Hope & Perseverance | ym

VII

The pack wasted no time in getting back on their feet, heading northeast towards where they knew Hyunjin's pack resided, and where they knew they would find their omegas. They traveled for months, weather shifting to freezing cold and snowy back to pleasantly warm and sunny. Soyoung grew as expected, having fun in the snow on the rare occasions that the pack paused long enough for the now mobile pup to explore, and then taking a great interest in the blooming flowers as springtime came. Half the time they were traveling, they would move slow enough to let her crawl alongside them, and the other half they would carry her in her basket so that they could cover more distance in hopes of getting to Seokjin and Jimin faster.

The sun was beginning to set when they stopped once again, Namjoon letting Soyoung out of her basket so she could crawl around a bit while they got settled into their camp for the night. As they all shifted, and Hoseok and Jungkook began to gather firewood while Taehyung bounced around them in an effort to get some of his energy out, Namjoon observed their surroundings, sniffing the air. An ache in his chest appeared as he caught onto the familiar lily scent that had been growing increasingly more prominent the closer they got to the territory.

Collecting himself, he turned to the rest of his pack. "We're gonna have to start being extremely careful from here on out, guys. Their territory line is not too far from here, and if we want to actually have a chance at rescuing Seokjin and Jimin, then we got work hard at not getting caught. Taehyung, I'm sorry, but this means you gotta stop provoking Jungkook and Hoseok into playing with you." The omega pouted but nodded that he understood. "In fact, you and Jungkook might have to stay behind with Soyoung while me and Hoseok go on."

"What?!" Jungkook looked at their leader in shock. "You can't be serious! We just got back together and you're already wanting to separate us again?!"

"Jungkook," Namjoon spoke calmly, "I can't bring Soyoung along without risking her crying and alerting everyone to our presence, nor can I risk her safety. I also can't risk the possibility that their pack might try to go for Taehyung next. Keeping them as far away from the action is best, and I would like for you to stay and watch over them, just as extra protection."

"What about you?" Jungkook asked. "Who's going to protect you?"

Namjoon sighed and opened his mouth to respond but stopped as he heard rustling coming from behind him. Without missing a beat, he and Hoseok both shifted and turned around to see an unfamiliar wolf with the familiar scent of Hyunjin's pack surrounding him. Hoseok moved to pounce on the intruder, only for the male to shift into his human form and hold his arms up. "Wait, I'm not here to hurt you or attack you." The two alphas slowly shifted into human form but didn't lose their defensive stance as the male continued to talk. "I heard you talking about Seokjin and Jimin and assumed you must be their pack." Everyone's eyes widened at the mention of their omegas. "I'm here to help."

Hoseok scoffed a bit in disbelief. "Help? How?"

"By getting them back out." The male held his hand out. "I'm Taemin, I'm a good friend of Jimin's, and the one who helped him escape the first time." Namjoon hesitantly shook the other alpha's hand, not fully sure if he could trust him yet, but not wanting to reject a possible ally who could help them. "The second I heard Hyunjin had brought them back, I haven't stopped trying to find a way to get them out again."

"How are they?" Taehyung ran forward. "Are they okay?"

Taemin bit his lips before responding. "They're alive, but I wouldn't say okay." The rest of the pack invited him to sit with them, asking him to elaborate on the state of their omegas. "Jimin's strong. He hasn't succumbed to anything that Hyunjin has tried on him. He's always had that fighting spirit about him though." He looked between the alphas. "Whenever I get to visit him, he talks about his mate that's going to make Hyunjin wish he'd never been born. Is that one of you?"

The entire pack fell silent at that, Hoseok being the one to speak up. "We haven't seen Yoongi since the day your pack attacked. We've come to terms with the fact that he's most likely dead." Taemin bowed his head in a sign of respect and to express how sorry he was. "Has Hyunjin touched Jimin? Or done anything to hurt him?"

Taemin shook his head. "Hyunjin may be an asshole in every sense of the word, but he would never harm an omega with pup." Everyone's eyes widened in shock at the news. "You guys didn't know?"

"It must have happened right before the attack." Taehyung whispered, eyes filling with the tears at the knowledge that Jimin was having to go through all of this while pregnant.

"What about Seokjin?" Namjoon asked, unable to hold back his worries for his mate any longer. "How is he?"

Taemin looked at Namjoon. "I'm guessing your Seokjin's mate? Jimin has talked about you a lot too. He admires you very much." Namjoon nodded slightly, just wanting Taemin to get on with sharing the news. "He's not really all there right now." The alpha felt his heart crying at that statement, barely hearing Hoseok asking what Taemin meant by that. "Whenever I see him, he's just curled up on the floor, shivering, not talking, not acknowledging anyone. He just stares off into space. Jimin said that he's been like that since they were first taken. Something about being in shock from being separated from his pup. I think it's an omega reaction."

"Is that it?" Namjoon asked monotonously, trying to stay strong for his pack by holding back his emotions. "I feel like there's more."

Taemin sighed. "Hyunjin has set up an exposé for him. To show him off to all the interested alphas in the hopes of getting him mated off soon." Namjoon clenched his fist at that. "Hyunjin lets alphas go in at set times of the day to 'observe' him and see if they think he would be a good mate. You can probably guess what most of them do." The alpha was unable to hold back the growl that erupted from his chest at that.

Namjoon stood up from where he'd been sitting. "New plan, we're getting them out of there as soon as possible. I don't care if I have to run in by myself and rip apart everyone who stands in my way. I am not letting my mate go through that anymore."

"Well we're definitely not letting you go by yourself." Hoseok said, turning to Taemin. "How soon could you get them out?"

"If I were still doing it by myself, weeks. But with you guys here now..." Taemin processed his number one plan in his head, "maybe a few days. I can take care of the guards while you guys get them out. But I'm gonna need something in return." The pack looked at him in curiosity at what he meant. "Protection. Some people were already pushing for me to be punished after the first escape, but I managed to throw them off my scent. If they get out the second time, there's no way I'm getting out of there alive, so I need you guys to let me come with you and protect me when they inevitably come after you again."

"If it means getting my mate and Jimin back alive, then I'd be willing to do anything." Namjoon said honestly.