Chapter 19

My eyes blink open in the sweet darkness of the night. I try closing them shut, attempting to return to my slumber but it doesn't come. The chill of the night seeps into my skin causing me to shudder under the blankets. Sitting up against the sofa, I notice a crouched figure.

My mate sits on the bed with his knees pulled in, staring at the foot of the bed. His hands tightly hold onto the sheets as if he is trying to hold on for his life. His distress is apparent, but I cannot help but think how soft and pretty he looks on the bed.  

"Hey," My voice is a little croaky. He looks at me before letting go of the sheets.

"Sorry, did I wake you up?" His breathy voice is light as a feather.

I shake my head in the dark, "No, I guess I can't fall back asleep," I reply, rubbing my eyes.

"Ah," he mumbles silently before turning away and appearing to zone out again.

I tilt my head a little before asking, "Are you... is something wrong?"

He does not respond for a while. I think to ask again, but he eventually speaks.

"No."

He grinds his teeth a little before sinking further into the mattress. For a moment, I marvel at the way the velvety blankets fold so perfectly into the weight of his body. 

"You're a terrible liar," I respond before shifting upright on the sofa.

He glances at me. His eyes are soft and round with a look of something indescrible, but he looks away, staring down in his lap, "It's just a pathetic nightmare."

I raise my eyebrows, "Pathetic?"

He fidgets with his fingers, continuing to look down. The moonlight is soft but welcoming. It lights the room enough for me to properly look at the features of the boy in my room. I wait patiently for him to respond, the curiosity seeming to get the better of me. 

"I.." a guilty sigh leaves his lips, "I told Jungkook that I forgive him, but I keep reliving that day in my dreams."

I watch him softly rest his head against his knees, pulling closer to the headboard. His words sink in and I think deeply about how I should reply, furrowing my eyebrows with thought. 

Hesitantly, I open my mouth, "That's a normal reaction."

He interrupts, "It wasn't him that day, but it was real.. and I just can't get the memory out of my head."

I shift around on the sofa, uncomfortable with the melancholy feeling in the air.  

"...I'm sorry," is all I manage to say.

"I know."

We sit there in silence for a couple minutes, listening to the fluttering sounds of the night. Eventually, my eyes begin to droop again and I start to feel myself getting loopy.

"Taehyung," I say with a yawn. His head lifts up towards me and his hair bounces with the sudden movement. 

"If I see you having a nightmare, I'll try to wake you up," I mumble before burying myself underneath the covers on the sofa.

He softly smiles before pressing his eyes shut, "Thanks."

———

I finish writing the letters to send back home. I tried my best to persuade the Elders that treaty revisions are something both of our packs need. Inside the letter, I have the whole plan and the resources I require. All I have to do is send somebody to deliver the message.

Near the front entrance of the palace, I meet up with a couple of wolves who normally transmit messages between packs.

"I need you guys to be extra careful with the contents of this letter," I warn them.

They nod their heads, "Don't worry Alpha Y/n. We never lose any of the messages we carry."

One of them whispers to the other, "Uh..well there was this one time.."

"Shut it!"

My fangs poke out a little, "I don't care about your track record. Just make sure these reach their destination."

They head out preparing for their journey towards the Shadow Pack. I walk back through the hallways of the palace. I can never get used to the number of servants that still bow to me as I walk by. It simply is not how the wolves in my own pack treat me. 

My heels turn a corner but I jump back, almost running into another wolf.

"Oh! I'm so sorry, Alpha Y/n! Please, forgive me!" The wolf pleads while bowing his head.

I wave my hands, "It's my fault. I wasn't paying attention."

The wolf looks up with a slight relief on his face before excusing himself. I watch as that wolf hurriedly makes his way through the palace hallways.

A scream echoes from a couple corridors down.

"Somebody help! Rogue in the palace! There's a rogue in the palace!"

Shit! What's a rogue doing here?!

I race towards the screams and shouts, my wolf surfacing under the adrenaline. Turning the corner, I see a ragged gray wolf stalking forward towards one of the servants.

Immediately, I shift into my wolf, slamming the rogue towards the wall. The wolf howls in pain after the impact.

His eyes narrow at mine, noticing my Alpha status.

The rogue lunges forward trying to get on top of me. I crouch down low, attempting to rake his underside. Growing impatiently, he snaps towards my neck, but I manage to flip him on his back.

We both get back on our feet tackling each other towards the wall. My claws dig into his side while he continues to drag me to the side.

I throw all my power towards pushing him to the floor. We slide across the hallway. My body knocks over some tables and a few wall ornaments fall to the ground.

All of a sudden, I feel a searing pain tighten across my skin, like a heavy weight pressing down on my chest. The wolf that I was just fighting also heaves in pain, sprawling across the floor.

From the corner of my eye, I see Beta Seungri carefully muzzle the rogue. The wolf immediately shifts back to human form, screaming in pain.

I shift back and my lungs start to wheeze as I try to get rid of the tightness in my chest.

"What..what is that?" I growl.

Seungri places a bag over the rogue's head and swiftly restrain his arms. The tightness lifts from my chest and I can finally breathe again.

"A thin layer of wolfsbane," He replies, "Just enough to incapacitate him." More wolves hurry to the scene, making sure the rogue is secured.

"What...," I pant from exhaustion, "This pack uses wolfsbane? Where did this rogue come from? How did you..?" A million questions race through my mind.

Jungkook and Yoongi finally make it down to the scene noticing the captured rogue being shoved down the hallway.

"Hey, are you okay? We heard that the rogue escaped from the dungeons," Yoongi hands me an extra set of clothes, noticing the chaos that erupted in this section of the palace.

The wallpaper is torn and scratched up. Valuables were thrown and shattered onto the floor, not to mention the large wolf size dent in the wall.

"Y/n??? Did you do that," Jungkook examines the giant dent.

"I..I guess I did" I say curiously looking back at the splintered wood and plaster.

Senguri walks back towards us after making sure the rogue gets sent back to whatever hell hole he came from, "When I heard Alphas are strong, I didn't realize they were that strong."

I shake my head, "No..that's..that's never happened before. Hold on," I furrow my eyebrows at him, "Why is wolfsbane used in this pack. It's legal?"

"Yeah," He shrugs, "Why wouldn't it be? We've been using it for decades."

A growl leaves my lips, "It's unethical and dangerous. If that gets in the wrong hands, somebody's life can be in danger."

His lips slant, "We know it's dangerous, Alpha Y/n. That's why we have lots of precautions when handling the substance. Nothing bad has happened all these years, besides these rogues deserve the pain for what they did to the pack."

I take a challenging step forward, "No wolf deserves that kind of pain."

Yoongi grabs me back and I shake his hold off.

"Leave him. This is something to take up with Alpha Namjoon, the Beta doesn't know any better," Yoongi mind links, "I'm going to check up in Jimin. You need to check on your mate."

I nod my head in response. The attack was not too far from our rooms, making every wolf in the area extra alert.

The crowd disperses and we make our way back to our rooms. Our feet turn the corner and I notice the door to my room left wide open. The door handle is broken and on the ground.

"What the hell," I snarl before rushing inside.

The window is left wide open, the curtains moving with the wind. Almost everything is untouched, but an unfamiliar scent lingers in the air.

"Taehyung!" I call out, searching for him.

The papers on my desks are slightly shuffled and tampered with, nearly concealed to look like nobody touched them.

"Y/n?" A quiet whisper reaches my ears. The door to the closet opens slightly. My eyes fall on him peeking from behind.

I walk up to the closet, leaving just enough distance.

"What happened here??" I look around the room, still trying to see if anything was misplaced.

He releases a sigh of relief before resting his head against the side of the door, "I heard noises near the door so I hid. The wolf was looking for something, but they made a run for the window just before you came."

I bare my teeth, letting out a nasty growl. My mate grips the door trying to hold himself up.

"Get your things," I command. He looks at me with confused eyes, "It's not safe here anymore."

"What?" he breathes.

"I'm being targeted." 

AU Fact: Wolfsbane is a deadly substance known to wolves. It can be crafted into poisons and be used to easily kill a wolf of any rank. The cure for the substance is unknown. 

(It's also apparently really dangerous in real life..so doN't be tOuching sOme wEird plAnts yoU guYs) 

Stay away from this! 

Anyway ;)

Thanks for reading!