Chapter 22

You are My Destiny

 

Suho didn't think he'd ever been happier at the thought of going somewhere than when he'd found out they could leave exo-planet for good but moving back to the newly renovated HQs definitely beat that.

Because he could, finally, be alone with his wife.

He was so happy, he couldn't keep the grin off his face and maybe his thoughts were too loud because Angel was turning redder by the second.

He didn't care though. They were moving into the HQs where he'd have the privacy of his own room and he would make sure it was completely devoid of anything that could disturb his time with Angel and then…

Then he'd make love to her like he'd been fantasizing since the day she'd walked down the aisle in that beautiful white dress.

Angel cast him a scandalized look before hurrying off into the kitchen. He grinned again, tempted to follow her sweet little…

'OI, mind out of the gutter, you erted old man!'

He growled irritably – couldn’t a man fantasize in peace? – before turning to glare at the interrupter. 'What?'

Chen smiled innocently. 'D.O wants to talk to you. Xiumin called, he thinks he saw something strange and Kris has news to report as well.'

Suho sighed, saying goodbye to his sweet fantasies – he'd fulfill them if it was the last thing he did, he vowed to himself – before standing up. 'Fine, let's go.'

……………………………

'Are you sure it's not just your…' Suho didn't know how to say it without implying Xiumin had basically lost it.

Which he kind of had but his Shadow was rather unstable these days and Suho didn't exactly fancy being on the receiving end of his infamous icicles.  

'I know what I saw,' Xiumin snapped irritably, the red in his eyes more pronounced than it'd been in years. The beast never got this close to surface with Xiumin, even when the man was using his ability. Lily's leaving had truly messed him up, hadn’t it?

The room's temperature dropped by several degrees as he stared at the alpha, daring him to defy him. Suho resisted the urge to snap his teeth, trying to be considerate of his situation and reminding himself that his Shadow was also an Elder, thus deserving of his respect. He breathed out rather forcefully before opening his eyes to look at the Legend.

'And what exactly was it?'

'It's not Evil,' Xiumin ran an agitated hand through his hair – which was standing on end like he'd done it numerous times before. 'Lay or Kyra would've seen it coming. And I'd say abby but it doesn't feel right.'

He described how he'd seen the eyes the first night he'd gone back and how, numerous times during his shift, he was sure he'd seen the same again. While it was tempting to disregard it just as something he might've imagined, they all knew it was unlikely, particularly with Xiumin.

And just because it was vague did not mean there wasn't a real threat of it being some abbies trailing them around.  Evil hadn't shown hide or hair earth-side… Xiumin was right, even if Lay had gotten rid of Evil's essence, it didn't stop the Legend from having visions. And he was always the first to sense some kind of trouble, they could rely on his intuition.

'We can pair you up…' D.O suggested, looking thoughtful. 'That way there's a greater chance of us capturing who or whatever it is.'

Though he looked less than happy about the news – he'd always preferred working alone, even more so now – but he nodded. 'Okay.'

'Kris?' The Legend had been lounging quietly against the wall, not drawing attention to himself – probably because Chanyeol was also in the room and hadn't, for once, gone stomping out the moment Kris showed up. He was still ignoring him, looking in the opposite direction.

Kris cleared his throat, straightening. 'There's has been an increase in the report of unusual nighttime activity in the --- area. Strange sounds at night, animals being restless and one unusual sighting. Also, the police have found three dead stray dogs in the area, and one pet cat strangled over the past month. Not sure what to make of it, though.'

Suho frowned worriedly. These kinds of things were what they called the 'soft signs' of Evil's presence – small, seemingly insignificant things like animals acting up more than usual or mysteriously dying without any apparent cause. Given that Evil had found so many ways to use his ability, it wouldn’t be surprising to find out that he could possess animals as well – probably better for him, in fact because they'd be easier to dispose of than humans. Still, plenty of people reported this kind of stuff anyway – it didn’t always mean Evil; humans believed, with good reason, in hauntings after all.

'Any reason you think this might be relevant?' He asked.

Kris's eyes flickered to Xiumin for a brief moment before meeting Suho's. 'Yes, actually. Lily's brother's rented a place in the area to stay here while their sister recovers. The rest of the family was there too until recently – they just moved back.'

Okay, this was definitely bad. And not only because it made Evil's presence over there much more likely.

Xiumin's face was an impenetrable mask, his shoulders gone stiff. Apparently, he hadn't known they were still in Oulphesden. 'I thought they'd gone back.' He muttered, eyes suddenly redder.

They weren’t clear on the details about what had happened between him and Lily except that he hadn't claimed her – which was highly surprising, given how attached they obviously were and frankly, Suho hadn't known it was even possible to withhold the link, wasn't it like… automatic or something? – and he'd told her to go away so she and her family wouldn't be in danger.

That they were still here meant the chances of Evil manipulating them to find her or draw the Legends out had just escalated drastically. Not to mention it'd make his entire efforts – and the consequent suffering – in vain if they were still here, unprotected and in danger.

'Well, this needs to be addressed immediately. Ideas?' All eyes looked to D.O – he was their strategist after all.

'Short of packing and shipping them off? I think the best way is to monitor them. If Evil tries to use them, we'll be ready to act. If not, there's no point in worrying them. It could be nothing, for all we know.'

'Okay… that's a sound plan.' Suho nodded, 'Who…?'

Chen volunteered. 'I missed out on all the action since I was bedridden and ,' he explained, 'so I figure might as well throw in some extra work…. Besides, it'd be night duty and I… don't sleep much anyway.'

Suho nodded, agreeing and mentally planning to ask Lay to give Chen another thorough check-up. The Legend hadn't once talked about his abduction and consequent torture – they all knew he'd gone through some pretty harsh stuff because of D.O – and he suspected his inability to sleep stemmed from that.

'Alright. Anything else?'

'I have added a few more reinforcements to the original security in the HQs,' D.O replied, 'I think it'd help if all of us added to it rather than just the offensives. I've had a few ideas since our last battle.'

Suho nodded again, dismissing the rest so he could go over the plans with him.

………………………………….

The talk was rather grim but that did not stop him from looking forward to his date with Nara.

'Oh, you're going out with her again?' Baekhyun asked, eyebrows nearly touching his hairline.

Chanyeol shrugged. 'She's been itching to try the new stuff she uncovered during her research over romance, so we could design an objective scale. I can hardly refuse since I consented to fully participate and all.'

Chen and Baekhyun snorted in unison, no doubt over his usage of research language. He didn't mind, though – research was fun, he liked researching with Nara.

'He's hooked,' Chen shook his head in mock pity.

Chanyeol ignored that in favor of reading Nara's text, asking if he would be ready for their first official date. The ice-cream one didn't count because it didn't have enough romantic elements to objectively qualify as one, as she'd said and well, how could he refute that and not give her a chance to enjoy a proper one?

There was only one problem. 'Crap!' He exclaimed, distressed.

'Did she finally realize the slick grease you are?' Baekhyun joked.

Chanyeol shook his head, looking ridiculously sad, 'I'm on duty tonight.'

'Wh… oh. Um… well, you can ask D.O switch things around or something.' Chen pointed out. Chanyeol shook his head, making his hair flap and fall into his eyes. 'He already did that last time, switching places with me… besides, Luhan's not here and everyone else has already asked him for switches and stuff. Dammit!'

'Um…' Baekhyun's eyed drifted thoughtfully before settling on something behind Chanyeol. He smiled, 'Give me a minute.'

He hurried off as Chanyeol continued pouting over his cellphone. He wanted to see exactly what kind of romantic elements she'd dug up and which ones she wanted to add to their first date… maybe he could even throw in some hands-on learning for fun. He sighed, then yelped when Baekhyun grabbed his neck.

'Done!' he sang happily, puckering his lips. 'You can thank me properly now!'

'Ew!' He pushed his face away, 'I'm taken now!'

'.' Baekhyun pouted, before grinning. 'Well, I found someone to take your shift so you don't need to worry. Go, have fun!'

Chanyeol eyed him suspiciously, 'Who?'

'Someone who's rooting for you,' Baekhyun nodded sagely. 'Go on, tell her you'll be there. You can thank us later.'

Chanyeol opened his mouth to retort before something crossed his mind, a frown appearing on his forehead. 'You asked Kris, didn't you?'

Baekhyun stilled, before shrugging. 'I might have.'

'Dammit Baek, I told you I want nothing to do with him!' he snapped, irritated.

'You don't have to.' Baekhyun shrugged again, annoyingly calm. 'This is between me and him.'

'If you think getting him to do things for me is going to change anything…' he began, growling because he was just that pissed. Baekhyun raised a hand, 'I don't. He doesn't either – trust me, he's very clear where he stands with you.'

'Nowhere!' Chanyeol snapped.

'Yeah, yeah… what's bothering you? I switched places with you and then told him to take my place – you don't factor into this. Now chill, will ya? This angry act doesn't suit you.'

'It's not an act.' He muttered, not at all appeased.

It annoyed him to no end that Kris had just walked back into the pack like he'd never left, like he, Chanyeol, hadn't suffered months of inaction and feeling helpless because his of Shadow had taken his powers.

And now, everyone was acting like everything was just peachy and Kris, sporting that idiotic guilty look every time their eyes met. As if his feeling sorry changed anything. And doing things like this – if he thought for second that Chanyeol was going to forget everything just because he did him a favor or two…

'You're hair's lighting up,' Baekhyun commented lightly, though his eyes were serious.

Chanyeol huffed irritably, swatting a hand over his head to put it out. He was sure his eyes were red and his palms felt too hot but he was just too damn angry. He couldn't just prance back into his life without expecting any consequences of his actions.

Chanyeol had done everything for the guy – supported him emotionally, kept him from going completely insane, suffered with him when he went through his bouts of depression over Karen and he'd repaid him by depriving him of his identity. If he thought, for even a moment that he could pay any of that back with a few measly favors…

'Gah!' He punched the wall beside him before angrily stalking off. Now his entire good mood was ruined and it was just one more thing he could hate his Shadow for.

Baekhyun shook his head at the tantrum, hurriedly putting out the fire before it could catch, wondering when Chanyeol would move on from his hurt. He was clinging to it, nursing his hurt and it bugged the hell out of Baekhyun because that's not who Chanyeol was – he was happy and forgiving, not angry, not someone to hold a grudge.

And yes, Kris had been a and screwed him over but it wasn't doing Chanyeol any good, holding onto his anger like that. Maybe he thought he didn't notice but it was easy to see the frustrated tears clinging to his lashes when he'd stalked off.

And the look on Kris's face was enough to send another bolt of sympathy through him. The guy looked positively ill with guilt.

'He's really mad at me, isn't he?' He muttered, face twisting a little sadly before he pushed it back.

'Yeah.' Baekhyun didn't really see how he could twist Chanyeol's words into anything nicer. Besides, they were connected – every thought probably bled into him anyway, so no point sugar-coating the truth.

'Can't say I blame him though.' He shrugged again. Baekhyun looked up at him thoughtfully before going over and hugging him. 'It's okay, he'll get over it.'

Kris looked lost for a moment before deciding to hug him back. 'Thanks.' He muttered.

Nodding, he backed off and pushed him away, feeling awkward. Kris wasn't one for emotional displays, neither was Baekhyun but he figured they'd both needed it. Didn't make the aftermath any easier though. Kris looked unsure if he should say something and Baekhyun was casting around for something when he was saved by his Shadow.

'Kris!' Lay hugged the Legend from behind, arms slipping around his waist and face nuzzling into his back, sobbing, 'Don't be sad, we love you!'

One look at his tear-streaked face, lips coated with cream, was enough to make Baekhyun face-palm. 'Who gave him ice-cream?' He yelled as Kris patted Lay's head reassuringly.

'You didn't murder Karen, it was Evil!' Lay bawled, hugging him tighter, 'Don't leave us!'

'Oh god, were you watching The Lion King again?' Baekhyun rubbed his forehead, before glancing at Kris. 'I'm leaving!'

Kris looked helplessly down at the Legend dissolving against him as Baekhyun took off. After a few moments of indecision, he tilted Lay's head up, chucking him under the chin so the healer would meet his eyes. His pupils were blood red, eyes wide and tearful and Kris felt a rush of affection for the kindhearted man.

'I'm fine and I'm not leaving.' He told him gently.

Lay sniffed, 'Really?'

He couldn't help the smile on his face when he nodded and Lay smiled back, the dimple in his cheek flashing immediately.

'C'mon, tell us what you were talking about…' Raina's voice echoed around the corridor, followed by Tao's laughter as the two came hurtling down the corridor. 'Tao, tell me… whoa!'

They skidded to a halt in front of them, Raina's eyes widening as she took in the way they were smiling at each other.

'I love you!' Lay suddenly declared, throwing his arms around the taller Legend again and nuzzling into his chest.

'Bad timing?' Tao asked, a naughty grin on his face as Raina gaped at them in shock.

Blood rushed to Kris's cheeks but before he could even say anything – though what, he had no idea – a soft snore reached his ears. Glancing down, he realized Lay had fallen asleep against him, the little bit of ice-cream from his lips smearing over his shirt.

Sighing, he picked the Legend in his arms and stalked off.

'Holy… it was Kris all this time!' Raina stage-whispered, sounding shocked, 'And here I thought he was into Sehun.'

Tao's laughter followed him to Lay's room while his ears burned. 

………………………………

 

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Alisha0074 #1
Chapter 84: Yikes!!
Alisha0074 #2
Chapter 83: What future????? I'm going to reread....
thanks for the update!!!
Alisha0074 #3
Chapter 81: Thanks for the update!!! Its was nice to read this again.
As for the kris may I suggest something??
Alisha0074 #4
Chapter 79: Finally finally xiu can get his girl but now what do we do with kris?????
these elders ....
Crazydork22 #5
Chapter 79: Woohoooo! You go Xiumin! Get your girl!
topgirls
#6
Chapter 77: This update made my morning!! Keep up the great work!!
shenaya #7
Chapter 76: I hope you did not give up on this masterpiece.
Crazydork22 #8
Chapter 75: Oh my GOSH. I was so excited to see a new update on this. I went to read the chapter and I was confused because it didn’t seem to flow with the end of the previous one from my memory so I went back and....somehow I missed an update?!?!!!!! How did I miss two chapters??? And SO MANY XIUMIN LILY MOMENTS???? Ahhhhhhh!!! Okay so loved the Xiu/Lily, her payback was XD also big lol to some of them wondering why it was snowing. This newest chapter, yes! Xiumin! Put a ring on her!



As to real EXOland, oh my gosh I was so so so happy when Jongdae came to Baekhyun’s show! All the pics were LQ, but it was so lovely to see him. AND Minseok and Kyungsoo had their musical live streamed yesterday! I’m so proud of them! Minseok’s character is so adorable and meme worthy!
Alisha0074 #9
Chapter 73: Poor poor minnie!!!!
thanks for the update!!!!
Alisha0074 #10
Chapter 71: Thank you for you're updated!!! Glad to see my 2 lovely ppl falling back in line