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Chapter Text

Yunho didn’t know what to think when Mrs. Park called him one day and asked if he would like to adopt a bear. He had never heard of anyone who kept bears, other than the old lady herself, who ran an animal sanctuary in the middle of the forest. Jongho was no ordinary bear, Mrs. Park explained, he was a bear shifter.

Yunho became slightly interested at that, since any shifter must possess some level of magic in order for them to shift. Their existence was one of the many wonders of the universe, as they embodied both the nature of animals and humans. Yunho had always been fascinated by them.

Still, he didn’t know why an animal expert like Mrs. Park would ask him, of all people, to keep a bear. He was a wizard after all, and it was common knowledge that wizards were neither responsible nor reliable enough to be trusted with such a task. The bear was still young, according to Grandma Park, at an age where he could still imprint and integrate into human society, given the right education.

And education was precisely the sort of thing Yunho was bad at. “Why don’t you keep him at the sanctuary then?” Yunho asked. “You have plenty of experience with bears. You’ll be able to raise him correctly and he’ll get to play with the other animals.”

The old lady coughed dramatically at the other end of the phone. “I’m getting old, Yunho-ya. I don’t have the energy to care for a young, zealous cub. My grandson, Seonghwa, helps me out with the chores, but he’s already taken on too much responsibility for a boy his age, and even then we can barely manage all the workload.”

“But aren’t you currently keeping other creatures that are far more dangerous? You’ve never said they were too much work. Compared to them, caring for a bear shifter should be a piece of cake.”

“This cub is a little bit different.” said Mrs. Park, her voice tinged with nervousness.

According to the old lady, she had found the cub two months ago, wandering in the woods by himself. The mother was nowhere to be seen, but the cub seemed to be doing well on his own. Still, Mrs. Park was worried he wouldn’t survive in the wild for long, and thus had brought him back to the sanctuary. There was nothing wrong with the bear, she promised. He just had an enormous appetite, that’s all, requiring more than ten times the amount of food as other bears his age. Despite eating a lot, the cub hadn’t gained any weight at all during his two months stay, which was honestly quite disheartening for Grandma Park. Considering the speed he was draining her wallet, she had at least expected to see some progress in his growth.

She tried to spin it into something positive.

“Perhaps he’s not just a shifter,” she suggested. “Of course, I know nothing about magic, but it certainly seems to me that he is a lot more magical than your normal shifter. How else would you explain where all the calories went?”

Yunho was hooked. He was already intrigued with the idea of keeping a bear, but a fully magical one? He felt so excited that he nearly shouted to San about getting a magical bear while he was still on the phone.

“He will make a great guardian,” Mrs. Park pressed on. “He may look small and cuddly now, but once he reaches his full size, no one will dare to break into your house. A wizard of your caliber could always use a magical beast to guard your property, right?”

At the rate of his growth, it may take forever for the bear to reach his full size, and by then Mrs. Park would’ve already gone to her grave and her sanctuary would’ve gone bankrupt. But she left that part out of the disclosure, for she was sure it wouldn’t be a problem for Yunho. Wizards lived forever, and Grandma Park assumed Yunho must’ve been old enough to have already accumulated a large amount of wealth. This meant Yunho would have the money to raise the bear and also live long enough to care for him. Truthfully speaking, the old lady was at her wits’ end. If Yunho wouldn’t take the bear, there’d be no one else who was capable. He was pretty much her last hope.

Fortunately for her, Yunho was quite gullible and easily swayed. It took her no time at all to convince the wizard to come to her sanctuary and see the cub himself. Five minutes after Yunho had hung up the phone, San found him digging through the drawers looking for his car key.

“Why are you driving?” San asked in cat language, his tail swishing from left to right. “Why don’t you ride the broom like usual? Also what’s with the teddy bear plushie and blankets?”

Yunho closed the drawer with a snap, clutching the key in his hand. He was just about to tell San all about the magical bear that Mrs. Park had promised before he stopped himself, his third eye picking up a heated argument in the immediate future.

San looked like any ordinary cat on the outside, albeit a bit purple. But he was nothing short of extraordinary. He was an ancient spirit who had existed for many millenniums, carrying his consciousness and memories through countless reincarnations. That cycle ended 200 years ago, when he finally melded his soul with a powerful cat spirit, the one the Japanese came to call Bakeneko, and took on the form of a purple cat. Being a cat was not always ideal for him, but at least he became immortal and didn’t have to go through reincarnations anymore. He lived with Yunho mostly out of convenience, and nowhere in their arrangement had San ever agreed to Yunho taking in another pet or a small child. The baby bear shifter was technically both.

“B-because,” said Yunho, his voice higher than usual, “I’ll be treating an injured bear and I want to give him these to help him feel better. It’ll be easier for me to drive there since I’m bringing all this stuff.”

“No it won’t. You haven’t driven in forever. You’re not really a good driver, you know that, right? Also, don’t you have that expandable pouch? You’ll be able to fit all your stuff in there without a problem.”

His sound advice only filled Yunho with jabbing annoyance. “There’s nothing wrong with my driving! The car needs to be driven once in a while to keep all the parts working, so I’m going to drive, okay? Now stop wasting my time, I'm running late.” He dashed out of the house before San could grow suspicious.

As Yunho hit the road, he decided he wouldn’t tell San about the bear shifter at all. It’s not like he had already decided to adopt him. And he surely wasn’t going to bring him home that day. He was just there to have a look. He had known that very clearly since the start, which was why he had taken the car in case he would need to transport the baby bear back home later that evening.

Yunho kept his hands on the steering wheel, eyes staring fixedly on the bumpy dirt road as he drove his Honda Civic through the forest. He had learned how to drive nearly 40 years ago, which was around half a century after the first car was ever invented. He had intentionally waited for the technology to advance before finally trying his hands at driving, yet even after all these years he still wasn’t confident in his skills. Maneuvering a vehicle felt unnatural to him, and it was a lot less intuitive than flying a broom. But Yunho was more than willing to brace the daunting task in exchange for a bear. He was ready to drive multiple lapses back and forth between his home and Mrs. Park’s sanctuary if that was what it took. It was kind of crazy for him to be feeling this determined already, but an unexplainable force seemed to be guiding him. Yunho didn’t dare to call it fate, for his knowledge on the topic was far too inadequate for him to make any assumptions. But he was sure he felt something. It couldn’t just be his hormones riding high, could it?

He pulled up at the front gate of the sanctuary. As soon as he got out of the car, a crowd of animals came out to greet him. Yunho had always been popular wherever he went. His psychic training enabled him to communicate with all sentient beings, allowing him to befriend humans and animals alike. His easygoing nature had also strengthened their trust in him. He had helped many out of sticky situations with his magic, and over time, he became widely known as the friendly neighborhood wizard.

A brown bunny came hopping to his legs.

“Yunho, Yunho! I heard you’re here to adopt Jongho the Bear Shifter!” the bunny exclaimed.

Yunho smiled. “I’m only here to have a look.”

“Is that so?” the bunny said excitedly. “Well I hope you’ll take him, because Mrs. Park can’t wait to get rid of him! I overheard her saying the other day that if she keeps him for another month she will go to her grave early! I don’t know what that means, but I think he’s been causing her a lot of headache!”

The bunny got lost in heaps of fur as a group of dogs surrounded Yunho, wagging their tails and jumping on him. “Jongho broke my toy the other day!” said a border collie. “He tore it apart and pulled out all the cotton! Are you going to take him away, Yunho?”

“Are you guys talking about Jongho?” asked a German Shepherd hybrid puppy, who could actually speak human language. “He bit me the other day! Although I bit him back. But then he pushed me to the ground and sat on top of me until Mrs. Park came and made him get up! I still have the bruise right here, look!” he rolled up his sleeve, revealing a patch of purple on his upper arm, formed around a small set of teeth mark. Yunho cooed at the hybrid, touching the bruise lightly. “You’re a big boy, Brody, why didn’t you just shake him off?”

The dog hybrid pouted. “I couldn’t. He’s small but he’s very strong!”

Yunho was intrigued. But before the dogs could tattle on Jongho any further, Mrs. Park came out and dispersed them. She greeted Yunho and led him into her house. They settled down on a battered, chewed up sofa in the living room. Mrs. Park then called for her grandson to bring over the bear. A short while later, a seven year old boy came in holding a cub in his arms.

Yunho felt his heart melted on the spot. Jongho was, without a doubt, the softest, sweetest looking creature he had ever laid eyes on.

The bear cub was a warm shade of chocolate brown, its coat thick and impossibly fluffy, like a real-life plushie. He was only slightly larger than San, but much, much rounder. The cub was nestling snuggly in the boy’s arms, looking docile and sleepy. His paws dangled lazily over Seonghwa’s arm, his expression as soft as his furry exterior. He blinked innocently at the world, his fuzzy face wiped away all the fearsome reputation that surrounded him.

“He just had his milk,” said Seonghwa, looking rather upset.

“Good,” said Mrs. Park, sounding relieved.

Seonghwa sat down beside Yunho on the sofa, still clutching the bear tightly in his arms. Yunho had met Seonghwa before, and they had always been friendly with each other. But today the boy appeared guarded. “Hi Seonghwa,” Yunho said gently. “Is this the bear shifter Jongho that your grandma told me about?”

“Yes,” Seonghwa said in a small voice.

“He’s so cute, and he looks so healthy. I see you’ve done a good job in taking care of him.”

Seonghwa smiled a little. “I’ve tried my best. He’s a handful but he’s actually very sweet.”

“Does he understand human language?”

“Yes, he can also speak it quite well.”

Yunho then turned his attention onto the bear, channeling his telepathic power so he’s speaking both to the human and animal part of him at the same time.

“Hello Jongho,” said Yunho, holding out his hand to let the bear sniff him. “I’m Yunho the Wizard. I live in the same forest, just a few miles south of here.”

The bear opened his mouth wide and yawned. He had heard him, and was clearly not interested.

“He’s usually sleepy after he’s had his milk,” Seonghwa said, rocking the cub gently.

Yunho had a strong suspicion that Mrs. Park had intentionally made Seonghwa feed the bear before he arrived, so that Jongho would be on his best behavior. It was working extremely well though. Yunho’s heart practically dissolved when Seonghwa passed the bear to him. He was even softer than he had imagined. Jongho squirmed a little against his hold. He sank his teeth lazily into his forearm, too sleepy to apply any actual force into the bite.

He fell asleep like that, mouth lapping over Yunho’s forearm while Yunho chatted with Mrs. Park about his daily care routine. Once the wizard had learned everything he could from the old lady, he began fondling the bear’s paws, holding and rubbing them softly in his large hands and admiring his tiny little claws. The motion stirred the cub awake.

Jongho blinked groggily at the stranger, his expression soured. “Where’s Songwa?” he asked in his baby bear language. “I want my Songwa!” He nipped Yunho’s hand.

“Ouch!” Yunho retracted his hand, and the bear flipped onto his short legs with surprising agility. He hopped onto the floor and bit down on Yunho’s ankle, intending to do serious harm this time.

Fortunately for Yunho, the boots he was wearing that day were a gift from Mingi, sewn from a rare, outer-planet material with magical properties that made it near-indestructible. Jongho was surprised when his teeth were met with the toughness of steel. Still, he growled and tore into the shoe with all his might, determined to show Yunho who was boss. He refused to let go even as Seonghwa grabbed him around the middle and tried to pry him off Yunho’s leg.

Yunho was astounded. The cub’s aura had ignited like a jet engine the moment he attacked. It burned in a raging red color, raw and oppressive, dominating every other person’s energy in the room. The sheer power nearly made Yunho’s heart stop. The squeaky, high-pitch noise coming off his boot snapped him out of his trance, the sound suggesting his foot would have been severed from his leg if not for the boot’s magic protection.

Grandma Park came out of nowhere with a roll of newspaper and swatted the bear on the head, yelling at him to stop. Jongho relented, letting go of the boot and allowing Seonghwa to pick him up. Even as the boy hushed and soothed him, he continued to growl menacingly at the wizard.

Mrs. Park asked Yunho if he was alright. The old lady had gone pale, out of fear that Jongho may have just ruined his chance of getting adopted. But unbeknownst to her, Yunho was completely smitten. An exhilaration, similar to that of when he first discovered magic, coursed through his veins and charged him with excitement.

Jongho was no ordinary shifter, Yunho was sure of it then. He was far too powerful to be ordinary. Yunho wasn’t sure what he was dealing with exactly, but it hardly mattered.

“May I see him in his human form?” Yunho asked, eyes gleaming like a madman.

Startled by his reaction, Mrs. Park turned to the cub and urged him to shift.

“Come on now, Jjongie, listen to Grandma,” Seonghwa said softly, placing him on the floor. With a scowl, Jongho disappeared behind Seonghwa’s legs and shifted. He then peeked out from behind Seonghwa, clinging tightly to his shirt. The older boy encouraged him to step forward, keeping his hands on his shoulders reassuringly.

Yunho once again felt his heart melted on the spot. Jongho’s human form looked to be around four years old. He had the roundest looking cheeks, fluffy brown hair that was the same color of his fur, and large round eyes. He pouted guardedly at the wizard.

Yunho took out the bear plushie he had brought with him. “Look at this, Jongho. This is you!”

Jongho tentatively took the bear. He stared at it, and bit down on its head. After a while he decided he liked the texture and hugged it in his arms.

“Say thank you,” Grandma Park reminded him.

“Thank you, Yunho-ssi,” Jongho said in a voice that was barely audible.

“Please, just call me hyung.”

The boy furrowed his brows. “You are not my hyung.”

“Jongho!” Mrs. Park cried, exasperated.

“Songwa hyung is my hyung.”

Yunho felt a piercing sting of sourness. He noticed that Jongho had put an emphasis on ‘my’, and sensed that the word ‘hyung’ carried a deeper meaning to the shifter, one that suggested a close bond, instead of just being an honorific.

The boy was possessive, in a way that made Yunho strangely jealous.

“You can have many hyungs,” Yunho argued. “I can be your hyung too.”

Jongho looked unsurely at Seonghwa, to which the older boy nodded in agreement. “Yunho-ssi is your hyung, too, Jongho.”

“Come on, Jongho, call Yunho ‘hyung-ah’,” Mrs. Park said wickedly, knowing that the word would be Yunho’s bane.

Pouting, Jongho looked toward Yunho and let out an innocent “Hyung-ah!”

Yunho clutched his chest and fell back against his seat, barely surviving the cuteness attack. He got off the sofa and knelt down in front of the boy, taking hold of his small hands.

A dreamy, dazzling smile plastered across Yunho’s face. In a fervent voice trembling with emotions, he asked, “Would you like to come live with me, Jongho? I have a house and a cat, and an entire forest under the protection of my magic domain. I will cook and clean for you, feed you yummy food everyday. I will keep you safe and make sure you are happy. You won’t ever have to worry about a thing if you come and live with me.”

Jongho was hooked by the promise of yummy food. “I eat a lot,” he warned, as that was what everyone had said about him.

“I have the means to source out plenty of food for you,” Yunho said in a serious tone. “I will never let you go hungry.”

“Can you cook? Songwa hyung cooks me the best ramyeon.”

Yunho gritted his teeth. He had thought Mrs. Park was Jongho’s primary caretaker, but that seven-year-old boy turned out to be his biggest competitor. “I can cook ramyeon too!”

Yunho could not, in fact, cook ramyeon. As San would’ve attested, his cooking barely passed as edible. Cooking and cleaning spells were never his forte, but Yunho was determined to learn and master those skills.

“I will cook anything you want!” Yunho declared, “Dumplings, bao buns, noodles, you name it! Anything you crave, I will make it for you!”

Jongho was almost convinced. He turned to Seonghwa again, whose eyes had welled up with tears. “It’s okay, Jongho,” said Seonghwa. “Go with Yunho-ssi. He will take good care of you.”

“But then I won’t be able to see you anymore,” said Jongho, his little head spinning. “Maybe you can come live with us.”

Seonghwa shook his head. “I can’t, Jjongie. I’m sorry. I have to stay here and look after the other animals. They need me.”

“But who will protect you if I’m gone?”

“Our sanctuary lies within Yunho’s sphere of power. If you protect him, then you are protecting me.”

Jongho’s innocent face grew firm with determination. He nodded, an important sense of purpose cementing in his chest.

“My good baby bear,” Seonghwa cooed, ruffling his brown hair.

“I’ll bring you over to see Seonghwa as often as you’d like, so you two can still play together,” said Yunho.

But Jongho and Seonghwa both knew that that wouldn’t be the same as them living together. “Then why can’t I just keep staying here? I don’t see why I have to leave,” Jongho whined.

Seonghwa burst into tears. He wrapped Jongho in his arms and cried against his small frame. Mrs. Park also let out a sob. Dabbing her eyes with a handkerchief, she said in a regretful tone, “Jongho-ya, it’s not that Grandma doesn’t want you, it’s just that I’m getting old. You’re a growing boy and you need more nourishment than I am capable of providing. It breaks my heart every time I hear you cry about feeling hungry. On top of that, you are strong, my dear. You don’t mean to, but you break things easily. The other animals can’t handle your rough play, and they keep getting hurt. None of this is your fault. This sanctuary simply isn’t the right home for you. Yunho will be able to take better care of you. He lives in the middle of the forest, where there’s plenty of space for you to run around. You’ll be happier living with him.”

The old lady then consoled her grandson. “We’ve talked about this, Seonghwa. We must do what’s best for our animals, and sometimes that means letting them go to a better home.”

“But he’s so soft and cuddly!” Seonghwa sobbed, squeezing the small boy tightly in his arms. “He’s like my little brother. I don’t want him to leave!”

Yet deep down, Seonghwa knew his grandma was right. He had seen with his own eyes how exhausted his grandma had become ever since they had brought in the bear. He had tried to help out as much as he could, but like his grandma had said, Jongho was strong and inherently destructive. He had already broken many of their furniture and injured many animals. The sanctuary was not an ideal home for him.

He blinked his watery eyes at Yunho. “Promise me you’ll take good care of him.”

“I promise,” Yunho said immediately. “I will care for him and love him like my own little brother, just like you have done for him.”

Seonghwa finally released the boy and made him look at him. “You be a good boy to Yunho, okay?”

Jongho scowled. “I won’t if he annoys me.”

“Hey! I won’t annoy you!” Yunho argued, although if San were here, he’d say something different.

“Jongho,” Seonghwa said sternly.

“Fine. I’ll be good, since hyung told me to.”

Seonghwa smiled sadly and pressed a kiss to his forehead. “I’m going to miss you, baby bear.”

Jongho only pouted. Being half a wild animal and still so young, he had yet to develop the emotional range to grasp the weight of the situation. Therefore he wasn’t too saddened about leaving, and only reminded himself of what his hyung had told him: that he needed to be a good boy and protect his new hyung, so that his old hyung would be safe and happy.

He hugged his Songwa hyung and Grandma Park goodbye, and got inside Yunho’s car. Yunho helped him strap on his seat belt, tucked him under a blanket and let him hold his teddy bear. Grandma Park then gave them a dozen steamed pork buns for Jongho to snack on, each of them as big as the boy’s face. Yunho put on a cassette tape of children’s stories and began the drive back.

Jongho finished all the buns halfway through the journey. Hugging his teddy bear, he was soon lulled to sleep by the whimsical story and bumpy road.

Chapter Text

“We’re home, buddy,” Yunho said softly. He removed Jongho’s seat belt and carried him in his arms. He cast a spell on Jongho’s belongings to make them float up and follow him as they entered the house.

San came up to greet him at the door. He saw the thing in Yunho’s arms and stopped dead in his tracks.

“San, look who I brought with me!”

San was speechless. The thing that looked like a boy suckling his thumb appeared innocent enough, but his aura emitted a powerful energy that made the hair on San’s back stand up. In an instant he knew he was looking at no ordinary boy.

Jongho slowly came out of his sleepy state and took in the sight of San. “A purple cat!” he exclaimed, pointing at him.

San felt threatened. Every fiber in his body was screaming at him to run. He recalled the last time he had sensed such a powerful presence, and it was more than 1200 years ago, when he came face to face with a 50-foot-long sea serpent. The serpent had brutally devoured their captain and attacked their ship relentlessly until it sank. No one on that boat survived, including San. The incident had haunted him for the three long lifetimes that followed and caused San to have an erratic fear of the sea.

“Yunho, what are you doing bringing in that monster?” he asked, his voice nearing panic. “Get that thing out of here right now!”

Yunho’s smile collapsed, looking deeply hurt and disappointed. “San, how could you? He’s just a boy.”

“A boy?” San cried. “Has your third eye gone blind? That ‘boy’ can easily tear down the house! Get him out!”

Jongho squirmed. With a small pop he shifted into a bear and broke free from Yunho’s hold. He landed on the floor and charged straight at the cat.

San screamed and turned to run.

It wasn’t that Jongho was offended by what San had said, he was simply triggered by the cat’s fearful energy. His prey instinct overrode the human part of him and compelled him to give chase.

San darted under the chairs and leaped onto the cabinets. He was quick as lightning, moving with graceful precision as he effortlessly passed through obstacles without bumping into a single object. Jongho, on the other hand, left a trail of destruction wherever he went. He knocked over the chairs and crashed into the cabinet, shattering the glass doors and sending dozens of cups and plates flying off the shelves. He chased San onto a small, ornate shrine, his small paws stomped on a centuries old relic and crushed it into smithereens. His round body knocked over several crystals, bumping a heavy obsidian sphere off its stand. It rolled and smashed to the ground, breaking into several pieces. The magic it had channeled for hundreds of years evaporated into thin air.

Jongho was right on San’s tail, ignoring Yunho’s cries calling for both of them to stop running. He finally forced San into a corner. He raised his paws and was just about to pounce on him when San suddenly turned around and gave his furry face a mighty punch.

San’s little claws barely tickled Jongho’s cheek, his hard swat landed like soft feathers, but it was his stern presence that snapped Jongho out of his predatory state. In that moment, Jongho sensed that San was old—so old that his young tender mind couldn’t even begin to grasp the sheer volume of memories San held. San was timeless and powerful, in a way that transcended the world he knew. Jongho had never met such an ancient soul before, and was therefore quite intimidated. With a whine, he spun around and scurried into another room.

“Jongho,” Yunho called worriedly, immediately going after him, leaving San trembling on the floor nearly shitting himself. He heard Yunho cooing at the bear from the bedroom, calling him ‘baby’ and ‘cub’ and all sorts of ridiculous pet names, until his voice shifted into sharp dismay. “San, you scared him!”

“He’s fucking fine!” San shouted, feeling deeply unbalanced. “I barely touched him!”

“Don’t use that word around him!” Yunho shouted back. He came out of the room looking upset and worried. “He crawled under the bed and wouldn’t come out!”

“He’s a bloody animal, Yunho,” said San, avoiding the f word this time. “He’ll forget the whole thing by tomorrow morning. Stop treating him like he’s fragile or something.”

Yunho seethed, and for a moment he nearly summoned the fire of hell to rain down on San, but he held himself back, for he didn’t want Jongho to see them fighting on the first night of his arrival. Clenching his jaws, he turned his back to San and began clearing away the debris.

It was moments like these when Yunho fell silent and the air around him crackled with rage that San knew he had gone too far. He slowly approached him, and for a while, watched him struggle to cast a simple repairing spell on a broken teapot. “You’ll want to fortify all the glassware and ceramics with the Shatter-Proof Spell once you mend them,” he said, after Yunho had finally put the teapot back together.

“I know that!” the wizard snapped.

Every furniture and the entire structure of the house would also need reinforcing with the Resilience Charm, but San thought it was best to save that reminder for later, until Yunho was in a better mood. With a sigh, he said, “I’ll go check on the bear.”

Yunho looked up from the plate he was repairing. “Be nice!” he warned.

San scratched the door lightly before entering the bedroom. “Jongho-ya,” he called out, as that was what Yunho had called him. He sat down beside the bed and peered underneath. A large pair of eyes reflecting bright green lights stared back at him in the dark. Looking at them made San’s skin crawl, but he forced himself to stay put.

“Can you understand me, Jongho?” San asked hushedly.

Even though San understood over a hundred human languages, ever since he had become a cat, the only language he was capable of speaking was animal language. It wasn’t a problem between him and Yunho, since Yunho could also speak animal language. For a shifter, however, the ability to understand animal language, human language, or both often depended on their upbringing. San didn’t want to make any assumptions, since he knew nothing about Jongho’s past.

Slowly, the bear nodded his head in the dark.

San was relieved to know they could communicate. “How old are you?” he asked.

“Four,” the cub spoke in a childish tone.

“Four, as in years old?” San asked, struggling to wrap his head around the figure. Four years to him was no more significant than a blink of an eye. My god, he really is just a baby.

He cleared his throat rather awkwardly. “Well, hello. I’m San.”

For a while, the cub only stared at him cautiously.

“What are you?”

San didn’t know how to explain such a complicated question to a child, therefore, he opted for the easiest answer. “I’m a cat. A very, very old cat, as you might’ve already guessed.”

Jongho only continued to stare with his large round eyes. “Why are you purple? Are there many purple cats like you? Also, why do you have a diamond on your forehead?”

“That’s not a diamond. That’s a rhombus shaped amethyst of the highest grade, embedded into my skull to help expand the vision of my third eye.”

San could tell Jongho didn’t have the faintest idea of what he just said.

“What’s a third eye? And what’s an amethssss-”

As the bear struggled to pronounce the word, San secretly sighed. This was why he avoided children at all costs. Being an old, jaded soul, he had long lost the patience to talk to them. “That’s unimportant,” he said curtly. “What’s important, Jongho, is that we establish some house rules. If you want to stay here then you must follow them, okay? Now listen carefully. The first rule is: you do not chase me, bite me, or push me around.”

The cub pouted. “But I want to!”

“You can’t,” San said sternly. “You just can’t, Jongho, not for any reason.”

“Not even for fun?”

“No!”

The cub continued to pout, but raised no further objections.

“The second rule is: you cannot run inside the house, or you will break things.”

“That’s not fair! You just ran in the house yourself!”

“That’s because you were chasing me! There’s a forest outside for you to run all you want, but no running indoors. A-and thirdly,” San said quickly, just as Jongho was beginning to scowl. “You need to call me hyung.”

“No.”

“Come on now, Jongho-ya, I’m a lot older than you.”

“I wasn’t told I would have three hyungs,” Jongho grumbled. “Songwa hyung only told me to follow Yunho hyung!”

“Well, I’m your hyung, too. You may call me Sannie hyung,” San said importantly, puffing out his chest.

“No!”

San sighed. He decided he wouldn’t push the third rule until Jongho got to know him better. “We can discuss this later,” he said tiredly. “For now, I’d like you to come out from underneath the bed.”

“Why?”

“Because Yunho is mad at me, and he’ll stop being mad at me if you’d come out.”

“But I feel safe here.”

“You’re safe anywhere, baby bear,” said San, unable to hide his sarcasm. “You’re a strong, powerful bear, aren’t you? No one can possibly hurt you.”

The cub only frowned at him. As the silence dragged on, San felt an increased sense of guilt creeping up his conscience. “Jongho-ya,” he said, half purring out his name, “the floor is cold and dusty down there. You can’t be feeling comfortable cramped up in that tiny space. How about you come on out and let Yunho give you a good cuddle?”

A few tense seconds passed by. “I’d rather stay here,” Jongho said at last. “Because you obviously don’t like me, and I don’t like you.”

San was crushed. He never thought he’d one day be rejected by a bear, nor that it would sting this badly. His heart wrung painfully, and soon he found himself begging for his forgiveness. “Jongho-ya, I never said I didn’t like you, I was just scared by your strong presence. I’m very sorry if I made you feel unwelcome. I promise I’ll be nice, as long as you follow the house rules, that is, so will you please come out? Please?”

Yet, no matter how much he pleaded, the bear refused to come out. In fact, the more he sweet talked with him, the more determined Jongho was to stay where he was. The bear flopped his chin on the floor, his eyes going out of focus, which told San he was no longer listening to anything he said.

Crushed by his own failure, San slouched back into the living room. Yunho took one glance at him and knew. Pressing his ears flat against his head, San did his best to avoid Yunho’s accusatory glare. He sat down in one of his kitty beds and wondered if he was still going to get fed that night.

A few minutes later, Yunho finished repairing most of the broken objects. Although some of the more sophisticated items could not be fixed with a simple repairing spell, and would stay permanently broken. The relic and the crystal ball were among those that had fallen. He took out his broom and swept away the leftover debris, reminding himself that he really needed to get on with sharpening his cleaning spells. His broom wasn’t meant to be used for sweeping.

San perked up when he saw Yunho heading for the kitchen. The wizard took out a piece of tuna from the fridge and put it onto a pan. He sizzled both sides briefly before dumping it into San’s bowl. It was exactly how San liked his meat: grilled on the outside and still raw on the inside. Yunho then tore up a leafy green and sprinkled it on the tuna, followed by dumping a spoonful of seaweed powder. San tried not to let his disdain show. He disliked vegetables and mostly ate them out of necessity.

Yunho set the bowl on the ground, and San hurried over to eat. He knew he wasn’t out of the woods yet, that Yunho would continue to stay mad at him until one of them could manage to lure Jongho out. Still, he kept a curious eye on the wizard, watching as Yunho began to unpack the large pile of Jongho’s belongings.

He dug out a giant tin of baby formula and five milk bottles. He scooped out the formula, carefully measuring it before shaking up all five bottles, hoping he’d done it right. He then took the bottles to his bedroom.

“Jjoooongie,” Yunho cooed, sticking a bottle underneath the bed. “Come on out, baby, come get your milk.”

A few seconds later, they heard the curious sound of sniffing, followed by the noise of tiny claws scratching the floorboards. Yunho pulled the bottle back slowly. Like a fishhook, it drew the bear’s snout out from underneath the bed.

As soon as Jongho’s head poked out he immediately latched onto the milk bottle, holding it with his forepaws and suckling eagerly. Yunho reached down and scooped the bear in his arms. He sat down on an armchair and cradled him, letting his four paws hang loosely in the air. Slipping a hand to his tummy, he fondled the cub gently and indulged in the softness of his fur. 

San stayed at a safe distance and took a good look at Jongho for the first time. He was a brown bear, nothing but a ball of fur and fat. Despite emitting a strong aura, he was surprisingly small, only slightly larger than San and much smaller than other bear shifters his age. San felt a sudden tinge of jealousy, wishing he could touch those fur too and feel how soft it was.

The first bottle was emptied within seconds. Yunho switched the bottles swiftly, stuffing the nipple into Jongho’s mouth before the cub could whine with impatience. And impatient he was, for he was constantly grabbing for the bottle, suckling like he couldn’t drink fast enough. By the time they reached the fifth bottle, Jongho’s speed finally slowed, his eyelids drooped heavily.

He went limp once he finished the milk, allowing Yunho to wipe his mouth clean with a towel. He didn’t even growl when Yunho pressed a few soft kisses to his furry face. Yunho sat him upright and tilted him forward, patting his back lightly. After a few of those pats, the cub let out a small burp. No longer feeling bloated, he yawned and closed his eyes. Yunho let him sink back in his arms, petting him in a slow, steady rhythm. As he held Jongho to sleep, he felt his heart gradually wring into a knot, weighed down by something warm and heavy. It came from somewhere deep within, pulling at his heartstrings. Waves of emotions rolled into his chest, drowning and suffocating him. There was no mistaking this feeling: he was in love. Only this time it felt different. Unlike the love he shared with Mingi, this one was pure, heavy, and profound. He wanted nothing in return from the cub, only his health and happiness, and he prayed for it from the bottom of his heart. The notion that he was now responsible for this tiny life was scary, humbling, but it also filled him with overwhelming joy. For the first in a very long time, Yunho felt a sense of purpose to live, and he thought he could actually look forward to tomorrow. A painful lump choked his throat, his vision blurred with tears.

“Oh Yunho,” San said softly, watching his longtime friend break down. “What have you gotten yourself into?”

Chapter Text

That purple cat who claimed to be Jongho's third hyung was not cute. He was a slim, muscular cat with a short purple coat. Sharp ears, sharp face, and thin sharp eyes. Nothing like the fluffy round cats Jongho had seen at the sanctuary. Most of all, he held himself in a way so different from a normal cat that Jongho couldn’t help but be wary of him. He was determined not to call him hyung.

The complete opposite could be said about his new hyung, Yunho, whom Jongho found soft, agreeable, and a complete pushover. It took him no time at all to realize he already had his Yunho hyung wrapped around his little paws. The wizard seemed eager to prove he was the better caregiver than his Songwa hyung in every way imaginable. He treated Jongho like royalty, giving him baths, dressing him in fresh new clothes, and feeding him warm bottles of milk everyday. He doted on him and showered him with praises, calling him cute, strong, handsome, smart and many other things that made Jongho quite happy, even though he admitted it was a bit much sometimes. Last but not least, Yunho would cook for him. His cooking wasn’t the best, but Jongho wasn’t a picky eater; what mattered was that the portions were generous and every meal was well balanced. True to Yunho’s words, Jongho hadn’t felt hungry since he moved in.

While his Yunho hyung spoiled him, that Sannie cat was always watching with his sharp beady eyes, perpetually judging with a look of disapproval. Jongho had been told off for chewing the furniture and scratching the sofa more than a dozen times already, just within the first few days since his arrival. The cat would follow Jongho wherever he went and watch him like a hawk, not letting him touch any of the shiny objects on Yunho’s desk, even though Jongho really wanted to.

When San wasn’t busy scolding Jongho, he was a rather sedentary cat. He liked to nap in his kitty bed for hours or sit by the windowsill and stare outside, often dozing off after a few minutes. When asked what he was doing, he insisted he wasn’t napping and was instead deep in meditation, extending his third eye with his advanced psychic ability, reaching far beyond their mortal realm to connect with other higher consciousness and become one with the greater universe. Jongho remained skeptical, for he thought the cat just looked like he was dozing off like an old grandpa. 

San also liked to groom himself every day, in a languid, methodical fashion that Jongho found strangely relaxing. Jongho had an impulse to snuggle him every time he saw San licking himself. He secretly wondered how it would feel to let San groom him, but whenever he found himself caught up in that strange fantasy, he would shake his head to dispel those disturbing thoughts. He often had to remind himself San was just a grumpy old cat who was neither cute nor cuddly. And he certainly wasn’t going to call him hyung.

Like any normal cub, Jongho was full of boisterous energy. But Yunho only had a few hours each day to play with him, since most of his time was now devoted to cooking, cleaning and studying recipes. Having San play with him was out of the question, but if left unsupervised, Jongho would no doubt cause some major destruction to their house. Thus, Yunho ended up confining him in a magic playpen for long stretches, leaving Jongho bored out of his mind.

Back when Jongho was living by himself, he would spend his days roaming the forest, devouring whatever food he could find and marking territory. He had no recollection of his parents. For all he knew, he had been alone since day one, and he never saw anything wrong with that. Having lived in the wild for most of his life, Jongho identified more as a bear than a human, and overall preferred to be in his bear form. Playing with toys and plush dolls could by no means satisfy his need to do feral bear activities. After a few days of being cooped up in his playpen, he finally had enough.

On one frustrating afternoon, Jongho gutted his teddy bear, pulled out the cotton and scattered it across the living room floor. He then climbed onto the sofa's backrest and gnawed at the window frame.

“Yunho, he’s chewing through the window!” San alerted.

Yunho was busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen. He reluctantly dropped his work to see what San meant. With a sigh, he waved his hand and muttered a spell under his breath. The magic pried Jongho off the window and lifted him in the air. He flew across the living room and landed gently in Yunho’s arms. The wizard flipped him onto his back and brushed wood chips off his fur.

With a loud “Poof!” Jongho spat out a large chunk of the window frame and shouted angrily, “I wan out!”

“You can’t, baby bear, not without an adult accompanying you,” Yunho said sternly.

“I said, I. WAN. OUT!” Jongho wriggled violently, and Yunho nearly dropped him because of how strong he was.

Yunho strapped him securely in his arms and tucked his furry head underneath his chin. “Jongho, I would love to take you out to play, but I simply don’t have the time.” He turned toward the kitchen so Jongho could see what he was working on. Four large pots of stew, curry, and braised pork knuckles simmered simultaneously on the stove. A spatula was stir-frying onions and clams on its own. On the counter sat a mound of dough that Yunho planned to roll into flaky scallion pancakes. The wizard himself was drenched in sweat from the heat and multiple tasks. “I need to finish cooking these so your dinner will be ready in the evening.”

Jongho’s mouth watered at the delicious smell wafting from the kitchen. Dinner seemed especially promising that day, even though it was still early. Still, he wasn’t about to give up his freedom just because he was promised yummy food. “I can go out by myself! I’m a big boy. I don’t need an adult.”

“You’re not a big boy,” Yunho chided softly. “Who told you you’re a big boy? You’re just a tiny, baby cub. What if you got lost in the woods and couldn’t find your way home? Or what if some bad people saw how cute you are and decided to kidnap you?”

At his words, Jongho flew into another tantrum. He kicked, screamed, and tried his best to bite Yunho’s hands. Seeing him like this was more than upsetting for Yunho. After failing to pacify the bear, he cast a sheepish glance at San, who was lazily grooming himself in his kitty bed.

San froze mid-lick as an unsettling tingle crawled down his spine. Sensing an ill intent coming from Yunho’s direction, he looked up and met his pleading gaze. At first, the cat was confused. But then it clicked and his mouth dropped open in horror. “No…” 

“San-ah,”

“No!” he hissed. “That bear is not my responsibility!”

“But he’s going crazy! You saw how miserable he’s been, he’ll tear the house down if he stays here any longer.”

“I don’t need any babysitting! Especially not by him!” Jongho shouted, not liking the idea either.

“Please Sannie?” said Yunho, blinking his shiny puppy eyes. “All you have to do is watch over him and make sure he comes home in the evening. You wouldn’t mind using a light, relaxing stroll today, right?”

San was furious. He had dreaded this moment since the day Yunho had brought the bear home. He had always known he’d end up shouldering half the responsibility of caring for Jongho, and he resented his friend for that. “You still haven’t told me why you took this bear in, Yunho,” he said sharply. “If this is your way of filling some kind of void, I wished you had talked to me instead of going with your impulse.”

Yunho’s expression hardened. A telepathic notion zapped through their psychic connection: Mingi. They rarely spoke of the sorcerer anymore, not since that terrible incident that led to Mingi’s sentencing, which tore him away from their lives. His absence had left a deep void in their hearts, and San knew all too well how much Yunho had struggled since losing him. He suspected that Yunho had taken Jongho in, at least in part, to fill that emptiness. Yet bringing it up at this moment felt like he had crossed a certain line, as their psychic link crackled with tension.

“If you meant to say Jongho is a substitute for Mingi, you couldn’t be more wrong,” Yunho said shakily, hugging the cub so tight that he would’ve strangled him if Jongho was a regular bear. “Jongho is not a replacement for anyone. He is his own person, and his place among us is permanent, unaffected by me, you or Mingi. He will always be my little brother and my baby bear no matter who or what comes in the way!”

Tears welled up in Yunho’s eyes, hitting San with the full force of guilt. His best friend had stopped there, but the silence that followed conveyed something deeper: Yunho had asked San for help because, unlike Mingi, San was reliable. He was a constant in Yunho’s life, always there whenever the wizard needed him, and right now, he was the only one left that Yunho could count on. If San didn’t help, Yunho would drown.

“Alright, fine. I guess I can use a stroll,” San huffed.

A bright, sunny smile returned to Yunho's face. San narrowed his eyes at him. “Hey, we should still talk about why you took him in after I return.”

Yunho pressed his lips together. “If you insist,” he muttered.

But that talk never did take place.

Jongho bolted out the door as soon as Yunho released him. 

“Listen to your Sannie hyung and be a good boy, okay?” Yunho called after him cheerfully, just as San scrambled after him.

“Whatever,” said the cub, disappearing behind a bush.

“And remember to come home for dinner!” Yunho added, but the bear was already gone. 

San sprinted as he tried to catch up with him. He hadn’t been outside for a while, and felt especially out of shape. “Jongho-ya!” he called, panting out of breath. “Jongho, wait up!”

Like the spoiled brat that he was, the cub made no reply. San soon found him peeing by a tree. The cub then did a handstand to prop up his hind legs and rubbed the scent glands at his rear end against the bark, his maneuver surprisingly swift and sturdy like he had done this hundreds of times.

San scrunched up his nose at the strong odour, a mixture of ammonia and Jongho’s musky scent. He had never seen a bear as young as Jongho displaying such strong territorial instinct.

They spent the next hour wandering aimlessly in the woods, sniffing, peeing, and scratching tree barks to mark more territory. San had to tell Jongho off several times for his naughty behaviors, although the cub seldom listened. He chased some poor groundhogs into their holes and further terrorized them by growling at the entrance. He ate several unknown berries and mushrooms that might give him food poisoning later and licked a yellow patch of slime off a rock, which tasted awfully bitter. He found some pellets on the ground that didn’t taste half bad, and was just about to gobble them all up when San told him they were rabbit droppings. He then came across a muddy pond and happily jumped in.

“Stop! Stop!” San cried, as the cub rolled in the muddy water, turning himself into a dark gloop. 

Jongho only giggled. “Come on in, Sannie, it feels great!”

“It’s Sannie hyung,” San said irritably. Yet Jongho’s smile was infectious, making it hard for him to stay mad. As much as San disapproved of such unruly behavior, he couldn’t help but notice how happy Jongho looked. He was right in his element, wild and free, a true little beast at heart. San wondered if a feral beast like him could ever integrate into human society, but he supposed that was for Yunho to worry about.

“You little devil. After all that cooking Yunho did for you, are you really going to torture him by making him give you a bath too?” San asked.

Jongho’s muddy smile collapsed. “No!” he said, exasperated, for it was never his intention to torture his Yunho hyung. “I don’t need a bath!”

San let out a dry laugh. “Oh yes you do. I guarantee you, you will not be allowed inside the house like this.”

He managed to convince the cub to go wash up at a nearby river, and led him there. Jongho did a half-ass job of cleaning himself, before he got distracted again by the fishes in the water. He set his eyes on a particularly fat trout and lunged for it, making a big splash. He ended up bumping his nose into a rock while the trout swam languidly away.

“That’s not how you catch fish, Jongho, you need to aim for the head. Watch me,” said San, crouching down by the water. 

At first, Jongho thought he had dozed off again, for San sat very still for several long seconds, doing nothing but staring at the water, his eyes so thin and sharp that it was rather difficult to tell if they were open or shut. But all of a sudden, San swatted at a shocking speed, his little paw hooking a trout out of the water as if it were attached by velcro. Jongho gasped. The fish was much larger than he imagined a cat of his size could catch.

The fish flapped onto shore, thrashing vigorously. San picked it up with his mouth and moved it further onto dry land. Jongho was impressed. He never thought a sedentary cat like San could be so good at catching fish. San offered the trout to him. After Jongho finished his light snack, he eagerly went on to try out San’s method, but he couldn’t move fast enough. His arms felt short and clunky compared to San’s sleek, nimble limbs. He struggled to coordinate his strength and movements, and soon felt the stark limitations of his own ability. Still, despite his clumsiness, he made several decent attempts that earned him praises from the cat.

Jongho was so focused on making his first catch that he lost track of time, until an ear-splitting crack of thunder tore through the sky, breaking their moment. As he and San looked up, heavy droplets of rain began tapping on their foreheads. 

“I think it’s time we head home,” said San, watching the dark clouds with a frown. He took the lead. As they scurried through the woods, the weather continued to worsen. The rain was soon pouring as if a faucet from heaven had been left wide open. Torrential rain slashed the earth with a deafening roar. The road became muddy and treacherous beneath their feet. To make matters worse, the temperature plunged as howling, cold wind cut them like knives. Soon their teeth were chattering from the cold, their coats thoroughly drenched.

They returned to a narrow pathway they had taken earlier, where one side was flanked by a steep hill that rose sharply from the edge of the trail. Its slope was thick with underbrush and scattered with leaves and loose rocks. San continued to lead the way. He was about halfway through when he picked up a low rumbling noise coming from above. He looked up the slope, toward the direction where the noise was coming from, his psychic tendrils detecting the first trace of an imminent disaster.

He whirled around, saw Jongho trailing about ten feet behind him, and was just about to call out a warning when a massive boulder in the size of a truck came barreling down the hill. Everything happened too fast. San watched as the boulder smashed right onto the cub, followed quickly by a landslide that engulfed them. As the boulder crashed further down the slope, San looked frantically for Jongho, but before he could catch a glimpse of him he was swept under torrents of mud, sand, jagged rocks and uprooted trees.

For several frightening minutes, San tumbled in the violent torrents, seized by terror and darkness, the world reduced to chaos, suffocation, and bone crushing pain.

When everything finally settled down, San found himself trapped under a slough of mud, his body bent at a painful angle. But he was an immortal cat, after all, so even though the injury to his body should’ve already killed him, he remained alive.

Yet at the moment, he hardly cared about his own physical condition, for the pain in his heart was unbearable. Jongho was dead. He was sure of it. There was no way that cub could have survived. He had probably died the instant the boulder slammed into him.

You had one job, San.

San let out a choking sob. He was supposed to watch over that boy, bring him home safely. That was all Yunho had asked. Now he wouldn’t even be able to bring home a body, for Jongho was most likely squashed at this point, reduced to a smear of red puree and matted chocolate-brown fur. His eyes brimmed with tears at the thought.

He couldn’t move, neither did he want to. He’d rather lie there forever than go home and deliver the bad news to Yunho. His heart jolted in pain as he imagined how Yunho would take the death of his baby bear.

“Hyung!”

That sounded oddly like Jongho. San reckoned he must be so consumed by grief that he was starting to hear things.

“Hyung!”

Besides, that cub had never called him hyung. More proof that the voice was just his own hallucination.

“SANNIE HYUNG!”

The raw scream prompted San to croak out a weak “Over here,” regardless of whether it was hallucination or not.

He heard footsteps approaching from above. A few minutes later, a ray of sunlight broke through the darkness. Specks of dirt fell on San’s face as a set of paws unearthed him. Jongho soon came into view, looking dirtier than ever, but other than that he appeared completely fine. 

“Sannie hyung, are you alright?”

San blinked, hardly believing his eyes. “Jongho, is that really you?”

“Yes,” Jongho replied, tilting his round head. “Why are you asking? Are there other bear cubs you know?”

He was indeed Jongho. That powerful aura was unmistakable. However, even if Jongho was really as strong as the 50-foot long sea serpent San had seen in his past life, he didn’t think the sea serpent would’ve come out unscathed if it were crushed by a giant boulder. It would sustain a few broken bones at least. The boulder must’ve weighed at least 15 tons. Taking into account the acceleration of gravity, Jongho had been hit with a force up to 200 metric tons—right on the head.

“But…how are you still alive? You were crushed. I saw it with my own eyes. The boulder did fall on you, didn’t it?”

“Yeah, it did,” Jongho said distractedly, while he resumed digging San out of the debris. 

“And you’re okay? Are you even hurt at all?”

Jongho paused, recalling the moment. “It hurt for like a second, but then the giant rock rolled away, so I’m fine now. Are you okay? Your butt doesn’t look right.”

“I think I’ve shattered my hips.”

San screamed when Jongho pulled him out of the mud. The cub became frightened after seeing the state of his legs. Not only were they bent at wonky angles, a jagged bone was sticking out from the open flesh.

“Don’t worry!” San said quickly, seeing Jongho’s fearful expression. “I’m not going to die. You just need to take me to Yunho, he’ll be able to heal me.”

He kept reassuring the cub, soothing him gently until Jongho was finally able to calm down. He crouched down and allowed San to crawl onto his back. They then resumed their journey back home. 

San tried to keep his moaning to a minimum, not wanting to alarm the cub any further. As a supernatural creature, his body would heal on its own even without Yunho’s magic; it would just take a lot longer. But that didn’t mean he was immune to pain. It was still drizzling. Jongho’s fur was wet and caked with mud, making it extra difficult to cling onto. After a few minutes, San felt his consciousness slipping. The fact that Jongho was unharmed and had even rescued him brought on a wave of relief that made him drowsy. He knew he needed to stay awake, to continue to guide Jongho and be his anchor, but Jongho’s strong, sturdy back provided such a lulling sense of safety that it dangerously tempted him to just let go…

At that precise moment, Yunho appeared in the sky, riding his broom. The wizard had sensed a shift of energy in his connection to the forest and to San, and realized that things had gone astray. He had quickly abandoned his cooking projects to come out and find them. As Yunho descended upon them, San was finally able to let himself go. He blacked out in an instant.

San was only vaguely aware of what happened next. He sensed himself being lifted up by magic, and during their ride home Yunho wouldn't stop fussing about how dirty Jongho was. Once they reached home, he was submerged in a bucket of soapy water, which caused him to scream in pain again. After Yunho rinsed the mud off him, he placed him in a cauldron full of healing potion. San let out a sigh of relief as the pain finally subdued. He then fell into a deep sleep, where not even Jongho's bratty whines throughout his three consecutive baths could wake him. He slept through the roaring noise of a hair dryer over Jongho and Yunho's loud conversation like a baby.

When dinner time came, the smell of delicious food made his nose twitch. Yunho had really outdone himself this time with his cooking. San could make out the smell of braised pork knuckles, curry over rice, vegetable stew cooked in chicken broth, stir-fried noodles with clams and onions, and crispy scallion pancakes. His stomach growled involuntarily, his mouth watering as he dreamed of Yunho and Jongho having their nice meal together. But he was still too weak to come out of sleep.

He was later wrapped in a soft, warm blanket and placed inside his kitty bed. Yunho touched his injured legs gently and murmured some spells, conjuring up a glowing light that softly enveloped his wounds. The wizard fed small morsels of grilled tuna to him. San finished all of it in his semi-conscious state.

“Is Sannie going to be okay?” He heard Jongho ask, this time in his human voice, sensing his small hand gliding along his fur.

“Yes, baby, don't worry about San. He'll be up and about by tomorrow morning.”

Their soft voices and gentle caresses lulled him back to sleep.

San woke up in the middle of the night, his body fully healed. In the silent darkness, his mind wandered back to that critical moment where he thought Jongho had perished. The memory still gave him chills. Had Jongho really survived, and even rescued him afterwards? Had he, in fact, dreamed of it all? The question prompted him to leap up and go check on the figures sleeping in Yunho’s bed. Yet there he was, the baby bear shifter, now in his human form huddling close to Yunho. It had all been real.

But how was it possible?

San crept up beside Jongho’s pillow and peered at the boy’s face. There wasn’t even a bruise. In San’s thousands of years of existence, he had never come across a living being capable of surviving a blow like that. Even the most powerful beast would’ve been somewhat affected. But Jongho didn’t even get a scratch. There had been no time to shield himself, no chance to run. It was as if the boulder had simply passed through him.

“What are you?” San whispered in the dark.

He watched the boy’s tranquil sleep and felt tenderness wrapping over his old, jaded soul. He had regarded him as nothing but a nuisance. But somewhere in the day, that annoyance and impatience was gone, replaced by a feeling of love that had grown from a place deep within him, taking root and flourishing until he could no longer ignore it. It didn’t matter what he was, for he was his little brother, his baby bear.

Jongho woke to a strange energy projecting onto him. He opened his eyes and found San staring at him, looking all better. A soft smile spread across his face.

“Sannie hyung,” he said sleepily, opening his arms.

San crawled into his arms and lay down.

Chapter Text

Jongho quickly settled into his new life. Every day he would go outside to play in his bear form and do his feral bear activities with the company of San. If it was raining that day, he would play indoors with his hyungs. He loved wrestling them, especially San, since he’d always win and could snuggle up with him afterwards. In the evening, he would return home to a big scrumptious meal that Yunho had spent the day laboring over. After the meal, Yunho would give him a bath, feed him the usual five bottles of milk and tuck him in bed. A month went by like this, until San became aware that Jongho wasn't getting any education.

Shifters were no different to normal human children in that they should also get an education, gain the basic knowledge and cultivation of a modern citizen and learn how society functions. Without those teachings, they may get themselves in trouble with the law, or they might even be deemed too feral and dangerous to live among humans.

San brought up the issue with Yunho, who appeared not to understand how this was a problem.

“What’s wrong with just letting him be happy?” Yunho asked in his apron, busily beating up a dozen eggs.

San gave him his signature glare.

“I mean,” Yunho added hastily, “you and I will always be around, and from the looks of it, Jongho’s going to live a very long time, too. He’ll have plenty of time to learn, so there’s no need to hurry.”

They had talked about the boulder incident, and both had reached the same conclusion that Jongho must be a rare, unknown mythical beast for him to be this powerful. When considering his daily food intake to his slow growth, they believed he would grow up to become even more powerful and would likely live for many centuries. And since Yunho and San were practically immortal, they could cut him off from human society and baby him his whole life if they chose to.

“Yunho,” said San, struggling to keep his cool. “You’re either talking out of your ass right now, or you’re being very selfish! If you keep on spoiling him, it’s only going to hurt him in the long run. We both know his animal instinct is strong, which is why it’s even more important to teach him how to be human, otherwise he will lose that side of him very quickly. He might have all the time in the world, but he’s only going to grow up once!”

His last remark finally drove the point home, making Yunho realize the importance of educating his bear. And since it was his bear, he ought to take up the responsibility. But Yunho was like a big kid himself, unable to sit still for more than five minutes and easily distracted, often veering off to other more interesting topics. He was also a sucker for Jongho’s cuteness. All Jongho had to do was call him ‘hyuuuuuuung’ in a whiny voice and maybe pout a bit, then Yunho would cave in to his every demand. When Jongho still couldn’t write his name after a week of supposed ‘learning,’ San finally realized it had been a mistake to expect Yunho to teach Jongho anything at all. The wizard had always been a pushover and Jongho was a very willful boy. It was time he stepped in, and Yunho was more than happy to let him take over.

However, San soon discovered just how difficult it was to assert authority over Jongho. Every time he tried to get the boy to study, Jongho would scoop him up as if he weighed nothing, scratch his chin and smother him with affection until San succumbed to the irresistible urge to purr, his dignity crumbling in the process. San was at his wits’ end. He had never been manhandled like this in his two hundred years as a cat. Yunho and Mingi had always treated him with respect, and sure, there had been some occasional teasing, but they knew not to overstep his boundaries. For the four-year-old, however, the word 'boundary' simply did not exist. Jongho never hesitated to use his human form to his full advantage, shamelessly overpowering San with ease. And the crazy part was that San couldn’t even say no. He found himself secretly enjoying the intimacy. San wasn’t sure if it was because the cat in him couldn’t resist being petted, or if he simply hadn’t been loved by a child for too long, but the intimacy he shared with Jongho felt disarmingly effortless.

In the end, San still had to find ways to educate Jongho. He was thus forced to take on his human form.

One special ability of a Bakeneko was that it could take on the shape of its owner. In his last life as a human, San had adopted a Bakeneko as his pet, and had later melded his soul with it. This allowed him to take on the shape of his former self. Unlike a shifter, however, San’s human form was only a temporary illusion, and it required concentrated psychic energy to sustain it. San always felt drained after teaching Jongho for a few hours. His third eye would throb from overexertion, forcing him to rest and recharge by sleeping on a bed of spiky crystals, which would then give him terrible back pain. But in turn, he could speak human language and read story books out loud to Jongho, and hold Jongho’s hand as he guided him to write. When Jongho finally began to pick up some alphabets, it made the whole ordeal worthwhile for San.

At first, Jongho was quite unhappy with San turning into a human. Even though his face shared an uncanny resemblance to his cat form, his human form was far less cute. He had thin, piercing eyes, sharp cheekbones and a strong jawline. On top of that, he was ridiculously muscular. He looked especially tough when he wasn’t smiling, and Jongho found him to be rather intimidating. San was also quite strict with him, especially at the start of each class, when he wanted him to sit down and focus. But at the end of the day, he was still his Sannie hyung, and beyond that tough exterior was still the same gentle soul that perpetually doted on him. After a few lessons, Jongho no longer saw any differences.

As they spent more time together, San noticed Jongho possessed the psychic sensitivity to detect spiritual energy, which was another telltale sign that he was some high-tier mythical beast. For example, Jongho instinctively knew San was no ordinary cat the moment he saw him. He could also tell if his or Yunho's energy was weak, or if their auras had changed color. Therefore, San also included the Theories of Psyche and Training of the Third Eye into their daily lessons, hoping it would enlighten the cub’s young, tender mind.

But oftentimes, he wondered if Jongho's animal instinct was simply too strong, which would hinder him from ever reaching a higher consciousness, for Jongho had grown obsessed with chasing squirrels recently, and nothing San said could talk him out of it.

One early afternoon, after San and Jongho had finished another day of lessons, Yunho brought over a plate of sweet chocolate buns for Jongho to snack on, while San shifted back into a cat and collapsed on top of Yunho’s crystal collection like usual.

“So, how did the lesson go?” Yunho asked, petting Jongho’s hair indulgently as Jongho grabbed for the buns. “Is my baby bear learning a lot from his erudite Sannie hyung?”

Jongho was too busy wolfing down the buns to answer. Yunho’s cooking had become even more elaborate with the improvement of his spellwork and skills. He had added a pinch of cocoa powder into the dough to make it brown, and had shaped the buns into little smiling bear heads, with ears and snout and all. He fixed the color with a trick of magic to make it the exact same shade of brown as Jongho’s hair.

“Save the patronizing tone, Jeong Yunho. You think after two hundred years I can’t tell when you’re mocking me?” said San. “We read a new story today, learned some vocabulary, then I taught him how to count. He can count to thirty now.”

“Is that so?” said Yunho, looking proud. He pressed a kiss to the top of Jongho’s head. “My baby bear is such a fast learner.”

“All of that was kindergarten-level stuff that you could’ve taught yourself,” San retorted. “But you wouldn’t, because you like being the good hyung while leaving all the teaching and discipline to me, so I end up the bad hyung.”

“Nonsense, Jongho loves us equally, don’t you babe?”

Jongho devoured the buns in one large mouthful. “I’m going out to chase squirrels now!”

San let out a tired sigh.

“Jongho-ya,” Yunho said softly. “Sannie already told you not to chase those poor squirrels. They’re innocent creatures, just minding their own business. If you keep chasing them up the trees, how are they going to find food?”

“They’re not innocent! At least this one named Hongjoong is not! He’s been taunting me to catch him, making fun of me for not knowing how to climb trees.”

Yunho cooed and ruffled his hair. “Then you must show him, little bear. You go climb his tree today and growl into his tree hole, make sure you give him a good scare!”

“Yunho,” San seethed, rubbing his throbbing forehead against a pointy quartz. “Don’t encourage him! What if he catches one? You’re gonna start letting him eat squirrels now? Is he not feral enough to your liking?”

“I’m not going to eat him! I just want to…” Jongho hesitated, realizing he hadn’t thought of what he’d do if he actually caught Hongjoong. “Make him stop laughing at me! Because he’s been really mean!”

“Jongho, I’ve already explained this to you before: squirrels don’t have the mental capacity to laugh at or be mean to anyone,” said San, mustering his patience. “Their souls are just fragments of the greater universe. Unlike our complete souls that will eternally exist as a point of conscious energy, animals don’t have that independent consciousness. Their behaviors are driven mainly by wild instinct. The only way they could take on more depth is when we develop feelings for them and project our own consciousness onto them. But you haven’t known that squirrel long enough to cultivate that kind of connection, which means the behaviors you’ve described—the taunting, laughing, being mean—are all just simply your own imagination.”

At his words, Jongho flew into a massive tantrum, prompting Yunho to lift him up and coddle him. San did his best to tune out the crying, each wail sending sharp spikes of pain to his already throbbing migraine. Jongho popped into a bear and wriggled free from Yunho. He landed on the ground and glared at San. “I’m going to catch that squirrel and bring him to you to prove you wrong!” he shouted, before barreling out the door.

Yunho watched him go. “San-ah,” he said, turning to him. The cat was still sprawling limply on a bed of crystals. “If your goal was to talk him out of his obsession with squirrels, I’m afraid you just did the exact opposite.”

San hated it when Yunho was right.

At the edge of Yunho’s backyard was a large oak tree that served as a home to many birds and animals. Among those were a colony of orange squirrels, who were often feisty and rowdy as they fought for food and territory. Their fluffy tails and squeaky noises attracted the attention of the bear shifter, enticing him to hunt them down. But Jongho could never catch one, for the squirrels were all too quick and alert, and they could all climb trees while Jongho couldn’t. Still, they at least had the courtesy to show Jongho the fear and respect he deserved, all except that one squirrel named Hongjoong, who treated Jongho like he was a joke.

At first glance, Hongjoong looked like any other squirrel. He was small compared to his peers and was particularly agile. His eyes were large and glossy, carrying a strange empty quality. The end of his lips curled naturally upwards, making him appear like he was perpetually smiling. While the other squirrels tensed up with fear whenever Jongho showed up, Hongjoong was always just chilling. He would stand his ground even when Jongho charged at him, calculating the precise last second to dart away so that Jongho always missed him by a hair’s breadth. Once he reached safety, he would stay at a distance just out of Jongho’s reach, and comment on his lack of tree-climbing skills. Jongho wished he could shred that squirrel like he had shredded his many teddy bears.

The squirrels were chattering around the oak tree as usual. Jongho snuck up quietly, lying low and using the tall grass as his cover. Unbeknownst to him, the squirrels had already detected his presence, for the wind had carried his scent to them. They went still, their chatters died down, but Jongho’s eyes were fixed solely on one particular rodent, and it happened to be the only one seemingly oblivious to his impending doom—Hongjoong. The squirrel was busy gnawing on an acorn, wearing that same empty smile as if nothing in the world could ever trouble him.

Jongho crept forward, eyes locked on his target, and waited for the perfect moment. Then he pounced.

Hongjoong watched the cub charging at him with mild amusement, mouth still busy chewing. Right when Jongho was about to catch him, he stuffed the acorn into his mouth and finally took off. He let Jongho chase him around the oak tree for a couple of laps, before darting up the trunk of a nearby birch.

Jongho gripped the base of the trunk and growled, his sharp teeth merely inches away from that infuriating smile. “You again,” said Hongjoong, eyeing him with interest. “Little cub still can’t climb trees.”

Jongho’s scowl deepened. He dug his claws into the bark, his short hind legs scratched desperately against the trunk to propel himself upward. Yet his thick fur and baby fat made every stretch difficult, his limbs trembled as they struggled to lift his weight. The birch tree bark was also particularly slippery, making the whole endeavor more difficult. He soon slipped and landed flat on his bottom. Embarrassed, he jumped up immediately and resumed growling at the squirrel.

“Where’s your mom?” Hongjoong asked, unbothered by the sharp little claws waving beneath him. “Cubs your age should’ve learned to climb by now.”

“I don't have one!”

“You don’t?” Hongjoong asked curiously. “What about a sibling?” 

Jongho shook his head.

“You’re saying you’ve been alone your whole life?”

“I have my hyungs!”

Hongjoong seemed confused for a second, before letting out a soft “Ah…”. The emptiness in his eyes flicked into something wicked, their previous glossy innocence vanished in a flash as if it had been nothing but a mask. “You mean that tall wizard and that purple cat that hovered over you like a helicopter?” He leaned down and whispered into his round ear. “No wonder you can’t climb trees. You're just a pet, aren’t you? A fat, spoiled baby kept as a plaything, serving no purpose other than to entertain your sad, lonely hyungs.”

Jongho froze. Hongjoong's words snuffed out all thoughts within him, leaving only red, murderous, rage. His own heartbeat pounded against his eardrums. Looking into those dark, taunting eyes, Jongho let out a feral growl. His aura flared to a vicious red color, while a new, brutal strength surged within him, empowering him to hoist himself up.

“That’s more like it,” Hongjoong whispered, his dark eyes lit up with cruel satisfaction. He slowly backed away as the cub began inching closer.

Jongho soon got the hang of it. He hooked his front claws into the bark and made sure he had a firm grip before pushing himself up with his hind legs. He was finally climbing steadily upward. Yet, no matter how fast he climbed, the squirrel continued to stay one step ahead. Always quick and effortless, without breaking a single sweat, like he was purposely making a point to mock his clumsiness.

“Come get me, little bear,” Hongjoong goaded, when the cub got stuck trying to climb over a thick branch. With a growl, Jongho leaped over the branch and quickly lunged for the squirrel. Hongjoong easily dodged the attack, laughing as he continued to ascend.

Jongho was hell bent on catching the squirrel. The puffy orange tail swishing before his eyes hooked his attention like a red flag to a bull. He followed Hongjoong’s footsteps, not caring how far up he went. Whenever he had to pause to catch his breath, Hongjoong would stop just a few paces ahead, dangling on a branch with maddening ease. “Tired already?” he called down with a smirk. “Did your hyung feed you too many bao buns?” The jab drove Jongho to the brink of insanity, drawing a roar out of him. He forced his clumsy body to keep up the chase.

They were nearing the top of the tree, where the main bark was quickly splaying into thinner branches. Hongjoong changed course and climbed onto one of the side branches. Jongho immediately followed. As they moved further toward the tip, Jongho’s footsteps wobbled from the narrowing branch. He gripped his paws tightly around it and inched forward, believing that he finally had Hongjoong cornered. Hongjoong suddenly scurried underneath the branch, and before Jongho knew it, he had retreated back to the main trunk.

Jongho cried out in frustration. He hadn’t expected Hongjoong to be able to climb while hanging upside down, a maneuver that he himself could not possibly replicate due to his size. He turned around, meaning to go back the way he had come, and that's when his paw slipped.

He landed flat on his stomach and clutched onto the thin branch beneath him for dear life. The branch dipped sharply from the sudden impact. It let out an ominous creak, followed by a crackling noise of wood splintering. For the first time, Jongho looked down and saw just how far up he had climbed. He was over 20 meters above ground. Yunho’s house had shrunk to a small dot from where he looked. Jongho gasped, his heart nearly stopped.

“You better start moving, little bear,” said Hongjoong, eyeing the branch that was continuing to splinter beneath Jongho’s weight.

But Jongho didn't dare to move, for the branch was swaying precariously, attached to the trunk with just a few strands of fiber. He let out a nasally whine, the urge to wail bubbling at the back of his throat.

Hongjoong’s smile collapsed with disappointment. His large, empty eyes narrowed sharply. “Come on now, you're only a few centimeters away from the main trunk. Quit being such a baby and start moving.”

Yet fear had crippled the cub, turning his legs into jello. “Hyuuuu…hyuuuu…”

“Do you want to die? Is that it? You're just gonna stay there like a wimp and wait for gravity to take you out?”

Hongjoong’s words landed harshly like a whip.

“HYUNG!” Jongho finally screamed. “HYUUUUUUUNNG!”

Back inside the house, Yunho was busy cooking and therefore didn’t hear a thing. San, however, jerked awake from his sleep. “Jongho?” he mumbled, his psychic tendrils picking up a tingling sense of urgency.

Hyuuuuuunng!

San leaped out of the pile of crystals and stumbled as a pang of dizziness hit him, his psyche in disarray from the sudden movement. He groaned, holding his throbbing head, but went out to check on the cub nonetheless. The telepathic screams and wails he heard in his head materialized into actual noises once he stepped outside. He searched in confusion, until he finally found the source of the cries coming from the top of a birch tree. San’s jaw dropped open. “Jongho, what are you doing all the way up there?” he cried.

“Sannie hyung!” Relief broke through Jongho’s voice as he spotted San beneath him. “Help, I’m going to fall!”

“Hang in there, kiddo! I’m coming!”

San had never climbed so high as a cat. His occasional bouts of cat impulse had prompted him to climb trees from time to time, but his human side understood the risk of injury and had therefore never ventured above one story. His head was still throbbing, but he hardly cared as he pushed himself to climb up the tree as fast as he could. He was close to dying by the time he reached Jongho.

He found the cub hugging a half broken branch, wearing a pout, his eyes watery with tears. Recalling the boulder incident, he reckoned Jongho would be fine even if he fell from this height. But he could tell that the cub was scared, so falling would be the very last option. “Jongho-ya, it’s alright. Just stay calm and crawl carefully towards me,” he said, extending his paw.

The cub shook his head. “I can’t! If I move, the branch will break.”

Hongjoong hopped onto a nearby branch and watched their exchanges curiously.

“Jongho, the branch might break or it might not, but what’s certain is the closer you get to the main trunk, the safer you’ll be. It’s called physics, specifically, the law of leverage.”

“Sannie hyung!” Jongho snapped with a bratty whine.

“Alright, alright, I’ll call Yunho over to help you, okay?”

San would've been able to grab Jongho if he was in his human form. But he had already exhausted most of his psychic energy from their morning lessons that day and therefore could not make the shift.

He shut his eyes and concentrated what little power he had left, reaching out in another dimension. The amethyst on his forehead lit up with a bright purple hue. Hongjoong stared fixedly at him, fascinated. 

Yunho, get your ass over here. Jongho’s in trouble!

Within a minute, Yunho came sprinting out of the house. He stopped under the tree, took in the scene, and burst out laughing.

“Yunho, quit laughing and use your magic to get Jongho down!” San shouted, his headache worsened by tenfold. He really shouldn’t have exerted himself when he was already drained.

Yunho struggled to control his laughter, for he found it too cute that Jongho had managed to climb so high only for him to get stuck. It took another minute for the wizard to finally focus. He aimed a spell at Jongho, but the cub was out of range.

“Sorry babe, you’re out of range. I’m afraid you’ll have to drop down and let my spell catch you!”

There couldn’t have been worse news for the cub. “What? No!”

“Jongho, it’ll be okay,” San said weakly, leaning against the trunk like a drunk cat. “You can trust Yunho. He will catch you.”

Jongho looked down again, his face turning green at the vertical view. He wasn’t sure how much faith he had in his Yunho hyung’s ability. “No, it’s too far, I don’t want to fall!” A gust of wind swept through the branches, causing them to sway violently. The splintered wood gave another loud crack. The cub screamed. 

“HYUUUUUUUNNNG!”

Yunho doubled over, slapping his hands over his mouth to hold back his laughter. He couldn’t help it. Whenever Jongho called him ‘hyung’ it always did something to him, turning him giddy and causing his heart to melt and his brain to malfunction. And when Jongho dragged out the syllable like this, in this whiny, needy fashion, it was simply too much.

“Stop shouting,” San moaned, covering his ears to block the grating, sharp noise.

“Jongho, hang in there buddy!” Yunho called, eyes streaming with tears from laughing too hard. “I’ll go fetch my broom to fly up and get you, okay? Just stay put.”

Yet, in the midst of his panic, Jongho lost control and involuntarily shifted into a boy. His human form was bigger and heavier than his bear form, causing the branch to finally snap. He let out a raw scream as he plummeted to the ground, his body kept shifting between a boy and a bear while his heart nearly jumped out of his throat. Suddenly, the drop eased into a slow, floaty descension, as an invisible force lifted him in mid air. Jongho finally recovered his sanity, his mad shifting came under control, stopping after he had popped into a boy. He landed gently in Yunho’s arms, and was met with his soft, doting smile.

“Did you really think I was going to let you fall?”

Jongho clung to Yunho’s shoulders, relishing the strength of those arms cradling him, the firm hold around his waist and legs, his fears driven away by the comfort of his presence. Jongho felt small, yet so utterly protected. His hyungs were his refuge. Even if the world was set ablaze, they would always protect him and keep him safe. He understood that now.

He buried his face in his shoulder and broke into heavy sobs.

The next day, Jongho made San teach him how to climb trees, especially the tricky techniques of getting down from a tall branch. He practiced on all kinds of trees, mastering each maneuver until he felt confident in every situation. Once he was sure of his skills, he set out to find Hongjoong. But the squirrel was gone. For weeks, Jongho kept an eye out for the peculiar rodent. But he never saw Hongjoong again.

Chapter Text

Twenty years went by. Jongho’s human form had grown into that of a man in his early twenties. Much to Yunho’s delight, his baby bear shifter had grown up to be exceptionally fine. He had bright, clear eyes, round apple cheeks, and a tall, beautiful forehead that held the secret power to make Yunho’s knees go weak. His temperament was reserved, carrying a quiet dignity that commanded attention without needing to raise his voice. Beneath his calming nature was a strength that radiated steady stability, giving those around him a sense of comforting safety. 

Despite his chaotic, and at times questionable education, Jongho had grown up to be remarkably eloquent. His sharp logic, quick thinking and unyielding nature made him a formidable opponent in any debate. San and Yunho could hardly ever win an argument with him, for Jongho always had a way of patiently guiding them, step by step, into agreeing with him.

Jongho was also the quickest among them to adapt to new technologies. In the past two decades, video games and computers had really taken off, and after spending a weekend at Seonghwa’s, Jongho had come home and demanded a TV set and a Nintendo gaming console. Yunho had, of course, bought him the brand new latest models. Before then, Yunho and San had never considered using human technology for the sole purpose of entertainment. But watching Jongho play got them hooked as well. San was even willing to shift into his human form in order to participate, although he could never quite reach the same level as Jongho and Yunho, as the two became each other’s greatest rivals, often duking it out in rounds of Super Mario Kart and Mortal Kombat. Jongho had also asked Yunho to teach him how to drive, but so far Yunho had staved it off, for driving was something that had taken him years to learn, which he knew would only take Jongho a mere few weeks to master. He didn’t want his baby bear to become too independent from him just yet.

Yunho was immensely proud of how well Jongho turned out, and he gave the credit entirely to himself. He had pampered Jongho his whole life, treating him like a royal prince, and believed it was his all-rounded meticulous care that had cultivated such a bright and respectable character.

Jongho’s bear form had also undergone tremendous growth. He had tripled in size over the past twenty years, and now stood about as tall as a golden retriever on all fours. His body was much rounder and stockier than a dog, however, with short, thick legs and meaty paws that packed a powerful punch. Despite his modest stature, he had long established himself as the undisputed king of the forest, claiming the entire expanse of Yunho’s magic domain as his territory. Thanks to his abnormal strength and commanding aura, he had won every fight he encountered, against opponents that were much bigger than him. Most animals in the forest had learned not to challenge him. He became widely known as the wizard’s fearsome beast.

However, since Jongho was still technically a cub, Yunho had the perfect excuse to keep babying him, and so he still fed him bottles of milk every night. Even after twenty years, Yunho still relished every second of it. Part of him wished he would never grow up.

“What’s that you’re so interested in?” Yunho asked.

It was another glorious morning inside the wizard’s home. Jongho was sipping his coffee and reading a catalog while letting his hyung style his hair. These days, the wizard liked to brush his bangs back and leave a small tuft falling just above his right eye, while keeping the rest of his forehead exposed.

“They’re called Tamagotchi,” Jongho replied. “They’re these little devices that let you keep a virtual pet. You can feed it, play with it, watch it grow up. There are so many different models though,” he said, flipping through the pages.

Yunho hummed idly, combing and mostly fondling with Jongho’s luscious hair, which was not only soft and shiny, but had the volume that would make any man envious. 

“Well, which one do you like more? This one’s cute,” he said, pointing to one shaped like a bear’s head. “You can keep a tiny digital version of yourself.”

Jongho didn’t reply immediately. Brows furrowing in concentration, he pointed to a yellow one shaped like a chick. “I think I like this one.”

His response tugged at Yunho’s heartstrings. It was the one Mingi would’ve chosen. Jongho had no prior knowledge of this though, for Yunho and San had never told him about Mingi, about who he was, his likes and dislikes, and it was purely a coincidence that he had picked Mingi’s favorite animal. For Yunho, it only made it that much more precious.

If only you were here, Mingi. God, you’re missing out on so much.

Yunho often wondered how Mingi would feel about Jongho. He had a feeling Mingi would fall for him as easily as he did. And knowing Mingi’s personality, Yunho was sure the sorcerer would stop at nothing to win Jongho over. He would pursue him like it’s a conquest, shower him with gifts and affection until Jongho accepted him and loved him back. He would annoy him to no end. The thought brought a dreamy smile to Yunho’s face.

“Hyung,” Jongho turned around to stare at him. “Why are you getting sentimental all of a sudden?”

Snoozing on the windowsill, San opened his eyes a crack and gave Yunho a look. Yunho kept forgetting how much Jongho’s third eye had sharpened over the years due to San’s consistent training. His depth of perception and sensitivity were almost on par with a psychic, which was crazy, considering it had taken Yunho over a hundred years to reach that level himself. It meant he had to be more mindful of his energy around Jongho, even when he’s standing behind him and not saying a word.

Yunho hugged Jongho from behind, leaning his weight onto his shoulders so that Jongho was forced to look at the catalog again. “Then I’ll buy this baby chick version for you the next time I go shopping, okay baby?” Yunho said dotingly, squishing his cheeks together with his large hand.

“Hyung, I’m not asking for one. I was just looking because it’s all the rage these days.”

“But my baby bear deserves all the nicest, coolest things,” said Yunho, gleefully jiggling his soft cheeks.

Jongho pried his hand off. “Hyung,” he said, sounding cross. “I mean it. I don’t want one. That’s a kid’s toy. I’m a grown-ass adult already.”

Yunho pressed his lips together. He couldn’t refute that Jongho’s human form had already matured, but hearing him call himself an adult still sounded wrong. In the end, he only smiled and said “Alright, handsome.”

He cast a few spells to keep his hair in place, tucking away the loose strands as he finished the final touches. “There, all done.”

“Thanks, hyung.”

Jongho got up from his seat and gave him a small smile, and as he did, Yunho felt butterflies in his stomach. The shifter had grown to a decent height. His broad frame housed a body packed with muscles. His exquisite physique was made even more striking by his beautiful eyes, proud forehead, and flawless hair. His baby bear looked oh so very fine. Yunho gulped, staring at the man before him. He saw him every day, even shared the same bed with him. Yet lately it felt like he was seeing him for the first time, over and over again. It terrified Yunho. Even though he had never confessed his feelings, he had been secretly treading a fine line, and he knew that one wrong move could destroy everything—Jongho’s innocence, his purity, the love and trust they had spent years forging—the very thing that had brought meaning back to Yunho’s life for the past twenty years, all in an instant.

“Hyung...Hyung!” Jongho snapped his fingers before Yunho’s eyes, jolting him awake. He peered at him closely. “You completely zoned out. Is everything okay?”

“Yes! Everything’s fine!” Yunho exclaimed, hoping Jongho wouldn’t notice his ears turning pink. “My mind’s just been a little hazy, probably because I haven’t meditated for too long, that’s all.”

“But I thought you shut yourself in the sunroom and did two hours of yoga yesterday. Don’t you usually meditate when you do yoga?”

Yunho was sure that his entire face was now flushing a deep shade of red. He could practically feel the heat radiating off his cheeks. “I was…actually…napping,” he said tightly.

Jongho stared at him for another second, before breaking into a grin. “I knew it!” He laughed, the sound ringing merrily in the air while he flashed his adorable front teeth. “You and San always say you’re meditating, but you’re really just dozing off!”

San let out an indignant meow. He stretched and rolled onto his side. “Excuse me? Don’t lump me in with him. I, for one, never doze off when I’m meditating.”

“Yeah, sure, hyung,” Jongho said with a chuckle. He went over to San and scratched his furry belly. The cat let out a strained noise before melting into a putty fur ball, purring like a spoiled kitten under Jongho’s deft fingers. The shifter leaned in and nuzzled his neck, pressing a kiss to his fur. He then bade them farewell and headed out for his daily patrol of the forest.

“Remember to come home for dinner!” Yunho called after him, like he always did.

San waited until he was sure Jongho was gone before speaking his mind. “You know you can’t keep going on like this.”

Yunho was clearing the table. He paused, jaws clenching, but stayed otherwise silent.

“What’s your plan, Yunho? Do you even have one? I think you should tell him how you feel, because if you don’t, you’re going to do something really stupid very soon and regret it.”

Yunho dropped Jongho’s coffee cup into the sink with a loud clunk. “Tell him what, that I like him?” he asked shakily. “Does he even know what that means?”

“He probably doesn’t,” San said gently. “Which is why you need to help him understand the difference between a loving hyung and a romantic partner, before leading him into making any decisions. You’d ultimately want to include him in your relationship with Mingi, don’t you?”

Yunho gripped the edge of the kitchen counter, shutting his eyes as a lump built up in his throat. “I don’t want anything from him,” he said after a long, heavy pause, “other than what he wants. If I’m lucky enough to win him over, that’s more than I could ever ask for. But if he doesn’t want me, or if he falls for someone else, then I’ll support him and give him my blessing. If he’s not ready for any relationship and just wants things to stay the way they are, then I will keep being his loving hyung, feed him, do his chores, and keep him safe. Whatever he chooses, I will always be there for him. His happiness is all that matters.”

In other words, he had no plan.

Yunho phoned his apprentice later in the day to place his shopping order. The way he did it was a little different from how regular people made phone calls. He took out a human skull and filled a goblet with magic potion. Muttering a spell, he then conjured a small flame and used it to set the potion alight. He poured the burning liquid over the skull, drenching it in bright green flames. A single dose of Infernocom would burn for a solid ten minutes, cheaper and easier than making an international call.

“Hey, Yeosang, you there?”

He waited for a few seconds. The skull then sprang to life. Its jaws began to move as Yeosang’s voice came through. “Hyung,” said a sleepy voice. “Wasn’t expecting to hear from you so early. Did you run out of groceries already?”

“No. Well—yes, actually, I do need more groceries. But that’s not the reason I’m calling. I need you to help me buy a Tamagotchi.”

“A what?”

“A Tamagotchi.”

“Don’t you mean a tamago and a wotchi? You want an egg and a watch. Got it,” said Yeosang, scribbling it down on a piece of paper. “Do I have to get them from Japan?”

“What? No!” Yunho slapped his forehead. His apprentice Yeosang had migrated to earth more than three decades ago to study magic under him, and in those years he had picked up many of the widely spoken human languages, but that didn’t mean he understood humans or what they were up to. His mind seemed to be operating on a different wavelength, often misinterpreting what he heard.

“I said Tamagotchi! It’s a toy! It’s the latest trend right now! Jongho wants the chick version!”

“Ah, of course, it’s for your baby bear shifter,” Yeosang said with a small chuckle. “You know, I never knew raising a bear would be so costly. On top of the exorbitant amount you spend on food and clothes, there was also the Walkman, the numerous cassettes and cds, the TV, the Nintendo, the Gameboy, and now this Tamagotchi. What’s next? Are you going to buy him a car?”

Yunho winced. “I will have to in a few years,” he admitted. “I’ve been putting off teaching him how to drive, but he will definitely keep pressing me, and once he’s learned how, I guess I’m buying him a car.”

“So all he has to do is ask. Does this mean you will teach me new spells if I ask for them?” If the skull had retained its lips, it would be smirking right then. “May I remind you, hyung, that our last lesson was five years ago. You also mentioned you were going to teach me how to ride a broom.”

Yunho was flabbergasted. “I will teach you! S-some day. I’ve just been really busy for the past two decades! Jongho’s a growing boy and he needs a lot of nourishment. He’s only going to grow up once!”

The skull’s jaws cracked open as Yeosang’s laughter echoed through the magic channel. “I was only kidding, relax,” said Yeosang, his light, gentle tone carrying no malice. “I know Jongho is your top priority right now. There’s no hurry. You can teach me once your time frees up.”

Yeosang being so understanding only deepened Yunho’s guilt. He hardly had time for his apprentice ever since he adopted Jongho, and the lessons he promised had been few and far between. The last magic he had taught Yeosang was the Waterproof spell, an incantation that could conjure up a bubble enveloping one’s body to keep that person dry, handy for a rainy day or for anyone who wanted to go diving. But Yeosang was an alien who came from a very wet planet, and the earth’s climate was often too dry for his skin. He needed to bathe every day and would go through a whole litre of body lotion each week. Rainy days were his absolute favorite, which was why he had taken up residence in Seattle. Yunho only realized after the lesson that Yeosang would probably never need the spell. He wondered if he had used it even once.

As his teacher, Yunho had barely taught him anything useful, yet Yeosang continued to be a good apprentice for him, running errands and getting his groceries. Yeosang was born with the unique ability to open portals, allowing him to access wherever his psyche could locate. With the help of Yunho’s magic, he was able to set up permanent portals across various locations on earth, including one that linked his garage directly to Yunho’s pantry. Others he had set up included some of Yunho’s favorite shopping places, ranging from rural farms in the middle of nowhere to high-end department stores in mega cities. Yeosang often jumped through portals to buy the goods that Yunho requested, using the wizard’s prized credit card called ‘Limitless’. It was one of the most coveted and hardest-to-get cards in the world, guaranteed to make any purchase successful anywhere in the universe. Its magical properties could facilitate all types of transactions, even for unconventional commodities such as a person’s years of life or a percentage of a person’s soul. It could complete a payment even in places where digital currency didn’t exist. As long as the price of the said commodity was agreed on by both parties in an established currency, Limitless would make it happen. Only a thousand of them were ever issued, and just the card alone was worth a small island.

Yunho had earned his card through sheer luck, after he had unwittingly helped a god win back his power through a game of poker with the devil, and had gotten it as a thank-you gift. Had he lost the game, however, he would’ve lost his soul with it.

Yet, regardless of how valuable the card was, it was still a credit card, and the debt it incurred must be paid off, or the consequences would be dire. Cardholders were known to die in the most gruesome, horrific, and unimaginable ways after failing to meet their payment deadline. Yeosang assumed Yunho must be well-off, for he never missed a payment, and he never fussed over prices or demanded to see receipts. He always gave Yeosang a generous tip after running his errands.

As far as Yeosang knew, Yunho’s only source of income was fortune-telling gigs that he did on occasion for a handful of wealthy clients. These included palm readings, face readings, tarot cards, crystal balls, and séances. Yunho had once admitted to him that most of those readings were made up, for he never was a gifted seer. Even when he did pick up a real vision, he preferred to tell his clients what they wanted to hear rather than the truth, for the truth was often too unpalatable for the rich and powerful. Yeosang wished he could be as good a con man as Yunho. He very much envied his easy lifestyle.

In reality, the amount Yunho made from doing fortune-telling barely made up 0.1% of his annual income, and it would only cover Jongho’s food costs for up to a month at most. He would have earned more, a lot more, had he put his mind into expanding his business, for his readings were high in demand and he had built up a solid reputation over the years. But why work at all when he was already drowning in wealth that could last him, San, and Jongho for centuries? Yunho would much rather spend quality time with Jongho and San than to go out and earn a living.

Yunho didn’t obtain his massive wealth through luck or trickery. It was the only compensation he got for losing Mingi, and he felt that he deserved every penny, if not more. Every year on New Year’s Day, a payment of 100 Korin was deposited into his and Mingi’s joint vault. Korin was the reserve currency of the Milky Way galaxy, with the conversion rate to earth’s money being one Korin to 79 ounces of gold. Yunho had been receiving the payment for 98 years straight, so he had accumulated quite a lot of Korins in his vault by then. He used it to pay off his credit card bills.

“So you said Jongho wants the chick version,” said Yeosang, bringing their topic back to shopping. “Is that like…a pretty woman?” the apprentice asked unsurely, dropping his voice. “I didn’t know they made a version of that into a kid’s toy.”

Yunho, once again, slapped a hand to his forehead, groaning and pinching the bridge of his nose. “No Yeosang, a baby chick means a baby chicken, not a pretty woman. The Tamagotchi you’re looking for will be bright yellow and shaped like a bird’s head.”

“Oh, I see!” Yeosang exclaimed, his voice filled with relief. “Okay, got it. Anything else you’d like me to get?”

“I think I also need more groceries. Can you help me get twenty kilos of lamb shank, a bag of dried rosemary, ten onions, ten bunches of kale, five squash, five kilos of sirloin steak, five whole chickens and two bags of flour? Oh yeah, I also need ten more tins of baby formula.”

It was all just routine for Yeosang. He helped Yunho with grocery shopping every other day, and so he jotted down the list without needing anything repeated. Today’s volume was modest compared to other days, for over the years, Jongho’s appetite had grown even bigger in proportion to his physical growth. 

Yeosang went and got everything Yunho requested. He checked with Yunho to make sure the baby bear shifter hadn’t returned yet before stepping through the portal into Yunho’s pantry, hauling everything with him. He offloaded the items, gave Yunho the brand new Tamagotchi, and received a fat tip in return. Once he got his tip, he quickly jumped through the portal as if he couldn’t get out of there fast enough.

Yeosang had only seen Jongho once, during his very first grocery haul for Yunho, and it was an experience he would never forget. Even though Yunho had warned Jongho about Yeosang’s arrival beforehand, and had repeatedly told him he was not an intruder, the cub was still extremely alarmed by his sudden appearance inside their pantry. Jongho had bared his teeth and charged at him, chasing him around the house and snapping at his ankles. His sharp little teeth had torn off a patch of Yeosang’s trousers before Yunho finally managed to stop him. Fortunately, a thin bloody cut to his ankle was the only injury Yeosang sustained that day.

After the incident, Yunho had tried talking to Jongho, explaining to him that Yeosang was a friend who would be visiting often. But Jongho’s territorial instinct was simply too strong. He sensed Yeosang’s aura was different from a normal person, that he was an alien and wielded magical powers. Therefore he couldn’t trust him, and nothing Yunho said could change his aggressive behavior. Yunho and Yeosang both agreed that it was best for him to avoid Jongho altogether.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, Jongho returned home in his bear form. He frowned as his nose picked up Yeosang's scent in the air. The scent led him to the pantry, and although his human brain knew Yeosang was harmless, the bear in him couldn’t help but interpret it as the scent of an intruder. Nose pressed to the ground, he huffed unhappily a couple of times before squatting down to rub his butt against the floor tiles, claiming back his territory.

“Jjongie.”

Jongho spun around and found the wizard watching him from the doorway.

“I got you something,” said Yunho, presenting a small gift box.

Curious, Jongho shifted into his human form and went up to take the present. He peeled away the wrapping paper, revealing the brand new toy underneath. His face lit up in surprise. “A Tamagotchi! Hyung, this is awesome! I can’t believe you got it!”

Jongho’s sweet, adorable grin was hypnotic, filling Yunho with a kind of joy that was dangerously addicting, cementing his desire to spoil him rotten for all eternity. He still loved him as his baby bear, but that sentiment was starting to blur with something else, and it was aching to be seen, to be understood. Yet Yunho might just be too scared to ever cross that line.

“It’s even the one I said I liked! Thanks hyung!” Jongho gave him a quick hug and hurried off to show his new toy to San, leaving Yunho alone in the pantry, mulling over his feelings.

They enjoyed a hearty dinner of roasted lamb shanks with onions and butternut squash, grilled sirloin steak with kale salad and bread, and a giant cauldron of chicken and mushroom soup. 

When it was time for bed, Yunho prepared the five bottles of milk as usual and sat down on his arm chair. He patted his lap expectantly.

Without hesitation, Jongho shifted into a bear and climbed onto his lap. He settled into his familiar position, allowing Yunho to cradle him, even though he was a lot bigger and heavier now, and grabbed for the bottle with his bear paws. He gulped down the milk while gazing into Yunho’s doting smile.

This was something that happened every night, as routine to Jongho as taking a shower or brushing his teeth, and no one had ever told him it was wrong, or that he was too old to be doing this. Therefore Jongho never questioned it. It felt as natural as earth accepting the heavenly showers of rain, or flowers blooming under the golden rays of sun. His hyung should love him and provide for him, and in turn, Jongho loved him back and guarded his safety. It was not a cold-blooded transaction or a twisted form of codependency. To Jongho, it was simply the natural order of life.

His eyelids grew heavy as they reached the last bottle. By the time he finished, he was drowsy and ready to sleep. Yunho sat him up and patted his back, nuzzling the fur at the back of his head as he did. Jongho burped, then licked his lips contentedly. The wizard placed him in bed and went to rinse the bottles in the kitchen sink.

Jongho shifted back into his human form and crawled lazily beneath the covers. He opened his arms and beckoned San over. As the cat lay down against him, Jongho tucked him under his chin and took out his new toy. The digital baby chick had left a pile of pixel poop on the screen. Jongho cleaned away the poop and began playing a simple game of soccer with it. Once the game ended, he looked up to find Yunho leaning against the door frame, watching him with a fond, tender smile. Jongho yawned and stuffed the device under his pillow, while Yunho switched off all the lights in the house with a snap of his fingers.

Yunho got into bed and slipped his arms around Jongho's waist, whispering a soft goodnight. Jongho closed his eyes and nuzzled San’s pointy ears, just as Yunho pressed a kiss to the back of his head. The three of them fell asleep like that, cuddling together in the comfort of each other’s warmth. To Jongho, this too was part of life’s natural order. He would have his hyungs by his side, and the three of them would be together, safe and happy in their own little paradise, for the rest of their lives.

Chapter Text

The forest was changing. It was subtle at first, with strange occurrences cropping up here and there, each one seemingly isolated. The first sighting of a black crow. The sprout of a dark red mushroom emitting a foul smell. The sudden increase of insects and worms. The first catch of a cancerous neon-green trout in the river…

As the forest became more and more unrecognizable with each passing day, Jongho began to realize something sinister was at play. A dark, hidden force seemed to be working in the background, pushing him and Yunho out of their sphere of influence. It drove him to go further, venturing deeper into the woods to claim back his lost territory.

That foulness seemed to be coming from the west. While the area within a mile radius of Yunho’s home remained lush, green and peaceful, beyond that, the forest looked sick. A scent of decay lingered in the air, and the further west Jongho went the darker the woods became. The strangest incident occurred one day when he ran into a wild boar who appeared to have lost its mind.

The boar’s breathing was erratic, its eyes wide and unfocused as if it was blind. Yet it was clear that the creature could see Jongho, for the boar charged directly at him the moment they crossed paths, and tried to gore him with its tusks.

“Hey!” Jongho cried, leaping out of the way. He had never met an animal that attacked outright without provocation. “What’s your problem?”

He was in his bear form, speaking animal language, so the boar should’ve understood him. But it only let out a mad squeal and charged at him again.

“Stop! I don’t want to fight!”

The boar’s aura looked highly unnatural, swirling with a black, malicious aggression that was senseless and violent. As the boar closed in on him, Jongho saw blood and drool dripping from its vacant eyes and gaping mouth. Jongho couldn’t quite explain it, but he had a feeling the creature wasn’t alive. It moved like a puppet strung up by that black, swirling energy, while the real puppeteer lurked in the shadows, pulling the strings. Whatever remained of the boar’s own will was being twisted and driven mad by the darkness that controlled it.

Jongho decided he wouldn’t dodge this time. He stood his ground and smacked the boar across face, sending blood and drool splattering.

Jongho was incredibly strong, so strong that he could usually knock any animal unconscious with a swat like that. But the boar only staggered sideways before losing its footing and falling to the ground. It didn’t squeal in pain, didn’t appear dizzy or disoriented. It only kicked its legs wildly in the air like a cockroach struggling to stand.

“Where did you come from? How did you become like this?” Jongho asked, approaching the creature with caution. “If you need help, I can take you back to Yunho.”

The boar suddenly flipped onto its legs and rammed Jongho, driving its tusks straight into his midsection. Jongho was lifted off the ground and speared into the trunk of a thick pine tree. The force of the collision was so extreme that it snapped the trunk from the point where Jongho’s back had slammed into. In that moment, Jongho felt it in his bones that the strength of the boar was without a doubt—supernatural. With a thunderous crack, the tree toppled and crashed down on both of them.

The dust gradually settled. Groaning, Jongho wriggled out from underneath the heavy trunk. He rubbed his tummy and his back, where it actually hurt a little, and looked around. The boar lay dead beneath the fallen tree. Both of its tusks had snapped clean off, its tongue sticking out. The body already reeked of decay, as if parts of it had been dead for quite some time.

Jongho went home and reported the incident to Yunho. To his dismay, the wizard only patted his head and told him not to worry, saying he would handle it and that he had been a good bear for trying to help the boar. Jongho didn’t need any praise; he wanted answers, but neither of his hyungs would tell him what was going on.

Yunho had been aware of the evil power corrupting the forest for quite some time now. He had been shutting himself in his study for longer periods, poring over old spellbooks and gazing into his crystal ball. Jongho could tell he was stressed, even though Yunho wouldn’t talk to him about it.

“Jongho-ya, why don’t you stay home today? It’s been a while since we just relaxed and had some fun together in the house,” San said the next morning. Jongho stopped at the foyer, his brows furrowing with unease. He couldn’t recall his Sannie hyung ever talking about wanting to ‘have fun’, especially not in the morning. Mornings were for meditation and learning, for self-elevation, as the old cat always put it.

“Hyung, I can’t. I need to claim back our territory. The forest is smelling less and less like me and more like some nasty, angry wolves each day. I’m heading to the far west today to find out who’s behind this foul energy, and I intend to put an end to it once and for all.”

San choked on his own saliva, exasperated. “What do you mean ‘put an end to it’? You’re not planning on looking for fights, are you? Have you forgotten what I taught you about abiding by the law? We live in human society, remember? There are rules to follow and civilized ways to handle conflict.”

Jongho turned to him gravely. “Hyung, you wouldn’t be talking about being civilized if you knew what was happening outside, if you had seen the boar that tried to kill me yesterday. Whatever this is that we’re dealing with has to be supernatural, and it for sure doesn’t care about the laws. I need to go out and destroy that thing before it gets anywhere near us.”

“Jongho, wait!” San leaped forward and hugged his calf, digging his claws into the denim of his jeans. “Stay home! Just stay home! W-we’ll eat ice cream! And play video games! Please, just don't go outside.”

Jongho was shocked to find his usually calm hyung shaking. His heart softened upon seeing him so scared. “Sannie, you know I don’t like ice cream.” Nevertheless, he scooped him up and brought him to the living room. Jongho settled down on the sofa, holding the cat close to his chest and rubbing his chin gently.

“Is the situation really that bad?” he asked, after a moment of quiet cuddling.

San remained silent, trembling limply in his arms like a frightened kitten.

“I mean, we both know I can’t get hurt. I’ve never bled once in my life. Not even that time when I got shot, remember?”

San remembered. It was a day that would forever haunt his memory. A man had once entered their forest to do some illegal hunting. When Jongho went to confront him, the man mistook him for an ordinary wild bear and shot him point blank. San remembered feeling his blood turned cold, his heart wrenched with an explosion of anger and hurt.

But Jongho kept standing like nothing had happened. All that changed was his aura, which began to burn a bright, furious red. As the hunter continued to fire round after round of bullets at him, the bullets simply bounced off Jongho like little popcorns, the metal bending and flattening out of shape. Jongho growled and pounced on him. He pried the rifle from the man’s hands and snapped it in half with his teeth. The man ran away screaming like he had seen the devil.

“So is it really necessary for you to be this worried?” Jongho asked softly. San nuzzled the shifter’s chest, taking in his soothing scent and comforting warmth.

Even though Jongho had come out unscathed, San’s heart still ached from witnessing him get shot. It was unfathomable to think anyone could be so cruel as to shoot a helpless cub, and if Jongho hadn’t happened to be bulletproof, San thought he would never recover from the trauma. 

“I know you’re strong, maknae,” said San, his body still tense. “But there is an ugliness in humanity that I’d never want you to face, and a level of evil that could corrupt even the purest mind. You thought I didn’t know what was happening outside, when in fact I saw everything. That boar you fought yesterday was the most perverse twist of witchcraft I have seen in a hundred years, and it’s only a glimpse of who we’re up against. The magic our enemy wields is far beyond your ability to challenge. And no, it may not be enough to hurt you, physically, but the malicious intent I sense behind it, the dark ambition, the insatiable hunger for even more power…makes my skin crawl. I don’t want you going anywhere near that foul thing, and that includes the part of the forest it has already corrupted, the creatures it has enslaved, stripped of their wild nature and kept alive solely to spread his evil, like the boar you met yesterday.”

Jongho was still keen to go out and fight their enemy, but he could not in good conscience go against San’s wish, not when his hyung was so worried. And so he stayed home. He used the bathroom in his human form, ate ice cream and played video games with San. In the afternoon, he shifted into his bear form and sprawled down on one of San’s kitty beds, flattening it beneath his large body.

“Groom my fur for me, hyung,” he asked sweetly.

San squeezed out a wry smile, knowing he wouldn’t be able to escape the chore today, since he was the one who had talked Jongho into staying home. He also couldn’t deny that his baby bear looked impossibly cute. His chocolate-brown fur puffed like cotton candy as he lay there, comfortably spread out.

San began licking him, starting with his forehead as always, meticulously working his way to his ears.

Jongho closed his eyes and relished the special attention. He loved having San groom him, his little tongue gently untangling his coat, pulling away any loose strands and debris, leaving his coat smooth and shiny. He loved how San was slow and meticulous, patiently working through every inch of his body, even reaching into the thick undercoat. It was like being stroked by a tiny brush, each delicate lick sending him further into deep relaxation. 

Yunho had a pin brush that could make his coat look just as pristine with much greater efficiency, but the metal pins felt harsh and invasive on his skin. The way it rudely raked through his fur stripped away the loose strands and Jongho’s dignity at the same time, and so he always hated it whenever Yunho called him over for a grooming session. He much preferred San’s gentle licks.

However, the reason Yunho had gotten a pin brush in the first place was precisely because San had complained about having to groom Jongho every other day. Jongho’s fur was made extra resilient by the magic he was born with. It had already been proven to be fireproof (from that one time Yunho had thought it was a good idea to roast a whole pig in their backyard), bullet proof (thanks to the incident involving the illegal hunter), and acid proof, as San would personally attest that the material was impossible to digest. Poor San was guaranteed to suffer the worst stomach ache after every grooming, persisting until he vomited out all the furballs.

Jongho fell asleep just as San was halfway through licking his left shoulder blade. An hour later, he woke to the sound of San’s loud hacking. Jongho would’ve helped by patting him on the back, but San wouldn’t allow him. His ‘gentle’ pat was as lethal as a swinging baseball bat, and it nearly broke San’s spine the last time Jongho had patted him. So Jongho only looked on with sleepy eyes while his hyung vomited in pain. Once the furballs were out, Jongho flipped onto his back and raised his arms, exposing his chest, belly and furry crotch. He soon drifted off again, under San’s endless spoiling and noble sacrifice.

Jongho woke from his wonderful nap after San had finished grooming him. As the cub got up from his bed, San nearly blurted out that he was getting too big to be groomed by his tiny kitten tongue. But as always, he couldn’t bring himself to say it. Seeing Jongho’s soft, happy smile and hearing his sweet thank-you made the words roll back down his throat.

There was no doubt Jongho would one day reach the size of a full-grown bear, and by then, it would be impossible for San to groom him. But today was not that day. And until the three of them could all agree that Jongho had outgrown the need for kitten licks, San would keep pushing his body to the limit. And even then, if Jongho still craved his grooming, San supposed he would still indulge him from time to time. Because no matter how big Jongho grew, he would always be his baby bear, and San simply couldn’t say no to him.

Jongho waited for San to finish puking out his second batch of furballs. After he was done, Jongho gathered them up and left them to air-dry on the windowsill. Once they were properly dried, he brought them to Yunho and was rewarded with a face rub and a round of cooing praises. Yunho called them his ‘precious treasure’, even though they both knew it was San who had painstakingly harvested them. Jongho watched as Yunho dropped the furballs into a large glass jar as usual. He had already collected more than two dozen jars of fur that lined his shelves and hogged his storage room. He had once stuffed some into his oven mitts, and it worked perfectly as a heatproof material. He could also make winter coats out of them, as they would provide excellent insulation and bulletproof properties, but he was too lazy to put in the work. Yeosang had once told him of a planet where people would pay good money for material like this, and he could help Yunho sell it in its raw form. But Yunho was too emotionally attached to his furball collection to let any of it go, especially the ones from decades ago when Jongho had been just a tiny cub and the fur was extra soft and fluffy. Therefore he declined the offer, and only kept adding to his collection.

Jongho honored San’s wish to stay indoors, but after two days, he couldn’t stand it anymore. He became restless and grouchy, every hair on his body yearned to go outside, to sniff and pee. It wasn’t even about taking back territory anymore, it was simply his wild bear instincts needing the kind of enrichment only nature could provide. San understood this, and so he relented, agreeing to let him out on the condition that he would tag along and that they would not venture beyond the sphere of Yunho’s magic domain.

That zone of safety had now shrunk to just four square kilometers around their house. Jongho spent a good two hours sniffing, peeing, and grazing on fresh grass and berries, his wild instincts finally being fulfilled.

They were near the outskirts of Yunho’s domain when a shrill cry of an animal suddenly pierced the air. Jongho looked up alertly, his nose picking up the scent of wolves. Angry snarls and vicious barks echoed in the distance, followed by another sharp cry of pain.

The bear cub immediately sprang into action, racing toward the sound even as San desperately called after him. He soon crossed the border of the lush green safe zone and entered into the dark forest.

As he followed the noise, his third eye began picking up a savage energy. He came to a clearing and found five wolves circling a lone red fox. The fox snarled and bared his teeth, doing its best to appear as vicious as possible, but its hind leg was bleeding badly, and it was clearly struggling to stand.

“Hey!” Jongho shouted, catching everyone’s attention. “Leave that fox alone!”

The wolves saw him and sneered. “Look who decided to come out of hiding,” said a large grey wolf, “The freak cub who never grows up.”

Jongho recognized the pack. Their leader, the one that had spoken, had once formally acknowledged Jongho as the apex predator of the forest. But now the wolf stood taller, bulkier, its aura swirling with the same black energy as the wild boar. In fact, the whole pack looked like they were on steroids, their bodies bulging with muscles, their teeth gleaming like knives.

“He brought his freak nanny, too,” another wolf jeered, eyeing San hungrily. The pack howled with laughter, the chilling sound sent goosebumps crawling over San’s flesh.

“If you touch him, I will rip your throats out,” Jongho said coldly.

Their laughter died down, replaced by low, murderous growls. The fox stared at Jongho in disbelief, cowering and nursing his injured leg as the wolves circled the cub.

“Jongho-ya,” San said in a trembling voice. “Maybe we should just walk away. Let nature be.”

“These wolves aren't a part of nature anymore, hyung. You know that better than anyone.” Jongho gave him a final, grave look.

“Go wait in a tree.”

Within seconds, he vanished in a whirl of dark matted fur as the wolves attacked him from all sides. San scrambled up the nearest tree and perched himself on a high branch, looking down and shaking in fear.

Jongho’s fights with other animals would usually end within a minute. But this one dragged on far longer. San could barely watch as the wolves tore into his baby bear, their sharp teeth sinking deep into his fur, pulling at his flesh. Jongho snarled and fought back fiercely. But it was five against one, and being one size smaller, he struggled to get a hold on any of them.

San closed his eyes, but he couldn’t block out the horrific noises—the vicious growls, snarls and snapping jaws that left his heart suspended in mid air. After what felt like an eternity, he heard a sickening noise of bones cracking. San opened his eyes and caught the most grisly scene: Jongho had torn off one of the wolves’ legs. The wolf was bleeding profusely, but it continued to attack as if it couldn’t feel pain. When it finally collapsed and died, the other wolves hardly reacted. Their aura reeked of something sadistic, devoid of empathy or even the basic instinct for self-preservation. One of them grabbed Jongho by the scruff of his neck and flung him into a tree. The tree broke in half, crashing to the ground. Whether the cub was dead or alive didn’t matter the slightest. The wolves lunged at him, their bloodlust driving them to tug and tear at his limp body like he was nothing but a piece of meat to be devoured.

San whimpered and closed his eyes, but quickly snapped them open again when his third eye picked up Jongho’s aura. The sheer power that surged from him made San do a double take. He had never felt anything quite like it.

Jongho emitted a growl that didn’t sound like it came from an animal, but more like a low, humming engine. The air around him reached boiling point, evaporating in waves as his aura pulsed with red flaring heat. He pulled his arm back—and snapped the teeth clean off a wolf’s jaws. He dropped to the ground, turned, and speared his head into another wolf’s chest. The single punch shattered its ribcage, sending splintered bones piercing straight into its heart. Jongho no longer resembled himself. With a roar he charged madly at the wolf that had lost its teeth. San looked away, this time feeling sorry for their enemies.

The fox lay low, shielding his head with trembling paws as blood occasionally rained down on him. Aside from Jongho's animalistic snarls, what remained were the wet snapping of bones and the squelching tears of flesh. By the time he finished ripping up the fourth wolf, his aura finally dialed down a notch, but it was still burning hot.

The bear, now covered in blood, slowly turned to face the last wolf standing. It was the pack leader, who finally gained some sense of self-preservation as he backed away. “You think this is over?” he snarled. “Just wait. My master will obliterate every one of you with a wave of his hand! Your wizard will be no match for him! Soon your little house will burn to the ground and your ashes will scatter like dust!”

Jongho stopped. The madness in his eyes faltered as realization hit him. “You have a master?”

The wolf’s mouth split into a wide grin.

“The tides have already turned. Master Lazurithe’s power is rising. Soon he will take over the entire forest. You, your pathetic wizard and that freak cat of yours will either perish or bow down to him! Mark my words, your days are numbered!”

With that, he fled and disappeared out of sight.

Jongho turned his attention to the fox. As he stepped toward him, the fox flinched and whimpered in fear. Jongho stopped dead in his tracks, realizing how scary he must look.

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to hurt you.”

He dropped to the ground and began rolling in the grass, doing his best to wipe off the blood. But the grass at this part of the forest had become slimy and damp, and all Jongho did was smear mud all over himself.

“Ew, gross.”

The fox stared, not knowing what to make of his behavior. The contrast between him brutally dismembering the wolves and this whiny cub was simply too much.

San came down from the tree, still shaking from head to toe. He quickly checked on Jongho, who, aside from a few sore spots, appeared unharmed. Even with the wolves’ corrupted strength they hadn’t been able to hurt him. Feeling relieved, San then greeted the fox and introduced himself and Jongho.

“I’ve heard about you, I just never knew you were real,” the fox said, staring wide-eyed at the two of them. “The bear cub with extraordinary strength and the purple cat with a shiny stone on his head. But after today, I think I can believe in anything.” He paused, then added: “I’m Wooyoung, by the way. Thanks for saving my life.”

“Nice to meet you, Wooyoung-ssi,” Jongho said with a polite nod.

“Yeah, nice to meet you too,” the fox said with a grimace. He tried to stand on his wobbly legs.

“You shouldn’t move, Wooyoung. Let Jongho carry you. We can take you to Yunho and he’ll patch you up in no time,” San offered.

Upon hearing the name of the wizard, Wooyoung shook his head vehemently. “No! No, thank you! I’ve had enough dealings with wizards lately! Can’t trust any of that dodgy lot! I’ll just be on my way, thanks.”

But the moment he put weight on his injured leg, he yelped and fell back to the ground. 

“What do you mean?” Jongho asked sharply. He leaned down until their noses were nearly touching. “You've been dealing with another wizard? Is it that Lazurithe the wolf referred to as his master?”

Wooyoung raised his paw and gingerly pushed Jongho’s face away. He didn’t have a third eye or any perception of aura, but his animal instincts could still feel that something was not normal about the cub, and having him so up close while radiating that powerful energy was more than a little terrifying.

“I met with Lazurithe and tried to make a deal with him. Hands down the worst decision of my life. I’m never going near his lair, or any wizard’s lair, ever again.”

“His lair?”

“Haven’t you heard?” Wooyoung asked. “He moved to the west side of the forest over a month ago, and that area has been rotting since. My home was unfortunately right next to his, and I had to leave because it was getting too dangerous to live there. But then I was starving because I could no longer find any food. Nothing is growing anymore, and the wolves have become ravenous. They took all the prey and left none for the rest of us. I then heard Lazurithe was recruiting animals to join his side, promising food and shelter, so I went.”

Wooyoung's voice shook as he recalled the nightmarish experience. “I met many other animals there: deer, owls, boars, and rats. They were all desperate, like me. The wolves rounded us up and sorted us by size. I was ushered into a cage with some raccoons. We were then brought into the wizard’s lair, where we met Lazurithe. He told us he was the new ruler of the forest, and that we were the few lucky ‘chosen ones’ to serve his cause. He gave this grand speech about how we’d all rise to the top of the food chain if we accepted him as our master. All we had to do was participate in a ritual, in which we would give up our souls and gain massive power in return.”

“I knew something was shady the moment he brought up souls,” Wooyoung said darkly. “Wizards all seem to be obsessed with souls, for some weird reason. Anyway, he chained us up and made us stand in a circle. The whole time, I kept screaming ‘no’ in my head, in case he tried to hypnotize me and take my soul away without my consent. But I think a couple of the raccoons actually wanted to join him. Halfway through the ritual, those raccoons started screaming. That’s when I panicked. I wriggled out of the chains, broke the circle, and bolted straight for the door. Lazurithe sent a pack of wolves after me. They chased me all the way here before they finally caught me. They were about to eat me alive when you guys showed up.”

Jongho looked quietly toward San, who avoided his gaze. He had a feeling his hyungs had known about this Lazurithe all along, and had deliberately kept it from him.

San cleared his throat awkwardly. “Well, I’m glad you survived, Wooyoung, and that we got here in time. But let’s not linger here any longer. That wolf will report back to Lazurithe, then he might send more of his minions over. We can talk more once we all retreat back to safety.” He said the last sentence pointedly at Jongho, to which the younger obliged, shifting to his human form without further prompting.

Wooyoung gaped at him. He had heard of shifters before, but had never actually seen one. When Jongho bent down to lift him up, he instinctively bared his teeth.

“Wow, relax! It’s still me, Jongho! I just look different, that’s all.”

“We’re not going to hurt you, Wooyoung-ssi,” San reassured in animal language. “Jongho can carry you better in his human form. Try not to bite my baby’s fingers, alright? You’ll only break your teeth.”

“Hyung, I’m not a baby,” Jongho said with a pout.

Wooyoung was still trembling and eyeing him mistrustfully. He had always been wary of humans and had never allowed anyone to touch him. He suppressed a growl as Jongho gently scooped him up and cradled him in his arms. The shifter ran his hand through the fox’s fur a few times. Wooyoung hated to admit it, but the stroking felt strangely comfortable, and against his better judgment, he began to relax.

Jongho tucked San on top of his shoulder. He then sprinted home without breaking a sweat or slowing down. Wooyoung began to realize that Jongho was neither really a bear nor a human, he just looked like one. His sheer, dominant power was terrifying, but there was a unique calmness and purity in his energy that made Wooyoung feel safe. 

Once they arrived at Yunho’s house, Wooyoung reluctantly let the tall wizard treat his injury. Even though Yunho appeared friendly and harmless, the fox found his seemingly gullible kindness highly suspicious, and throughout the treatment he remained tense. He kept waiting for the catch, a demand for repayment of some sort, but it never came. Once his hind leg was fully healed, the wizard simply stepped back and told him he was free to go.

“For your own safety, it’s best if you stay within our side of the forest for now,” San reminded him.

Wooyoung hesitated. He wanted to point out that their side was shrinking fast, and at this rate, it might not exist in another week. By then, he’d have nowhere else to go, no choice left but to join Lazurithe. He cast one last glance at the smiling trio: the wizard, the cat, and the bear, waving at him from the front door, and wondered how they were going to survive. With his tail drooping, he turned and walked away.

Chapter Text

While Wooyoung had been receiving treatment for his injury, Jongho had gone to blast the blood and gore off his body with a garden hose. He still felt icky afterward, so once Wooyoung had left, he headed for a shower to get himself properly cleaned.

Jongho’s bear form and human form were both equal embodiments of himself in the physical realm. They got equally clean or dirty and shared the same injuries and conditions. If he bruised his right knee, for example, the bruise would still be there when he shifted to bear form. Jongho stepped into the shower and let the water run over him. He scrubbed himself thoroughly with plenty of soap, ridding himself of the foul stench of blood.

He was in the midst of enjoying his hot, steamy shower when the door suddenly slid open, and before Jongho could turn around, Yunho stepped in and hugged him from behind.

“Hyung,” Jongho said, a little startled. Yunho remained unmoving. He huddled against his shoulders, holding him tightly, his gloominess becoming more evident by the second as the silence dragged on. Time seemed to be slowing down while a pink blush crept up to Jongho’s face.

They had seen each other naked countless times, ever since he was little, when Yunho used to bathe him or give him showers. But somewhere during his childhood, Yunho had stopped going into showers with him, especially when he was in human form. San had also taught him the concept of privacy, personal boundaries and consent, making sure he understood that he had every right to reject unwanted touches, no matter who they came from. Therefore, Jongho had a vague idea about what was generally considered appropriate behaviors between two adult men, and he had a feeling that his hyung might be stepping over that murky, invisible line.

Still, Jongho wasn’t sure, because Yunho wasn’t exactly making him uncomfortable. If anything, he quite enjoyed being hugged like that. He liked how tightly his hyung was holding him, leaning on him, needing him. It made him feel important, cherished, knowing that simply being there was enough to help Yunho feel better. Jongho was more than happy to support him, especially when he was feeling down. His only concern was—

“Hyung, you’re getting wet.”

The wizard hummed softly, and only tightened his arms around his body. Soon, Jongho felt a pair of lips touch the side of his neck. His head went blank for a moment, tingles spreading from the point of contact across his sensitive skin. He flinched, slightly caught off guard, but didn’t pull away.

Yunho’s lips lingered for a second longer than necessary, before they softly withdrew. “I hate that those wolves ganged up on you, baby,” he murmured beside his ear.

“Hyung, I’m fine.”

“Are you sure you’re okay? Is there anywhere that hurts? Any bruises, sore spots?” Yunho asked, hands skimming over the soft, warm ridges of his lower stomach.

Jongho shook his head.

Yunho nuzzled his damp hair and took a deep long breath. He exhaled slowly, the tension in his body dissolving from the soothing mixture of steam and soapy fragrance.

“You’re indestructible, Jongho, but that doesn’t mean I can tolerate anyone who tries to hurt you,” he said in a low voice. He ran his hands down his arms and let out another sigh. “Would you like some heat pads? Hot chocolate? How about a massage after shower? Please, just tell me what to do. Anything to make you feel better.”

His hyung was practically begging, which filled Jongho with a strange, warm feeling. But again, it wasn’t unpleasant. He turned his head and gave him a sheepish smile. “Honestly, after that fight, I’m starving.”

Yunho laughed. He pecked him on the cheek. “Alright, baby, I’ll go make dinner.”

Yunho prepared a feast that consisted of Jongho’s favorite foods: roasted racks of lamb, hand-pulled spicy noodles, kimchi tofu stew with pork and squid, dumplings, bao buns, fried mushrooms, and grilled trout freshly caught from the river. Jongho devoured everything on the table, while Yunho only had a little bowl of noodles. The wizard seemed content just by watching him eat. San, meanwhile, helped himself to the meat on the fish bones.

After dinner, Jongho sprawled out on the couch and tended to his Tamagotchi while his hyung cleaned up the kitchen. He then picked up a comic book and was halfway through reading when the wizard called him into his study. 

As Jongho stepped into the room, he immediately noticed a large, star-shaped sigil drawn on the floorboards, each pointy end marked with a flickering candle. He paused for a moment to take in the scene, before carefully walking around it to avoid stepping on the markings. Yunho’s desk was scattered with spell books and scrolls of notes written in ancient runes. Beside his desk sat a large cauldron bubbling with a mystery potion, filling the air with the faint smell of herbs.

The wizard seemed agitated. He stepped before Jongho and took hold of his hand—his own cold and clammy—and stared into his eyes as he asked in a low, shaky voice, “Jongho, you love me, right?”

Having no idea where this was going, Jongho nodded, his lips jutting in a soft pout.

“And this forest?”

Jongho nodded again.

“No matter what happens to us, you will always love me and want me to be safe. You’ll want our home to be protected, don’t you?”

Jongho’s heart grew firm with determination. He replied with a resounding “yes”.

Yunho’s expression softened. In the meantime, San watched from the sideline with increasing alarm. Yunho took a deep breath and asked in a solemn tone, “Then are you willing to make a blood oath with me?”

“Jeong Yunho, you stop right there!” San cried.

Yunho clenched his jaws. Reluctantly, he turned to face the cat.

“A blood oath? Are you kidding me? Jongho’s far too young!”

“I’m not too young, I’m twenty-four!” Jongho argued, although truthfully speaking, he would like to know what a blood oath would entail.

“He’s not a child anymore, San,” Yunho replied quietly. “Jongho’s old enough to make his own decisions.”

“No, he isn’t—not for this,” San said, his voice quivering with anger. “He has no idea what kind of sacrifice you’re asking for. A blood oath requires both parties to surrender a minimum of one-tenth of their souls as guarantee, and neither will get it back until the oath is fulfilled. You want Jongho to risk losing a part of his soul?”

“What happens if I lose one-tenth of my soul?” Jongho asked.

“You will feel sick,” San answered grimly. “Perpetually restless, hollow, like a part of you is missing, and that’s because it will be. You will never feel content, never be fully at peace. It takes decades to mend a broken soul, Jongho. Some don’t even survive, as it can lead to depression, even suicide. Believe me, you do not want to find out what it’s like.”

“And what would be the purpose of this blood oath?” asked Jongho, turning to Yunho. “What are the benefits, the terms and conditions?”

Something stirred in Yunho’s eyes. Pride. Gratitude. A flicker of mournful regret. He took a moment to compose himself before answering. “The term I’m proposing is simple: that we stand together in the fight against Lazurithe, until every last trace of his power is purged from this forest. It means no betrayal, no sabotage. I have complete faith in your loyalty, so even if Lazurithe tries to turn us against each other, I know his attempts will be futile. I believe this is the simplest term that we can both uphold in order to gain the benefit of the blood oath.”

“Which is?”

“A tremendous power that I’ll be able to wield against him,” Yunho said seriously. “The blood oath is one of the most ancient and potent forms of magic. When we each put in a fragment of our soul to seal the pact, it doesn’t just bind us, it generates an energy far greater than our current powers combined. With it, I will be able to set up an impenetrable shield around our house. It will serve as our last stronghold, blocking any hostile magic or entity from entering, and ensuring my magic stays rooted to this forest.”

“How far will this shield cover?” Jongho asked, quickly digesting everything he had just learned.

Yunho hesitated, pressing his lips tightly together before revealing the truth. “The most I can stretch is about 250 meters radius around our house, which will be just under 50 acres of land.”

Jongho’s heart sank. “F-fifty acres?” he stuttered, grappling with the reality of just how much they were about to lose. “But..that’s like nothing! Hyung, I won’t even have enough space to pee! What about the other animals that are relying on us for safety, like Wooyoung? They won’t have enough food if they’re all crammed inside 50 acres of land. It won’t be sustainable!”

“It’s not meant to be. The shield is there to protect you, and our home, not the other animals.” Yunho gripped his shoulders, giving him a firm squeeze. “Jongho, I promise you, I will banish Lazurithe and undo the damage he’s done to this land. I will claim back every inch of our forest and restore its peace and vitality. I will fight for you and for everyone who’s been counting on us. The shield is only temporary, just like the oath. Once Lazurithe is gone, the oath will be fulfilled, and you will get your soul back. You just have to trust me.”

“But…wouldn’t it be better if you use that power to fight Lazurithe?” Jongho asked. “I mean, I can fight too. We can coordinate our attacks and watch each other’s backs. Since we'll be bound by the oath, we should work together. Isn’t that the whole point?”

Yunho tensed at the suggestion. His eyes darkened, his voice dropping an octave.

“You are not fighting Lazurithe.”

He spoke like it was a final decree.

“I won’t let you near him.”

Jongho flinched at his tone. His hyung had never been this strict.

“He’s dangerous, don’t you understand? His magic isn’t just powerful, it’s vile. It twists, corrupts, and destroys everything it touches. It doesn’t matter how strong you are, Jongho, you’ll be defenseless against him. The sole purpose of the blood oath is to set up that shield. Nothing more. We need it not just for your safety, but also to keep my magic rooted to this land. Nature is where I draw my power. If I don’t have at least a small patch of forest untouched by Lazurithe, I won’t be able to use my magic properly. Then we’d lose everything.”

Jongho pouted. “But I wanna help you fight,” he whined.

Yunho’s expression thawed with a tender smile. “You will be helping me, by contributing to the shield. Believe me, you’ll be helping a lot. Besides, it might not come down to a fight. Lazurithe has broken just about every law that governs the use of dark magic. If he refuses to leave, I will say I’m going to report him to the authorities, people who neither he nor I can defy.”

“Who are they?”

“Beings with divine power. Entities older than time itself. They’re gods, basically.”

Jongho’s eyes lit up with fascination. “Gods exist? And you have the means to contact them?” he asked, visibly impressed.

Before Yunho could answer, San cut in sharply. “You’re not planning to alert The Pentarchs of Arcanum, are you?”

“What’s the Pentarchs of Arcanum?” Jongho asked immediately. His hyungs usually avoided discussing serious topics around him. Tonight was the rare opportunity that they were involving him in an important issue, and Jongho was grabbing at every chance to learn more. He was already mind blown by the things he just heard.

“They are a group of five powerful wizards working directly under Hekaf, the God of Magic. They represent the highest authority in the magic realm,” Yunho replied.

“Yunho, I don’t think the Pentarchs of Arcanum will care about a single dark wizard going rogue on Planet Earth. Lazurithe’s magic hasn’t even spread beyond this forest. That’s too insignificant for the gods to care,” San said with a frown. “Besides, you’re not exactly on good terms with them.”

“Why? What did you do?” Jongho asked, hoping to dig up more of Yunho’s mysterious past.

“I…uh…sort of caused a rift between Hekaf and Hades, God of the Underworld. But anyway,” Yunho said hastily. “That’s why I said I’m going to threaten Lazurithe into backing off. If he refuses, then I will have to fight him. Alerting the Pentarchs of Arcanum probably won’t be helpful and it will be my very last option.”

“So what do you say?” Yunho asked, turning serious again. “Are you willing to make a blood oath with me? To help me in the fight against Lazurithe?”

“Yes, of course,” Jongho said without giving much thought.

“Wait, wait! Just stop for a second, both of you!” San cried. He shot a furious glare at the wizard. “Yunho! Are you really going to push Jongho into doing the ritual, just like that? Aren’t you forgetting something super important?”

This time, Yunho was truly confused. He stared perplexedly at San, unable to figure out what he meant. 

San gave up after realizing he was clueless. “Shouldn’t you tell Jongho about your soulmate, the one you’ve already bound your soul to? This blood oath won’t just affect the two of you, you’ll be putting a part of Mingi’s soul at risk, too. Don’t you think Jongho deserves to know that before he agrees to a pact?”

Jongho wasn’t sure what happened, but the news landed on him like an atomic bomb. It wiped his head blank and sucked the air out of his chest, leaving him cold and empty. And for a moment he only stood there, not knowing what to think, or how he should feel.

“You have a soulmate?” he asked at last, his voice barely a whisper. “As in…you’re already bound to someone?”

Yunho felt a stab of frustration. He had honestly forgotten that Mingi’s soul would be affected by the oath. He and Mingi had been soulmates for so long, and the connection they shared had become such an ingrained part of him that Yunho was no longer conscious of it. Therefore, it never crossed his mind to tell Jongho about his relationship with Mingi before making the blood oath. Had he thought of it, he would have done it cautiously, gently easing Jongho into it and giving him all the time and space he would need to process it. Instead, the truth had come out in the bluntest way possible. He took a deep breath, ready to explain everything and to possibly face Jongho’s hurt and confusion. He could already see them rising behind his wide, boba eyes.

“I forgot to mention this to you, Jongho, and first, I want to say I’m sorry. I should’ve told you earlier. I never meant to hide it. I was planning to tell you when I felt you were ready. But then the whole Lazurithe situation happened and I just…forgot. Yes, Song Mingi is my soulmate. He and I have been soulmates for more than two centuries.”

The news, once again, broke something within Jongho. More than two centuries? That’s ten times the length of Jongho’s entire life. His Yunho hyung had a partner long before Jongho was even born, and he had never heard about it until now?

“If this Mingi guy is your soulmate, then where is he? Why isn’t he here to help?” Jongho asked, the resentment seeping through his voice.

“He would be here if he could. Believe me, Jongho, there’s nothing he wants more than to be with us right now,” Yunho said. He paused for a moment, his face laden with sadness as the painful memory resurfaced. “It’s complicated, but I’ll try to explain as best as I can.”

“A little more than a hundred years ago, Mingi and I got caught up in a wizard’s civil war. Two members of the Pentarchs of Arcanum had begun openly advocating for the use of dark magic. For centuries, they had secretly sought out young wizards, trained them as disciples, and helped them spread their powers across the universe. They were tilting the balance of the magical realm toward darkness. The other three members took this issue to Hekaf. But Hekaf was neither for nor against dark magic. He said magic was just another form of energy that goes through seasons of light and dark, like the weather. He told us to fight it out. Whichever side prevailed would prove itself the dominant force, and earn his support. Knowing that the outcome would directly affect our lives, Mingi and I both joined the fight.”

“As the war went on, it gradually became clear that our side was losing. On the eve of a pivotal battle, Mingi came up with an extremely risky plan: to steal Hades’s bident and use it in the war. Thanks to a past job, he knew where the weapon was kept, and with our combined magic, he thought we had a good chance of taking it without being discovered. I was against it at first, because anyone with an ounce of intelligence would know not to cross Hades. But Mingi managed to convince me that we weren’t stealing, just borrowing it for a day, and we’d return it as soon as the battle was over. We were desperate, and so I caved. We successfully took the bident, and with its power, we were able to win. Balance was restored. New laws were put in place to regulate the use of dark magic. But when Mingi and I tried to return the weapon, we were caught red-handed.”

“Hades was going to send both of us to hell. Mingi immediately took all the blame. He claimed to be the sole culprit and insisted I had no involvement in stealing the bident. He kept pleading with Hades to spare my life. Hades was intrigued by how we had been able to get past his security. After finding out that Mingi was a sorcerer, his attitude changed. He realized he could use a cunning sorcerer as part of his arsenal. He sentenced Mingi to a hundred years of service, during which he would serve as his loyal henchman and carry out any mission Hades assigned to him. If he defies him even once or fails a mission, he’d be sent straight to hell. Hades knew Mingi and I were soulmates, and that there was a great chance Mingi would not survive the next hundred years. As a twisted form of compensation he agreed to grant me 100 Korins for every year Mingi survived. So far, Mingi has made it through the past ninety-eight years. If everything goes well, he will be able to come back in just two more years. It’s critical for Mingi to stay on Hades’s good side, therefore I haven’t told Mingi anything about Lazurithe. I don't want to give him any reasons to worry and possibly break out of the underworld. I must face Lazurithe alone.”

The revelation struck Jongho like a hurricane, pulling him into a vortex of despair. Within the spiraling devastation, one particular issue came to the forefront. He couldn’t help but voice it out loud, even though he knew Lazurithe was the much bigger problem right now and he was being petty. “So in just two years, your soulmate Mingi is going to come back and live with us?”

Yunho’s heart wrung at the obvious pain in his voice. “Jongho, nothing’s going to change after Mingi returns. We will just have another family member, that’s all. You will always be important to me, and I will always love you.”

But all Jongho could think about was who would still hold him to sleep at night. Who would share the warmth of his bed, kiss the back of his head and whisper goodnight beside his ear? Who would still wrap him in those long, sturdy arms and envelop him in that bundle of love and safety? Yunho would surely want to sleep alone with his soulmate, so Jongho would have to move out of their bedroom. He supposed he would still have San to cuddle with, but his two hyungs had always been equally important to him, and neither could ever replace the other.

“As for Mingi,” Yunho continued, his face lit up with fondness. “I can already tell he likes you. He’s seen you twice, while you were asleep, and he said you looked super cute.”

“What?” Jongho cried, his sadness vanishing like smoke, replaced by a volcanic rage. “What do you mean he saw me twice? I thought you said he couldn’t leave the underworld!”

“He’s allowed to come home for one night, once every ten years. He saw you first when you were eight, and again when you were eighteen. I never woke you or told you about him, because of how territorial you’ve always been. I was afraid you would see him as an intruder and try to maul him.”

Jongho couldn’t refute it, for he wanted nothing more than to maul that man right now. He didn’t care if Mingi was the love of Yunho’s life, or if he had the personality of a saint. That man deserved to be mauled and shredded like Jongho’s many teddy bear plushies. How dare he step into Jongho’s territory without his permission? He hadn’t just entered his garden, or his front porch, but his house, for christ's sake! His private, sacred home! 

“Hyung!” he screamed. “How could you let him into our house, especially when I’m asleep? And you!” he bellowed at San, who recoiled under his accusation. “Why didn’t you tell me he was here? You guys never tell me anything!” His voice cracked on the last sentence. He clenched his fists, struggling to hold back his tears.

“Jjongie, please,” Yunho pleaded, pulling him into a hug. “I’m sorry. I really should’ve told you earlier. Don’t cry, please?”

“I’m tired of being kept in the dark! You treat me like a child and never take me seriously!” he shouted at the top of his lungs, while his tears soaked Yunho’s shirt. “Next time I see Mingi, I’m going to kill him!”

But even as the words left his mouth, he knew they were just empty threats. He couldn’t hurt Mingi, couldn’t even accuse him of intrusion. This was his house, all along. Jongho had been sleeping in his bed. Mingi was the one who had built a life with Yunho first. Jongho was just the new addition, the baby of the family, brought in to keep Yunho busy and entertained while Mingi was away.

This new reality shattered Jongho’s view of his relationship with his hyung. A deep pain wrung his chest, his insides coiled with a confusing mix of jealousy and betrayal. And for the life of him, he couldn’t understand why he was feeling this way. It wasn’t like he no longer belonged here. His hyungs would still feed him and care for him, maybe even love him, like Yunho had promised. But Jongho could sense he had just lost something precious, something he never paid any attention to, because he didn’t know it was his to lose, until now. It left him blindly groping in the dark, desperately searching for this significant thing that he couldn’t even name.

Meanwhile, Yunho was still hugging him in his typical doting fashion, wrapping him firmly in his arms, cooing and rubbing his back. Jongho was buried in his scent, forced to take in his presence. Yet his hyung had never felt further away. Because now Jongho understood: he had always been secondary to Yunho. He had been pampered, cherished, and raised with love, but he had also been used. He was still being used, for Yunho needed his blood to preserve what little connection he had left with the forest.

And despite it all, Jongho had no choice but to help him. His hyungs were all he had. Even if he was not as important to them as they were to him, they were the only two people he had ever truly loved. Yunho and San, their house, and their beautiful green forest—these were Jongho’s entire world, and everything that he cherished. He had devoted his life to guarding them. He couldn’t turn his back on them now. 

He pulled roughly out of Yunho’s embrace.

“Let’s make the oath.”

Yunho and San tried talking Jongho out of making the oath. They were afraid he was acting purely on emotions. San was especially against it, and kept reminding him he had no obligation to risk his soul. But Yunho stopped San after seeing the intensity in Jongho’s eyes. It was the look of unshakable determination.

He led him to the center of the star-shaped sigil. As they stood face-to-face with each other, Jongho noticed a problem. 

“Hyung, I’ve never bled before. How are we supposed to get my blood?”

“I already thought of that,” Yunho replied. He walked over to his desk, opened a drawer, and took out an old, shabby knife. Its curved blade gleamed faintly under the candlelight, the handle wrapped in old, worn-out animal hide. Jongho thought the knife looked incredibly plain.

“Borrowed it from a friend,” Yunho explained. “It is said to be Shiva’s old fruit knife. Supposedly, it can cut through any hard shell.”

“I think my skin is harder than the shell of any fruit, hyung,” Jongho said dryly.

“Yes, yes, I know, you’re impenetrable and all… Still, Shiva’s one of the most powerful gods, and it is said that anything he wields must be super durable for it to not break. Let’s just give it a try, shall we?” said Yunho, taking Jongho’s hand and holding up his palm.

Jongho wasn’t expecting it to work, so when a sudden, sharp pain pierced his skin, he gasped in surprise. He stared at his palm, fascinated by the sight of his own blood pooling at the center. Yunho made a small incision on his own palm. He then held Jongho’s hand in a firm grip and began chanting an incantation derived from an ancient alien tongue. The candlelight suddenly flared as if it had been doused in fuel. Jongho sensed the energy shifted beneath his feet. A portal of another dimension opened within the sigil, carrying a cold wind that swept through the two of them. As Yunho continued to chant the spell, the chill intensified. The cold wind shrank into an icy, powerful whirlwind that bound their hands tightly together.

Yunho stopped the chant and held Jongho’s gaze, watching him solemnly. 

“Do you, Choi Jongho, swear to stand with me in the fight against Lazurithe, until every last trace of his power is purged from this forest? Do you vow to uphold your promise until the oath is fulfilled, and to pay the cost should you ever break it?”

“I do,” Jongho said without a shadow of doubt.

The whirlwind squeezed their hands so tightly together that Jongho thought his blood would flow directly into Yunho’s open wound, and vice versa. Suddenly, the portal shrank and disappeared, the chilling wind vanished in a second. Jongho blinked in confusion as their hands naturally parted at the sudden loss of pressure.

“That’s it?” he asked.

“That’s it. The oath is made,” Yunho said lightly.

Jongho did a quick internal assessment. “I don’t feel like any of my soul is missing.”

“That’s because you still own that part of your soul. You just put it up as collateral, that’s all.”

“You will feel the difference when you no longer have ownership over it,” San said grouchily. He looked like it was taking all of his self-control not to shout at them for their recklessness.

Jongho’s wound was small enough for Yunho to heal with a simple spell. Within seconds, the cut on his hand sealed shut without a trace of a scar. The shifter then lingered around to see what his hyung was up to next. Yunho appeared busy. He immediately picked up an old, thick spellbook, burying his face in a page as he muttered under his breath while he absentmindedly wiped away the star-shaped sigil with his foot and a piece of rag from the floor. 

“Do you still need my help?” Jongho asked.

Yunho looked up from the book. “Hm? Oh no, baby, you’ve already helped plenty. Go relax, read your comics. I’ll just finish setting up the shield.”

Feeling somewhat annoyed, Jongho went back to the living room. He picked up his comic book and stared blankly at it, unable to take in a word.

Later that night, Jongho found himself having no appetite for his usual bottles of milk. He also couldn’t bring himself to sleep in Yunho’s room. He grabbed his pillow and went to sleep on the living room couch. The wizard kept pleading with him to come back. It took forever, but after what felt like an eternity, Yunho finally left him alone. That unexplainable sense of loss persisted, weighing heavily on Jongho’s chest throughout the rest of the evening.

In the middle of the night, San padded silently into the room. He leapt onto the couch, climbed over Jongho’s back, and settled against the nape of his neck. Without a word, he began grooming him. His small tongue dragged slowly over Jongho’s scalp, sliding rough and prickly against his human skin.

But it felt just as comforting, if not more. Under the constant, steady strokes, Jongho finally fell asleep.