Moonbound [Paused]

Chapter 23: The Catastrophe pt 2

"Hey, Ji..." Jungkook entered his sister’s room, with exhaustion evident on his face. He had just got back home from back to back meetings and conferences. Jieun was seated at her desk, scribbling notes while flipping through a heavy, leather-bound book.

"You really came back alone? " She asked looking up from her book in surprise .." You know father's not happy about it..right!!"  Jieun said, raising an eyebrow at him.

"I know!!"" Jungkook exhaled heavily, collapsing onto the couch. "He has been giving me death glares all day."

"I’m surprised Yoonie agreed to stay back without you!! " she said, leaning back in her chair. "He never goes anywhere without you or me. It’s... strange."

Jungkook gave a small smile and nodded. "I think he is enjoying himself there though. He likes the cold, the peace and quiet. Plus, Jin-hyung’s pups... he loves spending time with them. And, of course, he has always been passionate about writing...and the pack luna was a big poetry enthusiast...so he is basically living in her library.  The place really suits him."

"Maybe" Jieun conceded, nodding thoughtfully. "I guess he did seem happy....and let the poor thing do something he likes for once" she said as she went back to her book

Jungkook’s gaze shifted to the book on her lap, and its cover marked with the National Archives seal. "What are you working on?" he asked.

"Oh, just a research paper!!"  she replied, turning a page. "I’m studying the history of the forgotten betas...the ones who were powerful before the monarchy oppressed them. Father’s not going to be happy when he hears about it!!"  she added with a laugh.

"Oh!!" " Jungkook nodded, absorbing her words. He glanced at the book again and then at his sister, hoping she might have answers to the questions that were bothering him. "Ji... do you think an alpha and a beta could actually be mated?" He asked

"Of course!!" Jieun said confidently, giving him a reassuring look.

Jungkook hesitated. "Even... if both of them are men?" He asked ,biting in his lips..He knew something strange was happening between him and Jimin..It didn't exactly have a formal explanation but he was sure it had one..one his people are not going to like.

She paused, her expression becoming more serious as she considered his question. "Well... biologically, they can’t have pups together. But they can form a mating bond and take a mating mark. Though, there have been cases where the marks don’t last and tend to fade quickly. They would  have to reestablish the bond. But, you know....these days there are plenty of couples who are together without formal mating. Why do you ask?"

Jungkook shifted uncomfortably. "Oh, it’s just... something came up in a discussion about possibly funding a study on betas." He lied, he wasn't sure how he was supposed to explain his troubles to anyone... especially the fact that he went ahead and made out with a beta while still claiming to love Yoongi

"Funding a beta study? " Jieun frowned "That’s not something I’d expect from the people you deal with. What happened, did someone hit their head or smoked something strong?" she teased.

Jungkook smiled, appreciating her light heartedness. "Yeah... it was unexpected. They were talking about some.... betas having scents that alphas can detect. They wanted to know more about it. But.... don’t you think that’s just a myth?" He asked curiously

Jieun shook her head slightly as her interest suddenly piqued. "Actually, not entirely. I just read about a legend from the west. There’s a lesser known story about a prince from a small province who claimed to have a beta wolf as his fated mate. The prince believed he could sense the beta’s scent, and he wrote poems about it. He thought it was because they were destined to be together." She explained