"It's colddddd!" Taehyung complains as he wraps his arms around himself. They have made it a fair distance into Mount Gagazet, despite the overwhelming number of monsters. Suddenly, someone drapes a cloak around his shoulders, still warm from his body heat.

Taehyung turns around to find Seokjin talking with Namjoon, but without his cloak. Taehyung brings the cloak up to cover his nose (since his face is practically ice) and he can smell Seokjin's scent on it. This is something he'd like to steal. They continue walking, further and further up the mountain. The air is getting thinner, and Taehyung is finding it hard to breathe.

They walk until they reach an intersection, and Jimin plops himself down on the ground, too tired to move a limb. His breathing is ragged, most likely from the thin air. Jungkook, meanwhile, is fine, his body made to breathe this air. Even Yoongi and Hoseok are tired, both of them hitting the ground when Jimin does.

Seokjin is clutching his knees, panting. The air is simply too thin here for that much trudging. Even Namjoon looks tired.

"Let's...take a rest here, yeah?" Jimin leans back against the cavern wall. All of them agree as they sit down, and Seokjin brings out whatever food he's brought for their trip. They eat the already-cold rice cakes and sushi and bread. After downing the food, Jimin stands up again, staggering to his feet. Jungkook catches him just as he's about to fall, shooting Jimin a worried look.

"I'm fine," Jimin insists.

Jungkook doesn't agree, but from the expression on Jimin's face, there's no room for discussion here. The rest get up and follow Jimin down the left path of the fork in the road they've come to.

After walking for a little while more, Jimin and company find themselves facing a body of water.

"Water? Let's turn back," Yoongi drawls, apparently wanting nothing to do with the freezing water of the mountain.

"You can stay here. I'm going ahead," Jimin says, removing his sashes and passing them over to Taehyung, who accepts it, stunned. "I think there's something back there." 

"Why not Summon Bahamut or Valefor? Someone that can fly across the water?" Namjoon suggests, but Jimin shakes his head.

"The ceiling's too low."

"I'm coming with you," Jungkook removes his spiked shoulder guards, something that'll slow him down. He steps into the water, his fur keeping him warm as Jimin follows suit. It's easy to see the chill that rides up his spine as he does so, but he continues on, until his is submerged totally in water.

"I'm coming too."

Taehyung throws Jimin's sashes to Hoseok and he steps into the water as well. He looks like he's going to back out, but Taehyung persists, taking one shivering step into the water, until he's about as submerged as Jimin is.

"We'll wait here. It's a litle too dangerous to explore the rest of the mountain on our own," Seokjin says. "Come back quickly. Or else we're going to send Yoongi in."

"What? Why me?"

"Alright," Jimin chuckles, water pressing against his chest suffocatingly as the trio head off into the water body, kicking their feet harshly against the water.

**********************************************************

"It's boring," Yoongi complains, stretching his arms out and leaning against the wall, closing his eyes with his blitzball placed next to him, having at least a hand on it at any one time. He's making sure to keep Hoseok on his right side more often now--that must have been really traumatizing for Yoongi.

Hoseok looks over at Seokjin and Namjoon. They're talking, Seokjin having a smile on his face, while Namjoon's grinning. He wonders what they're talking about.

Well, with the kids gone...Hoseok touches his lips. He swears he hasn't drunk a single thing nor bathed ever since that day when Yoongi's lips touched his. Okay, maybe he did drink one or two glasses of water. Okay, he downed a whole canteen, but he can still feel that ghostly feeling of lips on his. Soft and plush.

He looks over at Yoongi, head tilted away from him and snoring lightly. Oh how would he like to feel it again. It's so easy. Just move over a few inches and...

"What are you looking at?"

Hoseok jumps out of his skin as Yoongi turns over to face him, sleepy eyes unfocused but he's definitely staring at Hoseok in a demanding sort of way.

"Ah--N-Nothing," Hoseok's words come out in stutters as his mouth betrays him.

Yoongi leans his head towards Hoseok and nestles it between Hoseok's neck and shoulder, closing his eyes yet again. Hoseok rests his head on top of Yoongi's and snakes one arm around the elder's shoulders, pulling him even closer, warming him up in the cold, dank cavern as they wait for Jimin, Jungkook and Taehyung's return.

*************************************************************

"You looked like an idiot," Namjoon laughs as Seokjin's face flares.

"No I did not!" Seokjin protests, spluttering.

"You had those thick-rimmed glasses, my friend," Namjoon counters. "Only rich- people have glasses."

"Namjoon..." Seokjin's tone is of warning.

"Seokjin..." Namjoon mimicks him, snorting as Seokjin throws up his hands.

"I don't know what to do with you."

"Oh, you love me," Namjoon snickers, at least, until he sees the look in Seokjin's eyes which fades as immediately as it had came. He sees Seokjin's lips move, and he can't really catch any of the words, but it looks suspiciously like 'yes I do'. He remembers his own feelings back in the Cavern of the Fayth, and he gulps, wondering if Seokjin knows.

I'm an idiot, Namjoon decides as he watches Seokjin fidget with the hem of his cloak, which Taehyung has returned to him. Being dressed in a neon green coat does wonders in keeping Namjoon warm even in this cold place.

"Hey, Namjoon."

"Hmm?" 

"Remember that time I asked you to be my team?"

Namjoon's heart sinks. Why did he even bother? "Yeah, why?"

"I keep thinking about that a lot now," Seokjin's eyes are averted. "We're coming to the end of this journey. Are you...still going to team with me after the pilgrimage?" 

"Of course." The words have just slipped out of Namjoon's mouth without thinking. But then again, now that Namjoon does think about it, it's true he will. He can't even really remember a time when Seokjin hasn't been by his side. Seokjin looks up, gaze sharp. 

"Do you really mean that?" 

Namjoon nods. They're a team. They do everything together, go everywhere together, tell each other their deepest secrets.

Except one, Namjoon thinks. Something I'm too scared to let him in about.

*******************************************************

"You're getting old, Tae," Jungkook laughs as he swims ahead, Jimin holding his own between the Ronso and Taehyung and Taehyung is just puffing at the back as they make their way through the ice-cold water. They've actually encountered deadly fishes more than once and Jimin almost got stung by a jellyfish (Jungkook did a number on that one by cutting off all its tentacles so it sunk to the bottom and Jungkook prays it'll become fish food).

"D-Don't get so cocky, Kook-ah!" Taehyung kicks the water again and Jimin spots land. Picking up the pace, the three of them make it to shore. Jimin is relieved at being able to climb out of the freezing water. He even helps Taehyung up, and Jungkook grabs Jimin's hands in his, warming them up. He can feel Jimin shivering. Probably from the cold of the water.

"What's that?"

Jungkook and Jimin look in the direction that Taehyung is pointing at. There is a shining sphere in the middle with debris floating around it.

"You think we need to hit it?" Jungkook suggests.

"With what?"

Jungkook brings out his spear, "I've got only one chance, though. I don't have any other spears."  He aims, body moving instinctively to a throwing stance. He closes one eye. And throws.

The spear flies through the air, hitting the debris and bouncing back, straight towards Jungkook. Jungkook dodges the spear as it flies into the water. It floats, and Jungkook has a feeling the spear is a little mad with it.

"Ah..." Jungkooks scratches his head as he laughs, walking towards the water to retrieve his spear. Jimin takes another look at the glowing glyph. A sudden thought crosses his mind. What's the point in hitting it anyway? Jungkook returns, and aims, slinging his arm forward and the spear hurtles through the air, hitting the sphere dead-on this time.

The debris stops spinning and Jimin hears a roaring from somewhere. Have they fallen into a trap of some sort and awakened something? He then hears a crashing sound, like rocks grinding against each other.

"Let's head back to the others before something comes after us," Jimin nods as the three of them take to the waters again.

*******************************************************

Hoseok's ears perk up. He hears something. Growling. Then a roar bursts his eardrums. Yoongi jumps with a shocked yelp as he grabs his blitzball in his human hand. Seokjin and Namjoon have also sprung to their feet, swords drawn. Jimin, Jungkook and Taehyung aren't back, and there's some big monster out there roarming his mountain. Not to mention that they have no clue how to get out of here, since the way back is fraught with Ronso...plus the entrance has been sealed off by a rock slide anyhow.

"What's that?" Seokjin's voice is merely a whisper as he throws glances around.

Hoseok prepares his mana, charging up his magic when suddenly, a rock is hurled in their direction. Hoseok cries out as Yoongi drags him to the side, his quick reflexes cultivated from his blitzball practice. Hoseok tries to see through the darkness to locate the attacking monster, but he sees nothing.

Another boulder is hurled towards them, and Hoseok ices that one, the Blizzaga attack stopping the boulder in its tracks. The boulder hits the ground and smashes into a million frozen pieces.

It's only then that Hoseok sees what it is. The fiend steps out into the light, the cavern illuminated by the glowing corals in the water. This fiend is...this fiend is huge! It's nothing like they've ever seen. Okay, it's not as big as the Sand Worm...

"It looks powerful," Namjoon's breath gets caught in his throat.

The beast in question is purple, with black demonic horns sprouting from the top of its head. It has a mane of yellow fur stretching from its head to its whole back, up to its equally yellow tail, swishing around agitatedly. Its claws are a deep purplish-black and Hoseok is wondering whether he can even kill it.

The fiend charges. Hoseok jumps, dodging its attack and a Firaga attack bursts from his palms, the fireball smacking the fiend in its arm. The fiend roars a deafening bellow as it thrashes about wildly, and Hoseok has to move quickly to prevent getting hit by its razor horns.

"Hoseok!"

Hoseok looks to his left and ducks, the blitzball flying overhead and nearly missing his head by a few centimeters. Hoseok watches as Yoongi dives out of the way, his demonic arm managing to get a hold of a piece of rubble and he flings himself away from the fiend as the fiend charges its head into a wall, snapping its fangs at Yoongi.

It arches its back as something stabs into it. Seokjin's stabbing the fiend, dark blood flowing steadily out of the wound on the fiend's back as Seokjin plunges the sword in once, twice, thrice...

Namjoon, meanwhile, is aiming for a critical hit as he launches Tornado, his favourite technique. He targets the fiend's belly, and he lunges forward, as if seemingly gained superior sight and speed. He hits the bulls-eye and the fiend rolls onto its back, snarling, trying to dig Namjoon's sword out of its body.

Namjoon doesn't falter as he draws his sword, bringing ribbons of black blood out with it. The beast cries again as Namjoon keeps on stabbing it, Seokjin helping in the effort.

At one last ditch-effort, the beast reaches up and swipes its claw. Hoseok gapes and Yoongi's eyes widen. Blood splatters all over the ground.

Someone screams.

*******************************************************************

Jimin hears a familiar voice. He pushes himself to swim faster, although he can feel the exhaustion in his body weighing him down.

"Slow down!" Jungkook grasps his arm, causing Jimin to flail in the water but Jungkook steadies him, so that they're both treading water. Taehyung follows suit when he realizes they've stopped. 

"You're going to kill yourself if you keep doing that. The water's downright cold for a human," Jungkook explains. "Plus you're not in a really good shape to swim."

"I'm perfectly fine."

"No you're not," Taehyung grabs Jimin's shoulder. "Don't push yourself too hard."

Jimin groans as he accepts their advice and leans on Jungkook for support, the only source of warmth in this cold mountain. After resting for a litle while, the trio continues on back to shore. When they reach, Jimin sees a congregation of pyreflies and three people gathered around something.

Hoseok, Yoongi and Namjoon. Namjoon is sort of facing them, but with Yoongi and Hoseok blocking their view, Jimin doesn't know what's happened.

"We're back!" Taehyung announces in that unusually loud voice of his, and Yoongi turns in their direction, face grim.

"What's wrong?" Jimin approaches the group, and then he realizes what's wrong.

Seokjin has a giant gash on his head, stretching across his entire forehead, in the form of claw marks. He's bleeding really badly, his blood dripping off his face in tiny waterfalls, trickling down over his eyelids and over the bridge of his nose as Namjoon keeps his grip tightly on Seokjin.

"Jimin! You can heal him, right?"

Jimin gulps, "I'll try." This is so far the biggest head wound he's seen in this entire journey. He gets down on his knees and focuses his mana into his hands for a Curaga spell. He touches Seokjin's gash, and he sees the eldest scrunch up his nose--he can feel the pain.

Jimin closes his eyes, and the green light emanating from his palms begins to glow more strongly now.

Jimin's Curaga spell dissipates into the air and he opens his eyes. Jimin gasps, realizing that the gash is only half as bad as just now. Sure, most of it has knitted up already, but the amount of blood is still overwhelming. Seokjin's eyelids twitch, and he opens one.

", oh my Yevon..." Namjoon lets out an apparant sigh of relief. His grip tightens obviously as Jimin prepares another Curaga spell. His mana is depleting fast.

"What happened?" Jungkook asks.

"There was a fiend," Hoseok explains, sniffing hard to stop the tears in his eyes from coming out. "And it was strong. Like, really strong. I think we got careless..." 

"There's only one strong fiend in this mountain which can give gashes," Jungkook shakes his head. "And we'd better not run into another one." 

"There's more than one?" Namjoon looks shocked.

"Yeah, they litter the place," Jungkook explains. "Totally territorial so we won't find another one around this parts anytime soon. We'd best get going." 

"Jinnie needs to rest fir--"

"I'm fine," Seokjin leans on Namjoon as he tries to stand, a little wobbly on his feet, but otherwise passable by Yoongi's standards. He almost topples but Namjoon catches him just in time.

"You sit out of any fights we're gonna have," Jimin points a finger at Seokjin. "Or I'm going to ban you from fighting until we reach Zanarkand." 

Seokjin gives a small smile, "Sure."

Jungkook trails behind as the group walks down the other path not consumed by water of the fork in the road, joking and laughing despite the situation they're in. He thinks about the monster that they may have just encountered.

Behemoth.

*********************************************************************

This is the Behemoth: