Once the darkness faded, Jimin woke up to the feeling of slowly rolling waves caressing his weakened body and birds screeching up there in the sky.
The first thing he noticed was the wet sand sticking to his freezing skin, then his uncomfortably dry throat and the fact that he could barely open his swollen eyes.
He groaned and rolled from his back to his side before pushing himself up into a slumped sitting position. While his memory was still hazy, his body definitely reminded him of the physical strain Jimin had put himself though. If his muscles could speak, the fox was sure they would be screaming at him right now.
It took a few more seconds but then a thought crossed his mind, a terrifying realization as his memories returned
"Jungkook!" He croaked and flinched when hearing his own, rough voice.
He swayed and stumbled a lot, feeling dehydrated and drained but, thankfully, he didn't have to look around for long. Only a couple dozen steps down the shore he found a very obvious black shock of hair in the otherwise almost snow white sand.
Exhausted, the fox fell to his knees by Jungkook's side with a hand on the Alpha's shoulder to try and shake him awake.
"Hey…" he said softly, sounding breathless already despite it only being such a tiny amount of physical activity.
"Jungkook-ah… Please, wake up…"
He was already close to tears when Jungkook's eyes finally did flutter upon. A sigh of relief instantly left Jimin's burning lips, his tense shoulders slumped and he dropped to the ground, fingers still digging into the other's shirt while the Alpha released a rustling cough.
"Fuck…" Jungkook wheezed before quickly rolling onto his stomach and throwing up in the sand.
"Fucking hell, I thought I was done for…"
"Me too." Jimin mumbled.
They stayed like this for a long while, just lying in the sand and staring at the slowly darkening sky until Jimin forced himself to get up again.
"We should find a safe place to stay. I'd rather not have to sleep outside when it starts to rain."
The sentence was followed by a pause during which he put a hand around his throat and closed his eyes. A part of him would still rather not hear his own voice but another, the one that was healing, was definitely relieved to be able to communicate much more comfortably.
"I always thought your voice fits you well. It's very sweet and pretty. I'm glad I was able to hear it again."
Surprised, Jimin blinked his eyes open and met Jungkook's gaze. The wolf looked straight at him, no shyness to be found.
Jimin, on the other hand, felt instantly flustered and looked away, feeling his cheeks growing hot. He couldn't remember the last time someone complimented him for something other than his unusual fur."
"Thank you…"
To distract from his own embarrassment, Jimin offered Jungkook his hand to pull him to his feet. As soon as he stood, however, Jungkook already lost his balance and would've fallen over if Jimin didn't have the reflexes to catch him mid fall.
"What the hell?! Are you okay?"
"Yeah…" Jungkook sighed and shook his head.
"You should go and look for a safe place by yourself."
"What? No! Why would I leave you here all by yourself? You're coming with me."
"But I can't! I can't fucking walk, Jimin!
Alarmed, Jimin gently lowered Jungkook back to the ground, directing his attention towards the wolf's leg instead.
His pants were completely drenched in blood but Jimin hadn't thought much about it with everything else that happened.
Now, as he ripped the fabric open and saw the horribly damaged flesh for the first time, he felt as if his heart was about to stop.
It wasn't just a bite mark Yoongi's father had inflicted but he almost ripped the flesh from Jungkook's bone!
"Oh, dear forest spirits…"
"I doubt that spirits will be much help in this situation." Jungkook hissed through gritted teeth.
Jimin felt his stomach turn. He felt incredibly sick just from looking at the deep gashes parting Jungkook's skin and imagining the horrific pain he must've been in this whole time.
It's no wonder that he was sinking like a stone when they jumped into the water, the fox himself wouldn't be able to swim like that either.
"I'm serious...I can't get up. You have to find a place to hide by yourself. I would only slow you down."
As he was thinking, Jimin nervously nibbled on his already raw bottom lip.
It's true that it would be hard to move Jungkook around in his current state, but even so, Jimin couldn't possibly leave him here all by himself.
No. This wasn't an option.
"I'll help you." He said with that voice that didn't accept any rejection. "You can use me as your crutch. Even if you put all your weight on me, I don't mind."
Despite his bold claims, they didn't make it very far.
As soon as they reached a huge lake not far away from the ocean shores, Jimin barely managed to help Jungkook lay back down before he himself collapsed from exhaustion.
Thankfully, it didn't seem like it would rain anytime soon, so sleeping under the starry sky wasn't actually as bad as they thought and being able to drink the lake water certainly gave them some strength.
Jimin was the first to wake up during the early morning hours of the next day.
While Jungkook was still catching up on some much needed rest, the fox decided to make himself useful by catching some fish and trying to think about how they should go about creating themselves a home.
He's never done it before, building a home that is. It seemed like a rather difficult task with no tools at hand and only one healthy person around.
Still, it might be possible if they just build a tent. He could use long sticks and branches together with furs if he managed to catch some small prey.
Later, when Jungkook was feeling better, it would be much easier to hunt some of the bigger animals to use their stronger bones and bigger furs instead. They might even be able to create some leather.
But whatever plans they have, they should make sure to execute them before winter. Otherwise they will, most definitely, be fucked.
When Jimin returned to the place where he left Jungkook earlier, he was shocked to see the wolf trying to get up by himself, his face being as pale as the moon. He swayed and wobbled before finally falling back down with a scream.
"Jungkook-ah!"
Instantly, Jimin was by his side, a panicked expression on his face.
"What are you doing?!" He scolded helplessly. "You have to stay still and rest."
"I can't rest. If I do, we're going to freeze to death."
"We won't! I'll take care of it, Jungkookie. I promise!"
"What can you do, though?! You're just an Omega!
He regretted the words as soon as he saw Jimin's expression turn distraught.
Brokenly, he whispered a weak, "Sorry…" and rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and pointer finger as if he was still trying his hardest to regain control over his temper but failed.
"I'm used to taking care of Omegas and being reliable. These days, it feels like I'm doing none of those things and I'm failing in every single way possible."
In an attempt to make peace, he asked Jimin to give him some space so he could calm down, only for a few minutes. Jimin nodded without saying a word before turning around and disappearing into the thickets of the woods.
I guess you just don't know, the fox thought while throwing one last glance over his shoulder to where Jungkook sunk deeper into himself, body shaken by sobs as he hit the tree he was leaning on only for his own hand to be covered in cuts and bruises over time.
You never know how deep the scars from your past truly go until it's killing you slowly.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
There was a rustling in the dark of the woods, a squeak, then a tiny piglet appeared in the middle of a small clearing and happily threw itself into the mud.
Being too young to understand the true dangers of the wild, it played around without noticing the predator who was cowering in the shadows, waiting patiently for his chance.
Then, things suddenly happened very quickly.
In the blink of an eye, a small ball of pink fluff flew through the air. After a very short scuffle, the loud squeaking noises faded into silence and the gasping pink fox lifted his head in victory before grabbing the piglet and dragging it back towards the lake.
I'll show you, he thought with a scrunch of his wet, black button nose. Jeon Jungkook, I'll show you what a true Omega can do.
Although he tried very hard not to care that much about it, the lack of trust Jungkook seemed to have in his abilities still kind of hurt. Sure, he might not be as good of a hunter as an Alpha wolf, he might not know how to build a big house either, but he wasn't useless. If he had to, he could definitely keep them both alive for a while.
When the trophy that was his prey got stuck in a mud pit on the way, Jimin wiggled his butt and pulled even harder. When it still wouldn't budge, the pink fox released a tiny baby growl that was followed by what he thought was a shockingly loud thunder but turned out to be something very different when he finally turned around.
Right behind him stood a huge boar. Judging from its enraged gaze, it must be the mother of the baby he just killed and it was clearly out for blood. Jimin's blood, in fact. He couldn't even blame her, to be honest. If it was his pup, he'd do anything to make the murderer suffer, as well.
"I'm sorry…" he thought while clumsily crawling backwards but it didn't help much.
With a last, piercing scream the big animal was dashing straight towards him, tusks and all. A murderous creature.
Only a second before being hit, Jimin jumped out of the way and started to run but the boar was much faster than he originally thought and suddenly hit him hard from behind, sending Jimin flying against a tree.
With a groan, the small fox helplessly fell to the ground and stayed there for what felt like minutes but couldn't have possibly been more than a few seconds.
Just when he thought this was it, it's over, the boar suddenly screamed and then… silence.
Jimin didn't dare breathe.
All he could see was two options. On one hand, the boar could be preparing another attack. On the other… something could've taken the animal down. Something even more dangerous.
"Now what do we have here, hm?"
A deep, male voice.
It didn't seem familiar but also not necessarily hostile. Still, Jimin kept his head low and his eyes shut, even when a hand grabbed his petite, quivering body to lift him into the air.
"Is that a fox?! It looks so weird!" Another voice yelled and this one was breathless. Maybe he was the one who fought the boar, but the first one instantly put him in his place with gentle sternness.
"Hey. Be quiet, Hobi-yah. Calling someone weird is a pretty rude thing to do. The poor thing went through a lot, don't scare it even more."
"But Jinnie… Do you think it's even alive? Look, it's not moving and the eyes are closed too."
Again, Jimin was just kind of manhandled and held up by his bushy tail. The instant pain that shot from his ass up to his spine had him squeak in a matter of seconds. Even his eyes filled with tears until the tall brunette with the wide shoulders and infectious laugh finally turned him around to hold him properly by the chest.
"Sorry, little one. I was curious to see how long you'll be able to play dead."
The one called hobi, chuckled along. He even reached out to pull on those huge fox ears, releasing amazed Ah's and Oh's until Jimin had enough and finally returned to his very naked, quietly growling human form.
"Oh my…" Jin gasped at the sight.
Thankfully, he was quick to take off his white fur coat, throwing it over Jimin instead.
"See, Hoseokie, we teased him too much. Now he's mad. Although, I guess it was worth it. At least we know that he is indeed a normal Omega and not an anomaly without human form."
"I don't know if I would call the pink hair normal but I get what you mean." Hobi said with raised brows, a curious look on his face. "How did you come here, pink Fox? Rogue Omegas don't usually survive very long on their own. You should probably join our pack if you want to live."
Jin only shook his head at that. He was already one step ahead and pulled the fox uncomfortably close to sniff on his cheek, his neck, even his arm. It was then that Jimin caught a whiff of their scents, as well. Oh. That Jin guy definitely smelled like Omega wolf. In fact, something about their scents seemed vaguely familiar.
At the same time, Jin pulled a face and pursed his lips, looking like something in Jimin's scent threw him off.
"I don't think he's a rogue. I can smell Alpha blood on him."
"Aww!" Hoseok exclaimed at that. "Is your Alpha hurt, little one?! I'm sure we can help when you lead us to him. Jinnie Hyung here is one of our healer Omegas. He's really good at it too! We were just about to grab some herbs."
"Oh, come on. Be quiet, Sunshine. Don't flatter me in front of strangers. You should do it tonight, in front of everyone. He's right though, little darling fox. I'm sure I could help your mate. There's no use in hiding him anyway, you know. Our pack will find him eventually."
Despite looking panicked, Jimin didn't say a word but kept his plush lips tightly squeezed shut.
Sure, they could definitely need some help. But he wasn't enough of a fool to lead two complete strangers to an injured Alpha who wasn't able to defend himself.
He would never betray Jungkook like that.
"He won't speak? Should I just Alpha voice him, Jinnie?"
Hoseok was jumping from one leg to the other, looking skittish as he glanced at the older who had lifted his face towards the sky with his eyes closed, thinking hard.
"No. I don't think forcing him will help much, even if it's for his own good." He finally replied with a sigh, though his eyes started to sparkle shortly after, mind already blooming with new ideas.
"We can, however, make a deal."
Under Jimin's suspicious gaze, the brunette Omega wolf grabbed the huge pig that he only noticed now was lying in its own blood, most likely dead.
"Look, Pink Rose. I'm guessing you were hunting because your Alpha can't, right? And if you just arrived here, you probably need some supplies. We could help you with that. For starters, we could give you the big piggy here as a gift. I'm sure Hoseokie would love to carry it home for you, too. On top of that, if we know where you live, we can inform our pack about it, so they won't think you're a danger to us and they'll leave you alone. Let's say… It's a peace offering?"
No. Definitely not. That was Jimin's initial thought. After thinking it through some more, though, he quickly started to pause and sway because damn, they're right.
The little piglet already would've helped them a lot but a huge sow?! That would be amazing.
The much bigger bones especially would make for great tools that would be extremely helpful if he was trying to build a home or anything really. Maybe he'd even be able to strengthen the walls and the roof with it.
Besides, even though they smelled like wolves, Jimin couldn't find the slightest hint of aggression in their scents. The only things he felt was curiosity and a friendly kind of warmth.
It reminded him of family, that feeling, and suddenly Jimin felt like he was about to cry, his resistance wavered.
If it was just those two and they would truly help them out… it might be okay, right? It could secure their chance of survival.
Again, Jimin glanced at the big pig. He scrunched his nose, hands pulling the fur coat tighter around his naked body as if to hide himself before he finally lowered his head in shame and silently pointing at the lake.
The two strangers shared a glance but didn't utter a word while following after a still very silent Jimin with their dead prey in tow.
Unsurprisingly, Jungkook must've smelled the two strange scents long before they appeared in front of him. He smelled Jimin too, but it was still a shock when he saw an unknown Omega put a hand on his fox's back, not pushing him forward but definitely making sure that he wouldn't run away.
The two strangers, however, seemed even more surprised. Hoseok even started to growl and so did Jungkook while the two Omegas quickly jumped in the middle of them to deescalate the situation.
"It's a black fucking wolf!" Hoseok yelled.
Jin just cursed and grabbed his arm, pulling him back while, at the same time, Jimin slipped away to wrap his arms around Jungkook's tense frame.
"It's okay…" he whispered, lips barely touching the younger's twitching ear, his voice a soft murmur that was created exclusively to calm a raging Alpha's temper.
"They saved my life, Jungkookie. They aren't so bad!"
When Jimin glanced over his shoulder to see what was going on behind them, a realization hit him. He noticed it before but the stranger's scents strangely reminded him of Taehyung. When seeing the now transformed Alpha wolf with the chocolate brown fur, he suddenly knew why.
This must be the remains of Taehyung's original pack. The brown wolves who didn't want to fight and eventually suffered from the betrayal of their black counterparts.
It's no wonder then that this Hoseok guy wasn't exactly happy to see one of the devils of their past return.
Unfortunately, neither of them had much time to ponder over any of that. Both of the Alphas could barely be contained and Jin threw Jimin a hectic glance before yelling at him to come over, promising they would keep him safe.
When Jimin only shook his head in return, Jin stretched out a hand, his voice turning even more urgent.
"There's no need to be scared! He's injured. He won't be able to keep you hostage any longer! We will protect you!"
"He's not forcing me to do anything."
It was the first time Jimin spoke directly to them. The panic he felt must've shown on his face because Jin looked perplexed and even Hoseok paused his aggressive growling, seeming confused.
Stumbling to his feet, Jimin puffed his chest and stretched out his arms to protect the younger and make himself look much bigger and more threatening than he actually was. The storm inside of his calm sea eyes had once again picked up speed, warning everyone who dared to come close that he wouldn't shy away from defending what he feared could be taken away from him.
"Jungkook is my future mate. If you want to hurt him, you'll have to get rid of me first and I swear, I won't make it easy for you. Besides, if it's the black wolves you have a problem with, it has nothing to do with us anyway. We just fled from there. We're not connected to them!"
Taken aback by the surprisingly passionate speech, Hoseok turned into his human form, causing Jin to sigh in relief as he let himself fall on his hands and knees before plopping down on his butt and using his hand to wipe his sweaty forehead.
"Well… a fox and wolf couple does seem pretty controversial. I can see why you would have to get out of there."
Hoseok still didn't look completely convinced but shrugged nonetheless. He probably didn't want to fight with the older, Jimin guessed and released a sharp breath. Jin's trust in them might have been their saving grace.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
Despite the tension that still lingered in the air, the two brown wolves did keep their promise when it came to taking care of Jungkook's open wounds. Jin did, at least. Hoseok mostly just glared suspiciously and kept an eye on them from afar.
With Jimin holding him down, Jungkook begrudgingly allowed Jin to cut open his already ripped pants and the older Omega's expression instantly became concerned as he grabbed some tools from the bag he was carrying around his waist.
The next thirty minutes must've been the most chilling of Jimin's whole life.
At first, Jungkook only turned pale, his chest stopped moving as if he was holding his breath. It was easy to tell that he tried to keep it in but eventually, when Jin started to stitch the nastiest of the wounds, he couldn't keep up the brave facade and started to whimper. When looking at his deathly white face, Jimin saw a wet sheen cover Jungkook's eyes and his heart started to break. He was clearly in pain.
"You'll be okay… just stay strong for a little longer." He whispered but his words wouldn't be able to stop the screams that followed.
It became so bad, in fact, that Hoseok had to help them hold the young Alpha down before he could possibly hurt himself in the process.
Half an hour later, Jungkook was finally completely patched up and wrapped into the big fur coat that Jimin had gotten from Jin before.
The fox himself looked rather shaken up by the whole situation but despite Jin's pitiful glances and him wanting to help, Hoseok insisted they had to go home now. The two of them were only supposed to collect a few herbs when they found Jimin. If they stayed for any longer, their pack mates would definitely start to worry.
"Are you sure you don't want to come with us?" Was the last question Jin directed towards Jimin who adamantly shook his head. He would never leave Jungkook's side, especially when he was in a state like this.
"Well… Okay. We'll be back tomorrow to look after the injuries and bring you guys some blankets at least, right Hobi?"
A snort was all the Alpha could muster and Jungkook instantly replied with a weak growl of his own but was shut up by a quick slap on the back of his head combined with a warning glare from Jimin who mumbled a very soft, "We would appreciate that. Thank you…"
Only when the two wolves had left the area did Jungkook relax his aggressive stance, though only to tiredly stare at Jimin instead.
"You said you still want to mate?" He finally asked the question that clearly sat on the tip of his tongue but Jimin only pursed his lips and scrunched his nose, the flush on his cheeks turning as pink as his hair.
"That's all you think about after everything that happened? I only said it to save your ass, Jungkook."
"You make it sound like this whole situation was my fault but you're the one who went on a hunt despite knowing that Omegas aren't made to take down huge prey. Hell, you yourself told me that even Alpha foxes know better than that. There's a reason why we hunt in groups and not alone. It's fucking dangerous!"
With every new word, he seemed to become more angry while Jimin, at the same rate, felt more and more hurt.
"I know it wasn't the safest thing to do, Jungkook-ah!" He finally broke down and screamed, almost in tears before quickly forcing his emotions back down.
"I'm trying my best, okay!? But I couldn't just watch you die, I had to do something! Your injuries looked so horrible and I just didn't know what to do. You don't fucking know how terrified I was..."
In an act of desperation, Jimin whirled around to run away from the conversation, from the frustration and pain he felt, but Jungkook wouldn't let him. The Alpha grabbed his hand, pulled him back. Next thing he knew, Jimin found himself in Jungkook's arms, held so tight, he couldn't breathe, couldn't speak. All he could do was bury his face in Jungkook's chest as he listened to Jungkook's racing heart and his carefully calming Alpha voice.
"… I'm sorry, Jiminie. I don't mean to accuse you but I was scared too, you know? You're bruised from head to toe. Your hands and knees are covered in blood. When I first saw you come back with those two strangers, I thought they did something to you. I thought they hurt you. And even though they didn't, the wild animals definitely could have. Hunting big prey isn't what you're supposed to do and I don't want you to try it now when I can't even be there to help if something happens. I NEED you to be safe, okay? Just stay here and catch some fish for us to eat. I'll take care of everything else when I'm feeling better."
"But what if you're never getting better…? What if it gets colder and you freeze to death because I didn't do enough to save you? I already couldn't save my family because I was too stupid to realize something was wrong. I'm not making the same mistake again."
At this point, Jimin looked up and Jungkook instantly used the moment to put his hands on his cheeks, pulling him closer until their foreheads met and their noses touched.
It was a surreal experience for both of them. Despite everything that happened, they've never been all that affectionate with each other. So, having Jungkook scent him in such an intimate way made Jimin's head spin with a whirlwind of different emotions ranging from cautious delight to sadness and utter confusion.
"Hey, stop it. You're not stupid." The Alpha scolded gently as the tips of their noses brushed against each other like two lost feathers caught in the wind.
"You're my sweet miracle fox and I'll punch everyone who says mean things about you. Even if it's yourself."
"You would punch me…?"
"If you keep saying you're stupid? Maybe. I'll definitely pinch that tiny nose of yours, though. I might even bite it off if you're not careful."
Only when Jimin started to giggle did Jungkook relax his grip on the other's cheeks, looking very much pleased with himself when he slowly pulled away and Jimin instinctively followed his touch, seemingly craving more.
It's been a while since he last got any physical affection and even when he did… cuddling with Taehyung just wasn't the same as this. A touch so bittersweet, yet so addictive.
"Watch out. You look like you're about to drool all over yourself, little Omega."
The teasing tone of Jungkook's voice instantly pulled Jimin back to the present. The embarrassed fox leaned away in an instant, eyes growing as wide as plates and cheeks burning red before he jumped to his feet with his head held high, tail puffed and standing up straight.
"Shut up, I'm not drooling! You're so annoying..."
While he tried to get up and away from the Alpha, Jimin accidentally touched Jungkook's leg. It was only a tiny brush of his fingers but Jungkook instantly hissed and growled, causing Jimin to flinch before he realized that it was an expression of pain, not aggression.
"Ah… Sorry…"
"It's okay." Jungkook replied through clenched teeth, trying his best to force a smile.
"I'm okay."
Although Jimin could clearly see that he wasn't, he swallowed all of the disagreements he had and silently nodded his head instead while sweetly petting Jungkook's head. If the Alpha wanted to act tough, that's fine. At least he's not drowning in sorrow.
"Alright, annoying baby Alpha. Just stay here and relax then. I'll go and take care of the pig. Make sure you're hungry later, okay? We're going to have a huge dinner today."
The agreeable smile stayed on Jungkook's face even after Jimin had turned his back towards him. When the Omega was busy working, though, all forced happiness suddenly faded and Jungkook's pale face turned anxious instead.
He watched Jimin set up a small campfire, watched the flickering fire illuminate his round cheeks, his small nose, pouty lips.
Even in the worst circumstances, he was still such a pretty creature. Too pretty for a life like this but he still flourished somehow. He did it all on his own.
Goddammit.
"I have to get better…" Jungkook whispered and angrily slapped his leg which only made him hiss again, face scrunching up in anguish and pain. His glistening eyes turned bright red for a second before the glow died down again and he leaned back with a frustrated sigh.
"If I don't... if I won't be able to run or hunt ever again… I might as well just fucking die."