Chapter Text
“You can kill me, you know.”
Coldly and quietly, Hoseok proposed the Option which Jungkook had from the side of his Floor Nest, near the end of it. He had Jimin there with him, between his arms, kept away from his Rightful, Red-eyed Mate, on the rugged floor. The Three of them had gotten inside the Older Beta’s Small Tent. It fitted Hoseok’s Floor Nest of Duvets, Pillows, and Blankets, a chest with his Belongings, a stack of Books next to it, a Wooden Armchair, and nothing more. There was no bed. Such Luxury out there was granted to the Heir only. Jungkook had stood by the Entrance with Jimin at first, across the Tidy Nest on the floor. Jimin wouldn’t make his Nests like this. It was Different for every Omega. And maybe, Jimin was clumsy with them. Maybe, he was merely experimenting on them. He was Twenty-one while Hoseok was Thirty-one. His Pretty Bluebird had just started while Hoseok had something more than a decade with them.
Indisputably, Jungkook liked Jimin’s Nests best. Anything that Jimin made was his Preference. They were evidently Tumultuous in Color and Shape - in comparison to what Jungkook had across his gaze. Their Clothes would protrude from it in random places more times than not. Their tangled scents would fight for Dominance and never win against one another. Hoseok’s Nest wasn’t anything like that. It was perfectly Round and Blue and Scentless. Blunt and Firm. No Clothes were in it. The Fact spoke of Hoseok’s Solitude in Life. Of Hoseok’s Desire to have no Comfort from anything or anyone. Maybe… Because nothing and no one could offer him such Peace.
Hoseok’s Blue Nightshirt was a Perfect Match to his Nest. But that was the thing. His Nest was meeting Aesthetic Criteria. Not Emotional Ones like Jimin’s.
Jungkook had closed his eyes, allowing himself to fantasize about their Nest for the first few seconds of his entry into Hoseok’s Tent. He would have given up everything to have Jimin back to their Warm, Safe Place. Where no Cruel Tragedy could reach them. Where no Pup Wish existed. Where Jungkook alone - as a Man and as an Alpha - was enough.
Jimin had gone through all the Stages of Grief inside that Tent. First, he had wanted to deny it. He stayed by Jungkook’s side as if Hoseok was aiming to deceive him. His Truth couldn’t be Valid. Unborn Blessings didn’t vanish that easily. They were there. And the next moment, they weren’t. That was… Pure Absurdity!
He got Angry. At Jungkook. At Hoseok for bending to Jungkook’s Schemes and Manipulation. How could Hobi say what Jungkook wanted him to say?! Deep down, he didn’t believe it himself. Hoseok wouldn’t be like this for a Lie. He wouldn’t have looked as if he waited for God to come and take him if those Dead Pups were Depictions of Jungkook’s Sick Ideas to keep him off the Baby Dream.
“You made him say this!” Jimin had turned to Jungkook with teeth and fires in his eyes. He had grabbed him by the Cloak and shook him. Jungkook could do nothing but stare into his Furious Cyan. He had no Comfort to offer. No words. Just his Presence. Just the withering of his scent. His Pheromones had no Pride anymore. There was only Sadness. For Jimin. For what Jimin refused to accept.
“SAY THAT YOU MADE HIM SAY THIS! SAY~…!”
“They were Yoongi’s Children.” Hoseok didn’t go easy on him. He didn’t let his Friend entertain the Pleasant Loophole. His Babies had existed. For a tiny bit. A lilliputian, happy bit. But they weren’t there anymore. And calling them a Non-existent Joke was Disrespectful to their Mother and them.
“A Mated Man’s Children. I knew. I knew he had a Wife. Children of his own. But that didn’t stop me. Not even the Loss of my Pups did. I kept~…” Hoseok paused, swallowing harshly. His eyes didn’t leave Jimin’s. He was drawing Strength from his Friend.
He wanted him to know. His Truth. His whole Truth. Where it ended and where it began. From the Start till the End. The Ugly and the Pretty. What he was. Hoseok wanted Jimin to know him completely. And now… Now, that Jungkook wasn’t standing in the way, he hurried to do precisely that.
Before the Devil could regret it.
Before Death could come and claim him.
Jimin had to know from his lips.
“I keep going back to him.”
Jimin started to slip. His feet didn’t seem to want to hold him up. Jungkook held him. He tried to steady him - keep his entire weight up. But Jimin had become a Mass of Dead Flesh and Bones. He wanted to be on the ground. And Jungkook could do nothing but lower him carefully on the rugged floor.
“I’ll keep doing so. Even if it costs me more Pups,” Hoseok confessed the Unforgivable. What Jungkook himself couldn’t believe it had come out of the Mother’s mouth. He went to Jimin and knelt before him, coming to his level - meeting him dead in the eye. “That’s my Sin. All of it.”
Jimin stared into Hoseok’s eyes and sobbed. He had his back pressed to Jungkook’s chest, legs tucked sideways beneath his weight - fists clutching the brown, furry rug in front of him.
That was it. What Jungkook didn’t want him to know. That Hoseok had lost Pups. And it could be both from the Forbidden Side of the Parents’ Bond or… Purely the Fact that the Mother was born a Beta.
From a point on, Jungkook couldn’t tell who was comforting who. Somehow, the Friends had ended up curled around one another before Jungkook. Hoseok supported Jimin’s entire weight with his body, sitting upright while Jimin leaned on him, face tucked into Hoseok’s neck - a Baby seeking Solace from his Mama.
There was no scent on Hoseok as usual. But maybe, all Jimin wanted was to comfort Hoseok back. With his Jasmines. With a hug and a soft touch. Hoseok was used to hiding all his Life. Yet, Jimin never had to. No other Force in their Empire or outside of it could make Jungkook tell his Sweetheart to cover up.
With the eyes… It was different.
Jungkook would have liked it if Jimin never gazed at anyone that wasn’t him with those mesmerizing eyes of his. (Preferably, other Alphas.) If he had Jimin veiled, his Heart would have been at Peace. But the Jasmines… No one was supposed to get close enough to smell them anyway. Hoseok was an Exception. Jimin’s Family, too. Though…
Jimin was the Social Butterfly that he was. Jungkook couldn’t delude himself. Back in the Palace, Servants had taken in his aroma. Jeon Hyeon had. He was close with that Anosmic Granny in the Kitchens. But maybe, other Servants like her had passed close by him, too.
But scents had excuses.
His Weak Jasmines could merely be the Aroma of the Beta’s Soap that the Red-eyed Heir liked on him. The Servants didn’t know. They could gossip about it. But they didn’t know that Jungkook’s Dearest Follower had an Omega inside.
Jungkook let Jimin and Hoseok be that way for as long as they both needed, staying on his knees across them. Till Jimin fell in a restless sleep. And Hoseok was forced to lower them together on the nearest wall of his Nest, breaking it from the outside. Hoseok held Jimin close against his chest as best as he could and pulled the Scattered Pillows and Blankets directly beneath his Unconscious Friend.
Jungkook didn’t move to help him. He couldn’t go that near to another Omega’s Nest. His Wolf was already protesting for entering the Tent while their Mate was that Distressed. He only watched, feeling Powerless as Hoseok gathered all the Pillows and Blankets of his Nest and used them to create a comfortable mound that Jimin could rest on. Perhaps… Hoseok was what Jimin needed in that moment. In a moment where half the Deal was Hoseok’s Feelings and Wounded Mentality as well.
Jimin’s Jasmines had Devastation. And yet… Their Sweetness hadn’t gone anywhere. They stayed Vulnerable and there as a Sweet Reminder of what Hoseok could have. Of what his Lonely Friend should aim to get in Life. Someone that could offer Warmth and Tenderness through their Presence alone.
His Babies would have been that Comfort. But they weren’t there.
Not even their Father was there.
Only Jimin was.
Jungkook didn’t reply to Hoseok’s Request.
He could kill Hoseok, indeed. He could kill Non-Jimins without a Reason anytime, any day. Yet… Something in Jungkook wouldn’t let him fuel the Bloodthirst.
That Beta was too much like Jimin. And~…
Hoseok hadn’t done anything wrong.
He was the Messenger of the Problem. Not the Problem Itself. He was the Pained Example of what the Future could hold on a Recessive Omega.
Hoseok didn’t truly have a Death Wish.
If he had Someone who cared… Willing to stick to his side… To put him first… To kiss the earth he walked on… Hoseok would have wanted to stay. With Jimin. With the Painful Memories of his Miscarriages and every what-if.
There was no Peace waiting for him on the other side. Hoseok had admitted it himself. He was going to Hell. For loving Yoongi. For choosing him. For putting him over his own Pups.
Maybe…
Hoseok wanted to go because Death was the only way to keep himself away from Yoongi.
Did Jimin love Jungkook like this?
Why couldn’t Jungkook see Jimin loving him that immorally?
It was…
There was an Enormous Difference.
Hoseok had lost the Pups.
That was Point Zero.
If they were there, he wouldn’t have wanted to cling to the only Love he was left with - Min Yoongi. He wouldn’t have become Someone Else. A Mother who refused to think of her Perished Pups because their Father stood in the way.
Jungkook sat there in Hoseok’s Tent the entire day. With his thoughts. With Jimin across him turning this way and that anxiously in his sleep. At some point, Hoseok had dozed off with Jimin, leaving Jungkook completely on his own with his Invasive Ideas.
But that was his Role as Someone with way too many Responsibilities on his young shoulders.
He was forced to be Invasive.
To test the Theory and stand there to watch it unfold.
Jungkook poked the inside of his cheek with his tongue.
⋆ ·˚ ༘ ↯
He returned to the Battlefield.
Jimin needed time to take everything in. And Jungkook gave him that time with Hoseok. He let the Older Beta explain what it was like to be a Recessive Omega to his Little Ignorant Beauty.
That Book about Recessives… The one and only… Hoseok had given it to Jimin. Secretly, the Thirty-one-year-old had taken it with him to the North. He had no need of it. He had read it. What there was to learn from it, Hoseok had already absorbed it - just like Jungkook had done. The Aim was always a Chance for him to pass it to Jimin.
And Jungkook couldn’t be Mad. Deep down, he was looking for the same Chance.
He wanted Jimin to know.
He wanted to have that Burden shared with Jimin.
Jimin…
Jimin would know what to do with it.
He was the Mommy. He was the Queen and the Goddess. He was the One in command.
Jungkook…
No matter how much he would like to be the Alpha to Jimin, he would always fall short.
It was…
In every Mortal Being’s Soul.
Everyone adored to be babied. To live with no Worries in the World. No Responsibilities. To wonder aimlessly here and there. Go where the Wind would blow them. Because they felt that Safe and Protected in another Being’s Care.
They felt…
Like Children.
Loved and Carefree.
The way Jungkook had always felt around Jimin. Each time that Temptress had fed him his Breads back then. Each time that Cyan-eyed Beauty had petted his Wolf’s fur softly, for long, in the Privacy of the Dark Forest near his Childhood Home. Each time he would call Jungkook Pretty.
His eyes…
His Hard, Red eyes were Pretty to the most Beautiful Nymph.
Jungkook used to be so Happy for the first time in his Life back when he was Ten. For that little while he had with Jimin. Before the Monster in him was fully Awake.
The Littlest Things meant the World to him.
Till…
Till his First Rut came and triggered all the Mayhem in him.
He had become the Adult at Ten. He had raped Hanwool. He had led that Tiny, Timid Male Beta to his Death.
And ever since…
Jungkook couldn’t live Burden-free. He couldn’t be near Jimin without fearing himself.
He knew at Nineteen that he wouldn’t be the Rapist and the Murderer to Jimin’s Story. He knew then that his Wolf would self-harm themselves first before laying a claw on Jimin. But back then… All his Teenage Life had passed under the Tyranny of that Cruel Fear.
It was… An Unbearable Load. Too much. While all Jungkook wanted to do was to love Jimin. Be the Child that he used to be only around him.
Jungkook had his eyes closed. Reliving that blissful time when the Twenty-one-year-old Jimin had brought him back to the Present.
“You’ve read this?” The Little Sin questioned quietly with Horror in his tone. An entire week had passed since the Discovery of the Complications that Beta Carriers could face during Pregnancy. And instead of Bible Bedtime Readings, Jimin had that Book about Recessives between his palms every night before sleep. Frowning and sighing every so often. Just like that night.
Jimin was doing better than Jungkook had expected. He hadn’t cried in their Nest - or, at least, he hadn’t done so with Jungkook in it. He hadn’t said anything about it. Jungkook assumed that he needed to know more to draw safer Conclusions. Jimin kept to himself, staying with Hoseok in their Tent like before while the Alpha was away in Combat.
That night, it was the first time Jimin had dropped a question mark about the Subject on him.
Jungkook’s Heart didn’t do Summersaults of Anxiety. It was a simple Question. It required a mere Yes or No.
Jungkook hummed grumpily instead. It came out more like a growl from his throat. But Jimin could understand. It was a Yes from his Big Puppy who just wanted to enjoy the Warmth of their bed. He had been fighting Smelly Bastards all day.
This was nice.
Jimin with his bare legs on him, reading. Jungkook did nothing but fake an Attempt to fall asleep. That was the Ancient Rule. He wouldn’t rest till Jimin first did.
Their bed was without a Nest. Jimin only had three Pillows arranged against his side, on the railed headboard. He was half-sitting, half-lying on his left side, facing Jungkook who was flat on his stomach without any Pillows. Jimin had them all. More were right behind Jimin’s tiny back, pressed against him, there for Comfort.
Jungkook only had Jimin’s legs and scent. Jimin smelled addictively like Jasmines Drenched in a Summer Rain. Jungkook had dropped dead on his front only when he had scented Jimin everywhere, licking his scent glands till Jimin was all Squirmy and Ferocious, pushing him off with Complaints on his tongue.
Jungkook was keeping his eyes closed, face turned toward Jimin’s stomach. His milky torso was hidden under his Thick, Black Nightshirt - the one Jungkook had taken off to lend to his Sweetheart the second he had stepped inside their Tent from his Bath Tent.
Jungkook had no Night Slacks or Underwear on beneath Jimin’s Bear Blanket. He was stark Naked while his Blonde only Sported his Loose Shirt which reached his midthighs.
Jungkook was feeling like the Luckiest Motherfucker in the World with Jimin wrapped all around him. That Baddie was hugging him with his right leg. It was draped on Jungkook’s waist while his other leg was bent between them, tiny, soft toes and ball of his foot in contact with his waist dip. That Siren was digging with the tips of his toes into his ribs.
If Jungkook had to die, he would have come right back to Life for that touch.
He was a Strong, Good Boy, though, that night. His arms were kept at each side of his head, flush against the mattress - unmoving.
His Mommy had at least ten more pages before he could wrap it up for the day. Jungkook respected the Routine. He would stay right where he was till Jimin deemed it a night. It was up to him. Everything. When they would sleep. When they would bathe and eat. When they could cuddle or not.
Jimin could enjoy the Power he had over the most Powerful Alpha in the whole Jeon Empire.
It wasn’t as if it didn’t feel like Heaven to be beneath those milky feet.
Jungkook waited and waited that night. The pages flipped. The Comfortable Silence stretched. Jimin got Tired at last and abandoned the Thick Book, trading it for Dreamland. He pressed himself against Jungkook. He sneaked beneath their Bear Blanket till his chin and forced Jungkook to roll to his side and accept him in his arms.
Jungkook couldn’t have been more Pleased to let sleep claim him like this - with Jimin as a Tiny, Precious Dove between his arms, pressed firmly against his entire Bareness. He marveled at how perfectly they fitted on one another. He got lulled by their Lovestruck Heartbeats. One against the other.
They were Identical. Crazed and Scared for their Love.
No other Question came.
Not that night. And not any other night.
And it bothered Jungkook.
It poked him like the edge of a knife because Jimin wasn’t like this.
Jimin was the Communicator between them. Jimin was the one who talked, and Jungkook was the one who listened. That was how it had always gone for them.
Jungkook couldn’t understand. He couldn’t get why it had to be that different with that Topic.
Jimin got his time. Jimin had read the damn Book TWICE after two weeks!
What did he want?
What should Jungkook do to get him to open up about that Painful Reality?
For the first time in his Life, Jungkook felt it under his skin. What it was like to be on the other side of the Border. How it hurt to the bone to get no thoughts from the one you loved. No inputs. No desires expressed on how it was going to be.
Jungkook didn’t know how it was going to be for them!
It was easy to decide when Jimin knew none of the Risks. But now… Now that Jimin knew them all… What was Jungkook supposed to do?
What if Jimin wanted to hope?
He heard it one night. He hadn’t asked. And he wouldn’t. But as he was about to enter his Tent, right as Yoongi, Namjoon, Tae, and Felix bowed at him, Jungkook had lifted his hand to shove the Curtain of the Entrance aside only to end up not touching the Crimson Fabric at all. From what he had just heard from inside.
“I’m not quite like this, Hobi.”
Jungkook’s Wolf stood at Complete Attention, ears twitching with Interest - tail curling and uncurling happily at the sound of their Mate’s voice. It had been a long day. The Fuckers hadn’t stopped coming during that Combat. Jungkook had missed Jimin more than any other day. The Full Moon was gracing their Camp that night. No Clouds at nighttime was a Rare, Golden Occurrence. Jungkook would have liked to dress Jimin well and take him out to see it.
But he got Curious and forgot all about it.
As a Skeptical Silence settled from the inside of his Tent, Jungkook didn’t take his eyes off the Heavy, Crimson Fabric before him while motioning with his hand for Jimin’s Guards to back off.
They weren’t that close. They hadn’t and wouldn’t have been able to hear a thing. His Sweetheart’s voice was barely a whisper. Jungkook had the Heightened Hearing Ability from the Supreme Side of his Wolf.
But the Devil had many legs.
He wouldn’t take any Risks with Jimin’s Precious Secret.
“Like what?”
Hoseok sounded sincerely Baffled. His voice was kept low as well.
Jimin didn’t reply. He wasn’t taking his time to think it through. Both Jungkook and Hoseok knew he wouldn’t say what was passing through his head. And Jimin was like this with the Things he believed.
It was…
A Type of Insecurity from a Deity’s Side.
From time to time… Jimin felt as if his Biggest Truths in Life were Ridiculous to other People. Even to Jungkook.
But Jungkook believed him every time. Jungkook had Complete Faith in Jimin. His Instincts and Hunches were never Wrong. How could a Mommy ever be Wrong?
Especially…
When Jimin was, indeed, nothing like Jungkook had ever seen before?
Jimin was Correct.
He was Special. He was Different. He was Unlike any other Being that had ever descended from the Heavens to walk the Earth. He was…
Not like a Usual Recessive Omega, too.
Jungkook understood what Jimin was talking about. He had seen the Signs. But Hoseok hadn’t.
From what Jungkook was picking up from their Conversation, Hoseok hadn’t heard of them from Jimin.
“Jimin…” Hoseok tried carefully, starting slowly with what he had assumed was the case. “It had taken me three years to fall Pregnant with my First Pup. If anything, you not being Pregnant yet only means~…”
That it was, indeed, Difficult for a Recessive Omega to get Pregnant.
If only…
The Candidate had ever consummated with their Spouse.
Hoseok had paused abruptly. For long. Probably from the expression on Jimin’s face that said it all. The Poor, Older Beta had attempted to humble Jimin. To not give him Empty Hopes. To pinpoint to him that he was no Different from any other Recessive Omega who was finding it hard to conceive.
Miserably, Hoseok had aimed to debunk Jimin’s Fallacy.
Only to get hit by another Reality.
“YOU AND JUNGKOOK HAVEN’T~…???”
“SHHHHH!”
Jungkook heard his Tiny Love jumping to his feet to hush Hoseok’s big mouth.
Jungkook didn’t know if he should keep standing by the Entrance like a Pathetic Stalker a moment more. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t participate in the discussion. He knew precisely what Jimin was talking about! He knew better than Hoseok! His Cyan-eyed Queen should be confiding solely in HIM!
“I have fangs!” Jimin confessed as quietly and firmly as possible, explaining to his Friend what he truly meant by that ‘Different’. “And I…”
Jungkook poked the sharp edge of his canine with his tongue.
Would his Darling be that Daring?
Would Jimin reveal it all to Hoseok?
Jimin paused briefly. He didn’t know how to say it. He hadn’t mumbled the word to Jungkook. How could he say it out loud to Someone Else? Jungkook could see the Red of his cheeks in his head. “There is Slick down there... Even when I’m not in Heat.”
Jungkook had stood outside like the Fucking Parasite enough. He pulled aside the Curtain and entered his Tent then and there, cutting the little chit-chat short.
Both the Betas shot him a horrified look, heads and bodies snapping toward his entry. Hoseok folded in the middle, staying right where he was by Jimin’s side. But Jimin’s Cyan didn’t waver. It didn’t move from Jungkook’s Redness.
He saw it.
Jimin picked it up immediately - how Jungkook had heard everything.
It had to be in the Fierceness of his eye. Jungkook was both Hurt and Angry that Jimin had chosen to talk to Hoseok instead of him! Him who knew him more! Better! Inside out! Him who was his Mate and had seen him at his Worst and Best! Jimin had vomited all over him! Jimin had been Feverish by his Side! Jimin had broken down in front of him for every Big or Insignificant Topic! Jimin had stormed off the Palace when he was Sixteen, threatening to leave him!
Jimin had cummed for him. Jimin had kissed him on the lips. Only him. Jimin had showed him his Entire Nakedness. He was Secure enough to present his tiny cock and hole to him.
What was so Different with that question mark?
Why couldn’t Jimin bring it up to him?!
Hoseok rushed outside. He didn’t wait for the Heir’s Approval. Not when his Pheromones wafted with Furious Possessiveness in the walls of the Tent. Jimin wrinkled his pretty nose. He frowned in Displeasure. He got Angry as well.
Jungkook had no Right to eavesdrop.
Jungkook had no Right to be Angry over Jimin’s Choice to share whatever he wanted about himself with his only Friend who could understand. Who was the same as him. When Jungkook himself had given them that space and time to talk and open up about Jimin’s Omeganess.
Jimin took his Beautiful Grace straight to their unmade bed. That Fat Ass surely had no Underwear beneath Jungkook’s Nightshirt. Jungkook bit the inside of his cheek harshly. He had the Murderer in his gaze. He just knew it.
Just like he knew he was being Childish with Jimin for yet another time in their Lives. He was remaining the Angry, Unloved Pup who wanted all of Mommy’s Attention for himself.
He couldn’t help it.
How could he help it when Jimin was all that he had, yet all Jimin wanted was to be Different so he could bear the Pups? No one could convince him of the Opposite! No one could dare and say to his face that Jungkook was unreasonably Pissed in that moment. Jimin had aggravated him for good that night. Jimin wanted to talk it out with Hoseok first because he wanted the Damn Pups! Still!
Jungkook got all the Information that he needed. He dropped his heavy bones on his side of the bed and rotted there wide awake for the rest of the night till Jimin fell asleep.
They both remained with their backs turned to one another like Stubborn Pups till morning.
And for yet another time out there in the North, Routines were all they had. They should feel Proud of themselves. They lived the Perfect Married Life. They survived in Silence and Stubborn Unwillingness to speak their minds. Jimin returned to his Bible Bedtime Readings. Jungkook stayed stuck to his Mate’s Tiny, Curled Side in their bed.
The only Change could come with the End of that War. Jungkook could see no other way. They would return to the Palace. And Jungkook would make his move by Proposing. They could figure out the rest as a Married Couple. Though…
Surely, the womb had to go.
Jungkook wasn’t Willing to take any Risks with Jimin.
He would say it to his face when they would be at Home. Jimin would be Calmer there. With Seraphina. With Zoe in a Warmer Place. With his Parents and Family around.
He would accept it. Whether he liked it or not. Jungkook didn’t enjoy it either. His Wolf was gnawing at his chest ruthlessly just by the thought of having Jimin’s Precious Ability taken from him.
But there was no other Option for them.
To have Jimin Pupped was what Jungkook wanted deep inside as well. To see Jimin Round with his seed. To sweat and strive just to have that Holy Outcome. To keep him hanging from his knots from day to night. Till his tummy was cramping from all the sperm he had taken.
But they couldn’t have it all.
They had to make that Sacrifice. Jungkook preferred to have Jimin Safe and Sound by his side for the rest of their Lives than to see Jimin Glow from the Sensation of their Pups moving inside of him.
Nothing would change without the Existence of Pups from their Blood.
Jungkook had loved Jimin as a Beta first anyway.
Being the Child Carrier was an Extra Capability that Jungkook did not need strictly attached to Jimin.
Jungkook would let Jimin pick their every Pup. And that would be it. Countless Mothers couldn’t raise their Babies in their Realm. Jimin surely could feel for the Abandonment. Every Baby’s Suffering was his own.
Jungkook couldn’t picture himself loving the Kid. But he could fantasize himself tolerating their Presence enough so they could co-exist. That Pup or Pups would be no Different than Seraphina or Zoe to him.
Jungkook could behave. If it meant Jimin’s Happiness, he would be good to the Tot.
Jungkook had everything planned out in his head. He was making Controlling Schemes once again without Jimin’s Permission. He was choosing for Jimin. But Jungkook would keep doing it for the rest of their Lives. Because his Ruthlessness secured Jimin’s Safety - what Jimin would refuse to put first if a Baby were to come their way.
He had gone to the Battlefield with those thoughts that day. Lately, he had been taking his Personal Matters to his Fights with the Barbarians. And that clouded his Judgement. That was a wrong move on his part. Underestimating the Enemy enough to let his Gloomy Ideas about his Future with Jimin overwhelm him. He had fucked up. He had considered the Bastards as an Inadequacy to Humanity. They didn’t require enough space in his mind. They couldn’t be his Top Concern.
They should have been.
They should have been when he had his Weakness there with him.
Jungkook had gotten comfortable. He kept winning. He kept being on top of the Game. He had done more to restrict those Uncivilized Brutes over the past few months than his Entire Clan had in decades.
But the Mentality of the Winner at War was a Fatal Mistake.
Jungkook got that Reality Check as the most powerful blow delivered in his gut.
He had gone up to the Border that morning. That cloudy morning. Same like any other. Yet, Jungkook could smell the Difference in the Air. There was… Less of them. Less Stench.
Because they had transferred it somewhere else.
Jungkook picked it up immediately. The second he spotted the Barren Battlefield, he just knew.
He had to get out of there.
Those Pitiful Excuses of what? Hundred and fifty Alphas? Hundred and eighty Scapegoats?
Jungkook didn’t delude himself. He hadn’t won. Those weren’t the Mighty Barbarians that had remained to fight that War.
Not when they were thousands upon thousands with each and every Combat.
By then, Jungkook had gotten accustomed to their Patterns. Sometimes, they needed more than a week to regain their Appeal - dare to set foot back into the Jeons’ Territory for another Attack. Sometimes, a few days it was. There was just no way of knowing with Absolute Certainty the Barbarians’ next Whim for Blood.
Under different - more civilized - Circumstances, the Parties would have been obligated to communicate. Set a Date. Like Honorable Alphas and Men from other Empires did.
But those Alphas on the other side of his Border had no Honor.
Jungkook hadn’t either. But the point there was that, with Decent People, Jungkook could at least guess where to start - how to act. With the Savages, he only knew that they wouldn’t have bothered to appear at all if they weren’t Ready to engage in a Fight.
Jungkook had to go.
He had to return to his Precious Mate.
Because the Filthy Pigs had gone there to harm him.
They had discovered it. Their Safe Base. His One and Only Nemesis. Jimin.
Jungkook had dreamed of it. He had seen Unspoken Nightmares the previous night. He could barely remember them. But the Sick Sensation had stuck to him till then like second skin. An Ongoing Fire in his chest. A Burn that coursed through his veins like Poison. A Powerful Feeling of Sorrow. He had opened his eyes that morning as if he had already experienced the Loss~…
No.
No, no, no, God.
Jungkook abandoned his Soldiers and Position. He dropped them all before they could set a proper foot to the Blooded Area. Jungkook spun around like a Reaper on Duty, tearing his Armor off his body as he stormed to Jimin - making his hands bleed on the Metal.
Each Piece he tossed on the forest floor felt a step closer to Liberty. The instant he had it all off him, he became his Wolf and howled. He didn’t run. He flew. His paws wouldn’t touch the Snow. His Spirit was already with his Love.
He moved faster than ever. Yet, it felt as if it had taken him half a century. The miles were endless when one prayed for them to end. It costed him a million Deaths to reach his Destination. It was a Journey to the Seven Hells and back.
And Hell had come right with him.
Because what he witnessed on the uphill before the Sea of their Tents was Pure Hellfire.
Jungkook hadn’t felt his Heart beat that fast before. He hadn’t felt that Helpless. He swore it. Jimin’s Painful Heats were nothing. Nothing could compare with the Potential of having the Love of his Life taken to the Afterlife. Stolen from him for good. Forever. Before he could even have him whole. Before he could even get the tiniest taste of Greatness with his cock sank between his legs.
Jungkook saw Red. He felt the Literalism of the Metaphor beneath his skin burning deeper than any other time before.
And he needed that Wrath. That Raw Adrenaline. That Red-hot Rage. To keep him Alive. To keep him flaring for the Deadly Purpose.
He needed the Beast Unleashed.
For Jimin.
The Barbarians were burning everything. They were running amok, up and down their Troop, setting Fire upon Fire to each and every Tent. They were on Horses and on foot. In their Wolf Forms and not.
Damien and Zoe were, too, somewhere among that Calamity.
But Jungkook couldn’t bring himself to care. He trusted that his Boy would tear Ropes and Tents to keep Zoe Safe and headed straight to that Fire. To that Flaming Mess.
A Devil wouldn’t get burned.
But a Devil’s Angel would.
Jimin could already be burning. Like a Torch.
Good, Great Heavens, no.
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE, JIMIN’S GOD!
They had other Plans.
Those Vile, Disgusting Bastards must have been keeping their Notes on him for long. The how didn’t matter in that moment. The only point was that the Illiterate Savages had found the Place they hadn’t breached in twenty-five years!
And Jungkook was on his own.
The Majority of his Soldiers had stayed right where Jungkook had left them. Jungkook had abandoned them with no command for them to retreat. Come and follow him. The only Hope was that they would be done with the Hundred Bastards in no time.
But until then…
Jungkook only had a limited number of Alphas guarding the Area with their Goods and some severally Injured Alphas and Beta Servants inside those Burning Tents. While Jimin, his Guards, Hoseok - Zoe and Damien - were in the eye of the Storm. All alone.
Jungkook couldn’t even focus enough to count hostile heads. He struck powerfully at each Faceless Fucker who stood in his way, sending them to the ground and having them get right back up to chase after him.
If they weren’t in their Wolf Forms, they unsaddled to become that way.
Jungkook shouldn’t have been the Bull. He shouldn’t have them on his tail. He shouldn’t attract their Attention too much. Not in a moment like that one. When Insecurities and Disadvantages were everything that he had. When he sprinted straight to the Direction of his Tent. Not knowing what to expect.
In a tick, he scanned the Area.
Their Impromptu Home was no more. It had become one with the Snow. Jungkook could barely recognized it. The Thick Fabric was thrown above their bed, chest, bathtub, and Fire Poles. It was on Fire as well. It seemed that the Flames had just begun.
The whole Paranoia had just gotten place.
Jungkook was right on time.
For some.
Insu was lying Dead on the Cold Snow, in a Pool of his own Blood, twisted and broken on every bone, eyes stony and frozen for eternity across the Cloudy Sky.
Namjoon, Teahyung, Kangdae, and Hyuk were fighting for their heads as well. With more Wolves than they could handle each. They were using their Swords instead of their Wolf Forms. All of them. Yoongi and Felix, too.
That Duo was the closest to Hoseok and Jimin. Felix was shielding both Betas with his body. He didn’t have the Physique. But, at the very least, that Boy bore the Spirit of the Savior. Before them, Yoongi was slitting throats with the Desperation of a Man who feared more than Death. Romeo feared losing Juliet above anything else in the World. Jungkook could relate. Thinking back to that moment, he, too, dreaded not being enough. To reach Jimin. To get to him before anything unreversible could happen to him.
Jungkook took the Horror in from afar. Moving faster and faster as he got closer and closer to his Love. He didn’t stop. He didn’t pay but a nanosecond to those who weren’t his Jimin. He didn’t care that Felix suffered a good bite on his shoulder from the Brown Wolf who escaped Yoongi’s Defense and tried to lock his jaws around Hoseok first. He didn’t care that Hoseok screamed and dropped to his knees to gather Felix in his arms as Yoongi sent that Wolf to meet the Creator through a stab in the side of the neck.
He didn’t care that he brought more Fuckers to them all.
Not when the Waves in the Cyan had never been that Disturb. And Scared. And Traumatized. Not when the Jasmines drowned in utter Terror as the Big, Grey Wolf appeared from behind, out of nowhere, pouncing directly above some nearby burning Tents to throw him on the snowy ground.
Inhaling sharply, Jimin went down face first next to Hoseok. Like a Ragdoll. The way no Goddess - no Sinless, Perfect Creation - ever deserved.
Without a sound.
There wasn’t a single sign of struggle from his Pretty Tanager’s Side. Jimin landed with his stomach on the Snow, arms coiling around his head to save his head from full Collision with the ground. He was completely caught off guard. His White, Long Nightgown graced the ground as if it belonged there.
Jimin did not belong there.
Not on the Snow. Not in a War. Not in the Devil’s clutch.
The Shock… The Inability to be God Himself and be by Jimin’s side before the paws of a Filthy Existence settled on that delicate back had Jungkook missing more than a Heartbeat.
He lost a breath and a step, falling harshly - crushing hard on the Cold Snow with Force. But getting right back up fast. A Man Anxious of failing. A Mate desperate to protect. An Alpha Hungry to cause Mayhem. A Demon Ready to raise Hell on Earth.
Jimin noticed him only then. There across him. When he fell and got up again only to have five Smaller Wolves on him instantly. No other Wolf Form could match his Size. No other Man was like him. And they all knew it. Enemies and Allies. God Himself wouldn’t be able to stop him from getting to Jimin.
They could slow him down.
They did precisely that. With Arrogance and Bravery. As if they had the Red-eyed Rarity right where they wanted him to be. As if they had thought this through.
Jungkook promised them. They hadn’t. They did not know shit. They could enjoy it, those quick few seconds. Jungkook was allowing them to.
He had to pause.
He had to stop.
Because those eyes of Jimin’s were on him.
Because they had Hurt and Horror. Because they didn’t want to see. Jungkook had promised him. His Sweet Cotton-ball wouldn’t ever have to see the Monster without the Shackles in him.
Jungkook stood there for five seconds.
That was all the time he was Willing to give to Jimin.
To close his eyes. To cover his ears with his baby hands.
He was doing more than he could bear. He was letting that Dead Wolf be with his paws on top of him. He was letting him enjoy the Power he thought that Fucker had over him for that critical moment.
He was letting the Wolves around him get the Illusion of having restrained him.
He felt instead of seeing. His eyes couldn’t leave Jimin’s as each Weak Wolf locked its teeth on each of his legs. One had jumped on his back, biting on his scruff, thinking that they had him.
Jungkook hadn’t reacted. He kept himself Upright, supporting a Wolf’s entire weight on his back and feeling as if he had a Human Tot on top of him.
They were Fools.
They were Nothing.
They were Deceased for touching what was his. For dirtying it on the unworthy, snowy floor. For causing it Fear and Discomfort.
For flooring their Crimson Home.
For merely being the Cause to fight that War up there in the Cold.
Jungkook warned his Soft, Cyan Love in those five seconds. He didn’t make a sound. He let the Pain in his gaze speak for itself.
He gave him five more seconds. He let that Grey Wolf smile with all its pointy teeth and near the side of his Mate’s head as Hoseok yelled Felix’s Name, as all the Wolves around them stopped and stood at Attention for the pathetic growl of that Fucker on Jimin’s back.
The Barbarians thought they had won. They stopped to watch Jungkook’s Suffering. Because they had his Heart under their claws.
Namjoon, Taehyung, Kangdae, Hyuk, and Yoongi panted from their Scattered Positions, staying with their Blooded Swords raised toward them. Ready to attack again. Accept Orders.
And Jimin…
Jimin didn’t close his eyes.