Daesung was right. Seungri had changed, and although Jiyong had been there as part of the agent of the change, he wasn't really sure that he even understands all of it. It was like a miracle. 

He propelled his chin on his palm and stared at Seungri who is talking to Youngbae and Daesung at the moment. He would want to take part in their conversation, but he rather sit there and watch Seungri and see the change himself. Jiyong could pick up some of it now, that Seungri seems more calm and he didn't even tensed when Jiyong touched him.

The signals was really subtle, but it was there and Jiyong doubted it if anyone in the room would notice. But then, he didn't want them to notice them. They were for his eyes alone.Well, maybe it would be satisfying if Seunghyun had been there, him and his bloody conviction that their bond was tattered and would never heal, and could blink when he noticed how Jiyong's mate was responding to him. But that was the only audience he would have wished for.

Seungri no longer startled when Jiyong embraced him, or when his wings moved. In fact, he was able to talk and even laugh with his hyungs in a carefree as if he had forgotten Jiyong was holding him. Its not a victory, for most Veela, but in this case, when Seungri had been so stiff and rejected even the barest touch, Jiyong was prepared to count it as one. 

Perhaps, its worth more than that, because Jiyong had earned it. He knew he could have done things that would have made Seungri distrust him and distanced himself more. But he hasn't. 

And there was none of that cold, focused intensity behind Seungri's eyes and words that Jiyong had noticed before. As if nothing mattered to him except going away from the country, and nothing could be allowed to matter except that, because if Seungri allowed himself to starts thinking and caring about something else...

He would have to question whether there was only one thing he could care about, after all. 

Jiyong smiled. No, he would never have the kind of bond he had been raised to expect, because it would require Seungri not melting his barrier but instead, switching it to something even worse. But this is way much better. 

And now, he had his reward: the way Seungri returned his holds, the scent of him echoing through Jiyong's nostrils, the shifts in his muscles that Jiyong know how to read. He smiled contently and continue admiring Seungri's face like a love stricken puppy. The thought of his mate and their very first kisses warmed him up like wine. 

*

"I do think that you've changed, in a good way, I mean." Youngbae told Seungri as they walked down the sidewalk near the beach."You seems more calm now, unlike how you were for these past few month."

Seungri snorted, feeling the soft breeze caressing his face. "These past few months, if you counted how I felt when I knew I have a Veela mate and, then the I have to go through along with it." He had to, if only for the signficance of what had happened there.

"Thats very much true," said Youngbae. "I suppose the times you spent with Kwon has been good for you in more ways than one." He paused and eyed him for a moment. "Do you think that you'll be able to continue your bond and stay by his side?"

"Perhaps. But I'm not playing the submissive role," Seungri said. "I won't change my mind regarding that matter." He turned around and watched Jiyong who was walking besides Daesung, stretching his wings so that he could annoy Daesung and make the lad walk on the sands. "And I guess, Jiyong had already accepted that part of me and everything after I opened up to him.He reminds me that I deserved to have a normal life, instead of dreading on my pasts."

"Of course you are," said Youngbae with a slight chuckle escaping his mouth when he see Daesung had started bickering with Jiyong. Its still looks like a fight, but to him, perhaps they're just starting to get along. He turned back to Seungri, and his smiles fades slowly. "I'm sorry that I ever implied otherwise."

Seungri turned at Youngbae with frown on his face when he saw the guilty look on that man face. "You and Daesung hyung, were the one who meant to give me good advice, to protect me, but it was me who took it too far," said Seungri firmly. He thought listening to Youngbae blaming himself was just agonizing as trying to go back to the emotionless person he had been. "Stop blaming yourself."

Youngbae looked at him in surprise, then laughed a little. "It has been quite a while since you've spoken that bluntly to anyone."

Seungri started to reply, but a voice interrupted him. "He spoke bluntly to me the last time we met. Seungri, can I talk to you?" 

Jiyong's growl started out so low and from a distance that Seungri honestly thought it was going to rain or something. Then it built to a roar, and he flew from where he stands and landed exactly at Seungri's side, his wings spread and overlapping with Seungri's body. Seungri leaned against him, partially to support him and show him that Seungri wanted him, too, and partially, to keep him from flying any further to Lucas, who stood there, just a few feet away from where Youngbae and him were standing. 

"No," said Seungri. "It wouldn't be a good idea. What the are you doing here anyway?"

"Are you stalking him?" Jiyong ask, and if not because of Seungri who holding him back at the moment, he's sure that he had his hands around Lucas's neck.

"I just wanted to talk to you," said Lucas. "And, I want to apologize." He moved a sliding step closer to Seungri, ignoring how Jiyong were already looking so fit to strike him at the moment.

"Get him away from me hyung," said Seungri to Youngbae. He kept his voice steady and uninterested with an effort. He wanted to laugh at Lucas's word but he decide that its not worth his time to deal with someone like Lucas. He had considered Lucas as dead, so entertaining him now would be merely useless.

"Please, can you just hear me out?" Lucas said, half pleading.

Seungri leaned back, full on Jiyong's chest, blocking his attempt to take off, and let his head fall on Jiyong's shoulder. Jiyong turned his head and sniffed at Seungri's ear. "I'm with him," Seungri said pointedly at Lucas. He didn't want to say anything like he belonged to Jiyong, in case the Veela side of Jiyong got the wrong idea, but he would say this. It was true, now and large piece of it came from his free will. "Go away. I'm not really interested in your explaination for why you treated me like back then, and why did you have the nerve to ask me to forgive you after all that? I thought you lost the duel and promised to stay the out from my life."

Saying it like that clarified his perspective and chased away any residual guilt he may have over sending Lucas away like that. Maybe Lucas was not the one to blame for everything, his mother was the root of all of his problems, but he isn't interested to hear Lucas's excuse now. After all, he could've choose to believe in him instead of him mother but he didn't do that and what he done after that was still disgusting.

Jiyong's claim on him had been silly at first, but at least he had been honest about what he wanted and what he choose to trust. Seungri was just going to always fight part of it, so they would compromise the rest. He might have had an easier and more accomodating relationship if Lucas didn't himself up, and now, Lucas is just a person he won't ever put his trust on, let alone forgive.

"Please, just hear me out first," Lucas began, and then Youngbae and Daesung came up and stands in front of him. Youngbae could look soft and Daesung could look like someone who spent his life cracking silly joke, but Seungri knew them long enough to tell that in this situation, both of them could get violent and beat the living life out of Lucas if that bastard dare to take another step toward Seungri.

"I think that you need to get the out from here if you want your face safe from beating," said Daesung, and began to pull Lucas away from Seungri with a hand clamped on his arm but Lucas snatched his arm away. 

"I just want to apologize to you," said Lucas. "Please, if you could only hear me out just once... and after this, I promise that I won't bother you anymore."

Seungri blinked slowly and breathed out. He had promised himself to get away from Noah and Lucas as far as he could, so that he would never be in this kind of situation ever again. Of course Youngbae and Daesung will protect him, but who knew what Lucas might did behind them and damn, he thought the duel will resolve it all at once. Did Jiyong risked his life over nothing then, Seungri touched his forehead and sigh deeply. All this makes his head dizzy. 

"Fine," said Seungri after a moment. His friends and Jiyong gives him a look of disapproval but stay put when Seungri tell them its okay. Youngbae and Daesung steps back while Jiyong stay guarded behind Seungri. "Now, talk." Seungri said towards Lucas.

Lucas, if anything didn't look like the arrogant man he was during the duel but instead he look like he's really sorry for his action but Seungri don't want to fall for that anymore. "Listen, I'm really sorry for what happened back then. I just find out what my mother really did to you, and I'm really sorry for what I did to you. I was at fault. I'm sorry for hurting you and I'm sorry for not believing you when I should. I'm sorry, I really am."

"I'll accept your apology," said Seungri and they were all staring at him. It make him feel sick when he saw that glimmer of hope in Lucas's eyes and the smile on his pathetic face. "But I won't forgive you." He said, and that smile slowly fade away. 

"But, accepting my apology -"

"Yes, I know that you're sorry. But, I suffered a lot back then," said Seungri and he even suprised of how calm he can say those words in front of the person who caused his pain. "It was painful to the point that I hated being alive." Lucas stared down to his feet and Seungri could feel Jiyong reaching down for his hand, holding it tight as if to give him strength but he didn't feel like crying, he didn't feel anything at all. But still, he needed to make this clear to Lucas. "It was so painful that I cut my arm, and bleed everytime you hurt my feeling, and every single times I tried to distract myself from hearing your voice inside my head whenever you drugged me. Was it too much? But I did it."

Daesung and Youngbae looks so worried as if he might break right there but Seungri doesn't stop. He stared at Lucas guilt ridden face, and smiled, "Right now, I feels, just by looking at your face, I feel nauseous. I hate you so much. If you were me and I told you that I'm sorry. These words, 'I'll forgive you. Let's get along from now on', would you be able to say it?"

Lucas didn't say anything and he keep on staring at the ground. Whether its from embarrassment or something else, Seungri didn't care at all. "Should I act as if my wounds have healed? I can never forgive you. Whatever the reasons is, how I am living my life now and what I'm up to... I won't let you know."

"Then what do I have to do to be forgiven?" Lucas said, and Seungri feels like laughing. 

"Be forgiven?" he said. Is your brain that ed up? You thought I would?"

"But I'm not joking. I really am sorry for what I did to you. If I known, I won't treat you like that..." Lucas said, now his eyes glazed as the man stared at his face. "I love you, and I am so afraid to lose you. I'm sorry."

Seungri breathed deeply and he recomposed himself. He would come running back to Lucas's arm but he's not that naive Seungri anymore. He knew who love him, and who thought that they loved him. He held Jiyong's hand tighter and said, "I can't forgive you for what you do to me, and you should stop playing the victim. Stop acting like the good guy who's just caught up in lies, begging for forgiveness while erasing your bad memories. Just keep on being the bad guy you are."

Silences lingers around them after that. "I got it," Lucas finally said after a while. The three of them was on guard in case Lucas decide to attack Seungri, but then, he just turn and leave them quietly. Seungri watched him leave, and he snaps out from his thought when he heard Jiyong's voice.

"See," said Jiyong, and if his voice was mostly inhuman, containing a thrill as he leaned over and the side of Seungri's ear, Seungri could still understand what he said, which was the important part. "You are mine."

"The same way that you're mine," Seungri retorted, turning around and getting that tongue, as tickling as that breath away from his ear. "You should agree with me, we're mates and in this bond together. You're not my dominant and I'm not your submissive."

Jiyong blinked for a long moment, wings fanning in a way that reminded Seungri of a cat waving its tail. He must have fallen pretty deep into his Veela mindset. Then he inclined his head slowly. "Yes," he said. "That's the way it is."

He took Seungri's hand and led them away from there, ignoring the temptation to go after Lucas and 'explain' some things to him. Seungri smiled a little and let himself being lad.

There were times that it was nice to have Veela's mate, he thought. At least, they were balancing each other just nice now. 

*

Jiyong had known his sister wanted to talk to him the minute he and Seungri walked through the door of the manor, but he needed to spend his time with Seungri, to rest his against Seungri's neck and try tickling his ear again and feel the span of his shoulder where no wings would grow and sit down at the same dinner with him. Besides, So Hyung had kept efficiently out of their way for the past few months, and Jiyong knew that only the last few weeks, the time Seungri had taken to recover, could be seen as her wanting to let the bond settle and affirm itself.

She was working on something.

When Seungri was settled on the alcove in their bedroom, with his sandwich and book, Jiyong moved into the drawing room where he knew his sister is waiting. Jiyong looked out through the window, curious to see if the gardener had trimmed the rose bushes in the garden yet. He want to bring Seungri there once they bloomed. He wonder if Seungri would like them.

"I have found something that you need to know about."

Jiyong turned around. He hasn't heard his sister enter the room, and he didn't think it was because of some defect in his Veela senses. She was simply making effort to walk silently. Jiyong wonder what that meant.

Seeing the sheen of honest excitement in her face, though, Jiyong had to smile. She at least thought that whatever she had discovered would please him. He nodded and escorted her to the couch in front of the fireplace, then call the maid and ask her to bring some tea for them. "Where have you been the past few months?" he asked, playing along. If the matter was urgent, she would have told him sooner but perhaps that isn't the case. 

"Well, I visit father and mother, and, I also speak to Seunghyun as well as to some other Veelas, and the experts on Veela." If So Hyung wanted to play with drama, the impluse seemed to be fleeting. She lowered her cup on the table and held Jiyong's eyes for a moment. "After all, they are the ones who know the most about your situation." 

Jiyong blinked, completely thrown by her words. "Of course, but surely you've must notice that Seungri and I are getting along much better now, right?"

So Hyung touched his hand. "Of course, but you should not have accomodate yourself to someone who will never be able to answer to all your desires. I found a ritual. It's not often used, and almost forgotten because the nature of Veela bonds were seen as destined." She leaned towards Jiyong and lowered his voice. "It will let you subtitute someone else for him - someone who will be conscious of the great honor of a Veela falling in love with them, morever, to have the chance to be a Kwon's mate. Someone who will be submissive."

Jiyong stared at his sister. 

"Did you see now?" So Hyung added, her voice rising in thrill of triumph Jiyong might have given himself. "You can now have everything you dreamed of." She touched Jiyong's hand again. "And, I don't want my brother to have anything else than that."

A.N : So did anyone miss Soo Hyung? If you do, you won't have to anymore because I'm bringing her backkk! Haha. Fanart not mine, I found it on google and it look so freakishly cute so credit to the artist. 

Anyway, thank you so much for the upvotes and to new subs, WELCOME. Thank you for subscribing, and also, thank you for everyone lovely comments.