Noonasinnetwork - Tumblr Posts

Shadow’s Birthright | MYG

Chapter 06: Convergence

Plot: Riding in on thunder and lightning, two princes are born. But a crown cannot be shared. It can only be worn by one and one alone. The hands of man have separated the brothers, allowing one to live in wealth and comfort inside the palace while the other grows up among commoners. But Fate cannot be destroyed by the hands of man. A shared destiny reunites the brothers; one to become a king who descends into madness and the other will rise as a dragon whose journey has only just begun in order to claim a crown he does not desire to have.

Rating: NC-17 // NSFW

Genre: series | historical!au | fantasy!au | angst | romance | drama | tragedy

Pairing: Min Yoongi (Lee Yoon) x Female OC (Kalina Shuri)

Warnings: Historical setting, caste system, magic/sorcery, graphic violence, disturbing graphic images, religious tones, angst, slow burn, smut

Previous Chapters: Prologue 01 02 03 04 05

Links: FAQ || BTS Masterlist || Admin E’s AO3 || [ REQUESTS ARE OPEN ]

Word Count: 4,065

Tag List: @luxekook, @pinkpjmin, @btsaudge, @flowerwrites06, @stillcopingxx, @taevkimchi, @aroseforyoongi, @vivpurple7, @happilystrongthroughthedark, @sw33tnight, @nikkitane, @mini-coop25, @shrimpmsg, @ggukkieland​

AN: Sorry this took me so long. Life decided it wanted to kick me in the face repeatedly. But I did warn everyone this was going to take a little time with the updates. Please be patient with me. I promise you that it will be worth the wait. If you would like to be added to the tag list, feel free to drop me a line!

P.S. Please bear in mind that while the historical accuracy will be mostly correct, I am setting this in a time period in Joseon history where there was no such thing as a king who had a twin brother. Obviously that’s where the fiction/creative freedom is going to come in. Everything else will be period accurate, trust and believe.

© thebiasrekkers (Admin E). All rights reserved. Reposting/modifying our work is prohibited. Translations are not allowed. Plagiarism/stealing is not tolerated by any means. Legal action will be taken in instances of theft.

“Things do not happen. Things are made to happen.” - John F. Kennedy

Yoon greeted his parents with the Crown Princess at his side. They both bowed deeply as they heard the King and Queen laugh in delight. The Royal Consorts also received bows from the Crown Prince and Princess. Finally, they turned and were given bows from the princesses and princes of the Royal Court. The officials and guards, as well as the rest of the palace staff, were present for the opening ceremony to celebrate Crown Prince Yoon’s first international liaison. 

When they were finally dismissed, Yoon took his seat next to the Crown Princess, waiting for food and wine to be served. Various voices of praise and congratulations were given to Yoon, to which he simply nodded his head politely and smiled while returning his own charming forms of gratitude. He allowed the Crown Princess to serve him a cup of wine and he, in turn, also served her. Merriment and good cheer surrounded the palace.

It made Yoon sick to his stomach.

The conversation he had with his Father-In-Law still didn’t sit well with him. At his own behest, he politely reminded Minister Jang that he should keep his small-minded ambitions to himself. He didn’t need to drag the Crown Princess into his mess. Regardless of his own personal feelings, Yoon held a deep amount of respect for his Princess. Jang Chae-Ok had no ambitions or selfish desires for wanting to be Crown Princess. She was simply a childhood friend to Yoon who always remained faithfully at his side. 

The Crown Princess was not blind to his relationship with Kalina. But she also did not question it. It was from this show of her character alone that Yoon promised he would not take a Royal Consort when he became King. He owed her that much for her understanding.

“I wish that I could accompany you, Your Highness.” The Crown Princess’s voice was sad, matching her expression. 

He reached out to grasp her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “It will be a long journey. It is no place for a Crown Princess.” Yoon smiled. “I will be back before you realize I’m gone.”

She sighed. “I will miss you greatly.” She placed her hand over his. “Do be careful.”

“I will, Crown Princess.”

A loud gong resounded, drawing everyone’s attention. All conversation hushed as the head of the Artisan school approached. He bowed deeply while the others waited with anticipation for his announcement. 

“Members of the Royal Court! We are here to celebrate the Crown Prince’s upcoming journey. We wish him great fortune but before he traverses out in the world, we want to be able to ease his worries and give him memories to hold on to as he travels to Ming. Things that he will be able to keep close to his heart and treasure if he should ever become homesick.” 

Yoon smiled, despite his own internal dark thoughts. He loved his country. He loved his people. The skills they mastered in order to have these small moments to showcase their talents were clearly battles within their own houses. Some performers and artists had better skills than others, hence why they were allowed to appear at the forefront. Others were still in training to be able to climb up in the ranks along the way. 

He secretly admired the drive that pushed these individuals along. Everyone had dreams, goals, and ambitions. People’s reasons for doing anything were threads that bonded everyone together to achieve common goals. No matter how small or big, they were to be appreciated. Even if one could not voice these appreciations aloud. 

The Chief Artisan gave a wide gesture, spinning on his heels as the performers made their way into the grand courtyard. “We hope that our performers, both within the palace walls, and those who have managed to make their ways from the streets, will be able to soothe your soul.”

Everyone applauded as Senior Artisan stepped away, allowing for the in house performers to showcase everything they’ve practiced for days. Curiously, Yoon hummed to himself at the mention of street performers entering the palace. If they were skilled enough to gain the court’s attention, there was a good chance they would be given slots to enter the performance schools within the palace halls. It would be a golden opportunity to change their livelihoods for the better.

He was keen to see just what they were made of.

“I can’t believe you’re making me do this.”

Jimin clicked his tongue against the back of his teeth, silencing Taehyung’s whining. “Hyung-nim is filling in for Namjoon Hyung-nim.” His eyes narrowed. “Surely you don’t expect him to wear the dress, do you?”

Taehyung pouted. “No, but still!”

“Besides,” Hoseok cut in, patting Taehyung’s shoulders roughly, “we all memorized multiple parts in case something happens. We only had time for Hyung-nim to learn one. Stop being difficult.”

Yoongi smirked, shaking his head while readjusting the waistband to his costume. The large rosary that hung from his neck was heavy and the boots were a little bit cumbersome, but bearable. He would be able to switch his shoes out when it came time for the tightrope routine. Jungkook and Seokjin fawned over him, making sure he looked as proper as he could in performance gear. 

Namjoon appeared, holding out a red and black demon mask to him. “I gave it some new paint earlier so it should be dry now.”

Taking the mask from him, Yoongi cradled it in his hands. “Thank you, Namjoon-ah.” He scratched at the cloth headband. “What will you be doing during the performance?”

“I’ll be narrating and helping the musicians out. Percussion, mostly.” 

“I see.” Yoongi eyed the mask, taking note of the large white fangs protruding from the mouth carved into the wood. 

Because of the depth of the role, he wouldn’t be able to take his mask off during the entire performance. Beneficial for him, but he hated that Namjoon wouldn’t be getting any credit. Yoongi knew how hard they all must have been preparing for this particular performance. A small measure of guilt wormed its way into his heart, but Namjoon’s laugh brought him out of his thoughts. 

“Now I feel even more terrible, Hyung-nim.” Yoongi saw the concerned look on Namjoon’s face, even though he was smiling. “Seriously, you’re doing me a favor. I feel bad enough. If you keep looking like that, I’ll think I’m completely worthless.”

“I’m sorry, Namjoon-ah.” Clearing his throat, he nodded. “You’re right. I shouldn’t be feeling like this.”

“Thank the heavens you’re wearing a mask.” Taehyung pushed his headband up a little more. “Otherwise the audience is going to think you’re guilty of some crime.”

“It’s just nerves.” Jimin flashed Yoongi a reassuring smile. “Right, Hyung-nim?”

All he could do was give a small smile. “Yeah, you’re right.”

“Hayan Geutop Troupe?” An unfamiliar voice pulled all of their attention. They saw someone dressed in official robes motioning toward them. “You’re up next.”

No one could hide their excitement. This was the first time any of them would be entering the palace. Each of them were given temporary passes to gain access. Once inside, they all made sure they were looking their best. The sound of joyful laughter and music rumbled through the courtyard, causing Yoongi’s heartbeat to elevate with excitement.

“Hyung-nim!” Jungkook gently nudged Yoongi’s back. “Your mask! Don’t forget to put it on!”

“Oh. Right.” Yoongi slid the large Demon mask over his head, making sure the cloth headwrap covered every part of his neck from view except the front. 

The sound of loud drums rang out through the courtyard. It was a little bit difficult to breathe with the mask on, but not impossible. If anything, Yoongi was more concerned with the mask falling off by accident. But Hoseok assured him that the bands were secured and redesigned to fit his head perfectly. It wouldn’t come off unless he pulled it off himself.

Admittedly, his nerves were a little frayed. Being around so many people at once, as well as so much noise, was teetering him toward sensory overload. But he continued to remind himself that he had a job to do. He just needed to get through the performance and then he could continue exploring the Crown City to his heart’s content. They were set to ride back out to the mountains at first light.

He hoped the shops would still be open before the lanterns were lit.

The large drum was hit, signaling for everyone to settle down. Yoongi took another breath, waiting for their group to be announced in front of the Royal Court. His vision was limited through the small holes in his mask - the rest of the world shadowed on either side of him. He could hear his own breath in his ears as he tried to peer out in front of him. But he wasn’t sure what he was even looking for. There was a strange pull at his heart; a feeling he couldn’t quite explain. 

Like someone was calling to him.

No. Like multiple people were calling to him.

“Members of the Royal Court! I present to you a troupe of young performers who hail from the outskirts of the Crown City!” The Chief Artisan looked in their direction as some of the students in the palace artisan school helped to set up their stage. “The White Tower Troupe!”

There was a round of polite applause from all the members of the royal court. The other troupe members were helping to set up the first scene for their skit. Yoongi waited patiently, even though he offered to help. Taehyung and Hoseok insisted that he stand back and focus on the performance. It wouldn’t take them long to get the set pieces ready. Once everything was put together, Namjoon walked gently forward and bowed deeply to the Royal family seated at the large banquet table.

“Please forgive our lack of eloquence, Your Majesties, as we attempt to regale you with a story. It is one I am sure you are all familiar with, but allow us to perform it for you just the same.” He flicked out the large fan in his hand, a picture of a blue sky and a green field painted on it. “We humbly present to you...the Tale of Green Pearl and the Demon!”

Yoon felt Chae-Ok grab his hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. He cast a sidelong glance in her direction, noting the soft pink flush that tinted her cheeks. He knew it wasn’t from the wine but more from her excitement. He smiled as she met his gaze.

“Oh, I love this story!” She looked back out toward the courtyard. “I’m interested to see how they will tell it.”

“As am I.”

The bass drum resounded through the large space just as the troupe finished setting up for the first scene. The narrator who spoke walked off to the sidelines and took a seat on a plush cushion that was provided for him. Silence draped over everyone present as the actors moved to their positions. 

“Many years ago, there was a humble man who lived a humble life. He had a humble trade and a humble wife. The wife bore him two children. A son named White Fang and a daughter named Green Pearl.”

Yoon watched as the narrator spoke about each character. One by one, they all appeared - their faces concealed with wooden masks painted in eloquent designs. Lingering off to the side was an actor clothed in black, red and gold garbs - a demon mask covering his face. Yoon felt his heart beating a little faster as he gazed at the person, unsure of why this strange sensation was lurching in his chest. 

The narrator slapped his stick against the small drum cradled in his lap. “As the seasons changed and the children grew older, the father became ill. The wife sent for what physicians they could afford and the old apothecary said that there was nothing he could do. The wife was distraught, unsure of what would become of her or her children should her husband leave this world for his journey to the afterlife.”

“Seobang-nim! You cannot leave us like this!” The wife sobbed beside the husband, cradling his hand between her palms. “What are we to do without you? How are we supposed to live?!”

“Don’t worry, Mother,” said White Fang as he placed his hand over his mother’s, “I will find a way to cure Father. I will travel across foreign lands until I can find the medicine that will save Father’s life!”

Again, the narrator struck the drum. “White Fang left to search for a cure for his ailing father, leaving his mother and sister behind.”

Yoon watched the person portraying Green Pearl moving toward the backdrop meant to pose as a wide open field. A lone tree stood off in the distance where she clasped her hands together and prayed. 

“Gods of Heaven, I beseech you! Please help my father. Please find a way to help him get better!” cried Green Pearl as she lowered her head, all but sobbing into her hands.

Heavy drums beat softly, signaling an ominous transition. Yoon watched as the actor portraying the demon slowly moved forward, until he was mere feet from the Royal Banquet table. The Demon whipped his head around to face the Royal family, causing everyone to lean back and gasp. 

All except Yoon.

Maybe it was the optical illusion of the mask, but he swore that the demon was looking directly at him. His heartbeat escalated, a soft thunder against his chest, and he waited for the demon to speak. There was a line here. Yoon remembered it. A line where the demon spoke to the audience of his wicked scheme.

But the demon said nothing. All he did was stare. Had the actor forgotten his lines?

“A demon heard Green Pearl’s cries, intrigued by her earnest wailings.”

The narrator cut through the silence. This seemed to wake the demon up, causing him to swiftly shuffle back a few steps as he threw his arm out in a dramatic flourish. 

“The sweet sound of sorrow nourishes my heart,” the Demon exclaimed, curling his shoulders forward. He pressed a hand against his face, fingers gliding over the white fangs on the mask. “It is the sound of easy prey. How I have longed to devour such a miserable soul!”

He heard the Crown Princess gasp as the Demon ran forward, leaping into the air and landing on the tightrope with amazing ease. Yoon quirked a brow, internally admiring the actor’s swiftness and balancing abilities. The Demon leaned forward, slinging his legs out until he was hanging upside down from the rope. 

Green Pearl took a sharp intake of breath, clutching at the front of her dress. “W-Who goes there?”

“A humble and curious Demon. But nevermind me, Sweet Child.” The Demon spoke in a cooing and sweet voice. “What seems to be ailing you? What causes you to mourn so?”

“My father is ill and there is no way to save him. My brother has left to travel in hopes of finding medicine to cure him.” Green Pearl turned away from the Demon, looking off in the distance. “I mourn for my family and what is to become of them should my father pass.”

The Demon laughed, swinging his body so that he was now sitting upright on the tightrope. He rested a hand on his knee and leaned forward, drawing Green Pearl’s attention once more. “This is a simple problem with a simple solution.”

“It is anything but simple!”

“Oh, but it is!” The Demon hopped onto the rope, bouncing up and down in a playful manner. “Because I know how to save your ailing father!”

Green Pearl stepped toward the tree, her hand reaching up toward the Demon but she was far out of his reach. “What do you know? Please, tell me how to save my father!”

The Demon bounced on the rope a few more times before dismounting, landing just a few feet away from her. He placed his hands behind his back and paced, not really bothering to stray too far from her but not coming too close. “There is a flower that grows in the western mountains. It is said that creating a potion from this flower can cure any illness.” He spun on his heels just as Green Pearl tried to approach him, causing her to halt in her steps. “But it is an arduous journey. Many have died trying to claim this flower.”

“Can you guide me to this mountain?” 

The Demon circled her, his steps slow and measured. “What will you give me if I decide to lend you my aid?”

“Whatever you wish to claim from me, Sir!” Green Pearl fell to her knees. “No boon is too great when it comes to saving the life of my father!”

The Demon knelt down before Green Pearl, lifting her face to meet his. “You will become my bride. That is the price you must pay if you wish to obtain my help.”

“If marrying a demon is the trade we are making, then I would marry you a thousand times.” 

The Demon pulled Green Pearl up onto her feet, a hearty laugh bursting from his chest. “Then come! Let us be off! The day grows shorter and the journey will be that much harder for you when the night comes.”

A gong and more heavy drums rang out as the Demon and Green Pearl exited the stage. Troupe members hurried to change the set backdrop to suit the next scene transition. 

“So Green Pearl and the Demon hurried toward the Western Mountains. The journey was, indeed, arduous. Many perils crossed their paths, but the Demon protected Green Pearl every step of the way. The harshest trek, however, was the path leading up toward the mountains. Wild animals impeded their path. Even the cold mountain winds attempted to blow the two off the krags so they would plummet to their deaths.”

With each scene change, a linen drape with a painted landscape was swapped. The serene music fit the pacing of each scene and the narrator’s strong voice pushed the actors to continue through the skit. Yoon knew this tale very well. Yet watching it unfold in this manner made the story seem brand new. He was particularly drawn to the Demon, unable to shake the tremors in his heart as the masked performer’s moves seemed fluid and natural.

“Finally, Green Pearl and the Demon reached the top of the mountain peaks. There was the mythical flower the Demon mentioned. It was a rich purple in pigment, the stem a soft green and nestled among a cluster of clovers. In the snow and cold temperature, there was no way that any vegetation should have flourished, let alone this single flower.”

Green Pearl reached for the flower, preparing to dig it up from the earth. Suddenly, she was stopped by the Demon’s harsh pull at her wrist. “W-What are you doing?!”

“Do not forget your promise to me, dear Child.” He pulled her flush against him. “You are to be my bride the moment your father is well. And not a minute later.”

“I haven’t forgotten our deal, Demon!” Green Pearl pushed away from him. “We must hurry back quickly!”

A soft bell tinkling sound issued from a row of wind chimes. The Demon laughed, grasping onto Green Pearl and jumping up toward the tightrope. Everyone watching sucked in their breaths as a stream of dark blue fabric followed after them. The Demon dragged Green Pearl behind him as the actors portrayed him using his powers to help them travel quickly. The two actors almost appeared to float across the thick line of rope.

“The Demon used his powers to transport Green Pearl and himself down the mountain. When they reached the foot of the mountain, they instantly moved through the fields. Within minutes, they were back in Green Pearl’s humble village. He safely brought her home and Green Pearl wasted no time preparing the flower into a medicinal tonic for her father.”

Green Pearl appeared next to her mother, holding out a wooden bowl. “This tonic will help Father. Please, we must hurry!”

The Wife started to feed the potion to the ailing Husband. In minutes, he started to rise up from his bed. He held his wife’s hands and she threw herself into his arms. 

“Husband! You are well!” she cried as her husband held her close. 

He laughed, stroking her back. “Yes, I am well, Pu-in. But tell me, what has helped me come back from the gates of the Underworld?”

“I traveled far to retrieve a flower that is said to cure any illness.” Green Pearl hugged her father’s neck.

“A flower?” He tilted his head to the side. “How did you come to learn of this flower?”

Green Pearl lowered her head. “A Demon told me. He guided me to the Western Mountains and I plucked the flower from the highest peak.”

Both the husband and wife looked at each other, clutching at their chests. The father reached out for his daughter’s hands. “You foolish girl! How could you make an agreement with a demon?!”

“Don’t you know that a deal with a demon only breeds disaster?!” The mother shook Green Pearl’s shoulders. “You have sold your soul to the Underworld!”

Green Pearl pulled herself away from her family. “I’m sorry!” She ran out of the house where the Demon was waiting for her. “We must hurry!”

The Demon grabbed her hand in his. “Let us leave this place!”

“Stop right there, you foul trickster!” The Father appeared, brandishing a wheat sickle. “Release my daughter, this instant!”

The Demon laughed. “The deal has been made, Human! You cannot break the contract!” 

The sound of a gong exploded over the courtyard, causing the Demon to gasp. When he looked down, there was a sword plunged through his stomach. As he turned, the assailant stepped forward to push the blade through his gut even further. The Demon reached out with a bloodied hand toward the one who attacked him. 

“B-Brother!”

White Fang ripped the sword from the Demon’s body, causing the Demon to fall to his knees. His head hung low and Green Pearl was instantly at the Demon’s side. He finally collapsed to the ground and Green Pearl clung to his shivering form. 

“What have you done?!” she screamed as the Demon continued to tremble in her arms. “Why did you strike him?!”

“It was a Demon, Green Pearl!” White Fang dropped the sword from his hand and the satchel from his back. “They only breed misfortune!”

“Y-You fool,” sputtered the Demon, “I would have given her a good life.” A trembling arm lifted as he pointed at White Fang. “Because of your actions, you have now condemned your sister to death.”

“What?!” White Fang dropped to his knees. The husband and wife hurried forward. “What lies do you speak, Demon?”

The Demon turned to look up at Green Pearl. “I will not be able to give you a life you deserve.” He touched the side of her face. “But I will be able to stay with you in the Afterlife. Always.”

“I am sorry for the cruel nature of man! Forgive me!” Green Pearl sobbed, burying her face in the Demon’s shoulder. “I will see you on the other side.”

And then the Demon’s hand fell limply to the ground. Seconds later, Green Pearl collapsed next to him.

Silence filled the courtyard. No one spoke. Hardly anyone took a moment to breathe, Yoon included. 

It was broken the minute that the King began to clap. The Queen soon followed until everyone at the Royal Banquet table rose from their seats and applauded. Yoon was still stunned, but he, too, clapped. The actors remained where they were - unmoving. However, the narrator stepped forward and bowed deeply to them. The tragic scene remained, but the story’s message still lingered in the air. 

Even a Demon was deserving of love and a person could see beyond the surface to one’s true heart.

But when promises were broken, a terrible fate would await. 

Dream of Red [1]

For the BTS Fabled Collaboration Project sponsored by @ksmutclub and @whipped-kpop-creators​.

Plot: A vain and jealous Queen sets in motion a series of events that will change the Land of Fae and its citizens forever.

Rating: 18+ // NSFW

Genre: dark fantasy | angst | romance/fluff | smut | dark fable/fairy tale

Pairings: Unseelie!Jimin x Seelie Queen! Saoirse [The Spring Queen], Unseelie!Jungkook x Unseelie Queen! Greeva [The Winter Queen]

Warnings: Blood, violence, orgies, seelie/unseelie dislike, ritual offerings, fae court drama, manipulation, mild depictions of gore

Links: FAQ || BTS Masterlist || [ REQUESTS ARE OPEN ]

Word Count: 10.8k

AN: This work is by Admin E and Admin T - we are coming out the woodwork, ladies and gentleman. There are 2 parts and this is the “prequel” to the main story/concept that was originally thought up. Admin E would like to blame the length on Admin T and Admin T will plead the fifth! Please enjoy!

© thebiasrekkers (Admin E & Admin T). All rights reserved. Reposting/modifying our work is prohibited. Translations are not allowed. Plagiarism/stealing is not tolerated by any means. Legal action will be taken in instances of theft.

“Saoirse.”

Two women sat across from each other at a long elegant table. Their beauty was unmatched, but there was much power in a name. And among the courts, one name trumped all.

“Titania.” The Queen of the Summer Court smiled brightly at the mention of her name. The Spring Court Queen remained cordial. “May I ask what brings you in so early?” Because it was very early for the Summer Queen to start snooping. 

Hair like spun threads of actual gold laid on the shoulders, the fairest of skin. The fairest of their kind, Titania - the most cunning and conniving of them all. She smiled, the sound of bells tinkling with the softest of laughs. “Oh, come now, little sister. Why can’t I come to see how you are? How are things going, hmm?” The Summer Queen let her finger swirl in a glass of nectar. 

Saoirse wasn’t buying it. She might be the youngest, but she was just as sly as her older sisters. She knew Titania’s presence meant the older queen’s patience was running thin. While the other queens chose not to pursue what some considered “loose ends”, Titania treated it like a pastime. It was like the Summer Games, and it was the grandest spectacle of them all.

Titania would, with a sadistic fervor, send her best out to hunt halflings. She sought to pad her Court with more servants. She made a mockery of the Lords and Ladies who seeded the human realm with their progeny. As if to teach the rest of the Court a lesson in dealing with humans. Humans were good for sport. Nothing more. The humans began to notice how strange it was that people would go missing in the summer season. They would blame the severe heat, causing people to wander and hallucinate.

They would wander into the land of Fae and remain lost in a maze. It was all a part of Titania’s brutal form of entertainment. Few would stand against Titania - and they too would disappear. But there was only one who escaped; a brave soul who chose the human realm over her home. This made Titania seethe with rage. It was a stain on her reputation, on her very name - and one she sought to rectify with each coming of the summer season.

“Deirfiúr, please.” Saoirse reached across the table, holding Titania’s hand in her own. “I beg you. Let it go. Let this go.” The sadness, and lines of worry, grew with every season. “I beg of you. Every year your games become more and more dangerous. You grow ever more vicious in your pursuits. And when the season ends? You seem to have lost more of who you are - who you were.” 

Titania, momentarily, considered her sister’s words. But she couldn’t help it, couldn’t let that disrespect slide. She had a reputation, a name to protect. “I am the same as I ever was, deirfiúr bheag.” The Summer Queen let her fingers gently slide across her sister’s face. “It’s all in good fun, my love.” She stood, letting their hands fall apart. A flurry of pixies fluttered in her wake. “I bid you good day. We will have time again.” And with that, Titania exited the room.

Saoirse frowned once Titania’s scent began to fade. She hated being lied to - and Titania told the biggest lie yet. She turned to the stone dial in the middle of the room. There wasn’t much time left until she had no power to protect anyone. She wanted to believe Titania but knew that it would be foolish to do so. 

Saoirse stood as the scent of clover and lavender filled the room. “Aithne.” 

The cait-sidhe moved to her Queen’s side. 

“Even now, the veil weakens against our attempts to keep the village hidden.” The feline leaned into Saoirse’s fingers. “What shall we do?” 

The Spring Queen frowned as she moved toward a scrying bowl. “The one thing I had hoped I wouldn’t have to do.” The cait-sidhe rumbled disapproval. “I’ll have to warn the Unseelie Queens that Titania will bloody the equinox.” 

The gravest of crimes amongst the Court. When one Queen acts above their station, it is a disrespect to the Gods and Goddesses. It was one edict never questioned between the Seelie and Unseelie Court. 

“You know you will owe a debt, My Queen.” Aithne moved around the queen, her tail brushing against the woman’s hip. “It is dangerous. Foolish, even. Are they worth it?” The cait-sidhe felt a pang of guilt even asking that question. 

“They all are, Aithne. We are no better than humankind if Titania isn’t stopped. It’s not just about the Wolf and the Child. It’s about the human realm remaining untouched, so they may live as if we were still a myth. That’s the way it should always be.” Saoirse reached for a jeweled athame, the tip pricking her pinkie until a shimmery bead formed. 

“We are magic and shadow. A fever dream when a soul loses hope.” She turned to the cait-sidhe. “Titania would make us more of a nightmare than the Dark Court. She must be stopped.” And with that conviction, she swirled her finger into the liquid.

Darkness filled the bowl until a face with sharp features stared back at her. There was shock in the face staring back at her. “Jimin, I promise you - I have a good reason for this.” The silver-haired Unseelie gave a stern look, a muscle ticking in his jaw.

“I’m listening, Saoirse.” 

At the moment, that was all she could hope for.

“Eamon.” The Summer Queen had settled back in her domain.  Her hand lifted for greeting, a tall, robust Fae taking that hand. His lips barely touched her skin. “What news do you have for me?” 

The Knight took a knee. “There are but a few more areas that we can search, My Queen. We seem to be making headway as if the maze of that forest is slowly unravelling.” 

She smiled with wicked glee. “I knew you wouldn’t fail me, Eamon.“ She settled back in the throne, the stone dial slowly inching toward her time. “Remember, you must remain unseen. No mortals must spy you in their drunken haze. And that witch should not see you coming. I don’t want to arouse suspicion, understand?” A gentle brow lifted as she looked down to her most trusted knight. 

“As you command, My Queen.” Eamon stood with a flourish before turning on his heel to leave the throne room. 

Titania smiled, her head leaned back against the throne. “Soon. Very soon, witch. I will have you - and you will pay.” 

In the land of Fae, there was a place where Dusk and Dawn lived side by side. For members to cross over before their season, or without invitation, was to risk certain doom. Expulsion from an appointed Court being the worst. The Unseelie were not keen on the Seelie’s exuberant displays. But at this tree, where their worlds were split in half, a different kind of magic existed. 

And this was why Jimin waited anxiously at the appointed time. He felt the air stir as Saoirse appeared in the distance, the cait-sidhe Aithne at her side. He tucked the silver strands of hair behind his ear as she drew closer. “Saoirse, what could be so important -...”

The Spring Queen held up a hand, bade him quiet as she interrupted. “I’m so sorry, Jimin - I...I didn’t know what else to do. It’s Titania.” 

Jimin's face began to contort in protest before he heard that name. His lips flattened as he nodded, allowing her to finish.  Saoirse relayed everything to him. 

The reason why Titania’s brutality grew with each season. The so-called slight against her. The constant search for the member of her court. She twisted her fingers in her own anxiety, turning to Aithne to fill in the rest of the story.

Aithne turned to the Unseelie and levelled him with a heavy gaze. “She had a child with a human.” 

Jimin’s eyes widened. A halfling?

“...she’s WHAT?!” He couldn’t help the volume of his voice.

It had been too many years since any court produced a halfling. They used to find them in droves long ago. But what Aithne said next had Jimin ready to step over the line that separated their worlds.

“That halfling is the mate of a Wolf,” Aithne said with no hint of hesitation or deceit. The cait-sidhe wasn’t lying because Jimin would know. 

He had to take a step away from the boundary - then he began to pace. “That child cannot be brought here.” 

“For more than one reason,” Saoirse added. “Titania would torture them both. We already know that she killed Cardia’s lover. The father of that child. She would do plenty worse if they were both brought here.”

“I have no doubts she would kill Cardia and keep the child in her service, horribly so, until her life expired,” Aithne added solemnly.

“We seem to be skipping over the part where a halfling is the mate of a Wolf,” Jimin spoke between clenched teeth. “Wolves are the most ancient of beings; their magic may surpass ours. We have an agreement with them. We don’t interfere in their affairs. Ever.” 

While the wolves moved about the world like any normal creature, they were busier during the end seasons. The spring and summer were bringing out the pups, shifting their living locations. But their older ancestors, those who’d been around long before? They were harder to find by anyone, let alone each other. Jimin knew of one Wolf in their area, and if his suspicions were correct, Titania was going to start a war on the other side of the veil.

Jimin turned a mercurial gaze toward the cait-sidhe. “It’s Taehyung, isn’t it?”

Aithne’s mouth tilted downward, her gaze lifting toward Saoirse, whose eyes began to widen at the thought. “Aithne, tell me it isn’t?” The cait-sidhe looked toward the ground. “Oh, Aithne. Why didn’t you tell me sooner?” Saoirse knelt down, framing the creature's face with her hands. 

“I’m sorry, My Lady. I...” Aithne’s nose twitched softly as the Queen rubbed along her nose and around an ear. “...after what happened? I thought we had it under control. I thought Titania would have been sated with the mortals. They were so young when…” 

Jimin felt his heart thunder against his ribcage. Everyone knew of Titania’s last hunt - a score of mortals found themselves in the land of the Fae. One of them was the lover of a court member. He was made an example of  - simply because Titania could.  He shared a long look with Saoirse as she comforted the cait-sidhe. 

“Saoirse, I-” Jimin shivered violently before spinning around behind him. Saoirse stood up abruptly, pulling Aithne with her. 

“I thought I said you two could only tryst during Samhain?” A voice seemed to echo from beyond the brush.  “And yet, here you are again.” The Autumn Queen, Fiadh, stood behind him with a look of extreme displeasure. 

Jimin dropped to his knees, head bowed immediately. “My Lady, it’s not what you think!” 

Saoirse’s lips flattened into a straight line. “I would not risk your ire, Fiadh. I was to have Jimin deliver a message to you.” 

“I’m glad of this, little sister.” Fiadh tilted her head with an amused smile. “Because I would hate to have my finest Knight lost from my court.” She tilted her gaze to the top of Jimin’s bowed head. She exhaled heavily as she approached the borderline between their realms. “So, if I heard this sordid tale correctly…” 

Jimin looked up as the confusion caused his brow to crease. Even Saoirse tilted her head slightly. Fiadh looked between the two of them, further amused. “I hear everything, cinn bheaga.” She couldn’t help but chuckle. “When you’re Queen for as long as I have been, you learn a thing or two.” A flick of her wrist had Jimin on his feet. 

“Now, if I heard you correctly,” she continued, “a former member of Titania’s court fell for and bore a child with a human. That human was taken by Titania, and that member escaped. Now, that member and her halfling child are in the human world. And that halfling is the mate of a Wolf?” Fiadh looked between the two of them. 

She then turned her gaze to the cait-sidhe. “That sounds about right, yes?” The creature nodded softly. Fiadh sighed. “Saoirse, I appreciate you coming to warn us. But this puts all the Court in a spot. We cannot interfere with the Summer Court. But, the Court must not involve themselves in the human world for too long a time. We don’t care for Titania’s games, but they have long been entertainment for all. I will admit that lately…” 

“...she’s gone too far, My Lady,” Jimin spoke up. “Her brutality grows, and now we know why. But she won’t care about the halfling being wolf-chosen. That is a fight we cannot afford.” Both Fiadh and Saoirse shared a grave look. 

“No, it is not.” The Autumn Queen’s fingers slid against the point of her chin. “You know the Wolf then, I take it?” This to Jimin, who nodded softly. There was a long moment of silence before she spoke again. “Quietly. The moment Titania’s games go overboard, you contact me immediately.” 

Without saying anything more, Jimin bowed and disappeared. Fiadh turned to Saoirse, “Fear not, little sister. There will not be war…” 

This time.

The heavy silence seemed as if the autumn queen measured her words. “I will handle this, Saoirse. I want you to interfere no further.” She turned to the creature at the side of the Spring Queen. “Aithne, you have permission to see me. I don’t want Titania to make a mockery of Saoirse because of her worry.” 

Aithne bowed her head. “I understand, My Lady.” 

Saoirse frowned, but Fiadh was right in her assumption. They knew that Titania was becoming unstable and just as unpredictable. When Titania took the throne, Saoirse would be nothing more than a High Lady of the Court. 

“Thank you, Fiadh.” She felt her shoulders relax just slightly as the Autumn Queen spun on her heel, an errant wave of her hand as she disappeared. 

Even with all these fail-safes in place, with all these contingencies - why did Saoirse still have a terrible feeling bubbling in the pit of her gut? She turned to make her way back to her own throne. 

Because her time on it was almost up.

Two Human Realm Weeks Later

“All Hail! The Summer Queen, Titania!”

The Seelie gathered en masse, kneeling down as the new queen stood before the throne. Her smile was radiant as the transfer of power concluded. Saoirse knelt before the older queen. “May her reign be glorious and bountiful.” 

Titania smirked softly as she settled back into the grand throne. Her eyes scanned those gathered. Old pawns, new pawns, and those who were willing to do anything to curry her favor. A brow ticked upward as she spotted two Unseelie fae from the dark court. Ah, right - they needed to bear witness to the transition of seasons. Meticulously annoying that lot. She couldn’t help the irritation causing a slight dip in her forehead. 

No matter, they would be long gone before any of her schemes began. 

It was worth noting that Eamon and her knight entourage were missing. She was convincing enough that no one questioned their disappearance. The way time passed in the human realm gave them a needed advantage. 

Mere days would have passed by the time they crossed in the Land of Fae. A cheshire smile spread across her face, her eyes pinching in the corners with the depth of her smile. “My children, it is time to welcome a new season. Little Sister, you have guided us well to this point. Please rest now.” 

Saoirse stood, offering the slightest dip of her head. “Thank you, My Queen. I will now take my rest with your blessing.” The Spring entourage stood bowing to Titania as they departed. 

The crowd parted, heads still bowed, as the two Unseelie Fae moved to the front of the throne. They wouldn’t kneel before a queen that was not their own. Titania sighed softly, if only they weren’t Unseelie. She could see calling on them to warm her pillows. A subtle brow arched as they swept an arm across their chest. 

The silver-haired one, she recognized him, stood with a neutral smile. Ah right. Jimin. Her smile widened. Was that the one that Saoirse fancied? Oh, little sister! You have such good taste. Titania knew better because Fiadh wouldn’t part with her own knights. 

“Your Highness, may your reign be glorious and bountiful.” Jimin bowed his head just slightly. She watched as he could feel Titania’s leering gaze. Amusement danced within herself as she saw him fight to keep the disgust from his face. 

“Ah, Jimin. It’s been so long,” Titania drawled, her voice sickly sweet, “I thank Fiadh’s most precious knight for his blessing on behalf of the Autumn Court.” 

Jimin stepped back so the next representative could step forward. The change in Titania’s face was too quick to hide. She was caught completely off guard by the knight that stepped forward. The Winter Court seldom switched representatives, so this was an interesting development. There were secret glances stolen at the pair from the Unseelie courts. Their physical prowess and stamina were things of legend. It was part of the reason they never participated in Titania’s Summer Games. A few centuries being bested by the opposing court was embarrassing, to say the least. The Unseelie court was fine leaving the Seelie court to their revelry.

Titania rose from her throne, her pupils blown wide with obvious lust as the Winter Court knight stepped forward. “Your Highness, may your reign be glorious and bountiful.” The stranger bowed his head slightly, a dark gaze lifted to the golden queen of summer. 

“My, my, my,” Titania practically drooled as she stepped forward, “and who might you be?” 

The man rose to his full height, his frame impressive. It was easy to see his physique under the light leather attire. The muscles in his chest and thighs seemed to push the limits of the material - and yet it seemed to slide against his skin. Her gaze slid over him from head to toe. 

When he crossed his arms, the sound of the leather groaned in protest. The man was the fairest in her presence. His ears were delicately pointed, the lobes adorned with black rings. His jet-black hair shimmered with blue undertones. She could see them because he tilted his head slightly while she ate him with her eyes.

“Your Highness.” There was something almost curt, a chastise, in his voice. “Forgive my rudeness. I am Jungkook. First Knight of Queen Greeva’s Court.” The way he spoke snapped her out of her visual assault. 

Titania gave a slight cant of her head. “Jungkook, well met.” 

Titania hadn’t lusted after another for quite some time. There was a reason for that; because her jealousy knew no bounds. Once she set her eyes on an individual, they needed to attend to her every whim and wish. To be her plaything was an honor. Or a horror, should she be displeased.

There was one time where someone denied Titania - and no one denied the Summer queen. 

“Please give Greeva my most sincere thanks for sending her most precious to my ceremony.” Jungkook wasn’t one to stand on ceremony with the other Queens. His fealty was to Greeva, she knew this. But she also couldn’t help but to test him. So when Titania started to eye-fuck him, he didn’t hide his displeasure.

“My Queen will receive this blessing, Your Highness.” Jungkook stepped back to join Jimin. They gave their slight bows and departed the throne room. 

Titania’s gaze was hot on their heels.

The Rift at the Fae Wylds

“You’re insane, Jimin.” Jungkook couldn’t keep his disgust at bay. They finally reached the divide between their worlds. “How can you stand being in her presence for so long?” He spat while pacing a path into the grass.

Jimin frowned softly. “It’s a skill I’m not excited to have developed, little brother.” 

He could feel Jungkook’s rage the entire trip back to the rift. Then again, it seemed a strange energy had possessed the area. The wylds were never a place to take lightly. But there was something more dangerous in the land. It was as if the whole realm was on edge - on both sides of the rift.

Jungkook found no humor in Jimin’s response. He respected the Autumn Court Knight for his candor. But his reasons left a bad taste in his mouth. Jungkook, like the rest of the Unseelie, didn't care to bed or mingle with the Seelie Court. He turned as the sound of footsteps broke the silence. 

Ever respectful, Jungkook bowed to the High Lady of the Spring Court. “Saoirse.” His tone had a slight bite, but she graciously brushed it off.

“I apologize for my older sister, Jungkook. I’m sure you’re aware of her...penchant for believing everyone wants her.” She offered an apologetic smile as some of the tension eased from his shoulders.

“We will not speak of this to Greeva.” Jungkook crossed his arms, a stern set to his face. “She would sooner declare war on that harlot and replace her as Queen.” He didn’t care for the look on Saoirse’s face - but he spoke blunt and truthfully. 

Titania’s reputation was known across all the courts. Her flirtatious and loose behavior was a thing of legend. Tales of orgies held in both the court and human lands turned into stories told around fires and at taverns and day-long carriage rides alike. 

Jungkook spat at the ground. “I wouldn’t lay with her if you held hot irons to my balls. Then again, that would be a mercy!” 

Jimin’s shoulders shook as he held back laughter. Saoirse’s mouth fell open at the analogy. “I-I, uhm, again - please pay Titania no mind. She’ll have plenty of bodies to warm her multiple beds. Enough that she can simply dream of you while she -”

“Okay, that’s enough of that!” Jimin put a hand over Saoirse’s mouth to stop the next phrase from leaving her mouth. “I don’t want that image in my head.” Jungkook visibly shuddered with a shake of his head. 

A sharp breeze whipped across the plains, causing the trio to check their surroundings. 

“It feels like the land is on guard.” Saoirse shivered from a sudden chill in the wind.

“It’s been like this for a few days now.” Jimin turned to look at the field that continued on into the realm of the Unseelie. 

“It’s not been this unstable for quite some time.” Jungkook spun around as well, his brow furrowed. “We should leave.” He turned to see the matching concern on Jimin’s face. “We need to report all this anyway. Saoirse, be well.” He offered that slight bow before stepping through the rift. 

Jimin turned to frame Saoirse’s face with gentle hands. “Are you sure you’re going to be alright? You know the games will be afoot shortly.” 

Saoirse smiled, a hand raising to settle atop his own. “Of course, àlainn.” Their fingers interlocked for a moment before another breeze whipped across their faces. “It’s as if we’re not welcome here.” This said absently as she let their hands fall to their sides.

“Return to the city, Saoirse. This is unusual and I’m beginning to think it's unsafe as well.” Jimin took a step away from her, one last look, before he stepped through the rift. 

Saoirse turned to make her way back to the city, the wind kicking up the closer she got to home. When the path leading into the city was more visible, the wind became almost violent. She hiked up her skirts to walk faster because for just a moment, she could have sworn she heard a growl. Intermixed in those violent winds, there was a warning.

There was a sudden silence as she entered the city proper. Just the sounds of people going about their daily lives. Saoirse felt her heartbeat against her ribcage as she turned to look down the road.  An unusual shadow seemed to linger around the road before disappearing. 

The First Knight of her court reached her side, quietly taking her by the elbow. “My Lady?”

She offered a weak smile. “How ill of an omen, Cormac. How ill of an omen.” Leaning on the Knight’s shoulder, she moved almost listlessly as he escorted her to the nearest inn. The land seemed angry, viciously so. They settled at a table as he presented her with a cup of tea.

“My Lady, what omen?” Cormac frowned as he whispered. Even for them to speak ill things when the new queen took the throne is blasphemous. 

“The land, Cormac. The land is angry. So very angry.” Her wrinkles in her brow deepened as she reached for the cup with shaking fingers. “I heard...something. I heard something in the wind.” She had to use both of her hands to hold the cup steady.

Cormac frowned. “My Lady, please... What did you hear? Just tell me what you heard that has you so shaken.”

“I heard a growl, Cormac.” The cup was raised to her lips as she stared at the dark liquid. “I heard the land give a warning.” The knight frowned as she remained transfixed on the cup. “It was for all of us, Seelie and Unseelie alike.” 

The smatterings of light bounced off the surface of her drink causing her to tilt her head oddly. “I saw a shadow, heard a rumbling like a great beast and then nothing.” She took a sip of the bitter liquid.

“My Lady, I-” He offered a deep sigh. “I don’t want to say you’re mistaken. I mean no disrespect, but you’re absolutely sure of what you heard?” Saoirse put the cup down softly. 

“I heard it, Cormac. Real as you and I both. The land is on edge.” She frowned, lifting her gaze to meet his own as he swallowed the lump in his throat. “Do you remember the last time the land was on edge?”

Cormac had been in the service of the Spring court for many millennia. He was as fierce a warrior as any in all the courts. He didn’t spook easily either. But right now, at that very moment, he looked white as a sheet. There was only one time in all his years that the land rebelled.

And it was in the middle of the Summer Games while Titania was on the throne.

“How could I forget? How could anyone forget?” He grimaced. “So it is truly an ill omen, indeed.” His gaze lowered to the top of the table. “What are we going to do?” 

Saoirse looked out the small window nearby. “Tell everyone to stay out of the wylds. Jungkook and Jimin will report to their queens.”

“And the games? What of those in our court who were to participate?” Cormac couldn’t hide his disappointment, because he knew the answer to that.

“I’m sorry, Cormac,” was all she offered, “if what I know now is true, then it will be dangerous for everyone. We will have to standby until…” Her fingers clasped as she left the rest to hang in the air.

Little did Saoirse realize just how dangerous it would be. 

In Heart of the Fae Wylds

The Wylds were vast and green for as far as the eye could see. There was a large clearing of trees just over the field several hundred yards away. Normally the Fae Wyld was teeming with life; animals were making noise and the wind swept over the valley gently. It was hardly this quiet. The only sound that could be heard in that moment was how harshly the wind blew every handful of minutes - causing a sharp chill to tear through the air in a way that was both swift and foreboding.

And the occasional scream.

Cardia’s eyes narrowed as blood rained from the skies, staining the green canvas of the landscape. It was fresh, along with the other spatters of crimson lining the field. A death knell keened over the area, reverberating along the trees and causing the branches to shudder with the final calls of her kin.

Limbs and lumps of flesh tumbled to the ground unceremoniously and the Fae didn’t bat a single eyelash. Instead, she let her arms hang limply at her side as her dark blue mantle whipped around her shoulders and back. She wondered if the onslaught would continue or would the people attempting to capture her would gain some wisdom and cease their pursuit. It would be a fruitless endeavor so long as she remained exactly where she was.

Exactly where she had been for the last several days.

The Fae wasn’t foolish enough to enter the Wylds without paying her due tribute. Yoongi always warned her that the Fae Wylds wasn’t a place for any commoner or noble alike to trek through. Not without paying a price. They would pay it in blood, one way or the other. The Wylds didn’t discriminate.

Not with its tribute and not with its victims.

But the Wylds slept for many centuries. Tamed by time itself. Until she woke it up, that is.

“Cardia!” a voice called from within the trees. She peered out, hoping to match a face to the voice but she already had an idea of who it might’ve belonged to. “Cease this madness!”

She chuckled, brushing her dark hair bangs from her forehead. “I should be saying that to you, Sir Eamon!” 

Her fingers traced the frame of her face, moving to rest on her lips as she continued to smirk at those in the woods beckoning her to stop. The irony was that she hadn’t made a single move against them. Not yet.

The tension in the air was palpable as the Wylds prepared to lash out against any who dared to move against the one who’d paid their tribute. Cardia wasn’t a wicked person by nature. Enough warriors lost their lives and their dismembered carcasses were proof of that. Titania was Queen and there was no sense in her turning her ire toward her or toward the Wylds. A smarter Fae would have remained hidden for as long as possible. A compliant Fae would have returned and their halfling child up to be the servant of their Queen without hesitation.

Cardia was neither a genius nor obedient.

But she was crafty and a strategist. She knew exactly where to hit her enemy in a way that would not only hurt, but would leave a lasting impression. Turning the neutral grounds of Fae territory into an ally was one of said ways to accomplish this.

Regardless of her past discretions against the current Queen, it was clear she had the upper hand.

“If you no longer wish to lose any of your men, Sir Eamon, I would advise you to return to the Queen and deliver my wish to parley.” Cardia sighed as she pivoted on her heels, making her way back to the small cottage she’d built for herself shortly after arriving in the Wylds. “Collect your men and return to the kingdom. Relay my wishes. I will be entering the city in two days’ time.”

Removing a knife from the small bag at her hip, she ran the blade over her palm and let her blood drip into the grass and earth. She closed her eyes, pushing the pain back while squeezing her hand into a fist. They are to collect their people. If they pass this marker I leave on the land, rip them asunder.

The wind howled, whirling through the skies and causing the branches of the trees to flutter against the strength of the gale. The Wylds heard her plea, accepted her blood, and would cease their assault on any trespassers who hadn’t paid their own price.

None would pass Cardia’s marker, lest they lose more than their heads.

The scent of sex seemed to ooze from the windows and openings of the castle. It made him sick to his stomach. Eamon made no attempt to clean the stench of blood and gore from his hands and armor. So when the sudden gust of wind blew open the doors, everyone was taken off guard. Bodies that clung and writhed against others suddenly stopped, and the sound of violent retching could be heard as he walked through the castle hallways. Even some of the lower ranked knights weren’t prepared as he picked up speed. An evenly paced walk turned to a violent stalk toward the queen’s chambers. 

They even had the audacity to remind him - HIM of all people, that the queen’s orgies weren’t to be disturbed by outside matters. 

He leveled a glare that had them shrinking away from him. Just to see the knight that enraged was enough for anybody else he passed to simply get out of his way. People smelled him before he appeared, causing them to scatter as their stomachs churned.

Eamon made it to the archway of the queen’s bedroom. The queen’s moans reverberated through the bedchamber. Bodies moved all over each other in various states of dress. The common link was a half-empty bowl of shimmery golden liquid, on a pedestal, in the middle of the room. 

“EVERYBODY. GET. OUT.”

There was some random lord with his face between the queen’s legs. Moist noises as he dined at her altar, pushing her legs wider to get deeper inside the most hallowed of places. It was an honor to pleasure the queen - it was a privilege to service the queen. 

One should see it as their duty to make sure that her happiness comes first and foremost. Two lady’s groped at her breasts, whispering words of devotion. There were tongues tangled in kisses as Titania threw her head back. Her fingers clutching at the lord’s scalp as he moaned into her sex. Her hips lifted as she tumbled over the precipice of ecstasy. 

Her eyeballs rolled as the two ladies bit and nibbled at her skin. 

“Yes! Yes, Ye-” The endorphin rush was cut short by a booming voice and the smell of blood. 

Her orgasm was ruined. 

Eamon’s face was contorted in dark rage. Even with their status as nobles, no one questioned the Queen’s Knight. The haze of golden nectar disappeared with the smell of blood and innards. They quickly gathered their belongings, rushing and stumbling out of the room. The man looked up the length of Titania’s body, scared to move for fear of disappointing her. But he saw the dramatic change on her face and thought it would behoove him to exit the premises. 

Titania didn’t bother covering herself. She didn’t care if he heard the sound of slick heavy between her legs. Her eyes were a dark cobalt as they remained locked in a visual standoff. It was clear he wanted to speak with The Summer Queen. Not Titania. 

Her voice had lost that light, airy, tinkle she reserved for court. “Eamon. Do you truly dare to interrupt my fun? Even for you, that is a grave crime. I hope you have a goo-” 

Splgorshsplat!

The sound, the sight, and the smell made her eyes go wide and she instantly was sick.

Eamon opened a space right at the foot of her bed. From it fell the body parts of his finest men. Some limbs were broken and tangled in the most odd ways. There was little that could be used to identify who they belonged to. The mass of flesh, rock, dirt and sticks soaked into her bed. She pushed back against the wall at the head of her bed. 

“Cardia wishes to parley. She will enter the city in two days.” Eamon’s face didn’t change. “The Wylds shield her.” He opened a space below that pile of flesh, leaving only the stain on her bed. “I am going to tell everyone to stay out of the Wylds until she enters the city.” 

Titania’s face contorted with rage as she lifted her gaze to him. 

“Your games cost more than what you are willing to see, Your Highness.” There was bitterness in the clench of teeth between words. “No more, I tell you. No. More.” He turned and left her bedroom.

He didn’t look back as he felt the rise of power emanate behind him. He didn’t even blink as he heard a sound of rage and disappointment pouring from Titania’s room. By the time he was at the end of the halls, he could barely make out the sound of a sob. 

He wouldn’t cry for her disappointment, no. He was going to save his tears for those mated to his men. The ones who now would have to figure how, or if, they would live without their life mates. He would even save a little for himself.

So he could mourn the once noble queen he loved - and somehow lost throughout these years. He would mourn the person he should have saved.

And pray someone will be able to save her.

Because he knew it wouldn’t be him.

The Unseelie Court Lands

The world seemed to be tumultuous for everyone in it. Jungkook’s displeasure was apparent with deep creases in his forehead. A shimmer of light flickered across his face as he looked out into the world beyond the city. The shadow that danced in the sky seemed to roll toward them. His fingers dug marks into the merlons at the top of the castle. His arms bulged as he tried to not tear the stone from it’s setting.

“You know that look doesn’t suit you.” A warm-honeyed voice washed over him. “...I never like to see you so vexed.”  

Jungkook’s expression straightened as he turned to drop to a knee, “My Lady. I apologize for showing such a side in your presence.” 

Greeva’s lips tilted up in the corner, briefly, as she emerged from the shadow of an archway. “I wondered where you had disappeared to for such a long time.” The Winter Queen looked out over the expanse of the land. Her gaze lifted skyward to see the same rolling shadow that Jungkook had reported days ago. Her fingers danced across his shoulder causing him to stand. “Has there been any change?”

Jungkook took an extra moment before finally rising. He towered over the diminutive Queen. She wore her casual garb cotton breeches, boots, and layered light tunics. Even in their section of the land, they too were afforded a slight reprieve from the harsh winters. 

“Yes.” A muscle ticked in his jaw before he turned to Greeva. She was small enough to sit on the edge of the grenel, where he was too wide.

Greeva gave him a sidelong glance before turning to look out over the land again. “It’s moving toward the royal city, isn’t it?” There was a shuffle of sound as he leaned against the top most part of the merlon. 

“From what Jimin told me, yes.” His gaze remained on his Queen. “Cardia gave a two day warning, saying she would enter the city of her own volition.” He watched Greeva nod softly.

“So now it's following her right to Titania’s front door.” Her tone was sad, almost melancholy. “Do we know more of her men?” 

Jungkook shook his head, “I’m afraid not. Word spreads that Eamon brought them back in pieces.” Greeva’s face never changed as he continued. “Then he interrupted one of her orgies and dumped those pieces at the end of her bed.”

“She’s always so wrapped up in the power of the throne and her games. She couldn’t even tell, could she?” Greeva’s gaze darkened as their skies returned to normal. It had been a few days since Jungkook returned from the coronation of the Summer Queen. He was frazzled, upset, and concerned at the things he saw in the Seelie lands. 

“No,” he answered softly. Titania couldn’t even tell that Jungkook was already mated. It was a  grave offense for anyone to disregard a mate bond, let alone a Queen to show that level of disrespect.

The quiet rage ate at him for more time than he cared for. But it was Jimin and Fiadh coming to see them that forced him to push it aside. Bringing news from Saoirse that Cardia was in the land of Fae. Giving them the answer to the strange presence that seemed to push at them days ago. Eamon's best men were torn to shreds while the land protected her. 

A slow, satisfied, smile spread across her face. What she would have given to have been a firefly in their midst. The queen tried to hide a chuckle behind the back of her hand. Not for the lost men, no. But for Eamon’s bold and brash tactics. It was a known fact that he loved Titania with all his being. It was strange, yet welcome, to know that even The First Knight of the Summer court could take his queen to task.

“My Queen?” Jungkook watched her compose herself, remaining quiet for a few more moments.

“Would you do that to me, Jungkook?” Greeva turned to ask her Knight. “Could you bring reality to my feet, in hopes I don’t steer our people wrong?” A subtle brow arch as her arm draped across a raised knee. 

“I wouldn’t be worthy of my title if I couldn’t, My Queen.” Jungkook moved closer, obscuring her shadow with his own. “I would take any punishment afterwards - but I would have you see reason. No matter how extreme my display.” 

Greeva felt the warmth of his body trapping her in place, her smile changed. There was a glitter of dusk in her gaze as she turned to him. “Would that be as First Knight? Or as my mate?” Her head rested against a stone setting. 

“Both.” There was no hesitation. There was never a hidden emotion between them. “I’d get through to you, somehow.” They both turned to the sky as the blight moved toward the Seelie royal city. 

“Saoirse said she would reach out with further developments.” Jungkook found himself rubbing against Greeva’s arm, letting the action soothe his irritation. “We are going to have to step in, aren’t we?” 

Greeva watched the nightfall over them. “Yes, Jungkook. I’m afraid so.” 

He frowned watching her turn away from him again. It had been so long since the Land had been given an offering. So long, in fact, they forgot how it felt to be rejected by it. It had been too long since they had felt unwelcome. The tale of Eamon’s small regiment spread like wildfire through the courts and people would remember once again. 

And with thanks to Cardia - the people would never, ever forget.

“Your Majesty,” a knight took a knee before The Queen and the Court, “she’s here.”

Titania smiled gleefully, a dainty wave of her hand bid the knight to rise. “Bring her straight to the dungeons! She will not get a chance to prance through these halls.” 

Eamon, Cormac, and Saoirse managed to keep their faces neutral. The Queen clapped her hands rapidly. “My faithful subjects, prepare yourselves! For we are to celebrate the return of one of our dear sisters!”  

The Fae had long lives and long memories to boot. So when the rumor spread that Cardia had been spotted in the city walls, the city came alive with gossip. As Cardia’s name spread from one end of the city to the other, a crowd began to muster. Because some could scarce believe she had returned. Let alone remain unescorted on the way to the royal court.

Eamon shifted from Titania’s side, a glum look on his face. A sharp snap of fingers had him turn around, confused. “No, Eamon. You will stay with me.” The Queen decreed.

He looked ready to protest, but a barely perceptible nod from Cormac changed his mind. Titania stood, letting her fingers danced along his arm. “I have special preparations for her. You have lost enough. I have entrusted one of our finest to handle this task.” 

She did a whirling dervish down the short steps to from the throne. “Everyone stay here! Drink, drink! For soon, I will return to bring our sister back into our ranks.”

Titania smiled at the sad look on Saorise's face. “Little sister, fear not! All will be made right! I must go prepare myself!” The chimes of giddy laughter followed Titania out of the throne room.

She sped through the archways to her rooms. “Come to your Queen!” Titania laughed as she stripped herself of clothing. The half-fae contingent of men and women that were her servants gathered quickly.

“Take your time, my pets. Tonight shall be for revelry,” she declared as she licked her lips while a heated bath of flower petals was pushed into the room.

Titania’s servants spent eight agonizing hours seeing to her needs. They rubbed her body and stroked her ego until the throes of her orgasms could be heard through the castle. 

By the time she was actually dressed, adorned, and sparkling to her satisfaction  - a young knight eager for approval sought her out.

The exhausted servants, cleaned up quickly, began moving the tub and soiled linens from her room.

“Speak,” Titania stared down at the knight who was tasked with Cardia's special accommodations.

“My Queen,” He huffed softly, exhaustion apparent in the drop of his head. “As you commanded. She was taken to the dungeons. She was stripped, lashed until she lay weakened. Then we tossed the water upon her. The brands were threatened but never used. Thicker leather straps were used until she seemed weakened again.”

Titania listened to every sordid detail, biting into her lip as her arousal peaked again. Her lashes fluttered as she savored everything.

“…she fought hard not to pass out.” The knight finally finished.

“She what?” Titania’s mood changed immediately. “Never mind. It’s fine. You’ve done splendid work.” She placed a fingertip under the knight's chin.

She leaned down and kissed him thoroughly. He would have thought she was his mate by how much heat seared between their lips. “You will receive a full reward later.” 

The promise in her eyes made his knees weak. So much so that he stayed on them well after she left her room.

Titania made quick pace to the dungeons, too excited to even use her magic. Every step was savored for this grand finale. It played out in her mind: Cardia beaten, desperate for her forgiveness. She licked her lips again as the guards stepped aside.

“Caaarrrddiia! My darling! Are you ready to return to me? Are you ready to be at my side?” she spoke cheerily, her hands clasped behind her back.

She began dancing toward the battered, bruised, and bloodied form of a woman dangling from the chains.

“Tell me, sister. Fill my ears with the words I have so longed to hear.” Titania tilted her head, just so. A Cheshire smile on those glossy lips, but malice in her eyes.

What she hadn’t expected, however, was the clear look of defiance sparkling within the depths of the former Summer Court Lady’s eyes. She may have been physically beaten and battered, but it was clear that her spirit was anything but. The Fae lifted her head a little higher, her glare giving Titania pause.

“I refused you once many years ago. In retaliation, you bewitched my mortal husband and sent him to his death in the Wylds. My family was hunted down and tortured - some ending their own lives for having their magic stripped from them. Despite all the pain and anguish you brought on my household, I was fortunate enough to be blessed with a child, our child, growing within my womb.” Cardia’s eyes narrowed a measure. “I fled the Seelie Court and survived in the Human World. I sacrificed everything to raise my beautiful daughter so that she could live her life on her own terms. I swore that I would protect her and her choice to live the way that she wished, whatever wish that may be.”

And then Titania saw it. A smile. Her smile. It was radiant and borderline deadly. The Seelie Court’s current queen wasn’t sure what to make of this sudden expression. She should’ve been outraged but it was clear that Cardia would be unhindered by the elder Fae’s ire.

“So if you believe, even for a second, that I would return to this place only to give up my daughter to a life of servitude as some scullery maid and bow my head in remorse or ask for your forgiveness, then you are sadly mistaken.” Cardia’s grin grew wider. “I came back to tell you that you will leave both my daughter and me alone. You will forget I ever existed as a member of this court and if you ever entertain the thought of forcing either me or my daughter into these lands against our wills, I will burn this place to the ground! And if you kill me where I stand, I will make sure the Wylds themselves spread into this realm...AND CHOKE THE VERY LIFE OUT OF THIS KINGDOM!”

No! No, no, no! NO! This wasn’t what was supposed to happen! This was nothing like she planned?! Titania stared with mouth agape at Cardia’s unflinching rage. Her hands balled at her hips and she considered it. She, for just a hot second, actually considered killing Cardia. It would be over quickly, and she would have that daughter at her feet within the span of a day.

But, Titania’s fate was sealed with her words. Because the strongest sacrifice one can make was their own life. So if Titania were to strike Cardia down, the whole kingdom could be destroyed; wiped from the lands of Fae with but a whisper. 

Titania’s eyes were suddenly a gold-flecked crimson. If she could end it quickly? Yes, if she could end it quickly! “How dare you! I offer you everything and still, STILL you deny me!” She could end it quickly, she was sure of it. Cardia wouldn’t have a moment but to blink! 

Titania surged forward as if she was going to call the other woman’s bluff. The Summer Queen was fully prepared to risk the entire kingdom. She raised her hand and suddenly felt weightless. The room spun in all directions before she connected with the wall. She squeezed her eyes shut as she waited for the world to right itself. There was a soft groan as she slid down to the floor.

At the same time, Cardia’s chains snapped - but there were two sets of hands gently lowering her to the ground. Jimin and Saoirse each stepped under an arm, letting the woman lean her weight on them. They frowned deeply as they looked over her injuries.

“I’m surprised she’s not dead,” Jimin spoke curtly, turning a glare at Titania struggling on the ground. He shifted to Saoirse who seemed just as anxious over Cardia’s injuries. 

“That makes two of us,” a husky voice responded. 

That voice made Titania’s blood run cold. She pushed the hair from her face, ignoring the pain running through every muscle in her body. “Greeva.” The Winter Queen’s displeasure was palpable. “W-where are my manners, Older Sister. It’s always a pl-”

“SAVE IT!” The Unseelie Queen hissed vehemently, causing Titania to flinch. “You were really ready to risk your entire kingdom? For VANITY? YOUR EGO?” The tallest of the queens loomed over Titania and she had never felt smaller.

“I-I wouldn’t! You don’t know what she --” 

“DO NOT LIE!” This time it was Fiadh whose voice rose. “We know everything, Titania. You are lucky you are still breathing right now.” 

Ruined. Ruined. Everything was ruined?! Titania kept her gaze lowered to the ground. She feared if they felt she was scheming that things would be made worse for her. The Unseelie Queens waited for Titania to rise. She took her time, smoothing the grime and dust from her skirts. There was a soft sniff as she clasped her hands in front of her. She kept her eyes on the ground. “I would make amends.” 

“Would you?” It was Greeva who spoke. It was Greeva’s malice crawling along her skin. She felt a fingernail under her chin, raising her gaze to the Unseelie Queen. Her head was turned to the man leaning in the archway. Her brow creased with confusion before the Older Fae filled her vision again. “He’s my mate, Titania.” 

Titania’s gaze flew from Jungkook back to Greeva, her lip quivering. “I didn’t know! I --” Her teeth clicked with the grip on her jaw. 

“It is because of him you still walk. Because I would have stripped you of your powers and left you in the human realm to age and rot.” The grip on her face was released as Greeva stepped away. Titania lowered her gaze faster this time. 

The Unseelie Queens approached Jimin and Saoirse, remorse and disappointment etched in the lines of their foreheads. 

“Cardia,” Fiadh spoke softly, “Saoirse and Jimin will see to your carry. We are so sorry that we did not foresee the lengths Titania would go. She has broken the most sacred of all our laws in multitude against you and yours.” 

“You are welcome to change your court, should you choose. You would be welcome among them all,” Greeva added. “We extend the offer to your kin, Yoongi.” They each looked at each other before the Winter Queen continued. “We also offer our condolences. Aithne has reported that Briarden was murdered in the Wylds. Though not by Titania but by events that occurred due to her actions.” 

Greeva stepped back as Fiadh placed a gentle hand on Cardia’s shoulder. “You are welcome in Fae, without the need of anyone’s permission. But if you are here for any reason other than your will or an express invitation…?” The accent on the last two words caused Titania to flinch again. “Then we’ll need to find a new queen.” 

“We should start getting her healed as soon as possible,” Jimin grunted, shifting the weight of the woman on his shoulders. 

“Come Titania. It’s time to make amends.” Greeva pointed toward the stairs, and Titania had no choice but to move. 

Every step that had been savored going down suddenly felt like a weight from her neck. It caused her body to slump, steps shuffling as she wound her way through the halls. Her knights were shaking in the presence of the Unseelie brigade. Their eyes seemed to fill with something that made her sick. 

Pity. 

They pitied their radiant queen chastised and paraded through the royal grounds. They reached the archway to the throne room. A crowd of people waited quietly, unnerved by the prolonged presence of the Unseelie Court. The Queens moved to stand before the throne. Saoirse gave a look to Jimin who nodded to her to join the rest. He took up Cardia’s full weight, standing off to the side.

“You are not a faeling, Titania. Your transgressions are grave.” Greeva spoke for all to hear. The Winter Queen spoke, her gaze dark as she beheld the gathered populace. “Tell them what you’ve done. Tell them what it will cost them. What it will cost all of us.” 

Titania was shoved forward, her arms pinwheeling as she fought for balance. Their eyes were full of questions and accusations. She swallowed thickly, her voice failing her as she spoke. 

“Louder! So that no one can say they never heard you.” This came from Saoirse, who experienced first-hand the way their home will be forever changed.

Titania looked prepared to say something, but the swelling aura behind her gave her pause. She cleared her throat, her eyes found a spot on the wall. 

And she spoke in earnest, “I, Titania, have failed the Court. I have, in my pursuit of someone – who made known they did not want to be pursued, damaged the land of the fae.”

A collective gasp rose as she continued, “I have broken the most sacred of Court tenets. I..I have at a time when I was not on the throne, sent vassals to the human realm to search for Cardia, against her wishes. I am…responsible for her kin taking their own lives.” Titania could feel the tears of embarrassment welling in her eyes. “And most grievous of all, I have attempted to entice the chosen of another.” 

Her face was hot and flush, wishing to be a speck in the wind, as she finished. “Because of these actions, Cardia was forced to defend herself. And because of my actions, the Land lives once again.” The sound of fear and anger caused her focus to shift. Titania started to back away from the faces that used to adore her. 

Now they called for her flesh to be used to set things right. 

The Autumn Queen stepped forward, and silence washed over the room. “We have heard Cardia’s words. She has again declined Titania’s advances. We hereby declare this matter resolved. Titania knows that Cardia would soon have the Land consume this kingdom than risk the rest of her kin.”

The Winter Queen stepped forward. “So let this be a warning to you all. The land is alive – and it hungers. Resume making your offers in earnest, lest the beast is the least of your worries. And pray that it doesn’t take more than one hundred years for it to sleep once again. This will be your first and only warning.” 

Titania wasn’t sure if that was for the Court, or for her. The other queen’s turned to offer a nod to Saoirse. The Winter Queen turned back to The Summer Queen, “If another person is hurt because of your schemes? We will find a new queen.” 

Titania’s eyes were wide, looking up at Greeva. The utterance of those words, in front of eager noble Ladies wanting a taste, would make things difficult. 

And Greeva knew this. 

The Unseelie Queen’s moved to exit the throne room, their knights and The Spring Queen in tow. Titania felt sick as she flopped on the throne. She felt exposed to the eyes suddenly on her. She knew those looks, each of them filled with a scheme and a lust…for the opportunity.

“Guards! Clear the throne room!” Her voice breaking as she shrieked. It took them a moment too long before Eamon appeared. The knights hurried the onlookers out of the throne room. They closed the doors leaving Titania alone. Eamon’s silent glare was enough to keep any tongues wagging. Not a soul would repeat the crash of dishes and screaming that went on well into the night.

The Hall of the Spring Court

Saoirse closed the door to the suite where Cardia rested. Jimin grunted as he wiped his brow. She let her fingers dance across the width of his shoulders. “I couldn’t have done this without you.” He smirked at her, “I mean it, Jimin. None of this would have been possible if you hadn’t heard me out.” 

He leaned into her, letting their foreheads touch. This was the longest they had been in each other's presence for some time. Although she wished he would press her into the nearest wall – the healing space was a sacred space. 

“You’re a brave woman, Saoirse. Titania could have made things difficult for you.” His hand brushed the hair from her face, causing her to smile softly.

“She still could.” Her smile was slight, reaching up to intertwine their fingers. “One day.”

 Saoirse’s gaze lingered on their hands. Jimin gave a sad smile in return. It had been too long since the last time a Seelie and Unseelie had been mated. 

Yet here they were, breathing in each other’s atmosphere. Jimin’s soft sigh made her frown. “I know,” she said, “you should probably go. Fiadh has been gracious letting you stay as long as you have.” 

He nodded, taking a step back from the Spring Queen. “I’ll be back in three days to escort Cardia toward the crossing point.” Jimin’s hand slid across her waist, pulling her flush against him. The kiss was quick, hard, and done as he turned away abruptly.

Because he couldn’t stay but had he lingered for a moment longer...

Saoirse tongue slid across her bottom lip with a frown. She sighed, patting her face before opening the door to Cardia’s room once again.

As she entered, she saw Cardia starting to sit up. Before she was able to put all of her weight onto her arms, Saoirse was quickly at her side to help her. The former Lady of the Summer Court gave a tight-lipped smile as she allowed her to administer aid.

“You needn’t push yourself so hard, Cardia,” she urged while fluffing a few more pillows against her back, “take all the time you need to rest.”

Cardia shook her head, her complexion a shade lighter than when she’d previously remembered seeing her. “No. I mustn’t linger here. I need to return home.”

“In time, you stubborn Fae,” Saoirse said while smiling, “you nearly died.”

“And I would’ve taken this kingdom with me.”

The grave tone in Cardia’s voice gave Saoirse pause. It was frightening to know the lengths this woman was willing to go to protect her child. It was even more terrifying to think that Titania actually considered bringing this into reality for her own ego. Unimaginable is what it was.

Saoirse rested her hand on Cardia’s shoulder, giving her fellow Fae a squeeze of comfort to reassure her that all would be well. “Rest a little bit longer. I’ll have someone send Jimin a message that you will be leaving for the Veil at dusk.”

“Thank you, Saoirse,” Cardia replied, placing her own hand over hers, “thank you for everything.”

The Wylds were alive again. All thanks to Cardia’s sacrifice. No court, Seelie or Unseelie alike, would dare question her devotion to her daughter ever again. Not if they knew what was good for them.

The Veil Between Fae and Human Realms

Cardia’s steps were ginger and measured as Jimin and his small regiment escorted her through the Fae Wylds. Blood was tossed to the expanse of flora and fauna to satiate its hunger and it recognized the one who made the pact with it originally. A part of her felt a small ounce of remorse for having reawakened that unforgiving landscape. But there was no sacrifice she wasn’t willing to make to ensure her daughter’s well-being. In time, the land would quiet itself and return to its peaceful slumber.

She could only pray that there would not be another need for such a heavy sacrifice in the future.

“You almost doomed us all, you daft woman,” Jimin said suddenly, his voice slicing through her thoughts as he held her up by her waist.

Despite the heavy meaning behind his jab, Cardia let out a weak chuckle. “Yes, well, I believe there is nothing I wouldn’t do to protect the one that is most precious to me.”

“You know,” he began, making sure to help her over a fallen branch on the pathway, “you could always return to the Fae lands. Your brother and your daughter are welcome. You would have your choice of courts to be a part of. You don’t have to continue to live in squalor in the Human Realm.”

“Is that what you think it is? Living in squalor?” Cardia scoffed. “I would much rather do that than return home only to have my daughter subjected to a life of servitude.”

“She wouldn’t --”

“She would, Jimin. Don’t patronize me.” Her tone was sharp. “Our laws are also part of a long standing tradition. I knew the price I would have to pay when I chose a human as my mate. I won’t allow my daughter to live like that because of my choices.”

She heard him sigh and knew that the discussion was over. Cardia had made her choice. She would have to live with it for the rest of her life. Her beautiful daughter, however, would be free to live her life on her own terms. As penance, Cardia would never fall in love again. She chose to live alone, mateless, for the rest of her days. 

Because in her heart of hearts, the loss of her beloved husband was still a fresh scar on her very being.

“Well, if you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to reach out. You’re still one of us.” She looked up to see the warm expression now settled over Jimin’s face. “You and your kin.”

“Thank you, Jimin.” Her eyes turned back to the path ahead of them and she realized that they were very close to reaching the veil. “I will remember your words.”

“Farewell, Lady Cardia.” Jimin offered a smile as she crossed the veil. 

For those who are curious about the terminology being used in the story, it is a form of Irish/Gaelic, and their meanings are as follows: Deirfiúr - Sister deirfiúr bheag - Little Sister cinn beag - Little Ones àlainn - beautiful

Dream of Red [2]

For the BTS Fabled Collaboration Project sponsored by @ksmutclub and @whipped-kpop-creators.

Plot: A vain and jealous Queen sets in motion a series of events that will force two lovers to face what they mean to each other.

Rating: 18+ // NSFW

Genre: established relationship | dark fantasy | angst | romance/fluff | smut | dark fable/fairy tale

Pairings: Wolf!Taehyung x OC [Red]

Featuring: BigBadWolf!Namjoon, Blacksmith!Yoongi/FormerSeelie!Yoongi, Unseelie!Jimin

Warnings: Blood, violence, wolf fight, minor character death, unprotected sex (wrap it up, kids), mentions of ‘claiming’, biting/marking, oral sex

Previous Part: Prequel

Links: FAQ || BTS Masterlist || [ REQUESTS ARE OPEN ]

Word Count: 18.6k

AN: This work is by Admin E and Admin T - we are coming out the woodwork, ladies and gentleman. This is the second and final part to the main story/concept that was originally thought up. Admin E would like to blame the length on Admin T and Admin T will plead the fifth! Please enjoy!

© thebiasrekkers (Admin E & Admin T). All rights reserved. Reposting/modifying our work is prohibited. Translations are not allowed. Plagiarism/stealing is not tolerated by any means. Legal action will be taken in instances of theft.

The sun filtered through trees playing along the skin, kissing more color into the owner’s pores. He couldn’t help but marvel at the form close to him. She was so at home amongst the leaves and foliage. Their naked bodies were supported by loam and moss, as if the forest acted to help keep their secret.

Taehyung’s pupils were blown outward as the scent of her reached him again. Fortunately, his willpower won as he was simply content to be in her presence. How he wished he could have her this way at night. How would she look with the blessing of Luna dancing through her eyes? His gaze narrowed, breath still, as she turned to snuggle further into his chest. 

There was the self-satisfied smirk that barely lifted the corner of his mouth. “I wish I could let you sleep, little Red.” A grunt of dissatisfaction under the whisper before he placed a firm hand on her shoulder. “...but we know you have little time to return to your village.”

She kept sleeping as if they didn’t have a care in the world. Taehyung wished that was the case, “Red, you must wake now. The sun is high and you move too slow.” He knew the tease would rifle her enough to get her moving. 

The Wolf knew that he needed to play along - for now. Because it was the only way they could have their moments together.

A pout formed on her lips, the latter remark being the nudge needed to finally push her to being fully awake. She opened one umber eye and glared at him through her dark curls. “Who is slow?” Slowly, the other eye opened. “I know it is not me whom you speak of.”

Taehyung’s laugh rumbled in the air as he pushed an errant curl behind her ear. “Ah, she wakes at last.” A brow ticked upward as she glared at him. “Now, now - I cannot help that you have to keep up these airs around the town folk. Unfortunately, it does make you relatively slow.” He leaned down to brush his lips across her forehead. “We all have our shortcomings, little Red.” 

She huffed, unappreciative to his continued jabs on her speed. It was unfair, of course, seeing as how she was restricted to human movements. But that didn’t mean Taehyung would tease her less about it. Red shoved her hand in his face, pushing him away from her as she rolled over in the lush grass. Finally, she sat up, her dark tresses falling about her bare shoulders and back. Taehyung laughed softly, unable to take his eyes off every elegant curve that made up her entire being.

Red reached for her dress and began slipping her arms and head through the openings, refusing to say anything to him. She then snatched at the crimson mantle that apparently got blown a few feet away during their lovemaking. 

He still smiled, head braced on an upturned palm as she gave him the silent treatment. Taehyung’s hungry gaze lingered on every dip and dimple. He was so focused - that he didn’t realize he was growling. It was something akin to a chuff, a vocalization of low sound. Something he did right before he’d threaten to shred every piece of fabric from her body. “What I wouldn’t give to see you bathed in moonlight.” 

She laughed. It resembled that of a bell tinkling in the distance, reminding him that while Red was human - she wasn’t all human. There was that touch of Fae in her that lingered on the surface of her brown skin. It was that very same blood that allowed her to see him, touch him, and even converse with him in the manner they had for so many years now.

“That’s impossible,” she murmured, pulling the crimson mantle over her shoulders. Red continued to look away from him as a soft breeze threw her curls off to the side - further hiding her from his view. “You already know the reason why.”

“It won’t stop me from wanting it, Red.” He stood, pulling on his pants while she dropped that crimson cloak over her shoulders. He couldn’t help the bitter tone in his voice. The time didn’t matter to their kind, those touched by magicks and blessed by deities long thought gone; her scent on the breeze as her hair tousled on the wind. “I’ll always want that. I--” His teeth snapped shut as he gripped the shirt in his hands. “...I know why.” 

Humans. 

Humans were scared of things they didn’t understand. Humans and their fear of the unknown so lost from the old ways they couldn’t connect with the miracles around them. Taehyung shrugged into the shirt carelessly, buttons flying in his irritation. “We can leave, you know? We could just…” He didn’t finish - he wouldn’t finish that thought. 

Because they went through that once before - and it didn’t end well.

Her shoulders visibly stiffened at the suggestion. A handful of seconds and he watched them relax. It was a tender subject, one he tried not to bring to light repeatedly. He knew Red wasn’t ignorant to his concerns, his wishes - because they mirrored her own.

Finally, she twisted her upper body so that she was now facing him. Her umber tones gave away no secrets as she lifted her hands to reach for the hood of her cloak. Smiling, she slid the hood over her dark curls and he noticed that it was a smile that did not reach her eyes. 

“Greed is destructive, Tahyung,” Red said, her voice soft and heavy in the same breath, “it destroys everything.”

And no one knew that destruction better than him. So he tried hard to keep the vow made. Never would he put them - put her in that danger ever again. Longer fingers danced over her shoulders, his nostrils flaring against that crimson prison hiding her from him. “I’m sorry. Forget I said anything. A man in love who longs to love his person can say selfish things.” Taehyung molded himself against her back.

He could feel her breathing. He could smell the faint salt in the air. Red was trying not to cry. Instead, he heard her take another breath as her heartbeat rang in his ears. “Taehyung…”

“I know, one day, this will all be over for us—the secrecy.” This forest. This village. One day, it would be behind them. He held her tighter as if he wanted more than anything just to steal her away. It hurt his soul to let her go. “Until tomorrow.” Tae found his voice, willing himself to release her, to step back before the creature inside him gave in to the urge.

Red tilted her head forward slightly. “Until tomorrow.” 

Reaching down, she scooped up the small wicker basket and straightened her posture. He watched her gaze linger a moment longer before Red turned and walked away - disappearing into the thick, dense forest and being swallowed by the shadows within. 

Tae waited with bated breath until the sound of her footsteps no longer echoed in the air. He waited until she crossed that thin veil that kept them safe. He knew then that she was gone, and his world was cold again. He let out a long sigh as another sound, faint, tickled his ears. 

“You can stop hiding, Aithne.” He grumbled as a black cat with a fiery red patch on its chest lounged on a branch above him. You could swear the cait-sidhe was smiling. 

“Tsk, Tsk, Wolf. You surprise me. Surely I thought the two of you would have ensconced yourselves on the other side of the veil by now.” The feline seemed to admire its claws. “It’s almost time for the courts to change. And if I recall…” The cat tilted its head in Taehyung’s direction. 

The Wolf’s claws tore at the bark of the tree. “I know what it means, you nosy feline.” His head tilted up the length of the tree. “It’s not exactly an easy feat to manage as long as we have.” They held each other’s gaze in a long, heavy silence.

“Taehyung, the humans are becoming a nuisance. She becomes more and more radiant with each change of the season. They’re going to notice sooner or later that she is more than.” The creature spoke with an almost sibilant hiss. “The veil around the forest needs to be stronger and stronger each time you two are together.” Taehyung finally looked away, focusing on tucking his shirt into his pants. “Especially when you two are together.” 

“I know, Aithne! I know.” He tousled the dark, disheveled strands from his face. “I can’t…” His fingers dug into his waist, eyes closed, teeth grinding in his frustration. “I can’t just steal her away! Especially if they are catching on to her. That would put her in even more danger.” His brow furrowed as he looked up to the feline. “You know how close they came to stumbling into the land of Fae.” 

The cait-sidhe sighed as it stretched its hindquarters. “I know well, Wolf. There was a heavy toll paid to keep them away.” The feline hopped down, landing perfectly on its feet. The creature was nigh on three feet in height without its glamour. The dark green of its eyes seemed to glimmer with regret. 

The girl was too young at the time, and so was he. No one had heard of such a thing!  A halfling being a wolf’s mate. But humans were stupid, vapid things. Always willing to destroy something instead of trying to coexist. 

The cait-sidhe’s gaze fell to the forest floor. “Be careful, Taehyung. It’s not just the humans you need to watch out for this time.” 

The lines in Taehyung’s forehead deepened. 

The Summer Court was almost in session. Which meant that the Fae would be on the prowl on the human side. Red was well over the age to be swept away. But he knew what life would be like for a halfling in the most arrogant of the Court. It’s why her mother disappeared. No. Why her mother chose to turn her back on everything she’d ever known.

“Thank you, Aithne. I understand.” Taehyung tilted his head toward the direction of the trail Red used. 

“I hope you do, Taehyung.” The cait-sidhe turned in that direction as well. “For all of our sakes.” 

Red sighed, her heart heavy with some unnamable feeling. She couldn’t call it sadness. She wouldn’t dare label it as longing. Perhaps it was remorse. Part of her was both sincere and full of guile, all in the same instance. It was inescapable. Her life was full of intricately woven lies, both for safety and selfishness. Some lies were harmless, and others should tear many hearts asunder should they ever come to light. Her own would not be exempt.

“Little Red!”

Her brooding thoughts were immediately knocked from her head momentarily. Looking around, she spied the village baker, Victor, waving her down. Smiling, she approached him as he held out a bundle wrapped in hempen cloth. Just as she was about to fish out some coin from within her basket, the baker shook his head and placed a hand atop the basket’s handle.

“Your mother has already paid for the goods, Red,” he said while smiling, “I was just a little busier than normal this morning, so I had no bread ready to give when she happened upon me. I promised to have it delivered later.”

Red smiled as she removed her hand from the basket. “Then I suppose it is good fortune that I happened to return to the village when I did.”

Was it luck that she was always at the right place and at the right time? Perhaps. Or perhaps it was something otherworldly altogether.

“You’re such a good girl, Red. Going off every morning to fetch herbs for your mother.”

“Mother is always so busy with house calls.” A warm feeling reached her cheeks. “It’s the least I can do.”

Victor chuckled. “Well, I won’t keep you. Run along, dear.”

She waved farewell to him, making sure she held onto the bread and that it didn’t mix in with the herbs tucked away in the basket. If her mother was still attending to patients in the village, she needed to hurry home to prepare a good meal for her when she returned. Red was doing her best to study medicine under her mother’s tutelage, but during the harsher seasons, it was challenging to balance work and study. Red knew that her mother’s apothecary skills were needed more than ever during the colder months. With summer’s approach, she also knew there would be a little more time to assist her mother and focus on her studies.

It didn’t take long for Red to reach their home - a modest cottage just on the outskirts of the village. They were close enough to be considered part of the community but sequestered away so they could maintain a level of privacy. People in the town found it to be unusual in the beginning. But after a time, they came to accept it as part of Red’s mother’s slightly eccentric nature. 

Birds chirped happily as she pushed her way inside, closing the wooden door behind her so the latch would catch. She set the basket and carefully wrapped bread on the table, her hands moving to her cloak. Red swept the mantle off her shoulders with a swift motion and hung it up on a wooden rung near the door - rolling up her sleeves to begin her work around the kitchen.

After preparing the kettle for tea and the cauldron with water, Red settled to chop vegetables by the window. Her mind wandered to the conversation she had with Taehyung just moments ago. For him to bring up the issue again worried her. It wasn’t like him to get swept up in his emotions in that manner. The Wolf wasn’t one to reveal fear or doubt to her or any other creature that dared to cross his path. 

Something is wrong…

It was the only thought she could dredge up that made sense. Something was wrong. The Wolf was a creature of old magic, part of an even older race that was now scattered across the four corners of the realm. She recalled Taehyung once telling her that it would take the lifetimes of dozens of humans to pass before he ever saw another of his kind. Sometimes longer.

She remembered thinking how lonely that must have been upon reaching such a revelation.

Regardless of his worries or their shared wants, Red knew she could never leave her mother. She would never entertain the idea, no matter how many thousands of times it was suggested to her. Red knew the sacrifices her mother made to raise her all alone. She never knew her father and only assumed he was dead. Her mother rarely spoke of him, but when she did, there was a sort of sadness in her eyes that sank into Red’s core, causing her pain.

“Mother…”

There was a soft rapping at her door, causing Red to almost drop the knife in her hand. When she looked up, she saw a red fox pawing at the window. His golden eyes peered at her curiously, the canine’s head canting slightly to the side as it waited for her to grant him entrance. Red half sighed, half laughed as a wave of relief washed over her. Reaching forward, she unlatched the window and pushed it open - watching the fox leap inside without a second glance.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, Briarden?”

The fox flicked his ears back and forth, prancing around the kitchen before leaping onto the kitchen table. He sat on his haunches, a black socked paw lifting to point in her direction. “Do not play the fool, Red. You know why I have come.” The fox - no, the reynard set his paw down on the wooden surface. “You grow bolder by the day.”

Huffing air through her nostrils, she turned away from the fox and resumed chopping the vegetables. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“You know what I am referring to.” The reynard suddenly appeared on the counter to her left. “Either that or the Wolf is growing stupid in his old age.”

Red smothered down the urge to roll her eyes. “According to him, he is still in his prime - young, in fact.”

“That makes him even more of a fool.”

A harsh sound echoed throughout the kitchen as she slammed her knife down on the cutting board. “Why are you here, Briarden?”

The fox’s tail swished back and forth in annoyance. “To warn you.” 

What displeasure she felt with Briarden’s unannounced visit was quickly doused with concern. “...warn me of what?”

“This tryst cannot continue. It is taking everything we have in the lower courts to hide it. The thicker the veil, the more it will be seen.” Red took note of the worry furrowing over the red and white muzzle marks just over the fox’s eyes. “It is practically a beacon!”

There was a heavy thump near Red’s chest, echoing down to her ribcage. She’d feared this would come to pass, but she believed that she had more time. More time to explain to her mother what was happening and more time to understand just what she was. She’d chastised Taehyung for being greedy earlier, but had it, in fact, been her own greed instead?

“Briarden, I-”

“The courts are going to change soon.”

Red felt the knife slip from her fingers and clattered to the floor. Was it already time? Surely not.

Watching the reynard leap onto the windowsill, he chanced a glance over his shoulder. “...you and your mother might still have a chance. A small one, but a chance just the same.” 

Red could only imagine what kind of look was on her face at that moment. 

“Iron clothes.” The fox sighed, shaking his fur a measure before looking out across the forest. “Relay my words to your mother.”

And before Red could ask for the reynard to further explain his cryptic words, he dashed off into the forest as silent and swiftly as he’d come.

The look of turmoil that painted over her daughter’s face was hard to miss. But Cardia could not afford to entertain it. Birariden’s message was clear. There was little time, especially if the courts were scheduled to switch to who was in power. And if her timing was as accurate as it always was, then she already knew who would be in the seat of power next.

Titania, she thought, her eyes darting over her work desk hurriedly, the games will be afoot soon.

Her arm swept over the surface, knocking all of her books and documents into the empty sack off to the side. Red’s voice was a distant echo around her ears, muffled and concerned. But Cardia quickly set about moving around the house. She would need to leave before sunset. The sooner she disappeared into the forest, the safer her daughter would be.

“Mother, please!” 

Cardia was stopped as her arm was wrenched back by her daughter, gripping onto it, halting her movements altogether. When she looked over her shoulder, her eyes widened slightly as tears began to stream down Red’s cheeks. There was clear desperation dancing in the child’s umber and hazel tones, which gave Cardia a well-needed pause in her manic movements.

Slowly, she turned and grasped onto Red’s wrist, gently removing her hand away from her. “Red, listen to me…”

“Where are you going?!” Red all but pleaded with her, and the broken sound in her daughter’s voice, a voice that was usually so vibrant, caused Cardia to sigh. 

“I have to go, my daughter.” Cardia reached up to cup her daughter’s cheeks in her palms. “I have to leave.”

“But why? Why must you leave?” Red pressed her hands against the backs of Cardia’s. “Please, take me with you!”

The former Fae of the Summer Court shook her head. “No, I’m afraid I cannot let you accompany me. It is far too dangerous in the forests. There are things that lurk in the shadows, ready to claim you for their own.”

Red seemed dissatisfied with this answer. Cardia already knew why. After all, hadn’t she traversed in the woods countless times to retrieve herbs for her? She was not ignorant of the forests or their winding paths. But Cardia knew the truth. She knew that the forest Red knew was the forest where she would be travelling to. To protect her daughter, she would have to return to that place. To that world.

To the land of the Fae.

“Do not leave me alone, Mother!”

Cardia stroked her hand through her daughter’s dark tresses before pulling her into a hug. “You won’t be alone. Your uncle will be here to look after you.”

Red stiffened against her chest. It wasn’t hard to discern where her concerns were stemming from. As far as her daughter knew, they only had each other. There were no others. So who was this “family” that she was speaking of now?

Pulling away from Red, Cardia swiftly resumed packing all of her belongings. Every single trace in the home that connected her would come with her. Only Red would be left behind. It was safer that way. It was the only way that this would work.

Because her daughter was half-Fae. Her human side would keep her safe just a little bit longer.

Making her way to the door, she threw the last of the items she had into the back of the wooden cart hooked to a mule. Cardia rushed forward and collected her daughter into her arms once more. It would be some time before she was able to see her again. If fortune smiled on them, it would be sooner rather than later. Either way, Red would be safe from the clutches of the Summer Court for just a little while longer.

“Farewell, my sweet daughter...my Little Red.” Tears brimmed her eyes, and she pulled her daughter just a little closer. “...until we meet again, stay safe.”

And before her daughter could further pull at the strings of her heart, Cardia rushed to the front of the cart and urged the mule down the winding path into the forest. The sun was beginning to sink over the canopy of trees. It wouldn’t be long before twilight kissed its lover, disappearing in a glow covered in darkness.

 “Uncle, please let me go!”

The man said nothing, causing Red to sob softly. He moved throughout the cottage methodically, picking up tools here and there. The sun had long since set, and yet he began to stoke the fires outside, his leather apron tied around his waist and his thick leather gloves slid over his hands. Her uncle was a blacksmith by trade, and upon his arrival, he immediately ordered Red to prepare the furnace so he could work.

This was madness. She didn’t know what was happening and it was happening far too quickly. Even if it was a desperate situation, she still wanted to know what was happening. What was going to happen? And, above all, Red knew she had to find a way to let Taehyung know what was transpiring. If something were amiss, he would sense it immediately. The wolf would search for answers, and he would do so regardless of the obstacles in his way.

As gentle as he was with her, Red knew what he was capable of. She knew the fire and rage that lay dormant behind those golden eyes in his true form. Because there was a time, long ago, when she almost fell prey to those very same flames. Red was but a child back then, and the wolf was lost, wounded, and very very hungry.

Just as he passed her for the dozenth time, Red grabbed onto the sleeve of his shirt. She didn’t bother hiding the tears. She was afraid. She was terrified of what was about to happen and the ominous words left by Briarden and her mother.

“Uncle Yoongi, please tell me what is happening! I must know!”

“Foolish girl,” he grunted, shaking her off so hard that she fell to the floor, “be still and let me work!”

But Red would not be brushed aside. Like a petulant child, she clung to the leg of her uncle’s pants - refusing to let him take another step. “T-Then please let me go to the forest and retrieve the herbs needed to tend to the patients in the village! I beg of you!” Her grip tightened on his trousers. “Mother wouldn’t want me abandoning them!”

She watched her uncle turn slowly around, shifting his weight so that he was now down on his haunches in front of her. There was a moment of silence as she saw his eyes studying her closely. Then a knowing smirk pulled at the corners of his lips.

“When morning comes, you will not be allowed to set one foot outside of this place.”

It was like Red had been punched straight in the gut. What air remained in her lungs quickly expelled through her lips, forcing her to gasp for more oxygen. She didn’t hear that correctly, did she? There must have been some kind of mistake.

“W-What do you mean by -”

Suddenly, her uncle grabbed her chin harshly - forcing her to lift her head up, and she cried out involuntarily from the unexpected action. Red tried to pull away from his grip, but it merely tightened to the point of it being painful. This time, tears leaked from her eyes as she was forced to stare into the harsh gaze of her uncle.

“There is a chance that your mother will die. She is risking her life by leaving you here and going into the forest alone.”

Red’s lower lip trembled as she recalled the sad look that painted over her mother’s features moments before she was pulled into her embrace. “M-Mother is-”

“And it’s all because of your foolishness.” His eyes narrowed. “You...and that wolf.”

This time, a gurgling noise of horror bubbled inside of Red’s throat. How could he have known that? How did he know?! 

...does that mean Mother knew as well?

But who would be there to answer that question? No one. Clearly, her uncle would provide her with no relief to the queries that continued to plague and mount her thoughts with each passing second.

Without another word, he shoved her away and resumed heading to the back of the cottage. Red was left stunned, still on the floor, wondering just what was about to transpire. And yet, the tears continued to fall in waves until she was left with no choice but to sob openly into her palms. As the hours pressed on well into the night, Red’s sobs were silenced as she drifted in and out of consciousness on the floor.

Only the sound of her uncle’s hammer hitting the anvil remained constant as all else was shrouded in shadow.

The moon shimmered fat and full on the surface of a lake. The forest was alive and busy as the seasonal change was upon them. Taehyung’s anxiety only seemed to grow since Red left him that afternoon. Maybe it was Aithne’s appearance that caused the sensation to fill his stomach. So much so that he had barely eaten his meal. 

“That’s unlike you, old friend.” Taehyung scoffed softly at the sound of the Unseelie Fae’s presence. “You could decimate the forest should you choose.” 

Jimin stepped into the light of the moon. Taehyung’s gaze shifted to the edge of the brush. 

Now he had indeed lost his appetite.

“To what do I owe the honor, Jimin?” He wanted so badly to smile for one of the few people he called a friend. But Taehyung didn’t believe in coincidences. Not like this. “It has been too long indeed, my friend. I fear I cannot offer you a more jovial welcome. Because you make for the third ill omen and the day has yet to end.” His brow furrowed as Jimin stood silently.

“Ever astute, Wolf.” Jimin stepped forward, dropping down next to Taehyung at the lake’s rim. “Gods, I missed being out here.” The Unseelie knight took a deep inhale of air. His gaze lowered to the ground as he spoke. “Tae, the Summer Court will be in session soon.” 

“I know, Jimin.” 

“Titania still has not given up on finding Cardia.” Jimin offered a sidelong glance, enough to catch the muscle ticking in Tae’s jaw. “...Saoirse came to speak to Fiadh.” 

Tae’s spine straightened with shocking quickness. “Sh-she what?” 

“Saoirse contacted me, and we met, and - Fiadh caught us.” Jimin looked to the ground, avoiding the sorrow in Taehyung’s eyes. “It’s fine. We will have Samhain as we always have. We agreed to never repeat our mistakes. Fiadh was more concerned for the consequences should we have been caught.” The wolf let his gaze settle on the ground as well. 

“But, Tae, everyone has worked to keep you and Red hidden from Titania. I fear as the child has grown older, so too has her aura. She has yet to discover, let alone understand, her heritage.” Jimin let an arm drape over a bent knee. “We did this at Cardia’s behest. Titania is starting the games as soon as she’s on the throne. We fear she may run them the entire season.” 

That’s when Taehyung pushed up to his feet, his golden eyes ablaze. “The WHOLE SEASON? Jimin, please tell me this is hearsay? Because this is far from a joke. You’re telling me she means to run her hunt the entire time she’s on the throne? Not just one week to usher in the Summer season?” He didn’t realise he was opening and closing his fists.

He failed to notice the feral sounds tucking their way into his speech. He didn’t note his fangs brushing his bottom lip. He could only hear his heart thundering in his ears. Jimin’s eyes grew wide as Taehyung lingered in a state of half-changed. 

“I wouldn’t joke about this.” Jimin’s eyes hardened as he stood. “Everyone knows about you and the child now. Everyone has done their part to help keep you two safe. It’s becoming too much, and the veil is warping. It’s been heard that Titania has had her knights searching for some clues throughout the seasons.”

“She can’t do that! That’s against the Court edicts!” Tae threw a massive hand in the air.

“I know. We all know. But, we didn’t know about them until the thaw. The activity ceased during the Spring season because Saoirse is prone to keeping a closer eye on Titania.” Jimin rubbed at the back of his neck idly. “Look, I don’t know what’s going to happen, but...you may need to stay away from the child for a while.” 

A deep growl vibrated the air, stilling the entire forest. Taehyung realized what he’d done. He closed his eyes, willing his emotions to temper. Jimin wouldn’t admit he’d considered reaching for his weapon and that the wolf also sensed this motion. 

“Taehyung, please. Titania means to go to war over Cardia and the child. We will do what we can to throw them off your tracks. But, for the moment? You have to stay away from Red - else it’s not just her you’ll be putting in danger.” 

Taehyung’s hand balled into fists with bone crackling intensity. 

Jimin reached out, bravely, to put a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “We have people watching her. But you need to watch the forest, now more than ever.” The Unseelie looked toward the moon’s position, his lips tempting a frown. “The next moonrise starts the Summer Season.”

The Wolf looked up at his beloved goddess, basking him in a warm glow. As if to tell him to take comfort in her blessing. The golden fire dissipated from his eyes, and the world was suddenly blurry. He felt like she was already too far away from him. She was farther than she had ever been before, and this time? This time he couldn’t go running to save her. 

Everything he could possibly think of would have her dead, or worse - captured by the Court. The tears in his eyes never fell. Even as Jimin bid him a quiet goodnight and returned to the shadows. 

Taehyung now understood Aithne’s words from earlier that day. Titania wasn’t just bringing Summer Games this season. She could possibly start a war.

He couldn’t remember the last time there had been war. But he knew what would bring one on sooner than later. Taehyung turned to the thick brush across from him. He was suddenly filled with dark rage - and tearing sneaky Seelie limb from limb? Well, that, he was sure, would calm him right the hell down.

He never imagined it would come to this.

Cradling the iron chest piece in his hands, Yoongi frowned. In a few more hours, dawn would kiss the skies and welcome a new day. The sacrifice he’d made on the night prior would pale in comparison to the sacrifice his dear sister made. Cardia was as smart as she was beautiful. Anyone in the Seelie Court knew this. While she had no desire for the throne or to be a consort in the royal harem, Cardia’s power was well-known throughout both the Seelie and Unseelie courts.

Yoongi’s body ached from phantom scars and wounds, even years after Cardia fled the Fae Courts. He was her older brother, and while he was not one to deny his sister anything, he warned her the dangers of falling for a human and what it would mean for her future. For the future of their family.

But she was as stubborn as she was beautiful, determined to have her way, regardless of the price. And that price she was willing to pay was also thrust upon her family. Their family.

He was a Fae in name only, a mere husk of who he used to be. Now he was no better than a human once Titania managed to get her hands on him and the rest of the family. There were days he often entertained the idea of ending it all. His remaining family had. But when he’d first held Red in his arms, he knew he couldn’t. He just couldn’t afford to abandon his sister when she needed him more than anyone else. Yoongi was all Cardia had, and no amount of words or lengths of denial would change that.

But he couldn’t stay with his sister. He had to part ways with her for her own safety. Because a powerless Fae was still tethered to the land of their origins. He was a beacon and, as such, a danger to his beloved Cardia.

Yoongi travelled for years learning the blacksmith arts. There were some boons with being a Fae that no longer had powers. He could touch iron. He could craft and hone the tools of man and utilise them for himself. In time, he knew that his talents would be called upon. He knew it the moment Cardia decided to hide away after losing the man she loved.

It was time.

As he entered through the back door of the cottage, he saw Red hunched over by the kitchen table. Somewhere during the night, she passed out. Something twisted in Yoongi’s heart. He knew the poor girl was uncomfortable. He knew that she was sad and afraid. While most people would have found her obedience to staying inside astonishing, he didn’t question it.

His niece was truly good.

Which made what he was about to do that much harder for him to go through with.

Setting the iron chest piece on the kitchen table, he knelt down by Red’s side and shook her. He did this three more times before she groggily pulled herself from her sleeping state. Guilt ripped through his chest as he watched her sleepily rub at her eyes.

“Uncle Yoongi?”

Yoongi said nothing. Instead, he hoisted her up into his arms and carried her to her bedroom. He then carefully deposited her onto her bed, pivoting on his heels and returning to the kitchen to retrieve the item he’d been working on all night and well into the morning.

“Uncle?”

Again, Red called to him, but he knew he had to remain focused. If he wavered now, there was nothing to hope for beyond this moment. Yoongi had to be strong and resolute, or else there would be no saving his niece from the path of destruction.

He entered her chambers once more and quickly closed the distance between them, his free hand reaching out to snatch at her blouse. Red sharply inhaled, clutching at the front of her garments, but Yoongi would not be stopped. The sound of fabric tearing almost screamed out in the room as Red, too, yelled out in horror at what was happening.

“Uncle, what are you doing?!” She did her best to fight him, but he was determined. Her tears fell as she screamed while he ripped one of the sleeves clean from her arm. “PLEASE STOP!”

Tossing the chest piece open onto the bed, he pulled Red up onto her feet and tore at what little remained of her blouse until only her chemise remained. He threw her face-first back on the mattress, making sure that her upper body hit the iron piece first. Bracing his knees along the edge of the bed, he grabbed Red's wrists and pulled her arms back and out until they were placed just where he needed them. Flinging her arms away, he quickly slammed the back of the chest piece closed - locking the side securely with a single key. 

As he tucked the key away, he watched Red rolling back onto her side - her arms flailing wildly in an attempt to pry the metal shirt off of her. She pulled and tugged until her fingers were red, and then she continued to pull. But it was hopeless.

It would take her days, if not weeks, to break free without the key.

Red whirled around, half on the bed and half off, glaring daggers up at Yoongi. Internally, he was burdened with guilt. On the outside, he was as cold as ice.

“W-What have you done?” She reached up to tug at the collar of the iron shirt. “Why have you done this?!”

“Until you are able to break those clothes of iron, you will not be able to step out into the light.” He watched Red’s eyes grow large and fearful as her hands fell into her lap. Yoongi swallowed the lump in his throat and continued. “You will not see your mother again, and the wolf will never find you so long as you wear that.”

“I don’t understand,” she murmured sadly, “I just...I don’t understand why this is happening…”

“No, I suppose you don’t.” Sighing, Yoongi turned and moved for the door. “But one thing you must understand is this. That Wolf is not of your world. You are not of his.” He placed his hand on the doorframe. “You may think you love him, but know this, Little Red. He is not a man dressed up as some dog. He is a wolf...disguised as a man.”

Before his niece could say another word, Yoongi exited the room and shut the door behind him - locking Little Red in her chambers. Pressing his back against the door, he slid to the ground and covered his face with his hands - silently mourning the sweet light that was being snuffed out forcefully by his own hands for the foreseeable future.

While it may have been for her safety and for the safety of all realms, it didn’t ease the pang of guilt weighing heavily on Yoongi’s heart.

Cardia, please… he prayed, clasping his hands together, you have to finish this before it’s too late.

There was a slight whimper that escaped Cardia’s lips as she collapsed onto soft undergrowth beneath her feet. She was tired. Tired and yet she could not help but press forward. Her mind was going a mile a minute and there was nothing she could do but keep going forward. If she didn’t press onward past this hill, her entire journey would have been for nothing.

With trembling hands, she grasped the hempen rope of the only bag that managed to survive her trek through the Fae Wylds. The items in the cart, the cart itself, and even the mule were lost - possessions that now belonged to the Wylds. They were mercilessly claimed, but she’d accounted for that. It was the very reason she brought them with her despite how arduous the journey would be.

Clearly, she was rusty. Then again, it had been some time since she last meandered through those woods. Being a single mother and maintaining her relationships with the lower courts to help keep the veil over the village took up most of her time. She hadn’t been able to enter the Fae Wylds in some time.

These woods were dangerous.

Not even nobles of the Fae Court would enter the Wylds because the flora and fauna would devour any arrogant being foolish enough to enter. Cardia would thank her older brother, Yoongi, for teaching her the skills necessary to overcome such a cumbersome venture.

It was why she knew that Red would be safe with him. Yoongi was the only one she could trust to keep her daughter safe while she was not there.

Mustering what strength she had, Cardia pulled the sack onto her shoulders and climbed the hill. There was a clearing just over said hill and once she managed to get there, it would be the safety boundary away from the madness of the wylds. She could build a shelter and prepare herself for what was to come in just a few short days. Using her magic, however, would be like releasing a meteor shower onto her location. But Cardia had no choice. Titania would preside over the other courts as ruler for the season and the games would begin. The hunt for the humans to satisfy her boredom would commence and her daughter would continue to be freed from Titania’s grasp.

I hope you were able to do it, Brother…

Just as she was thinking about it, a shock rippled through her system. It was so sudden and so violent, Cardia cried out in pain before tumbling down the hill. Pain covered her from head to toe and by the time she reached the bottom of the hill, it felt like someone managed to pour ice cold water over her body. However, despite the pain she was in, Cardia could only smile as tears leaked from her eyes.

Her daughter was safe. Trapped in irons, but safe.

Closing her eyes, she sighed softly to herself as her tears continued to stream down her cheeks. “...the Wolf will not be pleased when he discovers her missing.” Slowly, she sat up and wiped at her eyes with the back of her wrist. “But I have no choice. Come what may, this is the only path open to me.”

Fueled with determination, the former Fae Lady of the Summer Court pushed herself onto her feet and entered the wide open field. I will not make it easy for you, Titania.

Her magic billowed around her like a pulsating aura as the Wylds hearkened to her commands - to her requests for protection.

Numb.

Everything was numb.

Her hands. Her feet. Her arms and legs. 

Her entire body was absolutely numb.

The only thing Red could feel was the cold bite of iron touching her skin, jolting her awake in the middle of the night. Reminding her of what was happening. Forcing her to acknowledge the predicament she was in. But there was no answer as to why it was happening in the first place.

So she was left with no choice. Red only had one option open to her. She had to free herself from her shackles and obtain the answers for herself.

With a roar, Red flung her body across the room and slammed her chest against the wall. Wood and dirt chipped and fell to the ground around her feet as she smashed her fists repeatedly over the iron chest piece. She’d lost feeling in both her hands weeks ago and splatters of crimson decorated the floor of her room as blood seeped from her body.

Her uncle came to her twice a day, bringing her food and water. The first week she’d been too miserable to eat; too confused. After the second week, she gorged on her food like a wild beast. It was clear that both her uncle and her mother had this planned and she would not be left in the dark any longer. She needed answers and if she was going to fight, Red needed nourishment.

At the precipice of her thoughts was Taehyung. She wondered how he was doing and if he’d gone into a mad frenzy without seeing her. The last time they saw each other, they made the promise of seeing one another on the morrow. 

Dozens of days had passed since then.

A darker thought meandered through her brain, causing Red to scream as she threw herself onto the floor. The groan of metal matched the groan in her heart as she dared to wonder if the Wolf simply moved on without her. If he’d reconnected with his kin during the time she’d been away and was now off to be with his people. Tears leaked from her eyes and Red mustered the strength to throw herself along the wall and floor, looking like a mad woman.

And then...she heard it.

It was the sound of something snapping. The metal chest piece seemed to crack. Pushing herself up on shaking arms, Red watched with wonder as the iron shirt crashed to the floor in several pieces. Bloodied fingers reached out to pick up the pieces and her vision blurred momentarily. A desperate laugh escaped her throat as she cradled the broken shirt against her chest. Red heard the door to her room open slowly and she lifted her face up to peer at her uncle. He was holding a wooden wash basin and soap out to her, then placed it on the floor.

There were no words shared between them as Red cleaned herself. After she was clean, he tended to her wounded hands. Somewhere along the way, she felt her body collapse against his and she took great comfort in feeling his warm arms wrapping around her.

“Uncle Yoongi,” she whispered, surprised at the sound of her own voice, “am I allowed to leave now?”

He petted her head gently as a soft weight fell onto the crown of her head. “Yes, Little Red. You are allowed to leave.”

It didn’t take her long to get dressed. Her uncle wrapped her red cloak over her shoulders, pulling the hood up and over her wavy hair. He then held out a golden basket for her which, from what she could tell, contained food for her journey. Red smiled, her bandaged hands grasping the handle of the wicker basket.

After giving her a kiss on her forehead, her uncle led her to the front door and opened it. There Briarden sat, his tail moving back and forth as his ears swiveled in excitement. Red held her arms out as the reynard leaped into them. It felt like ages since she’d last seen him.

“She will need to take the Path of Needles, Briarden.” Uncle Yoongi’s face was stern. “She must not stray to the Path of Pins.”

The fox creature hopped out of Red’s arms and stood at her feet. He gave a deep bow of acknowledgement. “Of course. I will make sure she takes the correct way.”

Red was confused and did not bother hiding it from her features. “Where is it I am supposed to go?”

Her uncle smiled, pressing a hand to her cheek. “To your mother, of course.”

As much as she wanted to see Taehyung, Red needed to see her mother more. She would have the answers she was so desperately seeking. Truth be told, Red was far more worried about her mother than of the wolf. Taehyung could take care of himself but Red always looked after her mother when she was old enough to do so. Being alone in the woods couldn’t have been good for her delicate mother.

Red kissed her uncle’s cheek and bid him farewell, setting off on her journey.

Golden eyes peered across the land as an insatiable hunger thundered across a broad chest. Saliva pooled from grinning lips as those same golden eyes watched a crimson cloaked figure make their way through the forest. And they were being led by one of those traitors of the lower courts. Teeth poked out from a set of lips, curling into a sneer as the fox talked happily with the young girl. His hunger would not be satisfied by that fox.

But the girl? Well, that was a different matter altogether. 

He sniffed the air once more. There was blood, salt, flora, and something a little...familiar?

...what is that?

Again, he sniffed the air.

Feeling the fire ignite behind his eyes, he jumped from his perch in the trees and dashed across the air. With an elegant flourish, he landed directly in front of the pair of travelers, causing the girl to fall to the ground in fright as the fox immediately took up an aggressive stance against him. Flashing a pleasant smile, he took the opportunity to inhale the air and the girl’s scent once more.

It was unmistakable. That was the smell of a wolf lingering on her.

The girl smelled of his kind.

Leaning forward, he lowered his head in apology - a motion of grace. “Oh, do forgive me. I did not mean to frighten you, Little One.”

The girl slowly sat up and he bit back a growl of irritation as the reynard positioned himself between them. She reached out with a bandaged hand and stroked the fox’s orange back in an attempt to calm him. He would have been blind not to see the radiant glow of fae teeming from her person. But it wasn’t full fae. He’d been around his fair share of those flighty individuals and, dare he say, he could hardly stomach their company for long.

He could, however, stomach their bodies. He could stomach them very well. Many a fae were digested in his stomach.

“He’s not to be trusted, Red,” snapped the fox, “he’s a wolf!”

A hearty laugh burst from his chest, revealing rows of sharp canines. He saw the fox’s ears flatten as he took a step back but still maintained his position in front of the girl. 

“That isn’t a nice thing to say! We wolves aren’t all bad, you know.”

The girl, Red, nodded. Again, she petted the fox to calm him. “He is right, Briarden. It’s not fair for us to judge him because he is a wolf.” 

Her umber eyes lifted to meet his own, causing the wolf to pause momentarily. They sparkled with life and empathy and for a moment, the wolf almost forgot his reason for revealing himself in the first place. Shaking his pelt, he shifted back a measure and forced his body to transform into his humanoid form. Clad in a simple green linen shirt tucked into a pair of black trousers and black leather boots, he waited until all the fur disappeared before speaking again.

“Does this appearance frighten you less?”

Red smiled. “I was never frightened to begin with.”

“Well, it was more for your furry companion there. He and his kind don’t really see eye-to-eye with mine.” The wolf chuckled, his gaze shifting to the reynard in her company. “We wolves were never in the business of being servants to those we view as lesser beings.”

The fox’s lips pulled back, revealing his smaller fangs in hostility. “How dare you?!”

A smug look tugged at the wolf’s lips before he turned his eyes to Red. “Allow me to erase my earlier rudeness by introducing myself.” He pressed a hand to his chest and bowed. “I am Namjoon, the wolf.” Lifting his head, he held his hand out to her. “And you are?”

The girl rose to her feet, dusted off her skirts and held her hand out to his in return. “I’m Red.” 

Grasping her fingers in his, he internally frowned at the texture of the bandages in preventing him from actually touching her. Now that he was closer, he could definitely smell it. The scent of one of his kin was attached to her; faint, but still present. Had she escaped from being devoured? Surely not. The girl didn’t appear to exude any kind of immense power. In regards to Fae, she appeared weaker - no better than a commoner in the kingdoms.

Yet there was definitely...something about her.

After pressing a kiss to her bandaged knuckles, he released her hand and took a step back out of politeness. “Might I ask where you are off to on such a pretty day?”

“I’m going to meet with my mother. She’s been gone for some time and I miss her terribly.”

Namjoon quipped a brow, then craned his neck to look deep into the woods. He knew this was the direction of the Fae Wylds. Was this girl willingly heading into danger? What was her mother doing in the wylds? And if her mother did, in fact, head into the wylds, there was a chance she was dead. 

He looked back at Red who, in turn, flashed him a curious expression. He smirked. Which means this girl, too, is heading to Death’s Door. Ah, what a shame and what a waste…

“And which path were you planning to take, my dear?”

“I was told by my uncle to take the Path of Needles.”

It took everything Namjoon had not to smile menacingly. This girl truly was going into the wylds. If she knew of the Path of Needles, then she also knew of the Path of Pins. These were not commonly named paths and anyone who didn’t have knowledge of the Fae Wylds would never refer to those paths as such. Indeed, the child was going to Death’s Door. 

Far be it from Namjoon to allow such a waste to occur before his very eyes.

“You know,” he began as he pressed his hands together, “you would get to your mother faster if you took the Path of Pins.”

Red looked a little perplexed, her brows furrowing slightly. “I don’t know… My uncle said to-”

“I am a wolf, Red, and I know both ways very well. Both paths lead to the same place but you look so desperate to see your mother again.” He shrugged. “I simply wished for you to be reunited faster. But I suppose it is rude for me to insert myself into your affairs as such.”

The fox huffed at their feet. “As though you needed to voice it aloud.”

Namjoon glared at the reynard, watching him shrink back slightly. The fox would die long before he could ever set foot outside of these woods. The wolf would make sure of it.

Red bowed her head slightly. “I meant no disrespect! Thank you, Sir Namjoon.” She lifted her head and smiled, making Namjoon’s heart thunder across his chest momentarily. “Who would know these woods better than a wolf? I shall take your advice and go by way of the Path of Pins.” He watched her lean down to scoop up the reynard in her arms, her body shifting to the left side of the fork in the road. Before she continued down the path, Namjoon watched her turn to wave at him. “Thank you again!”

For a moment, all Namjoon could do was stare at the red cloak slowly being devoured by shadows. He was both mesmerized and confused. But the low growl in his stomach quickly reminded him of his purpose - his true desires - and he quickly reverted back to his original form. He couldn’t allow himself to be distracted.

Namjoon made haste down the Path of Needles. He would get to the wylds before Red and he would satisfy his hunger with a taste of both her flesh and the meat of her mother’s.

The scent of death and decay was in the air. He was so tired. So much pain.

So much...h u n g e r.

Hungry. So very hungry.

Must not stop. Must keep going.

He ate up the ground trying to find fresh air. There was something in the air, a heat of life that would feel wonderful beneath his teeth. It was a small something, but it was something. A deer? A rabbit? It wasn’t strong enough to best him. It wasn’t strong enough to evade him.

So hungry. So much pain. Make it stop.

When was the last time he had water? Parched. Dry.

HUNGRY.

He saw red.

He saw this little thing in red.

He saw red.

It wasn’t watching. He saw red.

So much pain. He saw red.

The war was over but all he saw was red.

He saw red  - and he charged.

He saw red. All he saw was red.

He saw his breath in the air. He saw red.

He opened his mouth. He charged. He saw red.

He heard a scream as he opened his mouth…

RED. RED. RED. RED. RED. rEd.

“RED?!”

Taehyung scrambled in the tangle of his sheets as he sat up. He clawed at the burning sensation in his chest. Pushing back wet strands of hair from his face, eyes wide, as he looked around his room. The early summer heat was sweltering. Taehyung saw the feathers and torn fabric of his pillows. The moist outline of his body imprint caused him to frown. 

It was strange how deliberate his movements were suddenly. Like he had become hyper aware of his own existence. He moved to the bathroom, splashing his face with water from the basin. He looked at his reflection, noticed the stubble setting in on his chin. His fingers reached up, in disbelief, rubbing at the dark hairs. 

He tried to remember what he was even doing the night before - and it hurt to think too deeply about it. It was as if a chunk of time was suddenly missing from his memory bank. The heel of his palm dug into his eye sockets as if he could rub the stabbing pain away. 

There was an emptiness inside of him, it was hunger. But for what? How long had he been asleep? He stomped to the kitchen, poured a glass of water. Greedily gulping, choking, and still it remained. 

WHY?

WHY?! 

What is it? What was it? What was missing? What was he forgetting? 

He choked another glass of water down, tearing off a piece of stale bread at the table. His face screwed up as he spat the mass on the floor. Taehyung wretched at the powdery foulness clinging to his tongue. He finally looked at the loaf of bread to see ...mold? Disgust twisted his features as he dropped the bread on the table. 

The sweet sour smell of rotting fruit hit him next. The bowl in front of him was full of the darkened remains of ignored produce. But he would never, right? He would never just leave food to go to waste. 

So, what in the hell was going on?

...hyung!

Tae’s hands began to shake as he tried to piece together the last few days.

...ehyung!

Why was he so hungry? Why did he have facial hair?

...aehyung?!

What was that incessant buzzing in his brain?! 

TAEHYUNG?!

“WHAT?!” His voice bellowed off the walls, vibrating the modest structure of his home. Who was calling him!!? 

He stepped outside searching for the source of the voice. His eyes went wide at the sight. The grass was tall, overgrown, with dandelions as far as the eye could see. The path that led from his door toward the forest was gone .

“Taehyung!?” A breathless voice called from above. Aithne’s eyes were large at the state of him as she dropped from a branch. “Oh thank the spirits! I’ve been looking for you for over two-moons! It’s nearly high-summer!” 

The Wolf stared at the cait-sidhe in confusion as she stared at him. It was worse than she thought. They weren’t fast enough before Titania’s guard came through, altering the landscape of the forest. She watched them lay magickal traps throughout the forest. Animals found themselves in different  places or lost altogether. Whole sections of the forest inverted and flipped on a loop, leaving a chance for something or someone to inadvertently get tossed into the wylds. What Aithne had not planned for was Taehyung’s section of the forest to be caught in that loop. 

“A-Aithne.” He spoke her name as if he was starting to remember something. “Aithne, wait! Did you say it’s HIGH-SUMMER?!” The cait-sidhe shifted uneasily. “The Games? Titania? But, Red-” 

Red.

“Red.” He turned in every direction, frantic, his heart racing. And he didn’t feel her. He couldn’t sense her. He couldn’t sense her presence at all. That’s when it hit him. The emptiness, the thirst, the hunger. 

The dream. 

Aithne knew that her kind was a long lived race. She knew that they had served courts and queens at whim. They were highly respected, prized, because of their high intelligence and loyalty. It was very seldom you found a reason to want to kill a cait-sidhe. Those more mischievous of her kin were simply never allowed at court. At the worst, they were banished. 

But, there were the rare occasions they could run afoul of a beast. 

Aithne’s form shrank away from the beast in front of her. When Taehyung turned around his eyes were black. In the middle of eyes as black as the void were a pair of golden irises. Blazing like the midday sun. His every breath was sibilant behind clenched teeth. His shoulders rose and fell heavily as if he was pumping up his very stature. 

“Aithne.” The Wolf growled low. “Where is she?” 

“W-we don’t know.” Aithne answered quickly, lest she be the focus of his ire. “...we suddenly couldn’t sense her at next dawn’s light. The forest...changed somehow. We couldn’t find you! Titania’s men laid traps. It was like being in the wylds! I swear we tried looking for you both.” The cait-sidhe braved taking a step forward. “We had feared the worst, Taehyung! We thought they had found you both and swept her away.” 

Taehyung fought to keep a tight leash on his rage. He knew that the other Queens didn’t believe in interfering on this side of the veil. They also didn’t believe in interfering with his kind. His lips quivered around a mouth full of teeth that felt too big. He turned away from the cait-sidhe, trying hard to regain his composure. “How long did you say you were looking?” 

Aithne replied, the sadness apparent now that he’d calmed down. “It’s been just over two moons now.”

“And it's now high-summer?” he croaked out weakly.

“Yes. We haven’t been able to figure out the forest or where Red is since Titania took the throne.” Aithne’s tail swished anxiously. “Her men flooded the forest, and just like that, they were gone. The traps have weakened and that’s probably how we found you.” 

Taehyung looked over his shoulder, the black faded from the whites of his eyes, confused. “What do you mean just like that?” Standing, he ran his fingers through his hair. He made a face as he caught a whiff of himself.

Aithne was, obviously, being extremely polite in that regard. “They flooded the forest from early dawn on the switch. They stayed in the forest, camped even, until about ten suns ago. They were in a hurry, too.” 

The Wolf rubbed his chin, pacing, as this new information was processed. They lost track of Red the very next day, but there was still time before the season switched. Which meant Titania’s men were looking for something before she took the throne. 

There was only one thing that came to his mind at that moment.

“Cardia.” He turned to Aithne. “Do you know where Cardia is?” 

Aithne tilted her head, momentarily confused, “Actually? N-no. We were in such a frantic rush to find you that we-” The cait-sidhe turned in a full circle, trying to see if that essence that was Cardia was anywhere near them. 

It wasn’t. 

And for that, he guessed that she, too, feared the absolute worst. “I don’t sense her at all.” Aithne began to pace as well. What to do? What to do!? Her head lifted as she turned to Taehyung, “I...I have to go. I’ll be back. Take a bath for god’s sake! And eat, Taehyung! You do not go hungry a day longer. I will return!” 

Taehyung gave an incredulous look, reaching out to say something more, but it was too late. The cait-sidhe vanished from his sight. 

Fine. It was perfectly fine. He would bathe. Then he would eat. He would ease his frustration by cleaning the mess left by Titania’s meddling. He leaned against a tree, his claws digging deep into the bark. “Red, please be safe.” 

That violent rage bubbled under the surface once again. And this time he wasn’t sure it could be quelled - especially if the worst of his fears came true. 

He closed his hand, snapping the young tree in half. No. He wasn’t willing to dream of it. He wouldn’t let those thoughts bleed into the ether. Because there was only one truth and one truth only.

There was no world for him without her in it.

If the world turned its back on him, if it dared to take what was his, he would make sure there was no world for him - or anyone else.

Hot puffs of air pushed from Namjoon’s maw as his feral eyes surveyed the lush green valley of the Fae Wylds. The forest was loud with the voices of the old ones, warning him of his trespass. He would not be able to take another step further unless he paid a tribute. That was unsurprising as it was tradition to pay the price in blood. It had to be something of value.

What was an eye to a full meal to a wolf? The choice was easy; simple, even. Namjoon didn’t hesitate to pluck his right eye out of its socket so he could give it to the Wylds. What they chose to do with it was of no consequence to him. If he was charming and convincing enough, he would simply have someone summon his eye back to him.

No harm, no foul.

His large paws pressed into the grass as he reached the clearing. The smell of blood was thick in the area, causing him to both drool and gag all in the same breath. Carnage clung to the fields and overwhelmed his senses. Namjoon growled in response, unsure of why he was feeling such trepidation and yet he knew his own hunger couldn’t be ignored. In a few moments, his nose would adjust to the stench and he would prepare himself for the feast ahead. 

He looked around, spying the makeshift cottage that was just over the small hill. This must be where the girl’s mother chose to take refuge , he thought, unable to hide the grin tugging at his dark lips. 

There was a sudden shift to his right and Namjoon raised his hackles, preparing to strike out at anyone who dared to interfere with his plans for a meal. Crouching down low to the ground, his hulking form disappeared beneath the brush as his one remaining eye trained on the line of trees a few yards away. Relief washed over him as he saw it was the meddlesome reynard, Briarden, sniffing out over the land. A sick sort of glee began building inside of Namjoon’s chest as he saw the fox resist the urge to retch from the stench of blood.

A snack wouldn’t hurt, he thought, moving forward in a predatory fashion, but I also would prefer my eye returned to me.

Lunging forward, Namjoon didn’t hesitate to make his presence known. The fool of a fox wouldn’t have time to react. He wouldn’t give him any quarter to make any attempts to flee and warn his little meal-to-be of what was approaching the moment she crossed the hills and into that valley.

Like a dark shadow of death, Namjoon threw himself on top of Briarden - his jaws and fangs finding the fox’s neck. The reynard could only manage a small squeak before the wolf crunched his throat between his massive teeth. The sweet tang of blood soaked his tongue and the wolf had to resist the urge to indulge himself in a selfish drink. This was to be his tribute to the Wyld. Despite not being his blood, reynard were still close kin to wolf-kind. Namjoon may as well have killed his own relative.

A suitable sacrifice in exchange for his eye.

Namjoon tossed Briarden’s body off to the wayside, the fox’s blood still fresh on his maw. With a gluttonous lavish of his tongue over his chops, the wolf waited for the Wylds to accept his payment. After a handful of minutes, a strange sensation returned to his right socket until he was able to see again. The tribute was accepted and his eye returned.

The wolf belted a hearty laugh, pivoting on his paws as he made his way toward the cottage. Namjoon may have ignored his base urges for a moment, but the ultimate reward would be much sweeter.

Fae flesh, even a halfling like Red, was a far better meal in the end. Especially for his kind.

Please.

Taehyung followed the cait-sidhe out of the forest on the human side of the veil. The whole forest was in chaos with untriggered traps. It took them a few days to figure out the path to Red’s village. He found her ease around the humans interesting; she claimed to know plenty of ‘bad people’. The cait-sidhe made assurances that none of those bad people resided in the village. 

And now she hoped The Wolf’s distrust would hold as they made it to Red’s house. Because it wasn’t Red who met him at the door - it was Yoongi. They found him sitting outside the door - but Taehyung couldn’t hear or smell her nearby.

“Where is she?” he growled while stalking toward Yoongi. 

The blacksmith looked up nonplussed by the Wolf’s aggression. “You’re late. She’s gone.” Yoongi answered in a gruff tone. 

Aithne stepped around Taehyung, attempting to keep the distance between the two men. “Titania’s knights set traps in the forest. I’m guessing when Cardia crossed over they left. But they never undid their spells. It took time to find him, Yoongi.“ The cait-sidhe flicked her tail in irritation.

Yoongi sighed quietly at the cait-sidhe’s explanation. “That bitch just can’t leave well enough alone.” It was clear the Summer Queen had even less fans on this side of the veil. “And Cardia decided to just go over there, trying to keep Red safe.” He balled his hands before releasing the fist. “Red went to find her mother. Aithne knows the way, and the path.” 

Taehyung’s gaze lowered to the cait-sidhe. “I have to get to her, Aithne.”

She nodded, turning to head down the road that would take them to the other side. He didn’t spare Yoongi another glance, but Taehyung stopped at the sound of his voice calling out to him.

“She knows nothing of that place, Taehyung. You know how the Wylds can be.” Yoongi sat down, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Find her. Protect her. Keep her away from Titania.” 

The Wolf nodded and ran to catch up with Aithne.

Please.

And he didn’t stop - hadn’t stopped running since. Even when the scent of blood filled the air, he didn’t stop running. Even when fear gripped his heart as the scent grew in intensity. Even when Aithne, who couldn’t keep up, decided to ride on his back. He wasn’t going to stop until he reached that cabin.

Please.

Taehyung felt a certain kind of freedom loping through the Fae Wylds. He needed to use all of his power to traverse two different realms. The shift of the atmosphere caused an errant shake of his head. The Wolf paused warily as he crossed the veil. How many years had it been? He could barely remember much of this side of the world. 

He didn’t make it a point to visit the place where he had lost so much. Where he could stand to lose more.

Please.

That was until there was a rumble in the air. Like the sound of a predator satisfied with a big meal. Taehyung came to a hard stop, his ears twitching toward the direction of sound. He was interrupted by Aithne’s sudden gasp.  “What is it?” 

“I-I don’t know? It’s as if the land has consumed something a bit…” Her brow furrowed as she looked around. “But it feels like something is missing.” Taehyung watched her quietly for a moment.

“I think you need to rest.” He grumbled softly. “We’re almost there, right?” The cait-sidhe nodded quietly. “Good.” He shook off the sudden discomfort and ran once again. Because he didn't want to admit he felt it too. That something more had definitely been gained. 

Please, Red. Please be alright.

Red felt a pang of anxiousness creeping up her spine. She was worried not because she was in the Fae Wylds of legends. It wasn’t because she was far from home and worried about her own safety. Despite the newness of the world around her, the Wylds seemed to almost recognize her in a way that was both strange and comforting. There were soft whispers in the trees and songs in the wind that told her a little bit about herself but also questioned her existence all in the same breath.

But these were things that she wasn’t concerned with. It was Briarden’s absence that troubled her. 

While it was only for a little while, the two of them separated for a moment. The reynard told Red that he was going to go ahead of her to make sure that they were safe. He also mentioned a peculiar stench in the air that he needed to identify. If it was safe, he would return. If it wasn’t, then Red needed to flee.

It was almost laughable. How was she supposed to flee if she didn’t know where she was? Most importantly, without a guide, how would she return? And if there was danger, how could she knowingly leave her mother in the thick of it?

No. Red was determined to reach her mother and to make sure that everything was alright. She needed to bring her back home. She didn’t care about rules or what was taboo or not. What was or wasn’t allowed. She just wanted to go back to how things were before she was locked up and forced to wear iron clothes. 

Red wanted to see Taehyung again. She wanted to hold him in her arms and tell him that she loved him. Over and over again. Because she knew now, more than ever, that she most certainly hadn’t told him enough.

Clutching at the front of her mantle, Red sighed and continued walking forward. Briarden hadn’t returned and she had no choice but to keep going. It was going to be nightfall soon. She couldn’t afford to be lost in the woods, let alone in the dark. The wind pushed her toward a certain direction and she continued down the path until she broke through a line of trees that opened up to a clearing.

An odd smell reached her nose, but Red wasn’t quite sure what it was. It wasn’t pleasant but it wasn’t awful either. A strange gray area she couldn’t identify. Searching the clearing, she took a soft breath and sighed with relief as she spied a cottage off in the distance. Smoke billowed from the small chimney and there was a light glowing from one of the windows. Red gathered up her skirts and tore off down the hill, the basket bouncing against her hip as she ran. 

Within minutes, she was at the door. Delight and excitement rushed through Red’s entire body as she made small attempts to catch her breath. After taking a moment to calm her racing heart, she knocked on the door three times.

“Mother, unbar the door!” she called, hoping her mother was there.

A cooing and sweet voice replied. “Just push on it. It’s not locked, My Dear.”

Red entered the cottage, her eyes having to adjust to the semi-darkness that seemed to blanket the space. There was only a single candle on a nightstand by the bed and a lantern in the kitchen. Everything else was covered in shadow. This worried Red as her mother was usually the sort who always kept their home well-lit until it was time to sleep. She immediately was concerned that her mother had taken ill and was about to address this when a sudden pang hit her stomach.

Hunger.

Feeling a soft warmth touch her cheeks, she peered into the area where she seemed to hear her mother breathing. “Mother, I know I just arrived but I’m hungry. Do you have anything to eat or shall I prepare something for us?”

“There is food and drink on the kitchen table already. Go ahead and help yourself.”

Red spied the dish of food and the glass of red wine, her stomach reminding her again of her own hunger. Not bothering to remove her mantle, she placed the basket on the counter and sat down to begin her meal. She didn’t realize how hungry she actually was until she cut into the meat and ate it. But just as she swallowed the food, a bird flew to the window and began tapping on it wildly. This startled Red, but not as much as the words the bird spoke.

“Your friend! Your friend! You are eating the flesh of your friend, Briarden!”

Gasping, she whirled around to peer into the dark room where her mother was. “M-Mother...there is a bird at the window and he says that...he says that I’m eating my friend!”

“Throw your cloak at that nasty bird! He tells you lies!”

But when Red looked back at the window, the bird had already flown off. Deciding that the Wylds were trying to play tricks on her, she picked up the glass of wine and began to drink. Just as she was about to drain the glass, a mouse scuttled along the counter and squeaked at her.

“Your friend! Your friend! You are drinking the blood of your friend, Briarden!”

Dropping the glass, Red stood from the kitchen table and, again, peered into the room where her mother was. “Mother! There is a mouse that says I’m drinking my friend’s blood! Birarden’s blood!”

“Throw your shoe at that old mouse. He’s wretched and good for nothing anyway.”

When Red looked to the counter where the mouse was, she felt her heart sink to see that it was gone. Perhaps she was just tired. Red was stressed and maybe the journey finally was beginning to take its toll on her. Fatigue weighed heavily on her shoulders.

“You look tired, Little Red,” her mother called to her, “you’ve had a long journey. Come and sleep.”

Red nodded, obediently removing her cloak and traveling clothes. Dressed in only her undergarments, she made her way to the bed where her mother was sitting. But it was at this instance when Red felt a shift in the air. A deep-seeded hunger filled space between her mother and herself, giving her a slight pause. She’d just finished eating so there was no reason for her to sense this in the room.

Slowly, Red looked in the direction of where her mother was and took note of the hungry eyes that looked back at her in the dark. It was a look that she recognized from many years ago. It was voracious; ravenous.

Taking a step forward, Red clutched at the front of her chemise. “Mother...look how big your eyes are.”

“Without them, I could not see you, My Dear.”

“Mother,” Red said while taking another step forward, “look how big your ears are.”

“Without them, I could not hear you so well, My Dear.”

An ache began to form around her ribs from how hard her heart was thrumming inside of her. “Mother...look how big your hands are.” Fear started to churn in her stomach as she took note of the claws.

“Without them, I could not reach out and touch you, My Dear.”

As she lifted her eyes up, she saw a flash of white and tears began to stream down her cheeks. Red realized what was happening. She knew and yet she couldn’t bring herself to run away. Because she’d encountered this sort of hunger before. Running was futile. She’d be dead before she could even reach the door.

“M-Mother...look how big your teeth are.”

The figure in the dark stood up, removing the night gown from their person. Red already knew this wasn’t her mother. She’d sensed it too late and what sickened her more was that there was a chance that those creatures were telling the truth.

Briarden was dead and she’d eaten his flesh and drank his blood. Red could only take comfort in knowing that the reynard would be a part of her forever. Or for as long as this moment she existed would allow. Because her end would come soon.

At the hands of this predator. 

At the hands of this wolf.

Red closed her eyes, prepared to accept her fate. A loud growl and gnashing of teeth erupted through the silence. She prayed that her mother was safe. She silently asked for her uncle’s forgiveness for being so foolish. Just as a puff of hot air brushed over her entire body, she whispered one thing before it would come to an end.

“...Taehyung.”

Glass shattering and wood splintering caused Red to jump back - her eyes frantically searching in every direction. Loud and ferocious snarls and howls tore through the small space inside the cottage and she gasped when her eyes spied not one, but two wolves tearing through the small room - fangs flashing and claws ripping through one another. Spying the pelt that belonged to the other wolf, an overwhelming sense of dread seemed to swallow Red completely.

“TAEHYUNG!”

The scent of blood rushed through Taehyung’s nostrils. The sign of a messy kill, a show of force. He could feel the ground pulsating under his paws. The question lingered in the air, spoken in hissing whispers: There’s another?

You must go faster! Quickly.

Aithne’s claws dug into Taehyung’s back at the sound of the voice that urged them both to go faster. “Briarden?” The cait-sidhe spun, clinging to the Wolf’s form. The tears welled in her eyes as the wisps of the reynards spirit fluttered like ashes in the wind.

Please. Faster. Danger.

Taehyung couldn’t hold the growl rumbling in his throat. The Wylds vibrated with energy because wolves now walked the lands. Aithne gulped air as she realized what she had lost. When she realized whom she had lost. 

The Wolf’s form began to change; the scent of fear was a sweet tang in the air. Aithne held herself together as they closed in on the cabin. The whispers turned into a cacophony of sound. 

There’s another.

This energy was familiar because it was kin. The cait-sidhe leapt from his back as Taehyung charged the cabin. He didn’t bother calling her name, didn’t bother worrying about the door. He could smell her fear, taste it in the air - and he knew it well.

Because he was, at one time, the reason for it. It 

was a flavor he had promised not to experience again. There was another Wolf? After all this time - there was another.

It was too bad he would most likely have to kill him. Taehyung heard the small utter of his name as he barreled through the window. Mouth open, he went immediately for the other Wolf’s vital spots. 

He heard Red’s voice as she screamed for him. He felt the drag of claws against his side. He didn’t care as he snapped his fangs at the other creature’s neck. His own nails dug into the opposite creature’s flank. Shards of glass embedded in his skin, and he didn’t care. All Taehyung cared about in that moment was ripping the other wolf to shreds for entertaining the idea of devouring what was his.

A spray of blood of fur splattered across the wooden floor. The other Wolf whirled around, giving Taehyung space to place himself in front of Red. Blood dripped from pear fangs as the Wolf laughed, his lips spreading out as the Wylds were visible behind him.

“Ah, so it’s true then,” the Wolf spoke, raising his hackles a measure, “another of my kin. I detected your scent on her, but was curious as to why you let her escape with her life.” The Wolf’s grin grew. “You would claim a creature such as this as your own, Brother? She is food and nothing more. You know this.”

Taehyung was vibrating with rage as the other Wolf spoke. "The actual question, Brother, is why would you go after something that isn't yours?" He could feel his claws digging into the floor. It took every ounce of willpower to keep from charging the intruder.

"This one isn't food." He gnashed his teeth between deep snarls. His tongue held steady for fear of endangering her further. "And you know nothing." There was a barbarous aura filling the air as Taehyung moved backward toward Red. The kind of feeling that had once been familiar to him. That time from long ago where the kills were indiscriminate; for the sake of survival. 

The Wolf laughed again. “If you claimed her as something more than food, then perhaps I would’ve abstained. But you haven’t marked her, Brother. Not properly.” He lowered himself down slightly, rolling his shoulders back as his tail swished back and forth. “And since she isn’t properly marked, then she is also free game.”

Before Taehyung could throw out another rebuttal, the other Wolf launched himself clear across the room. He knew he would have no choice but to take the hit. If he moved, Red would be caught in the thick of everything and would get hurt in the middle of their scuffle. No, he had to remain rooted where he was and then grasp for an opportunity to throw him out of their enclosure and out into the open where there was more breathing room.

Not properly. He hasn’t claimed her properly. The other Wolf spoke the truth, and yet he felt pangs of guilt striking at the edge of his rage. The other Wolf went airborne crashing into him. Taehyung howled as claws dug into his skin. 

“Aithne, get her out of here!” Taehyung roared a combination of pain and rage as he drove the other wolf out the destroyed side of the cottage, cracking out the frame as he fought to create distance. Enough distance to create some sort of advantage.  And hopefully enough distance for Red and the cait-sidhe to escape.

Taehyung felt his anger rise as the other wolf laughed as he rolled on the grass on his side. Even though he was far from what people would consider “young”, he could feel the age difference between the two of them. The level of experience was evident in how this other wolf refused to take him seriously. 

He watched the other male wolf slowly get up to his feet, shaking the grass from his fur. “Well, I suppose if we’re going to do this properly, then I should introduce myself. After all, we’re not savages.” The wolf lowered his head but kept his hazel eyes locked on Taehyung. “I am Namjoon, Young One.”

Biting back the urge to snarl an insult in his direction, Taehyung reigned his anger back to reciprocate the gesture. “Taehyung.”

“If this is to be the end for either of us, I think it fitting that we at least be entreated to carry the burden of the other’s calling, hm?” Namjoon grinned, revealing rows of fangs, before lifting his head to the sky and allowing a howl to rip through the vast expanse. 

Taehyung sensed movement from the cottage, but he dared not move a muscle. He didn’t want to even risk answering the wolf’s call. Namjoon was kin, yes, but this was also clearly a fight that had a prize at the end. He couldn’t afford to lose. He couldn’t afford to lose her.

A swift blur of crimson tore through the front door of the cottage. He didn’t have to look to know it was Red being guided by Aithne. If the feline was smart, they would beeline for the forest and not look back. They would not stop until they were back at the village where it was safe. 

At least, that was his hope. 

Taehyung looked back just as Namjoon sprinted forward, tearing through the field and kicking up sprigs of grass. The older wolf released a primal roar before jumping into the air in the attempt to maul Taehyung to the ground. Finally, he belted out his own call in response to the challenge.

He wouldn’t die here. He couldn’t die here.

A familiar sensation flooded his bones at the sound of Namjoon’s approach. The sounds of battle, of kin bleeding and dying, fighting each other over something neither side could remember. Taehyung let loose another roar of challenge. He pivoted to the side, barely dodging the snap of Namjoon’s jaws. He chomped down on the other Wolf’s foreleg with a wild shake of his head. Namjoon yelped in surprise, turning to try and snap his jaws at Taehyung’s face. 

Taehyung fought to keep his hold, twisting and turning to keep his neck far from Namjoon’s teeth. It was his turn to yelp when Namjoon crunched down on jowls near his ear. The motion caused him to bite harder through the foreleg in his mouth. There was a satisfying snap before they both gave each other a wide berth of space.

There was blood oozing down the side of his face from the tip of a missing ear. They circled each other, haphazard and bloody; saliva dripping and fangs bared.

“I don’t want to kill you,” Taeyhung bellowed, “do you not remember?! If we are what’s truly left, why are we doing this?” 

“Of course I remember!” Namjoon snarled as he tried to bear weight on his front leg. “You think I’ve lived as long as I have, not to remember the war?” His frame swelled with a raise of his head. “We are devourers, Taehyung. We consume - we feast. It is our right!” 

“We don’t have to consume everything! That’s why we fought! We must leave something behind, Namjoon!” Taehyung’s eyes shifted between the other Wolf’ gaze and his leg. A wounded creature is an even bigger threat and Namjoon was already a threat enough. “Have you ever wondered why it is you hadn’t found your mate? Why any of us couldn’t find our mates?”

Namjoon clearly enjoyed being the top of the food chain. He was the sort of wolf who enjoyed the power, the rush and the thrill of the hunt. He, like many others, had given up on finding their other halves. So they relied on terrorizing those below them. Taehyung was sure that the older wolf had relied on his bloodlust for so long he didn’t think he could discern physical lust from bloodlust. 

“What does it matter, huh?! I’ve probably eaten them already!” There was something suddenly bitter in his tone. 

The scintilla of hope that Namjoon would see reason was gone in a flash. Namjoon lashed out in that small window of consideration. Taehyung’s howl ricocheted through the forest as teeth dug into his shoulder. He bit into the bottom of Namjoon’s jaw as he attempted to shake the leg from it’s socket. They were a mass of fur and snarls, each biting down with crushing pressure before needing to separate once more. 

Now both wolves limped with bloodied faces. Taehyung forced weight on his sore leg with a vigorous shake of his head. Namjoon’s tongue flicked along the partly-mauled portion of his lower jaw. Taehyung charged him. The other reared up on his back legs, one clawed paw raised to slice him open. 

But Taehyung pulled a feint at the last minute as Namjoon swiped at him. By the time Namjoon realized his error, Taehyung managed a clean swipe of claws across his stomach. The searing pain caused the other Wolf to put a greater distance between them. The grievous wound knocked Namjoon out of his shift. 

Naked, bleeding and clutching his side. The wolf could not continue. Namjoon’s growl, even in the form of man, was startling. Taehyung watched him warily, a chuff of air pushed through his nose. “I’m not going to kill you, Namjoon,” Taehyung growled in warning, “not now. But if you ever appear in front of her again?” 

He watched Namjoon spit a gob of red from the corner of his mouth. He could swear he saw the opaque hint of bone beneath the other Wolf’s hand. Taehyung didn’t pity the other Wolf for one moment.  But he waited to see if his hand would be forced.

“Don’t worry, Young One,” Namjoon smirked, “we’ll see each other again soon enough.”

Taehyung watched Namjoon turn, shift, and loped off into the distance. He turned to view the destruction of the small cabin. He shifted anxiously before moving toward the path that Aithne ran with Red. He would just have to apologize to Cardia later. 

There was an agonizing few minutes more he waited before sprinting down the path. Full strides as he ate the ground beneath his paws. The trip home seemed quicker than the initial trip into the wylds. One thought, one person, consumed his mind as he crossed out of the land of Fae. He didn’t pay attention to the change in the sky. The change in the weight of the very air. 

He bypassed the village in the dead of night. His forest home seemed to welcome him. For a moment he pondered the change in the forest atmosphere. But there was a scent that filled his nostrils and drove him forward. He could smell home as the forest grew thick and tall around him. The village, and its residents, were far behind him; the song of night and stars so familiar to him.

Taehyung felt his muscles burn as he closed in on his house. He skid to a stop at the vision in front of him. Red, with Aithne, sniffling while wringing knots into that crimson cloak. They turned to see the Wolf as he began to limp. The pain of nonstop travel, the wounds of battle, all came crashing down on him. He shifted, naked, just feet from them; his hand stretched outward. “R-Red.” 

“Taehyung!” Red and Aithne cried his name in unison. 

It was so good to hear her voice. Did she know he loved her? How long had it been since he told her? One step, two, maybe three steps before he tried to speak. He wanted to tell her everything inside of him. It seemed like the world was moving in slow motion. 

Taehyung was so very tired and Red’s voice was like a dream. Everything started to grow black when she laced her fingers through his. 

The world fell in a raw tilt and his body stopped abruptly, as if some force were holding him up. Red’s scent filled his nostrils, pulling him from the dream-like haze his body was attempting to place him in. His mind grew a little less foggy as Red’s sobs seemed to shred through the muffled noises of the forest in his ears.

“I love you!” she sobbed, wrapping her arms around every part of him she could reach. “I love you so much, Taehyung!” 

Red carded her fingers through his hair and he leaned into her touch despite gravity forcing them to the ground. His own arms weakly encircled her waist as she continued to cling onto  him in what he could assume was desperation. 

“R-Red, I--”

“I never told you I loved you when I left that morning. That was the biggest regret I’ve had in my entire life.” He felt her pull back, causing him to lift his face up to peer at hers. Her brown cheeks were streaked with the trails of her tears. “And so, to make up for that mistake, I will tell you I love you until there is no longer breath in my body to do so.” Red leaned forward and he felt her lips brushing against his forehead. “I love you, Taehyung. So very much.”

“I love you. I always have.” His fingers slid through her hair as she brushed her lips against his skin. “Red? Did you know that wolves mate for life?” Taehyung thumbed away the streaks on her face. “Our meeting wasn't a coincidence. It was providence.” 

He pressed his lips against the flutter of her eyelids. “Red, you are my mate. You are my fated, my chosen. You are mine, as I am yours.” Even as his body screamed for rest and sustenance, her proclamation sent fire through his blood. “Will you really be mine? Can I have you as I have always desired?” His gums burned with the sudden glint of fags. 

“Yes. Yes! Taehyung, make me yours.” 

She pulled him down again, fingers carding through his hair. She could feel the warmth of his breath against the column of her neck. He licked a path from her shoulder to ear. A low growl rumbled in his throat as he set his teeth into her shoulder.

There was a tense moment where the world seemed to go silent. As if the world gave them solatium for all they had suffered. For the years of secrecy, as if this moment was truly for them. Red pulled Taehyung tighter against her body, her legs sliding against his hips. She turned her head to the side to give him better access, to yield to him. 

Taehyung bit down into her shoulder, fingers digging into the meat of her thighs as he pulled her legs around his waist. He felt Red shudder at what he assumed was the fire racing through her veins. They clung to each other, skin aflame, burning together in the eternal vow of the wolf’s claim to his mate. He was so hard suddenly and it hurt, his hips undulating against the thin barrier of her undergarments.

Red’s eyes rolled around as he clawed at his back. He couldn’t decide whether to let her run or arch further into her body. Her heart beat erratically, skin clammy as she reached between their bodies. Taehyung shuddered as she got one hand around the throbbing width of his cock. “Tae. Please.” 

He ran his tongue across the bite mark, sending her into convulsions. Red’s grip on him tightened and he shook from head to toe. He could swear every vein in his body protruded at the moment. He growled, moving back slightly to tear the wispy fabric from her body.  She held up her other hand, jamming her fingers into his mouth. There was a lewd sound as his tongue swirled around and between those digits. 

“Good boy,” she crooned. 

Red took those wet fingers and reached down to part her folds, while the other hand lined him up. Taehyung’s mind went blank as she pulled him forward. He clawed into the ground, mouth open in something between agony and ecstasy at the slow pace that her body consumed him. He was burning for her in that half way point of the mating ceremony.  “Red, love, please...I-I can’t..” 

“You can, and you will,” she hissed. 

He heard her make a sound of wonderment. It wasn’t her imagination. He was somehow bigger than she remembered. She controlled the meshing of their bodies with fine precision. Red was wet enough that the pool of slick against her thighs made the task easier. 

Taehyung was enraptured watching her play his body like a symphony. They echoed their pleasure once he was inside of her to the hilt. He could feel her pulsing around him. A flutter of motion whirled through hun as she undulated her hips in torturously slow circles. Those slow circles grew shallow as she pulled against the length of his cock. Letting that throbbing fat head pull against that spongy spot inside of her. The one that made her toes curl, the one that had him gasping for breath and sanity. 

The squelching noises seemed to echo in the deep silence around them. Red had her hands on his shoulders. He remained absolutely still, letting her take what was hers. His mouth fell open with a quake of his thighs. He could feel that sensation, could see that glassy far away look in her eyes. A hitch in her breathing, the slight intake of air through pursed lips - the faint whisper of his name. The beast inside of him demanded its due. 

“Taehyung!” Red’s lower half began to shake uncontrollably as the orgasm threatened to explode out of her body. He pulled out completely dragging the head of his cock against that secret spot. She dug her fingers into his biceps as he pulled her lower half up to his mouth. He sealed her doom with the flick of his tongue on that slick covered bundle of nerves. 

He swore his life flashed before his eyes as she came. Tears slid down the corner of her eyes as he feasted, tongue sliding between the folds of her pussy. Making sure that every single drop went nowhere but down his throat. She grabbed her breasts as her body went rigid with pleasure. 

He was a fool to not have claimed her earlier. But he wouldn’t suffer that mistake again. Taehyung lowered her body, lining himself up with that vibrating hole again. He pulled her against his cock, and it was so easy. “Look at you, love. You can take me so well now,” hee spoke in a growl as he continued to pull her against him. 

Red’s moans grew in crescendo as he continued those deep paced thrusts. “That’s right, made for me. Just for me. Only for me.” The thought of claiming her had kept him depleted at night when she wasn’t around. He had planned it all out at one point. Where he would do it, how long he would spend making love to her after it. 

There would be time for that, soon. But for now? He pulled her up so she settled into his lap. “You have to finish it, Red.” His breath began to hitch, he was already running on fumes. He tilted his head to the side. “I-I won’t last much longer. Finish it.” Those golden eyes focused on her. “Make me yours.” 

He pulled her harder, faster, until she dug more half-moon indentations into his shoulder. He could sense she felt the itch in her gums, pulling her gaze to the length of his neck. To that part of the shoulder just above his clavicle. Her body bounced, nipples erect and sliding against his skin, as she leaned forward. 

“Red, please, can’t hold it.” Taehyung sounded desperate as his fingers dug into the flesh of her ass. Lewd squelching noises, their combined moans, the world was just for them. Red opened her mouth and bit down hard on his shoulder. 

The sound that left Taehyung was triumphant. He clung to her in fierce desperation as he exploded inside of her. She tumbled off a third orgasm, clinging to him just the same. He couldn’t understand the reason for the tears filling his eyes. She ran her tongue across the bite and he felt it. The tingling sensation of completion that had him ready to hold her down again. He fell to the side, bracing her with an outstretched arm. 

Suddenly, the night seemed alive with sound. Taehyung looked at the woman in his arms. She smiled for him and then everything went dark.

Sweat dripped from Yoongi’s chin as he continued to slave away in front of the furnace. His arm pumped the large bellow up and down as he focused on forging something in the orange and red flames. It was the one thing he knew would keep his mind from drowning in the dark thoughts that continued to plague him since his sister left to travel through the Fae Wylds. It was the only act that kept him rooted to the spot as he sent his niece away to chase after her mother. 

Forging iron kept him from taking up the sword to assist Taehyung in the conflict that he knew awaited the wolf on the other side. The Wylds were not kind. Not anymore. Because he was aware of the pact Cardia was planning to make with the forest. She was intent on rousing the wylds to be her protector and now the woods would be perilous with the hunger for blood and meat; a tribute that no longer was required for centuries.

It would take a long time for the Wylds to fall back into a peaceful slumber. A very long time.

Orange sparks flew in various directions as his hammer fell on the hot iron resting on the anvil. The loud clang of the hammer melded with Yoongi’s grunts with each strike. He was almost lost to the melody and rhythm of his swings until the distinct rustling of grass and snapping of twigs pulled him from the raucous orchestra he was creating. A loud hiss issued as he set the slab of iron into a nearby pool of water, the steam rising in waves and washing over his shoulders and back.

Gripping onto the hammer, he waited for the person to reveal themselves. When they did, Yoongi dropped it immediately and all but ran to their side.

“Cardia!” 

His sister flashed him a weak smile before stumbling against him. He felt her grip tighten as she curled her fingers into the fabric of his shirt. Yoongi tucked a few stray hairs from her face and behind her ear, framing her cheeks in his hands as he lifted her chin a measure so he could look into her eyes. The weariness was clear in her eyes and while there were no physical injuries on her person, it was clear that she’d been roughed up a bit and haphazardly patched together before being sent home.

“So,” he began, his tone as soft as he could manage so as to mask his mounting anger, “how did it go?”

“They said that you could return if you wished.” Cardia smiled, tears leaking from her eyes just seconds before she closed them. “You’re welcome at one of the other courts. You don’t have to go back to the Summer Court and your powers would be given back to you.”

Yoongi rolled his eyes, letting out a scoff. “I’d never dare dream of it.” He carded his fingers through her hair. “Besides, I’ve lived the last few decades on this side of the Veil. I’m content to stay.”

“B-Brother,” Cardia stammered out, her eyes widening a measure, “does that mean that…?”

“Of course. Someone has to stay and make sure you’re taken care of.” Reaching down, he grasped her hand in his own and began to pull her toward the house. “Especially if we wind up adding another member to this household who may need a bit of acclimating to village life.”

His sister laughed, nodding her head as they entered the house. “Yes, you’re right.” 

Indeed, it was going to get a little bit more crowded and louder in the home. But it would be filled with the noise of laughter. As a home should.

Red focused all of her energy on tending to Taehyung’s injuries. The last of the bandages were wrapped around his biceps and wrists. Thankfully, his head wound healed the fastest and was no longer weeping blood. It would take a little time for the rest of his injuries to heal, but she had faith that there would no longer be any other form of conflict to enter their lives for a very long time. 

It was her eternal wish for the future she longed for with the wolf.

Taehyung’s calloused fingers rested over her knuckles, bringing her out of her thoughts. She looked up at him, seeing the confusion settle over his brows and she smiled. But she didn’t know what words to speak so she abstained from speaking altogether.

“Does something trouble you, Love?”

Shaking her head, she wrapped her arms around his shoulders and took comfort in the warmth and security his arms brought her each and every time. Had she taken these arms for granted for so long? She would not make the same mistake again in this lifetime.

“Not at all.” Red pulled away from him a measure, resting a hand against his cheek. “But we should probably get going.”

Taehyung canted his head slightly, his bewilderment remaining etched on his features. “Where are we going?”

She smiled. “Home.”

It wasn’t hard for Red to understand why he was lost. But it was past time for Taehyung to make his home in a place that wasn’t temporary. Wolves often roamed because they didn’t have a pack. They continued to wander until that sense of community was forged. Then they could serve as the protectors of that realm, of that community, and would no longer seek out a purpose for their existence. 

Red realized, now, that the reason Taehyung always wanted to leave and wanted to leave with her was because he felt like he belonged with her. He yearned for that feeling of belonging. Now Red knew the means in which to give him that purpose and it wouldn’t just involve her.

“Let’s go back to the village, Taehyung.” Clasping his fingers in her own, she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. “Let’s go home.”

Just as Taehyung’s lips parted, Aithne appeared in the windowsill and meowed in their direction. “Are you two ready to go?” The cait-sidhe gave the two of them a knowing feline grin. “Your family is waiting for you.”

Red lifted Taehyung out of the chair and laughed, a sound she hadn’t heard coming from herself in what felt like a very long time. There was a content expression now painted over Taehyung’s face just before he pulled her into his arms. 

“Yes, you’re right,” he whispered into her ear, “let’s go home. Together.”

Now it was time for them to truly start living their lives. They would have their own adventures. They would always be together from that moment forward.

Because that would be their happily ever after.

F I N

Call of the Amazon

For the BTS Pretty Boys Collab hosted by @btsaudge​ and @kingsuckjin​

Rating: 18+ // NSFW

Genre: non-idol namjoon, established relationship, smut/explicit sexual content

Pairings: Namjoon x Reader

Warnings: Switch!Namjoon,  Namjoon is secure, Strong Joon [namtiddies and namthighs],  fingering, oral, anal, toy use, reckless blowjobs [respect your throat space, y’all], unprotected sex, smidge of plot,  Joon in pretty things, creampie, nipple play [male and female], messy kisses, lots of noises, the adventurous couple is adventurous, The Amazon position [classic and kneeling] [google it you heathens!],

Links: FAQ || BTS Masterlist || [ REQUESTS ARE OPEN ]

Word Count: 3.7K

AN: First thanks to the lovely @btsaudge  and @kingsuckjin for coming up with this awesome collab. Also thank you to @hesperantha, @hauntedlilies, @megahwn, and @ddaengyoonmin for the squeals over all the possibilities that inspired all the stories you’ll see! It has been a pleasure, y’all! Thanks to Admin E and Admin L for the squeals and checks. Thanks to Audge for the checks. Thanks to @taetaesbaebaepsae​ for the position check *le wink*.

Now! I don’t see many stories that pay homage to this beautiful position. So who better than a collared Kim Namjoon, in lingerie and lovely thigh garters to kick things off. Just google the position, you’ll see. I started this before the muster, but let me tell you - muster blonde undercut Namjoon had everyone [and me] ready to burst. Enjoy!

© thebiasrekkers (Admin T). All rights reserved. Reposting/modifying our work is prohibited. Translations are not allowed. Plagiarism/stealing is not tolerated by any means. Legal action will be taken in instances of theft.

“You have such good taste in lingerie,” he spoke against the column of your throat.

Even though those pieces of lace and intricate detail were now sticky and soaked with sex. There was a soft mewling as you stretched like a well-fed cat, your ass bumping into the stirrings of another erection.

“I think you like taking it off and messing it up, more than appreciating it.” There was a sleepy sound as he grinned down at you. His fingertips danced along the curve of your side, rising at the hill of your hip.

“Oh, come now, My Love,” The air of his laughter tickled your ear. “That’s me showing complete and total appreciation for your aesthetic eye.” You turned a look over your shoulder. His brow lifted in feigned innocence - it failed. You both laughed as you turned in his arms. His large hands palmed the globes of your ass, pulling one leg over his thigh. The heat of your swollen sticky sex tantalizing his cock to stir even further. 

You grunted as he thrust against your lips, your clit throbbing as he stiffened between your legs even more. “Here, let me repeat that previous lecture.” He rolled until he loomed over you, hard and ready again. You smirked up at him; your lips parted on a sigh of contentment. 

“One day,” you purr as he rocks into your slowly, “It’ll be me looming over you - and I’ll have those lovely legs laced and lovely just for me,” Namjoon smirked as he leaned back, your legs lifted as he ran his teeth along your calf.

“Oh, love, what a day that will be.” 

1 Year Later.

“Hey, so are you sure about this?” Director Vante stared over your shoulder at the designs sketched into notebooks scattered all over the desk.

“Yeah, I am. But, look, we’re progressive enough in this day and age. I don’t think it’s completely out of the left field to say that there need to be more options for men in lingerie.” You stared at all the designs sketched thoughtfully from the most dainty to risque. “What happens in bedrooms across the world isn’t our business, per se. But it could be our business *soon*.” A satisfied look on your face as you leaned back in your chair. 

Director Vante picked up one of many sketches and couldn’t deny that this could be something monumental. There had been a change in what constituted gender, and the conversation was ever-evolving. You couldn’t just look at someone with a muscular physique, and *assume* anything about their masculinity or femininity. 

They could enjoy a Rosé with a see-through teddy and fuzzy slippers to relax when they get home. You did have a point - they could be the first to cater to the masses at the onset of this new revolution. People were speaking their truths, and it was time for markets to listen, truly. The Director bit his lip as he looked over the details for thigh highs, lace panties that would pocket the male structures without making them look silly. It wasn’t women’s lingerie on men. It was lingerie to fit the male body, and you had crafted quite a few gems. 

Director Vante did happen to notice one thing, though. Even though each piece was stunning in its originality? The physique of the ‘model’ seemed to be the same for each one. Each muscle, drawn from some explicit memory, was created with exact detail on each page. He chuckled softly, “It seems you have a Muse.” 

You blinked upward, then looked at your designs. Oh, you hadn’t realized. That the vague details of who Namjoon was still was apparent to you in these designs. He came to life in stunning but mysterious detail to those in the office. So it was true - he was your Muse. Every outfit crafted with him in mind. Every outfit designed to fit and flatter his physique. You cleared your throat softly as you lowered your gaze to another half-done drawing. “Uh, well, sort of.” 

The Director set the notebook back on the desk. “You have the go-ahead to speak to the fabric department. Start working on samples. I’ll trust your judgement from here on out. Let’s see if we can get some prototypes within the week?” 

You managed to keep your cool with a nod, “Thank you, Director. I won’t let you down.” He gave you a gentle tap on the shoulder before leaving your office. When the door clicked shut, you melted back into your chair with a lazy smile. 

Within the week? That smile broadened as you reached for your desk phone. A tap of numbers, a quick wait, and a familiar chipper voice greeted you. 

“This is Trish in R&D; how can I help you?” 

“Trish, you know you’re my favorite, right?” you purred quietly.

“Uh-oh, what is it now, woman?” Trish leaned back with an amused sound. She listened to the pitch filling her ears as you sat up straight. “Are you serious!? He said yes! We’re doing this?!” 

“Yes, ma’am, we’re doing this.” You had to lean away from the receiver for a few moments. “Remember those early sketches I sent? Scrap those. I’m sending you the new sets. But, I’d like you to put a rush on two in particular, is that ok?”

“Hell yes, I remember those! I keep them…for science.” Trish coughed but rolled over to her desk to await the new files. The whole set had been spank bank material because the body was too good to be true. “I got them, oh-whooooaaa. You want those two, huh? Honey, whoever you’ve got in mind for these? Is one lucky individual.” 

You laughed hearing Trish verbally drool over the new content. Your teeth dug into your bottom lip as you thought about that individual. “I think I’m the lucky one. But, I’m counting on you, Trish.”

“Don’t worry, honey. I’ve got you covered.” Trish turned to the strips of fabric pinned to the wall next to her. “But, I better get details.” 

There was a moment of silence for them both before they started laughing. 

“For science!” They declared in unison.

*My Love*

Hey! I’m going to be late. My project got accepted by the Director. So I’m trying to get some prototypes together. 

*Joonbug*

Congrats, baby! It’s fine. I need to cover a missing shift at the fire house. So I won’t be home for another 18 hours. 

*My Love*

Joonie =/. You tell them they better be lucky I’m nice.

It took 14 of those 18 hours before you finally got home. The sample pieces were dropped haphazardly on the couch. You trudged through the hallway to force a shower before tumbling into bed. 

Namjoon cracked open the door 5 hours later. He didn’t want to risk driving home exhausted, so he opted for a quick nap in the work bunk room. He saw the keys in the glass dish by the door, and given the dead silence, figured you were asleep. There was the hint of a smirk as he closed the door behind him. 

A bag of celebratory dinner set on the counter as he yanked his jacket off. He decided to take advantage of your apparent exhaustion and made a beeline to the bathroom. The hot, heavy spray of the showerhead gave him the perk he needed. He kept quiet as he moved past your bedroom with a towel tucked around his waist.

That’s when he saw the lumps of fabric and a hint of metal on the couch. He tilted his head slightly as he lifted the material in the air. A brow arched as he twisted it around, letting the texture of the lace stimulate the skin of his fingertips.

He turned to the dark hallway leading to the bedroom; still, there was silence. There was a long moment of consideration before he decided to risk it all. 

Namjoon dried himself off completely, making sure to throw on a bit of moisturizer to his skin. He checked his dewy complexion in the mirror. He made sure his skin was radiant before gently detangling the first piece. “Not a lot to the imagination, is there, Love?” He chuckled, stepping into the lace underwear. He noted how the fabric felt against his skin; a strange sensation brought on by the multiple patterns that made up the lace panty. 

A strip of cloth attached to the front stretched between his pectorals. He looked down with a wide-eyed look. His gaze lifted to the mirror as he pushed his arms forward. The motion caused his chest to look even more prominent. “Fuck, I think I need a bra at this point.” 

The lace collar came with a metal O-ring that sat daintily under his Adam’s apple. The material was marvelously stretchy; it had just enough give not to strangle him. He turned to that mirror again and admired himself. He arched a brow, his bottom lip snagged between his teeth as he put an arm behind his head. He turned to the side, letting his fingers travel over that lane of lace between his chest. He followed it down to the curve of his cock twitching in the confines of the material. 

He turned to the next item, “Might as well.” Every step. Every shift in position caused that meshed fabric to rub against him. A tickle on his testicles, a brush against the swelling head of his cock. He could feel that erection steadily pushing the limits of that panty.

If that wasn’t going to test the limits of this set? The next item would need a miracle to survive. The thigh stockings with a garter with heart-shaped rings were, again, very well made. The straps were cheeky leather strips with plug shaped studs. His thighs fought against that heart-shaped metal ring with every flex. 

He turned back to the mirror and gave a full flex in the mirror. His arms lifted as the muscles in his biceps jumped. He placed one hand on his waist while the other raked through his hair. A slight step forward as he presented a lace-covered leg, the fabric stretched for his life across the thick width of his thighs. The heart-shaped ring dug deliciously into the front of his leg. Every move he made, every flex, every turn, had his cock jumping. 

He ran his fingers over his shoulders, fingers clawing at the meat of his pectorals before thumb and forefinger tugged at his nipples. He was so lost in feeling himself and literally feeling himself that he didn’t notice you. 

Your throat dry and in need of water caused you to leave the room. What you hadn’t expected was to see Namjoon’s lace-covered back side facing you. You had not expected to be given the most glorious show in all of existence. You had not expected the ungodly amounts of saliva to pool in your mouth as you watched your man make all your wildest dreams come true.

It was that loud swallow that caught his attention and had him whirling around, surprised by your presence. “Oh! uhm, hi.” He was sheepish for a quick minute. Cock half-hard and desperately fighting the tight weave of lace for release. 

“Hi.” There was hunger in your voice, and your eyes lust-filled and blown wide. 

“So, how do I look?” He smirked at your response, moving his fingers down his stomach. 

“You look fuckable.” You stalked forward. 

“Do I, now?” Namjoon smirked with a squeeze and lift of his cock. “Why don’t you come and fuck me then?” 

Your teeth clenched on a growl as you looped a finger through the O-ring at his neck. A yank had his lips in range for attack. The large expanse of his hands grabbed and squeezed at your ass while your tongues tangled. Heavy breathing, a shift of positions had you walking him back toward the couch. It took a light push to get him to flop backward. 

His long legs stretched out and so pretty straining against that heart-shaped ring at his thighs. Sorry, Trish - this one was going to stay locked away forever. You dropped to your knees between his outstretched legs, fingers clawing up against the lace material. It was strange that you still found yourself taking note of any flaws or defect in your design as you admired his beauty. 

Granted, most men aren’t built like Namjoon; it’s helpful knowledge for later. You pushed his legs up, tossing them over your shoulder. The pool of slick between your legs growing as he dug those lace-covered toes into your back. You leaned in to bite and suck purple blossoms into his inner thigh. “You’re so pretty for me.” A purr, your breath falling over the fabric, barely restraining the girth of his cock. 

You opened your mouth to take in more of his skin. His thigh muscle flexing under your teeth caused you to wiggle your ass, pussy clenching against the air. Namjoon looked down as you adored every part of him, teasing him until, at last, the panty gave a little under the tent of his erection. 

You met each other’s gaze as your tongue slid over the straining flesh. Namjoon hissed, leaning his head back for a second before looking down at you again. You closed your lips over the veins throbbing against the lace of the panty. Sloppily, sucking and licking at the leaking tip straining to break free and slide down your throat.

He let out a moan that had you leaking down your leg. You slid up the length of his body, tongue out and leaving a wet trail from the stomach to nipple. Your tongue swirled over the pert little nub before trailing up his neck, sucking more marks along his jaw before you were at his mouth again.

“Take this off.” It was his turn to growl as his fingers sought the edge of the t-shirt you wore. The sensation of it brushing against his skin was driving him mad—the fact it was hiding your body, keeping your skin off of his own fueled his rage. You leaned back enough for him to yank the shirt up and away. Your skin was hot against his, your nipples scraped like a rock against his soft skin. Your dripping sex left trails of hot liquid arousal seeping against the panty. His fingers dug into your hips and slid around to palm your ass. 

Namjoon’s hips swiveled circles in that perfect spot, hitting a delicious steady pressure right on your mons veneris. That perfect pad of pussy cushion directly before you slip down to the clit. You squeezed your legs together to increase the press of his cock right there. Your hands gripped the back of the couch on either side of his head.

Again your gazes locked as the wet sound of your pussy weeping joy at the speed of his motion. “You’re gonna make me cum, Joon,” A breathless moan as your head fell forward. He could hear it; he could listen to the catch of your breath, the tremble in your thighs. There was moisture pooling against his testicles. He bit his lip, dark gaze set on your face. 

You were close, so close, and the moment you inhaled through your teeth? He stopped. Your eyes flew open at his audacity, then he pulled you down as he thrust upward. Your eyes rolled in your skull as came, faucet dripping all on his abdomen as you shook like jello in his grasp. “Y-you son of a bitch?!” He smirked as you pushed his hands away. 

You tried to stand, couldn’t exactly hide your wobbly knees. You tugged him by that O-ring till his face pressed against the light peach fuzz on your pussy. “Clean it up. You made a mess,” A smirk lifting the corner of your mouth. Your tongue slid across your lips as his tongue curled up against your clit. Another orgasm threatened in mere minutes before you pushed him back again. 

Namjoon reached up to smear your juices back into his mouth. You look down the length of his body and begin to realize that the limit of that lace panty is maxing out. Namjoon was just big, and that couldn’t be helped - it just meant more work in R&D. You licked your lips, kneeling down again, licking, sucking and teasing him again. 

Namjoon cursed under his breath when you tore the fabric away. You wrapped your hands around the base of his cock, opening your mouth as wide as you could before swallowing him down. His fingers clawed the air as you gagged, trying to squeeze the broad head down your throat. Your tongue flatted before curving against the shaft. It was as if you made space just for him, sucking loudly. 

He was throbbing and ready to burst in your mouth. The fact that you had two fingers smearing remnants of your orgasm against the pucker of his asshole didn’t help. Nor did it help when those two fingers tested his limits. He was clutching the couch cushion when you switched to tickling that ring with your middle finger.

He grabbed the back of your head and tried to shove himself into the space of your throat when you pushed your middle finger into the hilt. You could have sworn he came a little, but he pulled you back, just a bit, so he could enjoy the prostate massage. The loud, wet, lewd sound of your throat reaching its limit, plus the fuck and swivel of your middle finger inside of him, had Namjoon ready to sanctify your name. He pulled at his nipples, grabbing at his chest, completely overwhelmed with sensation - and then you pulled away. 

A small spurt of cum left him again as he cried out. Both of you were glistening with sweat but far from done. “Pull your legs up for me, Joonie.” You wiped your mouth as he put his hands behind his knees. He scooted down enough his ass hit the edge of the couch. 

You pushed his cock down, so it angled slightly from between his thighs. A slight squat and push forward was all it took to flex him at your entrance. You slid forward, both of you moaning, your hands now at the back of his knees. “Gonna fuck you so good, Joonie.” You licked the sweat above your lip as your hips snapped forward.

The shaft dragged against your clit, as you snapped them forward again and again. You felt the burn in your thighs as you fucked against his cock. Pushing his legs closer to his chest in those pretty thigh high stockings. “Might make you wear heels for me next time.” You smirked at the fucked out look on his face. Your fingers tugged at the heart-shaped rings at his thighs. You moved faster, pushing him up against the couch. There was just enough room for you to push his legs up in the air. You had enough space to kneel on the edge of the sofa, letting those years of Kegel exercise finally come in handy. 

It was the fun part about riding cowgirl, except it gave you more of the top position. He held onto your thighs, helping you slide forward onto his cock. His tongue stuck out, panting as he worked your body against his. 

“Baby, I..fuck...I’m gonna fucking cum..” There was desperation in his voice. You had edged him to orgasm at least twice. He knew he was going to explode, and it was going to be glorious. “Keep fucking me, just like this!” His brow furrowed in deep concentration, watching his cock disappear inside you over and over again. 

Listening to your body give you away, he reached down with two spit-soaked fingers and rubbed at your clit. As if the shaft of his veiny cock wasn’t already running ribbed-for-your-pleasure against that battered bundle of nerves.

“Fuck!” You mirror his sentiments as the combo of his fingers adding that needed pressure and the head of his cock sliding against that secret space inside of you didn’t already have you seeing stars.

You pushed into him more, pushing all of his cock inside of you. You’re thumping into each other enough to cause him to shake with each snap of your hips. It sounds like someone is stirring a moist pot of something as your hips stutter against his fingers. He growls, lowering his legs around you, pulling your body down onto his. By the time the wave of violent euphoria hits you? He has his tongue in your mouth, fingers digging into your ass, as he takes back control to snap his hips upward in rapid succession. 

All he wants is to blow; all he wants is to feel the squeezing vibration of your body as he cums. He moves one hand to the small of your back, the other tugging the hair at your scalp. His teeth sink into your bottom lip as he experiences the most mind-numbing orgasm he has ever had in his life. 

He squirts hot and so hard into you, it causes you to shriek and hold on to him. He plasters your insides while he bites down on your shoulder. You squeeze your thighs and ride him out to another orgasm, creaming and squirting on his cock. 

“Mmfuck.” Your body melts against his, skin slick with sweat. There is no way you’ll be able to move after that. There is a burn in your hips and thighs you haven’t experienced in a long while. 

“G’damn, woman!” Namjoon offered a hoarse laugh; his arms around your torso kept you in place. He attempted to sit up but was finding it just as tricky. So he did the next best thing, he slid down to the floor. He groaned as the metal hearts slid across his thighs. The fabric touching his skin sent him into a state of overstimulation. He ripped and tugged at it until air hit his skin. 

A sigh of satisfaction as he cradled you against him. “So, uhm, are you going to be bringing home more of those samples?” He asked rather nonchalantly, his eyes shifting to the side. “I mean, this project is going to take a moment, right?”

You chuckled weakly, “Should I?”

“For science.” He smirked into the top of your head. 

“Right.” You smiled against his neck. ”For science.”

The Witching Hour: Fly with Me

Pairing: idol! I.M. x POC Female

Type:  One Shot

Genre: Smut, Idol au

Links: FAQ || MONSTA X Masterlist || [ REQUESTS ARE OPEN ]

WC: 2.2k

Warning:  Switch!I.M, established relationship, unprotected sex, oral [f receiving], cockwarming, multiple orgasms, back at it with the Amazon position shenanigans [classic and kneeling], messydreamy sex, pining?? [he makes me wanna write poems and i don’t understand it. ;.;]

A/N : poem /spoken bolded words are mine. Moodboard by me. Again this mofo makes me flowery and fucking poetic. I don’t know why, that’s the vibe. So here’s another longer installation into this...series of moments. Wanna make your friends feel better? Write something for them. 

The Witching Hour - pt 1

Songs: Horizon - I.M.,  시든 꽃(flower-ed) - I.M

© thebiasrekkers (Admin T). All rights reserved. Reposting/modifying our work is prohibited. Translations are not allowed. Plagiarism/stealing is not tolerated by any means. Legal action will be taken in instances of theft.

A boy thinks about a girl that sets his soul ablaze. Thousands of miles separate them again, as they are want to do. The distance makes him frigid, unable to find warmth in the burn of the sun at high noon. He feels empty, void of even the most base emotions. He lives in a world of black, white, and brown alcohol with no ice. 

How do I see you?

Because the ice kills the burn, he wants the burn so that he can feel it. 

Strong. 

A boy thinks about a girl that sets his soul ablaze. The tapestry of the world passes him by as he travels to and fro. Faces are dark and bland, but he hears the sound of their jubilation. He hears the sounds of their admiration - for them. 

For him. 

Soft encased in steel.

His eyes are bright, nonetheless, as the flames of a performer burn within him. It races his blood, heats his skin, quenches a thirst now and again. But he misses her. He craves her. 

He wants her. 

Weary of the world.

A warm, sepia-toned vision fueled by heaven and hell. She gave him yin and yang. She gave him pleasure and pain. She offered, and he inhaled it as life itself. She gave him vibrancy, and he knelt at her feet. He prayed to her altar in the most earnest of ways. He prayed that she would continue to bless him. He prayed that she would continue to see that his world would be nothing without her inside of it. 

But yearning to find your place within it.

While inside of him - he longed to be inside of her. Complete and forgetful of the outside world, praying with her name falling from his lips. They sought enlightenment in the endorphin chase of their connected bodies. 

Beautiful to all but yourself

That was then - and now? Thousands of miles separate them, as they are want to do. 

Precious to me

--My Air--

Stop that. I can feel your mind wandering in my direction.

I see a goddess, regal. 

His phone vibrated on a desk in another hotel room. His eyes slid to the message that popped up across the screen. Lips lifted in the barest of smirks as his fingers swiped across the keyboard of his phone. He was writing sonnets, poems, and confessions. He erased them all, the overspill of his bleeding heart. 

And I am your throne.

--The Poet--

I miss you.

--My Air--

You always say that.

--The Poet--

I always mean it.

I am your gilded seat.

--My Air--

Kyun...

--The Poet--

Please. Come to me. 

“I’m so fucking selfish,” he muttered to himself with a bitter laugh. 

The phone was tossed to the side of the bed as he laid an arm across his forehead. The gentle patter of rain lulled him to sleep. He dreamed about random things, images of strange things twisted and warped inside of his subconscious. He finally zeroed in on the thing he wanted the most. Right before he could indulge in that wispy figure - his phone vibrated again. 

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes because he refused to believe the message - an address. He balked momentarily before grabbing a mask and his hat while shoving his wallet into his jeans. There’s apparent confusion on his face as he punched the button for an elevator. He was nervous and anxious by the time the Uber came around.

He bit into the tip of his fingernail as the ride crested into the thirty-minute mark. And then it was over. He was slightly outside the city. He paid the driver a hefty tip before stepping out into the rain. The modern cut of the two-story home seemed to loom ominously as he looked at his phone. He doesn’t care about the rain soaking him through as he texted her back. 

--The Poet--

I’m here.

Take your place upon me.

“So am I,” a familiar voice responds as the door opens. He’s at the top step, skin steaming as he reaches for her. He looks pitiful, letting the rain seep into his clothes. They stare at each other, erasing the world down to their existence. 

He claims her in a rush, breaking enough to lock the door. She pushes the jacket from his shoulders. He presses his wet body against hers, and he is whole. Their tongues tangle together as he dips enough to grab the back of her thighs. He maneuvers enough for the hat and shirt to be discarded. 

He was finally bare-chested, moist, and burning against the thin fabric of her t-shirt and flimsy pajama shorts. He could feel the heat of her against his abdomen. His fingers grazed through the soft coils of her hair. “How?” He ate at her mouth, teeth tugging at the sweet gloss of her bottom lip. “How are you here?” 

Her legs were locked with a vice grip at his sides. She shook her head, a finger placed to his lips. “Let me ease your burden,” she offered a dulcet purr of sound as he stepped back until his legs hit the edge of a bed. There was the scent of sandalwood and dragon’s blood in the air. A scattering of candles bathed them in soft light. All the things that called to his dark poetic heart. 

And face the world... 

He released her, letting her slide down the hard rippled planes of his body. He dropped to his knees, burying his face in the soft flesh of her stomach. His fingers dug desperately into her hips as he inhaled the scent of her. Her fingers ran through the wet strands of his hair. His fingers slid under her shirt, which she promptly removed. She reached for the waistband of her shorts, and he stopped her. 

She saw the hungry gaze in his eyes and let her hands fall away. She knew that look; he made sure she did. A soft smirk lifted the corner of her mouth. A fingernail raised the point of his chin. “Then make your offering.” 

He pressed his face against her covered heat. He knew there was nothing beneath these shorts. He could feel that wet spot growing beneath his lips. He ghosted over the pajama-covered imprint of her pussy. He knew its shape and its secrets. He opened his mouth and sucked at the cloth that kept him from that treasure. He pulled the fabric taut until it slithered between the lips of her pussy. He could taste her with each pull, his tongue snaking out to tease her clit. Sucking furiously until a wanton moan bubbled out of her. 

He yanked the shorts down while he leaned his back against the edge of the bed. He pulled her forward. That hungry took in the length of her body, a warm sepia tone glistening in the dark. 

And all his.

He palmed her ass, bringing her forward until his mouth was in a perfect position. The first tentative flick of his tongue had her thrusting toward his mouth. “Use me,” he said with another flick. “Take me.” The flat pad of his tongue pressed against her clit, sliding down toward the entrance of her sex. Trying to collect her taste, lewd wet sounds of his tongue stirring the slick that pooled. 

His cock was trapped in the tight wet fabric of his jeans. She settled over his face, looking down at him. He noted the look of possession in her eyes as she grabbed a handful of his hair. He moaned into her pussy, tongue out and stiff as she fucked herself on his face. A hand raised to capture a breast, fingers pinch tugging at her nipples. 

She switched from a slow, languid pace, steadily increasing as her pleasure built. He could feel the quiver in her thighs, the clench of her pussy on the tip of his tongue. She threw her head back as he pulled her forward. He opened his mouth wide to take all of her in. A rapid flick of his tongue and the sneak of a ring-studded finger had her crying his name. 

She fell forward, shaking as he pumped her through the explosion. He was sure he came in his jeans, and it didn’t matter. He wouldn’t be satisfied until he was inside of her. She gasped for air, her body shaking as she moved to the side to fall on the bed. She heard the thunder in her ears, and she was sure it was the storm outside. 

It couldn’t have anything to do with how he ate her like a main dish. Her eyes felt like marbles in her skull. She leaned up on her elbows as their gazes met. He slipped the finger covered in her essence in his mouth again. 

Her head tilted to the side as he stood, her foot lifting to press gently into the outline in his jeans. “Take them off.” 

Head high.

He reached for the button, the zipper, their gazes still locked. The band of Versace underwear was barely in the frame before he sprung up hard against his stomach. He felt her eyes on him as he grabbed the base of his cock. It was as if his body wept for her attention. 

She sat up, leaning forward, her tongue swirling to collect the taste of him. His eyes rolled shut as she lapped at the angry tip of his cock. He looked down as those plush lips engulfed the head. He prayed he wouldn’t blackout as she tried to take him all in. “Baby, fuck, not like this. I don’t know if I can last.” There was mischief in her eyes as she moaned. The vibration had him curling his toes into the floor. 

Because…

It happened fast - she turned and pushed him down on the bed. She flung her leg over his waist. He grabbed at his cock, holding it straight. “You’re beautiful.” 

She rubbed the slick of her pussy against the head of his cock. He grits his teeth as she lowered in small shallow pulls. Her hands pushed the shiny crimson-tinted coils above her head. Looking down at his face as she sucked him in bit by bit, inch by inch, with each swivel of her hips. 

Changkyun was no small feat to take in. 

She knew that he could kiss her cervix open if she wasn’t careful. His hands slid against her inner thighs as she rocked him into her body. The squelching noises echoed in the dark space of the room. Then finally, she had him completely and totally inside. She settled down on her throne, utterly full of him.

She rocked her hips in a slow drag, figure eight. He growled, digging painted fingernails into the meat of her hips. She worked her lower body, mouth open on a soft pant. He was in the best kind of agony, ready to cum at any second. “Make love to me,” he says, strained. 

Because to me…

She lifts up just enough to get his legs on the outside of her own. She rakes her nails down his inner thighs; takes great satisfaction feeling him pulse inside of her. She smoothes her hands up the rippled planes of his abs, rocking her hips into him. 

And he feels it, the switch in position as he wraps his legs around her. He could feel her clit sliding across his shaft. He could feel the drip of her arousal down his inner thighs. She moves her hands behind his knees, rocking her body into him at a brutal pace.

“You’re so pretty like this. Letting me fuck you so good like this.” She moans, feeling that molten pool in the pit of her stomach—the electricity at the base of her spine. “Tell me something pretty….” She uses his words against him. 

But he can hardly think watching her fuck him. Looking up at her like the amazon that she is. Vital, beautiful to everyone but herself, and all his. He reaches forward, grabbing more of her ass, forcing her to ride him just a bit harder. 

“You are my Queen.” He moans, pulling her down to devour her mouth. His legs lock around her as pussy quivers around him. She feels like home, and he never wanted to leave. “Come for me….” He breathes against her lips. “Come with me….” 

Their bodies crashed together as their voices rose without care. Lewd, wet body slapping sounds, breathing stops and starts. He cries out first, arms wrapping around her, holding him close to her. He shakes so hard, scared this is a sordid dream, as he chants her name like a prayer.

The orgasm rocks her, blurs her vision, fills her ears with the sound of his prayer. She feels like she’s left her body, but he holds her. He pours his load into her; it mixes with hers, streams down her thighs, and creams his cock.

They pant, drained and spent but locked in a sticky embrace. 

He can’t hear anything for the first few minutes. Her hips still held him captive, and the tiny undulations were driving him mad. Finally, he cups her ass, pushing into her with two long, deep strokes.

He cums again and sees stars. He sees his universe stretch out into the crimson coiled halo laid on his chest. He softens inside of her, but he stays. The aftershocks of their lovemaking sent shivers up his spine. He pushes the hair from her face. 

He watches her bite her lip, lifts her gaze to his, and he’s reminded once more. “You’re so beautiful.” 

Because you are the Queen of my soul.

Black Wolf (kth)

Summary: The dossier on your target is dismally thin, a couple of pages mostly about The Black Room, a rumored facility located deep in the Vietnamese jungle that trains children to become deadly weapons. You're looking for a chameleon, a man known as Kim Taehyung along with a host of other aliases. You consider yourself good at your job, but in the end, you don't find him. He finds you.

This has been a long time coming so I hope you like this indulgent Black Widow Taehyung fic! Ft. Loki!Jimin and WinterSoldier!Yoongi because I think they're neat for plot points

Warnings: Violence, blood, knife fights, shooting, mentions of hospitals and death, childhood trauma (briefly mentioned), smut, some degradation, oral (both m and f receiving), cumplay, unprotected vaginal sex (wrap it up folks), lots of sexual tension

Word Count: 15995 (I used to be in the Marvel fandom I have a lot of feelings)

You blink once, twice, but it doesn't help the fogginess that's taken over your vision. You sigh and close your laptop.

The room is filled with pictures of the same man: a lean body and half hidden face, coming out of a convenience store, something like a smirk at the mouth as if he knows you can't get a clear shot from the CCTV footage if he keeps looking down. There's almost as many crime scene photos pinned up next to those pictures. Whenever he is sighted, death follows. Always someone high up in society, a political figure, sometimes an athlete, sometimes an organized crime boss. Men. Women. Never children.

You absently rub the inside of your wrist, over a raised scar he'd given you five years ago. You still don't know how you got the drop on him. You wonder if maybe it was the other way around and for some reason, he decided not to kill you.

It isn't like you'd heard him. No, he'd been utterly silent, like a shadow. You hadn't seen him, either, not that you would have had time to react if you had.

It was almost like you felt him, some change in the air around you.

No time to draw your gun, all you could do was reach inside your leather jacket and pull out your knife, slicing through the air before you could think, your heart pounding.

The knife bounced uselessly off an arm gauntlet, nothing like you've ever encountered, too lightweight to be Kevlar but maybe stronger.

That's when you'd seen him.

You'd been looking for the Wolf a year at that point, and in all your research you'd imagined what he would look like.

For one thing, you'd thought he'd be older.

He looked younger than you do, boyish smirk and all. The bright red hair that was slicked back from his forehead looked soft and clean.

You'd imagined he must be handsome, given that you'd referred to him as a honeypot assassin, often his victims are found in general states of undress. You couldn't have imagined how handsome, how sharp the line of his jaw, half smirk on his face. Everyone's type.

"Hello there, little bird."

When he spoke, the tip of his knife was so close to your throat that you'd swear you could feel the vibration of his baritone through it.

You were holding him back or at least you think you were, but from how relaxed his stance is, you think it's likely he's letting you hold him back.

Panicked, you tried to remember your training. Keep them talking.

"Bird?" You croaked out.

The Wolf gives you just the slightest tilt of his chin. "Flitting around, here and there, taking your pictures."

Fuck.

He knew you'd been tailing him. Probably knew your name, your age, your family's names. You'd built his profile, you know how he worked.

"I just wanted to talk to you," you started, and his eyes narrowed just a split second before you pushed him back as hard as you could and ducked, narrowly avoiding the slash of his knife.

You scrambled backwards and he kept coming, and you didn't even know he'd cut you until you felt the blood trailing down your arm.

“Shouldn’t lie, little bird,” he warned, and you knew he could move faster than this, knew he was holding back for some reason, but if you could just get to the street then your partner could see you and-

The Wolf’s knife was a silver flash in the dark and it was at your throat again, his other arm caging you against the alley wall.

“I know your name!” You blurted out, desperate, and his dark eyes widened in shock. He doesn’t move away but he doesn’t cut you either, so you keep talking.

“Kim Taehyung. Born in Daegu, given up by your mother hours after labor. Presumed dead at 10 hours old.”

“How do you know that?” He demanded, voice raspy, but then your partner shined a flashlight down the alley, called your name, and the Wolf dropped his knife, vaulted over your partner, and disappeared into the night.

You’d needed ten stitches to close the wound he’d given you, but you know it could have been much worse.

That had been years ago, and there’d only been these little glimpses of them. You’re the only agent that’s gotten that close, though, so you stay on the case. He gives you just enough to keep you chasing him through Korea, Japan, China. Right now, you’re at a motel in Los Angeles because he’d been spotted outside a club, or at least that one side of his face had been.

You’d been here three days with very little sleep and no other sightings. It’s time to hang it up and go to bed.

You flop down on the hard, motel bed and think that your agency could spring for a nicer hotel before sleep overtakes you.

It feels like thirty seconds before you wake up and you can’t breathe.

Kohl rimmed dark eyes look down at you, one large hand clamped over your mouth.

He half smirks at you. “Hello again, little bird.”

Taehyung’s first memory is of a 10x10 cell with a folded mattress in one corner and a thin blanket. He remembers being hungry and food being slid in through a tray, ramen and beef and he eats as if he’s never eaten before.

Maybe he hasn’t. He doesn’t remember.

He doesn’t know how long he was in his cell but all he can remember from that time is a low, gravelly voice through the chute.

“Eat up, kid.”

Sometimes the voice would tell him stories (mostly war stories that somehow had a happy ending), and sometimes the voice would just grunt, tell him to eat. Taehyung could always sense him outside the door, though, as if he were guarding him.

Eventually, he gets to meet the man with the voice, but for the longest time, he doesn’t know his name. They just call him The Soldier.

Taehyung doesn’t know how old he is but the Soldier always seems wise, so much older than him. As Taehyung grows, though, the Soldier doesn’t get any older. His face remains the same as does his gravelly voice and the mechanic whirring of his prosthetic arm.

Breakfast is first, then training. So much training. With knives. With guns. With sticks and bats and with just their fists. The Soldier oversees all of it and he’s sparing with praise but he always seems to have a bit for Taehyung, even if it’s just a nod or a slight smile on his full mouth.

When Taehyung’s cell seems to grow smaller because he’s grown taller, become a man, The Soldier attacks him the second he steps out of the cell, and Taehyung gasps, ducks and spins as he’s been taught to avoid attack. The Soldier doesn’t stop coming, doesn’t change his face, dead serious and silent, until finally Taehyung tackles him around the waist, takes him to the ground, with all the others watching in awe.

The Soldier doesn’t try to get up and Taehyung stays there, holding him down, for a long moment, panting. The Soldier leans up to whisper in Taehyung’s ear.

“You’ve earned my name, kid. I’m Min Yoongi.”

Taehyung doesn’t know what that means, doesn’t know the secret that really is, until years later.

He hasn’t seen Yoongi or the black room in three years now, working for whoever pays the most and avoiding contact with any other agencies, especially yours. It rankles him that you’d been able to find him, been able to find out his name of all things. Taehyung himself hadn’t known his name until he was out of the Black Room, after the rebellion. Someone had sent him his birth certificate and death certificate in an unmarked envelope.

Possibly the same someone who had outed his location to you. Possibly the same person who had sent a burn notice to his agency.

Taehyung had woken up when his hotel window had slid open. Whoever had done it must have thought they were being quiet but they were an amateur, the sound waking him immediately.

Taehyung slid off the bed as if he didn't have bones, and when the intruder had one foot on the floor, Taehyung stood up and took him by the knee, hanging him over the fire escape.

The intruder yells but the sound is lost among the sounds of the city and the wind.

"Who sent you?" Taehyung yells, over the wind, because now it doesn't matter that someone might hear him, the whole hotel is a wash, he'll have to bolt without scrubbing the place, they'll know where he was but not where he's going.

The intruder yells something and Taehyung can't make it out but then he sees the foam trailing in the air he scoffs and let's go of the intruder's foot.

He's dead before he hits the ground, has burst a cyanide capsule with a back tooth. Taehyung knows now (or thinks he knows, as he finds out later), who's after him.

Hydra.

"Please," you whimper, tears forming in your wide eyes, and Taehyung removes his hand only for you to draw in a deep breath and he clamps his hand over your mouth again.

"Ah, ah, little bird."

He's smiling, almost fondly, and your heart is battering your chest plate because that's almost more frightening than a hard stare.

If he wanted to kill you, you'd be dead already, your inner voice reminds you, and you start to breathe slowly through your nose, knowing this is true.

You try your best to keep calm and eventually he removes his hand. You don't scream, and when you try to sit up, he moves away from you, but only slightly. He looks calm and unbothered but he's stiff, tense, and you know that you don't have time to reach for your gun, which you keep just under your bed.

"Why are you here?" You ask, and it comes out like a croak.

He shrugs, and it does nothing to lessen how tense he looks. "Had some free time."

Your eyebrow quirks up. "Oh? Thought you'd spend it with an enemy?"

Taehyung pouts, and it's truly frightening how cute he looks, disarming and boyish, no more dangerous than the young men you'd fallen into bed with in college.

"We aren't exactly enemies, dove. I'd call us...colleagues."

"Hm," you respond, and look around the room. He's shuffled your papers around your desk and you wonder how long he'd been in your room without you waking, how that was even possible.

"What were you looking for?"

"Maybe I just wanted some company," he responds, shifting on your bed to lean toward you.

His face is inches from yours, as if he might brush his mouth against your lips, but you know he's more likely to draw his knife while you're busy staring at his pout.

Dangerous, how handsome he is, how charming. The very definition of a honeypot assassin, drawing the marks in like flies.

"Wouldn't think you'd have too much time for love," you say dryly, and he laughs, an open, happy sound that shocks you.

"Oh, little bird. That's what I'm hired for the most."

"Love?"

He nods. "Love or hate, it's all the same in the end. Can't have one without the other. Wives who want their husbands dead, husbands who can't stand seeing their wives with other men."

"Have you ever been in love?" You ask, shifting toward him this time, one of your feet dangling off the bed, hoping to distract him.

His mouth crooks in a half smile. "Oh, about a hundred times."

He's looking at your mouth and you lean in closer before darting your hand down to the floor.

He grabs your wrist before you get halfway there. He doesn't twist, his hand strong around your wrist but not hard enough to leave a bruise.

"Come now, little bird. I've used that trick a hundred times." He chides, smiling as if you're old friends and he hadn't tried to kill you previously.

"Why are you here?" You demand, your voice shaking in spite of yourself.

Taehyung sighs, as if inconvenienced by the question. "I need your help," he says finally, tone soft, and of all the things you'd thought he'd say, that wasn't in the realm of imagination.

"Why?"

You keep pushing him even though he's a killer, even though you know he could decide to end your life at any moment.

You think it might be because you feel as if you know him, after all these years researching him. The company that you work for wants to imprison him, use him for their own goals, but maybe deep down you want to help him.

"I've been burned," he says, flatly, and your eyes widen in shock.

It isn't exactly true, but so little of what Taehyung says is.

He doesn't need your help. The Black Room and to a better effect, Yoongi, had taught him above all else, self sufficiency. A burn notice means that instead of half the world trying to kill him, most of the world is, and while that makes things harder, it isn't impossible to do alone.

But you know things about him. Lots of things. Things he himself hadn't known until he was an adult, like his real name.

"How..what could I possibly-" You stammer out, and it's really quite endearing how your eyes keep widening.

"You know my name."

"Taehyung."

He points at you, as if you've just won a prize. "You know my history."

"Just bits and pieces, you're a spy, a lone-"

He rolls his eyes. "Wolf, yes, I know. I tired of the Black Wolf moniker very quickly. It's a bit dramatic, don't you think?"

"Yeah, you're not dramatic in the least," you drawl, and Taehyung's eyes snap to yours, a smile stretching the corner of his mouth.

It feels odd, this smile, one of the first genuine ones in years.

"Are you making fun of me, little bird?"

"I wouldn't dare." Your eyes don't match your words. You've even relaxed just a bit, no longer poised as if to go for your knife or strike him over the head with a lamp.

"You can help me."

"Help you...what? Hide out?"

Taehyung scoffs. "No. Help me find out who burned me."

He stands up and stretches and your eyes follow his every move.

"Why does it matter?"

"I have to kill them, of course." He smiles at you quizzically and you swallow hard.

Taehyung thinks that if fear had a smell it'd be pungent, like sweat. It doesn't though, at least not to human senses, and for all his training Taehyung is after all, human, not the fabled Black Wolf he's been called. Fear has a feeling, though, hanging in the air. Fear has a look, a slight widening of the eyes, wrinkle in the forehead, excessive swallowing.

Fight or flight response.

Which will you choose?

You stare at him for a moment longer.

"Do I have a choice?"

"You always have a choice, little bird." Taehyung draws his knife, now, and the air feels heavy with your fear. He flips it idly in one hand, catching it by the hilt once, twice, three times before you answer.

"What do you need me to do?"

You go into work later that day as if you hadn't spent the night with the Black Wolf, the very man you'd sworn to bring in.

You could talk to your superiors, tell them what happened, but something tells you that he'd find out, that maybe he'd be taken in but not before he'd slit your throat in your sleep, leaving you there for the hotel manager to find.

You take all your files on the Black Wolf and while you’re leaving the office your coworker puts his hand on your arm.

Well. Not coworker. Boss, you suppose, or what passes for it.

"Is everything all right, Agent?"

There's a rock in your throat, fear making your heart race.

You nod, hurry towards the elevator.

"We appreciate what you do for the organization." He says in response, and your heart lurches as the elevator moves.

You’ve always known that your job isn’t one that you walk away from. It seems more clear than ever that one wrong step could lead to your disappearance.

On your walk back to the apartment where the Black Wolf was waiting for you, you think about how there is no one to miss you. You're an orphan and you were never able to find your siblings, even though you tried when you came of age.

You wonder if everyone who works for the organization is replaceable.

Taehyung isn’t in your hotel room when you arrive and you’re not sure if you’re relieved or concerned.

As you walk toward the bed, he swoops in through the window and you stumble backward, a scream turning into a squeak in your throat.

He’s dressed in a white t-shirt and gray sweats now, barefoot so that he doesn’t make a sound when he jumps down onto the carpet. He’s barefaced, even a little bit of stubble on his chin and jaw but no less attractive. You have no idea where he’s gotten the clothes, and you’re still trying to catch your breath when he smiles at you, tilting his head in that way he has. It’s alarmingly disarming.

“You’re still here,” you gasp out, and his smile turns to a frown.

“Of course I am. You haven’t helped me yet.” He slips past you easily, his shoulder grazing against yours as he rifles through the minibar, pulling out a handful of the fun sized Snickers and tearing one open with his teeth.

You take in a deep breath, your heart rate finally changing from hummingbird to somewhat human.

“I still don’t know how you expect me to find--”

“You’re good at your job, little bird. You found me,” he says easily, giving you a big smile before opening another Snickers with his teeth.

That’s that, you’re off on a lead that you’ve had for months, a lead about who might have leaked the Black Wolf’s birth certificate.

You head there in the car that you’ve rented, leaving the world’s most notorious assassin sprawled in a robe on the hotel bed and you trying to avert your eyes.

“Don’t leave the room,” you warn.

Taehyung had scoffed at you. “Of course not.”

You have a gun taped to your lower back, the handle just slung into the back of your jeans, but you’re hoping you won’t have to pull it when you see the shadow of a man on the street. It’s nearing dusk and the streetlights have just come on. You pull up several feet behind the shadow and keep your hands free as you walk toward the building, just a small post office where the birth certificate had been postmarked.

You slow just a bit right before you reach the alley where the shadow is coming from, but it’s perceptible enough because you find your wrists pinned above your head in a flash, your back pressed against the brick. He’s so close, almost intimate, and when you look up you recognize the wide brown eyes.

He winks at you, wearing a black mask and a hoodie.

“You scared the hell out of me!” You hiss, and he chuckles but he’s still got you pinned with one hand, chest pressed against yours.

“You’re not very quiet,” he scolds, and then his head ticks just barely to the left, and he leans down closer to you. “Pull the mask down and kiss me,” he orders, voice barely above a whisper, releasing your wrists.

“What?”

Taehyung rolls his eyes and tugs his mask down, pressing his mouth to yours, just barely gliding his tongue over your bottom lip. You gasp, your body instinctively leaning toward him before you pull away and push at his chest.

“Don’t be so cold,” Taehyung complains, staggering backwards as if drunk. “I was only an hour late.”

You finally realize what’s going on when a group of men make a wide berth around the two of you, thinking that you’re a couple having an argument on the street.

When the coast is clear, you feel like you can finally breathe again.

You yank the post office door open a little harshly, unsure if you’re angry or just sexually frustrated. The man had tried to kill you five years ago, and here you are feeling flushed from a kiss.

“You taste good,” Taehyung murmurs in your ear as you approach the post office boxes lined up on the wall and you nearly stumble.

“I thought you were staying at the hotel,” you mutter, eyes scanning the wall. You find the post office box you’re looking for and do a quick dust with a portable fingerprinting kit. You’d tried to explain that you wouldn’t get much from this, that it might have a hundred fingerprints on it, but Taehyung had insisted.

You’re about to tell him this again but when you turn around after putting the kit away in your bag, he’s standing at the doorway, pretending to fill out a change of address form.

Your heart begins to hammer in your chest. You’re no world famous assassin but you are trained to know that something’s wrong, that someone is watching you, maybe both of you.

Your hand itches to reach for your gun but you wait.

Sure enough, about a minute later a man walks into the post office. He walks toward the back wall, where you’re standing, and you turn and try to brush past him.

“Excuse me,” he mumbles, and you think you’re in the clear until you hear the ding of the door as someone else comes in. A woman wearing a mask and sunglasses, at dusk. You pull your gun just as Taehyung tackles the man next to you, pressing him up against the wall and the woman reaches for something in her purse and you bark at her to keep her hands up.

You move toward her slowly, training your eye and gun on her so that she can’t move away.

She seems familiar to you but you can’t quite place where and you get closer she starts to back away to the door.

“Don’t let her get away, little bird,” Taehyung calls to you, his voice calm, almost lilting. “She’s our canary.”

Taehyung doesn’t care what kind of interpersonal politics are going on in the company you work for, but he knows you don’t seem much like a spy. You’re quiet, of course, stealthy, probably good with firearms instead of knives like he is, but it’s your attitude.

You’re upbeat, almost...trusting. You don't flinch when he comes toward you, don't jump when he calls your name, or more often, "little bird." If you're a bird, you're one of those unafraid pigeons in the common square, coming up to anyone who might offer a bite of bread.

You’re wary around him, but not afraid, and that concerns him. He’s not sure why, exactly. It isn’t as if he couldn’t slit your throat and leave you bleeding out in your hotel bed. That was, after all, his plan after he got the information he needed.

Somehow, though, your lack of fear is a bit...intoxicating. Even just moments ago, when he’d had you pressed against the wall and could so easily slide his knife into your side, right into your liver just above your ribs, you hadn’t flinched. You’d kept your eyes on his.

Maybe not a pigeon at all, more like a hawk with your sharp eyes. Maybe that’s how you’d gotten hired.

Sure enough, when he picks out the woman who looks like she knows things, you get her arms behind her back, shove her towards him and he holds her while you tug out a zip tie from your bag and tie her hands.

“Look in my back pocket,” the woman gasps. “I have an identification card. I work for-”

Before she can finish, you tug the ID out and your eyes widen.

“They told me to follow you,” she says.

“She’s lying,’ Taehyung says, like he’s bored, and draws the woman’s hands higher up her back, straining her muscles so that she cries out.

“I know,” you answer, and he’s surprised, although he doesn’t show it.

Not showing emotions unless you can use it for your own gain is rule number one of the Black Room, and he’s learned it earlier than most.

“Not about who she is,” you continue. “Or where she works.”

You pace around them, watching the woman intently, and Taehyung finds himself oddly attracted to you.

It isn’t as if he’s immune to such things, he’d had his fair share of dalliances that he enjoyed despite it being a means to an end, but he’d never found himself attracted to anyone in the midst of a mission that wasn’t solely a honeypot mission. You’re easy enough on the eyes, the curve of your body meant for a hand at your waist, your eyes fringed with black lashes that you look up at him under with those shrewd eyes of yours. Taehyung feels alarmed at being distracted by this feeling, this attraction, and he shakes his head a bit, realizing where he is, what he’s doing.

“We can’t do this here,” he rasps, nodding toward the dead man on the floor and you startle, as if you were also distracted, only by finding out the truth rather than attraction.

Taehyung leans down, whispers in the woman’s ear, presses a blade against the base of her spine. “If I cut you deep enough, you’ll never walk again. So don’t do anything stupid, yeah?”

To her credit, the woman he’s been thinking of as the canary doesn’t make a peep as he leads her to the car, but he doesn’t move the blade until he’s thrown her in the backseat.

“What are you going to do to me?” She asks, voice shaky, in the elevator, and she’s either really afraid or a good actress. Maybe both.

Taehyung shrugs, but you answer for him.

“Nothing. You just have to be honest with me.”

Taehyung doesn’t believe you’re lying, but, again, maybe you’re a better actress than he knows.

He tosses the woman on the bed and she wiggles to flip over onto her back, scrambling up against the headboard.

“Why were you at that post office?” You demand to know, taking a step toward the bed. You don’t have any weapons on you, but you seem a bit intimidating nonetheless.

“I told you, I was told to follow you-”

You strike her across the face and it makes his dick twitch in the hotel gift shop sweats he’s wearing. It’s a little distressing.

The canary cries out but softly, as if she knows better. “I...I was supposed to meet someone,” she admits, and a line of blood runs from her left nostril.

“Who?” You ask, and Taehyung sits down in the office chair, watching you with pointed interest, not that it would show on his face.

“I can’t-”

Another strike across the face and Taehyung wants to groan.

“Some canary,” he comments. “Not much of a singer.”

“Okay, okay, stop hitting me!” The canary yells, looking more angry than afraid now. “Someone paid me half a million dollars to deliver a package. All I had to do was drop it off at the door, but my partner wanted to go inside since you guys were in there, wanted to kill you so there weren’t witnesses.”

“What package?” Taehyung asks, sitting up now, no longer distracted.

“I don’t know. It was heavy, but I wasn’t supposed to look in it. I dropped it at the front door.”

Taehyung curses his own worry about being burned and you being distracting that he hadn’t noticed it. It will surely be gone now.

“He’ll come for me, you know.” The canary says, smiling now, and Taehyung realizes her fear and anger both were an act all along.

“Who?” He asks, standing up to look out the window. It’s closed and locked tight, ever since he’d slid his way inside.

The canary smiles wider. “You’ll see.”

As if she’d caused it to happen, the fire alarm starts to go off, ringing impossibly shrill in Taehyung’s ears and he curses.

“Leave her,” he tells you and you start to protest until he takes your upper arm and drags you toward the stairwell.

You open your mouth and he thinks briefly that he wishes there was time to kiss you again before he puts a finger to your lips to make you be quiet, opens the stairwell door and shoves you inside before closing it and putting his back against the door.

He can hear you banging on the door but he drowns it out, listens for the sound of footsteps that he knows are coming.

If he’s right (and the Black Wolf always prides himself on being right), the man he’s looking for and might be the cause of all of this, of why he’s hiding out in a two star hotel instead of at one of the apartments he has scattered across Seoul, will be heading straight for the hotel room. Straight for the canary.

Sure enough, thirty seconds later there’s still no smoke and he sees a man in a trenchcoat heading toward the door of the hotel room.

Taehyung springs out from the doorway of the stairwell and pushes the man against the wall, taking him by the collar. Taehyung is shocked when he sees the man’s face, having seen it all over the news just a few months before.

“Ooh,” the man says, laughing a little. “Like a bit of rough trade, do you?”

“Loki,” Taehyung accuses, shoving him up against the wall again although the man has made no move to slip away or fight back.

There’s just the hint of a flash of something like anger in Loki’s eyes, something anyone but Taehyung would have missed.

“I don’t go by that name anymore. Call me Jimin.” His eyebrow raises slightly, still making no move to escape. “You’re the Black Wolf, right? Surprised to see you here.”

“The hell you are,” Taehyung growls, and pulls him close only to shove him back against the wall harder.

Jimin groans and laughs. “Rough trade indeed. I only heard a friend of mine was in trouble.”

“Jimin?” There’s a call from the hotel room, the canary that you and Taehyung had left tied up on the bed.

There’s another flash, nearly imperceptible, across the god’s face, concern this time.

“Loki Odinsson cares for someone other than himself?” Taehyung taunts, and this time the god slips out from under Taehyung’s arm, shoves the taller man against the far wall.

“I told you. That’s not my name,” he hisses, and then he’s gone, a twist of black smoke in his place.

Taehyung curses and runs into the hotel room, and Jimin is there, releasing the woman on the bed. She puts her hands comfortably around her neck but Taehyung manages to grab the god around the waist, pulling him backward to offset his balance, and as soon as the two separate, Taehyung has the woman pulled up against his chest, a knife at her throat.

That’s when you make it into the room, your cheeks red and your hair flying out of your ponytail, looking angry and confused in equal measures. You take in the scene and freeze.

“Now now, wolfie,” Jimin says calmly, but there’s a tightness in his features, rage or fear or both. “What good is all this conflict? Just let go of the girl-”

“Give you what’s yours?” Taehyung retorts, pressing the tip of the blade into the woman’s throat. She makes a whimpering sound in the back of her throat, something Taehyung has to tune out in order to do what he needs to do. He’d never liked killing women, never liked killing at all, really, but it’s what he’s best at, what keeps him alive and keeps food in his mouth, a roof over his head.

Jimin shrugs. “She’s useful to me. If you kill her, it would greatly inconvenience me.”

“Is that so? Maybe I want to inconvenience you.” A small line of blood starts to trickle down the woman’s throat.

The god stands there for a moment, throat working. “What, then? What do you want from me?”

You have absolutely no idea how you got roped into a road trip with a rogue agent, the Black Wolf, and a fucking trickster god, but here you are, sitting in the backseat with your gun pressed into the agent’s back.

She goes by Star, apparently, although you’re sure that’s not her real name, and she’s been the bane of your existence this whole ride, constantly trying to get away, once even opening the car door and trying to roll out on the interstate.

She finally calms down when Loki (Jimin, you remind yourself, he gets awfully pissed off when you or Taehyung refer to him as his given name), turns his head to smile at her.

“I know it’s not the best situation, pet, but stay calm for me?”

It isn’t an order, more like a request, and Star relaxes, nodding a little.

Taehyung drives like an absolute maniac and you can’t imagine how this is good for any kind of stealth mission, but you make it to one of his so called safe houses in under two hours that way, him throwing a tarp over the car and parking it in the garage so that you all can get into the house.

He’s warned you to never take your eyes off Star, she had been after all, the canary, just like he said, so you take her into the bathroom and keep the gun on her while she glares at you.

“You even have to watch me pee?”

You shrug. “Since your boyfriend is literally a god, seems smart to keep an eye on you at all times

She washes her hands, averting her eyes. “He’s not my boyfriend.”

You don’t respond, it’s none of your business what weird shit they have going on, but you assume Taehyung must think that Jimin has something to do with why he was burned, given how insistent he is.

You take Star into one of the bedrooms in the large safehouse, keeping your gun on her at all times, and she just shrugs and starts to watch television.

You can’t help but wonder, despite knowing that it might not be pertinent to your current situation.

“How did you end up involved in all this?”

Star gives you a look. “It doesn’t matter. It has nothing to do with this.”

“You don’t know that.” You shoot back.

“You can put down the gun, you know. He’s not gonna come in here unless he thinks I’m in real danger.”

“Why does he protect you?” You ask, unable to stop being curious. You suppose it’s a lifetime of being in a job in which you have to find out information, ask a lot of questions. Or maybe just because you’re hoping you’ll find out how to help Taehyung and he’ll get out of your hair.

“Why does the Wolf protect you?” Star asks.

You scoff. “He doesn’t.”

“Could have fooled me. He slit that guy’s throat because he was trying to shoot you, earlier in the post office.”

“He didn’t…” You pause, flustered. “He didn’t do that for me.”

Star shrugs. “Suit yourself.”

The Black Wolf has only ever protected himself and his own interests. He hasn’t been protecting you, but using you to get information about what’s happened to him, why he’s been burned. Right?

You slowly lower your gun when it seems that she won’t be running out of the room any time soon, and your eyelids grow heavy.

Jimin is doing his level best to appear calm, but Taehyung has been trained in the slightest expressions and body language, and the god is tense all over, shoulders stiff.

“How do I know that the girl is safe?” He asks.

“She’s safe,” Taehyung assures him, sitting down across from him.

Jimin frowns. “And I’m supposed to just believe you?”

Taehyung shrugs. “If you want to keep her alive, you don’t have any other choice.”

“I don’t know what you want from me.”

“The truth. Tell me why your girl was at the post office. Tell me what she was looking for.”

“She was looking for me. I told her that I would meet her there.” Jimin says easily, and Taehyung watches his face but it could just be a half truth instead of a whole truth. Usually, if people are telling part of the truth, they don’t bely on their face that they’re holding back. At least, the good liars, and all the press would indicate that Jimin is possibly one of the best liars.

“Who burned me?” Taehyung asks, leaning forward in his seat.

Jimin blinks. “I have no idea. Didn’t even know it had happened until you threw me up against that wall.”

Taehyung glares at him, but it doesn’t appear as though he’s lying.

Jimin finally sits back in his seat, seeming more relaxed, and it makes Taehyung frown.

“That girl of yours, you care for her?”

Taehyung scoffs. “I barely know her.”

“But you love her?”

Taehyung makes eye contact with the god across from him, repeating the words his trainers had drilled into him most of his life.

“Love is weakness.”

“We all have weaknesses, wolfie. Man and god alike.”

Jimin stands, brushing off some invisible speck of dust from his black trenchcoat, and Taehyung doesn’t move to stop him.

“It’s been fun, really it has, but it’s time I be going.”

“I don’t think so,” Taehyung scowls, but before he can get to him, the god has disappeared, leaving behind only those tendrils of black smoke.

Taehyung curses and runs toward the other bedroom, but all he sees is that you’re asleep in the chair and Star and Jimin are gone.

He’s full of rage, suddenly, because he’s been displaced from the solitary life he’d known and because you look almost cute with your head thrown back on the chair, full mouth parted, and he kicks your chair hard enough to scoot it slightly across the hardwood floor.

You wake with a start, standing and automatically pull your gun and then it’s all reflex, he gets your hand behind your back to make you drop the gun and you let out a surprised cry even though he hasn’t hurt you.

“You couldn’t do one thing I ask of you,” he growls into your ear and you buck in his arms, propelling yourself forward so that you get out of his grasp and turn to face him.

Your face is puffy but your eyes are flashing.

“I have done everything you asked me to, and I don’t owe you a goddamn thing! You broke into my hotel room and-”

“Because you were stalking me!” He shoots back.

“I was doing my job!”

Your chest is heaving with anger, cheeks flushed, almost like you would look…

Taehyung takes a couple of steps toward you and you circle around him instead of backing up and he feels a rush of heat through his body as you stalk around him like a predator instead of being afraid.

“You don’t give a shit about anything but yourself, Kim Taehyung.”

His name on your lips makes him startle a little. It’s not one he’s heard very often, since he prefers to keep his true identity to himself, going by a big list of other aliases when he has to blend in.

“Of course I don’t,” he scoffs. “That’s how you survive.”

“I don’t want to just survive. I want to live my life,” you retort, and he laughs and it sounds bitter even to his own ears.

“You? Living? Holed up in shitty hotel rooms across the country looking for people who do your job better than you do?”

Your anger slips just for a moment, a microexpression, but Taehyung catches it. It’s something like hurt and he takes another two steps toward you.

“Admit it, chickadee. You’re no better than I am. We’re both alone.”

“You know, for all the time I spent ‘stalking’ you, I had no idea you’d be like this.”

“Like what?” He’s close enough to kiss you, now, to see the way your tongue wets your lips before you speak.

“I knew you were a killer. I knew you were ruthless, seductive...but I never knew you were such an asshole.”

Taehyung chuckles, takes the final step toward you so that your breasts are almost touching his chest.

“What’s wrong, little bird? You want me to seduce you?”

He half expects you to strike him across the face, to shove at his chest, but instead you lean up just slightly, just barely brush your lips against his and he draws in a breath through his nostrils, leaning down toward you instinctively.

“I think you want me to seduce you,” you murmur, dropping your head to press a soft, wet kiss against his collarbone and Taehyung lets out a moan, puts his arms around your waist.

That’s when you shove him hard, both palms on his chest and he stumbles backward, caught off guard for the first time in years.

“Too bad.”

You storm out and lock yourself in the other room while Taehyung stands there staring at the space that you occupied seconds ago.

It’s another few moments before he curses and sits down on the bed and that’s when he sees it: a piece of paper, folded intricately into a swan.

It says, simply: Daegu.

The next morning, you wake up to Taehyung humming softly, sitting on the chair next to your bed and you scramble upright, pulling the covers up over your body.

“Wouldn’t have pegged you as the type to sleep nude, chickadee,” He drawls, raising one thick eyebrow, and you groan.

“It isn’t even daylight.”

“I knocked first, but you must be a heavy sleeper. Had to pick the lock.” He holds up a bobby pin and then grins and sticks it into his back pocket.

“You’re a fucking maniac,” you mutter, and start to get out of bed.

He just keeps sitting there and you turn to look at him.

“Get out!” You yell, throwing a pillow in his direction and he ducks it, still grinning.

“You’re grumpy in the mornings,” he chuckles as he walks out, closing the door behind him.

You take your other pillow and put it to your face to scream into it.

The Black Wolf is the most infuriating, possibly insane, and most attractive person you’d ever met, and you’re sure that by the end of this, you’ll be just as crazy as he is. The night before, everything in you had wanted to melt into him when he’d put his arms around you, if only because the rage inside you would probably be helped by primal hate sex.

It isn’t as if you’re any kind of prude or virgin, far from it, but you don’t make a habit of sleeping with men who murder for hire. It’s been quite a while since you’d been able to sleep with anyone, given the nature of your job and what you’d been doing to find Taehyung in the first place.

Your eyes widen as your thoughts circle back to your job, and you pick up your phone and wince at the three voicemails and ten text messages.

Taehyung bangs on your door again and you cry out.

“Wheels up in ten!”

“Oh fuck off,” you mutter, and when he knocks again you yell it and you hear him laughing through the door.

You call your superior, a man you only know as Francis, and he picks up on the first ring.

“Where the fuck have you been, Y/n?”

You could tell him now. You could tell him that you’ve been taken by the Black Wolf, have Francis send in a team to extract him, but that also means that if Taehyung were listening by the door he’d probably kill you before he got the words out. There’s a code you could use, but you’d be surprised if there were any code that Taehyung didn’t know, given his background with the Black Room.

Instead, you make up a story about having to have your appendix out and needing some sick leave, and in the end, Francis buys it.

Maybe you’re a better liar than you’d thought, or maybe when you got back home Francis would…

You stop that train of thought in its tracks. You have to focus on the tasks at hand and that’s 1. Surviving this road trip with an international killer, and 2. Not making out with said international killer.

Which means you have to find who burned him, and fast, before you give in to your baser impulses or he decides he doesn’t need you anymore.

You get dressed in a simple patterned jumper and Taehyung smirks at you.

“Look at you, chickadee. You look good enough to eat.”

“Where are we going?” You demand, and he hands you the slip of paper.

It’s a three hour drive this time and you spend the first thirty minutes of it in silence while Taehyung drives.

“Jesus Christ don’t you ever listen to music?”

Taehyung frowns. “Sure I do. Sometimes.”

You flip on the radio and he hums along with one of the tunes in a surprisingly clear baritone.

“You seem almost human sometimes. It’s weird.” You comment.

Taehyung snorts. “Is that supposed to be a compliment?”

“Nope,” you respond.

He turns his head to stare at you for so long he slightly runs off the road slightly before righting the steering wheel.

“You may be the most infuriating person I’ve ever met,” he says. “And I’ve met a lot of infuriating people.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?” You parrot back at him, smiling, and he groans as if put out but his mouth turns up at one corner, as if he’s hiding a smile.

Since the god has given Taehyung no more information than the city itself, he picks the most expensive hotel in town, pays with cash and he only carries a small duffel bag that must be stuffed with money and weapons.

You have no idea where he’s getting clothes, and at this point you’re afraid to ask.

At least he gets a suite so that you have your own room. You’d have expected the romcom trope of the hotel only having single rooms available, but in this, at least, you’re lucky.

“I’m going out to run an errand,” Taehyung says as soon as you sit your bag on the bed to unpack.

“What? You can’t-” You turn around, and he’s already walking out the door, waving at you as he closes it behind him.

You let out a long groan and contemplate screaming into the pillow again but decide against it, opting to take a long shower instead.

You’ve just barely put on your robe when Taehyung bursts into your room.

“I found something,” he says, words quick and almost excited, an emotion you’re not familiar with when it comes to him.

You turn away quickly to cinch the robe sash around you but he’s barely paying attention, his energy oddly nervous.

“I was just walking around, surveying the area,” he says, as if this is something normal people do when they’re in a new city. “I came across these apartments - a shithole, really, but I slid in behind someone that got buzzed in to check the mailboxes.”

You pause and perch on the edge of the hotel bed, watching him pace around the room almost in awe.

“There was a name there, a name I knew.” He looks at you sideways, as if he can’t reveal the name. “Someone that I...that I worked with. I think he has something to do with this.”

“Then we need to find him?” You ask, slowly.

Taehyung shakes his head vehemently.

“No. No, we can’t ask him. He’s not…” He lets out a frustrated breath and sits down on the bed next to you, his thigh against yours and it makes your skin feel hot.

“So what do we do next?”

“We wait until nightfall, go back, see if we can find someone that wants to talk to me about it. It’s mostly a retirement area. Elderly people love me.”

You stare at him in disbelief.

“I’m very respectful,” he explains, and you burst out a laugh before covering your mouth.

You stand up and head to your closet but Taehyung keeps sitting on your bed.

You start packing your things back into your suitcase and Taehyung frowns at you, calling your name softly. It’s unusual, hearing it instead of “little bird” or “chickadee.”

You turn to look at him. “You won’t need me now, right? You’ve got your lead, you’re a lone wolf or whatever. I can go home.”

Taehyung keeps frowning and stands up, walks up behind you.

You freeze with your hand on the closet door.

“You think you’re in control here?” He murmurs against your ear and it makes you shiver but it also makes you angry.

“No, I’m well aware that I’ve been being held hostage for weeks.” You snap. “But I’m tired and I want to go home.”

You turn around to face him, looking up at him. There’s a moment where you’re struck by how beautiful his eyes are but you won’t be fooled by a pretty face.

“Kill me or let me go.” You demand.

“There’s no third option?” Taehyung asks voice softer than usual, and he doesn’t move, so close to you that if he did decide to kill you he’d have a knife in your ribs before you could take another breath.

“What third option?” You ask, and that’s when he slowly raises his hand, as if you’re some wounded animal that might bite him, and traces his index finger along your cheek.

“You could stay and help me.”

“Why would I do that?”

Taehyung swallows, his eyes searching your face.

“Because you were right.”

You don’t speak, waiting for him to continue but his hand is still on your face, his thumb brushing the underside of your jaw and it’s hard to think about your next move.

“I...I am human,” he admits, as if it physically pains him to say it. “I feel things, just like you do, and this is...this might be...my family. Where I come from.”

“And where do I fit in?”

Taehyung sighs, presses his forehead to yours and something in you swells as if you might burst.

“I don’t know yet. I just know that you do. Fit in, I mean.” He almost stammers the last part and you’ve never heard him be unsure of his words.

You open your mouth to say something, you’re not even sure what, and then he tilts your chin up, covers your mouth with his, slow and deep and you make a noise into his mouth, your hands going to the buttons on his shirt instinctively.

He moves his hands to your ass, lifting you up, and your legs, traitors that they are, go around his waist automatically.

There’s this alarm in your brain that keeps getting fainter and fainter as he kisses you, slow and deep and thorough, as if there’s all the time in the world.

He presses against you, moves his mouth down to your throat and leaves wet kisses down to the tops of your breasts, pausing only to shove aside your robe and run his thumbs across your nipples while he catches your mouth again.

Taehyung, quiet all this time, lets out a low groan against your ear that makes you gasp into his mouth and rock your hips against his, feeling him hard and thick against you.

It goes quicker after that, he picks you up and pivots you to the bed, covering your body with his and pushing your robe apart impatiently, leaving kisses down your body until you’re trembling.

Those alarm bells have silenced, now, replaced with need and a growing pressure in your stomach. You can’t help moaning when he parts your thighs and then spreads your lower lips, staring at your pussy as if it’s some delicious meal he’s about to devour.

He doesn’t just eat you out, he buries his face in you, inhales you before licking the flat of his tongue against your entrance and up to your clit, no teasing.

Your hips buck and your hands go into his hair and for all his control he moans against you when you tug on his hair, buries his face deeper, sticking his tongue just barely into your entrance before replacing it with a long finger.

He breathes in through his nose, stiffening his tongue to flick across your clit, looking up at you and you arch your back when he adds a second finger, crying out.

“Taehyung,” you gasp as you hurtle toward your orgasm, but he doesn’t answer, curling his fingers inside you to hit just the right spot and you cover your mouth when you cum, your moans muffled against your hand.

He lifts his head as you’re still clenching around his fingers but he doesn’t stop pumping them in and out of you, his chin covered in your slick.

He frowns, licking his lips, and leans forward, his fingers going deeper inside you and making you cry out again. He circles your wrist and tugs it away from your face.

“Don’t hide. Wanna hear you,” he rasps.

“Fuck me,” you plead, and you’ve never been one to beg but you’re so hot all over, you need more even though you’re bucking against his hand.

“Patience, chickadee.” He says, calm now, focused on your face.

You groan in frustration when his thumb just barely brushes your clit and lean up to kiss him, tasting yourself on his tongue and he makes a sound in the back of his throat like a growl when you shift to bite down on the base of his throat.

“Just gotta have it, do you?” He asks, flirty but he’s not smiling, eyes dark with lust and you bite back a sigh of relief when he moves his fingers from you to unbuckle his belt, shoving his pants down his ass to reveal his cock, standing curved against his tight stomach.

Thicker than you’d imagined (and you’ll admit that you had imagined), bigger than you’d imagined and you’ve never been a size queen but your mouth waters just a bit.

“Gonna keep being a tease or are you gonna put that thing to use?” You taunt, feeling empty now that his fingers are gone.

Taehyung smirks briefly and then goes serious again, his hands rough on your thighs as he yanks you to the end of the bed.

“If I had more time, I’d shove it down your throat,” he mumbles. “Make you choke on it.”

“Not a punishment,” you gasp as he teases your entrance with the head of his cock.

Taehyung chuckles. “I guess it wouldn’t be, not for you, little bird. You’re an eager thing, aren’t you? Cock hungry.”

“Yes, fuck, hurry up!” You moan, rolling your hips up so that just the tip of him slides inside you.

Taehyung hisses and his grip on your thighs tightens as he rocks inside you, slow at first but only for a moment before he’s fucking you hard and rough and dirty, just how you’ve always liked it.

“You hate me but you wanted this, didn’t you?” He asks, his gaze flickering from where he’s fucking you to your breasts to your face. “Wanted me to fuck you so hard you’d forget your own name.”

“You wanted to fuck me,” you shoot back, but it’s in a strangled gasp as he fucks you harder, rocking you forward on the bed only to yank you back by your thighs or hips, whichever is easier.

Taehyung grunts. “I did,” he admits. “Wanted to know how your cunt tasted the first night we met.”

You’re so close to your orgasm you’ve lost the ability to speak, your eyes rolling back in your head as you arch up beneath him.

When you come down, he’s slowed inside you, rolling his hips now instead of the jerky rhythm he’d had before.

You focus on his face, aftershocks of your orgasm making you shudder.

Taehyung crawls onto the bed, managing to mostly stay inside you as he leans down to kiss you, slow and thorough like before and this time it’s a different kind of pressure, building slow from your throat down to your cunt.

“Jesus fuck you’re tight,” Taehyung growls against your mouth. “I’m close.”

You open your mouth to speak but he kisses you harder, his teeth nipping at your bottom lip, starts to fuck you hard again and you’re cumming and then he’s pulling out, grunting as he paints your belly and breasts with cum.

You look down at yourself, shocked at what has just happened, at how you’ve just been fucked (very well) by an international assassin.

You expect Taehyung to disappear into his room but he doesn’t, leaves only to go to the bathroom, bringing back a warm, wet towel that he cleans you off with, surprisingly gentle.

He sits on the edge of the bed for a long moment before you touch him on the shoulder.

“Stay?” You ask, and you can see by his side profile that he’s smiling a little.

“Aw, chickadee, you want to cuddle?”

You scoff and fall flat on your back on the bed.

“It’s aftercare. Don’t get it twisted.”

Taehyung shrugs and removes his shirt and you can’t help staring at the expanse of his back, seeing the white scars across his lower back and when he lies down, a circle of scarred flesh on his lower abdomen, a bullet hole, it seems.

Taehyung catches you staring.

“Not as pretty as my face, huh?”

You shake your head, shifting on the bed to put your head on his chest. “Just wondering who did that to you.”

He shrugs. “Don’t remember most of them.” He runs his finger across the bullet scar. “Just this one.”

You stare at his face but he doesn’t turn to look at you and so you focus on the clench of his jaw.

“How’d you get that one?” You ask when he doesn’t explain.

“A friend,” he says simply, like it doesn’t matter, and you don’t ask again, resting your head on his chest again and his heart is beating too hard.

It’s alarmingly easy to fall asleep like that, listening to his heartbeat slow and his breathing, and you think you must be dreaming when his hand drops into your hair, smoothing down the strands.

“Little bird,” he murmurs, in what must be your dream. “I’m not sure I was human until I met you.”

Taehyung wakes up just before dawn, like clockwork, like always. They’d unlocked the doors of the cells in the Black Room at 5:30AM, and he’s conditioned.

He’d always wanted to be the first out of his cell, the best student, especially when The Soldier was training them.

Taehyung had been 16 when the Soldier stopped showing up for training, and 20 the last time he’d seen him, in a black mask, hair hanging loose, and absolutely nothing in his eyes.

A sniper rifle bullet makes no sound, and Taehyung was off his game when he’d recognized The Soldier, and spent three weeks in the hospital with his liver bleeding.

Since then, he has tried not to think about it. Not thinking about things has always been how he’d gotten through his life, pushing everything dark and useless to some hidden locked corner of his mind.

Last night, he’d seen the soldier’s name. His real one. Min Yoongi. On a mailbox in Daegu, of all places. This of course, means that Jimin knew a lot more about Taehyung’s burn notice than he let on, but Taehyung had never been one to hold a grudge.

He hadn’t expected for this to become a journey about finding out his past. He didn’t even know he was interested in finding out about his past.

He’d been happy. Hadn’t he?

He sits up on the edge of the bed and you whine before rolling over, tugging the blanket around you in a burrito, only tufts of hair poking out the top, and it makes him smile.

Taehyung wasn’t lying when he told you that you made him feel human. Of course he’d always felt things. Anger, betrayal….fear.

Fear, most of all. The first memory he has is being so afraid he can’t breathe, sobbing so hard doubled over in a cell.

The Black Room had not turned him into a perfect assassin. He isn’t sure such a thing exists. Except for The Soldier with his dead brown eyes, stalking toward him as he’d scrambled backward, bleeding into his stomach, part of his liver severed by the bullet.

Taehyung shakes his head to rid himself of the memory, locking it away again. He’d felt anger at first, with you, because you’d gotten into his life in a way that no one else had. You’d known his true name, after all, something that he hadn’t even known most of his life. He’d felt interest, that’s for sure, because you’re beautiful and smart and wily, things that he values in himself. He hadn’t felt fear until you’d been attacked at the post office, and even then, he wasn’t sure why.

It isn’t as if he’d never felt desire for a mark, but that’s all they were. Marks.

You’re something else, and he has to admit to himself that it’s not just about your skills anymore. It isn’t that he needs you anymore, he’s gotten the information he needs. He wants you around, likes having someone to bounce ideas off of, go on road trips, hide out in hotels with room service.

Taehyung realizes, slowly, that the thing he’s felt most of his life isn’t fear after all, but loneliness.

He stands at the doorway to the bathroom, watching the tufts of hair he can see of you, hearing the way you snore lightly, for longer than he should.

Taehyung is gone when you wake up, the spot where he’d been still warm from his body.

You order breakfast, two plates just in case, having flashbacks from the night before that leave a blush on your cheeks.

You’ve really gotten yourself into a mess.

Something inside your chest aches when you think about his hand in your hair, the way he’d said “little bird” softly, instead of mocking.

You groan and plop down on the bed.

You wonder if he’ll find what he’s looking for and then you’ll never see him again.

You wonder if he’s gone already, after all there’s nothing he’s left behind that he couldn’t replace. That’s what he does, after all, gets the job done and disappears like smoke.

You don’t even have a way to contact him. There’s a burner phone that the two of you have been using but it’s at the hotel, sitting on the desk.

You’ve been sitting there trying to figure out how to feel about everything for a couple of hours when there’s a knock on the door.

When you look out the peephole there’s a bellboy standing there and you frown, wary.

“Sorry to bother you,” he calls. “Just bringing fresh towels.”

He is holding towels, after all, so you open the door, and when he looks up his face changes, smile turning wicked.

The towel is pressed up against your face before you can scream and everything goes black.

You come to inside a pitch black room. You’re tied to a chair and your mouth feels like cotton.

“Fuck,” you try to say, but it comes out slow and slurred.

“There you are,” the voice comes floating through the darkness and you recognize it, although you’re not sure from where. There’s footsteps and you’re not sure you’ve ever been more afraid in your life.

Instead of a punch to the face though there’s just a light touch on your tied hands.

“What do you want with me?” You ask, willing your voice not to crack.

There’s a lilting laugh and that you recognize.

“I don’t want anything to do with you, darling. I want your wolf.”

You hold back a laugh that’s more of a sob but it’s a near thing.

“You think he’s going to come for me?”

The lights come on, so bright that you shut your eyes before opening them again, looking into Jimin’s handsome face, with a familiar wicked smile.

“I know he will.”

Taehyung spends the early morning scouting the apartment complex, and he finds information even easier than he’d thought he would. Old men like to talk, and their wives like to feed him and talk even more, going on and on about how handsome he is and asking why he isn’t married himself.

Turns out that The Soldier had been some kind of war hero half a century ago, and Taehyung assumes it must be a grandfather or great-grandfather until one of the old women shows him a picture.

“He took up with that girl after she….” the old woman pauses and lowers her voice, as if telling him something scandalous. “After she was in the family way.” She must see the look on Taehyung’s face so she shakes her head and explains. “Couldn’t have been his, she was six months gone before she ever moved here. He was real sweet with her, though, never let anyone say an unkind word about her. Him and his buddy, they kept her fed and sheltered up until she had to go away.”

“Away?” Taehyung asks, fascinated, and the woman’s husband grunts at him when he misses his turn at dominoes.

“To have the little one, of course,” she says, as if Taehyung might be some kind of idiot.

Taehyung just nods, dumbly, finally playing his hand.

“What happened to her?”

The old woman sighs. “Poor thing died in childbirth, I believe. I was young at the time, and if you want to know the truth….” She leans down to whisper in Taehyung’s ear. “I had my eye on the Min boy myself, so I asked around about it. Never heard what happened to the baby, but there’s a place nearby that takes in young ones that need homes. You could try there.”

Taehyung stands up abruptly.

“Thank you, ahjumma,” he says gratefully, and bows, apologizing to the older man for ending the game prematurely as well.

It isn’t as if Taehyung is surprised, exactly. After all, he’d come face to face with a god recently, so the fact that his old friend might be some kind of immortal doesn’t shock him. What does shock him is that he might have known Taehyung’s mother, might have something to do with why he’d been burned.

In fact, there are a lot of strange things afoot. He hasn’t been attacked by anyone from The Black Room despite a burn notice, and of course he’s careful but he hadn’t expected them to give up so easily just because he left down or wasn’t staying in one of his normal areas.

It’s only a couple of blocks to the church, a sign that reads: Safe Haven above the double doors.

He finds out without much difficulty that there are records of the babies brought in, and gets a copy with a sob story about being orphaned.

It might, after all, be true.

His name is on the tenth page from 1996,and he finds it while riding in the cab on the way back to the hotel.

Kim Taehyung, male, arrived December 30, 1995. The young man who brought him says he was born a few hours before and his mother has passed on.

There’s no more information than that, and Taehyung huffs out a frustrated breath as he keeps searching through the document on the way up the elevator.

He knows something is wrong before he ever reaches the door.

There isn’t much amiss, but he doesn’t miss any small detail, and there’a a plant turned over by the window in the hallway of the hotel and it’s cracked enough that he can feel a breeze come through.

Taehyung doesn’t pause, heads to the door as if everything is normal but when he opens it, he draws his knife before stepping inside.

There’s clear evidence of a struggle and he isn’t sure why his heart is in his throat until he gets to the bed where a single sheet of paper has been weighed down with a stone.

In the same handwriting that had brought him here, there’s simply an address.

Taehyung spends an inordinately long amount of time stalking around the hotel room. This is clearly a trap, clearly set by the god who obviously knows all about Taehyung’s burn notice. Taehyung had already been fooled once, something that hadn’t happened to him since he was a boy. Not only is it obviously a trap, but it’s a trap that’s been deliberately set because Jimin believes that Taehyung will come for you, believes that Taehyung has some kind of feelings for you.

Taehyung had already been through this with himself more than once, about how he does feel something, about how he’d always felt things, maybe even more deeply than most people. However, his training had taught him that making decisions based on feelings doesn’t result in survival, and Taehyung had always survived. No matter what.

Even when the only friend he’d ever had shot him in cold blood, even when he was bleeding out on the pavement he managed to break The Soldier’s left tibia with a side kick and scramble beneath a car, hiding until he felt strong enough to get away. He hadn’t even hesitated.

Now, his feet want to carry him to an address where a god with unimaginable powers is waiting for him, all because of a person he barely knows.

Taehyung keeps remembering you this morning with your hair poking out of the blanket, the way you grunted as you rolled over in it. He keeps thinking of how you looked right into his eyes, arching up beneath him, how you were never afraid.

Taehyung doesn’t dare walk the ten blocks to the address but calls a cab after suiting up, all black leather which has the benefit of looking good as well as serving as a kind of armor.

The cab driver raises an eyebrow at him and Taehyung gives the older man a dazzling smile that seems to disarm him.

Taehyung is uncharacteristically antsy, and that’s nothing new given he’s felt that way since the burn notice, but he feels as if he might explode if he doesn’t get to you soon. He’s not even sure that he’ll survive this, given he has no idea what the god wants from him, but he’s determined to take someone down with him.

You can’t seem to stop crying and finally Jimin rolls his eyes.

“Please stop your blubbering, it’s giving me a migraine.” He pinches the bridge of his nose with his fingertips.

“You should just kill me,” you say, your voice strong instead of breaking despite your tears. “He won’t come. It’s been hours.”

Jimin tilts his head, smiling slightly at you. “You think I don’t have someone at the hotel room to make sure he does come, in the event that I’m wrong?” He pauses, picking some invisible lint off his shirt. “But he’ll come.”

He looks different like this, no trenchcoat, just a white button up shirt and black slacks, hair freshly washed instead of slicked back with product. He looks...almost handsome. Almost human.

“I keep telling you, he won’t!” You cry out. “He doesn’t need me anymore, you gave him what he needed.”

“I did. But yet he’ll still come.” Jimin says, determinedly. He ticks his head toward the metal door of the cell and you hear a man’s cry of pain and a woman’s scream. “Ah, here he comes now.”

Jimin opens the doors wide and Taehyung strikes at him and manages to land a slice across Jimin’s forearm before he pivots, shaking his finger as if to admonish the taller man.

“Ah ah, wolfie. You know how I feel about violence, but I’ll slit her throat before you can even start to untie her.”

Taehyung flips his knife over and Jimin laughs.

“You might be good with that, wolf pup, but I’ve been practicing knife play since before your grandmother was at her mother’s teat.”

Jimin brings out a knife of his own, longer than Taehyung’s with an intricate handle.

“Should I show you how good I am at throwing it?”

“Taehyung,” you gasp but he doesn’t even look at you, likely gauging the distance between the knife and your throat a few feet away.

“You think I came for her?” Taehyung laughs and you hang your head, not wanting to look at him.

Jimin smiles and it’s less mirthful than patronizing. “Of course you did.”

“I told you. I’m not weak.”

“And I told you, everyone has weaknesses.” Jimin tilts the knife toward you as if to point at you. “And she is yours.”

“You’re wrong,” Taehyung insists, and all you can do is sniffle.

You were stupid to ever let your guard down, to ever let him inside you, inside your heart like some kind of easily entranced mark of his. You’d read all about him, about how he works, how he plays sweet and seductive in equal measures, gets people to trust him before he strikes. One case you’d studied, he’d courted a woman for nearly six months before killing her, draining her of all the information he needed before simply slitting her throat in an alleyway. How could you have thought you were different? He’d used you to get to Jimin, to find out what he’d needed to know, and he’s only here to hear the rest.

Jimin turns to aim the knife at you and you gasp out Taehyung’s name, pleading, as if that will save you.

“What do you want?” Taehyung barks, and Jimin slides his knife into the back of his slacks and comes to stand behind you, his hands lighting on your shoulders while you cringe.

“Did you find out where you come from?” Jimin asks, looking at Taehyung almost shrewdly.

“Wh-what?” It’s only the second time you’ve ever heard Taehyung stutter.

“It’s important,” Jimin drawls, “to find out where you come from. Who you are.”

“I...I found out where I was born, yes.”

Jimin nods. “It took me a very long time to find out where I came from, you see, so I wanted to give you that courtesy before I took your life.”

You feel lightheaded from everything that’s happened but you scream when you hear Jimin’s words and his hands tighten painfully on your shoulders.

“Hush now. I might let you live if you keep quiet.”

“I thought you didn’t like violence,” Taehyung says, almost desperately, and Jimin sighs.

“I don’t. But it is sometimes necessary. For example, it’s necessary when someone is trying to imprison you, or kill you.”

“I’m not going to kill you. I don’t even know how to kill you.” Taehyung pleads.

You don’t know why Taehyung seems to be going to bat for you, what possible good it could do him, but you’re grateful, looking up at him with wide eyes.

“Oh, not you, wolfie. Well, not just you. You couldn’t do it on your own, you see. Barely anyone could. But my brother is part of some team building exercise....” Jimin rolls his eyes. “And he can really hold a grudge.”

“A team?”

“A team of elites, I’ve heard. Soldiers. Mutants.” He smiles. “Assassins.”

“I’m not part of any team. I work alone.”

“For now you do. But they’ll come to you. I have someone to take care of, now. Someone to protect. So I can’t let that happen. Congratulations! You’re the first on my list.”

Jiimin spreads his hands as if offering Taehyung some kind of prize.

You’re trying to figure out if you can kick over the chair, give Taehyung some kind of distraction, when Taehyung says something you would have never believed he’d say.

“I won’t put up a fight if you let her go.”

Jimin laughs as if absolutely delighted.

“Wonderful! We can avoid violence altogether.”

“No!” You yell. “Don’t you fucking dare, Kim Taehyung!”

“Before you kill me,” Taehyung says calmly, not even looking at you, “I have a request.”

Jimin tilts his head. “Fair enough. What is it?”

“Untie the girl and indulge me in a bit of knifeplay.”

Jimin looks at you and then back at Taehyung for a moment, and then shrugs, moving to untie your hands and feet.

“As you wish.”

As soon as you’re able to stand you rush to Taehyung but he grabs you by the wrists, avoiding your eyes as he shoves you out the open door.

“No--no, Taehyung, you can’t, he’ll kill you--” You babble, sobs tearing from your throat and you’re not even sure he can understand you.

“Go,” Taehyung says and his face is serious but his voice is strangled. “Run, as far as you can. As fast as you can.”

“No!” You struggle in his grasp but his grip on your wrists is like a vice. “No, you don’t understand what he can do, I spent years studying him-”

You can see Jimin juggling his knives behind Taehyung, calmly, as if he’s barely having to think about it and you try to rush Taehyung again.

Taehyung shoves you again, harder, and you stumble backwards, almost falling.

“Survive,” he orders, and starts to shut the door as you stand there, trembling all over. He pauses, looks at you and his eyes are wide and dark and unbelievably, a little wet. “But stay human,” he finishes, softly, and slams the door.

You try to open it again but it’s been locked from the inside and you pound on the doors, screaming his name, shoving your shoulder against it, but it won’t budge.

Just as your voice is starting to give out, someone bursts through the front door of the abandoned building and a large man stalks toward you, wearing some kind of...cape?

You wonder if you’re going delirious from being dehydrated and held hostage all day until he gets closer and he speaks to you.

“Excuse me, maiden,” he says, smiling politely, before he rips the steel door off its hinges.

When you scream in surprise, he turns to you.

You are frozen in place in shock for a few moments and all you hear is a brief struggle and Jimin cursing in a foreign language before the bigger man comes out with Jimin gagged, carrying him by his collar.

“Don’t worry,” the big man tells you as he comes out. “I’m just here to retrieve my brother, and it looks as if your man will live.”

Just like that, he’s stalking out the door with Jimin barely even struggling, seemingly defeated, and you finally snap out of it and rush into the cell.

Taehyung is slumped against the wall with a hand to his stomach, and his outfit is black but you can still see the blood streaking down the leather.

You rush to him and he gasps out your name, moving a blood streaked hand to your hip as if to check you for injuries.

“You’re all right?” He gasps, and you’re grateful that his voice or breathing don’t sound liquid.

“Taehyung, please tell me you brought the burner phone, we have to get you to a hospital--”

“No hospitals,” he says vehemently. “Shallow cut across the abdomen and a couple of broken ribs. Are you all right?”

You stare at him, crying, for a second before you lean down and kiss him, hard and sloppy because you’re so upset and everything has been so crazy, but the taste of his mouth is something you were sure you’d never taste again.

You look around the building, it’s obvious that Jimin had been using it as some kind of safe house, what with the custom steel cell, but there’s no clothing or bandages, it seems to have been cleared out.

With your help, Taehyung walks with you to a drugstore a couple of blocks away. He waits outside while you bring him bandages and buy him a sweatshirt so that it covers the blood enough that you can use the burner to call a cab.

“We can’t go back to the hotel,” Taehyung says, voice strained with pain.

“Obviously,” you groan, worried and upset, but you keep a tight hold on his hand in the cab.

“Sorry, chickadee,” Taehyung gives you a half smile. “Guess you’re good at your job, after all.” He gives another address to the cab driver, another nice hotel in the area. He must have scoped a few out before deciding on one.

Taehyung shoots back a few mini bottles of vodka and asks you to retrieve a bottle from his duffle bag, taking a pill that you’re positive isn’t aspirin before you start to stitch him up.

It’s certainly not the first time you’d done it, having been trained for this when you first started the job, but it’s the most shaky your hands have been. He ends up finishing the rest himself and you sit back in the chair, emotionally and physically exhausted.

“So what now?” You ask tiredly. “You take off again?”

Taehyung looks at you and it’s almost a glare. “I didn’t take off in the first place.”

“You always take off,” you shoot back.

“I just nearly got my guts spilled on a dirty floor to save your life, and you think I’m just going to fucking take off?” His voice is eerily quiet.

“Isn’t that what you did?” Your voice seems small, now, uncertain, and there’s this boil of emotions in your stomach that are almost making you nauseous.

“No! I went to scope out the apartments, I-” He pauses, sees you staring at him incredulously and points at the bed where he’d thrown down the folder. Suddenly, your work brain switches on, that part of you that’s inquisitive, that loves to solve a mystery and you pick up the book, flipping through it until you find his name and then flipping through the rest. When you reach the end of the book, there’s a note there, newer than the rest of the pages in the folder.

It has his name on it in block letters.

You hand it to him wordlessly and he looks down at it as if it’s a snake that might bite him.

“Go on. Open it,” you urge, and he crumbles it, tosses it on the floor.

You scramble to pick it up and give it back to him but he just sits there, shirtless and bandaged, eyes rimmed with kohl liner, and won’t take it from you.

When you finally drop it onto the floor again, he takes your wrists and pulls you toward him.

You squeal but you don’t struggle, letting him pull you into his lap.

He sighs out a breath against your throat when you’re seated, facing him, and it makes gooseflesh break out along your skin.

“Taehyung,” you say, softly, although you are trying to scold him. “You’re hurt, we need to-”

He cuts you off by planting a kiss at the base of your throat, soft, barely brushing his lips along your skin.

“You’re one of the only people alive that knows my true name,” he comments, words soft and slow, from the alcohol and painkiller or just from exhaustion. “I like hearing you say it.”

“Taehyung,” you repeat, and he makes a pleased sound in the back of his throat. “That letter might tell you what you’ve wanted to know, who put out the burn notice, so that-”

Taehyung cuts you off, again, by pressing his mouth against yours and it’s almost hesitant, this time, not like he’d kissed you before, slow and deep. It feels like your first kiss, not just with him but ever, how he breathes out softly against your mouth, how his arms tighten around you, fingers interlocking behind your back as if he wants to keep you here.

You pull away and press your forehead to his so that you can look at him and for the first time it isn’t just that blank face of his, that mask, and he looks open and soft and vulnerable, eyes big and dark and somehow...earnest.

You’re crazy for thinking that Kim Taehyung, The Black Wolf, could ever be earnest, but here you are.

“I don’t care who burned me,” he reveals. “It doesn’t matter anymore.”

You open your mouth to speak but he shakes his head and you close it, waiting for him.

“You told me that I wasn’t human,” he starts, and then pauses. “I guess I wasn’t sure I was either, until recently.” He looks away from you, down to the side. “Until I met you.”

“I didn’t-”

“No, you were right. It’s always been about surviving, for me. The first memories I have are being taught how to survive, how to kill, how to give myself over to every base instinct that I have.” He looks back up at you now and his eyes are wet but clear, he is’t as drunk as you would have assumed. “But I feel things, Y/n.”

Your eyes widen in surprise, you think that’s the first time he’s said your name.

“Of course you do.”

He continues as if you hadn’t spoken and his gaze is so intense you almost want to look away.

“I feel everything, fear and loneliness and pain and…” He pauses again, as if the words are difficult to say. “Love.”

You can’t help the tears that well up in your eyes. “Don’t say that. Don’t say that if you’re just going to take off and-”

“Just let me say this,” he pleads and his arms tighten around you again as if he’s afraid you might move away.

You go silent but your chest hurts, something like fear rising in your throat because you’ve never thought about what it might be like to fall in love, certainly never allowed yourself to think of how you might be falling for him.

“I’m not sure what love means, really. I’ve been trained to cover up those kinds of feelings, and God knows I’ve never felt what it’s like to be loved. I’ve been living my whole life just trying to get to the next day, the next job, and I didn’t realize until meeting you how fucking lonely it is.”

“What are you saying?” It comes out in a hoarse whisper.

Taehyung laughs and it seems genuine instead of mocking like the other times you’d heard it.

“I don’t know. I’ve never...done this before. I’ve never felt this way about anyone. When I found out that you’d been taken, every part of me said to run, to get away from here so that they couldn’t come after me instead, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t wait to get to you. I was so afraid that something had happened, that he’d hurt you…”

You put your hand on his face and he turns into it like a cat looking for affection and it makes your heart skip.

“I’m okay,” you promise. “You saved me and you didn’t have to, and I’m grateful, but you don’t have to say all this, you don’t have to pretend-”

Taehyung shoots his gaze to yours. “I’m not pretending. I’m not pretending for the first time in my life. I have feelings for you. I want you with me. I don’t know what that means because I’ve been spending my whole life hiding every emotion I have.”

He shifts back in his seat suddenly, wincing only slightly in pain.

“But I’m a fugitive. I don’t even exist according to the government, so I can’t ask you to-”

“Neither do I,” you say quickly. “I’ve been working for my company for most of my adult life and been scrubbed from any archive. I’m pretty sure they’ll figure out that I’ve defected any day and come after me. I’m dangerous.”

Taehyung has the ghost of a smirk on his lips. “Dangerous, huh?” He leans forward to kiss along your throat. “Maybe I like a little danger.”

You moan softly before pulling back, wiggling to get out of his grasp.

He lets you go with a pout and you brush your hair back from your face, sitting on the edge of the bed instead across from him and taking a deep breath.

“I won’t deny that I feel something for you,” you say, and he breaks into a smile, a real one and it’s something to behold, big and open. It nearly takes your breath but you manage to continue.

“But I don’t really know what love is either,” you admit. “I’ve never been with anyone more than a few weeks and it was usually just for sex.”

“So you’re saying we’re both fucked up and we’re both in constant danger?” Taehyung asks pointedly.

You laugh a little and nod.

Taehyung smiles again. “Guess that means we’re made for each other.”

“Does it?” You ask, your smile faltering.

Taehyung moves as if to get on the bed and then grimaces, holding his ribs and you bite your lip.

“Wait, don’t...I’ll help you.”

“Chickadee. Y/n,” he whines, his arms out to you and you’d never expected to be in this position, with one of the world’s most notorious assassins asking you to cuddle.

You dodge his arms and move your hands to unbutton his pants, yanking the leather down until kneeling to remove them.

“What are you doing?” Taehyung asks, curiosity peaking in his tone and you laugh.

“Stop asking so many questions and let me take care of you,” you demand, putting your hands on his thighs to spread them, moving a hand to kiss at his hip bone.

“Ah,” he breathes out and strokes your hair for a moment before you move his hand, putting it back on the arm of the chair.

“Think of this as a trust building exercise,” you tease.

Taehyung chuckles low in his throat but keeps his hands on the arms of the chair, watching you as you dip your head to run your tongue along his balls.

His dick is thick, even half hard, and when you wrap your fingers around it, he moans softly to encourage you. When you take the head into your mouth he hisses and braces his hands on the arms of the chair.

You only tease for a moment because he’s cursing and whispering your name and because you’ve wanted him in your mouth for longer than you’d like to admit.

By the end there’s saliva on your chin, you’re taking him so deep, and he shouts when he cums down your throat, his thighs trembling under your hands.

“Little bird,” he gasps, after, breathing in shallow breaths to not hurt his ribs. “I knew you had a mouth on you, but-”

You burst out laughing and he grabs at you to pull you into his lap again but you shake your head.

“You should lie down. When the booze wears off you’ll be sore all over.”

You help him onto the bed but he pulls you down with him despite your protests.

Taehyung palms across your ass but you slap at him gently.

“You need to rest,” you insist, and eventually, he does, watching your face as his eyelids start to droop.

You fall asleep more quickly than you would have imagined given the night’s events.

Taehyung doesn’t pick up the letter from the floor when the two of you start to pack your things up, but you do, smoothing it out and sticking it in the side of his duffle bag where you know he’ll find it.

It’s in another hotel room in another country when he finds it while you’re sleeping, and sits in the bathroom on the edge of the tub while he reads.

Hey, kid.

I know it’s been a while since we spoke, and first of all, I want to apologize for shooting you. As I’m sure you’re aware, I wasn’t quite...myself.

I came looking for you when I was myself again, but you were in the wind. Not that I was surprised. I taught you that, after all.

Nevertheless, I got more years on you than you can imagine, so I tracked you down. Saw you living in hotels and studio apartments, saw you working marks and staying hidden, just like I taught you.

I’m sorry that’s all I taught you. There’s so much more to this world than killing and fucking and being alone, Taehyung.

I didn’t mean to sic that god on you. That was just a side effect of me leaving clues. He picked them up and went after you. I knew you could take care of yourself, but I sent that big brother of his to be sure.

I sent your birth certificate out so that you’d know your real name. Names are important, you know. More important than survival, really. Names stay even when we’re gone.

I guess by now you’ve found out that I knew your mother. I’m not your father, it wasn’t like that with her. She was whip smart, just like you, but too sweet for the world she was living in. I thought at first that you were too sweet, too, that the world would just eat you up, first time I saw you. I was wrong.

You have her eyes.

As for the burn notice, you’re smart enough to know that was me, too. I

didn’t do it to harm you. I did it so you could be free, Taehyung. When you grow up in a place like The Black Room, when you’ve never known anything else, been trained by liars and killers (myself among them), you don’t get to experience life, not how it really is.

What you get to experience is loneliness and emptiness, and that’s not enough.

Freedom means feeling things like heartbreak and longing, but it also means feeling things like happiness and love. It’s taken me a long time to realize I might deserve that, despite all the wrong I’ve done.

I think you deserve it, too.

Your friend,

Yoongi

Taehyung doesn’t read you the letter, still wiping tears from his eyes when he brushes his teeth, but you hug him tightly enough to make him groan from the pain in his ribs, anyway, reading his face.

Turns out, you’re good at that, too.

You’re standing in the lobby of the hotel waiting for a cab to the nearest port when you bite your lip and look at him.

“What do we do now? What comes next?”

Taehyung looks at you, and grins.

“For the first time in my life, I have no idea.”

Turns out, not knowing what comes next is the fun part of living, and Yoongi turns out to be right. Freedom is worth any price.