Chapter Text
Jisung has been on the run for something close to half a day— at least, he knows it was noon when he escaped the clan house with nothing but the clothes on his back and his anxiety, paired with his sense of stupidity and recklessness. And now, it’s close to sundown. Like, really close to sundown— the sun is touching the horizon and the trees are turning black around him. He shivers, stopping once again to catch his breath and registers the frosty winter air nipping at his nose (which was surely bright red by now) and his fingertips. He had tried to shift into his wolf form, but that took way too much energy— energy he didn’t have at the moment— and he was now left hobbling through the forest in human form, barefoot.
He was sore and tired, his muscles were on fire and on constant protest-duty for pushing them so hard. But… he had no choice and he wished there was another choice. He wished for a lot of things, ones that could never be true.
I wish my mother were still alive.
She was long dead, killed in a hunt when Jisung was seven. Buried in the ground and forgotten by everyone except her son, traces of his love visible from the lillies left at her grave.
I wish I were happy with my father and my own pack.
He scoffed many times at this one. Who was he to want happiness?
I wish I felt safe with them.
Okay, this one hurt the most, digging thorns into his heart, but reality was harsh and the moon certainly hated his guts for whatever reason because apparently safety also wasn’t something he was allowed to have, stomped down before he could even hold it in his hands.
I wish I didn’t have to be at the bottom of the hierarchy just for presenting as an omega, and not the alpha of a future clan leader.
Somewhere deep down inside of him, he knew it wasn’t his fault for presenting wrong, but all the years after his presentation left him dull and numb, head swollen from all the sharp remarks and words and bruises, that he no longer cared if he told himself it was all his fault and he was the mistake. It didn’t matter— because in the end, he was a useless omega (unless he was pleasing one of his father’s men or working as a punching bag for his father’s anger sessions) that could never become the pack leader or alpha.
There was a fire burning in him, but it always shrunk on itself whenever he really needed it— the burning rage and anger to attack those hurting him and protect himself. That fire didn’t seem very keen on being useful either.
Jisung huffs and puffs, leaning against a nearby tree. He has sprinted as soon as he snuck out of the Han Clan’s territory, darting past the territorial marks, and then he’d continued running as quick as he could till he was in neutral grounds. And here he was, walking now instead of running, wandering aimlessly through the neutral forests, half-hoping there would be some sort of magic house that would appear before his eyes and he could live there till he died of old age.
That obviously wasn’t going to happen— it hadn’t and it wouldn’t any time soon.
Jisung sighed, and then winced when the bruises around his ribcage stung with pain. He rolled up his sleeves to peer at the still-bleeding wounds on his arms. When he glanced at his feet, he was startled to see how pale it was, the tips of his toes turning blue. He gingerly brushed off the dirt on the bottom of his feet.
It was awful.
His head hurt, his ribs hurt, everything hurt. His stomach was eating itself on the inside— painful instead of a nuissance. Goosebumps lined his arms and the cold seeped in through his skin to frost away at his organs too.
It had been a reckless idea to escape the clan house, considering he now had nowhere to go and no way to find a source for food or clean water, and it was especially dumb to go without grabbing warmer clothes at the very least. He was surprised he hadn’t dropped dead— from hunger or from frostbite. But at least it was better than dying from his father’s hands; it was better than hearing his father tell him he was a failure before everything went black.
“—head back now—”
Jisung shuddered at the feeling of his father’s fingers digging into his arms, pinning him to the ground before kicking his side and beating him up. This time— earlier that day— it had been worse than anything his father had done before.
More angry.
More painful.
“—think it’s that fish I ate—”
His father was close to the age where the clan leader had to step down and the pack was on edge. If the son couldn’t take over, who would? The pressure was getting to him and that had reminded him of what Jisung was, and then Jisung was the one on the ground, tears streaming down his face as he was torn apart and kicked around.
He was also especially livid at the fact Jisung was emitting fearful pheremones— and the scent of sweet, sweet peaches that smelt all too omega and not enough alpha. That was why Jisung’s scent glands were currently bleeding and unable to function like it was supposed to.
“—ix’s heat might starting soon, so—”
Right, yes, and there was also the fact Jisung had been showing signs of pre-heat, and that caused another round of bruise-making and snarls of furty.
“And I thought I could cook stew for tonight. It might settle your stomach, Innie.”
Voices.
Wait, what?!
A crunch of snow was the only warning Jisung got before two figures emerged around a tall tree trunk in front of him.
The heavy scent of alpha pheremones hit him first— wildflowers and grass; freshly baked bread with a tang of burntness— before his brain caught up to what his eyes were seeing.
Two young men around Jisung’s own age, tall and adorned in a thick, brown winter coat and tall leather boots, one with dirty blond hair and sharp, cat-like eyes and the other with soft, innocent-looking eyes and fluffy, brown hair.
“So I—” the blond one froze, mid-step and mid-sentence. His eyes took in the sight of Jisung, leaning against the tree with his arm wrapped around his stomach and the other bent against the trunk, thin clothes with matted blood, face and legs and arms bruised and bleeding, barefoot.
But scentless.
Scentless in a way that they didn’t know what subgender he was.
There was a small relief in knowing his father had injured his scent glands enough that his scent wouldn’t come out. It was painful, and he felt clogged up, but at least he wouldn’t be found out by these strangers too quickly. At least he could postpone the disgust and sudden loss of respect and dignity for a little longer.
“What the…” The brunet gasped, before glancing at his companion, who had now gotten over his initial shock, and now striaghtened up his posture. Trying to look intimidating. Trying to look bigger and stronger.
“What are you? A rogue? Spy? Trying to sneak into our clan’s territory and gain information?” The blond narrowed his eyes. “Why are you injured? Who did this to you?”
“I…” Jisung shrunk back, before puffing out his chest. He might as well take this opportunity— pretend to be stronger and something not an omega. He could pretend, even for just a few minutes, that he wasn’t himself, that he was bolder and stronger. And what if these two alphas were bad people, and dangerous? Then what? He’d have to fight. Though…
The blond and brunet looked more startled and confused, eyes tinged with a little worry— no anger or agression.
Then…
Perhaps he could use them to his advantage. They said ‘our clan’s territory’, so they must have a safe home and a place someone (Jisung) could stay.
“I..f you guys take me under your roof and let me stay till my wounds heal, I’ll be gone from your lives after that. Let me stay with you guys. You have a house, yes?” Jisung said, trying not to tremble or let his breath hitch as he spoke. His voice came out steadier than expected, which both surprised him and gave him relief.
The blond regarded him with suspicion. “And why would we do that? We could kill you right here, for stepping into another clan’s territory. And for all we know, you could be some sort of dangerous, ill-intented spy or wolf. Why should we help you?” He snapped.
Well, that didn’t work. (Obviously it didn’t, idiot.)
“In fact, who’s to say you didn’t do some horrible deed and that’s why you’re in this state, with no pack scent or mark? You’re either a rogue or a banned wolf. Both are bad options. So which are you?” The blond snarled, before lunging forward to pin Jisung against the tree, bark digging painfully into his skin. On the defense. Pheremones screaming protect, protect, protect. Too bad it wasn’t in aid of Jisung.
Jisung bit down the whimper in his chest because alphas didn’t act all scared and he had to act strong. He had to take the chance to act like he wasn’t who he was— just for a minute. Please.
But… his body betrayed him and a moment later, his eyes watered up, welling with unshed tears of pain and hurt. He didn’t mean to cry— and he was sure sobbing right now wouldn’t help his survival or make the wolves pity him; they’d probably find him weak.
Disposable.
Weak.
Unworthy of existing.
Alphas weren’t weak. Leaders weren’t weak. Leaders weren’t omegas.
He didn’t want to cry, but oh, for moon’s sake— the tears weren’t gonna stop and so he then tried not to blink. He didn’t want to let the tears fall. He didn’t want to let these two strangers see just how not alpha he was.
The blond’s expression softened the moment he saw the tears in Jisung’s eyes, and then Jisung’s brain took the cue to let his lips start wobbling, readying itself for the waterworks.
Don’t you DARE burst into tears, Han Jisung, he told himself fiercely. If you want to live, be aggressive, be strong. Fight back.
He pushed at the hands pinning his arms against the tree, but of course, biologically, omegas were weaker than alphas, even one as close-sized to Jisung as this blond one was.
Useless, pathetic attempt.
Jisung was stuck and his life was in the hands of these two alphas. At a last ditch attempt, he managed to choke out a plea.
“I… Please… I have nowhere to go and no one left to go to— but I still want to live. So let me go. Now.”
The blond’s eyes were pooled with warm browns and gold, and closer up, Jisung saw the twitch in the alpha’s face and the agression slowly sliding off of it.
“Minho hyung— stop it. This wolf’s hurt.”
It was the other alpha, brows furrowed and eyes directly staring at Jisung. His arm was outstretched, and then his slender fingers wrapped over the blond’s shoulder. It squeezed and the tension slid out of the blond alpha.
The blond— Minho?— let out a sigh.
“I know, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna let just any innocent-looking wolf near my clan members or my packmates. But…” He hesitated, eyes searching Jisung’s for something he wasn’t sure he had to offer. Then his gaze dropped to look at all the bleeding wounds and purple-blue bruises on Jisung’s skin. He eventually sighed again.
“Here’s what we’re going to do.” He announced. “We’re not gonna kill you, so don’t worry little wolf. Instead, we’ll bring you to our clan leader, and then he’ll decide if you can stay at our pack home. Our clan leader— who is also my pack leader… He’s merciful. Perhaps he’ll let you heal in our home. But, if you step out of line or hurt any of my packmates, you’re dead, understand?”
Jisung nodded, desperate to be free again. And look, he got what he wanted, didn’t he? Sorta? He just had to keep on pretending he was an alpha, and all would be good.
The blond huffed, pressing Jisung’s arms into the rough bark once more time, before finally stepping back with narrowed eyes. Jisung let his arms fall back to side, sagging with relief. He was free again. Thank the moons.
“You’re lucky, little alpha. Now that we gave you a chance, don’t mess it up. No lies, no bad deeds, okay?” The blond raised an eyebrow, jabbing a finger into Jisung’s chest, making him stagger backwards with a cough. .
No lies.
Jisung nodded in agreement. No lies— well he would be breaking that one, but there was no way he’d trust these strangers with something that had haunted him ever since his presentation four years ago.
—
The blond introduced himself at Minho, and the bruntet as Jeongin. Jisung introduced himself and then nervously told them he was an alpha, afraid they’d pick up on his lie and hurt him. But they simply nodded and accepted the fact, and then they were asking what happened to him. Jisung gave them the truth: his father had beat him up and so he had ran away.
They walked and talked— in human form, when Jisung told them apologetically that he couldn’t shift at the moment— with Jisung squeezed in between the two alphas. They were letting him come with them, but they didn’t trust him yet.
Still. He was an “alpha” now— they thought he was one, with his scent glands unable to show off his true subgender, and they had no reason to believe he wasn’t an alpha.
It was occuring to him that it was a very stupid idea of him to ask and let these strange alphas take him in, and he was also probably doomed if he kept following these alphas to wherever they were taking him (he didn’t even know where), and putting his trust so blindly in them.
His heart was hammering in his chest, but he didn’t dare look afraid. Acting like an alpha was his only means of defense here.
Upon realizing that Jisung had no clue which clan he’d gotten himself into, they explained they were part of the infamous Bang clan— one of the three top clans, known for their grand territory sizes and power. Then they explained they were both part of the clan and part of the clan leader’s pack. So top of the top in the hierarchy.
Imagine being part of one of the wealthiest, largest clans AND being part of the clan leader’s pack. I mean, I was only the latter, but wow. Both?
They eventually reached a clearing, where five others were standing together, huddled in an effort to keep warm, despite the heavy coats they were all wearing that should’ve been warm enough. But then Jisung realized they hadn’t huddled together to keep warm— the coats did enough of that. They were huddled around two figures, keeping them protected in a barrier made out of the other three.
All five faces turned to Jisung and two alphas with them, and at the sight of Jisung— a stranger to them, the three of them were nudging the other two behind them. Protecting them from the possible threat that Jisung could be.
He caught a whiff of the scents— a mix of protective alpha and worried, anxious omega. So the three must be the alphas, and the two the omegas.
Jisung had to admit, it was a bit surprising to see the alphas so protective to their omegas— and then it hit that he had never been protected because there was no reason to. There was no worth for him and obviously, he wasn’t like the other omegas in the clan. The clan’s omegas were loved. He wasn’t, for he was supposed to be an alpha. He didn’t get the same treatment.
“Who’s he?” the burly alpha jerked a thumb at Jisung, face twisted in agression. He stood like a wall in front of the two omegas, who poked their heads over the alpha’s shoulder.
“And why is he injured so much?” The orange-blond omega piped up, worried eyes brushing over Jisung’s frame. Oh wow, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d been able to see another omega like him. They were always steered clear of him and his father, but a small part of his wondered, If there had been other omegas nearby, would they have cared? Would any of them have worried for me or defended me? Or am I an outcast to them as well?
“This is Jisung. He’s an alpha that got beat up by his father, so he ran away.” Jeongin explained. “He’s looking for a place to stay while he heals, so we thought Chan hyung could make the call.”
The alpha on the far right stepped forward and examined Jisung with deep eyes, before sniffing the air.
“You don’t have a scent. But you look old enough to have presented and you claim to be an alpha, hm?” He raised an eyebrow questioningly.
Jisung tilted his head to show the state of his scent glands and the alpha hissed in sympathy.
“As you can see,” Jisung said cooly. “My glands are injured. I’m afraid I’m scentless until it heals, but I assure you, I’m an alpha.”
The ravenhead alpha stepped closer, and Jisung took a step backward in panic, fear pooling in his stomach. Yes, he was pretending to be an alpha, but he wasn’t really one. The anxiety was coming back ten-fold. He was suddenly face to face with a stranger— an alpha— and the realization that this alpha could be a threat to his safety echoed through his mind.
“How do I know you won’t be a threat to my clan or my pack?” The alpha questioned. “How can I trust you and your words?”
Desperation was starting to claw on Jisung’s skin.
“I… Please, you guys can do whatever you want. Just let me have a place to rest and something to eat, and I… I promise once I heal, you guys won’t have to see me again and I’ll be gone. I promise I won’t make trouble.” The words tumbled out of him, tinged with his franticness— something he hadn’t exactly meant to let out. But it was there and in the open, and—
The orange-blond omega was darting towards him, despite the two alphas with him trying to keep him back, and the brunet omega with the cool, poker-face expression that turned panicked when his omega friend left his side.
“Hi! I’m Felix!” The orange-blond chirped out, before the alpha— Chan— stopped him with a gentle but firm grip on his shoulder.
“Lixie, I understand your protective urges, but you’re about to go into heat and this is an alpha,” Jisung heard him say to the omega. “I’m not trying to be stereotypical, but it’s an unknown alpha and who knows what he’s like—”
“Trust me. He’s all sad— and plus, he’s also really hurt. I promise I’ll be safe. And I have you guys to step in if things go south.” The omega shot back sweetly, before he was bounding right up to Jisung, standing so close, Jisung could feel the body heat radiatating off of him— and a sweet, vanilla scent— tinged with heavier sweetness.
Minho’s eyes were sharp, but Jisung was confident he wouldn’t give a reaction— because there was nothing to give. He wasn’t affected in that way by the scent and pheremones of an omega about to go into heat. He shot a small smile at the orange-blond, Felix as he’d introduced, and nodded his head.
“Hi. I’m Jisung.”
Felix beamed, before he was cupping Jisung’s hand in his own, careful and gingerly as if he were dealing with a glass hand. Minho and Chan both looked on edge, but they seemed to relax when all Jisung did was smile and let himself be still, letting Felix cup his hand and fuss over the bruises on his arm and how thin his clothes were.
“We better get you warmed up! Your hands are freezing— and just look at all these bleeding wounds.” Felix clicked his tongue, almost like a mother and suddenly wanted his mom again— which was a silly and startling thought in itself. An absolute no, no.
“Seungmin-ah!” Felix called, turning his head towards the three still keeping a distance. The omega blinked with wide eyes, and then hesitantly jogged over when Felix beckoned at him.
“Seungmin is our pack’s medic. He can fix you up.” Felix explained when the other omega had reached them. Jisung took in the comforting smell of apple blossoms, soft and sweet— but not overbearingly so. It was perfect— and he was sure Felix’s vanilla scent would have been comforting if not for how too-sweet it was at the moment.
“Hi,” Seungmin mumbled, nervous eyes darting over Jisung. When he didn’t act agressive like the omega had probably expected, the omega relaxed and raised his head higher to properly meet Jisung’s eyes.
“Alright, I guess we’re letting you stay. Come on, we have a long walk to get to the edge of the forest. Then we’re taking a car to get to the house.” Chan interjected.
“You live in the city?!” Jisung’s eyes widened.
Jeongin nodded. “Mhm. The clan wolves live here, but Chan and our pack have a place in the middle of the city. We have a spare room, luckily, so that’s where we’ll put you. Right, Chan hyung?”
The pack alpha gave a brisk nod. “Yes, good idea. And we’ll take turns keeping watch of you, little alpha.” He gave a warning glare at Jisung. “Earn our trust and you’ll have freedom.”
“Of course.” Jisung agreed.
—
The walk to the forest edge passed in a blur and so did the car ride, in a sleek black car— a car— something that Jisung had only ever seen in blurry photos from his grandfather who used to live in the city. The cityscape rolled by and then he was being led into a tall building and to the top floors where the pack resided in a penthouse.
Only the best for a pack in a clan as powerful and wealthy as they are, Jisung thought wistfully.
Chan unlocked the door, letting his packmates file in. Minho and Chan then flanked Jisung’s sides to led him through the house. The foyer was a simple hallway with grey tiles on the floor and shoes neatly lined on the racks. The living room was open and the tall floor-to-ceiling windows let in the fading sunlight, the last bit for the day. Soft, brown couches were pushed against the walls, with large cushions and blankets on them, a coffee set completing the look, with a large portrait photo, framed and hung above the TV.
A TV! Jisung didn’t know wolves were allowed to have TVs!
The kitchen was sleek with black countertops and a seperate room connected to it with shelves brimming with different pots and mixers and the other side piled with food.
The hall on the other side of the living room had all these doors that Chan explained were the bedrooms of the pack, plus the two bathrooms at the end. On the other side of the living room was another hall, this one with the so-called gym room, home theater/den, and the library and study room, and a studio room with canvas propped up against the walls with paintbrushes strewn across the floor. There was another bathroom— with hanging spider plants and dark brown marble tiles.
Even the shower houses the clan used weren’t this fancy or modern— more in-nature vibes with no modern technology or gadgets.
Chan and Minho eventually led him to one of the bedrooms, and when they swung open the door, Jisung found it was empty except for a plain bed frame with a mattress on it, and a wooden desk and stool set in the corner.
“Make yourself home, I suppose.” Chan said wryly. “You’re part of the pack now. I’ll let Seungmin tend to your injuries and have you wash up.”
Then the door clicked shut and Jisung was left alone again.