When Kai appeared in the garden, he immediately saw Taemin alone and froze. Taemin's heart was beating fast and Kai could hear it from where he was. He tilted his head to the left as trying to figure out what could make his heart rate faster and walked slowly towards Taemin.

Taemin swallowed loudly as he saw the Alpha for the first time as he really was. His golden skin contrasted with his three-piece red suit, and a few bangs of hair fell over his eyes.

He was not just handsome, he was perfect.

Taemin asked himself to stay calm but he felt something rise in him, stronger than the attraction he had for him before.

"Shaman ?"

"Taemin." corrected Taemin for the first time.

Kai looked at him for a moment before going one step further until he was close enough to touch him "Taemin."

The latter swallowed loudly. If they were soul mates it meant that the Alpha also had a scar and a side effect ? he didn't see either of them.

"Your eyes." Kai said pulling him out of his thoughts.

"My eyes ?"

Kai his cheek with his fingertips "They changed color, they are like ..." he seemed to detail them "the color of a forest in the spring."

Taemin tilted his face to his hand needing his touch. Kai didn't hesitate for a second as he placed his other hand towards his face and stuck his body to Taemin's.

"She was mentionned on the invitation, I had no choice." he said quietly in Taemin's ear.

Taemin frowned but quickly realized he was referring to his wife Yoona.

"You don't have to give me any explanation" he pulled away from Kai's arms gently as regretting "after all we ... we don't have any relationship."

Kai looked at him silently.

"Uh, do we have one?" this time Taemin asked doubtfully.

Kai blinked "..no."

Taemin nodded, not showing that he was hurt.

Suddently a man saw them and went straight to them. "Mr. Lee ! I'm Adonis Lambra, I don't know how to thank you for inviting Nikolai to your home, it's an honor to meet you."

He continued to speak as Kai, jaw clenched, stared at Taemin's hand in Adonis's one. Taemin smiled politely at the stranger who was still holding his hand.

"I would like to know if I could visit Nikolai in your house, of course I would bring few people with me ..."

As if he had the choice Taeming smiled "You are welcome."

"I'm glad, I would also like to invite you and Mr. Deucius to visit Asclepios and then why not.." Adonis put his hand on his shoulder amicably "having dinner together."

Fangs out, Kai immediatly growled so hard, leaning towards Adonis that his throat vibrated visibly. In shock, Adonis almost fell to the ground legs shaking.

Taemin restrained Kai by touching his torso. As he approached Adonis, the man recoiled cautiously.

"The proposing was in all good honor i swear!" he defended himself.

"You should leave." said Taemin. He took Kai's face in his hands and kissed him, making him stop grumbling automatically.

Adonis nodded looking at them as he walks away. Taemin may have looked uncomfortable, but also happy at the Alpha's reaction.

ᚪᛤᛄᛩᛊ

Nikolai had stopped looking for Fate's soul mate a long time ago to throw up into the bushes. He decided to sit on the ground waiting for the next round.

He also wondered if the confrontation with Key had not aggravated his situation. He knew. He knew that what had happened was not Key's fault, that he had been manipulated by the Shaman but Nikolai could not forget the pain, the pain he had felt seeing his soulmate with other men and women.

He hastily wiped tears from the corners of his eyes and began to vomit on all fours on the grass.

"Oh Nikolai ..." said a voice both amused and compassionate, hands lifted it from the grass "you're not really on yoour best health tonight."

Nikolai turned to the newcomer.

+++

Sehun helped him sit on a garden bench.

"I'm sorry that one of my admirers had to see me in this state." said Nikolai sheepishly.

Sehun barely restrained his laugh, shoulders shaking.

"Ah, you are not an admirer."

"Oh yes of course i am, who doesn't know Nikolai Deucius, invincible except for his soulmate."

"Saying it like that is romantic. What do you want from me?"

"Many things including this" he pointed at Nikolai's stomach "relax your child is afraid, he feel your nervousness and that's why you feel nauseated."

How does he know about the baby ? Nikolai seemed immediately concerned touching his stomach "is he hurt ?"

"He's tough, just don't worry."

When Nikolai remained head bowed, Sehun called out "Hey."

Nikolai looked up at him.

"Stop playing the victim."

"Sorr..?"

"You are the first one of your kind created, obviously the Shaman could not seal you, but Key is just a fae like the others. He had no chance of getting away from it so, stop punishing him again and again. You know how hard it is to get rid of this spell, you have to have an strong will, especially since the Shaman has sealed your connection with Key much more violently than the others. And yet he managed to create a breach, the breach allowed him to leave his kingdom and go after you all these years, didn't you both suffer enough? 

"..You know things that I don't know." asked Nikolai slowly.

Sehun just smiled.

"That's all you had to tell me?"

"Not really" Sehun looked at his belly "can I ?"

"Can what?"

Sehun went to lay his hand on Nikolai's stomach when Key held his wrist.

"Ok you did enough Hellhound, I'm going to ask you to leave now."

Nikolai's eyes widened when he saw the fae, Sehun was an hellhound? these things guardian of hell ?

"Fine, I'm going." Sehun answered, raising his hands and stepping back.

Key frowned, "Your blood..why is it a mix of mine and Nikol .."

Sehun disappeared in a smoke not letting him finish.

"Not even a goodbye." Nikolai muttered his hand on his belly while Key frowned again on where Sehun was a few seconds earlier.

"What did you hear?"
Key looked at him "Just this soul mate story."

Nikolai nodded, trying to avoid showing his relief. He had not heard of his pregnancy.

He tried to get up and Key supported him immediately by taking his arm. When Nikolai glanced at him he could see Key's expression quickly changed, he would have sworn that a second ago he looked worried. As fearing that his contact will be rejected.

Nikolai said anything. He let himself be taken back inside.+++

Fate was in the garden back to the starting point.
"But where did he go, freaking red head I didn't dream the man right !?"

He thought about going inside the castle when he heard moans.

Tipping his head to the side of the entrance, he spotted Kai holding Taemin by the jaw and kissing his deeply while staring at him to gauge his reaction. Taemin breathless was clinging to the alpha, eyes closed.

"And hotel rooms are for oxen ?" muttered Fate before moving away. He took three steps before retracing his steps and looking at them again. During the few seconds that Fate had left them, Kai had brought Taemin's body closer to his.

"Well I'm going to watch just to learn, after all it will be my turn soon," Fate mumbled.
Things were going to be interesting when Kai slid his eyes to the entrance of the castle and while sticking to Taemin's lips, changed immediatly into a wolf.

All this happened in a fraction of a second and Taemin began to spat wolf hair while Kai rushed to the castle growling.

When Taemin recovered, he saw Fate staring at him astounded.

"It's .." Taemin spit out hairs again "he ... he was human a second ago when we got ..." he spat out again " I think I swallowed some hair."
Fate prayed that his mate was not a shapeshifter.

ᚪᛤᛄᛩᛊ

In the reception room, the guests were screaming in surprise when the Alpha collided with another wolf who was racing on the ruler.
The latter who played Monopoly on his throne with Adonis turned to them "What is it, didn't i say i didnt want fight tonight, are you stupid or are you playing stupid !?"

Kai growled threateningly at the other wolf as he struggled to his feet. The wold was weaker than the Alpha and his legs were shaking with the effort to stay upright.

Key and Nikolai watched the scene against each other as Fate and Taemin came to the other side.
The Seer came to the sovereign and whispered in his ear.

"Oh, is this one of your wolves, Alpha Elsung ?"

Kai growled.
"Wonderful." Mumbled the sovereign before looking at the other wolf "become human again and tell me why all this ruckus."

The wolf began to take shape humain again while Kai still in wolf form walked towards Taemin and sat down beside him.

The wolf turned into a Ben more than angry, he looked furious.
"What can I do for you wolf?" asked the Sovereign.

Ben was kind enough to bow "Sovereign I have a request that could not wait."
"That is ?"

"I appeal to the Malachie Law!"
The guests gasped in surprise and murmurs were heard.

"Come on, what's that now ?" Asked the sovereign leaning towards the Seer.
The latter whispered to him and the sovereign turned white.

"Are you sure what you're doing, wolf?"
"The sorcerer Nikolai can testify." Ben replied pointing the man.
Key positioned himself in front of Nikolai ready to fight.

"Deucius? Is this true?" asked the Sovereign.
Nikolai clenched his jaw, "Yes, his soulmate died several centuries before him, I was able to do a ritual that made him visible to others for a matter of hours." He looked at Ben somberly, "but his soulmate rejected him."

"I didn't reject him !" shouted Ben.

The guests were talking to each other.
"His soulmate died before meeting him?"
"If we have one, should we not usually see him in our lifetime?"
"Who knows if our soulmate is already dead? That would explain why there have been no soulmates registered by the council for centuries."

The ruler swallowed loudly "Silence !"

When the silence came, he leaned toward the Seer "I didn't know it was going so far, did you know that? Soulmates separated okay, but litterally dead?"
The Seer shook his head, showing that he didn't know about it.

The ruler turned to Ben "And where is this soulmate right now?"

Ben looked at Taemin "At his home."
The ruler also looked at him, "Oh..the Shaman, I see." he was a thoughtful for a moment "Mr. Lee I will go to your house to meet this .. person."

Taemin could only nod. His house became an inn.

"And now I'll ask Nikolai, Mr. Lee, and Fate to come forward." when they did, he continued, "Well, that soulmate, did you find him?"

Fate looked at Ignis, stepping out of the crowd and placing himself near Nikolai. His hair, eyes and tattoos became golden again.

"So ?" Asked the sovereign.
Fate continued to fix an Ignis determined not to cross his gaze.

He ended up lowering his head as well knowing that the Seer would know he was lying "No. No, I didn't find my soulmate in this room."

"Oh, I'm sorry, in that case I think it's time to finish this party."

The guests made some Ooh disappointed.
"Yes." Sighed the sovereign "like you all, I sleep too."