Arrows, Swords and a Little Bit of Magic ( Rated M )

The Hybrid : Part 2

Seokjin realizes all too soon that Taehyung neither bluffs nor dallies.

"Ah!" the hybrid exclaims as he exits the cave, stepping onto lush grass. "All that smoke was making my throat and eyes burn! It will be a hassle to get rid of the stench." The boy complains, looking around himself.

Seokjin and Namjoon aren't far behind, squinting as it takes them some time to get used to the sunlight after being enveloped by such profound darkness – even if Taehyung did light the torches upon his arrival.

Taehyung whirls around to face them, face splitting into an enormous grin. "Do hurry up. We shouldn't waste any time. Though...maybe the two of you could get some rest instead, since I'm the one who will be doing all the work anyway." The statement isn't haughty; the boy isn't actually full of himself because of his incredible magical prowess. Instead, Taehyung sounds sincere and maybe a little worried, his words subtly trying to ask if they required rest - as though he could sense the bone-deep tiredness the alpha and elder omega were feeling.

"It's alright. Rest can wait - we aren't too tired right now. Isn't that right Namjoon-ah?"

"Huh? Uh...yes. I mean no, we aren't tired at all." Namjoon, who'd stuck by his bonded omega's side as he was still wary of the hybrid despite the friendly way with which Taehyung was dealing with them says. The prince can feel the alpha's slight surprise through the bond at being called so familiarly by Seokjin. Namjoon is flustered at such a small change in their usual rapport and it almost makes a smile stretch across the elder omega's face. The downside of the bond is, however, that Namjoon can feel his emotions too and the alpha scowls a little when he realizes that Seokjin had done it on purpose, just to see what kind of face he would make.

Taehyung watches their interaction from the sidelines, radiating happy energy at the fact that Seokjin seemed to be comfortable enough in his presence to let down his guard. After all, keeping his hybrid nature a secret came with great loneliness. He's never had many friends, not until Jimin came along with his full-body laughs and adorable eye smiles and tales from all around the Ancient Lands. It was nice to be in the presence of more potential friends.

Seokjin's fast to notice the spike in Taehyung's scent, relaxing when he realizes the hybrid's happy. The chamomile almost completely conceals the sharp peppermint beneath it and the scent is so soothing that Seokjin thinks he can really fall asleep right that instant, despite just telling Taehyung that he wasn't tired.

He smiles at Taehyung, the last of the apprehension bleeding away from his body as the younger returns it with a wide grin.

"So...how long have you been living here, Taehyung? If you don't mind me asking."

"Mhm..." they are heading in the direction of the river, back down the same way Seokjin and Namjoon had come from earlier. Taehyung is brimming so full of energy that there's a skip in his step. "I don't really remember anything before I was five winters old so that makes it twelve years. One day I just woke up and I was alone inside that cave which later became my home."

The prince's brows shoot into his hairline. "And you've lived there alone? At five winters old?"

"Uhuh." The hybrid confirms with a nonchalant attitude. "Don't stress over it, Your Highness. I'm quite resourceful so I got by just fine for the first few months. Then Sylvie came along – she's the nymph that raised me. "

Taehyung is a strong omega. At five winters old Seokjin was still whining to his mother about wanting to escape his tutors' clutches. He doesn't think he could have survived in the wild like Taehyung managed to do – even if was only for a few months.