moonlight (nugu-seyo) (part 1/2)
Title: Moonlight
Pairing: Junkyu-centric
Rating: PG-13
Wordcount: 11,285
Summary: Junkyu meets his first dragon.
Warnings: Brief and mild descriptions of gore
Notes: Written for weatherscenes as a part of nugu_seyo. This started out as an attempt at How to Train Your Dragon AU and turned into something quite different.
Crossposted to AO3.
For the people of Junkyu's village, there had always been dragons. Centuries of history and folklore indicated no real first encounter with the creatures, not a single myth about how they came to be in this world. According to their stories, for as long as there had been humans, there had been dragons. There was a good chance the dragons had actually existed first, and though that nagging stipulation was forever on their minds, no one dared put it into words.
There had always been dragons, and therefore there had always been war.
Or so everyone said, but Junkyu thought it was all rather dramatic. The skirmishes that occurred every other week or so could hardly be called battles, in his opinion. A few days before dark shadows would course over the roofs of the village and otherworldly cries would wake everyone in their beds. The men and women alike would prepare accordingly, reinforcing the buildings and readying the rickety wooden things the clan leaders gave thetoo proud name "battle towers." Junkyu's family would be busy sharpening and repairing weapons which were doomed to break all over again. By the time the dragons actually came, the villagers were so prepared the "battle" went like clockwork.
The dragons came, the villagers attacked. The dragons would carry off maybe a dozen out of the hundreds of sheep in their flocks, and yet the villagers almost always got away with a few burns and broken bones. The elders liked to chalk this up to their strict training regimens and perfect combat strategies, but Junkyu couldn't help but wonder how they could be so lucky when they'd killed so many of the incredible monsters. Evidence of the clan's "victories" hung on the walls of the hall and around the village: skins, entire mounted heads, countless pieces jewelry made from scales and teeth. Seyong had once tried to sell Junkyu one of his prized dragonbone knives, but just looking at the thing made Junkyu queasy.
"They came again last night," Seyong whispered as if the entire village weren't buzzing with the same excitement. Junkyu bent over where he was sharpening a blade- Seyong's blade, a gift from the clan elders for consistently outstanding performance in battle. Where Junkyu was hesitant, Seyong was totally self-assured. Where Junkyu was questioning and doubtful, Seyong was headstrong and focused. How the two of them had managed to become best friends was a mystery, but they made it work in between the fights which Seyong always won.
Running a finger along the blunt side of the blade, Junkyu's frown deepened. "This is as sharp as it's going to get." Seyong grabbed the short sword out of Junkyu's hands and swung it in a graceful and deadly arc. "Save it for the dragons!" Junkyu hissed and stepped away.
"Oh, I'll make sure those monsters get a good taste of your hard work." Seyong grinned and sheathed the sword. "The real question is if you're going to crawl of your hole this time and see it."
Junkyu shrugged. "I do my part. What would you do if your bow broke and you had no one to fix it mid-battle?" When the dragons attacked, it fell to the blacksmiths, Junkyu's family, to be at the ready to repair anything brought to them as quickly as possible. Junkyu's father craved that thrill, the violence just beyond their doors and the blood dripping from the weapons shoved into their hands. Junkyu just liked having an excuse not to watch the carnage.
Seyong leaned against the doorway and watched Junkyu work with a mix of disappointment and interest. "You've been in training for two years and you don't have any desire to fight a real dragon? Even Jinseok shows more enthusiasm than you."
"Training is mandatory, and I'm not Jinseok," Junkyu replied flatly. He pretended not to hear Seyong's heavy sigh and, the next time Junkyu looked up, his friend was gone.
They came late that night. Junkyu was in his bed, his lamp glowing just enough to illuminate the pages of his book. The book was a massive volume, borrowed from the hall, and listed all of the recorded varieties of dragons. Village tradition required all young men and women to read and memorize the book during their first year of training. Junkyu's first year was long past now, but he still liked to borrow the book on occasion. He liked to stare at the pictures and run his fingers along the old drawings. On paper the dragons were bright and colorful, magical without the menace of their shadows as they passed overhead during the raids. At night the dragons blended together in fear and panic, but on the pages Junkyu's eyes took in all of the unique forms and qualities with nothing but wonder.
The blaring of a horn ripped through the night and the book toppled to the floor as Junkyu leaped to his feet and struggled to get dressed. The routine was so all muscle memory by now, and Junkyu's mind hadn't had much of a chance to keep up by the time he found himself in front of his father's forge. Outside the villagers were racing to the weapon stores before moving to their assigned positions. Somewhere out there Seyong was brandishing his sword and climbing up one of the battle towers, as always part of the front lines of combat. Jinseok would be there, too, providing back up and fetching weapons for the soldiers up on the towers.
Junkyu felt a pang of envy, but only because his best friends had already seen more dragons up close than Junkyu would in his lifetime. Screeches punctuated the shouts of the villages and made Junkyu shiver in fear and anticipation. They were here.
A fireball erupted not too far from the front window to the house, which was kept open so that the soldiers could run up and grab what they needed quickly. The impact shook the ground and the tools hung on the walls rattled against the wood. Junkyu didn't look up for a second as his father handed him broken knives and short blades to force the pieces back together. These blades never held up well but the priority on these nights was speed, not quality. He wasn't sure how many blades he'd handled before his father was shouting to him to go fetch more wood for the forge.
The cold air hit Junkyu like a wall after being in the sweltering heat for so long and for a moment he was disoriented. He looked around wildly for the woodpile and found it a heap of broken, smoldering cinders. The night was thick with the smell of smoke and all he could hear was people shouting and sheep bleating. Grabbing the ax Junkyu headed into the woods directly behind the workshop, narrowly avoiding a rain of fall that fell upon the outermost trees. The trees were safer than the open roads and Junkyu could fell a tree is less time than most, though he reasoned that even Seyong would call him a fool for trying to do so during a dragon raid. Not that he had much of a choice; without wood, the forge didn't function. Without the forge, there was no way to keep the soldiers armed.
There was a patch of dead trees not too far into the woods which they'd been saving to chop down later. Junkyu went to work without pausing to breathe, and thankfully was so used to the work that he could do it without thinking. In minutes he had a good stack ready to carry back to the stop, and then a large shadow passed overheard. Junkyu saw something glinting through the trees and a heavy weight fell somewhere close by. The leaves rustled as something out there moved quickly through the brush.
A scaled head pushed through the branches and Junkyu dropped his ax. Two perfectly formed jewel eyes returned his stare with calm interest. The dragon was covered from head to tail with small, glittering black scales. The light in its eyes glowed a steady pale gold. As the dragon moved the moonlight sparkled and danced off of the black scales. Junkyu couldn't move a muscle. Those eyes remained trained on his, and as he stared he saw them crinkle just the tiniest bit as if it were smiling.
Something whipped out from the bushes to his right and all Junkyu saw was the glitter of silvery white scales before everything went black.
Junkyu awoke to the sounds of hammering and cheerful voices. He was in his bed, the sky outside his small window was a bright blue, and for a second he thought that he'd dreamed the attack. Only when he spotted a few dark grey curls of smoke in the otherwise clear sky did he lunge from bed and out of his family's hut.
Outside, the scene was oddly peaceful. Children bounced around and helped their parents pick up debris. Builders were at work repairing roofs and bringing down what was left of the battle towers. Everyone was laughing and congratulating each other on surviving once again. Junkyu should have found this comforting, but there was something eating at him, something he couldn't quite remember.
"I guess that dragon really did knock the sense out of you," a familiar voice chuckled. Junkyu turned and found Seyong watching him, arms full of charred wood. "What little you had, anyway."
"Dragon?" Junkyu replied. He was too confused to even process the insult and his head was throbbing.
Worry creased Seyong's brow and he carefully set down what he was carrying and stepped closer to look into Junkyu's eyes. "You should go see the healer. Since all you got was a bump on the head she let your father take you home, but maybe that wasn't a good idea. Even with those freaks hanging around she should have room for you."
Junkyu's head span. "Freaks?" His voice was hoarse and he suddenly felt exhausted.
Seyong grabbed Junkyu's hand and started towards the healer's hut. "You weren't the only one attacked by those dragons last night. We found two guys near you, and you really need to see them."
The healers hut was stuffy and cramped. The air was heavy with the smell of herbs and the warmth of too many bodies. The two found Jinseok sitting just inside the entrance to the healer's hut, fidgeting with a few vials of seeds.
As soon as he spied his friends, Jinseok's face lit up. "You're alive!" he cried and embraced Junkyu with a little too much enthusiasm.
"I was just bumped on the head," he muttered, but he was happy to see Jinseok nonetheless.
Seyong swung an arm around Jinseok and squeezed him playfully. "Helping out the old lady again? I don't get how you can stand being in this hut all day!"
Jinseok's mouth tightened into a straight line. "I like it here."
Their friend didn't seem to hear him, looking around the main room of the hut. "So where are they?"
Junkyu patted Jinseok on the arm gently as Jinseok detached himself from Seyong and moved further into the hut. The healer kept two small rooms for the sick which Jinseok cleaned in addition to maintaining her stores of herbs. The work was tedious and quiet and not what the village considered manly, but Jinseok was good at it and the healer was well respected, so no one questioned why the clan leader's only son was more devoted to the healing arts than to his training. Jinseok took part in combat training with Junkyu's same level of enthusiasm: none. The only difference was that Jinseok actively participated in the raids while Junkyu chose to stay with his father.
In one of the rooms the healer was tending to an injured villager. There was a bandage around the man's face and her back was turned to them, so the boys moved quietly along to the second room, further to the back. Not a sound came from this room and, just as they reached the doorway, Jinseok hesitated. "Don't be rude," he whispered with a pointed glare at Seyong. Seyong looked ready to argue, but Jinseok looked away and effectively cut off the comment. A tiny smile crept onto Junkyu's face; all through their childhood Seyong had forcibly taken Jinseok under his wing, without stopping to consider whether Jinseok wanted the protection and guidance or not. These days Jinseok was less than receptive, and Seyong was as usual less than observant. The two maintained an awkward but affectionate balance that Junkyu found consistently amusing.
Jinseok's fingers hadn't even reached the door when it creaked open. A head appeared in the small opening, a flash of pale gold, and dark eyes widened in surprise to find them standing practically in the doorway. "Oh, it's you," an unfamiliar voice said with obvious relief and the head disappeared into the room. Jinseok followed after and, exchanging puzzled looks, Junkyu and Seyong did the same.
Two narrow beds took up the majority of the space in the small room. On the best farthest from the door one figure lay stretched out, eyes focused on the ceiling as if he hadn't noticed the new intrusions. The other, his golden head swaying slightly as he moved, swung himself down onto the other bed and fixed the three boys in a curious smile.
"Your friends?" he asked Jinseok.
Jinseok nodded in his shy way. "Junkyu, Seyong," he replied and gestured to his friends. "This is Insoo." When the stranger's eyes fell on him, the irises such a dark color that it was impossible to distinguish the pupils, it took all of Junkyu's mental capacities to remember to nod politely. The people of Junkyu's tribe had dark eyes, too, but Junkyu had never seen eyes so black. He could practically see himself reflected in the depths, every bit of light absorbed and, somewhere in those depths, shining quietly. Thankfully those eyes didn't stay on Junkyu for long, but wandered to Seyong and then around the room. They settled on Jinseok who didn't appear nearly so bothered and the two of them chatted quietly. In his gawking Junkyu couldn't keep up with the words.
The eyes weren't Insoo's only strange features. His hair was the color of weak gold which contrasted with his tan skin. Junkyu had heard of tribes with light hair, but those of the north had hair the color of yellow straw, and the tribes to the east were rumored to have fiery hair. Neither of those rumors quite matched Insoo, nor his friend. It took Junkyu a few moments to remember the other man, for he never once spoke up or even looked over. Like Insoo, he had fair hair, but his was a different extreme. So pale it was nearly white in places, the tiny bits of light that filtered in through the narrow window played strange tricks on the mind when it landed on that hair, as if all the colors of the rainbow were layered through the pure white base. Unlike Insoo, this one's paleness extended to his entire being. Junkyu's people were dark, tanned from hard work and playing in the sun of the cliffs, but this stranger's skin was white and delicate.
Insoo kicked his companion's leg and grunted, "Stop being rude." The pale one muttered something under his breath but rose to sit up. His impossibly round eyes were the same bottomless black and they immediately locked Junkyu in a gaze of utter indifference.
"Nice to meet you," he said in a tone that was polite but cold. "My name is Gunwoo." His voice was deep and melodic and his speech edged on painfully formal, the complete opposite of Insoo's light, casual voice.
Gunwoo's reaction was apparently adequate, for Insoo beamed briefly before returning his attention to Jinseok. "So does this mean we're allowed out of bed?"
Jinseok's eyes shifted to Gunwoo before reply. "Yes, but before I can show you around Junkyu needs his head examined."
Seyong snorted, "You can say that again." Junkyu promptly gave his friend a sharp elbow to the ribs.
Insoo's eyes fell on Junkyu again. "Ah, so you're the one they found with us?"
There was something inexplicably sad in the question, and Junkyu didn't have a chance to respond before Jinseok was answering for him and ushering them all out of the room. Gunwoo followed always a few steps behind the group; Insoo fell in step beside Junkyu in the hall. A pleasant warmth seemed to radiate from him in the tight space.
As they left the hut Junkyu kept his eyes trained on his boots. The bandages wrapped around his head made him feel more than a little self-conscious and his scalp throbbed from the healer's less than gentle touches. The shallow gash was healing properly but she had insisted on the bandage to keep it clean. Junkyu had put up his usual less-than-convincing fight before giving in to the stubborn woman. Seyong was busy trying to engage Gunwoo in conversation with little success while Jinseok pleaded with their friend to stop shouting at their guest.
His friends distracted, Junkyu was left to walk side by side with Insoo. He was keenly aware of Insoo's presence and yet not particularly uncomfortable with it, something which he found terribly confusing. The way he could feel Gunwoo watching didn't help.
"I guess we were lucky," Insoo chuckled and nudged Junkyu's arm. "By the time we found you the dragons were long gone."
Junkyu peeked at Insoo out of the corner of his eyes. 'Fast asleep and naked as newborns,' the old healer had said with a pointed look at Insoo and Gunwoo. 'Between that and you with blood all over your face we didn't know what to think.'
Frankly, neither did Junkyu.
"Where the hell did you two come from?" Seyong chimed in, giving up on Gunwoo and jogging to join Insoo and Junkyu. Behind them Junkyu heard Gunwoo mutter something and Jinseok laughed. Seyong cast the pair an annoyed look but stuck to his decision. "Your hair is wild." He reached out to touch Insoo's briefly and Junkyu almost moved to slap the hand away, except that Insoo smiled and leaned towards Seyong to give him a better look.
"We get that a lot whenever we leave the village. We live so high up in the mountains that not many of us bother traveling to other villages."
This time it was Jinseok who spoke up. "Why did you come here?"
Insoo craned his neck around to give Jinseok a kind smile, but Junkyu noticed a hint of the same sadness in them he'd noticed in the hut. "Our village is gone, now. We're all that's left." Though appropriately sad, the words rang hollow in Junkyu's ears.
"No way!" Seyong clapped a hand on Insoo's shoulder and Insoo nearly laughed again in surprise. "What happened?"
For a second, Insoo was quiet, his mouth hanging open, and then Gunwoo answered, "Dragons."
That night the five of them entered the community hall together. Seyong was prattling away about all of the great clan leaders who had once sat in the hall, all of their heroic deeds, while Insoo listened intently and Gunwoo stared straight ahead. Despite his cool demeanor Junkyu could sense that the quieter of their two guests was constantly listening and observing. Jinseok had stayed glued to Gunwoo's side throughout the day and was the only one able to actively engage him in conversation, but said conversation was always quiet, or when they were too far away to overhear. Junkyu didn't know quite how he felt about it but Seyong seemed happy to ignore it when Insoo was willing to give all the attention Seyong wanted. Somewhere in this middle was Junkyu, his head throbbing so badly he wanted nothing more than to go to bed but never able to pull himself away.
As the guests' unofficial escorts and guides, Junyku and his friends found themselves the center of attention in the village. Everywhere they went villagers would approach and ask questions about the strangers, always through one of the three boys they already knew. Children ran up on the street to gawk at their pale hair and Gunwoo's skin. At first Junkyu was worried the two would be offended, but Insoo delighted in the attention. He picked up the small children and tickled them until they were squealing with delight. At a point they'd had to stop the tour completely to allow all of the gathered children a turn.
Every single stomach was rumbling by the time they found an empty table in the hall. Junkyu settled down on a bench and waved the others on. Insoo stayed, and Junkyu wasn't sure if he was happy or annoyed. He was used to going with whatever his friends wanted, but it was a different thing altogether to feel drawn towards someone like this. Junkyu should have been home by now, but when he glanced up at Insoo's perpetually smiling face his legs felt like lead.
"You seem tired," Insoo commented.
Junkyu muttered something noncommittal and buried his face in his arms.
"I'm sorry."
There it was again. A quiet, undeniably sad undertone in Insoo's voice which Junkyu didn't understand. He looked up to find Gunwoo settling down on the bench beside Insoo with Jinseok on his other side. Gunwoo leaned in and whispered something to Insoo as he set a bowl in front of him. Insoo cheered and grinned at Gunwoo before digging into the food.
A bowl appeared next to Junkyu's arm. He hadn't even realized how blatantly he'd been staring until looked up and found Seyong frowning at him. "Eat, dummy."
Junkyu grinned sheepishly and obeyed.
The group parted after dinner. Seyong, sulky and uncharacteristically quiet, muttered something about training and went off towards the field alone. Jinseok offered to escort Gunwoo and Insoo back to the healer's hurt, but Insoo insisted that he still had energy. The second Junkyu started towards home, Insoo was by his side.
When they were a good distance away from Jinseok and Gunwoo, Insoo asked, "You don't trust us, do you?"
Junkyu groaned inwardly. He was exhausted and his head hurt; he doubted he had the energy to genuinely mistrust someone at the moment, but he couldn't deny that he felt anything but comfortable being alone with Insoo. "I don't," he decided to reply. "Nothing you say makes sense."
"Ask me questions," Insoo replied. He seemed neither surprised nor offended. "Maybe we can make it make sense."
Junkyu frowned. As much as he wanted nothing more than to get right into bed and not think about anything, his curiosity was nagging him. "Are you sad? About your village, I mean."
Insoo stopped walking and stared at Junkyu. Apparently that wasn't what he'd expected.
"You just, I don't know," Junkyu fumbled for words, losing confidence as quickly as his curiosity had formed it. "You smile. You laugh. You say dragons destroyed your village but you don't look sad."
"Do you think I'm lying?" There was still a strange lightness to Insoo's voice, like he was amused at the thought.
"No," Junkyu replied immediately. "I think it happened. I just don't understand why you're not sad."
They arrived at Junkyu's hut but lingered awkwardly on the path. Insoo sat on a severed stump and watched Junkyu carefully. "You're good at this," he conceded, looking far too pleased. "You're right. I'm not sad, at least not anymore. Our village was destroyed a long time ago."
Junkyu balked, "Then why-"
"We've been wandering. For over a year. We've been to village after village and they've driven us out. We don't just look different; we are different. Our tribe hasn't had contact with the outside world in hundreds of years. We... scare people." His smile twisted slightly, a bitter wryness to his voice. "This village is the only one for miles. We saw it a few days ago, but bandits attacked us last night. They took everything, and we just barely escaped alive. We reached your village in the middle of the attack and collapsed."
He paused and cocked his head.
"Does that story make more sense to you?"
Junkyu's palms felt sweaty. "Yes, but-"
"It's just a slightly different version of the story. Is it enough to make you trust me?" Insoo rose to his feet and stepped closer to Junkyu. He raised his hand to take Junkyu's but paused mid-air.
Junkyu felt himself smile, too, for the first time that day. "It's just another version of the story, and you don't even claim that it's true."
"There's truth in it," Insoo replied with a shrug.
"What do you want from me?" The space between their hands closed as Junkyu latched onto Insoo's. Insoo was unbelievably warm against Junkyu's clammy skin.
The gesture melted the sarcasm in Insoo's smile. He held onto Junkyu's hand lightly, testing the touch. "Patience. All we want to do is live. Maybe learn a little." He sighed and shook his head and Junkyu felt embarrassed, too. They let go at the same time and Junkyu's hand swung uselessly at his side. "Is that okay with you?"
"I don't know why you're asking me that," Junkyu grumbled sheepishly and plucked at his shirt. Regardless he couldn't shake the smile from his face. "But I'll trust you."
The village was busy the week following the attack and the elders cancelled dragon training so that the young men and women could help. There were houses to repair, weapons to be mended and re-honed, not to mention that the people needed healing, too. Villagers filed in and out of the healer's hut getting their cuts and bruises tended to. Quite a few perfectly unharmed people came to visit the hut as well, but to try and sneak a glance at the strange visitors from the top of the mountain. These curious onlookers usually left unsatisfied, for Gunwoo and Insoo made sure to stay away from the hut all day. The day following their meeting Junkyu awoke to Insoo waiting for him outside, and they began their awkward touring and exploring around the village. It became their routine, and soon Junkyu found himself waking up excited, ready to start another day. Junkyu couldn't place the reason for this new excitement, but he knew it had something to do with Insoo.
Over time the villagers, too, became used to seeing Insoo wandering around. The children never tired of running to him for a hug or a spin through the air, but for the most part Insoo went ignored so long as he was by Junkyu's side, which was always. Junkyu wasn't sure why Insoo had taken such an interest in him of all people, but he liked it. Even with Jinseok and Seyong Junkyu had never felt all that special. Seyong was a warrior, and a celebrated one in the village, and Jinseok was getting more and more attention for his work with the healer. Junkyu had his blacksmithing, but he knew that no matter how hard he worked he would never be as good as his father. He could run the forge and perform the duties, but he didn't have the talent. Eventually someone would come along with a knack for the task and he would inherit the forge. Jobs in the village weren't hereditary, something which made them special. You didn't become a warrior because your father was one; you earned it. The problem was, there wasn't anything Junkyu was all that good at. When someone did come along and take over the forge, where would take leave Junkyu?
When he was with Insoo Junkyu didn't have to think about those things. They never brought up their strangely intense first conversation, and Junkyu preferred it that way. With all of that out of the way, Junkyu found it easy to talk to Insoo as if they'd known each other for years. Insoo was laid back, insistently curious about everything in their village, and everything fascinated him. Junkyu introduced Insoo to everyone they met in the village and over the course of the week managed to show Insoo every nook and boring cranny the place had to offer. Meanwhile Insoo smiled, laugh and asked questions. Occasionally they ran into Jinseok and Gunwoo but always in passing. It struck Junkyu as odd that the two didn't spend more time together, but whenever they did meet on the paths it was like all they had to do was meet eyes and they understood each other immediately. They never exchanged a word. It was a bond that Junkyu couldn't fathom, so he didn't think about it much.
"Those two seem to be having fun," he commented once when they spied Gunwoo and Jinseok hanging around the outside of the healer's hut. Gunwoo was laughing out loud and clapping Jinseok on the shoulder. Jinseok looked surprised and pleased. Junkyu couldn't remember having heard Gunwoo laugh before, and the sound struck him as strange.
Insoo nodded absentmindedly and watched the two as well. "Gunwoo is a little... special." He wrinkled his nose at Junkyu and steered them back on track. "I feel bad that Jinseok has to spend so much time with him." He gave JUnkyu a wink and laughed at the expression on Junkyu's face. "Don't worry, though. He's weird, but it's a good kind of weird."
Junkyu looked back at the pair. "I could same the same about you."
Scoffing, Insoo gave Junkyu a halfhearted punch.
"It's not right, Junkyu."
Seyong sat on the edge of Junkyu's bed and fixed Junkyu in a hard stare. Junkyu leaned against his windowsill and folded his arms. The week-long break from training had ended, and tomorrow Jinseok and Junkyu planned to bring Insoo and Gunwoo along. Both of them were intensely interested in the training, and since they seemed to be blending into the village lifestyle in every other respect, it seemed wrong to exclude them. "I don't understand."
"Liar," Seyong countered and kicked Junkyu's chair. For the past week Seyong had been all but impossible to find. At first Junkyu had thought Seyong was scared of their new friends, but then he'd caught Seyong watching them. Always with the same pointed glare he was now aiming at Junkyu.
How could childhood friends be so different? Jinseok and his childish, gentle way of sulking when he was upset. Junkyu who never found himself angry enough to do anything about it. And Seyong, who'd given a boy a bloody nose and broken teeth just for sneering at Jinseok when they were children. That violence had found its place over time, a useful outlet, but it was always there, threatening to lash out at the slightest provocation.
And frankly Junkyu didn't have the patience for this tonight.
"What's your problem with Insoo and Gunwoo?" he asked as patiently as he could.
Seyong huffed. "If you weren't so busy making eyes at Insoo, you'd know."
"If you weren't so busy sneaking around and being an ass, maybe you'd see why Jinseok and I like them," Junkyu grumbled.
"Don't even get me started on Jinseok!" The chair toppled over as Seyong gave it one more kick before getting to his feet. "I tried talking to him about this and the kid fucking screamed at me. What the hell is that freak doing to Jinseok that he'd do something like that?"
"I think it has to do more with what you're doing, not Gunwoo."
"Observant and sulky as always," Seyong sneered.
"You're the one whining because Jinseok doesn't listen to you anymore." Junkyu sighed and sat in his chair, looking up at Seyong's fuming face. "Maybe he's tired of you always deciding what's best for him."
The snarl on Seyong's face faltered, and then fell completely. "I guess neither of you need me anymore, right? Fine, bring the freaks to training tomorrow. Nothing could possibly go wrong," he said bitterly. He turned and made for the door.
"Seyong, come on-" Junkyu called after him, but Seyong slammed the door behind him.
The soldiers in training formed a straight line across the middle of the field. The same field had been used for generations of villagers to practice fighting dragons, and sections of the dark earth were as scorched and scarred as old flesh. There were half a dozen current students, all of them around the proper age for fighting dragons. Seyong was still in training only for the sake of tradition and he spent much of his time being the trainer's assistant rather than his student.
With Gunwoo and Insoo seated at a comfortable distance away near the trees, the trainer was clearly enjoying being on display. He strutted and shouted his instructions with extra force this morning. Several students covered their laughter with their hands, at least until somewhere behind the trainer came an unearthly screech. The students stopped laughing and the trainer raised an eyebrow in amusement.
"Last week we succeeded in catching a dragon," he exclaimed and the students shrank back. "Now's not the time to be babies! Every man and woman in this village, even the mothers and healers and bakers, has faced a dragon head-on in training. This will be your first real look at the enemy. Well, except for Seyong." He gave his favorite pupil a wink and Seyong swelled with pride. "You have nothing to fear with Seyong by your side, right?"
The trainer gave a bark of a laugh and marched off into the trees. The students around Junkyu fidgeted and Junkyu glanced at their spectators. Gunwoo was sitting in perfect calm, but Insoocraned his neck trying to watch the trainer go, or rather watch what the training brought back with him. The trainer reappeared carrying a thick chain which dragged along the ground behind him. At the end, in a clunky iron collar, was a dragon. The size of a large horse, the dragon yanked against the chain now and then, but the trainer had a good hold on it. Its scales were a dull bluish black color, its eyes glowed an angry green. At the center of the field was a wrought iron hook embedded in the dirt by blacksmiths several generations before Junkyu's family. The trainer attached the end of his chain to the hook and let the chain drop. The dragon lunged towards the trees, but the chain went taught and stopped him mid-air.
Junkyu watched the dragon struggle and felt momentarily ill. A metal circlet held the creature's jaws shut and tiny sparks shot from between its clenched teeth. It shook its head to and fro and gave a muffled howl of rage.
"Is this really necessary?" All eyes turned on Jinseok, who fidgeted nervously in place. He shifted from foot to foot and rubbed his hands together but managed to stammer, "This is cruel."
The trainer glowered and motioned Jinseok forward. Jinseok shuffled forward and glanced back at Junkyu. Seyong tensed and stepped forward with him. "He doesn't know, sir," Seyong explained and tried to pull Jinseok back, but the trainer shook his head.
"No. Everyone here is going to face this thing and see if this is necessary." He spat the word and motioned Jinseok closer. He wasn't satisfied until Jinseok was standing directly in front of the dragon. Its eyes narrowed on Jinseok's thin form and snuffed. The trainer stepped up beside Jinseok and held him by the shoulders. "Touch its head, Jinseok."
Jinseok blinked up at the much larger man. Gulping, he reached out towards the dragon. His fingers just barely brushed against the creature's snout before he yanked them back. He turned to leave but the trainer held him tight.
"You call that touching?" He grabbed Jinseok's hand and pressed it against the dragon's snout. The dragon snorted and pulled away, but the trainer moved Jinseok's hand to run over the rest of the face. No matter how the dragon tried to move away, the trainer shifted Jinseok's hold. Soon the thing was growling and snapping its head back and forth. Smoke poured from between its teeth. The trainer let Jinseok go with a laugh and the boy turned so quickly he almost ran into Gunwoo.
Junkyu blinked. All of them did, because at some point during the supposed lesson Gunwoo had joined the two near the dragon. Even the trainer blinked in confused and puffed up ready to fight, but Gunwoo didn't make a move. "You have to show these monsters who's in control," he explained, supposedly to his students but his eyes were on Gunwoo.
Meanwhile Gunwoo's eyes were on the dragon. "You don't have to use force," he said. "Mind if I try?"
The trainer barked another laugh. "Be my guest!"
Gunwoo slid in front of the dragon. From behind it was impossible to determine Gunwoo's expression, but Junkyu could hear Gunwoo's soft, melodious voice murmuring to the dragon, and they could see Gunwoo's hand move towards the imposing head with no hesitation. Junkyu sneaked a glance at Insoo and found him watching, too, though without fear. There was a tension in his expression, but it didn't appear he was afraid for Gunwoo. The dragon made a low rumbling sound in its chest. Slowly, it shifted back onto its haunches as Gunwoo's hand slid up its snout to the top of its head. Once it settled, it bowed its head lower, allowing Gunwoo to run both of his hands along its neck.
He turned and gave the trainer an amused half-smile. "I think you'll find that trust is a better way to control not only dragons, but people, too."
The trainer muttered curses and shoved Gunwoo away from the dragon, which snarled and was on guard again the second the trainer came closer. "What the hell are you? What did you do to it?"
Suddenly all of the students were whispering to each other. Jinseok was staring slack-jawed and Seyong had turned a disturbing shade of purple. Insoo was there, too, walking towards Gunwoo and pulling him away.
"Well," he laughed and dragged Gunwoo after him. "We'll be going back to the village now. Thank you for letting us observe your training."
He was still shouting pleasantries behind him when the pair disappeared into the trees.
Junkyu sat on the bench outside of the elder's hut and tried to distract himself. Not too far away, Seyong was pacing, but not saying a word. That alone was terrifying. Inside they could hear the raised voices of the men and women, and now and then Insoo's voice emerged in between the chaos. The village had confined Gunwoo to their room at the healer's hut and Jinseok was with him. On the way back to the village Jinseok had been babbling away about change and peace and, most worrisome, getting Gunwoo to teach him and others how to do whatever it was he'd done to the dragon. The village had exploded into angry shouts and whispers the second the trainer and the students had arrived.
Now Gunwoo was practically a prisoner and Insoo wasn't far off, arguing for both of their lives inside the hut.
Seyong paused by Junkyu before taking a seat. His breathing was rough and uneven. He couldn't keep his hands still and he couldn't look at Junkyu. "Tell me something," he said quietly, his voice shaking. "Have we been wrong this entire time?"
"I don't know." Junkyu grabbed Seyong's arm to steady him but Seyong was already getting to his feet again.
"Have I been fucking murdering these things for no reason?" he shouted. A few women passing by flinched and stared at the pair a moment before hurrying off.
Junkyu opened his hands in a hopeless gesture. "I don't know." Seyong groaned. "You've been doing what you thought was right," Junkyu added.
Seyong nodded distractedly just as the door to the hut swung open. A haggard face appeared and for a second Junkyu didn't recognize Insoo. Only then did he realize he'd never seen Insoo without some kind of a smile on his face. Even when serious, Insoo smiled. When he noticed Junkyu and Seyong, Insoo smiled, but in a tired and dejected kind of way. The look on Seyong's face said he had things to say, but he took off down the path to the village square without a word.
Insoo sighed and watched Seyong go. "It's house arrest for us," he chuckled, but he didn't sound the least bit amused.
As it turned out, keeping two men under house arrest was terrifyingly simple. The sentence was unprecedented in the village's history, but the people adapted quickly. The elders chose four of the village's top soldiers to guard the healer's hut and ensure neither Insoo nor Gunwoo took a step outside. Jinseok and Junkyu brought the two captives their meals and spent hours inside the hut keeping them company. The room was cramped with four people, but they made do. Gunwoo remained unwaveringly unapologetic for what he did, and though he didn't say much to Junkyu directly, Junkyu found he admired Gunwoo a lot. He had a strange logic, even stranger than Insoo's, and his sense of humor was questionable at best, but after spending a few days around him Junkyu could understand why Jinseok had latched himself onto Gunwoo. He had a way of making those around him feel at ease without actually doing anything.
"So can you do that, too?" Junkyu asked one night when Jinseok was curled up asleep in Gunwoo's bed and Gunwoo was asleep sitting up against the wall. Whether or not Gunwoo was actually asleep or secretly listening was debatable, but Junkyu didn't much care.
Insoo peered down at Junkyu where he sat on the floor. Insoo was sprawled out across his own bed, half asleep. "Hm, do what?" he mumbled.
"You know," Junkyu insisted awkwardly, nudging Insoo's arm. "Control dragons, talk to them?"
A sleepy smile spread across Insoo's face. "Not as well as he can." He rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. "In our village there were two, I don't know what you'd call them, families? Clans? Gunwoo is from one, and I'm from the other. They're different. The best way to describe it is that Gunwoo's clan is purer, in a way. They can do more, and what my clan can do they can do better. He's stronger." He laughed quietly. "He's stronger in a lot of ways."
Junkyu frowned. "I think you're stronger in a lot of ways, too," he muttered.
"You're a strange person, Junkyu," Insoo mumbled back. "I'm glad I met you."
A warm feeling spread through Junkyu's chest and up to his cheeks. "I am, too," he whispered back. The night was perfectly quiet, and soon after that they were all asleep.
part 2/2
Pairing: Junkyu-centric
Rating: PG-13
Wordcount: 11,285
Summary: Junkyu meets his first dragon.
Warnings: Brief and mild descriptions of gore
Notes: Written for weatherscenes as a part of nugu_seyo. This started out as an attempt at How to Train Your Dragon AU and turned into something quite different.
Crossposted to AO3.
For the people of Junkyu's village, there had always been dragons. Centuries of history and folklore indicated no real first encounter with the creatures, not a single myth about how they came to be in this world. According to their stories, for as long as there had been humans, there had been dragons. There was a good chance the dragons had actually existed first, and though that nagging stipulation was forever on their minds, no one dared put it into words.
There had always been dragons, and therefore there had always been war.
Or so everyone said, but Junkyu thought it was all rather dramatic. The skirmishes that occurred every other week or so could hardly be called battles, in his opinion. A few days before dark shadows would course over the roofs of the village and otherworldly cries would wake everyone in their beds. The men and women alike would prepare accordingly, reinforcing the buildings and readying the rickety wooden things the clan leaders gave thetoo proud name "battle towers." Junkyu's family would be busy sharpening and repairing weapons which were doomed to break all over again. By the time the dragons actually came, the villagers were so prepared the "battle" went like clockwork.
The dragons came, the villagers attacked. The dragons would carry off maybe a dozen out of the hundreds of sheep in their flocks, and yet the villagers almost always got away with a few burns and broken bones. The elders liked to chalk this up to their strict training regimens and perfect combat strategies, but Junkyu couldn't help but wonder how they could be so lucky when they'd killed so many of the incredible monsters. Evidence of the clan's "victories" hung on the walls of the hall and around the village: skins, entire mounted heads, countless pieces jewelry made from scales and teeth. Seyong had once tried to sell Junkyu one of his prized dragonbone knives, but just looking at the thing made Junkyu queasy.
"They came again last night," Seyong whispered as if the entire village weren't buzzing with the same excitement. Junkyu bent over where he was sharpening a blade- Seyong's blade, a gift from the clan elders for consistently outstanding performance in battle. Where Junkyu was hesitant, Seyong was totally self-assured. Where Junkyu was questioning and doubtful, Seyong was headstrong and focused. How the two of them had managed to become best friends was a mystery, but they made it work in between the fights which Seyong always won.
Running a finger along the blunt side of the blade, Junkyu's frown deepened. "This is as sharp as it's going to get." Seyong grabbed the short sword out of Junkyu's hands and swung it in a graceful and deadly arc. "Save it for the dragons!" Junkyu hissed and stepped away.
"Oh, I'll make sure those monsters get a good taste of your hard work." Seyong grinned and sheathed the sword. "The real question is if you're going to crawl of your hole this time and see it."
Junkyu shrugged. "I do my part. What would you do if your bow broke and you had no one to fix it mid-battle?" When the dragons attacked, it fell to the blacksmiths, Junkyu's family, to be at the ready to repair anything brought to them as quickly as possible. Junkyu's father craved that thrill, the violence just beyond their doors and the blood dripping from the weapons shoved into their hands. Junkyu just liked having an excuse not to watch the carnage.
Seyong leaned against the doorway and watched Junkyu work with a mix of disappointment and interest. "You've been in training for two years and you don't have any desire to fight a real dragon? Even Jinseok shows more enthusiasm than you."
"Training is mandatory, and I'm not Jinseok," Junkyu replied flatly. He pretended not to hear Seyong's heavy sigh and, the next time Junkyu looked up, his friend was gone.
They came late that night. Junkyu was in his bed, his lamp glowing just enough to illuminate the pages of his book. The book was a massive volume, borrowed from the hall, and listed all of the recorded varieties of dragons. Village tradition required all young men and women to read and memorize the book during their first year of training. Junkyu's first year was long past now, but he still liked to borrow the book on occasion. He liked to stare at the pictures and run his fingers along the old drawings. On paper the dragons were bright and colorful, magical without the menace of their shadows as they passed overhead during the raids. At night the dragons blended together in fear and panic, but on the pages Junkyu's eyes took in all of the unique forms and qualities with nothing but wonder.
The blaring of a horn ripped through the night and the book toppled to the floor as Junkyu leaped to his feet and struggled to get dressed. The routine was so all muscle memory by now, and Junkyu's mind hadn't had much of a chance to keep up by the time he found himself in front of his father's forge. Outside the villagers were racing to the weapon stores before moving to their assigned positions. Somewhere out there Seyong was brandishing his sword and climbing up one of the battle towers, as always part of the front lines of combat. Jinseok would be there, too, providing back up and fetching weapons for the soldiers up on the towers.
Junkyu felt a pang of envy, but only because his best friends had already seen more dragons up close than Junkyu would in his lifetime. Screeches punctuated the shouts of the villages and made Junkyu shiver in fear and anticipation. They were here.
A fireball erupted not too far from the front window to the house, which was kept open so that the soldiers could run up and grab what they needed quickly. The impact shook the ground and the tools hung on the walls rattled against the wood. Junkyu didn't look up for a second as his father handed him broken knives and short blades to force the pieces back together. These blades never held up well but the priority on these nights was speed, not quality. He wasn't sure how many blades he'd handled before his father was shouting to him to go fetch more wood for the forge.
The cold air hit Junkyu like a wall after being in the sweltering heat for so long and for a moment he was disoriented. He looked around wildly for the woodpile and found it a heap of broken, smoldering cinders. The night was thick with the smell of smoke and all he could hear was people shouting and sheep bleating. Grabbing the ax Junkyu headed into the woods directly behind the workshop, narrowly avoiding a rain of fall that fell upon the outermost trees. The trees were safer than the open roads and Junkyu could fell a tree is less time than most, though he reasoned that even Seyong would call him a fool for trying to do so during a dragon raid. Not that he had much of a choice; without wood, the forge didn't function. Without the forge, there was no way to keep the soldiers armed.
There was a patch of dead trees not too far into the woods which they'd been saving to chop down later. Junkyu went to work without pausing to breathe, and thankfully was so used to the work that he could do it without thinking. In minutes he had a good stack ready to carry back to the stop, and then a large shadow passed overheard. Junkyu saw something glinting through the trees and a heavy weight fell somewhere close by. The leaves rustled as something out there moved quickly through the brush.
A scaled head pushed through the branches and Junkyu dropped his ax. Two perfectly formed jewel eyes returned his stare with calm interest. The dragon was covered from head to tail with small, glittering black scales. The light in its eyes glowed a steady pale gold. As the dragon moved the moonlight sparkled and danced off of the black scales. Junkyu couldn't move a muscle. Those eyes remained trained on his, and as he stared he saw them crinkle just the tiniest bit as if it were smiling.
Something whipped out from the bushes to his right and all Junkyu saw was the glitter of silvery white scales before everything went black.
Junkyu awoke to the sounds of hammering and cheerful voices. He was in his bed, the sky outside his small window was a bright blue, and for a second he thought that he'd dreamed the attack. Only when he spotted a few dark grey curls of smoke in the otherwise clear sky did he lunge from bed and out of his family's hut.
Outside, the scene was oddly peaceful. Children bounced around and helped their parents pick up debris. Builders were at work repairing roofs and bringing down what was left of the battle towers. Everyone was laughing and congratulating each other on surviving once again. Junkyu should have found this comforting, but there was something eating at him, something he couldn't quite remember.
"I guess that dragon really did knock the sense out of you," a familiar voice chuckled. Junkyu turned and found Seyong watching him, arms full of charred wood. "What little you had, anyway."
"Dragon?" Junkyu replied. He was too confused to even process the insult and his head was throbbing.
Worry creased Seyong's brow and he carefully set down what he was carrying and stepped closer to look into Junkyu's eyes. "You should go see the healer. Since all you got was a bump on the head she let your father take you home, but maybe that wasn't a good idea. Even with those freaks hanging around she should have room for you."
Junkyu's head span. "Freaks?" His voice was hoarse and he suddenly felt exhausted.
Seyong grabbed Junkyu's hand and started towards the healer's hut. "You weren't the only one attacked by those dragons last night. We found two guys near you, and you really need to see them."
The healers hut was stuffy and cramped. The air was heavy with the smell of herbs and the warmth of too many bodies. The two found Jinseok sitting just inside the entrance to the healer's hut, fidgeting with a few vials of seeds.
As soon as he spied his friends, Jinseok's face lit up. "You're alive!" he cried and embraced Junkyu with a little too much enthusiasm.
"I was just bumped on the head," he muttered, but he was happy to see Jinseok nonetheless.
Seyong swung an arm around Jinseok and squeezed him playfully. "Helping out the old lady again? I don't get how you can stand being in this hut all day!"
Jinseok's mouth tightened into a straight line. "I like it here."
Their friend didn't seem to hear him, looking around the main room of the hut. "So where are they?"
Junkyu patted Jinseok on the arm gently as Jinseok detached himself from Seyong and moved further into the hut. The healer kept two small rooms for the sick which Jinseok cleaned in addition to maintaining her stores of herbs. The work was tedious and quiet and not what the village considered manly, but Jinseok was good at it and the healer was well respected, so no one questioned why the clan leader's only son was more devoted to the healing arts than to his training. Jinseok took part in combat training with Junkyu's same level of enthusiasm: none. The only difference was that Jinseok actively participated in the raids while Junkyu chose to stay with his father.
In one of the rooms the healer was tending to an injured villager. There was a bandage around the man's face and her back was turned to them, so the boys moved quietly along to the second room, further to the back. Not a sound came from this room and, just as they reached the doorway, Jinseok hesitated. "Don't be rude," he whispered with a pointed glare at Seyong. Seyong looked ready to argue, but Jinseok looked away and effectively cut off the comment. A tiny smile crept onto Junkyu's face; all through their childhood Seyong had forcibly taken Jinseok under his wing, without stopping to consider whether Jinseok wanted the protection and guidance or not. These days Jinseok was less than receptive, and Seyong was as usual less than observant. The two maintained an awkward but affectionate balance that Junkyu found consistently amusing.
Jinseok's fingers hadn't even reached the door when it creaked open. A head appeared in the small opening, a flash of pale gold, and dark eyes widened in surprise to find them standing practically in the doorway. "Oh, it's you," an unfamiliar voice said with obvious relief and the head disappeared into the room. Jinseok followed after and, exchanging puzzled looks, Junkyu and Seyong did the same.
Two narrow beds took up the majority of the space in the small room. On the best farthest from the door one figure lay stretched out, eyes focused on the ceiling as if he hadn't noticed the new intrusions. The other, his golden head swaying slightly as he moved, swung himself down onto the other bed and fixed the three boys in a curious smile.
"Your friends?" he asked Jinseok.
Jinseok nodded in his shy way. "Junkyu, Seyong," he replied and gestured to his friends. "This is Insoo." When the stranger's eyes fell on him, the irises such a dark color that it was impossible to distinguish the pupils, it took all of Junkyu's mental capacities to remember to nod politely. The people of Junkyu's tribe had dark eyes, too, but Junkyu had never seen eyes so black. He could practically see himself reflected in the depths, every bit of light absorbed and, somewhere in those depths, shining quietly. Thankfully those eyes didn't stay on Junkyu for long, but wandered to Seyong and then around the room. They settled on Jinseok who didn't appear nearly so bothered and the two of them chatted quietly. In his gawking Junkyu couldn't keep up with the words.
The eyes weren't Insoo's only strange features. His hair was the color of weak gold which contrasted with his tan skin. Junkyu had heard of tribes with light hair, but those of the north had hair the color of yellow straw, and the tribes to the east were rumored to have fiery hair. Neither of those rumors quite matched Insoo, nor his friend. It took Junkyu a few moments to remember the other man, for he never once spoke up or even looked over. Like Insoo, he had fair hair, but his was a different extreme. So pale it was nearly white in places, the tiny bits of light that filtered in through the narrow window played strange tricks on the mind when it landed on that hair, as if all the colors of the rainbow were layered through the pure white base. Unlike Insoo, this one's paleness extended to his entire being. Junkyu's people were dark, tanned from hard work and playing in the sun of the cliffs, but this stranger's skin was white and delicate.
Insoo kicked his companion's leg and grunted, "Stop being rude." The pale one muttered something under his breath but rose to sit up. His impossibly round eyes were the same bottomless black and they immediately locked Junkyu in a gaze of utter indifference.
"Nice to meet you," he said in a tone that was polite but cold. "My name is Gunwoo." His voice was deep and melodic and his speech edged on painfully formal, the complete opposite of Insoo's light, casual voice.
Gunwoo's reaction was apparently adequate, for Insoo beamed briefly before returning his attention to Jinseok. "So does this mean we're allowed out of bed?"
Jinseok's eyes shifted to Gunwoo before reply. "Yes, but before I can show you around Junkyu needs his head examined."
Seyong snorted, "You can say that again." Junkyu promptly gave his friend a sharp elbow to the ribs.
Insoo's eyes fell on Junkyu again. "Ah, so you're the one they found with us?"
There was something inexplicably sad in the question, and Junkyu didn't have a chance to respond before Jinseok was answering for him and ushering them all out of the room. Gunwoo followed always a few steps behind the group; Insoo fell in step beside Junkyu in the hall. A pleasant warmth seemed to radiate from him in the tight space.
As they left the hut Junkyu kept his eyes trained on his boots. The bandages wrapped around his head made him feel more than a little self-conscious and his scalp throbbed from the healer's less than gentle touches. The shallow gash was healing properly but she had insisted on the bandage to keep it clean. Junkyu had put up his usual less-than-convincing fight before giving in to the stubborn woman. Seyong was busy trying to engage Gunwoo in conversation with little success while Jinseok pleaded with their friend to stop shouting at their guest.
His friends distracted, Junkyu was left to walk side by side with Insoo. He was keenly aware of Insoo's presence and yet not particularly uncomfortable with it, something which he found terribly confusing. The way he could feel Gunwoo watching didn't help.
"I guess we were lucky," Insoo chuckled and nudged Junkyu's arm. "By the time we found you the dragons were long gone."
Junkyu peeked at Insoo out of the corner of his eyes. 'Fast asleep and naked as newborns,' the old healer had said with a pointed look at Insoo and Gunwoo. 'Between that and you with blood all over your face we didn't know what to think.'
Frankly, neither did Junkyu.
"Where the hell did you two come from?" Seyong chimed in, giving up on Gunwoo and jogging to join Insoo and Junkyu. Behind them Junkyu heard Gunwoo mutter something and Jinseok laughed. Seyong cast the pair an annoyed look but stuck to his decision. "Your hair is wild." He reached out to touch Insoo's briefly and Junkyu almost moved to slap the hand away, except that Insoo smiled and leaned towards Seyong to give him a better look.
"We get that a lot whenever we leave the village. We live so high up in the mountains that not many of us bother traveling to other villages."
This time it was Jinseok who spoke up. "Why did you come here?"
Insoo craned his neck around to give Jinseok a kind smile, but Junkyu noticed a hint of the same sadness in them he'd noticed in the hut. "Our village is gone, now. We're all that's left." Though appropriately sad, the words rang hollow in Junkyu's ears.
"No way!" Seyong clapped a hand on Insoo's shoulder and Insoo nearly laughed again in surprise. "What happened?"
For a second, Insoo was quiet, his mouth hanging open, and then Gunwoo answered, "Dragons."
That night the five of them entered the community hall together. Seyong was prattling away about all of the great clan leaders who had once sat in the hall, all of their heroic deeds, while Insoo listened intently and Gunwoo stared straight ahead. Despite his cool demeanor Junkyu could sense that the quieter of their two guests was constantly listening and observing. Jinseok had stayed glued to Gunwoo's side throughout the day and was the only one able to actively engage him in conversation, but said conversation was always quiet, or when they were too far away to overhear. Junkyu didn't know quite how he felt about it but Seyong seemed happy to ignore it when Insoo was willing to give all the attention Seyong wanted. Somewhere in this middle was Junkyu, his head throbbing so badly he wanted nothing more than to go to bed but never able to pull himself away.
As the guests' unofficial escorts and guides, Junyku and his friends found themselves the center of attention in the village. Everywhere they went villagers would approach and ask questions about the strangers, always through one of the three boys they already knew. Children ran up on the street to gawk at their pale hair and Gunwoo's skin. At first Junkyu was worried the two would be offended, but Insoo delighted in the attention. He picked up the small children and tickled them until they were squealing with delight. At a point they'd had to stop the tour completely to allow all of the gathered children a turn.
Every single stomach was rumbling by the time they found an empty table in the hall. Junkyu settled down on a bench and waved the others on. Insoo stayed, and Junkyu wasn't sure if he was happy or annoyed. He was used to going with whatever his friends wanted, but it was a different thing altogether to feel drawn towards someone like this. Junkyu should have been home by now, but when he glanced up at Insoo's perpetually smiling face his legs felt like lead.
"You seem tired," Insoo commented.
Junkyu muttered something noncommittal and buried his face in his arms.
"I'm sorry."
There it was again. A quiet, undeniably sad undertone in Insoo's voice which Junkyu didn't understand. He looked up to find Gunwoo settling down on the bench beside Insoo with Jinseok on his other side. Gunwoo leaned in and whispered something to Insoo as he set a bowl in front of him. Insoo cheered and grinned at Gunwoo before digging into the food.
A bowl appeared next to Junkyu's arm. He hadn't even realized how blatantly he'd been staring until looked up and found Seyong frowning at him. "Eat, dummy."
Junkyu grinned sheepishly and obeyed.
The group parted after dinner. Seyong, sulky and uncharacteristically quiet, muttered something about training and went off towards the field alone. Jinseok offered to escort Gunwoo and Insoo back to the healer's hurt, but Insoo insisted that he still had energy. The second Junkyu started towards home, Insoo was by his side.
When they were a good distance away from Jinseok and Gunwoo, Insoo asked, "You don't trust us, do you?"
Junkyu groaned inwardly. He was exhausted and his head hurt; he doubted he had the energy to genuinely mistrust someone at the moment, but he couldn't deny that he felt anything but comfortable being alone with Insoo. "I don't," he decided to reply. "Nothing you say makes sense."
"Ask me questions," Insoo replied. He seemed neither surprised nor offended. "Maybe we can make it make sense."
Junkyu frowned. As much as he wanted nothing more than to get right into bed and not think about anything, his curiosity was nagging him. "Are you sad? About your village, I mean."
Insoo stopped walking and stared at Junkyu. Apparently that wasn't what he'd expected.
"You just, I don't know," Junkyu fumbled for words, losing confidence as quickly as his curiosity had formed it. "You smile. You laugh. You say dragons destroyed your village but you don't look sad."
"Do you think I'm lying?" There was still a strange lightness to Insoo's voice, like he was amused at the thought.
"No," Junkyu replied immediately. "I think it happened. I just don't understand why you're not sad."
They arrived at Junkyu's hut but lingered awkwardly on the path. Insoo sat on a severed stump and watched Junkyu carefully. "You're good at this," he conceded, looking far too pleased. "You're right. I'm not sad, at least not anymore. Our village was destroyed a long time ago."
Junkyu balked, "Then why-"
"We've been wandering. For over a year. We've been to village after village and they've driven us out. We don't just look different; we are different. Our tribe hasn't had contact with the outside world in hundreds of years. We... scare people." His smile twisted slightly, a bitter wryness to his voice. "This village is the only one for miles. We saw it a few days ago, but bandits attacked us last night. They took everything, and we just barely escaped alive. We reached your village in the middle of the attack and collapsed."
He paused and cocked his head.
"Does that story make more sense to you?"
Junkyu's palms felt sweaty. "Yes, but-"
"It's just a slightly different version of the story. Is it enough to make you trust me?" Insoo rose to his feet and stepped closer to Junkyu. He raised his hand to take Junkyu's but paused mid-air.
Junkyu felt himself smile, too, for the first time that day. "It's just another version of the story, and you don't even claim that it's true."
"There's truth in it," Insoo replied with a shrug.
"What do you want from me?" The space between their hands closed as Junkyu latched onto Insoo's. Insoo was unbelievably warm against Junkyu's clammy skin.
The gesture melted the sarcasm in Insoo's smile. He held onto Junkyu's hand lightly, testing the touch. "Patience. All we want to do is live. Maybe learn a little." He sighed and shook his head and Junkyu felt embarrassed, too. They let go at the same time and Junkyu's hand swung uselessly at his side. "Is that okay with you?"
"I don't know why you're asking me that," Junkyu grumbled sheepishly and plucked at his shirt. Regardless he couldn't shake the smile from his face. "But I'll trust you."
The village was busy the week following the attack and the elders cancelled dragon training so that the young men and women could help. There were houses to repair, weapons to be mended and re-honed, not to mention that the people needed healing, too. Villagers filed in and out of the healer's hut getting their cuts and bruises tended to. Quite a few perfectly unharmed people came to visit the hut as well, but to try and sneak a glance at the strange visitors from the top of the mountain. These curious onlookers usually left unsatisfied, for Gunwoo and Insoo made sure to stay away from the hut all day. The day following their meeting Junkyu awoke to Insoo waiting for him outside, and they began their awkward touring and exploring around the village. It became their routine, and soon Junkyu found himself waking up excited, ready to start another day. Junkyu couldn't place the reason for this new excitement, but he knew it had something to do with Insoo.
Over time the villagers, too, became used to seeing Insoo wandering around. The children never tired of running to him for a hug or a spin through the air, but for the most part Insoo went ignored so long as he was by Junkyu's side, which was always. Junkyu wasn't sure why Insoo had taken such an interest in him of all people, but he liked it. Even with Jinseok and Seyong Junkyu had never felt all that special. Seyong was a warrior, and a celebrated one in the village, and Jinseok was getting more and more attention for his work with the healer. Junkyu had his blacksmithing, but he knew that no matter how hard he worked he would never be as good as his father. He could run the forge and perform the duties, but he didn't have the talent. Eventually someone would come along with a knack for the task and he would inherit the forge. Jobs in the village weren't hereditary, something which made them special. You didn't become a warrior because your father was one; you earned it. The problem was, there wasn't anything Junkyu was all that good at. When someone did come along and take over the forge, where would take leave Junkyu?
When he was with Insoo Junkyu didn't have to think about those things. They never brought up their strangely intense first conversation, and Junkyu preferred it that way. With all of that out of the way, Junkyu found it easy to talk to Insoo as if they'd known each other for years. Insoo was laid back, insistently curious about everything in their village, and everything fascinated him. Junkyu introduced Insoo to everyone they met in the village and over the course of the week managed to show Insoo every nook and boring cranny the place had to offer. Meanwhile Insoo smiled, laugh and asked questions. Occasionally they ran into Jinseok and Gunwoo but always in passing. It struck Junkyu as odd that the two didn't spend more time together, but whenever they did meet on the paths it was like all they had to do was meet eyes and they understood each other immediately. They never exchanged a word. It was a bond that Junkyu couldn't fathom, so he didn't think about it much.
"Those two seem to be having fun," he commented once when they spied Gunwoo and Jinseok hanging around the outside of the healer's hut. Gunwoo was laughing out loud and clapping Jinseok on the shoulder. Jinseok looked surprised and pleased. Junkyu couldn't remember having heard Gunwoo laugh before, and the sound struck him as strange.
Insoo nodded absentmindedly and watched the two as well. "Gunwoo is a little... special." He wrinkled his nose at Junkyu and steered them back on track. "I feel bad that Jinseok has to spend so much time with him." He gave JUnkyu a wink and laughed at the expression on Junkyu's face. "Don't worry, though. He's weird, but it's a good kind of weird."
Junkyu looked back at the pair. "I could same the same about you."
Scoffing, Insoo gave Junkyu a halfhearted punch.
"It's not right, Junkyu."
Seyong sat on the edge of Junkyu's bed and fixed Junkyu in a hard stare. Junkyu leaned against his windowsill and folded his arms. The week-long break from training had ended, and tomorrow Jinseok and Junkyu planned to bring Insoo and Gunwoo along. Both of them were intensely interested in the training, and since they seemed to be blending into the village lifestyle in every other respect, it seemed wrong to exclude them. "I don't understand."
"Liar," Seyong countered and kicked Junkyu's chair. For the past week Seyong had been all but impossible to find. At first Junkyu had thought Seyong was scared of their new friends, but then he'd caught Seyong watching them. Always with the same pointed glare he was now aiming at Junkyu.
How could childhood friends be so different? Jinseok and his childish, gentle way of sulking when he was upset. Junkyu who never found himself angry enough to do anything about it. And Seyong, who'd given a boy a bloody nose and broken teeth just for sneering at Jinseok when they were children. That violence had found its place over time, a useful outlet, but it was always there, threatening to lash out at the slightest provocation.
And frankly Junkyu didn't have the patience for this tonight.
"What's your problem with Insoo and Gunwoo?" he asked as patiently as he could.
Seyong huffed. "If you weren't so busy making eyes at Insoo, you'd know."
"If you weren't so busy sneaking around and being an ass, maybe you'd see why Jinseok and I like them," Junkyu grumbled.
"Don't even get me started on Jinseok!" The chair toppled over as Seyong gave it one more kick before getting to his feet. "I tried talking to him about this and the kid fucking screamed at me. What the hell is that freak doing to Jinseok that he'd do something like that?"
"I think it has to do more with what you're doing, not Gunwoo."
"Observant and sulky as always," Seyong sneered.
"You're the one whining because Jinseok doesn't listen to you anymore." Junkyu sighed and sat in his chair, looking up at Seyong's fuming face. "Maybe he's tired of you always deciding what's best for him."
The snarl on Seyong's face faltered, and then fell completely. "I guess neither of you need me anymore, right? Fine, bring the freaks to training tomorrow. Nothing could possibly go wrong," he said bitterly. He turned and made for the door.
"Seyong, come on-" Junkyu called after him, but Seyong slammed the door behind him.
The soldiers in training formed a straight line across the middle of the field. The same field had been used for generations of villagers to practice fighting dragons, and sections of the dark earth were as scorched and scarred as old flesh. There were half a dozen current students, all of them around the proper age for fighting dragons. Seyong was still in training only for the sake of tradition and he spent much of his time being the trainer's assistant rather than his student.
With Gunwoo and Insoo seated at a comfortable distance away near the trees, the trainer was clearly enjoying being on display. He strutted and shouted his instructions with extra force this morning. Several students covered their laughter with their hands, at least until somewhere behind the trainer came an unearthly screech. The students stopped laughing and the trainer raised an eyebrow in amusement.
"Last week we succeeded in catching a dragon," he exclaimed and the students shrank back. "Now's not the time to be babies! Every man and woman in this village, even the mothers and healers and bakers, has faced a dragon head-on in training. This will be your first real look at the enemy. Well, except for Seyong." He gave his favorite pupil a wink and Seyong swelled with pride. "You have nothing to fear with Seyong by your side, right?"
The trainer gave a bark of a laugh and marched off into the trees. The students around Junkyu fidgeted and Junkyu glanced at their spectators. Gunwoo was sitting in perfect calm, but Insoocraned his neck trying to watch the trainer go, or rather watch what the training brought back with him. The trainer reappeared carrying a thick chain which dragged along the ground behind him. At the end, in a clunky iron collar, was a dragon. The size of a large horse, the dragon yanked against the chain now and then, but the trainer had a good hold on it. Its scales were a dull bluish black color, its eyes glowed an angry green. At the center of the field was a wrought iron hook embedded in the dirt by blacksmiths several generations before Junkyu's family. The trainer attached the end of his chain to the hook and let the chain drop. The dragon lunged towards the trees, but the chain went taught and stopped him mid-air.
Junkyu watched the dragon struggle and felt momentarily ill. A metal circlet held the creature's jaws shut and tiny sparks shot from between its clenched teeth. It shook its head to and fro and gave a muffled howl of rage.
"Is this really necessary?" All eyes turned on Jinseok, who fidgeted nervously in place. He shifted from foot to foot and rubbed his hands together but managed to stammer, "This is cruel."
The trainer glowered and motioned Jinseok forward. Jinseok shuffled forward and glanced back at Junkyu. Seyong tensed and stepped forward with him. "He doesn't know, sir," Seyong explained and tried to pull Jinseok back, but the trainer shook his head.
"No. Everyone here is going to face this thing and see if this is necessary." He spat the word and motioned Jinseok closer. He wasn't satisfied until Jinseok was standing directly in front of the dragon. Its eyes narrowed on Jinseok's thin form and snuffed. The trainer stepped up beside Jinseok and held him by the shoulders. "Touch its head, Jinseok."
Jinseok blinked up at the much larger man. Gulping, he reached out towards the dragon. His fingers just barely brushed against the creature's snout before he yanked them back. He turned to leave but the trainer held him tight.
"You call that touching?" He grabbed Jinseok's hand and pressed it against the dragon's snout. The dragon snorted and pulled away, but the trainer moved Jinseok's hand to run over the rest of the face. No matter how the dragon tried to move away, the trainer shifted Jinseok's hold. Soon the thing was growling and snapping its head back and forth. Smoke poured from between its teeth. The trainer let Jinseok go with a laugh and the boy turned so quickly he almost ran into Gunwoo.
Junkyu blinked. All of them did, because at some point during the supposed lesson Gunwoo had joined the two near the dragon. Even the trainer blinked in confused and puffed up ready to fight, but Gunwoo didn't make a move. "You have to show these monsters who's in control," he explained, supposedly to his students but his eyes were on Gunwoo.
Meanwhile Gunwoo's eyes were on the dragon. "You don't have to use force," he said. "Mind if I try?"
The trainer barked another laugh. "Be my guest!"
Gunwoo slid in front of the dragon. From behind it was impossible to determine Gunwoo's expression, but Junkyu could hear Gunwoo's soft, melodious voice murmuring to the dragon, and they could see Gunwoo's hand move towards the imposing head with no hesitation. Junkyu sneaked a glance at Insoo and found him watching, too, though without fear. There was a tension in his expression, but it didn't appear he was afraid for Gunwoo. The dragon made a low rumbling sound in its chest. Slowly, it shifted back onto its haunches as Gunwoo's hand slid up its snout to the top of its head. Once it settled, it bowed its head lower, allowing Gunwoo to run both of his hands along its neck.
He turned and gave the trainer an amused half-smile. "I think you'll find that trust is a better way to control not only dragons, but people, too."
The trainer muttered curses and shoved Gunwoo away from the dragon, which snarled and was on guard again the second the trainer came closer. "What the hell are you? What did you do to it?"
Suddenly all of the students were whispering to each other. Jinseok was staring slack-jawed and Seyong had turned a disturbing shade of purple. Insoo was there, too, walking towards Gunwoo and pulling him away.
"Well," he laughed and dragged Gunwoo after him. "We'll be going back to the village now. Thank you for letting us observe your training."
He was still shouting pleasantries behind him when the pair disappeared into the trees.
Junkyu sat on the bench outside of the elder's hut and tried to distract himself. Not too far away, Seyong was pacing, but not saying a word. That alone was terrifying. Inside they could hear the raised voices of the men and women, and now and then Insoo's voice emerged in between the chaos. The village had confined Gunwoo to their room at the healer's hut and Jinseok was with him. On the way back to the village Jinseok had been babbling away about change and peace and, most worrisome, getting Gunwoo to teach him and others how to do whatever it was he'd done to the dragon. The village had exploded into angry shouts and whispers the second the trainer and the students had arrived.
Now Gunwoo was practically a prisoner and Insoo wasn't far off, arguing for both of their lives inside the hut.
Seyong paused by Junkyu before taking a seat. His breathing was rough and uneven. He couldn't keep his hands still and he couldn't look at Junkyu. "Tell me something," he said quietly, his voice shaking. "Have we been wrong this entire time?"
"I don't know." Junkyu grabbed Seyong's arm to steady him but Seyong was already getting to his feet again.
"Have I been fucking murdering these things for no reason?" he shouted. A few women passing by flinched and stared at the pair a moment before hurrying off.
Junkyu opened his hands in a hopeless gesture. "I don't know." Seyong groaned. "You've been doing what you thought was right," Junkyu added.
Seyong nodded distractedly just as the door to the hut swung open. A haggard face appeared and for a second Junkyu didn't recognize Insoo. Only then did he realize he'd never seen Insoo without some kind of a smile on his face. Even when serious, Insoo smiled. When he noticed Junkyu and Seyong, Insoo smiled, but in a tired and dejected kind of way. The look on Seyong's face said he had things to say, but he took off down the path to the village square without a word.
Insoo sighed and watched Seyong go. "It's house arrest for us," he chuckled, but he didn't sound the least bit amused.
As it turned out, keeping two men under house arrest was terrifyingly simple. The sentence was unprecedented in the village's history, but the people adapted quickly. The elders chose four of the village's top soldiers to guard the healer's hut and ensure neither Insoo nor Gunwoo took a step outside. Jinseok and Junkyu brought the two captives their meals and spent hours inside the hut keeping them company. The room was cramped with four people, but they made do. Gunwoo remained unwaveringly unapologetic for what he did, and though he didn't say much to Junkyu directly, Junkyu found he admired Gunwoo a lot. He had a strange logic, even stranger than Insoo's, and his sense of humor was questionable at best, but after spending a few days around him Junkyu could understand why Jinseok had latched himself onto Gunwoo. He had a way of making those around him feel at ease without actually doing anything.
"So can you do that, too?" Junkyu asked one night when Jinseok was curled up asleep in Gunwoo's bed and Gunwoo was asleep sitting up against the wall. Whether or not Gunwoo was actually asleep or secretly listening was debatable, but Junkyu didn't much care.
Insoo peered down at Junkyu where he sat on the floor. Insoo was sprawled out across his own bed, half asleep. "Hm, do what?" he mumbled.
"You know," Junkyu insisted awkwardly, nudging Insoo's arm. "Control dragons, talk to them?"
A sleepy smile spread across Insoo's face. "Not as well as he can." He rolled over onto his back and stared at the ceiling. "In our village there were two, I don't know what you'd call them, families? Clans? Gunwoo is from one, and I'm from the other. They're different. The best way to describe it is that Gunwoo's clan is purer, in a way. They can do more, and what my clan can do they can do better. He's stronger." He laughed quietly. "He's stronger in a lot of ways."
Junkyu frowned. "I think you're stronger in a lot of ways, too," he muttered.
"You're a strange person, Junkyu," Insoo mumbled back. "I'm glad I met you."
A warm feeling spread through Junkyu's chest and up to his cheeks. "I am, too," he whispered back. The night was perfectly quiet, and soon after that they were all asleep.
part 2/2