean.”
The more Changmin thought about it, the more he remembered of Heechul’s strange behaviour lately. “Exactly as I say. I want to know what you’re hiding from us.”
Heechul was silent for a while, just staring at him, and then he nodded. “I guess that’s fair at a time like this.”
Changmin wasn’t even surprised that Heechul had apparently really hidden something big from him. His theory about their past, the books with ancient techniques.. it turned out he’d been holding back a lot of things.
“Can you stand?” Heechul asked.
Changmin scoffed and swung his legs off the bed. He was shocked when he actually swayed a bit as he stood up, but he managed to stay upright.
“Told you, you need more energy.”
“Shut up.”
Yunho looked up from the sleeping Yoochun in his arms. Apparently he hadn’t been paying attention to what they were saying at all because he said: “If you’re going to look for Kangin, you won’t find him.”
“We weren’t going to,” Changmin said. He had no idea what they were going to find though. He motioned for Heechul to lead the way.
“Wait,” he suddenly realised what Yunho had said. “What? Why won’t we find him?”
“He left,” Yunho said. “He was supposed to stay inside the city but he left with the humans instead, I just heard.”
Heechul shook his head and muttered something, but Changmin said: “Finally. At least he’s done something to get close to Kyuhyun.”
He would have done the same, exactly the same, if only they’d let him.
“Do you want to know or not?” Heechul asked.
Changmin followed him through the palace to his library, and in the third room stacked with books Heechul suddenly stopped.
“You can’t tell anyone about this, or show them, or ever come here alone. Promise me that.”
Changmin was getting more and more curious with how serious Heechul sounded. He had no idea what he was about to find, no idea at all. Junsu might have been able to make a guess, not him.
This was probably an easy promise to keep except for one detail. “Can I tell Junsu about it?”
Heechul looked at him with pity as Changmin realised that Junsu wasn’t here right after he’d asked that.
“Yes, you can tell Junsu when he comes back.”
Changmin swallowed and nodded. “I promise.”
Heechul turned towards a bookshelf that was standing against the wall and shot a controlled burst of energy at it. None of the books fell out, but the entire shelf moved, like a heavy door, to reveal a staircase.
Changmin stared at it for a while and then at Heechul.
“It’s not the best secret door,” Heechul said, “but it’s safe enough as I will always be near it and no one even knows there’s anything here.”
Changmin still didn’t know what to expect, but he now had an image in his head of some kind of treasure buried deep under the palace.
“Does this.. have something to do with why you wanted the humans to come to this side of the wall?”
Heechul winced. “That was too selfish, I know.”
Changmin looked at him. “What is down there that is so incredibly valuable to you?”
Heechul closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as if to calm himself, and motioned for Changmin to follow him.
Changmin would have expected a stone staircase leading down into the ground to be dark, pitch black, but a bright light shone in this one, and it came from below.
The lower they got the stronger the light. It had a white glow to it that reminded Changmin of something and right when he remembered, they were inside the room it came from.
The room itself looked plain, normal, but in its centre there was an interesting collection of white stones, the same as the one hanging around his neck.
They weren’t small like in his necklace but big, and shaped like a bed.
A man was lying there. He could have been dead, but he looked too healthy for that. Fast asleep was Changmin’s best guess.
When he got used to the glow of the stones, Changmin started to notice other things. Things like the man’s extraordinary beauty. He looked more like a prince than Changmin would ever feel. And then there was the energy vibrating through the room. It had to have a powerful source.
It wasn’t the man. Changmin noticed that he couldn’t feel his energy at all, like something was blocking him. Or maybe the man was dead after all.
He looked at Heechul and waited for an explanation.
Heechul’s eyes were fixed on the sleeping man. His expression had changed to a pained one, one Changmin had never seen before.
“Heechul?”
Heechul snapped out of it and turned to face him, his back to the centre of the room. When he spoke he sounded more serious than ever.
“I know what it feels like to fall in love with a human and to wish they could grow old with you, what it feels like to be prepared to do anything to make that happen. I know that better than anyone else.”
Changmin would need time to process that information; the fact that the man on the stone bed was Heechul’s lover, and a human, and all the questions that came with that.
But one question definitely stood out from the rest and he had to ask it immediately, even though he feared he already knew the answer.
“Have you found a way?”
Heechul’s laugh almost scared him. “It depends,” Heechul said, his voice bitter, “what would you count as a success?”
“If a human reaches an higher age than he normally would?” Changmin said.
Heechul looked over his shoulder and then turned his head back and stared into the distance. “Technically, Jaejoong is almost 250 years old,” he said.
Changmin’s eyes widened.
“But,” Heechul added. “He hasn’t been awake for well over two centuries.”
Chapter 21
Chapter 19 - Chapter 18 - Chapter 17 - Chapter 16 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 14 - Chapter 13 - Chapter 12 - Chapter 11
Chapter 10 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 1
Prologue
Pairings: MinSu, YunChun, Kangin/Kyuhyun
Rating: NC-17
Summary: Changmin suspects the only place in the world where demons and humans live in peace is in danger, but apart from Heechul he is the only one. He is also the only demon to openly declare his love for a human slave.
Warnings: Supernatural, Angst
Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Not even the power to make people orgasm just by running my fingertips over their skin for a few seconds. I do in my mind though.
For cerinityks ♥
Poster by markieyumeutau ♥
“Changmin! Changmin, wake up, damn it!”
Changmin was vaguely aware of someone slapping his face, but also of the fact that it probably should have hurt more. His entire body was numb, he couldn’t even really feel it, was he dead?
“Give him more, I can’t feel energy in him at all.”
Was that Yunho’s voice?
“Do you think I don’t know that?! And I am, but he has to wake up and take Taemin’s. This is not enough.”
That was definitely Heechul.
Changmin could now feel a hand on his shoulder and he started to get back the feeling in his body from there. The hand was giving him energy. He needed energy so badly. More.
Energy. Soon there was only one thing he could think of. The voices drowned in the hunger that raged through his entire being, his survival instinct kicking in.
And then, not paying attention to the hands shaking his shoulders and slapping him again, he felt a weight on his stomach, a body, someone was straddling him, someone full of pure energy.
He tried to move a hand and the voices got louder, but he still didn’t listen to them. His hand was already where he wanted it to be. The human was holding it against his chest.
Changmin gasped and his eyes flew open. He was finally able to latch onto that energy, to pull it in, and he did.
The gap he felt inside of him slowly filled, but long before it was full strong hands grabbed his wrists and pinned them down. The human on top of him landed his chest like a dead weight.
“That’s enough for now, don’t kill him,” Heechul said. He lifted the unconscious body off Changmin and carried it away.
It took Changmin a while to calm himself down. He was still hungry, but it had become a somewhat bearable kind of hunger, and now that his mind was waking up, he started to realise what was happening. He also noticed Yunho yelling at him.
“What the hell, Changmin?! You can’t just go and die on us! Do you have any idea what-”
Changmin closed his eyes, trying to think, and immediately Yunho’s voice changed and he hovered over him, shaking his shoulders. “No, don’t, don’t close your eyes again.”
Changmin shook his head. He wasn’t so tired anymore that he couldn’t stay awake. “I’m fine.”
He noticed that he was lying on a bed when he felt Yunho sit back down on the edge of it. “Don’t.. scare me like that.”
Changmin would have been touched that Yunho cared about him that much, but that wasn’t the first thing on his mind once it started to work again.
He shot up. “Junsu!”
Yunho sighed and pushed him back down. “They left. Heechul’s plan worked. Nothing indicates that they were discovered.”
Changmin let out the breath he’d been holding and looked around.
Heechul had placed Taemin on a bed to his left and Yoochun was on his right, watching them, or watching Yunho.
There was a bandage around one of Yunho’s arms, but he didn’t seem badly wounded, so Changmin didn’t mention it. Yunho hated when he’d been too slow to avoid getting hit by an attack. Changmin was glad that he'd apparently made it back alive.
Heechul came back to them. He didn’t look very happy. “What happened? Explain to me why we came back from a long day of fighting to keep you safe to find you on the floor, drained of all your energy and as close to death as you can get.”
Changmin winced. “I gave it to Junsu.”
It had been stupid to give away too much and then use what he had left to convince Junsu that he was fine, but he’d been so worried. And it might help Junsu. That was what mattered most.
Heechul and Yunho were quiet for a while.
“You gave away all your energy, yourself?” Heechul asked. Changmin nodded.
Heechul sighed. “When I set you up with a human warrior to learn more about them I never meant for you to fall this badly in love.”
Changmin glared at him. Heechul raised his hands in defence. “Hey, I didn’t mean that in a bad way, I mean, I like Junsu, I’m happy for you, but this won’t be the last time you hurt because of him. I feel responsible.”
Yunho stood up from the bed and shot Changmin a look of disbelief, shaking his head. “You moron. Next time I find you unconscious on the floor I’m won't even bother to worry about you.”
For some reason that made Changmin angry. They made it sound like caring for Junsu was a bad thing. He sat up and glared at Yunho.
“What else can I do?! You’re making me stay here and wait. What do I need energy for? What would you do if it were you in my place and Yoochun out there?”
Yunho’s face hardened. “This isn’t about me, this is about you being an idiot.” He made a quick movement with his arms to emphasise his words, and immediately his face contorted in pain.
Changmin held back his retort and remembered that Yunho had fought hard today, to help Junsu and the others.
Yoochun stepped out of bed and was next to Yunho in a few seconds, worry etched on his face. He reached out to touch Yunho’s shoulder.
Yunho harshly pushed his hand away. “I told you, I’m fine! Can’t you just believe me? Let it go, and stay in bed!”
Hurt flashed over Yoochun’s face, but in the next second he hid it and lowered his head. “I’m sorry, master.”
Yunho opened his mouth to say something, but in the end only a sound of frustration came out and he turned around and left the room.
Yoochun went back to his bed and slid under the blanket, turning his back to them.
“What’s wrong with him?” Changmin asked. He was a bit shocked by Yunho’s outburst, and he hoped that he wasn’t the only cause of it. He felt sorry for Yoochun.
Heechul sat down next to him and held a hand above his chest to read his energy. “How do you feel?”
“Fine, but-”
“People died today, Changmin,” Heechul said. “And at one point when managing the shield became almost impossible, the enemy came very close to entering the city. Remember that Yunho has never been part of such a serious fight before, and he must have worried.” Heechul’s eyes rested on Yoochun’s back for a moment.
“And when we came back, counting our losses and feeling exhausted, he was the one to find you. He thought you were dead.”
“I’m sorry for worrying you..”
Heechul sighed. “You need more energy. Taemin has to rest, I’ll go get someone else.”
And then Changmin realised that the energy in his body wasn’t Junsu’s.
He felt horrible.
It wasn’t just that it made Junsu seem that much further away, he also felt like he’d cheated on him, even if it hadn’t been by choice.
“No. Don’t. I don’t need more.”
“Yes you do, you’re still weak.”
“I don’t want it.”
Heechul looked at him. “So now you’re going to starve yourself? Way to thank us for saving your life. And I know what happened last time you did that. Didn’t you almost kill Junsu? Who do you want it to be this time? Yoochun? Yunho will never forgive you.”
Changmin clenched his teeth.
“Look, I know you’re- ...no.” Heechul suddenly cut himself off.
“I’m sorry.”
Changmin had expected another lecture on how caring for Junsu too much was a bad thing. He was a bit taken aback by how serious Heechul sounded when he apologised.
“.. what for?”
Heechul turned around. “I can’t, I can’t tell you to stop your feelings for Junsu from controlling your life. I’m not the right person.”
Heechul had said something like before, about not being qualified to reprimand Changmin for being blinded by love.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t stop your father from sending him away,” Heechul continued. “I tried, I really did.”
Changmin had felt like punching Heechul for days because of how much he didn’t seem to care about his feelings at all, and now it turned out that he did? He always had?
Heechul wanted to say more, but at that moment the door opened and the king stormed in.
“Where is my son?!” He looked around and as soon as his eyes fell on Heechul and Changmin he ran to the bed. He was actually out of breath.
“I heard you were.. What happened?.. Are you okay? Who did this?!”
Changmin really didn’t want to talk to his father right now, but since he seemed worried, this was a perfect opportunity to show him how he felt.
“No, I’m not okay. Why? Because half of my soul got sent out into battle and if it doesn’t come back to me I’ll never be complete again, which is worse than dying, although I might do that too. Who did this? You.”
Changmin watched his father’s face twitch in anger, but he didn’t miss the little glimpse of doubt that flashed over it. He sincerely hoped he had made the man feel really guilty.
The king turned to Heechul. “Is he in danger of dying?”
“Not right now, sire.”
“Make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid.” The king turned around and walked away.
Changmin glared at his father’s back until he disappeared. He wrapped his fingers around Junsu’s moon heart.
It was all he had left right now. A bit of Junsu’s energy locked inside a small stone. The idea of this being Junsu’s reflection that always stayed at his side was nice, but right now it wasn’t anywhere near enough.
Heechul looked at him and opened his mouth to say something, but he was interrupted by a sob, very soft but heartbreaking.
They both turned their heads towards Yoochun and Changmin realised that Yunho still wasn’t back yet. He should have had plenty of time to calm down.
As if he’d heard his thoughts Yunho opened the door and walked in not a second later. He very slowly made his way to Yoochun’s bed and sat on the edge of it.
“Yoochun?”
Yoochun’s shoulders shook. He was probably biting his lip to keep another sound from escaping.
Yunho noticed and immediately leaned over him. “Yoochun, I’m so sorry.” He pushed the blanket down and carefully pulled Yoochun’s body into his arms. “I didn’t mean to yell at you. Forgive me?”
Yoochun was breathing in gasps and clutched at Yunho’s chest. Crying had probably hurt him and Yunho stroked his hair and whispered words against his cheek to pull him through it as his body slowly calmed down.
Changmin wondered how much of this Yunho would disappear once Yoochun’s body would be completely healed. Maybe he’d always stay like this on the inside.
A dull ache spread through Changmin’s heart as he watched them together. Even if he tried not to be jealous, they reminded him of Junsu. Because he had seen it, this sweet side that had been hidden inside Yunho all along.
Junsu had also seen something in Heechul. He had always said that Heechul was jealous of them, and a long time ago he’d said something about Heechul being sad but hiding it.
Changmin turned to Heechul. “What are you hiding?”
Heechul’s eyes widened. “What do you mean.”
The more Changmin thought about it, the more he remembered of Heechul’s strange behaviour lately. “Exactly as I say. I want to know what you’re hiding from us.”
Heechul was silent for a while, just staring at him, and then he nodded. “I guess that’s fair at a time like this.”
Changmin wasn’t even surprised that Heechul had apparently really hidden something big from him. His theory about their past, the books with ancient techniques.. it turned out he’d been holding back a lot of things.
“Can you stand?” Heechul asked.
Changmin scoffed and swung his legs off the bed. He was shocked when he actually swayed a bit as he stood up, but he managed to stay upright.
“Told you, you need more energy.”
“Shut up.”
Yunho looked up from the sleeping Yoochun in his arms. Apparently he hadn’t been paying attention to what they were saying at all because he said: “If you’re going to look for Kangin, you won’t find him.”
“We weren’t going to,” Changmin said. He had no idea what they were going to find though. He motioned for Heechul to lead the way.
“Wait,” he suddenly realised what Yunho had said. “What? Why won’t we find him?”
“He left,” Yunho said. “He was supposed to stay inside the city but he left with the humans instead, I just heard.”
Heechul shook his head and muttered something, but Changmin said: “Finally. At least he’s done something to get close to Kyuhyun.”
He would have done the same, exactly the same, if only they’d let him.
“Do you want to know or not?” Heechul asked.
Changmin followed him through the palace to his library, and in the third room stacked with books Heechul suddenly stopped.
“You can’t tell anyone about this, or show them, or ever come here alone. Promise me that.”
Changmin was getting more and more curious with how serious Heechul sounded. He had no idea what he was about to find, no idea at all. Junsu might have been able to make a guess, not him.
This was probably an easy promise to keep except for one detail. “Can I tell Junsu about it?”
Heechul looked at him with pity as Changmin realised that Junsu wasn’t here right after he’d asked that.
“Yes, you can tell Junsu when he comes back.”
Changmin swallowed and nodded. “I promise.”
Heechul turned towards a bookshelf that was standing against the wall and shot a controlled burst of energy at it. None of the books fell out, but the entire shelf moved, like a heavy door, to reveal a staircase.
Changmin stared at it for a while and then at Heechul.
“It’s not the best secret door,” Heechul said, “but it’s safe enough as I will always be near it and no one even knows there’s anything here.”
Changmin still didn’t know what to expect, but he now had an image in his head of some kind of treasure buried deep under the palace.
“Does this.. have something to do with why you wanted the humans to come to this side of the wall?”
Heechul winced. “That was too selfish, I know.”
Changmin looked at him. “What is down there that is so incredibly valuable to you?”
Heechul closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as if to calm himself, and motioned for Changmin to follow him.
Changmin would have expected a stone staircase leading down into the ground to be dark, pitch black, but a bright light shone in this one, and it came from below.
The lower they got the stronger the light. It had a white glow to it that reminded Changmin of something and right when he remembered, they were inside the room it came from.
The room itself looked plain, normal, but in its centre there was an interesting collection of white stones, the same as the one hanging around his neck.
They weren’t small like in his necklace but big, and shaped like a bed.
A man was lying there. He could have been dead, but he looked too healthy for that. Fast asleep was Changmin’s best guess.
When he got used to the glow of the stones, Changmin started to notice other things. Things like the man’s extraordinary beauty. He looked more like a prince than Changmin would ever feel. And then there was the energy vibrating through the room. It had to have a powerful source.
It wasn’t the man. Changmin noticed that he couldn’t feel his energy at all, like something was blocking him. Or maybe the man was dead after all.
He looked at Heechul and waited for an explanation.
Heechul’s eyes were fixed on the sleeping man. His expression had changed to a pained one, one Changmin had never seen before.
“Heechul?”
Heechul snapped out of it and turned to face him, his back to the centre of the room. When he spoke he sounded more serious than ever.
“I know what it feels like to fall in love with a human and to wish they could grow old with you, what it feels like to be prepared to do anything to make that happen. I know that better than anyone else.”
Changmin would need time to process that information; the fact that the man on the stone bed was Heechul’s lover, and a human, and all the questions that came with that.
But one question definitely stood out from the rest and he had to ask it immediately, even though he feared he already knew the answer.
“Have you found a way?”
Heechul’s laugh almost scared him. “It depends,” Heechul said, his voice bitter, “what would you count as a success?”
“If a human reaches an higher age than he normally would?” Changmin said.
Heechul looked over his shoulder and then turned his head back and stared into the distance. “Technically, Jaejoong is almost 250 years old,” he said.
Changmin’s eyes widened.
“But,” Heechul added. “He hasn’t been awake for well over two centuries.”
Chapter 21
Chapter 19 - Chapter 18 - Chapter 17 - Chapter 16 - Chapter 15 - Chapter 14 - Chapter 13 - Chapter 12 - Chapter 11
Chapter 10 - Chapter 9 - Chapter 8 - Chapter 7 - Chapter 6 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 1
Prologue