Sehun grunted as his hands began shaking uncontrollably again. His eyes flashed gold as the air around him swirled at an increasingly fast pace. The papers on his table dispersed to the four corners of his little hut. Damn it, he should’ve gotten a paperweight. At this rate, it would take him hours to reorganize all the files.

                The wind picked up speed a minute later, causing everything in his hut to fly about. Sehun cursed loudly when the crystal ball rolled off his desk and dropped to the ground. He ran to catch it but the wind pushed against him body, slowing his every move. His throat tightened when the ball collided with the floor and fractured into a hundred pieces. He dropped to the ground and frantically tried to piece the shards back together again. But no matter what he did, they wouldn’t fit. It was broken and there was nothing he could do to make it whole again.

                  Sehun clenched his fists, allowing the sharp edges of the glass to cut into his skin. It hurt but he welcomed the pain because it made him feel normal. It made him feel human. Sehun unfurled his fingers and watched in bitter silence as his cuts sealed completely. The blood on his palm vaporized within seconds, leaving his once bloody hand clean. It didn’t matter how much he hurt himself, he would always heal within seconds. Most people would call his healing abilities a gift from the gods. A heavenly blessing. Sehun, on the other hand, called it a curse. Not only was it a curse, it was also a reminder of his origins — that he was an illegitimate child conceived during a one night stand.

                   He was neither fully god nor fully human. He was a demigod. A half-blood. An outcast of both worlds. The gods didn’t want him in heaven and the humans didn’t want him on earth. The only place that wanted him was the Underworld…but his chances of going there was moot since he couldn’t die no matter how hard he tried.  

                   To make matters worse, he couldn’t control his power. Not only that, his power acted as if it was controlled by a separate, invisible entity. At random moments of the day, his hands would start shaking uncontrollably as if he had a severe case of Parkinson’s Disease. The shaking was usually accompanied by an up-rise of air which would later turn into a full-on windstorm.

                   “STOP IT! STOP IT! JUST ING STOP IT!” Sehun hollered as he slammed his hands against the mahogany table.   

                   His frustration only caused the wind to go crazier. It reacted to his pain and anger. The wind fed on his misery. It consumed his emotions and used it to create bigger, heavier gales. A growl escaped the pit of his throat as the walls began to crack under the tremendous pressure. If he didn’t stop the storm inside his hut soon, he would be houseless. And that wasn’t a good thing, especially since it might rain tonight.

                  Squeezing his eyes, Sehun forced himself to relax. He slowed down his inhalations and exhalations. The wind still slapped against his face but the slaps were much weaker now than five minutes before. He sighed with relief as the windstorm died down.

                  Sehun flexed his fingers repeatedly to get rid of the weird vibrations tunneling his veins. He could never fully get rid of the strange humming in his body but he’d learned to live with it even though it still bothered him. When he regained control of his limbs again, he bent down to recollect the broken pieces of the crystal ball. Gently, he scooped the glass into a metal container and placed it on the shelf. It was stupid to keep a broken crystal ball but this wasn’t an ordinary crystal ball, it was a treasure that belonged to his mother. This was his only memorabilia of her.

                   She was a strict mother but that didn’t diminish her status as the best mother in the world, at least in Sehun’s eyes. She taught him everything he needed to know from writing and mathematics to Tarot reading and medicine making. She might be a shaman but she was still a human and therefore susceptible to diseases. On Sehun’s thirteenth birthday, she died. Sehun tried to kill himself but he soon learned he couldn’t die no matter how hard he tried. His semi-godly blood gave him immortality and everlasting youth. He didn’t want immortality…all he wanted was to be reunited with his mother.

                  She was the only person he’d ever wanted. Ironically, she was the only person he could never have. Or see. Or touch.

                  Unless…

                 Sehun’s eyes flickered to the book on the fourth shelf. Hurriedly, he grabbed it off the shelf and opened it to a page that he’d bookmarked earlier. His eyes narrowed as he stared at the painting of the beautiful, golden-haired god. To the local villagers, the blond god was named “Luhan”, the gatekeeper of heaven and hell. To Sehun, the blond god was his half-brother…and the key to Sehun’s mission.

                 It was impossible for him to go to the Underworld but if he kidnapped Luhan and forced the god to do his bindings, he might be able to enter the gates of Hell and see his mother again. Even if Luhan decided to permanently kill him for his misdeed, he would still be able to see his mother. It was a win-win situation for him.   

                Sehun smirked as he flipped the page. Legends had it that Luhan would come to earth once a month to bathe in the streams. If his calculations were correct, Luhan would come to earth tomorrow at noon. In the back of his mind, he began conjuring up a plan. It wasn’t fool-proof but it would work.

***

                Just as he’d imagined, Luhan was bathing in the local streams. Sehun watched from behind the ferns as the golden-haired god swam languidly across the pristine waters. Sunlight bounced off of Luhan’s skin and hair, making him radiate. For a minute, Sehun forgot about his plan and simply watched Luhan swam. As much as Sehun hated the god, he couldn’t deny Luhan’s fine looks. Luhan was simply beauty reincarnated. A true Adonis.    

                Get a grip of yourself! You have to remember your plan. Do not fail; you only have one chance, Sehun reminded himself when he realized what he was doing.

                   Sehun waited until Luhan stepped out of the stream and onto the riverbank before he made his first move. With his eyes semi-closed, Sehun focused all his energy at the center of his palm and aimed it at Luhan. Like a fly trapped in a spider’s web, Luhan became immobilized as strong gusts of wind surrounded him from all four directions. The blond god glared at Sehun, his golden eyes darkened with fury.

                “What do you think you are doing?” the god growled as he fought the winds around him. He grunted as the wind manacled his arms behind his back.

                “Take me to the Underworld.”

                Luhan scoffed, “Why should I?”

                “Because you’re at my mercy right now.” Sehun reached past the circle of wind and clutch Luhan’s jaw harshly, “Do as I say and I will let you go.”

                “Release me now and I will spare your life.”

                Sehun laughed bitterly, his dark bangs falling over his eyes as he snapped back in his most poisonous voice, “You can kill me if you want. I would love that, hyung.”

                Luhan rolled his eyes, “You’re a psychopath. You’re the reason why gods shouldn’t interbreed with humans.”

                “Even though what you said is insulting, I have to agree with you. Gods shouldn’t breed with humans. But what is done is done. I couldn’t be unborn.” Sehun increased the wind pressure. It caused Luhan to choke but he didn’t care, a god couldn’t die anyway, “Take me to the Underworld and I’ll release you.”

                Wheezing, Luhan twisted his head away from Sehun, “F-fine. J-just let me g-go.”  

***

                The Underworld was mostly empty space. Occasionally, a soul would wander by but for the most part of the journey, it was just Sehun and Luhan.

                Sehun didn’t trust Luhan enough to let him walk freely. Using his wind power, Sehun manacled Luhan’s hands behind his back. Beads of sweat dotted his forehead as he tried to keep Luhan in place. He was strong enough to keep Luhan under his control but it took a lot of concentration since his power in check. If Luhan broke free of the bonds, the god could easily send him back to earth before they he had a chance to see his mother.

                “You’re stubborn, you know.” Luhan said after they crossed the Styx River. Sehun would’ve dismissed the comment if it wasn’t for the look in the god’s eyes.

                “I just want to see my mother. Unlike you, I couldn’t just come here whenever I feel like it.”

                Luhan bit his lips, “You must really love her.”

                “I do.”

                “It must be nice to have someone to love.” Luhan whispered in a soft voice, his eyes downcast.

                “You’ve never loved anyone before?”

                Luhan shook his head, “No.”

                “What about our dad? Did he ever…love you?”

                Luhan scoffed, “Kris is too much of a cold-hearted bastard to love anyone. He didn’t love my mother, he didn’t love me...he might’ve loved your mother but that is something I’ll never know.”

                Sehun stopped in his tracks. This caused Luhan to bump into him and stumble backward, “He loved my mother?”

                “Ow! My nose!” Luhan wrinkled his nose, “Can’t you walk properly?”

                “You didn’t answer my question.” Sehun grabbed Luhan by the shoulders and shook him harshly, “Is it true? Did he love her?”

                “He must’ve loved her or else he wouldn’t break the vows that he made with my mother.” Luhan sighed deeply, “Kris would’ve granted you full godhood if the laws hadn’t banned such a practice. He cares about you.” Luhan looked away, his eyes watering slightly, “I wish he cares about me as well.”

                  Sehun never thought gods could cry. Especially a snarky-mouth god like Luhan. But his theory was wrong. Without realizing it, Sehun wrapped his arms around the golden-haired boy and patted him head. Instead of resisting, Luhan leaned forward and pressed his face against Sehun’s neck.

                Raising his head, Luhan blinked away his tears, “I’m sorry for being such an to you. I guess I just have too much pent-up anger inside of me.” He cocked his head to one side and gave Sehun a smile, “Maybe we can start over again. We’re family after all, we shouldn’t be fighting.”

                Sehun exhaled as he loosened the bonds on Luhan’s arms, “You’re right. I’m sorry for forcing you to do this. But before you send me back to earth, let me see my mother again.”

                Luhan rubbed his sore wrists and smiled, “She’s behind you.”   

***

                She was a floating shadow — a ghost without a face or form. But as he hugged her metaphysical form, Sehun knew this was his mother. Their hug didn’t last long because the Underworld guards quickly urged her to move on. But Sehun was satisfied. He'd accompished what he came here for.

                He waved and watched as she disappeared from his sight.

                “You can see her again.” Luhan placed a hand on Sehun’s shoulder and guided him back to earth, “You can come to me any time and I’ll bring you here again.”

                Sehun gave Luhan a smile, “Thank you, hyung.”

Author's Note: This is very different from the original foreword. Sorry about that. And for those of you that've expected romance...well, I'm sorry as well. It didn't fit into my plot so I made Sehun and Luhan brothers instead of lovers. I think it's a nice change of pace.