Chapter Text
To say that Min Yoongi was bored was an understatement.
His father kept patting him on the back, trying to get him to join the conversation, but his older brother, Jiho, was doing such a great job at kissing ass already. Yoongi failed to understand why he needed to do it too.
The dining hall was filled with Yoongi's family members and closer tenants, so only a small part of the more than a thousand living in the only wolf town of South Asia. Even if he was pretty bored, Yoongi did feel some pride to how those people seemed to be having fun. At least some of them were. Yoongi himself was responsible for their care and well-being, being a member of the leading family, so he considered his feelings justified, even if Jiho enjoyed calling him a sap.
His attention was brought back to the men talking when they laughed loudly at something the guest had said and Yoongi just barely held back from rolling his eyes. The dinner was in the honor of Kim Kwanchul, the leading alpha of a small but strong mountain pack, and the way Yoongi saw it, the large man should be the one doing the ass kissing.
“Your town is impressive, Hyunmin.” Kwangchul said. Yoongi perked his attention back to the conversation just to see what the other had to say. “I've been wanting to build permanent housing for years now, but our perimeter watch is more important.”
Yoongi scoffed and earned a pinch on the thigh, courtesy of his mother, for it. Permanent housing and the market were their biggest priority, without those, tenants would hardly have a reason to stay. Besides safety of course, but that wasn't Yoongi's field, so. Kwangchul's mountain pack took care of a large neighboring area, small in comparison, but taking into account their numbers and how much they had to fight to keep their ground, they were indeed quite impressive.
Yoongi whispered an apology to his mother and focused back on his plate. If the leading alphas weren't discussing the alliance, he really didn't care about their conversation. This exchange was about water sources and sharing perimeter watch duties and Yoongi didn't care for the flattery. At first his father had been willing to fight for the water springs, but after seeing Kim Kwangchul's warriors, suddenly a partnership was in the making.
So Yoongi was bored. He didn't have much to do but look around. Everyone was dressed up, and it was funny to see a few cousins look all dolled up, like they expected to finally find their mate here tonight, and Yoongi had to hold back the urge to cackle. His mother side-eyed him again, and he cleared his throat. He only ate a little of the huge feast weighting down the tables and knew his mother would have a lot to say about that if she noticed, so he avoided her glare and pretended to be interested in his surroundings.
The dining hall looked like it always did when they held events like this (Yoongi wanted to kill his mother a little whenever he looked at the stupid crystal chandelier she bought a few years back). The main table was meant for the leading family, and the perpendicular ones were for the guests and close relatives. Everyone worked to serve dishes, and even his mother took a few rounds serving wine. He wished she was doing that right now instead of glaring at him.
He pulled the collar of his shirt, wishing he could take off at least his stupid coat; it was too hot for it. He envied his cousins wearing flimsy dresses and braids; they looked far more comfortable than he.
The guests tonight were seated on the table to the right, and Yoongi turned to inspect them with mild interest. Kim Kwanchul was a big man. He was tall and broad, all muscles and his tan skin had scars up and down his arm, along with a gash that went through his right eye. He laughed loudly at something Yoongi's father had said, and his lips seemed to curl upwards to show teeth, rather than actually smile. Creepy.
The first alpha was widowed and had two kids, a male and a female. His son apparently was a year younger than Yoongi, and his younger sister sadly was already married. Not that Yoongi was sad about it—his father was the one who thoroughly was. Marrying him off to the girl would have been the perfect way to seal their alliance, but she was already married to a handsome omega whom she kept a territorial hold of at all times.
The son though, Yoongi looked at him for the first time since they arrived. He was tall and muscular, his jaw set as he watched the conversation between their fathers with full attention. He had tan skin like his father, but untarnished from any scars, as far as Yoongi could tell. His light brown eyes were completely focused on the conversation, and his hair was swept off his brow pristinely.
Yoongi massaged his chest; it was throbbing in a weird way since he entered the dining hall. In that moment, with Yoongi rubbing circles over his heart and watching the son distractedly, said person decided to look at him.
Kim Namjoon had slitted eyes, not as small as Yoongi's, but he narrowed them to stare right at him. His jaw relaxed, but he furrowed his eyebrows, like something on Yoongi's face didn't quite make sense. Yoongi moved his hand to his nose and mouth, checking if there was something there. He knew his black hair needed some trimming, but he had styled it to his best earlier. Maybe he spilled food on his chin? Nothing. He even looked down at his chest, while still massaging it.
When he looked back up, Kim Namjoon was looking even more intently at him, hands closed in tight fists. He excused himself from the conversation and went to sit where his sister and her mate sat, not looking at Yoongi again.
“Go talk to him.” Yoongi's mother, Hyeoon, startled him when she whispered in his ear. “Apparently he's very smart and responsible. He could be a valuable friend to you.”
Yoongi diverted his eyes from the other to briefly look at his mother. First Omega Min Hyeoon had a look on her face that meant that she was very serious about it. Yoongi grunted, but got up and promptly went to the other table. Trouble was something he always did his best to avoid.
Yoongi stopped where the guests sat and bowed, earning polite nods and a smile from the daughter and her omega. “I'm Min Yoongi. It is an honor to have your family as our guest.”
The Kim firstborn nodded politely and looked right at Yoongi's eyes, almost startling him. “I'm Kim Namjoon. This is my sister Hyejin and her mate, Seokjin.”
Kim Seokjin gestured again for Yoongi to take a sit, and this time Yoongi complied, settling beside their alpha heir.
“Thank you for having us, Min Yoongi-gun,” Kim Hyejin said politely, seated on the other side of her brother, and Yoongi turned her way to bow again.
When he raised his head, his senses were assaulted with the overwhelming smell of something earthy and herbaceous, and Yoongi discreetly moved further to side, trying to pinpoint where it was coming from. The smell couldn't be coming from the omega, who was mated—not to mention that omegas usually had sweeter scents, and this one was strong and invasive. Yoongi tried to compose himself. One of the rudest things to do is to comment on another wolf's smell, and he wasn't about to be impolite to his father's guests.
He did like to live.
“How are you liking our territory so far?” he asked instead.
“Your market is amazing,” Kim Seokjin said almost dreamily. The omega was tall and broad shouldered, but his smile was as sweet and harmless as it should be.
“Jin bought me a ridiculous amount of gifts.” Hyejin rolled her eyes, patting her omega on the knee.
She was tall and built like a fighter, looking much like a female version of her brother. The dimples on her cheeks made her look kind of goofy when she smiled, but it was probably just because she was so clearly in love. Yoongi didn't dismiss the way she held onto her omega, though. She clearly wasn't someone he'd want to mess with.
“Your library has a big collection; I was pleasantly surprised,” Kim Namjoon commented. He had just spoken seconds ago, but this time Yoongi righted his posture at his tone, turning his full attention to the other. “Do you think I could use it when the alliance is sealed?”
“I think our fathers will still talk details for at least three moon quarters. Feel free to borrow books any time.”
Yoongi dried his forehead with his hand, suddenly realizing how hot he was. He gestured for one of the people serving dinner to pour him some rice wine to drink, and right away, one of the girls kneeled on his side to give him his drink.
“Are you okay, oppa?” Wheein whispered on his ear, a crease on her brow. “You're pale.”
“I am pale, cousin.” He smirked and gestured for her to leave. “I'm just a little hot.”
Wheein nodded, but left with her lips on a thin line. Yoongi drank some of his wine and scanned the crowd as an attempt to fight the sudden anxiety lodging itself on his chest.
“That's a pretty omega,” Kim Namjoon offered amicably, his polite smile showing dimples on his cheeks.
“She's my cousin,” Yoongi answered a little curtly, taking another large sip of his wine. Why the hell did he say that?
He laughed like Yoongi had told a joke. “I could tell.”
Yoongi downed his drink and nearly dropped his glass, settling it on the table just in time. His chest was palpitating.
“My father might try to marry you off to one of our blood omegas, by the way.” Yoongi blurted. He wasn't sure why he said it. He started massaging over his heart again, his vision going a little blurry, and he had tried his best to not sound winded, but didn't think he managed.
“Mine will definitely try to marry you, but we don't have omega family members.”
“Are you one of those tribes that kills omega babies?” The question just slipped out of Yoongi's mouth, and he felt dizzy. That was rude of him. He was rude to the firstborn of a brutal man with whom his father was making business. Way to go.
Yoongi looked back at Kim Namjoon cautiously, but the other still had a smile on his face. Except it was now a scary one.
“My pack has many omegas, but my family can only seem to breed alphas and betas; we have thick blood.”
“Is your brother mated, Yoongi-gun?” Kim Hyejin jumped back into the conversation, probably sensing the edge in her brother's voice.
“Yes.” Yoongi gritted through his teeth. “His mate is called Yongsun; she's pregnant and was too indisposed to join the festivities today.” Lucky for her, Yoongi thought to himself, gesturing for Wheein to fetch him another drink.
“Oh, that's so great! How many puppies is she carrying?”
“Two.”
She kept talking, her mate joining the conversation too, but Yoongi found that he couldn't focus on what they were saying anymore. He felt Namjoon's eyes on him when he gestured to Wheein to come faster.
“I brought you cold water.” Wheein kneeled next to Yoongi again and touched his wrist under the low table, her pretty voice barely a whisper. “You're feverish Yoongi. Please ask to be excused.”
This time Yoongi nodded and eagerly drank the water his cousin offered him.
“Is something wrong, Yoongi-gun?” Kim Namjoon asked from his side, noticing the way Wheein had taken the other alpha's wrist, which looked a little odd.
Wheein got up and stepped away, looking at the ground submissively at the sound of the outsider's voice.
“I'm fine, Namjoon-gun. Wheein just reminded me of something I have to do. If you'll excuse me?”
“Of course! Don't worry!” Kim Hyejin smiled politely, her brother and mate nodding along.
Yoongi bowed his head thankfully, but when he moved to get up, his knees gave out a little. Kim Namjoon, being the one closest to him, took him by the arm to help him stand. The skin where the other alpha touched him felt like it was being burned, and Yoongi whimpered, too weak to even scream, before everything turned black.