Chan scrambled to his feet, wiping his eyes against his shoulder. What happened? What was going on? He needed to see, dammit!

But his shoulder was already muddy, and his efforts just smeared the mud more thoroughly over his eyes. It was only after a minute of blinking and cautious wiping that he cleared his eyes enough to see a softly smiling Mihn petting a docile unicorn, who was eating out of her palm.

Cheating. Mihn was cheating. How could they tell the tourists not to feed the animals if they did themselves? Still, it was better to get the mare to follow them willingly instead of towing her back by force. He squinted. She was just feeding her oats, anyway. Nothing that could mess up her teeth or stomach.

Leave it to Mihn to cheat responsibly.

Quietly, he walked to the Jeep and tied the end of the rope to a sturdy part of the frame. Then he spun and approached Mihn.

“Great work, partner,” Chan said with a grin. Viscous mud clung to every inch of him. He stepped towards her, arms wide in a hug.

Quicker than thought, Mihn raised her leg to press the heavy sole of her black boot to Chan's stomach, stopping him in his tracks. She stood perfectly balanced on one foot, brows furrowed and lips twisted, still with a palm beneath the unicorn’s lips. She looked like a dancing statue. “You’re disgusting. Don’t hug me.” 

Chan practically giggled. “Aww, it’s not that bad.” He placed his palm on Mihn’s ankle and pushed down, and he lunged for her once more.

She spun away from his grasping, muddy fingers. “Hey!” Mihn’s shout startled mini dragons from the trees, their sapphire scales glinting in the sunlight as they took flight next to the darker shapes of sparrows. Beneath Mihn's gentle hand, the unicorn didn’t flinch. “You wanna die?” Her eyes widened into a serial-killer glare.

The sun also glinted off Chan’s teeth. “You’re too cute.” He threw in a wink, just to annoy her.

Mihn scoffed. “Just get in the truck, you weirdo. Start driving. I’ll walk a bit with our captive here.” She scrubbed an affectionate palm around the mare’s horn, and the unicorn whickered happily. 

Mihn was only ever tender with animals. And even if he never got a taste of that tenderness towards himself, bearing witness to it still made Chan’s heart melt a little. He felt privileged, that Mihn would allow him even a glimpse of her soft side.

Chan obeyed, and hopped into the Jeep. But before he could get it rolling, the mare jerked her head out of Mihn’s hand, twisting to stare once more at the forest. 

Mihn was a breath behind, snapping her face towards the forest as well. 

The moments stretched with zero movement from both Ranger and beast. Muscles stood out on Mihn’s neck, and the light breeze rustled the damp strands of her hair. She looked as wild as the animal beside her.

Chan looked toward the forest and saw nothing. The longer Mihn stood still, as taut as a bowstring with the same promise of violence in the lines of her body, the more spooked Chan became. Something strange was happening here, for woman and beast to mimic each other so thoroughly.

The hair on the back of his neck prickled, and he swallowed, trying to get some moisture in his suddenly dry throat. “Mihn? What is it?”

A moment more, and then she turned to Chan with a grimace, looking incredibly annoyed. “It’s nothing.”

“Really? It seemed like you sensed–”

“Let’s get out of here,” she snapped, gripping the mare’s mane and tugging her away from the forest. The mare was smart enough to not cross Mihn, it seemed, as she trotted along, docile as a lamb.

Chan worried his lip, but stayed silent. Something told him this was not the time to poke at Mihn until she snapped into beautiful rage. And something cold and blue curled around his heart at her dismissal. He wished she would trust him enough to tell him the truth.

He pressed lightly on the accelerator and kept pace with his partner as she hiked across the plains.

Beautiful countryside rolled by. Emerald slopes cradled their Jeep, colored by summer-green leaves oak and aspen, and jewel trees that glinted and clinked in the mild breeze.

The mare seemed content to trot alongside Mihn, though every few minutes she stopped and craned her head around to look at the forest. When that happened, Mihn tensed and didn’t follow the mare’s gaze. She just gave soft clicks and soft strokes to get the unicorn moving again. 

Chan shivered as they crossed the boundary into the Reserve. Neither he nor Mihn dreamed of letting the unicorn loose until they were deep within its territory.

An hour of Mihn jogging and Chan keeping pace saw the sun nearing its zenith. Chan felt his skin soaking up the light. He’d be a richer brown tomorrow. 

Mihn eventually jumped into the back of the Jeep, holding the unicorn’s rope loosely and maintaining a soft babble that kept the magical creature’s attention on her. 

They skirted around the mountain and hit the dirt track that passed for one of the roads into Headquarters.

Headquarters made it sound like some elaborate fort, or perhaps a shiny tower with dozens of strategists toiling away in their labs and/or war rooms.

But, no. Four buildings sat in a cleared area that Chan could sprint across in 2 minutes if his laces didn't catch on a Bell Weed. 

One small wooden cabin served as the Rangers dorm for each two week shift. It was cozy and always smelled of woodsmoke, no matter the season. Mihn and Chan had three days left until Hwa and Briggs came to relieve them. 

A much larger depot housed all the equipment needed to keep the Reserve running. Vehicles, tack, veterinary tools and medicine, and more filled the massive aluminum shed. It was the worst place to be in the winter.

A 4-seater bathroom used primarily by tourists sat on the edge of the clearing, thankfully downwind of everything else. 

Lastly, the main office which doubled as the Director's home was twice as large as the Ranger cabin and fitted with polished stone and an old-school thatched roof. Yang Injae founded the Magical Wildlife Reserve, and as far as Chan knew, she left only to buy groceries, appear in government sessions to remind lawmakers of Anjeon's importance, and attend the occasional rock concert.

Chan drove the Jeep into Headquarters just as their boss was leaving, a half dozen tourists trailing behind her like so many ducklings. 

"What's the most important rule of this tour?" She called in her bright voice, one long finger pointed to the sky. Her black hair fell sleek and straight down her back, bangs cut bluntly above her eyebrows. Chan had never seen her with a different hairstyle. When he commented on it, she said she usually changed it up every century or so.

"Don't wander off," the tourists chorused sloppily. Chan frowned. At least one voice sounded drunk.

"That's right. Many of our creatures are beautiful, but even more are dangerous. The plants can also harm or enchant you. So follow me exactly."

Injae's sharp eyes met Chan's. She gave a typically foxy grin before speaking to the tourists. "It's your lucky day. You get to see a unicorn before we go anywhere! Go ahead and take pictures. But no touching!"

The tourists turned with a collective "ooh." A goblin couple raised their cameras, matching ballcaps protecting their bald green heads from the sun. They were wearing couple shirts, too, yellow stripes on a white background. Chan thought it was sweet. Mihn would think it was gross.

A human woman waved her hand and uttered an activation phrase. The small mirror nestled in her palm flashed, and Chan recognized the memory-capture artifact from when he’d seen it in the store last month. 

A young boy jumped up and down in excitement by her side. At least, the woman and boy looked human. It was always difficult to tell with shape-shifters. 

The other three tourists–two elves and a human–surged forward as if to stroke the unicorn still many meters away.

As if she’d been waiting for this moment, Mihn instantly leapt from the back of the Jeep, tossing Chan the rope in mid-air. Chan fumbled to catch it, eyes wide as Mihn placed herself between the young mare and the three over-eager tourists, legs flexing. Something very like a growl slipped from between her teeth, and the human skidded to a stop so fast he fell on his butt. 

The two elves slowed their pace with typical grace, cocking their heads when they stood right in front of Mihn.

One pointed a finger at her face, swirling it around rudely, and Chan wanted to smack him upside the head. "Are you an elf? You look it," the elf asked, gesturing to his own high cheekbones and sharp jaw.

Chan clambered to the ground and soothed the fidgety mare with gentle hands as Mihn spat, "I'm just a human. Now get away from us before I smash your face in."