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Taehyung My appa orders two guards to unchain me and I collapse onto the ground, my open wounds burning as I hit the cold pavement. The guards force me to walk down the dark corridors, both of them pushing and shoving me when I walk too slowly. As we make it out of the dungeons, the bright light of the day burns my bruised eyes and I wince, the guards laughing at me. They lead me out to the main road where Gamma Jin-hee and Ji-won are waiting for me by a pick up truck. Anger boils in my veins when I see ji-won's 'bruised face, her cheeks swollen and her lip split open from a beating. Ji-won bursts into tears as I collapse onto my knees before her and I brace myself for her anger for getting us both exiled from Diamondwings. She, however, takes me in her arms, gently cradling my head and sobs into my bloody hair. "I thought they killed you," she signs as she pulls away. "I thought you left me." Gamma Jin-hee dismisses the guards and instructs ji-won and I to get into the pick up truck.I notice two backpacks in the truck and I nod towards them. "They let me pack a few things before we left," ji-won signs before she begins examining my wounds as we drive to the edge of the territory, large tears streaming down her face. "It's okay," I sign, wincing as she dabs a cloth to my torn back. "I-it's not as bad as it looks." She frowns but makes no comment as she continues to clean the wounds with her small cloth. At the edge of the woods, Gamma Jin-hee orders us out of the car and hands us the bags ji-won packed. He then hands me a small envelope. Confused, I open it and find a wad of cash inside. "A gift," he says quietly. "Your mother was my best friend ... not a day goes by that I don't regret not finding her sooner." I stare at the money unsure what to say. Gamma Jin-hee has never treated me poorly but he had never done anything to help me either. Why help me now? As I stare at the envelope, I notice a small picture inside and pull it out, tears threatening to fall down my cheeks when I realize it was a photograph of my eomma and, it was taken just a few days before the attack. "Your appa kept this picture hidden in a drawer" Gamma Jin-hee explains. "I figured you may have better use for it. "Before I can react, he pulls out a map, hundreds of red dots scattered over the state explains. "Stay clear of them and you should avoid getting yourselves killed."He points to the few small towns with no dots near them. "These are your safest bet. They're perfect for two rogues starting over. Try Busan first. It's about 138 km from Gimcheon and is small enough that it wouldn't be a target for any packs." He rolls up the map and shoves it in my hand. "You better hurry before it gets dark. A deaf wolf and mute one are two perfect targets for a desperate rogue looking for a meal." I nod and stuff the map into my backpack. "Moon Goddess be with you Taehyung," Gamma Jin-hee murmurs, turning on his heel and jumping back into his truck. Ji-won and I watch as he drives off back towards the pack, a bit of dread se in the pit of my stomach. I feel a warm hand interlock with mine and I squeeze it back for comfort. Ji-won tugs at my hand and I look down to her smiling up at me. "We'll be okay," she signs, picking up her bag and slinging it over her back. "Hey I'll carry you," I sign, mentally preparing to shift. "I can walk," she huffs, turning towards the woods. I try to carry her bag but she once again refuses, determined not to be a burden for me. Of course, I've never seen her as one to begin with. We walk for a while, my injuries ache, but we finally make it as the sun sets over the horizon. Afraid people would ask too many questions about my gory state, I hand ji-won some money and have her book a small motel room for the both of us. The room is small and dingy but would do just fine for the night. There's only one bed and after a small argument, we agree to share it. Worried about my injuries, ji-won goes to a nearby pharmacy and grabs some supplies for me. I jump in the shower to rinse the blood off from the several cuts on my back. Normally the wounds would have healed by now but the silver chain had slowed my healing process significantly. My cuts and burn will scar permanently due to the silver and I will forever be reminded of what Hyun-woo and Da-Kyung did to me. It takes everything in me not to shift and let out my frustrations on the furniture of the room. Ji-won returns from her trip, finding me in a state of near panic and anger, and tries to calm me down. "Sit down," she pleads. "Let's talk." I shake my head at her. "I'm so tired of this shit! Why can't I just talk? Why am I so broken?" She shakes her head at me and forces a smile on her face. "You're not broken." She signs "Then why are we here!" I nearly growl at her, pulling away from her arms. "Face it! My own appa disowned me because I'm worthless!" She bites her lips, her eyes full of hurt. "Am I worthless then too?" The blood drains from my face as I realize I've just insulted the only person who had ever loved me since my mother died. "No," I sigh, hanging my head in shame. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean..." She holds her hands up and sighs. "Come" she gestures to the bed. "Let's get those wounds dressed." I sink into the bed, holding perfectly still as she tapes me up. She whimpers to herself as she cleans each wound and I realize she's crying. "I'm sorry. I don't mean what I said," I apologize and she forces a smile. "No, it's not that," she wipes her eyes. "Just look at what that ... that monster did to you ..." "I'm fine," I reassure her. "It was just a few cuts. "She points to the d-shaped burn on my hip. "He branded you." I stare at the raw skin, still red and burning from the silver. Hyun-woo had marked me as a diamondwings wolf but it pleased me to know my father had done the same to him. "It's okay. Hyun-woo got a matching one too," I laugh awkwardly. She doesn't find it very funny and continues cleaning me up then she gets the grocery bag and heats up the food in paper plates. We eat in comfortable silence and I thank Moon Goddess I'm not alone on this journey. My body still aches in the morning but at least the bruises on my face and chest are gone. Ji-won redresses my hip and a few of the cuts on my back before we check out and head downtown for the train station. I buy two tickets to Yangsan just outside of Busan and we board the train, ji-won glued to the window to watch the scenery outside. The journey is long and tiresome but after nearly a day of traveling by train, Ji-won and I arrive in Busan in the late hours of the morning. It was a port town nestled near the sea. Exhausted, Ji-won and I find a small motel on the outskirts of the sleepy town, both of us eager to rest for a few hours. I, however, struggle to get any sleep, my mind reeling over our options. We were still good on the money Gamma jin-hee gave us and it would be plenty for a deposit on a small apartment. I just needed to find a job soon if I wanted to give ji-won a warm comfortable bed to call her own. Mark stirs in my head and groans, wanting to go out for a run. It had almost been two weeks since my last shift and he needed to stretch out his legs. I roll over onto my side and find ji-won wide awake, staring silently at the ceiling. I throw a pillow at her to catch "Want to go for a run?" I grin and she nods eagerly. We make the short walk to the nearby forest and after a quick survey of the area, I guard ji-won while she undresses behind a tree. After a few minutes, a snout brushes up against my back and I turn to see a small light brown wolf bow playfully at me. Like ji-won, her wolf, ji-woo(yes I know the only difference is the last letter), is deaf and mute. Ji-woo's senses, however, make up for the hearing loss. She could see and smell far better than I could. Her green eyes twinkle with delight at being set free and she tugs at my shirt to join her. I hide behind a tree and remove my clothes, inspecting my almost healed wounds before shifting. Like my eomma and appa, Mark is also a silver wolf, his metallic fur gleaming under the last of the day's sunlight. As for gifts, I knew my abilities were related to the mind, but the extent of my strength was a mystery even to me. For a month after my first shift, I heard the never ending thoughts of every person I encountered, their inner voices nearly driving me mad. I could even see their memories, their dreams, their emotions. It was awful being constantly bombarded by random thoughts, unable to even sleep in peace. Mark could not keep their thoughts under control and I locked him in the dark recesses of my mind for a while until I learned to stop the voices with a mental wall. That was the beginning of the end of our relationship. Even now, he refuses to speak to me; he only growls or grumbles in annoyance on occasion. We tried practicing with ji-won but when we reached into her mind, she would go into a catatonic state for a few hours and I couldn't bear to see her go so numb and empty. I haven't used my powers in years, too afraid I might hurt someone. I hand Mark the reins to my body and allow him to enjoy a tiny bit of freedom with Ji-woo. He responds to her play bow and the two race through the trees, jumping over stones and stumps until their lungs burn. Tired out from their sprint, the two make their way to a small stream to drink water. Ji-woo jumps in to cool off, swimming around lazily while Mark lays out in the sun. I let my mind wander to oblivion when I hear rustling in the trees directly behind me. Ji-woo also senses a disturbance and sticks her nose in the air for a sniff. I stare in the direction of the rustling and see two wolves emerge from the trees. The larger wolf has dark brown fur and deep blue eyes which stare curiously at ji-woo and I while the smaller grey wolf looks frightened and hides behind his companion. Rogues. Mark is on his feet in an instant, taking a protective stance in front of ji-woo and growling at the two strangers. The larger wolf backs away and shifts into a man, no more than 27 years old with dirty blond/light brown hair and a piercing on his eyebrow. He is tall, muscled and his arms, chest and stomach are covered in tattoos.
