“Chanyeol, Baekhyun, you head east out towards the foothills of the eastern peaks. Have a look around. The season starts soon and I want us to have first pick of the bison herds this year. Just scout out the area, you don’t need to dither; do a quick check and report back by nightfall.”

Baekhyun stares silently down towards the floor where his leather clad feet toe the dusty ground as the hunt master moves to create the next pairing and bark out instructions. The seniors had apparently concluded that it was time to shake up the teams a little in order to improve the teamwork and morale within the group.

Shifting his weight from one foot to the other, he feels more than sees Kyungsoo leaning forward, breath brushing against his right ear and shoulder nudging against his back as he attempts and fails to keep his teasing amusement from spilling into his voice.

“Looks like you get to spend a whole day with your one and only. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

Baekhyun jabs his elbow back, catching his friend in the stomach with a satisfying thump and blinking innocently when Kyungsoo’s winded gasp of pain draws knowing looks from the other hunters in their team.

“Worst friend ever,” he hisses in Kyungsoo’s direction, risking a quick, nervous glance towards where Chanyeol is standing and calmly listening to the hunt master speak. Dragging his eyes away from smooth, tanned skin, soft hair swishing gently in the teasing breeze, and slightly flushed cheeks from the cool morning air, Baekhyun returns his gaze to the ground, relieved that Chanyeol seems to have missed their little bout of drama.

He ignores Kyungsoo’s evil sniggering and glares resolutely at the little indent he’s scuffing into the dirt with his boots. You just wait Kyungsoo… one day I’ll get you back for your incessant teasing.

Baekhyun misses the hunt master telling them to get going, so wrapped up in his thoughts as he is, and he’s taken by surprise when Kyungsoo gives him a shove towards Chanyeol, before striding off with a self-satisfied smirk.

He catches himself nimbly before he falls, turning to glare at Kyungsoo’s back, before facing Chanyeol, expression blank in an attempt to keep any unguarded emotions off his face. Chanyeol smiles at him, nodding shortly in greeting, and Baekhyun forces his usually friendly smile onto his face, hoping it doesn’t look too fake and ignoring the flutter in his stomach.

“Let’s get going,” he says, jerking his head towards the mountains in the distance and backing up a bit before turning and starting to walk.

Chanyeol nods and follows close behind, watching as Baekhyun strides forward without a backward glance. His shoulders seem tense, and concern mixed with disappointment flickers in Chanyeol’s eyes for a moment before the sound of Baekhyun’s shrill whistle pulls him from his thoughts.

He reaches absentmindedly for the white horn hooked onto his waistband and watches silently as Baekhyun strides out into the clearing around the back of the building, standing and waiting expectantly a few metres from where the ground drops away abruptly. Chanyeol takes the opportunity to bring his horn to his lips during the pause that follows, releasing a short burst of air and listening as the rich sound rings out for a moment.

For a few quiet seconds, the only sound to be heard is the faint rustling of leaves on trees as a light breeze picks up. Then their ears detect the familiar soft thudding sounds of wings beating against the wind, and moments later, two beautiful dragons come bursting over the ridge, rearing back with wings spread to counter their momentum and slow themselves down.

Once they’ve set down, the slight swirl of dust at their feet clearing, the two men head over. Chanyeol greets his dragon, Seraphina; patting her gently on her red and black mottled flank as he moves to stow his supplies in the leather saddle bags that have become standard for hunters these days.

As he murmurs to her softly, scratching the pale yellow underside of her head just how she likes it, he turns his head, fixing his eyes on where Baekhyun is still standing, his dragon Leukos nuzzling his blue head playfully into the crook of Baekhyun’s neck as Baekhyun pets him.

Chanyeol knows that they’ve not had a chance to fly together for a few days, and as he watches, Leukos crouches slightly, a ripple of excitement running down his spine as he wriggles impatiently. The bright, genuine smile that graces Baekhyun’s face is beautiful; very different to the smile he’d received earlier from Baekhyun, and Chanyeol’s gut twinges slightly as he turns away, wondering if there was something he’d done to make Baekhyun uncomfortable around him.

As Baekhyun hurries to stow his supplies with building eagerness, Chanyeol pulls himself up onto Seraphina’s back with practiced ease, swinging his leg over her back and settling into the saddle. He slots his feet into the leather straps on either side and gets comfortable.

Seraphina turns to face the cliff, arching her back slightly to get used to his weight again, before approaching the edge. Chanyeol can feel her muscles shifting beneath him as she moves and expertly shifts his weight in accordance. He glances over at Baekhyun to check his progress, and sees him pulling himself up into the saddle strapped to Leukos’ back, Leukos crouching slightly to aid him.

Leukos moves forward as soon as Baekhyun is settled, crouching at the cliff edge like a cat waiting to pounce.

Baekhyun glances over at Chanyeol, bright grin still present on his face, and eyes shining in excitement. He leans forward, murmuring something to Leukos, eyes softening for the briefest moment when his eyes meet Chanyeol’s, who can’t tell if it’s that smile or the way Seraphina throws herself forward off the cliff edge after Leukos, that takes his breath away.

Seraphina jostles him slightly as they fly, as if aware that his mind is elsewhere and demanding his attention again, and Chanyeol smiles dotingly, leaning forward to pat her neck with affection.

Baekhyun feels his heart settle as they fly, allowing the familiar feeling of elation that flying with Leukos always gives him, to fill him up. It’ll take approximately an hour for them to reach the area they need to scout, flying at a relaxed speed, so Baekhyun leans forward, calling out to Leukos and tugging at the saddle slightly.

He laughs brightly and grips the saddle tightly when Leukos lets out an excited roar, before flapping his wings hard and forcing them to climb higher and higher. They spend the next twenty minutes playing, Leukos flying high only to bring his wings snug against his body and send them shooting down, Baekhyun screaming in excitement; and then snapping his wings open and sending them whirling and twisting and diving into manoeuvres that have Baekhyun clinging to the saddle in order to remain seated. They keep more or less level with Chanyeol and Seraphina, who are content to fly leisurely lower down.

For one moment, he thinks he spots Chanyeol smiling up at them, but then Leukos swerves sharply to the right before starting to spiral down back towards Seraphina, and Baekhyun closes his eyes and throws his head back, knees digging in to keep himself steady and arms outstretched as he feels the wind in his hair and the way his ears pop as they descend lower and lower.

Chanyeol watches as they spiral downwards, eyes fixed on the peaceful expression on Baekhyun’s face and heart beating a little too fast to be considered normal as his breath gets caught in his throat.

He forces his eyes away when he sees Leukos looking at him, his dragon features morphing into something suspiciously akin to amusement, feeling as though Leukos knows exactly how much Baekhyun affects him.

He clears his throat when they eventually draw alongside him again and calls out to Baekhyun, determined to try and change whatever negative opinion Baekhyun appears to have of him.

“How is it up there?”

Baekhyun looks over, surprise visible on his features for a mere moment before he smiles, “it’s lovely. Not too cold at the moment, and the air currents up there are perfect for a little fun.”

Chanyeol laughs, enjoying the childish excitement still remaining on Baekhyun’s face, “Leukos was certainly flying well.”

Baekhyun grins proudly, taking the praise of his dragon’s performance as a personal compliment. “Yeah, he was. Gave me a tough time staying seated at certain times though.”

Chanyeol smirks, reaching up to brush his fringe out of his eyes when a stray breeze blows it haphazardly into his vision, “that’s half the fun though isn’t it?”

Baekhyun nods in agreement, face bright, and opens his mouth to say more but the wind picks up suddenly, making it hard to hear each other without straining their voices. He shrugs at Chanyeol with a little smile and faces forward again, reaching to pat Leukos on his shoulder, encouraging him as he starts to put more effort and energy into his flight now that the wind is against him.

Thankfully, it’s not long before the wind calms down again and both men are relieved to no longer have to deal with the cold air biting at their skin, or to worry about their dragons as they inevitably do, even though they know that they’re both perfectly capable of dealing with this weather that’s relatively mild in the grand scheme of things.

Near the end of their journey, the sun comes out in full force, lighting up the land below them and lifting the moods of all four members of the team; who, although now having to be aware of the risk of sunburn, much prefer the heat on their skin to the sharp sting of the cold wind.

They fly a little higher when they near their destination, in order to avoid the animals below from becoming startled when they’ve only come to observe.

After arrival, it takes them a mere few hours to scout out their designated area; noting the areas with the most tracks and checking the size of the younger members of the herds to try and see when it’ll be worth heading here to hunt the big game.

They decide to check everywhere first and then find somewhere to rest themselves, and more importantly their dragons, who’ve been flying for hours and are in need of a little water and a break.

They’re just finishing up when something glistening catches Baekhyun’s eyes. Unfamiliar with this area, he urges Leukos to fly closer to Chanyeol and Seraphina and calls out to them, hoping Chanyeol might know.

He receives a shake of the head and turns back to squint into the distance, eventually shouting over “It must be water; maybe a lake? Shall we head there?”

Chanyeol agrees willingly, curiosity piqued too, and they adjust their course.

As they fly, Chanyeol rests his eyes on the mountains that are now to his left. It’s rare that he’s ever this close and he decides they’re just as beautiful here as they look from back home. Inevitably however, his eyes come to rest on Baekhyun, who’s flying a bit lower down and to his left. Chanyeol takes in the sight of his wind tousled hair and flushed cheeks, and the way he looks more relaxed in this environment than Chanyeol ever sees him elsewhere.

They’ve flown together before of course, but as part of the team or in a group of four; never alone. In fact they’ve never really spent any one on one time together; even now they have their dragons with them.

Chanyeol wonders how it would be to just spend time chatting and relaxing in each other’s presence. He has a feeling it would be quite awkward; Baekhyun rarely talks to him, always appearing distracted by something and seeming to avoid making eye contact, though surely that isn’t the case?

Chanyeol hopes they can take some time to talk as their dragons rest, even if he has to use the excuse of “improving inter-team relationships” to encourage Baekhyun to chat with him. He resolves to gauge Baekhyun’s opinion of him during this time, and hopes that the awkward smile he’d received that morning won’t return once they’re back on land.

He’s pulled from his thoughts soon after, by the sound of Baekhyun shouting up to him. He glances over from where his gaze rests on his hands as is prone to happen when insecurities hit him, and follows the line of Baekhyun’s outreached arm, immediately spotting their planned destination.

The lake is a beautiful glistening blue, sunlight hitting the surface of the water and making it shimmer as the wind jostles the surface gently. He spots a clearing of grass against the right side of the lake and glances towards Baekhyun, pointing it out and receiving an eager nod in return.

They head down, all eyes scanning the beautiful area and wondering how they’d never heard of this before. Perhaps the previous hunters just hadn’t strayed this far to the right of the mountain, or maybe those that had just wanted to keep it to themselves; as Chanyeol dismounts and looks around, awed by the tranquillity of the place, he decides he can’t blame them.

So... hoped you liked it :) Please comment and give me some feedback >_< O_O

Was originally planning to post this whole thing in one go but I figured I'd just give it to you bit by bit rather than make you wait....

I've put 1/3 but it might be 1/2 who knows haha

Thank you everyone who's subscribed <3