Chapter Text
“There’s another dragon in Seoul?” Seokjin murmured, voice hoarse. He leaned back in his chair, diamond bracelets tinkling together against his wrist.
The Council Member nodded, shuffling his papers in front of him. The short horns jutting from his head, and the furry goat hooves under his desk marked him out as a satyr, a follower of Pan, God of the Wild, albeit one laden down with mountains of paperwork.
“Apparently, they weren’t sure what he was for years. Thought he was some kind of nymph for a while, then a basilic, then even a unicorn, can you believe that?”
Seokjin stiffened in his chair. He understood why the fledgling would be unwilling to go to the magical authority that was the Council.
The Council that regulated all magical creatures had spent centuries murdering and massacring all those that stood in the way of their total dominance over the magical community. That included the dragon population, which had already been sparse and prone to inter-species murder. Dragons did not like sharing.
Coupled that with the magical properties in their scales and bones, the wars had wiped them all out, all but Seokjin. The last dragon.
Seokjin had been alone for over a millennium, traveling the world aimlessly, abandoned and alone. He’d settled in Seoul for no other reason than he liked the Han River, the way it curved against the night sky under the glinting stars.
He’d remained solitary, aloof from the rest of the magic community, and especially from the Council, no matter their claims of how they’d changed, embracing democracy and inter-species harmony.
But now, Seokjin thought, with a desperate, hurtful inhale, there was another dragon.
“When can I take him home?” Seokjin murmured through clenched teeth.
The fledging had been without another dragon his entire life. He’d never flown with another dragon, never felt the thrill of the chase.
Even Seokjin could remember in his youth being protected by his parents, the joy of learning to fly with the other young fledglings, uncaring if they fell, knowing the older dragons would catch them. The fledging had never felt that sense of community or of safety.
The fledgling needed to be near him, near his hoard, so he could protect them both.
The Council member cleared his throat, hesitation tracing over his face. “There is…Well there is a slight problem.”
“A slight problem?” Seokjin exhaled, “what problem?” His fingers trembled as he clasped them together. The gold and ruby rings he wore dug into his skin.
The Council member looked up from his paperwork. “The other dragon…Well…He already has another pack. They came to us simply to help him, as they had no information on dragons. When we informed them that there was another dragon in Seoul, they were very pleasantly surprised.”
The Council member’s smile brightened, “and that’s the good news! They’d like to offer you a position in their pack.”
“A position…In their pack?”
Seokjin’s voice trembled with barely contained rage. Submit to some ridiculous pack leader, bowing and scraping so that he could see and take care of the fledgling? He would rather tear off his own wings.
Unfortunately for him, the Council member took his tone as joyful emotion. “Yes, yes. You know the Council advocates for all magical beings to integrate into a pack for their own social development and emotional wellbeing. And you know we don’t discriminate between species. You never used to think you’d see a pack with a kelpie and a sphinx, for example, but now it’s almost commonplace! And well, you’ve been alone for a very long time, it would be good for you.”
Seokjin swallowed his snarl, “it would be the only way for me to see the fledgling?”
“Yes,” the Council member nodded agreeably, “we don’t believe in separating well-functioning packs, especially one as well-functioning as the Kim pack. You would be a welcome addition.”
Seokjin thought about going back to his penthouse overlooking the Han river, to curl up on his bed all by himself, and felt the weight of his age on his shoulders.
“Yes,” Seokjin finally managed to gasp. “Yes, I’ll join the Kim pack.”