Onew awoke in the same position he had fallen asleep in: curled up on the cold, hard stone floor of the Earth Dragon’s cave.  His arms were tucked under his head as a makeshift pillow, but that didn’t stop the crick in his neck and the pain in his side from forming.  He groaned and rolled over, hoping to relieve some of the pressure on his joints.  His eyes were thick with sleep, but the faint smell of something delicious was reason enough to force them open.

            “Ch-chicken…?” he rasped groggily, rubbing his eyes and sitting up.  He saw Minho spread out a little farther away, rubbing his eyes with the back of his hand.  Taemin was curled up beside his mentor, using Minho’s other arm as a pillow, with Yoogeun nestled between the two.

            “No chicken, sorry,” came Key’s apologetic voice, and Onew looked up blearily to see the boy setting the table – which must have been fixed, along with the rest of the house, Onew noted – sliding some bright yellow scrambled eggs onto plates from a pan.  “Just bacon and eggs.”

            And indeed, the smell was not that of poultry, but of ham.  Onew bit back his disappointment and instead rose stiffly to his feet, trying to hide the cramping in his legs as he limped over to one of the stools and eased himself onto it.  Key shot him a sympathetic smile, joining him at the table.

            “Rough night, huh?” he asked.  Onew stifled a yawn and nodded.  “Yeah, sorry about that.  But when Jonghyun transforms, I just… well, you know.”

            But Onew didn’t know.  “What was that all about, anyway?”

            Key poked his eggs with his fork and sighed.  “It’s a little complicated, but I’ll simplify it for you.  And hey, you two on the floor!” he barked, turning towards the motionless forms.  “Wake up and eat your breakfast while it’s hot!  I want you to hear this, too.  It’s important.”

            So they waited until Minho and Taemin had dragged themselves over to the table, Taemin holding a still-sleeping Yoogeun in his arms as he thoughtlessly allowed Minho to hand feed him his breakfast.

            Then Key continued.  “Basically, a dragon has three different forms they can change into: humanoid, dragon, and rage dragon.  A dragon always has control over the transformation between human form and dragon form, but they can’t control the rage dragon – it just happens when something inside them snaps.  What you saw last night was Jonghyun’s rage dragon.  That form is way bigger and a lot less sensible than the normal dragon form; he just pretty much goes on a destructive rampage until he calms down and automatically morphs back into a human.”

            Onew bit into his bacon and only half paid attention to the taste.  “Then why did you make me splash him with that bucket of water?” he questioned with his mouth full.  Key continued to prod his food.

            “That wasn’t water – it was Moon Milk.  It sounds a little silly, I know, but it’s insanely helpful.  It’s a raw ingredient used in the taming of dragons.  It’s the only thing in the world that can speed up the process of calming down a rage dragon.  Lucky for me, there’s a fresh spring of it just a little ways up the mountain.  Precisely one gallon is the minimum requirement.  Splash that on a rage dragon, and they cool down almost instantly.  Without it, the calming process can take days, and it usually involves a lot of damage along the way.”  Then Key looked up at them all and smiled.  “So let’s not mention Jonghyun’s height anymore, okay?”

            A chorus of silent nods was the reply, which seemed to make the boy very happy, and he took his first bite of scrambled eggs.

            “Where is Jonghyun, anyway?” Minho asked, feeding Taemin a piece of bacon, which the younger boy chewed on absently as he stared straight ahead at nothing.

            Key took a sip of his coffee before replying.  “He went out to pick up a few things,” he answered brightly.  “He said he thinks he knows where Onew’s missing chicken might be.”

            Onew perked up instantly, looking – and feeling – like a puppy that had just been promised a treat.  Key giggled, hiding his mouth behind his fingertips.

            “Ah, you’re so cute,” he smiled warmly.  “Don’t worry, he shouldn’t be too long.”

            “Hey, Key,” said Minho from across the table.  Sensing the serious tone in his voice, Key stopped giggling and turned to face him.

            “Yes?”

            “Why aren’t you dead?”

            A stony silence fell upon the table.

            “I don’t understand,” Key said after he had processed the question.  Minho ran a hand through his hair.

            “Why hasn’t Jonghyun killed you yet?” he persisted.  “It isn’t in a dragon’s nature to keep prisoners.”

            Key averted his gaze to his coffee mug, once again skimming the rim with his finger.

            “I… it’s my hair,” he confessed after a tense pause.  “Since you know so much about mountain creatures already, you probably know that the main reason dragons kidnap young maidens is because of their soft, luscious hair.  You know, they like to line their nests with it and such.  Well, mine’s like that – actually, it’s way better than any girl’s hair – but it’s too short.  There isn’t enough to line a nest with.  When he first took me from my home, about six months ago, Jonghyun told me that he was going to keep me in his cave until my hair grew out.  Then, he was going to kill me and eat me.  Naturally, I don’t want to die, so every week or so, when Jonghyun goes out to pillage and hunt and whatnot, I just take some scissors and cut a little of my hair.”  He paused for a moment to scan the faces of his audience.  “I do it just at the right time, so that my hair never gets longer or shorter.  It just… stays the same.  Always.  And he hasn’t noticed yet, I don’t think – he’s a very busy dragon, you know, and he hasn’t said anything to me about it, so…”

            The boy trailed off when the steady beating of wings could be heard outside.  He jumped from his seat, shooting the boys at the table a wink, before skipping over to the cave entrance.

            “Jonghyun,” he called out in a sing-songy voice; “What did you get for me today?”

            The paper-folding, compressing sound happened again, and Jonghyun walked into the cave, carrying a large bundle.

            “It isn’t all for you this time, Key,” he said, causing the other boy to pout.  The dragon set it down on the table, hands on his hips.  “Has Key explained my theory to you guys yet?”

            Onew shook his head hesitantly, still a little nervous around the short-tempered creature.  But Jonghyun himself seemed to be over it, because he continued on as though nothing ill-natured had happened between them.

            “Okay, well, I think that a dragon did take Onew’s chicken, only it was a different dragon.”

            “A different dragon?” Taemin echoed, looking distressed.  “You mean there’s more than one?”

            Jonghyun nodded.  “Yep.  Her name is JoJo – she lives on the mountain behind this one, Mount Juliette.  Anyways, I’m thinking that she has Onew’s chicken, and all we have to do is find her cave and take it.”

            “That sounds easy enough,” Onew reckoned, but Jonghyun shook his head.

            “Unfortunately, no.  You see, it’s never easy to find a dragon’s cave – they’re very cleverly hidden, I should know.  What we need to do is lure her out, and then follow her back to her lair.”

            Minho quirked an eyebrow.  “And how do you suggest we go about that?” he questioned.  Jonghyun grinned.

            “As a dragon myself, I know for a fact that one of the most irresistible things on this planet is a fair, young maiden.”  To this, Key let out a dissatisfied puff of breath and crossed his arms.  “Now, before I continue, does everyone here trust me?”

            Onew wanted to say no, but at the same time, he really wanted his chicken back.  So, before Minho or Taemin had a chance to object, he blurted out, “Yes.”

            Jonghyun gave him a nod and a smile.  “Good.”

            “Okay, so I’m kind of understanding your plan,” Minho said, narrowing his eyes.  “But there’s one problem – we don’t have a maiden.”

            Jonghyun’s grin widened and he gave the bundle on the table a hefty pat.  “Not yet.”

            “I don’t know about this, you guys,” Taemin said slowly, biting his lip nervously.  “I don’t think this is going to work.”

            “Oh, trust me,” said Jonghyun, looking the younger boy up and down.  “It’s going to work.”

            Taemin let out a little whimper, but followed the other boys out of the cave and up the path.  Onew trailed behind the rest, holding onto Yoogeun’s hand.  The toddler seemed to be doing alright, considering the previous night’s adventures.  He did seem a little tired though, and Onew didn’t blame him.

            “Okay, here’s good,” Jonghyun held up one hand to signal the group to stop.  “Now, Taemin,” he said, taking the boy by the arm and leading him into a clearing in the rocks; “I want you to stand here.  See those flowers growing between the rocks over there?  Go pick those or something.  Skip around and sing to yourself.  Just act like a girl, okay?”

            Taemin tugged on his skirt uncomfortably.  “O-okay.”

            Jonghyun gave him a manly slap on the back and grinned.  “Excellent.  Now, the rest of us are going to hide behind that big boulder over there, and wait for JoJo.  She’s going to come and pick you up, but don’t be scared – we’ll be right behind, following you the whole way.”

            Taemin’s lower lip trembled.  “Promise?”

            “Promise.  Now, places everyone!  We need to be ready for this if we want it to work.”

            Onew hurried Yoogeun behind the large boulder, soon to be joined by Key and Jonghyun.  Minho, however, was pulled back by his apprentice.

            “Hyung, I’m scared,” Taemin said in a voice so tiny, Onew almost missed it.  “I don’t want to do this.”

            Minho ruffled the shorter boy’s hair.  “Don’t worry, Taemin, you’ll be fine.  I won’t let anything hurt you.”

            Taemin looked like he was choking for a moment, but then he swallowed heavily and nodded, blinking rapidly.  Minho hesitated, then gave him an awkward side-hug, before spinning around and joining the others behind the boulder.

            “Act cute, Taemin!” Jonghyun called in a stage-whisper, poking his head over the side of the boulder.  “Be a girl!”

            Taemin inhaled deeply, before beaming this radiating smile, as he began to skip around the open space, the green, ankle-length peasant skirt billowing around his legs, flying up in the air, and the apron bunching up and flapping around, his hair bouncing atop his head.

            “He has no idea how to move in that,” Jonghyun muttered.

            “I’m pretty sure that’s a good thing,” Onew mumbled back, before lifting Yoogeun up just a little so he could get a better look at the scene.  “Do you know who that is, Yoogeun?” he asked softly.  Yoogeun blinked and didn’t reply, so Onew lowered him back to the ground.  “I guess it’s kind of hard to recognize him when he’s in drag, huh?”

            Despite it all, Taemin did look like a girl, albeit a very clumsy, tomboyish one.  But his features were gentle, round, and smooth, and when he bent down to pluck some flowers from their place bunched between two rocks, Onew could have sworn he was a village girl from European medieval times.

            Although, he doesn’t look very Korean, he noted, and wondered where the heck Jonghyun had gotten the outfit.

            He was just about to ask, when all of the sudden a screech was heard from the distance.  It wasn’t anything like Jonghyun’s deep, rumbling roars – it was high-pitched and shrill, almost like a bird call, only much louder and much more bone-rattling.  Taemin straightened up instantly, frozen in fear, his eyes darting across the sky.  Sure enough, a second dragon appeared around the bend a moment later, head tilted towards the ground.

            “She saw him!  She saw him!” Jonghyun hissed excitedly, grabbing Onew’s arm and shaking it.  Taemin began shaking like a leaf, and Minho looked like he was going to jump up at any moment and call the whole thing off.

            But he didn’t.  And JoJo got closer, and Onew could see her golden eyes glinting in the sunlight.  Then she swooped down, hind feet outstretched towards the ground, claws clasping and unclasping in preparation to grab.  Then her shadow could be seen on the ground, and Taemin let out a very feminine shriek, throwing his flowers in the air as he shielded himself with his arms, crying, “Please don’t hurt me!”

            But he never left the ground.  Next thing Onew knew, JoJo’s shadow had passed over him, and when he looked up, he saw Taemin crouching on the ground, trembling, and Minho, eyes wide with shock, and Jonghyun, who looked like he wasn’t sure what to think.  Then Onew looked up, and saw JoJo sailing off into the distance, once again climbing into the sky, a struggling figure caught in her talons.

            “Oh, this is just great!” came Key’s aggravated shriek, his legs pummeling the air and his arms held back by JoJo’s claws.  “Twice in one year!  Is this my punishment, God?” he shouted to the blue sky.  “Is this my punishment for being so beautiful?  I swear, Jonghyun, you better come rescue me, or so help me Nidhogg, I’m going to rip off your wings and shove them up your nose!”

            His voice faded into the distance, the boys on the ground staring blankly at the disappearing dragoness and her prey.  Onew gulped.

            “In retrospect,” he said shakily, “I don’t think hiding behind something was the greatest idea when our enemy was coming from the sky.”

            Jonghyun shot up from his hiding position, fists clenched.  “Key!” he shouted, and Onew saw wings beginning to sprout from his back.  The leader leapt up, grabbing the dragon by the shoulder and spinning him around.

            “Wait,” he said urgently, shaking him slightly, hoping he’d snap out of it.  Jonghyun struggled against the grip.

            “She’s got Key!” he yelled, the gravel of a roar leaking into his voice.  “Let me go, she’s got Key!”

            “I know,” Onew insisted, still shaking, still hoping.  “But just wait a second!  You can’t turn into a rage dragon right now, Jonghyun.  You won’t be any help in that form.  And if you hurt JoJo, you’ll hurt Key, too.”

            The last bit seemed to work, and with a few rapid breaths, Jonghyun backed out of Onew’s grip and gave an unsteady nod.  “I’m okay,” he promised.  “I’m okay.”

            Taemin walked over, twiddling his thumbs nervously, already beginning to shed his costume, revealing his original clothes hidden underneath.

            “I’m- I’m sorry I wasn’t girly enough,” he mumbled, looking down at the ground.  Jonghyun shook his head.

            “Don’t sweat it.  Now we just need to find Key instead of you.  It still has the same results.”

            Minho looked up at the sky.  “But she left so fast,” he said.  “I don’t think we’ll be able to catch up.”

            Jonghyun gave a lopsided grin.  “Don’t worry, I’ve got this.”

            The mountain guide raised his eyebrows.  “Oh, really?”

            Jonghyun nodded.  “When I’m a dragon, my sense of smell is heightened by, like, ninety-five percent.  And Key always wears this obnoxious cotton candy perfume.  I can smell it a mile away.”

            Onew almost laughed despite himself, but caught it just in time.  Something told him that Jonghyun wouldn’t appreciate his laughter right then.

            Suddenly Jonghyun stepped out into the clearing, and next thing Onew knew, there was a dragon.  Just like Key had said, this dragon was smaller, and less fierce-looking.  Its eyes weren’t glinting and stormy with rage – they looked like Jonghyun’s eyes, and they looked determined.

            “I guess we’re riding on his back?” Minho guessed, scanning the creature’s form.  Onew took Yoogeun’s hand, smiling down at the child reassuringly.

            “Is this your first time riding on a dragon, Yoogeun?” he asked gently.  The boy looked down at the ground and nodded.  Onew gave a small chuckle.

            “Mine too.”

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Am I the only one who thinks that Key's speech at the beginning is long enough to turn into a monologue?  Aigoo.

Anyhoo, another chapter tomorrow, as always... don't forget to comment and subscribe! :D And thank you all for the support so far.  Love you all to bitsies. <3

Brownie points for anyone who can spot parallels of the Odyssey in this chapter.