It was dark.  It was cold.  It was gray.  It was night.  There was too much stone.  There was no moon.

            And that was about all Onew could observe at the moment – he wished he could notice more, that he could see something the others couldn’t, that he could see the thing that would get them moving again.  But he couldn’t.  He wasn’t sure the last time he had felt so useless.

            Knees curled up to his chest, chin rested on his knees, the leader – although, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to call himself that anymore – sat on the cliff edge, overlooking the twists and turns and never ending shadows of Mount Ring Ding Dong, alone, in silence.  There was no light, save the burning of already-dead trees in the distance, and the only sound that met his ears was the occasional – but not exactly infrequent – roar of Jonghyun.  The sounds had gone from furious bellows to desperate calls to pained wails.  They all sort of sounded the same – gravelly and deep and echoing – but they were different.  Onew at least knew that.

            A cold wind howled past him, carrying with it the cry of the Earth Dragon.  Onew watched it whip down the slope; it waved at him through the flames.  He tentatively waved back.

            Where did it all go wrong?

            Was it when Taemin was taken?  When Key was taken?  When Yoogeun was taken?  When the chicken was taken?

            This is… all my fault, isn’t it?

            There was a shuffling from behind him, but Onew didn’t process it until the sound had passed and his companion was sitting next to him – although, Onew wasn’t sure if he wanted to call him that anymore.

            “Hey,” said Key, dully.

            Onew curled up into a tighter ball.

            “Can’t sleep?” the diva asked.  Onew shook his head, his chin rolling from one knee to the other bumpily.

            “Me neither,” said Key, staring out at the scattering of burning trees.  “Don’t want to.”

            Onew looked over his shoulder at Minho, who was curled up under a ledge, one arm draped across Yoogeun.  Onew wondered if he was pretending Yoogeun was Taemin, back when Taemin was in elementary school, back when they first met.  Back when they were still together.  Back before they met Onew.

            Onew wasn’t exactly sure why Minho had taken Key.  It was an act of desperation no doubt, but there genuinely was no point.  It was Jonghyun who could fly, not Key; Jonghyun was the one who could help locate the dragoness’ cave, not Key.  All the separation had done was anger one of the most lethal creatures in the land, and gain the group an unwilling companion.  If Minho had been hoping to use Key as a tool for negotiation, then that plan had gone down the drain almost instantly – in his current state, Jonghyun would burn four of them to a crisp before anyone had a chance to speak.

            He returned his gaze to the landscape.  The trees weren’t waving at him anymore.

            “I don’t blame them,” he mumbled aloud, words slurred slightly by his puckered lips.  Key looked at him, seeming surprised by his talking.

            “Don’t blame what?” the boy asked, swinging his legs out over the darkness below.

            “The trees,” said Onew slowly, tilting his head to one side, then the other.  “They aren’t waving at me anymore.”

            “Oh,” said Key.  A pause.  “Were they before?”

            Onew nodded again.  “But now they’re not, and I don’t blame them.”

            “Why not?”

            “Because I’m the reason they’re on fire.”

            And Key gave this odd little laugh, only it wasn’t a laugh.  It was an acknowledgement, that he had heard Onew’s words and found them to be completely ridiculous and mildly amusing.

            Another pause.  Another breeze.  But no wave.

            “Why is he doing that?” Onew asked quietly.  Key turned to look at him for the first time.

            “Huh?” he asked, legs pausing in their swinging.

            “Jonghyun,” Onew murmured.  “Why is he burning down the trees?”

            The swinging resumed.  “Because he’s angry.”

            “Why is he angry?”

            “Didn’t you ever listen to your mother’s fairytales?” Key’s voice was wry, and he leaned back to observe the lights.  “Only an idiot takes a dragon’s treasure.”

            Onew straightened up a little.  “I wasn’t the one who did it,” he said in faint protest.  Key gave a small laugh, as dry and humorless as the situation.

            “I know that, but he doesn’t care.”

            A long silence followed this.  Onew didn’t really think.  He just watched, and waited for a wave.  Just one sign of forgiveness, from anything I’ve ever done wrong to.

            Suddenly, Key spoke.  “I’m going to die.”

            Onew looked up – this was genuinely surprising, coming from Key.  Light, flouncing, diva Key.

            “Someday, I’m going to die,” he repeated, not looking at Onew.  Only at the destruction.  He seemed to be searching for a dragon’s form among the rippling shadows.  “I’m going to get old and wrinkly and my hair will turn gray and I will die.”

            Onew blinked, and Key let out the smallest of sighs.

            “I wonder how he’ll survive without me?” he wondered aloud, somewhat wistfully, as though he were looking far, far into the future.  “I’m not sure if dragons are immortal or not, but they live so long that no one’s ever found one dead of old age.  So he’ll definitely outlive me.  And, you know,” he sighed, legs still swinging, now a little more violently than before; “I wonder what he’ll do with me when I’m not pretty anymore.  I don’t think he’s ever seen me as a person – just one of his many treasures, one of his jewels among that pile of gold he sleeps on every night, like all dragons do.  And when I’m old and plain and not pretty anymore, what will he do?” Key sighed again, loudly.  “Perhaps he’ll throw me out.  But perhaps not.  Dragons can be stingy like that.  But I’ll hardly be his favorite, that’s for sure.”  Key looked down at his chipped, dirtied nails.  “I suppose he’ll always look the same.  I’ll be getting older and crinkly and hunched, and he’ll always be young and smooth and as tall as he’ll ever be.”  Key blinked a few times.  “I wonder how it will feel, to not be the favorite, when I most definitely was before.  I think it will hurt more if I’m replaced.  But…” Key took a moment to breathe.  “If I were offered immortality, I would accept it, just for that reason.  So that I would never have to be replaced.  Because I don’t think I could handle the pain of that.  It sounds selfish, and maybe it is, but it’s also the truth.  I think we’re all allowed to be a little selfish sometimes.  So here’s me, being selfish.”

            Onew raised his head and looked at Key.  “You should leave,” he said.  Key looked up, confused.

            “What?”

            “You should leave,” Onew repeated.  “Before Minho wakes up.  Go find Jonghyun.  We don’t need you here, anyways.”

            Key blinked again, and this time his eyes were glassy.

            “Onew, you’re a leader,” he said, before getting up and dashing off into the night.

            Onew watched him go, before turning back to the scenery.

            Another pause.  Another breeze.  A flame in the distance waved.  And Onew tentatively waved back.

----------------

Angst + Little Plot Movement = This Chapter

:P But poor Minho.  He just wants his Taeminnie back.

(And I promised myself I wouldn't make any lame jokes about Minho, so.)

Next chapter is the last one! :O Can you guys believe it?  The whole thing was 62 pages total in Word, although it was double-spaced so it was probably more like 40-something.  BUT STILL.  That's the longest thing I've ever written. /authorfail

Also, I'll be starting the next story related to this one almost immediately afterwords, and I'll be sure to link it in this story later! :) Thanks for all the support, you guys!  I'm surprised how much love this story has recieved, but pleased nonetheless!  Love you all~