a song of fire and ice

mama!au;pathcode!au

Some say the world will end in fire, 

Some say in ice. 

From what I’ve tasted of desire 

I hold with those who favor fire. 

But if it had to perish twice, 

I think I know enough of hate 

To say that for destruction ice 

Is also great 

And would suffice.

 

---

minseok just came back from berlin when they heard a news about a wildfire that nearly wiped out a forest in arizona. it’s not surprising since climate change can be blamed, but it’s for the fact that a man was inside the forest during the fire and he came out safe and unharmed (except for his clothes that were burnt). 

junmyeon figured that the man might be one of them but sehun insisted that they could be mistaken and accidentally expose their identities, but junmyeon, being junmyeon, didn't listen and ask jongin to take him to arizona to find the man. 

minseok, as usual, did not utter a word and let them do their thing; junmyeon deciding on things and sehun contradicting it. 

three days passed and junmyeon and jongin still hasn’t returned from arizona, and in those three days the people in the house increased. there’s jongdae, who came back from kazakhstan, baekhyun from lyon, and yixing from china, instead of just him and sehun. minseok was cleaning the living room when junmyeon, jongin, and a tall man appeared at the door. “what took you guys so long?” he asked while hugging jongin.

“we have to make sure he has the abilities, plus he doesn't want to come unless we showed him what we can do.” junmyeon explained.

“you could've just left him there.” sehun interjected. “and risked him getting found? no thanks.” jongin replied.

“the kids are back by the way.” 

“sehun they’re older than you.” 

“they don’t seem to act that way.”

minseok glanced at the man who still hasn’t left the front door and motioned for him to come inside, but when he took a step forward, minseok took  a step backward. warm.

“i-i’m going back to my room.” minseok announced not taking his eyes off from the stranger. 

“hyung.” jongin called out but minseok already walked back, junmyeon, who noticed the elder’s anxiousness, followed him.

“minseok-hyung, what’s wrong?” he asked once he closed the door.

“he’s fire myeon. i  don’t think i can stay too close to him, i-i have to go back to berlin.” 

“hyung, that’s not a good idea. they already know you were there, and if they found out you’re back you’re gonna get killed.” he’s right. he can’t go back there, it’s too risky. 

“you don’t have to be close to chanyeol, okay? you can eat your breakfast or dinner at different times just so you won’t have to be near him.” he added.

minseok nodded, ‘i just need to ignore him until things have cool down and i can come back to berlin.’ 

-🔥—❄️-

“kyungsoo! you’re back!” jongdae screamed. after being away from him for months he finally get to see the person he wanted to hold the most. 

“you didn’t seem to miss me that much huh, jongdae-yah?” kyungsoo smiled. 

“shut up! you were the one who decided to stay in colorado instead of coming with me in almaty!”

“fine, i get it. now come here you probably need to discharge for having so much energy in the morning.” he rolled his eyes even though he opened his arms wide. 

jongdae didn’t waste a second to get inside the younger’s hug and release all the energy he has, he missed him more than anyone since kyungsoo is the only person he can touch without worrying if he will electrocute the other. 

they saw minseok smiling from the hallway when they part, “welcome back, kyungsoo-yah.” 

“hyung, it’s good to be back.” kyungsoo hugged the elder not minding he’s cold as every morning. “i heard there’s a new guy.” he furrowed his eyebrows.

“yeah, there is, and his ability is fire.”  

“are you ok?”

“i’m fine, i haven’t really talked to him that much. he rooms with jongdae at the end of the hall while me and junmyeon stays the farthest from them, so i don’t really interact with him much.”

since most of the kids are back, junmyeon insisted on switching rooms so they could be all comfortable. hence, junmyeon and jongdae both stayed at the opposite ends of the house, just so they could avoid disasters. junmyeon chose minseok as his roommate and jongdae chose chanyeol, in the end they all decided to separate the incompatible ones and put the compatible ones together.

“you would probably stay with them since you have to discharge jongdae every morning.” he changed the topic. 

“i know, it’s going to be a real pain in the .” he groaned. jongdae gasped from the back, “excuse me sir, but just because i haven’t seen you in months doesn’t mean i have to rely on you once your back. i can discharge myself very well to be honest.”

kyungsoo hummed, “alright i guess i will be rooming with sehun and jongin.”

jongdae opened his mouth, “unbelievable.” 

minseok laughed but it cut short when the room felt warm, too warm. 

he saw chanyeol entered the living room yawning while rubbing his eyes. minseok’s eyes widened when the taller stand next to him asking, “who’s this?” 

jongdae’s eyes also widened and pulled chanyeol’s arm placing him next to kyungsoo. 

“chanyeol, this is kyungsoo. soo, this is chanyeol, the new guy.” 

 “nice to meet you.” he offered his hand. 

chanyeol just stared at kyungsoo’s hand before hesitantly shook it. 

“i’m going to make you guys some breakfast.” minseok left the room and went to the kitchen. he took a deep breath, relief that he’s away from the warmth of the room. but the coldness in the air was abruptly replaced with heat, and he felt a warm presence next to him once again. he moved farther to the side to keep the cold aura he has, “what are you doing?” he asked.

“i want to help.” the taller smiled sheepishly. 

“it’s fine. i can do it alone.” minseok dismissed.

“but i want to help.” 

“i don’t need your help!” he cried out.

“oh, o-okay. sorry.” chanyeol looked down with shame and left the room without a word.

minseok was short of breath and sank down the floor. i must’ve been too rude.

-🔥—❄️-

the tension was suffocating and minseok was sure the other boys felt it at dinner. much to minseok’s dismay, junmyeon persisted on having a dinner with everyone since they’re all here, because of that, here he is being unusually quiet while listening to baekhyun’s stories about how he managed to shut off all the lights in lyon.

“did something happened earlier?” junmyeon asked him while washing his face. 

“nothing.”

“the two of you were awkward at dinner though, normally, there wouldn’t be any heebie-jeebies between the two of you.” 

heebie-jeebies?

“he asked for helped at breakfast but i kinda yelled at him when i told him i don’t need his help.” he revealed.

“it’s none of my business to tell you this but hyung, he faced rejection his whole life. that’s why it took time before we get him to come with us.”

“what?”

“i don’t know his whole story but that is just what he told us.” 

minseok lied on his bed staring at the ceiling, pondering about what junmyeon said; ‘he faced rejection his whole life.’

he got up from his bed and went to the kitchen and made himself a cup of coffee, he still drinks the same old coffee lu han had taught him from years before. lu han, i wonder how he’s doing right now.

he’s too deep into his thoughts that he never noticed that chanyeol had walked in the kitchen with a surprise look on his face. “minseok ssi, why are you still awake?” 

“scheisse!” he jumped. 

“i’m sorry i didn’t mean to scare you.” the younger apologised.

minseok stood up from his chair and moved farther from the man. “it’s okay.” he reassured the other, he grabbed his coffee preparing to leave when chanyeol asked him, “a-are you scared of me?”

minseok couldn't helped but be surprised to what chanyeol had said. “i’m not scared of you, i-it’s just…” he trailed off. chanyeol, even though he’s the tallest of the group, looked so small at this moment. ‘he faced rejection his whole life.’ 

“we’re incompatible you know, you’re fire and i’m ice. we can’t be put in the same room.” 

“but junmyeon hyung is fine, and his ability is water.”

“junmyeon can’t stay in the same room with jongdae without making the other feel charged. whenever he’s near you he feels lethargic.” 

“i-i dont feel anything though.” chanyeol said.

“i’m pretty sure you do. why do you insist on being close to me by the way?” minseok asked.

“i just don’t want any awkwardness between me and you guys. all of you seems to know each other well, i felt like an outsider whenever i don’t get an inside joke.” the younger explained. 

minseok stared at him, wondering whether he will succumb to this kid’s wants. “fine. i’ll try to talk to you or something, just don’t come too close.” he sighed.

chanyeol smiled widely, “thank you, minseok ssi.”

“you can call me hyung.” 

“o-ok, minseok hyung.” his face flushed.

minseok can’t helped the smile tugging at his lips when he heard the taller called him hyung, it reminded him of the time when sehun called him hyung for the first time. 12-year-old sehun stood in front of him during his break, declaring minseok as his ‘new older brother’ because “junmyeon hyung doesn't want to buy me tteokbokki after school!” 

-🔥—❄️-

two weeks has passed since their ‘agreement’ and minseok felt nothing has changed between them, they talked a few times but it was nothing more than ‘can you pass me that?’ or ‘ i’m going out’. and in that two weeks he found out a few about the younger, he’s loud whenever he’s comfortable, he’s too messy, he’s loud, he’s energetic, and he’s loud. ‘we’re too different, that kind of friendship will not work.’ he thought, but it was not until the 13th day that he started to think that being opposites might be a good thing.

“hyung! hyung! wake up!!!” sehun was shaking minseok awake. 

“hun-ah… what’s going on?” minseok asked groggily.

“there’s a fire in chanyeol hyung and jongdae hyung’s room!!” sehun cried.

“junmyeon can handle it…” he pushed sehun away.

“apparently, he can’t cause it’s too big! wake up, chanyeol hyung is on fire too!!” sehun pulled minseok up.

“alright!” minseok stood up and walked out of the room, the hallway is too bright and the others are hiding at the other end of the hall, away from the fire.

“junmyeon-ah!” he called out.

“hyung! can you help me? i tried containing his fire but it’s not working unless we freeze it.” 

“got it. go to the others and try to calm sehun down.” 

minseok walked inside the room and saw fire everywhere, it’s a miracle that the fire is not spreading outside the room. he put his hand on the dresser near him that was on fire, in an instant, the fire disappeared but came back just as fast as it went out.

‘this wont do, i have to cool chanyeol himself.’ he thought.

he looked over and the said man who was on fire and shaking in his bed, ‘he's having a nightmare.’ it’s not uncommon for their powers to be out of control once in a while, but when it happens it would be when they are really angry or having a nightmare. since chanyeol was asleep and rarely gets angry, minseok chose the latter.

“chanyeol-ah.” he called out.

he tried putting his hand out to try and freeze it but the heat was just too much, it almost melted the ice inside him. he went out for a bit and walked straight into the kitchen, ignoring the worried glances from the others. he opened the freezer and looked for an ice, when he saw one, he held it and put it near his body. the coolness of the ice calmed him down and restored the coldness inside him. 

fortunately, the fire hasn’t changed and it hasn’t creeped out of the room. even though it’s a wild fire, it almost seems like chanyeol is still keeping it under control and not making it spread.

he tried to reach out for the second time but he was too overwhelmed with the warmth, it started making him lightheaded. he was thinking of hugging the younger to cool him down but the other part of him screams no, first, they’re not that close. if it was the others he would have done that first, but this is chanyeol, the kid who was lost and who just wanted to help. but he’s scared. he has never met someone who has fire as an ability, the closest thing was jongdae and baekhyun, but they were never too hot for him. 

‘i have to… don’t i? fine…’ 

he took a deep breath and let his mind be calm, ‘forget about the consequences, just make the fire stop.’

minseok rushed to chanyeol and laid on top of him, hugging the taller with everything he can. their clothes got burnt and now it’s skin on skin, warm and cold, fire to ice. 

the fire around the room is starting to disappear and chanyeol unconsciously held minseok back, the older has his eyes closed and focused on hugging the younger. 

before they knew the fire is gone and chanyeol is staring at minseok.

“are you ok?” junmyeon asked the older with worry.

“i’m okay, it seems like he can’t burn me at all.” he joked weakly.

“good. thanks hyung.” 

“it’s fine, this is the first time we’ve done this huh?” he smiled.

“yeah, it’s mostly jongdae getting out of control but we only need kyungsoo for that.”

(back when they all just met, kyungsoo kept a distance to himself and mostly stayed at the side. he only talks to minseok and junmyeon and ignores the others. but one day, jongdae got lost control of his powers from the pressure of his parents. junmyeon tried to help but he knew it would only make things worse, so kyungsoo stepped in and asked if he could do it. they didn’t hesitate and let kyungsoo do his thing, he walked to jongdae and held the other. due to his ability he can withstand jongdae’s electric charges, and after that jongdae started relying on kyungsoo. it was not a surprise for them when they showed up with their hands linked together, declaring “we’re together… just so you guys know.”)

“now we need you to keep chanyeol in check.” junmyeon added.

“what?” he scrunched his eyebrows. no.

“it’s not all the time hyung please.”

“why can't you do it?” he groaned.

“it seems like i’m not too powerful for his fire. he needs ice right away and not water.” junmyeon explained and walked out of the room leaving him with chanyeol.

“i’m sorry about earlier hyung, i didn’t know it was going to happen.” chanyeol explained on his bed.

“it’s fine, it was an accident. it happens to us too.” he reassured the other.

“so… uh… did you had a nightmare?” he tried asking.

“nightmare eh? it would’ve been better if it was like that.” he chuckled slightly.

“it was more of a bad memory, i… i killed my own family.” chanyeol added.

minseok’s eyes widen at the sudden revelation, “you don't have to tell me.”

“i want to… i have to get it out of my head.” 

“okay, go ahead.” he took chanyeol’s wrist and pulled him closer on his side. ‘he’s not warm right now.’

“i was 12 when my ability started to appear, it was not that extreme at first. its just the book i'm holding suddenly caught on fire, things like that. but it did get worse over time, like my bed unexpectedly bursting into flames. my parents thought i was the devil you know, they thought satan took over me cause i never listened to them. they tried to take me to the priest but they never found any symptoms that i was possessed. so after that my family tried kicking me out of our house, ‘you don’t deserve to stay with us! you’re a demon!’ it hurt a lot hearing them say that, i was too upset and angry that my ability got out of control and it burned our house down where my parents were still inside.” chanyeol looked like he’s in a daze, he turned to look at minseok and saw the sadness in the older’s eyes.

“you don’t deserve to be treated like that, you’re not a demon. you’re too nice and soft.” minseok sniffled.

“soft is not a word to describe me hyung.” he smiled sadly.

“you’re not the only one who experienced that though, almost everyone here still has their parents except me and kyungsoo. i didn’t exactly killed them but i…” he trailed off.

“i froze them, they tried hurting my little sister. then i got really angry and i froze them, so they can’t lay a hand on her again. they were never nice to me, but it doesn’t really bother me though. my little sister was the one that kept me going, she was a sweetheart and an angel. but after what happened i had no choice i have to leave my sister somewhere since i can’t take care of her, what can a 13 year-old boy can do huh? so i left her outside an orphanage near our house, that’s the last time i saw her and i never knew what happened to her. i met junmyeon after that outside his dad’s company, he saw i can endure the cold so he took me in and we became brothers since then.” he was thankful for junmyeon, and even though he lost his real family he gained a better one instead. junmyeon’s parents adopted him and cared for him since then.

“oh…”

“don’t forget you’re not the only one who’s suffering chanyeol-ah.” he comforted the younger.

“you were lucky to find another family hyung.” he grinned. “i was stuck on the streets for a few months and i got into some shady business growing up.” he continued.

“you were dressed nicely when you arrived though.” chanyeol showed up looking very dapper for someone who had just caused a forest fire. 

“i was modelling for a product that time and i asked if i could keep the clothes.” he scratched the back of his neck, cheeks look flushed.

minseok stared at him for a bit, it must’ve been hard for him. he was rejected by his parents and got into situations he wasn’t supposed to be in. 

chanyeol stared back at him, and they’ve been staring at each other for a few seconds when chanyeol’s hand bursted into flames. minseok instantly held his hands and cooled it for him, he must’ve grown a soft spot for the other.

they spend the night talking and minseok realised that maybe chanyeol being different from him is not too bad, maybe he was scared of changes and grew accustomed of everything around him being the same. the things that chanyeol talked about got minseok interested that he doesn’t felt tired at all, the younger was leaning on his shoulder while talking and their hands intertwined (just in case it burst again). 

+++

epilogue

“junmyeon hyung!!” chanyeol screamed frantically. 

“what? what is going on?” junmyeon burst the door.

“minseok hyung is trapped on an ice block and it’s too cold in our room!!”

the ice block was too thick it took chanyeol 8 hours to melt.

“what the hell was that hyung?” he asked the older.

“nothing…” it might be the cold or something but minseok’s cheeks were red.

“tell me!” the younger pushed.

“it’s nothing!” of course he’s not going to tell the other he had a ‘weird’ dream about him. nope. no.

but chanyeol didn’t gave up and was determined to know the reason why the older encased himself on a thick block of ice, and it took him 3 days to crack minseok. he was a blushing mess when he found out though.

they shared a kiss after but did not ended up together, because according to minseok: “it’s too fast you !”

but of course it will only take 3 days for chanyeol to crack minseok. 

 

---

 

hello! sorry i was gone for like so long :---( i was too busy with college that i can't write for a while, i already have drafts for a few drabbles but writer's block punched me in the face so i was unable to continue it. but luckily i found a time to write this and since im turning 18 in a week i wanted to give you guys this!! i was actually surprised when i saw the subs thank you everyone!! this is one of my favorite xiuyeol angst subject (?) i mean come on, fire and ice?? yeah! i got the title from got (my favorite show) and yes i do ship chensoo and baekxing too. and lastly, i've wanted to put a luhan reference here (to feed my xiuhan heart), skin to skin is my favorite song of his! see you guys on the next update!! au revoir!