Three wolves, all bigger than the best, pure-bred horses in the royal cavalry, slowly toed their way towards the center of the clearing. A small tree was knocked down by the russet wolf on the side as if it was a single blade of grass, and Kyungsoo heard his own breath catch. His head whipped around to the group of men near the extinguished bonfire, anxious for Kai. Tao’s dark gaze blazed as he held his position, gùn poised in mid-air, one leg bent with his thigh level to the ground and the other spread out to his left. Right next to him was Yifan, his knuckles white from the tight grip on his fu tao, both swords gleaming like his eyes. Behind them was Kai, struggling and fighting tooth and nail to be released from Sehun and Minseok’s hold. The young emperor was screaming and he heard his name; the wolves, the wolves Kyungsoo!

He watched in mute horror as the enormous animals came closer, all three snarling and snapping with their sharp teeth. The wolf with fur as dark as the night sky turned towards him, and Kyungsoo felt as if ice had frozen his very veins.

“Run, Kyungsoo, now! I beg you!” Kai screamed once again.

Everything around him seemed to slow down and the young emperor’s screams sounded muffled as the smallest of the three wolves padded to where he was, its eyes sharp and hackles raised. Its dark onyx gaze searched his face, looked deep into his soul. He would have wanted to move, to run to Kai whose screams tore at his heart, but he was mesmerized.    

“Well, this is a nice touch,”

It was the newcomer’s lilting voice once again, and Kyungsoo felt hysterical laughter bubbling up his throat. He reminded himself that if he managed to live through this, he ought to ask Sehun where he had found this lunatic, and if it was a good idea to bring him along.

Kyungsoo forced himself to look at Kai again. Their eyes met and everything else blurred into a mass of colors.

The next words that came out of Kai’s mouth made him shudder.

“If anything happens to him, I will kill you with my bare hands, Yifan,”

“Let us try to survive the sharp teeth of these creatures first, your majesty, before we hand out passionate threats like that,” Yifan said through gritted teeth.

“You think we ought to run, Yifan?” Zitao asked quietly, his voice floated into the breeze, and Kyungsoo was certain that he did not imagine the slight trembling in it.

“Stay still,” Minseok said, beads of sweat on his forehead, still fighting very hard to keep Kai from running away.

“Are you out of your mind? Someone, anyone! Get Kyungsoo, now! Sehun, please, get him!”

“Stay still,” Minseok said again, this time, a hard edge to his voice, “and if you will please, young emperor, be quiet. You do not want to aggravate these, creatures. Just wait and see, and everything will be all right.”

There was the sound of something that resembled the tinkling of glass bells and Kyungsoo was certain that the desire to punch someone in the mouth had never burned in him until tonight, when he saw the stranger laughing.

Then there was silence; only the rough purr of the black wolf could be heard. He turned to see that it continued to gaze at him with its dark eyes, and he wondered if they ought to trust Minseok again with his words. The adviser had never been wrong before, but Kyungsoo tasted something bitter in his mouth when he thought about how he might die; right here, right now, without telling Kai how much his heart would feel as if it would burst sometimes, because of how much he loved him.

A growl snapped him out of his thoughts and he knew death was upon him.

“Kai,” He called out softly, “I love you,”

“Kyungsoo!” Kai screamed.

And then he felt the wolf’s tongue, hot and slick against his cheek and the quiet was deafening, and Kyungsoo’s knees shook beneath him.

The wolf nudged him gently on the chest with its snout before walking back to its companions, who had stopped howling, their front legs bent and head to the ground. The smallest wolf bowed towards the emperor as well, and Minseok let out a sigh.

“Well, young pups, you have had your fun,” He let go of Kai, who only hesitated for a heartbeat before he pushed a very startled Sehun to the ground, and ran to Kyungsoo.

Strong arms were around him and his knees gave way, and Kyungsoo felt the hair on the back of his neck stand when all three wolves howled to the moons and transformed right before their very eyes.

Sehun was very, very troubled.

Just a few nights ago he had lain in his old room, at his family’s manor, on a soft bed with feather pillows. There was a crackling fire at the hearth, and before then, a lavish dinner party with his mother and some family friends. Someone had brought their pretty daughter for him to meet, and he had toyed with the idea of pursuing her.

But now things were different. People who were supposed to be dead (himself included) were alive, and three of the four had turned into werewolves.

He understood the look of distress on Kai’s face, as they quietly talked about the motley crew that would help him get back the kingdom that was rightfully his.

There were the two foreigners who stood at opposite ends of their little circle around the bonfire, hands on their weapons, eyes sharp. Sehun had never questioned the late emperor’s choice for his favored son’s personal bodyguards, but now he wondered what reasons the patriarch may have had for choosing Master Wu Yifan and his young apprentice, Huang Zitao. They were skilled, no doubt, but these were dark times, and loyalty was crucial. He tried to wave away nagging doubts if Yunho himself had planted these two in their midst.

He stared at his three friends. Chanyeol, his hair now a brilliant shade of red, Baekhyun, his eyes lined with something dark that could not be washed off no matter how hard he tried, and Jongdae, the planes on his face and body sharper and more defined. All three were covered with fur clothing that appeared on their bodies after they had changed back to their human form. He shuddered when he remember how they had disappeared for about an hour to return with fresh kills, when Baekhyun refused to even swat at flies that annoyed them in droves during the summer season when they were young children.

All three had looked longingly at the meat, and he was certain that they would have rather eaten it raw, but thought otherwise when they saw how Zitao’s face had acquired a greenish tinge.

“Explain this to me again,” Sehun asked, his face void of any emotion, “a fairy appeared and restored you to health?”

Jongdae rolled his eyes as he turned the skinned rabbit speared on a thick branch over the fire. “Yes, for the seventh time, Oh Sehun, a fairy as beautiful as the sun, his skin glowing and a voice that sounded like a choir of angels appeared and wrapped us with cloaks, made of material that are not of this world. It felt like-“

“Flowing warm water, yes, yes. But you were…you were dead!”

“And the whole lot of you would also not know the difference between a fairy and a sprite if we dangled our faces right in front of your nose,” Luhan mumbled.

Sehun gave him a pointed glare and the fairy cleared his throat. “What I am trying to say is, fairies are more, skilled, in knowing if one’s life blood is spent or not. Your friends were barely hanging by a thread when they were found-“

“Is it necromancy?” Kyungsoo asked quietly.

Luhan barked out a harsh laugh. “Fair folk do not dabble in such horrors,”

“But aren’t fairies-“

“No, fairies are not angels thrown out of the heavens that were not bad enough for hell and neither did they bloom into existence when the very first newborn of this world laughed and the laughter shattered. Fairies are creatures on their own, their beginnings are not clear, but what mortals know of the fair folk are false and so very ridiculous at that. Nobody knows, they just are. You may want to take note of that before you give your young lover over there” He gestured to the young emperor with his thumb, “another lecture about fairies,”

Sehun did not miss the way Kyungsoo stiffened at Luhan’s words, nor how Kai’s arm was wrapped around the scholar, his hand resting slightly on his hip.

“And how, pray tell, do you know this?” Kai asked.

All eyes were now on Luhan, who seemed to be enjoying the attention. Even Zitao and Yifan, who were supposed to be on guard, watched with piqued interest.

“Ask Sehun, our precious Halfling,” He said with triumph.

“Did you not just say earlier that the boy does not know as much as we hoped he would, Luhan?” Minseok said. He was lying on the soft grass, arms folded behind his head. Luhan merely laughed at succeeding in putting Sehun in the spotlight.

“Sehun?” Kai asked.

He bristled and made a mental note to remind himself to talk to Minseok later. “I just found out…I was informed earlier today that my mother is, or was, a fairy. But I hardly know anything about them,” He added in a soft voice.

There was silence and only the popping of wood from the blazing fire could be heard for what seemed like an eternity. He turned to look at his friend, expecting to see fear, or worse, distrust in his eyes but was surprised that the dark orbs only held questions that he also did not know the answer to.

“The Lady Hwa Young?” Kai asked. Everyone stared at him when he started to laugh. “Yunho’s mother had always wondered how she remained to look ageless after all these years.”

He looked at Sehun with merriment in his eyes. “When your mother got tired of all her nagging she said that she used lavender water and the stupid woman made all the servants harvest all the lavender even when they were out of season and bathed in the concoction. Baekhyun and I laughed at her for days, do you remember? She remained ugly and smelled funny.”

Sehun wanted to laugh along especially when Kyungsoo blushed a violent shade of red at the new emperor’s way of speaking about the empress dowager, but he had other things in his mind.

“But did the fairy tell you, about the changes that would happen if you were brought back to life?” He asked.

“They were saved, not brought back to life,” Luhan muttered.

Sehun ignored him and stared at Chanyeol who was scratching the back of his neck. He pulled Baekyun closer to his chest, who was now yawning, and Sehun was almost relieved that at least, the friendship between the two have not changed.

“He did not say, only that we it was not our time yet,” The tall red-headed boy said.

“And that we are supposed to help the new emperor succeed,” Baekhyun added, his eyes half-closed.

“My Lady did say that the new emperor will be given all the help that he needed,” Luhan said in a voice so cheery it made Sehun sick.

“Who is this lady that you speak of?” Kai asked.

“The fairie queene, your highness,” Luhan said.

Kai’s eyes widened in shock or fear, Sehun was not so sure, he was too incensed at the manner Luhan had spoken to the ruler of Yagsog Ttang, like an adult explaining something very simple to a child. He had half the mind to drown him in the nearby river and he felt his blood boil when the fairy chattered on.

“So let us see, two very strikingly handsome foreigners, very accomplished with their weapons, three werewolves who shall hunt for food or the enemies, take your pick, there is Minseok, who was erstwhile one of our kind, but he has retained most of his powers therefore worry not, your majesty. The very beautiful Halfling, Sehun, is as loyal as can be, and who knows he may or may not have powers he has inherited from his dear mother. Let us not forget the precious Kyungsoo, who loves you to the two moons and back and will never leave your side even if he looks like he’s about to flee any moment from the embarrassment I am causing him,”

“Luhan,” Sehun said.

“And then there’s me, I offer my services to your royal highness, free of charge of course-“

“Luhan!” Sehun bellowed, “May I have word with you?”

“In a moment-” Luhan said, annoyed at being interrupted.

“In private, if you please,” Sehun said through gritted teeth.

“Oh all right. I bid everyone good night, just in case the young one would like to play with me in the dark,”

Sehun felt his face flame when Minseok and his three werewolf friends laughed.

“Wait,” Kai called as Luhan and Sehun stood up from their places around the fire. “Luhan, isn’t it?”

“Yes, your majesty?”

“You seem to know everything about everyone in this group. But, if I may, what are you?”

Luhan bowed with a flourish; a charming smile on his otherworldly beautiful face, his green, now hazel eyes, glittering in the firelight.

“I am, your majesty, the fairy in the woods.”

Sehun rounded up on him, an angry scowl on his face. Luhan felt something in his gut, and he was surprised. He hardly has felt anything all these thousands of years. He played, he floated around, he lived. The feeling was familiar but unpleasant.

He felt alive and it was exhilarating. It was a little confusing, but he liked it.

“What have your kind done to my friends?” Sehun asked, his voice ringing into the night.

“There is no need to scream a lung out, young one,” Luhan said.

“I do not care how long you have been alive, Luhan, but stop talking to me as if I were a child because I am not. And the emperor! You need to watch your mouth around him and Kyungsoo, their relationship is precarious enough as it is!”

“I was merely taking an inventory of sorts-“

“We are people with feelings. We are not ingredients to some evil plot you are about to concoct! Now answer me, what have they done to my friends?” Sehun asked through gritted teeth.

Luhan sighed and caressed the branch over his head. He wanted to laugh when Sehun’s eyes bulged at the sight of shiny, red apples that were not supposed to grow until the fall, still a few months away.

“The Lady said help will be sent. She did not say how,”

“Did my friends even had the choice to be turned into animals?”

“Why does it matter, they are alive and well!” Luhan said with an exasperated sigh. “And they are still humans, only with more, abilities,”

“What would you have turned me into?” Sehun asked, his eyes on the ground.

“Sehun, you were already a fairy to begin with,”

Sehun turned around and started making his way towards the camp.

“Would you rather that they are dead?” Luhan asked in a quiet voice. “Help was needed, Sehun, and therefore it was sent.”

“Please, spare me any more of your half-truths,”

“You are being unreasonable, young Halfling!”

“Do not call me that! I am terrified of what I had gotten myself, my emperor, my people into! I feel as if I cannot trust you!”

Luhan stared at him with wide eyes. “Well, you shouldn’t, we only just ever met!”

“But you saved my life…” Sehun whispered, his back still turned, head hung low.

“What is it that you really, really want? Either you trust me or you don’t, make a choice. But believe me when I say that you cannot single-handedly help Kai get back his kingdom or your old life back. Sheer determination will not be enough, not in this kind of battle.”

“Let me say this once and for all,” Sehun said, his gaze hard and cold on Luhan, “do not try any of your fairy magic on any of us ever again, do you understand? We are people. Our kind values freedom above all else, because with this agency we can freely do things that matter to us. We can love, protect and flourish. We do not want others taking advantage of our weaknesses and using them for their gain.”

“Freedom?” He sneered, “Is that why Yunho will not think twice to murder so he can have all of us groveling on the ground near his feet?

“We are not all like that!” He had faced Luhan again, his face livid and puce.

“I could say the same for our kind.”

Minseok stayed down on the grass, still staring at the stars as Luhan told him everything that transpired between him and Sehun since that night that he found the young man. His friend listened, a smile playing on his lips.

“And Minseok, it was so strange, because I felt things,” Luhan said.

“Oh?”

“It was…unnerving. But I think I like it,”

Minseok let out a chuckle. “How did you feel?”

“I am not entirely sure. It all changed so quickly, I had a very hard time distinguishing my emotions. Do you remember whenever you would transform into that white fluffy rabbit and hunters would be around? Then afterwards I felt like turning him into a mushroom and roasting him over the fire and eating him. And then I thought that he was so lovely, when his eyes were angry and his lips were moving and I only saw that and heard nothing else,”

“What is it?” Luhan asked in irritation when he turned to see Minseok, holding his belly as he laughed, his eyes filled with tears and mirth.

“Oh this is going to be very, very interesting. Be careful my dear Luhan,” Minseok said.

“Why?”

“You sound like you are infatuated with the Halfling!”

“What is that? And do not call him Halfling, I think…the boy does not like it,”

Minseok sniffed. “He will have to accept it at some point or another,”

“But tell me, what is it that I’m feeling?”

“Infatuation…it may pass soon enough. But it is the beginning of love for some,”

Luhan frowned. “Love? That sounds familiar. Is it poisonous?”

Minseok laughed again. “It can be. Just…be careful. Not all humans like to play.”

Luhan was very, very troubled.

He was not entirely sure if a playmate is all that he wants this time around, either.

Thank you old and new subscribers! First off, you are all crazy for reading this (if you are hahaha!). Seriously though, I appreciate it. TALK TO ME GUYS kbye