The Fabricated History
The Black Phoenix
*banner by ninanoah26
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I turned around. “W-what?”
Han Eul gave me a smile as she slowly walked towards my direction. “You heard me right.”
I shook my head in denial. “N-no. . . that’s not true. . . my parents are dead. . . they were k-killed by. . . I saw them die in front of me.”
She gave me another smile, a sort of understanding smile. Then her eyes went to the phoenix. “I need to explain everything to her first,” she said to which the phoenix cooed back. “Come, let’s sit and talk.”
I was too confused to even protest or say anything. I let her led me to the living room set of the basement just in front of the fireplace. Silence came over while Han Eul made the both of them a cup of tea. “What do you know about shadows, Dara?” she began.
I looked up at her with wide eyes. “You. . . you know about shadows?”
She chuckled. “Of course, I do.”
“H-how?”
“I used to be in love with one,” she said. “Me and your real mother were. But save your questions for later, Dara. I will answer them one by one. Tell me first what you know about shadows.”
“W-well. . . shadows turn into crows,” I said. And then, silence. Han Eul laughed, making me blush. Well, it did sound lame, even to my ears.
“Well, that’s one,” she said. “What else?”
“They are mostly boys,” I went on. “And they have this weird mysterious aura around them. They can be pretty playful and quiet at the same time. T-they have p-powers. They can turn into smoke or blend in with the walls. They’re pretty proud as well. They can be pretty hot and handsome and. . . s-sorry,” I mumbled shyly.
She smiled kindly. “I understand what you mean. I was once smitten by those characteristics, especially knowing that they can only love one girl, right?”
I nodded eagerly, making her laugh again.
“What about their origin, Dara? What do you know about their origin?”
“W-well. . . it all began long time ago. . .” I went on telling the history that I heard as well. And before I knew it, I was telling her everything that happened to me as well, from Jae to Jiyong and his friends, to Sulli and then to Sohee, to TOP and the siblings, about Jiyong again, Jiyong, Jiyong, Jiyong. . . ghad, I’m hopeless.
Han Eul stayed quiet for a while. Then, she sighed. “Do you believe that history, Dara?”
I was taken aback by the question that I was not able to find my tongue to answer that question.
“History can be fabricated, you know, forged.”
“W-what do you mean?”
“Shadows. . . are the sons of a she-evil and a half-devil,” she said. “That’s one version of the history. The other version was that, the very first shadow was a slave of an evil spirit. There are different versions of it, to tell you the truth. You see, long before this, there were. . . people who were involved with dark magic. Being involved with dark magic is having a contract to an evil force, an evil spirit or an evil entity. Since they are merely a force, a spirit or an entity, they were quite envious with human beings for they can never be as physical as us. Human beings have this natural thirst for power and greatness. Naturally, they would seek ways to get those things – power, wealth, you name it. It was quite simple, if you think about it. If there’s a blood contract in fiction stories, in this case, there was a soul contract.
The mechanics of it are simple, the evil entity would use the person’s body as a host and the person would benefit from the entity’s power. But then, a person could get so lost with his power that the entity would take control of him, leaving with nothing. But a soul contract can be eternal and it can be passed on from generation to generation. It’s quite weird knowing that entities could reproduce as well.”
“There came a time that it went so chaotic. The very first sons of the very first shadow fought and killed each other, just for the fact that they would want to become the direct descendant. Innocent lives were taken because of that. Crows. . . they were easily drawn to dark powers, dark desires and dark magic that they became a part of it as well.
There was a prediction. . . a prediction about a new creature rising from the burning ashes with unknown origin would put a stop to it, a creature more ancient than the evil entities. . . it was said that this creature was once a guardian in the gates of the in-between worlds. As it rose from the ashes, all shadows became one against it. But they were no match to it. They were not aware of its weakness at that time. The creature was able to take down the shadows, except one – a baby boy. The creature could not bear to kill the baby. So the creature turned itself into a woman to take care of the baby. A phoenix can live forever, but it’s not infallible. There are probably two ways for it to die.”
“As she took care of the baby, she learned to love him as her son. As he grew into a handsome man, the creature learned to love him as a man as well. They loved each other. One night, while making love, the woman confessed what she was and her weakness. After that, the creature was found dead in bed, turned into ashes.”
Silence.
“That,” Han Eul said, “Is just one versions of the history as well,” she laughingly finished. I can’t help but grimace a little. Why tell me a history that is just as fabricated as the others? Aish. . . “There were so many versions of the history that no one really knows which was true. The older shadows could make the new generations in their own version of history they all like but I know for sure that the history they told you was fabricated.”
“If no one knows the history, then how would you know if it’s fabricated?”
“Because,” she said. “Somewhere in the line, there should have been mentioned of the phoenix.”
“But. . . they seemed to be not aware of the phoenix as well.”
“That’s because their ancestors are trying to hide something,” she said. “That’s for sure. The phoenix. . . can do things that shadows could not.”
“A phoenix can heal any illness,” she said. “A phoenix can bring someone back to life but in exchange of its life, of course. A phoenix’s heart. . . that’s what the shadows wants.”
“Why?”
“We don’t know why, either.”
I jumped a little when the phoenix flew past by me and went to settle itself on Han Eul’s armrest. The latter the creature’s head lovingly.
“Come,” Han Eul said. “Come touch your mother’s chest, Dara.”
I hesitated at first. But with trembling hands, I reached out and rested my hand on its chest. There was nothing except. . . . warmth, no heat.
“You see,” Han Eul said, “a phoenix does not have a beating heart just like us. What they do have is a fire heart. And that’s its weakness.”
“But how. . .?”
“Your mother. . . she faced death three times. . .”
“T-three times?!”
“Yes,” Han Eul said. “The first death seemed like nothing but she started showing some changes after being brought back to life by the doctors.”
“What changes?” I eagerly asked.
“Hormonal changes,” she said.
“H-hormonal changes?”
“Yes,” she said, eyeing me carefully. “I think you know what I mean, Dara.”
I blushed. Aigoo. This is embarrassing.
“The second death was because of me,” she said. “She saved me from drowning that she ended up drowning as well. My parents were not able to do anything about it. But then, out of nowhere, a blue element came out from nowhere, like a bubble and my sister was inside of it. When she landed on the earth, there were swirling traces of black smoke and fire on her skin. My parents knew then what was going on. They didn’t tell me any details but what I only know is that, your mother inherited the phoenix blood.
Her third death was giving birth to you. . . a black fire enveloped her body and she turned into a phoenix.”
My eyes widened. “I-I’m. . .”
“But your mother was able to plan everything even before giving birth to you,” she went on. “You see, the shadow world was starting to suspect her identity. And so, we switched places. I pretended to be her while she hid herself from everyone while she was still pregnant. But she made a mistake, she confessed what she was to the shadow she fell in love with it and that shadow betrayed her. It was only then that we were informed by our parents that shadows and a phoenix do not go along very well.
Since they knew I don’t really have that much use to them, they did not go after me but was intent on going after you. And so, after your mother’s death, I brought you to a couple who was on the bed of death already. Your mother, as a phoenix, healed them and fabricated their memories. I kept my distance as well and since my boyfriend at that time was. . . one of the influential people in the shadow community, I was not harmed. But it came with a price,” she said. “He broke up with me and went to marry a girl of the shadows’ liking. But I was not harmed.”
Just like what happened to Jiyong and me before, I thought. “But. . . what about masked shadows?”
“Their origin is not that clear as well.”
“So. . . that time in the chamber. . .”
“Your mother felt your death,” Han Eul said. “I tried to stop her from going, but a mother’s a mother.”
I turned silent again.
“No more questions?”
“I have tons but I still can’t wrap my head around everything,” I answered truthfully.
She smiled. “You’ll get the hang of it. Sooner or later, you’ll start asking questions.”
“I do have some questions. . . h-how are you related to. . . my. . . m-my m-mother?”
“I’m your mother’s twin sister.”
I blinked blankly at her. What did she say?
“And you must be wondering why up until now, your mother is still not turning into her human form to talk to you?”
I nodded.
“Well you see, once you turn into phoenix, you can never turn back to your human form.”
“W-what?” I breathlessly asked. I could just imagine how lonely that could be. Jiyong then came into my mind. Is this the reason why fate kept on separating us? I inwardly scoffed. I should be thinking more of my reaction but Jiyong was the first person who came to my mind. “S-so. . . that would mean that. . .”
“Two more deaths from you and you’ll turn into a phoenix as well.”
“B-but you said it skips generation, right?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “But you’ve and still is, experiencing the changes, Dara. If I were to be honest, your phoenix blood seemed more potent than your mother’s.”
“B-but. . .I. . .”
“And with all these things going on, I think you should learn how to fight,” she said.
“W-what?”
“You should learn how to defend yourself,” she said. “Because the moment your third death comes, your mother will die as well.”
My eyes widened. “But why?”
“Because there could only be one phoenix heart, once you die, the phoenix’s heart fire will be passed onto you. You don’t really want that to happen, do you?”
“Of course not!” I said. “But who would want me. . .?”
“I’ve been hearing talks, Dara,” she said. “The shadows are in the move of finding the phoenix.”
“I. . I don’t have to defend myself from Jiyong, do I?” I asked. “I mean, Jiyong. . . he. . . Jiyong. . . my Jiyong hates being a shadow, he hates the. . . he hates the royalties, surely he would not go after my m-mother as well?”
“I’m sorry Dara, but I don’t exactly trust the direct descendant.”
“He’s different!” I cried.
“How different, is he?” she asked. “Didn’t he take your life down in the chamber?”
“He had a reason to do so!”
“Didn’t he hurt you over and over again? Didn’t he let you cry over and over again? And where is he now? Wasn’t he engaged to Ahn Sohee as well? How can he promise her marriage when he can’t even ask you to marry him? He could not –”
“He was about to propose but I screwed up!” I cried louder. I don’t know what’s gotten into me. Why am I crying in the first place? Didn’t I promise myself I won’t shed a tear for him anymore? Then why am I crying?
Maybe it’s because I felt so caught up. The parents I thought were my parents weren’t really my parents, so all my life was a lie. Then, finding out that your real mother died and became a phoenix because of you, was not very helpful at all. There’s also the fact that once you turn into a phoenix, you can never turn back to your human form again.
And then. . . and then. . . it seemed that I might have to stand in between Jiyong and my mother.
“You can’t have it both ways, Dara,” she said. “You can only choose one side.”
“Jiyong is different,” she said. “He won’t harm my mother.”
“Your faith in him is quite astounding. I hope I could say the same to him.”
I stood up. “I need time to think, sorry.”
I ran out of the room, clenching my fists as I heard the phoenix’s soft cry.
What am I supposed to do?
What?
I DON’T KNOW!
As I ran out of the boutique, I bumped into someone. “Whoa, hold your horses,” TOP’s familiar voice entered my ears. I looked up at him and his smile instantly faded as soon as he saw my face. “What happened? Why are you crying?”
I shook my head. “I. . .I thought I saw a ghost!” I choked out. “No one’s inside and it was so scary!”
He chuckled and hugged me tight. “Oh, you poor little thing,” he cooed. “I think I know exactly what you need. Ice cream!”
We went to an ice cream parlor, with him treating me. I was still not myself as I my ice cream. I was staring outside the glass window. The shadows are after my mother. I could not just watch. I know I might have to stand in between. Jiyong would not go after my mother too, I believe that as well.
What if he would? What would you do?
No, he would not do that.
Jiyong hates being a shadow. TOP and the siblings would surely be on my side, right? But I can’t let them get involve with this. I don’t want anyone to die because of me. I don’t want anyone to die from defending me and my mother from the royalties and the other shadows. What if I just let them get me so that they would leave me mother alone?
But then, I’d be useless to them as a human, they will surely kill me to turn me into a phoenix. If I face my third death, my mother would die. No matter how I look at it, there was only one solution. Han Eul was right, I might have to learn how to defend myself. My only defense right now is that, no one knows what really I am.
But what if I lose? What if I die and turn into a phoenix? That would mean I could never be with TOP. With all the kindness he had shown me, how am I going to repay that if I’m a huge black bird already?
And Jiyong. . . I could never be with him again. I could never touch him, kiss him, hug him. . . but then again, I’m far from doing that in the future anyways. He’s already married and he has already moved on with his life.
“Aish, you’re such a baby!” TOP’s voice broke into my senses. I glanced at him and he gave me a disapproving look. “Tch, look at yourself, you’re all messed up!” he scolded. “You’ve got ice cream all over your face.”
He took out a handful of napkins and was about to wipe my face when I just felt myself lean forward and gave him a creamy kiss on the cheek.
“Ya!” he protested. “You’re going to get ice cream on my. . .”
I giggled at the look on his face.
- - -
TOP’s POV
We strolled around the whole day. When it was almost dark, I walked her to her apartment. As I was about to turn around and leave, she suddenly grabbed my arm. I turned to face her and I was greeted by a pouting Sandara pet with puppy eyes! Aigoo!
“I’m scared,” she said. “I could still see the ghost in my head.”
I tried to sound like I have no choice as I sighed and said yes when in truth, I was glad she’s inviting me sleep over. Hahahaha.
“Yay!” she clapped and twined her hand with mine as she dragged me inside with her. “I’m going to make you a nice dinner!” she said.
“You should,” I said. “I don’t usually do much favors to girls, you know.”
“Whatever,” she laughingly said as she pushed me down on the couch. She opened the television and ordered me to watch something first while she pulls something up in the kitchen.
I watched some random variety show, laughing at some parts of it.
“Seunghyunnie! The food is ready!” she called out, making me grimace.
“Ya, Sandara pet! Don’t call me that name or else I’ll kiss you ‘til you forget your own name, got that?”
“Yes sir!” she said, saluting.
I frowned. “What’s up with you?” I asked as she deposited a tray of food in the center table.
She didn’t say anything. Instead, she took a spoonful of food and started feeding me. “Come on Tabi, open your mouth wider,” she cooed.
I was not even done chewing my food when she stuffed another spoonful inside, then another, then another and another until I started choking.
“Omo, omo!” she exclaimed. “Sorry! I’ll just go ahead get you a glass of water.”
She ran to the kitchen and sprinted back. She gave me a glass of water which I quickly drank down. “Ya! Are you trying to choke me to death?”
She pouted. “Sorry Seunghyunnie, I was just trying to be kind.”
“What did you call me again?”
“Aha! Look Tabi, we still have some food, you should eat more!”
I reached out for her shoulders and turned her to face me. “What did you call me again?”
“Tabi?” she answered.
“No, before that.”
“Seunghyunnie?”
“And what did I say I’m going to do if you’re going to call me that again?”
She shook her head.
“You can’t remember?” I asked.
She just shook her head again.
“Ah. . .” I nodded slowly. “Then, I might have to remind you, then, eh?”
I leaned forward and to give her a peck on the lips. Yes, it was meant to be a peck and a joke but I was surprised when she placed her hands at the back of my head and twined her fingers on my hair. She kept my face in place and kissed me.
I kissed her back, my arms going around her tiny waist.
What started to be a slow, sweet and innocent kiss turned deeper and deeper until I started hearing her heavy panting a little. We broke apart for a moment. She had her hands on my chest now and she slowly pushed me down on my back on the couch. She shifted herself and leaned down. Her face was hovering a few inches above me. I s my hand to her nape and pulled her head down, my mouth opening to welcome her. And she welcomed me back quite warmly.
“Hmm,” she murmured.
“Dara. . .” I murmured back, kissing her deeper. I could feel her heartbeat’s loud thump against my chest. With my free hand, I reached inside the back of her shirt to the clasp of her bra. But before I could unclasp it, my phone rang. We ignored it at first but then, it was persistent. “I have to take this call. . .” I murmured against her lips.
“Do you really have to?” she asked, nipping on my lower lip.
“Yeah, this will be very quick.”
“Okay.”
I went to take the call. It was Minzy. “This better be good, Baby MinMin. . .”
“She wants to talk to you,” she said. “She had another headache a while ago. . .”
After the phone call, I went back to the living room and saw Dara fast asleep on the couch. I sighed then chuckled while shaking my head. “Did I make you wait?” I softly asked. I then took her sleeping form in my arms and carried her to her bed. I placed her down gently on the bed and kissed her forehead, the tip of her nose then her lips. I went on my back beside her and stared at the ceiling, thinking. Then, her arms and leg suddenly went on top of me as she snuggled her face to my chest.
Oh dear. . . this .
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*a/n: got new banners!!! yay yay yay!!!
Lonely Dara by xuewida
And Movie inspire banners by yssa_kikz143!!
Tabi's smexy singing voice:
And another one! One of my all-time faves!
Ooh, TOPLESS BB!!
Kyak! Tabi is topless as well! even with his eyes closed, Tabi Tabi. . .
And ooh, GD long hair, although its just one sided, though.. kekeke.. If only he really got long hair, he would totally match GD's current look on TBP, haha.. Long hair! LOLzzzzz
*vids/bb photo credits to their rightful owners! ke
Me is excited. Kyahahaha!!
TROLOLOLOLOL. . . And I just want to repost this!
Dara is not a Shadow magnet, she's a KISS MAGNET!
Ghad!
First, Il Woo in the ninja series, TOP in I'm Sorry MV, Lee Minho in Kiss MV, GD in Hello perf (I just have to include the Kiss behind the cap, hehe), YB in his INAG perf in MAMA (remember the kiss on the cheeks?), and now, Jonghyun, Key, Taemin and Choi Minho. Oh, I forgot,Kwon YoungDeuk for the Kiss perf in NOLZA.
Am I forgetting someone? 0.0
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