Jungkook and Hani fell through the passage that divided the cave in two distinct parts. The water came flushing in, almost knocking both of them down. Quickly, The Alpha softly pulled Hani with him to the new area before putting the big bolder back in its space. Previously, it had been blocking their entry but Jungkook had moved it away, wanting to prevent them both from getting drowned. As the bolder was moved back to its initial space, the water stopped flooding. Jungkook took a deep breath, realizing that they were safe, now. His heart was beating rapidly in his chest, just like Hani's, both filled with adrenaline. The first thing he did was turning around to check on his mate. The girl was still overwhelmed with her thoughts, the thunder and the danger of being submerged underwater. Jungkook left a small kiss to the top of her head, trying to comfort the scared girl. He, too, found comfort in the small gesture.
"How did that much water even get in, so fast?"
Hani asked bewildered with what had happened. Jungkook sighed, running his hand through his hair.
"I don't know, I genuinely don't"
A lot of weird, unbelievable things had happened ever since Hani and Jungkook had stepped into the Endymion forest. Hani's dreams, the blue light, the whole location of the cave, the cave itself and what it hid inside it and now the weather. All that had happened ever since Jungkook and Hani went inside that forest remained unanswered and unexplainable. Isn't that what magic is all about?
The place where the mates were at, trying to catch their breaths and recollecting their thoughts, resembled a narrow hallway. The torch had been lost so, yet again, Jungkook and Hani found themselves in complete darkness. The Alpha's hand gently touched Hani's and tightly, he held it in his. The feeling of his warmth, his touch and his presence in that dark unfamiliar space, helped lessened her fear and worry.
"C'mon we should keep on walking"
Despite the absence of light, Hani nodded her head at him. They went back to walking, this time a lot slower. After what they had seen and experienced so far, they moved more carefully, scared about what kind of thing would they see next. Once more, they were roaming around the new found area of the cave, not really knowing where to go. They just followed the corridor through its multiple curves and counter curves. It felt like they were trapped inside a maze. The Alpha could see the next turn coming up, however, what caught his attention was the light that peeked from it. Hani noticed it too but what seemed to grab her attention was the sound of birds chirping from afar. She squeezed Jungkook's hand, bubbling excitement grew on her belly. Jungkook's and Hani's steps fastened at the slight hope of seeing the outside world again. When they turned, the most magical sight welcomed them.
The cave extended its walls to the side, creating an open wide area. The wall that, supposedly would be in front of Hani and Jungkook, did not exist. Instead of it, a glimpse of what laid outside of the cave showed itself to the couple. From where they stood, they could see bright and colorful vegetation growing there. The sound of birds chirping, the sound of water running. Paradise, waiting for them. Inside the area where they were both frozen, bathing on the view of the outside world, more toys like the ones that they had found were carefully organized next to the walls. Unlike the other area that they had seen, this one looked much more peaceful, calmer, beautiful. It was bright, warm, welcoming.
"What is this place..."
Jungkook asked in complete awe at the scenery. With Hani's hands still in his, he took a step further inside, dying to know what more treasures it hid. The girl looked around the place; her breathing was caught in her throat, her eyes sparkled more than the stars. A sense of magic – a universe bigger than her – took over her heart. She smiled from one ear to the other, gazing at all the small little details that decorated that space. Her hand slipped from Jungkook's and her feet guided her towards the walls.
"Jungkook" Her voice trailed off in astonishment at what decorated the surfaces. "There's drawings here"
"Drawings?"
Jungkook asked in shock, running to see for himself what Hani was talking about.
"There's a wolf here. Moon, stars." Her fingers softly touched the engravings, as if that made her understand them better. "I think it's telling a story"
"A story?"
"Yes, look" Hani said excitedly, redrawing the image of the moon with her fingers. "This is a full moon. These are the stars. And there is a wolf under them"
Jungkook saw it. The circle surrounded by the little crosses that tried to mimic the stars. It was oddly similar to Hani's mark, the only difference being that Hani's mark had a crescent moon. Two arrows connected the moon and the stars with a wolf that was placed under them. Hani naturally moved alongside the wall, her eyes following the engravings that continued on. A "U" upside down figure, which resembled a cave shielding the wolf... was that the cave that they were in, right now? Both Hani's and Jungkook's figures trailed the images as they passed through them feeling incredibly drawn to them. The once lonely wolf was not anymore, he was surrounded by many others like him. He was depicted standing on top of a big rock, looking at the moon that was full above him. Images of their life in the pack were represented. Their battles, their losses, their wins. Jungkook recognized the next scenes and Hani did too. They both had heard about it from Jinsang. It was the wolves being hunted down by others of the same kind, but far more different from them. Then, the wolves seemed to be leaving each other behind. That was the last scene on the rocky wall. The story ended there. Jungkook and Hani shared a look between each other, both of their hands still lingering on top on the engravings.
Hani had always been an adventurer. One that couldn't give up, refused to leave a story unfinished. Her eyes landed on the piece of ivy that had grew on the wall. She got reminded of what the ivy had hidden at the entrance of the cave and an idea popped on her head. Surprising Jungkook, she ripped the ivy from the wall. Hani had been right. The story did not end there. Carved exactly like the first image Jungkook and Hani had seen, another one laid in front of them. This one, however, had two wolves. An arrow connecting the moon to a dark wolf and another arrow connecting a lighter colored wolf to the stars. Hani scrunched her eyebrows in confusion, wondering why did these two particular wolves had color when the others didn't. The others had just been carved into the rocky surface but these ones had been colored, decorated. One in white and the other in black.
"Hani"
The Alpha's voice was laced with confusion; a very noticeable tone of nervousness was in it. Hani turned around to face him, her hand right on top of the white wolf. Jungkook's eyes were glued to the engraving in front of them, his eyes stared at it agape in shock. Seeing him like that, made Hani's heart waver in her chest. She grew nervous as well. A weird feeling swirled in the air. The same feeling that runs through your veins when you feel like something big is about to happen. As if something is about to change your life, drastically.
"What color..." Jungkook's eyes met hers; both of them were nervous. "What color is your wolf?"
Hani looked back at where her hand still remained - covering the white wolf. Softly, she removed her hand away and that's when realization hit her. She looked back at Jungkook; her eyes wide open.
"W-white" Hani said, disbelief flowing out of her mouth. "My wolf is white"
Jungkook's hand reached out to touch the black wolf in the wall of the cave. He trailed its figure slowly. He closed his eyes for a second, trying to convince himself he was overthinking it. But he was sure of it. God, he could feel that he was right about it. He just knew. It made perfect sense in his heart and in his mind. The Alpha glanced at Hani once he felt her pinky delicately touch his hand. Hani was doing the exact same thing as him. Her eyes were glued to the white wolf on the wall, a certain magical aura coming from her. At that moment, Jungkook gazed at them as if he was a third person in the room. Everything became crystal clear, or at least, some of it became in his eyes.
"This is us" Jungkook said, finally, moving his hand closer to Hani's so that they would be standing side by side, like the two wolves. "This is us right here, baby"
"How did they know that we would come?" Hani asked, looking at Jungkook in complete confusion mixed with amazement. "What does the arrows even mean?"
"I don't know." Breathlessly,Jungkook said as he removed his hand from the wall. "I just know that this right here" The Alpha pointed at the wall in front of them. "This is telling the story of the first True Alpha. This is the first pack ruled by one. Their traditions and their story. Their demise and how they got extinct. And then, there's us."
"Where do we fit in all of this?"
"At the end of their story. At the beginning of ours"
Hani's hand fell from the wall and she took a step back, wanting to look at the bigger picture. Jungkook's words were resonating in her heart – they were telling her more than what the words in reality meant. It had awakened a feeling of purpose in her. A sense of duty to a generation that had been long gone. Jungkook felt it too. That they were a part of something that was bigger than them, bigger than revenge, bigger than their past, bigger than their present. Just bigger.
"So, the blood"
"They were slaughtered in that room that we were in. They lived here... in hiding"
Hani felt nauseous, revolted more than ever. She had been in a place where thousands of lives had been taken. She was at the place where they had been slaughtered. She had stepped over bodies, although they had decomposed with time, vanished. However, their image was still there in her head; that was enough. The image that her mind was creating would definitely haunt her for the next nights. Pain was the next emotion that washed over her. Looking at the toys, the wood cutlery sprawled across the floor of the cave, her heart shrunk in her chest. She couldn't help but think about how many families had been destroyed, how many young lives had been taken away, how many lovers had been separated – because of power. The girl could feel their pain as if it was her own. She got reminded of her family and her new pack. She wouldn't know what to do if death ever came knocking on her door like that.
The Alpha was looking around the place, he too immersed in his own thoughts. His mind was taking him down darker paths than he had hoped for. He was taken back to the day he lost his family, to the day he almost lost Hani. The blood that he had seen on the floor was exactly like the one he had on his hands. The scratch marks exactly like the ones he had given to others. The furniture reminded him of how his house looked like after the fire – deserted, ruined. The depiction of their demise reminded Jungkook of how easily he could lose Hani. He didn't want to think about it, he knew what would happen if he did. He'd only dwell more into his guilt, into his hatred towards himself. All these wolves carved on the walls were great, powerful, leaders. Meanwhile, ever since the day that he was born, Jungkook only brought pain and death to those around him. Was he being punished by the moon goddess? Was she angry at True Alphas for giving up on their kind and was now lashing out on Jungkook? Why him? Why had he been chosen to be someone he's not? To fit shoes that are far too big for his feet? And why is it bringing his family, the ones he cares for, into his own nightmare?
Jungkook sighed loudly and his eyes landed on Hani who was looking at the opening on the cave. The sound of water running was calming down her thoughts and at the same time, turned her curious regarding as to where the sound came from. Without warning, she walked towards the opening. Her feet were just at edge where the cave's floor ended. Jungkook was standing right next to her, looking down at the scenery under them. It was a small forest that was trapped by more walls that belonged to the cave, yet the top was uncovered and allowed them to see the sky above. It was blue, showing no signs of the storm that had caused just a few hours ago. A small waterfall fed the crystal-clear lake with water so blue; one would believe it had been painted. Everything there was brightly colored, untouched by human hands or any other hands. A small piece of paradise standing right in front of Hani and Jungkook. Hani found it hard to believe this place was real. Still, everything on those woods was.
"Can we take a look?"
The girl asked, her eyes never leaving the scenery in front of her that grew more and more beautiful in her eyes. Jungkook noticed some rocks that were piled up next to the edge, forming a type of stairs. He grabbed her hands and he gently guided her down. Up close, the forest was even more beautiful. Hani was in love with the place, her eyes twinkled and she found herself even slightly jumping in excitement. It made The Alpha smile. She happily hoped towards the lake, dying to drink some fresh water and finally get a bath. As she leaned downwards, Hani saw her reflection in the water. The tiredness was showing evidently. Her hair was all tangled and dirty, baggy eyes, dry skin. This trip had been the most exhausting thing she had ever done both physically and emotionally.
A relieve sigh escaped Hani's lips, once she sat down at the margin of the lake. Her body and her mind were finally resting after so many days of nervousness, insecurities, fears and questions. Don't be mistaken, they were still there in the back of her mind; waiting for the right time to haunt her. The girl knew that they would come back soon. But for now, she just wanted to enjoy the peace and quiet that existed in that place. Jungkook sat down next to his mate, his own mind and body relaxing. He looked around the place, his eyes scanning for any possible dangers or threats
"Hey, baby" Jungkook whispered to Hani's ear; the girl had her eyes closed. "I'm going to take a look to see if there's any animals on the forest. Will you be okay? I'll be fast"
Hani nodded her head, mumbling a small "be safe" to the Alpha. The forest didn't seem to be that vast, especially, since it was trapped by the cave's walls. She heard him leave and his footsteps disappearing in the distance. The girl and the world were quiet, in complete harmony. Something was weighting on her chest, though, forbidding her from shutting off her thoughts.
She remembered Jimin, her father and Ulric, Jungkook's secrets, her mother's death and the dreams she had, the engravings she had seen on the cave. And how all of that oddly seemed to be connected.
Destiny, she thought, was a funny thing.