San visited Wooyoung often. He tried to drop by every day in the morning or after his classes with Seonghwa to greet the stable boy and his hooved friends. Wooyoung grinned brighter every time San returned, and they sat together to talk about the mountains San came from, about the poetry and calligraphy San adored, and his passions. They talked about everything and more, skipping the boring topics about palace-related matters since they had been discussed a hundred times before and held no importance. San learned Wooyoung came from a village in the west and that he had moved to Hanyang to find work here. He was lucky to be employed in the stables and now adored his job more than anything since he was unbothered by political disputes, but got to relish the security and luxury of the palace premises.

In return for the story of Wooyoung growing up wild and untamed in the fields, San told him about his bizarre marriage to the human king and what weight it had for his growth. Despite popular myths about the dragons, Wooyoung was baffled to hear San could control the weather and the tides simply by asking nature for a favour. He marvelled at San's age for a while and grew more respectful, only to forget his awe again as their joyous mood returned.

Wooyoung became somewhat of a friend. Each time San looked forward to meeting him, his mood lifted from its glum loneliness. Even trapped in the palace, he found distraction in the form of a smiling boy.

Their relationship contrasted with Seonghwa's and Hongjoong's treatment of San. While the imoogi's heart fluttered in confusing disarray of heartbeats for the other two, they also asked respect and submission. With Wooyoung, San felt free, like a bird, to laugh as he wished and say what he wished. Wooyoung was captivating in a way that differed from Seonghwa's beauty and Hongjoong's dominance. He was simple.

Today, San got to watch as Wooyoung saddled a horse. The military minister had to travel to an outpoint in the south, so Wooyoung got to prepare his horse. He began with brushing its fur and mane to perfection while San sat on the stone ground with his tail stretched out behind him and played with his claws. Their easy talk perturbed none of the other stable hands anymore as they skimmed around San's spot to work.

"Have you ever swam in the ocean?" San asked as he watched Wooyoung's dedicated hands groom the horse. They were firm but moderate in their ministrations, every movement of the brush concise. San wondered what those hands would feel like doing his hair, but he didn't ask. Seonghwa had clarified that only the king, he, and the maids could be excused to see San vulnerable like that. Asking a friend for such favours was improper for a king.

"I haven't. I visited it a few times before but the salty water isn't the best to swim in. Doesn't it bother you?"

San shook his head. A constant smile played around his lips whenever he was around Wooyoung. The stable boy adored his dimples and complimented them every time anew. San had no other choice but to continue smiling.

"It doesn't. I can even breathe in it. It feels... Different from the lakes I grew up in. Creatures as old as dragons live down there and some lurk in depths indescribable to me. For young dragons, it can be a scary place since it's so vast and dark."

Shuddering, Wooyoung shook off the imagination.

"I think humans feel the same. We don't know of anything lurking in the waters, and we are so small in comparison. We can't even dive deep enough to see it all because our bodies give out so soon," he agreed. He patted the flank of the horse as he fetched the reins and eased them on. Idle, the horse sidled about and pressed its chestnut-coloured flank into Wooyoung's side. He leaned against the animal, showing his trust and affection for it as he cooed sweet praises at it for its patience. San heard the stallion swoon in its mind for the gentle stable boy.

"Do you like exploring the ocean ground?" Wooyoung asked when San's answer was delayed for his amusement with the horse. His eyes carried an attentive curiosity as they regarded the dragon on the ground.

"I do, but I usually go together with my elders. They tell tales of scary creatures hidden in the depths, just like humans tell horror stories to educate their kids. Although most adult dragons move to the ocean anyway, since they have lots of space there. Hypocrites."

Wooyoung's laughter chimed through the stables. It was an undeterred sound full of glee that reminded San of the squealing children down in the city. Each time he heard it, a pleased grin spread across his features.

"Oh, then you aren't so different from us. My mother always told me not to go to the forests because of malevolent goblins when I was younger. Even today I look around for them when I am out there. They seem so minor compared to you. Though you look and act just like one of us."

Protesting, San reached for the tip of his tail and wiggled it at Wooyoung.

"Me, looking like you? Where?!" He had to laugh at the incredibility. Wooyoung chuckled with him, but softer.

"Just because you haven't acquired the full ability to shift yet doesn't mean you are much different. The creatures we fear are cunning and evil, but I believe social integrity and love make us human. You possess those. I've seen you looking at his majesty. You learned a lot from us already." Wooyoung looked at the saddle he placed over the horse's back. His face was melancholic, as if overshadowed by a deep sadness. It was the same wistful gaze San had seen in Hongjoong during the day of their wedding. He had yet to discern its meaning.

For a moment, San sat in silence. He hadn't been aware of how much of his feelings for Hongjoong showed to other people. Did Hongjoong look at him the same way? He had never acknowledged San's blossoming feelings for him, but San felt the king appreciated him subtly.

"I think you will make a magnificent dragon once you have matured and can shift freely," Wooyoung ended since the air of fun had lost itself. San played with his claws, suddenly aware of the coldness of the ground he was seated on.

"I will bring the commander his horse now. Will I see you tomorrow?"

San smiled again, though dulled.

"Of course." While he rose to his feet and dusted off his robes, Wooyoung led the horse out of the stables. The clop of hooves on the stones echoed over the courtyard as he disappeared into one of the smaller buildings.

With nothing left to do for today, San wandered aimlessly. He visited the gardens, greeted the fish in the pond, and looked at the peaks in the distance, at how they rose and fell to wrap Hanyang in their protective cradle.

When he got bored, he steered towards the main palace building. He could search for Seonghwa and inquire about more reading material from him if Hongjoong didn't expect San's presence tonight. He was halfway finished with his speech, but he had lost his motivation to work on it today.

As he neared the doors, the guards opened them for him without needing to announce him. The throne room belonged to him as much as it belonged to Hongjoong, and the entrance branched into enough areas that a grand introduction was unnecessary.

San froze in his tracks before he entered. Right ahead on the throne laid Hongjoong, stretched out like a cat in its favourite spot and with his body propped up on a pillow. The coy bat of his fan hid the devious smile on his features that exposed his white teeth and curled his lips in a manner that reminded San of a tiger.

In the middle of the room and with his head bowed, knelt Seonghwa. He was on one knee and faced the ground as his pearl-decorated nape was bared to the ceiling. His pink hair fell over his eye like a rain of cherry blossoms.

Surprised by the strange picture, San tilted his head. Hongjoong noticed him and the smirk on his lips disappeared.

"San. Is there a matter?"

San didn't take his eyes off Seonghwa. The gesture of submission was new on the man who usually carried himself with such dignity. Had he angered the king? His sunken form in the spread of his jade robes upheld a polite regality. He didn't look as if he were getting punished, more like taking an oath.

"I sought to spend time with you, my king," San said. Insecure, his eyes flicked from Seonghwa to Hongjoong. The bat of the fan had dulled, growing hypnotic again.

"You came at a bad time. I will catch up with you in the evening; excuse me for now," Hongjoong called. His voice echoed in the tall hall that was yawningly empty apart from Seonghwa.

When San nodded and took a step back, Hongjoong beckoned Seonghwa to rise. The shaman rolled his shoulder before he whirled around elegantly, his face a mask of his lofty peacefulness. He stepped close to San, but halted before their chests could brush. Bedazzled by the gleam in his eyes, San just stared as Seonghwa reached for both doors. With a polite bow, he pulled them shut.

San stared at the closed doors for a moment longer. That bow had been like one of a jester, or of a mocking spirit, before it attacked. Confused by its peculiar character, San left the stairs of the main building. In no hurry, and with his head full of pictures of the mighty shaman on his knees for the king, he returned to his chambers.

As a mentor and a caretaker, Seonghwa had taken on such a guiding role for San. He was on par with Hongjoong, both different in their demands but both requiring obedience. Seeing one submit to the other reminded San of their hierarchy and that his longing gazes at Seonghwa's glimmering beauty meant lowering his level.

San thought about their dynamic all afternoon. About how Seonghwa was already favoured by one king and now also favoured by the other king. Had the queen asked about him because she feared him to betray their ruler and the country? Did Seonghwa's grace hide a dark secret?

The sun left its fiery trail in the sky as it disappeared beyond the peaks. San ventured out in the evening when he got hungry, but Yeosang placated him with a snack and told him to wait for Hongjoong since he had announced his visit to San's quarters later. Nervous about seeing the man here, San tried to distract himself with his readings. His attention kept drifting to Seonghwa and Hongjoong, and occasionally to Wooyoung. If it weren't so late already, San might have dipped out again to see the man and calm his clammy claws with their light-hearted banter. Seonghwa didn't watch over San as much as he did at the beginning of his stay here, and while that gave San an opening to roam freely, it also made it hard to guess when he should stay in to receive visitors.

Before San went mad with anticipation, Hongjoong arrived. Yeosang brought him over to San's room and the dragon scrambled to put his book away and smoothed out his clothes. When he opened the door to greet Hongjoong, he found the king in his usual playful charisma as he smiled at San.

"Shall we have dinner together?" Hongjoong offered. This time, he didn't take San's hand and pointed him at the sitting area instead. While San sat down, the servants hurried around in their preparations. They filtered into a separate room afterwards to attend to quieter duties, but San didn't doubt they listened to every word said between him and the king.

Hongjoong ate after his long day of various duties, happy about the food. Pensive, San ate with him, but he didn't find the impulse to talk much. Hongjoong didn't mind. Their conversation was never as smooth as San's talks with Wooyoung, though San thrummed with curiosity about the earlier position he had found Seonghwa and Hongjoong in.

He waited until after dinner to inquire about it. If Hongjoong insisted on spending the night by San's side, he would ask in the privacy of his own room.