The sun was barely peaking over the mountain tops. For any normal human they would just be waking up, but not the inhabitants of Spring Meadows. The small village was always up and working at the first sign of light. By the time afternoon rolled around everyone had just finished their morning work and were now taking a break and relaxing through the hottest part of the day. Well, most were relaxing; a mother was moving around the kitchen juggling between checking on the cake in the oven, preparing the meat for later tonight, and keeping her children from eating the already finished pastries set on the party trays.

“Come on mom, just one brownie.” Whined the eldest of three children, a young 16 year old girl.

“No, Natasha. If I told the boys no, what makes you think I’ll say yes to you?” Their mother huffed and lifted an eyebrow at her children questioning why they were still trying. “Why don’t you go see if your father needs help. Just because it is the boys’ birthday does not mean you guys get to opt out of helping around the farm.”  Seeing their hesitancy to leave without any sweets she finally broke. “Fine, you each can have ONE brownie, but if I see anyone take more than one it’s extra work around the house. That means you, Yongnam.” She glared at the older twin, who had a knack for nabbing as many sweets as possible.

“Yes, Mom!” All three children yelled excited to finally taste one of their mother’s baked goods. Three brownies were quickly picked up and Yongnam reached for another but his mother was too fast and smacked his hand with a wooden spoon. Deciding to retreat with his sister, Yongnam was able to escape his mother’s wrath with just a sore hand.

Yongguk, the younger twin, stayed behind to finish his brownie in the kitchen when an idea formed in his mind. “Mom! Can I give dad a brownie as well? He could probably use a snack right now.” He gave his mother the gummiest of smiles, for he knew this plan was foolproof. His mother of course said yes and he took the biggest brownie. Walking away from the kitchen to the backyard, out of sight from his mother, Yongguk was ready to eat the brownie but then he felt guilty for lying to his mother. Plus, his father did most of the work today, because Mama Bang was in the kitchen all day to ensure the birthday party ran smoothly and he and his siblings were off slacking for most of the morning. Deciding to be a good son, Yongguk took the brownie to his father, who was out by the barn hiding under the shade, drinking some water and wiping the sweat off his neck. Yongguk smiled at his father and handed him the brownie.

“You didn’t steal this from your mother did you?” His father joked, smiling at Yongguk and ruffled his short hair. Taking a bite of the brownie his father’s eyes brightened and his grin grew. Everyone in the small village agreed that Ms.Bang was the best baker in the land, all her sweets tasted like a bite of heaven; so soft and fluffy.

After finishing the treat and wiping the crumbs off his hands, Mr.Bang looked off into the distance, watching his other two children lead the animals into the shade and watering hole for a few minutes before looking back at Yongguk. His smile drops and his face becomes serious. “Yongguk, you’re turning 14 this year… Have you put any thought into your future?” Yongguk looked at the ground. He always hated these talks with his parents because it would always create an unpleasant pit in his stomach.

“You were blessed and given the mark of the goddess Harmonia. There is a dragon out there waiting to find you. We need to know what you plan on doing about it.” Taking in his son’s silence and uncomfortable poster Mr.Bang decided to stop with the questions. It was Yongguk and Yongnam’s birthday- a day for celebration, not for discussing the unavoidable future that could happen any day. Yongguk’s parents just wanted to be prepared for whatever Yongguk planned to do.

Yongguk on the other hand was deep in thought. His mother would often brag about how he was the only person in their cozy village with a mark that bound him to a dragon. It was a big deal to Yongguk because this opened so many doors, too many doors in his personal opinion. Every night Yongguk has been going to bed listing the different outcomes he could run into. He could leave the village to search for his dragon, sure it would be nice to finally see what's beyond the meadows, but so many things could go wrong. He could get lost, and money doesn’t grow on trees. What if he was mugged and left to die? Maybe he would miss his dragon all together.

His father did mention the Dragon Guard, a place where both marked humans and dragons could go to find their other half. If he did that it would make things easier, he wouldn’t even have to wait there if his dragon has yet to show up. The members at one of the many outposts would write down his information and take a picture of his mark and keep in touch for when his dragon did show up. The closest outpost was in a village 2 days away. The part that bothered Yongguk the most was what to do when he finally met his dragon. Does he take his dragon back home with him and continue to work on the farm until he dies? Does he join the Dragon Guard? He personally want to stay with his family but the Dragon Guard did perk his interest, plus he didn't have to become a permanent member, he could just go for basic training then return home. It all came down to what the dragon would want. That was another thing that kept Yongguk up at night. What was his dragon like? Would they get along or would they hate each other? All the stories he was told by passing Dragon Riders were positive and all could be summarized with a simple ‘your dragon is basically a best friend you have yet to meet’ but what if Yongguk was the one outlier that did not become instant best friends with his dragon?

All his thoughts were cut short when a bucket of water fell onto his head.

“You ! You weren’t supposed to drop the bucket as well!” Natasha yelled at a laughing Yongnam. She picked the bucket off Yongguk’s head.

“Are you okay? You didn’t lose any more brain cells right? What were you even thinking about? It must have been important since Yongnam was able to drop the bucket right in front of you.” Natasha lifted Yongguk’s head to tilt it side to side, checking for any damage, laughing when he tried to swat her hands away.

“Yes. No. and you know what I was thinking about.” came Yongguk’s sort reply. He started to shake his head like a wet dog, Natasha let out a small giggle as she lifted her arms to shield her from the droplets of water. After a bit the shaking stopped and the laughing died down into a peaceful quiet.

Yongnam threw his arm around his twin’s shoulder. “I know you don’t like talking about it, but have you put any thought into what you are going to do about the mark situation?”

Yongguk nodded his head before telling his siblings his plans. “I’m going to head out to the Dragon Guard outpost in Ruby Village. It’s a two day trip so maybe the both of you could come.” Yongguk was nervous to go alone but he knew his parents had to run the farm so his siblings were his best option. He did not have anyone else to ask in the small village of Spring Meadows. Everyone in the village was either out of his age group or scared of his intimidating aura.

“I have always wanted to see the land outside our village even if it’s probably the same. It will be like a mini vacation.” Natasha sighed dreamly.

“What are you going to do when you met your dragon?” Yongnam asked excitedly. He was polite enough to leave out the ‘You are going to let me ride it, right?’

“I’m not sure, I mean, it’s something we both have to agree on... Plus, what if they hate me?” Yongguk mumbled the last part, voicing his fears to his siblings.

They both quickly jump into action telling Yongguk how no one could hate his gummy smile or anyone who doesn't like him could not have a heart. Yongguk knew they were just saying that to make him feel better, but it worked.

Soon he was playing around with his siblings until the sun started to set and their mother yelled for them to come inside to wash up and start the birthday party. The village was small enough that whenever it was someone’s birthday most of the village would come to attend. It was like a mini festival; there was music, dancing, party games and everyone would bring some sort of food to share. Mrs.Bang’s desserts were always the first to go- no one could resist until after dinner to grab a few. Once everyone was settled down and relaxed, Mr.Bang brought out the cake and everyone sang Happy Birthday in the key of tone deaf, wishes were made and gifts opened with pure joy. The party was finally over and the twins thanked everyone who came as they left.

A few stayed behind to help clean up and Mama Bang pushed her kids towards the bathrooms to get ready for bed. Yongguk left the bathroom and told his twin to go on before him. When Yongnam looked at him in a confused manner, Yongguk said he wanted to tell their parents his plan. Yongnam gave him a sleepy smile and nodded his head, turning around and head into their shared room.

Yongguk waited for his parents to finish chatting with the last of the guests. He quietly went over what he was going to say, making sure to remember asking about Natasha and Yongnam coming along. The Last guest left and when the door closed, he sprung up, walking as fast as he could towards his parents.

“Slow down, tiger. We are not going anywhere.” His father chuckled patting him on the shoulder. Taking a deep breath Yongguk, calmed his nerves and looked both his parents in the face.

“I have made my decision. I plan on traveling to Ruby Village’s Dragon Guard outpost, and hopefully they can tell me if my dragon has been registered into their books and if they have, then we could set up a meeting point. If they haven’t, then I will give them my information and they can keep me updated! And when I meet my dragon, then we will discuss what we both want. Also, I would like Natasha and Yongnam to join me.” Yongguk quickly looked to the ground, nervous about this parents decision.

“That sounds like a great plan, dear. Just give us a few weeks to save up some money and you guys can take the small wagon.” His mother smiled at him and his father nodded in approval. Yongguk beamed and wished both his parents a good night. When he entered the shared room he found both siblings sitting on one bed waiting for the details. Yongguk simply nodded his head and the two started giggling and dancing around the room in excitement. They only stopped when their mother yelled at them to go to bed. Natasha left the twin’s room after kissing both on the foreheads and wished them good night. Everyone in the household slowly fell into a peaceful sleep.

The weeks passed by quickly for everyone. Their mother was near tears as they said their goodbyes, constantly rechecking to make sure her children had everything they needed.

“While you are on the road I want you to be safe. Natasha is in charge. You might have to stay there a few nights so if anything bad happens go straight to the Dragon Guard. Got it?” Papa Bang may have not been near tears like his wife, but he was still nervous. He knew his children were strong and could handle themselves, but every parent wants to protect their children from harm. With one final goodbye the kids set off down the road towards Ruby Village in their small family wagon. They took breaks every 2 hours to care for the horses and enjoy the view. They made up new land marks and told fake ghost stories about what creatures live in the forest.

Yongguk took this time to mentally prepare to meet the Dragon Guard. The possibility that he might also meet his dragon came up but he buried those thoughts as soon as they appeared. One step at a time, Yongguk thought to himself.

It was a present ride, everyone was enjoying the nature. Yongnam spotted Dragon Riders flying above them. He pointed at them and yelled to get his siblings attention.

“Hey, look! Dragon Riders! Looks like they're heading towards Village.” The siblings looked in the direction of their village and for a moment it seemed like they were all in a dream. Smoke raised above the forest and panic clouded their minds. Natasha quickly snapped out of her trance and turned the wagon around, speeding back to the village.

“This cannot be happening right? Someone probably just set their kitchen on fire.” Yongnam chuckled nervously, he couldn’t even hide his fear. Yongguk trembled in his seat, praying nothing happened to their village, their home, their parents.

The sun was setting by the time they got back to the village, painting the destroyed remains of their once home in golden orange hues. Smoke still filled the air, a dragon laid dead on top of a destroyed house. A dragon rider came up to them but the twins ignored them and quickly ran to their house. Natasha forced herself to stay behind and listen to the dragon rider. She had to know what happened.

Their once beautiful house now laid half standing and crumpled. Yongguk ran out to the barn while Yongnam went into the house, both of them yelling for their parents. Their calls, their pleas, their prayers were never answered. Their Father was found with a few others in a pool of blood, farm tools in hand, while their mother was later found in the rubble of their destroyed home. With their parents put to rest under the tree they were wedded under, the three siblings were left to grieve in each other’s arms.

Days after the event, the few survivors were helped into carriages with their remaining belongings and shipped off to the closest relative or village. Natasha slowly loaded the last of their belongings into the family wagon. When she was finished, she took her brothers to say one final goodbye to their parents and they cried all the tears they had left. They traveled aimlessly, village to village, sometimes they ventured into towns just to take their mind off their lost home. Ruby Village and the Dragon Guard were completely forgotten. Yongnam and Yongguk still cried every night for a while and Natasha tried to stay strong but even she couldn’t hold back her sorrow some nights.

After months of traveling and living off what they could, their money ran out. They had to settle down in a town called Sleepy Peak. The town was peaceful and Natasha was able to find a job that paid well enough to afford a small one room apartment. Yongguk and Yongnam were still too young to work a real job, but they tried their best to earn money by doing small jobs like pulling weeds, babysitting, and walking dogs.

It was a month after the twin’s 16th birthday when Yongguk remembered that he was in fact marked and there was a dragon waiting to find him. The remainder came from a passing dragon rider’s dragon named Nightshade, who was bound to the North branch leader Hyosung. Yongguk was completely shocked to hear the dragon talking to him and asked Yongnam if he could hear the dragon as well. When Yongnam said no, Yongguk was confused as to why Yongnam couldn’t hear the dragon. Yongnam, on the other hand, was shocked by his twin’s stupidity, and slapped Yongguk up side the head.

“I think you have lost too many brain cells my dear brother. Don’t you remember you are a dragon whisperer?”Now, even more confused, Yongguk looked at the dragon and asked why his brother couldn't hear her.

“Your brother cannot understand me because he does not bear the mark” Facepalming Yongguk quickly apologised to the dragon and told her he forgot he even has the mark in the first place.

“How could you forget? It’s a pretty big deal.”

“I’ve been through some  and you know…” Yongguk waved his hand in the air as if that would tell the dragon what he meant. The conversation was cut short by the dragon’s partner arriving.

“Hey Nightshade, who is this?”

“It’s Shishimato’s mark partner.”

“Are you sure?”

“Red skull on the upper back. It’s definitely him.”

“Huh I guess this trip wasn’t a waste after all. Hey Kid, what’s your name!” Hyosung was excited to meet Shishimato’s mark partner, she knew he was going to have to be tough kid if he was going to be able to handle Shishimato.

“My name is Bang Yongguk and I am not a kid. Who are you?” Yongguk stood a little taller and put on his best glare.

“Whatever you say kid. The name’s Hyosung and here is the game plan: I take you back to the main Dragon Guard outpost, you meet your dragon, and then we start your basic training. After training you’re free take your dragon and do whatever.” She said all of this in one breath, standing in an overused hero pose and the sunlight hit her just right, making her glow. It was pretty impressive.

“Wait! I can’t just leave my family behind!” Panic started to fill Yongguk. The last time he left his family something terrible happened. He wasn't going to let that happen again.

“Then bring them along.” It was a simple answer and any normal person would have expected it, but sadly, Hyosung was dealing with Yongguk a.k.a Mr.I-need-a-solid-plan-before-I-do-anything.

“We can't just move everything on a whim. What about our house, money, our stu-” Yongguk was cut off by none other than Natasha. Was she here to save the day or add fuel to the chaos?

“Don’t worry about us Yongguk. We can follow after you once we saved up a bit.” Natasha had chosen the dark side and Yongnam agreed with her. Yongguk was about to protest again but Hyosung spoke first.

“If you need a job I can hook you up. The Dragon Guard could help out with the move and housing situation.” It seems this lady had all the answers. She is the leader of the north branch after all.

“Thank you for all your help. Please take care of my brother” Natasha shook Hyosung’s hand as if she was selling her soul to the devil.

“Wait! This can’t actually be happening. Natasha, how can you be so easy going about this?” Yongguk once again looking out for his family, but his family had other plans, dragging Yongguk back to their tiny apartment and started packing his bags. He had to be dreaming; nothing in his life has been this easy. Something was going to go wrong.

“It was bound to happen one day. We’re just lucky we have don’t have to do this all on our own. Take a chance, Yongguk. What’s the worst thing that could happen?” Natasha tried to reassure her youngest brother. She was waiting for this day to happen- she was ready for her baby brother to fly the nest.

“Last time I took a chance we lost our home.” Yongguk mumbled as the memories still fresh in his mind.

“Yongguk… You know we couldn’t have done anything to stop that. I know it hurts but we have to move on.” Natasha tried her best to find the right words but it was hard. The wounds from that day were still open and just barely starting to scab over.

“I know…” Yongguk wanted to say more but Yongnam came to the rescue and grabbed his twin in a headlock and proceeded to give him a good old fashioned nuggie.

“Hey, don’t have a lot of fun without me, you hear?” Yongnam chuckled at his brother's pain. Yongnam was truly on the dark side, it was possible that he was their leader all along.

“I won’t… I will miss both of you.” Yongguk was able to break free from Yongnam and gave his twin a tight hug. He started to tremble and tried his best to hold back the tears.

“Hey don’t cry bro, you’re going to make me cry.” Yongnam started to cry despite his protests.

“We will meet you in the kingdom as soon as possible. You better be a pro by the time we get there.” Natasha also let a few tears slip from her eyes as she joined in the family group hug.

“Don’t forget my free ride.” Way to ruin the moment Yongnam both Natasha and Yongguk thought.

“See you both soon.” Yongguk let go from the hug and looked at his family one last time. He saw that the dragon riders had packed the last of his belongings onto a wagon and he hopped into the back as well. As he watched the Town of Snowy Peak slowly disappear his eyes became heavy and he fell into a peaceful sleep.

Yongguk woke up in an unknown bed. It took a few minutes for the panic to set in, Where was he, Where was his family, what was he doi- all this thoughts were cut off by the door slamming open and a dragon came barreling into the room.

“So You’re my mark partner… Huh I was expecting someone more… Stronger?” The Dragon was black with a gray cammo pattern, they had red eyes and a red gas mask around its muzzle. How that is even possible Yongguk didn’t even know. Why would a dragon need a gas mask, was it a fashion statement? Is his dragon going thru a phase?

Yongguk pushed these thought aside and got out of bed. The two proceeded to walk about each other in a circle, Yongguk was able to spot the red skull on the dragon’s upper back. So this is my dragon. Hyosung and Nightshade called them Shishimato. If I remember correctly. Yongguk wasn’t sure how he was supposed to respond to the insult the dragon threw at him.

“ it” Yongguk said under his breath and followed his instincts for once. Without careful planning Yongguk ran straight into Shishimato and bashed his head as hard as he could against the dragon.

“You son of a-”

“Insult my mother and I will kill you.” Growled Yongguk, he got back into a running position ready to defend his mother’s name.

“Well I was wrong about you being weak. Maybe with some training you will be resectable.” Shishimato was amused by their partner. Yongguk already exceeded their expectations so now all there was left was getting to know the boy.

“I can already tell this is the start of a wonderful partnership.” Yongguk was honestly relieved to hear his dragon approve of him. He was about to tell Shishimato he felt the same but another dragon came into the room. Another black one like Shishimato but this one had a gray oil spill pattern around it’s neck and on top of its head. Speaking of its head the dragon also had a tiny crank key and had a light blue mask around its muzzle with an anti sign in the middle of the mask. What’s up with dragons and masks? Maybe Yongguk will find the answers later. Apparently both he and Shishimato had been called to Hyosung’s office. As they all walk down to the boss lady’s office, Yongguk can’t help but think everything's going to be alright for once.