[Year 19 of Exile]

[Yixing]

“She’ll be fine, Kai.”

The back of the boy shook vehemently, as he grasped her hand tightly. No matter what the elder boys said, no matter how Sehun tried to persuade him, he refused to leave her side.

“A-Are you sure, h-hyung?” I barely heard him, his voice muffled by the fact that he was hunched over the edge of her camp bed. “She lost so much blood.”

I scratched my head, lips pursed. “That’s over-exaggerating, Kai ah. She only lost–”

“She almost lost a ing finger!”

I gulped, knowing full well that I can’t refute that because it was true. Jen would have been missing her index if not for me.

Us, actually.

After the scream reverberated throughout the camp, a silhouette disappeared from my peripheral field of vision and Baekhyun threw himself at the very same spot almost instantly; him being closest to the space.

“JEN! JEN!” He too screamed, eyes glistening and widening with each passing second. “YIXING-HYUNG! SAVE HER!”

I was about to rush over when I blinked and found myself next to her in the next second. I understood when I saw Kai’s hands pushing bunches of hair away from her face.

My eyes immediately scanned her for injuries and my eyes twitched when they rested on a red hand that laid on the earth.

“God, what happened.” I muttered under my breath as I carefully lifted her hand up to inspect it. “What on earth actually happe–”

“She cut her finger, Yixing ah.”

I froze. The voice was unfamiliar, yet my name was called and a strange feeling washed over me.

“H-Hyung… A unicorn is behind you.” Baekhyun whispered, colour drained from his face and patches of red stained his cheeks; the boy must have touched the blood on her hand and wiped his tears away with the same hands. “I think it’s y-your spirit animal.”

“We don’t have time to chit-chat,” And a horse’s nose appeared in the corners of my field of vision. “We have to join her almost-sliced finger back before it’s too late.”

I nodded robotically, my mind still unable to process what was happening before me.

My ears caught none of the creature’s instructions, I only did what my consciousness told me; or rather, my actions were completely controlled by my will.

It was only when something glowed blue right in my eyes did I snap out of my stupor and I realised that I was using my power.

“It’s not enough, hyung.” Kai was sobbing silently, his eyes swollen from the tears that continuously streamed down his face. “Her finger’s not joining back.”

Looking down at the mess in front of me, I cursed mentally at the boy’s truth. Her finger was hanging by the skin, its bone completely severed by the impact of the chopper coming down hard. The bone was not attaching to the rest of the finger, and no new patch of pink skin stretched over the raw flesh that wrapped the bone.

It was a gruesome sight, a sight that would haunt my nights for weeks to come.

But I was at my limit. I could feel a nosebleed coming, the red liquid surging upwards towards my nose; my head pounded heavily, as though someone was playing a drum inside it, wrecking havoc in my already exhausted mind.

For the first time, I felt helpless. My healing power wasn’t going to work, no matter how hard I’m ready to push myself, to drive myself over the edge.

Just then, a darker shade of blue enveloped my own blue glow and beneath the orbs of translucent blue light, Jen’s finger began to reattach itself. Within seconds, pale pink skin stretched itself over the wound and the bloody mess from before was no more. In its place was only a faint scar that would, of course like the other wounds I’ve healed, vanish with time.

“There, her finger’s alright.”

I stayed silent, knowing full well that the dark shade of blue hadn’t been me, and the incredulous expressions on both Baekhyun and Kai’s faces as well as Suho’s words confirmed my suspicion.

“You are one cool unicorn, you know that?”

“But now it’s reattached, and it’s healing. So she’s fine, Kai.” I tried to keep my tone leveled, not willing to let my uncertainty escape. “Trust your hyung, alright?”

I placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder and he stopped shaking soon after, clearly having calmed down. My eyes flitted to the slightly opened flap of the tentage, numerous pairs of eyes peeping through the small slit. I nodded in their direction and the eyelids shut themselves in relief. The flap closed silently, Kris-hyung’s long fingers disappearing through the narrow gap.

“Hyung.”

“Mm?”

“Your spirit animal… saved her.” He tilted his head, glassy orbs gazing at me and gratitude swirled in them. “Help me thank it, yes?”

I nodded, unsure of how to actually approach the animal. Unlike the other boys who have seen their spirit animals sometime in their lives; boys like Xiumin-hyung, who dashed over and threw himself onto a large polar bear, nuzzling his face into the snow-white fur of the animal; boys like Baekhyun and Jongdae, who made sure that Jen was alright before doing what the eldest did, jumping onto a large cat and a large wolf respectively.

For me, I have never laid eyes on it (read: it) before. I know not of the creature’s gender, name, or origin. The creature and I were strangers, yet when its orbs caught mine, a strong sense of familiarity surged within me.

“Will you be okay on your own, Kai?”

“If anything happens, I’ll shout for you.” He finally smiled, albeit happiness not reaching his eyes, and I nodded.

I made my way out into the clearing, stretching my arms above my head and my eyes immediately found it.

Luhan-hyung was sitting with it as Carlisle was resting beside the creature. Suho, too, was near it for Sui had chosen to accompany the lone unicorn.

Sui and the creature would have been identical, if not for the horse’s unusual shade of blue as well as the single horn on the unicorn’s head.

“Yixing!” Luhan-hyung smiled, his hand reaching for mine and I let myself be pulled down next to him. “How’s Jen and… how’s Kai?” His tone turned dark, having seen how extremely worried and stubborn the younger boy had been when the second eldest levitated her into the tentage after I– we had healed her.

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