Taemin decided to make Minho a new, better collar, rather than fix the old one. Sooman had arrived back in town after a short trip, and brought back new magic that could enhance and strengthen the properties of collars. He was surprised to see Minho back, but happy after Taemin explained the story.

Taemin set to making new collars, not just for Minho but also for Jinki, even making one for himself. Sooman explained that it was part of this new magic, Taemin needed his own connection stone that he had to wear at all times in order to stay connected to his companions. He made his into a sort of choker, finding necklaces any longer than that burdensome when fighting.

The colors remained the same, Minho’s collar being red, and Jinki’s being a pearlescent aqua, but along with the new magic, Taemin also added one more stone of protection, making three in all for all three of them. After he finished, Taemin left for town, Sooman handing him supplies he needed to maintain the collars before he left.

The town was busier than usual, the town center bustling with Travelers, Hunters, and the lords, landowners, and others who were handing out the quests. Taemin looked around for someone he recognized, accepting a few quests in order to help the town. The three went around gathering the supplies they’d need before setting out.

The quests were the usual things: disband groups of rogues, protect human land, find and kill any known leaders or any especially violent creatures hanging around the town. The quests took a few days to fulfill before Taemin took more, occasionally doing favors and taking up quests from castle lords and landowners.

A quest involving tracking the movements of Elementals through the south led the three to a dense, but small rainforest outside of the Shinui district. They tracked and hunted down the Rain and Water Elementals, and decided to go to the locals for quests to kill time.

It was here, by the river that twisted through the rainforest, the three met with a large black panther. It followed them all the way down the river, Jinki taking interest in him immediately, Minho seeming to want to kill him from the start. Taemin couldn't get the beautiful creature out of his mind, even after going back to the village for the night, heading back to the river the next morning for more quest taking.

After three days the persistent panther still followed the group down the river, and Taemin, realizing he had probably been following them the whole time they had been in the rainforest, finally decided to do something about it.

Using a quick spell to temporarily mask his presence, Taemin snuck around and cut the panther off, finally facing the beautiful animal face-to-face.

The two stared at each other in silence for a while, Jinki and Minho watching from the side. “Why are you following us?” Taemin asked. The panther lowered its head, but did nothing more. Taemin took a few steps forward, and out of nowhere the panther leapt at him, claws and teeth bared.

Minho and Jinki tried to help, but Taemin told them not to intervene. He and the black panther wrestled with each other, Taemin getting his fair share of bites and scratches. After some time, Taemin pinned the animal to the ground, sitting on top of it and pressing his palms against its head. A bolt of electricity shot through Taemin’s body, making him want to let go, but he refused to give in, leaning in and resting his head on top of the panther's.

The feeling subsided, and Taemin stood up on shaky legs, walking back to his two concerned companions. He hugged Minho and held Jinki, intending to walk back to the village, when he realized the black panther was still following him. Taemin looked at Jinki, who jumped out of his arms and ran to the panther, smelling and investigating him. The two seemed to get along, making Taemin smile.

Minho huffed, annoyed, but Taemin just chuckled and pat Minho’s head. “Don't be jealous, Minho-ya. Remember what happened with you and Jinki.”

Taemin swore the dragon rolled his eyes as he flew away, hovering above them so he didn't have to interact with the newcomer. Taemin walked up to the panther, laughing as Jinki sat on its back, and smelling his fur. Taemin knelt down, and the two locked eyes, an understanding passing between them. The panther leaned down with a rough tongue and lapped at some of the scratches he had caused. Taemin gently pet his head, noticing how well-groomed he was, even compared to the very clean rabbit (who was now trying to climb on the panther’s head).

“Key.” Taemin said. Key and Jinki looked up in interest. Taemin smiled, cupping the panther’s head in both his hands. “Your name is Key. What do you think? Do you like it?” Jinki made a cute squealing sound, obviously liking the name. Key seemed to like it too, rubbing his head against Taemin’s chest. Taemin beamed, petting Key a few times before standing up and walking back to town.

At Sooman’s, Taemin fashioned Key a fuchsia collar, fitting it with the same stones Jinki and Minho had. Jinki seemed to be fascinated by the big black cat, while Minho fought with him often. This time around, however, Taemin was able to quickly break up each fight, as Minho didn't hide anything from Taemin anymore.

Key was difficult to train, often wandering off and doing his own thing whenever Taemin and Sooman tried to teach him directions and simple commands. But he proved himself more than capable in battle, able to think quickly and act accordingly when fighting, so Taemin figured he didn't need to be trained.

Not even three weeks after Key came along, the group found themselves in the Taebaeksan mountain, knee deep in snow. They were tracking human (or humanoid) hunters who were wreaking havoc to the wildlife in the mountain, indiscriminately killing all the animals and starting massive fires in the forests in the mountain. The quest was to arrest them, and take them to the castle if possible, but Taemin already knew he would probably kill them without remorse.

After roaming the mountain for about a day, Taemin grabbed Jinki and ducked behind a rock, the four watching from a safe distance as two white wolves ran by. Taemin saw what they were running from and ran out, sword already unsheathed, but it was too late; arrows flew before Taemin could intervene, and both the wolves were slain.

Taemin faced the hunters, ready to fight, but none of them were focused on him. The hunters (Taemin counted ten in all) surrounded one wolf, probably the last in its pack, and prepared to kill it.

Taemin ran forward in a rage, his three companions by his side. Minho and Key reached the hunters first, distracting the hunters from their prey and keeping them occupied as Taemin reached them and stood protectively over the injured wolf, Jinki by his side.

Seeing the hunters clearly now, Taemin could tell they weren't, in fact, human. He had never seen creatures like them before, but figured they were some sort of species of gremlin from the north. All of them smiled, preparing to kill more, but Taemin knew the battle would be quick and decisive. He would make sure these hunters didn't get the satisfaction they wanted. Minho moved first, beginning the battle by blowing fire at what appeared to be the leader. The rest followed, hunters attempting to gain an upper hand as the four moved in harmony, attacking and defending and distracting, cutting down the hunters one by one.

In a matter of minutes, all ten hunters were lying in the dirt, dead. Taemin turned to check on the wolf, finding Jinki already by his side. The wolf was huge, with sparkling white fur, only marred by the blood slowly leaking from several wounds. It had collapsed, and was now whimpering weakly as Taemin approached it. Taemin kneeled down and pet its head, the wolf Taemin's palm. Taemin pulled out a piece of bread that had been soaked in a health potion, and fed it to the wolf.

Once he was sure the wolf was well enough to go off on his own, Taemin went to the dead hunters and picked out a few trophies, items to hand to the quest giver in order to prove that the task was complete. Taemin was about to leave, when he noticed that Jinki, Minho, and Key were still by the wolf’s side.

The wolf lowered its head, still whimpering. Taemin realized why the others hadn't left him yet; he had just lost his whole pack, his entire family in one fell swoop. Taemin couldn't leave him there alone. Without a second thought he walked over and used the connection spell on the wolf. The familiar electricity surged through his body, broken and familiar images rushing through his head. The spell worked better than it had before, and Taemin smiled, hugging the wolf, who his entire face in response.

The three seemed to really like the wolf, already getting close, getting familiar with him. Jinki hopped up to Taemin who picked him up, thinking for a moment. Key was already running around the wolf excitedly, the wolf wagging his tail almost impossibly fast.

Taemin laughed. “What do you think about Jonghyun?” Taemin asked Jinki. Jinki seemed to approve of the name, and Taemin went up to the wolf, asking him about the name. Jonghyun liked the name, propping his paws on Taemin’s shoulders and his face. Standing on his hind legs, Jonghyun was taller and bigger than Taemin, which was a bit strange.

After spending some time getting to know Jonghyun, the five set off to Sooman’s in order to make a collar for the newest edition to their family.

Right from the start Jonghyun was obedient and loyal, taking orders well. All four of them got along with the wolf, although sometimes Minho got a bit annoyed at his high level of energy. He was strong and reliable in a fight, but at home he liked having fun, messing with Minho and pulling on Jinki and Key's ears. The five got used to each other very quickly (even Minho and Key were fighting less) and Taemin was happy.

A month after Jonghyun came into their lives, Taemin visited Sooman to relax after they had completed a rather difficult quest. Taemin sat on the floor watching the four play with each other when Sooman walked up and dumped a giant sack full of cooked and raw meat scraps on the ground. Minho took the whole bag in his mouth and started to fly away with it, but the others quickly protested. Key hissed and snarled, Jonghyun growled and barked at him, and Jinki hopped up, putting on the saddest face he could. Minho relented and put the sack back down, Jonghyun him as a sign of thanks. Jinki jumped onto Key's back and dove into the bag, and all four of them started to indulge in the treats.

Taemin chuckled and shook his head. Sooman laughed and sat down on the ground across from him. “And I thought Jinki had a personality on him. All four seem to be quite the odd group.”

“At least they get along most of the time.”

“And do they listen to Jinki?”

“Yeah,” Taemin laughed, “for some reason they do. They're all pretty respectful. It takes a load off my shoulders, having Jinki keep them in line.”

Sooman sighed, both of them smiling at the four as they ate. “When I first met you I never would have thought you'd have more than one or two. Yet here we are.”

Taemin smiled happily at them. “Me either. But I'm grateful I have them. Although,” Taemin laughed, “definitely not getting anymore. I can barely handle those four as it is.”

Sooman laughed too. “Can't say I blame you. From what I've seen they're all handfuls. Although they're all so brilliant, I'd love to see the lot of you fighting together sometime.”

“You can do it tomorrow if you want.” Taemin pulled a carefully folded piece of paper from one of his bags, and handed it to Sooman. “Just got another quest. I could use the help.”

Sooman sighed and shook his head. “Do you ever take a break from questing? There are other things to do in life.” Taemin merely smiled and watched tiredly as Sooman read over the details. “It seems rather difficult. Were you planning on doing something like this alone?”

“I was going to ask Gyeongshik hyung. But he has work, and since I'm already here I thought it would be better to ask you. Do you want to help?”

“What's your plan for a thing like this anyway? Last I heard all the farms were occupied. And you want to get all of them out in one go?”

Taemin smirked. “Just leave it to me. I know a few tricks to draw out vermin. It's really disposing of them I'll need help with. Are you in?”

Sooman sighed, handing the paper back. “Don't have much of a choice, now do I? Someone has to make sure you don't get yourself killed. And I'm not sure how much your companions can do to prevent you from being a blockhead.” Sooman smiled at Taemin, who beamed and thanked him. The four finished their meal and joined Taemin and Sooman, Jinki sleeping in his lap, Jonghyun resting his head on Taemin's knee, Key curled around them and Minho wrapped around Taemin's shoulders. Sooman marveled at how perfect the five looked together, and was overjoyed to see Taemin genuinely happy for the first time since Sooman met him.

An odd assortment of animals and people walked through the door of the armory, the two laughing and jostling each other, the animals running around excitedly. Gyeongshik looked up in astonishment, his mouth hanging open.

“Taemin… what…?”

Taemin walked up to the counter, leaning on it and smiling. “Hey hyung. Sorry for the noise, but Sooman hyung and I just got back from a quest and, well...” Taemin displayed his ruined armor and bent sword, smiling sheepishly. “We could use a fix.”

Gyeongshik sighed and shook his head. “What in the world have you gotten yourself into this time?” He looked around at all the animals, only recognizing Jinki out of the bunch. “And why are there so many animals in my shop?”

Taemin looked around too, realizing that Gyeongshik had never met all his companions before. “Oh! Sorry hyung, these are my companions. Minho, Key, and Jonghyun.” Jinki hopped up onto Taemin’s shoulder and nuzzled against his cheek. “And of course you know Jinki. Oh, and this is Sooman hyung!” Taemin hugged Sooman, flashing him and Gyeongshik a huge grin. “He’s the trainer I’ve been telling you about.”

Sooman shook his head and held out his hand. “Gyeongshik, I assume? Taemin’s told me about you.”

Gyeongshik chuckled and gladly took his hand. “He’s told me some stories about you too. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you. Although, he didn’t tell me about these new animals.”

Taemin smiled sheepishly and shrugged his shoulders. “Sorry hyung, we’ve been busy.”

“So he calls you hyung too?” Sooman asked. “I haven’t been able to figure out why, I’m at least 20 years older than him.”

Taemin wasn’t paying attention, but Gyeongshik shook his head at him. “Oh that started a long time ago. His brother got it from his dad, who was a few years younger than me. Taemin got it from his brother, and even after I told him the difference he still calls me it. I’d get used to it if I were you.” The two watched Taemin play with Jonghyun and Key, jumping around them until Key managed to trip him, making Taemin fall on the floor. All four of his companions immediately jumped on top of him, Taemin laughing hysterically under all of them.

Gyeongshik laughed too, then turned back to Sooman. “So what did Taemin get you into that could destroy your armor like that?”

“Oh Taemin had this quest. You know how all the farmlands had been occupied by monsters? Taemin was given this crazy quest to get rid of all of them at once. He managed to do so, but then the two of us had a horde of monsters to deal with.”

“I take it that didn’t go well.”

“Actually it went wonderfully! Taemin continues to amaze me. But we did have a lot to deal with.”

“It doesn’t look too bad. I’ll have it fixed up soon. Taemin!”

Taemin slowly sat up from under the animals, still laughing. “Yeah, hyung?”

“Give me your armor so I can fix it. Then we can all go out if you’d like.”

Taemin unstrapped his armor and handed it to Gyeongshik. “Going out sounds nice. Besides, these four deserve a treat after doing such a good job today.” Gyeongshik chuckled and took Taemin’s and Sooman’s armor.

Just over an hour later Gyeongshik had finished fixing all the armor. The group went out to a nearby restaurant and made lively conversation over their dinner. Taemin told Gyeongshik everything about his companions and the types of quests he’d been taking recently. Sooman and Gyeongshik seemed to hit it off instantly, Taemin finding that the two were very similar once he saw them interact.

After talking for some time, Taemin excused himself to go home. His companions diligently followed, all of them saying their various good byes to Sooman and Gyeongshik before walking away.

Gyeongshik leaned back in his chair, still staring after Taemin and smiling. “That child amazes me every time I see him. It’s a new surprise every time.”

Sooman laughed, seeing that this man could potentially become a great friend. “You too then?”

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Hi guys!

I am so so sorry!!! I know I haven't updated in a while, things got super crazy with work and school and I suddenly learned my parents were moving so I had to suddenly move and I was just really worried and anxious... anyways I just signed for the apartment and I'm moving really soon so I was finally able to finish this chapter.

In other knews!!!! I saw SHINee live with my best friend and oh my goodness it was the most amazing thing ever I can't even begin to describe how amazing it was. Cute little Key kept talking about his gucci, Onew was adorable and showed lots of Onew condition, Taemin was super hot and his English was adorable, Jonghyun was so sweet and and his voice blew me away and Minho omg Minho made my ing life because he waved at my friend and me!!!!!! He and Key were talking and he looked in our direction so I put up a heart sign and my friend waved and he immediately looked right at us and waved back!!!! It was amazing we freaked out and we're still freaking out about it even though it was months ago, lol.

Anyways I'll do my best to update more frequently, life is just really really hectic... I'm so sorry for the delay, please don't give up on me! I love this story so much, I promise I'll never leave it until it's over.

Thank you all so much for your love, support, and patience, and have a wonderful, SHINee filled day!
~Em