Title: Solitude
Pairing: Luck, Hyuken
Related Chapter: 95, 102, 108, 116, 135, 146, 153, 161, 170, 187, 208, 227,
Word Count: 1281

Sanghyuk looked out his bedroom window, watching the night sky carefully from his seat on the window sill. Hakyeon had left him alone hours ago, reminding him to be careful and not strain himself or his magic too much. He’d also suggested taking down the barrios around his apartment for the night, letting his body recover from the constant drain on his magic that they caused. But he couldn’t do that. If he did, Jaehwan could easily take it the wrong way.

This was not the time for Jaehwan to start thinking things that he shouldn’t about their relationship. That was the last thing Sanghyuk needed right now. Actually, the last thing he needed was his old master returning from whatever god forsaken place she’d run off to ages ago with his mummies. Jaehwan thinking he had a chance to become Sanghyuk’s lover was the second worst. Or maybe third worst when he recalled his current……problem.

Sanghyuk was quick to try to pull his thoughts away from that, trying to force himself to think of other things. He didn’t want to think about his need for a mate, not right then anyway. And yet the weak feeling growing inside of him constantly reminded him that he needed to find some poor soul to be his mate and soon. If he didn’t, then his powers would keep growing weaker until he was nothing but a shell of his former self. He wouldn’t die, he wasn’t lucky enough for that, but he would have to spend the rest of his long life as weak as a human.

Oh, old curses placed upon his race ages before he was born sure were fun. If he ever met his ancestors who’d earned their kind such a misfortune from the old gods themselves, he’d kill them. How was it fair that he had to find a mate or lose everything that made him what he was besides his life span? All because the Anubis from the early Dynastic period had angered the gods?

“Um, he-hello,” Sanghyuk startled at the sudden noise, turning around to find someone standing behind him.

He had expected Jaehwan, but instead found Taekwoon.

“What brings you here?” Sanghyuk questioned, eyeing Jaehwan’s twin carefully and the young nekomata shifted nervously under his gaze.

They didn’t look very much alike, and yet Sanghyuk could detect the same energy radiating from them. He’d mentioned this to Hongbin shortly after meeting Taekwoon and the yuki-onna explained that the twins shared the same soul. Well, more accurately, they each shared half of a soul. Sanghyuk himself didn’t understand how two people could each have one half of the same soul, but if Hongbin said it was true then it had to be so.

“I just wanted to talk,” Taekwoon said, “about my brother.”

“Is that all?” Sanghyuk raised an eyebrow, “I can assure you that you would get the same answers from the others. And it would not be as much work to enter their apartments either.”

“Not for what I want to ask,” Taekwoon frowned, “I want to know how you feel about him and only you know that.”

“Have a seat,” Sanghyuk said, gesturing for Taekwoon to sit down on his bed, “but I don’t think you’ll get the answer you want.”

“Don’t talk to me like that,” Taekwoon frowned, “I’m not here to try and force you to give my brother a chance.”

“Good,” Sanghyuk nodded, “because I can’t afford to give him one.”

“Don’t have to sound so mean about it,” Taekwoon grumbled, clearly thinking that Sanghyuk couldn’t hear him.

“I’m at the point where I can’t be nice anymore,” Sanghyuk frowned, returning his gaze to the window, “my time is running very short.”

“You need a mate,” Taekwoon said, recalling one of the books Hyuk had written. In the book, the main character was an Anubis who was trying to find a mate before she lost her powers and became mortal. Taekwoon thought it was just a story, but could something like that really be true?

“Yes,” Sanghyuk nodded, turning to face Taekwoon with a slightly surprised expression on his face, “how do you know that?”

“It’s the plot of one of my favorite books,” Taekwoon admitted.

“Ah,” Sanghyuk smiled slightly, “you must read Hyuk’s books.”

“You know of him?” Taekwoon said, blushing slightly at the mention of his favorite writer and crush.

“I do,” Sanghyuk nodded, “he writes about my kind after all. How could I not know of him?”

“He’s my favorite writer,” Taekwoon confessed, “I write him fan letters a lot and he always responds.”

“Really?” Sanghyuk asked, a look of realization slowly dawning on his face. Could the Taekwoon sitting before him be the same Taekwoon who always wrote him letters? The chances seemed so small, but that seemed to be the exact type of curve ball life liked to throw his way.

“Yeah,” Taekwoon nodded, unaware of what Sanghyuk was thinking.

“Well his facts are right,” Sanghyuk announced, deciding not to let Taekwoon in on the secret of who Hyuk was, “I need a mate or I will lose my magic. I’ll still have my long life span, but that counts for little without the rest.”

“And you can only mate once in your life,” Taekwoon frowned, “so you’ll never even consider Jaehwan. Not as long as he’s just a nekomata.”

“Exactly,” Sanghyuk said, allowing his regret to how in both in face and words, “I care for your brother, but I can’t stand to be alone for the rest of my days.”

“How much longer do you have?” Taekwoon found himself asking.

“Several thousand years,” Sanghyuk sighed, eyes once more traveling to the night sky, “I’ve spent enough years alone, I do not wish to spend the rest the same way.”

“What if there was a way?” Taekwoon suddenly asked, “a way to make Jaehwan live just as long as you?”

“You would need the help of the old gods,” Sanghyuk replied, regarding Taekwoon with interest, “and few remain who can contract them.”

“Do you know any?” Taekwoon asked, a flash of hope in his eyes at the idea that he might be able to help his brother and Sanghyuk.

“No,” Sanghyuk said, “but Hakyeon or Hongbin might know of someone. I spent too many years sleeping to have many connections that still live.”

“Then I’ll ask them,” Taekwoon said, giving Sanghyuk a small smile, “I’ll find a way to contact the old gods and ask them to make Jaehwan live as long as you. Then you can be together.”

“I’ll help you,” Sanghyuk said as Taekwoon made a move to leave, “I want to ask the old gods to remove their curse from my kind.”

“Curse?”

“That I must have a mate or lose my magic,” Sanghyuk explained, “whoever incurred the wrath of the gods to make them cast such a curse is long dead, why should we who haven’t done anything suffer?”

“Ok,” Taekwoon said, “we’ll work together.”

With that he left, leaving Sanghyuk to his solitude once more. Sanghyuk wondered if he should have said anything at all. There was no promise that Taekwoon would find anyone who could still contact the gods of old, nor was there any guarantee that they would help. Sanghyuk felt like he had built the young nekomata’s hopes up too much and that worried him. If those hopes came crashing down, it would hurt Taekwoon a great deal.

“Me and my foolish mouth,” Sanghyuk sighed, leaning back against the window frame, “you would think I’d of learned by now. Nothing I can do now but help him in hopes that I’ll be there to cushion the fall.”

A/N: So Taekwoon and Sanghyuk are going to be working together on this. I wonder how long before Taekwoon starts to fall for Sanghyuk. Or will he find out that Sanghyuk is Hyuk first? And where will Jaehwan fall into all of this? This is all gonna be one big mess come the hahaha. This also turned out way longer then I thought it would. Oh yeah, if you’re wondering just how old Sanghyuk is, he was born about…….2300 BC, maybe a little sooner, roughly about half way through the Old King Period of Ancient Egypt.