Chapter Text
Jungkook stirs.
The fire inside finally seems to have passed, leaving a heavy lethargy in its wake. But he is warm, safe, and surrounded by the scents of his alphas, who he can tell without even opening his eyes are sitting by the fire nearby.
They're not as close as he'd prefer, but he'll allow it for now. He listens lazily, drifting in the space between consciousness and his next dream.
“I don’t like it either,” Namjoon sighs, “But it’s been three days, Hob-ah. The others are bound to be worried.”
“I know,” answers Hoseok, “I know, but look at him, Joon. He’s so sleepy and warm. And he’s had such a rough heat.”
“His first heat,” answers Namjoon warmly, and Jungkook feels the alpha’s hand close possessively around his delicate ankle, his thumb rubbing soothing little circles into the skin.
“I hate to think of moving him,” he continues after a moment, “But I can’t keep the pack waiting any longer. Think of how worried Jin must be. He’s going to kill us.”
Hoseok snorts. “Jin? What about Jimin?"
Namjoon’s hand on Jungkook’s ankle stills.
“…Shit. We really need to get going.”
“Yeah,” sighs Hoseok. There’s a beat. “Well, you’d better wake him up then.”
“What? I think you’d be better suited, Hob-ah, you’re always saying how he trusts you most.”
“And you always go on about how you’re his Pack Alpha! Seems like a perfect opportunity for you to exercise your authority!”
“Hoseok-”
Jungkook smiles and snuggles more deeply into his blankets. Silly alphas. He drifts back to sleep, lulled by their bickering and the certain knowledge that his alphas are close at hand.
~~
He wakes again to a warm cloth wiping over him, cleaning the days of sweat and grime from his face, his neck, down his chest. It’s an annoyance, pulling him from his dream, but Jungkook puts up with it until a hand tries to clean over his belly, which is sticky with their combined dried fluids. Claimed.
He growls and squirms away, pulling a blanket over himself.
Hoseok sighs above him. “C’mon, Sweetheart,” he coaxes, “Alpha’s just got to get you cleaned up a bit before we go.”
Jungkook cracks an eye to glare up at him. Go?
Hoseok smiles back sunnily. “There you are. Good morning, Baby!”
Hoseok tries to pull down the blanket again but Jungkook holds firm, and they engage in a brief tug of war until Namjoon crawls over and stills Jungkook with large hands over his own.
“Enough,” he rumbles, smiling affectionately, “I know you’re still recovering, Baby, and we hate to disturb you, but we've got to take advantage of that sunny weather out there today to take you home. Now be good for your Hobi-hyung and let him get you cleaned up.”
Jungkook pouts, but he lets go when Namjoon pulls the blanket firmly off him once more, rolling it up and placing it into a pile with their other gear, which Jungkook now sees has been tidied neatly away into packs as he slept.
He stays pliant as Hoseok dips his cloth in a bowl of warm water and resumes wiping gently over his belly, and then lower between his legs, where he's still so tender. Jungkook whines.
“I…want to smell like alphas,” he croaks out, his voice rough from disuse. Just how long was he under?
Hoseok laughs. “Baby, trust me. The world’s most nose-blind beta would know you belong to us from a hundred paces. I’m just tidying you up a bit so it'll be a little more…subtle for when you meet your new pack mates.”
He taps Jungkook's flank briskly. “Now up, and turn around so I can get your back.”
Jungkook frowns but obeys slowly, pushing himself up onto his knees and turning his back to the alphas.
He doesn't want to go anywhere. It's safe and certain in the cave, Jungkook has everything he needs. Why can't they just stay here forever?
In a moment's inspiration, he leans forward on his elbows, arching his back.
There’s a low growl, Hoseok’s scent spiking spicy around them, until Jungkook hears a smack followed by an indignant squawk.
“Focus,” Namjoon laughs, coming over to join them once more.
To Jungkook, he adds, “Behave yourself. Alpha’s going to pack up your blankets for you now, Pup. That way you can set up your pretty nest just like this in your new home.”
Jungkook glares at him but sits up properly so Hoseok can continue cleaning him. He can be good, he'll show them. When Namjoon starts carefully rolling up the blankets of his nest, Jungkook even holds in his hisses of displeasure. Mostly.
Namjoon smiles, tying the blankets into a neat bundle for transport.
“Good Boy,” he rumbles, “Being so sweet for us. You’re excited to meet your pack mates, aren’t you Jungkook-ah? We’re just a small group for now, but we’re making a good life for ourselves. Jin, Yoongi, Tae, Jimin, Hoseok, me, and now you. Just the seven of us, until the pups arrive. Seems like a good number.”
Jungkook wrinkles his nose. He…wouldn't say he's excited. Two new people in his life have been overwhelming enough, the idea of more is frankly terrifying. He feels his scent souring.
“It'll be fine Sweetheart,” says Namjoon soothingly, “You were made for us. My wolf is sure of it, and he’s never been wrong about this kind of thing. The pack will love you.”
“Once they get to know you!” Hoseok adds as he wrings out his cloth for the final time, smiling brightly as though it's not a completely ominous thing to say.
He hands Jungkook a change of clothes and Jungkook reluctantly begins to pull them on. They belong to the alphas and are much too large, he'll be swimming in them. But they're completely saturated in Hoseok and Namjoon's scents, and it makes Jungkook’s omega feel settled despite his other misgivings.
“You said…I think you said you have two omegas already?” he asks.
“Yes, two,” Hoseok answers patiently, “So you'll have lots of friends.”
He gasps, turning towards Namjoon. “Maybe they’ll even nest together tonight!”
Namjoon is busily tightening the straps on the final pack, but he pauses at that, and the alphas exchange a gooey look, seemingly completely besotted by the notion.
Jungkook…is less certain.
He always used to love the company of other omegas, but now the thought of meeting two makes his belly tight with nerves. He’s not sure what their reaction will be to him, some new upstart wolf swooping in to share their mates.
When it comes down to it, Jungkook's not sure how willing he is to share Namjoon and Hoseok either. It's only been a short time, but already it feels like they belong to him, and the greedy thing inside him wants to hoard every single one of their warm looks and soft touches for himself.
But he has no time for further complaints, because as soon as he's dressed, Hoseok is coaxing him into his coat and boots, and before he knows it, Namjoon is dousing the fire and leading them out into the snow.
The sunlight is blinding after so much time in the cave. Jungkook squints around, trying to engrave in his mind a final image of the unassuming crack in the rockface where his whole life changed forever.
It all feels too big for him to wrap his head around. He curls in on himself, feeling small and unsteady, until a warm arm wraps around his waist.
“It's a special place, isn't it?” Hoseok murmurs, “I'm sad to leave too. But we'll come back, ok, Baby? Maybe a little honeymoon in the spring.”
Jungkook smiles up into his eyes and Hoseok grins back, leaning in to rub their noses together.
“Just you and me,” he adds at a whisper.
Namjoon wraps around Jungkook from the other side and pulls him gently from the other alpha's hold.
“Great idea, Hoseok,” he says briskly, “We'll all go. Now we need to get moving. It might be clear now, but that damn snow could blow up again any minute.”
Hoseok falls into place next to them.
“The storms are so unpredictable up here,” he agrees, “You'll love the valley where we live, Jungkook-ah. It's milder because we're by the sea, and narrow enough that we don't get much snow in the bottom.”
Jungkook follows quietly, a little wobbly but supported by his alphas on either side as they pick their way down the slope. He’s lost in thought for a few minutes, thinking of the snow and all it has brought him.
Hoseok and Namjoon have moved on to other topics when he finally says, partly to himself, “I’m thankful for the snow. Without it, we'd never have met.”
Both alphas coo, ruffling Jungkook’s hair and squeezing him between them.
“Baby!”
“Oh, Sweetheart, we’re thankful too!”
Encouraged, Jungkook adds brightly, “I suppose I should even be grateful to the rogues who found my camp!”
Namjoon and Hoseok stiffen, heads whipping around to scan the trees. They close in tighter around Jungkook as though ready for an imminent attack.
“Rogues?” Namjoon asks sharply, “What rogues, where did you see them?”
“Oh, not near here,” Jungkook says quickly, “Down in the valley on the other side of the mountain. Maybe a week back now. I heard them coming through the forest towards my den, but I fled before they found me.”
Hoseok and Namjoon share an uncomfortable look over his head.
“B-but it's ok,” says Jungkook, looking between them uncertainly, “I mean, I got away fine, and it seems they didn't follow. I'm sorry to have lost my den and all my things, but it all worked out for the best. I would never have come up into the mountains if they hadn't chased me off, and then I'd never have met you, right?”
Something occurs to him and he turns to Hoseok.
“What were you doing up in the mountains anyway, Hyung?”
Hoseok clears his throat.
“Ah. Well -”
“It wasn't rogues you heard that day, Jungkook-ah,” Namjoon says firmly, “We've been scouting this area extensively all summer because we're planning on extending the borders of our hunting grounds next year. There are no rogues within a three day's run of here, I'm sure of it.”
“And if any set foot closer than that, we'll rip them to pieces,” Hoseok adds.
Namjoon nods seriously.
Jungkook stops walking, forcing the alphas to double back. That can’t be right.
“But I heard them,” he insists, “They were coming through the forest towards my den, a whole band of them. I heard their boots, and I heard their voices. It was just like before when…when…well. Just I know what I heard.”
There’s a thick silence. A formless nervousness builds in Jungkook’s belly as he looks between his alphas anxiously. Something is wrong.
“You’d better tell him, Joon,” Hoseok says at last. Namjoon nods, face set like he’s bracing himself. He steers Jungkook to a fallen log and sits him down, fussing over his coat to straighten it before squatting in front of him.
“We never saw signs of rogues when we were scouting,” he repeats gently, “But…we did see you.”
He reaches out to take Jungkook's hand, continuing, “I stumbled upon your scent while I was running the perimeter one day. Just the smallest hint, I might not have even caught it if it was anyone else, but it almost knocked me out, my wolf reacted so strongly. I had to know who you were. I tracked you down wind until I found you picking raspberries in a clearing among some birch trees.”
Jungkook stares, images flashing through his mind. He thinks he can recall. A hot autumn afternoon day, daydreaming as he picked, distracted by the birdsong and the aroma of the berries.
“Cranberries,” he whispers, “That’s where I liked to pick cranberries.”
Namjoon smiles. “Cranberries. I should have known, I mean I watched you for hours. But I’ll admit that my attention wasn’t on the berries. You’re one of the prettiest omegas I’ve ever seen, Jungkook-ah, I knew right away you were made for us. My wolf was trying to claw out of my chest to get to you.”
Jungkook looks down, feeling shy.
“Why…why didn’t you say anything then?” he asks.
“An omega like you?” says Namoon incredulously, “I figured you had to belong to someone! Some travelers or maybe a band of rogues planning an attack. I needed to keep my distance until I was sure our pack wasn’t in danger.”
His face sobers again. “I lost you when you shifted and ran home at dusk. You're really fast Sweetheart. My wolf was beside himself not knowing where you were, but Hoseok helped me track you to your den a few days later.”
“It wasn’t easy,” adds Hoseok, taking a seat at Jungkook’s side, “You’re good at covering your tracks. Honestly, we’d all been worried when Joonie came home raving about you. We’d been wanting to add another omega to the pack for a while, but it was so sudden. As soon as I saw you though, I knew how right he was. You’re absolutely perfect for us, Sweetheart.”
Namjoon nods in agreement.
“We kept tabs on you from afar for a few more weeks though,” he said, “Just in case you were bait for some kind of trap. But finally, when we were sure that you really were alone, the pack prepared some gifts for you, and Jimin, Taehyung, Hoseok, and I came to your den to deliver them.”
Jungkook’s head is spinning with the new information, mind still slow as sap with the remnants of his heat. He latches on to the first idea he can.
“Gifts?” he asks, “You…were you going to court me?”
Hoseok slips an arm around Jungkook’s waist, pulling him close, “Oh, Baby. Of course we were. Those blankets were just going to be the first courting gift.”
Jungkook swallows. The blankets. Of course. Six of them, covered in each pack member’s scent.
“But…I ran away.”
Namjoon nods, looking pained. “You did. I’m so sorry about that, Jungkook-ah. We didn’t realize how it would seem from your perspective when we approached. That’s why we decided it would be best if just one of us went after you.”
“And the pack chose me because they knew you’d just scare him more,” interjects Hoseok.
“I wouldn’t have scared him,” huffs Namjoon.
Hoseok laughs. “Please. Your wolf is completely obsessed with him. You were practically shifting when we realized he’d run. If you’d caught him, you’d probably have tried to mate him right there in the woods.”
“And you think you’ve been the picture of controlled instincts over the last few days?” Namjoon growls.
“I had the sense to keep calm and introduce him to the idea of joining our pack subtly! If it wasn’t for me, you-”
Jungkook throws his hands over his ears. He feels cold and his head hurts, brain scrambling to try to make sense of it all.
“So it was you that day?” he interrupts, “You’re the ones who scared me from my den and made me abandon everything I had in the world? It’s because of you that I got lost in the snow and thought I was going to starve to death alone in a cave?”
Both alphas snap their attention back to Jungkook guiltily, wincing.
“Well yes, but not intentionally-”
“Baby, believe me, we never imagined-”
Jungkook's mind is whirring.
So it hadn't been rogues coming for him that day, but his pack. The pack he’d been desperately missing for so many years without knowing it. Coming to bring him home at long last.
He flings himself towards his alphas, wrapping an arm around each of their necks and nearly knocking them over as he tries to scent them both at once.
“Thank you,” he whispers, “Thank you.”
~~
When they finally calm, after the happy tears, tender kisses, and apologies, it’s the afternoon, and Namjoon is particularly anxious to get moving again.
He helps Jungkook to his feet, pressing a last kiss to his forehead.
“One more push,” he says, “We’ll shift and run from here, but we can talk more once we get home, I promise.”
Jungkook looks between Namjoon and Hoseok, feeling better but still so small and needy from his heat, his body desperate to curl up in the comfort of his nest and parse all the new information. An idea occurs to him.
He smiles sweetly and sinks to the ground.
“Jungkook-ah?” starts Hoseok, “Baby, what are you doing? It's time to go!”
Jungkook raises an eyebrow and crosses his arms.
Hoseok sighs.
“He's going to give Jimin a run for his money as chief brat, isn't he?”
Namjoon chuckles and starts pulling off his clothes, stuffing them deftly into his pack.
“Ok, Pup, understood. We’ll carry you.”
He shuts his eyes, and when he reopens them, they are yellow, sharp. The air around him seems to shimmer as his body shifts, realigning into an enormous wolf, fur jet black and shining in the sunlight. He crosses over to crouch before Jungkook, looking up at him expectantly.
Jungkook just stares for a moment, enamored, his omega thrilling to finally meet this other side of his mate.
Hoseok gives a yip at his side, also shifted now. Remembering himself, Jungkook scrambles to secure the packs on each of their backs before climbing up and burying his face in the fur at Namjoon’s neck.
He sighs in contentment as the familiar scent fills his nose and relaxes his body. He could get used to this. There’s a coil of muscle beneath him and then they’re off, running silent as shadows beneath the tree branches.
They make much better time after that. Jungkook clings first to Namjoon and then to Hoseok as they make their way downwards over increasingly rocky terrain, stopping only for a quick lunch of dried goat’s meat beside a waterfall.
Speech comes slowly to Jungkook, thanks to his heat and the many years spent alone. His voice is rusty, soft, and it takes him a long time to think of the right words. Though Namjoon and Hoseok are always patient, listening attentively with encouraging smiles every time he interjects, Jungkook still finds he prefers to listen than talk, grinning along as the alphas chat and joke together by the water.
He’s dozing on Hoseok’s back after lunch when they come around a bend and suddenly, there’s a different scent in the air. Jungkook blinks open his eyes and looks down into the valley on the other side of the mountains for the first time.
It’s green, interrupted by a stream winding through, but with cliffs rising steep and treacherous on either side. Jungkook can see at a glance that the narrow path they’ve been traveling on is about the only way any but a mountain goat would be able to make their way in without breaking their necks. It feels…safe. Right.
He looks further, over another row of peaks to take in an enormous expanse of water beyond, extending as far as he can see and shining red in the setting sun. Jungkook gasps.
Namjoon shifts back to his human form beside them.
“That's right, Sweetheart,” he pants, “That's the sea. Have you ever seen it before?”
Jungkook shakes his head mutely, staring at it with wide eyes. The sea. He's heard of it of course, but never imagined it could be so vast, that anything could.
When he finally tears his eyes away, he finds both alphas watching him, endeared. He blushes and looks down.
Hoseok gives him a lick on his hand.
“It’s not far now,” Namjoon says, “Let’s keep moving.”
They continue downwards until they find the way blocked by a chasm in the path, opening down into a dizzying drop. Jungkook looks around, perplexed. There doesn’t seem to be anywhere to go.
Suddenly, an arrow strikes the ground at their feet. Both alphas shift back to their human forms, placing themselves in front of Jungkook.
Namjoon barks. “Taehyung! What have I told you about wasting arrows?”
A young alpha hops down from a ledge he'd been sitting on a small distance away on the other side of the chasm.
“Where have you been?” he calls out, pulling a long plank out from the overgrowth and dragging it over towards them, “It's been days and days! Everyone's been worried sick! Jinnie hasn't left his nest, which means Yoongi hasn't left his nest, and Jimin's been on an absolute tear. I would have come looking for you myself but I think he'd have eaten me.”
“We’re sorry Tae,” says Namjoon, “We were delayed. But everything's fine. We're home now.”
Taehyung grunts and drops the plank down over the chasm, forming a frankly terrifying bridge.
“You're ok?” he asks, regarding them carefully, “Both of you?”
“Well actually,” says Hoseok eagerly, reaching back to grip onto Jungkook's hand, “There are three of us!”
He pulls Jungkook reluctantly forward into the other alpha's view. Taehyung stares at him for a beat.
“Jimin's going to kill you.”
Hoseok sighs, but his smile doesn't falter. “This is Jungkook! Our new mate.”
Taehyung's eyes bulge. “Your mate? Weren't you just supposed to introduce yourself?”
“There was a change of plans,” says Namjoon crisply, stepping up onto the bridge and crossing deftly over, “Now say hello to your new pack mate.”
Taehyung grins and steps up onto the bridge, reaching out a hand towards Jungkook.
“Hi, Jungkook-ah, nice to meet you! I'm sorry for the carnage you're about to witness!”
Jungkook shrinks back into Hoseok's chest.
“Stop that,” Hoseok says to him irritably, “Can't you see he's scared enough as it is?”
Then softer to Jungkook, he adds, “Don't worry, Baby. Taetae’s just joking. Now let him help you across, I'll be right behind you.”
Jungkook looks Taehyung over nervously. He's an alpha: tall, cocky, and almost intimidatingly handsome. Everything inside Jungkook alarms, telling him to get as far away as possible.
Then there's a shift in the wind, the slightest breeze, and Taehyung's scent reaches him all at once. Warm, bright, and comforting, like an old friend. He knows he must just be remembering it from the blankets, but it seems bigger than that, more significant. Pack.
Taehyung smiles.
“Hobi-hyung is right, I'm just being dumb. C'mon Kookie, let's get you down to meet the others.”
Jungkook squeezes his eyes shut and reaches out his hand. When Taehyung grasps it in his own rougher palm, it feels like another missing piece sliding into place.
~~
They make their way down towards the bottom of the valley, the rocks and gravel of the path giving away to neat rice terraces, all carefully staked and tied for the winter. When they finally reach level ground, it transitions to other gardens, most already picked for the winter, though Jungkook can see a few squash and radishes still hiding under wide leaves here and there.
He sticks very close to Hoseok and Namjoon, probably getting in the way underfoot, but neither seem to mind. Jungkook stays quiet, listening (and blushing) with rapt attention as his alphas fill Taehyung in on the events of the last week.
Three huts come into sight through the dusk ahead. They're crude really, compared to Jungkook's old village, but after his years in far more rudimentary conditions, they seem almost palatial.
Namjoon leans in close. “I know it might not be much to look at now,” he says apologetically, “We've only been on our own as a pack for a few years, and we focused on establishing the gardens first. But we have big plans for these huts. By the time our pups are born they'll be perfect.”
“They already are,” Jungkook murmurs, but his words are lost under Taehyung’s shout.
“Jimin! Jin-hyung! Yoongi-hyung! Look who I've found!”
There's a thud from inside one of the huts, and then a brief squabble before a door bangs open. A tall omega hurries out, followed by a harassed looking beta.
The omega takes them all in, hand over his heart, eyes wide, before he lets out a little sob and throws himself at Hoseok and Namjoon. The alphas hurry forward to catch him in their arms, and for a moment they're a mess of nuzzles, scoldings, apologies and kisses.
After a moment, the beta joins too, but not before smacking both alphas on the back of the heads.
“If you ever worry him like that again…”
Jungkook watches the whole affectionate scene, expecting to feel…something. Hurt, furious, or jealous maybe at seeing his alphas so wrapped up in another omega. But the omega in question is clearly pregnant, likely just a few months from his due date, and he smells nothing like Jungkook's alphas. Somehow, seeing Hoseok and Namjoon dote on him sets Jungkook's mind at ease. It's as it should be. He smiles.
Jungkook feels eyes and turns to find Taehyung grinning at him.
“You're going to fit in just fine, aren't you Kookie?”
The door bangs open again, and a small omega stalks out.
Taehyung winks. “Have fun!”
“Where the hell have you been?”
Hoseok extricates himself from the pile first.
“Jiminie! Hi, Baby, I missed you!” he says, overly cheerful, “Look, I'm sorry to worry you-”
“You're sorry?” squawks Jimin, outraged, “You're, sorry? It's been a week, Hoseok, and you were just supposed to drop off some fucking blankets. We thought you'd died. We-”
He trails off, seemingly noticing Jungkook for the first time.
“What the hell is this?”
Namjoon comes between them, approaching Jimin with his palms raised, like he's confronting a wild animal.
“Jimin-ah-” he begins, but he doesn't get any farther because Jimin rounds on him.
“You were with him, this whole time?” he yells, pointing at Jungkook, “Jinnie’s back here worrying himself sick, Yoongi's not much better fretting over the pups, I'm tearing my hair out trying to keep us all together, and Tae’s-”
He pauses. “Well actually, Tae's been a rock.”
“Love you Jimin-ah!”
Jimin ignores him, striding towards the alphas like a tiny swarm of wasps, finger raised menacingly. The alphas shrink back, keeping their bodies between Jungkook and the advancing tirade.
“Jimin-ah-”
“You left us like that for days just so you could court some fucking omega?”
Jungkook is all instinct. He throws himself between his alphas and the challenging omega.
“I'm not some fucking omega,” he growls, “I'm their mate.”
Jimin’s eyes go wide, burning into the marks on Jungkook's neck before he rounds on the alphas once more.
“You mated him?” he yells, “Before even telling us his name?"
He whirls back to Jungkook.
“And you let them?”
Jungkook feels a hand on his arm, Hoseok or Namjoon trying to pull him back behind them, but he shakes them off, bearing his teeth at Jimin. This is omega business.
“Yes.”
Jimin glares at him, speechless for a moment, and Jungkook doesn't blink.
“He…Jungkook is from the Jeon pack. He'd been away from alphas for a long time and was terrified,” Hoseok says weakly.
There's a pause, the pack mates all making eye contact as though they know what that must mean.
“And then he went into heat,” says Namjoon after a moment, “And we cared for him. It's earlier than we would have chosen under other circumstances, but we're thrilled with it. Jungkook is our mate and a member of the pack, and I won't apologize for it.”
There's another pause. Jimin looks Jungkook over again consideringly.
Suddenly, he lunges forward. Jungkook flinches back instinctively with a squeak, baring his neck to the older omega.
It's decided. Jimin’s stiff posture melts, and he snaps his teeth in victory. He gives Jungkook a boyish smile before glaring at the alphas once more.
“Poor Jungkookie is barely out of his heat and you're dragging him across a mountain?” he demands indignantly, “Are you insane?”
“Baby,” says Namjoon, exasperated, “We wanted to get back to the pack so you wouldn't worry!”
Jimin crosses his arms, unimpressed. “Alphas have no common sense. Anyone can see the baby's not ready to travel. He's swaying on his feet like a newborn deer, poor thing.”
He turns back to Jungkook, smiling brightly, and grabs his hand. “Come on, Kookie. Jinnie and I'll show you where we nest.”
The other omega, Jin, joins them.
“Would you like anything to eat, Jungkook-ah?" he says, "I made kimchi jjigae for dinner, I think there's some left.”
Jungkook looks between them, feeling overwhelmed. The familiarity of their scents from the blankets telling him pack, the easy camaraderie of fellow omegas, and even kimchi jjigae, his favorite. Jungkook hasn't even thought of the dish since he'd fled his village so many years ago. It makes him want to cry.
Jin smiles down at him like he understands.
“I'll just go heat you a bowl,” he says before bustling off.
The beta, Yoongi, follows, clapping Jungkook on the shoulder in passing.
“Welcome to the pack, Jungkook-ah.”
Hoseok arrives at their side and hands Jungkook a neat pack of all the rolled blankets from his nest.
“Go on, Baby,” he says, “Have fun building your nest with your omega hyungs. Joon and I will be right here.”
Jungkook bites his lip. Building his nest sounds heavenly, but…
“Will…can Alpha come see it when I'm done?” he breathes.
Hoseok's pupils blow wide. He licks his lips.
“Of course," he pants, "I'll be there as soon as you want me, Baby,” he looks to Jimin, “I mean, as long as-”
Jimin rolls his pretty eyes.
“Well if Jungkookie wants you then of course you're welcome, Hyung, though there's no accounting for taste."
His expression softens slightly. "But while you're there, I guess you and Joonie could re-scent my blankets for me. They're all stale since you've been gone so long."
Hoseok beams at him, looking completely besotted.
"Of course, Sweetheart, we-"
Jimin rolls his eyes again, interrupting, “But that doesn't mean you're forgiven! Don't forget this contrition at chore time tomorrow!”
He tugs Jungkook's hand once more and Jungkook follows him obediently towards the central hut. It's small but cozy with the light of a fire burning inside.
Jungkook casts a last glance over his shoulder, catching Namjoon, Hoseok and Taehyung huddled together, watching them leave like they've just won an incredible prize. Alphas are so weird about omegas nesting, Jungkook hadn't realized before.
“Ignore them,” Jimin says briskly, “We'll get you warm and settled before we let any of those dogs try to paw at you again, Kookie. You'll see, we take care of our own here. This is as good a place to live as any.”
Jungkook nods, clutching his blankets to his chest. It feels like so much more than that. He struggles to put it into words.
“I think...this is a place to live for.”
Jimin raises his eyebrows, but doesn't comment, just pulling Jungkook insistently into the warmth of the den, which seems to wrap around him like an old friend.
"Well, here we are," he says, "Welcome home, Kookie."
🪤🪤🪤❤️❤️❤️