Leading Minho up the flight of stairs to Jinki’s room of Tranquility, Jonghyun could sense the young boy’s excitement laced with nervousness. He had never been allowed up to this room. He could remember very vividly being shown the shop, the back room where lessons would be given, the room that would be his, and then the stairs leading up to the room. How Jonghyun kneeled in front of him and said very sternly, ‘You may go anywhere you wish in this house, except to the room at the very top. That is Master Jinki’s room. Only he can give you permission to go there. Understood?’ And he had understood, never going up them. He had seen his two Masters go up there plenty of times, but not as much as Jinki had alone. Then the woman had been prevented from entering the shop and Jonghyun had come to lead him up the stairs.

               Upon the door opening, the bright room of blue came into sight. Jinki was sitting on a thick pillow in the middle of the room, his back was toward the window, and there was a pillow straight in front of him. He smiled warmly, gesturing to the pillow, but Minho wasn’t looking at him anymore. The boy was looking around the room, eyes big with wonder, reminding both Masters of the way he had looked at the stars in the sky the first time they showed them to him with magic.

               Jonghyun’s hand was warm on his shoulders, comforting in a way as he moved them toward the pillow. “Do you wish to go first or would you like me to Minho?”

               He looked between them. He wasn’t nervous or scared because he was afraid that whatever this meant would end with his Masters hurting him. He knew they’d protect him and keep him safe with everything in them. He trusted them, but he didn’t like not knowing everything. Pieces were blurry and the woman from earlier still confused him. All Jonghyun had told him was that she was a dark sorcerer and sent from their past, but nothing else. Saying it was Jinki’s story to tell. It was then Master Jinki spoke. “You have questions.”

               “But the amulet-”

               The man smiled, “I don’t need to read you to know you have questions, Young One. Please, sit.”

               Carefully, he did, mirroring Jinki’s position perfectly. Jonghyun handed Jinki a teacup before gently pouring some in. The cup was offered on his steady palm. “What is this?”

               “It’s just tea. It helps with my readings.” Jinki’s hands fell into his lap after the tea was taken. “Drink it slowly while you ask me your questions.”  

               Minho took a slow sip, eyes following the cup as he lowered it to his lap. “What did you mean when you said this was your past coming back?”

               “I haven’t told you much about my past, Young One, and maybe that was wrong of me, but know I did so because I wished it never would resurface for you to need to know.” Jinki smiled softly when Jonghyun handed him his own cup of tea, taking a small drink before looking over the rim of the cup. “There’s a Kingdom far to the West. I used to be a very highly held sorcerer for the Monarch there. Prophecy is my gift. Seeing the past is something not many can do, and it comes easily to me. My visions and predictions were supposedly used in the capture of dark sorcerers, but in the end, I was running myself thin. Prophecy takes so much of my focus and of my power. It drains my energy. In the end, I chose to be with Jonghyun and left.”

               “You chose Jonghyun?”

               “Yes. The Kingdom had strict rules about love. I wished to bind my soul with Jonghyun. It was forbidden because it was believed that one’s loyalty to the crown could be lessened if it was put against their lover. They were right.” Jinki smiled then, looking at Jonghyun leaning against the wall to his left. “The King was angry when I left. I was his most powerful asset and I foresaw he wouldn’t let me leave without some type of fight, so Jonghyun and I packed up what we had. We moved here, as far East as we could buy a ship to. I blocked our movements and intentions, and we opened this shop together. It helped that we had bonded our souls. My signature, presence, is different now connected to his. I’m starting to believe that maybe the reason that every time the King’s men got to the location I foresaw too late was because the King wished it to be that way.”

               “And.. this King sent that woman?”

               “We believe so yes.”

               “And you need Master Jonghyun and I to remove our amulets so you can see our futures?”

               Jinki grinned, slightly proud. “Exactly.”

               Minho finished his tea quickly, left hand curling around the amulet that was dripping with Jonghyun’s magic, and lifting it over his head. He beamed brightly. “Then I’m ready, Master.”

               With a quiet laugh, Jinki softly laid his hands out, palms up. “Then hold my hands and close your eyes.”

               “Will it hurt?”

               “For you? No.” Jinki’s eyes fluttered shut and Minho could feel the full force of his magic swirling around him. His own eyes widened in awe causing Jinki’s lips to softly curve as he said, “Eyes closed, Young One.”

               When he did, he felt the warmth of Jinki’s magic and his palms tingle, but it didn’t hurt even as the feeling traveled over his entire body.