Chapter Text
It had been a couple of days since Yunho had received his literally life-changing news, and keeping it hidden was nearly driving him up the wall. How could you just keep something like ‘hey, I’m not actually human!’ a secret so easily? Their schedules provided a much needed distraction, but also took away time from the one thing he needed to do - call his mother. She had to know something about his origins, since he’d had a glamour placed on him as a child. The more he thought about it, the more he couldn’t decide how to feel about the whole thing. Should he be upset with her? Mad at her, for keeping something so huge from him when she knew it would all come crumbling down when he was barely an adult? But he knew his mother, she had a reason for everything and was never wrong. Yunho just needed to talk to her.
“You’re itching your ears again,” Yeosang speaks, breaking Yunho from his thoughts.
“Huh?” The older questions, meeting Yeosang’s eyes to see a neutral expression, slight curiosity in his gaze.
“Your ears,” Yeosang starts again, adjusting the microphone attached to his shirt, “you keep itching them. Do you have an allergy or something?”
“Oh,” Yunho starts. He hadn’t even realized he’d been doing that. “No, I don’t know why I’m scratching. Do they look bad?”
Yeosang’s eyes flit to Yunho’s ears once more before shrugging. “Just a little red. Don’t scratch too much, they’ll bleed.” As quickly as he had broken Yunho’s trance, he was walking away, leaving Yunho hyper-aware of the slight tingling in the shells of his ears. Great, now he had another ear-issue to worry about. He would have to ask Seonghwa about that after the filming, as if he hadn’t asked his hyung enough questions over the past couple of days already. And Seonghwa, ever the gentle soul he was, had the patience of a saint and answered them all to the best of his ability.
True to his word, Wooyoung had insisted on a birthday party the day Seonghwa had put the glamour back in place, leading to a slightly overwhelming but very chaotic and fun time spent with his closest friends in true ATEEZ fashion. There were many drinks to be had as well as karaoke to be sung, a favorite by Jongho and Mingi especially. Yunho wished that he remembered more of it through his haze and sudden headaches which he had chalked up to the noise and alcohol, but definitely could be contributed to the exhausting morning he’d had. Seonghwa and Mingi had noticed his mood and made sure he knew that it was okay if he needed to tap out for the night.
“You had a big morning,” Seonghwa said, hand rested gently on his shoulder while Mingi watched silently beside him. “It’s okay if you need to turn in.”
“I’ll go with you, if you want,” Mingi piped in, making Yunho smile with gratitude before shaking his head.
“No, you have fun, Mingi,” Yunho said, trying to ignore the younger’s pout. “I’ll be all up to par in the morning. Besides, I think Jongho’s up for another song,” Yunho pointed behind the rapper to where their youngest, gummy smile and reddened face, had been getting ready for the next song in the queue.
“Alright,” Mingi grumbled, standing up but not leaving quite yet. “But I expect cuddles in the morning.”
Yunho laughed at that. “Whatever you want, princess.”
The answer was enough for Mingi, who smiled and finally took off to take the spot next to Jongho. Yunho had turned his attention back to Seonghwa, who nodded his head towards the door.
“Go get some rest, they’ll understand,” he said, then leaned in a little closer with a softer voice. “Do you want me to take the glamour off when we come back?”
Something about the offer was so tempting. He hadn’t necessarily felt bad, but Yunho had to admit he was slightly more uncomfortable with the glamour on since his discovery. Even then, he shook his head. He was far from ready to share his secret.
“Okay,” Seonghwa nodded, not even questioning the decision. “We’ll see you in the morning, then.”
Thinking back on the memory now makes Yunho realize just how loved he was, and how much his members cared about him. He couldn’t help the nagging thought in the back of his mind that the rest of them would hate him when they found out, they’d think he’s a freak and turn their backs on him. The logical part of him knew that wasn’t true, though there would definitely been some awkwardness to sort through when the time came. As much as he wanted to keep his Fae nature a secret from the rest, he knew that it wouldn’t be possible. He’d forget a glamour at some point, or just let something slip. They would know eventually, and he dreaded that day.
During the shoot, Yunho has to be pulled out of his black hole of thoughts at least three times, prompting Hongjoong to pull him aside after they’d wrapped for the day. The group gives their thanks and farewells to the staff and crew before piling back into the cars, Hongjoong taking the spot beside Yunho.
“Can we talk back at the dorm?” The older asks, buckling himself in.
Yunho glances over at his hyung, swallowing thickly at the proposition. Even though he knew it probably wasn’t something bad, no one liked to hear that question. “Sure, hyung,” he answers, forcing a smile.
Hongjoong doesn’t reply, allowing he and the rest of the members in their car to settle into the silence and wind down from the busy and long day they’d had. It wasn’t long before they were back at the dorm, bringing forward conversations of dibs on the showers and longing for sleep. Hongjoong and Yunho trail behind the other six boys, immediately going to Hongjoong’s room before doing anything else.
“Hopefully this won’t take long, I’m sure you want a shower just as much as me,” the captain says, eliciting a soft chuckle from Yunho before they sit on the ground across from each other. “This isn’t anything bad, y’know,” Hongjoong starts once they were seated.
“I know,” Yunho nods, reaching up to scratch at his ears again absentmindedly. Hongjoong notices, his gaze shifting from Yunho’s eyes to his ears. The younger sighs. “Does it have to do with this?”
“Sort of?” Hongjoong answers with his own question. “Is that tied in with how spacey you’ve been today? You’re worse than Yeosang.”
Yunho snorts at that. “I guess I have been. I don’t know, this whole thing has me distracted.” The dancer begins without being prompted. He really just needed to get it off his chest to someone who understood. “Keeping it secret is already hard. I’m so uncomfortable in my skin, hyung.”
Hongjoong frowns. “I think we should take the glamour off. Just for tonight. You can stay in here, if you want, so San won’t see anything.”
Yunho sighs and considers the offer. It could help, he thought, but that wasn’t his biggest concern. He nods before continuing. “That would be fine, but I just… I need to call my mom. I haven’t had time to. I’m sure she knows more about my whole… situation. She wanted me to visit a few months ago and I didn’t have time. Now that I think about it, she might have wanted to see me in person to talk about all of this.”
Hongjoong listens intently, his frown deepening just a bit. He hums as he thinks over the words, already formulating a plan in his head. “The next few days are just dance practices. I want you to take the first train you can back home and talk to your mom, okay?” He continues before Yunho can protest. “You already know the choreo backwards and forwards, Yunho-yah. Talking to your mother about this is a lot more important than some extra practices that you can afford to skip.”
Yunho sighs, wanting to argue further to stay and get as much practice as he could. Yes, he knew the choreo well enough, but he couldn’t do it with his eyes closed yet. It wasn’t good enough. “Fine,” he gives in, the desire to see his mom and find out more about his origins winning out.
“Good. You may as well go pack now, so you won’t have to leave the room until tomorrow. We’ll put the glamour back on before you’re off. Does that sound okay?” Hongjoong says, his expression lightening up a bit.
Yunho nods once more, though can’t answer before Seonghwa enters the room, only seeming a little surprised to see the younger there. “Oh, hi Yunho,” he greets, continuing to rub at his wet hair with a towel. “Is everything alright?”
Hongjoong nods in answer before Yunho can. “He’s going to go make a trip home tomorrow to talk to his mother,” he says, his tone taking on a different sound that makes Seonghwa hum in understanding. “Would you take the glamour off of him after he showers?”
Seonghwa crooks an eyebrow and looks at Yunho in question. “Is that what you want?”
Yunho nods a little too fast. “Yes, please. Hongjoong asked me to sleep here tonight so I don’t have to worry about San seeing anything. I hope that’s okay?”
“Of course that’s okay, puppy,” Seonghwa smiles, sitting on the edge of his own bed and ruffling Yunho’s hair in passing. “Go get cleaned up and packed, we’ll be here when you’re finished.”
Yunho nods and thanks Seonghwa and Hongjoong both before ducking out of the room, heading to the next available shower. It doesn’t take him long to clean up, his mind preoccupied by swirling thoughts of getting to see his mother again after all and his mixed emotions of relief and nervousness bubbling in his stomach. He just hope that taking the glamour off would relieve at least some of the weight on his shoulders. Once he finishes, he leaves his hair damp and goes to his room, slightly relieved to see it empty. San was probably hanging out with Wooyoung and Yeosang. He really didn’t feel like answering questions right now, anyway, too on edge and looking forward to shedding this glamour to put together a good excuse for leaving on such short notice. The family emergency reason could only go so far, even for people as understanding as his group members.
With a bag packed with the bare necessities, Yunho felt ready enough and frankly, too tired to really worry about anything else. He could always buy anything extra he may need. With a deep exhale, he heads back to Hongjoong’s and Seonghwa’s room, seeing them huddled together on Seonghwa’s bed. Their heads pop up to look at Yunho when he enters and closes the door behind him.
“Ready?” Seonghwa asks him with a small smile.
When Yunho nods, Hongjoong gestures to his bed. “You can sleep on mine, tonight.”
“Okay,” Yunho agrees, too tired to question the decision. Not that he would for long, anyway - Hongjoong was stubborn as a bull. He sits on the edge of the bed when Seonghwa gets up and kneels in front of him, just as he did a few days prior.
“This will be a lot faster than putting the glamour on,” Seonghwa says, raising his hand up to Yunho’s ear, but waiting until he gets a nod before touching. The older cups his hands around Yunho’s ears once more and with a rush of warmth, Yunho can feel all of the tension in his muscles roll off in waves. The pressure behind his eyes that he didn’t even notice accumulating dissipates, and he visibly slumps in relief.
“I never thought I’d be happy to feel them like this,” Yunho mutters, thumbing along the shell of his ear when Seonghwa sits back on his heels.
“Were you in pain?” The older asks, tilting his head.
“No, not really,” Yunho answers, sitting back on the bed and hugging his knees to his chest loosely. “Just felt really… suffocated, I guess? Yeosang asked me why I kept scratching at my ears today, so I guess it affected me more than I realized.”
Seonghwa scowls at that, but Yunho doesn’t even have the energy to respond to it. “Hm… I wonder if that’s happening because I’m not Fae. A witch applying a glamour meant for another species won’t necessarily work the same.”
The words make Yunho slump a bit. He doesn’t even fight when Seonghwa gently maneuvers him to lay down. “Mom might know…” he mutters, then yawns.
“Most likely,” Seonghwa nods, brushing pieces of fringe away from Yunho’s face before placing a gentle tap on his nose. “Go to sleep, you need to replenish your energy for the trip tomorrow. We’ll let the others know you left.”
“Thank you.” Yunho allows his eyes to fall closed, and it feels like he’s asleep almost immediately.
Seonghwa spends a little longer carding his fingers through Yunho’s hair and taking in the sight of him finally relaxed. The past few days had Yunho’s entire body tensed and stiff, regardless of the face he tried to put on. Everyone had noticed it, but it was obvious the dancer didn’t want to discuss it, so nobody pushed him on the issue. But now, with the glamour off and finally asleep, Yunho looked comfortable again at last. Everything about him seemed to be ethereal from the golden glow of his skin to the sparkles dancing at the corner of his eyes. Hongjoong had been right - in his true form, Yunho had an allure to him that Seonghwa had never seen before, and he was absolutely enamoured. Once he got up and turned back to lay beside Hongjoong, he saw that the rapper was watching Yunho with the same expression on his face.
“Don’t tell me you have eyes for another, my love,” Seonghwa teases as he tucks himself into Hongjoong’s arms and presses his ear to his chest, listening to the twin thrumming of his two hearts.
Hongjoong laughs airily, rubbing at his own eyes. He didn’t necessarily need sleep, but it was a nice thing to do every now and then, especially when he had to keep up with his fellow members - who may as well have been their six kids - and the busy idol life. “As if you weren’t just eyeing him while he slept,” the demon teases, pressing a kiss to the top of Seonghwa’s head. “Kinda creepy, darling.”
“The demon telling me that I’m the creepy one? You’re hilarious,” Seonghwa says with a grin, scooching them both into a laying position. “Now shut up and go to sleep, I’m exhausted.”
The train ride went faster with Yunho’s mind wandering, as it seemed too often nowadays. He’d received a few texts from his fellow members that morning wishing him safe travels and joking requests for souvenirs, but thinking of the others just made him feel even more dread in the pit of his stomach. He was going to have to tell them eventually, and probably sooner rather than later. Now that he knew how much better he felt without the glamour quite literally weighing him down and bringing a new pounding to his head, he wasn’t sure he could keep it on while not in the public eye and survive for much longer. All he could hope for was that his mother knew of a solution and he could keep going on as he had been like nothing had changed.
His mother was ecstatic and welcomed him with open arms, as well as a kiss on the cheek that brought the first real smile to his face all day.
“You must be famished,” she’d said almost immediately. “I made your favorite for lunch as soon as I knew you were coming.”
He was so grateful for her. This visit was really what he needed, and he sent a silent thank you to Hongjoong before following her inside.
They talked for what felt like hours, just catching up with life. She asked about how work was treating him, how Mingi was doing, any funny experiences he had on stage or with fans. He asked about how she was holding up with an empty nest, if she’d heard from his brother lately, and if she wanted to come visit Seoul for their upcoming comeback. The conversation was the best kind of distraction he could have asked for, but his newfound habit of scratching his ears caught his mother’s attention.
“Honey, are you alright?” She asks, frowning and setting her mug of tea back on the coaster in front of her. “Your ears are going to bleed if you keep scratching like that.”
Yunho freezes at the words, knowing that now was the best time to just rip the band-aid off. He sighs and readjusts himself in the chair, averting his gaze for a moment before finally asking. “Eomma, what do you know about Fae?”
The silence is deafening. Yunho can see her go rigid, having the same reaction he did just a few moments before. “I was hoping you’d be able to visit sooner so we could talk about that before your birthday…” She mutters, proving his earlier theory he’d discussed with Hongjoong. “I’m sorry I never told you.”
“It’s okay, Eomma,” Yunho says, looking back at her as he nearly shrinks in on himself. “I already found out, so the worst is over, I hope. I just… I want to know how to handle this. Where I came from.”
His mother wears a sad smile at that, though a soft chuckle passes her lips. “Well, I’m certainly not Fae, so I’m sure you’ve put together that you aren’t my son by blood. Regardless, Yunho, before I tell you anything, I want you to know that I love you to the moon and back as though you were my blood. You will understand.” Yunho blinks away the tears burning in his eyes, nodding wordlessly at his mother before she continues. “Do you remember Miyoung?”
The name brought up vague memories of his mother’s best friend when he was a child. She was around often as he was growing up, but around the time he was a young teenager, he saw her less and less. The last time he’d spoken to her, he was 17, and he distinctly remembered her in a more solemn mood than she usually was. She radiated happiness like the sun, so seeing her so down had left a lasting impression of her in Yunho’s mind. He nods once more. “Yeah, I do.”
“She is Elven Fae, and her real name is Saria. I’m sure you remember, I’ve known her since I was a young girl, and we were close friends until she moved away.” His mother leans back in her chair, folding her arms in her lap as she continues. “She came back into my life after I’d married and before I had you - or, ah, the child you were swapped with. We rekindled our friendship and that’s when she shared with me her heritage. I only know so much since I’m human, but I very well could be one of the only humans who knows the truth about Fae. Around the fourth month of my pregnancy, the doctors told me that the baby had a lung defect, and he wouldn’t survive once he was born. Yunho, I… I was devastated. All I wanted was a child and after so long of trying, now he wouldn’t even be able to live.”
He couldn’t stop the tears now. Silently, he reaches over to grab one of his mother’s hands and urges her to continue.
“Saria was pregnant at the same time as me. She was there with me through the ups and downs, and helped me through the worst of it when your father couldn’t. Eventually, she told me that it wasn’t safe for her to have her child back in her realm, and she never told me why. It was such a touchy subject that I never pressed. But she… she offered to exchange her child for mine to spare me the heartache and ensure the safety of her own. We looked similar enough that it could work. That child was you, Yunho. Changelings are a dead practice within the Fae realm now, and the circumstances of your exchange were unheard of, since it was out of a place of pity for a human instead of wanting a human child for the Fae’s gain. Saria always told me that she felt like an outsider because of her sympathy for humans, which isn’t common among the Fae. Her offering her child to a human in exchange for a human child that would die within a few days hadn’t ever happened before, and was looked down upon. You are one of a kind, my son. My wish come true.”
The cluster of emotions stabbing within Yunho’s chest was nearly too much to bear. If he thought the news of just him being Fae was overwhelming, then that was a walk in the park compared to this. He was the object of a trade to save his mother the anguish of losing a child, and his Fae mother from what could have been a terrible fate for herself and him had he been raised as Fae. Oddly enough, he didn’t feel like simply an object to placate an upset mother, but he felt like he truly had been wanted and cared for so dearly. He squeezes his mother’s hand, though can’t help the pang in his heart which he figured was the desire to meet his Fae mother again under new circumstances. There were a million questions bouncing around his head, but he could only ask one.
“How did I pass as human for so long?” Yunho croaks out, noticing his mother dabbing at her own eyes.
“She was able to place a glamour on you that would allow you to pass as human for twenty years. We both knew it would break by then, but were never able to tell you about it, especially since you were pursuing your idol career. By the time we were ready, it was too late, and we had to just wait for the inevitable.”
He scowls at this, but supposes he understands. His teenage years had been hectic and stressful without the stress of having his world upheaved in the way it was now. “Can… can I see her again?”
His mother smiles at the question, squeezing his hand back as well before she sits up and forward. “The last time you saw her, she was upset because she wouldn’t be able to visit until the glamour wore off. At that time, she told me that you would have to make that step to speak to her because she didn’t want to force herself into your life even more if you turned out to hate her for this. She was just grateful to get to watch you grow up.”
Yunho lets out a soft laugh through his tears, wiping at his cheeks. “I am, too. How do I contact her if she isn’t here?”
His mother seems to perk up at that and holds up a finger to tell him to wait there as she goes into her room, then returns with a simple gold necklace. “She gave me this charm to pass onto you if you chose to speak to her again. It’s Fae magic, so I don’t know how it works. But you will.”
Yunho accepts the necklace, holding the pendant of a sun symbol in his palm. It felt warm, bringing forth a warm and tingly feeling beneath his skin that he had never felt before. Right now, he wasn’t sure how it was supposed to work, but there was a feeling in the back of his mind that he would soon figure it out. It felt familiar. It just had to come back to him.
“Yunho,” his mother’s voice snaps his attention back to her, meeting her questioning stare. “Your ears. Do you have a glamour on now?” He nods, and she seems intrigued. “How? Did you pick up that magic somewhere?”
Yunho’s cheeks burn red as he suddenly remembered that night with Hongjoong and the following morning with Seonghwa. He figured that if his mother knew about the Fae, then she must know there could be other magical beings that exist in their world. “Um, no,” he starts, fiddling with the sleeve of his shirt. “Seonghwa-hyung did it, actually. He’s a witch.”
His mother nods, thinking over the words. “I always thought he had something magical about him. Some of your other boys, too, now that I think about it.” She pauses. “But my magic radar isn’t as good as it once was, son. My age could be getting to me.”
Yunho laughs at that, but files that information away for later. He would be thoroughly surprised if any more of his group members turned out to be some sort of magical being. Three out of eight was already the stuff of fairytales. How ironic that term was now. He shoves the thoughts away and closes his fist around the necklace, choosing to focus on the present instead. “I love you, Eomma.”
“I love you too, my son.”
“So you were changed out for a baby that was going to die?”
“Yeah, exactly,” Yunho speaks into his phone, laying back on the bed of his childhood bedroom as he spoke with Seonghwa and Hongjoong.
“Damn,” Hongjoong replies, silence permeating the call for a moment. “And how are you doing?”
This time Yunho is silent. “I… I feel okay, actually. It makes me appreciate my mom even more than I already did. Saria, too. Both of them made such huge sacrifices so I could be here. I dunno, hyung, it’s a lot to process, but I’m okay.”
“I’m so glad to hear that, Yunho-yah,” Seonghwa replies this time. “I hope you’re able to talk to Saria. I think that would be good for you.”
“Me too,” Yunho sighs. “I’m going to try tomorrow. I’m nervous but… excited, too, kind of. I don’t really know what to expect.”
“Nobody ever does,” Seonghwa says, and even the distortion of the phone call can’t mask the gentle tone of voice he uses. Yunho can see the soft smile of his expression so clearly. “You’re stepping into a new world, Yunho-yah. It’s okay to be nervous, but you’ll be okay. You’re going to learn more of who you are.”