Hello! Before we actually get to the chapter, I really just wanted to let you know that reading the latest comments has... sincerely moved me to tears. All I've ever wanted was what I wrote to make an impact. I've had many friends read my work and comment on it, but I feel like, personally, it's a different kind of happiness when you get feedback from readers who don't know you personally, and I really want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart. One of the reasons that I initially had stopped working on this fic was because not only I wasn't happy with it, but I felt as though my readers weren't, and though writing should be for myself I ultimately wanted to share what I had to offer with others. In all honesty, I didn't think many people cared for this story, especially after about two years of not updating. But after reading about how my writing, my own ideas, thoughts, and feelings made you feel, I was definitely wrong (*￣∀￣) I've always wanted to write something that would impact others the way that things impact me. I wanted people to be inspired, moved, to just feel the the way that I did, and I'm just so honoured to hear that I was able to accomplish just that. 

That said ! I have a bunch of stuff that I wrote for this story that takes place after all of the current written chapters. Initially, I wasn't going to share it because I didn't think people cared, but now I definitely will!! Once all old chapters are uploaded, I will be uploading almost all of the material that I had for this story. This includes my storyline/outline (though there isn't a lot to it), writing from future parts of the story that we never got to, my ideas document, the profiles that I made for each character, moodboards, and anything else that I think is worth sharing! Again, thank you all so, so much for tuning in to this ambitious story I wrote in high school. It still means a lot to me to this day, and I hope to see you in the last chapters where I dump all of my old, abandoned writings on you (*´∀`)

In addition to that, I have a lot of old writing, so I'll be making a blog or something for that soon, if anyone was interested! I'll post a link whenever I get around to it! Alright! I'm so sorry for the longwinded delay, but here is Chapter 6 !

Dum inter homines sumus, colamus humanitatem

As long as we are among humans, let us be humane.

Yongguk thought nothing could force him out of his life of solitude. Though it wasn't complete solitude; he had the plants and animals around him, and of course Daisy. Rather, it was moreso a life without humans. From his time at that academy he learned some of the more brutal truths concerning humans. Two days a week, sometimes more, they would all gather in a chapel and pray or sing hymns to some higher being. The whole ritual itself seemed strange, and almost absurd to him. Was there really some divine being that judged the humans? They seemed to revere this being, known as God, but at the same time they feared him. He himself had come from a sheltered lifestyle, and after the unfortunate incident with his mother he sought to see the world. Where he had spent his earlier, the humans were shallow and closed-minded, but he didn’t pin that on the race itself. Rather, he wanted to see what the world had to offer and how diverse these ‘bitter’ humans could get.

Regardless, he was fond of them. Humans found hope in the strangest things. Some of them were brutal and unforgiving, but there were always others willing to stand up and fight for what they thought was right. They were intriguing creatures. So delicate, yet acting as if they could rule the world. However, the same thing could be said for his kind. Often the line was blurred between his kind and the humans. There had also been civil wars, oppression, and bloodshed in his world. His race itself was a lot like humans, but after a point, the line became solid and he was no longer similar to the species that he admired so much.

However, what motivated him to travel back to one of the countries he'd visited in his youth wasn't his insatiable interest for humans. It was a feeling. A dangerous, foreboding feeling. There had been an artifact that was lost in time and forgotten by most that held unmeasurable power. Of course, in the wrong hands, such power could be all the more treacherous. Thus, taking it upon himself, he traveled to a small city in the dry state of California to follow nothing more than a gut feeling. There was a chance that he could be wrong, but then again, he could also be right.

Yongguk was able to find his target quickly, though perhaps target wasn’t the correct word. It wasn’t as if he wanted to kill them, no. All he wanted was the artifact. However, when he laid his eyes on his ‘target’ he was quite surprised.

It was in one of the aisles at the local supermarket in that small, off-the-map town. A tall, long-limbed and lanky kid stood in front of the dairy coolers with a broom and a bored expression. His work hat was a faded blue and had the logo of the store embroidered into the front of it. He wore a bright orange apron that should have reached below his knees, yet couldn’t stretch far enough over his long legs. A cheap plastic name tag was pinned to the striped cotton sweatshirt he wore beneath his mandatory work-apron. The name was unreadable as the tag itself had been covered with a variety of foil stickers and all that stuck out was a bold ‘J’.

What clung to this supermarket employee wasn’t just the usual disinterest or apathy. There was also something curious about him. It had nothing to do with his awkward mannerisms or clumsy ways. Instead, it was as if something was stuck to him like the stickers adorning his name tag. It was difficult to place a name to it, but finally it clicked. It was almost as if this kid wasn’t quite… human.

There was no doubt he blended in with the rest of them. This J -- which was what he’d be referred to as since he lacked a proper name -- was just like the rest of them save for one minor thing. Though all of his behaviours and understandings and looks were in line with the other humans’ he seemed just slightly off. It wasn’t anything significant, yet it was there. There was just something about him when he stood, moving that old frayed broom from side to side, that wasn’t quite right. Of course, it wasn’t the easiest to detect. Yongguk had visited that supermarket time and time again to observe J and still couldn't put his finger on it. He did anything from deliberately getting into his checkout lane -- despite the fact that there were many others that were far less crowded -- to “accidentally” bumping into him while gathering his food for the week. Each and every time J was polite, respectful and held none of that malice that many humans were said to have.

It occurred to him -- right as he was eating his ham and cheese sandwich and Daisy was eating a hearty meal of her own -- that perhaps some entity of the artifact attached itself to J in order to hide it's presence. As true as that could be, what were the odds? He voiced his concerns to Daisy who, as uninterested as she could, responded with a low groan before she went back to tearing apart the expensive steak that was held firmly between her paws and making a mess of their old tent.

“I ought to replace you with him,” He had joked, poking her protruding stomach as she feasted. “At least he's civil.”

Weeks later, and Yongguk was just as unsuccessful. J had done nothing out of the ordinary, and when he followed him home nothing stuck out in particular. Even when Yongguk had spilled coffee on his apron by “mistake” J didn’t even seem remotely upset. He brushed it off, and offered to buy Yongguk another coffee. Another coffee! Wouldn’t most be at the very least angry? The entire exchange left Yongguk very confused, though after relaying that day’s events to Daisy she made it seem like it was completely normal. Despite their familiarity, Yongguk still found himself misinterpreting her at times.

Finally, though, Yongguk made his breakthrough.

He had been staying in that small town for close to six months, and within that timespan had accomplished barely anything. J did nothing but confound him. Even though he had that almost superficial air to him, Yongguk had yielded nothing from searching his apartment, observing his daily life, and interacting with him. Six months in a tent with an irritable black bear in the middle of a state that was a completely different climate was almost unbearable -- no pun intended. With every day that went by, Daisy became more restless and eager to go home. She was well used to the tropical environment as well as the large green canopy that surrounded her at home. This place was… quite the opposite. It was dry and there was almost no foliage to detract them from the hot sun. Though it wasn’t Hell, it was pretty damn close to it.

One late night at the checkout counter, and Yongguk saw his chance. J was working lane 8, and the luminescent number that shone weakly above the conveyor belt was almost headache inducing. In front of him, a woman with bags heavy under her eyes and a pale complexion was purchasing a small supply of groceries. Her wrists were thin and the jewellery that adorned them hung off of them like weighted shackles. The apartment that she would go back to would most likely have been as meek as her small, hunched over figure.

J finished bagging her assortment of groceries, almost mirroring her exhausted look. As he uttered a “Thank you for shopping with us,” his voice was quieter than usual. The striped sweater that he often wore had been traded for a loose blue t-shirt that hung lazily off of his form. He stretched, long arms held above his head, before moving on to do Yongguk’s transaction. That unattractive blue hat that J always wore was absent from his head, and for the first time Yongguk was able to see his face clearly. Something about his weak smile and the way his dark hair fell against his face was almost… familiar.

A medley of sandwiches prepared in the deli as well as a quite a few different cuts of meat had been placed on the conveyor belt beforehand, and were separated from the woman’s by a triangular divider. J slid it off of the black rubber of the belt and put it back into it’s place in front of the towers of gum varieties. He began scanning the sandwiches with all of the practiced grace of a veteran grocery store employee. In no time, both the sandwiches and the meat were packed expertly into the plastic shopping bags and he was awaiting Yongguk’s payment patiently.

Yongguk squinted at the total that had come up in almost neon blue numbers on the yellowed screen in front of him. That was significantly more than he anticipated. If Daisy hadn’t insisted on coming along, there was no doubt he would have saved considerably more money. He handed J three twenty dollar bills and watched, intrigued, as his eyes widened and his tired face lit up with a glow of childish curiosity.

“I love your sleeves. You’ve got a beautiful language tattooed on your arms.” J remarked, his pupils blown with admiration.

Yongguk let out a soft laugh. The tattoos that decorated his arms were quite elaborate. He’d done them himself as a way of protection. J was right; the language that lined his arms was beautiful, but it was also something more. A series of incantations and sutras and spells cascaded along the entire expanse of both his right and left arms. They ranged from simple curse protection charms to full-blown destructive spells that were only to be used in the most dire of situations. The words inscribed into his skin along with the elegant colours and pictures served to set him apart from others of his kind. They gave him power, and a significant upper hand.

“Thank you,” Yongguk offered J a smile and pointed to a particular string of words wrapped around his wrist in a dark blue ink. “This one means ‘beneath thy compassion’. It’s a Latin phrase.”

J blinked out of surprise. “That’s not Latin, though, is it?”

“Not at all. It’s been translated into something else.” Yongguk tapped his foot on the ground. Not out of impatience, but out of anxiety. He honestly had no way to know what would come out of J’s mouth next.

He didn’t speak immediately, though. Rather, he stared at Yongguk’s tattoos as if he was studying them. Finally: “I have a book and it,” he paused, “It has that language in it.”

Yongguk tilted his head, eyes widening. This was it. Exactly what he had sought out for six months ago. He was just about to reply when J spoke; “Do you think that you could translate it?”

Eager to jump at this wonderful, shining opportunity, Yongguk nodded. “Of course.”

J held out his hand with a kind smile. “I’m Junhong. Could we meet at the coffee shop after my shift? Say, around three?”

He offered a smile of his own, and returned the handshake. “Yongguk,” he nodded and agreed to the meeting at the coffee shop. As if by a twist of fate, he actually found exactly what he was looking for. Finally, the artifact he had been looking for was within his grasp. This kid, this… weird kid was handing it out to him as if it was candy. Of course, he had to remain suspicious, but he always had Daisy to back him up in his times of need. Things would fall into place, and in no time he’d be back home under the green hues of his familiar canopy.