a/n: guise! sorry for the long wait, i actually had to edit this first chap so many times lol because i know my english is not the best. and my mouse isn't working and it's so hard to use the touchpad D< guess whattt i've got my first job haha so nervous af orz. anyway hope you guys enjoy! !!!

oh btw thanks guys for upvoting/subscribing this crap beforehand \o/ ilu

ps: image cr

Snowfinch: is a small passerine bird. Despite its name, it is a sparrow rather than a true finch.

word count: 3009 (yeehaww)

Tears fallin’ into my heart
Whatever I do, I want to get you
As much as I wanted you, I get sad
Do not leave me

            The little white-winged Snowfinch flies back to the old pine tree where its warm nest is. By instinct it shudders, trying to brush the soft snowflakes off its short white wings. It has finished its little trip collecting the seeds, getting ready to survive the harsh winter. But unfortunately, the Snowfinch unknowingly has dropped some of the seeds on the way back home. Far away about a few miles, where the precious seeds are from, standing a row of snowy sunflowers. Very strange, isn’t it? These sunflowers don’t look like the ones you usually see though. They look rather fragile and about to collapse onto the white ground as the cold winds whip their faded petals, causing them to get torn one by one.

            Nearby the broken sunflowers however, there is a little frozen pond that has absolutely no sign of living creatures around. That must be true though, the pond looks pretty much deadly and dangerous enough to kill a little snow sparrow if it dares to come near. Ironic isn’t it? Since the lucky Snowfinch has successfully made its way back home.

            Now back to the pond, which is oddly formed by two small streams. The weird thing is only one of the streams isn’t frozen. There is a curse casted onto the lake by a malicious giant toad that whoever drinks the water, their memories will be stolen and put in a glass jar which is hidden carefully in a snow castle where the Snow Prince lives. Those unfortunate ones will forget whose family they belong to, where the pink roses come from, the amount of the winter songs they used to sing since they were little, and the worst and saddest of them all, is who their beloved ones are. The only way to get back the memories is travelling up the Great Mountain, creeping into the Silver Castle to break the glass jar. How though? God knows. The only thing the villagers know that no one has dared to go into this area where the cursed pond is, and no one has tried to climb up the mountain where the cold Snow Prince stays. Only those who are stupid enough to voluntarily lead themselves to the death. It seems like a taboo to speak about the mysterious Snow Prince and the cursed pond, because is there a good thing to speak about them anyway? Mystics always stay mystical; no one cares enough to discover them.

~❅~

            “Don’t you think you’re being too much, Woohyun?” shrieks a caramel haired boy, who’s having a difficult time pulling his little chubby feet off the white snow.

            Without looking back, the boy with a pointy nose named Woohyun keeps dragging his little sledge on the hard surface. He almost falls several times but as a tough boy he is, Woohyun uses all of his strength to keep himself balanced.

            “Yah! Are you even listening to me?” the older boy gets pissed.

            “Just hold on a little bit more hyung, I’m pretty sure this way will lead us home.” Woohyun turns around, helping his ‘hyung’ who has clumsily fallen onto the cold ground.

            “Why did you want to go to this place anyway? Are you not scared of t-that…that pond?” sniffing, the older hold on to Woohyun’s hand.

            “Shush hyung! No one will find out okay? I’m just trying out my new sledge.” Woohyun puts a finger on his blue lips, grimacing as the other mentions ‘the pond’.

            “I’m seriously going to die young because of you here Woohyun. Don’t you dare!”

            Snow begins to fall so heavily that the little boys almost think they can’t find the way to get back home. Fortunately though, they spot the smoke coming from the chimney of one of the houses in the village. Mouth grinning widely as if his life has been saved, Woohyun quickly runs through the white snow, the small sledge gets dragged behind, making a long line on the snowy surface. Sunggyu is trying hard to catch up with Woohyun since the boy is not so fond of sports and running is at the top of his hate list. Both of them are out of breath when they finally reach Woohyun’s house. Nose getting redder and lips getting more chapped, Sunggyu collapses on his knees and pants hard, you can clearly see his breath forming in the cold air.

            “Sunggyu hyung, are you okay?” the shorter boy tries to gasp for air while asking his hyung with concern.

            “Of course not idiot! If mom won’t make me mushroom soup for dinner it’s your fault!” Sunggyu cries, eyes starting to get teary.

            “Stop crying please? I’ll take all the blames, okay?”

            And even before Sunggyu starts to punch Woohyun in the chest, the door suddenly swings open. Woohyun’s mom runs out and hugs the boys. “Where have you guys been? Everyone was looking for you all day!”

            Sunggyu tries to avoid the tight squeeze with fail, getting surprised at the fact that the woman isn’t upbraiding them nor asking them any further questions at all, while Woohyun looks back at him with the most childish grin Sunggyu’s ever seen. I told you hyung.

~❅~

            That night, Sunggyu has two bowls of mushroom soup while Woohyun is grounded. The younger doesn’t make a fuss though, because he has taken all the blames to protect Sunggyu instead. The older is like a family member to Woohyun, or even more than that. Sunggyu has been an orphanage ever since he was two. And yes, it just happened like that; one day, Sunggyu woke up to the absence of his mother. One of the neighbors found out when she heard the cry of a two year old coming from the old bricked house. His mother abandoned him, some of the villagers said. Or maybe the Snow Prince took her away, others said. The little boy only kept crying, missing his mother’s scent and warmth.

            Woohyun’s mother is a kind woman after all. She accepted Sunggyu into her family despite the fact that she was too poor, plus Woohyun had just been born for only ten weeks. She had told her husband that Sunggyu’s mother was a close friend of her and expressed how much she wanted to raise the boy until he grows up. The poor man only silently nodded, thinking of how much harder he would have to work in the future to feed another being.

            Therefore, Sunggyu had become Nam Woohyun’s older brother. They always sleep together, eat together, make fun of the neighbor’s dogs together, even when Woohyun’s mother tells them to bathe, they also do it together. They are pretty much like needle and thread, kite and string. However though, Woohyun usually, if not always, wants to switch role with the other to be an older brother. Sunggyu sometimes protests but always ends up giving in and hugging Woohyun instead when the other explains that hyung is so weak and fragile, I need to protect you since I’m stronger, is that right? Sunggyu mumbles something Woohyun can’t quite hear, tightening the hug that makes the boy breathless.

~❅~

            After throwing all the dirty dishes into the wooden sink, Sunggyu laughs and tells Woohyun to wash all of them. Woohyun grins back and his eyes form into beautiful crescents which makes Sunggyu think he kind of melts inside a little bit. Sunggyu then holds a cup of hot chocolate milk and flops into the wool couch in front of the fireplace. Woohyun’s father is currently reading the evening newspaper, however, he stops and looks up at Sunggyu when he feels his presence.

            “Where exactly did you guys go today?”

            Sunggyu almost chokes on the milk, and he swears by the moon and the stars he hears the sound of a bowl being dropped into the sink from the kitchen. “We—we just hung out near the Pine Forest for a bit.” Well hope that makes sense a bit.

            “Okay, don’t go too far though. You both know you’re not allowed to come near the you-know-what place right?”

            Sunggyu lowers his gaze and keeps his eyes fixed on the cup. This is totally embarrassing, it’s all that idiot’s fault after all. Should I not sleep with him tonight? Woohyun’s father chuckles after 30 seconds of silence between them. “Have you heard about the tale of the White Owl?”

            Sunggyu shakes his head, feeling glad that the man has changed the topic.

            “Well, from what I’ve heard from the hunters while going to town with your mother this morning, there’s this white and ugly looking owl that has lived around the Pine Forest for nearly 15 years. That owl from head to toe has the color of alabaster except for its golden brown eyes. And the thing is… Uhm how do I say this?” the man hums, tapping his chin to find the right words. “In fact, that owl is actually a human.”

            “A what appa? Is it even true?” Sunggyu’s eyes get bigger for like 2 cm and his mouth gasps open for like God knows how big.

            “Seriously though?” from the kitchen Woohyun laughs while walking towards the couch, wiping his wet hands on Sunggyu’s shirt as he sits next to the lad (which Woohyun earns a punch in the stomach). “How is a bird supposed to look ugly? Does this even make sense?”

            “Rumor say that this owl has exactly 20,000 feathers.” the father continues, ignoring the foolish acts of his sons (yes Sunggyu has been a precious son of his just like Woohyun). “But however he currently is missing one of the feathers so therefore, he can’t go back to his human form until he gets back that missing feather. Rumor also says that whoever stares into the White Owl’s eyes, his soul will be taken away and he will never come back home.”

           “That’s not funny appa!” Woohyun frowns, feeling his hair standing on end.

            The man laughs as Sunggyu’s face turns into a terrified look.

            “Is that why you don’t want us to go near the Pine Forest? Is that ugly looking owl that dangerous?”

            “For that fact I do not know, but the fact you should know is that the whole area of the Pine Forest is dangerous sons. As I have been warning you for countless time, don’t risk your life to come near that place. No one will be able to save you if your life is in danger. I hope you guys all got it?”

            Sunggyu and Woohyun both stop joking around and wince. Their father has yet again changed the topic to a moral lesson that will probably last more than an hour.

            “Honey! I think the kids got it, don’t be so harsh on them.” Woohyun’s mother sits next to her husband, a clay mug in her hand.

            The little boys give their mother a thankful look as she signs them to go to sleep.

~❅~

            “Get out of that bed! Now!” Sunggyu yells, shooting Woohyun a deadly glare.

            “What hyung? So where am I going to sleep on tonight?” Woohyun sighs dejectedly, knowing so well the reason Sunggyu is mad at him.

            “Sleep on the floor.”

            “It’s so freaking cold though.” This time the greasy boy jumps onto the bed, causing Sunggyu’s body to bounce up. “I know you love me hyung. Don’t get mad, okay?”

            Seeing the older isn’t budging, Woohyun wraps his arms around Sunggyu’s waist and rubs his little tummy and calls him ‘piggy’. “I’m going to break off your hands Woohyun.” Sunggyu suddenly feels insecure and he yelps, kicking the younger’s leg, only to earn a yelp from him.

            Things end up with Woohyun sleeping on the floor, feeling too sour to fight back. The boy huffs, curling up in the thick blanket that has the scent of Sunggyu. His eyes gaze through the glass window in the ceiling of their room. They have this cool rectangle shaped skylight window that lets the sunlight shine through the small room during daytime and the moonlight beam through at night. Woohyun loves it when he wakes up to the morning light hitting his face through the glass window, when the white sparrows land on top of it just to say hi to the little lads. Sunggyu prefers it when the nights come, when the dark sky is so clear he can see the twinkling stars through the glass. After discovering how deep Sunggyu’s love is towards the skylight during nighttime, Woohyun quickly started learning to love it at night as well, then Sunggyu giggled stupidly and said finally we have the same taste Woohyun. Woohyun would jump up and down on the bed whenever he sees a shooting star fly by. He would mumble dear the lord of the stars, please let me grow taller than Sunggyu hyung a jot, just to get a smack upside the head from the caramel haired lad.

            “Are you awake hyung?” Woohyun reaches his leg onto the bed and nudges Sunggyu’s .

            “Get your filthy foot off my body!” Sunggyu pinches Woohyun’s toes, hard, causing the other to jerk back.

            “Ah so you’re still awake then.”

            “…”

            “Hyung hyung hyung”

             Sunggyu grunts.

            “Do you want to build a snowman tomorrow?”

             “Nah, too cold.”

             “How about picking snow strawberries with Daeyeol?”

            “Too girly.”

            “So you want to try my sledge? I’ll teach you.”

            Sunggyu squeaks in this high-pitched voice, sounding angry. “Woohyun, wasn’t today enough? Don’t you listen to appa at all?”

            “No I’m not going there anymore though.” Woohyun feels offended. He sits up and pokes Sunggyu’s back. “You know that I know my fault, hyung.”

            No response.

            “So are you just gonna lie in bed all day tomorrow?”

            “Why not?”

              Woohyun snorts, he almost thinks Sunggyu is already asleep. He then feels sleepy so he lies back on the floor again, curling himself in the soft material. But for about 5 minutes after or so, he sits up all of the sudden and starts getting panicked.

            “My sledge! Sunggyu hyung, my sledge!”

            Sunggyu turns, squinting his eyes to catch a glimpse of Woohyun’s face through the dim moonlight. “What is it this time, stupid! Can you not shut up?”

            “No I left it outside the door! I need to get it!” Woohyun quickly grabs his thick coat from the chair.

            Sunggyu gets up as well. You know gets real when Kim Sunggyu gets up.

            “Yah Woohyun! Where are you going? Can’t you get it tomorrow?”

            Woohyun stops at the door, putting on the coat. “No, the kids are gonna steal my sledge.”

            And without looking back, he tiptoes down the stairs, making sure to take the old oil lamp from the shelf. Sunggyu rolls his eyes and face palms. Stupid moron. Then he, too, grabs his fur gloves and jumps off the bed. He needs to stop Woohyun from doing anything stupid. Woohyun has been doing lots of stupid stuff lately.

            Their parents are still deep in their conversations and the shimmering fire is still dancing in the fireplace. Carefully, Woohyun tries not to make a sound as he crawls behind the long couch. He thinks his heart almost drops when the father laughs at the joke he’s telling his wife. Woohyun fortunately makes it to the entrance, quietly pulls the doorknob and slides his tiny body through the wooden door.

            Woohyun heaves a sigh of relief then he feels something tugging at his sleeve. Clutching his palpitating heart, the lad turns back just to find Sunggyu’s angry face. “We’ll be so dead if they find out! Get the sledge quick!”

            Woohyun doesn’t need to be told twice, he runs towards the flower garden, where he suspects his sledge is left. The garden contains his mother’s favorite flowers. From splendid red roses to violet bells, white chrysanthemums to baby snowdrops. However, there is no sign of Woohyun’s sledge at all. Tightening the grip on the oil lamp, he furiously walks back and forth in disappointment, hoping to catch a glimpse of the object. Sunggyu quietly treads behind, trying to open his eyes as big as he can and look around the garden, which he believes it will help spot the sledge easier.

            “Do you see it?” Sunggyu whispers.

            Woohyun looks like crying. “No—I’m sure the kids already stole it.”

            “We got home when they were already in beds though. Go back Woohyun, I’m sleepy.” And as a proof, Sunggyu yawns, mouth wide and shameless.

            “Don’t you think I dropped it on the way back home?”

            “I ran behind you idiot! And I saw you were still carrying it.”

            “Sunggyu hyung, I—I think I have to go back and check…” Woohyun hesitates, taking a glimpse of Sunggyu’s reaction which the lad gives Woohyun the “are you insane” look then makes his way back into the house.

            And out of expectation, Woohyun dashes into the snow heading towards the direction of the Pine Forest. Hair flying in the cold that cuts deep into his thin skin. The oil lamp is dropped down from his hand onto the soft surface, fire bursts into small flame for a while or so then it slowly dies out as the snow falls harder and faster.

             “COME BACK HERE NAM WOOHYUN!” Sunggyu screams on top of his lung, hand covering his eyes. He, too, starts running, ignoring the fact that his jacket is too thin and he’s gonna die soon because of hypothermia. Trying to catch up with Woohyun is hard and calling the boy’s name is even harder because Sunggyu’s throat is hurting like crazy. Idiot where are you going? Come back! Tears start forming in his eyes and they freeze into clear crystals as he cries.

a/n: it's soo ty isn't it?? i have a habit of describing things too detailed :(((

and snowy owl....sounds so familiar lol shh can't drop too many hints here. told you woohyun is p rebellious （；¬＿¬)

(╥_╥) do ya know where those beautiful lines at the beginning of the story are from? ? no i didn't make it lol it's a part of the lyrics of "tears fallin'" by spica (goddd check it out it's bootiful!1!!) 

aaaand CAN'T WAIT FOR IFNT'S COMEBACK JULY COMEBACK THOUGH UGH