But it's easier to push away

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Six Years Later — Present Day

Fallen leaves crunched beneath his feet, slightly soggy with the fresh layer of snow. It was colder here. Every breath escaped in a puff of white, fanning against his fur as he stepped forward. The ocean was somewhere close by. More moisture hung in the air, creating tiny snowflakes. Soon it would create another layer.

The forest stretched out around him further than he could see. It'd been that way for weeks now. The further west he headed, the denser the woods became. Aside from the muffled crunch of his steps, silence fell between snow-dusted trees. In the heart of winter, not much roamed. Most of the animals were in hibernation.

He kept his guard up, even when he knew he was completely alone. Somewhere behind him—likely over fifty miles out—were the three betas he'd run into over the course of his journey. If he knew them, they were likely on the border of another pack, planning their next raid. Hunting throughout winter was harder. Easy sources of food became scarce. In the rivers, there were only fish.

Taehyung was content with it, but the others weren't. They sought more options—or a more dependable supply.

Regardless, he never joined their raiding efforts. When they chose to dive head-first into the packs, he continued deeper into the forests. Where the cover of trees shielded him from anyone who might be lurking. No one ever did, aside from the three instances when he found his betas.

All rogues of their own. He'd stumbled upon them by accident.

At the time, two of them—Hoseok and Namjoon—were being tracked by warriors. Taehyung could have stayed out of the mess, but trackers were incredibly annoying to deal with. Once they caught his scent, their direction would turn away from the betas. Disposing of them was much easier than evading.

Yoongi—the third beta—was found injured and starving in the woods. He'd been there with him throughout his entire healing process, hunting for them both. There was no need to, Taehyung knew, but there was also no harm in helping. When the wounds healed, he left.

They stayed with him. It wasn't often when they all gathered in one spot. Only to settle and rest for a couple of days when the weather got bad or traveling for weeks had taken its toll. The four of them stood as a small pack of their own. Outcasts. Fugitives. Orphans.

Taehyung took care of them. Offered up his food when hunting hadn't gone so well. Resorted to starving just to ensure their survival. In the six winters he'd been a rogue, there weren't many good days. Necessities didn't come in abundance, but they adapted. Persevered.

Every time they gathered, he was always the first to leave. Taehyung didn't tell them why, either. He'd collect his things—shoved into a torn backpack that had seen better days—and ventured further west. They'd always manage to find him, though. Whether a few hours or weeks later. The betas would bring fresh kills or rations they managed to snag from the nearby packs.

The cycle continued that way for three winters. Spring and summer were easier, and that's when their distances grew further apart. Taehyung would take advantage of the longer daylight and the available prey. He made the most progress searching the continent when the weather was warmer. When snow didn't cover the landscape or rain drowned out his surroundings.

His betas didn't know anything about his plans or his goals. They tried asking him on numerous occasions, but Taehyung always dodged the topic. He told them about other things, though. His life before going rogue. How they had treated him. When he presented; why he chose to leave.

This was a personal mission. It had been for six years, if the winters had been any indication. Frustration grew within him, burning stronger as the seasons changed. Winter, spring, summer, then fall. Again and again. There was never any sign of them. For all Taehyung knew, his search was completely futile.

Deep down, he knew they were out there somewhere. Rumors held some truth, at the end of the day. He remembered the Head Alpha speaking of the incident—an offer he'd made to a small-time pack who never wrote back. Only to find out the purebloods were gone. Somehow, they managed to flee undetected.

Taehyung wasn't a fool. Three pureblood omegas couldn't abandon a pack on their own. They were watched too closely. Their stronger scents would've been easily detected by the warriors. Someone—an alpha—must've been working with them. It was the hope he needed to believe they were still alive.

Part of him wondered if he was wasting his life away for something that wasn't worth it, but the purebloods were an essential component of his plan. If Taehyung had given up life as a rogue and returned to the society that shamed him, he likely could have made his mark in the rankings. He would have climbed the precarious ladder, but he couldn't have challenged the alpha at the top.

He shook his head, taking a seat near the base of a tree. His paws in the snow left noticeable imprints, but he was too far from any pack to worry about it. With the gentle snowflakes cascading down, sticking to the fur on his back, they'd be covered in a day.

Hunger made his stomach rumble. Ever since he left the river, food hadn't come. He knew he'd have to find something soon. There was always hope that his betas would find him, but Taehyung didn't like the idea of depending on their risky methods. Pack raids were dangerous. It's how Yoongi had been injured.

With the lack of food came a lack of energy. Tiredly, Taehyung slumped to the ground, dropping the backpack between his paws with a muffled thud. Around him, the flecks of snow fell slightly faster. The smell of pine wafted through the air around him, mixing with wet soil. Hints of salt were there, too. The ocean must have been closer than he suspected.

He cast stray glances around the empty forest. Peaking through the dense leaves were gentle streams of fading sunlight. Darkness was descending. An end to another day. He lost count of just how many it had been.

Throughout the seasons, there were numerous times where Taehyung wanted to quit. He thought about it enough to almost go through with it. To end the journey he embarked on and return to the packs—find a place to settle in an unfair society and forget everything that happened all those years ago. It was so tempting.

But then the past came back in haunting nightmares, and he was back to continuing the search.

Exhausted, Taehyung felt his eyes slowly begin to close. Despite the attempts to fight off sleep. His head dropped forward, landing softly upon his front legs. His tail curled around himself, drawn in close. He shot another glance around, just to be sure, but there was still no one. Just him and the forest, tucked safely away beneath the cascading snow.

Sleep descended upon him then. Strong, like it always did. Inevitable.

The dreams never came, though.

*

Taehyung stood outside the Head Alpha's office, back pressed against the sturdy, wooden wall. They didn't know he was there. With the door cracked open, the conversation drifted into the hallway easily. Slightly muffled in parts, but most of it was audible.

At this hour, the only ones awake were the pack alphas and the night-shift warriors, but neither of those groups paid any attention to him. Their care was reserved for other matters—more important matters than a kid.

"It's about time we consider where he's going to go," one alpha said. Taehyung didn't know them very well. Just his adoptive father and the Head Alpha of the pack.

There was a murmur of agreement, silenced by the Head Alpha. "No, he'll remain here."

His father's voice came next. "Why, exactly? Are you hoping for a pureblood?"

"The fact is, we don't know who his parents are," the man stated matter-of-factly. Against the wall, his heart sped up. Just within the room, the council of alphas were discussing his future. Just like they did for omegas. All because he was about to be sixteen and hadn't presented yet.

He wasn't an omega. He knew he wasn't. Deep in his bones—in the control he struggled to suppress daily and the strength that pulsed in his veins—Taehyung knew he wouldn't present as an omega.

There was nothing wrong with it, either. He'd grown up surrounded by other omega kids. They'd been the kindest souls he'd ever known. Strongest, too. Emotional in the best way; caring despite the circumstances. But he knew himself.

Back pressed fully to the wall, he turned his head to the left, leaning an ear against the wood. Not that it would help. Still, he felt glued to the floor—hidden in the structure of the room. They didn't know he was listening, and he intended to never let them find out.

Another murmur passed through the crowd. "What are the odds, though?" An alpha asked. "Sure, he was found on the border, but weren't there alpha scent traces?"

"There's still a possibility for an omega," his father declared. The certainty of it left Taehyung breathless. Like they were convinced despite nothing being set in stone.

Like they were... hoping for it.

His heart sped up, erratic pounds echoing in his ears. Deep in his chest, his lungs felt as if they'd been lit aflame. "Pureblood or not, he's an omega. Why keep him?" An alpha asked. The question came from further away. Over his thundering heartbeat, Taehyung barely made out the words.

The Head Alpha spoke again, carrying a voice of overwhelming authority. He felt it from here—rooting him to the hardwood floors. Sinking his heart to the pit of his stomach. Making his blood run cold. "Even omegas can be useful." There was a pause. Something rolled across the desk. "One of you may have him, if you desire."

He gulped, puffing out a shaky breath. It came out wrong. Burning. There was still a spark of hope within him, swaying like a low flame. His father was in the room. There was a chance the conversation could turn—a possibility that the alpha he'd known all his life would stand up for him.

All he needed was one person. One wolf to believe in him.

"Do what you wish," his father said. "If he presents as an omega, I do not care where he goes."

The rest of the conversation fell on deaf ears. The feeling of the wall at his back disappeared, too, leaving him standing there, frozen. The words played on repeat in his head, cycling loudly until they were engrained in his memory.

Do what you wish. I do not care where he goes.

They'd get rid of him in an instant. Like trash. Like he meant nothing at all.

His fingers dug into the wall of the Head Alpha's office. Bitter words formed at the back of his throat. How dare his father. After all these years. After everything the alpha had done.

How dare he.

How dare he.

How dare—

Taehyung's eyes shot open with a startled jolt.

The forest came into view after a few, rapid blinks. Fresh, untouched snow covered the earth in a pale-white blanket. Above him, the moon still hovered. Despite the evening hour, the woods weren't cloaked with a thick darkness. The silence made his rapid heartbeat sound like war drums.

Slowly, he rose from the ground, shaking off dense snowflakes. They scattered all around him. His teeth hooked under the backpack strap, holding it firmly. Not sparing much of a glance, he set off, whisking aside remnants of sleep.

The moments of rest he got were never truly peaceful. There were a handful of times when the exhaustion had settled into him, enough that it drew him into a deep slumber. Those were the only memories he had of solid sleep. No nightmares. No memories.

He tried not to let it bother him. The past was the past. Taehyung ran away from it, but no matter how far he got, it always seemed to find him again. A life he once lived. A life he feared going back to.

Things were different now, though. If he did return to the packs, they'd offer respect and admiration. They'd praise him for his decisions—seek his approval. Whatever once happened would be no more, but that was the sickest part. The leaders would act like nothing was ever said; like nothing was ever going to happen.

They considered selling him. Then they considered keeping him, and when he came of age, they'd hand him off to one of the alphas. Taehyung would bear the leader's children.

He tried to shake the memory away now, but it came back several times. Hours passed in the process, but his mind kept retracing back to that moment. Him at fifteen, standing outside the Head Alpha's office. Hearing his father in the room, speaking about him like he didn't matter.

Why would he, anyway? Alpha Kim wasn't his actual—

Taehyung caught a scent.

In an instant, the thoughts scattered. His senses honed into the smell drifting in the frigid air, wafting through thick leaves. He chased after it, pushing further into the forest. Around dormant trees. Paws pressing swiftly into the snow. In the distance, he heard the faint sounds of civilization.

Another scent floated towards him. More neutral. He sniffed twice, pausing by a tree, ears twitching. The sounds of crashing waves were faraway and muffled, but they were there. There were other noises, but they were too vague to properly identify.

He smelled something different. Humans, maybe. But Taehyung had only heard of them from stories told in the pack. He'd never seen them before.

There was something else, though. Another scent in the air. The first one he caught. It was fainter now.

Slowly, he traced deliberate steps in the snow. Aside from the sound of waves, there was silence. Leaves didn't crunch beneath him. Twigs didn't snap.

Taehyung wasn't sure how long it took until he identified something new. Through the thick cover of trees, there stood a structure. A house, of sorts. He could barely see it from where crept, but it was there. Against the tree, a border existed.

It wasn't physical, but as an alpha, he could detect the clear claim of territory. It existed here, wrapping around the area in a wide oval.

Only alphas possessed that ability. Head Alphas, specifically. It was how the packs were differentiated. But what was a Head Alpha doing out here?

Taehyung stared at the structure in the distance. His heart played a steady beat, but excitement flared up within him like an inferno. Relief. Optimism. Anticipation. Part of him didn't want to get his hopes up. What if he turned up empty-handed? What if someone fled the packlife, as he did, and chose a life of solitude instead?

Yet part of him was already convinced this was it. There had been no clearer signs. He travelled the continent. Set out from the east. Ventured as far south as he could. Trailed his way up north. Now he was tracking west because there was nowhere else to go.

He took cautious steps backward, retreating from the border slightly before someone detected him. Whatever this was, he'd play it safe. Scope out the area for a few days. Discover what was nearby. Even as he walked away, the fire continued to blaze stronger than ever before. Burning with newfound purpose and hope—because his search for the purebloods hadn't been in vain.

After six years, Taehyung might have finally found them.

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Let the excitement begin

I purple you<3

~Pisan.