"Where are you going, uncle Chanyeol?"

Chanyeol finishes shoving a few more things into a satchel- a couple apples, a few cookies, medicines and bandages. He'd thought through everything for three days, thought through every consequence of returning. Yet in the end, he's still a headstrong idiot and decided to do what feels right.

He extricates himself from the mess of his closet and turns to his audience of eight eager faces. "Somewhere- not that it concerns any of you."

Soojung huffs dramatically from where she's perched on the countertop between Jinri and Sooyeon, cookie only centimeters from her face and mouth littered with crumbs. "Come on, you're not that cool to have places to be."

Chanyeol blanches for a moment, tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth. "Well maybe now I am cool."

Soojung, Sooyeon, and Jinri groan at the same time, rolling their eyes. "The day you become cool is the day I become princess of all the jellyfish," Jinri helpfully adds between bites of her cookie.

"I can help you with that quest if you want," Kyungsoo says, stepping through the door at that moment. All the children gasp simultaneously. "Though I have to say that jellyfish are the least interesting of animals. They don't think much."

"Kind of like Jinri," Minho snickers, leaning back against the counter. Chanyeol's about to chide him for that but Jinri takes care of it herself, knocking his head with her fist and blowing a raspberry in his face. All the other kids snicker behind their hands and Chanyeol can see the tears just beginning to well up in his eyes.

"Okay, children, be nice," Kyungsoo says, stepping into the house. Minyoung and Sunny are out of their seats in an instant and have their tiny hands wrapped around Kyungsoo's waist. "The only person you're allowed so make fun of is Chanyeol."

Chanyeol pouts, swinging his satchel over his shoulder. "Ha ha. You're absolutely hilarious."

"Aren't I though?" Kyungsoo smirks, continuing to gather the kids in his arms as they all come to hug him. "The other mermen and mermaids are in tears at my jokes- well, you know, they would be if they could truly cry underwater."

Now Chanyeol rolls his eyes, slowly helping all the kids from his home. They're now all more than eager to follow Kyungsoo off to play."Just please don't let them jump out of the trees, okay? Minho tried that before, thinking he could fly, and that didn't turn out well."

Kyungsoo smiles, running fingers through Minho's hair. "No worries. Stay out of trees and no eating dirt."

Chanyeol nods, shutting the door behind them. Sooyeon, Jinri, and Sunny have run off ahead, already heading straight for the play house.

It’s always a little strange to see Kyungsoo out of the water. While Kyungsoo much prefers his tail, making a trip on land is not too difficult physically. He carries a powder with him at all times, and though he’s explained how it works before, Chanyeol assumes that it’s just like pixie dust: a little sprinkle over his tail and it magically transforms into two legs and 10 wiggly toes.

"Don't worry, uncle Chanyeol," Yerim murmurs, tugging gently on Chanyeol's tunic. Her cookie is gone but there are crumbs and chocolate smudges all around . "Uncle Kyungsoo will take care of us."

"Yeah!" Soojung yells. "We're gonna go play 'Mermaid and the sea witch' with him!"

Chanyeol glances wide eyed at Kyungsoo, and yet Kyungsoo simply smiles vacantly. "They're smart children. They came up with that story all on their own."

"Sure," Chanyeol huffs. "Thanks for taking them out though. I know it's hard for you to leave the ocean."

Kyungsoo shrugs. "You owe me," is all he says before he waves Chanyeol goodbye. He picks up Yerim in his arms, wipes the crumbs from , and follows the rest of the children through the farmlands and over to the playhouse.

Chanyeol finally breathes a sigh of relief. Half the day has already passed by since he'd had to wait for Kyungsoo to come. He hadn't expected so many kids to want to play with him all at once, and they even knew he had nothing planned for the day. They're too smart for their own good, Chanyeol muses, finally stepping through the forest.

He follows the path back through the forest, the sun high above the trees. It's cool underneath the canopy of the trees, though the animals all seem to have scurried away into their homes. He spots a few pixies twinkling around him, trying to . They sit in his hair, twinkling, leaving sparkly dust in their wake as they fly around his face. Swatting them away is no good, especially when they're trying to make Chanyeol smack himself. In the end, he decides to let them perch in his hair and takes them along for the ride.

Sweat is slowly beginning to drip down his forehead as he breaks through the last set of trees. He swings his satchel to one shoulder, wiping his forehead with his free sleeve. As soon as he approaches the last set of trees, the pixies fly out of his hair, probably sensing the dragons. Chanyeol smoothes down his hair where they sat, pushing back the knots and brushing out the sparkles.

He breaks through the last set of trees and into the clearing, the anxiety in his chest unwinding a little. His eyes fall upon everyone in the clearing- Luhan, Jongdae, Yixing, Zitao, Minseok, and even Jongin. And all of their eyes are on him.

"Hi," he says, running nervous fingers through his sweaty hair. The atmosphere is more tense than he expected, and he doesn't understand why. He slides the satchel off his shoulder. "I brought a few things--"

"Why did you come back?" Jongin growls. He's on the porch, wings outstretched behind him so that they nearly span the length of the house. Zitao had been sitting in the curve of his side but now moves away, sitting almost nervously.

Chanyeol stalls for a moment, a lump of words and confidence caught in his throat. Jongin looks much better, the tiredness behind his eyes gone and the wound in his abdomen has already healed up, but he looks angry. "I just figured--"

"--That you could continue putting us in danger? That you could disregard all the work we've put into being careful about staying in hiding just for your own pleasure?"

Zitao presses a gentle hand to Jongin's thigh, but it doesn't calm him down any. He brushes it off and stands, taking slow, heavy steps towards Chanyeol. His fists are curled up at his side, teeth grit tight.

"Stop that, Jongin," Yixing stays, stepping in front of Jongin's path. "If it wasn't for Chanyeol making the effort to bring the medicine, you would still be bedridden."

"And if it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be in this position in the first place!" Jongin is yelling, chest heaving for air as fury begins to boil hot in his veins. His red eyes are dangerously dark.

Yixing grips Jongin's shoulder, voice dropping to a low murmur. "Don't be like this, Jongin. Minseok is--"

"Minseok has been protecting us for years, caring for us and taking care of us, and you want to let a complete stranger ruin it for us?!"

Yixing is effectively silenced at that. He's still holding Jongin back, but his grip loosens for only a moment and Jongin takes that chance to shove Yixing away.

Chanyeol is silent, throat locked up. His mind is in a daze, not believing that this is happening, but maybe he should have expected this.

"Jongin, stop," Jongdae says, green eyes flashing with worry. Jongin doesn't stop but instead puffs up his chest and blows fire at Jongdae.

He then turns to Chanyeol, chest puffed up, and only registers slowly what's about to happen. He ducks just in time, drops to the ground on his back and looks up to a giant fire cascading above me. His heart is beating heavy from the surprise. He's defenseless and though he's apologized, he still understands how Jongin must feel.

Jongin leans over him, hoisting him up by the fist wrung in the collar of his shirt. His dragon claws have come out as have his ears. He looks menacing, far more frightening than the beast Chanyeol had taken out of the sky.

"Leave," Jongin seethes, breath hot as it brushes over Chanyeol's cheek and down his neck. "Leave and don't come back. Forget about us."

Chanyeol swallows thickly, trying to look around for a glimmer of help. Minseok looks like he wants to speak up, but his tongue is caged between his teeth and he doesn't make a sound to help him.

"Dragons are secrets," Jongin continues. "We are not caged animals like the cows and sheep in the village. We live in fear of being hunted by dragon hunters and witches, and this forest has been the only sanctuary we've found in years." Jongin's eyes flash. "So leave, and don't come back. We can't afford to get up and leave another time."

Jongin unceremoniously drops Chanyeol on the ground, spitting fire in his face before stalking off back to the porch. Chanyeol is left in silence, in shock, trying to come to terms with what a simple mistake has done for them.

"If you don't want me here," Chanyeol sighs, "I'll go." He looks directly at Minseok, a sad smile crossing his own features. "I'll leave."

And so he does, leaving his satchel behind, looking back at solemn faces, and trying to erase the image of Minseok smiling imprinted on the back of his eyes.

He doesn't know why he cared so much anyway.

A slap resounds in the terse silence left behind. Jongin is cradling his cheek in shock as it slowly begins to swell up under his hand. Jaw slack and eyes wide, his gaze falls upon Zitao who's cradling his own trembling hand.

Zitao growls low in his chest, teeth bared but his eyes are sad. He's upset, and Jongin is at a complete loss for words. Zitao has never been upset with anyone, not even once. Jongin doesn't understand.

"You didn't need to go that far, Jongin," Jongdae says. "He was sincere."

Jongin is caught in a trance, dumbfounded and unable to take his eyes off of Zitao. He finally sighs, defeated, and shuffles back over to the deck with his head between his hands. Zitao hasn't moved, hands still shaking and too scared to approach Jongin. He whimpers in the back of his throat, worried, and Luhan comes up to Zitao and hugs him. Zitao breathes out heavily, resting his head on Luhan's shoulder and trying so hard to collect himself.

They're so young for dragons, Luhan muses, raising his hand to Zitao's head and carding gently through his hair.

Jongdae moves over to sit next to Jongin and Luhan stays next to Zitao, comforting him until he calms down, but Yixing has his eyes set on Minseok. He takes the trainer by the hand and pulls him through the forest, away from the house and farther away so they won't be heard.

"Where are we going?" Minseok asks, confused.

But Yixing doesn't reply, he keeps pushing through the forest until they're far enough that curious ears won't pry on their conversation.

"I want you to be honest with me," Yixing says, bringing them to a stop suddenly. Minseok looks on confused, hands wringing nervously at his sides. "Don't think about us," Yixing continues. "Just think about what you want. The rest of us, even Jongin, will always be on your side no matter what."

Minseok swallows thickly, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I don't understand what you mean."

Yixing sighs and presses a gentle hand to Minseok's shoulder. He smiles and finally says, "Do you like Chanyeol?"

Minseok freezes up, hands stilled. He breathes out shakily. "I don't-- I don't think--"

But Yixing's gaze is serious and Minseok stumbles over his words. His voice locks up and his thoughts all jumble together.

"You have to be honest with yourself. Do you want Chanyeol to stay? Do you like him?"

Minseok bites down on his lip because for once, he feels a little lost. He's never felt so helpless, not when he had to raise and train five dragons and survive out in the enchanted forest on his own. Then again, he hasn't even been near another man in years, especially not one like Chanyeol.

"If you like him," Yixing says, gripping Minseok's hand, "we all will support you. We're stronger now than we used to be and now we can protect you no matter what happens afterwards. Jongin and Zitao, they'll come to understand and trust Chanyeol too. You've done so much and this is the least we could do for you."

Then Yixing sighs weakly. "If you don't like Chanyeol, then say it. Don't leave the rest of us on the edge of trusting him and being scared of him. If you believe he's bad, we'll trust your judgement. But if you like him, then now is the time to say it. Don't think about us for once and just think about what you want."

Minseok exhales, not even sure what to think at this point. His dragons mean so much to him. Years ago, when he'd been outcasted from his kingdom since they were afraid of the curses the witch would bring upon them, Yixing and Luhan had been the ones to take them in. Then they'd gone out and found Jongdae, Jongin, and Zitao, and now they'd become something of a family. And while Minseok doesn't ever want it to change, there's something different about the way Chanyeol had made him feel. Upon first sight, his heart had threatened to burst right out of his chest and his mind screamed that this was something he shouldn't let go.

Even if this doesn't end well, Minseok looks up at Yixing with confidence. He breathes out his nerves and his eyes alight with something bright, something Yixing's never seen before.

Yixing smiles, patting Minseok's shoulder before he leads him back to their home. He'd sensed the way Minseok had felt about Chanyeol, he knew Chanyeol was the one who would help him when trouble would inevitably descend upon them. However, he didn't expect Minseok to be so honest with himself, at least not on the first try of falling in love.

A few days pass by before Chanyeol gets an unexpected knock on the door. He'd been lounging around in the biggest clothes he could find, hair unruly. He'd spent the past two days moping, confused, and had finally decided that today he'd do something- at least go out and play with some of the kids because they usually cheer him up no matter what's upsetting him.

He opens the door, completely expecting a three foot tall child to immediately clamp to his knees and plead him with big eyes to come out and play, only to find the exact source of the confusion he's been in for the past two days.

"Hi," Minseok says, bouncing on his heels.

Chanyeol's jaw drops, but no words come out.

Minseok looks curiously into his home, glancing nervously around him outside and behind him. "Can I, uh, come in?"

"Right, yes, come in," Chanyeol nods, continues nodding and is suddenly so surprised and more confused that his head might just knock off his neck. He tries to run quick hands through his hair to fix up the knots and smooth down what has become a bird's nest.

Minseok steps through the front door, shyly skirting along the walls. He looks around, peeking around the kitchen doorway and into the living room. "Nice place," he muses. "It seems a bit quiet though. Not what I expected from you."

Chanyeol smiles sheepishly. "Well a couple kids from the village essentially live at my house and so does--"

A soft meow resounds throughout the kitchen. Luna saunters into the kitchen, winding herself between Minseok's legs, purring against him, before hopping up on the counter beside him.

"And there's the princess, Luna," Chanyeol sighs. Minseok seems to be completely enamored with her though, petting her between the ears and quickly finding the spot that makes her completely pliant and nice.

"She's adorable," Minseok sighs. Luna simply meows from under his hand and curls into his touch more than Chanyeol's ever seen before.

"You can keep her. She isn't mine and all she does sleep on my face and uses me as a scratching post."

Luna hisses, baring her teeth and claws and Chanyeol grips the counter, fearing Luna may actually lunge for him. Minseok just laughs behind his hand, eyes twinkling with mirth.

Chanyeol makes the mistake of looking into Minseok's eyes and his chest suddenly hurts again. He pastes a smile over the heartache like a bandaid and pretends like he hasn't been depressed for the past two days.

"How did you find--"

"I wanted to ask you--"

Both of them fall silent, lips pursed tight. Chanyeol smiles and gains the courage to ask first.

"How did you find my home?"

Minseok leans back against the counter, elbows propped up to give Luna room to wander around him. She finds the best place to settle underneath the crook of his arm. "I had Yixing track down your scent. And I wanted to ask you something."

Chanyeol nods, palms suddenly sweaty and clammy. He wipes his palms down his pants, trying to hide his nervousness. Minseok, oddly enough, looks about as nervous as he feels.

"Jongin... he really wanted to apologize for the other day." Minseok's gaze drops down to his feet, aimlessly scuffing the ground. He shoves his hands deep into his pockets, and as if Luna senses his nerves, she meows and cuddles against his shoulder. "And I really don't want to chase you away. I..."

Minseok's voice catches, and Chanyeol doesn't know how to make Minseok feel more comfortable for whatever he's about to say. His own heart is about to break through his ribcage.

Minseok takes in a deep breath, eyes skirting nervously. "I want you to come back? I don't know what you’ve done to me but I liked seeing you. I liked that you're a bit of an idiot for pushing what may not work out anyway. Also for treating my dragons well even at the face of death. I don't want it to be ruined before we even have a shot."

Chanyeol isn't sure what to think- he's not thinking. Minseok takes his clammy hands from his pockets and holds them and Chanyeol's not even sure he's breathing.

"I really want to try this, Chanyeol," Minseok whispers sincerely. "I really do.”

Chanyeol's tongue feels swollen in his mouth, like it's blocking his throat from air.

Minseok suddenly leans up on his toes, lips pursed like he’s about to kiss him. Chanyeol holds his breath and closes his eyes, waiting for the kiss. But Minseok looks away shyly, letting go of Chanyeol’s hand and backing away, fussing around with Luna to hide his flushed cheeks.

Chanyeol isn't even sure his heart is beating because truthfully, this is the first time someone's tried to kiss him first. His fingers press to his own lips, where Minseok’s pink lips would have been, everything within him fit to burst.

It brings a small chuckle out of Minseok. He shyly shuffles over to the door, hands fidgeting behind his back. "I... so... yeah... just come over whenever. I'll teach you how to fly or something."

Chanyeol's throat feels suddenly dry. "I'll do that. Tomorrow. I'll come."

"Great," Minseok sighs. He opens the door for himself and steps into the bright summer sun. His cheeks are flushed pink like his lips. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow. Yes," Chanyeol stutters. He watches as Minseok leaves, waving behind him before he disappears into the woods. Chanyeol watches, dumbfounded, until an irritated meow snaps him out of his daze.

"Shush, Luna, something good is happening for me," he chides, but the cat simply hisses in his face, hops off the counter, and saunters off deeper into his home- most likely to piss on something he truly values. He groans and instead wanders into his bedroom, flops face down, and yells into his pillow until he chokes on the dryness of his throat.