He didn’t like flying.  He really didn’t and as the plane jumped and shuddered on its descent to the runway, Ryeowook’s hands clung to the armrests tighter, gritting his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut.  His stomach lurched at the sudden rise, plummeting in the next moment when the flying contraption of potential death dipped again, making him ask himself one more time just what he was doing flying to Eureka, Montana.

                A quick intake of breath followed the intercom crackling to life and Ryeowook was brave enough to crack an eye open as he glanced at the other passengers.  Disgustingly, his own seatmate was still sleeping…  Ugh!  But no one else was panicking and the pilot was talking, speaking in that weird way they always did.  At least he thought it was odd, with the strange pauses like they were actively deliberating what they should tell the rest of the plane or not.  Thank god the window was closed though.  It made the descent just a tiny bit more bearable.

                At least until the plane actually touched down.  The tiny young man squeaked and hunched himself further into his seat as he swore the plane bounced, jostling him roughly while the engines whined loudly in the downshift and the force of the brakes heaved him forward against his seatbelt.  “Oh god…” he groaned, closing his eyes to take one deep breath after the next.  “For Henry.  Just keep telling yourself that, Wookie.  You can do this to see your best friend, right?”

                Exhaling in palpable relief, Ryeowook slumped into the back of his seat when the plane finally came to a full stop, his legs like jelly and his fingers cramping from holding on so tightly.  As much as he hated flying and wanted to get off the plane as soon as possible, he hated being crammed up against any number of strange people even less.  No he wasn’t claustrophobic, but he was small and he disliked the feeling of being dwarfed on all sides…

                Still trying to will his racing heart to slow down, he waited until most of the passengers cleared out before he stood up to retrieve his overhead bag, struggling with the larger piece of luggage.  When it was free, Ryeowook ducked his head in embarrassment, bashfully waving to the flight attendants who had at least tried to make his ride as comfortable as it could be, all things considered, and practically bolted from the side door to the exit ramp.  Solid ground!  Mostly.  Just standing on something sturdy that wasn’t going to be in the air at all made him feel better and he finally smiled, relaxing for the first time since he stepped on the damn plane.

                With single minded intensity, he rolled his bag behind him and brushed too-long, dark brown bangs out of his tired eyes, making a beeline for the entrance to the airport.  It only took him a second to check his phone, confirming that Henry was indeed in the waiting area, before he picked up his pace, weaving through the exiting throng skillfully.  That was one thing about being tiny; he simply didn’t get in the way and it was easy to get around others.

                Then again, Glacier Park Airport wasn’t half as big as the one he’d left in Chicago, Illinois.  He missed the familiar, bustling city already and he’d only been gone a few hours.  That didn’t bode well, but Henry had assured him he had absolutely nothing to worry about.  Right.  Because strange things didn’t happen in the mountains… no.  He couldn’t talk.  Worse things happened in the city all the time, to be fair.

                Ryeowook sighed as he gave himself another mental pep talk.  By the time he was right back around to second guessing himself, he made it to the waiting area and immediately zeroed in on Henry. As if it had never existed in the first place, his nervousness and uncertainty dissipated like a bad dream and he beamed at the young man who noticed him at nearly the same time.  “Henry!” he called, waving his free hand quickly.

                “Wookie!” the taller young man shouted, actually jogging over, threading through the crowd with ease.

                Taller than Ryeowook by several inches, the younger male seemed to have filled out even more and looked older than the last time he’d seen him.  His cheeks had lost some of the baby fat that had always made him appear like a child and the light brown hair was doing a neat upward spike thing.  Ryeowook wanted to pat it to see if it would move, but he was ensconced in a huge bear hug before he could.  “Oof!” the slender young man grunted, letting go of his suitcase to squeeze back, his own grip nowhere near as strong.

                “You made it!  How was the flight?  Is that all you brought?” Henry asked in quick succession, finally stepping back to hold Ryeowook at arm’s length.

                Ryeowook laughed at the rapid-fire questions and straightened his white shirt under a light coat, pausing to give his companion a once over too.  Blue jeans, a dark colored, long-sleeved shirt, and hiking boots rounded out his appearance.  Maybe it wouldn’t be too cold after all.  “Ugh!  Don’t even get me started on the flight.  You know how I feel about planes,” he groaned, stifling a heavy sigh as Henry chuckled at his misery.

                “I know,” he responded, pulling the shorter male back into his arms for a consoling hug.  “But it’s so much faster than driving from Illinois.  After all, it took me two years to convince you to come out here for two measly weeks.  I’m not losing time to you driving,” he teased dryly, the upward turn of his lips taking any sting out of the words.

                “I drive better than you do!” Ryeowook defended immediately, smacking Henry on the arm in a harmless, playful gesture.

                “Not a manual transmission,” Henry winked, reaching to take Ryeowook’s suitcase.

                “Oh!  I’ve got it!” Ryeowook urged, scrambling to take it back.

                “Nope!  You’re my guest and I promised you a nice and relaxing time.  That includes me carrying your luggage,” the younger male assured him cheekily, holding Ryeowook away with his other arm.  “Speaking of which,” he continued before the other male could interrupt.  “Is this all you brought?”

                With a shrug, Ryeowook nodded.  “Yep.  You didn’t say I needed to bring anything extra so it’s what I usually take with me when I travel.”

                “You travel light,” Henry grinned, stepping close to sling his arm over his companion’s shoulder.  “Yoochun is terrible when it comes to packing.  I think he has to take his whole damn room,” he groaned with a roll of his eyes.

                “He’s your… cousin, right?” Ryeowook asked with a raised brow as he looked up at Henry.

                “Yep.  Oh don’t worry,” he chuckled, waving a hand at Ryeowook when he looked nervous.  “He’s utterly harmless and I’m sure you’ll get along with him just fine.  Oh!  And wait until you meet Luna.  She’s adorable,” he gushed with a goofy grin, the infectious expression transferring to his companion easily.

                “Luna?” he murmured, thinking the name sounded familiar but he couldn’t remember why.  When Henry told him about the Park family cabin near Ksanka Peak, he’d been hesitant about agreeing to stay.  It was in the middle of nowhere and Ryeowook wasn’t a camper by any means.  There was a reason he lived in the middle of a large city, after all, but some of the pictures Henry had been sending him, as bribery no doubt, were spectacular.  No, he didn’t like camping, but he loved the views you could only get from being in the environment.

                “Yeah.  And wait until you see Micky.  He’s a bit skittish though so we might not catch him today,” he nodded, shrugging his shoulders without concern.

                It felt like Ryeowook should know the names, so he didn’t ask, even though he really couldn’t get a clear idea of who he should be expecting.  They’d only kept in constant contact via email since the phone reception was terrible and after they’d graduated from undergrad together, Henry had gone into nature conservation hardcore, an alignment that put him in really good standing with his cousins, the Parks, who worked extensively with the wildlife and the recovering wolf population in particular in the nearby mountain range.

                The pair spoke back and forth as they headed for the parking garage and Ryeowook paused when he saw Henry walking towards a dirty, fairly scratched up pickup truck, the dark blue paint chipping off in several places.  “Is that seriously the same truck from college?”

                “Of course,” Henry nodded in response, hefting Ryeowook’s suitcase into the back with deft care.  He made sure it was securely in place before he turned to watch his friend approach, a fond smile pulling his lips up at the corners.

                Slender fingers reached out to brush against the fading side of the vehicle, fingertips tracing the rough edges and rusting metal lightly.  “So many good memories,” he murmured, recalling times when they would just ride around in the cab, singing loudly to whatever was on the radio.  Their off-key vocals still rang in his head with a glance at the cab.

                Henry placed both hands on the driver side door and shrugged.  “If it’s not broke, don’t fix it.”

                Ryeowook nodded at the familiar intonation, looking up with a warm glimmer in his eyes.  “Very true, Henry.  Very true,” he agreed, pulling the passenger side door open to slide on top of the fabric of a faded and worn seat cover, dark brown and green tones pale and fraying.  The dash was starting to crack from sun exposure, but the interior looked presentable enough otherwise.

                Sliding into the driver seat, Henry cranked it to life, wincing once at the brief whine in the fan belt as she reluctantly turned over.  “I never said she was perfect,” he snorted with a sidelong glance at his companion who just looked at him in amusement.  “So!” he chirped, smacking both hands on the steering wheel.  “It’s just after three and if I know you at all, you haven’t eaten since forever ago.”

                Ryeowook ducked his head and flushed in embarrassment, nodding hesitantly.  If he had to fly or anytime he got too nervous, he couldn’t keep food down and usually didn’t eat for hours at a time.  In fact, he hadn’t eaten since last night and he was definitely starting to feel it.

                Henry snorted at the lack of response and shook his head.  “Food it is then.  Maybe that’ll put some color back into your cheeks.  And if not, you’re staying inside way too often,” he chided with a bemused chuckle.

                “I get out,” Ryeowook defended himself quickly, crossing his arms over his chest.  “I am not that pale,” he grumbled, holding his hand out to compare it with Henry’s, only to grumble under his breath at the large difference between them.  He looked downright pasty next to Henry’s sun-kissed skin, the light tan color giving him a healthy glow.

                Left with little room to argue, he chewed on his bottom and then pouted, “Well, I do work a desk job…”

                The outright laugh beside him told Ryeowook how far that excuse would take him.  “Aish.  Looks like I’ve got my work cut out for me,” Henry winked in a friendly manner, reaching over to pat his companion’s shoulder before he put the truck in gear.

                “For what?” Ryeowook asked in a chastised tone.  He already knew what his friend was going to say, since he’d been harping on him since they became friends for the same things: a lack of food, sun, and exercise, in that order.  At least he’d made it this far though, and he didn’t get sick all that often.  And there was that look.  Bugger.

                Henry gave him the familiar, skeptical head tilt with pursed lips.  “Oh, you know,” he chuckled, refusing to elaborate as he turned the radio on, static talking to them briefly until he located a station that belted out something twangy.  When Ryeowook returned the expression at his choice of music, he burst out laughing and conceded the point.  “Alright, alright,” he murmured, switching over to the CD player.

                While it was loading the disc, Ryeowook couldn’t help but ask, “Seriously, Henry.  When are you going to upgrade that at least?”

                “If it’s not broke,” he started to say, looking at his companion pointedly.

                Ryeowook held his hands up in surrender and laughed.  “I know.  Don’t fix it,” he finished with a shake of his head, threading his fingers together in his lap as he heard the first few notes of a song they had worked on together come to life over the speakers.  His light brown eyes widened in surprise and his mouth fell open in a mute gasp as he looked at his best friend.  As soon as he heard their voices stream through, he laughed in complete delight, clapping excitedly at the sound of one of their first duets together.

                “I thought you might like that,” Henry beamed, grabbing Ryeowook’s shoulder and giving it a firm squeeze as he paid attention to the road and began to sing along.

                It was another thing he hadn’t done nearly enough of since college: sing or compose.  Editing for a professional publishing company tended to take up most of his time and it drained his creativity at the end of the day, leaving him somewhat brain dead after work.  That was part of the reason he’d agreed to the two week vacation with Henry; he honestly just needed a break and his family was being little more than a nuisance lately, talking about how he needed to find someone to settle down with and how his younger, closest cousin already had a husband and a baby on the way.

                Falling back into the old routine of singing together again, he realized just how much he’d missed this simple activity and when the song finished, he took a deep, relaxed breath with his eyes closed.  “Thank you for inviting me,” he breathed gratefully, fingers loosely threaded together as he simply enjoyed the moment.

                “Thanks for coming,” Henry responded with earnest sincerity, an amused chuckle lingering in his tone.

                For the next song, Ryeowook kept his eyes closed and they listened to the entire CD, all eleven songs, by the time they got food at the local Burger King and started on the drive to Henry’s cabin.  It was a fair distance from the town of Eureka and Henry’s truck didn’t particularly like the uphill climb, valiantly humming along at a higher pitch than he was used to, but he couldn’t beat the scenery.

                As they climbed in elevation, the rest of the earth fell away and he saw a vast expanse of greenery extending over the mountains where even further hills were dotted with various caps of snow and clouds, the tree furnished exterior disappearing beneath their cover.  In the middle of summer, it was still somewhat chilly with the windows down, causing Ryeowook to pull his jacket closer about him, but the mountain air was incredibly clear and clean.  There wasn’t even the slightest trace of smog or pollution present, and Ryeowook at least found it fascinating.

                Amidst his wonderment, he and Henry chatted affably with the younger male pointing out interesting landmarks and spots of interest as they drove.  There was no additional traffic so he didn’t have to worry about the road too much, except for the lack of rails, which did make Ryeowook a little bit nervous, but it did nothing to detract from them catching up on the little things they hadn’t been able to send via email.

                They started to retell stories of college but didn’t get very far before they reached the cabin nestled quaintly in the overarching forest.  Okay, so it wasn’t actually in the forest but there were trees on all sides of the clearing around it, hiding it mostly from view.  The old, log cabin was large; considerably bigger than Ryeowook was expecting and likely big enough for four or five times their current number.  A smaller barn dominated the back of the clearing behind the house and there was another storage shed immediately to the left of the structure.

                Henry pulled up next to another vehicle in the driveway, a similar sized pickup truck that had a relatively recent paint job, the black color still whole, if dirty.  “Home sweet home!” he grinned, hopping out with the enthusiasm of a five year old as he retrieved Ryeowook’s suitcase and waved at him to get moving.

                “I’m coming!” Ryeowook laughed, rushing after the taller male as they hurried to the front door.  He pulled up short when he heard a tiny whining sound.  At least that’s what he thought it was.  Then he noticed the little, fluffy puppy wiggling out from under the front porch stairs, whole body wriggling in its excitement.

                “Luna,” Henry sighed, setting Ryeowook’s suitcase down as he knelt in front of the puppy who bounded up to him and threw herself into his arms, dirtying his shirt from her stay under the house which had colored her off-white fur a matted brown.

                Absolutely delighted, Ryeowook flailed excitedly as he hurried to fawn over her.  “A puppy!” he cooed, reaching out to scratch her head as she whined happily, trying very hard to his hand, making him laugh.

                “She’s actually full-grown,” Henry corrected him, offering the wriggling mass to his companion, eyes crinkled in amusement when he accepted without complaint, regardless of the dirt.

                “Really?” he asked in confusion.  “She’s so tiny.  And she looks a little different from the puppies I’ve seen before,” he admitted, peering into her clear, blue eyes as she panted at him, tongue lolling out the side of .  She honestly wasn’t much bigger than a corgi, and was just as fluffy.

                “Yeah,” Henry nodded with a pensive look.  “For some reason, she never grew to adult size.  You’d never know she was almost four years old.”

                “Yah!” Ryeowook gasped, startling the ball of energy in his arms so that she jerked away with a yip, nearly tumbling from his grasp.  Strangely enough, she actually grabbed at his arms with her paws, hugging them without struggling further.  “Huh,” he chirped at the reaction steadying them both enough so that she could go back to being happy and grinning in his embrace.

                Henry just nodded at them both, “She’s had a lot of practice with being held.”  He gave her a long look, which she returned blink for blink, before she yipped at him once and he rolled his eyes in exasperation.  “And she’s spoiled rotten, I warn you now.”

                If Ryeowook didn’t know better, he would have said that Luna snorted at Henry’s response.  In puzzlement, he gazed her at, unable to keep the smile from his face when she craned her head back around to lather his chin with sloppy kisses.

                “Stop that,” Henry chided with a light pat on her back.

                “It’s alright,” Ryeowook assured him, missing Henry’s frown at Luna who steadfastly ignored him.

                The sound of the door opening dragged both their attention to the young man standing on the porch.  He had both fists perched on his waist while he regarded Luna with a wry twist to his mouth, nonplussed eyes blinking from under the fall of his wavy, dark brown bangs.  “There she is,” he exhaled with a long suffering sigh.

                “Uh oh.  You’re in trouble now,” Henry chuckled, waving in greeting to the stranger who wore clothes of a similar make.  Apparently blue jeans and t-shirts were the way to go.

                Ryeowook didn’t feel terribly out of place since he had actually thought to bring mostly those types of clothes, though his sneakers were questionable.  At present, he was wondering why Luna was in trouble…

                “Brat,” the stranger barked a laugh as he stopped in front of Henry and Ryeowook.

                “Hey, Yoochun.  Luna’s just making the rounds, as per usual,” he nodded, gesturing towards the pup in his friend’s arms.  “Harassing Ryeowook and getting him all dirty.”

                This time, when Henry shook his finger at her, Ryeowook was positive that she understood and he stared as her ears flattened against her head at the scolding, a thin, repentant whine escaping from her tiny body.  “Aww.  She’s a smart little thing too, isn’t she?”  The question prompted her to wag her tail which made him laugh in return.

                “You have no idea,” Yoochun assured him, extending his hands to retrieve the errant Luna.  With her safely under his arm, he finally turned his attention to the newcomer and extended his hand.  “Nice to meet you, Ryeowook.  Henry’s been telling me all about you,” he grinned, the statement alarmingly neutral.

                “All good things,” Henry added quickly, leaning over to whisper behind his hand in a conspiratorial manner.

                “Or so he’d like for you to believe,” Yoochun laughed outright, gleefully throwing his cousin under the figurative bus.

                “Oh really now?” Ryeowook responded, head tilting to the side as he glanced between his friend and Yoochun.

                Henry scowled at his cousin and shooed with his hands, “Don’t you have work to do?”

                Yoochun made a face at the younger male and then glanced down at Luna, bouncing her in his arms so that she panted happily again.  “With this little troublemaker around?  Always.”  He shrugged and added, “Though, of the wolves we take care of, she’s probably among the most entertaining of the lot.  Anyway,” he finished up with a dismissive wave before Ryeowook could comment on the statement.  “I’ll be out back if you need me.  Feel free to anything in the fridge and Ryeowook,” he stated, fixing his intent, dark eyed gaze on the newcomer.

                “Neh?” he responded in a knee-jerk reaction, feeling very antsy under the heavy weight of his gaze.  Why did he suddenly feel like a mouse cornered by a cat?

                “Make yourself at home and I hope you enjoy your stay,” he smiled and waved, turning around to carry Luna towards the back barn.  “And you need a bath, missy.  You know better than to get under the house,” he chided as he walked, his voice growing distant as he went.

                Ryeowook looked between the departing Yoochun and Henry, still trying to make sense of things.  “So Luna’s a wolf?”  He’d have never thought it but that explained why she looked a little different than any normal puppy he’d seen.

                “Yep.  She’s completely harmless though.  Just like Yoochun.  He can be a bit intimidating sometimes but you’ll get used to him,” Henry waved with one hand while he retrieved Ryeowook’s bag, hefting if with ease, refusing to use the wheels on the bottom of it.

                “Are there other creatures in the barn then?” he asked, peering around at the structure with some concern.

                “Of course.  Yoochun and I work to rehabilitate injured wildlife in the area.  I’m mostly just an extra pair of hands while he does the delicate stuff, but we’ve got a couple volunteers that come by to help every so often and you’ll probably meet them soon enough.  But!  As my guest, you come first, okay?” he grinned, moving close enough so that he could sling an arm over his friend’s shoulders.

                In what he suspected would only be one of many times that he wondered what he was doing here, Ryeowook looked up at Henry with a speculative gaze.  “Should I be concerned?” he asked, declining to elaborate on what he was specifically inquiring about.

                “Don’t worry, Wookie!” Henry assured him with a firm, one-armed hug.  “I promised you a relaxing stay with whatever you wanted to do and I’m going to deliver on that.  Even if I have to piggyback you everywhere,” he grinned cheekily, waiting for the effect to wear off on his friend.

                The toothy expression was too much to resist and Ryeowook found himself laughing in the next few seconds as he slung his arm around Henry’s waist and leaned into the friendly contact.  “Alright, alright,” he agreed with a reluctant nod.  “So what’s next then?” he asked as he allowed himself to be guided towards the cabin.

                “Well!  I’m glad you asked,” Henry answered theatrically, being intentionally silly.  “Once we get you settled in, we’ve got two weeks to do anything and everything you want,” he beamed, stopping at the door to pull it open for both of them.  “How does that sound?”

                Ryeowook considered what two weeks could be like up here, completely out of his element and detached from anything and everything familiar except for Henry.  A glance at the spectacular scenery and another deep inhalation of the refreshingly clean air had him relaxing once more.  Even if the details were getting to be a bit more interesting than he bargained for, it was a nice area.  And it was really good to see Henry again.  There was so much that they needed to catch up on, and turning to meet his younger friend’s earnest, hopeful expression, he realized he did want to be here right now.

                Letting the encroaching smile take over his mouth, as it was going to anyway, Ryeowook laughed in the back of his throat and nodded, “That sounds great.”  Only then did he step inside, followed by the quiet footsteps of his best friend, the door shutting with a solid confidence that made him feel surprisingly safe in the new space.  Yep.  This was going to be interesting indeed.

(a/n: First chapter!  Woot!  It ran a bit longer than I meant, which isn't exactly unusual, but that tends to be a good thing in my experience.  heh  I hope you've enjoyed it though and we'll be getting to some more character introductions soon.  I know Kyuhyun wasn't even mentioned yet but one thing at a time.  ;)  We've gotta set the stage after all.  Thanks for reading and please look forward to the next update!)