Are You There - Chapter 51: Chapter 51
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The Counsel line themselves in their seats on this early Sunday morn, complacent smiles on each face as they begin their daily routine. The vampires, with a plate full of sentences today, talk among themselves at the center of the table. The eldest, by age but not by face, is especially hung up about one of the cases they will be handling today.
"About this Chae Hyungwon," he murmurs to his compatriots, shuffling in his seat to better see the others to his left. "Just what are we to do with his young Claim? If he is not to impress us with an ability, what will be done with him?"
"Jeon Wonwoo..." The youngest of their trio rolls his eyes, none too eager to hear the drivel their eldest will surely put forth. "Do not tell me you will consider letting him live-"
"That is precisely what I was going to ask of you." The eldest vampire stares down his nose at the youngest, and second youngest beside him. "Being of half-blood myself, I do so have a softened space in my mind for others of my kind."
The second eldest, a woman by the name of Hayoon, does understand the words, but supports little of them. "You were also given the chance to become full-blooded, just like many others. So why you dwindle in a life that no longer belongs to you, I'm not sure."
Jeon Wonwoo places a hand to his chest, feigning hurt. "I have lived for nearly seven centuries. This life, half blood or full blood, will always belong to me. I hope you'll do well to remember than young one, or you may lose your own due to carelessness."
His counterparts grumble to themselves, clearly put off by the ominous warning. They say nothing else in reply however, fierce in their opinions and choosing not to argue for the sake of their own sanity. Wonwoo chooses to also keep to himself for the rest of their preparation hour, sifting through cases and making notes across his pages so he can remember clearly what will happen later on. While he does not agree with incoming end to what was once his own race, he cannot say he has much opportunity to fix it. He is but one voice, among these nine.
One voice among the Counsels that line all across the globe. They will not listen to him.
So he decides not to bother speaking.
[ x ]
Changkyun paces the length of his apartment alone come Sunday morning. Kihyun's adoption had been processed early yesterday, and he had gone home with Hoseok for the time being. It was not a difficult process, and the vampire did not even question his abilities of glamour during it all. He knew that Kihyun would be taken into a home of love and life; that alone helped him move forward confidently.
He is to meet Hyungwon within the next hour, just as the sun rises at a high six in the morning. This will leave them approximately three hours to confer with one another before their hearing with the Counsel. The final hour, absorbed by their journey to the Counsel building, will be spent in silence, as Hyungwon has requested.
Changkyun does not think he will be able to survive quite well in the silence between them, but he has agreed for Hyungwon's sake. His Master has kept his distance in the last week, as much distance as he can offer at least with how fearful he is of today's events. Though this has pleased Changkyun to no end, it has also brought him a striking amount of terror. Hyungwon is not often one to hold himself back. Changkyun is scared that his dear Master may blast off as soon as they reach the Counsel building. The younger is worried to no end over his Master, and just how far Hyungwon may go to fight for his own life.
"I don't think one week was long enough," Hyungwon had said just last night over the phone. Changkyun could hear the tears in his voice, obvious in that thick, painful sense. "I've put all my trust in you, young one."
Changkyun can feel the pressure more this morning as the sky outside his bedroom window begins to tinge purple. The once dull cornflower blue has begun to twist and change with the incoming sunrise. The incoming weakness. The incoming end. Changkyun knows what he will need to do today. He has been planning since the first moment he had turned back time days ago. He has practiced a few times since then, telling nobody of his secret.
Focusing his energy now, the blood of an emotional photographer from the park still fresh on his tongue from hours ago. He can feel the energy coursing through him as he stares out at the sky above. The purple, a waning violet now, must not remain. This is Changkyun's most important climb before the finale.
Staring hard, and harder still, he focuses. He forces all his mind onto that beautiful sky, and just where that purple fades still into the blue of the night. He forces that blue back, far off across the dome of stars and back farther still. He can feel the minutes tick back one after the other, longer than he has managed before. The clock on his wall winds backwards as the orange in the sky sinks back in fear of his abilities. His final practice is a blessed success, but he remains fearful of just how well he will do in four hours.
He has saved one life before; the life of the man he has loved for far too long to lose. But his connection to Hyungwon is different and he is not quite sure his talents will be strong enough to turn anything back when it comes down to it.
But as the orange finally drops behind the skyline, and the blue overtakes the sky like a sea of darkness. Changkyun can feel his powers stronger than they were just a few days ago. He can feel the strength in his fingertips, tingling in his cells, surging down his spine. For the first time in six months, Changkyun can feel it.
Faith.
[ x ]
"You're ready, I presume?"
Hyungwon has asked the same question almost twenty times now, the span of three short hours seeming quite cyclical in that sense. Their messenger had arrived twelve minutes before nine, a bit early, and Hyungwon had invited the young woman into his shop for some coffee.
"I already know this is forbidden, but as long as you don't go blabbing to your Masters, nobody will ever know."
Changkyun had chuckled at that sentiment, as all messengers remain unable to speak. The woman had opened her mouth to reply, but the empty space where her tongue belonged was all in vain, for she clamped her lips shut after a moment. Changkyun feels guilty for chuckling now as he watches the messenger hold her coffee to her lips and barely sip at it. Hyungwon watches the clock in thinly veiled disgust. He does not want the hour to strike quite yet, for when nine arrives, he will be forced to prance through that shop door and perhaps never return.
"Can we have a moment alone?" Changkyun speaks up, aiming the question at their messenger. The woman seems skeptical of his intentions, clearly nervous to oblige, but she stands from the chair behind Hyungwon's office desk and excuses herself from the back room. She makes some kind of vague hand motion, indicating that she will wander the shop until the time arrives.
Hyungwon watches as his office door shuts behind her, dousing the pair of vampires into a stifling silence. Neither breathe, finding it none-too-necessary now. Hyungwon clears his throat, searching for the words he would like to give his youngest. He does not have the strength to spare for Changkyun, but he wants to shave shave some off for the poor youngster desperately.
"I don't care why you turned me." Changkyun had not planned to speak so forwardly, but he knows that there is only a few moments between now and the rest of his life. "I know there must have been some reason, some spark you caught, but it doesn't matter why. That was six months ago."
Hyungwon shakes his head, leaning against the far wall of his office, as much distance between him and his youngest as he can create. "There was a reason. Really there was. There was a stretch of your soul in my shop just the day before I came across you, I'm still unsure of how. Though the memory I found just wasn't quite right, it was morphed. Like something had gone back to that night and changed it. Fixed it, perhaps."
Changkyun's head tilts to the side, the question on his lips but no words escaping. His throat is growing tight in fear, and he can see the same emotions plain on his Master's face. If what his Master says is true, then his plan will work; he still cannot fight the ache in his chest as pain for his elder overwhelms him.
"Perhaps if we survive today, I'll tell you about that reason sometime down the path."
Changkyun shields his thoughts, unsure if Hyungwon can really read them. Often times, it feels as if his Master can, but other times he has not a single clue. If we survive today, he thinks to himself, you won't remember a single thing of it all.
Before Changkyun can create a proper reply, the phone he has tucked into his pocket vibrates incessantly, beckoning for attention. Sighing, Changkyun removes the device and swipes the call right to answer it. His dark eyes, narrowed on the clock over Hyungwon's shoulder, watch as the final seconds tick away on the hour of eight.
He watches as the hour hits nine, and the door to the office opens once again.
"...Changkyun? It's Jooheon..." The familiar voice floods his senses as the vampire nods to the messenger. "Kyun?" Changkyun takes a deep breath, pushing off from his wall and motioning for Hyungwon to go ahead of him. "Are you there?"
"About this Chae Hyungwon," he murmurs to his compatriots, shuffling in his seat to better see the others to his left. "Just what are we to do with his young Claim? If he is not to impress us with an ability, what will be done with him?"
"Jeon Wonwoo..." The youngest of their trio rolls his eyes, none too eager to hear the drivel their eldest will surely put forth. "Do not tell me you will consider letting him live-"
"That is precisely what I was going to ask of you." The eldest vampire stares down his nose at the youngest, and second youngest beside him. "Being of half-blood myself, I do so have a softened space in my mind for others of my kind."
The second eldest, a woman by the name of Hayoon, does understand the words, but supports little of them. "You were also given the chance to become full-blooded, just like many others. So why you dwindle in a life that no longer belongs to you, I'm not sure."
Jeon Wonwoo places a hand to his chest, feigning hurt. "I have lived for nearly seven centuries. This life, half blood or full blood, will always belong to me. I hope you'll do well to remember than young one, or you may lose your own due to carelessness."
His counterparts grumble to themselves, clearly put off by the ominous warning. They say nothing else in reply however, fierce in their opinions and choosing not to argue for the sake of their own sanity. Wonwoo chooses to also keep to himself for the rest of their preparation hour, sifting through cases and making notes across his pages so he can remember clearly what will happen later on. While he does not agree with incoming end to what was once his own race, he cannot say he has much opportunity to fix it. He is but one voice, among these nine.
One voice among the Counsels that line all across the globe. They will not listen to him.
So he decides not to bother speaking.
[ x ]
Changkyun paces the length of his apartment alone come Sunday morning. Kihyun's adoption had been processed early yesterday, and he had gone home with Hoseok for the time being. It was not a difficult process, and the vampire did not even question his abilities of glamour during it all. He knew that Kihyun would be taken into a home of love and life; that alone helped him move forward confidently.
He is to meet Hyungwon within the next hour, just as the sun rises at a high six in the morning. This will leave them approximately three hours to confer with one another before their hearing with the Counsel. The final hour, absorbed by their journey to the Counsel building, will be spent in silence, as Hyungwon has requested.
Changkyun does not think he will be able to survive quite well in the silence between them, but he has agreed for Hyungwon's sake. His Master has kept his distance in the last week, as much distance as he can offer at least with how fearful he is of today's events. Though this has pleased Changkyun to no end, it has also brought him a striking amount of terror. Hyungwon is not often one to hold himself back. Changkyun is scared that his dear Master may blast off as soon as they reach the Counsel building. The younger is worried to no end over his Master, and just how far Hyungwon may go to fight for his own life.
"I don't think one week was long enough," Hyungwon had said just last night over the phone. Changkyun could hear the tears in his voice, obvious in that thick, painful sense. "I've put all my trust in you, young one."
Changkyun can feel the pressure more this morning as the sky outside his bedroom window begins to tinge purple. The once dull cornflower blue has begun to twist and change with the incoming sunrise. The incoming weakness. The incoming end. Changkyun knows what he will need to do today. He has been planning since the first moment he had turned back time days ago. He has practiced a few times since then, telling nobody of his secret.
Focusing his energy now, the blood of an emotional photographer from the park still fresh on his tongue from hours ago. He can feel the energy coursing through him as he stares out at the sky above. The purple, a waning violet now, must not remain. This is Changkyun's most important climb before the finale.
Staring hard, and harder still, he focuses. He forces all his mind onto that beautiful sky, and just where that purple fades still into the blue of the night. He forces that blue back, far off across the dome of stars and back farther still. He can feel the minutes tick back one after the other, longer than he has managed before. The clock on his wall winds backwards as the orange in the sky sinks back in fear of his abilities. His final practice is a blessed success, but he remains fearful of just how well he will do in four hours.
He has saved one life before; the life of the man he has loved for far too long to lose. But his connection to Hyungwon is different and he is not quite sure his talents will be strong enough to turn anything back when it comes down to it.
But as the orange finally drops behind the skyline, and the blue overtakes the sky like a sea of darkness. Changkyun can feel his powers stronger than they were just a few days ago. He can feel the strength in his fingertips, tingling in his cells, surging down his spine. For the first time in six months, Changkyun can feel it.
Faith.
[ x ]
"You're ready, I presume?"
Hyungwon has asked the same question almost twenty times now, the span of three short hours seeming quite cyclical in that sense. Their messenger had arrived twelve minutes before nine, a bit early, and Hyungwon had invited the young woman into his shop for some coffee.
"I already know this is forbidden, but as long as you don't go blabbing to your Masters, nobody will ever know."
Changkyun had chuckled at that sentiment, as all messengers remain unable to speak. The woman had opened her mouth to reply, but the empty space where her tongue belonged was all in vain, for she clamped her lips shut after a moment. Changkyun feels guilty for chuckling now as he watches the messenger hold her coffee to her lips and barely sip at it. Hyungwon watches the clock in thinly veiled disgust. He does not want the hour to strike quite yet, for when nine arrives, he will be forced to prance through that shop door and perhaps never return.
"Can we have a moment alone?" Changkyun speaks up, aiming the question at their messenger. The woman seems skeptical of his intentions, clearly nervous to oblige, but she stands from the chair behind Hyungwon's office desk and excuses herself from the back room. She makes some kind of vague hand motion, indicating that she will wander the shop until the time arrives.
Hyungwon watches as his office door shuts behind her, dousing the pair of vampires into a stifling silence. Neither breathe, finding it none-too-necessary now. Hyungwon clears his throat, searching for the words he would like to give his youngest. He does not have the strength to spare for Changkyun, but he wants to shave shave some off for the poor youngster desperately.
"I don't care why you turned me." Changkyun had not planned to speak so forwardly, but he knows that there is only a few moments between now and the rest of his life. "I know there must have been some reason, some spark you caught, but it doesn't matter why. That was six months ago."
Hyungwon shakes his head, leaning against the far wall of his office, as much distance between him and his youngest as he can create. "There was a reason. Really there was. There was a stretch of your soul in my shop just the day before I came across you, I'm still unsure of how. Though the memory I found just wasn't quite right, it was morphed. Like something had gone back to that night and changed it. Fixed it, perhaps."
Changkyun's head tilts to the side, the question on his lips but no words escaping. His throat is growing tight in fear, and he can see the same emotions plain on his Master's face. If what his Master says is true, then his plan will work; he still cannot fight the ache in his chest as pain for his elder overwhelms him.
"Perhaps if we survive today, I'll tell you about that reason sometime down the path."
Changkyun shields his thoughts, unsure if Hyungwon can really read them. Often times, it feels as if his Master can, but other times he has not a single clue. If we survive today, he thinks to himself, you won't remember a single thing of it all.
Before Changkyun can create a proper reply, the phone he has tucked into his pocket vibrates incessantly, beckoning for attention. Sighing, Changkyun removes the device and swipes the call right to answer it. His dark eyes, narrowed on the clock over Hyungwon's shoulder, watch as the final seconds tick away on the hour of eight.
He watches as the hour hits nine, and the door to the office opens once again.
"...Changkyun? It's Jooheon..." The familiar voice floods his senses as the vampire nods to the messenger. "Kyun?" Changkyun takes a deep breath, pushing off from his wall and motioning for Hyungwon to go ahead of him. "Are you there?"
End of Are You There Chapter 51. Continue reading Chapter 52 or return to Are You There book page.