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Dragons are marvelous creatures.
They come in all shapes and sizes, they have big and vast wings in their back, their scales shine in different colors and their limbs are tough yet soft. They’re all calm in nature, violent when provoked and mischievous by heart. They’re bringers of peace if raised correctly yet they can also bring ruin if nurtured with hatred, malice and vengeance.
Dragon riders exist for this reason, to tame the majestic beasts the right way.
The countless hours they all spend on reading, writing and practicing their taming skills all come to fruition the moment they turn twenty one. That’s the one moment when the dragon riders are tasked with their first ever mission, to tame a wild dragon with all the knowledge they’ve gained and bring it back with them. It’s a coming of age activity, a rite of passage, proof that their preparation and dedication are honest and righteous.
Not all dragons are caught immediately though, in fact, most take a couple of weeks, months or years to find and tame. It’s an arduous process that’s warned at the beginning of their theoretical practice, they’re advised to think their decision through and commit to being a fully fledged dragon trainer or they can be an advisor instead.
Very few people take the offer of advisor, most kids commit to the dragon rider role as it's the coolest.
Such is the case of a soon to be dragon rider who’s hidden in a bush as he stalks the area around him. “Any second now,” he says as he looks at his cleverly placed trap, a piece of meat where a cage would land on a dragon’s head and he could catch it. “Dragon trapping 101, a simple trap is the more efficient trap eighty percent of the time.”
The man nodded to himself as he heard rustling nearby, grabbing his rope and ready to throw it around any dragon that fell into his trap. He readies his rope, making a circle on one end and tying it up, alert for the moment he hears it snap.
He hears a huff, the sound of meat being eaten and he grins. “Kim Namjoon, get ready to finally be a fully fledged dragon rider.” He whispers to himself as he hears his trap snap, lunging forward and throwing his rope, managing to grab the creature… which was just a deer indigenous to the area and not a dragon.
Namjoon blinks as he looks at the deer who just stares at him while eating the meat. “Well this sucks.” He sighs, freeing the deer who took the meat while he was wrapping the rope around his waist and arm. “Another failed trap, another waste of my time I guess.”
Namjoon has dreamed of becoming a dragon rider his whole life. His family have all been dragon riders, he’s fascinated by the creatures, studies each one of them as if his life depends on it and as a kid he always imagined himself on the back of one as they soared through the sky. He’s dreamed of touching the clouds while on his trusty steed, developing a strong bond that rivaled that of any other rider and he even thought of how he could become the best of friends with one that people would joke they were practically the same being just in different bodies.
Sadly, his dreams have been on hold for almost four years as he has yet to catch and tame a dragon.
“One day, I’m sure of it.” Namjoon sits on a big rock, taking off his backpack with all his hunting equipment and food. He places it on the grass as he takes out a sandwich to eat. “I just have to keep going, that’s all.” He takes a bite of his sandwich and takes in his familiar surroundings.
He looks at the trees, tall and proud that stretch for miles swaying with the wind. He hears the sounds of the nearby river, raging rapids calming into a gentle trickle where he can see local wildlife quenching their thirst with the clear, cool water. He can listen to the wind howling, giving him a bit of chills as he’s partially covered thanks to his shirt having been ripped by his waist.
“I can’t believe I ripped my shirt in one of my attempts.” Namjoon frowns as he finishes his food. “Mother will probably shake her head while my brother scolds me for being reckless.” He rolls his eyes as he imagines his brother's words. “It’s not my fault his dragon literally fell in his arms and he had no trouble with taming him.”
Namjoon stands up and chuckles, fixing his torn shirt and tossing his backpack on his back. “The odds of that happening are scarce, it’s not like I’ll just snap my fingers and dragons will flock towards me.” He does as he says, snapping his fingers and giggling as he starts to walk.
He halts, his feet grow cold as he hears one, no, a few ferocious growls nearby. “What the!?” Namjoon looks at his fingers and curses at them, bolting to the nearest hiding spot but sadly it’s too late for him to do anything as the ones who roared make their appearance before him.
In front of him land two dragons. One is tall, the other is slightly smaller but looks bigger, stronger. They both have a red hue to their scales but the taller one has more pink colored scales and the stronger one has yellow colored scales. They both butt heads, huff in response to the playful interaction until they look at Namjoon and their eyes blink, eyes shifting into a predatory gaze and they snarl.
“E-easy there.” Namjoon slowly puts his hands in front of himself, taking careful steps backwards. “I mean no harm, I’m just… going for a walk.” He smiles at them, the dragons only trill in response as they move their claws in tandem with Namjoon’s steps.
It’s a game of chicken at this point, they’re sizing up the trainee who in turn is doing the same, observing their movements. “Hey.” Namjoon says and the dragons look at him, he points behind them. “A goat.” He sees the dragons look back and when they look at him, he’s already running away from them at an extremely fast pace.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” Namjoon curses as he sprints, parkouring over the different rocks, paths and trees. If he wasn’t running for his life from dragons running at a high speed and snarling at him he would take a moment to acknowledge that he’s doing a super cool job.
The chase goes on as Namjoon swerves, jumps and slides away from their claws. He’s close to his hiding spot, a cave he’s made that only he can fit inside, or at most an animal much smaller than a dragon, but he’s outsmarted and the pink dragons beat him to it. He slams his feet on the ground, turning to run away again but he’s trapped by the yellow dragon who snarls teasingly at the human.
“W-we can talk this out!” Namjoon says to both dragons, hands extended as if that will do anything. “I have meat I can give you guys for free! I can even cook it… well, burn it to an almost uneatable degree, but it’s tasty I swear!” He can hear one huff, almost as if he’s laughing at him. “Please spare me.” He mutters as he sees them both pounce, feet bouncing and ready to dodge whatever he needs to.
“RAAAAAAAWR!!” A loud, screeching roar made Namjoon and the dragons look up, a dragon that was smaller than the two was flying down swiftly towards them.
“Oh shit, not another one!” Namjoon didn’t know what to do as the third dragon, a purple one with a reddish hue, flew down at a fast speed with a determined expression. “I always knew dragons would be the death of me.” Namjoon sighed, closing his eyes in acceptance of his fate as he heard the dragon land, and yet he wasn’t met with a swift death but rather the embrace of wings covering his body.
He also heard the other two dragons roar, the sound of wings flapping made Namjoon open his eyes and he saw them both fly away while whining, the hurt in their voice imminent. “What the…” He muttered, the purple dragon spreading his wings and moving from its position.
From up close Namjoon saw its scales shine in the light, wet from a nearby waterfall no doubt. His body is strong yet looks light, he’s not as long as the pink dragon and he for sure doesn’t look as big as the yellow dragon. He does seem… calmer, more tame than the others and something he’s just noticed, he’s almost human sized.
“Well that’s odd.” Namjoon says wary, the dragon’s looking at him with wide eyes and his tail is wagging from side to side. “You’re way smaller compared to other dragons for such bravado you showed there, not to mention you’re so adorable too.” The dragon seems to understand him as it lowers his head and whines, making Namjoon giggle by the interaction. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. You’re just… not what I expected when I heard that big and strong roar earlier.”
The dragon’s eyes go wide as he stands upright quickly, his tongue darts out as it smiles and Namjoon notices he has no teeth.. His tail never stops wagging and he trills happily. “If it wasn’t for you I’d be minced meat a few seconds ago.” Namjoon extends his hand and the dragon slowly, tentatively, lowers his head and lets Namjoon pet him. “Thanks little dragon.”
The dragon shakes his body, moving backwards, doing small jumps in a circle. Namjoon laughs at the action, mesmerized by the dragon who continues to do a few tricks like breathing fire, juggling coconuts with his tail and making different sounds. It almost feels as if he’s trying to impress Namjoon with everything he’s doing, as if he wants him to continue giving him his attention. It feels weird, but it wouldn’t be the first time Namjoon’s seen dragons do weird things, he did have one hide from afar from him and not do anything for hours on end but he never saw how he looked or its kind.
“You’re a cute and strange dragon.” Namjoon tells the dragon as he pets his stomach when he gets tired, the dragon being belly up and trilling in happiness. “Not many can scare off big dragons while being so cute and docile. I wonder what type of dragon you are, I’ve never seen your species before.” The dragon stares at Namjoon with big shiny eyes as his tongue rolls out, shaking his head when a drop of water falls on his face.
Namjoon looks up and notices the cloud above them, making him sigh as he stands up and grabs his bag. “Well, rain seems to be coming so I better hide in my cave. It was nice to meet you little dragon, please take care while you go back to your family.” He turns quickly as the dragon fixes his posture, his tail holds his waist and he turns. “What’s wrong buddy?”
The dragon whines, taking small steps towards him with his head lowered. “Oh, are you alone?” The dragon huffs, small gusts of fire burst from his nose. “I’ll take that as a yes?” The dragon nods, bumping his head with Namjoon’s leg. “Poor guy, guess you're like me for now huh?” He pats the dragon’s head and looks up, the rain has started and it seems to be picking up.
Namjoon looks back at the cave and hums while looking at the dragon. “I don’t know if you’ll fit, but you can try to slip inside the cave I’m staying in for the night. What do you think, boy?”
The dragon jumps for joy a few times, shaking his body as it bumps his head on Namjoon’s leg. “I’ll take that as a yes.” He giggles as he pets the dragon’s head, walking towards his cave while he’s followed. “Might be a tight squeeze for you but I’m sure you can make it through.”
The dragon looks at the clearing and huffs, walking close towards it and bumping a few times with the entrance. He whines, roars softly as he leans down as if he was going to lunge at it. “Easy boy.” Namjoon’s voice makes the dragon look towards him, head tilted when Namjoon throws his bag first and then walks sideways. “Try walking sideways, not directly. You’re smaller if you do this, even more if you can crawl on the walls with those sharp claws of yours.”
The dragon walked towards the wall and placed his legs on it. “That’s it.” Namjoon says as he continues walking inside the cave, the dragon follows him and walks on the wall with ease. “See? You just needed a different perspective.”
Once Namjoon enters the cave with the dragon behind him he notices just how small his hiding spot really is. “Home sweet home… for now at least.” He sees the makeshift bed on the ground that consists of sheets, a pillow he made on his own with wool and on the side is a little fireplace to keep him warm.
It’s not the biggest resting place, but with the purple dragon now coiling itself around his sleeping spot, he notices it’s even smaller now. “Sorry if it’s too small, it was originally just for me.” He takes a few steps forward but stops as the dragon gets comfortable.
The dragon roars, sounding something more close to a bark, as he spreads his wings while getting comfortable in Namjoon’s space. He makes a sound, one of his wings pats the floor, almost as if it’s calling for Namjoon to lie down which the young human does after laughing.
“Ok, I get it, I’m going.” Namjoon walks towards the dragon and grabs his shirt, lifting it upwards and tossing it to the side. “You don’t mind if I get comfortable, right?” The dragon doesn’t make any sound, instead his wing blocks his view and that makes Namjoon chuckle as he shimmies out of his pants, the shorts falling on the ground as he lays bare in his underwear.
“Rain is coming too.” Namjoon comments as he sits on his bed, grabbing his sheets and tossing them over his body. “I hope it doesn’t rain too much, if it does I might not be able to hunt for dragons tomorrow. The ones in this area don’t come out the day after it rains a lot.”
Namjoon sighs, the dragon touches his body with a wing, he seems to be asking something. “Oh, yeah, I’m a dragon rider. My ‘job’ is to tame a dragon and take it with me to my village so I can prove my worth and be recognized!” He smiles while looking at the sky, the stars may be hidden but a small glow could be seen through the darkened clouds. “I haven’t had the best luck, I’ve been on the hunt for a long time… but I’m sure I’ll find one some day. Then I’ll take it home and I’ll be a full-fledged rider like my parents!”
The dragon remains silent as he stares at Namjoon who keeps talking, his big eyes shining as he listens to him talk until he seems to fall asleep. He spreads a wing, covering Namjoon with it and nudging his body closer and tighter, doing his best to warm the human as they both fall asleep.
“Cute.” The dragon's eyes open after some time has passed, a cheery voice rings in his ear as two humans now stand at the entrance. “Who knew, our little dragon boy would follow a completely random man.”
“Aish, hyung, be nice.” A deep yet happy voice follows. “Dragons latch on to things, sometimes humans and he happened to fall in love with this human.”
The dragon whines, the humans laugh at him. “Stop.” The dragon says, its voice whiny in tone as he slowly stands up and places Namjoon softly on the floor. “Not cool hyungs.” He whispers loud enough for them to hear. “You know I didn’t mean to.”
“We know, we know.” The tall and cheery voiced human steps into the light. He has a pink shirt and shorts, his eyes have something akin to stars in them as his irises share the color of his shirt. “Still, you picked a fairly clumsy human if you ask me.”
“He’s hot though.” The deep voiced human says, his yellow shirt and shorts shining in the dim light as his irises shine with the same color. “I can see why he chose him, Jungkook has a good eye, Jin hyung.”
“Thanks Taehyung hyungie.” The dragon slowly lets Namjoon’s head fall on the soft pillow, walking towards the two humans and his body starts to shift. The once big and pink dragon starts to morph into a smaller human (about five eleven compared to his humongous dragon size), he’s sporting purple shorts and no shirt. “Some of us have good taste, unlike you who just doesn’t want a human to protect or treasure.”
“They’re all the same Jungkook.” Jin shrugs, taking a step outside as the other two follow him, the rain falls on their bodies yet they remain as if nothing happens, the cold does not affect them. “They love you, cherish you, but then when you least expect it they throw you away or ignore you.”
“Not all of them are like that.” Jungkook says with a pout, eyes wide as his eyes reflect the night sky, it looks as if galaxies are stored in them with his purple tinted irises. “You’ve seen him! He’s super nice and considerate, he’s been so close to bonding with dragons but he never takes advantage of our brethren nor has he even tried to catch me!”
“He has had multiple times to do so.” Taehyung comments as Jungkook points at him. “I’m with him on this Jin hyung, maybe our little maknae is right on this occasion.”
“Even if he is, how long will this be for?” Jin points at Jungkook. “You’re changing just at night because you’ve wanted him to tame you, do I need to remind you just how dangerous this is?”
“It’s not ALL the time.” Jungkook comments to which his brothers stare at him with an arched eyebrow. “Ok, fine, it’s almost all day.”
“Every day, the moment the sun goes up until it comes down, is borderline treacherous for your health.” Jin comments with a hand on his hip, Jungkook opens his mouth to speak but shuts up when Jin raises his eyebrow at him again.
“S-sorry hyung.” Jungkook whines, his hands play with themselves as he looks down.
“Hey, don’t be too rough.” Taehyung nudges Jin who looks at him confused. “He’s technically still a fledgling. He hasn’t had his dragon growth spurt and he’s in love, why don’t you cut him some slack?”
“Because as the eldest it’s my job to make sure none of you get hurt.” Jin takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. “There’s a reason dragon riders exist, we can go wild if we stay in our shifted forms too long.”
The dragons shudder at the thought, the one weakness of dragons, being themselves for too long. Countless dragons have lost their humanity, their sanity, as they remained in their shifter forms for too long a day. They slowly get reckless, start making noises instead of speaking and, on various occasions, they sadly lose their ability to shift back.
“Then I would have been fine because he’s a tamer!” Jungkook looks back at Namjoon and sighs, he’s smiling in his sleep as his chest rises and falls slowly. “He looks so dreamy like that, so sound asleep and adorable.”
“Yeah… and almost naked too.” Taehyung snorts when Jungkook jabs him lightly.
“Even if he was a tamer, you’d be lost to us.” Jin walks up to both his brothers and puts a hand on their shoulders. “It’s a point of no return baby, no one has ever come back. You’d be fine, but you wouldn’t be you and I just can’t have that happen to you guys.”
Jungkook looks up at his brother and sighs, he knows he has a point. “I get you.” Jungkook smiles softly at Jin. “I won’t stay like a dragon the whole time, I promise! I’ll try to do it tomorrow, if it helps you feel better.”
“Yes, it does.” Jin smiles as he squeezes Jungkook’s nose. “Are you sure you’ll be fine here tonight with him?”
“Yes hyung!” Jungkook grins as he looks back, Namjoon’s shivering. “I’ll just sleep like a dragon and the first thing tomorrow I will shift back to a human in his face. He’ll probably be scared, but I’ll make him see me as the cute dragon he likes to be around!”
Jin blinks a few times. “That’s a horrible plan.” Taehyung says beside them. “But I can see it work too, not like he can run quickly or escape you.”
“Yeah!” Jungkook high fives Taehyung.
“My brothers are dumb.” Jin mumbles as he hugs them both, ruffling Jungkook’s hair. “If you need us we’ll be close, just roar your cute roar and we’ll fly here in a second.”
“It’s not cute!” Jungkook huffs at his brothers who spread their wings, both men squatting and then taking off with a flap of their wings. “It’s menacing, scary and tough. Namjoon was shook at my presence and volume so it must be the loudest he’s ever heard.”
Jungkook mutters under his breath, walking on all fours until his body shifts into a dragon. He manages to lie down in the same spot he was before, wings covering Namjoon who stops shivering from the cold. He smiles as he closes his eyes, the warmth coming from Namjoon making his heart burn like a small and warm fire. He exhales through his nose, the gust of wind moving a few leaves until he falls into a deep slumber, the sound of the rain cascading again lulling him to sleep.
It takes the sun to stir Namjoon awake, the bright wide line glowing through the crack of his cave where he hides makes him rethink choosing somewhere the light hits directly through. He groans, turning where he lies and smiling as he feels a warm body close to him and a set of arms wrapped around him. He takes a deep breath, exhales and… wait a minute, a body… a normal human body next to him?!
Namjoon’s eyes shoot open and he finds a man beside him, his hair dark with only purple shorts on. “What the!?” He mutters confused. “When did I… Did I… Wait, no, I was sleeping on top of a dragon last night… right?” Namjoon shakes his head, his mind suddenly feels hazy, almost as if he dreamed yesterday’s events.
The man pouts, he holds tighter on Namjoon and he nuzzles his face on his chest. He makes a shrilling sound followed by a grunt, his eyebrows furrow together and he ends up looking more adorable than anything which makes Namjoon smile and chuckle at his actions.
Namjoon doesn’t really know what to do at this point. The man doesn’t seem dangerous, he seems to be comfortable in his position and, truth be told, Namjoon isn’t opposed to this type of intimacy. He’s hella gay, ever since he started his twenties he knew he didn’t prefer women, so the fact he’s wrapping an arm around this stranger isn’t perplexing him in the slightest.
“I wonder… how did you get here?” Namjoon looks at the man who smacks his lips, body stretching and shaking himself. “H-hello?” He asks the man who’s slowly waking up. “Are you… ok?”
The man smiles, nodding and bumping his head with Namjoon’s chest while making another sound that has Namjoon tilting his head because it sounds familiar. “Did you sleep well?” Another trill, it’s even more familiar, it sounds very similar to… “How did you… get here?”
The man tilts his head, blinking his eyes open and tilting his head. He whines, the pitch is high in tone and his eyes shine a purple color as if galaxies are held in them for safe keeping. “Wooow.” Namjoon whispers, lifting a hand to observe the eyes better but the man places his hand below it and trills, that’s everything Namjoon needs to piece it all together.
“That sound… Are you…” Namjoon’s eyes shoot open and he scoots away at a quick pace, the man stays stunned in his place, curling slightly in on himself. “Who the fuck are you?”
The man tilts his head, he looks confused as he stares down and he freezes. “Shit.” He breathes out, eyes wide and scared. “I’m so… fuck… This wasn’t supposed to be like this.”
Namjoon rolls to the side and grabs a makeshift weapon, a brandished wooden sword and points it at the man. “Who are you and what did you do to the dragon!? Why were we cuddling so close too? Did we… you know?”
The man shakes his head slowly. “No.” It comes out soft and low, it felt like if he spoke louder he would crack a window. “I, um… I can explain.”
“Please do so.” Namjoon says as he takes a few steps to his clothes, the man looks down at his body and then rapidly upwards when Namjoon tapped the floor with the weapon.. “Eyes up here.”
“Sorry.” The man blushes, looking down at the floor. “I’ll look when you tell me to.”
Namjoon tilts his head as he puts on his shorts and shirt, he’s polite, interesting. “You can look up, I’m done.” He sits down near the exit, sword ready but body relaxed. “Speak true, not a single lie.”
“I would never lie to you.” The man says a bit too quickly, shaking his head as he cringes. “Sorry, I just…” He takes a deep breath and sighs. “Well, for starters, my name is Jungkook.”
“I’m Namjoon.”
“Pleasure to meet you properly.” Jungkook bows, lowering himself until he sits down on top of his legs. “I say this because we, um, met yesterday. We spent time together to be exact.”
“How?” Namjoon squinted, his eyes looked confused. “I have never seen you in my life.”
“You did, but just not me, me. Like, it was a different form of me.” Jungkook plays with his fingers as Namjoon still looks confused. “Would you believe me if I say that we spent time together yesterday because I was the purple dragon?”
Namjoon stares at Jungkook silently for the longest seconds ever, their eyes meet and disbelief is clear on his face. “If you killed the dragon you could just say so.” Namjoon’s words make Jungkook’s eyes widen. “I didn’t tame him so I didn’t have a strong connection to him, but I will miss it. He seemed like a well behaved and nice dragon.”
“I am?” Jungkook gasps, a smile on his face that he shakes off by shaking his head. “I didn’t and I can prove I was the dragon!”
“How?” Namjoon grabs the sword preventively. “No one has ever turned into one, how should I believe you?”
“Because we exist.” Jungkook huffs, placing both hands on the floor. “Watch.” He takes a deep breath, leans forward and lowers his head, he looks at Namjoon and his eyes shift, his irises turn a deeper shade of purple.
Namjoon gasps as he sees Jungkook’s eyes change, his back seems to pop up as what he believes are his bones snap but in reality it’s not that, it’s Jungkook’s wings that form on his back. “What the…” The rider whispers as he watches the wings flap, forming into the familiar wings that warmed him yesterday. “You… you have wings.”
“That’s not all.” Jungkook says with a raspy voice, lowering his head as he continues to transform.
His body shifts, slowly but surely, and the rest of it becomes familiar to Namjoon. His head transforms, his body morphs into a bigger form and his hands and legs change with long limbs and claws. The purple scales shine with the sunlight, Jungkook’s claws slam on the ground as he flaps his wings and his tail stands upright.
In front of Namjoon is now a dragon, the same one from yesterday that he slept next to, Jungkook has transformed into a dragon in front of his eyes.
“How… the fuck…” Namjoon stays stunned as he looks at Jungkook’s dragon form, extending his hand to pet him and he gets the same action from yesterday, his head nuzzled under it. “You really like nuzzling your face in my hand, huh?”
Jungkook huffs a whine, bumping his head softly with Namjoon’s hand. “It’s calming.” His voice is deeper, but the tone is similar. “You have soft yet firm hands.”
“Thanks?” Namjoon chuckles as he looks at his hand. “So… you’re a shape shifter or something?”
Jungkook nods, his body shifts again and he sits in front of Namjoon in his human form. “I’m a dragon shifter. We blend in with the other dragons and humans, we try not to stand out which is a bit hard with dragon riders around.”
Namjoon nods, scooting closer to Jungkook and staring at his eyes. “So, we’re a problem to your kind?” He looks at the starry irises, the purple hue giving it the feeling of staring at the night sky.
“Yes and no.” Jungkook smiles, staring back at Namjoon whose eyes sharpen, he himself has a dragon-like stare. “Yes because it’s a bit weird when you guys try to tame us, no because we do have the ability to go rogue and you guys taming our kind helps the greater good in the end.”
“Your kind can go rogue?” Namjoon’s eyes widened in worry.
“Yes… but only if we stay in our forms for long.”
“How long?” Namjoon finds himself smiling when Jungkook pouts, his gaze looking upwards and humming.
“Hyung said I can’t stay in my form for about… a few hours, like a whole morning or afternoon because I can slip from human senses to animalistic senses.” Jungkook nods but frowns when Namjoon gasps.
“A few hours?!” Namjoon thinks, uses his fingers as he thinks and gasps again. “Jungkook, I met you at day time and you spent a long time in your dragon form at night! That’s way too close to a few hours.”
“But….” Jungkook frowns. “I was ok, promise! I just wanted to get close to you and spend time with you, you seemed like a nice human and I’ve seen you try to tame dragons so I just… sorry.” Namjoon blushes at the fact Jungkook’s seen him fail at taming a dragon, but that doesn’t deter him from scolding Jungkook.
“Aish, Jungkook, you could have walked up to me as a human.” He stands up and Jungkooks does too, he places a hand on his hip and continues speaking, missing how two people walk inside the cave. “I find it cute that you wanted to approach me and spend time with me, but there are safer ways to do this than just sacrificing your state of mind to be with someone.”
“I know.” Jungkook pouts, lowers his head. “I’m sorry Namjoon.”
Namjoon sighs, extending his hand and ruffling Jungkook’s hair. “It’s fine, don’t worry just… don’t let it happen again, ok?”
“Again?” Jungkook looks up, he looks at his brothers who look at him amazed and then at Namjoon. “Does that mean I can still hang out with you?”
“I don’t know.” Namjoon hums, a cheeky smile on his face. “I was sent to tame a dragon, my family would flip if they found out I tamed a human instead.” He grins, nudging Jungkook. “But I prefer for them to see a new… companion, first and then the dragon.”
Jungkook bounces on his feet, his smile wide and happy. “I can go with you then!?” He trills in excitement when Namjoon nods, jumping towards him and giggling. “Thank you Namjoon!” His wings pop out of his back and he starts to flap them from excitement.
“Calm down buddy, you're going to make my things fly off.” Namjoon holds the shifter in his arms as he flaps his wings, patting his head and making him calm down. “Hey, since you can’t be a dragon the whole time, would you help me tame a full dragon then?”
“No.” Jungkook says so fast Namjoon chokes on his spit. “I’ll be the dragon you tamed, there’s no problem with that.”
“But… you can’t be one the whole time.” Namjoon frowns. “I don’t want to force you to shift or have to let me ride your back.”
“He’ll ride something, that’s for sure.” Namjoon jumps when he hears Jungkook’s brother speak, walking deeper into his cave and holding onto Jungkook tightly. “Oh, look Jin hyung, he’s trying to protect him.”
“Taehyung, don’t throw our brother under the bus like that already.” Jin chuckles as Jungkook sticks his tongue out, still holding onto Namjoon. “Other than that, I can see why Jungkookie chose him.”
“Who… are these guys?” Namjoon lets Jungkook go when the shifter runs and hugs both men.
“My brothers! Jin hyung and Taehyungie hyungie.” Jungkook presents his brothers who nod. “They’re also the yellow and pink dragons from… from yesterday.”
Namjoon blinks, lets the information simmer and then points at them. “You all set him up to save me so I could like him more, didn’t you?!”
“It was his idea.” Jin and Taehyung point at Jungkook who stutters his words until he pouts and lowers his head, making everyone laugh.
“Please, forgive him, he’s still a fledgling.” Jin says as he places a hand over Jungkook’s shoulder. “Dragons tend to find someone or something to love, fledglings tend to have a bigger… need, so they try their best to achieve or acquire that which they find enticing.”
“So, in other words.” Namjoon looks at Jungkook who grabs his brother's arms and hides behind them. “This little fledgling fell in love with me at first sight and wanted to impress me so I could like him?”
“One million percent correct.” Taehyung says with a nod as Jungkook punches him softly. “He saw you and immediately took a liking towards you, chased you for a long time and everything. In our ways, that’s the biggest type of yearning and display of love. You should feel lucky.”
Namjoon looks at Jungkook who looks away from him. “I do.” He answers truthfully. “I hope I can live up to the hype, Jungkook.”
“You have.” Jungkook says softly, a small smile on his face as he walks up to Namjoon. “You’ve been so nice to my dragon and human form, way nicer than I thought so… yes.”
“Good to know.” Namjoon smiles as Jungkook stands next to him, they both look at his brothers who share a worried expression. “Don’t worry, I’ll protect and help him be safe with me.”
Jin looks at Namjoon and nods “I know, you’re a kind human, but my brother has his stubborn moments that worry me.” He looks at Jungkook whose eyes widen and sparkle, so he smiles. “But he’s going to be alright with you.”
“You can come with us if you want, both of you.” Namjoon offers and both brothers look at him. “My village has enough room for other people and dragons, I’m sure I can convince them to treat you guys how we’re supposed to, you can even help us understand how to deal with dragons and shifters.”
“That’s a good idea!” Jungkook jumps for joy. “Come on hyungs, we can definitely do that!”
“I don’t know…” Jin sighs while Taehyung thinks. “We don’t want to intrude in your guys life, we’re not obligated to follow you guys. Just because we’re brothers doesn’t mean we HAVE to be with you guys all the time.”
“It’s not a hassle for me.” Namjoon shrugs, holding Jungkook’s waist. “I would be honored if you two came with us. It’ll help me learn more about your kind and you can all be together as a family too.”
“Can we think about it?” Taehyung asks.
“Of course.” Namjoon replies. “You can even come with us to visit and see if you like it or not.”
“It’s settled then!” Jungkook says with a smile, head on Namjoon’s chest. “We’ll all go to Namjoonie’s village and decide what you guys will do.”
“This little brat.” Jin sighs with a smile, turning to exit the cave. “We’ll give you guys some alone time, we can leave whenever you two want.” Taehyung follows his brother and winks at Jungkook, leaving the fledgling with Namjoon.
“Your brothers seem nice.” Namjoon says as he holds Jungkook’s hand.
“They mean well, a bit embarrassing at times.” Jungkook huffs while Namjoon chuckles. “But they love me and I love them. We’re there for each other all the time, no matter what.”
“That’s just like mine.” Namjoon grins when Jungkook looks at him intrigued. “Don’t worry my little fledgling, we have lots to talk about on our trip to my village. It’s not the closest place and walking will take us a few days.”
“That’s fine.” Jungkook looks at their hands and intertwines their fingers. “I don’t mind it.”
“Perfect.” Namjoon smiles, a dimple pops up and Jungkook’s wings flap. “You’re going to fly off soon with that flapping.”
“Sorry, I can’t help it.” Jungkook giggles as he hovers. “I just get excited that you… just you.”
Both men laugh at Jungkook’s words. “I get you, I kind of had that reaction when I woke up to you next to me.” Namjoon puts a hand on Jungkook’s face and rubs his thumb against his cheek. “But you gotta calm down those wings, you can’t be next to me if you fly off.”
“I’ll try.” His wings never stop flapping. “I make no promises though.”
“Here, let me help.” Namjoon raises his other hand and holds Jungkook’s head, he leans forward and seals the distance between them with a kiss. Jungkook’s wings flap fast and then slowly, lowering his body until he lands on the floor and they stop flapping. “Better?”
“I… don’t know.” Jungkook whispers, eyes fluttering open as he closes them. “I need to try again, just in case.”
Namjoon rolls his eyes. “Happy to keep trying.” He leans forward and kisses him again, starting a make out session as the brothers sigh as they look inside the cave and then outside.
“Our Jungkookie found the one, right hyung?” Taehyung asks his brother who decided to stare at the sky.
Jin closes his eyes and smiles. “Yes, he did.” He opens them and then looks at Taehyung. “I may not agree one hundred percent as my take on humans is… not the best,” He turns to see them both talking and smiling. “But they seem to be starting a good relationship.”
“And that’s what matters.” Taehyung replies as he puts his head on Jin's shoulder. “Let’s go with him, not just to keep an eye on him, but let’s try to find our person. Who knows, maybe we’ll end up with some humans too.”
“Unless I find someone with the heart of Jungkook’s human I highly doubt it, but yeah, let’s go with them.” Jin looks at the cave and scoffs playfully when his brother exits. “Finally, you had us here falling asleep.”
“Sorry, we were having a little… talk.” Jungkook giggles when Namjoon wipes his face. “We’re ready to go, you guys ready?”
“Yup.” Taehyung answers. “Lead the way Namjoon.”
“This way!” Namjoon points to the right. “Just gotta follow the trail down and go to the tallest tree, my village is there.”
Namjoon starts walking with Jungkook’s hand in his, their conversation slowly starting to develop about Namjoon’s village and then gravitates towards stuff about them. He mentions how his family functions, how he’s expected to bring a dragon thanks to his heritage and how he’s thinking of presenting them all to them. Jungkook’s giving him a few suggestions on what he could do, what the shifters could try so they all fall in love with them first and then show their full dragon side.
It’ll be a bit of a hassle, but they’re sure they can make it happen. Namjoon’s way of speaking and Jungkook’s charisma is going to suffice for now, in the meantime they’ll take the time to know more about each other so their friendship and eventual relationship can blossom into something bigger.
“Hey, Namjoonie.” Jungkook whispered in the night as they went to sleep mid track, his brothers sleeping close to them and Namjoon rubbing his exposed waist. “Do you think I’m crazy? For following you and loving you without knowing you?”
Namjoon hums. “Yeah.” He answers truthfully, looking at Jungkook who’s pouting. “But that makes it more wholesome and cute.” He smiles when Jungkook tilts his head confused. “You followed your instincts and they helped you find someone who does like you. Maybe not the way dragons like, but he for sure finds you attractive and adorable.”
Jungkook turns, moving until he’s on top of Namjoon’s body who holds his waist. “You think I’m adorable?” He asks cutely.
Namjoon nods. “You roared your way into my heart.” He taps his chest and smiles. “I like you, but I want to love you.”
“You will, trust me.” Jungkook smiles as he leans down and hugs Namjoon who does the same. “I’ll work my way and make a little nest in your heart.”
“And I’ll do my best to take care of it.” Namjoon kisses the top of his head as they close their eyes, letting sleep win over them.
“Ew, love.” Jin comments as he listens to them, making everyone laugh. “Adorable.” Namjoon kisses Jungkook’s head again as the shifter smiles, both men sleeping with a big smile.