“Ssssssssss ….

“Ssssssssss ….

“Haup!”

“Pik! Pik! Pik!”

THUD

“Ouch! Gheghe! Thath hurths!”

A boy rubbed his head after being hit by a stick. The other boy who previously hit him gave another hit to him, making the boy before him whined in muffled sound, before he tossed his stick to the ground.

“I told you not to do that again, Shi Xun! Spit that bird out, now!”

The boy named Shi Xun clearly did not approve the idea from the other boy. His face was contorted in upsetness. He was really hungry and he hadn’t eaten anything for three days. This beautiful blue bird would surely satisfy him a bit before he could find any other food to eat. He was hungry as hell and all he just wanted to do was eating.

“Spit, that, bird, out, right, now!”

The death glare from the older boy made him shiver. He reluctantly open his mouth and spit the bird out. The bird was shot to the ground, covered in thick saliva. The other boy sighed, he took the bird and began the saliva. Thankfully it was not the poison Shi Xun possessed in the gland on the tip of his fangs. Soon enough the bird was free. He smiled and talked to the bird.

“I’m sorry you have to meet this circumstance. I apologize to you on behalf of my younger brother. I promise you that nothing would do any harm on you in this forest. Call my name, Lu Han, if you are threatened by something, especially my brother. I would come and protect you. It's our apology over my brother’s mistake."

The bird chirped. Lu Han smiled and gently throw the bird to the air, leaving it fly over the sky. Lu Han was watching that bird for a while before he turned his head to Shi Xun. He simply shook his head and leapt. His long, white tail was wiggling on the ground collecting the momentum before he flew to the sky.

“Gege! Wait for me!”

Shi Xun wiggled his long green tail too before he chased Lu Han. He needed to explain everything before his big brother was totally mad at him.

“Gege …,” Shi Xun clutched Lu Han’s arm, “I’m sorry. I was hungry. And that little blue bird was really … tempting.”

Lu Han glared at Shi Xun. Shi Xun clamped his mouth, pouting like dejected dog. Lu Han sighed and motioned himself to go down to his favorite part of the forest, the biggest camphor tree in edge of the forest. He circled one of the biggest branch, his white tail gripping it before he sat on the branch. Shi Xun trailed beside him, trying to hug Lu Han.

“Gege …. Please forgive me …. I won’t do that again.”

Lu Han looked at Shi Xun with disappointed expression.

“Shi Xun, I told you many times that we are now still in the phase of meditation. We are not allowed to kill animal and eat them. We are supposed to just consume herbs and medicinal plants only. Not only will it give us power, it would allow us to neutralize the demonic trace we are having. If we keep purifying ourselves, the sooner will we begin our ascension to heaven. Isn’t that what we’re expecting, what you’re expecting all this time? When you do that kind of thing you did before with that blue bird, you lessen the power you have achieved already and add more bad virtue you have to erase. If you keep doing that, you will not go anywhere. Your meditation would end up useless.”

Shi Xun was looking really bad now, making Lu Han sigh and caressed his hair.

“It’s alright then. I forgive you for this. But this is the last, of the last, of the last, of wrong encounter from you. You know that I love you right. I just want you to have the best thing you could get in your life.”

Shi Xun smiled and hugged Lu Han from his side, resting his head on Lu Han’s shoulder. Lu Han chuckled.

“Boy …, you are just like a child, never grow up!”

“I don’t care. As long as I stay with you.”

"I wouldnever leave you."

"You promise?"

“I promise. We will stay together forever.”

They linked their pinkies. A pink thread appeared on their each pinky, connecting their soul as one. They had done that many times but they still felt the same feeling as they stared at it: amazement. They stayed there in glee, smiling to each other.

However, their sharp sense of hearing caught a voice from the eastern side of the mountain. They adjusted their sight. Their power made them capable to clearly focus their sights at things far away from them easily. They spotted several humans walking to the lake beside the mountain. That place was seldom to be passed by demons, that’s why humans come there often. The truth was that it was the closest area human can approach before they dived into Mount Er Mei.

“Humans. What are they doing here again?” Shi Xun sneered. He had this annoyance towards human. When he was just a mere snake, he was almost caught and killed by humans.

“Relax, brother. They probably come just for picking up some herbs, like the other humans coming here.”

“Yeah, but they are, really noisy, Gege! I don’t like them! They are intruders! Humans are more dangerous than us demons!”

Lu Han knew the background of Shi Xuan’s hatred towards human. He himself didn’t despise them. He respected them as fellow creatures. Contrary to Shi Xun whose last encounter with human was traumatizing, his own memory of meeting human was very fond. When he was just a snake, he was almost preyed by a badger. A human boy saved him and released him to the nature. He always wanted to return the favor to him, expressing his gratitude. However, he was just a snake and he wasn't able to do anything. Plus, it was a thousand years ago. The boy had already died a long time ago. Who knew whom he reincarnated into.

“Well, just give them their space, Shi Xun. So long as they don’t do anything bad, that’s no reason for us to get rid of them. Remember our limit, self control.”

Shi Xun grumbled beside him but Lu Han barely heard that. He was scanning the humans. There were four of them, each had a bamboo basket on their back to carry on the load of plants and herbs they got. They were walking to the a hill by the lake, discussing something over the mysteriousness of the place. Lu Han giggled when they were talking about big snake demons that inhabited the mountain.

“See, Gege, they have no respect towards us. They keep talking about us like we don’t exist at all. Look! One of them was even eating the magic rose. What an annoyance! That’s what I need to clean my hair every day! He is the silliest human I’ve ever seen!”

Lu Han focused on the man Shi Xun was talking about. He laid his eyes on him.

The moment he saw him, something strange was tingling inside his heart. It was not bad, it was just … strange …. He somehow noticed that he was feeling a bit warm and something inside his stomach was flapping. He kept staring at that young man, feeling somewhat familiar with him.

“Gege!”

Lu Han jerked. He hit Shi Xun’s arm.

“Don’t shock me like that, Shi Xun! You almost made me die of shock!”

Shi Xun rolled his eyes. “It’s because you keep staring at that silly man and your face perfectly pictures the idiocy on that man’s face. You are blushing! It’s creepy.”

Lu Han didn’t respond but rolled his eyes. He continued looking at the young man. Even from far away he could see that that man was really handsome. Something in him tell him that he was a really gentle man. Lu Han watched him as put down his basket and called his friend, announcing that he would climb the hill and take purple rose on the top of the hill.

“See …. You ignored me again! Whatever! I’m bored now! I guess I will make a prank on them. I will scare them away to make them get out of this place and never try to take my valuable roses again!”

Lu Han blinked as he just processed Shi Xun’s words. He wanted to prevent him but Shi Xun was faster than him. Shi Xun already flew to the lake in a flash.

“Shi Xun!”

Lu Han watched in horror as Shi Xun appeared himself as a full giant green snake only in the front of that man. The man screamed in fear when he saw Shi Xun. He lost his grip on the rocks and screamed as he fell to the lake.

Lu Han didn’t think much. He jumped to the lake. As he was rolling in the air, he transformed. His scales was glowing in white before it turned into sheer white silk covering his entire body, flailing as the gravity pulled down the lake. He put his arm to the front just before the tip of his finger touched the surface of the water, diving through the water and letting the still intact gravity moved him deeper. As the water began to suspend his speed, he quickly scanned the water and he found that man. He was slowly drowning, looking unconscious. Lu Han quickly jetted to that man, pulling his hand before he could sink any deeper.

Lu Han startled as he saw the man’s face clearly for the first time. He was really handsome, drop dead handsome. His milky white skin was glowing in the dark blue water. Lu Han put his fingers on his cheek. It was really smooth. He could have this moment for eternity but he remembered that unlike him, this man was not able to breathe underwater. Lu Han’s brain was running really fast. He didn’t have time to bring this man up. If he did that, the man would die of suffocation.

There was only one way.

Lu Han shut his eyes as he pressed his lips on the man’s. He concentrated and let a fluid of his vital life flow through their lips. He opened his eyes just in time when the man opened his eyed. The man looked confused and panicked at the same time, but Lu Han just smiled at him. Lu Han drew himself back, looking at the man’s stunned face before he gathered his power in his hand and launched the man up. The water rushed when the man sped upward. He would land on lake shore. His friends would be able to take care the rest of it.

Lu Han touched his lips. The taste of that man’s lips still lingered on his lips, even under the cold water. Smile crept on his lips as he turned back and launched himself up. He knew that he had expensed some year’s worth of his vital life but he didn’t mind that at all. He had saved the man’s life and somehow it made him really, really happy

2014/04/14

I could never thank everyone enough for reading, subscribing, even upvoting this story. I am really touched that my effort to rejuvenate old legend is responded very warmly. Ahh... tissue please. So, as a treat, here I update this story along the update of my two other stories. Realy guys, you make me want to spill the tears...

PS: The beautiful Suho picture belongs to manapia of deviantart. Click here: http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/f/2013/242/9/6/hiatus_drawing_part_2_by_manapia-d6kewb5.jpg. Thank you manapia!! You are damn, damn, damn amazing!!!

Schandelierre