Taehyung opened the door to the hotel room and stood to the side as Jaci, Zephyr, and Aydan filed into the quiet room filled with the stench of blood.
Jaci stood frozen, her hands up to her mouth as she saw the broken person on the bed, unconscious and badly wounded. Her feet refused to move closer, no matter how much she willed them to do so. Sunny noticed her conflict and walked over to her, pulling Jaci tightly into her arms and turning her away from the grisly view.
Zephyr frowned and headed immediately to the bedside, his bag of herbs and concoctions in his hand. "Aydan, come help me get him uncovered."
Aydan did as he was asked and gently tugged the bloody sheet from the gaping wound stretching lengthwise down Jungkook's body. He grimaced as the smell of the wound reached his nose. "Is it rotting already?"
Zephyr was leaned close to the wound, his nose twitching as it identified the different smells.
"Mm. This is definitely Hunter work. They laced their weapon with an anti-healing agent, along with a coating of monk's hood. The monk's hood by itself would only cause a mild irritation, but when combined with the anti-healing agent, it becomes a powerful substance that induces quick deterioration of the wounded area." He leaned back and pursed his lips, staring at Jungkook's pale face.
"Jaci needs to be near him," said Taehyung. "We are convinced they're fated mates."
Zephyr's head slowly turned towards the vampire. "But they've made no progress towards becoming actual mates."
Jaci pulled away from Sunny and came to stand at the foot of the bed. Her face was red from the tears and her chin quivered. "I wasn't ready," she whispered.
"Ready for what? What's there to be ready for specifically? If you two love each other, you get in with things," chided Zephyr.
Jaci ignored the rebuke and knelt on the opposite side of the bed. She reached out a trembling hand and grasped Jungkook's hand to her cheek. "I'm so sorry," she whispered.
"Take her out of here. I can't work properly if she's here. She might hinder the process," said Zephyr. He was unzipping his bag and pulling out various herbs and bottles filled with different colored liquids.
"I've left him too many times to leave him again, especially in this condition," said Jaci, slowly climbing up onto the bed and laying down beside Jungkook. She faced him and tears kept streaming as she watched for any sign of consciousness.
Zephyr sighed with frustration and looked to Taehyung and Sunny for help.
"Don't look at us. If she wants to stay, deal with it," said Sunny flatly. She rolled her eyes away from Zephyr, and walked over to Jaci. She leaned down and brushed back some dampened hair from the girl's face.
"Jaci, Tae and I are going to step out. Stay with our boy and watch over him for me, okay? We trust you, Jaci."
Jaci barely nodded and Sunny stood up. "If you kill him, or hurt him further, I will hunt you down and make you regret everything you've ever thought of doing in your life."
"Yeah, yeah. Get out," barked Zephyr.
Taehyung grabbed his wife's elbow and the pair left the room only to hear a disgusted "Americans" comment come from Zephyr as the door closed behind them.
***
"Aydan, go get me some warm water. Call down to the front desk and ask for all the towels they can give us. Also, bring that lamp over here closer so I can see more of what I'm doing." Zephyr's orders were clipped and said with experience. Aydan never blinked as he quietly went about obeying his master's demands.
"Keep your hands out of my way," muttered Zephyr to Jaci. "If you are indeed his mate, your presence will help. If not, you will be nothing but a hindrance to me if you make a scene."
Jaci ignored him, instead focusing on Jungkook's face. It was pale, so white. His lips, normally red and inviting, were the same color as his skin and dry and cracked.
Her heart broke for him. She had caused him so much trouble. So much pain. He wouldn't have even been here if she hadn't come. All he wanted was for her to be his Luna. To help him lead his pack into the future. To stay by his side as he did what he had been called upon to do. How could she have been so selfish as to run away from the responsibility? Why had she acted like a scared child?
She reached up slowly and pushed a black lock of hair away from his clammy forehead. His skin felt like paper. She swallowed a sob and tried to keep her movements slow and undisturbing to Zephyr.
I feel your pain now. I understand why you felt so frustrated with me. You waited so long for your mate. When you saw a glimmer of hope in me, I choked it and ran away. How could I have done that to you?
Zephyr packed the wound with gauze filled with his own recipes for healing. As he carefully pressed it into the gaping wound, something caught his attention. He stopped and beckoned Aydan to look also.
Zephyr looked up at Aydan with his eyebrows raised with his silent question.
Do you see what I see?
Yes, it's slowly healing itself!
Zephyr looked over at Jaci, watching her stroke Jungkook's hair as she cried quietly. He watched the wound once more. Every stroke she made, a little more of the wound healed. It definitely wasn't as fast as a wound could normally heal, but considering the severe damage and added anti-healing agents, it was miraculously fast.
Jaci began to whisper her words, unsure if Jungkook could hear her thoughts right now. She leaned over and pressed her forehead to his cheek. "I'm sorry, Jungkook. I'm sorry I left you behind to handle your pack. I'm sorry I was so scared of being a Luna. You were so amazing, so perfect for the job. I felt like a burden to you. Some girl who may never shift into a werewolf, being the Luna to such an amazing pack? I wasn't...ready. I was worried... I couldn't match...up."
Her words became slower and more slurred. Zephyr leaned back in his chair and frowned. "Luna to what pack? As far as I know he's a member of the Blood Mountain Pack. That's Ga-Eun's pack."
Aydan nibbled his bottom lip as he watched Zephyr sift through his thoughts. He glanced over at Jaci who was slipping into a slumber that was typical of a werewolf lending healing energy to their mate. He stepped back and sat down, knowing there was nothing more he could do at the moment. Now, it was a waiting game.
***
Jaci fell into the darkest areas of her mind. She found herself standing alone, in an open clearing lit only by the silvery light of a full moon. She glanced around, unsure if this was real or just her imagination playing tricks on her.
But then she saw movement in the shadows. A form of a wolf slunk along the perimeter of the clearing, choosing to stay out of the moonlight. Low growls could be heard coming from it, and it gave Jaci chills.
"Who's there? Where are we?"
"We...? You are in my realm, my territory. We must speak."
The voice was vaguely familiar to Jaci and she welcomed it in an effort to answer her own burning questions. "Then let us speak."
Slowly, a beautiful brown and white wolf stepped out of the shadows. It's head was lowered, but it's piercing blue eyes stayed trained on Jaci as it moved forward.
"You are Jaci, the one chosen by the Moon to be my carrier," said the wolf. Feminine tones laced its words and set Jaci a bit more at ease.
"I am Jaci. I am not sure I was chosen by the Moon. I was attacked by a rogue wolf."
"If the Moon did not want it to be, it would not be. You have been chosen." The wolf slowly walked a circle around Jaci.
She admired its fur pattern. The brown gently meandered from the wolf's underside, up over the right shoulder and flowed in a river pattern across her back tapering to a point midways up her tail. The moonlight glistened off the white hairs intermingled with the brown, making it look like the peaks of waves on a fast flowing river.
"So what if I'm chosen? I've screwed everything up. Now Jungkook might not even live."
"You haven't screwed up," came another voice, one she knew all too well. Her eyes darted to the edge of the clearing. Another shadow began to emerge into the light.
There, looking completely whole and healthy stood Jungkook, or rather, a figment of Jungkook. He smiled and tugged upwards on his sleeves. The wolf that had been circling Jaci hurried over to him, butting her head gently into his side, rubbing up and down and whining with excitement.
Jaci stood back, unsure of what was actually happening, and confused at how jealous she was of that wolf.
Jungkook knelt down and pressed his forehead to the wolf, closing his eyes while he smiled. "Don't worry, he's just being shy," he mumbled to her, leaning back and scruffy the wolf's ears.
With bright eyes of the most brilliant blue, the wolf bounded off into the darkness where excited yips and barks were heard soon after.
Jungkook stood up and looked over at Jaci. With slow deliberate steps he moved over to stand in front of her, barely leaving any room between them. His hands reached up and lightly cupped the sides of her face, sending rushing pulses of electricity up and down Jaci's arms.
"I can't believe you're here," he whispered, leaning forward and pressing their foreheads together. "I've been looking everywhere for you."
Jaci's eyes closed as the warmth from his forehead spread into hers. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for everything that has happened."
"Don't be. I know I appeared excited to become the next Alpha, but I was nervous too. I didn't want to let Hoseok down, or the rest of the pack. I felt immense pressure on my shoulders. I put too high of expectations on you, Jaci. I'm so sorry. I should have eased you into our way of life, not just thrown you into it and expect you to be okay with everything."
Jaci slowly shook her head, leaning back to look into his dark brown eyes. "I think we could both argue until the sun comes up about who is more at fault here. But I need to know one thing."
"What's that?" He leaned forward, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead.
"Is this real, or am I dreaming?"
Laughter, clear and bright, bubbled up from Jungkook's chest, causing Jaci to smile as well.
"Yes, it's real. My body may be a mess, but my mind is still okay. The minute you came into the room I wanted to reach out to you. But I was too weak. It wasn't until you were much closer that I could reach you."
Jaci reached up and held his face, her eyes searching his eyes for any sign of pending doom. She saw nothing but bright cheerfulness. "I thought I only fell asleep."
"No, your body is doing a lot of work right now. Just you being near me is healing me, Jaci. If you hadn't come -"
Jaci pressed her lips to his, stopping the words she never wanted to hear come from him. She felt him stiffen and then relax into her hands, his mouth slowly accepting hers. His hands wound around her waist, pulling her closer, and tighter. He felt her energy coursing through him and knew his body was responding to her in a way only a mate could.
Jaci pulled back, breathing shallow and fast. "I'm not running away again, Jungkook. I will be your Luna, and I accept you as my Alpha."
As she finished her words, Jaci felt an energy racing through her veins that she had never felt before. Her eyes snapped to Jungkook and she saw his eyes glowing a bright golden yellow. They mirrored her own eyes back to her and while she couldn't see the color, she could see they were lighter and brighter.
"What's happening?" she whispered.
Jungkook's smile grew brighter. "I think we found a solution to the problem. You accepted me. You accepted your position as Luna. I think, Jaci, when we finally wake up, you'll be a full-fledged werewolf."
***
Zephyr watched the two laying side by side on the bed. He noticed various expressions coasting across their faces as if they were having a conversation only they two could hear. But Zephyr wasn't anxious for them to wake up and live happily ever after. No, he had questions that he would be demanding answers for.
Aydan watched Zephyr study the pair. He watched darkness creep over Zephyr's face and it filled Ayden with uneasiness. He had heard the things Jaci had whispered to Jungkook about being the Luna. He wasn't sure if she thought he and Zephyr couldn't hear her, or if she just forgot they were listening. Regardless, he would need to be on point for when the pair awakened, if they awakened.
***
"Sunny, stop pacing. You're making me dizzy." Taehyung laid down on the small sofa in the grand lobby. It wasn't extremely comfortable, but at least it was better than standing. He was tired, even for a vampire.
Sunny nibbled on her thumb nail and kept pacing around the little sitting area. "I don't know how you are so calm. Jungkook is probably dying, and we've left him in the hands of some werewolf kooky shaman person."
"Do you think he will shrink his head if we request it?" teased Taehyung, with a glimmer of a smirk on his lips.
Sunny stopped and glared darkly at her husband. "If I wasn't afraid someone would see me, I would attack you with a leg off this coffee table."
She gestured angrily at the table with its pointy wooden legs. Taehyung swallowed thickly as he imagined those legs being used as a wooden stake, shoved directly into his heart.
"Surely, you don't really want me deader than I already am," he pouted, blinking pitifully up at his wife.
"How I wish I could be as glib and relaxed as you," grumbled Sunny, flopping down onto her husband's middle rather than the chair near to the couch.
Taehyung let out a soft "oof" but decided to enjoy the closeness of his wife rather than complain about how squashed he felt. Truthfully, he barely noticed her weight on him.
"We've done everything we can for Jungkook. I brought the kooky shaman to do what Ga-Eun would have done if she were here. I brought Jaci to do the part the crazy concoctions wouldn't. If she wasn't here I would be the textbook definition of panicked and worried. Trust me."
"How can you be so sure she can help?" Sunny looked down at her husband with a worried pout.
"I'm not completely sure, but I am banking on old werewolf lore and trusting that they will both heal because of it." Taehyung smiled warmly at his wife, tugging her down to lay on top of him.
Pushing some hair away from her face, he grinned and leaned up to peck her lips with his own. In his vampire voice, he sung his next words into her mind and caused her to relax into a restful sleep. "Now, lay your head down, close your eyes, and let me tell you a story about the time I saved Jungkook from a rabid bunny."
-Avid_Rdr 💜