Hope & Perseverance | ym

V

The pups began to whimper as the scent of blood and death became more prominent. Hyun was quick to nuzzle against them in comfort as Yoongi continued to lead them further into his old territory. Once they reached the den, they all shifted, and Yoongi didn't waste any time before speaking. "We should still have some supplies stockpiled in there if you want to feed the pups while I go see where everyone went off to." Hyun nodded in agreement and Yoongi took off.

He stopped once he caught the lingering scent of Jimin, turning to look in the direction he knew the other pack would have taken him and Seokjin. Every fiber in his being was telling him to go that way and rip apart every wolf in that pack until Jimin was safe and back in his arms. But the logical side of him knew that wouldn't work, especially since he now had five pups to think about along with Hyun. He forced himself to move, checking out the different hiding spaces first to see if Soyoung, Taehyung, and Jungkook were still there, and then to see if he could find out what direction they went in.

After he concluded his searching, he went back to Hyun and the pups, who were chowing down on some fruits that had been inside the den and informed them of what he found. "Namjoon and Hoseok took Namjoon's pup and followed the scent of our other two pups to try to find them first. We'll follow their scents, then when we find them, we'll regroup and come up with a plan to get our omegas back."

"Lead the way~" Hyun said, urging the pups to finish their small meal before shifting and following Yoongi towards the river.

~*~

Taehyung and Jungkook were still walking, Taehyung clutching his stomach as he followed the younger. "I'm so hungry, Kook!" Taehyung whined as his stomach growled once again. "Can we please stop and look for something to eat?"

"No, Tae, we can't stop yet." Jungkook looked around at the area that was too open for his comfort level, wiping away the sweat beading on his forehead. He was confused for a second as to why he felt so hot, as it was fairly cool that day and the clouds were covering the sun so it wasn't beating down on them, but he quickly brushed it off and focused on getting to a more dense area of the forest so he and Taehyung could rest and find something to eat.

Taehyung whined once again. "Just for a minute! All I need is a couple of berries to tide me over! It won't take that long-"

"I said no, Taehyung!" Jungkook raised his voice, whirling around to look at the omega with a harsh look, causing Taehyung to whimper quietly. "We're not stopping yet!"

"Okay, I'll stop asking." Taehyung said quietly, and if it had not been for the unexplained rage sitting in Jungkook's chest, the younger male would have apologized immediately and pulled his best friend into a hug.

They continued their journey, Taehyung gradually moving closer to Jungkook until they finally made it to an area that Jungkook deemed safe enough. By that point, Taehyung was practically on top of Jungkook as the pup moved to sit down. "What's gotten into you? Is it because I snapped at you? I'm really sorry!" Jungkook exclaimed, the guilt of his earlier response finally hitting him.

Taehyung shook his head, sitting down next to him. "No, you just smell really good." Taehyung stuck his nose into the crook of Jungkook's neck, inhaling the black pepper scent radiating off of him.

"What do you mean I smell good?" Jungkook asked, wiping more sweat off his forehead. "I don't have a scent-" He suddenly stopped talking as he felt a twist in his gut. He felt a burning sensation wash over him, making him tune out the world except for a sudden whimper and strong burst of cinnamon slick.

When Jungkook felt the urge to push Taehyung down to the ground and claim him for himself, he realized what was happening. "Jungkook, please~" Taehyung mewled, clinging closer to the presenting alpha.

Jungkook mustered all the strength he had to push Taehyung away, the omega immediately pleading for him to come back. "No!" Jungkook yelled as he took off running through the trees, trying to get as far from Taehyung as possible.

~*~

Jimin stared off into space, trying to ignore the throbbing in his ankle, the stinging of his hands, and the stickiness of the dried tears on his face from the most recent 'suitor' who had come to 'look at' Seokjin. The door opened up once again and Jimin immediately looked at it, already preparing to hiss and hurl profanities at whoever was about to walk in. But then the sight of a familiar face made his expression soften.

"You have ten minutes." Jimin heard Hyunjin say before the door closed, but all he could do was stare wide eyed at his old best friend standing before him.

"Taemin?" He asked as the alpha rushed over to him. "I thought you were dead!"

"Why would you think that?" Taemin asked as he crouched down to be at Jimin's height.

Jimin shrugged slightly. "Seemed like that was the only plausible explanation as to why you hadn't come to see me yet."

Taemin sighed. "Some pack members voiced their suspicions about me helping you escape the first time, so I had to lay low for a while. If I had tried to come see you sooner, it wouldn't have looked good for me."

"And if you had tried to come sooner, maybe Seokjin wouldn't be getting raped on a nearly daily basis." Jimin snapped, eyes shining with tears as some of his anger over the situation came through.

"Is that what they're doing?" Taemin asked, having not realized before what the viewings for the exposé had been being used for. "I'd heard that he was now the 'perfect' omega, but I didn't realize...I thought it was because..." He glanced behind him to where Seokjin was still lying trembling on the floor, implying that Seokjin's inability to move or speak was what he had assumed they were talking about. "Is he like that because of them?"

Jimin shook his head. "No, that's from being separated from his pup and not knowing if his mate is alive because the last time he saw him, he was being overtaken by a group of feral wolves."

Sympathy shown in Taemin's eyes at Jimin's words, obviously feeling for the omega. "I'd heard about his pup...and yours," Taemin's gaze dropped to Jimin's now slightly protruding stomach, "but I didn't think that one was true."

Jimin looked down at his stomach, resting his hand over it. "Well, it is."

"It's not Hyunjin's, is it?"

Jimin shook his head quickly. "I wouldn't be sitting here talking to you if it was." Jimin said honestly.

Taemin sighed in relief. "I was worried, because that's what Hyunjin's been telling everyone." Jimin's eyes widened, then narrowed into a glare. "He said that you finally complied to mating him the second you arrived back and that he impregnated you with the heir to the pack."

"That's definitely not the case. I would die before I let Hyunjin have any claim over my pup."

"And that's why I'm getting you out of here." Taemin said. "That's what I came to tell you. Now that the pack has lost interest in if I helped you escape the first time or not, I'm able to do some recon. I'm watching the guards and their schedules and looking for easy escape points in the territory." Jimin pulled Taemin into a grateful hug. "I'm getting you and Seokjin out of here if it's the last thing I do."

"Thank you so much~" Jimin whispered into the alpha's shoulder, only pulling out of the hug when he felt a jolt in his stomach.

"What's wrong?" Taemin asked upon seeing Jimin's wide eyes and the way he was clutching his stomach.

Jimin shook his head. "Nothing's wrong~" He giggled, some tears starting to spill out of his eyes. "The pup is kicking." Jimin felt another small kick, causing him to giggle again as he looked down at his stomach. "Hi, puppy!" He whispered excitedly, Taemin watching on in awe. "I feel you in there! I don't know if you can hear me, but I love you so much, and I'll do anything to protect you."