A satisfied smile is etched on Luhan’s lips as he lies, relaxed, on the checkered picnic blanket. His honey blonde hair is splayed out below him in a silky fan, bangs falling into his eyes as he laughs, eyes curving into twinkling crescents. Sehun is a comforting warmth next to him, their hands linked in between their lounging bodies.

Lights from the nearby town are reminiscent of dimmed stars in the inky darkness of night, their shine glossed over due to Baekhyun’s absence while on his trip with Chanyeol. The real stars, however, shine even brighter that night – perhaps in joint celebration with the people of Exo. Both of Exo’s Moons are full; a spectacle only witnessed once per year, on the Day of Life – the birthdate of the Tree of Life, the birth of all life on Exo.

The townspeople gather with flaming torches and colourful masks as they walk the streets. There is a festival today, in celebration of the Day of Life, and although Luhan so yearned to join in with the fun, duty to the tree of life comes first and foremost. He’s the guardian of the Tree of Life that day, and he won’t be relieved of his duties until Kyungsoo comes to take over the next day.

“Hey, Lu?” Sehun’s voice is soft and gentle; the hand not held on to Luhan’s bent behind his head. Luhan elbows the younger for lack of formalities, but looks up at him expectantly anyway. Sehun blows air through his teeth, sitting up and facing the older boy. “You know I love you, right?”

Luhan’s features break into an endearing smile. “You’re so silly, Sehun-ah. Of course I do! We’re a pair – we’re meant to be, we always have. The three of us.”

Sehun shakes his head, brown bangs draping into his eyes as he takes a deep breath. “Luhan hyung, it’s not just that. I don’t know about Jongin, but I love you. I really, really, really love you. I really do. A lot more than just because we’re a pair.” He pauses as Luhan sits up too, doe eyes shining in concern. “I just wanted you to know that.”

“Oh, Sehun.” Luhan sighs, looping his arms around Sehun’s slim neck and pulling the younger exotic in for a kiss. Luhan tastes sweet, like the strawberries he’s just eaten, and the kiss is chaste. When they both pull away for air, Luhan nuzzles close to the taller exotic. “I Love you, too. Much, much more than my heart can take. And I know, I know both you and Jongin Love me very, very much. You forget, I’m in your minds more than any of the others. I know you two inside and out.”

They sit together, with Luhan snuggled between Sehun’s legs, until the clock strikes twelve.

…

As if on cue, fireworks are sent into the sky as people cheer deafeningly. Jongin grimaces as his ears are numbed by the loud screams, dark eyes squinting as he makes out the faces of the twelve guardians as they appear, one by one, as shining fireworks in the night sky.

Luhan appears second, in a beautiful blue.

Chanyeol sure has outdone himself this time, Jongin thinks as he pauses, staring at his bond’s face. If only he could have spent this Day of Life with Luhan. Instead, he’d been sent on patrols, seeing as he’d be the fastest, and had only just gotten back. As Luhan’s fireworks fade, and Kris’ red blooms like a flower in the night sky, Jongin vows to shower Luhan with kisses once they meet.

Sehun has him covered, though. Luhan had been miserable after finding out that he’d have tree duty on the Day of Life, and Sehun should be entertaining Luhan now in compensation. As much as Jongin hates it when Sehun and Luhan are alone together, without him, he owes Sehun this time, for being able to be there for Luhan while Jongin isn’t able to.

Sehun’s fireworks appear last, after Jongin’s own shimmering bronze, in a silver explosion. The colour of the wind. Chanyeol hadn’t been able to replicate Jongin’s pure black shadows, but he had promised to work on it before the next Day of Life.

Released from the hills, Lanterns cruise over the town just as Sehun’s smiling face fades from the sky. In the soft yellow glow of a thousand lanterns burning brightly in the sky, a few people are able to spot Jongin and bow fully, their faces softened in respect.

The twelve Guardians of Exo are charged with the duty of protecting the Tree Of Life. For that, they are highly respected and almost revered by the townspeople, as if they’re Gods themselves.

Jongin grins when he deduces that everything seems to be in order, and it should be find if he leaves to see Luhan. He’d gotten strawberry cake from the next town over, after all, so they could celebrate properly. Strawberries are Luhan’s favourite.

He’s stopped by a nagging feeling at the pit of his stomach. Something is wrong – but what exactly?

Jongin’s eyes narrow as he surveys the people around him. They all seem happy, excited, even, to be celebrating the Day of Life. But still, the nagging feeling intensifies. Something just… isn’t right.

Pitch black fireworks make their way high into the sky, shimmering somehow, even against the dark sky. Jongin frowns as he observes it, cocking his head in confusion. Chanyeol had said he hadn’t been able to make black fireworks, and he’d left on his trip with Baekhyun almost right after programming the performance. Jongin had watched him as he did – and no black fireworks had been added into the show. Was this a surprise? Jongin’s eyebrows furrow even more. Chanyeol’s energy signature is still far, far away, and these fireworks don’t feel anything like the others.

Jongin can only watch with widening eyes, heart pounding so hard it seems to hammer against his chest painfully, as the larger-than-life fireworks morph into black flames high in the night sky, devouring and spreading to cover the twinkling stars in the sky rapidly. Everything, everyone seems to freeze in place as the temperature seems to drop.

No. This fire isn’t familiar. It isn’t Chanyeol.

And it definitely isn’t good.

A burst of black tendrils of smoke signals his departure as the black fire rains down on the town, feet pounding heavily on cobblestoned streets as the shouts of joy turn into screams of terror.

A box containing strawberry cake is left forgotten on the floor.

Title: Guardians

Characters: EXO OT12, Luhan-centric

Pairing: sekailu, kailu, hunhan, baekyeol, sulay, taoris, xiuchen

Length: chaptered

Genre: adventure, family, romance, friendship

Warnings: character death (highlight to read)

Summary: MAMA! Now answer me, and tell me, why have things changed? Has there really been a beautiful time before? Please, please say that we can change things if we wanted.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed the (pretty long) foreword! This story is meant to be a tribute to Exo's MAMA Era - hence why I'm using MAMA Era ships like sulay and xiuchen - and OT12. I'd written some of it back when they first debuted, and I've only just found the plans and decided to post and continue it. I don't know about you guys, but to me, I'll always be an EXOTIC, and not an EXO-L. Those are just my personal feelings, of course.

Thank you for giving this story a chance. No Plagiarism, please. Credits to owners of any photos/gifs used.

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