The Lost Angel (1B/2)
Title: The Lost Angel (1B/2)
Pairing: HaeHyuk
Genre: Fantasy, AU, Romance
Rating: PG-13
Summary: At sixteen, Hyukjae's life turns upside down when he begins to attract the attention of deadly night creatures who can't wait to kill him.
Warnings: Erm. Angels? Haha.
Previous Chapter: 1A
Beta-ed by: mysapphiresky
“Alright! You’re almost there, Your Highness! Just a bit more!”
Panting with the exertion of keeping himself steady in midair, Hyukjae found himself wishing once again, that he hadn’t healed that quickly. He had been excited to be healthy enough to start his flying lessons, but that had been before he realized that flying was such hard work.
“Be careful, Your Highness!” A group of angels hovered a few metres beneath him, ready to catch him if he fell. They needn’t have worried though; Hyukjae himself may not have known it, but he had almost mastered the art of flying.
“Hyukkie! You’re doing great!”
Hyukjae turned awkwardly in midflight, peering down to see Donghae waving excitedly at him and acting very much like a three year old instead of his twenty one years of age. He smiled unconsciously at the sight, before suddenly diving down towards Donghae. He giggled as Donghae jerked slightly back in surprise as Hyukjae landed neatly right next to him.
“Wow, Hyukkie, you’re a real natural at this!” Donghae complimented. He was so proud of Hyukjae! It took himself almost two months to master the flying technique but according to Hyukjae’s instructor, the young prince had already gotten most of it down pat in just two weeks. All Hyukjae needed was more experience in flying, and to get used to the idea of treating his wings as more than just a decoration. Donghae had been horrified when he first saw Hyukjae dragging his wings around as he walked, until Donghae taught him how to keep his wings folded and bent at the right angle to keep them out of the way.
“Thanks,” Hyukjae said, ducking his head slightly at the compliment. Contrary to his original thought, the relationship between them did not become awkward even after the kiss. While Donghae’s clinginess had been strange at first, Hyukjae had quickly gotten used to it, surprising even himself.
A pink carton slid into view and Hyukjae looked up in delight. “It’s for me?”
“Why do you always ask me that when you already know the answer?” Donghae teased, enjoying the slight blush that spread across Hyukjae’s cheeks. “Don’t worry, if you want, I’ll send you hundreds and thousands of cartons of strawberry milk every day.”
Hyukjae merely hummed lightly in response, not taking the other seriously. Donghae was such a sweet talker - it was hard to think of him as the son of the commander general sometimes.
“I mean it, you know.”
“Eh?”
“I’ll do anything for you, if it makes you happy.”
“Y-Yeah, I know. Um, thanks…” Hyukjae really did feel grateful towards Donghae for taking such good care of him, but he had never been good at expressing himself to others. He was just lucky that Donghae didn’t seem to take it to heart.
“Your eyes are pink again,” Donghae teased. He chuckled when Hyukjae immediately looked away in embarrassment. As much as he wanted to stay like this with Hyukjae for the rest of the afternoon, however, there was still another pressing matter for them. So it was with a reluctant sigh that Donghae stood, pulling Hyukjae with him at the same time. “Anyway, you’ll be meeting Sungmin now. It’s going to be pretty fun!”
Hyukjae’s somewhat half-hearted nod went unnoticed by Donghae. The older angel had already told him about Sungmin, who would apparently help him figure out his own special power and how to harness it properly. Donghae had also mentioned something about incorporating fighting skills at the same time and this was what had Hyukjae worried, actually. Though he was curious about the nature of his own power he wasn’t exactly keen to learn how to harm others with it as well. But Donghae had sounded so eager for him to learn all these that Hyukjae didn’t have the heart to burst his bubble.
They finally stopped in front of a large ornate door. It was quite intimidating, if Hyukjae had to be honest. He hoped this Sungmin would be nice to get along with.
“Oh? I think he has a visitor. Doesn’t matter…” Donghae muttered absently as he heard voices talking from beyond the door. He pushed the door open and Hyukjae could only blink in bemusement. Instead of the grim, dark interior he was expecting, the room was completely bright and cheery in its decorations.
“Good afternoon, your highness! I’m Lee Sungmin.” Hyukjae was taken aback to see that Sungmin looked barely older than him. He had expected someone older, but at least Sungmin seemed friendly enough.
“Hi, nice to meet you! I… Eh?” Hyukjae gasped in surprise. The blue winged angel from the other day was here too!
“I’m Cho Kyuhyun. We’ve met before, your highness.” The angel inclined his head in greeting.
“I know, I remember!” Hyukjae said, and then proceeded to surprise everyone present by suddenly bowing deeply. “Thank you for saving my life back then!”
Kyuhyun grinned slightly. “I didn’t do anything, though. Donghae was the one who did everything.”
“It’s Donghae hyung, you brat. How many times must I tell you that?” Donghae frowned when Kyuhyun merely shrugged and ignored him. This kid…
“Alright both of you, leave now. There’s no need for you to be distracting his highness in here. Now shoo!” Sungmin practically shoved the two bickering angels out and shut the door. “Sorry about that, your highness. They both seem to degrade into five year olds whenever they meet.”
Hyukjae smiled. “They seem like really good friends.”
“That’s right. They were childhood best friends. Anyway, let’s get down to business, your highness. Did Donghae tell you anything about this ‘power’ we keep referring to?”
“Uh, not really. I only know that he can control fire, and most angels have some sort of power of their own…”
Sungmin nodded. “That’s the main gist of it, really. Now I’m here to help determine your power, but unfortunately that is also the hardest part.”
“My power? Oh! I can burn people,” Hyukjae said, suddenly remembering the incident where he had supposedly burnt a werewolf with his wings. Now he felt like a complete idiot for forgetting that in the first place.
“You can WHAT?” The sudden outburst made Hyukjae jump slightly. Sungmin was now staring intently at him, eyes wide in shock.
“…I can burn people?” He repeated hesitantly, quickly adding, “I kind of burned one of the werewolves who were after me, though I don’t know exactly how it happened.”
“Are you absolutely sure about that?” Sungmin demanded.
“Yeah, the werewolf was so angry after that. Why?” Hyukjae asked uneasily. Sungmin’s reaction wasn’t what he was expecting at all.
“…” Sungmin eyed Hyukjae critically for a moment, then without warning he suddenly drew his arm back and threw a punch towards Hyukjae.
A wall of flame shot up immediately right in front of Hyukjae, and Sungmin’s fist stopped mere centimeters away from the scorching flames. He lowered his fist slowly. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
***
An irritated Sungmin stormed over to where Kyuhyun was currently relaxing in one of the entertainment rooms in Donghae’s mansion. “Cho Kyuhyun!”
The said angel barely looked up from his game. “What?”
“How could you have kept such an important thing to yourself? This affects all the angels and I thought you trusted me! But instead you left me in the dark!” To say that Sungmin was irritated might have been an understatement. He was downright pissed.
“Wait, hold on. What are you talking about?” Kyuhyun didn’t know what he could have done to anger Sungmin to this extent. As far as he knew, there weren’t any secrets between them either. “I didn’t hide anything from you, what are you being so angry for?”
Sungmin glared at the oblivious blue-winged angel. “You idiot! You knew all along that Donghae’s mate is none other than the prince! And yet you didn’t tell me and left me to discover this on my own!”
Kyuhyun’s brow creased in confusion. “You mean Donghae hyung didn’t tell you that?”
“…”
***
Donghae eagerly accosted Hyukjae as he made his way back to his room. “So, Hyukkie, how was it? Did Sungmin manage to find out what’s your power?” In his excitement he didn’t notice the pensive expression on Hyukjae’s face.
“Sungmin sshi said that it would probably take a few more days, at least.” Hyukjae paused slightly, before asking, “Donghae, is there something you’re not telling me?”
“…What do you mean?” Though he sounded absolutely calm, Donghae was really panicking inwardly. There was only one thing which Hyukjae could be referring to, and Donghae sincerely hoped it wasn’t that.
“Nothing. Forget I said anything,” Hyukjae said, suddenly smiling brightly at Donghae. “What’s for dinner tonight?”
The sudden change in Hyukjae’s attitude confused Donghae, but he soon put this out of his mind as Hyukjae started dragging him towards the dining hall. All he could think of at this moment was that Hyukjae was willingly holding his hand. He cheered inwardly. I am making some progress!
Over the course of the next few days, however, Donghae realized that Hyukjae seemed to be avoiding him. He was upset and confused; what had he done to deserve this? They barely talked and that was quite a feat, considering that he was always trying to find Hyukjae in his free time. But the other angel always seemed to elude him somehow. He thought back to the strange conversation they had before and decided that something must have had happened. He made up his mind just as the clock chimed, showing him that Hyukjae’s flying lesson had just ended, which meant that he would be on his way back to his room now.
“Alright, time to find out what’s wrong with him,” Donghae told himself, hurriedly making his way over to Hyukjae’s room. He could already sense Hyukjae’s presence nearing him with each step he took and this hastened his pace further.
“Hyukkie, we need to talk!” This was the first thing he said as he flung the door open, scaring the wits out of poor Hyukjae, who jumped in fright.
“D-Don’t do that again!” Hyukjae said, clutching at his thumping heart. He had been too preoccupied with his own thoughts to even notice Donghae’s approach.
“I’m sorry!” Donghae apologized, pulling him into a hug. “Why have you been avoiding me?”
Hyukjae tried struggling out of the strong embrace, but failed. “I h-haven’t,” he denied. Donghae frowned. Hyukjae was obviously lying - he couldn’t fool Donghae. Just as he was about to call Hyukjae out on his bluff, however, they were interrupted by a sudden series of strong tremors that shook the entire room.
“Donghae!” Hyukjae called nervously, instinctively tightening his grip on Donghae.
“Don’t worry, Hyukkie, I’m here.” Donghae stroked Hyukjae’s back reassuringly as he eyed the chandelier swaying dangerously above them. “Are you ok?”
Hyukjae nodded hesitantly. “W-What was that?”
“I don’t know. It could be an attack…” The shaking had subsided for the moment and Donghae took the opportunity to take Hyukjae out of the room with him.
“Attack? What do you mean?”
Donghae turned round to face Hyukjae. “Our relations with the werewolves are still tense. And… There’ve been reports of a possible traitor from within our own ranks.”
“Your Highness! Donghae! I’m so glad that both of you are fine!” Sungmin was running towards them, with Kyuhyun closely behind him. “It’s an attack,” he reported tersely. “They took out half the mansion in one shot, but our angels have already engaged them in battle.”
“The werewolves?”
Sungmin shook his head grimly. “You’re only half right. There are rogue angels on their side, too. We’re still trying to determine who their leader is, but they already know that his highness is currently here.”
“We must get the prince out of here right now,” Kyuhyun added.
“Ok, I got it. We’ll be moving up the schedule a bit. I trust you two to get him to the palace safely, then,” Donghae instructed.
“Wait! Aren’t you coming? I don’t want to go without you!” Hyukjae cried. He suddenly regretted having avoided Donghae for the last few days. In hindsight it seemed like such a stupid thing to do now. He clutched tightly at Donghae’s shirt, refusing to let him go.
Donghae took Hyukjae’s hands and held them tightly. “Listen to me, Hyukkie… It’s not safe here anymore. You remember those two werewolves that night?” At Hyukjae’s nod, he continued, “well, there’s a lot more of them out there right now. And there’re vampires too. That’s why you have to go; there’s no way I’m going to let you get hurt here.”
“But… Since it’s so dangerous out there, then why can’t we all go together?”
“Because Donghae’s one of the best fighters in the kingdom. Your highness, we really have to leave now.” Kyuhyun interjected impatiently before Donghae could say anything. Donghae shot him an annoyed glare but didn’t dispute him.
“Don’t worry, Hyukkie. I’ll be done in no time. Go, now.” Donghae gave a quick peck on Hyukjae’s cheek and smiled at him. “I’ll see you at the palace.” He then pushed Hyukjae slightly towards Sungmin and Kyuhyun, nodding at them to go. Hyukjae was practically on the brink of tears, and Donghae had to resort to turning around so that he wouldn’t see that sight. He wasn’t sure that he would be able to let Hyukjae go if he saw him cry.
One of his servants came running up to him just then. “Sir! I’m so glad that I found you! We’re under attack!”
“Yes, I am well aware of that,” Donghae snapped. “Who’s leading the enemy?”
“It’s Hwang Chansung! He’s got the werewolves on his side too, and they said they want the prince! Siwon sshi is already outside defending the mansion, but it’s no good!”
“Chansung? I should’ve known it was him!” Donghae cursed angrily. Chansung was one of the more powerful nobles around. No doubt he had been eyeing the empty throne and had felt threatened by Hyukjae’s reappearance. Donghae could only hope that Hyukjae had arrived safely at the palace and away from this madness. As for now, he had to stop Chansung.
The situation outside was worse than he had expected, with numerous rogue angels flying ahead to clear a path for the bloodthirsty werewolves. And the angel in the midst of all these was none other than Chansung, who smirked upon seeing Donghae.
“Chansung! Stop this madness right now!” Donghae yelled.
“It’s no use, Donghae,” Siwon informed him. “He’s bent on destroying the mansion.”
“You should listen to your friend there,” Chansung sneered. “Where is the prince?”
Donghae ignored the question and raised his hands instead, sparks lighting at his fingertips. “I’m sorry, but I can’t let you continue destroying my mansion.” As he said this, a column of fire sprang up from the ground in an instant, engulfing Chansung entirely. This would be enough to trap him until the special forces arrived.
“Be careful,” Siwon warned. “He must have something up his sleeve still.” Indeed, none of Chansung’s followers seemed even slightly phased by the fact that their leader was now trapped in a ring of fire. They fought on mercilessly, pushing the line of defense further backward. However, both angels were still shocked when the flames surrounding Chansung suddenly flickered and died entirely, having been doused by a massive amount of water that had appeared out of nowhere.
“Did you really think that this would stop me?” Chansung asked triumphantly as he flew out, completely unscathed. “You may be powerful, Lee Donghae, but I’ll never lose to you!”
“What the hell,” Donghae cursed. Of all the angels around, Chansung just had to be the one who possessed the elemental power of water? He was now at a horrible disadvantage, and that sneaky bastard Chansung was well aware of it too.
“Victory is mine!”
“Stop the rest, I’ll deal with him,” Siwon said, flying towards Chansung and throwing a strong punch at him. Chansung staggered backwards slightly, then retaliated with a huge wave of water which Siwon barely escaped from.
“Be careful!” Donghae yelled, even as he swiftly turned the battlefield into a raging inferno that stopped the werewolves right in their tracks while the angels hurriedly took to the skies to escape the flames. He was keenly aware that if Chansung kept bringing water out from nowhere his flames would soon be useless, and so he had to reduce the enemy’s numbers as much as possible now. It was a strategy that seemed to be effective, as even the angels in the sky were not spared from Donghae’s deadly accuracy with his fireballs. With him defending the mansion now it seemed almost impregnable. Recognizing this, Chansung decided to take him out of the picture once and for all.
Flinging his hands out, Chansung prepared for his next move, but was distracted by Siwon, who had caught on to what he was trying to do.
“I won’t let you do it!” Siwon growled as he wrestled with Chansung in midair, both sides trying to gain the upper hand. Siwon had the power to change any part of his body into anything he desired it to be, and now he took advantage of his close proximity with Chansung to turn every inch of his skin into an extremely sharp surface.
Chansung released him immediately, howling in pain as cuts appeared on the parts of his body that had been in contact with Siwon before. His eyes flashed in anger as he turned his attention to Siwon. “Do not underestimate my power!” As he spoke, a large whirlpool started forming rapidly right before their eyes, catching all the werewolves who were still on the ground off guard. The angels mostly managed to escape by flying, though the slower ones were all engulfed by the raging sea beneath them as well.
“Are you crazy? Those were your comrades right there!” Donghae yelled as he saw how the unforgiving waters swallowed up more of Chansung’s own army than anything.
Chansung only laughed derisively. “Fool! They have long outlived their usefulness. Now that the little prince is out of the way, you two are next!”
He doesn’t know! Donghae thought in relief. Chansung must have thought that Hyukjae was still in the mansion, which was now almost entirely submerged underwater. If Hyukjae had stayed behind he would have drowned for sure. But these thoughts were quickly cut short when Chansung resumed his attacks, trying to corner him with his water to completely neutralize his power.
“You’re too slow for me!” Donghae taunted as he evaded yet another wave. This only angered Chansung further and he escalated his efforts, not knowing that this was just what Donghae wanted. With Chansung’s attention all focused onto him now, Siwon would be able to sneak up onto Chansung unnoticed and kill him.
Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. A particularly strong, steaming jet of water hit Donghae right in his chest as he was trying to avoid another wave, and Siwon immediately flew to his friend’s aid instead. He just narrowly managed to prevent Donghae from falling into the waters below, when both angels heard something that shocked them.
“Donghae!” Both angels whipped their heads around immediately, not daring to believe their ears.
“What are you doing here?!” Donghae asked in frustration as he saw Hyukjae flying towards them with Sungmin and Kyuhyun. What exactly were those two doing? Why hadn’t they brought Hyukjae to the palace yet?
“Oh ho. So the crown prince is still very much alive and healthy, I see…” Chansung said, rubbing his hands in glee. “No matter. I will just crush you now!”
Donghae’s eyes widened at that declaration and he instantly shouted at Hyukjae to fly away as fast as possible. He was surprised, however, when a bolt of lightning lanced through the sky and narrowly missed Chansung. That didn’t seem like the work of nature at all. Could it be…?
“Who are you?” Hyukjae demanded, crimson eyes swirling with anger. He had decided to turn back for Donghae soon after they had separated, and though Kyuhyun and Sungmin had tried to stop him none of them were able to catch him when he started flying back towards Donghae. Guess Donghae hadn’t been lying when he had complimented Hyukjae for his flying skills.
'He can control the weather, but he doesn’t know it yet.' Sungmin’s voice sounded suddenly in Donghae’s head, confirming his earlier suspicion. He felt slightly better now that Hyukjae wasn’t as defenseless as before, though it was still dangerous for him to be out like this, especially when he didn’t know how to control his power yet.
“You… What is your power?” Chansung asked, now keeping a wary distance away from Hyukjae as more lightning flashed through the sky. Being a water elemental user, he was extremely vulnerable to lightning, after all.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I won’t let you hurt Donghae!” Hyukjae screamed defiantly.
Chansung snorted derisively. “Oh, really? Such big words coming from someone as weak as you. I think you should worry about yourself first!”
“Shut up, Chansung! You’re the one who needs to worry! Who’s the one surrounded by five other angels?” Donghae retorted. “Just surrender now if you know what’s good for you!”
Indeed, Donghae was right. Upon seeing their leader mercilessly decimate his own werewolf allies, his remaining forces had scattered and left as well. Moreover, with the addition of Sungmin and Kyuhyun, two of the country’s best angels in combat, taking down Chansung would no longer be a problem now. Chansung was well aware of this, but he refused to give up. He had done so much just to reach this point; the idea of stopping now was just preposterous to him.
I’ll just have to drown all of you, then!”
“Do something!” Donghae yelled desperately as he lunged towards the crazed angel, hoping he wouldn’t be too late. But before he even neared Chansung he was surprised to see more streaks of lightning that flashed ominously across the sky, before they actually struck Chansung. A strangled scream could be heard as Chansung plunged right down, a bloody mess of burnt limbs and charred feathers. As he watched, the water around them started receding at a rapid rate, a sure sign that Chansung had completely lost control of his power and was very likely either dead or unconscious.
“Hae…” At the sound of his name, Donghae hurriedly flew towards Hyukjae, who looked extremely pale. “I don’t f-feel too g-good…”
“What? Hyukkie, what’s wrong?” Donghae asked, his panic only increasing further when Hyukjae collapsed in his arms. “Hyukkie!”
-TBC-
A/N: Tried my best to finish this in two chapters, but apparently it wasn't possible ;_; Sorry for this, I know it's not that good but at least it's off my chest now... Comments are greatly appreciated, thanks :D
EDIT: I forgot to give spots! =/ Sorry I guess I was in too much of a rush to post it and go to sleep...
Pairing: HaeHyuk
Genre: Fantasy, AU, Romance
Rating: PG-13
Summary: At sixteen, Hyukjae's life turns upside down when he begins to attract the attention of deadly night creatures who can't wait to kill him.
Warnings: Erm. Angels? Haha.
Previous Chapter: 1A
Beta-ed by: mysapphiresky
“Alright! You’re almost there, Your Highness! Just a bit more!”
Panting with the exertion of keeping himself steady in midair, Hyukjae found himself wishing once again, that he hadn’t healed that quickly. He had been excited to be healthy enough to start his flying lessons, but that had been before he realized that flying was such hard work.
“Be careful, Your Highness!” A group of angels hovered a few metres beneath him, ready to catch him if he fell. They needn’t have worried though; Hyukjae himself may not have known it, but he had almost mastered the art of flying.
“Hyukkie! You’re doing great!”
Hyukjae turned awkwardly in midflight, peering down to see Donghae waving excitedly at him and acting very much like a three year old instead of his twenty one years of age. He smiled unconsciously at the sight, before suddenly diving down towards Donghae. He giggled as Donghae jerked slightly back in surprise as Hyukjae landed neatly right next to him.
“Wow, Hyukkie, you’re a real natural at this!” Donghae complimented. He was so proud of Hyukjae! It took himself almost two months to master the flying technique but according to Hyukjae’s instructor, the young prince had already gotten most of it down pat in just two weeks. All Hyukjae needed was more experience in flying, and to get used to the idea of treating his wings as more than just a decoration. Donghae had been horrified when he first saw Hyukjae dragging his wings around as he walked, until Donghae taught him how to keep his wings folded and bent at the right angle to keep them out of the way.
“Thanks,” Hyukjae said, ducking his head slightly at the compliment. Contrary to his original thought, the relationship between them did not become awkward even after the kiss. While Donghae’s clinginess had been strange at first, Hyukjae had quickly gotten used to it, surprising even himself.
A pink carton slid into view and Hyukjae looked up in delight. “It’s for me?”
“Why do you always ask me that when you already know the answer?” Donghae teased, enjoying the slight blush that spread across Hyukjae’s cheeks. “Don’t worry, if you want, I’ll send you hundreds and thousands of cartons of strawberry milk every day.”
Hyukjae merely hummed lightly in response, not taking the other seriously. Donghae was such a sweet talker - it was hard to think of him as the son of the commander general sometimes.
“I mean it, you know.”
“Eh?”
“I’ll do anything for you, if it makes you happy.”
“Y-Yeah, I know. Um, thanks…” Hyukjae really did feel grateful towards Donghae for taking such good care of him, but he had never been good at expressing himself to others. He was just lucky that Donghae didn’t seem to take it to heart.
“Your eyes are pink again,” Donghae teased. He chuckled when Hyukjae immediately looked away in embarrassment. As much as he wanted to stay like this with Hyukjae for the rest of the afternoon, however, there was still another pressing matter for them. So it was with a reluctant sigh that Donghae stood, pulling Hyukjae with him at the same time. “Anyway, you’ll be meeting Sungmin now. It’s going to be pretty fun!”
Hyukjae’s somewhat half-hearted nod went unnoticed by Donghae. The older angel had already told him about Sungmin, who would apparently help him figure out his own special power and how to harness it properly. Donghae had also mentioned something about incorporating fighting skills at the same time and this was what had Hyukjae worried, actually. Though he was curious about the nature of his own power he wasn’t exactly keen to learn how to harm others with it as well. But Donghae had sounded so eager for him to learn all these that Hyukjae didn’t have the heart to burst his bubble.
They finally stopped in front of a large ornate door. It was quite intimidating, if Hyukjae had to be honest. He hoped this Sungmin would be nice to get along with.
“Oh? I think he has a visitor. Doesn’t matter…” Donghae muttered absently as he heard voices talking from beyond the door. He pushed the door open and Hyukjae could only blink in bemusement. Instead of the grim, dark interior he was expecting, the room was completely bright and cheery in its decorations.
“Good afternoon, your highness! I’m Lee Sungmin.” Hyukjae was taken aback to see that Sungmin looked barely older than him. He had expected someone older, but at least Sungmin seemed friendly enough.
“Hi, nice to meet you! I… Eh?” Hyukjae gasped in surprise. The blue winged angel from the other day was here too!
“I’m Cho Kyuhyun. We’ve met before, your highness.” The angel inclined his head in greeting.
“I know, I remember!” Hyukjae said, and then proceeded to surprise everyone present by suddenly bowing deeply. “Thank you for saving my life back then!”
Kyuhyun grinned slightly. “I didn’t do anything, though. Donghae was the one who did everything.”
“It’s Donghae hyung, you brat. How many times must I tell you that?” Donghae frowned when Kyuhyun merely shrugged and ignored him. This kid…
“Alright both of you, leave now. There’s no need for you to be distracting his highness in here. Now shoo!” Sungmin practically shoved the two bickering angels out and shut the door. “Sorry about that, your highness. They both seem to degrade into five year olds whenever they meet.”
Hyukjae smiled. “They seem like really good friends.”
“That’s right. They were childhood best friends. Anyway, let’s get down to business, your highness. Did Donghae tell you anything about this ‘power’ we keep referring to?”
“Uh, not really. I only know that he can control fire, and most angels have some sort of power of their own…”
Sungmin nodded. “That’s the main gist of it, really. Now I’m here to help determine your power, but unfortunately that is also the hardest part.”
“My power? Oh! I can burn people,” Hyukjae said, suddenly remembering the incident where he had supposedly burnt a werewolf with his wings. Now he felt like a complete idiot for forgetting that in the first place.
“You can WHAT?” The sudden outburst made Hyukjae jump slightly. Sungmin was now staring intently at him, eyes wide in shock.
“…I can burn people?” He repeated hesitantly, quickly adding, “I kind of burned one of the werewolves who were after me, though I don’t know exactly how it happened.”
“Are you absolutely sure about that?” Sungmin demanded.
“Yeah, the werewolf was so angry after that. Why?” Hyukjae asked uneasily. Sungmin’s reaction wasn’t what he was expecting at all.
“…” Sungmin eyed Hyukjae critically for a moment, then without warning he suddenly drew his arm back and threw a punch towards Hyukjae.
A wall of flame shot up immediately right in front of Hyukjae, and Sungmin’s fist stopped mere centimeters away from the scorching flames. He lowered his fist slowly. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
***
An irritated Sungmin stormed over to where Kyuhyun was currently relaxing in one of the entertainment rooms in Donghae’s mansion. “Cho Kyuhyun!”
The said angel barely looked up from his game. “What?”
“How could you have kept such an important thing to yourself? This affects all the angels and I thought you trusted me! But instead you left me in the dark!” To say that Sungmin was irritated might have been an understatement. He was downright pissed.
“Wait, hold on. What are you talking about?” Kyuhyun didn’t know what he could have done to anger Sungmin to this extent. As far as he knew, there weren’t any secrets between them either. “I didn’t hide anything from you, what are you being so angry for?”
Sungmin glared at the oblivious blue-winged angel. “You idiot! You knew all along that Donghae’s mate is none other than the prince! And yet you didn’t tell me and left me to discover this on my own!”
Kyuhyun’s brow creased in confusion. “You mean Donghae hyung didn’t tell you that?”
“…”
***
Donghae eagerly accosted Hyukjae as he made his way back to his room. “So, Hyukkie, how was it? Did Sungmin manage to find out what’s your power?” In his excitement he didn’t notice the pensive expression on Hyukjae’s face.
“Sungmin sshi said that it would probably take a few more days, at least.” Hyukjae paused slightly, before asking, “Donghae, is there something you’re not telling me?”
“…What do you mean?” Though he sounded absolutely calm, Donghae was really panicking inwardly. There was only one thing which Hyukjae could be referring to, and Donghae sincerely hoped it wasn’t that.
“Nothing. Forget I said anything,” Hyukjae said, suddenly smiling brightly at Donghae. “What’s for dinner tonight?”
The sudden change in Hyukjae’s attitude confused Donghae, but he soon put this out of his mind as Hyukjae started dragging him towards the dining hall. All he could think of at this moment was that Hyukjae was willingly holding his hand. He cheered inwardly. I am making some progress!
Over the course of the next few days, however, Donghae realized that Hyukjae seemed to be avoiding him. He was upset and confused; what had he done to deserve this? They barely talked and that was quite a feat, considering that he was always trying to find Hyukjae in his free time. But the other angel always seemed to elude him somehow. He thought back to the strange conversation they had before and decided that something must have had happened. He made up his mind just as the clock chimed, showing him that Hyukjae’s flying lesson had just ended, which meant that he would be on his way back to his room now.
“Alright, time to find out what’s wrong with him,” Donghae told himself, hurriedly making his way over to Hyukjae’s room. He could already sense Hyukjae’s presence nearing him with each step he took and this hastened his pace further.
“Hyukkie, we need to talk!” This was the first thing he said as he flung the door open, scaring the wits out of poor Hyukjae, who jumped in fright.
“D-Don’t do that again!” Hyukjae said, clutching at his thumping heart. He had been too preoccupied with his own thoughts to even notice Donghae’s approach.
“I’m sorry!” Donghae apologized, pulling him into a hug. “Why have you been avoiding me?”
Hyukjae tried struggling out of the strong embrace, but failed. “I h-haven’t,” he denied. Donghae frowned. Hyukjae was obviously lying - he couldn’t fool Donghae. Just as he was about to call Hyukjae out on his bluff, however, they were interrupted by a sudden series of strong tremors that shook the entire room.
“Donghae!” Hyukjae called nervously, instinctively tightening his grip on Donghae.
“Don’t worry, Hyukkie, I’m here.” Donghae stroked Hyukjae’s back reassuringly as he eyed the chandelier swaying dangerously above them. “Are you ok?”
Hyukjae nodded hesitantly. “W-What was that?”
“I don’t know. It could be an attack…” The shaking had subsided for the moment and Donghae took the opportunity to take Hyukjae out of the room with him.
“Attack? What do you mean?”
Donghae turned round to face Hyukjae. “Our relations with the werewolves are still tense. And… There’ve been reports of a possible traitor from within our own ranks.”
“Your Highness! Donghae! I’m so glad that both of you are fine!” Sungmin was running towards them, with Kyuhyun closely behind him. “It’s an attack,” he reported tersely. “They took out half the mansion in one shot, but our angels have already engaged them in battle.”
“The werewolves?”
Sungmin shook his head grimly. “You’re only half right. There are rogue angels on their side, too. We’re still trying to determine who their leader is, but they already know that his highness is currently here.”
“We must get the prince out of here right now,” Kyuhyun added.
“Ok, I got it. We’ll be moving up the schedule a bit. I trust you two to get him to the palace safely, then,” Donghae instructed.
“Wait! Aren’t you coming? I don’t want to go without you!” Hyukjae cried. He suddenly regretted having avoided Donghae for the last few days. In hindsight it seemed like such a stupid thing to do now. He clutched tightly at Donghae’s shirt, refusing to let him go.
Donghae took Hyukjae’s hands and held them tightly. “Listen to me, Hyukkie… It’s not safe here anymore. You remember those two werewolves that night?” At Hyukjae’s nod, he continued, “well, there’s a lot more of them out there right now. And there’re vampires too. That’s why you have to go; there’s no way I’m going to let you get hurt here.”
“But… Since it’s so dangerous out there, then why can’t we all go together?”
“Because Donghae’s one of the best fighters in the kingdom. Your highness, we really have to leave now.” Kyuhyun interjected impatiently before Donghae could say anything. Donghae shot him an annoyed glare but didn’t dispute him.
“Don’t worry, Hyukkie. I’ll be done in no time. Go, now.” Donghae gave a quick peck on Hyukjae’s cheek and smiled at him. “I’ll see you at the palace.” He then pushed Hyukjae slightly towards Sungmin and Kyuhyun, nodding at them to go. Hyukjae was practically on the brink of tears, and Donghae had to resort to turning around so that he wouldn’t see that sight. He wasn’t sure that he would be able to let Hyukjae go if he saw him cry.
One of his servants came running up to him just then. “Sir! I’m so glad that I found you! We’re under attack!”
“Yes, I am well aware of that,” Donghae snapped. “Who’s leading the enemy?”
“It’s Hwang Chansung! He’s got the werewolves on his side too, and they said they want the prince! Siwon sshi is already outside defending the mansion, but it’s no good!”
“Chansung? I should’ve known it was him!” Donghae cursed angrily. Chansung was one of the more powerful nobles around. No doubt he had been eyeing the empty throne and had felt threatened by Hyukjae’s reappearance. Donghae could only hope that Hyukjae had arrived safely at the palace and away from this madness. As for now, he had to stop Chansung.
The situation outside was worse than he had expected, with numerous rogue angels flying ahead to clear a path for the bloodthirsty werewolves. And the angel in the midst of all these was none other than Chansung, who smirked upon seeing Donghae.
“Chansung! Stop this madness right now!” Donghae yelled.
“It’s no use, Donghae,” Siwon informed him. “He’s bent on destroying the mansion.”
“You should listen to your friend there,” Chansung sneered. “Where is the prince?”
Donghae ignored the question and raised his hands instead, sparks lighting at his fingertips. “I’m sorry, but I can’t let you continue destroying my mansion.” As he said this, a column of fire sprang up from the ground in an instant, engulfing Chansung entirely. This would be enough to trap him until the special forces arrived.
“Be careful,” Siwon warned. “He must have something up his sleeve still.” Indeed, none of Chansung’s followers seemed even slightly phased by the fact that their leader was now trapped in a ring of fire. They fought on mercilessly, pushing the line of defense further backward. However, both angels were still shocked when the flames surrounding Chansung suddenly flickered and died entirely, having been doused by a massive amount of water that had appeared out of nowhere.
“Did you really think that this would stop me?” Chansung asked triumphantly as he flew out, completely unscathed. “You may be powerful, Lee Donghae, but I’ll never lose to you!”
“What the hell,” Donghae cursed. Of all the angels around, Chansung just had to be the one who possessed the elemental power of water? He was now at a horrible disadvantage, and that sneaky bastard Chansung was well aware of it too.
“Victory is mine!”
“Stop the rest, I’ll deal with him,” Siwon said, flying towards Chansung and throwing a strong punch at him. Chansung staggered backwards slightly, then retaliated with a huge wave of water which Siwon barely escaped from.
“Be careful!” Donghae yelled, even as he swiftly turned the battlefield into a raging inferno that stopped the werewolves right in their tracks while the angels hurriedly took to the skies to escape the flames. He was keenly aware that if Chansung kept bringing water out from nowhere his flames would soon be useless, and so he had to reduce the enemy’s numbers as much as possible now. It was a strategy that seemed to be effective, as even the angels in the sky were not spared from Donghae’s deadly accuracy with his fireballs. With him defending the mansion now it seemed almost impregnable. Recognizing this, Chansung decided to take him out of the picture once and for all.
Flinging his hands out, Chansung prepared for his next move, but was distracted by Siwon, who had caught on to what he was trying to do.
“I won’t let you do it!” Siwon growled as he wrestled with Chansung in midair, both sides trying to gain the upper hand. Siwon had the power to change any part of his body into anything he desired it to be, and now he took advantage of his close proximity with Chansung to turn every inch of his skin into an extremely sharp surface.
Chansung released him immediately, howling in pain as cuts appeared on the parts of his body that had been in contact with Siwon before. His eyes flashed in anger as he turned his attention to Siwon. “Do not underestimate my power!” As he spoke, a large whirlpool started forming rapidly right before their eyes, catching all the werewolves who were still on the ground off guard. The angels mostly managed to escape by flying, though the slower ones were all engulfed by the raging sea beneath them as well.
“Are you crazy? Those were your comrades right there!” Donghae yelled as he saw how the unforgiving waters swallowed up more of Chansung’s own army than anything.
Chansung only laughed derisively. “Fool! They have long outlived their usefulness. Now that the little prince is out of the way, you two are next!”
He doesn’t know! Donghae thought in relief. Chansung must have thought that Hyukjae was still in the mansion, which was now almost entirely submerged underwater. If Hyukjae had stayed behind he would have drowned for sure. But these thoughts were quickly cut short when Chansung resumed his attacks, trying to corner him with his water to completely neutralize his power.
“You’re too slow for me!” Donghae taunted as he evaded yet another wave. This only angered Chansung further and he escalated his efforts, not knowing that this was just what Donghae wanted. With Chansung’s attention all focused onto him now, Siwon would be able to sneak up onto Chansung unnoticed and kill him.
Unfortunately, things did not go as planned. A particularly strong, steaming jet of water hit Donghae right in his chest as he was trying to avoid another wave, and Siwon immediately flew to his friend’s aid instead. He just narrowly managed to prevent Donghae from falling into the waters below, when both angels heard something that shocked them.
“Donghae!” Both angels whipped their heads around immediately, not daring to believe their ears.
“What are you doing here?!” Donghae asked in frustration as he saw Hyukjae flying towards them with Sungmin and Kyuhyun. What exactly were those two doing? Why hadn’t they brought Hyukjae to the palace yet?
“Oh ho. So the crown prince is still very much alive and healthy, I see…” Chansung said, rubbing his hands in glee. “No matter. I will just crush you now!”
Donghae’s eyes widened at that declaration and he instantly shouted at Hyukjae to fly away as fast as possible. He was surprised, however, when a bolt of lightning lanced through the sky and narrowly missed Chansung. That didn’t seem like the work of nature at all. Could it be…?
“Who are you?” Hyukjae demanded, crimson eyes swirling with anger. He had decided to turn back for Donghae soon after they had separated, and though Kyuhyun and Sungmin had tried to stop him none of them were able to catch him when he started flying back towards Donghae. Guess Donghae hadn’t been lying when he had complimented Hyukjae for his flying skills.
'He can control the weather, but he doesn’t know it yet.' Sungmin’s voice sounded suddenly in Donghae’s head, confirming his earlier suspicion. He felt slightly better now that Hyukjae wasn’t as defenseless as before, though it was still dangerous for him to be out like this, especially when he didn’t know how to control his power yet.
“You… What is your power?” Chansung asked, now keeping a wary distance away from Hyukjae as more lightning flashed through the sky. Being a water elemental user, he was extremely vulnerable to lightning, after all.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I won’t let you hurt Donghae!” Hyukjae screamed defiantly.
Chansung snorted derisively. “Oh, really? Such big words coming from someone as weak as you. I think you should worry about yourself first!”
“Shut up, Chansung! You’re the one who needs to worry! Who’s the one surrounded by five other angels?” Donghae retorted. “Just surrender now if you know what’s good for you!”
Indeed, Donghae was right. Upon seeing their leader mercilessly decimate his own werewolf allies, his remaining forces had scattered and left as well. Moreover, with the addition of Sungmin and Kyuhyun, two of the country’s best angels in combat, taking down Chansung would no longer be a problem now. Chansung was well aware of this, but he refused to give up. He had done so much just to reach this point; the idea of stopping now was just preposterous to him.
I’ll just have to drown all of you, then!”
“Do something!” Donghae yelled desperately as he lunged towards the crazed angel, hoping he wouldn’t be too late. But before he even neared Chansung he was surprised to see more streaks of lightning that flashed ominously across the sky, before they actually struck Chansung. A strangled scream could be heard as Chansung plunged right down, a bloody mess of burnt limbs and charred feathers. As he watched, the water around them started receding at a rapid rate, a sure sign that Chansung had completely lost control of his power and was very likely either dead or unconscious.
“Hae…” At the sound of his name, Donghae hurriedly flew towards Hyukjae, who looked extremely pale. “I don’t f-feel too g-good…”
“What? Hyukkie, what’s wrong?” Donghae asked, his panic only increasing further when Hyukjae collapsed in his arms. “Hyukkie!”
-TBC-
A/N: Tried my best to finish this in two chapters, but apparently it wasn't possible ;_; Sorry for this, I know it's not that good but at least it's off my chest now... Comments are greatly appreciated, thanks :D
EDIT: I forgot to give spots! =/ Sorry I guess I was in too much of a rush to post it and go to sleep...